NARS FOTD product pictures

I thought instead of posting yet another shot of my face I'd show you the products I'm using together instead.

From top left clockwise: Indian Summer duo, Lili Marlene cream eyeshadow, London pencil, Medea lip lacquer, Luster blush.

I applied the Lili Marlene over my lid and a little past my crease (I just used a fingertip to apply and blend.) I lined my waterline with the London pencil (top and bottom) I then applied the champagne shimmer from Indian Summer on the lid, and the mustard shade in my crease and underneath my lower lashes. The grey cream eyeshadow underneath stops the mustard from being too 'look at that yellow eyeshadow!' but it's very wearable in any case, and yet another example of the genius that is Francois Nars, making a colour/combination that sounds mad, look fantastic.

RMS Beauty Rapture Lip2Cheek and Solar Cream Eyeshadow

I've written about RMS Beauty and the whole raw cosmetics ethos behind the line here, so I'm not going to bang on about that again. I do admire Rose-Marie Swift's dedication to producing high fashion products that are pure and beneficial for the skin, and I also enjoy the ease of use and pretty, flattering finish these products give me. I can see myself ending up owning all the colour products from this line in time (and probably not that much time; I have my eye on the Luminizer and Seduce eyeshadow already.)

Rapture is a warm brownish red that gives a natural flush to the cheeks and lips. It is very pigmented and I do have to apply quite sparingly to my cheeks to avoid the 'Aunt Sally' look, but it's very flattering and the colour is particularly winter appropriate; it gives a warm and lovely 'just-come-in-from-the-cold' look. I love this on the lips; if you find a lot of red tints turn pinkish on you, this is one to try. This would be absolutely beautiful on darker skins.

Solar is a sheer yellow gold. It doesn't give an Illamasqua Solstice block metallic look, it gives a wash of golden sparkle to the lid. I could see this working well on cheekbones and collarbones as a highlighter too. As I've mentioned before, the cream eyeshadows do crease, but I don't mind as they're easy to fix and I love the look of them. If creasing bothers you particularly, skip these though. I really like this just with black mascara and the Rapture on the cheeks and lips; it gives a subtly brightened natural eye that works very well with a reddish lip.

Both products cost £28 each, and are available at www.beingcontent.com. These were Christmas gifts.

Swatches: (please note, this is quite a heavy swatch of Rapture, it can also be sheered out on the cheeks.)

Dolce & Gabbana FOTD

This was my Boxing Day look. ERA Everyday foundation in Y3 as a base, Hourglass Superficial mascara, Shu Uemura Seal Brown hard brow pencil and the rest, all from Dolce & Gabbana:

Elegance quad on eyes. Ivory all over as a base, grey in outer corners and along upper lashline, green buffed onto lid, taupe in crease and under lower lashes.
Stromboli pencil to line upper lashline.
Caramel blush.
Naked Shine lipstick, Nude lipliner.

I like this. I'm not at all used to myself in nude lips, but I think they work nicely with this eye look.

Dolce & Gabbana Naked lipstick applied

Naked is from the Shine (slightly sheerer coverage) line of Dolce & Gabbana lipsticks. It's a change of pace from my usual sort of colour, being a peachy nude shimmer. I have to admit, I wasn't sure how well this would work for me when I first opened the tube (it was a Christmas present) but I was pleasantly surprised when I applied it.  I'll post a FOTD using it soon.

Dolce & Gabbana Caramel blush and Naked lipstick

Caramel is a recent addition to the Dolce & Gabbana blush line up (it was released with the Holiday 2009 collection) and it's a lovely colour. I found the other colours in the blush line up either too warm/peachy (the nudes) or too bright (the pink/roses) for what I was looking for to go with the other items I already own from the line, but Caramel is just right; a neutral beige brown with slight pinkish undertones. It's a perfect blush to wear with a red lip.

Naked is a Shine lipstick; it's a shimmering peachy nude shade, and although the Shine formula is sheerer than the Classic it still gives very good coverage. I'll be posting a picture of this on my lips soon.

Both of these items were Christmas presents. Dolce & Gabbana makeup is currently available exclusively at Selfridges in the UK.

Poppets can tend to multiply

The Londons went a little Poppet crazy this Christmas. I bought Poppet Reads The Graveyard Book for Mr London, and he bought Impeccable Dr Brown and Saturday Afternoon Reading Poppet for me.

