Wednesday 28 November 2012

Make-up Review: Mac Marilyn Monroe Blush in The Perfect Cheek

Hi guys!
Mac came out with this new Marilyn Monroe collection and it is so gorgeous. I think Marilyn is just mazing and her story is so sad so when this collection came out, I just had to get something. So after examining the collection I settled for the powder blush in The Perfect Cheek, which is truly perfect.


Starting with the casing, it features a picture of Marilyn Monroe on it, which is really cute, from one of her shows and it is so simple and great to take around and throw in your purse. When you think of Marilyn Monroe, you think of showgirls, seduction and Chanel No. 5, but this collection takes a more neutral take on Marilyn by including many nudes, whites and simple colours that look great on everyone. They kept the glosses, blushes and nails quite neutral, but they had to obviously include the red lip and the signature Marilyn eyeliner. We can definitely say that this look is a success, and that it is truly amazing, in fact nearly everything on the website is sold out.

The product I picked up is the blush, and it is BEAUTIFUL! The colour is hard to describe, but I am going to say it is a dusky peach colour, it is a pink colour with a bit of a yellow undertone to it, and it is matte so there is no way that you will look like a disco ball. The name fits the blush perfectly as it gives just the right flush of colour you need to look healthy and not like a pale vampire. It goes on so smoothly and feels like satin on the skin. I personally prefer these type of powder blushes as they make people look so pretty and natural. Overall all the collections from Mac that have just come out are very neutral and gorgeous and definitely worth getting.

What do you think of this collection?
Are you in love as much as I am?
Chiara xx
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Monday 26 November 2012

Make-up look obsession: Neutral Cat Eye

Hi guys,
be prepared, as as soon it becomes December the 1st, the Christmas blog post are going to start, and never end till January the 6th so as I didn't want to overload you guys with too much Christmas spirit in November, this blog post will try not to include too many festive words and will be about the eye I am rocking these days: the neutral cat eye.

This look is quite new as I don't usually go for a cat eye and i don't usually go for browns and neutrals on my eyes as I love to experiment with bright colours on my eyes rather than my lips. Recently I have been surfing Youtube and reading blogs and I suddenly realised how many people wore neutral looks which instantly made me want to wear it. Most of the time I just line the water line but I find that the cat eye makes my huge eyes more elongated and normal size and gives that gorgeous daring look that you don't achieve easily with these colours. I love the contrast of my bright blue eye with the brown and I think it actually suits me, when I would never initially go for  brown colours. I tend to pair this with my Burberry lip Glow in Vintage Gold as it picks up the gold flecks in my eyes or a dark lip gloss, as dark lipstick may be too harsh as there is already a lot of brown going on. 


I lined my water line with a chestnut colour eyeliner, used a simple cream off-white base for my eye, defined my crease with a mink colour, used a gradient pattern on my top lash line by starting at the inner corner with a chestnut, moving on to a brown and ending with a dark wood colour. On the lower lash line I applied a gold bronze colour and brought some of the dark wood colour just at the corner of my eye. 

Overall, I will experiment a bit more with neutrals!
Do you wear neutrals a lot?
Do you like to try different looks once in a while?
Chiara xx
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Thursday 22 November 2012

Make-up review: Burberry Lip Glow in Vintage Gold

 Hello guys!
I am suddenly getting into the Christmas mood and lately I love this lipgloss which is also the perfect gift for Christmas. It is Burberry Lip Glow in Vintage Gold. The name appeals to me so much! I really like Burberry products, so it WILL be a recurring brand!
The colour is very sheer as it is a lip glow, so it doesn't actually come out gold on the lips. Not that crazy! I can't even start explaining how festive and beautiful this colour is. It is a gold with copper and rust undertones to it, so it is a darker gold and has fine gold shimmer running through it which makes your lips look more glossy than sparkly, so it is a really wearable glitter. As it is so sheer, it just complements the natural peach-y pink of your lips and makes them look glowing and much more attractive.  
Another good thing about this gloss is that the wand is AMAZING! Most of the time I really dislike the wands you get in lip glosses as they are either too big or a weird shape, not mentioning any names..... *cough L'Oreal cough* But this one is just perfect! The gloss glides on my lips so easily with one stroke and the wand is the a really good average size brush that fits all lips. When wands are too big, I get gloss all over the sides of my mouth which is very unattractive.


