A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Like every other woman on the planet, I spent at least some of Christmas Day on the internet.  Before the Queen’s speech had even begun I was frankly bored of my family and wanted to spend some of that glorious Christmas money on some new goodies instead.

I picked up these two books off Amazon after reading a couple of the on-site reviews.

A whole book devoted to eyebrows? *swoon!*

Beautiful Brows by Nancy Parker basically tells you everything you ever needed to know about eyebrows, ever.  You wouldn’t think that there would be *that* much to say yet Ms. Parker manages to fill 128 pages on the subject without too much repetition.

The book covers everything from choosing the right shape for your face, the best tools for the job, how to tweeze like a pro and even advice on selecting the right shades for filling in your perfected brow.  All images are in B&W and look a little dated.  However, good brow shapes tend to be classics and can stand the test of time.

Most of the advice seems pretty solid, though the emphasis is placed on tweezing as the preferred removal method with a slight deviation to cover waxing.  As I cut my teeth on (over) tweezing, this is fine by me though it would have been nice to read a little more detail about other hair removal methods aswell.

Currently priced at £3.87 on Amazon, it’s a good book to have at your disposal and will have you glancing in the mirror to check how your brows adhere to the “beautiful brows” formula!

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Saving the best till last, my second purchase was the well-received Makeup: The Ultimate Guide by Aussie makeup artist Rae Morris.  The book is beautifully illustrated with crisp, striking and realistic photography.  Morris has stated that the step by step images in her book have been left alone by the retoucher’s hand which makes for a refreshing change.  Even in the larger, retouched portfolio images pores are still visible on the model’s skin and fine lines haven’t been obliterated into non-existence.  It serves to give the book an achievable, down to earth feel.

The looks showcased in the book are thankfully all modern and uptodate.  They bridge the gap between editorial and wearable with great skill.  Rae isn’t afraid to demonstrate her love for colour but takes a no-nonsense approach to more classic neutral variations too.

There are whole sections devoted to contouring, foundation, makeup kits, quick looks and probably my favourite; Over 40s.  I love how Rae doesn’t signal the death knell of shimmer and glitter eyeshadows for women over the age of 30.  Instead, she explains how best to incorporate all that fun stuff for a flattering but grown up look.

It’s great to find a resource that can still offer an old makeup bore like me some new tips and tricks to try (Rae swears by mixing Cetaphil and bicarb of soda for an unbeatable exfoliator!) and it’s frankly unusual to find a book that inspires me to try new looks based on the tutorials found within.  I’m completely smitten with the image on page 241, it’s cosmetic perfection, I’d love to show you it… but my camera wasn’t doing it any justice so you’ll have to check it out for yourself in your local bookshop!

Makeup: The Ultimate Guide is currently priced at £10.01 on Amazon and in my opinion, is worth every penny.

Have you read either of these?  What are your favourite beauty books?

Sometimes, only good can come from being very bad.

£24 bad to be precise… but we’ll keep that between us ok?

The lovely Jessica from OutInAPout made me buy this.  I’d also like to blame her for the other shade I picked up aswell but I think that might be pushing my luck a bit.

I look quite washed out in the picture below as it was taken before bed and most of my makeup had long since faded… I had just re-applied the lipstick to take a piccie before heading off to wash my face!

The most Christmassy red on the planet.  Possibly.  On me, it wears like a real jewel-toned red… ruby-esque but without the pink undertones.  Not hugely blue either, which surprised me.

Dragon is stark against my pale skin, it’s not a shade that I’ll be able to wear without drawing attention to my lips which means that they need to be in tip top condition to get away with it!  Despite the liquid lipstick formula of the Chanel Rouge Allure Laques, I don’t find this to be too drying… at least not compared to the high street versions I’ve tried in the past.

It transfers like a bitch mind… I’ve stained about 7 cups already today.  Whatever, I’m not washing up.

