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Thursday 30 August 2012

Rouge d'Armani Lasting Satin Lip Color in Rouge 400



In my last post I mentioned this lipstick that I recently got and I got a request from Rebecca from P0larmilk (CHECK HER OUT) to show what it looks like on. 

In the tube (is it a tube?! no) it looks as though it is leaning more towards a deep red but once on it really looks different depending on the light. I took the photos below in my bathroom where the light is pretty artificial and as you can see it looks like a berry pink/red colour.
That pretty much sums up the colour: it is a red with pink/berry undertones. (Great for making one's teeth look whiter!)

I find that the more pinky lipsticks suit me best so the fact that this is berry toned is a good thing in my books.

ONTO THE TEXTURE!
This is a satin first of all, so it is not as drying as a matte but not as sheer and shiny as something a bit lighter and more hydrating.
The thing that is great about this is that you can wear it as a full on lipstick colour like I did, or you can wear it as a stain because the lasting power on this bad boy is seriously off the hook.

I went out for lunch today and when I came back it was still very visible. Obviously it wasn't quite as strong but it honestly sticks on like a stain.

As I said in the last post, the closure is magnetic. I need say no more.



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Wednesday 29 August 2012

HAUL!



Today's post is about an order I made a few months ago when I was home in Paris and I only actually just received recently.
I haven't properly tried any of these products yet so this post will just be showing you what it was I got, and what it all looks like.

First off, I got a YSL Glossy Stain in #7, which is in a peachy/apricot colour. I got this because I already own one in a berry colour and I absolutely love how comfortable it is to wear and how long-lasting it is. I also find that it is extremely versatile as you can wear it as a stain, or as more of a long lasting, pigmented gloss.


I also got my two first-ever Armani products and I am already impressed. The packaging is just the epitome of ELEGANT and 'chic' (vom). You would have to actually see it and feel it to understand what I mean.
The first product is the Armani Eyes To Kill mascara, which I saw on Meg's blog a while back and just thought looked so stunning on her. It is a mascara that gives length and volume (hallelujah- aren't you just sick of mascaras that give you one OR the other?) and the packaging is absolutely stunning. It might not look like much on camera but in real life it is SOMETHING ELSE.


The next Armani product is a lipstick: the Rouge d'Armani Lasting Satin Lip Color in Rouge 400.
I tried this on the second I got it and when I tried to take it off a few hours later I couldn't. It really is a long lasting lipstick.
The texture is gorgeous and smooth, the pigmentation is excellent and the colour is just beautiful. It also has a magnetic closure which is so satisfying.
The colour is a kind of pinky red, which I personally really love.


Then I also got two new Essie polishes, one which is more popular and the other is a bit more obscure in the nail polish world.
The shades are: Ballet Slippers (left) & Beach Bum Blu (right).
I don't have any shades like either so that is why I chose them. Beach Bum Blu is kind of dimension-y and shiny so I thought it looked kind of cool and different.


Lastly I got some conditioner and it's the Redken Blonde Glam one. So basically I am blonde and I needed a conditioner. That is all!


Thanks for reading!

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Friday 24 August 2012

OOTE - Black & Neon

A quick one!
I am just off for a casual meal with the family.

I am wearing:
-A black Zara jacket. (click here to see it in a post)
-A white and neon yellow top from Maje.
-My new black leggings from Zara. (Click here to see recent post)
-My new Cos boots. (click here)


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Cos Nubuck Panel Boots

I pinned these on Pinterest (the name is raspberphobia if you fancy following me) a while ago and when I saw them in store in Paris yesterday, I became a bit obsessed and HAD to get them.

These are the Nubuck Panel Boots from Cos. As you can see, they are leather and suede, black, chunky heeled boots.
They cost €150. or £135 which I thought was quite cheap for a pair of heeled Cos shoes but maybe that's just me?

I absolutely love Cos because it does simplicity so well: good quality & good shapes, all for reasonable prices.

I felt the need to do a separate post on these because they are the perfect Autumn boots I have been looking for.

Obsessed.



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Sunday 19 August 2012

Recent Purchases - UPDATED

I have been shopping AGAIN. Do not judge me.

 Brand: American Vintage
Price: €57 with 40% off.

