La Femme Blushes

Hi readers! We're back! Sorry it took sooo damn long, Heather and me have been really busy with work and uni stuff but we're ready to hit belfast and beyond with more beauty! I'll also add that Heather wrote a wonderful post about the Clarisonic but Blogger seems to have devoured it so while we sort that one out here's my thoughts on some interesting blushes...

After being seriously disappointed that I didn’t win Charlotte’s competition on Lipglossiping back in April, I decided to scoot on over to Cocktail Cosmetics to have a look for myself at the La Femme blush range. I chose a 6 pan palette at £8.95 then picked out the individual shades from the range of 45 available. How I wish I could remember the shade names I picked as I can’t decipher which ones are which from the list on the site, oh well. Looking back, I should have done a bit more blog research on swatches of the shades as some colours weren’t what I was expecting, but are nice all the same (as with a lot of colours on makeup sites).

The palette itself:

My 6 shades:

…And swatches:

The colours are matte apart from the burgundy shade in the bottom left corner which has a slight shimmer, but this doesn’t seem to transfer onto the skin.

As Charlotte mentions in her review here, the blushes are quite dusty when swept over with a brush and as you can see my palette is a bit grubby after only a few uses. This doesn’t bother me much, as £2.95 per pan is still very good value. One negative aspect though is that I find them quite difficult to blend well with a regular blusher brush, so Charlotte’s isea of using a stippling brush would be more suitable for application. I especially like using these shades lightly over cream blush to make it last.

Overall, the colours are nice and unique and there’s a big variety of shades to choose from, and at £2.95 each its definitely worthwhile to investigate.

'Bright Idea' Nails

Hope everyone had a nice relaxing Easter Sunday today! I had a lovely dinner at my mum and dads, which is where I found the mother's day present I got my mum this year - a mini O.P.I brights set, 'Bright Idea'. Is it bad that I opened it?? It contains a bright orange, pink, shimmery blue and a top coat. I'm not keen on sheer, shimmery nails so I used Atomic Orange and That's Hot! Pink, one on each hand for uber brightness.

I applied two coats on each hand with no top coat - I'm lazy like that. I love the vibrancy of the orange most and even though I may be a bit pale for these kinds of colours, really who cares cause they're so fun and bright!

Are you guys rocking brights on nails this spring/summer?

- Siobhan :)

Topshop Makeup – Highlighter in 'Sunbeam'

I’ve been looking for a nice, non-expensive highlighter for a while now. I stumbled across this one in Topshop for £9, for which you get a huge amount of product. I was impressed after swatching it in store and as you can see below it’s the loveliest golden colour, almost like a glowy light which is exactly what I was looking for.

It’s the first thing I’ve tried from Topshop’s range and I do like what I’m seeing, so more products to play with may be on the cards. I really like the look of the cream blushes... but back to the highlighter. This was the lighter shade of two available, the other being a more bronzed colour. It’s nicely pigmented which I’ve found is hard to get in a high-street highlighter. As I mentioned, you do get a lot of product for your money, 6.5g to be exact. The packaging is quite cool and different, not too bulky and not cheap looking. One thing that would be a great addition is a mirror inside, but that doesn’t bother me too much.

In the pan it looks quite yellow toned, but as you can see from the swatch it’s a lot more golden. Although the colour is beautiful, I do think it might be a little warm for my pale skin tone. In the summer though, when I’m a bit less ghostly, I’m sure it will work fine. Lightly dusted on cheekbones is where it looks best I think. All in all an affordable, pigmented, nicely coloured highlighter - great for the summery weather we've been having!

- Siobhan

Sephora Liner Electro - Choc Electro 09

Firstly, it may shock some of you that my first visit to a Sephora store was just three months ago when I was in Rome. Then again, there are no stores in the UK or Ireland so maybe not so shocking. Anyway, what I want to mention is my Sephora ‘Liner Electro’ in Choc Electro 09. I found this on the floor of my car a year or two ago when it must have fallen out of my friend’s makeup bag, but as it was blunt it lay on my dressing table until about a month ago when I bothered my arse to sharpen it. But boy am I glad I did! This pencil is so creamy and nicely metallic, not that yucky in-your-face glitteryness you get sometimes. But best of all, it’s so easy to use which is great for clumsy people like me, and it looks great smudged. If I’m in a rush in the morning and don’t have time to bother with the precision that my Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner needs, then this is my saviour. Plus, it looks great on blue eyes.

This pencil has slowly became a product I’ve been using pretty much every week day as when I’m running late for uni I can just stick it in my makeup bag and smudge it on before getting out of the car and going to class. I asked my fellow beautifyBelfast blogger Heather to get me another shade when she was on one of her regular American travels for work, Metal Electro 02. This one isn’t quite as creamy for some reason and the shimmer isn’t as fine, which is a shame.

Metal Electro 02, Choc Electro 09

As for wear, these didn’t quite hold up to the ‘shower test’ (that’s getting a shower with the swatches still on…) but then I don’t really mind as the softness makes application so easy. As for those with quite oily lids, I would suggest using a primer before application as they don’t seem to set firmly in place, although they do still last all day on my normal lids.

So, until Sephora starts shipping across the water, ask anyone you know going to the US, Rome, France etc to bring you this back. It’s currently $8 on sephora.com. Though of course, if it drops out of your mate’s makeup bag (thanks Louise), then it’s free!

Current Love-Clinique Moisture Surge

My skin is ridiculously dry. Always has been. I'm always on the hunt for a moisturiser thats not greasy,not wild expensive and brings a bit of life back into my face. Introducing Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief!

I'd been hearing good things about this pot of goodness and couldn't wait to try it. Last months Glamour magazines free gift,was a selection of Clinique treats. I managed to get my hands on Moisture Surge and the 'All About Eyes' eye cream.

I literally got so excited about this moisturiser (sad I know) having just came off a flight, I immediatley slapped it on my face. After about 5 mins of the product sinking in I could immediatey feel and see a difference. Not only was my skin super soft and smooth, the dehydration lines on my forehead were significantly reduced. I was in love!

The little leaflet that comes with it says you can use it as a hydrating mask. To be honest though I don't see the point in putting on a thicker layer,leaving it and wiping off agin when you can just whack it on and rub it in and get the same results!

I used up the sample tube which lasted me a good 3 weeks. It didnt cause any blemishes or irritation.I liked it so much I decided to purchase the full size pot. Luckily enough for me we had a travel set in duty free that came with an eye gel and moistrising facial spray for less than what a full price pot of cream would have cost. I love a good bargain!

I use it morning and night after my Clarisonic,along side the 'All About Eyes'cream which is equally as lovely.  My skin is no longer crying out for hydration. Its bright, fresh and dewy. I wish I had have found this little gem earlier!

Whats your favourite moisturiser?

Heather xx