OOTD: A little Alexander McQueen...

Many of you have messaged me to request a few more OOTD posts in addition to the myriad of stream of consciousness photos I upload on my Instagram (@NatalyaFGM). So, I thought I would start with this fun one from last year on my Birthday! Since I'm not getting any younger I thought I would put together something a little more different to celebrate turning 25... again ;p.

It all started with the dress! I spotted this Alexander McQueen envelope dress in an outlet mall near Florence of all places. Despite it being heavily discounted I needed some convincing as I didn't think it was particularly flattering (there are about 600 folds of fabric at the waist, enough to make a tent), but in the end I decided that it was a piece of art worth investing in!

A few months later I still hadn't found an occasion to wear my first Alexander McQueen purchase. It was a little too short and eye catching for a wedding and the UK was getting colder by the second!

In the meantime I had come across these fabulous Carvela Kurt Geiger Gylda lace ups that I like to think of as a grown up gladiator. With their sharp high heel and cut outs the hubby instantly got excited and offered to purchase them for my Birthday. He rarely has any opinion on shoes, other than ranting that I have far too many (which is true), but given his enthusiasm I knew these must be pretty special.

So when my Birthday finally came around at the end of October I decided that it was time to try out the two most adventurous items in my wardrobe... despite the cold and rain! As Miley so wisely put it... it's our party and we can do what we want!

Prohibition in the 1920s

Last weekend I stepped back in time to the roaring 20s at one of Prohibition's secret parties. Though the dates of these are not top secret the venues are hidden and only disclosed to ticket holders. If you haven't heard of this before, then do check their website out here. With flowing vintage cocktails served in tea cups, live bands, silent movies, casino and even a burlesque show this was definitely a fun and unusual way to spend a Saturday evening. It was fabulous!

You all know that I love to dress up and when given a theme I can never go less than all the way! Luckily, I already had this little flapper outfit hidden away in my wardrobe. The dress is a Massimo Dutti number that I have had since I was 16 (does that count as vintage?). My style has changed so much since then and I even surprised myself that I have kept it all these years. The dropped waist style is perhaps the least flattering shape of all for my figure as it highlights the widest part of the hourglass and the length shortens my legs. To accesorize I wore my Chanel pearls and various feather pieces including a broach that I made into a headpiece, a feather clutch from ASOS and green feather detailed shoes from New Look.

Even the bf grew a 2 day moustache for the occasion so I made sure we both looked perfectly 20s. I tonged my hair with the Babyliss Wave Envy (check out my review here) to add texture. I then painstakingly pinned it around the nape and folded it under my shorter layers to create a faux bob, which I am proud to say lasted through many a dip on the dance floor! 

For makeup I used lots of powder to create flawless, matte and pale skin. I then contoured the cheeks to narrow my face shape. On the eyes I used a mixture of pigments - collection 2000 teal all over,  shimmery golden green in the centre of the eyelid, matte brown to blend and create a more rounded eye shape. I also made my brows thinner and darker to create the classic strong, slimline pencil brow of the 1920s. I then added two pairs of lashes (top and bottom) to make my eyes look larger and alter their shape. I used the new Katy Perry Cool Kitty lashes (£5.95 here) on the top as they are perfectly full and not too long.

I then finished off with a strong lip, making sure to define the cupids bow. This is my slightly more modern and wearable take on flapper makeup!

Have you ever been to a 1920s themed party? What is your favourite decade? Are you tempted to attend the next Prohibition event? I believe it will be held on Saturday the 8th of September! xxx

FOTD: Lily Cole Shimmer Cubes

Getting ready in the mornings is always a pretty haphazard affair, but I love trying new products and aim to incorporate them into my morning routine. I spent last week playing around with The Body Shop's cruelty free collection by the gorgeous Lily Cole.

 

I absolutely love TBS's shimmer cubes as they always have a great selection of colours and are versatile as they can be used wet or dry. For this look I concentrated the bronze pink on the lid with a little of the dark burgundy on the outer corner and the light pink as a highlighter on the inner corners.

