Thursday, August 22, 2013

Eyeliner Collection (22/08/13)

Why, hello there!

I don't know about you, but to me it seems as though these past few months have just FLOWN by - it's already the end of August! However, I can't honestly say that I mind seeing the end of Summer, being the Winter lover that I am, so yeah - BRING ON AUTUMN!!

I have recently noticed that I've been gravitating to coloured eyeliners, since during the hot/sticky/sweaty summer months I tend to not go into some much detail when it comes to my everyday make-up, thus using coloured liners to inject some "ooomph" into my day without applying a whole load of stuff to my face.

SO! MANY! EYELINERS! ^.^

Without a doubt, my favourite liners are Essence's Long Lasting Eye Pencils, mainly because: 

a) they are retractable - I'm not very good with sharpeners, apparently; 
b) they come in a large range of amazing colours
c) their formula is very smudge-proof; 
d) they last a relatively long time on the eyes - especially when paired with an eyeshadow base/primer; and finally 
e) they cost very little, thus making my impulse purchases relatively guilt-free! (YAY!)

I've got 10 of these liners (8 from the permanent collection and 2 from the SUN kiss-ed collection), and as you can see from the swatches (below), they are SUUUUPER pigmented! The SUN kiss-ed ones are supposed to be waterproof, but they last the same as the normal ones (aka: they last long with a base, and need no extra effort to remove with a face wipe or cleanser).

Another Essence liner I luuurve is the Super Fine Eyeliner Pen. It's got a really thin felt-tip which helps in creating those super-chic winged lines (especially if you just happen to be blessed with unsteady hands, like moi). It's slightly pricier than the other Essence liners, however it is EXTREMELY long-lasting and easy-to-use, so it's worth it!

L-R: Long Lasting Eye Pencils in: Black Fever, Hot Chocolate, C'Est La Vie, Cool Down, I Have A Green, Remember Amber, Coolest Chic, Tu-Tu-Touquoise;
SUN kiss-ed eyeliners in: Hello Summer!, Sunset Paradise;
Superfine Eyeliner Pen in: Deep Black
(Top photo with flash, bottom photo without flash)

Onto my Catrice liners! Now, these are not so high on my "love-list", mainly because of their formula - unlike their Essence counter-parts, they are very soft pencils, thus resulting in very smudged liner for yours truly, unless I really take time to concentrate on the line I'm drawing, which is not the case with the Essence liners. Also, they don't come in as wide a variety of colours as the Essence ones do (in fact, these are my more "wintery" colours). But other than that, they're retractable, not very pricey, and last a fairly good amount of time on the eyes if applied over a base.

L-R: Precision Eye Pencils in: Just The Blue Of Us, Khakitoo, I Wood If I Could, Gold Me Tight!
(Top photo with flash, bottom photo without flash)

Finally I've got 3 Gabrini Waterproof Eyeliners which I'd bought about 3 years ago - before Health+ opened at the UoM campus and brought the glory of Essence and Catrice into my life. They are not retractable, but I don't use them very often as they've got quite a chalky consistency and are therefore a bit drying on the eyelids (also, the green one is a bit glittery).


L-R: Waterproof Eyeliners in: White, Sky-Blue, Green
(Top photo with flash, bottom photo without flash)

And that is all for my extensive eyeliner collection. At the moment I *think* I'm all set in that area of make-up (until the next amazing colour comes out, that is... *guilty laugh*).

I'm thinking of doing more make-up collection posts in future (however humble my collection is compared to others'), so if you're interested in seeing more of those, keep a lookout on my Facebook page!

Until then, take care!

