U-taupe-ia?

Yeah, I went there. (I'm pretty sure I'm not the first and I won't be the last - just felt compelled to do it!)

Taupe is a pretty magical colour. As far as I'm concerned, a taupe is somewhere along the spectrum between grey and brown. (A great blogger who is particularly passionate about taupe is Elvira of The Pink Sith, who has an awe-inspiring collection!) I gravitate towards the greyer taupes, since I'm so cool-toned (as I may have mentioned an obnoxious number of times in my previous post, apologies!), but since lots of "true" greys turn blue/silver on the skin when blended, or are too dark and harsh for daytime, taupes are some of my staple daily shadows. This may be deviating from the "taupe" brief somewhat, but I also class purple-toned greys in the same general category of "wearable every neutral-ish colours", so I've included them here.

This post was prompted by my acquisition of the Maybelline Color Tattoo 24 Hour Eyeshadow in Tough As Taupe, from Stacey's blogsale. Having heard lots about these on various blogs, I was v. excited to be able to try them in the flesh, so to speak. (I also picked up Audacious Asphalt and Bold Gold, of which more another time.) I don't know if these are going to launch in the UK at all, but they're basically a version of cream potted shadows, in the same vein as MAC Paint Pots/Benefit Creaseless Cream Eyeshadows. Here's hoping they do make an appearance on these shores, as my impressions are pretty good so far!

Here are all the taupes I pulled from my collection:

Top row, L-R: NARS Lhasa, Ruby & Millie Beige 840P, Chanel Illusoire.

Middle row, L-R: Maybelline Tough as Taupe, Benefit Skinny Jeans, Illamasqua Hollow.

Bottom row, L-R: MAC Morning Frost, MAC Copperplate, MAC Satin Taupe.

Here are swatches of what I think of as the purple-toned taupes:

Top to bottom: NARS Lhasa, Ruby & Millie Beige 840P, Chanel Illusoire, MAC Satin Taupe

I've raved about NARS Lhasa before, so I won't add much here, except to say this is the perfect colour for a daytime slightly smoky eye. It doesn't photograph brilliantly (not helped by the fact I'm not a brilliant photographer), but in person it's more purple, with a subtle shimmer/sheen. Gorgeous.

I think Ruby & Millie Beige 840P (I absolutely hate brands with numbered shades!) might be discontinued - I don't think Boots stocks the range any more, at least. But if you can get hold of this, I highly recommend it! Amazing buttery formula, incredibly pigmented (much more so than Lhasa). Basically a cooler version of Satin Taupe, as you can see from the swatches.

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Illusoire. These did the blog rounds last year sometime, and I just had to get this colour (especially with money off on the Debenhams website). A shimmery (almost glittery, really) purple-grey? Yes please. I don't plan on picking up any other shades, but this bizarre sponge/gel hybrid formula is brilliant - buildable, blendable, long-lasting.

MAC Satin Taupe must be one of their most famous eyeshadows. It's a good frost, pretty pigmented and shimmery rather than glittery. This is a plummy cool brown - looks great in the crease with Phloof! or Vex on the lid. I'm definitely glad I bought into the hype on this one!

And the rest:

Top to bottom: Maybelline Tough as Taupe, Benefit Skinny Jeans, Illamasqua Hollow, MAC Morning Frost, MAC Copperplate.

Tough as Taupe is a grey-brown elephant-coloured taupe, quite dark - basically a cream version of Copperplate, one of my favourite MAC shadows. It's very pigmented, and applies well, but I did find it creased after about four hours' wear, so next time I'd wear this with a primer underneath. Very pleased with this!

Benefit Skinny Jeans Creaseless Cream Shadow is a bit different, more like a grey-green. I rarely wear this, but now I've swatched it, it's going in my everyday makeup bag! The formula is a bit drier and harder than the Maybelline shadow or the MAC Paint Pots, but it's very pigmented, applies smoothly and blends out well.

