Sunday 7 September 2014

BLOGGIVERSARY SPOTLIGHT: The Transforming Power of Make Up...

My blog has finally done one circuit of the sun, and what better way to celebrate than to reveal all!

The idea for this post has been rattling around in my head for years, long before I started blogging, and it's so wonderful to finally have an avenue to express my passion for make up, and the extraordinary power it has to transform a Plain Jane into a Pretty Polly. I remember the awe I experienced when I first discovered "makeovers" on the internet - in capable hands, I was staggered at the difference between the before and after photos of the ladies who so bravely allowed themselves to be photographed "au naturel", and then later in all their made-up glory. Little did I realise that I would be doing this very same thing one day! Believe me, it takes a whole lot of courage to reveal a bare face on the web...

Not all of us are blessed with natural beauty - I'm certainly no oil painting, and while I am in no doubt of the vastness of my INNER beauty, simply put, these days my outside just doesn't match my inside. So, I set about learning how to bring these two dimensions closer together, and to give myself greater confidence when dealing with the outside world. Another factor is the ageing process - time, environmental factors and life's experiences all take their toll on our faces, and while I didn't wear half as much makeup in my youth, I'm embracing it with open arms now to help me maintain what I regard as a camera-ready appearance...

Along the way I learned quite a few tricks (massive thanks to beautyheaven and Wayne Goss), and made my share of mistakes, and the discovery journey certainly isn't over yet, but I'm comfortable now in my ability to enhance what I was born with, and I hope that what follows shows you that the beautifying products (and techniques) available these days are indeed wondrous, especially for us older gals. It's all a matter of finding what works for you 

Below are some examples of my morning transformation. I do this just about every day (and looking at the first pics you'll understand why lol), and love every second of it. Takes about 40 minutes from beginning to end - this is also precious "me" time, and I wouldn't give it up for all the tea in China...

Warning: The bare-faced photos are far from glamorous and frighteningly revealing. But what the hell, I doubt I'll ever be this brave again...


Here's what I used - this is the full-blown arsenal for work days and special occasions...



And just so you know I don't spend my entire life in front of my makeup bench, here's a lazy Sunday face - takes 12 minutes using barely anything lol...



As you can see, makeup can truly work magic, EXCEPT on under eye bags! They're nowhere near as obvious if I don't smile, but hey, smiling wins over vanity every time 

There's no one particular thing that makes all the difference for me - when you get to my age it's a combination of quite a few, but I reckon my top two are a great foundation and good eye definition, and of course a long glossy fringe helps too...

Which makeup product(s) enhances your beauty the most?

Take care of you,
kats xxx

P.S. First Bloggiversary giveaway starts tomorrow!
P.P.S. I've just added this review to Ingrid's Monday Makeup Madness #8 Link Up Party - you'll find lots of other fabulous blogger articles there too, and some new talent to follow 

35 comments:

  1. What a fabulous post Kats. You are SO much braver than I as I don't think I could share my naked face with everyone. I have absolutely no eye definition without makeup and my dark rings are quite something.

    I love both your full blown makeup and your Sunday makeup. They both look polished and lovely. My current Sunday face is completely bare and I have only just run a brush through my hair as it was sticking up everywhere this morning. I am busy on the computer and washing today so no-one is going to see me (I hope!).

    Congratulations on the Blogiversary - I can hardly believe it is only a year as it seems like you have been doing this forever. xxx

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    1. My darling Kate, I could only post these bare-faced pics because I don't have a proper camera - the phone rarely picks up my freckles, which I can assure you is a blessing lol. Nor was I about to take the pics sans glasses - it's just too scary! But thanks for your uplifting words hon, I so treasure your support ♥

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  2. Happy birthday to kats colourings! :D I can't believe it's been a year. You have such an amazing blog Kats and you really are a natural blogger. It just flows from you in such a perfect way. I love my daily visits to your blog so that I can see your latest stunning eye creations and see your beautiful face. Makeup on or not you are so beautiful Kats!
    I love this post :D It's so fun being able to see FOTD transformations, especially yours my gal. You have such amazing skin Kats. It's so clear and has a lovely healthy glow to it. We can tell you take good care of your skin. Love your glossy fringe too xxx

