Orange..?

I had an orange look in my head today but I'm not sure I really pull it off!

Orange isn't a colour I tend to wear generally but I like to set myself a challenge. 

I started with a brown on my eyes, then packed a bright orange from the Sleek Shangri-la Respect palette onto the lids and across the brow bone. I lined my top lashes with black liner but makbe a dark brown or blue would have worked better.

On my cheeks I used my Sleek blush palette in Lace, which is a trio of orangey hues. 

I swept the lighter colour over the top of my cheeks, the bright orangey red across my apples and the darker, shimmery one around the bottom of my cheekbones and up onto the apples. I added little contouring under my cheekbones with my Heroin eyeshadow and highlighted the top of them with Intrigue Blusher, both by Illamasqua. I blended the colours throughout with my kabuki brush to avoid any harsh lines.

I finished up with an orange from one of my fab Kryolan lip palettes!

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Dark lips don't always = goth.

For my look of the day today I was inspired by one of my favourite lip liners, Nightmoth by Mac. 

I expect some people are put off wearing dark lipstick for fear of looking too heavy or gothic. But done right I think it can look very slick and modern. Even black lipstick. The trick is to keep everything else clean and light. 

I wanted a fresh, light base with good coverage so used a moisturising primer by Body Shop followed by Illamasqua's Skin Base and Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer. I used Illamasqua's Rude cream blusher and set this and the foundation with Mac's Translucent powder.

For my eyes I washed them over with Mac Shroom, an off white, shimmery eye shadow and blended Illamasqua Heroin eye shadow into the crease to add a little depth. I lined the top lashes with black felt tip liner by L'Oreal and applied Max Factor False Lash Effect mascara to the top and bottom lashes. I also lined my water line with a peachy pencil called Vow by Illamasqua.

I think the key to this look is to balance the dark lips with the rest of the face. 

After lining & filling in the lips with Mac Nightmoth lip liner, I blended in a little Illamasqua Pristine lipstick, which is a matte black and cleaned up any mistakes around the lips with a cotton bud and a brush dipped in concealer. 

I didn't need a bright blusher so contoured my cheeks with Illamasqua Heroin eye shadow under the cheekbones and Illamasqua Intrigue Blusher on top, which is a white blush - one of my favourite and most used products. I added warmth with a hint of apricot blusher by Bourjois.

As a final touch I added some extra highlight to the high points of my face with Illamasqua's Gleam.

An added bonus to this look is that by going for a big statement lip, you're distracted from the two mountainous spots on my chin!

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Make up tips for glasses wearers

When I started wearing glasses a few years ago (over 10 actually, yikes) I was wasn't really sure what make up to wear with them. I was still getting used to wearing glasses and never seemed to get it quite right.

A decade of playing around and I've worked out that, during the day I just like to enhance my eyes to help them stand out but not look too 'done'.  

Glasses can sometimes magnify the eye area so I feel it's particularly important to get my under eye concealer right so that my dark circles are well camouflaged.
I apply pencil eyeliner above the top lashes (here I've used a dark plum) and smudge it a little with a similar coloured eye shadow. This softens the look and sets the pencil. I run the same brush I used to smudge the pencil liner just below my bottom lashes too.
I like to curl my lashes, apply mascara and then comb through the lashes to avoid any clumps.
A bit of blush, lip balm/ gloss and I'm good to go about my business!

From there, if I'm at work or out and about, I can either build up the eye make up to make a more smokey look or add a bright lippy. I find that it's one or the other for me.

Below you can see I've spent more time building up the eye make up, making the eyeliner thicker and winging it out very slightly. I've also built up the colour so that it's heavier and more of a smokey look.
I added more blush then tried a couple of lip options, the first image below is a purple lipgloss with a nude shimmery gloss patted on top. The second image is the same eye make up with a pink gloss.

Which of the three looks you prefer?

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Yay, the sun is here!

After a very long winter we've had a week of glorious sunshine. Me & Molly have made the most of it by getting out everyday and today we met a friend across London which meant very little time for make up.

