Face of the fortnight - as promised!

Sorry about the extreme close up nature of these pics, I'm in the middle of a major hair crisis!  A really major hair crisis ... But this is how my Maybelline/Bobbi Brown makeup looks when it's put together.  I've been trialling Lancome Teint Idole, and Clarins Wonder Perfect mascara in this pic too, so expect a post on those later on in the week ...

I'm wearing the Cargo Plant Love mineral baked Illuminator in wind on my cheeks, still totally in love with that product, and how it looks in these pics.

Nail of the Day - Mavala Tokyo

There won't be too many Nail of the Day posts around here for a couple of reasons, the main one being that I'm lousy at applying it, and the other one is that I have truly dreadful nails that don't grow, and when they do, the second I start to think they're looking reasonable they start to split, peel, flake and then snap.  It's very frustrating! 

When I do wear polish though, I tend to favour dark shades, as I think they're a rare example of something that actually looks better on short nails (at least, that's how I justify it to myself, anyway!).   Mavala sent me some samples of their mini-polishes to try recently, and it was love at first sight for this shade!  It's a gloriously rich inky purple, and under natural light the colour is gorgeously vibrant and not at all "gothy". I'm wearing it in my rather staid office job right now!

Mavala specialise in mini pots of polish, and they promise a " unique formula" that is free from parabens, formaldehydes, toluene, camphor, cellophane, animal ingredients and heavy metal.  They also say that their product delivers microscopic air pockets to allow nails to breathe, so is allegedly a healthier option for your nails than some other varnishes on the market.  I love mini-products - seriously, give me a miniature version of anything, and I'll love it way more than the full size version, I'm a bit odd like that - so the dinky size of the bottle really appealed to me, and it means the polish won't dry up completely before I get to the end of the bottle.

I found the polish easy to apply (the pic shows two coats, with neither a top nor base coat, with flash), and although the brush on my bottle had a few stray bristles that I'll need to remove for next time I use this it, I really like it. I'll keep you posted on how the wear is!  I was slightly disappointed in that I was expecting the colour to have a matte finish, but I actually really like the satin-y shine of the polish, I'm looking forward to seeing if anyone notices it at work ...

You can find Mavala polishes for around £3.75 at good chemists and department stores.

Makeover: Gillian

It's Sunday, and that means it's makeover day here at Get Lippie!  Meet Gillian:

Gillian came to me a couple of weeks ago, wanting to look like a sexy 50's bombshell.   Now, this is a look I happen to love, as it's actually pretty simple and quick to put together.  First things first though, the classic bombshell look is dependent on flawless porcelain skin for it to work.  So we used a base of Max Factor Seamless in porcelain to even out Gillian's skintone, and give us a flawless base to work from:

 

We added a little concealer, then powdered down with some Benefit Bluffdust to tone down any lingering redness and give a matte finish, and Gillian was feeling more like a bombshell already!

There are two main elements to the bombshell look, eyeliner, and lipstick, both are crucial, so we'll start with the eyes.  I started by showing Gillian how to define the crease of her eyelid using MAC Behold as a contour shade:

Once this was in place (and Gillian had had a lesson in how to find it for herself) we moved on to liner.  Liquid liner can be tricky for a novice, so I showed Gillian how to use powder and an angled brush to paint on a line that looks just as dramatic and flattering as liquid liner, but takes a lot less practice to perfect.  We used Virgin Vie shadow in charcoal, then a coat or two of mascara:

 

Personally, I think this look suits Gillian down to a tee, and we could just have added a touch of lip balm or gloss right here and we'd have a lovely glamorous look suitable for daywear already!  However, the bombshell look demands lipstick.  So we added a slick of Guerlain lipstick in CanCan red as the finishing touch:

So there you go, quick, simple, with a minimum of products, but the maximum of impact.

Here's the before and afters:

Thank you, Gillian.

