NARS face of the day

Today's face is courtesy of Francois Nars;

Eyes lined on upper and lower waterline with London pencil.
Lili Marlene cream eyeshadow smudged over lid and crease as base.
Grey/taupe from Brumes duo in crease and under lower lashes.
Shimmering blue from Brumes on lid (with a little of the bluish silver from the Underworld duo in inner corner.
Luster blush.
Medea lip lacquer smudged onto lips.

Friday's outfit

T shirt from Howies, Skinny jeans from Uniqlo. Although I am not what you'd call skinny myself, these jeans are very comfy - the material is stretchy but firm, so it helps to hold you in where you need it while still allowing breathing.

Rock week on Xfactor

...of course, for Jamie, every week is Rock week. How bad must his Big Band song have been last week for Simon to switch him to Angel of Harlem the day before the live show?

Rumour is that JEdward are singing We Will Rock You. I can't wait.

15% off Benefit Cosmetics online

The code is GLAMBFFS, and it's good until 12 November. If I was buying, I'd get Skinny Jeans and Stiletto cream eyeshadows.  Good to Go lipstick is also pretty (it was the lipstick used on Kirsten Stewart in Twilight) but it does need to be reapplied constantly.

Vapour Organic Beauty Aura blush and Mesmerize eye color

Vapour Organic Beauty is a US line fronted by Eric Sakas, Kevyn Aucoin's former business partner.  You're not getting beautiful packaging, but on the bright side, you're *not* paying for beautiful packaging. This line is all about the product. The Aura blush is $28, and it's huge. The Mesmerize eye color is $16, and for an organic product that's very reasonable.

Storm is a medium grey with subtle multicoloured shimmer; it's less creamy than the RMS eye colours, but it does still crease quite easily (you could counteract that by setting it with a powder eyeshadow, but it would most likely still crease a bit. I prefer to wear it on its own and just pat away any creasing at lunchtime, but creasing doesn't overly bother me.) Torch is reddish pink, with very subtle gold shimmer; it gives me a natural sheer "just been out in the wind" flush.

The website is at www.VapourBeauty.com. I hope it finds a home in the UK soon. These items were part of a gift exchange with a friend in the US.

Lubatti Grapefruit and Bergamot bath oil

Mr London gifted me the Lubatti Grapefruit and Bergamot bath oil recently (he'd done something boorish in IKEA, if I remember correctly.)

The Lubatti range is the brain-child of Tracey Malone, sister of Jo. The formulations are based on the recipes handed down by Madame Lubatti, a skincare expert who trained Eileen Malone, mother of Tracey (and Jo.)

The bath oil is quite similar in formulation to the Jo Malone bath oils, except that the Lubatti one has more jojoba oil and less avocado oil in it. It leaves my skin feeling soft, moisturised and comfortable when I get out of the bath, although it isn't quite as unctuous as the Jo Malone post-bath feeling. Bergamot adds a gentle perfumey note to the citrus of grapefruit, and manages to be both relaxing and refreshing at the same time. I have soaked in a bath after building the accursed IKEA furniture for the past couple of weekends, and I do believe the thought of a Lubatti bath at the end of the pain may have saved my marriage on more than one occasion.

I'm adding the Wild Violet and Scented Rose bath oils and body lotions to my Christmas list, and I hope that the range can expand and introduce new scents. The Lubatti bath oils and body lotions both cost £27 for 200ml.

I wasn't bowled over by the facial skincare; it all smells lovely but the formulations are just pleasant rather than earth-shattering (no space rocks here. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing.) I did buy the hand cream and I'm liking that a lot; I'll report on that separately later.

Armani say...not that much!

I made it to the Armani counter today to enquire about the price of the new Rouge D'Armani lipsticks. They are £22, not the £30 that was quoted in The Stylist. Not exactly a bargain, but not quite as jaw-dropping as advertised.

The flame/orange red 401 that I would have bought was out of stock, so I was saved from myself. I shall be adding it to my christmas list.

Lipstick Queen Butterfly Ball

Lipstick Queen has just launched a range of new lipsticks on the website, LipstickQueen.com. Sheer tints with a turquoise shimmer (which helps to brighten teeth, as well as looking pretty), the Butterfly Ball lipsticks have instantly shot to the top of my lust-list. I have my eye on Goodbye (on the left in the picture,) a deep shimmering wine. I do like the pewter tubes of the packaging too.

The blurb says that this product was inspired by Mohammad Ali's famous Rumble in the Jungle quote; "I'll be floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee." It therefore combines two of my pastimes; make up and fighting. I think I'm obliged to buy it.

Image is from Lipstick Queen website.

