LOTD: Besame 'Carmine'

This Lip Of The Day is brought to you by Besame's Classic Colour Lipstick in Carmine*.

Besame Cosmetics is a range created to resurrect a more glamourous age, the packaging is sheer 40's feminine luxe and the colours are true retro, pin-up tones.

Carmine is a very orange/red coral, but it's not sheer; it's a semi-matte with an extreme density of colour. I needed barely any to get my lips covered. The lipsticks are infused with Vitamins A, E & C, aloe & green tea and unlike some mattes (*cough MAC cough*), this formula manages to remain softening & didn't dry my lips at all.

I got about 4 or 5 hours wear before it needed touched up, which I think is pretty good, but I was more amazed by the fact my lips didn't dry out. The shape of the bullet is unusual, but I found it surprisingly easy to apply - I was worried the flat edge would be too big to maneuver, but actually it gave a really nice clean line - this was photographed without a lipliner.

Overall, this is a really wearable red, especially if you like orange toned reds (as opposed to cool blue toned ones). The price (£22) is definitely reflected in the luxurious packaging & the formulation of the lipstick. If you like the look of this, you can pick yours up from Coco Beau & whilst you're there, check out some of the other delights, such as the Powder Compacts.

*PR Sample

FACE Atelier; Lipstick

At the IMATS I picked up quite a few lipsticks; 8 in total! These 3 little beauties are from FACE Atelier (which you can find at Coco Beau).

Left to Right: Pink Sizzle, Pink Cashmere & Berry Sorbet

Berry Sorbet: A shimmery purple frost

Pink Cashmere: A shimmery pink frost

Pink Sizzle: very cool blue pink

All are available for £17. Pricey, but divine

Spring Fresh Coral Lips & Glossy Eye

You might remember this post by my guest blogger Lisa, where she listed the many many flaws of OCC Lip Tar in Grandma. Well she kindly donated the lip tar to me and challenged me to make it work (a little Tim Gunn there for good measure)

I kept the skin really fresh with FACE Atelier foundation.

A slick of vaseline on the eyelids gives a really fresh, glossy appearance. Use waterproof mascara!

Garden Girl Palette

In Aberdeen, it's rained so hard there is a river running through my street, the wind nearly blew an old lady away in the car park and it's about -3c outside. Inside my house, however, there is a ray of warm sunshine because look what arrived* this morning from Coco Beau...

The Bee Luscious Garden Girl Palette!

Inspired by the colours of a spring garden, the palette is made up of 16 eyeshadows; some metallic, some shimmery, some matte, some reflective, some satin (I could go on...). There are 4 blushes; 2 of them are mineral blushes with a lovely subtle shimmer and the other 2 are matte mineral blushes. The palette is finished off with 2 'Micro Bubble' lipstick pans.

I've had a wee play with it already, but it's so pretty I didn't want to start messing everything up! The shadows are mega soft, but not dusty (Sleek - take note!) and blended brilliantly on the back of my hand, so I have high hopes for when I get to take this baby out for a full spin!

These are just a few of my initial favourites in the palette...

So, if you are now thinking hmmmm that's not bad, 16 eyeshadows, 2 lipsticks and 4 blushes. I could get me some of that action, then you'd be right! The palette is exclusively sold at Coco Beau for £67.50 (just over £3 per pan!) but as a Beauty Blogging Blonde reader, you can take advantage of a 15% discount - you just need to enter the code BBB15 at the checkout.

And the best news? The code is valid until New Year, so if you think the man in your life could do with a nudge in the right direction when looking for your perfect Xmas gift, just send him a link to this post!

I will be filming with this palette very soon, so keep an eye on my YouTube channel and subscribe to receive notifications of new videos!

*Received for review. See disclaimer for full details

Coco Beau Pro 'The Big Fat Firm Foundation Brush'

Introducing...

Coco Beau's very own Big Fat Firm Foundation Brush!

I got an email last week from the perky peeps down at Coco Beau HQ revealing that they have been squirrelling away developing this bad boy and would I like one to try... Um, Hell Yeah!!

So here it is! The brush handle is massively chunky, which is just as well, as the head is HUGE! This is it pictured next to a MAC 190 for comparison...

I've tried to capture the dimensions of the brush as best I can - the brush head does taper, but it's very thick; not 'flat' like a traditional brush. The bristles are super dense and as a result, the brush gives the foundation more of a flawless 'buffed' finish rather than a flat (or streaky!) finish that you can sometimes get with a brush like the 190.

