Top Pout: Chanel Rouge Noir

Now I have to admit I was pretty sure winter would have slipped away by the time I got this post up, and I really didn't want it to have as for me this is the ultimate winter lipstick.

Chanel Rouge Coco in Rouge Noir is a beautiful deep berry shade that looks positively terrifying in the bullet, but can be used a multitude of different ways to make sure that you get plenty of use out of that twenty-odd quid lipstick. 

I picked this up about a year ago along with Clinique Black Honey after watching Lisa Eldridge do a video on dark lipstick (which she has since reshot with a Tom Ford shade).

The way she used just one deep dark lipstick in so many different ways to create a multitude of looks completely appealed to me, and the fact that it was Chanel sent me straight to the nearest counter.

In the picture above I shown it worn three ways, the top is the lipstick alone, over a lipbalm which is providing an extra glossy finish. 

This is the way I wear this shade for a special occasion, and I did post an OOTD/FOTD sort of post a while back when I was going to a party where I wore this. I find that when combined with fair skin and dark hair the colour gives that luxe vampish look, without looking like you regularly listen to heavy metal (to use an awful stereotype).

 It looks absolutely grown up, it may just be because of the packaging and the feeling that evokes, but I feel more grown up when I wear it too. 

I haven't done so in the picture above as I wanted to give an accurate swatch, but when I do wear this in its full capacity for colour I use the Clinique Plummy Quickliner for Lips to ensure it lasts the whole night without sliding all over.

The second picture is me wearing the shade as a stain, deeply pushed into the lines of the lips but not layered thickly to create the deeper shade, this simply makes me look as if I have been eating winter berries and is a much more wearable day look for me. As it is staining the lips it doesn't take a huge amount of touching up, though again I recommend a good lipbalm as it can cling to flakes when worn this way.

Finally I am showing the stain method topped with a gloss, and my favourite to pair with Rouge Noir is Mac's Oyster Girl. I would wear this over the shade be it worn as a stain or a full on berry lip, as its silvery lilac shimmer softens the brown in the colour and instantly makes it a bit more wearable (browner shades are not good on me, nuh-uh!).

I will also note that I do also use this as a blush as Lisa instructed, and it was what first got me into trying cream blushers!

A pricey lipstick, but definitely worth the splurge

xo :)

Favourites

I realised that I haven't posted my latest videos on here!
In my effort to make sure that this blog became more than just a place to post my videos, I have been neglecting them, so here are my two latest favourites, those of 2011, and of January 2012.

The To-Be-Read Problem

As I have mentioned countless times on this dear blog of mine, I am a librarian. 

(I ALWAYS, without fail, think of Rachel Weiss in The Mummy when I say that)

How I store and manage my book collection is very important to me, I have had them all catalogued for several years now using my own shelf tags which suit the size and range of my collection perfectly. The only problem with this perfectly ordered way of arranging my books is that when I am only trying to read certain books, i.e. the books I have not read/finished/can't remember for my reading challenge, the ones I had read, and love dearly, were sat right next to the ones I was trying to motivate myself to read.

If you lack will power like me I am sure you can guess what kept happening?

All my older books got re-read and my unread ones were left on the shelf.

I came to the conclusion that if I were to ever get them all read I would have to make a change, and I took the plunge and messed up my neatly ordered bookshelves and moved all of the titles I wanted to read as part of the challenge onto one bookcase, the one next to my reading nook.

Anyone who knows me quite well will be fairly shocked about this, and possibly amazed. It is a well known fact that I am a little bit OCD about things, and I have to admit half way through shifting them all I did have a bit of a nervous wobble and contemplate putting them back, especially when I realised they wouldn't all fit (there are books on top of books as in the picture, and also books on top of books on top of books on the very top shelf, not to mention the small pile of extra fat books which is currently on one of the other bookcases).

I have to admit something now though. It's working.

This set of shelves is both right next to my reading nook and my bed, my other bookcases are in the far corner of the room, I haven't even looked at those shelves since I moved these books to this location and I don't particularly miss being able to see them all in order either! 

This is all a bit of a revelation for me, but it is a happy one, as I hope it will continue to keep me focussed on my goal.

What about you? Do you keep books you have yet to read separate from your others? 

Top Pout: Mac Russian Red

It doesn't seem right to let Valentine's day pass by 

(even though I personally think it is a money grabbing holiday and greeted my boyfriend this morning with "Happy Hallmark Day") 

without doing a nice red lipstick post.

Now in my current collection, lipstick doesn't get redder than this shade, Russian Red is the absolute pinnacle of bold red lips for me. I find that all of the Mac reds are nice and pigmented, but when it came to purchasing one I went for this shade purely because it is so strongly pigmented. It means that I can safely sheer it out if I want to, or go for a classic strong lip if the occasion (or outfit) calls for it.

