My Makeup: Smokey Bronze Eyes With The Body Shop Christmas

The Body Shop always come out with lustworthy Christmas items, this year, out of all their offerings, christmas scented body butters, shimmer atomisers and powder pearls, what caught my eye was the Smoky Eye Palette in Smoky Copper. A warm eyeshadow quad, perfect for a smokey eye lover like myself.

The eyeshadows themselves are rich and creamy, a really lovely buttery formula and the beautiful colour transfers onto the eyes and looks beautiful. They aren't the most blendable formula around but that's nothing that a Mac 217 brush doesn't sort out - a little blend at the edges works perfectly. The lasting power is what you would expect from high end eyeshadows and despite the gorgeous satin finish I'm pleased to report they didn't crease after a long day! 

It's lovely seeing decent eyeshadow brushes in a eyeshadow palette, the liner brush is particular is fantastic which makes a massive difference compared to the usual doefoot applicator provided in most eyeshadow sets. 

I've been pairing it with a Metallic Eye Definer Pencil in Copper Brown, a warm bronze colour, which is really creamy and doesn't tug against the eyes despite it not having particularly good lasting power on the waterline. 

The Smoky Eye Palette Palette will set you back £14, which I can't fault at all - four lovely shades that are buttery soft included with two more than decent brushes! The Body Shop Christmas is available here and the Smoky Eye Palette is available here. Will you be visiting The Body Shop this Christmas?

My Makeup: Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate

Tom Ford's infamous contouring duo, Shade & Illuminate had remained on my 'to purchase' list since I spotted it in Lisa's video here. A cream duo, housed in the pretty hefty packaging that makes high-end feel like high-end and made for sculpting and contouring the face simply. 

The darker shade, a milky chocolate brown, is completely matte making it a fantastic contour shade. On my yellow based skin tone, I would've preferred the highlighter to be a little more golden as it only gets picked up in some lighting. Both look really subtle and natural on the skin, especially compared to the Hourglass Illume Creme Duo, who's orange contour shade I didn't get on well with at all. 

Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate £55 Selfridges

I ended up buying the Shade & Illuminate brush too, which I dont think is a necessity at all. Something like Real Techniques Contour Brush or Setting Powder Brush would work perfectly. Being someone who usually steers away from cream formulas, I found this simple to use and blend, as well as lasted the whole evening.

I paired my new cheekbones with my all-time favourite lashes, Ardell Demi Wispies and a smokey eye. That outburst of dark lips didn't last very long before I went back to usual smokey eyes... Next on my Tom Ford wishlist is Black Orchid Lipstick... 

 Anything from Tom Ford on your Christmas wish list?

My Makeup: Dark Lips With Aveda Rare Orchid

After dipping my feet in the dark lip pool my eyes became magnets to any dark lipstick so when I set my eyes on Aveda Smoothing Lip Colour in Rare Orchid it was only a matter of time before it ended up on my lips. Makeup Artist Adam De Cruz kindly took me through wearing a dark lip as it's something new to me, his advice was to... wear a neutral wash of colour on my lid, tons of mascara on my upper lashes, leave the bottom bare and apply some bronzer, which is exactly what I did. 

As far as lipstick formulas go it's fantastic, especially for a dark lip. Not too creamy that it will end up anywhere but your lips (in other words my chin) and is more on the waxy side of formulations which makes it long lasting too. Coverage wise it's the perfect balance of pigmentation, easy to achieve a stain or build up to a full coverage look. The shade Rare Orchid is part of the Passion Flower collection, which features two other lipsticks amongst eyeshadows, lip glazes and lip liners. 

Skin

- My newest base of choice, Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion with a sweeping of Sleek Face Contour Kit

Eyes

- Aveda Petal Essence Single Eye Colour in Callalily and Clinique High Impact Mascara with L'Oreal Carbon Black Voluminous Mascara

Wearing Aveda Nourish-Mine Smoothing Lip Colour in Rare Orchid £12.50 Aveda

Lips

- I started off applying a base, Aveda Nourish-Mint Lip Liner in Foxglove followed by Aveda Nourish-Mint Smoothing Lip Colour in Rare Orchid.

My Makeup: Berry Lips With Clinique Chubby Stick Intense

There's something new on the block for us Chubby Stick lovers, Clinique Chubby Stick Intense. A richer, more pigmented formula that has been gracing my lips for the majority of this week and so far so good! 