They're living on the comic book graphic novel shelf in our study/library. They look quite at home there.

(Also pictured, Poppet Plays Fairy Godpoppet, Classic Little Red Poppet, and Poppet Witch and Sourpuss.)

Poppets can be found at the Strangestudios Etsy shop.

New objects of desire - Kose Addiction

I've been lusting after this brand after I read about it on Cosmetic Candy and A Touch of Blusher. Addiction is a Japan exclusive line that launched in Summer 2009. The artistic director, Ayako, previously worked for NARS so it has a NARS-ish feel to it, and the general feel and look is a bit harder and edgier than other Japanese lines. I do think it's a shame that the model in the promotional pictures is so very caucasian, but that's not atypical for Japanese lines (one of the things I like about Suqqu is that they do use models for their campaigns who look at least part asian.)

I was googling it the other day, as you do, and found an online store that is now stocking it that will ship to the UK - www.mihokoshop.com. I managed to resist for about a day before placing an order, and I'll report back when I receive the order. Prices on Mihokoshop are around the Suqqu UK level - I bought 4 eyeshadows, a blush, a lipstick and a compact case for just over £150 with Express Mail Service shipping included.

I love the compact case: it can hold the eyeshadows, blush, pressed powder and tools in numerous combinations that appeal to my OCD desire for order (I can't ever leave a t-shirt in the jumper drawer if Mr London has put the laundry away.)

Picture is from the Addiction Website, www.addiction-beauty.com. It's clickable for a closer look.

Olay Regenerist 3 Point Treatment Cream

The PR for Olay offered to send this to me recently to try, and thinking that it was just an Olay 'super cream', I said yes, because I was interested to see how it compares to the SKII skincare I've tried in the past (also from the Proctor & Gamble stable.)

I was pleasantly surprised to find that this is something different, because it's a massage cream that specifically targets the eyes, jawline and neck, loaded with hyaluronic acid to plump the skin. If you're interested in the idea of the Suqqu Gankin but you don't want to pay the £60 for the massage cream, this is a pretty good alternative. I've only tried it once (it came today) but so far I'm quite impressed with how it feels during the massage. Where it's different from the Suqqu is that you don't have to wash it off afterwards; it's the last step in your skincare routine. I wouldn't personally ordinarily use it during the daytime because it has no spf in it.

I don't really have sagging issues, but my sister in law has already expressed an interest in this cream so I'm going to make her a sample up and ask her to test it out too. I'll report back on how we both like it; I would warn the scent-sensitive that the fragrance in this is quite strong to my nose, it's quite a typical fresh Japanese skincare kind of smell.

If you've left someone's present until the very last minute (shame on you!) Boots and Superdrug both have this cream on offer at the moment for £23-£24, and Boots have it in a red gift box set.

Disclaimer: this product was sent to me without charge for consideration for review.

Happy Christmas from the Londons

Please help yourself to a ginger biscuit before Mr London eats them all.

This is the recipe, for anyone interested:

350g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
100g butter
175g soft brown sugar
3 tablespoons golden syrup
1 egg

1. Put the flour, baking powder, ginger and cinnamon in a bowl. Add the butter and rub in with fingertips until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. 
2. Add sugar and syrup, mix with a spoon, then add egg and mix that in with the spoon. 
3. Knead the mixture until it's a smooth dough. You can add a little flour if it's too loose, or a little extra butter or treacle if it's too stiff. 
4. Roll out to about 5mm thickness, then cut out shapes. 
5. Bake in oven at 170 C, gas mark 3 for 10 minutes. The biscuits will still be soft when you take them out of the oven, but they harden as they cool. 
6. Ice if liked. 

Thank you so much to all of you who read this blog. I've really enjoyed chatting to you, and here's to a good 2010.

Bah Humbug, HQHair

I don't shop at HQHair.com very often, because I've had experiences in the past where items I've ordered have been notified as out of stock after I ordered, and have taken ages to arrive. I've also heard from others of bad customer service experience, and, frankly, there are a lot of alternative e-tailers that work harder at the customer services side of the transaction that I'd rather give my money to.

Recently HQHair ran a 25% off code, and on 10 December I placed an order using that code, mainly in order to buy an eye cream as part of Mr London's Christmas present. I purchased the Skinceuticals eye balm (priced at £60, so £15 off, which seems like a great bargain.) At least, it seemed like a bargain, until I went to wrap the bloody thing today, and saw that the expiry date is 02/10. That's three months away.

