A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

I’m not doing any Valentine’s gift guides this year because, quite frankly, I can’t even come up with a single gift for my lovely husband, let alone a heartfelt collection that you lot could choose from.

A Twitter friend suggested that I just need to look down to find his gift, I assumed that she was talking about my baby bump rather than my vagina, but either way… after 10yrs of marriage and one snotty five-year old, I don’t think either suggestion will raise more than a sarcastic eyebrow.

However, the one Valentine’s-related release that has made my blood pump a little faster is this beautiful collection of sultry reds from Illamasqua.  If you’ve been reading Lipglossiping for more than a few seconds, you’ll already know about my love affair with red lipstick.  I only own the one from Illa’s range (Sangers), so to see the ridiculously feisty Maneater in my parcel evoked a couple of mid-air heel clicks.

The new I’m The One Collection* contains a total of four passionate pieces from the British makeup line.  Including:

NEW! Intense Lipgloss in Touch (£14.50) – Infused with fine shimmer particles, this plush gloss will add depth and fullness to your lips.

NEW! Colouring Pencil in Feisty (£14.00) – A creamy addition to your lip collection, use our Feisty pencil to create a precise and alluring red lip.

Lipstick in Maneater (£16.50) – An intense, full coverage formula, apply this lipstick to bare lips for a long-lasting pop of colour.

Nail Varnish in Throb (£14.50) – Apply two coats of this glossy blood red shade for an elegant, classic manicure.

From left to right: Feisty Colouring Pencil  |  Maneater Lipstick  |  Touch Intense Lipgloss

Of all the items in the collection, I have to say that I fell in love with the least likely offering.

Feisty, the brand new lip pencil is one of the most pigmented-yet-creamy red lip-liners I’ve ever had the pleasure to use.  With a deep, long-lasting pigment… you usually have to compromise on the texture and a dry, unyielding lip pencil is something that many of us will be familiar with.  No such compromises are necessary here, it’s an absolute dream.

I’ll leave you with a couple of extremely pose-y FOTDs featuring the new Feisty Colouring Pencil and Maneater Lipstick.

If you fancy the chance at winning some hand-picked pieces from the new collection, you have until the 15th February to brush off your Social Media skillz and tweet @illamasqua a Red Lipstick Selfie, using the hashtag #ImTheOne – good luck!!

The Illamasqua I’m The One Collection is available to buy on counter and online now at illamasqua.com, priced at £50.00

* press sample

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Surely Illamasqua’s Magnetism from the latest Generation Q collection is the perfect lipstick to welcome the colder weather?  It’s like taking baby steps into the vamp.  Tiny little raspberry-pink coloured steps.  Now, I’m no great lover of Illamasqua lipsticks – I just don’t like the harder formula… of all the ones I’ve bought and tried in the past, I’ve only actually held on to Sangers (bit dry but beautiful colour), Atomic (the violet flash slays me), and Eurydice (because everyone needs a bit of pink neon don’t they?).

But… what I’m trying to say is that… when it comes to lipstick, I don’t go to Illamasqua for their amazing, lip-friendly formulas.  Well, not until now…

I mean jeez, dare I say it… it’s almost… almost… buttery.

I don’t think I’ve raved about an Illamasqua product for a while (well, except their eyebrow cake in Gaze, eternal HG) but this… you needs this in your life.  I’d stopped looking to Illa to provide any lipstick-love for me, are there any other buttery-smooth Illa lip formulas I’ve missed the memo on?!

Please Illamasqua, please remake all your other beautiful shades in this formula.

Illamasqua Magnetism Lipstick is priced at £16 and available to buy online and on counter from Illamasqua.

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I perpetually live in hope when it comes to the Precision Inks from Illamasqua.  For whatever reason, my body chemistry and the polymer-whatsits inside the formula repel one another.  I also know that I’m in the minority when it comes to having trouble getting them to stay on my eyelids but regardless… here’s a quick review of the latest Precision Ink from the great (Great?) British brand…

The Precision Ink provides a neatly tapered, perfectly controllable “brush” with which to dispense the product along the lashline – it’s well designed and allows both precision and decent coverage without needing to take multiple passes.  When you get the hang of how the liquid flows from the brush you can use the angles to your advantage and swiftly draw both thick and thin lines.

The formula is fairly wet and does occassionally attach itself more to my lashes than my lashline… but I find that to be true of most non-pen style applicators, whilst they’re great for providing quick coverage, you may have to do a little cleanup afterward, unless you’re very handy with an eyeliner!

Now, as for Wisdom… what makes it special?  What made me hope and pray to the Gods of makeup that the formula and I would finally, magically become compatible?

The shade.

Wisdom is an absolutely beautiful gilded olive/antique gold – it reminds me a little of Urban Decay’s old liquid liner in Honey… but perhaps a little more sheer.

