Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow!

A couple of weeks ago, Benefit invited me along to an event in Glasgow to launch it's latest foundation offering - Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow.  Yup, a bit of a mouthful that one.

It was interesting to hear that Benefit as a brand actually started off in Glasgow before spreading throughout the UK, so it seems Scottish shores have a special meaning for the company.  That aside, we were given a demo of the new foundation by the wonderful Head Artist, Lisa - which in a change to Benefit's regular line, is a liquid foundation.  This excited me, I pretty much only use liquid or 'wet' foundations so to speak so I was looking forward to giving it a go.

Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow comes in more shades than what Benefit normally offer with 9 shades varying in light, medium and dark.  I was matched to 'I'm so money ... honey' which is just about right for me when I am fake tanned.  It is said to provide a light to medium coverage, is oil free and contains an SPF25.

It comes in a frosted clear bottle which is handy for keeping tabs on your supply and it has an absolute godsend for all foundations - an application pump! Honestly, all foundation packaging should come with a pump.  As a foundation liquid, it is quite runny in consistency which I usually associate with low coverage and reduced wear time.

Despite my initial reservations, I have actually fallen in love with this foundation.  Personally I feel it's coverage leans more on the medium side as opposed to light but this is ideal for what I am after.  It is easy to apply with tools or with your hands and creates a soft, subtle dewiness to the skin without making it look greasy or oily.  It gives a natural, fresh glow to the skin.  It blends beautifully and from what I have noticed there is little to no fragrance.  For me, it lasts a full day of work with no touch ups at all although I can't be certain this will be the same for all skin types (I am normal/combination fyi).

My only negative is the SPF properties creates a little bit of flashback with the camera but not enough to stop me wearing on a night out.  I think its a wonderful spring/summer foundation for those of us who hate to go without a base even in warmer weather.

Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow is available now priced at £24.50

x

Tempting

The make up I chose to wear in yesterdays post was a little bit inspired by the Olsen twins smokey look that they have been rocking for ions.  I toned it down for day wear so it wasn't as deep and intense as some of their more recent dramatic looks.

-Insert ancient but gorgeous photo of Olsen Twins-

- Insert posey in the manky bathroom mirror photo of moi-

I STILL haven't cleaned the mirror! minger.

I used 2 of my very favourite MAC shadows to create the look, Tempting and Twinks.  Tempting is a lovely shade which is very similar to Woodwinked (another favourite) but slightly less intense.  It's a golden bronze with a slight shimmer, super pigmented and is fabulous to use as there is little to no fall out from it!

I started layering products starting with MAC Patina then applied and blended Tempting at the outer corner.  To add some depth I used Twinks, a rusty brown, in the outer v which also really helped 'lift' the look and avoided a flat bronze appearance.

Face: Chanel Pro Lumiere
Cheeks: Benefit Hoola, MAC Sun&Moon
Eyes: MAC Patina, Tempting, Twinks; MAC Smouler liner; Urban Decay Bourbon 24/7 liner;  Rimmel Scandaleyes mascara
Lips: No7 Nude lipliner; Tom Ford Lip colour in Blush Nude; Estee Lauder gloss in Twilight Petal

I really love wearing this kind of smokey eye and it was a welcome return of the nude lip for me.  I was never truly sold on a nude lip but I think having a break from constant images of nude lips on other blogs has made it a nice change to try on myself.

Lots of you have been asking questions about my hair colour so I am just compiling a post to tell you more about it and to show off some of the products I use most on my hair!

x

17 Wild Metallic Eyes

I blogged about these creme shadows last week when I wore the wild nude shade for a natural look but today I tried out one of the deeper shades from the 17 Wild Metallic Eyes range.

Wild Midnight Blue is a gorgeous sparkly creme shadow with flecks of irridiscent navy, blues and turquoise greens, all blended beautifully to create a deep blue/navy shadow.

Of course, just like I mentioned in my last post, I immediately whipped out the iPhone to take some photos ... 