This is a lightweight, cotton, charcoal grey long t-shirt dress that I found in a small boutique shop in France which holds different brands. I like American Vintage (is this a french thing?) because the clothes are always a really lovely quality without a hefty price tag. I definitely didn't need this, but I thought it would just be a great, good quality staple for my wardrobe.

Brand: Converse
Price: €45

So I got these the day me and my mom were about to have my cat put down and we needed a bit of cheering up. I already have a pair of white, leather Converse so really I just got a pair because I wanted them and I was feeling a bit sorry for myself.

        
Brand: Zara
Price: €79.99

Oh my goodness. I have been looking around for a leather tote and when I saw this one, I thought it was perfect. It is real leather (gotta get the real deal), really plain, apart from the zip details, and will just be perfect for university. You can either carry it like a tote, or use the longer strap and have the bag folded over.

Brand: Zara
Price: €19.99 down from €35.99

I saw this, it was the last one, it was my size, I fell in love. (Yes, I am an English Literature student and I just wrote that awful sentence- thanks 50 Shades of Grey). This is a beautiful floor length, sheer, black dress with gorgeous lace detailing. It has an opaque black skirt so I ain't showing the world my knic-knocks, and honestly, it is perfection. It is so flattering and just absolutely stunning.

Brand: Zara
Price: €9.99 from €25.99

I don't really OWN any 'going-out' dresses or anything 'bodycon' because I usually hate that kind of thing. However, when I saw this it ticked all the boxes for me because I think it is quite versatile. It has a open back, cut out detail and I think the print makes it quite interesting. I think it COULD look totally tacky and cheap if worn in a certain way but I am hoping I could make it work for me.

Brand: Zara
Price: €5.99 from €15.99

This is really plain, and really boring. I know. BUT! I needed something like to wear under things like the dress above. It has a low back, and I just think this is going to come in handy.

That is all...for now.

OH! No it's not!

Brand: Zara
Price: €15.99 from €35.99

There was only one of these left and was luckily in a size S. This is in a bright, neon yellow colour and I think it will look really cute with SNEAKERS. (Tennis player style)

Brand: Zara
Price: €19.99

I am not a leggings type of person (that sounds like a dig at legging wearers), but I just find they usually look pretty unflattering. However, these ones are high waisted, quite thick and the pockets SOMEHOW make them more flattering on me. I just thought they would be really comfy for travelling and are quite easy to wear.

Brand: Zara
Price: ARGH NOT SURE! About €1-€2

I know, socks are not super duper interesting BUT I DO HAVE A THING FOR FRILLY SOCKS.


I promise that is all.


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Friday 17 August 2012

Ode To Phoebe

Today is a sad day!
My 12 year old cat is being put down.

I feel the need to serenade her in some sort of way.

Her story: 
I got her 12 years ago when I was 9, we were her second owners because she had been with a neglectful family. She started off as a bit of a nervous cat and had a lot of problems with her skin scabbing over probably due to her nervous condition. Five years ago, when I was living in California, she developed a sarcoma on her hip bone and had to have one of her back legs removed. 

Since that happened, she became a lot more confident and had a new joie-de-vivre. (SHE WAS A SURVIVOR- queue Destiny's Child).

In December, we found a lump on her back. The vet guestimated she had about three months to live. 
Eight months later, she has become increasingly ill, is constantly hungry and uncomfortable and so we have decided it is time to say adieu.

PHOEBE. YOU WILL SORELY BE MISSED.
(our doggy Fizz is going to be truly upset)

Thursday 16 August 2012

FOTD - 16/8/12

HEY Y'ALL.
So I have got a little face of the day post for you today.

What I have on is:
-The Eyelure eyebrow pencil in the blonde shade.
-NARS Kuala Lumpur (the peach shade) eyeshadow.
-No7 Black Pencil eyeliner.
-MaxFactor 2000 Calorie mascara.
-Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum.
-Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer.
-UNE Skin Glow pencil on my waterline.
-The Body Shop Baked Bronzer in 02.
-Mac lipstick in Nicki. (I did a post on that, click here to take a little look!)

PLEASE DON'T TAKE THIS ONE TOO SERIOUSLY.


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Sunday 12 August 2012

My Favourite Blushers

 

Grotty looking, huh?

These are my five favourite blushers (at the moment) - my absolute favourite being NARS Luster, which I have done a post on before (click here for that).

