It's the little things!

There has been quite a lot of depressing chatter in the makeup community recently so lets take our minds of the drama....

What are the little things that make you happy?

Here are a few of my most recent happiness triggers:

Self Magazine



I love this US only magazine - it's not the most indepth read in the world but there is something about it that I just find really cosy.

Watermelon



Yum. Experiencing a current addiction to this stuff.

The Diet Fanta is another new love - I never really even knew it existed. I also like that a six pack of any soft drink here costs less than a £1.

A pink lip gloss

This is Smashbox's pout but I find this with all pink lipglosses. They make me happy :)



Dingly dangly earrings

Anything sporting a bit of fake bling, hearts, bows or keys will get me every time!



Discovering an old favourite

L'oreal Elnett - the original hairspray has been my friend for the last few days. A good soft hold, a strangely pleasant smell and a reasonable price!



Honourable mentions

Lately these things have also been working nicely:

* Baskin Robbins Pralines & Cream (my first ever taste of BR!)
* Being able to wear summery clothes in September.
* The Internet - I really don't know what I would do without it. I wouldn't be able to communicate to loved ones or keep up to date with the beauty community drama :)

Now over to you :)

A serious chop!

I mentioned before that I trimmed my extensions. I took to the scissors again but this time went for a slightly more dramatic cut.

I think this is the way forward with extensions. When you have shorter hair it is just too unrealistic to clip in 18 inches and expect it to look natural. It just wont because:

a) There is a huge disconnection between your natural hair length and the extension; and
b) Very few people have that length, and have it in such good condition, so people will look closely at your hair, and with more scrutiny comes more hassle in trying to ensure it looks both good and convincing.

My attack with the scissors has brought the extensions to about 8-10 inches. I wear four tracks, all positioned at the base and I never worry about how it looks - it's much easier to blend in.

Here is an idea of what we are dealing with here :) After a long day at work so forgive a slightly fatigued "looking down" pose :)



I am so much happier with them now. So yay!

Lessons learned

My advice is to grow your extensions with your hair. Keep it believable and once your own hair grows, feel free to add a few inches of bonus length with the help of a bit of fakery.

The one makeup routine change

The weather has been pleasant here - 35 degrees (that's celsius for those of you working on a different scale) during the day and cooling to 30 at night.

The makeup routine has followed the same pattern as before but there has been one addition:



Yes that's right, the Bare Minerals have made a comeback.

I knew that it would get some use over here. Whenever I am in humid climates I literally crave powder. I like the way it soaks up my delicate perspiration (I say delicate because as you all know ladies do not sweat :).

I have been buffing it into my T-zone after I apply a light amount of NARS Sheer Glow foundation in the morning and my makeup has been lasting ALL DAY. That never even happened in the UK - there a touch up was always required at 5pm.

Success and a possible conversion to Bare Minerals in the pipeline I would say!

And just for fun and because I think it is semi-cool, here is my work Blackberry, complete with Arabic characters on the keyboard - now all I have to do is learn the language!

A hair question

There has been a lot of talk recently about professional hair products on Twitter, with Kerastase being one of the names cropping up the most.

This is something I am now lemming (thanks Kelanjo19 :)!) but I have a question and would be interested to know what you think:

Do you think that using professional hair care ranges makes an actual difference to the condition of your hair or do you think drugstore products do the job just as well?

Of course everyone's answer is going to depend on the condition of their hair - if you have healthy, gorgeous hair and are able to use the cheapest of cheap products on it then I salute you.

So to make it helpful here is my hair bio:

Hair type: Fine
Breakage history: Had terrible split ends until I chopped them off a month ago.
Hair issue: Dryness - I feel like the ends of my hair get dry very quickly.
Professional or drugstore?: I don't feel like the expensive products I have tried before have ever made a massive difference - I still feel that Tresemme deep conditioner is the best and the James Brown and Aussie shampoos are the best...but maybe I haven't tried the right products.

What's your hair bio and where do you stand on professional vs. drugstore products?

My one purchase...

Before my flight on Friday I did have a quick look round duty free - it would have been rude not to.

However, nothing was really calling my name. I did hear the faint cry of Mugler's Angel - Rose but I couldn't decide if I wanted to smell like so many other people or not.

My one purchase was a lipstick - a nude!

Yes a nude!

I have seen this before on other blogs and I always thought "wow that is so pretty, I must get it" etc.

So yesterday I did.

It's Victoria's Secret lipstick in Malibu.



It looks so pretty, it feels so light to put on, but sadly the colour is so.....blah.

I did a quick swatch with GOSH Darling.

GOSH Darling on the right and if you look really close Malibu on the left.



It does give a pretty glazed effect, I will give it that...



