NOTD: Orly Rage

Things are looking up for my nails. I’m emerging from my pink/ boring work appropriate rut and throwing caution to the wind. No one has complained so far about my nails so I’m branching out into more unconventional colours for the office. My latest polish purchase is this gorgeous rose gold foil effect number. I think it might be love!




This is two smooth, easy coats. The effect is gorgeous. The gold combined with the rose undertones makes this a very neutral colour with my skin and as such I find it very wearable. The wear was a bit funny though. When it started to ship after a couple of days it began to peel off in great sheets (I was wearing OPI Nail Envy as a base and Seche Vite as a top coat). Odd... I’ll forgive it this quirk though as it’s such a fab colour. Love it!

*I bought the above bottle of loveliness with my own money. My reviews are always open and honest. For more info see the disclosure policy in the menu on the left*

Front Cover Mermaid Dreams

I am the sort of person who is perfectly ok with admitting when I’ve been wrong. I wasn’t crazy about the original Rainbow Eyes palette when I first bought it. And yet when I’m packing to travel anywhere I pick it up and pop it in my suitcase without thinking. Having had time to play and figure out how get make the most of those gorgeous baked shadows I’ve grown to love it and have no problems saying ‘I was wrong, it’s an amazing palette’. When I saw this latest offering on sale for half price (£12.50) I grabbed it and ran to the till without hesitation.

It’s back up to full price now (£25) and I’ve noticed something odd. The Rainbow eyes palette, which has 5 more shadows and all of them are larger, is only £5 more. Both palettes give you a lot for your money even a full price but the discrepancy between them seems odd. Either way keep your eyes out around Christmas when they tend to go on offer again.

So in this you get 20 baked, domed shadows housed in a sturdy cardboard case. You also get a double ended applicator (meh) and the infamous Shadowline – a solvent and applicator designed to turn any of the shadows into liners. I like the shadow line but when it runs out I won’t be running out to buy more as you can get the same effect by foiling the shadows and using a thin brush. The shadows themselves are fairly hard. All of the swatches here are dry with no primer. I like the fact that used dry they are quite sheer. It makes them more wearable as let’s face it, whilst I love these shades sometimes blues and greens can be a bit hard to wear. Used wet they take on a richer, more metallic appearance.




There are a lot of gorgeous greens and blues in here along with some complementing bronzes, silvers and highlights. This, along with the original Rainbow Eyes palette, will be accompanying me on holiday. Unlike say the Sleek palettes I don’t panic about them cracking in transit and I’ll certainly have plenty of options! Whilst it doesn’t represent as good value as the original palette it’s still only £1.25 per shadow. If you manage to get it on offer then you’re getting the bargain of the year. Love it! X

*I bought this whilst it was on offer. My reviews are always my open and honest opinion. For more info see the disclosure policy in the menu on the left*

NYX Pearl Mania Pigments: Rust, Penny and Nude

Wow that Cherry Culture haul has lasted us a while hasn’t it! This is the last instalment of the NYX products I bought then (though I have bought some more since in the UK!). I think these little pigments were $1something making them rather barginous. Rust is a deep, warm red bronze. Penny is similar but cooler toned. Nude is a pale yellow cream. All three are shimmery but Nude less so.

You get which is less that most loose shadows buts let’s face it I’ve never used up a shadow in my life so any more would be a waste. The packaging is kind of awkward. The labels also seal the shadows so you need to peel them off to get in them. I didn’t want to do this as I like having the colour name to refer to so I trimmed them down instead. The narrow neck of the pot makes spillage less of a problem but also makes it difficult to get at the product. The pots are plastic instead of glass making them a bit more travel friendly than most pigments.

These are all swatched dry with no primer (Penny on the left then Rust and Nude). They are incredibly pigmented. They benefit from a sticky base just to give them something to grab to and prevent fallout. The powder is finely milled and glides on easily but as always when working with loose shadows/ pigments I like to do my eyes first and foundation after in case of fallout. MY favourite way to wear Rust and Penny is wet as a liner. Nude makes a fab highlight and is also useful for blending out edges.