So, my LOTD (look of the day) is a natural & easy one. Just foundation (mixture of Illamasqua Skin base, YSL Touch Eclat foundation & L'Oreal Apricot CC cream), liquid liner (Illamasqua Havoc Precicion Ink), Mascara (Max Factor False Lash Effect), A bit of blush (Sugarbomb by Benefit) and a lip balm.

I mix my foundations to get the right shade and consistency. Sometimes I like more coverage but during the day, particularly when it's sunny I only want a light base.

My brows are in urgent need of attention. I had to push my waxing appointment back by a week and am desperate to pluck and straighten them up but must resist!

I don't look very sunny n this pic do I? I ripped the scarf and cardi off as soon as I stepped outside!

Molly on the other hand, looks super sunny & smiley in her pic of the day! Shame we have rain forecast over the weekend.

 

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Look of the day... Inspired by Leigh Lezarck

Hello lovely readers! I was flicking through Company magazine today and was struck by how gorgeous & totally hot Leigh Lezark looked on the cover. Don't you agree?

I love her sultry, bronzy eyes, contoured cheeks and pink lips so thought I'd create a version of it for my look today. 

Image courtesy of http://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/company-magazines-cover-star-leigh-lezark-130400454.html

First, I thought I'd show a pic of me with no make up on for reference. Not a very pretty sight but good to see what a difference a bit of make up makes eh?!

I love the eye make up look but wasn't sure about the pink lips, I think a slightly different shade would have looked better on me but just as I went to change the colour a friend arrived with her toddler in tow to play with my little monster, Molly.

I love the eye make up look but wasn't sure about the pink lips, I think a slightly different shade would have looked better on me but just as I went to change the colour a friend arrived with her toddler in tow to play with my little monster, Molly.

As we were sipping our tea and munching on biscuits, I thought I'd best take the lippy off. Plus, I felt a bit over dressed to be honest. Pink lip removed, I preferred the look with nude lips so when our visitors left I ran upstairs to add a pink lip balm I got a while back from Clinique (Pudgey Peony Chubby Stick) and I love it. What do you think?

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Ladies that lunch

Heading out for a lunch and catch up with my beautiful pal & awesome jewellery designer Jennifer Farrell, I couldn't resist my Illamasqua Magnetsism lipstick for some reason.

To keep the look from feeling too overdone for a stroll in the sun, I kept the rest of my make up pretty neutral, with just a flick of Havoc eyeliner, groomed brows, Hula bronzer and a hint of pink blush.

Jen makes the prettiest, eclectic & lovingly handmade jewellery and is well worth checking out if you have the time. Visit http://www.stormteacup.co.uk/ to view her colourful jewels!

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A colourful & fun look of the day!

After a few bridal looks last week and a make up free weekend, I fancied a pop of colour on my face to match the glorious sunshine outside. Yay, spring is here!!!

After reading an article about the Brazilian fashion week I was inspired to create a colourful & fun look for my eyes so grabbed my pigment pots, Sleek & MUA colour palettes and got to work!

I started with blue on my lids, adding a darker blue into the socket, yellow at the inner corner and then green at the outside corder and over my the brow bone. The trick to a look like this is to blend the colours into each other well to avoid any harsh lines.

I started with a blue eyeliner but ended up going over it with purple to help bring out the yellow. 

I don't have a yellow pigment and since the blue and green colours were pigments so more bright and vibrant than shadow, the yellow was getting a bit lost. Purple is a complimentary colour for yellow it so helps to make the yellow stand out. Purple also really suits my eye colour so was a good choice to lift the whole look I think.

When using pigments or dark eye shadows I do my eyes first and base second as there's always a lot of fallout to clear up. To finish the look I lightly contoured my cheekbones, added a warm coral pink blush and dabbed an orangey red gloss on my lips.

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Floral inspired bridal make up

Today, another bridal look. This time inspired by these gorgeous pinky/ purpley hydrangeas. 

I wanted to do something different to yesterday's classic/ enhancing bridal make up look and I think this would work really well with a more dramatic or couture wedding dress but equally with a simple summer wedding.

