Clarins Colours of Brazil Summer Collection

Clarins have come out with another beauty of a collection for this summer - Colours of Brazil, which consists of a gorgeous bronzer, eyeshadow quartet with eyeliner, 6 lip balm crayons, and a black waterproof mascara. All of the pieces are limited edition other than the mascara which is part of the permanent line.

As the name of the collection would suggest, they have drawn inspiration from the colours of Brazil - the sandy beaches, the sea and reflections of the sky, which in terms of make up equals beautiful bronzey summer gorgeousness.

The eyeshadow quartet comes in a velvet pouch and has a gorgeous reflective casing with a Brazilian inspired pattern on which comes into full effect when you are holding it in certain lights.

The same pattern has been embossed onto the eyeshadows. It almost seemed a shame to start using them, they look so good! 

The eyeshadows are a nice range of neutrals; a satin finish golden taupe, matte mushroom, matte chocolate brown, and a pop of colour with a satin finish coral. There is also a cobalt blue eyeliner, and two applicators; one double ended with a fab eyeliner brush on one end, and the other a standard sponge applicator. 

They have also included ideas for two ways to wear the colours. They have numbered the eyeshadows so that is the order in which I have swatched them below. 

The shadows are designed to be used either wet or dry, and are really creamy and easy to apply. 

I also have three of the Lip Balm Crayons, which I am just loving! They feel so so hydrating on the lips thanks to the Shea Butter in them, comfortable to wear and the perfect amount of colour in one quick slick of the crayon. They have the feeling of lip balm, but the colour intensity of a sheer lipstick.

I tried the eyeshadow using one of the inspirations from Clarins, and have tried to photograph it from different angles, with each of the different Lip Balm Crayons, starting with 02 Creamy Pink.

04 Sweet Cherry

06 Soft Coffee

I think the colours of the eyeshadow palette work really nicely together, the coral shade blends seamlessly into the bronzey tones, giving a nice punch of colour to an otherwise neutral look, but without being too much that it's whacky. Same with the blue eyeliner - it is very wearable.

I am definitely going to check out the other Lip Balm Crayons as I love the formula so much! There's one in the range called My Pink which works with your own pH to create your own unique shade - can't wait to give that a go!

What do you think of this collection? Big thumbs up from me!

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette

Shhhh... can you hear that? It's the sound of the halo of light that the Naked 3 palette is emitting... for the launch of Urban Decay's Naked 3 Palette is something that a lot of people (me included) are very excited about.

They kicked off the Naked range with the origal Naked palette (check out my review here) - a velvet cased twelvesome of gorgeous warm toned neutral bronzey shades. Soon followed Naked 2 - a metal cased palette along the same kind of lines, but cool toned neutrals. Since then there have been an array of others added into the Naked line... Naked Basics (check out my review here), Naked Flushed (review here) and a variety of Naked skin products such as foundations.

The latest addition to the family is Naked 3 - jam packed with warm toned pink to brown hues, with a rippled metallic rose gold case. One of the founders of Urban Decay saw a beautiful sunset one night, which led her onto the decision to create a palette of these colours (God bless that sunset).

Inside the mirrored case you will find 12 shadows ranging in finishes, and a double ended synthetic eyeshadow brush. One end is for packing on colour or using for liner, and the other is great for blending or for using on the lid for a soft wash of colour into the crease. When you purchase Naked3 you also get a Primer Potion sampler which has about a weeks worth of original, Sin, Eden and the new anti-ageing formulas.

This is the first time they have released 12 shades entirely for this palette - there are no repeats from other palettes - all fresh and new and gorgeous.

The story beings at Strange - a very pale pink in a satin-matte finish - this colour would be good for a delicate daytime look, to use as a base to creating others, or to add to the inner corners of your eyes. Dust is a pale metallic pink shimmer with iridescent micro-glitter. Burnout is a beautiful pink with a hint of frost, and Limit is a stunning matte muted rose shade.

Buzz is a beautiful cranberry/rosey colour with iridescent microglitter, Trick another metallic pinky copper shade, with a hint of a sparkle. Nooner is a gorgeous purpley matte brown, and Liar a metallic milk chocolate brown shimmer.

