Divo Briscare Hair Brush Cleaner

Ever looked at your hair brushes and said 'Ugh!! you need a good scrub down and a bath'? If you are a lazy cleanliness freak like me, chances are you would have, picked up your hairbrush and willed it to magically clean itself up!

With winters wrecking havoc on my hair in past few months, one of the first victim of my continued hair woes was my hair brush.And I was so pleasantly surprised when one of the items I received from Divo was a Hair Brush Cleaner called 'Bris care'

Now I'd have never thought a generic hair brush cleaner could look nice or have pretty packaging, I was so happy to see the duo-chromatic peachy pink packaging of Briscare.

Briscare is the perfect brush cleaning accessory. It extends the life of your hairbrush and most importantly ensures that by using a dirty hair brush you are not adding lint or fluff back in to your hair.

Faces Go Chic Lipstick Mulberry Slush review and lip swatches

Mulberry slush- a creamy lipstick from Faces Go Chic range is a beautiful berry-pink shade.The shade is beautiful for everyday wear & it would suit a wide variety of Indian skin tones.

Its comes in a simple black plastic tube and has a faint smell of coconut cookies.It has silky smooth shiny finish without any glitter. Just the way I like my lippies :)The lipstick is decently pigmented and the texture is very similar to Revlon's Super lustrous lippies,albeit at almost one third the price,these are a great bargain.Faces has 10 shades in this range and the SA mentioned that Faces have launched some new 8-10 shades in the range.(I swatched so many lippies that I actually forgot the new shades-sorry!)

Like all creamy moisturizing lippies it lasts for around 3 hours [ or may be its just me- I can't stop snacking to test the longevity of lippies! LOL ;) ]

Chambor Silk Touch Lipstick Silk Garnet review and lip swatches

Chambor Silk Touch Lipstick Silk Garnet is a shimmery deep plum - Bordeaux shade.It looks intense in the tube but surprisingly very creamy in texture and sheer on application.

It  has a coco-nutty fragrance (No not like coconut oil-think coconut cookies.that's more like it)

The packaging is run of the mill- black, chrome and a holographic rose embossed on the tube. I wish they'd jazz up the packaging a bit, this looks a bit too staid and boring to me.The pack contains 4.5 grams of lippie so the quantity is fairly good, its priced at INR 575/-

New Launch-SOLUTIONS skin care range by Avon

Reveal your own natural beauty

Introducing new & improved SOLUTIONS skin care range

When nature meets science, beautiful things happen. Avon, the leading direct selling company in the country introduces all new Solutions skincare range comprising of Solutions Youth Minerals for anti-aging and Solutions Refined White for whitening.

Solutions Youth Minerals range of Energising Cream Cleanser, Energising Toner, Energising Day Cream with SPF 20/PA++ and Restorative Cream brings back a more youthful look with visibly reduced fine lines and more even tone.

Breakthrough: Amethyst enhanced skincare formulated to help stimulate collagen production.

Avon’s exclusive Amethyst Mineral Complex aid skin’s production of collagen to energize, renew and restore youthful-looking skin from the inside.  Bio Mineral Complex, a blend of 8 minerals with anti-oxidant properties, helps exfoliate dull surface skin cells and protect against environmental damage. 86% of women revealed healthier, younger looking skin with visibly reduced lines & wrinkles in just 2 weeks.

Solutions Youth Minerals skin care range

My entry for the Illamsqua's Sophie-I Collection & Technique with video tutorial

To mark the launch of the Sophie-I technique and its support for the Sophie Lancaster Foundation Illamasqua is hosting Iconic I contest.

Here's what Illamasqua has to say about the contest.

"We want to see your 'Iconic-I' and twist on the traditional smoky eye. Unique colourways, luxe textures and bespoke interpretations, the Sophie-I can be distinctive to you.Well be offering an unmissable and bespoke prize to the 3 chosen winners.3 lucky winners will be chosen to select £100 of cult Illamasqua pieces of their choice for their prize!"

Here's my interpretation of Sophie Technique- the look is all about 'Smokey eye with molten metal' , the gold gives almost a foiled texture while the metallic brown adds to the smokiness

Faces Moisture rich lipstick First Lady review and lip swatches

When you hear First Lady- what comes to your mind? Well the first image that pop in my head are that of a stiff, prim & proper sophisticate lady with understated elegance. But guess what even First Ladies can be a whole lot fun-don't believe me then take one look at Faces Moisture rich lipstick in First Lady.

