easy peasy scary mary make-up

If you are struggling for Halloween costumes, don't want to get all dressed up with the gear horns and fangs and all - last minute costumes don't need to be bought! Make up is an easy way of creating a great costume without all the jazz, sequins, hassle and money. So put away your wings and turn off your sewing machine - I have 2 fab looks that you can achieve with just your make-up bag

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The first look is POP ART - inspired by this image in particular:

 

 

I used GOSH Cosmetics 002 Mineral Powder and 17 Stay Time 18 Hour Concealer to form an even base. I then used a standard purple shadow to create my black eye, I applied Maybelline Super Stay 24 Hour Colour in 510 Red Passion to my lips. To then create all the outlines I used my favourite liquid eyeliner, Avon Extra Lasting Black Eyeliner.

The second look is VAMPIRE.. very easy and typical look.

I used the same base foundation and concealer.. I contoured with a standard black eyeshadow instead of bronzer, GOSH Cosmetics Forever Eye Shadow in 05 Grey, Avon True Colour Eye Shadow in Black Pearl and a standard deep pink eyeshadow as well as Barry M Special Edition Double Ended Shadow Pen in Black/Silver to create a super dark smokey eye. I used the same Avon eyeliner and used my Max Factor Clump Defy Mascara. For my lips I applied B. Brilliant Rich Colour Lip Gloss in Morello, the blood is the same Maybelline Super Stay 24 Hour Colour Lippie in Red Passion, it stays really well so no sticky mess like real blood or pigs blood or fake blood (more likely you will use that!).

What will you be this Halloween??

frankenstein's monster nails

Halloween is officially here, I have been waiting to post some halloween themed nail art since I started my blog in Januray. I waited till the exact day before because this is the prime time to actually do your nails for Halloween itself! Not a week before, or a month, don't do them so early they have chipped before your trick or treating session or big gruesome night on the town. I decided to go for Frankenstein's monster as a theme/inspiration - I love the story and find him utterly terrifying!

I gathered the appropriate tools and colours once I decided exactly how I would portray this creepy character onto my nails... I used GOSH Cosmetics Frosted Look in Silver for the bolts, GOSH special edition in Splish Splash for my base coat, GOSH special edition in Kind of Pink for the cut in his head, then I used my Mirror Mirror Nail Effects Pen in Black for the hair, some stitches and his brow and eyes topped with a dab of Color Show by Maybelline in Winter Baby. I also used two dotting tools and a long thin brush to create the look.. see below:

I decided his eyes were the scariest part of him so I used two nails to create the top of his head, adding in the famous stitches and bolts to complete the look!

Are these scary enough? What will you do with your nails this year?!

the invisi-brow

 Now I am sure I have reviewed brow kits on curiosity before now but I cannot for the life of me find a link. For those of you who are wondering there is a definition below that will help you understand this post...

Invisi-brow (n) definition: an eyebrow that is deemed invisible to the naked human eye. E.g. 'Look at that ginger girl, she has no eyebrows!' also known as: when the hair of an eyebrow is extremely blonde naturally

Not many can say that they have invisible eyebrows, I am unfortunately one of the rare few that can. I won't go into the whole back story but I have learnt in the past few years as a teenager, a beauty pr intern and a girl who loves make up that eyebrows are essential. I started using eyeshadow as an experiment to fill in my brows, getting darker as I got braver. When I realised there were fabulous brow kits available I jumped at the chance and got a GOSH brow kit for myself. It has 3 shadows and a gel - it's brilliant. I then advanced to a stunning Shavata brow kit with creme shadows that I still have in my make up bag. Next I think I will try the Sleek brow kit but until then I have discovered an easier solution.

I have recently been encouraged to try tinting. I thought it would be a perfect idea for my trip to Thailand to get both my brows and lashes done, so I treated myself and went to Shavata in Harvey Nichols. If you have me on instagram you will have see the results there, they were amazing and I swore never to go untinted again.

Since I daren't try anywhere cheap and tacky in the borough of Rochdale.. I was very excited to see a brow and nail bar had opened in Primark Manchester called Love Beauty by Monica Mohindra! I ran straight down there and got my brows tinted, as they desperately needed it, for an amazing £5. It's situated on the 1st floor in the back corner, nice and cosy and the ladies in there are lovely and very well trained. I am very happy with my brows.. next it's nails and lashes!

How would you or do you solve your sorry brow problems?

rainbow lips for pale girls

Taking a break from my 500 products of summer today I am going to review some lipsticks. The first set from Makeup Revolution aa affordable brand that explores colours I couldn't have seen coming. The second GOSH lip lacquers I have been using a couple of for a while and I thought I would review the whole set. I wanted to concentrate on how these lipsticks suit my skin colour because sometimes I see pale girls wearing that just aren't the right shade for them.

