A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

If I could pick only one lip colour to share the rest of eternity with, I would be faced with a decision-making crisis like no other.  I would find it preferable to contemplate chowing down on nothing but beans on toast for the remainder of my days than make an ultimate choice between my pinks, reds and nudes.

Having said that, the first step in the decision-reaching process would be the easiest.  Bold or neutral?  For me, it’s bold all the way.  I adore a bright lip, a pop of colour can work wonders to liven up a dull complexion, lifting weary expressions along the way.  Simply put, a new bright lipstick is one of the quickest, easiest and most affordable pick-me-ups known to (wo)mankind.

Some ladies wear their lip shades with an attitude that allows them to rock any colour they choose but the nervous among us have to be more cautious with our selections.  To play it safe, cooler-toned ladies generally look better in pinks and plums while warmer, olive-toned beauties sparkle in corals and fire-engine reds.  Of course, as with most things in life… rules are there to be broken but it’s always good to know the “rules” first in order to break them with confidence!

My favourite way to wear a bold lip is with good skin (hormones permitting), a slick of eyeliner, a hint of blush and nicely defined brows.  Bright lips can be quite draining so try to remember “fresh” face, not “freshly-dug-up” face when considering your overall look.  The key is to create a balance across the canvas that achieves a harmonious result, easier said than done but work on the basis that less = more and you’re halfway there.

My final consideration in the quest for lip perfection is upkeep.  Bold shades are the Mariah Carey of the lip world, they’re high maintenance and need careful care and attention to avoid a midday meltdown!  For long-lasting lustre, I recommend a liner to avoid bleeding, exfoliation and moisturisation to avoid the colour settling into furrows and the “apply, blot, reapply” technique to fortify dawn-to-dusk colour.  Failing that, just make sure you carry your lippie with you for mid-afternoon top ups!

I’m all about the lipstick but perhaps you’re more of a gloss girl?  The final decision lies with you but don’t forget to share your thoughts!

Tesco Magazine are running their latest campaign, Tesco Your Beauty Awards 2011 where you stand the chance to win lots of lovely beauty bits and if you’re very lucky, a trip to Antigua!

Head over there now and vote on your favourite beauty buys for unleashing the perfect pout!

* this is a sponsored post

I don’t usually fire out many lust posts but I had to share my OMGWANTITNOW for the new Rouge d’Armani Hot Collection.  I’d been sorta thinking about (trying not to think about) it for a little while… but Karla’s swatches, oh my… the swatches.

Yeah.. whatever… I was talking about the SWATCHES <<<< click this link and be prepared to want one.

Want one?  I want TWO.

I always seem to fall in love with Armani Limited Edition items and I swear that the counter in Selfridges has the worst stock levels of any counter, ever.  Wish me luck on Wednesday, I’m taking L into the big city and if I don’t come back with one of these beauts in my hot little hands, I won’t be a happy pink-lipstick lover.

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Do you have a favourite from the line up?

This is for the lovely Deborah at ThisWeekIHaveMostly… who requested a couple of lip swatches before the weekend from my recent Hot Pinks post.

Hope this helps D!

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Oh and just because this post is super short, I’ll take a moment to tell you about yesterday. If you follow me on twitter, you may have already heard this story… so move along, nothing to see here!

So anyway, potty training.  I haven’t actually started the process… I’m just testing the water and seeing how she reacts to the potty/having her nappy off/talking about it etc.

Well, she crapped on the floor.  I don’t know why I didn’t prepare myself for something like this but I should point out in my defence that I’ve never owned a pet that’s crapped on the floor either.  I walked around the corner to see L pointing at this (impressive) turd, look of abject horror on her face while she explained to me breathlessly that she was just playing games when a coconut fell out of her bum.

Laugh? Cry? I did a bit of both to be honest.

Have a great weekend lovely people!

I only picked up three of the Shiro Cosmetics Intertube samples but now I know that I’m ok with the formula… I’ll be going back for more!

Leeroy Jenkins: Pale pinky-lavender with subtle blue interference and gold sparks

3 Wolf Moon: Dark, bold red

Sad Keanu: The type of purple that frightens little kids

And lip swatches… I’m not sure any of them suit me – will stick to the pinks next time!

