October Favourites.

Hello everyone.

It’s that time of the month again, the monthly favourites article is here. Before I tell you about my favourites I’d just want to say it’s November already… Where has this year gone?

Right, here are my ‘October Favourites‘! Some of you will recognize old favourites…

– YSL Le Teint Touche Éclat foundation. Still my favourite foundation, even more so now that it’s getting colder. I’ve got a review here if you want to know more.

– M.A.C. Eye Brows in Brunette. Brunette is a new eyebrow colour, it came out with the Carine Roitfeld for M.A.C. Collection in October. I like using it on days where I try to fill my eyebrows in without having them quite as dark as they are when I use the colour Spiked. You can still buy Brunette now but for those who were wondering, it will be added to the permanent line in January 2013.

– M.A.C. Desert eyeshadow. I have never been one to wear eyeshadow, but I have been wearing the Desert eyeshadow from the M.A.C. Carine Roitfeld Collection, Desert Camouflage Full Face Kit. Desert is a shimmering warm taupe colour with a Satin finish, this is the sort of colour I like. See swatches here.

– Benefit BADgal Brown Mascara. This one was in my last monthly favourites, it’s just a simple brown mascara, it helps define and hold my lashes without making them too dramatic. I probably use it everyday.

– Soleil Tan de CHANEL Bronze Universel Bronzing Makeup Base. Yes, again. It’s there every month since I bought it. I love it for contouring and bronzing, I don’t think I’m interested in finding something to replace it. It’s just amazing.

– SOLEIL TAN DE CHANEL Sheer Illuminating Fluid in Sunkissed. A new favourite of my, very nice applied to the cheekbones, it’s a subtle highlighting product and I don’t go a day without using it. I’ve wrote a review, have a read here.

– CHANEL ROUGE ALLURE VELVET Luminous Matte Lipcolour in L’exquise. A nice dark plum colour, perfect for this season. I wear a sheer layer of it in the day and layer it up in the evening for a more dramatic look.

– Essie Skirting the Issue. I love Essie polishes, especially the drugstore ones, I think they have very nice brushes. Skirting the Issue is part of the Essie Stylenomics Collection for Fall 2012. It’s a very dark blood red, very suitable for this season and goes very well with a multitude of outfits. The only downside is that it is very hard to get an even finish because this isn’t an opaque colour.

And that’s all of them. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my ‘October Favourites‘.

What have you been loving in October?

Juliette

 

Carine Roitfeld for M.A.C.

Hello everyone.

I am very excited to be writing this article! As I mentioned in a previous post, I was looking forward to the M.A.C. Carine Roitfeld Collection (which is due to come out this week in the UK). I went in a M.A.C. store last saturday, hoping to see both the Camouflage Full Face Kits to try to decide which one (Desert or Jungle) to buy when the collection comes out. Well not only did I get to see the entire collection but I also did get to buy, yes, to buy what I wanted early! All that thanks to a lovely M.A.C. makeup artist.

Whilst they are some pictures and swatches available online (mainly from the US), I’m glad to be one of the first UK bloggers to review the Desert Camouflage Full Face Kit.

The packaging is absolutely gorgeous, it’s a square black box with a matte finish with Carine Roitfeld‘s initials and M.A.C. written in a glossy black paint. The box is heavy and feels very well made, it feels, dare I say, ‘expensive‘.

When you open it, it reveals a mirror on the top part and four Eye Shadows. I generally dislike mirrors built in palette as many are cheaply made and distorted, well I like this one although I will probably never use it. Slide the eye shadow section to the side and you’ll find the Cremeblend Blush.

What’s included in this kit? What do I use the products for?

The Eye Shadows:

– Top left : Sahara Dust, a light neutral beige with a Satin finish. I like using it in the inner corner of my eyes.

– Top right : Cactus Thorn, a mid tone brown bronze with a Frost finish. I use this one all over my lid and a little bit under my bottom lashes.

– Bottom left : Desert, a shimmering warm taupe with a Satin finish. I use it like Cactus Thorn, obviously, one or the other.

– Bottom right : Carbon, an intense black with a Matte finish. This colour is part of the permanent eye shadow line. I use it in the outer part of my lid.

I do like all of the eye shadows in this palette, they all have great formulation and are heavily pigmented. If I had to pick a favourite one out of the four, it would be Desert, I do really like taupe colours. I only think it’s a shame to have included Carbon, especially since  it actually is in both the Camouflage Full face Kits.

The Cremeblend Blush:

– Sand Storm is a soft sheer warm caramel, it reminds me of my Soleil Tan de Chanel Bronze Universel Makeup Base in colour but it is much sheerer and more orange. When I first opened the box, it was immaculate but now I’ve used it a couple of times, there is some condensation on the blush, I don’t mind it, just thought I’d let you know about it.

Here are heavy swatches of the eye shadows on my fingers, left to right : Sahara Dust, Cactus Thorn, Desert and Carbon.

Now for a swatch of Sand Storm inside my wrist. I applied quite a bit of product and blended it out a little bit.