Faces lipsticks have been making waves in Indian market for a while now, somehow I had steered clear of these. No I'm not a brand snob, I'm just weary of lipsticks which look pretty but smell of overpowering fragrance or waxes..so I never even bothered to try these out.

Don't snigger when I tell you, when I go lipstick shopping before swatching the shade I smell it!! (yes I've received plenty of weird looks from the Makeup SAs) but sorry can't help it, if it doesn't smell good it won't make it to my lips!

So when I actually tried out Faces Moisture rich lipsticks I was pleasantly surprised, it has very faint sweet cocoa kind of smell, followed by one beautiful swatch and I was sold!

The packaging of these lipsticks is really nice, yes the big tube can be a tad bulky but I love the shade swatch at the base

4.2 grams of the lipstick costs INR 349/- though you can buy these for cheaper. At Style Craze these are available for INR 296/-. Click here to browse and buy The quality is fairly good for the price.

The lipstick swatch visible at the base of the tube is such a blessing- it helps in finding the right shade in a jiffy. (By the way the stuff you see frozen in the clear plastic base isn't real lipstick!!)

Illamasqua FREE UK & International Delivery

As Winter is drawing to a close and we near the launch of our Spring/Summer 12 collection, we thought we’d add to the excitement and brighten your day with Free UK Standard Delivery on all orders and Free International Delivery when you spend over £50.

To redeem your Free UK Standard Delivery, simply enter the promotional code ‘FREEUK02’ when you reach the checkout page of the Illamasqua Shop.

To redeem your Free International Delivery, simply enter the promotional code ‘INTERNATIONAL50’ at the checkout – when you spend £50 or more.

Click here to visit the Illamasqua online shop, and discover our range of colour-intense, professional make-up, expertly designed to help you express your alter ego.

Vichy Laboratoires launches the revolutionary Normaderm TriActiv Cleanser

Vichy Laboratoires introduces its latest innovation- the Normaderm TriActiv Cleanser- an effective combination of cleanser, exfoliator and mask all rolled into one revolutionary product to give you clean, blemish free and healthy skin. Keeping in mind the specific needs of sensitive skin, the Vichy Normaderm TriActiv Cleanser is specially formulated for sensitive and acne prone skin.

Dispensing away the need to use multiple skin care products for your sensitive skin, now say goodbye to skin imperfections, clogged pores and pigmentation with the Vichy Normaderm TriActiv Cleanser offering one cleanser with three uses- 

1. Cleansing Cream- Reduces sebum and impurities

2. Exfoliator: Helps unclog pores.

3. Mask: Matifies skin and clarifies complexion

MAC retro matte lipstick Ruby Woo,review and lip swatches

There's a fire starting in my heart 
its reaching a fever pitch and it's bring me out the dark
Finally I can see you crystal clear
it's my 'Ruby Woo'

There are red lipsticks and then there is MAC Ruby Woo. Like the red apple tempted Eve, Ruby Woo has tempted and teased me senseless.For me this is epitome of classic Red and reminds me of pin up girls & old Hollywood glamour.

Its a flat blue based red, and despite it bluish undertones I feel it would suit duskier skin tones as well.This shade instantly makes me feel like a strong & sexy woman. It assures you a steady stream of eyeballs (in a good way!)

My lipstick haul from New Beauty Center, Khar Mumbai

Few months back (5 to be precise) Tanveer (from Addicted to blush) did a post about a seemingly magical Beauty store-called New Beauty center (in Khar S.V. Road) Mumbai. Apparently this is the Mecca of Makeup lovers in Mumbai. Go read Tanveer's detailed review here-Places to Shop: New Beauty Centre (Khar)

It totally piqued my interest & I added it to my Mumbai To do check List.I went to Mumbai many times since October but never really got time to go shopping, but this time I had a long(ish) stay and my hotel was literally stone throw distance from this store,so I decided to haul some makeup from NBC.

Day 1 Sunday 6.00 pm-I went from the airport straight to the shop-& guess what-Shop closed! Dang what a bummer! Apparently stores in this area are closed on Sunday...Never mind I decided to catch up with friends & went to Colaba, Fort and Gateway of India to do general TP...got stuck in jams due to Kala Ghoda festival and then feasted on some awesome Chinese at All Stir Fry The Gordon House Hotel Restaurants in Colaba..after that went to a nice patisserie for dessert (sorry can't remember the name), so the good food uplifted my mood slightly.

