A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

NOTE: I’m breaking the sun protection series into small chunks because I can only take so many -enzones before I want to pull my eyes out.  If it seems a little disjointed, bear with me.  Making a series like this coherent may prove to be my biggest challenge!  I hope you find it useful.

Talking about sun protection is such a minefield and I’m certainly no expert, infact I’m not in any legitimate place to be talking to you or posting about the topic.  So why am I?

Well, for all the science and controversy that surrounds the subject… as a consumer, I just want to know one thing.

Which easy-to-wear sun protection should I buy to give me the best UVA/UVB protection without risk of potential harm from its formulation?

It’s not much to ask is it?  So why am I still searching?

photo credit: D Sharon Pruitt

Let’s break the question into its three key segments to ensure we’re on the same page before continuing with the series.  What I’m essentially looking for is…

1). Sun protection that wears like a dream.  For the majority, this means: A lightweight formula that applies like an invisible veil alongside other products I use and causes no skin irritations, breakouts or dryness.

2). The best UVA/UVB protection available that will protect my skin both from burning, sun sensitivity and cancers but also prevent premature aging.

3). NO risk of interaction with my hormones, winding up those pesky free radicals and preferably doesn’t penetrate the skin at all.

C’mon… we can put man on the moon but we can’t create a simple answer to an ideal sun protection?

Coming up next, Sun Protection 101: Part 2 – What we’ve got…

In the four years since I first fell in love with makeup, I’ve become a snob.  Caused by a simple case of exposure, or should that be overexposure to brands.  Without wanting to sound like someone you’d like to stab in the kidney, I’m in the fortunate position where brands sometimes send me products to try for free but I can honestly say that in spite of this… I’ve never spent so much money on makeup and beauty products in my life.

Three years ago, I would have considered a MAC eyeshadow a luxury purchase and when all is said and done, at £11.50 for a bit of coloured powder in a pot.  It is.  Of course, it’s all relative really… I don’t earn more than I did three years ago but my priorities have changed and beauty hits the top spot for those hobby spends nowadays.

So back to this makeup snobbery.  It’s like a slow rot.  I almost find it hard to believe nowadays that I’m going to find the quality I’m looking for in a drugstore purchase.  That my now ‘more discerning’ tastes (I know, hit me) won’t be catered for on the high street.  Bull.  Shit.  I just might need to look a little harder… and I’d completely forgotten the excitement to be had in uncovering awesome gems for little monies (until last night!)

Now, that’s not to say I’m going to turn my back on my high end purchases (heaven forbid!)… I’m still a sucker for a bit of luxe packaging and that superficial (and it is!) thrill of owning something horribly covetable.  I just hereby promise to spend a little bit of time having a play in Superdrug again, I genuinely forgot how much fun it was to be LEFT. ALONE. to swatch!

Do you think “snobbery” is a natural progression for hobbies that become more consuming?  Have your purchasing habits changed much over the last few months/years?

OK, enough with Spring/Summer… here’s my favourite season (in terms of colour – definitely NOT weather!).

OPI have previewed their Autumn/Fall collection, titled Touring America and it looks a little something like this:

It’s a large, 12-piece collection which can be split into the usual sophisticated yet dirgy, autumnal shades and rather awesomely, some fall-toned brights too!  From the bottle shots, the brights look like they may be metallics but I’m not 100% on this – I’ll have to wait to see some swatches before I can confirm!

Let’s have a breakdown:

Are We There Yet?: Melon
I Eat Mainely Lobster: Luminous Coral
My Address is “Hollywood”: Vivid Rose
Color to Diner For: Iconic Red
Honk if You Love OPI: Rich Raisin
Road House Blues: Deep Sapphire

Suzi Takes the Wheel: Grey
French Quarter for Your Thoughts: Sexy Grey
Uh-oh Roll Down the Window: Chic Olive
A-taupe the Space Needle: Creamy-Rich Taupe
Get in the Expresso Lane: Amped-Up Dark Brown
I Brake for Manicures: Eggplant-Plum

I’m pretty divided on this Touring America collection.

Autumn is the pinnacle of nail polish collections for me, it rarely gets better and if this represents the best of what I have to look forward to from one of the biggest players in the polish world.  I’m just not sure I’m as excited as I hoped I would be.

Coming from someone who loves their grungy, dirty shades… I would have liked to see OPI mix things up a bit.  Get adventurous with the dirge!  Some different textures maybe?  I don’t know… as I said, I haven’t seen these in person so there may well be something about them that lifts from the standard cremes.  I hope so but at the moment I’m left with an overwhelming feeling of deja-vu.

