Movie Magic - A Smashing Success! (25/03/12)

As many of you might have noticed, my last few blog posts have been mostly about one particular thing - Movie Magic. Hardly surprising really, when for the last month it has basically been the main focus of my after-work life... (not that I'm complaining... ;D)

A great amount of hard work and effort by so many talented people came to a climax last weekend, when we performed our hearts out in front of a full theatre of people (on both nights) and gave what I think was an amazing performance!

I am so thankful for everyone who took part: the seamstresses and wardrobe helpers, the backstage crew and all those who built the set/special effects, the light and sound engineers who helped create the atmosphere to our performances, the hair and make-up team, all the dancers - not being much of a dancer myself, I especially admire you all for your energy!!, my fellow singers - Fiona, Franklin, Aldo, Chaya, Paul, Danielle and Norma - with whom I spent many a-happy hour singing, and last but definitely not least, Edwina and Tonio, who took it upon themselves to make this dream into reality! If it weren't for their hard work, effort, dedication and imagination, the show would not have been the success it was!

As much as I'm going to miss all the rehearsals/singing/laughing, I can honestly say that the "break" from rehearsing will be a welcomed one (and I'm sure I'm not the only one who's feeling this way at the moment...)

Here are just a few of my favourite photos from yesterday night (it was so manic backstage, that I only managed a few hurried snaps here and there...) :

Tonio - the Director - and myself :) This man is the reason I started acting on the stage of the Salesian Theatre, and for that I am forever grateful! :D xxxx

Aldo - who sang "There's a Place for Us" from The Chronicles of Narnia and "The Phantom of the Opera" - and myself

Some "Wizard of Oz" action - The Munchkin Mayor (played by Ryan), Dorothy (played by Fiona), Carlo (who helped backstage) and our youngest cast member - Chiara :)

Myself and Joanne - who played Glinda (I <3 that dress!!)

JP as the Scarecrow

David as the Tin Man (obviously NOT impressed by my impression of him... :P)

Gabby as the Cowardly Lion :)

Myself and Dario, who as well as being an amazing singer, also choreographed the dance for "We Are" which I sang... :)

Fiona (Dorothy), Franklin (who played Danny Zuko from Grease) and myself (in my "Hairspray" costume)

Hahahaha, gotta love that wig! (with Mumu, who was wearing his "Saturday Night Fever" wig)

Myself and the (very talented) Genie of the Lamp from "Aladdin"...

This lovely woman had the (very) daunting task of helping me change from my "You're the One That I Want" outfit to my "Summer Nights" dress in just a few seconds... :)

With the beautiful and talented Edwina (who choreographed almost all the dances and also was very patient with us all!)

That's all for today! I'll try and post some more this week (maybe even a haul and a nail polish/make-up collection.....)

Cheryl

 xXx 

Movie Magic Rehearsals Update (16/03/12)

Hey everyone!

This post is just going to be a very quick update on Movie Magic - click here to read my previous blog post about it.

This week was Dress Rehearsal week, and I cannot begin to describe the excitement and craziness that was going on backstage! Although we hit a couple of glitches along the way ("Ix-xitan jibda jittanta", as we Maltese love to say), the rehearsals were great! All the costumes looked amazing and I'm sooooo much more looking forward to next weekend!

Here are some random snaps I took during yesterday's rehearsal - just as a teaser... ;)

Can anyone guess whom this character is...? ;)

Hot 'n' steamy number from "Nine"...

The curtain-call dance - a song from one of my favourite musicals ever!

Sorry for the crap quality of my pictures, but I had to use my phone to take them... 

I hope that those of you who are interested to come watch Movie Magic have booked, as tickets are selling fast! If there's anyone who'd like to book tickets, check out the facebook event here for more info on booking tickets!

I can't wait for next week, when we get to run through the entire show with costumes, lights and sound! :)

Until then, lots of love!

Cheryl

 xXx

NOTW - Polka-riffic! (15/03/12)

Good morning everyone!

Today I'm bringing you another NOTW featuring my first ever Catrice purchase - the nail lacquer in 470 - Snow Motion (which I was really excited about, as I've wanted a white polish for ages!)

I decided to go for a polka-dot look, using Essence's Replay for the dots... Since I'm still very much in the pastels mood, I absolutely adore the way the bright mint green dots look on the white base... (Also, the green goes brilliantly for St. Paddy's day!) The next colour I'm going to be looking out for is a milky peach colour - so far I'm considering ELF's Mango Madness, however, having never tried their polishes, I'm not really sure whether or not to buy one... Perhaps I'll find one at the Catrice/Essence stand when I finally manage to go...

