Wild About Debenham's Beauty Club

A few weeks ago I attended the Debenhams Autumn/Winter press show where I was first introduced to Louise Redknapp's new make up line Wild About Beauty.

Debenhams recently asked me to come back and visit their Glasgow beauty hall so they could tell me about their current Beauty Club promotion and to try out the Wild About Beauty products and indulge in a little makeover.

Wild About Beauty has been created by Louise Redknapp and international make up artist Kim Jacob.  The brand offers products that are packed with nourishing ingredients such as organic rose water and chamomile, focusing on caring for your skin as well as enhancing your natural beauty.

My stand out product so far is the Golden Skin Glow which I went on to purchase along with the Line & Define Liner Pen.  So far the liner pen is an absolute winner with it not budging at all on my first day of wear.  That was a 7am application yesterday right until the wee small hours of this morning. Phenomenal.

Wild About Beauty prices are pretty reasonable.  In fact the most expensive item they had was a £35 gorgeous make up bag that came with 3 full size brushes!  Just now when you spend £35 at Wild About Beauty, you receive a free nail polish which come in lovely autumnal colours.

Back to Debenhams Beauty Club.  When you spend over £50 in their beauty hall you gain an extra 1000 points (£10 worth of points) on your beauty club card.  I ended up buying a few extra bits and pieces to make sure I gained my points.

I think I might take another trip to purchase some more Wild About Beauty products, I have my eye on that make up bag and their creme blushes!

The offer ends tomorrow so get spending so you can clock up some points for a rainy day!

Swing, Sing and Shine with Swarovski

The Swarovski lookbook landed on my doorstep this week and for a magpie like me, turning each page was met with 'ahhhs', 'oohs' and 'want that one!'.

Swarovski's spring/summer 2012 collection "Swing, Sing and Shine' is a tribute to vintage styling and an ode to the lights, camera and action of the entertainment world.  Creative Director Nathalie Colin uses the collection to tell the story of a young woman as she evolves from a student to that of a starlet becoming accustomed to fame and the limelight.  The collection takes us through themes using pastel colours and shapes associated with the swinging 'sweet sixties' and the glamour of 'in the spotlight'.

I adore the the mix of colour, texture and material used in this collection from the bright gems of the Rainbow Earrings, the pearl and fabric mix of the Ribbon Necklace and the masculinity of the Motaigne chain necklace.

Rainbow Earrings

Ribbon Necklace

Monochrome: Montaigne Necklace (Want this!!)

Monochrome: Remix Bracelet

Vintage Glamour: Reception Bracelet - perfect for a Bride!

 So many stunning item.  I feel like this collection is bigger and better than ever before.  There is something to suit all tastes, whether you are preparing for a school prom, your perfect wedding day or simply looking for some gorgeous statement pieces for everyday wear.

What I also didn't realise is that Swarovski also have Hello Kitty and Disney collections.  I know how many of you love a little bit of kitsch in your life so thought I would includes some examples of the fun yet glamorous and chic offering from Swarovski.

Hello Kitty Chic Earrings

Hello Kitty Glamour Necklace 

Disney Thorn Rose Ring

Asides the stunning jewellery and sparkly bits and bobs, I was quite taken by the imagery used in the 'Swing, Sing and Shine' in particular the make up (naturally).  Graphic Fluoro pink liner accentuated the shape of the models eye on an otherwise neutral lips and cheek.

Front cover of lookbook

Does anything take your fancy then?  I love a good old browse round a Swarovski store in all it's sparkling glory.  Think I will go in and take a look at some of these items in the flesh,  after all my birthday is only a few months away ;)

x

BY TERRY LIGNE BLACKSTAR

I rarely leave the house without eyeliner, preferably of the black kind.  I sometimes venture into navy or deep browns but most days black is my friend.

My eye seems to look naked without liner but my problem with black is that it doesn't do the 'natural' look very well.  And sometimes, just sometimes, I would like a less made up look.

This brings me to By Terry's liquid liner Ligne Blackstar.  I was sent this to review and although excited by the fact I was getting to try out some By Terry for the first time, the fact I was sent a liner in the shade 'GREY MOTION' severely disappointed.

When was I ever going to wear grey eyeliner, I thought to myself.  This product lay for weeks and weeks before I even picked it up to try out.  I was convinced it wasn't for me but then I put my colour reservations aside and decided to go ahead and review anyway.  Of course, I would still be able to critique it's pigmentation, application and lasting abilities despite my hatred of how it might look on me.

Using fountain pen technology, with a slim brush shaped like a felt tip and housed in a sleek silver packaging, By Terry Ligne Blackstar doesn't necessarily stand out from other liquid tip liners.  Where it differs is not in it's smooth and easy application made so by it's design or that it lasts the full day (that's 8 hours of a work day to you and me) without requiring a touch up but it's the fact that after daily use of it in the last 2 weeks, it still hasn't dried out.  Every day I expect to have to apply a little more pressure to see the end result but no, it's going strong.  I realise it's only a couple of weeks but I literally expected it to dry up within days.