Day 2- Monday- I rushed in to the store at 8.20 pm and felt like a kid in candy store-I ogled at the NYX counter -I mean the entire range of NYX stuff which till now I had to buy by guesstimating the shade online was-here right in front of me.Boots, Bath and Body works,Body Shop and all my beloved brands were were right there. Was this place for real???- while I looked around in daze I spotted Jordana,VOV,Chambor,Faces,Colorbar,Lotus,Lakme,Max Factor, Revlon,Streetwear.. and then some more I don't remember the names of....

The energy was crackling in the store!The place was brimming with girls,their moms and ladies of all stripes with a maddening zeal for makeup.... it was a task just to check out products with such incredible rush.All makeup counters had discounts on the retail prices ranging between 10%-30%

While I swatched a few brands and hunted around for some shades on my wish list, I just managed to pick up 1 lipstick and suddenly I realized all the counters were closing and the SAs were filing out of the store!! 

I asked around and was told- Sorry Ma'am closing time! Out came a silent scream 'Nahiiiiiiiiiiiiiin aisa nahi ho sakta!' I felt like Tragedy Queen-crestfallen and heartbroken I headed back to my hotel :(

Day 3-I reached Khar at 8.50 pm- Shop closed!! Oh-my! I get enough exercise just pushing my-luck! :(

Day 4- With a missionary zeal,determined to make it anyhow to New Beauty center before closing time, I wrapped up work quickly and rushed back and reached by 8 pm- Voila! store was open and had sparse crowd-I went on a swatch fest. So finally managed to snag 3 more lippies and some nail enamels (sorry couldn't find it when I photographed rest of my haul). 

I can honestly tell you this is one of the best places I have shopped for makeup in India.The collection of such wide variety of Indian and International brands, all under one roof, very helpful (& non pushy) SAs,great discounts,fresh stock and the energy of the place are thrilling!

Here's some of the stuff I snagged.[Btw I'm feeling like Cat that ate the canary- I've bought 10 lipsticks in under 14 days this month! Maximum number of lipsticks I have ever bought!!Gosh this is more than my entire lipstick collection! Z-O-M-G!! I've a 2nd trip to Mumbai coming up next week & at this rate I'll be going bust! I need to stay away from NBC this time round)

Here's just a sneak peek of the Faces lipsticks I got, detailed review and lip swatches coming up soon.

Overall Recco- If you are a makeup lover in Mumbai, there is no way you can miss this store. Definite must visit, best visited with your gal pals.

Divo Salonica Ceramic Paddle Brush

If you want salon quality hair styling and have been struggling with your styling tools its time to upgrade to Divo Haistyling brushes.Divo Salonica Ceramic Paddle Brush is a part of Divo's professional styling tools.The ceramic is made from inorganic substances which are denatured at very high temperatures. These brushes provide better heat retention to dry hair faster and better heat distribution prevents hair damage.

Ideal for detangling and straightening hair, this brush is very versatile. The pneumatic pad powers bristles to gently penetrate the hair, thus reducing the pulling and breakage of hair while styling. As a durable multipurpose tool, this brush also has a massage effect on the scalp. This brush comes with a detachable plastic pick at the bottom which can be used for partitioning your hair into sections while styling and blow drying. It is ideal for medium to long hair lengths.

Material-

Handle: Plastic with a rubber grip 

Body: Plastic with a ceramic coating

Pad: Pneumatic with cushioning 

Bristles: Nylon Detachable

Pick: Plastic

Inglot Freedom system lipstick 86 review and lip swatch

Inglot freedom system's creamy lipsticks, great pigmentation and sensational range of colors are enough to make any lipstick Diva's heart beat faster.

Inglot's freedom system lipstick number 86 is a stunning vintage plum shade with a hint of pink.The shade would look great on most Indian skin tones and I feel duskier beauties would totally rock it.

 In the pan the lippie looks like a berry- plum with very finely milled shimmer.

 But swipe it on your skin and the color comes alive. (swatched on NC 45 skin)

Lakme Salon - Bridal contest prizes worth 1 Lac to be won

Lakmé Salon launched its Bridal Look book – Beautiful Brides in October 2011. They are now running a photo contest for brides-to-be as part of their bridal campaign. Brides-to-be have to upload a stylish picture and get maximum votes to win!