The finish is also really good and is a very natural, go-to gloss that I feel suits everyone and makes the lips ever so slightly darker and bring out the natural pink of my lips. This also goes really well with lipstick underneath. I recommend a bright pink or a peach shade. You could also dab this in the centre of a red lip and make it really festive and Christmassy.  It isn't extremely sticky and feels good on the lips.

The packaging  is so, so so gorgeous with the signature check lid and BURBERRY imprinted on the side of the bottle. Who couldn't not stop staring at this cute little bottle as they apply this rusty nude onto their lips. Gorgeous.


Overall, 9 out of 10 for packaging, 9 out of ten for finish and 9 out of ten for colour. As this are sheer I didn't write about the pigmentation. They also taste and smell of nothing, in case you wanted to know and so far it has not irritated my lips. It is limited edition and priced at £19 pounds, which is pricey but completely worth it. Normal unlimited glosses are £18.50 and are also very pretty.
Have you tried Burberry lip glow?
What do you think of these festive colours that I am sporting?
Chiara xx
P.S This shade is number 18


















Monday 19 November 2012

Hand product review: L' Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream

Hi!
Now, as you may see this is a bit of a different blog post as it is not make-up. :( In fact it is a hand cream and I have been wanting to review this for a while but I thought now that the weather is so horrible and cold this would be better for many people with dry skin around this time and it is also a good idea for a gift for Christmas.




This cream is amazing for this weather as it is very thick and very moisturizing which I feel does much better than my usual Nivea Soft cream which is slightly lighter and doesn't really give me the satisfaction this cream does. Now, when I say thick I mean thick. This must be the thickest cream that I own (I don't own that many creams) and surprisingly doesn't leave that much of a residue. Sometimes I hate when I put on a cream but it takes me forever to rub in and absorb into the skin, especially when I am just about to do something, like picking up a glass of water. Before you know it, it's on the floor and has smashed and there are pieces of glass everywhere. :( However this cream absorbs into the skin nicely. Once you have put this cream on, your hands do feel very soft for a long time. I tend to put it on just before I go to bed and the next day my hands are still really soft after lunch, which is great. 

The smell is quite strong and as you can imagine it smells of shea butter. I don't really like the scent as much as I like the cream but I can definitely put up with it on my hands. It isn't that disgusting! If you like the smell of shea then this is the hand cream for you as the smell is very strong as it does have 20% shea butter in it.

Overall, I really like this product as it does the job for my hands and it is priced at £8 pounds for the travel one (30 ml, which I have) or around £18 pounds for the full size which is 150ml. As I said before, this does make the perfect gift for anyone!
What do you use on your hands in this weather?
What are you giving your relatives this Christmas?
Chiara xx

Thursday 15 November 2012

Make-up review: Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in Pearl Grey

Hello!
A lot of you guys seemed to have liked reading my Chanel blog post in confront to others, so I have gone for another luxury brand, Burberry! Burberry has done a make-up line and I have tried a few of their products and so far I really like them, so today I have thought of doing a more winter-y colour eyeshadow as it will be of much more use than a bright turquoise eyeshadow as I can imagine that right now we are all heading for our darker colours.

                                       

I am going to start by saying that the packaging for Burberry is just so glamorous and luxurious, like the brand itself and it has a metal casing that closes with a magnet meaning that it will stay closed and it has the signature check on the casing. When I look at this eye shadow it makes me feel glamorous! The packaging comes with a brush and a full sized mirror.


