A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

For someone who can’t be bothered to find the time to moisturise… I’m doing an awful lot of moisturising recently.

My skin is DRY DRY DRY… and nothing is making it better.  Not even tried and tested solutions that have kept my skin in good condition over the years.  Infact, not even my trusty body oils are providing long-term relief.

I re-discovered this Lula Bloom Body Butter in the parcel that housed the GOSH smoky eyes palette I was sent by Superdrug PR.  I was in two minds about it, remember?  I hope this fares better.  I have a bit of a backlog I need to work through…

I wasn’t gonna crack it open, ‘cos it looks like one of those all style-no substance products doesn’t it?  Plus I wasn’t sure if it was aimed at teenage skin… it just has that look…  I was gonna give it to a younger family member, except I forgot.

After having a quick look at the ingredients and noticing that one of my favourite moisturising bases (Cocoa Butter) is right up there near the top of the list, I decided that I’d give it a go.

Lula Bloom Body Butter (stupid name) is housed in a satisfyingly heavy glass jar.  This won’t appeal to half of you, but I’m not wanting to carry it about anywhere other than to and from my bathroom shelf so I’m not bothered.  I like it.  I’ve already mentioned that the artwork on the packaging gives me the impression that this is aimed at a younger audience, but the price tag doesn’t really match those impressions.

£6.99 for 250ml.  That’s quite pricey.  I know as a teenager I wouldn’t have been able to afford something like this.  I had more important things like 20 Lambert & Butler and 3 litres of White Lightning to spend my pocket money on.

Ignoring my misspent youth for a moment, I was truly surprised by how creamy and smooth the texture proved to be.  The consistency is very thick and a small amount spreads a long way.  I can see a pot of this easily lasting me at least a month of daily use.  Yet, despite being thick, it feels quite light once it’s on the skin.  A winning combination.

The scent is overpowering… it’s nice, but it’s too “in your face” for me.  Again, it makes me think that the product is aimed at a younger audience.  It’s fruity, tropical… everything that a 14yr old girl would want to saturate herself with.  It reminds me of my younger self stood at The BodyShop’s perfume oil carousel display.  God, I’d come out of that store with a dewberry/fuzzy peach induced headache.

Overall, I really like the product… but it suffers from some kind of Body Butter schizophrenia.  It’s a top quality moisturisier, leaving my skin soft and conditioned for many hours… but it’s as if some prat in the development team (probably a bloke) has come along and ruined the delicate balance by chucking half a ton of tropical pot pourri in the mixing vat.  What gives Lula Bloom?

It needs to either ditch the overpowering smell and horrible artwork…. or shave about £3 off the price.  Have you tried this?  Am I too harsh?

I’ll tell you what though… if you happen to know a 12-17yr old you fancy treating… *points at the body butter* you wouldn’t go wrong with this.

Superdrug has a whole Lula Bloom range going (the body scrub is decent too! Lurid pink packaging though…).  Check out the range on the website here

… I realised I hadn’t shown you the lovely Underland from the Urban Decay Alice in Wonderland Palette.  It’s a beautiful shade although I do wish it were a bit more pigmented… it’s not that it’s NOT pigmented… ‘cos it is.  It’s just not as heavily pigmented as say Alice or Oraculum.  It’s more along the lines of Absolem/Homegrown, that pretty green that was in the BOSII, remember?  Alice swatches are here if you want reminding.

Face:
~ Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid – so quick to apply and blend with a lovely finish, but staying power is kinda sucky if you’re at all oily.
~ Illamasqua Blush in Rumour
~ NARS Orgasm Illuminator on the cheekbones

Eyes:
~ Urban Decay Primer Potion
~ Drink Me. Eat Me across the entire lid
~ Underland applied lightly from the inner 1/3  gaining strength towards the outer corner.  Also swept under the lower lashline.
~ Jabberwocky lightly applied along the lashes to line.
~ Rimmel Glam’Eyes Lash Flirt Mascara

Lips:
~ MAC Speed Dial Cremesheen Lipstick
~ NYX Round Lip Gloss in Whipped to tone down the lippie a touch.

Hope you can’t see my rotten nose crusties *blows nose*… I moisturised and picked at ’em like a demon before attempting a FOTD…. TMI?

…for easy glitter nail polish removal.

