Cleaning the makeup off my face.

I'm generally a face soap and rinse girl.

However, my mum brought home the NIVEA gentle caring micellar water. A 3 in 1 concoction that is supposed to clean all the makeup off of your face while hydrating, cleansing, and moisturizing your face, which is very important when you've had makeup on it all day (not sponsored, but hey, if NIVEA want to hit me up?)

Basically what you do is pour a small amount onto a cotton ball or pad (very cheap, you can buy packs anywhere) and what I did was rest it on my eye makeup for a couple seconds to let the water permeate the makeup. After that you wipe it away and even waterproof makeup should come away with minimal effort.

This micellar water is free of colours, perfumes or parabens which is great if you have highly sensitive skin. I have read many reviews of the product today and have found that on average it has 4-5 stars by the majority of reviewers, and I can see why.

So, the micellar water got the majority of my makeup off, even the waterproof eyeliner I was wearing. Yes, the cotton pad was disgusting afterwards and it did not remove all of my mascara, but I did pack on a lot (!) of makeup to test this product properly. I even tried it on a long lasting liquid lipstick after it had been on for a couple hours and it was removed no problem. Best part was my face actually felt clean afterwards and I did not have to rinse. My currently dry (due to winter on its way) combination skin loved this product and I will definitely be using it again.

9/10 stars for this product, and I highly recommend.

YAS! xox

Taz 

(Again, not sure what happened to the text above the video, it tends to do that sometimes)

NYX Face Awards

I love extreme make up looks, hence my love for people like MadeYewLook and Glam&Gore.

 

The NYX Face Awards are an annual competition to find the beauty vlogger of the year. The competition is open to anyone with a love of makeup. Simply upload your entry to Youtube and submit your entry form. The top 6 finalists will be flown to LA for their final tutorial and the winner recieves $50,000. Unfortunately the competition is only open to the United States.

Rules & Regulations

Top 30

@alexandra_anele
@AlexaPoletti
@bethanyfae
@cameronpulido
@Charmsie
@Cosmobyhaley
@coymakeup
@formidableartistry
@gabriel_dreams
@ginashkeda
@howtobyjordan
@isnoweh
@jackyohhh
@kayladaniellea

@kimberleymargarita_
@laura_makeup
@lilmissmegsmakeup
@missbrimarie
@msbrittanysarah
@nickeilgenesis
@nicolconcilio
@nsomniaksdream
@pompberry
@rawbeautykristi
@rebeccashoresmua
@ryankellymua
@spankievalentine
@victorialynbeauty
@visual_artifacts
@wesleybenjamincarter 

Top 20

@alethea_spencer
@AlexaPoletti
@missbrimarie
@cameronpulido
@kimberleymargarita_
@cosmobyhaley
@ginashkeda
@howtobyjordan
@jackyohhh
@laura_makeup
@lilmissmegsmakeup
@nickeilgenesis
@nicolconcilio
@nsomniaksdream
@pompberry
@rawbeautykristi
@ryankellymua
@bethanyfae

@victorialynbeauty

@wesleybenjamincarter

I have been watching some of the entries and here are some of my favourites so far (I haven't seen them all yet) X3

\

Would you ever enter the NYX Face Awards? I'd love to, but I can barely contour let alone transform my face XD annnnnnnd I don't live in America.

Catch you later xx 

The Charity Event

Biggest Morning Tea!

This weekend, my mother and I attended a Biggest Morning Tea hosted by one of mum's cousins. We, along with all the other lovely ladies that attended, raised $1700 for Cancer research!

It was an amazing turnout of around 60 ladies who all donated generously for a good cause. Mum also won the bake-off! YAY, to be fair though, her peanut brittle is actually amazingly delicious, so no surprises there. 

The most adorable thing to happen was the host's toddler turned up with her baby sister and father, and pretty much stole the spotlight! By the end of the event and cleanup time, I had her with a broom, sweeping the entire hall. The best part was the broom was just the right size for her, and I may have taught her to chase people around with brooms...

"Watch out! Watch out!" was heard all around the room as that little girl tried sweeping up her family and friends. She is very helpful, and so cute!

It was just a really nice occasion to dress pretty, chat up a barista for decent coffee (mwahahaha) and hang with family. 

Stay beautiful! xox

Taz

P.S.

Something some book-lover's need to realise...

And something I noticed today.

When I'm on the bus heading to Uni, I am either on my phone playing a game or more often than not, reading a book. It's a great time to immerse yourself in some literature and take yourself away to some far off land for adventures.

