Messy Smoky Eye Look

I actually wore this makeup look several weeks ago for a dinner party but forgot to take a picture at the time. I decided to repeat it for a face of the day post as I was pleased with the result and it was quite quick and easy to apply. I took my inspiration from this Lisa Eldridge tutorial but instead of a cream eyeshadow, I used my Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill eyeshadow in #4 which is a cream/powder hybrid.

When I did this look originally, I used Illamasqua Skin Base foundation. I only have a small sample tube of the Illamasqua Skin Base and I wasn't particularly taken with the formula when I first tried it. However, it's the only full coverage foundation that I own so I use it whenever I want a heavier coverage and I must admit that I've warmed to it a lot. You only need a small amount otherwise it looks cakey and I find it looks best buffed into the skin using a dense kabuki-type brush. Instead of Skin Base, today I used a sample pot of the new Rouge Bunny Rouge Time Defying foundation.

Face
Vapour Soft Focus Skin Perfector*
Rouge Bunny Rouge Skin Sanctuary Time Defying foundation in Linen Cream*
Ellis Faas Concealer in S202
Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer in SC-3 on blemishes
Brows freshly dyed with Eylure Dylash kit in Dark Brown
MAC Strada blusher to contour
Rouge Bunny Rouge blusher in Gracilis*
A tiny bit of Rouge Bunny Rouge Sea of Tranquility on the tops of cheek bones

Eyes
Kevyn Aucoin eye pencil in Basic Black*
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill in #4 (Pulp Fiction)
Navy aqua cream from the MUFE Black Tango palette layered in the centre of the mobile lid
Maybelline The Falsies Flared mascara

Lips
Rouge Bunny Rouge Irreverence

I wanted to finish off with a few random brush thoughts. I used my MAC 217 to apply the Eyes to Kill eyeshadow, just as Lisa Eldrige demonstrates in her video. I was surprised how well the 217 applies this kind of product, I typically apply with my fingers but I've never been entirely happy with this. I will definitely use the 217 in future. I've been using my new Laura Mercier Eye Finishing brush to buff in concealer which it does really well, one of these days I will get round to using it with eyeshadows as I had intended.

Now this is probably a rather odd brush confession. I have been using my tiny Louise Young eyeliner brush to apply Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage concealer. I've hardly used the Secret Camouflage since I bought it two years ago, as I've always thought the formula looked too dry and obvious. After watching Lisa use it in her videos, I decided to give it a try using a small brush. Unfortunately, all of my concealer brushes are too big for this kind of spot application, hence the misuse of the liner brush. Using a different tool has definitely changed my opinion of Secret Camouflage and I intend to buy a dedicated pinpoint concealer brush to use with it in future.

* Items indicated with asterisk were received without cost for review purposes

A Brush Splurge

After obsessing over brushes for the past two weeks, I decided to treat myself to an early Christmas present (read House of Fraser were offering 10% off). Although I had been considering either a Hakuhodo or Chikuhodo order, what I was particularly looking for were several eyeshadow brushes with a specific shape, as well as at least one for use with cream products. The following brushes all looked like they would fit the bill and the reviews looked promising.

Top to bottom: NARS #15 eye contour brush, NARS #15 smudge brush, Shu Uemura #10 synthetic brush and Laura Mercier Eye Finishing brush.

I won't deny this was a splurge, especially as said I was cutting back on makeup purchases. My justification is that these brushes should help me get the most from the makeup I already own and also improve my application technique. I've come to the conclusion that following the 'lighter lid colour plus darker colour in the crease' colour application just doesn't flatter my eyes and I'm hoping the NARS brushes will help me experiment with different placements.

I touched on Chikuhodo above and I wanted to share a recent discovery. Having previously assumed that you couldn't buy Chikuhodo brushes outside of Japan, I was pleased to learn that you can buy their brushes from Kohlindo, an online store based in Sweden. The website is currently undergoing some changes, so orders must be placed by emailing the shop owner, Malin. I have spent a good deal of time pouring over the various brushes, particularly the long handled Artist Series and Malin has been brilliant at answering my questions via email. I'm planning an order after Christmas if no-one picks up on my very unsubtle hints!

Laura Mercier Mystere Duo Applied

The Laura Mercier Mystere eyeshadow duo was gifted to me by a kind friend a little while ago. I gave its first outing last weekend whilst I had a bit of time to play with my makeup in peace. As I often find that deep blues don't look as vibrant on the eye as they do in the pan, I applied over a dark base. On this occasion, I chose the liner end of the BECCA Line + Illuminate in Belize which is black with a hint of violet. I was really pleased with how rich the blue from Mystere looked over the liner but looking back I wished I had taken the colour all the way up to the crease.

