mini haul! MAC kiss me quick & Illamsqua foundation

Mini Haul!

The really hard thing about working in Soho, London is that it is just FULL of amazing makeup stores.  This makes lunch time extremely exciting but also extremely expensive - somehow today ended up with a mini makeup haul!

I treated my self to a lip pencil which I have heard raved about so much in the blogosphere - MAC pro longwear lip pencil in Kiss me Quick (link).  I also thought I would try out Illamasqua's Skin Base foundation (link) which not only is apparently undetectable in HD but also has a great range of shades especially for more European and Asian skintones.

Illamasqua skin base retails at £27.00 and Mac lip pencil at £14.00

I'm really looking forward to using this Mac lip pencil and Illamasqua foundation as I feel like they're the perfect pieces of makeup to add glamour to an occasion.  I've heard the mac pro long wear lip pencil looks great used over the whole look as it stays put all night without budging after a glass of wine.  Its throbbing red colour is simply delicious and really is asking for kiss.

As for the Illamsqua foundation, I'm really looking forward to trying out its high quality finish which I've heard leaves an absolutely perfect finish.  All in all, I am definitely looking forward to painting the town red with these too devilishly gorgeous makeup products!

Post Photo Shoot

Hey ladies!

Today I spent the day on shoot with my work.... for those of you that don't know I work for a large American beauty company.  We were shooting our first TV advert for the UK and yours truly is going to be in it! (I was so so so nervous in the days running up to it I hadn't even done any posts!)

Due to copyrighting etc etc I can't show you any takes from the day (but there are a few cheeky ones on my twitter!).  However, this was my makeup from the day and what I wore on the way back - a mixture of nudes and blues. I wanted something casual and comfortable as all day I'd been under hot lights and quite a lot of pressure.

The best part - the makeup.  I was so jealous of the makeup artist and her hundreds upon hundreds of makeup bags! I love the makeup they she did - it was a really natural look focusing on a flawless complexion.  She achieved this with a mixture of three MAC foundations and using an airbrushing machine which sprayed a light mist of foundation all over, I'd never had such a clear complexion!

I hope you liked the post! I look forward as always from hearing from you guys!

Zara SALE - white silk blouse

Hey,

I really hope its not just me whose been indulging in the ZARA sale!!!  Working in central London its really hard sometimes to try and resist all the shops, especially when they're in the sale!

I found this gem - a white silk blouse for just £17.99 - see here on the zara site.  Its a long sleeve number made of silk with a low narrow V neck with black detailing on the neck and cuffs.  I love its elegant style and is great for a night out with some black shorts or some jeans.  But I'm even thinking about wearing it to work with a pencil skirt.

Zara silk blouse with combination lapel £17.99 available here on in stores

Makeup: Number 17 primer, YSL la teint touche foundation B50, mac prep + prime transparent finishing powder, Benefit sun beam illuminator,  clarins splendors colour quartet eyeshadow , Dior Show mascara in waterproof

  What have you guys got in the Summer Sales? Let me know!

Kisses!

Fashion in Paris

Good morning my beauties!

I've been away the last few days in Paris which is why you haven't seen a post off me in a while!  It was my first time there and an absolutely wonderful experience and a great time to try out some fashion in Paris.  

After setting off from Kings Cross on the eurostar within two hours we were in the heart of Paris! These snaps are from the hotel balcony - I thought I'd share a couple of the outfits I wore over there and some of the more 'romantic makeup' looks I did.  Because, well, if you can't wear red lippy in Paris where can you?

I went for a simple but chic look consisting of jeans, white cotton shirt from The Kooples (perfect for the changes in weather!) and my favorite pair of cream Ugg wedges.

 Clothes: Cotton White shirt- The Kooples (link), jeans - Italian boutique (old), shoes - Ugg wedges (link)

Makeup: Number seventeen photo flawless primer, YSL teint touche eclat foundation b50 , Urban Decay primer potion origional, Urban Decay blackout eyeshadow, Mac Prep and Prime loose white powder, Benefit blush in dandelion, Diorshow waterproof mascara, Soap and glory lipstick in man trap

There will be more snaps coming up from my trip in Paris! Hope you guys enjoyed!
Kisses!

