Topshop Ramble Crayon as an eyeliner

A reader, Rachel, wondered if it would be possible to use the Topshop Crayon as an eyeliner with an eyeliner brush. I gave it a go with my usual Bobbi Brown flat eyeliner brush and found it worked well. The Crayon is soft enough for the brush to pick it up easily, and then I used the brush to walk the colour across my lashline. 

On my hand - I found it easier to get a thinner line on my eye as I had my lashes to push the brush against. 

On my eye:

I found it lasted well too; after the Crayon sets it doesn't budge. 

Beauty Spotlight weekly round up 28 April

Another week, and another selection of posts to browse through from the Beauty Spotlight Team. It's a perfect way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon. 

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic finally tried out a few Darphin Paris skin care products that she's had her eye on! Check out which ones and enter to win some Darphin of your own!

Is OPI Number One Nemesis really a dupe for Chanel Graphite? Read polish insomniac's post to find out!

Pammy Blogs Beauty embraces the "Color of the Year" with Sephora + Pantone Universe's Blush Duo in Tangerine Tango. Has she found a new favorite blush?

Possibly the most silky matte shadows you will ever try, Visionary Beauty shows us the new matte shadow offerings from Rouge Bunny Rouge.

Prime Beauty shows us that the French know their skincare. Not only does she teach you about Darphin Skincare but she has a giveaway for you too and it runs until May 24th.

Modesty Brown compares two neutral Guerlain eyeshadow palettes: Rue de Passy and Les Fumes. Prepare yourself for some palette perving!

London MakeUp Girl finds out if the Topshop Eye Crayon is a good substitute for By Terry Ombre Blackstar. See if the budget buy can stand up to the big name in her post on the Topshop Crayon in Ramble.

Has Shannon at Lipstick Musings finally found a neutral lipstick that doesn't look like mud on her lips? Come learn more about Lancome Color Design Lipstick in Lucky Kiss !

Adrift in a sea of Spring's warm corals, peaches, and bronzes, Zuzu's Petals at Everyday Beauty tries to be pretty in pink. Come read about what she's loving right now.

For the sole reason that Pink Sith hates shatter polishes, Lisamarie from Beauty Crazed spent the week swatching a whole bunch of - come check them out and feel the hate love!

Ready to be blushing and glowing? Tarte Cosmetics has just the right duo to do the job right. Beauty Info Zone even shows you how to get a discount on them.

Another Le Metier de Beaute Eyeshadow single has stolen Perilously Pale's heart. Take a look at her newest love Fig True Color Eyeshadow.

Rebel & Mercury Cerise En Cocoa Perfume Oil review

This Cerise En Cocoa sample was included as an extra sample when I placed an order for some Rebel & Mercury samples. I'll admit, I saw the name, thought, 'I don't like dessert-y fragrances' and dismissed it as not for me. After trying and loving the samples I'd bought, I finally opened the vial and took a sniff, fell in love and then proceeded to anoint myself liberally with the perfume oil.

Cerise En Cocoa is the scent equivalent of an amuse bouche (amuse nez?) because I know there isn't cherry in the blend but I can smell it. My nose smells rose, then cherry, then rose. Red and white rose and red grapefruit give the ripe morello cherry note. The cocoa note is dark and the earthiness is further enhanced with vetiver. Cocoa in a good natural perfume is dark and rich, almost woody-spicy, and a world away from artificial chocolate scents. As the day goes on it settles into a rose-spice base, and I tend to refresh the application in the evening for another hit of the cocoa-fruitiness.

This is a fabulous balance of sweet, floral and dark, and has me sniffing my wrists like a mad thing throughout the day when I wear it. If you like rose and/or chocolate/spicy scents, I'd recommend giving a sample a try.

Rebel & Mercury fragrances are available from the Etsy shop www.etsy.com/shop/rebelandmercury.

Topshop Crayon in Ramble and Kohl in Saddle

I made my first trip into Topshop in about a decade after reading this post on Drivel About Frivol, which was similarly sparked by this post on Mascara Magic. I have and love a By Terry Ombre Blackstar and the idea of getting other colours for £7.50 instead of £26 appealed to me enough to make me willing to double the average age of the inhabitants of Topshop Oxford Circus one lunchtime. 

