Favourite 5 | Dark Lip Colours for Fair Skin

Hello!

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekends, I know I am. I really enjoyed showcasing my favourite red lipsticks so I thought i'd do the same for dark lipsticks. I'll keep this intro short and sweet, but I love how a dark lip can add some drama to a look with minimal effort. Having pale skin I think you tend to stick to lighter colours that blend well, but sometimes its nice to mix things up! Whether its sheer, mate or extra glossy, i've picked my favourite five dark lipsticks that I reach to when I want to add some extra warmth to my everyday make-up.

(This background is so drab - i've somehow lost my fairylights! :( ) 

'Fling Thing' Hyrda-Smooth Lip Colour - Benefit

Oh I love this lipstick! I've been such a huge fan of their Hyrda-Smooth range since I worked there, and this shade is by far my favourite. It's described as a 'very berry', and certainly looks darker on the bullet than it does on your lips. It sounds weird, but this lipstick is one that I wore at a certain time in my life that I will always remember, so this will always be a shade that I love. It's really moisturising and you can build up the coverage without it looking cakey and fake. I really love the double-slanted bullet, which makes it really easy to apply. I think this a really great universal shade that's perfect for day or night.

'Wicked' Lipstick - Topshop

This is actually the newest lipstick I own. Absolutely terrifying in the tube as it's so dark, but applies as a rich burgundy and glides onto the lips effortlessly. Topshop lipsticks are a cult favourite amongst British beauty bloggers and I am certainly a fan. I love how creamy the texture is and doesn't need reapplication after eating which is a definite plus. I haven't found a shade anywhere else like this, so I would definitely recommend if you want a deep wine or oxblood shade that lasts.

'Aura' Rouge Coco Shine - Chanel 

This is a different sort of lipstick than the others in this collection as it's really sheer. I know it looks a little odd and I did think so too, but its nice if you want to pat on a little bit of colour but not go overboard with a dark lip. I'm not a fan of the bullet because its rounded making it slightly before difficult to apply straight from the bullet. It's lovely and glossy and hydrating and is ideal if you want a slick of dark colour without all the drama.

Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate Moss in Shade 30 - Rimmel London

I'm so impressed with Kate Moss' range of lipsticks. The shades are incredible, the finish is flawless and its so affordable at just £5.49 a tube. This is a lovely plum shade with slight pinky tones peeking through. The colour is really rich and probably the truest shade to the bullet. I feel that this would be a shade that suits everyone and its really easy to apply so I have no issues applying it without a mirror or slicking on a bit while i'm on the train.

'Vicious Velvet' Ultra Moisturising Lip Paint - Barry M 

This was the first dark lipstick i'd ever bought. Costing just £4.49, I thought it would be perfect to experiment, as I would only lose a few pounds if I decided it wasn't for me. I love this colour; it's a really gorgeous berry shade that's really long-lasting. My one flaw is that it is really drying on the lips. Barry M lipsticks are supposedly designed to be moisturising, but that's not really the case. The colour pay-off is great though, making it a pretty decent drugstore lipstick if you want to experiment without breaking the bank.

I hope you enjoyed, have a lovely rest of the day!

x

Braving Black Lipstick

I love wearing black. It's classic, simple and goes with everything. I base a lot of my outfits around the colour black, but i'm the total opposite when it comes to cosmetics. I think because I have pale skin and blue eyes I immediately go for soft colours like pale pinks and corals, and tend to shy away from brighter colours incase it makes me look even paler. However, I got the chance to try out MAC's Hautecore*, which is a matte black, and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to take the plunge and try something totally out of my comfort zone.

After doing my research, i've now realised that Hautecore isn't available anymore (Although there are a few floating around on Ebay), so i'll post a few alternatives below! 

I actually kind of love this! I don't know why. I tested this out on a day where I didn't want to put on too much make-up, so everything else is quite natural which looks a little odd. Because it's such a dramatic colour I wanted to keep things quite low-key, but i'm now thinking I went a little too low-key and should have at least done my brows (as I like to have them quite dark!) instead of just running Benefit's Gimme Brow through them. As its a matte shade it needed a few coats and you can still see some fleshy tones poking through, so i'd definitely recommend investing in a lip liner of the same shade - as you can tell I didn't have one! 