But today, I forgot my book. *GASP* so instead of playing on my phone, I looked out the bus windows and watched the world go by. Here is a list of things I noticed:

1. The streams were actually full of water from the rains, for a change. In Australia, we have alot of very dry weather; this year, it isn't even Winter yet and the creeks are full.
2. New interesting houses are being built near the city, more townhouses and apartment buildings as well. Architecturally interesting buildings with more curves than straight lines.
3. The birds were out in abundance today, from ducks to pigeons to doves. All seemed happy at the blue sky after a rain storm that completely saturated the ground.
4. I did not bring my camera and I am not happy about it...

So my question is this, do some people get so absorbed in the beauty of the written word that they forget there is an entire world out there, brimming with life and feeling and beauty, ripe for experiencing? I know I have been so absorbed in a book before that I have missed my bus, or been late to school, or have "wasted" away the day in my room with my bedside light...

Just something to think about.

Goodnight reader! xox

Taz

Art Attack

Is it Media or Medium? My teacher always tells me and I always forget XD

Today I wanted to talk about what I usually use to create my art works. I am currently studying Stage 2 (Year 12) Visual Arts. When you do art there will be things that just click like working big or small, quick or slow, music or silence, paint or pencil, realistic or cartoon?
Most artists will prefer a certain media or medium for their work.

Art Vs. Artist Tag @tabby_in_wonderland

Copic Markers
I started using copic markers last year at school, I do not own any myself but I have a set from school that the teacher gave me to keep for the year. They are the classic warm grey set of 12. I like this set because it's not as harsh as the cool greys and I can use it to create black & white art works, whereas if I had colours I would be limited to what I could draw.

Pros - Looks amazing

Cons - Price, takes practice, can bleed

Tip - Before investing in Copics, borrow some to see if you work with them. If you can't afford Copics start with Prismacolor Markers.

Prismacolor Markers
I only started using these recently and I love them. While cheaper than Copics, they're still not cheap. I use the Premier chisel tip primary/secondary colours set of 12, which I am loaning from school for the year.

Pros - Easy to use first time, don't bleed as much as copics

Cons - Price

Tip - Before investing in Copics, start with Prismacolor Markers.



Pencil (Faber Castell)
I love using the Faber Castell pencils, they are so smooth and good quality. I also use Crayola. If I'm desperate for a colour I'll use Derwents, the problem with Derwents are they are expensive, hard to sharpen and have a waxy finish. I bought a pack of Faber Castells and they are my favourites to use. I love using them in my adult colouring book (Star Wars), it's a great way to practice different colouring techniques.

Pros - Price, easy to find (target, kmart, big w)

Ink
I'm not sure what brand of ink I use, it it whatever is in the art storeroom at school. I have been using ink for about a year and I am still finding new techniques. I need to write them down though because I never remember them XD

Pros - Lots of different effects

Cons - Hard to control, takes a lot of practice

Tip - Experiment


Fineliners
I use Artline 200 fine 0.4 to outline pretty much all of my art work. My Marilyn Monroe piece used Artline Calligraphy makers and the Artline 210 Medium 0.6. 

Pros - Finishes a piece nicely, range of sizes, cleans up lines before colouring

Cons - Bleed - they bleed blue when used with copics, but NOT with Prismacolors.


Tip - If you press on the pen so the nib is pushed into the pen making it shorter, it will draw smoother but not last as long.

Moleskine
These little books can be found in Dymocks in sets of 3. They are small enough to keep in my bag for when I get a sketch idea, the paper isn't white but it is very smooth. 
Here is an artist who uses them quite a lot.

Used for quick sketches and ideas

Visual Diaries (Jasart)
I got the Jasart book from my brother so I have no idea about price or availability. The corners are square not round with I prefer. The paper is lovely, it's not as soft as the art diaries I use for school (so pencil doesn't smudge as much) but it's thicker and stronger.

Used for art works

Catch you later xx

BoHo BooYa!

Bohemian Chic? YAS

Natural wood and plants mixed with cool patterns and rustic tones? Very gypsy, very bohemian. Today I will share some of the Pinterest pictures I found that are totally life goals. I love the use of the muted purple, a dusty purple colour that is just gorgeous!

Here we have some basic bohemian fashions that I love. A flowing skirt or dress, some cute shoes and long turquoise necklaces. It's kind of a gypsy vintage look, which just looks very comfy and easy to wear.

All of the natural and neutral colours work really well together, and that handkerchief dress is actually adorable. 

And then we have my favourite Home Decor! Basically the more plants and pillows the better! I personally love the throw together look of bohemian home decor, mixing elements from modern and vintage furniture to create a look that is completely unique. So pretty, and very natural when you add the wooden elements! 

So awesome and natural. Some people do not like the hippy vibe, but I do. It is very calming.

Sweet dreams lovelies! xox

Taz 

PARTY!!! Adult! Bunny! AVCon!

