A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

My StrawberryNet order arrived on Saturday, super fast shipping from Hong Kong… incredibly fast actually, took about 2 days.

Anyway, here’s my first Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick…

Nectar…

Isn’t she lovely?

I’m pale enough to pull this one off as a blush if I wanted… it might be a bit frosty for that, I think it’s a product I need to experiment with before I work out how best to put it to use.

The texture is pretty smooth and the shimmer although very obvious, isn’t too chunky.  I’m pleased with my £16 bargain!

Next on my ‘play with’ list is Rose – can you see me?  I’m doing a happy makeup dance!

Is it teal?  Is it blue?  Argh… can’t decide…

Petrol blue, that’s what I’m gonna call it.

Barielle’s A Bouquet for Ava is a stunning creme polish.  Opaque in 2 coats (as pictured), the formula is a beauty… smooth and thin but heavily pigmented.

I dislike the semi-matte finish once dried and was sure to top off with a coat of Seche Vite for the ultra-glossy look I love.  I’m on my 2nd full day of wear and I’ve no chips and only minimal tip wear, so far so good!

Barielle’s A Bouquet for Ava is available online from Barielle and priced at £8 (though they’re still currently offering BOGOF)

EDIT: Still love it, but you need to know… a base coat IS. A. MUST.  Trust me, this stains like a bitch.

Signed… Smurf Nails.

Bourjois Sweet Kiss Naturel, a new lipstick available in 10 shades that promises to contain 100% natural ingredients and long-lasting colour.

These natural ingredients include lovely-sounding things such as: magnolia oil, shea butter, jojoba oil, green tea, beeswax and mineral/plant pigments.

I was sent two shades to try: Fuchsia Ardent (04) and Sienne Kiss (09)

The packaging is the same as the original Sweet Kiss range from Bourjois (though a different coloured plastic)… it’s incredibly tactile… I could click and click for hours…

The formula (which promises to be silky, melting and creamy) is a little bit harder than those adjectives would imply.  Though it certainly doesn’t create any drag on the lips, I’ve definitely applied softer-feeling lipsticks.  Also, I’m not loving the scent.  It’s quite waxy… but I guess it’s not easy to be vigilantly natural and delicately perfumed all at the same time… plus, I can’t smell it once it’s on my lips, only if I sniff the tube.

What I would say about the Sweet Kiss Naturel Lipsticks though is that they’re wonderfully light.  I can apply a ton of product and STILL not feel like I’ve built up a layer of beeswax.  This results in fabulous pigmentation without any gloopiness or heaviness on the lip, and that’s a rather unusual and impressive achievement for a ‘drugstore’ lipstick.

This is a few swipes straight from the tube, the lipstick applies sheerly at first but builds up to a great intensity as you can see.  The finish is semi-matte and extremely easy to wear.

Longevity is average despite claims of 8hr moisturising wear… perhaps if I were enclosed in a vacuum… but I do normal girl things like drink tea, eat muffins and chew on pencils, so these lasted around 3 hours on me before fading away leaving my lips just a touch drier than before… nothing that I’m not familiar with from other lip products.

I would say that they bridge the gloss/lipstick gap… but they don’t, they’re too opaque and matte to be drawing any comparisons with gloss.

Overall, at £7.99 (€11.99) each, I think they’re a great buy.  Particularly if you’re usually uncomfortable with the heaviness of a lipstick.  If you give them a try, let me know what you think!

WOAHHHHHHHHH too much blush.

Aside from that, I was really pleased with how this turned out!  I was looking forlornly into my pigment drawer thinking that I don’t use them enough and although it was 6pm in the evening and I had just done my first DIY home facial (courtesy of Liz… yeah, we’re on first name terms innit) I decided to have a little play anyway.  Was that the longest sentence in the blogosphere?  Possibly.

I really need to start using more than 2 eyeshadow shades, I really enjoyed playing!

Products Used:

Face

~ Skin79 Super BB Cream
~ L’Occitane Etoiles des Neiges Illuminator
~ MUFE Full Cover Concealer in Shade 1

Eyes

~ Urban Decay Primer Potion
~ Silk Naturals Vanilla Pigment (all over lid up to brow bone)
~ MAC Melon Pigment (all over mobile lid)
~ MAC Revved-Up Pigment (crease and slightly above)
~ Elemental Beauty Vamp Pigment (outer v and under lower lashline)

~ Bourjois Khol & Contour in Brun Design (smudged on upper lashline then melon pigment reapplied over the top)
~ Benefit Bad Gal Lash Black Mascara

Cheeks

~ Milani Luminous Blush
~ Bobbi Brown ShimmerBrick in Nectar (yeah, I got carried away)

Lips

~ Bourjois Sweet Kiss Naturel Lipstick in 09 Sienne Kiss

I commented a few months back that Estee Lauder were starting to shake things up a bit and get with the times… and now they’ve gone all technologically advanced on us too!

