A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Australian brand Becca is one of my favourite cosmetic lines, I love almost everything about the brand.  The shades, the packaging, the beautiful campaign imagery that sets my pulse racing not to mention the products that deliver polished and understated results time after time….

But there’s one thing I don’t like about the brand, infact… it’s such an issue for me that I’m on the verge of throwing my toys out of the pram and boycotting.

My Pressed Shimmer Powders keep disintegrating.

Now, I don’t carry my makeup around with me.  I don’t need to… I work from home and if I’m out and about, I’m usually too laden down with either L’s things or my camera – a makeup bag is not an essential in my life.  These powders are treated with kid gloves and they sit in a drawer on my desk.

So why the hell is this the SECOND time one of my Becca Pressed Shimmer Powders has started to lift from the pan in this way?

You might think that I’m one helluva unlucky madam… I must admit, I was contemplating resigning my online account with Lotto too until I googled the issue and realised that I’m not the only one experiencing this quality concern.

Let’s do some maths here… I’ve owned a total of 5 Becca powder products and 2 have disintegrated – those stats aren’t good.

On the Becca website, I see that the Pressed Shimmer Powders are in the ‘last chance’ section so it looks as though they’re going to be discontinued.  I’m not sure whether to whoop or sob.

As for my beautiful, broken Nefertiti Pressed Shimmer Powder that I got for Christmas?  Well… I just shed a little tear.  And at £30, it was an expensive one.

Have you experienced any crumbling issues with Becca powder products?

New York Cheesecake with an Edge, Vermont Va Va Voom, Toast to the Coast and Southern Belle promise scintilating flavours that leave me unsure whether I should be slathering them on my body or on my crumpets in the morning!

I’m gonna go with ‘body’… but only ‘cos I’m on a diet.

The Body America range of products has been notoriously hard to track down until House of Fraser scooped them up as part of their new Apothecary setup.  The range claims 72% organics which are enriched with Aloe Vera juice to soothe and soften the skin.

That’s all great in theory… but how does the range really perform?

Vermont Va Va Voom Foaming Bath & Shower Wash (£7.00)

Green Apple, Maple and Blueberry… but particularly heavy on the apple.  Thankfully, although heady in combination, the scent that’s left behind on the skin is quite light and pleasantly fresh.

I’m not usually a fan of products that foam before I get them close to my body as I find I have to use a ton to get the same kind of luxurious lather as with normal soapy formulas.  This one gets a thumbs up for managing to go the distance before losing it’s fluff!

I should also note that I didn’t find this drying on my skin.

Toast to the Coast Lip Butter 8.5gms (£4.00)

All style and no substance.  It smells delicious (Ocean and Grapeseed), tastes incredible but does nothing to moisturise my lips.  It’s thin and spreads lightly which makes it a nice butter to apply under a drying lipstick but that’s about as far as my praise for this one can stretch.

New York Cheesecake Body & Face Scrub 100gms (£7.00)

My pick of the bunch and I will definitely be picking this up in the Toast to the Coast flavour.  It’s a milky thin fluid that spreads for miles and contains minute particles of ‘scrub’.  Touted as a light exfoliation, I’d say that on my skin it felt pretty full on and in my opinion, too harsh for the face.  But it’s perfect for bodycare and leaves a positively edible scent behind!

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I haven’t tried any of the body butters but they’re reportedly made by the people behind The Body Shop body butters and only £7/£8 each.  All products are available instore and online.

Have you tried the Body America range yet?

I picked this trio of blushes up in Debenhams when it was on sale a couple of weeks ago and I could barely wait until I was home to have a play!

Dandelion was my first Benefit purchase many, many, MANY moons ago and it nearly broke my makeup-loving heart.  I just couldn’t make it show up on me… and back then, I’d spent a considerable amount of my weekly student budget on the damn thing.  Thankfully, things started to look up when I discovered Benefit Creaseless Creams and now I’m back to give the powder blushes another go.

I know that loads of people hate the blush box-packaging, but it’s never bothered me… aslong as it’s sturdy, I’m ok with it.  I don’t generally carry my blush around with me on a day-to-day basis anyway.

You get three 3g blushes in the set.  Clockwise from top left: Coralista, Dandelion, Dallas.