Eating: Roses chocolates

Watching: Bride Wars

Hanging with: my cat

This weekend I celebrated my 18th birthday with my friends! A Very Potter Musical and cards against humanity and pizza = yassssss

My friends know me so well, harry potter merch ftw!

I have been watching Supernatural recently and because I am a complete fraidycat I've been watching Ever After High just so I can get to sleep. I actually enjoyed it more than I thought XD 

Ah Netflix, thou art an addictive love

I have my CanDance for Cure performance next weekend at the Adelaide Entertainment centre, so excited!

My brother took the last slice of birthday cake TT^TT and I submitted two different reports on the same play, do you think they'll notice some parts are the same? It's not plagiarism if it's my own work...

Oh and I'm adjusting to the adultiness of adulthood...

The 7th Fairy Tail OVA came out! So much Gajevy!!!

Angry Levy is soooooo cute!!! I so want to cosplay Bunny Levy!

Speaking of which, I have finally picked my Friday cosplay for AVCon 2016.
I love taytei's circus/carnival AU.

Catch you later xx

Happy Monday?

It is Monday, once again...

Monday, the necessary evil. If we did not have Monday's, we would just hate Tuesdays honestly. (Que rambling) I wonder what preservative they put in Cola? I've had a bottle of it sitting in my room for four weeks unopened and just now, pouring myself a glass, it looks and tastes exactly the same as if I had opened it four weeks ago.

A small disclaimer: sometimes, I need some time to myself and I cannot write well in a bad state of mind. 

Public Service Announcement: Take time for yourselves sometimes, always try your hardest but recognize when it is time to take a break.

The Sloth is my current Spirit animal.

ANYWAY, on to the weekend. Tabby had her 18th B'day party! *CONFETTI THROW* Which was alot of fun. There was a decadent cake, A Very Potter Sequel and Cards against Humanity! Met some gorgeous people, was attacked by both Tabby AND my boyfriend at the same time. I worked most nights and finished a big assignment on Friday! Very Busy. Very stressful. However, I got some great sleep and this morning, I got up, had breakfast and then had a nap before one of my best-friends and I donated some clothing and went to get coffee... AKA ambrosia because Caffeine.

Oh and there was Gym, ow my shoulders hurt. But at least it wasn't leg day, AMIRITE?

MY POOR LIMBS! xox

Taz

Why I can't write a book

I can't write a book...
I would like to...
But there are a few reasons why I probably won't.

1. I procrastinate
Wow a teenager who procrastinates, never heard that one before! But seriously I procrastinate for the lamest reasons, "It's too hot", "I'm hungry", "Doctor Who is on". I struggle to even do cosplay because I either clean up my work space then forget to do it or I do it for 6 hours straight.

2. Where's the meat?
I have ideas, plots and characters but not the stuff in between. I want so badly to get to a certain event that I get lazy and vague on the parts in between.

3. Disaster!
I lost all the notes on my mac and all my story ideas, quote ideas and character profiles TT^TT


4. I need a Tardis
Time! I need time! I'm so busy with dance, cosplay, school, job hunting and sleep that I don't have time to sit down and write.

5. Get in the mood...
I need to be in the mood to write. When I was in the pub at Lake June sitting in wooden seats by a fire with hot chocolate and snow falling on still green trees, all I wanted to do was write.

6. Too many ideas!
Either I'll try and squeeze too much into one character or story or I'll get bored with one story and start another because I have a great idea.

7. Old ways die hard
I'm a fanfiction writer, or I used to be before Year 12. I'm used to writing characters people already know and love, putting in inside jokes that reference the series. Everything I need is already done for me. I mean we don't want another 50 shades of Grey right? Besides if I changed the names in my fanfics and tried to sell it it'd be 50 shades of spelling and grammatical errors.

8. Money
Authors don't make a lot of money, JK Rowling and John Green don't apply to this statement but it's true. I would love to have it as a hobby but I doubt I'd ever finish but if I took a year off to write a book how would I support myself?

9. Fear
I'm a very confident and outgoing person but I still fear alot and something that would destroy me would be if I spent a ton of time and effort on a book and no-one like it or no-one want to publish it. Fear is something I can overcome but I would still struggle, thankfully I have Taz to support me whenever I'm down :)

10. Just keep swimming
I can started but it's keeping going that I struggle, so I'm setting myself a challenge.
I'm currently writing a Fairy Tail fanfic and I will write a full story. I'm not making it as long as a story, the chapters will be over 1000 words each and I'm aiming for over 20 chapters. I'm up to chapter 5 and have written 5346 words. (This is a lot for me)

If I can finish this fanfiction maybe I'll try writing a book...who knows?
Until then I'll make sure Taz keeps writing hers!

Catch you later xx

To the stars!

EXPLORE THE GALAXY!

