Ms Purple Make-up in black and white

New Inglot palette for everyday looks

2012-01-28T19:48:00.002Z

Hi ladies,

Whenever I go to INGLOT I know I will spend serious money!

It's never the case of- well, I'll just take this one product and leave. Never!

Firstly because I do not like shopping centres. They are like hell to me. I do not like to mingle with people that have a lot of time to waste and go at 1 mile an hour so when I make the hard decision to venture to West London to go to Westfield it has to be worth it = big shop.

Secondly because I always want everything in that shop. It could be because it's only in Westfield and it's the "can't get that often" effect that makes me want it more.

Whatever the reason I bought a lot! Maybe the most used product is this freedom system palette.

I was nearly going to go for the 20 e/s one but it was too heavy and I would never leave home with that. Maybe it's good for freelancing but I have my make-up for ever palettes with all the eyeshadows I use for make-up on other people.

So, I just went for the regular 10 e/s! Just to add to my other 3 10-e/s palettes :)

I picked 7 with shimmery/satin finish and 3 with mat finish one of which is the rainbow type (3 e/s in one square).

rainbow e/s 107R, 376, 420, 402, 423
357, 404, 11, 09, 12

Rainbow e/s 107R

This is the perfect trio for crease work for blending and transition colour. They are also good alternative to brow powders!

376

It's a matte dark purple. It has some hints of blue and black. Perfect for deepening the crease or outer V

420

My favourite of the palette! It's like a purple version of Stain Taupe by Mac. It's a lilac with hints of silver and a bit of blue. I can change colours ever so slightly when you blend it. Love it.

402

It's a lighter version of Satin Taupe. I much prefer this e/s to Satin Taupe. It can be used on it's own, on the lid or to highlight.

423

It's a rich burgundy colour with a hint of gold shine.

357

This is the crease colour! Ideal for blending or for contouring the crease on lazy days

404

This is my second favourite colour on the palette. It'a an antique gold that can be used on it's own, on the lid or as highlight. Very unique.

This one is quite a regular e/s. You can probably find this kind of shade on any brand but it's super super soft and pigmented. This is mainly my highlighter on this palette.

This one is next on the favourites. It's an orangey copper that brings light and warmth to any look. It's like velvet in texture.

This one is the one I used the least of all these. It's a rich reddish brown. It doesn't suit me all the time. When blended I look like ill. Red undertones never compliment my complexion. I use it carefully and just to give a hint of colour rather than to predominate an entire look.

I absolutely love this e/s palette! I've been using it every day since I bought it. I tend to rotate my make-up every week but I just cannot resist it!

You can see live swatches on this video I did on my Office makeup look.

XXX

Mercedes

NEW VIDEO: Paris Haul

2012-01-25T15:20:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

Yey-I managed to record and edit the video. It's incredible how much I got.
This will keep me going for a while so it might be the last haul video you see from me for a while.

If you haven't already, please subscribe! You will see a lot of make-up ramble and you will get to see Willow :)

Enjoy

What a horrible face that is! :P

Have a fav day.

Mercedes

Some Paris Snaps!

2012-01-23T22:11:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

These are some of the photos I took in Paris.

I am now officially the one behind the camera on our trips so very few are of me!

Me ready to go!

(Nail polish is Essie Nice is nice)

A bit of local architecture near the museum

People queuing at the Christian Louboutin- the sales were on!

Couldn't resist taking photos of some of the shoes!

I have no idea what this building is but the work on it looks amazing.

And of course the Eiffel Tower

The only photo of me.

This is my brave face with no make-up. And yes, it was cold!

A token from Paris anyone?

We were doing a lot of this- looking at the map.

The reason why we went to Paris- food!

I absolutely loved using my camera. It's quite strange being on the other side of the camera but I'm really enjoying it.

I found the 50mm lens a bit hard to work with on this particular trip. Don't get me wrong. I love this lens but it's not a panoramic one so to get a monument or building all on the photo I had to be like 10 blocks away from it. I didn't use the automatic focus. It was way to slow for the quick photos I needed say on the boat tour.

I also learnt that my camera performs better at an f4 aperture. The photos looks sharper and neater.

I didn't take any photos at night because I just wanted to enjoy myself at night without having to worry about get it stolen or damaged.

I'm editing the make-up haul so that will be up in the next days.

I hope you liked my photos!

Stay tunned!

XXX

Mercedes

FOTD: Simple look with Light as air- Jemma Kidd

2012-01-19T21:18:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

As promised, here's my FOTD featuring Jemma Kidd Light As Air Liquid foundation. You can check out my review here.

I took this photo with a strong flash on for you to see how this foundation reacts to photography.

There's no horrible wash out so I guess that is a positive point!

Also, I hope you can see the coverage. I was lucky that day to have clear skin with no major visible spots. Doesn't happen often!

This is the lady in questions paired with a Jemma Kidd foundation brush number 10 which I did not use for the application for these photos but hey, they looked nice together :)

More photos

Not so well focused close up to one eye:

And more just for reference:

Products used

FACE

Oil Free primer by Laura Mercier

Light As Air Liquid foundation by Jemma Kidd

Coverderm (mixture of colours) (under my eyes)

Secret Brightening Powder by Laura Mercier (to set the under eye concealer)

Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear Concealer by Collection 2000

EYES

UDPP

Buck e/s by Urban Decay (on crease)

Toasted and Sin by Urban Decay (mixed on the lid)

Pigment N22 by Inglot (used wet on the lid)

Eyeliner Gel Matte in N77 (the blackest black and best long lasting liner I have ever seen- to line and waterline my eyes)

Black e/s to do a tiny bit of smoky effect on the bottom lash line

CHEEKS

Soleil Tan de Chanel

BROWS

They look awful on these photos- I blame the camera!

Espresso e/s by Mac. believe me it does matches my eyebrows in real like :)

LIPS

Nice N Spicy pro longwear pencil by Mac

Rouge Volupte by YSL in number 30

XXX

Mercedes

What do you think?

FOTD & REVIEW-Light As Air Foundation by Jemma Kidd

2012-01-16T19:03:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

I'm back from Paris! Just came back today. Loved it- we did a few things and I seriously over-hauled at Sephora! I will tell you a bit more about it on another post later this week.

During the Xmas sales I went to the feelunique website to buy the over hyped Jemma Kidd Light As Air Liquid Foundation.

It's supposed to be as it claims "light" and it's supposed to be super easy to blend.
I had high expectations for this foundation. If you follow my blog you will know that I have probably more than 30 foundations so I pretty know what I'm taking about when it comes to foundations and I have hard contestants to compare this one to! You can see my foundation obsession post here.

The packaging is average. The tube is easy to squeeze but it can get a bit messy as some product tends to accumulate on the top and because everything is so black you see it. I will not however take this against this product. It can happen with others too.

The foundation itself is quite liquid and runny. I tend to apply it with either my fingers or with a buffing brush. I think a normal foundation brush will make the application a bit stripy.

It has a nice smell. It reminds me of the scent of the Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo. The smell is not strong enough for you to notice it when you have the foundation on your face.

As for the product itself- well, yes I like it but I wouldn't say it's the best foundation.
Yes, it blends very nicely and the finish is very nice but I found it very similar to my Bourjois Healthy Mix. VERY similar! Actually I prefer the Healthy Mix. The Jemma Kidd one is a bit more mat.

The coverage is I would say medium and it can be totally buildable. The longevity is quite good too. I haven't used it all day long yet- just on nights out but it was pretty good.

I would say it's a nice product but I wouldn't rave about it too much.

I know a lot of you love it but this is just my opinion.

I also picked up a foundation brush by Jemma Kidd. I wanted this brush for ages! I love how unique it is with that round and pointed shape. Perfect for getting the foundations on those hard to get corners.

And here's the FOTD using this foundation.
As you can see it is super natural and it looks nice but you can achieve this look with many other foundations too.

I hope this was useful to anyone trying to decide on getting this foundation or not.

I'm off to get some cuddles from Willow (as I missed her so much) and to get all the make-up I got out of the suitcase :)

XXX

Mercedes

NEW VIDEO: Collective haul (bday, xmas, sales and more)

2012-01-11T07:38:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

I decided to do a video showing you lovely things I got for my birthday, xmas and the sales.
There is a bit of everything: books, make-up, skin care and much more.

I hope you enjoy it and don't forget tu subscribe, comment and like :)

I see on on my next post and video!

XXX

Mercedes

Spot the bargain!

2012-01-08T17:47:00.000Z

Happy Sundays ladies!

I hope you're ok and looking forward to next week.

Have you spotted the bargin on the photo below already?

During the pre-xmas period I really wanted to get the Benefit trio called POWda WOWza.

This set is not actually new or it's not a release of any new product but Benefit always does this thing of pairing popular products in one little set for the Holiday season.

Firstly I liked the packaging. Just a light and flat square box ideal for travelling and then it was the fact that all these three are the most popular products by Benefit. They paired CORALista, hoola and bella bamba! Each of these are around £23 each but this little box was only £20.

I first spotted it in a Boots near work around early December and for some "strange" reason I never picked it up. I said to my self, do I really need 2 more blushes and 1 bronzer? NO, of course I don't. Also, I was in the mind set of buying stuff for other people rather than for myself so I forgot about it.

Then last week I had to pick up some essentials for the gym (shampoo, shower gel, etc) and I saw that the Benefit counter had all the Holiday items on sale! Bingo!

Yes, I picked it up and for only £13! BARGAIN! :)

The two blushes are quite scented. In a nice way I say it but it's quite strong. I never noticed the perfume from swatching the testers.

Yes, I like them- we all do and I think they are perfect for just throwing it in your bag and you get 3 products in one little square.

CORALista is what the name says- a pretty and flattering coral with a nice shimmer that will make you look gorgeous and glowy.

bella bamba is more on the pink side and it has that same natural shimmer that will make you look rosy.

As for hoola, yes I like it- it's just a mat bronzer but I wouldn't say it's my favourite bronzer however I understand why people rave about it.

All in all I'm super happy with my purchase. It was a total bargain hard to ignore!

I'm pretty sure there are more of these hanging around so it you spot it get it.

Have a lovely week everyone!

XXX

Mercedes

Have you picked up something that was marked down? Share the info!!!

FOTD: Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation

2012-01-05T20:23:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

A good few weeks ago I went into Selfridges to visit the Illamasqua counter as I wanted to try the Skin Base foundation really badly.

As you know they do not give samples of their stuff. Not sure why but it sucks!
Anyway, after reading lots of reviews I realised that you either love or hate this foundation.
I wanted to love it so I got matched and all done at the counter to see how I felt about it.

The numbers did not make a lot of sense to me.
The GORGEOUS girl at the counter matched me with number 11 and another number like 8 say.
I asked her why the jump in the number but she mainly said something about the undertones.

She was super nice and even said that the light at the counter wasn't great and that I should check myself in a mirror that was far away. I thought that was risky for her. Sales assistants are always for that split second when you decide to buy it or not and than generally happens when you are looking at yourself int he mirror after they apply the product.
I guess she was very confident on this foundation because I indeed went back and said: I'll take it!

Here is what I look like with the foundation on.
Mind you, this was taken with my super camera (my new Canon 600D), which I haven't mastered yet.
I find it too realistic. I mean there are even things that are not visible to the human eye but yet you can see them on the photos. Also, my brows look horribly done but trust me- they were perfect in person.

The photos below are some with flash and this is how it will look! I haven't edited or retouched any photo!

Also I didn't set the foundation with any powder! You do get a stain finish with it.

The main thing I wanted to show you is how natural this foundation looks. At least I can see my pores in these photos. That does not bother me at all. If you do not like to see your pores you will like this foundation too as you can build up the coverage.

I applied this foundation with a small stippling brush and I pat pat pat and blend blend blend.

On some blogs I read that you need a tiny amount otherwise you will cake it. I disagree. I used near the same amount as with other foundations but they key is blending!

All in all I love this foundation.

The same day I got the Armani Luminous Silk foundation. I know! Terrible. I think it was near xmas so I was in a purchasing mode! I would say maybe these two are my top two at the moment.

That's how much I love it.

This is the packaging. Nothing special and you get the typical 30ml.

It retails at £25 and it's worth every penny! Link

One thing I will say is that you do not get the number (shade) on the bottle- just on the box which I find so silly and that the foundation matrix Illamasqua created on their website is not accurate. According to their matrix I would be an NC37 in Mac. Mmm I don't think so.

Anyway, this is an amazing foundation that unfortunately you will need to buy to see if you like it or not.

I can "hands down" totally recommend it!

I hope this was useful to anyone.

Let me know if you and any comments or any questions :)

XXX

Mercedes

New Video: Make-up favourites of 2011

2012-01-02T13:43:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

This was my 3rd attempt to upload this. The video didn't sync to the audio and it looked weird.

I just couldn't choose one option on each category. I have way too much make-up and too many favourites.

I chose high-end and drugstore on each category (whenever possible) so I could cover different budgets.

I filmed it with my Cannon 600D with my 50mm lens therefore it's in HD quality.

Please do not forget to subscribe, comment and like :)

Enjoy

What were your favourites of 2011?