Mini Bobbi Brown Haul - and Face of the Week

Okay, face of the fortnight, if I'm being honest ... I bought these shadows from Bobbi Brown recently, in the palette there is (L-R) Flesh, Naked and Gunmetal, and on first glance I think they look a little uninspiring, but this has been one of my very favourite purchases for a while.  I had initially been intent on buying Flesh and Woodrose from BB as some new neutral base shadows, but on swatching in House of Fraser, I realised that Woodrose is just a little too cool for my pale-custard coloured skin, so I swapped it out for Naked.  Gunmetal was a colour that I wasn't intending to buy at all (I've done two grey-eyeshadow based makeovers lately, and they got terrible feedback, who knew it was so contentious?), but I kind of fell in love with this shade in the store.

Here's how they swatch (dry, on unprimed skin) without flash and with:

You'll notice that Flesh disappears almost entirely on my skin, and you may be thinking that's a bad thing, but actually, it's not.  It's perfect for creating an even and matte base for other shadows, and when I add  Naked into the crease for a contour, I really love the effect I get, they're a lovely pair of colours for that polished and natural look I'm such a fan of.  I've mainly been using gunmetal as a softer lining alternative to black recently, and for a big night out recently (one where I knew I was going to be going out with a lot of women who don't wear an awful lot of makeup), I created this look:

Basically, I used Flesh (over Urban Decay Primer Potion), over the entire eyelid, up to the brow as a base, then defined the crease with Naked, and created a winged liner look from corner to corner with Gunmetal and I loved how the grey contrasted and brought out the brown in my eyes.  I'm also enjoying using matte shades for winter, I think they look very different to the shimmery looks I've been creating lately.

I've been doing a softer version of this look for daily office wear for the last week, combining it with Maybelline Hollywood Red, and I'll bring you a full-face version of this look soon.  I'm not showing the full face look here as I hate how shiny I am in the pics, and I've changed my foundation to a more matte formulation recently.  I'm all about the matte at the moment, it seems!

(note: I've had my eyebrows done since I took these pics, my eyebrows are the bane of my existence, Denis Healy and me, separated at birth.  Troo story)

Lip of the Day - Maybelline 540 Hollywood Red

I'll be honest here, I've not bought a Maybelline product in years and years and years and years, not since I tried Great Lash and discovered it to actually be "Defiantly Average Lash"!  I do still wonder why and how this spectacularly nondescript mascara has as massive a cult reputation as it does, but I'm digressing slightly.

There's been a lot of Maybelline love on the blogosphere lately, and I admit, it's made me actually look at the products a bit - which is more than I've done in quite some time, it's one of those brands that very rarely, if ever particularly impinges on my consciousness for some reason! However, one of the Colour Sensational lipsticks has been haunting me for a while, I swatched it a month or two ago, and I've been debating with myself whether to buy it or not.  I finally gave in last week, and I'm glad I did.

It's this one:

For some reason, it's been packaged with the reds, but it's actually more of a soft pink, bright, but not not too blue-based.  The reason it's been on my mind a lot is because the shade is actually a dead-ringer for my All-Time Favourite Lipstick of All-Time: Chanel's India.  India was a limited edition shade, and my various attempts to replace it over the years have all ended in abject failure but, as replacements go, this one's a winner.

Here's how it looks on my lips:

 

 

Although it's bright, it's actually a very wearable shade.  It's not at all bubble-gummy, and as it's not fuschia, it barely harks back to the 80's at all!  It's a bit greasier on the lips than the Chanel, so the wear isn't the greatest (this stuff loves coffee cups!) but it does last a good few hours before you need to totally reapply.  It fades evenly without leaving lips ringed or dry.

I'm glad I picked this one up, I've worn it every day since I bought it, and I love it.  Slightly easier to wear than red, but more of a statement than nude lips, it goes with a variety of makeup looks.

The Great Giveaway Unveiling!

Many apologies for the craptacular photography, but I just wanted to post this quickly! I'm giving away the following:

a complete set of Organic Surge skincare (face wash, eye gel and moisturiser)
a set of Demeter shower gel and body lotion in Fig Leaf,
a tube of Balm Balm in rose geranium (love, love, love this stuff, it's like Eight Hour Cream, only better smelling!),
plus I've thrown in:
a mystery Ruby & Millie lipstick and
a mystery Sleek eyeshadow palette!

