Saturday 28 July 2012

New YSL logo...

Hi all!

So recently I did a post about how Yves Saint Laurent were changing their same to Saint Laurent Paris (if you haven't read it click here)...well the new logo has been released and I thought you'd like to see the results....




So there we have the new logo. I for one really don't like it at all, I just cant understand why they would mess with such an iconic name and logo. But I guess its something we'll have to get used to!

What are your thoughts on the new logo? Let me know in the comments.

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Until next time...keep smiling :-)

Tuesday 10 July 2012

July Magazine Freebies!!!

Hi all!

I was in M&S and walked by the magazine section and spotted sooo many free gifts with different magazines that I couldn't wait to get home and write a post. I got a little carried away and almost brought the lot...but I was with my my mum so had to show some control!

So without further adieu here are the fab gifts you guys should look out for...

Marie Claire



The cover has the beautiful Marion Cotillard on it and the free gift is a choice of three full size Avon mascaras which are worth £10! The magazine itself will cost you £3.70 so its a bargain! I do love Marie Claire magazine, its a great read, plus I already have an Avon mascara and its great.

You can choose from the following mascaras:
* Super Curlacious Mascara
* Super Shock Max Mascara
* Super Extend Extreme Mascara

Harper's Bazaar


The cover model for Harper's Bazaar is the gorgeous Miranda Kerr (who I love!) and the free gift is a choice of two 50ml Neom Luxury Organics hand creams! These sound amazing and I think a definite must for those, like me, who get very dry hands all year round. The magazine costs £4.20 and a full size (75ml) Neom hand cream costs £20.00. Bargain!

You can choose from the following hand creams:
* Inspiration hand cream (with violet, chamomile and ceder wood)
* Complete Bliss hand cream (with Moroccan blush rose)

Elle


The Elle cover girl is Mila Kunis (and she looks amazing, I love the styling on this shoot) and the free gift is a choice of two St.Tropez Gradual Tan Body Moisturisers. Personally I don't use fake tan but I have heard great things about this brand. The magazine costs £3.90.

You can choose from two shades of the tan:
* Light/Medium
* Medium/Dark

Glamour

With Kate Beckinsale on the cover the free gift with Glamour is a choice of four Balance Me skincare products, all travel sized. The magazine is £2.00.

You can choose from:
* Pure Skin Face Wash (50ml)
* Rose Otto Intensive Lip Salve
* Balancing Face Moisturiser (20ml)
* Wonder Eye Cream (7ml)


Red

Jools Oliver (Jamie Oliver's wife) is on the cover of Red magazine which is giving away a free Ren skin care kit! The magazine is for £3.90 and the kit is worth £16 so its a great deal. I've never tried Ren so this may be my chance, and yours!

In the kit you get:
* Vetiver v7 Hand and Body cream (15ml)
* Hydra-Calm Global Protection day cream (15ml)
* Radiant Eye Gel (3ml)

And that's the lot...phew!! So has this post tempted you to get any goodies? Let me know what you'll get and if you have any of these what you think...

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Until next time...keep smiling :-)

Sunday 8 July 2012

YSL Touche Eclat Foundation

Hi all!

Make-up lovers all over the world would have jumped with joy when they heard of the release of this foundation...and I was one of them. And when I spotted this in my local Debenhams I could not wait to give it a try. The MUA was very helpful and gave me a 7 day sample of the foundation, and then put my name on the waiting list....yes there is one and it was very long! :-o



I've been using it for a little while now and thought I'd share my thoughts with you lovely ladies....

The Claim

The new YSL foundation is a bold, unique formula to target shadowy areas and define contours. A magic light infused within a weightless fluid. A texture that has no mask-like effect. A formula free of opaque powders that evens the complexion and erases imperfections, enhancing the face's natural features.

Colour Range

I have to say that YSL have been very good in having a wide-variety of colours to suit most skin tones...thank goodness! They have organised the colours into 3 families; rosy beige (BR), golden beige (BD) and natural beige (B).

I was perfectly matched and I was really pleased how the colour suited my skin tone so well. It's normally such a hassle for me to find a good match to my skin, but I love how the colour looked on me.

The Packaging and Price

Since this is YSL I'm sure you'll all know, without me even saying, that the packaging is beautiful. The foundation is housed in a heavy glass bottle with a gold lid...very pretty and it looks and feels expensive. This is one foundation you will have front of house on your dressing table! ;-)

And you will all be pleased to know that it comes with a pump!!!! YAY!!! I am so glad they did this, its one of my pet peeves when foundations don't have a pump, especially when the brand makes you buy a separate one *cough Nars *cough. So well done YSL.

Now onto price, this bad boy comes in a standard 30ml and will cost you £28.00. Now I think this is quite reasonable for a high-end foundation, its obviously not cheap but its not too expensive so I'm quite happy with the price.

