NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream Review

I recently purchased the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream Vault which has mini versions of all 36 shades in the collection. I'd wanted to try this range for awhile and I wasn't sure which colours to go for so when the vault was available for a good price, I thought I'd buy that. I've certainly never had so many shades in the one product before.  I've also never been so excited by a makeup product. It's been really fun to try shades I wouldn't normally so I thought I'd share my thoughts here. It look me almost an entire day to complete this post! 

The lip product I use daily and have for many years is Maybelline Provocalips. It's perfect in terms of texture and staying power but I find the colour range limited. Other than the red and dark red, the other shades don't appeal to me. So that was my motivation behind finding another brand. In the past I've also tried Too Faced Melted which has an amazing colour range but it doesn't always stay on the lips and ends up in unwanted places on the face. It's also rather expensive. NYX soft matte lip cream addresses many of the issues I've had previously with lip products. There are so many shades I love but at the same time there are many I wouldn't wear such as the browns and neutrals.

I'd like to repurchase some of my favourite shades but it's so difficult with limited stockists in Australia. I only know of Target and Priceline which have NYX but there aren't many colours. The NYX website doesn't ship internationally. I'll have to work out where I can buy them. 

Adis Ababa and Copenhhagen
Adis Ababa is a medium pink which is similar to many in this collection. I like it but it's not a particular standout. and in terms of repurchasing I'd probably go with Paris.  Copenhagen is my absolute favourite in the collection and I have worn it continually since I bought it. I've already used up the sample and need to repurchase it. I look forward to wearing it with the Rouge Noir version of the Dita Cardigan when the weather is colder. It has a red undertone compared to Moscow which is more of a blue undertone and Transylvania which is a purple undertone. That makes it more wearable for everyday. 

Stockholm and Moscow
Stockholm is a neutral shade with a pink undertone. As far as neutrals go I like it and believe it suits my skin tone, however I wouldn't wear it as I always prefer bright lips. Moscow is one of a few dark colours in this range but this one has more of a blue undertone. It's a little bold for every day wear (even for me) but since I like it I hope there's some occasion I can find to make it work. 

Manila and Paris
Manila is a coral shade with an orange undertone. I often don't look good in orange but this is exactly the right amount of orange. It's a little different from the colours I wear on an every day basis but I like it and I'll certainly be using it again. Paris is the brightest pink I've tried so far in the collection but it's not particularly unique as many brands have similar shades. It's one I'd get a lot of use from so I'm likely to repurchase. 

Transylvania and Abu Dhabi
Transylvania is unique and bold and I can definitely make it work. It's one of my favourites from the whole collection and I've been looking for a shade like this for ages. It has more of a purple undertone in comparison to Copenhagen and Moscow. It will definitely be a repurchase. Abu Dhabi is a neutral with a brown undertone. There are too many shades which look this way in the soft matte range. It's too plain, the brown undertone doesn't suit me and I won't be using it again. 

Sydney and Seoul
At first Sydney was disappointing but after a couple more tries I don't mind it. It's not the most flattering shade but it's fun to wear and I haven't got any shades like it. The consistency isn't as smooth as most of the other colours though. Seoul was a surprise. I was expecting it to be more purple from the container; it's more of a berry pink hue than I thought. It's a winner and will be a repurchase. 

Istanbul and San Juan
Istanbul is a standard and average medium pink. I don't mind it and favour it over many of the neutrals in the collection, but at the same time it's not a standout. San Juan is a very bright orange, even brighter than it appears in the pictures. Orange is a new shade for me and I like it. However, I don't think it could work for every day. I hope I'll be able to find an occasion where it is appropriate. 

Havana and Los Angeles
Havana is one of my favourites from the collection and exactly what I was hoping for; it's more the colour I thought Seoul would be. I have always loved purple lip shades. It's very bold for every day use but I adore it too much so I'll have to make it work. I'll definitely be repurchasing. Los Angeles is another neutral with a brown undertone. I'm not used to brown tones on myself and it's not my style. 

Cairo and Berlin
Cairo is my least favourite of all the colours. It's too plain and looked like I was wearing nothing on my lips. I won't be using it again. The texture wasn't as smooth as the other colours and it was very patchy to apply. Berlin is the darkest brown in the collection. I like it better than the other browns and appreciate it is fairly pigmented. However, again brown is not my style. 

Morocco and Milan
Morocco is one of my favourites and will definitely be a repurchase. It's a more wearable version of San Juan as it's less orange and is really a red orange shade. It suits me a lot better than any other orange I've found in the past. Milan is another medium pink which is between Istanbul and Paris in terms of brightness. Again, I like it but it's not a particular standout. I'll have to choose just one of the pinks I like best to repurchase. 

Zurich and Antwerp
I expected Zurich to be another brown based neutral from the container  but it has more of a pink hue. It's one of the better neutrals but it's a little plain and I don't have any use for neutrals so probably won't use it again. Antwerp is similar to Milan but has more of a coral undertone. I'm likely to repurchase it. 