Armani Eyes To Kill- Three I could not resist!

2012-01-01T13:23:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

I really hope you had a nice and safe New Year celebration.

I also hope this New Year brings you happiness, heath and prosperity.

I stayed at home with the hubby and the dog. We had a lovely home-made dinner with a nice bottle of Merlot which made me fall asleep on the sofa at about 11.45! Yes, the fireworks woke me up. I'm getting old!!

Anyway, enough of the NYE ramble. Onto the make-up!

A few weeks ago I went to Selfridges on Oxford Street to hit the Armani counter.

I never owned anything by Armani but I was super curious. I want to try their foundations and their pressed pigments called Eyes To Kill.

I wanted to take all of them but at about £24.50 each I had to do a painful selection. I got three!

Shade 6 (a more metallic than sparkly antique gold)

This is gorgeous antique gold and copper with another kind of silvery gold too. All these shades mixed beautifully and can be used just on its own. I believe this one is one of the most popular ones and I can see why! You can use it all over the lid, as a tear duct highlight or as part of a goldy smoky look. However you want to use it will look just fabulous!

Shade 4 (a cool metallic and sparkly grey)

This one is an interesting one. It's cool grey with shots of red that gives it an interesting sparkly finish.
I have to be honest and I was easily led to get this one by the sales assistant. It wasn't on my list but she told me how this one is a no fuss smoky type shade that can be blended if you go for a soft look. I was sold. I'm ashamed but you know that happens. It's ok. I don't have anything like this one in my collection so I don't regret it that much.

Shade 3 (a metallic blue purple with some gold sparkles)

Needless to say that this one was first on the list! It's a gorgeous blue purple with gold shots that make it even more metallic and sparkly! I'm in love.

I have a similar one by Lancome but the Lancome one is more of a bright one and it's quite sparkly. Love it nevertheless but this one is a more every-day wear one. I could seriously wear this every day.

There were lots more of these that I wanted. You can become quite addicted to them I tell you!

They are pigments but they are pressed. They are super pigmented! Most of them have a metallic finish but there are a few that have some sparkly too. They are very long lasting and crease proof. You can use them dry or wet for an intense look.

They come with a little cap that you just leave on top of the pigment. This keeps the pigment pressed and helps to keep it tidy.

I'm very happy I got them. And for sure I will get more if I have £24.50 extra to spare. I can see these lasting a long time so they will be considered more as an investment.

You can have a look at some of the other shades here.

Also, I wanted to get a sample of their Luminous Silk Foundation. Yes, the very popular one.

well, the clever sales assistant matched me and made me up at the counter and I ended up buying the bloody thing too! I'll tell you about it in another post but for now I can say that it could be my top 1 foundation!

XXX

Mercedes

Have you indulged in any Armani make-up?

Have you tried the Eyes To Kill too? What shade shall I check out?

The only good thing about Tesco is VIVO

2011-12-29T19:30:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

I do not normally (or ever) get exited when I need to go to Tesco.

It's boring, depressing and it feels seriously like a chore rather than a necessity.

During the Xmas period all major supermarkets had their delivery slot booked.

*Note to self: get there early next year Mercedes!*

So, I had to go into the shops :(

Well I came out with all my xmas food and a bit more- some VIVO make-up!

The stand what a mess! Horrible. Not sure whose fault it was but I just spotted it.

Everything was everywhere and a lot seemed to be opened even though they were clearly not the testers.

As you know me, I just went straight to the cheek products. And I picked up the one I thought was worth it.

Baked Blush in Peaches and Cream (Shade 1)

It's a lovely peach with a bit of shimmer. I have to pile it a bit as it doesn't show too much on my skin. I still think it's very pretty!

I also picked up this eyeshadow but now with the intention of using it on the eyes but as a blush too!
It's a gorgeous duochrome pink. It reminds me of MAC Petticoat MSF. It's that kind of colour.

Dusky Pink (Shade 7)

So far I'm happy with these buys.

I'm not sure when I'm going to go again to the big Tesco near me but for now I will just enjoy these two.

XXX

Mercedes

Have you tried VIVO make-up? Anything worth double checking?

Tag: Get ready with me video

2011-12-28T12:53:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

The tag video is now up :)

This is how I created my Xmas Eve look using purples, glitter and some serious eyeliner, cheek definition and obviously a good cheek illuminator.

All the products are listed on the info box.

What do you think?

I'm planning on a New Year look now.

XXX

Mercedes

FOTD: Xmas Eve Look (with Get Ready With Me Video!)

2011-12-27T11:43:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

I decided to film wile doing my Xmas Eve make-up look so this will end up being a Get ready with me video! I'm super exited how it turned out. I will upload it on fast forward motion- otherwise it's too long.

I had no idea what look I was going for but the two things I knew I wanted to use were Mac Reflects in Blue! I just love the sparkle it gives. And Illamasqua Skin Base foundation which I got about 2-3 weeks ago.

I was also tempted to use fake eyelashes (a must for the festive season) but this year we just did something small and local and I didn't want to look overexcited.

I'm uploading the video on me Youtube Channel now so it will be a few hours I expect. But here's a preview :)

XXX

Mercedes

What look did you go for for xmas?

NEW VIDEO: Belated what I'm using this week #5

2011-12-27T11:31:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

This is a video I should have uploaded last week!

It's all the products I used. It was a busy week so I didn't use as many products as the usual week.
Nevertheless, some products were used. :)

XXX

Mercedes

Festive NOTD- OPI in "Save Me"

2011-12-25T21:53:00.001Z

Hi Ladies,

Merry Xmas!

I'm here watching Downton Abbey! Loving it.

When it comes to Xmas and New Year I like to use and wear a bit of bling...and that includes my nails!

I discovered this lovely nail polish by OPI at my local chemist and I just couldn't resist.

It's a lovely clear top coat with tiny silver glitter (but the lovely one) together with some super thin strips in 3D colour. It's the one and only Save Me.

On this occasion I already had a nail polish on my nails - Flamingo by LOOK Beauty but I wanted to add the bling element to it.

This is the final result. It can look a bit dull in daylight but trust me at night or in artificial light this is just gorgeous and super festive!

I have to say I can see myself using this nails polish all year round! It just gives you that touch of sparkle without going overboard.

XXX

Mercedes

Some YSL I Could Not Resist!

2011-12-23T19:54:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

Happy Friday!

For some strange reason (unknown to mankind) I never owned anything from YSL. Not because I couldn't afford it but because every time I ventured to their counters nothing really attracted me.

I guess their most hyped product is the Touch Eclat. I got it some time ago from a blog sale and I was so unimpressed! My Laura Mercier would throw it out of the park a million times!

The eyeshadows were pretty (yes I'll give them that) but everything to me looks overpriced.

However, I will blame Sanni Mai for this! Completely.

She did some videos featuring the Rouge Volupte in shade 30 and I HAD TO HAVE IT!

Shade number 30 is probably the perfect peach! It has the right amount of coral, pink and orange. It's such a lovely colour that I'm sure will look good on anyone! I'm so happy I got it.

And because I was there on a "purchasing mode" I looked at their latest offerings too. They have a collection going on of gel liner. But not any gel liner- these are all super fabulous and glittery. Perfect for a night out. I swatched all of them and I decided to take with me two shades a green and a purple.
The purple made it's way back to the counter as I had a near dupe by Bobbi Brown which wasn't even half way.

I kept the emerald green one. It's called 6 Noir Jade/ Jade Black.
I love it. I used it already and seriously this stuff does not come off! When I was at the counter the lady gave me an oil based make-up remover and I had to swipe it like 3 times to get it off! Amazing.

The shade is a gorgeous emerald colour that in the shade looks like more black but under the light or in the sun (as below) it shows it's green side.

I'm in love!

The gel liner was £20. Link

The Lipstick was £22. Link

I have photos of a FOTD using the gel liner. I will post them during the weekend.

And yes, I will be posting during Xmas. I love blogging and I love having some extra days at home to share more beauty related stuff! :)

XXX

Mercedes

What's your favourite YSL product?

Which colour shall I go for next? I'm obsessed with this lipstick!

Catching Up With Drugstore Hypes

2011-12-21T20:19:00.000Z

Hi girls,

Hope you're all ok!

Last week I ventured to Oxford Street in London. Once every year and I even live in London. I just can't stand it!

Anyway, I managed to get myself down to the Superdrug where they carry the professional range of MUA, LOOK Beauty and FASHIONISTA.

I wanted to pick one (or two) items from each brand just to get a taste.

MUA
Heaven on Earth- Eyeshadow palette.
This is a handy palette that costs only £4. It has 12 neutral colours (creams, browns, peaches, golds).
It's ok. The quality is ok but now wow. This is ideal if you are on a budget.

FASHIONISTA
I purchased the red eyeshadow palette (sold separately for £4). And then I chose 2 regular eyeshadows (Lilac Dream Shade 31 and Embellished shade 35), a baked eyeshadow (Golden Dragon Shade 2) and a blush (Juicy Apricot Shade 6). The eyeshadows are sold separately too. They come in their own packaging but you just pop them out and you can put them in the pan.
I'm impressed! The quality is very good and the pigmentation is very very good! I will definitely get more (if I decide to go to Oxford St again in 6 months from today).

LOOK Beauty
I was impressed with the range. All the eyeshadows looked lovely. Huge but lovely.
the lipsticks looked nice as well and the nail polishes looked interesting.
However, being a cheek product junkie I went for the blushes and I got two!

I got Flirt which is a lovely apricot/salmon shade with lots of gold flecks. I wish the gold side of it would be just a sheen but no, it's glitter and there is a lot of it!

I managed to get a technique whereby I just tap tap and tap the brush to make sure the gold glitter falls (as it's supposed to be heavier than the pigment). It seems to work but you will get a bit of glitter anyway.

For some reason (not sure why) I also went for Flush which is a sheer peachy. It looks as if this one has glitter too but this type of glitter blends into being a sheen.
This colour does not translate as a blush on my skin but it's more of a highlight. On occasions I put Flirt and Flush on top.
The blushes were about £7 each.
I'm happy with them.

XXX

Mercedes

What drugstore hypes are you catching up with? How do you find them?

How many foundations does a girl need?

2011-12-18T19:50:00.007Z

Hi ladies,

I hope you are having a nice chilled out Sunday.

Mine has been good so far. I met up with my friend Bego and we had a lovely lunch at Buasaba in Soho. This is probably THE best Thai food I've ever tasted! Love it. Try it!

We then met with her boyfriend who is actually Ash Mair (yes, THE Master Chef winner 2011!!). I've been friends with them for about 6 years now. Amazing how many people recognised him in the street. I think I counted 3 people asking for an autograph and 7 for a photo with him. All so bizarre but he's enjoying it and he totally deserves it!! I think the best thing of all is that he's still the same guy as usual.

We all then went to Fenwick in New Bond Street because I had to change something at the YSL counter. Yes, they know my addiction for make-up and they laugh about it. I ended up getting a refund because I couldn't think of what to get instead. Nothing really caught my attention. Sad. And then I came back home.

As Sundays are days to reflect, chill out and re-organise your home I decided to shift one thing here and there on my dressing table and I ended up swapping things from one drawer to the other. I came up with a great idea of having a drawer just for my primers, foundations and concealers. This drawer is now one of the main ones on my table so nothing will be forgotten. I can see exactly what I have.

This however made me realise that I have a lot of foundations and made me wonder: Do I need all of these products? Isn't it too much Mercedes? Seriously?! All this stuff will last me for ever.

Have a look.

I decided to put my most expensive ones first because let's face it- I spent quite a bit of money on them so I might as well use them, right? And then I decided to mix and match drugstore, high end together with different formulations. My OCD is not that bad (yet).

I used a white box that was actually a mobile phone box which now stores my foundations that I cannot stand up because the tubes are too long. Underneath that I have most of my concealers.

And you can see my concealers. I have drugstore and high end. I also put some travel size primers and some samples. This is all a work in progress so I might make some adjustments.

So as you can see the third drawer on my dressing table became the "face" drawer. I think this will totally work for me much better!

Now on to the products themselves. I will shame myself and make a list of all the foundations I have.

You might be interested on any of these so feel free to ask me any questions. I'll be more than happy to get back to you with my humble opinion.

I tend to do a lot of research before buying but I have to be honest with you and yes, there were some impulse purchases here!

I will separate this list by 3 categories: I love- I think it's ok- forget it- it's rubbish.

I hope this will help anyone.

I love

-Chanel Vitalumiere

-Chanel Pro Lumiere

-Chanel Mat Lumiere

-Nars Sheer Glow

-Guerlain Lingerie De Peau

-Mac Mineralize Satinfinish
-Mac Studio Sculpt

-Vichy Dermablend

-Revlon Colorstay (normal/dry skin)

-Revlon Photoready

-Origins VitaZing

-Korres Wild Rose Foundation

-Korres Ginger and Vitamins Foundation

-Estee Lauder Double Wear

-Helena Rubinstein Color Clone Hydrapact

-Helena Rubinstein Sensual Clone

-Maybelline Dream Creamy Foundation

-Bourjois Healthy Mix

I think it's ok

-Make up For Ever HD Foundation

-Mac Face and Body

-L'oreal True Match

-Laura Mercier Mineral Powder

-Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser

-Bare Minerals Foundation

Forget it- it's rubbish

-Garnier BB Cream

-Clinique Anti-blemish Solutions

To add to the foundation shame I added the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation and the Illamasqua Skinbase to my collection last week and I can totally say these two go straight into my Love category!

