Two Tone Lips

I have what I think is a super duper fun post for you all today! You’ve probably all heard about it, seen it, and read about it, but the Two Tone Lip Craze has been very popular with various designers this summer, and seems to/should be making its way into the average persons Autumn look. Sooo, I thought it would be great fun for me to try out some (more wearable) looks , all of them I find to be very subtle and easy to pull off. Below I have posted pictures along with the products I used to create the look shown.

Rimmel Kate in 111 (Kiss Of Life) , Sleek Pout Paint in Cloud9, Stargazer Fantasy Lipgloss in Hot Pink

Revlon Matte 004 (Pink About It), E.l.f Studio Matte Lip Colour in Coral 

 

FashionistA blush in Crimson, MAC PaintPot in Rubenesque

Rimmel Kate in 111 (Kiss Of Life), Revlon Super Lustrious 353 (Cappuccino)

Hopefully you will all now try out some two tone looks for yourself, and if you do I would love to see them!
I can see myself in the future doing some more ‘christmassy’ looks at the end of the year, with some deeper reds and aubergine-y purples!
Thanks for reading
LuLu
x

Top Ten Tanning Tips

Now with summer fading along with my natural tan, I will start to find myself reaching once again for my favourite faker.

So here is a few tips that I have picked up over the years which enable me to glow like a golden goddess all year round!

 

1. Make sure that you wax roughly 48 hours before tanning (and depending on your skin shave 24 hours before) to avoid your tan seeping into your pores leaving an uneven dotty colour.
2. Giving your skin a good old scrub in the shower before applying fake tan is one step that you should never skip! You want to make sure that all your dead skin has gone and has left behind a lovely smooth base for applying your tan, otherwise you will find that the colour will fade away a lot quicker and a lot patchier. If your skin is generally quite dry (like mine) I find that using your scrub on dry skin, then, rinsing it off in the shower is very effective! This is the time that I absolutely love using my Kedem Kiwi&Mango Salt Scrub. (which you can read about at the bottom of My Favourite Moisturisers post)
3. Don’t over moisturise! This is something that I recently wasn’t very aware of! We all want to moisturise before we tan to try to get as smooth a base as possible, but this will in fact stop the tan from completely developing, leaving you a little underwhelmed in the morning when it seems to all wash off in the shower! Instead opt for a oil free moisturiser like the one from FakeBake, and only apply it to the dryer areas of your body such as elbows, knees and ankles! “The moisturiser will act as a diluting agent for areas that grab the tan more” – as said by Leighton Denny, co-founder of the Sun-Believable range.
4. Don’t rush! Try to leave at least an hour between jumping out the shower and applying your tan. After having a hot steamy shower your body will still be ‘sweating’ out excess moisture which can interfere with the tan developing.
5. Avoid using your hands at all costs! For me a mitt is perfect, as long as you chuck it into the washing machine before using it again. Some tans when left in open air turn a horrible green colour, so if you decide to use your mitt after it has turned green you will find that the colour will transfer onto your body and will leave it a less than pleasant colour.
6. Work your way up. Start at your feet, otherwise if you bend over to get to your feet at the end you could end up leaving fold lines across  your stomach and patches on your thighs!
7. Feeling a little sticky? Take an old clean tanning mitt and put some talc on it, then pat around your underarms and anywhere that your skin touches ( behind knees, inside legs and elbows) as not only will it stop the sticky feeling but will also stop any moisture that might prevent the tan from developing.
8. Avoid hot showers! Try and get used to a luke warm shower also don’t rub or wipe yourself dry, try patting your skin dry instead, again this will help keep your colour for longer!
9. Try to moisturise your body twice a day (morning and night) this will help lock in your lovely olive glow!
10. Night Out? If you are going out and really want to show off your tan, try a spray oil on your legs (baby oil works great too!) or even a little shimmery bronzer down your shins and along your collar bones! Don’t get carried away though, you don’t want to be mistaken for the Christmas tree in the holidays!

Happy Tanning!
LuLu

x

FashionistA Cosmetics

This brand isn’t very well known but really should be!! Now owned by MUA, you can purchase their products online at MUA (all products currently 60% off) or at Superdrug (all products currently 50% off)
I LOVE how pigmented their eyeshadows, blushes, bronzers and highlighters are, i truly am impressed especially how inexpensive they are.

£1.65 for a single

Fill a 4 pallete for £7

or

a 6 pallete for £10!

I took advantage of this fabulous offer and ordered some colours that i wouldn’t necessarily go for, and have also found some products which have become part of my daily makeup collection and would find it hard to do without (slight exaggeration)

Blushers – top left: ‘Crimson’ top right: ‘Blushing Coral’

bottom left: ‘London’  bottom right: ‘Milan’

The bottom two blushers are part of the FashionistA ‘double take’ collection and are baked, my favourite is ‘London’ as the peachy undertones are great for my skin tone and for everyday, ‘Blushing Coral’ is extremely pigmented and a gorgeous colour with a slight golden shimmer running through it, you only need a very small amount to get a strong colour (i have warned you). I find that the whole ‘double take’ collection to be a lot less powdery than the normal ones – not that this changes the quality of the product!