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Grandest Grape

Compared to the original Chubby Sticks the formula provides a much more glossy, pigmented finish and it's easy to achieve a full coverage look, whereas the original were more of a tint. They've added a couple extra ingredients in there, like shea butter and jojoba seed oil for that extra kick of nourishment. After being out and about in the cold I was pleasantly surprised to not return home to dry and crusty lips, they were still in soft condition! 

Clinique Chubby Stick in Volumptous Violet (right) VS Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Grandest Grape Swatch

On the lips the formula feels much lighter than a lipstick, which makes them easier to wear, especially when wearing a heavily pigmented colour. During my first venture into the dark lip zone I was pleasantly surprised to see minimal fading on my lips, despite drinking and eating (with caution) giving them fantastic lasting power too. I would've loved to have seen the colours from the original Chubby Stick collection like Woppin' Watermelon and Mighty Mimosa available in the Intense range but overall a big thumbs up from me!

Wearing Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Grandest Grape

I've been pairing this lippy with a light base combination of Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion and By Terry Touche Veloutee followed by a lot of mascara for something quick and effortless.

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense are available in 8 shades and the shade I've been wearing is Grandest Grape. They are £16 and will be available from November. 

Will you be trying out Clinique Chubby Stick Intense?

My Makeup: Travelling Around

Apart from whilst air bourne travelling and makeup just don't mix, whilst travelling the past couple of weeks I've become rather sluggish with my makeup as it usually gets applied in an airplane cabin or train bathroom. Needless to say there's only minimal makeup going on, very natural and what I like to call 'can't feel this on my face' products.

Skin

- I've been gracing my skin with the most weightless base I own, Giorgio Armani's latest release, Maestro Fusion. I'll keep my thoughts under wraps until the end of the week! Followed by my concealer of choice, By Terry Touche Veloutee

- This handy compact by Nars (post here) ocontains a blush, highlighter and bronzer - perfect for on the go, which I've been sweeping my cheeks with.

Eyes

- Bobbi Brown Long Wear Cream Eyeshadows are my summer saviour (post here & here) as they provide a lovely sheer, matte wash of colour without creasing or fading. I'll run the shade 4 Sandy Gold all over the lid with some 10 Suede in the crease

- On my upper lash line I'll apply a brown eyeliner and some mascara followed by By Terry Ombre Blackstar in 11 Beyond Gold along my lower lash line for an extra touch of colour. 

That's my quick travelling face which has lasted me through recent planes, trains and long journeys! What do you use when you're travelling?

My Makeup: Blue Mascara?

We all have cravings, some more than others, but due to my friends blue eyelashes catching my eye the other night my craving from then on was blue mascara. Coloured mascara isn't something new to me, I dabbled in violet from the L'Oreal Luminizer range sometime last year as an attempt to enhance brown eyes, which failed pretty quickly, but bright shocking stare-at-my-eyes noticeable blue is something I could be interested in!

For my journey into blue mascara I picked up Collection Colour Lash Mascara in Blue, which did the trick, but as my obsession progressed I picked up Dior Diorshow Mascara in Azure Blue, which is a bright shocking pigmented blue. Stunning. I've been keeping my eyes pretty bare so all focus is on the blue mascara, as well as having blush to one side here's what I've been wearing on blue mascara days...

Collection Colour Lash Mascara in Blue (left) Dior DiorShow Mascara in 258 Azur Blue (right)

Collection Colour Lash Mascara in Blue (left) Dior DiorShow Mascara in 258 Azur Blue (right)

Skin

- The latest natural foundation love of mine, Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion, but more on that later... paired with a bit of contouring with Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate

Eyes

- As the whole blue lashes phase isn't exactly natural I wanted my lashes to be spiky and thick which Dior Diorshow Mascara in Azure Blue achieved perfectly. Collection Colour Lash Mascara in Blue was more of a natural look.

Lips 

- 17 Mirror Shine Lipstick in Belle

Have you ever dabbled in coloured mascara?

My Makeup: Brown, Smokey & Sculpted

Over this weekend the usual intense smokey eye here, failed to make an appearance due to lack of time. I drew on the Autumn Winter 2012 trends, where more of a wash of colour all over the lid was seem. A lived in, messy and undefined smokey eye. 

Being someone who favours a defined crease and smoking out my lash line this was completely out of my comfort zone. As opposed to choosing from a palette of 12 eyeshadows I only used two shades, shocker I know! I contested my undefined smokey eye with some heavy contouring and highlighted cheekbones and opted for a berry stain on my lips.

