Bi-Weekly Notes — #6

A poem called "Thinking" I discovered by a photo posted by Elaine got me thinking, ironically. The way we train ourselves to think can be the actual outcome of what we keep telling ourselves, so perhaps if we changed the way we think we could be a better version of ourselves? Think, I can therefore I am. (A play on “I think, therefore I am”)

Thinking  ⎯

If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you'd like to win, but you think you can't,
It is almost a certain - you won't.
For out in this world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will
It's all in the state of mind.
If you think you're outclassed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise.
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win the prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the one who thinks he can. 

Walter D. Wintle

 NEW IN ⎯  

Inspiration  –  Art galleries and museums, are one of my favourite places to visit. Though I wish I visited them more often it's nice to be able to explore one I have never been to before. I was so inspired by many of the quirky art pieces displayed at the Fremantle Art Centre and at MANY Projects, it has definitely motivated my creative side. A few of my favourite art pieces The Colonial Frame and Letters to the Sea. 

Oh, and this print of Rupi Kaur's poetry from her new book 

The Sun and Her Flowers is so beautiful and inspiring. (photo header)

Updates  –

• Taking Anna around the best parts of Perth's CBD during the short time we had together last week was definitely the highlight of my week. We met up for dinner along Beaufort Street where she was staying and had dinner at Solo Pasta followed by dessert at Measure Bar where I treated Anna to a few immaculate dishes they had on their new Spring menu. I of, course had to get her their famous Beignet Donuts, they are to die for and I was so thrilled she loved them too. The following day we spent most of it around Northbridge and parts of CBD, we basically visited every place you can think of, some I had on my "to visit list", so it was really nice to be able to tick those places off with Anna. The new Perth City library, A zine vending machine, Flora & Fauna, Miyu, Pretzels, Teassential, Planet Books, Murals all around Northbridge just to name a few. 

• Attending an art workshop with my niece on Thursday where we created some mini booklets of our artwork. Mine was of course home interior and indoor plant themed. I had so much fun and was nice to have some aunty and niece time together.

• Saturday was well spent with Carina and Elaine where we went to check out the new launch of The Wild Stem at Stackwood followed by a nice tour of the hidden gems Fremantle had to offer. The girls took me to some places I had never even known of within Fremantle and we had such a beautiful day sipping lots of chai and exploring stunning art galleries, creative shops and bookstores.  

 CURRENTLY ⎯ 

Doing  –  watercolour painting, testing out my new palette from Kuretake.

Reading  –   The Book of Invisible Questions by Lala Bohang, I love her pure words and I adore this book so much. Anna gifted this to me, one of the most thoughtful gifts I've ever received.

Working  –   on which type of blinds or curtains to get for our house. How can something like this be so tedious and hard to decide on?

Wanting  –   more hours in a day.

 TOP PICKS ⎯ 

Instagram / Blogger  –  My ever so wonderful friend Alexis, has incredible taste when it comes to basically everything and anything you can think of, I truly admire her. Recently, she launched a new business with her friend Libby called Launch Creative Co and I am so proud of her. Give her some love and follow @amgoorie / www.amgoorie.co

Lifestyle product  –  My typewriter, I've almost forgotten how much I love using this nifty machine. I've been typing a lot of quotes, poems and letters on this beauty. 

Beauty product  –  *Tatcha Silk Cream has seriously changed the texture of my skin. During winter my skin became extremely dry and flakey and thanks to this gem I have seen an incredible difference, it's become more supple, soft and overall texture of my skin is so smooth and hydrated. Now I just need to dig into my savings when I run out of this baby ⎯ eek! 

Bi-Weekly Notes — #5

I think when there is a delay on my Bi-Weekly Notes due to unforeseen events, it takes a bit of time to get back on track again. I'm so far a week behind schedule, however for me I would like to post causally and not force myself to catch up and be on time each post. I know it's called bi-weekly notes, but I'm quite happy for it to be a bi-week starting from any time of the week. It's still a few weeks between each post. Also if you've been wondering why I've been quiet on my Instagram account @amourjnfr, it's because most of my time has been spent on my private account @bonjourjnfr ⎯ I've been enjoying posting more personalised content on there and if I am completely honest, I haven't been feeling motivated by my main account for a while now.

