Cherry Blossom FOTD III

... Using Nars Gaiety.

To continue my annual tradition of spring Cherry Blossom inspired FOTDs, today's look uses a lot of pinks.

I used pink shades of my cheeks, lips and even a little on my eyes.

Products Used

Face:

RMK Creamy Polished Base in 01

Nars Blush in Gaiety

Nars Gaiety is my latest purchase. I've been trying to resist this blush for the last month, but finally caved and bought it. I'm glad I did as it's a beautiful blue-based light pink. It's matte in the pan, but has a subtle glow once on the cheeks. I love the high quality of Nars blushers.

Eyes:

Shiseido Integrate Gracy Brow Pencil in 963

Lavshuca Eyeshadow PK-1

Bobbi Brown Gel Liner in Caviar

I used the light beige and pink shades from the Lavshuca palette that the lovely Riya sent me. I really love the shades in this palette, such lovely soft colours.

Lips:

Guerlain Rouge Automatique in 161

Lastly, I used Guerlain's Rouge Automatique in (aptly named) Cherry Blossom on my lips to complete my very pink, spring Cherry Blossom inspired look.

FOTD with Guerlain Rouge Automatique Cherry Blossom

For today's look, I'm using one of my favourite pink lip colours, Guerlain Rouge Automatique in Cherry Blossom 161.

On my cheeks I used my new MAC Beauty Powder in Alpha Girl for soft, peachy-pink flush.

I like the consistency of Geurlain's Rouge Automatiques. The texture is pretty creamy, and the colours are fairly long-wearing.

Cherry blossom is a light to medium rosy pink with frosty shimmer.

Swatch of Cherry Blossom:

Lip swatch:

I used quite a thick layer of the lipstick for this swatch so you can have a good idea of the true colour of this shade. For my FOTD I lightly applied the lipstick and blended it out for a softer, easy to wear look.

Products used in today's look.

Face:

Dior Crystal Nude Natural Matte Skin Perfecter in 001 Invisible

MAC Beauty Powder Alpha Girl on cheeks

Eyes:

Shiseido Integrate GY941 on brows

MAC Eyeshadow Smut

MAC Eyeshadow Typographic as Liner

Lips:

Guerlian Rouge Automatique Cherry Blossom

The pores on my skin were looking pretty visible today, so rather than brave a FOTD without any base, I applied my recently acquired Diorskin Crystal Nude Natural Matte Skin Perfector.

It is a translucent, colourless product that can be used on its own, as a base or over foundation. I used it on its own and it instantly made my face look a whole lot smoother.

My fringe is still at that awful awkward growing out stage. When I kept a fringe, it grew so fast I needed frequent trims at the hairdressers. Now that I want to grow it out, it just won't grow fast enough! So for the time being, you will see pictures of me with the top of my head cropped off.

New Blush G Serie Noire From Guerlain Spring 2011

Hi everyone. Here is a quick post on the new Guerlain Blush G. Guerlain is probably my favourite makeup brand of all time, and I've had my eye on this blush eversince I first saw promotional pics of it last year.

The price is terribly expensive at around ~£40 (the most expensive blush I have by far), but since this was my 'must-have' Spring 2011 product, I could not resist getting it. (Yes, I realise I have no self-control, but I'm trying really hard!)

Guerlain Blush G Serie Noir

This gorgeous blush is housed in a very sleek black case, which itself is wrapped in a luxurious looking black pouch with cerise lining.

The blush also includes a gorgeous hot pink and black brush in a seperate compartment below the actual blush itself.

The brush is not as soft as I would like. I much prefer the super soft brush that comes with Suqqu blushes.

Now onto the blush itself. This is where some might feel they get their money's worth. The blush contains 4 seperate shades.

All the shades contain tiny particles of gold shimmer. The first strip is a coral-orange shade, followed by a dark pink/ fushia colour. The third shade is a peachy-beige, followed by a pale pink.

The four colours allows you to pick and choose which shades to use to flatter your skintone.

I like just blending all 4 shades together, as I found this the easiest to do. All the colours together gave bright peachy-rose colour with gold simmer. The shade reminds me of Nars Orgasm, but with a more pink/rose colour. I really love Nars Orgasm, but sometimes wished it also came in a shade that was more on the pink side, so this blush for me is perfect.

Now I present to you the world's worst swatch. I'm so sorry for the bad quality. I feel that I should redirect you to temptalia, where her swatches are so far superior that it's truly embarassing!

Below is a blend of all the 4 shades on my cheek:

Anticipation of Spring 2011 Collections

Hi everyone, here are some photos to get you excited for upcoming Spring 2011 beauty collections, while it's cold and dreary outside for most of us. Sorry for the lack of info, I just wanted to do a quick round-up on things which have caught my eye. Spring collections have always been my favourite as they are so vibrant and pretty.

Paul and Joe:

Parasol Spring 2011 Collection

image curtesy of Kiss and Makeup

YSL :

The colours look so pretty and fresh! The range includes a highlighting powder called Pink Celebration, and 8 new Rouge Pur Couture Lipsticks.

One of my favourite brands, Guerlain:

I like the look of: Ecrin 6 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette Rue de Rivoli

and Blush G de Guerlain

Givenchy:

The star product of this collection will be the Photo Perfection Light Evanescent Fluid Foundation SPF10 with foam applicator and radiance formula

This Blush Gelee caught my attention as I love blushes in its many forms

Lancome:

Ultra Lavande Collection by Aaron De May.

I'm not fond of lavander coloured makeup, but this collection has some beautiful looking pieces, including this La Rose butterfly Blush

Ballerine Color Fever Gloss Natural Origin, Lancome Le Vernis and LA Base Dewy Glow Smoothing Radiance Enhancer (which I am VERY interested in the sound of).

