Fifties Make-up

 

This is what I put on for my 50's themed party...

Eye: Maybelline nude and Body Shop shimmery light gold coloured eyeshadow, MAC Black Fluidline eyeliner, Maybelline discontinued mascara.

Face: Bare Minerals Primer, MAC mineralize foundation, Bare Minerals spf 15 foundation, Nars Orgasm Blusher.

Lips: MAC Brick Lipliner, MAC Russian Red Matte Lipstick.

Hair: Pin curls worn overnight.

Red

On a Saturday I am usually the first to wake up so I thought I'd take the opportunity with no one about to paint my nails ready for the party I'm going to this evening. I hate the smell of nail varnish so I painted it in the bathroom before going to the front room to watch the Saturday morning cooking programmes.

I also decided to harvest these chili peppers before the frost kill them all!

 

New lips!

Finally decided on the red lipstick!

  

 

I came home from work and found my online order on the table and just slapped it on over worn off foundation and tired eyes. I was initially quite shocked when I finished applying the lip liner and lipstick, the colour is very vibrant and pigmented. It's still on now after dinner, so it does have real staying power!  

I'm wondering if anyone can guess what brand and colour I have on?  :)

Sleek Rose Gold Blush a dupe for NARS Orgasm?

Unfortunately when I had the opportunity to buy NARS Orgasm I went for an eyeshadow instead LOL so cannot make a comparison for you ladies but I've read it is very similar. Here are some pics and swatch, what do you think?


The blush is quite pigmented, gold shimmers with a pinky red undertone.


Lovely isn't it? I think it's slightly more red than Orgasm but I'd be interested to know whether you ladies think it is a dupe so I can pat myself on the back for saving that £20!!

Available from www.sleekmakeup.com or superdrug for £3.99 bargain!

Lippy

Does anyone have a recommendation for a scarlet red lipstick? I'm thinking 1950s pin-up girl red as I've been invited to a 50s party.

Thanks lovelies! xxx

Bare Mineral Prime Time Primer

I treated myself to this bare mineral prime time primer in the summer as my friend tried it out in Brighton when looking for wedding make-up. She said it was great and would keep the grease at bay. To be honest I don't really get that oily so I've not really noticed it on me. I bought it to complement my mineral foundation, so it goes on smoother and doesn't cake up. I really like the feel of the primer, you only need a tiny bit as it goes a long way. Overall it does help in providing a smooth base for mineral foundation, I haven't tried it with liquid foundation though.

If you're interested in food blogs you may want to follow me on Twitter (minnybrioche)! xxx

Ps, can't seem to post photos on iPad!

Nails

My holidays are coming to an end rather rapidly and before I have to cut my nails to a sensible length and remove all traces of nail polish I thought I'd have a go at blinging them up! I saw how pretty the gold glitter looked on Make Me Blushhh's blog and wanted to give it a go. Here's the result...I was worried they'd look a bit garish but the gold glitter is quite subtle but adds a nice girly touch. On MMB's nails she used polish from Sephora a store we no longer have in the UK so after visiting the usual high-street haunts I ended up having to buy my polish on eBay (seller: kissnmakeupx). It only cost £2.75 and came through the post very quickly.

Hope you like it. Ax

Easily pleased

It was only this morning I thought to myself I needed to get long foam applicators so I'm not constantly trying to dislodge them from the bottom of my pot. Well look what I found from Muji...No more messy pot and no more rummaging to find the applicator that matches the eyeshadow. It reminds of the coloured pencils that stack into one I had in school over 15 years ago!
Ah I'm so easily pleased!

http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?V=1&Sec=17&Sub=70&PID=2896

Have you come across any gadgets that make life easier and tidier?

Birthday Treats

It was my birthday last week and I was lucky enough to receive some beauty products and money to buy beauty products! Here are some of them... I forgot to include the chocolate face mask from Taiwan that A got me.

