Current Loves

Book Stieg Larsson The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo I tried to read this a while ago but I just couldn't get into it, I've given it another go though and I'm loving it.

Nail Varnish Jessica Geleration French Manicure I love Geleration manicures, they're long lasting, quite drying and brilliant.  Having said this though, I have got a chip in one of my nails after only a couple of days though - not cool after two days of its 2 week expected lifespan!!

Face Product Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel Bronze Universel I've got a whole blog post coming up about this very soon, it's been a beautiful product to use this summer - lightweight, beautiful and it smells delicious! 

Lip Product It's got to be Clarins Colour Quench Lip Balm, this is probably my most favourite summer product, click on the product name above and read my full review of it! 

Hair Product Tangle Teezer running this little beauty through my hair after a shower just makes it so easy to work with.  I've been using this on my 11 year old God daughter's hair and I'm the only one who has been able to brush her gorgeous long hair without making her cry, so that's got to be a winner! 

Drink Morrisons Apple and Elderflower High Juice plenty of ice and a nice tall glass is summer drink perfection! 

Food Homemade Butternut Squash Soup with Chilli and Ginger If you'd be interested I'll do a blog post on this recipe? 

Website twitter.com I've become a twitter addict recently and I never thought that would happen to me because I couldn't get why people loved twitter so much until relatively recently! If you want to follow me its @martinalice22

Place The beach living in North Cornwall has disadvantages (being an hour and a bit drive away from any decent shops) and advantages, and the beaches are a massive advantage.  Rain or shine they're always impressive but on those days of brilliant sunshine they are incredible and I feel so lucky to live where I do, and I honestly wouldn't want to be anywhere else while I'm admiring the area that's on my doorstep! 

July Favourites!

I know that everyone says this but I really cannot believe that we are in August already! July has been incredibly busy for me and it seems to have flown by but I can't believe how much I have crammed into one month; I've completed the prestigious Pixiwoo Makeup Course, I've had several interviews and landed myself places at two colleges in Brighton, and I've spent a week caring for my granny! 

Anyway, enough about how I've filled my month, and more about my favourites! 

I've got to start with a non beauty favourite really, which is my Moleskine Diary! I love it! And considering how crazy this month has been I don't know where I would be without it! 

Clarins Color Quench Lip Balm see my full review here

This has been my lip gloss of choice this month, and I've found this to be the only gloss I've reached for so it's got to be a winner! I adore the scent, and miraculously it isn't sticky at all so you barely know you're wearing it other than the delicious smell!

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua

I'm yet to do a full review of this foundation but I promise there will be one soon. 

This has been the only thing I've been using if I've wanted to wear a foundation, it's lightweight but gives a lovely buildable coverage and it feels like you're applying silk to your skin!

Real Techniques Buffing Brush

I've been using this to apply my Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua and I find it helps it to glide on like a dream.  I've also been using this on the days when I've favoured just a bit of concealer (I couldn't handle a full face of makeup in the heat!) and I've simply buffed the concealer in with this to give some coverage where I need it (which realistically is in quite a lot of places!)

Benefit Hoola 

This has been my favourite bronzing powder for the past two years so it's only fair it gets a mention! It really is the perfect bronzer; it's matte, it doesn't make me look orange, it is a great contour colour as well as for creating an all over sun-kissed glow - can you tell I love it?! 

Estee Lauder Peach Nuance

Just like Hoola, this has been a firm favourite for what seems like an eternity and I really don't know what I'd do without it, it's the perfect peach in my humble opinion and it adds a natural summery flush to the cheeks all year round! 

Avene Thermal Water Spray

Yes I am probably an idiot for paying £6 for water in a can but to be perfectly honest I don't care! In the hot weather (which I have LOVED) this has been my saviour - I've just been spritzing this on my face (legs, arms, chest, feet...you get the drift) to instantly refresh myself and try to prevent myself from melting! 

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr in On and On Bronze

I've been wearing pretty low key makeup for most of the month (my skin needed it after the pasting it took on the makeup course) and I've been loving just smudging a bit of this onto my lids to give a hint of something with minimal effort! 

