An Ensemble That Could Never Go Wrong!!!

I went to WholeFoods market today to start my food shopping for Valentine's party this weekend.  Then a girl came to me n' said that she has to comment on my outfit ..... Very sharp!! 

I smiled back n' said Thank you!!

......... then I was thinking....... This outfit would compliment almost everyone in my opinion. Oh, yes, I know you are going to say because I have "LEGS" so I can wear shorts...blah blah...blah......

The truth is...

Pick up a cropped, or Bermuda, or just a slim legged trousers...or whichever would elongate your whole proportion even if you don't have "legs" but definitely choose a pair of pants which makes you feel confident or even a bit cocky.  haha......

The key is....


The right attitude....  (just like my friend, Catherine said!!) 
Maybe wear your clothes like you are acting-feeling the clothes..... I don't know... .. use some imagination here!! ^O^

1. Top:

Lilla P. brown turtleneck

Theory velvet blazer (bought at vintage shop for $18) Hooray!!! 

 2. Bottom: 

liquid high waist shorts

3. Accessory:

Hobo international distressed suede brown messenger bag

Steve for steve madden studs belt

knitting scarf

Hue charcoal gray hosiery 

4. Shoes: Givenchy wedge booties 

Hope you have some fun here!!! 

Foundation Brushes: Ruby & Millie vs. MAC

As promised, here’s a comparison of the two brushes that I recently bought, the Ruby & Millie Foundation Brush and the MAC 190 Foundation Brush. I’m going to list the pro’s and con’s for each and then tell you which one I prefer.

Ruby & Millie Foundation brush (£11.00):


PRO'S

Soft bristles/non scratchy
Tapered end for great blending
Perfect firmness for foundation application
Gives smooth, seamless coverage
Skin looks airbrushed
Works well with light and heavier foundations
Affordable
Easily accessible in Boots stores
Re-sealable pouch to keep brush in if required
Doesn’t shed fibres
Washes well and can be easily reshaped
Doesn’t soak up too much product (possibly because of synthetic bristles)

CONS

I couldn’t think of any!

MAC 190 Foundation Brush (£25.00):

PRO'S

Washes well
Doesn’t shed any fibres
Works well with concealer for under eyes/uneven skintone
Non scratchy brush fibres

CONS

Expensive
Soaks up a lot of product
Only available online for people who don’t have access to a MAC counter
Brush itself is slightly too firm and not flexible enough
Gives a slightly ‘heavy’ look when using liquid foundation
Left a couple of streaks on jawline (spent same amount of time blending as with R & M brush)

So as you can probably tell from that comparison, it’s pretty obvious which brush I prefer and I’m delighted to say that it’s the cheaper one by Ruby & Millie. This definitely serves as proof that the most expensive brushes AREN’T always the best ones. I have been so impressed by the R & M foundation brush and what makes it almost better is that I stumbled upon it randomly (I love it when that happens). I think that makes it better because I had no expectations of the product and hadn’t read any reviews so the fact that it turned out to be a fabulous tool was just a bonus really.

After shelling out £25.00 for the MAC Brush, to find out that it wasn’t that good was a big disappointment. But, you live, you learn and next time I’m not going to assume something is good just because it’s MAC. To be honest, I really should have done my research beforehand as Makeup Alley has a lot of negative reviews of this product. I have learnt my lesson! Congratulations to Ruby & Millie though for creating a brush that is both affordable and a pleasure to use.

DuWop Heavy Metal 18 Carat Eyeshadow Trio

I don’t know about you guys but I’m a HUGE fan of metallic eye shadows, I’m like a magpie when it comes to anything shimmery or sheeny on the eyes. I actually bought this on a whim (SO unlike me.ha ha) when www.lookfantastic.com were having a sale recently. I picked up this DuWop eye shadow compact (£16.00 sale price for 17.6g compact) and also some Xen Tan Intense Mousse (love that stuff!).

Firstly I picked it because I had never tried anything from the brand before and I know it can be hard to get hold of. I also picked it because I thought it looked amazing (they described the pans as looking like crushed velvet…sounds so luxurious!) and I don’t have any rose gold coloured eye shadows and I thought that one looked particularly interesting.

The compact contains 3 triangular pans of eye shadow – a rich shimmering copper/rose gold, a warm shimmering bronze, and a gorgeous shimmering taupe. I was a bit dubious when I saw the eye shadow pans at first because from the surface of them, you can see metallic particles and they looked a little bit chunky. However, on application to the skin these metallic particles actually blend seamlessly to create a completely buttery smooth, gorgeous finish with no fall out. They are also really long lasting too.

I would say the nearest product I could compare these to are MAC pigments that have been pressed. Although I think these eye shadows, applied over a good base, adhere to the skin a lot better than MAC pigments do. The pigmentation is out of this world and SO intense (the swatches really don’t do them justice at all, they need to be seen to be believed!). They are all really blend-able and you only need a very small amount to create an amazing super metallic finish on the lid. You can apply them slightly more sheer when dry or apply them with a damp brush to get a really intense finish for a night time look. The eye shadows are paraben free, fragrance free, sulfate-free, petro-chemical-free, free of phthalates and contain no GMO's, no PPG's, no MEA's, DEA's, TEA's. They are also formaldehyde donor-free, and triclosan-free (It actually makes you wonder what the hell the other brands are putting in their makeup???).
The packaging is ok, it’s simple and nothing flashy but it does it job and feels sturdy. Although I can’t help thinking that it could have been a bit more imaginative to let everyone know how amazing the product inside is! When it comes down to it, the packaging doesn’t matter when a product is this good, but it just adds to whole experience of buying makeup. The fact that the whole idea of makeup is all about aesthetics, you would think that brands would put a bit more imagination/creativity into their packaging. I think some brands see packaging as purely functional and others see it as an extension of the product itself, creating something fun or just damn stylish.
Saying that, overall I give this product 5 out of 5 because the reason they had less packaging COULD have been to tie in with their environmentally friendly approach and is that was the idea behind it, well, then that’s commendable. For anyone who likes metallics though, this is definitely a must have compact! The fact that I adored this eye shadow trio has made me A LOT more curious about the DuWop brand and what else they have to offer.

Has anyone got any recommendations?