Barry M Punky Pink Lip Paint

Hot pink lips are the colour de jour thanks largely to a certain beautiful Mrs Cole on X factor who has been rocking the colour on a Saturday night. This is Punky Pink Lip Paint (number 145) and at less than five pounds, it's an affordable way to tap into this trend.

Funnily, Mr London wasn't sure about this colour either; I think he's too used to seeing me in flame red or soft my-lips-but-better shades.

If you missed out on MAC Style Black lipsticks...

...rest easy in the knowledge that Barry M Lip Paint 37 (pictured above) is actually miles better quality at half the price. It's creamier and gives better coverage than the Midnight Media Mattene lipstick I bought from MAC.

This scared Mr London rigid. I quite like that in a lipstick, as he usually can't be cowed by even the brightest red.

Credit (blame?) for this purchase goes to the lovely Mizzworthy, who suggested it as a good alternative to the MAC in her post here.

Becca Showgirl Holiday Collection

The Becca Holiday collection this year is a Showgirl collection, but it's not Vegas showgirl, it's Parisian showgirl, so think more the girl from the Killers video for Mr Brightside.

This collection is all about pastel lilac eyes and berry lips and cheeks. Very pretty, and a nice season-appropriate alternative to gold and red.  I have my eye on the limited palette, pictured, which gives you the complete look, and I'll also be looking at the new Sheer Tint Lip Colour in Tatiana, a wine pink that looks like it might be a cooler version of Vendela, which I love.

Right, I'm off to re-watch Moulin Rouge and have a good sob.

RMS Beauty face of the day

And once again I'm posting a picture that looks as though I'm barely wearing any make up at all, but as that's entirely the point with RMS, I feel justified in doing so.

I just bought the concealer in 11 in my last Content order, and I'm wearing that around my nose and under eyes. The cheeks and lips are Illusive, a plummy rose cream, and the eyeshadow is Magnetic, a light glossy taupe cream eyeshadow (as I've said before, these do crease, but I really don't mind; I love the look of them and I find them comfortable on my dry lids.) Here's a close-up of my eye.

RMS Beauty products are all raw; none of the ingredients or finished products are heated above body temperature. I find them easy, pretty and flattering; perfect for a lazy Sunday face. In the UK, this line is available at Content.

Xfactor - can the Twins survive?

I promise not to do too many off-topic posts, but how much fun has the X factor been this year? I've been twittering with like-minded souls during the shows, and it's much more fun with company (Mr London barely looks up from his iphone and grunts at me during the show.)

My favourite act this year has undoubtedly been the Irish Twins, John and Edward. Like two identical malevolent little bundles of ambition they cartwheeled onto the stage, sang over the competition and completely charmed Louis despite having no discernable singing talent by being...well, Irish.

I think this week is as far as they can go though; despite the comic genius of them singing Britney Spear's "Oops I did it again!" in red plastic suits last week, I fear that Big Band week will just be too much for them.

I have grown oddly fond of the boys over the weeks; I blame the absolutely lovely Jenine Creaney on Twitter, who is the first person I remember expressing an "Ahhhh, but they're oddly sweet" for them. If I ever need a PR, I'm hiring her.

If they do go, I hope they go with a bang, singing "Somethin' Stupid" to each other...

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Evolve Radiance Boost Smoothing Cream

Evolve is a new line of eco-smart products of effective, natural products that are packaged in recycled containers. It was founded by Laura Rudoe, who was previously head of development at Nude Skincare. The range is based on the principle that anything you put on your body should be good enough to eat, and uses superfood ingredients like Goji and Acerola berries.

The Radiance Boost Smoothing Cream is a body cream that boosts radiance and smooths the skin (the clue is in the name, see?) I first read about this line on the fantastic Beauty Woo Me website,  and was then very excited to get this cream in a pack from Content Beauty, following a press/blog event that I unfortunately couldn't attend.

This is a medium textured cream (not as thick as Kiehl's Creme de Corps, but not at all runny) that sinks in well with a little massage. It leaves my cold-weather skin comfortable, healthy looking and smoother; it contains gentle AHAs that exfoliate the skin. I already use good quality body creams, but this one has definitely made the skin on the back of my arms and my bottom/thighs softer and smoother. If you suffer from dry/bumpy skin, this is definitely worth a go, and I'll be using it regularly to make sure my skin is party-dress ready (just in case I do ever go to any parties.) The packaging is sleek and modern without being ugly. It smells lightly of fruit/lemon and biscuits, which sounds a bit odd, but it's quite neutral and pleasant.

At £12.99 for 200ml, this product is incredibly well-priced, and is an affordable and luxurious alternative to the high street brands. Evolve is available at Content Beauty, the Evolve website, and it will also be available at John Lewis stores from Sunday.