Then we reach the darker shades. Great for adding in a bit of definition, or for a full on smokey-eye.  Factory is a pinky-brown satin shade, Mugshot a pinky-taupe shimmer, Darkside a deep purpley brown satin, and Blackheart a gorgeous matt black with pink micro-sparkle.

I quickly threw together four looks using the palette.

As the inspiration behind the palette was a sunset, that's where I was trying to go with this. I used Burnout all over the lid, then added Liar in the crease, then blended it out with Trick. I then added some Buzz to the middle of my lid. I used Urban Decay's Perversion liner on a smudger brush along the lashline.

For this look I added Blackheart all over my lid and underneath my lower lash line, then blended the edges using Nooner. I used MAC Prunella on my waterline.

I used Dust all over my eyelid then added Darkside into the crease of my eye and under my lower lash line. I added L'Oreal Superliner to my upper lid, and Urban Decay Perversion to my waterline.

I used Liar all over my lid, then Mugshot in the outer corner. I used Factory under my lower lash line, and added Urban Decay Perversion to my tightline and waterline.

The big question is.... when!? When does this go on sale? Well I've been told "mid December" and will retail for £37.... I've spotted them on lookfantastic.com for pre-order for delivery by 21st December.

*UPDATE!* The official launch date in the UK is 16th December, but if you go to House of Fraser on Oxford Street from 12th-19th December you can preview and purchase there, plus have a makeover by an Urban Decay makeup artist.

Bobbi Brown Rich Chocolate Collection

I am a bit of a browny, nudey, smokealicious fan - so when I saw the new Bobbi Brown Rich Chocolate collection, I may have swooned just a little. Just how gorgeous!?

The initial item that stole my heart was the Rich Chocolate eye shadow palette (£39.50) - 7 varying chocolately brown shades housed in a slim brown mirrored palette, with a superb double ended eyeshadow and eyeliner brush included.

There are five matt shades, one Sparkle Eyeshadow and one Shimmer Wash. Bone is very light but great for creating a base or to add a little lighter tone to the inner corner of the eye. Stone, Frappe and Cocoa are gorgeous chocolate shades, with Rich Cocoa being perfect for the outer corner or a full on smokey eye. Caramel Sparkle adds definition to the eye, and Champagne Truffle is a truly beautiful gold. 

The Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Bittersweet (£20) is so deliciously creamy and easy to blend. It can be used to line the eyes then smudged out, all over for a smokey eye, or a base for other eyeshadows.

The lipsticks in the collection are Baby Pink and Berry (£19 each) - both gorgeous classic shades and perfect for this season. They compliment the brown eyeshadows perfectly and have a slightly orangey taste to them that takes me back to my childhood. I love the way that the lipsticks are shaped - making them super-easy to apply to your lips. 

The blush's mirror the colours of the lipsticks. Pink Coral (£19) is a new shade which I am in love with! It's such a flattering, universal shade. Berry (£19) is limited edition and really highly pigmented. Paler faces will only need a light dusting of this, and it will look beautiful on darker skin tones.

I also have the Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner (£17.50) from the collection in Dark Chocolate Ink, which is a very dark brown and a nice alternative to black gel liner. It's so dark it's almost black, but takes some harshness away for a softer look. The Extreme Party Mascara (£19) in Black Chocolate, again is really dark but softer than wearing black - and a really pretty shade on the eyes.

I have created a couple of looks to show how soft or bold these new products can be, depending on the occasion or what floats your personal boat!

For the look I used Champagne Truffle Shimmer all over my lid taking it up to the crease. I added a little Bone to the inner third of my eye, then used Cocoa on a blending brush in the crease. To add a bit more dimension I added Caramel Sparkle to the middle of my eye. I used the Dark Chocolate Ink Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner, and Black Chocolate Extreme Party Mascara to finish off the eyes. To complete the look I used Pink Coral blush on my cheeks and Bobbi Brown Baby Pink lipstick.

For this look I applied the Cream Shadow Stick in Bittersweet all over my lid, up to my crease, then blended the edges with a fluffy brush, then added some Frappe shadow at the edges to blend the colour out even more. I patted on some Caramel Sparkle to the lid, then using Rich Chocolate along the lash line with an eyeshadow brush to softly line the eyes. I also used the Cream Shadow Stick under my eyes and blended out, then finished with the Extreme Party Mascara. To complete the look I used a tiny bit of Berry blush (see what I mean about how pigmented it it!?) on my cheeks, and Berry lipstick on my lips.

