Showing posts with label nars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nars. Show all posts

Wednesday, 13 March 2013

Mid-week Manicure: Nars-Thakoon 'Koliary'

Today's mid-week manicure is a limited edition nail polish, 'Koliary' which is part of the Nars-Thakoon collection of five nail polishes. The shades in the collection have been inspired by the vibrant colours seen in Indian spice-markets.

I decided to apply this shade, when the winter weather re-appeared at the start of the week. I was feeling in need of a burst of vivid colour to brighten things up! If you like the look of this shade, you can buy it at HQ Hair, for £14.50 (free delivery!) and House of Fraser for £14.00.



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Thursday, 12 April 2012

NARS Semi-Matte Lipstick in 'Heat Wave'

At the moment, one of my favourite beauty looks is the 'bold lip' look. It is only in the last two years that I’ve started experimenting with stronger and brighter colours. I’m not really sure why, but slowly and surely, the stronger colours in my makeup collection are the ones that I find myself wearing. I love the way that a bold lip colour can transform a look, and it can act as an instant self-confidence booster, in one application. And they don't come much bolder than one of my most recent beauty purchases, NARS 'Heat Wave'. 


'Heat Wave' is a bold red, with orange undertones. Although the texture is semi-matte, I didn't find it too drying as some matte lipsticks can be. However, I do always make sure that my lips have been prepped by using a lip scrub and balm before applying this, just in case!

This is a highly-pigmented shade, which gives full coverage. I find that it lasts really well, and that I don't need to keep re-applying it to maintain the colour. I love this lipstick, and it has become my 'go to' lipstick of choice.

'Heat Wave' is available from all NARS counters, including John Lewis (where I got mine from) for £17.50.

Are you fan of a bold lip colour, or do you prefer more neutral shades?

Friday, 4 November 2011

I'm dreaming of a John Lewis Christmas

A whole Winter wonderland wardrobe; tables festooned with Christmas decorations; apple crumble cocktails served in vintage-look jam jars, and lots of gorgeous beauty exclusives from Nars and Origins. What a lovely way to spend a Wednesday night.


On Wednesday I was invited to the John Lewis Cardiff Press Event which was held in 'Peppermint', just down the road from the store. The team from John Lewis had transformed the upstairs of the venue into my idea of a perfect Christmas: lots of stylish party looks; fabulous accessories; quirky Christmas decorations, and oodles of beauty loveliness. Oh, and not to mention the 'Pick and Mix your own Christmas' stand, where we were invited to choose whatever we wanted: a selection of Christmas decorations; chocolates; candy canes, and candles, to name just a few of the items.


The womenswear team had chosen a great selection of pieces from a range of the brands stocked instore, including Kurt Geiger; Warehouse; Bertie and REISS. I was particularly drawn to this gorgeous pair of shoes from Kurt Geiger, and these jumpers from Warehouse, which are perhaps a more stylish alternative to the usual 'Christmas Jumper' concept.





When it comes to Christmas decorations, John Lewis are offering three looks: 'Jazz' ("vibrant brights and lights"); 'Pearl White' ("winter white with sparkling frost"), and 'Established' ("a traditional Christmas"). My favourite was the 'Jazz' collection, which was really colourful and had a retro feel to it. Anyone for a cocktail?




On the beauty front, Jodie from Origins and Guy from Nars were there to show what their brands are offering this season. My particular favourites were the limited edition 'Famous Favourites' set from Origins; the Nars 'Arabian Nights' trio eye-shadow, and the Nars Votive Set.





My eye was also caught by a giant bottle of Guerlain's new release, Shalimar Parfum Initial. I have been wanting to try this ever since I watched BBC4's 'Perfume' documentary. Apparently I'm not the only person who is enthusiastic about this new release, as at the moment it's the store's sixth biggest selling fragrance. I'll write another post about it to let you know more of my thoughts about the fragrance.


I really enjoyed the event, and it has firmly put me in the Christmas (and wishlist-compiling!) frame of mind:

  • Origins 'Famous Favourites' Limited Edition set
  • Nars 'Arabian Nights' Limited Edition Trio Eyeshadow
  • Nars Votive Set
  • Warehouse 'Christmas Jumper'
  • Origins 'Incredible Spreadable' Ginger Body Smoother

......... and that's just for starters!

Thursday, 19 May 2011

To GlossyBox or not to GlossyBox?

The discussion between beauty bloggers on Twitter has been raging: to GlossyBox or not to GlossyBox? If you have no idea what I’m talking about, then here’s what GlossyBox have to say on their website (www.glossybox.co.uk)

“With the GlossyBox you receive the most interesting beauty products and latest make-up trends every month directly to your home. Each GlossyBox contains five selected luxury product miniatures. The product range is diverse, ranging from a luxury lipstick to a trendy hair care product from a cutting edge brand. All product miniatures are carefully selected and tested by our experts. Find your new favourite indulgent products to soothe those daily stresses or to add glamour to a party night.
With the GlossyBox many surprises and beauty tips await you. Let us find the right products for your type and let us guide you through the vast world of beauty.”
So basically, five luxury beauty treats landing on your mat every month, for the sum of £10. The idea is similar to the Birchbox service which runs in the United States.
There was a lot of discussion on Twitter as to whether this was a good idea or not. Quite a few people seemed to think that they would rather go in-store to get samples from brands they know they like. However I decided to trial the service, as not living in London means that my local department stores don’t always have the new brands I want to try, and I don’t always want to order an untried premium brand online, in case it doesn’t live up to the hype. 