I also swatched the Kohl pencil in Saddle, and bought that too. For £4, it is every bit as good as pencils that have cost me 4-5 times that amount and more. It's one of the smudgeable pencils that I like for soft definition - not good if you like a sharp line, but perfect if, like me, you prefer more diffused definition. 

Swatched, Kohl top, Crayon bottom. The Crayon is really very similar in texture to the By Terry Ombre Blackstar I own, and from the ingredients list the base formula is almost identical; the By Terry does have the luxurious additions of Tourmaline and Pearl Powder, but whether that is worth an extra £20 is a personal judgement call. The Topshop Crayon is similarly smudgeable for a couple of minutes before setting, and once it sets it lasts all day. Both the Topshop Kohl and the Crayon are made in Italy (like the By Terry Ombre Blackstar.) 

Saddle is a neutral dark brown with warmer shimmer. Ramble is a medium/dark chocolate brown with gold micro-sparkles. 

Swatch of the Crayon blended.  

Both applied. I make a messy line with the Kohl next to my lashes, daub the Crayon over the top of it on my lid and then blend up into my crease with a fingertip.

Yes, I am already planning to go back to Topshop and buy other colours in the Crayon; I want the taupe-y Mystical and pink-beige Whisper. The Kohl only comes in brown and black.

Jo Malone Scent Surround Diffuser

Reed diffusers have become very popular in home fragrance over the last couple of years, so when Jo Malone recently expanded their For The Home range, it was no surprise to see some reed diffusers appear.

Reed diffusers give a constant gentle throw of scent, and are good for situations where you don't want to leave a candle burning. I wouldn't leave them within reach of a child though; they won't burn the house down but they would make a mess (and an almighty smell) if upended by toddler hands.

As well as the new diffusers, Jo Malone also has a couple of limited edition home products, available in Lime, Basil & Mandarin only; scented drawer liners and scent sachets for the wardrobe.

The customary black on ivory Jo Malone livery has been reversed for the home range to ivory on black boxes. It still looks distinctively Jo Malone, and makes a lovely gift.

I was sent the Red Roses Scent Surround Diffuser, and it smells exactly like the Red Roses Cologne to me, although at a more diluted concentration. It also comes in Pomegranate Noir and Lime, Basil & Mandarin.

The silver lid on the bottle of fragrance oil unscrews, and the black cap pops out. The silver lid goes back on, and you poke the reeds through the hole.

If you want to up the strength of the scent periodically, I find taking the reeds out and turning them the other way around works well.

The Scent Surround Diffusers are £45 for 165ml, and are available from www.jomalone.co.uk as well as the usual stockists. I'd expect a diffuser of this size to last about 4-5 months.

Disclosure: PR sample.

What's in my.....skincare corner

It's my Beauty Spotlight turn to show you What's in my.... and I've gone for my skincare corner. I put the products by the window in order to photograph them - I don't usually have them in direct sunlight!

Cleansers:
Oskia Perfect Cleanser*
My balm cleanser. If I feel my skin needs a deep clean, this is the one I reach for.

Stem Organics Gentle Cleansing Milk
Fluid cleanser. Light and quick to use, as it rinses off easily with water. Takes off normal eye make up.

Mu London Foaming Rose cleanser
Morning wash, and also Miss London's face wash of choice (yes she's ten. She's definitely my girl.)

Exfoliator:
Fix Malibu Wish Wash
A powder wash with salicylic acid to gently exfoliate the skin.

Day Serums:
Skinceuticals CE Ferulic
I come back to some sort of Skinceuticals C serum every summer. I've moved to CE Ferulic this year as my skin feels a little drier than it did last year.

Perricone Face Firming Activator*
I use this DMAE and glycolic acid serum 2 or 3 mornings a week (I don't use the CE Ferulic that day).

