couple of FOTDs

The first look is quickly becoming my go to look. I used to go straight for the pale skin, winged eyeliner and either neutral or red lip. I am getting older now and I am finding that the winged eyeliner does not look as good on me as it used to. I am also a lover of a strong eye and love playing with colour but lately I have been loving the taupe as an easy and quick eye look.

Products used -

Base

Loreal wrinkle filler eye cream

Illamasqua cream pigment in emerge under the eyes

Clinique Super City Block

Stila angel light powder foundation in the lightest shade.

Eyes

UDPP

Boots NO7 simple eyes compact. Lighter shade on the inner third and the taupe blended across the lid and up into the crease.

Eylure eyebrow pencil in Medium/Dark

Chanel platinum rose eyeliner under lash line

Bourjois volume fast and perfect mascara

Cheeks

Illamasqua cream pigment in emerge

Lips

Clinique chubby stick in whoppin watermelon

In the next one I can't remember exactly what products I used but I took the photos because I was trying out a new eye product for me. A friend at work gave me some Gosh products that she wasn't getting the use out of and I was excited to try the eyeshadow base.

It is in a stick form and is a sheer white with a slightly bluish flash it was too pretty to cover up completely so I just blended in a colour from the 17 metallic nudes palette and finished with a little eyeliner under the lashline smoked out with the same shadow.

Make up looks of the week

I have been making more of an effort to try a different make up look everyday at the moment. Normally I get in a bit of a rut and tend to stick to the same few things day in day out. The first look is from some of my fav mac makeup at the moment.

Base

Shiseido prefect refining foundation in 100 (this is so good I didn't use any concealer)

Bourjois mineral radiance powder in vanilla

Eyes

UDPP

Mac boy crazy all over the lid and under lash line

Mac aduki bean outer corner and in crease

liner avon supershock gel liner in plumful

mascara collection 2000 big fake in ultra black

eyebrows rimmel dark brown eyebrow pencil

Blush

mac sakura

Lips

Guerlain rouge automatique in cherry blossom

The next look is a bit more of an evening one.

Base

Max factor weightless foundation in 40

Bourjois mineral radiance powder in vanilla

Eyes

UDPP

Accessorize illusion merged eyeshadow in cocoa all over the lid

No7 autumn palette used to blend and highlight

liner avon supershock gel liner in plumful

mascara collection 2000 big fake in ultra black

eyebrows rimmel dark brown eyebrow pencil

Blush

Illamasqua cream pigment in Emerge

FOTD and An Experiment

So lets start off with a very quick face of the day.

Products used

L'Oreal Collagen Eye Filler

No7 Protect & Perfect Day Cream

Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation in 100 (very light ivory)

Maybelline Pure Cover Mineral Concealer 01 (nude beige)

Bourjois Mineral Radiance Pressed Powder 02 (vanille)

Eyebrows - Natural Collection eyeshadow in Midnight

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Eyeshadow - Boy Crazy all over the lid, Azuki bean in crease and under lower lashes, Moshi Moshi to high light in the centre of the lid.

Cheeks - Mac Sakura Blush

Lips - Poppy King for No7 in Confidence

Mascara - Collection 200 Big Fake in 17 (ultra black)

Now on to the experiment!

I blogged a few days ago about the amazing staying power of the Integrate nail polish I had tried and how I was unsure if it was the polish or the Orly Bonder that cause the phenomenal wear. I decided to set up an experiment I gave myself a new manicure using a cheapy Polish (actually it was free with the big fake mascara) from Collection 2000, it's one of their new "hot looks" and the colour is 43 fruit salad.

The experiment is as follows, the left hand is Orly Bonder and the right hand is OPI Natural Nail Base Coat.

Right Hand - OPI

Left Hand - Orly

Pretty colour huh. Both were topped with my normal Seche Vitte, Let see the damage from Saturday morning to Tuesday night.

Right Hand - OPI

Left Hand - Orly

As you can see the thumb and the index finger on the OPI have chipped a little but but considering I am right handed thats not bad going.

Right thumb

Right index

I am a little bit bummed about this to honest I wanted the exceptional wear to be down to the Orly Bonder (I have decided there was no clear winner they both wore about the same) but it does seem to look like the Integrate is just a really really good polish. Is it crazy that I would consider flying back to Japan just to get my hands on some more bottles of this.

FOTD and things i'm loving/hating right now

Konichiwa :D

Lets start with things I am love, love, loving right now.

Spring - it's awesome, sunny, warmer and cute baby animals.

Illamasqua Emerge cream pigment as a blush, perfect peaches and cream complexion - so pretty

Cherry Blossom - I'm a little bit obsessed with Sakura and I am finding a new Cherry Blossom tree everyday.

My Hair, growing out the black and going back to red.