I just gave my face a once over with this to see how much surface area it could cover and I'm not kidding, my foundation was fully in place in about 10 seconds flat, no streaks or patchy areas.

I am seriously impressed with this brush - it is taking 1st place above my MAC 190 and my Louise Young foundation brush. LOVE. IT.

This will be available to purchase at Coco Beau from 28th October and will be £29.75

My New Love... Embryolisse Skin Care

Hello,

You have probably heard the virtues of Embryolisse Lait-Cream Concentre extolled all over the internet and thought you might like to try it, but had always been put off because you'd have to order it from France... I know I always was! I had actually tried the product a couple of times, but had never quite got round to ordering it. However a sudden increase in websites selling it from the UK have appeared in the last couple of months making, not just the moisturiser, but many other products from the brand much more accessible.

Imagine my delight when I discovered that one of those websites was my favourite 'beauty boutique' Coco Beau. This website has previously secured a place in my heart for it's fabulous service, quirky packaging, fast delivery and generally just being awesome and now I can add 'stockist of my new favourite skincare brand'... Anyway, as I don't want the peeps at Coco Beau to get big heads, let's move on to the products themselves!

Lait-Creme Concentre

This moisturiser, in my own humble opinion, has got to be the best thing that has ever happened to my skin. I mean it - I know I have posts previously on moisturisers (particular old fave PerriconeMD) but skin changes and over the last year, my skin has been through a serious period of illness, a wedding, moving house and then 3 weeks in the sun... It hasn't known what's been going on, but the result is my skin is much dryer - more 'normal' I guess than my oiler days from 8 months ago or so...

This moisturiser has boosted it's tone, evened out the texture (it literally feels like a baby's bottom) and just made it feel generally more comfortable. All the redness is starting to disappear from my cheeks and chin and I have to say, without a doubt this is the best treatment for 'plucked eyebrow syndrome' - you know that first 12 hours after plucking where no amount of concealor will hide the red? this bad boy will clear it up...

The texture is a good old thick cream - none of your lotion-y nonsense here. A tiny blob about the size of a pea will cover an entire face and so a 30ml tube (only £10 by the way) should last a good few months. For those who have a conscience, it's not tested on animals and it's paraben free.

Foaming Cream - Milk Cleanser

I always imagined it would take wild horses to drag me away from Philosophy's Purity cleanser and, although I wont be giving it up completely, I will be happy to share it's cabinet space in the bathroom with this product. This is a cleanser that's suitable for all skin types, including sensitive and it's simply lovely.

You can apply it in the normal way - to a damp face and work it into a lather, but I've found if I apply it to dry skin, leave it for 5 minutes like a face mask, then work some hot water in, that afterwards my skin can only be described as 'creamy' - it has that appearance I've always wanted; smooth, even-tone, no after - washing redness and just nice and clean! My skin has never felt tight after using it (presumably because it's soap free). Again, it's paraben & cruelty free and is £15 for 200mls.

Exfoliating Care Cream

I once read in a magazine that a good exfoliant should not contain scratchy contents such as walnut shell, sugar, sand... (that last one's a joke!) and instead one should always look out for an exfoliant that contains 'micro-beads'. And well, I've found one! I'm not sure what Embryolisse's micro-beads are formulated from, but they are far from abrasive. Using this, my skin feels smoothed, dry patches eliminated and it feels generally much more refined. I've been using this twice a week and what I've found is that I'm using less toner - weird I know and I don't what the connection is, but there you go.

Another fab product - cruelty free and is £20 for 60mls

So, what can I say? In one fell swoop my skin care regime has been transformed and my skin is looking and feeling blooming amazing. Probably just as well... I suffer horrendously from 'after-a-night-out-wine-spots' and with Xmas & Hogmany on the horizon, I will need something to fight my corner!

*I've purchased the moisturiser myself and although the 2 other products were samples, I will be hot-footing it shortly to buy them too. See my disclaimer for further details on PR samples.

FOTD

Hi,

Today is my little brother's birthday and so we were hanging out at the cinema. Here's the makeup I wore!

Face:

FACE atelier Ultra foundation in Wheat

MUFE HD Cream Blush in #03

Eyes:

Urban Decay E/S in Creep from Naked Palette

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on pencil in Black

MUFE Aqua Smoky Lash mascara

Shu Uemura brow pencil in Seal Brown (Hard 6 formula)

And that's it! Simples!