Haus of Gloi Valentine's Collection

The Haus of Gloi Valentine's Collection will be released later on today (Noon PST which I believe is 8pm UK time). I had great success with the Valentine's fragrances last year and I'm pleased to see both Come Hither and Who Needs Love are back. Who Needs Love is probably my favourite HoG scent ever and I was quite surprised by this as it's a sweet gourmand smell. As much as I love chocolate, I don't really like it for anything other than eating! Who Needs Love is a dark rich chocolate though with something delicious hiding inside, I find the hint of coffee stops it from being too sickly. I have Who Needs Love in the pumpkin butter and as well as being a lovely scent, the pumpkin butter is the perfect body cream texture for me.

Odette really appeals from this collection. It's described as 'clean sun dried linens, tuberose, ginger lily and white musk'. After my moaning about the January slump yesterday I think I should invest in one of the Spring Tonics. I Imagine the Spring Tonic #1 in the whipped soap would lift my spirits with it's Californian Lemon and Mexican Lime. Although the Fresh Cucumber in Spring Tonic #2 sounds pretty good too.

Will you be purchasing any of the Valentine's Collection this year?

Thoughtful Thursday

I've been working the odd day and this always leads to me ruminating. Sitting in a room in silence for a couple of hours with only your thoughts for company will do that to you! Lately I've been musing on how difficult it can be to write a consumer blog in January. Particularly with the financial climate as it.

Blogging is a lot of fun but I find I struggle to write for the sake of it. My blogging mojo hasn't gone exactly, it's just not there everyday like it usually is and I think a lot of this is because I'm not buying as much. Spring collections don't often grab me and I am making a concerted effort to cut back (I'm sure I'll make up for this a bit at IMATS). I tend to want to focus more on skin care at this time of year and, as I'm sure you know, testing skin care products for review is time consuming so there are never more than a handful of those posts each month.

When I announced my eyeshadow no-buy, I noticed that a lot of other people were talking about cutting back and starting project 10 pans etc. I think it's a natural part of the annual cycle that people tend to tighten their belts in January after the onslaught of Christmas. This ebb in blogging mojo is probably part of the natural cycle too. I've been writing this blog for almost two years now and you definitely start to see patterns in your desire to write and general blogging enthusiasm. I've noticed it elsewhere too, I think it's hard to write with consistent momentum year-round.

Even when I have things I could write about, if I don't feel in the mood writing can be like pulling teeth and I'm sure it comes across as a reader too. I have noticed that I seem especially critical in January: just looking over my posts from the last couple of weeks I've moaned about a BB Cream, an Hourglass brush, the cost of Caudalie, been lacklustre about a Bionic mascara and whinged about the very popular Tangle Teezer. That is a whole lot of moaning! I'm bound to have to come back and eat humble pie on at least one count once Spring arrives and returns my good spirits.

I think that's enough of my thoughtfulness for today. What do you think, do you experience a slump in enthusiasm in January, either it's in terms of blogging or buying? Or am I just a moody old mare that probably needs to invest in a S.A.D. lamp? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

FOTD and initial thoughts about the Clinique BB Cream

It seems like an age since I posted a face of the day. And after trying to take pictures yesterday I remembered why it had been so long. It's hard taking pictures at this time of year and especially difficult taking pictures of yourself that don't make you want to cry! So, I hope you will forgive me for the cropped picture with flash.

I used the new Clinique Age Defence BB cream as my base. I feel I ought to spend a little time talking about my initial thoughts about this new BB cream. I have avoided many of the BB releases simply because my expectations were that they were tinted moisturiser under a different name. I had high hopes for the Clinique BB cream as Clinique already have a good reputation for their skin care. Now this feels nice on the skin: it's not greasy and has an almost satin finish. The texture of my skin looks great but, like the Erborian that I tried last year, colourwise this isn't a good match for me. It's quite pale and gives my skin the same grey cast that I experienced with the Erborian. I take this to mean that a. the Clinique is fairly true to the original Asian BB creams and b. they just don't suit me! I still wonder if I'm doing something wrong and will continue to use it to investigate the skin care benefits. I consider myself to be fair skinned (not pale) so I do wonder how people with darker skin than mine fare with these creams. I'm not sure which shade I have but I assume it is shade 01. I will have to investigate shade 02 so that I can get a feel for how much darker that is.

