Urban Decay: Gwen Stefani Palette

Hello all!

We're sure you've heard the hype around this fabulous pallete, and really what isn't to get excited about?!

Urban Decay never fail to produce top quality products, the pigmentation cannot be equalled and their limited edition palettes are always even better. Knowing that this release was with Gwen Stefani was even better! I've loved her style for so long, even with her sometimes quirky outfits she always has flawless make up.

After buying a house and keeping every spare penny for furniture and paint, this was the best news and finally a big enough reason to break into the piggy bank - this release made me EXCITED.

As soon as I saw the packaging I knew I had to have it, the contents at this point hadn't even crossed my mind. I love monochrome and gold metallics so the colours were perfect for me. Even though Gwen Stefani is known for being part of the Punk music scene she's always stayed pretty classic at the same time. I love it.

The colour range of the eyeshadows is also spot on. There are so many beautiful neutral shades to create so many looks with finishes from matte, frost and shimmer. 

As for the colours, here's the rundown:

Blonde is described as a “pale beige with pink iridescent shift.
Bathwater is described as a “pale beige with gold pearl.
Skimp is described as a “pale nude satin
Steady is described as a “medium rose with metallic gold shift
Punk is described as a “reddish brown matte
Baby is described as a “cool metallic rose
Anaheim is described as a “light taupe-brown matte
Stark is described as a “nude-pink matte
Zone is described as a “medium brown matte
Serious is described as a “smoky gray with iridescent floating pearl
Pop is described as a “pale coral with iridescent sparkle
Harajuku is described as a “metallic blue-pink with iridescent micro-shimmer
Danger is described as a “deep metallic royal blue with blue micro-sparkle
1987 is described as a “bright metallic yellow-gold
Blackout is described as a “blackest black matte

I'm finding it hard to say which colour is my favourite as I genuinely think all of the top 2 rows are perfection in a palette. Blonde, Anaheim, Punk and Serious have special mentions though! Love these eeeeeeeeeeeeeevery day!

The surprise in the palette is the gold (called 1987), I was super impressed as it is beautiful and so pigmented. I have so far only used this dry as a liner but I would really love to use a wet brush and try it then as I imagine the pigmentation would be so much more vibrant. 

I'm not sure what I think about Harajuku but I'm willing to give it a try, and Blackout is a staple in anyone's life - it's just a must and the blackest of black eye shadows. I was very excited by Pop and Danger, but sadly these both had quite a lot of fallout. Pop barely made it onto my eyelid so I think some serious primer is going to be necessary. Danger is a wonderful colour but half of it ended up on my cheeks, and I only noticed when it smudged across my face in work and I looked ridiculous!

All of that being said, it's a beautiful and perfect palette that everyone needs. It comes in at £40 but is limited edition and worth every penny. My only downsides are the fallout from Pop and Danger, and I'm a little disappointed there isn't a brush or an eyeliner included like many other palettes.

In fact, although I'm excited for the lip products maybe they should consider an eyeliner collection too, how much does everyone want the perfect liner that Gwen always seems to get right??

Think about UD, it would fly off the shelves even faster than the palette!

What do you think of the palette? Are the colours perfect for you?


L xxx

Hey All

As L and I went to John Lewis Urban Decay counter to see this palette I was sure I wouldn't buy it. I didn't need another palette and after recently moving in with C I couldn't really afford it. As we arrived Kate did my eye make up for me using it and I was instantly sold. In my slightly hungover state I had absolutely no willpower I think knowing it was Limited edition made me want it more.

As L has said the packaging is amazing!! It has a huge mirror with a cute quote in the corner of the mirror which you can see below. The packaging is apparently inspired by some art Gwen has in her house!

The colours in the palette are what made it hardest for me to resist. It's full of mostly wearable colours and the prettiest nudes! Anaheim is one I was instantly drawn to, it's a perfect crease colour and would probably make a great brow colour too. It has a really great mixture of shimmer and matte shades and all of them have the quality you'd expect from UD, there is some fallout with some shades especially Danger but if I'm going all out with make up I tend to do my eye's pre foundation anyway as it makes clean up easier!