No more endless wiping and scraping to get the glitter polish off your nails.  No more sighing and soaking of fingers in pure acetone till your cuticles shrivel up and you develop hang nails that reach your elbows.

At least, that’s what 2 of my lovely readers promised.  Meganne, and Lisa – to give credit where it’s due.

so it goes something like this…

1). Take your cotton wool and dampen it with nail polish remover.  I like to make it quite soggy… I don’t wanna have to be doing this more than once ‘cos I haven’t got enough remover on the pad yano?

2). Hold the soaked cotton wool to your nails and wrap a bit of foil over the top…

It’s at this point you’re wondering if you’re actually the butt of a big fat joke.

Wait 5 minutes, no less… and then remove.

I can happily report – it works! As ridiculous as you may look with your tin foil tips, it saves a hell of a lot of effort and irritation.

Try it!  If nothing else, at least the aliens won’t get to your fingers.

My IMATS haul is coming up (if you’re not insanely sick of them)… but I’ve got a rotten cold and I’m not up to taking photos of it all.  Is everyone ill at the minute or is it my imagination?

Anyway, I love having a nosey in the ASOS beauty clearance section – not just me is it?

I came across these goodies:

My bill came to: £13.15 inc. P&P thanks to a 20% off discount code – hoorah for savvy shopping!

I picked up…

Models Own Duo in Red Alert and 25 Carat Gold (£2)
ASOS Ciate Paint in Mary-Kate (£2 – they’re now £1.50) love the gold sparkles
Jemma Kidd i-design in Vogue (a neutral beige – £3)

ASOS Ciate Paint in Agyness (£2 – now £1.50ea)

My first Butter London – Knees Up.  This is how a red should look! Although I don’t usually love metallics, so it’ll be interesting to see what I think of this.  Well, when I say interesting… only to me, but you’re stuck along for the ride now.  It’s like being halfway up a mountain on a ski lift. – (£5)

A swatch of the Jemma Kidd I-Design in Vogue.

That felt weird… I don’t usually do haul posts… ever.  Was that boring?  Be honest.

If you fancy a little ASOS splurge, check here for discount codes.

~ Rae falls in love with an amazingly pigmented violet eyeshadow — for under $5! — and tries it on as a blush.

~ Jeweled Thumb gives you the deets regarding a brand new line that may be popping up at your CVS by the ever famous Salma Hayek!

~ Feast your eyes on this two-parter from Lipglossiping and see what happened when IMATS rolled into London Town last weekend.

~ In her constant search for a flawless complexion, Beautyjunkielondon reviews the latest foundation launch from Maybelline.

~ Check out “The EOTD Series: Color of the week” at xLovelyMakeupx.

~ Vex in the City shares her experience of the 2010 London IMATS.

~ Sophie from Melovemakeup talks about her collection of Sleek Palettes.

~ Maggie gets her rave on with these Rimmel blushes!

~ Krasey Beauty whips out Essie’s matte topcoat and lets the nail polish fun begin.

~ Hell Candy Make Up attended the London IMATS show last weekend. Check out the various MUAs looks from the show.

~ A purple smoky eye with a pop tutorial from Lisa Kate at Sparkle is my Crack!

~ This week GlossQueen tells us how she loves her By Candlelight MSF.

~ Come discover 32 different nail colors in 32 days with Audrey.

~ This week at Get Lippie, Louise tries out a Kevyn Aucoin-influenced makeover.

~ Lisamarie at Beauty Crazed tests out eyerollers to see if they live up to the hype!

Wondering whether you should be throwing out that favourite discontinued lippie lurking in the back of your drawer? Cosmetic guidelines have always been quite stringent with regards to shelf life…

Judy regretted not throwing that old cream foundation away…

Do you follow the guides?

