“The Oldest” in my collection… Tag

Tags

Chanel Coco Shine #48 Evasion, Chanel Joue Contraste #72 Rose Initiale, Diptyque Baies Fragranced Candle, Givency Amarige Mariage perfume, MAC Satin Taupe Wedge eyeshadow, The Body Shop brushes

Today I felt like having a trip down memory lane and revisit the oldest items in my beauty stash – really old ones, but also ones that I repurchased countless times, ones that somehow managed to escape the decluttering my makeup process which takes place twice a year with the precision of a Swiss-made chronograph.

Some of the products I will show you were limited edition items, some are impossible to find at the moment because their brands decided to redraw them from the market, some are simply too cute to get rid of and some, well some have sentimental value! Yes, I’m weird like that and I have a somewhat twisted relationship with my makeup! But don’t you?!

I also thought that it would be more interesting and fun to make the whole thing a Tag!

So with the analytic process coming to an end and all my makeup sorted out and rearranged nicely back in its respective drawers, I managed to come up with 5 categories:

1) my oldest makeup item: the Chanel Rouge Coco Shine #48 Évasion and the Chanel Joue Contraste #72 Rose Initiale bought on the same shopping trip to Sephora, a couple of years ago enabled of course, by the Pixiwoo sisters. Évasion is nowhere to be find at the moment and Rose Initiale is a permanent in the Chanel Joue Contraste Blush line… Thank goodness!

2) oldest limited edition product: the Lancôme Gourmand Colour Bare Lip Sensation Lipstick Le French Touch Collection, in #316 Soft Marshmallow.

It is a lipstick launched with the Spring of 2012 Colour Collection created by Aaron de Mey, called Roseraie des Délices.

I barely wore this one! Why?! But isn’t it obvious?! Would you imagine my boring-nudes-lover-self wearing a bright Barbie-pink lipstick sometime in this life? Exactly!

I bought it exclusively because of the gorgeous petite, pastel-coloured packaging which is a work of art itself! Me and my smart shopping… not!

Kids! Please, don’t do this at home!

3) my oldest perfume is the Givenchy Amarige Mariage.

You can actually see how loved this perfume was. It’s almost gone and its colour and smell have also changed! I don’t use it anymore but I still keep it as it used to be my signature scent for so many years!

I bought it on my first trip to Rome – Italy so, so, so many years ago! I’ve tried to repurchase it but it’s sadly discontinued…

And also, last year I was lucky to discover the most representative scent for my personality, my real signature scent, the one I’m sure I’ll wear for the rest of my life!

4) my oldest home scent is Diptyque Baies Fragranced Candle, not this precise candle to state the obvious, but I always make sure I have something in this scent somewhere inside the house, whether it is a candle, a room spray, a scented oval or a diffuser! It’s not my usual scent as I mainly go for deep woody, amber-ish scents. This is a fruity one but the wild roses notes and especially the cassis notes make it lighter, not overpowering sweet, and irresistible to me!…

So irresistible that I always keep one in my office too!

5) the oldest makeup tools: these The Body Shop makeup brushes.

These are literally my first makeup brushes I bought! I used to use them daily but when I started to become a makeup snob and sensing the difference a good brush does in terms of application ( see the review on my current Tom Ford favourites here and here ), I tossed these in a drawer and kind of forgot about them!

These would be all “The Oldest” makeup bits I managed to find in my collection.

Now I would love to see “The Oldest” of Jackie, Serene, Katie, Zoe, Alessia, Michelle. And by the way, make sure you check these gorgeous ladies’ amazing blogs. They’re my daily, most enjoyable, relaxing reads!

Also, anyone is welcomed to share with us “Their Oldest” in the comment section below or to do this Tag if she/he desires!

See you in February beautiful, to celebrate together for an entire month, annie’s beauty…‘s first year of blogging!

xx, Annie

Two great bases for smokey eyes: Chanel Illusion d’Ombre #85 Mirifique and Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill #2 Lust Red

Tags

#eotd, chanel, Chanel Illusion d'Ombre #85 Mirifique, Chanel Illusion d'Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow #95 Mirifique, Giorgio Armani, Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Silk Eyeshadow #2 Lust Red, review, smokey eyes, swatches

You know me! I’m for natural makeup all the way! But sometimes I “slip” and go for a bold, sultry, smokey eye mostly on a special occasions like a night out or a party!

