AKA the lip colour that drove me crazy as a teenager, why? because back in the 90's it was impossible to get your hands on an actual nude colour lipstick that wasn't some shade of Brown in the drugstore and as I was a tween from the countryside and had yet to discover the delights of the MAC lipstick stand (you should have seen how fast the shade 'Blankety' was in my kung fu grip when I did!) it felt like I was forever on the hunt for my perfect creamy pale nude.
Nowadays we are lucky enough to have an abundance of nude shades available from Tesco's to Tom Ford they are everywhere so finally I can make my peace with the 90's nude lip and admit that it actually is a look that I am loving at the moment!
In particular this combination, essence lip liner- 'in the nude' (top swatch)for the price (less than £3) I'm really impressed with the creamy formula and longevity of this lip liner, that aside and back to the 90's this is the perfect tawny brown liner for a 90's nude either worn all over the lips or paired up with my recent love (bottom swatch) Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet 'Nude-ist' ahhhh if ever there was a time I was happy to be a bandwagon hopper then its every time I see my reflection and this perfect pinky toned brown nude beauty is on my lips! A quick hats off to the formula a liquid lipstick with a matte finish that packs some serious pigment and sticks around for hours, I wont go too much more into detail but if you haven't tried one of these then let me give you a gentle metaphorical nudge towards your local Boots ;)
This is definitely my most worn lip combination of late and can see it continuing to be a favourite for the remaining winter months!
As you can see I haven't just bought these baby's home, both have lived in my lipstick drawer for quite some time, I rarely wear snob as it is so cool toned I find it hard to pull off and to be honest the only reason I bought it was because I was in Harvey Nichols for the first time and it seemed fitting, oh the logic!
The Rimmel lipstick (101) is another cool toned Barbie pink, it doesn't have the vanilla-y delicious taste of MAC, it's more a fruity taste, or the satin finish of snob, it's a little more matte (I like both) but the fact that it is just those couple of tones warmer and those couple (or ten) pounds cheaper makes the 101 my personal favourite of the two and it makes a regular appearance in my make-up bag which must be the reason it's collected the most fluff. More logic right there! I'm full of it tonight ;)
Stay pout is a new addition to Boots' Seventeen range, I went out and unintentionally stumbled upon them a couple of weeks ago then bought the two because I already had one thing in my basket and it was 3 for 2 across all make-up (still is!) you know the drill...
Stupidly of me and not something I would recommend to anyone (I don't for one minute think that you would) I bought both of these without swatching them. Why?? Well um there were no testers out on the stand I liked the stickers underneath and had way too much faith...yes I should know better.
Cut to a very disappointed me sat in the car with two very frosty (least favourite lipstick finish ever)
pinks instead of the beautiful nude and raspberry shades I had hoped for.
So I sound like I'm having a right bitch about these, I'm not I just think it's funny to share what a dumb ass I was in my shade selecting process. So for the purpose of giving you a bit of a review I have been trying them out.
Firstly the pigmentation is great, so it's a good start! They are a long wearing formula so I was expecting them to be more on the matte side and possibly quite drying, not the case here, they apply really smoothly and feel so moisturising, the Shea butter in them lends a hand to this which is great at this time of year when dry lips are rife! As I mentioned before going off on a standard tangent, the formula is long wearing Seventeen don't claim X number of hours but I've found they last a good 7 hours, wearing off evenly into a subtle stain which I like.
Altogether a really good lipstick for the price (£4.59) I'm definitely going to check out the other shades, there's 15 in total so the chances are if there are some testers out that I'll find some I like ;)
MAC Vegas Volt, a gorgeous amplified creamy coral and a lipstick that I had on my wishlist for what seemed like a lifetime before I eventually got around to buying it, it is such a beautiful colour that even though I rarely steer away from my pinky/peach nude lip colour I wanted to own this if only to look at it, does anyone else have lipsticks that they do this with?
Vegas Volt has now been in my lipstick collection for around 2 years and I have found that I have gotten a lot more wear out of it than I thought I would.
Last Monday I was having a scruffy bun, can't be bothered kind of day (you know the ones?) where eye-make up was kept to just mascara, I applied only a light layer of foundation and a bit of bronzer, these are the days that I find it easier to get away with a bolder lip colour, also having a bright pop of colour on the lips makes it look like I have made a little more effort with my Make-up than I really have.
Face: Rimmel wake me up foundation (200 soft beige) Benefit Hoola bronzer Eyes: Max factor eye brightening mascara Lips: MAC Vegas Volt Eyebrows: clearly ignored :o
Please excuse the dodgy pose, I think I have some kind of mild mental disorder when it comes to pouting at cameras!
