Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter New Shades Part 2 - Review and Swatches

The other day I showed you 3 of the new Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter shades and today I have the other 3 to tell you about. As I said in my other post, I didn't buy Brown Sugar because I'm not a brown lipstick person, so I won't be showing you that one. The ones I have in this review are Pink Lemonade, Sugar Plum and Red Velvet.

I ordered these shades unseen because none of my local Boots seemed to stock them, and I was a bit worried about how Pink Lemonade would look on me as it is a very light pink shade. Turns out it's actually pretty okay, mainly because it's not very opaque, so it mostly just looks like a glossy light pink sheen on my lips. Brown Sugar is a nice, slightly sheer mauve colour and Red Velvet is a burgundy red. It isn't massively opaque, but as it's a darker colour, it is the most pigmented of them all. I don't need these lip butters to be very pigmented as I like to just throw them on when I'm exercising or just at home, instead of wearing lipstick or lipgloss.

As I've said before, I don't find these lip butters very moisturising, but they're comfortable to wear. They need reaaplying after 2 hours or so and don't last through eating at all. They are pretty much scent and taste free which I love.

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters cost £7.99 each, but there's often a 3 for 2 deal on them, which is currently on in Boots. 

See more pictures including swatches after the jump! 

Want It! Laura Mercier Folklore Collection for Summer 2013

I like the look of the upcoming Laura Mercier summer collection, especially the Illuminating Eye Colours. I have 4 of the previous ones (as in all 4), if you want to read about them, click here. The new colours seem quite similar, but may well be different enough to buy. The texture of these eyeshadows is really lovely, similar to the Mac Extra Dimension shades, but even better.

I also like the look of the lip crayons and the baked blush bronze.

Here are the collection details:

Illuminating Eye Colour

Eye colour with a multi-dimensional, luminous pearl finish with a soft, bouncy texture for excellent colour pay-off and a smooth, even application.

• Fire Glow – copper shimmer
• Sun Glow – gold with shimmer
• Earth Glow – deep brown

Lip Crayon

A smooth lip colour that provides pure, long-wearing colour to lips in three on-trend shades for summer. With a convenient purse-friendly package, Lip Crayon never needs sharpening, making it perfect for travel and touch-ups on the go.

• Folklore – fuchsia
• Maya Sun – orange pink
• Burnt Clay – deep brown

Baked Blush Bronze

Laura Mercier Baked Blush Bronze is a baked powder with five complimentary shades that together provide the perfect, natural colour for cheeks and face. Each tile is hand-mixed with a unique design.

Creme Eye Liner 

An ultra-smooth, water-proof creamy eye liner that applies with the ease and smooth silky finish of a gel and the precision of a liquid liner. Smudge and transfer-resistant, this long-wearing formula goes on “foolproof” with the Laura Mercier Angled Eye Liner Brush.

• Canard – teal
• Cobalt – vivid midtone blue

Faux Lash Mascara

• Sierra Brown – chocolate brown
• Black – black

Long Lash Mascara

• Bleu – true cobalt

Angled Eye Liner Brush

Specifically designed by Laura Mericer to work with the Crème Eye Liner, the Angled Eye Liner Brush uses high quality synthetic fibers in a narrow, exact point with a thin profile that creates the most precise looks.

Body Bronzing Makeup

Available for a limited time, Laura Mercier Body Bronzing Makeup instantly reveals healthy, radiant, bronzed skin without long-term commitment.

See more pictures after the jump!

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter New Shades Part 1 - Review and Swatches

I'm supposed to be on a lipstick no buy, but I decided to make an exception to Revlon lip butters because I really like them and very often reach for them, especially on days when I'm not wearing full face make up but still want some colour on my lips.

Revlon have released 7 new shades this spring and I've bought 6. I passed on Brown Sugar because I'm not a brown lipstick person. In this post I've got Juicy Papaya, Wild Watermelon and Sorbet to show you. Juicy Papaya is a sheer orange-coral shade, Wild Watermelon is pinky red and Sorbet is bright pink. I find Wild Watermelon and Sorbet to be a lot more pigmented than Juicy Papaya, but I also really like it as it's such a lovely shade, so the sheerness doesn't bother me. All 3 shades last on me for 1-2 hours depending on whether I drink and what I do while wearing them.

While I don't find these lip butters terribly moisturising, they are very comfortable to wear. I often use them if I go running or to the pool as they don't look to full on, but still give my lips some colour. I also like using them at the weekend when I'm not wearing full face make up or not planning on leaving the house. I don't usually wear lipstick at home, but these are just the right products for me on these occasions.

I love it that Revlon lip butters don't have that hideous chemical smell some drugstore/high street lipsticks have (Maybelline I'm looking at you!), which is another reason why I make an exception for them.

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters cost £7.99 each, but there's often a 3 for 2 deal on them, which is currently on in Boots. 

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

Chantecaille Save The Sharks Palette Review and Swatches

Here it is, the newest Chantecaille palette, this time it's in aid of sharks. Probably not the species we think of when we hear about endangered animals, but according to Chantecaille, up to 73 million sharks are killed every year for their fins. As with every special edition palette, Chantecaille donated a percentage of proceeds to the relevant charities. This time 5% of proceeds from the Save The Sharks Palette will be donated to the BLOOM Association to ban unregulated shark fin trade.