As you can see the formulation is a matte, which is the shade's only real downside for me. I do find it rather drying and have to make sure I pre-prep my lips with a nice slick of lipbalm beforehand.
I pair this shade with Mac's Cherry Lip Liner, though I haven't in the picture above, which is a perfect match in shade, and together they make sure that the lipstick stays on for several hours without needing touch ups, even enduring eating and drinking at a Wimpy! (I once wore this to go shopping for a day, and it survived perfectly)

At £13.50, mac lipsticks are neither the cheapest nor the most expensive on the market, but as I have said before I do find that their formulations are well worth the extra couple of pounds. A decent red lipstick isn't usually used regularly, and so is worth being classed as an investment piece in my opinion. I certainly class this shade as a great investment.

:) xo

January Empties

A few more products this month! Whoo! Still no makeup though, there is an item that will probably be in my february empties though (will be glad once that one is gone!)

So this months empties are a bit of a range, mainly skincare but most importantly there are some of my literal every day use items in here, which is what I wanted to do these empties posts for. I feel with my favourites that you only get a snap shot of the things i have been using just that month and it doesn't really tell you about the products I truly love.

Strawberry Shower Gel

£4 from The Body Shop

If you have been watching my videos/following me on twitter or reading this blog for a while you will know I have quite sensitive skin, even baby soap and fairy liquid gives me a rash.

 I often find it very difficult to find suitable body washes and especially ones which smell ncie and make my skin feel nice and moisturised, but The Body Shop's range of shower gels and creme's are some of the few out there that smell amazing and don't cause me any irritation. 

When I first started using these it was a bit of a pain because they were very expensive (£6 per 250ml bottle originally I think) and as a student I bought them and used them as a treat. Now though The Body Shop has dropped the price, and they have an offer where you can get 2, 3 or 4 bottles for reduced amounts, so I always grab the 4 bottles for £10 deal. I do change the scent and grab different ones for each of my four bottles, but I stick with the same formula.

Simple Soothing Facial Toner

RRP £2.99 from Boots

I have linked Boots above for this one, but it can generally be found cheaper int he supermarket as it is often on offer. This is an absolute every day staple for me, I know a lot of talk has been around saying that toner is basically useless and does nothing for the skin, and my boyfriend always makes a point of saying 'why are you cleaning your face again you've just done it', but I really can't skip my toning step. It might step from having been a Clinique user, and I am used to having that extra clean feeling after washing my face, or it might just be that I have been brainwashed into thinking I need it, but I always use a toner after I wash my face. 

I use this one in particular because it is first of all cheap, and also because it is non irritating. I don't really buy into the claims of added vitamins in the product, but it really is a gentle soothing cleanser that helps me to feel like I have got rid of all cleanser before slapping on my moisturiser, and that is all I need it to be so that is fine by me! 

Neom Organic Body lotion

£23.50 for 240ml from Neom

Another sample this month, from the November Carmine Box.

I kinda sorta liked this body lotion, but the scent scared me, every single time i went to put it on my skin I worried I would react just because of the scent. It was very herbal, and in general just very strong. It sells itself as being packed with vitamins, shea butter and macadamia nut oil, but to me I didn't find it crazily moisturising, I was a little disappointed in that I have to admit. I found it to be moderately moisturising, not particularly luxurious feeling and if you removed the scent I would say it felt exactly the same as some of my other body lotions. I definitely wouldn't shell out for the full sized bottle, but if you were a fan of the scent I imagine it would be more appealing.

Sure Fragrance Collection Bright Anti-Perspirant

£1.73 from Boots

This is another one which you can probably find cheaper elsewhere, and usually I would be a bit dubious about mentioning deodorant, but I really liked this one so I saved it in my box.

It was part of a collection where they made the scents less deodorant like and more along the lines of a perfume, or a proper scent. There were adverts if i remember rightly and the scent of this one was very nice, not a complete departure from a deodorant scent, but nicer than the average. It still had the 48hour protection, but not the no white marks protection and I wear a lot of black for work so that was a little annoying. I would probably buy it again.

Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser

£29 for 200ml from Murad

The last sample this month, and I think I either finished it in December or even November but forgot to mention it so when I found the tube I thought I would shove it in here. 

I received this in one of my GlossyBox's and wasn't impressed when I got it, I wasn't impressed when I used it either as it is too intensive for my skin. It contains 0.5% salicylic acid and so I would only recommend you try it if you have acne, and only if your doctor has said that salicylic acid might help. On the plus side, Murad do sell smaller size tubes of this (the one pictures is a 30ml sample, which is around £5 on the website) so if you did want to give it a try you can do so without shelling out nearly £30!

So there are my January empties! I hope you found it useful, I am really looking forward to talking about a couple of the items that I think will be in next months empties, as I really don't like them, and will be so glad to get them out of my collection!!