I’m not a makeup expert, but after many trials and errors I discovered that using a dark base for a night look it’s like having your smokey eye half done! My most used two smokey eye bases are the Chanel Illusion d’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in #85 Mirifique and Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Silk Eyeshadow in #2 Lust Red.

With Mirifique I’m already on my third Illusion d’Ombre Eyeshadow. My first pick was Ébloui, a limited edition shade and my second was the permanent Mirage.

Released in the Fall of 2011, the Chanel Illusion d’Ombre in #85 Mirifique is an intensely shimmering long-wear eyeshadow which offers true versatility. It can to be worn as an eyeshadow base, on its own as an all-over the lid colour or as an eyeliner.

As a base for my smokey eyes I used to use my MAC Black Tied eyeshadow, but there’s no comparison in terms of formula between the two. I absolutely adore the formula of these Chanel eyeshadows!

Mirifique is a really dark black with holographic shimmers, AND specks of silver glitter to it. An interesting combination of textures which makes it unique and gorgeous. It has that innovative Chanel gel texture that is both velvety and soft, but cushiony and bouncy at the same time. Now I find that my MAC Black Tied is too powdery and has a lot of fall-out, when Mirifique glides on the lid effortlessly and with no fall-out whatsoever.

It also acts like an “adhesive” for the other eyeshadows I layer on top of it and blends like a dream!

The other base I’ve recently discovered is the Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Intense Eyeshadow in #2 Lust Red. This one is made with Color-Fil^TM Technology which gives an innovative hybrid texture to it. Not a powder, nor a cream this eyeshadow acts like a smooth, lasting color film and with just one swoop, you can create a wet, shimmering smokey eye with a multidimensional effect thanks to the second pigment in it. It grants twenty four hours of full intensity colour wear, it’s crease proof, flake proof, waterproof and sweat-proof. So many “proof”s you might say, but I can guarantee you that it actually lives up to all these claims!

It comes in the form of a pressed pigment and it is a complex colour – a rich blackened, purple with burgundy undertones and with ruby-red, violet and blue coloured shimmers. I don’t know how much justice this description does to the actual colour but feel free to look at the picture above, since I somehow managed to catch it’s true colour that day for an Instagram post! 

Also, you are most welcomed to try your own, personalised description and share it in the comments below!

This is a smokey eye look I created using the Giorgio Armani #2 Lust Red as a base, a couple of Burberry Sheer Eyeshadows blended over it, and two coats of Chanel Le Volume Mascara on the lashes. The base is Dior Diorskin Star Foundation in the shade #010 Ivory, set with a bit of By Terry Hyaluronic-Hydra Powder in my t-zone, a bit of contouring using Burberry’s #07 Earthy Sheer Blush, and a bit of Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Mood Exposure from my Ambient Lighting Blush Palette, and some highlighting using the limited edition shade Incandescent Light from the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder Palette. Brows, courtesy of Burberry Effortless Eyebrow Definer in #02 Sepia and on the lips I have the Dior Universal Lip Liner topped with the Tom Ford Lip Colour in #07 Pink Dusk.

Here is a closer shoot of the smokey eye with #2 Lust Red as a base! I really hope you like how it turned out! 

And here you have a hand swatch of the two in daylight. On the left you have the Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill in #2 Lust Red and on the right the Chanel Illusion d’Ombre in #85 Mirifique.

What is your go-to base for smokey eyes my lovelies? Please share!

See you soon, Beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

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The glorious CHARLOTTE TILBURY Filmstar Bronze & Glow Face Sculpt & Highlight

Tags

bronzer, Charlotte Tilbury, Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Face Sculpt & Highlight, highlighter, review, swatches

The second Charlotte Tilbury makeup post in a row? Yes, please!