I was given Burt's Bees hand lotion and the Johnson's baby powder, no I do not have a baby! I mentioned in passing that I like the smell of the talc. I was also given some money and bought two products from Bare Minerals (SPF 15 Foundation and Prime Time foundation primer) and a lipbalm from Burt's Bees. 

I really love the Burt's Bees hand lotion. The packaging is cute and the smell of banana is so delicious it makes you want to lick your fingers! I like the consistancy of the lotion, when you dip your finger in to get a scoop it's thick and creamy and leaves a indentation which I find quite satisfying! At first it feels a little oily but this soon disappears after a few seconds of rubbing it in it. I've been doing a lot of DIY lately, this has come in handy.  

The Burt's Bees lipbalm is refreshing as it has peppermint in it. I quite like it but I think it takes time to get use to the tingling sensation on your lips. 

Review on the other products later.

Canmake haul

A few months ago I challenged a male friend who teaches in Japan to pick up a few make-up items for me and bring them over on his next visit home. I say challenged because at the time he didn't have the foggiest about make-up or where to get it and being a Westerner in a foreign land he had slight apprehensions as to his success. Anyway I saw him yesterday and this is what he got me...

Lots of Canmake goodies! I had specifically said drugstore only products to avoid him going crazy and getting high-end stuff I could not afford! The total amount came to about £46 or 6121 yen for the 12 items! Apparently they had a 20% off sale in one store where he got few of the items from... not bad considering I was prepared to pay a bit more. I joked that he obviously found my challenge too easy and that next time I would make it 10 times harder by picking really obscure things.

I've never tried Canmake products before so I'm wondering whether anyone would be interested in my opinions when I try them despite already being blogged about loads by others?!

What I got:

Cream cheek
01 Peach Dream
03 milky Pink

Loose Cheek
06 Mauve pink

Cheek gradation
01 pink stripe

Color wishes
05 Peridot green
02 Ruby pink
06 topaz brown

Four shiny eyes
01 strawberry chocolate
05 Bitter coffee

x2 Lash care essence

Lip concealer
02 lip concealer

Cheap Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Glosses

Whilst scouring the internet for birthday pressies I stumbled upon fragrancedirect.co.uk. They've got a good selection of Revlon Super Lustrous Lip glosses for £1.50 which for a cash strapped student is a totally bargain! They charge £1.95 for P&P for orders up to £60. Has anyone bought from this site before? I think I might make a small order and see how it goes. I will keep you informed.

A x

What am I loving?

Unless I win the lottery, my bursary which is provided by the wonderful healthcare system here in the UK will only allow me to purchase 'drugstore' goodies. I'm not complaining though because I always feel with drugstore purchases I'm getting more bang for my buck - if it's good I've snagged myself a little gem and if it's not so good, well no harm done to my bank balance.

At the moment I'm totally loving the Maybelline Mousse blushes and eye shadows. They've been around for a while but for some reason I never took notice of them before! What I like is that they're really easy to apply and blend really well. Using a finger works best and you can easily control how much you pick up.


Probably the worst swatches ever but you can see the blushes are quite pigmented and sparkly so go easy on them. The eyeshadows have to be built up if you want the colour to show up - I personally like this. Because the shadows are quite sparkly also I like to use these as a base to add a little something without going OTT if you're going for the more natural look. They last pretty much the a full working day on my eyelids without creasing. I don't have oily lids but my friend who has told me it lasted quite well for her.

You can get them anywhere that has a Maybelline stand but Superdrug have more of a range than Boots. I definitely recommend them if like me you have never even noticed them in the shops before as they're only about £5.99. The only thing I guess I would point out is the texture may vary and be a bit drier than others.

ASOS stocks RMK

As the title suggests ASOS now stock some RMK products.

