APRIL

So Dr Dennis Gross MD is a pretty rad guy. Dermatologist in the Big Apple, the best of the best for radiance, clarity, and just plain good skin.



He developed his Alpha Beta Peel Pads for his clients, as a way of maintaining their skin in between clinic visits. I could get super science-y here, talk about AHA’s and BHA’s, acids and neutralizers, but let’s keep it basic (like my blonde in January, HA!)



Ultra Gentle Peel Pads – 3 types of acids to exfoliate + coconut oil. Easy peasy.
Original Alpha Beta Peel Pads – 5 acids to exfoliate
Extra Strength Peel Pads – 7 acids
Medi-Spa Peel – 12 acids. Twelve! OH MAMA.

For the record, I use the Ultra Gentle range because I’m really sensitive, and if there’s even a chance my skin could freak out, it’ll do it ANYWAY because it’s thoughtful like that.

The pads are pre-packaged in sachets; you tear one, use it all over until it’s dry, wait two minutes (and scroll through Insta @beautybyasparrow) and then use the second pad to neutralise the acids eating all your manky dead skin. Follow with your normal serum and moisturiser, and boom! You’re done! Yay!

In case it wasn’t clear, these peels chemically exfoliate the skin. The acids dissolve all of the dead skin cells and are able to get deeper into the pore to exfoliate. Some skins can handle daily exfoliation. Mine cannot. Believe me, I tried. (It was not pretty.)

When using peel pads, I go 3-4 days a week. So Monday, Wednesday and maybe Friday or Sunday. They tend to send me quite red, but it calms down by morning. If you hate scrubs (put DOWN the St. Ive’s!) or struggle with break outs and pimples (YO) then these are an amazing option for you.

I love them to pieces, they’ve changed my skin for the better!

Tweet tweet xx

MARCH

Silver Dreams & Silver Hair
March was a mixed bag this year. I went back to full time study (“WHY?” you ask, ‘I STILL DON’T KNOW’ I silently scream in my head) and that wasn’t exactly an easy transition for me, or my skin.

Suddenly the heavens parted, angels sang, the dream like candlelight like a dream you can’t quite place twinkled down, and I met ARgENTUM Apothecary. No literally, I got to meet the founder. Joy Issacs is exactly how I imagine the Faerie Queen would look and speak.




Her la potion infinie is also the stuff of the fairy realm. It’s magical. Silver is one of the most healing ingredients used in both medicine and skin care. In Argentum, silver is fused with DNA HP (a natural marine extract) in order to enhance the healing and regenerative power of the colloidal silver.
So… it’s a face cream?
No, little birds, it’s a game changer. More than that it’s a face changer. Moisture is locked down, skin is clarified and brightened, and it lifts and refines the appearance of the face and neck.

And also… Ok. Clear your mind, take a deep breath and think about your current crush. Or even like, Zac Efron. Leo. Think about that guy. Now imagine what he’d smell like. YEP. THIS SMELLS LIKE THAT.
Vanilla, sandalwood, Argan oil, and sweet almond oil. It smells incredible. Almost enough to make me forget I’m single. (HA lol jks)

ARgENTUM as a brand are also really fun, as they make the cream an experience. Each pot comes with its own Tarot Card. I got ‘The Rebel’ – prepared to challenge and change the forces that surround themselves – and I actually believe now, in hindsight, that card predicted how this year went. Don’t change yourself, change the game, and see how far you can take it.
But seriously my skin has had quite a few bad reactions this year, and nothing soothes or calms it like la potion infinie. I might not use it daily, but it’s a love that’s gonna last to infinity and beyond.




The silver obsession expanded into my hair, as my poor head had finally recovered from the Unspeakable January Incident, and I decided to play to my strengths – i.e., the cool, ashy, NOT grey tones of my natural colour. A really soft balyage with a ash bronde base, taking the cooler tones down to the ends. The change came about for two reasons; one, being a time poor and just y’know, poor-poor uni student, an easy-to-maintain colour was absolutely necessary. 





And secondly, after being bleach blonde for x amount of time I figured it was time to get a little dark. After all, I am a Rebel...







Tweet tweet xx

P.S. Be sure to visit ARgENTUM Apothecary online, and in stores at Mecca Cosmetica x

FEBRUARY

ELLIS FAAS
Do you know this woman? You should. You really, really should. She is a make-up revolutionary badass who changed the way runway faces were done for all fashion eternity.




