A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Paese Cosmetics is a Polish cosmetics brand new to the UK market.  Currently only available online from http://paesecosmetics.com, the brand encompasses a wide selection of products from primers through to nail polishes and most things inbetween.

Paese Cosmetics’ price point aligns it with the drugstore market, infact… slightly cheaper.  A foundation will set you back just under £10.

I was sent some samples to put to the test, read on for images and my thoughts on the base products I received.

Read the rest of this entry »

I’m a sucker for cream blush.  Complete and utter sucker.  I love the dewy finish they tend to give and feel more confident in my application and blending than I do with powders.

Which led me to this little purchase…

Blushed Rose #3 is described as a brown pink… it’s definitely a little more brown than pink to my eye.  I think I’d describe it as a pink brown. I know, I know… I’m totally splitting hairs but that description just seems to fit better!

Not very pink is it?

I’ll be honest… I was really dubious about how this would work.  Multi-tasking products are up against it at the best of times.  They promise a lot and often deliver very little , I wasn’t sure how a lip product could successfully double as a cheek product and vice versa.

Still not very pink.

Well… my verdict on Bobbi Brown’s Pot Rouge for Lips and Cheeks?  It’s… ok.

It doesn’t rock my world and it’s not the innovation I was looking for.

I find it a little drying on my lips and a touch too sticky on my cheeks.  Not horrendously so (in either case) but it’s not faultless.  I also feel that once blended, it’s a touch too sheer as a blush.

At £16.50 I do feel that it’s fairly good value… but it’s just not for me.

Have any products disappointed you recently?

When I read on the Perricone MD website that Cold Plasma was “A New Paradigm in Scientific Skincare” – I succumbed to the realisation that I didn’t have a clue what paradigm meant.  I suspected that I might need a degree in something better than Media and Cultural Studies to be able to use that word in company without much sniggering.

I went to Wikipedia to try and make sense of it, but came away even more confused.  Something about exemplars apparently…. so then I got out my dictionary to look up exemplars (whilst wondering how long all this was going to take and couldn’t they have just used the word “breakthrough” instead).  And then I struck gold, the penny dropped, the lightbulb flicked on and I ‘got it’.  It just means something that’s so brilliant, someone else is bound to half-inch the idea soon.

If you all knew exactly what it meant anyway… congrats, you just wasted about a minute of your life reading this.

So anyway, on with the product!

Perricone MD are well-known for their ultra-pricey, ultra-scientific skincare.  They’re like the Hell-Fire club of skincare but without the sex, whips and debauchery.  A pot of Cold Plasma will set you back 120 of your British pounds… that’s a lot of money for 30mls of something that smells like the inside of a fishbowl.

Which is why it was given to me earlier in the year at a PR event… I don’t have the kind of money to drop £120 on a cream that I’ve never sampled before in the hope that it will turn me into Bieber’s younger and more fresh-faced sister.

But that’s also why I was determined to see the pot through to the bitter end and not take this review too lightly.  People out there WILL spend that kind of money because they like to have the best of the best and sometimes, the best don’t come cheap.

I started using Perricone MD’s Cold Plasma around April/May.  The gel texture is cooling, refreshing and beautifully light.  It sinks in leaving me with velvet-soft skin and an almost instantly smoother complexion.  Sadly, this effect never lasted till morning or else I’d be commanding you all to go buy, buy, BUY!  The scent (which has been commented on many times before) is fishy.  Not fish and chips fishy, or harbour-side fishy but aquarium fishy.  There’s a difference…   Have you ever walked into a pet shop?  It doesn’t smell of cats and dogs does it?  It just smells… like a pet shop.  Well, this smells to me like a fish tank, are we clear on this completely unimportant distinction?!

Everytime I used it… I was like “ooooh, there goes £1”, which is quite off-putting when I kept losing about 20p worth under my nails.  Have I mentioned how much I dislike my products packaged in jars?  Squeezy tubes all the way please!

But anyway… I did it!  I reached the bottom of the jar at the beginning of August, which actually means that although I can’t describe this with a straight face as being “value for money” – this stuff did last me a hella long time!  I think because it spread so well over my skin, I really only needed to use a v. small amount each time.  I should downsize that £1 theory.

So, would I actually go and spend £120 on this to repurchase?

Um… no.

Despite it being a thoroughly lovely treat, I just didn’t see enough overall difference in my skin to warrant that kind of purchase.

