I love surprises ! A gift and a makeover....

Can you imagine how delightful it was for me to receive a surprise parcel in the mail recently? Dont you just adore those little packages that arrive so unexpectedly? It is those little highlights that add magic to ordinary days........ and when I opened up my little package, there was an entire makeup set courtesy of my dear darling friend Chrissy Keepence from the Lindy Charm School for Girls!

Now, I dont claim to be any expert in powder and paint, infact, I am usually the one begging my friends for their make up secrets and hints, but last Sunday I opened all my new little Lindy Charm goodies and gave them a whirl. Before I tell you just what I thought of my new blush, eyeliner, lipstick (red of course), lip pencil and eyebrow pencil, let me give you a small bit of background about my cosmetic knowledge.....

I didnt start wearing makeup till I left highschool and even then, not really very much till I began my working life at age 20. It wasnt that I didnt adore make up and what it could do to enhance the features God gave me, it was just that, well, it never seemed that important save for all the plays and musicals I participated in. That's perhaps a bit sad isnt it? After all, every young girl loves to play with makeup, and I most certainly did play and experiment, but in the country, 4 hours from Melbourne, there just wernt that many places to wear make up too......

When I began my working life and started wearing makeup every day, I quickly fell into a routine of 60's glam style - you know...winged eyeliner, defined brows, and as I have very thin lips, I tended to play them down with subdued shades of lippy. I guess I just gravitated to what looked beautiful to me in all my favourite movies and images - 50's and 60's styles of course !!! Never one to follow fashion trends and always far more inclined to dance to my own drum......

I have kept pretty much the same look ever since - alternating between red 50's lips, light eyeshadow and winged eyeliner sometimes, and 60's natural lippy with heavy coal coloured eyeshadow and eyeliner. It has been alot of fun, just as make up and dressing should be.

In the early 90's when I was 'getting my groovy on' with make up, I really really struggled to find a liquid eyeliner that would last all day and not crumble off, sometimes I found it very hard to locate a liquid eyeliner at all, as it was not really the norm to wear it at the time - everyone seemed to have that 'shimmery face' look (a look I just cant stand - give me Dita porcelain smoothness every time.) I must confess that I have never really found the perfect liquid eyeliner, although generally speaking, you do get what you pay for. And pre 'Poppy' lipsticks, it was nigh on impossible to find a mat lipstick in golden age of Hollywood red.

Skip ahead to last Sunday as I experimented once again with new make up.....my lippy went on mat and PERFECT in the absolute darlingest shade of red (no Ita Butrose orange to be seen !!!).

My lip pencil complimenting it with precision that did not 'bleed' into the little creases around my lips (yes, age is creeping in!!)

My eyebrow pencil spot on the right natural looking colour.

My blush the rosiest of glows that perfectly suits my pale skin (that is something else I have always found difficult to get just right!).

And the piece da resistance, my wonderful WONDERFUL new liquid eyeliner!! It lasted all day looking as flash and daring at 10pm as it did at 10am.

(Below - the makeover begins)

I am in love !! Did you hear me readers? I AM IN LOVE with my new make up!!!! Please believe me when I tell you that I am NOT just saying this because I know the Lindy Charm gals....this make up has been perfectly orchestrated to suit those of us who want a golden age of Hollywood face. If you like that shimmery face effect, head on down to Priceline, but if mat finish, last all day, perfect iconic colours is what you chase. If Dita, Marilyn, Rita, or Elizabeth is what you are after then these are the goodies for you !!! Miss Chrissy, you have a devote for life in me....no more searching for non-crumbly eyeliner, or the perfect rose pink blush, or chasing that hard to find matt red lippy for me.

A million thankyou's to Miss Chrissy and the Lindy Charm Girls !!!

(First and final photographs in the article provided courtesy of Brooke Orchard Photography)