I hope you enjoyed this post.

XXX

Mercedes

Let me know which foundations are on your Love category and most importantly I want to know which ones are on your rubbish!

Also, help me answer my question- do we really need all these products? Why do we buy so many?

Gorgeous Cheek Illuminators For Xmas!

2011-12-14T20:17:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

When it comes to parties for me there is only one product that is a must! That is a good cheek illuminator!

You can have no eyeshadow and a simple nude lip but if your cheeks glow and feel confident then bingo! That's your party look done!

Here are a few illuminators (I have a humongous collection of them) that I thought are worth the mention in case you are planning on a party look.

These are mainly high end/expensive but I incorporated a drugstore one which I think performs like a high end.

Let's the party begin!

This is a newly released baby! It's the Laura Mercier Illuminator. Hurry it's out now but not for long!
It's on the £30+ mark but you just need this product and you are done!
I would imagine this will suit most skin tones but it depends how you apply it and how much. It looks pink on the pan and yes, it is pink but it has lots of other colours to it. It's incredibly finely milled. Super super soft.
Can you appreciate how gorgeous this is? Well in real life is 10 times of what you see here. I have to swatch the little in betweens because I'm so silly and I don't want to ruin the embossing!

This is a liquid illuminator. It's the Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel. This unfortunately was limited edition this year (can't remember the collection-sorry).
This one is more on the gold side of illuminators. It looks gorgeous when you have you photos taken.
It's soft and gentle and how it looks really depends on how much you put on.
I think it was something like £25+.
A good alternative is the N7 illuminator in the peachy colour. Mind you it's not the same- just similar. One is well...Chanel and the other is N7! Say no more. I know I'm a label whore!

Another multipurpose powder will be the Dior Healthy Glow Summer Powder in 001 Aurora.
This is a bronzer, blush and illuminator all in one "supposedly" I guess it depends on your skin tone how illuminating this will be. I am a NC25-30 at the moment and it does give a glowy look. This is ideal for parties. You just need this one product and you have your entire cheek done! No need to carry 3 separate products (blush, bronzer and illuminator). This again was limited edition and it was about near £30.
You can see more photos on the post I did when I bought it here. And you can see a FOTD where I used it here.

And of course I cannot do a post on illuminators and not mention the Jemma Kid Dewy Glow All Over Radiance Creme in 02 Gold Rose.
This is my go-to cream illuminator. I cannot live without this stuff! Just cannot.
It gives the most natural glowy cheek I've ever seen! You can see a FOTD post of me wearing it here.

This one is my drugstore product for this post. It's the GOSH Giant Sun Powder in shade 001.
This thing is HUGE! Seriously I can just hold it in my palm. This is a 30g powder so it will literally last you for ever. It gives you a gold shimmer look which looks quite something on photos or on a candlelight night. I think it was about £13 or around that. Amazing quality for the money.
You can see another photo and how it looks on on this phototutorial I did ages ago. See here.

And to finish this post I just couldn't resist not adding this photo. Just look at how gorgeous this powder is. Seriously I don't think I had this much love for a cheek product like this in some time. I can literally look at this stuff for hours.

And lastly my favourite illuminator is Willow! When I see her my cheeks, eyes and hear illuminate! I know it sounds cheesy as hell but it's true. I rescued her from Battersea and from the day I saw her in the kennel when I was contemplating the adoption I just loved her! After that initial visit I had to wait like 3 weeks to have a home visitor to give the ok and have two interviews with Battersea people before they said, ok- you can adopt her. And during all these 3 weeks I kid you not I called EVERY single day to see if she was there. Anyone with the ok already and with the right profile for her could have taken her while I was waiting!
I just cannot express how much love I feel for this little dog. She's so cheeky and sweet. She just stole our heart! It's not joke when they say love (even for dogs) makes you look glowy :)

I hope you enjoyed this post! I put a lot of effort especially on the photos which I'm sooo impressed how they turned out! I'm loving the Bokeh effect!

Mercedes

What is your cheek illuminator for this xmas?

Any special product?

What makes you glow?

Lancôme Tropiques Minerale- Review + Swatches

2011-12-10T09:56:00.000Z

Happy Saturday ladies.

Hope you are all keep well.

If you have been following me for a while you will know that my thing is cheek products. It could be blush, highlighters or bronzers. I have overloaded drawers with products to make your cheeks look glowy, more defined, fuller, matte and of course sun kissed! I love the sun kissed look! I think it suits my latin skin.

On a recent "What I'm using this week" video I spoke about this lovely bronzer by Lancôme.

I have to be honest! Lancôme is not a counter that catches my attention. I hardly ever stop by and look at what they have. I recognise they have lovely products that work but I think it's a brand which targets older ladies. I think!

This product has a neat packaging. Simple yet practical and classic. The lid has a gold/coppery tone which I thought was a nice touch considering this is a mineral bronzer.

And once you open it you have this kind of product dispenser which I actually don't like. I find it gets messy and you get a lot of product on the lid.
When I have products like this I just open 2 or 3 holes and keep the other ones sealed. I find this is a neater way with less waste.

As I said on my video this product is very nice! It's soft, gentle and not heavy at all. It gives you a very natural look which can be overdone if you are not careful. I like it!
The only problem which was my problem and nothing to do with the product is that this shade is a bit too light for me and I don't get that a defined bronzy look. It's more like a highlighter or super soft bronzer for me. I am at the moment a mmm maybe near a NC30 and it's a bit too light.
See the swatches below and you will see what I mean. The colour gets lots (even in my hand)

Swatches:

No flash- The colour is kind of lost

With flash- now you can see it and it gives a lovely radiance to the skin but yet I wouldn't say it's a very bronzy look.

So, to sum up- Yes, it's a lovely product and I will keep on using it. Shame I got the wrong shade. Entirely my fault and nothing to do with Lancôme!

I will keep an eye at the end of the month with all the Xmas sales to see if they have a darker shade at a bargain price again :)

XXX

Mercedes

Do you buy Lancôme products? What would you recommend?
What do you think of this mineral bronzer?

How I cake make-up!

2011-12-03T20:45:00.002Z

Hi ladies,

On my last post I revealed my best kept secret for about 15 years: cake make-up.
What do you think of my skin on this photo? It's an unpublished photo of my previous FOTD to the theatre last week.

I was super impressed with the results and how the skin photographed and it's all down to just one product: Kryolan cake make-up!

I'm pretty sure you never heard of cake make-up? Maybe?
I've always had a huge interest on tv, film and theatre make-up. Not sure where this interest comes from but it's here to stay and it's getting stronger and stronger.

The main product actors (especially in theatre) use is cake make-up. What is that?
Well it's a super pigmented and concentrated powder foundation that is activated with water and will give you coverage like nothing else!
The one I used was by Kryolan. This is a new pot for me. I hit pan on my previous one.
This is what it looks like if you are curious:

And this is the back with a list of all the ingredientes. Kryolan is a German company so a lot of their packaging has info in German as well as other languages.

Now you must be thinking that I'm mad! I'm not. If you see the results on the photo above then you will think it's probably worth it. And it is!

It all depends on the application!
You can go completely over the top and look like a cake yourself with all that make-up or you can achieve a super light coat with fantastic coverage like I have. In the photo above I did not use any concealer. Nothing. Just this product on my face.

I use a disposable sponge and a little bottle full of water. I find it easier to have it on my dressing table and I just spray the sponge.
Some people spray the pan directly. I don't. It's just a personal preference.
The other very important tip is to pat pat pat and more patting on the face with a damp sponge even when you are happy with the results. The patting will give you the natural finish.
Do not try using this with a brush. You will never get a good result.
Also, FYI this is a matte foundation. They might do cake make-up with different finishes.

So there- you know my best kept secret is now public domain!

As I said before do not be afraid of experimenting it's just make-up and it washes off!

However, this will need some practice and I don't recommended to beginners. I've been using this stuff for about 10 years so I know exactly how to use it.

So let's start cake make-uping ourselves! :)

XXX

Mercedes

Let me know if you give this a go.

What is your best kept secret (make-up related)?

FOTD: To The Theatre + Sunday Ramble

2011-11-27T22:52:00.001Z

Evening ladies,

Yesterday I went to the theatre with the ladies of the family (mother and sist in law).

On occasions we do those outings and I enjoy them very much :). I'm blessed with a super friendly sist in law who I love very much and my mother in law (thank god) is also super nice and friendly.

We went to see End of the Rainbow which I cannot recommend enough! It was a superb performance!

I will tell you more about it below.

But as this is a FOTD post here is my make-up look.

As for the e/s- they were super sparkly which wasn't really the intention.

I'm wearing one of my hubby's Ts. I always steal his clothes to potter around! For some reason I always do my make-up first and I get dressed later.

I am in LOVE with these eyelashes! They give you that glam effect without being too much (in my opinion). They are super comfy and they have an invisible band which makes them even more day use friendly. I have small eyes so I cut one bit from each side on both lashes and they fitted perfectly!

Lips- I'm loving this combo but the actual lip product is a bit drying and it doesn't look that nice if not fixed or retouched.

Products used:

Face

-Kryolan Cake Make-up (I explain this below!)

-YSL Touche Eclat (under my eyes)

Cheeks

-Soleil Tan De Chanel

Eyes

-Laura Mercier Baked palette- colours used: Ballet Pink (lid), Lilac (outer corner), Sienna (outer corner and crease). See link to my post on this palette here

-MAC Avenue fluid line

-Lash Accelerator mascara in 002 Brown Black by Rimmel

-False lashes: Eylure Naturalites (Upper and bottom lashes duo)- I only used the upper ones. I used DUO (clear) to put them on

Brows

-Christian Eyebrow Make up in Dark Brown (I will do a separate post on this soon. It deserves it!

Lips

-MAC Pro Long Wear lip pencil in Nice N' Spicy (Just to line the lips)

-Cream Puff in Power Puff 2 (?) by Collection 2000

Let me explain.

Yes, I used a theatre/stage foundation (Kryolan Cake Makeup). Why? You must be thinking I'm mad.

Well, no! Ages ago (it could be 10 years ago) my sister Vicky introduced me to cake make up. She was doing the make-up (just for fun) for a band and she used this type of foundation. Not sure where she got the idea from or how she discovered it. I cannot even remember the brand. The thing is that she showed it to me and I tried it and I was amazed! I have to confess I used cake make up for so many years! I even remember hitting pan. Do you know how much you need to use this stuff to hit pan? A lot!

The cake foundation looks like a powder but it's activated with water. You use a wet sponge and you dab it on the powder and then onto your face. You can get light or super heavy duty coverage (as actors do).

The finish is something you have never seen before. On all these photos I'm only wearing this foundation. Does it look cakey? Does it look powdery? Over the top? Ridiculous? I don't think so.

I didn't even use concealer!!! Nothing!! I have a few spots and redness here and there. Can you see any of that? I don't and I swear these photos were not retouched. I also used flash on these photos and I don't look washed out. You can even see my pores. My sun damage (on my forehead) also looks less noticeable.

My golden tip when using cake makeup is to pat pat pat and more patting with a damp sponge even when you are happy with the coverage.

So you see- when people say cake make up is only for stage I say- think again and experiment! I hate when things get categorised: this is for this and that is for that. Why?

You use and experiment with everything and you make your own rules!

It's just make-up- it washes off!

End of the Rainbow

What a fantastic show! It's the story of the last years of Judy Garlan's life.

If you don't know who Judy Garlan is she was the girl from the Wizard of Oz and she was Liza Minnelli's mum!

From young age Judy was addicted to pills for everything. Mainly to keep her going. She was a working child and her mum started giving her pills from the early stages to keep up with her performances.

Sadly, she was hooked for life! Every show was a challenge and she needed her pills to perform the way she did. Even when you see videos of interviews she did you can totally see she's high.

The show concentrates on her 1968 London comeback where she had to push herself to the maximum as people were expecting a great show every night. What people didn't know was that for every show she needed a handful of pills to sing the way she did.

Her body gave up and she passed away from an overdose at the young age of only 47.

The show is a mixture of anecdotal moments, a lot of live singing and a lot of comedy.

There are only 3 actors involved Judy, her pianist and file friend and her fiancé.

Tracie Bennett steals the show! She is fabulous and what a voice!

I cannot recommend it enough.

I saw it in Richmond but they are on tour.

Genuine Treasure- How I Make It Work For Me!

2011-11-24T21:03:00.002Z

Hi ladies,

Hope you are all well.

Remember this recent hyped product? As soon as this collection hit the shops almost all of us went running to get THIS paint pot only to get home to stare at the gorgeous product in the pot, to swatch it, try it, swatch it again, applying it on the eyes to discovered it was a rubbishy one!

The product looks divine on the pot and it promises the best party look that will get everyone talking.