OK so my laptop appears to have miraculously cured itself and 24 hours has gone by without it overheating once so I am feeling confident enough now to sit and write up my October favourites without flapping that it's going to blow up in my face.Yay! Anyway enough of the "woe is me, my laptop broke" snoozefest, I promise there will be no more! It's all make-up and beauty from here on in girls and boys...Good times :)
On to the good stuff...
Make-up
Vivo cosmetics lipstick shade 8 'barely there'
This has been my go to nude lipstick throughout October. It reminds me of one of my favourite ever nudes which is Hue from MAC but at £1.99 is a lot more purse friendly.It has a gorgeous creamy finish with a slight glossy sheen, feels really moisturising on the lips, and the smell! Oh my Gawwd! If you love creamy vanilla/coconut smells then you need this lipstick in your life.
17 Supreme shine lipstick in Pink Posey
I picked this lipstick up before a shoot that I did last week (I know I'm cheating the favourites system here ;)), the photographer wanted natural make-up with a bright lip and none of the lipsticks I owned were what I had in mind for the look. I wanted a dramatic bright purple but this was the closest thing I could get from my local (miniature) Boots...Anyhoo...I wasn't expecting too much from pink posy in the way of lasting power as 'supreme shine' to me suggests that it would be one of those lipsticks that slides off the lips within 20 minutes but no, I was proved wrong when it stayed put throughout the shoot and beyond, which all in all was about 2 and a half hours, so even though it is technically a November fave I really wanted to share it as I'm so impressed and I'm loving the colour for Autumn/Winter.
NARS Sheer glow foundation
I have had my fickle pants on this month when it comes to foundations but for the last couple of weeks I have been religiously using an old (once hailed Holy Grail) favourite.NARS Sheer glow. The shade that I have is Deauville which is my perfect match when I have absolutely no colour/fake tan which at the moment I don't (think Morticia Addams or Fester :o) I have been applying this with a damp beauty blender sponge and loving the beautiful airbrushed looking finish that this gives so much more than when I apply with my MAC 190 foundation brush.
Laura Mercier universal invisible loose setting powder
I love this powder!
I'm not really a powder girl, as my skin leans to the dry side it's a step that I often forget in my make-up routine.This month though I have used this powder to set my foundation most days.I love how it just does what it say's on the tin, it set's the foundation, and is invisible, simple :)
Collection 2000 lasting perfection concealer
I have been loving using this concealer in two shades this month firstly I like to used medium 3 (which is a peachy tone) underneath my eyes to correct any dark shadows and light 2 to brighten the area and give me a much needed hand to look more awake and alert.
I picked up this eye kohl when there was a 3 for 2 on Collection 2000 eye products in Boots about a week or so ago, along with one of the above mentioned concealers and the new Pump up the volume mascara . I didn't really expect to love it as much as I do but I have been seriously impressed! It is a really soft well pigmented kohl which stays put in the waterline all day long, even on my eyes which have a tendency to run like a tap, especially at this time of the year.Big thumbs up to Collection 2000 this month!!
Hair Products
L-R-Head and shoulders citrus fresh shampoo John Frieda Frizz ease 3 days straight VO5 Gloss me smoothly conditioner
Front-Amargan hair therapy oil
This month I have been making a much bigger effort than I normally do to get my hair in good condition. I have a lot of fine hair with a natural wave to it and find that within about half an hour of being out of the house, it feels tangly and develops annoying kinks.All I want is for it to look sleek, shiny and bouncy, and to be able to run my fingers through it without giving myself whiplash.
So this month I took a little inspiration from the beautiful Anna and Barbara's haircare video's and picked up the Head and shoulders citrus fresh shampoo and the V05 Gloss me smoothly conditioner (for frizzy hair) and I have really noticed the difference in my hair since I have been using them, the Head and shoulders really makes my hair feel ultra clean and my hair feels really silky soft as soon as I rinse the V05 conditioner out in the shower.My hair has definitely been alot sleeker and shinier thanks to these products.
The other hair products that I have been loving are the Amargan hair therapy oil which I picked up at a beauty supplies store. It is some sort of Argan oil (?) You just apply a small amount through damp hair and it cuts the hair drying process by up to 50% I was massively sceptical about this at first but it really works. Without this my hair takes around 15 minutes to blow dry but with it, it literally takes 5 minutes, I do love a time saving product!
