Kryolan Glamour Glow Palette

Meet the new gem within my make-up kit - Kryolan's Glamour Glow Palette.

Glamour Glow contains an array of eight very practical colours and as the name suggests these serve to create glowing effects on the skin. The palette is however very versatile and can be used as highlighters, bronzers, eyeshadow and blush.

The colours are - top row, left to right: Glamour Tan, Natural Tan, Pale Tan, Blush Mauve

Bottom row, left to right: Blush Peach, Bronzing Summer, Bronzing Sun, Bronzing Agais

The powders have a pearly, satin texture without very obvious shimmer particles. You can achieve either delicate or stronger glow effects depending on the method of application. It's best to apply these delicately, building on the layers as some of these shades can make you look "dirty" or like a disco ball if applied too liberally. When applied carefully, these give the skin a gorgeous, ethereal glow. The fact that the powders are quite hard gives you control over the layers being applied. 

Here are a couple of swatches - 

top row

bottom row

Have you discovered any great palettes lately?

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Bargain Hunting & New Blush Discovery

Don't you just love bargain hunting at TK Maxx? Now I have to admit that I'm no good at shopping for clothes at TK Maxx as I find it too difficult to find stuff and can't be bothered to ravage my way through all the clothing racks. I do however always make my way towards the
cosmetics section in search of some good deals.

I usually manage to find some stuff that makes me all giddy with excitement like for example -
Nails Inc nail polish at a fraction of the usual price, St. Tropez self-tanning lotion for a tenner instead of the usual and depressing £20.

During my last visit at TK Maxx I came across quite a few Model Co products. Although I'm not at all familiar with their make-up range, which by the way is tested on models and not animals, I do happen to use as well as love their make-up setting spray. Needles to say I picked up another bottle for £7.99 (BARGAIN) instead of the £23 that I'd normally pay for it online - and that is excluding postage and packaging!

Anyway, there was one item that caught my attention big time - a blush in the shade Joie De Vivre 02.

The Model Co Colourbox Blush comes in a cute pink and white two tiered box compact - on top you get the blush and a handy mirror while at the bottom you'll find a brush for applying your blush with.
I however like to use my regular blush brush for application.

So what is it that drew my attention to this particular blush? The fantabulous colour of course!

Joie De Vivre does indeed fill me with joy! The moment I swatched it I knew without any doubt that I was going to buy it. It is a lovely peach shade (and you know how I love my peachy blush) that is very close in tone to Peaches by MAC. I'd say that Joie De Vivre is a little bit more on the orange side.

Index finger: Joie De Vivre    Middle finger: MAC Peaches

Left: Joie De Vivre   Right: MAC Peaches

Although I can see very minimal and very few tiny sparkles here and there, the blush applies to a matte finish which happens to be yet another plus for me.

The price - while the regular retail price of this blush is £16.00, the TK Maxx price was £6.99 (happy grin).

Have you found any great bargains lately?

The Body Shop Almond Body Butter

The first time I ever tried a body butter from The Body Shop was a couple of years ago and at the time I remember thinking that it was one of the most amazing body moisturisers around.
A couple of years later my views haven't changed one bit.
The difficulty is however, deciding which butter to purchase as there's so many of them to choose from - Coconut, Vitamin E, Moringa (one of my faves), Mango, Strawberry, Olive...to name but just a few.
I must have stood at the shop for at least 20 minutes just trying to decide which butter to purchase for smothering myself with. At the end I allowed the price to be a deciding factor and opted for the Almond version as it was on sale for half price...oh and I do love almonds.

Almond body butter also contains cocoa and shea butter, making it extra moisturising and perfect for normal and dry skin types. The consistency is as with all body butters - creamy, soft and buttery - very easy to blend into the skin, easily absorbed and super hydrating. You can definitely sniff  out the almonds in there but overall the scent is kind of sweet and reminds me of cake icing.

These body butters are great during the winter months and when making the transition from winter to spring as they really help to clear up and soften any dry and rough bits. 

Do you have a favourite body butter from The Body Shop?

...on a different note - how do you like this bright pink from China Glaze? It has tiny particles of shimmer in it.