Please note: this product was provided to me free of charge, as part of a press/blog event pack. I liked it so much that I've already bought one for a friend though! I am not affiliated to any of the websites in this post, nor do I receive any remuneration if you click on the links in this post or any other.

20% off code at Zuneta

There's only a week left to vote in the Zuneta/Elle model competition, so you might like to have a look and vote for your favourite entries if you haven't already. As a thank you to everyone who has voted, Zuneta is offering 20% off any order for this weekend only.

The code is ZUNEMODEL. I may have to pick up one or two of those Rouge Bunny Rouge matte eyeshadows I've been eyeing...

Euoko skincare new at Liberty

Euoko is a Canadian luxury skincare line that's relatively new to the UK; it's currently only available in Harrods and Liberty. It claims to combine the best ingredients from around the world with cutting edge skincare technology.

The copy is a bit place-name droppy, to say the least. It's not just hyaluronic acid, it's elite hyaluronic acid from Denmark. My absolute favourite piece of ingredient hyperbole on the website is: "Discovered-on-Mars Iron Rose Crystal from Effusive Magma Rock in Hydrothermal Seams" (of course my neck cream is worth three hundred quid. It has space rocks in it.)

I tried a little of the anti-ageing eye cream on my eye, and I can report that it does have a noticeable lifting and firming effect on the skin around the eyes - it's actually a bit odd, but in a very good way. I'm not sure I'm ready to spend that much on an eye cream just yet (Helen would choke on her chips) but if I were 10 years older I'd certainly be tempted to spend Miss London's university fees on the stuff. It's due in stock on 01 November 2009 in any case, so I was saved from the immediate impulse purchase. The textures of everything I tried at the counter were wonderful; rich but easily absorbed. Do be warned though, that the entire range is scented, if scent bothers you, although the scents are subtle.

I bought the Watermelon defense fluid/cream, which may or may not end up as a Christmas gift for Mr London (he needs a new face protector.) If I do give it to him, I can always borrow it to try out. I also received generous samples of the Radiance Eye Contour Brightening Gel and the White Moisture cream.

Slightly annoyingly, neither of the face creams are given an actual spf (which would be more useful information than where the algae in it comes from, in my opinion.) The Sales Assistant told me that the Watermelon Defense has an spf of about 25, but it would be nice to have that officially confirmed.

If you're interested, the website is here. It's worth having a look if only to chuckle at the copy; it reminds me so much of that annoying girl at university who was always saying "Of course, as Daddy said to me when we were in Cannes last summer/Val D'Isere at Christmas/L.A. last year...."

Ellis Faas launch date for UK

Ellis Faas has just announced on its Facebook page that the launch date for the brand in the UK will be 01 February 2010. It's launching at Liberty, London.

Nude skincare GWP at Beauty Expert

Beauty Expert are currently running a special offer where if you spend £20 on Nude Skincare, you get 5ml mini sizes of the miracle mask (AHA mask) and Replenishing Night Oil thrown in. 5ml doesn't sound like much, but the oil will last you a month or so - you only need a couple of drops for the whole face and neck.

My tip for how to spend that £20? The Cleansing Oil at £27.40, which outperforms the Shu cleansing oils in my opinion, in that it removes every last scrap of make up, washes away with water (no need for muslins) but leaves skin comfy. It also smells disturbingly edible.

Link to Nude at Beauty Expert, with details of the offer, below:

http://www.beautyexpert.co.uk/shop-nude/

Something wicked this way comes...

I discovered Lisa Snellings and her Poppets through Neil Gaiman's Twitter/Blog. Sweet and sometimes just a little creepy is very much my sort of thing so I hopped over to the Etsy shop. My favourite character in The Wizard of Oz was undoubtedly The Wicked Witch of the West, so when I saw this Poppet, I knew she was the Poppet for me.

I think I want the Poppet reads The Graveyard Book next.

Rouge Bunny Rouge natural face of the day

In the photo it looks like I'm barely wearing any makeup at all - but I hope you can just about see it.

The eyes are Solstice Halcyon in a wash from lid to just above crease, and pushlined into lower lashes. I then buffed Tantalising Lovebird onto the lid over the Solstice Halcyon to give a glowy eyelid. I used Modelling Mascara in Midnight, and I have to say this gives me the blackest, swishiest eyelashes ever.

Cheeks are Orpheline powder blush, and lips are Whim of Mine lipstick. Pictured below: Tantalising Lovebird, Solstice Halcyon and Orpheline.

