A FOTD with MAC Style Snob and Club

I thought I'd share this face of the day from yesterday, as I was really pleased with how the eyes turned out. It was a bit of a random pairing of two of my well loved MAC eyeshadows, I've already mentioned MAC Club quite a few times but I don't think I've shared Style Snob before other than in swatch comparisons. Unfortunately, it is one of those 'taupes you can't have', unless of course you're lucky and find one in a blog sale.

I started off with a base of Le Metier de Beaute Dualistic pencil in Champagne smudged over the mobile lid. Despite the name, this is a lovely matte taupe colour. I find it lacks definition as a liner but it's excellent used like a paint pot. I patted Style Snob on top of the Champagne base, blended out at the crease and then pushed Club along the lashline, concentrating on the outer third of my eye.

Apologies in advance for the hair band. I'm dithering over whether to stick or twist with the short hair. As much as I love short hair, I don't love regular trips to the hairdressers...

Face
NARS TM in Finland mixed with BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pearl
BECCA Concealer Duo in Praline to cover blemishes, redness and also on my undereyes
Hourglass Duo in Sunset, blusher on the cheeks and a bit of the bronzer
MUFE HD Powder
Shu brow pencil

Eyes
NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base
LMdB Dualistic Pencil in Champagne used as a base
MAC Style Snob
MAC Club
Clinique High Impact Mascara (magazine freebie)

Lips
RBR Lipgloss in Coy

Desert Island FoTD and Colour Ramblings

I discovered this FoTD post sat in drafts today and thought now would be a good moment to share. The products I am wearing are items I picked out for my Beauty Spotlight Desert Island visit. Based on my hair, these pictures were taken a while ago but the items I used remain firm favourites, irrespective of hairstyle.

Face
NARS Pure Radiant tinted moisturiser in Finland
rms 'Un' Cover-up in 11
Hourglass Aura Cheek Stain in Rouge

Eyes
Rouge Bunny Rouge Solstice Halcyon eyeshadow
Kjaer Weis Wisdom
MAC Teddy eye kohl
Maybelline The Falsies Flared mascara

Lips
Ilia Arabian Knights lip conditioner

I was having a moan today on Twitter about my habit of wasting time filling up virtual shopping baskets, only to talk myself out of the spend. I know I'm not alone in doing this but it is an incredibly frustrating habit. I was eyeing up the Clarins lipsticks that are currently reduced on Escentual, but had to concede that the colours I was looking at (Rouge Eclat in Pink Berry and Woodrose) bear a striking resemblance to about 50% of the lip colours I already own. I curse my own inner sensible side for refusing to allow more dupes for 'research purposes'.

Another reason for vetoing more lipstick purchases is my current obsession with what 'season' I might be. I suspect London MakeUp Girl's recent Sci/Art analysis has sparked a veritable tidal wave of similar curiosity. I am clueless about which colours genuinely suit my colouring. I have been told that my uniform of black and white aren't particularly flattering but knowing which colours don't suit me, hasn't particularly helped me deduce which do. I remain hopeful that pastels or yellow aren't the answer! Both Grace and Stiperstones have suggested I might be a Light Summer, so I have been looking at the appropriate colour recommendations on Pinterest. I rather like the suggested colours and have been messing about with coloured scarves that are similar to the colours in the swatches. This blue/green scarf is probably one of my favourites, not least because it matches the colours my streak has faded to.

I think the time has probably come for me to save some pennies and investigate who offers colour analysis locally, so that I can get a professional opinion. I will also be interested to hear whether my rapidly greying hair changes things in terms of what colours I should choose. Watch this space!

Random Pink Lipstick Swatches

So, I already admitted that I put a good deal of obsessing time into planning what to wear to the Lippie wedding. Would you believe me if I said I didn't invest a similar amount of time into deciding what makeup to wear? No, I didn't think so.

