Beauty by a Sparrow

OHMYGOD FOOD. I love food, and breakfast foods in particular. Eggs, bacon, avocado, I'm all over that like Hollandaise sauce. 

When your working day starts at ten though, you miss out on that opportune brunch bracket and then by the time you eat again (because you HAVE to have breakfast before work!) it's well and truly lunch time and if you try to order poached eggs or muesli people look at you strangely. Also brunch is SUCH a social thing, that doing it alone would feel unnatural.

2. Converse Chucks

If I could wear my Converse Chucks to work I would literally never take them off. They're so comfy, they're so cute, and they perfectly walk that casual/cool line that I so often struggle with. Weekends and sneakers were made for each other, like Nutella and strawberries. Teamed with denim, cute skirts, chunky knits, thick coats and scarves, they work with everything and make Sunday feel like Sunday, to me at least.

3. Exercise

I live near one of the most gorgeous rivers in Melbourne, the Maribyrnong river. It's a great little 4km walk that's scenic, pretty, and just generally a nice thing to do. Driving past all the morning walkers with their dogs and their bright work out gear has made me so jealous, so I can't wait to get out there soon and have a walk with my mum, or maybe some girlfriends! 

(And the best bit? THERE'S A BRUNCH PLACE AT THE END OF THE WALK!)

4. Bed

You have no idea how much you love your bed until you have to drag yourself from it, at six-thirty on a Sunday, and walk across FREEZING bathroom tiles to get ready for the day.

5. Cleaning & Tidying

I know, I know, I was just going on about the amazingness of laziness on Sundays, but I love a good spring clean! Folding and putting away nice, clean laundry, washing your sheets and drying them outside, so they smell like sunshine when you crawl in that night, re-arranging knick-knacks and my bedside table... All the things that I don't get time to do during the week, that make me feel a little more organised and in control of my life. I'm also a fan of all things pretty, so getting into my room and making everything perfect gives me all the warm and fuzzies.

And if I get a chance to re-arrange my make-up bags and storage? THAT'S SERIOUSLY THE BEST

#goals

6. The beach

"But it's winter!"

And...?

I love the beach, regardless of the weather. Any chance I get to be by water, I take. The same way I love walking near the Maribyrnong, walking on the beach is one of my all-time favourite things, especially at the end of a hectic week. There's something about sea air that makes me feel immediately better, no matter what's going on in my life. Sundays and sand just make sense, right?

7. Shopping

Ok, so I've never had a Blair-style splurge, but Sunday shopping is the best kind of shopping, It's more wandering and occasionally spending money than actual shopping. I love going to Puckle Street and Chapel Street in Melbourne, popping in and out of the little boutiques, the big brands, and the DFO's. I love taking time to look at different pieces, feel inspired, and pick and choose what I want. Like brunch, it's a social thing - spending an afternoon with my mum, or one of my close friends, aimlessly looking at everything from clothing to candles, is a luxury to me. 

8. Markets

Image: houseofhumble.com

Since I was little, my mum and I would get ready and go, every second Sunday of the month, to Flemington market, to look at lovely crafts, clever innovations, fresh flowers, fruits and vegetables, and to eat mini-Dutch pancakes with lemon and icing sugar. The boy started taking me to Daylesford markets about two years ago, and again, beautiful, handmade crafts and soaps, fresh produce, and unique things you can't find anywhere else. And donuts. 

There's something about Sunday markets that I absolutely adore. It could just be the mini-Dutch pancakes talking, but I love the idea of shopping local and organic. The best Pink Lady apples I've ever eaten came from a farmer at Flemington market. Wandering around in the sun, picking up trinkets and no-where-else-one-of-a-kind things, and apples, is my idea of a perfect Sunday. 

Well there you have it, little birds, my favourite Sunday things. Stay tuned for what's on my face on these lazy Sundays. 

I hope you all enjoy a sleep-in, some brunch, and most importantly some time in the gorgeous winter sunshine with your favourite people.

Until next time,

Tweet tweet xx

Seriously how pretty is she?!!

If you don't have a friend like Kristyn in your life then I feel very sorry for you. This gorgeous girl and I met through work and we've been buds ever since, and aside from my lovely PT, she's my go-to for fitness and health. She's actually a sponsored athlete for Protein King, because that's how awesome this girl is!

So naturally, when you have an amazingly exquisite gal pal with all that fitness and health knowledge, you want to pick her brain, and luckily enough Kristyn let me do just that! I honestly believe that when you feel good on the inside, it'll show on the outside, and Kristyn is a beautiful example of that. 

Without further ado, here we GO!