Sometimes you have to be careful with red based shades as they can make you look tired, but the shimmer in this pink really lifts it. I think it also makes my eyes look greener and somehow darker!

What do you guys think of Shimmer Cubes? Will you be picking up the latest installment from the Lily Cole cruelty free collection (£16 here)? xxx

FOTD: 10 Mins Going Out Makeup

When in a rush I usually go for fail safe combo of bright lips and neutral eyes. This whole look took about 10 minutes, which I think is pretty speedy... though I have no doubt the bf would disagree ;).

With my amazing new Boudoir lashes (review coming soon) all I had to do was add a flick of L'Oreal carbon gloss eyeliner and a tiny amount of MAC's Phloof in the inner corners to open up my eyes.

I then used a small amount of MUA's Hot Lips lip balm on my cheeks (multi tasking) and mixed a red Eyeko lipstick with MAC's cool toned gladiola to create a statement. I find that mixing colours and layering up different textures of lip products ensures that your colour stays put all night!

What are you fail safe makeup choices? What products do you rely on to get ready in a hurry? xxx

OOTN: K Middy

If you can't beat them, join them! That's always my philosophy when visiting the glamorous capital of the north - Liverpool.

So for a bank holiday night out I knew that big hair and heels would be a must! I chose this lace overlay bubble dress from Zara (as worn by Kate Middleton), which I was able to track down, despite it's instant sell out in the UK, while I was shopping in Hong Kong.

The wedges are from All Saints, which I had packed to wear with another dress, but given the freezing weather I had to pair them with black tights and hope that in the dark no one would notice the dreaded open toe shoe/ tights combo. Shhhh... I don't think anyone saw...

The makeup was a fail safe brown smokey eye, lashes and pale lip. To show off the deep v in the back I pulled my hair into a low side ponytail, which was super easy to style and made sure that the volume stayed put all night. 

 

I hope you are all having a fabulous bank holiday weekend! xxx

17 Mirror Shine Purple Haze

I have been loving 17 Mirror Shine lipsticks lately! They are so smooth and glossy and leave my lips feeling soft and hydrated. I really like the fact that you can use them to just add a tint, or really layer them up for more colour. My current favourite is Purple Haze.

 

I absolutely adore this colour! It's bright and vibrant but is very comfortable to wear and fades beautifully!

You can find the 17 Mirror Shine On lipsticks in Boots for £4.59 here.

Have you tried these lipsticks? Which are your favourite shades? xxx 

Red Hot Love

I purchased this dress from Love a few weeks ago and despite the rain I knew I had to wear it for Saturday night cocktails. This dress is definitely all party in the front and business in the back ;). I paired it with a kimono-esque black wrap around belt to cinch in the waist, black tights and some leopard print booties.

Asymmetrical Maxi Dress - Love (£48 here), Belt - H&M, Boots - River Island.

Unfortunately the bf's photo taking skills have not improved. He has managed to shrink me from 5"10 to about 5"2 in all these photos and let's just say that the walking shots have ended up on the cutting room floor. Despite failing to capture any decent images, you can see that the flow of this dress is absolutely gorgeous. It really does move beautifully when you walk. Though you do have to be quite careful when sudden gusts of wind are around as the front is very short. To preserve my modesty I used a few small pins to secure the skirt in place. You could easily add a few stitches to hold the fabric together, or even add a small weight at the bottom of the skirt (apparently this is what the Queen has in all her clothes) to prevent it from flying up.

Having less than 10 minutes to freshen up my makeup I decided to add lashes (from Velour here) and a dark red lip to take my look from plain to dramatic. I used a combo of a few different reds - Burgundy NYX pencil, MAC's Russian Red lipstick and The Bodyshop's Love Gloss for Lips, which meant I didn't have to touch up through the night and the strong colour lasted through a number of cocktails!

