My Favourites of 2010

Rouge Bunny Rouge Irreverence
I've waxed lyrical about this enough already, so I'm sure it's no surprise this is on my favourites list. The Rouge Bunny Rouge lipsticks have a beautiful moisturising texture and this particular shade is a perfect rosy everyday colour on me.

Rouge Bunny Rouge Raven Glaze Lacquer Liner
 This was a surprisingly great purchase for me this year.  It's got a fine and non-scratchy tip and I find it very easy to draw a fine line with it. It's also great for getting liner right up close to the lashes so that I don't end up with that tell tale gap at the roots.

Hourglass Film Noir mascara
I was sent this for review and it rapidly became a tremendous favourite. I've never really used expensive mascaras before and I was convinced there wouldn't be any difference. I had to eat my words though, as this is pretty much HG territory for me.  It makes my lashes really black and more obvious, it feels soft and it never smudges or flakes. I particularly like the effect of this with the RBR Lacquer liner as it gives the illusion of much thicker lashes.

MAC Hug Me
This is similar to Irreverence for me. It's a pretty, everyday colour that just gives a slightly more polished look to the lips. If I'm ever unsure what colour to wear, I'll reach for this.

Lilac Allure Anniversary set

Guerlain Rue de Passy and Suqqu EX-07 Blend Eyeshadow palettes
I really wanted to include one of these palettes and couldn't decide which one. So I gave up and thought I'd mention both! I'll often pick these out when I need a quick but sophisticated look. The Suqqu in particular has been on the train with me a few times. It may be surprising to see Rue de Passy on here after my initial disappointment. It maybe isn't as versatile as I'd hoped it would be but I really like the colours and that fact that I can create a simple no fuss eye look very quickly.

Edward Bess After Sunset Compact Rouge
The texture of the compact rouge blushers is amazing. Creamy, light and without even a hint of greasiness. This colour maybe isn't instantly appealing in the pan but I love it for the definition it gives my cheeks. It's another one that's really handy for travel. I'm rather keen on the fig scent too.

RMK Concealer
This has been a good under-eye concealer for me. It provides decent coverage and doesn't move around too much. It also has the added benefit of being pigmented enough to conceal blemishes so I like to keep this in my handbag. It's quite yellow based so I'm not sure this would suit everyone but it has peaked my interest in trying more RMK products.

Illamasqua Unrequited and Beg Blushers

Illamasqua Unrequited blusher
This blusher looks candy pink in the pan but isn't the least bit frightening on my cheeks. It just gives me a nice, healthy glow. Illamasqua blushers are lovely to use, they're pigmented, finely milled and long wearing. I've reached for this all year round and I find it goes with a variety of looks. After success with this, my first pink blusher, I went on to get quite a few more but I most often come back to this one.


Which items have been your favourites of 2010? Have you found any holy grail items this year?

Make Up from the Sheer Cover Review

I was quite pleased with the make up I was wearing in the Sheer Cover video. I decided to repeat it so I could share with you what I was wearing. Below are all of the items I used with the exception of Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation and Rose Lanolips under the lipstick.

Le Métier de Beauté Blonzer, Edward Bess Night Romance lipstick and Compact Rouge in Island Rose

Swatch of Le Métier Blonzer (Maldives Magic)

Face
Bourjois Healthy Mix in Vanille
RMK Super basic liquid concealer
MAC Studio Finish concealer
Le Métier de Beauté Blonzer in Maldives Magic
Edward Bess Compact Rouge in Island Rose

Lips
Edward Bess lipstick in Night Romance

(Apologies for my face looking a completely different colour to my neck in these photos. Ooops!)

Eyes
Shu Uemura brow pencil H9  Seal Brown
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Eyeshadows all from the Guerlain Rue de Passy palette
Bisque (bottom lift) over the mobile lid
Taupe (bottom right) in the crease

Beige (top left) to blend out above the crease
Rouge Bunny Rouge Raven Glaze lacquer liner
Hourglass Film Noir mascara

I'm Making Trax..

