Paul & Joe: Mesmerize, RPM and Boulevard

I had noticed that ASOS had the Paul & Joe Mesmerise palette on sale for £11, naturally I couldn't resist. The palette contains a very sheer glittery lilac, a mauved brown and a deep slightly blue toned charcoal. I'd say they were neutral to cool. I don't think they are necessarily stand out shades but it gives a nice easy to wear look, as below,

I got a single Shadow in shade Boulevard, this was also on sale and looks like its gone down in price even further since I got my order. The shadow texture is very soft so please bear in mind that it has come out a lot more intense on my swatch (I just use my finger to swatch) than when I apply it on the eye. I think this is quite a difficult to describe shade, its like a sheer shimmered beige with pink and gold tones.
Lastly I got RPM lipstick which was not on sale (£14). The is a neutral pinky rose,with a slight bit of beige. To be honest I probably have a load of similar shades but I always gravitate towards the same colours. The formula is quite comfortable to wear, not overly creamy nor drying, the cardboard packaging, whilst really cute I don't think I'd risk putting this in my handbag as it may get damaged.
Swatches L-R:Mesmerize, Boulevard, RPM lipstick (Please click to enlarge)

I had heard a lot of negative things about ordering from ASOS, this is the first time I ordered from them and although it wasn't that well packaged it did come quickly ( even though I selected the super saver option).

NARS Spring D. Gorgeous shadow and Cruising lipstick

NARS always tempts me, their eyeshadows that have been released since fall 2007 are a lot better I would say ( before that I found the texture and wear not so good). D. Gorgeous is a single shadow from the spring 2010 collection, the description is spot on as its a matte sheer dusty lilac (costs £15). Its quite smooth and is applies as in the pan,I can see this one getting overlooked though as its quite a demure shade compared with the majority of the spring collection. A lot of lilacs can go on a bit too pastel and stark looking but this one is very natural.
I used to have a load of NARS lipsticks as they have some beautiful colours but although they all had a slight crayon scent to begin with it just got worse and they all ended up smelling rancid. I had heard the formula has been changed so bought Cruising (£17). I'm glad to say I don't detect a crayon smell to this one so hoping it will stay that way! The shade is a neutral extremely easy to wear subtle pink nude. This is in the semi-matte category but on me I would say the finish looks more satin than matte.

I did really want the nail varnish but it wasn't instock when I ordered (think I jumped the gun a bit as ordered as soon as some of the products appeared on the site). I really like these two items, I bought one of the new mascaras as well but I'm going to try that out more before doing my review. I ordered from the NARS UK website which is a first for me and it came quickly, packaged well and I got a free mini lipgloss, so no complaints there.

Lancome Pop Petrol

I don't tend to bother with Lancome but since Aaron De Mey joined them, their collections have looked more interesting. As soon as I saw the nail varnish in pop petrol (part of the spring O My Rose 2010 collection) I knew I had to have it. I was slightly dismayed when I got it home that my one did not look as vibrant or shimmery as the tester in store. Its a really nice shimmered dark forest green, the formula is thick and the brush is quite wide and I only needed too coats, but I do start to get chipping after two days.
It is pretty but just a bit more dull compared to the one in store. I wanted to get their kohl pencil liner in pop petrol as well but the lady in Boots said that was the one item that sold out straight away so of course I shall be heading to John Lewis to see if they have it there as it surely must be great if its sold out....right ?

TAG: Getting to know you / 7 random things

I was tagged by sweet Anna from http://italianbeautyblog.blogspot.com/

Here goes for some rip-roaring facts about me :)

1.I have a purple car

2.I adore Kinder chocolate (I’ve been known to eat my way through 2 boxes of the individual wrapped 8 bar packs in one sitting quite happily)

3.I’m 5 foot 10 inches tall

4.I’ve not been to the cinema in over 6 years!

5.I’ve conceded that I no longer can fit in a size 12 at Topshop (is it me or are their sizes smaller than other stores or am I being delusional ?)

6.I’m a constant worrier, I tend to think the worse and then run with it!

7. I told myself this year I would cut down on my cosmetic spending, this resolution has worked wonders, as I worked out that I have spent more this month than normal, its like when I tell myself I need to eat more healthy and then find myself standing in boots on my lunch break with chocolate in hand….