I’ve been testing a lot of Charlotte Tilbury makeup goodies lately: the MATTE Revolution lipsticks ( Sexy Sienna, Amazing Grace ), the Colour-Coded eyeshadow palettes ( The Sophisticate, The Dolce Vita, The Uptown Girl ), some of the blushes ( First Love and Love Glow ), and a few other items on which I will upload reviews pretty soon. I was beyond pleased with everything I’ve tried this far and I really think that in terms of luxury makeup, the Charlotte Tilbury really lives up to her claims and it’s definitely a good investment!

So it was only normal to get the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow Face Sculpt & Highlight, one of her most hyped products along with the Lip Cheat lip liner in Pillow Talk ( another one I adore and I’ve used every day since I got it! ).

This is a gorgeous product! Inside AND outside!

Just take a look at this beyond amazing packaging! I really am familiar with the iconic rose gold Charlotte Tilbury packaging, but the attention to details on this one is absolutely glorious! Just… No! I’m not saying anything else! Just look at it!…

And when you open it, that’s when the magic starts to work!

The Highlighter is a pale, champagne beige, a soft golden, ethereal colour which will give you the most natural and angelic glow to you face. It blends effortlessly into the most beautiful luminous satin finish.

I’ve heard mixed reviews on this one though! Some said Charlotte Tilbury should’ve released them separately because the highlighter isn’t as great as the bronzer, because it really accentuate pores and imperfections! That never happen to me, not even once!

It’s such a different highlighter from all the highlighting products I have in my makeup collection and one of my most practicals, up there with my all-time favourite Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder Palette. And that’s mainly because of the excellent bronzing powder that accompanies it…

The Sculpt/Bronzer is a light to medium tan, a soft and smooth warm bronzing colour with the most subtle warm undertones and the most beautiful satin finish. It will never turn orange ( my main concern! ) on you no matter how much you apply. The powder is so soft and it blends into your base like a dream.

I’m not the biggest fan of shimmery bronzing products but the soft shimmer particles you see in the pan barely translate on your skin.

I wouldn’t recommend it for those with medium to dark skin though, because I think that it’s simply too light of a colour for such skin types to show on!

Both the Bronzer and the Highlighter come in the same packaging but cleverly divided so that they can be used without making any mess! They work so well together and you can never go wrong with any of it! So I think this would be such an excellent travel companion. In fact, it will definitely come with me in my upcoming Milan trip!

To make everything look even more natural and flawless, they way Charlotte Tilbury said her products were created for, I use her Powder & Sculpt Brush, a tapered brush made of natural goat hairs, encased in a rose gold barrel and night crimson handle. It is not the softest brush you’ll ever try ( if you’d ask me I would have preferred it a tad softer ), but maybe because of that reason its relatively stiff hairs manage to pick up and distribute the right amount of product to serve your needs! It applies and blends your bronzer flawlessly, making the often times tricky contouring game such an easy step in my everyday makeup routine! The tapered tip is somewhat more loose which allows an effortless and uniform blending for both bronzer and highlight!

Bottom line: I absolutely love the Charoltte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow for all the reasons above and I couldn’t recommend it enough!

See you soon, beautiful!

Lots of xx,

Annie

CHARLOTTE TILBURY’s The Uptown Girl Eyeshadow Palette and the complementary MATTE Revolution lipstick in Amazing Grace

Tags

Charlotte Tilbury, Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Palette Colour-Coded Eyeshadows Palette The Uptown Girl, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Amazing Grace, Charlotte Tilbury The Vintage Vamp, Charlotte Tilbury's Lip Cheat Re-Shape & Re-Size Lip Liner Pink Venus, review, swatches

I was so incredibly lucky to have the chance to try so much gorgeous new makeup lately! Most of it from amazing brands like Charlotte Tilbury, Burberry and NARS. And I’m loving every single makeup bit I tried!

My only regret is that’s just one me and so many amazing makeup products! Haha!

But today I finally got around to properly review another beautiful eyeshadow palette from Charlotte Tilbury, The Uptown Girl and to try to create a look using it and its complementary Matte Revolution lipstick in Amazing Grace.

I’m not going to bore you again with all the “technical details” on what Charlotte Tilbury‘s eyeshadows are made with ( I already wrote about that when I reviewed The Sophisticate and The Dolce Vita ), but I have to say again that these are one of the softest, creamiest, pigmented and effortlessly blend-able eyeshadows in my collection, on the same “rank” with my beloved Burberry eyeshadows.

