Benefit's Prrrowl..

Whenever someone mentions the word prowl, it reminds me of  a scene from Phoenix Nights (scroll to 7.28).  The way Brian Potter says prow-ul just cracks me right up.

Benefit's Prrrowl, although not as hilarious..is quite a useful addition to my forever growing makeup arsenal.

The mascara topcoat adds a nice subtle touch to you eye makeup that leaves people trying to guess what you've done.  It works better than traditional glitter mascaras that I've used as I find that the glitter is more densely packed here and the consistency is pretty smooth.

I find that the gloss works better over naked lips.  There's no photo of how it looks on the lips because I couldn't capture it in a way that showed it in its true light.  It is pigmented and spreads very well.  The shimmer is also consistently applied as it doesn't clump in places.

The lipgloss side smells like a proper new car does..my car lost that smell come the second week of January (boo!) but with a slight hint of peach.  It has blue shimmer in it..BLUE. SHIMMER.  That was more than enough to entertain my simple mind.  I like the way Benefit have used blue as that compliments the peach and seems to give the product something extra, something you can't find in every lipgloss out there.  The mascara side is nice too, I like the purple/turquoise glitter thing, using two colours really gives it something extra that most glitter mascaras don't have.

The swatches..

The gloss

Three coats on bare lashes.  This product is very hard to photograph up close but the effect is far more stunning when looked at from a distance.

If you're of the Asian persuasion and go to a lot of desi parties, shindigs, birthdays, weddings, pre-wedding parties, post wedding parties or just general desi get togethers then this will come in quite useful.  I've had to go to quite a few after work and this has been constantly in my handbag as it's easy to just whip it out and glamourise yourself with ease.  With this, I can keep my face on, spread some of the mascara topcoat over my liner and over my mascara.  Brilliant time saver!

I have been out and about trying to find a dupe for the gloss and I couldn't find one so if you can get away with wearing glittery gloss on a daily basis and you like this shade, pick it up because dupes are non existant.

I wouldn't have picked it out myself but now that I do have it, I'd recommend it if you can get away with wearing shimmery makeup. or if you need something quick to transform your makeup from day to night.  The mascara topcoat is fluid enough so you don't have some lashes coated in glitter whilst others remain bare and the lipgloss is pigmented enough to work on darker lips and the shimmer spreads well.

Prrrowl will set you back £19.50 if bought from their site (no link as it's currently not on there) or from their stores/concessions.  You can also pick it up from Boots, HoF and Debenhams (click the links to be take to the product).

Perfect Nude Lip for Women of Colour

I have been trying to perfect this look for ages and I think I'm finally happy with it.  I never thought that I'd wear a nude lip to work as I feel that it tends to wash a face out if you haven't balanced it with a statement/dark eye.

I personally think that getting a nude lip for those of us with darker skins is one of the biggest makeup problems we have, alongside finding a decent concealer which doesn't cost the earth.  You want a nice nude lip, not one that looks like you've smeared someone's concealer all over your lips.

As my lips are not uniform in colour and are already quite pigmented, getting a natural (as possible) nude lip is made that little bit more difficult.

A long time ago now, I took the advice of this WOC beauty oracle and she told me that she had recently bought a lipstick which worked as a perfect nude.

I rushed to ebay and bought it.

It has been documented here before and I have used it for a few desi functions when the eye makeup has been heavy.

I have always wondered how people figured out which coloured lipglosses worked over certain lipsticks.  I came across this totally by accident.  I wanted to make my lips glossier but had no clear gloss and grabbed the lightest coloured gloss I could see.  I have never really layered coloured lipgloss over a lipstick before but I am so glad I decided to mix these two as I now have the perfect glossy nude lip.  The colours are strong enough to not vanish the second I put them on my lips.

I've got hand swatches and lip swatches so you can see the colours as they are and how they transform over to my lips.

The top left hand photograph of my lips is how it looks in reality, the rest are just there to show you how it looks when layered. 

Do you think this works as a nude? If you have any tips and tricks re. getting a good nude lip, leave a comment!

The Swatch Files: YSL Gloss Repulpant Shiny Lip Plumper Shade No2: Glossy Plum

I bought this with a gift voucher about three years ago and it still hasn't finished.  I used it practically every day, until I found that I had lost it after a trip to my parents' house.

I wanted to put it in the Files ages ago but as it was MIA, this proved somewhat difficult.

I love this as it goes on very shiny and then fades to a stain during the day.  It looks like a lipgloss but ha the intensity of a lipstick.  You know when you put lipstick on and then gloss over the top? This little gem does it all in one.

For some reason, it was very hard to photograph, it's not at all patchy and both my lips were in fact the same colour as the top part of my upper lip.

It works very well with my skintone and has a lovely minty smell to it.

It cost me £15 or so but I think the price has gone up a bit now.  I bought it from Selfridges and I have to say that the ladie who work on that concession are always super helpful, regardless of how busy they are, they have never ever been rude or dismissive.

Review: Rimmel Stay Glossy Lipgloss

I won this gloss in a Rimmel giveaway.  Rimmel are really really good for giveaways of new products, if you sign up to their newsletter you get an email when they have a new product release and when they have a giveaway open.  Plus, they give away a fair amount, they gave away 3000 of these lipglosses which is super generous.
I've been using the gloss since the day I got it and below is my review..

