Dolce & Gabbana Classic lipstick

D&G offer two types of lipsticks, Classic and Shine. I bought a Classic in the shade "Soft" (£20). Obviously buying online you never quite know what colour you get and whilst I really like the shade its darker than I thought it would be. On me it applies as a medium rose with hints of a brown/berry tone and the finish is semi matte.
It initially feels creamy and light but seems to set and does feel drying, it doesn’t however make me lips look dry it just feels it. I did notice that due to its creaminess the colour seemed to migrate a bit on application, so I think with the darker shades you may need a lip liner. On the plus side I find it very long lasting, I don’t think I will get another one as I’m not keen on how it feels but I am tempted by the shine one in the shade Naked, although I hear the formula may have the same dry feel as the Classics so we will see.

I bought this from the Selfridges website http://www.selfridges.com/

Sisley Phytocernes Eye Concealer

I seem to have an obsession with under eye concealers, I love my By Terry Touche Veloutee for the outer under eye area (great lightweight/ highlighting concealer) but I am constantly searching for a more heavy coverage concealer for the inner under eye area, that is non drying. I’d seen a lot of raves for the Sisley concealer and it seemed exactly what I was looking for with its claims that it will “Diminishes the intensity of dark circles and reduces puffiness while restoring radiance to the eye contour area. Smooth away lines with soft-focus pigments “
Its really pigmented and I was surprised how quickly it set, I couldn’t blend it quick enough before it dried, it lasted all day but I found it very drying (I do have dry skin under my eyes) and it appeared patchy, unsmooth and really highlighted my lines. I bought different eye creams in an attempt to get this to work but it wasn’t happening.
I got the lightest shade (shade 1) and it was a really good match, a pink toned colour rather than yellow though. Swatch below, on the right I’ve blended it in a bit.
My mother who doesn’t have a dry eye area or dark circles is having better luck with this but if your eye area sounds like mine you may what to skip this one…I’m really annoyed that I wasted £43.50 on this, sometimes I wish we could return used cosmetics in the UK! Think I’ll just stick with Sisley eye shadows and lip products from now on.

I only went in for a Mascara.....

Back track to the Thursday before last and I thought it would be a good idea to pop into MAC on my lunch break to pick up a new mascara. This date coincided with the release of the new collections, so naturally I had to take a look. Now before I go any further I will mention that I did have a slight fever at the time so wasn’t quite with it…
This is my excuse as to why I bought a lipglass when they are probably my must hated lip gloss, when the SA tried the tester on me it didn’t feel sticky, I thought wow maybe they have changed the formula, well no they haven’t and whilst Perennial High Style is a pretty very sheer non shimmered pinky coral it is indeed very sticky/tacky. I also suddenly decided I needed a new makeup bag for the weekend and how lucky that they had some with the new collection, I didn’t ask the price and they didn’t have them out on display so I could only see it in the wrapper, in hindsight had I realised it was £24 and had no inside pattern (not sure why this bothers me but it does) I don’t think I would have got this.
I also got the lipstick in Ever Hip which is a nice sheer coral with a touch of pink and the beauty powder in shell Pearl which is a very luminous peachy pink with a gold sheen, on my pale skin it does have rather an intense glow so can look a bit over done. I also picked up a greasepaint stick in Dirty which is a very dark taupe with shimmer, unless I am doing something very wrong I find this flakes and goes on a bit patchy, I think I’ll have to keep trying with this one!
So although an unexpected haul, it wasn’t too disastrous considering it’s probably the first time I have gone makeup shopping when I felt slightly delirious.