I mean… Cold Plasma is promoted as helping to combat the 10 signs of aging, which include:

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And I just can’t say that I experienced long-lasting differences to these areas.  Yes, for a few hours my skin felt: smoother, softer and I also think it made my pores appear smaller.  But that effect would only last me through to lunch-time and I’m not even 100% positive that I wasn’t looking EXTREMELY hard to notice these things.

I am skeptical about all things claiming to work miracles but goodness me would I have sung the praises of this concoction from the rooves of the blogosphere if it had delivered.  For me, it delivered around £40 worth of good skin.  And that’s the most I’d give you for it.

Estee Lauder’s Sensuous Noir is the original’s sexier, sassier and more mature sister… it was released this Summer as a rich, seductive and ‘after dark’ version of the already popular Sensuous.

After reading that description, I was expecting something heady, dark and sophisticated… and it very nearly is.

I received my bottle from the press officers at EL after attending their Christmas Launch (of which I’ll have more detail on v. soon!).

First, let’s take a look at the packgaing because we all know how influential the bottle can be.  Who wants an ugly bottle on their dressing table right?

The bottle (lightened here by the fact that I photographed it in the window!) is basically the same design as the original fragrance except that it’s been vamped up with a midnight blue colour change.  It’s simple… nothing extravagant or particularly memorable but the ripples make it quite tactile and nice to hold.

The embossed lid is a nice touch but I found it quite hard to remove, I had to clutch the bottle to my chest and really pull to expose the spray nozzle.

The scent is initially as heady as I expected.  With my amateur nose, I can detect a spice that seems almost oriental and immediately disappointed me.  So many ‘night-time’ versions of day-time scents fall back on the old oriental/vanilla trick that I was worried this would be heading in the same direction.

But then the patchouli hit me squarely on the nose!  I’m not usually a fan of patchouli-heavy scents, but this one isn’t really earthy at all.  It’s much woodier, fresher… cleaner.

If I had to describe this in the shortest way possible… I’d describe it as a perfect Autumnal mid-evening scent.  It has notes of Amber which always remind me of Autumn and when mixed with the spice, vanilla and patchouli – I can almost taste the crisp, cool evenings.

After an hour of wear, the Amber really takes over and it becomes a far softer, more feminine affair without being too powdery.  I think that this is where it excels.  On my skin, those lovely, soft and hugely feminine tones linger for hours.  I would reach for this whenever I wanted to simply smell great without attracting too much attention to the perfume.

It’s not a “knock your socks off” sexy, “sensuous” fragrance by any stretch of the imagination, it’s just not exciting enough for me… but that won’t stop it from having broad mass-market appeal.

Estee Lauder Sensuous Noir is available on counter and online now, priced at £32 for 30ml.

So, the other day/week/month…. whenever it was (they’re blurring)… I told you about the new Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliners that I’d had a look at during the Avon Christmas collex launch.   I also told you about not being able to remove them with plain ol’ soap and water which resulted in me looking a bit grubby while I was on an overnighter in London.

I thought I’d compare it a little more closely to some of the other eyeliners I have in my stash that are generally well-regarded throughout the blogging community… so without further ado…

It’s got that fancy-schmancy luxe lace packaging going on… I’ve noticed that these eyeliners have currently disappeared from the website, so I’m guessing that’s ‘cos they’re about to be relaunched in the new packaging for Xmas.

Not retractable or any of that jazz, just your standard-looking eye pencil!

The black is VERY black.  Pigmented to the max and easily the softest eye pencil I own.  I barely need to touch this to my eyelid to create a defined and solid line.  Can you say impressive?  As with most soft/glidey eyeliners, it does mean that this needs more frequent sharpening than it’s counterparts… but your poor sensitive eyelids will thank you for the drag-free application.

Here’s 4 of some of the most highly regarded pencil eyeliners available.  I think you might be able to clearly pick out which packs the biggest punch in terms of pigmentation no?  The above artistic squiggles show one swipe each.

How about lasting power?  I swiped MULTIPLE times over my entire hand with a wet wipe…

Urban Decay… as much as I love you… you fail.

GOSH?  Close… but no cigar.

MUFE performed slightly better than Avon in the longwear test (conducted whilst I was wearing something that looked nothing like an official lab coat – probably my pyjamas) but the pigmentation just wasn’t there to begin with.

So… finally… how about a price comparison?

MUFE – £11.50
Avon – £6.00
GOSH – £4.99
Urban Decay – £11.50

There are a few other factors to take into consideration.  Of all ranges, Avon has the least shades available… I think there are only around 3 or 4, so great coloured eyeliners will still have to be sought elsewhere…

…But if you’re looking for a fabulously pigmented, long-lasting black eyeliner that won’t break the bank.  Better make friends with your local Avon lady (or yano, do the modern thang and head here).