Oddly the shade is called Naked - don't know why...oh well who cares - it's quite a nice shade for the summer.

No fuss nail art

I finally managed to get my hands on Barry M's Instant Nail Effects some weeks ago.

Initially I wasn't sold on the idea (reminded me too much of chipped polish) but after trying out OPI's Shatter in a salon, the "crackled" effect kind of started to grow on me. OPI's Shatter had flown off the shelves very quickly and became impossible to get hold of, and Barry M's version had also been continuously sold out at my local chemists. When it finally returned to the shelves I didn't hesitate to get it.

Here it is applied over a light pastel pink polish:

Once your base polish has dried you only need to apply one thin coat of this and watch it produce the crackled effect. It looks great on the toes as well - I think that I actually prefer it on the toes as it looks more like a design rather that polish that has started chipping. I'd also recommend applying a top coat over it for a more intense and glossier finish.
As you can see I'm keeping my nails incredibly short as I'm almost finished with the first year of my nail tech course - over the past year I have continuously either had on gel or acrylic nail extentions. I'm giving my nails a bit of a break now and keeping them really short...typing is so much more fun at the minute...:)

While I was sporting some acrylics, I tried out some of the Professional Cut Trendy Nail Wraps for the tips - the set I used was Curly Q.

Can't really explain it but I wasn't too keen on these - I guess the biggest issue was that they didn't suit everything that I was wearing - I'll have to try out another set in the future and see how I feel.

Instant Nail Effects and Trendy Nail Wraps are great options for those keen on nail art but lacking artistic ability, time and patience.

Are you into nail art or are you more keen on a regular one polish manicure or the traditional french?

Face Atelier Ultra Foundation

Firstly I'd like to start off by mentioning that I'm still here and haven't given up blogging!
Over the last couple of weeks there have been days when I just simply didn't have the time nor the energy to post something or days when I was just too lazy to do so (feeling ashamed). Then having had such a long break from posting, every time I sat down to actually write something I'd just end up getting distracted and figured that another day's delay wouldn't do much harm...and so it led to such a significant time gap...

Anyway, onto the topic at hand -

There's been a bit of a buzz going on regarding Face Atelier's Ultra Foundation - and in my humble opinion, the buzz is very justifiable indeed.

If you haven't yet heard here's what it's all about:

"Ultra Foundation is the heart and soul of FACE atelier – an innovative approach to foundation that allows you to be in control. With a growing cult-following, Ultra Foundation is a silicone-based emulsion that floats on top of the skin, doesn’t crease or flake, and lasts all day long. Hydrating yet oil-free, it obscures tiny lines and pores to ensure a smooth finish. No primer needed! It's built into Ultra Foundation, thanks to the super sophisticated, silicone-based formula. Another bonus - it sets without powder, preserving the youthful, dewy finish.

If you can never find the right shade for you, FACE atelier allows you to infinitely adjust your foundation shade. Add a drop of Zero Plus to go a shade darker, or a little Zero Plus Plus to go deeper still. A splash of Zero Minus will lighten, and Heat adds warmth, creating the shade that’s perfectly right for you."

So a couple of weeks back I ordered samples of all 12 shades from Coco Beau to check and see which would be the most popular ones for my kit.

This is what the sample pots look like and swatches of all 12 shades -

From left to right: porcelain, ivory, wheat, sand, sepia, honey, tan, caramel, toffee, cocoa, mink, sable

A sample pot will last you a couple of applications as a little goes a long way with this foundation and you only need the tiniest bit.

My overall impression - I'm pretty hooked on this formula and really can not fault it, meaning that I'll definitely be committing to a full sized bottle.
Face Atelier has a very silky texture that applies smoothly and easily. It's easy to blend with no streaks and smears. The coverage is medium to high and the great thing about it is that you can build up the coverage in certain areas without it starting to cake.
It feels very light on the skin and the finish is a dream come true for me as it's the sort of thing that I'm always after in a foundation - dewy and luminous.

When wearing this foundation my skin still looks fresh and made up even at the end of the day - please bare in mind that I do have a normal skin type.

So far I'm impressed enough to say that this could very well become a staple in my make-up bag.