However it's not quite that! On the contrary it's VERY hard to work with.
I tried applying it with fingers, sponge applicator, synthetic brush, natural hair brush, flat brush, fluffy brush. Nothing worked quite well.
I also tried applying it on layers one after another after the first one dried. Fail!
See the swatches below:

I was however, determined to make this product work! It's just too nice to put at the back of the drawer.

So, after trying and trying I opted for an alternation layer technique.

What is that?

1-I prime my eyes (my fav at the moment and maybe ever is Shadow Insurance by Too Faced)

2-I apply Genuine Treasure preferably with my fingers

3-This is the interesting bit- I apply a similar eyeshadow or pigment on top (a gold with flecks- I'm sure you will have something like that in your collection)

4-I apply another "thin" layer of Genuine Treasure on top

5-Viola!

So that's it! That's my trick.

What you basically need is a bit of a base for the paint pot to stick to it!

Trust me this will not affect the longevity of the product in your eye and it will not look odd or cakey.

It will just look mega sparkly which is just what we all wanted, right?

I will do a FOTD with this and you'll see the technique in action.

I hope you try it!

XXX

Mercedes

Any tips on how YOU make it work for you?

Review: Pro long wear lip liners by MAC

2011-11-21T19:57:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

Hope you're well.

As you know I'm not a massive lipstick/ lipliner lady.

For me it's all about the cheeks and eyes.

However I decided to take the plunge and invest in some nice and classic lip liners.

I went for the MAC Pro long wear lip liner as I heard wonders about them.

I picked up a bright orange/red and a nude every-day colour.

They come in the classic packaging- all black with the colour representation on the top which is ever so handy to spot them in my liner glass.
And you can see the actual tips. They are a bit rounded because I used them :)

Hand swatches:
I decided to do them on my hand so that you get a clear representation of the colours. I always find that lip liners always change depending on the pigmentation on your lips.

What can I say?

I love them! They are truly long wear but seriously long wear. Incredible!

I love the colours. These two are a staples for me. I love orange/neon colours for nights outs and I love a nude lip for the office.

I used them lo line my lips or I use them as all over colour. If you go for this option you need to know that they are a tad dry so make sure you prep the lips!

Red colour- What a blast. Link

Nude/ cinnamon colour- Nice 'n' Spicy. Link

They have them in stores too and they are £14.

I would definitely get some more.

XXX

Mercedes

Any lipliner recommendations?

Have you tried these?

How do you use your lipliner? Any tips?

Let's Skate!- A Very Pink Paint Pot

2011-11-17T20:30:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

Another item from the MAC holiday collection that made its way home was this innocent looking paint pot. I have no idea what attracted me to it. When I swatched it in the shop it looked gorgeous but me getting something pink? Very strange!

The packaging was nice - white and silver to go with the theme. It's just a pot but having a visual break form the classic MAC black was something visually refreshing.

Now, onto the paint pot itself.
It's a super baby pink with lots (and I mean lots) of tiny gold sparkles and even shimmer.

Swatches:

This was a bit tricky to photograph because it's one of those that change with the light and the light reflection. It's a white/gold base but it turns into this icy pink that makes the product very interesting. The more you rub the more the gold sparkles become visible.

In all honesty I think I will never finish this product. It's wouldn't be my go-to paint pot but it's nice to have something this unusual in my collection. I love paint pots. They are such a useful product to have in your collection. Excellent primers and gorgeous colour bases.

For this reason I don't regret the purchase.

How often will i use this? Well...I shall see and tell you.

XXX

Mercedes

Did you pick up this paint pot?

Any thoughts? Do you love it or hate it?

Mac-Dazzlesphere Coral Ornament

2011-11-15T20:34:00.001Z

Hi ladies,

To my surprise (and thank god) I didn't go mad with MAC latest Holiday collection.

I just picked up a few little things.

One of my surprises was that I was instantly attracted to one of the lip glosses ball! Yes, the packaging is very catchy and you can still use it to store other things but I just liked every colour in the selection.

We are talking about the coral one obviously.

The photo above is quite true to colour I have to say.

I have tried Dazzleglasses before and I always love how they look but I hate how quick they disappear. I was intrigued about the Cremesheen glasses! I like them...very much.

If you are curious about the packaging - this is how they come:

And more photos of the tubes. Aren't they pretty?!

You get:

-Phiff! - a clear gloss with lots of gold sparkles

-Eurobeat- a more coral colour with some gold and silver tiny tiny tiny sparkles

-On the Scene- a gorgeous creamy peachy color

-Richer Lusher- on the coral/salmon side of colours. There are no sparkles

These are super hard to photograph and I kind of gave up. It's hard to get to show you the exact way the sparkles look in real life.

It's currently in stock and it's £25.50. link

From this collection I also got a paint pot and a brush set. I'll post about them soon.

I passed on the purple palette and I didn't buy it (hard to believe- I know) but I might have a second look.

XXX

Mercedes

Did you pick up anything from this collection?

Any recommendations? Any disappointments?

Laura Mercier Baked Palette (LE)-Swatches

2011-11-12T15:47:00.002Z

Hi ladies,

I picked up this little handy palette from the Laura Mercier counter.

It's a mineralize palette and it has 5 gorgeous and super easy to wear colours.

I believe 3 of them are on the regular mineralize collection and there are two new ones.

I just couldn't resist it!

Don't they all look pretty in the pans? The individual ones that are part of the regular collection are huge and I would never hit pan on those so I thought these little ones are a perfect excuse for the splurge.

I love this photo! Can you see little willow on the mirror. She always needs to see what mom is doing!

The 5 mineralize eyeshadows are super easy to wear.
I would totally wear these during the day and to go to work but I know some of you associate shimmer with night time. That's fine! Just think maybe of this palette as the trick that will take you from day to night.
You get a brown, a goldy/champagne, a creamy, an opal pink and a soft purple.
I had to turn on the flash. They were looking too flat otherwise and they are just divine with all that shimmer!

Swatches

It comes with a handy double ended brush. It's very good quality and you can use it to apply the e/ss on the lid and on the corners and you can even blend them with this brush.

I got it from House of Fraser and it was on the £30 mark. Each individual mineralize e/s is actually £18.50.

I'm trying to find it online (House of Fraser and Space NK) and I cannot see it. It's part of their holiday 2011 collection. They definitely have it at the counters.

Here's a link to the official LM website in America if you want to get more info.

I love using these e/s wet or dry. I love the relaxed sparkle that they give to my eyes. It's super handy for the handbag especially this time of the year when we need to get from the office to the bar/restaurant more often for all the xmas celebrations and office gatherings!

I also got yesterday the Laura Mercier Illuminator. It's soooooooo pretty!

XXX

Mercedes

What are your picks this holiday?

there are so many make-up brands doing gorgeous stuff! Any recommendations?

FOTD: Beetle Eye (video tut coming soon)

2011-11-08T22:14:00.001Z

Evening ladies (is there any gentleman out there? Please come forward),

I hope you're all well.

I was playing with all my club dupes (as per last post link ) and I decided to do a video tut to show them to you in action. I'm still editing the video- it's like 30 mins and it needs to come down to 15 max! So there is a lot of ramble to cut and other things too.

This is however the look. I called it beetle eye! I just cannot describe to you how gorgeous this eye combo looks in person. These eyeshadows constantly change with the light so it's far from a flat look.

And as for the foundation combo...I'm speechless! So perfect and look at the finish.

I am super amazed at how well this foundation combo photographs! I mean...look at this finish! Flawless! I swear there is noooo retouching here!

Close up on my beetle eyes and on an okish brow job (I have better days to be honest).

And just some more for the sake of it- why not?!

Products used

FACE

-Face and Body by Mac in N3 mixed with Helena Rubinstein Color Clone Hydrapack in 24 Caramel.

-Lasting Perfection concealer by collection 2000 in 4 Deep

CHEEKS

-Accessorize bronzer in shade 2

EYES

-A combo of e/s on the lid: Wet N Wild, Famous by Sue Moxley (all dupes of Club e/s by mac)- on the lid and bottom lash line

-Stars and rockets e/s by Mac-on the crease

-A shimmery gold/champagne e/s on the brow bone

-Dior Blackout mascara

-Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Zero (black)

Stay tuned for the tutorial. You will se my naked face (ahhhh) and you will see how I get transformed and how the foundation combo works in real time!

XXX

Mercedes

I hope you like!!! :)

Dupe Alert: Good Club Alternatives!

2011-11-06T11:29:00.000Z

Hi ladies,

I had a bit of rummage through my collection (as you do on a Saturday afternoon) and I found 3 possible alternatives to the very famous eyeshadow called Club by Mac.

It's a duo chrome - mainly a very shimmery green with blues, purples and a few more undertones but when you blend it you get a very reddish brown. Most of the people pack the e/s on the lid and blend it towards the crease and you get a gorgeous look in no time!

I don't actually have Club by Mac but I do own 3 really good dupes!

1-Label Whore by Too Faced

It does the same! You get that very interesting green and you can blend it and you get the reddish brown.
This one in particular has some glitter on the pan but when you apply it the glitter disappears. Not sure where it goes but you cannot see it at all! It's available at Boots and retails at £11. Link

2-Famous by Sue Moxley (Cafe culture palette)

I discovered this one by coincidence. I wanted nice browns for everyday wear and the last e/s was exactly like Club. I have to say from these 3 dupes this one is the one that I like the most! By far! It's super super pigmented and it's very affordable. The red undertones on this e/s are stronger than on the other two. On the photo below you cannot see the red tones that much but trust me they are there and they are strong. Also the green colour on the photo does not show too much. Again, trust me..it's the prettiest of the 3!The Famous by Sue Moxley range is available at Superdrug. I cannot see that they have the range online. I also heard that they will discontinue it from the stores. This quad was probably around £8 but they do sell the shadows in individual pots and the last time I saw them they were super cheap at about £3-£4! I will definitely re-stock soon!

3-Wet n' Wild (coloricon palette)
My beloved husband brought me this palette when we came from Vegas. Yes, I asked him to bring me some drugstore make-up! He did well :)
Wet n' wild is not available here in the UK (unfortunately) but I've been told that you can easily get their products from ebay.
The very last shadow on this palette is a soft version of club. It's super creamy and soft and the red undertones are less noticeable. The main green colour on this e/s is amazing! I'm not sure at how much this one retails but they were less than $8 for sure!

Swatches

I hope this was helpful!

I did a video tutorial using some of these and I will be uploading it very soon! Stay tuned!

XXX

Mercedes

Poppy Appeal-Glamour Style

2011-11-02T15:04:00.003Z

Hi ladies,

This week we started to see all the poppys on people's coat laps.

The poppy appeal (if you don't know) is a charitable money collection.

All the money made will go to people involved in any war the UK has been invloved with.

There is a big parade on Rememberance day!

Last year they collected £36 million!

Most of the funding will go to the wounded and schemes to help soldiers get back to normal life.

A big part of the poppy appeal will go to old veterans who are still being cared for. But there are lots of other causes and things they use the money for.

You can read more about it here.

However, this post is all about the poppy itselvef!

There are really pretty ones out there, especially in the official Poppy shop.

One of my favourites is this one:

Which is also available from the Poppy shop and it's £25. Link

I had another look too and they sell the ones by Kleshna that were super popular last year in the X factor and Strictly but they are more pricey at £59.95. Link (currently out of stock at the moment of publishing this post).

This year I have my paper poppy but I'm definitely buying a crystal one for next year!

XXX

Mercedes

Would you get a sparkly poppy brooch?

Review: Nanoblur in the UK

2011-10-29T19:42:00.006+01:00

Hi ladies,

I hope you're well and having a nice Halloween. I have decided no Halloween party this year for me. I wanted a nice rest instead.

I have a review for you. One that I guess a lot of you were waiting for.
It's for Nanoblur which landed on the UK market very recently.

Now, this product was super controversial in the US and Canada (where it was first released). People either loved it or totally hated it!
Fortunately, there you can return this type of products but here in the UK it's a bit more complicated so I wanted to get this up as soon as possible!

Let's start with the first claim "10 years younger".
That will make me look like 20. Well 20 years my arse!
The thing is in all honesty- If you buy this product just for that claim then I should have no respect for you! Really. Who on earth will believe that!!

Anyway, moving on.
I bought this for the only fact that apparently it's the strongest primer ever.
I have a large collection of primers: Laura Mercier which is the best in my opinion, then I have one by Inglot and one by N7 and I also have the controversial one by L'oreal and a few others.
So I have tested a few in order to compare.

I'm going to go to the point here.
It is truly the best primer in the market! I applied my foundation at 7.30am and by 7pm when I got home EVERYTHING was there! I seriously could not believe it. In my opinion the Laura Mercier primer is up there but this just knocks it off completely!

I prefer to apply it before the foundation and the more you rub it the more you activate the primer tacky effect. Some people say they feel that tacky feeling all day long. I don't.

I don't (thank god) have large pores but it reduces them I would even say completely!
So if you have large pores and this is an issue for you then you will definitely like this.

But mind you. There is a massive massive massive problem with this product.
It does not work well with a lot of foundations.