And again…

I think this is such a great way to purchase your Benefit blushes.  At £578579 or whatever it costs nowadays to buy a single Benefit blush, it’s expensive.  Benefit keep releasing these blush boxsets though… and then discontinuing them.  I recommend POUNCING on the sets when you see them or if you can hold your nerve, wait until they go in the sale though you risk missing out alltogether.

Dandelion still barely registers on me but the other two are delightful.  I’m especially pleased with Dallas which I thought would be the ‘bum note’ of the set but I can see myself using this blush-cum-bronzing shade with a light hand.

The texture of all three shades is delightful, lasting power.. impressive and blendability… spot-on.

If you see one of these, pick it up and RUN to the till before it’s gone for good.

Whenever I buy from Boots No7, I feel like I’m taking a bit of a gamble.  Each purchase I make tends to polarise my opinion and I either end up LOVING the product… big LOVE, not just fleeting love (lip liners, exceptional definition mascara, eye mousse) or out and out hating it (most no7 foundations, shower oil).

I just don’t seem to occupy much middle ground where this brand is concerned.  With that in mind, I was curious to see how I’d like the bits I was recently sent from the range.

From left to right – Amazing Eyes Liner in black, Blush tint in 15 Blossom and Stay Perfect lipstick in 45 Tranquil Rose.

Let’s start with the liner…

Not my favourite type of application brush but perfect for thinner lines and precise flicks.  I’m a touch clumsy so generally fare better with felt tip type brushes.  Having said that, the formula is inky black, true and long-lasting.  The brush holds together beautifully to achieve dainty flicks with relative ease.

No7 Amazing Eyes Liquid Eye Liner is priced at £8.75 and available in black or brown online.

Blush sticks are always a temptation for me, they’re so portable and quick to apply.  The No7 Blush Tint in 15 Blossom is no exception, infact… it’s particularly foolproof.  It’s sheer with a non-greasy feel and applies well over both liquid and powder foundation thanks to a non-sticky, powder-finish.  I swipe this across my cheek back and forward about 5 times to build up the intensity before blending the edges with my fingers.

If you struggle with blush I can’t emphasise enough how well I think you’d get on with this product.  I’ve popped this one in my handbag because it gives me a really natural flush that I can touch up without even needing a mirror.  Really delighted with it’s performance.  I’d like to see No7 release this in more shades.

No7 Blush Tint Cream Blush is available online in Rosebud, Blossom and Clove, priced at £10.

Finally, No7 Stay Perfect lipstick in 45 Tranquil Rose.  First impressions are that it isn’t very ‘rose’ like… it’s far more vivid and corally than I’d expect for it’s name.  Second impression was a distinct “Woah!” when I applied and saw how pigmented it was… I ended up reaching for my lip brush to ensure a neat application.  If you go over the lines with this one, you’re gonna notice it!

For a long-lasting lipstick it’s remarkably creamy to apply but it will accentuate signs of lip dryness after a couple of hours.  And how about that wear?  Without eating… I achieved 5 hours of near-perfect wear but with eating… I needed to top up immediately afterward because the colour had still clung so well to the edges, it left a distinct ring!

I’m going to look into the other shades available as I do believe that Cherry might be calling my name!

No7 Stay Perfect Lipstick is available in 16 shades online, priced at £10 each.

Swatches from L-R: Amazing Eyes Liner, Stay Perfect Lipstick in Tranquil Rose and Blush Tint in Blossom.

A quick FOTD featuring the three products reviewed above.  How killer is that lipstick shade?!

Do you have any No7 staples that you return to time and time again?

How much do we hate it when we look down at our fresh manicures to realise that yet again, we’ve managed to daub more polish on our fingers than we got on our nails?

Well, worry no more ‘cos Butter London set the scene at Vena Cava yesterday for a forward-thinking, fabulous faux pas that’s achievable for anyone with a nail brush (and an unsteady hand!)

image stolen borrowed from Nonie Creme’s twitstream here

Check out the finger bands painted by Nonie with some of the bestselling Butter London shades!  Such a fun touch, much cheaper than hunting down the latest high-street jewellery and at around 24hours, probably longer-lasting too 😉

Wanna see my late-night take on the trend?

Shades used: Marrow, Scoundrel and Come to Bed Red!

If you give it a go, make sure you play safe and only use Big 3 Free polishes in the creation of your finger art masterpieces.

I love anything in beauty and fashion that doesn’t take itself too seriously and this daftness reminds me of being at school and tippexing the crap out of myself in an ‘artful’ manner…  and anything that reminds me of those playful days is a win in my book.

