SLIDER

Haul - MAC Prabal Gurung, Tarte Holiday Collection & More!

12.13.2014

'Tis the season to haul! With all the Sephora 20% off codes floating around and the limited edition makeup collections launched one after the other, it's no wonder I caved and brought a few bits and pieces I had been lusting over since their release announcement! Definitely no more hauling since I'm trying (key word being TRYING) to save up for a holiday next summers! Lord, let me be strong for the after Christmas sales are approaching! Haha


First up is this mini The Body Shop gift bad featuring their Coconut collection! I love me some Body Shop during the winters. As soon as my Sweet Lemon stuff finishes up, I'm busting out the Coconut stuff and pretending I'm in some exotic location somewhere in Hawaii instead of being in the middle of a cold, colllllddd winter!


I know many people are on the fence about celebrity fragrances, I personally have quite a few favorites, mostly from Britney Spears and Taylor Swift though haha. It was love at first sniff when it came to both of these scents. The Lady Gaga scent, in a very non-Gaga-ish way is pretty wearable for everyday and quite unique, thus, me getting a giiiinormous bottle of it haha! Carolina Herrera's Do You Know What Private Means id more of a night out scent, I still love it! Very unique and strong, not in an over powering - headache - inducing way though haha!


I'm still pissed at the fact that I missed last years Tarte Off The Cuff blush palette so when I heard of this one for Holiday 2014, I was going to order it as soon as sales went live, and that is exactly what I did! For $42 this is a bargain and more! 


Not a fan of red, not a fan of splurging on lipstick shades that I will never wear but something about this incredibly hyped up MAC x Prabal Gurung ... ahh just something about it made me go forward with my order. In my mind I justified the purchase with some weird theory about how every girl needs a red in her collection and I decided to go forward with the payment. I'll keep you guys updated on whether I will ever be using it haha.

What have you hauled recently? Leave me some blog links so I can feel a little better about my small yet non-budget-friendly purchases haha! 

Until next time, tc

Weekend Post - Skincare & Kuch Khaas!

11.20.2014

While I love Islamabad, it really needs to catch up when it comes to meet-ups and social events in the beauty industry. Thankfully, Well Beeing, an all natural skin care company based in Canada, decided to hold one in Islamabad to introduce their products into the local market. Here's what I wore to my meet-up which was held at Kuch Khaas, definitely wasn't going for the all-black look, but it just happened haha.


OUTFIT -
Top - Forever 21 
Jeans - Forever21 
Clutch - New Look 
Statement necklace - Topshop (maybe :s) 
Shoes - Honestly no idea! 

MAKEUP - 
Maybelline Fit Me Concealor 
The Balm Nude Tude Palette 
Rimmel Exxagerate Eyeliner 
Jordana Extra Lash Mascara 
Luscious BOLD Inense Eye Pencil 
MAC Twig
MAC Peaches 
The Balm Mary Loumanizer
 


Now coming on to Well Beeing , they basically produce handcrafted skincare items with natural ingredients that are completely bio-degradable! Not only are they chemical and toxins free, they are quite easy on the pocket and coming in excellent packaging! Since all natural ingredients are used, they are prepared in small batches, rest assured what you get will be super fresh! The packaging is sleek, doesn't take up much space and it is a relief to see products that are so budget friendly with excellent packaging!  

Since it was a meet up, I had the chance to talk to the man behind Well Beeing in depth about his products and the entire process of what goes behind into making them! What impressed me the most was the fact that nothing that is sold is more than 2 weeks old! Imagine! From the cleansers to the exfoliators, everything is as fresh as can be, and what a treat that is for our skin which is used to products that are filled with chemicals that extend the shelf life of a products for years. In Pakistan, the natural skin care products aren't as popular yet due to very few options, I love that well-beeing has managed to nicely fill in that gap with premium quality products that are not only great for our skin, but super budget friendly too!


Well Beeing was kind enough to give me a whole lot of products to try out, which I am currently doing! I don't want to ruin the review post by talking about how the actual products are but here's a teaser for you - I am so impressed with them that I recommended them to my best friend who is getting married and wants to stay far, far away from chemicals before her big day! They're THAT good! 

