This Seasons Lips.

Hey there,

Flicking through pages and pages of magazines, it’s wasn’t quite as apparent as normal as to what colour lipstick we should all be dashing out to buy. From what i could see, these are this seasons trends: nudes, corals and reds & berries. And finding the right product of each can be challenging. I’m dedicating a post to each of the three mentioned trends – this one is for the nudes.

I like wearing nudes in the day, as they exude an effortless, polished look. Magazines and polls show evidence of men preferring a natural look, as opposed to a bright, flamboyant look. So if you, like me, are a fan of nudes this summer, my colour picks are:

MAC stock a huge selection of top quality shades with different finishes, and all colours cost £12.50.

Please Me (Matte) is a muted light pink shade which is less flamboyant than the lady gaga shade (tamara did a post on that – click here) but it’s more than layering foundation on your lips. It’s a summery, pastel tone, and it would look good with colourful, bright eyeshadow.

Fabby (Frost) is mid-tone mauve with gold pearl – it looks more nude than it sounds. This is versatile, but i’d say that it’s sliding towards the evening end of the wearable scale. (to the left)

Kinda Sexy (Matte) is a neutral pinky-rose – it’s similar to the Please Me, but it’s way toned down. This lipstick allows dark eye makeup to dominate the face, and would be suitable for both evening and day. This one is most nude and muted out of the three MAC shades mentioned, and this suits all skintones.

I could talk about so many more MAC shades but i’m going to save you that much reading hassle and list them for you instead: Midimauve, Snob, Piink!, Angel, High Strung, Creme Cup, Pink Plaid, Shy Girl, Faux, Patisserie, Brave, Syrup, Fanfare, Naked Paris, and for darker skin also try: Half n Half, Fast

Play and Creme D’Nude. Enough of MAC…

Ecco Bella I’ve very slightly mentioned before but the products from this brand are very natural and free of everything -they’re made of vegetables waxes, oil and mineral pigment. They do a great range of moisturising lipsticks; my favourite are Napa Grape, Rosewood and Sangria.

Valerie Beverly Hills was created by Valerie Sarnelle, a makeup artist to the stars who has her own

makeup range and I’m a big fan of hers – click on this link to see her using her own products to create a simple, evening look click here. However, her makeup is not cheap; the lipstick she uses in the video is $25 or around £17. My picks? Shades Joy, Brad and Charity.

Cheap Lipstick Picks:

Collection 2000 Make a competent Volume Sensation Lipstick – these are only £2.99. It’s both moisturising and volumising but only lasts for about an hour so you will need to bring it out with you. It comes in 11 shades and right now if you spend only £4 on collection 2000 you get a free gift! All the shades are quite different for different skin colours – Sea Shell is for me.

Lastly (yes you are probably praising the heavens that you’ve managed to read this

much about nude lipstick!) is Max Factor Colour Collections Lipstick. Tamara actually left some of this at my house and being the makeup obsessive I am, I tried it out. I was actually very impressed; it is very soft and moisturising and is better than a lot of ‘high street’ lipsticks. The most natural, flattering shade I think is English Rose. (right top)

I hope out of the 1000’s of products listed here you may be able to find a nude lipstick! But just so you’re all aware, I have pale-ish skin with medium size, light pink lips so although I can make suggestions I can’t be so sure on totally different skin colours and lip colours because I can’t really compare 😀 But hope this helps anyway.

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Charlotte

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Burberry Beauty??

Hey there,

Well, the title speaks for itself – Burberry has launched a new beauty line that will be available in early June!

This line is guaranteed success, as the faces include Lily Donaldson, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Nina Porter and Emma Watson! Apparently, the collection is inspired by their signature trench coats and the English weather – “You’ve got the natural (colours) from the trench coats, you’ve got these beautiful stormy greys and blues” says Christopher Bailey, the creative driving force of the brand.

The collection will be found exclusively in Harrods soon!

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Tamara

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Sit Tight.

Hey there,

Sit Tight by Soap and Glory has been out for a while now (a month or so i guess) and i’ve really my time in trying it out. It’s a thigh firmer, which i don’t necessarily need yet, but none the less, i love the feeling of firm thighs.

The actual science behind the product is slightly genius – it’s ingredients are activated by heat, so you apply it onto your thighs and literally…Sit Tight!! I hate being conned by products, but i have tried S&G’s other leg firmers and felt a difference, so i, naturally, had high expectations for this product.

I am slightly fickle when it comes to packaging – if a product looks good, something inside me assumes the product itself is good, which is not a good thing! I love the packaging for this; a large mirrored silver tube – it looks great. The product itself comes out in a smooth white gel, and is absorbed within 30 seconds of applying it, which makes it easy to apply in the morning before you get dressed. It has a fresh eucalyptus/natural smell to it, and it instantly smoothes your thighs.