An expert in both special effects and beauty artistry, Ellis Faas created a make-up line designed to mimic the skin. Every colour in the range is a colour that naturally occurs in the body, aside from the metallic shadows and the neon lips (how cool would naturally neon lips be though?). Boundary pushing is the key theme, friends.
ELLIS FAAS IMAGE DECEMBER 2016
Think perfect, almost translucent, glowing skin as the base, with high couture, creative expression everywhere and anywhere. Eye colours as lip colours, and cheek tints, concealer as highlight and contour, literally  no rules and every rule completely broken. Think of the woman who was one of the first to use gold leaf on runway models, one of the muses of the great Karl, and an all-round badass who does beauty her way. Uncompromising, raw, beautiful.

 My pick? Eye Lights and the Skin Veil foundation. 

 Eye Lights re-create the effect of foiling on the lid, giving a metallic, iridescent finish to any look. Absolutely stunning on every skin tone, coming in green, silver, bronze-red, purple, silver-green – all of your goddess/ethereal dreams brought to life.

Now the Skin Veil foundation is exquisite; aside from her setting powders, every piece of make-up created by Ellis Faas is in liquid form, as she believes this is closest to us humans, being 70% water based. The foundation is liquid-crème, full coverage, and extremely hydrating. It leaves the skin with a natural glow, so it appears you’ve been running through a flowery meadow with fairies and woodland creatures. It’s lightweight but enough to cover up any scarring or discolouration in the skin, and it’s been one of my favourites all the yearlong. The mineral ingredients allow the foundation to become one, seamlessly, with the skin, and because it layers quickly and evenly it’s super ridiculously easy to build up your coverage. 



My top picks from the line-up: Skin Veil foundation S101, Hot Lips in L402 (the amount of compliments I get wearing this colour is insane and makes me feel like a Kardashian) and Eye Lights in E302, green-gold that makes it seem as though you have the gilded eyes of an ancient statue. Ah-mazing!
To the left (to the left) is Ellis L402 on yours truly headed to a soiree in March. Lip didn't budge the whole night through, even with double shots of Tequila and lemon. Somehow I think Ellis would approve....






Tweet tweet x

JANUARY

Forgive me Father, for I have sinned.

Desperately, the week of my twenty-second birthday, I attempted to re-dye my blonde roots by myself. Me, with no hair experience – me, who is not a hair dresser, and does not have any kind of colour or toning skills, me who is impatient as all heck…. You can imagine what happened.

things could be better


So I literally rang in 2016 at my hairdressers on New Year’s Eve getting my blonde fixed, and New Year’s Day showing everyone a ‘new me’. So cliché, I know, but hey, gal’s gotta do what a gal’s gotta do when HER HAIR IS PURPLE.

I don’t know entirely how I managed to dye my hair orange and purple, but there we go. See the pictographic evidence below and feel my pain friends, feel, my, pain.

 













My lovely colourist ran a toner through my hair, and essentially colour corrected the orange and purple. Little bit of a trim because I managed to fry my ends. (See when I say disaster it ain't hyperbole.)
 
The New Year inspires people to do a lot of stupid, stupid things – from drinking too much champagne, to making resolutions we all know we won’t keep, to drastic changes as a means of coping with life changing. Again, very cliché, but the lesson I learnt the hard way was that you don’t get to skip change or recovery and get right to the shiny brand new you after a tough break. You need to give it time, and space, and if all else fails, a colourist who really knows her stuff.



Tweet tweet x

THE 12 DAYS OF BLOGMAS

Hello little birds!

 A thousand, million, repeated, gross-sobbing, sincere apologies for being MIA this year. Turns out when you start a new job, and start writing a 15,000 word thesis, it gets a little impossible to do aallll the things you want to do. 

 So to make up for my shocking absence I've organised THE 12 DAYS OF BLOGMAS!
glitter
A blog a day, per month of 2016, with the best tips, things, lessons, fun facts and just cool beautyful things I've learnt this year, from January-December. Like a Calendar Girl! 

 Stay tuned for a-blog-a-day, and a Insta-post-a-day too, leading up to December 24. 

 FOR NOW, however, here's a few quick little updates;

 I'm now a full-on, unapologetic chocolate headed brunette, and if you've been here for a while you'll know that's a MASSIVE change after being a bubbly blonde for four-five years. Blonde was fun, but as we'll see tomorrow it comes with its own challenges and quirks. Being a brunette has been kinder to my hair, cheaper, and honestly just feels so much truer to my personality. 

