laura mercier

Make Up

Black Orchid Stickgloss – An Unexpected Win

12/01/2016 by 0 Comments
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When life gives you lemons, you put them back down & go buy lemonade! When husbands give you make-up as a present you ask what they’ve done wrong! I think if it was anyone else it would be a strange gift but with Ross it’s that moment where you think, was he really listening to me ramble about make-up… It’s the same when he talks about Halo & I know who the master chief is! The lipstick in question is a Laura Mercier stickgloss in Black Orchid.It’s something I would have never chosen myself which makes me appreciate it more.

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Make Up

Cobalt or Violet? Laura Mercier Long Wear Creme Eye Pencils

02/07/2014 by 0 Comments

Laura Mercier Longwear Creme Eye Pencil - products cobalt violet

Who Buys Cobalt and Violet Anyway?

You know when you get buy some make up in the sales and knowing it’s now or never? Well these are that for me. The Laura Mercier Long Wear Eye Pencils were a set of minis at half price from Christmas. It in you got five shades Noir, Espresso, Khaki, Cobalt and Violet. At the time the first two I knew I’d use and the Khaki I would attempt but the Cobalt and violet kinda felt like those extra shades you get in palettes that nobody really uses.

That was 6 months ago, me now I can actually manage eyeliner that isn’t in the water line. I’ve tried many techniques and products and become borderline addicted to the stuff still a work in progress with the cats eye look though. These Laura Mercier ones I kinda always put to the back because I didn’t want to waste them. What I realise now is not using them is wasting them. If I buy something more than drugstore I want to get my moneys worth.

Laura Mercier Longwear Creme Eye Pencil - self 3 cobalt violet

Cons?

Before I get into the pros ill explain my main niggle. It’s a creme product in a pencil that has to be sharpened. If you don’t the line gets way too thick and you can’t really get an even look on both eyes, you have to sharpen after the first eye is done. These are from a set so they are smaller than the normal ones that’s OK. Sharpening feels like I’m throwing a lot of product away though. This is where the Smashbox Always Sharp really do stand out no sharpener, no mess and no waste.

Laura Mercier Longwear Creme Eye Pencil - eyes cobalt violet
Failure on the super shiny nose!

Pros

Once you get past that niggly feeling the actual product is really good. It’s super creamy so it glides over rather than tugging. I still pull the eyelid taught to get a good line but as you can see you can get pretty close to the bottom of your eye lashes. This eyeliner is great for quick use but once you’ve applied it theirs little room for error. This sets and the stays there until you remove it. You can wipe it instantly after you use it and it will come off but after 30 seconds theirs no altering it not even with micellar water. This can be a bad thing for some people but if you out all day and in hot or rainy weather this lasts as long as you can.

I really love that the colour translates onto the eye, some products look one way in the pot then have no pigment when it’s on the eye. The cobalt and violet is as blue and opaque as they are looking at the pencil. What you see is what you get.

Blue is very on trend this summer, in fact brights always make a show but this year it’s blue that is holding strongest. I think in this photo the cobalt is brighter and more out there than the violet. I think I would more likely wear the cobalt shade but then again if it’s the main feature both can carry a look off on their own.

Tobuy the Laura Mercier Long Wear Creme Pencils they are £18

Beauty

June Faves – Half Way There

01/07/2014 by 0 Comments

June faves 2014 Favourites - MI

June’s been a bit of a good one in terms of experimenting with colour. Be it lips, eyes or cheeks I’ve picked one to go bold with which has made my June faves simple for me. Altering colours away from the same old bronze shade has changed looks that would otherwise be very much the same.

June Faves

Eyeliner loving

After my Smash box Always Sharp came to an end I was up for trying something new. First up is the Eyeko Skinny eyeliner a great freebie from …. It has added a touch of navy with superior wear and ease of use for a felt tip. Then came the testing of the Laura Mercier longwear creme pencils. Having a choice of five shades made this fun to play around with. It’s super creamy and opaque but once it’s set there’s no moving it. The shade range included bolds and more muted shades and all work as well as each other.

The Neutral Nude

I know this has seen a favourites post or two before but when playing around with eye looks in shades of blue, green and purple I need a more toned down lip. This fell to the well loved Nars Velvet matte lip pencil in Sex Machine. It’s easy to apply and wears pretty well throughout the day. When I do need to top up it goes on no fussing around because of the nude shade it is.

Off With Her Head… erm Hair!

I’m not sure this counts it’s not a product so much as a weight off my shoulders and head. Taking a good 6 inches off made my hair mote manageable and simply easier to maintain. Styling is quicker and I suppose my BlowPro You Only Smooth is definitely part of that. A saviour from heated appliance I don’t have to worry as much when I do get my Ghd’s out.

