Chanel Nail Colour: 18 Rouge Noir

Chanel Rouge Noir 18

Taking another break from summer brights today and decided to paint my nails in one of my favourite classic, vampy shades, Rouge Noir.

Chanel Rouge Noir

Rouge Noir is a gorgeous dark red/chocolate shade in the bottle. The colour you get on nails depends on how many coats are applied. The shade looks like a glossy burgundy with the first coat, but becomes more of a deep, blackened red with a second or third. I really do like how the shade looks with just the one coat, but rarely wear it without adding at least a second because I find the finish to be a bit uneven and sheer. A second coat evens out the colour nicely, and a third turns it into a completely opaque, almost black (depending on lighting) colour.

As with most other Chanel nail colours I've tried, Rouge Noir applies really well. The colour does initially apply slightly unevenly, but becomes smooth and opaque with a second coat. The finish is glossy and lasting power is average. The photo below shows how the shade looks with three, thin coats. I had planned to apply just the two, but messed up horribly and needed a third.

Chanel Rouge Noir (3 coats)

And a quick photo to show how the colour looks with two coats.

Rouge Noir (2 coats)

Are you a fan of dark, vampy shades? Do you have any favourites?

Myface Foundation Winners....

The winners of the Myface Mymix foundations are Evelyn and Y, I'll be sending you both an e-mail shortly. Congrats to the winners and thank you to everyone who entered.

The Make Up Mavens Weekly Round-up

The Makeup Mavens present makeup you may have missed. This week there's an array of products from Chantecaille, LMDB, La Roche Posay, Armani and Chanel. We've got posts on pretty palettes and blush, and one Maven shares a review on the brush that can do it all.

This week Lipstick Luvvies introduced us to the new palette from luxury brand, Chantecaille. Head on over to read her brilliant review and take a peek at swatches of the gorgeous blush and shadow shades.

  

Finding suitable products for sensitive skins can be a tricky task, but Klara of Mookie on the Bench has discovered an excellent moisturiser from La Roche Posay. If you're looking for a soothing product to calm irritation and redness, check out her review of Toleriane Ultra. 

In an effort to simplify her make up routine, Product Doctor went on a search for a multi purpose brush, and found Le Metier de Beaute's kabuki. Check out her great review and comparison to MAC's 182.

Raspberry Rouge finally gave in to Chanel's Fall nail colors and shared swatches of Graphite. Hop on over and take a look at the beautiful, shimmery shade.

After searching high and low for the perfect nude blush, The Black Panties stumbled upon Armani's Beige Violet. Check out her review and swatches of the pretty, natural shade.

A Few Daily Make up Essentials

Today's post is inspired by yesterday's monthly favourites post. After taking photos of the products I've been reaching for a lot throughout August, I had a little rummage through my make up bag and picked out some of the items I use everyday. Eye shadow, blush and lip colours tend to change on a daily basis, but there are a few different products that always stay the same, and I thought I'd do a quick post on them.

NARS Loose Powder: Eden

NARS Loose Powder -  I have oily skin, so I always use a powder to set my foundation. I've tried quite a lot of different loose powders from different brands, but I always come back to NARS because it's the best I've tried. It's finely milled, buffs beautifully into skin without looking powdery or chalky and it really does help to keep shine at bay. The colour range on offer is also fantastic and the 35g tub lasts forever. It'll probably start breaking me out after I say this, or it'll be discontinued, but it's my holy grail setting powder. (Around £26.00 a tub)

Becca Pressed Bronzing Powder: Flamenco

Becca Pressed Bronzing Powder: Flamenco - I wont go on about this because I've already mentioned it on a number of occasions. I picked mine up in a Salonskincare Summer sale and I've used it almost everyday since. The shade works really well on my NC15/20 ish skin and does a brilliant job at adding a hint of believable, non orange colour. More accurate photos & swatches here. (Around £30.00 for a 10g compact)

Clarins Everlasting Foundation

Clarins Everlasting Foundation -  I've rambled on about this quite a lot already too, so I'll keep this short. Everlasting is one of the best full coverage foundations I've tried because unlike others, it feels nice and light weight when I'm wearing it. It holds up well on my oily skin and hasn't caused any problems with break outs either, which is a bonus. I've also been using a foundation from Myface (mymix) over the last couple of weeks, and that's also nice stuff, but it doesn't beat Everlasting in the coverage department and coverage is something I need at the moment. (£24.00 for a 30ml bottle)

Becca Eye Tint: Vicuna

Becca Eye Tint Vicuna - I use this as a base for all of my shadows because I find it really helps them to stay put. It's a peachy, gold cream shadow which doesn't really add much colour, but it helps to brighten my eye area, evens out lids and stops anything I add over the top from creasing. I was slightly underwhelmed with it when I first tried it, but it's now one of my favourite products and something I reach for everyday. (£19.00 for a 7ml tube)