Daytime Moisturiser: 
Super By Dr Perricone Daylight Savings
SPF 25 from zinc oxide. Comfy on the skin. If I was in charge I'd lose the shimmer, but it's not enough to stop me using it.

Eye products:
La Bella Figura Decouverte Eye Serum*
This is a sample of the La Bella Figura Decouverte. It's an oil based serum, it feels light and sinks into the skin quickly. Contains coffee bean extract to help with puffiness and dark circles, and barbary fig (prickly pear) oil which is high in anti-oxidants. If you find most eye creams make your eye area puffy or congested, this is definitely worth a try.

Perricone Cold Plasma Eye Cream*
Does not smell fishy. Sinks in quickly without leaving a residue so makeup can be applied over it straight away. If my eye area is looking particularly tired or feeling very dry I layer this over the Decouverte, but I more typically use this in the morning and the Decouverte in the evening.

Night oil
DeMamiel Spring Facial Oil
I've reviewed this recently. Love it. Perfect night time treatment, smells heavenly and leaves skin feeling plump and nourished.

Night Cream
Omorovicza Rejuvenating Night Cream*
This cream smells and feels completely indulgent. I use this on nights my skin feels like it needs more moisture. If you don't have the time or inclination to use oils or serums at night, this cream stands on its own as a great night treatment too.

Items marked with * are PR samples.

Topshop Razzmatazz applied: shiny sparkly nails

Topshop make up is really very good indeed. I have to thank Kate at Drivel About Frivol for making me finally go and have a look at it because of this post. I bought the Crayon and a couple of other eye cosmetics (post on those later) but also fell for the nail polishes.

Razzmatazz is a sheer lilac jelly with silver and holographic glitter and hexagons. The hexagons are smaller than those in the Deborah Lippmann glitter polishes, like the Ruby Red Slippers that I own.

The picture is of one coat, applied over a single coat of lilac/grey cream Rainy Day (also from Topshop). The glitter polishes cost £6 and the cream £5. These nail polishes apply easily (the brush is flat and reasonably wide, but not so wide it is unwieldy) and dry quickly. Instant love. Maybe it's not quite as heartstoppingly beautiful as Lippmann Today Was A Fairytale, but it's a good alternative for anyone unwilling to pay £18 for the Lippmann.

I just decided to add a second coat of Razzmatazz - apologies for the phone picture, but it shows the added sparkle.

Oskia Perfect Cleanser review

Oskia is a UK skincare brand that uses mostly natural (plant-based) ingredients. The products are free from petrochemicals, artificial chemicals and fragrances, silicones, parabens, sulphates and propylene glycol.  The products are also built around MSM (Methyl Sulphonyl Methane) a form of bio-available ( = the body can use it) sulphur that is more commonly taken as a supplement to help support the connective tissues and joints, and other ingredients that I like to see in skincare like prebiotics and omega oils.

This is a balm cleanser that doesn't contain mineral oil or beeswax (as I've mentioned before, I love bees, but beeswax can be pore-clogging on some skins). Most natural balm cleansers do contain beeswax, so it's good to find one that doesn't. The softer balm texture that results through the use of almond and coconut oils as a base for this product does mean it tends to liquify in warmer temperatures. This doesn't affect the performance of the product, but you do need to be a bit careful not to squirt it out of the tube with too much gusto in warm weather.

It's a very gentle, effective cleanser with a light natural fragrance (slightly citrussy/yuzu-ish). I use this when I feel like my skin needs a deep and thorough clean; on the odd days when I wear foundation, or any day when I've been in London (for dealing with both the extra grubbiness and dryness).

The technique for using this is the same as most other balm cleansers; massage on to a dry face to melt grime and make-up, then you can either emulsify with warm water and rinse or take off with a damp muslin cloth. I don't feel like it removes completely for me with just rinsing - although my skin looks and feels clean I can feel a fine film of oil left behind that I don't get when I remove using a warm cloth, so I prefer to use a muslin. An extremely dry skin may prefer to emulsify and then just rinse with water.

