Code red

Last night I swooped by Topshop for one thing, and came out with three. Thankfully they were all make-up, otherwise I would have seriously destroyed my July clothing embargo.

Regular readers will remember my quest for a red lipstick, and I thought, before diving headfirst into an expensive Mac purchase, I'd try something more thrifty and see if I wear it often enough to warrant the big investment.
So I picked up Topshop Lip Stick in Flame.

Here's the rather embarassing picture of me wearing it...

(pic by David Cotter)
You see, whenever I've tried to take lippy pictures myself in the past they are blurry, or washed out, or a totally different colour to real life, so I asked my photographer colleague to lend a hand. I asked him to just crop the lips but he wouldn't play ball.
No, I haven't had a stroke, I just appear to have a rather droopy eye... who knew! Anyway, the stick is very pigmented, to the point that it's actually quite nervewracking to apply without a brush. It's quite versatile; nice and shiny, matte if you blot. I did somewhere in between here.
It lasted around two hours before I needed to reapply, and surprisingly for a pencil it isn't drying - it's more of a regular lipstick in pencil form. Altogether, this product is really impressive for £7.
The only problem is, I just realised I now also need a big fat pencil sharpener.

PS I didn't take a 'swatch' hand photo, because I'm never sure how useful it is to know what a lipstick looks like on your hand, unless you are comparing a few? Please do let me know though if you find these helpful though!

UPDATE: This lasted about 5 hours, including a strenuous aerobics class! It's amazing! 

Sparkle motion

Thursday 20 June was an exciting day for the UK high street - H&M Fashion for Aids line and Kate Moss's biggest collection yet both hit the shelves, to much elbowing and catfighting on Oxford Street, I can tell you.

Managed to picked up a couple of beauties on a whistlestop tour after work - more about them over the weekend - but one particular find has made this beautiful day even more sunny.

It must have been the return of summer that made me want to take something about my outfit to the next level today... but after over-experimenting with neon clothing in my uni days, I decided to limit my crazy brights to the fingers... so embarked on a glittery journey.

Now, let me preface this by saying I thought my glitter nail days were over long ago (except perhaps at Christmas), until the little gem above caught my eye in ToShoOxo lat night - Barry M nail polish in number 228 - oh the possibilities to add a subtle shimmer to any shade!

With nails already slicked in Nails Inc Satin (my personal fave of the turquoise family), I added a quick layer of this sparkly beauty and the little fellas were transformed from a basic look to something with another dimension. The silver sparkle makes the polish seem shimmery metallic, rather than like something from Claire's Accessories, and instantly more expensive!

It's the closest to Minx I've had at home.

Another bonus of this perfect polish is it sweeps on smooth, rather than scratchy or raised like some glittery polishes, which means less chance of chipping... everyone's a winner!

(Sadly this effect didn't quite translate in the images above - first shot is a before, second is the after - obv.)