Excitement on all fronts

There's plenty to be excited about in the Queendom of Esme at the moment. The arrival of Clinque's Chubby Sticks for eyes has me counting the days to their February arrival. The chubby stick wasn't an instant hit with me but they've become a daytime staple over the last month & I do love an eye crayon so expect a review on Massive Midnight & Whooping Willow towards the end of February.

Whilst on the topic of new releases I'm having a complete girly moment over the Dior Cherie Bow Collection for spring. Its just so pretty, ultra feminine with a nod to quirky in its bow shape. tipping its hat to the iconic bow that was the final flourish on Christian Dior's designs. Love that the packing was designed by the in house jewellery design too. I can feel an indulgence coming on when this super cute palette is released. By the way, the rest of the range is just as lovable.

Nip+Fab have recently entered my bathroom. I've been looking at this range for ages & managed to get a heavily discounted gift set so I could try a few of their products. I'm already in love with the Hydrating Mask & Face Scrub after just 2 uses so will be scouring sales for some more from this range. There a review in the pipe line so won't ramble on too much here.

I happened to find myself on the illamasqua website the other day & the sale was pretty good so dropped a Cream Foundation,  Fundamental eye shadow palette & a Medium Pencil, in a deep candy pink (Manic) into my basket. Can't wait to have a play with these, I love their powder eye shadows and have had good results from the Skin Base foundation in the past. Here's hoping they help me get over the Liquid Metal saga!

I'm lucky enough to have an amazing friend who gifted me a Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Liner in Ultra Violet. Now my world is complete. My favourite liner in purple, what more can a girl ask for! Just like the others, this limited edition is uber smooth when applying and last all day and night without moving a millimetre. Love it with my Badgal Plum mascara as it lifts my eyes in a way black could never.

Well I think that's enough about what I'm currently enjoying. Its time to look towards spring and explore the pretty pastel-ness of the new collections whilst dreaming of bright (& hopefully drier!) days. Would love to know what you're enjoying on these cold dark nights and grey damp days.

Party Eyes

I love weddings. I particularly love getting dolled up for weddings. I absolutely adore the opulent colour palette of this time of year, so I'm took full advantage of the opportunity to get my glam on & break out a completely decadent smokey eye at a recent wedding. I couldn't resist writing a post about my dress rehearsals.You'll have to excuse the lack of gel liner (usually a staple) as I couldn't find it (it may still be in the hotel!) the evening I had Mr Esme poised with the camera. There will be a part 2 of this post as I've more looks to recreate but waiting for a sunny day to get some decent quality photos for once!

Black & Gold

This super easy look would have complemented my outfit perfectly. I really like black and gold together and with some super sharp liner to finish this off would have been ideal wintery chic. 
Primed with Maybelline 24hr Eye Tattoo in Immortal Charcoal
Took MAC Carbon over outer corner and out into a wing, smudge some under lower lashes.
Blended Benefit Show Off in Jacki into inner corner and over the edge of Carbon. Lined upper lashes with carbon and filled in lower water line. I forgotten how much I love Jacki, its really pinky but turns a beautiful antique gold colour when applied over a darker base.

Navy and Bronze with Teal Liner

This is the look I wore on the day. Its my new favourite eye look. I love the teal under the eye, brightening the look. I love the bronze edges to the navy, not a combination I've tried before but I think the warmth from the bronze really sets the Navy off. 
I primed lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion (Greed) and contoured the crease with a reddish bronze from Sleek The Original Palette. Just underneath the reddish bronze I blended a more gold base tone from the same palette. I covered the lid with MAC Nehru and lined with Carbon  in place of a gel liner. I smudged some Shiseido Hydro Powder in H5 under the lower lashes as a primer then the teal from the Sleek palette over it.

Bright Blue Liner

I've been trying to find an excuse to wear MAC Liquidlast Liner for a while now. It was given to me by a friend who 'could get on with it'. I see her point. Its an amazing colour and REALLY lasts (I have to use baby oil to remove it) but I find it difficult to work with. I always end up with lashes caked in it, whether I use the brush that it comes with or decant onto my favourite liner brushes. Grrr. It stays wet for a really long time too. 
Anyway, I primed my lid with Maybelline 24hr Eye tattoo, Immortal charcoal and covered the lid with Blue Smoke from an Estee Lauder gift palette. I added a thick sweep of Liquidlast, a little flick and some Benefit Bad Gal Blue. I lined the lower water line with MAC Fascinating Pencil. I think its far too casual for a wedding but fun party make up. I love the silver and bright blue combo but still not sold on the Liquidlast formula.