Tokyo and Cannes
Tokyo is a pale pink shade which is similar to Sydney but less fun and bright. It's a little too plain and just another pink which is too similar to others in the collection. The application was patchy too. Cannes is yet another neutral and as far as neutrals go, it's one of my preferred shades. However, as mentioned previously I don't think I'll have much use for it. 

Buenos Aires and Dubai
Buenos Aires is one of my least favourites colours in this range. Again it was patchy to apply and the texture was not smooth. It's a neutral with a pink or peachy undertone. Dubai is one of the darker browns very much like Berlin. I prefer it to the lighter or neutral browns because it's richer but again brown doesn't suit me. 

Athens and Monte Carlo
Athens is another neutral with a pink undertone. It's very plain and almost looks like I don't have anything on my lips. By this point I am so over the neutral tones. There are way too many in this collection. Monte Carlo is very much my style and I will continue to use it. It's most similar to my current every day lip colour and what I have in a lot of other brands. I was beginning to wonder why there weren't enough red shades in the range. 

London and Ibiza
London is a disappointing shade being another neutral shade with a brown undertone and it doesn't suit me. Ibiza is another medium pink which is similar to Istanbul, Milan and Antwerp. It's a little more pale and there are others I like better so don't think I will be repurchasing. 

Madrid and Prague
Madrid is my favourite of the reds in this collection and is completely my style. It's very similar to my everyday lip colour in other brands. I prefer it over Monte Carlo because it's richer and darker. It's a very classic shade. I'll definitely repurchase. Prague is a medium pink, similar to Paris but a little darker. I like the shadesbut it's fairly close in colour to the pinks done by most brands. 

Bangkok and San Paulo
Bangkok is such a unique standout and one of my favourites. I've bee obsessed with purple lip colours since I discovered Too Faced Melted Violet a couple of years ago. Bangkok is a little brighter and even more fun than Havanna. However, that does make it harder for every day use but I'll make it work because I love it. San Paulo is similar to Ibiza and Antwerp. It's a lovely shade but there are others I like better. 

Rome and Budapest
Rome is a brown tone but of all the browns it's my favourite in the collection. It's less harsh on my skin tone, maybe because the undertone has a little pink to it. Even though I never usually wear brown, I'd consider using this again. Budapest has more red to it which is evident next to Rome. I definitely like it but prefer some of the traditional reds like Monte Carlo and Madrid more. 

Antwerp and Vancouver
Antwerp is a fun and bright red tone, again very similar to many reds I've worn in the past. I like it and would wear it again, but prefer the more classic reds such as Madrid and Monte Carlo. Vancouver is a standout. I love how bold it is, there's almost a gothic feel to it. I'd like to repurchase it. Vancouver is a little more plum or purple than Transylvania but similar. 

My favourites are Havana, Copenhagen, Bangkok, Morocco, Transylvania, Madrid, Vacouver and Seoul

Have you tried NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream? 

Instagram

1. A Christmas event in November. 2. New wallet. 3. Sparkly notebook and pens. 4. Another matching pink outfit. 5. A playground I found one day at lunchtime. 6. 1500m time trial at swimming training one Monday morning. 7. Our 4th wedding anniversary was on 1st December. 8. Juliette Princess Miracle with her personalised Christmas decoration. 9. Final swim meet for last year. 10. Christmas Day selfie. 11. Another Christmas day picture. 12. Matching tennis visors to shoes. 13. The husband at Parkrun. 14. Tennis outfit. 

Follow me on Instagram as chelsea_miracle 

Tia Cherie Fitness

Hi all,


I've decided to create a fitness blog. It's an idea I've been thinking about for awhile now and makes sense given sport is my main interest at the moment. The time now feels right because I have many ideas for the blog which will include favourite products, my fitness goals, active wear fashion and updates on parts of my daily life. Both sport and fashion are my interests so I've been thinking about whether to post everything on the one blog or have them separate. I think separately will be a lot more organised and I appreciate my current audience may not be interested in some of the fitness content I'm going to post. But I want to do it because it reflects my life more accurately at the moment. It's interesting the common misconception that it's impossible to like both fashion and sport. People I meet for the first time are always so surprised I do sport especially swimming and that misconception is usually based on my clothes. It shouldn't be that way. 

My fitness blog is Tia Cherie Fitness located here. 

I'm still setting it up at the moment. I know it's not a very creative name but I couldn't think of anything cool or exciting. Plus Tia Cherie is my relatively established Internet name so it makes sense to stay with it. 

I'll still be updating my fashion blog here as per normal. 

Outfit

This is my current favourite outfit and most worn ever since I added the beautiful black and white Dita Cardigan to my collection (post here). It's also the outfit I wore on Christmas Day, the weather was a little warm for a cardigan but I wanted to make it work anyway. It's the same outfit I posted a few weeks ago here but with the black version of the Dita Cardigan instead of pink. I'd wear any of the colourways in the cardigan with this dress because of the way the detailing on the dress matches the embroidery on the cardigan, and also the keyhole design. There aren't many colour combinations I wouldn't wear. I'm sure the colour combination I posted previously of pink with red isn't to everyone's liking but I like it which is all that matters. Black, white and red is probably more conventional. Of all the colourways in this cardigan, black is my favourite which is surprising for someone who likes colour as much as I do. It's probably because the black version is more rare and took me a couple of years to add to my collection. 