For a chance to win, (and because I've nearly left the house twice this week without mascara and realised I simply look all wrong without it!) all you have to do is leave a comment on this post telling me which single beauty or cosmetic product you simply can't live without. Oh, and you must be a follower! If you want to mention it to other people, that's great, it's not compulsory - but I will be grateful!  Winner will be drawn at random on November 19th, and is open to international entrants.

Thanks for reading, and good luck!

L
x

EDIT: Because this has been so popular, I've now added a second set of goodies to the giveaway - not identical, but very similar! - so you now have double the chance of winning.  Good luck!

PS Items in this competition were all provided by myself and have not been supplied as freebies by any of the companies mentioned, or any PR firms.

Organic Wednesday - Green People Deodorant

Just a quick Organic Wednesday mention this week, as I'm ill with labrynthitis (truly, the most useless and pathetic disease ever) and the monitor is making me feel slightly nauseous ...

Anyhoo, I've been testing this Green People deodorant for the last couple of weeks, and I've been pleasantly surprised!

The Blurb:

Green People say: "This natural deodorant is made without pore-clogging Aluminium, Parabens, ethyl alcohol and artificial fragrances to bring you the purest deodorant that nature can offer."

Lippie Says:

I usually prefer my deodorants scented - I'm a big fan of  Vaseline Deodorant Cream ordinarily, as I love the scent of it, but it's gettting harder and harder to find in supermarkets these days - and I usually like an element of anti-perspirant too, it's the belt'n'braces approach to personal hygiene really.  This rolls on smoothly, doesn't take an age to dry, and, I've found that it really seems to work.  Yes, if you're a sweaty betty, then it won't really suit you, it contains nothing that will stop you perspiring, but it  really does seem to inhibit any whiffs.  I've worn it to work, and out on several  social occasions - I do leave the safety of the house and computer sometimes, I swear! - including a gig, a party and a rave (it was an accident), and no troublesome smells.


I was sceptical, I have to admit, but I tried it, I liked it, and I'll be continuing to use it till it runs out.  My deodorant came from Wholefoods (whom I'm currently boycotting - more about that later) and cost £7.50.

Yay!

Thank you lovelies!  I now have fifty followers, so a bit later this week, I'll be putting together a competition to win some goodies.  What would you like to see as a prize?  Skin care?  Make up?  Body care?  Or a bit of all three?  Any suggestions, let me know in the comments section.

Watch this space! The question and the prize reveal will be here a in a day or two ...

Whee!

It's a very small thing, but it makes me happy, I have nearly 50 followers now! I didn't think anyone would read this when I started it, much less subscribe to it!  I promise to put together an amazing giveaway present to say thank you to you lovely people when I do hit the magic number ...

Makeover: Louise

This is Louise:

Louise came to me wanting a classic "English Rose" look, as she wanted to look glowing, natural, and make the most of her beautiful blue eyes.  She has a make up bag full of steely greys, but after a chat, we thought something more apricot, and shimmery would be an excellent contrast.

Louise has lovely skin - no pores! - and we didn't need a huge a huge amount of coverage, so as a base, we used Benefit You Rebel in Light.  Louise does have a small patch of broken veins on her right cheek, so to cover them, we used a small amount of MAC concealer patted on, and finished off with a very, very light dusting of Benefit Bluffdust to further counteract the redness, and tone down shininess.

On Louise's eyes, I wanted to use lovely shimmering golden apricot shades, to complement her skintone, and to really make the blue in her eyes stand out. I applied MAC Naked Lunch as a colourwash all over her lid up to the brow bone:

Then we added just a touch of MAC Patina to the outside corner, and as an eyeliner, I used Cargo's Plant Love shadow in Sparrow:

Louise's lashes needed a little definition - actually, everyone's lashes need a little definition, mascara should totally be everyone's desert island beauty product, if you ask me! - so we added a coat of Louise's own Boots mascara:

Then we moved onto blush, and we used MAC's Prism, which is a lovely coral-y peach shade:

Once that was in place, we added a touch of Bobbi Brown's lipgloss in Rose Sugar, and the look was finished:

Here's the before and after, just look at the difference in those eyes!

Pictures by Genna.