Ross Likes it Matte

Very much a recent purchase but when Ross said something that made me proud I finally felt like what I’ve been saying may have gone in. It was along the lines of “When you tell me about how a moisturiser should help and make my skin feel better for it this is what this moisturiser does. Oh it also doesn’t make my forehead super shiny either that’s annoying” . Seems like something small but Ross explaining properly why he likes something is a bit of a miracle. The product he’s referring to is the Rehab Mens’s No Shine Moisturizer for oil control. It came from T.K.Maxx last week for £4.99 I think but retails around the £15 mark. He also said this was on par with the sample he had of the Clarins moisturiser that he loved means it would be worth repurchasing as its half the price of that.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Lip Stain in Crush

Love Love Love and getting more use out of this one than the matte balm. Like both but love this more for an everyday look. It’s me in a rush but looking put together, I also like that if I want to eat I can wipe this off and afterwards swipe it back on in a jiffy.

A June Fave Food

Metcalf Cinnamon popcorn is to die for, it’s so good I can get through a share bag on my own. Even better is for a share bag it’s only 9 pro points. The popcorn isn’t over powered more like a good sprinkle of cinnamon. It means I can have something sweet without having to feel guilty as a whole bag takes ages to finish off. Best bit of all Ross doesn’t like it so no sharing either! lol

Beauty

Favourites I’ve Loved In February 2014

09/03/2014 by 0 Comments

I’ll apologise now for how late that my favourites are only just going up now but I promise there shouldn’t be any big breaks for a while.These favourites are a little obvious with the release of those matte balms and my love of The Body Shop but I just kept coming back to these in particular. I’ve been trying to take better care of my hair this month and I’m considering trying the Lush Henna again.

Febuary 2014 Favourites

Dove Nourishing Oil Care

This is a fantastic light weight bio phase spray leave in oil now that’s a bit of a mouth full. It’s one of my favourites because it smells fab to the point of spraying it just to add the scent to my hair and really makes my hair feel like I’ve not completely wrecked it. It’s not a miracle worker but I can feel the difference this has made and would love to try out the other version for coloured hair.It helps keep those dry ends from looking so frizzy and smooths then down.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Toner

As you can see it’s almost empty and this for me has really helped keep my skin clear and I went into more detail here. It makes my skin tingle a bit but not anything I have worried over as it’s really helped with spots. Only minor annoyance is the residue that you have to shake each morning to get it to mix back in to the liquid, bearing that in mind I’ve already repurchased a new one.

Revlon Colour Burst Matte Balm in Sultry

There has been a divide in the blogging world over these balms. Some hate the and some like me just think they will be one of my long time favourites. I’ve bought one of the less bright shades which for me is more wearable. If you’ve read about lipsticks from me you know I have a love for mattes. These go on very easily and this lasts around 4 hours before I can see signs of wear , yes the balm dries out but mattes tend too these just take a bit longer. I hope they bring out more easy wear shades rather than those crazy bright ones as they are so easy and quick to apply. See a sneak preview when I first got mine here.

Laura Mercier Longwear Creme Eye Pencil

I’m still working on getting these to do more than just my waterline but the shade Espresso has become a great way of keeping my love of liner going while toning it down at the same time. They are really creamy and last most of the day but I’m trying to wear it above the line as when I swatch them on my had it really is smudge proof I just haven’t got the technique right yet.

Neutrogena Nourishing Lip Care with Nordic Berry

A very thick balm consistency with a nice natural berry scent that has become part of my morning routine. The hydration lasts much longer than my Nivea Hydro Care that I use at work and I prefer the berry scent to the classic Nivea one. Great for applying before I start putting make up on as it really softens the lips before I add colour to them.

Revlon Cream Blush in Charmed

I had a moment in Boots 3 for 2 when I didn’t know what to get as a third when it was just on Revlon and I ended up getting this. It’s the first cream blush I own and it’s one of those product where It would be near impossible to over apply unless you scooped it out. I can just dab my finger tip into it and take my time applying where I want it but can be blended out easily if you do go wrong. Only issue is I don’t much like the other two shades available and wish they had more choice. Charmed is a natural flushed shade in a satin finish.

My empties will be appearing in a few days if you like seeing what I’ve been using up this month, hope you have a lovely relaxing Sunday.

Make Up

Eye Of The Day – The Body Shop Eyeshadow

03/02/2014 by 0 Comments

This is one of those things where you pick it up in the sales then forget about it. A big part of this is I’ve swatched tonnes of The Body Shop eye shadows and found them way too glitters. So this Sunday. I wanted to to try eyeliner again and attempt the felt tip type.

eye of the day The Body Shop - swatches

 I was gonna just go with sable but when I swatched them against each other, I assumed they’d be practically the same. Instead it made Mac’s Sable shade look more champagne bronze and The Body Shop was a deep copper bronze. It’s soft almost creamy texture was enjoyable to apply and was highly pigmented. I know it’s discontinued but that just means you can pick it up whenever there’s a sale on. I wish I’d picked the matte shade up I saw but I was sceptical at the time so that’s my fail.For just £2 it’s worth a try if you can find them.

The Body Shop Eyeshadow - Bronze

I think I’m getting the hand of the Collection Felt Tip Eye Liner now , it’s a bit of a pain but if you use just the very tip of it you can get a nice line that you can build up (i used this cheat i do to make it easier) . I’ve been using the Laura Mercier Creme Pencils on and off since Christmas just for tight lining and the water line. I like the shade noir but I haven’t worked up to the colour shades yet. I finished this off with Maybelline Great Lash which will probably be the last time for a while as I need to get rid of it and I’m testing out something new.