A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

It’s the last one!  That’s it!  You’ve seen all 6 of the new Barielle Style in Argyle polishes from the Autumn/Winter collection that I was sent… Cowl of the Wild is probably the most on trend shade from the collection.

A ‘propah’ greige/mushroom/taupe blah blah thingamibob.  Am I getting bored of these yet?  Not on your life… though I do think I’m starting to accumulate a couple too many.  I prefer these mid-toned mushroom shades to the darker YDKJ ones.

I think the stand out delight from this new Barielle collection is just how truly creamy they look on the nails… perhaps it’s the warm chocolatey shades, or maybe it’s just the formula, but each is a delight to look at in that aspect.

I’m not so keen on the fact that each shade needed 3 coats for a good finish.  None of the shades are particularly pale… I would have prefered them to be 2-coaters… am I fussy?  Only a little.

The penultimate shade from the Barielle A/W Style in Argyle collection, and I have to say… it’s my favourite!

And I don’t really know why!  I generally REALLY dislike ‘wine’ type shades…. but this… it’s just so flattering on a cool skintone and totally screams Autumn to me.  Lovely.
I’m getting tired of saying this.. but once again, 3 coats for a fully opaque finish.  For a range of such dark colours… I would have prefered to be done in two coats with most of them… but at least the formula throughout is consistent, glossy and smooth.

This is the fifth in the series of six that I was sent for review consideration.

The Style in Argyle collection is available to purchase online from the Barielle website priced at £8 each.  Though currently, the Spring/Summer and Autumn collections are available on a “buy one get one free” basis, rendering them a bargainous £4 per polish.

Who knew that you could quite literally spend ALL FREAKING NIGHT trying to decide whether to organise your makeup collection by:

* colour

* high end/high street

* current favourites

* recently used/long-forgotten

* daytime/night time

* formula

* alphabetically (ok, I joke… no really – don’t even think about it or I’m calling in psychiatric backup!)

I settled for high end/high street… I bet that reveals a disturbing indication of my shallowness or something.

I have 2 foundation drawers (they’re small drawers honest!) – 1 with all my high end ‘only wear this shit when you’re going somewhere nice’ and 1 with all my ‘you can go to the post office in this’ stuff.

Do you organise?  And more importantly… does it stay that way?!

Continuing with the Barielle A/W Style in Argyle collection, we’re just over halfway through and can you guess what today’s shade variation is?

Can you?

That’s right!  Brown!

Ohhhh how I long for a green.  Not that this isn’t a rather lovely brown…. look how glossy it is!  This is with a top coat, but that never guarantess super-gloss like this…. the polish underneath has to want to play ball to get this almost glass-like finish.

Barielle’s Unraveled Rust is described as a ‘burnt rust creme”…. though it’s not really all that rusty in my opinion.  More of a vampy chocolate.  Three coats again are needed to achieve that perfect finish.

What do YOU do at 11pm?  Normal people go to bed, weird semi-insomniac types start pissing about with makeup.  They challenge themselves to use all the right products in all the wrong places.

And then they hope for the best!

Clearly not the best, but it was fun!

What the hell am I talking about?

I lined up my products and decided to use them where they ought not be used…

My mascara ended up on my eyebrows (as did my eyeliner)

My cream eyeshadow?  On my lips…

My Blusher?  On my eyes!

And my lipstick?  On my cheeks of course!

I did add a little normality… I used a touch of vaseline to help the cream eyeshadow turned lipstick not look quite so cakey.  My NYX Rust eyeshadow made a nice eyeliner and I still used mascara where mascara should be placed.

So what did I learn?

Not much really… except that my No7 Brown eyeliner is in NO WAY a good match to fill in the gaps in my brows.  Oh, and lipstick as blusher is a dream to blend but a bugger for that ‘orrible sticky feeling afterwards.

I also realised that I should probably get a hobby that doesn’t involve makeup.

And no jokes about my face looking like an arse please.