Muji

Despite finishing exams I'm still rather snowed under with work :-(. I'm slowly working my way through it all and can see the end in sight! So my posts will be short and sweet for now, hope that's ok. I recently popped in to Muji on Oxford Street, London, UK to pick up lint roller refills - their roller is by far the most superior one around but I'm not here to talk about that haha.
When I was in there I had a look at their skincare range and saw these compressed face masks (£1.50 for 5) .
Basically they're like those compressed face flannels or t-shirts that used to be available - you add water and they expand. On their own these masks are a bit useless especially if you just add water but the idea is to add toning water or pre lotion from Muji's skincare range and allow it to sufficiently soak then unwrap it and apply it to your face. I'm yet to purchase anything from their skincare range so am yet to find a use for these. Perhaps I could soak these in essence samples I have?

Also, in their leaflet promoting the skincare range is an illustrated step by step massage regime. Here it is in case anyone wanted to try.

A couple of treats

I can't wear nail polish at work or even have long nails which means I never really buy nail polish but after seeing Terri's haul from Topshop I had to satisfy my curiosity and check out their new range. I loved the Big Smoke nail polish and thought it was the nicest colour so treated myself to that and a blush in Flush.
Apologises for the poor picture (taken with my phone) but hopefully you can see how lovely the colour is. I described it to someone as dirty paint water but I guess it doesn't make it sound to appealing! Here I applied about 3 coats plus a top coat to get a solid colour. The polish is described as long-wearing and for the 4 days I had it on my nails it didn't chip though there was slight wear at the tips. Would I buy it again, probably but at £5 a bottle I expect a bit more than 8ml especially if I have to apply more than 2 coats!

I don't have a swatch of the blush but I'll rectify that once I get a battery for my camera but as you can see the packaging is really cute and there's a handy mirror for touch ups. It goes on quite easily and blends well and because you have to really squish down with your finger to pick up lots of product you're less likely to overdo it and look like a clown. I think the colour is quite a pinky magenta if that even makes sense and reminds me of a Bobbi Brown blush in Peony.

A Pop of Kawaii giveaway

With exams out of the way I feel I can truly indulge, guilt free in blogging again... well until the next round. So what have I been missing, a lot it seems. To my delight fellow blogger Nic Nic has opened her own online store, apopofkawaii.com selling Japanese cosmetics and other wonderful goodies. Stocking brands such as Jill Stuart, Lunasol and Kanebo my wallet going to be feeling a lot lighter in the weeks to come.

To celebrate the launch of her new website she is giving away goodies to six lucky winners chosen at random. To find out how to enter check out her blog.

I wish Nic Nic the best of luck with her new venture.

Revlon Benefit equivalents

Some of you may know Benefit has discontinued 'her glossiness' and like me sad to see them go. Anyway I have found suitable replacements. After my bf purchased the Revlon Super Lustrous in Coral Reef and liking it, I went to check out their other colours and found Pink Pop was a perfect match to 'who are you wearing?' and peach petal a perfect match to 'didn't hear it from me'. The only real difference is pigmentation - Revlon is slightly more pigmented and thicker in consistency. However the big bummer is these colours are limited edition and will be gone from the shelves in the coming months. Time to stock up?

Anyway I'm definitely loving these Revlon glosses!

Wellcome Collection - Upcoming exhibiton

For those who live in London, UK or can get to it easily, Wellcome Collection near Euston station/ Warren Street tube have an exhibition on Skin starting 10 June - 26 September 2010. It has a lovely coffee shop, if a little expensive but the admission is free into the exhibiton which makes up for it. Definitely a nice way to spend a lazy afternoon.

New Revlon Lip gloss

I have 4 exams that are rapidly approaching which has meant hours and hours and HOURS of revision - quite depressing really. However to cheer me up my bf without any consultation bought me a new lip gloss - Revlon Super Lustrous in the new 170 - Coral Reef colour.
When I first saw the colour on my lips I wasn't really sure it suited me, but it has definitely grown on me. The colour is quite intense/pigmented so for this shade I prefer to apply a light layer.

Do you think I should let my bf select lip glosses in the future?
I've added an extra picture to show what a thicker layer looks like. I think the colour is more coral coloured than the pictures demonstrate.

What the website says about the product:
"Silky...Sexy...Brilliant. Glossy formula combines sheer color and intense moisture with light-reflecting spheres to create amazing shine. SPF 15"

Right back to work!