The palette features 3 eye colours and a cheek colour, all of them made up of two colours (there's no overspray here!). Great White, the highlighter is a sandy beige with a white fin in the middle, Grey Reef is a glistening sandy grey with a lighter brown fin in the middle and Black Tip is a deep ocean blue with a black fin in the middle. Also includes Sea Anemone Cheek Shade, a golden coral color that is universally flattering on all skin tones, inspired by the underwater gardens of the tropical seas.

Despite reading not very positive reviews about the palette, I'm actually very happy with it. The eyeshadows aren't particularly unique, but they are nice colours, and they are smooth as butter. I did have some blending issues with the darker colours, but nothing major. The blush is my absolute favourite of the whole palette, it's a gorgeous coral shade, very pigmented and easy to use. It also has a light pink highlighter fin in the middle, but it's too small to use alone with a blush brush so I just mix the two shades together usually. The highlighter could be used with an eyeshadow brush though.

The palette costs $83 (approx. £55) in the US and £75 in the UK (I'll never understand why Chantecaille is so much more expensive in the UK), but I luckily managed to get mine for £40 on eBay. I'm very happy with it at that price, but I'm not prepared to pay the full UK retail price for Chantecaille products. Available from Space NK, Harrods, Liberty, Harvey Nichols.

See more pictures including swatches and a look I did with this palette after the jump!

Want It! Mac In Extra Dimension Collection April 2013 *WITH PROMO PICTURES*

I now have the promo pictures for Mac's upcoming In Extra Dimension collection, due in April in the US and May in the UK. The collection contains extra dimension eyeshadows, blushes and skinfinishes, all made from the same gelee powder as the previous two collections' products as well as Estee Lauder's gelee powder products.

Here are the collection details:

Extra Dimension Skinfinish
Double Definition - Soft shimmery gold / Patina bronze
Shape The Future - Pastel pink with iridescence / Soft brick with shimmer
Definitely Defined - Silvery pink / Soft rose with shimmer

Extra Dimension Eyeshadow
Zestful - Pale iridescent lime
Extra Silver - True silver
Dimensional Blue - Frosty blue
Opalesse - Opalescent white with pink pearlized pigments
Triple Impact - Opalescent lavender with violet pearlized pigment
Smoky Mauve - Mid-tone mauve

Extra Dimension Blush
Flaming Chic - Bright blue pink
Bareness - Rosy beige pink
At Dusk - Mid-tone rose pink
Fiery Impact - Burnt red bronze
Blazing Haute - Mid-tone peach

128 Brush - Split Fibre Cheek Brush

235 Brush - Split Fibre All Over Eye Brush

See more pictures after the jump!

NOTD: Mavala Sparkling Violet

Mavala Sparkling Violet is a gorgeous multicoloured (magenta, teal, gold) glitter top coat. It has I thought it might be opaque enough to wear on its own, but after 5 coats (which is what you see in the pictures) I gave up. It should definitely be worn as a top coat!

It is very pretty though, as well as quick drying and long lasting. It lasted on me for 3 days with minimal chipping (no chipping at all in the first 24 hours) which is pretty much my record.

Mavala polishes cost £4 for 5 ml, so they are very affordable and as the bottles are so small, you actually have a chance of finishing them. The 5 coats I used for this pretty much got through a third of the bottle! I got mine from BeautyBay.

See more pictures after the jump!

Want It! Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencil Vault *UPDATED WITH SHADE NAMES!*

Okay, so I don't even know if this is coming out in the UK, but I really really hope so! It contains 40 full size 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils, including permanent, previously released and new shades, and will retail for $295 (guessing £200 - £220). It will launch in the US on Tuesday, 26th March.

Here's the list of shades available in the Vault:

• Perversion Blackest black matte (Existing Shade)
• Zero Zealous black cream (Existing Shade)
• Smoke Deepest grey matte (New)
• Uzi Dark gunmetal shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive, Revamped)
• Oil Slick Black shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (Existing Shade)
• Underground Metallic taupe shimmer (Existing Shade)
• Mushroom Metallic taupe-pewter shimmer (Previously Exclusive)
• Smog Copper shimmer (Previously Exclusive)
• Roach Deep copper brown shimmer (New)
• Bourbon Brown shimmer with gold micro-sparkle (Existing Shade)
• Hustle Metallic brown shimmer (Previously Exclusive)
• Whiskey Rich brown matte (Previously Exclusive)
• Corrupt Dark metallic reddish brown shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive)
• Demolition Deep brown matte (Existing Shade)
• Desperation Deep taupe/gray matte (New)
• Scorch Bronze shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (New)
• Goldmine Gold shimmer with gold micro-sparkle (New)
• Loaded Dark green shimmer (New)
• Freak Bright green shimmer (New)
• Invasion Deepest dark green matte (New)
• Mildew Deep metallic green shimmer (Existing Shade)
• Stash Dark metallic green/gold shimmer (Existing Shade)
• Junkie Metallic teal shimmer with gold micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive)
• Mainline Deep green/blue matte (Previously Exclusive)
• Deep End Bright metallic peacock shimmer (Previously Exclusive)
• Electric Bright metallic aquamarine shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (Existing Shade)
• LSD Navy shimmer with bright turquoise micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive)
• Sabbath Deep navy matte (Previously Exclusive)
• Abyss Bright metallic blue shimmer with blue micro-sparkle (New)
• Chaos Vibrant cobalt blue matte with slight floating pearl (New)
• Ether Pale smoky gray shimmer with violet and fuchsia micro-sparkle (New)
• Delinquent Dark purple shimmer with light purple micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive)
• Vice Pearly red eggplant shimmer (New)
• Psychedelic Sister Bright purple cream (Previously Exclusive)
• Rockstar Darkest eggplant shimmer (Existing Shade)
• Empire Dark eggplant matte (Previously Exclusive)
• Asphyxia Vibrant pink/purple duotone with tonal and blue micro-sparkle (Previously Exclusive)
• Woodstock Sparkly hot pink shimmer with silver sparkle (Existing Shade)
• Yeyo Metallic white shimmer (Existing Shade)
• Cuff Metallic silver shimmer with silver micro-sparkle (New)