Skin

- Started off with YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat, covering my under eye area with Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer

- I skipped out on blush and sculpted my cheekbones with the Hourglass Illume Creme-To-Powder Bronzer Duo in Bronze, the jury is still out on whether it's worth it so stay tuned...

Eyes

- Using two eyeshadow shades from Natural Collection, sweeping Milk Chocolate all over the lid and following with Asteroid making sure to blend out any harsh edges so everything looked very lived in and smokey. For £1.79 these eyeshadows are an absolute bargain, they are a tad chalky but amazing none the less

Lips

- I dabbed a bit of Topshop Lipstick in Inhibition on my lips with my finger to act as a stain

Are you a fan of the seamless smokey eye or prefer more of a defined look?

My Makeup: Issa SS13 Inspired

After being backstage at Issa last week (post here) and drooling over Val Garland working her makeup magic, my front row seat enabled me to analyse her feather light hand movements, swift brush strokes and precise cat flick up close. To say I was totally mesmerised would be an understatement! After noting down all her tips and techniques I got a little inspired to try and recreate the look myself, however, something a little more suitable for my everyday life.
Now I'm an eyes girl, it's the feature I always play up - there's rarely a red lip or just some skin action going on with me, but the makeup at Issa had it all, which on myself I wouldn't be too fond of, so I adapted it by toning down the lip from a bright opaque colour to a sheer wash, a less defined eye and a smaller cat flick.

Skin

- Val Garland used the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Pure Light Primer as a base to ensure glowy skin, which I personally haven't tried, so instead I applied Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Moonstone all over my skin, followed by YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat.
- Under my eyes I used what Val used as a highlighter, L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer, which wasn't high enough in coverage to conceal my dark circles so I mixed in some By Terry Touche Veloutee.
- To contour I used the dark shade in Sleek Contour Kit and to add a highlight to the high points of my cheek bones I used L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer.

Eyes

- Sweeping the lightest shade from the L'Oreal Trio Pro in 403 Golden Fidelity and defining my crease using a mix of the two darker shades in the palette. The look at Issa was much more defined but I opted for a more subtle, wearable look.
- To line my eyes I used L'Oreal Super Liner. Like Val suggested, I started at the middle of my eyelid and drew outwards, filling in the gaps after I had defined the shape of the flick. Val then followed with a L'Oreal mascara that has yet to be released, so I opted for L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic instead.

Lips

- I used a sheer wash of bright colour with Giorgio Armani Rouge D'Armani Sheer in 502

Do you think I made the look Val created at Issa more wearable?

My Makeup: Party Face

Just the word party ensures some sort of smokey eye is involved, which no doubt it was, and little more intense than I usually go. I opted for black as opposed to brown, to add some drama to my eyes. Using L'Oreal Infallible Eyeshadows, which are truly incredible. Unbeliveably pigmented, so rich, creamy and blendable - I just wish they were available in a wider range of shades. Back in May at the Cannes Film Festival Cheryl Cole wore a beautiful nude lip that complimented her smokey eye perfectly - L'Oreal Rouge Caresse in Nude Ingenue and  L'Oreal Glam Shine Fresh in Aqua Grapefruit was the combination she used so I jumped on that bandwagon too, joining in on the amazing nude lip pair!

Skin

- For party ready skin I always opt for a primer, ensuring that my makeup lasts all evening. Here I reached for Estee Lauder Matte Perfecting Primer (post here) which was followed by my foundation of choice, Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk as it's perfect for photos and lasts amazingly throughout an evening

- Sleek Contour Kit was brushes through my cheekbones for added definition while a touch of Mac Blush in Well Dressed was added for some colour

Eyes

- I primed my eyelids with Mac Painterly Paint Pot to help eyeshadows adhere to my skin and help their pigments appear more vibrant

- I used L'Oreal Colour Infallible Eyeshadow (post here) in 12 Endless Chocolate all over the lid and intensified the look with the shade 14 Eternal Black, followed by lashings of Max Factor False Lash Effect. 

Lips

- The Cheryl Cannes nude lip combination of L'Oreal Rouge Caresse in Nude Ingenue and  L'Oreal Glam Shine Fresh in Aqua Grapefruit 

Are you a smokey eye girl or do you prefer keeping it simple?

