Lux Rock-Chick Smokey Eye with Burberry & ByTerry!

 Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in No.24 Mulberry  + 

ByTerry Ombre Blackstar in 6 Frozen Quartz

Hey Beauty Lovers! This look may not be for everyone but personally I quite enjoy a rock-chick heavy smokey eye ever so often. So the key to this look is taking the eyeshadow under the lower lash-line and right into the inner corner. To create this smokey eye I have applied ByTerry Ombre Blackstar Cream Eye Shadow in 6 Frozen Quartz, which is a beautiful shimmery rose-gold. Then using only the Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in Mulberry No.24, I simply applied it all over the lid and of course under the lower lashes, making sure everything is nicely blended. This look would be incomplete without a intense black eyeliner in the waterline, I've gone for Avon SuperShock gel eyeliner. And that is pretty much it... 

LOVE

On Trend: Autumnal Metallic Ombre Nail Look!

Chanel Nail Colour in 601 Mysterious + Avon Nailwear Pro+ in Lucky Penny 

Hey Beauties! You may have spotted me wearing this autumnal ombre nail look in the last few blogposts. This nail look is super easy to create. I was wearing two coats of the Chanel Nail Colour in Mysterious [chic dark greyish khaki cream from the Autumn 2013 Collection, to see it on its own click here!] for a couple of days after which I got inspired to quickly change the nail look without needing to repaint my nails.

Going through my nailpolish collection I came across this beautiful Avon Nailwear Pro+ in Lucky Penny [a true copper metallic], which I haven't used for a while. To create this look I used my artists #2 round brush which gives you more control and started by applying most of the colour at the base of the nail, then dragging it up half way. I repeated the same process a couple of times to bring out the true metallic copper effect, making sure to leave the Chanel Mysterious still visible at the top of the nail, which is what makes the whole ombre look pretty cool. And of course finished off with my beloved Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Topcoat.

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Floral Nail Art Using a Fine Artists Brush!

 Zoya Jacqueline

 

From L to R:

Essie Fear Or Desire, Jessica Blushing Princess, Avon Viva Pink, 

Zoya Wednesday, Zoya Jacqueline, Orly Prelude To A Kiss

Hey Beauties! Omg I have had so much fun creating this super pretty floral nailart, and even more fun wearing it! A couple of times in the past I have tried using the nailart striper, it's basically a thin and super long nailart brush. But I just can't do it, after horrendously messing up my manicure I have been traumatised and gave up on the idea of using it ever again. And this is why last month I have blogged about my recently purchased nailart dotting tools which makes nailart super easy even if you are totally new to nailart. So check out those blogposts.

However, a girl who I follow on Instagram mentioned this other girl who does the most amazing cool looking awesome nailart - MrCandiipants, she also has a YouTube channel where she shows how she creates her designs, she is super talented so go check her out! Basically there's this this vid called Spring Floral Nail Art where she creates a super neat and pretty floral design simply using the brushes from the nailpolish bottles. I decided to give it a go but most of the brushes from the nailpolishes I picked have a wide brush so instead I used a simple synthetic artists brush I had lying around [Deler-Rowney Size 2 Round brush]. And it worked beautifully!

What I realised watching Candice nail art vids is that the more offsetting colours you use the more you will make the colours pop, and that is what makes nailart look really beautiful! So here is how I did it: for the base colour I applied two coats of Zoya Jacqueline [off white with a sheen], then for the dark flower I used Jessica Blushing Princess [raspberry cream], and for the centre I used Essie Fear Or Desire [bright orange cream]. For the other flower I used Avon Viva Pink [cream pink], this one looks sheer when applied once so it's great for nailart as it makes it look as if other colours were blended. For the centre of the pink flower I used Orly Prelude To A Kiss [pale pastel cream peach]. And for the leaves I used Zoya Wednesday [cream pale teal]. This is I think my favourite mani of all times, so far!

LOVE

Vogue UK JUN13 Kate Moss Beauty Look!

Hey beauties! As I was returning from the Soap&Glory SkinGenius event today I was driving through Hampstead High Street and there she was, Kate Mass walking with her cute daughter down the street. I realised today is day I should share the Kate Moss look I created last week! In last month's Vogue UK Kate finally was on the cover again. I loved the super summery issue, great images, fabulous fashion, and beautiful make-up. In some pictures she was wearing a more natural smokey eye look, but I particularly liked the glammed up version with the silver eyeshadow.

