Saturday 30 June 2012

Chic Make-Up Bag...





When you have fabulous make-up in your collection naturally you will want to keep it in something equally fabulous... I found this neat quilted make-up bag at Claire's, yet again, a shop I'd never think of when the word 'chic' comes to mind... Surprisingly enough I found quite a few neat things there this summer... If you are a contact lenses wearer check out my previous blog post on beauty-travelling tips for the fun patent croc contact lenses case --> Travel with Muji... This make-up bag here is a really good size, I don't like too big make-up bags as they take up too much space, and too small are useless as nothing fits in... What I also quite like about this one is that the zip goes all the way around, which means you can open it like a book and see everything rather than piling things up or needing to dig through the stuff to find the lipstick right at the bottom, of course... And although camera didn't pick up on it well, but it's a black on gold leopard print... Meow!


LOVE

Friday 29 June 2012

Balenciaga L'Essence...



...comes in a little pouch...




When I smelled Balenciaga L'Essence for the first time the scent reminded me on that French man I used to see and the beautiful time we had... It's a very luring, powerful, sensual fragrance with a hint of masculinity... It's an incredibly chic and sexy perfume, French affair sexy... In no time it has become one of my all time favourite sensual fragrances... "L’Esssence is impulsive. L’Essence is unambiguous. On the skin, L’Essence is as pure as the searing honesty of short-lived flowers.  Violet leaves are like a blast of woodland and their youthful energy stimulates the skin. Violet leaves are unfailingly honest and offer up their exquisite coarseness. Vetiver also takes the upper hand, wild, unruly and incisive…"


LOVE

Lancome Rouge In Love Miss Coquelicot...











Anything that has the word 'love' in is hard not to love... This is my favourite shade from the current Lancome In Love line... Miss Coquelicot, which means poppy, is a beautiful coral orange... Corals and oranges are a huge beauty trend this summer... Corals are the new reds... Although in the bullet the lipstick looks completely matte once you start working it it melts into a glossy gorgeousness... I wouldn't say it's an opaque lipstick, but it's not sheer either, I'd say it's right in the middle... And it feels very light on the lips... I found myself a few times thinking my lips felt so light that it probably was time to reapply the lipstick, but every time I checked in the mirror Miss Coquelicot was still perfectly in place! Rouge In Love comes in 24 shades and 3 styles... M - Jolis Matins [Sweet Morning] - fresh and wearable; B - Boudoir Time - on trend chic day to night; and N - Tonight is My Night - rich and sexy... Miss Coquelicot is Boudoir Time!


LOVE





Thursday 28 June 2012

MAC Pro Colour x 4 Compact...





wearing MAC Antiqued...






MAC Eyeshadow Refill Pans in Antiqued [L] & Coppering [R]...


...to get the refill pans out hold and press at the bottom of the quad 
until you click that part out, 
underneath each refill pan you'll find a little scoop [you can see them in the pan holes]
 you can push your finger in and that way safely get the pan out!



Since my MAC 15 Pro Palette is full I decided to pick up my first eyeshadow quad compact... The great thing about MAC pro palettes is that all the eyeshadow refill pans stick to the magnet base and that way it's very easy to keep reorganising your eyeshadows as you go, very often you'll find yourself expanding your MAC eyeshadow collection - they are pretty awesome... Also having a quad means you can move some of the desired eyeshadows from the 15 Pro Palette, which space-wise is super convenient! I haven't researched the empty pro quads at all before getting it and thought they work the same way as the 15 pro palette.. When I got home I realised it's the updated version of the quad... 

After I put in the two refill pans, I immediately started wondering how to get them out... It took me over half an hour of googling 'how to' - I am pretty good when it comes to beauty-googling, but this was impossible(!) - literally noone seemed to talk about it... And finally as I was about to give up I found a girl on some beauty forum explaining it... Great success!! I must say I love how sleek and professional looking this quad is, I love the design as well as the functionality! And as for the two eyeshadows I got - Antiqued and Coppering are fantastic for blue/grey eyes, make them pop beautifully!! Also MAC Bronze is meant to be great, but it was sold out... Next time!


         Update: Check out this blog post if you also want to see the --> MAC Coppering on!


LOVE

Becca Jewel Dust Nissa...


Ladybirds - Skin Art Temporary Tattoos, 
Love is Enough - the romantic collection...
















This is the perfect barely there summery wet eye look... I like Becca Nissa after a couple of hours best, it starts to look lived in, and gives your eyelids a pretty 'wet' look rather than the shimmery sparkles you can see straight after you apply it... Nissa is a duochrome, which is a reddish chocolate brown with blue/green shimmer... The blue/green shimmer doesn't come through as a strong colour but its purpose is rather to create a glowy wet looking texture... It's an incredibly flattering eyeshadow, very very pretty indeed... Nissa is very sheer and perfect for that bronzy goddess look we all fancy during the summer months!  