It definitely makes my thighs feel firmer, whether they look it – only time will tell. If you follow the blog, you’ll know i went on holiday to turkey a couple of weeks ago, i got five friends to tried it, and they all liked it. I ended up hiding the tube!

This is £14, but is justified by it’s firming power, and also, you get a hell of a lot in one tube. It’s a huge 200ml tube, and i doubt i’d finish it soon.

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Tamara

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Oooh, Cheap Smells!!?

Hey there,

I was recently told by a friend of mine a website where the impossible is made possible. By this, i mean serious discounted beauty. And no, there’s no catch – delivery is 95p per item in the UK!! Finally i can shop freely on a discounted site without a ridiculous $50 shipping bill looming at the end of my basket!

So, this site sells makeup, hair products, skincare and fragrance – all for extremely good prices. Some £25 foundations are reduced to £8! I am so excited about ordering from this brilliant site which offers discounted products from Benefit, Dior, Elizabeth Arden, YSL, Stila and Shiseido!

And if you did happen to notice, i’m sorry about every single sentence ending with an explanation work. hmm thats slightly sad but hey in this case it’s for good reasons! 😀 So check out CheapSmells.com.

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Tamara 🙂

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Trish McEvoy.

Hey there,

We haven’t really shed light to the wonderful brand that is Trish McEvoy but Tamara mentioned the eye primer/base in her tired eyes post (click here to view). I had heard of Trish McEvoy before, but i only decided to try the products because a friend of mine literally swears by it.

Trish McEvoy’s products are all very compact and the most famous is ”the makeup planner’. This is basically a makeup kit that contains all basic makeup you need all in one. She had the genius idea of creating this type of product on holiday, when she had tons of separate compacts.

 

These kits also have a custom feature – you can pick the brushes and products that go in it, and there are brush slots and zips for all of this. Also, you can fit your personal makeup in there to! When I first saw their volumising mascara I was very(very) skeptical. The whole thing was tiny and very light, it didn’t look that volumizing but in my lashes one coat did the job brilliantly! If you’re someone who doesn’t have hours to do your makeup everyday, and if you don’t have the space or just want to get organised with your makeup this brand if for you. Although it’s in America all orders over $50 (so about £40) get free shipping and a gift with your order.

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Charlotte

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Une.

Hey there,

It’s definite. Bourjois has officially launched ‘Une’, a new makeup line that is totally natural. The ingredients range from 98%-100% of their natural origin, and the collection contains 9 products which are available in different shades. This should’ve been in stores about a week ago, but when i went to boots yesterday (post below!) ‘Une’ was nowhere to be seen!!?! Considering that it’s a pretty large boots store, i was confused.

I’m most excited about the ‘Breezy Cheeks’ blusher, because it supposedly has a ‘cream-to-powder’ texture. This blusher is available in 8 shades, but they all look quite dull and neutral. This collection also doesn’t do eyeshadows, lip colours, eye pencils or mascara. There are 4 foundations and no eye-makeup products?? They collection consists of (like i said) 4 different types of foundation (??) a corrector pencil, a concealer, a mineral powder, a blusher and highlighter/bronzing liquid. So 9 products altogether. Bourjois itself is a french brand, so the french range is larger, covering mascara, brushes and lip products.

I think the idea behind the collection is a good one – it’s high time that organic makeup becomes cheaper, but the products seem too focused on overly neutral tones and products. Having said that, i would like to try the face products out; there’s a loose powder foundation, a ‘soft’ mineral powder foundation, a cream based ‘skin glow’ foundation and a ‘skin matte’ foundation.

So keep your eyes open for this range! If you see it in your boots, comment below and tell us what you think! Or, you could check out their website here.

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Tamara

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2 Bottles of Diet Coke = Free Nails Inc!

Hey there,

The title itself is pretty self explanatory.

From 5th May – 30th June, when you buy two 500ml bottles of Diet Coke, you are entitled to a free Nails Inc poilsh! Bear in mind, this is only available in some boots stores, but i’m sure looking at the collaborated range will cheer you up!

I’m also leaving for turkey on monday (yesssss!!) but i will have access to the internet, so subscribe for a week of summer fueled posts 🙂

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Tamara

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30th May

My Own Experience of The Diet Coke Offer

Just got back from the boots store in Westfield and they had the offer on! I also got a chance to look at the colours – the first beige-y colour was no-where to be seen (i’m guessing that’s the most popular one?) but i saw the others.

So, (going from left to right in the picture, not including the beige one) the purple is a medium, warm, quite one-dimensional colour that would produce a polished finish.

The pink shade is well, pink – quite loud and barbie-ish, definitely a girly colour, but i had concerns as to whether this colour would be just too pink.