Silver eyeshadows can be very challenging to pull off. When I think of silver eyeshadow I instantly get reminded of that woman at my aunt's bday dinner, she was almost sitting across me, and I couldn't stop wondering what possessed that woman to paint her eyelids in silver... So yeh silver eyeshadows can look pretty dated... I like the Chanel runway platinum eye make-up look, but in real life it wouldn't work, it's definitely an editorial look. So when I saw this look on Kate I was really excited to recreate it, it's super beautiful and wearable! And I must say I absolutely love it, a great example of how a silvery eyeshadow can look chic! 

The key elements of this look are: 1. silver eyeshadow as an accent rather than statement, 2. making sure the edge of that silver eyeshadow is blended with a warm brown shade, 3. a lot of black kohl eyeliner smoked out, except for chocolate brown on the waterline! So here is how I did it - Face: there is strong sculpting and bronzing going on so I used Aerin Illuminating Powder in Pretty Bronze just in the hollows of my cheeks and a touch over the bridge of the nose, top of the cheeks and also over the temples, this warms up your complexion making you look sun-kissed! On the apples of the cheeks I applied Giorgio Armani Sheer Blush in 4.

Eyes: MAC Paint Pot in Groundwork as a base. The silver shade from the Shiseido Luminizing Satin Eye Color Trio palette in OR 302 applied just over the lid looking straight ahead taking the silver slightly higher up in the middle so that you can just about see it. Definitely avoid putting it into the socket! Then blending the edges of the silver eyeshadow with MAC Eyeshadow in Texture. Winging out the eyeliner in a straight line for a sultry look, blending it with a pencil brush. For this type of look the kohl eyeliner should be really creamy, I find Soap&Glory Kohl in Black perfect for that. On the waterline Kate seems to be wearing a dark warm brown shade, it's definitely not black, but still quite dark, I used Pixi Endless Silky Eye Pen in No.4 BlackCocoa. 

Lips: Kate is wearing a toffee-like lipstick shade, although quite natural it still has more colour than just a nude. I chose Topshop Lipstick in Rumour Has It. I have to say this looks is beautiful to wear for a special occasion. I never thought I'd be able to pull off a silver eyeshadow, and I'm so glad Kate wore this look. The silver shade from that Shiseido palette is stunning, it almost has a pearlescence to it, looks gorgeous on. I love this palette, fantastic for summer! I have also created a fiery copper and black smokey eye look with the other two shades from this palette, if you want to see it click here!

LOVE

Inspired by Lisa Eldridge's Classic Smokey Eye!

 This is my Instagram pic so the colours are a bit different...

You can see the swatches from top left to right:  

Giorgio Armani Sheer Blush in 4, Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliner in Black,  

MAC Paints in Sublime Nature,and bottom two from L to R  

Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow in Taupe and Hot Stone

I'm a huge fan of Lisa Eldridge's work and so happy to see her doing beauty looks again. Her latest creation is the Classic Smokey Eye, to see her vid click here! I decided to recreate this look especially because I already had Bobbi Brown Eyeshadow in Taupe, which I haven't touched in ages. This Classic Smokey Eye is all about greyish brown shades, shades that naturally don't suit me, I prefer warm browns on me so I was really intrigues how this look would work on me. And I ended up loving it! This is why beauty is all about experimenting and being brave, I highly recommend to try this look, it has honestly become one of my staple looks!! 

I followed the exact techniques that Lisa Eldridge shows in her video, but used all the products I already have in my make-up collection. So do watch the vid of how to do this look, and I will just list the products I used otherwise this blogpost would be insanely long... 

