Review: Born Pretty Store 3mm Glitter Rhinestones

I have been very busy over the past few weeks and more often than not, I didn't even have time to do my nails! Rhinestones are always a good idea when you are pressed for time and want something to jazz up a plain manicure.

Born Pretty Store have once again allowed me to browse through their extensive nail art supplies and choose some products to consider for review purposes.  These rhinestones, which are part of the newest additions to their website, immediately caught my eyes because of their iridescent tones.

As with most rhinestones, they come in this wheel packaging which is very convenient to carry around in my case and it also makes it easier for me to pick them up.

There are colours which are sure to go with a multitude of designs and nail polish colours.  Here are two ways in which I used these rhinestones:

Pink rhinestones on a watercolour effect accent nail
(two of my nails have chipped so I took off the polish but the rhinestones were still intact)

Blue-green rhinestones gradient on a simple French Manicure

Since they are 3mm in diameter they have quite a good base to adhere to the nail without coming off despite being more raised than other, smaller rhinestones. In fact, I never lost one!

These rhinestones retails for $4.47 per wheel from the Born Pretty Store website but you can always get them at a 10% discount when quoting the code EBABK31 at checkout!

PR Sample

Catrice Fall 2012 New Products Preview

Following from Essence's new products preview, here are the new products from Catrice to join the stands this coming September!

Eyes

Absolute Eye Colour Mono Eyeshadow

8 new colours join the already existing 19 shades of the Absolute Eye Colour Mono Eyeshadow.  Finishes vary from matt to shimmery and from pearl to satin.

Made to Stay Long Lasting Eyeshadow

Achieve the ultimate metallic shine effect with these eyeshadows that promise to stay put longer without settling in the crease of your eyelids.  Range consists of 6 beautiful shades, 2 of which are new (070 Mauvie Star (left) & 080 Copper & Gabbana).

 

Kohl Kajal & Precision Eye Pencil

Glamour Doll & Mini Max Precision Volume Mascara

Now it is easy to achieve the world-famous 'doll eyes' look thanks to the specially formulated Glamour Doll Mascara brush which provides length, volume and density.  To further emphasise your eyes, go for the Mini Max mascara which will reach even the shortest of lashes!

Lips

Ultimate Lip Glow

This is the product I am most excited about from Catrice! One Shade Fits All! The transparent lipstick contains oils to moisturize the lips and provide individual colour results. On my lips, it turns to a nice warm pink :)

Liquid Lip Tint

Another innovative product from Catrice consisting of three wonderful shades of red.  The more often you apply the colour. the more intense the result! The product has a light, water-based formula and this makes it feel cool and refreshing on the lips. Available in 010 Red My Lips, 020 Wine-Tastic, 030 Are You Red-y?

Lip Appeal Lip Gloss

4 new trendy colours join the Lip Appeal lipgloss range which provide ultimate shine and volume to your lips.  These lipglosses have a subtle vanilla scent and a moisturizing formula.  They come with a special applicator that enables a smoother application. Available in a total of 13 glossy colours.

Ultimate Shine Lip Colour

'Exciting and tempting: The Ultimate Shine lipsticks - ranging from soft nude tones to bright pink and warm coral - plain or with fine shimmer pigments. The creamy, soft texture practically melts with your lips to provide intensive moisture, care and a beautiful shine. Comes in a high quality purist design for an elegant look.' Available in a total of 16 colours, one of which is new.

Ultimate Colour Lip Colour

'Colour, colour, colour: The Ultimate Colour lipstick makes your lips shine with highly pigmented, rich shades. The smooth and creamy pampering texture is extremely long-lasting and provides a gorgeous finish with great coverage - for an amazing appearance that lasts for hours! available in two new shades and a total of 16 colours.'

Face

Ultimate Moisture Fresh Skin Make-Up

'Radiantly beautiful and wonderfully fresh - the new oil-free Ultimate Moisture Fresh Skin Make-Up leaves nothing to be desired.  The foundation with medium coverage offers a long-lasting natural, slightly matt complexion and evens out small irregularities of the skin. Its glycerin ingredients offer plenty of moisture to protect your skin from drying out. With UV filters. Dermatologically tested. Available in four different shades.'

Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder

'A wonderfully light powder that can be used in combination with every Catrice foundation.  The ultra silky Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder adds gorgeous highlights to your face and neckline for a pearly, shimmering finish.'

Defining Blush

'Blush to emphasise your cheekbones - the new Defining Blush makes its grand entrance! The ultra-delicate blush powder with Vitamin C and E ingredients spreads easily and ensures a radiant, silky smooth complexion. With the highly pigmented, soft texture, you can define your cheekbones and model the contours of your face. Available in 6 new colours.'

Nails

Ultimate Nail Lacquer

'The fall/winter season remains colourful yet subtle. Ten new colours for your nails freshin up the range. Catrice has them all - colours with ultimate colour intensity, ultimate shine and ultimate coverage. Now in ten new colours and with the flat professional brush for a perfect colour application with just one stroke. Available in a total of 40 hues.'

Catrice Limited Editions

Cruise Couture Collection

Coolibri Limited Edition

Essence Fall 2012 New Products Preview

Here is the first part of the Essence New Products Preview photos.  I don't have all the products as I only picked the ones I know I am going to use. I will be reviewing the products in batches as otherwise it would take me forever! However, as initial first impressions, I can say that I am impressed with the pigmentation of most products and I really like the eyeliner pens for their very precise tip.  All photos are on my facebook page too and swatches are without primer.