So, now I'm going to have a nightmare with their customer services department actually trying to get hold of anyone in the first place, and it's anyone's guess if they'll agree to exchange it when I'm outside of the 7 day return period and it's technically within date.

Bah humbug, HQHair.

Becca Paracus eye tint and Mermaid loose shimmer powder

These two products are a great combination for a natural eye with a subtle glimmer. Paracus is a neutral sheer brown tint, and Mermaid is a pale silvery gold with subtle greenish undertones.

A picture of the Paracus as it dispenses. It's quite a fluid cream.

The Paracus sheered out on the right, as I'd apply it to my eyelid.

Top left, Mermaid applied to bare skin, and on the right over the Paracus.

I love this combination for a natural-but-not-matte eye; Mermaid is a great product to use to add subtle natural shimmer without any warm or pink tones (if you find a lot of golds are too yellow or warm for you, this one is worth a look.) It works very well with a bronze or khaki eyeliner.

Becca products can be purchased online at www.BeautyExpert.co.uk and at www.beccacosmetics.com. It's also sold in Fenwicks in London.

RMS Beauty "Un" cover-up concealer in 11

Apologies for the state of the box and the product - as you can see this is one I use regularly (if I had had more forethought I would have snapped a picture before I got started on it.)

Heavy swatch of the colour - this is on the inside of my wrist, which is a bit paler than my face. My foundation matches are MAC NC20 (although that's a bit too yellow), Bobbi Brown Warm Ivory, Chantecaille Ivory, Suqqu 10, Becca Praline and ERA Y3. RMS 11 is a pretty spot on match for me; it's what I've been wearing in most of my recent pictures.

Blended out; it's still not a perfect match for the inside of my wrist, but you can see from this picture that the un cover-up really does mimic the natural texture of the skin.

What I like about this: it does look very natural. It isn't too dry or too creamy; I don't have to set it with powder and it doesn't settle into fine lines around my eyes. I also feel comfortable wearing it to cover redness on my chin without worrying it's going to clog my pores.

Things you should know: it isn't the most heavy duty of concealers. It knocks back my very dark circles to an acceptable level for me, but it doesn't obliterate them in the way that Becca or Bobbi Brown concealers do. The colour selection is also quite limited: there are only 3 colours available currently, and very pale and moderately dark (and darker) skins are not catered for yet. I also found the online swatches to be a bit on the light side; I was dithering between 11 and 22,  from the online pictures.

RMS Beauty is available at www.beingcontent.com, and the un cover-up costs £26 for 5.67g. That's not inexpensive, but I love the ingredients, ethos and finishes of all the products in this line, and I reach for this and the other items I own from this line (see my post on those here) a lot.

*Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, *Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, *Cera Alba (Beeswax),  *Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, *Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Tocopherol(non-GMO), *Rosmarinus officinalis (Rosemary) Extract, and may contain: [+/- Titanium Dioxide CI 77891, Iron Oxides CI 77492, CI 77491, CI 77499]

*organic ingredients.

Urban Decay Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows

I've not really ever gotten that into Urban Decay for some reason, but I do want this:

www.sassisamblog.com/2009/12/22/alice-in-wonderland-urban-decay-palette/

The link has pictures - it's an Urban Decay Book of Shadows with an Alice in Wonderland theme. The Sassi Sam blog says that it's a Sephora exclusive launching on 28 December. Fingers crossed it's only Sephora exclusive in the US, and that it is going to come to the UK too. The ladies on makeupalley.com (where I first saw the link to the Sassi Sam blog) are going slightly bonkers over the idea already.

Edit: Urban Decay have put a message on their Facebook page saying that it won't be out in Sephora on 28 December, but no further news of the launch yet. For more info on the UK release, see this post on the marvellous British Beauty Blogger blog.

Ellis Faas face of the day (green eyes, orange lips)

L204 is a bright pumpkin orange. This kind of colour is not for everyone, I know, but I was utterly drawn to it at the Ellis Faas introductory event, and I love it. The milky lips have a very light fluid-stain texture that is slightly transparent. They do need to be reapplied quite often because of this, but I like the natural stained finish they give to the lips.