A multi-purpose product always appeals to me, so Illamasqua Hollow Cream Pigment, a cool-toned brown, is a bit of a winner - I use it on the eyes for a neutral matte wash, or on the cheeks for a subtle contour. Quite a dry stiff formula, but long-lasting and easy to apply with fingers.

I'm being a bit cheeky here by including two colours that aren't in the stores - MAC Morning Frost came out in a winter collection last year (hence the white lid). This is the perfect easy everyday neutral to slap on with your fingers for those early morning starts: a shimmery cool brown, light enough to use all over the lid, and you can get away without a primer.

MAC Copperplate is a staple for me. A cross between grey and brown, it's a matte squared (why are there not more of these?), so applies smoothly and is incredibly pigmented and blendable. It's a touch too dark for my brows in daytime, so I use MAC Coquette, but this is a really versatile shade for a light wash over the lid, or deepening the crease. To be honest, this is about as brown a shadow as I can comfortably wear!

So there you have it, my range of taupes! These are definitely some of my favourite shadows - where some people love warm browns, I love these!

Till next time,

Josephine x

PS. I finished my coursework, hurrah! It was a close-run thing, but I did it. Phew. Sadly the next deadline is 8th April, but I'm not thinking about that just yet...Hope you're all enjoying the sunshine today!

Today's Makeup Bag

So, I decided it was time to clear out my makeup bag and throw in a few products I haven't used in a while/put away colours I'm not wearing at the moment. And I took some photos.

I'm always shocked by how MUCH this looks all laid out like that! I split it up into eyes/face/lips, so it's a bit less intimidating!

EYE PRODUCTS

Nothing that revolutionary here, with lots of the same old favourites making an appearance.

In the MAC eyeshadow quad I have (clockwise from top left) Vex, Dazzlelight, Patina, and Satin Taupe. I want to finish up these pans of Vex and Dazzlelight as they're now a bit of a pain to apply, and Satin Taupe and Patina deserve a bit more love than they currently get in my 15-pan palette. The lone eyeshadow pan is Coquette, my eyebrow colour, and the NARS shadow top right is (surprise!) Lhasa.

I've owned this MAC Paint in Bare Canvas (in the metal tube packaging, below the quad) for a while now, having randomly ordered it after I sent back a dried-out jar of Painterly Paint Pot. It's not a product that's talked about a lot on blogs/Youtube, and I was curious to try it out - however the ointment-style packaging, while cute, is a bit of a nuisance. My current tube of Too Faced Shadow Insurance is on its last legs, so I'm trying out Bare Canvas as an alternative eye primer.

The Bourjois pot eyeshadow bottom left is in shade 90 Blanc Diaphane - I've had this for an unhygienic length of time, but it's just so useful for popping a white highlight in the inner corners (and yes, I do use the crappy sponge applicator!).

Mascaras: I'm still enjoying Benefit's They're Real!, but after my Revlon Grow Luscious dried out, I felt I needed another, more "casual" mascara which isn't so hard to remove at night. I picked up Rimmel Lash Accelerator in Extreme Black, having previously loved the regular black version, and so far I'm pretty happy with this - a much smaller brush than the Revlon version, which makes it easier to get at the corner lashes. I may be saving They're Real for evening use in future!

Liner-wise, I'm using my trusty L'Oreal Super Liner in Carbon Gloss for when I fancy winged liner, and have thrown in Topshop Kohl in Saddle (shimmery dark brown) for a change, since I never usually wear pencil liner. I also have a rather battered Mac Eye Pencil in Ebony, which is a more or less permanent fixture in my makeup bag - these days I mostly use it on the waterline of an evening. Finally, I'm experimenting with Topshop Kohl in Frost (matte white) as an inner corner highlight and on the lower waterline - white looks pretty stark, of course, but until I get round to acquiring MAC's pale flesh-toned Chromagraphic Pencil, this will do for those especially exhausted mornings!

FACE PRODUCTS

L-R, top to bottom: No. 7 Perfect Light Loose Powder in 05 Translucent; Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 51 Light Vanilla; Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow; Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow All Over Radiance Creme in Iced Gold; NARS blush in Desire; Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer in 1 Fair.