Also, according to Temptalia, these 40 shades will be the permanent line up of 24/7 eye pencils going forward which means that any shade not on the list from the existing permanent line up will be discontinued. So if you love any of those shades, better back them up now!

Want It! L'Ete Papillon de Chanel Collection Summer 2013

Another summer collection that's caught my eye is the upcoming Chanel collection, L'Ete Papillon de Chanel. I love butterflies, so anything with them in their pictures is usually a winner for me. The first ever Guerlain collection I bought from was the Midnight Butterfly collection (holiday 2008).

This collection is rather unusual, it features a lot of coloured mascaras, cream eyeshadow sticks and several bright nail polishes. I think it's a brilliant summer collection, I love blue, teal and green for summer, as well as coral and yellow. I'm not entirely sure if I'll get many things from this collection, it all depends on the quality of the cream eyeshadow sticks, but the blue and teal nail polishes will definitely come home with me.

Here are the details of the collection:

• Inimitable Waterproof Mascara 
• Black
• Zest 
• Limelight
• Aqua Blue 
• Blue Note
• Le Vernis 
• Lilis 
• Azure 
• Bel-Argus
• Levres Scintillantes 
• Zephyr 
• Envolee 
• Eden
• Rouge Coco Shine 
• Idylle 
• Pygmalion
• Stylo Eyeshadow 
• Moon River 
• Cool Gold 
• Pink Lagoon 
• Jade Shore 
• Blue Ray 
• Black Stream
• Stylo Yeux Waterproof in True Blue

See lots more pictures after the jump!

Want It! Dior Birds of Paradise Collection for Summer 2013

I have to admit, I haven't been buying much make up lately, mostly been buying nail polish instead. The spring collections, except for a few, didn't really catch my eye, but having been looking at details of the upcoming summer collections, I've already got a long wishlist.

Today I want to show you the Dior summer collection called Birds of Paradise, full of very colourful, gorgeous, very summery products. The promo pictures are just beautiful, very eye catching.

I'm pretty sure I will want to get the eyeshadow quint used in the promo pictures and the Diorskin Nude Tan Paradise Duos look gorgeous too. I'm also eyeing up the metallic green polish (comes as a duo with the mint green one) and those Jelly Lip Pens look very promising too. There is also a waterproof liner that I don't seem to be able to find info on that looks gorgeous! What do you think?


Here are the details of the collection:

• Diorskin Nude Tan BB Cream
• Diorskin Nude Tan Paradise Duo 
• Coral Glow 
• Pink Glow
• Dior 5 Couleur Eyeshadow Palette  
• #434 Peacock 
• #374 Blue Lagoon
• DiorShow Mono Eyeshadow in #273 Parati
• 1 Couleur Eye Gloss 
• #740 Zenith 
• #530 Golden Sand
• Lip Maximizer Collagen Activ in #001 Pink
• Jelly Lip Pen 
• #516 Copacabana 
• #476 Ilhabela
• #636 Carioca
• #656 Gaia
• Dior Addict Lipstick 
• #771 Passionnee 
• #751 Exotique 
• #471 Flamingo 
• #431 On The Beach
• Dior Vernis Duo 
• Bahia (green and fuchsia) 
• Samba (metallic green and mint)

See lots more pictures after the jump!

Scent Of The Month: Bath & Body Works Japanese Cherry Blossom Eau de Toilette

I picked up this perfume almost 2 years ago in Florida when I visited Bath & Body Works. I can't believe it's taken me this long to use, but I'm very happy I've finally opened it. To me spring means cherry blossoms and I absolutely love cherry blossom scents.

As I'm absolutely rubbish at describing scents, I've copied this from the interweb:

"Transport yourself to the floral gardens of Japan with the Japanese Cherry Blossom. This amazing women's eau de toilette contains top notes of Asian pear, Fuji Apple, and Ume Plum. The heart notes of Japanese Cherry Blossom, Butterfly Lily, Kyoto Rose, Mimosa Petals, and Hedione of this Bath & Body Works perfume leave you refreshed and enlivened. This women's eau de toilette finishes with base notes of Vanilla Rice, Imperial Amber, Silk Musk, Cinnamon Incense, Himalayan Cedar Wood, and Creamy Sandalwood. This sensuous Bath & Body Works perfume has a high concentration of fragrance oils and comes in a pretty bottle accentuated by a flowery design. Spray Japanese Cherry Blossom onto your pulse points and feel the fragrance spread throughout the room."