Now lets discuss 'Grey Motion'.  Applied to the eye this shade of grey gives a subtle definition that maintains the glam factor without looking too 'done'.  It's the type of liner I could apply to go to the gym, climb a hill or catch the red eye without looking like I had spent hours in front of the mirror.  There really is nothing worse when people give disapproving looks at your made up face will slogging out a 5k round the block 10 times with a MAC Fluidline Winehouse flick!

Still visible and creating definition to the eye after 8+hours of wear

So too, I have found this a perfect option for work.  I still look polished and presentable without having my eyes appear heavily made up with black liner.  This means I can save my dark liner for occasions where I like my make up to pack a real punch! In fact, this liner is so easy to use, I think I will probably ending up buying it in black too.

It looks like I am convert, grey is definitely a winner for a natural, sophisticated look without always having to look like the make up junkie I actually am!  By Terry Ligne Blackstar is available in 5 shades, including black, at Space NK. RRP £25.

Could grey be the new black?

x

A bewitching new lippie

I have been dying to blog about my new lipstick since I bought it a couple of weeks ago and had hoped I could get some good photos for you to drool over.  Alas, time has been precious these past few weeks and with a busy work schedule it's been difficult to capture the beauty of this wondrous new shade in my collection.

Max Factor Colour Collections lipstick aim to target their colour range at specific skintones, fair, medium or dark.  I chose a medium collection lipstick ... Bewitching Coral.   I have been whipping out the summer brights already in an attempt to bring a bit of sunshine into my dreary, wet and cold days and this is definitely going to be one of my summer staples.

It is a gorgeous bright pinky coral that really illuminates skin.  It definitely suits better with a tan and is very longwearing.  The texture feels wonderfully moist on the lips and glides across my smackers giving a smooth colour blocked finish.

It was so hard to pick up this shade in photos and admittedly these are very bad quality (quick iphone pics).  This 'face of the night' was taken before a night out .... where I teamed Max Factor bewitching coral with a gorgeous The Body Shop sparkle liner in gold.  I applied it on my lower lashline and winged it out under my regular liner.  I think this eyeliner may be a seasonal item only as I can no longer find it on their website.  I hastily applied my make up so it is a bit messy but I really love this look and hope to recreate it again with a little more finesse.

This was one of my first Max Factor purchases in a longtime, the last time I purchased I think it was their Lasting Performance foundation when i was 15!!  I would definitely re-purchase these lippies and for around £7-8 they are quite good value ... plus they are currently on a 3 for 2 offer at Boots :)

Has anyone tried the Max Factor Colour Collection lipsticks?  What's your favourite?

The Body Shop - Thank You!

Last week The Body Shop held a beauty bloggers event in London. I had been invited to this but unfortunately I had already a booked a night at the Edinburgh Festival for my husbands birthday so I couldn't attend.

After catching up with some blogs after it, I thought their new make up collection was worth a look but before I got a chance to go and have a look I was sent a bag of goodies in the post!! I was absolutely wowed by what was sent and have to say a big Thank You to The Body Shop for their generosity! They are well known for being a fantastic, ethical brand and I really feel the girls at the Body Shop are a real credit to the company, it's a lovely personal touch to still be thought of even when you have missed an event.

So on to the goods!
First up is 11, yes 11 lipsticks!! I find it hard to pick lipsticks for myself so when i tried all 11 and they all suited or just the very fact I liked them all was a real surprise! Some of the girls are absolutely lush. So far I am loving numbers 59, 60, 69 and 71. Sorry I do not have the correlating names, I should have done my research before starting this post!
I was also sent this blush in 'Warm Sunset'. It is a mix of bronzey, terracotta shades. You can use the 3 shades seperately but I have applied by just swirling them all together. I absolutely love the warm glow it gives me and it has been a staple in my make up bag this week. It did crack a little on transit but still ok to use.
Then there are these 2 eyeshadow trio's in (from left to right) sundown glow and moonlight lustre. I am yet to try them out to be honest but I love the colours so will hopefully to a little fotd with them at some point soon. Finally, we have these gorgeouse eye pencils. The colours are so bright and vibrant and just quite simply, something a little bit different than your usual browns, blacks and greys. I do love a coloured liner, I usually wear on my waterline to add a little bit of colour to an otherwise neutral eye. From left to right we have; Shimmering Steel, Brilliant Blue, Glowing Amethyst, Vibrant Emerald and Burnished Amber. They are so smooth and velvet-like to apply, I will really enjoying playing with these :)

I was also sent some bodycare items which I have been using since I received and really love so I will blog about them seperately in a future post.