Close up of the eye look - this is after a very long day, and it held up really well. I applied the E104 close to my upper and lower lashes, and then smudged it out on my lids a little. I then dabbed a little of the E204 over the top on my lid only.

And this is the whole face. I think these products show that colours based on naturally occurring shades do not necessarily have to be in the beige/brown spectrum. I'm also wearing the ERA Everyday foundation in this picture (in shade Y3.)

Inspired by Rachel Weisz - Chanel and Beaute FOTD

I loved the look that Rachel Weisz was wearing at The Lovely Bones premiere, and found a great breakdown of it here at BlogdorfGoodman.blogspot.com. I was inspired to give it a go myself tonight, as I already own and love the Murano Quad. I subbed Chanel Blush Fresque for the Tweed Rose (I won't buy products with oversprays), and Beaute Masochist weightless lip creme for the Dragon Rouge Allure Laque, but only because the Dragon was sold out at both Chanel counters we visited today (it will be mine as soon as I find it.) I was wearing Beaute Liqui-Gel Stain in Fever earlier today, and you can see it on my cheeks underneath the Chanel Fresque (I think I'd prefer this look with a more neutral cheek, just with the Fresque.)

Picture of the products used:

Incidentally, how excited am I about Chanel Spring? TheBeautyLookBook.com has glorious pictures of a lot of the collection here (it's already out in some bits of the USA), and I think I will need the Kaska beige eyeshadow quad, Rouge Allure lipstick in Impertinente (a dusty rose) and the nail polish in Particuliere (the taupe.)

HJ Manicure nail polish Twinkle over Blizzard

This is a coat of Twinkle over one coat of Blizzard (the polish I'm holding in this picture.) I love Twinkle on its own (see my picture of it here) but it's really lovely over the dark grey Blizzard. Very seasonal, but   not a typical glittery red (although those are nice too.)

Please note: Blizzard was provided free of charge, for consideration for review. I bought Twinkle myself.  HJ Manicure products are available online at www.HJManicure.com. 15ml bottles are £8.50, and 5ml bottles are £3.50.

Z palettes now available in the UK

Z palettes tweeted at me to let me know that their palettes are now available at Makeup Provisions in Shepherds Bush. The large palette (which I own, pictured) is £18.55, and the smaller palette is £12.85.

Makeup Provisions also sell Julie Hewett (although the transfer exchange rate they have on this line is horrid) and MUFE (Makeup Forever.)

£10 off any order over £25 at Puresha until Monday

The code is free10, and it's good until 11:00am on Monday.

This finally gave me the push I needed to place my first order with Puresha (I've been eyeing some bits from the Cargo Plant Love line for a while.)

I bought:

Lipstick in Mariska, a creamy caramel shade. A lot of the lipstick colours were picked by and named after celebrities, and this is by and for the stunning Mariska Hargitay, who I am not ashamed to say I love. Yes, I picked this colour because of her. Yes, I know that's a little bit sad, but it looks like a lovely creamy neutral anyway.

Eyeshadow in Sparrow, a matte warm brown. It looks like a nice basic colour, and I love sparrows, so, sold.

Illuminator in Wind (which is a dreadful name for a makeup product. Could you not have called it Air, people?) I really wanted Fire, but it looks like that one may be out of stock, so I opted for this instead. I know Get Lippie has this one and likes it a lot, even if she makes jokes like a schoolgirl every time she mentions the name.

With shipping, my order came to just under £32 after the £10 off voucher was applied, and this line is very keenly priced for a high end organic line. Shipping is free on orders over £55, but for once I restrained myself a bit!

(images are from Puresha.com. I'll post pictures of my products when I receive them.)

Ojon Today's Special Value on QVCUK today

The item number is 228897, and the set costs just under £37 including postage. You get 250ml each of the Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner, 100ml of the original hair treatment, and 300ml hairspray.

The shampoo and the conditioner are from the original range and are best suited, in my opinion, for very dry hair. I prefer the Shine formulations on my hair, but I do like the Hydrating a lot better than the Volumising shampoo and conditioner from the last TSV (which makes my hair a bit puffy for my liking.)

(picture is from qvcuk.com)

Lipstick Queen Saint Pink

The Saint Lipsticks are from the initial Lipstick Queen line up - the Saints and Sinners - a line of 10 shades in a sheer (Saint) and full coverage (Sinner) formulation.