 I work in beauty, specialising in skincare, and I am LOVING IT. Each day I work is literally living the dream. I've learnt so, so much this last year that I can't wait to share, and, bonus, I've made amazing amazing friends in the industry (like Natasha Ribeiro Artistry - go and follow her Instagram and be inspired! @natasha_ribeiro_makeup) and Centaine of glossco (glossco.com.au). Two amazing beauty babes to check out ASAP if you're serious about anything and everything beauty.

 Between livin' the dream and plain livin', I went back and completed my Honours year of study in Ancient Worlds (ancient civilisations, Greece and Rome, and Egypt and Mesopotamia) and experienced one of the most intense love/hate relationships between myself and the written word, in the form of my thesis. My brain baby/bane of my existence. Graduating this week and Imma need y'all to cross your fingers and hope I don't trip up, OR down the stage stairs.

 Aaaaaannd that is it! Please come back and visit these next twelve days, I promise I've put in the best beauty bits, lots of pictures, and as many puns as one human is allowed to get away with in a singular blog post. 

 Tweet tweet xx

A note: new adventures

Hello my little birds,

I know I've been a little MIA lately so I wanted to take a quick minute to explain what's been happening.

Around September I decided to make a job change, a pretty big one too. One that I never would have even considered if it weren't for this blog and its little legion of followers and supporters. I'm now working in the beauty and cosmetics industry and it's honestly one of the best things I've ever done.

I'm feeling happier and healthier, I'm pursuing a passion, and it's been amazing so far. I'm learning so, so much, that I can't wait to share with you all, and I'm finding my skills and confidence growing every day. This blog is still my baby and my happy place, and I'm going to try and keep it updated as much as I can going into 2016! 

(AH IT'S NEARLY 2016 HOW DID THAT ACTUALLY HAPPEN NO SERIOUSLY WHAT IS THIS)

So here are a few of the looks I've been sporting at work, my next few posts will be what I'm loving and how I follow the three-colour-rule (an eye, a cheek and a lip) day-to-day xx



Gotta love a good contour!

Until next time,
Tweet tweet xx

Step into Spring: New Skincare & Beauty Loves

Hello my little birds!
Let's not talk about the fact it's almost the end of November and I'm convinced some cosmic giant pressed the 'fast forward' button on 2015 haha - instead, let's talk about SPRING, because it has indeed sprung, and it's gorgeous thus far! Trends including crisp whites, co-ord sets, full brows, coral lips, and of course, Spring Racing colour and florals are making me all kinds of excited for the Spring/Summer season ahead.


So in keeping with the whole, spring-is-a-new-season-ergo-I-need-to-get-new-things vibe, I thought I'd give a little update on my skincare routine, and what I'm loving colour-wise as we move into warmer weather (YAY! SUMMER!)

actual footage of yours truly in summer

SKINCARE

Now you long-time sparrows will notice a couple of old favourites in this photo, and some newbies. My faithful Cetaphil SPF 50+ Daily Moisturiser took a back seat during Autumn/Winter this year, but as the mercury creeps up and the days grow longer, I'll definitely be reaching for my 50+. I'm going to attempt to NOT get sunburnt this summer, and whilst I know the likelihood of that succeeding is low, I'm hoping with a little help from some wonderful SPF+ friends I can make it!

Speaking of SPF, my current moisturising duo tick that little box too. The two Clinique jars with green lids are from the Youth Surge range, designed for dry/combination skin. Whilst my skin has behaved fairly well these last few months, exposure to artificial air and heating has dried it out something shocking. I picked these babies out of Mumma Sparrow's stash (sorry Mum) and I've found them to be really effective. The day cream contains SPF 15+, perfect for overcast, wintry days, and the night cream is buttery and feels luxurious on the skin. I don't know if I'll repurchase this duo in future, simply because there are so many products I'm wanting to try and experiment with. I think around this time next year though, if my skin is again feeling damaged and dried out, I'll definitely come back to them. 

The Garnier Gentle Cleansing Milk has also become a fast friend of my poor, dried out skin. I often use this as my 'second step' following a trusty Johnson's make-up wipe. Whilst wipes aren't the best thing in the world for your skin, I find they remove a majority of that 'top layer' make-up that usually comes off quite easily. The Cleansing Milk, with cotton pads, is great for getting rid of the stuff you maybe can't see. I also find it really gentle to use on the eye area, and very effective at removing waterproof/eye make-up. Whilst the idea is that you can leave your skin after using the milk (as it's also a moisturiser on its own), I'll often follow this with my Swisse Cream Cleanser, because as nourishing and luxurious as the milk is, it can feel a little heavy if I leave it on my face. 

