Sunday 30 December 2012

Belated Boxing Day EOTD

Can't believe that Christmas has come and gone so quickly!
To hold on to the festivities a little while longer here is my, very simple, Boxing Day look

- Maybelline colour tattoo in Bronze as a base over my lid, blended up to my socket
- MUG Purely Naked in socket
- MUA Eyeliner pen in Black applied thinly along lash line
- lots of mascara!

On my cheeks I wore Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Rose and on my lips, Prescriptives lipgloss in Meteor (sheer cranberry, sadly discontinued).

Hope you like it :)

Tuesday 25 December 2012

Festive eyes, too! Cranberry and green EotD

Merry Christmas!
This one's not the most wearable but I really like it :)
I've tried my best to get the colours to show up in the pictures but, as usual, I'm working with my phone camera and British winter sunlight, so it's pretty much impossible and it looks much prettier in real life.
I've used:
MUA Forest Green pencil in my socket, outer corner and under my eye.
MAC Cranberry across my lid
Napoleon Perdis shimmer powder No 37 ( a sheer gold shimmer ) pressed lightly over it all.
Clinique black cream liner on upper lash line
Mally Onyx eyeliner on waterline
Lots of black mascara, also from Mally
Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Rose on my cheeks

I hope you like it, have a great day everyone :) xx


In the practically non-existant daylight

In my bathroom!

Monday 24 December 2012

Festive fingers, festive toes! Christmassy nails and getting cosy in my Twilight boots...

Morning, Blogland and a Merry Christmas Eve to you all! :)
In the sprit of the season I thought I would paint my nails red and green and share with you the birthday present I bought myself which turned up late but is very much loved.




The nail colours are OPI Affair in Red Square and a-England Saint George and I am very pleased with them as a festive combo.






These lovelies are the Ugg Adirondack and they are so comfy and cosy that I don't quite trust them! If they look familiar to you they are also the boots that Kristen Stewart wears in Twilight.
There is also a tall version to keep your legs toasty, but I could only find them here on amazon in a UK 5 which would be just a smidge too small for me in my winter socks. If you are a 5, though, my advice is snap them up!

Please excuse any weirdness in the layout, etc, I am posting from my phone.

Merry Christmas everyone!! :)

Tuesday 11 December 2012

It's my birthday!!

So I'm a million years old today but I don't look too shabby for it. I was going to post a picture of the wondrous present that I bought for myself but it hasn't arrived yet!

Instead, here is a picture of the Christmas tree I wish I had in my imaginary house in Whoville.......



Monday 12 November 2012

Be still me beating heart, it's Rolo stuffed cookies!


I saw this recipe on the Self Facebook page and thought it would be downright cruel of me not to share it :)
That's right, it really does require 50 Rolos..........







Monday 29 October 2012

Music Monday: Seven Devils by Florence and the Machine

I'm sure a huge portion of you reading will be going "Uh, this isn't new" but if it's new to me, it might be new to others and it's only polite to share, see?

I heard this song last week on the Revenge (UK) finale montage and, after the gripping season conclusion, I promptly typed "Seven Devils" into Google and found out that I am apparently a fan of Florence and the Machine and that it was also used for a Game of Thrones Season 2 promo.

I may be mildly obsessed with the song.
I may have had it on repeat for a few days.
At some point I will find out if the rest of the album is good too....


Friday 12 October 2012

Exciting News if you love Kate Moss' Make Up!

Charlotte Tilbury, Ibiza cohort of Miss Moss and Grand Mistress of the Smokey Eye (yes, it deserves capitals) has decided to start a blog!

This blog will feature tutorials, reviews, quick-fix tips and behind the scenes glimpses into the (probably) ridiculously exciting life of a celebrity Make up Artist.

As a pre-emptive treat, Charlotte has released a Smokey Eye tutorial, featuring Laura Bailey, which you can see HERE on her new YouTube channel, or on the Grazia website.

I suggest we all watch and learn..... ;)


Wednesday 10 October 2012

Lisa Eldridge's ingenious Brights vs Smoky tutorial

I know it's a bit lazy to just share someone else's video but this is such a good idea that I physically had to!

On the surface, it looks like it's been done using dark coloured shadows with varying undertones, BUT, it's actually an ingenious way of using up those random brights that everyone seems to own that never seem to get used.

All hail the Queen of Make Up ;)


Go HERE for more knowledge


Monday 17 September 2012

Bring back Dairy Milk Mint Crisp!!

Ok, so these post are very random and more than a little complainy lately but this was my favourite chocolate bar ever and Cadburys, cruel mistress, discontinued it here the UK a good few ( too many ) years ago.