In terms of colour The Uptown Girl is one of my favourite quads this far. I love the colour selection and how holographic the colours are ( you can see that they can look slightly different in different light intensities ).

The colours are:

PRIME – a beautiful peach colour with warm golden undertones and frosted metallic sheen, to use all-over the lid as a base

ENHANCE – a nice dusty gray colour with warm purple undertones and a softer metallic sheen than the colour above, great transitional shade

SMOKE – a deeper purple-gray shade, a medium-dark colour excellent to “smoke” the crease or to use as an eyeliner.

POP – the most beautiful and complex eyeshadow of the entire palette, it is a light and bright warm-toned peach, with the most amazing glitters I’ve ever seen. Unless other glittery eyeshadows I used, Charlotte Tilbury‘s glitter eyeshadows had the least fall-outs and they are pigmented enough to be used on their own or over a base. 

– you can see, from left to right, swatches of PRIME, ENHANCE, SMOKE and POP

When Charlotte Tilbury launched her MATTE Revolution Lipstick range last year, she meant for them to be used for specific looks created with her amazing eyeshadow palettes.

Again, I’m not going to write about “technical details” when it comes to her matte lipsticks, because I already wrote about that when I reviewed Sexy Sienna.

Yet again, her MATTE Revolution Lipstick range has the most comfortable formula in a matte lipstick I have tried this far. They glide on the lips so easily and in a single swipe they pack on the exact amount of colour you need to make your lips look flawless.

Amazing Grace is a dusty pink lipstick with rosy undertones, a vintage rose shade which looks a bit darker online but nonetheless a gorgeous colour, that would look flattering on any lovely lady, regardless her age. I’m sure it will be one of my favourite colours I will use this Spring, along with Lost Cherry.

For this look I used:

Base:

– Burberry Sheer Foundation, colour #04 Trench

– Burberry Sheer Concealer in #02 Soft Beige

– Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow 

• Charlotte Tilbury Cheek to Chic Swish & Pop Blusher in First Love

Brows:

– the Effortless Eyebrow Definer in #02 Sepia

Eyes:

– Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Colour-Coded Eyeshadow Palette The Vintage Vamp 

– Burberry Bold Lash Mascara in #01 Ebony

Lips:

– Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat Re-Shape & Re-Size Lip Liner in Pink Venus

– Charlotte Tilbury MATTE Revolution Lipstick in Amazing Grace

See the original Charlotte Tilbury The Uptown Girl Look here.

What do you think about this eyeshadow palette, beautiful?

See you soon!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

 

INTERESTING FACT:

• • Charlotte Tilbury paired the Bombshell Look with Red Carpet Red Lipstick, the Uptown Girl with Amazing Grace, the Ingenue with Lost Cherry, the Glamour Muse with Love Liberty, the Sophisticate with Birkin Brown, the Vintage Vamp with Walk of Shame, the Golden Goddess with Sexy Sienna, the Rock Chick with Glastonberry, the Dolce Vita with Bond Girl, the Rebel Look with Very Victoria MATTE Lipstick.
• one more detail I recently acknowledged is that all Charlotte Tilbury makeup is pareben free!

 

BREAKING NEWS! BURBERRY launches two more eyeshadows in a NEW formula: EYE COLOUR SILK #200 TEA ROSE and #201 ROSE PINK

Tags

breaking news, Burberry, Burberry Eye Colour Silk, Burberry Eye Colour Silk #200 Tea Rose, Burberry Eye Colour Silk #201 Rose Pink, new release, review, swatches, wet & dry

Sneaky release from one of my favourite makeup brand, Burberry!

As you may already know, Burberry launched the new Spring/Summer 2015 Collection The Birds and the Bees with the representative look back in autumn last year, inspired by “the sheer fabrics, patent textures and vivid shades of the Prorsum runway”, as they say. The makeup artist Andy Rowe, took us through this look step by step ( see it here ) using old Burberry iconic products and announcing a sum of new releases as well, but there was no mention of new eyeshadows launching anywhere. So when I saw these two “new and different” shades on their website for the Rose Pink Look, I knew I had to have them.

