A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

It’s been a while since I’ve pulled MAC Speed Dial out from the lipstick drawer but there’s something so damn irresistible about pink lipsticks and Spring-time.  Looking back through my archives, I notice that I always start wearing the pinks at this time of year, and I tend to go more “nude” (har har) in the Summer-time.  I’m such a sheep for trends.

One of my favourite things about MAC Speed Dial is that it’s a beautifully clean-looking pink.  Bright without being in your face… a little cool-toned without being blue.  As is typical of most MAC lipsticks, I don’t find this to be the best formula in the world.  The cremesheen finish is slightly claggy on the lips if you build it up, feeling quite thick and heavy from the first application… staying power is good for around 2hrs, without eating.  I’m just not a massive MAC lipstick fan I guess.

Grumbles aside, the colour just makes me happy.  It brightens up an otherwise boring FOTD and goes nicely with a simple eyeliner flick and tidy brows.

What’s your favourite spring-time pink lipstick?

MAC Speed Dial is priced at £14.00 and available to buy on counter or online at www.maccosmetics.co.uk

I’m currently sitting in the middle of a big pile of steaming pooh, otherwise known as “someone forgot that a child might need a passport to leave the country and there are mere DAYS in which to fix this stupidity”.  I have been rushing around like a blue-assed fly in an attempt to gather photos, counter-signatories, and application forms.  I thankfully have an appointment at the passport office on Wednesday to sort my idiotic mess out.

The fact that I have to drive to Wales in order to do this as I couldn’t get a fast-track appointment in London is making my forehead vein throb a little more rapidly than normal.

It’s to this end that I’m asking you to forgive a FOTD post.  In fairness, it features the eyeshadow quad that I reviewed earlier today, so is at least… relevant.

It’s also pink. purple. purplink.

If I do say so myself, how nice is that lip colour?  I do not wear Bobbi Brown’s Rich Lip Color in Mod Pink anywhere near enough.  It’s blue-toned without going all Minaj-freaky-I’m-not-sixteen-anymore on my face.  If you want a blue-pink that doesn’t make you look like a mental deficient, it’s worth checking out.

The eyes are courtesy of the BareMinerals A List palette I reviewed earlier.  I used the purple shade both in the crease, and as a liner.  The pink is on the lid and the white highlight across the browbone.  I used a smidge of the black in the outer corner.

All products used are shown below.

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion  | BareMinerals READY Eyeshadow Quad in The A List  |  Guerlain Cils d’Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara  |  Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzer in Antigua  |  Illamasqua Brow Cake in Gaze  |  Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Color in Mod Pink  |  Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation in Vanille Clair

You know, the real irony is that I remembered to get her an E111 European Health Insurance Card.  Who remembers shit like that and yet forgets the passport?

*sigh*

* p.s.  Look again at the FOTD!  This unwanted stress has given me grey hair.  Bitch too busy stressin’ to do her roots.

I don’t do pastels, I blend into the background enough without them thankyouverymuch.  I need some contrast in my life, and eyeliner… all of the eyeliner.  I don’t think I like this look but I do like my hair very muchly.  So much infact, that I sort of, kind of, want a loose perm.  But that’s exactly the kind of thing you want just before you get one and then regret it forever.

I’ll have to think on this more seriously.

Ok, so the look is possibly a bit eighties, and not in a cool way.  As a nineties child, it’s pretty hard to think that anything about the eighties can really be considered cool when you were there first hand with the Speak and Spell to prove it.

My problem is that I struggle to think about a makeup look in its entirety, I just wake up and think “I want to wear BLUE EYELINER today (ooh, aren’t I bold!)”.  And then, 20 minutes later, my husband is rushing me out the door and I’m stood there… lip-less thinking “QUICK! What goes with blue, what goes with blue?!?!!”

“PINK!”

And I grab the pinkest lipstick and blush that I can find.

Oh well, at least my skin looks good.

What was the last bold look you attempted?  Did it work out?