I tag
http://sparklzandshine.blogspot.com/
http://pinksparkle84.blogspot.com/
http://myhumblereviews.blogspot.com/
http://www.mizzworthy.com/
http://www.beautyscribbler.com/
http://christina83writes.blogspot.com/
http://getgawjus.blogspot.com/

RMK

RMK is a Japanese brand that offer makeup and skincare. I knew you could get it in Selfridges but only recently realised that lookfantasic.com were stocking it online. Its not a brand that initially attracted me, my first thoughts were that it was more a younger, fun brand, but I like to try new things and the Mystique palettes released for fall 2009 were what reeled me in.

I was torn on which shadow palette to get and finally settled on 01 Coral (yes, the name should have been a clue as to the palette's suitability to my cool toned skin) although I really wanted 03 Grey (this was used in the autumn promo image) but that was out of stock. I had read the shades were sheer so was not surprised that the 3 lighter shades in the palette were indeed very sheer, the darker two though were more pigmented. The colours are a mix of shimmer, peaches and coppers, texture wise these are very soft, perhaps a bit too much as they can go a bit crumbly, the darker colours (copper and warm brown) are not the best colours on me and do look off, there are very few warm shades that work on me and these I am sad to say do not!
I got cheek palette 01 pink beige, I was expecting it to be sheer so got out my trusty Illamasqua blusher brush, which could get pigment out of anything, and then looked back and admired my rather flushed dolly cheeks! So the next time I used my MAC #187 and got a nice cool toned pink shimmery glow, much better!
Swatch of all shades swirled together:
The shades are a white highlighter, very pale peach, shimmery orange followed by a shimmery pink and then a more vibrant very cool toned shimmery pink. Due to the size of each pan I don’t think you will be able to use these colours separately as cheek shades.
Swatches of individual shades:
Each of the five shades in both palettes seem to have a slightly different finish, I’ve no idea how this translates to the other shades in the normal blush and shadow range. I will say that the second lightest shade in each palette is very difficult to get any colour from and I feel almost redundant.
Both of these cost £25 each. The compacts are shiny silver plastic and have a good sized mirror but be warned they are very small (around 7cm x3.02cm). I like compact makeup so this suits me.
Lookfantasic.com ships internationally for those of you outside the UK. I did get two more things from the RMK range but the light this weekend has been terrible so I will post those separately.
Although I have a few issues with these I would like to try some more and their spring collection looks very fresh and vibrant, hopefully lookfantastic will stock a bit more of the range as its quite limited at the moment.

Rouge Bunny Rouge original skin Blush Gracilis

This is my third RBR blush, not only do they have a very smooth texture and hold up throughout the day but the colours are very natural, if your looking for shimmer and high impact colour then these aren't for you, if however you want a natural shade with a glowy finish I'd recommend these.
Gracilis is a medium toned rose that leans cool. I have very pale skin that is also very ruddy so I have to be careful with more pink/rose coloured blushers as they often enhance it, but luckily that is not the case with this shade.
I've taken a picture/swatches with all three of the shades I have.
Swatches L-R Delicata,Starina,Gracilis (please click to enlarge)

I buy all my RBR from Zuneta.com and these blushers cost £25 each. I've noticed Zuneta have added some RBR brushes to their site, although they are rather spendy, but we will see......

Edward Bess: International viewpoint

Edward Bess is one of those brands I have been desperate to get my hands on. I happened upon a blog post saying that they were now offering international shipping and for only $12.75 ! Great I thought and hastily went to place my order. I choose three items, selected the $12.75 shipping option and merrily placed my order. Two days later I got an email that my order had been refunded, as I had to select the UPS Next Day shipping method to account for international shipping costs. I was slightly bemused by this because no where had I seen on the site that you needed to select this shipping for international orders and I really think they need to sort this out as there are three shipping methods and you are not necessarily going to plump for the most expensive. UPS Next Day was $25, I know when you order internationally you can expect the shipping to be bunged up a bit but this still seemed quite steep. I totted up 3 lots of $29 plus $25 for shipping and decided that what it equated to was still within my normal makeup budget (including the shipping worked out about £24 a piece)
Something else I should point out that although I did get a refund for the first order it was for less than I had originally paid! It was only around £4 but to my mind a refund should be a refund of what you paid, I guess this must be due to the fluctuating exchange rate?
I got my order 11 days after I placed it and it came in an padded envelope and the postage on the outside said $5.64……..
Anyhow on with what I bought, I knew straightaway that I wanted eyeshadows in Intimate and Dusk, these seem to be the most popular and considered the most unique out of the ones on offer.
Intimate – medium slightly warm tan brown/beige, I’d say this has a glowy finish.
Dusk – taupe, more to the grey end, in some lights it looks slightly khaki. It has subtle gold shimmer.
The shadows come packaged in sleek black cases with little suede pouches. The texture is quite smooth and they blend really well, good colour payoff and they don’t fade.
Swatches below, Dusk is on the left,
I wanted to try a lipstick, and whilst the general consensus seems to be that the bulk of his lipsticks are warm toned the newer release of three shades were a better option for those cool toned.