...but I was a little disappointed. I was expecting it to be like their regular line lipstick - Spontaneous - a gorgeous dupe for NARS Striptease gloss and one that makes the lips look amazing.

Sadly Malibu did not live up to expectations but it was £6 and I am sure I will find room for another nude in the collection :)

Have you tried this lipstick?

Arrived!

Here I am!

From one couch to another...

As long as I have a laptop and a wireless connection I can function anywhere :)

The flight was painless, just one purchase made in duty free and I am still wowed by the view from the apartment.

I am staying here for a month and then I have to find my own place. I will post some daytime pictures to give you an idea but I am delighted that Starbucks, Johnny Rockets, Cafe Caribou, Noodle House and a mall await me at street level :)



Hope you all have a great Friday night!

What I wore this week - Edition 3 (Mon and Tues)

Seeing as I might not have time to do a full version of this post this week I thought I would show you what I sported on Monday and Tuesday.

Monday

This was a rather special day as I was invited to attend a couple of fashion shows in London as part of London Fashion Week. The shows were Ziad Ghanem and William Tempest. I have included a rather shoddy video taken on my digital camera to give you a flavour of where I was sitting and the setup :)

This video was taken during Ghanem's show where I also got to go backstage and see the models getting their makeup applied - amazing experience!



It was quite a directional look for this show - lots of contouring with a heavy use of rich colours. All the products were apparently Benefit which was a surprise - Benefit always strike me as a commercial and soft brand but this look was anything but.

Anyway, for this I channeled "the Conrad" and sported a red dress from ASOS. Click here to see which one :)





Dress - ASOS
Tights - Boots :)
Boots - New Look

Tuesday

Tuesday was the day of my new Zara dress, a fitted jersey number littered with studded detail. I love this and love the fact that it is one of those day/evening transitional dresses.





Dress - Zara (this season)
Tights - Boots :) Love those 40 deniers :)
Boots - New Look (one of my best buys this year I think)
Blazer - H&M (a cheapy ebay purchase last year)
Bag - Balenciaga (blah blah blah - you see it in practically every picture)

Note the ubiquitous hair extensions. Clipinz forever! :)

Hope you are all having a good week so far!

SOLD OUT Blog sale - the fifth and final attempt!

EDIT - All items are now pending!

Thanks so much!!!


Here we have blog sale 5.

The rules are:

1) If you want an item, say so in the comments along with your Paypal email address. I will then send you an invoice - note the first person to claim it with their email address can assume that the item is theirs;
2) Paypal is the only method of payment accepted - it's just easier and more secure;
3) Please ensure you pay for the item immediately upon receiving the invoice - or at least some time within the next 24 hours; otherwise the item will be reposted and will not be reserved for you.
4) Prices are in £....I am sorry that I can't provide a full currency breakdown but £'s are what I know :)
5) I will ship to Europe, US and Canada only. Shipping is £2.50 for one item: for each additional add 50p.
6) No returns;
7) That's it!

Onto the goods...

Blush and bronzer products

PENDING MAC Dollymix - £5.50
PENDING MAC True Romantic (LE) - £8.50



Both hardly used - they are not coming with me and Dollymix for some reason is not a colour I am keen on.


PENDING MAC Mineralize blushes

I love Moon River but these two I just like. Both used about 4 times total.

PENDING MAC Love Rock - £6.50
PENDING MAC Daft Pink - £6.50




PENDING MAC CCB

95% of product left - Pearl is on the left!

MAC Pearl - £5




PENDING Stila

Convertible Colour in Lilium - £7.50

Used a couple of times but 98% of product remaining




PENDING Cargo Tonga - £5

This is the blush Jennifer Anniston is rumoured to wear. On me it looks quite flat although its a pretty shade. Swiped about 5 times.




PENDING Cargo Bronzer in Medium - £5

A little bit more golden than tan bronze and for that reason its not quite right for me. Used twice.




PENDING MAC Belightful pressed powder - £7.50

By god I have tried to make this work but its just not one of those products I will be taking with me. Used 5 times.






PENDING Bobbi Brown limited edition shimmerbrick in Platinum Pink - £17.50

In amazing condition - tried about two times. This is actually my mum's one and she never uses it, preferring to steal my Shooting Star MSF instead :)






PENDING Laura Geller Blush-n-Brighten in Roseberry - £5




PENDING Urban Decay Baked Bronzer - £5



Face Stuff

PENDING MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer in NC20 - £6.50

Majority left - used three times!




PENDING MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation in NC30 - £7.50

About 95% of product left!




PENDING MAC Select Cover Up in NC20 - £4

About 90% of product left.




PENDING L'egere BB Water Drop Shiny Pearl BB Cream - £5

Nice concept but doesn't quite work for me. Would suit an NC20-NC25. 95% of product remaining.




