Ellis Faas: Ellis Eyes Lights Eyeshadows FotD

As you may know, my birthday treat to myself was a couple of Ellis Faas Ellis Eyes Lights shadows. I created a FotD with E305 - a rich burgundy brown with amazing green duochrome - at the time, but I've since got around to wearing the E304 - a shimmering lilac metallic - and this is how it looked under a variety of lighting conditions:

As you can see, depending on the lighting conditions it can look very different. Also, depending on the angle you're looking it from, it can appear very sheer with a hint of sparkle, or a vibrant lilac shade, accordingly.  For me, in all honesty, I actually find it a slightly easier shade to wear than the E305, possibly because I like to play up the green tones in my eyes, and this is an excellent vehicle for that.

It's maybe not entirely suitable for office wear, but that's never stopped me wearing glitter for work before, to be honest! I teamed it with a taupe eyeshadow in the crease alongside my beloved Guerlain Oriental Metal kohl, and a very nude lip (Becca's Giselle topped with Le Metier de Beaute's Manhattan gloss), here's how it looked in the full context of my face:

Yeah, my hair looked insane in the full picture, so I had to crop  it out, that'll learn it.

The Fine Print: Bought them!  Nyah Nyah!!

Mannequin Hands? Precision Nail Lacquer P300 Kismet

A couple of months ago you couldn't move for blogs with people showing you their "Mannequin Hands".  Basically, a mannequin hand is one where you've painted your nails the same colour as the skin of your hand, making you look like you have longer, slimmer fingers.  Sadly, my hands are more sausage fingers than mannequin, but this polish - P300 Kismet from Precision - seems to have worked better for me in this craze than some other, more beige shades I've been trying.

Yes, it's a bit frosty - and therefore not a "real" mannequin hand, as you're meant to use a creme shade - and yes, it's a lot paler than I thought the skin on my hands was in the first place, but I do kind of like the shade, I can't deny it.  But I also can't deny that this looks dated in the picture, because what you can't really see here is the amazing green/pink duochrome that's in the polish! It's very visible in the bottle, but sadly not on the nail, and not in these pics ... The pics have also washed out the shade a little, it's actually slightly more pink than it appears here.

Pics show four coats - I still had some visible nail line, but I can live with it - over an Orly sticky basecoat, and under a layer of OPI Rapid-Dry top coat.  The polishes last well, the picture above is several days old now, and there's no chipping or signs of tipwear.

Precision polishes cost £5.95 and are available from Venus nail and beauty supplies.  I've not bought from these people though - this polish was a gift - so buyer beware, and all that.

What's your take on mannequin hands?

Elf High Definition Powder vs Urban Decay Razor Sharp Ultra Definition Finishing Powder

You can't move at the moment for High Definition cosmetics. I'm not - entirely - convinced that for day-to-day wear you need cosmetics that provide coverage designed for such a specific purpose (essentially a High Definition cosmetic is one designed not to look dreadful for digital photography), but some of them do have their uses.

I'm a fan of HD powders, they're a lot finer than traditional talc-based powder, and for that reason, on my slightly dry skin, I find them quite easy to wear.  They're also slightly lighter than talc-based cosmetics, so they won't clog your pores, and they're also suitable for summer-wear over a tinted moisturiser.

I own two HD powders, firstly Elf HD Powder:

Mainly consisting of silica, this powder costs £6 and is available from the ELF website.  It's housed in a bulky black box with a sifter, and comes complete with a velvet puff to buff the product into your skin.

I also own the Urban Decay Razor Sharp Ultra Definition Finishing Powder (catchy name!  But it's essentially an HD powder like the ELF above):

This is housed in a round container, which has a built-in applicator, which makes it slightly less likely that you'll end up spilling the powder all over your feet when you're using it.  Not, of course, that I'm speaking from experience!  Their are two major differences between the Urban Decay HD powder (seriously, I cannot be bothered typing the full name out every time) and the ELF, and that is the UD is beige, and it costs £17.

So, given that the major component in both powders is silica, is there much difference between them?  Actually, yes. And no. Both feel silky on the skin thanks to the silica, and both work well as finishing powders, giving the skin a matte-ish, but not flat finish.  In fact, the ELF powder is the one I use as a finishing powder in the vast majority of my makeovers, but I do find that the Urban Decay does, in fact give a finer, softer finish on the skin, and feels a great deal silkier when rubbed between your fingertips. There's not a huge amount to choose between them to be honest.  Both involve patting the applicator over your skin, then I like to sweep away the excess with a large powder brush, to give an even finish.

All that said, which one would I buy again?  The ELF. Most likely. For my purposes, it's just that little bit more versatile.  Yes, it doesn't have the "sexy" packaging of the UD, but I don't think the fancy container justifies a three times higher cost considering the similarity of the contents. I did find, in use that the UD reminded me a great deal of Prescriptives (now discontinued) "Magic Powder", and I think it has some of the same "water-burst" technology, so people who've been yearning for a duplicate, here's your chance! For me though, I'd still buy the ELF, I can always put it into a fancy container ...

Do you own any HD cosmetics, what do you think of them?