I will just run you through each one and tell you what I think of them:

Cargo Cheek Activator in Rose Flush: I actually got this for super cheap on sale in Boots one day. I knew absolutely nothing about it but I have always loved any Cargo products I have been bought in the past. This comes out as a white cream but once you apply it, it turns into this beautiful rose colour. It looks very natural and I love cream blushers because they look like part of your skin. 

No7 Vital Brights Cream Blush in Blossoming Pink: This is such a bright pink that you only need a tiny amount of it, but I think the colour is actually very flattering for really brightening up your complexion. I am very pale and think this would look great on any skin tone. (click here for a post on this).

Paul & Joe Face Color in 001: First of all.... THAT PACKAGING! Out of this world. This is a proper baby pink colour which made me a bit scared when I first got it but I think this is gorgeous when combined with black liquid eyeliner for some reason. I find myself reaching for this quite often nowadays.  It does have quite a bit of glitter in it but because it is fine, I don't mind. I don't mind looking a bit shimmery. (click here for the post on this blush!)

NARS Deep Throat: I really was not sure about this when I first got it, I thought it was too pink to suit me for some reason. But actually, I think this peachy coloured blusher is really easy to wear and very flattering. It has the gorgeous gold shimmer that most NARS products seem to have and I just find myself loving this blusher more and more. (click here for the post on this).

NARS Luster: HOLY GRAIL PRODUCT SAY WHAT! This apricot coloured blush is just amazing, especially for pale mofos like myself. I just think it is the most flattering blush for pale girls, ever. As soon as I hit pan on this, I will be getting a new one. (click here)

Left to right (aka bottom to top!): Cargo Cheek Activator, No7 Vital Brights, Paul & Joe 001,
NARS Deep Throat, NARS Luster.

What are you favourite blushers?


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Sunday 5 August 2012

FOTD: Fake Freckles

Be warned. You might want to laugh at me.

I have always loved freckles since I was a little girl and I felt like confusing some of my family members today by faking freckles (I have far too much spare time at the moment).

If you want to know their reaction...they all laughed at me.
Oh well, I tried... and I think they look pretty realistic!

Basically I just applied my foundation as normal (Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 51), filled in my eyebrows and then used my eyebrow pencil (Eylure Shape and Shade in Medium to Light Blonde) to draw on some freckles. I did this by lightly pressing and twisting the pencil onto my skin and then patting it in so it blended out a bit. I tried to create little clusters and make them a bit uneven so it looked more natural.

After that I just put on a bit of pressed powder and bronzer as per usual, added a bit of my L'Oreal Rouge Caresse lipstick in Tempting Lilac ET VOILA!

I only left the house once to go on a walk so I kept the freckles on. 
I. Am. Ridiculous.






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Friday 3 August 2012

An Opinion: On '50 Shades Of Grey'


People seem to be either loving or hating this book, and I am completely on the fence about. Yes, I did read the whole book and yes I have ordered the next two on Amazon. However, I don't actually know why. I despise the two main characters: Christian Grey, for his unapologetically cocky and superficial way of being, and Anastasia Steele for being so naive, sickly sweet and completely and utterly cringe-worthy. The reality is I don't think there is anything particularly captivating, relatable or realistic about either one of these characters. I feel like the only reason this book is receiving any attention is because women love the idea of Christian Grey, as the wealthy, attractive womaniser he is. I personally find his character completely unrealistic and almost ridiculous because he is such a caricature of himself.

The book tries to convey the idea that both of these characters are mysterious and complex, yet both their backgrounds and stories are completely predictable, which eliminates any possible notion of surprise within the novel. We know that Christian Grey must have had a slightly imperfect upbringing, hence why he refuses to be 'touched' and we can tell from the beginning that Ana is going to be a virgin. None of this comes as a surprise and as I read the 'novel', I kept expecting something shocking or interesting to happen. But it never did.

The 'sex' in the book is unauthentic, embarrassing to read and I think for readers in 2012 it really should not be drawing so much attention. Sex is a natural thing and so I found that reading a book with a few 'kinky' sex scenes in it was nothing controversial.