After the chit-chat, I grabbed a good old Red Velvet cupcake, some snacks and was on my way! What a lovely day, courtesy of Well Beeing! 

Be sure to like and support them on Facebook by clicking HERE!

Until next time, tc.



Luscious Cosmetics BOLD Intense Eye Liner Pencils!

11.04.2014


My go-to, never changing look is a simple liquid liner flick on my eye lids accompanied with kohl/pencil on the lower lash line. I have a habit of changing the kohl with colored pencil, leaving it bare etc, but never my liquid liner, it's a staple and personally I love the neatness that liquid liner brings. So how did these re-introduced BOLD Intense Eyeliner Eye Pencils by Luscious Cosmetics fare?


Being smudge-proof and transfer resistant is the biggest claims these pencils make, do they live upto them? I'd say majority, not all. Like with all collections, there are some that perform really well, but some performances left a bit more to be desired.When I first got these pencil, I quickly got swatchin and loved how they looked on my hands, vibrant and very smooth. Not only were they well pigmented, they lasted a long, long time as well. I didn't wipe the swatches off and got around to my business during the day, eating, cleaning up the dishes and general work, and guess what? After about 6-8 hours, I checked on the swatches, and while the intensity and 'shimmer' had dulled down a bit, they were not a mess at all! They didn't smudge or budge so kudos for that! Also the packaging is super sleek, it's matte and lovely to touch!


Trouble starts with a few of those when it comes to how they fare on your eyes. Some are absolutely amazing, while a few were disappointing. The color I was most looking forward to was Peacock, which is a vibrant green. I always love wearing green on my lower lash line since it really helps bring out the warmth in brown eyes, but sadly, this did not fare very well on my eyes. The color just wouldn't get as intense as I would like and same was the case with Amethyst. Also, comparing it with Metallic Purple 13, which was the same shade with the old formulation, that one is much more vibrant than this and has been a re-purchase for me.


Now on to the good part, the rest of them - I LOVE! Electric Blue is what I've been wearing on my lower lash-line since I got these, it stays put for ages and barely loses it's intensity after an entire long day at university! Definitely gets a double thumbs up for me. Another shade which really surprise me, is Cocoa! I've never been a fan of brown-ish eye pencils, but this has me converted! Love the way this roughly applied on the lower lash-line looks like instant smokey eyes that are day time appropriate! Definitely my second favorite out of the bunch. Copper is another color that is similar, just a tag bit lighter, and I use it for the same purpose - smoke up the lash line a bit without the use of a traditional black pencil!

Shades L-R : Rockstar, Peacock, Electric Blue, Amethyst, Moonlight, Copper, Glitz, Cocoa.
To summarize this post, I'd say go run out and get your hands on Electric Blue, Cocoa and Copper! The ones you don't need are sadly, Peacock and Amethyst! Other than that, these pencils, regardless of the shade are super smudge and budge proof.

Price - PKR 395 each 
Availability - ALL local departmental stores and online at the Luscious website HERE!

Until next time, tc

*PR Samples



Bath & Body Works Candles Haul!

10.22.2014

I'm not too sure about the weather where you guys live, but in Islamabad, the cold has definitely snuck up on us! I clearly remember being too hot in the day time, and BAM! come evening it was freeezing! Literally to the point where I had to take out my thick scarf and wear that to university for my evening classes (obviously people decided to laugh at me, not for long though, when the wind picked up they were definitely shivering in their t-shirts! Ahh sweet karma! Lol. Anyways, since summers here are brutal, I can't even look towards my candles that just lie in storage, un-burned (is that even a word? haha) but worry not dear candles, after a scorching summer, your time to shine has come!


I do LOVE me some Bath & Body Works candles, they are a bargain for the scent quality and power that you get, plus they have impressive sales every month, so what better time to stock them up. I decided to try new scents this time around, from different collection, and I'm soo glad I did! Loving each and every one!


