Morning Skincare and Makeup Routine

By popular request I have been asked to detail my morning routine. Please note I have oily, dehydrated skin with fine lines and textural issues. I have a little rosacea (redness), but no melasma/hyper-pigmentation or acne. The products I have chosen suit my skin type but may not suit yours. You might need a cuppa, this is gonna be a long post. It goes without saying, all skincare products should extend down the neck and onto the décolletage.

SKINCARE ROUTINE

Cleanse

Firstly I use a gentle cream cleanser, applied to dry skin and removed with a warm, damp face washer. You don’t need to spend a lot of money on a cleanser because ultimately the product is washed down the drain and doesn’t remain on the skin. I would strongly suggest to totally avoid anything foaming as the sulphates are harsh and stripping on the skin.

First Aid Beauty Milk Oil Conditioning Cleanser – purchased from Beauty Bay $29.70 (imported from the UK)

Or:

La Roche Posay Toleriane Dermo-Cleanser – purchased from Priceline for $25.99

The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter – purchased from The Body Shop for $22.95

Makeup still on?????

Um mah! If you were naughty and left your makeup on overnight you will need to remove your eye makeup with makeup remover or Bioderma and then do a double cleanse. More on this when I post a night-time routine at a later date.

Eye cream

You don’t need to buy a separate eye cream if you don’t want to, but I like to sometimes add this extra step so my eyes are well hydrated and plumped. If you don’t want to use an eye cream, just extend your serum and moisturiser onto the eye area.

Dermalogica Multivitamin Power Firm Eye Cream – purchased from David Jones $72

Or:

Indeed Labs Eysilix Instant Eye Rescue – purchased from Priceline $29.69

Lip Balm

I find that if I use a lip balm and give it a good 20 minutes or so to settle in, my lipstick will apply beautifully and overall my lips remain in pretty good condition. I use a lot of matte-finish lipsticks and these can be harsh on the lips. It’s vital to wear a lip balm underneath them unless you want your lips to be destroyed.

Nuxe Reve de Miel Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm – purchased from Priceline $19.99

Or:

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Lip Protectant Stick Sunscreen SPF15 – purchased from David Jones $26

Serum

Next I apply a serum. Serums are specially designed with smaller molecules to easily penetrate the skin, and deliver potent doses of active ingredients (vitamins, antioxidants) into the deepest layers where they will be most effective. In short, serums are designed to give results. For daytime I choose something that is light, easily absorbed and will not interfere with sunscreen, primers or foundation. What I mean by interfere is, sometimes using the wrong product will result in sunscreen not applying smoothly and rolling into little balls – a very frustrating thing to happen. That can be caused when mixing water-based and silicon-based products together.

Vichy Aqualia Thermal Dynamic Serum – purchased from Cosmetics Now $48.95

Or:

L’Oreal Revitalift Laserx3 Anti-Aging Power Serum – purchased from Target $49.99

L’Oreal Paris Revitalift Filler [HA] Serum – purchased from Priceline $34.99

Ole Henriksen Truth Serum Collagen Booster – purchased from Sephora Australia $105

Sunscreen and Moisturiser

If I’m not wearing makeup I will apply a sunscreen and moisturiser. I choose items that are oil-free to suit my oily skin. If I'm wearing makeup without SPF I will apply sunscreen on my face, down my neck and my décolletage. 

La Roche Posay Anthelios XL SPF 50+ Ultra Light – purchased from Priceline $27.99

Kate Somerville Nourish Daily Moisturiser Oil-Free – purchased from Mecca Maxima $86.00

Or:

Clinique Moisture Surge Intense Skin Fortifying Hydrator – purchased from David Jones $60

MAKEUP ROUTINE

Primer

A primer is a product that I use to make my makeup stick. Often oily-skin girls will find that their makeup slides off their face, normally in the T-zone and the apples of the cheeks. I also have some enlarged pores in my T-zone and on my cheeks and the primer does a terrific job of disguising them. For me this product also stops oil from penetrating through my makeup and causing ugly shine. It really is a brilliant product that I couldn’t live without.