ETA:

I received a sample of the Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliner in Silver as a few of you requested swatches… here are the pictures.  I really do recommend these liners without hesitation.

As beauty addicts, how many times have we done that huh?  I’ll tell you how many… too bloody many.

Not only that, but let’s not forget that when in the UK, you’ve got more chance of finding genuine MAC on eBay than you have being able to return your purchases… these mistakes can really add up.

So, you can imagine my utter deflation when my NARS #12 Small Domed Eye brush turned up and wasn’t quite what I was hoping for.  I mean, I know that it’s called ‘small’… but I didn’t expect the head to be quite SO small.  My fault entirely.

But then I used it and I fell in love.

The NARS blurb on the website reads… Squirrel hair for definition and for creating depth in the crease of the eye.

I say… If you have hooded eyelids, get this brush.

(excuse the eyeshadow dust – it needs cleaning!)

The NARS #12 Small Domed Eye Brush is incredibly soft.  I find some NARS brushes a little scratchy for their price… but this one is a winner.  It’s densely packed and firm enough to do more than just place the colour.  This little beauty is a master blender to apply defined but soft crease colours.

Hai!  My name’s dopey.

Ignoring my moronic eye-expression (and need for a one-on-one with my tweezers) for a moment… can you see how perfectly the brush fits under that hood?  I don’t have the most hooded eyelids in the world, but they are a pain for muddying colour when the upper part droops onto the lid itself.  If I’m wearing a v. dark crease colour, I need to be precise and I need to focus it in the outer corner and just in the actual crease itself because of that reason.  With this brush I can do this.

Why not just use a pencil brush or a small eye contour brush then?  Because I’m crap at makeup in general and those kinda brushes always encourage me to be too heavy handed.  With the NARS #12 brush, I can do gentle windshield wiper movements along the crease contour (whilst keeping my eyes half open) and achieve a soft, smoky but perfectly defined dark crease.

At £22.00 (for such a teeny little brush) my initial disappointment almost resulted in a mild strop but now?  I’m considering a backup.

Which NARS brushes do you rate most highly?

For Autumn/Winter, L’Oreal have released some new shades to join their Color Riche Boosting Serum Lipsticks lineup.  Titled the “Nude Collection”, the four new shades are (as you would expect) wearable and flattering for most skintones.

Marketed as “having the power of a serum at it’s heart (with) powerful active indredients… …to restore moisture and definition to the lips” and boasting some pretty good ingredients to back up these claims.  Among these ingredients, I was pleased to see Hyaluronic Acid listed and had a quick google on another ingredient “Pro-Xylane”… which appears to have originally been developed by Lancome back in 2006 and is used in many of L’Oreal’s more expensive anti-aging facial products.

On paper, if there’s one thing these lipsticks should achieve… it’s a non-drying formula.

I have to say, I’m not a fan of the packaging.  Yes, it’s useful to be able to see the exact shade of the lipstick by looking through the little window… but these feel cheap.  They’re very lightweight, overwhelmingly plasticky and they damage easily.  I spent an afternoon with one of them in my handbag and as you can see from the below photo, the casing is already starting to show wear and tear (lipstick on the left).

I guess the overall design is pleasing, but the materials used are a let down.

While I’m discussing what I dislike… I’m also going to mention the scent.  For me, it’s not appealing… the lipsticks are quite heavily violet-scented and it just conjures up the old lady lipstick smell.  Something a little fresher or unscented would have been preferable.  Thankfully, the scent doesn’t linger too long once applied, but it’s a point to note.

I was sent two of the new shades shown above by L’Oreal: S106 – Freshly Rosy and S204 Beamy Plum

Of the two, Freshly Rosy is paler and a little frostier whilst Beamy Plum applies creamier whilst still carrying a sheen.

That different coloured core is cute right?

Both apply like a dream.  They’re smooth and glide on with no effort at all.  Pigmentation is best with Beamy Plum but buildable for both lipsticks.  They don’t stick to any dry patches on my lips and neither do they accentuate the furrows and grooves.  So far, so good!

Hand swatches…

For my colouring, I was expecting to prefer Freshly Rosy… but my lips must be more pigmented than I thought as I struggled to cover my natural pigmentation with this shade.  I got there eventually, but it took a few swipes from the tube to do it.

You can see that they’re both completely wearable for fair skin tones and have a glossy appearance.  Despite how moisturising these are, they don’t feel at all sticky or thick on the lips.