The scents I picked up were - 

1. Limoncello - A lovely scent that reminds me of lemon cakes, which I have a habbit of gobbling up frequently haha!
2. Sicilian Orange - If you guys have tried the Satsma range from The Body Shop, this is basically that scent in a candles! Soo refreshing! 
3. French Lavender - I adore purple, all shades of purple so this lilac-y mason jar was definetly going into my shopping cart, unfortunately, I'm not really feeling the strong lavender in this, I was hoping the vanilla notes would tone down the lavender, but let's see, maybe when I light it up, it won't be soo strong. 
4. Lemon Mint Leaf - Now this one, as strange as it sounds, remind me of Strepsils or Vicks and how they smell haha! Definitely weird in the jar, but when you light it up, it kicks of a much subtle-r scent than you would expect which I really enjoy!
5. Red Velvet Cupcake - OMG! This is basically red velvet cupcakes and cream cheese frosting stuffed into a candle jar. Seriously! When ever I'm having a craving some baked delights, I get a whiff of this, and it is almost strong enough to make me not want to have a cupcake, almost, but not quite haha! Like the other ones, the scent in the jar is incredibly over helming-ly sweet, but burn it and it's much more refined. Make the house smell like there's always baking going around, which I quite like! 


I've been playing around with my new camera, and went a little too image happy in this post, but I really liked looking at the 'smooth-ness' of these candles before they were burned haha. Is that weird? Do you guys get sad before lighting a candle thinking about how they will never be smooth again? 

Let me know in the comments below!

Prices - Small Candles - $10 each
Mason Jar Candles - $12.50 each

Availability - 
For US Residents - Bath & Body Works stores and online here!
For Pakistani residents - Online FB makeup shops. I trust and always do my shopping via Makeup & Accesories!

Until next time, tc.

Morning Routine!

8.27.2014

Well hello there guys! I was just sitting and brain storming about potential blog ideas, and for some reason since I wasn't in the mood to do beauty posts, I decided I would work on a daily routine kind of post where I show you what I get up to on a daily basis.


So starting off,I'm not gonna lie and say I make the effort to have a nice breakfast everyday. It honestly depends on the amount of sleep I've gotten the night before haha, so since I was well rested, I decided to go all out and make some super delicious but unhealthy fluffy pancakes! I consumed them within minutes of topping it of with layers of maple syrup! Yum (comment below if you would like the recipes)


Now I'm as forgetful as anything! If I don't write every single thing down, chances are I won't remember what I have to do through out the day. That is why I have a different planner for various areas of my life. One for university, one for work, one for my blog.. You get the idea. Now most of you must be thinking what a hassle it is to write everything down physically instead of typing it on my phone, but honestly there's just something about writing stuff down that helps you keep it in your mind. I even read studies that back my theory up, so I'm definitely on to something haha


Next is the dreadful task of going through my emails!I dread this part since my inbox is always loaded with a ton that I have to reply to. Now I won't lie and say I'm the most productive person who stays focused on the task at hand haha, I always end of scrolling through blogs and instagram and facebook and the bazillion other social media websites! Too many things to check, really less time haha. A cup of tea is mandatory here!

 Since for a change, it was a nice day outside, I decided to stop being so gadget-centered and enjoy the weather! Sadly it turned ridiculously humid as soon as I got settled in so I stopped procrastinating and decided to get on with work!


I'll be honest here, I usually don't work with a smile on my face haha, but since I was pose-working here, you'll have to excuse that. I work as freelance writer among other things at the moment and I love it! Working in a field that is my hobby, it doesn't get better than that seriously! Even when I get tired, it's always the happy-kinda-tired. 

Time to get some food in my tummy! I wish I could've shown you a really Instagram worthy shot of what I cooked, but I decided to be all Master-Chef-y and ended up with something that was barely edible, and a mountain of dishes to do! Oh well.. there's always next time haha.


What I did manage to get right were these delicious zesty lemon-y cupcakes for my cousins birthday! I honestly don't know why I never tried these before; the addition of the fresh lemon zest makes a world of a difference! (comment below if you would like recipes)

Once I'm done with all that, I usually dress up and head off to university. I take evening classes so I leave around 5 in the evening and come back around 10. By that time in knackered and half-dead so I head to bed, more often than not skipping dinner. 