Danger is another shadow that made me buy this palette! What an amazing shade of blue. I did a smokey eye using it for last weekend and it just looked amazing (even if I do say so myself ha!). I keep reaching for this at the moment and it's making me feel inspired to play with make up again. If I'm honest Harajuku probably won't get used but I need to play around more and see if I can find a way to use it. Lastly worthy of an honourable mention is Baby. When I swatched it in store it was love, such a pretty everyday shimmer with a hint of worth. It looks great as a lid shade especially with Anaheim through the crease.

As a bonus with the palette you get a preview and sample of the lipsticks that will be released next year. How beautiful is that packaging going to be!!! I love all the four sample colours and will definitely be testing these out. I like that you get a to test out the different formulations of the lipsticks too. I'm intrigued by 714 as it's a mega matte! And let's face it, I have high expectations for the Red lipstick if it's been done in collaboration with Gwen Stefani.

It retails for £40 but the eyeshadow pans are a decent size and almost the same size as a Mac eyeshadow pan! This is one you won't regret.

Have you picked it up yet?

Love M

xxx

Lush Cranberry Fresh Face Mask

Hey All

L and I love a good face mask especially the Lush one's. When we went to Lush a few weeks back to see the new Christmas collection (you can see that post here) we couldn't resist getting some new face masks. As we were meeting up a week later to go to a friend's christening we decided to go for a double face masks session so we could try out each other's purchases.

Cranberry is a Christmas edition so you should definitely snap this one up quickly. Cranberry is a great one full of antioxidants and fenel to cleanse the skin and argan oil and rose clay leaves helps to leave the skin soft, smooth and matte.

It has a thick texture meaning it's easy to smooth onto the skin, it also has a slight grainy texture so gives a slight exfoliation when it's removed. It dries comfortably on the skin and does flake off too badly as you're relaxing waiting for it to work it's magic. After using L's I'll definitely be grabbing another one before it goes.

Love M

xxx

Good morning!

This face mask is well worth picking up for the limited time it is available, if it's only for the smell!! It just smells so perfectly fruity and addictive.

My favourite feature of this face mask was the slight exfoliation properties, which clearly help with the 'smooth skin' that the mask promises. I can't find anything not to like about this, its's super refreshing and everyone should pick up a pot!

I always look forward to trying out the new masks from Lush, I hope that they bring out another in the new year very soon!


L xxx

Quench Mojito Master*

Hey All

I can't believe it's only 11 days until Christmas! When the email came through to see if we wanted to try the Mojito Master I was interested straight away. Mojitos are something that are made regularly in my house as it's what me and my other half drank on our first date and one of our favourite drinks. I don't have the proper tools though and tend to just use a rolling pin and stuff to make them.

The mojito master is the Swiss knife of cocktail making, it has everything you need and the bits pop out. It contains a muddle, drinks measure, knife, spoon and mint cutter.

The knife was impressively sharp. I had assumed with something like this it wouldn't be that good but it is. All the bits pop out easily and there our measures inside the cup for the perfect mojito.

It's comfortable in the hand when all assembled again to be able to perfectly muddle the ingredients! Apologies for my lack of pretty glasses. We opt for big mojitos!!

I make mine by squeezing the juice of half a lime into the glass, add 2 large teaspoons of sugar and muddle all of that together. I then add around 8 mint leaves to the glass (apparently if they give them a clap between your hands it released flavour. I then fill the glass with crushed ice. The smaller the better. Here the rolling pin is still used to smash it. I then add to large shots of rum and use the spoon to get right the bottom of the glass and kind of pull the liquid up so all the ice, rum and lime, mint, sugar mix is all combined. I then add a quarter of a lime wedge and mint sprig to garnish. I don't opt of soda in mine as the crushed ice melts and waters it down a little. We also prefer a spiced rum to a white rum or an aged rum!

The result some very tasty mojitos! If you're looking for a last minute gift this is a great idea! I would have definitely grabbed on for my other half. The only thing I would say could be improved it the spoon folds out but then doesn't look in so bends halfway down. If I wanted making pints of Mojito though it probably wouldn't be an issue!

