Subtle Smoke: A Romantic Makeup Look

 

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, I thought I would share with you my go-to look for a romantic night out. This look consists of slightly smokey, plummy eyes, glowing skin, and light pink lips. Although I am a fan of more dramatic makeup looks on others, I just don't feel that I can pull them off myself. When I know I have an event or a special evening to attend, I really like to take the approach of my everyday makeup, but just bumping up one element of it, being either smoking out the eyes a little more or putting a vibrant color on my lips. 

As pretty as they are, for this particular occasion I avoided any bright or dark lip colors. I find that men don't really appreciate dramatic makeup the way that women do. Chances are, no matter how pretty your fuchsia lipstick looks on you, the person you want to be kissing tomorrow night doesn't want to be wearing it as well. 

*Please excuse the frizzy hair!*

Eyes

For the eyes, I built the look around the new Spring 2013 Chanel Eye Quad in Raffnement (review here). I prepped my lids with a little Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Beige, then buffed the taupe shade across the lid. I then defined the outer corner, crease and lower lashline with the darker shimmering plum shade. To highlight the inner corners, I applied the iridescent lavender shade. Because I wanted to keep this look sexy and smokey, I avoided any pencil or gel liner and went for a black eyeshadow, MAC's Black Tied, to line my upper lashline. No smokey eye is complete without lashing of an ultra-black, volumizing mascara. My choice had to be the amazing new Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara.

Face

I didn't want my cheeks to compete with the eyes in any way. I just wanted a glowing, healthy look to my skin. To achieve this, I dusted some Benefit Blush in Hervana on my cheeks, followed by Benefit Watt's Up! Highlighter across my cheekbones, browbone, and down the bridge of my nose.

Lips

For a romantic night out, you want your lips to look as soft and kissable as possible. For this effect, I chose Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Sourire, a warm light pink color. The glossy, balmy formula of this lipstick is ideal for a night out because you won't have to worry about it getting anywhere.

Let me know what your go-to look is when you have a romantic night out!

Hope you all have a very happy Valentine's Day no matter what your plans are!

xx

January Favorites

 Hello Lovelies! Hard to believe we are already into the second month of 2013! The year is already flying by! Here's a little breakdown of the products I was particularly loving last month.

Stella McCartney Stella Perfume

Feeling a little bored with my usual fragrance, I was on the hunt for a new scent last January. I had heard so many bloggers mention Stella, so I gave it a little spritz on a recent trip to Sephora. Oh wow this fragrance is heaven! I believe the main notes of Stella are rose and amber, which are scents I would never think I would go for. I generally gravitate towards more floral, light fragrances. Something about this fragrance though is so romantic and sophisticated (but not in a stuffy way) that I was immediately hooked. And I can't lie, that stunning limited edition patterned bottle made the purchase all the more easy.

Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Sourire

This is my first ever Chanel Coco Shine and I have been reaching for it non stop since picking it up in January. It is the perfect semi-sheer warm pink and seems to look appropriate no matter the occasion. You can see swatches of the color here!

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara

This is a sample I received in January when I purchased my Sourire Rouge Coco Shine. I am blown away by how amazing this mascara is! It is ultra black, incredibly volumizing, not at all clumpy and holds a curl like no one's business. I've been recommending it to friends, coworkers, anyone who I can! I think once this sample runs out, I just might have to purchase a full size, because any other mascara I have tried just doesn't compare to this!

Bumble and bumble Sunday Shampoo

I have to say this clarifying shampoo lives up to all its hype. A quick wash with this one to two times a week removes all the product buildup in my hair and leaves me with voluminous, shiny strands for days. An added bonus is that you need the smallest amount to achieve luxurious suds, so I expect this bottle will last ages.

Bumble and bumble Surf Spray

This salt water spray has been my saving grace this past month. A few spritzes of this in damp hair helps me achieve tousled, voluminous, effortless waves with just enough hold to avoid a poufy mess. If you would like to see how I achieve my no-heat beachy waves, click here!

butter London La Moss

This nail polish is the perfect vampy merlot color and was on my fingers almost all of January. The formula is beautiful and ultra-long lasting as well. For a full review, click here!

What were your favorite products in January? 

Thanks for reading 

xx

Today I'm Wearing #17: Chanel Nail Colour in #509 Paradoxal

Chanel Nail Colour in #509 Paradoxal is a color I was hunting down for a very long time. Every time I would visit a Chanel makeup counter, they were inevitably sold out of this color. I thought that since I had no luck at the Chanel counters, I might be able to find a similar color from another brand, but to no avail. I finally threw in the towel a few weeks ago, and ordered this nail polish online. Even with the hefty price tag, I can't say I regret it. It's just so darn pretty!