 Click on image below to view the Bridal Look book

 The gratification includes a bridal outfit worth Rs. 1 Lakh, a wedding photography package, complete bridal makeover from Lakmé Salon’s premium hair & makeup experts and Lakmé Salon gift hampers. Four other winners will also get Bridal consultancy by Lakmé Hair, Skin and Make up experts and Lakmé Gift hampers.

Click on the image below to know more on how to participate in the contest

Valentine Day romantic eye makeup look

Hey girls, here's an easy romantic pink eye make up look for valentines day.

Products used - 

• NYX HD eyeshadow primer

• 120eye shadow palette- shades used shimmery pink 
• Faces stacable eye shadow - top seller ( shades used, shimmery pink on the center of the eyelid and shimmery white on the inner eye corner and for highlighting)
• Maybelline colossal volume mascara
• Faces Black eyeliner pencil (used on lower lashline)
• KK CenterHK eyelashes A812 & QVS eyelash glue
• Oriflame eyelash curler
• Coastal scents- brushes

Inglot Freedom system lipstick 63 review,lip swatch

From steering clear of red lippies all my life I have developed a minor obsession with red lippies recently and one the recent addition to my lippie collection is Inglot Freedom system lipstick 63.It is a full bodied red and leans toward yellow undertones, but the micro glitter give it slight bluish edge as well.

The good thing with a bold red lippie is that it lights up the whole face and all you need is a light foundation and kohl and you are good to go.

 Its creamy lipstick with a hint of sheen.Texture of the lipstick is very similar to MAC Amplified lipstick albeit more creamier.I'm wearing it without any lip liner or lip balm or gloss.

MAC and Inglot Valentine Haul !!

Have you seen the Seagram Imperial Blue Music CD advertisement 'Men will be Men'? The one in which a guy is consoling his friend  'coz his wife's week long official tour got cancelled?

Every time this ad airs on TV my hubby gives me this goofy grin (which needless to say, annoys me & yet melts my heart!)

I know you are wondering why am I talking about this ad- well Valentines Day is round the corner and boo hoo guess what I'm not going to be in town with my Man! I'll be traveling to Mumbai for 5 days for work.(Mumbai- here I come!I'm kind of hoping to check out legendary Beauty Center in Khar,lets see how that works out.)

So before I started packing,started my usual spiel ' I don't have anything to wear' (don't all girls say that?!)

On we went hauling work wear - you know the drill -formal striped trousers, boring button up shirts and blazers-duh!

But no shopping expedition is really complete without makeup,after my Shopper stop work wear shopping, I sauntered in to MAC outlet (store in Shoppers Stop at Vasant Kunj Mall) and hoping against hope asked the SA if Ruby Woo was in stock.The SA Ranaveer  was uber friendly and helpful,he gave me a sheepish smile and nodded 'Yes!'

He confided that usually the reds are always out of stock, if Ruby Woo is available then, Russian Red is out of stock & so on .. O-M-G I'd been waiting forever to get my paws on Ms. Ruby Woo (uh-huh, no that doesn't sound quite right, ours is strictly a platonic relationship ! ;D LOL).

I was just so thrilled so decided to splurge a bit, I wanted to try out some Lustre and creme sheen finishes & the SA picked out 5-6 shades for me to try out and another all time favorite caught my eye MAC Creme in Your coffee & I got that along, so Ms. Ruby Woo won't feel lonely :)

  

Here's all my goodies - Oh my I can keep looking at them for hours (Sigh Love!)

Coastal Scents launches 7 new vibrant hot pots and 8 new face brushes!

Girlies, Coastal Scents is has just launched some super gorgeous bright and summery shades in their coastal scents Hot Pots! Take you pick from Vibrant hot pinks to Blue greens or Vibrant Purple. And as if that was not enough to tempt me to fish out my credit card they have also launched 8 new Face brushes.

If you are on the look out for good quality pocket friendly brushes, do give CS brushes a 'dekkho' they are great value for money.

You can check out their site www.coastalscents.com

Marilyn Monroe inspired eye makeup look and Lisa Eldridge tutorial

You know a Beauty Blogger on 'Project  101 Eye Makeup Look' has a death wish ,when she tries to take on Legends like the Marilyn Monroe & Celeb Makeup Guru  Lisa Eldridge and attempt to recreate Marilyn's iconic eye makeup look. 

I'm not exactly a glutton for punishment but Marilyn's makeup and her stunning pictures always intrigued me and when I saw Lisa's video tutorial, well I just couldn't resist the temptation to recreate this look.