Cheryl
 xXx

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Spring Awakening - I Love Spring Tag (17/04/13)

A tag about how much I love Spring - and all it brings (taken from All Things Lady):
  1. Favourite spring nail polish? Anything pastel! I love coloured polishes all year round (see my favourites for Summer and Autumn 2012), but Spring is definitely a time for pastels, anything from mint, to baby blue, to pale pink, to lemon yellow to lilac! (favourite Spring nail colours coming soon!)
  2. What is your must-have lip colour this spring? Hmmm, I'm absolutely loving Catrice's Ultimate Colour lipstick in 210 - Pinkadilly Circus. It's a beautiful corally-pink shade that's just bright enough for spring, yet not full-on Summery! Also I adore Catrice's Liquid Liptint in 030 - Are You Red-y. Although the name hints at redness, it actually has more of a pinky colour, and is VERY build-able, so you can make it as intense (or natural) as you choose!
  3. Show us your favourite spring dress! In Spring I'd LIVE in dresses if I could - particularly tea-dresses (I love me a good vintage-looking tea-dress), so this question is a bit tricky for me... However, if I had to pick one dress, it would be a GORGEOUS minty floral skater dress from Primark! :) 
  4. Favourite spring accessory? Lots of coloured bangles and sunglasses!! In winter I don't wear much arm-candy, as bracelets tend to get covered up by long sleeved tops anyway, but when spring arrives I break out the bangles in celebration! Also, I start wearing my (many) sunglasses, as it gets really sunny during my work breaks!
  5. What spring trend(s) are you most excited about this year? (Make-up, fashion or both!) Pastels! Pastels! PASTELS! I MIGHT have mentioned that I love colour, and Spring to me means I can start wearing my favourite floral-print and pastel-hues garments and accessories. Also, coloured eyeliner... LOTS of coloured eyeliner!
  6. Favourite body spray/perfume for spring? Body spray: Impulse's Tease ; Perfume: Miami Glow by JLo
  7. What’s your favourite thing about spring? SOOOO Many things! Brighter, lighter clothing, longer days, the thought that Summer is soon upon us, perfect weather, Easter time... What I DON'T like, however, is ALLERGY SEASON... *insert angry face here*
  8. Are you a spring cleaner? Hmmmmm, I DO like to re-organise my clothing every Spring and Autumn, and also a general re-shuffle of my room is always good, so yes, I kind of am a spring cleaner...
  9. Any plans for summer so far? To have loads of FUN. Plain and simple.
  10. How long have you been blogging for? I've been blogging (albeit irregularly) since November 2011, which means a year and a half :)
Hope you enjoyed this tag! I tag everyone who's read this, but specifically: Martina and Denise from All Things Fabulous
Dyna from Makeup by Dyna
Lorraine from Lola Loves Sparkles
Sarah-Jane from Make-up by Sarah-Jane and
Lara from Every Beauty Addict's Bible 

Cheryl
 xXx

Monday, March 18, 2013

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

NOTW - Tinsel and Holly (18/12/12)

Hey there everyone!

Kindly excuse my prolonged absence - I'm currently going through a series of events (some unfortunate, some not so much) and was lacking in time (and, admittedly, inspiration) for blog posts...

However, yesterday evening, inspiration struck in the form of an awesome Christmassy nail tutorial by one of my favourite nail bloggers - Nailside... It's so simple, yet so chic and festive that I absolutely had to try it!

My Tinsel & Holly design (above) - inspired by Nailside's Holly Leaf design (below)

It's basically all glittery-gold - I used Essence's Go Bold! (a shimmery gold colour) and Essence's Gold Fever (a gold and red glitter) - with a (really easy to do!) holly leaf design - using Catrice's King of Greens (a metallic grassy green) as a base, Essence's Walk on the Wild Side (a dark mossy green) for the tip and leaf-vein design, and Max Factor's Wine Red (a bright Christmassy red) for the berries - and, of course, topped off with Essence's Gel-Look Top Coat. Although the leaf bit looks tricky, it's actually quite easy to do - trust me, I've got the least steady hands in the world, and somehow I managed to pull it off! Go to Jane's (Nailside) blog for easy step-by-step instructions on this and many other awesome designs!

I hope you're all well! Have a happy and safe Christmas!