Despite the awkward packaging I do like these. I’m not sure I’l be buying any more though as they are so difficult to get too. Most morning I cannot be bothered faffing about trying to get some on my brush so they just don’t get used as much as they deserve to be. I could depot them I suppose... maybe I will! What do you think, is the packaging a deal breaker for you? X

*I bought these myself. My reviews are always my honest opinion. For more info see the disclosure policy on the left*

NOTD: China Glaze Vintage Vixens – Ingrid

I don’t know why but I like brown polishes. Especially dusty, dirty looking ones. You might be forgiven for looking at this and thinking Essie Mink Muffs or even Barry M Chocolate Brown and in the shade they are all very similar. Get it in direct sunlight though and that gold shimmer that you see in the bottle is gloriously visible on the nail too. This stops the colour looking flat and I think is a really nice touch. This was two coats.




The formula is slightly thick so it does have good coverage. It applied well though there is a little air bubble on the ring finger which annoyed the heck out of me. Wear was two days before it chipped. I’m curious about a few more of the Vintage Vixen collection however I’m saving my pennies for the gorgeous Halloween collections coming out way. How do you feel about brown polish? Grown up and sophisticated or poo fingers? Let me know in the comments! X

*I bought the above polish. My reviews are always my honest opinion. For more info see my disclosure policy on the left*

Revlon Illuminance Cream Shadows

AKA Claire’s random obsession with creamy eyeshadow bases that happened about 2 months ago continues. This particular palette is in copper canyon which I can’t find on the Boots website oddly. I don’t know if it’s discontinued or what but anyway there are other shades and they cost (at Boots) £6.49. Incidentally the reviews there all seem to complain about these creasing. If you’re not careful then yes creasing can be a problem. These are all shimmery and sheer. Here we have a icy blue, warm ivory, burgundy and golden brown (now I have The Stranglers in my head. Tune!)

They are surprisingly firm in the pan and are best applied with your ring finger rather than a brush. They are very sheer to if you are looking to do a look just with these is will be very subtle. They have a slightly tacky texture which lends them very well to being as a base for powder shadows. The shimmer in these tends to translate through the powder shadow which personally I love. If you’re doing a matte look though use something else.

If you use these by themselves with no primer they will crease like you wouldn’t believe. I do have fairly oily lids and hooded eyes, these wouldn’t last 5 minutes on me. I use these with a good base and powder over the top and they last a full work day on me.

For 4 coloured bases that you need very little of I think the represents quite good value for money though as always with drugstore brands you’re mad if you don’t wait until they are on offer (which 90% of the time they are!). I like ‘em x

*I bought these myself. My reviews are always my honest opinion. The disclosure policy in on the left for more info*

How do you line yours?

Eyeliner is one of the most varied products on the makeup market. You can use pencil, liquid, gel, cake, kajal etc. You can use angled brushes, tapered brushes, thin brushes, thick brushes. There is no right or wrong answer, it’s just a case of finding what works for you.
My personal preference is gel/ cream liners. I love how easy they are to control and they are more forgiving than liquid liners. And my favourite brush to apply these? The MAC 210:

I love this brush. It is so thin yet firm so you can do a really precise line very easily. It’s perfect for creating a precise wing too. The bristles are nice and sturdy so they don’t splay and I haven’t experienced any shedding. The only little niggle I have is that the handle is super thin too so if you’re like me and have a touch of the old Carpal Tunnel it can be a little hard to grip.

At £13.50 it’s one of MACs cheaper brushes but I have seen similar styles at places like Crown Brushes for less. I haven’t tried them though so I couldn’t tell you how they compare so if you have tried them please let me know what you thought of them because cleaning this one every day is a pain in the bum!
*I bought this myself. My reviews are always my open and honest opinions. The disclosure policy is on the left for more info*

NOTD: MAC Rain

This is from an old MAC collection. I have no idea what collection it was from as I found it in a blog sale but I thought it was pretty enough to post anyway! I’m sure you could find it if you really hunted. I’m very eager to get into wearing some dark, rich colours for Autumn and Winter. Summer just doesn’t do it for me! I like my thick wooley tights and rich dark colours. Metallic deep purple? Yes please!
It’s a funny colour on the nail. Depending on the lighting it can be purple or pewter. It’s is incredibly metallic so you need to be careful when applying so as not to cause too many visible brush strokes. Here we have 2 thick coats.



