What I should have packed - Part one

When I was planning my big trip what to pack was quite a difficult decision. I had done some research but as it turns out it definitely wasn't enough as there are so many things that I wish I had brought with me. I think I assumed Australia was a constantly warm and laid back beach party....it isn't! I am a few months in to big city life in Melbourne and there are some things packed away in my English home that I really wish I'd thought to bring with me. In fact so many that I have decided to divide this post in two. These are all the beauty bits I wish I had brought......ps yes I'm hoping that my mum reads this and decides to send some of them over!
1. A tried and tested cleanser:  Hey Robyn, remember when you gave away all of your spare products and decided to buy and pack a brand new cleanser that you'd never even tried...not your best idea was it? Me and the Bliss fabulous foaming face wash didn't get on..to be honest I don't know what made me think we would. It irritated my skin and didn't remove my makeup well leaving me looking like a red, pimply mess. Unfortunately by the time I realised this I wasn't in the position to buy a another cleanser until I accidentally (genuine accident) left this one in the showers whilst camping. I would have been much better bringing my Elemis balancing lime blossom cleanser which I knew I loved, I would however have been devastated if I'd left that in the showers.   
2. The Urban Decay naked palette.  Why I decided to leave this at home I'll never know, broadcasting the fact that I left it at home means that it's only a matter of time until my sister decided to "borrow" it. I even remember leaving this out after packing all my other makeup away and then still deciding to leave it at home. I used it every single day and somehow thought that I wouldn't use it whilst I was travelling. It's not ever big and would have been easy to take away with me. I am a fool and that's all there is to it!
3. Make up brushes. I fetched about 4, 2 face and 2 eyes. Face wise I'm happy but 2 wasn't enough eye brushes. I actually managed to leave some of the ones I used the most. This was probably because I only brought 2 cream shadow posts with me,  another mistake. 
4. Perfume. I fetched one half used sample sized perfume....it lasted about a week. I know a lot of perfumes can be bulky but I had a set of benefit minis which would have been really easy to take with me. I used them all the time at home and they would have been perfect for bringing away but no...again, fool!
5. Hair appliances. I didn't bring any of these. To be far they're big so it made sense not to bring any. Plus, I had a vision of returning with amazing, long and healthy hair...this wasn't happening, I was just a frizz bomb. I have since bought a hair dryer and a tiny pair of straighteners, I picked them both up for really cheap and now I can actually style my hair before nights out rather than going for the unintentional wet pony tail look. I would quite like some curlers but that will only happen if they're super cheap...Target has been home to every other cheap yet brilliant purchase so far so I'm hoping. 
So there we go. I realise I'm being a little bit dramatic and I am obviously managing just fine without my hair curlers but sometimes you just miss your home comforts. As I mentioned at the start, there will be a second part to this post which will be all about clothes I wish I'd brought....it's likely to be just as dramatic. 

10 things I love about Melbourne

I've been in Melbourne for a few months now and I'm planning on staying for a while longer while we make plans and try our best to save (that parts easier said than done). It's one of the coolest places I've ever visited and I thought I would share some of my favourite things about the city with you.

1. The view from my room. 

Living on the 50th floor of a building right in the middle of the city definitely has it's perks and the view from my balcony is definitely one of them. You can see for miles and miles and it's incredible. Almost worth feeling dizzy from the journey in the lift.

2. Queen Victoria Market
Queen Victoria market is just down the road from where I'm staying. It is absolutely huge and is full of incredible food as well as clothes and trinkets. We've been buying all our fruit and veg from here as it's cheaper than the super markets, you can also buy some really delicious treats for lunches. 

3. The graffiti walls

Melbourne is full of amazing graffiti. There are streets that are dedicated to graffiti where you can watch the artists work. I think it must be legal here because it is so common. I'm sure if I was more creative I could do an amazing look book around here....only time will tell. 

4. The cat cafe

I've written a whole post about this place but I thought it was worth mentioning again. I've only been twice but it's nice to know it's there for when I'm really missing my own little balls of fluff at home. The cats that live here seem so happy and it's really lovely to see. 

5. Trams

Trams are just cool. Ignoring the fact that I can't work the time table and ended up going miles in the wrong direction the other night (alcohol may been involved), they are cool. 

6. The cafes

Melbourne cafe culture is a big deal and for that I am grateful, I have strong feelings for cake. Every little suburb has some of the most beautiful cafes I've ever seen, some of the best ones are hidden away down little side streets. 

7. The food

Maybe it's because I've never lived in a big city before but I have never been somewhere where you can get every type of cuisine under the sun. I live right in the centre of the city so it's all on my door step. You can be as healthy or as naughty as you like and it's all really reasonably priced which makes being a poor backpacker a little bit easier. 

8. Bikes

Bikes are a big deal here and I have a bit of a thing for them. I'd probably be too much a scaredy cat to ever ride one but I think they're gorgeous. Vespers and Harleys seem to be the big thing as well as lots of beautiful push bikes and quite frankly I want them all. 

9. The parks

I've written a full post about my time at the Botanical gardens but there's lots of other beautiful parks here too. Melbourne's very mixed weather (it's honestly crazier than England) means that plants grow really well here. You only have to wonder a few miles in any direction to find a little patch of paradise to wonder around. 

10. The river

The Yarra river is the centre of the city and it's pretty spectacular. I think walking down by the river in the evening is great. Street performers, amazing restaurants and lots of people watching, life is always good by a river. 

So that sums up my favourite parts of Melbourne so far. I still have a some time left here so I'm sure I'll discover even more great things about the city. I have to say that the people I've been spending my time here with have been a huge part of what's made it so special, you're all super cool people! 

