Hello there!

A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to attend a wonderful evening at St David's Hotel and Spa and come home with a goodie bag of lovely products from Paul Mitchell and New CiD.

We've been using them over the last few weeks and couldn't wait to share the amazing i-Glow Compact Shimmer Powder.

The i-Glow Compact Shimmer Powder is another of New CiD Cosmetics hand baked powders which uses waxes to stick ingredients together. This helps to make the product glide over your skin smoothly creating a more radiant and youthful look - this all sounds pretty wonderful to me!

The other ingredients in the shimmer powder help to 'bounce' the light off your skin which is why the best way to use the product is by picking up a really large brush, swirling it over the powder and dusting it over your cheekbones, collar bones and just about anywhere you want with a bit of a glow!

i-Glow is available in three different colours; Icy Pink, Sirocco and Coral Crush.
We were given Sirocco which is a lovely gold colour, the shimmer is amazing but the particles are so small it gives an amazing glow.

I've been really impressed with the colour payoff but also how blendable the shimmer powder is, it's easy to blend with any base make up I put on and has been suitable to wear in both the day and night.

Here it is on:

I really like the glowy look it gives, I've had so many people compliment me on it and ask me what it is as they want to buy it too!

You can purchase all of the iGlow products for £26.00 for 9g of product in the compact. The compact itself is also super sturdy with a decent mirror size, I'm overall really impressed with this and I definitely want to try out the Coral Crush and Ice Pop to see how the glow changes.

What do you think of New CiD baked products? Have you tried iGlow?


L xxx

This was one of the products I couldn't wait to try out as I already own ice pop (well my mum did but she wasn't giving it the love it deserved so gave it to me!) which I love. The texture of these are amazing they are so smooth and give an amazing highlight to the skin. Ice pop just adds such a pretty pink flush to the cheeks.

Sirocco is more of a bronzey shade, these are so pigmented as you can see from the swatch below (apologies for the slightly dark photo, I was battling the bad weather spell when I took these!). They have a really soft blendable texture which makes them so easy to work with.

Now I've got these two I really want the i-bronze as the colours in that one look amazing. These are baked products so they're going to last for ages. My ice pop is older than I should admit and doesn't look used still. Another great thing is they sell these in minis for £16, you get a lot of product in the original and I find I rarely use a blush up so it's nice to have the option to grab a smaller size one.

Love M

xxx

Hey all,

It's been a busy few weeks for me and I am currently on a hen weekend - at this point it is likely I am in a haze of bronzer and hairspray to make sure I'm looking as glamorous as everyone else there!

I've had this palette for a few weeks now and I've been dabbling around with it for work and weekends, I am of course talking about the Smashbox Full Exposure palette:

This palette contains 14 neutral shades, 7 shimmer and 7 matte, from nudes to blacks. It also includes a double ended eyeshadow brush and a mini mascara, and a booklet to tell you how to apply eyeshadow for different eye shapes.

The packaging is alright, I always have a bit of a dislike for cardboard/paper packaging like this. The Naked palette is the same but at least UD learned their lesson and brought out metal casings for the rest. I think most other brands would do well to do the same as however pretty the packaging is it's rubbish if it only lasts a few weeks after purchase! Mine of this has already got a good few dents and the corners are rounding off.

It also disappoints me that the shades aren't named, some people may think it's a petty thing to pick up on but why on earth are Urban Decay so good at what they do? Naming these eyeshadows S or M for shimmer or matte and then assigning them a number seems like a really half assed attempt, why bother at all naming them something so uninspiring!

That said, the colours themselves do make up for it:

I love the layout of the palette, it's lovely and symmetrical for an OCD person like myself. I LOVE that there are seven shades and a matte and shimmer version of both of them, it makes creating eyeshadow looks extremely easy.

There are both warm and cool toned neutrals to balance out the shade range giving you way more options than other palettes.

You can see the warmer toned eyeshadows above, the shimmers are unbelievably shimmery and I mostly can't stop looking at them. The golds will be perfect for the summer nights with a golden tan to match, I can imagine getting a lot of wear from these for some subtle shimmer for nights out.