I think this collection is absolutely gorgeous for Autumn and will definitely be getting a lot of use from me. What do you think of the Rich Chocolate collection?

Available at Bobbi Brown counters nationwide, and online.... and LIMITED EDITION!

NARS At First Sight Palette

At First Sight is a new, limited edition palette from NARS, housing two of their best selling complexion products - Deep Throat Blush, and Laguna Bronzer, and a quad of bestselling eyeshadows - All About Eve, Bellissima, Nouveau Monde and Cordura, all contained in a sleek, mirrored palette.

Deep Throat and Laguna are favourites of mine, and them being paired up for this palette ticks major boxes for me. Deepthroat is a coral with golden shimmer, and Laguna a not-too-bronzey bronzer with subtle golden shimmer in it.

The eyeshadows are all wearable shades - three neutrals - All About Eve; a flesh toned shade with a hint of shimmer, Bellissima; a perfect matt mushroomey taupe, and Cordura; a deep brown with flecks of golden glitter. Then, in case you fancy to take it up a notch and break through the neutral barrier, Nouveau Monde is in there too - a satin lilac colour, which is really pretty, and nice to use as an inner corner highlighter.

I've really enjoyed playing with this palette and creating different looks, it really is very versatile - you can get lots of different effects from the one palette and as there is a blusher and bronzer inside too, I have found my make up bag over the past two weeks has really slimmed down! This is ideal for travelling with for that very reason.

Here is one of the looks I created with the palette:

I started by adding All About Eve to the inner 1/3 of my eyelid with a flat eyeshadow brush, then using a fluffy brush, added Bellissima onto the rest of my lid and into my socket. I then took a pencil brush and added Cordura into the crease of my eyelid, blending it across and downwards to meet my eyelashes. I used the end of my flat brush to add Cordura under my eye too.

I used a black eyeliner pencil to line my waterline, and used it very close to my eyelashes on my upper lids. I finished by adding some Nouveau Monde into the inner corners of my eye with a small brush, and then added mascara to my lashes.

For this look I applied Bellissima to the crease of my eye using a fluffy brush, then added All About Eve to my eyelid and blended the two together. I lined the my waterline with a black pencil, and used black gel liner on my upper lid, then finished with mascara.

You'll have to excuse my eyebrows in this photo - I was testing out a new brow product and didn't realise quite how dark they were until I saw this photo!!

For this look I used Nouveau World all over my lid, and under my lower lash line. I added Bellissima into the crease using a fluffy brush, and added eyeliner to my upper lid and waterline, then finished with mascara.

For reference, I am wearing Deep Throat as a blusher in each of these looks, with a little Laguna bronzer.

There are three totally different looks I have created, but the possibilities go on and on. I am definitely going to keep experimenting! The quality of NARS products has never let me down, and I continue to be impressed with At First Sight.

NARS At First Sight costs £45 and is available from HQ Hair

Clarins Splendours Palette

Clarins Splendours Palette is part of their limited edition collection for this summer - a collection inspired by South America in terms of colours and print.

The Splendours Palette looks fairly plain in standard maroon and gold colours - but once it catches the light, an amazing design appears within the lid, it is just gorgeous!

Inside are four neutral, complimentary eyeshadow colours all embossed with the Splendours print - gold, champagne, maroon/bronze and pinky gold. There is also a waxy, deep plum eyeliner which I adore! It goes so nicely with all of the colours and is perfect to wear smudgy or as strong liner. 

The eyeshadows are really highly pigmented and creamy - they glide onto the eye with ease and leave so much colour on the lid with just one swipe. The colours last all day too - my eyes tend to look the same by evening as they did in the morning!

Here are a couple of looks I did using the palette. 

I am loving using it - it is delicate, fresh, feminine and somehow, feels 'sunny' to me! The shimmer in the shadows isn't too overpowering - it leaves a nice satin finish to the eyes, and that liner is absolutely amazing!

Clarins Splendour Palette is out now priced at £31 from www.clarins.co.uk