New from RMK - Gel Emulsion Compact

Can you guess what my latest RMK purchase is? I love the Alice in Wonderland style messages on their product packaging.



Yes, it's the new Gel Emulsion Compact! RMK's base makeup products are among my very favourites and I've never used a foundation that I liked better than their Liquid and Creamy foundations, so I had to try this compact foundation when I saw it on lookfantastic.







Ideal for dry skin, this gel-based foundation glides on easily - I'm not usually a fan of compact foundations as I find them difficult to apply and blend, but this is very easy to apply for a sheer, even finish using the sponge that comes with it. As with the Liquid and Creamy foundations, what I most love about it is the way it seems to melt into my skin and not look at all obvious on. If you like a dewy finish, this is a good option and I found it very comfortable to wear all day (if your skin tends to be more oily or requires something less hydrating, then the Liquid Foundation would be a better option).

Choosing foundation online can be a gamble unless you know your shade - I chose 201 based on what I wear in the Liquid and Creamy foundations and though it looks a bit pink in the compact, it is a perfect match for me.

RMK is no longer available in Ireland but can be found on lookfantastic, where this Gel Emulsion Compact is priced at £33.

Summer shades from Armani Beauty

I paid a long-awaited visit to the beauty department in Brown Thomas today; it was the first time I'd been in since before the baby was born. I mainly wanted to see the new Armani Tokyo Corals collection, as well as the Blushing Fabric, but sadly none of the products were in stock, due to the delivery going to Cork instead of Dublin.

I did get to play with the testers, however, and came away with a generous sample of the Blushing Fabric in shade 3 - a lovely peachy pink (don't pay any attention to the shade descriptions on the Armani website - as usual they are way off). This blends beautifully to leave a wash of colour and the tiniest dab is all you need, so even though the tube looks small for the €35 pricetag, it will last forever.

It looked like only some of the Tokyo Corals testers were out, but I did like the look of Shine lipstick in shade 54, a nice bright summery pink. The lollipop pink and coral nail polishes were absolutely gorgeous and perfect for glossy summer manicures and pedicures.

Let's hope that delivery finds its way back to Dublin some time soon!

Today I am wearing...

The baby fell asleep while I was getting dressed this morning, so while she takes a nap and I wait for her to wake up so I can feed her and we can go out and do some shopping, I thought I'd do a quick post on my makeup today.

When I was working I tended to wear the same makeup every day, so being on maternity leave is a nice chance to look through my collection and pick out new things to wear every morning, often finding things I'd completely forgotten I own. Today, for example, I came across the Becca Eye Tints, which I own in three shades and which I'd completely forgotten about.

The picture above may not be great for accurately depicting the shades, but here's what I'm wearing:

Giorgio Armani High Precision Retouch: A fantastic under-eye concealer, this blends beautifully, covers dark circles, brightens the eye area and lasts all day. I wear shade 2 and I'm fairly pale.

Giorgio Armani Micro-fil Loose Powder: Perfect for taking down the shine of sunscreen when I don't want to wear foundation. This is really light and looks very natural on - I use shade 1 in this.

Giorgio Armani Sheer Blush in shade 10: The picture doesn't do it justice but this is a pretty rose bronze with shimmer. It's easy to overdo it with this, so I use a light hand when applying. Lovely summer shade and nice if you're not a fan of bronzer but like to look just a little bit sun-kissed.

Becca Eye Tint in Baroque: At least I think it's Baroque - for some reason they don't put the shade name on the tube - if it's not Baroque then it's Paracus. This is a cream shadow in a lovely neutral brown with fine shimmer; doesn't give a lot of colour, but evens out the eyelid and is perfect for a very natural look. Very easy and quick to apply and also works well as an eye shadow base.

Becca The Ultimate Mascara in Black: This is one of those tubing mascaras and gives my lashes lovely length and definition. Unfortunately this tube has been on the go for a while and is drying out a bit so it's time to replace it.

Shiseido Perfect Rouge lipstick in BE208: This neutral beige shade has just the right amount of pink in it so that I don't end up looking like a corpse and finishes off a natural look nicely.

Shopping online at lookfantastic.com

I needed to replace my REN cleanser recently and lookfantastic.com were having a 20% off sale on many of their lines, so it was the perfect excuse to add a few more things to my basket.

