Favourites #1: Lips

I'm sure we all have a bit of a go to feel good look when it comes to makeup, something that you know will pep up either your mood or your makeup...or preferably both! For me over the past few months it has got to be the lip combo I am about to share with you.  It never fails to put a smile on my face (literally haha) and give me a little bit of confidence.

Please excuse the slight changes in the lighting of the photos in this post, I took some of them over time to try and show you the wear of the product and obviously that changes the amount and angle of the natural light...not a lot I can do about our position in the solar system! 

My weapons of choice are;

• MAC Lip Pencil in Beet
• MAC Lipstick in Impassioned (it's an Amplified Creme incase you were wondering)
• MAC Tinted Lipglass in Pink Lemonade

Without further ado, I give you my step by step application of my favourite fuchsia lips! 

1 - I have to prepare my lips somehow because despite my best efforts they are as dry as the Sahara and at times flakier than puff pastry! I use any old lip balm I've got to hand, and slap it on before I do the rest of my makeup, or about five to ten minutes before if I'm just changing my lip colour not the whole face! 

2 - Using Beet I first line the outside of my lips, making sure I get right into the corners.  Once I'm happy with the shape I use the lip pencil to fill in the majority of my lips.

3 - Then, using a lip brush (my favourite is by Illamasqua) I apply Impassioned lipstick all over the lips.  I sometimes leave it as it is, but if I fancy a bit of extra shine, or my lips are feeling particularly dry I'll add an extra step.  The formulation of this lipstick, especially over the lip pencil means it does have a tendency to feel quite tight and drying on my already parched pout! 

4 - To add that extra sheen and injection of moisture I slick on Pink Lemonade, which has got to be my favourite Lipglass by a mile, and then I'm good to go!! 

As you can see this lip finish looks quite different depending on the lighting...and I love it however it looks!!

The wear of this combination is incredible, you don't need to touch it up all day; and I mean all day.  After six hours of drinking numerous cups of tea, stuffing my face with lunch (and maybe a little millionaire shortbread) and chatting away it puts up a damn good fight and begins to fade (see photo below).  And the fade is something I love about this combo; it doesn't go patchy, it doesn't all vanish at once, but it slowly loses its intensity but at no point does the colour die completely.  After I'd taken the photo below I went to an exercise class and did a flipping hard work out, and even after all the sweating (there was a lot) and wiping my face with a towel (again - quite a bit) the colour remained and took a damn good scrubbing to remove in the shower.

So there you have it, my favourite lip to wear at the moment.  Full reviews of the individual products are to follow if you're interested.  

What is your go to 'feel good' lip combo? I'd love to know so I can try them out and see if they can become my new favourite too! 

I hope you're all well lovely ladies

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

Maybelline ColorSensational Popstick - Citrus Slice

I simply couldn't resist the three for two offer on Maybelline in Boots a few weeks ago and I was drawn to the colour tattoos as well as this rather intriguing 'Popstick'.  Maybe I'm just a child, but the thought of putting something that essentially looks and smells like jelly on my lips was too much to resist! 

I went for the shade 060 Citrus Slice (mainly because of the smell) and I'm really happy with both the colour payoff and the fact that the scent lingers for ages!! 

This photo doesn't really do the colour justice, it looks far more pink on my lips.

I love the fact that this is more of a 'relaxed' lip colour - it's essentially a balm with a hint of colour and a really sensational smell (it definitely lives up to the name ColorSensational ) and you don't have to worry about looking in a mirror when you slap it on, and it won't look stupid if you forget to reapply it and the colour just gives your lips a natural flush (as if you'd been kissing - naughty!)

I'm going to do a full post on the Colour Tattoos and everything I picked up from Maybelline so watch this space.  

Have you tried any of the ColorSensational Popsticks?

x

The Red Lip

I think it is safe to say that the red lip is a bit of a classic.  It's sexy, it's sophisticated, it's empowering but in all honesty, I think it's bloody scary to wear. Whenever I want to wear the red lip look I always seem to find a reason it would be better off not bothering, such as; my lips aren't smooth enough to pull it off, I won't have the chance to touch it up and it'll look crap within hours, it won't go with what I'm wearing.  But whenever I pluck up the courage I think it's well worth it, it does make me feel more confident (I think!).  I'm not a massive fan of the shape of my lips, they aren't a uniform colour or smooth around the edges and they are always dry, but is that enough to stop me from going for red...like hell it is!! 

 As they come 

 Lined and filled in with Max Factor Colour Elixir Lip Liner in Number 10 Red Rush

Then painted (is that what you call colouring in your lips?) with Rimmel Lasting Finish By Kate, in shade 01. With a coat of Max Factor Lipfinity Top Coat.

I know Max Factor say not to use the top coat with other colours, but I need a bit of gloss on my lips as otherwise the dryness really shows through, so you know what Max Factor can just thank their lucky stars I've chosen them as my top coat brand of choice!! 

Despite saying that it makes me feel more confident, I just walked past my brother with this lipstick on and he thought I looked disgusting, and asked if it was a joke or would I seriously wear that out...bye bye 'it's ok I can pull this off' confidence!! 

What do you think of the red lip? Am I the only one who's scared of it sometimes? 

xxx