IMATS 2014 Sydney - Fun Times All Around & Haul

Hi Lovelies! This year, IMATS Sydney was held at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park - just across from the Hordern Pavilion (a very popular concert hall in Sydney). I have to say, I much preferred this location. Also the exhibition space felt much bigger than last year (which was held at Darling Harbour Convention Centre).

I attended both days (Saturday and Sunday). This year, I had two of my girlfriends with me - one on each day. I really enjoyed this year's experience more than last year. It just felt like a better venue and there were so many new and exciting vendors this year. 

The first day was like a mad house, a real frenzy of crazy makeup addicts like me. The second day like last year was a lot more relaxed.

I think my highlights were meeting Ms Amy Doan #shrinkle - the creator of Sugarpill and just seeing what else was on offer from new vendors like  Bésame Cosmetics, Egyptian Queen  and Lipstick Republic and many many more. 

I have lots of photos for you. So here goes!

First up - Sugarpill

This was the first stand I headed to as there were quite a few limited edition items I wanted to get. Besides queueing for 1 hour to get into the venue, I had to queue for another 40 minutes or so, to get my purchases. Check out my haul video for what I got and live swatches, but here are some photos.

Had to take a photo of the bags!! So kawaii! Argg cuteness overload

Isn't she the cutest!

More cute babes from Sugarpill

I managed to get a Pro Palette (the one with 12 colours at the back). That sold out in a few hours.

Look at how adorable their displays are! It was also the global launch of the Sugarpill's new palette called "Sparkle Baby".

The Sparkle Baby palette sold out in a few hours, but I managed to get two (one for me, one for my GF)

I can proudly report, I have everything :P

The lashes I wanted were sold out!! Bummer.

The mad frenzy at the Sugarpill stand

I really have to hand it to the Sugarpill girls. They were the best dressed group in the entire IMATS. They really made an effort, and I think they flew into Sydney just for the event.

Let's just admire this fabulous outfit!! LOVE the hair.

The girls were very kind to pose for me, and as you can see above, they were very patient and posed so nicely like super models!!

I didn't see Ms Amy Doan of Sugarpill on the first day, but I saw her on the Sunday. She was sooooo nice and very sweet. I think she looks just like a Harajuku doll. She very kindly consented to pose for a pic with me. I didn't know what to say, and babbled something like "I have everything!!!". 

She looks FABULOUS & of course it had to be the day I looked like (especially) crap.

Lime Crime 

This stand was very close to the Sugarpill Store. This year, they were a lot smarter. They had a stand that was double the size of last year and had these massive bags and a full Lime Crime backdrop.

Also they made sure to have several display stands for all to test out before purchasing.

Rather blurry photo - sorry!

Other than the new Velvetine called Utopia (a vibrant orchid colour) which was already released on line. There was nothing new from Lime Crime. Now, I have to point out that this was not a store run by Lime Crime but the Australian distributor for Lime Crime. The prices were at a 20% discount. 

My GF (Sarah - who looks like Taylor Swift) that accompanied me on the first day was so fascinated by how big and bright the Lime Crime bags were. So much so, that she bought a lippie and was given that massive bag! I bought a few things for my upcoming giveaway ;P and also got that ridiculous big bag. I guess it turned every makeup enthusiastic into a walking ad for Lime Crime.

Massive Lime Crime bag in green. It's HUGE!

Bésame Cosmetics

As far as I am aware, this was the first time Bésame Cosmetics was on show at IMATS Sydney. 

Go here for more info of this brand (USA Link here  Australian Link here). This is an American based brand that makes very high quality makeup in vintage inspired packaging. I noticed that in the USA, you can buy it through Amazon and get 2 day shipment under Amazon Prime (Amazon Link).

I was quite excited to see that this brand was going to be at IMATS this year, and so that was the second store I headed to. By this time, my GF had joined me. 

The Lovely Ladies of Besame Cosmetics

Their amazing Violet powder which is now my all time fave to set my under eye concealer

Their compacts are plated with 24 carat gold and make great presents. The pressed powders also come in refills

I will be doing a blog/youtube review on Bésame Cosmetics. They are just too beautiful not to go into detail about them.

I purchased one of their foundations because it was made from all natural products and free from parabens

You can get Besame Cosmetics on Amazon

Hakuhodo 

I picked up a few brushes from Hakuhodo. The ones I picked up were the special red lacquers ones from what they call the S100 Vermillion Brush Range. These brushes are all hand made in Japan and incredibly soft.

These brushes are quite expensive (think in the US$100 ++ range). However, you are really paying for superior quality. I call these my "artisan" brushes. The ferrule of the brushes is brass 24-karat gold plated with clear coating.

Bdellium Tools

I also  picked up a few more brushes from Bdellium tool. I mainly purchased from the pink series. I like them because they are all vegan and well, who doesn't like pink?

I think I got a pretty good bargain on them, as they were cheaper than iHerb.com

You can get these brushes on iherb.com and Amazon

Kryolan

I love Kryolan products but they are super expensive! Even with the 20% of discount, I did not purchase the palettes that I wanted. I did get a pretty nifty (and affordable) brush set from Kryolan. 

I really wanted this one, but could not justify the $140 for it.

 Same as above, this palette retails for $140.

This brush set (12 brushes + brush case) was $79 down to $51 and the brushes are SO soft. The brushes are made by Essa for Kryolan. That was all I got from Kryolan, as everything else was sooo expensive (as it should be as Kryolan makes great makeup), and I justified this by thinking it would be good for travels.

Saucebox Palettes

I also got to purchase three palettes from the brand SauceBox Cosmetics (Link)

I have heard good things about these palettes and so I was happy that I could test the out in person before purchasing them. 

I found the texture of the eye shadows to be very creamy and easy to blend.