Thinking back to last year’s Swiss Collection (of which I own the majority!), I’m just not getting the same buzz from this year’s offerings although I am pleased to see OPI carry over some Summer shades whilst giving them an interesting Autumn edge!

These will be available from LenaWhite, priced at £10.50 each.

What are your first impressions of OPI’s Touring America Collection?

Everyone’s talking about The Vitality Show this week, one of the best ‘beauty and wellbeing’ expos on the calendar!

“With over 300 companies on hand to dispense diet and healthy eating tips, beauty and anti-ageing solutions and fitness and wellbeing advice – there’s everything you could possibly want to look healthier, fitter and more gorgeous.

And that’s just for starters…there’s a host of amazing interactive attractions that are guaranteed to inspire you too.” source

The show is being held at Earls Court 2, London from this Thursday 24th March until Sunday 27th March.

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Courtesy of JustBeautyDirect, I have 4 Pairs of e-tickets for this THURSDAY to be won!

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For a chance to get your hands on a pair of tickets, you can either leave a comment below OR make use of Twitter!

Follow and Retweet (RT) this message:

“RT @lipglossiping: Follow & RT to win a pair of tickets to The Vitality Show http://bit.ly/gN2CrP”

Good Luck!

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T&C:
Lipglossiping.com is the Promoter
Note, this is for THURSDAY entry only (24th March)
The competition closes at 3pm on the 23/03/11 (that’s less than 24hrs away folks!)
This competition is open to UK residents only, aged 18 years or over
4 winners will be emailed their e-tickets tomorrow evening and will need a printer to print them

I know it’s LFW but I’ve never been particularly fashionable.  I like clothes, a lot.  I like to buy clothes, a lot.  I just don’t know how to combine them to ‘create’ looks.  I’m truly envious of women who have an unforced style… me?  If it looks good, it tends to look like I’ve ‘tried’ really, really hard to make it look good you know?

So anyway, it’s not that I’m eschewing LFW… not at all, I love to look at the makeup from the shows… but when it comes to trends?  Completey superficial and frivolous posts on eyebrows are more my thing!

With this in mind, brow gods Tweezerman reckon they’ve got their fingers on the Brow Trends that’ll have us going “ooh nice brows” this Summer.  Don’t say that I’m the only one who “oohs” over nice eyebrows in this way… no seriously, don’t.

[stextbox id=”custom” caption=”Tweezerman say…” ccolor=”ffffff” bcolor=”b0c4de” bgcolor=”e6e6fa” cbgcolor=”b0c4de”]Brows – last season it was all about an over sized, wild & bushy brow.  This season, full brows are still on trend but now they are more tailored & groomed, the hairs aren’t as wild and often they are slightly elongated and tapered at the ends creating a touch more drama.


This Spring/Summer’s full brows have a great arch that is both feminine and strong.  Brow colour should be 1-2 shades lighter than hair colour and should be powdered across the whole brow rather than just used to fill in.  A new trend is also to highlight under the brow, which makes it look more substantial and showcases the brow perfectly.[/stextbox]

Strong brows are still in, just a little more ‘tailored’!

If you’re not blessed with a well-defined arch, Tweezerman recommend the use of a little cosmetic trickery to give the impression of a master eyebrow-raiser:

“You can use a touch of a highlight of makeup underneath the brow to create a bit of lift; a light-toned fleshy nude or very pale vanilla colour to illuminate the underneath.  You can also use your brow powder or brow pencil to emphasize the arch.”

Here are some of the most popular products on the market for emphasising a beautiful brow!

1. E.L.F Eyebrow Lifter and Filler (£3.50)
2. Clinique Instant Lift for Brows (£13.00)
3. Pixi Brow Lift (£16.00)
4. Benefit High Brow (£14.00)
5. MAC Shroom Eyeshadow (£11.50)

But what my eyebrows want to know is this… how long are they going to have to wait until curly brows are in huh?

Oh… that long?

Well in that case, I’d better stock up on mega-hold hairspray and hone my use of brow shaping scissors instead.

Do you have brow envy?

Isabella has been beauty blogging since she was a student at University, writing for cosmeticsurgeryguru.com she now takes an interest in all cosmetic surgery procedures from surgical to non-surgical.

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Why has cosmetic surgery become so widely accepted?

Most of us can remember a time when cosmetic surgery was a pretty taboo subject, not only in the world of celebrity and entertainment, but also on Civvy Street. Women who’d gone under the knife were often subject to endless questions over what they’d done – so it’s hardly surprising that few ever stuck their heads above the parapet to admit to surgery. Meanwhile, the mere thought that a man could have had a little nip-tuck would be a source of endless ridicule that could almost derail a career.

