Tag Archives: Nars

Get the glow in January!

I’m sitting here looking out of my office window and it is GREY! In fact almost dark. There is a Nor’easter heading towards us. Fortunately, I think, we are only going to get pummeled by rain as our temperatures are rising. In weather like this I always love wearing my darker greys and blacks, but when it comes to makeup I want my skin to glow with health! I am drinking a lot of water which helps – but you can’t beat some good moisturizer and makeup products at this time of year! I love treating myself to some little ‘feel good’ cosmetics to beat the January blues.

Here are my favorites which I am using constantly at the moment!

Hourglass have become one of my go to cosmetic brands. Not cheap, but their products last forever and do what they say on the tin. So many people have mentioned recently how good my skin looks and I attribute it to this palette. You can use the powder to highlight and apply it intensely on the cheek bones, or apply it more liberally to give an overall glow.

Buxom lip cream is a favorite of mine. It has an amazing tingly sensation when you apply it which apparently helps to plump your lips. I adore White Russian – it’s a lovely nude gloss that brightens your face.

Recently I’ve gone what I consider to be ‘old skool’ with my skin care. I’ve tried more expensive options but believe me they ain’t worth it. The good old Body Shop comes out tops in my book time and time again. Especially with their Drops of Youth and Oils of Life skincare ranges. I apply this essence every morning after washing and before I put any serum or moisturizer on. It kind of prepares your skin to absorb the moisture.

This serum is lush. I apply it in the morning and before bed. Super hydrating and it smells divine.

I also love the gel cream from the same range. I love the texture – it’s not greasy at all and absorbs in an instant ready for you to apply foundation.

The body shop Vitamin C range has always been a go to line for me – especially when traveling. Nothing gives you a better boost than applying some of this in flight (I often decant into smaller pots for travel). This one really does make me giggle because it is perfect for ‘grumpy skin’!

I’ve just reordered this (if you join the Body Shop rewards program it gives you a 10% discount off each purchase.) I love this and use it each day, with or without makeup.

I don’t wear a lot of foundation – sometimes I just apply a little concealer on after the above glow enhancer. When I do wear it Hourglass is my brand of choice – I love their Illusion skin tint – it is a little heavier in consistency than the name suggests and you only need a tiny amount for a flawless finish.

Most important to me at this time of year is a fab, fab lip color! I am wearing Mac Pink Pigeon today, and my favorite nude color from them MAC at the moment is Kinda Sexy.

I doubt I will ever wear another blusher than this – NARS orgasm – it’s just the perfect hue for a glow winter or summer.

A new discovery this season, for me at least, is the NARS multiple stick. I’ve always been a tad scared about application. I run Copacabana gently along my cheek bone and then Portofino in a line slightly below it, BEFORE applying my blush on the apples of my cheeks. I use a firm angled brush to gently blend the multiple and it leaves a gorgeous dewy sheen.

And that folks is how I get my glow on this winter! Along with buckets of water!

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What are your favorite products this winter? A great hand cream is always a necessity and I am still searching for the perfect hydrating, non greasy formula!

Finally here are a couple of outfits from the past couple of days. It’s been pretty chilly here!

Coat – ASOS on sale // Jumper – H&M on sale // Jeans – Zara (old) // Boots – Isabel Marant by H&M (old) // Bag – Mulberry Bayswater

Coat – Mango on sale // Boots – Stuart Weitzman 5050s // Jeans – Zara (old) // Jumper – Everlane // Scarf – Asos (similar here) // Bag – Mulberry Bayswater

My picks from Sephora’s VIB 20% sale!

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I love cosmetics – maybe not as much as clothes – but I’ve always had a thing for lipsticks, and more recently eye makeup. Having super short hair I always feel far more feminine with some good makeup on for the day.

Sephora have started their VIB 20% off sale today – their website crashed it is so popular. It’s back up at last and I manage to order 3 items I have been lusting after for a few months – Urban Decay’s classic Naked palettes. With a full 20% off it was a no brainer – Sephora have discounts so rarely.