Now to be honest with you I have no idea what most of the flowers and fruits mentioned are or what they smell like, but I can tell you that this is a lovely fruity floral fragrance. It lasts very well on me. I also bought the body lotion/shimmer gel and shimmery body spray, so I can layer them and make the scent even longer lasting.

I remember there was a 3 for 2 offer at the time and this EDT cost $29.50 for 75 ml. It's still available from Bath & Body Works, but it seems to be in a different bottle.

See one more picture after the jump!

Sleek Make Up Aqua Collection Mirrored Pink Blush Review and Swatches

Gah, I've been so busy these past few days, I've hardly been home, so that's why I haven't been posting much. I'm gonna quickly write this post up and then go to bed, I'm knackered. I know this is just a hobby, but I feel bad about not being able to blog. Hopefully next week will be a bit calmer.

The other day I showed you the eyeshadow palette from the Sleek Make Up Aqua Collection and today I've got the blush called Mirrored Pink. The blush comes in the same style cardboard box as the palette, and the compact itself is the regular black Sleek compact with the full size mirror in the lid.

Mirrored Pink is a frosty, slightly cool blue pink shade with fine gold shimmer, can't actually think of what other blush to compare it to. It's really nicely pigmented and smooth, not too powdery, and it wears very well. It is a bit frosty and it's quite easy to overdo, but it is a lovely blush. I have been using it for the past few days and it's very easy to wear. I did enclose a picture at the end of this post, but I wasn't wearing much else in the way of make up as I'd been to the pool, so excuse my disshivelled look please!

My only niggle about this product, and this might just be my compact, but I find it very hard to open it, so instead of trying to force it open with my nails, I'm now using a pair of nail scissors to pop the lid open. Shouldn't be necessary, but it could be a one off. At least it closes securily!

The blush costs £4.49 and you get a whopping 8 g, so it's still a brilliant bargain and it is really lovely. It's limited edition and is available from Superdrug and the Sleek Make Up website.

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

Sleek Make Up Aqua Collection Lagoon Eyeshadow Palette Review and Swatches

Nowadays Sleek Make Up eyeshadows are pretty much the only drugstore eyeshadows I buy (yes, I've turned into a make up snob). They are still great value for money and their quality is up there with Mac, Inglot, etc. eyeshadows. So as you can imagine, I was very happy to get my hands on the new limited edition Aqua collection, and in particular Lagoon eyeshadow palette (I will review Mirrored Pink blush another time).

The palette comes in a gorgeous cardboard sleeve, but inside the sleeve it's the usual matte black palette with a full size mirror in the lid, 12 eyeshadows and a double ended applicator. The eyeshadows come in a good variety of shades, you get yellow, green, teal, blue, coral, pink, the lot. Some (most) are shimmery/frosty and there are 3 matte ones too. They swatched very nicely, with the exeption of the matte ones which swatched okay, but actually all of them applied, blended and stayed really well on my eyelids.

I have done a few nice looks with this, although I still haven't used the bright coral shade (which I guess would also make a nice blush, if only the pans were bigger) and the black one. There isn't an obvious highlighter shade in it (the white one is too frosty for highlighting, better in the inner corner/tearduct area), but if your collection is even a quarter of mine, I'm sure you will own a highlighter shade to use with it.

All in all I'm very pleased with the palette and other than my usual compaints (put the shade names on the palette somewhere rather than the see through protective sheet, get rid of the applicator, stop putting the price up by a quid every year) it's a really nice one to have. I find some of my Sleek palettes a little hard to use due to the colour selection, but this one is really great, provided of course that you like bright colours. Other than the light purple and the rosy pink shadow, everything is pretty bright and loud in here!

The palette costs £7.99 for 13.2 g of eyeshadows. I bought mine from the Superdrug website, but haven't actually seen this on the shelves, also this doesn't seem to be on the Sleek website at the moment.

I'll leave yo with a picture of Paws, out gorgeous big cat who decided to "help" when I wanted to photograph the palette and blush! 

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

NOTD: China Glaze Strap On Your Moonboots Holographic Polish

It's been a long and horrible day, so I only have the energy for a quick post, but I wanted to share this with you as it's so pretty. Strap On Your Moonboots is the first shade from the China Glaze Hologlam collection that I've tried on my fingers. This was the one that arrived broken, so I decided to quickly use it while I could. I now have a new bottle and managed to save most of the broken one, so all's good.

The formula was a little thick, but it could've been due to the fact that the polish hadn't been in a sealed bottle for a few days. After adding a few drops of thinner it was fine and easy to work with. I used 2 coats, but frankly, one would've been pretty much enough. It dried quickly which was just as well as I didn't use a topcoat. The holo effect isn't as strong as some others (Color Club, Glitter Gal, Layla), but it is very smooth and looks very classy. The colour is gorgeous, it's a smokey denim blue colour, again rather classy and unique (for me anyway). I was pleasantly surprised to find that it lasted relatively well too, I'd heard horror stories about the China Glaze OMG holos. It didn't chip at all for the first 24 hours and still looked good on the second day.