Mini giveaway-NOW CLOSED

I'll be neglecting this blog over the next few weeks so to make up for my absence I'll be running a small competition to giveaway a few goodies to readers. To enter all you need to do is be a follower of this blog and tell me which beauty item you could not live without and why. Just leave your answer on this post. I'll announce the winner on 27th May 2010 so remember to leave a valid email address so I can contact you.

I have a Sleek 'Storm' Palette and a Regene Vita Aqua-SPA Rejuvenating Mask to give away so far but I will probably be adding a few more bits. I know it's nothing amazing but it's free!!

Added:
Bourjois Effet 3D Lipgloss in No. 3 Rose Idyllic

Good Luck

A xx

ELF Beauty Encyclopedia

I placed my elf order at the beginning of April and the Beauty Encyclopedia's were not available then (hummmph! ) so if anyone has one already or is planning to get one I'd like to know what you think of them.

Avène

Everyone loves receiving freebies and after the tiring day I had (8 hours on my feet!) the small package that was awaiting my arrival home was well received. Avène had sent samples of their Extremely gentle cleanser and Skin recovery cream calming after I recently filled in their skin diagnosis form to find out which product would suit my skin. I wasn't expecting anything but they have obviously used the information from the diagnosis to send me suitable samples. I'm looking forward to trying out the Skin Recovery cream as my face has been irritated quite badly by the industrial strength AC where I spend my working hours.

Are there any moisturises you would suggest that would last under AC?

Busy

Due to the fact I have to work and the fact it's highly stressful I have been tired and busy.

Update 1: My new lipstick melted today! I left it in my car and thanks to the sun I have a malformed lipstick!
Update 2: I've not had the time to exchange my mascara to the Define-A-Lash Volume! I'm eager to test out this range!
Update 3: Still unable to sort out my MAC foundation.
Non beauty related, though it is a beauty, my leather armchair arrived today!

For Sale: MAC Mineralize Satin Finish Foundation in NC30

Mineralize Satin Finish Foundation inNC30??? I need MAC Studio Fix in NC25 (I think)... basically it need to match up to with MAC Face and Body Foundation in C3. The MAC Mineralize Satin Finish Foundation in NC30 is a little dark for me, so it makes me a little too yellow. 

The story behind this brand new bottle of foundation is this: I bought it in Brighton which is roughly an hours journey away on the train. I was with my BF and so I couldn't spend a lot of time umming and arrhing about it! I got home and got out the last dregs of my old MAC Mineralize Satin Finish Foundation in NC30 and decided I really need Studio Fix as I can see the horrid blemishes on my cheeks. These blemishes aren't from spots, they are just broken capillaries which seem to have increased! Anyway I can't afford (time and money) to go to Brighton to exchange it. :(


Suggestions are also considered! :)

Undecided

I had a few chores to do this (late) morning and it gave me an excuse to pop into town afterwards. I headed towards Boots to look for mascara as my Maybelline stylist is almost running out and is now discontinued (I don't know why Maybelline decided this because it is a very good mascara!). I found one similar and decided to get it (I've not tried it yet though), it was in a green tube called Define-A-Lash. It was between the green tube or the pink one (Define-A-Lash Volume). I'm still kind of undecided... I might just read some reviews before opening it.

I also found myself purchasing one of the Maybelline Colour Sensation lipsticks! I wanted a pinkish tone but not too overbearing so came away with Ambre Rose. The hue is pink but the undertone is mauve/lilac which I think suits my colouring... My brain think this to be correct from having a design background the colour spectrum says purple and yellow compliment. Yellow being my skin undertone. See a design degree did come in handy! Haha.

Lipstick £6.99, Mascara £7.99

e.l.f review - eyelid primer

When I ordered the primer I was secretly hoping this would be a 'holy grail' find and that I wouldn't have to splash out on the Urban Decay eye primer potion I had been eyeing up (no pun intended!) , but seriously at £1.50 what was I really expecting?

