Casual Oufit: Fall 2012

 

Sometimes I don’t want to dress up and love the casualness of this outfit. 

Perhaps it is because of the change in the leaves,
but I find Tan is such a  timeless autumnal (Fall) colour. 

What do you think?

Sleek MakeUp Be Beautiful Balm (Review)

The announcement that Sleek MakeUp had decided to enter into the BB (Beauty Balm) market left me excited. As a Woman of Colour I was miffed that many of the cosmetic companies had largely ignored my skin shade and the entry of a product from Sleek was sure to make up for this, right? 

Hmm, well sort of. 

There are only four shades of the Be Beautiful Blemish Balm: Fair, Light, Medium and Dark.

As Sleek MakeUp create over thirty different shades in their  foundation range, I found it hard to understand why they felt that they could try to fit us all into only four shades in their BB range.

 My shade in Sleek’s foundation is Hot Chocolate which, at three shades from the end, is on the darker end of  their spectrum. I naturally reached for the ‘Dark’ box but found the shade far too red for me; the Medium shade was on the yellow side but blended in enough to convince me to buy it.  

Positives:

• I loved the fact that I only need a small amount and a decent coverage was produced.  
• It was light enough to be used during warm weather and so will be my go-to base for holiday looks abroad.
• Love that it contains SPF (protect your Skin!)
• Price - glad that they kept the range afforable.

The only negatives for me were:

• Oily finish- something I think anyone with an oily T-Zone will always encounter with these types of products.
• Lack of shades- I adore Sleek but feel that they have missed a trick in not expanding their range, particularly on the Women of Colour shades.
• Chemical Smell- took me a while to get used to. 

 What do you think of BB creams, over hyped or useful?

Beauty Blender Dupe(s)

Beauty Blender quickly became the cult ‘IT’ product of 2011 for me; I watched countless vloggers espoused its greatness, read reviews galore that waxed lyrical about the seamless finish it provided and I really wanted one. However every time I went to make a purchase there was always a problem with delivery / stock. Due to the difficulty in purchasing the product I wish to make it clear that I am making a comparison on the concept of the sponges! 

Beauty Blender – What is it?

Beautyblender, the ultimate make up sponge applicator. Beautyblender has been created to leave you with a professional finish and a flawless complexion. Forget your fingers or sharp-edged triangular sponges, these application methods waste make up and can leave visible streaks.

Beautyblender’s patent-pending elliptical shape makes application foolproof by allowing you to access hard-to-reach areas with stunning ease. Beautyblender is latex free, non-allergenic and odour free.

 -Excerpt from Bleautyblender website

Dupe?

I purchased these sponges from a seller from EBay, the cost of P&P and the items total less than £5. The items arrived after two weeks (normal for items from China) and I quickly put them to the test.  

Waterbottle shaped Beautyblender dupe

I deliberately ordered two different shapes (egg & water bottle) as I was keen to see which of the two was easier to use. I found the water bottle was easier for me to use initially as I struggled to get a firm grip, I was able to graduate to the egg once my confidence grew.  The sponges worked well wet - slightly damp, not dripping, and I found it easier to adopt a stippling motion to use with my Sleek Cream to Powder foundation.

Egg shaped Beautyblender dupe

Overall I was extremely pleased with the products; the sponges were excellent value and easy to use.

My foundation was seamless and I think these sponges offer a viable alternative to those of us who hate using fingers to apply makeup. I have large pores around my nose and noticed that the finish the sponges provided helped to mask this. I have already made a repurchase from EBay and so thought a review was overdue.

What are your thoughts, have you purchased the orginal Beautyblender?

MAC Prep + Prime Lip (Review)

Ask me what item of makeup I love the most and I always answer lipstick (although blush comes a close second). I’m a strong believer in colour therapy – a bangin’ colour on my lips and I’m ready to rule the world.  However, my love affair with lipstick has not been as smooth as I’d like as I suffer with super dry lips and so have trouble with keeping the colour in place and from feathering.  To help with the chapping I make my own lip scrub to exfoliate weekly, but the despite this, I find my lipstick still needs support and this is where a Lip Primer comes in.  

I initially bought MAC’s Prep + Primer Lip Primer as I was running out of my beloved Sue Moxley Lip Primer. Scouring the internet I picked up on the chatter surrounding this magical white tube of goodness and decided to give it a go. 

MAC described their product as:

A colour-free base to wear under lipstick. Adds light moisture, smoothes and refines the lips. Improves the appearance of applied lip products.

Initially I felt like the emperor who had been sold a dodgy batch of clothing. I did not understand what I should do with this tube and was not impressed that I’d spent £12 on something that appeared to be nothing more than a weird chap stick. However, I persevered and discovered that I needed to really work the product into my lips, leave for around two minutes for the texture to change to tacky, before attempting to apply my lipstick. The result was lipstick that lasted longer and didn’t move around as much when Prep + Prime Lip isn’t used. 

The product dries to a clear colour and found that if I prepped my lips with a chap stick, such as Bilstex or Carmex, at the beginning of my makeup application (not immediately before using the Prep +Prime) my lips didn’t feel tight or dry. 

TIP: To further enhance the longevity of my lipstick I used a lip brush to apply the colour, blot, and then apply from the tube. 

I used MAC's Prep +Prime for the last year and am already planning my next repurchase. 

What products do you use to extend the life of your lipsticks?

Black & Red

An all black ensemble with red lips and nails -this is a killer colour combo,

especially for Fall. It never fails to impress and, in my opinion, allows the 

sensuous power a woman has to be seen to full effect.