My Thoughts

Texture
It's kind of like a gel type texture, its not runny and its a bit creamy too when you apply it. It feels lovely and weight-less on the skin, honestly you cant even tell your putting foundation on! It also smells quite fresh to me, definitely no strong foundation smell a la Double wear. So for all those that hate strong smells you'll be happy with this.

Application
It applies like a dream! If really does just glide onto the skin and I find a little goes a long way, so I would advice using a small amount and building up if you need it. I really like using a traditional foundation brush to apply this, I think because of its consistency it works better with this type of brush. But fingers would also work good too. The MUA told me that YSL were bringing out a special brush to be used with this foundation...and it costs more than the actual foundation! No thank you.

Coverage
This foundation can give you a medium coverage, it will not give you full coverage, and if that's what your looking for then this may not be for you. Now personally I like medium to full coverage as I don't have the best skin....but I really like the coverage this gives, and there's always concealer for those annoying areas which need some extra attention.

Look
Now of course this gives you a fabulously dewy look to the skin. It also manages to look natural on the skin like you just have inner glow coming through, and not that your wearing any foundation. I love this about the foundation. I'm always on the look out for a foundation which gives me coverage but also looks natural which isn't easy, but this does just that.

Now be warned though that this can get a bit too glowy when you've warn it for a while. I have normalish skin and I found after a few hours of wear it got a bit too dewy for my liking (not massively so that I looked like an oil slick, but still), so I'm a bit worried that those with oily skins may suffer. But if you have the right powder to set it with then maybe it would work. But be warned, if you don't like the glow don't pay the dough!

Lasting Power
On my skin this lasted pretty well. I wore it for a full day to a party and when I got home and took it off late in the evening it was still there, no issues. Of course if you find foundation doesn't last on you then the normal rules apply, primer and powder till your hearts content!

Overall Thoughts

Overall I have to say...I LOVE this foundation, its really great. And I was a tad sceptical about it as I like more of a fuller coverage and a satin finish....but there is something about this that has me feeling like I cant wait to do my make-up in the morning!

I would highly recommend this to everyone, even if you don't normally go for this type of foundation you should still try it. I suggest popping to your local counter and asking for a sample and giving it a go...what do you have to lose? And to all those who love it like me, its releasing in the UK on 9th July so purses at the ready! ;-)

Will you be trying it?

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Until next time...keep smiling :-)

Thursday 5 July 2012

Calling all Potterheads!!!!

Hi all!

I'm back today with a non-beauty related post...I couldn't resist...and for all Harry potter fans out there I'm sure you'll all appreciate this and understand why!



So you may be aware of the Harry Potter Studio Tour which started in April this year, and if you don't then where have you been! lol. Basically the studio in Leavesden where the films were mainly shot has been opened to the public so all Potter fans can go and see the real life sets used in the films! Amazing I know! :-)

I went recently for my birthday and I thought I'd briefly share some pics and thoughts on the day. I won't go into too much detail for all those that want to go and experience everything new, and also once I get started I won't be able to stop!

THE PICTURES

The Great Hall

Diagon Alley
Magnificent Hogwarts Model

These are just a few aspects of the Tour (there is a heck if a lot more!). These pictures don't do the sets justice, they are all so incredibly detailed its quite unbelievable. And all the props are fantastic too, seeing them is so strange as now every time I see a film I always think oh I've been there and I've seen that! I can guarantee that you will not be disappointed if you go, in fact even those who aren't fans will appreciate the craftsmanship and detail put into every single aspect of the film.

So will you be going???

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Until next time...keep smiling :-)

Monday 2 July 2012

June Nail of the Month: Duo-chrome chic

Hi all!

June just flew past, I didn't even realise it was July until someone told me!!! Its gone too fast. Anyhoo here's a nail look which I was loving in June, something a bit different which I stumbled across when I was experimenting on a boring Sunday! lol



It was quite difficult to capture the different colours, but I tried my best. I absolutely loved this nail look, my nails always looked different in different lights. There was a mix of navy, gold, red, green and blue! Very pretty and I liked that it was dark too. :-)

I experimented with 2 different nail polsihes, which were...

Rimmel Lasting Finish polish- Midnight Blue and Max Factor mini polish- Fantasy Fire

Another reason I used these 2 together was because the Max Factor nail polish is sooo sheer! And I couldn't be bothered to sit around and apply 5 coats of polish so I opted to use an opaque base coat. The Rimmel polish really only needs 1-2 coats, its a lovely deep navy colour, very pretty, the only down side is that it stains your nails!

With these 2 polishes my nails lasted very well, in fact they lasted a week and by the end there was only minor wear on the tips, which is pretty darn good.

Hope you guys liked my nail look, let me know your thoughts and any combos which work well for you.

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Until next time...keep smiling :-)