   NEW IN ⎯  

Inspiration  –  Honestly, nothing new has really been inspiring me lately. I have been feeling a little uninspired, though the regular things that inspire me still keeps me going. I've noticed since working on the other side of the city I've come to realise how beautiful nature is, even more so than I realised. You could say nature has been inspiring me a lot lately. I always feel so happy when I see birds, trees, beautiful parks, etc. I especially love the little Willie Wagtails that keep greeting me each time I'm around that area. I've snapped a few images of them. 1, 2, 3. 

Updates  –

• Last week we received confirmation that the next stages of our home will be under construction this week. The foundation slab has been laid for our house (on Wednesday) and it is the most exciting thing to see each stage slowly form. We've been documenting every stage and I can't wait to see it continue to build up slowly. It makes it even more special to see your very first house get built one layer at a time. 

• An old friend of mine from Melbourne has booked a long weekend trip to Perth to visit for the first time (it's long weekend over there for them this week). I'll be seeing Anna for dinner tonight and taking her around town tomorrow morning. I can't wait to see her again. 

 CURRENTLY ⎯  

Focusing  –  on what makes me happy and the things I enjoy doing the most. I've been taking a step back and re-evaluating the important things and prioritising those.

Working  –  on social media and PR work for a new company I've been working at. I am so excited and it's been a really great month. I'm loving every bit of it!

Wanting  –  to continue shopping my makeup and skincare stash without purchasing any new products until they are finished. I have a box filled with products I've been wanting to finish up and so far it's going great. I also have another bag filled with empties of which I am very proud of. That satisfying feeling of using up an entire tube ⎯ pure bliss.

 TOP PICKS ⎯  

Instagram / Blogger  –  Lavanya is such a beautiful soul, I love her content and I always look forward to her posts and chatting to her. We recently became pen pals and are currently putting together a little surprise in the mail for each other, yay! Show her some love and give her a follow @elle_files / www.ellefiles.com

Lifestyle product  –  My new black Circular Shoulder Bag from COS that the Mr surprised me with last week. It has been on my wish list since the store opened up here in Perth. I am so in love!

Beauty product  – This beautiful Rose Perfume Oil gifted to me from Imogen.

My Go-To Makeup

I've worked within the beauty industry for several years now and although I have moved on from being a makeup artist to working within the beauty side of PR, I have noticed my routine for my makeup application has changed drastically. I use to wear a full face of makeup daily for work as it is of course a given that comes with the job and I was loving being creative with my looks each shift. However, since I've moved into the more office side of things I can't pull that same look each day, therefore my daily makeup routine has become much more minimal. In some ways I am loving this change as with makeup it doesn't matter how much or how less you wear, it’s whatever makes you feel confident and enhances the beauty you already have. Having a much more simpler makeup application is ideal for me as it suits my current lifestyle. Occasionally, I like to go back to being more creative with my makeup on night outs or special occasions but in terms of daily wear this is what I have reached for the most and my perfect application routine.

| Surprisingly I haven't been reaching for much highlight/illuminating products, bronzers or even eyeshadow.

 MY GO-TO MAKEUP 

 BASE ⎯ 

• Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint in Medium 

• RMS Un-Cover Up Concealer in #22 

• Soap & Glory One Heck of a Blot Powder

 CHEEKS ⎯ 

• RMS Lip2Cheek in Spell

 BROWS ⎯ 

• Glossier Boy Brow in Brown

 EYES ⎯ 

• Chanel Le Volume Mascara 

 LIPS ⎯ 

• Go-To Pinky Nudey Lips Lip Balm

 FRAGRANCE ⎯ 

• * Riddle Oil in Muse 

FAVOURITE  MAKEUP TOOL ⎯   

• Surratt Beauty Relevée Lash Curler 

 

Swatches L-R (Swatched + Blended T-B )  ⎯   Go-To Pinky Nudey Lips and RMS Lip2Cheek in Spell.

⎯ My Bi-Weekly Notes #5 will be up next Friday.

