Category Archives: General

Dry lips?

Posted in General, Lips by

My lips are so often dry these days! I’m still searching for something to keep my lips hydrated all day long AND add some colour at the same time so I will keep you posted on that journey…  Until then, here’s what I’ve learned about dealing with dry lips:

1. Vaseline only provides short-lived relief and seems to leave my lips even drier! 

2. There’s a good reason that many state Elizabeth Arden Eight-hour Skin Protectant (the one in the tube at about £27, not in the lippy format) as their main go-to product. Yes, it smells a bit odd (herbally but not in the best way) but it really does hydrate the lips – I use it at night and can sometimes still feel it when I wake up in the morning. I find it a bit fiddly for daytime as you have to squeeze it out on to your finger first, but my friend Dina uses it in the day and it makes her lips look nice and shiny, so this gets a massive thumbs up from me. Also great for dry elbows/knees!

3. I stumbled across Dr PawPaw Multipurpose soothing balm in a wonderful beauty box that my friend Kaysheen got me from Look Fantastic to help me start blogging (thanks Kaysh!) and this really does moisturise lips, but does need regular re-application and is also a little fiddly (as above). The good thing is that it comes in various shades – mine is the Tinted Ultimate Red – but don’t be fooled, it’s not bright red at all, just the smallest hint of colour. Around £7 online and looks like Superdrug may be stockists.

4. I’m not usually a fan of No7 products, but their BB Lips is a really lovely lip product which works for moisturising and adding colour. It feels like you’re wearing a lip balm but it looks a little glossy, and the colours are great! I definitely recommend this, £9 from Boots.

I’ll let you know when I find the ultimate lip product that gives a great dose of moisture in the perfect shade with a little gloss-effect, lasts all day and doesn’t transfer onto my wine glass…!

Charlotte Tilbury’s K.I.S.S.I.N.G Lippy

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I just bought this lippy in So Marylin, which is a gorgeous deep red and matches well with my olive-y skin tone. Perfect with minimal eye makeup, it actually does what it says on the tin: glides on and makes your lips feel super hydrated and look plumped up with great colour. It leaves a stain on your lips so the staying-power is brilliant – I hate to admit it, but it appears to be better than my all time fave MAC lipsticks… I may have to try some more shades out! Watch this space…

Nars ‘not so’ Audacious Mascara?

Posted in Eyes, General by

I just had to Google Audacious to make sure my understanding was correct… Bold, Daring, Fearless you say? I would say this mascara is none of those things, sadly.

I like to have thick luscious lashes and this absolutely did not deliver. Firstly, it smells a bit like glue, not in a strong way, but not so great either. It’s a bit runny in texture which is never going to help me achieve my thick lash effect and the worst thing about it, in my opinion, is the wand. The bristles are quite long, which makes getting to the root of your lash without stabbing yourself in the eye impossible. Cue tears and panda eyes to sort out before continuing application. It’s difficult to get to your bottom lashes with this wand too, so I ended up using a completely different mascara (le volume de Chanel aka Ye old faithful) to complete my look. Longer lashes? Tick. But they are not thick and plumped out and it took about 100 strokes to get anywhere near acceptable eyelashes. Unless you’re looking for a subtle lift and elongate on your lashes, I’d suggest saving yourself £21 and trying something else.

Charlotte’s Magic Cream

Posted in General, Skincare by

On a very hungover Tuesday (yes, Tuesday… don’t judge me, I didn’t have a good start to the week!) I went on a mini online Charlotte Tilbury splurge, buying myself 4 treats. One of which was the Magic Cream which at £70 is slightly on the pricey side, but is almost worth it for the packaging alone! Almost… The adorable box has 2 sides which pull apart to reveal a folded together box-like structure with facial massage advice & tips on it. Great gift material!

The daily moisturiser itself though claims to ‘transform dull skin’, lift complexion and intensely moisturise your skin, whilst making you look like you’ve had 8 hours sleep even if you haven’t! Is it actually magic?! I must say,  on my first application, it has plumped out some unsightly wrinkles, made my skin feel really soft and has given me a glow minus any greasy residue. My skin actually feels super hydrated, even in the heat and I love how well it has sunk into my skin so I don’t have the shiny T-zone going on. The cream itself feels lightweight and has a very light scent and it contains SPF 15 too. Highly recommended from me! Check it out… http://www.charlottetilbury.com/uk/charlottes-magic-cream.html

Shu Uemura cleansing oil

I attended a talk by Caroline Hirons (http://www.carolinehirons.com) about a year ago at a Stylist event, where it became apparent that (shock horror!) I haven’t been cleansing my face properly!! Apparently, one is supposed to apply a cleansing balm or oil and then wash it off using a hot flannel…. Now, I don’t know about you but I hadn’t seen a flannel since childhood! Anyway, I thought I’d give it a go and I am now hooked on this routine. Try it!