The only new product here is the Jemma Kidd creme highlighter, which I bought after hearing rave reviews from other bloggers, particularly Anna! So far I only own powder and liquid highlighters (such as MAC Lightscapade and Benefit High Beam), and I love the simplicity of creme products which you can apply with your fingers. This was pretty expensive - £17 I think - but no more so than MAC! It's a gorgeous product, which can be blended out to a subtle glowy sheen, or applied more heavily for a more intense white-gold highlight.


I chose NARS Desire as my blush of the moment - we got off on the wrong foot, since I was more taken with Sin, but I feel it's time to acquaint ourselves. After spending that much on a blush I'm damned if it's going to languish in my makeup drawers unused! Report to follow.


The other products are fairly standard, and I think I've mentioned most of them before, and/or lots of other bloggers have! I do like the Illamasqua Cream Pigment as an eye base, but at the moment I'm using it as a contour shade, with varying degrees of success.

 LIP PRODUCTS

L-R: Neutrogena lip balm SPF 20, MAC Hue, Revlon Lip Butter in Sugar Plum, and (front) Rimmel Exaggerate Lip Liner in 063 Eastend Snob

 This basic Neutrogena lip balm lives in my makeup bag all the time - I prefer the Lanolips 101 Ointment, which resides in my handbag, but that doesn't have SPF. 

[Warning: rant ahead!] Ah, MAC Hue. This is a glaze finish lipstick which I'm sure many of you have heard of/own. It's one of the most talked about lipsticks MAC make, so when I first started buying MAC products, I ordered this online after watching girls on Youtube rave about it as the most wearable nude. Thankfully I passed on Creme d'Nude and Myth, realising even in my naive state that these would be a disaster on me. However, so many beauty bloggers rated Hue in their top handful of MAC lipstick colours, or as their favourite lipstick ever, that I didn't question my need for it. I probably would have bought it even if I'd swatched it in a shop, to be honest, since it's a non-offensive-looking sheer peachy pink when swatched. On my lips, however, it's just - horrible. Why?

1. (Oh yeah, I'm listing.) It's lighter than my lips. Quite a bit lighter, in fact. Since I am very fair, the combo of pale pink skin and pale pinky lipstick is - not good. It's also a touch too orange for my taste/skintone.
2. If I were ever to want the nude lip/smokey eye look (which is so gorgeous in my head/on other people!), I'd need a lipstick which was opaque/pigmented enough to cover my natural lip colour. This is not it. I find it applies not only sheer but also uneven and streaky. Nice.
3. It doesn't last. This isn't surprising given the glaze finish, but it wears badly, gathering in lines and generally making a nuisance of itself.
4. OK I'll stop now. Sorry. As ever, this is just my personal opinion - I've certainly seen many a blogger/Youtuber look gorgeous wearing this shade! But I certainly wouldn't recommend it to anyone with my colouring (pale, pink-toned skin) and taste in lipstick colours (namely, my natural lip shade or darker).

So that's my beef with Hue. Like an ex-boyfriend of a similar name, it's good on paper, not so great in real life. (I couldn't resist it.) Having spent £13 odd on this lipstick, though, I'm gonna wear the damn thing. At least you have to reapply often, which gives me a chance of finishing it up!

And finally, my latest lip product acquisition, courtesy of Stacey, is the Revlon Lip Butter in Sugar Plum. This is AMAZING. I love the two other shades I picked up (Raspberry Pie in particular, a stunning deep pink, and Peach Parfait), but this is the most wearable everyday "my lips but a LOT better" colour.

I've got to say, for my purposes/tastes at least, the Revlon Lip Butters are beating Hue hands down. (They remind me of MAC's lustre finish, which I do like; in particular, Sugar Plum is comparable to MAC Plumful.) Pigmented, glossy, not at all drying - all that, and they wear surprisingly well! I get a few hours' wear out of these, and they seem to fade pretty evenly. There are loads of blog posts and Youtube videos on these Lip Butters (such as Allison's post, which features a swatch of Sugar Plum), which apparently launch in the UK in mid-March, so I'll stop rambling here - but I will definitely be picking up more shades!

