The Next Bobbi Brown Ambassador: Kate Upton

“I was drawn to Kate because – not only is she incredibly beautiful – she is healthy, comfortable in her own skin, has such positive energy, and is a woman who creates her own rules. She loves life and that is Pretty Powerful.” - Bobbi Brown 

In case you didn't already know, I am a big fan of Bobbi Brown products. My first eyeshadow palette was from Bobbi Brown. I was pretty stoked when I found out that Kate Upton is set to be the next ambassador, second to Katie Holmes.

Known for gracing the covers of Sports Illustrated and clad in bikinis, Kate has an enviable body. My boyfriend and I were appalled when we heard the news sometime back that she was rejected by Victoria Secret to be an angel because apparently she's "too fat". It disgusts me that big brands like that still try to portray that "only skinny is beautiful". Now, I am happy for Kate for scoring this role. I think Bobbi Brown made a smart move. Whilst Katie Holmes remains a suitable ambassador, she is more appealing to slightly older women and speaks for the sophisticated side of the brand. Kate Upton, on the other hand, targets a younger audience and represents the sexy side of the brand. That's my opinion anyway.

Kate Upton and Bobbi Brown campaign images are expected to hit stores and counters in July 2014.


What do you think of this partnership? Are you a fan of Kate Upton?

First Impression: Bobbi Brown Sea Pearls Collection

Bobbi Brown recently released a new collection called Sea Pearls. I thought I'd share with you my first impression of two products from the collection: Shimmer Nail Polish in Pink Pearl and Shimmer Brick Eye Palette.

If you're a fan of Bobbi Brown, chances are you know about her highly acclaimed Shimmer Bricks for the cheeks. So I was pretty eager to see if the Eye version would live up to the name. The packaging is gorgeous as usual. Upon opening the palette, I was greeted with a lot of shimmery powder and glitter everywhere. A chunk had chipped off one of the eyeshadow tiles during its journey in the mail. I carefully swept it all off the plastic and the mirror with a brush. The instructions on the box said to be careful with this delicate product, it was handmade in Italy.

 I swatched the colours on my arm and found the eyeshadow to be smooth and relatively pigmented, considering they are pale and shimmery colours.

I immediately spotted some colours that I liked. There were some that I felt that I would not use either because I don't know how to use it or because I think it would not look flattering on me. I will have to experiment with this palette for a while before I'm confident enough to write some form of tutorial on it. Please leave me a comment down below if you're interested to see one.

As for the nail polish, this is the first time I've tried a Bobbi Brown one. It is really easy to apply. I am usually a messy applicator and I go back in with a cotton bud dipped in remover to clean up afterwards. With this nail polish, I found that the brush was easy to control. I swept it on my nails with very little mess left to clean up.

I wore it for three days without any top coat and it didn't chip. And it takes a fair amount of remover and working to get every last bit of the polish off. From there, I deduced that it has good staying power. But I could be wrong.

Without flash

The nail polish has a shimmery and pearlescent finish. To me this shade of pink looks elegant and sophisticated; I would use it for special occasions, like to a wedding or a formal dinner/event. I personally would not wear this as an everyday colour.

With flash

Bobbi Brown products are of high quality and these products did not fail to meet that standard. At this point, I cannot say that they are must-haves in your makeup collection. I can, however, say that they would be luxurious additions.  The Shimmer Brick Eye Palette retails for $99; the Shimmer Nail Polish in Pink Pearl for $26.

Triple S: Bobbi Brown Creamy Matte Lip Color Review + Swatches

I've been excited about these matte lipsticks since an MUA from Bobbi Brown told me about them. That was back in July. It was a long wait but it was well worth it! I received these lipsticks last month when they were released and have been loving them!

Bobbi Brown Creamy Matte Lip Color  
Claims: Highly pigmented formula that provides intense moisturisation on the lips due to soft waxes and emollients. It is designed to slightly soften with the warmth of the lips and forms a film to provide up to eight hours wear.
RRP: AUD$44

Packaging: 5 out of 5

Review: I'm really sorry ladies but I will be doing a lot of raving in this review! I will do my best to be concise. First off, these lipsticks are very creamy. It glides on with very little resistance but at the same time, it lays down a lot of product. It is highly pigmented and so usually I swipe it across my lips only once. It truly is long lasting. I went out to dinner with my friends wearing this lipstick in True Pink. Even though some came off as I ate, when I checked my lips after the meal, most of it was still intact. It stayed on all night. With my other lipsticks, most of it comes off when I eat, leaving only a rim of colour around my mouth afterwards. 