In context… (please excuse the pyjamas *blush*)

Beamy Plum is a great choice for those of us who want to indulge in slightly darker lips for A/W but are scared of vamping it up too much.  In other words, if you’re a bit of a wimp like me… you need to try this shade!

The lipsticks lasted fairly well throughout the morning, both could have benefited from a touch up after my mid-morning coffee but neither *really* needed it.  After my soup though?  Forget about it… they were gone!  To be fair, I fully expected this considering how moisturising I found the formula.

Pros: Moisturising Formula, Wearable Shades, Smooth Finish, Easy to Apply

Cons: Violet Scent, Cheap Packaging

L’Oreal Paris Color Riche Boosting Serum Lipsticks are priced at £8.49 each and the Nude Collection will be available from this month onwards.

I like these Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzers… they’re lovely for fair skin types who quite like the idea of bronzers but just don’t really know how to make them work.

I own a few…

Antigua, Maui and now Bali Brown.

In hindsight, I should have probably gone one stop paler and plumped for Aruba, but never mind… I like a challenge!

Bali Brown is a golden bronze that stops short of looking dirty on my skintone.  It is a much warmer bronzing shade than I’d normally dare to reach for, but with a light hand it warms up my complexion without looking too bronzy!

It contains a fairly subtle sparkle, so as with my other Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzers.. I wouldn’t use this as a contour shade.  We aren’t even close to disco cheeks territory though… this is safe to use with a little bit of reckless abandon.  A little bit, I said.

I’ve just had a thought… is it ok to wear bronzer in the Winter?  I’m one of those people that need a hint of colour on their cheeks to avoid that “freshly dug up” look.  Will I be commiting some kind of cosmetic faux pas dusting this on my cheeks once the clocks go back?!

I mean… I just freakin’ spent £23.50 on it, so I’m gonna rock it through wind, rain and snow regardless.  I just won’t tell anyone when I’m doing it 😉

Do you bronze regardless of the changing seasons?

It was the the Body Shop Summer Baked to Last bronzers that caught my eye in store before anything else when they were released at the start of the Summer.  They have that whole MAC MSF thing going on don’t they?  We were introduced to them more closely at a blogger event in the Summer…

Priced At £14 each, one could easily argue that they are aimed at the same kind of market as MAC.  So let’s see how they shape up shall we?

Warm Glow – £14

Warm Glow is the paler of the two shades and despite it’s name, isn’t actually too warm at all.  A hint of pinkness mixed in with the warmer brown tones keeps this from being too orange.

Well pigmented with a fine shimmer, the above shows a heavy swatch on the inside of my wrist.  You can see that I have to work quite lightly with this bronzer but to be honest… that’s the case for 99.9% of all bronzers I use anyway!

What I really like about this product is that unlike the MAC MSFs I’ve tried in the past, this doesn’t give my face any kind of metallic sheen.  The shimmer adds a glow without being too obvious.  I wouldn’t use this to contour, I prefer to use matte shades for that… but dusted lightly onto the cheeks?  It’s a really nice warm (without being too warm) bronzer.

Love it!

Golden Bronze – £14

A far deeper affair than Warm Glow.  Golden Bronze is clearly more suited to darker skintones or those looking for a more dramatic effect.

I found the texture of Golden Bronze to be a tiny bit harder than Warm Glow, it didn’t swatch quite as smoothly either.  You can see that I would struggle to use this shade as anything other than an eyeshadow but again, it benefits from a lovely sheen that isn’t too obvious.

Overall, I was impressed with both of these samples I was given and it’s not very often that I’ll say that a Body Shop makeup item is worth the asking price.  I ‘get’ why it’s more expensive than other high street offerings… products produced from ethically sourced base ingredients often are.  But judged purely on it’s quality as a cosmetic product?  These are worth the asking price.

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Also, isn’t it soon that The Body Shop start discounting their Summer cosmetics online?  Keep an eye out ladies because I see that the Autumn blushes are out online (and looking flippin’ gorgeous!)

You can purchase the Baked to last Bronzers online or instore priced at £14 each.

Ohhhh, I dunno… it’s all a bit macho innit… cheesy 90s machismo.

Maybe it’s the bottle, maybe it’s the whole locker room sport scent thing…

They say

[stextbox id=”custom” bcolor=”b0c4de” bgcolor=”e6e6fa”]Davidoff’s latest men’s fragrance Champion will trigger in men a desire to develop the latent potential within them. That deep, fundamental instinct for victory and power. Davidoff Champion is about the daily ritual of taking the time to build physical and mental strength. To become a champion.[/stextbox]

I say

I’m not a snob (well, alright… I am) but it’s a bit mainstream isn’t it?  I hate this just as much as I’d hate a stiletto shaped bottle of scent (there must be one out there?).  I know, I know… look past the packaging… but I’m struggling.