I’ve swatched it above both on its own and over a black liquid eyeliner to demonstrate the depth of pigment.  Wisdom makes a fabulous alternative to the usual black and is light enough to work really well as part of a simple neutral, work-appropriate look whilst adding a little “interest” to a look that you might be a bit tired of wearing.

Unfortunately, it just doesn’t last well on my eyelids at all.  I don’t know if it’s because they’re hooded and I literally “rub” away the product with my upper lid as the day progresses or… gosh, I really don’t know.  Either way, none of the Precision Inks I’ve tried since their launch have lasted longer than around 4 hours for me without flaking off in great chunks and leaving bald patches.  Other people I’ve spoken to on Twitter find them some of the most long-wearing eyeliners they’ve ever tried.  C’est la vie.

Illamasqua Precision Ink in Wisdom is part of the limited edition Generation Q collection, priced at £17 and available on counter and online now, while stocks last.

Do you have a nemesis product that you just can’t get to grips with?

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Morning!

Hope you’re reading this from the comfort of your beds, I intend to still be fully tucked up when this post goes live – probably with one eye on Franny’s Feet, Mike the Knight or whatever else is showing on TinyPop that will grant us an extra half hour in bed in the morning.  Sweet, sweet children’s T.V.  Once that’s over and done with I’ll be heading to my parent’s house to eat my Dad’s birthday cake celebrate my Dad’s birthday.  Possibly with a little trip to the supermarket on the way back.  Not the most exciting of Saturdays is it?

Whatever you’re doing today, I thought I’d give you a little heads up to a rather tasty free delivery offer that’s gone live over at Illamasqua.com.

The deal lasts until Monday morning and is valid on both domestic and international orders with NO MINIMUM SPEND.

If you’re interested in checking out some of my favourite (and not so well liked) Illamasqua goodies, click here for an archive of Illamasqua-inspired posts.   Also worth checking out is the Illamasqua Perfect Pout bundle; The Retractable Lip Brush, any colour in Medium Pencil and any colour in Lipstick for the price of just £38.00, originally £47.50.

What are your plans for the weekend?

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?

Want some tips on creating the perfect ‘flick’?  Need some guidance in mastering your smoky eye technique?  Well cancel any plans you’ve made for this Sunday because Illamasqua are holding their inaugural Beauty School Drop-In at their Beak Street store.

The brand will be running a series of 15-minute makeup classes to give you the confidence and know-how to wield your makeup brushes without causing any traffic-stopping beauty faux-pas!  And best of all?  It’s completely free to attend!

The class timetable is available online now, so click through and take a look – you can attend as many or as few as you like, though don’t be surprised if the store gets kinda busy!

Which of the classes is taking your fancy and will you be attending beauty school this weekend?

These trio of eyeshadows from Illamasqua’s latest Human Fundamentalism* collection landed on my desk this week and I thought I’d post up some swatches.  The three matte shades are: Vernau (yellow ochre), CanCan (bright lilac purple), and Pivot (yellow green).  Get ready for some piccies… (I dunno why I always say that like it’s 2001 and you’re all hitting X so as not to max out your 56k dial up *shrugs*)

The shades have fair to good pigmentation (for mattes) and blend nicely.  The pick up is powdery but again, this is something you often have to contend with when you’re using a matte formula.  On with the swatches…

Applied on dry skin with no primer (please excuse the cycling scratches).  The pales don’t look too chalky considering.

Each shade applied with Illamasqua’s Sealing Gel* (as you would for an eyeliner application).

My attempts at a FOTD sadly ended with me looking at myself in the mirror and declaring “you look like a twat in those colours”.

But…. and this is where it gets interesting…

I went to the bathroom to remove my clown face and upon scrubbing with face wash and warm water….

The swatches done with the Sealing Gel would. not. budge.  I mean, they really wouldn’t budge.  I’m sat here 5 hours later and they’re still looking at me.

So my review is being thoroughly hijacked because I can’t coo over a trio of eyeshadows in shades that I wouldn’t be seen dead in (did I mention Illamasqua will makeover your dead body?).  However… I can get excited over the Illamasqua Sealing Gel which would be a phenomenal addition to your makeup routine if, like me, you have hooded eyelids and can’t stop eyeliner from transfering up to your hairline when you blink a bit too hard.

The shadows are ok, if you’re gonna get all hot and sweaty over them… you probably don’t read my blog anyway to be honest.  But check out the inconspicuous looking bottle of sealing gel next time you’re near a counter.  I already own/use a mineral-makeup branded sealing gel… this is 100x better.

Illamasqua’s sealing gel is priced at £10.50 and can be purchased on counter or online.  Also, if you haven’t seen them already – check out Illa’s pretty glorious moving swatches on their new-fangled website.  The Human Fundamentalism Collection can be seen here.

* 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!

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I do the school run a few times a week for my neice and it’s made me realise that what little time I have in the mornings to make myself look human is going to decrease drastically when Leila reaches school age.

