A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Shall we have something a little more demure today? All this holographic sparkle is lush n’ all but not always the most work-appropriate of choices.  If you are looking for the kind of polish that is possibly more work-appropriate than even you are, look no further than this Suqqu Spring release…

SUQQU Nail Color R EX05 Shirakoucha is so demure and understated that it makes Emma Watson look like Miley Cyrus.  This pale, creamy nude is completely and utterly neutral, like the milkiest tea-latte in the coffee-shop.

It’s a little sheer on the first coat and needs a full 2 or even 3 coats to build up to opacity and you only get a rather laughable 5ml for your money here, so if you’re wearing this frequently as part of your nail wardrobe, you’ll get through a bottle sharpish.

That aside, it’s a lovely polish to work with, quick-drying and glossy… I’m on day 3 of wear and it still looks as good as new.

SUQQU Nail Color R EX05 Shirakoucha is priced at £18.00 and available to buy on counter at Selfridges while stocks last.

* press sample

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Only a couple of months old, Cheeky Cosmetics, the sister brand of Cowshed is making waves online with their new range of 21 nail paints and freshly-opened Shoreditch beauty parlour.  Not all about nails, the new parlour also offers a range of other treats including the “Cheeky Blow” (a range of four different blow-dry styles for girls on the go), “Cheeky Paint” (A file and paint with the colour of your choice and 10ml bottle to take home with you!), and a “Cheeky Up Do” (perfect for a night out with a choice of three sophisticated styles).

Today, I’m putting one of their polishes to the test in my own beauty parlour in-front of an episode of I’m A Celebrity (why is Lucy still in there?)

The shade on my tips in the photo is The Feeling’s Neutral, an oh-so-lovely milky mocha that harks back to OPI’s cult classic You Don’t Know Jacques but with a slightly chalkier, softer and more greyed-out edge.

Application is quicker than usual with an ultra-wide brush that can suffer from overloading if you’re not careful.  Coverage is great in two coats and the polish dries rapidly to a glossy, tough finish.

My only complaint about this particular polish lies with the smell, it’s pretty obnoxious but you can take comfort from the fact that Cheeky Cosmetics lists the full ingredients on the website and there’s no sign of the toxic-three anywhere.

Cheeky Nail Paints are priced at £7 each and available to buy online and instore at the Cheeky Parlour

* press sample

I’m reviving my ever-so-slightly neglected Swatch Saturday posts!

These will be filled with images and swatches as opposed to my inane ramblings (woohoo!) and will hopefully showcase some of the products that I use regularly.

So here we go with today’s swatches of an eyeshadow that I’ve been using pretty much non-stop this week.  Estee Lauder’s Pure Color Eyeshadow in Sugar Biscuit.

Estee Lauder Pure Color Eyeshadow in Sugar Biscuit has a satin finish that shimmers without being metallic.  It is an integral part of my lazy day looks!  A wash of it from lid to browbone will brighten tired looking peepers and give the impression of 8 hours sleep. Kinda.

I usually combine with a taupe in the crease and lots of mascara!

You can see it used in a quick look here.

Estee Lauder’s Pure Color Eyeshadow in Sugar Biscuit is priced at £15.50 and available on counter or online (though currently OOS).

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What’s your favourite eyeshadow for all-over brightening?

Whilst dodging the weekly shop by loitering down the health and beauty aisles, I thought it might be high time to give the Barbara Daly range another once over after being so impressed by the nail polishes.

I was glad I did, because my eyes alighted on these:

Barbara Daly Easy-on-the-Eye Eye Shadow Pens!

I have to draw the comparison to the Ellis Faas eye pens don’t I?  I mean, c’mon… how could I not?

With the Barbara Daly eye shadow pens costing £5.62 in Tesco vs. Ellis Faas’s £22 only stocked at Liberty offering – there’s no prizes for guessing which is gonna win the price/accessibility war but let’s take a look at some of the colours and application shall we?

Let’s face it… these budget versions from Barbara Daly are never gonna win the “which is sexier” battle.  Take a look at the wonderful Witoxicity for an indepth view at the new Ellis Faas Eye Lights pens if you’re unfamiliar with the eyeshadow pen concept.

