Fashion Bloggers' Brunch at Pacino's

September's FBB took us off to Pacino's on Suffolk St. last weekend and despite the fact that I must have walked by it on more than one occasion, I'd never registered it was there before. While waiting for our delicious eggs florentine and pancakes with bacon we eagerly delved into the Clarins goodie bags so generously provided - expect to be reading more from me about the lovely Autumn/Winter 09 collection at a later stage...

There was no rest for the fashionable once we'd devoured the food as we were ushered downstairs for a surprise lesson on how to mix the perfect Mojito with renowned mixologist Paul Lambert. With his top tips in mind, there'll be no reason not to make my own delicious cocktails at home next summer.

I had to take off following the demonstration, but I heard rumours of even more yummy food afterwards, so props to Pacino's for being such generous hosts and thanks as usual to the lovely Annmarie for organising the event!

RMK Autumn Mystique A/W 09

RMK has been a favourite makeup brand of mine for quite a while now, so I was very sad to see the counter close at House of Fraser in Dundrum last year. However (it must have been fate), as I wistfully read about the latest colour collection on their website recently, an email popped into my inbox informing me that UK-based hair and beauty retailers lookfantastic are now stocking the brand. Caught up in the moment of excitement, I immediately ordered a few products from the new Autumn Mystique collection (at present lookfantastic are stocking only a limited amount of products from the brand - I'm not sure if this will be expanded).

Here's what I got (you can click on the pictures to see larger versions):

Mystique Cheeks in 01 Pink Beige and Mystique Eyes in 02 Brown Beige:



Mystique Cheeks includes 5 shades, of which three are blush shades with good pigment and two are shimmery highlight shades. Blend all colours together to apply, or select individual shades (for which you'll need a precise brush, as this palette is fairly small). I generally wear this by blending all shades and adding some of the highlight shades separately as required. The shimmer, as is usually the case with RMK, is very fine and gives a lovely glowy effect. I like this a lot.

Mystique Eyes also includes 5 shades. The darkest shade at the top is a matte deep brown and the other 4 shades are all more sheer with shimmer. There is a useful mix of warmer and cooler shades in the shimmer finishes, which all combine well with the dark shade either as a base shade or to line.

Ingenious Gel Eyeliner in 02 Deep Blue and Ingenious Pencil Eyeliner in 02 Deep Grey:



I love, love, love the Gel Eyeliner. It is smooth, very pigmented and a gorgeous shade of very deep blue with a shimmery finish. The pot it comes in is plastic, making it easier to travel with than gel liners (such as Bobbi Brown's) which are packaged in glass jars. I also love that it comes with a very useful double-ended retractable applicator with a brush on one end and a sponge tip blender on the other. Perfect for application on the go.

I don't love the Pencil Eyeliner quite as much. Although the packaging is nice (this is an automatic pencil), with a sharpener at one end, the pencil itself is hard and doesn't blend easily on the eyelid. The shade is lovely when I test it on the back of my hand, but because I can't press as heavily when applying it to the eyelid, I don't get the same colour payoff. On the plus side, it does seem to last well.

I want this (pt. 1)

If the rather damp August didn't set me off early, then the very chilly mornings this week have definitely started me thinking of Autumn/Winter dressing. Just how cute would this French Connection Kitty Coat be with some dark skinnies and riding boots? I know this gorgeous cherry red shade would definitely cheer me up on an otherwise dark and dreary morning.