Have a look… (red denotes how long it takes me to dump stuff)

• Oil-Free Foundation: 1 year (if it looks/smells and feels ok, I’ll still use it)
• Cream or Compact Foundation: 18 months (12 months… I have a “thing” about cream compacts)
• Concealer: 12-18 months (if it looks/smells and feels like new, I’ll still use it unless it’s in a compact…)
• Powder: 2 years (indefinitely)
• Blush and Bronzer: 2 years (indefinitely)
• Cream Blush: 12-18 months (12 months… it’s the whole compact thing again)
• Powder Eye shadow: 2 years (indefinitely)
• Cream Eye shadow: 12-18 months (compact? 12 months)
• Eyeliner: 2 years (gels – till they inevitably dry out, pencils – indefinitely)
• Liquid eyeliner: 3-6 months (um, till they run out?)
• Mascara: 3 months (till they run out or become unworkable – yes, cardinal sin I know!)
• Lipstick: 2 years (till they get that funky crayon smell)
• Lip liner: 2 years (indefinitely)
• Lip gloss: 18-24 months (yeah, probably no more than 2 years)
• Nail Color: 1 year (till they become unworkable)

I think that a little common sense goes a very long way in situations like this.  If you live in a warmer climate, your cosmetics aren’t going to last as long.  If you buy mostly natural products containing less preservatives, you’re going to want to have a clear out more often.  If you share your cosmetics with your sister or best friend, then I’d be far more vigilant.  If anyone touches mine… they die.  I say trust your nose!

The oldest item in my collection is this 6 year old Bobbi Brown Palette:

My eyeliner obsession started with my Bobbi Brown Shimmering Eye Kohl palette which I bought back in 2004… I’ve dropped it twice (as you can tell – sob)

Tell me about your oldest cosmetic item? What is it and why do you still have it?

As previously reported on BritishBeautyBlogger, the Alice in Wonderland Palette will now be released online at Debenhams.com on the 22nd February and will be available instore from the 28th February.

Get hunting for those free delivery codes!

This is another from Mavala’s recently released Mystic Collection that I was sent last month.

Mavala Black Velvet is a dark purple-black with a very subtle shimmer which unfortunately is more apparent in the bottle than on the nail.

There is a great swatch of it over at HeijastusPinta

I’m in two minds about this collection.  So far, I like how they look individually… but now my nails are getting a bit longer, I think they’re a touch vampy for me.  If you have short, well-groomed nails, this would be a great collection for you.

I have two more to show you and I’m gonna hurry them the hell up, because Spring is nearly upon us… and if you give a fig about staying on trend, you might not want to see them ’till next Winter!

You can buy Black Velvet online at Mistrys Pharmacy – £3.95 a bottle.

A few of you eagle-eyed ladies spotted the manicure I was sporting in my NARS post!  *Looks at Kim, Danielle, Rae and Dee*

It’s the bomb! The Glitterbomb!  I originally had an Orly taupe shade on my nails that was looking a little tired… so I played at “How much glitter can I put on my nails in one go”.

The Miners Extreme Nail Colour is now discontinued I’m afraid, but it’s surely easily dupable?  I paid 99p for it a few months ago from their website. I think they may be sold at Claire’s (or at least they used to be).

I applied 2 coats of the Miners over my gnarly taupe polish and then finished off with a “top coat” of Inglot’s flakes.  A cheaper and more accessible version of the flakes would be GOSH Rainbow. (I can’t find it in my local Superdrug).

Ta-da!

I don’t even bother with cotton pads for removal of these glitter-fests.  I just fill the lid of my nail polish remover with the solution and dip for about 3/4 mins per nail.  That dissolves enough polish for one firm swipe of a cotton pad to do the job.

Have you been indulging your inner 4yr old lately?  Is glitter even remotely on-trend?  Do we even care?

Every year I do it.  I forget Pancake Day, or to give it it’s biblical name… Jif Lemon Day. (Tuesday 16th February incase you were wondering)

Do you remember those Jif adverts when you were a kid?  They were proper public service announcements weren’t they?

Anyway…

They Say:

Lemslip shower butter cream (£2.50 for 100g) from Lush has been given a makeover.  Lush’s butter creams are now more solid, similar to our soap, so easier to use in the shower and needing less packaging.

Lemslip contains fresh lemon juice, lime oil and sweet orange oil.  This one will awaken the senses and effectively cleanse dull skin. Cocoa butter moisturises the skin, along with extra virgin coconut oil.

I Say:

I love lemon things… food-scented things in general if I’m honest.  Mint, Ginger, Bubblegum… all a big hit with me.  I think this is more for oily skins, thanks to the antibacterial properties of those citrus oils.  I haven’t tried these Shower Butter Creams, but I do like the LUSH Shower Jellies.