ELF's Mango Madness

Anyway, back to the NOTW, I painted 3 coats of Catrice's Snow Motion on my nails (since it's white, brush strokes and other imperfections show more), and then set about dotting them with Essence's Replay. I REALLY must invest in a good nail art brush, as the one I had has lost its shape and is in no way usable anymore... In fact I ended up putting my dots on with "Replay"'s own brush - no easy task, but somehow I managed...

This is the finished look:

 
That's all from me today, tomorrow I'll be posting an update on Movie Magic dress rehearsals (which is such a huge part of my life at the moment, I can't not post about it...)

Anyways, that's all for now!

Cheryl
 xXx

Beauty Challenge/Review - Essence MySkin Face Wipes & Moisturiser (12/03/12)

Good morning all you beautiful people!

Today I'm bringing you a post about something I've never really done before, and I'm kind of excited to see how it's going to work out...

Now, as I don't usually wear much make-up on my face everyday, I do tend to sleep without having washed my face sometimes (yes, I'm a bit lazy in that, but I am trying to get better!)... I know that doing so clogs pores and is in general not good for your face, so I decided to try some new products to help me change my wicked ways...

I've decided to place a beauty challenge on myself, in order to properly see how my recent Essence MySkin purchases fare on "my skin" (pardon the pun)... I'm talking mainly about the Essence MySkin Caring Cleansing Wipes (in Pomegranate and Bamboo) and the Intensively Caring Cream (also in Pomegranate and Bamboo), however, I've also purchased the MySkin Moisturising Cream-Gel in Cucumber and Lime, but will be testing it at a later date. I decided to give these products a try mainly because I'd previously been using another brand of face wipes and moisturiser (namely Simple's Cleansing Facial Wipes and Hydrating Light Moisturiser), but since they're a bit more expensive, it would be brilliant if I could use the Essence ones and save some cash...

top row, left to right: Essence MySkin Intensive Caring Cream in Pomegranate and Bamboo; Essence MySkin Moisturising Cream-Gel in Cucumber and Lime
bottom row: Essence MySkin Caring Cleansing Wipes in Pomegranate and Bamboo

I started the "challenge" last Monday (5th March 2012) by incorporating the wipes into my usual nightly routine... Below is the video I recorded yesterday, to review the products and their effectiveness at the end of the week:

As I said in the video, the wipes and cream smell amazing! I love the smell of Pomegranate, so for me it was an added bonus. The prices are €1.69 for the wipes and €2.19 for the moisturisers, which I think is brilliant, as the face wipes' pack contains 25 wipes (almost a month's worth) and they remove make-up very well, and the moisturisers contain 50ml, which will most probably last a very long time!

Since I'm enjoying these items so much, I'm considering buying the MySkin 4-in-1 cleansing cream (also in Pomegranate and Bamboo), which - according to the Essence website - "is a true all-rounder. it effectively cleanses your skin and refines your pores as well as providing moisture and a long-lasting mattifying effect. thanks to its special texture, this new cleansing cream is a peeling, a face mask and a cream – all at once! valuable pomegranate and bamboo extracts turn your daily cleansing ritual into a lovely pampering session." I have absolutely no doubt about the last sentence, as the fragrance alone is enough to send me into a world of bliss... But it would be brilliant to know if it actually does all it's meant to, as that would mean that my Saturday morning face-pampering session would mean less bottles of face washes, scrubs, masks and toners, and more space on my shelf in the bathroom cupboard (which is super valuable when you have 2 sisters who also require space for their own supplies)!

As I also mentioned in my video (but forgot to take a photo of - *groan*) I use the Body Shop's Born Lippy Lipbalm in Passionberry because a: is smells amazing, b: lasts ages and c: actually moisturises lips, whereas other lip balms I've tried (and believe me, I've tried a lot) just last a few minutes on the lips then disappear again. Lara from Every Beauty Addict's Bible wrote a post reviewing this product in further detail, so you should definitely check it out!

Anyway, that's all with regards to this beauty challenge/review! I hope you've found it useful, and don't forget to comment if you have any other suggestions for posts/videos, or if you've tried these products out yourself and agree/disagree! :)

Cheryl

 xXx 

New Blog Banner! And other news... :) (06/03/12)

Hey there!

Today I'm feeling very proud of myself! I've designed a banner for my blog (as I was feeling a bit too "using-a-template-from-Blogger", and I felt that having my own banner would stimulate my creativity and get the juices flowing...

So, meet my new blog icon:

She's like a cartoon/post-it version of me, I guess... (Yes I know, you can totally see a resemblance...)

