NARS – Lily Pebbles

Summer Glow

lily — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:30:00 +0000

ByTerry Serum Terrybly SunBooster*, NARS Tinted Moisturiser*, Soleil tan de Chanel, Clinique High Definition mascara*, L’Oreal Rouge Caresse in ‘Dating Coral’, Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow All over Radiance cream in ‘Rose Gold’, Jemma Kidd Creme Cheek Colour in ‘Paw Paw’, Makeup Forever Aqua Cream in ‘Pink Beige’

The sun finally made an appearance this weekend so I thought it was the perfect time to try out a new ‘summer glow’ makeup routine. For the past few weeks I’ve been using the By Terry Serum Terrybly Sunbooster and I absolutely love it! It’s a serum that gives you a gradual natural tan as well as hydrating and protecting your skin. It smells absolutely gorgeous, like trees and grass (that’s the only way I cant describe it). I was lucky enough to be given this at the Space NK press event but when I did some research on it and found out it was a whooping £65, I was a bit taken back. Even with this in mind, I’ve decided that I would repurchase it. It’s such a lovely serum and it has given me a nice subtle glow whilst proving to be a great moisturiser.

So anyway, onto the makeup! I started by using my NARS Tinter Moisturiser, that not only gives good coverage but it is SPF30. I’m annoyingly in between shades, so I use both Finland and Alaska. I then used my Soleil tan de Chanel with my Real Techniques Stippling brush in the contours of my cheeks, on my temples and down my nose. My favourite highlighter for a summer glow is the Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow All over Radiance cream in ‘Rose Gold’. I use my finger to apply this along the tops of my cheekbones, under my brows, down my nose and on my cupids bow. To add to the dewy look, I then use the Jemma Kidd cream blusher in ‘Paw Paw’, again using my finger to apply and blend in.

I tried to keep my eyes quite simple, because anything too heavy would ruin the overall look. For a shadow I used the Makeup Forever aqua cream in Pink Beige, which is a really subtle pink cream shimmer. I then used a Clinique high definition mascara in Black Brown, which is something very new to me. I always use black mascara, but I just thought brown would work better and would look more natural… and it did! I ended with the L’Oreal Rouge Caresse in Dating Coral as it’s really moisturising and very summery.

Sorry there isn’t photo of me with the final look, the lighting was awful, but I can promise that I looked fresh, dewy and glowing.

Do you use any of these products? What are your favourites for creating a summer glowing makeup look?

Lily xx

Monthly Favourites: April 2012

lily — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:30:00 +0000

May has come along so quickly and here is my monthly favourites video for April. I hope you guys like it, please click through to watch on YouTube and see all the product info in the description bar of the video.

Lily xx

NARS Summer Collection 2012

lily — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 11:41:00 +0000

‘Trouville’ nail polish*, Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser*, ‘Ramtuelle’ Eyeshadow trio*,

‘Never Say Never’ Velvet Matte Lip Pencil*

So as promised in my last post, let me introduce you to the NARS Summer Collection for 2012. In my opinion, it’s a great collection with some amazing products!

‘Ramatuelle’ Limited Edition eyeshadow trio £33: This is my favourite piece from the collection. A gorgeous eyeshadow trio with three really unique colours. Two shimmery colours; one a silvery blue, the other a gorgeous peach. Alongside these is a matte apricot shade, a shade very different to anything I’ve seen. The shimmers are perfect for all over the lid and the apricot is great to contour the crease and outer corner.

‘Marie-Glante’ Eyeshadow Duo £24: This is a ‘WOW’ product. The two colours are really vibrant with an amazing sparkle to them. They can be used as shadows or wet for an intense eye liner.

Calabria Soft Touch Shadow Pencil £17: This another great, versatile product. The chunky pencil can be used all over the eyelid on it’s own, as a liner or as a base under a powder eyeshadow. It’s a gorgeous plum colour that’s really easy to work with.

Liberté blush £29: This is a really interesting product and one that scared me when I first saw it. In the pan it looks like quite a bright orange but when used with a brush it gives a lovely subtle warmth to the face. It can be used as a bronzer and as a blusher and suits lots of different skin tones.

Moscow Pure Matte Lipstick £26: For those who like to be a bit braver when it comes to lips, this is a very striking dark strawberry red matte lipstick. As it’s matte it can be a bit drying so I’d recommend having exfoliated and moisturised lips before applying it.

Vendanges Lipstick £25: This lipstick looks scary and brown in the bullet but it’s in fact a really sheer grape colour that’s really easy to wear and is flattering.

Buenos Aires Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil £25: This is a really lovely lip product that’s perfect for the summer. The nude shade applies smoothly and feels really nice on. It’s one of those everyday, throw it on lipsticks.

Never Say Never Velvet Matte Lip Pencil £25: I absolutely LOVE this lip pencil. The colour is a raspberry pink and looks very glamourous. It is matte but doesn’t feel drying on the lips at all. It’s also very easy to apply and feels like colouring in!

Trouville Nail Polish £18: A lovely light pink polish that looks really fresh and clean on. Two coats are needed and it lasts well on the nails.

The collection will be available from May on counters and online.

I’ve also done a video on the collection and the products I have tried.

What do you think? Do you like the look of any of the new products?

Lily xx

NARS Masterclass

lily — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:30:00 +0000

(Full review of Summer 2012 collection to come in next post)

Last week I went along to one of the most exciting events I’ll ever be invited to… a Masterclass with NARS. I think by now you all know how I feel about NARS.