Photos of the three palettes I bought below:

The Forbidden Fruits Palette

 This HUGE mega palette called the Midnight Blossoms Palette

The Creme de la Creme Palett

Watch my haul video here!

For more IMATS fun and live swatches watch my video :)

More photos from the day

This was the winning entry for the SFX category. 

All in all, I had an awesome time! I think it's always advisable to bring a friend along. My two girlfriends were super interested in everything as they had never been before and they really got into testing and trying out everything. Thank you Sarah and Emily for being my beauty buddies at IMATS 2014.

Well... that's all folks! See you all soon! :)

Anna Sui Cosmetics - It's all coming up Roses!

Hello my lovelies! I recently purchased 3 of the Lipstick M lipsticks from Anna Sui (because the packaging is to die for) and I thought I would do a review of those lipsticks and 2 other items I own from Anna Sui's cosmetics line.

The first item I ever purchased from Anna Sui's cosmetic line was the Rose Cheek Colour in #300. Honestly, I really only purchased it because it was sooooooo beautiful. I'm a sucker for cute packaging. :)

This blush retails for US$30 and can be found online at websites like Beauty.com & Beautylish.com

On Beautylish.com, it is described as:

"This moist, sheer powder retains a dewy, glossy finish. Use a single colour or in different combinations to compliment your look. This Rose Cheek Colour has a delicate sparkle and the signature Anna Sui tea rose scent."

I totally agree! It does have a creamy texture and applies like a dream. On me (combination skin) it lasted for 5 hours and I just needed a little bit of touch up to get that rosy glow back. Unlike other multi coloured powder products, I found it much easier to pick up distinct colours to apply, and I liked how I could customise the cheek colour this way. To do this, I used a smaller, pointed blush brush, like the Studio e.l.f blush brush (which I think is a very good dupe for Wayne Goss' blush brush).

This is how it swatches if I swirl my brush over all of the colours. Isn't it pretty?

Anna Sui Eye Color Palette, Rock Me

Anna Sui Eye Color Palette, Rock Me 0.5 oz (15 g) 

Now on to the eyeshadow palette! If you follow me on Youtube and/or Instagram, you will know that I have a weird obsession with palettes. I think I must own close to a hundred (oh dear!). So I could not give this palette a miss! This palette retails for US$42 and can be found at Beauty.com

There are 10 shades in the palette and they do have that signature rose scent. I have to say, I do find rose scents a bit sickening after a while, but I am proud to report that the rose scent of the Anna Sui products is not over whelming, and tends to go away after a while.

This palette contains a lot of mid-tone colours. Except for the white, the peach (next to the white one) and the sparkly black, the rest of the colours are mid-tone shades. The shadows are soft and creamy to touch but I was a bit surprised by the amount of "kick up" I had after dipping my brush in. I noticed quite a bit of fall out from these shadows, even though they blend very well.

Here are some swatches on my hands without primer.

Top row colours:

Bottom row colours:

The bottom row colours do come across more pigmented! I think the dark moss green colour (right next to the black is divine. Watch my youtube review (link below) for a demo of how these eye shadows perform on the eye.

Now on to the Lipsticks!! 

I saw these online and just had to have them! I'm really not much of a lipstick girl as I do not like to bring attention to my ugly teeth (:0), but these lipsticks were just too pretty to pass by.

Super cute packaging! 

Anna Sui Lipstick M in 370, 371 and 770

Arghh!! Can the packaging be any prettier?!!

They look like marbled pieces of art

There are currently 3 in the Lipstick M series. Each retail for US$30 and can be found here. There are other new lipsticks in what is called "the Lipstick V" series but those are monotone and not duo toned like these. Which is what makes them SO special!

All three have a smooth and creamy consistency that is quite light on the lips, yet moisturising. From descriptions online, they claim to be hydrating, which I quite agree with. As far as I could tell, they do not have a taste. There is of course that faint rose scent that comes with all of the Anna Sui Cosmetics line.

Except for #371, the other two have a sparkly (#330) or metallic (#770) finish.

First up, #370 Coral Shell x Pearl White (get it here).

#370 Coral Shell x Pearl White (source: Beautylish.com)

Look at it!! How beautiful is that!?! I am a big sucker for anything with stars and anything pink! This combines the both of best worlds. :) On my lips, they come off as a light frosty pink. You definitely need to make sure your lips have been scrubbed and well moisturised as this colour accentuates any dry spots! The colour sure is pretty!

Me with #370 on

Next is #371 Deep Pink x Maroon Brown (get it here)

#371 Deep Pink x Maroon Brown (source: Beautylish.com)

#371 in daylight

I was surprised that this looked very different in person then what it shows as online. As you can see from the photos above, it actually comes across as more purple in colour. I liked that very much about this lipstick. This shade was more forgiving and the two colours blended into a very lovely berry colour on my lips. This is the type of lip colour I tend to gravitate to and you can see a slight purple shade peeking out. What's that called? Is it Fuchsia? LOL

#371 on my lips

Now for #770 Pearl Beige x Orchid Purple (get it here)

#770 Pearl Beige x Orchid Purple (source: Beautylish.com)

This is OMG, KAPOW, WOW, AMAZING, GORGEOUS all rolled up in to one. Online, I was not able to see how it would come out in real life.

In daylight.

I think this is my favourite out of the three. I didn't quite understand why this was not named #372 and why they skipped forward to #770. This lipstick is not for wimps. This is a statement lipstick. I loved how metallic it was, yet it was so soft and light on the lips. I did not feel any grittiness in the formulation at all.

#770 on my lips

Watch my video review to see live swatches of all these pretty products from Anna Sui:

Thanks so much for reading! See you all soon. xoxo and blessings!