Two months ago I started a challenge for myself which I dubbed the Lipstick Only Challenge. This challenged involved wearing a different shade of lip colour each day for at least a month without any other makeup ie I had to go bare-faced with only a lip colour. (You can read more about the challenge on my last blog post.) The majority of the colours I have worn to date were NYX Cosmetics products; mainly because I had acquired their two vault selections: the Soft Matte Lip Cream Vault and the Liquid Suede Vault. By chance, New Zealand's department store chain Farmers also ran a NYX Cosmetics giveaway competition on their Instagram social media site around the same time I started the challenge. To enter the competition it required the participants to post a photo of them wearing NYX Cosmetics products onto their Instagram with the hashtags #NYXatFarmers and #NYXNewZealand. I knew with all the talented makeup artists out there I would have little chance of winning the competition but a little voice in my head urged me to try anyways. So I entered my daily photos into the competition. Imagine my shock when I was contacted by Farmers after the competition had closed. I was in such disbelieve I thought it might have been a scam. However, everything checked out and I was beyond excited to receive my prize in the mail. I have never won anything quite like this before and never thought I would. But sure enough I received the package from Farmers a few days after.

A few months ago I decided to start a challenge for myself. I dubbed it the Lipstick Without Other Makeup Challenge or simply, the Lipstick Only Challenge. Below is a list of Q&As explaining what this challenge involved, why I started the challenge and what came from starting this challenge. Following will be a parade of photos showcasing my daily efforts in this challenge. Read on and I hope you will be interested in joining me!

November marked an exciting time for New Zealanders, well, mainly those of the female gender, because it was the official launch of theBalm Cosmetics in New Zealand! After hearing the rave overseas for this brand and the many Youtube videos and reviews, it was very nice to finally see its corporeal form and just a few feet away from the dispensary. The story of the brand started in a San Francisco kitchen in 2004 where founder Marissa Shipman began concocting her own makeup formulas after researching into this domain via the eleven books she bought on Amazon. What started out as the passion of a makeup enthusiast expanded into a world-wide seller within a decade, and now it has reached the shores way down south of the globe. Shipman's success story is an inspiration to those who want to build a business empire from scratch, including that of myself. It was very fortunate for me the launch of this new brand in New Zealand was exclusive to pharmacies owned by Green Cross Health, whom I work for. I was beyond excited when the training dates were rolled out for each region and I signed myself up despite being a pharmacist who mainly work behind the dispensary.

The first time I ever heard about hair dyes I was a little girl. It was the 90's and grunge was the way to go. The distinctive makeup and fashion trends were coupled with a variety of hairstyles, including the chunky highlights of unnatural colours. I remember getting my hands on a pamphlet of Taiwan's hottest sporting the new trend. Most of all, I remember being mesmerised by the model who had amethyst highlights worked into her luscious locks. Since then I have had a burning desire to have my head crowned in purple shades. Despite yearning for a fresh new look and a dramatic change I had never dared to venture into the bold colours because I learned early on my black hair needed to be bleached first. The fear of frying my hair prevented me from reaching my mermaid hair goals.

Currently Clarins counters around New Zealand are running a gift with purchase campaign dubbed "Time to Choose Your Gift". A quick search on the internet shows this offer by the French cosmetic company runs yearly from stores around the world. The gift sets on offer are more than generous; the condition being purchasing a minimum of two Clarins products with at least one being skincare. Thanks to my friend Emma introducing me to the wonderful world of Clarins products I have recently procured my very own gift set.