Model Makeup #2

This is the second in my series about makeup looks I have done on recent photoshoots. 

Today's model is Abi Green. It was great working on Abi because she is an agency represented model, and had a face that just comes alive with makeup (and the most perfect baby soft, blemish free skin I have ever seen!!)

Instagram: emilylaurenbeth

I was shown the outfit (it was all from Urban Outfitters) and was immediately drawn to the gorgeous neon coral colour of the top. I knew I wanted to reflect how fun and beautiful this colour was in her makeup too. For her lips I mixed two Illamasqua shades together, a bright matte orange called 'Flare' and a bright neon pink 'Immodest'. I used Bobbi Brown Foundation Sticks for her base and contoured with MAC 'Harmony' blush to accentuate her amazing cheekbones and then added a sweep of pink blusher to add some warmth and colour  as contour alone would have looked quite severe.

On her eyes I primed her lids with Urban Decay's matte primer potion, which is so good I have to say. On top I created a blown-out, soft wash of colour using the pink and copper shades from the Paranormal Palette from Illamasqua's latest collection. Using MAC's soft kohl eyeliner in 'Smoulder' I lined her waterline and finished off with lashings of MAC Opulash mascara. Her eyebrows were very fair so I added some definition with MAC 'Omega' eyeshadow. 
The finishing touches...
I painted her nails with the brightest pink I had on me, which was one by Maybelline. I wanted to keep her amazing skin quite fresh and glowing so I didn't add any powder until just before she was photographed, and only to her T-Zone.

The shoot was in preperation for an exhibition which has been on show in Urban Cardiff for a couple of weeks now. It's nice seeing some of my work on the walls, makes me remember why I love doing makeup so much. And I would love to work with Abi again!

Here's a final shot:

Lewis Hughes-Evans photography, Abi Green model.

Empty Products- the October Edition.

It's that time of the month again, empties time!! I've racked up a total of 13 empty products this month, which is pretty good going for me. They're a mixture of skincare, haircare, nails, makeup and fragrance! Read on to see what I think of each. :-)

Bioderma Crealine h2O Solution Micellaire- I really enjoy using miscellar waters, I think they're great because they remove face/base makeup effectively and are gentle enough for all skin types. Bioderma was the first I purchased and probably remains my favourite of them all. It's unscented and I notice an improvement in my skin when I remove my makeup with it before cleansing my face, rather than just using a cleanser on it's own to remove my makeup as well as clean my skin. Bioderma isn't readily available in the UK (though I heard miniatures are on sale in Harrods now) so I use an eBay seller, I think this 500ml bottle cost me between £12-£15. There is something so simple yet tactile about the bottle too, I just love it.
Will I buy this again?
I've got an Etat Pur one to use now but I'm certain I'll buy this again in the future.

YSL Top Secrets Pro Removers Eye Makeup Remover- This 30ml bottle came free with a selection of YSL products in a makeup bag that I was given last Christmas after spending so much on the counter! I absolutely loved this, it removed eye makeup instantly and gently, without irritating my sensitive eyes.
Will I buy this again?
I've got a full sized eye makeup remover still unopened, but I would buy this full sized.

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish- Another month, another empty Cleanse & Polish! This is my go-to fail safe cleanser of the moment, it cleanses really well and gently removes any excess makeup. I think it's price is so reasonable for the quality, it contains gorgeous natural ingredients such as chamomile, cocoa butter and eucalyptus oil.
Will I buy this again?
Already have.

Vichy Aqualia Thermal Light moisturiser- This claims to offer 48 hour hydration and is targeted towards those with sensitive skin. The consistency of this is quite fluid and it takes quite a long time to absorb. For once, a Vichy product left me quite opinionless.
Will I buy this again?
No.

L'Occitane Ultra Rich Body Cream- This was a sample given to me after my boyfriend spent £22 on a body wash for my birthday. I absolutely adored this, while I only used it once I noticed how quickly it absorbed for such a rich cream that contains 25% Shea Butter. It softened my legs and elbows, and the nourished effects could still be felt in these areas days later, after further showering.

