Barbara Daly Long Wear Eyeshadow Pencils Review and Swatches

On a recent trip to Tesco I found these Barbara Daly Long Wear Eyeshadow Pencils and thought I'd give them a try. They look very similar to the Topshop ones which I love and at £6.75 each you can't go too wrong. I bought two shades, Shimmer Sand (pinky beige with high sheen, no shimmer despite the name) and Black Marble (shimmery charcoal grey).

The eyeshadows claim to be long wearing and creaseproof. I agree with them being long-wearing, once they set, they're not going anywhere and last through the whole day, but they aren't as creaseproof as I had hoped (in particular Shimmer Sand). I wore Shimmer Sand with and without a primer, without it creased quite significantly. With primer (Too Faced Shadow Insurance) it also creased a bit, but wasn't too noticable. I haven't tried it as a base yet. As I often wear cream eyeshadows when I don't have much time to get ready as they're so easy, I expect them to be creaseproof, at the very least on top of primer. With Shimmer Sand it wasn't too bad as it's a lighter shade. I wore Black Marble yesterday in the crease very lightly applied and blended very thouroughly with a crease brush and it held up beautifully without creasing. So maybe the secret is to apply a very thin layer and blend out very thouroughly.

The formula is very nice, the eyeshadow glides on very easily and can be blended out with your finger as well as a brush. They dry pretty quickly and once set, you need make up remover to get them off. Both colours are lovely, Black Marble has some fine shimmer whereas Shimmer Sand has more of a sheen instead of shimmer. Shimmer Sand reminds me of Urban Decay Sin Primer Potion. There are also two other shades available, Bronze Gold and Sand. You get 1.64 g and the product comes in a twist pen with a lid.

These eyeshadows cost £6.75 and there's currently a 3 for 2 offer on all Barbara Daly products at Tesco.

See more pictures after the jump!

Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadows Review and Swatches Part 3

You may remember that I have reviewed some of these new Barbara Daly Satin Swirl eyeshadows before (click here for my review) and at the time I was sure I'd seen pictures of some other shades on the display stand, but could only find 6 initially. Well, I have managed to track down the remaining 4 shades and yes, there is a purple and a green one as I initially thought.

Top row: Oyster, Rose Lace
Bottom row: Whirl, Twilight

That's the good news. The bad news is that these are - for some reason - nowhere near as nice as the other 6 shades. I was most disappointed in the gorgeous purple (Twilight), it looks so intense in the pan yet it has a poor colour payoff. I have swatched them with my fingers which always give a better colour payoff, and I have applied them with a brush, but either way all I got was a sheer wash of colour. The green one (Whirl) and the champagne colour (Oyster) are the most pigmented of the bunch, although Oyster is very light, so it's not very easy to see, but it does make a lovely highlighter. The dusty pink shade (Rose Lace) looks quite dull in the pan and also when swatched, it doesn't really show up on my skin.

I haven't worn Whirl yet, but I did a look with the other 3 (sorry, no pictures, I'm really rubbish at taking pictures at the moment) and the colours were very sheer, although you can build them up slightly. I guess it's good news for those who don't like/want to wear very bright colours. I ended up adding Mac Grand Galaxy Extra Dimension eyeshadow in the crease because Twilight was just not cutting it as a crease colour. Otherwise they wore pretty well and didn't crease at all (I had Too Faced Shadow Insurance under them). At £8 each for 2.5 g they're still not bad value, but compared to the other 6 shades I felt these, especially Rose Lace and Twilight, were a a bit of a letdown.

These are now available online from Tesco Direct as well as in-stores, although I believe that these 4 shades are only available in selected stores (none of mine had them). There is currently a 3 for 2 offer on all Barbara Daly products.

See more pictures including swatches after the jump!