REN Calendula and Arctic Berry Ultracalm Cleansing Milk - I think this is my third or fourth bottle of this, so it's safe to say it's a favourite. Removes makeup perfectly, leaves my skin smooth, soft and perfectly calm.

Philip B pH Restorative Detangling Toning Mist - I'm almost finished my MOP Pear Detangler, which I use on my hair when I don't bother with conditioner, so I thought I'd try something new for a change. Haven't used this yet, but will report back when I do.

Philip B GWP - this came free with the Detangling Mist and includes Light-Weight Deep Conditioning Crème Rinse, Scent of Santa Fe Balancing Shampoo and Drop Dead Straightening Baume. I haven't used any Philip B haircare before, so I'm looking forward to trying these out.

Guinot Hydra Tendre Soft Wash-Off Cleansing Cream
- I used this years ago and really liked it then, so thought I'd try it again. Unfortunately it's not just the packaging that has changed - they've also added a horribly strong fragrance too it, which I hate in facial washes. The hazards of shopping online without trying something first...

RMK Creamy Foundation and Super Basic Liquid Concealer - The Creamy Foundation has been a favourite for a few years and is a replacement buy - this is gorgeous on and very comfortable for winter skin. The concealer is a new one - I've tried it out once so far and like it a lot. Very pigmented, but still creamy and easy to blend and lasts all day.

Get your 15 minutes of fame from Lipstick Queen

Perfect as a present for any beauty addict (or even for yourself), these cute sets of mini lipgloss pens are available in two colour selections - The Nudes and The Berries. Priced at €24 for a set of 5 glosses, I think these are a really good deal - you could even split a set among a few lucky people as stocking fillers.

I've been meaning to try the Lipstick Queen range of lip products for ages now and finally got around to it when I picked up the Medieval tinted lip treatment and the Goodbye shade from the Butterfly Ball shimmering treatment lipstick collection recently. Both are lovely and have left me wanting more... you can't have too much gloss at this time of the year, can you?

Available from SpaceNK at Harvey Nichols in Dundrum.

Armani Manta Ray - Liquid Silk Eyeliner

I promised this a while back so apologies for the delay. I planned to take more decorative pictures but never got around to it, so here they are, carelessly swatched on the back of my hand in an unnaturally large close-up.



Available in two shades, these liners come in the same packaging as the High Precision Retouch Concealer and are the type where you dip the brush into the liquid. I usually find this type really messy to use, but because the liner is thicker than usual and really pigmented, I don't have too much of a problem with these once I got some practice and realised I could wipe off a lot of the excess product inside the neck of the bottle.



These colours are GORGEOUS. #1 is a metallic deep blue and goes exactly as it looks in the picture - it doesn't end up looking close to black. #2 is a medium grey with no shimmer, but a really glossy, almost plastic finish. This is a really modern shade and unlike any other liners I own, but dark enough to give proper contrast as a liner.

These are available now from Armani counters priced at €25.50 and of all the new products Armani has put out lately, definitely my favourite.

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.

Get a perfect complexion in an instant

I've been using Clarins Instant Light Complexion Perfector in Champagne Shimmer since receiving it in the lovely goodie bag at the Fashion Bloggers' Brunch. This product is a bit of a beauty all-rounder - apply it alone as a base if your skin doesn't need much coverage, apply under foundation as a primer, or mix a bit with your foundation to give it a bit of radiance.

On lazy days I am loving this as a quick alternative to foundation - it blends really easily on my skin and evens out skintone, minimizes pores and adds some glow. I add some concealer under my eyes and top with powder and I'm done! Don't fear the shimmer in the name - the light-reflecting properties do give your skin a luminous look, but don't look obvious or sparkly.

This is also available in Rose Shimmer (for brightening your complexion) or Bronze Shimmer (for a lightly sunkissed look). Priced at around €27, get it now from Clarins counters.