All in all, I really like this polish, even though the holo effect isn't nearly as strong as I had hoped. I ordered mine from Nail Polish Direct and they cost £8.95 for 14 ml each. I have seen these on BeautyBay for £16 each which is a joke though, I'm sorry, but these are never worth that much!

See more pictures after the jump!

Barry M Bold Purple Waterproof Eyeliner Review and Swatches

A little while ago I told you about two shades of the Barry M Waterproof Eyeliners, Bold Gunmetal and Blue (click the link for my review), and now it's time to tell you about the purple one. I think this one is my favourite of the 3. It's a gorgeous purple with fine micro glitter, absolutely stunning.

In fact I've found that it's a nearly exact dupe of Mac Designer Purple Pearlglide eyeliner, which is one of my favourite purple eyeliners. The staying power of this one was slightly better than the other two as well. I didn't test whether it's waterproof, but it did stay on my lower lashline all day without smudging or fading, so that's good enough for me. Luckily the micro glitter doesn't irritate my eyes, in fact the pearlglides sometimes do, so in that respect I like this eyeliner better than Designer Purple.

These eyeliners cost £3.99 each and are similar size to the Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliners, although it doesn't say anywhere on the product or the Barry M website. I'd estimate it to be between 1 and 1.2 g.

A lovely, soft, creamy, long lasting eyeliner at the fraction of the cost of other brand's very similar product. What's not to like?

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

Follow My Blog on Bloglovin!

So apparently Google is getting rid of Google Reader shortly and with that possibly Google Friendly Connect (GFC) which has finally prompted me to add a Bloglovin link to my blog. I know some of you already follow Pleasureflush on Bloglovin, but if you don't, now you can do it by clicking at the button below or on the right of the screen. See you there!

Bobbi Brown Lilac Rose Shimmer Brick Review and Swatches

I've bought surprisingly small amount of make up lately which isn't like me at all, but this is one of the lovely things I did buy, Bobbi Brown's new Lilac Rose Shimmer Brick. You know how I love and collect Shimmer Bricks, so of course I couldn't not get this one, I just have to have them all.

Lilac Rose is part of the spring collection that I've already told you about here. I didn't get anything else, although there are undoubtedly some gorgeous bits and bobs in the collection. The Shimmer Brick comes in the usual square black packaging with a full size mirror in the lid. You have 5 different colour stripes, "featuring bright pink, golden pink, and icy pink pearl pigments perfect for light to medium skin tones. Each bar also doubles up as eye shadow." (Quoted from the Bobbi Brown website)

Despite its name, there is nothing lilac about this Shimmer Brick, but at least there is rose. Swirled together the shades give a frosty light rosey pink colour. This is definitely a highlighter, not really dark enough to be worn as blush, also it is rather frosty. In the pictures below I wore it on top of Bobbi Brown Maui Illuminating Bronzing Powder (by the way, Bobbi Brown, it's not a bronzing powder, it's a BLUSH!!!) and it gave me a nice sheen. It can be easy to overdo, so you definitely need a light hand when applying it.

It costs £32 for 10.3 which is the standard weight of Bobbi Brown Shimmer Bricks. It is a limited edition shade, but luckily Bobbi Brown collections don't sell out very quickly, so it is still available from Bobbi's website and some department stores.

See more pictures after the jump!

Topshop Holographic Nail Polish Swatches

I have been on a MASSIVE nail polish kick (especially holographic nail polish!) lately, even though I shouldn't be buying any more, so expect to see a few more nail polish posts here on the blog.

I picked up these holo beauties on a recent trip to Topshop as I'd seen them on their website. I was a bit worried they might not turn out very holographic, but to my surprise these are actually pretty good. The holo effect isn't as smooth as the China Glaze Hologlam polishes, the holo particles are bigger in the Topshop ones. The effect is more similar to the Color Club Halo Hues polishes (maybe I should swatch all 12 of those too), but less strong.

The colours are nice, but nothing special, you get a silver one, a pale blue one and a pink one. I hope they come out with more colours as these are really nice polishes and at £6 for 8 ml each. I've yet to wear them, but they swatched really nicely and dried quickly and you can see for yourself how pretty they are. Now if only Urban outfitters sold their holo polishes in the UK...

See more pictures after the jump!

Want It! Mac Baking Beauties Collection for Spring 2013

Mac has a very pretty collection coming out in April (I believe May in the UK) and I really wanted to share the promo pictures and collection details with you.

Pretty, isn't it? To be honest, despite the edible promo pictures and gorgeous colours I don't actually want many things from the collection. Since I'm on a lip product no-buy, I will be skipping the lipsticks and lip balms. I am rather interested in the new paint pots and the pearlmatte powders, although the pattern on those does remind me of the embroidery my grandmother used to make (and that's not necessarily the best thing to be reminded of when it comes to a hip and happening brand like Mac).

Here are the collection details, let me know what you're lemming! (Collection details taken from Specktra with thanks to the user Mac-Guy.)