Image courtesy of http://www.newcoventgardenmarket.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/large_picture/Linda_Cottee_Flowers_-_Pink_Hydrangeas.JPG

I kept the eyes natural but added drama with a mixture of plum and purple colours to the brow bone and under the eye, blending onto the outside of lid and across the crease. 

I chose a warm, dark pink blush but blended it down to keep the focus on the eyes. I finished with a pink lipstick to finish up but a subtle pink gloss would also work very well.

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Easy, Breezy, Bridal

My look of the day today is a classic & popular bridal look that will never date. It's all about enhancing your natural features and creating a polished version of yourself so that you feel comfortable on your big day.

A few tips for long lasting make up are:

• Prep your canvas (face) well by exfoliating skin & lips once a week beforehand and on the day cleanse, tone and moisturise before applying any make up. 
• Give the moisturiser time to sink in before applying a foundation primer which will create a smooth base and hold foundation in place all day. Use a mattifying primer if you have oily skin.
• Blend blend blend. You really want the make up to look as natural as possible, as if you're not wearing any make up.
• Once you've applied foundation & concealer, add a thin layer of cream blusher to the apples of your cheeks then set it all with translucent powder.
• Consider appling your eye make up before the foundation to avoid having to remove eyeshadow fall out.
• When you've finished, spritz your face lightly with a setting spray.
• There are many more tips but I didn't want to go on and on. If you'd like some more advice then feel free to comment below with any questions or contact me via my website!

During your make up trial, whether you employ a make up artist or do it yourself, it's important to check the look in as many different lighting situations as possible.

I've taken pictures of the same make up in daylight, indoor/ artificial lighting and with the flash (below). I also wore the same make up look out last night (with a brighter lippy) and took photo's at the end of the night to check the make up's durability. It's not such a pretty sight but the make up held tight.

The first photo below shows the finished make up look. When I looked at the image though I could see a little white around my nose. This is the translucent powder which needed to be blended in more. It's undetectable with the naked eye so it's worth taking a picture (ideally with flash) to double check this on the trial and before you head down the aisle.

The above picture shows the finished look however translucent powder can be seen around nose.

Powder blended, I then took pictures in natural daylight and in the same room with the lights on.

Natural daylight

Artificial lighting

Again with the flash and also check the sides to make sure the blusher, contouring and foundation are blended well and as symetrical as you can make it. You can either take photos as I have done below or have a friend check for you.

Same make look in a darker room with the flash.

Check the sides to make sure the make up is blended well

Finally, if possible test the make up's durability by taking pictures later on. I applied the make up in the early afternoon so double checked it about 4 hours later (after a bath, washing my hair and running around my 21month old toddler) and again at the end of a night out. Not a pretty sight I warn you but the make up held very well.

Same make up 4hrs later, only difference is the lippy 

Same make up 4hrs later, only difference is lippy

And finally, same make up at the end of a night out about 8hrs after application...

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Liner look of the day...

This season saw loads of fun coloured eye shadow and liners on the catwalks from blue to neon pink.

Image courtesy of http://cocosteaparty.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/coloured-eyeliner.png

Image courtesy of https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBfdJ1FU8Mlplzq7Xi6Uy35kKfUMX7dCY3H7bRuLcEFy5LdxdIpQmMusfyKTnlYh8ezjBzSFeJUFqlDaM25NKi5h8ff3Vf54NV0t7RjOzhQQbxOY6ZMmepAVPMAqFzceiuxUuWze26VEV/s640/moschino+cheap+and+chic+spring+summer+2013+make+up.jpg 

For my look of the day, I decided to create a look using Havoc eyeliner from Illamasqua. It's a dark, plummy, aubergine colour perfect for brown/ hazel/green eye'd girls and very wearable. Keeping the rest of the make up natural keeps the focus on the eyes.

I think this is a great way of wearing a different coloured eyeliner and updating your look without screaming 'look at me, I'm wearing bright colours on my face!!'. 

Here's an easy way to buy into the coloured eyeliner trend, without actually buying a new coloured eyeliner - wet a fine/ angled brush and dip it into a coloured eyeshadow that you already have for a homemade liquid liner.