Now I don’t know where I camera picked up those red flecks from because I can’t see them in real life! That said the pics are otherwise fairly true to life. Having heard some not so nice things about MAC polishes I was pleasantly surprised with how well this one applied and lasted. I got three days of wear out of this. Love it! X

*I bought this myself. My reviews are always me open and honest opinion. For more info the disclosure policy is on the left*

Lancôme Blush Subtil Highlighter

Ah outlet stores. Why pay £25 for a Lancôme Highlighter when you can pay £10? Once again please excuse the terrible photos. I’m getting there with the new set up but I’m not quite sorted yet.
In a rather sleek black case you get 6g of shimmery gold highlighter with the Lancôme flower embossed into it and a good sized mirror. The powder is very smooth and finely milled with no chunky glitter. It’s a just a soft warm sheen. It is much less frosty and metallic than the MAC MSF’s so it is an ideal day time cheek highlight.


The powder has a very distinct floral scent. It fades pretty quickly and personally I quite like it however if scents put you off then this won’t be for you. It’s not often I suggest sniffing before buying but it’s probably a good idea (though the SA may call security). The brush is pretty useless so it went in to the bin the day I bought it.


It isn’t hugely pigmented which again is probably a good thing for during the day. I don’t want to look like a bionic woman with frosty metallic cheeks at work. It works well for me with a MAC 168 or similar style blush brush. I like it but is it worth £25? Not really. I’d like something super pigmented that I only needed the tiniest amount of for that money. This is nice, but it’s not £25 nice. For £10 though I’m quite happy with it!

*I bought this myself*

MAX Factor False Lash Effect Waterproof Mascara

This is, apparently, Covergirls Lash Blast in black packaging. Same formula, same tube, same big rubberised wand. It is one of YouTube’s most loved mascaras so my expectations were high.

The wand is large but not so big that I can’t use it on my piggy little eyes. It has lots and lots of short, rubber bristles which are fairly densely packed. This means that it combs through all my lashes leaving them nicely defined and clump free. Here are my naked lashes:


And with one coat:


I like! This is one of the very few mascaras that I can build up with two or three layers too. Normally that leaves me with one big clump of eyelashes however this works wonderfully. It’s a deep inky black and when they say waterproof they really mean it. This won’t come off in the shower even, it takes a heavy duty eye makeup remover to get it to budge. I find that as with most waterproof mascaras this holds a curl much better than none waterproof mascaras do.

At £7.99 it’s very reasonably priced, especially if you get it on a buy two get one free offer like I did. I fully expect that I will be buying another when this one runs out. On a random note how thick are full are my naked lashes looking?! I’ve almost been using my L’Oreal Lash Renewal Serum for 3 months now so it’s nearly time for the review. I think I love that product too! X

*I bought this myself*

L’Oreal Absolute Eye & Lip Make-up Remover

I’m on a quest to find a cheaper eye makeup remover that is as effective as my beloved Lancôme Bi-Facil. I’ve tried some absolute duds but this is one of the better ones. It’s ok, but by no means brilliant. For £5.29 you get 125ml of blue, layered remover that you shake up to use.

The bottle makes three claims. I’ll go through each in turn. The first is “removes all make-up, even waterproof”. Yes it does. Eventually. For a normal work days eye makeup it does the job quite nicely however water proof mascara takes a bit more rubbing than I would like. By the time I’m done with it the skin around my eyes is quite tender.

Non Greasy – it is really quite oily and leaves a fair amount of residue round my eyes. So does the Bi-facil but less so. I feel the need to wipe it off after use.
Suitable for sensitive eyes – now my eyes aren’t that sensitive however the skin just under my eyes is very fussy. Normally this doesn’t cause any discomfort unless I’m wearing water proof mascara in which case it can sting a little by the time I’ve gotten all of it off.

Overall I think it’s a reasonably good eye makeup remover. It’s not perfect though so the hunt continues. What’s your favourite eye makeup remover? X
*I bought this myself*

NOTD: Diamond Cosmetics Yukon Gold

I was gutted when Flashy Nails, the only retailer of Diamond Cosmetics polishes in the UK, announced they were closing recently. I’m a huge fan of the polishes and the customer service from that site was always excellent. I took advantage of their closing down sale and this was one of the (many) polishes that I bought. I think this was three coats:


Well if that isn’t just the most Autumnal polish I’ve ever seen! The gorgeous, complex bronze in the bottle translates beautifully to the nail. It’s got russet, gold and copper tones all swimming together in there. I’ve worn this three times now despite having a whole pile of unswatched polishes and I love it. I’ve received a fair few compliments on it too.

