YSL Rouge Volupte - No1

I have been wanting this lipstick for about half a year, but managed to put it off until now because of the price. However, after my exams, I decided that it was time for another investment ;) The YSL Rouge Voluptes are absolutely gorgeous - the packaging is beautiful and the lipstick itself has a lovely, creamy consistency. I know I have already posted a little about this lipstick range, but I would like to blog about them in detail.

I myself don't like the mirrors on the top of the lipsticks, as it gets scratched, so I put glittery nail varnish on top of mine:

This is the packaging of the lipstick itself:

It is the most attractive lipstick on the market, in my opinion.

Here is a swatch of the colour itself:

Will be blogging again soon! xx

Shameless Posing - FOTD

Today I met up with my friend to go shopping in London - Kings Road to be precise! We did a bit of shopping and I bought a gorgeous pink blazer from Zara which I intend to post about at the weekend when I can photograph it in daylight.

I am wearing..

Eyes:

Lancome Hynose Mascara
Lancome Artliner in Black

Face:

Mac SFF in NC15

Mac MSF Natural in Light

Mac Studio Finish Concealer in NC15

Mac Select Cover Up Concealer in NW20

Nars Blush in Deep Throat (applied to the apples)

Nars Blush in Madly (to contour)

Nars Laguna Bronzer

Lips:

YSL Rouge Volupte in No1 - Nude Beige (a new buy!)

I apologise that this is such a simple look, but I had applied it all in a rush, hence the no eyeshadow! Hope you are all well, and I will be posting again very soon :) xx

A Quick Update

Hi everyone :)

This is just a quick post to let you know that I have some exams coming up this week - my mock A Levels, which I have been busy revising for. As I have been working quite hard, I have been unable to post as much as I would like. They finish on Wednesday, so after that posting will return as normal!

xx

My Mac Pigment Collection

Before 2010, I didn't own any Mac pigments. I had tried and used them on many occasions, but never bought one as I could never see myself using up a whole jar of pigment. However, when they brought out the smaller containers, I thought that I might finally be able to use them! I have an aunt in the US who kindly offered to send me these as they are cheaper over there - we are ripped off by Mac in the UK! I did of course reimburse her :)

This is my current pigment collection. From L-R: Kitschmas, Tan, Melon, Silver Fog and Violet.

^ Kitschmas - a 'Light airy shimmering pink/mauve pearl' and a lovely shade. Very versatile as it goes with a lot of different colours. I like putting this on top of Mac's 'Beautiful Iris' shadow to make it a little more interesting.

^ Melon - 'Soft bright golden peach' - this reminds me a lot of Rubenesque paintpot. A beautiful peachy-bronze colour.

^
Silver Fog - a 'Platinum silver' - this is a Pro shade which means that it is only available at Mac Pro stores or if you order it online/over the phone. I struggle with silver as with my fair complexion and blue eyes I often think it isn't the colour for me, but this is actually an incredibly flattering hue.

^ Tan. Tan is a 'Muted bronzed pinky brown.' It is such a gorgeous shade of brown. Tan and Melon go very well together and I have created a few looks with these two. Tan is a very safe colour - by that I don't mean that it is a boring colour, but that you can't really go wrong with it. Love it!

^ Violet. A 'Vivid bright violet-purple.' Now, in my opinion, this is not violet at all. I would definitely term this as a purple and quite a dark purple at that. It is, however, such a pretty shade! It adds that extra something to a purple smokey eye.

So that is it. I love the Mac pigments - they are of exceptional quality. Nevertheless, they are £15 in the UK, which is rather expensive (this is why I seek my kind Aunt's help!) If you are looking for something similar for a lower price, I would always go for Barry M's Dazzle Dusts :) xx

Favourite Blushers

Hello everyone! It's my one month blog anniversary today! Hehe. A big thank you to everyone who has subscribed, it means a lot :)


I wanted to show you my favourite blushers today. Three of them are Nars, five are Mac, one is Benefit and one is Illamasqua! These are my current favourites, having recently tried my first Illamasqua blush when some money comes in, I would love to try more from their range. I am also hoping to purchase Benefit's Coralista so my favourites could change!

Nars:

^ Angelika. Such a fun colour! Nars describes it as a 'cotton candy' pink, and that is a pretty good description. It has beautiful silver shimmer to it, which can easily be toned down by buffing the shade into your cheeks, if that puts you off.

^ Deep Throat. Already raved about this, but this is probably my favourite Nars blush. I don't own many peach blushers, so it was a useful buy. Nars describes it as a 'peach with shimmer' which is true, but a bit misleading as it has definite pink undertones, making it a very wearable shade.


^ Madly. Nars describes this as a 'Seashell pink.' Hmm. I disagree. I would actually describe it as a light brown colour with pink/mauve undertones. Now if you are pale, and you are currently thinking, 'Ahh! I can't wear brown blush!', think again. I am NC15, and this works so well over bronzer. It makes you look as if you have just got back from holiday, and no fake tan or sunburn needs to be involved!

Illamasqua:

^ Katie. Illamasqua describes Katie as a 'Soft candy pink.' As I have mentioned before on this blog, it is very similar to Mac's Well Dressed. The difference? The colour pay-off. Katie requires the tiniest amount applied, whereas I need to apply Well Dressed to the cheeks 2-3 times in order to get the required amount. Both can be desirable, depending on what you need. For a more subtle, buildable look, I'd go for Well Dressed but if I was in a rush, I'd reach for Katie.