I'm going back to work tomorrow and I can't quite comprehend how the holidays are over. Seriously, where did that time go? I definitely wish it wasn't time to return and it's difficult to think of the year ahead; I simply cannot face having a year as busy as the last one. But I will just take one day at a time and I have lots to look forward to on the weekends and before/after work. 















Wheels and Dollbaby Dita Cardigan in Black and White
Kitten D'Amour Scarlet Tie Dress
B.A.I.T Footwear Gloria Flats in Black

Linking to: Fashion Should Be Fun

2016 Review: Part 2

See part 1 here

Swimming: 2016 was entirely about swimming for me. I have a background in swimming from when I was a child but it was twelve years since I'd been in the water. Sometimes I can't believe I stayed away for so long because out of anything I've done in my life, swimming is still what I feel most comfortable with. I joined swim club on the first Wednesday night of 2016 and didn't miss one all year. I also accepted zero excuses from myself for missing training (no matter how much it hurt or how cold it was at 5.30am in winter). I quickly found a good routine to stick to for the whole year but I didn't find it easy with a full time job mainly because of the constant lack of sleep. But I had a dream this year, not just to return to swimming but to get to the level I used to be as a child. It took training most days all year but I did it in the end. 

One of the first swim meets I did for the year was the Western Met RSL Carnival. I certainly did not expect to win the trophy for the open 50m freestyle championship race. To be fair, there wasn't much competition, it was a small carnival and I was still 3-4 seconds off where I wanted to be for the race but still not too bad for the first 50m freestyle I'd entered in 12 years. Unfortunately didn't get to keep the trophy but still exciting to get my name on it. Since it was my first one in so many years I just had to get a picture. 

• A couple of weeks later I attended a carnival at Dee Why in an ocean pool. It was my first time racing in an ocean pool and found it very different. Unfortunately it was freezing and rained the whole time despite being in summer so I didn't get the full experience. I didn't win the open race for this carnival but hope to go back again another year. 

• 
  
  
• In total I believe I attended six RSL carnivals and 15 Masters Swimming NSW meets for the year. I wanted to put in maximum effort and be involved in everything. However, I found the Masters events particularly stressful. They shouldn't have been but racing swimming makes me nervous despite having learned to race when I was nine years old. It is pressure I put on myself because I'm so annoyed and disappointed at myself if I swim a bad time. I am still not sure how to deal with this. 

The highlights for the first half of the year were the Long Course State Championships at Sydney Olympic Park in April and Ettalong Masters in May. The State Championships were one of the few Masters Meets with medals so that was pretty exciting! I knew I still had lots of work to do because my times were so far off where I wanted them to be. 

The Ettalong meet was amazing for a different reason. I spent the weekend away at Pearl Beach with my friends and we had free time after the swimming events were over. Pearl Beach was the most beautiful location and since it is very secluded it's the perfect escape from every day life. 

In May there was the summer presentation for my swimming club. I'd only been in the club for half a season at that point so was very happy to win these awards. I won the open 100m freestyle championship event which was a huge surprise. However, again I knew it wasn't a fast time so had the goal to become a lot better. 

After many more swimming events in the middle of the year we once again went to Pearl Beach for the State Short Course Championships in October. I won five medals at the championships but it was a weekend of ups and downs. Three personal best times and two terrible times. I'd never been so disappointed with any races all year as I was with two of the swims. I even felt bad having gold medals for them. I was much happier with the silver medals because they were good swims. Overall I had an amazing time up the coast again and hope we go back again this year. 

Next was our own Halloween themed swimming carnival hosted by my swimming club. It was one of the most stressful times ever organising the decorations and coordinating various tasks on the day. Aside from that the swimming went well. I won the trophy for the open 50m freestyle championships. I'd wanted this so much given it was our own carnival. As you can see I dressed as a black cat for the themed presentation afterwards.

The last big meet for the year was the Long Distance Championships. I participated in the 400m backstroke and 800m freestyle. I knew the 800m freestyle would be hugely competitive when deciding what to swim for the meet but I wanted to try it as a challenge. I was very happy with 3rd. I also love the look of the bronze medals and it was my first one. 

 In November we had the winter presentation for my swimming club. I won these awards. Many were achieved from consistency so it just goes to show what can be achieved by showing up each week and wanting something enough. It felt like a moment to reflect on the crazy busy year it had been with swimming.

All year I've been working on achieving the million metres award with Masters Swimming Australia. The name is self explanatory and requires a log book to be kept which documents total distance swam. I find it motivating because every training session and every single lap counts for something. I ended up swimming 679.3km this year which is an average of 13km each week. I still have to swim 320.7km to reach one million metres so it will take a number of months more. But I can see the end and I hope to receive that award before the middle of 2017. 

The positive influence swimming had on my life majorly contributed to 2016 being the best year of my life. I am sad to see it end. After everything I've been through in my life I am incredibly grateful. 

What have you achieved in 2016?