A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

…Strawberry!

I was sent an Arbonne lipstick in shade, Strawberry (£16).  It’s an “almost red” that would suit ladies who fear a completely bold red lip, i.e. me.

The texture is smooth and it feels light on the lips.  I’ve been wearing this applied quite sheerly and blotted with my finger to create a softer matte stain-like finish and as a result, longevity has been impressive.  Applied more heavily, you can achieve a glossier effect, but the flipside is a more noticeably dehydrated lip.

It’s a fun shade for the summer, a pink-ed red that suits it’s name perfectly.

Excuse the silliness, I was being too lazy to go and pose in my usual spot properly!

Visit www.arbonneinternational.co.uk or call Customer Services on 0800 977 5721 to locate your nearest consultant and purchase products.

What reds are you favouring for the Summer?

Arbonne… you won’t find them on the high street, their products are sold through a network of independent consultants… like the old Avon lady/Mary Kay situation, but with a 21st Century twist.

The Swiss brand are particularly well-known for their skincare, with an almost cult fanbase in some countries.  More well-known in the U.S, Arbonne have only been active in the UK for a couple of years.

Now, the products aren’t cheap… and I’ve so far experienced some rather (how can I put it delicately) “full on” interactions with Arbonne consultants over the internet.  They come across a bit ‘motivational video/live your dreams/come join us and be happy!’ for me and I find it off-putting.  It’s a shame that you can’t just bypass the whole independent consultant bit… but it is what it is.

Having said that, I’m rapidly falling for the products I was sent to try, and one in particular…. the Arbonne Nude Lip Polish.

Exactly the same size as a Revlon Super Lustrous lipgloss, 5.9ml is a pretty average quantity.  Sadly, Arbonne’s version will set you back £16.  I did say it wasn’t cheap.  What I didn’t say, is that in the week I’ve been wearing it, it’s quickly become one of the nicest products I’ve ever worn on my lips.

It’s semi-sheer… but where most lipglosses aren’t buildable (unless you like 7 inches of gunk stuck to your lips) this somehow is.  I usually apply 2 or 3 layers and in doing so, I achieve a more opaque finish without the product becoming denser and gloopier.  On my lips, it feels like a cross between a lip gloss and a lipstick with a satin gloss finish as opposed to a glassy one.

I guess what I’m saying is… if you don’t generally like lip glosses but kinda wish you did, there’s a very good chance that you’ll love this.

The packaging feels pretty luxe, with a nice weight.  The applicator is your standard doe foot affair, and the colour in the tube is true to life.  It’s also extremely long wearing… 2 cups of tea, 2 4 chocolate digestives and a cheese string later and it’s still holding on!  Oh, and another thing I’ve noticed that I’m really impressed by is Arbonne’s comprehensive website.

I can’t link you directly because it’s (stupidly) built in flash… but if you click through to “lips –> lip polish”, not only do they give you a full ingredient list… but they also state the purpose of each ingredient present in the product.  An extremely worthwhile addition to the website in an age where consumers are so information driven and ingredient conscious.

I love doing heavy eyes, so the Arbonne Lip Polish in Nude is pretty much the perfect accompaniment.  I’m still trying to make peace with the price tag and I guess compared to Beaute’s Weightless Lip Creme (around £20) I’m getting a bargain.

Anyway, wanna see?

You can see the satiny finish and how it’s glossy but without being pornstar full-on sucking on a greasy pork chop… (that’s not a euphamism btw).

I’m also wearing Arbonne’s eyeliner in Plum on my eyes and whilst it’s perfectly lovely… it’s also £15.  There’s no way I’m gonna attempt to justify that when I can buy almost 4 GOSH Velvet Touch eyeliners for the same price.  It’s nice… but it’s not £15 nice yano?

The Nude Lip Polish?  Definitely is.

Arbonne products can be purchased through a consultant and you can find your nearest consultant, here.

Have you tried Arbonne?

…only a teeny haul!

It was 3 for £12… and there were 3 further colours I was tempted by, but I’m not convinced of the quality so held off splurging further until I’d given these a try!

L-R: Mouse, Peacock, Factory Grey.

I wore Peacock to the Sleek event, and whilst I love the colour… I wasn’t too enamoured of the formula which was a bit gloopy.

I would have a NOTD for you but I fractured 2 of my nails whilst bowling (of course) so have given them all a much needed prune instead!