The cool toned eyeshadows are something that I've been wearing a lot more, both matte and shimmer. The cool mattes are the ones that I've been leaning towards for work and the cool shimmers are great for Saturday nights out. The darkest shimmer that matches the matte black is the sparkliest shadow I think I own, it's beautiful!

As for the brush I can't make up my mind about it. I do like it, it does blend well and the double ends allow you to apply different finishes from either end of the cool/warm spectrum and not worry too much about the colours mixing together. However I do feel sometimes that the eyeshadow doesn't pick up very well from the pan and it just falls off the brush, which normally means that it ends up all over my cheeks instead of my eyelids - not a good look!

I'm afraid my photos of swatches seem to have gone walkabout - courtesy of my laptop getting the blue screen of death and I am currently unable to get hold of anything that's on there eek!

So instead I will direct you to this link, where Fleur de Force of course has some fabulous swatches to show the shades, finishes and colour pay off very easily.

I do have some photos of the look that I normally create from this palette - this is using the cool toned matte shadows:

I then also just apply some of the shimmer shades on top so that I can go straight from day to night with minimal effort. Just add some lighter shimmer to the inner corner of your eye, a medium shimmer to the centre and the darker shimmer to the outer corners and you're good to go!


The Smashbox Full Exposure palette is a worthy contender to the Urban Decay Naked family. It costs similar at £37, comes with a double ended brush, mirror and a freebie (mini mascara compared to UD's mini Primer Potion).
I love the balance of the cool and warm tones, and the shimmer and matte finishes. For me, the cool toned mattes are the best of the bunch and I've been wearing them a lot. All of the shimmers are beautiful, so the only shades that may not get used as much are the warmer toned mattes - I just never seem to reach for them.

I'd say this palette is a great starter kit for those that don't have any other palettes as it gives you the best variety of tones and finishes in one place with mirror and brush for ease.
I do feel that they could have done a bit more with their packaging and shade names though.....

What do you think of the Smashbox Full Exposure palette? Do you have it in your collection?

Will you be snapping it up for summer holidays? What's your thoughts on naming the eyeshadows or leaving them numbered?

L xxx

Happy Sunday!

I don't know about you but i will be spending my Sunday lazing around and enjoying a free day. There's going to be reading, tv and food, along with some dog walks to get me outdoors but that is it! The last few weeks have been so busy I'm really looking forward to having a quiet weekend or two.

In the post Christmas sale there was one store that I was really looking forward to having a browse of....sadly in Wales we don't have an individual store but we do have access to the wonderful Space NK website, and so I made my very first sale purchase: the Laura Mercier Artist's Palette for Eyes and Cheeks.

Originally this was priced at £45 but I managed to get it for the bargain price of £22.50 - who on earth could refuse that?!

With eight eyeshadows and a super flattering blush in the centre it was sure to be a winner in anyone's make up collection, especially mine. I've long lusted after LM palettes and products in general and having only tried the Silk Creme foundation and the hydrating primer I am yet to find one that I don't like.

And with an animal print exterior I was surely not going to let it pass me by.

Sometimes I think they could be a bit more creative with their names....but nevertheless at least their names make some sense - there's no use in calling something a completely ridiculous name that has nothing to do with the colour, you know what you're getting here.

Opening the palette reveals a sturdy mirror along with the product inside, I love the arrangement and the equality of the palette pleases my OCD tendencies.

I also really like that they're named on the front, a lot of brands do this now and I think it's a lot better than scrabbling around trying to find the box it came in to work it out! I like products with names, feels a lot more personal than '001'.

How do you like my Christmas leggings by the way? I seem to have snapped them in the mirror in the image below - a Primarni special they are my absolute favourite things to wear right now.

The blush in the centre is a Rosegold Shimmer; it does exactly what it says on the tin. It's a beautiful rose gold product that I've been wearing all day every day recently; its extremely flattering and gives me a warm glow kind of look. It also has a really subtle shimmer that does not look glittery in any way and it's great for day and night.

