Summer make-up tip No1 - Return to the basics!

Summer has started here in England! Are you guys as excited as I am?
As the days are warmer, our wardrobe gets lighter.. floaty maxis, sheer lace tops and short shorts.
And with the wardrobe getting lighter, our make-up has to keep up too.
Sheer, soft and not too caked-up.

The biggest foundation problem in the summertime? Having to swap for a lighter one - not enough coverage, buying all the wonder-products - too expensive. One option is the usual tip of mixing yours with your favorite moisturizer, then applying for more moisture and lighter coverage. But for me, that is a bit too messy and I've noticed it does not work with all moisturizers/foundations.
My tip is returning to the basics - Apply your usual foundation with a wet make-up sponge. Apply with a dabbing motion, concentrating on the problem areas and the center of the face and then let it fade out to the edges.

The sponge will soak up all the excess foundation and spread it out more evenly with a bit of water, giving you full control to build up the coverage you want and need. 
Result? Light, airbrushed, flawless complexion.

What is even more genius - Wet the sponge in ice-cold water - the coolness will calm down your skin, help the redness and just help you cool down on a hot day. (And you will appreciate the last one more than you can imagine!)
I would advise you to buy a big bag of disposable sponges (mine are just 50 for £1 from Poundland - which will last for ages) though and not use one for longer than once as the bacteria will multiply a lot faster in heat. Don't risk it!
And here's a little preview of my next post - bubblegum/pale pink lips for the summer and make-up to match!

Lots of love, 

S

xoxo

I'm back! FOTD: Daytime glam

I was just having one of those days when you need a bit of a confidence boost and a bit of glam to cheer up, and, let us all admit it - feel stronger. A bold lip, a contoured face, a dark outline along the lash - it all makes us feel so feminine and reminds of the power of a woman.

And this is what I have been preaching for a while now (and some of you will recognize this line) - "What You visualize, You materialize". So, when going through rougher times, slick on that bright lipstick, or that glowing blush that makes You LOOK and working with that - FEEL confident - and You will shine inside and out. True strength comes from the inside, and we all have it, but it has to be brought to the outside through very little things and details like make-up to truly shine.

Hope this inspired atleast one of you, and although I have been absent for a short while now, I am very determined to post every week and work hard to find time for it as make-up is my love and passion, and what really inspires me and I'm so grateful for every single one of you who is reading this. 

I've got a wonderful bubblegum lipstick look (inspired by Marina Diamandis) coming up this week and the Rimmel 1000 Kisses lipstain review so do come back :)

Lots of Love,

S

xoxo

Marina Diamandis inspired

So, for the past couple of weeks or so I've been obsessing over Marina and The Diamonds, good music, genius lyrics and such a stunning beauty! 

So, quite obviously, I've been very inspired by her look as well - a lot of black eyeliner framing her eyes, quite a strong brow, and always, no matter if it's pale or dark, a statement-making lip color. Genius!

The eye was actually quite unusual at first as it's the opposite of what I normally would wear - I would avoid anything too dark on the bottom lashline as my eyes are quite hooded naturally. But I do love it now and I love the way it transforms my look, I feel like I'm taking pride in what mother nature and genes have given me by drawing attention to the natural shape of my eyes. 

Super-simple, quick and bit messy - but in a fun way - I will do this again for a night out! 

Just line your eyes with a black pencil liner (I just used MUA, I think it is shade 1) and smudge, smudge, smudge! Layer some more on top and smudge a little more! (It is actually quite fun, isn't it?) To add a bit more shape to the eyes, line them with Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Liner Black both top and bottom. Add a pair of falsies and finish off with your favorite mascara, I used Clinique High Impact Mascara in Black.

For the rest of the face, because the eyes and the lips make enough of a statement already, keep it simple. I've used Healthy Mix foundation and Elizabeth Arden Sun Goddess Bronzing Powder in deep for some contour. 

Here's the fun part - the lips. I love both the dark and the chalky look on her so, being as inspired as I am, I've tried both. I've used Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in 006 - Pink Blush in the top picture. 

(Dare to go for something bolder, I've already added Barry M Lip Paint in Palest Lavender to my shopping list.) In the following pictures, I just used a lip brush and the same Maybelline eyeliner as mentioned before as a lip paint.

Can I say I'm absolutely in love with the black lip now? 

Not sure if the world is ready for me wearing a black lipstick yet unfortunately.

Too much for a night out?

xoxo

S

FOTD - a bit of mint

As I decided to wear a powdery-pink studded blouse today, I wanted my make-up to match - soft, girly and with a bit of edge. :

• To add to the girly, I went for a lovely mint shade for my eyeshadow (using the good old CS 88 Matte Palette, keep forgetting how great it really is, the finish, the hold, the color payoff!) and a pair of falsies and a white in the waterline for a doll-like finish. 

• Then, to balance it out and add a bit of edge, kept the brows strong and added my signature red lippie - MAC in Ruby Woo! 