You can see that each provides good coverage on the lips and can be worn more sheerly than I have above.  A couple of them were a touch gritty but this melted with the heat of my lips as I applied.

Shiro Cosmetics Intertubes are available to buy online from shirocosmetics.com

I don’t generally get enough time in the mornings to do much in the way of eyeshadow so I often rely on a slick of liner and a bold lipstick and to be honest, that suits me fine!  Seeing LondonMakeupGirl rock a gorgeous flick the other day inspired me to make the effort and extend my liner past the ‘comfort zone’!

I was also keen to wear my new Revlon Strawberry Suede lipstick that I picked up from eBay after hearing Lisa Eldridge extol its virtues… shame Revlon discontinued it, it’s pretty fabulous!

Products Used:

Face
Lancome Teint Miracle in 010
Inglot Cream Concealer in 32
NARS Multiple Tint in Beverly Hills

Eyes
NARS Ondine
Stargazer Liquid Eyeliner in Black
Rimmel Volume Flash x10
Illamasqua Eyebrow Cake in Gaze

Lips
Revlon Strawberry Suede Matte Lipstick

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What are you wearing today?

Sometimes I get a little bit guilty looking at all the lovely things that I’ve bought and haven’t gotten around to swatching for the blog and after a conversation on Twitter last night with @PinkSith, @LondonMUGirl and @Fauxlivia – it shamed me into grabbing my ‘waiting’ box and dragging the things out of it that I knew I should have gotten around to swatching a bazillion years ago.

7 lip tars (I didn’t bother with the less wearable shades I own) and a pair of slightly sore lips later…

L-R: Hush / Memento / Grandma / Trollop / Pageant / NSFW / Stalker

They all need to be applied with a lip brush and each gives great coverage with just a small amount.  I tend to use a little more than I’ve read *should* be needed but I always end up blotting after because they transfer to my great big front teeth like a total bitch if I don’t.

~ HUSH is the palest shade I own… it’s a beige nude which works well with a smokey eye and is *just* dark enough to avoid the corpse bride look.

~ MEMENTO is a darker, more wearable nude on my skintone thanks to a pinker hue than HUSH.

~ GRANDMA was a gamble for me when I bought it… I thought it would be far too warm for my skintone but it actually turns fairly neutral on my lips despite the tube colour.  One of my favourites for Summer and can be built up to a rich coral with a couple of coats.

~ TROLLOP was purchased purely on the basis of its awesome name so I’m really pleased that I love the colour too!  I’d describe TROLLOP as a warm pink… verging toward the guava territory but not as warm as GRANDMA gets after a couple of coats.

~ PAGEANT was my first Lip Tar… I wanted a hot pink that wasn’t quite neon and found it in this shade.  If you want something a touch bolder than this, go for ANIME (which I don’t have).

Ahhh… the reds…

~ NSFW is the classic neutral red and it really is one of the most bang-on reds I own.

~ Thinking that I didn’t need another OCC red when I was already in love with NSFW, I almost didn’t pick up STALKER.  But oh boy am I glad I did?  It’s a true vampy cool-toned red that works verynicelythankyouverymuch on my skintone.

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Now, I don’t really wear these as often as I should… they need a brush to apply, don’t be trying from the tube unless you have some serious skills.  They can also feather if you over-apply or generally suffer from this anyway… clear lip liners for the win!  I’ve also mentioned the transfer issue… a slight purse of my lips and my teeth get a nice coating too.

Does this mean that I regret buying them?  God, no.  I just regret being too lazy to take the extra little bit of time to ensure that I do these justice.   I hereby solemnly swear to break out my OCC pinks a little more this month!

OCC Lip Tars can be bought in the UK from sites: MakeupArtistBoutique, Cocktail Cosmetics, GenieCosmetics and LoveMakeup.

Do you own any OCC Lip Tars?  Which ones are on your wishlist?

ReeRee Rockette from Rockalily Makeup has released a new compact range of 4 lipsticks designed to inspire you to find your perfect red.  Ahhh, that elusive perfect red…

ReeRee Rockette was tired of trying to find her perfect red lipstick. She was overwhelmed with lipstick choices, but disappointed with their colours. Some were too dry, some too dull, some yellowed her teeth whilst others bled beyond her lip line. ReeRee knew she wanted a blue-based red lipstick but beauty assistants never seemed able to help.

