Zoo Trip & The Program

Hey friends, 

Sally here. So recently some of my friends from Canada came down on exchange and we've been taking them around here there and everywhere. Last weekend had some nice weather so we took them to the zoo so they could have a look at some Aussie animals which were all rather lazy and asleep. My favourite animals were the tigers but the baby elephant was so cute! While we were there we had a picnic too which was nice even though I need to make a mental note to myself not to bring chips as it seems to be everyones staple food. Anyway, it was a lovely weekend and here are some pictures from it. I've been trying to get into photography so if you want to check out some of my photos, click: Here

Also, recently I've been trying to pick up my reading again as I've been a bit slack this year. Elle Fowler (a YouTuber) recommend in one of her videos the book, 'The Program' by Suzanne Young. I'm so impressed with this book I could barley put it down. Basically it's about a suicide epidemic effecting 1 in 3 teenagers which is contagious. For example someones, friend commits suicide, then they becoming depressed and commit suicide and then the cycle continues. They are unsure of how this all started but anti depressants have stopped working. The Program is a group of handlers that work to try and stop this epidemic. They come in and erase the contaminated part of your memories that are causing the depression and then let you off to start your new life. In the book, the protagonist, Sloane gets taken by the program but she fights against it. She doesn't want to forget so she hides a ring given to her by her boyfriend James and a photography of James and her brother in her room in hopes that when she returns from The Program it will spark some memory in her.

That's all I want to say for now because I really want you to read the book. It sounds like a really depressing and uncomfortable topic but I can assure you the book is a can't put it down book and I read it really quickly. I'm just about to start the next book in the series called The Treatment so I'll let you know about that when I'm done reading it.

Hope you guys have all been well!

Love Sally.

xxx

Benefit They're Real! Push-up liner Review and Happy 13 Months!

Happy birthday to The Tweedlers! Well technically, 13 months, kinda missed it last month haha :P
I thought I might come on here to do a quick little review for y'all. My sister recently purchased the Benefit They're Real! Push-up Liner and with all the buzz that has been going around it online, I, of course had to borrow it from my sister and give it a go.

First of all, it claims to be the "FIRST EVER lash-hugging gel liner in a pen! This matte black gel formula won’t smudge, budge or dry out, and the innovative soft AccuFlex™ Tip hugs your lashline from corner to corner. The closer the line, the bigger the eye"

I do agree that it's lash-hugging, matte and hugs your lashline from corner to corner. However, I don't really agree with the rest.


The Pigmentation:

One click is supposedly sufficient for both eyes, but I made the mistake of clicking three times (sorry sister!). Both my sister and I ran into the problem of it drying too fast, so it was really hard to go over the line to make sure the line was perfect. Because of that, the line was streaky and started clumping and flaking. Once it dried, it felt really heavy on the eyes. Even after it was fully dry, it still felt heavy and wet, as if it stuck all my lashes together by the base. Not a good feeling.

Removal:

After about 15 minutes, I couldn't handle the heavy feeling on my eyes, so I decided to remove it. I mean, I was only at home, and wasn't leaving the house so it would be pointless to leave it on anyways. Removal was an absolutely disaster. The flakes I mentioned from before seemed to un-dry itself (as in it went from a dry flake back to it's original form!) and was just clumpy and a bother to remove. The now-chunky-wet-mascara bits were everywhere in the hollows of my eyes, from my brow to the apples of my cheek. I usually remove my eyeliner (MAC black track gel eyeliner) with one, maybe two cotton pads of my Biore eye and lip makeup remover, but with this, it took me around 5 but it still wasn't off. 

The Application:

The idea of the applicator really is great though. The nib is a flexi-plastic slant that disperses the eyeliner and it really does hug the lashline. But, I feel like the nib is too stiff and it pulls on my eyelid when I apply it, and that isn't a good thing because it could cause premature wrinkles.
My sister agrees with my review, but she didn't like the applicator at all. Maybe it's her monolid eyes or something, but she found that the nib doesn't hug her lashline and she finds it hard to flick out and do a wing.