Edward Bess Dusk and RBR Gracious Arasari are both unfairly neglected eyeshadows in my stash. Although Gracious Arasari doesn't look it in the pan, it's just a shade or two darker than my skin colour. It doesn't stand out particularly on it's own but it's good for adding a little sheen or making a look more polished. Dusk is quite a complex colour but I spoiled it a bit pairing it with the bronze eyeliner. I think a black with a hint of green or gold flecks would enhance the beauty of Dusk more. You can see how it looks paired with MAC Kohl Power in Mystery further down.

Face
Clinique BB cream (I think it's shade 01)
YSL Touche Eclat
Shu Uemura brow pencil in Seal Brown
Dolce & Gabbana Luminous Cheek Colour in Rose

Here's how it looked with MAC Kohl Power in Mystery instead

Eyes
TFSI
MAC Brule all over the lid
RBR Gracious Arasari on the mobile lid and up into the crease
Edward Bess Dusk in the crease
MAC Teddy eye kohl to line
RBR Seas of Tranquility as a brow highlight

Lips
NARS Sheer lipstick in Falbala


Disclosure: The Clinique BB Cream was a PR samples as were the Touche Eclat and small sample of RBR highlighter. The NARS Falbala and D&G Rose were gifts from very lovely friends.

Hourglass Crease Brush 04

I thought I would stay with the brush theme for another day and talk about the Hourglass Crease Brush 04 that I bought last year. Hourglass Cosmetics have a fairly extensive brush collection all of which are made from high-grade taklon so they're a good choice for anyone wishing to avoid animal hair. The handles are made from the same bronze metal as the rest of the Hourglass line and they are weighted to feel solid in the hand.

As you can see from the comparison to the MAC 217 and Rouge Bunny Rouge Crease brush, the Hourglass Crease brush is quite narrow. It is tapered but not particularly fluffy. Consequently I find it applies colour in a more precise line than the other crease brushes. I can soften the line using a wind-shield wiper motion but it does require a little effort. Whereas the MAC 217 will deposit colour in the outer corner and into the crease at the same time, the Hourglass brush deposits colour just in the crease and I have to apply colour in the outer corner separately. This is probably a very long-winded way of saying that the two brushes apply colour in a different way, the Hourglass brush allows more precision whereas the MAC 217 is faster and more smoky. Which you prefer will depend on the look you want to achieve and possibly your eye shape.

L-R: MAC 217, Hourglass Crease 04, RBR Crease 011

Top to Bottom: RBR Crease 011, Hourglass Crease 04, MAC 217

The Hourglass brush is super soft and feels lovely on the delicate eye area. It picks up colour easily and I haven't noticed any issues with fallout. The brush washes well and doesn't change in shape or shed hairs. As with all taklon brushes, I find it takes a little longer to dry than animal hair.

After all that waffle, what's the bottom line? Well, I like it but I don't love it and it's not a must-have in my opinion. If you're interested in trying the Hourglass brushes I would recommend trying one of their face brushes first (whilst I don't own one, I've had a selection used on me at the Liberty counter). Both their Foundation Brush 02 and Large Concealer 08 are on my wishlist.

The Hourglass Crease Brush costs £22 and I bought mine from Zuneta. Hourglass Cosmetics are also available from Liberty.

TheTenBest.co.uk & Zuneta's Vlogger Contest

I'm moonlighting on thetenbest.co.uk today talking about my pick of The Ten Best Makeup Brushes. My collection of brushes has grown considerably over the last couple of years so it was interesting to muse on which brushes I would consider to be must-haves. I was rather shocked by how heavily MAC featured in my top ten. I do have a great many brushes that I love but in terms of accessibility and function, I think that MAC brushes are hard to beat. Particularly their eyeshadow brushes.

I'd really love to know what you would pick as your top ten brushes. Would you disagree with any of my choices? Have I missed any essentials?

Now I'm about to do something I have never done on my blog before and mention that I have entered a contest. In a fit of weekend madness I entered my BECCA Professional Brush Soap demo video into Zuneta's Vlogger Contest. I'm not under any illusions about winning but you might find the video interesting if you haven't already seen it before. It's amazing how a soap in a tin has revolutionised my brush washing!

Pai Camellia & Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser

I have been using Camellia & Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser by Pai Skincare for a couple of months now. The cleanser is recommended for all skin types and comes with an exfoliating muslin cloth. I always remove cream cleansers with a damp muslin and I have never tried using this with cotton wool so my review is based only on this method of removal. It is possible to use this on cotton wool to remove eye makeup but I haven't used it this way.