:) xo

Bloglovin', that wonderful website that can be used to track your favourite blogs and keep up to date with their posts apparently requires that you post a post with the following link in it in order to claim a blog as your own, so here you are Bloglovin', and here is the link for all of you lovely people. 

I would love if you could follow me over there

:) xo

Bloglovin', that wonderful website that can be used to track your favourite blogs and keep up to date with their posts apparently requires that you post a post with the following link in it in order to claim a blog as your own, so here you are Bloglovin', and here is the link for all of you lovely people. 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I would love if you could follow me over there

 :) xo

NOTD: Rumples Bones

Excuse my dehydrated cuticles!

This look is actually off my nails now, as it started to chip yesterday when I was taking Blog Sale photos.

(That should be up later today, lots of highstreet and higher end brands in case you are wondering)

Anyway this is OPI Skull and Glossbones, from the Pirate's of the Caribbean collection  

with OPI Rumples Wiggin, from the Shrek Collection, as the tips.

I am really glad this has shown up in pictures because in person it didn't look that obvious, which disappointed me slightly. Though the negative is that in this picture the Skull and Glossbones looks much more khaki then it is, its actually much more grey. 

I did like the combination though!

xo :)

Top Pout: Clinique Black Honey

When I am deciding which of these posts to write next I have a list that I refer to and try to pick my favourites, and today I was going to post about Clinique Baby Baby. 

It occurred to me though that recently I have mentioned this lipstick several times, and as it is an autumn/winter shade on this particularly rainy day I should maybe post on this one instead! 

(Don't worry, Baby Baby will be featured once it warms up a bit)

I have been a fan of this shade from Clinique for a couple of years now and it becomes an immediate staple in my handbag as soon as the weather turns cold. 

I was initially introduced to it by Lisa Eldridge in her original plum lipstick video where she demonstrated several ways to use a deep lipstick (the new version of this video features a Tom Ford lipstick, but the original was Chanel Rouge Noir) and Lisa used Black Honey as an easier way to achieve the tinted/stained softer way to wear a deep shade than faffing about with lightly applying the deeper coloured Chanel. 

I saw it in the video and loved it, swatched it in store the next day bought it immediately and I haven't regretted it since.

Black Honey looks really quite scary in the tube, especially if you don't think about the fact that this is an almost lipstick. It applies like a gloss or a balm, really softly, and provides a beautiful healthy sheen while still providing a little bit of a deeper autumnal colour.

Because it is so sheer it doesn't require a mirror to reapply, and surprisingly lasts a reasonable amount of time. It lacks the slipperiness of a true gloss so it doesn't slip right off, but it does need to be topped up every couple of hours.

This past autumn Clinique released a limited edition set of eyeshadows and blusher to match this shade, and I am absolutely gutted that I missed out on the blusher, so if they re-release it I will be snapping one up. 

For now though I am content keeping my Almost Lipstick safe as I will always fall back on it during the colder months.

Currently it is priced at £16 and I picked up mine from Boots, but you can get this from any good Clinique Counter.

:) xo

Review: It has EARS!

Ok, so I know I have tumblr-ed and tweeted about this bag already, but come on! Look how adorable the thing is!! I just had to do a proper post about it.

I grabbed this from a little shop in Lincoln called Ruby Red Boutique which is up The Strait if you fancy a bit of a hill climb. The shop was really lovely, the staff friendly, and it had some nice clothing items and gifty bits. Definitely worth a look if you are in the area. 

I spotted the bag as soon as I stepped into the back room on a table full of purses, and literally grabbed it to give it a squeeze, it was just so darn cute and very me. 

It is made by Cheeky Budha, a brand I had never heard of before but a quick Google has shown it is stocked alongside higher end brands. The bag cost £10 which at first I thought was a little much considering I already have lots of makeup bags, it wasn't something I actually needed. I think it is actually supposed to be a purse (it would be a really big one though, with very little organisation) so it doesn't have a wipeable lining, but for something which is a bit out of the ordinary I didn't mind spending a bit extra. 

Once I realised exactly how much stuff would fit in this thing though I really thought I had got a bargain. Tardis is most definitely the word. Currently inside it I have a blusher, nail polish, a mascara, my Garnier eye roll on, two concealers, lipstick and lipgloss, a paint pot, an individual eye shadow, two single eye shadows I am planning on reviewing (both in pot like containers) my MSF natural, kabuki and eyelash curlers. AND THERE IS STILL ROOM!

One of the main reasons I don't carry makeup around with me, even if I think I will need to touch up during the day, is because it is such a bother trying to get everything I need to carry to fit into a bag, and usually I have to slot them all in perfectly to get the thing to shut. This just happily zips closed. Perfect!

I have a feeling this little guy will get a lot of use. 

:) xo