Perfect Potions Haul and Review

The first time I ever heard about Perfect Potion was probably about six months ago, during a Natural-DIY-skincare course I did. They are a brand proud to boast a range of  quality natural products made from "certified organic essential oils and plant extracts". 

In the past I have used a few different natural-care ranges and found that they weren't always as effective as I would have liked them to have been. However, so far, I've been pretty wowed by the products I have used from Perfect Potion. 


I also just want to put out there that I think these products are actually quite affordable, despite using such high quality ingredients. Really some of these products aren't that far off what you might pay for a good cleanser or lotion at the drugstore. 

active deodorant 


In all the years that I have been using deodorant I had never actually found one that I really liked. Either the smell was just not for me or the product was just damn right ineffective. As such, this was the first thing I was eager to check out and with it I am killing two birds with one stone. The smell itself is actually quite pleasant and calming. It's also not so strong that I can smell it on myself throughout the day or overpowers my perfume. In its spray bottle application it is really quite cooling and dries quickly, without a sticky feeling. In terms of function it doesn't completely mask all BO when you have been doing strenuous exercise (does anything?) but day to day and when the weather's a bit warm it does perfectly well by me. 

cooling leg and foot lotion


On those days when I have been running around or it's just too damn hot to move, this is what I have been using. And I don't just use this little baby on my footsies. I have been applying this anywhere that feels overly warm - hands, feet, neck, arms and underarms. It works quickly and makes such an obvious difference. Without delving into the science behind this lotion (which really I am no expert in) it's clear that the cooling effect comes from the high levels of menthol that occurs naturally in peppermint oil.It sends a wee little message through the body which triggers the chilly sensation. Mind, you don't need to use much of this, a little goes a very long way! I have shared my find with a few close friends and family, and seeing as we are in the midst of a hot Australian summer, they can't get enough

soothe cleansing gel 


I am walking on eggshells with my skin at the moment. I have been breaking out left, right and centre! After changing around few of my serums, toners, masks and lotions I've come to the conclusion that my cleansers aren't cleanse-afying  my skin well enough. 
I was most definitely drawn in by the advertising on this little bottle - soothe, sounded awfully appealing to my aggravated skin. You will want to make sure your face or hands are damp to help the gel formula suds-up (although it doesn't foam all that much - probably due to the absence of sulphates). Despite being a foaming cleanser it doesn't feel as dehydrating or striping as some others. My skin was clean - sans the squeaky - soft and smooth, as though my pores weren't clogged! Job well done me thinks, it was just what I needed.


sweet dreams pillow mist 


Lately, having just started a new job, Im feeling a bit stressed and tired. I wasn't getting that really nice deep sleep and it would take my body, what felt like years, to shut off. I thought that if I could maybe try to train my body to think  sleep when I sprayed this it might help me to drop off. And thank my lucky stars it has!! The main scent, that I have noticed in this, is Lavender, which I know is supposed to be great for relaxation. Just be aware that its a pretty strong fragrance so you will only need to spray it on your pillow the once, anymore than that and I have found it a bit overwhelming to the senses. 

sweet dreams bath soak 



Bath salts contain so many beneficial mineralsthat help to ease the tension in your muscles and body, detoxify your skin and encourage plump soft skin. On top of that they have mixed in a couple wonderful natural essential oils, which help to relax your mind and prepare for sleep. Usually in water, most of us feel so light , effortlessly floating on top of the water, but after this bath my body and mind both felt very heavy. So I found it was a very quick transition from awake to zzzzz.


Although from the same fragrance range as the Sweet Dreams Pillow Mist, this Bath Soak has a much more subtle scent. At first I thought that I was unimpressed with how simplethis product was - no bubbles, muted fragrance and clear water - not very fun right. But its effect was really quite noticeable so I am more than willing to overlook everything else.

I was surprised by how  smoothand soft my skin felt after drying off because the water itself didn't feel particularly hydrating. And after second thought I was actually quite glad that the scent wasn't too overwhelming (as it meant that I could actually smell the new candle I had bought and was burning). All in all it was a good purchase and something I am glad to have.

