Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Tried and Tested: Pupa Multiplay Eyeliner in 09

Hey Guys!

So today I will be reviewing a product which I have been meaning to review for ages, the Pupa Milano Multiplay Eyeliner in 09!

I have been using this eyeliner religiously since Pupa sent it to me!

The eyeliner is not your average eyeliner since it is actually a Kohl eyeliner meaning that the pigmentation of the product is more intense. Apart from the actual eyeliner, it comes with a smudge brush on the other end of the product.

This eyeliner retails for 6.89 euro and comes in a multitude of colours which you can check out here:

I was quite impressed with the longevity of this product, in fact it is one of the reasons why I have been using this eyeliner everyday. Apart from that, I love using it for night time looks since the intensity of the eyeliner is great to achieve more dramatic looks.

That being said, you have to be careful with application since if you apply too much it will look too intense for morning looks. Apart from that, if you put on too much you will find difficulty in getting the result you desire, especially if you try and smudge it.

The Smudging brush is a bit tricky to get a hand on especially when the liner is applied quite heavily. The trick with the smudging brush, I have noticed, is that you would need to apply just a little eyeliner on the outer corner of your eye and with the tip of the brush, smudge the eyeliner towards your tear duct, this also helps for daytime application of the eyeliner.

I highly recommend this eyeliner especially if you are looking for a highly pigmented eyeliner, however, do be careful with your application of the product.

Martina XOXO


*Disclaimer*- I have received this product for free, however, I was not paid to write this review. The above review is of my true and honest opinion.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Diet Diaries- Update 5- Let's Do This!

Hey Guys!

As I told you in my previous update:

I will be getting weighed after 10 days in order to get right back on track!

These 10 days, I'm afraid I was kind of naughty. I missed certain foods, didn't have much time or energy to prepare my meals and to top it all off I had a wedding this weekend!

Although I have moderated what I eat, I still feel guilty about not sticking with the diet (and for taking some sweets). Apart from the fact that last time I lost the weight, it was mainly due to the drip!

These 10 days, especially this past week, was extremely hard for me to prepare my food, first of all, I was exhausted all the time, I have been so busy, that the time I had for preparing food was either spent sleeping or relaxing.

Anyways, let's check out the choices I had when I had a little energy to experiment with food!

Egg Sandwich and Tea- Yums
Yummy Meat
Barley Tuna Salad
Pasta Day- Balsamic Chicken
Who said sandwiches are boring?
My Hubby's experiment for me for my Dad's birthday meal
'Tis the Season for Grapes!
Dinner at the Hubs
My Favourite experiment to date! Healthy Stir Fry Barley & Chicken with peas and eggs
Barley Tuna and Egg Salad
So, this morning I woke up Super Early to wash up before my parents come home from being abroad, it's their 25th Wedding Anniversary today!! Happy Anniversary xxxx

So let's see how I did these 10 days!

Why hello there, nice round figure!!! 

Yes, I have lost weight it appears! I was quite surprised that although I sinned a little, I still lost the same amount of weight I usually lose in 2 weeks!!! To top it all off, I'm down 8.75 kg already!!! 

I know last time I didn't tell you my target weight, however, today Marika told me how happy she is with my progress and has officially told me I am half way there!! 

I also had a little heart to heart with Marika about my tiredness and motivation. She suggested I try to eat more red meat since I might not have enough Iron intake. 

Also, I have been receiving a lot of nice compliments about my weight loss, since I am currently at a stage were I really look like I have lost a lot of weight and a lot of people are noticing it. Marika warned me that I might get too excited and maybe shut an eye. 

To be honest, I have done that and have admitted it to her openly. Marika gave me this really good tip to help me out... Since I'm still not 100% happy with my weight, I have to always bear in mind that I have a target which I want to reach, so I have to stay positive and cheer myself on to reach that target!

I want to thank you all for your support throughout this journey, you have no idea how much all of you help me with your comments and support and I hope that I am helping you with your weight loss journey! Remember, I am always an email, comment, message away, so if you need any tips, help, support or just someone to talk to, I am always available!

Martina XOXO

Fabulous Feature- Exciting News- Pavli Magazine!

Hey Guys!

So a few weeks ago we had the opportunity to write about Spring/ Summer 2013 Make Up Trends for Pavli Magazine!!

Check out the full magazine here, it's worth checking out!!