What are your go-to looks on a Saturday night? What do you think of asymmetric dresses? Have you ever purchased anything from In Love with Fashion? From the 4th of May they are having a special sale if you guys are interested in checking them out... 

On the 6th of May you can also use code BANKHOLIDAYTREAT25 at checkout on orders over £40 to get 25% off your order :). Happy shopping! xxx

Birthday makeup

On Wednesday my bf took me to a lovely restaurant to celebrate my 23rd Birthday. It was an amazing dinner!

This was my makeup for the evening.

Products used:

Face- Mix of MUFE HD and Dior forever spf25 foundation

MAC MSF natural

NARS Laguna bronzer

NARS angelika blush

MAC MSF porcelain pink

 

Eyes-

UDPP

Chanel quad -silver e/s, Urban decay silver e/s, MAC knight devine, carbon, vapour e/s.

MAC blacktrack fluidline, L'Oreal voluminous mascara, MAC 106 lashes (my new love).

Lips- MAC cremecup

This is pretty much my go-to look for going out, a simple silver and black smokey eye, with a light pink lip. Do you guys have a look that you love and always do when you want to look your best? xxx

FOTD/ OOTD

Today was another long, hectic day of Visa chasing around London. If you have ever tried going to Russia with a UK passport you will know what I am talking about... they make it very difficult and expensive for you! Though, I did meet a friend for lunch and managed to have a very brief stroll around Selfridges, which always cheers me up!

The makeup today was done in a hurry, but I thought I would share it with you anyway.

Face:

Revlon Colourstay- I never seem to get on with this foundation, though many people love it :(

MUFE concealer

ELF complection perfecting powder to set (the one where they have 4 colours).

NARS laguna bronzer

MAC melba blush  

 

Eyes:

UDPP

MAC holiday pallette- using the grey, silver and nude highlight as well as shale

GOSH lime green eyeliner in waterline

Revlon liquid liner

L'Oreal Voluminous mascara

Lips: MAC Vegas Volt with a little peachy pink pigment on top, which ensured it stayed ALL day. I didn't have to touch up once, not even after lunch! Woop!

Since I was running about I wanted to be cosy and warm so I opted for a wool strapless dress from FCUK, with a long sleeved black jersey top underneath. I am sorry the quality is so awful, as the only way I can take these photos is with my video camera (it has a handy remote).

Hope you guys are having a good day and are looking forward to the weekend. I am off to Moscow for my grandmother's Birthday so I will be away till Wednesday. Time for me to go and pack those thermals ;).

Natalya xxx

FOTD- Neutral with a pop

When skin looks clear and healthy it lets the rest of your features shine, and always gives me a confidence boost! Having very little time, but still wanting to look put together, I always spend the most time on perfecting my base and then add a quick pop of colour either to my eyes or lips.

Yesterday I chose my eyes as I was wearing a dark teal jumper dress and did not want to make my lips too dark. I think bright or dark lipsticks always look best if your outfit is more neutral. I know everyone says you shouldn't match your makeup to your clothes, to some extent this may be true, but it is always important to take into consideration the colours in your outfit and make sure your makeup compliments them.

Face- Dior Forever Foundation spf25

MAC MSF natural

NARS Laguna bronzer

ELF mineral blush in Joy

Eyes- L'orel HIP liner in teal
Lancome Hypnose Mascara

Lips- MAC cremecup (officially my favourite pink lipstick ever!)

I love this look as it is simple and quick, yet polished. Today I am wearing exactly the same, just with MAC's macroviolet fluidline. 

I just had to include this for all my Maxie lovers... he is getting bigger every day!!

Hope you all had a lovely weekend :)
Natalya xxx

FOTD

Today I wanted to play around with my makeup. Since I have been obsessed with warm purples and plums lately, I thought I would do a more dramatic version of the last look I posted. I love these colours for green eyes :).

Face: Dior Forever Foundation spf 25 (I love the way this really grabs on to your skin and stays all day)

Copious amounts of MUFE concealer (because it is that time we all know and loathe, when my skin just hates me!)