Bi-Weekly Notes — #4

If there is one thing that can always brighten my day it is in the form of a plant, a bouquet of blooms to be precise. Each time I fill my entire house with all kinds of flowers and plants it just makes all the difference. I've been feeling under the weather lately hence my absence on social media and blog which also explains the delay of my bi-weekly notes. That is why I've decided although I am late I will post one regardless of the timing. As I was saying, I've been feeling sick so having flowers around have definitely kept my spirits up.

What I've been doing a lot lately is drying out a few of the flowers I want to preserve or pressing them in old books. My idea is to later frame them in our house one day as art, so no flower goes to waste. I am still yet to master the way to keeping plants alive and for them to not die on me, so far many of my plants and flowers are going strong but I do notice many of my flowers don't last as long as I think it should.

I must admit I am not someone who often visits local florists as much as I want to here in Perth, mainly because of time, distance and that there are so many options. Though, it is always so lovely to be able to visit a florist in person a lot of the time it isn't realistic to do so. This stunning arrangement of flowers placed in this cutesy mason jar was kindly delivered for me from the folks at *Flower Bros last week. I love the story on how James and Jay started their little business. With no clue about flowers or what type of blooms to get for their wives, they wanted to build something special out of it by providing quality and value to their services. They supply and deliver the most stunning blooms in different forms, from a mason jar (my fav) to a bouquet or box ⎯ I'm guessing with the help of the women in their lives they've aced it. It's always nice to know there is an actual flower delivery service within Perth that is of fun and quality I can now use if I am ever in need of more blooms, without having to visit a store if I am lost for time.

There's nothing quite like a vase filled with the most prettiest blooms. It's always great discovering local Perth florists that specialise in flower delivery services within Perth. Flowers Bros is located in the nooks of Claremont and deliver all your floral needs. I am in love with my beautiful jar that's filled with a variety of my favourite blooms. Now I'm just waiting for Peony season to arrive.

When I take photography having some form of plant/flower in the background or as a prop always makes all the difference to each photo. Even our home, it brings so much life into it and if I could I would have a bouquet of flowers in a vase every single day. I could take photos or create paintings of plants and flowers all the time and never get bored of it, the vibrant colours of each petal is just mesmerising.

  NEW IN ⎯  

Inspiration  –  My saved collection tab on my Instagram. Mixture of home interior, stationery and art and plants giving me all the inspo I need right now. 

Updates  –

• I created a new personal account on Instagram @bonjourjnfr where I posts more behind the scenes type of photos of my life that I don't share else where. (I won't be accepting all follow requests, this is only for those who interact with a lot and are close to me.) 

• Stationery, ah my pure addiction ⎯ MiGoals newest launch of their *Get Shit Done (GSD) Notebooks/Notepads have launched and they're amazing. I was kindly gifted a few of their launch to try out and I am diggin' the craft and khaki tones and the added pocket at the back of their notebook is always a bonus. These have been keeping me organised and on top of my to-do lists. 

• The Mr and I have been jotting down all the types of plants we want to have within our home as well as a vege patch and fruit tree. I also need a flower garden too. 

 CURRENTLY ⎯  

Doing  –  the index and layout to my new journal ⎯ I just finished my current journal and now it's time to crack open a new one,  best feeling ever. I found these A6 notebooks that are ink friendly and with French made smooth high quality paper from Clairefontaine at a bookstore.

Reading  –  Little Black Book by Otegha Uwagba ⎯ needing all the advice I can get!

Working  –  on some exciting new adventures I've just started and I can't wait to learn and experience this new path.

Wanting  –  to keep donating my unused/unwanted belongings and just continue living with less. I've made over 5 trips to the donations boxes and plan to continue.

 TOP PICKS ⎯  

Instagram / Blogger  –  Kate is another fellow Perthian and I just adore her posts on Instagram and all the little shopping hauls and places she visits, not to mention the delicious foods pics she is always capturing. Go show some love and follow her @kateemay / www.kateelizabethmay.blogspot.com

Music  –  Nothing beats old school R&B from the 90's to 2000's, that's what I've been listening to non-stop on my playlist. Monica's Angel of Mine, anyone?

Beauty product  –  Tatcha Exfoliating Rice Enzyme Powder has been my go-to cleanser daily (sometimes paired with my Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser) and I just love how it thoroughly cleanses and exfoliates so gently without stripping my skin of any natural oils. 