This has definitely proven to me that black lipstick is actually quite wearable. I always thought it was something that only Kylie Jenner could pull off, but I think if you have pale skin it can look quite cool. I now can't wait to pull this out on a night out, or even brave it as a day look perhaps? Maybe not. Either way i'm quite proud that i'm now reaching for darker colours and embracing my inner goth! Haha. What do you think of black lipstick? Do you have a favourite that I should be trying out? Let me know! 

Alternative Matte Black Lip Colours
Barry M Lip Paint in 37
Lime Crime Black Velvet
Illamasqua Lipstick in Pristine

Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint in 'Green Berry'

Everybody loves a bit of neon! Don't deny it, on a dreary day a pop of colour is exactly what we all need! However, at this moment in time i'm not quite ready to step out of myself in a pair of luminous yellow flatforms, so i'll be sticking to changing up my nail colour.

Gelly Hi Shine is one of Barry M's newest 'Effect' products, aiming to leave nails with an ultra glossy finish with their gel effect polishes. With 13 different colours on offer, from pastel pink to vibrant oranges, this range is perfect for incorporating lashings of neon to an otherwise plain outfit. I chose Green Berry as I wanted an easier transition from my usual matte pastels to full-on 'out there' nails!

The polish applies easily and only requires a single coat to achieve the same quality of colour as it is in the bottle. The 'hi-shine' element is definitely spot-on, however I found that it started chipping within two days, and after five I had to remove as it has removed completely from half of my nails. But isn't the colour ah-mazing?! So vibrant and fun, its just a shame it doesn't last as long as I would have expected.  For £3.99 I don't mind adding a few touch up's to keep my nails looking fresh ... the colour and finish makes the extra effort worth it!

You can purchase products from the Gelly Hi Shine range at your local Boots, Superdrug or from their official website here.

Review: Barry M in Shade 154 - 'Pale Nude'

Barry M is a brand that we all know and love, particularly for their bright and bold nail paints. However, what people seem to look (me being one of them!) is that Barry M also have quite a wide range of other make-up products. After reading about this product on another beauty blog, I decided i'd put Barry M to the test and see if their lipsticks were half as good as their signature nail polishes. I was going to try out a different shade just to try out the lipstick in general, but when I got there this shade stood out to me the most, so I knew I had to have it:

To be honest, the packaging isn't that appealing in comparison to their other products that come in such fun and imaginative colours, which is probably why I never bothered to try anything else of theirs. However, if the lipsticks were displayed on their own, I would really like the matte black with simple gold writing - but a swatch on the lid wouldn't have hurt! It looks a perfectly natural nude with a hint of peach, which is great if you can't pull off a straight-forward nude shade.

 I can't get enough of this shade! It's so matte and is perfect for a subtle hint of colour. I want to purchase a lip pencil in the same colour as I found that I couldn't get the slight outline of my natural lip colour to budge, however I applied it. It makes your lips appear fuller too! It's almost a rival for my 'Innocence, Beware' lipstick from Mac (review here). However, the only downside i'd say is that it doesn't have the most appealing scent. It's smells waxy, and to be honest, quite cheap. But what can you expect for £4.49. Once applied I found it lasted about three hours before I felt like it needed to be topped up, so it's not too bad considering the price.

I'll definitely be trying out a few more of these shades, as well as other products in the Barry M range (accourding to their website, they've just released new blusher shades). 

Shade 154 is available (along with over 30 other shades) from Boots, Superdrug or online here.

March Obsession: Candy Coloured Nails!

 

It's no surprise that candy colours have become the go-to trend this year, with the Queen's trademark pastel two pieces making regular appearances in our magazines and on our television sets due to her Jubilee Tour. So here's my contribution, candy nails! 

I used these colours: 

1. Misty Jade - Rimmel London   2. Pure Turquoise - Barry M   3. Strawberry Ice Cream - Barry M   4. Berry Ice Cream - Barry M

I used mint for my middle finger as it's by far the best of the pastel colours this season, and it's always great to go back to your inner-child and paint each nail a different colour like I know I used to when I thought that wearing as many different colours as possible was the key to good style!

Barry M is by far the best place for pastel nail paint, and you could even go one step further by painting your nails white and then applying some pastel nail crackle on top?

Happy painting!