Bronze summery night look with a pop of aqua! #

Hey my lovelies,

This is another look of the night from my holiday in the Amalfi Coast back in August (pictures here).

We had been at the beach all day and I felt like a bronzed, summery and fun look! I wore this zebra/tiger like kaftan which has a lovely bright blue stone on it so I decided to incorporate the blue into my makeup too :)

The kaftan I bought about 3 years ago while on holiday in greece. It's more of a beach cover-up really and therefore very see-through, but when you match it with a nude slip underneath it's suitable for a summery evening out.  The hair...quite messy after a day at the beach so decided to braid the front to deal with the 'out of control' side fringe. Here's a close up look of my face of the night makeup:

♥ Face

Collection 2000 - Lasting perfection concealer (3)

VIE - One step face base in soft beige

NARS - Laguna Bronzer

NARS Orgasm Blush

MAC Soft & Gentle Mineralize Skinfinish

♥ Eyes

Estee Lauder - Island Oasis Eye Palette, aqua shade tear duct & inner 1/3 of eye

Estee Lauder - Island Oasis Eye Palette, warm yellow gold shade to mid of eye lid

Urban Decay - Naked Palette, smog eyeshadow in outer crease, blended into crease & lower lash line

Bourjois - Effect Smokey Pencil in ultra black (76) in waterline & smudged along upper lash line

Lash Perfect - Ultimate Black Mascara 

♥ Lips

Lancome - Juicy Tubes in Fraise

I really loved this look. Think the aqua in the corner of they eye gives it that real summery POP!
What do you think? xoxo

Spoiled Birthday Girl >

So it was my (27th) Birthday last week and I have to say, I was one spoiled Birthday Girl ♥
I had a lovely evening out with my friends on my actual birthday (birthday FOTD post and pictures to follow) plus had birthday celebrations continuing throughout the weekend with friends visiting from overseas! Wanted to share some of the amazing gifts I got for my birthday :) 

A gorgeous teal Longchamp bag! My sweet flatmates got this for me from Nice (France) and told me the bright blue colour was the colour of the season there! Which is fab because I love bright colours anyway - think this bag will come in very very handy! Plus now that I am the owner of a Longchamp bag I feel properly British ;)

Check out the super funny and creative card my work friends made me! 'The Dutchess' Magazine :)

LOL it just cracked me up so much!

Two of my besties from New Zealand (currently in London woop woop) got me some beautiful goodies from Chanel - they know me SO well ;) A lovely pink lipgloss and a Les 4 Ombres Palette in Mystic Eyes.
Of course a review and swatches post of these items will follow!

Plus also in this picture is a scarf I got from one of my friends. As you know, I am a big fan of stripes so this scarf is perfect for me and the mix of beige, pinks, purples and coral is just to die for.

My dear friend Lulu (who's featured quite a bit on this blog) came from Holland to London especially for my Birthday weekend, awwww ♥! She got me these funky stud crystal earrings from Swarovski. Such a cool black/granite/grey colour - gives them a cool edgy look while still pretty and sparkly. Love them :)

And last but not least - my annual Tiffany & Co present! You may remember that last year I also got some earrings from T&C (read the post here) and so this year I had already chosen which item I wanted from my (ever growing) lust list from my favourite shop in the world ;) My parents got me these beautiful silver ball earrings which I just adore. They come in 8mm and 10mm diameter and I chose the bigger version because think it makes them pop a little more! Thanks mum & dad :)

So that was a selection of my birthday gifts; am I a lucky girl or what!?
Thanks to all my wonderful peeps for the presents and birthday wishes! :) xoxo

M.A.C Autumn/Winter 2011 Trends Recap

MAC has just released a their Autumn/Winter 2011 trends recap.
In the recap they provide summaries and images on the key beauty trends that emerged from the AW11 season, details of the key products were used to create these looks, quotes from key makeup artists on inspiration and more! 

Here are two of my favourite trends from the recap:

The 'Mod-Ernist' Trend is the sixties look through modern eyes. Think beige, think lashes, think a little bit mod and feline. Flawless featherlight foundation, highlighters, super sheer powders and gloss, gloss gloss (looking lovely and luminous all-over) Love the lip shade from the Chloe show, the combination of glossy orange eyes with bubblegum pink lips in Donna Karan and the sexy mod flicks on the Behnaz Sarafpour models.