Kristyn is bae <3

Sparrow: What is your pre-workout skin routine? (Make-up off, make-up on? Moisturizer or bare face?)

Yeah like that!

And finally, this little sparrow HAD to ask:
Do you even lift bro?

To which the ever-lovely and brilliant Kristyn replied;

Much love and thanks to Kristyn for letting me bombard her with questions! Check out her articles and videos at http://www.proteinking.com.au
See more of her gorgeous face, fitness advice and fitspo on Instagram!

Until next time my little birds,

Tweet tweet xx

Species Sparrowtus Dorkius

This is my mug wearing Inglot YSM foundation in 41

If you look at my hairline you can see that shade 41 isn't quite matching my skin tone. Even the tiny bit of neck visible under my scarf doesn't match my skin. This is first thing in the morning, so as you can see the finish is quite matte and flawless.

NARS doesn't have any of these problems, at all, and is still matte, and perfect. It matches my skin tone so well, and I haven't had to conceal anything!

I still use Bobbi Brown concealer under my eyes (because these nine hour shifts and six day streaks are killing me folks) and set my T-Zone with my Rimmel Stay Matte Powder. AND THAT'S IT. The only comparable experience is using my Australis Stay Put foundation, but that product did need to be set occasionally with more powder throughout the day (because summer and sweat and ick). I've struggled with blemishes throughout my teenage years (and unfortunately to this day) and I can't believe that I don't need to conceal any of my blemishes or redness. It's actually incredible! 

I think I love you. 

Keep in mind I've only been using this foundation for a little under a week. For all I know, in the next two days my face could blow up and becoming a blemished, horrible mess, but I'm feeling hopeful!

My face today - no filter, still can't believe that finish!

Stay tuned little birds, because I have some news about the inversion method and my hair! And remember how I said I needed a new, better cleansing method? I think I've found it!

Bottom line: if you're looking for a sheer, buildable, full coverage foundation that offers near perfect colour matches, NARS Sheer Glow could be the one for you!

Until next time, 

Tweet tweet xx

Hello my little birds!

So I've started a process that I want to blog about and share with you, simply because in my own research and YouTubing I haven't found a clear, billboard like, HUGE sign saying "YES THIS WORKS" or "NO IT DOESN'T". I've only really found "SORT-OFs" and "FOR ME, YES". 

It's called the Inversion Method and I'll admit, when I first read about it I was a little sceptical, and scared. Oil? In my hair? But oil make grease? Greasy hair bad? How...? Then I watched this little clip on YouTube by Evin Yalcin and heard that you actually don't have to use oil, but you can rely on your hair's natural oils instead. I find my hair can get quite greasy on its own, so the idea of putting more oil in there isn't very appealing. 

Essentially you flip your hair upside down, looking down, and give yourself a scalp massage for four minutes. At first I was a bit half-hearted, I mean, standing with your head almost between your legs rubbing your head isn't a daily activity, you know? But then I remembered something about myself -

I LIKE MASSAGES. 

So even if this method doesn't end up working for me, I'm getting a lovely mini-massage each night, and I'm ok with that! 

I mean the gloss, the depth, the shine, how healthy it looks.... ah!

I already know, however, that I can't do another thing to my hair colour-wise until it's healthy again, and I was considering lobbing it all off, but that won't really repair any of the damage I've done. Also, I don't want short hair! As much as I adore a bob/lob, I know they don't really work for me. I'd feel silly chopping it all off since I've been growing it since August last year. 

L-R: Clinique Anti-Blemish Solution, bareMinerals BARESKIN, L'Oreal Tru Match, Revlon Colour Stay

Right off the bat, none of these foundations are the right colour for me. I'm painfully aware of how freakin' pale I am (which will become that touch more obvious over the next few paragraphs), however most foundation samples you receive come in the warm neutral/beige variety, so there's no room for being fussy. So whilst colour is irrelevant, the main thing I'm looking at in these samples are three factors 

FORMULA 
Is the liquid sticky? Creamy? Bubbly? Watery? Weird?

FEEL
How does it go on? Smooth, easy like paint? Sticky and claggy like glue? Patchy? Greasy? Dry?

FINISH
Once it's all on, buffed, smoothed, set, how does it actually look on? Colour aside, of course haha!

First up was bareMinerals Bareskin foundation, a sample from the wonderful Mecca Maxima.

The description reads
"bareSkin liquid mineral foundation has a built in brightening serum packed with Vitamin C so that skin looks luminous at all times. This foundation creates a seamless natural effect with adjustable coverage, so that the perfect amount can be applied. Lightweight in texture, this hypoallergenic foundation it formulated without oil, silicone, parabens or fragrance so it is suited to all skin types. Beautiful bright natural foundation is only one step away."