They are called the Eye Colour Silk Wet & Dry Eyeshadows and they come in two new shades #200 Tea Rose and #201 Rose Pink. Actually there is another Tea Rose in the old Sheer Eyeshadows line; it’s #11. But you will see the differences between the two when I will compare them later on. #201 Rose Pink is a completely new shade though.

There’s hardly any difference in terms of quality between the Sheers and the Colour Silk eyeshadows. Both lines are buttery soft, they blend effortlessly to create in the shortest time from the easiest look to more pretentious ones. Also, the fall-out is minimal and if you don’t forget to tap off the excess on your brush, you won’t even have any. Both formulas are weightless and silky-smooth and last on your lids throughout the day, beautifully enhancing the look. They both use silicones for smooth and flawless application, and contain micronised satin smooth pigments to ensure long-lasting colour and high pigmentation.

The only difference in the formula is that the new Colour Silk Wet & Dry Eyeshadows use a next-generation powder technology which gives multiple results… As in it can be applied dry for a more natural, buildable look, or wet for intense colour effects and precision lines to shape and define the eye.

You can see them in the picture above swatched wet and dry!

 – left: Burberry Silk Eyeshadow #200 Tea Rose, right Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow #11 Tea Rose

In terms of colour #200 Rose Tea can be described as a soft, medium pink with pink hues. It’s so similar to the original Sheer Eyeshadow in #11 Tea Rose which is a dusty pink with satin finish. But what makes the difference between the two is precisely the finish. 

As you can hopefully see in the picture above, #200 Tea Rose has a softer and luminous finish, with some micro specks of silver glitters through it which don’t transfer on your lids at all, don’t worry! Burberry isn’t that big on glitters anyway!

#201 Pink Rose is what I call the colour of the roses sorbet! The instant I opened it, I immediately pictured a spring garden and the sweet, floral rose scent and recalled the taste of the roses sorbet!

Deeper and with more personality than Tea Rose, Pink Rose is a rosy pink with warm undertones and the same silky finish of the new formula, but less luminous ( the glitter particles are barely there in this one ), which makes it a great colour to define your crease with.

Makeup used: everything Burberry.

Base:

– Sheer Foundation, colour #04 Trench

– Sheer Concealer in #02 Soft Beige

– Light Glow Blush #07 Earthy

Brows:

– the Effortless Eyebrow Definer in #02 Sepia

Eyes:

– #200 Rose Tea and #201 Rose Pink

– Bold Lash Mascara in #01 Ebony

– Effortless Kohl #03 Stone

Lips:

– Burberry Lip Definer #02 Dusty Rose

I also wore the same look with this lip liner and the Lip Glow in #19 Mallow Pink over it and it was a beautiful combination, very appropriate for Spring and Summer.

I’m very excited with these Silk Wet & Dry Eyeshadows new releases, and I sure hope that they were out for a test run and Burberry will release more shades in this lovely new formula.

What do you think about them? Yes or no?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

HIS Winter Scent… The timeless British elegance of PENHALIGON’s Blenheim Bouquet

Tags

man, masculine scent, Penhaligon's, Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet, review, winter

Fragrance is the purest and most devastating arrow in Cupid’s quiver and our collection remembers both historic and brave new scents.

                                                                                      PENHALIGON’S

Talking about “historic scents”, Blenheim Bouquet is a perfume created in 1902 by Walter Penhaligon, addressing a very busy gentleman concerned that his perfume does not smell masculine enough. It is a truth valid in the contemporary world as it was back then, in the past century… Because the moment you’ll inhale this amazing scent, I’m sure it would be rather difficult for you to imagine that it was actually created over one hundred years ago.

I, for instance, was immediately smitten with its fresh, understated and sophisticated scent. A delightful fragrance with a citrus opening ( a mixture of lemon and lavender ), and pleasant woody and musky tones to follow, which makes out of Blenheim Bouquet a subtle, light and modern scent whilst it retains a timeless gentlemanly elegance.