Lazy Sunday and Pink Lipgloss

Hello!  It's a Sunday, and about to pop out into London to enjoy the bank holiday!  So I've gone for a super laid back look as today is all about chilling. 

I went for - Beach look hair (bumble and bumble surf spray), faded jeans, hoodie and subtle makeup.  Oh, and then some neon pink lipgloss by YSL to make it pop!

Clothes: hoodie - Jack Wills this season, jeans - Guess Letitia skinny jeans,

Makeup - Benefit playstick, MAC magically cool liquid powder in Truth and light, Diorshow mascara, urban decay 24/7 black eye pencil, YSL pink liploss in golden fuscia 4



Natural Work Makeup

Morning people

Just a quick post about the makeup I put on this morning for work.  It is fairly typical of what I wear most days.  I work on the corporate side of a cosmetic comany so I have to come in having made a bit of effort, yet not so much I look like I'm off for a night on the town!

Makeup: Benefit Playstick foundation,  Bobbi Brown creamy concealer kit,  Mac prep and Prime loose finishing powder, Bobbi Brown shimmer brick in Pink Quartz, Benefit Badgal lash mascara



I usually choose to wear a long wearing foundation.  Benefit's Play Stick is my usual choice (in Tea Party) for work foundation as it has great staying power even without primer.  I also love its consistency.  It makes a great change to liquid foundation which I first get all over my hands before applying as it just goes straight on. I then just finish it off with some mac loose powder.

For the eyes, I just used the Bobbi Brown shimmer brick as a shimmery eyeshadow.  I like how smoothly it goes on and the effect it has for brightening up the eyes.

I know my hair leaves a lot to be desired but long hair is pretty high maintainance so I usually just put it in a side plait!

What's your work makeup routine?

Casual Makeup

Hello!

Here's just a quick post showing the difference a little bit of makeup makes, but still creating a very natural and casual look.  As you can see me without makeup leaves a lot to be desired, but it doesn't take much to create a 'flawless' complexion or show off your eyes.

Buongiorno!

Volevo fare sola una post veloce per mostrare quanto e' grande la differenca con un po' di trucchi!  Ma il look creato e' ancora molto casuale e naturale!  Come potete vedere, sensa di trucchi non sono molto bella, ma con un pochino ti trucchi posso creare pelle liscio e sfruttare al meglio i miei occhi.

Creating the Look:

Prep:

The most important part to achieving  a 'natural' look is creating clear skin.  The below picture is after the application of the following:

La cosa piu' importante per riuscire a fare un look naturale e di creare pelle liscia.  Nel foto di sotto si puo vedere come sono dopo che ho applicato le seguente:

1) Primer - in order to create a natural look , its important not to use a dewy primer.  Much better is a mattifying, pore minimizing primer. 
Splurge: Benefit's Pore-fessional
Steal: Number 17's primer.

2) Foundation - I'm currently in love with YSL's Teint Touche Eclat foundation in B50.  It's got a gel like texture so it easily glides on and it can also be built up as well depending on how much coverage you want.  It is also great for covering those bags under the eyes.

3)Set - I set this foundation with MAC's Prep+Prime loose white powder and MAC's magical cool powder

Now it's time for the fun part - really bringing out the best of your features

Eyes

4) As this is a natural look I didn't want anything heavy.  Instead, Ijust lightly lined the eyes with a small angualr brush with a gold / black eyeshadow.  I then put on lashings of mascara - I love Dior Blackout as it really builds up your lashes and exaggerates their natural length.

Lips

5) As you can see I had covered my lips lightly in foundation too - this is to bring out the most of my light pink lipgloss as otherwise on red lips the colour wouldn't show up.
I used Clinique's but Boots no7 do a similar one for a cheaper price.


And that's it - it's really simple to create a causal makeup look - don't go to heavy with your eyeshadow and no blusher is even needed.  Keep your lipstick / gloss light in colour and be sure to remember lashings of mascara!

Hope you enjoyed

Fiocco Bianco
xxx