Oskia state that this cleanser is suited for all skin types, but particularly mature, dry or hormonal skin. I'd agree with that, and I do particularly like it on evenings when my skin is feeling drier. This would not be my first recommendation for a cleanser for a younger, oilier skin.

Oskia Perfect Cleanser is £32 for 125ml. There are a number of stockists; it's available at Liberty, Fenwicks and Content Wellbeing in London (and www.beingcontent.com online), and through the company website www.oskiaskincare.com.

Ingredients:

disclosure: PR sample.

Guest post New Nude: Nail Foundation by HIPPx RGB

Today I have guest review from the gorgeous Imo who writes the It's a London Thing blog www.imz-itsalondonthing.blogspot.co.uk. I was sent all four of the HIPP x RGB nail foundation shades, and asked Imo to guest review the darker shades for me.   

We slap it on our mugs to cover blemishes and even out skin tone, so when I read about the nail foundation by HIPPx RGB I was pretty intrigued. I love nude nails and have acquired a modest collection of flesh-toned, pinky beige lacquers, my faves being MAC blissed out and OPI Malaysian Mist- these shades look great if you have medium to dark skin.

To spoil this review at the outset, I will say that the colours I tried in this collection do not match up to my current nude faves. The formula is lovely and in one coat you get fantastic coverage, the drying time is short and the shine supreme, but like drugstore foundations the colour range has two platforms, light or dark. I’m neither of these.

I have colours F3 and F4.

F3 is a caramel brown with NO shimmer. This has a jelly finish with absolutely no top coat, I liked the glassy effect so didn’t bother applying one. F4 is a dark brown with a similar glassy finish. This would be a great nude shade for dark skin ladies (MAC NW45) and a pretty winter shade for lighter complexions. 

If you have short nails nude polishes will elongate your fingers and for longer nails the effect is more ET/ Doctor Who oud which I’m not averse to.

For my skin tone, F2 may be a suitable match but for now I’ll stick to OPI and MAC. I absolutely love the idea of nail foundation but a variety of shades need to be developed to cater for all different skin tones.

Overall, Im really pleased with the quality of the polishes and Im now really excited to try more RGB varnishes, as I think I’ve found my favourite nail lacquer formula. RGB cosmetics are available here and here.

Thanks again Imo for the review. Product is PR sample. 

Shu Uemura G White Gold eyeshadow

Sometimes you see something that you know is wildly impractical, but it's just so pretty you have to buy it anyway. Shu Uemura G White Gold eyeshadow is one of those things. I was in the Shu Uemura shop in Covent Garden for a mascara, and then saw this and was pulled in by the 'Ooh, pretty!'

G White Gold is a sheer gold shimmer with some larger white and gold sparkles. It's more of a eyeshadow top coat to add some sparkle, like the sparkly shades in the Tom Ford eyeshadow quads or the MAC Reflects pigments.

Swatch in sunlight

Swatch not in direct sunlight (but still natural light).

I've applied it here over my usual taupe everyday eye (Sue Devitt Surat pencil and Lonely Splendour eyeshadow) - patted over my lid with a MAC 239 eyeshadow brush. It gives a little sparkle that catches the light and brightens the eye. I think this is just about daytime appropriate applied subtly, and you can pack it on for more glitter.  It does tend to migrate onto cheeks as the day goes on - looking either like a sprinkling of fairy dust or glittery dandruff, depending on your viewpoint. 

The Shu Uemura eyeshadow pans cost £11, and the single reusable palette is £4. There are also 4 pan palettes available.

Beauty Spotlight Weekly Round-up 14 April

There are lots of great posts in this week's round up - brand new collections from China Glaze, MAC and Chanel to some of our old favourites from Le Metier de Beaute and Yves St Laurent.


Lisamarie from Beauty Crazed hits up the expects for their tips on cuticle care in hopes that her nail swatch pictures will stop scaring small children. Check it out and feel free to offer up tips of your own for everyone's sake!

Layla Cosmetics have taken the nail polish world by storm and polish insomniac shows you why!

The Pink Sith says the Too Faced Cosmetics Better Than False Lashes Nylon Lash Extension System may be just right for your special snowflake like lashes!

