NARS Translucent Crystal Setting Powder - Loose

Today is a review on the NARS Translucent Crystal Setting Powder, I have been using this for months now and I want to talk about it!

First off are some pictures of what the product looks like!

The bottom of the packaging.

The general inside of the product.



I have been using this for a few months now just like I said at the start. I wanted to try this because I have heard a lot of good things about this product from good old YouTube. Normally I go for pressed powders, but I was in the mood for a change and so got the loose version. I do not regret this at all! So that is a good thing. I am tempted to get the pressed though, I will explain why below.

The reason why I love this product so much is that it helps keep me matte during the day. I have really oily skin in the T-zone and so I need some help with keeping my makeup look good and not utterly horrible. I do think that this does help with that!

This is roughly what I would use to cover my face, this is most likely too much, so it shows you just how little you need. Now I most likely use a little too much powder, so people with normal/ dry skin would need a lot less than me. I find that this product does not affect my foundation, but even though it is a translucent powder, I do feel that it does help my foundation match my skin colour a bit more. My foundation is slightly too dark for me so this helps lighten it a tiny bit.

The reason I have thought about getting the pressed powder is because of the image above. I LOVE how this feels and looks on my skin, the only problem is that the loose version isn't exactly very travel friendly. This happened after being in my bag from shopping, it took me roughly 20 minutes to be able to get the product back into the base of the packaging. So my only concern is that if you're doing a lot of traveling maybe think about getting the pressed version. I might be getting it as I plan to go overseas soon and don't really want to have to spend potentially an hour trying to get all the product back in the right spot.

I have also re-applied this through the day and it didn't not disturb my makeup at all. It returned my makeup to what it looked like when I had first applied it in the morning. Which I was shocked and so glad for because I didn't really have time to touch up anything else.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:
I do seriously love this product, I use it everyday and when I don't use it as apart of my routine I do notice a difference in how my makeup looks. If you're in need of a nice face powder and looking for a high-end product or even just a change I think you should consider this product.

RATING:
9/10

PRICE: $46 (MECCA)
Pressed version: $46 (MECCA)


Hope this helps, thanks for reading!

Bye xx

September Favourites!

The month of September came and went super fast! Sorry that this post is a bit late, I only have excuses to offer so I will just move right along to my favourites for the month!

I'm super sorry to start off a post with some limited edition products, but these are honestly my favourite lips sticks of the month. The two that I have been loving are from M.A.C. and they are Kelly Yum Yum from the Kelly Osbourne collection and Mystical from the Alluring Aquatics collections.

 Here is a couple of photos of the packaging, as you can see these lipsticks are in limited edition packaging I love them! My favourite packaging would have to be from the Alluring Aquatics because the rain drops are raised and feel awesome!!

 As you can see on the bottom of the packaging it lists the colour name and also what finish the lipstick is. I personally prefer satin and cremesheen because of how they feel on my lips.

 This first swatch is of Kelly Yum Yum. This is Candy Yum Yum in a different finish. Candy Yum Yum is a matte finish where as Kelly Yum Yum is a satin finish.

This is a swatch of Mystical, this is one of the first nude shades I have bought from M.A.C., I personally prefer bright shades but once I swatched this I knew I had to have it in my collection.

Again I'm sorry that my first favourites are limited edition lipsticks but these have honestly been my favourites. I have been wearing these so much its a bit ridiculous. I love wearing Kelly Yum Yum with a more neutral look as well as black/ plain clothing so that way the lipstick stands out. I wear Mystical when I am going for a more subtle look. I find that these last really well and they don't feel uncomfortable on my lips.

PRICE: $36 AUD


Next is my favourite powder of all time (so far) and it is the NARS Translucent Crystal Light Reflecting setting powder. I have had this for a few months now and I don't think I could live without it now.

There is a choice between a pressed powder and loose powder if the loose powder isn't for you. I normally use pressed but I was in the mood for something different and decided on the loose! (Important to note that there is NO price difference between the two.)

This is the inside of the product, when you first get the product there is a sticker over the holes to make sure lots of product isn't going everywhere before you even use the product. This is also black when you first use it, but I have used mine so yea.

This is roughly how much I use all over my face. Some might say this is too much which is perfectly fine! I prefer a MATTE finish and so maybe I apply too much, but this is the look I like.

This product isn't completely 'travel friendly' as you can see in this photo, this happened after I had my powder in my bag all day (because I had left it at my rents and mum kindly gave it back to me). Now this is WAY to much product to use, but I stress that you CAN get the product back into the packaging, it's just that you are going to have to spend the time to tap it all back in. The photo representing how much I use was taken after I had spent about 10 - 20 tapping the product back in. So yea, not really travel friendly.

Even though this isn't travel friendly I LOVE this product. It keeps me matte for ages without looking super powdery throughout the day. I also love how this feels on my skin throughout the day, it helps keeping my skin feeling fresh and like I don't have heaps of makeup on. One thing to note is that this does have a strong-ish smell, so be aware of that when using this. I don't mind the smell and just adds to the great time I have using this product!

In Australia to get this in-store you can head over the Mecca Cosmetica which is a stand alone store and sometimes available in Myer.

PRICE: $46 AUD (This has recently went through a price change, it used to be $55 AUD)
LINK: NARS Translucent Powder (Link takes you to Mecca's website)


My last favourites are eye shadows. These have honestly become some of my all time favourite colours in my collection. I use them so often! These products are the NYX Eye Shadows in Sahara and Walnut.