And if you think this only occurred in Hollywood in the 1980s and 1990s, think again. You only need to think back to the media furore over Men Behaving Badly actress Leslie Ash’s botched lip implants and the ‘trout pout’ jibes that followed in 2003 to realise how recently cosmetic surgery was deemed unacceptable and ripe for ridicule.

However, as we make our way into a new decade, a sea change in attitudes toward plastic surgery has become more and more noticeable. Having a little nip-tuck is nothing to be ashamed of any more – and is often celebrated in TV shows and magazines. As with many changes in society in recent years, there’s not one central reason for this – rather a combination of factors.

For a start, celebrities are much more comfortable discussing their procedures in interviews – and the public can often identify with the reasons they give. For example, TV presenter Jenny Powell recently admitted to having breast implants after years of breastfeeding left her boobs saggy and tired-looking – a situation millions of mothers could easily identify with.

And it’s not only women who are happy to discuss their treatments. More and more male celebrities are not only having surgery such as facelifts and hair implants, but are also promoting the clinics that have carried out the work. Where once famous men who had cosmetic surgery were considered a bit odd or vain, now even respected celebrities such as Gordon Ramsey and Duncan Bannatyne are widely reported to have gone under the knife.

However, it’s not only the celebrity world where it’s become increasingly acceptable to have plastic surgery. With more and more affordable treatments available, from non-surgical Botox to CACI facial toning, many procedures are now within the reach of everyday Britons too. And just as men in the celebrity world are turning to treatments, Joe Bloggs is also getting in on the act. Recent figures released by the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons showed that demand for surgery among men soared by 21 per cent in 2010 – with operations to cure the dreaded ‘moobs’ (man boobs) rising by an amazing 80 per cent.

With the effects of the recession not only affecting our wallets but also giving many of us tired complexions, wrinkles and crow’s feet, it’s clear that the nation is waking up to the fact that there’s no longer any shame in giving Mother Nature a little helping hand and winding back the clock a little. And long may it continue!

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Thanks for such an insightful and though-provoking guest post Isabella!  If you’d like to read more of Isabella’s thoughts on Cosmetic Surgery, be sure to stop by her blog: http://www.cosmeticsurgeryguru.com/

What are your thoughts on society’s acceptance of cosmetic surgery, do you believe there’s still a social stigma attached to surgical procedures?

Casa Lipglossiping is getting a little over-run with makeup, so I’ve been going through my collection and digging out the bits that don’t see the light of day enough for me to warrant keeping when there’s other even more beautiful things lying around in carrier bags until I find homes for them.

So with this in mind, please indulge in a little blog sale.  UK Only.

Everything will be sent recorded delivery.  UK P&P is £2.50 for one item but I will be pleased to combine postage on multiple items and email you the combined total.

Please leave a comment to claim an item leaving your Paypal email address.

Items are sold as seen, all authentic, condition is as stated please ask if unsure.  No returns.

1. Accessorize Merged Blusher – Pretty Pink (MAC Moon River-a-like) – Used 2x – £3.50

2. TopShop Cream Blush in Flush – Used 3x – £3.50

3. TopShop Cream Blush in Butterscotch – Used 4x – £3

4. Stila Convertible Colour in Fuchsia – No dips – £12.50

5. MAC New Vibe Blush – Swatched – £13.50

6. Cory Cosmetics – Mineral Blush in Lava (slightly more tawny version of Deep Throat) – Used 2x – £4

7. Silk Naturals Mineral Blush in Climax (Orgasm dupe!) – Used 2x – £3.50

8. Prestige Skin Loving Minerals in Pure Shimmer – Used 1x – £4

9. MAC Flower Mist Dew Beauty Powder – Swatched – £13.50

10. Art Deco Loose Powder (Fair/Medium)  – Used 3x – £8.50

11. Art Deco Eyeshadow Base – Used 2x – £6

12. Revlon SkinLights Face Illuminator in 02 Pink Light – Used 3x – £4

13. Jelly Pong Pong Cheek Stain (sheer raspberry colour) – swatched – £4

14. MUFE HD Foundation in shade 110 – Used 2x – £17

15. Inglot Concealer in shade 32 – Used 1x – £8

16. The BodyShop VitaminE Serum – Used 1z – £4

17 & 18. No7 Highlighting Powder – light use – £4 for both.