Lipstick

Rasberry Swirl - Light white blue pink (Cremesheen)

Pure Decoration - Light white peach (Cremesheen)

Lavender Whip - Light cool lavender (Cremesheen)

Devil's Food - Glossy deep plum (Frost)

Mineralize Tinted Lip Balm

Sweet Tooth - Creamy lilac

Baking Beauty - Creamy light peach

Glace' - Creamy pale baby blue 

Cheery Cherry - Creamy mid-tone blue pink

Pro Longwear Pain Pot
Fancy Frosting - Frosted white
Mooncake - Warm beige
Eclair - Light chocolate with gold pearlized pigments
Let's Skate - Pale pink with pearlized pigments
Dangerous Cuvee - Frosted cool grey

Glitter
Reflects Transparent Teal - Sparkling white with turqoise
Pink - Bright pink

Haute & Naughty Lash
Black

Pearlmatte Face Powder

In For A Treat - Champagne base with matte coral flowers and mint leaves

Pink Buttercream - Light silvery pink base with dark pink flowers and periwinkle leaves

Lustre Drops

Pink Rebel - Blue pink with gold pearlized pigments

Nail Lacquer

Blue Velvet - Light periwinkle blue (Cream)

Confectionary - Light blue pink (Cream)
Pistachio Creme - Light teal mint (Cream)

129 Brush

Powder/Blush Brush 

252 Brush

Large Shader Brush

See more pictures after the jump!

NOTD: Mac Immortal Gold and Topshop Black Dynamite Crackle

Topshop Black Dynamite Crackle polish is an interesting one, it's matte back with gold sparkles without a topcoat. I preferred it with topcoat, I prefer shiny polishes. I applied it over Mac Immortal Gold nail polish and the combo looked really nice.

Formula was good on both, the crackle effect is actually really good. Sadly, that's where the positives ended. The mani chipped on me within 24 hours and in fact one nail completely peeled off. I don't know which polish to blame, but generally Mac polishes don't last very long on me.

Mac Immortal Gold was a limited edition, so it's not available anymore. Topshop Black Dynamite Crackle costs £6 and is a permanent shade.

See more pictures after the jump!

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr Eyeshadow 85 Light in Purple / Liquid Light Review and Swatches

Maybelline has released a few new shades of their very popular Color Tattoo eyeshadows and I picked up 85 Light in Purple (or according to the display in my local Boots, Liquid Light). It's a really interesting colour, a greyish purpley blue with a pink duochrome to it.

The formula is the same fantastic long lasting, non-creasing, easy to work with gel-cream formula that we know and love. I used it over my trusty Too Faced Shadow Insurance primer and it stayed put for over 12 hours. It would also make a nice base, but I haven't done that as with a colour this lovely, I prefer to use it alone.

The colour is very similar to Mac Industrial pearlglide, in fact that's the eyeliner I have used with it for a quick, but rather striking look. The pictures don't show the pink duochrome very well, but it's there and depending on which angle you're looking it's pretty strong, making the shadow look more purple than blue.

I really like this product and absolutely adore the shade. At £4.99 for 4 g (with a 3 for 2 offer in Boots currently) it's well worth buying.

See more pictures including swatches and a look I did with this eyeshadow after the jump!

Yves Saint Laurent Le Teint Touche Eclat Foundation Review

A little while ago I was stopped by a lovely lady at the YSL counter in House of Fraser and was asked if I'd like to be matched up for a free foundation sample. Of course I couldn't say no and came away with my little bottle of Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation. I was given shade B50 which looks a little yellow on my hands but blends out nicely on my face.

I have to admit I don't follow YSL as closely as other brands, but I believe this is their new foundation. This is what I found about it on the Debenhams website: "Twenty years after the launch of the iconic Touche clat, Yves Saint Laurent adopts a leading edge technology that transposes the magic of this legendary highlighter into a foundation to achieve the same illuminating result for the entire face. Yves Saint Laurent introduces LE TEINT TOUCHE CLAT. A bold, unique formula to target shadowy areas and define contours. Infused within a weightless fluid, the light of Touche clat foundation targets shadowy areas and highlights the contours of the face. Free of opaque powders, its perfecting texture evens the complexion and helps conceal imperfections, while enhancing your skin's natural beauty."

I think the key word is illuminating. While not greasy by any means, this foundation does look more "dewy" on me than some others, so I think it would suit drier skins better than oily ones. I have normal skin during the winter months, but my T-zone can get rather oily in hot weather, so I would definitely not wear this in the summer, but right now it works well for me. I don't love it as much as I do the Lancome Teint Visionnaire foundation, it is definitely more dewy on my face and tends to need a bit of blotting halfway through the day, but it does have a nice medium coverageand it feels very light on the skin. It comes in 22 shades which is great and the full size product comes in a pump bottle which is also a big plus.


I like this foundation, but won't be buying the full size version. I know it's just going to be too dewy on me in the warmer months plus it doesn't come with SPF which I think is really necessary in the summer. It's nice in the winter, but I have nicer foundations. However, if you have dry skin and you're near a YSL counter, it's well worth a look. £29 for 30 ml.

See more pictures after the jump! If you want to see me wear this foundation on my face, check out this post for full face pictures!

