Irish Beauty Show

Oooo eeee I was in my element today!!! To be fair it's a miracle I even heard about this. Let me explain, I'm not 'in the know' about all things beauty, I am 100% amateur. But, I am trying!

Last week on the Crown Brush Facebook page they posted a faboosh picture from 'The Beauty Show' in the UK, I thought to myself, I would love to go to something like that in Ireland. Quick google and voila, wouldn't you know it, there's one in Dublin and IT'S NEXT WEEK! Arrrgh! So I immediately registered (just before the deadline for free entry!) and boom, I was on the list!

My very good and much abused bestie (I drag her to waaaay too many places) Caf agreed to come along for the craic and we were set! The day started early, read: 11am, and we headed for Dublin. Unknown to us there was loads of different expos on at the RDS meaning the traffic around Ballsbridge was a nightmare.. This cued lots of car stalling and dodgy driving in bus lanes by moi (it's ok you can drive in them on Sunday's here!) and a simple twenty minute journey from Caf's apartment lasted and hour and a half! Oops!

Registration and entry completed I was expecting to have to buy the expo currency (which is an utter pain) but I was pleasantly surprised to find that this was not necessary - so lets get down to business!!

To be honest, the show ( and I'm not complaining) was heavily geared towards salons and professionals - very little in the line of 'bargains for the normal girl' / 'freebies galore like the Woman's World Show' (as pointed out by my buddy who only goes to that to register for the mini marathon... And the knitting stands!). I would have loved if there were a few stands by make up brands etc but I have to say I got some great bargains and products I wouldn't have picked up had it not been for the show!

Like a giddy bunny I raced to the HD Brows stand (only to find they were only there to sell training courses & franchising) no demo's / consultations and only because I asked I was able to purchase a brown kit. I guess I set the bar too high...

Onward to the Baby B Browne tanning stand, here I found a lovely girl who was more than happy to chat about her product. After a little sampling on my hand (the tanning lotion smells like Palmers Coca Butter - honest) I was interested. When she said the lotion was normally €18.50 and that today it was €8.00 - bargain - I was sold! I'm pretty excited to try this, and it's the Irish Launch today so I'm ahead of the game for once! Yeay!

We looped around a few more stalls, some really good ones in fact, when we stumbled upon 'E38: Distinct Distribution' don't know what that is? Neither did I! But, I squealed when I SAW it - it's the Sleep in Rollers!!! (Way to badly label your stand guys - I totally would have missed it!) so I picked up the Sleep in Rollers set, with the Hairdryer Hood included all for €35.00. I cannot wait to try these out, I have heard so many good reviews and at the end of this week I'm heading to my glamorous cousins birthday - so it's a brilliant time to try them out!

All in all, I would highly recommend the Irish Beauty Show. There is a huge amount of exhibitors (Dermalogica, Crown Brush, Academie, Megawhite, Jessica Nails, Vita Liberata, Young Nails, Great Lengths Ireland & Creative Academy to name a tiny handful). I will definitely be going again next year (except earlier to avoid the crowds, and with my research properly done!)

If you missed it today it's on again tomorrow, 4th March 2013 in the RDS Simmonscourt... Do it... You know you want to!!

Mwah!
xo

Where's Mimi Been?!

Luxers - I'm sure some of you have wondered, 'where on earth has Mimi's nonsensical blog posts been?!' or even, 'Is she alive?!' Well, I'm here, and hanging my head in bloggers SHAME!

Truth be told, I've been working like crazy out in the real world. (I have a full time job purely to fuel my addiction to make up and clothing!) So my beloved blog was sidelined in favour of sleeping, watching movies with my hubby (of which I mostly slept through), and napping... I'm seeing a pattern here. As a result there was no way in hell I was going to scare anyone with pics of my tired, dry skin - ha ha!

The good news is, the crazy spell in work is almost over & I have tonnes of products to talk about!!! Today my BFF Caf kindly accompanied me to The Irish Beauty Show over yonder in the RDS Dublin (I'll discuss our adventures in a separate post to follow) and picked up some nifty products I'm sure I will have fun making a balls of testing, so I can't wait to get rolling on that front!

Thanks for stopping by and for the comments/ mails as to my whereabouts!

Lets do this!!
MWAH xo

Boots Haul

So today I went a bit cray cray but this hoard will definitely do me for a while! Like most of my friends in the UK and Ireland will agree, the weather is a HOT MESS right now, but that doesn't mean we have to be - so a boots haul was definitely in order.

I picked up a mixture of products from everyday must haves, drugstore make up and a few luxe items.