Eyes

Essence Mono Eyeshadow

Fantastic selection of 28 colours varying from matt to sparkling effects, 4 of which are totally new shades!
The new shades to be available from September 2012 are: 61 Out of the Blue, 62 John Lemon, 63 Is it Purple? and 64 Greyhound. Shown below is 62 John Lemon which is a sparkly lemon yellow colour.

Essence Quattro Eyeshadow

The popular quattro eyeshadows offer even more fun with your styling sessions this fall. Each eyeshadow palette offers perfectly aligned colours in various textures ranging from matt to silky shimmers for unlimited creativity with your eye make-up. The improved texture allows even more colour dispersion for long-lasting results! Available in two new variations (11 Sea My Eyes! & 12 Purple Day) and a total of 6 colour combinations. 11 Sea My Eyes! is a cool petrol combination with greys and a light shimmery pink shade.

Essence Stay All Day Long Lasting Eyeshadow

Applied only once, it lasts and lasts and lasts...! The highly pigmented colours of the Stay All Day Long Lasting Eyeshadows give your eye make-up an exciting look with metallic effects.  The creamy texture is especially colourfast and won't settle in the crease of your eyelid. Available in 3 new, trendy colours and a total of 6 colours. 07 Jim-Me Blue is a metallic royal blue, 08 The Magic Must Go On is a metallic purple and 09 For Fairies is a metallic baby pink.

Essence Super Fine Eyeliner Pen

The all rounder amongst eyeliners! The super fine eyeliner pen is riding on the trend waves straight out of the USA and Asia! This extremely long lasting precision eyeliner has a particularly slim felt-tip applicator ideal for creating fine, subtle eyeliner looks as well as extravagant and dramatic styles. Waterproof version also available!

Essence Multi Action Blackest Black & Waterproof Mascaras

Must-haves for fantastic volume, length and curves to your lashes!

Lips

Essence XXXL Shine Lipgloss

Available in 3 new (20 Wood of Roses, 21 Red Blossom, 22 Nude Kiss) and a total of 14 colours.
Shown here is 20 Wood of Roses, a beautiful dark old rose shade with multi-coloured shimmers.

Essence Kiss Care Love Lipbalm

A new product from Essence available in 4 fruity shades that smell good enough to eat! 01 Fruit Crush, 02 Purple Berries, 03 Fruitylicious, 04 Caribbean Sunrise

Essence Lipstick

Two new shades are joining the other 14 components of Essence's lipstick army.  Their sheer colouration makes them very wearable everyday colours.  The new shades available are called 61 I'm a Lob-star & 62 Rockin' Red.

Nails

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polishes

The ever so popular Colour & Go range gets a revamp with bigger (8ml), newer packaging and new shades. Available in 44 stunning colours!

Essence Nude Glam Nail Polish

The Nude Glam range follows suit with the new packaging. All polishes now feature a gel-shine finish.

So, that's it for the Essence new products! The Catrice ones will be up tomorrow :)

OOTD: Essence & Catrice Event

By now you all know that last week, I was invited to the launch of the new Essence & Catrice products for September and after all the magic happened (read all about it here), Martina, Rebecca and myself took pictures of our outfits. Here is what I wore:

Lace overlay top, Dorothy Perkins | Skirt, Terranova
Red peep-toe slingbacks, local shoe store
Royal blue cross-body bag, New Look | faux pearl bracelets, Peacocks

As you can see, I kept my make-up minimal with just a hint of a red lip thanks to Max Factor's lipstick in 804 Hint of Red. On my face I just applied some Essence Stay Natural Concealer in 01 Soft Beige and Rimmel Powder Blush in 004 Pink Rose.  I lined my eyes with Max Factor Kohl Eyepencil in Black.

Watch out for the official photos of some of the new products and a brief description coming soon!

Epic Bloggers' Event: Essence & Catrice Cosmetics New Products Launch

Last month, I received an online invitation for the launch of the new Essence and Catrice products to hit our tiny island's shores in September.  Being the big Essence & Catrice fan than I am, I didn't think twice to RSVP with a big YES!

First of all, I want to say a huge Thank You to Daniela from Pharma MT for having us over and spoiling us too!

Some of us bloggers with Daniela

Basically, we were met with cute displays of the new Catrice Limited Editions all decked up with mini sweets and treats and we took photos of the displays and chatted away while we waited for everyone else to arrive.

Me chatting away to Rebecca from Island of Make Believe

Subsequently we were led into the boardroom where there was this big table full of make-up and we each had two folders with press releases of the new products.  We were also offered some soft drinks and snacks including very cute (and yummy!) Essence cupcakes :)

The best was yet to come as once we all settled down and told that we could try the products as we go along, Daniela told us that we were allowed to take away everything we liked!! Needless to say, we all went a little bit crazy with so many products to choose from! I even managed to get hold of the Marble Mania blush after totally giving up on finding it!! How amazing is that? Moreover, we were each given two goodie bags filled with even more goodies! It really felt like a Make-Up Wonderland and we went down the elevator 8kgs heavier than we were before the event (no not with all the cupcakes, but will all the make-up obviously! My upper arms are still aching in fact!)

Here are some more pictures from this fantastic event.  I won't be putting pictures of all the products that I got but I will be doing reviews of the stuff a few items at a time. Enjoy the pictures and thanks to Daniela once again for hosting us :)

Rebecca, Martina & Rhiannon

Rhiannon, Dyna, Fiona & Denise

Lara, Stefy & Daniela