Two Cyan and Purple EOTDs (one high-end, one low-end) and NOTD

Above is what I am terming the high-end cyan look I did last Saturday. I used NYX jumbo pencil in Milk and MAC pigment in Hi-Def Cyan patted on top. The browns were from the Urban Decay 15th Anniversary palette and I added dramatic liner just because! There ended up being a Sikh wedding at work on the day, so the liner felt kind of appropriate. A little bit Bollywood? (ps did you know Sikhs drink alcohol... a lot? Judging by this wedding anyhow. You live and learn!)

Today I ended up doing another light blue/cyan look using the Sleek Curacao eyeshadow palette - Blue Lagoon, Blue Hawaiian, Singapore Sling and Purple Haze (again using the NYX Jumbo pencil in Milk as a white base to help it pop). I also used the Wet n Wild I'm Feeling Retro palette (the white as inner-corner highlight and the pink for blending). Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Asphyxia was a base for the crease and also Perversion (blackest black pencil liner) was a softer version of my usual black liner. 

More pictures and a NOTD under the cut.

Barney EOTD

Two Matte Nails of the Day

The above are two nails inc polishes I bought in a box set from T.K.Maxx. I did not realise they were matte. I gave my sister one of them for her birthday that had glitter in it and was probably also matte. (Hi Sis! Sorry if that polish freaked you out!) It turned out more exciting that they were matte as I only had an (at this point untried) essence matte top coat and Revlon Emerald City (which is really more of a satin finish). The brown is Barnsbury Road and the blue is Chester Terrace. It chipped and cracked pretty badly because it had no topcoat and only one or two layers of each colour (applied a little streakily in places). After two days it was time for a new colour.

This. My new favourite combination OF ALL TIME. Yeah, I said it. This is a Wet n Wild polish (that Lyuba sent me) called Haze of Love (dark red cream, nicely covered in two coats) with a generous layer of Andrea Fullerton's Gemstone topcoat (goldy orangey flakies) and a coat of the aforementioned essence matte topcoat (which Nola sent me). It dried so fast and is super thick and luxurious feeling. Very slightly tipwear after two days. No chips. Shines green in the sunlight when tilted at an angle. One more word - LOVE.

My cuticles are feeling pretty dry. I think I need to invest in a cuticle oil of some kind... does anyone have any recommendations?

Ruth x

Shrinkle inspired EOTD

I wore this make-up to work today. I had actually drawn a facechart for it...  It didn't turn out quite as planned. For example, I wrote that I wanted to use some blue false eyelashes, and I didn't have time for that in the end. Maybe tomorrow. I also didn't do my tightline or waterline as this can make me feel quite tired at work and it was too warm today. Again, maybe tomorrow. 

I have enjoyed the process of planning out a look beforehand, but this time I was a little bit too ambitious.

I ended up making the liner too long and when I corrected it I wasn't thinking and used the Boots Botanics oil based make-up remover which meant I couldn't tweak it, the sealing gel mix beaded up like sweat over it

so the flicks looked crusty. Humph! 

Next time i'll be sure to use my MAC oil-free remover for corrections... even though I find it drying.

Products

Eye base - UDPP Eden, NYX Jumbo pencil in Milk (inner corner), UD 24/7 Liner in Asphyxia. (lid).

Eyeshadows - Wet n Wild I'm Feeling Retro trio (fuscia on lid, blue under and over eye, white on inner corner), a touch of Sugarpill pressed shadows in Dollipop (inner lid) and Poison Plum (outer lid), Illamasqua Sadist (matte blue above crease and blended round to under the eye with blue from W n W palette), Inglot matte skintone eyeshadow to blend up to browbone.

Liner - Sugarpill chromalust in Royal Sugar used wet with Illamasqua sealing gel.

Mascara - Rimmel Lash Accelerator

Eyebrows - Illamasqua matte pressed shadow in Sadist.

Foundation - Laura Mercier oil-free tinted moisturizer in Porcelain, Clinique translucent powder and MAC Wonder Woman blush in Amazon Princess. 

This Wet and Wild trio was a dream to use, I especially love the blue. It's unlike anything else I own. It's not as teal/in your face as Sugarpill Afterparty and it's not as dark as the Sleek Acid palette metallic blues.

