Review: Narsissist Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow and Blush, Contour and Lip Palettes

This week I have been having a little bit of a narcissistic love affair with the new Narsissist products!

 (flash)

 

 (no flash)

The Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow Palette* is absolutely stunning. The colours are rich, pigmented and so easy to work with as they can be used both wet and dry. I have played around with them using both methods and have particularly liked using them wet over the lid for a foiled effect and then blending them out dry through the crease and under the eye to create a really intense smokey eye.

 (swatched wet and dry)

The shades include: Europa, Himalia, Ursa Major, Subra, Andromeda, Lysithea, Giove and Sycorax.

 (with flash and without flash)

The Blush, Contour and Lip Palette is the perfect compact travel companion. It has everything you need for the lips and cheeks including 3 blushes (Enrapture, Enthralled and Roman Holiday), Albatross Highlighter, Laguna Bronzer and even a mini Istria Lip Gloss.

The Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow Palette is £45 and the Blush, Contour and Lip Palette is £35. You can find both the palettes on the Nars website here.

Have you tried the new Narsissist Palettes?

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

With a number of these crayon style balms currently on the market it has taken me quite a while to work through my selection. However, I was so impressed with Revlon's offering in their Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain I made sure to set aside an afternoon to show you a selection of shades and how they look on the lips!

So let's see how these balms/ stains measure up!

 

On the skin you can see that they are glossy and deliver a good amount of pigment in just a few strokes. I love the ease of application with these and as the swatch shows you can get a pretty precise line as they are not too soft.

So what about the lips?

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

I was really impressed with the buildability of these balms. The swatches above show a fairly full application, but as you can see they are still super glossy. I love a versatile lip product and the fact that these can be worn as just a sheer tint, or full on colour, makes them a handbag essential.

The Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains are available for £7.99 here. Which is your favourite shade?

Clinique Chubby Sticks

Clinique Chubby Sticks are a really fun moisturising lip balm that give your lips a soft wash of colour. They are available in a great variety of shades and I was lucky enough to pick my top 3 at this week's Clinique cocktail party.

 Top to bottom and left to right: 14 curvy candy, 06 woppin watermelon, 15 pudgy peony.

As you can see the original chubby sticks are pretty sheer and while giving lots of moisture and shine they are not overly buildable in colour. As a lip balm they work perfectly for daytime wear and the crayon shape makes them effortless to apply, even without a mirror.

Being a lover of strong lip colour I am really excited to see that Clinique have now also launched an 'intense' version.

 This stunning red is 06 roomiest rose.

Even though my lips are pretty pigmented you can see that the chubby stick intense lives up to its name delivering an intense burst of colour. The texture of this lipstick is a little thicker than the original giving the lips a matte finish.

The original chubby stick can be found here for £16.

 

Are you a fan of Clinique's Chubby Sticks? Which is your favourite formulation? Which of the shades would you recommend?
 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 

Revlon Lip Butter - Strawberry Shortcake

I know that the Revlon Lip Butters have been reviewed by a myriad of blogs, but having recently purchased one (slow on the uptake...) I thought that I would show you some swatches of my favourite shade - Strawberry Shortcake (080).

The lip butters have a lovely, creamy texture and give a subtle colour to the lips.

If you have quite pigmented lips you can build the colour up with a few coats, but I wouldn't say that it is overly buildable as it is very glossy and smooth.

As much as I enjoy the light texture, effortless application and hydrating properties of these lip butters I can't say that I share the huge amounts of enthusiasm expressed when these are mentioned. Perhaps the hype has set the bar too high, but if I am completely honest I actually prefer the 17 Mirror Shine Lipsticks as they are just as smooth, but are slightly more opaque and longer wearing. This lip butter has made it into my handbag as the colour is so easy to wear and very versatile, but I doubt I will be repurchasing it when it runs out as I just don't find it that unique!

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butters are £7.99 here and available in a great selection of colours.

Are you a fan of the Revlon Lip Butters? What are your favourite shades? xxx

Look!

 The beauty brains behind Look magazine have developed their own beauty range in support of cancer charity Look Good... Feel Better, which helps ladies combat the visible side-effects of their cancer treatment. With over 100 beauty essentials including 32 eyeshadow and nail polish colours, lipsticks, glosses, foundation, bronzers and much more it is definitely a range that will make an impact with its imminent launch in Superdrug stores!

At just £4 each the single eyeshadows come in a great range of colours and finishes. I particularly like the fact that all the shadows have individual names and numbers too, which is not often the case with many affordable collections.

Left: Suede (no. 25). Right: Acid Wash (no.1).

The shadows have great pigmentation and colour pay off, though they are a little powdery, so I would recommend using them with a good base to prevent fall out.

Of all the products I have been lucky enough to play with the lipsticks (£7) are probably my favourite. I love the selection of fun colours and the creamy, moisturising texture that leaves lips feeling smooth and glossy. Pictured above is Toffee Cup (shade no. 4) a beautiful, milky and oh so wearable nude, which was kindly chosen for me by the lovely Zoe.