Shu Uemura:

Inspired by butterfly's wings and tropical jungle sunsets.

Morphollium Blue Palette, Sunset Gold Palette, Shine Mystic Eye Colors, and Peacock Partial Eyelash

From all the the above collections, I'll be interested in investigating the; YSL Pink Celebration Highlighter, Givenchy foundation and Lancome LA Base Dewy Glow. How about you?

Guerlain L'Or Radiance Concentrate with Pure Gold Review

Hi everyone. Guerlain L'Or Radiance Concentrate with Pure Gold is my HG makeup primer. I've used it for quite a few of my FOTDs and decided to do a review on the product itself.

According to Guerlain:
'Instant radiance to reveal a perfect complexion. Gold is the most precious of metals. Pure, it reflects light in an extraordinary and unfailing way. To light up the complexion, Guerlain has chosen to include 24-carat gold in a hydrating and soothing gel. The gold gas been fashioned into precious flakes using a unique time-honoured method, to integrate them magically into the gel. As though suspended in the air, the flakes sparkle to reveal their precious treasure: radiance. The complexion is immediately awakened, thanks to the formula's extreme hydrating action: +112% after two hours and 93% after 6 hours (instrumental test).'




The base is housed in a beautiful glass bottle, which feels quite heavy and of good quality. The base itself is extremely lightweight. It melts so easily onto the skin, dispersing and evenly distributing the gold flakes. There is a slight fragrance to it which is subtle and pleasant. The base is very luxurious and feel so fresh and cooling on my skin. I found that it helps keep my skin quite moisturised too. The gold flakes disperses into very tiny gold shimmer particles, leaving an amazing glow.

It looks great alone or under makeup. I sometimes just dab a small amount onto my cheeks to give them a great dewy sheen. A little of this product goes a very long way. I've had this bottle for a year and there's still so much of it left. (It has a recommended shelf life of a year though, so might need to replace it at some point).

Here is a pic of me taken from a previous FOTD post, with the base and a little BB cream on top.


This base looks great under powder foundation too. Here is a pic of me & fellow scientists at some party at a genetics convention in Rome, wearing the base under powder foundation.



Pros:
- lightweight, yet luxurious feel
- gives skin an incomparable dewy, radiant glow
- slight moisturizing effect on skin
- looks great on its own, and under liquid or powder foundation
- very easily applied onto the skin
- non greasy
- only a little is needed, so product lasts a long time


Cons:
- expensive at £40

Cherry Red Lips Haul and FOTD

Hi everyone! As you would have already noticed, red lips are everywhere this season. I've been searching far and wide for a nice red lipstick, and finally found it in the form of YSL's new Rouge Pur Couture in 01. The colour has been described as a lovely cherry red. I also couldn't resist buying a lipgloss to go with it. I chose, YSL Golden Gloss in 17.

I did a FOTD with these bold red colours. I tried to keep the rest of my face in neutral, soft colours.

I used the products below for the FOTD. These include the new Guerlain Lingerie de Peau foundation which I have recently done a review on.

Face:
Guerlain Radiance Concentrate with Pure Gold
Guerlain Lingerie de Peau Foundation, 02 Beige Clair
Giorgio Armani Sheer Blush, 10

Eyes:
Dior 5 Couleurs Iridescent Palette, 609 Earth Reflection
Bobbi Brown Gel Liner, Black
Mac Opulash Mascara, Bad Bad Black

Lips:
YSL Rouge Pur Couture, 01
YSL Golden Gloss, 17

I just love the Guerlain foundation! It gave me nice sheer coverage while giving the skin a great glow.

Illuminating Foundations: Guerlain Lingerie de Peau V. Lancome Teint Miracle

Guerlain Lingerie de Peau Invisible Skin Fusion Foundation

What Guerlain says:

'Silk and linen weave themselves into a second skin... Weaving an imperceptible veil of perfection on the surface of the skin, the softness of natural silk envelops the skin in a voluptuous sensation of comfort & drapes the complexion in a silky radiance that captures & reflects the light.'

-provides perfect, long-lasting coverage

-natural complexion with no mask effect

-complexion enhanced & dazzlingly natural

-light, fuses perfectly with skin so that you forget about it

Pros:

-good sheer to medium coverage

-contains SPF 20

-gave a gorgeous, smooth, radiant, peachy-skin finish

-quite a few choices of shades

-long-lasting

-did not irritate my skin

-had a really pleasant scent

Cons:

-expensive at £33 (Debenham's is doing a sale for £30)

-does not have great oil control

-coverage may be too sheer for those who prefer full coverage

Lancome Teint Miracle

10 years in the making, this is Lancome's first foundation that helps create the aura of perfect looking skin.

What Lancome says:

'Instantly complexion appears flawless and luminous, as if lit from within. Skin feels smoother and looks unified.'

-hydrated for up to 18 hours

-10x less opaque fillers

-40% less water

-pigments to add luminosity and radiance

Pros:

-gave a natural dewy radiant finish, with healthy glow

-good, medium coverage

-lasts all day

-does not irritate my skin

-reasonably priced at £25

-contains SPF15

-non greasy

Cons:

-can look slightly dry and cakey if too much is applied

Overall:

To be honest, I found both foundations to be really great. They both gave a beautiful luminous long-lasting finish. I would recommend the Guerlain foundation for those who prefer sheer coverage and a more natural look. The Guerlain foundation smells great too. For a bit more coverage, I would recommend the Lancome teint miracle, which still gives a lovely natural look.