I choose forever yours. The colour is a beautiful neutral medium rose. There is quite a lot of depth to the colour. Its not a really creamy texture but I don’t find it that drying. The pigmentation is great and it lasts well. It does have a VERY strong sweet scent.

My overall thoughts are that the colours I chose are perfect for me, the shadows combined give an effortless natural slightly smokey eye for daytime wear and the lipstick is the shade I have been looking for (so many rose coloured ones turn out red or too bright on me). I do think the quality is very high but I wouldn’t say that these blow everything else out of the water. I think the brands availability is an issue; I thought Le Metier De Beaute was seriously exclusive but Edward Bess takes it to a new level. If there was a UK site or store then I would order some more but as it stands I’ll keep an eye out for future releases but hold off ordering anything else for now.

http://www.edwardbess.com/

Paul & Joe: First Impressions Part 2

Moving on to part 2 of my first foray into Paul & Joe, I got face powder in shade Re-Belle #15 (£15).One side is a rose pink,the other a peach.whilst both sides have some shimmer it’s a lot more noticeable in the peach shade and shows up as silver sparkle.
Once on the skin though I didn’t find it that obvious and I think it gives the colour a real vibrant glow.I'm very pale and although it gives me a nice flushed look I think some may find this particular shade too sheer. The texture although smooth is not the most silky I have tried but I did find this very long wearing. I like the combo of having two shades in the same compact, but good luck trying to use just the rose shade on its own, I just swirl both together.

I got Pearl Powder in shade Silhouette #03 (I got this on sale for £9 on Zuneta but they cost £15 normally), this has a very finely milled and silky texture. The colour, a complex very shimmery brown, sometimes looks almost taupe other times it shows golden tones.
Although there is initial fall out, once on it stays on and lasts all day. My only gripe is the pigmentation, used dry I cannot get the colour as swatched, what I get its nevertheless pretty even though its very subdued and a lot less sparkly. If you want to get close to the colour you see in the pot I think you really need to use a cream base so it has something to grab onto. Just a note that I don’t think the pot it comes in is as user friendly as the Rouge Bunny Rouge or Illamasqua loose powders.

My last item is the Under Eye Concealer - Creme #01 (£15). The weather has been rather bitter and my skin has been getting really dry, as a result of this I noticed that my normal full coverage eye concealer was looking a bit crepey. My first mistake was instead of getting a more moisture intense eyecream I decided to buy another concealer, my second mistake was to buy something that I had no idea what the colour selection would be like and had read no reviews on.....
This is not to say its a bad concealer, its texture is quite good, its got a silicone feel to it but this enables it to go on smooth and it doesn’t settle into lines. Unfortunately it does not give me enough coverage, I'd say its light-to medium at best and as you can see from below its rather dark ! Unless I have grossly misunderstood Paul & Joe's colour system and 01 is not the lightest shade, I am actually surprised how dark this is. On the left I've splotched it on, on the right I have tried to blend it in.

The concealer and face colour I bought from Beautybay.com, this was my first time ordering from their site and I have no complaints, it was packaged really well and came really quickly. So, apart from the concealer, which is my own fault as I should have researched it first, I am pleased with all my Paul & Joe I have bought thus far.

Le Métier de Beauté Classic Flawless Finish Loose Powder

I seem to have been on the quest for the perfect powder for ages. I have dry skin but get shiny on the T-Zone, added to this I have acne prone, sensitive skin. Its usually the case that they either highlight my dry areas or irritate my skin (Laura Mercier highly rated loose powder actually gave me a major skin rash, came up in bumps all over). The one that had previously worked best for me was Armani’s luminous silk powder; however now I have tried Le Metier my Armani doesn’t get a look in.
The powder is very finely milled and feels really silky. It does not accentuate my dry areas at all yet gets rid of my shine break through, it imparts a slight bit of colour to the skin so it evens my skin tone slightly. I am actually surprised that this caused my skin no problems, as I was a bit hesitant about the Bismuth Oxychloride in it.