** edited to add list of products used

Face: Embryolisse Lait Creme Scintillant (the one with subtle gold sparkles), Ginvera BB Cream, Givenchy Mister Bright, My Face Paradisio Pink Blush

Eyes: Illamasqua Gaze Brow Powder, Yaby PP066 eyeshadow (worn as blue liner), Kiss Me Heroine Make Smooth Liquid Eyeliner, Guerlain Maxi Lash Mascara

Lips: NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Addis Ababa

Do you know what I can’t get enough of? Glitter. I know, I know… it’s not Christmas anymore and I’m not telling you anything new but seriously, I am rebelling against my 30s like you wouldn’t believe and in the classiest way possible (if I do say so myself!)

I may be a little too old to rock glitter eyeliner, I’ve never been one for glitter lashes and my rapidly-dilating pores are in danger of swallowing any glitter that comes in contact with them but you can still enjoy a subtle glitter infusion without creating a “wrong season!” scene.

All you need is some cosmetic-grade glitter, my favourites are by Victorian Disco Cosmetics (Tac Nuke is lush) and your favourite cream eyeshadow. Create your base look, it doesn’t need to be complicated, I often only do one shade across the lid and blended up into the crease. Once you’re happy with how that looks (don’t give it too much time to set), take a synthetic flat brush (like a concealer brush) and pat some of the glitter over the top. Not too much, you don’t want solid glitter, just enough to catch the light as you turn your head.

I much prefer this to using shimmery shadows (think Sleek/MUA) which I’m starting to discover can look quite ageing now that I’m on the other side of 30. This way, I get the best of both worlds!

Don’t give up on glitter ladies, it makes the world a better place.

When you’ve spent 30 years of your life as a brunette and then decide to go strawberry blonde half by accident, half with intention… you gotta prepare yourself for the consequences. The first issue you’ll face is that everyone you know will hate it, but won’t tell you to your face.  Not because it looks like shit but because it just doesn’t look like the version of YOU that they’re used to.

The second, and more pressing issue is that if you’re fair skinned like me, you’ll look like a blob with no edges when you’re wearing no makeup.  This, I wasn’t expecting.  Frankly, a girl needs contrast, and if she has no contrast, I’m telling you – she needs goods brows, eyeliner, and a bold pair of lips.

Nothing in the below FOTD qualify as such.  I’m still learning, as you can tell.

MAC Hue!  I used to be able to wear you when I was a brunette!  WTF?  Also… cool pinks now appear to be the biggest makeup disaster on my lips/cheeks since I dabbled with an overly thick application of Lipcote.

What makeup colours look bad with your hair colour?  Any strawberry-blondes out there got some colour tips for me that work well for them?

My makeup collection is currently languishing, looking slightly-unloved in a 6-drawer Ikea Malm chest with a heap of those little boxy drawer dividers playing referee to stop the lipsticks beating up the mascaras.  It’s anarchy in there.  I miss my beautifully organised Helmers that I could reach into without even leaving my computer chair.  Sure, I guess it’s now all in my bedroom, which makes better sense for morning application – but I do miss play swatching with a random beauty while I’m waiting for my emails to download.

But most of all… I miss the order that I had.  I was in charge, and now it looks as though my collection is the boss once again.

As a result, I’m thinking that perhaps it might be time to have another pare down.  Out with the old and in with the new, ok maybe not in with the new for now – it’s not like I need any more.  Unless, you know… I just have to have something.  I’ve been playing this week with a few bits and bobs that I probably haven’t touched for a year or more – shutup hygiene freaks, I haven’t died from contaminating myself with my own germs yet.

From the picture above, the rediscovered products would be NARS Barbuda – a beautiful (and discontinued) purple-y taupe, MAC Femme-Fi, Bourjois Lilas d’Or Blusher, Clinique Even Better Makeup in 01 Alabaster, and my Guerlain Rouge G in Georgia.  The rest have been in more frequent use over the past 4-6 months anyway.

And here’s the FOTD that resulted…

It’s made me realise that I very, very much still like NARS Barbuda and that I might make the more frequent effort to give my Bourjois blushes a quick scour with a toothbrush (they always go hard and in-penetrable after a bit).

Have you been reacquainting yourself with any lost makeup loves recently?

…but most of the time, I take the photos – write the post, upload the photos, think “job done”, click preview and then wonder why the hell I bothered.  Today is one of those days.