Till next time,

Josephine x

PS. This is the bag all this fits into! It's a purple leather James Lakeland bag which I got for about £10 in TK Maxx. I love that shop!

(Mascara tube for scale in otherwise featureless table landscape.)

Everyday Face of the Moment

Here we have all the products I use in my standard daily makeup routine. Scary.

 That's a whole lotta makeup. It's probably more sensible if I divide it up into vague categories, since listing it all here would be loooong (I tried it. It was).

Face products

L-R, top to bottom: NARS blush in Sin, MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Lightscapade, Alpha-H Daily Essential Moisturiser SPF 50+, Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in the lightest shade, Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer in fair, and No. 7 translucent pressed powder.

I rarely wear foundation, but if I do feel like it, I blend in a small amount of this Bourjois one down the centre of my face, where I need a bit more coverage. Usually I just stick to concealer and powder - I definitely need powder after applying sunscreen, as it does look shiny, particularly till it dries. I'm trying to wear sunscreen every day, even though it feels (and probably is) bonkers putting it on when it's grey and cloudy outside.

Then I swipe on my latest favourite blush, NARS Sin, which is a gorgeous wearable plum with a bit of gold shimmer, and a quick dusting of Lightscapade on top of my cheekbones (such as they are). I was going to photograph the brushes I use, but a) this post would be even longer and b) they're dirty, as usual. For the record: I do own the Sigma F80 flat-top kabuki, but if I'm in a rush and want to slap on a bit of this foundation I just use my fingers, as I do with the sunscreen. I use a MAC 188 for this blush, the amazing Illamasqua highlighting brush for the MSF.



Eye products

Top to bottom: L'Oreal Super Liner in carbon gloss, Benefit They're Real! Mascara, Too Faced Shadow Insurance, MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study, MAC eyeshadows in (L-R) Crystal Avalanche, Vex, Dazzlelight, Coquette, and Copperplate.

This tube of the Too Faced eyeshadow primer has lasted me for absolutely ages, and it works brilliantly to keep eyeshadow on all day without creasing/disappearing (my mother is also a convert to this stuff!). However, when I went to the Oxford St Boots to repurchase (it's hard to find the brand in all but the biggest stores), I found it had gone up by FIVE POUNDS, to £16.50. At least, I'm pretty sure I only paid £11.50 or thereabouts last time I bought it. Now uncertain whether I'd purchase again at that price, but I shouldn't be running out any time soon. I'd also like to try the classic Urban Decay Primer Potion and MAC Painterly Paint Pot - should probably steer clear of the NARS one if I'm complaining about price!

I love the effect of this Benefit mascara, which everyone has been raving about - long, voluminous lashes with curl. So what's not to like? Well, firstly the price; I used a £5 off voucher in Boots, without which I do think it's overpriced. And it's a complete pain to get off at night! Maybe I should invest in a more heavy-duty makeup remover, but I always end up with panda eyes and flakes of black everywhere!

The L'Oreal Super Liner is an old favourite for flicked black eyeliner, which I go through phases of wearing every day. I have tried the Maybelline gel liner with a MAC 210, but I find it too fiddly, and difficult to get a smooth line without expending more effort than I'm willing to make in the mornings!

My eyeshadow standbys are either Bare Study all over the lid for a brightening effect - I just whack this on with my fingers if I need to get out of the door fast - or, for more leisurely mornings, a wash of Vex/Dazzlelight with a bit of Copperplate in the crease, using a MAC 239 and 217. If I'm feeling fancy, I'll pop some Crystal Avalanche in the inner corner for a highlight.

I always run some Coquette through my brows with the Illamasqua angled brush. I only started doing this in August, but now I wouldn't be without it - adds a bit of definition and polish to the face, which has to be a good thing!