Kevyn Aucoin red lipsticks (the Expert Lip Tint)

From left to right, Enchantaberry, Dantique, Talula, Poppia, Bloodroses, Moonbiba.

At first glance in the tube some of these lipsticks may look similar. When they are swatched the differences in undertones and opacity become apparent (and I hope, justifies me owning all six of them.)

Dantique and Moonbiba are both sheerer shades; the rest are full coverage. My favourites are Bloodroses (for winter) and Talula (for summer.) Talula looks scarily orange in the swatch, but gives a beautiful coral red tint on the lips. The picture below is an old (and blurry) one of me wearing it.

Lipstick Queen 15 minutes of fame lipgloss

These are the new offering from Poppy King, Lipstick Queen. Non-sticky, moisturising creamy glosses with no shimmer, in varying shades from baby pink nude to deep berry. There are 15 shades, each corresponding to one of the 15 minutes of fame.

I received this as a gift from a friend in shades 9 (a sheer red) and 12 (a creamy rose.) In the picture below, 12 is on the left and 9 is on the right - you can see the difference in opacity between the two shades.

9 gives me a red tint. It's pretty similar to the look of Lipstick Queen Medieval on my lips, but a bit more glossy.

12 gives me my lips but better rosy, shiny lips.

These glosses are not sticky, and are very comfortable to wear. They feel almost cushiony-balmy on the lips.

Lipstick Queen is currently only available in SpaceNK in the UK, and I think these are retailing for £14 each here. That is a little on the expensive side, as you don't get a huge amount; each gloss is 1.45ml. They are a nice option for anyone looking to replace the now discontinued/hard to find Stila lipglosses  in the click tubes.

In which SpaceNK are again a bit rubbish...

I visited the SpaceNK in Covent Garden today at lunchtime to decompress between meetings, and also because a regular reader and correspondent had expressed an interest in the new LifeNK range. As I am always willing to do research (and hey, if some products happen to be bought along the way, who am I to challenge destiny?) I was on a mission to sniff and try the LifeNK, and report back here.

They have the products. Lots of them. Multiples of each item. But not a single tester.

I asked if there were any testers, just in case I'd missed them in my Lubatti-sniffing-induced fugue state (the Violet stuff is lovely. And they had testers.)  Nope, I was told, no testers yet. Although, the SA suggested, I could open the products and sniff them. Hang on a minute.
"Are you going to sell people stuff that other people have opened and sniffed?"
Yes, I did say that out loud, and was met with deafening silence.

If you're buying anything from the LifeNK range in Covent Garden, pick one of the items from the back.

Armani say how much?!

I was looking at the new Armani lipsticks in London last Friday (Rouge D'Armani.) I was quite tempted by the red (400-something) but Armani lipsticks never seem to quite work for me - the Sheer 10 that seems to get universal love gives me frostbite lips.

Anyway, in this week's issue of Stylist (free paper for ladies by the publishers of Shortlist) I saw that these cost £30. Are you kidding me? They cost $30 in the US, so how is £30 here justifiable?

Has anyone bought one of these? Was it a typo in Stylist? Are they worth £10 more than other luxury brands?

SKII Air Touch foundation review

This foundation doesn't provide a lot of coverage and if you have blemishes, you'll need to conceal those first. I think it's best suited to normal skin that's pretty good to start off with, which makes it sound a bit rubbish as a foundation. However,  if you have quite good skin this will give you flawless, almost unreal skin (but without looking like foundation.)

It's what it does for the texture and evenness of my complexion that I like. My skin is pretty good; I have some redness around the chin and nose and a definite tendency to take on a slightly green/grey tinge if I'm tired, but otherwise it's pretty clear and even textured. The SKII gives me glowy, peachy baby-looking skin.

The Air Touch isn't as difficult to get the hang of as the Era spray foundation from Classified Cosmetics, but it does take a bit of practice to get the distance and timing right. If you apply too much it can go dry and cakey - the only time this has ever happened to me is when I first tried it out at the counter and the sales assistant blasted my face for a full minute plus (she gave me flesh coloured eyelashes, because I had mascara on. I looked like Tilda Swinton.) If you spray too close to the face you'll get streaks too, which are quite easy to blend out, but defeat the unique selling point of this product, which is that it gives an incredibly fine and even mist that you don't need to blend.

I apply after concealer and powder blusher (it doesn't cover the blush, weirdly) but I put my eyeshadow, mascara etc and lip product on after it. The foundation does not stick to your hair or eyebrows because it is magic (or it has something to do with ionic charges, one or the other.) I only spray for about 15 seconds, moving the mist around my face. This is enough to give me clear and even skin without looking like I'm wearing foundation. Once it's dry, it's transfer resistant, and as a bonus, it seems to help colour cosmetics stay on longer too.

