Glam Christmas party look

 

I was sitting here writing a blog post when all of a sudden I felt inspired to create a Christmas look. I wouldn't normally go for bold lips and eyes, but I think Christmas parties are one of the times when you can really glam up and go all out.  

I tried to keep the eye shadow not too over the top and instead focussed on the eye liner, brows and lips.  So here's a breakdown of what I used and how I used it :)

Makeup Revolution anti-shine balm

If you've ever heard of or used Benefit Dr Feelgood then you'll know this product, it's a great dupe for it.  Dr Feelgood was my first high end makup purchase back about 15 years ago, god I feel old! I use this on top of my foundation by dabbing it with the sponge it comes with.  It helps to keep shine under control and keep your foundation primed - I use this in place of powder, and I usually find it works better than powder at shine control.

Makeup Revolution ultra aqua brow tint in medium

This is the first time I've used a liquid product like that on my brows.  I usually fill them in with powder and go for a fairly natural look with slight definition.  I haven't mastered that yet with this, I think this products strength is creating well defined brows that look well filled in.  It's well pigmented, but not over the top - you wouldn't want that in a brow product lets face it!

Makeup Revolution Iconic dreams palette

This is a very different palette from most of the Iconic ones, there aren't any really deep dark shades, i.e. no black or very dark brown.  That's why I picked this palette for this look as I didn't want very dark eye shadow.  For the look I applied the 4th shade all over the lid (very similar to Urban Decay Sin), then the 9th shade (a brown/green) on the outer half of lid, and finally the 10th shade in the crease.  Oh, I did also use the 2nd shade as a highlight under the brow and the 7th shade underneath the eye next to the eyeliner.

Revlon Colourstay skinny eyeliner

This is the finest, skinniest eyeliner I've ever used!  If you like creating definition and having a very fine line (perfect for the inner part of your eyes) then you really might like this.  It's jet black and pretty matte, and doesn't transfer up on your lids (winning!).

Makeup Revolution The Viper mascara

This is the first MUR mascara I've tried, it has an unusual wand (shaped like a cobra head) and has normal bristles instead of rubber ones.  It grips the lashes pretty well and after 2 coats creates a nice feathered full lash look (I'll do a proper review of this separately so you can see before and with different coats on).

Makeup Revolution the one fluid blusher in pink dew

I haven't tried the Daniel Sandler watercolour blushers before other than swatching them, but these seem to be exactly the same for a fraction of the price.  I absolutely love the subtle wash of colour they give my cheeks, so much nicer than a powder blusher, and they last well too.

Glo & Ray lipstick in Imprint Red

This is a gorgeous bright and zingy red (it photographs brighter than it actually is) that's one of the more hydrating lipsticks I've worn recently.  Since it's a glossy lipstick it doesn't last quite as well as matte ones, however its great for a glam look for the party season and so well pigmented.

That's everything I used to create my look - what do you think?  Too much or perfect for a Christmas or New Years party?

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*This post contains PR samples

A John Lewis Christmas

It's that time of year again when shops start filling up with beautiful Christmas decorations and showcasing the looks they've put together for the festive season.  Earlier on this week I was invited to see first hand what John Lewis have in store (<-- see what I did there!).  I'm sad, I know.

You'll have to excuse the slightly fuzzy photo's it was quite dark in there.

Some of the 'rooms' they set up, like this one which is a 'Vintage Market', how cute does it look?

 How amazing is this lamp!?  I love how it looks in the dark, great for a feature.

 They set this up in the middle of the room - it's showcasing some of their edible bits and bobs they're selling for Christmas, as well as some little treats we could put into a bag to take home, so cute!  My biggest memory of this was trying what I thought was a green olive stuffed with pimento, when it actually turned out to be a very hot chilli!!! So, so, so hot!

 NARS were displaying some of their new foundations, they're a cream formula in a LOT of shades, I think they retail for about £28 and you need to buy the palette separately for £6 I think - but you only need to buy that once, then you can just pop out the foundation and replace it with a refill & new sponge.  I only tried this on the back of my hand, but it looks like it has a soft dewey finish.

 This is NARS new gel eyeliners/shadows - they're a two in one product that sets fast and is designed for very long wear - some of the shades available were amazing!