I decided I wanted to go down the matchy, matchy route and wear a pink lipstick to match my accessories. These are a couple that I auditioned for the part.

The swatches aren't an exact match for the group above. I didn't included swatch of the OCC Lip Tars but you can find swatches of Pretty Boy and Strumpet here. I decided that the Lip Tars were probably inadvisable as they do feather on me and I need to purchase something like the Lipstick Queen invisible liner to feel confident wearing them. The Kevyn Aucoin Liquid Lipstick in Aquarouge on the far left is a bit of a rogue as it's not a pink, but I love the colour.

From left to right: Kevyn Aucoin Aquarouge, Barry M Punky Pink, Edward Bess Night Romance, Butter LONDON Lippy in Snog and Hourglass Femme Rouge in Nocturnal. I've included links to previous posts which all include lip swatches.

In the end I went for a combination of the Barry M Punky Pink topped with Eos gloss from the LMdB Aurora Lip Kaleidoscope.

What's your opinion of matching your makeup to your outfit? Is it truly as naff as the magazines would have us believe?

Project Swatch: Hourglass Illume Bronzer Duo in Sunset

I'd wanted to buy the Hourglass Illume Bronzer Duo in Sunset for a long time but held off because I was concerned that the bronzer would be too dark on my fair, NC20-ish skin. I won't lie, the bronzer is a little tricky for me to work with and it takes a lot of buffing in to look natural. It can also look a wee bit orange on me if I'm too heavy handed. You can see how the duo looks applied on my face here.

Despite the effort required with the bronzer, I don't consider this a bad purchase because I particularly wanted it for the blusher. In an ideal world, I would make up my own palette with the bronzer from the Illume Duo in Bronze Light and the blusher from Sunset. When I've had my makeup done at the Hourglass counter in Liberty, that is the combination they have used.

I find the texture of these creams very pleasing to work with. They are described as a cream to powder formula but I don't find the finish to be especially powdery, instead, for me this just means the product melds with my skin without leaving a shiny finish. I apply both the bronzer and blusher with my Illamasqua blusher brush but would love to invest in one of the Hourglass brushes to use with it one day.

I have wondered how the texture and colour of these Hourglass Duo Bronzers compares to the popular Chanel Bronze Universel. Unfortunately, I don't own the Chanel to make the comparison but if anyone has seen side by side swatches let me know. I will update this post with any appropriate links as I find them. UPDATE: You can see a comparison of Bronze Light and Chanel Soleil de Tan/Bronze Universel here on Cafe Makeup.

The Hourglass Illume Duo in Sunset costs £40 and I purchased mine palette from Zuneta. Hourglass products are also available from Liberty and SpaceNK.

Hourglass Neo-Classic Vol.6 Eyeshadow Palette

It's not often that I'm stumped on how to begin a post but this is one of those rare occasions. It's probably because this is neither a rave review nor a slating and often they are the hardest posts to write. The Hourglass Neo-Classic Vol. 6 palette is a mix of positives and negatives and although it isn't easy to write, I imagine it will probably be quite useful for anyone considering a purchase.

The eyeshadows come in the stylish signature Hourglass packaging complete with the reversible swivel lid. The palette includes six eyeshadows; the lightest two 'base' colours come as slightly larger pans than the darker eyeshadows (2.5g instead of 2g). All of the eyeshadows have a matte finish with the exception of the flesh toned peach which has a fine shimmer running through it.

The eyeshadows have quite a powdery texture and this does lead to the darker colours catching fallout from the lighter shades within the palette. The eyeshadows are well pigmented but they are not as smooth in texture as the Hourglass duo formula. I think you can probably see this from my swatches. However, when used on the eyes with a primer, I don't experience any patchiness.

