Why a blog?

Somewhere to jot down all things I am passionate about.
My little space to rant, rave and ramble on about this and that.
Most of all, just to share my thoughts with the world!

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Beauty Expo 2011 - My mini haul.


Image c/o http://www.internationalbeautyexpo.com.au/
Hey there peeps! :-h   Well I am just back from my awesome weekend away, attending the Sydney International Spa & Beauty ExpoThis is the second year I have had the privilege of visiting the prestigious two-day event at the SydneyConvention & Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour

The expo is the largest event in Australia for the beauty industry, featuring the latest and greatest in products, treatments and equipment from some of the best brands and suppliers in the country.  With over 250 exhibitors, let me tell you, this expo didn’t disappoint.  ;)  Including brands such as ASAP, Dermalogica, Ecoya, Jane Iredale, Orly, and Youngblood to name a few; it is a beauty connoisseur’s dream come true, with all that beauty stuff in the same place at the same time, yeah boi!!!. \:D/  I am talking skin care, cosmecuticals, natural & organic, makeup, haircare, tanning and all sorts of tools of the trade, you name it; 'Everything Beautyful' is all on display at the expo. yay :D


Image c/o http://www.internationalbeautyexpo.com.au/
This year I was more prepared than I was last year, knowing that there are certainly lots of bargains to be had at this event over the course of the weekend.  Therefore, I made sure I had a few $$$ spare for just a tiny little splurge, which is more than I can say for last year, d'oh!  :-O   #-o  Yeah, yeah I am 'unfortunately' on a super tight budget, being a stay at home mummy and all, but considering I don’t 'normally' go out and treat myself, this was classified as an exception  :-"  :>  I am quite proud of myself actually, because I didn’t really 'go to town' buying up a storm, as I have recently embraced a HUGE reality check and am avoiding any 'unnecessary' beauty purchases :-t (well TRYING to, LOL). :))  It had to be done, if you saw the amount of beauty booty I have laying around my house you would honestly fall over, ha-ha. :))  I could 'easily' open my own store :-O  But seriously, enough is enough!  I hate wasting anything and buying more stuff just for the sake of it, coz it looks so prrrretty, or someone else claims it's good... etc etc is how I landed in this boat in the first place, so it’s OFFICIAL, I AM ON A SPENDING BAN!!! [-(  :((  But……it IS cool to buy anything that needs replacing or things I don’t already have (phew, #:-S  it's impossible to just go cold turkey right, >:)  hehe). ;))

So now, onto the exciting bit, ha-ha, :))  Here is what ended up in my mini haul from the expo this year!

Beauty Expo, Mini Haul
Make Up Thing - High Grade Beauty Kerchief


Ok, What the???  :-/  Well as it turns out, the Make Up Thing - High Grade Beauty Kerchief is just basically a purple, cotton/elastic headband to use for makeup/bath/beauty.  It is one size fits all and has one of those velcro fasteners. Not exactly a fashion statement, LOL :)) but quite useful all the same and for $1.60 I took the bait and got reeled right on in, haha :))  Yeah well, I guess I am just a sucker for anything novelty, shh :-$  ;) 





Makeup Sponge Wedges

I have never tried makeup wedges before but considering I LOVE :x my Beauty Pod, which looks similar to the soft sponge of these wedges.  I thought these might be a super budget alternative.  There is like 32 in a pack, so talk about value, these will no doubt last me for forever and a day, ha-ha :))



Designer Makeup Tools - Brush Cleaner

Scandal - Nail Polish Remover















Natural Look - 8 inch Hinged Sleepers
Scandal - Oil Control Film
Red Eyelash Curler
Some Samples I picked up too :)
Eye Kandy - Basic Kandy Bag
I am loving the Eye Kandy Eye & Body Glitter. :x  With a stay-put base this glitter stays on all day with no flaking! (*)  I first saw this brand last year at the expo and wanted to get a demo done, but their stand was constantly jam packed with people congregating to have a test drive. :-w  I admired the legion of fans who were easily spotted flaunting their vibrant, colourful kandy liners as they made their way around the event.  I am sure every second person I passed was sporting this new-found bling, hehe. ;))  This year I wasn't going to miss out, LOL :)) so, I bee-lined straight to the Eye Kandy stand nice and early and this time I finally got my whack too, woo-hoo. <:-P  I was so impressed with the results so I purchased myself a basic starter set to take home and plan on getting some more gorgeous shades further down the track.




