my gorgeous little monkeys!!

Just a little updated pic of my two little boys, Ashton and Logan, who keep me very busy when i'm not make-upping!

Ashton even comes eyelash shopping with me! xxxx

It's been faaar too long since I last blogged..

I've been really busy during wedding season and have LOVED every minute of it!

Only thing is, it's only left me time to look after my two boys, clean brushes, buy more makeup..ummm not all that bad then!

A little photo of my lovely friend Nicola, who inspired my rant about my love for these foundations, she really has the best skin!!

So, mainly as I've been meaning to blog about some of my favourite products for a month now, I thought I'd start with my Chanel foundations and bronzer..

I've had these in my kit for over a year now and love them so much have just re-purchased pro Lumiere in 20, vitalumiere in 30 and pro Lumiere in 50 to have a reasonable range to mix. It was purely indulgent but I added the bronze universel to my purchase, mainly as I've always wanted it and I figured, hey, it's the summer, I may have a tan (yes, from st tropez and xen tan ) so will get my use out of it!

I love all of the 'lumiere' products but 'pro' and 'vita' variety's seem to work the best for me, although I would certainly say the 'matt' and 'lift' are good too, for different skin types.

So..what do I love about them?? well, I can't ever forget Sam on my pixiwoo/fashionface course explaining why these work so beautifully but be it the correct explanation (or not too accurate) here is my way of explaining- Pro lumiere is a medium coverage foundation which gives a luminous finish. Something to do with 'spherical particles, bouncing light, flawless skin, you know) Do not be fooled into thinking this is not for those of us who have vaguely oily t zones, it's nothing a little bit of powder can't eliminate!

It is truly beautiful, I like to think of it as a second skin for my face, but a whole lot clearer and more glowing! If it's natural, flawless and glowing skin you're after..I would say give this a try! Below is a (rather bad) pic of me..with Pro lumiere 20 on..possibly some translucent powder over t zone. My skin is really not the most perfect either so you can see how good I think it is at evening and perfecting everything..

In the picture below I have more of a tan, so this is vitalumiere in 30. Equally as lovely as pro, but a little more sheer and glowy, so if you prefer a slightly lighter finish, or have dry skin, this is beautiful!


I can very definitely say I cannot imaging ever being the right colour for 50 (unlike my gorgeous friend Nicola who has such a beautiful warm bronzed tone to her skin) however it is a good colour to use to add a little in to my other foundations to match up the colour depending on tan. On the pic below I added a tiny pump of 50 to my 20, and it just added a nice warmth to the colour.

There you have it..a few of my most certain 'cannot live without' items..

Do you have any favourites cannot live without items??! xx0x

just playing about....all pictures x

A love for chanel nail polish..

I'm not really sure why, I'm really not fussy about where my nail polishes come from, Barry m, Essie, Revlon, no 7, china glaze, Barbara daily, nails inc- I've tried a few, but I have to say, I'm quite a sucker for Chanel polish.

It started off with 'organza' a beautiful bright bluey pink. I used to call it my barbie nail polish...it looks amazing with a tan!

This is not with a tan, and unfortunately doesn't really do it much justice, may sadly also be the very last time it is applied- was quite a challenge to get a good coat!

Then there was 'paparazzi' way before lady gaga got to it..another more muted pink with a slight sheen of silver running through! (sorry no pic, come to think of it, may need to have a go with this one again sometime soon)

After that ,since last fall I've seem to have been on a mission to get each new 'it' shade..

so last winter saw 2009- Vendetta a rich deep almost black purple with a very fine violet pearl running through

Spring 2010 - Particulaire- an amazing 'mud' colour great for us neutral lovers!

Summer 2010- Nouvelle Vague - not my usual colour but when it came out at the end of spring, I found myself longing for some sunshine and this was the best way to cheer up my almost all black wardrobe!