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    1. Aww hon, you're just the kindest, sweetest gal on earth ♥ I actually took pics as I applied each product, but I couldn't bring myself to post them - I'm trying to make the world a prettier place, not frighten people ha ha! My skin is light years away from how it was when I first joined bh - it's a work in progress of course, but using quality skin care products from the get-go makes a massive difference when you find yourself heading for 60 ♥

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    2. 60!!! I don't believe it at all! No way. Honestly Kats I thought you were in your 40s. Now that proves how amazing your skin is :D
      Oh Kats your so silly. Your transformation pics wouldn't of frightened anybody at all. I bet the entire membership of bh and other gals from around the world would love to follow your step by step guide for more hints and tips of how to look as amazing as you do each and everyday.....even those so called lazy Sundays :D
      And you ARE making the world a prettier place with colour, happiness, love and care xxx

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    3. Darling Gemma, you sure know how to make an old chooky feel great ♡ Bless you sugarplum xxx

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  3. Kat, thank you so much for being brave enough to show a bare face. Can I just say that makeup alone doesn't give you a radiant glow. Your skin looks amazing, and so youthful. Your makeup looks are so inspirational, so I'm glad that you share those. In saying that, you should totally feel comfortable being bare faced, no plain jane by any means!
    Gosh, even your weekend look is so polished. I like to apply makeup even if I'm not going anywhere, I find that it is almost therapeutic
    Happy Blogiversary! xx

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    1. Sweet Indie, thank you so much for your words and wishes hon - you've given me such a boost ♥ I must admit sometimes I look at the skin of other women my age, and in comparison, I reckon I'm taking pretty good care of mine (thanks mainly to beautyheaven for sending me so many fabulous products to trial ♥). And I agree that putting on some slap is the best therapy on any day - the only time I don't wear it is when I'm full of flu, mainly because most of it ends up on my tissues xxx

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  4. You are gorgeous nd I have said this before aswell kat�� regardless of with or without makeup��
    And let me also tell you that you are very brave to put a selfie of your face without makeup but you are lucky to be naturally beautiful
    Not everyone can do this ��
    I love your makeup and always love seeing the new Eye makeup looks you come with so keep up the good work
    X

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    1. Varinder my dear you are so very kind - I just wish I'd started this blogging journey 20 years ago when I was a bit more comfortable with my appearance (was there such a thing then?). Thanks so very much for your lovely words of support hon, makes 'revealing' a whole lot less scary ♡♡♡

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  5. I loved reading this post Kats and you are not even close to being a Plain Jane, I think you are beautiful both inside and out.... And also a brave soul! I wouldn't dare post bare faced photo of myself, although LOL! Halloween is coming up I would give people a fright!
    Congratulations on your First blog anniversary, well done hun..love your work Claire xx

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    1. Claire sweetie I put this post together in April, and its taken this long to work up the courage to publish it. But with gorgeous followers like you, I don't know what I was fretting about lol ♡x♡X ♡

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  6. I LOVE seeing the 'raw' Kats! I can actually see even more of your kind, beautiful eyes when they're not dressed up. Either way, I like both of you lots! xo : )

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    1. Ness honey you say the loveliest things - LOVE the 'raw' term, gave me a super giggle. Thanks heaps babe xxx

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  7. Kat's nothing about you is frightening, you crazy lady! You're absolutely gorgeous and I admire this post so much!! xx

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    1. Lol Monique, ok I give up - crazy yes, frightening MAYBE not ha ha... You're a darling ♥

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  8. It DOES take courage to bear yourself naked, or 'raw' on the internet. The overwhelming response is positive, so I'm sure you're glad you took the plunge. I see a mixture of high-end & cheapie BYS: like you said, a good foundation & a good eye definition.
    As long as smiling wins over vanity, you're on the right track. Thank you for being so daring & honest.
    Congratulations on your bloggiversary!