I'm making this seem like an expensive hassle, but I'll definitely replace the cartridge when I run out. SKII is now only available at Harrods in the UK. I've tried the skincare and didn't rate it that highly, to be honest (although I did buy it at the time when there was a concern about the safety of the formulations in some markets, which may have coloured my perception of the brand.)

Yes, this is £80 for the mechanism and a small cartridge (I think 5ml, maybe) and then £40 for the refill (I think each one would last at least a couple of months using it every day in the way that I do.) Yes, I bought it myself (although, in my defence, I had been influenced by the news that this was the foundation used in the Twilight film. I would like to know *where* my free Cullen is.) I'm shade OP3, which is a pale neutral slightly peachy beige.

Oribe Creme for Style update and review

I bought this at SpaceNK at the end of September, and as it's a new brand to the UK I thought it might be useful to do a review of what I think of it, having used it for a couple of weeks.

I can report, with some ambivalence (I still think we're being robbed on the cost in the UK), that the Oribe does what it says on the box. I use a pea sized amount, rub it between my palms and then distribute it in the mid lengths and end of my hair. It prevents frizz, totally, and leaves me with defined waves if I leave my hair to air dry. It does also make the ends of my hair feel more like hair and less like straw, but without making it lank or greasy; the Oribe gives some body to my hair.

I did also blow dry it one morning for the sake of the experiment/review - and I can report it did smooth out nicely into a straight style (although, as luck would have it, this was on Friday, when the heavens opened as I was walking to Kings Cross in the evening. I ended up with a head of ringlets after getting soaking wet, but still no frizz!)

It also smells lovely - it's a sparkly and not acrid citrus blend. The scent reminds me of the Neil George range (also at SpaceNK, I am very tempted by the Illuminating Shampoo and Conditioner which is getting good feedback at emakemeup.com, and BritishBeautyBlogger liked this range too.) It also smells a bit like the Fekkai Glossing range (which is unfortunately another "I just don't get it" lauded product for me  - even a small amount of the glossing creme makes my hair look limp and lank, and after repeated use it seemed to leave my hair ends drier than ever. )

I can post full ingredients if anyone would like them; it's basically a cetearyl alcohol soft cream/wax blend with some silicones and vegetable/soya proteins.

Besame Voluptuous Lip Colour Set new at Beauty Expert

After seeing my post on Besame Enchanting lipstick, Beauty Expert contacted me to ask if I'd like to try the new Besame Voluptuous lip kit they've recently started to carry. As this particular girl can never have enough reds, I jumped at the opportunity.

The Voluptuous set is the first product in the new line that Besame is launching. The lipstick is full size (4g) and comes with a matching twist up lipliner and lip brush for £25. It would make a nice gift; the products come packaged in a matching box, and as a set it's a lovely indulgence. Although the lip brush is a good texture it's not portable, having no lid on it; you could keep it in the plastic resealable bag it comes in, but that doesn't really match the elegance of the rest of the packaging. I'd prefer to just buy the lipstick and liner for slightly less, and I do wonder if Besame has limited its appeal by only selling as a set of three items. This being said, I was very impressed with the lip liner, and I don't usually bother with matching lip liners; I think you can see in the picture that I have a much sharper and cleaner lip line than when I just use a red lipstick on its own (as I normally do.) It also matches the lipstick absolutely perfectly.

This has the traditional Besame vanilla scent, and the satin texture. The Voluptuous formula is easier to apply and less heavy than the Enchanting formula, and the bullet feels less fragile than the smaller Enchanting, although as it is less pigmented it does not have quite the same longevity as the Enchanting formula. It still lasts well and fades evenly on me (without the red ring of horror appearing around my lipline when it fades) but I do need to reapply after lunch, whereas the Enchanting lasts all day.

Red Velvet is a great red; it's a slightly muted red that isn't too warm or cool. If (in Besame Enchanting) Carmine is a Grace Kelly colour and Red Hot Red is a Marilyn Monroe, Red Velvet is the Lauren Bacall of reds. It's what I call a casual red (like Kevyn Aucoin Dantique, Lipstick Queen Rust or Julie Hewett Coco Noir); in that it is definitely red, but doesn't shout "Look at these RED lips" when you enter a room. The Voluptuous Lip Colour Set is also available in Champagne and Rapture Rose.

This picture is of the Red Velvet lipstick applied, with the Red Velvet liner then applied around my lipline afterwards to sharpen the line.

I've bought from Beauty Expert a few times, from before I started blogging, and those experiences were all positive. In my experience they ship quickly, safely and include relevant samples. It's also worth signing up for their email updates, as they often have special offers.