What do you think of Butter London’s Vena Cava Finger Bands?

I would love to tell you about this shade, but I’ve drunk 3/4 bottle of really cheap, crap merlot and it’s taken me a good 5 minutes to make this sentence readable.

What’s that Mr. L?  Vogue are onthe phone?  They want to employ me?  Tell them that I charge double for posts this shiteous.

Right, let me put a bit of effort into stopping these letters dancing around the monitor.

Pearly Queen reminds me of everything I wanted OPI Moon over Mumbai to be… but in less coats.  3 coats gives the elegant finish shown above (though 2 will do if you don’t mind a slight VNL)… and it really is elegant and elongating with a pretty satin finish.  My nails feel proper lady-like without being frou frou or bridal.

Pearly Queen is available to buy online from PowderRooms, priced at £9.75

Mineral makeup tends to attract followers of great dedication.  Some people are almost evangelical in their adoration for their swirl, tap, buff methods that they leave my head spinning.  I do count myself as a fan of most mineral foundations, I find them quick and easy whilst leaving behind pretty good skin!

My biggest issue with them would be lasting power (or lack of!)… especially in the Summer and particularly on my nose!

Enter Bare Minerals‘ new Prime Time Brightening Foundation Primer*.  They already have a ‘normal’ primer on the market, this is the new one that promises to deliver an “extraordinarily luminous, healthy-looking glow” to our skins.

It’s a very peachy-looking primer… I was expecting to see the usual, white or cloudy viscose liquid dispense from the pump.  Instead, it’s creamy, sparkly and a little on the orange side!  Eek!

So how does it fare?

Well, the colour blends away into my skintone and doesn’t leave a trace behind… it has a slight silicone slip though not as much as primers like the Smashbox one.

When I buff the foundation into my skin, I can definitely feel a difference in the application… it’s smoother and seems to give a little more glide to the buffing action.  I’d even go so far as to say that I get a better finish than without the primer.

But longevity?  Nuh Uh… I’m not noticing a discernible difference.  Not only that… but the “luminous, healthy-looking glow”?  Well… that’s just a bit of sparkle.  All over mah face.

Look.

See the gold flecks?  They sure are pretty!  But they make me wanna break into Saturday Night Fever.  They’re discoball… albeit subtle discoball once spread out over the face.

In any luminizer, I prefer subtle sheen over glittery particles.  It’s not that the effect isn’t pretty… it is.  It’s just too much for daywear, for me at least.

Little primer. we can’t stay together, I’m sorry.  It’s not you… it’s me.

Bare Minerals Prime Time Brightening Primer is available from this month at Bare Escentuals Boutiques, department stores and selected spas/salons nationwide priced at £19.00.

*Press Sample

Butter London say: Straight from the Fashion Week runways, the butter LONDON Spring/Summer 2011 Collection was inspired by the many colourful “impressionist” style prints that graced catwalks from New York to Paris. Designed by Founding Creative Director Nonie Creme, the new collection is reminiscent of Monet’s palettes, with the inclusion of an opal overcoat that lends ethereal beauty to any shade.

BLAGGER
Colour: Striking cobalt blue.
Definition: A person with a silver tongue; a charlatan.

HEN PARTY
Colour: Sheer opal lacquer that is neutral and stunning alone and on-trend as an edgy overcoat on top of any shade.
Definition: British term for a bachelorette party.

LADY MUCK
Colour: Powdery periwinkle blue, slightly on the grey side and infused with pearl pigment for a soft, sexy sheen.
Definition: A term for an arrogant, conceited woman; a snob.

DOSH
Colour: A molten apple green shot through with metallic gold.
Definition: British slang for money or cash. “Can have a bit of dosh, love?”

TEDDY GIRL
Colour: A pale retro bubblegum pink, featured on the catwalk of a top Brit designer for S/S 2011.
Definition: “Teddy Boys & Girls” was a youth culture movement in Britain typified by teens fighting, drinking, shagging, and fighting some more.

The collection launches around the 1st March and will be available to purchase online from ThePowderRooms and instore at Harvey Nichols.

Last weekend saw VexintheCity and myself wandering the streets of Paris, city of lights and painfully stylish women.  What is it with Parisienne ladies anyway?  Do they teach eyeliner in schools?  I didn’t see a single pair of eyes that hadn’t been expertly rimmed with smudgy black kohl.  It was both refreshing and slightly intimidating.