My Recent Haul Pictures

I'm still playing catch up when it comes to writing blog posts, so I thought I'd do a quick one about my recent make up (and mostly nail polish!) purchases. I don't think I will get around to reviewing many of these anytime soon (I have one review coming), but if you are really interested in something, let me know in the comments. So without further ado, here are the pictures:

My Cherry Culture order

First up lots of lovely Milani stuff. I bought these from Cherry Culture when they recently had a 20% sale. Shipping was quite expensive, but I was very pleased that I didn't have to also pay customs duty and the horrendous £8 Royal Mail fee on top of it all, so the above came to a total of £60 which isn't too bad actually.

See what other products I bought after the jump!

FOTD: Laura Geller Eye Elements Baked Eye Shadow and Highlighter in Meadow Skies

Here's the look I did with my new Laura Geller Meadow Skies eyeshadow and highlighter compact. I like this look, I think the colours work well together and on me too. What do you think?

To create this look I used the following products:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly eyeshadow primer
Laura Geller Eye Elements in Meadow Skies khaki shade on middle of lid and above crease
Laura Geller Eye Elements in Meadow Skies forest green shade in crease
Laura Geller Eye Elements in Meadow Skies rose gold shade in inner corner
Laura Geller Eye Elements in Meadow Skies white gold highlighter on browbone
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencil in Mildew on waterline
Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Guerlain Parure Aqua foundation in 02 Beige Clair
Mac Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Medium
Mac Brunette Mineralize Skinfinish to contour
Laura Geller Blush n Brighten in Tropic Hues
Laura Geller Eye Elements in Meadow Skies white gold highlighter

Lips:
Mac Rue d'Rouge Dazzleglass

See more pictures after the jump!

Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadows Review and Swatches Part 2

As I promised in the Mac In Extra Dimension post, here's the review of the second three shades of these lovely eyeshadows. They look very much like the Mac ones, don't they? I don't know if the texture similar, although these are definitely powder eyeshadows, whereas the Mac ones are supposed to be a gel/powder hybrid I think, like the Estee Lauder Cyber Eyes eyeshadows.

I got the following shades here: Crystal, Gold Dust and Sequins. To see the other three shades and a more detailed review, check out this post. For some reason I thought there was a green and purple one of these as well, but I've only ever seen the 6 shades I own, so maybe not then. Do let me know if you've found any other shades. These are £8 each, but there's been an ongoing 3 for 2 offer on all Barbara Daly make up, so it works out cheaper that way.

I wore all 3 shades over one of the Topshop crayons and they stayed all day without creasing, exactly like the other 3 shades did. Really pleased with these and wouldn't mind if they were available in more shades (I'm thinking pink, purple, teal, green...).

Anyway, there are swatches after the jump, so keep reading!

FOTD: Chanel Eclosion Eyeshadow Quad

I've been meaning to post this look that I did using my new Chanel Eclosion eyeshadow quad. I really liked this look, it's nice and neutral but with a bit of a kick. I personally love the glittery highlighter shade and also the mauvy plum shade.

To create this look I used the following products:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly Even Smoother Eye Base
Chanel Eclosion eyeshadow quad peachy pink shade on middle of lid
Chanel Eclosion eyeshadow quad mauvy plum shade in crease
Chanel Eclosion eyeshadow quad beige shade above crease to blend out
Chanel Eclosion eyeshadow quad shimmery highlighter shade in inner corner and on browbone
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Crash on waterline
Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara in black
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream
Guerlain Radiant Butterfly Meteorites Voyage Powder
Mac Subtle Breeze mineralize blush

Lips:
Guerlain Kiss Kiss Lipgloss in 871 Frosted Rose

See more pictures after the jump!

Want It: Mac In Extra Dimension Collection May 2012

I always get excited when new collections with pretty powders and palettes are released (see my recent post on the new Chantecaille palette) and it's no different when it comes to Mac's upcoming In Extra Dimension collection. Due out in May the collection includes 3 new Extra Dimension Skinfinishes and 10 new Extra Dimension Eyeshadows. The formula of these is supposed to be similar to Estee Lauder Cyber Eyes eyeshadows and gelee powders (Modern Mercury and lately Topaz Chameleon) which are all lovely, so no wonder I'm excited about these!