My Makeup: Colour Therapy

During some colour therapy I went a bit mad for the Topshop lipsticks as their formula is one that I favour - really strongly pigmented, long lasting and not too drying on the lips. Think Mac Matte but much more creamy and less clingy on dry patches. 

I picked up the shade Ohh La La which I've been pairing with a clean base, a tiny touch of blush, some eyeliner and mascara. The Orangey peach shade isn't one I would normally go for so being a little out of my comfort zone I kept the rest of my makeup pretty simple. Like all the Topshop Lipsticks, it can be applied quite sheerly all the way up to a pretty opaque colour and I like to land somewhere in the middle. 

Skin

- For a covering yet luminous base I went for YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation (post here) followed by By Terry Touche Veloutee Concealer (post here)
- To add some dimention and colour to my face I dusted a touch of Mac Well Dressed blush on to my cheeks

Eyes

- After dusting the lightest shade from the Make Up Academy Undressed Palette (post here) all over my lid I lined my eyelids with L'Oreal Super Liner (post here) and coated my lashes in Avon SuperShock Max Mascara. 

Topshop Lips in Ohh La La £8 here

Lips

- Topshop Lipstick in Ooh La La 

What are some of your favourite bright lip colours?

My Makeup: Back To Basics

The point of beauty products is something I often forget - how they are made purely to enhance natural assets.  Lets face it, there's nothing natural about my often intense smokey eye makeup or an orange lip.  In all honesty, I feel weird without looking like I've got some sort of makeup on, heavy mascara, lipgloss or some peachy pink blush. During my lazy days I tend to take it all back to basics, no blush, no fancy pants eyelashes just me and a couple other products.

Skin

Using the Dior Airflash Foundation (post here) followed by By Terry Touche Veloutee with Une Healthy Glow Mineral Powder (post here) as a bronzer to add a little dimention to my face

Eyes

For my eyes I simply used a matte black eyeshadow to line the outer corners. I wanted to make my eyes appear less round so brought the line quite far out - helping to elongate my eyes. I then went on to apply mascara - Max Factor False Lash Effect

Lips

Sticking with the natural theme I used a matte nude coloured lip liner all over my lips which was a recent purchase, L'Oreal Infallible Lip Liner in 708 Always Toasted

It's not often my lips aren't coated with lipgloss or my eyes with eyeshadow, but here's the rare occasion that it did - don't expect to see this happening anytime again soon      

My Makeup: Glowy Skin & Golden Eyes

As I'm hidden behind my factor 50 for the majority of the holiday, there hasn't been too much glowing going on, which is where I rely on my trusty collection - namely a combination of Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector with the ultimate glowy base, Chantecaille Just Skin. Paired together make me look like I'm seriously luminous from within. To further enhance my glowy complexion is some gold eyeshadow, which really emphasises the all round look.

Skin

- To kick off the whole glow I applied Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Moonstone (post here) all over my face as a base, I then went in with Chantecaille Just Skin Tinted Moisturiser in the shade Glow. To cover horrendous dark circles it's By Terry Touche Veloutee (post here) as always!

- The star of the show is the Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starburst (post here) as it adds the perfect amount of highlight, bronze and blush at the same time. I don't feel the need to use anything else on my cheeks as this subtly does it without looking too shimmery or too bronzy.

Eyes

- I used the shade 012 Sahara Treasure L'Oreal Infalliable Eyeshadows with Mac Cork in the crease to add some definition and a matt black shade, Blackout from the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette along the lash line and topped it all off with Ardell Demi Wispies False Lashes

Lips

- I reached for the shade that enhances and compliments my glow, Chantecaille Brilliant Gloss in Lucky (post here)

My Makeup: Summertime Smoke

When it comes to an evening makeup look smokey eyes are what I favour. No surprises here, but in holiday time where I'm cutting back on makeup I tend to apply something a little lighter and more summer appropriate, nothing like this makeup here. I do like to have a little eye makeup on, especially for the evenings and this look is perfect for something a little natural yet smokey at the same time.

For my skin I've been loving some added glow curtsey of Mac Style blush and a recent Sephora purchase, Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starburst. The combination of the two makes it look as though I've been in the sun for days when really I've been hiding behind a hat and factor 30-50.      

