:: Shiseido at Melita Health & Beauty! ::

Hello there gorgeous!

This past week I was given the opportunity to visit Melita Health & Beauty which is a pharmacy found in St Julians. They were having the Shiseido Beauty vs. The World Promo Week this past week, and I wished to share my experience with you all! 

In a nutshell, Shiseido is a Japanese multinational personal care company. It produces skin care, hair care. cosmetics and fragrances. 

Their make -up stand was to die for! Girls, believe me when I tell you, you HAVE to visit them! It heaven in there! 

Their eye-shadows are extremely long-lasting and  pigmented, and the variety is amazing!  Its a light weight cream consistency, making it easy to blend - I suggest you give them a visit as soon as you can - they won't disappoint, take my word for it! 

Their lipsticks blend gorgeously, and their packaging is adorable! They provide a long-lasting smooth finish, and ongoing lip hydration. My favourite is Tender Sheer RD 629 (swatched at the bottom)

The gorgeous brand representative and promoter, helped me understand all their different lines of skin care, so here are some of my favorites! 

Pureness Skincare Products  - This range focuses mainly on combination to oily skin, with the purpose of decreasing unnecessary shine and oils in the face, all while hydrating the skin. This is the line which is mainly targeted at young people suffering from acne or other skin related issues such as dryness. 

Ibuki Skincare Products help with correcting skin imperfections, dryness around the eyes, nose and mouth, and it strengthens resistance to ensure clear skin as much as possible.  

With the hotter days approaching, one must start preparing and keeping an open eye for beauty and skin care products containing SPF in them. 

A great investment this summer would be this Anti-Aging foundation with SPF 30. It blends really well into the skin, and leaves you looking smooth and covered. Its never too early to start fighting those wrinkles ladies! 

I hope you enjoyed this post girls! Let me know what you think below!
Meanwhile. prepare yourselves for Malta Fashion Week 2016 - I hope you are as excited as I am!

Kaylie Chetcuti
Soarella 

xxx

:: Full Face of Essence ::

Hello again girls!

It has been a while since we talked, however I am back with a post which I've been very excited to share with you! As most of you probably know by now, I am a huge (like.. really big!) fan of Essence Cosmetics. I happen to be a person who likes to test out different looks, and I try to do it on a budget. Essence offers extremely competitive prices in the market, as well as having amazing quality, which is why it is so popular! 

I will share with you my absolute favourite products from the brand, and I definitely recommend you to visit one of their stands which can be found all over our gorgeous island, and purchase a couple of these! 

About two months ago I purchased an eye-shadow palette from a local pharmacy which stocks Essence products (the cause of my sins) and I absolutely fell in love. Originally I was after the Naked Basics Palette, which don't get me wrong, it's gorgeous! However, when I was hovering over the stand I absolutely feel in love with the Essence All About Bronze Eyeshadow Palette. 

It has eight matching bronze colours which can be combined in multiple ways. Some are matte, while some are metallic which are perfect for taking you from day to night! They are very long-lasting too! 

Another thing which I'm absolutely obsessed with is their mascaras.  I haven't yet found a better one than their Plump No Clump Deep Black Volume Mascara. It gives great volume and length to the lashes, without making them stick together and clump. I've heard a lot of girls rave about the Essence Lash Princess Volume Mascara, which I've also purchased but honestly, the latter is still a winner for me! 

Yep - It deserves two pictures! It's that good! 

Anyone that meets me, would immediately realise that my ultimate obsession when it comes to make-up and beauty are lipsticks, lip liners, lip glosses, anything lip-related really! I feel the urge to buy lipsticks in all shades in brands, but obviously that's not quite doable right? 

Below are my absolute favourite lipsticks from Essence; I'm absolutely in love!
From Left to Right: Nude Love 11, Coral Calling 01, Natural Beauty 07, Adorable Matt! 14, Colour Crush 14, and lastly Barely There! 06. 

They are very moisturizing and long-lasting - and definitely worth a place on your wish list girls! 

I also like their Sheer & Shine Lipsticks; especially 09 I Feel Pretty and 13 Like a Princess! they are in the form of a lipstick, but look like a sheer and shimmery lip gloss when applied on the lips. They are not sticky, which is a must for me! 

And what about their lip liners? I have only recently discovered their lip liners while I was bored-shopping at University. These immediately caught my attention because I'm currently on the look out for water-resistant lip liners for spring and summer! 

They are easily applied, and have a very soft texture. They also last quite long, especially Femme Fatale 14!. The rose pink shade is called Wish me a Rose 12 for those interested! 

Thank you for your continuous support both on my blog and my Facebook Page! I hope you have enjoyed this post, as I loved writing it and snapping pictures! 
We have great plans coming very soon in the future with regards to Malta Fashion Week 2016, so make sure to keep updated! 

Comment below if you are simply in LOVE with Essence Cosmetics! 

Take care gorgeous people!
Kaylie Chetcuti
Soarella
xx

:: Industry Spotlight - Lola's ::

Hello there girls!

I feel like I haven't posted for a while, but I'm back! This is an introductory post to a series which I've been planning for these last two weeks with the talented nail technician Lara Vella from Lola's! This series will include myself meeting numerous professionals in different sectors of the industry, such as hairdressers, make-up artists, nails technicians, beauticians, models, photographers etc...