Hopefully you can just make out the swatches of the bone and shell colours despite being so close to my skin tone

The palette contains a slightly curious mix of colours in my opinion which I don't think I fully appreciated until I tried to use it to create a look. In essence, it provides good base/highlighter shades and liner/defining colours but not much in the way of mid-toned or transition colours. The only mid-toned shade is the rosy pink, which I wouldn't consider to be universally flattering on the eyes. On the SpaceNK website this shade is listed as a taupe, which it most definitely isn't. I think a taupe or mid-brown might have been a more versatile inclusion.

Just because this isn't a 'look in a box' type palette doesn't mean it isn't incredibly useful. For me, the beauty of this palette is that it provides staple matte colours which work well to supplement my existing eyeshadow collection. The lightest colour has been a perfect replacement for MAC Brule and I've been using it everyday for the last couple of weeks. I've regularly use the black, navy and brown to define my lashline and have even used the brown as a brow powder.

The bottom line for me is that your mileage may vary when it comes to the Neo-Classic palette. If you're looking for a travel palette or a palette that will provide multiple looks on its own, I would hesitate to recommend it. However, if you're looking for some staple matte colours and don't mind switching between palettes when applying your makeup, you may well find this very useful. You could of course buy these sorts of colours from MAC as single pans and create your own custom palette but you wouldn't have the lovely Hourglass packaging to admire then, would you?

Hourglass Cosmetics are available from Zuneta, Liberty and SpaceNK in the UK and the Neo-Classic palette costs £42. This palette was passed on to me by a very lovely fellow makeup fan.

Vampiric Smoky Eyes with Dark Lips for Halloween

I've made good on my promise to play with my makeup more and for the last few days I've been preoccupied with looks for Halloween (more on this in my next post). After getting the children ready for a party at the weekend, I thought it would fun to have a go myself. I don't think it looks as OTT in the photographs as it felt in person, it's hard to know whether that's my conservative nature to blame or the flash! I love how the eyes and the lips turned out but I know I couldn't bring myself to wear the pair together ordinarily.

Face
BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pearl mixed with Avene moisturiser
Illamasqua Skin Base in 06
Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Delirium as contour
White portion of the Laura Mercier Tourmaline Shimmer Bloc as highlighter
Hourglass Vol 6 palette, brown and black mixed as brow powder
MUFE HD Powder to set

Eyes
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
MAC Dirty Greasepaint Stick from lash to crease
Illamasqua black eyeshadow in Obsedian from lash to crease and blended out
Annabelle Studio Pigment in Karma pressed over the black on the lid
Pink eyeshadow from the Guerlain Rue de Rivoli palette to blend out at the crease
White eyeshadow from the Suqqu Lilac Allure palette on brow
Iridescent white/pink from Guerlain Rue de Rivoli over the white on the brow
Kevyn Aucoin basic black pencil on waterline and lash line
Clinique High Impact Extreme Volume mascara
MAC eyelashes - I'm not sure of the number as these came from an event but I would guess they're #33

Lips
MAC Rebel lipstick
Butter London lipgloss in Chancer to add a bit of extra dimension


Disclosure: This look was created using a mixture of items purchased by myself and press samples. The Butter London Lippy in Chancer is a recent sample.

FOTD with my new Hourglass and RBR purchases

I bought a few new things from Zuneta recently and today was my first opportunity to have a play. I don't seem to have been experimenting very much with makeup recently. I think it's partly because I'm still restricting myself to using up the items I talked about in this post but also because I don't have as much time to myself. I decided that buying something colourful might help me out of this rut and Rouge Bunny Rouge Mysterious Tinamou eyeshadow is certainly outside my usual taupe comfort zone.

Today, I used Mysterious Tinamou as an accent colour alongside some favourite neutrals. I also gave my Hourglass Illume compact (Sunset) its first outing. Both items are pictured below alongside the other colour products that I used.