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Makeup Haul - Nars, MAC, Modelsprefer and Savvy



Left to right 
MAC Romantic breakdown (LE Boa Boa Wan Collection)
MAC Blankety
MAC Rebel
Models Prefer Nude Lipstick in Naked 
Savvy Ultra Matte Lip Colour in Lights...Camera


As I am sure you will soon pick up on, I am a very big fan of hydrating lip products. Nothing feels worse to me than a dry or sticky lip yuck. With hydrating lipsticks, usually, also comes the added benefit of a glossy finish, masking dryness and lines, making your lips appear fuller and cancelling out the extra step of applying lipgloss. Who wouldn't love that right? 


models prefer  
Brown lipstick, I know, isn't for everyone. Its most definitely a flashback to the 90's - although kylie jenner seems quite fond of it too - but all the same I find it quite flattering and lately its one of my favourite things to wear. This one from Models Prefer has more of a cool undertone to it than I am used to, usually I will gravitate towards more Mauve tones. I do find it to be a bit sheer and I have to work a little to build it up to the colour you see in the above image, but I don't necessarily consider this a bad feature as its almost like two lipsticks in one. 


savvy 
Odd, is probably the best word to describe this product from Savvy. Don't get me wrong - the colour is stunning, consistent and very pigmented, I like the doe-foot applicator and it has great staying power, like I think you could drink and eat and it wouldn't budge!! But the texture/feeling of the product changes a couple times while you are wearing it. It starts off super creamy, then changes to extremely sticky, like my lips were sticking together and then five minutes later it was your standard matte. so weird. Not so great for reapplication during the night. 


mac 
I have never been let down by a MAC lipstick and these were no exception. I was, however, a bit apprehensive about the Satin formula for Rebel. I love red lips of all kinds but really struggle with the dry matte or over glossy, slippery formulas they usually come in. Rebel was the perfect balance of both! It was hydrating but at the same time it stayed exactly where I had applied it. Even after it starts to fade, Rebel leaves a stain on your lips so it never looks messy or unkempt. I am definitely going back to try more Satin lipsticks. 

You do have to be a little bit careful with Romantic Breakdown. If you aren't exfoliating your lips regularly, like with most pale lip colours, any dry patches or crack are really going to be emphasised. Despite this it is such a stunningly beautify colour, and actually the first nude colour I have ever felt comfortable wearing. It would look fabulous with a dramatic smokey eye!

All I can same about Blankety is yes!! It is slightly lighter than your - well my - lip colour, with a beautiful mauve undertone that looks so very natural. The girls at the MAC counter where very happy with and encouraging about my choice. 


Left to right 
Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla 
MAC Studio Fix Powder in NW20



mac 
I'm not blown over by this MAC powder. Its a lovely product - not chalky or cakey, it blends well, with a lovely natural finish on the skin and the variety of colours that it comes in is insane. But still, I am not convinced that I can't find something even better. I am looking for something that is gong to be natural and really long wearing as, having oily skin, I hate to find that my foundation has worn away during the day.


nars 
Au contraire, I am so incredibly impressed with this Nars concealer. Its coverage is just sensational, the best I have ever used and yet it doesn't sink into fine lines or leave your skin looking heavy or cakey. Its got a somewhat illuminated matte finish to it that you just know is going to last throughout the day/night. They have a good range of ten colours in the collection and I am pretty happy with my colour match, its the perfect shade to brighten my under eyes without looking fake. I would probably need another slightly darker shade to hide any spots though.


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Visiting Bargo Farm



Now don't get me wrong, I love the city and I will always be a city girl at heart. But still, every now and then the city hubbub just gets a little bit too overwhelming and complicated and I need out! My mum and I come out to this beauty once a week, to bask in the quiet and enjoy the company of our horses. 




Ive had Sinbad - apparently camera shy - for the past four and a half years now. He is so amazingly gentle, patient and loving with people and he was also the one that helped me to - excuse the pun - get back in the saddle after having a bad fall. Its nice to partake in the mindless task of grooming him and I love wrapping my arms around his tummy, trying to get my fingers to touch - it never happens. 


David is a newer addition to the little family, and he is quite possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen. He is so small that his back only reaches to about halfway up my thigh!! He has got the sweetest little habit of digging a groove in the ground with his hoof - as you can see above - when you come close to him, as a signal of begin forever hungry, that just about makes me melt. 



"Mr Wonderful" - as he has dubbed himself - looks after the horses and farm during the week and always greets up with a massive breakfast (eggs, hash browns, tomatoes, mushrooms and bacon yum) when we come up !!


