Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Hyde Park

Hello there!

It's no secret that I'm newly obsessed with Nars having kept my wishlist at bay for such a long time, the flood gates seem to have been opened. I can't even begin to tell you how many blushes I now want, not to mention their Virtual Domination palette and their lip products are also highly rated by myself. You can see my previous review on the infamous Cruella lip pencil here, and this review is on the Satin lip pencil Hyde Park.

I bought this from the Space NK website; I'd never seen it in reality and pretty much bought it because the shade looked like something I'd like and get a lot of wear out of and the name was appealing. Who doesn't love a London named product??

Hype Park is described as a 'cardinal red' which to me sounds a lot more red than this. I would say it's more of a berry toned red and whilst I haven't tried other lip pencils from the Satin range to compare it to, I loved the more hydrating and lip balm feel to it than was expected. you could easily wear this pencil as a wash of colour and top it up with lip balm, or layer it up which is my preferred way of wearing it.

It's a gorgeous colour for almost any skin tone and for me personally with my dark hair and pale skin it's an absolute winner for the upcoming winter season.

The pencil style is super easy to use especially on the go, you just need to make sure you have sharpened it recently as otherwise you'll be a bit stuck! It;s the only downside I can find to the pencils as a whole as on the go it can be difficult to find a sharpener and this is where a traditional lipstick would have a major advantage.

That said, they're easy to apply and the colour can be built up with a few layers leaving a lovely stain after a few hours of wear and I didn't find that it settled into lines too badly either, though this does always happen eventually.

The photo above shows the berry colour and below is the lip pencil on my lips:






In my personal opinion sometimes I feel I need an actual lip pencil to line and fill my lips as something this can be a bit translucent as you can see in the image above. I just feel this kind of colour and look requires a clean and defined line.
The colour however is one of my favourites and it's now one product that always seems to live in my handbag. I wore it to a wedding recently and loved it, was so easy to apply and was even appropriate in the day time:

In short, I love it. I definitely want more of the lip pencils from Nars now I know where I stand with finishes. The set from Space NK for Christmas, the Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret holds 5 of the lip pencils in a smaller size and I've definitely got my eye on it. 

It contains Cruella and also Iberico(intense matte coral), Yu (shocking pink with cool undertones), Descanso (tea rose with satin finish) and Torres del Paine (peach coral with satin finish). Cruella and Yu are part of their normal range whilst the others are limited edition. I need to get my hands on this set as Torres del Paine looks beautiful! 

Have you tried any of the Nars lip pencils? Is the gift set on your wishlist? What colour is your favourite?

L xxx

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella

Happy Friday lovely people!

I've got a lovely quiet(ish) weekend lined up where I'm meeting some old friends for lunch and aside from that it's going to be relaxation and bliss on the cards.....and a whole lot of catching up on tv! This new job has taken up a lot of my time doing extra reading and trying to keep up with my gym and classes so I'm looking forward to catching up with everything else.

A few weeks ago both myself and M nabbed ourselves one of the Space NK Gift With Purchase bundles that I haven't even begun to get through; free stuff is so much fun. But obviously we had to spend £150 to get said gifts and this became my opportunity to snap up some much raved about Nars products. I'd never used any whatsoever before this so had quite a wishlist and proceeded to cross some of them off; I've previously posted about the infamous Orgasm blush - post here - and now you can read my review of the nearly as famous Lip Pencils.

It didn't take much convincing for me to add this to my basket, Anna from VDM who I'm sure you all MUST be aware of always looks gorgeous wearing hers so as we are the same colouring it was a no brainer.

Cruella, as if I could leave it after seeing that name! Brings back all the memories of the oh so glamorous Ms Deville and the colour is perfectly fitting.

It's a matte lip pencil, there is also a satin and a velvet gloss lip pencil range (come back for a future review of a satin pencil also!) and so I snapped up one from each range for comparison purposes....obviously.

The pencils themselves are typical in NARS design with monochrome packaging but have the added advantage of having a coloured base; this would be great when choosing between nude, red, pink etc but may be problematic with differentiating between reds...however I don't own enough of them at this point to worry about that!

The Lip Pencils are super easy to use, I have used liner with this one as I have a similar colour to match it but they haven't bled a single time i've used them so are good enough to use without one. The colour is so pigmented and although the matte did feel quite dry on application compared to other lip products, it didn't actually dry my lips out any further.

Clearly they are easy to use, you just need a larger sharpener to get the pencil in (rumour has it UD's Grindhouse is the best - added to wishlist!) and it's so easy to apply the colour that you could even slick on a layer whilst on the bus - though you'll definitely need to check you are in the lines for a colour this bold!

So how does it look on?

These photos were taken with minimal make up apart from the lip pencil and I love the slightly vampy look!

