OPI Dulce De Leche nail polish

What an unexpected buy! I was out with a couple of friends to buy another friend some birthday presents when we stumbled on some OPI nail polishes. There has been so much hype over OPI, and I've always wondered, why? One of my friends said that it was one of the best nail polish brands there is, with incredible quality so I decided to try one. OPI retails for $19.95 which is a crazy amount, although it is not much more than say a Revlon nail polish which retails at $13.95 here in Australia. However we were at a My Beauty Spot and they were selling them for $10, There weren't too many colours to choose from but I decided to go for a nudish-pink colour, called Dulce de Leche.

Sorry for the picture being unfocused!

 As soon as I got home I tried it out, to see what the hype was about for OPI nail polishes. The brush was very nice, although the first time I applied it only my nails I picked up too much product. Application was smooth and easy, and it didn't turn out streaky like it would with the cheaper nail polishes. It dried very nicely as well and I love the colour!

Ahhh I love the colour! Pardon my dry cuticles and hands

Since I was too eager to try on the nail polish, I didn't bother with base and top coats. Even without them, the staying power on this nail polish was amazing! This photo was taken a few days after application and it has hardly chipped at all. This polish is definitely worth the $9 I paid for, but at $20 I'm not quite sure as it is quite an exorbitant amount for a mere nail polish. If I had put on a base and top coat, it would definitely last much longer. Comparing the OPI nail polish to the Revlon nail polish I have,  it definitely lasts much longer and the application is much nicer. 

What do you think of Dulce De Leche?

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Review: Avene Cicalfate Restorative Cream

My face had been becoming really tight, dry and itchy lately with red blotches- not a pretty sight. I might have had a little bit of ezcema on my face but I'm not too sure (I don't usually get ezcema though). I've been eyeing out for a good restorative, thick moisturiser for sensitive skin, so I stumbled upon the Avene Cicalfate Restorative Cream.

Touted as a technologically advanced cutaneous barrier cream to help soothe and restore damaged, dry, cracked and non-oozing atopic skin, it definitely sounded like something I needed. Avene also describes the Cicalfate Restorative Cream to have anti-bacterial properties to help improve the appearance  of cracked skin, and its famous Avène Thermal Spring Water to soothe irritation.

Sounded perfect for me, as my skin was super dry! I managed to purchase it for $9 with my friend's discount at her pharmacy (my pharmacy doesn't sell Avene, *sob*) but it retails at $11.95 for 40mL, which is very inexpensive considering the rest of the Avene range is quite pricey.

I really love the clean packaging of the Avene products. So after a shower, I gave it a go. It was very thick as expected because it was a restorative cream. Took a while for me to get it to sink into my skin, however when it did, WOW! My skin was truly moisturised, I think this is the most hydrating cream I have ever used! It didn't make my face feel tight after a few hours ( it kept the moisture in) and it was so gentle, as well as soothing the irritation my face had. Loved it! I read a bit more on the box, and it says it contains copper sulfate and zinc sulfate which synergistically (why is there a red wiggly line under this word? I swear it's spelt right!) work to promote and maintain a healthy skin environment.

This cream receives a score of 9.5/10. No fragrance, gentle on the skin and does what it claims. The only downside to the cream is  its extreme thickness which requires effort to rub into the skin. Despite this, I highly recommend it to those with dry, itchy skin- especially those who suffer from ezcema. All in all, a great $9 spent, no regrets at all. I will definitely try other Avene products.... once I manage to decide what product to get!

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My first post!

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One of my friends told me to start a blog, so here I am, starting one. I might make it mostly to do with beauty stuff :) So I might have to get used to using blogger (although it's probably not that hard). So please follow for beauty reviews and random ramblings!

Oh sorry for no introduction. My name is Karen, currently studying pharmacy and I live in Melbourne, Australia. I'm 20 years old (I definitely don't feel that old!) and I love beauty products (and also realised I have a LOT). So yeah, this will probably be one of the ways I will procrastinate from my studies! :D