To finish, I applied the taupe colour where the blue ends to soften the line and took it up the the crease. I lined the upper waterline with Kevyn Aucoin Basic Back and added plenty of mascara, I think it was Max Factor False Lash Effect in this case.

Eyes
BECCA Line + Illuminate pencil in Belize - liner end (original review)
Laura Mercier Mystere duo
MAC Brule on brow bone and to tidy up
Kevyn Aucoin Basic Black*

Face
Mix of Bourjois Healthy Mix and Max Factor Second Skin*
elf HD powder
Blusher unknown - the folly of waiting a week to write this post!
Laura Mercier Pink Tourmaline Mosaic Shimmer Bloc highlighter*

Lips
Rouge Bunny Rouge Irreverence

* Items marked with an asterisk were received as press samples

Anniversary Kisses

It's my Wedding Anniversary today and I thought I would celebrate by treating my smoochers to a slick of something bold. This is Hourglass Femme Rouge in Nocturnal.

With statement lips, I kept everything else simple. I'm wearing MAC Omega eyeshadow and Rouge Bunny Rouge long-lasting pencil in Lola on my eyes and a dusting of Laura Mercier Pink Tourmaline Mosaic Shimmer Bloc highlighter on the tops of my cheeks. Base was NARS tinted moisturiser and Perricone MD NCC on my undereyes.

Happy Friday everybody and enjoy the long weekend, mwah!!

In the interests of full disclosure, the Laura Mercier Shimmer Bloc, Perricone MD concealer and Max Factor mascara were received as PR samples.

Blog Sale Take Two

UPDATE - All the items have been posted out now and will hopefully be with you very soon. I am closing this thread for comments but if you do have any problems you can use this post to get in touch or email me.
Many thanks!

The blog sale that I did the other day went so well, that I decided it was sensible to let go of some other neglected items. As before, all of the items I am selling have been purchased by me, I would never sell samples. Wherever possible the items will come in their original packaging. Now for the boring rules bit...

* Paypal only- I must receive payment within 24 hours or the item will be re-listed. Please check that your postal address is correct on Paypal as I will not be able to keep track of requests to post to a different address.

* Postage will be £3.15 per item and I will be sending packages by 2nd class Signed For as standard. If you wish to purchase several items, I will calculate any extra postage costs by weight using RM Price Finder. Based on my experience from the previous blog sale, the price is likely to remain the same for multiple items.

* I'm happy to consider posting items outside of the UK but please get in touch so that I can calculate the correct postage for you.

* I aim to post packages within 1-2 days of payment.

* No returns or refunds - I have included pictures to show usage and also given an estimate of how much product remains in each case. Please make sure you check swatches and reviews before going ahead with any purchase.

* Either leave me a comment below with the item(s) you are interested in and your Paypal address or email me at modestybrown@googlemail.com with BLOG SALE in the subject and your Paypal address in the email.

* I will invoice you from a different email address- DO NOT PAYPAL ME until you receive my invoice!

BECCA Pressed Shimmer Powder in Princess in original box, 95% left - £10

L- Hug Me, R - Patisserie

MAC Hug Me and Patisserie lipsticks, approximately 80% left in both cases - £5 each SOLD

Rouge Bunny Rouge Delilah eye kohl - £7 SOLD
I would estimate there's at least 85-90% of this pencil left. There's a tiny crack in the pencil lid.

Illamasqua Blusher in Beg, 90 - 95% left - £7 SOLD

Laura Mercier Lip Stain in Hibiscus, 80 - 85% left - £5 SOLD

MAC Charcoal Brown eyeshadow pot - £5 PENDING
Hardly used, minimum of 95% left

L'Oreal Infallible Colour in Endless Chocolate - £1 SOLD
(I will only sell this with other items, as the postage is so expensive for single items)

NARS Rajasthan duo, including original box - £15 SOLD
Approximately 85-90% left as I've only used it a couple of times

All of the eyeshadow pans shown above (and listed individually below) are proper MAC eyeshadow pans and will be packaged in proper sleeves.

MAC Naked Lunch eyeshadow pan, 90 - 95% left - £5 SOLD

MAC Vanilla eyeshadow pan, 95% left - £5 SOLD
NB - in most lights you can't see the reflects that are visible in the picture above, this eyeshadow is listed on the MAC website as having a Velvet finish.