Base [in the order I used the products]: 

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in Light 4 Deauville, Liz Earle Light Reflecting Concealer in Medium 02 [just under the eyes], Collection 2000 Concealer in Light 2 [everything is rubbed off of mine, I still got the original one, best cheapest concealer ever - to conceal spots etc, not for under eyes], bareMinerals Matte SPF15 Foundation in Light W15 [all over to set the foundation],  Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer [doesn't seem to have a shade number, might have rubbed off - I always finish off my make-up with this concealer under the eyes], Aerin Illuminating Powder in Pretty Bronze [I love to contour under my cheek-bones with it, I even prefer it to Nars Laguna!], and finally Giorgio Armani Sheer Blush in 4 [I bust this baby out during summer, the prettiest bronzy natural blush I can think off]

Eyes:

Soap&Glory Archery Brow Tint & Precision Shaping Pencil in Love Is Blonde [I love the name as much as the pencil it self, I find the tint end a bit too hard but omg(!) is the precision shaping end amazing!! I will have to do blogpost about it separately it's that good, basically gives you the sexiest blode brow], MAC Paints in Sublime Nature [all over as a base], Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow in Taupe 4 [as the main eyeshadow], Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow in Hot Stone 56 [as the darker shade, very similar to what Lisa Eldridge used, a greyish dark brown], Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliner in Black [one of my favourite black eyeliners, very intense and creamy so it's great for smudging, once it sets it stays put forever], before I apply mascara I always curl my lashes, it has become a religion - I use Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers, Avon SuperExtend Extreme Mascara in Black has proved to be a great companion [doesn't seem to ever end or dry out, love it!]

Lips:

And lastly for the lips I decided to keep it nice and simple as this looks requires lots and lots of blending, so I went for Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in 03, I was obsessed with it couple of summers ago, and might go back to it this summer, these lipglosses are super simple to use, not sticky which is a major plus point and they just somehow make your lips look very pretty and natural! 

Hope you like this look, I certainly loved wearing it! The cool browns I usually try to avoid wearing changed my mind, thank you Lisa xox

LOVE

Avon Nailwear Pro+ Nail Enamel in Decadence!

As in the previous blogpost you could really see this nailpolish on my nails very well I decided to do a separate blogpost - so here it is! I have been a fan of Avon Nailwear Pro+ nailpolishes for a while, they are nicely pigmented and go on beautifully. Decadence is a duochrome metallic purple with a silver, blue and fuchsia shimmer. It's a very fierce shade indeed! I wouldn't mind a nice Porsche in this colour... Dream on Alyona...

LOVE

SS13 Beauty Trend: Blue Sapphire Eyeliner!

 Nails: Avon Nailwear Pro+ in Decadence

[a fierce purple metallic shade]

 Clarins Rouge Eclat in 08 Coral Pink; Avon Nailwear Pro+ in Decadence; 

Avon SuperShock Eye Liner in Shimmering Sapphire

Avon SuperShock Eye Liner in Shimmering Sapphire has a fantastic build-ability, when you swatch it first it looks very sheer but it becomes incredibly pigmented in no time once you build it up... 

Having oily eyelids I was actually amazed at the lasting-power! Although it's not waterproof it lasts as amazingly as the SuperShock Gel Eyeliner, on me actually even better! 

Some of my waterproof eyeliners can transfer a little this one stayed like stencilled - great for the summer!!

Blue eyeliner and eyeshadow have been pop-ing up all over the runways, including Michael Kors, Moschino Cheap & Chic, and Stella MaCartney... Regardless what you put on your eyes the variety is wide, it can be an eyeliner or eyeshadow, applied on the lid or the waterline, thin or thick - what matters most in this trend is that the blues are vibrant, whether you choose a sapphire or a turquoise it's up to you as long as your eyes pop, that's the key! This stunning Avon SuperShock Eye Liner in Shimmering Sapphire doesn't come out as amazingly when I'm wearing it on the pics as it does on the pic as a swatch, but in real life it's just as saturated and beautiful! Shimmering Sapphire has a beautiful almost metallic finish, which makes it pop awesomely, is that a word(?) - if not, it is now!

In this trend however, the lips are kept nude, which makes the look that little bit more crisp and chic! But I went for a peachy lip as my complexion is incredibly pale at the minute, I really need to indulge in a good fake-tan. Until then, I find that whenever I have pale skin I either should do a super smokey eye with lots of black [eyeliner as well as waterline] then keep the lip nude, but if I'm sort of keeping it pretty bare in the eyeshadow department I absolutely have to stick on a bright lip to give my complexion a lift and look more fresh! Having said that, I actually really want to try this look with a nude lip once my skin gets a bit more colour!