 The actual eyeshadow is really plain grey which has a bit of shimmer when applied to the eye which describes the reason of it being called PEARL Grey. This colour is very pigmented for being a sheer eye shadow and doesn't need a lot of powder to get the grey shown in the packaging as I sometimes find when you buy an eye shadow, it isn't very pigmented and looks very different to what you think you are putting on your eyes, which is terrible if you have paid a lot of money for that eyeshadow This eye shadow is completely different to those kinds and it shows up on your eyes really well. Bonus point: the actual eyeshadow has the check imprinted on it, which is adorable! This colour is perfect for these dark days and can be used for simple smokey eyes to extravagant night out. The eyeshadow glides on the eyes so smoothly and lasts so much (I had it on when I went out to an exhibition and when I came back home it was still there, which was around 3-4 hours of walking, meaning this lasts a LONG time). Overall I love the finish of this shadow!


These eyeshadows are priced at £22.50 which is QUITE expensive but it is worth it. The actual range of Burberry eyeshadow is gorgeous and are very wearable, neutral colours that are on-trend and suitable for everyone and this eyeshadow is just a really wearable winter colour that matches the weather as right now the days are a bit grey. :( Overall for Colour 9.5, Packaging 10 and Pigmentation 8!
Have you ever tried Burberry make-up?
What make-up are you wearing in these days?
Chiara xx




Sunday 11 November 2012

Make-up review: Sleek i-Divine Shangri-La Collection Respect Palette

Me again!
So, these days I have been blabbing on and on all about sunset shades because I love them so much, so here is an apology. BUT..... this product that I am going to review couldn't wait. One because it is limited and two, because it is flipping amazing! And it is Sleek i-Divine Shangri-La Collection Respect Palette. I wasn't entirely sure on the name as there is so much stuff written on the box so that is what I am going to call it for now.


For starters, I am kind of angry because I actually had to buy this in a different country. I have always wanted to try Sleek products as they are apparently really good but I have never seen a Sleek counter or  'shop' anywhere in London. I bought this palette in Sephora in Italy, which I was really happy to have found it but now I need to wait until I go back to Italy so I can get another Sleek product, which sucks! If anyone knows where they sell Sleek please let me now in the comment box, or twitter as I have been looking in Superdrugs and Boots and I simply can't find it.



Moving on to the actual product, as I said earlier, I love it! The colours are very pigmented and the palette contains a variety of both matte and slight shimmery colours. I have decided that I will review each colour so here it goes:


  • Gladys White- I love to use this in the inner corner of my eye as it is a really good colour for highlighting and brightening the eye
  • James Brown- This dark brown is really pretty. In the box it looks slightly shimmery but it comes out more matt on the eye, meaning that it loses some shimmer. I prefer matt eyeshadow, but it might not appeal to some if you'd rather shimmer. 
  • Shalamar- This matt colour is really hard to explain, so I'm going to go ahead and say that it is a peach apricot skin colour that has slight pink and brown undertones to it. This colour is really natural and I like to sweep it all over the eyelid.
  • Count Basi Beige- This creamy beige colour is again very natural and matt.
  • Aretha Orange- This is where the sunset fun starts. This bright, ever so slightly shimmery orange is very pigmented, and a little goes along way to get the really bright colour. 
  • Otis Red- Yet again, another very pigmented bright colour, but this time red. With these bright colours I like starting from the inner corners of my eye, and make it darker as I go along the lash line so it starts white and ends black.
  • Roberta Black- This is one of the most intense blacks I have ever used. Gorgeous.
  • Vandellas- This intense purple is probably my favourite colour in this palette and it is probably the most pigmented one alongside the black colour.
  • Cameo Cream- This off-white is probably useless in this palette as it technically has the same finish as the white, but yet again this matte is natural and simple.
  • Motown Mink- This mink joins the natural club as it is a really soft mink with hints of grey.
  • O'Jays- This is my second favourite as it is so pretty. It is the most shimmery copper colour in the palette with orange undertone and gold flecks, which do come up in the eye and aren't lost. I love to use this in the centre of my eye to brighten it when I am using dark colours to add a pop of bright shimmer.
  • New Jack Pink- This super bright pink is also quite pigmented and adds brightness to these glum days. I actually sometimes use it as a blush on days when I feel crazy. :)
The palette comes with a two sided brush that you usually get in palettes and a full sized mirror, and by that I mean the whole inside part of the palette which is not eyeshadow is mirror, which is really comfortable for touching up or putting on make-up. The only problem is that as the actual casing is matt black plastic and gets dirty with your fingertips quite easily. Overall though it is an amazing palette which fits into right now's on-trend colours, so hurry and grab one now before they are discontinued! 