You can see our article on page 48!!
A snippet of our article!
Thank you Pavli for this opportunity!!!

Martina XOXO

Monday, May 20, 2013

Tried & Tested: Make Up Store Palette

Hey Guys!

So as you know, a few weeks ago I visited Make Up Store and picked up the Make Up Store Palette.

Check out the video below for my full review!



The Make Up Store Palette is a plastic palette containing eight slots, however, in the store, a palette without the slots was available which you can build up however you want it.

This palette can store the bigger products from Make Up Store like the Microshadows, Blushers etc. This product retails for 14.99 euro.


You can choose to store the products either with the lid on or else by easily removing the top lid, which you can put back on just as easily!


I was inclined to buy this product since I wanted to store all my Make Up Store products (or the majority of my make up store products) in one place, unfortunately my smaller Make Up Store products such as the Make Up Store concealer, do not fit into this palette.

What I liked about this palette is that you don't need to depot the products you would like to put in the palette, like other palettes I have come across and own, unfortunately I do have another palette and have never filled it up due to never having enough time to stay depotting my products! 

I hope you liked this review!

Martina XOXO


*Disclaimer*- I bought this product with my own money and was not paid to write this review. I am not affiliated with the above mentioned company.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Malta Fashion Awards- Crossing it with Gold- OOTD & FOTD

Hey Guys!

So since I was well enough, I decided to attend the Malta Fashion Awards last Saturday!

I was able to meet my lovely Blogger friends and cheer on the Nominees including some of our very own bloggers. If you haven't checked out who won, visit our post here: http://www.allthingsfabulousblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/malta-fashion-awards-winners.html

I had all my outfits planned a week in advance, unfortunately we all know what went down, however I did end up wearing my favourite outfit of the lot!

I decided to go with my favourite statement pieces including some of my favourite make up products!


New Look Cross Body Suit
New Look Dip Hem Skirt
New Look Waist Belt 
New Look Leopard Shoes
Shana Beige Blazer
Accessorize Brown Bangles
Tally Weijl Gold Earrings
Jane Norman Gold Envelope Clutch


Face
essence Soul Sista Limited Edition Liquid Bronzer in Shake your Booty
Inglot YSM Foundation
e.l.f HD Powder
essence Soul Sista Bronzing Powder in Shake Your Booty
e.l.f Mist & Set

Eyes
Make Up Store Microshadow in Bronze
Make Up Store Microshadow in Choco D'or
Pupa Multiplay in Black
essence Super Fine Eyeliner
Jimont Eyebrow pencil in Brown No.1
e.l.f Flirty Eyelashes- Dramatic Lashes applied with Eylure lash glue

Lips
Make Up Store Lipsick in China Red

I also got my hair done at my fantastic hairdresser HBR Hairdressing, check her out on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hbr.hairdressing

I had the opportunity to watch the awards with my amazing blogger friends Kylie: http://passiontobeauty.blogspot.com/ and Sarah: http://sarina515.blogspot.com. We also met Marija: http://allthingslady.wordpress.com and Chanel & Phil: http://bontonfashionista.blogspot.com/:  at the After Party! Check us out!
With Marija- all things lady
With Chanel- Bon Ton Fashionista. Photo Credit- Bon Ton Fashionista
Until next time!

Martina XOXO

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Diet Diaries- Update 4- Let's Do This!

Hi Guys,

So you might have realised that after two weeks there was no post!

The reason being is that if you were following our facebook page, you would have realised that I had to be rushed to hospital the day before my weigh-in!

These past two weeks (well a bit more than two weeks), I was trying out to see how I went with a planned diet, therefore, I had asked Marika to tell me what to eat.

I was quite surprised that having everything planned out didn't put me off but kept me quite on track with everything, until.... last Monday when I had to get rushed to hospital and stayed without food for around 2 days and was only getting my nutrients from the drip.

After I was given the go ahead to eat, I ended up eating a few biscuits since I needed some energy.

These two weeks, I decided to try Barley which I just LOVED, it does add that different element to the dish which I absolutely love! Check out some of my food choices for these two weeks!

