Be a Style Queen

The release of the Boots’ Christmas catalogue marks the official run up to Christmas. Each week during this run up to Christmas, Boots offers up one of its “star” gifts for half price. This weeks’ is pretty good and guaranteed to cause a stampede….

Frontcover Style Queen Reduced from £35 to £17

Frontcover Style Queen is a bumper beauty collection for eyes, lips and cheeks. It includes all the products, tools and techniques you’ll need to rock a new look and is great for party season.

The Frontcover Style Queen Colour Set includes:

• 6 lip glosses
• 7 dome baked powder eyeshadows
• 6 pressed powder eyeshadows
• 2 fine-line baked powder cheek domes
• Double ended mascara/sealer
• 2 iridescent pigments
• Shadowline
• 6 make-up brushes
• Mini lash curler
• Double pencil sharpener
• A mirror in the lid

All that for just £17! I can personally vouch for their eyeshadows – I picked up a bumper collection during last Christmas’ star gist. See the review here.

Offer ends Thursday 20 October 2011, whilst stocks last, which won’t be long!

LOOK Beauty Collection

Another new kid on the block! LOOK Magazine announced last week that they are launching their first beauty range. I think this is a brilliant idea and I’m surprised someone hasn’t beaten them to it. I picked up a few samples at the show last month and wanted to share my pics, and thoughts.

It’s a pretty comprehensive range with everything you’d expect – foundations, primers, blushers and more. For me the stand out product is the Double Hit Lip – lipstick at one end and gloss at the other. The shade I received is an orangey coral, which looks quite scary but is actually quite sheer.

The texture of the lipstick is nice, more like a balm and the lipgloss smells divine. These were used to achieve the very on trend bold pouts at the recent LOOK catwalk show (see the pics here). I’d be keen to try the red for a buildable crimson pout, with optional gloss finish.

As for the Statement Eyes shadows £4 each, again, not the best shades for me, but the textures are nice. Quite silky and satin-like.

 

I’d like to try their metallic shades – Lame and Luxe were used on the models in the show.

Other stand out products include the Ooomph Lashes mascara £7 and Holiday Glow highlighting Powder £8.

Available exclusively in Superdrug stores later this month. A donation from every product sold goes to cancer support charity Look Good… Feel Better.

17 All About Nude Palette

If you’ve been in Boots anytime in the last week or so this summer palette might just have caught your eye. Unfortunately the limited edition palette is not for individual sale, instead it’s a free gift when you purchase any two 17 products. I ordered mine online as the shops had sold out, and now I see why. The palette is really good quality and wouldn’t be out of place alongside premium palettes from the likes of Benefit and Stila. It contains two eye shadows (top row), a multi purpose cheek blush/highlighter (bottom left) and a lipgloss (bottom right).

The golden coloured eyeshadow is divine – buttery texture, highly pigmented and metallic finish. The cheek product reminds me of a pigmented highlighter, think Nars’ Multiples or Topshop’s Cheek and the lip square is rosey glossy lipstick.

l-r pink eye shadow, golden eye shadow, blush and lips

 So which two 17 products did I choose to go with the new palette? Well, I opted for a mirror shine lipstick in Peace that I’ve had my eye on for a while and a practical, but slightly boring pencil sharpener (£1.99).

Mirror Shine Lipstick – Peace £2.59 (online, £4.59 in store)

If you fancy one of these lipsticks, order online. Boots have £2 off the Mirror Shine range, for some reason they’re still full price in store. As the title suggests, this is a shiny, glossy lipstick. It looks like a lipstick but feels like a balm. It’s shiny like a lipgloss but not at all sticky. Peace looks like a bright coral, but on the lips, it’s more of a hot pink – either way it’s a nice summer shade and super shiny.

All three products cost less than five pounds, a pretty savvy haul I’d say!

Nars Turkish Delight Lipgloss, not so delightful?

I’m prepared for some serious backlash when I say this… but I’m starting to think that Nars products are seriously over rated!!?!? I thought this after I bought the Laguna Bronzer (and it crumbled to bits after two minutes), I especially thought it when I got their world famous ORGASM blusher and now I’ve branched out to their lip glosses, I KNOW IT! I’m not saying that they aren’t good, I’m just saying they’re hyped to hell and don’t live up to my expectations.