Wear is great, mostly thanks to it’s incredible pigmentation rather than formula as it does fade a little faster in the centre for me.  It’s not the most high maintenance lipstick I’ve ever worn… but it’s not effortless either.  Through a work day, I’d need 2 touch ups… that’s not really bad for a red is it?

Application however, was incredibly foolproof.  A few strokes of lipliner for insurance and I was able to apply straight from the wand – marvellously easy!

I love both of the ones that I picked up and want to try more of the Rouge Allure Laque range now… any other recs for me ladies?

Here’s some of your gorgeous selves rocking a festive red lip look!

1. Check out Julie from TheBeautyHooligan who’s totally rocking Revlon Colorburst in True Red!

2. Katie from MyLipsButBetter is looking very lovely in NYX Snow White.

3. Sara from Sarasarebel is making me whimper with jealousy in a red that I want but can’t have.  MAC Port Red to be precise *swoon*.

4. And another lovely Sara!  Who is looking fabulously festive in Rimmel’s Red Fever – thanks lovely!

5. Last but not least, Krystal is showing us her favourite drugstore red: Revlon’s Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wine With Everything.

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For someone who’s scared of bronzers… I own a few.  I’ve also ditched many more.  The ones that I’ve kept work for me, though not without effort.  This isn’t a fault of the products… it’s my unconfidence with application and with wear.

The ones that I’m showing you are my current favourites based on their tone.  With my (admittedly) untrained eye… they all complement cool-toned skin.  I should also point out that I’m not talking bronzer for contouring – these are all the products I use to mostly just warm up my complexion and give it a sunkissed look.

Swatched in the same order from left to right (note that swatches are to show tone, not intensity… some are VERY heavily swatched):

1. Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder in Maui (£23.50)

Is it a blush, is it a bronzer?  Well… it looks a bit like a blush but if Bobbi says it’s a bronzer, who the hell am I to argue?  Maui is a warm pink shimmer that’s shot through with golden sparkle.  It’s an incredibly easy-to-use bronzer because it never looks muddy and on the rare ocassion that I actually do catch a bit of genuine sunlight… it’s much closer to how my skin would naturally colour than the more traditional golden browns available.

2. NARS Blush in Douceur L.E. (£19.50)*

Being a limited edition item <–ignore, am stoopid – it’s not Limited Edition!  I wasn’t going to include this one.  But it’s still available online at HQHair… so I figured it couldn’t hurt?  Now… this is a blush (if I’m not gonna argue with Bobbi, I’m certainly gonna agree with Francois!) but on my skintone, this matte blush works very nicely as a light pink/brown bronzer.  Although it looks dark in the pan, it’s the 2nd sheerest that I’m showing you.  Even I can’t mess this one up.  Just perfect.

3. Becca Pressed Shimmer Powder in Princess (£30)

Again, not a bronzer per se, Becca’s PSP in Princess is just lovely.  It’s shimmery but not AT ALL glittery… it’s very well behaved and grown up about things.  Smooth in texture, it imparts a subtle sun-kissed glow to my cheeks that is never overcooked.  Pricey, but worth it.

4. Illamasqua Powder Blusher in Rumour (£16)

If there were one black sheep in the set, this would be it (being Illamasqua, it had to be the naughty one didn’t it?)  The tone is perfect – devoid of any orange… and being so matte, it makes the best contour shade I own.  The problem is, that’s not saying a lot because it’s the ‘only’ contour shade I own.  I find Rumour a little hard to work with due to it’s heavy pigmentation and it can end up looking a bit muddy.  I want to love it and I feel that it’s my inexperience that stops me rather than the product itself.  Any tips for this one ladies?

5.Guerlain Terracotta Bronzing Powder in Blondes (£31.50)

Finally, a classic.  The sheerest of the lot (and the most expensive!)  Blondes is the lightest of the three shimmery bronzer options from Guerlain.  I also own the lightest in the matte version but reach for this one more often.  I would defy anyone to overdo this… it’s a must-have for pale skintones.

