A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

It’s pretty hard to avoid the “pinkwash” of products that exist at this time of year, not only across the beauty-sphere… but the whole market in general.  I have nothing against these, provided they set a fair donation to their chosen charities.  More and more nowadays, brands are jumping on the charity bandwagon and it took some time and effort to sift through the products that rolled into my inbox, claiming to be beneficial to the work in the fight against breast cancer when they really only existed to “raise awareness”, oh… ok then.

Here are some of my picks from the “pink” charity-supporting beauty products available this month.  There’s a variety of donation amounts on offer, some more generous than others but I’m including products not only on their generosity value but also on their old-fashioned covetability.  I’ve highlighted a couple of “star buys” (look to the bottom of the list) – kudos to those brands that have no capped figure or who are donating more than 15% of the product’s RRP.

If you’re making a purchase anyway, by all means… jump on ’em before they’re sold out!  If not, consider popping your donation directly to one of the many charities available.  Either way, we all get to feel good about it, right?!

01: Clinique Pink with a Purpose Lipstick Set (£17) – £2 from this purchase will be donated to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. link

02: Elemis Limited Edition Pink Pro-Collagen Marine Cream 100ml (£99) – Elemis pledges to donate £10,000 to the charity, Breast Cancer Care. link

03: Aromatherapy Associates Inner Strength Candle (£35) – 10% of proceeds will be donated to the charity, Defence Against Cancer. link

04: GHD V Coral Professional Styler (£129) – £10 will be donated to Breakthrough Breast Cancer for every styler sold. link

05: Stila Breast Cancer Awareness Cheek Palette “Positively Pink” (£12) – a portion of proceeds from each sale will go to Cancer Research UK. link

06: STAR BUY (20%) Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex II with Pink Ribbon Keychain (£69) – 20% of the suggested retail price will be donated to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. link

07: STAR BUY (16.6%) Bobbi Brown Pretty Pink Ribbon Lip Gloss Collection (£30) – Bobbi Brown will donate £5 of every sale to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. link

08: STAR BUY (24.3%) Jo Malone Red Roses Cologne (£82) – For each Red Roses 100ml Cologne sold throughout October within the UK, Jo Malone London will donate £20 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation UK Research Grants. link

09: STAR BUY (100%) Estée Lauder Breast Cancer Awareness Evelyn Dream Solid Perfume Compact (£60) – Estée Lauder will donate £60.00 (the full RRP) from every sale in the UK to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. link

10: STAR BUY (48%) Sew Lomax Raspberry Pop Pouch (£25) – From every bag sold, £12.00 will go straight to the Pink Ribbon Foundation. link

Do you usually indulge in pink beauty buys or do you donate directly to the “pink” charity of your choice?

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here

If you always struggle to buy the man who has everything, something… then I might be able to help you out.

Whether it’s a partner, a brother, a son, or a father… there’s always one fella in the family who leaves you scratching your head when it comes to accommodating him in your annual Christmas shop.  You may not think that fragrance is the most original gift choice in the world but if you get it right… you’re on to a bonafide winner.

Over the years, I’ve managed to grind down Mr. L’s resolve to the point where he is finally, a fully-fledged fragrance fiend.  His tastes vary but he’s not too particular… if it smells great, offers long-lasting wear and isn’t too extreme, he appreciates a well-crafted scent whatever the notes.

I’ve picked out two from his collection that I think would appeal to most men on your gift lists… and perhaps even more excitingly, you can pick them up for less than £16 each!  Yes, I’m talking about some of my favourite kind of fragrances, those mainstream buys that slip under the radar, punching well above their weight!

The Dad/Husband Choice: Pour Homme – Van Cleef & Arpels (from £12.15 – link)

Of the two fragrances that I’ve selected as “great buys”, this is the one that would be better suited to an older gentleman.  It has a 70s vibe that might not appeal to the younger, Paco Rabanne 1 Million-wearing crowd.  It was revealed by VC&A a couple of years ago, that Pour Homme was one of Serge Gainsbourg’s favourite scents and if you know me, you won’t be surprised that this fact alone made me RUN for the nearest stockist.

Pour Homme opens with a vintage blast of green, a combination of aromatics that include basil, juniper, and bergamot.  It’s a pungent beginning, herbaceous and dated – though depending on your personal tastes, that last adjective is not meant as a criticism – merely a caution.

The heavyweight bottle hints at the darkness of the juice inside, I like to imagine the contents swirling around in there like some kind of twilight-zone vortex because I do believe that the dark arts were afoot during its creation.  I simply cannot envision how it is possible to blend so many different discernible notes without creating a complete hash of a fragrance.  From the freshness to the spiciness, the leather to the wood, the soapiness to the magnificent rose – it’s all in there, managed like a military operation.