Lately when I feel like I need a good, deep cleanse, or I want to do something a little more relaxing and ritualistic at the end of the day, I've been turning to the Eve Lom cleanser. THIS STUFF IS AMAZING. Eve Lom is a facialist, honing her craft in L.A., and created the balm for clients who wanted the same effective cleanse and treatment at home, between facial appointments. The balm is a cleanser, an exfoliant (when used with the accompanying muslin cloth), and a moisturiser, if you choose. For starters it smells incredible, so right off the bat you receive aroma therapeutic benefits. Following the instructions included with the pack, I found it easy to give myself a facial massage, which felt incredible. Even more exciting, it removes make-up so, so easily and quickly, including eye make-up. Unlike the Garnier milk, the balm doesn't feel heavy on the face. Out of habit I'll still rinse after cleansing, but I could leave the balm and just not moisturise, if I wanted to. A really, really beautiful product that I highly recommend for anyone looking for a more pampering, relaxing way to effectively cleanse x

Last but not least, primers! Yay! I recently re-purchased the Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer, with SPF 15+ and I've fallen in love with it all over again. It feels like silk on the skin, and causes make-up to become water resistant, something that I know I'll really appreciate when those sticky, hot summer days come around. I've also been using the Too Faced Shadow Insurance eye make-up primer, and again, it feels so silky and wonderful on my eyelids, as well as preventing my shadows from creasing or fading. and evens out skin tones as well. 


COLOUR

First things first (I'm the realest), I know there's a lot of Nars happening in the above image. After having such amazing success with Sheer Glow, however, I felt I should give a few more products a try, and it's been terrible because now I love them and I'm never going to be able to NOT have them in my kit because I love them infinite amounts!

Above I've included my Soft Velvet Loose powder in Eden, the Eye shadow Duo in Portobello, and the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Mysterious Red (swatches below). I find the powder perfectly compliments my Sheer Glow shade, Mont Blanc, as well as perfectly setting my T-zone for a full day's wear; it mattifyes without adding pigment, which is so wonderful because I adore my colour match. 
The Portobello duo contains a mushroom-like brown, and an almost-nude taupe shade, which are wonderful for creating a basic day look, but can be blended and smoked out for something a little more intense when going out. 
Finally, the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Mysterious Red has toppled my favourite red lipstick of all time (Bombshell by Sportsgirl). It creates the perfect red lip, every time, without fail, and is long-wearing without flaking. An incredible red, and something I'd recommend to anyone wanting to attempt a red lip, but feeling unsure. 

Now my Mecca Cosmetica To Save Face should technically be in with my skincare, but the amount of time, care and thought put into the Mecca Cosmetica range means I'll count it in with my colour. Containing SPF 30+, I find this moisturiser a happy medium between my Clinique Youth Surge, and my Cetaphil 50+. Whilst it provides a higher level of protection than Clinique, it feels less sunscreen-like, and far less heavy than my Cetaphil. Also, as I use this as a base under my primer and foundation, I feel like it counts as make-up... sort of... not really... but I think we agree it looks good in the photo...? Hehe

 Two new picks from Stila have made their way into my collection, the CC Cream and the Convertible Colour in Gerbra. 

The CC cream is colour correcting, as well as providing hydration and brightening effects to the skin. It does come out of the tube green, but quickly adjusts to your skin tone, providing a more natural colour-match, with a radiant finish. A new go-to for days off, this stuff is foolproof, and definitely worth a try if you're looking for something user friendly!

The Convertible Colours have long been a Stila fave and staple for many the beauty junkie, and for good reason, In that little compact is your lip and cheek colour, and they're super blendable, so it's easy to achieve a hint of colour, or a full-blown natural glow. My chosen shade, Gerbra, is what Nina wears in Offspring (for any of you fellow fans out there!). Again, so user-friendly and foolproof it's not funny, this convertible cream is perfect for day-off chill, and work-day madness! 

Now, as promised... swatches!


NARS Portobello - L is the nude/taupe, R is the mushroom brown

 

Stila CC Cream - goes on green, blends and adapts effortlessly to the skin! Easy as!

To the right - Gerbra, so beautiful and peachy!
To her left - on the bottom is a swatch from a NARS blush tester, in Deep Throat
Above left - another NARS tester, the Liquid Illuminator in Super Orgasm

NARS Mysterious Red - mysterious because it's a mystery why this doesn't have its own cult following, seriously guys, GET ON IT



That's all for now my little birds, stay tuned for how NOT to contour and strobe! 

Until next time,
Tweet tweet xx
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