Wednesday 30 April 2014

Statement Lips

I've never really done a statement lips post on here, and a clean, bold lip is a bit of a staple in any girl's makeup arsenal. I'm personally much more of a lip girl than an eye girl; I love experimenting with new colours and textures. I recently discovered my new favourite red, By Terry Rouge Terribly in Shade 203. It isn't new or seasonal, but it is new to me and it's so good! Everyone loves a good red. This is a gorgeous, more blue-y toned, highly pigmented red in a creme texture that gives full impact colour and shine. It does stray a bit because of it's slight glossiness, therefore I make sure I use it with the By Terry Lip Pencil in Red Cancan which keeps it exactly where you want it.





When doing a bold lip, make sure you have well conditioned lips. You wouldn't put paint on a cracked wall. No lipstick, whether it's Chanel or Barry M, will look good if your lips look like the Sahara Desert. I have a good scrub with Lush Cosmetics' Popcorn Lip Scrub and then moisturise with Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm.

Once you're prepped, cover your lips and the surrounding area in a light reflecting concealer to give yourself a clean base to work on. I've used my favourite, Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla. This will also help your bright lip look crisp and perfect in photos, because of the contrast between the colour and the bright clean skin around.

Next, I find it's easiest to line the middle of your bottom lip directly under your cupid's bow as this helps the overall shape become more even. Join up the middle sections with the corners of your mouth.

If you don't have a steady hand, make your other hand grab your wrist while you apply the lipliner. Don't worry if you mess up, just get a cotton bud soaked in makeup remover (Bioderma is best) and use it as an eraser on the wonky lipline.

Colour your lips in with the liner. This is great for longevity as it gives the lipstick a base to cling to.

Apply your chosen shade. Some people use a lip brush - I do when I'm working, but on myself I just whack it on straight from the tube. Blot on a tissue to press the colour into your lips, again this is good for longevity.

Apply another layer of lipstick.

You're done! Perfect bold lips that should for last hours.

Wednesday 9 April 2014

Tantastic

Firstly, I would just like to say that my lovely friend and very talented photographer Laura Coughlan wrote a feature on my for Ballad Of... Magazine. Here is a link to the article. It's one of the nicest things anyone's ever written about me and I feel extremely lucky and privileged to have this opportunity, so thank you, Laura <3

So, as the title may suggest, this is actually a post about fake tan. Let's just say that I am late to the tanning party. Super late. As in 21 years late. I feel like fake tan has been given a bit of a bad rep over the years by people like this...





Which has sort of put me off. Being so pale, I feel like any tan would look a bit unnatural on me. Plus it smells like biscuits, and I'm more of an Acqua di Parma than an Eau de Digestives kinda girl.

Enter Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Glow Pads.

These bad boys are simply awesome and absolutely my fave beauty discovery of the year so far. It's a pad infused with tan which also exfoliates your skin to ensure that 1) your face is streak free and 2) it doesn't clog your pores and leave your skin spotty, dry and flaky. Lactic and glycolic acid get to perfecting the surface of your skin whilst the tanning ingredient (DHA) is pushed deeper under the surface of the skin encased in soy proteins, for a more natural glow. They sound scary but they are perfectly fine for sensitive skin too.

That's the sciencey bit. The colour takes 4 hours to develop but in my personal experience I notice it developing for up to 2 days after application. You always have a lovely even glow that looks perfectly natural and healthy. One word of warning, however, these are just for your face and neck, so make sure you blend it into your chest to avoid any tan lines!

I am so happy with these, and I have been wearing far less makeup than usual as my skin looks so much healthier. They are a great price point too, at £26 for 20, that's almost three months worth of pads (I use one a week).