However.....

I just found out you can still buy it in Ireland!!!!!!!!!!!!

You might think this would make me happy - Yay, it still exists! I can once more savour it's delicious goodness!

Unfortunately, it's about £2.50 for a small bar PLUS International shipping costs so there'll be no savouring going on here.

So, in closing I would just like to say:

CADBURYS!! If you can feed Ireland you can feed Wales too! Bring Mint Crisp back!


Please...?

Sunday 16 September 2012

Today I have been mostly....

.... watching re-runs of An Idiot Abroad. Karl Pilkington is truly a genius.



Ricky Gervais, you are a lucky man and I thank you wholeheartedly for sharing your good fortune with us.

Tuesday 4 September 2012

Seriously, Illamasqua?? Seriously, Laura Mercier??

I will just skip over how long it's been since my last post as none of you need to hear the extent of the mental cringing that went on when I saw the last date listed here........

The point of this post is samples. Apparently a contentious subject when it comes to expensive foundation, although my opinion on the subject applies to the entire price spectrum.




The reason I have picked on chosen these two brands is because they are both extremely well known for their bases. Everyone and their uncle has written about Illamasqua Skin Base and Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage has been a classic for a bajillion years.

They also happen to be the two brands I wanted to try a sample from during my last visit to the Big Smoke.
This is how it went. For BOTH brands.



Me:  Hello, is possible to get a sample of (Skin Base foundation / Silk Creme foundation) please?
SA: Sorry, we are a colour matching brand. It's better for a make up artist to match you than for you to have a sample and try it at home.



I'm sorry? What now?? It's better for me to trust one person's opinion in shitty department store lighting, with only a few hours left in the day, than for me to have a couple of days worth of a few different colour/ texture possibilities to make sure that the colour is correct and that it doesn't oxidise, turn me into an oil slick, disappear after 5 minutes, or give me the breakout from hell ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Yes that's a lot of question marks right there. It is demonstrating the level of my incredulousness.

To make matters more annoying I have seen samples of BOTH PRODUCTS on various blogs. To be fair, a lot of the Laura Mercier ones were from Sephora (come back to the UK, PLEASE!!) but there were branded sample tubes from Illamasqua.

Are these samples only for people who will bring the brands more publicity and not for the everyday customer who doesn't want to make an expensive mistake? Should I have given some spiel about being a beauty blogger in order to get preferential treatment?

This is not to say that the SAs were unfriendly/unhelpful but there was a little initial snootiness when I made my request.

WAKE UP PEOPLE! This is lazy!

Estee Lauder, Lancome, Clarins and MAC are fantastic at giving samples and, guess what, if the product works, I will come back and buy it.

Guess what I won't do? Buy it blind.

Foundation is expensive but it is the crux of a flawless face and I refuse to waste my money on anything that doesn't live up to expectations.

Did these two? Unless the policies change, I guess I'll never know.

If you got this far, thanks for reading, I would love to hear your opinions and experiences.
xx

Thursday 28 June 2012

Maleficent's coming.....

Just saw this pic of the lovely Angie donning the uber-confident style statement that is the horned headpiece of Maleficent, the sorceress who causes all the shennanigans in Sleeping Beauty.

Maleficent and her magnificent cheekbones


I have to say, I do love a fairy tale and adding this to the great big pile of live action remakes that are doing the rounds lately actually makes me quite a happy bunny.

This one is supposed to be an origins tale giving us an insight into what prompted her, frankly rather churlish, behaviour towards Sleeping Beauty and her family.

In addition, the fantastico Sharlto Copley will be in it. This is good, he is amazeballs - District 9, Murdoch in A-Team and Funny or Die.

Curious?
I am. Don't judge me.

Wednesday 27 June 2012

Pancake Problems

Actually, egg problems to be more accurate.

I was trying the Carbohydrates Addict's Diet (notice the use of the past tense here) so I bought a crap load of eggs to cook for breakfast.
Now I ain't got no time for cookin' 'n' such in the morning so I decided to rely on boiled eggs.

The result:
I am now sick to death of boiled eggs.

I bet you are shocked, aren't you?
Yup, neither was anyone else I know. The problem is that I still have to use up these damn eggs so I've been trying lots if random recipes trying to find something that doesn't make me gag.

My first attempt was a flourless pancake. It was ok but I wouldn't do it again. There were promises of fluffy deliciousness so convincing that it could fool small children.
Sadly I am not a small child but to see my cooking you might think so.

See here to make a better job of it than I:






Second attempt: The  Tone it Up Perfect Fit pancakes

Mmmmmmm, looks good, no?