I would blame the camera, the lighting, the mis-calibration of your monitor… but the truth is, my face absorbs colour.  Unless of course, I wear a shade from one of my Sleek palettes which seem to encourage my chemistry to saturate the colour to the max, turning me into some kind of deformed caricature of myself.

Grumbles aside, and seeing as this was intended to be a FOTD post, I’d better get on and list the products just as I would for any other FOTD post… who cares if you can’t actually see them right?

Face

Giorgio Armani Fluid Sheer #2
MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation in NW15
Kevyn Aucoin The Sensual Skin Enhancer in SX03

Cheeks

Trish McEvoy Golden Bronzer*

Eyes

Trish McEvoy Glaze Eyeshadow in Rose Quartz
Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Mascara
Estee Lauder Intense Kajal Eye Crayon in 01 Dramatic Black*

Lips

Clinique Chubby Stick in Oversized Orange*

I’m liking the MAC Studio Fix more than I thought.  It’s a little drying and perhaps a touch too matte for me but I mix in some Fluid Sheer to give it a boost of luminescence and I’m quite enjoying it.  The Kevyn Aucoin SSE is starting to work for me now that I’m using it to conceal rather than as a fuller-coverage foundation – though I am still determined to work out how to get full-face coverage from it.  I received the Trish McEvoy Golden Bronzer last year and it’s a sheerer formula which is quite forgiving despite my pale skintone, it has a subtle sparkle and is quite buildable.  I’m not the best at applying/blending bronzer though… consider me still a bit of a bronzer noob.

The eyes were the most disappointing aspect of today’s look.  The Trish McEvoy shadow I bought for my palette, although a beautiful colour didn’t create much impact – which to be honest, is fair enough – it is intended to be a sheer wash of beautiful rosy taupe… nothing too dramatic, it’s my fault for not bothering with a contour.  I’m sitting on the fence when it comes to the MUFE Smoky Lash mascara, I know that many of you swear by it and although it’s certainly quite impressive at creating some drama, I feel that it’s a little prone to clumping and I don’t like the way it makes my lashes feel.  Finally, the Estee Lauder Intense Kajal Eye Crayon in 01 Dramatic Black seemed to look more ‘dramatic plum’ on my waterline… perhaps it’s those sleepless nights finally showing through!

The one component of today’s FOTD that I thought I’d be indifferent about (sheer lip colours – “meh”), I ended up really liking.  The Clinique Chubby Stick is such a nice formula to wear and for me to reach for it, well… perhaps I was feeling more ‘subtle’ than I was letting-on!  You won’t see a huge amount of colour with this range but the Oversized Orange gives my lips a nice polish and a hint of warmth.

What’s your favourite product that you’re sporting today?

* indicates press samples

You’re gonna have to excuse the late-night point & shoot pictures, these were taken at around 11pm and I’d just dragged my tired bum through the door after spending an evening at Selfridges enjoying an Armani masterclass with Cesar Santos, one of Armani’s International Face Designers.  I’d already managed to eat my lipstick and gloss off whilst on the train home, so what remains in the photo below is a five-hour old base which my dry skin instantly fell in love with (Luminous Silk 4.5), some phenomenal mascara (Eyes to Kill (VexInTheCity, you were right)), and one of the new Eyes To Kill eyeshadows (#24 – RougeDeluxe has more info on them here).

There was also a blush (blushing fabric #1) which the camera has failed to capture.  I’m sad that I ate the lipstick off, it was probably the best warm pink I’ve ever worn for not looking clashy against my skin.  Don’t comment on my brows, I would say that I’m “growing them out” or something bloggery like that, but I’m not… I’m just too idle to phone my threading lady and my fringe does a great job at hiding them.  Usually.

How about that mascara huh?

Cesar Santos usually resides on the Giorgio Armani counter at Harvey Nichols, London.  You need to track down this man, seriously.  He’s ridiculously easy to talk to, completely non-judgemental when admitting your makeup crimes, and did not put a single foot wrong when selecting shades that complemented both my skintone AND my hair.  Basically, if ever there were a case for human cloning (especially if we could turn them into our makeup minions)… Cesar is it.

I shall be blogging more about the evening soon!

