Written by Nicole
What does an American charm addict do when she finds herself living a world away from her favorite products and familiar haunts? Why, she learns the lay of the land, of course, and discovers a world of new charm possibilities.
Photo remixed from an original by Teknorat
ANNONSE
Late last year my husband and I became American expats living abroad when we made the relocation to Australia from the U.S. for his new job. I knew about our big journey months in advance, so I did the best I could to prepare and studied anything and everything I could about the land down unda’ before we arrived; however, I made two fatal mistakes.
First, I never fully realized just how expensive things would be down here, and second, I was unprepared for how long I’d have to wait for makeup collections to make their big debuts here after being released in the States.
As a woman of substance, I have my needs. among them: facial moisturizer, hair products (loads of ’em), perfume, nail polish, and anything relating to MAC, Benefit, Clinique and Philosophy. Not long after moving, I was already hitting the bottom of my assorted elixirs and potions, wondering what I was going to do.
ANNONSE
Katter og sminke -sweatshirt ??
42 dollar
Handle nå
I realized that I could either A.) Skype my mother and ask her to send a care package my way, or B.) venture out into the city of Melbourne to find much more permanent charm solutions. Gone were the days of Cheese-Itz and Dunks’, so I figured it was also time to broaden my horizons and revamp my charm artillery.
The first thing to go was my sought after container of Origins GinZing Eye Cream; I needed to find something just as good at combating my puffy under-eye circles. In the States, the cream sells for $29.50 USD, but here it sells for a whopping $64.00 AUS! With the us dollar on par with the Australian dollar, I just couldn’t justify paying much more than double for the same thing.
I searched high and low for hours in Mecca Cosmetica (heaven), The Body Shop, L’Occitane and several other local pharmacies and department stores. during my quest, I kept happening upon a brand by the name of Jurlique, which I’d seen before in Sephora but never really gave much thought.
It’s a homegrown brand here in Australia, and the company prides itself on using organic ingredients. The price for a tube of Jurlique’s Herbal recovery Eye cream ($52.00 AUS/$40.00 US) wasn’t as bad as GinZing’s, and I also figured I ought to start using things I’d be able to find anywhere in Oz.
Arnica, the active ingredient used in Jurlique’s Herbal recovery Eye Cream, claimed to fight my tired, puffy eyes, and I was up for the battle. I have to say, I’ve been pleased with the results.
I’ve been using the cream because last November and like it just as much as GinZing. Both products include the same amount of cream — 15ml — but the one from Jurlique has a much longer shelf life. We’re talking 24 months versus 6. You be the judge.
I, like Karen, have wavy hair that can go as mad as Medusa in mere seconds when exposed to humidity. I don’t even attempt to blow dry it when the forecast calls for much more than 55% humidity; it’s just not worth the time or the arm strength.
My former hairdresser, Laura, knew the texture and wicked ways of my hair, so she introduced me to Moroccan Oil back in 2008. Not only did I fall in love with the scent, but I also fell in love with the fact that it kept my frizz in check on those really humid days. Alas, I ran out of the travel-size bottle I brought with me here and didn’t bring any spares, but equipped with the lessons learned from my previous adventure, I went out to my local hair provider and plunked down $34.95 AUS for a 100ml bottle of One n’ Only’s Argan Oil.
It has a similar consistency, color and scent as Moroccan Oil and comes in a travel-friendly plastic bottle, instead of a glass one. It was another win-win — the price was right, and I’ve been very pleased with the resulting smooth, shiny hair.
The next thing to go, unexpectedly, was my trusty eyelash/eyebrow comb from Sephora. I purchased it ages ago, but it eventually crumbled somewhere between Boston, Vegas, Miami, Amsterdam, Singapore and Melbourne. With as much as we’d been traveling lately, I’m really amazed I didn’t have even much more casualties inside my makeup bag.
This time I chose to head over to Myer (a local department store), a mere walk away, and perused their assorted high-to-low-end options. Restless and weary, I wandered past Benefit’s Brow Bar and was stopped in my tracks when I found this little beauty.
Tweezerman teamed up with benefit to create this retractable eyebrow tool — the mascara-type wand keeps my brows in line, and it’s useful for separating my lashes before curling. It sells for $12.00 in stores and online in the US, but it costs twice the price here. I was preParet til Splurge, fordi jeg tar brynet mitt på alvor, takket være min gamle venn Diana og hennes insistering på å holde larvene i sjakk.
Ikke lenge etter det, ville du ikke vite det, pumpen i Aveeno -flasken min sluttet å trekke ut sin dyrebare last. Jeg fjernet hetten for å tappe ut så mye jeg kunne, et ritual som gikk i noen få flere uker, men til slutt var flasken bra og virkelig tom. Jeg følte meg som den vanvittige damen i kjærlighet Potion nr. 9, og prøvde å tvinge hver siste dråpe fra flasken (du vet at du har sett den; ikke lyve).
Spenningen av å flytte hadde gjort et tall på huden min; Jeg snakker mye. Det jeg virkelig ønsket å finne var noe jeg hadde råd til her som ville fukte min nå uforutsigbare kombinasjonshud og beskytte den fra UV -stråler, mens jeg hindrer glansen i å sive gjennom.
Min Aveeno fuktighetskrem ha ikke helt hacket den lenger, så jeg kom tilbake til det himmelske Mekka Maxima (Mekka Cosmeticas storesøster) på jakt etter noe nytt. Butikken bærer Clinique, Mario Badescu, Clarins, DDF, Philosphy og mange andre, men det som virkelig fanget oppmerksomheten min var Dermalogicas nye baby, ren start.
Det er et ansiktsomsorgsområde rettet mot tenåringer og unge tjueårene, men jeg regnet med, hvilken alder fikk avslutte med det? Kanskje det fungerer for mitt 27 år gamle krus. 60 ml flasken kostet meg $ 45 AUS ($ 24 tilbake i 50).
Jeg innlemmet Welcome Matte (med SPF 15) i morgenregimet mitt, men dessverre fungerte det ikke noen mirakler på meg. Baksiden av flasken råder deg til å “ta farvel med glans uten å tørke hud med denne ekstraordinære, lette lotion som ikke vil tette porene.”
ANNONSE
Meh, jeg vil ikke kalle det ekstraordinært. Jada, det fukter med SPF, men det handler om det. Jeg antar at jeg må finne noe muligens litt mer alder passende.
Melbourne, Australia
Uansett hvor du befinner deg i denne verden, må du sørge for at du er klar for det som venter deg før du ankommer. Melbourne har vært vakker så langt, men amerikaneren i meg skriker stadig: “Du vet at du kan få det mye rimeligere på Macy’s, Target eller Nordstom’s!” I tilfelle, den KitchenAid -mikseren? La oss bare si at jeg vil begjære det litt lenger.
Skrevet av Nicole
Nicole er en nygift eks-pat som flyttet fra østlige Massachusetts til Melbourne, Australia i slutten av 2010. Hennes kjærlighet til sminke begynte i moden alder av 5 år da hun skjedde på morens Clinique Electric Blue Eyeliner. Makeup -tellere ble senere hellig grunn i løpet av college -dagene hennes, da hun ville lese tellere før hun pendlet hjem fra en lang dag i klassen. Når Nicole ikke tipper med sminkebørster og pulver, kan du typisk finne henne galavanting over hele Melbourne CBD, sikle over arkitekturen, søke etter den neste beste ballettflaten eller drikke rødvin med mannen sin Scott.