Hourglass Illume Creme to Powder Compact in Sunset // Kjaer Weis Eyeshadow in Wisdom // RBR Eyeshadow in Gracious Arasari (depotted) // RBR Eyeshadow in Mysterious Tinamou // Hourglass Femme Rouge in Fresco

Face
Olay Regenerist Wrinkle Relaxing Complex*
Max Factor Second Skin foundation*
RMS "Un"Cover Up in 11 on undereyes, around nose and on blemishes
Hourglass Illume compact in Sunset, I used both the bronzer and the cheek colour here

Eyes
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
RBR Gracious Arasari from lash to crease
Kjaer Weis Wisdow in the crease
RBR Mysterious Tinamou along top and bottom lash line
Clinique High Impact Extreme Volume mascara*

Lips
Hourglass Femme Rouge in Fresco

Scent of the Day 
Aftelier Perfume Patchouli Spice Body Oil & Hair Elixir - I applied this to my hair today and it smells beautiful, I get little wafts of scent as my hair moves. As you can probably see, I've decided to let my roots come through in a bid to see if I can embrace the grey. They do need taming though as hence the need for bit of hair oil.

Disclosure: I have labelled press samples with an asterisk, all the other items were purchased or won by me. 

September Empties

I know this is a little late for a September post but I had a computer meltdown recently that meant a lot of my prepared blog photos were held hostage on a hard drive that my laptop was failing to recognise. I was surprisingly devastated about the loss of these pictures as September was a particularly prolific month for empties. Thanks to my local Apple Genius and a new hard drive cable, I've been re-united with my precious photos of empty bottles (don't say a word)!

Melvita Berry Body Wash* // Neal & Wolf Daily Cleansing Shampoo* // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Odette // Apivita Baby & Kids Mild Body Was in Lavender and Honey* // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Samhain // Lise Watier Foaming Face Wash // Tresemme Naturals Conditioner

I won't write about all the items in detail as there are too many to talk about in one post, instead I will focus on the most notable mentions. The Melvita Berry Body Wash* was a delight to use. I love berry scents and this has a slightly tart edge which prevents it from smelling too synthetic or sickly. It didn't leave my skin dry either which is essential for a good shower gel.

I set myself on a mission to use up all of my stray pots of Haus of Gloi with the promise of a new full size pot of Samhain once I was done. Of the two pumpkin butters pictured above, Samhain is my favourite. I can't claim to be any good at describing it so I will point you in the direction of London MakeUp Girl as she is infinitely better at these things and always spot on. Odette was described as a clean linen smell on the HoG website and I think this is pretty accurate. I liked the scent best when first applied as one of the notes seemed to develop on my skin after a while and become a little over-powering, losing that initial clean fragrance.

I have been meaning to talk about the Apivita range for children for ages and now that the range is more accessible in the UK, I feel less guilty raving about it. My children absolutely loved having their own shampoo and shower gel to test for me. Fortunately, they weren't terrified by the strange looking girl's head with saucer eyes and the body of a bee either (just me then!). I loved the gentle scent of this Lavender and Honey body wash* and it made them smell positively angelic just before bed.

Rouge Bunny Rouge Sketches on Water Tinted Moisturiser // Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover // Organic Surge Peach Passion Shower Gel // Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer Sample

I was very sad to finish my RBR Tinted Moisturiser as it's been one of favourite bases for a long time. I purchased it in the shade Adansonia which at times I felt might be a little too light, however it always blended in extremely well. I have tried samples of the RBR foundation (you can request samples from Zuneta) with a view to purchasing a foundation as replacement but I actually prefer the coverage of their tinted moisturiser. I suspect I will re-purchase in the future but I need to finish up a few more of my foundations and tinted moisturisers before I can justify any more purchases.

Both the Botanics Soothing Make Up Remover and Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer are worthy of mention as products I didn't really get on with. I'm still a bit 'meh' about the Hourglass Primer as I expected to love it and I believe it's one of their bestsellers. It didn't seem to do anything for my skin or the lasting power of my makeup, I have a suspicion it was the cause of a small breakout on my forehead too. I didn't get on with the Botanics remover at all. It's a bi-phase remover and I should realise from past experience that I find these way too greasy on my skin.