Beauty tip: I found it looked best on me when I added a bit of MAC Coppering in the crease and then applied Becca Nissa on top, it just gives a little more definition without intruding in that barely there make up look... I also took MAC Coppering under the lower lash line to smoke it out, even during summer I have to have some sort of dark eyeliner either on the lid or waterline... When you first apply Nissa it has a lot of shimmer and therefore I would not recommend taking it under your lower lash-line because of the fall-out... Nissa looks very different from the first instant you apply it to the end result... Going from shimmer and sparkle to a creamy smooth beautiful texture... Be patient with Nissa, and you will love it!

LOVE

Wednesday 27 June 2012

Chanel Holiday...



As promised, here for all nail polish lovers is a separate blog post on this beautiful coral/hot orange nail polish! Although I am quite pale at the moment, I still find it incredibly flattering... It's that type of coral that makes your skin glow and appear more tanned than it is... Which is très très bien! I saw Lisa Eldridge taking a picture of  Chanel Holiday on the sand when she went on a holiday... I really liked the photographs she took, she also put Furious Love [book about Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton's marriage, which I actually got when it first came out but never got around to read it, so it was nice to reminded of it] - on the sand, along with other holiday beauty things, which I really recommend to check out if you are planning a sunny get-away this summer, here is the link to her blog post Lisa Loves - Holiday Things... 

LOVE





Chanel Beauty S12 Collection...





...here I added more of the chocolaty bronze to the crease for a smokey eye and kept a nude lip to make the eyes stand out more...




Chanel Eyeshadow Duo in Sable-Emouvant...





These are my favourite three pieces from the Chanel Beauty Summer 2012 Collection... On the pictures I am wearing all three of them... Holiday is the perfect hot orange nail colour for a sunny get-away! Being a nail polish addict I will do a separate blog post on it... The eyeshadow duo in Sable-Emouvant is a very flattering combo, I think it would look beautiful on any complexion... Both colours the light creamy and chocolaty bronze are shimmery... And finally the incredibly moisturising coral with light gold shimmer sheer lipstick in En Vogue... Uhh the name, hello lover! Although it is pretty sheer it still gives you a nice flash of colour on your lips, perfect for the summer! 

If you like the lightness of a sheer lipstick but would like a tiny bit more of definition or colour use a red lip pencil to line your lips lightly and then blend in the lipstick thoroughly, you don't want to see the outline but you might like the light definition it will give you! Also another beauty tip: use predominantly the light eyeshadow if you want the brighter lip, or if you want to focus on the eyes [as I have done on the pics], add the chocolaty brown for a smokey eye and go for a nude lip instead, I find it helps to keep eyes and lips separate, which looks modern and chic...

LOVE

Tuesday 26 June 2012

Travel with Muji...

...filled up Muji TPU Travel Pouch in Medium [19x13cm]... 
things I would take with me on an airplane: 
Chanel Sculpting Brow Pencil in Blond Clair
Pixi Lid&Line in No.6
Bottega Veneta 20ml Purse Spray
YSL Matt and Radiant Pressed Powder
Estee Lauder Pure Colour Lipstick in Coral Fantasy
By Terry Blush in Torrid Peach
Jurlique Rose Hand Cream
DHC Lip Cream
Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in 03



Claire's Contact-Lenses Patent Croc Case...
Very chic!



...comes with a contact lenses container, and even has a tiny mirror inside!



Muji travel stuff, from top left: nail files, a double ended black pen, 
small and large brush cases, blotting paper, under eye patches, compressed facial wipes, and a medium travel pouch...


Muji black linen large pencase that I would use as a make-up bag, only £2!!!



Ok, I decided since everyone is travelling right now to suggest a few things which I think are awesome when it comes to travelling! I don't know about you, but I'm sick of those airport plastic bags you have to put your precious make up into... I mean Chanel, YSL, By Terry, Estee Lauder, Bottega Veneta, etc in a plastic bag, seriously?! No, no more plastic bags for moi thank you very much! Last time I went to Selfridges I decided to check out Muji, I know they deliver super fast if you order online, which is great if you are running like a headless chicken sorting out stuff before you go away! 

The size of the travel pouch that is big enough for me is the medium, but there also was a bigger one which is still within the regulations of course... Personally I think if you can, keep it as small as possible bcs you don't want to make your handbag even heavier [unless you really have to], we always over-pack anyway, snacks, three different flavours of chewing gum, magazines, books, whatnot... Although I chose the medium travel pouch, I still have quite a bit of space left as you can see on the pic... If I'd travel I'd also throw in a small pack of wet tissues, a hand sanitiser, and a small bottle of contact lenses solution, which all would fit in perfectly... And then also to avoid confusion I like to keep all the make up dry and wet in one place...

I also picked up a large black linen pencase, which is a perfect size to be a small make up bag that is great for travelling or not, it was on sale, so I paid 2 quid for it, yay!! I love linen stuff, it's quite resilient and always looks chic... When you get bored on the airplane you can just move all your make up from the transparent pouch to a cute looking make up bag, just a suggestion... I had a good browse at Muji and they have plenty of other really convenient things for travelling, starting from a fold-up tooth brush, to blotting paper... 

