"Let's do what we love and a lot of it.. " Marc Jacobs




Thursday 10 December 2015

Glossybox for NARS

Hello lovely friends!



 I am pleased to share with you my review of the exclusive limited edition Glossybox in collaboration with NARS. The box is truly a gem! I was lucky enough to get my hands on one for myself and one for my friend Marine; who lives in France and is a fellow Glossybox subscriber. I forwarded the box on to her and she was as super excited about this box as I was! I think it has to be the best collab I have experienced with any beauty box. These boxes sold out in something like 30 minutes which was just crazy and there truly was a lot of hype around this box.... So I thought.. I must get my hands on one! I was at the ready when the sale opened and pounced at the chance to get my hands on one of these! And to say I am impressed with this is an understatement... This box is..... AMAZING!


 

The box came beautifully presented true to the NARS brand in a sleek matte finish box complete with the NARS logo on the side of the box and the Glossybox logo on the outer lid... Very simplisitic! However... NARS doesn't need anything extravagant to make a statement. Now I have not used many NARS products in the past so I thought this would be the perfect taster to sample a good range of their products. 5 products are found in the box; one "Audacious" mascara, one "Larger than Life" eyeliner, one "The Multiple" blush stick, one "Blush" and one "Satin lip pencil". Let's have a look at each product in more detail....! Eeeeeeeeek!















The first product I pulled out from the box was the "Audacious mascara" in Black moon. This small 3ml mascara is.... Just.. Wonderful! I forgot to say that the products found in this box are smaller than full sized and are more a handbag size, which is not something that bothers me at all because these products are perfect for trialling products and perfectly sized for a night out! The mascara has a very unique and clever brush design that incorporates a mix of long and short bristles, little lengthening hooks and is slightly tapered also. The design of the wand is excellent for separating lashes, lengthening and also curling. I prefer these style of wands that are more soft plastic as opposed to an actual brush.. I find they separate the lashes better and give an overall fuller effect and do not require multiple applications. This mascara will surely amplify your lashes and create an almost false lash effect and all that is needed a sweep or two and your ready! Lustrous lashes be having you! The cost of this full sized product is £21.

 

The next product I had a look at was "The Multiple" in Orgasm. This product is a like a highlightling/blush/contouring crayon. NARS claim this is a "cult classic" product and from my first impressions I can see why they feel it is deemed suitable to do so! This multi-use crayon can be used as a blusher, a lip colour, eye shadow and even a subtle body shimmer. The trick with this product is to build it up.. If you want to use it as a blusher apply more.. if only as a highlighter or to add some shimmer keep it toned down. You can use it tailored to what you want from the product and is perfect as a product that gives you a bit of everything! How could anyone hate this??





The full size price of this product retails for £29 and the size I received in the box was 0.4g. This would be a product I'd definitely look into purchasing as some point as it is a perfect all rounded product and you can't really go wrong with it.
 
The next product is "Larger than Life" long wear eyeliner in Via Veneto. Now I am a lover of eyeliner so I was super pleased that they had included an eyeliner in this box. Normally I wear gel liners and find they are very precise; so I was a bit sceptical that this eyeliner could smudge as is it more like an eyeliner crayon with quite a creamy texture. However having tried this it glided on perfectly and surprisingly did not smudge which I was pleased with; I just find these type of liners a bit more difficult to create a bat wing with which is what I always do with my eyeliner. I think I am still a gel liner girl at heart but will get use of this product and would still recommend it; the pigment is intensely dark and I was pleased with the results. The product in this box was 0.3g and the price for the full size is £19.
 




 Last 2 products....! The next product I pulled out was "Blush" in orgasm. I am really pleased with this product and will get a lot of wear out of it as I love the shade however... it does seem a bit samey as the "Multiple" only less shimmery and in powder finish. NARS advise to layer it over the "Multiple" in the evening to create a luminous, intense finish. I will give this a try next time I am going on a night out.. so far I have been wearing it as a stand alone blusher and I am pleased with the results. I think this colour is as close to a signature blush colour I'd wear and is very delicate. I received a 3.5g size of this product and it retails at £23 for a full size.





Last but not least....! The "Satin Lip Pencil" in Rikugien. This is quite a delicate, subtle, dusty rose shade and is something a little more subtle than I normally wear for a lip colour; however it makes for a perfect day wear shade and is suitably apt for autumn. It is very moisture rich and has a creamy consistency that will not require you to use a lot of product and can be blended in really well. I am warming to the shade of this although not sure I would go and buy the full size jumbo lip pencil in this shade.. I'd aim for something more bold. The size of the product in this box was 1.7g and the price of the full size product retails at £19.




 
 
Needless to say.... It is a big thumbs up for me for the NARS box; the box is beautifully presented, the chosen items are superb a good mix of everything especially for the party season of Christmas! The mini sized products are perfect for taking out on a night out..
 