Garnier Intensive 7 Days Hydrating Lotion
For my full review click here
I love this moisturiser, and it has been particularly amazing in the hot weather because it cools your skin as it glides on, and it feels slightly like a gel rather than a lotion at times, which is great because it doesn't feel at all heavy or sticky on the skin (nothing worse on a hot night!).  After a day in the sun you can really feel this sinking in to leave you lusciously moisturised still in the morning! A summer time delight! 

And now, for another non beauty favourite - I give you the one and only Percy Pig
On his first taste of a Percy Pig my rather intoxicated cousin described them as such 

"the texture!  It's incredible, easy going yet resistant!" 

 

Do you have any favourites that I ought to check out? Please let me know if you do! 


And I'd love to hear from you on twitter @martinalice22
and my instagram is alicemagints - I really want to try to post more photos on there!!




xxx

Clarins Colour Quench Lip Balm

                

Once again I went to purchase a particular thing and came out with something different!  I'd gone to Debenhams to pick up the much raved about Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector (as seen here) and came out with this, the Colour Quench Lip Balm in shade 04 Raspberry Smoothie (have had to include a link to it from Boots as couldn't find the shade on Debenhams website - naughty Debenhams!). I'll be perfectly honest and admit that I have no idea why the lovely Clarins lady recommended this to me over the Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector (crikey what a mouthful!) as both claim to nourish, repair and protect your lips but hey ho, I'm not at all disappointed with my lot as I simply adore my Colour Quench Lip Balm.

Boots give this description 'Eight of the prettiest shades of shimmering transparent lip colour with a delicious cherry scent and flavour. A finish that’s glossy, not sticky, due to a 100% natural high-shine polymer and a cocktail of skin treatment plant extracts that intensively nourish, repair, protect and moisturise. A sheer, smoothing glaze of a gloss that adds long-lasting, light-catching colour and shine.' 

I think this description is pretty spot on. I don't know that I'd recognise a '100% natural high-shine polymer' if it slapped me in the chops, but whatever it is it really does work to make this a complete joy to wear - there is none of that horrible sticky feeling, only sheer cherry scented joy! 

I really love the fact that this product is a balm and a gloss combined.  I suffer from incredibly dry lips and I don't really like just masking it with a regular gloss because even if it looks good for a while you know that the illusion will be shattered once the gloss wears off!

There is a much larger range of colours in the Colour Quench line than there is of Instant Light Natural Lip Perfectors, eight to the ILNLP three and personally I think this is no bad thing - there has got to be something there for everyone, and for every season! 

Shade 04 Raspberry Smoothie is a delicious soft mid-toned pink packed full with silver shimmer and it gives a really natural and wearable high shine to your lips, which is perfect for everyday, and could be easily worn over lippie to give a more dramatic look.

At £15 it is a pound cheaper than the ILNLP.  I am thrilled with my purchase and it has remained in my handbag since the day I bought it and I can't see it leaving any time soon! 

I'd still love to try the ILNLP to have a bit of a compare and contrast with the Colour Quench but for the time being I am happy as larry!

Do you have a favourite gloss come balm?

As always, the beautiful throw that is the backdrop to my photos was handmade by the incredibly talented Gabrielle Vary, so go and check out her website here if you fancy a look, or have a nosey on http://www.notonthehighstreet.com/gabriellevary to see some more of here wonderful stuff (there's a sale on it too!)

I hope you're all well

x

Naked Palette. Big Love.

In my manic rampage of beauty counters this week I purchased the Urban Decay Naked Palette.  I can't have spent longer than 30 seconds at the counter, I probably spend longer choosing a bunch of bananas (in fact I definitely spend longer choosing bananas because it's tricky to get the perfect bunch, but that's another story!). 

Other than on nights out (which are pretty rare these days) I'm quite unadventurous as far as my eye make up goes, usually I slick on some eyeliner (L'Oreal Super Liner in Carbon Gloss) and some mascara and I'm good to go but I really want to change this and I thought the Naked palette would be the perfect way to do this.  It provides a good range of neutrals (mostly shimmery ones but there are a couple of matte colours) and they are all there for you to choose from which I like as I hate rooting around in my make up bag because I always forget I have certain colours. 

