A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Poor cauliflower, the most misunderstood vegetable of all.  I think they’re amazing and I’m not just saying that because today’s recipe features them heavily.  I hated cauliflower when I was growing up.  My Mum used to serve it as an after-thought, anaemic and boiled to death.

It’s actually pretty versatile and makes a great base for many dishes.  As a frequent low-carber, it’s saved my backside numerous times, making a fairly convincing substitute for fried rice (grated) and pizza dough!

But in more regular, daily use, the cauliflower is at its best when combined with cheese and bacon.  Mmmm, bacon.  When I make Cauliflower Cheese, I make a big’un as it keeps very well in the fridge, you may want to half the quantities or just live off it for a week like we usually do.

1).  Break the cauliflower into florets trying to keep them reasonably large in size and place them in glass bowl with a few tbsp of water in the bottom.  Cover with a vented lid (clingfilm with holes poked through or microwave cover) and pop in the microwave for around 6 minutes until just tender (test with a fork).  You could of course boil or steam in a traditional steamer… but I’m being lazy remember.

2).  Cook the carrots with the same method and just check occasionally with a fork until they’re *just* tender.

3).  Fry the onion and bacon until crispy and set aside.

4).  Using a food processor, blitz the cheese, mustard, nutmeg and evaporated milk together.

5).  Grab a large ovenware dish (no need to grease it), and add the cauli, carrots, fried onion and bacon.

6).  Pour over the faux cheese sauce.

7).  Scatter the breadcrumbs and grated cheese before layering the sliced tomatoes ‘prettily’ on top.

8).  Bake in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for around 25 minutes, or forget about it and remember after 35 minutes to get it a bit burnt around the edges like mine.

Personally, I slightly prefer my Cauliflower Cheese with a proper roux base.  Mr. L prefers it this way.  L doesn’t care as-long as she gets more bacon bits than anyone else.

Lazy Cauliflower Cheese without the efforts of a homemade cheese sauce.  Bliss.

Robyn has been one of my weekly reads for many, many months.  The only blogger in existence who makes me want to wear yellow eyeshadow.  She makes me laugh, and she makes me want to grab my makeup and play.  It’s a killer combination.

I’m delighted to have her guest blogging an awesome and autumnal-inspired tutorial for us today.  Read on as Lipglossiping.com features:  EyelinerAndSpraypaint

Hello, lovely Lipglossiping readers! I’m thrilled to be writing a guest post for you all, so I thought I’d knock together a little picture tutorial for this purple, chocolate and brown look.  I don’t always follow that you should use colours according to season, but this would be perfect for fall and it’d be very easy to switch up the colours in this look if you’d prefer something less smoky.

1. Prime your eyelids. I’ve used Urban Decay Primer potion all over the lid and then NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk sparingly over that, bringing it slightly up past my crease and blending well. Too much base in the crease area can grab your shadow and make it hard to blend.

2. Apply a bright white-gold on the inner third of your lid, and bring it into the inner corner of your eye.

3. On the rest of your lid, add a matte chocolate colour…

4. …and blend it in with the gold to get rid of that harsh edge. Using a flat shader brush, hold it vertically and make side-to-side motions. Add more of the gold if you need to.

5. Next, take a deep, slightly plummy matte purple and start to define your crease. Using a fluffy brush, I placed the shadow under the highest point of my brow and made small windshield-wiper motions. Go slowly and build up the colour – you can always add more but you can’t take it away without taking it off – and make sure you place your brush on the same spot on each eye to make it even. Repeat until you’ve got your desired depth of colour.

6. Then, using windshield-wiper motions again, blend the crease colour down toward the inner corner of your eye. Make this a little less intense than in step 5 so there’s a slight gradient.

7. Taking the same purple on a pencil brush, line your lower lashline, making sure to join it up with the crease colour.

8. Taking a deeper brown on an angled brush, line your upper lashline, the outer half of your lower lashline and darken the outer crease slightly with the same colour using a fluffy brush. You could  use a black shadow if you wanted a more dramatic effect.