Hope you liked this post, I had so much fun making it :) Would you like more lifestyle-y posts like these? Let me know. 

Until next time, tc

22nd Birthday Goodies!

7.31.2014


This post is going up super late, my actual birthday was on the 6th of July but since I was waiting for some of the presents to actually reach me, this post didn't go up on time. Now that everything is here, I'm super excited to share with all of you some of my favorite presents that I got for my 22nd birthday, feeling very spoiled haha.


Just a heads up, I got alot of fragrances for some reason. Is it because perfumes are one of the easiest presents to choose? Whenever I have to get a present for someone, I always opt for a perfume haha! I mean who wouldn't want to smell nice? 


So what I was gifted was Juicy Couture by Juicy Couture, Burberry Sport by Burberry and Victoria by Victoria's Secret. How incredibly pretty is Victorias bottle?! I LOVE the detailing of that over sized bow and the pale pink fragrance. Good work on the aesthetics, Victoria's Secret haha. 


I love collecting Victoria's Secret body mists, so these two additions were more than welcome in my collection. The first is Noir Tease (my ALL time favorite) and the second one is, once again, Victoria. These body spray versions of VS perfumes are ideal for on the go, to chuck into your bag without having to worry about them breaking or leaking. 


As a present to myself, I decided to opt for a new camera. While the Kodak one that I was previously using did serve me well, it kinda was on its last legs and I just wanted better results (without having to put in a ton of effort, #lazygirlissues ) Upon using it for a couple of days, I would call this as a hybrid between a digital camera and a proper DSLR, making it ideal for auto-mode users like me haha.


Now onto one of the most exciting presents that I got, MAC lipsticks! I got Twig, Lady Danger and Mocha ( from my best-est friend! Thank you Tehni! ). While I love all three, Mocha has to be my favorite, it is the perfect everyday nude, and given how I've been using this everyday since I got it, this will definitely be a future re-purchase. 


Since I'm all about accessorizing these days, one of my other best friends gave me this Marc Jacobs inspired necklace that I can't wait to wear with plain tops to add a bit of pazzaz! Love the variations of blue on it :) 


Now after perfumes, I got a whole load of clothes so instead of putting up images here and making this post into a huge mammoth one, I'll be doing outfits of the day instead so you guys can actually see how the clothes look once worn :) expect alot of Khaadi, Origins & Beech Tree posts soon.

All in all, I feel very thankful for everything I got, and can't wait to see all that this 22nd year of my life has in store for me :) Thank you to all those who wished me, made my day, truly! 

What was your favourite present from the bunch that I got? Is there something you have had your eye on? Let me know in the comments below :) 

Until next time, tc.

Eid Outfit!

7.30.2014


Hello everyone! A very happy Eid Mubarak to all those celebrating, and a happy Wednesday to all those who aren't. Just like last year, with the humidity levels and temperatures on the rise, instead of opting for heavily embroidered attire for Eid, I decided to keep it comparatively simple with lighter materials and loose flow-y designs.


The shirt that I'm wearing is from Beech Tree, one of my new favorite stores for ready made stuff! They have such an amazing range of kurtas, and the jewellery is to die for along with their collection of sandals! I resisted getting a pair this time, but no guarantees for the next time I visit haha. This particular shirt and dupatta is from their 'BLOCK' collection with intricate 'zari' embroidery on the front and a block print pattern on the sleeves, back and the duppata.

Now I LOVE chiffon dupattas, and really liked the look of this one since it had 'ajrak-y pattern printed over the dupatta, but for some reason the chiffon was very itch-y and I was constantly taking it off and on since I could not wear it comfortably for a longer period of time. Other than that no complains with the dress, the embroidery is on point, the colors are vibrant and material along with the stitching is worth the money. 

For this shirt and dupatta, I paid PKR 5900 and paired it with my super old black tights and some strappy flats for Nine West. Hope you guys had a lovely Eid and collected lots of Eidi :) 

What did you guys wear? Let me know in the comments below, until next time, tc.

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