Like the Laguna Bronzer and Orgasm blusher, Turkish Delight lipgloss is another of their “It” products with a celeb and cult following – Apparently a favourite of Kim Kardashian. Like Kim I LOVE pretty pink and nude lips, so I expected this to tick all the boxes.

The colour I love. It’s a milky, baby pink – more like candy floss than Turkish delight.

It’s well pigmented but it’s semi-sheer, meaning you have to apply quite a lot if you want to achieve the bottle colour. I think it’s best teamed with a pale lipstick like Mac’s Angel.  It’s very comfortable to wear, not at all sticky, but my main gripe with this product is its lack of staying power. It lasts two minutes – you find yourself having to reapply frequently. Oh and it doesn’t smell too good.

I know it sounds like I’m complaining for the sake of it, I do like the lipgloss – it’s a great colour, but at this price point (UK retail price £18) it could do better, correction SHOULD do better. I’ll enjoy wearing it, but there’ll be no repeat purchase.

I find it’s quite similar to Revlon’s Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Peach Petal which I love. It has a similar creamy texute and milky finish, but lasts longer and is a snip at £6.99.

Something for the weekend: Jemma Kidd Coral Lipgloss

I blogged earlier in the week about all the fab mag freebies on offer this month. I hadn’t intended to purchase this one, I tried to abstain (honest), but my addiction got the better of me and I couldn’t resist the free Jemma Kidd lipgloss with Red MaGAZINE. I had a good excuse though, I’m planning on hitting the town at the weekend in a coral dress, and wanted a lipgloss to match.

It’s my first Jemma Kidd lipgloss and I’m happy to report I’m very impressed. The colour is a PERFECT match to the dress. A true coral, not too red, not too pink.

The texture is very nice too. A little balmy, but not too sticky and not at all glupey or tacky. Glides on like a dream and smells great too. My only criticism, it’s a bit too transparent, I’d have preferred more pigmentation. This one will need teaming with a lipstick if you want maximum impact. Here’s how it looks on the lips…

Hey, for £3.80 including the magazine, I ain’t complaining.

Best of… Pink Lip Glosses

Lip gloss is something I’ve loved for years. In fact it was probably my first make up love. I started with Lancome’s Juicy tubes then progressed to everything and anything shiny and glossy. Although I’m increasingly drawn to lipsticks now, I still can’t walk past a make up counter without sampling their latest gloss. My current obsession are nudes and peaches, but for a long time it was all about the pinks. Here’s some I have in my collection….

Left to right

Mac Viva VI Glam Special Edition Lipglass £12.50

I wasn’t sure whether to include this one as it’s at the lilac end of the spectrum, but it’s actually quite a nudey pink when applied. Typical of Mac Lipglasses it’s thick, luxurious and Long lasting, but can be a bit too glupey. BEST FOR: Highlighting a tan

Clinique Long Last Glosswear – Air Kiss (Full Size £14)

I got this sample size gloss free with a Clinique Bonus Time gift, otherwise I wouldn’t have chosen it, but I’m glad I did. This one’s Sheer, Shiny and Sticky. It’s a very pretty, light pink and great over lipstick because it lasts long-time! BEST FOR: Wearing over lipstick

Mac Lipgelee Limited Edition – Bubble Lounge £12.50

This one’s special. Creamy, shiny, shimmery and luxurious. It’s a light nudey pink with a creamy, frosty finish. Long lasting but not sticky, smells great too. Whenever I whip it out on a night out it’s quickly snatched off me and passed around. BEST FOR: Maximum impact WOW lips

Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Candy Gloss £8

This one’s a light peachy pink that’s heavy on the glitter. It has a heat activated plumping effect for the ultimate pout – don’t worry it doesn’t sting or burn. Nice on its own for a hint of glimmer and has a fabulous vanilla scent. BEST FOR: Plumping