Pretty pinks and wearable nudes, Visionary beauty has a look at some of the newly released Chanel lipstick shades.

Another new MAC collection? We may find these appear too often but sometimes they come out with a winner. Beauty Info Zone wants to show how you can go the Extra Dimension.

Prime Beauty embraces the bright trend with 5 bold lip looks for spring and summer!

To celebrate the return of Le Metier de Beaute to the UK, Modesty Brown shares some of her favourite items from the brand.

Shannon at Lipstick Musings joins the ranks of the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed with the help of the famous Touche Eclat . Come see why this concealer and illuminator is so famous!

Pammy Blogs Beauty finally got to see the Hunger Games movie! Check out the Hunger Games-inspired manicures that she created with Pure Ice Nail Polish.

London MakeUp Girl compares the new and old formula of Kevyn Aucoin's Expert Lip Tint in Samilke. Has the shade changed? See if you can spot the difference she swears she sees at Kevyn Aucoin Samilke - old versus new version.

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic discovered the favorite beauty products of makeup artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis.

Which drugstore mascara is her favorite? Zuzu*s Petals wonders if facial exercises could be a worthy addition to her pro-youthful beauty arsenal. Come read about it at Everyday Beauty.

Perilously Pale decided it was time to find out what all the hype was about with the new YSL Glossy Stains. Check out her review of Corail Aquatique and find out why she thinks everyone MUST try these!

Kevyn Aucoin Samilke Expert Lip Tint Lipstick old and new

Kevyn Aucoin was one of my first niche brand loves. My Emakemeup ladies will remember when we all went crazy for the line in the early-mid 2000s, and kind friends from the US helped me to purchase them and send them to me (the line was available very briefly in the UK in Harvey Nichols.)

Kevyn Aucoin is available again in the UK from SpaceNK and has been available for some time from MiseBeauty.com in Ireland (who ship internationally.) The SpaceNKs I've been in have had very limited products available and the whole range still isn't available online. Mise has the whole range available, including the Expert Lip Tint (lipsticks).

I've had my old Samilke (on the right in this picture) for about 7 years, so I decided it was probably time to buy a new one (on the left). I bought it from Mise Beauty.

Left new packaging, right old packaging. The new packaging is lighter with less sharp edges than the old. It looks okay, but to me feels a bit cheaper. I also find the snap closure isn't as good; the lid has come off in my makeup bag a couple of times so now I keep it in the box.

Swatched: left is new, right is old. The colour is almost the same (a neutral medium rose in the new formula, a slightly cooler rose in the old), but the formula is quite different. The new formula seems to have more emollients in it, compared to the old formula which almost melted on to the lips as a liquid lipstick formula, and then set as a layer of pigment on the lips. I do not find the new version noticeably more hydrating to wear, although it doesn't dry my lips more than most other high end lipsticks. I still need to pair with a good balm both before and after wear (I have extremely dry and picky lips though).

New Samilke

Old Samilke

I do think the old version is a little cooler in tone and more vivid on the lips, although the difference is probably not noticeable to anyone who isn't slightly OCD about the particular shade of a rose lipstick. Although I personally preferred the old formulation, the new one is still worth owning in my opinion, and the slightly softened rose tone will probably have wider appeal.

Super by Dr Perricone Daylight Savings SPF 25 moisturiser review

I've mentioned this moisturiser with sunscreen a couple of times in recent posts about sunscreen. I bought it at the beginning of March so I've been using it for just over a month now.

The texture is a cream-fluid, and it has a light citrus fragrance and some mica in it to give a glow to the skin. I could live without the mica personally, but at least it isn't bismuth and it isn't too Twilight-y.

Just rubbed in. You can see the shimmer, although the moisturiser actually dries to a more satin-matte finish on my face - I am wearing this in my last couple of face pictures, and I don't think I look too sparkly.