Other honourable mentions: Bobbi Brown Antigua, Bobbi Brown Bali Brown, The Body Shop Warm Glow, Guerlain Terracotta 01 (matte)

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I know that all my bronzers are at the higher-end of the price spectrum… but experience has shown me that if I want to rid myself of orange-toned monstrosities, this is where I have to look.  Please do comment and let me know if things have improved in that respect on the high street because I’ll be one of the first out the door to go check out a bargain alternative!

What are some of your favourite bronzers?

* denotes PR sample.

I was given this by PR a few months ago and from first use, I wanted to jump on here and exclaim my love for it… but I didn’t.  I’ve spent good money on glass nail files before, fallen in love with them and then watched them become ineffective after a month or so.

Leighton Denny’s Crystal Nail File is different.  It’s made from lead crystal that’s been treated to create a filing surface that is literally guaranteed to last a lifetime (the guarantee is in the box!).

This is the 135mm ‘model’ that comes in an aluminium case and I really recommend getting one that comes protected like this.  Whilst the filing surface should last indefinitely, they’re still delicate tools and prone to breakage if dropped or carried around in handbags.

I finally felt the push to bite the bullet and upload this review for one particular reason…

I developed a horizontal split in my thumbnail after dropping something very heavy on it a month ago… it reaches very nearly halfway across the nail bed and I’ve been nursing it in the hope that I can keep the nail intact until it grows out.  With a fragile nail like this, I didn’t think I would be able to go near it with a nail file… but I was wrong.  The Leighton Denny Crystal Nail File is so gentle that I can carry on like nothing has happened.

The file glides, it never catches… it turns the nail to dust right before my eyes and I’d liken it to a hot knife slicing through butter.  It’s like kryptonite to the ragged edges of my nails.

At £12, it’s one of those purchases that you wouldn’t appreciate until you started using it.  I wouldn’t be without mine and when Leila got hold of it a couple of days ago, I panicked… turning into a jump negotiator as she waved the crystal wand around in her chubby little hands (perilously close to the table edge).

“Come to Mama lovely… want a chocolate?  No… don’t swing your arms baby… one more step… *grab*”

I’m completely in love with this Crystal Nail File and would happily rate it as a beauty must-have.

Leighton Denny’s Small Crystal Nail File is available online and instore at Boots (priced at an even more bargainous £11!)

What do you use to file your nails?

First and foremost… this ain’t my find!  The delightful Virtues of Beauty told me to try this out when I asked for some brow gel recommendations on Twitter.

I hate the normal Great Lash mascara.  Hate. It.  This stuff though?  It’s good!  Especially for the money (I paid £2.99 on eBay).

I’ve been using it to hold my CURLY (yes, curly – thanks gene pool) eyebrows in place now that I’ve finally decided that I should pay them more attention.  There’s not a huge amount to say about this product except that it works.

The bristles do a good job of combing through and coating the hairs.  I’m not keen on how long this stuff takes to dry and for that reason, it means that I have to make using this… the very last step in my makeup routine.  I’d say that it takes a good 3/4 minutes to dry fully.  Until then, you have wet brows.

Once it has dried… it thankfully doesn’t leave my eyebrows crusty.  Just sets them nicely in place and stops me looking like Dennis Healy‘s lovechild.

What do you use to keep your brows in place?

Gosh, has it really been nearly a week since I did a Red Lips day?  Time is currently moving far too quickly… that’s what happens when you still have a Christmas tree to put up.

Day 5 is one of Clarins’ new Rouge Prodige long-lasting lipsticks in Fusion Red.  If you don’t like your products to be scented… steer clear of this range as that tell-tale lipstick smell has been heavily masked with a lovely (if a bit strong) scent of fig.

Fusion Red is a glossy creme with a texture that grips.  It has a little less slip during application because of this and takes me longer to apply with a brush than some of the other reds I own but once it’s on, you can wear with the confidence that only a long-lasting lipstick brings.