Dolce & Gabbana Smooth Eye Colour Duo

When Selfridges starting selling online I was thrilled to see that they had D&G makeup on the site, having never tried the raved about range before I hastily tried to work out what I wanted, however it took me ages to decide what shadows to buy. The colours seemed too warm, too bright or not very unique. I was all set on duos in Stromboli and Fortune but at the last minute decided the lighter colour in Fortune looked a bit yellow so went with Rose….
I must confess that I really dislike gold packaging however this is the nicest gold I have seen, it a lighter hue and has no overly bright/shiny tackiness to it, I was surprised that the packaging was quite bulky though, I expected it to be a bit more sleek/compact.
On to the colours, the Stromboli is a warm champagne shimmer and medium to deep charcoal with silver sparkle. With the rose duo I was expecting a matte pinked white and golden shimmered rose, what I got is a shimmery, almost frosty white with a slight pink cast and a medium dusty pink with golden shimmer.
Unfortunately applied on my pale skin the pink goes on a lot lighter and brighter, for whatever reason there is no depth to the colour when I put it on. I don’t want to use the word hate so lets just say I strongly dislike the colour on me, I’ve tried using in on the lid, to line and in the crease and none seem to work, I think I’ll see if I can mix it with another colour or use it wet but for now I think I’ll just glare at it.
The eyeshadows are nicely pigmented, smooth, blend well and last, I do like the look of some of the spring and summer colours so may get some of those if they become available online.
A great resource for D&G makeup is http://www.thebeautylookbook.com/
The duos cost £22 each and I bought mine from Selfridges (http://www.selfridges.com/ ) I received my items the day after I placed the order even though I selected the normal shipping option so I was impressed with that.

Rouge Bunny Rouge Devotion Ink & Gorgeous Double Duty Beauty Mirror

I was very impressed with my ‘Tiger Eye Essence’ so bought the ´Anthracite Essence´ (£27), which is a deep black, infused with silver sparkle. Unlike my other liner this has a long, thin brush head instead of the fibre tip one (Anthracite shown below, Tiger Essence above)
Initially I thought I would have problems with this, as the majority of liquid liners are difficult for me to apply, however I can get either a fine or thick line, and get it close to the lash line. You can reapply over it later (if you want a different look) and it applies smoothly (no bumps, flaking). Once on the colour lasts all day and still maintains its vibrancy .The colours really deliver, I find with a lot of sparkly blacks, they always apply mostly black but the sparkles in this really show up.
Swatched below: Tiger Eye Essence, Anthracite Essence
I really hope they release some more colours (only 4 at the moment)I'd love a deep sparkly emerald.
I had to get one of the new Gorgeous Double Duty Beauty Mirrors (£13.99), as I really like the RBR imagery. I got it in white and was surprised that they are quite big (still handbag,pocket sized though), it contains a normal mirror and magnifying one. A very nice little indulgence and a very study one as my little boy has got hold of this quite a few times and flung it around and its stayed intact!
I buy all my RBR from http://www.zuneta.com/ who stock it exclusively.

By Terry: Intensive Hydra-Plump Lipstick

This lipsticks comes housed in a shiny purple tube, the formula does feel quite hydrating but its not the most moisturising lipstick brand I have, I didn’t notice any plumping qualities with this. The texture is quite light and does have a bit of slip to it. It has quite a strong sweet scent.
Although I would never advise buying a colour on line you have read no reviews nor seen any swatches/pictures of, it is something I do sometimes, on this occasion I lucked out. I choose the shade Praline Cristalline (£25) and it turns out to be a slightly purples pink with silver micro glitter. I’m not a fan of glitter in lipsticks but this seems to work and has no gritty feel to it at all.
It lasts quite well and leaves an even stain of colour behind. I think if I could find swatches/pictures somewhere I might buy another one but for now I think I’d best not push my luck!
I bought this from Space NK.

Kevyn Aucoin Celestial Powder in Candlelight and Brushes

I have read a lot of rave reviews for the Celestial Powder in Candlelight (£30) and I’m pleased to say it lives up to the claims. It’s a champagne highlighter, I find it quite pigmented so apply it sparingly. Where it differs from the majority of highlighters is the finish is one of a glow/illuminator rather than full on glitter/shimmer. The powder feels very smooth and this lasts till the end of the day.

I also bought the Super Soft Buff Powder Brush (£34) and the Small Eyeshadow Flat Tipped Brush (£20).
The Super Soft Buff Powder Brush is a very densely packed flat end brush. I tried using this for blush but it picks up way too much colour, instead I have found this great for applying liquid foundation when you want a full coverage look, it blends it in perfectly without any streakiness and due to its size its super quick. Heres a close up of the head,
The Small Eyeshadow Flat Tipped Brush has a slightly tapered head and again is quite densely packed. I think its best used when you want to apply a more pigmented layer to the crease. I find its better for applying colour rather than blending. Overall both brushes are not the softest I have but nor are they scratchy, the buff one does feel quite firm on the skin though. The brushes also do not shed at all. Of the two I prefer the Super Soft Buff Powder as I don’t have another brush like it and it gives an almost flawless finish.

I buy all my Kevyn Aucoin from misebeauty (they do ship international) and I have always been pleased with the service I have received from them.

http://www.misebeauty.com/