On the left is Sahara and Walnut is on the right.

I love the colour of this. I put apply this to 3/4 of my lid with a white base to make the colour look more pigmented.

One thing I love about the packaging is how it has other languages on the back. (Mainly the Japanese as I can read it and giggle at what it's called in Japan.)

As you can see this is the back of the Walnut shadow.

I love this colour so much! I love to put this in the corner of my eye to create a more smokey look.

I love these shadows soooooo much and the look that I create with these two shadows is really simple but looks great! I have received compliments on these shadows and it just makes me love them more. Walnut is a creamier shadow and you don't need a lot of shadow to get an amazing colour pay off. Sahara takes a bit more to build up but I still love the colour that is gives once the colour has been packed on.

 This is a hand swatch of Sahara.

And this is Walnut!

I know that I didn't have many favourites this month, but simple is sometimes better! I will still be using these products this month but I already know some of my favourites for this month! Leave me a comment with your favourites and anything you think that I should rush out and get and try out!

Thanks for reading! 

iHerb.com order

So these are my recent purchases from the amazing site iHerb.com! (One product belongs to my sister, I will mention which one below) iHerb.com is a great site that sells organic products globally but at USA RRP making this a great place to shop for us Australians where, in our stores they like to jack up the prices! (Due to shipping and wages, but still) 

Also it's nice to note that the company will throw in some random product, as seen with the measuring tape with the website displayed in big writing. 

This is the Eyes.Lips.Face (E.L.F) High Definition Undereye Setting Powder. This is a new product to me, I've heard some good reviews and mentions on YouTube and so I thought I would give it a try! I have a problem with concealer creasing under my eyes super quickly/ easily so I am hoping this will help set things in place better. This will also be my first time using a HD setting powder (to my knowledge).

Price: $3 (iHerb.com) 

          $8 (E.L.F Offical AU website)

This is the Eyes.Lips.Face (E.L.F) Eyelid Primer in Sheer. This is a repurchase (and my third at that!) I love this primer as it does make my eye shadow last longer! I use this with my Estée Lauder Concealer and together they make my eye shadow last all day! I so far have noticed though that this works best with my NYX shadows to make them last.

Price: $1.99 (iHerb.com)

          $3 (E.L.F Offical AU Website)

Now onto the brushes, all the brushes in this order are by Real Techniques by Sam and Nic Chapman. The first brush I am going to talk about is the setting brush, which is exactly what I want to use this for! I plan to use this with the E.L.F setting powder. I'm excited to see how this goes and whether the products work well together.

Price: $8 (iHerb.com)

          $14.99 (Priceline)

This is the Real Techniques Powder Brush. I use this to powder my entire face and I find it's perfect for that, I like how it is a big brush meaning I can cover more of my face at a time, this saves me time in the morning. This brush is lovely and soft and remains so after multiple washes. Mine has not lost it's shape or changed in any way. I have washed this both with Antibacterial Hand Soap and Shampoo and find both work fine. This can take it's time to wash as there are a lot of bristles, so please double and triple check after initial wash that you HAVE got all of the product out of the brush. I do also spot clean this with the M.A.C. Brush Cleanser and have no problems either.

Price: $9.99 (iHerb.com)

          $24.99 (Priceline)

This is the brush is what my sister ordered, the Expert Face Brush. She has a smaller face and so she prefers smaller brushes to do her makeup with. I'm pretty sure she is going to be using this as her new foundation brush. (She was previously using the Real Techniques Stippling Brush) 

Price: $9 (iHerb.com)

          $19.99 (Priceline)

This is the Your Eyes/ Enhanced Starter Set. This consists of a Base Shadow Brush, Deluxe Crease Brush, Accent Brush, Fine Liner Brush, Brow Brush and a Panoramic Case. 

These brushes I already have repurchased so that I would have doubles to use for looks in the future. The brush that I use the most is the Base Shadow Brush, I use this to pack shadow all of the lid. Again these wash well just like the Powder Brush and clean easily.

Price: $18 (iHerb.com)

          $ 39.99 (Priceline)

This is the last of the products and it's the Your Base/ Flawless Core Collection. This set contains the Detailer Brush, Pointed Foundation Brush, Buffing Brush, Contour Brush and finally a Panoramic Case. 

This is another set that is a repurchase, although last time I went halves with my sister and she took the Pointed Foundation Brush (her first Real Techniques Foundation Brush) and the Detailer Brush (again because she likes smaller brushes, I think she said she used it for eye shadow). I use the other two brushes regularly/ daily. The Buffing Brush has become my favourite brush to use to apply my foundation. This is because it is a dense brush that applied product beautifully without leaving brush marks. I also use this to apply my concealer (both under eye and general) it does an amazing job and doesn't rub off the foundation already on my face (just in case you apply concealer second) the Contour Brush is used for contouring, blending and was also used for highlighting. I love this brush for contouring as it's small and blends product nicely without moving the foundation underneath. 

Both of these wash nicely, I've only once had trouble cleaning the Buffing Brush which was when the foundation in the centre of the brush didn't want to come out. It took maybe 4 washes to get if out. But again this has only happened once.

Price: $18 (iHerb.com)

          $44.99 (Priceline)

Sorry that so far all of my posts have been hauls! I hope this will slow down, it's just all my internet purchases are arriving.