MAKEUP REVOLUTION SCANDALOUS LIPSTICKS

I have been seeing Makeup Revolution all over the blogger community and so I looked them up online and saw their limited edition scandalous lipstick range was on offer for £5 for all 5 lippies, how could I saw no? Incredible colours with incredible names. From the stop:

Crime: A gorgeous deep purple/pink shade, that goes on perfectly and is such a lovely colour for girls with pale skin. Love it.

Vice: A bright tangerine shade, goes on quite nicely and is a current trend for this summer so perfect if you are after a catwalk look. It didn't drown me out as I expected, I probably wouldn't wear it too often. An occasion lipstick for me.

Depraved: Almost a violet colour, something I've not tried before as I normally wear a darker purple but I really loved this shade, it matched my orange hair! But unfortunately it didn't stick very well to my inner lower lip :(

Felony: Yellow lipstick. YELLOW! I didn't like this lipstick at all I'm afraid. It completely drowned me out and was really difficult to get an even colour!

Immoral: Or as I like to call it Ichiban! Lipstick for men! I LOVE this, but more as a gimmick lipstick than a serious one - it also was quite difficult to apply.

Overall, I like the lipsticks for their price (usually a £1 each). They don't last that long but are easy to apply and are rich in colour! I would definitely buy more.

GOSH COSMETICS LIP LACQUERS

I love the brand GOSH, I have a lot of their nail polishes mainly, so I tested their lip lacquers that were launched earlier this year. These charming little nail polish style pots of gloss are lovely and smell lovely. I only picked colours that suit my skin.

Hot Lips: This shade isn't to harsh a red, it's soft and gentle. A perfect red for during the day.

Dangerous Lips: I love this red, it's great for evening drinks. It stays, but doesn't stain your lips. And its a nicer colour than the picture shows!

Sweet Lips: I wasn't sure about this shade, I don't normally wear pale pinks in light of the face I am pale but I like this lipgloss. It is really soft, not thick or sticky.

Other lipsticks and colours I am liking at the minute are Clinique's Chubby Stick in Super Strawberry (a deep pink) , MUA's Lipstick in Shade 1 (a really dark deep red) and GOSH Velvet Touch Lipstick in Yours Forever (a dark deep pink - almost red).

500 products of summer (almost!) part 1: colours

Summer is here. I have officially decided.. The sun is out and so is the fake tan, as are the guns ;)

So I have cracked out a whole load of goodies and started using them regularly in my summer routine. This first part of a cracking summer two parter is filled with my picks for summer make up and colours including tan and my new favourite thing... scrunchies!

Let's start with the scrunchies as I know you are all dying to know...

Originally discovered my floral pink scrunchie is so pretty I fell in love, having wanted a velvet black one for so long you can imagine my excitement when I found the beautiful scrunchie range in Topshop. Like a child in a sweet shop. (or just me in a sweet shop) I have a scrunchie for every outfit now, black, red, pink, green you name it. But these two are my favourite for the summer - the green velvet one is to match up with my purple eye shimmer that is featured below and is from Boots.

Eyes are the window the soul...

...or so they say. I have a adapted a couple of new favourites recently for my eyes that are perfect for summer. They are the GOSH Forever Eyeshadow's in Beige & Grey they last all day and are waterproof so perfect for looking glittery by the pool! They have a gorgeous sheen that glows in the sun, and I have to say they bring the glittery girly girl out in me. I love the beige for day to day and the grey for evening with precise eyeliner for a perfect long lasting smoky eye.

The other product I am loving for my eyes at the minute is the B. Stunning Eye Shimmer in Royal - having raved about it previously you may recognise it - it is so soft and light you can apply as little or as much as you want. Purple eyeshadow was seen on catwalks by Holly Fulton and PPQ  for Spring/Summer 2014 - it is one of the top make-up trends for the summer. Up against the green shadows of Giorgio Armani (I need to invest in) and bright blues of Marc by Marc Jacobs.

Getting lippie...

Now red lipstick.. I won't get into it because I could go on for hours and I had to pick one red for this post and honestly I use more than that but this one is kind of perfect for summer. The new GOSH Lip Lacquers are lovely and girls with more tanned skin can go for the pinker shades however for us pale gingers, the best bet is the red shades, my personal favourite being the Dangerous Lips shade. They are pretty good for during the day when lipstick upkeep becomes a little boring - this is sleek and easy to apply, instant colour.

When I'm not feeling the red lippy which is rare to be honest but it does happen - during the day when work stops me re-applying (how dare it!) - I need something lighter and moisturising. Lanolips Lip Ointment with Colour is PERFECT for that. The lanolin (which most people have pre-conceived ideas about) is the purest of pure so it nourishes the lips and keeps them lovely and smooth for when the red lipstick does come out. The ointments with colour are so pretty and available in a range of shades, Rose being my current favourite and it is soft and summery - I dab a tad of red lipstick in so the pinkness doesn't drown out my pale skin. And it has SPF 15 in - holiday must have I think!

Nailed it...