Though I have mentioned the Serge Gainsbourg connection, I find it quite hard to associate the two personalities, myself.  Pour Homme is the epitome of a formal fragrance, it’s perfectly styled to sit beautifully against the backdrop of a dark suit, buttoned up to the hilt.  I can only amalgamate the personalities by unbuttoning that collar a few inches and adding 20 Gitanes into the mix.  Ahh yes, there you go.

As the fragrance dries down on my skin, the soft rose notes blossom into a bouquet against a somewhat-soapy backdrop… on my husband’s skin the rose whips against leather and patchouli, darkening the shadows further and stretching them into a bygone age.  The projection and longevity is equal to nothing else in his collection of fragrance, it can only be described in a cliche, as a powerhouse.  I can still smell this on my husband’s collar when doing the laundry, days later.

Talk about getting some serious bang for your buck.  Oui, Je T’aime.

The Son/Boyfriend Choice: 24 Gold Eau de Toilette (from £15.00 – link)

If you can get past having Twentieth Century Fox logos emblazoned across the outer packaging, you’d be extremely wise to give this one a chance.  24 Gold is indeed a spin-off fragrance, paying homage to TV’s Jack Bauer.  On paper… it’s about as gimmicky as they come, Mr L’s bottle even arrived with a 24-emblazoned ipod armband… presumably so he can listen to his favourite tunes while taking down the world’s baddest baddies.  Frankly, it should be shit.  But it isn’t, it’s about as far away from shit as you can get, it’s amazing.

24 Gold has an alltogether younger feel than Pour Homme, with gourmand chocolate box qualities and a boozy heart of amber.  From the off, it delivers up a beautiful and striking blend of powerful oud and vanilla – remaining forever sweet and better suited to the cooler weather.  It’s an atomic blast of a fragrance, lasting for hours and hours on both mine and Mr. L’s skin, projecting itself into a room long after we’ve left its walled confines.

24 Gold describes itself as a unisex fragrance, and I agree… it has some feminine qualities and a sweet oriental heaviness that would undoubtedly frighten off most Davidoff Cool Water-loving men, so do have a precursory sniff at some of the other scents in your intended target’s collection before jumping in with a blind buy.  Certainly, if most of his collection is light and airy… steer well clear, 24 Gold is decadent, rich, and very, very dense.

If you think you might have the green light on a bolder choice of fragrance, 24 Gold genuinely wouldn’t be wildly out of place in a designer’s private blends collection – exclusively available to only the world’s most revered department stores.  In conclusion, it belies its frankly ridiculous price tag.

Taken at face value, it would be easily forgivable to overlook this one in your local perfume store’s bargain bin.  But do so at your peril!

These two fragrances prove that it’s simply not necessary to drop £££ to find an incredible fragrance and although fragrance buying is a very personal experience, I believe you’ll be hard-pushed to find better quality for the money this Christmas.

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here

It’s been a while since I tried a new mascara, the truth is that I’ve fallen into an extremely comfortable relationship with Clinique High Lengths mascara (the one with the brush that looks like a praying mantis).  Considering I first reviewed that particular mascara over 4-years ago now, it’s pretty good going for it to remain in my top-5 mascara list, no?

Anyway, as comfortable as our relationship is… I’m a terrible flirt and the latest mascara from Avon, which promises 24-hour volume with a buildable, clump-free formula, had me batting my eyelashes from 50-paces.

I usually get on well with lengthening mascaras as my lashes are fair, particularly at the tips where they disappear against my skintone.  I could apply boot polish and I’d still get an initial wow factor at uncovering those lost tips!  Having said that, my lashes, particularly post pregnancy, are a little sparse and volume and thickness is something I crave.

The Avon Big & Daring Volume mascara presents a large, curved brush… densely packed with bristles of varying lengths.  The idea behind this brush is the usual “capture as many lashes as possible in one go” remit, and it works well.  Obviously, the more lashes you can capture (per sweep), the less you’ll need to layer and the chances of clumping will reduce.

I hate clumpy lashes, with a passion.  I struggle to leave the house if I’ve had a mascara melt-down and have overdone it.  As a result, I generally dislike any “wet” mascaras or ones that apply too much product, too quickly.  Instant bin fodder.

Although the Avon mascara captures a lot of product on those many, many bristles… the packaging has an effective inner narrowing of the neck that ensures excess product remains inside as you draw the wand out of the tube.  The curve of the brush matches well with my eye-shape and allows me to get down into the root of the lashes without too much effort or wrangling.