Fav product: Audacious mascara
 
Least Fav product: The Satin Lip pencil.
 
I can now understand the hype around this box and the utter disappointment a lot of people faced not being able to purchase one.. It is truly a unique, beautiful collection of NARS products to trial and fall in love with! I know now that plenty of NARS products will be on my Christmas list! I purchased this box for £35 as I am no longer a Glossybox subscriber.. However the offer was open to Glossybox subscribers for a steal at £30! I do not grudge at all paying the £5 extra! The box is a steal! Excellent work from NARS and Glossybox! 10 out of 10 from me!
 


 
 
 
"Don't hold back. Be bold, It encourages other to do the same." - Francois Nars (Founder and Creative director).
 
In the wise words of Francois.... Stay Bold!
 
 
Thank you soo much for reading and what did you think of the box?
 
Merci!
 
Cheryl xxx
 

Saturday 5 December 2015

Too Faced - Le Grand Chateau

Bon Soir!




I am pleased to present to you all my thoughts on the new and absolutely adorable make up palettes from the brand 'Too Faced' and is a Christmas limited edition collection. This adorable little chateau opens to reveal three individual palettes that include 18 eyeshadows, two blushers, one bronzer and a oh so cute handbag size of the 'Better than Sex' mascara.

Each palette is beautifully designed to look like a little gift; wrapped in a bow and each palette reveals a theme that is tailored for a particular type of event. There is... 'a romantic evening in St. Tropez; a sunny day in Côte d'Azur and a stroll along the Seine at night' there is a palette suitable for all occasions or they can be gifted to loved ones as each palette has a little 'gift tag' on the back where you can write a special message if you choose to gift one to a fellow mademoiselle!.... On this occasion though... sorry my lovely friends! I am keeping them alllll! ahaha they are simply too cute to separate but I would definitely recommend purchasing one of these for a friend who loves make up and has a soft spot for all things French.. Like I do!

Now...... Lets have a look at the palettes!



 
 

The first palette is the evening theme one which has very sultry gorgeous eye shadow shades perfect for a night out,,, All carefully named in French words.. Some have a shimmery and almost glittery effect. The texture of these is perfect.. Not too powdery but enough coverage to give a lasting colour although I do always recommend to apply an eye primer before applying eye shadow. This palette is the most perfect one for a Christmas party night and the blusher which is called 'Tres Fab' truly is Fab! A subtle pink/peachy colour that is most suitable for my paler complexion to apply some nice highlighting on the cheeks for a winters night..





The second palette is 'a romantic evening in St.Tropez'...



This evening look palette has a range of golds and browns that all have a shimmery effect and can be built up to create a look perfect for St.Tropez.. Think golds... tan... bronzed.. gold jewellery... I think this palette would be perfect for a summer time look either for an evening or even a more dressed up day look if you happen to be oh so lucky to be sailing around on a luxury boat somewhere... !

The blusher in this one called 'Mademoiselle' is my favourite as it is bit more of a peachy colour and less pink. The texture of these blushers is only what I can describe as like... silk! They feel weightless on the skin and provide an even coverage.

Now.... For the last palette... Which has a more wider range of eye shadow colours... some browns/pinks/almost a very subtle lilac.. and a cream colour. This palette is the perfect combination for a bit of everything although more suitable for a day look but the colours could all be built up to create that smoky eyed finish. This palette has a bronzer instead a blusher and is called 'Jolie'. Now I am not the biggest fan of bronzer... Due to the nature of my pale complexion.. However it is still a lovely shade and that is the wonder of these palettes; that they have been designed with a range of all skin tones in mind.


I have never used 'Too Faced' products before however after making this first purchase I am sold! I will admit they aren't the most reasonably priced brand.. I purchased this brand from the 'Too Faced' website and was £36.. however the p&p price made the price up to something like £50. So quite expensive but it was being sent from the US. I have recently checked their website and it now looks to be sold out however I am sure there are other outlets on the internet to find this item although it has had a great deal of demand and popularity. I would assume a lot of people are buying this a Christmas gift or a pre-Christmas treat like me!










Oh I forgot to mention...! The set also comes with a cute mascara which I am very impressed with! The applicator is perfect for creating a lengthening look and provides a lot of volume! I think I will look into buying the full sized version of this..


I would give this product a big 9 out of 10! And I will definitely look into purchasing more Too Faced products!


 
Au Revoir mes amis! And stay 'Too Faced'!
 
Love Cheryl xxx

Wednesday 21 October 2015

My Little Creative Box October 2015

 

Bonjour mes ami!

 
 





I am pleased to share with you all my review of the latest offering from My Little Box for October. The theme of this month's box is Creative and the box is in collaboration with Pinterest which fits perfectly with the theme. I know many other beauty boxes do special collaborations from time to time but the thing I love about MLB is that they always get really amazing collaborators on board which make the boxes even more special and it is practically every month that they have such collaborators. Some of my favourite have been DVF, Fleur deForce, Ines de la Fressange and Delphine Pariente.