This applies extremely well for a physical sunscreen (the active ingredient is zinc oxide, although titanium dioxide appears further down the ingredients list too.) It doesn't whiten my skin at all and rubs in quickly, feeling almost weightless but leaving skin comfortably moisturised. I do find that by the end of the day on colder days my skin can feel a little dry, so like most physical sunscreens I'd say this is best for normal to combination skin unless you layer extra hydration underneath it for a drier skin. The moisturising base is likely to be too moisturising for an oily skin.

Ingredients:

Turmeric (which is the natural 'super' food that is the focus of this product's blurb) is the last thing on the ingredients list, so I'm not sure I'd say the product is 'loaded' with curcuminoids (as the blurb does.) Turmeric is a good ingredient though; even without it this is still a good physical sunscreen that feels cosmetically elegant and I will repurchase. I'd recommend this to anyone who is looking for a comfortable physical sunscreen/moisturiser (although I'd warn a total shimmer-phobe to test it out first.)

Super Daylight Savings cost £28.50 for 30ml, and I bought mine from Boots - it's only in the larger shops and online. I use 3 pumps each morning - one for face, one for neck and one for my decollete. I've used about half of the bottle in just over a month, so I'd estimate a bottle will last about two months using the amount I do each day.

There is also a tinted version: Super Sun Kissed SPF 25. Tali has reviewed this over at The Gloss Goss: The Gloss Goss Super Sun Kissed review.

de Mamiel Spring Facial Oil review

Annee deMamiel is an acupuncturist who studied Chinese Medicine as a result of her own health crisis in the late 1990s. Every Equinox and Solstice she produces a new facial oil blend to help balance and support the skin for that particular season.

I like the idea of treating the skin seasonally. One of my favourite skincare lines from the past, Sheerin O'Kho (no longer stocked by SpaceNK) has different creams for Summer and Winter, and it makes sense to me to change skincare as the weather changes. Seasonal weather shifts bring almost universal challenges; even an oilier skin gets drier in cold weather, and my Twitter timeline has had a number of people who have remarked their skin has gone a bit bonkers and spotty as the weather started to warm in March. I'm a bit of a hippy who believes that we are affected by the seasons and things like lunar cycles (Twitter goes absolutely mad on a full moon, without fail.)

The deMamiel Spring Facial Oil is designed to cleanse and energise the skin, clearing out winter stagnation and bringing back a healthy glow. The facial oils are freshly hand blended in London each season to provide what your skin needs for the months ahead, and are not sold 'out of season' (which is great in terms of freshness, but you're out of luck if you live in the Southern Hemisphere.) I'm not going to repeat all the information on the benefits and effects of the ingredients in the oil, because you can read that at the deMamiel website here: deMamiel Spring Facial Oil ingredients and benefits.

This is a medium textured oil (for comparison I count argan and coconut as thick textured oils, and something like camellia as a light oil that sinks in almost immediately). The deMamiel Spring Facial Oil is in a base of jojoba and ricebran oil which gives you a few minutes to massage before it sinks in completely but doesn't feel heavy on the skin. The smell is very energising and uplifting, and perfect for spring. It's quite an active blend of essential oils, so I would not personally recommend to a very sensitive skin or to anyone who is pregnant or trying to be.

I use this in the evening, usually on its own, although I very occasionally use a moisturiser over it if my skin still feels a little dry after applying the oil. I love the smell and the feel of it, and I do think it has helped to keep my skin in balance during the seasonal transition. I wake up with skin that looks bright, balanced and well-rested, and I think it's one of the best facial oil treatments I've used. I've been using it for a month now (sorry Ms deMamiel, I started using it as soon as it came before the Equinox as I cannot wait and didn't have the Winter Oil!) I will report back in June if I'm still using it and if I buy the Summer Facial Oil.

I bought this directly from the deMamiel website www.demamiel.com. It's also stocked by Cult Beauty www.cultbeauty.co.uk. It costs £58 for 20ml, which should last the whole season applied as directed once a day.

Ingredients list:

Beauty Spotlight What's In My...

For this week's Beauty Spotlight teaser, Visionary Beauty shows us what's on her dressing table.