Bronzers – top left: ‘Tokyo’ top right: ‘Dubai’ Highlighters – bottom left: ‘Nude Glimmer’ (this is actually an eyeshadow) bottom right: ‘Barcelona’

‘Tokyo’ has become my all time favourite matte(ish) contouring bronzer, i use it almost everyday, it blends superbly and is just the right shade! I say its matt-ish as i believe there is a very small amount of sheen that comes from it, its barely noticable but is there. I also use ‘Barcelona’ every time i highlight and use ‘Nude Glimmer’ on my brow bone everyday as the pink undertones are very natural looking. Its also great for the inner corner of the eye to add a bit of brightness!

top row, left -> right   ‘Stylish’, ‘Couture’, ‘Exclusive Collection'(no name)  

          bottom row, left -> right ‘Auburn Glow’, ‘Berry Brown’, ‘Fashion House’

I created this palette for only £10, with the intention of it being my everyday shadows, which they now are. Four of them are from the ‘double take’ collection, and are probably my favourite! ‘Fashion House’ is insane, it looks black with gold and cream running through it but when swatched it has green undertones and becomes an almost khaki colour. Its beautiful but would suggest blue eyes stay clear. ‘Stylish’ is shimmery cream colour with gold and bronze which become very visible when in certain sunlight, this colour is very flattering and stays put throughout the day with my normal primer.

top left: ‘Icey’   top right: ‘Bewitched’  bottom left : ‘Embellished’   bottom right: ‘Flamboyant’

These i bought mainly because of the offer MUA had on their site, i was unsure about these colours but thought i’d give it a go, and i am so so so glad i did. Just like the rest of the shadows, these were super pigmented and great quality, i was just unsure if i could pull this colour off… I tried out a smokey eye using the four colours, and loved it! For me its a perfect dramatic evening ‘going out’ look and i am very sure that i will be supporting it most weekends throughout the holidays (especially christmas)!

The only thing i would say is that the ‘double take’ ‘Bewitched’ needs built up, but i mean no more than two ‘layers’. I love that this eyeshadow has larger, almost specks of glitter through it, usually i find this quite tacky and off putting but it really works with this colour!

Overall a GREAT review of the products i have tried, i’m not sure if i will purchase their other products such as the mascaras, brow kits or eyeliner, just because i can’t find better than i already use and i am afraid to be disappointed by this brand and would rather end on a high than finish on a low!!!

If you would like to know what other products i used in the look above or how i achieved this look, don’t be afraid to contact me  as i would love to chat!

Calvin Klein Cosmetics

Sheer Creme Eyeshadow
(tempting glimmer)

I have a small collection of Calvin Klein bits and bobs, bought from various discount shops as all products are discontinued and no longer sold in department stores. Some of these products have been good buys but some have been a real disappointment!

When i tried these out in the shop i found them to be VERY pigmented when swatched on the back of my hand, and along with the fact that there was a deal on for 3 for £5 i bought them with the hope of using them as eyeshadow bases.

I got the colours (left to right) snakeskin silver, cashmere plum and bare silk.

I used ‘bare silk’ the next day, over my eyeshadow primer and under my normal eyeshadow, it looked great, it made my usual eyeshadow stand out even greater, i even used it to highlight my brow bone. However, only a few hours later after strolling the street my eyeshadow was creased, my eyelids were oily and my makeup look horrendous!! Over the rest of the week i discovered that these products were terrible for everything except highlighting my brow bone, but even then, i can only use ‘bare silk’ for this. Thumbs Down.

Creme Lipstick

Next up, these were the first ever Calvin Klein Cosmetic products that i bought, and was impressed, i think i got them for only £3 each, which i think is a bargain!
I have the shades ‘Venus’ and ‘Orange Too’ , the picture doesn’t show just how orange and bright ‘Orange Too’ is, they are both very pigmented and actually quite moisturising. I do have to reapply this lipstick throughout the day but i don’t see this as reason not to buy more if i have the chance! Thumbs Up.

Pictured next to the lipsticks is the Mega Volume Mascara in Black.

Mega Volume Mascara

Wand

I dislike this Mascara as it just doesn’t live up to my current one, the wand is cheap looking and feels cheap also, it’s one of those products that i won’t throw out incase of a mascara emergency but i will not buy it again.. Thumbs Down.

 

 

 

Splendid Colour Nail Enamel

 

 

Next Up, the Splendid Colour Nail Enamel in colours ‘French Tip’ and ‘Ebony hates Chris’ 

These are great and one coat worthy! ‘French Tip’  is 13ml whereas the black is only 10ml – i guess thats the only explanation for the packaging being slightly different. There is a wide range of manly very vivid colours, so if you can find them, it would be great to pick some up for summer!! Thumbs Up.

Large Powder Brush
Eyeshadow Brush

 

 

 

 

 

Finally the most exciting! These are incredible, they are synthetic, extremely soft and they pick up a perfect amount of colour. They look sleek and expensive which for me they were not, i got the Powder Brush for £5 and the Eyeshadow Brush for £3 – what a bargain! I definitely plan on buying a few others in the future! MEGA Thumbs Up!