Elegant yet bold enough to stand out from the majority of gentleman’s fragrances Blenheim Bouquet is powerful and seductive, subtle and pleasing… The perfect scent for the contemporary gentleman, distinctive yet versatile, understated yet powerful… Another scent full of paradoxes! Just the way my beloved Penhaligon’s Malabah also is.

How would you like your loved one to smell like this Winter?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

 

INTERESTING FACTS:

– it intentionally wears the name of the Blenheim Palace, home to the 12th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough, seat of one of England’s most respected bloodlines. Designed in the rare, and short-lived, English Baroque style, Blenheim Palace is also notable as the birthplace and ancestral home of Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955.

– initially made for Lord Randolph, Winston Churchill’s father, Sir Winston is reputed to have worn Blenheim Bouquet as well making it an iconic British perfume.

– it’s the second creation of Penhaligon’s House of perfumes after Hammam Bouquet, brand’s first offering, created in 1872.

– Blenheim Bouquet is the first complex perfume ( I’m not talking about simple perfumes like Molecule 01 from Escentric Molecules, which contains only one ingredient ) I’ve encountered which has NO heart notes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Birthday Presents… CHARLOTTE TILBURY

Tags

Charlotte Tilbury, Charlotte Tilbury KISSING lipstick Stoned Rose Confession, Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat Pillow Talk, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution lipstick, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lost Cherry Amazing Grace Walk of Shame, haul, makeup, The Uptown Girl, The Vintage Vamp

Lately, I kept bombarding your Instagram feeds with a lot of Charlotte Tilbury makeup! And there’s a reason for all that! Besides the fact that Charlotte Tilbury‘s makeup is beyond amazing, what I kept from you as my little secret is that as a part of my birthday presents I had the chance to get some more of these goodies!

It’s my first time ordering directly from her official website and I have to admit that the whole experience was delightful. Order received and processed on the same day, shipped the following day, arrived “in the middle of nowhere” in 5 days as stated, with tracking order service and all…

Plus my order came in this beautiful packaging, so carefully wrapped up that I felt it was a shame to ruin it… So I had to Instagram it first obviously, then dig in for the goodies!

The first two items I remember ordering were these two gorgeous eyeshadow palettes. I already owned two The Sophisticate – my first ever Charlotte Tilbury purchase and The Dolce Vita, which was basically the only thing I wore on my lids throughout the holidays. So I got The Vintage Vamp which was on my mind since I got The Dolce Vita ( I intent to do a comparison post featuring the two, already here ), and The Uptown Girl – another one on my wishlist for the longest time.

The quality of Charlotte Tilbury eyeshadows is beyond amazing: buttery smooth and soft, they blend effortlessly on the lids with minor fall-outs, especially from those serious glitters out there.

Then, I’ve never tried the K.I.S.S.I.N.G Fallen From The Lip Stick Tree Lipsticks therefore I had to get me some. Obviously I had to have the nudes first. I am truly impressed with the formula of these, and above all I’ve never used to like “the Kylie Jenner lip” on me… Clearly I hadn’t found THE COLOUR to give me that!… Until now! Here you have pictured the limited edition Confession and the permanent Stoned Rose.

And of course, I had to have a few more shades of the MATTE Revolution Lipstick range. I already own and reviewed Sexy Sienna and it is, by far, the best matte lipstick formula I’ve came across. In this picture you have, top to bottom Lost Cherry, Amazing Grace and Walk of Shame. 

Now I’m waiting for some very, very, very hyped matte lipsticks to arrive in the mail, and I can’t wait to see how those compare to these Charlotte Tilbury little gems!

As you might have seen in my previous Charlotte Tilbury haul, when I placed that order I somehow deleted the Lip Cheat Re-Shape & Re-Size Lip Liner in Pillow Talk from my cart. Clearly I didn’t made that mistake twice! Haha! Gorgeous product! One of the few that really lives up to the hype around it, in my opinion!

By the time I’m writing this post I’ve already tried most of the products here and as an overall impression let me just tell you this: Charlotte Tilbury makeup is one of the best birthday presents a beauty lover can ever receive!

Hope you enjoyed this part of my birthday haul, Beautiful!