The packaging is simply luxurious. Although it may not seem obvious in these photos but these lipsticks come in very high quality plastic tubes. The packaging is what I would like to describe as an "all-rounder". It looks simple enough to be an everyday item. At the same time it can be glamorous or elegant. You can pull this lipstick out from any kind of bag in any type of event! The only downside that I can think of is that it feels heavier than other (drugstore/pharmacy) lipsticks. However, once you have it in your bag, you will not notice the weight at all. That is if you're not carrying around 20 of those... Anyway, I can't wait to get more of these gems; I am already eyeing the colour in Pink Lily!

Now on with the swatches! 

Natural light

In the shade

 Below we have Calypso on my lips. I can only describe it as a very fun orangey-pink. I think this would look even more amazing with a bit of gold lipgloss/eyeshadow dabbed onto the centre of the lips.

 Here we have True Pink on my lips. I'd like to think that it's a very neutral pink. It's not too dark or too light. It may have a teeny tiny bit of mauve in it. 

This is the only (relatively) close-up shot of me with True Pink on my lips at the dinner with my friends. Can you tell?

 What's your favourite matte lipstick? Have you tried Bobbi Brown's? 

Please remember that although these lipsticks were sent to me, these opinions are 100% my own! It does not matter whether I receive a product from a company or bought it myself, if I love the product I will rave about it. If I don't, I usually don't bother writing a review on it unless I deem it necessary. This is to clear up any confusion.

Wicked Wednesday: Comparison of Makeup Books

beautifulmakeupsearch.com

Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual by Bobbi Brown

This is the first makeup book I've read and the only one I own. In terms of teaching you makeup application, this book covers the very basic. It is only good for complete novices but with internet (Blogs and Youtube), it is no longer necessary to learn how to apply makeup through this book. Instead, strangely, I learned a lot about skincar. Bobbi explains sunscreen and moisturisers in a lot of detail. She also talks about common important skincare ingredients to keep an eye out for. This book contains tips about becoming a makeup artist, which I think is what makes this manual unique. It gives you an idea of the directions you can take and things that you should do in order to become a good makeup artist. Overall, I think that you don’t have to buy this makeup book but I still think you should borrow a copy to read it at least once. You will more than likely learn at least one thing that you did not know about previously. However, I do think that this makeup book would make a very good gift for a young girl who has just started to show interest in makeup. 

 zoefoster.com.au 

Amazing Face by Zoe Foster

I borrowed a copy of this book from the library to read and am considering getting a copy for myself to keep. This isn't a makeup book. It's a book about beauty that does cover makeup. Zoe's writing style is very fun and relaxed and it's amusing to read. She shares a lot of beauty knowledge that are not commonly known or found on the internet. For example, did you know that after spraying perfume onto your skin you're not supposed to rub it? Many beauty gurus like Michelle Phan make this mistake! You're ruining the true scent (if you read it you'll find a more elaborate and satisfying explanation than mine). Zoe also gives product recommendations, which is very convenient for people like me who don’t know where to start looking or what to try. Lastly, this book is suitable for all ages. Zoe gives advice according to age group and needs, which I think is absolutely wonderful! I think Amazing Face is worth a read.

 

yourbeautyspot.ninemsn.com.au

Makeup The Ultimate Guide by Rae Morris

This truly is the ultimate makeup guide! Our amazing Aussie makeup artist Rae Morris teaches us about colours and textures of makeup products. She explains eyebrows quite thoroughly and even demonstrates different effects with different types false eyelashes. The photos are absolutely beautiful to look at. Steps on how to achieve the looks are concise and easy to follow. I love how Rae shows us how simple makeup can actually be. In the book, she did a lot of looks that do not require more than two eyeshadow colours. This book is filled with a plethora of makeup looks. So if you're out of ideas on what to wear on your face, consult MakeupThe Ultimate Guide; you won't regret it! 

angusrobertson.com.au

Express Makeup by Rae Morris
If you loved Makeup The Ultimate Guide, you will go nuts for this makeup book too. The format is similar to The Guide except the looks are different. This means more stunning models to ogle, more tips and tricks to master and more looks to try out! This book is practically a library of gorgeous makeup looks. They are all very easy to achieve and in short periods of time. In my opinion, this book is suitable for all ages, ethnicity and makeup tastes/styles. 