Bi-Weekly Notes — #3

Do you ever get that feeling of wanting to just book a small trip somewhere far away pronto? I am currently feeling that at the moment ⎯ having a few thoughts on doing a little getaway soon. I've spent a lot of my days off exploring and doing different things. A few things I use to do years ago that I had forgotten I found so much pleasure in doing, things such as visiting the markets on a Sunday morning has been on the occasion every so months and flower picking. I would love to do a little road trip down to beautiful Albany again ⎯ it's been years. I love the country side and miss the horses, paddocks and beautiful hills. I'm at that point of needing a good digital/city life detox.

I've been really into watercolour painting and have bought quite a few sets to do a little bit of work on ⎯ my favourite is painting anything nature themed. Visiting art supply stores has been on the regular these last few weeks, goodbye money, hello colour palettes. The only thing I need to do now is find a good storage system for it all.

I also added a new sidebar header to my blog called "Categories" (thanks to the original designer herself Alexis for creating another sub-header for my blog). This is a way for you to be able to navigate around my posts with ease. I've categorise each of my posts with certain labels so you can find what type of post you're looking for. ie. Bi-Weekly Notes and previous Let's Catch Up has its own label so if you would like to catch up on any past posts you can simply click on the label.

 NEW IN ⎯  

Inspiration  –  Jordan Clark is such a wonderful creator. Her content is by far one of my favourites and I find her YouTube videos so therapeutic and aesthetically pleasing. Her art and journalling videos are so creative and I gain a lot of inspiration to do more with my art and stationery supplies. 

Updates  –

• On Thursday the 10/8, we attended our final pre-start meeting with our home builder to get all our submissions of each colour selection for our home interior and exterior finalised. FINITO! 

• My Dylan Kain tote bag was recently damaged, the seams of the handles were coming apart and I had only own it since March this year (it was a birthday gift from my beautiful sister). Thankfully, they have a good warranty replacement system and I sent it off to get it replaced. It arrived a few weeks ago and I am so happy to be reunited with it again. It is my day/work bag and fits my MacBook and journals perfectly.

• I made a custom order of my Amour JNFR logo in the form of a miniature stamp and it arrived just this last week. It is so cute and the perfect size for my pencil case. I am planning to use this for quite a few projects I'm working on. It makes for the perfect signature stamp. See it in action here.  

• On Saturday the 19/8, the Mr and I dropped by our block of land to take some photographs on the tripod together to document each stage of our home building journey. It was such a lovely moment and with plenty of hilarious and failed moments. 

• The Mr and I spent our Saturday night at my sister's place with our niece for dinner (a marvellous Italian feast we had). My sister and I did some flower/leaf pressing/drying and she gave me this beautiful Polka dot plant ⎯ how stunning are the pink and green leaves? Her house/garden is filled with so many beautiful plants, she also gave me a bouquet of Lavender which I am planning on drying out as well. I love pressing flowers and leaves in old books ⎯ the results are always so beautiful. I am creating a collage to frame as art work within our new home.   

PR mail  –  

• MiGoals Get Shit Done Notebook Launch (Mid August) 

• Lady Burgundy Matte Lip Creams (Mid August)

 CURRENTLY ⎯  

Doing  –  furniture and appliance window shopping for our home. Scrapbooking every cut-out I find in magazines for ideas.

Reading  –  back issues of Fete Magazine. It's so lovely to be able to borrow these back issues from the library and gain more inspiration for our home.

Working  –  on putting together letters to pen pals. I love writing letters and putting together snail mail packages. 

Wanting  –  to catch up on my never ending to-do list. I have so much to do, but I am so happy to be organising my time efficiently. I'm determined to get the important things done and leave some leisure time for myself too.

 TOP PICKS ⎯  

Instagram / Blogger  –  Tina Sosna has this magical touch when it comes to everything she creates. I adore her style and how peaceful she comes across as. She makes YouTube videos, blogs, has an Instagram as well as a beautiful little handmade shop which I've been buying a few of her handmade goods from. I highly recommend her work. 

Music  –  Bon Iver is a major throw back for me, I've always loved his music. If I was to choose a favourite singer it would most definitely be Bon Iver. I can listen to his tunes forever.