Verdict:
It's such a disappointment that this product wasn't great for me. You guys know that I love Benefit makeup (see my gimme brow review and rockateur blush review) and the packaging is amazing and all, but I can't be biased towards this product because of my past experience with this brand. Unfortunately, neither my sister and I will continue to use the They're Real! Push-up Liner, and will definitely not repurchase it. With that being said, our thoughts of the brand will not be swayed by the one failure and will continue to purchase our other HGs (and possible new products!) by this brand.

Lots of love,
Juliana xox

Healthy Banana Bread Recipe

Hey there, it's Sally here,

Here's some exciting news, I've made a new YouTube channel and basically got rid of my old one because I had to use that one for school. You can find me here now: here! Basically I will be posting games, cooking and other stuff which is why I called it SallyTV.

Today I thought I'd share with you a video I put together of how to make healthy banana bread. Let me know if you try making it as I would love to hear what you think of it.

Since it's been so cold and will be getting colder these months for the people down under, I've been drinking a lot of teas to keep myself warm. I've been absouletely loving me some chai tea and I thought this cake would go really well with it.

Hope you guys are all well!

Love Sally xxx

Favourite Summer Lip Combo

Hey everyone!

If you guys have seen my latest June Favourites video, I mentioned that I'd swatch my favourite summer lip combo. Well tadaa here it is! I'm absolutely obsessed with this lipliner-lipstick combo, its super nudey pink but not like an I'm-dead-but-I'm-trying-to-be-trendy look.

First of, is the MAC lip liner in Dervish. It's just a muted rose-nude shade that is exactly my lip colour and can go with any lipstick. I like to line my lips for a bit of a fuller pout, and is also a great base for your lipstick to adhere to.

Second, is the MAC lipstick in Angel. This is apparently Kim Kardashian's go-to nude lipstick, and I can see why. It's just a light baby pink nude shade that goes with practically any eye makeup.

The swatch above is the lip liner, and below is the lipstick. These two together is just an absolute match made in heaven. That dervish angel ;)

All in all, I totally recommend this combo. If y'all haven't checked out my YouTube channel, go give it a look-see!

Sorry for not posting in absolute ages, Sally and I went on a little blogging break!

Love, from Julsie xox

MAC Pro- Longwear Concealer Review

G'day y'all!

I have the longest school days of all time, sometimes I'm in class from 9am to 7pm, which means putting on my makeup at 7am and having it last for at least 12 hours.

Sortof an issue when I have oily skin and makeup tends to melt throughout the day.

So I wanted to invest in a long wearing concealer, something that's high coverage enough for my hyper pigmentation but feels light on the skin for the humid and sticky Hong Kong weather.

So I went and got myself the MAC Pro-Longwear concealer. I'm in the shade NC20, 15 for winter months and 25 with fake tan. But since it's spring/summer, I'm at my natural shade.

After using it everyday for 2 months, I feel like it's an adequate time to finally review it.

Packaging:

I don't exactly like the pump for a concealer. I find it hard to control- sometimes on good days I might need less or if I have horrible skin over finals week, one pump isn't enough and two pumps is way too much.

I pump it on the back of my hand and apply it on my face with my finger. I find that I'm always wiping some excess off the back of my hand cos the pump always dispenses way too much product for one go. Bonus points for hygiene though.

It's in a glass container, which I have no problem with. If you are one of those roughies then it might not be for you, because it might shatter if you drop it.

Coverage:

As for the product itself, it contains 0.30 fluid ounces, which isn't too bad for it's price of $19USD. I find that it has amazing coverage. I would say it's medium to full coverage, and definitely buildable. It's long wearing- I find that I don't have to touch up on throughout the day. Of course it'll naturally melt off a bit but not too much that I have to touch up on. I found that it's also slightly water resistant, which is great if the weather is feeling bipolar and decides to rain on a sunny day.

Usage:

I quite like to use this on hyper pigmentation as well as the circles under my eyes. It feels lightweight enough for it to go under my eyes, without it creasing. I like to use my finger for this product because I think it makes it super blended and natural. For under my eyes, I layer this under my eyes with the MAC Prep + Prime highlighter in Radiant Rose, which is a really moisturising combination and really brightens up my eyes for a really awake look. Even though I might look like a zombie with all the uni stress.