Will I buy this?

I would love to have this full size, it'd be a perfect winter moisturiser.

Kiehls 'Creme De Corps' All Over Body moisturiser- This was a favourite of mine and was featured in my May favourites. Luxurious, soft, and doesn't take too long to absorb, it's ideal if you're looking for an unscented intensive body moisturiser. This is technically Ben's, so he used it up and I thought I'd include it in the post, I only used it sporadically but I always enjoyed it when I did.
Will I buy this again?
I'm sure Ben will ;-)

Lee Stafford Hot Shots 4 Blondes- I used to use these religiously when I had white bleached hair when I was younger. This time around, they don't seem to have done much though girls at work keep commenting that I seem to be blonder and blonder each week so perhaps it has been working more than I know noticed. It's a purple treatment that you lather into shampooed hair, before conditioning. You're meant to leave it on for 2 minutes but I always try and do 5, it eliminates brassy, yellow tones to colour treated hair to create a more pure blonde.
Will I buy this again?
This was a repurchase but this time I'm undecided. I think I will try another purple treatment first.

Batiste Dry Shampoo in 'Cherry'- This will probably appear every month. You can read what I think here.
Will I buy this again?
Already have.

17 Miracle Matte pressed powder in 'Ivory Porcelain'- While this was nice n' pale, it was too powdery and heavy on the skin no matter how little I used. The entire product lasted me about two months, but it did shatter when it was near empty and I lost a lot of product when I subsequently opened it!
Will I buy this again?
No.

Nails Inc 'Harley Street' ridge filler- Though this isn't technically empty, it has died a death. The brush no longer reaches the product unless tipped and the product is a gloopy mess. This has served me well as a base coat and I've used it so much over the last year. It smoothes the base of the nail well and doesn't take very long to dry.
Will I buy this again?
I've got another basecoat to use up at the moment, but it doesn't even compare to this one. I will buy this again when I've got a spare tenner.

Hugo Boss 'Orange' EDT-  I've had this for a loong time and for a while it was my favourite but then I felt that it didn't last very long on my skin and stopped wearing it as often. I think my tastes have changed (working next to the perfume department hasn't helped!) so I won't buy this again even though it is a gorgeous scent. I remember an old friend of mine telling me 'if I was a girl, I'd want to smell like that' when I hugged him, and I was wearing this at the time. That sounds quite funny written down, but it was a nice compliment all the same.
Will I buy this again?
No.

Dolce and Gabbana 'Pour Femme' EDP- This was a 2ml sample size of the new fragrance. I've never really liked D&G perfumes and this one was no exception; it's overly sweet, heavy and unoriginal.
Will I buy this?
No.

Marc Jacobs 'Daisy' EDT- Another sample. This is a pretty, feminine and playful scent that I imagine would appeal to a large age range. It's fresh and floral, a lovely day scent or for the summer.
Will I buy this?
No- I don't love the scent enough, and I don't like the bottle!

Do you use any of these products, if so what do you think of them? Please link me to your empties posts too, they're my favourite to read!

P.S. I'm now a ginge

All change! Having been really well behaved and spent the last year growing all my hair dye out and getting it back into a nice, natural condition I go and spend 5 hours in the hairdressers chair last week to go ginge. Copper blonde, technically. Needed a change, plus starting a new job on Monday! I'll still be working on a makeup counter, just swapping which company I work for!

VO5 Hot Oil Review #1

VO5 Hot Oil Nourish Me Truly, about £4 for 4x15ml

My friend at University introduced me to V05 Hot Oil when I was complaining about my bleached hair (it was in AWFUL condition) snapping, being uncontrollable and dry. She used Hot Oil herself and swore by it. So I bought some and along with some other hair treatments, my hair was pretty much transformed as best it could be in a matter of weeks. I had bleached, white hair for a couple of years and used V05 Hot Oils weekly until I (stupidly) dyed my hair jet black in 2009 (but that's a story for another time...)