In the US when this was launched maybe last year the instructions said to apply it BEFORE your foundation as you would with a normal primer.

What happened? With some foundations you could ended up looking like Freddy Krueger!
Seriously. The foundations would just stick and rub with the product and it could look as if you had burnt tissue on your face. Not a good look.
So, as we all do- all the beauty bloggers and youtubers started uploading their reviews and a lot of them were really bad so Nanoblur took all this feedback into account and CHANGED their instructions.
If you buy it in the UK you will read that they are now suggesting you apply it AFTER your foundation.

Let me just give you a quick demo of how good and bad this product can work.

On both cases below I applied Nanoblur before the foundations. On the left we have Chanel Vitalumiere and on the right we have Nars Sheer glow.

What a difference!
The Vitalumiere looks gorgeous and the blending was easy and natural but on the right the Sheer glow looks disgusting! Dry and super patchy. It's normally as the name says a "glowy" foundation but as you see here it's super flat. Not good.

I tried applying it after the foundation but I don't buy that. I still think this product works better under the foundation.

The big downside of this product is that as you can see it does not work well with some products.
So, I would strongly suggest you tried them first on your hand because if you do it on your face you can ruin your night!

It is only available in Boots and it's £20. Link
Unfortunately you cannot get any samples!

Is it worth it?
Mmmm it's a hard one.
I would say if you are like me and happy to use different foundations regularly and if you happy to experiment with what you have in your collection then yes. And also only if you are after a strong primer. Forget about the looking younger claim. That's pure BS.

If you like using one foundation only and if you can't be bothered to experiment then I would say it's a definite no no! It's likely that it could go wrong and then you are stuck!

I'm hoping to update this post with a list of the foundations that work well this Nanoblur and the ones that are a disaster.

I hope this was useful.

XXX

Mercedes

Have you tried it?
Can you help compile the list? Let me know if you tried this product and with what foundation and how it worked.

FOTD: When Less Is More

2011-10-27T20:41:00.002+01:00

Hi ladies,

I feel I haven't done a FOTD in centuries.
I never seem to have time or when I'm ready to go my camera is not charged. Mmm excuses excuses!

I tried something different the other night. I did a little test of applying the less amount of products I could get away with.

This is the result:

I was pleasantly surprised with the result and I proved to myself that on a lot of occasions I don't need to use that much.

Yes, my hair is wet. A lot of times I do my make-up and then decide on the hair style. It looks super dark here..maybe because it's wet but I'm still rocking the ombre hair style.

And a close up on the eyes and lips
As you know I am definitely not afraid of colour and I decided to use a super on your face aqua gel liner.

And to match it I chose a coral lippy with a satin finish.

FACE
Chanel Mat Lumiere mixed with Mac Face and body
Some random peachy blush- super lightly applied

EYES
Mac Blue Deep fulidline
L'oreal Explosion mascara (the one with the little ball on the wand)- just one coat

LIPS
17 Hot Chilli

Yes, I managed! And I didn't have any shivers or any side effects.
For some strange reason when I don't have eyeliner on the waterline I feel totally naked! But I was ok.
I would totally do it again maybe with different products.

XXX

Mercedes

What is your less is more look?
What do you use?

Belated-Recent Buys

2011-10-22T17:28:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Hope you are having an awesome weekend!

For some reason I forgot to publish this old post of an interesting haul I had.

See the goodies. I promise I will keep this post short and sweet.

Yes, this involved A LOT of foundations and a lot of other stuff too.
As you can see this was not a drugstore haul but most of it was from blog sales!

Also, the good thing about posting this late is that I have now super tested everything you see on this photo so I can give you a trusted opinion on how they perform.

Foundation porn

Chanel- Pro Lumiere and Vitalumiere.
I got the Pro from a blog sale and the Vita from the Chanel counter.
I'm more inclined to the Vita just because it gives me that nice glow and looks like second skin. The Pro lumiere is fantastic with great coverage but for some reason if feels a tad more heavy on my skin. Both are fantastic and I would recommend them. Please bear in mind that Pro Lumiere will be soon discontinued. Stock up!

Guerlain-Lingerie de Peau
I got both of these from a blog sale.
On the bottle it says invisible skin-foundation and that is exactly what it is- invisible. Such a nice foundation. Super easy to use. Fool proof and impossible to cake up! I got shade 2 and 3. The only bad thing is that it's £35.50 at counters. Thank god for blog sales. These were just £27 each.

The other stuff:

id Bare Minerals- Foundation in tan and Face colour in Warmth
These were too from a blog sale.
I don't use the foundation too much to be honest. I find that on it's own it does not give me that medium coverage I'm used to but it's lovely for on top of tinted moisturizers.
The face colour is like a bronzer really. It's very nice and it looks quite natural.
I quite enjoy both products and they have a special place in my collection.
These are my first bm products. They look like a promising brand!

Chanel- Soleil Tan de Chanel
This is a liquid highlighter in gold/bronzy tones. It's gorgeous and easy to use. It looks lovely in real life as well as on photos. Not sure to be honest I would repurchase this. I think it was a LE anyway but what I mean is that I'm not sure it was worth it. Boots N7 highlighter in peach is as good!
Also, the silly glass bottle with a tiny circle where the product comes out from is very hard to use and you need to do a lot of shaking.

Laura Mercier- Mineral Illuminating Powder
This thing is incredible. It has gold, emerald, topaz, quartz, ruby, etc dust! So it's all the dust from all these precious stones made into a face powder. It's incredible under artificial light and for the tear duct area. It's not glittery but sparkly and shiny. I love it and I use on those special occasions as I keep it like gold dust (I had to put the pun!)

The rest

Clarins- Daily Energizer Lotion and Wake-up Booster

I cannot explain how much I adore these two products. The came too from a blog sale!

The lotion is my go to lotion every day! Incredibly fast absorbing and it looks gorgeous under make-up. The smell is incredible too.

The booster is basically a very gentle toner what truly wakes up your skin. Lovely in the morning of just before going to bed. It smells like the lotion- gorgeous!

I will definitely repurchase these two.

Shu Uemura- Eyelash curlers

I wanted to try these for ages but the price was a bit much (about £20) for what it was. On a very stressful day at work I decided to go for it. Initially I thought it was magic and my eyelashes looked amazing. Now for some strange reason I'm not that wowed! Yes, they still look amazing and I think it's a good tool but I think this has been a bit too hyped.

Laura Mercier- Tinted Moisturiser
This too was from a blog sale. And this was another product I wanted to try for ages.
It's very good and yes it gives you a bit more coverage than the normal tinted moisturiser.
It blends amazingly onto the skin and it does last for a long time. I cannot compare it to any of the other TM I have- it's strange because it looks thick and heave but it's not! Me like.

Ufff- that was a lot of products!

I love everything actually and I enjoy using every single one of these products!
Yey for blog sales!

And talking of that- I still have a lot of stuff on my blog sale- feel free to have a look. I'm happy to negotiate!. Link.

Let me know if you have any questions about these.

XXX

Mercedes

Rock The Avenue With Some Sparkle

2011-10-18T21:42:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

The other day when I picked up Groundwork Paint Pot I also did 3 more cheeky purchases- as you do!

I picked up my very first fluidline and it was in Avenue.

I think it's a LE from one of the 'very unimpressive" current collections.
Don't ask me why I picked it up. I don't know. I still have more than half of my Bobbi Brown gel liner. There is nothing wrong with my BB one and I love it. It goes so well on the lid AS WELL as on the waterline and it stays for ever!
So why did I pick this one up? I think it's all down to the sparkles!

I had to put the flash on for these photos so that you would see what I mean. There are tiny tiny gold sparkles on this gel liner and they look very cute. No, you will not be a disco ball and maybe this on is not ideal for the waterline. we'll see.

I will admit it. This was a total compulsive and unnecessary purchase from my part. Very amateurish!

I will be comparing the BB one with this and see which one I prefer. Apparently or you love the fluidline ones or you love the BB ones. I heard there are no in betweens.

The other two purchases were two prolong wear lip liners which I'm lovinnngggg ATM! More on that to come soon.

XXX

Mercedes

Are you a fluidline lady or a BB Gel liner lady?

Any recommendations on how to apply fluidlines?

Current Obsessions

2011-10-13T23:04:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Yes here we go again with more cheek products! You know it's my weakness.

These are the super affordable Shimmer Bricks by Famous by Sue Moxley.

This one is my ultimate favourite! It's Shade 2 Rose Gold.
I've been using it for at least half a year and I cannot see any dent on it!
It gives you the most cheeky and gorgeous pink and gold glow.
It you want more of a highlight just grab some of the light colours and if you want a more intense pink then just swirl your brush on the pinks.

Photo taken with a low flash

Photo taken with no flash

I use this next one for when I want to go for a more beach godess look. It's the Medium.
There is an inconsistency on the manes as this one has no shade or name and I think this is because this was the very first one I bought probably more than a year ago and maybe they changed the names since then.
Again this one is quite customisable and you can make it lighter or darker depending on where you swipe your brush.

"Not very on focus" photo taken with a low flash

And another "not very on focus" photo taken with no flash.

I think this is my second favourite.

It's a mixture of the two above really. Very interesting colour. This one is Shade 1-Golden Rose.

This one is my go-to at the moment just because I still have a tiny bit of a tan and it looks great giving me that extra tan and some rose glow at the same time.

Photo taken with a low flash

Photo taken with no flash

And this is what the packaging looks like and you can see the shades and the ingredients at the back

I cannot explain the joy I get from these 3 best friends!

They are super pigmented, hand and super affordable. I saw them a few weeks ago in Superdrug for £3 each! I was very tempted to get more but as you can see I've been using this for ever and honestly there no sign of usage! I haven't even used 1% of the product. Incredible.

No, I don not have the Bobbi Brown Shimmer Bricks so I cannot compare them. I don't think I ever will. Why pay extra if you can get an equal result for a mini fraction of the price?

I do have a few MeMeMe equivalents of these. They are lovely but these are way better in terms of quality, colour pay off and longevity.

Seriously, just try them and let me know. You will not regret it!

PS: Super random ramble. I went today to Virgin club/gym as a guest with my colleague who goes there and wow...what a lovely gym! It was a bit different from my gym LA Fitness. We did some Body Combat then we went to the jacuzzi and then the sauna. I loved it and we were chatting all the way.

However I will stay at my gym. I just cannot see the point of paying £100+ for a membership per month. Unless I win the lottery or if I reduce my monthly budget for make-up purchases...which ain't gonna happen!

Have a lovely Friday.

XXX

Mercedes

A boring but necessary buy at MAC

2011-10-09T10:49:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

I've been to MAC some weeks ago. There was the Fall Colour collection and I didn't want to pick up anything! Strange but true. Maybe I'll go and see the paint pots of the Posh collection at some point this week.

However, when I was there swatching things around during my lunch break I realised that I always wanted to get Groundwork paint pot and I never did.

I always get sidetracked and get more adventurous things and more on the bright colour side but this is a MUST-have for me.

It's the perfect transition colour/ crase colour that will warm up a look and it also works as a priming base.

The colour on the pot looks like a light brown on the reddish side but when you swatch it it's quite neutral in my opinion. What attracts me to this product is the texture and the finish.

The colour under natural light is just a plain light brown that will be ideal for a lot of looks as a crease colour or a transition colour between the lid colour and the highlight on the brow bone.
On this photo under natural light the finish looks like matte.

But when you take a photo under artificial light and using the flash look at what happens.
It has like a stain finish and a even light silver shine.

Yes, for me this was a super boring purchase. I don't get exited when I buy neutral colours for some reason but I do acknowledge the need for these type of products.

I think I'm done with paint pots for now. I have Blackground (a lovely black-gunmetal colour), Constructivist (a gorgeous shimmery brown/taupe colour), Painterly (a good matte base-pale pink/skin type colour), Rubenesque (a super gorgeous shimmery golden peachy colour that I use on my eyes and cheeks) and Delft (an interesting teal/turquoise colour that I now realise I should use much more).

I also had Bare Study, Soft Ochre and Artifact but I sold them some time ago. I wasn't using them enough.

I think from the Posh collection I'll be looking at Half-wild and hyperviolet..of course. I would love to have a good purple paint pot. We'll see. These pots are big and I cannot see myself going though one of them before they dry out.

Mercedes

What would be a boring purchase for you? Do you get exited with neutral colours?

Any thoughts on the Posh collection

Photo shoot with Marie

2011-10-06T20:26:00.000+01:00

Hi girls,

Las weekend I was called for a photo shoot to do make-up and hair.

The theme was fallen angel. You probably can't see but Marie has a pair of black wings. They are visible on other photos.

These are more of the beauty shoots that will be going straight on my portfolio :)

And on this photo you can see the hair! If you are wondering how I did it have a look at my previous post where I linked a very short video. Link

What do you think?

XXX

Mercedes

Bobbi Brown BBU Palette

2011-09-27T21:31:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Did I show you my baby already?

Maybe she made it to one of my videos.

It's the one and only BBU palette by Bobbi Brown.

This baby came ALL the way from Australia. I have one of my sisters living there. How handy for when collections are released there, right?

