MAC's Young Venus Extra Dimension Eye Shadow. Yeah, baby, she's got it

"Goddess on the mountain top Burning like a silver flame The summit of beauty and love And Venus was her name"

I know, the cheese, right?

And you'll be thanking me later for this song getting stuck in your head.

All kidding aside, earlier this month MAC released In Extra Dimension, a 14-piece limited edition liquid-powder collection.  Unfortunately, for the girls down under, we were shorted one of the highlighters; MAC's HQ only shipped Superb and Whisper of Gilt.  To top it off, the shadows alone retailed for $50.00 a piece.  Because I didn't have the third highlighter, Glorify, to compare in store, I purchased Young Venus, a shimmery pastel pink, instead.  You might be wondering why I opted to buy an eye shadow versus a beauty powder; well, the MAC store associate inside of David Jones recommended Young Venus as a multi-tasker - eye shadow and highlighter in one. Prices are high here *continues to hammer point home* and I couldn't fathom asking what the highlighters retailed for. Young Venus will just have to do and it has!

Young Venus applies like a dream either by using your fingers or with the help of a brush. The colour is similar to NARS' Copacabana and is far more compact in size - I think it'd be great for taking it on a weekend getaway.  I didn't breakdown and buy Young Venus due to it being a liquid-powder (I didn't know this was the case at time of purchase); the reviews have been favourable, the store associate's advice was helpful and the promotional image is gorgeous!

MAC In Extra Dimension

Rose gold, navy blue and chocolatey brown equals the modern-day woman's kaleidoscope. At least it does for me.

Let's get to Young Venus and her beautifully designed pressed pan; I think I may have shed a tear as I swatched.

MAC Young Venus

Pearly pink wave

Extra Dimension Eye Shadow

Young Venus close up

MAC Young Venus swatch

MAC Young Venus swatch

Young Venus

Here I am wearing it on my cheekbones, eyes and down the bridge of my nose.  Subtle, but gives you that "lit from within" look.

Eyes, cheekbones, nose..

Just looking at theses pictures makes me long for my long locks.  I let my hairdresser chop off two inches or so - that's about five cm.  Yowza!  It needed to be done, because my ends were getting really dry from blowdrying my hair straight.  My hair's still past my shoulders, but I probably have the most boring haircut on record.  I'll post some pictures of my new 'do soon.

So, what do you think of MAC's Young Venus?  Comparisons have been made (see Cafe Makeup's review);  it's no wonder there's such a striking similarity, Estee Lauder is the mothership of makeup houses.  MAC just so happens to be one of its babies purchased back in 1998.

Enough makeup history for today.  Class, here's your bagful breakdown.

The Bagful breakdown:

Total amount for MAC's Young Venus:

• $50.00 AUS – It sells for $20.00 USD.

Value for money spent (performance and quality):

• 7 out of 10 bags – great multi-tasker, but I think my wallet is still whimpering.

Likelihood to purchase again:

• I might have to buy one of the new blushes that were released in the Tres Cheek collection. Does someone want to buy it for me from the States?

Essie's Sexy Divide - weekly nail review

Two weeks without a manicure, oh the horror!  Seriously. I did my own in between the holiday break, but I've lost my steady hand and patience from when I maintained them myself.  College and having no money forces oneself to become thrifty, resourceful and creative.  When you come out on the other side, you become lazy and wasteful. Hence, my splurges on makeup and manicures - burning money FTW!

French Pink currently carries Essie's Fall 2011/12 collection, but it doesn't cast its usual gleam. This one can "Carry On" as well as a workroom filled with a dozen uninspired designers and one awfully sad Tim Gunn. In other words, skip it.  Which I did - instead, I grabbed for a random colour that seemed to be calling my name.  Essie's Sexy Divide it was.

Deep purple, shimmery with a touch of fall.

Essie Sexy Divide

Nails and bottle

Sexy Divide

Essie's Sexy Divide leans a bit more red, definitely more eggplant with a little less merlot. If you're on the hunt for a deep / electric hue (a true purple), Butter London's HRH might be up your alley.

For those wondering why I have a bottle in hand this week... Erin of French Pink deemed the bottle as unfit for future applications, so I ended up being the lucky one to walk away with the remnants. Maybe next time I'll pick a colour based on how little polish is left.  Heck, it's worth a roll of the dice.