The look really is as easy as it sounds, for my foundation I used the usual Bourjouis Healthy Mix (and dabbed a little extra instead of using concealer in the problem areas - around the nose, under-eye, etc. for a very natural yet airbrushed effect) and highlighted my cheekbones, nose and chin with Benefit High Beam.

 

And I think this eyeshadow has started my mint obsession for the spring. What better shade to feel girly and spring-time-ready without being too much? And I am hunting for the perfect mint going out dress for my 21st (which is in exactly a month, not sure how I feel about it yet!) as I am writing this. Keep you updated on my progress, 

Take care,

S

xoxo

P.s. What is your favorite shade this spring?

Brighten up! - FOTD

First of all, I appologize to all my lovely followers for being absent for so long once again, with moving out, working, going on holiday back to Latvia there has not been a lot of free time for me, and if there were a few hours or so, I'd be catching up on all the lost sleep as I am now.

Even with that, I'm feeling full of energy as the longer days and sunshine charge us all up like solar batteries. And as there's color and brightness everywhere, let it shine through your make-up as well.

As much as I'd love to be bronzed and glowing right now more than ever (and I've blogged about it), that's just not for my complexion. If you're a honey-bronzed-beauty, now is the time to return to your sparkling bronzers, gold eyeshadows and coral lipsticks.

For skintones like mine and all the pale beauties, there's still an alternative - subtle neons (no, that is not fiction - just use small amounts of color and blend into a paler pastel) teamed with a bit of bronzer will go a long way.

Top tip - don't think you need to choose a light bronzer if you're pale! They're great for brightening up deeper complexions but not for contouring as they will shop up as orange in contrast with pale skin. Pick a deeper one instead and keep applying it in very sheer layers.
Here, I've used Elizabeth Arden Sun Goddess Bronzing Powder in Deep to contour. For a bit of brightness, add a neon-pink blusher. Again, very sheer.

Keep the eyes simple and pull the look together with a coral pink lippie, you're spring ready!

Hope You are all as excited for the sunshine and all that the s/s season is going to bring us,

S

xoxo

Saturday Night Sparkle

There's something about Saturday night partying I enjoy more than sipping cocktails, dancing my heels off and meeting old - and new - friends - getting ready! And I'm sure a lot of You ladies will agree, it's the picking an outfit and a MU look to match, planning ahead from Monday, that adds all the excitement.

So this is what I wore last night when going for drinks with a friend and one key product I'm absolutely in love with. I know it's been around for a while and I picked it up at IMATS but never really got the chance to test it till now - it's Illamasqua Liquid Metal in Phenomena!

It's like no other product, a cream shadow that actually feels like liquid when blending, very light and sheer yet provides amazing coverage. Incredibly rich with pigment and shimmery particles, a must have when You want some sparkle without going too glitter-crazy!

It does not crease a lot but here's a little trick to make it last all night:

• Over an eyeshadow primer, dab a thin layer of the Liquid Metal and blend slightly outwards
• Apply a sheer layer of a matching eyeshadow - I used the silvery shade from the Elizabeth Arden Color Intrigue Eyeshadow Quad in Blue Breeze - just dab it accross the lid with Your finger as You don't want too much coverage, it's more about the powder-like layer to set the product in place
• As the cream eyeshadow is very sparkly and sheer, the eyeshadow might take a bit of the mirror-like sparkle away so dab a thin layer over the eyeshadow again. This way, the powder and the layering will keep the product in place yet You will still have the amazing effect. 

So You have a layer of Liquid Metal, eyeshadow and Liquid Metal again!

 

P.s. As You can notice, the pictures are much clearer and the detail is more visible, as I'm the proud owner of a brand new camera! Yay! 

What is Your must-have Saturday night product?

Lots of love,

S

xoxo

Randomness + Modern 50s FOTD

This is so exciting! First of all, bloghop is such a great idea! I've found so many great blogs to follow and I'm drooling over all the products with the great reviews I never knew about, dying to try out all the make-up looks and absolutely amazed by some ladies' great fashion sense! Find out more here

 

Second of all, I've hit more than 100 followers! It is absolutely amazing and I'm so grateful for each and every one of You that keeps checking this blog out, each an inspiration to keep going! I'll possibly be doing a 100 follower giveaway, stay tuned!

And last but not the least, just a random FOTD from yesterday as I was just meeting a friend for drinks. The quality is not that good as they were taken with my blackberry but here it goes:

 Attempting to channel a modern 50s with pale skin, a full brow and a strong lip

NYX HD Studio Photogenic Foundation 

Estee Lauder in Mink on the brows

Soap&Glory Supercat™ Eyeliner pen Carbon Black Extreme

Revlon GrowLuscious Mascara

NYX Loose Pearl Powder in Pearl (over the lid)

Primark falsies (And they're actually my favorite falsies now!)

Illamasqua Cream Blusher in Sob

Benefit High Beam

and

Mac Matte Lipstick in Ruby Woo

-

Keep coming back as there's more exciting stuff coming up in the next few days, lots of love to all my followers,

S

xoxo