9. Line your waterline with a black (or deep brown) pencil and tightline your upper lashes if you want. If your liner tends not to last very well on your waterline, set it with a touch of matte black (or brown) shadow.

10. Taking a fluffy paddle brush, highlight under your brow and blend any harsh edges in your crease colour and your outer corner. I chose a matte cream shadow, but if you want more drama or sparkle, you could go in lightly with the same shimmery gold we used earlier.

11. Add mascara and brows (and falsies if you want!) and your eyes are done!  Hooray!

Products used:

Eyes: Gold – Mornings of Gold by Hi Fi Cosmetics. Chocolate brown, Inglot matte 357. Purple from Wet & Wild Lust palette. Deeper brown, Inglot Matte 326. Liner, Benefit Bad Gal waterproof liner in Black, set with Sleek black eyeshadow. Highlight, Inglot matte 351. Mascara, Maybelline One By One. Eyebrow pencil, Rimmel Professional Eyebrow Pencil in Hazel.

Lips: Nameless L.E Barry M Lipgloss Wand

Face: Inglot Cream Foundation in 21, Darling Girl blush in Aloha

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To finish the look, I added a soft matte bronzer and a pinky-nude gloss. I hope you ladies enjoyed the tutorial, please let me know how you got on if you try it out!

 

Thanks Robyn! It looks lovely and you know, they say that purple suits EVERY skintone and eye colour. The ultimate universal shade!

bareMinerals will be touring the country this September in their rather cute skincare van!

Celebrating the nationwide launch of bareMinerals skincare, the brand are inviting you to look out for the van and stop by for a closer look at the products and enjoy to a free RDA Organic Smoothie on them!

I know I shouldn’t, but I can’t help but have a giggle at the tour van.  It’s not exactly glamourous is it?  Beep Beep!

The tour dates are as follows: (if the van makes it that far…)

12TH SEPTEMBER  •   BRIGHTON, EAST STREET BASTION
13TH SEPTEMBER  •   GUILDFORD, HOUSE OF FRASER GUILDFORD ENTRANCE
14TH SEPTEMBER  •   KINGSTON, MARKET PLACE
15TH SEPTEMBER  •   LONDON 7 DIALS, EARLHAM STREET
16TH SEPTEMBER  •   BIRMINGHAM, ROTUNDA SQUARE
17TH SEPTEMBER  •   MANCHESTER TRAFFORD CENTRE, THE GREAT HALL ENTRANCE

Not the most extensive UK tour I’ve ever seen (sorry Northerners, Welsh and Scots), but if you happen to be nearby, it’s worth a look.  I’m a big fan of the bareMinerals Purifying Facial Cleanser which has replaced Cetaphil as my morning cleanser of choice.

They should have named the van, that van needs a name.  I vote for Barney.

I’m aware that I’ve been showing you the individual products from the Lancome Fall collection with their corresponding swatches without showing a FOTD to go alongside.  It’s always useful to see product put into context, lip swatches can mean little without being able to see how the shade marries up to the wearer’s colouring etc…

But rather than repeat the same image throughout the posts (you’d be throwing things at your monitor by the time I’d gotten round to the eyeshadow palette), I thought I’d post up the FOTD at the end so you can see how the products harmonise together.

And a reminder of the products used:

Face
Lancome Maison Lancome Blush

Eyes
Lancome Les Oeillades in Blondette Fatale
Lancome Hypnose Drama in Gris Fatal

Lips
Lancome French Touch Absolu Lipstick in #102 Rouge St Honore

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I thought it was going to be the blush that would steal my heart from this collection but I’m afraid I’ve reverted to type.  For me, it’s all about the lips and that beautiful vintage-styled lipstick casing.  I’ll be checking out the other two shades available when the collection is released tomorrow.

Will you be heading to your local counter for a closer look at Lancome’s 29, Saint Honore Fall Collection?