Dine with Bagful and husband..

Tucked to the side and out of the way, I often wonder if we're looking into the fish bowl or looking out. People watching has become our "thing"; I mean, everyone does it from time to time, but we go out of our way to see what will happen next.  The Waiting Room inside of Crown Casino provides us with box seats, excellent drinks, a superb staff and even a one-off chance encounter with Neil Perry (he owns the joint). You can find us there watching the world go by while theorising what these strangers are setting out to accomplish that same evening.  Getting drunk, gambling, shopping, partying, dining or picking up a few chicks at a club.  The casino is their oyster.  For us, it's entertainment.

A few weeks ago, Scott and I cozied up in a corner and opted to dine inside instead.  It was a quiet Monday afternoon and the patrons were few and far between.

Here's a sample of what we nibbled on during this particular visit.

High Tea for two

Dessert

Slider

Fini

A cappuccino will do

If you're in the area, drop in and have a drink or two. I highly recommend the Chipotle Margarita or the Corn and Oil. Oh yeah, they whipped up a special batch just for me, at least that's what they told me;)

Liquor infused with popcorn oil (me thinks)

Revlon's ColorBurst Lip Butters satiate my appetite

Sugary sweet without the weight gain. At least that's what I would like to think.

Revlon shipped these lovely lollies to Aussie land last week and they are selling like hotcakes. I perused the local shops in order to add to my collection - as luck would have it, they were buy one get one free over at Priceline and Myer for that matter.  $21.95 per pop can add up pretty quickly.  Yes, they too, are pretty pricey down under.

Color Burst Lip Butters

View from the top

Raspberry Pie close up

Lollipop close up

Sweet Tart close up

Creme Brulee close up

Sugar Frosting close up

Gumdrop close up

Swatches in direct sunlight

Swatches captured indoors

Creme Brûlée, Sugar Frosting and Gumdrop are super-sheer colours and work well for those low-maintenance makeup mornings. They each contain the subtlest hint of shimmer and shine, which sticks around for about an hour or two. If you're looking to maintain glossiness, it's best if you carry your chosen shade in your purse for future applications. The thing I'm most looking forward to is layering these over my existing lipstick collection in order to enhance what I already own.

Raspberry Pie, Lollipop and Sweet Tart are far more pigmented and come with a bit of shimmer as well; thankfully the shimmer doesn't cast that 80's frost we all know and loathe. As I swatched these, I was amazed by how well each colour initially appeared; however, I was put off by Sweet Tart and its ability to crumble and melt upon contact. Definitely another reason why you should carry these in your purse rather than your pocket. Raspberry Pie dwindled down to a berry stain, which stuck around for four hours. Whereas Lollipop required several applications between dinner and drinks last night.

The ColorBurst line smells of vanilla, but the scent isn't as striking as MAC's lip range.  They claim to be moisturising, although, I haven't worn them alone because my lips tend to be dry no matter what time of the year it is.

Revlon is presently selling the below elements on their site:

-"Hydrating mango, shea and coconut butter formula boosts lip moisture by 156% - Pampering gel formula provides super charged hydration and glides on lips buttery smooth - Sheer to medium colour with buttery shine - Available in 20 luscious shades."

Side note: I didn't notice improved lip moisture.

Raspberry Pie 010

Lollipop 075

Sweet Tart 090

Creme Brulee 095

Sugar Frosting 005

Gumdrop 060

Here are a few other observations:

• The surface area of applicator is on the large side.  With the darker shades I lined my lips with the edge of the lipstick and then lightly patted my lips in order to build up the colour.
• Cheaper than a tube of Dior Addict.  They go for $49 AUS.
• Buy them on sale (preferably), now.

The Bagful breakdown:

Total amount for Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butters:

• $21.95 AUS - I paid approximately $13.00 per tube thanks to several sales.

Value for money spent (performance and quality):

• 8 out of 10 bags - I wouldn't mind paying less for these, but it's definitely good value for money in this part of the world.

Likelihood to purchase:

• I'm looking to add cotton candy, strawberry shortcake, berry smoothie and cherry tart to my artillery.  Any takers?