The overall result is great for an “every day” look, the before/after picture shows how my lashes look with two coats of the Avon Big & Daring Volume mascara applied.  I could have gone for one more coat without clumping but in all honesty, I don’t have the luxury of time to keep building my mascara in the mornings.  It’s probably not quite dramatic enough for a night out but it’s perfect for the daytime, especially as I want something a little more impactful than “natural” without going overboard.  It strikes the balance just right for my tastes.

I don’t experience any flaking or smuding with this formula, infact… if anything, it’s a little too resilient as it does take some effort to remove it in the evening.

All in all, for a sub-£10 mascara, I’m really pleased with how it works.  It’s an effective choice for those on a budget and offers a generous 10ml of product for your pennies.

Avon Big & Daring Volume mascara is currently on offer at £7 (usual price £8.50), it’s available online from avonshop.co.uk

* press sample

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here

Question of the Week: When applying your makeup, do you stand or sit? Where do you apply it? In your bedroom, bathroom or…?

Answer: I hover between the bedroom and the hallway to apply my makeup.  My Ikea Alex is just inside the bedroom door but there’s no mirror nearby.  So I lean into the bedroom to grab what I need and use the mirror on the wall in the hall to apply it.  It’s a bad, bad situation for a beauty blogger.  When I’m rich, I’m gonna have a full-sized vanity area with some decent lighting.  None of this energy-saving-takes-until-you’re-50-to-illuminate-the-bulb crap.

Phyrra – brings you the Beginner’s Guide to Cruelty Free Perfumes! Check out some of her Fall picks.

we heart this – we took a look at all 37 of the latest Milani Color Statement Nail Lacquers. And then we fell in love…

EauMG – shares her Empties from September!

Glitter.Gloss.Garbage – Glitter.Gloss.Garbage  is sharing her Lush Cosmetics Halloween must haves

Gouldylox Reviews – It’s time for the holiday releases!! With so many swoon-worthy palettes, here is one you can skip.

Lipglossiping – definitely prefers palettes over pans but does Estee Lauder’s latest 5-color offering pass muster?

Nouveau Cheap – So I finally tried one of the L’Oreal Extraordinaire by Colour Riche Lip Colors that everyone’s been raving about. Was it worth the wait? Click here to find out.

Prime Beauty – found a new and interesting beauty subscription box. Scentbird is for fragrance lovers who love to change up their scent without the high price tag!

(Wondering what the Lipstick League is? Find out here.)

Guest Post of the Week, as chosen by Phyrra – I love Rebecca’s blog because she has great, easy to follow tutorials. Check out her How to Apply Gradient Lipstick Tutorial, which is perfect for how to add depth to any lipstick.

I’m really fussy about chocolate brownies, infact… so fussy am I, that I hardly ever order them when I’m eating out.  Do you know why that is?  Because I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a decent chocolate brownie.  They’re always too dry… too cake-like.  I don’t want a square of dried-up old chocolate cake masquerading as a brownie.  Don’t try and placate me with a handful of chocolate drops strewn about the crumbs.  That won’t do.

I want a brownie that practically squelches between my teeth.  I want a brownie that basks in its own decadence… I want a brownie that makes me question whether I can even finish it… that’s how rich and super-chocolatey I want my brownies to be.  Now, can you see why I never order them?  I’m a brownie-snob.  That’s what I am!

Leila and I received a lovely hamper from the sugar-company Billington’s last week, containing a few choice ingredients that they felt would result in the perfect chocolate brownie.  Of course, in the interest of science, my daughter and I felt the need to test this theory without delay.

She’s so proud of her new apron.  I don’t think it’s going to stay clean for long… do you?

Along with the hamper, Billington’s sent a Chocolate Brownies Recipe card that promised indulgent, squidgy pieces of brownie heaven.  They recommend the addition of glace cherries and dark muscovado sugar, I’ve never had cherries in a brownie before… have you?

The recipe calls for 300g of dark chocolate, and it nearly broke mine and Leila’s hearts to raid our chocolate stash… she was getting ever more hesitant as she got to the last bar.  “Are you sure it needs all this chocolate, Mum?”

“‘Fraid so!”

Once we’d melted, mixed, sieved, stirred, and whisked our way through the recipe, it was time to put them in the oven.  Those ensuing 30-minutes felt like the longest of our lives.  The smells wafting from the kitchen were tantalising!

Finally, the timer beeped and we dived for the oven door.  Letting them cool for nowhere near as long as we should have, we began to cut into the squidgy slab of sinfulness.

Unfortunately, I had to wait a little longer than I’d anticipated before I could sink my teeth into a square.  You see, I’d also accepted Billington’s mission to capture a #bakeface.  You know… that face you pull when you’re indulging in the sweet excesses of gluttony.  Basically, cake.  You know and I know that cake brings a special kind of happiness that salad can only dream of aspiring to!