The red is a pretty standard bold red, but i didn’t choose this one because a) red doesn’t particularly suit me, and b) i think it’s worth spending more than two bottles of diet coke on a red nail polish, because as soon as they chip, it looks cheap.

In the end i chose the purple shade, because i think it would compliment a tan, and it also isn’t an easy-to-find shade.

So, i hope you get the chance to participate in this one-off offer!

😀

Rituals Tao Collection Favourites…

Hey there,

This week, on a sunny tuesday, Charlotte and I attended the launch of the new ‘Tao Collection’ from ‘Rituals…’ which is based on ancient Chinese philosophy, focused on maintaining the balance between the ‘yin’ and ‘yang’ (inner and outer stress). As fun as those words are to say, this collection is all about deep relaxation, using raw organic chinese materials to create products so calming, they can even relieve insomnia!

Speaking to Eva Elias, Head of Brand Innovations, she explained the importance of deep relaxation while i was receiving a temple from one of Rituals very own masseuses from the St. Pancras Station branch – definitely check out their stores (they now have them in Westfields and even Heathrow and Gatwick Airport!) Another factor that gives the collection a winning edge is the affordable pricing – everything is from £6-£13!

My favourite in the collection would have to be the ‘Wai Wang’ (yes, they all have Chinese names – Wai Wang means ‘Royal Glow’) exfoliating body cream which has the most amazing unique smell of bamboo and white lotus flowers. The product itself comes in a pretty huge tube (200ml) for £10.50, which is quite reasonable, as the tube will last 6-12months (depending on how much and often you use it). As soon as you spread this onto your skin, the gorgeous fragrance oozes out. mmmm. I also really like this because when you rub it onto your skin, it doesn’t hurt :O. It actually feels very relaxing, which is a first, considering i’ve used many harsh body scrubs.

This fabulous collection also includes massage oil that smells like Chinese heaven, ‘Qi’ stress relief roller for temples which contains soothing mint and calming fragrance, and pillow spray/body mist that smells like green tea!

I hope you all enjoy the collection as much as i’m enjoying it 😀 Check it out on the Rituals website here.

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Tamara

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Compeed Blister Patches – Do They Work??

Hey there,

I came across these at Charlotte’s house last weekend, when her dad very kindly offered me these to survive my journey home in – i’d been skeptical about the blister patches since they started sponsoring ‘four weddings’ (my guilty pleasure!).

These are oval shaped plastic adhesive plasters, designed exclusively for the back of your heels. These retail for £3-£4 for a packet of six, so i’m very torn about this product; i can’t decide if i like it or not, so i’m going to list its positives and negatives…

Positive

• They’re made of transparent plastic, so they aren’t obvious at all.
• The shape is perfect for your heel, and it seems to work on most shoe shapes.
• They’re thick, so you aren’t frowning from pain whilst on your train journey.
• Once applied, you can see the white gel forming around your blister, which satisfies you visually.

Negative

• They are adhesive, but i’d have liked them to have a stronger grip on my heel
• They’re a little expensive considering they only come in packets of 6 (they’re £1 off on the boots website currently, click here to view…)

Okay, so the positive do greatly outweigh the negatives, but i think my mediocre experience with them was actually my fault, as i didn’t know how long i should’ve kept them on for, as i like removing plasters at the end of the day (bad idea with this ‘plaster’). It ended up soothing my pain for a couple of hours, but ripping it off brought the (sorry to say) scabby layer off with it, so it revealed new flesh and wince-able pain. Apparently, you’re meant to leave them on for a good couple of days…

But then again, i should’ve picked more sensible shoes.

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Tamara

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Eyeliner Pens…?

Hey there,

I don’t know if it’s just me, but pen eyeliners have always been something that have interested me. And I’m talking about felt-tip style eyeliners.

Unless you are feeling creative, i wouldn’t recommend these. It’s like drawing under your eyes with permanent marker. I found that it wasn’t at all soft to apply (in fact slightly uncomfortable) as well as the brush-tip being too large to get a neat, defined line. This was the same on the upper lashes – the line seemed to start straight, but at some point in the middle of my eye, the line ended up skyrocketing half way up my eyelid. Not my favourite look ever, and if you have sensitive eyes or you wear contacts, don’t even consider one of these. The pen somehow seems to get in your eye and although it wasn’t painful, for a second or so i could see the liner in my eye :-s.

For everyday use it is pretty terrible, but if you were going crazy I would recommend one of these pens, you can draw all over your skin very very easily and it will come off with any makeup remover. You never know, festival season is almost here and i might just try it out!

So there you go, my views on pen liners….not for general use. But I have heard great things about MAC’s ‘Penultimate’, so i shall be trying that sometime soon.

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Charlotte

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