Maybelline Colorama in Coral Reefs

I recently picked up this pretty nail varnish at my local supermarket. It is from the Maybelline Colorama collection and I got the colour 110R Coral Reefs. I've noticed that this collection is called Color Show in the UK, not sure what it's called everywhere else, but here in Denmark they are obviously going with the Colorama name.

I picked it up on a whim as I have a weak spot for coral and peach :) And this really is such a pretty pearly coral/peachy colour, that is neutral and sheer enough to go with everything, but its pearly sheen makes it stand out. I was surprised by how much I like it! I have been searching for the perfect all-round neutral nail colour, but didn't really get this with that in mind. But it is the absolutely perfect shade for me and I'm completely in love with it.

On top of my excitement about the colour it also turns out it has AMAZING staying power. I cannot recall any other nail varnish that has stayed this long on my nails without chipping etc. I am normally lucky if I get it to last 24 hours, this lasted 4 days!!!!! And I could have still kept it on, as it was only really two nails where it had worn off a bit. Obviously lighter shades are often more forgiving as chipping and wear & tear is less noticeable, but 4 days is still more than amazing! I don't know of this formula is the same throughout the collection, but this is hands down the most impressive staying power I think I've ever come across, so if you see a shade you like, I say give it a go :)

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Maestro fusion makeup by Giorgio Armani

And the winner is...me! A few weeks ago I randomly entered a competition my local department store was running on Facebook. You had the chance to win the Maestro fusion makeup by Giorgio Armani in the shade 5,5 and wouldn't you know, I actually won! Me, who never wins anything, I was (overly)excited when I found out :) 

But back to my grand prize. I was a little worried about the shade being too dark for me at first, but it works surprisingly well, however it's definitely a summer-shade for me. The foundation dispenses from a teat pipette, which I've never seen before, but it's a very good thing as this foundation is extremely fluid and this helps to control the amount you get really well. I find that a little goes a long way when applying and that it's super important to shake it well before use, as it says on the bottle, because if you don't the colour changes quite dramatically. 

The best words to describe the texture once on the skin are probably odd or strange. I don't mean this in a negative way, but it truly feels very different to any foundation I've ever tired and it just feels a little....strange :) Once it's on you almost can't feel it and I find myself touching my face a lot to make sure it is still on, so an extremely lightweight foundation for sure. I find it to have pretty good medium coverage and it dries to a matte almost powdery finish. I definitely had to cut back on my powder with this foundation as it otherwise becomes very visible and mask-looking. 

In terms of staying power I have oily to combination skin and even though it says it is for all skin types, I think it will hold up better on normal skin. I can't get it to last all day and my t-zone does pretty shiny through out the day, so on me this is not a long wearing foundation. 

I do actually really like it, the finish and feel of the foundation is just so unusual and different. I like the look it gives and it might be light weight enough for me to wear in the summer, depending on how the heat affects the staying power obviously :)

Would I buy this foundation "again"? Not sure to be honest. I do like it a lot, but the price is just quite outrageous here in Denmark, so for that reason alone, probably not. Even if it is quite a special foundation it just isn't good enough in terms of staying power to make me want to spend that kind of money on it, but I'm happy to have gotten the opportunity to try it out like this :) 

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Paparazzi by Chanel

As I previously mentioned when I got Starlet from the Avant Première de Chanel Collection for Spring 2013, I knew I would also have to get Paparazzi...and here it is :) It is just such a gorgeous colour, a bronzy burgundy with subtle golden shimmer. This is probably my favourite shade in this collection, a great classic shade that goes with everything, but still has that little something extra.

   

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Benefit longwear powder shadow in Nude Swings

So I recently discovered Benefit eye shadows and so far I have been impressed with their finish and staying power, so another trip to Sephora resulted in a purchase of their longwear powder shadow in the colour Nude Swings :) This shade is not included in any of the World Famous Neutrals ( I have the Most Glamorous Nudes Ever which I love!) and can therefore only be bought individually.

 How absolutely adorable is the packaging!?

The shade is a pretty soft rose gold. I have seen some swatches online where it comes off much more warm and golden, but on me the pink seems to be what comes through the most, making the colour appear cooler.

It is a gorgeous neutral shade, perfect for soft subtle looks. It has pretty good pigmentation and I have nothing bad to say in regards to staying power either. A really lovely shadow that I've already used several times :)

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Fancy nails

I'm not normally big on doing anything but one colour on my nails and I prefer solid shades, but this might also partly be due to my total lack of skills when it comes to doing any type of "nail art" :) But after getting the Sally Hansen Gem crush in the shade 04 Blingtastic in one of MyBeautyBox I kept wanting to live a little and try it with my Blue Rebel by Chanel, so recently I (finally) took the time to give it a go! 