 I am really in love with pink blush with the blue hair. I never liked dolly-pink blush much before. I preferred peachy and warm blushers, but since the blue hair... pink just clashes so beautifully! I'm glad I picked up Sleek blush in Santorini last time I went shopping...yeah, I finally tracked it down! So bright! 

It's like Dollipop eyeshadow but for my cheeks. Do you have a favourite pink blusher?

Ruth x

Wet n Wild Cool as a Cucumber EOTD + NOTD

I used UDPP in Eden, the Wet n Wild Cool as a Cucumber eyeshadow palette (all three colours), along with UD 24/7 liner pencil in Perversion (blackest black) and Rimmel Lash Accelerator mascara (also in black, this mascara has certainly got better with age). 

I haven't been wearing much eye make-up recently - I've been dying my hair and doing my nails a lot. I used my usual foundation/concealer (Laura Mercier Oil-Free tinted moisturizer in Porcelain with Clinique powder/Collection 2000 cheapo concealer aka most awesome concealer in Light). Blush was Illamasqua cream blush in Rude. This palette was not the most pigmented eyeshadow ever but over a base I know they'd work amazingly as they blend really well.

I wore this nail look for all of a day before I messed it up/dyed it blue/got tissue stuck on in cleaning hairdye off my face with polish remover. It is Maybelline express finish in 'Outloud Lime'. It claims to dry in 50 seconds and with a basecoat, three coats of the colour, a coat of Inglot green flakie (on 5/10 nails) AND my fast dry topcoat, it was dry to the touch in 10 minutes flat. It is a very impressive nail polish. 

I am still super-duper grateful to Lyuba @ Funky Makeup Junkie for these amazing goodies. Can't wait to try the second palette, too :)

Ruth x

ps. All will be revealed about my new hair soon!

Swapsies... :D + NOTD

I undertook my first two swaps recently. One through makeupalley.com and one through this here blog. I'm really happy with it. In both cases, looks like I got the better deal SUCKAS (j/k... but I think so).

From the beautiful and talented and also kimono-loving Lyuba-chan (just look at this eye-look she did the other day and follow her because she's great) two (!!) Wet n Wild trios in Cool as a Cucumber and I'm Feeling Retro. I can't wait to try these... I've never tried Wet n Wild so it's going to be fun. She also sent two nail polishes in Wet n Wild megalast 'Haze of Love' and Maybelline express finish in 'Outloud Lime'. 

We swapped brow powders because I ended up with Gingersnap browbox from Urban Decay (not ginger!) and she ended up with this Gosh set (which may be a bit dark because she IS a redhead!)... I didn't send her as much. I feel like I cheated... but I'm still excited.

Incidentally this green is creamier and lighter than Illamasqua Radium, a favourite of mine. It also has no shimmer. It reminds me of an Avon colour that I had when I was at school (like 11 or so) that came out sheer no matter how much I put on... It looked like this in the catalogue but was disappointing in real life. Fingers crossed, looking at it in the bottle this is opaque. And just look at that red. It's like a dusky creamy brick-colour. Oooh...

My make up alley swap was with Nola at Hedonism Limited. Her nails are immaculate... . I sent her a couple from Illamasqua, a couple from Accessorize and a couple from Models Own and she sent me some Essence and Inglot. Now, I know I could've got the Inglots when I was at the London store earlier this year but I completely blanked and forgot all about nails. The eyeshadows and eyeliners... they blinded me! Anyway, I had my heart set on 203 and 204 (green flakey and blurple flakey). From essence their nail art twin in Edward (it might be named after Twilight but I do not care a jot... it is beautiful! It has square glitters!), Circus Confetti, Matte Topcoat,  'Can't Cheat on Me' and 'Where's the Party?' also got my attention when I was searching blogs. 

My nails at the minute are Illamasqua Bacterium (a taupe with silver sheen), which I got bored of after a day and when I received my Polish polish (see, it's from Poland!) decided to glitterify (what, it's a real word!?) with essence Circus Confetti. I've had it on this way two days and can't see me changing it till tomorrow... I like it. But I know with so many new ones to try it's only a matter of time.

Anyone else like swapping?

Ruth x