And if you're thinking you might have seen the design somewhere, you're not wrong! Do you remember these Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyeshadows? Similar pattern without the "Mac" bit obviously. (I actually have the Barbara Daly shadows in 3 more shades - must review them soon!)

Anyway, the skinfishes and eyeshadows come in the following shades:

Extra Dimension Skinfinish 

Whisper Of Gilt - light soft white gold with shimmery sheen 

Superb - soft peach nude with multi dimensional shimmer 

Glorify - copper golden shimmer

Extra Dimension Eyeshadows 

Warm Thunder - midtone silver grey

Blue Orbit - light iridescent purple 

Grand Galaxy - midtone violet 

Lunar - royal blue 

Havanna - midtone copper brown 

Sweet Heat - bright peach champagne

Modern Pewter - midtone olive gold 

Rich Core - midtone aubergine

Dark Dare - charcoal black 

Young Venus - pale white pink

To be honest I would've liked to see some more fun shades, greens and yellows perhaps, since a few of these colours are really similar to the Estee Lauder Cyber Eyes eyeshadows.  But I'm still looking forward to trying these out and I'll probably end up with a good few of them.

See lots of photos after the jump!

FOTD: Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs 11 Les Roses

This is the look I did with the new Guerlain Les Roses eyeshadow quad from the spring collection. I just love the dark mauve colour, it makes the look a lot darker and smokier and it's so smooth and gorgeous! I like my pink eyeshadows anyway, but I think these colours work particularly well with my dark brown eyes. (Sorry the pictures are so dark, it was a very gloomy day.)

To create this look I used the following products:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly Even Smoother Eye Base
Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs 11 Les Roses eyeshadow quad matte medium pink shade on middle of lid
Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs 11 Les Roses eyeshadow quad pearly medium pink shade in outer corner of lid
Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs 11 Les Roses eyeshadow quad deep mauve shade in crease
Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs 11 Les Roses eyeshadow quad light pink shade in inner corner and on browbone to highlight
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Crash on waterline
Guerlain Noir G de Guerlain mascara in Noir
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream
Guerlain Radiant Butterfly Meteorites Voyage Powder
Guerlain Blush 4 Eclats Sculpting Blush in 04 Rosee Du Printemps
Guerlain Meteorites Cruel Gardenia Highlighter

Lips:
Guerlain Kiss Kiss Lipgloss in 870 Cherry Pink

See more pictures after the jump!

FOTD with Accessorize Merged Eyeshadow in Purple Drama

This is the look I created with the Accessorize Purple Drama Merged Eyeshadow I showed you earlier this week. I really liked this look, I generally love purples and I especially adore Stila's Royal (purple) Sparkle Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner which always makes any purple look pop. I used the pink part of the eyeshadow on the lid and the purple in the crease and it worked really well.

To create this look I used the following products:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly Even Smoother Eye Base
Accessorize Merged Eyeshadow in Purple Drama all over lid and in crease
Mac Vellum eyeshadow on browbone to highlight
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Zero on waterline
Stila Sparkle Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Royal on upper lashline
Guerlain Noir G de Guerlain mascara in Noir
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Guerlain Parure Aqua foundation in 02 Beige Clair
Guerlain Radiant Butterfly Meteorites Voyage Powder
Blush from Vivo Baked Shimmer Palette in Paparazzi

Lips:
Chanel Glossimer in #104 Astral

See more pictures after the jump!

2011's Favourite Products: Part 1 - Eyes

As 2011 is drawing to a close, I decided to do a series of posts about my favourite beauty products of the year. To be honest though, I do find it quite difficult to do posts like this, because a year is a pretty long period and I often find if I think of my favourites of a certain period, the latest favourites will most likely be included rather than the ones I was crazy about 6 months ago. But I will try to be as objective as possible. I'm not doing detailed reviews on everything since I have actually reviewed a lot of these products, so I will just link them back to the posts if they've already been reviewed.