Alternatively, if you already have coloured pencils why not try using one of those and then smudge a similar or even more vibrant colour over the top. This will set the pencil line, holding it in place and make the colour pop.

I did a blue eyeliner look using eyeshadow & a wet brush a few weeks ago, click here to take a look.

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Silver Tuesday

Tuesday = silver. At least today it does anyway.

I love, love, love Chanel's silver eye make up look on Cara Delevingne and have admired it in my magazines for months so decided to do a silver look of mine own.

Image courtesy of http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbskdiAu3G1rik98vo1_500.jpg

Cara is untouchable and my picture shouldn't even be on the same page as her... but it was a great excuse to us my Slick Liquid Metal by Illamasqua & Silver pigment by Mac on my eyes. 

Shame my eyes are so ugly and bloodshot, damn this horrible cold I'm suffering from. 

I think the Chanel look is lighter and more refined (as usual!) than mine. Next time I'll try another base for the pigment as the Liquid Metal is quite dark to begin with. It's a great make up look for a night out though.

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Inspired by Audrey

Today I've been inspired by my absolute favourite beauty of all time, Audrey Hepburn. I would say my re-incarnation is her 50's look as she changed her make up and styling through the decades.

Although I didn't necessarily want to copy her look, I really wanted to get her brows but with my wirey, black, stubborn hairs there was no chance!

Oh to look as classically beautiful, fun and intriguing as Miss. A Hepburn...

Image coutesy of http://fiftieswedding.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Audrey-Hepburn-4.jpg

I didn't really do Audrey justice, particularly with my photograph. I wanted to do a red lip as I just love this particular lipstick (Marigold by Elizabeth Arden) and it feels very 50's.

I like my eyeliner flicks though and, although the pic's not great, my hair is giving good Audrey today.

Red lip removed and I think I prefer it this way afterall. There's still a bit of lippy so my lips aren't nude and my brows are back to normal. The below make up certainly suits me better.

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A little more grunge

I couldn't help but continue playing with my grunge look and I reckon this look is a bit more 90's grunge. I spent a bit more time on my contouring, using Illamasqua's Intrigue (white) blusher high on my cheekbones, and Heroin eyeshadow (cool mid brown) below my cheek bones and onto temples. 

I was also dying to try out my Fierce Intense Gloss, which is this gorgeous purple lipgloss by Illamasqua so I tied it in by adding purple (MAC Satellite Dreams) under my eyes and I threw in some orange (Aretha Orange by Sleek) on the brow bone.  'Cause, well why not?

To finish up I added a little Gleam in Aurora to highlight my brow and cheek bones.

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Going going... Grunge

For my look of the day I decided to go grunge, inspired by Versace's SS'13 make up.

Image coutesy of https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVpR7JKOkdi0_QaPi93rnXcIgCpm5WtZoWkHGv4iJYYBqBO8Kncssdk5EWTQthAk4sIYW6eXKywQ9X_vuVUuLkokpjDKgKfaGlZHuf-5HJQfhi8VtWKJkimwe4NwkzPQRZyttXYro5vE/s1600/versace+smokey.jpg

Image coutesy of http://fixmakeup.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/mic0087-450x675.jpg

The idea is to line just the bottom lashes, and to keep the whole look of the eyes quite smokey. That coupled with a heavily contoured face and you have this season's grunge look. I just wish I had the long flowing locks to compliment it!

I'm pretty happy with my attempt but I reckon I could have gone even heavier under my eyes. 

I don't like the lashes I'm wearing though. I find most false lashes are just too long for me (as in lash length not strip length), I have such short stubby lashes, sob sob!

Anyone else have this problem, apart from my mother?! Any ideas for more suitable lashes?

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Miss Dior bridal make up inspiration

For my look today I decided to create a bridal make up look and was inspired by the gorgeous, gorgeous Natalie Portman for Miss Dior.

I'm pretty sure that, to compliment her striking brown eyes, she's wearing a deep purple eyeliner and a little green under her bottom lashes. 

Of course I'm not a patch on Miss Portman but see below for my version using long lasting products that will stay put through a whole wedding day, and night!