MAC Purple Haze eyeshadow pan, 95% left - £5 SOLD

MAC Beautiful Iris eyeshadow pan, 95% left - £5 SOLD

MAC Well Dressed blusher refill pan, 90-95% left - £7 SOLD

Edward Bess Compact Rouge in Island Rose, 90% remaining - £13 SOLD
This had a ding in it and I've also wiped the surface over with a clean tissue which you can probably see from the surface. I do not have the original box, but it does come with the original velvet pouch.

Smoky Green FOTD

Yes, it's another green eye look. I had to look at last weeks FOTD to check that I hadn't accidentally recreated the same look with different eyeshadows. It is similar but fortunately not identical. You will probably spot several favourite products that used in both looks, such as the Perricone concealer, Shu brow pencil and the Kevyn Aucoin eye pencil.

The new item I used here is the Laura Mercier Shimmer Bloc in Pink Tourmaline Mosaic*. This was a limited edition item released with the Summer Jewels collection, but unfortunately I can't it anywhere online to provide a link. It is possible you can still find it in Selfridges. I used the Shimmer Bloc as a highlighter on the tops of my cheeks and didn't apply any blush as my natural colour seemed to provide enough flush. I really liked how this looked in the mirror but it was interesting to see how it photographed. In the photos it definitely looked like I needed more colour on my cheeks and the highlighter seemed to accentuate my crinkles. Maybe this accounts for my moody face below!!

Here's a complete breakdown of the items I used:

Face
Perricone MD No Concealer Concealer*
W3LL People Narcissist Foundation and Concealer Stick (01) blended on cheeks, around nose and chin
Laura Mercier Pink Tourmaline Mosaic Shimmer Bloc* applied with Hakuhodo medium pointed Yachiyo
Shu Uemura brow pencil

Lips
Lancome Rouge in Love in Rose Boudoir* blotted on as a stain. I still don't think this is a great colour for me but I fancied experimenting with application techniques.

Eyes
Too Face Shadow Insurance - not pictured
MAC Brule all over the lid
Edward Bess eyeshadow in Dusk applied from lash to crease
MAC Club eyeshadow on the outer corner
MAC Vex pressed onto the centre of the lid
(Brule, Club and Vex all feature in my favourite MAC eyeshadow post)
Kevyn Aucoin Eye Pencil in Basic Black* on the outer corner and on the upper waterline
Clinique High Impact Extreme Volume mascara*
I used a MAC 239 brush to apply the colours and the 224 to blend.

I was really happy with the eyes but I'm not sure that the lipstick worked to compliment the look. I'd probably go for a more peachy colour next time. What makeup have you been wearing this weekend? Do you ever find that your makeup looks different in person to how it photographs?

* PR Sample

My Week in Makeup

I woke up this morning, rejoiced because I have a day off and then duly set my mind to what to write today. Unfortunately, my mind was a total blank. This isn't especially unusual for me as I'm not really a morning person and my mind has been similarly blank as I've been getting ready each day this week. Makeup wise, I've relied on tried and tested items that I know will make me look human and prevent me from frightening the already anxious students.

Foundation - I used Max Factor Second Skin foundation* this week. It offers a bit more coverage than my usual Rouge Bunny Rouge tinted moisturiser but it's still quite a light foundation.

Concealers - BECCA Compact Concealer* in praline on blemishes and redness. YSL Touche Eclat* on the undereye area.

Cheek Products - NARS Laguna bronzer, BECCA Turkish Rose, Rouge Bunny Rouge Delicata and Laura Mercier in Petal Pink. I used various combinations of these depending on how drained I looked. My favourite combination at the moment is Delicata all over the cheek area with a tiny sweep of the Laura Mercier on the apples.

Brown Liners - I've used both the GOSH Truly Brown and Ben Nye liner in Espresso this week. I prefer the GOSH, I have to admit, as it is easier to apply and lasts longer without smudging.

Eyeshadows - I'm sure you won't be surprised by this taupe fest! I used Solstice Halcyon, Gracious Arasari, the mid brown from Guerlain Les Bois de Rose and various colours from Les Fumes. I also used the highlighter from the Dior Smoky Nude palette on a couple of occasions.

Yesterday I went for a bit of a smoky eye layering the darker colours from Les Fumes over MAC Dirty Greasepaint stick at the lash line then blending out using the pinky tan shade. I was really pleased with the end result and it still felt work appropriate.

Shu Uemura H9 Seal Brown brow pencil and Too Faced Shadow Insurance are both daily staples.

