Review: Oh My Gloss! Rimmel Lip Glosses & Swatches*

Rimmel have just released a brand new line of lip glosses called Oh My Gloss!. How cute is that clever play on words? Honestly, I'm more of a lipstick than lip gloss lass, but I'll always try new products from brands I love, in the hopes of discovering a gem. I was lucky enough to be sent three PR samples from the range to try out:

Love Bug - pale baby pink
Pin Up - bright hot pink
Rebel Red - deep cherry red

There are eight shades in the range (check them out here), including clear, nudes, pinks, mauves and reds, and the claim is that they will stay glossy for 'up to 6 hours'.

Rimmel say: "Formulated with Argan Oil and Vitamin E, Oh My Gloss! provides a cushion soft feel for lips. The formula also features Rimmel’s clever ‘Gloss Lock’ technology, which delivers an elevated, long-lasting 3-dimensional shine. The formula delivers up to 6 hours of colour, shine, comfort and moisture for your lips."

Packaging
I think Rimmel have done a fantastic job with the packaging of this line. The glosses look sexy in their clear plastic tubes, and the stylish twisted triangular packaging is sturdy and clicks shut securely. You can see the shade through the tube, you get a fair bit of product (6.5ml) for your money and the plastic is thick, so it wont break easily. The doe-foot applicator wand is another stroke of genius, because the sponge tip tapers off into a flat end, making application effortless.

Top to bottom - Love Bug, Pin Up, Rebel Red

Colours
I'll start with Love Bug. This shimmery pale pink/practically clear when applied gloss is not really my cup of tea, as it tends to wash me out (this happens a lot, as I'm quite the ghost). It's pretty, but I just prefer something with a bit more punch, colour-wise. I'm thinking I'll use this over the top of lipstick to give shine and dimension to my lips.

LOVE BUG

Pin Up is a bold, fun, hot pink that brightens my look and makes me feel happy. I can see myself reaching for this gloss on a wet day or when I'm down in the dumps as it's an instant mood lifter. It's really pretty and flattering and is my favourite of the three Oh My Gloss shades I received, and the one I'll get the most use out of!

PIN UP

Rebel Red is the sexy, adventurous one and definitely something I'd wear on a night out. It doesn't apply as intense as it looks in the tube, and in looking at my close-up lip swatches, it did appear slightly patchy in some of them. I definitely need to wear a lip liner with Rebel Red, otherwise I'd worry it may bleed with time. I like that it leaves a slight red-tinged stain on the lips as it wears off, or if I blot it (yes, sometimes I blot my lipgloss off if I can't stand the wet feel!). In playing around with it, I discovered my preference for applying a thin layer, as I think it looks great sheered out (see photos below).

REBEL RED: normal amount applied

REBEL RED: less applied so it's sheerer

Wear
These glosses feel super smooth on the lips and are very comfortable to wear. They aren't sticky, and just feel really nice on, probably thanks to the Vitamin E and Argan Oil ingredients. As I mentioned with Rebel Red, there is a faint stain left after they wear off, and a lip liner helps keep everything in place and eradicate feathering or bleeding. Six hours of wear is overstating things, because these lasted just a few hours on me, I guess that's why Rimmel say up to six hours! I needed to re-apply the gloss after eating, but that's nothing new with gloss products. These give a really shiny look and make your lips look very juicy! I'm impressed by the formula, as it is very comfortable, shiny and smooth, but I'd be surprised if anyone actually achieved six hours of wear with these glosses.

Overall, the Rimmel Oh My Gloss! lip glosses are well-packaged and stylish with pretty colours, great feel on the lips, shiny finish and the only real flaw is they don't last six hours!

RRP $13.95
Stockists: Priceline, Target, Kmart, Big W, Chemist Warehouse, selected Coles and Woolworths and selected pharmacies.

*Disclaimer: These products were provided for editorial consideration. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion. No payment was received. For more information, check out my Disclosure page.