Joan Harris - she pretty much rocks and I totally would!

Mac Candy Yum Yum lipstick, where have you been all my life Mwah x

Having some things to look forward to - Mani/Pedi booked, Red Panda feeding and possibly Royal Ascot Woo Hoo.

Things I am Hating (hate is a strong word but they definitely make me a sad panda)

Spring - time to break out the SPF and the Hayfever tablets lol

Cherry Blossom - it's pretty much over and every time I see a tree that was stunning last week with no blossom now it makes me want to cry

Mad Men - I have watched all 4 seasons and now they have put it on hiatus, I need my fix.

Whats happening in Japan - It is one month today since my world shook, luckily I had a home to return to. There is this phrase "your god never gives you more than you can handle" seeing the Japanese people act with such grace, humility and patience I have never felt this more.

So on the the very simple face of the day

This is my daytime work look at the moment

products used

L'Oreal Collagen Eye Filler

No7 Protect & Perfect Day Cream

Shu Uemura UV under base mousse in beige

Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation in 100 (very light ivory)

Maybelline Pure Cover Mineral Concealer 01 (nude beige)

Bourjois Mineral Radiance Pressed Powder 02 (vanille)

Eyebrows - Natural Collection eyeshadow in Midnight

Cheeks - Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Emerge

Lips - Guerlain Rouge Automatique in 161 (cherry blossom)

Mascara - Collection 200 Big Fake in 17 (ultra black)

***100th post giveaway***

So here it is readers, I have been blogging for just over a year and this is my 100th post. It has been a rollercoaster year for me and this outlet, reading your comments and all the other blogs out there has really given me some great relief. As promised I have an epic give away for one lucky follower.

the products are

Nails

Incoco - Sinderella

Ciate - Roses nail stickers

17 - Fast finish Grapefruit

Carlo De Roma - Bright Pink

Urban Retreat - Metalic Polish Duo(princess/mysterious)

Barry M - 313 Dusky Mauve

OPI - Nail Envy

Makeup

Bare Minerals - Foundation Sample medium beige with brush

17 - waterproof mascara travel size

17 - Ultimate Volume lip gloss Pink Ice

Carlo De Roma - Diamond Pure lip gloss

Bourgois - Ombre Stretch eye shadow 11 infinite green

N07 - Moisture Drench lipstick 55 pink crush

Urban Decay - 24/7 eye pencil travel size in zero

Darphin - Vitalbalm Lipcare

Bourjois - little round pot 12 Bleu Magnetique

Others

Green People - aloe vera everyday organic condition (normal/dry)

No7 - cleansing sponges

L'Occitane - verbena body salt scrub

Mavala - smoothing foot scrub

phew - all you have to do is follow my blog, leave me a comment saying you want to enter and you email address and the lucky winner will be picked on the 12th of December.

Thank you for a great year and now I have posted this Giveaway I can get back to a normal posting schedule.

Spread the word x

I'm baaaaaccckkkk - recent make up looks

A.K.A - fun with palettes. I know I have been rubbish, I have been swamped at work and blogging has been the last thing on my mind but I have been reading and buying (new No7 collection). So I am up to date with the news and all that. How excited am I about the new Illamasqua store? Not only is it right across the road from PlayLounge my fav store in the while world but it means I can finally go and check out their makeup without having to brave Selfridges.

So Anyways on to some looks, I am a girl who loves (in a oh my god I have to have it kinda way) a good palette and one of these days I will treat you to a run through of my wildly varied collection but for now I am going to focus on 3 looks I have been rinsing and repeating over the last few weeks.

Look 1

This is the front cover palette in "cool eyes" and I have to say I love these shadows. They are so pigmented and buttery the just glide on and blend really really well. They also have a lovely iridescence to them with them, they are not out and out shimmer but they do catch the light beautifully. They give you a very subtle and wake look which makes then great for the office, the only down side is the brush it picks up colour and blends well but it is a little on the coarse side.

This is glisten all over the lower and upper lid and a little of honey just to define the crease and outer corner. Then butterum underneath the lower lash line.

Look 2

As you know when it comes to shadow palettes my heart lies with Guerlain and I am a complete and utter sucker for their limited editions, the packaging, the colour combinations and even the sponge applicators are a joy to work with. This look is a combination of two palettes Mysterious Butterfly (I wore this on my wedding day) and Cherry Blossom I would say the overall themes are lilac and mauve respectively but in mysterious butterfly you get white, dusky pink, lilac and a plum all in shimmer. In cherry blossom you get the same white, a deep plum satin, true purple matte and a baby pink shimmer.

This is the white along the brow, true purple all over the lid then blended with the baby pink on the inner lid and deep plum on the outer corner and crease. I did use a tiny amount of the lilac as a highlight right in the middle of the lid. Then just some simple black eyeliner, possibly my favourite makeup colours an look on me.