Please note: this product was provided to me without charge, for me to review if I liked it. I have not otherwise been paid for this post, and receive no remuneration should anyone click on the link to Beauty Expert in this post or any other.

Saaf cleanser

I have a confession to make that might get me kicked out of Beauty Fanatics Anonymous: I don't like the Eve Lom range. I don't care for anything I've tried from the line, and I particularly don't like the cleanser. I've tried really hard to like it, and I enjoy the process of oil-massage-hot-damp-cloth-remove-cold-water-splash, but the formulation does not agree with my skin at all and makes it dry, flaky and uncomfortable in bits while causing breakouts in atypical spots elsewhere (I got spots on my forehead and cheeks with this, as well as on my chin.)

Not to be put off, I've tried other oil based cleansers with varying degrees of success (Vaishaly is lovely, but stings the eyes, Ren is not good, and clogged my pores more than Eve Lom, Neal's Yard rose one is not a good cleanser; I think they now market it as a treatment instead, I liked Spieza but didn't adore it.) I was browsing on a beauty e-tailer one day, as you do, and came across Saaf. The Saaf cleanser has no mineral oil, and the ingredients are:
Jojoba oil, Safflower oil, olive oil, beeswax, shea butter, natural vitamin E, grapefruit seed oil, geranium oil, lavender oil. The ingredients are 98.5% organic.

I use this with the hot cloth method - apply cleanser to dry skin, massage in to emulsify make up and grime. Take a muslin cloth, soak in warm water and ring out, then use to remove the cleanser. Rinse the face with lots of cool water. I find this cleanser removes every last scrap of make up, including tough to budge mascara, without making my eyes sting. It also leaves my skin feeling comfortable, but without a filmy layer. If I'm occasionally feeling particularly lazy or tired, I can just use this cleanser and an eye cream without having to go through the rigmarole of a whole evening routine.

The Saaf cleanser is £25 for 35g, and I bought mine from Beauty Expert. It's also available at Content Beauty.

Beaute Weightless Lip Creme - Masochist

Beaute is a Canadian high-end brand by a young up-and-coming makeup artist called Beau Nelson. He's launching new products slowly and cautiously, and the latest product to be launched is the Weightless Lip Creme. This was also in my parcel from my US friend, and it is a liquid lip colour that gives me full and comfortable coverage, with ingredients that are meant to be beneficial for the lips. It really is weightless; it feels like nothing on my lips, is completely fragrance-free (and paraben free too) and lasts well. This lip creme held its own against a sausage and mash dinner on the day I received it (although slightly faded it wasn't patchy or uneven.) I'm not saying it lasts all day, but I've only needed to reapply after lunch today to refresh the colour; it hadn't completely worn off, and my lips felt better at the end of the day than they did at the start of it. I don't need to use a balm underneath this product, and that's almost unheard of for me. There are other, more neutral colours in the range; I am very interested in Modern Love, a plum brown.

Lipstick Rules has written an excellent review on the Liqui-Gel Stain for lips and cheeks here. I need Fever, a reddish stain, because obviously I don't own enough red lip and cheek products already. I do already own a few of the Luminous Volume Glosses, which are very good glosses indeed - I find these moisturise and condition my lips well too.

Weightless Lip Cremes are $26 (Canadian) for 3g, and can be purchased through the Beaute Cosmetics website. I'd love to see these available in the UK - I could see them doing well at Zuneta, or in somewhere like Liberty.

New style layout or old?

I've just found a new template layout that stretches out posts to fill the whole screen. On the one hand, I found that blank 1/3 of the screen irritating and it means you don't have to scroll down so much for each post, but on the other hand, pictures now do seem to hang in the middle rather awkwardly.

Which layout do you prefer?

Rock & Republic sale swag and swatches

Rock & Republic cosmetics were on sale at Hautelook, and so my US pal kindly picked up a few bits for me that I wanted. The top picture is without flash, bottom is with flash. These are:

eyeshadow in Diffused - medium cool beige/brown with shimmer.
blush in Bedroom - warm guava pink matte. Yes, this is huge - it's 9g of product.
lipgloss in Sexy Beast, a berry rose with subtle shimmer.

Below is a swatch of Sexy Beast, next to a swatch of R&R Drama Queen gloss. You can see that Sexy Beast is pigmented, much more so than Drama Queen.

Also below is a picture of Diffused (right) compared to R&R Spy (left), which is a paler beige.

Rock & Republic cosmetics are considerably marked down on Neiman Marcus online now - an eyeshadow is $17 rather than $28. It does look as though the cosmetics line is closing, which is a shame because it has some fabulous items. I agree with New York City Pretty's take on the fortunes of this line; I too think it was a mistake to lead the marketing of this line with the $225 Swarovski bronzer, especially in uncertain economic times.