Pulling off the lid reveals a nylon brush…. pliable and soft with plenty of give (perhaps a little too much give).  The goal is to draw the creme eyeshadow into the chamber and down the middle of the brush head until it emerges onto the tip of the brush.  To do this, you twist the opposite end of the pen which clicks as it rotates and forces the creme up through the bristles… like so…

Out of the four products that I put to the test, each dispensed product accurately and smoothly.  None of this sudden gushing of eyeshadow that the Ellis Faas pens have been known to do.

There’s some beautiful shades in the range, all very wearable both as shadows or eye liners.  I think I saw another shade while I was on holiday too…. I may have imagined it though, a neutral called Hazel?  Anyway… I think you’ll agree, these look pretty pigmented and lovely no?

The cremes glide on (I use the brush pen to apply directly to the eyelid) and blend with my little finger or a separate brush.  Don’t even bother trying to blend these with the built-in brush… it’s only good for creating hard lines, you’ll be turning the air blue before you know it!

Here’s a quick FOTD with Otter as the main focus.  A great shade for bringing out any green lurking in your eyes!  I’m also currently addicted to wearing Airforce as a thick eyeliner (slightly blended along the edge with a smudger brush).

Wear is pretty decent, it sets fully within a couple of minutes and lasts without creasing for about 5 hours when worn with no base.  I know they’re not hugely sexy… I mean, for god’s sake – they have the words “make up” printed on them, but they’ve impressed me!

Check them out next time you’re in Tesco!

Have you tried the Barbara Daly Easy-on-the-Eye pens before?  Which shades are you liking the look of?

Mooching around Covent Garden last week (as you do!) I stumbled across the Bare Escentuals boutique (the only one of it’s kind in the UK) and practically squealed at it’s boutiquey cuteness and revolving tester tables!  I wish I had a picture to show you… but if you ever find yourself at a loose end whilst down Neal Street, check it out… I could have spent many, many hours in there swatching all the pretty shadows.  Truly surrounded by pigment…. a swatchers paradise.

It also helped that the MUAs in there were completely approachable and at one point swatching with me and rediscovering shades they liked and disliked themselves in an attempt to find a potential alernative for an OOS shade I wanted to pick up.

Anyway, I was looking for a more summery lid colour… but as a neutral-loving fiend I wanted to be able to combine it with my boring beloved array of taupes and mauves in my collection.

I discovered this…

Bare Escentuals Heart is a wonderfully blended concoction or rose/mauve/pink/bronze… it’s dusky without being flat and colourful whilst still remaining neutral.

Being a ‘glimmer’ it’s pretty darn sparkly but despite this, still works surprisingly well as a crease colour.  I do love these minerals for their blendability and this is no exception.  At £13 for a small pot, they’re not cheap… but a little really goes a very long way.  I barely have to touch my brush to the sifter to pick up enough colour for both eyes.

I also fell in love with two other shades whilst browsing… Queen Phyllis makes the most beautiful highlight and Grace is simply one of the most beautfiful minerals I’ve ever swatched… I was proper “woahhhh… that’s purdy” whilst playing with the testers… so I was gutted to discover that Grace was out of stock when I tried to buy it!

Have you checked out the Bare Escentuals boutique?  What are your favourite BE shades?

I found it, I found it!

I thought I’d add a swatch to my collection of Creaseless Cream swatches… you can find the rest here.

Flatter Me is described as a ‘Toasted Mauve’… which basically means it’s a strange mix of mauve, taupe and brown.  It’s quite, quite beautiful.

As with the other Creaseless Creams, this is budgeproof on my eyelids.  More, more.. I must have more!  I think I’m going after Stiletto or Pre Nup next!

Do you like this one or are they all a bit too neutral for you?

So, last week… or was it the week before?  I’m getting old… they’re all starting to blur.

Anyway… I hit up The Makeup Artist Boutique mid sale and treated myself to a couple of Yaby bits that I’d had my beady eye on.  I’ve heard lots of (mostly positive) things about the makeupartist-designed brand and wanted to check it out for myself.

Here’s what I bought.

for swatches and some quick first impressions… read on…

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