Hey ladies, here are the swatches as promised. Unfortunately I don't have swatches for the Eye Kohl Pencils, Dazzleglass, the Nail Lacquers and the Beauty Powder since I didn't have time to finish swatching the products inside the Mac counter.

Hey ladies, the MAC Marilyn Monroe Collection will officially be released today Oct. 27 here in Cebu City.  Please do drop by at the Mac shop located in Rustan's Ayala Center Cebu at 2:00PM today.

I have always been a fan of Zen Zest fragrances ever since I was in college. Among my favorites were the Eau de Toilette in Tangerine and Thistle ,their Eau de Cologne in Seduced which are all from the Sweet Scent Sation Line as well as the Cosmopolitan scent from their Cocktail Collection.


I'm really excited to let you ladies know that this is my first ever sponsored product review.  Yay! The people from Zen Zest sent me a bag full of their fragrant goodies last week. I know you're excited to see what's in it.



I tested out all fragrances for about a week so that I can really experience the differences of each scent.  I find the packaging really adorable. It reminds me of desserts that you buy at a pastry shop to give as presents to your friends.

All four scents have one thing in common, they smell as sweet as sugar. However, some might find these scents a little overwhelming. What I love most about them is that they all smell like what their names are.

* Cotton Candy, brings youthful innocence that carries a sweet fruity fragrance which also reminds me of a candy shop.
* Key Lime Pie, as scrumptious as it sounds, has a mix of tart green limes and honey.
* Cherry Cheesecake, has the luscious fragrance of ripe cherries, vanilla beans and fresh milk.
* Vanilla Ice Cream, has the mouthwatering fragrance of fresh vanilla beans and fresh milk. This mimics the smell of real vanilla ice cream which is why this is my favorite out of the four.

The fragrance lasted for a good four hours on me when worn inside the office, which isn't bad considering that it is a Cologne and not perfume.



I used the Orange & Spices Fragrance Diffuser in our bedroom and oh boy it smells awesome! It definitely has that zesty orange citrus scent with a hint of spicy punch. I'm used to just spraying our bedroom with Ambi Pur Air Freshner, but I'm now switching to the Fragrance Diffuser.


The Zen Zest Fragrance Diffuser also comes with five Reed Sticks. The more reed sticks you use the more fragrant it becomes.  The scent lasts all day long and I won't have to keep on spraying air fresheners anytime soon.  I'm sure this 50ml bottle with last me for months.

Overall, I'm really pleased with the Zen Zest Sparkling Sugar Collection and the Zen Zest Fragrance Diffuser. I would definitely recommend their Fragrance Diffuser as it gives that fresh and relaxing feel to any room. If you're a fan of sweet scents, then the Sparkling Sugar Collection is something you should try.

Until next time.

Cheerios!
***Hollie***

Hey ladies, Random Beauty by Hollie blog is officially 2 years old! Yay! My blog has come a long way since my first beauty related post last Oct 23, 2010 (here). It has changed so much over the past couple of years and I'm happy to see what I have accomplished. I'm glad that I was able to meet beautiful people and gained loyal readers.  I really appreciate you ladies for taking time to read my posts and for believing in my reviews and wanting to know my thoughts about certain products.

I initially thought that I wasn't going to last this long, because doing each post takes so much time and effort. From testing products, taking photos, to doing research. But I have come to love blogging ever since I found my niche as a beauty blogger. I can talk about makeup and beauty products all day and I'm glad that I have this blog to serve as my stress reliever.


Editing and improving my blog isn't a walk in the park. It takes so much of my time since I personally tweak the html or css codes for my templates.  I also make my own banners or blog headers from scratch through Photoshop CS4. (I was a freelance graphic artist back in 2006)

As my blog has evolved, I too have improved as a person. I was rather shy and had low self esteem when I first started blogging. Because of beauty blogging, I met different personalities both online and in real life. They really helped me become a better person that I am today. I'm now more confident and comfortable in my own skin.


If it wasn't for beauty blogging, I wouldn't have become a freelance makeup artist. I have not studied from any beauty school nor have I attended any makeup workshops.  I'm a self taught makeup artist and everything that I have learned about makeup is from reading Beauty Books, watching Youtube Tutorials, doing online research and through practice.

My love for makeup and passion for making people look fabulous is simply a Hobby (an expensive one at that LOL). I don't intend to make this as a career, I do this for fun. ^_^


I do have something in store for you ladies and it will be announced very soon, so stay tuned.

Until next time.

Cheerios!
***Hollie***

Since it's already Fall or Autumn in some countries, I thought the MAC Pro Longwear Lipcreme in Seasoned Plum from the Daphne Guinness Collection would be perfect this season.


