GOSH Cosmetics Foundation Plus+ 002, 004, and 006 Review

GOSH Cosmetics are probably my favourite mid-priced range, and lots of their recent releases have set my jaded old heart pulsing - their last, with the lip oils, the foundation drops and those beautiful eyeshadow palettes and matte eyeshadow sticks, was one of the best thought-through collections I've seen in quite a while.  I was lucky enough to be invited to dinner with the brand recently and have an introduction to the Autumn/Winter 2016 collection, and I'm happy to say it's really up to their recent standards.  Incidentally, did you know that GOSH were an almost entirely vegan brand?  I didn't, and I think it's brilliant.  They're not completely vegan, because they occasionally use beeswax in a couple of their lipsticks, but everything else is totally vegan-friendly.  Good news!

Anyhoo, my pick from this collection so far is this lovely new foundation formula: Foundation Plus+.  Designed to give full coverage (but is actually blendable down to a medium-coverage), but still look like skin and have a dewy finish - which is almost entirely unheard of in a full-coverage foundation! - it is layerable, and very blendable, and feels moisturising  in wear, thanks to a formula that contains both hyaluronic acid and algae, meaning it's also quite nourishing for a foundation product, and definitely hasn't lead to dryer skin.

l-r 002 Ivory, 004 Natural, and 006 Honey

It's highly concentrated in its squeezy bottle, and you'll need only the tiniest amount to cover a full face, even a gigantic melon-face like my own, but it spreads easily, and melds well with skin.  The amounts you can see on my hand there would probably have covered at least three faces.  You can build up coverage in parts where required (usually in my patches of high-colouring around my nose and cheeks in my case), and you can even apply with a brush to spot-conceal should it be required.  I find that it definitely does require setting with powder to avoid sliding, but it is a good, long-lasting formula once on skin and set.  I like it a lot.  Best of all, it doesn't look flat or overly matte once applied - there's very little more ageing than a thick layer of too-matte foundation on skin of any age, if you ask me.

Wearing shade 002 Natural here, with GOSH Cosmetics Velvet Touch Lipstick in Cranberry

I concentrated my application around my nose and cheeks here to cover up my redness, but sheered it out over my forehead, so you can still see (a hint of) my freckles.  I think it looks surprisingly natural for a full-coverage product, my skin looks like skin not vinyl, and I especially like the customisable nature of the product.  The only downside for me is that it can be very difficult to get the foundation out of the squeezy bottle, but at £9.99(!) for a full 30ml I can overlook that particular issue.

GOSH Cosmetics Foundation Plus+  comes in five shades: 002 Ivory, 004 Natural, 006 Honey, 008 Golden and 010 Tan, and is available in Superdrug stores now.


The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases


This post: GOSH Cosmetics Foundation Plus+ Review originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

GOSH Forever Matte Eyeshadow Stick - 10 Twisted Brown

Doesn't look very exciting, does it?  One taupe eyeshadow pencil, all alone there.  But trust me, for £6.29 this GOSH Forever Matte Eyeshadow Stick  might just change your (makeup applying life).  Eyeshadow pencils are nothing new, in fact, I've acquired so many great pencils over the course of the last 12 months or so that I've barely bothered applying powder eyeshadow at all, to be honest, but matte eyeshadow pencils?  Oh, they're rarer than unicorn farts, so they are.

  
Yeah, it doesn't look any more exciting  when you take the top off either, does it?  The GOSH Forever eyeshadow stick is pigmented and silky and lovely, and lasts beautifully on even oily eyelids.  I find a couple of swipes of this shade (which is No. 10, Twisted Brown), hastily blended in with a fingertip gives a great neutral base colour, which is buildable and lasting.  I generally wear it on its own with just a slick of liquid liner, and boom!  Polished eyemakeup in less than two minutes.  Okay, three minutes if you include mascara (which you should always do, peeps).

It's a kind of perfect nothing-y shade, which looks like nothing more than shadows on skin (this is one pass with the pencil, btw) when blended with a fingertip, and is perfect for days when you just simply can't be bothered with thinking about your makeup (I have lots of days like this, sometimes it's all I can do to pick out a lipstick for the day, frankly) and it's a great shade for everyday looks.  There's a darker brown shade too, but that's just a little too warm for me, but I've used this almost every day for the last two months, and I'm definitely going to splash out on a backup or three.  For £6.29 from Superdrug, I'd be insane not to. 

The Fine Print: PR sample.


This post: GOSH Forever Matte Eyeshadow Stick - 10 Twisted Brown originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

GOSH Autumn Winter 2014

By Tindara

Well it might me blisteringly sunny out there but it’s Autumn Winter launch time and I was excited to be invited to see the new GOSH products this week. As usual GOSH haven’t let us down, they seem to capture the zeitgeist better than most other brands at their price point.