Beauty product  –  Go-To Pinky-Nudey Lips is divine, it is perfect for those winter chapped lips and gives an overall sheer tint of pink to your lips and smells delicious. I always have it in the pocket of my coat.

The other week I did some bookbinding and handmade my very first notebook with card stock paper (and a pencil case/pouch, not pictured). I hand sewed each signature and covered it with this floral fabric. It's a little on the rough side, of course being my first time actually making a book ⎯ but I'm loving how it turned out.

Care Package Swap With @chyism

Earlier this year my blogger friend Cindy and I did a care package swap with one another. I must admit, this is by far the BEST mail swap I have ever done, I would say the best in history too. We definitely went all out and it felt so lovely to be able to pick up so many goodies we both had on our wish lists for each other. It's taken both of us so long to get posting on our platforms about our swap, mainly because we've been bombarded with life itself and let's face it, this swap is absolutely epic therefore it needs that extra bit of time to properly put together ⎯ and I am so thrilled to be uploading it now as I have been working on it for so long. We also decided to use this time to properly test out most of the products we sent to each other so we could get a proper in take of it all. If you would like to see what I sent to Cindy, check out the beautiful post she put together about it here.

We decided to form a wish list consisting of 7 brands we really wanted to either try or explore more of that are quite difficult to get a hold of where we are from (Cindy is from California, USA and I am of course from Perth, Australia). This worked so well for the both of us, we emailed each other our top 7 brands and away we went gathering together items from each brand. We also decided there wasn't any limit, either one product from each brand or a few from each. Knowing both Cindy and I, we of course got more items from a few particular brands that we knew the other would like more of. 

I had so much fun putting together all the goodies for Cindy! My package arrived to her a lot earlier and I received hers shortly after. It took us about a month to get together all the items we had for each other, including extra snacks and gifts we picked up that was native to our countries (aka, I got her Tim Tams and she got me 3 Musketeers Bar, etc). I remember when her packaged arrived I was literally squealing at how beautiful everything was. I sat on my bed slowly unravelling each product from the giant box and was so over the moon with everything she sent me.

It's always such a great feeling when you meet someone that you get along with so well and have a lot in common with. That's the best part of this whole social media/blogging community ⎯ you meet so many amazing people. I adore everything about Cindy, she is such a beautiful gal, inside and out and hopefully one day if we ever travel to either end of the universe we can meet up for a nice coffee date. We chat almost daily on Instagram DM's, which is so lovely. If you haven't checked out Cindy's platforms and handles, you're definitely missing out ⎯ the gal's got talent y'all! 

This is going to be a LONG post, so grab yourself a cuppa! 

WHAT'S IN THE CARE PACKAGE

GLOSSIER  ⎯ 

There was no doubt that Glossier had to be one of my first brand picks. In fact, Cindy asked me about it way before I even started my list as she knew that was a brand that would definitely be on my wish list. Cindy is also a Glossier Rep, so do shop through her link if you would like extra discounts and her recommendations.

Milky Jelly Cleanser –  I have been wanting to try this cleanser for so long. When it first launched I wasn't too phased by it and kind of brushed it off but because Cindy and many others had raved and talked about this cleanser so much I was curious to try it. Plus I really liked the concept of it, I love any simple/gentle cleanser that can be used daily. 

I've been using this non-stop since I've received it (it's actually almost reaching the half way mark) and it is perfect for an all round type of cleanser, whether morning or night. I use it as a first step cleanse followed by my other cleanser to double cleanse. It works so well at removing excess build up of dirt and makeup. I don't wear as much makeup as I use to, therefore it takes off every bit of makeup even my mascara (which isn't waterproof). 

Priming Moisturiser Rich –  A lot of people have been using this as their night cream, however I like to switch in between depending how dry my skin is. As it is winter here in Australia, my skin has been a lot drier so I've been using this day and night within my skincare regime. I love the consistency of this moisturiser, it feels really thick and luxurious on the skin and smells of subtle lavender which works perfectly before bed time. If I were to choose, I would definitely keep this as a night cream as opposed to a day cream, but for those drier skin days this works like a charm either way. 