Here are the Ingredients: mica CI 77019,Iron Oxides CI 77491,CI 77492,CI 77499,Bismuth Oxychloride CI 77163,Titanium Dioxide CI 77891,[+/- (may contain):Ultramarines CI 77007]

The powder is Talc and Paraben Free

Now onto the shades, I got shade #1 and shade #3. They only offer three. Shade #1 is perfect for me and I would think would suit between a MAC NC/NW 10-20. Shade #3 is quite a warm colour, obviously too dark for me, I did try it as a bronzer/blusher but it was still a bit too much so have given this to my mother who is about 2 shades darker than me. I am not sure how well this would work if you have really dark skin? Neither shade seems to have any strange sparkles (I’m looking at you Armani mico-fil loose powder shade #0).
Swatches below, I have dabbed it on so hopefully you can see the colour better.
For those of you with oily skin I’m not sure how well this would hold up, and this doesn't give a lot of coverage like some powders can, but for me its pretty much perfect and apart from the price (which I imagine is rather high) I don’t have anything negative to say about this.

Disclaimer: These were sent to me for free.

Hourglass Eyeshadow Duo in Exhibition

This is my third Hourglass duo, I was expecting the lighter shade to be more sheer but what I get is a dusky mauve and intense smokey plum, both shades have subtle shimmer .The darker shade is so pigmented that I think I will use it mostly as a liner. In my eye pic below I did use it very lightly in the crease and then really tried to blend it but as you can still its still quite dark.

If you want a a really effortless smokey look that is different from the normal greys/charcoals, then this is the duo for you.
I got this from Zuneta.com and its Costs £28. The hourglass range is very small but I like everything I have from them. These shadows are free from Sulfates,fragrance and Phthalates. I find the shadows pigmented, smooth and they don't seem to fade. I'm hoping they expand the shadow range as I think there is only one more I'll get from the current range.

Paul & Joe:First Impressions Part 1

Its taken me a long time to get round to trying Paul and Joe but the sale on at zuneta.com and some enticing blog posts was enough to push me over the edge, there is still some stuff left but its going really quickly.

I got Limited edition lipstick shade 062, Eye colour palette ingénue (I think these were part of the spring 2009 release) and Lipstick N shade #29.

The lipstick textures are smooth and feel quite moisturising on, they have a glossy finish and pigment is quite sheer. I’d say both colours apply lighter than they look in the tube. Shade #62 is a beautiful natural nude pink; it has a really glossy finish to it so it makes lips look fuller. This is very sheer so if you have pigmented lips I don’t think this is for you. Shade #29 is like a step up from #62 in terms of pigmentation, its more pink and has silver shimmer. I’d say both are neutral tones. Picture below with flash
Picture below without flash
Swatches L-R:#062,#29
Although they aren’t as moisturising as my RBR or as pigmented as my Le Metier they are really pretty colours for those who like a natural look and I already have my eye on a few other shades.

The eyecolour palette contains a beige champagne, Medium brown, and deep charcoaled brown. Not unique shades by any means but I do think I don’t have a dupe for the middle colour as it has a really nice almost golden sheen to it. I think this is wearable for those cool or warm.
The lighter shades have a soft texture and whilst pigmentation is quite good the darkest shade definitely feels dryer in texture so I get quite a bit of flyaway. They do blend nicely and whilst I don’t think they exceed my other favorite brands I’m sure I’ll end up with some more of the limited edition palettes as I think the packaging is really cute and stands out from the other brands on offer. Picture of eye palette design below
Part 2 of my review will feature the under eye concealer, blush and loose eye shadow as I want to use them a bit more before giving you my review. Some of the items in the first picture (concealer,blusher,vanity case) where non sale ones I ordered from BeautyBay.com

Laura Mercier Lip Glacé

I’ve had some real duds from LM but have always been intrigued by the Lip Glacé. I thought the mini Lip Glacé set released for the holidays would give me a good selection to try.
The colours are (all are shimmery):

Pink Diamond: silvery base, with very subtle pink tone, almost transparent, I think this will show up as just shimmer on the majority so probably best used layering rather than on its own.
Violet: cool toned pink with a hint of lavender
Bellini: Peach/apricot
Baby Doll:sheer slightly warmed pink
Ambre Rose:Bronze with golden shimmer.
Swatches (please click to enlarge) are L-R Pink Diamond,Violet,Bellini,Baby Doll,Ambre Rose.

They are all scented (smells like Vanilla to me).

Texture/performance wise, they give a very shiny glossy finish,they are medium thickness which enables them to last quite well and I don't get any bleeding from them. There are some really beautiful easy to wear colours in the range and Violet seems to be quite a popular one. I do however find them a little bit sticky/tacky (I am rather fussy about this) and whilst I like the ones I have I won’t buy anymore due to this.