Lily is a 19 year old beauty blogger hailing from one of my favourite UK cities, Manchester.  She has a penchant for indie cosmetics, inspiring looks and creating inventive ways to store your makeup!

Since first stumbling across Lily’s blog, I’ve been transfixed by her tutorials – she has the kind of creativity I could only dream of aspiring to.  Don’t believe me?  Read on as Lipglossiping.com features:  BeautysBadHabit

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Take some black eyeliner, a leopard and an electric guitar, blend them together and what do you get? A freakin’ rock ‘n’ roll smokey eye, that’s what!  Or a really big mess…try explaining that one away to your insurance company.

1. Apply your eyeshadow primer as usual.  Cover your entire lid with a soft, black eyeliner and blend upwards just a tiny bit past the crease.  Don’t worry if it’s patchy, it will be covered up soon!

2. Pat a deep, shimmery eyeshadow over the black.  You can use any colour you fancy, purples and golden browns look great with this look, too.

3. Now apply a matte highlight colour downwards from directly beneath the eyebrow.  Applying the highlight colour first makes it easier to blend past the crease in the next step…

4. Use the same deep, shimmery colour on the lid to extend the eyeshadow shape upwards past the crease.  If you’re unsure of how to shape your eyeshadow, use your eyebrow shape as a guide.  If you don’t want to add leopard print to your look, skip to step seven.

5. Squiggle some pale coloured dots, dashes and ‘C’ shapes above your crease.  Apply more at the outer edge and use fewer as you near the centre of your face.  I’ve used eyeshadow mixing with Illamasqua sealing gel, but coloured liquid eyeliners are definitely an easier option!

6. Outline your dots and dashes at the outer edges. You don’t have to be neat or even – how uniform are a leopards spots, after all?!

7. Extend the eyeshadow all the way around the eye.  Apply eyeliner to the waterline – I used a white and pressed the same pale blue eyeshadow I used for the dots over the top.  You could always use the usual black, though!

8. Apply mascara or false lashes and fill in your eyebrows.  If you decide to use falsies, opt for ones which aren’t very long, otherwise they will cover your leopard design up!

9. Bask in the glory of your awesome eye makeup 🙂

I finished off this look with peachy pink blush and a pink toned nude lipstick for a balanced and fresh finish. I’m not listing the exact products I used throughout since they’re not especially unique, you can pick up similar shades from any make-up company!

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See what I mean about the talent?  Fiendishly awesome, thanks Lily!!

To complete the Fall collection, Lancome will release two new nail polishes in classic red and edgy black.

The red – #22 Rouge St Honore is a classic, vixen red creme with great single-coat opacity and a high gloss finish.  The brush on these polishes is wide and allows for 3-stroke coverage, meaning that I was completely done with the red in less than 5 minutes from start to finish (not allowing for drying time of course).

The black – #29 Noir is a little more unusual in that the inky base  is infused with mini, multi-coloured flecks.  Sadly, these don’t quite translate as vividly on the nail as they do in the bottle.  Also a little sheerer than the red, this one took a respectable 2 coats to achieve opacity.

See below for swatches…

Lancome’s Le Vernis in #22 Rouge Saint Honore & #29 Noir 29 are priced at £12.50 each and available at Lancome counters nationwide from 1st September 2011

Amrita is a doll, her bubbly and infectious sense of humour keeps me smiling on Twitter, whilst her impeccable taste in cosmetics often has me lusting after her most recent acquisitions!  Not sure?  Check out her storage post for a sneak peek at her ‘cheek’ drawer!

I’m thrilled that she agreed to guest blog for us today, so without further ado, read on as Lipglossiping.com features: The6InchStilettos

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Seeing as my Top 10 series has been so popular, I figured that I should do a Top 10 feature on my makeup brushes too. Now, I own a hell of a lot of makeup brushes and although some of them are unloved, I try to rotate them and use them at least once or twice.