Lip products

L-R: MAC lipsticks in Cosmo, See Sheer, Syrup, and Plumful, and Neutrogena lip balm with SPF 20.

These are what I think of as my everyday lipsticks. If I'm feeling super lazy, I just stick on some lip balm and have done with it. The next step up in the grooming stakes is Syrup, which is basically a toned-down version of my lip colour, with some shine to it. Plumful and See Sheer are equally easy to wear (these are all lustre finishes, meaning you do have to reapply quite frequently, but I think the formula works well for the everyday, not too done look), but make a bit more of an impact colour-wise: Plumful, as the name suggests, is a beautiful berry/plummy colour, See Sheer a coral red.

Finally, Cosmo, which may take the title of Favourite MAC Lipstick Ever (quite an achievement given the size of my collection, which is a topic for another day). It's an amplified finish, so packs a bit more punch and lasts longer on the lips - a gorgeous deep rosy pink, similar to my lip colour but a tad darker. Since I'm so pale, this definitely draws more attention to the lips than the other shades mentioned here, but if I'm wearing understated eye makeup I like this effect. This is the one MAC lipstick I anticipate repurchasing. Love.

And there you have it. I'm now wondering if that's a ridiculous amount of makeup to wear for a normal day. Maybe I'll go in to college entirely makeup-free one day next week and see how I feel - I think I'd find blush the hardest thing to give up!

Till next time,

LL x

My Blush Collection - mainly Topshop and MAC

Let me start by saying that I absolutely love blush. It's probably one of my favourite makeup items, both to buy and to wear. I'm very pale with very dark hair, so generally without a bit of colour to my cheeks I can look a bit Twilight-esque (if you'll forgive the reference).

So here are all the blushes I own, on my delightful rumpled duvet (I should really iron more often). In common with a lot of makeup addicts, I don't intentionally "collect", but have somehow ended up with far more blush than I could probably get through in a lifetime (worrying thought). And I still have lots of blushes on my "to swatch with a view to purchasing" list (catchy) - see previous post on this topic.

For years I owned only one blush at a time. I know, I know - those were the days. I think the inaugural blush was one of the Bourjois pot ones, possibly in Rose d'Or or similar, and I actually used the horrible little brush it came with. A good look, I'm sure. I then moved on to the L'Oreal Blush Delicieux, one of which (in the shade Bois de Rose) has survived and is pictured above (small pink square, next to the lonely NARS). I didn't buy a new one until I'd used up the previous one - what kind of crazy talk is that? Anyway I'm pretty sure L'Oreal don't make these any more, so I'll spare you a picture of the dregs I have left.

Then my friend gave me Benefit Posietint for my birthday, which I adored, and which I still think is a good product. It's not everyone's cup of tea - if you don't blend pretty speedily you end up with radiant and unshiftable pink dots on your cheeks, for one thing - but I find it gives a gorgeous natural pink flush which lasts for ages. I don't reach for it much except when it's hot (so that'll be never), but I did finish my original one and repurchase. Another downside: the pink shiny layer on the container does flake off extravagantly with use, leaving the product looking distinctly grotty. I also have the mini samples of Posietint and Benetint which came with Glamour sometime over the summer - can't say I'm overly enamoured of Benetint, a bit too ferocious and ink-like even for my blush-loving tastes.

Then came the release of Topshop makeup (in May 2010, I think - in the run-up to my finals, which of course led to copious amounts of time spent browsing the internet in mild panic). I bought the much-hyped Neon Rose cream blush, and now own four:

L-R: Neon Rose, Pinch, Flush, Nutmeg
These are lovely! Cute and convenient packaging, though it does get a bit dirty with use; handy mirror for touch-ups (I've had Flush in my everyday bag for the past month); great cream-to-powder formula which is matte (I love a matte blush) and blends easily. I just apply and blend with my fingers, mucky pup that I am, as I think using a brush like the MAC 188 would be more hassle than it's worth with these.

