M.A.C Cranberry

If you have been looking for the perfect autumn/winter eyeshadow, look no further than M.A.C's 'Cranberry'.  For the last couple of years around this time, I always watch numerous 'Cranberry' You Tube tutorials, add it to my ever growing wish list and then forget it about it until Autumn rolls around again.  However since buying 'Cranberry' this Autumn, I've worn it nearly every day!

When it came to writing this post, I found it quite difficult to describe 'Cranberry'.  Depending on the light and what you pair it with, 'Cranberry' can look red, burgundy, a reddish brown and sometimes even a dark pink! 'Cranberry' is a frost which gives a really pretty metallic finish to the eye and can be used quite lightly to give a sheer wash of colour, or a little more heavily to achieve an opaque finish.  

What makes 'Cranberry' the perfect A/W eye shadow shade?

1. It's versatile.  As I mentioned above, 'Cranberry' looks different depending on what you pair it with.  I love using Cranberry all over the eye, then smudging a little matte black shadow along the lash line and the outer corner of the eye.  Blending black into 'Cranberry' creates a really nice deep plum shade. It works as an all over lid colour, a crease colour and even a liner.
2. It's extremely flattering. When I first applied 'Cranberry' I was a little worried as it can make your eyes look a little tired or sore when used on its own.  However, as soon as I added some dimension to my eye and some mascara, the shadow was a really flattering shade.  I have hazel eyes that often change depend on what colours I use - 'Cranberry' really brought out the greeny/yellow.  Those people with green or blue eyes would look amazing!
3. It surprisingly compliments a number of other colours.  I've use 'Cranberry' with gold, white and purple eyeshadows, each giving very different but pretty results.  Most surprisingly though, I thought I would be quite restricted with what lipstick shades I would be able to wear, however I've worn it with nudes, reds, plums and even bright fuchsia!

Do you have 'Cranberry'? How do you like to wear it?

Love Nic

xx

Keeping toasty this winter...

Winter is my favourite season; I love the food, the smells and the weather it brings.  In Scotland there is a phrase, to 'coory in' which describes exactly what I love about winter:  it's that feeling of coming home from a freezing cold night, getting straight into my pyjamas, cranking the heating up, getting  festive scented candles and twinkly lights on and having a cuddle with your loved ones.  In other words, I love to hibernate in winter.  

However, when I am reminded that I do sometimes need a social life and I'm forced to venture outside, I want to be as cosy as possible.  Remember when your mum would wrap you up in a huge puffy jacket and zip you in, right up to your chin, so you would have to turn your whole body if you wanted to look left or right?  I may of hated it then, but that's what I strive for now in my winter clothes.  While it may not be quite cold enough for that yet in Glasgow, I wanted to share some of the pieces I've recently bought to keep me toasty warm this winter.  

As soon as I saw this parka in Topshop I had to buy it.  It's the cosiest coat I've ever owned - the sheepskin and fluffy hood are detachable, though I'm not sure why you would want to take it out, it's the best part!  If you are thinking of buying this parka, be warned.  You will spend half of your day either being asked where your coat is from (three different people have chased me around shops without me noticing as I had my headphones in) or avoiding people trying to stroke your hood.  The other half of your day will be spent trying to ignore other people walking down the street in the same coat - it seems to be very popular! I don't ever understand why some people have such a problem being seen in the same clothes as others - if you buy from the high street surely this is unavoidable!? 

My scarf and boots are from River Island.  The scarf is huge and unbelievably cosy! As I sit near a huge window in work, I often end up wrapping it around me to keep warm.  It also comes in red and orange - I am sorely tempted by the orange version! I wanted a pair of cut out boots for such a long time, but was looking for a pair without a heel so was delighted when I found these (link here).  They are so comfortable and well made and look amazing with pretty much anything - I've worn them with leggings, jeans and dresses. I've paired them here with a pair of frilly sparkly socks from Primark to keep my feet extra toasty!

What are your favourite pieces to help keep cosy this winter?

Love Nic

xx   

Revlon ColorBurst Lipgloss 060 Adorned

As a fellow beauty lover, I'm sure you're familiar with the feeling of stumbling across a perfect product - there is just no discussion about whether it is coming home with you or not.  Despite having a silly amount of fuchsia lip products (I'm slowly beginning to think of Magic's in the Make Up is a fuchsia lip directory rather than an all round beauty blog ha!), I  had to buy Revlon's Limited Edition ColorBurst lipgloss in 'Adorned'.

I practically ran over to the Revlon stand when I saw 'Adorned' - it is a ridiculously neon fuchsia gloss with blue micro glitter (that is extremely difficult to capture).  It is one of the most pigmented and creamy lipglosses I have ever tried.  On the lips it has the look of a liquid lipstick rather than a gloss, but is much easier to apply!  It's so glossy, non-sticky and very comfortable to wear.  When the glossiness begins to wear, the colour of 'Adorned' stays on the lips for a couple of hours which I love.  The doe foot applicator makes application easy, however as it's so pigmented I found it a little safer to use a slightly smaller lip brush.

One thing I have noticed is 'Adorned' seems to be magnetically attracted to my teeth - even after using the old 'suck your finger' trick, some gloss always manages to find it's way onto my teeth.  It might be best to have a friend on teeth watch - especially if you're like me and tend to slap their lip products all over their face after a couple of cocktails!

If you love bright lip products, you definitely need to see 'Adorned' in person - it's beautiful! Revlon ColorBurst lip glosses cost £7.99 from Boots and Superdrug.

Love Nic

xx

Sephora Professional Mineral Powder Brush #45

I have just came back from a wonderful holiday in Portugal and was delighted to find that there was a Sephora a ten minute drive from our Villa! While I was a little disappointed at how small it was, I managed to find a couple of things I'd had on my wish list for a while.  I was most excited to try the Sephora Professional Mineral Powder Brush.

Although marketed as a mineral powder brush, I've been using #45 as a buffing brush for liquid foundation.  The brush is synthetic, making it perfect to use with liquid foundation as it's much less absorbent, wasting less product.  The bristles are densely packed but extremely soft, which makes it lovely to use and helps give excellent coverage.  I love the way my foundation looks when using this brush - it seems to deposit just the right amount of product and is small enough to fit into the contours of my face.

#45 washes well and I've experienced no shedding.  I've found that it works particularly well with fluid foundations - I love using it with both Giorgio Armani's 'Luminous Silk' and 'Maestro' foundation, Chanel 'Vita Lumiere Aqua' and Shiseido 'Sun Protection Liquid Foundation'.  While it does provide excellent coverage with thicker formulas such as Laura Mercier 'Silk Creme' Foundation, it does take a little more work buffing it in compared to other brushes I've tried.

If you have access to Sephora, I highly recommend picking up this brush!

Lots of Love

Nic

xx