I bought this from SpaceNK.

Rouge Bunny Rouge: Loose Glitter Pigments

I now have two new additions to my RBR collection, loose glitter pigment in Spun From Sunny Seawater and Eaten All The Cherries. So far these are the best loose eyeshadows I have ever tried. I don't get fall out and they adhere well to the skin and last all day, not to mention the fact that the colours are gorgeous.
Eaten All The Cherries is a shimmery golden pink and Spun From Sunny Seawater is a shimmery blue almost teal. Don't be put off by the use of "glitter" in the name (as I was at first) these are more shimmery iridescent colours and I don't think they look glittery.
I've taken pictures/swatches of all the ones I have, please click to enlarge.
Swatches L-R:Wishing for wings, Spun From Sunny Seawater, Sleeping Under a Mandarin Tree, Eaten All The Cherries
Picture L-R:Eaten All The Cherries, Sleeping Under a Mandarin Tree, Spun From Sunny Seawater, Wishing for wings.
They cost £24 each and I bought mine from Zuneta.com, who stock them exclusively; they do international shipping for those outside the UK.

Le Métier de Beauté Colour Core Lipstick and True Colour Eyeshadows

I really wanted to try a Le Metier lipstick having been really impressed by the brand so far. I settled on Dubai (£22), as I really like the lipgloss in the same name so made the presumption they would be closely matched.
On arrival this is not the case, Dubai in lipstick form is a medium cool toned rose pink (the lipgloss is a sheer shimmery pink). On application it comes out almost bright and for me (I tend to go with a more neutral lip) this is too bold so I do blot it down to give a more subtle effect. Nevis is a copper bronze, too warm for me on its own, I use this combined with my nude lipsticks as its gives a beautiful warm shimmered vibrancy. Fiji is a neutral perky pink, lighter in tone than Dubai, I find this more wearable but it’s still more pink than I would normally go for. All shades have a shimmer but I would say Nevis is more pronounced. Swatches L-R:Nevis,Fiji,Dubai

I think the pigmentation of these is amazing, with no compromise with the formula, which is silky, quite creamy and long lasting. I really want to find a shade that works for me, as I love the vibrancy of the shades and have not seen it in any other brand I have tried so far. Looking at the Liberty website I have narrowed it down to Summerland and Rio de Janero, if anyone has seen these or has them I’d love to hear your colour descriptions.
Pictured below is Nevis and Fiji.
Le Metier eyeshadows have a silky texture, good pigmentation and blend and last well. The shade selection seems to be a mix of neutrals and some more unique, brighter shades. Texture wise they seem to have matte, satin and shimmer. Of the ones I have I’d say Clay and Naked are matte, Milan and Kunzite are satin and Sugar is a shimmer.
Pictured below is Sugar and Dubai.
Sugar (£21) is an off white, slightly cream/gold toned highlighter shade. What I like most about this is the shimmer is perfect, not frosty or overly intense, I very rarely use a non-matte shade under my brow bone but this just gives the perfect highlight.
Milan is a very warm brown; a colour I would normally run away from, this however works really nicely in the crease with a champagne or light gold on the lid.
Kunzite is a no holds barred candy pink,this is a high statement colour that I think would really suite those with a darker skintone. I wear this one in the crease with silver on the lid and then a brown in the outer V so that the pink looks like it graduates to an almost smoky purple when combined with the brown.
I really want to get one of their Kaleidoscope Eye Kits, there are some really nice ones on the Neiman Marcus website at the moment so I am stalking the Liberty website in the hope they will have them up at some point.

Disclaimer: Nevis,Fiji,Milan and Kunzite were sent to me for free.

Rococo Nail Apparel

SpaceNK now stock the nail varnish brand Rococo. Its marketed as a "professional range with a high level of pigment". They seem to have some quite unique colours and I immediately decided I had to have Metal Jacket (£11.26).
Metal Jacket is a metallic cool mink brown base infused with loads of tarnished silver shimmer, once in indoor lighting the shimmer appears more gold. I really like this shade and have had a few comments on it already.
I have to mention that the brush head is rather large, its not a problem for me and means I can apply it quicker but I think for those who like to put their nail polish on perfectly, they may feel a bit of precision is lost. Two coats gives me the colour as it appears in the pot, the colour vibrancy remains throughout the wear. Whilst I don't get chipping until about 3 days, when it does begin, it chips off in quite large chunks so I think a top coat maybe the way to go to get the most out of this.
Thought I'd show you the box it comes in as well, definitely the most prettiest outer packaging I have seen for a nail varnish.