Now that 2022 has officially come to an end, I have something a little different to write.
Last year was, honestly, a very tiring year. Although things can be glamorous and fun on the outside, being a content creator is a lot of work and a big time commitment. Lately I’ve begin to wonder whether it’s worth it – so decided to highlight some of my favourite content and products from this year, partly to showcase some great products and partly to reminds myself of how far I have come.
So read on for some of my favourites, and little personal experiences that I wasn’t able to include in my caption and posts.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Collaborations
I’ve been in love with the Anastasia Beverly Hills brand for years so being able to work with them was insanely exciting! I did a few different collaborations featuring their lipsticks, brow gels and recently one of the Norvina palettes too (check it out here, I’m super proud).
I hope that I get to do more with them next year too. Although I don’t think the brand has the same hype that it used to all those years ago, their quality is still way up there and their eyeshadow formula is still one of my forever favourites.
Face Contour Mask (Omnilux)
One of the stand out things about this year was the introduction of TGA regulations to our social media work, which meant that none of us were allowed to actually review any TGA regulated products (including sunscreens and this LED mask). Regardless of how you feel about this, it did make it more difficult working with brands.
Still, I was very happy to have been able to work with Omnilux to showcase (not review) their Face Contour Mask. This is something that I used just last night!
Cloudicos Collaboration
It’s not every day that you get to make friends with a brand’s owner and spend dinner talking marketing, packaging and design – but that’s what happened with Cloudicos! Not only did I receive (pretty much) their full existing range to play around with, I also had the opportunity to shoot the promotional campaign for their first Cosmic Eyelights launch.
This was definitely a highlight for my year and I really hope to work collaboratively with more small brands in the future – maybe even as a designer? 🤔
Oh! So Soft Toner & Cleansing Cloth (Valere Beauty)
Valere Beauty is another small business that I had the opportunity to work with and I loved the innovation of their Oh! So Soft Toner & Cleansing Cloth – the quality is superb and it’s still a part of my regular cleansing routine.
However, one of the things that really stood out to me was how respectful they are of their creators.
The industry isn’t always a nice place and, to be honest, I felt like I had been taken advantage of multiple times in 2022 alone – but Valere Beauty is a ray of sunshine for me. I’ll always support them and look forward to continuing to work with them too!
Lip Nourish (Lük Beautifood)
I tried Lük Beautifood for the first time this year and I’ve become obsessed with their Lip Nourishes. These are essentially lip balms with varying pigmentation and a super comfortable formula – I have around five or six of these now and they’re one of my go-tos.
I’ve started to go out a lot more this year (yeeahhh dating can do that lol), so there’s a need to actually wear make up again. However, I’m not really a fan of a full-glam look anymore so tinted balms have been my preference.
Lala Retro Whipped Cream (Drunk Elephant)
I’ll be honest, I’d been putting off trying Drunk Elephant for a while because their products are pretty pricey but I’ve been converted with this Lala Retro Whipped Cream! It’s one of the few times where I not only finished a product, but actually opened it up to gets what’s inside.
They actually sent me so many products from this year and I hadn’t been able to try it all yet, so there’s definitely more to come in 2022.
Zoom Shadow Sticks Matte (Mecca Max)
Cream eyeshadow sticks. Holy cow, I never thought that I’d get into them but these are now must-haves for me! These Zoom Shadow Sticks from Mecca Max (in particular the matte formula) have great staying power and they blend really well.
I have super watery eyes so it’s hard to keep my eye make up on. These withstand the waterworks substantially better though so I use them almost every day. I definitely want to try out the shimmery variants next year.
Stash Beauty Co Collaboration
And finally, this is one of my more recent collaborations but one that I am super proud of! I worked with a relatively new online store Stash Beauty Co to do a tutorial on a super glittery eye make up look. I loved the products that I used in this reel – the adherence of the Unleashia glitters was especially surprising.
A fun fact is that I’ve always used black liners but post video actually tried out the brown variant of this liquid liner… I’ve been converted!
For 2023, I have every intention of slowing down on the sheer volume of content that I produce. Instead, I want to focus on producing more that I’m proud of. I hope that every creator can do something like this too because, honestly, I think that we’ll all burn out soon otherwise!
Here’s to more amazing opportunities, more living and happiness for this year! 😊