Max Factor Facefinity All Day Primer – purchased from Priceline $31.95

Foundation

I’m still hooked on the following product and to be honest it’s not even a foundation, it’s a CC (colour corrector) cream which really is a fancy term for a foundation. I apply it with my fingers and it goes on like a dream and looks luminous, warm-toned and hydrating. It doesn’t look like I’m wearing foundation at all and it doesn’t accentuate my pores which is what I’m looking for.

IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream with SPF50+ – purchased from Sephora Australia $62

Or:

Make Up Forever Ultra HD Foundation – purchased from Sephora Australia $62

Covergirl Ready, Set, Gorgeous Fresh Complexion Oil-Free Foundation – purchased from Priceline $16.95

Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Makeup – purchased from Myer $50

Concealer

I use concealer to cover my dark circles that are on the inner side of my nose, beside my eyes, rather than underneath. I also have a bit of blotchiness on my cheeks and a few broken capillaries on my chin and cheeks. That’s what we’re dealing with here! I’m still working on a favourite concealer product but right now it is this.

IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Anti-Aging Concealer – purchased from Sephora Australia $38

Or:

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer in NW20 – purchased from MAC $32

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles – purchased from Priceline $13.26

Powder

I’m still hunting for a powder I love but I do have a few that I quite like.

Laura Mercier Loose Setting Powder in Translucent – purchased from David Jones $50

Or:

MAC Mineralise Skinfinish Natural – purchased from MAC $49

Rimmel Stay Matte Long Lasting Pressed Powder – purchased from Priceline $12.95

Bronzer

I always lightly bronze my face because I’m quite pale and cool-toned. Bronzer should be applied lightly to the areas of the face that the sun would naturally hit. To me that means the tops of the cheeks, across the middle of the nose, the forehead and around the hairline. It’s subtle and that’s how it’s meant to look. It’s just meant to warm up the face and make it glow.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Radiant Bronze Light – purchased from Mecca Maxima $74

Eyebrows

Naturally, my eyebrows are very grey (full of white hairs) – my brows really show my age. My hairdresser has given me some salon-strength tint which I do myself at home and it lasts for a few weeks before reapplying. I’m constantly chopping and changing the products that I use on my brows but these are the ones I use the most.

Shu Uemura Hard Formula Hard 9 in Soft Brown or Grey – purchased from David Jones $34

Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil – purchased from Mecca Maxima $49

I always following up with an eyebrow mascara. This product is used to thicken the brows, separate the hairs and keep them all in place – nice and tidy.

Benefit Gimme Brow in Light/Medium – purchased from Myer $35

Eyeshadow Primer

Don’t stress too much about buying a separate product for this. You can either use a neutral eyeshadow that is skin coloured or what I use is a cream eyeshadow. The idea is that this neutralises the colour on the eyelid, covers any red lines or discolouration and gives the eyeshadow something to adhere too. It makes eyeshadow last longer and minimises creasing.

MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot in Painterly – purchased from MAC $35

Eyeshadow

I pretty much always follow one of my saved YouTube videos when doing my eyes. That gives me the option of wearing a different look with different colours each day. I always use eyeshadow palettes and my favourites are:

Too Faced Chocolate Bar – purchased from Mecca Maxima $70 – smells of chocolate, what a bonus!

LORAC Pro Palette – purchased at Ulta in USA (can be tricky to get your hands on in Australia) – one row is matte, one row is shimmer – superb

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette – purchased from Mecca Maxima $81 – a range of rosy neutral shades

MAC Eyeshadow Burgundy Times 9 – purchased from MAC $65 – perfect for a smoky eye

Clockwise from top left: Too Faced Chocolate Bar, LORAC Pro Palette, Urban Decay Naked 3, MAC Eyeshadow Burgundy Times 9

Eyeliner

I’m not a massive liquid eyeliner fan but I do eyeliner four ways:

1.  Using a pencil, line my upper eyelid and lower outer eyelid with a pencil and then smudge with a blending brush for a soft smoky finish.

2.  Using an angle brush and a dark eyeshadow i.e. black, brown, purple or khaki, line my upper lid and lower outer lid with powder and either blend out or leave it as is.

