Review and How-To-Wear: Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Eyeshadow in EBLOUI

Earlier this month, a company I model for in Holland flew me over for a day shoot.  The first time I worked for them back in July, I flew via London City airport, a little airport in East London, where you can check in 15 minutes before departure time.  Which was lovely and convenient as I was running very late thanks to the wonders of the DLR and signal failures etc, and it's not THAT far away so I was lucky to make it.


Anyway this month, they booked my flight to go from Heathrow.  Which takes about 2 hours realistically from door-to-departure-lounge.  Which I wasn't thrilled about as it involves having to take the joyous London Underground.  Bah.  But for once I was running nicely early and despite the Picadilly Line's attempts to make me weep with it's RIDICULOUS delays, I got to Heathrow bang on time for the 2-hour-before-flight check-in time.  And it's no secret that Heathrow boasts some pretty impressive retail therapy outlets.


I strolled over to the Chanel counter hoping that they would have some Soleil Tan De Chanel aka Bronze Universal in stock.  But NO.  Just like every other counter/website I have checked out in the last 2 months.  But I stayed to browse and decided to make the most of my Duty-Free opportunity and buy one of the Illusion D'Ombre eyeshadows, that I had been lusting over for a while.


Earlier research led me to want to invest in one of the grey/silver shades but the LHR Chanel counter only had two shades left in stock; ILLUSIORE (dark purple/silver) and the one I went for, EBLOUI.  I swatched them both at the counter but I fell so in love with Ebloui, I had to have that one as it was unlike any colour I had seen, let alone owned.

5 words to describe the colour: Rusty, Red-Brown, Warm, Shimmery.  The consistency is smooth and mousse-like, and is described as a powder-cream texture by Chanel.  It looks stunning.

Most people I have seen talk about the D'Ombre shadows say finger application works best.  It does however, come with an angled brush that can be clicked into place to make a decent long-handle, then clicked back into a compact size.

I really like the brush, not just for the fact that it looks good on my dressing table.  It's nice for packing on the colour and also applying the colour as a day-time wearable liner.

And now for some swatches:

I have shown here how versatile the shadow is.  It can be very lightly applied as seen on the right, for a subtle, pretty day to day look.  The left swatch really shows off the ombre effect.  The potential for instant smokey eye is evident.  And I can't tell you how much it feels like a dream to touch and apply.

And here I am:

This was at the end of the night when I had came back from the Joe & Jagged Edge concert.  I wish I had taken a photo when my makeup was fresh, but considering it had been on for 7 hours, it looks pretty good.

I used a normal fluffy brush to blend out the harsh line that was in the socket and added a tiny bit of silver/white shimmer to the inner corner of my eye from a Sleek Palette.  I lined my eyes with L'oreal Carbon Gloss Superliner and used loads of L'oreal Volume Million Luminiser Mascara.

Even the way I wore it doesn't do it much justice to show off how far it can go for an intense eye look.  But it really does do something for my ordinary brown eyes.

A word of warning though.  Don't rub your eyes.  I found it doesn't truly dry on to your skin and while it does have some brilliant staying power.  Also, make sure you truly close the lid of the pot once you've finished using it, as they have a reputation for drying up and shrivelling to nothing.

Price:  Expensive definitely.  It's usual RRP is £22.50 but in duty-free I got it for £18! Which sounds so much better...

Time to go..

xo

NOTD "I Vant To Be A Lone Ranger"

As usual, when ASOS have a sale, I check out the Beauty section to see what high end goodies they have price slashed.

And a full size O.P.I. at £6.75 in a gorgeous pale cool blue is very welcome, please and thank you :)

It has silver undertones and suits my natural yellow undertoned skin (now O have no tan) beautifully.

Nifty Jewellery Storage/Display!

First of all, THIS IS NOT MY IDEA.

I was at a friends house on Saturday and noticed her amazingly imaginative way of storing all of her dress jewellery, whilst having it on display all at once. It is the cleverest thing I have seen. And... CHEAP!

How does everyone else store their pretty stuff?

And so here it is:
"Corking" wouldn't you say!?

Review: L'oreal Volume Million Lashes Luminizer Mascara. Does it really make my brown eyes stand out?

So, when one goes to Superdrug to buy a L'oreal Carbon Gloss liquid liner, one will of course indulge in a 3 for 2 Offer across all L'oreal products. Even when one is waiting to get paid. *Insert face of disgust here*


Anyway, as I saw the offer, I was drawn in by the Volume Million Lashes mascara, but in particular, the Luminizer range. The packaging was pretty, I couldn't help it. 

I have heard about Volume Million Lashes for years, due to L'oreal's extensive advertising campaigns, but never gave it a go.  The Luminizer comes in three shades, with light reflecting micro pigments to compliment different eye colours; hazel/brown eyes, blue eyes and green eyes.  I of course, with my brown eyes opted for the appropriate shade.


When you open up the wand from the tube, you discover a gorgeous rubber bristle brush, covered in a lovely, almost metallic purple mascara formula.

Inside the tube is an "excess wiper" which "leaves the brush coated with just the right amount of formula to achieve the look of maxed up volume with no overload and no clumps." according to the L'oreal website.  I have to say I agree; when removing the brush, you can clearly see a nice even coverage of mascara formula all over the brush AND application is beautiful. Seriously - NO clumps! And it gives my eyelashes amazing volume I haven't experienced before from any other mascara, so I already know I will definitely re-buy.  And I received compliments on my eyes on the first day I wore it.

