Putting On My Best Face At The Problogger Training Event. And A Giveaway.

The best beauty advice I ever received was my grandmother telling me to always moisturise my face. I was fourteen. She gave me a tub of cream, a bottle of glycerine and rose water, and these words:

"Edie, if you put cream on your face every day starting from today, and use this toner ... you'll thank me when you're older."

Oh I thank her. But .... she forgot to tell me to also moisturise my neck.

Don't even get me started on my knees. Aging is fascinating!

Today I'm headed to Melbourne for the Problogger Training Event. I almost didn't go because I feel weird and sad and I'm easily overwhelmed. But, it's Problogger.

Darren Rowse is one of the most successful bloggers in the world, as well as being an all-round genuine, decent and caring guy. I waited in line to get this blurry photo taken with Darren at this years Digital Parents Conference, and felt like a really geeky fangirl.

In contrast, Mrs Woog just walks up to Darren with her scarf lasso and ropes him in like a cowgirl.

Yesterday I realised that I was flying to Melbourne TODAY, so had to do a whole beauty revamp. I woke up pre-menstrual, sad and weird, and SO UGLY. You know those days you feel dreadful? Yeah.

I got my eyebrows shaped and eyelashes tinted, immediately felt better. I took a gamble and decided to colour my hair with an unknown colour the day before a blogging conference.

My hair colour is a big deal for me, people would always ask me what colour dye I used and I'd say, none! Alas, the colour is fading so I have to bite the bullet. I think I'm going to get more brassy and bold the older I get.

Fiery Red 

Putting Rocco in the bath, he watched as I dropped the colour dye all over our sandstone bathroom floor, swearing, bending over naked scooping it up with my bare hands and putting it back in the container. (Dave you can hardly notice the stains I promise.)

Very quickly the dye became bright red.

"Mum why are you bleeding YOU'RE BLEEDING ON YOUR NECK."

I had a terrible, foreboding feeling about this dye session so I washed it off after just fifteen minutes. It was a huge gamble, but I LOVE it.

Next up - found out the kids have not only taken out the batteries of my nose hair trimmer AGAIN, but lost the end part of it so I had to go to Kmart Katoomba and buy a new one for fifteen dollars. Also bought a new black top for $6 to wear tomorrow. Score!

Finally, my makeup routine.

A few months ago I was given a Maybelline New York makeover by amazing Makeup Director Nigel Stanislaus. I can't thank him enough ... I'm forty years old and never knew the importance of matching the right foundation to my face. There's a range called FITme, and my number is 135. Simple as that.
So whenever I want to feel a little less .... old and haggard, I do my routine and it takes me less than ten minutes.

Dream Smooth Primer, FITme Foundation 135, Colour Tattoo "Too Cool," Great Lash mascara, FITme Pressed Powder 135, FITme Bronzer, lippie.

You can buy all of these at a great price in your local chemist or supermarket.

Or drugstore in Seventh Avenue, New York City.

Choosing a new Colour Tattoo eyeshadow.

I told Maybelline I was writing about them and asked if I could do a giveaway and they said yes! If you'd like to win a basket of Maybelline New York makeup worth $200, just leave a comment below telling me your one most valuable piece of beauty advice. I'll choose a winner and announce it here next Tuesday 16th October.

It can be anything .. for example, mine would be to use flushable toilet-training wipes to remove excess hair dye from the back of your neck while you're naked in the bathroom and your kid is screaming in the bath.

Makeup on, hair red, neck still crepey. Let's go.

I'll be talking on a panel at the Problogger #PBEvent tomorrow with the Queen of Makeup herself, Nikki from Styling You. Also Lorraine Murphy from the Remarkables Group and Mrs Woog. Please come and say hi. I'll be as overwhelmed as ever.