I think a lot of people felt it was worth trying the service at least once though, and this feeling heightened once GlossyBox started dropping teaser tweets into people’s timelines hinting that Nars products would be making an appearance in the first box. Anyone who’s read my blog (for which I’m giving you a big virtual hug to say thank you) will know that I have only recently discovered Nars products. My first purchases were two of their fabulous blushes: Orgasm & Instant Cheekbones a.k.a Sin, and I soon added a Laguna bronzer to this list. These purchases were the start of a love for Nars that I know is shared by a few a LARGE number of bloggers (Is there a collective noun for a load of beauty bloggers?) If they have got Nars products in there then there will be some very happy GlossyBox customers out there.
My GlossyBox hasn’t been delivered yet, so until I can comment on the contents I’ve been thinking about what would be in my ideal GlossyBox. Here’s my list so far:
·    Nars Albatross highlighter; Orgasm Illuminator; any of their lip products, Sheer Glow foundation….. (here endeth this sentence before it starts to resemble a Nars product list!).
·    Alpha-H – I’ve been impressed with this brand from my use of their 7-piece Daily Miracles set from Beauty Expert so would love to try more of their range.Until the 31st May you can get 15% off your order at Beauty Expert when you enter the code LOVELY at the checkout.
·    Daniel Sandler – I’ve heard some great product reviews and have been impressed with the base brush I’m using from his range and also his Eve lipstick for All for Eve which raises funds for The Eve Appeal which I purchased from Beautique.
·    By Terry – Ever since reading about Touche Veloutee on Chic Beauty Blog and Rose de Rose on Welsh Beauty Blog I have been lusting after this brand. For those who don’t know, this range was created by Terry de Gunzburg who created the iconic Touche Eclat for YSL. Thankfully for my bank balance there isn’t a branch of Space NK near me so I haven’t added anything by this brand to my collection…yet!
·    BioEffect – I was lucky enough to get a sample of this (worth £30) after finding out about their sampling campaign via the lovely British Beauty Blogger. Whilst I was impressed with the results, I couldn’t quite justify the cost to myself (£125 for 15ml or £76 for 5ml) so didn’t purchase it.
So have you ordered a GlossyBox or did the concept not appeal to you? What products would be in your perfect GlossyBox?

Wednesday, 4 May 2011

My Current Routine - Part II: Make-up

Here is the second part of my 'current routine' series of posts, and this time I'm looking at the contents of my make-up bag as opposed to every bit of makeup I own, which would be a much longer post! I'd be really interested to know if you have tried any of these products and what you thought of them.
Foundation – Estee Lauder DoubleWear in Fresco. This foundation is great and is a Holy Grail foundation for a large number of bloggers. It gives great coverage which lasts and lasts. If you'd like to give it a try, pop along to your nearest Estee Lauder concession to get yourself colour-matched and try a free 10 day sample.
Powder – L’Oreal True Match – This was bought after a Twitter cry for help as I needed to buy some powder to apply before going out after work and had left my compact at home. Great value and does a great job.
Concealer – GOSH TouchUp concealer (for undereyes) and Benefit It Stick (on blemishes). Although I am reasonably happy with these products I am still searching for the perfect Holy Grail concealer. As my undereye area has been known at times to have more bags than a Louis Vuitton flagship store I am always searching for ‘the one’ when it comes to concealers. When I find it you will be the first to know!
Blush – Nars blushes (which I LOVE) in either Orgasm or Sin (which has been described as "instant cheekbones"). I had never tried a Nars product until I read a few tweets about them, and I now wonder what on earth I was putting on my cheeks before I discovered Monsieur Nars’ blushes. The pigments and textures are fabulous. I also use Nars Bronzer in Laguna.

Lips – I think that this is one of the areas that has been most influenced by my discovery of beauty blogs. I used to be slightly hesitant about veering off the ‘natural pink lipgloss’ path but since I’ve discovered the joy of a good beauty blog I have been trying out a variety of different shades and textures. Here are some of my current favourites: Lanolips lip ointment in Apples (gives a lovely red sheen and leaves my lips really soft); MAC Viva Glam in Cyndi (a coral-red lustre); Guerlain Rouge G in Gaela (a pink which is bright enough to give a pop of colour without being too 'in your face', and it comes in the most gorgeous case) and All for Eve ‘Eve’ lipstick (a classic red) created by Daniel Sandler.

Mascara – Paula’s Choice Illicit Lash Mascara – I hadn’t come across this brand before until I read about this product on three blogs within the space of a week. With my cosmetic curiosity piqued I decided to order it from http://www.paulaschoice.co.uk/ and my lashes haven’t looked back. This mascara gives me lovely long lashes, and I never get any of the flaking that I’ve had with other products.
Eye-liner – L’Oreal Super Liner in 'Carbon Gloss' – very easy to apply and long-lasting – what’s not to love?!
Eye-shadow – MAC 'Retrospeck' and MAC 'Sumptuous Olive'; GOSH Waterproof shadow stick in 'Love that Brown'.
Brows – I never really used to do much to my brows, but once I started using a brow kit I haven't looked back. Just the simple act of brushing them through properly and applying brow powder gives some more definition to my face. I'm currently using the GOSH Brow Kit after buying it as part of a 3 for 2 offer in Superdrug.

So have you used any of these products, and if so, what did you think? Have you got any recommendations for me?

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