Rimmel say "Style. Shape. Shine. Stay Glossy delivers on all three with a fantastic new formula and applicator combo, custom-designed for fabulously luscious lips that last, and last, and last. New Stay Glossy Lipgloss features advanced Shine Extend™ technology for up to six hours of fabulously polished perfection. Its lip-loving formula pampers lips with a caring complex of cotton and silk for increased lips moisturisation. The innovative Soft Extend™ applicator is designed for ultimate speed and accuracy, defining your dream lips in a flash."

The colour I got was Captivate Me (340).  The swatch on the website isn't the best but the colour match to my lips is great.  The colour is a dusky kinda pink and it has small flecks of glitter in it.


So, did it hold up to these claims?
It was indeed shiny and glossy and it was surprisingly good at keeping my lips soft and moisturised.  I sound like such a fat pig here but hey..I don't know if it stays on for six hours without coming off because I don't go 6 hours without eating but I will say that until I ate, it stayed on VERY well.

The main thing I loved about this gloss was the applicator, all companies making glosses should abandon that dodgy doe foot applicator (I'm not picking on this company, they had the best pic to illustrate my point) and start using this Soft Extend™ applicator because it works like a charm.

I've also found a way of making the applicator BETTER.  On visit to TGI's to celebrate my brother's birthday, I slipped the gloss into my pocket. My thighs must be hotter than the pits of hell because when I took the gloss out, the bottle was a bit warm.  The Soft Extend™ applicator had softened and application was the best I'd ever had. It bends just as you apply a little pressure but holds enough composure to coat your lips properly.  Plus, you don't get any wastage like you do with the doe feet. You can totally control how much gloss you want to put on.

The picture-y bit:

I really like the packaging on this, Rimmel have made it look bling but not tacky. The picture represents a true swatch of what the colour looks like.  I really liked the shiny part of the applicator..

See how lovely and sleek that looks?

The shade:

Tis a good thing I took this before I went to TGI's because it's all but rubbed off now..

The excellent applicator:

I tried my best to photograph the applicator so you could see it wasn't a doe foot but this is the best it came out. It's like a doe foot but the end is flat and you can flex it as you wish. It's a revelation in lipgloss application I tells ya and the pocket warming method only makes application more effortless.  Take my word for it, it's the bees kneees. I've been to Boots and have taken the tester out of the tube and you can see the trailblazing shape.

Look how gorgeous it is!

This is how the glitter appears under flashy conditions:

Purchase?
I'd buy this in a flash. The colour is lovely, it lasts, it is shiny and glossy and best of all the applicator is a stroke of genius.  I feel that I should say this about Rimmel because I feel they're missing a trick.  Their colour range works brilliantly on women of colour, I've bought glosses from them before and they've actually shown up on my lips whereas some high end brands have fallen flat on their faces. Maybe if Rimmel got a coloured model in their ads, they would increase their customer basis a bit.. The gloss is also cheap, it retails for £5.99 but is currently on sale in Boots for £4.49.

Copycat

I saw Yinka's blog and Sara's blog about how many lipsticks/lipglosses they had so I've decided jump on the bandwagon.

I cannot stress enough what a noob to makeup I am and I thought I had quite a few lip products but laying them out and seeing how many I have I realised that I'm not really as bad on lip products as I thought I would be..oh, and I found my TWO HG lip colours, Rimmel's Lip Vinyl in Velocity mixed with clear gloss from 17 and a Smashbox berry shade which is in their palette only so semi yay!

Anywho..here's my collection of glosses/pencils/sticks:

Top Row: Rimmel Vinyl Lip in Velocity (a bit lighter IRL and much nicer on lips), Maybelline Watershine Diamonds in Chocolate Sparkles, Maybelline Fruity Jelly in Raspberry, Maybelline Fruity Jelly in Satsuma, Smashbox lippy in Encore, Smashbox lippy in Toffee, 17 lippy in Chocolate Suede, Natural Collection lipgloss in Strawberry

Row 2: Wet n Wild gloss in Tangerine, Opia lipgloss in clear, Maybelline Fruity Jelly (can't remember flavour), YSL gloss in 3, Boots No7 in Lollipop, Boots No7 in Sherbert

Row 3: Smashbox lipliner

Row 4: Smashbox lip palette 5, Stila Plumping Glaze in Melon Mint, Stila Lip Glaze in Mocha

Row 5: Natural Collection lipliner in Rose

Row 6: Wet n Wild gloss (I forget the flavour), Lancome Juicy Tube in a pinky shade, Boots No7 in Lollipop, Lancome Juicy Tube in Fraise, Natural Collection in Watermelon x 2.

And there we have my collection of lip paints.

The ones I use the most often are:

• Rimmel Vinyl Lip
• Opia clear gloss
• YSL gloss in shade 3 (must remember proper name)
• Smashbox palette in the plummy shade on the bottom left hand corner

Also, I'm looking to sell some of those glosses so if you see anything you like, do let me know and I will see what I can do :)