Super Pure Serum –  Although, I thankfully have never suffered from severe acne occasionally I do of course get pimples (especially during that time of the month). Therefore having a good selection of pimple treatments has always been a must within my skincare. I love Niacinamide with its anti-inflammatory properties, it works deep within the skin to remove any barriers that may be clogging your pores which can lead to build up of pimples forming. This formula just melts into my skin so quickly which I really enjoy, as I can't stand products that sit on top of the skin feeling sticky or tacky. 

The only down side to the Glossier Super Serums is the small size. I own their Hyaluronic serum (Super Bounce) and it was the quickest product I've ever gone through. I hope Glossier brings out a larger size option to choose from. I've since been using The Ordinary's Hyaluronic Acid instead which is a lot more forgiving, though the formula isn't as top notch as Glossier, but is still very good. The Super Pure Serum is actually lasting me a lot longer as I only need to use it occasionally. I noticed instant results after apply this to any pimples or redness. It reduces any noticeable areas instantly.

Balm Dot Com Coconut –  I wasn't too crazy about the original Balm Dot Com, it smelt horrid and I found it wasn't a good product. Though, I admit the packaging won me over and I was quite in love with just the packaging alone (looks amazing in photos, that's for sure). For some reason, since using this Coconut flavoured Balm Dot Com, I've sort of converted and find in some ways it works a lot better than the original and smells so good as well as feeling more hydrating on the lips. 

It has a subtle coconut smell, nothing artificial smelling which is perfect (I love coconut). It's a shame all the Balm Dot Com's contain Petrolatum which is frustrating (why do brands feel they need to add this in?) however, the other ingredients listed makes up for it and therefore I don't mind it so much. I carry this balm everywhere with me and because it isn't tinted I use it where I have dry skin, but mainly for my lips. Again, the packaging of all Glossier products is just too aesthetically pleasing, it's just a crime not to fall in love with it a little extra.

Generation G Lipstick in Jam –  My most favourite and almost used daily lipstick these last few months has been my Gen G Lipstick in Leo that I purchased a while back. I love the consistency of their lipsticks and it makes the perfect terracotta brown on my lips. I had three other shades I was eyeing for the longest time and Jam was definitely one of the three (cake and like were the another shades). Jam is literally the shade of jam, right? It sheers out so nicely on the lips and I like to apply it on my cheeks and blend it out to give that subtle flush. Jam can be built up from a sheer to a semi-bold lip, it makes the perfect berry shade.

MILK MAKEUP  ⎯ 

Milk Makeup is another brand that is almost impossible to get a hold of here in Australia, unless you're doing an order through forward mailing services which can be such a pain. I've been so curious about their products and just love the simplicity of their brand and overall outlook to their aesthetics.

Sunshine Skin Tint in Light –  This is considered a skin tint however if you were to compare it to the actual Skin Tint from Glossier it provides a lot more coverage and if anything, I would consider this more of a tinted moisturiser with light to medium coverage than a skin tint. I love the packaging, there has been a mixed review on the packaging of this skin tint, but for me, I love how travel friendly and convenient it is. 

It is a very smart way of applying your base with the glass ball applicator and click style pen. The shade 'light' is most definitely my winter shade, I would probably go for a more medium shade next time as they come off a lot lighter than I thought (I'm usually a light-medium in most bases) but I can make it work as it blends out so seamlessly.

SATURDAY SKIN  ⎯ 

Saturday Skin has only recently launched here in Australia, from what I've seen it's stocked in Myer. The pink packaging is just calling out to all those folks who are loving the Millennial Pink phase (I, included) and the Korean's just know their shit when it comes to skincare, let's face it. I only had my eyes on one products and that is of course... (the facial mist)

Daily Dew Hydrating Essence Mist –  I have been dying to try this mist since seeing Tamira Jarrel feature it countlessly on her feed. The bottle and packaging is just too perfect and everything I would want packaging wise. The mist is so fine and beautiful, I almost feel guilty using it as I don't want it to end. I've been using this to prep or perk up my skin when needed and using this sparingly. I need this in my life forever.

Quench Face Masks –  Cindy added in two of their face masks for me to try, and I was so thrilled but I am still yet to try them as I am reluctant to even open one. They're just to lovely to destroy. I will hopefully find the courage to pamper myself with one of these bad boys soon, I'm thinking on my first pamper session I have in my new home and brand new large bath. Yay!