The other day I bought Nars Audacious lipstick in Michiyo – I could have waited and saved but I wanted to see it in person. If you love pink buy it – the pigment is incredible.

Another lipstick that I adore is Urban Decay’s Anarchy – a fab bright pink with great pigmentation and packed with moisture.

I’m wearing it today to brighten a gloomy day!

The code for the VIB sale I used is GIFTROUGE – if this doesn’t work check out retailmenot.com for other shared codes!

Let me know what you buy!

New makeup!

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I get stuck in a rut when it comes to makeup. Apart from my eyeliner I have probably been applying and using many of the same products for 20 years. Much as I love clothes and trying new things I rarely do the same with make up – very boring.

My current make up routine begins with a drug store moisturizer with spf – either Boots No7, Oil of Olay or Nivea – I like a light non-greasy fluid. MM bought me a pot of La Mer for my 40th but to be honest I find it too thick for me – no bad thing at $100 a pot! That is then followed by foundation in the Fall/Winter – normally from Clinique, or Jergens natural glow in the Summer. I’ve always loved Clinique and use Aglow blusher everyday. I’ve been using Clinique since I first splurged on my Wedding makeup back in 1998. I’ve tried Estée Lauder a couple of times and their foundations are lovely – but the power of branding always brings me back to Clinique and I also use their pressed powder everyday. Eyes are always drug store brands – due to sheer laziness I never wear eye shadow unless we’re off out somewhere special – my every day wear is a line of L’Oreal Infallible pencil on my top lid and Maybelline Great Lash mascara in Very Black. This mascara is always a Beauty Editor’s favorite and I love it – it never clumps and is super easy to apply – I doubt I’ll every wander from this little gem. Lips are normally a quick swipe of gloss – I’ve tried them all L’Oreal, Clinique, Rimmel, but my favorite is Chanel – $29.50 – so expensive – but they last forever, are non sticky and have fabulous colors – well worth the splurge in my eyes. I also have an array of Revlon super lustrous lipsticks – they are lovely and creamy and there’s a great choice of colors. At the end of the day before bed I use my Clarisonic Mia and apply Bio Oil – the best night moisturizer I have found and I really believe my Clarisonic has reduced the number of break outs I get.

Given how rarely I switch up my make up I decided that this month it was time to adapt for my 41 year old skin. It definitely needs a bit more care. There are certain drug store purchases like my eye make up and moisturizer that I won’t change – I just don’t see the point in paying more. However, in addition to my moisturizer I am now trying Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus – let’s hope it does exactly what it says on the bottle. My skin has been ravaged my sun – and although I now wear spf daily – in my youth I fried it in the sun on the rare occasions we saw it back in the UK. At 17 I even gave myself sun stroke using a heat/sun lamp on my face – I shudder to think of it now! I nearly bought some Clinique Even Better but have decided to try Ambi Even&Clear instead for now as the price tag is considerably less.

As for foundation – I’ve decided I really just don’t like it. The thought of applying a goopy fluid on my clean skin just seems counter intuitive to me. Having said that I still need something to give me a bit of a glow and very light coverage. After trying a Bare Escentuals starter kit I’ve now invested in a pot of their Matte Foundation powder and a fabulous new applicator brush from Sephora. I love how silky and light it feels on my skin but it really does provide great coverage.

I also bought a new blusher brush as for the first time ever I have bought a Nars blusher – yes the one that is mentioned in nearly every magazine – Orgasm. It is a gorgeous peachy color and apparently should work well on my skin that has ‘yellowy undertones’. One of these blushers is sold almost every second according to the girl in Sephora.

I’m still as lazy as ever when it comes to lips but my current Chanel glosses are Twinkle and Seashell for the summer, so I bought a couple of darker ones for Fall – Myriade and Imaginaire – I can’t wait to wear them!

All in all quite a good haul that I am really happy with. It did make me question why I think $30 for an item of make up is too much – when I quite happily spend that on a t-shirt. After a fabulous haircut yesterday I am starting to think that you can have all the clothes in the world but nothing makes you feel as fabulous as great skin and great hair.