This was the only one left at the counter and it was there because someone forgot to pick it up!

This palette was released here in the UK some years ago and it was sold out almost instantly.
It was hard to get and so expensive (around £200+).

It still was very expensive. So, what do you get for your money?
Eeerrr...everything? You get all the correctors and creamy concealers (26) and the stick foundations (20)!

Concealers:

It comes with a plastic separator which is very handy with all the names and it helps you avoid any mess going on.

These are the stick foundations:

When you see empty squares those are so that you can create your mix! Kind of your working palette.

The idea is that you take a little bit of the colours you need and then you mix them in the empty one.

After doing a bit of research I think the previously released palettes were slightly different. You can see an example here. They actually came with less concealers (21) and stick foundations (17). Not sure why they changed it.

I'm so happy I took the photos for the blog. Now I can start using it!! ;)

I heard so many of you raving about the Bobbi Brown concealers and correctors...so now I can try the lot!

XXX

Mercedes

Any good combos to use with the concealers?

I guess my Laura Mercier brightening powder will work ok to set it?

My Holiday Make-Up Bag

2011-09-24T08:48:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

This is all I took on my recent beach holidays.

I took a lot of skin care products and a few make-up items.
However, as it happens I used probably half of what I took.
I made a mental note not to repeat this again. I am an experienced make-up user and I should know better by now, right?

Skin and hair products

-The Body Shop Body Butter. This was really good for after the beach moments when you really need to hydrate your skin. I took the Passion fruit one. It smells lovely! The only bad thing is that this cream/butter is so thick and it takes ages to absorb. Be prepared to be slippery for some hours. And be careful with the mosquitoes. They love it too!

-Clarins Daily Energizer Lotion. I cannot express enough how much I adore this cream. I got it for a bargain price at a blog sale. It smells incredible, it absorbs almost instantly and it truly energises the skin. Ideal for under foundation. I am definitely repurchasing this. It has some SPF too.

-Burt's Bees Hand Cream. This cream made it into my beach bag and it came with me every day. I used it on my hands, feet and on my face. Yes, don't believe that hand cream is JUST for hands. It's cream with no SPF basically. I used the tinniest amount though on my face. It's very thick and it takes some time to absorb completely but once it does your skin will feel much better. I wouldn't recommend it for under make-up. Too thick. The smell (banana and honey) mmm not too sure about it to be honest. It's too much and it smells a bit artificial. I heard some people using this cream for their hair too. I need to try that!

-N7 Anti-dark spot facial sun protection 50+. I used this sun protection on my face. I have a lot of dark spots and hyper pigmentation from years of sun abuse (I wish I could go back in time and slap me in the face for sunbathing with nothing on for years!) so I'm trying to protect my skin as much as I can now in hope they will disappear. I was very happy with this cream. It absorbs into the skin very quickly too. I got it a bit cheaper because I used a N7 Boots voucher.

-N7 facial wipes. Nothing special here! Not impressed at all. I got them again with a N7 Boots voucher. Not doing that again.

-VO5 Miracle concentrate. Who doesn't have this? Everyone I know purchased this. It's a hair oil that you apply to wet or dry hair. Yep, it's good. Wouldn't say it's a "miracle" product but yes I'm happy with it.

-Pleasures by Estee Lauder. This has been my main perfume for yearssss! I love this fragrance and I think it suits me so much. Every time I use it people ask me what perfume it is. Love it! If you know what I smell like when I go out..have a sniff at this perfume.

Make-up

This was wayyy too much for just a week! What was I thinking? Anyway.

-3 foundations? Well the reason being is that the Nars Sheer Glow and the the Helena Rubinstein Sensual Clone ones are the darkest one in my personal collection. I tan very easily and I go dark very quickly so I though I would be able to use them. I couldn't be bothered really! It was so hot that the idea of having a heavy foundation on made me feel ill. I used the Vitazing by Origins a bit more. On extremely lazy days I would only use my Mac Mineralize Skin Finish. Some days I wouldn't use anything. My beloved husband always tell me that he loves when I go natural (which does not happen very often of course) so I pleased him thanks to my laziness.

-Eyeshadows. I took two The Body Shop cubes and 4 Mac eyeshadows. I think if I remember correctly I used e/s only twice in the week.

-Cheeks. I took the Famous Shimmer brick Shade 1 which I'm obsessed about. My favourite product recently. I have all of them! They give you such a glow to the face and can lift your look instantly. It's a cheap (very cheap at £3 ATM in Superdrug) version of the bobbi Brown Shimmer Bricks. The other cheek product is Mac cream blush in Something Special. I also used it quite a bit. The bronzer is a very nice one by Accessorize. I think I used it once.

-Concealer. I took my Collection 2000 in shade 4. I didn't use it that much but it was very handy.

-Lips. Barry M lip gloss and Mac Cut a Caper. I used both of them all the time!

-Mascara: SuperShock by Avon. Used it every day. I still love this mascara.

-Primers: I just took Too Faced Shadow Insurance. I prefer it to the UDPP.

-Extras: RealTechniques and other random brushes.

Yes, I know...too much!

I hope you enjoyed this post about my holiday make-up bag.

XXX

Mercedes

Do you alo get over exited when you go on holiday and over pack and the use half of it? Or is it just me?

Korres Buys- A Lot Of Foundation Here!

2011-09-20T21:48:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Hope you're well.

It's been expected that I did a post on my Korress make-up buys.

I got my hands on to Korres make-up while in Greece (how exotic, right?).

Yes, I know you can get it in the UK but it's hard to get hold of the entire range.

I went to Kefelonia (a Greek island) so there weren't massive shops or drugstore but a normal high-street chemist was enough. Most of them carry the brand.

Before even typing anything about what I bought I wanted to do a proper road test! I tried all of these at least for one week each so now I know exactly how I feel about each product.

As expected I went for mainly their foundations and one lip product:

Wild Rose Foundation (the little dark bottles)

It's the long-lasting foundation for a flawless, radiant finish. Don't they all claim that?

I cannot express how much I LOVE this foundation. I actually got 3! Yes three! I went for my lightest (WRF2) shade, my darkest-right now after my holidays (WRF6) and one in between (WRF4). I got obsessed much?

Oh yes!

This foundation is so light yet delivers what it claims. I would say it's mid coverage but a good "mid" if that makes sense. I apply it with my fingers and it melts on my face! There are no harsh lines, not even on the hair line. It does remind me of Guerlain Lingerie de Peau in the way it blends on the skin.

I can still see my pores but not my imperfections. It looks very natural and yet polished. I'm so happy I got these.

It comes in a glass bottle (I think- it's hard to know what material is) and you get 30ml. It has SPF 20.

You need to shake it as you can see it separates a bit.

I cannot stop using this product! And now I completely know why people love this foundation so much. It's my new love and all the shades I got with slightly different undertones will allow me to have a Korres face all year round. I paid 18 Euros for each of them.

While looking at their range I also got curious about another foundation but I haven't heard too much about it.

It's the Ginger & Vitamins Foundation (the white tubes)

It says on the tube: Lightweight water-based foundation that balances skin tone and leaves the skin fresh and luminous.

It's more of a tinted moisturisers basically.

It's quite liquidy (not like Face and Body) but not as thick as the Garnier one.

It blends beautifully into the skin and it does leave a nice satin finish. The coverage is quite light but you can build it up a little bit.

I got shades LF2 and LF4. You get 40ml and I paid 17 Euros each.

And if you are wondering, yes it has SPF 10

I do like it. Nothing too special to be honest but it's a very decent tinted moisturiser.

The only lip product I got was their cult Lip Butter in Mango

Yes, it's nice and super rich and moisturising. The scent is gorgeous and the coral tint is so beautiful on the lips but I totally detest having to dip my finger on products. I always make sure I have super clean hands when using it and I don't like that I then have tu rubb off the excess on my palm or hand.

Anyway, it is nice. I know a lot of you love this product.

I was intrigued by other products by Korres. Their lip liners looked so nice!

But I think their stand out thing is their Wild Rose foundation *hands down*!

Super super recommend it! Try it and let me know if you agree.

XXX

Mercedes

Are you a Korres foundation addict like me?

If you have it, how do you apply it?

Any other Korres product I should check out?

What do you guys think of my themed photos!?

Olympia Beauty Show-2011

2011-09-19T19:55:00.005+01:00

Hi Ladies,

On Sunday I ventured to West London to go to the Olympia Beauty Show (link).

I got there are 11am and there was already a queue to get in! Not impressed.

After 20 minutes (and this was going fast) I got in.

I went upstairs straight to the make-up theatre as they had lined up some interesting people I wanted to meet and listen to. Link to the speakers for Sunday and today.

I got a bit near the end for the Illamasqua's talk by David Horne. They were of course doing a very nice look with their new collection Theatre of the nameless.

I didn't pick up too many tricks as I got near to the end but it was good!

Amazing MUA who worked under pressure and delivered!

For me the highlight was Louise Constand!

What a character! As well as being so talented she was so funny cracking jokes every 2 minutes!
Such a lovely lady and so knowledgable in the art of make-up.

She does work for MAC so of course all her make-up kit was by them.
I did film most of the make-up demo so I will be uploading it soon. I need to check the sound. There was the Beauty theatre next to us and their mic was sooo loud so I'm not sure if you will be able to liste to what she said. Bear with me!

Here we can see a very relaxed Louise getting ready for action.

We started by having a look at a short video where she showed us some interesting advertisements she worked on. Very nice looks in every single take!

She then said that in most of the ads they use false eyelashes even if it is for a mascara ad because mascara does not look nice on HD and on close ups. very interesting.

We then were shown some images of make-up from the 50s and then the 30's.
We were going to see her working on a look "inspired" by the 30s.

She gave us so many great tips!

She started by talking about MUAs' kits. This is what she carries!
She doesn't believe in carrying all your lipsticks or e/s for the just in case moments. She suggested getting a few of the on-trend colours as that is what will be requested most of the time unless you are given a brief where an off colour (say black) will be needed.
She also talked about MAC's palettes and how good they were to carry around and she had a quad with the on-trend colours.
But she also mentioned the off job where she wasn't told the full brief and she had to improvise a lot with the little she had at hand.

She said she travels on the tube on occasions and she couldn't bare to have a case with wheels to take on shoots. So here we see her how she carries her kit most of the times. :)

As I said, I filmed most of the demo but this is a photo I took towards the end.

Some of her tips were:

-Do the eyes first and the foundation last. By doing this you can have fall out and easily clean it without ruining the foundation and also you can be a bit more permissive at touching the model's face without having to use tissue or a puff sponge.

-Remember that everything you use comes out of your salary. All used/emptied things comes out of your pocket so use products wisely.

-If you are lucky to work with celebrities be warned that they do not like their face being touched and you have a tacit allowance of about wipping the "victims'" (as she called them) face with tissue or wipes until they start showting at you.

-Use one wipe per model. Just fold it and use the other side.

-Do not go mad with brushes. Just have two or three depending on the look. One for the dar colours and one of the light colours.

-When doing the eyeliner tell the model that she can blink whenever she wants. They tend to stay still like a statue and then their eyes start watering or the eye starts building up certain oils that prevent the make-up to stick.

-If you make a mistake she said to make the same mistak on the other side and blend! I got scared about this.

-She also said to clean or amend your mistake immediately! It will get worse if you leave it and lenses will pick up everything!

-Do not go crazy with concealer under the eye. Most of the problematic areas are between the eye and the nose. Also, do not go too light. That's very 80's.

-When applying mascara ask the model to look slightly down.

-When applying false eyelashes ask your model to keep their eyes open and feel free to have a look and move them if they are in the wrong place.

-Be creative an look around for materials. For the look below she used feathers from her boa scarf.

-A very interesting tip on lips was not to apply lipgloss on the edges but just on the lips. You avoid bleeding this way.

This is the look:

The products she used were:
All that glitters and a green e/s from the Semi Precious collection.
Black eyeliner
False lashes.
Mac Studio Sculpt Foundation ( a lighter shade to suit the theme)
Rose Quartz MSF on the cheeks.
A combo of lipsticks and a dark gloss.

And this is me with her. Sorry for the quality.

After the talks I had to breath in and go downstairs to have a look at the offers and interesting products.

Beauty madness

Huge nail studio

Tanning demos. I find these odd and uncomfortable to watch.

And there's always a weird treatment going on

And there was an army of eyelash extension studios.

What did I go for?

-Crown brushes ( a lot of them- you cannot beat their quality and price)

-Konad discs and nail polishes (hard to get in the UK)

-False lashes ( I can never get enough of them)

-A mattifier nail polish topcoat (I saw a look of a matte black nail and a glossy black french manicure and I wanted to recreate it. No one had a matte black polish so I went for a mattifier instead)

The only thing in my wish list is an airbrush system. I'm doing my research now. Any recommendations?

All in all I had fun.

I learnt and it was good to keep up with the industry, products and prices.

It is hectic and busy everywhere but if you know that beforehand then you should be ok.

XXX

Mercedes

Anyone been to the Beauty Show?

Doy you go to exhibitions like this?