The only thing that truly shocked me about this book is how badly written it is. The overuse of certain expressions and words was truly nauseating and just embarrassing to read. Some examples of this are:
'ghost of a smile'
'jeez'
'holy cow'
'Kate!'
'Fuck!'
Another problem with this book is the fact that the author clearly has no idea as to what a subconscious actually is. Throughout the story, Ana's subconscious is speaking to her as if it is her brain speaking, and Ana's conscious thoughts are the heart. The subconscious and conscious thoughts are both constantly in dialogue with each other. Anyone with any idea as to what a subconscious really is, would realise that this is by no means how our conscious/subconscious thoughts work. 

The book comes across as sexist as Christian Grey 'the Dominant' gives Ana 'the Submissive' a list of rules of what she can and cannot do. The problem with this is that it mimics real relationships between women and men in different societies all over the world and so the idea of a woman being dominated by a man comes across as backwards and sexist.

Overall, I hate this novel for what it represents and what it says about society today. It demonstrates no progression in the conflict of gender roles, although there are attempts to portray Ana as independent and strong, yet these are counteracted and diminished by the fact that her life is taken over by a dominating man.

The only reason I shall continue to read the rest of the trilogy (although I am ashamed to actually have purchased these books) is to be able to comment on the hype and laugh at the author's embarrassing narration. It is almost one of those things that is so awful, that it's great.

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Top 5 Foundations


Despite being enamoured by my YSL Touche Eclat foundation at the moment I thought I would share with you my top 5 foundations. I tend to prefer liquid or cream foundations rather than powder but this post does feature a mineral powder that I absolutely love.

1 2 3 Perfect by Bourjois (Shade 51)
I have written about this foundation before, it is supposed to have three different coloured pigments to help conceal dullness/dark circles/redness in the skin and overall I think this one does a good job of evening out my skin tone. I like to use this one when I have a breakout or my skin tone is looking particularly uneven.

Healthy Mix Serum by Bourjois (Shade 51)
Another Bourjois foundation and this one is great for achieving a dewy finish. I do find the range of colours is pretty limited though, so I can only really use this one when I am slightly more 'tan' (I don't really tan, I'm a pale girl). I love this one though just for the lovely gel texture and the nice radiant effect it has on my skin.

YSL Touche Eclat Foundation (Shade BD40)
This is my new ultimate favourite foundation. I absolutely love how dewy this makes my skin look, and I like a bit of shine on the face because my skin tends to be dry and can look a bit dull. I don't think you even need highlighter when you wear this foundation simply because it is so shiny (in a lovely, natural way). It goes on really smoothly, the colour choice is great and it is only £28 which is really reasonable for a high end foundation in such lovely glass packaging.

Lily Lolo Mineral Powder (Shade Porcelain)
This is my first ever mineral powder foundation and I love it because it is so pale which is exactly what I need when I haven't seen the sun in a while. I like to use this over a BB cream and I find it just gives a really natural effect on the skin and just enough coverage. I like to use this one on days when my skin already looks pretty good so I don't need too much coverage.

Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation (Shade 100 Ivory)
By now you'll know I have dry skin and I love a dewy glow. This foundation is great because it offers pretty decent coverage but it is dewy at the same time. This is more of a thick-ish, creamy foundation, compared to the previous foundations mentioned, so I find it is great for covering up any imperfections whilst keeping my skin looking radiant. I love the smell of this too, it smells of cucumber which is lovely in the morning!

What are you favourites?


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Wednesday 1 August 2012

Oops. I Went Shopping.

I went back to San Sebastian in Spain this week with my family and got a few pieces of clothing considering it's the end of the sales.

I had been looking for a pair of black trousers for ages so when I found this pair (the last pair happened to be my size) in Massimo Dutti, I was pretty pleased. The fit is lovely and they fit me perfectly so I am really glad I came across this pair. I really like the faux leather detail on these - it just makes them that little bit more interesting.
Also when we got to the till they turned out to be down to €15, which is MAD cheap.


The next thing I got is from Zara and it's this cardigan/jacket which is in a cream colour and is super soft. I just though this would be nice to pull on when I am wearing my new black jeans with a plain top.


The next thing I got is also from Zara and it's these shorts which are in an off-white colour and have rose gold hardware on them. They are made of a pretty strange plastic-y type material which I kind of like. Most of my shorts are high waisted so I wanted a pair that are just easy to pull with a bikini or any top, because they go with pretty much anything.


And that is all! I will be going back to Spain (my holiday house is about 20/30 mins away from San Sebastian) soon so I am sure I will be picking up some more bits and bobs. (My excuse is that I am helping out their economy).

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