Have a good weekend good people of the internet!

Dark, grungy and all about texture… Topshop’s new Autumn/Winter makeup range, Heavy Duty… is set to launch at the end of the month.  From ultra-wet looking glossy lips through to slept-in smoky eyes the new collection is a far cry from the high-street store’s Summer offerings.

LIP MARKER: A felt tip pen applicator for long lasting gorgeously bitten looking lips. So efficient; use an oil based cleanser to ensure full removal.  Shade: Ultimate

GLOSS: The perfect formula for creating heavy lacquered lips that look dipped in paint.  Choose from three deep sultry tones for a full on wash of colour.  Shades: Volt, Gloom and Undertone.

KOHL DUST: A revolutionary formula that crumbles and smudges to create the perfect smokey eye.  Perfect for both top and lower lid, inside and out, the 3D effect is the first of it’s kind.  Shade: Ash.

EYE PALETTE: Two beautiful and complementary shades encased in a mirrored palette.  Build them up wet and watch the diamond like formula reveal a deep and dramatic finish.  Palette Shades: Thunder and Greyscale.

CREAM LINERS: With four unique and fashion forward shades to choose from use as a liner, a wash or build up for an intense injection of colour.  Applicator included.  Shades: Facet, Steely, Etch, Ravine.

CRAYON: The ultimate pigmented kohl presented in a chubby crayon for buildable coverage.  A choice of two dark and sultry shades that easily smudge for a dramatic and smokey effect.  Shades: Graphite and Burnish.

MASCARA: High drama lashes in an instant.  Lifts, lengthens and defines for buildable volume, perfect for this season’s heavier lash.  Shade: Carbon.

NAILS: A collection of three intense nail lacquers of contrasting and complementing petrol hues.  Shades: Metallic Khaki, Iridescent Grey, Metallic Blue.

Heavy Duty will be available towards the end of this month instore and online with prices ranging between £6-£10.

Anything catching your attention?

Not my colour… too clashy and obnoxious against my skintone… but on the right person, this could be a real conversation starter (in a good way!)

Barielle’s Aura Angora is an opaque, creamy mustard.  It’s more wearable than I thought it would be, though I think it would suit shorter fingernails better.

Formula throughout the collection is consistent, three coats needed to achieve that perfect finish but all provide a high gloss shine.

Not the most exciting beauty product to be featured on Lipglossiping… but you can’t get much cheaper than a quid, and when it’s a staple… that makes it a precious find!

I’m not sure if it’s seasonal stock… but I don’t *think* it is.  I’ve tried most supermarket brands, ‘named’ brands, chemist owned brands… and this is simply the best.  It may not be the most moisturising (though it does contain glycerin), but I don’t care.  I just want last week’s polish off my tips and QUICK!

Classics Nail Polish remover is available from Poundland and really, really does the job!

… or to give it’s full title – Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector!

Phew!

Brand new from Clinique, this is sure to be a top seller this Autumn/Winter… especially with Christmas round the corner.  Promising to combat both wrinkles and UV damage, could this be the all-in-one solution that so many desire?

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Clinique introduces NEW Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector, a de-ageing serum uniquely formulated to work day and night to reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles, and repair and help prevent UV damage with results remarkably close to a dermatological laser treatment.  Use just three drops of NEW Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector twice a day and in 12 weeks, achieve 63% of the visible wrinkle reducing power of a laser.

Like three serums in one, delivering multiple benefits leading to visible wrinkle reducing results of a laser. Skin might not forget, but it can now help forgive the visible effects of sun, stress and pollution.

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I’ve been sent one for review consideration.  I’ve seen some pretty impressive results with it on other blogs, but in all honesty… I don’t think a review from me would do this much justice.

At 29, I don’t have wrinkles or even many fine lines… wait, let’s interject a little more honesty in that statement.  At 29 and with a penchant for cream cakes… I don’t have wrinkles or even many fine lines.  It’s the cakes, not the genetics.

