Favourite Bath Products

Shiny Happy Purple Look!

Dramatic Diva Make Over!

This is my good friend Jules. By day she is an artist and teacher. By evening she is an amazingly talented singer. I almost cried hearing her sing "You've got the Love", it was a goose pimple moment!

Now Jules is setting herself a challenge to be more Diva, she has a big show coming up at the end of the month so today we worked on her look (hence the feather boa). The look has to be elegant and smokey but eye catching under strong lighting. Jules doesn't have a huge budget for make up so I decided to introduce her to my e.l.f collection to create a look.

BEFORE

This picture is rather unfair to Jules, I gave her a wet wipe to take her make up off which left her a bit red around the eyes and nose.

AFTER

Studio Eye Shadows in Sand Dollar, Pebble and Charcoal with a touch of Mineral Eye Shadow in Trendy

Lip stain in Red Carpet with Plumping Lip Glaze in Ruby Kiss

Jules gets to try Wiggy (and it looks better on her!)

I had to use more bronzer as with Sepia photography, subtle shading is lost.

Products used were all from e.l.f, I am affiliated with e.l.f Cosmetics UK so all items were sent free for my review.

• Studio Corrective concealer palette (green was used to hide redness on the cheeks)
• Studio Under eye Concealer and Highlighter in Light (to add brightness under the eye area)
• All Over Cover Stick in Ivory (used as a foundation and concealer)
• All Over Colour Stick in Spotlight (a must have for any Diva, to give that glow under bright lights)
• Studio Eyebrow kit in light (Jules' eye brows had to be darkened as under strong lights they will disappear)
• Studio blusher in tickled pink (in the centre of the cheek to complement Jules' rectangular face shape)
• Studio Lip stain in Red Carpet (it has to deep and dark to go with the sultry blues singer's act)
• Plumping Lip Glaze in Ruby Kiss (deep and glossy to complement the lipstain)
• Mineral eye liner in Ash (Black is too harsh on Jules' skin tone and eye colour, so a dark grey was used for smokey without being too stark)
• Studio single eye shadows in Sand Dollar, Pebble and Charcoal (three excellent colours for a contemporary emphasised eye and a touch of smokey)
• Mineral eye shadow in Trendy (gently washed over the lid, brings life to the grey and adds much needed shimmer to the lids)
• Earth and Water Mascara Duo in Black
• Studio HD Powder (pressed in to the skin it has an amazing softening effect. Even under very strong lighting, Jules will look soft and luminous rather than dusty or shiny!)
• Studio Cool Bronzer (used under the blusher, along the jaw line, down the sides of the nose and on the forehead to sculpt Jules' features under strong lighting)

Total cost of the make up used in this look = £47.00 Not a bad price for 15 items of make up!

If we had more time I would have used some Dramatic Eye Lashes but Jules was in a hurry!

What do you think of Jules' Diva Singer Look?

I am affiliated with e.l.f Cosmetics UK so all items were sent for my review.

Prize Giveaway with Naked Body Care

Simply join the Facebook page for Naked Body and Hair Care and leave a comment on the video to enter!

Tutorials!

A couple of tutorials on my YouTube channel, all making use of my new found love for cut crease. I may do one with eyeshadow next, for a more blended look!

Michael Todd Cosmetics Review

A new brand to the blogging sphere is US based Michael Todd Cosmetics. Their website is host to a variety of different products for make up, skin care and fragrance amongst others. I was sent a clutch of 5 products of my choice. I chose the 5 below:

Cream e/s in Gold Dream

Gel e/liner in Urban Mobility

Lipstick Creme in Pumpkin

Everything Stick in Dixie

Creme Glace Lip gloss in Show Stopper

A few close ups of the products post swatch (click on any of the images for a larger picture):

A few swatches:

Creme Glace in Show Stopper

Lip Stick in Pumpkin

I have a mixed review on these products.

I adored Pumpkin lipstick, it's bright orange in reality, the photos don't do it justice. But comes out peachy on me. It is highly pigmented and lasts ages, however it is rather dry. If you apply it straight from the bullet it will pull off any dry skin on your lips. My advice is to make sure your lips are exfoliated and well moisturised before putting this on! Highly pigmented lipsticks will cling to dry bits so bear this in mind.

The lip gloss is thick, moisturising and slides about on the lips. The smell is quite nice, a sort of coconut/vanilla smell, but a little strong for my liking. I liked the colour "Show Stopper" and I would wear this daily as it works really well over lipsticks to keep the lips moist. The smell doesn't linger thankfully.

The Everything Stick in "Dixie" is a multi-purpose product - for lips and cheeks etc... The colour would suit most skin tones, apart from olive skin tones as it would make the complexion look muddy, as it is a pink/peach with gold glitter. I like multi-purpose products, however this product does none of the intended purposes well. It is glittery bordering on gritty and wears away too quickly to be a good lip or cheek product. As it contains a lot of glitter I don't feel that it works for me as a daytime product unless I want a glittery look. I loved the cream to powder texture but it is too thin to be a good multipurpose product. It needs more cling and pigment.

The cream eye shadow in "Gold Dream" also suffers from the same problem, too much gritty glitter and not enough pigment. It sets quickly and resists creasing for a little while, however the glitter finish is patchy and you don't have long to work the product before it becomes un-blendable. It also feels gritty and dry on the lid which is a feature of highly crease resistant eye products. I don't like this feel as it makes my eyes itch but I understand it. I would like to have tried a more matte cream eye shadow for comparison to see if this is a feature of the glitter or the cream.

The gel eye liner in "Urban Mobility" is a good one, very little smudging and the colour on the eye is true to the colour in the pot. It also glides on and and is easy to apply. I've had a little play with a cut crease as you can see in the images below!

So as I said, a bit of a mixed review of these products, which you can buy from the US via the Michael Todd Website. However please note that these products have been safety tested to US standards not EU standards which are more stringent about ingredients and labelling. I have suffered no ill reaction as I checked the ingredient listings for EU banned substances but it's just something you should know when buying products from countries outside the EU.

Michael Todd's website is here. A selection of the products can be purchased and shipped to the EU from this wholesale website.

Nerves of steel, more like plastic!

Now that June is finally here, I am getting nervous about an impending trip to the dentist. For the second time in my life, I am having braces to correct my teeth. As a teenager I had train tracks top and bottom and all I remember was the pain, the embarrassment and the lisping. Plus the inability to eat properly without worrying about bits stuck in my teeth.

However I also remember that after the 2 years, I had wonderful straight teeth and a beautiful smile. Sadly though, as time went on my teeth gradually started to move and now I am self conscious about my smile and have been for a few years now.

I can finally afford to have them rectified. Dental treatment was free first time around and now that I am paying from my pocket I realise how lucky kids in the UK are to have free dental.

Thankfully I don't have to suffer the metal mickey mouth this time as I am going for a Clearstep brace. Clearstep is a virtually invisible and thin gum shield type of brace which over the next 10 months will move my front teeth back to the original alignment.

I will have to wear it 24 hours a day (taking it out to eat and brush my teeth) and it won't be as painful on the gums and cheek as metal braces were (I still have scars where they were cut up the first time!).

So wish me luck and look out for them, if you can't see them - let me know!