the belle lumiere » beauty cupboard

Hey Mr Postman…

Jessica — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 04:21:05 +0000

New arrivals: Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant, Biotherm Aquasource Skin Perfection & my book order from Amazon. (The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, First As Tragedy, Then As Farce by Slavoj Zizek & White Noise by Don DeLillo) The Dermalogica was a gift from my friend Maya, who was able to attend an exciting Dermalogica launch on behalf of The Belle Lumiere recently. Keep an eye out for her guest post! Also, the Biotherm was sent by my favourite online beauty store Adore Beauty for trial and review. I can’t wait to check it out!

Filed under: shopping diary

Project 10 Pan

Jessica — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:02:45 +0000

Well, the time has come. I need to embark on the dreaded Project 10 Pan! I guess I shouldn’t look at it as the “dreaded” project because I’ll probably never accomplish it if I think like that… Basically I have a cupboard overflowing with products that I don’t feel like I’m getting enough use out of. I keep buying new things and not making the most of the things I already have. So I’ve decided to do a project 10 pan for haircare, skincare and a project 5 pan for makeup. I don’t really have THAT many body products to justify a project 10 or 5 pan, so I’m leaving that one out for now. If you haven’t heard of Project 10 Pan before, it’s basically where people who have too many products attempt to use up 10 things before purchasing anything new. My one exception for this rule will be if it’s something that I feel that I have to replace. Foundation (of which I only have 1), mascara, moisturiser and facial cleanser will need to be replaced if I run out of those before the 10 pan finishes. I’m pretty sure that with everything else I have a few back up products to use so I should be okay.

I will be keeping a tally in the sidebar for products I use up as I go. Anyone and everyone is welcome to join me on this… If you feel like you’re spending too much on skincare, makeup and haircare and want to use up a few things in your cupboard – feel free to jump on board!

Filed under: beauty cupboard, project 10 pan

Bathroom Organisation

Jessica — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 04:26:14 +0000

My friend Kimberley (aka Miss Giggly from Pop Couture) and I were recently discussing the issue of makeup and bathroom storage. For the longest time my bathroom was a disaster zone. Makeup and beauty products shoved into drawers and cupboards in disorganised array. (you should know that I absolutely hate clutter, so this was a big deal for me. stressful.) I decided that I’d had enough, and needed to do something about it. My solution? Howard’s Storage World.

It’s a good idea to ‘think outside the box’ when it comes to bathroom storage, because a lot of the options available are just not what you’re looking for. I found my makeup storage containers in the home office section (I preferred the grey/taupe colours) and my bathroom cupboard storage containers are from the laundry section.

I keep my weekly products in a container on the bathroom cabinet (in picture #1) – everything that I’ll be using for the week goes in there. My bathroom cupboard is organised into hair care, body products, skin care & a spare container holds all of my samples/nail products. (picture #2). My makeup is organised into different catagories in two different drawers. The top drawer includes face (primer/foundation/concealer), cheeks (blush, bronzer, highlighter), lips (gloss, balm, lipstick) as in picture #3. The second drawer includes eyes (eyeshadow, liner, mascara) split into two different containers, and a seperate container for all of my brushes. (in picture #4) Speaking of which, I really need to streamline my brush collection. It’s all over the place at the moment!

eta: I should probably point out that as we have 3 bathrooms in our house, this is technically considered ‘my’ bathroom. I haven’t kicked the rest of my family out just to over run the place with my own junk!

How do you organise your bathroom? Do you have storage issues or some interesting solutions?

Filed under: beauty cupboard, life etc

Beauty Cupboard List

Jessica — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:58:37 +0000

As I am in my ‘traditional way of doing things’ phase right now, and am focusing on buying and replacing items that are tried and true in my Beauty Cupboard, I figured I would write a list to keep track of the items that I love, and that I consider to be my “holy grails”. I often go to re-purchase something down the track, and forget what the specific product was called, or what shade I used. Hopefully this will stop that from happening in the future!

Makeup
Givenchy Photo Perfexion Foundation in Perfect Ivory
Givenchy Skin Tonic Stretch Cream in Lift Dragee
Stila Sheer Colour Tinted Moisturiser in Bare
NARS Sheer Matte Foundation in Mont Blanc
Benefit Erase Paste in Light
YSL Touche Eclat in #1
Becca Lip and Cheek Creme in Rosebud
By Terry Rose De Rose Liquid Blush in Fresh Rose
Chanel Irreelle Blush in Tea Rose
Estee Lauder Blush in Peach Nuance
Lancome Le Crayon Khol in Noir
Givenchy Magic Khol in Black
Lancome Hypnose Mascara in Black
YSL Faux Cils Mascara in Black
Shiseido Silky Eye Duo in Taffeta Taupe
NARS Eyeshadow Duo in Alhambra
Bobbi Brown Shimmer Wash Eyeshadow in Champagne
Napoleon Perdis Loose Dust in #36 Champagne
NARS Lipgloss in Chihuahua
Lancome Juicy Tube in Melon
Givenchy Rouge Interdit Lipstick in Seductive Rose
Mecca Cosmetica Nail Polish in ‘Jessica’
[need] Mecca Cosmetica Nail Polish in ‘Rosaline’
Chanel / Napoleon Perdis Makeup Brushes
Beauty Blender Sponge
Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