My Valentines face

So Valentines day is just around the corner and whilst it isn't my favourite holiday I do love an excuse to take pretty pictures and rock a slightly more feminine look than normal. I loved my valentines look from last year. I seemed to be having a good hair day and the pictures turned out really well. I thought  I would give it a go again this year and see what I could come up with...bare in mind that I am no makeup artist, just a blogger who enjoys adult grown up face painting. 

My face:

-Precious mineral BB cream

-NYX dark circle concealer correcteur

My eyes:

-Maybelline colour tattoo in pink gold

-NYX eye shadow in coquette 

-Maybelline the falsies mascara

-Maybelline master precise liquid eyeliner 

My cheeks: 

-NYX powder blush in Mocha

My lips: 

-Sephora rouge lipstick in unfaithful

-NYX lip butter in angel food cake

So there we have it. I'm quite pleased with how the look turned out and yes I did eat all of those chocolate hearts. Me and Steven are usually real valentines scrooges but maybe Australia will bring out our romantic side.....who knows. Whatever you get up to have a wonderful day and I hope Cupid's good to you. 

Angel Food Cake lip gloss deliciousness

I think I may have found my favourite lip gloss and I am pleased to say it didn't break the bank. NYX is a brand I've been wanting to try for ages but unfortunately it isn't sold in the UK, it is however stocked in Australia! I'm starting to go cruelty free and NYX (please correct me if I'm wrong) is a cruelty free brand. 
I have tried a few things from NYX so far but the first one I wanted to share with you was the Angel Food Cake Butter Gloss. It is the perfect pink/nude shade so it's incredible wearable, I know this because I've pretty much worn it every day since buying it. The texture doesn't feel too sticky at all and it seems to last pretty well on the lips. I never know what else to say about lip glosses but basically, this one is goooood!

No Drought....because washing your hair is a bore

I don't know why but when I was packing all my beauty bits to come away with I didn't even think about dry shampoo. It's something I used to use a lot at home...that maybe says something about how often I wash my hair but it really is a god send. Now that I'm working again and spend a lot of my time wiping strands of my hair away with oily hands (If you didn't know I'm a massage/beauty therapist, not just sweaty) I have definitely felt a need for dry shampoo in my life and, like I do with most of my beauty needs now, I ventured to Lush to see what they had to offer.

The No Drought dry shampoo from Lush is the first I've tried that isn't in a spray bottle, I wasn't sure how I would like this but I find I actually use a lot less product. I puff this into the roots of my hair and  let it absorb any oil while I'm getting ready for the day. I then comb it through and style however I like, this gives it a chance to work for a bit before styling. 
The smell is very fresh and citrusy but not too over powering and it seems to do a great shop at mopping up any excess oil. Lush is really reasonably priced too and as I can't see this bottle running out any time it means a lot go bang for your buck...winner winner *nut roast dinner!

My 2nd Bloggerversairy

So my little blog has turned 2....well I never!  To celebrate this not so massive for any one but me event, I thought I would share some of my favourite posts from the last year so we can all look back......nostalgia. 

At the start of last year I applied for the quiz show Two Tribes and by some miracle they found me charming and entertaining enough to let me on. This may seem a bit silly to some people but as I'm not always the most confident of people I was very proud to have accomplished this. I wrote all about my experience of the show here.

I competed in Total Warrior last year and it was tough tough tough. It was definitely a memorable and  very fun experience, I had mud in places where mud should never be!  I wrote all about y experience here.

Last year I discovered the Ultra bland cleanser from Lush and we got on like a house on fire. It's definitely up there in my all time favourite products If you would like to read more about it then click here

This is one of my favourite posts of the year purely because I love the pictures. Thank god for my mum having a duck egg shed that looks like a beach hut! This is also where I made some rather yummy summer drinks. If you'd like to see some more of this then click here.

This one was one of my Halloween looks from this year. I created a few looks but this one was my favourite as I tried a few different techniques and felt like it worked really well. I am definitely no make up artist so it was still very simple to create. If you would like to see how I did it then have a look here. 

Visiting my friends in London is one of my favourite things to do. They've all lived there for a while now so it's great to see the not so touristy side of things. I remember having such a good time on this trip. Cheap theatre tickets, my first time at a vegetarian restaurant and ciders in the park on a sunny day, what more could you ask for. If you'd like to see what else I got up on this trip then click here. 

  Lush is one of my favourite places all year round but it has a special place in my heart over Christmas. I discovered some real gems this year that I look forward to stocking up next Christmas. I loved the pictures on this post too, but sparkly bath bombs make that easy. If you'd like to see what else I got then click here. 

This is the look I created for Valentines day last year. I was really happy with how the look came out and I really liked how the pictures came out too (I don't just mean my face, I mean the product pictures really) I have a new valentines look coming up son but if you would like to see this one then click here.

When I discovered the Maybelline colour drama lip pencils I fell in love. I loved every single one I tried and raved about them to every one I knew. If you'd like to see more about them then click here. Try them, you'll love them! 

Leaving to go travelling was one of the most exciting and nerve racking experiences ever! I'm here now and loving it and I'm so pleased we decided to take the risk and do it! If you'd like to read a little more about my adventures then click here.  As I'm still travelling currently make sure to follow my blog and have a look at my youtube channel to see what else I get up to.  So there we go! 2 whole years of The Robyn Christina. While it's still a smaller community I'm pleased to have you here and I will keep working hard create posts that you enjoy! If you'd like to share my posts with any one you think may be interested then I'd really appreciate it. I really hope this post hash;t seemed like one massive plug, I just wanted to share my favourites with you so we can all get nostalgic. Thanks for supporting me so far!