First up are base products. My favourites are in no particular order: Barbara Daly (for Tesco) Even Smoother Eye Base, Mac Paint Pots and Rimmel Colour Mousse 8hr eyeshadows. Click on the links for the reviews. The only one of these three that I haven't reviewed yet are the Mac Paint Pots. I don't know why, I've just never got around to doing it. I actually own a lot of them, having bought 10 with the last 2 Mac collections and also the permanent ones, or older limited edition ones that I'd already owned. They can be used as primers as they don't crease at all or just on their own for a subtle (or in some cases not so subtle) colour. My only problem with them is that my older ones are beginning to dry out, even though I keep them upside down and sealed properly. They are the most expensive of the bunch at £13.50 for 5 g.

Keep reading to find out what other eye products made it into my favourites this year!

FOTD With Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadows

This is the look I did with my new Barbara Daly eyeshadows, Navy Reflection and Cinder Shine. I used Cinder Shine all over the lid and Navy Reflection in the crease.

Here's a list of all the products I used to create this look:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly Even Smoother Eye Base
Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadow Cinder Shine all over the lid
Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadow Navy Reflection in the crease
Chantacaille La Baleine Bleue Eyeshadow Palette light grey shade on the inner corner of lid and above crease
Chantacaille La Baleine Bleue Eyeshadow Palette highlighter shade on browbone to highlight
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Zero on waterline
Gosh Velvet Touch Waterproof Eyeliner in Cool Mint on lower lashline
No 7 Exceptional Definition Nutrient Enriched Mascara in Black
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
17 Blemish Balm (will review this soon)
Guerlain Radiant Butterfly Meteorites Voyage Powder
Chantecaille Blush in Laughter
Chantecaille La Baleine Blanche Face Palette

Lips:
Chanel Rouge Allure in Belgravia

See more pictures after the jump!

Barbara Daly Satin Swirl Eyes Eyeshadows Review and Swatches

On a recent trip to Tesco I discovered these new eyeshadows by Barbara Daly and decided to give them a go. I was sucked in by the pretty swirly wavy design (as usual), but it turns out these eyeshadows are more than just a pretty face.

I bought Navy Reflection, Taupe Ripple and Cinder Shine, but I think there's another 3 shades in the range (I did see a highlighter colour, and I think there's a purple and green one as well which were out of stock). They cost £8 each, but there was a 3 for 2 offer, so got 3 for £16 which I thought was okay. £8 each is a bit expensive in my opinion for a supermarket brand, but having said that, these eyeshadows are really good quality. I will definitely keep an eye out for the other shades.

As you can see in the pictures, the eyeshadows have a wavy pattern which is actually raised, so it looks pretty cool. It reminded me of the upcoming Estee Lauder gel eyeshadows (to look at), but these are definitely powder, not gel/hybrid. I was very pleasantly surprised when I swatched them, they are very pigmented and smooth. I have worn Navy Reflection and Cinder Shine (will be posting the FOTD soon) and they lasted really well, they applied beautifully and were easy to blend. They honestly feel like high end eyeshadows to me, they have a very nice texture and the colours are lovely too. My favourite of the three is Taupe Ripple, it's such a gorgeous taupe with a hint of sheen (not shimmer). You get 2.5 g per pot which is a good amount. I can happily recommend these eyeshadows and will be looking out for more shades myself.

Have you tried these eyeshadows yet? What do you think? Let me know in the comments!

See more pictures after the jump!

Laura Geller Baked Marble Eyeshadow/Eye Rimz in Cinnamon Swirl/Mint Chocolate Chip + FOTD

Bit of a mouthful, huh? Anyway, this is my newest Laura Geller baked eyeshadow, it cam out in the same (Vanilla Nudes) collection as the Baked Dreams Cheek Highlighter and Blush I told you about the other day.