On me, Fusion Red lasted a good 6 hours before fading but when it did eventually begin to fade, It lost colour in the centre first leaving me that tell tale red ring.  It wasn’t too apparent thanks to filling in with my lip liner but still…

Having said that, I had less teeth transfer issues with Fusion Red than with any other.  Is there anything worse than smiling seductively at yourself in the mirror only to notice that it looks like you’ve been chowing down on a couple of wild gazelles during your lunchbreak?

Clarins Fusion Red (£16) is a good, solid… long-lasting choice that is particularly unfussy but does need to be kept nearby for a quick touch up when it eventually fades.

As requested, here’s a shot showing how Urban Decay’s soon-to-be-released Afterglow Cheek Tint in Quickie (the hot pink one) looks on my skin.

I’ve also applied it to my lips in the above picture.  Excuse the post threading forehead blotchiness.

I don’t like Quickie worn on the lips as much as Greedy which was infinitely more flattering and didn’t pale down my lips so much.

Both cheek tints are sheer but buildable.  To remind yourself about them, read my post on them here.

Hope you’re having a lovely weekend xx

I’ve always thought that The Body Shop Golden Pink blush (04) was considered as a reasonable dupe for NARS Orgasm?  But when I swatched the two… they were quite different.  TBS’ Golden Pink seemed a darker and far more intense.

Then I dug out my NARS Deep Throat blush and got a much better match!

What d’ya reckon ladies?  Dupe or Poop?

I was a bit naughty… I bought my first red for the series.  I’ve been wanting an RMK lippie for ages and you know what it’s like when you want something… any old excuse right?

I’m very pleased I did buy it though!

RMK Irresistible Lips in 29 Red is a vibrant, slightly pink red.  I actually expected it to be a little sheerer than it is… I’m used to Asian lipsticks coming out less pigmented but this is a cracker and a really balanced lipstick in terms of texture being neither too matte nor too glossy.

One swipe (as with most lipsticks) will give an uneven finish but if I blend the colour with my finger I get one of the best deep pink/red lip stains I’ve worn.   A couple more swipes and you get a finish as in the photo above.

I find pink/reds quite hard to wear as they often clash with my skintone… they have to be spot on or they just look “off”.  This one is pretty good, it’s neither too guava nor raspberry leaning… neutral.

RMK Irresistible Lips also gave me great wear and faded evenly after a few hours…. because it wasn’t completely matte, I was also able to smoosh my lips together to replenish the colour a couple of times before reapplying.

RMK Irresistible Lips in 29 Red (£15) is available to purchase online from LookFantastic

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If anyone wants to join me on my red lip crusade, please email me a photo of your lovely selves rocking your favourite red lip – I’d love to post a collage with your photos!

Please keep your photos coming in – perhaps we can inspire one other to carry on rocking the reds over Christmas!

I’m a little bit excited to be showing you these today.  I love Urban Decay, I love Blushes and I love cream blushes most of all…

They come packaged in Urban Decay’s signature purple acrylic emblazoned with a silver serpent… for sizing, they’re a hint smaller than a MAC blush… identical to a TopShop cream blush if you have one to compare.  Each pot contains 4g of product which is about standard when compared to Illamasqua, TopShop, Stila… but less than the generous 6g that MAC provides with their blushcremes.

I have two shades that I was sent to show you today:

Quickie is a vibrant, bubblegum pink that leans to the cool side.  Greedy is a plum/grape shade that is also ideal for cooler skin tones.

The first thing I noticed about these cheek tints are the vibrancy.  Both look rather intimidating in the pan, particularly Greedy which is an almost blackened grape shade.

The texture is interesting, there is a huge amount of slip and neither have that creme-to-powder feeling that you often get with cream blushes.

Quickie is shown on the left, Greedy on the right.

The best way that I can describe these is as having Illamasqua’s slip… but with Tarte’s gel-like consistency.  Another comparison would be to NARS Limited Edition multiple sticks they came out with this summer… especially in terms of the sheer, glowy finish these provide.