Fall 2010- the new one - Paradoxal - another understated, beautiful grey/mauvey/smoky brown with a subtle sprinkling of very fine blue and pink pearl (only really seen in the sunshine)

I'm sure there will be more, and I'm sure there are quite a few more in the permanent collection to try out..but for now, I will forever be a Chanel limited edition nail polish collector! If you like them, best hotfoot it down to your nearest stockists, these baby's sell out fast and go for silly amounts of money on ebay!! xx

a CCO haul...

Had a little play at the Cosmetics Company Outlet (CCO) at Mcathrur Glen in York last week.. I've been quite a few times this year on the hunt for a few MAC, Bobbi Brown, Estee Lauder, Clinique goodies but have found most of it to be a few seasons old (not that there's anything wrong with that at all) however I'm really interested in the core collections so I can recommend them to clients! I still had a lot of fun though, picked up loads of things and then settled on a few pictured below. I also picked up xmas 09's face brush collection which has a duo fibre brush, foundation brush, concealer and angled blush brush, all short handles but perfect for my own bag! Will do a review on these soon!

I'm always a bit worried about quads which aren't from the permanent ranges but I couldn't resist these..besides, one of them had 'tempting' in, which is the most beautiful muted pale sandy gold shade and the 'spiced chocolate' quad has a beautiful rich orangey bronze e/s in, which is one of 'THE' colours of the fall season!

Also picked up a Michael Kors for estee lauder lipstick in starlet peach.. it's a very sheer pale peach. perfect for an everyday lipstick!

What's your favourite eyeshadow colour? I can never decide... why not try them all xxox

prodiga new pics

Earlier in the year I worked for an amazing upcoming designer by the name of Jennifer Levenstone with her high end clothing label 'Prodiga'!

Jenny is getting plenty of press coverage for her beautiful items and having seen them whilst at the shoot, I can certainly tell you they are stunning! as were her models and concept for the shoot.. hope you will all agree these shots were worth all the hard work and effort that was put into them!

Here is a little piece about Jenny and Prodiga-

Young entrepreneur and Fashion Designer, Jennifer Levenston, left Leeds Art College at the tender age of 19 years old to branch out and launch her own brand, Prodiga.
“The Italian word for ‘lavish’ is exactly what I wanted my clothing line to reflect, but with a difference. It needed to have the ability to be worn in everyday life.
Jennifer continues: “Breaking into the market is a huge challenge, especially in today’s current climate. Much to my surprise, Mintel has reported a rise in high-end designer clothing over the past year.
“The clothing range has been born out of a societal change. Soaring numbers of women are demanding high quality, fashionable work attire.”
Prodiga designs aim to allow women to embrace their fashion conscious image, whilst retaining ‘the look’ within the workplace. The clothing range uses a mix of fabrics such as laces, alongside ruffled and structural elements.
Jennifer has designed the collection from ongoing research and inspiration for the ‘perfect’ blouse.
“I feel that whilst decorative designer blouses are highly sought, the choice is somewhat limited. You either face an extremely large price tag, or stuck overpaying for basics.
“I recently had a photo shoot for my first collection, and it exceeded all my expectations. I got in touch with a couple whose garden won the Garden of the Year Award! I stumbled across our outstanding photographer on Facebook, Adam Barouhk from London. The shoot was also filmed by Eddie Steinberg to generate a short film intro for the website.”
The first collection is made of beautiful fabrics to generate a stunning garment, and practically usable – an everyday garment. Check out the beautiful and inspirational work of Fashion Designer, Jennifer Levenston. If you like what you see, or would like to find out more by getting in touch by email on jennifer.levenston@prodiga.co.uk.

Hope you like them.. xxxox

a late starter on the twilight scene..

This does not however mean that I am any less umm..addicted to the whole saga as though I am 13 again! Not sure if it's the love story or the beautiful people.. either way, the books have kept me very well entertained for the past 3 weeks and the films, well, lets just say, when sky hd player is selected.it somehow always comes back to 'twilight' ! ah well.. I don't do things by halves, why not enjoy it in full...! Just a few fave pics! xx

bridal busy..

Just a few recent pics from my beautiful brides x