Avenoo Hand Cream // Haus of Gloi Spring Tonic #1 Whipped Soap // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Hearth // Lady Mitchum Roll-On Anti-Perspirant

The Avenoo Hand Cream and Lady Mitchum Anti-Perspirant are both staples in my life. My hands turns painfully dry soon as we hit mid-September and the Avenoo is the only cream that really repairs and protects them. I've already re-purchased a tube as I can't be without. I realise that anti-perspirant is not the most glamourous beauty item but an essential nonetheless. I've been using Mitchum for years and it's failed me on very few occasions.

I loved using the Haus of Gloi Spring Tonic #1 Whipped Soap as I mentioned in my recent Shower Favourites post. It was gone all too quickly and I'm tempted to try more of the whipped soaps when I place my next HoG order. One item I won't be rushing back for is the Hearth Pumpkin Butter (Christmas release). The fragrance didn't suit me at all and Mr MB would always know when I'd applied my 'cake cream' as it scented our whole house. Of course, I martyred myself finishing it up rather than putting it in the bin like a normal sane person.

Thanks for reading if you managed to make it this far. You'll be relieved to hear that October's Empties won't be anywhere near as product heavy!

* PR samples are indicated with an asterisk

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.

Face of the Day using RBR and LMdB

Sorry for the rather heedless use of abbreviations in the title. I tried and failed to come up with something more catchy, I really did. In case you haven't come across these abbreviations before, RBR = Rouge Bunny Rouge and LMdB = Le Metier de Beaute. I seem to have posted quite a few face of the day type posts recently, we mostly have the school holidays to thank/blame for this as I have more time to play with makeup but less time to write. I'm sure I'll be catching up with lots of reviews in September.

Today, I went for more golden toned neutrals on the eye than is my usual habit. I resisted the urge to reach for one of my beige-pink blushers and used MAC Prim & Proper instead. This blusher went in my 'maybe' box during my sort out a couple of months ago. I'm still not sure about it and I think it turns too orange on my skin to be entirely flattering. Time to go back in the box, maybe? Let me know what you think.

Eyes
Too Faced Shadow Insurance - I'm not sure if I've said it before but with oily, hooded lids, an eyeshadow base is an absolute must for me.
RBR Atlas Swallowtail* cream eyeshadow from lash to just above the socket
LMdB Bronze Topaz* eyeshadow from the Penelope Kaleidoscope layered over Atlas Swallowtail
LMdB Brocade* eyeshadow from the Silk Road Kaleidoscope on the outer corner and into the crease
RBR Unforgettable Oriole dusted lightly on the inner corner and a tiny bit on the centre of the lid
RBR Caress of Mink loose glitter pigment lightly pressed onto the outer corner over Brocade
Max Factor False Lash Effect mascara* (this isn't as dramatic as the Clinique mascara on my lashes)

L-R: Unforgettable Oriole, Brocade and Bronze Topaz

Face
RBR Sketches on Water tinted moisturiser in Adansonia
Perricone MD No Concealer Concealer* on undereyes and around my nose
MAC Prim & Proper blusher
Shu Uemura brow pencil

Lips
Hourglass Femme Rouge in Fresco lightly tapped on from the bullet

Swatches from left to right: Unforgettable Oriole, Brocade, Bronze Topaz, Atlas Swallowtail, Prim & Proper and Fresco.

* PR Samples

Hourglass Script Liner

Hourglass Script Liner in Jett is different from the other pen liners that I own in terms of its size. The nib is considerably smaller as you will see from the comparison below. This is good news for anyone who struggles to get a fine line with this style of pen.

When I use it, I don't particularly aim to create a finer line than normal. Instead, I find it allows me to be more precise as I build up the line in layers. If I wasn't so lazy, I suspect I could master a decent flick with this pen.