I don’t think you can put it on your pancakes though.

Have you tried this or the other Butter Creams?  I’m kind of a LUSH n00b!

A.K.A… the one I’ve been waiting for!

This much anticipated release from NARS is another reason I was in London last Thursday.  I attended the presentation with VexintheCity and by the time 5.30 rolled around we were giddy with glee.

Elbowing each other outta the way to get up the stairs, we practically fell through the door looking every bit true Orgasm addicts.  Stop sniggering.

In it’s simple packaging… it looks kinda plain and… well, um… orange.  There I’ve said it.  It looks orange.  If you’re as pale as me, I know you’re gonna understand when I say that I may have physically recoiled from the tube.  Truth be known, my soul felt slightly crushed.  It looked *nothing* like I was expecting.  I mean, I don’t know just WHAT I was expecting… but it sure wasn’t a tube of ORANGE.

Anyway, here’s what Sephora (Oh! Sweet Sephora) has to say about it:

What it is:
A complexion enhancer that makes skin look instantly refreshed, radiant, and glowing.

What it does:
NARS Orgasm Illuminator lights your skin from within! Deceptively sheer and decidedly luminous, it magically transforms lackluster skin into a remember-me, luscious complexion. Flirt with foundation, go it alone, or go neck-and-neck with your décolleté. The effect is, well, orgasmic.

Whatever.  It’s still ORANGE.

And so I applied…

Woahhh Orange…

To be fair, I applied WAY TOO MUCH!  Seriously, this stuff spreads… you need the teeniest amount.

and then I blended…

and I blended some more…

You can see how far a little goes, right?

I haven’t sheered it out too much in the picture above so that you can still see the colour impression… I wouldn’t wear it this pigmented, although you could if you blended out the edges.

That’s more like it!!  Can you see the dewy faintly peach glow?

I want to suggest that the ladies (in my humble opinion) most likely to put Monsieur NARS on their Xmas card list for introducing this, will be darker-skinned.  Check out some swatches over at VexintheCity for an idea of how it looks on dark-skinned sisters.  On fair skin it’s beautiful… but it’s lacking the wow-factor that seems to magically appear on deeper tones.

Having said that, would I repurchase? Yes.

I think some people are expecting this to be the same as the blush, but in liquid form.  It isn’t.  It illuminates the skin with the teeniest hint of colour… and I think it will polarise opinion.  It’s subtlety will either be it’s strength or it’s weakness depending on what you want from it.

I slick a little of this ontop of my blush (not necessarily Orgasm!) for that extra bit of oomph… and it looks great down the centre of my nose.  Don’t laugh, it makes my nose look less um “fat”.  (Do you think it’ll work on my bum?)

It’s also fab for highlighting the cupids bow and although I know there are a 1001 illuminators out there that would do the job adequately, I’m back to stressing just how easy to use this is.

I suppose the nearest ‘dupe’ I have to this would be Illamasqua’s ‘Fondle’ Illuminator which I love, but find to be a little too glowy for daytime and if I don’t blend thoroughly, it leaves a hard edge.

I also own and adore NARS Albatross.  For me, Albatross is the best highlighter on the market.  Bar none.  Truthfully, it’s better than this for my skintone, but I wouldn’t dare try and apply it on the go.  Ladies who own it would agree with me that it needs a *very* light touch and more than a little patience to stop you looking like a disco ball.

NARS Orgasm Illuminator is foolproof.  It dries to a powder finish, leaving no horrible sticky residue and yet it doesn’t dry too quickly.  You can blend until you’ve got it *just* how you want it.  Im a dunce and I could apply this in the dark without screwing it up.  I’m honestly not sure how the formula manages to combine powder-finish with such blendability.

If you want the beautiful Orgasm flush, go for the blush.  If you want a subtle grown-up glow that you can add to your foundation without looking ridiculous, go for the illuminator.  Personally, I want both… he’s not daft that Monsieur. NARS.

NARS Orgasm Illuminator will be available from 18th February as a Space NK exclusive (boo!), before being rolled out across all NARS Counters on the 1st March – priced at £21.

Your prizes are finally on their way!

International ladies, my post office ran out of customs forms, so yours will be in the post tomorrow!

Sorry for being so tardy with these everyone.  Life has a pesky habit of getting in the way!