Having said that, I think the packaging will probably tempt just as many men as it puts off… I can see this on the Christmas wish list of many 16yr olds.

As for the scent?

Well… it’s not my favourite and it does border slightly on the generic fresh scent for “manly” men… but… it just about dodges the bullet.

Davidoff Champion has a nice citrusy kick that although never really fades enough to reveal anything beyond this, is almost pleasant enough on it’s own.  Staying power is pretty good too… I just wish it were a bit more complex.  This ain’t gonna beat Marc Jacobs Bang as men’s scent of the season, that’s for certain!

Having said that, I’m strangely addicted to the ad… *shrugs*

Davidoff Champion is available in 50ml & 90ml EDT and priced at £35.50/£43.50 respectively.

Until next year, Decleor’s new Aroma Cleanse is a QVC exclusive and claims to leave your skin feeling fresh, cleansed and hydrated.

I’ve been putting a PR sample to the test over the last month…

You only need to use a tiny amount and the pump action nozzle is quite frustrating when judging how hard to de-press in order to dispense a small amount.  Answer, about a 1/3 of the way… and this isn’t always possible!

The product does indeed foam up quickly and spreads smoothly over the skin… it smells pleasant and washes away leaving my skin feeling squeaky clean.  A little too squeaky clean for my normal/dry complexion.

I struggle with this cleanser… after use I develop an immediate and uncomfortable tightness that demands moisture.  After a few days… I notice dry patches along the tops of my cheekbones that extend into the undereye area.  This is simply too stripping for my skin.

I also take issue at the cleanser’s claims that it can be used to remove eye makeup.  I have tried it twice and I wouldn’t wish a third attempt on my worst enemy.  If even a small amount of the Decleor Aroma Cleanse enters my eye… the pain leaves me unable to open my eye properly without it streaming until it passes around 10 minutes later.  I don’t even have sensitive eyes!

I’ll be interested to discover how folks with oilier skins fare with the Aroma Cleanse… it certainly leaves your face feeling clean!

Priced at £24.56, I’m disappointed by this cleanser.  Generally a fan of Decleor (I love their night balms!), this hasn’t lived up to the high expectations I had for it.

The day that I get my concealer application down to a fine art is the day that I go ALL out on tinted moisturisers.  I love the more natural finish, but hate compromising on coverage.

Arbonne are quite new to me and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the products I’ve tried.  I’ll probably never feel comfortable with the way in which you need to purchase the products through consultants but that’s just because I’m an old fashioned girl who’d much rather be able to pick up her makeup whilst out shopping!

I received a sample of Arbonne’s Sheer Finish Tinted Moisturiser in Fair.  Arbonne offer an impressive 6 shades within their tinted moisturiser range.  I’m used to seeing Light, Medium and Dark… so such a wide selection caught my attention early on.

Packaging is SLEEK!  I know they’ve recently revamped their entire cosmetics line and the dirty pewter finish is lovely!

The texture of the tinted moisturiser is quite fluid… which makes it easy to spread and blend, there’s plenty of slip which makes for quite a fool-proof application.  It’s definitely more like applying a moisturiser than applying a foundation.

It’s a dewy finish that would benefit from a little powder over areas that are prone to shine.  I usually powder my nose, chin and forehead after applying this.  It evens out my skintone nicely but doesn’t provide any coverage for blemishes.  It also doesn’t completely cover redness, but as a tinted moisturiser, it probably isn’t meant to.

It moisturises well (something that most tinted moisturisers actually fail to do!) but the flipside to this is that it leaves my skin feeling slightly tacky to the touch, another reason to set with powder.

At £24 for 50ml, this is high end.  Not as expensive as Laura Mercier’s cult offering or Bobbi Brown’s tinted balm, but more expensive than many high street alternatives including Clinique’s Almost Makeup (which I love for the winter).

Longevity is good, it does slip around my nose by mid-afternoon… but that’s where I’m at my most oily and I don’t use any kind of mattifying products in this area.

Final Verdict – If you’re looking for a sheer tinted moisturiser in a wide variety of shade choices, Arbonne’s Sheer Finish Tinted Moisturiser may be for you.  If you’re prone to oily skin or don’t need so much moisturisation… consider other options first.