Will you be checking out the Rimmel Oh My Gloss! range?

Mani: MAC Festive Finery!

I won this grey/purple MAC cream nail lacquer years ago (I can't remember where from), but have only worn it once! I won the OPI Top Coat from a recent Adore Beauty Instagram competition where I submitted a photo of my glittery-nailed fingers caressing Rob Pattinson's face. Unfortunately it was just a picture of Rob's face and not the real thing. Anyhoo, I won both of these polishes (which is better than paying for them), so let's go ahead and Nail It!

I've Used:
Two coats of MAC nail lacquer in Festive Finery
One coat of OPI Top Coat

What nail colours are you loving right now?

Priceline 40% Off HairCare Haul!

I think I may singlehandedly be keeping Priceline in business with the amount of money I've been giving them lately! There was my Cosmetics Bag GWP Haul and hubby threw some cash their way to get me Lady Gaga's Fame, YSL's Parisienne and Katy Perry's Royal Revolution for Mother's Day in their fragrance sale, too. And there's still the Skincare GWP to go!

Let's talk HairCare, though. My hair has been giving me a fair bit of grief lately. It's naturally fine, but lately it's becoming increasingly difficult to inject some volume into it. I need to cut an inch or so off, as that usually gives me a little more body, but I'm getting frustrated with how flat and lifeless it appears. I use volume shampoo, conditioner and mousse plus various root booster sprays and thickening lotions, so I'm really throwing everything at it and I'm just not getting the results I used to. So I used the 40% off sale as an opportunity to buy a bunch of volumising products (plus a few extras) in the hopes of finding something that works well for me. Fingers crossed that something in this massive haul is a miracle worker!

Batiste Dry Shampoo XXL Volume (x 2) - my favourite ever dry shampoo because it gives me extra volume from the roots. When this goes on special, I stock up, as it's a staple in my hair styling routine. Check out my mini-review here.

Batiste Dry Shampoo Light & Blonde - I use dry shampoo every day, so I go through it fairly fast. I've tried this before and just decided to get this to mix things up a bit.

L'Oreal Elvive Fibralogy Thickening Serum - I've gone through about four bottles of this, and when used daily, I can easily finish a bottle in a few weeks. If it's on special I'll get it, because it's a lovely product that does give my hair body, providing I scrunch it through properly. I'm not loving it as much as I used to, though, going by this post where it made my Favourites last year!

L'Oreal Elvive Fibralogy Thickening Shampoo - Another repurchase, because this one is quite good. I do have a fair few bottles of shampoo in the cupboard waiting to be used up at the moment though!

Fudge Root Juice - this is a 'medium hold root booster for extra volume and grunt'. I will give anything a go that claims to provide body from the roots and I'm loving a few other Fudge products at the moment, so hopefully this is just as good.

VO5 MattClay - I included one product for hubby, because it makes me feel slightly less guilty about this huge haul! I can also use this on my son's hair, so it was a no-brainer.

VO5 Give Me Texture Tousled Style Spray - I still don't know if texture is a good idea when you have fine hair, as you don't want it to go too piecey, but I'll give this a go. I'm thinking it will be similar to salt spray.

Toni & Guy Glamour 3D Volumiser - this sounds promising. I'm expecting miraculous results from this 'volume boost with a spritz of shine' spray. No pressure or anything!

Pantene Light Detangling Spray - I'll only need to use this right before I wash my hair. That's when it's at its tangliest. I don't blame it, with multiple days worth of dry shampoo, serums, various sprays and lacquer through it!

Schwarzkopf Ultime Sea Salt Texture Spray - I just finished off my Tigi Catwalk Session Series Salt Spray and thought I'd try this as a replacement. Schwarzkopf is a good brand and all salt sprays would be pretty similar ingredient-wise, wouldn't they?

I'm joining up with the Fabulous And Fun Life MakeUp Linky Party. Join in!

Have you used any of these products?