Mascara - No.7 Lash Adapt mascara*. I rather like this for everyday but the formula is a little on the dry side so I think that there's a limit to the number of layers you can apply.

Lipsticks - I wore Rouge Bunny Rouge Murmurings and Ilia Arabian Knights interchangeably almost everyday. Arabian Knights stays at home and whilst Murmurings lives in my handbag. I wore my old favourite Rouge Bunny Rouge Irreverence with the smoky eye yesterday.

Hopefully next week I can get myself organised and pack a makeup bag that I can grab for the early morning starts. I'm hoping to fit Edward Bess Dusk and Olive Violeteare in there for some more work appropriate smoky eyes.

Do you have a selection of products that you know won't let you down? Are you quite adventurous with your makeup at work or do you favour neutrals day-to-day?

* Items labelled with an asterisk were received as PR samples. 

Face of the Day with Laura Mercier Cassis

This face of the day includes quite a few of the items I from my last neglected makeup challenge post. I started off my just applying the Sue Devitt Intensifier on it's own but found it looked a little stark. I wasn't sure how the Kjaer Weiss eyeshadow would look with it but was pleasantly surprised by the results.  The Laura Mercier Lip Velvet in Cassis is a lovely colour but it does show up every imperfections because of it's unusual texture. What's not visible to the naked eye becomes very obvious in the gigantic lip picture!

Face
Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in Vanille
RMK Super Basic Liquid concealer
MAC Studio Finish concealer in NC20
Shu Uemura H9 brow pencil in Seal Brown
Bobbi Brown Apricot blusher

Eyes
Sue Devitt Intensifier Eye pencil in Zaire
Kjaer Weiss Wisdom eyeshadow
W3LL People Universalist #2 highlighter as brow highlight
Hourglass Film Noir mascara

Lips
Laura Mercier Lip Velvet in Cassis

Looking forward to......Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colours

I first spotted the Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colour on The Non-Blonde's blog.  I was immediately drawn to the colours and finish, especially after my renewing my love for my MAC Greasepaint stick. Gaia's awesome artwork with the pencils didn't hurt either!

These eyeshadow pencils won't be release until August but I had a sneaky peak at them the other day and they were everything I hoped for. I was able to swatch the shades Amethyst, Cocoa and Steel and despite my rubbish-without-daylight camera, I actually managed to get a few snaps.

I think of the three shades I swatched, Amethyst is the most appealing for me. I had an almost duochrome quality which was very pretty. I think both Cocoa and Steel would be great for more sultry looks.

I have to mention the staying power of these eyeshadows. I swatched these in the early evening and the lasted until bedtime with no fading or wear, despite a sweltering train ride home. They didn't come off when I washed my hands and I was stunned to see they were still visible in the morning! These will definitely require a waterproof eye makeup remover to shift. I'm sad that these won't be out before my camping trip as I think they would make a perfect travel makeup item.

There are eight shades altogether, the ones not shown here are Plum, Sapphire, Smoke, Jungle and Khaki. They will be priced £20.50/€30 and although they're not cheap, I think they're well worth considering for the rich colour and staying power. The hardest part for me will be whittling down my list!

Simple Eye Look with Laura Mercier Sable

This post is actually for a reader, Erin, who got in touch to ask for recommendations to recreate the eye makeup I was wearing here.

I guessed at Kjaer Weis Wisdom or colours from the BECCA Enigma palette but these are not easily accessible for Erin and she asked if could recommend anything similar. I enlisted the help of Twitter friends to get suggestions for similar mauvey-taupe colours with minimal shimmer that are available in the US. I had loads of great suggestion, many thanks to those of you that helped me!

Erin is looking for a colour to create a sophisticated but soft smoky eye. She particularly wanted to avoid anything too dark or warm as she struggles with colours looking bruise-y. She has Laura Mercier Vanilla Nuts eyeshadow already as a base colour and I wondered if either LM Topaz or Sable would work. I only have Sable out of these two but thought I'd use it in a look to see how it would look in a less intense application. In these photos I have paired it with MAC Brule eyeshadow.

When I swatched Sable it was clear that it's an eyeshadow that can be used for a soft or more dramatic look. It's not very pigmented but buildable which gives it this flexibility. The light swatch is a couple of swipes and the heavy swatch was at least five passes with a clean finger. Normally I use a flat, lay-down brush to apply this colour all over the lid but in this eye look I used a fluffy brush in the crease.

I hope this post will be useful for others as well as Erin. Please feel free to add any alternative colour suggestions in the comments too. They would be most welcome I'm sure!