I opened the packet and immediately realised how off the colour was, for me. 

There appeared to be enough in the sample for one full face of make-up. I used my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush , however BareMinerals released a patented brush specifically for this formula which you can see here. Now whether using their brush would have had a different effect, I'm not entirely sure, but from my experience I found one or two big issues. 

FORMULA
The foundation was bubbly and seemed a tad watery; I was worried it'd dribble off the foil and onto my lap. The idea of the brush is that you directly pour the liquid foundation into the bowl-part of the brush, so that would explain its consistency. 

FEEL
Ooh. Ooh that was nice. Like brushing silk all over your face! So, so soft, so smooth, gorgeous texture, lovely to buff on. 

FINISH
DEWY. SO, SO DEWY. 

You can see how shiny this foundation is on my nose and chin alone. Look at that sheen! I'm not entirely sure why youthful make-up is associated with dewy, wet finishes. In my experience, if young skin is dewy or shiny, it's about to break out HARD. I figured that using a powder (my Rimmel of course) would counter-act the dewy-ness, but I was wrong. 

You can see above that the sheen has died down a little, but it's still quite shiny around the mouth and chin, and along my cheekbones. I couldn't quite believe how bad the colour match was - sometimes neutral/beige colours can be negotiated with to suit my face, however, this shade was all kinds of wrong. The foundation also felt weighty on my face - no where near as heavy as my longwear foundations, but I COULD feel it, and that says enough in itself. I quickly took this foundation off immediately after application, and beneath I could see my skin beginning to grow red. I didn't pay that much attention, simply because my skin is sensitive and reacts to new products the same way some two year olds react to green vegetables. 

Overall, whilst the foundation felt nice going on, it didn't look nice overall, and I already know how my skin reacts to dewy formulations - pimples, pimples, pimples. Oh, and pimples. 

A solid 6/10, but alas, no winner here!

I'll keep you all posted as I go through my other samples these next few weeks 

Until next time,

Tweet tweet x

P. S. I'm now taking requests! Fed up with foundation? Sick of skin care? Had enough of hair? Comment and let me know what you'd like me to look at, try, review and share on the blog! xx

From the gown, to her hair, to her lip colour, to her beautiful acceptance speech, this gal didn't put a foot wrong!

Beauty-wise, aside from Carrie, three other girls caught my eye and made my jaw drop. Scherri-Lee Biggs (channel 9), Rebecca Judd (channel 9) and Lucy Nettlefold (channel 7) stole the show with their looks, and I loved each of them for different reasons. 

Bec Judd

Ah, who doesn't love Bec Judd? And her MUA, Chantelle Baker, who SMASHED IT. Honestly there's not a thing I'd change about her make-up. Beautiful contouring, full brows, smoky browns to set off her gorgeous tan, and a pale pink lip to leave her coral Jaton Couture gown as the star. The only teeny tiny thing, really teeny tiny, is the hair. I loved the cut of her gown, the v-neck and the coral lace, but I feel like leaving her hair all down covered too much of it. I would've opted for a low, sleek side sweep, perhaps a bun or braid, something soft enough to compliment the sharp lines of her gown, but a little less overwhelming. 

SERIOUSLY ARE YOU EVEN A HUMAN?

I asked my Instagram followers what look they'd like to see, and Scherri was the pick! So today I attempted to re-create Scherri's look (by Jade Kisnorbo) in my little bathroom sitting on the floor.

Some nice contouring work happening!

To replicate the look, I used a hodge podge of different products. For my base I used my Cetaphil moisturiser, Face of Australia matte eye primer,  and Nude Airbrush primer. To re-create the smoky shadows, I used the Too Faced Natural Eyes palette, and the Chi Chi Glamorous Bases palette. The Maybelline New York Hyperglossy liner allowed me to create a fine line with great shine, and a teeny tiny wing like Scherri's. Maybelline also helped me to conceal the bags under my eyes (they're Gucci) with the Revitalise concealer, and I used the Australis 4 in 1 concealer creams to cover up redness. Today I played it simple with my Maybelline NY Dream Pure BB cream, and my Rimmel Stay Matte powder for setting. I used the Chi Chi Rose blushes, after I'd had some fun with my AC On Tour palette. I tried to re-create Scherri's big, black lashes with the Australis Mega Lash mascara, topped with the Spotsgirl Fibre lash mascara. 

I tried my best and I felt pretty glamorous today, must say! 

Stay tuned, I'll be posting more recreations of my favourite Logies looks later this week!

Until next time,

Tweet tweet xx