I love the colour, it's a perfect red and I can see me wearing this a lot in future. Even though these photos were taken in natural day light the colour in reality did seem to be darker than the photos show but nevertheless you can see the finish.

I was really impressed by the wear time of these lip pencils too. I'm sure I went a good 6 hours without the need to reapply and that was through multiple meals/snacking/drinks and I think i reapplied purely for the feeling of knowing there was something on my lips!

I would fully recommend the matte range and am tempted to look at the other colours but must resist for the next month or so.....

The Matte Lip Pencils come in at £18 for 2.4g of product and are available in 21 colours.

Have you tried one of the matte lip pencils? What's your favourite colour? Any recommendations for future NARS purchases??

L xxx

Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick - Catfight

Evening All

Hope you've had a great bank holiday weekend. A few weeks back we shared our thoughts on the Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in the shade Native (review here). When we went to an event for the Electric Palette this was another of the items I decided I had to purchase.

I loved the formula of the lipsticks but Native isn't a colour I wear much anymore. I very much a brights on the lips girl. I find nude shades don't suit me very much any more. I won't go into the packaging too much but I do love the gunmetal colour and embossing on it.

I went for the shade Catfight, after seeing it swatched on Nina's hand there was noway I wasn't having it. It's a shade my totally ridiculous necessary lipstick collection is lacking. Most of the red colours I own are blue toned. I love the warm pinky tone of the shade with enough red to make it not too pink! (I'm great at describing colours!)

One swipe of this lipstick leaves the most amazing pigmentation on the lips! It's got a subtle sheen to it and just glides onto the lips. Another bonus is it makes my teeth look white. I would say I could do with a lip brush to apply it. Something about the shape of the bullet makes a bright colour hard to apply tidy! It may be me. The lipstick does look different colours in different lights. The first two photos on the lips are from my camera normally and the last one is from the camera front facing. I would say the swatch is most true to colour.

These lipsticks last amazingly well and for a bright colour fade pretty well. There is a slight ring around the lips but nothing as bad as some. They aren't drying either which is always a plus.

They retail for £15 which is reasonable for high end lipsticks! As I have previously said I wouldn't have looked to Urban Decay for lipstick before but I love the formula and would put them on par with MAC!

Have you tried Urban Decay Revolution Lipsticks?

Love M

xxx

Urban Decay Naked Ultra Nourishing Lipgloss in Beso

Evening all!

Sorry for the late post. The weekend and today have just rushed by. I've literally just got home after the gym. I definitely have the fitness bug at the moment so I'm trying to push myself as much as possible while it's still here. 

Hope you all had great weekends!

A few weeks ago L and I went to a showcase for Urban Decay and we were lucky to have these in our goodie bags. Over the last year I've been loving a glossier lip and have been trying to find lip glosses I like. Lately I've been wearing my hair up more so I've been wearing more and more lip glosses so I couldn't wait to try these.

I was instantly drawn to the packaging. How gorgeous is it. I love that it matches the Naked 2 palette and how sleek it looks. The colour at the bottom makes it easy to see what colour it is if you have more than one. It's also stayed scratch few even when it's thrown about in my bag.

When we were swatching away I was instantly drawn to Beso. It's such a gorgeous soft plummy colour and very much a 'me' shade. When I found out that Beso meant kiss in Spanish I loved it even more.

The Urban Decay Naked lip glosses are nourishing on the lips and contain vitamin E, Avocado Oil and Shea butter to keep lips in great condition.

It has a slightly longer applicator so it makes it really easy to apply.

I love that the lip gloss isn't sticky, as nothing puts me off more than when my lips stick together. With the Naked lip glosses they provide a soft wash of colour, high shine, moisture and make my lips look plumper.

Beso has been a firm favourite since I got it. I love it on it's own for a simple daily gloss look or pairing it over dark lipsticks for a bold lip!

I also got liar. I've not worn this one as much as I'm loving Beso more!

Liar is a softer pink shade and nearer my natural lip colour.

I'm a big fan of the texture of the glosses and love how conditioned my lips feel. They are great for everyday wear or for wearing over lipsticks. I do wish the colours were slightly more pigmented as I am a fan of a bold lip.

Have you tried the Naked glosses?

Love M

xxx

MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer in Kooky

When I dyed my hair purple a few weeks back I decided I needed some new lipsticks to match it as probably half of my lipsticks would no longer go with it. I picked up one of the new Rimmel Moisture Renew lipsticks which I'm absolutely loving (review here). I'd been eyeing up the Topshop velvet lips as it was the perfect purple but after spotting the MUA one for a lot cheaper I thought I'd give it a go.

The MUA luxe velvet lip lacquers are a liquid lipstick that dries super matte with full pigmentation that lasts. They are similar I imagine to the Lime Crime Velvetines. I'm still eyeing up red velvet to try.