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    1. Hiya doll, thanks a million for your encouragement and warm wishes ♥ I'm not regretting this post at all, in fact I'm overwhelmed by the loving support, and thinking maybe I should do more articles like this lol xxx

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  9. You look stunning, hun, both in the before and after photos!!! Thank you for taking the courage to share everything with us, and honestly, you are a rocking almost 60 year old! I'll be extremely thankful if I end up looking half as good as you do!

    I have many of the same products you've photographed above! I think foundation (specifically mineral powder) is definitely something I can't live without.

    Congratulations on the blogiversary!

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    1. Gosh Nalini what a blushworthy comment, can't thank you enough darling lady - surrounded by all you gorgeous young babes, I keep forgetting I'm almost a retiree! ♥♥♥

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  10. Congratulations on your one year anniversary and thank you for sharing this post with us ♥
    You have such lovely skin, I'm finding it hard to believe that you're almost 60!

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    1. How sweet of you to say hon - I have quite a few freckles, creases and some spider veins, but on the whole I guess it's not too bad, I do follow a morning and night routine without fail though ♡

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  11. Congratulations again Kats :) You look glamorous with or without makeup - your great personality shines through either way...

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    1. What a darling comment Magda - thanks heaps hon ♥

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  12. Congratulations Kats on 1 Year!! That's fabulous. And you look gorgeous in every single photo I see. How brave of you to bare all.....your lovely smile is always there shining through. Enjoy reading your blog and look forward to another year of reading to come.
    Love Flaming Beauty xx

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    1. You're so kind Flaming - thanks for all your wonderful support darling, I treasure it ♥

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  13. Congratulations on your first year bloggiversary!!! Yay! Your blog is one of my favourites to read!

    I love seeing before and after photos! You look gorgeous in both photos!

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    1. Thank you my dear - so sweet of you to say. Thank goodness for makeup!

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  14. I love this post, it takes a lot of gutts to put your bare face out there for all to see and you've done it beautifully! I hope I look as good as you when I am in my 60's!!! You look gorgeous with or without makeup. I can be pretty lazy with makeup and don't wear it unless I'm leaving the house, filming/shooting or have people over. Otherwise I am just too busy to worry about it with 2 rug rats running around my legs! haha! Huge congratulations on your bloggiversary!! You've done an amazing job with it here and I love visiting, even it I don't always comment. I am here every few days. :) Here's to another fun year! Cheers!! xo

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    1. Candy honey I so appreciate your kind words - there's so much to do in a day hey, and I'd love to leave comments way more often than I get around to too ♡x♡x♡

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  15. You look AMAZING without a stitch of makeup! I wish I could look that good! We're always our own worst critics, right? xo

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    1. Oh you are so kind hon - I agree we are always tougher on ourselves than anyone else, but at the end of the day, I feel far more comfortable after a little bit of a boost from my beloved pans and tubes. My Mum is 87 and she's just discovered lip gloss!

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  16. Heartiest Congratulations Dear on your Blog Anniversary. So glad you created this blog because it is such a pleasure to see all the pretty eye looks you create as well as read all the informative reviews and posts you write. You are so creative. I apologize for not commenting on your posts most times because I am always reading your posts at work (sneakily) and don't get enough time to type.
    Dear you look gorgeous even without makeup on. Your skin looks so clear and radiant. You are such a kind hearted person and I wish you all the best . Hope your blog attains great success this year. I love your honest opinions and I love the fact that you are not biased on your reviews just because a company has provided you with a product. Your reviews are genuine and that's what I love about your blog.
    Good Luck!!!

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    1. My dear Moonlight, how delighted I am to read these wonderfully supportive words from your heart. I'm deeply touched and thank you so much for expressing your enjoyment of my little corner of the blogging world. It's readers like you that make what I do even more pleasurable, and sure encourage me to keep going - bless you sweetheart ♥♥♥

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    ReplyDelete