Any show/exhibition I shouldn't miss?

Something You Need! Eyelash Applicators

2011-09-17T10:49:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Hope you are enjoying the weekend which just stared.

If you are like me, a massive false eyelash lover, then you need these brilliant eyelash applicators!

My hunt started when I spotted some false eyelash applicators at the Shu Uemura counter.
The look fantastic but at £27? Ridiculous!!!

I was sure I could do better than that and I did.
I found these two from different shops from Ebay.
And the price?
Well just £5 and £6 including shipping! Who's laughing now? I am :)

This is what they look like next to each other. They both fit in the palm of my hand.

This is the curved one which is fool proof.
What I like about this one in particular is that you can close the clamp. I find it useful when I'm putting the glue and when I need to wait for those crucial moments for the glue to go tacky.
I find that with the tweezers I always really press them to make sure I don't drop the lashes but with this applicator you don't need to worry about that. You just close it an leave it to dry a bit while you do something else. :)
See below the firs photo where it's "open" and the one below is when you "close" it. Easy.

The other one is a bit smaller and the end is also good for when we need to press the eyelashes against our lashes or when we need a bit more precision to stick the ends.

I'm not sure which one is better. I guess it depends on how you apply eyelashes.

I actually like both. They were super cheap so there's no harm in trying them.

You can see a selection of eyelash applicators available on Ebay here.

I actually cannot remember the seller I used. I remember that the curved one came from the UK and it took just 2 days to get home. The other one came from China and it took a week or so.

I still think tweezers are perfectly fine for eyelash application but I love these gadgets. They make your life easier and they are specifically designed for that purpose.

Hope this was helpful.

XXX

Mercedes

How do you apply false lashes?

Do you use tweezers, your fingers or something else?

Would you consider purchasing eyelash applicators or is it too much for you?

Holiday Hair Update:Wavy Ombre-Style

2011-09-12T22:15:00.000+01:00

Hi Ladies,

I think on one of my "very" random YouTube videos I mentioned that I have the Ombre-hair style at the moment. I'm quite proud of it as I did it my self with a drugstore highlighting kit.

I literally mixed the blue powder with the peroxide cream and I applied it to the bottom half of my hair and to some bits near my face just to give me face a bit of light.

At some point my hair felt like on fire. That stuff really heats up and a bit of checking and moving the cream around I knew it was ready. :)

Of course on these photos my hair got a bit wild and a bit more blonde with the sea water and sun but you get the most updated version of my look.

This is my hair in it's raw state.

This is how it is with no styling whatsoever! No combing and no products on it. It's normally quite straight on the top and super wavy at the ends. I have to say..I love my hair ATM :).

There were moment (when I was younger) when I would straighten it constantly but now I absolutely adore my natural waves and I'm totally comfortable with how it looks.

Depending on the weather (mainly humidity) and on what shampoo I use I get more waves or more curls even.

On this photos my hair looks a bit too wavy and it's because of the sea water I guess.

I love it as it is now. We'll see how I feel when we get more into winter.

At the moment I'm in the hunt of hair extensions with ombre-style.

Do you know of any? Do they exist?

And in case you were wondering the sunglasses are from Primark. I got them ages ago on a desperate day that I forgot my "good" sunglasses at home and I was very close to a Primark. I picked these ones and I never looked back. Love them! I love the shape and I love the fact that they are kind of browny tinted so I can still see all the true colours of things enven in the sun.

XXX

How do you have your hair at the moment?

Any new experiments with colours of cuts?

Hey you..did you miss me? I'm back!

2011-09-11T16:41:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

You probably noticed. I've been MIA this week.

And that's because I went to Kefelonia, Greece for a week.

I needed a bit of peace and sunshine.

I went for just a week and they were my last holidays for this year. Boooo!!

I had such a good time and the weather was fantastic. I have a amazing tan which I achieved with no pain and with a lot of sunscreen and after sun care.

These are some photos of my week.

Lovely beach (Costa-Costa)

I needed serious concentration to decide which cocktail I would go for. There were millions. I tried a few different ones every night ;)
Notice my minimum make-up. It was too hot!

This is our garden and THE view from the apartment.

I went into the water probably 6 times every day. I love swimming in the seas, especially in these crystal clear water.

One of the cocktails. Loved the little monkeys the put in the glasses.

And we had our own little path/way to the beach!

We saw a few sea turtles. So cute.

A lot of sunshine. We were very luck with the weather. About 35C every day.

We saw the sunset every day from our garden. Such a lovely view.

And, yes...there was a bit of a haul. I bought som Korres make-up. Will do a separate post.

Some related post to come are:

Holiday hair update

Korres haul + some Greek brands

FOTDs while on holiday

Make-up products I took with me

XXX

Mercedes

How are you?

What did I miss?

Feel free to tell me what you blogged about this week and put the link below :)

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Shadows-Review + Swatches + Photos

2011-08-31T21:53:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Yep, I couldn't resist them.

I couldn't decide between the purple, the sagey or the peachy one so I had to go for all of them!

They come in a box like this:

And these is what they look like in the pots from their bottoms:

And without their tops. They come in a like a dome shape with the most of the product in the centre.

finger swatches:

And hand swatches:

Each one of them come with a cute (and rather useless) applicator like this one:

My thoughts and review:

The texture of these cream shadows is strage in an interesting way.

It feels to the touch like a cream, it smells strange (but you won't smell it once on your eyes- it was just me sticking my nose there) but it applies like a powder eyeshadow.

I find that the harder and smaller the brush the better. With a very soft brush you won't be able to pick up enough product. With your fingers you will probably pick up too much.

The little brush that they provide is not very good unfortunately. They say that these eyeshadows can be used as liners. I wound't to be honest. They are so packed with glitter and reflects that a bit of that in your eyes and you will remember Coco Chanel for the rest of the day!

I use contact lenses everyday and I love glitter. I never complain and I'm a tough one when it comes to things stuck in my eyes but I did feel some chunkiness getting into my eyes and contacts. This won't put me off from using them anyway. But be aware these shadows are packed with shimmer, glitter and reflects.

Long lasting? Yes, they are especially with a primer underneath.

Easy to blend? Yes, this is one of their main features. They are a dream to blend.

Expensive? Yes. They were about £22.50 each and they are LE.

Do I regret the purchase? No way. Love them. Especially for night use.

I hope this was useful.

XXX

Mercedes

Were you tempted too with these?

Which one did you go for?

Any recommended combos?

FOTD: Bold Look- My take on Cora's Sailor Moon

2011-08-29T11:07:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

I usually recreate some of Cora's (Vintageortacky) looks in the privacy of my own room. I love to play with colours and do extravagant and crazy looks. Cora is THE mother of amazing shock-colour looks and she explains things so well in her tutorials. So I had to try this one too!

But this time I took the plunge and photographed the results to share them with you.

This is my take on Cora's Sailor Moon look. I had to do some tweaks here and there as my eye shape is very different from Cora's. I'm very happy with the result.

For those who don't know Sailor Moon is a Japanese cartoon. One of those manga things that I never watched in my life and never will. Cora did an amazing series of YT videos featuring a lot of the characters and designing make-up looks.

And these are the lips- very red!

I wish I had videoed this one. I'm very proud of myself :)

the only thing was I so wished I had her contacts! The are fabulous.

And no, this is not a very wearable look.

Products used:

FACE

-Make-up For Ever HD foundation in 145 mixed with Chanel Mat Lumiere in 40 beige.

-Harmony Powder Blush by Mac (to contour)

-A red lip stain used as cheek tint

EYES

-Black eyeshadow to cut my crease

-Kryolan Supracolor in white (as base for the yellow shadow)

-Buttercupcake e/s by Sugarpill (insane yellow used on the lid)

-Obnoxious e/s from the Bad Girl paletee from Sleek (a deep blue used on top of the black crease)

-AMC loose e/s in 58 by INGLOT (metallic blue used on top of the darker blue to blend and on the lower lash line)

-White e/s on the brow bone

-Maybelline gel liner in black (upper lash line, tight line, lower lash line and to define the crease)

-False lashes

-Brown e/s on the brows (VERY badly applied)

LIPS

-Random red lip with a little bit of gold pigment on the centre

This was really funny. You can totally map the eye look in this cotton pad.

I hate to remove looks I love when I'm just at home I need to get back to my boring house work.

XXX

Mercedes

What do you think? Did I do well? Did I do Cora's look any justice?

Did you know Cora already? She's AMAZING at make-up.

Follow her and subscribe to her channel right now!

It was love at first sight: Guerlain Blush G

2011-08-27T16:24:00.000+01:00

Hi Ladies,

I feel totally guilty here.

Yes, it's yet ANOTHER cheek product!

A blush and a vey expensive one and LE.

It's the one and only Guerlain Blush G

I bought this bad boy back in April and I forgot (not sure how) to post these photos.

It was completely sold out here in the UK but I managed to get it at Madrid Airport when en route to Buenos Aires. Yes, it was expensive around the £30 mark! But it was an airport purchase and they never feel like real purchases although when you look at your bank statement they clearly are!

Forget about the flashy and probably not necessary packaging (more on this below).

I just fell in love with the colours. All of them are right up my street and the colour you get when you mix them all up it's just The perfect peachy/coral colour.

This is the flashy packaging:

You get

-A box (of course :P)

-A dust pouch with a hot pink inside. Yes, it's pretty but not my type of colour if you ask me.

-A mini super soft blush brush with hot pink bristles. And yes, it's ok. Not wow but ok. Dior's brushes are better in my opinion.

More photos

(can't help it...it's gorgeous)

I'm so happy I picked this one up. I don't regret it at all!

I don't use it that much because it was expensive and LE but I should.

I'm a great believer that people work hard (most of the time) to get make-up treats and we should all use them and enjoy them. I do have a lot of drugstore products and I like to mix them with the high-end ones.

A lot of people do not use their expensive things for the every day work routine but I wonder why not?

It's YOUR every day and everyday counts as a one an only day.

Each day you have less days to live to live it to the maximum. Enjoy everything you have cheap or expensive. It's your life and you should enjoy it.

From now on I'm definitely including this guy into my every day routine.

XXX

Mercedes

Where you lucky enough to grab one of these while they lasted?

What's is your make-up treat that you cherish the most?

NOTD: Bleu Model 44 by Bourjois

2011-08-24T19:49:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Just a quick one to show you this amazing colour I'm rocking on my nails ATM.
It's Bleu Model (44) by Bourjois.

I'm in love. Not sure how or why I picked it up because it's not a colour I would go for but it's looks so pretty when on. I confess- can't get enough of it!

I did my mani on Sunday and it's now Wednesday and it looks very good! Don't you think?
I cook, type all day, do the dishes and play with Willow and no chip on sight and no sign of wearing off.

Another good thing is that it dries quite fast and the application is very smooth.
The colour you see was achieved with 3 coats. You don't really need 3 as 2 are totally ok but for some strange reason I always do 3 coats on my nails.
I didn't apply any top coat.

I also got another one which is mustard yellow and it's my other obsession ATM.

Love them.

XXX

Mercedes

What colours have you been using on your nails?

Too Faced Romantic Eyes Palette- Photos + Swatches

2011-08-22T19:58:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

Yes, I have my camera back! Yey!

My mother in-law borrowed it for her trip to Italy. I couldn't say no.

But I'm up and running again with lots of energy to blog.

I had this palette for some time now and I love it!

It's the Too Faced Romantic Eye

It looks small and nothing special but don't be fooled. This little palette is an amazing performer!

It's you love grey and taupe colours then this one is definitely for you.

You get a bit of everything: powders and shadows.

Now, I'm not sure if the idea is to use the colours combined horizontally or not. I personally never follow those set rules or suggestions. As usual, I just do what I want and combine things my way.

But in the case you are not that sure how to combine the colours they provide you with some charts where you can see different looks and then use the palette.

Swatches
Powders

Eyeshadows

As with all compact palettes this one is ideal for travelling.

As for the colour selection, this looks a bit more like a "winter" palette for me but I know a lot of you love these colours and use them all year round.

I think my favourite colour is that grey/purple one (of course) but joke aside, it's such a unique and interesting colour.

I got mine at Boots (adding points to my lovely advantage card) and it was about £20+.

XXX

Mercedes

What do you think?

Would you get this palette?

Sleek Lip Pouts= Photos + Swatches

2011-08-12T23:44:00.001+01:00

Hi ladies,

Another week went by and another brilliant make-up discovery in the Ms Purple lab!

Yes, you've seen millions of posts on these!

I wanted to post about them because they are good.

Sleek Pout Paint in 159 Port

And Sleek Pout Paint in 156 Peachy Keen
For some reason it looks paler on these photos. It's probably 2 shades more on the peachy side.
It reminds me of Interlace Lip Tar by OCC.

And it looks a bit washed out with full flash. Not very sexy in my opinion.

This is how they come out of the tubes. It's quite thick but easy to work with. I wouldn't use the product straight from the tube. It doesn't come with an applicator but I think I get a better application when I use a lip brush. A bit of a pain for when you are on the go if I'm honest.

And a bit of an inclusive photo. You can see a bit better the tone of the lip product I guess.