You can try out the different shades and finishes from Estee Lauder’s current collections whilst still wearing your slippers.  Isn’t technology great?

Click the image above to be taken to Estee Lauder’s new Virtual Makeover Tool.

I picked this up a few weeks ago whilst browsing in L’Occitane, somewhere I frequent more for their Almond Apple Cleansing Oil than their makeup usually.

I’m endlessly intrigued by colour-correcting all-in-one products like this and it reminds me a little of Guerlain’s infamous Meteorites… obviously not in appearance, but in ambition.

L’Occitane say…

Inspired by a pink white peony with an extraordinary brightness, this illuminating face powder leaves skin soft and velvety, like a petal, and gives a stunning glow to the complexion.

Made with natural softening peony extract from Drôme (France) and mica powder coated with Provençal mimosa flower wax, the powder’s texture glides on smoothly and feels comfortable on the skin leaving an iridescent effect and a delicate perfumed.

Encompassing four sheer shades: pastel green to correct redness, light mauve to correct dullness and the blend of fresh pink and white to light up and refreshes the complexion.

It was tricky to get a swatch, as promised… this powder is soft and sheer, but you should be able to just about make out this swipe on the back of my hand

It’s a very slightly pearlescent pale pink when all four shades are swirled together.  I dust the product all over my face after applying foundation and I do believe that it gives a luminosity to my skin.  It’s very subtle, perhaps too subtle to warrant the £19.50 I paid for it, but I guess the proof is in the fact that I keep reaching for it day after day to set my foundation.

I’m not sold on the colour-correcting aspect of L’Occitane’s Illuminating powder… the shades are simply too sheer to do anything to counteract redness.  I’d have to pile it on an inch thick before noticing any colour correction, but overall… it’s a very pleasant product to use.  Delicately scented and velvet-textured, I’m glad I picked this up.

L’Occitane Etoile des Neiges Illuminating Powder is a limited edition product and available instore at L’Occitane.

Trout Pout. I haz one.

A quick SK:N laser hair removal update… check out my swollen top lip!  I’m impressed… that thing could take over a small country, it’s like the Goodyear blimp!

I don’t generally have much of a top lip as you can see in my FOTDs, so it’s only when you realise this that you can appreciate just how hugely puffed up that top lip is!

Anyway, I had my 2nd facial hair removal session at my local SK:N clinic on Wednesday and I was looking forward to it and dreading it in equal measure.  I’ve already said that I found my first session quite painful but I was hopeful that with a lot of the hair already destroyed, this 2nd session would be easier to bare.  And it was!

It was about 1/4 as painful as the first.  The only bit that had my eyes watering was the upper lip which they thankfully left till last.  The rest?  Completely fine…. just light pinging sensations against the skin.  Nothing to worry about at all!  Relief!

Compared to last time’s post-treatment soreness…. I have nothing.  Literally nothing.  After about 12 hours, the redness had completely faded… all that is left are a couple of whiteheads on my upper lip which probably have more to do with slathering on copious amounts of Aloe Vera gel than anything else.  A true 90% improvement in irritation and discomfort over my first session.

Except for the swelling.

The whole lower half of my face has doubled in size again, perhaps even more so than last time.  I look like a Spitting Image character.  I’m assuming this is just the fluid rushing to protect and heal the areas that it feels are under attack… but still, not attractive!

Here’s a post-treatment video just like after the first session, apart from noticing how horrible my bottom teeth are… try to concentrate more on how much less skin irritation I have compared to the previous video.  If it keeps progressing like this, it’s gonna be a doddle!

SK:N After treatment #2 from lipglossiping on Vimeo.

~ Over at theNotice, Rae talks about a new Burt’s Bees lip balm… and how it reminds her of an old Lip Smacker!

~ Maggie shares this Foxy dupe of Too Faced’s Sexpresso and Peachfuzz duo over at The Polka-Dotted Apple.

~ Kim Porter talks about a miracle moisturizer that’s also a makeup primer, remover, and more!

~ Vesna from Beauty addict blog discovered one of her blushes is fake, so read this post to find out how to spot a fake Benefit Coralista!