This pic makes it look crap but Shu Uemura’s oil coats your face as you apply it and does lift off make up and dirt, with the help of the flannel. The plush smell reminds me of having a spa treatment, and because you only need a little oil each day, it lasts for ages. It doesn’t remove much of my eye make up though, so I’d recommend this purely for face cleaning and use a separate eye make up remover. I tend to favour the oil-based ones – I’ll update you on those soon as I have probably tried them all!

Lip oil anyone?

Posted in General, Lips by

On a recent issue of Stylist, there was a double page advert for Clarins Instant Light Oil which I had totally forgotten about… I bought this over 6 months ago as I have quite dry lips and assumed ‘lip oil’ would be lovely and moisturising, but not quite so! It doesn’t last very long, is quite liquid-y but a bit sticky at the same time, and although I chose one of the brightest colours (Raspberry) it barely shows up on my lips! So I must say, I doubt I’ll bother using it again. They seem to get good reviews elsewhere, so maybe it’s just me, but I’m going to be trying YSL’s Volupte Tint in Oil next! I’ll keep you posted…

The big ‘O’?

Posted in Blush, General by

OH EM GEE! I am absolutely in love with Nars Orgasm blush… It’s an incredible pinky powder blush with gold-like shimmer that highlights your cheeks when it catches the light, and I have had several people ask what blush I’m using lately. I tried out Super Orgasm, but that has far too much gold shimmer for me – may be better for a night out rather than everyday. For now, I am hooked on this blush and the staying power is amazing! I would say at least 12 hours (and that includes London hustle & bustle, tube journeys and all!).

 

Clarins BB Cream

Posted in Foundation, General by

I know it’s not really a foundation, but Clarins BB Skin Perfecting Cream is a BB cream that is quite thick and creamy and gives pretty good coverage for blemishes, age spots, dark circles etc. I mainly use it as a base before applying the rest of my make up, but as I’m on vaycay now and have caught some sun (gloats), I’m using it as my only make up. Not only does it give an even skin tone, but it also boasts SPF 25. I have olive-y skintones, but I use the ‘dark’ one as it makes me look sunkissed and radiant, so definitely worth a try!

Since writing this, I’ve discovered that there’s another BB cream called Skin Detox Fluid also by Clarins and I would definitely recommend it over the cream. It is less heavy but provides a similar coverage, so it’s perfect for warmer climes too!

Le Volume de Chanel Waterproof Mascara

Posted in Eyes, General by

So here I am on hols but I am just dying to share my views on waterproof mascara with you! I love nothing more than luscious long and thick lashes, so I tend to opt for those ‘fake lash’ style mascaras. But as most of you will know, those are no good for beach holidays and the such – they tend to smudge super badly! So whenever I’m away I opt for a waterproof mascara that usually doesn’t really give my lashes the length & volume they need, rather they usually separate and look sparse!

A couple of years ago I stumbled across Chanel’s mascara Le Volume de Chanel in waterproof and I have to say, it is pretty bloody good! It doesn’t smudge at the first sign of water AND gives the long, thick lashes that I crave (minus extensions). Although I did look like a panda after a couple of lengths in the pool with my head underwater, but this mascara is fab and is at least sweat/splash proof. Result!

Chanel foundation

Posted in Foundation, General by

Just found a tester for a Chanel foundation, le teint ultra tenue. Now, I never use these because they’re inevitably too light for my mixed race skin, but I tried it out seeing as I’m staying in today supposed to be tidying my dressing table right now. And it’s got great coverage, smells really nice and feels quite thick while you’re applying it (feels a bit odd, kind of sticky) – I do it with my fingers. It sort of starts to dry and ‘sets’ on your face so apart from the sticky feel initially which goes, it’s a great base for make up! 5/5 from me! Now back to sorting dressing table…