Barry M Bold Gun Metal and Bold Blue Waterproof Eyeliner Review and Swatches

I bought these Barry M eye pencils a little while ago when they had a 3 for 2 offer in Boots and there was a very pretty nail polish I wanted to get. So you know, started looking at other things to make use of the promotion (as you might have noticed, I do that very often!) and came across these eyeliners. I thought for £3.99 each (well, one was actually free) they were worth a try. Luckily I was right.

They are very similar to Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencils, soft and smooth, very easy to apply, but dry down quickly and don't budge for hours. The shades I got are Bold Gun Metal which is a shimmery silver/grey colour and Bold Blue which is a shimmery medium blue colour. Bold Blue has slightly more micro glitter to it, but it's by no means glittery. I also bought Bold Purple subsequently which I'll be reviewing separately.

Both eyeliners stayed on my waterline fairly well, probably for about 4 hours, and on my lower lashline all day. These are supposed to be waterproof and I have tested Bold Gun Metal in the swimming pool and it did smudge, not terribly badly, but it did. I'm not that fussed, but if you are looking for a truly waterproof eyeliner, these might not be the ones for you.

Bold Gun Metal isn't too similar in colour to any of the Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencils I own (it's quite a bit darker than Gunmetal and less shimmery), but Bold Blue is a dupe for Deviant, I swatched them side by side and you can't tell the difference. If you like blue eyeliners, this may be good news for you, as these are similar size to the Urban Decay ones (doesn't actually say anywhere, but I estimate between 1 and 1.2 g) and only cost £3.99 each, plus there's bound to be an offer on them at some point.

All in all these are nice, creamy, long lasting eyeliners, but not as waterproof as they claim to be.

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

Do You Want A Dupe (Or Two) For OPI Polka.com Nail Polish?

With my China Glaze Hologlam order I also got OPI Polka.com, the only polish I was interested in from the Euro Centrale collection (which is quite unexpected since I'm from Hungary and there are a few references to Hungary/Budapest, but none of the colours called out to me). Of course me being me, I managed to accidentally pick up a couple of dupes before I even received Polka.com. I thought I'd show you what they are, so if you'd like the OPI polish but it's a bit too pricey for you at £12.

The polishes you see in the picture are (left to right) Beauty UK Posh Polish in Pinkabloo, OPI Polka.com and Topshop Hope Floats. There are very slight differences, but the over all look is pretty much the same. While OPI has blue and pink micro glitter (as well as the larger blue, turquoise and bright pink hex glitter they all have), the Beauty UK polish only has blue micro glitter and the Topshop polish has turquoise micro glitter. However, as you can see in the swatch pictures, the difference is very hard to see. The hex glitter is pretty much the same in all 3. Consistency wise they seemed pretty similar, while OPI had the best brush, it's nice and wide, and Beauty UK had the worst, thin little brush.

Pricewise the Beauty UK one is the cheapest at £3.49 for 9 ml, then it's the Topshop one at £6 for 8 ml and then the OPI one at £12 for 15 ml (I bought mine for £7.15 from Nail Polish Direct by the way). Technically the OPI is cheaper than the Topshop one gram per gram, but question is, do you actually NEED 15 ml of glitter polish?

See swatch pictures after the jump!

China Glaze Hologlam Collection Haul and Swatches

My China Glaze Hologlam collection holographic nail polishes arrived today! I was so excited, I had to take pictures and swatch them all. Unfortunately one of them (Strap On Your Moonboots) broke in transit, so there is quite a bit of polish on some of the other bottles, but I just quickly wanted to take some pictures while it was sunny. Luckily the bottle didn't smash completely, only the top broke off, so I could still swatch the polish (there's about 2/3 left in the bottle as it remained standing).

I haven't worn any of them yet, so can't comment on wear time. The swatches show just one coat, I'd probably do two for a better coverage, but they are nicely pigmented. The holo effect isn't as strong as some other (namely Color Club and Glitter Gal), but it's not too bad, it's still linear and perfectly visible. The pictures were taken in strong sunlight, so they are as good as they get. All the pictures were taken without flash.

The colours are nice, not massively unique, but pretty anyway. OMG A UFO looks rather yellow/gold in the pictures, it's actually more khaki than yellow in real life. Don't Be A Lunatic and Sci-Fly By are very close, Sci-Fly By is a little bit darker, but hardly noticable. Get Out Of My Space and Astro Hot look quite similar in the pictures, but Get Out Of My Space is definitely more purple in real life.

While the holo effect isn't as strong as I hoped, these polishes are really nice and I'm glad I got them all. I ordered mine from Nail Polish Direct and they cost £8.95 for 14 ml each.

See lots more pictures after the jump!

Maybelline Superstay 14 Hour Lipstick Review and Swatches

So I was in Boots the other day looking at make up and found a new shade of Maybelline Color Tattoo eyeshadows (review coming soon) that I really liked the look of. But since there was a 3 for 2 offer on Maybelline make up, I thought I might as well take advantage of it and ended up buying two of the new Superstay 14 Hours lipsticks. I got 430 Stay With Me Coral and 160 Infinitely Fuchsia, the two brightest shades.

First of all I'd like to point out, that I'm not a muppet and wasn't expecting these lipsticks to last for 14 hours. The blogger in me was very curious and of course had to get them. So, do they last for 14 hours? Of course not. Now that's out the way, let's see what the lipsticks are actually like.