Cheryl
 xXx

Monday, November 19, 2012

Review - Catrice Light Reflecting Concealer (19/11/12)

Monday mornings are never easy, but thankfully, Catrice have come up with a great concealer to help hide those horrid under-eye circles (and any other nuisances that may crop up) - the Catrice Light Reflecting Concealer.

I was never really a concealer type of person, not because I don't need it - quite on the contrary actually - but I just never found one that I could actually use well... I've tried concealer sticks, liquid concealers that come in a tube with sponge-tipped applicators, and also cream concealers, but never really fell in love with any of them (actually, I don't even think I ever really used up any of them...) 

The closest I came to finding that awesome concealer was the Essence Forget It! 3 in 1 Concealer that came with beige, green and pink sections for different types of coverage, however the packaging was too flimsy - the lid hinge broke off almost immediately, which resulted in the lid randomly coming off and my make up bag being filled with splodges of green, pink and beige... Needless to say, I chucked that in the trash...

RIP Mr. Concealer...
However, about a month ago, I decided to try out a concealer from Catrice (in 030 Rosy Beige), having read a few positive reviews about it, and was pleasantly surprised by it. At first I couldn't get round to using it (twisting the bottom to push the product up into the brush-tip, then dotting it over problem areas) and found that the best and most effective way of applying it was to blend it out with a small foundation/concealer brush after applying it from the tube/brush... I was amazed to see redness reduced, pimples camouflaged and under-eyes brightened with just one product! 






As I said, It's lasted me a month, which means I've used it every day (teamed with my Essence I <3 Stage eyeshadow base and Catrice Matte Mousse Foundation in 020 Natural Beige) and I'm really glad with the way my face looks after I've done my make up... 

It's a definite winner for me, and will be repurchasing another (plus back-up) today!

I'm thinking of doing a haul of all the stuff I've bought in the past 2 months (quite an alarming amount of items, actually) and a ring collection (as I've also been branching out and trying to go beyond my comfort zone in terms of accessories)... If there's anything you'd like to see, just comment below! :)

Cheryl
 xXx

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Grandpa Wants His Cardi Back... (13/11/12)

I know, I know... It's been a while (again)...

This post was inspired by longing for wintry weather (or as close to it as we get here in Malta, anyway...), mostly brought on by a Christmas Tree shopping trip with mum last Saturday, plus listening to Christmas songs... (Yes. I know. It's still mid-November... Lay off me...)

Lately I've been fantasising about big, cosy knits, particularly Fairisle patterns - they are sooooo adorable, plus they remind me of the large printed cardis my Granpas (and dad) would wear in the winter.... In fact, I remember Dad had this cream-coloured cardi which had huge brown buttons, and was so soft, I used to love to sneak it out of his wardrobe as a munchkin and wrap myself in it... I guess I never out-grew that feeling... Thankfully, big knits are back, and I've invested in 4 amazing new wooly delights courtesy of Terranova and New Look - will post pictures of them as soon as I've snapped some ;) but in the meantime here are the links to two of the New Look ones (the others aren't available online): Grey and Pink Leopard Print Boxy Jumper ; Navy and Red Fairisle Boyfriend Cardigan 

Anyway, so great is my longing for cold weather and warm knits, that I even created a Polyvore set:

 

Yes - I adore the large "grandpa" Christmas prints! They're so cheerful and cuddly-looking!

Anyway, enough gushing!! That's all for today's post, but I'm working on a few OOTDs, so stay tuned for those... *wink wink*

Cheryl
 xXx

Monday, November 5, 2012

Blog Sale (04/11/12)

Hey all! 

Sorry for my absence last week! However, the long-awaited blog sale is here! :) 

I have uploaded photos of all the items available - you can find them here :) The only "rule" is that it's only available to Maltese residents...

If anyone is interested, leave me a comment below, facebook message or comment on the photo itself!

Thanks!

Cheryl
 xXx