ReeRee decided to start her own brand of lipsticks, where less really could be more.  She wanted to create a range that could be worn every day and that were the right shade and quality of product.  She wanted Rockalily Ladies to be able to quickly choose which shade would be right, and be confident that they wouldn’t be disappointed when they got them home.  She settled on three red shades and one pink, creating a capsule range of perfect shades for anyone brave enough to apply!

The shades are described on the website as:

Hot Rod Red is an orange-based red designed for those with darker skin tones. And creamy and luxurious matte lipstick. Still a classically bright red.

Roulette Red is a deeper shade of classic red. It is a creamy and luxurious matte lipstick. Again, perfect for paler skin tones, for a more sultry look. This again is a blue-based red, to enhance the whiteness of your teeth.

Pompadour Pink is a semi-gloss lipstick in a bright fuchsia shade. A blue-based pink to flatter paler skins and teeth. The perfect pink!

Rockette Red is a creamy and luxurious matte lipstick. It is my classic bright red, and is perfect for paler skins. It is a blue-based lipstick so it is also good for making your teeth look whiter.

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Rockalily Lipsticks available exclusively from www.rockalily.com and are priced at £14 each.

You may have already heard about Karen Alder’s new lipstick creation – TRUST which has been developed to raise funds for the youth charity, The Prince’s Trust.

100% of the proceeds from the sales of TRUST (exc. VAT) will go directly to the charity!

I thought I’d share some images of the celebrity supporters sporting the lipstick (in various guises!) and I particularly adore Kara’s playful pose! (bottom right)

Karen Alder, Celebrity Makeup Artist and creator of the TRUST lipstick said…

I love the power of the colour red – no other shade has such an impact.

I call it a not-so-secret weapon.  My new creation – TRUST – is a foolproof easy to wear bright red, packed with Vitamin E. To me, this is the perfect red, striking the balance between the orange tones and blue. Its satin finish really makes it easy to apply without bleeding, yet keeps the look contemporary.

What with being ALL about the red lipstick, I’ll be logging on to snap one of these babies up quicker than you can say ‘big ears’.  Wait… can I get put in the tower for that?

The limited edition lipstick will go on sale on the 2nd of April exclusively at QVC UK.

You will be able to log on to the QVC website or call 0800 50 40 30 to buy one and it’s priced at a bargainous £8.00

When I was in London last week, I was on a lipstick mission… overtaken by the urge to find something to tempt me, I came home with more than I bargained for – a new lipstick obsession!

The new Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Color’s had been piqueing my interest for a few weeks now and I headed to the counter in HoF Westfield to take a closer look.

The new Rich Lip Color range comprises of 12 relatively bright shades which definitely lean more Summery than Autumn/Winter in my opinion.  I chose two from the 12: Mod Pink and Guava.

Mod Pink was a shoo-in from the moment I spied the bullet.  It’s a lovely pink for Spring/Summer.  I took a bit more convincing with the other despite previously professing my love for all things Guava!  I was just a little unsure if it would be too warm and be a bit too “Oh HAI lips!”

I am pleased with myself that I pushed out of my comfort zone… not only that but I completely avoided Old Hollywood, a particularly lovely-looking red!

The packaging is the typical, sleek Bobbi Brown affair… nothing particularly exciting, just understated and elegant enough to pull out in public should you do that sort of thing!

God I love new lipsticks! *drool*

The texture of these is good!  Firm but smooth to apply with barely any drag on the lips.  Pigmentation is high (as you would expect from a range called “Rich Lip Color”.

Finish-wise, the two that I own are both semi-matte and despite this, they feel extremely comfortable on the lips and not particularly drying considering the very good wear I achieve from them.  I would estimate at around 4/5 hours without eating or drinking.

And here’s how they look in context with my face…

Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Color Lipsticks are priced at £16.00 each on counter but are currently available on the House of Fraser website with 10% off.

Next on my list is Bikini Pink!

Are you planning on checking these out? Have you bought any already?!