We'll see the items she reaches for daily as she turns the spotlight on her attempt at makeup organisation. So race over to Visionary Beauty to see 'what's on her dressing table.' (Click on the picture to be taken to her post.) 

Sue Devitt Surat Eye Intensifier and Lonely Splendour eyeshadow

Left to right: Sue Devitt Lonely Splendour eyeshadow, Surat Eye Intensifier pencil, and for comparison, Rouge Bunny Rouge Solstice Halcyon eyeshadow.

Swatched left to right: Sue Devitt pencil, eyeshadow and RBR eyeshadow. Lonely Splendour is noticeably more beige/brown to Solstice Halcyon's mauve undertones.

I like Surat and Lonely Splendour worn together for a subtly defined eye, and here's (possibly the taupest ever) step by step of how I apply them:

Bare eye

Liner on top lashline

liner blended

liner added to lower lashline, blended

eyeshadow buffed over lid from lash to just below brow

mascara and eyebrow pencil added

The finished eye doesn't look massively different (and the effect is less apparent in photos than in real life) but it gives a subtle polish and definition to the eye. I like the play of the slightly different textures and depth of the liner and shadow.

Here I'm wearing with an uncharacteristically (for me) nude rest of face: Sue Devitt Koh Samui (light neutral) blush and Sue Devitt Lip Intensifier (chubby pencil)  in Kirakira (nude). The Sue Devitt tonal taupe eye is also perfectly suited for a bright lip; today I'm wearing it with Ilia Neon Angel.

Sue Devitt products are available from Fenwicks and Harvey Nichols in London, and from www.qvcuk.com.

Disclosure: Sue Devitt eye pencil and eyeshadow are PR samples. I bought Koh Samui (and the RBR Solstice Halcyon), Kirakira was also a PR sample.

Slightly disappointed in Suqqu Spring 2012

I finally got to have a look at Suqqu Spring 2012, and bought nothing from it. Everything was still in stock by the middle of March, so they have fixed the limited edition 'sell out on day of launch' issue, the colour combinations are tasteful and flattering, and the textures are smooth, blendable and buildable. So what's my problem?

I don't find the collection concepts as interesting or attractive as they used to be.

This is the Spring Summer 2012 Summer Collection. I don't know if it has a collection name in Japanese (if any readers who can read/speak Japanese could tell me, I'd like to know) but in the UK it's going by the catchy title of 'Spring Summer 2012 Collection'.

The products themselves are lovely, if a bit of a pedestrian brown eyes/peachy cheeks and lips combination. From any other brand, I'd be impressed.

However, with Suqqu, I'm comparing this Spring collection to these:

Spring 2008 Kirari - the reflection of light, as if the colours are seen through a layer of water.

The Blend Eyeshadow quads all had a colour with subtle sparkles in it at the top left, and I loved the Blend Cheeks Yanwaricha, which is a perfect contouring duo. The Blend Lipsticks in this collection were sheerer with shimmer in them, giving washes of orange, coral, pink and beige.  

Spring 2010 Kisui - inspired by a watercolour painting technique, layering one shade on another to give a subtle glazing of different colours.

I loved the eyeshadow quads and the cheek duos from this collection, although the lipsticks did not work quite as well for me and were a little pale/chalky when applied, even the deeper colours.

Finally, my favourite Spring collection, Spring 2009 Sakurakage. Sakurakage was based on the luminous pink of the cherry blossom, contrasted with the dark definition of the tree bark.

One of the most interesting items in this collection was the contour shadow, available in five different shades of pink, to highlight the browbone. Using a clear pink to highlight the brow gives a fresher look than a fleshtone/cream shade, and contrasted well with the browns/greens/purples of the eyeshadow quads and duos in the collection.

There are some lovely swatches and pictures of the new collection at Drivel About Frivol and Replica at Visionary Beauty has a post on Blend Colour Eyeshadow #10 Kozuecha which does tempt me to give it another look.

I don't think the collections have been as creative or intriguing since the line re-vamp in Autumn 2010, although Suqqu's popularity as a brand continues to grow. Do you agree, or do you prefer the style of the new collections?