3.  If I’m wanting something a bit bolder I use a liquid liner in a pen form and draw a sharp winged line – you need a steady hand and clear mind (don’t rush it) when doing this. YouTube tutorials are how I learned to do this.

4.  I also tight-line my upper lid. This involves putting eyeliner (always pencil) in the upper waterline. It’s not for the faint hearted and feels like poking your eye out with a pencil when you first start but the look is smouldering and sophisticated without being tarty. I rarely if ever tight-line the bottom waterline because that’s when the eyes start looking tarty.

My favourite products are:

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eye Pencils – purchased from Mecca Maxima $30 each

Maybelline HyperSharp Wing Liquid Liner – purchased from Priceline $16.95

Eyelash curler and mascara

There is only one eyelash curler and that is a Shu Uemura one. It’s available from David Jones for $29.95 and comes with replacement rubber guards.

There is only one mascara for me and that’s Benefit They’re Real. It’s available from Myer for $40. It’s very bold and clumpy but that’s the way I like my lashes. I use whatever else I have on hand for my bottom lashes because I find They’re Real mascara is a bit too bold for that and I can start looking like a Panda Bear.

Contour

I subtly contour my face to accentuate its shape. By using a deeper, cooler shade on your face it pushes that part of the face further inwards whereas highlighter brings it forward. I use contour just under my cheek bones to make my cheeks look more shapely. I contour the sides of my nose to make it appear narrower and along my jawline to separate it from my neck. I also use contour around the edges of my face and from the corner of my outer eye to my hairline to accentuate the slight indent there. The contouring technique is also used during my eyeshadow stage to accentuate my socket line and reshape my eyes.

My favourites are:

Sephora Contour Powder in Tranquil - purchased from Sephora USA $22 (via my lovely friend Colleen)

Benefit Hoola powder – purchased from Myer $51

Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow in Light to Medium – available online from Charlotte Tilbury for $97 (includes a highlighter in the palette)

Clockwise from top left: Benefit Hoola powder, Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow, Sephora Contour Powder

Blush

Gosh where to start. I have so many. I change the placement of my blush depending on my look. Sometimes it is just on the apple of my cheeks, sometimes along my cheek bone, somethings up high on my cheek bone. Generally I try to match my blush to my lipstick and match the same undertones i.e. orange undertones, dusty pink undertones, red undertones, brown undertones etc.

My favourites are:

Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso – purchased from Milani Australia $11.95

Hourglass Incandescent Electra Blush – purchased from Mecca Maxima $50

Tarte Amazonian Clay Longwear Blush in Tipsy – purchased from Sephora Australia $36

Max Factor in Seductive Pink – purchased from Priceline $21.95

Charlotte Tilbury Cheek to Chic Blusher in Ecstasy – purchased from Charlotte Tilbury online $60

Clockwise from top left: Hourglass Incandescent Electra, Charlotte Tilbury Cheek to Chic Blusher, Tarte Amazonian Clay Longwear Blush, Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso and Max Factor in Seductive Pink

Highlighter

This is my new favourite product to apply. I like to go bold with this product and make no apologies for it. I dust it on with a fan brush on the tops of my cheeks, on my cupid's bow (upper lip in the centre), middle of the nose, under my brow and just above it. My favourites are:

Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Moonstone – purchased from Endota Spa, Garden City $60

Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Champagne Pop – purchased from Sephora Australia $60

theBalm Mary-Lou Manzier Powder Highlighter – purchased from David Jones $49

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Luminous Light – purchased from Mecca Maxima $66

Clockwise from top left: Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Moonstone and Champagne Pop, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Luminous Light, theBalm Mary-Lou Manzier Powder

Lipliner and lipstick

Because of my pale skin tone I suit bright warm lipsticks.  I rarely wear nude or brown colours and deep red, purple and burgundy doesn’t really suit me either. My favourite colours are corals, pinks and bright orangey-reds. I won’t list my lipsticks one by one but rather the following brands and lines are favourites:

Australia Velourlips Liquid Lipsticks – available at Priceline $10.49

MAC Retro colours, MAC Creamsheen and MAC Amplified colours – available at MAC $36-46

Max Factor Flipsticks Colour Effect (which disappointingly have been discontinued)