MAC MSF natural

NARS Laguna

MAC well dressed blush (my all time favourite)

 

Eyes: MAC painterly paint pot as base

MAC e/s dazzlelight on the lid, shale in the crease, with fig1 and beauty marked to deepen crease and on lower lashline, vapour as highlight

MAC blacktrack fluidline

Lancome Hypnose mascara 

(If anyone has tried the new one please let me know what you think).

Lips:

ArtDeco lip primer (love this and review coming soon)

L'Oreal Contour parfait lipliner in rose vintage 668

MAC Creme cup l/s

What do you guys think? Is this too dramatic for the day, or do you love mixing it up with smokey eyes every now and again?

xxx

Eye Colour Series- Hazel

A fun arabic inspired eyeshadow tutorial that looks great on all colour eyes, especially hazel. If you have hazel eyes you can also check out the tutorial for green eyes using warm purples :).Products used:

Face: Dior forever foundation spf25
NARS Laguna bronzer
Peachy neutral blush from ebay palette

Eyes:MAC greenstroke painpot
L'ancome silver eyeshadow
Pure Luxe minerals
MAC club and espresso eyeshadow
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in zero
L'ancome Hypnose mascara

Lips- MAC subculture lipliner
Bodyshop colourglide lipstick in latte swirl.

Hope you guys can try this one out as I think it will be universally flattering! xxx

FOTD- Saturday and Maxie being a little thief :).

This weekend was a relaxing one with the boyfriend- plenty of good food (Sainsbury's are doing a recession friendly offer for a two course taste the difference meal and a bottle of wine for two for only £10!), DVDs, and X-Factor. However, on Saturday night we managed to dislodge ourselves from the couch for some drinks and a few giggles at a comedy club.

 (Luke always boasts that he has longer eyelashes than me, but I think I win with a little help ;). Who do you think wins, nature or Revlon? Hehe).

Never missing a chance to play with my makeup, but only having a few minutes to get ready I decided to keep it simple, but add drama with lashes.
Eyes- MAC naked pigment over my lid, with burnt burgundy in the crease (love this for green eyes).
MAC blacktrack fluidline
Maybelline pulse perfection mascara
REVLON Intensifying lashes 99500- add subtle length

Lips- MAC subculture lipliner
Bodyshop Colourglide lipstick in Dusk Pink (No. 42- smells so yummy)

You may be wondering why I would fuss with lashes if I am trying to be speedy, but I will let you in on a little secret, they took less than 30 seconds to put on! These lashes come with adhesive already on them, so there is no mess, no sticky fingers and no time spent dancing around the room, waving them about to get the glue tacky. I just peeled them off, stuck them on, and surprisingly they stayed put all night! Success!!

The downside of these is the adhesive band. For my liking it is too thick, though this makes it easier to adhere and adjust. It is also shiny, so it can look obvious, and I much prefer a clear band. This to me seems strange as these lashes are made to look very natural (especially compared to some of the monstrosities I have previously worn on photo shoots etc.), yet the band would not blend in to the lashline without fairly thick eyeliner.

However, I would definitely recommend these for beginners, as they are much less fiddly and you won't be getting glue all over your eye makeup. Kindly, they come with a little lash applicator, which you can use to make them more secure, or manouevre them down so that there are no obvious gaps between the band and your lashes. There is also an extra adhesive strip so they can be re-used, and after that you can of course use them with your own glue :).

If you are on old hand at false eyelashes, these may not be for you, but I really like them and will be stocking up on a few pairs for those clumsy days when DUO just doesn't co-operate, or if I am in a rush.

Unfortunately, I can't re-use mine, as the second I took them off Maxie mistook them for a spider and decided to chew them to death! I really wish I had a camera to capture the moment he proudly sauntered up to me with an eyelash casually hanging out of the corner of his mouth. With all the stollen brushes, Q-tips and lipsticks I think Maxie is becoming a modern man and has started to build his own make-up collection ;).

Natalya
xxx