A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

I was quite sad to read this piece of news yesterday afternoon!

After 13 years as a mainstay on the British high street Boots UK is today announcing the phased withdrawal of the Ruby & Millie brand from its stores.  Ruby & Millie led the way for pioneering fashionable cosmetic brands to break into the mass market driving the trend for the fusion of mass and premium cosmetics .

Ruby & Millie were one of the brands I cut my beauty teeth on.  Not quite ‘high street’ (though they are!) but not ‘high end’ either.  To be fair, I wasn’t in love with many R&M products, especially in recent times… but the ones that I did fall for, I still use frequently today!

Where am I going to get my i-writers from now huh?!

The press release went on to say (I’m C&P-ing because I can’t say it any more concisely!)

Ruby Hammer and Millie Kendall stepped down from the brand in 2008 and have since focused on new and innovative brands such as Andrea Fulerton Nail Boutique, Scarlett & Crimson and Alex Byrne Beauty. 2011 will also see the launch of Ruby Hammer’s eponymous new range.

I still haven’t tried anything from the Andrea Fulerton Nail Boutique…  I need to get into a bigger Superdrug to check the range out after seeing Helen’s nails blinged up to the max with the Trio Colour Layering System!

But it’s not all doom and gloom for the Ruby & Millie brand because…

The duo will also look to reinvest their energy into the Ruby & Millie brand bringing back a classic representation of their iconic products and initial concept of affordable luxury to the global market.

I’m pleased that the duo will be looking at ways to bring the brand back to former glory, it’s one of those brands that seems to have lost its way a little in recent times.  Also looking forward to finding out more about this new range from Ruby Hammer – every cloud has a silver lining eh?

Will you be sorry to see the Ruby & Millie brand disappear from Boots?

Marian Newman is an acclaimed session manicurist of many years standing and has worked with a ton of legendary photographers, models and celebrities.  She was the first UK nail technician to work on the top level fashion shows and her work continued in this year’s London Fashion Week when she demonstrated some on trend looks with Ruby & Millie as her polish of choice.

I’m loving these custom polish mixes for the catwalks and ‘Black Tulip’ is no exception:

The Look:
Black Tulip is for strong, confident ‘grown up’ women.  Longer and perfectly oval glamorous nails matching a strong  lip.  The deepest purple; reading black but with a glimmer of luscious purple in the light.

Ruby & Millie Nail Color:
Mix Nail Color Blue 620C and Nail Color Purple 550C – Price: £9.50 each

Marian’s Top Tip:
“The Black Tulip is a deep ‘midnight’ with just a hint of purple. The purple only appears in certain lights.  The key to this looking so fabulous is a smooth nail, smooth finish and a super glossy top coat. It should look almost PVC.”

I can totally imagine this for AW/10… purples are usually hot anyway but it’s lovely to see such a vampy colour wearing well on longer nails.

Problem is, I’m far too lazy to franken polishes… so Ruby & Millie need to get their bums in gear and just make sure it’s released at Boots in time for my Christmas Dinner.

Ruby & Millie make some decent brushes at reasonable prices, and this one is my favourite.  It’s great for gel eyeliners and brow powders… firm but supple.

The Ruby & Millie I-Define brush is priced at £6.00 in Boots, but is currently available for a recession-busting £1.00 with a No7/Ruby & Millie till spit*.

I’ve bought a couple since the offer’s been on and plan on getting some more of the Boots No7 Eyeshadow brushes which I enjoy using alongside my MAC 239.

The Boots No7 Eyeshadow brush is priced at £5.75 rendering it a 75p super-bargain with a till spit.  Only larger stores appear to carry these brushes though.  You can usually find them on the bottom shelf of the No7 stand (rather than amongst the general makeup brushes) housed in cardboard boxes.

*till spit = a voucher automatically printed by the till when you spend over £5 in a transaction.  I’m a geek and purposefully split my transactions into roughly £5 amounts to maximize my till spits *blush*

Till spits are valid until the 31st January, so get shopping!

Have you tried either of these brushes?  Do you recommend any other ’till spit’ bargains?

Green, not the best colour choice for me… typically one of my favourites – boo hoo!

I’m still showing the I-Divine Original palette some love…

Face:

Revlon Colorstay in Ivory
Silk Naturals Blush in Climax (Orgasm Dupe)

Eyes:

Sleek I-Divine Original Palette (Green and Gold shades)
Shu Uemura Painting Liner in M Brown
Ruby & Millie Metallic I-Writer in Green
GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Green Grass
Kanebo Kate Enamel Glow Waterproof Mascara in Black

Lips:
Avon Glazewear Lipstick in Pink Kiss (shade now discontinued)

I don’t usually wear pinks.. but these shadows from The She Space’s Taurus Astrology Collection were just too cute not to.

Face:
Cory Cosmetics Mica Free foundation in Bare Beige
Earthen Glow Minerals Blush in Berries & Cream
MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural & Shimmer in Light/Medium
The Body Shop Vitamin E Face Mist

Eyes:
Urban Decay Primer Potion
The She Space Mineral Eyeshadow in Little Explosions
The She Space Mineral Eyeshadow in Traditional Taurus
Ruby & Millie I-Writer in Black
Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara
GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Black Ink

Lips:
GOSH Pearl Shine Lipstick in Starlet (discontinued)

…of liquid eye liners?

I have a real problem with most liquid liners.  I either love the tip, but find the product too thin and unpigmented (yano where the blacks come out as a watery grey) or, I love the product but daren’t put the tip within 2 feet of my eye without risk of blinding myself.

I’ve finally found one that applies like a dream and is also a gorgeously pigmented black.

Ruby & Millie’s I-Writer is an odd looking contraption.  A few of their products utilise this futuristic x-ray type design.  It’s novel, interesting and pretty functional.

As you can see, the tip is VERY fine.  It’s also flexible and soft fibred, which means that it’s not gonna drag on your eyelid.  The brush has a wide enough base to offer some support to the tip which gives it just enough stiffness.  It tapers into a lovely sharp point for precision lining and the product disperses itself fairly evenly along the fibres when you give the other end of the pen a little twist.

I love the brush so much that when I run out of product, I’m gonna can use it with my gel liners.

The I-Writer retails at Boots for £10.50 and is available in a few different colours (I also have this in green, but don’t recommend it.  the formula is a bit too sheer for an eyeliner).

Next time I use this in a FOTD, I shall make a note of it in the products used so you can see it in action!

[starreview tpl=14]

You can save £5 on Ruby and Millie at Boots ’til June 30th with this voucher.  Click the image below to claim your voucher thanks to the 30 days of fashion and beauty promotion!

I’ve heard great things about the ‘precisness’ of i-writer eyeliner pens and as someone who can’t draw a thin line for love nor money, I’m going to be checking them out!