Egg and Veggie Sandwich!
New Rice Cake Flavour discovered by my colleague!
Soup Day!
Chicken Omelet and Veggies!
Simple Sandwich- Lettuce, Tomato, Olives and Gbejna
Chicken Veg Omelet + Rice Cakes
Chicken, Veg, Tomato with Spaghetti
Barley, Veg and Egg Salad
Barley 2.0 this time with tuna
Chicken, Bacon, Tomato Omelet with Rice Cakes
Not really food related but don't you just love this cereal bowl :) I had Rice Krispies in it :)
New Experiment- Barley Chicken Casserole
My first hospital meal- Soup
My first solid hospital meal
I ended up going to Marika a day after I was discharged from hospital. Obviously she still took my measurements and weight, however, she informed me that due to the circumstances, I might re-gain a bit of the weight I lost in hospital, however, we are right back on track with healthy eating.

I was quite surprised that I didn't lose more weight, people were actually commenting on how much the 4 days in hospital made me ''shrink'', however, technically speaking I was only losing around 1 point something kgs a week so 2.2 kgs is quite a lot, considering.

Next time I will be going back on Tuesday 21st May to get my routine back on track, however, the scales will probably not show a lot of difference! We'll just wait and see!

Martina XOXO

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Tried and Tested- Threading at Ayur Veda!

Hi Guys!

So leading up to Malta Fashion week, we were given a complementary threading session by Ayur Veda. If you recall, Denise has been threading before and I have been wanting to thread my brows ever since! Check out Denise's post on Threading a few years ago: 

We had the opportunity to ask the lovely Dorianne a few questions about the history of Threading and some useful information about doing Threading.

Dorianne Catania
How long has threading been done and how did it originate?

Threading has been around for centuries. The threading technique originated in ancient Middle Eastern and Far East countries. In ancient Persia, threading the face was a rite of passage for girls reaching adulthood that signified becoming a woman. Today, it has become a popular method of eyebrow shaping and facial hair removal.

What are the Pros and Cons of Threading?

Pros
When done correctly, nothing will touch the skin during threading except the thread, which is thrown away after use; so the procedure is highly sanitary.
People who have trouble getting their brows properly shaped often find that the concise hair removal achieved with threading is the only method that can get their brows right, whereas waxing, and tweezing fail.
Threading involves no chemicals on the skin.  There are some instances where alternate hair removal methods waxing and sugaring conflict with medicines a person is taking.
Threading is a much quicker method than other types of hair removal; for instance, threading eyebrows can take as little as 2 minutes.
Finally, threading can eventually produce permanent results.  Since the hair follicles tend to become damaged by threading, the hair stops growing.

Cons
If the person performing the threading isn't experienced at the procedure, the hair can be broken instead of being removed at the hair follicle.  This means that re-growth occurs much more quickly.
It can be challenging to find a person who is experienced at threading.  It’s an art that’s passed down through generations and isn't typically taught in just a few classes.
For threading to work, the hair to be removed must be at least 1/16th of an inch

Are there any contraindications?

Rash, sunburn, dermatitis or inflamed skin.
Active cold sores.
Open skin lesions.
A recent skin treatment such as a microdermabrasion or chemical peel.
Active acne lesions.

Can anyone have it done?
Yes, men and women...our youngest client is 7 years old.

Check out my results from Threading! 


Before (Top), After (Bottom)
Since I didn't take a before picture, I used a picture from around a week before going for Threading! I was absolutely impressed by the results! As you can see from the first picture, I never really had defined brows. Also, in around 5 minutes I was all done and ready to go! I loved the fact that it takes less time than having your brows done with tweezers (I have stopped using wax a long time ago) and they look much much better!

Dorianne also offered to tint my brows, something I have done on my mum quite a number of times! As you can see from my above pictures, I have quite a few gaps and since I have now gone quite dark (hair wise) my brows were quite dull! Check out my brows after tinting!

After Tinting
I highly recommend visiting Ayur Veda, not only is Dorianne extremely helpful and very knowledgeable but the results are absolutely amazing! Today, I am visiting Ayur Veda again to try out threading on my upper lip!

Apart from Threading, Ayur Veda offers a number of Organic face and body treatments and a number of organic products including face and body care, make up, gluten/ diary/ wheat free food products.

Visit Ayur Veda's facebook page for more information: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ayur-Veda/138593300929?fref=ts or contact them via phone on the below numbers:

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Martina & Denise


*Disclaimer*- I was given this service for free, however, I am in no way affiliated with the company and was not paid to write this review. The above review is of my true and honest opinion.