All-in-one neutral palettes have never been more popular, they’re a quick solution to the eternal morning dilemma of eyeshadow selection when all you really want is an extra five-minutes in bed.  Stepping firmly on the bandwagon with their latest palette release is U.S. brand, Stila in the form of their In the Light eye shadow palette*.

A cardboard palette, lightweight and without a mirror makes this a slightly more portable (if flimsy) choice than the Urban Decay Naked franchise.  The palette contains 10 pans of colour, both a mix of shimmer and matte shades.  Each pan provides 1.4g of product, around the same quantity per pan as the Urban Decay offering, but two less pans in total.  The stock images that you will see online of the palette don’t reflect the true shades within, both bliss and sunset do not swatch pink as described in the official colours and shown in the stock photo.  All shades can be used both wet and dry.

The ten shades vary in pigmentation and texture, some feel quite soft and creamy whilst others are more firmly-textured and require building up to achieve rich colour.  None feel chalky and they all share excellent blendability.  There are four matte shades in total: Bare, Bliss, Sandstone and Ebony allowing you to create a fully matte look with a range of neutral shades if you so wish.

I like this option a lot… it allows me to create a fully matte eye look as my base before adding in a ‘pop’ of something more shimmery without going into disco territory.

The shades are mostly warm-toned with the exception of Night Sky and Luster.  Also included in the palette is a 0.28g black, retractable eye pencil (smudge stick) which provides rich colour with a smudgable but long-lasting formula.

A quick FOTD showing Bare, Bliss and Sandstone with a pop of the inimitable Kitten on the inner corner to brighten the eye area.  Kitten has long been one of Stila’s most cult shades, and I can see why, it’s a very pretty champagne highlight that opens up and lifts the eye area when used as a highlight.

The Stila In the Light eyeshadow palette is available to buy instore at SpaceNK, online at BeautyBay and Escentual.  It’s also available at Stila’s freshly-launched website: stila.co.uk – priced at £25.00

* press sample

Well, not entirely monstrous, but green is not a colour that I can pull off with much success.  Mr. L, who never comments on my makeup (other than to tell me I look lovely when I drop enough hints that he ought to be saying something), readily agrees that green is not a colour I should allow into my makeup-playing repertoire too often.  About halfway through the day I asked him, “Have you noticed that I’m wearing green on my eyes today?”.

“Yes. *pause* It doesn’t look too bad does it?”

And that ladies, clearly means that it looks amazing.  Or not.  I’ll go with the former.

Do you ever get the feeling that you’re getting a bit old to wear bright colours on your eyes?  I do.  I mean, when I was 27…. I thought I was getting too old, but now that I’m 30 and I’m looking at the photo thinking, “I think it doesn’t look too weird” but, I surround myself (online) with beautiful women who love to have fun and enjoy a passion for makeup.  What must women who don’t share our creativity when it comes to slap think?

Of course, one totally shouldn’t care what other women think and I’m neither fishing nor asking for validation here, it’s just that being on the cusp of the wrong side of 30 makes me hesitate.  Nothing more and nothing less, I guess it comes down to the fact that you can’t really pull off the “cute” thing once you reach your thirties, and so there’s no room for error in the same way as when you were younger.

“Should know better”.  I’d like that on my headstone… along with “One Day”, a long-held shot at faith.

I usually only have time in the morning for the basics when it comes to makeup but Mr. L has been super-generous with his time in the run-up to releasing his next game, so you can expect a few more FOTDs than normal simply because it feels lovely to walk out of the house in a proper made-up face once a week you know?  The type where you’ve played and pontificated over choosing what to apply rather than reached for the quickest, most fool-proof things you own.

Anyway, I’m really rambling.  I’ll do a quick product breakdown.

Face

Face Atelier Ultra Foundation in Ivory
Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage SC-1
Guerlain Terracotta Moisturising Bronzing Powder in 00

Eyes

GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Green Grass on the upper lashline
Purple Eyeshadow from the Smashbox Muse Artist Eye Palette on lower lashline
Clinique High Impact Curling Mascara*
Illamasqua Eye Brow Cake in Gaze

Lips

Bourjois Sweet Kiss Natural in 09 Sienne Kiss*

What’s your colour nemesis?  Do you hesitate when it comes to colour?