I’ve also never been one to accept and review products “just ‘cos I can”, so I’d like to offer this up to one of my lovely readers to trial thoroughly and review honestly for my readers.

There are a few ‘stipulations’ though.

* You must be happy to provide before and after photos (close ups are fine if you’d rather remain anonymous!)

* You must be aged over 35

* Your trial period is 12 weeks with one reader update (no photos required) around the 6 week mark and a reader conclusion (with photos) once the trial period is over.

If you fit the above criteria and fancy giving this a go, please leave me a comment below and I’ll choose someone suitable next week.

Sound good?

If you simply can’t wait to find out what our guest reviewer thinks… then, Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector will be available at all Clinique counters nationwide from 10th September 2010 priced at £35.00/€48.00

Barielle’s Tight Knit is described as “a purple brown crème” and is one of my favourites from the collection.  It’s one of the few that particularly flatters a cooler skintone though still encapsulates the warmth and cosiness that this set delivers.

3 coats are shown above and I had no issues with application.  The cremes from the Style in Argyle collection are all glossy in their finish and don’t require a top coat to achieve this.

Do you remember about a month ago I asked for potential guest reviewers for this new (to the UK) range for young skin?

Well, Jemma was good enough to step up to the plate and take the challenge and here’s what she had to say about the range…

This kit comes in a sea threw reseal able bag which I think is very handy. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a picture with the products all stood up looking neat . It also comes with a booklet explaining each product and when you should use them – I find this very handy as there is quite a few products in this kit and it is aimed at teenagers to get them into a skin care routine. Also, on the back of the products they either say ‘am’ or ‘pm’ on them so you know when/how regularly to use them.

Wash Off
This face wash is easy to work into lather and only a small amount is required to clean the whole face. The first thing I noticed about this was the smell; it is incredibly fruity and it really uplifts you at the start of the day and wakes up you and your skin. Using this in a morning my skin was clean of the dirt and grime left from overnight, however when taking a full face of makeup off this needed a little help (I used a face wipe beforehand) at removing all the makeup. After I had washed this off of my skin, my skin felt clean, tingly and really soft to touch.

All Over Clear
The thing that I love the most about this toner is that it is a spray. After washing your face you just spritz it over your face and neck and it instantly refreshes the skin and leaves it feeling cool and fresh. The problem that I normally have with toners is that they leave my skin either looking greasy or feeling dry yet this one finds the right balance and keeps shine at bay whilst leaving my skin feeling supple. The smell of this isn’t quite the same as the Wash Off and is a little bit plastic; however it wouldn’t stop me using it.

Ready, Set, Scrub!
This is my favourite product out of them all. You apply it onto your face as a mask and leave it to set for 5-7 minutes. This product smells beautiful and it really wakes you up if you were using it in a morning. After the mask has set, it becomes a scrub. And you then use it as an exfoliator and then wash it off. I don’t know which half of this product works the best but afterwards, my skin felt a lot smoother and looked brighter.

Welcome Matte SPF15
This moisturiser comes out white which for some reason, I really liked. I don’t know why, maybe it was because I had previously been using the yellow Clinique Dramatically different, but it just seemed a lot ‘cleaner.’ The texture of this moisturiser is incredibly light and after you have let it sink into your skin, your skin instantly appears matte. This is great for oily skin but not so much for combination as it didn’t add quite enough moisture for me. I loved that my skin was matte throughout the day as I do get shiny skin, it’s just that it emphasised my dry patches. I will also add, the matte effect doesn’t wear off quickly and it lasts around 8-10 hours, which is incredible. It also has SPF15 in it which I think is great for blemish prone skin as you’re not adding a separate product onto your skin which would block it up more.