Colours 8, Pigmentation 9.5 and overall.. 9 out of 10! 
What do you think of Sleek?
Do you know where to get it in London?
Chiara xx

Tuesday 6 November 2012

Make-up review: Chanel Le Vernis in Frenzy

Hello!
As you can see from the title, Chanel is coming to blog, and not just any Chanel, nail polish Chanel(and as it is so luxurious, instead of writing nail polish I wrote it in french!). I can imagine your faces as I am about to talk about one of the most on-trend nail polishes/colours this season which is none other than the gorgeous Frenzy (559).



Let's start by explaining the colour, and bare with me as it is really hard to explain.  Most of you will see it as a nude, some as a light brown-ish cashmere, some of you as a nude-y rose-y dusk or a grey-ish light taupe. I see it as a mixture of all four, making it such an elegant, feminine nail polish worth the money. 

This nail polish is suitable for most ages, but knowing that girls now-adays are more into brights, this polish might suit the young adults/adults group. But, may I warn you, this colour is one of the most famous this A/W so you better have a similar one to stay fashionable. If your persistent about brights, oxblood is also on-trend, a dark bright red wine (if you get what I mean!).

The finish is so shiny and glossy and surprisingly the nail polish lasts for a week without chipping (with a top coat), so the saying is right, you get what you pay for. Talking about prices, these polishes are around £18 which personally I don't think is that bad for Chanel if we are being honest. Another pleasant surprise I found was that it dried really quickly! It doesn't say anything about drying time on the bottle but when I put on my nail so I could take a picture for you guys, I waited a minute and by the time I started typing, which was a minute after applying, that nail was completely dry! 1 point to Chanel!
(it is really dark these days :( so the colour didn't really come up in camera)

The bottle is probably one of the most gorgeous bottles in the nail polish industry, even though the cap you get on top of the polish is really confusing. Even the box you get it in is to die for! The only down side of this nail polish is that it needs around 2-3 coats to get an opaque colour if not it is in between a sheer and opaque colour.

Overall, 10 for the colour, 10 for the bottle and 9 for the finish. Chanel, you've done well. I'm very impressed. I am really curious if there is a price difference in France as I am going there soon! Let me know! You can tell me at @Aphrodi23905920 on Twitter or leave a comment below! If you like how I write, follow this blog! :)
What do you think of these seasons colours?
Is Frenzy on your Christmas list now?
Chiara xx

Saturday 3 November 2012

Make up trend- Sunset shades!

Hello!

So, new makeup trend.... Sunset shades! Sunset shades are very popular this A/W 2012/2013 and I wanted to mention a bit more and a few products that you can use to perfect the look.

How do I know about sunset shades?

Well.... I am a geek, and in ELLE I read all about sunset lips and eyes and the catwalks that feature this look.

What brands rocked this look in the catwalks?

The main brands are Giorgio Armani, Narciso Rodriguez and Prada, even though many other brands like Dennis Basso and Zac Posen have been sporting these shades.
(Giorgio Armani)

What products do I recommend?

I really recommend the new Limited edition Sleek palettes in the Shangri-La collection. I have the respect one which has colours from black to plum to bright punk-y pink to oranges to red and to coppers which are the colours of this season, even though they may sound bright to you. Max Factor Flipstick in Gipsy Red is also the perfect red coral to add to your look.

How do I wear it?

By simply creating a winged liner look using your sunset-y eyeshadow you are already making a statement, and bright orange lips, like Topshop's lipstick in Infrared, add instant trend to your look. By pairing a nude lipstick, your look is muted down and more wearable. Girls...DARE! Bright colours may scare some of you or may make you think that your eye looks irritated. Sunset shades may be the ones for you! Ombre nails can also make your A/W look more... in-style! 

So.... what do you think of this questionnaire type post?
Do you love sunset shades as much as I do?

Chiara xx