Mac:

^ Well Dressed. Mac refers to it as a 'Pink lady pink' - a very soft baby pink. It is such a classic colour, and if you were looking to purchase a safe and wearable colour, I would recommend this shade every time. Definitely my favourite Mac powder blush.

^ Dame. Dame is similar to Well Dressed, and they are both satins. The main difference is that Dame has more mauve/blue undertones. This is reflected in Mac's description of the shade as a 'Blue soiree pink.'

^ Pink Swoon. I first came across this shade when I was at a friend's house and I had forgotten my blush. I asked to borrow hers, she handed me this, and we fell in love! Mac describes this shade as 'Clearly pink'...but I think I can do a little better. It is a bright candy shade which gives a gorgeous pop of colour to the cheeks. A little goes a long way with this blusher, and if you're looking for subtlety, this might not be the shade to go for.

^ Lillicent. This is in the Blushcreme formulation. According to Mac, a 'Full rosy fleshtone' - in normal language, that translates as a healthy-looking peach colour. Such a gorgeous shade, and perfect for summer.

^ Ladyblush. This is another blush in the Blushcreme formula. Such a pretty shade of pink! Mac describes it as a 'Demure pink flush' which actually describes it very well. If you had to choose one Blushcreme, I would go for this one!

Benefit:

^ Dandelion. I first tried this shade when I was fourteen, and I still use it nearly four years later! You can't go wrong with this powder. It is just yet another beautiful, wearable, baby-pink shade. I would not recommend this for those with dark skin, however!

Phew! That post took forever, though I did enjoy it! Let me know what your favourite blushers are :) xx

Some Lancome Goodies

Hello everyone :) Today I went to my nearest Lancome counter, my local large Boots store, to pick up a Hypnose mascara and Black Artliner (liquid liner.) As I went to the till the lovely MA informed me that I was qualified to receive a Gift with Purchase as I had bought two products. Yay for free goodies!

^ I love the Hypnose mascara - this must be my third or fourth tube :) It thickens, lengthens and curls all at the same time. It's rare to find a mascara that does all three well. Now that I think about it, it must be my third or fourth Artliner also! The artliner comes in a small selection of colours, but I go for black every time. It comes with its own applicator, which is so good that I have never felt the need to go out and buy a liquid eyeliner brush.

^ What was inside - Eau Micellaire Douceur Cleansing Water, Bi Facil Sensitive Eyes Instant Cleanser, Genefique Youth Activator, Hydra Zen Neurocream & a mini Hypnose Mascara (not photographed.) It is just me or do the Lancome product names sound very scientific?! I suppose it's just their marketing!

Lancome is not a particularly 'young' brand - although many buy their eye makeup products such as their lash primer and mascara, I very rarely hear their lipsticks and blushes talked about, for example. I can understand why this is the case - I think their target age group is probably for maturer ladies, but I think it is a brand which is well worth checking out when you next pass by the counter!

More soon xx

Illamasqua Lipstick in 'Liv'

If you have read my posts about Illamasqua, you will know that I am developing an obession with their lipstick range. I had wanted the lipstick in 'Liv', but when I went to Selfridges a couple of weeks ago, it was not in stock :( However, as of today, I have finally managed to get my greedy hands on it!

It is a gorgeous baby pink with lilac/blue undertones - what a surprise! It is similar to Liar, but a little brighter, and totally matte. Liv definitely lives up to expectations, but it is a little drying. I would recommend applying lip balm before and after application to prevent it from settling into fine lines. I neglected to do this today and you can witness the dry results for yourself below!

More soon! xx

Collective Haul

Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't been able to post much this week - I celebrated one of my best friend's 18th birthday this weekend - we went to a bar for drinks last night, then went clubbing, and arrived home at 5 in the morning! So as I write this, I am rather sleepy...

Anyway, this is just a post to show you what I have bought this week!

^ I bought these flats from Russell and Bromley (a shoe shop in London.) They are sooo pretty :) I actually really like wearing flats and prefer them to heels, but they have to be interesting flats!

^ I also bought the following brushes from Mac (T-B): 227, 224, 219, 252

The 227 is so big! I really did not expect it to be as large as it is. It is very fluffy, and perfect for applying a highlight colour.

The 224 is always talked and raved about, so I felt like I had to pick up this brush at some stage! It is competition for the 217 as it is excellent at blending and applying the crease colour.

The 219 is the pencil brush. I haven't used this much yet, but I think it will work well for applying shimmer to the inner corner of the eye.

Finally, the 252 is a larger version of the 239 - it is able to apply shadow all over the lid in one sweep. I can tell that this is going to be really useful!

Thanks for reading. I hope to be posting a bit more this week! xx

FOTD - Sort of!

If you read my recent Illamasqua post, you will know that last week I purchased a lipstick in Liar...I absolutely love it. It is now my new favourite lipstick (previous titleholders have been YSL's Rouge Volupte in Lingerie Pink and Mac's Snob.)

In fact, I love it so much I even took a picture just to show you all what it looks like! Please bear in mind that it was a schoolday, so I just have mascara, powder and the lipstick (which I applied after school haha) on my face/eyes...eek.

So that is all for today - Illamasqua's Liar - my new love, and one of the prettiest baby pink lipsticks you can get! xx