* press sample

I had a little shop-my-stash session and pulled out some things that haven’t seen as much love recently as they should, namely my Face Atelier foundation which is a touch too silicone-heavy for my skin when it’s at its driest in the Winter.  My skin is back in a good place at the moment and I couldn’t wait to see if I still loved it as much as I did last Summer when I bought it.  The answer is a resounding YES!  I’ll do a proper review with before/after shots later in the week, kick me if I don’t ‘cos it makes a great spring/summer foundation for those who aren’t ready to give up ‘propah’ coverage just yet.

My NARS Lhasa got some extra love with a sparkly pairing courtesy of Avon’s Glimmerstick Diamonds Eye Liner in Sugar Plum – it’s a nice way to supercharge a much-loved taupe with a bit of additional colour.  My beautiful Maison Lancome blush* is still pleasing me muchly, especially if I give the brush a good swirl in the darker shades first before building up a little more luminosity courtesy of the pale pink.

Hmm, what else…

Ahh, a Fyrinnae Lip Lustre in Ryo Pinko!  I wasn’t sure if this would still be usable… it’s been a while!  However, it smells and tastes perfectly fine, it’s not quite ready for the cosmetics graveyard just yet!  I love the colour and the metallic finish is a little bit retro (in a good way!).  It inspired me to give today’s FOTD a silly little name though, so it’s all good.

Finally, I layered up two mascaras that I’ve recently been sent and got some epic lashes as a result, I’ll blog them as part of my mascara series shortly.  The Clinique Lash Power Mascara* has a small brush that works well at getting product right into the roots of the lashes before a coat of Clinique High Impact Curling Mascara* ontop sends them skyward.

What’s on your fizzog today and when was the last time you shopped your stash for some forgotten treasures?

* press sample

My poor, poor face.  I’m in the middle of a snot fest and I’m now understanding why I was brought up on a diet of haliborange.  Throughout the year I’m not a terribly sickly person (I was as a kid) which is just aswell because I’m the biggest wimp you could meet (probably).  I even have a ‘cold’ voice – you know that weak-sounding, more-than-slightly whiney tone that resonates through the nose more than the throat?  My poor family.  Anyway, this week’s cold has been particularly frustrating because of how beautiful it’s been outside!  The whole family have had it and thus we’ve been mostly quarantined indoors through the weekend.  I decided to make a break for it yesterday and thus needed a face of makeup to disguise my ravaged skin.  It’s so dry and dull, combined with the snot-induced nose flakes and hormonal jaw-line mega zits?  Not pretty.

I massaged my freshly-washed skin with a combination of Liz Earle SuperSkin Concentrate* and Alpha H All For Eve Age Delay Facial Oil* in an attempt to revive some life.  Kinda like a cardiac massage for the face before giving my driest spots (flakey bits) at light cover of Lucas Paw Paw Ointment (this stuff is great for disguising nose flakes).  I went with the spring-like weather and injected some colour onto my face with a bright streak of blue under my lower lashline.  This is my favourite way to wear the shade and I do it quite a lot in the Summer.  Anyway, enough talk.  Here’s my Springtime in the Sahara FOTD:

I think I could have done with a touch of highlighter but I’m otherwise looking fairly perky considering I felt like DEATH.  Like my Tammy Faye Baker eyelashes?  Tough – I do!  I never put that much on my lower lashes normally but now I’m gonna (until I get bored of it).

I’m wearing:

Skinfood Gingko Green BB Cream
Priori Perfecting Mineral Foundation (lightly buffed where I needed more coverage)*
Maybelline Pure Cover Mineral Concealer

KIKO Automatic Waterproof Eyeliner
Laura Mercier Luster Eye Colour in Marina under the lower lashline
Benefit They’re Real Mascara*
Illamasqua Eye Brow Cake in Gaze (I found it, I found it!)

Benefit Hervana Blush* (I did promise you a FOTD with this beauty)
Boots No7 Vital Brights Lipstick in Blooming Pink*

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What do you think?  Bit too early in the year to pull out these shades?  Hope you’re well and less snotty than me!  At least the pancakes (bacon and maple syrup!) cheered me up!

* press samples