19. The Make Up Store cream highlighter (that dip looks 100x deeper than it is – pink/peach shade) – £7

20.  MAC MSF Natural/Shimmer in Light Medium – Used 6x no dips – £11

21. Stila Smudgepot in Cobalt Blue – £3.50

22. MAC Fluidline in Waveline – £8

23. MAC Fluidline in Silverstroke – £8

24. MAC Fluidline in Green Sage – On it’s last legs – £2.50

25. MAC Fluidline in Brassy – £6

26. Bobbi Brown Long Wear Gel Eyeliner in Violet Ink – £8.50

27.  Bobbi Brown Long Wear Gel Eyeliner in Sepia Ink – £7

28. Generic eBay type eyeliner – £3

29. Generic eBay type eyeliner – £3

30. Generic eBay type eyeliner – £3

31. Generic eBay type eyeliner – £3

32. Generic eBay type eyeliner – £3

33. Laura Geller Eye Rimz Cake Eyeliner/Shadow – £4

34. Coffret D’or Gel Eyeliner DB04 – used 4x but beginning to dry up a little (still workable though!) – £4

35. MAC Shroom – No dips – £7.50

36. MAC Beautiful Iris – No dips – £7.50

37. Laura Geller Bewitching Bronze NOT FOR SALE – SORRY!

38. Smashbox Smashing Champagne Eye Shadow – teeny tiny dip (more of a nick really) – £4

39. Le Metier de Beaute Eyeshadow in Platinum – Used 1x No dips – £14

* have stolen some of the t&c from Tits McGee queen of blog sales… a.k.a Cosmetic-Candy

Is it just me or are we experiencing some rather good deals at the moment?  My bank balance has been taking a serious hit the past couple of weeks!

For one week only, Barielle are offering 20% off EVERYTHING… but… (and here’s the kicker)….

The Spring, Summer, Autumn AND new Winter polishes are still on BOGOF!!

Two Barielle’s for a grand total of £6.40?  Oh.. if you insist…

Next up doing their bit for Breast Cancer Awareness Month is…

What is it?
Versace Bright Crystal is a contemporary fragrance with delicate notes of juicy pomegranate, magnolia, peony, and lotus flowers.

The luxurious set features:

• Limited Edition Versace Bright Crystal Pochette with pink ribbon charm
• Versace Bright Crystal Eau de Toilette Natural Spray (50ml)
• Versace Bright Crystal Perfumed Body Lotion (50ml)

Price
£42

Donation
Unspecified percentage of the sale’s proceeds going to Breast Health International.

Availability
Exclusively in House Of Fraser Stores from the beginning of October 2010, whilst stocks last.

I’m guest blogging over on Zuneta again today!

I get to grips with a bit o’ Rouge Bunny Rouge and characteristically fall in love with the cult brand, but it’s not ALL plain sailing…

Head on over there and don’t forget to leave a comment, I wanna know your tips for sharpening those babies! (not babies babies… um… oh, you’ll see what I mean if you go have a read!)

Last weekend, Lipglossiping reader Charlotte (what a great name!) alerted me to the fact that Debenhams online were charging £35 each for the new Limited Edition Soft Touch Chanel Eyeshadows in Taupe Grisé and Vert Khaki.

Yeah, really….

I informed Debenhams of this last Sunday evening (15th August) and was told that the misprice was indeed a technical error… 3 days later, on Wednesday evening… the error was fixed.

I’ve since asked Debenhams Beauty if customers would automatically be refunded if they had been overcharged.  Unfortunately, the answer is no.  I quote:

If you bought it at the higher price you need to call our Customer Services on 08445 616161 with your order number to sort out refund!

So there you have it.  If you’ve been stung by this technical error, hopefully you’ll realise and get in contact with Debenhams who will then happily refund you.

Although it doesn’t quite end there…

Charlotte claims that her local Debenhams counter in Ipswich also charged her £35 each for the eyeshadows, though I have no way of verifying this.  Perhaps they were following the online pricing?  I’m not sure… but it might be wise for Debenhams to get a memo out to their counters to ensure that customers aren’t paying over the odds for the new releases.  STAT!

I mean sure… they’re pretty, but they’re not THAT pretty.

Have you paid over the odds for these new releases or seen your local counter charging more than £19.50 a piece?

Yano, it’s not that often we get an exclusive this side of the pond, but check it out:

Givenchy’s Summer 2010 collection includes this beautiful turquoise addition to the popular Givenchy Phenomen’ Eyes lineup of mascaras.  Available in Europe only, it’s a gorgeous looking shade no?

Of course, if you were going to splash out on the blue mazzy… it’d be plain rude not to pick up the matching polish too…

Available from the 1st May exclusively at Harrods, with a nationwide roll out at counters everywhere from the 15th May – thanks to BBB for the release info.