The Saints do still provide definite colour; they aren't so sheer that you can't tell which one you are wearing. This is Saint Pink, which is the lightest shade in the range, although it's not so pale that it makes me look deathly; it's a neutral clear pink shade.

Ellis Faas eyeshadow swatches

(bottom left and right, Milky Eyes)
E205 sheerer khaki with subtle shimmer
E204 sheerer bottle green with shimmer

(top, Creamy Eyes)
E104 full coverage velvety dark brown

At the moment, these are only available online at EllisFaas.com. The line will be at Liberty from February. I may have already mentioned it, but I really can't wait to get to have a play at the counter.

Hopefully, the lovely Get Lippie will also swatch the colours she bought when a) the right colour Milky Eyes (that I ordered! They mucked up, not me!) arrives, and b) I hand over her bits from our order when we meet up after Christmas. I've managed to restrain myself and leave her things alone!

Fantastic Lipstick Queen Kit on QVC (US only, boo!)

This kit is available on QVC.com - it costs $45 at the introductory price, including shipping, and contains Medieval, Saint Pink and a Butterfly Ball in Sigh, which is a QVC exclusive colour. Sigh is a sheer rose - picture below.  I have and love both Medieval and Saint Pink, and I would dearly love to get my hands on that Butterfly Ball. The item number is A199188. Here's hoping that QVCUK can get hold of this line too.

Pictures are from QVC.com.

ERA Everyday spray foundation by Classified Cosmetics

This is a spray foundation by Classified Cosmetics. I have previously used and loved the original formulation, which I bought from Selfridges before they stopped stocking it. I've recently discovered that the line is stocked online in the UK at beautybay.com, and I decided to give the lighter version, the Everyday spray on foundation, a try.

I can't see a huge difference between the formulations, but I have quite clear skin and I tended to use the original formula pretty sparingly. The Everyday is maybe a little bit lighter coverage, but it's still buildable and completely evens out my skintone. if you have more unevenness in tone or if you want a completely flawless look for a particular occasion, you might want to go for the original.

I prefer to spray onto the back of my hand, then pick it up on a puff and apply it with that (I use a Suqqu puff designed for powder application; Classified also sells a good one. The one that comes with the foundation is smaller and less easy to use, but it is workable.) It might seem bizarre to buy a spray foundation if I'm not going to use the spray mechanism to apply it, but I find I get more controllable coverage using the puff, and the longevity of the ERA is much better than any other liquid or cream foundation I've tried, without being drying. ERA gives a flawless finish without looking or feeling cakey, and it wears incredibly well; after you buff it with the puff it locks onto the skin to give a natural demi-matte finish. An oily skin might need to blot the t-zone, but I've found that the original wears all day for me even in the most humid conditions (if I'm going to any kind of summer event this is the foundation I reach for) and, so far, the Everyday is wearing as well despite the lighter finish. It's definitely the one I'll be wearing on Christmas day while I'm sweltering in the kitchen.

Compared to the SKII Air Touch foundation, this isn't as easy to spray on (you do need to practice with this one if you want to use it as a spray, and protect clothes and hair from the spray) but it gives a fuller coverage, and comes in a better range of colours. I'm shade Y3 in ERA, which is equivalent to Bobbi Brown Warm Ivory or MAC NC20.

The Everyday formula is £17.50 for 75ml, and the original Face formula is £35 for 75ml. Both come with a small washable puff and a headband, but in my opinion if you like the foundation it is worth buying a large puff if you don't already have something similar (£7.50, and it comes with a nicer headband too.)

This was my first order from BeautyBay.com - the site is easy to navigate, has some excellent brands and  I received my order quickly.

Illamasqua purple eye and Lipstick Queen Berry Sinner

(Please excuse the messy eyebrow hairs.) This is quite a structured eye look using matte shades from Illamasqua, and during the day I wore it with a clear lip balm.  I added the Lipstick Queen for this picture because it's a lovely colour for Winter/Autumn, it's a nice alternative to a red lip and I like a brownish lip with a purple eye; it's not a typical combination but I think it does work quite well.

Blush/contour: Illamasqua Primal (pale grey/beige.)

Eyes: Illamasqua Succumb (peachy ivory) all over, Fatal (blue-purple) on lid, Truth (plum brown) in crease and under lower lashes. Sophie (black) eye pencil on upper lashline, Vow (cream) pencil on lower waterline.

