*Review: Natura Siberica – Body butter and scrub

December 16, 2015December 17, 2015 SamthebearLeave a comment

A few months back in October I attended a bloggers networking event in Sydney run by the lovely ladies over at BloggersUnitedAu. There we had the opportunity to talk to and find out more about different participating brands. One such brand was Natura Siberica which, had just recently been launched in Australia.

Everyone received a different product from the Natura Siberica line up in the massive goodie bag that was given out to all attendees and I received the Oblepikha Siberica body butter and scrub in mine. The Natura Siberica range is currently available at Chemist Warehouse ranging in price from $12.99 to $24.99 – so all in all, a pretty affordable body and hair care range.
But before I get away with myself, I have to be honest and say that I don’t love the body butter and scrub. In general the body butter and scrub are ok but there are a few issues to raise in the review.

Read on for more!
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*Review: Irresistible Me Hair Extensions

December 9, 2015December 6, 2015 SamthebearLeave a comment

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I’ve been away due to a combination of finishing off work to make it in time for my trip to the US to visit some family and celebrate Thanksgiving.

A photo posted by Sam (@the_curiousbear) on Nov 26, 2015 at 5:49pm PST

But enough of that! I was kindly sent a set of hair extensions from Irresistible me and today I bring you a review on Irresistible Me Royal Remy Hair extensions. I’ve never actually tried hair extensions before so this was an interesting experience but the short version is: I like it but only for specific applications due to my personal hair thickness and length.

Read on for more!

*Review: Scholl Velvet Smooth + Giveaway!

November 7, 2015November 7, 2015 SamthebearLeave a comment

Summer is imminently upon us and you know what that means! Slippers, sandals and strappy heels season! The lovely people at Scholl has sent me their Velvet Smooth pedicure set for review as well as an extra set to giveaway! The line up includes the Velvet Smooth Express Pedi, Velvet Smooth Night Mask and the Velvet Smooth Intense Serum.

Read on for the full review as well as the giveaway deets!

Review: Hourglass Ambient lighting powder and blush

October 24, 2015October 19, 2015 Samthebear2 Comments

I received these for my birthday a few months ago and it has just taken me forever and a half to finally put out this review. I had never really heard much about Hourglass but after reading Tine’s post on a model’s prefer dupe of Hourglass’s Mood Light I knew I had to try the model’s prefer version. After all, $66 is quite a bit to plonk down on a finishing powder without really knowing what it actually does. Intrigued I bought the model’s prefer dupe in photo ready (which, was the dupe for Mood Light) and while the powder was hard and talc scented, on application it looked fabulous. Of course it wore off in a few hours and the effect was gone but I now know what I am missing out on and it just made me desire the Hourglass Mood Light ambient powder even more.

I pined for this – you don’t understand how much. I would go into Mecca and swatch all the powders and admire the luxe packaging which was so unlike the cheap plastic feel of the Model’s prefer dupe version. Let me put this out there – there is nothing wrong with using and purchasing a dupe, in fact I whole heartedly encourage you to purchase dupes of your most lusted after products to see if you truly love it enough to splash out hard earned money on the luxe version.

So many times I wanted to buy it but it was always frustratingly out of stock. In the end I asked my friends (bless their souls) to get these for my birthday.
Anyway, that was the short version of how I came to know of this and came to fall deeply in love with it. On to the review!
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Review: Missha Closing Cover Liquid Concealer no.23

September 19, 2015September 16, 2015 Samthebear2 Comments

I had recently run out of my usual The Face Shop Concealer and when I went onto the newly revamped RRS website, I was gutted to find out that they weren’t selling it anymore. In my sadness I ended up not buying any concealers but after seeing a post by Ryan showing the new Missha concealer I decided to give it a try since RRS was carrying the new range. For a few dollars (less than $5USD I believe) I decided that it wasn’t too pricey to try blind.

Something more personal

September 16, 2015September 16, 2015 Samthebear4 Comments

I hope everyone has been well and I have to admit I haven’t been posting on here as frequently as I have hoped to just because Uni is getting insane (fun fact: I should be working on my data right now instead of this post!). This is just to let anyone who (still) reads my blog that I’m still alive and I will still be posting even if it means I’ll only be posting once or twice a month instead of once a week like I wanted to.

I am more active on my Instagram account so if you’re interested please do follow me on there as I will update that more often than my blog. I also use Instagram to post quick reviews and first impressions!

A photo posted by Sam (@the_curiousbear) on Sep 13, 2015 at 11:15pm PDT

Review: Fig+Yarrow Clay Mask {Rose}

August 15, 2015August 7, 2015 Samthebear8 Comments

This was purchased awhile ago from Urban Outfitters with my Aromatica Damask Rose Soothing Gel purchase and as I had mentioned earlier, I use this clay mask with the Rose gel as my liquid base. You can use any kind of liquid base (water, aloe vera, honey and yogurt come to mind) but keep in mind that for it to dry, the liquid base you’ve chosen must also evaporate so for example, honey or yogurt may take much longer than water to evaporate. It was $16 USD without shipping.
Overall the mask is effective and when used with the rose gel it’s even better. Read on for full details!

Review: Aromatica 95% Damask Rose Soothing Gel

August 8, 2015July 31, 2015 Samthebear2 Comments

I had first lain eyes on this beauty on Tracy’s (@fanserviced) Instagram account. It was cooling, had a clean ingredients list and most of all it was rose. As soon as I knew that I was sold and of course the only online retailer that sold it (Peach and Lily) would only ship it to me if I paid the same amount in shipping fees. So I did what any poor, kbeauty aficionado would do – I Googled the crap out of it. Turns out it’s sold on the Korean Aromatica website but no, they won’t ship to Australia – another crushing blow but salvation came from the most unlikely of places. Urban Outfitters.
That’s right, Urban Outfitters and they sold it at the same price that Peach and Lily was selling it for. At first I was incredulous but then I saw “Free Shipping to Australia and New Zealand on orders over $50”. At that moment I knew this was to be. I threw it into my cart along with a Rose clay mask from Fig+Yarrow and to make $50 I added in an Anastasia Dip Brow.
/exposition
I’m going to be upfront. I love this. But why? You ask. Well read on to find out why!

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Review: Nuxe – Reve De Miel Lip Balm

August 1, 2015July 31, 2015 Samthebear2 Comments

As Priceline recently had a 40% off skincare sale I obviously went down to replenish some staples (Bioderma and La Roche) but along the way (if you’re following my Instagram account you’ll know) I ended up picking up this Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip balm as well as the Trilogy toner mist (but that is for another post).
The main reason why I bought this was because a friend of mine uses it and said it was pretty good so I decided – why not? It’s on sale and is only $12 (as opposed to $20)
Spoiler alert: I do like it but it’s not ‘blow-your-socks-off’ amazing.

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Review: Elizavecca Carbonated Bubble Clay Mask

July 11, 2015July 7, 2015 Samthebear4 Comments

I have never heard of Elizavecca before seeing this for sale on RoseRoseShop but since it was about $8 I decided to give it a go and it is surprisingly not terrible for a ‘stab in the dark’ purchase. I have tried many clay masks but this one is unique in that it does not dry, instead it bubbles to create a foamy texture on your skin! I definitely bought this out of sheer curiosity but it is not a purchase I regret!
Read on for more!