Sadly I didn't get a photo of Laura Mercier, but they were there too showing some of their new eyeshadow trios and a stunning palette with several eye shadows/blushers and other bits and bobs combined.  Laura Mercier did give me a gift too (eye shadow duo and mini mascara), I've been wearing both of them all week (my first LM products!).  The quality is amazing, one of the shadows is quite glittery and there's next to no fallout, the mascara is really long wearing too - both are great.  I'll be doing proper reviews of these so keep your eyes peeled :)

I can't keep it a secret, the John Lewis Haberdashery were there and doing card making with everyone!  This was my favourite part of the night (above is the card I made & below are lovely fellow bloggers with the lady from Rowan wool), I really felt at home there and the ladies were so so lovely.

As you know, I've just taken up knitting, and when I was talking to the Haberdashery ladies they mentioned that John Lewis do free knitting classes with Rowan - in the Cardiff John Lewis the classes are on a Tuesday from 11am - 12am, teaching beginners.  You just need to call in advance and book - how amazing is that!!!

 I love these cute signs they made :D

Finally, John Lewis have some quirky gifts for sale this year, I took a pic of these ones as I love their 60s/70s vibe.  By the looks of it they're cordless too, how cool is that!?

Thank you to John Lewis for inviting me to their fab event, and for a lovely goody bag too!

What are you looking forward to about this Christmas?

This months Bigest-Pixi3 advertiser is the lovely Jess from Coffee Cosmetics

 

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Beauty advent calendars - the picks

Last year I saw a lot of people raving about different beauty calendars.  Some were really expensive, an expense I just couldn't justify before xmas, and before then I'd never heard of them.  Well, this year I plan to change that (I've got one of the Benefit ones pre-ordered) and join the club.  I've been scouring the net trying to find the announced calendars and have tried to bring them to one place for you.

Lancome | Selfridges beauty advent calendar £84

This one isn't available to buy just yet, but you can put your name on the email notification list so as soon as it's launched you'll be notified about it.  From what I recall, this was one of the most popular ones last year, but weighed in at close to £100 if I remember correctly - but the samples/gifts inside looked amazing!

You can sign up for this here.

The Ciate mini mani advent calendar £42

I absolutely love the look of this one, I'm a complete sucker for nail polishes and the Ciate ones are such good quality.  You'll get a range of colours, in fact, a different one every day, and by the looks of the picture you'll get a full size one too :)

You can buy that here.

Benefit advent calendar £50

Of the makeup ones this is one of the more affordable ones, especially considering it's full of high end products.  It'll be available to buy from 2nd November, but stocks are VERY limited, so if you want one, I'd highly recommend popping to a Benefit counter, like now, and seeing if you can reserve one. Plus it comes in a cute pop art box :)

Otherwise, keep an eye on their website.

Boots beauty advent calendar £30

Probably the most affordable of the bunch and packed with a variety of different makeup products that are sold in Boots and in total worth over £65.  If you're a makeup lover and you don't have £84 to throw away on the Selfridges one, this would be a great bargain :)

You can order it here.

This months Bigest-Pixi3 advertiser is the lovely Jess from Coffee Cosmetics

 

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Christmas Card Craft Challenge - CCCC

Yes I know what you’re thinking, what the hell am I doing writing a post about Christmas in July.

And, with that, I’m not a million miles away from you.  However, with the task I’m setting myself this Christmas, I need to start planning it.  We’re over half way through the year, and time just keeps going faster and faster.

 Last Christmas I set myself the task of hand making every Christmas card I sent.  It’s a task I achieved and thoroughly enjoyed doing J

I came up with 4 different styles of card, and small variations within that theme.  I also ‘spread the love’ by putting a message on facebook to my near 400 friends, that if they wanted a Christmas card from me, they just had to inbox me their address.  The result was me sending a lot of cards, to people I wouldn’t have normally sent them too, and you know what?  I loved it J

So this year, I intend to do the same, but I’m also stepping it up a notch.  I’m going to handmake everyone’s presents too (this is excluding my husband – I’m sure he’ll want a real present)  J  I already have some ideas and things I’m going to start practising.

Your Challenge should you choose to accept it

Here is where I give you my invitation, I invite you all to hand-make your Christmas cards this year too J  I’ll be doing a series of tutorials on how to do different Christmas cards and different designs, all of which you are welcome to copy.  So, if you’re not super creative you don’t need to worry, I’ll guide you through it.

What I’ll also do, if you have a blog and you decide blog about it we can do a little tit for tat thing, I’ll do a list of your blogs that are doing it and post it on my blog, and in return when you post about your Xmas card project, just link back to me at the bottom of the post.

Who’s up for this fabulous Christmas Card Craft Challenge then?  Leave a comment below J

Pixi3 out

xXx