Soooo......... Without further a do.. Lets see the contents of this box.

One thing that is noticeably different about this box is that the lid of the box is not designed with the standard Kanako illustration instead it displays a collage of photos all MLB related; I think it is aiming for the idea of a Pinterest board which ties in well with the theme and is quite nice to see something different.. However I am a big fan of the Kanako illustrated boxes as they are simply too pretty and lovely to keep. So I hope this idea is just a one off thing..

As always with MLB the box came with an illustrated card by Kanako which displays a quote from Albert Einstein and says.. "Creativity is intelligence having fun". The card is something I will most definitely frame as I do with all of my MLB cards.

So the first item I pulled out from the box was a gorgeous material tote bag which is spotted on one side with the MLB logo and on the other side says: "Collect moments not things". This bag is super cute and functional. I will definitely be getting some good use out of this; and no one can ever have too many tote bags! This retails for £15 in the My Little Shop which is unfortunately not available in the UK yet :(



The next lifestyle item is something I have never actually seen before and is super cute! They are little coloured beads that you clip on to wires for like earphones, phone chargers, whatever you fancy really and I must say I am loving these. I am going to use these to customise my earphones as I am always listening to music on the go and I reckon this idea should prevent them for tangling as easy. Big thumbs up! The wire-wrap beads are retailed at £16.


So moving on to the beauty items found in the little material draw-string bag; and I was very pleased with what I received. There is noticeably a lack of make up items and more skincare products but I am ok with that.. I do love face creams and especially French branded ones that I am not familiar with.



The first item is: Un Songe d'Or beauty oil by Ainy in 100ml size. This is a brand I have never heard of but will most definitely be trying this out. This product is a nourishing oil for the face, body and hair. Inspired by sacred Latin American healing rituals; the brand Ainy is very eco-friendly and have sourced the ingredients from the Andes and Upper Amazon. The oil smells incredibly sweet and is created entirely from medicinal plants. I have recently been using a lot of oils on my skin and as deep hair conditioners such as coconut oil and Polynesian radiance oil. I will most certainly be giving this a go and I love the scent and that it is all purely natural ingredients. This retails at £29 for 100 ml.

The next item is Photo-Hydra Day cream from Talika in 30 ml size. The idea behind this cream is that it has a unique technology that gathers the sun's energy and turns it into intercellular hydrating energy. Aiming to provide hydration all day for your skin I will be interested to see if this technology works but it sounds interesting and I like the idea of the brand and that it is French. The cream has a pleasant scent but not overly scented and has a light texture on the skin. This retails at £43.50 for 50ml.

The last of the skin care items is the product from My Little Beauty and compliments the other products really well; Crème de Minuit is basically a night cream with shea butter and wheat proteins to soothe and nourish skin whilst you sleep. I use night creams a lot as they have a more deep nourishing effect on the skin and give you the much needed moisture your skin requires whilst asleep. Again the packaging for this product is adorable and comes in a 40ml size. From the other MLB products I have tried I like the formulas and often find they work well with my skin so I will be definitely using this night cream, This retails for £15.

 
 
 
Overall I am really liking this month's box.. I was a bit undecided when I heard what the theme would be.. But I am really pleased with the products and will use all of them.
 
Favourite Product: I think it has to be the Photo Hydrating cream and  I really like the cute little beads! Sooo cute!
Least Favourite Product: I actually liked everything so this will be incredibly hard... I can't actually choose! I like all the products so I'm not going to nominate a bad product this month....
 
Thank you for reading! and let me know if you received any products that were different.
 
Merci Beaucoup and Stay Creative!
 
Cheryl xxx
 
 




Monday 12 October 2015

New Shoes, Happy Feet! Nicholas Kirkwood with Roksanda

 
Nicholas Kirkwood in collaboration with Roksanda
 
 
 
I have been lusting after these shoes since they popped up on my newsfeed on Facebook from Oliva Palermo's page... After much contemplating and a sale! Which very much swayed my decision I purchased the Nicholas Kirkwood shoes online from Browns in London.
 
 


Known for his architecturally bold designs, Nicholas Kirkwood presents a beautiful design boasting a neon pink and mint green crossover front, mirrored toe and uniquely curved heel. These shoes are simply vibrant and quirky and capture the vivid spirit of the designer. These shoes will most certainly add a kick to your outfit whether it be a more relaxed pair of skinny jeans or a more dressed up look for a night out.

 
 





Olivia Palermo certainly got me hooked with these shoes and I felt like I needed them in my life! They are even more perfect than the pictures portray and I can't wait to wear them out and about... They came beautifully presented and I definitely think they will be adding a touch of vibrancy to my outfits! Who says autumn has to be dull?

Thanks for reading! Happy shoe wearing!

Cheryl xxx