March 09, 2015

Kookai does Vegas for AW15

March 09, 2015/ Nicole McIntyre

Sneaky snap of Siobhan touching up her makeup

Last week I found myself amidst the backstage mayhem prior to the start of Kookai's fashion show. It wasn't really mayhem of course, more like organised chaos - everyone had a station, a role, and a pretty model to paint. I'm still pinching myself about it all, but the highlight of the evening was meeting Napoleon Perdis' Director of Makeup, Siobhan Kelly.

Watch on to see how this fashion show came to life..

And, be sure to check out these links for a bit more information:

Music by Geowulf - a local, and very talented Aussie.
Napoleon Perdis' DeVine Goddess Lipstick in Electra (currently sold out).
Napoleon Perdi's Auto Pilot Lip Service
Kookai's latest collection for AW 15 - dying to try on the Placid Funnel Neck Top, and The Architect Top!

Thanks for watching!

Special thanks to Two Birds Talking for providing backstage access, as well as allowing me to hang out for the show.

April 21, 2013

Giveaway time: Win a bagful of notions!

April 21, 2013/ Nicole McIntyre

This morning I felt compelled to clean my workspace and guess what, I stumbled across a few unopened goodies! I've amassed quite the makeup collection, it's getting to the point where I need to purge a bit. If there was ever a time to have a giveaway, it'd be now.

Enter for a chance win your very own bagful of notions!

Two L'Oreal lippies and an Infallible eyeshadow in Flashback Silver

So what are you waiting for? Enter now!

P.S. be sure to check out the rules below.

Good luck :)

**Update**

The giveaway is officially closed. Congratulations to Diana, hope you love the Essence makeup!

Thanks to those who entered! I’ll be sure to have another giveaway in the near future.

The Rules:

Enter to win (1) gift bag filled with beauty items from Essence, The Body Shop, L'Oreal, The Balm & Maybelline. These items were either purchased by me or given to me. Estimated prize valued around $150.00+ AUS.
How to enter – there are two ways to enter! For two entries, leave a comment below and follow me via Twitter @bagfulofnotions -- be sure to send me a tweet and say hello after you follow me! Not interested in Twitter? Leave a comment below for one entry.
This giveaway is open to adults aged 18 years and older. Also, this item is up for grabs internationally.
I will happily accept entries through Sunday, 28 April 2013 by no later than 11:59 PM local time.
The winner will be chosen randomly via http://www.random.org/. I will then notify the winner via e-mail; you will have 24 hours to claim this giveaway. Should you fail to contact me within the time frame specified, I will choose someone else again at random.

April 13, 2013

A glimpse at the lips: L'Oreal's Shine Caresse Lip Colour in Princess

April 13, 2013/ Nicole McIntyre

Over a year ago I was almost positive I was going to purchase YSL's Rouge pur Couture Glossy Stain. So, what happened? First, there's the scent (I couldn't get past it), it reeked like really bad red wine and second, it was expensive. The coupled negatives were enough for me to warrant passing on something which was voted the "2012 Breakthrough" by Allure readers. I hoped and prayed something would come out and rival this glossy to matte beauty -- the mothership, L'Oreal, delivered. Well, sort of.

L'Oreal's Shine Caresse Lip Colour in Princess (Coral Tattoo)

L'Oreal's Shine Caresse Lip Colours have swept the makeup world off its feet, but part of me has been left wanting so much more.

First impressions matter. For instance, let's start with the tube's shape. Intuitively, one would assume the wider part of the tube was the base; after I took the tester off the shelf I tried (unsuccessfully) to twist off the narrower end. Oops.

Strike that and reverse it.

The doe foot applicator is of the floral variety -- petal-like and contoured with a spine for optimal product delivery. Personally, I love this sort of applicator, because it expedites the application process and works well with my lips.

