Almost a year ago now, I reviewed the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation on Little Darling Life. At the end of the post, I mentioned that I would see my skin become blemished a day or two after using it. I also speculated that it may have been my bronzer and/or blush interacting with the foundation, subsequently causing minor breakouts. If you read my original post, you would know that in all other respects, I absolutely adored this foundation and how it worked with my skin. So, I decided to give it another go but this time I tested it without my blush.

I should mention that since last year I have changed my moisturiser to the Antipodes Vanilla Pod Hydrating Day Cream and in this experiment I used the L'Oreal Paris Infallible Priming Base, which I did not use when I first trialled this foundation. I retested this foundation three times within a one week period, and the results were consistent each time. I did not have any blemishes after using this foundation without my usual blush. And I am so happy about it because I cannot stress enough how much I love NARS Sheer Glow.

Along with this experiment, I also played around with application techniques and I have discovered how this foundation best works for me. A primer is definitely a must to keep longevity at a maximum as is setting powder - though I am finding that I use less powder since adding primer into my base routine. Setting your whole face will obviously mattify it, which kind of defeats the purpose of a glowy foundation, in my opinion. I usually just set my nose, forehead and under-eyes so I can still achieve a glow on the rest of my face. Also, if you don't own the Zoeva Silk Finish brush, get onto it. It's an amazing brush generally but when paired with this foundation it just works wonders.


I think it's safe to say that this has now become my holy grail foundation. I will gladly skip the blush in favour of this beautiful base, which leaves my skin with a nice glow and is the perfect colour match.

Today I would like to bring your attention to a major issue in the cosmetics and skincare industries, among others. That is, the issue of animal testing. Looking back on the ridiculous amount of beauty products I have purchased or owned over the years, I was completely oblivious to the number of brands and companies that test their products, or ingredients used in their products, on animals. It is only recently that I have started educating myself on the brands that do and do not undertake this type of product testing.

Now, I would just like to say that I am not a vegan. And my intention in this post is not to make people feel bad or guilty for their purchase decisions. My aim is merely to engage in the discussion of cruelty against animals through inhumane testing practises.

As someone who wants to get their hands on as many beauty-related products as possible, I also feel like I have a moral obligation to discontinue supporting brands that test on animals. Because Little Darling Life is partly a beauty blog, I wish that my conscience would let me go to town and buy all the cosmetics, with no regard for the consequences of my actions. But I just can't do that. Now that I have knowledge about the treatment of animals in these test environments, I can't help but think 'what if that was my dog?' In 2016, with all the innovation out there in the world, we do not need animals to ensure that our cosmetics and skincare are safe.

You might be thinking that because I'm not vegan, why I would have such a position on this issue. My answer to that is: I care about the welfare of ALL animals. I don't disagree that they should be a food source. But I do believe in treating animals ethically and with respect.

Animals don't have a voice. So we have to be their voice. As bloggers, as influencers, as consumers, the choices we make can have a very big impact. We can decide which brands to work with and we can decide which products we purchase. I hope that if you are not currently buying cruelty-free, you might take some time to do a little bit of research and reconsider. I'm not requesting that you turn cruelty-free tomorrow. This is relatively new territory for me as well, so even I am still navigating my way through and trying to familiarise myself more and more with cruelty-free products and brands.

This Antipodes' moisturiser has a bunch of good things in it. I absolutely love the manuka honey, an antibacterial that will help to keep the skin clean and clear. The Vinanza Grape is an antibacterial too, and also helps with moisture retention, smoothing and firming the skin.

I have never used a moisturiser in cream form before. I would usually reach for the lotions, which are said to be much friendlier to blemish-prone skin. So I did have concerns that this day cream would be far too rich for my skin, even through it is on the drier side. However, I have not found this moisturiser to be heavy at all. Less really is more when it comes to this product. Once applied it leaves the skin feeling hydrated and looking smooth with a lovely matte finish, something I was quite happy about as my previous moisturiser left me looking super shiny. I have also noticed that this day cream makes for an excellent base before makeup application. I was concerned that because the product is heavily made-up of natural oils, my base makeup would break up over the course of the day. But everything goes on a lot smoother and hardly moves all day even when I haven't set with powder.




Another thing I have to mention is: don't be fooled by the 'vanilla pod' part of the name. This day cream does not smell like vanilla - candles, essence, bean or otherwise. I personally would love if it did have that scent but I do also love the mild vanilla cross mandarin essence it leaves on the skin. The moisturiser itself is off-white in colour as you can see in the image above - I'm so sorry that I already started to use it before photographing but I was desperate! I certainly wouldn't say that it is thick in texture; it just simply feels luxurious on the skin.

For me, there are only a couple downfalls to this product. The first is that the product comes in a jar. Although I keep my hands as clean as possible when handling skincare products, I just can't stand to think how much bacteria I may be putting back into the jar with my fingers. There are a few ways to prevent contamination though, such as never double dipping and using a clean icy pole stick to scoop the cream out of the jar. The second negative is that there is no SPF. This is fine - though still not ideal - for the Winter months. However, if you plan on using this day cream in the Summer, you will need another source of sun protection.

Overall, I am in love with the Antipodes Vanilla Pod Hydrating Day Cream as much as I am with the Grace Cleanser. I don't find it to be too rich for my skin at all, and it hasn't contributed to any breakouts, which is amazing. You can pick up the Antipodes range at your local Priceline, and I do believe that David Jones stocks it as well.

I was wondering if after all these months you'd like to know why I haven't posted anything on Little Darling Life. (Who isn't loving Adele's latest album!) Well even if you don't, I'm going to tell you anyway. Just because I feel the need to. Which is what this blog is for, right?

The last few months have been particularly big for me. I turned 23. New job. Final semester. I did not expect to get as caught up in schoolwork and other life events as much as I did. But it happened. And that basically explains my blogging hiatus. In all honesty though, I can also attribute my blogging break to a bit of a creative block because I'm still not completely thrilled with the content on this blog. Also, I am one of those people that feels guilty for having 'me' time. It's sad but true and something I'm trying to work on.

So stay tuned! I hope to have some new posts up very soon.

If I'm going for a natural "everyday" makeup kinda vibe, I simply comb my brow hairs away from my nose, beginning at the tail - as this is where I need a bit more coverage - and finishing at the head of the brow. If I'm going for something bolder, I will again start at the tail but comb my brow hairs toward my nose. I then finish by brushing through my brows and shaping them as desired. I also brush through my brows with a clean spoolie prior to application in an attempt to remove any foundation or concealer that may have gotten onto my brow hairs during base application.

The one and only disappointment I have with this product is the brush. I'm not too sure what the thought process was behind it because it is not as functional as I would like. The only product you get out of it is what has clung to the widest part of the brush and you cannot use what is on the skinny end. This means wasted makeup. I really hope that Maybelline changes it too a shorter slim brush. This would make application a lot easier and less messy because with the current brush I find it difficult to control, especially when applying to the tail of the brow.

This brow mascara is incredible at keeping my eyebrows in place all day. They do go a little bit 'crunchy' but it's not necessarily something I hate. I don't find that the colour fades and it wears really well, even in hot weather. I can touch my brows throughout the day and it doesn't smudge or move at all.

You can purchase the Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara here for AUD$12.95.

Did you like this brow mascara? Is there another one that you love more?