Marion Cotillard at the BAFTAs

At the BAFTA awards last weekend, Marion Cotillard embodied my beauty ideal to a T. Loose tousled hair, shimmery neutral eyeshadow, mascara and a slash of killer red lipstick - it looked like she got ready in about 10 minutes and she was perfect. Red carpets are usually awash with über-styled stars who look as though they spent all day and a good part of the preceding week getting ready, with the help of a team of hair and makeup people. And fair play to them; I'm sure it's nice work if you can get it. But as someone who is never 100% done myself, I do appreciate a bit of reality on the red carpet. Go Marion!

New from Armani - Lip Wax

The product-naming department were obviously on holidays the day they decided to launch Armani's latest offering, but despite its shortcomings in that area, Lip Wax looks like a very interesting new must-have for my collection.

Available in 6 shades, from a nude beige to a deep wine (perfect for this season's deep berry lip), Lip Wax is a lip stain in a compact. Apply with your fingertips for a sheer wash of colour, or layer on with a lip brush for a more precise application and deeper colour. And if you like to coordinate your lip and cheek, try blending this lightly onto the apples of your cheeks for a sheer flush of colour.

Priced at $26 on the US website, I am guessing this will be around the €24 mark here. Definitely one to look out for at the Armani counter...

Bourjois Rouge Hi-tech

I must admit that I have never been a lipstain fan. This is mainly as a result of an unfortunate run-in (with a product I won't name and shame) years back, when I ended up with lips stained purple only on the outer edges, giving me the look of a vampire who'd just finished dinner. Well, that or a wino. Anyway, when I spotted these little beauties on the Bourjois display, I thought "Never say never" and decided to give one a shot.

Rouge Hi-tech is a water-based liptint that comes in a cute plastic container, with a sponge-tipped wand applicator. I was a bit worried that applying it right would be like learning how colour between the lines all over again, but it turned out to be pretty easy. The tint stays in place where you apply it, but does blend well before it dries, so you can correct any mistakes. It's also easy to apply a sheer coat, or build up to get more colour. You do need to make sure your lips are in fairly good condition, as flakes will catch more colour and give an uneven result, so I always apply a coat of balm and then blot off before applying.

The lasting power of Rouge Hi-tech is a huge plus point for me. When I apply before breakfast, it lasts through breakfast and lunch with only some fading, and the colour fades so gradually and evenly that you don't need to worry about running to a mirror to top it up. I also regularly apply lipbalm over the tint and it does not affect it at all.

The shade I bought is the one used above - Rose Pixel. It's a pretty rosy pink with a touch of red - perfect for summer. There are a number of other shades available and I have my eye on a lovely shade of fuchsia...

Rouge Hi-tech is priced at around €10.70, with most retailers currently offering an introductory price of around €8.50.

Giorgio Armani Spring 2008

Armani's Spring collection is out and although I haven't seen it up close and personal yet, the ad campaign featuring model Sasha Pivarova makes it look seriously pretty. Featuring a naturally luminous base, with iridiscent highlights and just a hint of colour, this look is all about perfecting the flawless base and then gently highlighting the features. The new Luminous Silk Powder will be a welcome companion for the already popular Luminous Silk Foundation, and the limited edition Radiant Pigments Fluid Sheer adds a hint of colour and illumination to the cheeks. I'm already a fan of the Fluid Sheer highlighters, so I look forward to trying this new formula out.

As alway, theAdvisor feature on the website describes in detail how to achieve the look.

In Ireland, this collection should be available from Brown Thomas towards the end of the month, if not earlier.

Kevyn Aucoin at Queen beauty emporium

If you're a makeup junkie like me, you'll love Dublin's newest beauty emporium - Queen on Aungier Street. The Kevyn Aucoin makeup line is available here exclusively; I picked up The Liquid Airbrush foundation and The Celestial Powder - a gorgeous highlighter which will be perfect for nights out over the holidays. I'm sure I'll be heading back after Christmas to take a closer look at the eye shadow palettes and some of the delectable lip colours.

Giorgio Armani Maestro Eye Shadow

I have to hand it to Giorgio Armani - he knows exactly how to suck me in with his lethal combination of fashion and beauty. Maestro Eye Shadow has just been added to the Armani cosmetics line - a collection of 18 shades in 3 different finishes, all inspired by the silk that Giorgio Armani works with in his fashion design. Containing matte, satin and sparkling shadows, the colours in the Maestro range from nude pink and beige to purple, brown, navy and black.