I love this palette, I am happy with the quality of the products and of the packaging. I will use all of the shadows and the blush. I love the one I have my only regret is that I didn’t pick the other one too… Might have to go back.

The Full Face Kits retail for £37 each. The entire collection is available online now and on 4th October in M.A.C. stores.

Are you picking up anything for this collection?

Juliette

September Favourites.

Hello everyone.

It’s that time of the month again! I can’t believe how quickly September flew by, October already, Christmas is just around the corner.

So… What have I been loving this month?

I’ve been using the Estée Lauder DayWear Advanced Multi-Protection Anti-Oxidant Creme for years and it’s never let me down. The brand has a new DayWear moisturizer (which replaced the one I was using), and so I bought it when I almost ran out last August. I am glad to report that I love the new version, at least as much as the previous one, I was worried it would be too different from the one I’ve used for ever. I’ll write a short article about them.

Whilst I’m talking about moisturizers, I’ve been loving using the La Roche-Posay Lipikar Lait body moisturizer. I just apply it in the morning after the shower and let it dry for a couple of minutes before getting dressed. It is lovely on the skin and reply helps with dry patches I may have. I will be moving to the body balm version of this product (which is a lot richer) when winter comes as it is very moisturizing. I bought mine in a Parisian parapharmacie but you can get yours here.

I still absolutely adore my YSL Le Teint Touche Éclat, even more so now that I have the colour BD40 that I mix with BD50 to get the perfect colour match. I wore this foundation a little longer than thirteen hours and didn’t need to touch up and it did still look very good when I took it off, very impressive. I actually wrote an article on this product.

I have been loving using my Sigma F60 brush to apply the YSL foundation. It’s just a classic foundation brush really, it does the job it’s suppose to do and I get the right amount of coverage when I use it.

If I need to hide some dark spots or blemishes with concealer, I use my Detailer Brush which came in the Real Techniques Core Collection kit by Samantha Chapman. It’s quite small so it ideal for precision work. Real Techniques brushes are available at Boots.

I am gone contouring and bronzer mad this past summer and I just can’t get enough of the Soleil Tan de Chanel Bronze Universel Makeup Base. I absolutely love it, it works so well with my skin tone. I use it every single day, to the point that I skip blush now.

I have very long and full lashes so I don’t tend to too much mascara as it makes my eyes look very dramatic and I’m more into subtle makeup. If I wear mascara, I prefer brown and one I have been loving is the Benefit BADgal brown mascara. It just gives more definition to my lashes and that is all I need really.

I don’t really worry about blemishes anymore, and if I get any I just apply a bit of the Avène Cleanance K Cream-Gel on the spot before bed and it would be gone the next morning (two nights for more persistent blemishes). I have recommended this product to a couple of friends and family members, every single one of them came back to me saying how impressed they were with the product. Just be aware that it might sting a bit. It’s available at Boots.

I’ve also been enjoying my weekly application of GlamGlow Tingling & Exfoliating Mud Mask, it is a very pricey mask but I can safely say that I will repurchase it when I run out of it, not that I can see this happening any time soon. Read my review here fore more details.

I made a series of articles titled ‘Autumn Nails‘ and whilst I liked most of the polishes I absolutely loved wearing O.P.I. Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok Fine! nail polish. I love this dark olive polish, plus it has an amazing formula. I’ve reviewed it here.

What have you been loving this September?

Juliette

Autumn Nails – The Wellies.

Hello everyone.

Today’s article in the third in my ‘Autumn Nails’ series. After ‘The Naked Texan‘ and ‘Dead Leaves‘, I present you ‘The Wellies‘.

I was looking at the nail polishes from O.P.I.Germany Collection for Fall 2012 and thought I’d try one of the colours. Brace yourself ladies, this is quite a ridiculous name, Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok Fine! is described as a black olive. I think it I’d agree with this, though, under some lights it looks like a very dark grey.

Like all the previous O.P.I. polishes I’ve tried, it was pretty easy to apply, I mean the formula and the brush are impeccable.

Like with the other polishes, I have to apologise but I find it impossible to get an accurate picture with the camera I use. This time I thought I’d put two pictures up so you can see two different captures I managed to get of this nail polish. The real life colour is a lot closer to the one on the second picture but both photographs seem to have totally removed any traces of grey in the polish.

As usual, I applied one coat of O.P.I. Original Nail Envy, followed by two coats of the polish and one coat of Seche Vite.

I love the colour and how it looks against my skin tone. I can imagine it would work with most skin tones and look fantastic on both fingernails and toenails. It’s a great twist on the classic black polish.

Have a look at the rest of the O.P.I. Germany Collection here. Pick up a set of four Ger-Minis here or a full size bottle of Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok Fine! here.

Juliette

Autumn Nails – Dead Leaves.

Hello Everyone.

This is the second article in the ‘Autumn Nails’ series, you can read the first one ‘The Naked Texan‘ here. Let’s talk about O.P.I. Java Mauve-A.

I find this nail polish very hard to describe. Is it a brown? A pink? An orange? Or a mauve like its name suggests? I say, it reminds me of the colour of autumn leaves (picture below), it is a brown/pink/orange/mauve. Very appropriate for the the season.