Those of you into mineral make-up will be pleased to hear GOSH are launching a mineral powder. Pareben and perfume free, it’s a loose powder in a decently sized container with a handy dispenser at the top in which you can swirl your brush. I tried the powder at the event and it had really good coverage but felt light and smooth. It’s also pretty good value at £9.99 if you want to see what all the mineral make-up fuss is about.

Along with the powder they’re also launching a mineral powder brush with densely packed short bristles which do the job nicely. If you don’t have a kabuki or similar brush that works well with a mineral powder, this is a good value option at £7.99. I use mineral make-up regularly as it’s a good option for sensitive skin and for a quick base. I’d definitely consider using this in place of the Laura Mercier and Bare Minerals which I use regularly. I hope GOSH join the other mineral make-up brands and make a compact version soon too.

Another product I absolutely love is the Defining Brow Gel, I’ve read a lot about brow gels recently, but having quite sparse eyebrows I didn’t think they’d do the trick for me. Well, I have worn this every day since I got it and I love the effect. It definitely thickens and darkens my brows enough and stops me having to bother with a pencil. I am using 002 which GOSH call a brown/grey. My brows are a dark black/brown and this thickens, darkens and holds my brows in place in a subtle way. I really love it. It’s gone into my everyday make-up bag where I think it will remain.

The Giant Blush stick is another GOSH product which might remain a staple, I love the soft texture which blends really well. I tried 06 Pink Parfait which is a lovely colour. It pulls a bit more blue pink than I’d normally like, but blends very well with deep pink, and blue red lipstick shades. I tried using it as lip colour too but I found the texture wasn’t quite right for this so I’d stick to using as a quick pop of blush on the cheeks. I also wondered whether some of the lighter toned pink-brown shades could be used for a subtle contour effect.

And now to the new shadows, GOSH have themed the new pallettes in this Autumn Winter range with American cities, so there’s 001 New York sophisticated neutrals, 002 LA aqua and green-browns and my fave 003 Las Vegas (Rainbow brights). I got a Las Vegas palette which caught my eye immediately, the colours are beautiful clear brights, and I’ll be honest with you, irrespective of how these shadows work I love this palette. It’s gorgeous. The jewel-like rhomboids of colour are like a Mondrian. I know others feel the same as me about pallettes, they’re just beautiful things. So what about the shadows, you ask. They’re not massively pigmented so though the colours look bright in the pan, they’re quite subtle on, buildable washes of strong colour that would look beautiful with minimal make up look or with a liquid liner on top. Those of you that find brights scary may want to try these, they’re a good way to get a bright green or pink shadow on without making a big statement. The palettes are also good value at £9.99.

GOSH have also launched more colours of their great Velvet Touch lipsticks and a couple of new mascaras and glamorous nail colours. I have yet to try the rest, but I’m going to enjoy going to Superdrug and having a play. I hope you do too.

This post: GOSH AutumnWinter 2014 originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

GOSH Spring Summer 2014

By Tindara

Greetings Get Lippie-ers! I’m back back back. It’s been tough old game but I’ve been sampling lots of new things recently. Not least the new stuff from the GOSH Spring Summer range. I’ve been a GOSH fan for a while, I think their Velvet Touch eyeliners are brilliant and easily as good as my previous staple MAC Powerpoint at double the price. So, I was excited to get stuck into my goody bag.

There are lots of lovely new things in the range, the Lip Lacquers are cute and would make sweet presents for a teen relative. They’re contained in nail polish style bottles with an application wand in the lid. There are a host of pleasing summery colours, including shimmery neutrals, pinks, corals, and reds, with a not-too-glossy sheer shine.

The lipsticks are also really good value, moisturising, and good colours, particularly in the neutrals. They last very well too for a lipstick at this price point. I’m a bright lipstick girl normally but I’ve really taken to the Innocent, Nude and Sweetheart. They’re flattering and go very well with a smudgy smoky eye.

Which leads me onto the new Eyeshadow Forever Pencils. These are a great dupe for the many more expensive eyeshadow pencils on the market like Smashbox and Charlotte Tilbury. They twist up so there’s no need for sharpening, and come in gorgeous blendable metallic shades which are perfect for this season. After a minute or so they set and stay put the whole day. I’ve been using Brown, Grey, and Beige most, the latter being an excellent subtle pearly look particularly good on paler skins.