Brows: Illamasqua Gaze (dark slate grey) eyebrow cake.

Lips: Lipstick Queen Sinner lipstick in Berry, a berry with brown tones.

Renee Rouleau Skincare

My love of the hard-to-get-hold-of peaked in my skincare for a couple of years when I would only use the Renee Rouleau line (which is a independent US salon line.) I only stopped using it when our currency went down the pan, and I've honestly spent a lot more in the year or two since than I would have if I'd just stuck to the Renee Rouleau.

The basic routine is quite simple:

morning
cleanse with facial wash
tone
vitamin C serum
spf 15 or 30

night
cleanse with cleansing milk
tone
glycolic serum (one week), other treatment serum (alternate week)
night cream

There are also eye creams, masks, exfoliators and blemish treatments in the range, including the anti-cyst treatment for those horribly painful underground bumps that don't ever come to a head.

So far, this sounds like a solid, but nothing earth-shattering, line. What makes it such a good fit for me is that the line avoids the use of mineral oil, isopropyl myristate and isopropyl palmitate, alcohol in toners, sodium or ammonium lauryl/laureth sulphate and synthetic dyes and fragrances. Instead it used cold pressed plant oils and has non-pore-clogging formulas, which I really found work well to keep my skin hydrated without clogging my pores.

There are also 9 different skintypes and products to suit each of them, rather than the normal dry, oily, sensitive. Renee Rouleau recognises you can be oily and sensitive, for example (skintype #4.) I changed formulas depending on season; I used the spf 15 in winter and spf 30 in summer, and used the richer Hawaiian Nourishing Cream in winter, and the lighter Multi Vitamin Cream in summer for my night cream.

If you're in the US, this is a line that's well worth a look at. I'll be reordering in the summer; although my Sarah Chapman suits me well in the Winter it's too rich for my skin in the summer, and the Renee Rouleau spf 30 is one of the best high spf day creams I've ever found.

The website is at reneerouleau.com. They can ship overseas, but you need to email before ordering (Lydia, the Customer Services Manager, is lovely and very helpful, and I'm not just saying that because we share a name!) EDIT: Apparently the website is now set up to take international orders, so there is no need to email before ordering from outside the US.

Dolce & Gabbana Devil lipstick applied

I'm liking this lipstick a lot more in the cooler weather. The feathering problems I previously had seem to have been heatwave-related, and the creamy texture is lovely in the biting wind and cold we're having at the moment.

This is a very nice colour; a true neutral red with no shimmer. I want to try out Icon, a slightly more orange/coral red, next.

Neil George Illuminating Shampoo and Conditioner

A friend recently made me some generous samples from her tubes of Neil George Illuminating Shampoo and Conditioner because she knows it's the kind of haircare range I tend to be interested in.

I've been using these for a couple of weeks now, I've nearly run out, and if Christmas doesn't bring me some of these or the Oribe ones, I will be going to SpaceNK to purchase these. The shampoo is clear and lathers well without stripping. The conditioner has more of a thick body cream texture than a traditional conditioner feel to it; it's creamy and luxurious, and detangles my hair effortlessly in the shower. The smell of both these products is a fresh citrus/fruity sniff; the hero ingredient in the line is Indian Gooseberry Oil, and the fragrance is evocative of that kind of smell.

What I like most about these products is how they make my hair feel; they tame my frizz and dryness without leaving my hair lank, lifeless or greasy. I only wash my hair every other day and with the Neil George it still looks decent on the second day. I do think these make my hair a good deal shinier than the Ojon Volumising shampoo and conditioner I'm using at the moment (from the QVC Todays Special Value, I'm really not liking this formulation much, I'm afraid.)

At £18 each they aren't inexpensive, but they do cost a good deal less than the Oribe shampoo and conditioner I'm eyeing (I'm still loving the Oribe styling cream, by the way.) Available at SpaceNK in the UK (image is from SpaceNK.)

HJ Manicure nail polish in Disco

Another HJ Manicure colour, this one is Disco from the Festive collection. It's a deep warm burgundy red shimmer - it reminds me a lot of OPI Romeo & Joliet. This is two coats, application was a breeze, and the polish dried quickly.

