A Pick-Me-Up Lip & Fave Eyeshadow of the Moment!

 Stila Countless Colour Pigments in Encore

Charlotte Tilbury Rock 'N' Kohl Iconic Liquid Eye Pencil in Bedroom Black

Topshop Lip Stick in Hedonist

Hey Beauty Lovers! This is the look I wore today, I haven't worn a bright lip in a very long time. An über bright lipstick can be a true pick-me-up in the winter. If you keep the rest of the makeup neutral there is nothing wrong with wearing a super intense lip colour. Topshop Lip Stick in Hedonist is an almost neon matte orange red. Before I wear a matte lipstick I tend to thoroughly exfoliate my lips, then the matte lipstick goes on beautifully. 

For the eyes I used Stila Countless Colour Pigment in Encore, which is my go-to eyeshadow of the moment. There is just something about it that makes it a very pretty nude eyeshadow shade with a satin finish. I just swirl the brush in all the colours except for the lightest and apply it all over the lid as well as under the lower lashes. 

For an extra dimension I like the Charlotte Tilbury Rock 'N' Kohl Iconic Liquid Eye Pencil in Bedroom Black, it's a soft black. This eyeliner is as soft as butter so be careful how you place it as it dries really quickly and will last untouched until you are ready to take it off. I love wearing it in my waterline as it isn't too intense for this type of look and also lasts forever without transferring. 

LOVE

NYE Chic Violet and Sparkles Smokey Eye with Stila!

On the brows wearing Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Colour in Light

Blush: Stila Baked Cheek Duo in Pink Glow

Eyeshadows: All Stila in Kitten [shimmery pearl]; Rose Quartz [silvery taupy glitter]; Dahlia [matte violet]

Browliner: Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Colour in Light

L to R: Stila Eyeshadow in Dahlia; Rose Quartz; Kitten

Stila Baked Cheek Duo in Pink Glow

L to R: Stila Baked Cheek Duo in Pink Glow the darker and the lighter shades.

Stila Eyeshadows in Dahlia, Rose Quartz, Kitten.

Hey Beauty Lovers! I think violet eyeshadows can look really chic when you use them as an accent rather than the main colour. To create this subtle violet smokey eye I applied the Stila Eyeshadow in Rose Quartz all over the lid [do use a primer!], it's a glittery sheer eyeshadow that creates that wet eyelids effect. Then taking the Dahlia, which is a matte deep violet shade, onto a flat eyeliner brush - I applied it right into the corner as if creating a light flick but then brushing the eyeshadow upwards a little so that it blends nicely into the sparkles. With the same brush I took Dahlia also into the socket, but keeping it quite light. For the smokey eye effect I also blended a touch of Dahlia under the lower lashes. 

Using a black eyeliner [MAC Kohl Power in Feline] I have then lined the eyes making sure to go over it with Dahlia to blend edges for a softer look. For the eyebrows I have used Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color in Light, it's a perfect shade for blondes. I love it with my current hair colour! It has a fine brush, so you can literally draw in hairs for a natural brow look. 

And finally I have applied the darker shade of the Stila Baked Cheek Duo in Pink Glow where I usually apply blush, and then I followed up with the lighter shade applying it higher on the cheekbones and also right on the apples of the cheeks blending in the colours. The two shades blend in beautifully, giving you that super pretty glowy cheek! It seems to have a pearly shimmer, but not too excessive and rather flattering. And I love the metal rose-gold packaging!

LOVE

August Faves: 10 Best Loved Beauty Products!

Hey Beauties! I always feel a little sad at the end of August, because it means that summer is over. It was such a lovely summer during which I devoured a humongous amount of Italian ice-cream! But at the same time you also start looking forward to lots of cosy evenings spent home with a big mug of hot chocolate and melting mini marshmallows. And of course I also get excited about the coming AW13 beauty trends and new shades of the season. 

So it's time to let go of summer and embrace autumn. I decided to share with you the beauty products that I have really enjoyed and used consistently this month, trying to keep them within ten items: 

1. Favourite Eyeshadow: Too Faced Summer Eyes Palette, shades: Cocoa Beach and Toasted Coconut - to see the eyeshadows on click here!

2. Favourite Eyeshadow Highlighter: MAC Eye Shadow in Grain - technically it's three eyeshadows this month that got most love, Grain looks super sexy on the brow-bone.

3. Favourite Mascara: Cosmetics a la Carte Divine Lash in Black, I use it daily, love the brush and the volumising but non clumping consistency. Gives you full but natural looking lashes.

4. Favourite Face Primer: Stila Skincare Light Source, this spot correcting and brightening serum is great as a base, makes foundation go on beautifully, and it has a clean lavender scent. For the full review click here!

5. Favourite Foundation: NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Light6 Ceylan. For a review and to see it on click here!

6. Favourite Lip Base: Cosmetics a la Carte Plump & Prime, makes any lipstick look even more beautiful. For a full review click here!

7. Favourite Lipstick: bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick in Be Free, super creamy!

8. Favourite Lipliner: bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipliner in Liberated, just the most perfect nude lipliner, favourite nude lip combo right now is this lipliner as a base and the Be Free lipstick over the top! To see the lip combo on click here!

9. Favourite Nailpolish: BarryM Gelly Hi-Shine in Greenberry, such a pretty teal, perfect summer shade! To see it on click here!

10. Favourite Fragrance: Atelier Cologne Gold Leather, just stunning, incredibly unique, deep sensual scent! For the full fragrance review click here!

LOVE

Stila Skincare Light Source Review!