Julie Hewett Twilight Palette

I'd been tempted by this palette on the Julie Hewett site for a while, because it's;

a) called Twilight, and I'm automatically attracted to anything vaguely Twilight-ish.

b) neutral eyeshadows, which I can seemingly never get enough of, and

c) by Julie Hewett.

A dear friend sent it to me as part of one of our semi-regular cultural exchanges (I send stuff she can't get in the US, she sends me things I can't get in the UK.)

The colours are a matte neutral deep brown, a shimmering white, grey with gold micro-sparkles and a shimmering black. Julie Hewett eyeshadows are soft and pigmented; they remind me of the original Stila eyeshadows (I found that the quality of Stila eyeshadows went downhill after they were sold by Estee Lauder.) For me this palette is different enough from the Julie Hewett Soiree palette I already own to have both, but if you had to chose just one I think the Swank (grey with gold sparkles) shade in the Twilight palette gives it the edge.

The card with the palette suggests completing the look with the Vampie Cheekie, which is a reddish berry shade, perfect for Autumn/Winter, and for that pale skinned, flushed lips thing, you know, if you happened to be going for that kind of look...

You can buy directly from JulieHewett.net in the US, and there are details of international stockists on the website too.

I've uploaded a swatch picture, but unfortunately the sparkle in the grey does not show up that well in natural light on my arm.

Because beauty isn't always superficial - Rankin Sightsavers Campaign

The hugely talented photographer, Rankin, has teamed up with top makeup artists, including Mary Greenwell, to run a campaign this week highlighting the fact that women account for two thirds of blind people in the world, and how preventable and treatable many of the causes of blindness are.

Be warned, although the images are not "real" they are disturbing and provoking.

http://rankin.sightsavers.org/

Why don't brands cost the same everywhere?

Why does a NARS eyeshadow duo cost £23 here, $32 in the US and a gobsmacking Aus$78 in Australia? Have you ever wondered this?

On straight current exchange rates, £23 is equal to $36 and Aus$42. So why isn't that what they cost respectively? With Australia, the argument is that the cost of getting the product to the consumer is high due to distance, and so that has to be added on to the cost of the product. Similarly, there is a cost (although lower) of distributing a US brand in Europe. As well as the shipping costs, there are nearly always going to be import taxes on luxury goods, and purchase taxes vary by country (and in the US, by state.)

I accept all that to a certain extent, but in the case above, Australian consumers are still getting kicked.

The simple fact is, brands charge what the market will accept. Generally, most cosmetics are transfer priced at £1 to $1.50ish, and stayed at this level even when the pound was nearly at $2. That makes sense - why would Laura Mercier or Bobbi Brown drop prices for us when they could just make extra profit? On the flipside, it was difficult for established brands to start charging more in the US, which is why you had the anomaly of UK brands like Jo Malone (arguable to still call it a UK brand now that it's a Lauder, but still,) costing more in the UK than they did in the US.

The store in the UK that takes the biggest liberty with transfer pricing is SpaceNK. Quite often, $1 will nearly equal £1 in the SpaceNK pricing policy, and that's pretty cheeky. Examples include:

Oribe conditioner for brilliance and shine is $47 in the US and £43 in the UK.

Kate Somerville antioxidant serum is $65 in the US and £59 in the UK.

Lipstick Queen Medieval is $20 in the US and £19 in the UK.

I could go on, but I'd probably bore you to tears. SpaceNK can do this because they bring over exclusive brands you can't find anywhere else. I'm really pleased to see that their position as the place to buy beauty exclusives is being challenged by online beauty retailers like Zuneta, Content and Puresha, who generally charge fairer prices for non-UK brands - an Hourglass lipstick costs £18 at Zuneta, and $24 at Sephora in the US, and an RMS Lip2Cheek costs £28 at Content, and $36 from RMS in the US.

My personal, all-time, I will never order from that brand again because of their dodgy pricing policy, goes to Bionova. This is a US line that has a UK website. The prices are about £1 to $1, but I accepted that, grudgingly. What really made me cross was that what the website doesn't tell you is that your UK price will then be converted into dollars on your credit card, at the credit card exchange rate, and you will end up paying even more than the published price plus whatever your credit card charges you as a foreign currency fee. Shame, as the products themselves were pretty good, if strange-smelling.

Korres Pomegranate Lip Butter review

I've seen other colours of this lip butter reviewed and featured on blogs, but not the Pomegranate one.

