Busy Mom Makeup: The Simple Face (To bring back some ME time)

I have always been a very organised person, and I like to plan things ahead.  Since becoming a mama,  I learnt to take things as they come and deal with them one at a time, this means that no matter how organised I am, I had to sort things out now and pass things up when I have the next minute.

Putting on makeup has never been that 'luxurious' to me... it's my only 'me' time now (aside from shower although these days, I can finish it in 1 min... joke, but seriously there's no such thing called indulging in a shower/ bath).  Luckily, almost every time when I head out of the door with my newborn baby, I managed to, somehow put some sort of makeup on my face to look a little bit more than presentable, or just about.

A good base that covers your skin well and brightens your complexion helps a ton, I don't have the extra second to further conceal my face.  YSL Fusion Ink Foundation is a great all-rounder and an instant fix to a dull and tired looking face.  I like to use the Zoeva 102 Silk Finish Brush from the Rose Golden Luxury Set to buff it all over my face, not only it does the job quickly; it also does it brilliantly.

Eye makeup will have to be compromised to a much simpler version as there really is not time for me to blend, blend blend.  Therefore any 'one wash wonder' is my saviour, and recently I love using my Tom Ford cream eyeshadow which comes in a pot, it's extremely easy to blend.  I like to use my ring finger to dabble onto the pot and a few blends onto the eyelids then you are almost good to go.  You can stop right there as the shade does give a structure to the eyes, however my eyes are quite there without a good application of eyeliner, any non-budge/ waterproof one is great!  If you have that extra second to squeeze in just before you baby wakes up or wants you, a helping of mascara is always useful.

I also like to contour my face a little bit to give an illusion of 'my face has gone back to my pre-baby-weight-face', the Kevyn Aucoin Candlelight & Sculpting Creamy Glow Duo is perfect.  Fingers is all you will need to give your face a bit of structure, and glow.

Soap and Glory Archery 2-in-1 Brow Filling Pencil and Brush is my forever repurchase eyebrow pencil.  Its fine nip is perfect when it comes to filling in your brows and you can do it quickly as well.

Just before you dash out of the door, and you've got a million things yet to do, but haven't got the time to return to the bathroom to apply lipsticks, Dior Addict Lip Glow won't fail you but to give your lips a bit of colour and at the same time moist!

By the time I finished typing this blog, I can hear that my son needs me.... so until next time, happy putting on makeup FAST and enjoy your 'ME' time!

Liberty Beauty Advent Calendar 2014

This year, I've decided to make Christmas a special one, therefore I've spoiled myself by buying Liberty's Beauty Advent Calendar 2014!

I've never owned one myself, not even a chocolatey one. So this one I bought is hugely exciting!

From 1 Dec, I'm going to be blogging everyday (woo very brave of me I think!) by opening one of these drawers then sharing with you what is inside!

If you are still shopping around for a special Advent Calendar for this year, you may be interested in getting this!

Have you ever owned an advent calendar before? 

I'm getting excited for Christmas!

Life Updates and Announcement!

You may be wondering where I have been! Sorry if I have been slacking on the  blogging front. Life has been less than manic and severely sleep deprived!

Yes you've guessed it but I've had a baby just a little over 6 weeks ago!

Let me introduce my baby son officially here: Lear Berry Li, born 7 Oct 2014 at St Mary's Hospital.

I won't go into great details of the whole labour and delivery story but in short, I've been fortunate enough to have a rather smooth, quick and easy delivery. Lear also came just 1 day after the due date so it's pretty cool.

Taking care of a newborn is not easy at all. I think the most challenging thing is not getting enough sleep which is seriously a problem for me.

Feeding front, breastfeeding has been unexpectedly challenging too so I'm combined feeding right now after some serious trial in the first couple of weeks.

Lear is a very adorable baby which I'm in love with! I'm simply just very looking forward to seeing him growing up and starting to properly responding to his mama and papa!

I'm hoping to try as hard as possible to blog regularly. I'm also going to attempt blogmas this year! It might just be simple entries but it's a way I keep my beauty blogging going after becoming a mama!

LANOLIPS: ONE GOOD AND ONE BAD

Lanolips,  an Australian brand which I have heard so much positive reviews about its wide range of products.  Aside from all the raves received, I also have a good impression of products from down south, purely because of its reputation of injecting natural ingredients in skincare and beauty products.

I think I've waited for long enough to finally have chosen two Lanolips products to give them a properly test.  The end result, one good and one bad.

Lanolips Lemonaid Lip Aid with Organic Lemon Oil - I'm always looking out for the most hydrating and moisturising lip balm as I suffer from chapped lips all the darn time.  I had high expectation of this product as I have heard such fantastic things about it that it actually cures very dry lips, so that's great news as it sounds like right up my street.  However, when I adopted this from my sister (@forksandbrushes) as she didn't find it impressive, I had mixed feelings about it.

Anyway, now that I have tried it for a little while; I absolutely loved using it!  Recently (in the past 4-5 months at least) I had to exfoliate my lips on a daily basis and with a constant routine of applying lip balm, it wouldn't improve the situation.  Then things have changed dramatically since I introduced Lanolips lip aid, my chapped lips seem to have completely been transformed.

I use it around twice a day, especially before I go to bed I put on an extra thick layer.  The next day when I wake up I found my lips felt much smoother and moisturised, there's hardly any dead skin lurking.  This product has got quite a thick and creamy texture however it is absorbed by the lips so quickly, the product seems to really have penetrated through the surface.  I love the perfume of it, too - it's very lemony which reminds me of a yummy lemon meringue cake or a lemon curd tart!  Continued using it I have become totally detached from my lips exfoliator.  It's definitely a first for me.  I'll keep using it and see if it's able to see me through the winter!

Lanolips Antibacterial Hand Cream - I had rather high hopes for this hand cream.  I enjoy using multi-purpose products.  This one, not only works as a hand cream it also has anti-bacterial function.  What a clever idea!  However, after using it for a short while, I found that my hands became allergic to it and as a result there were some minor rashes and caused itchiness.  I am not sure which ingredients in this have caused it, but here's a list of all the ingredients in this hand cream:

Ingredients:

Water, Lanolin, C12-15 Allkyl Benzoate, Caprylic/Capric Triglycerides, Ethylhexylmethoxy cinnamate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Benzophenone - 3, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Butylmethoxydibenzoyl Methane, Ceteth-20, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, Caprylyl Glycol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Benzalkonium Chloride, Disodium EDTA, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract

I don't find this hand cream particularly moisturising either.... and whether or not it has the effect of anti-bacteria; I remain doubtful, too as the reactions I have suffered from as a result of using it.  I have stopped using it completely and despite looking for other body parts I could use it; I'm quite worried that it would cause further irritations to my skin so I'm afraid I'll have to say goodbye to it!

Have you tried any products by Lanolips?  What's your favourite or (un)favourite?