This polish was a free GWP with a purchase I made at the website, www.hjmanicure.com. It's available in the 5ml size for £3.50, and also in the 15ml size for £8.50.

Office party look; Vincent Longo, Illamasqua and By Terry

This is a simple smoky daytime look for my office Christmas lunch. I used:

Illamasqua Gaze cake eyebrow. (I love this. I should make the effort and use it more often.)
By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Black Pearl on lid and under lower lashline, Vincent Longo Diamond eyeshadow in Concerto (sparkly charcoal) over the By Terry.
Vincent Longo Baby Love (warm beige/brown shimmer) eyeshadow in crease.
Illamasqua Vow medium pencil on waterline.
Vincent Longo Water Canvas blush in Morning Tender (warm pink.)
Vincent Longo Lipstain lipstick in Fleur de Flirt (sheer natural pink. This doesn't look like I'm wearing much, but it takes away my natural anaemic lip look.)

The lunch was okay; food was nice, I was sat next to people I like and I didn't drink any booze as I needed to be home at a reasonable time with a clear head!

Lise Watier Quatuor in Les Prunes

Lise Watier is a Canadian high end brand that I was first introduced to through a swap with a Canadian friend. If I had to sum up the brand, I'd say its general feel is wearable, elegant glamour; it has a very French kind of vibe to it, but with a relaxed Canadian twist. The website is at www.LiseWatier.com, and details of stockists can be found there. It's sold in Canada, in limited locations in the US, and there's an online stockist in France.

This is a beautiful quad; the colours are a cool beige, deep purple plum, a mauve taupe and a copper pink. The texture of these reminds me of MAC veluxe pearl; soft, shimmery, pigmented and easy to blend. My quad is in the old style packaging; they now come in square palettes (this quad is still available in the new packaging.)

This picture shows the quad applied; I have the beige all over, dark plum in outer v and along lower lashline, taupe in crease and pink copper on inner half of mobile lid. The colour combination is very flattering; it isn't so bright that a neutral lover would feel awkward, but it's a bit more colourful than a straight brown or grey eye look. The flash of my camera has washed the colour out quite a bit.

Julie Hewett Gem Noir picture applied

Gem Noir is one of the sheer reds in the Julie Hewett Noir range. It's a warm strawberry red, and is very good if sheer reds tend to turn too pink on you. This is still one of my top 5 red lipsticks, and a great red if you want a subtle red lip look.

Product Picture of NARS Spring 2010

Picture is courtesy of iswii.net (link is to actual post) by way of Krasey Beauty  via Emakemeup.

Here's a recap of my previous post about the products when I saw them in person at a press event:

Duo powder  eyeshadow in Kuala Lumpur: pale rose and deep plum shimmer
Single powder eyeshadow in D'Gorgeous: palest lilac, I think this was matte (no-one else had stuck their finger in it so I didn't like to)
Duo cream eyeshadow in Camargue: sheer slightly greenish gold and warm iridescent brown
Easy Lover gloss: sheer bright electric pink (no shimmer)
Purple Rain nail polish: very shimmery sparkly cool purple

There was also a nude lipstick and a nude-y gloss, and one of the chunky glitter eye pencils in a pale blue. (I wasn't so interested in those.) 


From the products pictures, I'm still most interested in Kuala Lumpur, Easy Lover and Purple Rain.

Beauty Boards and Beauty Blogs - is there room on the internet for both?

As I've written before, I've been a member of emakemeup.com (EMMU) since 2004 and I've been a member of makeupalley.com (MUA) for a similar length of time. Makeupalley is busier, has a more commercial approach and tends to have more transient posters (and also tends to have more, um, robust exchanges of views on the boards from time to time.) Members who post there regularly have buttons that they can flag up posts with inappropriate content, including people who post on makeup boards purely to promote their own goods, services or site (what's known as shilling.) EMMU is more closely monitored by the moderators for unkindness, as well as for shilling. It has a smaller, more family/friendship feel to it.

I've noticed that as blogs have proliferated in the past few years, EMMU has had less traffic. MUA still seems busy, but it's somewhat lost the community feel that it used to have a couple of years ago; I still have friends on the MUA boards but I'll recognise very few posters when I visit.