LOVE

Avon Glimmerstick Eye Liners!

First of all please ignore my hair and the layered homey outfit, I shot this look when it was super cold at home while my boiler was getting fixed, but I love how the eye look with the Avon Glimmerstick eyeliner came out, so I am sharing it anyway... These three eyeliners in the shade [swatched above top to bottom]: Majestic Plum [a satin plum], Cosmic Brown [a matte dark brown], Smokey Diamond [a glittery gunmetal] - are from the Christmas Gift Set that I featured in my Christmas Gift Guide... 

I have also tried the Smokey Diamond eyeliner, it's lovely and sparkly... There are a few shades to choose from including an emerald and gold for a bit more drama... Glimmerstick Diamonds is the glittery option of the regular Glimmerstick Eye Liner, if you like a sparkle or two you'll love them... The shade I am wearing is the Majestic Plum, very pretty shade indeed, great on blue eyes, but also would look beautiful on brown and green eyes... Texture wise I find them to be an affordable dupe version for my beloved Chanel Long-Lasting Eyeliners... They are long lasting and you can either draw a line as I did or smoke it out lightly before it sets...

LOVE

Gift Guide 2012: Last Minute Stocking Filler Ideas!

The last few pre-Christmas days have been absolutely crazy busy! Everyone is working super hard to finish up their projects before Christmas, running around trying to get everything done in time before we finally can relax with our loved ones, cook delicious lots of delicious festive food and watch old Christmas movies.. Uhh bliss! But before we get to that, some of us are still wondering around in shopping malls trying to get the last minute gifts so I thought since I've been doing the Gift Guide pretty much for a month now to share some of my stocking filler ideas in case you still will be getting a few things tomorrow... These are mainly small but nonetheless cute and thoughtful! 

As it's such a busy time of the year, especially these few days I didn't have time to swatch all the products and create looks with some of them, but I didn't want you t miss some of the limited edition products... I chose things that are really fun to find in a stocking filler within a wide price and age range... I won't be reviewing every single product now, but I will be creating looks and doing separate reviews in the New Year, so here it goes!

STOCKING FILLERS LIST:

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips in 360 Laced Up + 260 Glitz Blitz

Nail Rock Designer Nail Wraps in Metallic Moon + Python + Pink Leopardskin

RealTechniques by Samantha Chapman Expert Face Brush

Lush Solid Massage Bar in Midnight Massage

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle Twist and Spray Eau de Parfum Purse Spray

The Body Shop Chocomania Gift Set

Avon Glimmerstick Gift Set

Cowshed Lazy Cow Soothing Perfume Oil

Estee Lauder Pure Color Nail Lacquer in Fallen Angel

Percy & Reed Simply Sumptuous Shine Gift Set

Eylure Naturalites Accent and Lengthen Strip Lashes

Lush Christmas Party Gift Set

Sally Hansen Gem Crush Nail Color in 02 Cha-Ching! + 04 Blingtastic

Pixi Early Bird Palette

Darphin Dry Oil Body Care Nourishing Satin Oil with Red Ginger

Tangle Teezer Salon Elite The Professional Detangling Hairbrush

LOVE

Gift Guide 2012: Avon Nail Polish in Festive Shades!

Avon Nail Polish in Lucky Penny...

And Nail Art Heart Nail Tattoo on the accent nail...

Avon Nail Polish in Lucky Penny, Chilling Teal, Decadence, Green Goddess...

Nail Art Nail Tattoos...

Avon has always a great selection of nail polish shades, and of course they didn't disappoint with the new festive shades... I really like the Lucky Penny, which is a burnished metallic orange packed with glitter... I haven't worn the other ones yet but wanted to share them as well, they all are duo-chrome really shimmery metallics... The  Chilling Teal is an icy mint with silver, green and pink glitter particles... The Decadence is a purple with blue and red  shimmer, and Green Goddess is an olive green with green and gold shimmer... To add an accent I applied the Nail Tattoos Heart nail sticker, which I find pretty cool and went over with a coat of my beloved Sally Hansen Insta-Dri, to keep things looking neat and glossy... 

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Don't forget to check out the John Frieda give away I'm doing and leave your answer if you want to win the full set of the red or brunette range! CLICK HERE

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