Monday, May 13, 2013

Malta Fashion Awards: Winners!!

Hi Guys,

So on Saturday I attended the Malta Fashion Awards!

Check out footage of the night's winners via the following link! More videos coming soon!!


Malta Fashion Awards Winners!

Female Model Award
Gaby Curmi

Female Photo Model Award
Valentina Rossi

Male Model Award
Robert Galea
Male Photo Model Award
Karl Bonnici

Fashion Photographer Award
Bernard Polidano

Nail Technician Award
Barbara Buttigieg

Make Up Artist Award
Mateja Camilleri

Fashion Stylist Award
Caroline Paris

Hairstylist Award
Annalise Azzopardi

Special Award- Outstanding Contribution
Steve Vella

Special Award- Outstanding Contribution
Marisa Grima

New Designers' Award
Ritienne Zammit

Martina XOXO

Friday, May 10, 2013

Malta Fashion Week- Fersani Fashion Show

If you have been following us on Facebook, you might have realised that we have been missing for a number of shows, this is because I was admitted to hospital due to abdominal pains. Thankfully I was sent home today so I couldn't miss out on today's show! Denise was also able to join me today!

The remote Maria Rose Wine Estate hosted the Fersani Fashion Show, an evening and bridal collection created by Marygrace Pisani using fabrics from Gaudi. The pieces were complemented by a number of pieces from Victor Azzopardi Jewellers. The event was planned out to the last detail, in fact, transport by John's Garage was provided for guests due to the distance from the parking to the show's location. Other sponsors included Baystreet Hotel, Digital Eye Photography and Hamilton Travel.

We were able to re-unite with some of our blogger friends at the show and we also managed to see the first lady of Malta herself, Mrs. Michelle Muscat, and her adorable twins Etoile and Soleil, seriously the cutest little girls ever! We spent the whole night commenting on how adorable they are and how they were entirely focused on the collection, two little fashionistas in the making!

The collection was inspired by nature, also focusing on the beauty of the Mediterranean Sea, in fact this was reflected in details such as the colour scheme consisting of cold, warm and neutral hues, floral details and flowing material were used for this collection. 

The Make Up, applied by Elaine Galea complimented the collection since a number of neutral tones off set by either a bright blue shadow or orange shadow in order to integrate the warm and cold hues of the collection. Hair, styled by Tony & Guy, complemented the elegance of the collection with a number of soft curled up dos or high buns.

We noted how influential nature was to this collection. Many of the pieces included some kind of floral and leaf details beautifully handcrafted on the pieces, some of which were embellished such as the black with silver floral embellishments dress shown below which also had the floral detail on the collar which really stood out and added a feminine playful side to the dress.


Another nature element which was also prominent were the animal inspired pieces such as a leopard pencil skirt and a parrot dress.


Since water was an element which was quite prominent in this collection, some pieces also included actual water such as the sea inspired cape which included fin like material and water. Pieces from the sea were also present, such as in the finale dress with oyster shells.


Some pieces had an asian feel to them, we noted some slight chinese collars and silk materials which gave the piece that asian feel. One of our favourite pieces out of these asian-inspired pieces was an orange dip hem dramatic dress.


Lace also played a part in this collection. Our absolute favourite piece, hands down of the night, was a dip hem, black lace dress with a flowing floral lace train which screamed Hollywood Glamour from the moment it appeared on the runway.


There were also two dresses which were part of the bridal collection, also holding true to the nature theme of the whole collection. One dress had flower chiffon motifs  together with a matching hair piece and veil whilst the other dress was more dramatic, still with floral details however containing a dramatic high neck piece and ruffles.


Apart from the clothes collection, hand crafted basket-style bags with floral and leaf details, paired up with some pieces to compliment the piece.



Although the collection was entirely evening wear, the designer was able to create unique pieces with a creative twist to your average evening gown!

I also would like to mention the fabulous shoes sponsored by Aldo, complimented the collection so effortlessly, I chose to show just one shoe since I do not want to take the focus off the collection, but aren't these heels to die for?


Stay tuned for more Malta Fashion Week posts (hopefully this time I will not be visiting the hospital anytime soon this week!)

Don't forget to visit our facebook page for more photos and updates during this last few shows! www.facebook.com/allthingsfabulousblog

Martina & Denise