What you have hereis basically a baked eyeshadow duo. On the left you get a mixture of autumnal shades: orange, brown and khaki swirled together. On the right you have a very shimmery blackened green eyeshadow that can also be used as a highlighter. I have found that it is best used wet because otherwise it's a bit chalky and the shimmers get lost when applied to the eyelids dry. I used it wet as an eyeliner and it is gorgeous. The left side of the eyeshadow is slightly larger and has good chunks of separate colours, so I managed to pick out the orange and khaki (but there's a nice big brown patch too) to create the look you can see at the bottom of the post. The left side is perfectly good applied dry, in fact I never even tried it wet.

I used my Barbara Daly eyeshadow primer under this and the shadows didn't crease at all and still looked the same 10+ hours later. There was minimal fallout during application, but nothing afterwards. The compact is 1.8 g, so pretty much standard baked eyeshadow size. As it was part of a set, I haven't got a price for this, I don't think it's available to puchase on its own anyway.

Make sure you go all the way down to the bottom of this post as I have a look I've created with this eyeshadow duo which I think turned out really well actually. There are also swatches after the jump.

FOTD: Guerlain Fall 2011 Collection

Here's the look I did with my new Guerlain fall 2011 products, in fact I also wore Guerlain foundation, mascara, blush and setting powder/complexion highlighter but that's mostly just because I love Guerlain products. :) In most pictures I'm wearing Rouge G in 71 Girly, but I included a picture at the bottom wearing 25 Garconne as well. (I did take that one with a slightly different camera setting, hence the cooler colours, but it's the same look.) Hope you like it.

To create this look I used the following products:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly (Tesco) Eyeshadow Primer
Guerlain 4 Colour Eyeshadow Palette 08 Les Perles light pink colour on inner half of lid
Guerlain 4 Colour Eyeshadow Palette 08 Les Perles grey/taupe colour on outer half of lid
Guerlain 4 Colour Eyeshadow Palette 08 Les Perles dark grey-purple in crease
Guerlain 4 Colour Eyeshadow Palette 08 Les Perles white gold on browbone to highlight
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencil in Zero on lower lashline
Guerlain Le 2 Waterproof Mascara in Black
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Guerlain Parure Gold foundation in 02 + 03 mixed together
Guerlain Meteorites Voyage Powder in Radiant Butterfly
Guerlain 4 Eclats Blush in 04 Rose Plein Vent on the cheeks

Lips:
Guerlain Rouge G lipstick 71 Girly (and 25 Garconne)

See more pictures after the jump!

Purple face of the day with Dior

I did this look the other day and really liked it, so I thought I'd share it with you. Sadly, my camera once again failed to pick up the pink tones, so the purple looks much coller than it actually was in real life, but it's still pretty, so here it is.

To create this look I used:

Eyes:
Barbara Daly for Tesco eyeshadow primer
Christian Dior Cristal Boreal eyeshadow 152 Purple Gem all over lid
Christian Dior Cannage Colour Collection palette mauve shade in crease
Christian Dior Cannage Colour Collection palette pink shade in inner corner and below browbone
Make Up Forever Aqua Liner in Iridescent Electric Purple on upper lashline
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencil in Lust on lower lashline
Clarins Wonder Mascara in purple
Mac Brow Set in Show Off

Face:
Guerlain Lingerie de Peau foundation in 03 Beige Naturel
Mac Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium
Mac Well Dressed blush

Lips:
Dior Addict lipstick in 579 Rose Vision

See more pictures after the jump!