The formula was typical of Diamond Cosmetics. It was easy to apply being their too thick nor too runny and lasted a good three days. I’m really very sad that I’ts going to be so much harder to get a hold of these in the UK. One of these days I’m going to have to arrange a swap with someone in the US. You folks over there have so much great stuff that we can’t get here! I need to get my mitts on more of these, some L’Oreal HIP, Sephora OPI, Milani... etc) Anyway This is one of my favourite polishes at the moment. What colours are you wearing this season? X

*I bought this myself. My reviews are always my honest opinion. For more info see the disclosure policy in the menu on the left*

Holiday Makeup/ I’m off!

This is a quick video just to say that I’m off on my belated honeymoon now. I’ll be away for 2.5 weeks and honestly I have no intention of going anywhere near a computer until I get back. I have however scheduled the usual daily posts. Please feel free to leave comments/ questions and I’ll catch up with them all when I get back 
I thought it might be fun to go through what I’m taking with me in terms of makeup. Please excuse the state of my hair in the video. I hadn’t straightened it yet so it’s a bit scary... I’m not taking a lot and I’m not taking anything expensive because a.) It might get lost and b.) I’m going to be on a beach so I won’t be wearing much makeup.



I hope everyone has a fab two and a bit weeks. I look forward to catching up with all your lovely comments and blog posts when I get back. Ttfn! xx

Benefit – The Porefessional

I love primers. They can make all the difference between a bad skin day and a great skin day. I picked this up in my last (and I really do mean LAST) trip to a Benefit counter. For £23.50 you get 22ml of product. According to the website:

Why we love it:Quickly minimize the appearance of pores! Apply this silky, lightweight balm for translucent pore coverage and smoother-than-smooth skin. Pores... now you see 'em, now you don't!What else you need to know:- Lesson included!
- Oil-free for a silky smooth finish.

The tube seems teeny tiny at first but a little goes a very long way. It’s a slightly beige silicone feeling cream which is very, very thick. It feels very silky to the touch and doesn’t pill up if you accidentally apply too much. Does it make your pores magically disappear? Well it’s no substitute for a good session with photoshop but yes I do think my skin looks a fair bit smoother and pore free when I use this. Not totally poreless mind you but it does the job better than any other primer I have at the moment.

Whilst it creates a nice , smooth base for your foundation it don’t find that it keeps my makeup in place longer than any other primer, for example GOSH Velvet Touch (Which is almost £10 cheaper...). Though the box does day that you can pat it on top of any shine that appears throughout the day I personally would rather just blot the excess oil away than add more product on top of it. I still get oily by midday.

In terms of oil control and staying power this is average. Where it does excel for me is in minimising pores. It does do a fab job at this. I’m going to wait and see how long this little tube lasts me before I consider whether it’s actually worth the rather steep price. As of yet I’m not sure I’d repurchase and if I were to I’d definitely do it online so I wouldn’t have to face the Benebabes again.

*I bought this myself*

Lancôme Colour Fever Gloss – Shade 125

I recently discovered a local outlet shop selling all sorts of premium brands a insanely low prices. There was a lot of tat (some really awful colours that clearly weren’t selling in normal shops) but some hidden gems jumped out at me. This gloss should sell for £17.50. I think I paid £7! I can’t see a shade name but this is shade 125. It’s a bright true red.

The applicator is this funny shaped doe foot style wand. Cute but almost too big. It feels slightly unwieldy to me. Precise application is key as this is without a doubt the most pigmented gloss I’ve ever worn. You don’t get a hint of red, you get a full on scarlet lip!

The gloss is slightly sticky but this combined with the pigmentation means that it lasts incredibly well. I can get 3 hours wear out of this which is unheard of for a gloss and after the gloss itself is gone it leaves a just bitten stain behind. There is a very slight floral scent to it but I can only detect it if I shove the bottle right under my nose.