Mani: Essie Fifth Avenue Plus Gold Glitter!

Welcome to my latest mani! I wanted to try Fifth Avenue by Essie, which I recently acquired in the Priceline Beauty Bag offer (blogged at the link), because Essie is one brand I haven't had much experience with. I've paired it with Face It dense gold glitter polish in GL111 for a feature nail and used BYS Million Dollar Baby top coat, because the multi-sized gold glitter pieces tie in perfectly with the whole look!

I stuffed up and forgot to leave my ring fingernails bare, covering them in the orangey red lacquer. Oops! So I had to apply two coats of Face It GL111 over the top, and you can still see the red on the edges of those nails, but there's not much I can do about it! I'm happy I thought of a way to use a top coat that matched my theme, because normally I forego this step altogether out of sheer laziness. I'm impressed with the Essie formula; it's smooth and very easy to apply. This is only one coat of red Fifth Avenue!

One coat of Essie Fifth Avenue

Plus two coats of Face It gold polish on the ring finger

Plus one coat of BYS Million Dollar Baby top coat

You can see the red edges under the gold nail. Oops! LOL

Holding my new Lady Gaga Fame fragrance!

What nail polish have you been loving lately?

Priceline Cosmetics Bag GWP!

Priceline's latest offer, running from April 30 to May 11 (or while stocks last) is a free Cosmetics Gift Bag with a qualifying spend of $60 or more on cosmetics from participating brands. After taking a look at those participating brands (including Essie, Sally Hansen, Rimmel, Revlon and Innoxa) I knew I could get to $60 pretty easily! Here's what I bought, and everything I got in my Beauty Bag.....

My qualifying spend products

Cosmetics Bought:
Models Prefer Ultra Lipgloss Pencil in Perfectly Polished
Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in Asia
Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in Firecracker
Savvy Lipstick in Hot Pink
Savvy Nourishing Lip Liner in Chestnut
Savvy Classic Blush in Rose
Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara
Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Top Coat

The bag itself

Cosmetics Gift Bag contents

Gift With Purchase:
Beauty Bag - perfect for storing my makeup and beauty products on trips away.
EcoTools Bath Sponge - always handy to have a spare one I guess.
Savvy Clear Brow Gel - I probably won't use this as my fair brows need coloured volumiser, eg Benefit Gimme Brow.
Rimmel Scandaleyes Rockin' Curves Mascara - I'm interested to try this. The product design is cute!
Physicians Formula Organic Wear Fake Out Mascara - Fibre mascara is always fun to use.
Glam Eyes Beyonce Lashes - These look dramatic. I like that they're pre-glued.
Innoxa Natural Finish Makeup in Buttermilk - I'm guessing this is too dark for me but it's sealed so I can't check without opening it. I might have to see if they have testers instore.
Nude By Nature Mineral Lip Gloss in Flirty - I like the colour and hope this will be flattering.
Models Prefer Glossy Lip Tint in Best Of Britain - this colour is not going to suit me and I'll probably give it away.
Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Coquette - I'm really disappointed I got this colour. Again, this type of candy pink shade does nothing for me. Any other shade would have been better.
Natio Nail Colour in Stardust - I've never tried Natio polishes and this colour looks lovely.
Essie Nail Lacquer in Fifth Avenue - I'm very happy with this shade. Yay!
Sally Hansen Triple Shine Nail Colour in Flame On - I do not like this garish shade one bit.
L'Oreal Color Riche Nail Polish in Divine Indigo - Seriously, WTF? Why am I getting all the drag queen shades?
Glam Manicure Express 3 in 1 Nail Art Pen in Sparkling Silver - Not gonna lie, I'm excited about this.
Nail Rock Nail Velvet in Burgundy - I'm eager to try this out! Another fascinating product.
L'Oreal Base Magique Primer sample - I'll save this for travelling since it's little.
L'Oreal True Match Foundation sample sachet - Golden Beige will be too dark for me.
Offer card for $6 off Essie nail colour - I'll definitely use this. I don't have many Essie polishes.