All in all, it’s a winning combination in terms of blending.  I would happily state that these are the easiest-to-apply cream blushes (sorry, cheek tints) that I’ve used.  They move around on the skin beautifully and don’t muddy or fade during blending.  The obvious downside to this is that they take a while to ‘set’ and until they have, they will transfer onto clothing etc if you’re not careful.

These can also be used on the lips… the texture lends itself to this well.  Feeling more like a balm when you apply, I didn’t experience any dragging or particular dryness though it’s still worth making sure that your lips are well exfoliated beforehand.  Again though, because of the extra slip… I didn’t find them particularly long-lasting when worn this way.

Out of the two shades I was sent, Quickie is punchier and more pigmented.. the above swatch shows two swipes of the shade.  Greedy is sheerer and the above swatch shows a good 4 swipes to achieve that pigmentation.  Not really a bad thing to be honest considering how intense the shade is… it would be easy to go overboard were it more pigmented I feel.

I thought it might be useful to see Greedy applied… out of the two, it’s my favourite but one that I would have probably overlooked simply because of how it appears in the pan.

Greedy gives one of those natural winter flushes of colour to my skin and also looks lovely worn on the lips (shown above).  I wanted to make sure the colour would show on camera so I’ve applied more heavily than I would normally.

I’d recommend these Urban Decay Afterglow Cheek Tints to anyone but particularly if you struggle with getting blush to look natural.  You have to work quite hard to overdo these (though I’m sure that some of us will still manage!)

I’d also say that these would be particularly suited to those of us with older or drier skin, if you’re quite oily… you may fare better with a cream-to-powder formula for increased longevity.  Alternatively, you could always powder over the top of these to ensure a good ‘set’ that will last you throughout the day.

If you’re looking for beautifully silky, thin banded, flexible lashes…. you should close this page.

If you’re looking for robust, striking, shockingly cheap lashes that you can use to fine tune and hone your lash applying skillz, read on!

What? I told you they were cheap…

I decided about a month ago that I wanted to learn how to apply false lashes (as you do) and so I started buying up pairs of Ardells that I found in T.K. Maxx.  Lovely lashes they are indeed but at £2.99 a pop – not the best for a n00b who doesn’t know how to apply OR (more importantly in terms of lash preservation) remove the damn things without destroying them.

I went through 6 pairs before I decided that what I needed was the eyelash equivalent of a WWII Nazi Panzer tank.  Something that would withstand my ham-fisted attempts at elongating my own lashline.

Enter these false eyelashes from eBay seller GlamLabel.  The seller, based in HongKong dispatched immediately… but unfortunately the post is painfully slow from the far east at the moment, so they took over a month to arrive.  Not the seller’s fault… but something to be aware of if you thought you’d be able to buy them in time for the New Year.

You get 20 pairs in two sets of 10 pairs each.  One is a more natural “day” lash, whilst the other is more dramatic and appropriate for going out.  The lashes feel plasticky… they’re quite coarse and need softening up before wear.  To do this, I spend five minutes flexing them which works well to loosen up the band and make them easier to apply.

Application was actually a bit of a doddle… I genuinely believe that this is down to the fact that they aren’t as soft, fluffy or good quality as more premium brands.  They didn’t flop about as I was trying to apply the glue and they didn’t buckle under the pressure of my sausage fingers trying to smoosh them about on my eyelid to get them in the right place.

See that crappy dangly end?  Yeah… chop that.  Infact, because the band is thicker and the lashes heavier than good quality ones, I chopped them about 3 lashes from the outer edge to make the band a good bit shorter.  I didn’t want them stabbing me in the outer corner of my eye.

What d’ya think?  As always with false lash photos, they’re far more obvious looking in the photo than they are in real life.

I can feel them while I’m wearing them though not enough to be irritating and to be fair, I could feel the Ardells too…

Ignore the funky brows… at the time of taking this photo they were still a “work in progress”.

This set of 20 lashes cost me the same as one pair of reduced Ardell lashes… until I’m a false lash maestro, I know where I’ll be spending my money!

Do you buy cheap false lashes or do you only invest in quality?