Sorry for the title, I just can't help myself! I was inspired to pull out the plums and purples after watching a Pixiwoo video using the Elizabeth Arden Velvet Plumtone palette. I'm so tempted by the colours in this quad but as I already have loads of similar colours and of course I'm on a spending ban, it was good to remind myself what I already own!

On my eyes I used:
MAC Brule all over the eye to prime
MAC Mink Pink on the mobile lid
MAC Trax in the crease
MAC Phloof! brow highlight and inner corner
Rouge Bunny Rouge Delilah eye kohl on lower lash line
Rouge Bunny Rouge Raven Gaze lacquer liner
MAC Zoomlash mascara

Lips:
MAC Patisserie lipstick (my giveaway win from the gorgeous Zara at Just a Bowl of Mouldy Fruit).

Face:
Bourjois Health Mix Foundation in Vanille
Benefit Erase Paste in Fair
Brow powder from HD Brows palette (which I will review soon)
MAC Northern Lights MSF as a blusher

I was reluctant to show the full face shot as I wasn't 100% happy with how it turned out. It's probably just as useful to share though to see how it all works (or doesn't work) together. I think I need a coloured primer to get the more out of the eyeshadows. I also think a stronger lipcolour or blusher shade would have brought this look together a little better. The colours are all too samey on the face and I think a bit of contrast would have worked. I may well experiment later.

I am still very pleased with the lacquer liner. I really like lining my eyes with this pen. I was also pleasantly surprised by the Zoomlash. I was given this at the MAC event. I've never used a MAC mascara before and had heard quite mixed reviews. Whilst it does smudge more than my favourite Hourglass mascara, it does give more dramatic lashes which makes a nice change.

The spending ban is still going well. Well, apart from the fact that I'm thinking about getting the Louise Young LY38 crease brush. I've been interested in this one for a while, it's not make up though really is it......

Rouge Bunny Rouge Abyssinian Catbird and Lacquer Liner

My latest Rouge Bunny Rouge items are here! This is only their second outing so this isn't a thorough review, just my initial thoughts. I've included swatches as well as some pictures of me wearing them together. It's very picture heavy but I that's probably a good thing in this case.







This is Rouge Bunny Rouge Abyssinian Catbird eyeshadow. It's an amazing colour and so unique. It has touches of khaki, gold and bronze. I'd been worried that it would too warm for me as I do struggle with gold and bronze shades but it doesn't seem to lean too warm or too cool so I think most people could pull this off. This is just as buttery soft to apply as my other Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadows and it's very pigmented too. Just a single swipe of the pan with my 239 brush was enough to get good even coverage over my mobile lid. There was no fallout either. I am so pleased I got this eyeshadow, I've been admiring it for such a long time. I just wish I'd got it sooner.








This is the newest addition to the Rouge Bunny Rouge line. Raven Gaze Lacquer liner is a black liner with felt tip style applicator. You don't have to apply much pressure and the nib is firm (though not scratchy) so it's easy to get a precise line. Hopefully you can see from the swatches that you can adjust the thickness by either using the point or the side of the nib to draw the line. The liner dries quickly so that you don't have to worry about transfer. I like the lacquer finish, it's glossy without being too wet looking. I don't think I've worn it enough to comment on how hard wearing it is. It's not waterproof and the swatches washed off easily. I'm pleased to report though that after a trip outside in the rain I wasn't left with Alice Cooper eyes!

I'm pleased I bought this as it's useful for applying liner quickly. I really hope they bring out a dark brown version. I like the applicator but it would be really nice to have an alternative to black.

I'm wearing both Abyssinian Catbird and lacquer liner today as you can see in these photos. My eyes were primed using Too Faced Shadow Insurance and I applied MAC Brule as a base all over the lid. I applied Abyssinian Catbird all over my mobile lid and I darkened with MAC Smut on the outer V and into the crease.









If you like the look of Abyssinian Catbird keep a lookout for my giveaway coming later this week. Hint hint!!