I think that this is a great foundation for those -

• with normal, dry or mature skin types
• who like a multi-tasker and aren't bothered with incorporating a primer into their make-up routine
• who don't like powdering or can't be bothered to do it
• who like the dewy, luminous look

Have you tried this foundation yet - what are your thoughts?

Revlon Photoready and ColourStay

Over the last couple of weeks I've taken advantage of some of the 3 for 2 offers from Boots and decided to continue experimenting with liquid foundations, which wouldn't normally be my foundation texture of choice as I prefer cream based ones.

I picked up 2 foundations from Revlon - Photoready and ColourStay - I know that these are probably old news to most but what can I say...I'm just a slow coach:)

Revlon PhotoReady

I had read a lot about this one and very often the reviews haven't been all too positive. The issue that most people seem to have with it is that it contains shimmer particles. You won't really be able to see the shimmer when swatching the foundation in the store so it can be quite baffling and leave you thinking "what on earth is everyone complaining about"? Once the foundation has been applied to the face you'll only be able to detect the shimmer if you have a close up look in the mirror especially on a sunny day - so no biggie if you live in a place with gloomy weather...:)

I think that I was drawn to trying out this foundation for two reasons - first was the fact that it has an SPF of 20 and second were the shimmer particles which everyone seems to detest but that's because I have normal skin and like making it look shiny...

The foundation itself has great packaging due to it's very easy to use pump. It dries to a satin matte finish and provides medium coverage. Bare in mind that the sparkles are apparent in the sun so if you don't like that sort of thing then stay away from it. It does help however if you keep the foundation standing upright all the time thus allowing the shimmer to settle more towards the bottom of the bottle.

Revlon ColourStay

Revlon's ColourStay foundation is available in two formulations to suit Normal/Dry and Oily/Combination skin types. It is a long lasting foundation which seems to have gained a lot of fans around the world and has been compared to quite a few high end foundations out there but happens to be a bit more purse friendly.

ColourStay smells a bit funny - a lot of people compare the scent to that of paint - I however don't seem to mind the smell and actually quite like it. However the smell is not very long lasting and disappears soon after application.
The big downside to this foundation is most probably the packaging which is just a simple glass bottle with no pump.

You need to be quite careful when pouring it out and I assume that it's also going to be difficult getting the last bits out once it nears the end.

The foundation has a thick texture and provides matte coverage. It dries pretty quickly and can thus be a tad too difficult to blend so fast application is required. I like to apply it either with my fingers or a foundation brush.

ColourStay seems to stay on all day on my skin but then again I don't seem to have much problems with the lasting power of other foundations either as my skin doesn't really have any oily zones.

Have you tried PhotoReady or ColourStay - which do you prefer as I can't seem to decide?

Bourjois Round Pots of Eyeshadow

I know, I know! I haven't posted in ages (guilty face) so it's great to finally get around to it...things have just been quite hectic but in a positive sort of way...I really need to start blogging more often!

If you've been visiting my blog during my absence then thank you very much for your patience!
Anyway, to get back into the swing of things, here are my thoughts on two lovely eyeshadows that I've been reaching for quite a lot lately.

Although Bourjois Round Pots have been around for ages, I purchased my very first two pots of Bourjois eyeshadow about two weeks ago as I've always found them to be a bit of a "hit and miss" sort of product.
When swatching them at the drugstore I've found a lot of these eyeshadows to either be poorly pigmented, too glittery or gritty in texture. There have been some exceptions though - and I purchased two colours that I would gladly recommend from this brand.

Shade 08 - a creamy beige, champagne sort of colour and Shade 74 - a rich plummy brown.

swatch of nr 08

I find shade 08 to be such a great bridal sort of colour. It works great on its own all over the lid or as a highlight colour. I love, love, love it!

swatch of nr 74

I use shade 74 all over the lid and up to the crease. It's just a really modern and chic plummy brown. 

Both of these have a very creamy, soft and smooth texture as well as great pigmentation. I'll probably get another pot of 08 just in case cause I've been using it daily and I wouldn't wanna run out...

Let me know which round pots are your faves?