I got the opportunity to visit her one morning, and get my nails done, and hence I decided to share my experience of getting them done with you! 

The polish used is Tan my Hide by Gelish Urban Cowgirl Collection, as well as Trendy by Orly FX Nailpolish on the ring finger. Since it was my first time getting gelish nails done, the idea was to keep the colours neutral during the transition from winter to spring, but also to add a pop of colour; in this case a bright coral! 

I also had the opportunity to ask Lara some questions, so I hope you enjoy them! 

1) Who are you exactly and what do you do? 

My name is Lara Vella and I have worked in the beauty industry for over nine years. Five years ago I fulfilled my dream of opening my own beauty salon, Lola's in Msida. At Lola's we offer our clients all sorts of beauty treatments from specialised facials to hot stone massage, waxing, make-up for all occasions, and finally all kinds of nail treatments, which is the treatment I specialise in. Our belief has always been that beauty comes from within, but there's nothing wrong with giving a little love on the outside too. Our aim is for clients to look and more importantly feel, radiant with every visit to Lola's. 

2) What made you choose this sector, and did you always find the industry intriguing? 

I have always been fascinated by the transformative power of make-up and I feel that its my way of expressing myself creatively. As a teen I would save all my pocket money, to then spend on stick on nails and nail polish. I would spend a whole Saturday painting and repainting my nails. I was always a girly girl, and in fact that is where my nickname Lola came from. It was never about work to me. Then my cousin Rebecca introduced me to the industry when I started training in her salon and for that I am forever grateful.

3) What is a positive aspect? 

I am so lucky to have found my passion in life. I absolutely love what I do! I've been in beauty for a while now and I'm confident in my work, which means when I'm with clients I can afford to focus not only on the job I;m doing but also on spending quality time with the person. Some people have been clients of mine for years, it's almost like having coffee with a friend! One of my favourite quotes is: ''Discover what you love to do, and you'll never work a day in your life.'' I feel this describes where I'm at perfectly. 

4) What is a negative aspect? 

I wouldn't exactly call it a negative aspect of the job, but it's definitely the area I find most challenging. Being your own boss you always tend to work more than the standard '40 hour week'. This is completely understandable and I believe that all the effort and energy you give out will come back to you tenfold. However, especially during the busy periods, I find it challenging to keep a balance between accommodating all my clients and not over booking my schedule. So I am learning to be stricter with taking breaks and not working more than a 60 hour week. 

5) What inspires you to keep working hard and reaching new goals?

I can't possible imagine myself doing anything else or not being my own boss anymore. I'm constantly inspired by new treatments especially those I discover while travelling. One of my main priorities in life is to travel as much as I possibly can, and this job allows me to do so as I regulate my own schedule. Flexibility in my job allows me to live a balanced life, which is of paramount importance to me!

I hope you liked this post! I feel so privileged to have had the opportunity to work with Lara; I highly recommend that you to visit her adorable salon! More pictures coming soon! 

Also, feel free to forward your ideas with regards to which aspect of the industry you'd like me to tackle next! I am currently planning something with a gorgeous model; so stay tuned!

Kaylie Chetcuti
Soarella

xxx

:: Sleek Makeup Weekend - Melita Health & Beauty ::

Hello again girls! 

Last weekend, happened to be Sleek Makeup Weekend at Melita Health & Beauty, which is a pharmacy in St Julians. However, I can honestly say that it is definitely not your average pharmacy. A lot of attention is given to make-up, perfume & skincare products!

I was given the opportunity to photograph some of the gorgeous displays of make-up and perfumery which they had in stock! I'm absolutely in love! 

The gorgeous contouring & Blush Palette which I strongly recommend!

There's more! In my opinion (and I'm sure most of you will agree), this is absolute heaven! 

I also enjoyed the array of perfumes which they had in stock. I had the opportunity to smell both the Nina Pop by Nina Ricci perfume, and the Chanel No.5 which I'm dying to purchase! I definitely encourage you to smell them out! *sniff sniff* 

I was also given the opportunity to get my make-up done by a Sleek Make-up Artist! I enjoyed every second of it, and learned so much! A tip she gave me was to apply black eyeliner very close to the lashes, and then use a smudge brush to smudge it out onto the eyeshadow. This helps to give your eyelashes a fuller look! 

In a nutshell these are the Sleek Products she used: Primer in Control Shine, Concealer in CC1, Foundation in Shell, Contouring using the Palette photographed above, called FaceForm (Light), Sleek Blush by 3, Eyeshadow using the palette I-Divine a New Day, and my Lipstick is called Lip VIP in Night Spot. 

I-Divine a New Day - Eyeshadow Palette

Sleek Blush by 3 - Blush Palette 

Before I left, I was given a small goody bag which included numerous testers I'm dying to try out! These included Clinique Moisture Surge Overnight Mask, Estee Lauder Double Wear Mascara, Bioderma Eye Makeup Remover, L'Oreal Maquillage Quad Eyeshadow Palette, Estee Lauder Hydrationist Maximum Moisture Cream, GLOV Hydro Demaquillage Quick Treat,  and L'Oreal Eye Designer in Argent Rose!

Thank you so much for your support girls, and thank you to Melita Health & Beauty for having me!

Kaylie Chetcuti
Soarella
xxx