Now that I own Chanel Paradoxal myself, I realize what a truly unique color it is. I am not at all surprised now that I had such a hard time finding a dupe for it! Depending on the lighting, this shade can appear more plum or more smokey grey. It is a complex, intriguing shade, that is guaranteed to look stylish on women of any age. The purple duochrome shimmer that is so prominent in the bottle is however much more subtle once on the nails. I only occasionally notice the shimmer when the light hits my nails just right.

Happily, I found this particular Chanel Nail Colour to be exceptionally smooth and opaque. It was in no way streaky, and an absolute breeze to apply. My only minor complaint is that although wear time was decent, it did chip a few days sooner than my Essie or butter London polishes.

Do you own any Chanel nail polishes? What are your thoughts on them? Worth the price, or just a lot of hype?

Thanks for reading! 

xx

My No- Heat Routine for Beachy Waves

Hello lovelies! Today I want to quickly share with you an easy routine I have found for creating undone, beachy waves. This look is staring two of my all-time favorite hair styling products from Bumble and bumble, the infamous Surf Spray and the Grooming Creme. This has been my go-to routine lately as it involves very little to no heat, makes styling my hair in the mornings practically effortless, and the end result looks like I put considerable effort into my hair (when in fact all I did was sleep in an extra 15 minutes).

I originally discovered this no-heat hair waving technique by watching this youtube video. With just a few tweaks, I've been able to create a process that seems to work perfectly with my slightly-wavy, long and thick hair. The natural texture of my hair is something that has always plagued me. I've never been able to let it just simply air dry because parts of it are so curly it almost looks crimpy, while the underneath sections are almost straight, leaving me with a half curly/wavy, half straight mess. Trust me, it's not really a cute look! In any case, I've always been drawn to the look of soft, effortless texture in hair and until now had used heating tools to achieve the look. I am glad to say that I find the results of this routine equal (if not prettier) to those I got spending 15 minutes in the morning curling my hair. I am by no means a morning person, so anything I can do to up the number of times I can hit the snooze in the mornings is good with me!

 

 

My Routine

Step 1: Wash hair the night before. Make sure hair is well conditioned.

Step 2: Apply a dime size amount of Bumble and bumble Grooming Creme through hair, avoiding the roots.  Comb product through hair with a wide-tooth comb.

Step 3: Let hair air dry, or if short on time blast hair with hair dryer on low heat.  

Step 4: When hair is 95% dry, spritz a liberal amount of Bumble and bumble Surf Spray through ends of hair up to about ear level (I generally avoid my roots).

Step 5: Section hair off into two parts on either side of head, like you are making pigtails. Starting near the temples, begin the rope-braiding technique from the video. Tie bottom of rope braid off with a small clear elastic. 

Step 6: Get some shut-eye!! ZZzzz

Step 7: In the morning, gently take out the rope braid and run fingers through hair to break up any twists. At this point you can choose to let your hair be. I generally apply some smoothing serum to the ends of my hair, and set everything with a light coating of hair spray.

My Best Tips

Through trial and error, I have discovered a few secrets that help guarantee a lovely end result. First off, make sure your hair is 90-95% dry when you put your hair in rope braids. This helps with proper wave formation overnight.

The smaller the section of hair you use when rope braiding, the more crimped your waves will appear in the morning. I generally recommend taking larger sections of hair than you think you need, for a more loose wave effect. I also do not recommend doing two separate rope braids on either side of your hair, vs. the end large one. This creates a much more crimped, 80's look.

If when you take the elastic out of your hair you are left with a funny bump, simply spritz a little water on the ends of your hair and smooth it out a bit.

There you have it! I hope you see some beautiful results with this routine!

Thanks for reading! 

xx

New Shades! Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colours

I have always been intrigued by the idea of cream shadows in stick form, but unfortunately had never been able to find a shade that appealed to me enough to purchase. As I am rather fair, I tend to go for more shimmery light to medium shades, and the original offerings from Laura Mercier in particular were far too smokey for me to wear on a day-to-day basis. That's why, when I discovered that Laura Mercier was releasing a multitude of new shimmery, lighter colors, I was over the moon. And let's just say, seeing them in person far exceeded my already high expectations!