Have you tried the American Apparel polishes yet?

Get free standard delivery with no minimum spend over at Avon today only.

I love free delivery offers, they probably tempt me more than any other despite not always being the most ‘saving’.  I guess it’s ‘cos you can make a small order, sometimes just to trial a brand… and not get that ‘stung’ feeling when you get to checkout… £6.95 for the product, £3.95 shipping? *closes window*.  We all know that feeling right?

Anyway, go fill yer boots at Avon, voucher code AVONUK Expires midnight tonight!

I first heard of Aurifere when I saw their stand at IMATS back in January…

…I was on the hunt for a Shu Uemura foundation brush dupe at a bargain price, when my eyes alighted on this domed goat-hair blush brush (Series 150) from Aurifere (£11.99).  It has a slight taper and I umm-ed and ahh-ed that it could be a possible match.

But before I could make the purchase, I got sidetracked by this:

Aurifere’s Series 480 blending brush in squirrel (£8.99).  Soft doesn’t even begin to describe this brush.

It has a beautifully sharp taper that gets right into the socket line for precise blending with complete control.  I find that unless I’m very careful, my MAC 217 can spread the shadow a little too far above and below the crease for me.  I’m not hugely aufait with MAC brushes, but I’m thinking that the MAC equivalent to the Aurifere 480 would be a 224 (tapered blending brush).

I paid around £9 for the Aurifere blending brush and I’m absolutely delighted with it, though I have been lamenting not picking up the 150 ever since!

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Fast forward a couple of months and you may have noticed from my top photo that I do now have the Aurifere 150 in my grubby little hands!  Shall I tell you how?

Aurifere have opened a web store!

Hot off the press, the store only opened last week and I was their first customer – yay me! Desperate much?

Whilst making my order, I also added another blending brush to my collection:

The Aurifere Series 490 (£9.59) is a goat-hair blending brush which is nicely packed but definitely scratchier than my 480 or MAC 217.  What I do love about it though is it’s ‘springiness’.  That’s a terrible way to describe it… but it blends out harsh lines effortlessly when I hold it near the end of the shaft and do windscreen wiper motions across my socket line… something I appreciate because I kinda suck at doing those little blending circles with my 217.  How crap was that testimonial?  Way to make myself sound like I have no clue about makeup application… but I hope at least some of you appreciate what I’m trying to say!

My package also contained the Aurifere Sablinsky Series 330, a synthetic brush that is amazing for cream shadows like my Benefit creaseless creams.  Total bargain at £6.69!

I am so happy to have given Aurifere a try, I simply haven’t been disappointed with anything I’ve bought so far.

I want to give the Series 150 (blush brush) a full try before passing judgement, but so far I’m liking it ok as a foundation brush, but I’m freaking loving it as a blush brush.

I emailed Aurifere and asked if they’d consider passing along a discount code for my readers and they obliged!

I have 30 codes available (single use only).  If you try one and it appears to have expired, come back and give another one a go!

Enter one of the following codes at checkout to get 5% off your order (I may have ‘accidently’ already used that first one, sorry ) and remember all items have free delivery:

I just treated myself to a Series 180 Racoon Powder Brush. Vex has one, and it’s softer than Leila’s bum. FACT.

Have you heard of Aurifere?  Used any of their brushes?  Let me know if you make an order and tell me what you get, I’m hopelessly nosey.

I’m a certified skincare fan, but Mr. L hates anything remotely greasy.  Infact, he doesn’t really understand the concept of ‘moisturising’ or why he would ever need to do it.  Machismo aside, that doesn’t stop me getting him to moisturise my back for me when I get out of the shower.  I’m lazy and it’s always nicer if someone else does it don’t you think?

Aveeno sent me a few bits a while ago, and after giving them my unadulterated attention (not easy to do when you buy as many products as me), I’m back to let you know how they performed for me.

I’ll start with the Aveeno Moisturising Creamy Oil.

Not quite an oil and not quite a cream means that it has a hella confusing name!

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I first pumped the lid.  It is a very light, runny cream with a bakewell almondy smell.  I’m not sold on the scent, it’s not offensive in any way… it’s just a bit biscuity for me.

Aveeno say:

• Combines the concentrated goodness of naturally active colloidal Oatmeal and sweet almond oil.
• Provides the benefit of an oil with the convenience of a cream.
• Helps to maintain the skin’s natural moisture level and prevent dry skin.
• Skin is left looking and feeling soft, smooth and healthy without a greasy after feel.