The real star of the show, however, is the Prime ‘n Set Primer and Mattifying Setting Powder. I had never used a powder as a primer before but this is a revelation. I’ve used lots of primers but none worked as well as using a light touch of this powder before foundation. It felt dry and comfortable all day even on a sweltering London tube journey. It’s also a really good setting powder and very similar to the Nars Light Reflecting Setting Powder at a fraction of the cost. Just saying. Here’s hoping GOSH bring out a pressed version soon.

GOSH Lip Laquer is £5.99. GOSH Velvet Touch Lipstick is £6.49. GOSH Eyeshadow Forever Pencils are £5.99. GOSH Prime ‘n Set Primer and Mattifying Setting Powder is £9.99. They’re all on offer at Superdrug with a few quid off at the moment. No pressure.

The Fine Print: PR Samples

This post: GOSH Spring Summer 2014 originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

Nude Eyeliners

 Up until a couple of months ago, I didn't own a single "nude" eyeliner.  Having been tortured throughout the '80s by white eyeliner that was supposed to make you look more "awake" (but in reality just kind of made people look like they had been attacking their eyes with Tipp-Ex), I didn't really think there was anything you could realisitically use these pencils for.  I'd been reading a lot of love on blogs for Stila's Topaz, and when it came up on ModestyBrown's blog sale I bought it.

And now I own seven. <sigh> I'm not sure if it's a problem or not, to be honest.  I now have Une's Skin Glow, GOSH Go Bananas, Stila Topaz, Chanel Clair, Mally's double ended pencil, Laura Geller's I-Care pencil in Bone, and Guerlain's Secret Glow.

Did someone mention swatches?  Here you go:

Thoughts on each:

Une Skin Glow: This is actually meant to be a concealer, but I find it works marvellously well on the waterline, it's light and creamy, and lasts pretty well.  As it's meant to work on your skin to cover up blemishes, it works remarkably well on the waterline to disguise any redness.  A winner.

GOSH Go Bananas: This is actually a shimmering yellow.  Not actually that great as a nude liner, it's a little too yellow for that.  That said, this lasts astonishingly well, and won't actually disappear until you use a remover to take it off.  Great for highlighting around the tearduct rather than using on the waterline, if you ask me.

Stila Topaz:  Although this was the one that started off my collection, I have to say that it's very much not my favourite.  In fact, it's probably the worst liner on this list.  Why?  Well, it's very soft and creamy.  FAR too soft and creamy, in fact.  It's exceptionally easy to overapply (making it look like, well, ta bit like: Your eyes are leaking!! Leaking onto your face!!!  which isn't a great look outside of Halloween), and it can get onto your eyelashes a bit which just looks wrong, really.  Also, it's a little on the peach side, which means it's not a great match for most people's skin tone.

Chanel Clair:  Probably the hardest pencil on this list, it's very subtle, and all the better for it.  The firmness means you don't get the "ooziness" of the Stila, and the colour is very good too.

Mally: The second palest on this list, this gives a very similar effect to a while pencil.  If you're very, very pale, this might be a great choice for you.  It's a double ended pencil though, so means you don't get very much in there.  I'll be talking about the other half of this pencil next week ...

Laura Geller: Another hard pencil, this time in a shimmering ivory shade.  Possibly the prettiest pencil in the collection (and has a great built-in sharpener), alas, I can't get this one to show up on my waterline at all.  Such a shame!

Guerlain Secret Glow: A shimmering vanilla shade, this is glorious (and works well as a browbone highlighter too), being a powder, it's easy to overapply, and make yourself look a little odd, but I do love this one quite unreasonably.

Overall, the ones I'd buy again (and I did buy most of these myself) would be the Chanel and the Une.  What do you think?

Tiny placeholding post ...

Just a heads up to let you know my URL has changed to http://getlippie.com.  It won't make any difference to you guys, but it made my inner geek happy today!

Unlike GOSH Darling lipstick, which I bought this afternoon.  It makes me look like death.  DEATH, I tell you. Worse than DEATH, in fact, look:

(apologies for the quality of the appalling iPhone picture)

Hmn, actually, that picture makes it look almost acceptable!  Trust me, in the flesh, it looks like I've had a nasty accident in a lard'n'chalk factory. I think it's because my lips are quite highly pigmented naturally, and beige-ing them out just makes me look ill.  For me, this shade is instant zombification.  Inna stick. This is a very pale pinkish beige, and it's just far too cool a shade for me, I err on the side of caramel when it comes to "nude" shades. So, my search for the perfect nude lipstick goes on, can you make any recommendations? I will say this for it though, it feels more like a balm than a lipstick when you're wearing it.  This is based on approximately 45 seconds wear though.

If you'd like the lipstick - I know it's a really popular shade for other people - please let me know in the comments. I bought it today, applied it once with a lipbrush, and fell into instant HATE.  Doesn't happen often, but I always kick myself when it does.