Giveaway haul: No 7 Vital Brights

I was lucky enough to win some No 7 products a little while ago from the gorgeous Claire of the UK beauty blog Eyelining Obsessions - A big public thank you to Claire!  I'm always excited to receive new products to try, especially from brands not readily available in Australia.  This was just in time to save me from my P10P doldrums and I just love the cute and cheerful packaging too! 

My little care package consisted of three products from UK brand No 7's latest Vital Brights spring collection:  Cream blush and lipstick (both in the shade Blossoming Pink), and Vital Enlightening Highlighter Powder which looks like the star of the show!

Vital Brights Cream blush ( Blossoming Pink)

 Vital Brights Lipstick (Blossoming Pink)

As you can see from the product photo and swatches the blush is a matte, red-toned pink, great for a naturally flushed cheek.  The lippy is a lovely semi-sheer glossy mauve pink and another MLBB shade to add to my everyday collection.  Both of these are 'me' shades I could have easily chosen myself so I'm really pleased to have them.

Now onto the star product...

Vital Enlightening Highlighter Powder

I don't own the Laura Mercier or Guerlain face hightlighter powders so this little powder palette has automatically gone to precious status for me.  You'll understand why I haven't swatched this because I don't want to disturb the pretty, shimmery overspray just yet.

Thanks for looking!

Vita :)

Satisfying my coral cravings! Revlon: Craving Coral

Pardon the pun but I'm still craving coral nails and lips!

Today I'm modelling this week's work mani and one of my more recent Revlon polish acquisitions.  I spotted Craving Coral on the Revlon stand a while ago and this orange/red visually leapt out at me because it makes such a classic statement.  On my skin it leans more red and I'd most accurately describe it as a hot tomato red.  To get a really good depth of coverage I applied three coats of colour and the result was rich, glossy colour.   For the retro-style matching lip and nail look I love I've been pairing this with my Tom Ford True Coral lipstick.

You'll notice the "wrong" hand is in these pictures.  That's because I managed to break one of my nails in Zumba class (of all places!) last Monday.  All pictures were taken outdoors in semi-cloudy conditions:

Three days in this is still lovely and glossy with only minor tip wear. 

Until next time.

Vita :)

The Face Shop: Celestial Light Nail Color 02

Happy Wednesday everyone :)

After playing with my Easter skittle mani last weekend I liked the two Face Shop foils enough to do full manicures of each.  I actually bought these nail polishes in Singapore a few years ago.  I was inspired by all the amazing mani's and pedi's I was seeing all around over there so I had to get me some sparkly, foil polish to join in with the fun. 

Before seeing your lovely comments on the yellow gold foil I'd decided to go with the pink foil shade 02 first.   02 is a mauve-toned pink foil so it's pretty without being too OTT.  This is two coats with top coat to add a bit of shine.

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That's it for tonight!

Vita :)

China Glaze: Midnight Mission

Now for some car coloured nail polish...

...Well that's what my husband says!  As soon as he saw my mani he declared it to be the same colour as the dusty old blue '65 VW Beetle parked in our garage.  No, I didn't go and compare but I took it to be a slightly unusual compliment on the colour.  Midnight Mission is from China Glaze's Vintage Vixen collection released in 2010 and is a unique deep blue shade in my stash.  MM is a navy (almost black) blue with loads of silver fleck sparkle.  It's a perfect autumn/fall shade and is understated edgy attitude in a bottle, and on the nails.  I just loved wearing this as a dramatic change from all the lighter, brighter colours I've been sporting lately.

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I'm back at work tomorrow after enjoying a mini Easter break with the family.  I hope you all had a great Easter too!

Vita :)

Going over the top with taupe...

There are three families of shades which predominantly feature in my eyeshadow collection:  purple, shimmery highlights and taupe.  Ah, taupe - isn't that the staple in every beauty conscious girl's makeup bag? (I'm building my case for self-justification here.)  Yes well, now that I'm nearing the end of my makeup ban I've been doing a bit of an inventory - where I dare - to get an indication of makeup items I do not need to buy once it ends.  Case in point: Taupe eyeshadow.  At the beginning of last year I owned three taupe shadows but by the end of the year my taupe collection had doubled to six.  I realise six isn't a huge number by some standards but anyway...

Here's a quick rundown of the taupe shadows taking up space in my makeup case.  Without deliberately trying I've conveniently sorted them into two logical groups - the light taupes and the deeper taupe shades.

Light taupe shadows

  

Shown L - R and swatched in same order:

• Essence (Party All Night - metallic effect) - This is a warm golden taupe with a metallic sheen and as I tend to favour golden taupes this one's right up there for me.  This sounds like an after dark shade but it's versatile enough to translate from day to night.  During the day I'll wear it blended out as a crease accent and in the evening I'll apply it more heavily over the lid. 

• Essence (Taupe of the Pops - shimmer effect) - A softer, more subtle finish than Party All Night, Taupe of the Pops is another warm taupe with a slightly khaki tone.  This shade reminds me a little of my all-time favourite taupe MAC Patina (I could justify reintroducing this into my collection because I loved it all the way to the bottom of the pan).  It's so easy to blend and fantastic as a wash all over the lid so it looks as though I've made more of an effort!

• Maybelline (Silken Taupe) - A lovely soft mushroom taupe shimmer and my go-to for minimal makeup days.  This looks so natural and is another shadow I'll wear alone as wash over the eyelid just to freshen me up.  I've featured it in my basic face post (here).
  

Dark taupe shadows

Shown L - R and swatched in same order:

• Rimmel (Backstage) - This is a well pigmented mid-toned frosty taupe and another all-in-one shade.  I like applying this all over the lid and blended into the crease on its own or paired with a golden highlight shade on the inner corner.  It looks quite glam when heavily applied and can also be applied over a darker base to create a smokey-eye look.
  

• MAC (Satin Taupe - frost) - I've had this purple-toned taupe in my collection for quite a while and it probably doesn't get enough love.  Although it's a frost the effect is quite subtle, but this shade is very dark and dramatic against my light green eyes and pale skin and can drain the life out of me and make me look like I've got black eyes if I'm not careful!  I prefer to use it as a crease accent for an evening eye.

• Bloom (Taupe) - Uh, yes I haven't worn this one yet but had to include it for the sake of completeness. Swatched on the back of my hand this is a slightly cooler, lighter version of Satin Taupe with great pigmentation. 
  

 What's your favourite taupe eyeshadow?

Until next time.

Vita :)

NOTD: Easter egg skittles

My Easter manicure was inspired by a little bag of Easter eggs I received from my son :)  I simply chose four shades which I thought would closely match the gorgeous foil colours to create my own version of Easter egg skittles. 

 L - R:

Revlon (Lush Lime)

The Face Shop (Celestial Light Nail Color 02)

Sally Hansen (Blizzard Blue)

The Face Shop (Celestial Light Nail Color 03)

I was quite happy with the result.  Unfortunately our Easter Sunday has been a cloudy one.  On a random note the little milk chocolate eggs are yummy and it's hard to stop at one...

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Fluffy bunny hugs to all xoxo

Vita :)

Revlon: Icicles - take 2!

Hi there!

I'll try not to ramble too much tonight.  I've swatched Revlon's Icicles previously (here) but decided this blue iridescent glitter would be THE perfect enhancement for yesterday's Wild About Violet with its blue undertones so here we go again.  I added two coats and the result pleases the little girl in me.  This is ethereal sugary goodness on my fingertips...

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I felt pretty in pink wearing this mani!

Until next time.

Vita ;)