Are you a mojito fan? The mojito master is currently on offer for £9 at Handpicked Collection.

Love M

xxx

Whirlwind Trip: Helsinki, Finland

Hi all!

Hope you're all getting into the Christmas spirit - I'm super excited to have my Christmas in my own house for the first time so I've been busy buying and making as much as I can!

Work seems to be slowing down ready for Christmas but November was crazy busy and I was out of the office every week for various reasons. One of the trips I went on was to Helsinki in Finland for three days. It was a very quick trip, involving some very early mornings and late nights but I dragged myself out to do some sightseeing during the 1 free hour in day light that I had!

My hotel was right next to a beautiful lake - it was in fact still part of the sea because Helsinki itself is surrounded by it and alsmot looks like it's made up of little islands on the map, like Venice is. The lake was surrounded by paths and trees, and I am honestly impressed at how many people were meeting to walk dogs, power walk, jog and cycle around it. It was really inspiring and they were all so fit, it kind of puts the general British public to shame with the level of exercise they were doing.

That said I continued around the lake and got very very lost - my planned 30 minute walk ended up taking me at least 1.5 hours as I found myself on the other side of a completely different lake!

I had to re-navigate myself back to the centre of the city to find my way back to my hotel without walking the same route all the way back - it was an experience!

I did see some beautifully lit buildings though. It was surprising to see a European city without an abundance of old brick building which is what I am used to from travelling around France and Italy for example. All of the buildings are fairly new and minimalist in their appearance, so the odd building still made of old-style brick stood out to me, like the one below.

After my super long walk I went back to the hotel ready for my first day of work there, I was only there for 2 nights so I was hoping I would have more time to wander around the next evening.

Luck was on my side though as I was back at my hotel by 4 the next day and it was still daylight at this time so I was really pleased. I walked as fast as I possibly could to one of the main attractions in Helsinki, the Helsinki Cathedral.

This suddenly appears from the middle of nowhere and opens out into a sizeable square, there is a monument in the centre (shown above) but the main attraction definitely takes the most of your attention.



It is so beautiful and pristinely white that you wonder how on earth they have managed to keep it clean for so long!

Unfortunately I was too late to get inside the cathedral but the outside was good enough for me. There were a load of steps to climb so I just started running up them before I changed my mind...

One of my favourite things to look at is all of the detail up close, the tops of pillars are always interesting and often overlooked.

I also really loved the colour of the domes - there is one large dome and then four smaller ones all in the same beautiful green colour. Also,the gold accents can't be ignored and if I'm honest the reason I love these so much is because these are the colours in my bedroom at home! I'm a sucker for greens and golds!

It was a shame that the other half was having maintenance performed as this photo would have been so much better - maybe this is how they manage to get it so white though!

After this I moved on to see Market Square, it's right on the water front and I managed to time it perfectly with the sunset. I spent a good half an hour here talking pictures of the amazing ship - I've been watching Once Upon a Time recently and in my opinion this was Hook's!

I also loved that a few people had decided to put some 'love locks' on the bridge - I understand why the one in Paris was removed as there were so many on there it was starting to become a health and safety problem but it's still a lovely idea and maybe even more special that it isn't somewhere as obvious as Paris.

The scenery here was amazing, I loved watching the boats moving back and forth, there were cruise ships and all sorts passing through and I couldn't help but take many panoramic shots as the sky was changing colour - it was so so pretty.

Have you been to Helsinki? What did you think of it?

I really appreciated my 2 hours of sightseeing and tried to do as much as I could before it got dark! I would have liked to have explored more and also taken a boat trip to the nearby islands but sadly this was a work trip so time was very limited. In fact the last day I was up at 6.30 to pack up and check out of the hotel before working for the day and travelling back to the UK - I got home the equivalent of 2.30am so I was a zombie at work the next day!

Now I'm looking forward to my next trip - there aren't any planned for next year yet so who knows where I'll be ending up next!

L xxx