~ Head over to Beautifully Glossy to discover a lip balm that GlossQueen thinks is an essential.

~ Glitter Geek is obsessed with everything sparkly, and she puts a glistening spin on the summer smoky eye.

~ Need some wedding makeup ideas? Check out Audrey Dao’s wedding looks!

~ Pop over to melovemakeup for swatches and thoughts on the New Revlon Colorburst Lipsticks!

~ Get the only 10 tips you’ll ever need for a fool-proof fake tan on beautywoome.com.

~ Champagne, French macarons and make up…Hellcandy spends an indulgent afternoon with Terry De Gunzburg, founder of By Terry.

~ Vex in the City takes a look at Mai Couture’s Blush Papier – blush with a difference!

~ Lisamarie from Beauty Crazed discovers the joy that is cream blushes!

~ Eyelining Obsession thinks you shouldn’t have to spend a fortune on great eye brushes.

~ You can wear nudes too! Spiced Beauty shows off MAC Lovin’ it Lipstick with lip swatches.

~ Jen from A Beauty Junkie in London has been feeling all posh whilst checking out Estee Lauder’s new Pure Colour Shadow.

~ Retrodiva splurges a bit with Chanel’s Coco Rouge and Red Shine Glossamer. Find out if she thinks it’s worth it!

***

Want to win a $100 gift voucher for all your skincare needs. Head over to Yinnie’s blog to check out the details!

I’m having a bizarre relationship with this nail polish from the Urban Decay Summer of Love nail set… When I first saw Hashbury, I was a little bit in awe.  In the bottle, it looks ah-mazing.  Cadbury purple with masses of micro-shimmer…

Then I swatched it on one nail and couldn’t have been more disappointed.  It was watery, sheer and jelly-like.  It still is two of those things.  After 3 coats, I can get a pretty opaque finish, though it still looks more jelly than cream.  Nothing wrong with a jelly, but if you’re anticipating a nice opaque purple shimmer…. the effect is lessened with a jelly-ish finish.  I like it more than I did, but still not as much as that initial WOW factor.

Final verdict – Could have, should have been great but isn’t.

I know I’m being a tad harsh, it’s still a rather lovely purple… and although the formula is terribly thin, 3 coats isn’t bad and it has the most beautiful high gloss finish.

Anyway, I’m all up in the air about this shade… I can’t decide.  What do you ladies think?

Check out my other swatches from the collection:

Aquarius
Woodstock
The Whole Kit
Psychedelic Sister
Magic Bus

It’s the WEEKEND!

What I done did this week… in pictures of course!

Far too much cucumber in my Pimms, I tasted more salad than gin.  And that’s never a good thing!

“I hope Mummy’s not hungry… Oh look, there’s her lunch!”

Pretty colours!

Oh, something makeup related DID slip in there afterall!

Am I being political? Nahhhh it’s just a car bonnet (hood).

An altogether different kinda bonnet!

Down at the docks.

I wanna take a quick opportunity to emphasise another big THANK YOU for the ‘feel better soon’ messages that you left me earlier in the week on here, twitter and over email.  It means such a lot to me.

Anyway,

What have you ladies been getting up to this week and do you have any plans for the weekend?  It promises to be another fine one!

Cowshed have teamed up with Astley Clarke to give newsletter subscribers the opportunity to win a £1000 manicure.

A £1000 manicure?  That sounds like a hell of a lot of O.P.I to me…. except it’s a bit more special than that…

Click the image below to be taken to the registration/entry page:

To complement the winner’s luxury manicure, they’ll also be given £1000 to spend on a sparkler of their choice… chosen in the comfort of Astley Clarke’s luxurious London showroom.

I’ve already fallen in love with this Niobe Black Diamond eternity ring… so if you’d all kindly NOT enter, that’d be great thanks.

I appreciate a beautifully kept semi-pristine makeup collection.  I understand that cosmetics are completely functional objects with shelf lives and shades that fall in and out of fashion over time, but hell… when you look at something like this:

Surely… that’s not meant to ACTUALLY be used…  At least… on some level, you know what I’m trying to say right?

I’ve only ever ‘collected’ a couple of pieces of makeup and when I have … I’ve bought two.  One for using and one for collecting.  I’d never buy something just to collect it I don’t think, I mean… I would have to want to wear it enough to want to collect it in the first place.

So, quick poll!

 Loading ...

I want to know about some of the pieces you’ve collected and if you think collecting makeup is an absurdity, tell me why – my bank balance will thank you later.