Mac Limited Edition Wonder Woman Collection Lipglass in Emancipation £17

Candy pink with a suitable gold shimmer. It’s sticky long lasting and JUMBO sized. Quite highly pigmented giving it a great coverage. It’s my current number one! BEST FOR: Everything

Clinique Colour Surge Impossibly Glossy – Prettiest Pink

This gloss is the darkest of the bunch, verging on hot pink. It has soft, creamy feel – comfortable to wear and not especially sticky. Has a satin sheen finish. Unfortunately, I think it’s been discontinued now – don’t you hate it when that happens! BEST FOR: Coverage

Pout Plump Lip gloss

Unfortunately Pout cosmetics no longer exists, but you can still pick some of these babies up online. This one’s been in the collection for years and I’m scared to let it run out. It smells and tastes minty with a cooling effect that plumps the lips and with regular use, and claims to increase collagen. That I’m not sure about but the texture is creamy with a sine/satin finish. The medium pink is great for a nice hint of colour without being too bold.  BEST FOR: Plumping

Let me know your recommendation and watch out for my Best Of… Nude glosses

Lunch time treat… Tin o Tint

I love a lunch time treat. There’s nothing like popping out for a sandwich and coming back armed with beauty goodies. Only problem is, it’s a less than purse friendly activity… except today when I discovered Miners Tin O Tints.

A lovely pot of gorgeous lip balm, available in 3 flavours Cherry, watermelon and my personal favourite, Vanilla.

This is a lip balm with a difference, it’s more like a moisturising gloss. The consistency is thick and creamy. It’s slightly pigmented with a lovely shine. It lasts longer than Vaseline, doesn’t dry out the lips afterwards and is lightly Vanilla scented. I wouldn’t recommend for very chapped lips, I use my Elizabeth Arden’s 8 hour cream for those emergencies, but it’s perfect for creating soft, supply, slightly shiny lips… The pot’s pretty cute too.

Only problem is, I think I’m addicted to mine already.

Just £2.99 for 12g tin in Boots stores, I’m popping back out for the Cherry.

THIS WEEKS BUYS: MAC Wonder Woman Lipstick, Gloss and Blush

I already blogged about the the fab Limited Edition Opulash in Victorious. Now Mac’s Wonder Woman collection is undoubtedly the most coverted collection of the year, if not the decade, but I needed a new lipgloss like a hole in the head so I desperately tried to resist temptation. Unfortunately, I was ill last week and succum to the devil that is, late night internet shopping… and I’m glad I did.

Here’s what I got

Doesn’t it look pretty? I’m a sucker for cute packaging.

Wonder Woman Powder Blush in Mighty Aphrodite

The jewel in the crown of the collection. Undoubtedly heroic, this special powder blush is supersized and super fabulous. Duo blusher is part warm peach coral with gold pearl and part bright coral pink with gold pearl. It barely hit the door mat before I was slapping it on. The compact is gorgeous and unlike other mac blushers and compacts, comes complete with a mirror. It’s larger than the standard blushes and with two colours  it’s perfect to mix and blend for varying shades and intensities. The lighter shade is quite subtle, yet very pretty and warm looking. Gives a healthy, flushed glow. The darker pink shade is more pigmented – a little goes a long way. Mix and match to suit, great for contouring. I just love it!

Wonder Woman Lipstick in Marquise d’

I think I bought this lipstick for show,I blame the star. It’s a pale, neutral colour, MAC describe it as a sandy cream peach, but that doesn’t do it justice. Universally flattering it’s cute and very Spring. Soft, moistuising, long lasting and rocks in my handbag. A perfect compliment to the Mighty Aphrodite blush.

 

Wonder Woman Lipglass in Emancipation

 

 

Size counts with this limited-edition jumbo-sized Lipglass! With a heroine’s sense of bravado, this M∙A∙C favourite flaunts its superhero status over its frenemies, leaving them in the shade. Speaking of shade, it’s a soft pink but not too suitable, shows up lovely on the lips – making for a perfect wonder woman pout. As with all lipglasses it’s shiny, sticky and long lasting, unlike other lipglasses, it’s seriously fat, even the wand is huge.

 

Once you’ve had fat you’ll never go back!