Simply Scentsational Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue Review

Fine fragrances aren’t really my thing and you definitely won’t find me rushing out to buy the newest one after a launch. I do however have a few favourites and I emphasise the word few cos there really aren’t that many than I love.

I got this heavenly scent from, well the very same source all my favourite scents come from, my hubby of course. I must add that if ever I do find myself lusting after a new perfume, I just need to drop some not so subtle hints and he usually gets them for me.

He does however complain that I don’t use them enough but there’s perfectly valid reasons for this.

First things first I have terrible sinus/ allergies which means sometimes even a mild scent will have my eyes all watery and I spend the rest of the day looking like I caught a bout of pink eye. The next thing is I like to bring out these wonderful fragrances for special occasions as I feel they add a little something extra to my outfit.

The Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue fragrance has scents of jasmine, apple and a slight woodiness to it. For me, it’s a refreshing aroma that isn’t over powering or clinical, perfect balance between floral and fruity.

If I had to describe it, its summer in a bottle with a seductive twist.
That’s the reason why I find myself reaching for it year round, in winter it reminds me of the summer breeze and the lazy days spent on the beach. In summer it’s light and airy nature makes it easy to wear even in the warm Durban weather.

Source

I have seen a recent launch for the Italian Zest edition which I’m keen to try. You can read up more on that here.

You can purchase the Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue EDT from Redsquare or anywhere that sells fine fragrances.

Do you have a signature scent, share with me below:

Seeing Red – My Favourite RED Lippies

Don't we love a red lip, whether it's a night on the town with your girls, dinner date with your love or if you're just feeling extra fierce for the office, the red lip screams confidence and clout. It really is the ultimate power colour.

Since so many of us still search for the perfect red shade, I’m sharing my favourite Red Lippies with you. They flatter many skin tones and most of them are pretty affordable.

#1 Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm Provocateur Femme Fatale – R175.00 Foschini Beauty 
I have been using this colour for a good few years. It’s so comfortable with a minty sensation which I feel plumps my lips. It can be built up or a single swipe offers you a great flush of colour. I love how shiny this lip balm looks but if you like matte lippies, they also have a matte version of these for you.

#2 Wet N Wild MegaLast Lip Color in STOPLIGHT RED - R48.95 Clicks
This is a really comfortable easy to use red, it’s often been coined as a dupe for Mac Ruby Woo but I think it feels better on the lips than Ruby Woo. It’s great value for money and you will often find Clicks has it on special or on 3 for 2 offers.

#3 Wet N Wild Liquid Catsuit in Missy and Fierce - R99.95 Clicks
This is a beautiful rich red colour, it dries matte and really does offer great value for money. Undeniably one of the most affordable yet great matte lip products around. One swipe of this and you ready to paint the town red.

#4 Freedom Makeup – Pro Lipstick in Retro – R34.95 Jet #BESTBUDGETBUY
This lipstick as a great feel as it offers a semi matte look but doesn’t dry your lips. It’s more of a true red for me and also have great staying power. It most certainly offers you big bang for your buck.

#5 Essence Matt Matt Matt 06 Kiss me if you can– R49.95 Dischem
This beautiful deep red offers high impact colour with a single swipe. Very comfortable to wear on the lips and good staying power.

#6 Mac Ruby Woo R240.00 Mac
This lipsticks is a cult favourite it's a beautiful blue red it suits many skin tones and really does last a long time on your lips. I do suggest using it with a lip liner though because it bleeds a little bit, also moisturize your lips before putting it on because it's a retro matte and it has a bit of a drying effect on your lips.

L-R

Missy and Fierce, Retro,Provocateur Femme Fatale, Ruby Woo, Kiss me if you can, Stoplight Red

These colours really does suit everyone, just take a look below at the pics of some of my gals Rocking the Reds

Do you have a go to RED Lippie? Leave me a comment below to share it with me

Revlon Irresistible Kiss Balm Juicy Peach VS Labello Vanilla Buttercream lip balm

I had to buy both of these (at different times of course) because I’m struggling to find my favourite Maybelline Baby lips in stores.

Let me just start this post saying there is no lip balm that will compare to the Baby lips for me. I have tried so many different ones from Avon, Body shop, Oh So Heavenly, Soft Lips, LipIce and I always find myself going back to the Maybelline Baby lips.

I decided to give these two a try because I need to find a lip balm that’s a pretty close second to my fave.

Let’s talk packaging, the Revlon Kiss Balm wins here for me, the colours are so fresh and I like the sleek design with a cute transparent lid. The Labello Vanilla Buttercream lip balm is sturdy with a white base and gold cap which is pleasing to the eye.