As an admirer of all things glitter I have quite a few GOSH Glitter Matt Finish Polishes as they are so cool! I couldn't get my head around them when I first discovered them, I had a new matt glitter feature nail every week. My new discovery and one I find completely perfect for summer (not just because it matches my pools of blue eyes) is the Frosted Blue shade. They are really good to do gradient glitter with, just apply to a sponge and dab at the bottom or top of your nail.

My two most featured nail brands seem to be Maybelline and GOSH so it is only natural that my summer picks fall into those brands. I have discovered the Super Stay Gel Nail Colour polishes, on my quest to find an amazing clear top coat I picked up Crystal Clear which so far is my favourite ever! I also got myself a colour with Berry Stain which is a rich purple that I adore! (It even matches my handbag). The polishes really do stay for much longer than your everyday polish and the shine on them is lovely - so far so great!

Matching my skin to my wardrobe..

Is hard for me sometimes. I like wearing black now and again as it falls nicely with my hair, but I can end up looking gothic, then pale colours and whites tend to be a no go for me - and that is where I am struggling so far this summer. I haven't even been summer shopping yet (due to a lack of funds) and I am panicking about how much white and pastels are out there and look gorgeous yet I fear I can't wear them. HOWEVER.. I have my bottle of St Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Mousse (where one shade fits all - I love the way they show it on the site, click the link to see!) to hand now and have really gotten into the routine of application. I am feeling a lot more confident in my skin and may even venture into wearing something white soon! It goes on so evenly and perfectly (moisturising and exfoliation help here) with a mitt, and builds up over 4 hours so do not apply too much thinking it isn't dark enough (a mistake I have made before).

So there we have part one of the summer episodes on curiosity.. think before you colour ladies x

Oh and remember to click the names of the products to buy them or see more online info from stockists :) 

the nail art update: roses, organisation & geometrics

I have a couple of really cute designs to show you from this week. I started the week with a messy & girly vibe and ended it on a neat & edgy note. I'd love to tutorials for both these designs at some point as they are both fairly basic once you break them down and easy once you have had a bit of practice, but I still got asked 'You did them yourself? How?' I'll get a few pointers and show you the tools I used (If you are someone who dabbles and has the tools these designs should be fairly easy).

pretty ugly freehand roses

Tools: A medium and small dotting tool, black nail art pen, GOSH Cosmetics Special Edition 009 Bright Idea, Spring shade 626 Kind of Pink, 012 Splish Splash and Cheeky 1813 Purplexed.

This design actually inspired my new logo (which I hope you like, designed and done by me! I am very proud of it). I've done a few roses designs in the past couple of years, this has to be my favourite though. A design I have actually seen a lot of nail artists do variations of. This is my turn on it, a shimmery gold background with deep pink roses - very messy style with simple black lines to make them look more like roses as appose to splodges! 

To do this design - you literally have to, on top of your base coat, dab a couple of random sized dots of a few different polishes (stick to pale pinks/deep pinks/bright reds for roses) in clusters. then use your nail art pen to create random out lines, creating petals then using a brush I brushed on little green leaves! - top coat and done!

random retro geometrics

Tools: Long thin brush, black nail art pen, a rainbow of bright polishes of your choice

This design is totally random - I wanted to do something completely new and as I had just gone through all my nail polishes to organise them I couldn't pick one feature colour to concentrate on or inspire me - so I picked a whole bunch and just went with it.. this is the result!

I used the brush to paint on the shapes (this took some patience and a very dry undercoat of white) It is important to have a reall dry undercoat with this as if you create a bump in your straight line you can use a small thin brush dipped in varnish remover to neaten it up. If you have a thick base (made up of several thing layers to avoid chipping) that is super dry you won't remove an obvious amount of the base colour! I created random shapes and added black lines with my pens thinner brush - and done :)

I decided to ransack my messy Soap & Glory bag this week and throw out any dried up old polishes - this I should do regularly really - in the process I came up with a new organisation plan :) 

I hope it stays this neat..

the nail art update: twisted manicure and matt glitter

Another weekly nail art update coming your way boys and girls! This week I have two cool and easy designs and a quick tutorial for a twist on the classic French Mani.

Firstly this is the design i did for my night out in Camden with my best friends from back home! I used my new GOSH matt polish, a lovely powder blue called Frosted Soft Blue that i LOVE!
I used a sponge to sponge on some pale blue polish and my glitter polish on top of a deep green to create a soft sponged effect. 




The next mani i did this week is my funky twist on the classic French manicure. Instead of classic white tips I chose to do a few layers of pink and purple shades. To do this i uses the below brush, long and thin in slow steady strokes to get a neat line.

Apply one colour at a time, two coating if the polish is needs it to create a solid colour. This layer is in Cheeky Purpl-exed.

Next layer is Models Own in Pukka Purple.

This next layer is Models Own in Dinky Pinky...

Another layer of Cheeky Purpl-exed..

When I first did this design I coated it with my pink tinted Cheeky matt polish and used two layers only...

Then when I did the tutorial to show you all, I used four colours as you can see above and ended up with the below..