It was quite hard to capture Leila’s #bakeface to be honest as she was mostly positioned face-first into her plate.  After a lot of patience – and the fear that I might have to give her another square of brownie in the name of capturing it – I got one.  That final bite.  The understanding that it’s all gone.  And then the cherished realisation that you have at least another 5-licks worth attached to your fingers!

Gotcha #bakeface!

If you’d like to enter your best #bakeface – Billington’s invites you to upload your snap to http://bakeface.billingtons.co.uk/ for the chance to win some amazing prices. The more votes your #bakeface gets, the more chance there is of winning!

* Billington’s provided me with some of the key ingredients of this recipe

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here

Question of the Week: What’s the first beauty/makeup item that you remember coveting?

Answer: I think it was a MAC Mineralize Skinfinish. God knows which one though, there’s been so many!

Prime Beauty – is excited for the new movie Gone Girl, and the new Gone Girl collaboration with Duri Nail Polish! Which shade will you sport to the opening?

Phyrra – Find out more about my love of lip products with the Lip Product Addict Tag!

we heart this – Losing the fight against frizz? You’ll want to give the new Moroccanoil Smooth Collection a look.

EauMG – shares her perfume picks for Autumn 2014. From Oktoberfest festivities to pumpkin patches, Victoria has the perfect scent paired with your favorite fall activities.

Gouldylox Reviews – Want to look fresh faced in minutes without a million products? This is what you’ve been waiting for.

Lipglossiping – is surprised to discover that the Joan Collins beauty range is more than just a pretty face…

My Beauty Bunny – Looking for a new fall scent both you and your significant other will love? Win the KIÖRI perfume giveaway; a natural oil that’s a perfect blend of dark vanilla, patchouli and delicate blossoms.

Nouveau Cheap – What the heck is Reverse Hair Washing? Click here for my own personal experience and why it might be right for you!

(Wondering what the Lipstick League is? Find out here.)

Guest Post of the Week, as chosen by Prime Beauty – A Fashion Love Affair is a Canadian fashion blog by Cara. I love her style, her clean site and beautiful photography. Cara has contributed to or been featured by more than 100 media outlets including The Zoe Report, Lucky Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar. If you like fashion and great photos, check it out!

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here

Over the years, I’ve slowly discovered that as much as I love my makeup, I can also be rather lazy about it.  An example of this is my love for palettes.  I like knowing that someone has taken the work out of choosing which shades goes with which to ensure that I don’t end up looking more Coco the Clown than Coco Chanel.

There are a few single eyeshadows that you’d have to prise out of my cold, dead hands before I’d relinquish my grip but for the most part, I’m pretty commited to having the hard work done for me.

Estee Lauder’s latest palette launch features a new line of Sculpting Eyeshadows that are firmly grounded in the neutral camp.  Offering a total of 12-different palettes across the range with shades that are designed to add definition, shadow and highlight to the eye area – these haven’t been created to break ground on new trends… you’ll have seen these shade combinations a hundred times over but they have been designed to make mornings easier.

In my posession, I have 04 Rebel Metal – a collection of golden, metallic hues.  Each shade is a shimmer, there are no mattes at all.  I prefer balanced palettes that offer a matte, I’m too old and wrinkly to wear shimmery shades in my eye socket!  Having said that, the five shades do deliver some pretty, subtle nuances between them and are nicely colour-balanced to ombre across the metallic spectrum.  The palette definitely leans to the warm side but should suit most skintones well.

Pigmentation is good and the texture from each pan is pleasing, I’ve found some Estee Lauder shadows to be a little firmly-textured in the past… particularly the paler shades.  This palette, though not quite “buttery”, is easy to apply and wears nicely when applied both wet and dry.  As you might imagine, wearing these metallic shades wet creates a far more impactful and intense look, it’s nice to have the option.

Despite eschewing a primer, I found these to be fairly crease-resistant, they didn’t move about on the eyelid but instead, faded gently as the day wore on.  In all honesty, I can’t say I’m hugely excited by this release but at the same time, there’s nothing I can moan about either.  There’s nothing wrong with them per se… they just don’t get my makeup-loving heart a-beating.

Perhaps I’ve been exposed to too many palettes of golden neutrals over the years *cough* Naked *cough* but for the £40 price tag, I’d gently suggest that your money could stretch further, whilst getting the same quality… from a purchase elsewhere.

I’ll still be checking out some of the other colour-combinations on counter though, you never know where that perfect taupe is lurking!

Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Sculpting EyeShadow 5-Color Palette in Rebel Metal is priced at £40 and is available to buy on-counter and online from esteelauder.co.uk, johnlewis.com, and debenhams.com

*press sample

if you liked this post, please don’t forget to check out my subscriber options, here