Now onto product size, Labello steals the show here with 4.8 grams of product compared to the 2.6 grams you getting with the Revlon balm. While we here we rather compare price, again Labello wins as it retails for R24.95 compared to the R59.95 for the Kiss Balm. I will more than likely need 2 of the Revlon ones in a month which makes it quite expensive for me. (I use lip balm every day, even under lipsticks or glosses).

On the moisturising/hydrating test I pick the Labello one (this could be due to the variant of the Revlon one I purchased). I felt the Labello one moisturised my lips for a good 2 hours before I needed to reapply. 

I felt the Revlon one was too thick and just sat on my lips without being absorbed, also it left a very light white film on my lips, (again, this could be due to the variant of the Revlon one I purchased). I found myself reapplying the Kiss Balm more often as my lips felt dry.

When it comes to the smell of the lip balms both are amazing, the Labello Vanilla Buttercream had a beautifully light vanilla scent, I could also get a bit of an oily scent from it as well but it isn’t something too noticeable. The Revlon Kiss Balm though made me feel like I was walking through an orchard of peaches. Also I got a sniff of the other varients and they are all amazing.

The Labello Vanilla Buttercream lipbalm is a WINNER for me, it’s super affordable, hydrates my lips and has a sweet but not over powering scent. I also ended up passing the Kiss Balm along to my sister since she apparently likes it a lot, different strokes I guess.

You can purchase both of these lip balms at Clicks or Dischem and the Revlon Kiss Balm at Foschini and Edgars.

Have you tried any of these or are there any other lip balms that you just can’t live without, let me know below:

Review Freedom Makeup

I was thrilled when I saw the Instagram stories of this brand, when they shared that they launched in a few of the Jet stores NATIONWIDE. So naturally on my very next trip to the mall I popped into my nearest Jet store at Chatsworth Centre.

I was ecstatic, I struggled to choose a “few” items to try. I hadn’t used anything from Freedom Makeup before but had seen many videos on Youtube on how affordable and awesome they are.I bought the following products which I convinced myself “I MUST HAVE” and proceeded to test them immediately. 

Luckily for me I was getting ready for a party, a pretty fancy Oscars themed Party.
On my look below I used the Pro Highlight highlighter in GLOW and Pro lipstick in NOIR DARKNESS

They were hits, I also proceeded for the rest of the night to tell anyone who would or wouldn’t listen just how much I LOVE these products.

I also bought the eyeliner which has a thin brush applicator which is perfect for my hooded eyes. The brush allows or precise application and you can build up you liner as you like. It’s a strong jet black 
colour and R49.95 is a good price for a liquid liner as I find I need to buy these quite often.

The eyeshadow primer was a bit of a miss for me, I tried using it on its own, with a powder, over concealer well pretty much any way that was possible and I didn’t see the benefits of having it there. Unless I am using it incorrectly, I would skip this one if I were you.

I can’t decide if I love the lipsticks or highlighters more. At R34.95 the lipsticks are a steal, the colours are so pretty I really wanted them all. They last a long time and even the semi matte ones won’t dry your lips. The pigment is wow and you can use them without a lipliner. Also there was no bleeding with these colours which gets a thumbs up in my book.
I got the colours Retro Retro, a beautiful deep red and Noir Darkness a gorgeous rich purple tone.

The highlighters though, the struggle is real with finding non ashy looking, non-texturizing and affordable highlighters.  These highlighters had me glowing, beaming and shimmering for days. It stays put can be built up, used on its own or as a pretty topper on your blush.

Now they call this trio the Bronzed Professional Pro Bronze I have the shade SHIMMER LIGTHS but it’s more of a highlight/bronzer combo. The bronzer shade is a bit light for me but I use it as eyeshadow sometimes so no wastage here.The peach and champagne colours look great on my skin tone but I do believe they will suit a variety of complexions.

Check out the swatches below, L-R theres Glow, Noir Darkness, Shimmer Lights, Retro Retro & black

Have you tried any Freedom Makeup products share your thoughts below:

New Year Wishes

Well, It's already the 15th of January and I am a little late with the New Year Wishes.

Just a few words from me to you. Enjoy each day this year offers you and do more of what you love, what makes you laugh and what makes your heart happy.

Remember to embrace the greatness that's within you and be kind to one another but most especially to yourself.

Summer Loving Nail Polish Edition

Now that SUMMER is on our doorsteps (Well from the weather in Durbs lately, you would swear it's not) and you know we gots to get our nails did to evoke those #summervibes Here's some of my favourite nail polish shades for summer:

First up is the Essence The Gel polish in You and Me a beautiful lavender colour, two coats gives u maximum effect. Very pretty and likely to flatter most skin tones. I think this would work well as a pedi colour too.
Also I used this polish without any topcoat and it lasted a good 5 days with very minimal chipping.