I'm pleased to say that they are actually pretty nice. They are creamy, vibrant, they smell gorgeous (this I was worried about as most drugstore/cheap lipsticks smell hideous with a few exceptions) and feel lovely on. Infinitely Fuchsia feels smoother on, Stay With Me Coral seems heavier and doesn't look as smooth either. They both apply very opaque in just a couple of swipes and last for about 4-5 hours depending on whether I eat or not. I tested them both for wear, they were both okay for 3-4 hours with little eating/drinking, and then practically disappeared when I had a proper meal. The sheen starts to disappear after about 3 hours and I've found that the lipstick starts fading from the inner part of my lips first. They last well for a regular lipstick, butu definitely nowhere near the advertised 14 hours!

On the plus side they feel really nice on, they're not at all sticky and don't feel drying at all unlike a lot of long lasting lip products. I didn't need to apply any gloss or balml on top, or even afterwards, my lips were fine. Won't say they're actively moisturising, but definitely not drying.

According to Boots they come in 20 shades, but I can only see 11 on their website and my local store only had about 8 shades on the display. There are lighter, more muted shades as well, but I like mine bright.

These lipsticks cost £6.99 each (I don't know what size they are as it doesn't say anywhere) and there's a 3 for 2 offer on all Maybelline make up at Boots at the moment.

See lots more pictures including arm and lip swatches after the jump!

NOTD: Team GB / Jubilee Nails

Yes, I know, I'm a few months behind, but this mani reminded me of last summer with the Queen's Golden Jubilee and the London Olympics. I used Barry M Jewel Britannia glitter nail polish on top of Max Factor Odyssey Blue nail polish.

Taken without flash in direct sunlight

I used 3 coats of Odyssey Blue and then topped it with one coat of Jewel Britannia. Both polishes for great, Odyssey Blue was smooth and quick drying and Jewel Britannia had a very good glitter coverage in just one coat. It has small holo glitter as well as medium size red, blue and silver round glitter. Very British looking indeed. The mani lasted for 3 days with very minimal chipping and it was so pretty, very sparkly and unique.

Max Factor Odyssey Blue is a mini size and costs £3.99, Barry M Jewel Britannia was a limited edition shade and I can't find it on any website anymore. For reference though, Barry M glitter polishes cost £2.99.

See another picture after the jump!

My Recent Kiko Haul, Review and Swatches

I wasn't sure if I wanted to do this post due to my bad experience when ordering from Kiko a while ago (if you don't know what I'm talking about, read this post, but basically their customer services based in Italy were a pile of cr@p), however, to be fair to Kiko, despite their non-existing customer service their products are actually very good and the staff in their Westfield store have only ever been helpful and nice. I still won't be ordering from their website, but it's worth checking out their store if you're near one.

On a recent trip to Westfield London I picked up four of their water eyeshadows, one long lasting stick eyeshadow and two nail polishes. The nail polishes were in the sale, I believe they are from the holiday collection which I never saw because I stupidly forgot to pop into the Kiko store when I was in London in December, and one of them is even holographic (I believe there were four of them in the collection)! The water eyeshadows are permanent and the long lasting stick eyeshadow is limited edition (although there are also some permanent shades in different packaging).

I haven't tried the nail polishes yet, so I won't be reviewing them in this post. I have tried other Kiko nail polishes and they were fine, but they come in lots of different finishes and colours. I got shades 402 and 404. Kiko nail polishes cost £4.90 for 11 ml, but I think I paid £2 each for the ones I got in the sale.

I have reviewed the long lasting stick eyeshadows (permanent line) before, if you want to read my review, it's here. The new limited edition shade I bought is 31 Hypnotic Iris Blue which is a bright blue with purple duochrome. It gave me a very hard time as my camera just couldn't pick up the beautiful duochrome, so I had to use my phone to capture the true colour (as a result I have to I apologise for the bad picture quality). It's such a beautiful, vibrant colour though, I had many compliments while wearing it. I used it over Too Faced Shadow Insurance primer and it lasted very well without fading or creasing. It was easy to blend out and stayed put without smudging. The product come in a twist up pen like many other cream eyeshadows. Long lasting stick eyeshadows cost £6.90 and you get 1.64 g product.

The water eyeshadows are basically wet and dry eyeshadows with an excellent texture and colour payoff. They come in 32 shades and I chose 4 of them: 212 Emerald Green, 221 Cyclamen, 225 Indigo Blue and 224 Lavender. The latter was also a troublesome shade, it has a gorgeous purple duochrome to it and of course that didn't show up properly either (cue bad quality phone camera photos). The eyeshadows are a little bit like the gelee powder shadows Estee Lauder and Mac have come out with, very smooth, easy to blend, almost creamy, but with the non-creasing advantage of powder shadows. They are quite shimmery and a bit metallic, but not glittery at all. I wore them on top of Too Faced Shadow Insurance primer and they lasted all day without creasing or fading and with no fallout. I seriously love them, they are gorgeous. They come in mirrored black compacts and have a design that resembles ripples on water. The water eyeshadows cost £8.90 each and you get 3 g for your money.

See more pictures including swatches and looks I did with these products after the jump!