I only own one Julie Hewett product, it’s a lipstick that LondonMUGirl made me buy.  She doesn’t know she made me buy it… it was a blog lemming thing.  Still unforgivable though.

Anyway, the reason I’m mentioning it is because I went to Shepherd’s Bush yesterday to check out the new and improved PAM store.  If you don’t know about PAM, they’re a professional makeup shop that caters to makeup artists and students.  Of course, they’re open to the public too so if there’s anything that catches your eye, you’ll be welcomed in store or on the website to have a closer look.

So, as I was saying…

I own one Julie Hewett lipstick from the Bijou line of sheer lipsticks.  The shade I have is probably the most well-known, Lulu.  It’s a true rosy pink on my unpigmented lips and really not that sheer after all.

Excuse the dust, Lulu is my ‘handbag’ lipstick and I dragged it out of a tissue-stuffed side pocket for the photo!

It’s very glossy, light and non-drying.  It doesn’t last too long but is ideal for touch ups on the go and to give an overall polished look.  Hence it always being in my handbag!

The Julie Hewett brand is only stocked in a few places online in the UK and as far as I’m aware, PAM are the only stockists you can visit to have a look at the products in person before purchasing.

While I was there, I fell in love with this promotional image.  The stark contrast of the dark lips with the barely there makeup enchants me!

and this one…

I’ll leave you with a few more pictures of the Julie Hewett stock available instore…

Have you tried anything from the Julie Hewett range?  Want to?

Originally intended for my red lip series, Inika Mineral Lipstick in Electric Red is formulated with natural shea butter and jojoba oil and prides itself on being a completely natural and vegan lipstick.

I say ‘originally intended’ because once I applied it to my lips, I could see that it wasn’t really a fit for my red lip series what with it not really being red n’all.

Inika Cosmetics are an Australian brand boasting over 79 permanent products in their lineup.  All natural products are guaranteed to be completely free from petrochemicals, fillers, talc, bismuth oxychloride, GM ingredients, parabens, preservatives, mineral oils, phthalates and fragrances.  That’s quite a list… but usually consumers often find themselves making compromises in terms of pigmentation or wear when it comes to natural products….

Inika’s Electric Red* is indeed lacking in pigmentation.  While this will disappoint some, others will be delighted to find a more wearable version of a strong shade.  I can’t help but feel that with a name like “Electric Red”, I want something a little bolder to translate to my lips.

It has the prettiest metallic sheen… and in truth, I’m actually quite delighted to find such a wearable warm red that neither makes me look like a clown, nor a cheap tart.  It’s quite an unusual shade and perfect for summer.  Texture-wise, it’s quite hard but softens up as the warmth of your lips encourages the mix to spread.  Once on, it feels light and comfortable.  Despite the natural ingredients, I can’t say that I found it particularly moisturising but it definitely didn’t dry my lips out either.

If you’re looking for light, wearable shades to suit all skintones, take a closer look at the Inika Cosmetics range of highly wearable lipsticks.

Inika Mineral Lipstick in Electric Red is priced at £12.77 and available to buy online from the Inika Cosmetics website.

* press sample

Illamasqua’s Atomic lipstick is a non-hooker fuchsia pink with blue flashes makes for one hawt Spring/Summer lipstick!

It’s packed with pigment for an opaque, matte finish which is pretty unforgiving on lips that are in anything but the best condition.

I own a few Illamasqua lippies and they are all hard-textured, solidly opaque affairs that are unkind to dry lips but I think this is the most drying yet and should be accompanied with a lipgloss.

I know that some will be happy to sacrifice moisturisation for lasting power and Atomic has plenty of this, with the kind of longevity you’d expect from a stain rather than a lipstick.  Thanks to the hard texture of the lipstick, you shouldn’t get too many bleeding issues from this bright.  I didn’t notice any problems despite not using a lip liner… it just doesn’t move.

Overall: Illamasqua Atomic lipstick* is an awesome shade with amazing pigment, incredible lasting power but potentially quite uncomfortable to wear without proper lip preparation.

Illamasqua Atomic is a shade from the Toxic Nature collection and is available to buy on counter, instore or online priced at £15.50

* press sample