The Fine Print: I bought these. A little while ago, admittedly, but I've still got the box the ELF came in.  I really need to tidy up.

Guerlain Kohl Swatches

I own four of the Guerlain Kohls now, I thought it was time to show you how they compare to each other:

Here are the three darks, Noir is a rich, sparkly black, Mirage is a matte, slightly flattened grey-brown (it's not quite a taupe, but it's not as red, nor as sparkly as Guerlain's "Brun" shade), and Oriental Metal is the most beautiful lightly metallic taupe-shade, which has very quickly become a staple in my daily make up.

There is one missing from the hand-swatch here, and that's the Guerlain kohl in Secret Glow.  The reason for this is that it's almost impossible to see, so I thought I'd show it to you "in action" as it were:

It's a flesh-coloured powder with a light hint of iridescence, you use it in the same way you use the other kohls (a quick swipe along the waterline with the stick), and instead of darkening and defining the eye, it lightens and brightens your eyes, by getting rid of any residual pinkness.

It's VERY easy to overdo though.  Very, very, very easy.  This doesn't look too bad in the photo, but I spent all day boggling at how "odd" my eyes looked.  I'm not sure I'll use Secret Glow again for a while - it was just too different - or at least, I might try and see how I can use it to get a slightly lighter application.  I'll say this for it, it's got some MEGA-staying power!

The Fine Print: I bought these, and I loved them so much I've bought them for other people too.  Don't fear the stick, people!

Organic Weekend - Madara Eco Cosmetics

Madara is Latvian for Cleaver  - a plant that features a great deal in Madara cosmetics.  Launched four years ago, Madara have released a capsule range of skin care and cosmetics concentrating on plant and herbal extracts which have weathered the short Latvian summers and  the long, long Baltic winters.

Prettily packaged - a nice change for an organic range! So many of them you buy for their worthiness rather than thair looks - in airtight vacuum containers, the range concentrates a great deal on moisturisers of differing intensities, and has a small range of cosmetic products such as tinted moisturisers and lip glosses.  I saw the products at both The Vitality Show and The National Organic Products show this year, and I was impressed enough to want to give their tinted moisturiser a thorough look-over.

Being slightly warm-toned, I chose their "Sunflower Tinting Fluid", but there is also a "Moonflower Tinted Fluid" for cooler skintones.  Sometimes, even a cool-toned gal wants a tinted moisturiser!

Here is what Madara have to say about the Sunflower product:

Tints, illuminates and lightly moisturises the skin of the face and neck. Evens out skin tone. Gives the skin freshness, radiance, and the look of a summer tan. Disguises imperfections and fine lines. A lighter alternative to foundation.

CONTAINS Baltic St.John's-wort, plantain, chamomile, algae and rose water, as well as cocoa and jojoba. Colour and shimmer are obtained from natural plant minerals and mica.

USAGE: Apply evenly to cleansed and toned face and neck. For deeper moisturization use MÁDARA moisturizing cream, fluid or gel beforehand.

I've used this a lot in the weeks since it arrived, it's light, fresh, easy to blend and melds well with the skin.  Also, it's not got a huge amount of pigment in, so it's not going to turn you orange.  It has a vague "green" scent, remiscent of grass and hay, but the smell doesn't linger upon application.  It also doesn't leave you looking greasy!  I like it a great deal, Madara say it's suitable for all skin types, but I'd suggest that if you're dryer skinned then you might have to use a regular moisturiser underneath, but as it is, it won't clog up the pores if you're slightly oiler-skinned, which is nice.

Sadly, like many organic moisturisers, it doesn't contain an SPF, so you will have to use a separate product for that, which is a bit of a pain - it's also the reason why this won't be knocking my beloved Bobbi Brown Tinted Moisturising Balm of it's perch at any time in the near future - but, whenever I've worn this my skin has looked great, even with just a tiny touch of HD powder over the top, and it's light, long-lasting and easy to wear.

Madara Eco Cosmetics Sunflower Tinting Fluid costs £21.50, and is available from these online stockists

The Fine Print: Review based on samples acquired from a variety of sources.  I cannot reveal my sources, because then I'd have to kill you.

Review - Andrew Barton Salon Covent Garden

I've been a bit obsessed with hair this year, I can't deny it. I've had four visits to different salons since Christmas (which is at least three more than usual, I'm notorious for leaving it far too long between visits), and, hand on heart, there's only one of them I'd definitely go back to.  And that is this one.

I was invited along for a pre-birthday hair makeover by the Andrew Barton team last week - in spite of all my other salon visits recently, it can't be denied that I've been in a bit of a hair rut the last year or two - and I was delighted to pop along to see what they could do.  If the name seems familiar to you, that will be because Andrew Barton himself is the hair stylist responsible for those amazing transformations you see on Ten Years Younger.  Unfortunately, Andrew wasn't available on the day of my visit, but I was left in the more than capable hands of Tracey and Declan, and neither myself nor my hair have any complaints about it!