For me the smell of a product going anywhere near my face is very important, so imagine the horror when I sniffed the elf primer, and to double check I wasn't being over fussy I asked my boyfriend to have a sniff - we made the same conclusion, the primer smelt like emulsion paint. Gross!!

The consistency of the primer wasn't much better. It was clumpy and gel like. Is that how they're suppose to be as this is the first eyelid primer I've ever bought?Applied it dries to a matte finish but I didn't think the coverage wasn't very good as I saw no difference to my eyelid. I chose not to keep it on because of the smell so whether it lasts will remain a mystery.

I definitely DO NOT recommend this even at £1.50!

e.l.f review - the packaging

If make-up was judged by its packaging e.l.f would be right at the bottom. It's hideous, makes the brand look cheap, and there is way too much of it. The packaging for their minerals line is recyclable so their website states, but what about the other stuff? I'm no tree-hugger but I do try and recycle as much as possible, even if it's to have a guilt free conscious knowing that I've done my part.
Each brush presented in their own plastic pouch with cardboard backing inside. A little excessive!
Felt like I was ripping open a pen packet
Yuk! Looks really cheap.
This was all the packaging ready for the bin.

E.l.f state they prioritise their products, rather than their packaging, to provide quality and value but surely by not using a spot varnish finish on some of the boxes they would save some money and not providing unnecessary plastic pouches for each brush would help the environment?
My advice, lose the poorly shot images and stick to one plain colour with simple text!

Reviews of the products coming soon but here's hoping they're not as awful as the packaging.

Just in case

Not beauty related but just in case you want some Mickey Mouse sunnies but can't afford the Jeremy Scott originals I saw some imitations available here!!

http://shop.cooliohigh.com/product/exclusive-paparazzi-mickey-minnie-mouse-shades-black

Lippy

I don't usually wear lipstick but it's because I can never find any I like. I tend to buy lipsticks and then wear them for a very short period of time (maybe 1 week) and then decide I dislike the colour. Yes it's a waste of money!

I was wandering John Lewis last year and ended up chatting to the YSL sales assistant. I wanted a lipstick but was really unsure of what colour to get, so I played it safe and asked her to help me find an everyday lipstick that was natural looking. I tried on a few and finally picked one from the Rouge Pure Shine range (No.6).

I quite like it because it glides on smoothly and it's incredibly sheer (yet it shows up on your lips). It almost feels like you're putting on liquid because as soon as the stick touches your lips it melts and a cherry scent is released (the scent is nice and not too over powering). Overall it's a pretty girly natural colour and very moisturising (even contains SPF15) but the down side is that it does come off easily.

e.l.f haul

Is it possible to get quality make-up at a cheap price? Apparently you can and it comes by the name of e.l.f.. I received my mini haul this morning and will let you know what I think of their products over the next few weeks (may be a bit longer as I have exams to revise for). A x

Something Spontaneous!

I'm not the type of girl who plans ahead when it comes to getting a haircut. I will suddenly get an urge to have it cut, I don't usually know what I want done either! I've had long hair for a while now and I'm fed up with my dry ends and the dullness to it.

Here is the before and after pic:

Taken in the evening.

Taken today with natural light.

I like the fact my hair will dry quicker and I'll be a lot cooler in the summer! 

High Street Vs High End (2)

After Lazy M did her comparison I thought I'd do one as well. I've used Maybelline Great Lash Blackest Black Mascara and Exceptionnel De Chanel Intense Volume and Curl Mascara in Smoky Noir, can you tell the difference?


The Maybelline one is quite wet and coats the lashes quite smoothly put prone to sticking together . I found this mascara weighed my lashes down as well as made them look a bit spidery.

Chanel's mascara is slighter drier and the wand has a combination of long combed edge and short bristles. This ensured my lashes were well coated yet neatly separated. My lashes looked more voluminous without being weighed down. It also looked more natural than the Maybelline one but that may be down to the shade.
Overall if your budget is tight then the Maybelline is worth purchasing at £4.99 as the Chanel Mascara will set you back £20.95