Amber to grey (and every shade of rust, rose, sand, bark, lavender and burnt gold in between). It's all about a palette of twilight shades, applied in stains and washes. Softer-edged makeup but still cool and contemporary. Bold lips and bold brow combo for Hakaan is stunning and love the rust and purple smokey eye on the Norman Ambrose model.

I love reading about the lastest makeup trends from the world of fashion to find inspiration for my daily make up looks! Do you? Check out the full recap by MAC here! xoxo

NARS - Makeup Your Mind: Express Yourself

The other night I was invited to Harvey Nichols in Knightbridge to check out the new NARS makeup book, plus to experience one of their amazing 'MakeUp Your Mind' masterclasses for myself!

In 2001, François Nars published Makeup Your Mind, a best selling beauty manual featuring glossy photographs uniquely overlaid with clear instructional guides. The first in a series of three books, featured professional models photographed 'before' (without makeup) and 'after' (with makeup), demonstrating the transformative effect of makeup effect plus instructions on how to achieve the looks at home! 

In his new book, Makeup Your Mind: Express Yourself he takes the before-and-after concept to the next level by transforming 56 real women and men scouted on the streets of New York City. The people vary in age from 16 to 64, and represent a wide range of countries including Russia, South Afrika, Guatemala and Sweden. I love the fact that in François books, he doesn't just write about the makeup application, but shows readers how it’s applied by including “before” and “after” pictures overlaid with clear paged diagrams, it gives you a great instant visual of the transformation!

"My hope for this book, and for my makeup, is to give you the information and tools with which to express yourself in as many different ways as you can dream up" - François Nars

At the event I got to have a good look through the book and check out all the amazing transformations!
Then I got told to pick a look that I liked, for one of their talented makeup artists to transform moi :)
I chose a look called 'the Ballerina' because I really liked the soft eye matched with a bright pink lip!This is me at the end of my Makeup Your Mind Masterclass showcasing the finished look! I really loved the result, because it's quite different to my usual makeup looks! On my lips he used the new 'Carthage' Pure Matte Lipstick, which has just launched as part of their Summer 2011 Collection. I want.... ;)

Also check out this cool website they created for the the Makeup Your Mind book! Here you can select some of the looks from the book and 'try it for yourself' - it will provide you step by step instructions how to recreate the look!

Inspiring customers to have fun with different makeup looks, you can now experience one of these great Makeup Your Mind Masterclasses for yourself at Harvey Nichols at only £35 for a 2 hour class, which is redeemable on product! Plus you will leave with a personalised face chart & complimentary travel size 'Orgasm Illuminator'.

If you are looking for a beauty manual book then I think Makeup Your Mind; Express yourself is fantastic because it provides very detailed instructions to create so many different looks ranging from natural and demure to dazzling and outrageous. It's also lovely to see the looks on real men and woman with different skin tones, face shapes, ages and ethnicities. I also really like that on the clear overlay it will say 'champagne eyeshadow' for example so if you don't have the particular NARS product used, you can still recreate the look with a similar product that you do own.  The book provides insider knowledge from François but also encourages people to be who they are and express their individuality through makeup. In a recent interview with François he talked about how he came up with the looks for each subject:
"Instead of crafting each look based on what suited the individual's personality, I focused on bringing out her or his natural beauty, rather than concealing it. Ideally you want someone to say to you, "you look great!" rather than, "your makeup looks great". You should always see the person first and the makeup second" I think this is SO true!

Makeup Your Mind: Express Yourself (£29.99) is available now at Harvey Nicols and narscosmetics.co.uk 

Plus check out this amazing video tutorial by Sam of Pixiwoo, where she recreates an emerald green eyes look from the book! xoxo

The Beauty Department with LC!

A bit of fun news came across my desk the other day that I thought I'd share with you all. Well it turns out that Lauren Conrad  has decided to take her beauty knowledge online! Lauren was by far my favourite on the MTV show 'The Hills' and the girl was smart enough to get off that show before it became a bit loony! Anyhow, ever since she left the show LC has been really busy focusing on her career designing clothes, writing books and sharing her love or fashion and style with us! I personally love Lauren's sense of style and beauty, she's one of my fashion and beauty icons! ♥

So now LC has decided to launch her own beauty website, called 'The Beauty Department'.

With the help of her makeup artist, Amy Nadine, and her talented hair stylist, Kristin Ess, she will be sharing all her knowledge, looks and inspiration with us regularly. How exciting right!