Slightly squashed brochure
Some of the intense glitter varieties available














I chose my favourite hue - Purple
Bright and Bold











Spicy Tart



The name seemed fitting also, ha-ha, :)) I believe I could be considered as a bit of a spicy tart myself, LOL   :-j   









Anyway, that is my Sydney International Spa & Beauty Expo done and dusted for another year.  Now time to kick back and play with some of my new beauty booty. ;)  Should keep me entertained for a while now and it will keep me satisfied so I need not dwell on my spending ban, LOL :))  Did anyone else venture to the expo this year too?  Have you ever been to a beauty expo anywhere else before?  Let me know your thoughts. Do you agree it's the biggest Temptation with a capital T or what?  hehe ;))  How good is your self control?

All images in this blog are my own, other than the two generic images from the Sydney International Spa & Beauty Expo website. 

14 comments:

  1. Good one Mel! nice haul :)
    That Eye Kandy Spicy Tart looks awesome, even more better in person!!! You should post an EOTD using that and the liquid sugar, would make a gorgeous eyeliner :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice control - I'm very impressed!! You got a good amount of stuff without going crazy. I went as well but virtually avoided the makeup section for fear of spending!! I have that much skincare that I knew i could probably resist buying that stuff...thought it was bloody hard!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. @Su Thanks Su glad you like it. I will definitely post an eye of today :) They applied it on my upper lash line on Saturday (as a liner, you know the way we like it) and it held up really well, only a smidgen of fallout throughout the day, but that was most likely due to me being forgetful and touching my eyes, lol and even then it then it was barely noticeable. Will keep you posted :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. @sarah kretchmer Ahh finally this is working again, coz I have been trying to reply to your comment all afternoon, after replying to Su's comment, but was having some freaky blog loading issues and non-responsive scripts, grrrr driving me nuts, :-O LOL :))
    Anyway back to the topic at hand, thanks so much, I agree with you darl, I have an abundance of stuff, both makeup and skincare that I don't use as it is, although I think my worst habit is definitely impulse cosmetics purchases, EEK!! :-O You know when everyone starts raving how good this new eyeshadow palette is and I think yep that is definitely on my wishlist, followed by stalking the product online for the best deals and going as far as adding it to cart before the reality check sets in, ohoh, then I need to spend weeks convincing myself that I don't use even a fraction of the stockpile of existing palettes I own, so why the heck should I get another one just for it to sit and grow cobwebs, :P But yeah just so tempting, sigh :-<
    Skin care is not as bad for me coz I have set products that I stick with, so they only accumulate when I am lucky enough to win something random or get trial products that are not suitable for my skin, :-/
    OMG! I forgot to add one more product to my expo haul list, oops, #-o LOL, :)) the Essie Smoothies Hand and Body Lotion in Coconut Pineapple, mmm =P~ haha ;) Maybe I might have to play around and do an edit tomorrow, hehe, ;)) And I didn't even remember to take a photo of it when I did all the other products, so that goes to show, I definitely got MORE than enough stuff! When it gets that bad you can't even remember what you purchased, shhhh ^#(^ that means SERIOUS problem [-X ;) bwahaha xxx ooo

    ReplyDelete
  5. loool to the name of the glitzy eye make up "spicy tart" hmm quite catchy! Anyhoo, love your posts, pretty funny and sweet so I'm your newest follower, hope you'll pop over from time to time and follow me!!

    Urban art + street fashion addict:
    C.ULT FRIDAY.

    ReplyDelete
  6. @VIVA.V
    Hi Viva and welcome to my little space, thanks so much for your comment and for following, I will definitely head over to your blog and check you out as well. Cheers babe, will most certainly catch you around xxx ooo

    ReplyDelete
  7. @makeup artist in Sydney Thanks for checking out my blog, appreciate it :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. i attended this, year, it was great, i sooo regret not buying some dermatologica, they had a good deal on the regime i wanted, oh well next year ill get it!

    ReplyDelete
  9. @bellameansbeautifulbeauty Thanks heaps for posting darl. I know the deals are amazing, but the two times that I have been now, I can't believe it, I'm always broke :-/ Then about a week later my tax rebate comes and I am cashed up, nooo. It's always the way, and I think imagine what I could have gotten if that tax money was in my purse instead of skimping and saving my regular weekly budget to get a few odd things, lol. Maybe next year will work out better, haha, or I should start some serious saving in advance. Opportunity not to be missed ;)

    ReplyDelete
  10. THANKS FOR THE LOVELY COMMENTS! I AM GLAD YOU LIKE THE POST ASWELL! MORE TO COME!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks you, have checked out your page also, very well done, your expo sounds fabulous, gotta love beauty expo's <3

    ReplyDelete
  12. Cheers darl, I've also checked out your page, well done, keep up the good work :-)

    ReplyDelete

Would love to hear your two cents worth, both good and bad, but anything out of sorts, offensive or unappropriated will have to be scrapped, sorry, just want to keep things clean ;)