I would definitely recommend the new autumn make up range from The Body Shop, the previous collection wasn't so good for me but this definitely makes me want to go back and repurchase :)

What do you guys think of it? Have you checked it out yet?

Caviar Ink ...daahling!

On Friday I took a trip to Bobbi Brown with the purpose of picking up the infamous Long wear gel eyeliner. I have noticed that black can sometimes be a little severe on my eye so I set out to find me the perfect brown that gave a softer finish without losing the definition.

The MUA at Bobbi Brown couldn't have been more approachable and helpful which is a rare find at a make up counter these days! She pointed me in the direction of their new Nude collection, specifically the new shade of eyeliner - Caviar Ink.

Caviar Ink is a rich brown-black that adds warmth and definition to the eye. It is still very dark but softer than using black. The MUA (whose name i forgot to ask!!) demo'd a winged liner look with the caviar ink and i loved it.



If I can apply my flicks this perfectly everyday I will be very happy! :) I also enquired about the brush she used as she seemed to complete the look so effortlessly. It was the Bobbi Brown ultra fine eyeliner brush. I usually use a Mac or Nars very fine brush to apply my liner which does work well but is sometimes difficult to control and really needs a steady hand. With this brush it is so much easier. It is slightly stumpy and wider than you would imagine and the bristles are tapered at the top. I feel i have more control using it gives a better result. Obviously I had to have it ;)

So far, I think I may prefer this liner to Mac Fluidline which I have worn for years and have always loved. The consistency of the long wear gel liner seems much smoother and less gloopy than fluidline.

Although caviar ink is not a true brown and would look black to the untrained eye it is a lot less severe. Here it is photographed next to Mac fluidline in blacktrack, hopefully you will see the difference. (fluidline in blacktrack is on the left and caviar ink on the right)

Does anyone use this already? Do you prefer a softer option to black too?

x

Illmasqua has arrived .....

.... yup, this wonderful brand is now practically on my doorstep!

I was lucky enough today to be asked by Joanna at Illamasqua to join them for the launch of the brand in Glasgow. I was over the moon to be asked and even managed to get away from my work a little bit earlier to go in and have a nosey!

When i got there I noticed the Illamasqua counter straight away, it stands out from any other brand on the shop floor. Its in another league completely which is really refreshing after so many years of make up brands basically looking like clones of one another but with a different name attached. I've got to admit I was actually a bit nervous on arrival, I think it was the excitement of it all but when I met Joanna she was just so lovely and friendly, she really was a joy to speak to. I had a browse through a lot of the products which are all stunning and daring in their own ways. Joanna then introduced me to Alex Box, Head of Illamasqua's Art Team ... that was intimidating. Here I was in the presence of a world famous make up artist, with a portfolio that includes Stella McCartney, McQ, Gareth Pugh and work featured in Vogue, i-D and Dazed and Confused to name just a few ..... I was honoured.

Alex is an amazing looking woman with such an individual and creative style ... I was a mesmerised by her. I got chatting to Alex and got quite a bit of advice regarding colours and she also showed me the products from the new Spring/Summer collection.

The Spring/Summer collection, Sirens, is fantastic. Here are some of the collection images:I can't remember every product but there are quite a few that I will definitely be buying as soon as they arrive in-store. First thing I am after from this collection is the coral coloured nailpolish called Lament which just looks like the perfect shade of coral that we have all been talking about and looking for!! I am also uber excited about 2 cream based products in the collection called Liquid Metal. I am not sure if they are classed as a shadow, a blush or highlight but basically they do everything, they can even be used on your body. One is a golden colour called Solstice, the other more bronzy called Enrapture. They will look fabulous with a tan. I tried the Solstice on the back of my hand, and it literally looks likeliquid gold melting on your skin, similar to the effect of gold leaf. Alex actually put this on as a liner just above my fluidline and it looked amazing, really opened up my eye added some life to my otherwise neutral make up today. This really is a fabulous collection.

Alex also took me over to play with the pure pigments. I told her about my warm/cool colours dilemna and she told me that I should have no problem wearing both warm and cool colours. In keeping with Illamasqua's philosophy, Alex really believes there should be no rules to make up and it is a form of expression. Here Here! So, in light of this Alex used a cool coloured pigment on my eyes, Chasm. Here are some photos of it. Its applied over the gold liner but it still gives a pretty good effect. Remember, Alex did not do a full make up, so the rest of it may not look quite so good.
Alex also suggested I play up my cheeks .... don't need to tell me twice, buying new blush is always a joy! I had a look at the blushes and have got my eye on a few already.