In other cultural news, I'm going to be taking part in a show called "Movie Magic" at the Salesian Theatre in Sliema on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th March. As you can guess from the title, the show is going to be made up of various songs from everyone's favourite musicals and movies (example: Wizard of Oz, Singin' In The Rain, Men In Black, Grease, Phantom of the Opera and Footloose to name but a few...), all choreographed by the amazing Edwina Farrugia, Directed by Tonio Vassallo and starring an enormous amount of extremely talented singers and dancers (including yours truly)... You can check out the promo right here. If you enjoy a good night out and love musicals, this is the show for you... ;) Bookings open now, so if you're interested in attending, book by calling: 99839640 or 21342516. (the show starts at 19:00 on both nights, and free parking will be available on both nights also.)

OK, so that's it for today's post, but stay tuned, because I've just started a new beauty challenge and will soon be writing a post all about it!

Cheryl

 xXx

FOTN - Blue Smoky Eye (28/02/12)

Hey everyone!

As promised, here is my Face of the Night for my date yesterday evening... I decided to go for a navy smoky eye, and I also used one of my most recent purchases (which I love!)... So, enough of this idle chatter, onto the make-up!

My Face of the Night (Sorry if the picture isn't very clear)

• First off, I put on some of my Essence "I <3 Stage" Eyeshadow Base. I find that it gives my lids an even colour and keeps eye make up on for ages!

• Next I applied my favourite foundation (which I swear by) - Maybelline Dream Mat Mousse in 21 Nude Beige Suave. I find that the mousse consistency is the best for my skin, as it doesn't feel cakey like liquid foundation, and doesn't highlight any dryness (that the wind has a habit of bringing on) like a powder. Also, the mousse blends seamlessly and feels super light on my skin! I'm actually thinking of trying the Essence mousse foundations when my Maybelline one runs out. (perhaps if anyone of you has ever tried it, you could give me some comments on it).

• My go-to blush powder is Rimmel's Powder Blush in 004 - Pink Rose. The colour suits my skintone, and looks natural. (As with foundation, I was considering trying some mousse blush for the summer, as I like a bit of a creamy/dewy look in the summer, and powder blush sometimes feels too dry. Anyone recommend any good mousse blushes?)

• Next is my favourite part of the make-up experience: Eyeshadows! I started my smoky eye with a silver shadow (Deborah's Mono High-Tech Shadow in 12) all over my lids and up to my brow bone as a highlight. (By the way, most of my eyeshadow collection consists of Deborah monos, they're affordable, look great and last ages! If you'd like me to do a Make-Up Collection Post/Video, let me know in the comments below!)

• Next, I patted some of Revlon's Matte eyeshadow in 005 Venetian Blue (which is a beautiful electric blue colour) all over my lid (except for the inner corner).

• I then used the dark navy blue colour from my Deborah Mono High-Tech Shadow in 60 in my crease and the outer third of my eye. The colour, I feel, brings out the colour of my eyes, so I love using it for smoky-eye looks.

• Then, just to darken the outer corners and make them look a bit more dramatic, I used my Rimmel Colour Rush Matte Mono Eyeshadow in 214 Jet Black. (Sometimes I also use this shadow on my lower lash line as a very subtle liner - it works a treat!)

• Next I got to try out my latest Essence buy - their Waterproof Gel Eyeliner in 01 Midnight In Paris (if you haven't watched the movie yet, by the way, DO!) I was really excited to try this liner out, as I've heard rave reviews about it forever, but never seemed to find it at the UoM Health Shop Essence Stand. Finally, I saw a lonely pot yesterday, and grabbed it faster than you can say "Cat-eye". As promised, it was a treat to apply under my lower lashline, and lasted the whole night, whilst at the same time, not resulting in my tugging frantically at my eyes with a face wipe to remove. Approved! :)

• Then, to finish off my smoky eye, I applied one coat of my Maybelline "Falsies" Volume Express Mascara (the one with the curved applicator). I love how it lifts my lashes, and does not clump (very important for me! I don't feel like I could ever rock the clumped-lash look the way Dyna does...)

• Last but not least, my favourite nude/light pink lipstick ever: Maybelline's Watershine Lipstick in 111/103 Iridescent Rose Diamonds. I love how it's not drying to my lips at all, and it doesn't make me look dead when I wear it!

So, that was yesterday's FOTN. As you all know, I have a YouTube channel, which is linked at the bottom of my blog page, and I was wondering if you guys would be interested in some collection/what's in my bag/tutorial videos? Let me know in the comments below!

Love to you all!

Cheryl

 xXx