* just as a wee side note check out the old hair and look how long it has got, I got it chopped this week so I will post some new pics.

Look 3

This was a bit of an experiment as I mentioned before I bought some bits from the new collection at boots no7, there is exceptional definition mascara, smokey liner, shadow palette, matte top coat for nails and a couple of lipsticks. As I am all about the eyes you can guess what I went for so here is me wearing the smokey eyeliner which is ridiculosly easy to apply the mascara which is really lovely it has lash conditioners also so lave you lashes beautiful and the orange (is it really orange, copper maybe) and green from the palette. The palette is blue, green, purple a orange is lovely chrome/jewel colours perfect for Autumn.

So that makes us, what, 98 posts now so only 1 away from the big 100th post give away which one lucky reader will win.

FOTD, OOTD and a camera comparrison

So most of the pictures on this blog have been shot with my little Panasonic Lumix DMC - LX3 but I have a life long love of cameras and all of my photography use t be done with my Canon EOS 400D see my Flickr for further reference. So today as we were off to Taste of London today I thought I would dig it out and get a few pics of the day. This led me to a little experimentation into which takes the best pics for the blog.

The Lumix

The Canon

I am actually not even sure I think I like the Lumix the best, it is a lot handier to use and does give a slightly warmer/softer picture but on the other hand the lens on the Canon makes my eyes look bigger.

So anyways onto the look, keeping it really simple for a nice sunny day out in the fresh air.

Skin prep

N07 Protect and Perfect eye cream

N07 Protect and Perfect Intense serum

N07 Protect and Perfect day cream

Base

UNE - soft minerals powder foundation M03

Garnier eye roll on in fair

N07 powder blush - soft apricot

Eyes

Cover girl lash blast fusion

Benefit eye bright (just on the very inner corner of the eye)

Lips

17 mirror shine Bee-Hive

Like I said really simple, I may review the UNE at some point because it is quite a nice product. Now finally onto my outfit of the day, this is not going to be a regular thing (I hate my body) but the hubby snapped a pic of me just as we were leaving so I thought I would share.

The dress is Next and should have been £40 but I got it on sale for £15 (707-197-x45 incase you are interested) The boots are last season from Evans I can't remember what the cost. What you can't see is that under the dress I have some grey lacey almost cycling short things on which are ace for under dresses as it saves you flashing your pants should the wind catch you or if like me you end up sat down on the grass cross legged somewhere.

Recent nail roundup

Time for a run down on the colours I have been wearing the last couple of weeks and it has been quite a mixed bag.

Bourjois - 17 Noir de Chine

I have had this a couple of year it was a special edition I think with some reds that I also have, when I first got it it was lovely, as most bourjois polishes are but over time had dried out quite a bit which I find is another common problem with their ranges. A little OPI thinners made it just about fluid again to use but it was a struggle. Lovely shiny black though that is opaque in one coat.

Barry M - Berry Ice Cream

Ok so people have raved about this already so I won't go on about it too much but I can say I was dubious after the failure of Lucky Lucky Lavender, I am also not loving the light purple I have coming up later on. I am pleased to say I am pleasantly surprised with this though because whilst being a pastel shade it still has enough pop to it to compliment my skin tone. Application was fantastic and there was virtually no shrinkage from the Seche Vite. I lasted really well too which makes this an instant fave.

H&M - Goddess On Stage

Be still my beating heart, how much do I love this polish! If you can't bring yourself to splash out on Nars Purple Rain or Illamasqua Baptiste then this is the polish for you, deep and shimmery and very very Cadburys purple. The application was phenomenal for such a cheap polish (£3 I think) and it lasted and lasted this photo was taken on day 3 after lots of typing and generally bashing my nails off anything they came into contact with. Only problem is that it is more of a winter colour than a summer one and doesn't go with much that I am wearing right now but I can't wait for the right time to wear it again.

Nails Inc - London (free with diet coke)

Another free Nails Inc polish, I think it's an evil plan to get us all addicted to their product and I guess it is working as I like this one too. Yet another greige but you really can't go wrong with them on pale skin, I won't bore you with application and wear time because you know the drill, I will say this is very similar the the Mink given away by InStyle but up close the are quite different Mink is pinker and dark than London. The only bad thing about it was that it seemed to pick up some weird staining from somewhere no idea what that is all about.