Do you have any favourite makeup books? What other makeup books would you like me to read and review?

Pink on the Lips... and Cheeks!

It's the last day of September and tomorrow marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I've decided to set myself a challenge to wear pink on my lips every day, whenever I'm out and about, for the month of October. Why? To raise awareness and to keep reminding people of this debilitating disease is still very much prevalent in our society.

Source: makeupfrwomen.blogspot.com

I don't want to bombard you with all the facts and figures because I necessarily agree with the ones that are commonly preached to us. This may come across as a surprise to you but (at this point) I am skeptical of mammograms. Yes, I agree that early detection is without a doubt vital but I believe that we need to develop better techniques to test for breast cancer. Both my parents are health care professionals (HCPs) and in a few years time I will be one as well. My parents have spoken with some HCPs, with their field of interest being breast cancer, who feel that women who have mammograms done annually are more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer. We're speculating that mammograms may actually be contributing to high occurrence of breast cancer. In simple terms, it emits very high radiation, which damages cells. For a better understanding, I encourage you to read this article. This is not an airy-fairy conspiracy theory. It is backed up by studies and research.

Source: lebeautesalon.com.au

I know this goes against what cancer councils and majority of doctors say. I can tell you now that I am with the minority and I am against mammograms. My lecturer has sung praises for mammograms but I think that there is still much to be desired. Better diagnostic techniques need to be developed and this will hopefully come with more research. So in October, I am going to combine my love for beauty with my contribution to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. I am going to purchase a Pink Product, in addition to wearing pink on my lips every day. No prize for guessing which one I'm going to purchase!

Bobbi Brown's Pink Peony Set! Bobbi Brown will donate $14 for every one these sets sold.

Source: nbcf.org.au

So I guess I will actually be pink on the lips and cheeks for the month of October! 

What will you be doing for Breast Cancer Awareness Month? Do share!

Triple S: Dramatic Navy Eye Makeup Tutorial

If you've read my post on Beauty on Pinterest, you'd remember how much I love this photo. So much so that it has inspired me to come up with a navy eye makeup look!

Pinterest.com

So here is the look I came up with! I would like to call this Pinspiration Look #1. (P.S. #2 is on its way.)

If you would like to see how I achieved it, just keep reading...

Step 1.  Cut out a strip of magic tape and tape it onto the edge of your eyes at an angle (pointing towards the end of your eyebrows). This will give your eye makeup a nice clean edge. Proceed to filling in your brows if you need to. My brows are horrendously thick and natural-looking, so I didn't fill them in. If I did, it would look horrible.

Step 2. Colour in your lids with a navy eye pencil, stopping just beneath your crease. Make sure you go right up to the edge of the tape. Here I've used my Bobbi Brown's Long Wear Eye Pencil in Black Navy. It is perfect for this look because it's very pigmented and long wearing. It has a slightly creamy consistency so it goes on smoothly. It's a lot easier and faster than slowly packing on lots of powder eyeshadow.

Step 3. Pick up some Naked eyeshadow from the Naked Palette with a fluffy blending brush and blend this into your crease. This will also blend out the top edge of the navy eye pencil to soften up the look.

Step 4. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo for this step. What I did was remove the tape, and using my Bobbi Brown navy eye pencil again, I lined the outer half of my lower lash line with it. I also drew the colour up to join with the top. 

Step 5. With a small flat brush, pat some glittery light sliver eyeshadow onto the centre of your lids. Don't bring it too far up; we don't want any on the crease. The silver glitter will help make the navy colour pop. I used Bobbi Brown's Rockstar Metallic Eyeshadow.

Step 6. Using a black pencil eyeliner, line your top lash line and your top and bottom waterline. It does not have to be perfect, you can just smudge it on with short strokes. Don't make the line on your top lash line too thick. We want the main feature to be the navy colour.