The product itself is interesting, take this as good, bad or indifferent. It slips on the lips easily due to it being water based, but after an hour or so, it becomes tacky/sticky on the lips. At this stage I find that I'm more aware of my lips and have this distinct feeling of being worn by something instead of things being the other way around. I hope you get what I mean.

There's also a vast difference in scent -- I purchased Princess (a.k.a. Coral Tattoo) from my local Priceline and ordered Berry Persistent and Pink Resistance from Ulta; Princess smells like Sweet Tarts, whereas the other two smell like baby wipes.

In terms of appearance and wear time the glossiness lasts for an hour, tops, a light sheen sticks around for a few more hours (the sticky phase) and eventually it dries down to a soft, matte stain. Another thing to be aware of is the colour pools within the dips and troughs of your lips. Just be prepared for the colour appearing uneven; I noticed this the most with Berry Persistent.

As for the colour, Princess is a heavy leaning orange coral. Not sure if you can notice, but I wore Princess to the Unico relaunch.

Swatch of Princess – heavy (left) and light (right)

Here are two other reviews with different takes on L'Oreal's Shine Caresse Lip Colour...

L'Oreal Colour Caresse Shine Stains: Review & Swatches - reviewed by Kate of la beaute et le blogueur. Be sure to check out her application tips :)
L'Oreal Shine Caresse: Swatches and Review Part 1 - reviewed by Jen of My Funny Valentine

The Bagful breakdown:

Total amount for L'Oreal Shine Caresse Lip Colour in Princess:

$23.95 AUS / $9.99 USD

Value for money spent (performance and quality):

7 out of 10 bags – love the colour, just hate the inconsistencies.

Would another purchase be on the horizon?:

Never say never.

March 19, 2012

L'oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival - Runway 3

March 19, 2012/ Nicole McIntyre

Fashion week might be over in New York, Paris, London and Milan, but in our little city of Melbourne, we too celebrated the shift of the seasons. L'oreal's Fashion Festival ran between 8-15 March and I was lucky enough to attend Paris Runway 3 and 4. Up until now, I had never been to a fashion show and I knew I should probably dress accordingly. What can I say, any excuse for me to go shopping is good enough for me. Here's a glimpse at what I wore.

After hunting around for close to two hour on Sunday afternoon, I stumbled across this dress at Gorman. I had seen it before, but decided not to try it on; I took finding it again as a sign. While waiting in line for a fitting room, I was told by one of the sales associates this dress makes everyone look good. Sold! I'll do anything to conceal my hips. As I was checking out, the same sales girl asked me what the special occasion was and I mentioned that I was attending a fashion show. It just so happened that I picked out a local designer who was showing that same night (I never checked the program).

For the first night I sat in the second row and had a pretty good vantage point. Truth be told, the girl who sat in front of me made it difficult to see at times. Case in point...

My first goal was to survey the crowd in order to catch glimpse of someone famous and I ended up spotting Matcho of Australia's Project Runway Season 3. I'd like to think he was a fan favourite thanks to his personality and charm. I thought to myself, "should I go ask him for a picture, or should I leave him alone." For a few moments I sat there, starstruck, but my courage lifted me off of the uncomfortable timber bench and willed me to ask for a photo of the two of us.

And yes, I think he wore a koala-type accessory around his neck. Perhaps he wanted to pay homage to an Aussie mascot - I'll never know. I was honestly hoping for crazier glasses, because he switched them up on a weekly basis. After getting the goods, I then wandered back to my seat and waited for the show to start.

I didn't get to snap the best photos, because my shutter couldn't handle the clip at which these models walked. In less than 20-minutes, we saw six designers and were then quickly whisked into the night; for some, assorted parties awaited their arrival, but for the rest of us (like me) snagged a shuttle bus back into the city. On a side note, this shuttle bus wasn't ordinary, oh no; gift bags were left for each passenger and were filled to the brim with all sorts of coupons and goodies. I'll be sure to share my makeup look in another post.

Until then, here's a look at a few pictures I snapped and a video of the final walk.