I really like the dispensing mechanism and find it's very easy to use even with slippery hands. One pump dispenses enough to remove all of my makeup completely. I tend it rub it between my palms to warm slightly before massaging over my face. The cleanser has a nice creamy consistency and has a lovely rose scent. It cuts through makeup quickly and removes eye makeup too (not all mascara though). It's easy to remove all traces of makeup and cleanser using the muslin cloth.

I was reluctant to try the muslin to start with. It's made of unbleached material and felt quite stiff, I feared that it would be too abrasive (I have damaged my skin in the past using cloths that were too rough) but I need not have worried. Once the cloth is damp it is soft and I find it to be of very good quality. It has enough texture to gently exfoliate the skin and remove the cleanser without feeling scratchy.

The cleanser leaves my skin feeling thoroughly clean and hydrated. Although the details on the box say that you do not need to use a separate moisturiser at night after using this, I always use a moisturiser after cleansing. This is partly force of habit but I'm not sure the cleanser would be enough on it's own for my skin.

Ingredients (from the Pai website)
Aqua, camellia sinensis leaf oil*, ricinus communis seed oil*, prunus amygdalus dulcis oil*, cetearyl alcohol, glycerin*, butyrospermum parkii butter*, cetearyl glucoside, sodium anisate, mixed tocopherols, rosa damascena oil*, pelargonium graveolens flower oil*, sodium levulinate, lavandula angustifolia oil*, lactic acid, litsea cubeba fruit oil*, sodium lauroyl lactylate.

The Camellia & Rose cleanser is suitable for all skin types including sensitive and allergy-prone skin. As with all Pai products it is free from irritating chemicals, artificial fragrance and alcohol and the products are certified organic by the Soil Association. The Camellia & Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser (100ml) plus cloth costs £25. Pai Skincare is available from www.beingcontent.com and www.lovelula.com as well as their own website.


Disclosure: PR Sample

New BECCA Products & The Beauty Spotlight Roundup

Those of you that are signed up for the Zuneta newsletter will probably have seen this video already but I couldn't resist sharing. BECCA have released some special palettes and sets to celebrate their 10th Anniversary. I spotted the Anniversary palettes on the BECCA website the other day and was instantly smitten. The palettes contain a creme blusher, lip & cheek creme, creme highlighter and a lip gloss. The Dusty Rose palette used in the video includes one of my favourite colours, Turkish Rose as well as the popular Tuberose Lip & Cheek creme. The Vintage Jewel palette looks very pretty too. As there are no eyeshadows in these palettes, I feel pretty safe lusting after them!

Zuneta presents BECCA ¬ Dusty Rose Anniversary Palette from Zulu Beauty on Vimeo.

Anyway, enough of the drooling! This week the Beauty Spotlight Team previews Spring makeup collections, finds some must-have drugstore treasures, keeps your hair looking great and one member channels her inner Supermodel for a day!

Marcia from Beauty Info Zone continued her search for L'Oreal Infallible eyeshadows and found more to love.

Little cat paw print embossed lipsticks, now what could be more fun… Visionary Beauty shares the lipsticks from the cat themed Paul & Joe collection for Spring.

At Everyday Beauty, Zuzu's Petals dishes about beauty and the aging process.

Modesty Brown reviews the L'Oreal Super Liner in Black Amethyst. It might be designed for hazel eyes but this pretty liner is sure to appeal to purple fans no matter what their eye colour.

Guarantee yourself a good hair day! Pammy Blogs Beauty loves No 4 High Performance Hair Care's Lumiere d'hiver Reconstructing Masque.

Lisamarie from Beauty Crazed starts swatching the OPI Holland collection - wooden shoe like to see it? Then check it out!

Over at Pretty in Dayton, it's Story Time! A Fairy Tail come true - Styrch makes a surprising transition from "customer" to "model" for Sittella, by Althea Harper

Paula, from Older Girl Beauty, shows us one of her foreign beauty faves - this time it's Hissyfit Body Double Sunscreen Lotion from Australia.

Perilously Pale finally satisfied her craving for Fyrinnae and shares with us her first set of swatches of the incredible eyeshadows!

At Lipstick Musings, Shannon's falling in love with Laura Mercier all over again, all because of Shimmerplum Sequin Eye Color.

Prime Beauty fell hard for the Burberry Spring/Summer Collection, a beautiful assortment of neutral and brights perfect for the over 40 woman!

A stain that's glossy? Isn't that an oxymoron? Londonmakeupgirl sees if YSL has managed to make it a reality, when she buys a YSL Glossy Stain.