So here's my list;
L'Oreal Elvive Nutri Gloss Light Shine Conditioner
L'Oreal Elvive Triple Resist Reinforcing Shampoo
Argania Hair Oil for light coloured and fine hair
Oral B toothpaste
Real Techniques Core Collection Make Up Brush Set
Eco Tools Bamboo Smudge Eyeliner Brush #1245
Maybelline New York Fit Me Foundation #115, Concealer #15 & Pressed Powder #125
Benefit Fine One One
Barry M Glitter Liquid Eyeliner in #11 Gold

And a few sample sachets of Total Moisture Facial Cream & Triple Performing Facial Emulsion from Benefit! (Huge thanks to the Benebabe who gave them to me ~ she was so sweet and have me loads of tips for Fine One One)

It's pretty safe to say I have loads of reviews coming soon!

Mwah
xo

NYC Blushable Crème Stick Review

I'm on a roll today my lovelies! Another review!

I've never really purchased an NYC product in the stores... They've always been TOO budget friendly for my liking and therefore leaving me über suspicious of their quality. (Read: cheap = acne breakout) So I tended to steer well clear.

However, I was keen to find a bargain to add to my collection so I went ahead and picked up the NYC blush stick, or more eloquently put, the Blushable Crème Stick, in Plaza Pink. At €3.50 they're a TOTAL bargain. I have fallen in LOVE with this product so much!

Zero nasty breakouts, gorgeous colour, super easy to work with, and most importantly gives my MAC blush a serious run for it's money.

Also, did I mention, I love how when I first apply it I feel like a super girly American Football player... Don't believe me? Check out my pictures below!

Tell me what you guys think!

Mwah
xo

Rimmel Wake Me Up Review

So, I finally became brave enough to post my first review! Eeek! Where to start? With the basics I guess - foundation!

I'm such a BB Cream slave but in the cold/windy/wet weather it just doesn't cut the mustard so alas.. Without any recommendations I bit the bullet and picked up the Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation. My colour of choice #200 soft beige, yes I know I'm not tanned enough for such an oh so dark colour but Rimmel don't make anything in the shade 'ghastly white'. Plus I like to laugh in the age old advice of never buying foundation that's darker than your natural tone for fear of the dreaded Oompa Lompa effect!

So here it goes at 11 squid it definitely doesn't break the bank, but I do like the packaging... I've dropped it more than enough times this week to know it's smash proof!

My skin (as you will see in the picture below) is typically 'Irish' in the sense that it is pale and pasty with flashes of red, a smattering of freckles, and most recently an outbreak of acne. It's also wildly unpredictable in the sense that one day it's as dry as the Sahara and the next it's so oily I almost announce a natural disaster has occurred on my face. Therefore it's vital that I reviewed this over a number of days wear and not just one! (Which I diligently did!)

Colour wise there's not that many shades to choose from but I can live with that as soft beige did me just fine! Here's the best bit... The coverage - it totally evened out my skin tone and even managed to cover some nasty red acne skin when I built it a little. Needless to say I'm delighted with this.

Is it durable?! Well, on my Sahara days it never cracked and I had a nice dewy glow even after 8 hours. On my oil slick days I'm happy to report it didn't just slide off my face but I did have to reapply some setting powder.

As for the anti fatigue effect it promised? Well, I'm not too sure, it definitely did deliver a soft sheen finish, but I guess I would be my own worst critic - what do you think of the before and after pics? Do I look more awake?

Lastly I must say I loved the smell of the foundation, it didn't ever feel like I was wearing any either and added bonus it has an SPF of 15! Winning!! Overall I give this a solid 9/10.

Mwahx

Beginners Beauty

Every now and then I stumble across a great blog and get sucked in reading the posts! Today's poster of the hour is Hannah over on www.beginnersbeauty.com - Congrats Hannah on your 1st year of blogging! Hopefully this will me be this time next year!

Did I mention she's doing a great giveaway of an Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette to celebrate! Pull your sicks up and head over to her blog to be in with a chance to win!

Mwah
xo

H&M Haul!!

So on Tuesday I totally went a bit wild, but in my defence.. My beloved Frankie made me do it! He's the sweetest pup but his obsession with my shoes... Well.. Well.. Ok no, I can't blame him this time!

H&M sucks me in every time, you know the store where you go in to get one thing, and leave with six items?! Yea, that's the kind of shop H&M is... Shame on you! Ha ha!

I did get some great bargains in there though, the leopard flats below were only €12.95, the cute black pumps were even better at €9.95.

The coral skirt that I mentioned in today's OOTD post was a steal at €7... Down from €24.95! The pink striped basic long sleeved tee was €9.95 and the long knit in cream and black stripes was €12.95. I can't wait to wear that tomorrow with black leggings and my brown boots.

Lastly the brown and pink pencil jersey skirt was also on sale and I picked it up for... Wait for it... €3!!!!

I did by some cute undies but I figured those pictures would be too racy!

Mwah
xo