I adored the texture of Aveeno’s Moisturising Creamy Oil, it glides onto the skin with no dragging and I can instantly feel it relieving any tight patches (I suffer from small areas of eczema).  Unfortunately, the cream isn’t rich enough for the effect to last the whole day on me, so if you’re very dry-skinned, I’d look for something a little heavier.

If you have normal skin, I’d whole-heartedly recommend this body moisturiser.  Especially for the Summer and morning applications.  It’s light and absorbs quickly leaving a slight sheen on the skin.  A definite good buy and one that I will be repurchasing.

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Next up is the Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion with Shea Butter 200ml

Shea butter based, it applies thickly and more heavily than the creamy oil.  I’m not a fan of the tube packaging, I seem to consistently dispense too much product.  However, I believe that if you buy the 300ml version of this one, it comes in a pump bottle like Aveeno’s Moisturising Creamy Oil.

My skin feels slightly tacky to the touch after using this and it takes a good 5-10 minutes for absorption to be fully effective.  There’s no doubt in my mind that this lotion is far more penetrating in it’s skin relief than the creamy oil, but it’s not as “light and carefree” to use.  I wouldn’t use this after a shower before getting dressed in the morning… but I have been using it happily before bed where I don’t mind my skin feeling a little tacky.

As for skin benefits, combined use of these 2 products means that I’ve banished my dry scaly bits!  My skin is now Summer ready, so bring on the sunshine (and fake tan).

The Aveeno range is currently £2 off at Superdrug and a 1/3 off at Sainsburys.

…. Ceona!

This traumatic episode in Ceona’s life had me and Mr. L wiping tears from our eyes.  Sorry Ceona, we were laughing WITH you.

14 year old me: Muuuuum. I want a perm. Muuuuum, I really want a perm. Pleeeeeaseeeeeeeee!

Mum after years of my begging: Ok, we’ll speak to the hairdresser.

Hairdresser: No. No no no. It won’t work. Your hair is too thick, it will fall out. No.

Me: Hairdresser, I want a perm. Oh please, please, pretty please. I won’t blame you if it falls out.

Hairdresser: Oh fine. I’ll do it.

Hairdresser gives me a trendy spiral perm. Hairdresser repeats through the whole thing that it will fall out. Hairdresser uses extra perming solution.

Result: I end up with the tightest spiral perm you have ever seen. I am, in fact, Spuggie from Byker Grove (google it youngsters). I am mortified. The hairdresser is delighted and thinks it’s fabulous. I retreat home and burst into tears.

My sister, bless her, does me a french plait. And I wait for the perm to drop. All my friends have bad home perms that drop into cute waves.

Mine does not. Mine grows out very, very slowly. I use industrial quanitites of mousse to control it. I have crispy hair too. At one point I have straight hair to the tops of my ears and tight curls underneath. I do a home dye. I neglect to read the bit about permed hair taking dye more strongly. I have two tone hair.

Eventually, I get a bob.

You’ve won some lovely Aussie products, please can you email me your details so that I may pass them on to the lovely bods at Aussie?

Thanks for sharing everyone xx

So, 8 of you sealed my Aussie ‘Hair Mare’ fate.  But when I dug out the promised photo, it kinda didn’t look as bad as I remembered, you can see for yourself… it’s bad… but it’s not a patch on The Agassi is it?  I decided it was only fair to share a few more. Upping the ante as it were.

So… as promised… my shameful hair mares…

A). Honestly?  I’m too busy looking at how tight my necklace is to concentrate on the hair.

B). In my defence, I look about 7.  This is my MOTHER’S shame, I’m not carrying this one.  Who lets a 7yr old have a perm anyway?

C). OK, this is the spiral perm… but it’s hard to see.  So let’s concentrate on the bum head parting instead.  Not only that, so much mousse… those curls were crusty. and flammable.

D). Dec 31st 1999. Man I thought I looked cute. I was… um… *counts*… 18.  Old enough to know better.  That spidery hairpiece took about 3 hours to ‘attach’ too, so it’s not like I had made a rash decision.  Just a bad one.

Since my last post, Aussie got in touch… and want to send one of you lovely ladies some product to steer you back onto the path of hair righteousness.  If you’ve already commented to confess your secret hair embarrassments, you’re in.  If you’ve yet to share your secret barnet shame… better do so now, ‘cos only Aussie can help!*

*well… Aussie or a great big sombrero.