I personally love a matte lip. I think matte looks great with bold colour but to get a perfect matte lip is a challenge. I hate it when it feels tight or dry on the lips or when cracks.

The first thing I love about these are the packaging. The frosted glass and simple and sleek packaging look much more high end than their £3 price tag. I also love that they are boxed! A waste of packaging yes but it always makes me feel like I'm getting something better.

Kooky is a very true purple. It has a very impressive pigmentation and comes out true to colour on the lips. With these less really is more. I find it best to wipe some of the product of before applying and go for a thin layer. The coverage looks better, it's less messy and it lasts better.

I find if I applied too much product it almost crumbled off my lips. I also wondered about applying a lip gloss over the top for if I wanted the great pigmentation but with a glossy finish. This didn't mix well. It just peeled off the velvet lip lacquer underneath and looked really messy.

I also find apply less feels more comfortable on the lips. When I apply it more thickly it makes my lips feel tight and almost more like I need to pout.

They do wear well with a strong pigmentation but wear time is dependant on whether you eat and drink as they do start to wear off from the inside and you are left with the outer parts of the lips being coloured.

These are great for strong pigmentation and matte finish without leaving lips cakey and dry when applied right. Overall I like them and will probably pick up the other colours. Kooky really is a great colour and a purple like this isn't something I'd have thought of picking up before but it has surprised me how many compliments I've got especially from people I wouldn't have expected?

Have you tried these yet?

Love M

xxx

Review: Avon Ultra Colour Rich Moisture Seduction Lipstick Fuchsia Fever

This is a lipstick I've actually had for a while but after buying so many this past year I keep forgetting then ones I have. Lately I've been making it a mission to try and use up the make up I have and refind hidden gems.

This is one of Avon's colour rich moisture seduction lipsticks. These lips are extra hydrating on the lips. I tend to favour brighter colours most of the time so picked the shade Fuchsia Fever.

As with most of the Avon Colour range the rich moisture lipsticks come with a classic black and silver packaging. They have Avon embossed on the silver part. I like the simple packaging but it does mean it doesn't stand out to me in my collection.

In this picture you can see the unique feature of this lipstick. It has a marble effect on the bullet which is moisturising ribbons throughout the lipstick so that lips are kept hydrated. 

As you can see from the swatch it's got quite a glossy finish. Fuchsia Fever is a true pink. I tend to gravitate to blue toned pinks but this has more of a warm base to it. It's really pigmented, moisturising and glides onto the lips without any dragging.

I really like the finish of this lipstick, it feels almost balmy on the lips but leaves amazing colour behind. Even though it's not blue toned it also doesn't make my teeth look yellow which I find some lipsticks do.

I really need to go through my collection more and mix up my make up more regularly. It's so easy to get stuck into a rut.

The Ultra Rich Moisture lipsticks retail for £8.50. I definitely think they are worth it. Also as it's Avon quite regularly you can get them on offer.

Love M

xxx

Revlon Mauve it Over Matte Lipstick

Hope you've all had a great bank holiday weekend! L and I have had a great one and were suffering yesterday so forgot to write a post.

Today is my newest lipstick to add to my now ridiculously large collection *cough* over 50 *cough*. In boots a few weeks ago they had some of the Revlon line on 2 for £10 including the new lash potion mascara which retails for £9.99. As I hadn't tried it before I decided to pick up a new lipstick as well.  

I've been wanting a more matte nude lipstick for a while. I love my Mac Fanfare lipstick (review here) but sometimes find it is too shiny for some looks. I remember seeing good things about the Revlon matte range on YouTube so decided to give it a go.

After swatching all the matte shades in Boots I settled on Mauve it over. It looked like a great neutral lipstick and felt soft on the hand.

The packaging is simple and classic in black and gold but what I really like it that the top of the lid is see through so you can easily tell the colour. This works great for me for the way I store my lipsticks.

On the hand the lipstick looks slightly more orange toned than it does on the lips. I find it to be very similar to my natural lip shade. It is a almost rose toned lipstick.

Even though it has yellow tones I don't find it makes my teeth look yellow which is always a good thing. I find blue toned neutral shades just look strange on my skin tone. I love the way the lipstick applies. It glides onto the lips and is opaque in one swipe. I find it doesn't really dry my lips out either which is always a bonus.

I love how natural the colour is and find this so easy to wear for everyday and going out. I wore it when I was a bridesmaid a few weeks ago. I love it for a night out as I find it just completes the look without taking anything away from a dramatic eye look. This lipstick has stayed in my handbag since I got it as I find it just easy to wear.

I'm loving this formulation and now want more of the shades.

It's still on offer for 2 for £10 in boots so technically free if you want to try the new Lash Potion. A great choice if you want a new everyday lip colour.

Love M

xxx