OPI by Sephora - Metro Chic

Another cult greige, I have been after getting my clammy little paws on this for a while so when the lovely Jo from Music and Make up asked me if there was anything I wanted brought back from her trip stateside this was at the top of the list (along with the tokidoki make up which I will review at some point). Quite a dark one this one but man it is lovely, you can't see it from these photos but it is actually subtly purple. The shinkage you are seeing on the thumb is only because my Seche Vite was getting old and the coat went on too thick. I can see why people like this so much as it is very easy to apply and even easier to wear. I shall have to get a bundle box at some point so I can get some more of these polishes over from the states. Or you know Sephora could open a London store, just saying ;)

Nails Inc - Paris (free with diet coke)

Not really my kind of purple but once it was on I loved it, just as good as the other I have tried recently and I think this would look great with a bit of a tan or on toe nails. This one did suffer a bit of tip wear but still outstanding.

No7 - Decades Collection Mai Dress

Not like the swatch on the website at all. Another lilac that looks unfortunate on me with a lovely tippex like quality too it, it was also thick, gloopy, bubbly and an all round nightmare to apply. Some may love this I hated it the 70's obviously are not my decade and the whole thing was like one bad trip!

more freebies

Natural light

Ok so here we go with another round of freebies from Boots they really know how to push product there and feed a habit, This is Milan from their diet coke promotion. it is a lovely blood red and I have to say it applied a damn site better than the InStyle mink I tried last week. It still gives the same great colour pay off and the staying power on this baby is incredible, these photos were taken at the end of day 3 as you can see no chips and only the tiniest amount of tip wear. As reds go this a very true red unlike a lot of have tried at the moment which seems to have a distinct orange tone to them and it will become one of my go to reds. I have to say that Nails Inc reds seem to win hands down over any of their other shades but I am looking forward to trying out the Paris shade later this week.

With flash

Next up is one of the two No7 eyeshadow shades you get in the free gift, which is really easy to get with the till spits. It is called Mink and is a lovely neutral shade with an amazing shimmer to it, it is not as frosty or shimmery as say an Urban Decay shade but this does mean that you don't get any fallout. I went with it as a single shade so I don't know how well it will blend with other shades but it did blend over he entire eyelid really nicely. I might even looks for this in the full size if I ever run out of the sample size.

I haven't done nails for a while

So lets have a run down of the last couple of weeks.

Still experimenting with my OPI haul from Brand Alley, this one was a big departure for me as it is distinctly gold and I don't do gold in any way shape or form. I can't say I loved this either, objectively I can see it is really pretty of course as a metallic applied really well and dried super fast not keen on seeing brush strokes though and it just not feel comfortable on me.

With flash

Natural light

Next up is another OPI I think this is the first one I ever bought and I have actually repurchased this one. It is called Malaysian Mist and its one of my all time favourites I haven't worn this one in the longest time due to the staining on my nails. I don't think the staining would have shown through as it is more of a creme than a sheer but I still couldn't wait to put it on my newly whitened nails. This one also lasts forever on and I can easily get a good week out of this before it starts looking ropey which makes it an excellent holiday shade.

In sunlight

In the shade, this was right before I broke my nails :( look how nice they were

So it was back to the dark side again with surprise surprise another OPI, I always pick a vampy colour when my nails are short not sure why. This is Sapphire in the Snow from this years Holiday Wishes collection and I have to say I had high hopes for this. Looked beautiful in the bottle a rich purple creme but unfortunately the pay off did not live up to my expectations. The formulation was very gloopy and incredibly difficult to apply and the colour was much much darker than the bottle would suggest which was a shame, I may stick some thinner in this and give it another try but it won't be for a good long while yet.

Natural light

With flash

Bottle shot - see it was not quite what I was expecting

Yay for No7 till spits! this lovely is from the limited edition Decades range to celebrate 75 years of No7. If you haden't already guessed this is the 1940's shade called starlet stockings, it's a bright red which is far more orange toned than I would have expected for the 1940's but No7 were around then and I wasn't so what do I know! Anyhoos, it applied like an absolute dream glided on and was perfect in one coat (yes you heard me ONE COAT) but unfortunately this is another one that does not like the Seche Vite and I suffered from polish shrinkage and tip wear. I think if you had the time to wait for it to dry then this would provide an exceptionally beautiful mani but I couldn't stand the tips so took it off after only a day.

Natural light

With flash

Which brings us to what I am wearing right now, courtesy of InStyle Magazine. They Teamed up with Nails Inc (whats with all the Nails Inc promotions at the moment) to bring 3 exclusive colours and there was one free on the front of every copy. This is Mink and I love, love, love the colour even though it was like my worst nightmare to apply. Gloopy, Draggy and fairly streaky it took a good 3 coats to get this right but a coat of the old magic Seche Vite and it was stunning. So smooth and even someone actually asked me if my nails were real today. It is a darkish greige with slight purple tones and I hope it isn't too similar to the Diet Coke London I have coming up which looks more pink but I will do a comparison shot for you all to see.

Natural light

With flash

Phew! that was a bit of a whistle stop tour hope you enjoy.