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    The orange lip trend. Or, re-visiting Annabelle’s Volumelip glosses.

    The product: Annabelle Volumelip lip gloss in So Sanguine

    The shade: So Sanguine is a gorgeous orange/orange-red gloss with medium pigmentation and no shimmer. It’s amazingly on-trend, and really wearable (especially for something so orange)! Not exactly my shade of choice, but nonetheless gorgeous.

    It’s super, super cute on Arianne, though, who totally rocks the orange lip ;)

    The formula: We’ve reviewed these in the past, so feel free to head on over there if you’re interested! Here are a few key points –

    • All VolumeLip glosses are paraben- and scent-free, which is awesome.
    • They’re not super moisturizing, but they’re also not stripping,
    • The pigmentation ranges to very sheer (usually the light, almost-nude shades) to medium-sheer (usually the vivid shades, like this one),
    • And above all: they’re not sticky!

    The packaging: I should probably mention one more thing – that the packaging has been fixed! My first two VolumeLip glosses, Cherryoké and Sweet Tweet, feature the original, hard tubes… which means that I haven’t been able to use either in months, what with my hands and all. (Breaks my heart; Cherryoké is gorgeous!)

    This tube, however, is blissfully soft in comparison :)

    The verdict? It’s the same as it was last time: without a doubt, you must try these! So Sanguine is the perfect choice if you’re looking to try out the orange lip trend without going all-out, but the line has enough options that I think everyone will be able to find at least one shade that they adore.

    (just a touch, so you can see the amount of pigment!)

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    The moustache post. Or, “Rae has impulse control problems.”

    While putting together a “four ways to wear winged liner” post (you’ll see it soon enough, now hush!) I developed this…. insatiable urge to draw on a moustache.

    And then I realized – there is no such thing as an insatiable urge to draw on a moustache! All you have to do is draw on a moustache!

    For good measure, this is what I looked like pre-‘stache, plus a bit of photoshop because I was too lazy to put on foundation or concealer. (Please excuse the fact that I have an entire pharmacy on my desk!)

    One last bit of off-topic rambling – I think I’d like to do a series on taking photos and using Photoshop for a beauty blog, so please comment or email in if there’s any specific photography questions that you may have!

    (Oh and P.S. I’d like to issue a HUGE thank-you to Marcelle for making such an awesome pen-tipped liquid liner at a drugstore price. It does leave just a shadow of a line behind, though, unless you really work to get it off… so perhaps it’s not the best option if you’re drawing on fake facial hair.)

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    New 02/04/11

    A few gorgeous new products and sets…

    …and a few $20 and under:

    I couldn’t quite put my finger on why these Josie skincare pads seemed strange to me, and then I realized: the name’s just too similar to “Toys ‘R Us”! Anyone agree?

    And for those of you not on a silicone-free skin diet – I always wanted to give this set a go, being the sunscreen addict that I am…

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    Saturday Steals & Deals (or, “an awesome deal on Marcelle”)

    After leafing through this upcoming week’s fliers, I couldn’t wait to tell you about this amazing Marcelle steal. For those of you by a London Drugs, they’re doing 20% off Marcelle skincare this week, and a free Rouge Xpression lipstick with a skincare purchase. Please please please get out there and try out the line – I promise you won’t regret it!

    Rouge Xpression photos and swatches:

    • Product photos and swatches {here, here, and here}
    • And lip swatches of three of my favourites – Paris Rose {here} / Cleopatra {here} / Amour, a stunning matte red {here}

    As for Marcelle skincare I’ve been loving? Basically, the entire Essentials line – reviews upcoming for the Cleansing Milk and Hydrating Lotion (which is stellar), and a review for the Cleansing Water can be found here.

    Happy hauling! x

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    Angry bears and seal-slugs.

    Today’s regularly scheduled post has been temporarily postponed so that I can send you over to Lipglossiping instead, where Charlotte needs (and deserves) some love. Go give it to her!

    Charlotte – I tried to draw you a picture to make you feel better, but then I remembered that I can’t draw. Anyhow, this is what happened:

    It started out pretty tame,

    And then was reasonable for a little while,

    But eventually, it got out of hand.

    Anyhow. Internets: I will see you soon with some beauty-related posts! In the meantime, I’m justifying my actions by the fact that I find joy in railroading other people with so much crazy stuff that they can’t help but smile. Give me a shout sometime if you need some cheering up ;)

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    Swatches: L’Oreal Magic Smooth Soufflé

    Just a few quick swatches (and comparison swatches) today; my apologies for not being able to review the product itself, but it’s full of silicones and to be honest, I’m a bit afraid of it!

