Stila Wet-to-set Eyeshadow

Stila have just launched their new eyeshadow range. The first of it's kind, the 'Stay All Day 3D Wet-to-set' eyeshadow has been specifically designed to work with water to achieve a high performance, bold shadow look.

Using a wet brush to apply eyeshadow is not a 'new' trick in the beauty world, but this shadow is the first to be designed with this in mind and so works beautifully when combined with water on your brush.

There are 6 colours to choose from and all of them are really gorgeous, wearable shades but my personal favourite is 'Daybreak' below. The black shadow will work great as an eyeliner for an evening look.

Stila Stay All Day 3D Wet-to-Set eyeshadow in 'Daybreak'

These shadows give a velvety, long-wearing finish and the formula ensures maximum, bold colour impact when applied with a wet brush.

I would highly recommend checking out the other colours in the range if 'Daybreak' is not for you - they are all really pretty.

Each palette costs £17, which I think is reasonable.

Will you be giving these a try?


Liz
xo

L'Oreal Nail Polish Confetti

L'Oreal have recently released a range of top coats that give different effects when applied over your standard nail colour.

There are 4 polishes in the range at the moment, 3 of which are 'lurex' - a kind of semi-transparent, metallic effect, which you can get in blue, gold or diamond/white.

The fourth item in the range is the one that interested me most, so I decided to give it a try.

The Confetti top coat is a clear polish with black and white particles. They feel a bit like sequins cut up into tiny pieces and all different sizes. The effect is really different and unique - each nail looks slightly different too, as they are scattered randomly across each nail as you paint it.

It's important to apply a top coat over this to seal the nail, otherwise it can feel quite scratchy and you may (like me) be tempted to try to pick it off...

One other tip is to not apply this over very dark colours - I applied this over a dark blue nail polish and the black particles were barely visible. The look was OK but it's definitely improved when you see both the black and white particles - any colour that isn't too dark will work perfectly.

When I've tried this over a lighter colour I will do a swatch for you all.

These are available now and cost £4.99 each.

Have you tried this product or any others from the L'Oreal top coat range?


Liz
xo

111 Skin Celestial Black Diamond Cream

Continuing the black diamond theme... This night cream by 111 Skin claims to contain black diamond particles. The supposed benefit of this is that this allows the 3 key ingredients to penetrate the skin deeper. 

111 Skin Celestial Black Diamond Cream, £599

Among the 3 key ingredients are collagen and hyaluronic acid - so far, so good, except that both of these are now common in many skincare products that don't contain diamonds and already work well, with lower price tags...

It also contains Vitamin E - which again is great for your skin, but hardly groundbreaking in the beauty world.

The black diamond element of this product is what the brand are using as the main selling point, and no doubt to justify the £599.00 price tag!

There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding the use of diamonds in skincare. Lots of sources say diamonds have 'healing powers'  and improve your well-being, but the only proven skincare benefit of any type of diamond is it's exfoliating properties once it has been ground into a powder and added to cream. 

The idea behind this is nothing unique to diamonds at all - simply that exfoliating before applying products allows the products to sink deeper into the skin. But that is possible with many exfoliating products - not just diamonds, right?

Don't get me wrong - I'm sure this product is quite good based on the ingredients list, but not because it has diamonds in it.

So what do you think? Would you pay hundreds (or thousands) of pounds for genuine diamond products? Or do you think it is all a big marketing stunt to get consumers shelling out for a product which has no major or unique benefit?


Liz
xo

Azature Black Diamond Nail Polish

Would you pay £160,000 for a nail polish?

This has to be the most extravagant beauty purchase you could find...

This is a 267 carat nail polish by Azature, which contains actual black diamonds and a bottle with a platinum sterling cap, topped off with 60 hand-set black diamonds.


The polish itself comes in a black silk bag, inside a big leather box which is much bigger than it needs to be. 

I can't think who would want to spent that much money on a nail polish - would anyone really notice whether it was a real diamond polish or not??

In fact, the same brand have their own imitation products with a range of 'diamond' nail polishes in a range of colours that you can purchase for £17.00 each - a bargain by comparison.

I am struggling to see the difference between the real diamond and fake diamond black polish in the bottle myself.... 

The other colours in the 'fake' range are actually quite pretty, so if you are looking for that sparkly nail effect without spending enough money to buy a house... I'd recommend checking them out.

The Azature range is available to buy from Selfridges online.


Liz
xo


 

Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb La Vie En Rose

The original Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb is one of my all time favourite perfumes. It has such a signature, sweet but grown up scent and it lasts for ages on the skin.

The La Vie En Rose version is the Summer version of Flowerbomb - a lighter, fresh, tangy scent. It still has that intense floral note but also combines madarin, grapefruit, pink pepper and green tea for a summer hit.

There's not much to say about this perfume other than the fact that it's really very lovely. If you're a fan already of the original Flowerbomb than this is a great way to experiment a little but still keep that staple Flowerbomb scent.

The 50ml size costs £55 and you can get it online from Selfridges now.


Liz
xo

Diptyque John Galliano Candle

Happy Wednesday everyone!

I spotted this candle yesterday which is new to the Diptyque range and I fell in love with it. I have a bit of a soft spot for good candles. Diptyque worked with John Galliano for this one -  which gives it great fashion credibility. You can tell by the packaging and the jar that it has something a little bit 'exclusive' about it - it's a fashionistas dream candle!

The scent is a blend of smoked leather, white incense, rosewood and bay leaves - a really sensual, gorgeous smell.

It doesn't come cheap though - it's £170 for the giant size which is 1,500g. At this size, it should last forever but I'm not sure how many of us can justify £170 spent on a candle.

Nonetheless - it looks and smells gorgeous.

You can get this from the Harrods website now, if the price hasn't put you off!

Liz

xo

Benefit World Famous Neutrals

Benefit always come out on top when it comes to fun and playful products that really deliver.

Their new offering is the 'World Famous' neutral eyeshadow kits. I'm quite impressed with these. You get 6 products in each kit - 2 creaseless cream shadows and 4 longwear powder shadows.

There are 3 kits to choose from: 'Most Glamourous Nudes Ever', 'Easiest Nudes Ever' and 'Sexiest Nudes Ever'. All 3 of the colour kits have a good mix of matte and shimmery shadows and the colours are designed to be easily layered.

Above: Most Glamorous Nudes Ever

 I can't decide whether Most Glamorous or Easiest Nudes is my favourite - they both look really wearable. The Most Glamorous kit (above) has more shimmer to it and I'm particularly liking the look of the cream shadow colours. This palette could take you from day to night quite easily

Above: Easiest Nudes Ever

 The Easiest Nudes kit (above) is the most everyday of the trio. 3 matte shadows are included in this kit, including a light pink shade that would be great as a highlighter along the brown bone or as a brightener in the corner of the eye. The pale buff colour and the darker espresso shade blend together perfectly for a nude, warm eyeshadow base that could easily be worn every day..

Above: Sexiest Nudes Ever
 

The Sexiest Nudes kit (above) is my least favourite of the three - I'm not a huge fan of purple shadows, but for anyone that is this kit does the look pretty well. I particularly like the charcoal cream shadow - paired with the darker purple and the glittery silver, it would make a really intense smokey eye.

If you are wondering how these are packaged........

Benefit usually get their packaging spot-on and these kits don't stray from that. These are ideal for carrying around with you and each kit has the varsatility to take you from day to night with not much else needed. If you're anything like me you'll appreciate the extra space in your handbag!


These kits are £23.50 each and are available now from the Benefit website.


Liz
xo