The packaging is a thick substantial feeling plastic. It certainly feels expensive. I’ll be stocking up on these next time I’m at that shop!

*I bought this myself*

NOTD: Ciaté Talent Scout

About 6 weeks ago I got a subscription to Instyle Magazine. As part of the deal you got a set of 4 Ciaté polishes. Now the blurb at the bottom stated that it was only whilst stocks lasted and you might now get any so after a month I gave up and assumed I wasn’t getting any. It was a really pleasant surprise when the little box of loveliness turned up! Here is Talent Scout. It’s a gorgeous purple crème that was opaque in two slightly thick coats.



Mmmm grape. The wear on this was fantastic with tip wear and chipping at the end of day 3. The bottles are really cute too. I’m excited to try the rest of them now!

*I got this free with a magazine subscription*

Beauty Blog Link Love Time!

Rae ignites a bit of a lipstick craze with photos and swatches of her (current) favourite drugstore thrill -- Revlon Mauvy Night!

Eyelining rounds up all of the Sleek iDivine palettes, both
permanent and
limited edition!

Neutrals is her middle name! Maggie shares her favorite neutral eyeshadow palettes over at The Polka-Dotted Apple.

Jen from A Beauty Junkie in London has a sneak peak at the new range of make-up from Accessorize.

Phyrra shows you a cool tutorial on how to do a Candy Gothic Lolita Look.

Take a little look at the *NEW* Max Factor MakeUp Brushes! Sophie likes them a lot!

Jellyminx shows you how to create a subtle gold and plum look.

Musicalhouses has swatched the new NARS Pure Matte Lipsticks so you don't even have to check them out in person! Woohoo!

Glitter Geek is going on a self-imposed Chanel ban, and it's all because of this beautiful blush.

The Lip Print puckers up to Etsy and goes a little crazy for Flourish Lip Balms.

Jeweled Thumb takes a walk down memory lane and runs through the best and worst of the ULTA makeup line.

Check out Pink Diva Beauty & support Tammerly while she fundraises for Liptember and pledges to try 30 lip products in 30 days!

The Smashbox Masquerade eye shadow palette for Fall is both both and beautiful. See pictures and swatches and learn how to get the look at Prime Beauty.

Emma discovers her new favourite lipsticks for only £2 a piece at Birds Decorate Branches!

Makeup Zombie is absolutely crazy over her most recent High Voltage Haul!

Hot Beauty Health shares 7 fun and easy braided hairstyles!

Beautywoome.com thinks the term 'real women' has been hijacked!

***

Over at The Glamorous Gleam, Mz. More is celebrating her first Blogiversary with a giveaway. Enter for a chance to win MAC Viva Glam Gaga and Cyndi lipglasses!

IHeartCosmetics is holding a giveaway to win £46 worth of Purity Organic Skincare.

Benefit Powderflage

I hear rumours that this was being discontinued but It’s still on the Benefit website. I bought this a while ago at an outlet store for about £10 (it usually retails for £19.50 for 3.2g)and haven’t seen it in Boots recently so I’m unsure if it is still being made but it’s still very easy to find online. The Benefit website claims that this is

“light-diffusing powder concealer for under eyes & face”

Er... no? It is a pale, pinkish powder that goes on rather translucent. It provides pretty much zero coverage. The first ingredient listed is talc too so not exactly a premium product. It does however contain silica and here is where it starts to get interesting.

I am very long sighted and even with my glasses on frequently squint when I’m reading things. This + layers of concealer attempting to hide my under eye luggage = creasing. If I set my under eye concealer with a regular powder it gets cakey too which is not sexy. Someone suggested setting it with powderflage. They told me that the silica would stop it settling in the lines made when I’m squinting and do you know what? They were right. I now use this daily to set my concealer and I love it!


The little brush is worse than useless. It’s scratchy and horrible and went in the bin along with the rest of the excessively bulky packaging. I’s also found that the lid doesn’t screw on very well on mine. I’m not sure if they are all like this or if that’s the reason this one was at an outlet store but it’s loose enough that I could never travel with it.

At £10 I would happily/ will repurchase this. I wouldn’t pay full price though. Just because I’m cheap like that xx
*I bought this myself*