All in all, I give it

Packaging: 6/10

Coverage: 9/10

Convenience: 8/10

Price: 8/10

Overall: 8/10

Follow me on my instagram @littlemissjuliana and my twitter @MissJulianaYu for more updates!

Love from julsie xoxo

Great Ocean Road; Twelve Apostles

Hey guys,

On Saturday, 12th April, I went along the Great Ocean Road to visit the Twelve Apostles in Victoria. They were absolutely beautiful. It took about 3 hours to get there and about 2 hours to get back not including stops. Altogether we travelled 560km. Crazy!

The weather was a bit crazy, it was raining and then sunny and just kept alternating between the two.

Here are some of the photos I took. The beach where you see the Twelve Apostles is called Gibsons Beach, you have to go down a cliff which has about 90 stairs but it was so worth it. There are actually only eight Apostles left which is a little sad as erosion has gotten the better of them. In a thousand years from now though, more may be created as you can see in the picture with the cave, that's how they are formed. I loved the different colours and textures of the stone and the different colours in the ocean. In the last picture, you can see the sun is setting which was so beautiful. I wish I could have stayed there a bit longer.

For lunch there was a little food court at Apolo Bay and I had fish and chips. Apparently the fish was flake fish which is also known as gummy shark caught fresh from the ocean. None the less it was delicious.

We left at 8am in the morning and I arrived back at 7:30pm.

Definitely if you get a chance, this is a place to go! It has such a relaxing atmosphere.

Anyway, I'm on holidays right now, I've got one more week to go! Hope you're all having a lovely holiday and have a wonderful Easter!

Love Sally.

Roses de Chloé Perfume Review

As I am waiting for my nails to dry (Angel Food by Essie) at 1 in the morning, I thought I would do a little blog post! #insomniaprobs

I was on the hunt for a new scent for this spring time. I mean, I'm 18, in college, my first spring as an adult. So obviously I needed a new perfume. Like duh, right? ;)
Or probably I just needed a new excuse for a new perfume haha.

But anyways, I was sashaying around Colormix, a popular pharmacy here in Hong Kong, the bottles of Chloé perfume caught my eye. I've always loved the packaging of Chloé perfumes, but I always thought that it was way too high end for a high schooler, so never really bothered giving it a sniff. But, as I mentioned before, it's my first spring as an adult so why not? #moreexcuseslol

I remember watching a YouTube review on the Roses de Chloé perfume, how it literally just smells like roses, and what better way to welcome the spring season than with a floral perfume? So I gave it a sniff and fell absolutely in love.

It's light, floral, but not a powdery floral like the ones grandmas smell like, but it's a fresh, slightly sweet rose floral scent, as the name suggests. It simply reminds me of light strolls down the cobblestone roads of Paris as I walk past the Parisian florist.
Did I describe it with too much imagination?
Probably.
Even the packaging looks sophisticated and amazing.

A little bit goes a very long way with this. I usually spritz it on my wrists, on my neck and a little bit in my hair. I like the idea of smelling it when I just happen to toss my hair or when the wind blows.
I squirt some of this into my Travalo so that I can pop it into my pencil case, because:
a) I have incredibly long school days (try 9am to 7pm!) and
b) I'm not going to throw an expensive bottle of perfume at the bottom of my purse.

But, despite that, the lasting power is fairly long. I'd say that it lasts about 4-6 hours, but I wouldn't know for sure because it's kinda hard to sniff your wrists subtly when you're out in public.

I purchased the 50mL bottle, and I think it's the perfect size. If it's too small of a bottle, i.e the 25mL, then it wouldn't look as cute, and same goes for the 75mL.

Overall, I would give this a great two thumbs up, three if I had an extra limb. This is definitely my go-to perfume to get me through my last couple weeks of the semester, and another plus side is it looks great on my bedside table!

As usual, follow me on my social media:

Twitter: @MissJulianaYu

Instagram: littlemissjuliana

Snapchat: @julsie27 (I'd love to see your beautiful faces!)

And speaking of snapchat, I've been obsessed with that app! A little shoutout to my CosmoVIP internet bestie, Jasmin! <3

Love, from Juliana XO