My holiday make up bag

Since I really enjoy reading about what make up people take on holiday with them, I decided to write my own post about it. As you know (or don't, but will now), I was away in Florida for 2 weeks last month. I always struggle with packing, usually end up taking far too much, clothes, shoes and make up alike, and while I will not go into details about the clothes and shoes, I can assure you, I did the same again - both for me and my 3 children (my husband packs his stuff). I swear we could have left at least one suitcase behind and not be without anything. I mean who would've thought you don't need long trousers, sweaters and raincoats in Florida at Easter? I always pack warm clothes just in case, but honestly, I didn't even wear a light summer cardigan, it was always over 25 degrees even at 10 o'clock in the evening. Anyway, moving swiftly on, here's what I took with me make up-wise:

My 88 Shimmer and Metal Mania palettes

All other make up products I took with me

As you can see, all of the products are fairly cheap, drugstore or similar products. I'm always really afraid to take expensive high end and limited edition products with me in case they get damaged or lost in transit. I find the 88 eyeshadows palettes (especially the Shimmer palette) very useful as they contain all the colours (including some really good highlighters) you ever need. Although the quality of the eyeshadows isn't that good, with a decent primer they lasted through most of the day, and it was usually over 30 degrees, so I guess that's not too bad.

So what else did I take? I managed to photograph it upside down, but you can see my Maybelline Dream Creamy Foundation (reviewed here) which I actually managed to finish on the last day of the holiday, talk about great timing eh? I took my Collection 2000 Illuminating Touch concealer (reviewed here) as well as my  Mac MSFN & Shimmer in Medium, great for setting foundation and highlighting. Not sure why I needed an extra highlighter, but I took a Ruby & Millie one, not sure what it's called though, it's from a set. I took 4 blushes: First Kiss and China Pink by 17, Sleek Rose Gold (see review here) and Laura Geller Tropic Hues (a handy travel sized one, full sized one reviewed here).

I took numerous eyeliners, all Urban Decay 24/7 ones, as I love their eyepencils and I like the variety of colours. I also took 3 mascaras: L'Oreal Telescopic Explosion mascara (reviewed here), Max Factor More Lashes waterproof mascara and a Rimmel waterproof mascara (its name escapes me completely, sorry). For my brows I took my trusty Mac Brow Set in Show Off. And of course my favourite eyeshadow base: Barbara Daly for Tesco (I've reviewed it here).

I took 2 lipliners and 8 lipsticks, plus 4 double ended lipglosses as well as several of my GOSH eyeshadow brushes, 2 blush brushes and a cheepo noname face brush. Oh and a double pencil sharpener.

Now, do you want to see how many of these products I actually used over the 2 weeks? See after the jump!

Finished! The January edition

You might recall that I started this series last month when I managed to finish several beauty products (which doesn't happen very often, I'm telling you!) and to my surprise I'm back with another post of yet more finished products. I don't want to include basics like shampoo, conditioner and shower gel in this as I always go through those, will just stick to skincare, make up and fragrances.

First up are my beauty basics:

Mac Brow Set in Show Off is the only thing I use on my brows as I don't like brow pencils (too harsh) or powders (too obvious). This is a brown shade that just gives a bit more definition to my brows and holds them in place. I came across this product when Blonde, Brunette, Redhead collection came out in 2009 and I have loved it ever since! I actually think this was my original one, so it lasted me over a year, although I did move it to my downstairs cloakroom a while ago as it was running low (that's where I keep my emergency make up items for day when I have no time to apply my make up in my bedroom), so I guess I hadn't been using it so regularly lately ( have a new one in my bedroom). It never dried up though, just ran out. I love this stuff and have already repurchased it and will continue to do so. £11.50 from maccosmetics.co.uk.

Continue reading to see what other products I've finished last month!

My favourite high street (drugstore) make up / beauty products

As you know, I love high end make up, my favourite brands include Guerlain and Dior, and you can't get much more luxurious products than from these two brands. However, I also like products that work well no matter how much they cost or what brand they are. I am a make up snob, but not enough to pass on good bargains! :)

I thought I'd show you what my favourite high street (drugstore) beauty products are and if you like, please tell me in the comments which ones you like / work for you. 

Find out more about my favourite bargain buys after the jump!