PIXI  ⎯ 

Pixi is another brand that has just recently launched in Australia (within this month, actually) and from what I've seen it is within David Jones. Before this I hadn't tried much Pixi products before Cindy sent me these items. Shortly after the PR of Pixi have been sending me a few of their products to try and combined with the products Cindy sent me I have been so in love with their brand. The only product I have tried and have been using for a few years is of course their cult, Glow Tonic which is by far one of the best! 

Hydrating Milky Mist –  I've been using this mist religiously since I received it it is almost empty, thankfully I have a back up! The mist doesn't spray out as fine as most mist do. Pixi's misting spray nozzles aren't very good, they tend to spray very sparsely other than that this is packed full of goodness and is the perfect pick-me-up when your face is feeling dehydrated. 

Multibalm in Baby Petal –  The shade Petal is the perfect soft rose shade, I have swatched this on my hand, but am yet to fully test this multibalm out. 

Lower Lash Mascara –  I have a few mascaras I am currently going through before I can crack open this mascara, but I am looking forward to using it on my lower lashes as the wand is very thin and petite. 

FRESH  ⎯ 

Fresh is a brand I've heard of for so many years, yet have never ventured out to trying. Their Sugar Lip Balm is probably their most cult product within their range and I am so glad I have the chance to try it out for myself. 

Sugar Lip Balm in Honey –  The packaging to the Sugar Lip Balms are housed within this almost heavy duty matte metal-like material. It feels really hefty and twist open to reveal a beautiful balm. I chose the shade Honey, well, because it just sings out to me in terms of the type of shade I always go for (I think you know by now). 

The consistency of these balms are very buttery and smoothing on the lips, it gives an overall tint adding that subtle colour that can be slightly built up. My lips feel instantly hydrated and without any stickiness. I do find the packaging of the twist up balm can make it scratch onto the balm itself and because it is such an emollient balm it is prone to melting easily especially during a sunny day. 

TATCHA  ⎯ 

If a could use one word for Tatcha, it would be "masterpiece". I can't quite get over how luxurious and beautiful their products are. It is literally gold in a bottle. Their paper packaging is almost too stunning to throw away. The packaging hoarder within me is dying to hold onto it, but that is the old me and I must refrain from keeping the paper packaging and move on. Thankfully, their actual product packaging is even more breath taking so I'm doing ok.

Luminous Dewy Face Mist –  Believe it or not, I am actually still yet to try this beauty! Mainly because I am going through several other facial mist at the moment, I am saving this for a special occasion. It is so luxurious, which isn't any surprise when it comes to Tatcha and how stunning their products are. I am so grateful to be collaborating with them at the moment and have several more of their products I am currently testing. More to come with this stunning brand soon!

Polished Rice Enzyme Powder –  I like to use this powder either on its own with a few drops of water or mixed with a cleanser (preferably Glossier's Milky Jelly Cleanser) it feels so gentle on the skin and really buffs away dead skin leaving your skin feeling smooth and soft. Luckily, I have a backup of their full size! I am so grateful that Cindy introduced me to the world of Tatcha and I was able to try a few of their products for the first time through her.

HERBIVORE  ⎯ 

The one thing that catches my eyes with Herbivore is how minimalistic everything they have within their range is. I love that their range broadens from each end of the skincare scale and how ethically sourced their ingredients are. 

Blue Tansy Face Mask – Wow, I was definitely not expecting this within my package! Cindy surprised me with a random pick from Herbivore, it was a brand on my list, but for a few of the brands we both told each other to choose which ever product we thought the other may like from a few brands (For me it was mainly Herbivore, Tatcha, Milk Makeup and Fresh which makes it more fun and spontaneous). 

I wasn't sure what to try from Herbivore, I had seen their range floating around the net quite a few times and have always wanted to try their products out and I am so thrilled Cindy had chosen this face mask for me. I had actually never seen or heard of it, but oh my it is sublime! The dark teal shade of this mask is so mesmerising and I just love the cooling affect it has on my skin when I use it. It's like magic in a little jar and a definite treat for my skin, I love a good AHA/BHA treatment. 

Have you ever done a mail swap with anyone before?