I've had this lipstick for a while now and I've only ever worn it twice which was just this month.  Mac Seasoned Plum was given to me a few months ago by my good friend Khymm of Shopcoholic. (thanks Khymmy!) I just love the shade because it is so unique.


It has been raining like crazy here in Philippines, so it is almost always gloomy and dark outside. That's when I remembered that I have this in my stash. Others might find this shade too odd, but all I did was pair this with a red lip liner and it looked great!

This is my first Pro Longwear Lipcreme and I'm very pleased with it. I like the chic packaging and how the product itself exactly fills the rim.  It has a decent staying power and it doesn't dry out my lips. Also, it does not feather or transfer easily like other cream lipsticks do.

Mac Seasoned Plum is a limited edition lipstick since it's from the Daphne Guinness Collection, so you might have trouble looking for this. You can buy it online or at Amazon.

Have you tried wearing a purple lipstick?

Until next time.

Cheerios!
***Hollie***

I went berserk with online shopping for makeup last month when I saw several choices of Black Radiance Eyeshadow on my favorite ebay.ph store. For those who don't know, Black Radiance is a sister company of Wet n Wild both manufactured by Markwins International.


Since the holiday season is coming, I was looking for Gold eye shadows, thus explains why I bought gold shades. ^_^

Items bought as follows...
* L'oreal Paris Telescopic Explosion Mascara in Black
* Cover Girl Eyeslicks in Glistening Gold
* Revlon Matte Lipstick in Mauve It Over
* Styli Style Flat Liner 24 in Blackest Black
* Black Radiance Duo Eyeshadow in 8755 Sunrise/Sunset
* Black Radiance Artisan Color Baked Shadow in Rum Spice
* Black Radiance Artisan Color Baked Shadow in Mint Julep
* Black Radiance Artisan Color Baked Shadow in Silver Frosting


I was all giddy when I found out that the packages from Singapore arrived! Yay! I won both from blog giveaways and it is totally a coincidence that they are both from SG. lol


The smaller package was from Eliza of Eliza Beauty (thank you Eliza!). I entered her Bioderma Giveaway early September, because I have been wanting to try the most raved makeup remover Bioderma Crealine H20. I was lucky and finally had the chance to try it. Btw, I just found out the Digital Traincase now sells the 500ml Bioderma!

Eliza gave me the..
* 100ml Bioderma Ceraline H20
* NVEY Eco Organics Eye Shadow Sample in 150
* Pro HairCare Leave in Moisturizer Cream (made in Israel)


On to the good stuff ^_^. I would like to thank Charles of wickeRmoss for this SURPRISE giveaway. This was totally unexpected. I honestly didn't know that she does this surprise giveaways. I was her first commenter of the month and I was just grinning from ear to ear when I read her email. Thank you again Charles! Hugs

Charles gave me...
* Elizabeth Arden Sheer Lights Illuminating Pen in Warm 03
* Majolica Majorca Skin Remaker in Ochre 20
* Essence Colour & Go Quick Drying Nail Polish in 77 In Style
* Essence Colour & Go Quick Drying Nail Polish in 53 You Belong To Me
* Essence Stay All Day Long Lasting Eyeshadow in 02 Glammy Goes To
* Essence Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Black
* Essence I Love Stage Eyeshadow Base
* Essence Stay With Me Longlasting Lipgloss in 05 I like Cotton Candy
* Essence 2 in 1 Volume Mascara
* Essence Powder Brush
* Essence Blush Brush

You can check out the Essence Cosmetic website if you are curious about their products.

I will definitely be posting reviews on some of this products soon, so stay tuned. ^_^

Until next time.

Cheerios!
***Hollie***

The girls and I finally had a day all to ourselves, this was last week.  It was such short notice and nothing was really planned. We had no idea where to go and chitchat. Finally, we decided to hangout at our friend's Salon and got our nails done.


It has been over a year since we last went all together to get our nails done. I had such great time with my girls and we talked about a lot of stuff all afternoon.


This is what the interior looks like. It's painted in pink with style icons on the wall! That is Lalaine in photo and the owner of Hair Couture Salon and a professional make-up artist.


I love their customer service, the staff are friendly and very accommodating.  The services they offer are very affordable and results are awesome (quality is similar to high end salons). The best part is they have Free Wifi! Mid-sized salons rarely offer that.

I have been using the Sigma F88 brush ever since I got it last month and it has become my go-to foundation brush.  If you love the Sigma F80 brush (review HERE), I have no doubt that you will absolutely adore the Sigma F88 brush as well.