Here’s some shots from the (very long) day out, starting with the Paris essentials:

A map, we looked at it blankly all day long.

Jaffa Cakes – Don’t attempt the Eurostar at 6.22am without copious amounts of sugar close at hand.

Papped – I swear to God I did not pose for this!  Red lipstick made me feel almost cultured enough to tread the cobbled streets though.

Undeniably Paris!  Napoleon’s rebuild of the great city renders it thoroughly iconic with it’s long, wide Boulevards and grand Avenues!

Ahhh Sephora!  My first ever visit!  This is the one on Champs Élysées, we arrived v. early and as you can see, it wasn’t too busy at all!

Makeup, makeup as far as the eye can see!

Can you believe we sat our bums down on the posh chairs in Ladurée only to be told that we were too early for cake?  Too early… for cake?  So we boycotted all things French and went to McDonalds instead.  No really… we were famished!

As night fell, we indulged in a little of Paris’ notorious cafe culture… I recommend the house Merlot at Café Kléber, though I was a bit squiffy after only two glasses!

As you can probably tell by this photo.

But not this one!  Oooh La la!  Je t’aime La Tour Eiffel!

So what did I buy in the capital of fashion, beauty and all things ladylike?  Not a lot actually.  I’m saving my pennies for this weekend at IMATS but I did pick up a couple of bits…

See?  How restrained was I?

Despite all your fabulous advice and words of temptation, (for which I was immensely grateful and will be relying on when I return later in the year!) I held back and only picked up a Bioderma cleanser (for Mr. L!), a MAC CCB (I know, sacrilege to go to Paris and buy MAC right?) and a Rouge Baiser Lipstick (described as the world’s first ‘kiss-proof’ lipstick!)

Did I do well?  I also played with some MUFE in Sephora and expanded my IMATS wishlist tenfold.  Oops.

Butter London have just announced a new nail polish shade to coincide with the Royal Wedding this year!

“No More Waity, Katie” will be a limited edition shade released late spring, named for the popular tabloid play on Kate Middleton’s perceived patience as she waited for Prince William to pop that all important question!

Described as a greyish/blue glitter infusion, I can’t waity (see what I did there? smooth…) to see how this looks in person.

More information on release dates and potential pre-orders at PowderRooms as and when I have it.

I’ll take any excuse for some new glitter-infused nail polish shades thankyouverymuch!

Due on counter next week (26th January), the new No7 Spring collection includes an array of delicately-hued goodies for the new season.

The collection includes:

Limited Edition Eye Palette – £12.50
Limited Edition Gel Eyeliners, in Navy Blue, Turquoise and Black – £10.50
Limited Edition Lipsticks, in Brigitte (pale pink) and Grace (pale coral) – £10.50
Limited Edition Nail Polish, in Sugar (pale pink) and Spice (pale coral) – £7.50

Lisa Eldridge had this to say about the inspiration behind her latest No7 collection:

“Inspired by St Tropez in the early 1960’s, the birthplace of the glamorous international jet set and Brigitte Bardot, the archetypal sex kitten, this collection focuses attention very much on the eyes – the key items being the three Gel Eyeliners and beautiful Eye Palette. The eye shadow quartet contains the prettiest washes of ‘barely there’ beiges, corals, pinks, shimmering turquoises and sea greens all evocative of the Cote d’Azur. When the strong liners and pretty shadows are combined with the pale pouty lip colours… the look is defnitely more than a little 60’s Riviera starlet.”

I’ll be diving in for a closer look at the Gel Eyeliner in Navy Blue (love a good, deep blue eyeliner!) and lippie in Grace (pale coral).

What will you be making a beeline for?

… collect all the new Nails Inc./Diet Coke promo shades!

I’m actually off Diet Coke at the minute… not out of choice I hasten to add.  This is one of those dietary reasonings *rolls eyes*.

However, I’m not going to let a silly little thing like that stop me from getting my hands on all four of the limited and exclusive Nails Inc. shades!

Each bottle is full size (10ml) and to get your grubby hands on one you need to buy two 500ml bottles of Diet Coke from a participating Boots store (the polishes are usually located on display stands nearby).  The promo started on Wednesday but I haven’t noticed these in my local store yet which makes me think I may have to travel into town to take advantage.

They don’t call me Dora the Explorer for nothing!  Or… actually… at all.

Which one will you be going for first?