So the colours. Vanilla Nuts is a super matte, creamy textured shadow that I've been using as the perfect base. It glides on and covers my whole eyelid easily. It's almost a bit dark for my (pretty much) ivory skin but it's a great colour.
Stone Taupe is exactly that colour and I love using it in the crease of my eyelid to define it, it blends so smoothly it's like it belongs there.
Pewter is a gorgeous shimmery dark silver and will be great for an evening look, again it blends seamlessly and flatters my skin tone.
Deep Night is a gorgeous dark blue that I've been using as a liner; it's perfect and a pretty change from black which I am otherwise hooked on.

Topaz is essentially a shimmery version of Stone Taupe and again will look great for evening, though I would wear it in day too as they have such a subtle shimmer to them and blend so well.
Morning Dew and Cashmere are again matte shadows and between them they feel so buttery. They create the perfect nude eye look for work and don't seem to fall or slide during the day.
Crystal Beige is the last colour in the palette and is a warm toned shimmer shadow with a touch of gold in it.
I can't describe them any better than this as I'm far too busy playing with them and marvelling at their beauty!

Here are some colour swatches taken in daylight, so these are true to colour. Taking photos in winter is so restrictive don't you think??
The above shows without flash and below shows with:

Here are the first four eyeshadows closer up without/with flash and also the blush, found at the far left of my arm. It blends so well you can barely see it!

And here are the last four, with and then without flash. They are so finely milled that when swatched they almost blend seamlessly into my skin:

Still not convinced? Here are some photos I've taken from the last few weeks:

I absolutely love it, and i love that I got it for £22.50 even more! 

What do you think of the palette and the eyeshadow colours?

Have you tried a palette from Laura Mercier before? Have you bought anything in the Space NK sale?

I can see this coming with me a lot when I start travelling with my job; it has almost every look I could need!

L xxx

Morning pals!

I've clearly become obsessed with a bit of Nars and I cannot stop wearing my new blushes; to the point that I actually end up wearing both of them on my face at once. What of it eh?

Today I've got a review on Torrid, a gamble I took when on the Space NK website and I guessed based on its orange colour that I would love it (and a quick search on Temptalia of course)

Again, I love monochrome and the packaging for this is pretty but the rubber gets SO dirty that it never stays pretty for long at all. It's a shame but as my make up stays in my wardrobe without anyone to see then it doesn't matter too much....

The blush is described as a coral blush with slight shimmer. The shimmer is so fine that sometimes it barely shows which is perfect for me for work; I don't mind a bit of it but to be known as the girl with disco ball cheeks probably isn't what I'd go for! Torrid can be gently swept on for a flattering glow or piled on for some seriously pigmented colour.

You can see some swatches of all Nars blushes on Temptalia here, you can instantly see why I chose the colour being a lover of Benefit's Coralista.





For work I tend to sweep it onto my cheeks for more of a glow effect, I've taken some photos of this below:

I love the effect it gives my skin, its a really subtle wash of colour that gives a lovely glow for day time, and I'm sure with a heavier hand you could really get some colour onto your cheeks as the product is so pigmented. I think the price is pretty standard for blushes nowadays and the fact that they are so pigmented means that you really don't need a lot at all so it will last. It also lasts whilst on the face too, i never need to touch it up throughout the day which is perfect for me.

I used to look at other people's blush collections and wonder why on earth they had so many from Nars but now seeing as I've bought near on 11 blushes in the last few weeks it is safe to say it's my new obsession!

Here's Torrid on my skin with a flash:

You can see the subtle shimmer but it's not glittery at all, I think maybe I even prefer this to the beloved Orgasm blush I also bought at the same time!

At £22.50 these blushes are actually cheaper than the Benefit Box o' Powders but still pack just as much of a punch. I feel like I've been missing out in the blush world!

I would certainly recommend for anyone to buy a blush from Nars now that I know the quality and pigmentation is top notch, I will be certain to add my collection as soon as I can. The Virtual Domination palette for Christmas time looks amazing; if only I could find a few £100 to spare!

What is your favourite Nars blush? Do you have a favourite finish? Are you discovering blush is just as good as eye products for changing your look like I have been??

L xxx