Next up we have a beautiful aqua shade called Juicy from Avon cosmetics if you can't get your hands on this, Essence, Sorbet and Essie have similar colours. This is the perfect pedi colour, I use it for an accent nail when I do a manicure. It's fun and bright and would complement many other colours for some cute nail art combos.

I got the Sorbet Sweet Sixteen set for Christmas last year. It really is an ideal gift for any nail polish lover like myself. There are so many cute colours with different textures. Melting Moments is one of my favourites, it's a pale nude pink. This colour would suit many skin tones. It's a very romantic colour, I think it would also go really well with a metallic rose gold accent nail.

Found the next gorgeous colour at the freshly stocked Essence stand at Dischem it even says new on it... There was only 1 left so needless to say I grabbed it pretty quickly. It's a peachy, pink nude that looks oh so fresh and cute. This seems like it would be a perfect base for a multitude of nail art designs. This shade is called Rosewood Forrest, I know! the name is as pretty as the polish.

If you know me, then you know this next colour is as bright as my personality. This one again is from Essence (what can I say, their nail polishes are awesome) it's a Matte tangerine colour and screams #summervibes. Its called Va Va Voom This colour need no accents, it stands loud and proud on its own. I sometimes put a glossy top coat on and it just makes it look a lil more special. Sinful Colours also has a similar shade called Boogie Nights, which was one of favourites for a while.

Now this last colour called Serendipity is my all time favourite it's like a greyish lilac colour and can pass off as a cool neutral, no suprises that it's from Essence Cosmetics too. It will flatter many skin tones and can be used with a multitude of colours for those of you who like to mix up their mani.

What's your summer nail polish faves, share with me below and I just might try them out❤️

Tried, Tested and Loved

This is the 1st edition of #TTL & I want to make it a regular feature on my blog. I love writing product reviews, I always feel my opinion counts a whole lot and so I love sharing it with anyone who will listen.

Here's a a few products I started using this year and my take on just how awesome they are.

Justine Tissue Oil

I know like where have I been?, I had to switch to this one because I couldn't get my hands on my usual Cocoa Heaven from Bramley.

I like the smell and feel of this oil, its quickly absorbed into the skin and keeps me moisturised without feeling greasy. That’s a pretty grand feat for a beauty oil. I use is whenever I remember too and mostly at night on my face.

Price: R60 for 60ml on special ( They are having a special on 2x 100 ml for R190)

Get Yours From: Local Justine sales rep find yours here

Brush Egg

Ok so, many of my peeps are telling me I don’t need this but, they are soooooo wrong. This mini beauty babe makes brush clean up a breeze, it takes me half the time to wash my brushes and get them really clean. I use this with baby soap and water and it works on both synthetic,natural and combo brush types.

This is pretty hard to come by, I haven’t seen them in many stores. You can buy yours from one of the IG sellers and this one often has them on special.

Price: R60.00

Catrice Long lasting lip pencils

I love lip liners, well I love makeup so this isn’t a shocker. I ordered these ones from Takealot when they were having a sale. Got them at a bargain price. The shades are pretty flattering for most skin tones. They are soft and highly pigmented. If your lips are in super great condition you could get away with using these as matte lip sticks. They can be used to line or full in lips and maybe switch up the colour of lipstick by layering them on before or after lipstick application

Price: R18.00 each on sale 

Get yours  from: Takealot or Dischem

Can we ever have too many of these

Pantene Aqua light

I usually use this refreshing spray after I wash my hair or to tame fly aways when I’m tying my hair. It has the most freshest scent ever and isn’t sticky. You can spray as much of this as you like and I promise you there will be no sign of oiliness in sight. Curly hair beauties should try this as a leave in conditioner, you will be amazed at how soon you will fall in love with this miracle worker.

It softens hair and makes frizzy hair more manageable without weighing it down.

Price: R70.00

Gets yours from: Clicks, Dischem, selected Checkers and PnP

Need another one of these soon

Design EyeShadow Palettes

I have ready great things about these palettes from Hayleigh. I was so eager to try them so I jumped at the opportunity when I saw this in Edgars at the beginning of January. You might only spot them at one of their beauty sales so if you see this in the store then you have to act fast. The colour pay off is awesome and I can create a variety of looks with this palette. The golden bronze shades can be used to highlight and bronze. This has to be one of my new favourites.

Price: R53.00

Gets yours from: Edgars whenever you can

Rich Naturals

Have you tried any of the products above, Comment below and let me know what you think.

PS The notebook used in the pics is part of a 2 pack from PnP got at a steal of R29.95.