Maybelline ColourSensational lipsticks – available at Priceline $16.95

NARS Audacious lipsticks – available at Mecca Maxima $47

Revlon Colourburst Balm Stains – available at Priceline $10.77

Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate – available at Priceline $9.95

Rimmel Provocalips Liquid Lipsticks – available at Priceline $17.95

Smashbox Be Legendary Matte Lipstick – available at Mecca Maxima $29

I don’t always use lipliners but for me they must match the colour lipstick I’m wearing. My favourite brands are:

MAC and MAC Pro Longwear, available from MAC $30-43

Charlotte Tilbury – available from Charlotte Tilbury online $35

Spritz

At the end of all of that, I spritz MAC Prep + Prime Fix+ on my face. The spray is a hydrator, locks in moisture and removes that powdery finish that can look quite aging. Available at MAC for $27.

Whew, all done, time to go!

Until next time xx
 

New York Guide

Last July I travelled with Mr P and our grown up kids to New York. Here’s some of our hot tips for what to do, what to see and where to eat.

View north from the One World Trade Centre building

Accommodation

We AirBNB’d it in an apartment in Brooklyn for 13 nights. It was a 2-storey townhouse with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a washer/dryer, so it pretty much felt as comfortable as home. We ate breakfast there each day and had the occasional dinner there at night. Living with the locals was exactly the experience we were after.

Transport

We bought Metro Cards and topped them up for the 13 days of travelling. The subway is easy to navigate with a little bit of research before you arrive in New York. It’s also cheap, regular and reliable. Our advice would be to avoid the peak hour commute as it can get very busy. We also took taxis to and from the airport and on evenings when it was raining and we couldn’t face catching the subway and walking through the often flooded streets. Taxis were cheap and plentiful. We walked pretty much everywhere else we could and clocked up an average of 13 kilometres a day. Good comfy shoes are a must.

Sights you must see

In order of preference:

1.     National September 11 Memorial & Museum – it was an overcast rainy day when we visited but I’m sure you will still feel sombre when viewing the site whatever the weather, we spent hours inside the Museum (which is ironically beneath the World Trade Centre footings), a truly tasteful tribute to those that lost their lives

2.     Brooklyn Bridge – walking across it felt like such a New York thing to do, the vistas are incredible, you won’t be able to put the camera down

3.     Broadway Show – any show but if Wicked is on go and see that

4.     Rockefeller Building – the best observation deck by far because of the better view of Central Park, purchase the Sun and Stars ticket so you can ascend twice in one day

5.     Times Square – trashy, tacky but just gotta be done, sit on the red steps above the TKTS Booth and just take it all in, a great spot for people watching and trust me, you’ll see it all

6.     Wall Street – a must to take a shot of the Stock Exchange, Federal Building, Trinity Church and the Charging Bull

7.     Flatiron Building – such an iconic New York building

 

8.     Grand Central Terminal – again you just must do it, I just wished there was a flash mob in there when we visited

9.     Radio City Music Hall – because it such a great spot to photograph and the buildings opposite are spookily like the former World Trade Centre buildings

10.     Central Park – massive but the best spots are the Loeb Boathouse, Conservatory Water, Bow Bridge, Bethesda Terrace, Mall and Fountain (the backdrop for countless movies)

11.     Mulberry Street’s Little Italy district – for your fill of cannoli, pasta and gelato, they also have an amazing Christmas shop

12.     Harbour Cruise, Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island tour – it was a last minute decision to go but a good choice, I wouldn’t however spend the money and visit the crown again (perhaps I have issues with claustrophobia) but the rest of it was fabulous, gorgeous views of lower Manhattan to be had 

13.     The Met (Metropolitan Museum of Art) 5th Avenue – extensive museum that has to be seen to be believed, we enjoyed the Greek and Roman galleries, the Egyptian wing, the Astor Court and painting collections, expect to spend a few hours here, great views of the New York skyline and Central Park from the Roof Garden

14.     Plaza Hotel Fifth Avenue – because it’s opulent and is worth a walk through

15.     The High Line – refurbished elevated railway tracks that have been transformed into a grassy promenade, amazing river and city views, a great spot for photography