I also got the white one (153 Cloud 9) for mixing the colours. I wanted the blue one to make them deeper but it was sold out. Maybe I'll get it some other day.

These are two colours that I created by adding a tiny bit of white to the swatches above. Magic!

I also tried it as a blush (see below). It worked too :)

OCC Lip Tars dupes?

I don't think so. The consistency (a bit thicker) and the finish (more on the satin side) are quite different to the OCCs.The durability is not as brilliant as they say. I estimate the Lip Pouts will last for a good 4-6 hour period with no eating, drinking or kissing. They do not set (as opposed to OCCs Lip Tars) but I still think they are nice products and quite innovative in the UK market.

I will definitely look into getting more when the hype goes down. At the moment they are sold out everywhere. I heard that for some the products dried in few days. I did not experience that at all so far.

Would I recommend them? Totally! They are fun, innovative and quite inexpensive at around £4.

Hope this is useful.

You can see posts and swatches on OCC Lip Tars in Interlace here and in Beta here.

XXX

Mercedes

What are your thoughts on the Lip Pouts? Any good mixing combo?

Two Cream Blushes Worth Getting!

2011-08-08T20:09:00.001+01:00

Hi ladies,

These are two winners in my opinion. Definitely!

Who doesn't like a good cream blush that will lift your spirit? Surely you do!

Don't panic these two will cover all your needs and preferences. If you don't like one I'm sure you will like the other.

Mac Something Special
It's super creamy and it gives you a dewy look.
Ideal for a candlelight night, for a long night out or even for day wear (for me).
It's a bit on the pink side.
It's part of the permanent collection now.
It's about £15ish?

Gosh Peachy Rush
It's a cream to powder formula and it's matte.
It takes a bit more effort to blend on the cheeks because of the formula but the result is worth it.
It's super peachy.
You can get it in Superdrug and they have a 3 for 2 offer at the moment. This one is about £7.

More photos

They look similar in the pan but they are a bit different when swatched.

Had swatches in different lights.

What do you think?
Do we have two winners?
I think so.

XXX

Mercedes

What's your favourite cream blush?
Any recommendations?

The Body Shop Shimmer Cube Palette 23 Purple-Photos + Swatches

2011-08-06T19:59:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

This is the last post of The Body Shop series.

The first one was Shimmer Cube Palette in Warmth. See the post here.

The second one was the last post on the gel bronzer. See the post here

This last post is on the Shimmer Cube Palette in 23 Purple!

I was lucky that day and if you bought one palette the other one was half price so we can say this was £8 for me. Otherwise the normal price is £16.

As I said before it's a bargain! You get 4 massive eyeshadows which are 4 grams each! It will last you a while. I have been using the warmth palette a lot lately and it looks like new as if I have never touched it.

Finger swatches

Hand swatches in different lights:

This palette is a tad too shimmery for my taste but it's totally workable. The colours are interesting and they can be used in conjunction with other e/s that are not that packed with shimmer to tone it down a bit.

You get a while, a frosty pinkish white, a deep purple and a plum colour.

I'll let you know what looks I create with these.

On a side note, As you can probably see I'm playing around with the layout of my posts. Not sure I told you but I got my .com some time ago. It will be a bit more than the blog so wait and see! For now this is still my home but I will be migrating my blog at some point. My new home will be a bit more organised, clean and neat. Not clinical at all...you will still see me all over the place but things will be a bit more tidy .

Have a fab weekend people!

Mercedes

The Body Shop Honey Bronze Bronzing Gel For Face- Photos + Swatches

2011-08-05T21:17:00.000+01:00

Hi ladies,

What a week.

It's been very busy at work which meant long hours and getting home late with no energy for blogging.
I hate when that happens.

Following my The Body Shop haul I wanted to show you swatches of another good product.
It's the Honey Bronze Bronzing Gel for Face (was the long name necessary?)

When I went to see this new Honey Bronze collection I had high hopes for the bronzers.

They look amazing and they come in a few good colours but thank god I stopped myself from getting any. I have way too many already. So I went for the gel one. I don't think I have anything quite like this product in my collection.

I love

♥ That it smells of honey. The smell is soft so only you will be able to smell it and not the rest of the room.

♥ It's in a plastic tube so it's easy to carry around.

♥ You can control how much comes out. No product waste = no mess.

♥ It blends nicely and it gives you the right amount of time to play around and blend before setting.

♥ It gives you a soft satin finish. Not entirely dewy but just the right glow.

♥ The price: £11. I think it's quite reasonable.

I hate

I cannot think of any bad things about this product. 100% Ms Purple Make Up recommends!

Swatches

I know it looks a bit scary on the swatch (blob) on the big photo but I think the light betrayed me there.
Look more at the other photos for a real true colour of the product.

Trust me...it looks very natural and it's super nice!

Me like and I'm thinking of getting more for a back up.

I hope this was helpful for anyone.

XXX

Mercedes

Have you tried this?
Any picks from this collection?

NOTD: OPI Clubbing Til Sunrise

2011-07-31T18:02:00.002+01:00

Hi Ladies,

I have to admit it.

Until last week I was an OPI virgin!

Yes, not sure how that happened.

To revert the situation las week I purchased not 1 but 4 OPI nail polishes.

So, let's the polish party begin with the first one.

Clubbing Til Sunrise

Long gone were the days when I went clubbing til sunrise but never mind...the name of this polish makes me go down to memory lane where I would be horrified of my make-up running all down my cheeks (I was totally unaware of primers and there was no UDPP around) and we would go for breakfast with the girls to a cafe after clubbing or in the odd cases I would go straight to Uni. Yes..I did that and a few times.

In natural light but in the shade

In the sun

It's not for everyone I guess and it can be a bit tiring to the eyes.

It is a strong/statement colour.

I like it. I love the metallic element to it.

It shines like nothing else.

I applied 3 coats to get this colour and coverage.

XXX

Mercedes

As I'm new to OPI which colour do you think I would like?

Any recommendations?

The Body Shop Shimmer Cube Palette in Warm -Photos + Swatches

2011-07-28T22:13:00.001+01:00

Hi ladies,

I recently visited The Body Shop and I picked up a few things.

The first one was this gorgeous and very practical Shimmer Cube Palette in Warm.

I love Shimmer Cubes!

I think they are such a great value for money.

They are £16 each but as you can see on the photo above you get a lot of product 4 X 4g!

Each shadow will last you a long time.

Also at the moment (only in stores I believe) when you get a Shimmer Cube Palette you get another one half price!

Of course I got another one too. I will post about it soon. I want to try it a bit more first.

This Warm palette is exactly what its name says...warmed toned colours.

I've been using this palette all week now and I created endless combinations.

I used them on their own or mixed up.

The names of the shadows are

01-Honeycomb

02-Dark Chocolate

03-Marshmallow

04-Choc Chip

Honeycomb is similar in colour to Woodwinked by Mac

Choc Chip is similar (but nicer in my opinion) to Patina by Mac

Marshmallow is probably my favourite. Yes, very strange but it's the perfect all over the lid colour and it's ideal to apply on the tear duct area for a bit of highlight.

See some swatches:

I think they look a bit frosty on these photos but they are super creamy and buttery.

They apply so easily. I use a 217 look-alike (the one by Boots) and they apply with no problem. They blend straight into your lid and with each other.

I have 3 Shimmer Cubes Palettes in my collection and I love them.

I cannot recommend them enough.

I think £16 for each sounds expensive but when you think how much you get then it's a bargain.

I hope this was useful.

Next posts

Shimmer Cube Palette in Purple 23

Honey Bronze Bronzing Gel For Face

XXX

Mercedes

What do you think of the Cube Palettes?

Do you have any?

What do you think of The Body Shop make-up in general?

Wedding OOTD

2011-07-24T19:30:00.004+01:00

Hi ladies,

I'm exhausted!

I've been in Wales from Friday for a make-up assignment. I had to do 3 bridesmaids and the bride.

It all went fantastically well and everyone was super happy. I will post photos of that as I get them.

I was lucky enough to be also invited to the wedding party too. :)

So this is what I wore. And yes..it's vintage and it's purple!

I had to take a photo next to this car from 1949!

What I was wearing:

Dress: 1970's vintage from Paper Dress (my all times favourite vintage shop in Shoreditch)

Belt: New look (very old- at least 4 years)

Shoes: Primark. I need to do a separate post on These. They have a massive platform, very thick heels and the platform and the heels are COVERED in brown glitter.

Handbag: Randome shop in Liverpool

Make-up:

Face:

Foundation: Mac Mineralize Satin Finish foundation in NC40

Cheeks: Chanel Soleil tan de Chanel topped with Prestige Glam Tan in number 02.

Laura Mercier Secret Concealer

Eyes:

Randome purple eyeshadows: MUA and Mac

Stila Smudge pot in Black to line my eyes

Avon Supershock mascara

Too Faced Glitter liner in pink

Lips:

A randome lipgelee by Mac that lasted literally 5 minutes on.

Hair:

You know it...my favourite at the moment Batiste XXL Volume. And lots of it!

The waves and the curls are all natural.

XXX

Mercedes

How are you?

Have you done anything exiting this weekend?

Swatch Day: Pearly Amethyst Eyeshadow by Lancôme

2011-07-21T11:37:00.003+01:00

Hi ladies,

I hope you are having a good week so far despite the weather!

Today I wanted to share one of my favourite eyeshadows.

And yes...of course it's a purple. But this one is a very special one.

It's Pearly Amethyst by Lancôme

I don't normally purchase things from Lancome. Not sure why.

It could be because it's targeted to the older ladies? Yes, I'm 30 but I still think I'm a teen at heart.

It could be the high prices? Not that keen on some of the boring-looking palettes?

The older sales consultants that I think will try to do me up like a 50-year old?

But one the day I purchased this e/s I was in House of Fraser and they had a lot of products 50% or 70% off and that of course attracted me to the counter. This e/s was only £7. Bargain!

This is what the packaging looks like:

When I swatched it I just fell in love.

I loved the super soft and buttery texture.

I loved the colour pay off which is very good.

I loved the dimension of the colour: It's purple, pink and blue.

And I loved the 70% off price.

I got it!

This is a (not that good) finger swatch.

I swirled my finger very softly and look at how much product I picked up.

Hand swatches in different lights.

I'm in love!

It's such an easy colour to wear. Just dab a bit of this colour on your lid. It blends like a dream!

Add mascara and you are ready to go.

It's also brilliant for a smoky look. This can be the base colour or even the transition colour.

It has something of Parfait Amour by Mac but this one has more personality and a hint of other lovely colours too.

Hope this was useful!

XXX

Mercedes

Do you purchase from Lancome?

Why?

What's your favourite product from them?

OOTD: A Leather Belt That Never Fails Me

2011-07-19T11:05:00.001+01:00

Hi ladies,

I haven't posted anything fashion/clothes related in ages.

Maybe because the extra 5kgs that I randomly/innocently gained in the last mmm 7 months (?) put me off from buying any new clothes. I'm currently between of size 8 and a more comfortable/realistic size10 and I refuse to jump onto size 10 just yet. But I can't keep my mouth shut and I'm not very motivated to do any exercise. I'm too tired these days. I really hope this will change. I miss walking Willow for hours. Now I realised that helped me to keep my weight. Booo.

Ramble aside, I recently discovered an old favourite of mine.

My trusted burdundy leather belt.

The cotton dress is from GAP

This is probalby the handiest belt you can ever have.

It helps you dress up a notch any informal/casual outfit.

This is one of those that has a hole on one side so you put one end through and then you get like a wrap effect wich I always find so flattering on me. I don't tie it too hard otherwise you can get the horrible muffin effect!

I purchased it about a year ago in Spitafiled Market in East London.

I also got a caky one which I find hard to match to my clothes so I never use it.

As I haggle anywhere I go and as I purchased 2 I think I got both for £20 but I think they were originally £15.

It's probably my favourite belt at the moment.

I know the colours are not too summery but people..let's face it Summer is not here yet.

Just look out of the window. Grey, grey and more grey sky! :(

XXX

Mercedes

What's your favourite belt?

Why? Where is it from?

Photo Shoot 2-Look 1

2011-07-16T18:05:00.001+01:00

Hi ladies,

Another photo shoot :)

This is one of the looks:

Black Sparkly Lips

Credits

Model: Mariela Quintabani

Photography: Rita Metlovaite

Hair & Make-up by: Moi

Products used

Face:

Chanel Matt Lumiere foundation in 40 mixed with Make-up for every HD in 150

Harmony contour powder by Mac

Dermacolour concealer palette to cover blemishes

Eyes

Burgundy e/s by Sleek mixed with a matte black e/s to define the lash line and the outer half of the lower lash line

Maxfactor Falselash effect mascara

Gosh brow kit

Lips:

Black lipstick mixed with black e/s

Black self adhesive rhinestones from the craft shop

Concealer to perfect the lip line

Hair:

Batiste XXL dry shampoo

Tresemme Extra hold hair spray

And a bit of backstage action:

And these are the rhinestones on close up

What do you think?

It's not a super wearable look but I loved it.

Look 2 coming soon.

XXX

Mercedes