Picture from here.

The colour is modern and goes with everything. I personally like wearing it on slightly shorter nails, it is very sophisticated.. I love this colour on my fingernails, so much so that I’m actually wearing it on my toes too.

On the picture below I wear one coat of O.P.I. Original Nail Envy, two coats of the polish and on coat of Seche Vite. I have to mention that the first coat was a little streaky, the polish evened itself out with the second coat though. The colour on the photograph is close to the real life colour.

So far, this is my favourite polish, I absolutely love it.

Get yours here.

Juliette

Looking forward to – M.A.C. Carine Roitfeld Collection

Hello everyone.

This is a quick post about a collection I am really looking forward to. I can’t wait for the M.A.C. & Carine Roitfeld Collection for Fall 2012 to come out in October!

For those of you how haven’t heard of Carine Roitfeld, she was Vogue Paris’ editor in chief from 2001 until 2011. She has a very distinctive style and while some find that her signature smokey eyes give make her look tired, others think she has the best smokey eyes out there. I personally like her makeup very much, bare skin, smokey eyes and sheer nude lips ; all that hidden behind her hair.

 

While many products are in the permanent collection, a few are obviously limited  edition and these are the ones I have my eyes on.

Two kits will be available and I can’t decide which one to go for :

Jungle Camouflage Full Face Kit or Desert Camouflage Full Face Kit

I’m also quite curious as to how the Eye Browns pencil in Brunette (Grey brown) turns out, I love Spike but I’m always happy to try new brow stuff.

Details of the full collection can be found here.

Are you as excited as I am?

Juliette

Autumn Nails – The Naked Texan.

Hello everyone.

With autumn just around the corner, I’ve been gathering a few nail polishes for the new season, old and new releases. So, this is the first article in a series of autumn nail colours.

First stop is O.P.I. San Tan-Tonio, it was released as part of the Texas Collection for Spring/Summer 2011. It is described as a ‘honey of a ten-gallon tan!’, I say it’s a sandy nude polish.

It is almost opaque after the first coat but I would most definitely say it’s a two coater.

I think the colour would look amazing on you if your skin tone is fair, light-medium and medium. Any darker and I fear it might not be flattering on the nails. I personally just about like it, I think if my hands were any darker, I wouldn’t wear it.

I apologize for the picture, but I only have a standard camera and so it is quite hard to get a good picture. Looking at my nails right now, San Tan-Tonio is less glossy, darker and I’d even add a little more khaki than on the photograph.

To get this finish I applied one coat of O.P.I Original Nail Envy, two coats of the polish and one coat of Seche Vite on the top.

Get yours here.

What do you think?

Juliette.

My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming Planets.

Hello everyone.

I just managed to get a few minutes to myself on a very busy day and so I thought I’d write a quick article about a new addiction on my dressing table. And no, it isn’t a planet from our solar system, just a new blush.

Heavenly Creatures was a M.A.C. collection for fall 2012. I’m always the last one to make up my mind on what I want to get and so I’m always left with very limited choice (which makes it simple I suppose). I wanted to get a a blush and while the collection had four (Solar Ray, Supernova, Stratus and Ring of Saturn) I only had the choice between Stratus (amethyst and gold brown, frost) and Ring of Saturn (terracotta and gold, frost). I thought Stratus looked a bit purple in the pan so went for Ring of Saturn instead.

Here is my review of M.A.C. Heavenly Creatures Mineralize Blush in Ring of Saturn.

I mentioned in my ‘Late-August/not-quite-September-yet purchases‘ article that I bought it online and that I thought the blush looked more like Stratus than Ring of Saturn. I looked into, I did get the right one (wouldn’t expect Debenhams to sell fake M.A.C. products anyway), it just looks darker than I remembered it. As a bonus I received two samples, a L’Occitane Shea Butter hand cream and four shades of the new Urban Decay Naked Skin foundation.

It is quite hard to describe but I’d say it’s a pale pink with a golden shimmer with swirls of raspberry and golden shimmer colour. The colour in the picture below isn’t accurate, I’d say it looks a look more pink than in real life and it doesn’t show how shimmery it actually is either.

It swatches like a golden coral on my finger but then applied a lot darker on my cheeks, it was a terracotta. While there is shimmer in the product, I can barely see any on my face and it actually look a lot like the natural blush of my cheeks, just more intense. It was a bit too much for me so I had to blend it a lot, I personally like my blushes to look subtle and natural but if you are one to wear bright colours then this is worth a try. I think this will suit light-medium to medium dark skin tones better but again, it is a question of preferences.

Like other M.A.C. blushes, it came in a classic black packaging. I wore it all day and could still notice it after a few hours.

I don’t have any complaints really. M.A.C. blushes are pretty fantastic and this one is no exception. Only trouble is that MAC collections sell out pretty quickly and so I don’t think it’ll be very easy to get your hands on one of them now, although some online stores may still have some colours left. Debenhams has this blush in the colour Stratus left, you can pick it up here.

Do you own any M.A.C. blushes? Which one is your favourite?

Juliette