A lot of conversations on Twitter amongst beauty bloggers and general girly chit chat revolves around makeup brushes and which ones are the best to buy but it always comes down to personal preference. Some like firm brushes while others prefer super soft ones, others think that expensive brushes are best while others feel that high street versions are way better – It’s all personal.

Anyway, I’m waffling on way too much so let’s get cracking!

These are my most used and most loved makeup brushes…

Unknowingly, it turns out that I have 5 main face brushes and 5 main eye brushes which I definitely didn’t plan but I guess it all works out in the end.

So, the face brushes…

From left to right:
Bobbi Brown Blush Brush
Bobbi Brown Powder Brush
Crown Brush Stippling Brush
Crown Brush Flat Top Kabuki Brush
Inika Cosmetics Kabuki Brush

Now, the eye brushes…

From left to right:
Bobbi Brown Eye Blender Brush – Very similar to MAC 224 but with longer bristles
Inglot 6SS Blending Brush – Another one that is very similar to MAC 224 but slightly wider
Bobbi Brown Ultra Fine Eye Liner Brush
Boots Eyeshadow Brush – Probably my favourite eye makeup brush EVER
Crown Brush Eyeshadow Brush

I have loads of Bobbi Brown makeup brushes in my collection purely because I used to work for them but even if I hadn’t, I definitely would have invested the money. They don’t shed and they’re made so well that you can’t go wrong with them – Plus, each brush is already labelled so even someone with no existing knowledge of makeup brushes can use them with ease.

Other brands of makeup brushes that I use include: MAC, Royal & Langnickel, The Body Shop and Essence of Beauty. The next brushes on my list are Sigma makeup brushes so I might have to wait until pay day to splash out on a full set of those!

What are your favourite makeup brushes or the ones that never let you down?

Make sure you drop a comment in the box or whizz over to my blog and let me know over there!

Until next time…
Keep swivelling those hips in your

Thanks Amrita!  I need to check out some of those Bobbi Brown brushes for sure!

Grey eyeliner, I’m a fan… grey mascara?  I knew I was gonna need some convincing…

Lancome’s Fall 2011 collection, which I’ve been previewing this week includes the popular Hypnose Drama mascara in a new shade: Gris Fatal.

They say…

In just one stroke, lash volume is magnified, customisable and offers women intenseley expressive eyes.  Hypnose Drama in Gris Fatal dresses lashes in this season’s it-shade, defining and sculpting lashes without looking hevaily “made-up”.

I’m a sucker for lashes.  Blessed with decent natural length and curl, I like my mascara to take things to the next level and always opt for the blackest of the black to tint them.  I have to say, the new shade doesn’t float my boat but it has opened my eyes (har har) to a previously untested formula!

Gris Fatal is a flat, darker than mid-toned grey that would suit anyone who finds that black mascara makes them look a bit ‘doll-i-fied’ (nice madeup word there).  Infact, my mother has stolen this from me and it looks fabulous on her.  For reference, she’s blond with sparse lashes, heavily hooded eyelids and piercing blue eyes, single-handedly – this shade has given her back an interest in cosmetics.  God help me.

So, while I won’t recommend this one for anyone who likes BIG lashes, it’s perfect for women (especially older women) who want a more natural, polished look.

And the formula?  Well, it’s lovely!  Nicely balanced, lengthening and volumising with zero clumps.  I do believe this is VexInTheCity‘s favourite mascara of all time (we were having a conflab about the merits of this vs. my newly beloved Benefit They’re Real just the other day!), so I will have to put my money where her big gob is and plump for it in black very soon!

Have you tried Lancome Hypnose Drama?  How about grey mascara – reckon you could rock it?

Lancome’s Hypnose Drama in Gris Fatal Mascara is priced at £20.50 and available at Lancome counters nationwide from 1st September 2011

* press sample

Question of the Week: – What has you most excited for fall, beauty product or otherwise?

Answer:  Noo clothes!  I love buying for the colder weather.  Coats, jeans, scarves and boots – I really have to reign myself in when it comes to Autumnal shopping.  Oh and did I mention red lipstick?  I’m a bit too conformist to break out my reds in the Summer.  Hurry up Autumn!

