an Essence-ial FOTD

Face:

Catrice Skin Finish powder, 010 transparent

Essence blush, adorable

Essence Sun Club, large matt bronzing powder, for blondes

Eyes:

Essence eye brow designer, 04 blonde

Essence long-lasting eye pencil, 04 hot chocolate

Essence get BIG! waterproof mascara

88 matte eye shadow palette, greens, browns and white

Lips:

Rimmel 1000 kisses lip tint, carry on cherry

A few weeks back I found myself parted from most of my basic make up; it's a long story and I'm sure you really don't wanna hear about it.
Anyway, because I had a few occasions to attend, I needed emergency, inexpensive, but still quality make-up, so I ran to my nearest chemist.
Here is a quick review of some of the things I picked up.

Catrice skin finish powder, 010 transparent: this powder is a-maze!!! I use this as a base as  I don't really need foundation, especially in the summer, and it stays on for a long, long time. I also used it as an eye primer as I didn't have my UDPP, and it worked wonders! Perfect skin tone match as well.
Essence Sun Club, large matt bronzing powder, for blondes: if you're really fair and usually go for soft bronze and blush, this may not be for you. It's quite dark to be designed for light skinned blonde but as I often like to enhance my defined cheek bones, this is perfect for me.
Essence eye brow designer, 04 blonde:as for above, it may be designed for blondes, but if you like your brows quite light in colour, don't go for this. Also, as most brow liners go, it has a very reddish under tone that show up especially in photos. Super easy application though, and it last all day without budging.
Essence long-lasting eye pencil, 04 hot chocolate: this liner is an absolute dream! It's so soft it glides on effortlessly, super easy to smudge -even with your fingers- and it stays on for hours without the need to be touched up and no primer.
Rimmel 1000 kisses lip tint, carry on cherry: really does what is says on the tube! The slim tip is a major bonus for me as it allows a great, precise application even for the blind-as-a-bat like me. The balm really moisturizes and makes the tint last longer. No need to re-apply every hour like most lippies, you don't feel it on your lips and they are not left dry at the end of the day.

I must say, after years of people telling me I should try a red lip, I gave in, at last. As you know I;m generally not a lipstick fan as I can't be doing with constant reapplication and they dry my lips out very quickly, but I'm really liking all these new moisturizing lip tints! Any suggestion?
Do I sport the rich, red lip, well?

Lil

Comments update (again...)

I have installed a new comments system so hopefully everyone will be able to leave comments noww.
You may be asked for a name and e-mail, but don't worry, other readers will NOT be able to contact you.
I REALLY hope this works.
As usual, let me know if you find any glitches or if it's working fine for you.
Thank you.

Lil

WOW BROWN DIY luxury creme tan, light/medium

If you are familiar with my blog and myself you will already be aware of Wow Brown (you can go back to see my reviews on the spray tan here ). If you aren't familiar with the brand I shall give you a quick brand background.
It's an Irish brand funded by two amazing ladies who decided to develop a sunless tanning range of products suitable for the pale complexion. And boy have they done it!

This is the product I will be reviewing

DIY luxury creme tan, light/medium, RRP  €21.95

I am honestly not the kind of beauty junkie that discards a product if it doesn't look pristine, so the very simple white and hot pink bottle and packaging don't phase me at all.

Let me start with the application: because on my colour-less skin ANY self tan mistake will show very clearly, I use a mitt. I also enrol the help of my other half for the hard to reach bits and for those areas my eyes won't allow me to see, even in a mirror. The biggest plus of this product for me is the colour guide, it's a big help for my bad eye sight as it allows me to very clearly see where I have applied it already.

I have to be honest and say that when it comes out of the bottle and as you glide it onto your skin, it's a very scary shade of brown and also could end up looking a little streaky in places. But fret not as that is not the colour you'll end up with. It's super easy to apply and does give you the time to really rub it in and correct possible mistakes.
I apply this on my face as well, although I can never get a perfect uniform colour because I can't be too precise with the mitt; I use a BB cream or tinted moisturiser to make it more even.

As the tan develops you will get a slight whiff of burnt digestive, but it's very bearable, especially if you leave it over night.

When you shower in the morning or after the 8 hours of colour developing, all the excess and streaks will just wash away completely, leaving you with a lovely natural glowing tan.

The brand claims the tan will stay on for 3 to 10 days, I guess they pretty much cover themselves with that. On my fairly dry body if I moisturise daily, the colour will look nice for 3 or 4 days, after which it starts to fade away quite evenly, again providing you keep your skin moisturised.
€21.95 might seem  a little pricey for just a bottle but I assure you get a lot of full body uses out of it.
I am definitely going to purchase another bottle when I eventually finish this one.

And here is the final results:

after one application

after another application a couple of days later

For more information, to buy this or other products and for everything you need to know, you can check their website on Wowbrown.com

Let me know if you've tried it too and what you think of it.

Lil

OOTD Come Fly With Me & an iclothing.ie review

 (please excuse the horrible frown)

This is the outfit I chose to travel back to Italy for a few days a couple of weeks ago.
The trousers are from iclothing.ie: you can find them here. At around Christmas time I won a €50 voucher on a Twitter giveaway they did so decided to treat myself to a few little things seeing as I hadn't done so since before Christmas. Other than the trousers I also bought this dress and this one. I haven't had the chance to wear them yet but I will post photos when I do.
I have to say I was EXTREMELY happy with the service they provided: I placed my order in the early afternoon and the morning after it was delivered. The garments were very well packaged, uncreased and everything was the right size. I am DEFINITELY buying from them again!
The trousers are an absolute dream to wear! Even after a whole day travelling on buses, coaches, plane and car, they were still super comfortable. And they even stretch to accommodate my Mediterranean hips and back side!
All the other pieces in my outfit I've had for absolute years and were all bought in Italy, suitcase included (I have been asked about it before).
I know it could have easily been a white overload but I would have never gone for this ensamble without a bit of a tan on. I would have broken it up with a coloured/patterned top or blazer.

Lil

Even a stone...

"Even a stone can be worn down with enough rain.” 

Arthur Golden, Memoirs of a Geisha