See you soon!

xx, Annie

 

 

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#anniesbeautydiorchristmasgiveaway WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT!

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#anniesbeautydiorchristmasgiveaway, announcement, giveaway, winner

Congratulations Anne from Doves and Roses here on WordPress!

You, my lovely are the winner of annie’s beauty… first giveaway!

Thank you for constantly supporting my little blog by liking every post and always answer to my rambles with the best suggestions/advice, or even with a smiley face and a xx only!

It really means the world and for that I’m forever grateful!

Now, please make sure you contact me until Sunday, 18 January 2015 midnight, EET to establish all the details I need to send you your prize as soon as possible!

If not, another winner will be picked via random.org!

Also, a huuuge thank you to everyone else who entered my first giveaway!

And remember all! annie’s beauty… first birthday will be on the 10th of February!

Stay tuned! There will be more amazing surprises for you, my lovely readers, to celebrate my first year of blogging!

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

 

UPDATE :

Giveaway winner confirmed by email Sunday, 18 January 2015, at 19.28 EET! 

Congratulations once more my lovely Anne!

UPDATE :

Anne, the winner confirmed the packaging has safely arrived to its destination, Thursday, 5 February 2015!

 

 

 

NARS ALHAMBRA Duo Eyeshadow review, swatches

Tags

#narsissist, Alhambra, Alhambra Duo Eyeshadow, NARS, review, swatches

It’s been a while since I published my first NARS haul a while ago. But with the holidays and all, I didn’t really had much time to properly use all that gorgeous makeup I got.

This week everything changed when I was going through my forever growing makeup collection and rediscovered this gorgeous eyeshadow duo in Alhambra. I was in a need for new everyday, not over the top, decent eyeshadows because the only eyeshadows that I’ve used lately were my Charlotte Tilbury palettes in The Sophisticate, and more than anything else – The Dolce Vita!

I wanted some simple to apply eyeshadows, that blend effortlessly, and which create a natural eye look in a matter of seconds… Considering that this week was “the back-to-work-week” and the only thing I wanted in the morning was to stay in, read and have some more sleep!

With its soft neutral tones and just enough pearly shine to look bright and fresh, this NARS Duo Eyeshadow in Alhambra might seem one of the most boring neutrals to many. But at a closer look the metallic rose mist paired with its golden champagne complimentary colour can definitely be modern, surprisingly unique, and why not a very unexpected colour combination.

The formula contains micro-fine powders that are highly pigmented, long-wearing and crease resistant, even without an eye primer. They glide on the lids smoothly, evenly and blend effortlessly, without any fall-out whatsoever.

I mainly like to obtain with Alhambra a subtle effect on my lids but a smoldering, more dramatic eye look can also be easily achieved. That one it’s yet to try though, but I’m looking forward to!

 This is the my go-to look !

Here you have a few more details about this eyeshadow duo:

– they’re some of the most true to colour neutral eyeshadows I have ever used; the colour you see in the pan is the colour that your brush will transfer on your lids

– they can be used wet and dry, which definitely will intensify the pigment but mainly the satiny finish they have making pushing it a bit on the metallic side

– it’s a good classic, neutral, everyday pair of colours, very easy to blend, buttery soft and smooth enough not to get crumbly or powdery.

Conclusions:

NARS Alhambra is just what I was expecting it to be – a simple, subtle eyeshadow with a little character due to its pearly-soft shimmer finish, to keep me looking fresh and awake when I have one of those days…

Do you like the look of Alhambra? Let me know if you have any other NARS recommendations!

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

BURBERRY… An overview on their entire Mascara range

Tags

Burberry, Burberry Bold Lash Mascara, Burberry Curve Lash Mascara, Burberry Effortless Mascara, definition, mascara, review, volume

Besides all the other beauty blogger “qualities”, I am also a mascara fiend! Now, who would’ve really thought that, right?!

I’ve tried Chanel, Tom Ford, Dior, Burberry… And when I’ve discovered that Burberry launched two more mascaras last fall I obviously thought to myself that I had to try the new ones too.