And lastly in my quest for super sleek hair I have been using the John Frieda frizz ease 3 days straight. I originally bought this to use in place of my GHD's which broke a little while ago...but I didn't read the instructions which clearly state that this is a product that is supposed to work along side hair straighteners DUH! Anyway it has helped my hair's kinky tendancies and does keep it straight for around 24hours which is fair enough. I'm sure it would work really well when used correctly ;)
Book of the month
The secret by Rhonda Byrne
I always love when other bloggers include their favourite books in monthly favourites posts so I thought I would include mine as its a real cracker! It's kind of tricky to describe and I don't want to ruin it with some ditzy explanation, but if you enjoy philosophy books and you haven't read the secret I totally recommend checking it out as it is such a fascinating read and one that always makes me feel super positive and motivated.
Phew Im sure that has been my longest list of favourites to date! If you got to the end congrats!
Lately it seems that at the beginning of every month I get something new, love it, then have to wait a whole month to add it into my favourites. It is now November the 7th and I already have things that are potentially faves for the end of the month (Origins Vitazing moisturiser, Oh M Gee I got it two days ago and it's already <3 )
October Favourites video
I hope everyone is having a lovely night, Im off too put the heating on because my toes feel like icicles right now brrrrr! :)
The cover of last month's issue of Glamour saw Cheryl Cole looking gorgeous in a simple white fitted summer dress, a pretty, volumised, loose ponytail and the most amazing shade of lipstick! I was so obsessed with the colour of the lipstick that I had a dream about it (I do this alot with make-up!) nutter! I tweeted about my lipstick lusting, Glamour mag noticed and told me the colour was Loreal colour riche in Pink passion and I today I finally got my hands on it...
Oooh I wonder if I will get mistaken for Cheryl when I go out later?? ;)
Pink passion is a gorgeous very well pigmented bright pink, the formulation and finish actually reminds me of a MAC amplified lipstick. It applies really smoothly and feels moisturising although as the day goes on it looses moisture as it turns to more of a stain. I think that it would be a lipstick that would show up any dryness on the lips, so a lip balm beforehand would be a good idea if you are having a dry lip day! I have had this on now for around 3 hours and it is showing no sign of going anywhere even though I have eaten and had 2 cans of diet coke (a habit I need to kick!) which is really impressive.
Pink passion...which actually looks coral in the bullet
The range contains 10 intense colours, formulated specifically to suit either blondes or brunettes, with coordinating nail varnish also available!
What do you think girls? Do you have any of the CR made for me range?
I saw this tag over at Vivianna's blog a little while ago and thought it would be a really fun one to do, so here goes...
Little tubes of happiness :)
1. When you were a child did you use your Mother's lipstick?
Hmm..I honestly cant remember,hold on a sec *Rings Mum* oooh apparently when I was 2 my Mum had me all dressed up ready to go to a Birthday party,and I must have decided that the look she had given me wasn't complete without some red lipstick, which I proceeded to squash into my face and all over my party outfit, I spent the rest of the day with a red face as it stained and wouldn't wash off ooops!
2. How old were you when you brought your first lipstick?
I remember having alot of lip balm's when I was about 11 I had a tinted one from natural collection at Boots called sugar plum, which I repurchased for years until they stopped making it. I think my first actual lipstick was Bon Bon from 17 at Boots which I bought when I was about 12, and was another one that I was obsessed with for years!
3. Pink or red lipstick? I love Pink lipsticks the best and find them a lot more comfortable to wear than reds.I always feel a bit 'on show' wearing a red lip!
4. The most expensive lipstick you have ever brought?
The most expensive lipstick's that I have ever bought are from mac,I have been in love with the range of colours from their since I first clapped eyes on the mac counter at Manchester airport about 5years ago. Total LOVE at first sight goggly eyed moment! (My first buy was Blankety)
5. And the cheapest?
The cheapest lipstick I ever bought was probably one from collection 2000 or natural collection at Boots when I was younger.The cheapest ones in my lipstick drawer at the moment are probably from Barry M and MUA,in fact MUA is probably cheaper than collection 2000 and natural collection were back in the 90's "/
6. What's the most bizarre thing you have ever done with a lipstick?
When I bought my very first lipstick from mac I kept it in the box for ages and kept taking it out, swatching it and putting it back! I loved it so much!
7. If you had to recommend a lipstick brand, what brand would you choose and why?
Definitely mac! the lipstick stand is mesmerising! There are so many different variations of colours and finishes that there will always be something for everyone.I think mac lipsticks are actually addictive, so beware ;) !!
I tag everyone that wants to do this post
Let me know if you do it so I can read your answers :)