Neon Rose and Flush are both listed on the Topshop website, but I'm pretty sure more shades are still stocked in the larger stores. Neon Rose is a brilliant spring/summer colour, which can be a bold, vivid coral or worn blended and (fairly) subtle. Pinch is the one I wear least, since it's easy to overdo this intense raspberry shade, but with the right application it's a lovely pink. Flush is a toned-down version of Neon Rose, a bit more pink and milky, which gives a great day-to-day healthy glow (cliche ahoy), easy to slap on on the train in the mornings! And finally Nutmeg, which as you can see from the pan has had a lot of love in the past - a browny-rose shade, which I imagine NARS Douceur to be like. Very natural, if the slightest bit muddy on my skin tone (this is probably just personal preference, as I like dolly-pink cheeks!). I would definitely buy any new shades released in this formula, especially since they're only £6 each - bargain!

I'll spare you my deeply amateurish swatches taken with flash, and instead direct you to the excellent Delicate Hummingbird, who not only has the blush collection of my dreams but takes better photographs too.

Next up we have MAC.

Clockwise from top left: Something Special; So Sweet, So Easy; Frankly Scarlet; Harmony

Before I get started, I should point out that the frankly awe-inspiring KarlaSugar has amazing swatches of pretty much all MAC blushes known to man/woman. I'm sure you knew that already, but there it is again. As you can see, I actually don't have many MAC blushes. Which is especially surprising, given the sheer volume of MAC lipsticks and eyeshadows I own. To be honest, the appeal of MAC blushes somewhat eludes me, and I'm not keen to change that if I can help it. I did once have a flirtation with the freakishly bright Pro shades, but couldn't face the prospect of buying (and inevitably filling) a palette. Long may this abstinence last!

I think Harmony was my first purchase out of these, ordered online (never a wise move) because I fancied trying my hand at contouring. Having a round face without much definition (which is a nice way of putting it), cheekbones were always the dream, so I was prepared to spend some cash in pursuit of them. Harmony is a decent contour colour for us pale girls - fairly cool in tone, and not overly pigmented. The beautiful Julie uses it to great effect in lots of her looks. However, I've never quite got on with this, and have since taken to using the Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow whenever I have a stab at contouring (which is rarely). Then came Frankly Scarlet, bought after an MUA in the Covent Garden store applied it, which I do love and use. With a light hand and a 188. For wintry Snow White cheeks, or blended even more for a dolly flush.

The two other shades are the new-formula Cremeblend blushes. I bought Something Special on a whim in Debenhams one grey, rainy "summer" day last year, and it really is rather nice: a milky pink coral, for a peachy cheek that's perfect for spring. So Sweet, So Easy was out of stock at the time, so of course after playing with the tester I had to order it online. Less essential than Something Special (but of course), it's a very pale cool-toned pink, not overly pigmented but fun for a subtle, fresh girly look. I will definitely be breaking out both of these colours when (if) the warmer weather rolls round.

A couple more MAC cheek products:

L-R: MAC Lightscapade MSF and Azalea Blossom Blush Ombre

I didn't own a powder highlighter, so I picked up Lightscapade from a recent collection, the name of which escapes me, after hearing lots of good things about it. I do use it daily, and it's a pretty highlight - not too gold for my skintone, which is a plus - but I can't help thinking MAC Dazzlelight eyeshadow does much the same thing for less. Ah well. And then we have Azalea Blossom, which I bought in a blog sale from the lovely Kelly, because Cami had raved about it and it looked purdy. It is purdy - a delicate lilac/pink, which puts it squarely in the realm of Blush-I-Must-Have - but somehow I'm not quite as love with it as I thought I would be. If you fancy picking it up, it's currently available in the Daphne Guinness collection.

So, having written over 1000 words on blush (the mind boggles), I will take a break here, probably have a cup of tea, and cover Illamasqua, my single NARS blush and a few odds and ends in another post.

And finally, I now have a renewed desire to wear a different blush every day, as well as buy several new ones. Success.

Till next time,

LL x