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ASOS Boots and Accessories Haul

winter boots 

Boots are becoming my thing at the moment. I want all of them, every style, every colour and every height - all of them !! These boots in particular I actually got for work. They seriously crank up the air-con in my office and as I have no inclosed shoes my tootsies, and as a result, the rest of me end up freezing.  These ones from ASOS are pretty comfortable - albeit a fraction too small and they don't come in half sizes, so Im relying on them stretching a bit. The heels aren't noticeably heel-like, it pretty much feels like I'm walking on a flat shoe, but you still get that slight lift that makes those pins more damn.
I am aware that the detailing looks a wee-bettie western and that that isn't for everyone, but I am of the opinion that they are gorgeous.  I'll probably pair these with some jeans and a slouchy-neck jumper. 






sunglasses 

The last time I bought a pair of sunglasses (Gold Rimmed and Soft Brown) was a bout a year ago on my vacation to Bali. Sunglasses aren't something I think to buy often or splurge on when I do. But I'm so incredibly over
that same old pair that continuously falls down my nose and gives me sore eyes and a headache from a blurry, scratched screen!! I did spend more than I am accustomed to, but I am at peace with that because I can see and feel the quality! These both sit securely on my head without being overly tight and have that oversized style without making my head look like a pea.  I am still on the hunt for a final pair in my favourite style, aviators. I will of course post when I do.

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What I Read In February


February being the month of love I thought I would keep on with that theme in my reading. After doing a bit of research (really just binge watching itswaypastmybedtime, also known as Carrie Fletcher) I chose two books that I noticed where popping up in popular reads of the moment :
the rosie projec

by 

graeme simsion 

&

eleanor and park 

by 

rainbow rowell


The first book I got through this month was The Rosie Project. The protagonist of this book is Don Tillman, a thirty-something year old genetics Professor at the University of Melbourne, Australia (despite this my mind automatically gave all characters American accents) who wants to find a wife. Don himself is a sufficient cook, incredibly tidy, amazingly fit - due to practising Aikido and Karate - and uniquely smart. He's quite a catch, or so it would seem. As a result of unrecognised Aspergers Syndrome, Don's life is governed by schedules and he often finds himself in difficult situations due to a lacking filter and comprehension of what is socially and morally acceptable.

In order to avoid some such situations, Don devises a plan that is sure to uncover the best candidate for a partner, the wife project. A   detailed  questioner that essentially acts as a first date - helping Don to weed out the no-gos without having to actually initiate contact. 



He's filtering out vegetarians, smokers, drinkers, barmaids, women who have ice-cream preferences (arguing that it all tastes the same due to frozen taste buds), woman without a satisfactory understanding of mathematics and oh so much more!
cue rosie ... and she is everything that Don doesn't want / doesn't know he wants.

Rosie essentially takes Don's little world, turns it upside down and shakes it around a little. But Rosie's got problems of her own and Don might be the only one who can give her the answer she needs. Over the next few weeks Don and Rosie work together to uncover the mystery of the father project.
who does rosie belong to ? 

I am sad to say that I really didn't love this book. I loved the concept, it was fun, smart and romantic but it was also - pardon the pun - all over the page. I thought the writing was really unorganised and bland, so I found if difficult to really invest myself in. 

On the contrary, I actually had a bit of trouble putting Eleanor and Park down.  Its writing style was like a flowing stream - HAHA - and very captivating.  
Eleanor and Park seem an oddly paired couple, not just to those around them but to each other as well. "Like, if you try to break down why you fall in love with someone, it never adds up, right?" - I found this quote on a blog called A Beautiful Mess and it just made so much sense to me after reading this book that I simply had to share it !!! 



eleanor is awkward, big, takes very little care of her appearance, has flaming hot red hair that almost glows in the dark and is the butt of every school joke. As far as family's go, Eleanor's got it a bit rough with four younger siblings, a timid and figuratively blind mother and a short tempered and abusive step-father. With all this extra baggage on her back she's unsure of showing her heart and her mind to Park. And fair enough !

park , having previously dated miss popularity, has a hall-pass for bullying. That's not to say he's alpha male, but it offers him the - very welcome - opportunity to blend into the hustle and bustle of school life. At home he has a distant relationship with his father who holds certain expectations and hopes for what and who his first born son would be. But Park isn't holding up to his end of the deal. He's listening to punk-rock, reading Marvel comics and spending far too much time helping his mother in her at home beauty salon when he should be learning to drive stick, practicing his Taekwondo and in general doing what a real man ought to do.  

Its a pretty predictable story line, I'm not saying that that is a bad thing by any means, in fact its so realistic and relatable that it could just about be anyones story - yours, mine, the person sitting across from you on the bus, the waiter bringing you your lunch, your boss - anyone ! I mean I'm pretty darn sure that anyone of us can say we've experienced similar emotions, experiences and relationships in out teen years. 

This is a book that sums up perfectly what its like to be an awkward bumbling teenager, hopelessly and blindly in love and afraid

"I'm going to tell Mrs Burt that my mom doesn't want me to do anything that might rupture my hymen," Eleanor said. "For religious reasons." - quite possibly my favourite quote from the book, I just had to throw it in there for you. 

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