According to the Laura Mercier website, the new shades offered are: Pink Opal (bright pink with shimmer), Grey Pearl (mauvy grey), Rosegold (dirty pink with golden shimmer), Mint Snow (aqua), Sand Glow (taupe with golden shimmer), Sugar Frost (golden beige), Orchid (violet), Seashell (golden shimmer), and Sterling (bright icy shimmer). 

The day I stopped by the Laura Mercier counter, I was lucky enough that the regional brand rep was visiting so we got to play and swatch all the new colors. She also did an eye look on me, and walked me through the most effective way to apply these creams. Although most people may think blending with your finger tips is most effective with shadows in this form, what she taught me is that these work amazingly well when blended with a fluffy brush such as a MAC 217. The combination of cream product and blending brush just creates a seamless and professional looking eye look. 

Let's be honest, after swatching the new colors on my hand, I spent the rest of my mall trip walking around like a woman possessed, repeating over and over again to my sweet boyfriend about how stunning these shades are (poor guy). But, seeing as how I'm not made of money  I settled on the two I thought I would get the most use out of. I took home Sand Glow, a complex taupe/ antique gold/ pewter (can you tell this color is hard to describe?) shade and Rosegold, a shimmering warm pink copper. I was also very drawn to Grey Pearl, which despite its name is a soft medium mauve toned taupe. 

Left is Sand Glow, Right is Rosegold

After having these two shadow sticks in my possession for a few days, I can say I am incredibly impressed by the formula. I love how the metallic pigments catch the light and create a luminous effect around the eyes. The sticks themselves are creamy, blendable, buildable, long-lasting and just a joy to work with. The swatches on my hand lasted from my mall trip all through the night, even through my shower before bed. These babies do not budge! The color selection is also so unique and sophisticated. I think there is an offering for whatever you are looking for, be it light and illuminating to dark and smokey (more so in the original shades). 

Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colours swatched from top to bottom are Orchid, Sand Glow, Grey Pearl , Sugar Frost, Pink Opal, Seashell and Rosegold

Make sure to look out for upcoming FOTD's featuring these cream shadows!

What do you think of the new Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colour shades? Anything that peaks your interest?

Today I'm Wearing #16: A Quick & Easy Weekend FOTD

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend! The Winter chill seems to have momentarily lifted here in Northern California, so I've been spending as much time outdoors as possible before the rain and cold return. The pseudo-Spring weather has left me feeling partial to rather natural, light makeup looks the last few days. Just a little shimmer around the eyes, a bit of color on the face and lips, and I'm a happy camper.

For this look I used my Bobbi Brown BB Cream in Light to create buildable but imperceptable coverage on my face. I then followed up with a little Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer under the eyes and on any blemishes. Everything was set with a dusting of MAC's Select Sheer Pressed Powder in NW20. 

To warm up my complexion, I buffed in a bit of Benefit's Hoola Bronzer and added some glow to the cheeks with tarte's Amazonian Clay Blush in Peaceful. 

For the eyes, it was all about subtle definition. With my finger tips I layered on MAC's Paint Pot in Rubenesque, a peachy gold shade, followed by a bit of bareMinerals Eyecolor in Nude Beach, a highly reflective nude pigment. I decided to forgo my usual gel/liquid liner and just used Stila's Smudge Stick in Stingray to tightline my upper lash line. No makeup look for me is complete without lashings of a volumizing mascara. I am currently testing out a sample of the new Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara (little sneak preview: I'm in love). 

As I kept the rest of my face quite neutral, I wanted a pop of color on the lips, just to keep things interesting. For that, I decided on my much-loved Laura Mercier Lip Glace in Bonbon, a flattering coral-pink shade.

Does the weather influence how you do your makeup in the morning? 

Thanks for reading xx

Lots of Love,

Louise

New Year, New Design!

 Hello Lovelies!  I am thrilled today to unveil to you my bloggeroo's new look! She's had a major overhaul, all thanks to the amazingly talented Dana of Wonder Forest. I've been wanting to take on this project for many months, and with the start of a fresh year, I figured now was as good a time as any.

 I couldn't be happier with the results! The beauty of working with a designer like Dana, is that she can take this little glimmer of an idea and help it blossom into a full-blown gorgeous reality. Dana was so patient with me, even when I (mildly) obsessed over the smallest details. She really listened and took to heart the overall feel I was going for and through the process was able to capture my personal style and personality so perfectly.The result far exceeded anything that I could have created on my own.

Please excuse me if there are still a few little kinks that need to be ironed out here and there, but I just couldn't wait to share the exciting news! 

If you have any questions at all about my experience working with a designer or my layout in general, I'm more than happy to chat 

xx