Vampy Varnish – Kelly shows you how not to wear your lipstick and lipliner in the first of her new series How NOT to Wear…

we heart this – discovers a mascara with a TRULY original feature, a squeezable tube that lets you control the amount of product on the wand. Check out LashControl.

Beauty Junkies Unite – See why we’re loving the latest from LORAC for fall, the Naked Lace Collection.

Clumps of Mascara – Has found the best drugstore lip gloss to date. And they only cost $2.29 a pop.

Gouldylox Reviews – Not sure what eye liner will give you the purrfect cat eye? Check out these tips and tricks meow to get the look your longing for!

Krasey Beauty – Looking for a lipstick that will bring you only high octane color and shine? Check out the new Urban Decay High Shine Lip Pencils!

Nouveau Cheap – What’s my favorite part about Halloween besides candy corn? Wet n Wild’s Fantasy Makers collection, of course!

Pink Sith – Is having a giveaway for her holy grail of sunscreens! Elta MD UV Clear SPF 46. Enter today, giveaway ends on August 30th, 2011!

Prime Beauty – gives us a glimpse of the New York City inspired Paul and Joe Manhattan Fall Collection -see what gems she scored and what she’s still lusting after.

Phyrra – Tentacles anyone? Phyrra shows you the latest way to adorn yourself in her review of Deceptions jewelry!

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Come on dear readers, how about you?  What has you most excited for fall, beauty product or otherwise?

The second piece from this year’s Lancome Fall collection that I wanted to show you was the new eyeshadow palette, Les Oeillades in Blondette Fatale, featuring an array of wearable neutrals and multi-tasking eyeliner/brow shades.

This beautifully designed brown and taupe palette can be used to create a beautiful smoky eye effect.  It can also be used for subtle shading and for softer, more natural definition, you can use the metallic shades to illuminate the lids and the matte shades to define and sculpt the eye area.

Shown top left, is the dark liner/brow shade which is an ash-toned dark brown matte with a firm texture.  Next along is a mid-toned brown matte shade which leans slightly warm and can also be used for filling in fair brows.  The two bottom spaces are taken up by a pair of metallic shadows, one cool and one warm.  The bottom left works beautifully toward the inner corner to inject a hint of light without being ‘highlighter-y’.  The bronzier shade (bottom right) is nice to wear dabbed over the base in the centre of the lid.

Aaron de Mey, Lancome’s Global Make-Up Director suggests…

The eye shadow can also be used wet with a small brush on the eye area if you wish a more intense result or dry with small soft brushes to shade and sculpt, always remembering that darkness makes areas recede and lighter shades bring features ‘forward’.

The pigmentation on these is nicely build-able, with the mattes requiring a couple of swipes to achieve the payoff shown above.  The metallics are, as usual, the most strongly pigmented in the palette.  The colour-combination and texture shows this palette to be a more grown-up version of a neutral work palette.  The build-ability ensures that Les Oeillades in Blondette Fatale can be put to use in both day and night-time situations depending on the intensity required.

I tend to wear these higher-end shadows without primer and these held up very well indeed.  I’m sure using the mattes as a base increases the longevity of the shimmers successfully.  I also want to mention the little ‘tools’ included with the palette which I would usually either ignore (at best) or ridicule.  The ones included with this palette are actually brilliant for travel.  A completely useable angled brush for brows, the usual application sponge (ignore that one) and a pointy, thin sponge that works brilliantly to line the eyes.  Colour me impressed.

Overall, I would describe Les Oeillades in Blondette Fatale as an incredibly versatile palette.  It may well be that you, like me, already have 101 neutrals in your collection in which case, I’d say this is great for travel thanks to the inclusion of genuinely useful brow/liners shades and tools but is otherwise a non-essential.