I can barely bring myself to pull clothes over my head, let alone apply makeup but I have a duty not to scare the under 8s and so I diligently make an attempt at disguising my 7am death mask with a hint of colour. As you’ll see, I don’t go much on product this early in the morning.

Infact, I rarely use more than four: foundation, mascara, lipgloss and blush.  Of the four, blush is most essential to avoiding that freshly dug up look, as is mascara – lashings of it.

As for my hair? Well I’m just pleased it’s the right time of year for wearing a hat.

Products Used:

• ByTerry Perfecting Fluid Foundation Ultra Correcting Coverage (full review coming soon)
• Illamasqua Rude Cream Blush
• Bobbi Brown Extreme Party Mascara
• BarryM Toffee Lipgloss

What’s your laziest face of the day?

The lovely Lily from BeautysBadHabit is doing another stint with us today and showcasing Illamasqua’s latest collection: Theatre of the Nameless – take it away Lily!

Illamasqua have been at it again with their Autumn/ Winter collection, ‘Theatre of the Nameless’, being yet another which has had the blogosphere abuzz. Inspired by the dark, decadent creatures of ’20s Berlin who owned the night with illicit acts and wild looks, the ‘Theatre of the Nameless’ is an unapologetic nod towards Illamasqua’s original inspirations.

To my surprise, when Charlotte received a few ‘Theatre of the Nameless’ items to review, she sent them my way since such ‘odd’ shades are pretty everyday for me! Especially lipsticks, with Illamasqua ‘Disciple’ (inky navy blue) being a firm favourite.

‘Kontrol’ lipstick (£15.50) is a medium dark, blue toned purple with a twist of grey and extremely impressive pigmentation. One swipe and this baby is as opaque as they come. To me, ‘Kontrol’ is the perfect ‘night on the town’ colour if you’re a little…um…gothically inclined? Alternatively natured? Heck. If you’re up for wearing something more interesting or ‘edgy’ than primary red or hot pink – this is for you!

I love ‘Kontrol’ with a strong, opaque, sharp application, but it also looks lovely dabbed on and coated with a sheer gloss for a more forgiving finish. This lipstick will last as long as you do, I’ve gone entire days (and then well into the night) wearing this without it fading or smudging – very impressive indeed!

‘Kink’ polish (£13.50) is one of four from this collection, all of which have the same ‘rubber-look’, waxy finish. The new texture (for Illamasqua at least, I recognise the finish as satin/ semi-matte) is bound to be love it or hate it with all who try it. Personally, I’m a fan, though my opinion may have been swayed by the gorgeous, deep green colour! ‘Kink’ was extremely thin (managed to drip it down my jeans – oops), opaque in two coats, fast drying and lasted two days before any chips appeared – which, for me, is average. The best thing? It’s called ‘Kink’. ‘KINK’. Who doesn’t want to say they have a bottle of ‘Kink’?!

All in all, another fascinating and boundary pushing (green gloss – need I say more?) collection from Illamasqua, but by now – would we expect anything less?

I’m usually the woman who loves the fragrances that others hate, so reading Julian Kynaston describe the brand’s first foray into perfumery as:

There’s no middle ground with Freak.  The name, the packaging and the fragrance will polarise opinion to simply love or hate.

I can’t help but feel tremendously excited.  I’m really hoping for something that strays wildly from the well-trodden, mass-appeal fruity-floral, mild musk that proliferates the market today.

Illamasqua’s Freak lists top notes of: Black Davana, Opium Flower and Belladonna followed up with heart notes that include: Poison Hemlock, Datura and Queen of  the Night (are they making these florals up?) sitting on a base of aromatic Frankincense, Oud and Myrrh.  Finally, something I can grasp at, and although I’m not the world’s bigest fan of Frankincense, I do love (quality) Oud and Myrrh.  Freak will be available to purchase only in 75ml bottles and will be priced at £59.00.

I have a niggling concern that Illamasqua Freak has the potential to demonstrate a classic case of style over content.  Everything about the fragrance has been so carefully constructed to fit with the brand’s ethos and whilst that’s clearly not something to be criticised, I hope that the sum of these individual (edgy-sounding) notes add up to something that represents and rings true for their fans.  I don’t actually care if I hate it, I just want it to be engaging enough to make me care one way or another.  I also want it to be powerful, with great sillage and turn heads regardless – it wouldn’t be Illamasqua without that quality.  The fact that it will be released exclusively as an EDP has me hoping.

First impressions based upon the campaign film and images alone?  I dislike the name, love the film and adore the bottle.

So there we have it, Illamasqua’s first fragrance.  On paper, it works.  On the fragrance blotter and under our noses?  Time will tell.

Freak by Illamasqua is available for pre-order from the 3rd October online at Illamasqua.com before it launches on the 20th October.

In a world that seems to take ever-increasing pleasure from bringing others down, just five minutes of your time please.

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