Maybelline Fit Me Foundation, Concealer & Powder

Taking full advantage of Superdrug's 3 for 2 offer I thought I'd road test the latest foundation offering from Maybelline.

What they say..

Fully customisable range of 12 shades with matching concealers & powers.
No nasties like fillers or waxes
Gel formula
100% natural looking skin

Excuse the dirty finger prints!

Packaging...

The pump on my foundation leaks a bit & seems to dispense too much product but it looks classic.

There's only so many ways to package a concealer, this is a pretty standard square-ish tube with rabbit foot applicator, not ground breaking but looks quite slick.

I do really like the way the powder is packaged. Its a sturdy, square compact with a good mirror under the powder so it stays clean & a very soft velour puff.

Thoughts...

Foundation

This takes a bit of blending but gives a very natural finish with just the right amount of luminosity for combo skin like mine. Feels light on skin but seems to stay wet for a bit longer than I'd like, not great if you're in a hurry. It gives a sheer to medium coverage which is a bit light for my normal tastes but adequate for a good skin day.

 I found you need a good primer with it to ensure it lasts past the 4 mark. I haven't set the whole face using the powder yet so perhaps that extends wear time. I didn't want to ruin the natural, fresh finish by adding powder where I don't need it. 

Concealer

The Concealer is very easy to blend and builds to a full finish without any hint of caking. Applied after foundation, an impressively small amount covers blemishes well. Although I was initially put off by the very liquid consistency of this product, it's light weight texture makes it great for under my eyes, where I need quite a lot of coverage.

 I fear it's longevity is probably not great if its not set but when used with the powder I got around 4 hours from it in normal daytime conditions.  I would normally opt for something more creamy but on top of a light base this really does the trick as it looks so natural but covers what I ask it to, its surprisingly opaque.

Powder

It's been a while since I bought a powder in compact form. I use MAC Mineralise Skin Finish (which lasts ages!) & loose powders, so I've gone out on a limb with this one. To be honest, I didn't expect to like it much as I'm very picky with powders. However I think this is probably the star of the trio.

 It's really light & the shade is great for my skin tone. I hated it when applied with the applicator it comes with but once I'd blended it out it gave a nice matt but not mask like finish. Used under my eyes to set concealer, it blended  to almost an invisible finish & didn't settle into my fine lines. It feels a lot more like an expensive powder, fine smooth texture & soft finish.

Overall

These are by no means Holy Grail products for me but they are reasonably priced and do seem to work in harmony with each other. The create a really natural base but don't have the staying power I long for in face products. I felt like I should be recommending this range to my 18 year old sister, I'm not sure why but it feels like it'd be suited to younger, clearer skin than mine!

 The shade range seemed quite impressive, with the lightest being really fair and the darkest looked deep and rich. I didn't swatch it but it did not look at all ashy in the bottle. I like the concept of having matching products and I think Maybelline have pulled it off. If you're after a super natural, affordable range of base products this is certainly worth a look but I do think there are better high street products out there. 

November's Wish List

Ok so we're fast approaching payday & I'm already scouring the net for my November Haul!
This month I'm hunting for rich, deep jewel tones & Maybelline's Eye Tattoo range is topping the list. I'll probably grab Endless Purple and Eternal God and seeing as its 3 for 2 at Superdrug it'd be rude to leave Turquoise Forever on the shelf! I already own a couple of these & I love them, so versatile as they work well as shadow, bases & liners & really do last until I deem it is time to remove them.

Hot on the heels of the successful cream blush experiment I think I'll pick up a MAC Cream Colour Base (Hush or Improper Copper) or Bobbi Brown Pot Rogue (Powder Pink). Whilst I'm hovering around MAC I've been eyeing up Lickable & Moxie. I love wearing naked looking make up with a bright lip at the moment & feel I need to mix it up a bit shade wise.