The first image of me below was my first attempt but as I looked at the image I thought the hightlights were a bit much and the lips needed to be more pinky so my revised look is at the bottom. The difference is subtle but I think the second version is definitely better.

Image courtesy of http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/33400000/New-Miss-Dior-Campaign-Photoshoot-natalie-portman-33497704-750-971.jpg

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Bright lips. Bold brows.

Today, I decided a bright, statement lip was needed.

Bright, bold lips and bushy brows were all over the SS'13 catwalks with eyes kept very minimal to keep it balanced. I think it's very pretty and wearable.

I adore the top left hand look in the below image and wish I could bleach my brows but I'm not sure it would work on me - what with my dark hair and huge Jewish nose!

Image coutesy of http://looksbylaura.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/ss13-trend-statement-lips.html

For my first look I used my orangey/ red Mandarin lip pencil by Lord & Berry, which I LOVE. 

Orange reds suit me better than blue reds and I love it when I find a good'un. I then applied a Kryolan red lippy over the top which I think is called True Red.  

I used my Benefit Brow Zings again after re-discovering it yesterday. The pigmented wax fills in gaps and keeps your brows in place as you go. The darker powder sets it whilst adding depth which I also love. 

For my skin I wanted a nice, natural glow. I wanted to use my YSL Le Teint Touche Eclait but the shade I have is a too dark for me so I mixed in a drop of my trusty Illamasqua Skin Base. It worked out well actually as the YSL foundation is quite sheer so the Skin Base gave a little extra coverage. I also added a little of my Illamasqua Gleam in Aurora to enhance the glow.

So easy to quickly change lip colours so I thought I'd try out the two-tone trend. 

I used a combination of bright orange on the bottom lip and pink on the top, blending some of each colour into the other lip. Both lip colours from my Kryolan lip palettes from Charles Fox London.

Look for the day...

Another day another make up look. 

Since my daughter Molly still sleeps for an hour in the middle of the day, I try to make the most of this wonderful time by experimenting with my make up - using products that I haven't used before or for a long time.  

Today I flicked through Grazia and was inspired by this gorgeous image of Jennifer Lopez for L'Oreal Elvive.  In particular, I love the eyes, brows and glowing skin.  Below is my interpretation - obviously I'm not a patch on JLo but it was a fun look to recreate...

Image courtesy of http://img.trendenciasbelleza.com/2012/01/elvive.jpg

To achieve JLo's glowing skin, I added Mac Strobe Cream to my foundation. I wanted the eyes to look polished like the reference rather too grungey and I think I'd like another stab to get this perfect as mine are a bit messier than the original.

I really like my skin though and this is so easy to create so I'll try it again another time soon. It reminds me of Kim Kardashian/ Cheryl Cole's make up don't you think?

What to try tomorrow...

Heading out tonight...?

I just created this bronzed eye look and I think it would be perfect for a night out. What do you reckon?

Starting off I applied the bronze end of the Max Factor Purple Dust as the eye shadow base. 

I then layered L'Oreal Paris Bronze shadow over the top and ran the dark brown from my Estee Lauder Bronze Dunes palette into the crease.

I lined my top lashes with Bobbi Brown's brown gel liner and blended with Illamasqua's Forgiveness from the Complement palette into the liner and the bottom outer third of my lashes.  

I LOVE the Champagne colour from this palette too (Slink) so I added that as a highlight to the centre of my lid, the inner corners and along the bottom lash line.

To finish up I added a wash of Mac Nocturnelle to my brow bone and a couple of coats of Maybeline Mascara.

For my lips, I kept it simple. I applied a thin coat of Illamasqua's Magnetism lipstick, smudged it with my fingers to sheer it out and create more of a stained look then dabbed a little of my Illume lip gloss by Smashbox.

Other product used are listed below...

Also used were:

Illamasqua Skin Base
Illamasqua Gleam in Aurora
Kryolan Derma Colour
Kryolan eye brow palette
Illamasqua Sealing Gel
Illamasqua Heroin eye shadow
Benefit Coralista
Benefit Hula
Sleek Blush in Pumpkin (Orange shade)