Mine did not look like that. It was a different species of food entirely.
To be fair, I didn't really follow the instructions. I thought fuck it, I'll use 2 whole eggs (they'll be gone quicker), a whole banana (what am I supposed to do with the other half?), 2 spoonfuls of oats (in lieu of protein powder/flaxseed) and some cinnamon (the only accuracy in my version!).

The end result was actually quite nice at first but there was a weirdness to it towards the end, like a dodgy banana muffin.
I will probably try again so I will let you know if I stumble upon something amazing.

Any ideas? Let me know below....

Tuesday 26 June 2012

Kudos to Kimberly

I just want to say thank you to Kimberly Sayer customer service.

I recently had an issue (for the first time ever, btw) with the pump on my SPF30 day lotion so I emailed the company directly, not really that hopeful that I would get a reply.

I am extremely glad to to tell you that I was wrong.

I received a reply within a few hours from (I think) Kimberly Sayer herself!


In addition to being timely, the response was thorough and extremely helpful - MAJOR points for this as I am still in the midst of a run-in with a dodgy eBay seller.

I have nothing to do with the company, other than being a regular customer since 2008. I really just wanted to give credit where credit is due.

A big ol' gold star for you :)



The trouble with ennui......

My posting has been more than a little sporadic of late.

The reason? 


Hmmmmm, there are lots really.
I haven't really felt like there was anything new or interesting to say. I did a couple of make up looks that I liked but the pictures were shitty (even more so than usual so you know that must be bad!) so I didn't put them up.

Sometimes I get bored of beauty. Sacrilege for a beauty blogger I know but sometimes I want to write about music and movies and books or just whatever random shit comes into my head.

Does anyone really mind if do that? I mean variety is the spice of life, right?

Anyway, if you are still there, you can expect more posts from me soon. I'm experiencing a little more chutzpah today so it feels easier to do this.

For now, here is a picture of a cake ;)




Monday 11 June 2012

Song of the Week: I Wanna Be Your Dog - The Stooges

Watched The Runaways yesterday and this was part of the soundtrack.
Forgot how good it is, felt like sharing ;)



Friday 8 June 2012

Russell Brand is back on the TV!!!!!!!





Nice... 'citing if anything, as the Brand might have said pre- marriage/movie career.

His newest venture is Brand X which seems to be something along the lines of The Daily Show but with none of Jon Stewart's boundaries.

Regardez.....






As the man said, it premieres on June 28th at 11pm on FX.

Monday 4 June 2012

Song of the Week: Monster Magnet - Space Lord

For the first in a (going by my past form) most likely occasional series, we have:


Enjoy xx

Sunday 3 June 2012

So, I'm on Pinterest now.......

That's about it really. I haven't had the gumption to write a lot over the past couple of weeks but I have had just enough chutzpah to save lots of random pics for my own personal entertainment. Lazy I tells ya, but weirdly addictive.



So far it's mainly workouts, thinspo and random recipes but if that's what you like to see then please check it out here:

ScarlettHeartsX


Wednesday 16 May 2012

Electra-fying Cranberry EOTD

Had a bit of time on my hands so I did this while listening to The Prodigy and Shinedown. Fun times :)











MAC Paint as primer
MAC Cranberry pressed on lid + blended up over socket
MAC Electra blended over lid with 217-type brush
MAC Beauty Marked in outer V + used wet as a liner
Mally Onyx automatic eyeliner on waterline

What you get is pinky-silvery-purply goodness which, as usual, is not captured in my pics.


Tuesday 15 May 2012

Monday 14 May 2012

A rant about gherkins

There I am, following the instructions of my latest faddy diet to the letter. Distraught at not even shifting a pound.

Queue maniacal scouring of every ingredients list in my newly stocked cupboard.......

The culprit?

The dieters friend, the innocent, low calorie, low carb flavour-giver. The gherkin.

The evil trickster -  courtesy of a google search


Pickled in SUGAR.

WHY???????????????????

That is all.

Wednesday 9 May 2012

Blog Sale Bare Minerals Smoky Quartz eyeliner

Tested only.

Retail £14
Blog Sale £10






If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Laura Geller baked eyeshadow Amethyst/Lagoon

Used wet three times but still loads left

£4.50



If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)















Blog sale Bare Minerals Chenille eyeshadow

Used once.

Retail price        £14
Blog Sale price  £10



If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Bare Minerals Smoke eyeshadow

Used once

Retail price       £14
Blog sale price  £10





If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Bare Minerals Skyline eyeshadow

Used once

Blog Sale price £10











If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Bare Minerals Inspire eyeshadow

Used once only

Blog Sale price £10


If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.


Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)

Blog Sale Bare Minerals Brunette eyebrow color

This item is new and sealed

Retail price         £11
Blog Sale price  £8.50









If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)

Blog Sale MyFace Purple Blingtone

I have one available, lightly used

Retail £10
Blog Sale £6.50










If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)

Blog sale MAC Innuendo eyeshadow

I think this colour is discontinued.

I have three available, all new

Blog sale price: £10



If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.


Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)




Blog Sale MAC eyeshadow Relaxing

I think this colour is discontinued.

I have three available: 2 new, 1 lightly used as shown.

Blog sale price: £10 new, £7.50 used






If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale MAC eyeshadow Aquavert

I have 1 available, lightly used, in limited edition packaging.






If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale MAC Mancatcher eyeshadow

This eyeshadow was a limited edition and is no longer available.

Blog sale price £10

I have 3 available: 2 new, 1 lightly used



If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Vincent Longo Lip Stain Lipstick Genesei

I have three available. Brand new and boxed

Retail. $23
Blog Sale £9






If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.


Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog Sale Vincent Longo Lip Stain Lipstick Madison

Again, I have three of these, new and boxed

Retail $23
Blog sale £9





If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.


Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)


Blog sale Vincent Longo Baby Balm - Bon Voyage

As a bona fide make up hoarder getting rid of stuff is hard so I am starting with the multiples.

First up, Vincent Longo Baby Balm in Bon Voyage.

I have three available and they are brand new.
























Retail price $23
Blog Sale price £9

If you want one leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Payment is through Paypal and should be marked as a gift

All sales are final

Postage will be 2nd class recorded and I will ship internationally on request.
UK shipping will be 2.50 base and 50p per extra item.
International shipping will be more



Thank you for reading. I have a ton of things to add so please spread the word, I would really appreciate it ;)





Monday 7 May 2012

Sharing the love: MYOMYtv.com

This post is not for a giveaway or any sort of compensation. Someone mentioned this website in a comment under an article I was reading so I checked it out.



If you are looking for Kettlebell workouts and don't feel like shelling out a ton of cash on the latest, must-have infomercial you should definitely check out Marianne's website.

I'll be honest, I am yet to try any of the workouts as I have limited space space for exercise and the whole 'flinging' aspect of Kettlebell-ing unsettles me somewhat - I think it's to do with the potential for getting a bit over zealous and smashing the tv (or a floorboard, for that matter) to smithereens.....

Anyway, if I haven't put you off with my (slightly) insane worries, head over there immediately and get fit for free :)

Thursday 3 May 2012

100 followers! A mahoosive thank you ;)

Having one person following my sporadic ramblings was amazing enough, having 100 is crazy cool. 



Thank you, you lovely people.

Sunday 22 April 2012

... is now on Hello Cotton!!





So I finally got around to it and now you can follow me on Hello Cotton as well as Bloglovin' and GFC.

Please do! ;)


Tuesday 10 April 2012

... beauty: FOTD - Bronze eye, red lip...

Just because I felt like it:







Eyes:
- Bare Escentuals eye primer shadow - Nude Glow
- Laura Geller 'Tiramisu' on lid, over socket and under my eye
- Brown Cream liner from the Smashbox 'Girls Night Out' trio smudged along top and bottom lashes and through the outer V and socket. Then blended out
- MUG 'Corrupt' applied along top lashes with a wet brush to minimise fallout
- Mally 'Onyx' waterproof eye pencil along waterline
- Laura Geller Wonder Wand as brow highlight
- Max Factor Lash Perfection/Masterpiece mascara

Lips:
- Base layer of Spiced Rum lipstick topped with Red Zin, both from Bare Escentuals


Monday 9 April 2012

... beauty: Nubar Diamont Seal and Shine Top Coat review...

If you have been reading my blog you will know that I am looking for  "Big 3 Free" top coat to rival the not so human friendly, but bloody brilliant, Seche Vite. Happily, this has proved to be one of my shorter beauty quests as I seem to have hit the jackpot on my second attempt.

Behold.......





I love this product. I managed to avoid the duff batch that did the rounds a year or so ago and what I received dried as quickly as Seche Vite, feels pretty much as 'thick' and protective when dry, is just as glossy and keeps my chip free for a good 5 days!!

The fifth day, regardez:


Over Nails Inc 'Hampstead Heath'



I bought this from Beauty Bay for £5.50. That's right, it is actually cheaper than the crappy Save the Nail top coat.

As far as I'm concerned the only bad point is that I now want to try more from the range....