I’m not new to the Burberry mascaras. I’ve already tried the Effortless Mascara which I bought in Milan out of sheer necessity ( when I arrived there my mascara wasn’t in my makeup bag where I clearly remember I put it before leaving… So I had to get a new one! If anything else, I can’t get out of the house without wearing at least some mascara! ) and I thought it was really good.

So, with two new releases my curiosity doubled and I ended up buying the Bold Lash Mascara and the Curve Lash Mascara.

All these mascara are volumising and they can be used for both simple makeup looks and more dramatic ones, from day to night.

What I found interesting is that that they also work like a lash treatment being enriched with marine plant glycogen that accelerates fiber growth and strengthens the lashes, whilst providing effortless definition. Which is always a plus, right?!

Doing my research for this post I also discovered that, and I quote: “A protective film forms on the surface of the lash and shields against humidity, rain and heat.”, which is not quite the truth because – speaking from my experience – all of these mascaras don’t resist too long in such ambient, even if they say that this is a “smudge-proof”  formula!

Even so, for me this is not an important aspect because I can always trade a long-lasting, doing-nothing to my lashes formula for the flattering volumising, defining and elongating effect, I always look for on my lashes obtained with a minimum of effort!

Now let’s review the mascaras one by one.

The Effortless Mascara Volumising Lash Enhancer is a mascara with treatment properties which in a single swipe creates definition and natural volume to the lashes, as you can see in the first picture of the collage below. It is Burberry’s first mascara, the one I had to buy in Milan, and I chose the colour #01 Midnight Black. Even if it’s not as black as the other two new releases, I like the effect I get with this one on my lashes, even without curling them.

The Bold Lash Mascara Intense & Volumised Lashes gives – well, a multi-dimensional volumising effect as expected! It’s the most volumising and defining of the range. The creamy, intensely pigmented formula ( it’s the blackest of them all ) gives rich volume for a bold look, the colour being called #01 Ebony. I’m all for intense & volumised lashes, which makes this one my personal favourite mascara of the three!

Created especially for those delicate, shorter, flatter lashes the Curve Lash Mascara Volumising Lash Curl in #01 Ebony aims to create “the open eye” effect. The lightweight formula lifts, volumises and curls each lash to effortlessly enhance and frame the eye. You can see in the last picture of the collage below what a natural-looking volume and perfect definition this mascara adds to my face. I also like to use this one on my bottom lashes because the streamlined brush design makes everything so easy.

– Pic.1 the Effortless Mascara Volumising Lash Enhancer; Pic.2 the Bold Lash Mascara Intense & Volumised Lashes; Pic.3 the Curve Lash Mascara Volumising Lash Curl.

You’ll all agree that a mascara being good or bad is decided from the way it applies! And a good application starts with a good brush! The brushes on all the Burberry mascaras are made with synthetic fibers only their design differs to serve different needs.

On the Effortless Mascara the bristles have a more usual shape and form. They are dense and compact which gives a decent volume and a good definition to the lashes.

For the Bold Lash Mascara the cone-shaped brush effortlessly captures every lash from root to tip coating every lash in the right amount of product to create intensely coloured, volumised and defined lashes.

The brush on the Curve Lash Mascara is the most unusual of the three. The streamlined brush was designed to coat even the most delicate lashes and to create natural-looking volume and definition.

The packaging was also revamped and slightly changed with these two new releases, being coated in that iconic Burberry gun metal shade with the usual checked embossing on it. Where for their first mascara, the Effortless Mascara, the body of the packaging was a transparent sturdy plastic tube with a minimal Burberry logo printed on it. The visual effect of the new packaging is more impactant than the old one though, and I really like it!

Overall impressions:

I really like these Burberry mascaras! Each for the need it serves! My most favourite had to be the Bold Lash Intense & Volumised Lashes though! I think it’s somewhat similar to my all-time favourite Chanel Le Volume! But I also like the other two. The Curve Lash Mascara is the one I use for minimal looks or even when I can’t be bothered to wear any makeup at all and the Effortless Mascara I used anyway because it was the first one I bought… Haha! It’s a really decent mascara but not a “wow” one!

Which one is your favourite? How about your all-time favourite mascara?

Thank you for sticking up until the end of this looong post, beautiful and…

See you soon!

xx, Annie