16.     Chelsea Market – if you walk The High Line you might as well visit the markets and grab a super lunch there, the gelato at L’Arte Del Gelato is superb

17.     Carrie Bradshaw’s stoop at 66 Perry Street – fans of Sex in the City should walk the beautiful streets of this part of New York and check out the external location used

18.     One World Trade Centre – the observation deck took a bit of getting used to (felt a bit eerie to us) but well worth it for the views

19.     Empire State Building – even though Rockefeller is better it’s still worth visiting a building built in 1930 and just marvelling at the engineering feat that it is

20.     Shopping in SoHo – Spring Street is an amazing street filled with boutiques and cafes and certainly a spot that I’d love to live in New York if given half a chance

Supermarkets/Pharmacy

1.     Wholefoods Supermarket – we simply loved this place and on a few occasions got some great stuff that was enough for dinner at home

2.     CVS – a brilliant pharmacy were I discovered my favourite Vichy serum, they have such an extraordinary array of drugstore makeup and skincare

3.     Walgreens – because it’s almost as good as CVS

Dining Out

In order of preference again:

1.     Carmine’s, 200 West 44th St – just off Times Square, enormous portions (share size) of delectable Italian food, if you’re Sicilian the stuffed artichokes are just like Mumma used to make, reservations are a must

2.     Shake Shack – despite me trying to be as healthy as possible, if I’m going to have a blow-out this is the place to do it, the buns may be overly sweet but the burgers are fabulous and you just have to try to the frozen custard – it tastes way better than it sounds, it’s a chain of burger places so there are plenty to choose from in the City

3.     Eataly NYC Restaurant near the Flatiron Building – a gelataria, a butcher, a bakery, a patisserie, a bottle shop, a café, a bar, a restaurant, you really just have to see it to believe it, heaps of food options here, we ate at Birerria which is a rooftop beer garden with pasta that is to die for

4.     Pasticceria Rocco, 7 Carmine Street – a must whilst in the Meatpacking district, this really reminded us of a pasticceria that we visited in Sorrento Italy, I suggest you try the lobster tails and cannoli

5.     Veniero Pasticceria, 342 East 11th Street – another incredible pastry shop reminiscent of Italy, good if you’re in the East Village district, pastries as good as No. 4

6.     Magnolia Bakery (in the Meatpacking district or inside Bloomingdales) – our hot tip is to try the red velvet cupcakes

7.     Burger Joint – hidden inside the Le Parker Meridian hotel and when I mean hidden you will need to ask the hotel staff where it is, inside is an incredible burger hut with graffiti scrawled walls, retro booths and burgers to delight

8.     Rubirosa Ristorante, 235 Mulberry Street – great pizzas and pasta at the northern end of Little Italy

9.     Joe’s Shanghai, 9 Pell Street – cheap as chips dumplings in the heart of Chinatown, you will need to queue for this restaurant but it’s worth the wait

10.     Kefi, 505 Columbus Ave – if you’re up on the Upper West Side and feel like Greek food this is the place for you, bring a jumper the air con is freezing

11.     Ippudo, 65 4th Ave – if you like ramen you will love this joint, hidden behind a timber façade

12.     Katz’s Delicatessen – featured in the movie When Harry Met Sally, unfortunately we didn’t have room in our bellies to eat here but I’m pretty sure if would be worth experiencing a jumbo pastrami sandwich

13.     Vapiano – just like Australia if you want something easy and quick that you know, I think it actually tasted better in the US

Shopping

1.     Tiffany & Co – if you don’t know why, you must watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s

2.     Sephora – just my favourite place in the world, so much better than Australia because the brand range is broader, check the prices before you leave because you might be surprised to find that some brands are cheaper in Australia when you factor in US State taxes and the exchange rate

3.     MAC – any New York MAC store as the prices are to die for, you will realise how much we are slugged here in Australia

4.     Zara – because it’s my favourite shop in the world, why else?

5.     Bergdorf Goodman – because they stock Charlotte Tilbury makeup, again why else?

Look up you'll be surprised what you see

Weather

I had read that if it rains in New York, it rains! Well that advice was correct. Don’t go anywhere without an umbrella because when the heavens open they pretty much downpour and flood the streets.

Until next time xx