Bedtime for Breakouts
This is a moisturiser than you use at night time. I love the idea of this as I like using a separate moisturiser for night; this is because your skin repairs itself at night time so I think it’s good to have a moisturiser that helps that along. Another nice smelling product, and this one comes out clear. Although this is a moisturiser, I used it as a serum because like the Welcome Matte, it just wasn’t moisturising enough for me, especially because it was at night. It did work just as well though as I woke up with fresh looking skin.

Smart Mouth Lip Shine
This Clean Start kit is for blemishes and this is the one product that I didn’t understand. I don’t know why a lip balm was in this kit because in all honesty, it doesn’t help with spots does it? But I must say, I’m glad it was! As well as the Ready, Set, Scrub this is another of my favourites. The lip balm smells beautiful, tastes gorgeous and moisturisers the lips very well. I can’t explain the applicator so I’ve added a picture, but as you can see it dispenses out of holes which ensures the correct amount of product is distributed so there is no waste. This is also very shiny and can be used as a clear gloss or a lip balm to moisturise your lips. I find myself using this when I’m having a natural day as it just adds a nice sheen to the lips.

L-R Brighten Up SPF 15, Hit the Spot
I received both of these products in a sachet, but I dispensed them both so they would last me longer.

Hit the Spot
This is a spot treatment cream (that once again, smells nice). But I found it a little weird. Not only did it help get rid of my spots, it also sort of moisturised them and soothed them. I found this to be a very nice touch which helped my spots in being less red and less noticeable. I have tried a lot of spot treatments in my time and I do like this one; it clears up spots in the same time as other spot treatments do (around 3 days) but I liked that it took the redness down instantly and also didn’t dry my skin up.

Brighten Up SPF 15
I love love love this! This is also a moisturiser and once again, I didn’t find it moisturising enough for my combination skin, so I use it as sort of a ‘primer.’ It is a tinted moisturiser (ish) that doesn’t add colour to your skin but evens out your skin tone and adds a nice shimmer to it. After using this, the redness in my skin has completely disappeared and my skin looks so radiant and bright and awake. I can’t recommend this product enough – and it contains SPF 15! In the picture I have included, you can see it half blended into my skin and it looks pretty orange, but once it’s fully blended, you can’t see the colour.

Overall
My skin is combination and blemish prone and the reason for this kit is to clear up spots, so does it? Yes, it does. Reviewing a skin care routine is a lot different to just reviewing one product by itself, this is because you can’t see if one product is superior to the others. But when all of these are used in conjunction with each other, my skin cleared up within around 2-3 days. I could see an improvement the morning after though; my spots had reduced in size. The only problem that I had with this kit is that it wasn’t very moisturising so I would recommend this product for people with oily skin and no dry patches; it didn’t dry my skin out though I must add, it just didn’t moisturise my already there dry patches. One of the greatest things about this skin care routine (except that it cleared my spots), was that it smells beautiful! It’s nice to finally find spot products that don’t smell of chemicals and smells beautiful. Would I recommend this? Definitely if you have oily skin that is spot prone. It is also great at encouraging teenagers to get into a skin care routine, which I find very important.

As for me, I will be repurchasing the Ready, Set, Scrub, Smart Mouth Lipshine, Hit the Spot and Brighten Up SPF 15 as I love these products.

Barielle’s Cashmere or Loose Me is described as a “Soft brown with copper pearl” and it’s the only shade from the new Style in Argyle collection that gave me application issues.

You can see the dragging near the cuticles?  This is with 3 coats… I’m not happy about that, though to be fair, it was less noticeable in real life than it is in the picture.  What I do love is the ‘copper pearl’ – it gives an added dimension, something that I’ve come to expect from Barielle’s polishes.

The copper pearl isn’t visible in the above photo (though it is on the nail), so I’ve taken a photo of the bottle which shows the effect well.

This is the first in the series of six that I was sent for review consideration.

The Style in Argyle collection is available to purchase online from the Barielle website priced at £8 each.  Though currently, the Spring/Summer and Autumn collections are available on a “buy one get one free” basis, rendering them a bargainous £4 per polish.