 

[Disclaimer- I'm not a stunner like Marilyn nor talented like Lisa so please don't compare my handiwork with those of THE LEGENDS! ]

Marilyn always sported languid half shut eyes in most of her photographs.The eye makeup is deceptive 'coz it looks very simple but the trick is with drawing a fake dark shadow (of the false eye lashes) below the lower lash line.(Watch the video to know more about this)

Products Used

• NYX HD eye shadow base
• Matte white eyeshadow from 120 eyeshadow palette. (White shadow would be better suited to fairer tones for duskier tones like mine [NC 45 in MAC] I'd recommend a matte beige or a creamy nude shadow to be used as a base)
• Coastal scents mineral eyeshadow- champagne shade used all over lid on top of white shadow
• Dark brown shade from Faces eyeshadow trio Beechwood (used in the crease & to draw eyelash shadow below the lower lashline)
• Maybelline colossal Mascara
• Maybelline eye studio gel eyeliner
• KKcenterHK Fake eyelashes A812 (used a half set, by cutting the eyelashes in half & used only on outer corner to create elongated droopy eye effect)

To have some fun with the look I teamed up the eye makeup up with some classic red lipstick.This was the trickiest part of the look 'coz my natural lip shape is nothing like Marilyn's.As Lisa mentions in the video Marilyn's makeup artist Whitey created what can be called "Lip shape of the century!" Now that's a tough act to follow.

If you are wondering about the white shimmery powder on the center of my lower lip,scroll up and observe Marilyn's lips.Her sensuous lips were accentuated by her Makeup Artist Allan "Whitey" Snyder with some shimmery white shadow applied in the center of her bottom lips to make them appear more fuller & voluptuous.It does look odd in real life but I can imagine in black & white photography this would really take the drama & intensity to a whole new level.

And now for Lisa Eldridge's remarkable tutorial on Marilyn's makeup. Its a must watch as its steeped with not only makeup history and Marilyn trivia but also so many amazing makeup tricks hitherto unknown to most of us.

Hope you enjoyed this look, do comment & let me know :)

Stay beautiful & stay classic!

Pink & Purple eye makeup look

This 'Pink & Purple' eye makeup look was inspired by a eye shadow called 'Royal Assassin' from Glamour doll eyes

Its a gorgeous aubergine shade with gold and multicolored reflects, its a very unique shade and I wanted to team it up with a shimmery pink frost shadow. The glitter reflects in Royal Assasin are not clearly visible in the nighttime pics, but the effect it creates is simply stunning.

 

I've tried a slight twist on the regular winged eye liner, the liner is used heavily on the lower lash line and wings upwards at the outer corner.Instead of traditional black eyeliner I've used Royal Assassin mixed with Inglot Duraline to create a dark purple liner

This the 10th look in my 'Project 101 Eye makeup looks', I have some very interesting eye makeup looks coming up so stay tuned!

Dramatic Arabic Eye makeup look

As promised, my Project 101 Eye makeup looks is cruising along beautifully and I decided to do a very dramatic Arabic Eye makeup look this time.

So scroll down for the pics and details of products used :) Lets get started!

The Body Shop and Accessories tiny Haul

Its the last week of the End of Season sale and I decided to do some Mall ratting and haul some stuff.

I'd been eying The Body Shop's Midnight Bakula EDT for a while now, when I saw 50% Off on this I had to grab it.! Its a limited edition exotic perfume with floral & spicy fragrance and perfect for evening wear.

This is what TBS has to say about Midnight Bakula.

"Enchanting and captivating, our Midnight Bakula fragrance features notes of juicy nectarine, delicate rose and patchouli."

In case you are wondering about the Indian inspired motif on the perfume bottle, well its because Bakula is our very own 'Maha Gandhraj' and has medicinal value and used in Ayurveda

TBS also gave me two trial sachets of Tea Tree Facial wash and Maca Root Energetic face protector (For Men-so hubby dear, this is coming your way!)

This EDT was originally priced at INR 1025/- got it on 50% Off for INR 520/-

Next I picked up some tiny bijoux and trinkets, first one are these ultra fierce feline ear studs from Vero Moda

Original price INR 395/- got it on 70% Off for INR 118!! Ain't that a steal?!! 

I thought this would look quite OTT but I was in for a pleasant surprise, 'coz these look very nice on me (so says Dear Hubby!) I love these :)