Excuse my manky mirror!

Then I realised that this hardly represents the truth of the shadow.  It can be applied as a sheer coat with just a sweep of colour or layered on which is the look I prefer.  The sparkle is quite subtle to begin with and almost appears like a sheen across the eyes, however, a creme shadow being a creme shadow, it does begin to crease with time and if you like this kind of look (I do) then you might just love the results. 

Foundation: Rimmel Lasting Perfection
Eyes: 17 Wild Metallic Eyes in Wild Midnight Blue
MAC Blacktrack liner, Rimmel Scandaleyes mascara
Cheeks: Benefit Hoola, Illamasqua Unrequited blush
Lips: MAC Dervish Lipliner, Estee Lauder gloss in Twilight Petal

As you can see Wild Midnight Blue creates quite a deep, sultry evening look.  Once it begins to crease a wash of blue is left behind along with lashings of sparkle so if you are looking for a laid back but intense party look, this is the kind of effortless glitter eyes for you.  I applied with a finger just buffing and blending the edges.  It took all of 2 minutes. 

creased after wear which I love but this photo doesn't capture the sparkle

Although I prefer to apply with my finger, it does get a bit messy and I find that of all the creme shadows I have tried, these really do work well with a brush, something I would normally find awkward with this kind of product.

On an aside note, the mascara I am wearing (and have been for the past month) is Rimmel Scandaleyes.  While it has a lovely thick plush brush, I am not keen on the formula.  Yes, the intensity and pigment is just right and it does create quite fluttery big lashes but I do feel my lashes look hard and a bit brittle once it fully dries.  You might even notice this in the photo above.

You can buy Rimmel Scandaleyes for £6.99 and 17 Wild Metallic Eyes are available at £3.99 each at Boots stores.

I was going to post my outfit post from today but since this post is huge enough, I will do it separately.  Oh, and before I forget, loads of you have been asking about my iPhone cover.  It's a multi colour leopard print and I bought it for around £3.00 in TK Maxx :) 

Does anyone else like a creased shadow?  Have you tried 17 Metallic Eyes?

x 

Cheek of the Week!

This weeks cheek is a new blush I purchased last week. I don't own many cream blushes so thought since Spring is on it's way (even though snow is lashing down outside my window right now!), it was about time to dabble in some cream blush investment.

I decided on Nars Penny Lane. It is such a lovely subtle pink with hints of peach and a slight mauve undertone. I imagine this is the kind of colour that will look very different on varied skin tones.
I apply this either with my finger tips or a Mac 109 brush. It leaves a lovely flush to my cheeks and works well whether I'm tan or pale. It reminds me of a nicer, richer, more pigmented and obviously cream version of Benefit Dandelion.

Anyone else tried Penny Lane?

What is your cheek of the week?

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Dr Hauschka's Rose Day Cream

My skin has taken a real battering this week all thanks to Benefit products. It seems they totally dehydrate my skin and has left me looking like GoldMember with the flaky skin from Austin Powers!! ... nice.

To rectify this I have had to use my husbands eczema cream ... but usually the best thing for my dry skin is Dr Hauschka Rose Day Cream. I absolutely love it. Unfortunately for me, I have none left!
I love using this cream as I makes my skin feel so soft and smooth and it smells gorgeous. I usually use this cream at night when going to be bed but also have been known to wear it under my make up. You are not actually supposed to wear it at night, Dr Hauschka advises that you let your natural skin oils do their work overnight but I have got myself into a habit that is just too hard to change. Their website even suggests you mix with bronzer to wear as a tinted moisturiser .. i don't think i will try this but I am sure it would work just fine.

My husband is away on business just now so hoping if I drop enough hints he will bring a tube of this back for me. Here is what my current tube looks like

Sorry for the quick post I am really not in such a good mood this evening which is very unlike me. Had a bit of a tearful session earlier so hopefully it's all out of my system now!
Still have some haul posts to do later this week so hopefully that will be more interesting
xx