Virgin is a really delicate slightly peachy vanilla.  These shadows are so finely milled that it feels like applying silk. This shade gives a subtle sheen as I think it makes for a beautiful highlight, base colour or works amazingly in the tear duct to really brighten the eyes.

Sin is a rich shimmery rose gold.  It's just a beautiful colour!! Worn alone I think this is the perfect subtle summer shimmer!  

Naked (sorry my fat finger is covering the name), is a simple matte base colour, it can be used to create a lovely base for other colours or to soften the insensity of other more vibrant colours (Stars N Rockets for example).

Sidecar is a warm toned pinky gold, and it's just beautiful.  End of. I've used this over the inner half of my eyes in the images at the bottom of this post. 

Buck is a warm tan colour, a soft brown if you will, and can be used to add definition in the crease for a sophisticated simply day look or to add definition and depth to basically any other shadow! 

Half Baked.  What a colour! This is just a beautiful gold with a slightly bronze tone running through it! Applied to the tear duct, this colour will just make your eyes look incredible! 

Smog is, as the name suggests, a bit of a dirty goldy with a bit of a rusty edge to it. Like the other true shimmers in this palette it is just so finely milled and highly pigmented, and the colour pay off is so full and luxurious.

Darkhorse has a really subdued shimmer to it that is only picked up in certain lights and it creates a pretty good seductive smouldering look (get my trying to be sexy!)

Toasted is a shimmery pinky brown.  I love it.  This is used in the middle of my eye in the look at the bottom of this post. 

Hustle is a purply brown, and is the third colour I used on my eyes in the photos featured at the end of this post! 

Creep is a deep grey shot through with silver glitter.  The colour can be used boldly to create the intense colour shown in the swatch above, or it can be blended right out to give quite a sheer coverage, and therefore it's really versatile. 

And last but not least, Gunmetal is a gorgeous pewter shimmer.

The photos below are of my first ever time using my Naked palette, and I'm pleased as punch! I used Tanya Burr's tutorial  which you can view here as my instruction, and obviously mine is nowhere near Tanya's (mainly because I screwed up my eyeliner big time) but I'm hoping with practice it'll improve! 

Products - Eyes

Urban Decay Primer Potion (comes with the palette) all over the lid

Using a 217 apply Sidecar to the inner half, right into the inner corner

On a 239 pack Toasted onto the centre section of the lid

On the other side of the 239 combine Toasted and Hustle and draw that out from the lash line to create the wing, then pack more Hustle in the outer corner to create depth

Then using the leftover product on the 239 draw the shadow under the eye.

Use a 217 or another fluffy brush to blend all the colours and soften the edges

I used Sin as a brow highlight

I then used L'Oreal Gel Intenza to line the water line, my upper lash line and to create a wing

Finally lashings of L'Oreal Telescopic mascara adds great definition

On my brows - No. 7 Perfect Brows pencil in Black

Products - Face

Benefit Erase Paste in Medium

Mac Pro Longwear in NW20 and NC25

Mac Studio Sculpt in NW25

Mac Magically Cool Liquid Powder in Truth & Light

Nars bronzer in Laguna

Mac blush in Plum Foolery

Benefit Highbeam to highlight

Lips

Clarins Joli Rouge Brilliant Perfect Shine lipstick in 06 Fig

If you have made it to the end of this blog post then thank you so much, and congratulations, it's a bit of a mammoth post!! 

The Urban Decay Naked palette is available here or at a zillion other places either on-line or at Urban Decay counters in Debenhams etc

What are your feelings on the Naked palette? What are your favourite looks to create using it? 

If you'd like me to provide links to the other products just ask in the comments and I will willingly do so :) 

As always the beautiful back drop to my product shots is by Gabrielle Vary, she makes incredible luxury knit-ware items which are available here. 

xxx