But does it make my brown eyes pop, compared to any other BLACK mascara?

I decided to give it a mini-roadtest against my beloved Maybelline Collosal Volume Mascara today.  I have been re-buying this for at least two years now.  So who is number one?

I tested them both at the same time, applying Maybelline to my right eye (the one you can see on the left) and the L'oreal to my left eye (you see on the right).  Here goes...

Before Mascara

One Coat (After Curling)

(Maybelline)                                            (L'oreal)

No flash

  (Maybelline)                                            (L'oreal)

It's obvious to me (and hopefully you too) that the L'oreal side appears much more volumised in comparison to the Maybelline'd lashes. But would I saw it made that eye pop more? Hmmm not sure.  It should also be noted that the eye I applied the L'oreal to, has always been my "bigger" eye.  I think the sheer volume created by the L'oreal is eye-popping alone.

Two coats

  (Maybelline)                                            (L'oreal)

Two coats has always been much more effective with my trusty Maybelline, but compared to the L'oreal, it seriously looks like I have nothing on my lashes. Which is a good thing I guess for everyday can't-be-bothered makeup.  But if anything this experiment has lead me to conclude that there are better volumising mascaras than Maybelline Collosal Volume.

I also find it interesting (and maybe you agree) that the L'oreal actually makes my lashes appear BLACKER even though its formula isn't even black. In the second coat picture, I can see the hint of purple in my eyelashes and I actually do think that those lashes draw you into my normal brown eyes, much more than Maybelline does.

The one CON to this L'oreal Luminizer Mascara?

It's not waterproof!! To be fair, the only think that makes it smudge and transfer onto my skin is WATER.  It actually lasts well throughout the day without a problem.  But due to my job as a Swimming Teacher, when the kids get a little excited and splash me, I definitely get a case of the panda eye!

I hope anyone who was thinking of buying the Luminizer mascara found this helpful.  In a nutshell I would definitely recommend it.  My certainty on the colour-popping capabilities is not close to 100%, but it really does volumise your lashes.  Give it a try. Bet you'll get a compliment or two ;)

xo

"Get Ready With Me"

Well I think this is my best go at video editing to date. Let me know what you think ! :)

A Shoe-Per Week!

Soooooo it's safe to say that my love of shoes took over me like a wave crashing over a beach, or just a wave of shoes crashing over my shoe-loving head.


I met up with a my two most close friends from sixth form, J & C, and after hunting down THE MOST EPIC salad of my life (Cafe Giardino.. I love you), it was time to spend some moo-lah.


For the last few weeks, I have had it in my head that I need Converse Allstars in my life, thanks to some inspiring, stylish friends of mine, who know who they be! I originally was after that dusky kind of blue colour standard hi-top style..


UNTIL...


I went into JD Sports and met these amazing babies.

And my oh my have they got a beautiful soul sole!

Probably not to many people's tastes but I am absolutely in love with them and can't wait to wear them (given the beautiful weather we've had in London for the last week, it would be a crime not to give the sandals one last moment of glory).  Next to the pair of "dusky blues" I originally liked, these ones just stole the show.


I think they would look great as they are folded down with shorts in the summer, and I might even try to get away with them with a skirt and really thick tights this winter (might... haha).  What makes them even more special is their versatility... you can fold up the pink to create a super hi-top:

Luckily for me, my friend J works at JD Sports so 25% discount was all mine :) From £52 down to £39 I think I have got a real winner here.

I thought I was done buying footwear until stepping into TopShop and finding my ideal winter boots, just waiting for me to buy them.  I have been looking for proper leather, smart-pretty boots for a good few years and I found them, I had to have them:

The leather is lovely and soft with a rough edge to it and the buckle detailing is what made me truly fall for them. They will literally go with ANYTHING this autumn/winter.  They're not too heavy, that I'd feel like I was walking a brick on days that aren't so cold, but not "light" either, as the leather feels very durable and there is room for some toasty socks in there too.

I had to buy a Size 7 however, something I'm finding a frequent occurrence lately with buying shoes. Are retailers downsizing their shoes or something, because there's no way my feet have grown at the ripe old age of 21 (nigh on 22).  But sock space is definitely required for a winter boot :-).

Of course.. the price tag. A not so healthy £85 and as I am no longer of student status, no discount here. (insert sobs here)

As if I hadn't done enough for one shopping trip I simply could not resist those typical TopShop ballerina-esque pumps that many people have, so I added them to the "basket" for a further £16. With no regrets as I wore them to work today and they are the most COMFORTABLE flattie shoes ever, the leather and materials are so soft and they look adorable, like I just stepped out of the dance studio (which I totes never will!)

And as if that wasn't enough...


I received a joyous email this afternoon from Office Shoes telling me I had won a £250 voucher for UGG Australia boots! Don't even get me started about my love of UGGS, I already have three, but I have been hankering after a pair of Kensingtons for a couple of years now, and have had to stop myself several times, but now they shall be mine!






& so with that, this lucky, shoe-aholic is signing off for the night.


xo