I’ve already told you about my triangle hair… and my spiral perm from 1992…

Now it’s your turn…

Aussie, Agassi and me want to hear about your hair mares!

Go on, tell me about your nightmare ‘dos!’

If I get five horror stories I’ll upload a pic of the spiral perm.  And let me tell ya, it makes Agassi look coiffured to perfection.

…

Congratulations Yinnie!  You’ve won yourself a £50 Red Letter Day gift card!!!

PinkySpanish kindly agreed to judge my competition and she chose Yinnie’s entry as the winner.  Here’s what she had to say about it…

This was more difficult than I thought!  I am going to go with 4.  She had the most creative idea, the execution wasn’t perfect, but she showed the most outside the box concept and I like that!

Thanks to all fab entrants for taking part!  I really appreciated your participation!

Yinnie, could you please email me your details so that I can pass them on to Aussie by Sunday.

The third and final event for us lucky Aussie Angels (can I just keep calling myself that forever?) went off with a bang last Thursday night.

We were invited up to London to sample the capital’s nightlife.  Mahiki played host for the evening and the venue didn’t disappoint.  A tiki-esque hideout in the heart of Mayfair, Mahiki ticks all the right boxes.

My friend Vicky and I jumped on the train congratulating each other on how lightly we’d managed to pack for a night away… infact we were congratulating each other so vigorously talking so much that we very nearly got left on the platform.

Arriving in London with little time to spare, we headed straight for the Hilton at Kensington Olympia where Aussie had generously put us up for the night.  I managed to check us in without getting escorted off the premises for being a pair of scruffy oiks and we settled into our room to get ready for the festivities ahead!

Despite best intentions, we still managed to be late.  Vicky has always been the laid back one in our friendship.  Me? Well I was running round in full-on mentalist mode, arms in the air like a certain white rabbit out of Alice in Wonderland with echoes of “late, late! we’re going to be late!” reverberating around the room.

“Relax”. says Vicky, “You are so uncool”.  Like I need telling.

I felt a 100x better when we got on the tube at Olympia and met up with Hayles and Zoe who were also staying at the hotel and heading to the Aussie event.  If you can’t avoid being late… find as many people as possible who are also late and hide behind them.  It’s a philosophy I’m proud to call my own.

We were greeted at the club by a photographer (who I somehow managed to resist asking nerdy camera questions, I was *sorely* tempted to ask for some flash bouncing tips) and the lovely Emma from 1000heads.

We were lead downstairs into the cavernous depths of Mahiki and emerged blinking into a Polynesian paradise!  I was given a little black box which when opened revealed some lovely makeup goodies, the inimitable Aussie 3 Minute Miracle and a handbag hanger (I’m a little uncultured and had to be told what the hell it was before I embarrassed everybody by trying to pick my nose with it or something.)

Then it was Mojito time!! Followed by Pina Colada time!! Washed down with a couple of Mahiki Mai Tais and topped off with a Tiki Dick’s Super Space Martini.  By this time I’d forgotten how to pronounce my own name let alone the names of the cocktails.  Needless to say, they were very yummy and each one more enticing than the last.

Highlights of the evening? Semi-naked waiter – oh so tacky, and I’m absolutely not going to admit to perving.  (why have you put him down as a highlight then huh?)  Close-up magician – superbly charming and very talented, too much fun!  And treasure chests filled with an intoxicating mix of champagne, rum and a brandy and peach liqueur.

It was brilliant to be able to catch up with old friends and meet some friendly new faces too!

Alas, all good things must come to an end and as the night drew to a close the exertions of the day were catching up with me.  I bid my friends (new and old) adieu and headed back to the hotel.

Waking up the next morning I wasn’t sure which hurt more, my head or my neck (crick)… here have a photo.  If nothing else, it’s an advertisement for teetotalness.

The rest of the next day was spent shopping and mooching around town.  But I’ll tell you more about that in another post!

Credit for some of the photos goes to Sam and Zoe – I can’t seem to get mine off Vicky’s mobile – argh!

Quick update…

I’ve had word from Lauren at 1000heads that the prizes will be revealed early next week.

Sorry for the delay, I’m sure you’re as impatient as I am!

I can’t wait to reveal which of my 6 beautiful entrants has been declared the most deserving winner! Woo!