Lancome’s Les Oeillades in Blondette Fatale is priced at £33.00 and available at Lancome counters nationwide from 1st September 2011

* press sample

Perhaps one shouldn’t judge a collection on the sum of its smallest parts but damn, I like lipstick.  And I really like this lipstick.  Lancome’s French Touch Absolu is heavyweight, solid and beautifully designed to capture the attention of vintage-lipstick lovers everywhere.

You should take note of how small this is.  Possibly the one down-side to retaining that authentic, vintage styling.  It’s practically a stub.  A stub of beauty, but a stub nonetheless.  For the princely sum of £23.50, you get 3.7ml (not listed in grams) of product (EDIT: Rouge Deluxe has come to the rescue and confirmed that you get 3g of product, the same as a MAC lipstick – so, erm, ignore me).

It has a wonderful old-fashioned lipstick scent that evokes memories of playing with my Nan’s makeup when I was a little girl.  It’s thoroughly charming and despite the obvious absence of any value for money… my heart has been captured.

In 1945, Lancome redefined the codes of beauty by launching “Shaker”, its very first lipstick, in the ultimate shade of red.

In creating the latest French Touch Absolu, Aaron de Mey has once again drawn inspiration from Lancome’s heritage whilst adding a modern twist.  The sumptuous, creamy texture of French Touch Absolu guarantees a deliciously sensual velvet touch: a true silk cream enhanced with Pro-Xylane™ to give lips stunning contour and shape.

One swipe.  Perhaps there is a little more value for money there than I first anticipated…  The above swatch shows shade #102 Rouge St Honore, but there will be two other reds available (#100 Rouge 29 and #104 Rouge Faubourg).

Words can’t quite express how in love I am with this lipstick.  I mean, I know the collection is all about that blush, which is of course ridiculously pretty.  But I’m not just looking at it, I wanna use it and this lipstick would blow most products out of the water.  It’s creamy without being heavy, moisturising without being slippy and once blotted, it stays put for hours.  Love.

Lancome’s French Touch Absolu Lipstick in Rouge St Honoré is priced at £23.50 and available at Lancome counters nationwide from 1st September 2011

*press sample

I couldn’t keep this one under wraps any longer. I was going to save it ’til last but like a fat kid with a plate of biscuits, I’m licking the chocolate off the digestives.

With the charm of a vintage postcard, the very essence of Paris has been captured in this season’s blush palette. The silhouette of the Eiffel Tower, the typically Parisian Art Nouveau streetlamp lighting the cobbled pavement outside the historical House of Lancome at 29, rue du Faubourg Saint Honore makes this palette a true work of art.

Three soft shades combine to make up this palette which can be used either as a highlighter or a blusher depending on skin-tone. It contains a very fine golden shimmer beneath the overspray which lifts the matte formula and adds another dimension.

I personally wouldn’t recommend trying to use the shades independently of one another, they’re sheer and the small surface area would simply make that endeavour a giant pain the in backside. Instead, a fluffy brush will pick up plenty of product (it’s a touch powdery) and deposit a little more than a wash wherever desired.

As mentioned, this is sheer but build-able. Sheerer than I thought it would be so if you’re a darker skin-tone you may want to have an SA try this on you before purchasing. For fairer skins, you may have just found your ‘can’t overcook it’ blush of choice this Winter.

I’d describe the shade (all three colours combined) as a pale rose with a hint of sparkle. The above swatch was done with a finger (2 layers) and I found that the Maison Lancome blush nicely deposits luminosity aswell as colour, making this a good potential highlighter if your skin tone will allow it. It’s not at all metallic or shimmery so you don’t need to worry about it highlighting enlarged pores.

Aaron de Mey, Lancome’s Global Make-Up Director suggests…

Use as an overall cheek blush with a large, soft fluffy brush, keeping it high and central on the cheekbones. It adds soft, sheer colour and definition to the face by illuminating the cheekbones.

Maison Lancome Blush is priced at £32.50 and will be available at Lancome counters nationwide from 1st September 2011

* press sample