I have already tried out 10 - sparkling lilac and 12 - satin purple and I love the fine texture, smooth application and polished finish these shadows give. As with the existing Armani eye shadows, the Maestro shadows are still somewhat sheer in finish, but that happens to be the look I like, so I will definitely be picking up more colours from this line. I believe these are priced at around €22.50 in Ireland and are available from Armani counters in Brown Thomas and hopefully at Dublin airport too!

Armani Fall 2007 Leather Collection

Be still my beating heart... Armani's summer bronze collections never do much for a pale girl like me, but once Autumn rolls around and the Fall collections are on the counters, the Armani counter is pretty much guaranteed to have me as a customer. This year's collection doesn't disappoint. The Fall 2007 Leather collection is perfect for recreating the grown-up glamourous looks featured on all the catwalks for this season. The collection arrived in Brown Thomas last week, and barely before the saleswoman had the words "limited edition, we only got one order in" out of her mouth, I had requested the Eye Mania palette, the new Sheer Blush and the Maestro Liquid Eyeliner.

The Eye Mania palette (€57) is encased in a black snakeskin patterned compact and features eye shadow shades of satin pink beige, soft shimmering pink, matte deep purple and matte ashwood.

TheSheer Blush #11 (€35) is encased in a similarly embossed palette and is a gorgeous shade of pink with a touch of peach.

The Maestro Liquid Eyeliner (€25) is a water-based black liquid liner with a felt tip - perfect for recreating this season's catwalk looks.

The new collection also includes single eye shadows, lipsticks and lip shimmers and the advisor section on the Armani website has a helpful step-by-step guide to recreating their look with the products from the collection.

Run, don't walk to the Armani counter for this one!

RMK Beigy Colours A/W 2007

OK, the name of this collection might not invoke excitement, but the cute heart-embossed shadows, blushes and glosses from Japan-based RMK's Autumn/Winter 2007 collection are all going on my wishlist. The limited edition collection, comprising 6 eye shadows, 4 lipglosses, 3 blush/highlighters and 3 nail polishes, takes a subtle and polished beige as its backdrop and compliments it with coordinating pops of colour in the hearts that are embossed into the shadows, blushes and glosses. You can use the colours separately or mix them together to create custom shades. The quality of RMK products is generally fantastic and I'm sure these are no different.

RMK is available from House of Fraser in Dundrum in Ireland.

Image courtesy of http://www.rmkrmk.com

Bobbi Brown Stardust Collection

It's true, the Stonewashed Nudes palette wasn't my only Bobbi Brown purchase recently. I also picked up the Stardust Collection - a specially-priced set which includes Espresso Ink Long-Wear Gel Eye Liner, Galaxy Long-Wear Cream Shadow, Mauve Shimmer Lip Gloss and Powder Pink Blush - all packed in a cute double-sided makeup bag, one side of which has spaces for travel-sized brushes. The shades in this set are perfect for Autumn/Winter and will also go really well with the Stonewashed Nudes palette - how could I resist?

The Stardust Collection is available from Bobbi Brown counters, priced at €60, which is probably a saving of at least €20 on buying each item separately, plus you get the nice bag for free! I don't imagine this one will last long at the counters either...

Image courtesy of http://www.bobbibrown.co.uk/

Bobbi Brown Stonewashed Nudes

I have never been drawn to Bobbi Brown cosmetics in the past. While I have flitted between obsessions with many different brands - from cute, ultra-feminine Stila to elegant, upmarket Armani - Bobbi Brown, with her "10 different shades of brown" lipsticks and eye shadows "imaginatively" titled Cement, or Putty (did I make that one up? It's possible) seemed too dull and pedestrian to attract my attention. But things seem to have changed there recently and with the launch of the new Stonewashed Nudes eye shadow palette, I was finally won over. Featuring seven cool, neutral shadows in matte and shimmer finishes, and complete with a double-ended shadow/liner brush (which, take note, beats the insignificant sponge applicators many competitors are still supplying with their products out of the water), this palette will definitely be my go-to for a variety of everyday looks this Autumn and Winter.

Stonewashed Nudes retails for €55 from Bobbi Brown counters in Ireland. Buy it now - this is a limited edition product and I predict it will be popular.

Image courtesy of http://www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com/