Step 7. Line the (remaining) inner half of your lower lash line with some dark glittery silver eyeshadow. I used Bobbi Brown's Gunmental Shimmer Wash Eyeshadow.

Step 8. Place some of the glittery light sliver eyeshadow onto the inner corners of your eyes to brighten the area. You can also use Virgin from the Naked Palette. I highlighted my brow arch with Virgin as well.

Step 9. Curl your eyelashes. I used my relatively new Shiseido eyelash curler.

Step 10. Load up your lashes with your favourite mascara. I used Rimmel's Scandaleyes mascara in Extreme Black.

Step 11. This step is optional. I put on a set of MAC #32 false eyelashes to make my lashes look as full as possible. They look wonky now because I did not know how to take care of them.

Step 12. Now for the face, put on your favourite foundation/tinted moisturiser. I used my Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser.

Step 13. Conceal any blemishes. As you can see, I have tons! My skin is not in its best shape at the moment.

Step 14. Powder your face, especially your T-zone which can get quite oily. I used my Smashbox Translucent Powder.

Step 15. Apply blush to your cheeks lightly. We do not want it to compete with the eye makeup. Choose a more natural browny pink colour. I used my Bobbi Brown Blush in Tawny. First I sculpted my cheeks with it, then I applied some to the apples of my cheeks.

Step 16. Line and fill in your lips with a nude lipliner. You may slick on a matching nude lipstick on top if you like.

Step 17. Apply some pink lipgloss to bring some colour back into your lips, to avoid looking like a corpse!

And there you have it! The completed look.

I also put my hair up into a top bun and wore some silver and navy earrings (to look more like the lady in the picture). I took a lot of photos for this look because I really loved it! It looks really nice in real life. Too bad I don't have a great camera to show its true beauty! But feel free to go through the photo gallery that I've compiled.



What do you think of this look? Love it or hate it?

Wicked Wednesday: Bobbi Brown and Burberry in a Park

I’ve been busy with an exam and assessments so I apologise for my tardiness with today's post. This isn't exactly the most informative or interesting post either and again, I apologise. I promise you I have really good posts lined up for the near future. So please bear with me for now. 

I recently got my hands on a pair of Burberry frames and I have to say that I am in love with them! No, I don’t need glasses but they have become a fashion statement these days. Having said that, I think this provides me with the opportunity to experiment with makeup for glasses. I hope that one day I will be able to post up a makeup tutorial for spectacle wearers. 

Aren't they beautiful?

I have yet to take a photo of myself wearing these glasses yet because I have two massive ugly pimples on my face at the moment. I will upload one once my pimples have cleared. 

 A couple of weeks ago, I had this epiphany for a makeup tutorial (keep your eyes peeled!). I approached Bobbi Brown and requested for one of their products. They were very kind and generous in providing it to me for free. It is a Long Wear Eye Pencil in Black Navy. I thought it’d be nice to give a quick first impression rundown on the product. 

I’m sure I’ve drummed it into your heads by now (for those of you who are regular readers of my blog content). I love Bobbi Brown products. I was really excited to receive it. It brightened my horrible week up a little. 

I really liked how the eyeliner came with a sharpener. For first time pencil eyeliner buyers, this would be very handy. Plus, it means more bang for your buck. According to the product information, this is the pencil version of Bobbi Brown's much loved Long Wear Gel Eyeliner

It's a gorgeous dark blue and here's a swatch of it. 

With direct sunlight

In the shade

After I swatched the eyeliner, I waited a couple of minutes to let it set. Then, I swiped my finger across it to see that if it would budge. I'm happy to report that it stays relatively well. You can see that it has smeared slightly but that is expected of most pencil eyeliners. So you don't have to worry too much if you accidentally rub your eyes (like I sometimes do) when you're wearing this eyeliner. It won't be too big a disaster. 

I know that my blog seems to be chock full of materialism. Please allow me to take a moment to balance some of my narcissism out with the following photo. 

My boyfriend and I had a small picnic in the park today. Hence, the tartan blanket you see in the photos. It was such a lovely day. We were seeing nature at its best. Quality time with him still trumps receiving an awesome beauty product from Bobbi Brown. As the saying goes, "the best things in life are free."