So, is there a place on the internet for both? If I love EMMU so much, why do I have my own blog? I think the answer to my first question is yes - there are people who don't have the time or the inclination to write a blog but still want to chat about makeup in a more social setting. A board is like an interactive letters page, where a blog is a column. There's room in a newspaper for both of those. With respect to the second question, I started my blog because I like writing, and I didn't want to be the person on a board who is always talking about herself and her purchases (on my blog, I feel like I can do that! I can also write longer posts on my blog than I would on a board.) As I've written before, I'm in the fortunate position where I have disposable income that I can choose to spend on quite expensive items. If a board is just filled with posts about expensive brands it can sometimes inhibit people from sharing their thoughts on less expensive brands, and there has to be room for both on a board.

I've also found that when my blog is referenced at either EMMU or MUA I get a spike in traffic, and of course that makes me happy. That has to go both ways though - if I discover something new or cool at EMMU (or MUA for that matter, although that tends to focus more on the bigger brands) I always credit it as the source; content mining on boards by bloggers is obvious, and the boards can get just as cross about this as another blogger would if you don't credit the place where you found the information. Not least of all it's pretty poor manners not to credit your source.

So, boards or blogs? Do you do both?

HJ Manicure nail polish in Twinkle

Twinkle is a mixture of gold, bronze and red sparkly shimmer suspended in a grey clear (jelly, I think it's called) base. This picture is with three coats, which gives full coverage.

This is perfect for the party season; it's very sparkly and pretty, but I still think it's office appropriate as the overall undertone is quite cool and not yellow/orange. If you work in a very conservative office you might want to take advice on this from someone who hasn't ever worn neon orange nails to work though.

HJ Manicure products are available online at www.hjmanicure.com. I bought this using the 20% off code (hjtw) but it is usually priced at £8.50 for 15ml (Twinkle isn't one of the colours that comes in a smaller size.)

An eyeshadow look I'm loving

I don't have a lot of time to mess around with makeup in the morning, as I'm generally herding small child/finding things for husband/drinking my own body weight in tea. This is a very simple eye look that I've been really liking lately; I find it a little more interesting/brightening than just a wash of taupe, but it still only takes 5 minutes to do.

I do a wash of a semi-matte beige/light brown/taupe shadow from my lashline to just past my crease, and then blend it so there is no harsh edge on my browbone. I use a flat brush with firm bristles to apply the colour (MAC 239) and a soft fluffy brush to blend the edges (Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow brush.)

Eyeshadows I particularly like for the base shade:

Solstice Halcyon from Rouge Bunny Rouge (I've changed the picture because I wasn't happy with the accuracy of the colour representation of the last one)

Spy and Diffused from Rock & Republic

I then take a fluffy brush (Suqqu eyeshadow brush M) and pat a more colourful shimmery shade on my lid, over the brown. The brown underneath mutes the colour, and makes it more wearable (for me) during the daytime. If I wear a pink or blue shade on my lid on its own I can look a bit tired.

Eyeshadows I like for the contrast shade:

Angelic Cockatiels, Delicate Hummingbird and Tantalizing Lovebird from Rouge Bunny Rouge

Tempting, Love Rocks and Emerge from Rock & Republic

I finish by taking some of the beige/brown under my lower lashes with a flat liner brush (Bobbi Brown Eye Liner brush.) With some black mascara, it's a simple but flattering look.

Rock & Republic cosmetics are currently available at Harrods, and Rouge Bunny Rouge are available from Zuneta.com.

Hourglass Superficial Lash Mascara in Carbon

I received this as a sample with a recent Zuneta order, and I ended up liking it more than the mascara I bought in that order (Rouge Bunny Rouge Modelling Mascara, which leaves my lashes looking a bit spindly.)

Hourglass mascara, for me, is mascara perfection. It lengthens, volumises and really holds a curl well, and it doesn't smudge or smear. I like the shape of the brush (no smears on my lid with this one) and it doesn't get that annoying build up of mascara on the brush that some other mascaras do.

It's £19, which isn't obscene for a high end mascara these days, and it's cheaper than the Suqqu I like (and the Rouge Bunny Rouge that I don't.) I'll definitely be purchasing one of these when I run out of the sample.

Hourglass is only available at Zuneta.com in the UK. It's at Sephora in the US.

Rococo Gold Leaf Nail Lacquer is back in stock

Many thanks to KL, who has just posted a comment on my original post to say this is back in stock (and I can see it back in stock online  now.) Handily, this is just in time for Christmas (winks at Mr London.)