I bought this because I love Pomegranate - I love the smell and the colour and the autumnal feel of the fruits. Like all Korres lip butters, it moisturises well, doesn't feel sticky and gives a subtle sheen to the lips. Pomegranate has a fruity smell, and gives a warm healthy pink glow to my (naturally pallid) lips. Picture below is applied to bare lips.

Like all Korres products, this is mineral oil free, and is very reasonably priced at £6. You can find Korres in most department stores now, and it's also stocked at Zuneta.com.

Chantecaille Total Concealer in Ivory in action on my dark circles

This is my concealer of choice for under eye circles.  Bobbi Brown creamy concealer and Kevyn Aucoin both give better coverage, but the BB needs to be set with powder and both the BB and the KA can look a little crepe-y on dry skin. I like that the Chantecaille doesn't need to be set, but isn't overly greasy and lasts quite well.

Step 1 - my bare eye. You can see I have quite blue shadows, especially in the inner corner.

Step 2 - concealer patted on with a brush. I concentrate the products where the shadows are darkest.

Step 3 - blended with a fingertip, and finished. Some blue still shows through, but the area is brighter and less tired looking.

Sometimes, you don't need words.

As well as Midnight Media lipstick, I was wearing my Cowshed Grumpy Cow shower gel and body lotion.

If there was a perfume called "IKEA: Destroyer of Souls" I would have been wearing that too.

Don't try this at home, kids - L'Oreal Casting Creme Gloss in Chocolate

I should learn, really I should. I haven't dyed my hair at home in years, literally since before Miss L was born. I recently(ish) had my highlighted blonde hair dyed back to something approaching its natural colour at Eleven Hair. After three or so months, the colour on my ends had faded a bit (it happens when you dye over highlights) and being a) impatient and b) stupid, I thought "How wrong could I possibly go with a semi-permanent colour?"

If my lovely hairdresser, Jason, ever reads this, I bet you a dollar he's laughing right now.

L'Oreal Casting Creme Gloss looks straightforward, and is easy to apply. The colour you get though, is at least 2 levels darker than the colour on the box (and no, I didn't leave it on for longer than the minimum required time.) I picked Chocolate, which is meant to be a warm chocolate brown, suitable for dark blonde to medium brown hair. It's dark, dark brown, with a lot of red in it. I can only thank my lucky stars that I didn't opt for the Dark Chocolate that I almost went for.

My colour isn't dreadful - it's dark brown with a strong red cast, but it isn't great either (you can see it in my Style Black lipstick picture.) I was more annoyed at the dry and brittle state that it left my hair in, and the deep conditioner in the box was absolutely horrid.

I'll be washing it furiously until I've lifted enough of the colour to go to Jason, confess my sins, and beg him to colour it properly for me.

OPI Romeo & Joliet

This colour is from the OPI classics range. It's a deep burgundy red with red shimmer and slightly coppery undertones in certain lights. The top picture is without flash, bottom is with flash.

I love OPI colours, but I don't find they wear brilliantly on me - I think I painted my nails with this on Monday evening, and the picture was taken on Wednesday evening - you can see the shrinkage at the tips, although there's no actual chipping. To be fair, it was a pretty sloppy two coats and no top coat.

This is quite a good alternative to NARS Tokaido or Chanel Gondola, from the current Autumn/Fall collections.

I see a red door....* MAC Style Black collection

I think I'm PMSing, because when I popped into MAC at lunchtime today, black lipstick suddenly seemed like a completely fabulous idea. So much so, that I bought Midnight Media Mattene (pictured wearing above) and Blackware glimmerglass, as well as the black greasepaint (this stuff is really pigmented, and has a subtle purple pearl to it) and Young Punk Mineralize eyeshadow. I am not usually a MAC LE type of person; the last collection I really liked (and bought a lot from) was Danse from at least a couple of years ago.

Is it a wearable, everyday, office appropriate look? Absolutely not; with my pale skin, dark eyes and hair I can honestly say I look cadavarous. I plan to wear the lipstick to IKEA on Saturday, where I think it will accurately reflect my state of mood.

Mr London is not a fan at all; he was making lots of jokes about whether he would be able to take a picture of me wearing the lipstick (because I look vampiric) and was hesitant about kissing me (to quote him: "I thought it would taste funny. Like poison or something.")

I'm still glad I bought it; sometimes I like the idea of makeup to shock or surprise. I'll report back if I still feel the same way when I am less hormonal, but this collection is already moving very quickly indeed. The eye products in the collection give more traditional smoky/shimmery eye look.

...*and I want to paint it black. From 'Paint it Black' by the Rolling Stones (back when Mick was actually really quite hot, believe it or not, you young things.)