Skincare
Dermalogica Precleanse
Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel
Dermalogica Overnight Clearing Gel
Dermalogica Soothing Protection Spray
Jurlique Rosewater Balancing Mist
KORA Skincare Balancing Rose Mist
Dermalogica Active Moist Moisturiser
Ultraceuticals Ultra Moisturiser Cream
Trilogy Organic Rosehip Oil
MD Skincare Alpha/Beta Daily Face Peel
Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant
Dermalogica Skin Refining Mask
This Works Tired Eye Serum
Smith’s Rosebud Salve
Lucas Paw Paw Ointment
La Mer The Lipbalm

Body Products
MOR Marshmallow Body Creme
Glasshouse Fragrances Body Lotion in Montego Bay
Bath + Body Works Body Lotion in Warm Vanilla Sugar
La Source Hand Therapy
Grown Vanilla & Orange Peel Hand Cream
Moo Goo Milk Wash
Shu Uemura Pleasure of Japanese Bath in Sakura
Givenchy Glow To Wear
Renee Satin Body Shimmer Spray
Allure by Chanel EDP
Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel EDP
Burberry Brit EDP

Haircare
Kerastase Bain Satin Shampoo
Unico Intensive Shampoo
Unico Intensive Conditioner
Terax Crema Conditioner
Kerastase Oleo Relax
Pantene 3 Minute Miracle
Bumble & Bumble Spray De Mode
Frederic Fekkai Shine Mist
Frederic Fekkai Sheer Glossing Creme
Frederic Fekkai Classic Brush
GHD Salon Styler
[need] Parlux Hairdryer
[need] MyCurl
Evo End Doctor

I am still on the lookout for some great products… If any of my fellow fair-skinned girls out there could recommend a great translucent face powder, I would be forever grateful!

Posted in beauty cupboard

The Beauty Cupboard – Body Products Pt 1

Jessica — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:26:48 +0000

As with my previous posts on makeup and skincare, these are a few of my favourite body products that I try to keep in constant supply in my beauty cupboard…

MOR Marshmallow Body Creme

I first started using this luscious creme when it came in a sweet little pink tub with a white lid. MOR have since upped the ante, and the creme now comes in a gorgeous black tub with a gold lid packaged in a beautiful rose print embossed box. Once you get past the beautiful looks and are able to dig into the actual product, it is divine. A luxe, rich cream that takes it’s time to sink in to your skin, but when it does you are left feeling moisturised and silky smooth. The smell is beautiful, sweet and marshmallowy (is that a word?) and a hint of the fragrance lingers all day long. I used to keep this as a “special occasions” body creme, but I’ve been using practically it every day since buying my new tub!

La Source Hand Therapy

This is hands down (hehe, get it?) my favourite hand cream. Rich and heavily moisturising without being too greasy, I have a tube of this sitting on my desk at work and use it a few times a day. It has quite a strong smell, but it is such a fresh fragrance that it is not too overpowering.

Shu Uemura Pleasure of Japanese Bath Sakura

I will go out on a limb and say that this is the best smelling bath product that I have ever used. After reading that Liv Tyler was a fan, I was curious and tried to hunt down a place to buy the bath oils in Australia. No such luck unfortunately, but I managed to order myself two bottles while I was holidaying in the US this year and I am attempting to make them last as long as possible! A capful of the oil turns your bathwater into a deliciously sweet smelling milky moisturising experience. The perfect product to use if you’re wanting a long, relaxing bath where you can drift away and daydream of Japanese cherry blossoms. So divine!

image source: indulgeskinspa, amazon & shuuemura

What beauty products do you love and repurchase time and time again?

Posted in beauty cupboard

The Beauty Cupboard – Makeup Pt 1

Jessica — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 02:25:38 +0000

As with my skincare favourites, I have a set of “must haves” for makeup. These products are always in my makeup bag. (and if not, they are at the top of my shopping list to be purchased asap!)

Givenchy Photo Perfexion Foundation in Perfect Ivory

After years of searching for the holy grail, I think I’ve finally found the perfect foundation for my oh so fair, oh so temperamental skin. The only downside is that it is not oil free, but I think that is a small price to pay for a foundation shade that suits my skin perfectly. The foundation is light enough to be worn during the day, and can be built up for a flawless night time look. If only they stocked Givenchy foundation in Australia! I spend way too much time trying to find places online that I can buy it from. I bought my current bottle from Sephora in New York, and am hoping to make it last as long as possible!

Becca Lip And Cheek Creme in Rosebud

I love this product so much. I only ever use it on my cheeks (yet to try it on my lips) and it’s the perfect shade of pink. It blends smoothly onto skin, and lasts all day long. I apply mine with a foundation brush, but you can easily apply with fingertips – (some creme blushes are uneven and blotchy when applied with fingers, not this one!) Beware when buying Becca Cheek Cremes though, they are so beautiful you will get addicted and need one in every shade!

Lancome Hypnose Mascara in Black

After running out of my long time favourite mascara – Lancome Definicils – I decided to give Hypnose a try. It has a similar lengthening effect to Definicils, but with the added benefit of some oomph as far as volume goes. It’s a great black-black mascara, that doesn’t flake during the day, lengthens and thickens lashes. What more could you want?

image source: sephora, dermstore & makeup411

Posted in beauty cupboard, makeup