I did one coat of Blue Rebel followed by one coat of Blingtastic and I think it turned out pretty good :) It is very shiny, but somehow still "subtle" because of the dark blue. I know that this by no means qualifies as "nail art", but it is about as fancy as I can get :D 

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Shoes Of The Day - DKNY pumps

These fantastic leather pumps from DKNYC are a purchase from my recent trip to London. I got them at the DKNY store at the Bicester Village Outlet. I am so in love with the dark maroon colour, especially for A/W, so I do think this is one of the last times I'll be wearing them before they are packed away for a bit :) 

This is a really comfortable shoe, as they have a cushion bit at the front, so no sore feet after a long day :) The heel is approx. 10 cm, but it's quite sturdy and really good to walk on, so this has quickly become one of my go-to pairs :) 

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Maybelline The Rocket Volum' Express

I am always happy to try out a new mascara - if I can find it in brown that is...yes, I don't own a black mascara and (probably) never will..I think they are too harsh on me and prefer brown, so there ;) 

Anyways, I am a big fan of Maybelline The Falsies and lucky for me I was able to find The Rocket Volum' Express in brown on a recent trip to Sweden. I am not normally a massive fan of the rubber brush/bristles, but really wanted to try this one, as everyone else seems to love those. 

After trying it out for a few weeks, I am still not sure how I feel about the bristles...I didn't hate them as such, but do feel like the brush deposit A LOT of product, perhaps a little too much for my liking. Volum' Express might be the perfect name because it is very volumising, dare I say it, maybe just a little too much? I am all for volume in my mascaras, but I find this to be a little over the top, if I'm not careful. After using it several times I do seem to have managed to work out how to apply it in a way where it does come off not quite as intense and then I like it. The colour is great and it has really good staying power and is a good mascara. 

So overall it's a pretty good product, but definitely not my go-to, unless I'm going for intensity and a lot of volume :)

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Wet n' Wild blushes

I'm a big fan of Wet n' Wild, especially their eye shadow trios and their prices, so recently I decided to try out some of their blushes and they didn't disappoint! I got Pearlscent Pink a pretty bright shade and Mellow Wine a deeper and darker pink, both really gorgeous colours. 

These blushes are über pigmented...as in if you aren't careful you will end up looking like a circus clown! Obviously this is a luxury problem, but do keep in mind that a little goes a very very long way with these blushes :) They also have awesome staying power and are just an overall amazing product. It continues to amaze me that Wet n' Wild can make such fantastic products that are so incredibly inexpensive...but I love it :)

Apologies for the dodgy close up of Pearlscent Pink, but the blush broke on me, so I had to fix it, which made it look a little funky, but it still works prefectly :)

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Benefit velvet eyeshadow in Leggy

I stopped by Sephora this last weekend and they had a jumble box with all sorts of goodies marked down 25% and I found this pretty Benefit velvet eye shadow in "leggy". It is a gorgeous pale pink with a tiny bit of metallic shine. The pigmentation is great and it truly has a velvety feel to it, it almost feels soft, plus it held up great through out the day (with a primer), so I'm super happy with my very first Benefit eye shadow. 

PS: How precious is the packaging :)

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Estée Lauder Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick

My local department store is having a sale so I thought I would splurge a bit and that resulted in me getting the Estée Lauder Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick in Vanilla Truffle. I have recently tried a few different Estée Lauder products and have been super pleased with them, so even though I am not much of a lipstick fan, I had been wanting to try out this particular shade for a while. As mentioned the shade is Vanilla Truffle, a pretty nude peachy colour, not quite as "orange" as it seems to come out in the pictures though. 

I so wanted to love this lipstick, but sadly that just isn't to be the case :( It looks super pigmented in the swatch, but for whatever reason it just transfers really sheer on my lips. It is a very creamy product, almost seems balm-like to me but no matter how many times I re-apply it just won't stick and moves all over my lip, and in terms of being long lasting, all I can say is that I find it to have almost no staying power at all! 

It's so frustrating when you decide to splurge a bit on a high end product to treat yourself and then it ends up being such a dud :/ It really doesn't hold a candle to my Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Moss in pigmentation or staying power, so I will just be sticking to that one. Oh well, that's how it goes sometimes, at least I really like the packaging, which is super slick and classy ;)

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Starlet by Chanel

It seems to be all about nails these days, but with the Chanel Avant Première de Chanel Collection for Spring 2013 in the stores now how could it not. The collection consists of these four colours and from what I hear the shade Starlet will be limited edition, the other 3 will be included in the permanent range:

Picture borrowed from Cosmo

I tried to contain myself, so I just got Starlet seeing as it was the one I liked the most and the one that is limited edition, so I wanted to get it while I still could. It is such a pretty pink/peach shade with subtle gold shimmer. Absolutely perfect for spring and I'm already loving it :) I also already know that I will have to get Paparazzi at some point. It is an amazing burgundy colour, also with shimmer, so pretty! I really do love my reds, so we shall see if I can withstand the urge to also get Cinéma :D  The last one, Provocation, is a deep plum and not really a shade I typically go for, so I that one I shall be giving a miss...but 3 out of 4 isn't bad :)

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