Eye stuff

PENDING MAC Tempting Quad - £16.50

Released with Cult of Cherry - I basically have all these colours in different guises. Tempting is the most used colour - used about 10 times I would think. Bitter, unsurprisingly, has hardly been touched! :)




PENDING MAC Copperclast pigment - £8.50

I just don't get this pigment - it's sort of a blue-brown. I dunno. It's the only one I just couldn't get to work very well and the only pigment I will sell :)




PENDING Benefit Skinny Jeans Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner - £7.50

Tested once - I just won't get round to taking this and will rely on MAC's Blackground instead.




PENDING Majolica Majorca primer - BNIB - £5




PENDING Majolica Majorca Lash Gorgeous mascara - BNIB - £5




Miscellaneous

PENDING Frederik Fekkai Marine Summer Hair - £6.50

I don't have much use for this with my hair's current length. Used about three times.

What I did today

1) I cut my extensions

I should have done this ages ago. I cut off from the length and layered it a little bit too.

I took a photo post-cut-pre-styling



I feel they look much better. In real life there is a more realistic connection between the length of my natural hair and the layer of the hair extension.

In the photo I still tied back the front sections but I have actually been wearing them down today - I don't feel the need to take steps to disguise my natural hair.

How do I cut them? I take small sections, twist round the hair and then with gradually cut down the twist, with small motions. It means that you get a soft layered effect, rather than a blunt cut.

I do the same for my fringe/bangs too - incidentally that needs doing so maybe I should record that so you get the general idea.

2) I received an ASOS box!

I ordered a dress from ASOS (which I will be wearing on Monday) and a ring.

The ring?

So wrong yet so right.



Most definitely tacky, 100% Conrad inspired, slightly debilitating but I love it all the same :)

3) I have discovered a new perfect lip combo



MAC's Way to Love (LE) lipstick with Barry M's Glossy Tubes in number 4

The flash washes it out here but trust me its a lot warmer in person :)

Both products are effectively the same tone - we're talking light peachy pink - so they go together beautifully.

Way to Love was a lipstick I umm'ed and aah'ed about for ages but I did end up picking it up in the end and I am so glad that I did.

4) I got Benefit Coralista and another beautiful face product that, coupled with NARS Sheer Glow foundation, create the perfect complexion.

Sigh.

NARS Sheer Glow seriously is the best thing since sliced bread and I will be doing a video about it tomorrow.

Did you do anything exciting today?

What I wore this week - Edition 2 (kinda)

Yeah so I wasn't really on the ball with this for Edition 2.

In fact we only have two photos from Monday and Tuesday - a tad pathetic!

I worked from home on Wednesday so I was in "loungewear" and Thursday and Friday I was incredibly busy, finishing off reports and presenting to clients and didn't really have this as a priority.

Nevertheless, here they are:

Monday

This was super casual day. No client meetings, just report writing so I went for uber-comfort.



I was also sporting a full head of hair extensions - in fact it was all about the hair extensions which is why the outfit was so casual.

I was laughing because a woman just came up the stairs on the bus (the number 19 by the way :) whilst I was posing for a photo and I got shy :)



Tee - GAP
Jeans - Paper Denim & Cloth
Blazer - H&M
Necklace - Topshop
Shoes - Converse
Bag - Russell & Bromley

Tuesday

I like this. It's both girly and structured at the same time.



Dress - Urban Outfitters
Blazer - Topshop
Leggings - Topshop
Boots - New look

I promise to do better next week :)

Giving Liz Earle a Whirl!

So this is where I am with my cleansing skincare routine.

* Nude Oil cleanser to remove 90% of makeup (using until it runs out); and
* Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish to complete the cleanse

A few times a week I use the Neutrogena Visibly Clear mask to control any spots that want to make an appearance.

And?

It seems to work well.

I feel happy with my skin - to date - and I am enjoying the cleansing ritual.

Yay!

First a word on the Nude Cleanser

It won't be being repurchased. It's not horrible. It hasn't broken me out but when I use it I feel like I am wasting ALOT.

You see it literally sinks into the skin (probably due to the lack of mineral oil that often acts as a barrier) upon application. Remember that it cost £28 and I don't feel comfortable knowing that I am using more product than I really should just to get it to work for me.

On top of that I don't think it removes super-hardcore mascara. I mean it removes 90% of it but I am one of those people that have to get EVERYTHING off before I go to bed. I want spotless lashes and no residue left behind. This doesn't quite do that.

I still believe in oil cleansers and their effectiveness in removing makeup but next I am thinking though about trying the cheapest of the cheapest - plain old olive oil!. We'll see.