The Double Hit Lip (£7) is a clever double ended lipstick and gloss in a selection of bright, punchy colours. These lippies are extremely pigmented and they smell delicious too!

 Red Alert shade 4

L to R: Lipstick, Gloss, Combination.

I was also very much excited to see the selection of nail varnishes (£5) Look has an offer. A massive 32 shades encompassing some gorgeous brights, as well as bling glitters and modern nudes/ taupes. Of the two shades I received I was most drawn to Pearl Effect (shade 20).

I immediately applied this over my current nail polish (OPI Russian navy) and loved the subtle, multi dimensional effect it created. I can't wait to experiment with it as a top coat over contrasting colours!

Sophie Beresiner, the Beauty Editor of Look magazine, is such a strong, beautiful lady and an absolute inspiration. I highly recommend checking out her blog here and reading her story.


Are you a Look magazine reader? Will you be supporting Look Good... Feel Better and purchasing any products from Look Beauty? What products are you most excited about in the range? xxx

It's all about the lips...

I will put my hand up and admit I am not a fan of Fearne Cotton. She annoys me.. there I said it ;). However, when I was shown a selection of makeup for her line exclusive to Boots I was very much excited by the lip sets. It's All About the Lips in Natural is a gorgeous, wearable trio of lip liner, lipstick and gloss.

What I particularly like about this set is the difference in textures between the products, which lets you create different looks and play with different shades of nude. The lipliner is a deeper, more rosy nude that can create a matte look, the lipstick is a light, creamy pink that looks great paired with a smokey eye and the gloss is shimmery, without being overly glittery, to add some vibrancy to the nude palette.

Top - lipliner, Middle - lipstick, Bottom - gloss, Left - all three.

The above was created using all three (sparingly) to create a beautifully irridescent, natural nude lip.

I am really impressed with this set and look forward to sampling more of the range in the future. This line is exclusive to Boots and retails at £10 (here), not bad for 3 products!

Have you tried any of Fearne's range at Boots? xxx

Eve's Kiss from Rituals

Being blessed with a fairly substantial sized pout I have always had chronically dry lips. I am constantly reapplying balms, lipsticks and glosses in an attempt to keep them hydrated and am always on the look out for new products that will help to condition my lips. I was therefore excited to try the new lip treatment from Rituals - Eve's Kiss.

Eve's Kiss promises to be a long lasting, moisturising treatment that soothes and protects with SPF 8. This treatment has a beautiful creamy finish and a delicious, subtle apple scent. Although it is a little thicker than your average gloss or balm it is not at all sticky and feels very silky on the lips. With extracts of Karite (shea butter) it works hard to hydrate the lips and lasts for a respectable length of time. The packaging is also super handy as it's quick and hygienic to apply on the go. There's nothing worse than sticking dirty fingers into pots, especially if you have false nails, yuck! The applicator is angled perfectly and cut very flat so it's easy to spread an even layer (I find some of the rounder ones a bit more tricky to use as they can smear the product).

I have been so enthusiastic about Eve's Kiss that I have been using it as an overnight treatment as well as a gloss during the day. Any lip products that make it into my handbag should be very proud of themselves ;). It's great to use on it's own or over lipsticks as it gives a beautiful, long lasting shine.

As this product was sent to me for review I wasn't sure of its price point, and after using it for a few days was convinced that it would probably be a little more pricey that I would like, however after checking out the Rituals website I was thrilled to see that it was only £4.90 - not bad for 15ml! You can also find it in John Lewis here.

Have you tried any Rituals products? What are your favourite lip treatments? xxx

Poppy King No. 7 lipstick and lipgloss

No7 has collaborated with lipstick legend Poppy King to create an exclusive range of lipstiks and lipglosses to change womens’ views of lip colour forever. The collection encompasses seven colours - ranging from the deep wine of 'Seduction' to the barely there nude warm glow of 'Confidence'. The colours are inspired by eras throughout history re-interpreted to be extremely wearable.

I was lucky enough to be sent two products to try out. The first is 'Glamour' - inspired by the 1950s this is a fun, flirty and feminine pink lipstick. 

 Power on the left, Glamour on the right.

Glamour is quite sheer on the lips, giving a lovely glossy, natural finish which is wearable enough for the day.

 Power is inspired by the 1930s - a deeper berry shade that works great as a more subtle alternative to a traditional red. The gloss is smooth and not at all sticky. It can be applied softly for a sheer wash of colour, or built up (as below) for more impact.

This collection can be found on the Boots website retailing at £12 for the lipsticks and £11 for the glosses. Check out the video below for more information on the different colours in the range!


Have you tried the new Poppy King range? What are your favourite colours? xxx

*This is a sponsored post. All views and opinions expressed are my own as usual.*