Galaxy inspired art is so beautiful to me, with the blues and purples and pinks blending into each other like clouds and the stars... I thought I would share some of my favourite I saw today.

Both of these are from an artist on Youtube by the name of Qinni. As you can see, she is amazing and her work is so clean and gorgeous. The first picture reminds me of Rapunzel due to the colours and the innocence and youth in the girl's face. This distinctive art style of hers is very appealing to me.

Here we have Karina Joaquin's work. As you can see, a skeletal girl is drinking tea in the universe. I'm not sure if this skull is supposed to be inspired by the Day of the Dead, but it is an interesting piece that adds a pastel touch to the otherwise rich background.

Agnes Cecile, this picture is hair goals. Even though it is a drawing and the hair is watercoloured, I would love to have that hair. Even the white space in this picture adds to its beauty. Overall very well done.

Kate Ronshina? This is exactly how I have been feeling this week, my thoughts can be perfectly described with this photo. I love how simple the girl is compared to her galaxy cloud.

The only name I got for this piece of art was KSENIA, a japanese style with vibrant colours and an adorable skull clip? This picture is cute AND beautiful!

TheBestFangirl on Tumblr created this galaxy chibi, she has quite a few. I chose this one because it had more pink than my other photos and I wanted to incorporate that somehow. Super cute!

And finally a picture that I could not find the original artist for...

If that is coffee I want some.

Night lovelies! xox

Taz

90s WEEK!

My local library is AWESOME

It is 90s week at my local library and in honor of the occasion, we are going to look at typical 90s fashions I may or may not have missed out on being born in 1996. Apparently some of these are coming back? Lets see the damage...

BUTTERFLY CLIPS?

Even though I have always had a lot of hair, my hair is quite fine so these used to slip out of my hair unless my mum put them in for me, even then I preferred bobby pins. At least bobby pins did not break in my hair when I attempted to put more hair than I should in them!

From Lizzie Maguire to the Olsen twins, colourful butterfly clips in the hair was so fashionable if you were the "girly girl"... which I was in all honesty. I didn't start my vague tomboy phase until I was about ten.

GRUNGE!

Doc Martin's or ankle boots, a berry lip for the girls (or guys, you do you) and maybe throw in some plaid and a smoky almost panda eye? Boom, you have grunge fashion.

Even though the word "Grunge" sound's like something you would scrape off the floor of a public bathroom at 4am, the look itself is pretty cool incorporating band shirts, androgynous looks and prints. It's such an awesome mix'n'match that works.




SCRUNCHIES?!

BRING BACK SCRUNCHIES! wait... what? They already have? Awesome! Although scrunchies have a hard time keeping my hair up I absolutely love the messy look that comes along with them.

Phoebe from Friends rocked this look then and now scrunchies are all over instagram on gorgeous girls with very long hair. Good work ladies, not only are you adorable but scrunchies are actually gentler on your hair! YAY for healthy hair, am I right?


These are just three of the trends I have witnessed coming back but things like accent braids, chokers, army boots and berry lips are definitely back now. Mostly I am not even mad, but some things should probably stay in the past... like Gel Sandals.

Have fun with that! xox

Taz

Mermaid Couture

What's up with Ariel?
Why be human when you can be a mermaid...oh wait pollution, global warming...

I don't know of a way to actually become a mermaid but you could still look like one!

Colour Pallet
First you need to work out your colour pallet , do you wanna be Ariel? Or Aquamarine? Or the H2O trio?
Do you wanna be the colour of oceans or sunsets? A clown fish or an angel fish? Good or Evil?

Makeup
So we know waterproof mascara is a must!
Using a wig cap and eyeshadow you can create those scales!
Remember to stick to your colour pallet!
A bold lip goes well with that bright hair!
Decorate with pearls and glitter!
Add gills, shells, starfish or symbols - make your mermaid your own design!

More mermaid looks here

Hair
Time for some colourful hair! Mermaids are colourful so stay away from greys or dirty colours! If your evil try dark greens and blues, black or dark brunettes. If you're a pastel mermaid try pinks, mints, baby purples. f your brighter colours like greens and red try red or blonde or more. If your feeling adventurous go with multiple colours! Your hair must compliment your scales/tail.
Mermaids usually leave their long hair down but you can add braids or fishtail braids!
Decorate your hair with glitter, beads and underwater accessories!
More mermaid looks here

Clothing
Find inspiration from your favourite mermaid things - shells, dinglehoppers, fish...
Scales are a must - you need a tail!

Look Human

Adorkable Apparel

Ebay

Tinkercast Etsy

Hot Topic

Cakeworthy

Nails

Ombre, feature nail and glitter nails...

Add shells, glitter or pearls. Paint shells and scales, go wild!

Pinterest will be your best friend.

Now go live out your mermaid dreams. <3

Catch you later xx