Bleached;

This past year I have focussed on recuperating my hair after years and years of complete abuse. I get it cut regularly, and am now proud to say not a touch of dye has touched my scalp in 10 months (you may have seen in my pictures a slight unintentional dip dye going on, it's because I'm simply growing the black out and letting my natural hair come through). I now use heat protection products, and try to use my GHDs a lot less, and I'm careful to let my hair do it's own thing a couple of times a week, I'll either hide it up in a bun or wear it wavy so that I can give it a 'rest'.

Until lately my hair was in quite good condition, but I noticed it was becoming quite dry again. I remembered, VO5 HOT OILS! The next time I was in Boots I picked some up.

The packet comes with 4x15ml treatments. I use one weekly. I place the tube under hot running water in the shower until it heats up and apply to wet hair before shampooing. Massage it into the hair and leave it on for one minute only, any longer can lead to irritation because it is an intense treatment. I wash it out as normal and commence my usual shampooing and conditioning routine.

Like I have mentioned, this benefited my bleached hair so much and was affordable on a limited student budget. I have been using the Hot Oils again for 2 weeks (2 treatments) and this is what I think so far;

• The first time I used them, the hair felt soft and healthy again after washing. It made my hair easier to handle after washing, and smoother when styling (I used my usual heat protection products). I noticed that it made my hair so silky and soft that it looked quite flat/sleek. However, by the next day my hair had gone greasy. My hair felt quite heavy and like I had used too much product in it.
• The second time I decided to apply the hot oil just to my ends, as this is where the dryness was occurring and I was hoping to avoid greasiness the next day. Bearing in mind I had been to get my hair cut inbetween treatments so the ends weren't as bad as they were, but after I washed my hair (cue soppy moment) my boyfriend was stroking my head and commented on how soft it was. He normally comments that my hair smells nice, or that it feels good after a cut but I think this comment shows that it works (I hadn't told him I'd used Hot Oil, cos let's face it, what kinda man cares?!) The next day it felt soft, and nourished, but not greasy or flat like the time before, result :-)

If you have seriously damaged hair, then I cannot praise this product enough. It works wonders on dry hair, but be prepared that it might be so nourishing that your hair might feel greasy the next day. Plus if you're a busy gal, this only adds on a couple of minutes to shower time and you're done. If you think of it as a pound a week spent on nourishing and restoring your hair, then I think it is a price worth paying. If your hair is healthy. naturally quite oily, then you do not need to use this product. I believe it benefited me mostly when I had bleached hair, but now I'm happy to continue using Hot Oil because it is without a doubt doing my hair good.

If you're interested in hair related reviews, then I'll be reviewing some Lee Stafford products in a couple of weeks, once I've had the chance to use them!

Have you ever used VO5 Hot Oils, did they work for you?

Fell in Love with A Girl

I think I'm in love with Lana Del Rey

E

 Embracing the sixties makeup, flower power, hippy look which is a nice refreshing change to the 50's pin up/ kitsch look rolling around (bored) and the 70's festival chic that has flooded the high street last spring/summer (though I did enjoy the crochet, tan leather and tassles!)

As Vogue online and this months Company magazine have both cited, sixties is a strong makeup trend this autumn and has already been spotted on the catwalks at NYFW with DKNY and is expected to be seen in the Burberry shows at London FW. However the catwalk interpretation is a lot more subtle than the trends shown in Company who insist full on Twiggy eyeliner and pencilled in lashes is the way to go....

Twiggy 1960's model and icon

 Back to beautiful Lana...

Reminiscent of Andy Warhol's style of pop colours and repitition of images (think Marilyn Monroe..)

She is the 2011 answer to Brigitte Bardot;

All images courtesy Google

 Check out Lana's new single Video Games due for release in October.

What way are you going to interpret the sixties look this autumn/winter?