What they say "This is a site for anyone who’s ever had a beauty question or gotten into a fight with a hair brush and lost. We’ll be covering all kinds of hair+makeup how-to’s, nail trends, skin issues, tools, current obsessions & inspirations, as well as countless quick tips."

One of the first hair tutorials posted on the website shows you how to create gorgeous vintage curls!

Click here to see step-by-step instructions on how to create this look! Love it :)

I've got to say I am very impressed with thebeautydepartment.com, so LC definitely has my vote & support! Hopefully she'll feature a tutorial soon on how to create those famous soft curls and perfectly winged eyeliner, I can't wait! :) What do you think, will you be checking out and following LC's new site? xoxo

Travelling Light..

Happy Friday Everyone!
I hope you have all had a good week? I'm very excited today because I am off home (to The Netherlands) for a few days over the weekend. The last time I went was around Christmas time, which is ages ago now, so can't wait to catch up with friends, family and see The Netherlands in Spring time! Love it around that time of the year, with all the tulips and flowers in bloom!

Because I am only going for a 3 day weekend I am flying budget which means I can only take carry on luggage. Therefore I need to pack light! People have asked me this question quite a lot so I thought I would share what (essential) cosmetics items I take with me for a weekend away (when travelling light)...

♥ MakeUp:
Concealer - MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NC20
Liquid Foundation - Bourjois 10hour sleep effect foundation
Powder - MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Light
Bronzer - Bourjois de Poudre Bronzing Powder (review coming!)
Bronzer/Blush - Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Sea Star Bronzing blush (review coming!)

Blush - 17 Blusher in First Kiss (review coming!)

Liquid Liner - Eyeko Graffiti Eyeliner Pen in black

Mascara - Boots No7 Exquisite Curl MascaraEyeshadows - Urban Decay Naked Palette which also includes a brown & black kohl liner!

These are probably my main cosmetics essentials and I will end up taking different foundations, bronzers, blushes and mascara's etc. depending on the products I am loving at that particular time. However, the Naked palette has become quite a staple for me to take travelling. It's just the perfect palette - so many great options from natural to smokey :)

♥ Brushes & Tools:
Blush Brush - Manicare, Artiste Stippling Brush 17
Foundation Brush - MAC 187 Stipling Brush
Contour Brush - Sigma SS168, Large Angled Contour Brush
Powder Brush - Sigma SS150 Large Powder Brush
Lash Curler - Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler
Brows - Ultra3 Brow Pencil
Small Blending Brush - MAC 217 Blending Brush
Pencil Brush - MAC 219 Pencil Brush
Flat Shader Brush - Sigma  SS239 Eyeshadow Brush
Big Blending Brush - MAC 224 Tapered Blending Brush

I tend to use a mix of MAC & Sigma brushes as I love them equally!
I hope you guys enjoyed this post and wishing you all a wonderful weekend :) xoxo

New MakeUp Storage Solution

My ever growing makeup collection was becoming quite a mission to store in my room so this got me on on the hunt for a new makeup storing solution. After some online research, I got some fab ideas from other blogs, and this brought my attention to the Muji Acrylic Drawer boxes! So last weekend I ventured out to their Covent Garden store and purchased myself a new makeup storage solution: TADA!

What I ended up getting was:

♥ 2x Acrylic Boxes (2 drawers) wide

♥ 1x Acrylic Box (2 drawers) with flip, wide

♥ 1x Acrylic Box divider (large)

They are stackable and super solid. I love how they are clear so you can see exactly what's in each draw and it really tidies it all up, while making my makeup easily accessible. At the moment I haven't quite organised it properly yet because think I actually need some more draws to fit all my make up but for now my draws are organised as follows (from top to bottom): Draw 1 (with flip lid!): Concealer, Powder Foundation, Eyelash curler and Brow pencils, Draw 2; MAC Paint Pots, Eye primers and bronzers, Draw 3: MAC pigment sample pots and Barry M Dazzle Dusts (I used the divider in this draw-handy!), Draw 4; Mascara's, Eyeliners and pencils, Draw 5; Blushes and Draw 6: Loose eyeshadow pots. 

Think I will definitely be getting some more of these storage boxes to fit my lipsticks, glosses, more foundations and eye shadow palettes. Plus they sell these acrylic round pots which could be perfect to store my brush collection!! For worldwide stockist information on Muji products visit their website!  

Do you like my new storage solution? Also if you have any other great ideas - please let me know! :) xoxo