Now onto the Liz Earle



The cleanser is somewhat famous. I know alot of you have tried it. I always thought it was an "Eve Lom" rip-off and I guess in a way it is: a cleanser which is then removed with a muslin cloth.

But maybe this is slightly better?

What I always noticed about the Eve Lom is that it leaves behind a residue on the skin. At first you think "wow, my skin is glowing" then after a while you realise that it's almost a trick - its the cleanser that's glowing not your complexion :) The Liz Earle cleanser removes everything and it doesn't leave its mark behind.

The scent of "Liz" is also must more pleasant than "Eve's". It's a strong eucalyptus/cocoa butter concoction that smells refreshing and perfect for cleansing. This is a personal thing but I genuinely love it.

Of course it's very early days but I am pleased that I haven't gone through the "purging process" that skincare companies often whip out as the excuse for spots when you try their products.

By the way I got it from the official site - I went for the starter kit (100ml) which comes with 2 muslin cloths.

A cry for help

So now that I can remove my slap I want a recommendation from you.

I am looking for a night cream.

What I am looking for is something that will really nourish my skin overnight. I want to feel and see a difference.

Yes, I know this may sound like a tall order but I have seen creams do that before - Stri-Vectin did it for me a few years back.

Mmmm maybe I should reorder...

Anyway...

Here I keep thinking Estee Lauder. I don't know why but I really associate them with good, dependable face creams.

Any recommendations from you all would be very much welcomed!

PS. Don't bother recommending Creme de la Mer. I tried a very generous sample of it a while ago and well...I think its just overpriced grease in a plastic tub. Did nothing for me other than break me out.

x

Blog sale - the fourth attempt - SOLD

EDIT: All sold and invoiced. Thank you so much everyone!

Here we have blog sale 4. There will be one more - most likely next weekend. As I am moving I don't want this stuff to just sit here untouched for months on end.

The rules are:

1) If you want an item, say so in the comments along with your Paypal email address. I will then send you an invoice - note the first person to claim it with their email address can assume that the item is theirs;
2) Paypal is the only method of payment accepted - it's just easier and more secure;
3) Please ensure you pay for the item immediately upon receiving the invoice - or at least some time within the next 24 hours; otherwise the item will be reposted and will not be reserved for you.
4) Prices are in £....I am sorry that I can't provide a full currency breakdown but £'s are what I know :)
5) I will ship to Europe and the US only. Shipping is £2.50 for one item: for each additional add 50p.
6) No returns;
7) That's it!

Onto the goods...

MAC Mineralize Skinfinishes

£8 each!

SOLD - Perfect Topping
SOLD - New Vegas (Alexander McQueen collection) and
SOLD - Porcelain Pink

Do note that New Vegas has been used but there is about 80% of the product left.



SOLD: MUFE HD Powder

This is a messy little thing but its a full-size pot with about 98% of product left - £8



SOLD MAC Scatterays solar bits

Pretty colour but could never make this work. Tried a bit from the lid and that's all so I would say 99.5% of product left :)

£6.50



Blushers

SOLD Benefit Dallas - £6.50
SOLD Illamasqua cream blush in "Lies" - £6

Dallas has about 90% of product left and Lies has been swiped about 5 times - its a very soft cream blush (I would say far too soft - as in rushed-through-production soft) but some people think its a pretty cream highlighter :)



Concealer

SOLD Benefit's Erase Paste in Number 2

£4.50



MAC Pigment

This is the one pigment I am prepared to sell :) Maybe I need to try a bit of tough love and sell some of the others but...

SOLD Dusty Coral - this is a matte orange/coral pigment. Its one of those ones that I got new and it already looked used: MAC pigments are measured by weight or something.

Anyway, £4.50



MAC Eyeshadows

SOLD Pink Platinum metal-x shadow - £4
Threesome eyeshadow - £7.50 (used only once)
SOLD Aquavert - £5.50 (tested once but never used as I am a netural person and have decided that it's okay not to branch out :)



Lipgloss

SOLD Cargo lipgloss set in South Beach

£2

Bargainous!



MAC Lipsticks

Okay here is the line up - each lipstick is being sold for £3.50!



Here is the breakdown - all from left to right



SOLD Lady Danger
SOLD Frou
SOLD High Tea
SOLD Kinda Sexy
SOLD Patisserie



SOLD Barely Lit
SOLD Eden Rocks
SOLD Freckletone
SOLD Bubbles



Velvet Teddy - SOLD
SOLD High Top (Fafi)

Blush palettes

These are the palettes from China :)

SOLD The 10 pan palette - £4 (note the bottom right pan is loose on this palette and always was)



SOLD The 28 pan palette - £4 (note they are shadow size so ickle!)



PENDING - Plus if anyone wants to buy my Warehouse flats they are £15 :) Worn out about 3 times and a size 5 :)