I also tried some Rich Foundation on the back of my hand. This is quite a thick consistency yet still light on the skin. It will definitely cover any blemishes and/or freckles. Just before I left, Joanna was kind enough to give me a little goodie bag.Wow!! WOW!! In here is a nail polish, mascara, medium pencil, lipstick and eyeshadow. I will go into full detail on these after the weekend as tomorrow I am going back to purchase Nymph blush and some Rich Foundation ... and possibly a few other things, so i can give you all an overview of the products at the sametime. Why i didn't just buy it today, I will never know?!

It really is refreshing to see a brand do something that is a bit different and encouraging others to think outside the box and be creative with their image. Maybe its just the novelty just now but I can see this being the start of a beautiful love affair between Illamasqua and myself!

Before I go, I will leave you with a photo of the polish. Its called Baptiste, and its the most wonderful shade of purple. I want to show you this because this is the polish with just one coat on!!! This is a winner for me. MAC polishes are watery bottles of wasted money compared to this! We will see how long it lasts without chipping before I make my final judgement but so far I'm thinking Illamasqua could by my new favourite for polish!
So a big Thank You to the girls at Illamasqua today, especially Joanna and Alex. Thank you so much!

Has anyone else fallen for Illamasqua yet?
x

Illamasqua ..... my new obsession!

At long last I have managed to get my hands on some Illamasqua products! I have got myself 2 blushes, 2 eyeshadows, a medium liner pencil and an intense lipgloss. Now I must apologies in advance, I tried my hardest to get good swatch photos but I failed ... again! I just can never get the lighting right!

Firstly, as awkward as they can be in the make up bag, I actually really like the shape of the packaging simply because its a little bit different to other make up brands. Admittedly though it is not the most practical and found I had to use a bigger make up bag to fit the ergonomically challenged blushes in!

These are the 2 blushes. One is a cream blusher the other a powder blusher. The powder blusher on the left is called 'Excite'. Online this looks like a perfect bright coral colour but in real life it is more of a dramatic matte peachy orange colour ... it is almost electric it is so bright and this photo really does not do it justice. It is quite a scary thought to think about wearing this on the cheeks but with a light hand it gives just enough of the colour to give a lovely glow to the skin. This is now out of stock on the online store.

The cream blusher is called 'Lies'. Online it looks like a baby pink, in real life it is pretty similar but warmer than i expected. The consistency is very creamy and almost a little too wet but this actually makes it really easy to apply. I did find I had to layer this to get any kind of colour pay off. It is lovely though and gives a lovely glowy sheen to the face. Rather than use this as a blush I think I will be using this as a highlight or combined with another more pigmented pink blush, using this to help illuminate the face.
On to the eyeshadows. On the left we have 'Trollop' .... love the name! Online this looks like a very pale peach and looks like it would be a nice base colour but in real life I would have described it as a light orange. Not as neutral as I expected it to be. At first, i did wonder how I would use it but have actually found myself reaching for it more often than I thought. I wear this with a neutral eye, I sometimes layer a beige or browny colour over it or combine it with bronzey colours. Either way, it really helps the colour of my eyes to really pop! Orange is opposite blue on the colourwheel so I guess by using it alongside it will intensify the blue. Yay for me!

On the right we have 'Immortal' which looks like a grey-ish white online but is more of a true white in reality. I only have one white eyeshadow which is a rimmel colour... and it is no good so I was on the lookout for another. The Illamasqua one is great, pigmentation is fab and great for highlight or the inner corners of the eye to help illuminate. Both these colours are matte shadows.
Next, we have the intense lipgloss in 'Follow'. Online this looks like a bright electric fuschia but in real life it looks ruby red. However, when on the lips its more a bright pinky red. Either way i love it. I love a dramatic look for night time and this gloss certainly helps achieve this. This gloss is perfect over a lippie or on its own as the colour is so intense and pigmented ... and it lasts ages! It feels lovely and creamy on the lips almost as if it moisturises at the same time. It is glossy without being sticky which is great on a windy day ... can't stand it when my hair sticks to my gloss ..eurgh!
Lastly, we have the medium pencil eyeliner in 'Erratic' ... basically black. This has now replaced Urban Decay 24/7 liner in zero for me. Where UD is soft and creamy, the medium pencil has the same attributes and colour pay off but with more control when using the pencil. I sometimes find things get a little messy with UD 24/7, not so with the medium pencil.

So there you have my Illamasqua haul ... I am hoping there will be many more to come as it will be at a store near me very soon! Whoop Whoop!! Next on my list will be the Rich foundation, more of the blushes and glosses - the colours just look amazing .... and also some of the nail colours, after seeing how gorgeous Mizzworthys nails looked at the Body Shop event ... i'm sold!

So back to work tomorrow, need to go get organised ... Hope you have all had a lovely Easter weekend with lots of chocolate eggs and goodies! xx