The biggest beauty challenge this month is dressing table & lighting. The darker mornings and a bedroom shift about have left my mirror lacking any kind of decent light. Now I've finally got my collection into some sort of order it's time create the dressing table of dreams! I've seen a few I like & I've been dribbling over hinged mirrors. I've also been trawling eBay for unusual storage ideas. I hope to create a kind of beauty table utopia where I can comfortably sit & learn my craft, have others sit for me to practise on & somewhere to escape to when I need to feel lady-like & spoilt! I love dressing tables, especially when styled with a vintage vibe. I can't wait to get my teeth into this project, I'm sure I'll post photos a plenty when I eventually perfect my vision!

I'd love to hear what you guys are lusting after this month so leave a comment!

The Great Mascara Cull

 The Great Mascara Cull of 2012

The thought of a world without mascara leaves me cold. Its a long standing love affair that refuses to go stale. Volumising, lengthening, coloured, curling, vibrating, I've tried them all. A few weeks ago, after yet another came to be in my possession, I was forced to take stock of my collection. As the head count approached 15, I knew the time had come to ruthlessly edit. 

The Chosen Few.

I decided to limit myself to 5. Heading up the keep pile was Maybelline Great Lash. I defy anybody not to get on with this one. Its perfect for work as it gives good definition, doesn't flake or smudge so I can't get away without using a waterproof, saving myself from the world of pain that is removing a waterproof mascara after a 16 hour day!
Secondly, and this is where I cheated slightly, was Benefit Bad Gal. I love the big, bristly brush that comes with this one. The volume this gives me is pleasing, its not flaky and doesn't clump to badly after a second or even three coat. If pushed I'd choose this as my one & only mascara. I have this in black, blue and plum but have lumped them together to count as one, slightly cheeky but hey I'm making the rules here!!
Next I broke my no MAC mascara's vow and let Opulash stay. After falling out of love with Plush Lash and the horror show that was Zoom Fast Lash, I promised never to buy another MAC mascara but a rather charming salesman, resembling Julian Clary convinced me that Opulash was the answer to my prayers. Its certainly very black, always a good thing, and it gives great volume. Perfect smokey eye mascara if I'm feeling too lazy for falsies.
Avon SuperMagnify was a worthy contender for fourth place. I really like this for a natural look, I often wear it on its own on no make up days or for super casual looks. It feels really light, doesn't clump and makes my lashes look fantastically long without any spidery-ness.
Finally I just could not let my Max Factor 2000 Calorie go. I've had one for these in my collection since the dawn of time. I generally love all Max Factor mascaras but this is my favourite, although it gives me the same kind of effect as Bad Gal there's something about this formula that seems to last a bit longer and its so easy to remove. I also like the curved brush to add a bit for staying power to curled lashes. 

So Long, Goodbye ......

So what did the binman relieve me of? 
Rimmel Scandal Eyes, loved the brush but the formula stayed wet way too long and transferred onto my face. 
Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara, I found this a bit gimmicky. I've never really had trouble getting my bottom lashes, I just use the tip of the brush held vertically. This took way to long and was a bit fiddly.
L'Oreal Telescopic, came close to blinding myself on more than one occasion with this one! Didn't like the formula very much either, seemed a bit watery for my liking.
MAC Zoom Fast Lash. Hated this from the outset. Bought it after a sales assistant used it on me in the store. By the time I got to the car park my eyes were moist and it had run all down my face leaving really stubborn black streaks. Not a good look. Second attempt, it melted in the sun, same effect. Third and final try it flaked causing my eyes to run and yes, you've guessed it, the gorgeous black streaks were back again. 
DiorShow, loved how it looked but it smudged badly and always left me with panda eyes in the morning no matter how much effort i put into removing it at night.
Barry M Clear Mascara. I just didn't use this as much I thought I would. It was quite useful for blending my real lashes into falsies though. 
Avon Super Shock Mascara (Plum), I liked the colour and the formula but i like a bristly brush and this had a nylon applicator which gave good volume but not the definition I wanted, wasn't going to replace Bad Gal in my affections. 

So now I can close the lid on the mascara box even if it does look a bit naked.