I went along with Zoe, Jen and Karla and when we arrived we were sat at our own little table. On our table were 4 NARS ‘laptops’.. the best kind of laptops around! The NARS laptops are what they use at counters; a large case filled with eye shadows, blushers, bronzers of all different colours. My life long dream is now to own one of these. Alongside these were pots of brushes, all the tools we’d need and the new Summer 2012 collection. Each table had it’s own makeup artist on hand to help out.

NARS’ Global Lead Stylist Jane Richardson introduced us to the evening and started to talk through the new Summer collection and the overall look she’d be creating with it. As she went through each step, we had to imitate her by creating it on ourselves. I definitely didn’t do as good a job as she did, but I think I did ok!

We started by moisturising and priming, creating a good base for the makeup. We then applied their new Tinted Moisturiser; I was shade 1 ‘Finland’, working it from the centre of the face outwards and ending with a light and glowing complexion. We then worked a bit of powder into the skin, using a cotton wool pad for a more natural effect (Jane recommended using a puff). We concealed any blemishes and dark circles with a concealer duo.

We then needed to warm up the face and did so by using the new blusher in Liberté. It’s quite a dark orange blusher, so at first I was skeptical to use it all over my face but using it as a contour actually works really well. We contoured and later went back and used it as a blush on the tops of the cheekbones.

Next up were the eyes. We started by using a bit of the smudge proof eyeshadow base to make the shadow stick and stay put. We then used the new limited edition eyeshade trio in Ramatuelle. We used both the silver and peach shimmer shades together all over the lid and then went back with the matte apricot shade and used it in the crease of the eye for some definition. The peach shimmer colour can also be used as a highlighter so I added some to my cheekbones and brow. We were then able to pick any colour from our ‘laptop’ to use as an eyeliner, either dry or wet. I picked black and used an eyeshadow brush to create a thin line close to the lashes.

Then finally were the lips and I chose to use the new Matte velvet lip pencil in ‘Never Say Never’. It’s a gorgeous raspberry shade and it really suited my skin tone.

I loved the final look and had a great time creating it. I learnt so much and it was amazing to have a full face of makeup from only one brand. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before!

Sorry if this post is a bit confusing without really knowing the collection, my next post will be a review of the new collection and a video. So check back for more info on the new Summer 2012 Collection!

Lily xx

March Favourites 2012

lily — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:52:00 +0000

NARS Laguna Bronzer, Maybelline 24 colour tattoo, Bourjois magic nail polish remover*, Elemis Fresh Skin serum*

Just a quick monthly favourites this month, as nothing has really shone for me. Next month will be a big one as I have already fallen in love with loads of products over the last week.

NARS Laguna Bronzer: I’ve wanted this bronzer for ages but hadn’t run out of my old Guerlain bronzer yet so couldn’t justify buying it. That was until I got an email from Buyapowa and saw it was available for as low as £18 (I think). So I snapped one up within minutes! I really like it. You need to apply it with quite a light hand as it’s quite dark and very pigmented, but it’s easy to blend and looks really natural.

Maybelline Colour 24 hour tattoo (never know what the real name is, it’s too long!) in ‘On and on bronze’: I’ve already written about this in detail here, and I haven’t stopped wearing it since. It’s the perfect eye shadow for work because it stays put all day. I can’t recommend this enough, it’s amazing!

Bourjois Magic nail polish remover: This has changed my life. I know that these were brought out a few years ago, but Bourjois have just created their own pot of magic nail polish remover and this time it won’t damage your nails. You basically stick your finger inside the pot of foam, twist it around a bit and voila, your nail polish is removed. I’m obsessed with it and for £3.99 I will be repurchasing this again and again. It’s made with sweet almond oil so your nails feel nourished after. This will be available from mid April in Boots and Superdrug and I highly recommend it.

Elemis Fresh Skin Super Boost moisturising serum: I got this at the Superdrug press event and I was actually really pleased to hear that Elemis were putting their products in Superdrug. Elemis Fresh Skin is their sub-range for younger skin and I think it’ll work really well. I have been loving this serum this month; I use it before my moisturiser and primer and it feels gorgeous on the skin.

What have you been loving this month?

Lily xx

NARS 413 BLKR Collection

lily — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 14:30:00 +0000

NARS 413 BLKR Collection*

The new NARS 413 BLKR Collection is inspired by one of my favourite cities in the world, New York. The collection is named after the West Village flagship store on 413 Bleecker Street (I’ve been there… it’s amazing!).

The packaging is the same as their usual, gorgeous black matte but with the added ‘413 BLKR’, which I think looks really smart. There are 3 pieces in the collection; an eye shadow, a lipstick and a lip gloss.

Pure Matte Lipstick £18.50: Although this shade isn’t for me, the product itself is gorgeous! The pigmentation is unreal and the lasting power is amazing. The formula is also rich and easy to apply.

Larger Than Life Lip Gloss £19.50: This lip gloss blew me away! I opened it up, saw a very short stumpy brush and doubted how good it would be. As soon as I started to apply it I saw how incredibly thick and pigmented it is. It literally feels like you’re painting the red onto your lips and I’ve never experienced such a opaque lip gloss. If you want to look like Jessica Rabbit, this lip gloss will do the trick! You’ll never get this effect with a lipstick, so if you want high shine and great pigmentation, I highly recommend this lipgloss.

Single Eyeshadow £17.00: “Just like the city itself, sophisticated, luminous and light-reflecting”. I’ve never owned a NARS eye shadow before and I’m absolutely in love with the mini packaging. This shade is a gorgeous dove grey, which is perfect as an everyday shade for work. You can lightly dust this on or dampen your lids and apply it thicker for a more intense look.

This collection is available in store exclusively at the Bleecker Street branch, but for those of us who are not so lucky to be able to shop in that store, it is also available on the NARS website here.

So what do you think? Do you like the look of this chic collection?

Lily xx