I also quite liked their brush cases in different sizes, the big one fits my longest MAC brush easily... The other two items I though were quite fun as well is a pack of the tablet looking compressed dehydrated facial wipes... You can conveniently place one of those in a plastic glass and pour a little hot or cold water on top and watch it grow, super refreshing for your face or hands... And also under eye patches are pretty good for when travelling, especially if you are prone to puffy eyes... Just take a small tube of cooling eye gel, apply a tiny amount onto the patches and place them under the eyes... If you don't want to look ridiculous pull on an eye mask for 10-15 minutes and relax!

And although the next two items are not Muji I could not not include them... Cute looking Claire's holiday theme nail file and they had this neat looking contact-lenses case, which I couldn't walk past... My eyes get very dry on airplanes, so I find it's nice to take your contact lenses out during the flight and give your eyes a little break... And with this chic looking patent croc contact lenses case you can easily do this in the convenience of your seat!  

Update: Those tablet looking dehydrated things aren't tissues as I suspected... There is no word in English on that little pack so you'd never guess that in fact those tiny things are tissue masks that you can unfold after you pour a little water on them... The mask has holes for the eyes, nose and mouth... What a surprise it was, I wouldn't have thought in a million years that that's what it is... I wonder how many people found themselves trying to wipe their hands with it, thinking: 'It doesn't quite look like a tissue, hold on, it's a facial mask??!'


LOVE

Ashley/Mary-Kate Olsen Inspired Look...







 ELLE UK APR 2012
Mary-Kate on the cover...


 Ashley & Mary-Kate...


Mary-Kate...


Back in high school I used to watch the Full House, it was impossible not to adore the super adorable Olsen twins... I always thought of them as the pretties baby-face cute little sisters! Little did I know they would grown up to be two beautiful and timeless-style-icons... The Olsen sisters are renowned for their smokey eye... The eyeshadow under the lower lash line is always taken quite far down... I realised the look I tend to wear most is not too far off, it's easy and quick...  My hair isn't as blond currently, but the rest, colour-wise, is pretty similar: skin tone, eye colour... I was actually quite surprised when I found out that Lancome Ombree Absolue Palette in B10 Parures d'Etoiles was used to create their smokey eye looks in this Elle issue... It's a blue/grey tone eye palette... When I think of Olsen signature eye look - red brown or warm bronzy colours immediately jump to mind, it's the colours that naturally sit a lot better with their complexion and make grey/blue eyes pop... Blue and grey eyeshadows I find tend to wash out grey/blue eyes...

Here is a list of products I used for this look: eyes - MAC Paint Pot in Nubile, Bourjois Intense Extrait Eyeshadow in 08, Avon Supershock Gel Eyeliner in Black, Lancome Doll Eyes Mascara in Black, which btw is also the mascara the Olsen sisters are wearing in Elle, it's a great mascara(!); and lips - Revlon Matte Lipstick in Nude Attitude... Basically you want to create a flawless skin with dewy youthful finish, everything should be staying pretty nude and natural, and the impact should be on the eyes... Warm shades of browns works best... Use one eye shadow all over the lid, apply it in a round-ish shape, blending it out... For intensity I applied Supershock liner all around the eye including the waterline, and then smudge out the edges of the liner using a touch of the same eyeshadow, you will see how the black underneath makes the eyeshadow colour stand out more... Et voilà!


LOVE

Monday 25 June 2012

Zara Home Sale!








I was so happy when Zara Home opened in Hampstead, funny enough before this one I have never been to a Zara Home store... Now living five minute walk away from Zara Home is just delightful! I try not to go to Zara Home very often as with their clothing shop I can not get enough of their pieces... I tend to get things like cushions, candle holders, picture frames, and drinking glasses - there is a lot of wonderful stuff... They have a great variety of everything that a chic home may ever need... 

I love how they have different sections, according to colour scheme... Oh my, just love it! So a sale does come in handy... This cushion that you can see on the pic I have been eyeing for a while, it's a beautiful blue print on white linen which reminds me on beach house colour scheme... Now that the cushion was reduced hey presto it has a new home! Also their drinking glasses are just so pretty, they are very delicate and I love storing my lipsticks in them, I section them into nudes, darks, and brights... It's another way to make your vanity table look a little more chic!

LOVE

Bottega Veneta Purse Spray...





New Bottega Veneta Eau de Parfum Purse Spray 20 ml...


Original Bottega Veneta Eau de Parfum 50 ml...




"The fragrance, a leathery floral chypre, marries the olfactory language of the Venetian countryside—fresh meadows, mown hay, flowers, earth, and wood—with the gentle richness of leather in a creation crafted with the meticulousness of a master artisan." Exactly that! It's an incredibly elegant and luxurious scent... The original eau de parfum came out last year... And now Bottega Veneta that is famous for their luxurious handbags, came out with the perfect accessory for the handbag, the same fragrance but as a purse spray... The fragrance has a pleasant modern touch, it's an elegant version of a boyfriend scent with jasmine and patchouli notes running through, which I always adore! I can never have enough of patchouli or jasmine... The purse spray is such a great idea, and the bottle of course is also channelling elegance in its simplicity... Perfect for any 'it' handbag and travelling!


LOVE