This Stila Skincare Light Source serum was from my goodie bag when I went to the Stila Summer 2013 event, if you want to read more about that and see some really exciting new products from the Stila Summer 2013 Collection click here! I always associated Stila purely with make-up so to me it was a great revelation to discover that Stila Skincare is as awesome as the make-up!! The Light Source is a spot correcting and brightening serum. It helps to even out skin tone, working on dark spots, hyperpigmentation, and acne scars - sounds like heaven to me! I'm really impressed with this one. As you can see on the last pic it's a gel like texture, very light, fast absorbing, leaving your skin feeling super smooth. And it smells of lavender, a very calming and clean scent, makes it a joy to use!

It has an impressive list of ingredients [straight form the box]:

• alpine rose stem cell technology closely mimics the function of human stem cells responsible for renewing, repairing & defending healthy skin
• encapsulated brightplex peptide technology targets & treats existing dark spots to help fade  them while breaking up the melanin clusters responsible for causing hyperpigmentation
• antioxidant rich, stabilized vitamins A, C & E help reduce the appearance of fine lines & wrinkles, restore elasticity & protect skin from free radical damage
• red algae helps inhibit melanin production
• made with love & without synthetic fragrance, mineral oil, sulfates, parabens or phthalates
• ideal for sensitive skin

Use it morning and/or evening on cleansed skin, half a pump is enough for me, a little goes a long way with this serum, it will last for ages. Light Source is a god-given skin goodness!

LOVE

Brigitte Bardot Inspired Look with Stila Countless Color Pigments!

As featured in my previous blogpost here is the new Stila Countless Color Pigment used as an eyeshadow in the shade Encore from the Summer 2013 Collection, for more info click here! These hand pressed and baked pigments are beautifully pigmented and smooth, they can be used on face and eyes, as an eyeshadow, blush, or highlighter... Like I said in the previous blogpost you can create endless looks with these pigments by either using them separetly or blending few shades together with a finger or a sponge...

Encore is a very pretty shade, a warm toned reddish soft brown with a satin finish... Swirling all the colours together to me it's the perfect Brigitte Bardot eyelid colour, so that's the look I went for... I also used the lighter colour as a highlighter... To also warm up my complexion I used the Laura Mercier Shimmer Bloc in Golden Mosaic, which I have featured so many times, this definitely will be my summer staple(!) - for a full review click here...  

And on the lips I used the A La Carte Plump & Prime lip primer, which I have featured last week, for a full review click here... It's a plumping primer, but I like using it just with a lip pencil for a gorgeous nude lip - perfect for that Brigitte Bardot full lips look! For extra dimension and fullness I used the Chanel Precision Lip Definer in 59 Palissandre [Spring 2013 Collection], it's a beautiful dark brown - I like to apply it over Plump & Prime, blending the liner to soften the definition and then I go over with the Plump & Prime again, which creates that voluptuous full lip... 

LOVE

Stila Summer 2013 Collection - Festival of Colour!

Stila Countless Color Pigments! [£14]

The tiniest cheesecake in existence...

Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner! [£13]

The two pencil looking lipsticks in front are those After Glow Lip Colours! [£12]

They come in six bold shades...

 shade: Melody

Stila Countless Color Pigments in Melody [L] and Encore [R]...

Few weeks ago I was invited to the Stila event, which introduced the super fun Summer 2013 Collection!! It was a real fun experience - the bold colours were super exciting and intoxicating... This summer Stila will be all about festivals and raves aka pretty pop of colours but still keeping it pretty wearable! The highlights for me were a few really unique items, which I am very happy to share with you... Starting with, Stila Countless Color Pigments with a unique tie-dye effect are mixed pressed pigments, they can be used as a blush or eyeshadow depending on the shades or the look you are going for... 

You can either swirl the brush in all the colours or create an individual colour by mixing a couple of shades in the pan or use them separately, the possibilities are endless and so are the looks... They are pressed in such a way that you can always come back to the original top colours even after swirling them together, which is pretty neat! Also there is a new shade of the best-selling Stila All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner - Turquoise is the right on-trend shade... I love the Stila double liner eye-look you can see in pic - the turquoise above the black eyeliner is a very chic way of introducing a pop of colour to the eyes...

And of course the super fun Stila After Glow Lip Colours - they look pretty ordinary that is until the black-light hits your lips, the responsive florescent pigments come alive under ultraviolet light making your lips glow-in-the-dark, woohoo! The rave-worthy formula has a buildable coverage with staining properties for long-lasting wear... While Algae extract, sunflower seed oil and Vitamins C & E nourish and moisturise lips and oat kernel extract soothes and calms... And they have a delicious cherry scent, very summery!

LOVE

Stila Set & Bronze Baked Powder Trio...

on the eyes: I'm wearing the beautiful MAC Sumptuous Olive eyeshadow

- it's a beautiful metallic olive green...

[and a new addition to my beloved MAC eyeshadow collection]

on the face: I'm wearing the new Stila Set & Bronze Powder Trio, 

which beautifully warms and illuminated the face...

I got this beautiful light Zara flower print blouse this spring for 

the Damien Hirst exhibit at the Tate...

When I read there would be the butterfly room I decided to dress for the occasion...

 In and Out of Love... 

And of course the huge beautiful butterflies were attracted to my yellow flowers,

it was a very special and beautiful moment,

 because love is like a butterfly - 

you never know where it will settle down next...

I was quite excited to try this new Stila bronzer... It has three shades: Matte Bronze, which bronzes and warms the skin; Kitten Shimmer, which brightens and illuminates; and Bronze Shimmer, which enhances skintone... When you turn the 'ingenious shaver' that is build in the compact it sort of shaves the baked powder and the three colours mixed together become a beautiful luminous bronzy champagne powder... It has a beautiful satin-like finish... I love how it illuminates the face, I wouldn't recommend to dust it all over the face if you have oily skin like moi, as it's quite shimmery and you may end up glowing like a light-bulb, but as a highlighter it really looks beautiful! 

LOVE