The salon itself is monochromatically decorated, with hints of wit - have to say I adored the flock wallpaper with the dog silhouettes all over it -  being a fan of the monochrome, I felt right at home! I found the salon quite restful, and it was nice to have a little respite from the pounding dance music that a lot of salons pour into your ears in order to make your visit appear cool'n'trendy.  Prior to my appointment, I'd attended a consultation with Declan and had a colour test (the salon only uses Redken products, and I hadn't had a colour with Redken products for a while) to ensure I wasn't allergic to anything.  Declan and I had a good chat about the state of my hair (back to it's usual insanity), and my attitude towards styling (non-existant). Declan took all of this in his stride, and suggested a style that works with my hairs own natural tendencies, and also discussed some colouring options.

On the day itself, I was delighted to be recognised by other staff members who I'd chatted to briefly during my consultation visit, and was gratified to see that Declan, my stylist, and Tracey, my colourist, (who hadn't been available on the consult day) had obviously chatted about my requirements in the meantime - or if they hadn't, they were remarkably in tune with one another! - we decided to not change my colour too drastically, but even up the ends and the roots, and add in a few subtle highlights to break up the colour around the front.  There was nothing drastically wrong with the colour as previously done, but I'd been aware that my hair was looking rather "block-y" and heavy recently, and I wanted to add some movement.  Both Tracey and Declan got what I was trying to explain right away, and I have to say that they are both extremely talented at taking some vague, mumbled instructions about "boringness" and "heaviness" and taking on board both appropriateness for lifestyle, and appearance, and turning that into a hairstyle.

Staff were friendly, professional, and very easy to chat to, there was no pretentiousness, snootiness or patronising of the clients, all things other salons are occasionally guilty of (sometimes all three in one go, with an added side order of rubbishness. I'm naming no names, but this post might remind you of how annoying any and all of those things are).  It's the small touches that make a salon friendly, and re-visitable, and the Andrew Barton salon has these in spades.  Everyone took a turn in manning reception, anyone and everyone offered to make drinks, and I noticed all of the team taking their turn in cleaning up after themselves too, it was nice not to see a stressed out "junior" doing all the donkey-work.  Most importantly, these guys seem like a team, one who genuinely enjoy working together and, after a few disappointing and/or stressful visits to salons this year, it was a refreshing delight to see and be part of.

As for my hair, well, I love it. It's a bit darker than I anticipated (considering I had highlights!), and a little shorter than I was expecting after the consult, but both the cut and the colour work very well, it's very shiny, and just it feels so much lighter and bouncier, it's almost like a new head of hair! It's garnered lots of compliments, so, sometimes, I guess it's okay to just trust the stylist. You just need to pick your stylist carefully ...  

Andrew Barton isn't a cheap salon - although considering the location, it's reasonable in context. Colour services start from £60 and go up to around £170 dependent on both the service requested, and the technical level of your stylist.  Ask for Tracey and Declan, tell them I said hello.  And warn them that I'll be back.

The Fine Print: Service was provided free of charge as a pre-birthday review opportunity. I'll pay next time though, you betcha.  And I'll be stealing that wallpaper. And possibly one of the backwash chairs. All pictures in this post - aside from the one of my ugly mug - were shamelessly stolen from the Andrew Barton website.

Review - Armani Blushing Fabric Second Skin Blush

I first had a sneaky peek at these a couple of months ago when BritishBeautyBlogger kindly let me swatch her sample, and I was lucky enough to be sent a couple too just recently. Not ordinarily a massive fan of blusher (I'm much more an eye and lip product kind of girl), these are gorgeous, and I've enjoyed using them a lot.

Weightless owing to their silicone base, these are easy to apply and spread well over the skin, giving a "lit from within" glow that's very flattering.  They're fairly pigmented, and a little goes a long way.  I have two shades, 1 & 2, and here's how they look straight from the tube:

No 1, on the left there, is a lightly gold-flecked peach, and No2 is a sheer strawberry shade.  I find these a lot easier to blend than normal cream blushes - owing to their light texture, there is little or no "drag" on the skin when blending, Certainly I much prefer using these to something like Benefit's Benetint, as they don't dry as quickly, and you're not left with dreadful stripes.  Blended here's how the shades look:

There's not a huge difference between them once blended, but shade number 2 is slightly cooler-toned and is without shimmer, whereas there's just a tiny hint of gold shimmer on the swatch on the right.

Here's how they look on the face:

There is a little bit of a learning curve in using these blushes, it can be very easy to use too much - just a dab'll do ya, but if you do get too much out of the tube, the shades work well on the lips too. I've noticed that the Blushing Fabrics work much better over a foundation with a matte finish rather than one something dewier, a dewy finish-foundation will make them wear off a lot faster, whereas if I wear it over something like Clinique Anti-Blemish foundation, they will last a good 12-16 hours without fading. Tubes of this aren't huge, but you need so little at a time, that I estimate a tube would last quite a few months of daily wear.

Armani Blushing Fabric Second Skin Blush (catchy!) will be available on counters from July 1st, will cost £28,  and will be available in three shades.  Will you be investing?

The Fine Print: These were sent for review by a PR who owed me a favour.  No blue eyeshadow was harmed in the making of this post. Opinions, honesty, yadda, yadda, yadda.