It contains no less than six nail products

For the full list of participating brands and terms and conditions of the offer, see the relevant Priceline Goody Bag page.

Disclaimer: Everything here was bought with my own money. All opinions are my own.

Did you get the Priceline Gift Bag? Were you happy with it?

Review: Maggie Beer Soup Range!

Three soups from the Maggie Beer range

I was excited to receive a media release recently, regarding the Maggie Beer range of soups. Here in South Australia, Maggie is a bit of a local treasure! You may be familiar with Maggie through her ABC TV show The Cook and the Chef, her appearances on Channel 10's MasterChef or perhaps her many successful cookbooks. She also runs The Farm Shop in the Barossa Valley and sells her gourmet products online. Of course, with the imminent onset of winter in Australia, it's the perfect time of year to be talking about soup. It's comfort food that warms the heart and the soul!

Maggie Beer: "My food philosophy will always remain; to cook from the heart, making the most of each and every ingredient I have to hand. Taste and quality are paramount in the creation of my range. My aim is to make the very best products available to everyone, regardless of cooking skills or the time restrictions of a busy lifestyle. I hope I can share my love of a good food life with you all."

There are five flavours in Maggie's heat and eat Soup range: old favourites Minestrone; Pea & Ham; Sweet Potato, Pear & Ginger plus two newbies, Mushroom and Lamb & Lentil. I love the pouch packaging. It's easy to rip off the top and either stand the pouch up in the microwave, or heat on the stove in a saucepan. At only 2-3 minutes in the microwave or 5 minutes on the stove, this is a meal that is convenient, simple to prepare and ready to serve in next to no time. I appreciate having a healthy dinner option in the house, and on nights where I really can't be bothered fussing around in the kitchen, these soups are a great alternative to ordering a pizza! Here are my thoughts on the three flavours I was sent......

Lamb & Lentil

Lamb & Lentil
This soup was delicious. Packed full of vegetables and tasty herbs, the lamb pieces were tender and succulent. This pretty much defines Winter (it is coming, you know) comfort food for me; hearty, meaty soup dense with healthy vegies. Even the lentils were yummy, and I'm not usually a lentil lover. I served this with cracked black pepper sprinkled over the top for some kick and it added the perfect final touch.

Ingredients include chicken stock, parsnip, celery, onion, verjuice, dijon mustard, lamb and brown lentils.

Pea & Ham

Pea & Ham
This was my favourite of the three soups. Again, this soup's chock a block with small chunky vegies. It's creamy, and the aroma of the ham in particular is a standout. The flavours meld perfectly together, with the bacon adding a lovely smokiness. This tasted fresher than tinned soup, and I'm not sure if the pouch packaging has anything to do with it, or if it's the gourmet recipe. My pea-despising husband surprisingly enjoyed this soup (he seriously hates peas), and commented it was really nice, so Maggie Beer is very talented indeed!

Ingredients include green split peas, chicken stock, bacon, grated carrot, garlic paste and extra virgin olive oil.

Sweet Potato, Pear & Ginger

Sweet Potato, Pear & Ginger
Hubby and I ate this last, because out of the three, it sounded the most like a dessert soup! What an intriguing combination of flavours! When I first tasted this silky smooth soup, I was taken aback, because it's a strange taste. The pear really comes to the forefront flavour-wise, and I can't say I really even tasted the ginger, such was the subtlety of it. But my tastebuds adjusted to the unusual concoction, and I ended up enjoying it! This is a great Vegetarian option.

Ingredients include vegetable stock, tomato, parsley, garlic, bay leaves, cream, lemon juice, thyme and white pepper.

RRP $8.49 each (500g)
Check out the Where To Buy page on Maggie's website for a Stockist near you.

Disclaimer: These products were provided for consideration. I was not paid. All reviews are my honest opinion.

What flavour takes your fancy?