Skin

- Sprayed on a light layer of Dior DiorSkin Airflash Foundation which I've proclaimed my summer saviour (review here) followed by Mac Style Blush and Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Bakes Starburst

Eyes

- Chanel eyeshadow duo in 37 Sable - Emouvant, which is from their summer collection and is just a simple easy set perfect for creating a smokey eye. I then lined my upper lash line with Eyeko Skinny Liner and applied another recent purchase of mine, Make Up For Ever Smokey Lash Mascara, which I don't think does anything too spectacular. Just lengthens and adds a touch of volume, nothing as much as Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill or Max Factor Mascaras. 

Lips

- Of course, what did you expect, Chantecaille Brilliant Gloss in Lucky! I'm almost out of this stuff which would mean a huge record for me, the first lip gloss I've ever finished!

Hope you're having a great week!

My Makeup: Waterproof Face

Makeup in the heat is not something that goes down well with me, it almost always ends up slipping and sliding around which as you can imagine, is not the look I'm going for. This summer I've really been on the hunt for sweat and waterproof products that I don't need to constantly be checking up if they are still on my face or not! My Top 10 products that survive the heat are all here, some of which feature on my face above. Of course during my holiday I'm much too relaxed to apply this all everyday, but should I need to I know these products don't fail me!

Skin

- Just a bit of skin tone evening with a mixture of Estee Lauder Long Wear Concealer under my eyes and Make Up For Ever Waterproof Concealer on any blemishes

- Hourglass Waterproof Bronzer to bronze up my face a little and along my cheeks

Eyes

- Bobbi Brown Long Wear Cream Eyeshadow in 4 Sandy Gold all over my lid with Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadow in 2L patted into my crease with MaxFactor False Lash Effect Waterproof Mascara

Do you still apply some makeup on holiday or are you brave enough to go bare faced?

My Makeup: Minimal Summer Face

All this hot weather has caused me to be a little lazy with my routine, tut tut I know, but for now I've only been doing the absolute minimal. I don't even count this as a full face there's that little products used, but I have officially rediscovered a foundation in my collection that's perfect for lazy girls like myself...

Skin

- Seeing as this was evening I opted for a light layer of foundation, my latest lazy girl purhcase Dior  DiorSkin Airflash Foundation which I can just spray on and not have to worry about applying and blending! Expect a review to come but for now it's been an absolute dream, I think it takes me a total of 5 seconds to apply foundation! That is then followed by followed by a touch of concealing with Estee Lauder Double Wear SPF 15 around my nose, chin and anywhere else I get a little red

- If I do wear blush I've been opting for a cream formula, something light that won't slip off my face. Here was an end of the day shot so I opted for powder, a recent purchase, Mac Style, which is a very prominent peach

Eyes

- Just lashings of Lancome Hypnose Star (post here) and if I'm feeling a little less lazy, I'll dab a bit of Mac Naked Lunch Eyeshadow in my inner tearduct for some brightening

Lips

- One of my favourite lip glosses, of which I'm almost out of! Chantecaille Brilliant Gloss in Lucky (post here)

Have you been cutting down on products in the summer?

My Makeup: The Summertime Face

I've been reaching for different products in this heat over the past week, my beloved tinted moisturiser, some long lasting concealer that's slightly more coverage and a beautiful eyeshadow palette I've raved about a hundred and one times. Something really strange happened this week - I didn't reach for blush. I think that's partly because I've been slapping on more highlighter than usual and trying to embrace some summer glow. Don't worry I haven't totally ditched powder, that still goes down the centre of my face where I get a little shinier. I've also rediscovered one of my all time favourite lip glosses, as there's no way I can carry around a lipstick in this heat, it would just melt away!

Skin

- To avoid having a makeup meltdown I've been applying some primer, my sister has ran away with my beloved Estee Lauder Matt Perfecting Primer so I've been using another favourite, Insitut Estederm Pure System Shine Control Fluid (post here)

- I've then reached for my favourite tinted moisturiser with slightly more coverage, Chantecaille Just Skin in the shade glow with some Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer around my nose, under my eyes and on any redness with a quick dusting of Bare Minerals Matte Powder down the centre of my face 

- For cheeks I've been applying some Une Healthy Glow Mineral Powder in H07 with some Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in a new shade, Moonstone, but more on this at a later date!

Eyes

- I've been applying some gold shimmer shades from the Estee Lauder Bronze Sands Palette followed by some L'Oreal and lashings of Lancome Hypnose Star (post here)

Lips

- Fallen back in love with Chantecaille Brilliant Gloss in Lucky (post here) It's the perfect summer shade!

What have you been loving this week?