Top - Script Liner, Bottom - RBR Raven Glaze Lacquer Liner

Don't be fooled by the swatch above. It does create a good black line (this pen only comes in black) but I used a single swipe in the image above to show the relative difference in thickness you can achieve compared to a standard sized nib.

I think if you have lots of similar style pens which you already get on with, you don't really need to add this to your collection. However, if you find you struggle with this sort of liner or you haven't used this style of liner before and want to give it a try, Script is probably a good place to start.

Hourglass Script Liner costs £23 and I bought mine from Liberty. I'm pleased to report that Hourglass Cosmetics have increased there presence even further in the UK and are now available from SpaceNK as well as Liberty and Zuneta.

My Weekend Makeup Bag

Despite my best intentions to keep things minimal, I have managed to completely fill my makeup bag just for a night away. I know I probably should have planned what makeup I wanted to wear in advance and packed accordingly, but I suck at being that organised. Anyway, I thought I'd share with you which items made the cut. I have included links to previous reviews where possible.

Basic Face Products
NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser in Finland
Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Fresh Powder Makeup in 020
BECCA Creamy Concealer in Praline*
Shu Brow Pencil H9 Seal Brown
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Tweezers and Pencil Sharpener

Eyeshadows and Liners
Rouge Bunny Rouge Eyeshadows in (left to right) Umber Firefinch, Bohemian Waxwing and Olive Violeteare
Lancome Erika F eyeshadow*
Sephora Jumbo Liner in Taupe
MAC Kohl Power Eye Pencil in Mystery
MAC Eye Kohl in Teddy
Ben Nye Eye Liner Pencil in Espresso EP-85
Kevyn Aucoin Liner in Basic Black*

I really wanted to take my LMdB Come One, Come All kaleidoscope but I'm too precious about my kaleidoscopes to travel with them. I wish I wasn't such a nervous ninny!

Cheek Products and Mascara
NARS Laguna Bronzer
No.7 Lash Adapt Mascara*
Laura Mercier Blusher in Petal Pink
By Terry Blusher, this was passed on from a friend and I'm afraid I don't know the shade.
Rouge Bunny Rouge Sea of Tranquility highlighter

Lipsticks and Nail Polishes
Orly Decoded* from the new Electronica collection
Illamasqua Bacterium
BECCA 2 in 1 top/base coat
Clinique Chubby Stick in Whole Lotta Honey*
Hourglass lipstick in Fresco
Rouge Bunny Rouge sheer lipstick in Murmurings

Brushes
Rouge Bunny Rouge Face Contour Brush* which I use for both blusher and bronzer
Illamasqua Blusher Brush #1, I'm hoping I will be able to use this with the Diorskin powder foundation
Adesign Flat Topped Foundation Brush*
Le Metier de Beaute Concealer Brush*
MAC 224, 219 and 239 brushes
Sigma E25 blending brush
Hakuhodo Kokutan ML Eye Brush
Ruby + Millie Angled Liner

Orly Decoded

I'd like to claim that it's unusal for me to walk around with one random nail painted but that would be a lie! I've had Orly Decoded on for my little finger for couple of days and it's lasted surprisingly well. I still can't make up my mind whether to wear this or Illamasqua Bacterium on Sunday which is the reason that both are travelling with me.

I don't tend to do clothes posts. I'm not the least bit fashionable (you'll be able to tell from the pictures below) but this is the outfit I'm planning to wear to the baptism. It's a black jersey faux wrap around dress and the cardigan is one I purchased the other day in the Lazy Lu sale. I intend to wear it with black tights, black boots and some chunky gold jewellery. I can't decide on which scarf to wear, as much as I love the one in the first picture, I fear that I'd be entering Bett Lynch territory combined with my zebra print bag! I may have a quick look for an alternative tomorrow if time permits.

My 'Bett Lynch' bag!

Right, it's time for me to rinse this hair dye off and find out exactly what 'blends in grey' really means!

Disclosure: PR samples are indicated with an asterisk.