    The product itself feels light and velvety upon application, with your regular mousse/”soufflé” texture. It’s on the sheer side, though, and doesn’t layer well – if you try to put on too much product, it simply balls up rather than settling in. Like a lot of other bloggers, I’d definitely recommend this for a drier skin before an oily one, but as I said: I haven’t worn it around, so do read up on it if you’re curious!

    A note on the images: these have been uploaded in 1000px across, so do give them a click if you’re looking to see the swatches up-close! Additionally, it’s worth noting that the exposure setting is a touch darker than normal, to help show off the shade differences a bit better.

    L-R: L’Oreal Magic Smooth 512 Classic Ivory, L’Oreal Magic Smooth 516 Nude Beige, L’Oreal Magic Smooth 530 Sun Beige

    L-R: MAC Studio Finish Concealer NW20, L’Oreal Magic Smooth 512 Classic Ivory, MAC Studio Stick Foundation NW20, L’Oreal Magic Smooth 516 Nude Beige, MAC Studio Stick Foundation NC35, L’Oreal Magic Smooth 530 Sun Beige, MAC Studio Finish Concealer in… bollocks, I have no idea what that last shade is.

    & finally, a few full reviews worth reading, if you’re interested:

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    FOTD: green-gray eyes, inspired by Chanel

    After seeing the models’ eyes on the Chanel Fall 2011 runway, I knew that I had to try and dupe it. I absolutely fell in love with the gorgeous Épatant (one of three upcoming Illusion d’Ombre shadows) – it’s not quite green, not quite aqua, not quite blue… basically just perfection; undefinable perfection.

    I can’t be the only one who’s currently revering Peter Phillips, right?

    To get the eye…
    Read more

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    Review and swatches: FaceFront Re-Write Pink, Third Kiss

    What they are: FaceFront Cosmetics’ Rocket Bronzer in Third Kiss and Color Volume Blush in Re-Write Pink, both from the Spring/Summer 2011 Ouro Fino collection.

    Third Kiss: I haven’t yet tested this as much as I’d like to (not really a bronzer-in-the-winter kind of gal), but I’d say the company’s description of this as a  “subtle golden tan infused with 24K Peruvian gold nano-particles” is pretty spot-on. The shimmer is finely milled and the shade itself isn’t too orange or muddy, though it is perhaps a tiny bit more yellow than I’d prefer. On the whole, though, it’s nice and neutral, and best for light/med skintones.

    L-R: re-write pink (heavy/light), third kiss (heavy/light)

    Re-Write Pink: Brace yourselves, because I am absolutely in love with this shade! It’s the perfect balance between warm and cold, between coral and magenta… honestly, just gorgeous. It’s very pigmented, so it can create quite a strong cheek, but it’s not hard to blend Re-Write Pink down to a smooth, natural flush. I can see the fine shimmer in the pot, but once applied, I really don’t notice any  shimmer or glitter.

    & slightly different lighting/focus…

    The verdict? I like Third Kiss, but I LOVE Re-Write Pink. Both are limited-edition, so please, please, please, check out the blusher before it’s too late! The two are $17.50 and $15.00 respectively, but there’s nine grams of product in there. Compare that to the 0.85g of product in B.E.’s blushers (which for the record are $18USD), and you’ve got —

    a really awesome product for a really awesome price. And if you want any more details you’ll have to go figure them out for yourself because I’m refusing to do math today!

    More Ouro Fino…

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    A bit of an important message…

    So this camera can actually shoot pretty impressive video… but I don’t know how to do that so the following is utterly terrible. I’ve scrapped the video on the whole, but these are the most important few seconds:

     

     

    (Please excuse the super-weird face at the end!)

    Basically, I’m here to give you ladies a bit of unfortunate news, because I’m a Debbie Downer. I’ve been having health issues over the past little while, which I’m not really going to explain in great detail (unless, as I said in the clip above, you’d like me to).

    Further explanation in an audio clip because I’d rather not keep typing: A ramble for your Friday (My apologies that you have to download; I can’t figure out how to embed this. But I promise the file is clean and all that!)

    If you’re interested in finding out more about rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia, here are a few links might help:

    Much love,

    Rae

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