No Makeup-makeup

Here once again is my no makeup-makeup look. Can you tell this is my thing? This look is basically gravitating towards working with what you got and making your face acceptable for public viewing.

The first step when I roll out of bed in the morning is a coating of Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua, followed by my beloved Collection lasting perfection concealer around my chronically rudolph-esque nose, on spots and even under my baggy eyes, talk about stretching a product to it's limits! Then I add a quick flush of colour by dusting on Benefit's Hervana over the high points of my cheeks, to bring a bit of life into my face.

It is then pretty essential to define my invisible eyelashes by curling them with a couple of pumps of the Shu Uemura eyelash curlers and just one coat of the Clinique High impact Extreme volume mascara, (which isn't my favourite but let's not go there). Then I need to fill in my equally invisi-brows with MAC's Omega eyeshadow using an angled brush also from MAC, the 266 if I remember correctly. This is the very basics of my makeup routine, for when I am super pushed for time (i.e. every morning).  

Thanks for reading!

Frances x

Jo Malone English Pear & Freesia: Review

Jo Malone English Pear and Freesia. £39

I recently received this from a very generous lady from where I work, and I am smitten. I have been lusting after a Jo Malone perfume for quite a while so when she handed it to me I was ecstatic! 

I have never been able to bring myself to buy a Jo Malone perfume because every time I visit the counter there are such a vast array of different beautiful scents that I just can't decide, and with the price I don't want to make a mistake, so I usually head off to some makeup counter (hello Space NK...) and spend my money more 'wisely'. 

This cologne is in the fruity category, which doesn't sound particularly appealing to me, however this smells beautiful. It definitely has a fruity pear like twist but is more natural smelling, not sickly whatsoever, and I have no idea what freesias smell like but the floral notes smell very light and fresh, yet feminine. I imagine it would be a lovely spring scent. Jo Malone describes this as 'being mellowed with amber, patchouli and woods', which I would say is spot on, and is probably what makes it such a wearable scent, not too tart. The scent comes out fairly strong however I do find myself re-spritzing after about 3-4 hours because I like it to stay noticeable. I also love the size of the bottle it is perfect to throw in my makeup bag when I am travelling and I think it's also pretty cute looking. This gorgeous little thing sits happily on top of my muji acrylic drawers where I can keep glancing at how pretty it is! 

I would definitely purchase another Jo Malone scent and I already have my sights on the Peony & Blush and the Blackberry & Bay.

Have you tried any of the Jo Malone perfumes, what do you think?

Frances x

Laura Mercier Luxe Colour Wardrobe: Review

On Christmas day literally straight after opening my presents I plonked myself down on the sofa to see what Space NK's sale had to offer this year and boy was I impressed!

This is one of the amazing deals they had on offer which was this gorgeous Laura Mercier palette which was actually on my Christmas list, and I am so glad I didn't get it because come Christmas day it was half price!
It comes packaged in this beautiful luxe leather-type case with a leopard print magnet clasp, which opens up to reveal 8 eyeshadows on the top layer with 2 very high quality brushes, one being a pony tail brush which I find perfect for crease blending and one is a double-ended affair, one end being a smudge brush and the other being a crease brush.

The eyeshadows included in this set are beautiful, high colour pay-off and all neutral wearable shades some matte and some shimmers, my favourite shades are african violet which is a lustre-effect violet dusky eyeshadow with a copper shimmer, and ballerina which is a pale pink shimmer which is lovely on the inner corners and brown bone.

That is not all...swivel this layer out of the way to reveal 2 blushers, 3 tightline cake eyeliners, a golden shimmer highlighter, another high quality brush this time being a flat eyeliner brush, and also a longwear creme eye pencil in espresso.

The blushes in this set are lovely, and suit me well, however I do prefer a creamy formula for my blushers. I am also yet to 'get' the knack of using the cake eyeliners however I will persist! Also the golden shimmer is very dark on my super pale skin, so I use a very light dusting on the cheekbones using my MAC 187 brush. The eyeliner on this layer is what does it for me, it is super creamy and sets and does not budge! It is also my first venture into brown eyeliner and I am converted!

All-in-all very impressed by this set by Laura Mercier and it was a great introduction for me into their colour collections, and I am so pleased by the inclusion of high quality brushes for once! My picks from this set are definately the eyeshadows, the brushes and the eyeliner, all which will no doubt be repurchased.

Frances x