Lather Rinse Repeat: September 2012

, by Michaela

NOTD - C'arn you Adelaide Crows! feat. Hello Darling, Essie and Ulta3

, by Michaela

1932 by Tabu - perfume review

In 1932, the original Tabu was created by Jean Carles for the Spanish company Dana, who wanted a fragrance a puta (whore) would wear. While originally prestige fragrance, it has dropped in status the last few decades, and now lines discount stores and Priceline. Despite being priced at under $20, the original warm, spicy floral with a rich woods base still gives a lot of bang for your buck (pun totally intended).

80 years on, Dana has released 1932 by Tabu to celebrate many years of slutting it up everywhere from my neckline to your grandma's wrists, and everything in between. The dirty slapper of a scent has retained its citrusy top notes, thanks to the bergamot and lemon, spicy warmth and heart of rose and sandalwood. The animalistic civet is completely erased, along with the sweaty balsamic note that reminds you of used, tangled sheets and a day old man's shirt. This new formulation is less demanding, with a soft musk and vanilla note turning it from the roughed up hooker with a heart of gold, to the call girl who kisses on the lips and listens to your secrets.

While it's not the best scent ever, it has its merits, and works well as a comforting stay at home and watch old 70's films type scent. It does have remarkable staying power, and quite a reach, so spray lightly.

I think 1932 is defiantly more approachable for the new generation, being less musty and eau de old lady, with a touch of fruit. I also suspect we finally now know what fragrance Cady Heron preferred.

Another change is the gorgeous Art Deco style bottle that is reminiscent of the cello-shaped spray the original Tabu came in, both being much nicer than the cheap looking black capped rectangular Tabu of today.

Don't let the el cheapo price tag turn you away, both 1932 by Tabu and the original Tabu (especially if you can find a vintage cello bottle) are worth trying and may be a pleasant surprise for those from the school of fruity florals.

Plus, pretty bottle!

1932 by Tabu retails for A$19.95 from discount chemists and perfumeries.

14 brilliant comments

, by Michaela

skin

Dermalogica AGE Smart Skinperfect Primer SFP 30 - review and swatch

Dermalogica has recently done a reshuffle with their sun-care products ahead of the Aussie summer, as well as adding some new goodies to their skincare lines.

One new product, the Skinperfect Primer, has been aligned with the AGE smart line (I feel like the AGE bit is yelling at me), and although that name suggests it's only for the wrinkly, flapping-skin retirees amongst us, I think it's appropriate for all ages. Most importantly, it can help prevent you getting to that wrinkly stage so quickly as it contains a broad spectrum SPF 30. This is one ingredient I want to see in more primers, because you can never slop too much sunscreen on your face, right?

This may be too much sunscreen

I like the squeezy tube used here compared to other Dermalogica products I've previously used as it's soft enough to squidge out every last bit of product, and the small opening prevents me getting too enthusiastic and using way too much product.

This is the most pigmented primer I've used, and the dense colour could be either a bonus for those who want extra coverage and colour correction, or a dealbreaker for those whose skin tone differs to the light beige shade.

I narrowly fit into the bonus group, with the primer just working on my skin. A little darker and it would have headed into Orange town, which is never nice to visit. Kick up the formula's coverage, and this primer would be edging into BB cream territory, with the high SPF, skin benefits and smoothing qualities working hard for your skin. Compared to other Western BB cream releases, Skinperfect sure does a better job, even without meaning to.

Anyway, looking back at Dermalogica's claims that Skinperfect Primer will aid "a lasting make-up finish", I agree that it does help my foundation to cling to my face for longer and makes application easier, being thick enough to spackle pores and laugh lines into submission.

While it is a good primer, I've been putting it on weekend duty, working solo as a face base for those days I want a wee bit of coverage but CBFd going a full-face. Some call that lazy, I just say I'm low maintenance. Somewhere in Sydney, my boyfriend just snorted after sensing that last sentence...

Dermalogica AGE Smart Skinperfect Primer SFP 30 has a RRP of A$79.

Disclaimer: These products were provided to me for consideration by Dermalogica. They have in no way influenced my review and opinions are my own. It is also my opinion that if you don't use sunscreen, YOU WILL DIE! See my Disclaimer for more sexy details.

26 brilliant comments

, by Michaela

hair

Pink hair roots!

21 brilliant comments

, by Michaela

MAKE-UP

Maybelline Fit Me foundation in Ivory 115 - review and swatch

Being an extremely pale lady, it's so hard to find a foundation that matches up with my skin tone (likewise, I can imagine it being hard with the limited shades available for darker skin). Like I'm so pale, that when searching for an example to compare my snowy visage to, the best Google could come up with is me.

THANKS A LOT

Most foundations either lean to a yellow tone that turns orange after bout half an hour on, or are literally white and make me look pasty and ill. While I've had better luck in colour matching with high end brands like Giorgio Armani and YSL, it's so fricking hard to do the same with drug store formulations. So far, I'd only found Bourjois' Healthy Mix and 10 Hour Sleep Effect foundations (both in Vanille Clair 51) to meet my white gal needs.

I picked up Maybelline's Fit Me Foundation in their lightest shade, Ivory 115, when I was in Hawaii last month on le cheap during the my grand drug store frenzy. I didn't expect it to be a great colour match, especially because there is one shade below this, Porcelain 110, and I normally always nab the lightest shade.

I detest these open neck glass bottles, the pumps are so much better for managing the amount of product that comes out and seem more hygienic too.

It's a pink based colour, that's almost peachy on my skin. If you're looking for full coverage, you're not going to find it here. This is a very light, very sheer formula.

Top: blended in, bottom: less blended in...

The colour is surprisingly an okay match, still too orange, but I think the 110 would have been perfect. My biggest issue is with the formula, it's too sheer and doesn't wear well on skin. It doesn't wear for more than six hours on me, even when set with powder.

A plus is that it does't pill or gather on dry patches, which is my main issue with trying out new foundations.

Applied with fingers, no primer. The discolouration on hairline is old fake tan!

I'll save this foundation for weekend days where I might want a wee bit of coverage, but wouldn't trust it on oily skin, to last a full day or with my handbag.

I bought Maybelline Fit Me Foundation for US$6 (sale price) while on holiday. The Australian RRP is A$18.95. I just can't even with that difference right now. Cannot.

23 brilliant comments

, by Michaela

hair