Chanel Brow Palette

Chanel Le Sourcil De Chanel Brow Palette - I purchased this a couple of years ago and I've almost completely used up the shades. The palette contains three really natural shades of powder which can be used individually or mixed together to create a perfect colour match. I've tried a lot of similar palettes, but Chanel's beats them all because the texture of the powders is great. Others I've used have been too soft and have ended up looking too harsh and heavy, Chanel's shades are easy to apply and give a really subtle, natural looking finish to brows. I haven't opened the palette in the photo because there's barely any product left in the pans, there are some excellent photos and swatches over at Makeup merriment though. (£41.00)

Shu Uemera Brown Pencil: Seal brown

Shu Uemura Brow Pencil: Seal brown - I use this to fill in my brows, then to soften, I use the Chanel brow powder which I mentioned above. It's the most natural looking brow pencil I've tried colour wise, and the texture is great. It's not particularly soft and it's not creamy either, so the lines it draws are incredibly natural and subtle. I've had the one in the photo above for ages now and it's looking a bit old and worn, it still works perfectly though. (Around £17.00)

I suppose none of the products on the list are particularly exciting, but they're all items I use every day and I couldn't really do without any of them, especially the base and brow products.  

I'm really interested to know what your everyday essentials are. Is there anything in your make up bag that you really can't do without?

A Few August Favourites

August Favourites

R&R Diffused & Daniel Sandler Jumbo Jet Mascara

Rock and Republic Eye Shadow in Diffused - I was lucky enough to win this recently in a lovely giveaway over at Makeup merriment, and I've been using it a lot over the last few weeks. It's a gorgeous, shimmery, pigmented taupe which applies and blends beautifully. I really wish I'd discovered the brand when the products were still available, it looks like there were some lovely eye shadow shades on offer.

Daniel Sandler Jumbo Jet Mascara - This was one of the items I received in August's GlossyBox. It thickens and lengthens well, looks pretty natural and doesn't smudge, flake or irritate my eyes.

Chanel Coral Reef Glossimer & La Pausa Lipstick

Chanel La Pausa Rouge Coco Lipstick - Is a pretty, peachy coral with golden/coppery shimmer. It's the first shade I've purchased from the Rouge Coco range and I'm in love with the long lasting, light weight, creamy formula. Swatches here.

Chanel Coral Reef Glossimer -  Complements La Pausa perfectly.

Chanel Splendeur & Miami peach

Chanel Miami Peach & Splendeur Nail Colours - Both are gorgeous, bright, summery shades which I've been reaching for a lot over the last few weeks. Swatched here.

Myface Mymix Foundation, Becca Flamenco & Becca Terracotta

Myface Mymix Foundation - A great medium coverage base which lasts well and doesn't emphasize blemishes or pores. Review and swatches here.

Becca Bronzing powder in Flamenco - This was on July's favourites list too. It's one of the nicest bronzing powders I've used. Finely milled, applies beautifully and the colour is incredibly natural looking. Because Flamenco is quite light, I'll probably be able to use it through the winter too, to brighten up my pale, pasty skin. Swatches and review here.

Becca Creme Blush in Terracotta - I often have problems with Cream blushes because they tend not to last long on my oily skin, but Becca's seem to hold up really well. They apply and blend with very little effort and leave cheeks with a hint of really natural looking colour. Terracotta is a perfect mix of apricot and brown and is one of my 'go with everything' blushes. Swatches here.

What's on your August favourites list?

Myface Gigabite Lipstick & Lip Pencil: Strawberry Fields & Nude

I was recently sent a few things to try from the myface cosmetics range. I've already shared my thoughts on the brands foundation (mymix) and today I thought I'd do a little post on the lip products I was sent.

The first is one of the brands Gigabite lipsticks in the shade Strawberry Fields, which is from the "red hot mama" collection in their fair skin range. The colour looks like a very bright, slightly scary red in the tube, but it actually applies sheer and becomes more of a juicy, pinky, strawberry shade on lips.

Myface Gigabite Lipstick: Strawberry Fields

If you look really closely, you can just about see the very delicate gold shimmers which are barely visible when it's on.

Myface Strawberry Fields

The scent free formula feels lovely. It's soft, applies well without dragging or pulling and feels quite hydrating. The finish is sheer and glossy, but doesn't feel tacky or sticky at all and I've found the shade to be fairly long lasting. I'd say I get a good couple of hours wear before the colour starts to fade, which I find to be the case with most sheer/glossy lipsticks. As Strawberry Fields fades, it leaves behind a delicate, pretty stain.

Strawberry Fields applied

All in all, it's a really lovely shade which I've actually found myself reaching for a lot since I got it. The formula is comfortable, non drying and leaves lips feeling quite soft and hydrated. Myface lipsticks are slightly more expensive than other drugstores brands, such as Revlon and L'oreal, but in my opinion they're worth paying a few extra pounds for.

Available from myface.co.uk/.com & Boots where they cost £9.99. Boots don't seem to offer many of the shades, though and Strawberry Fields is currently out of stock.

Myface Lip Pencil: Nude

Next up is the brands lip pencil in Nude, which is again from the fair skin range. Now, I've bought quite a few Nude lip pencils from quite a lot of different brands over the last couple of years and almost all of them have been the wrong colour for me and have ended up being either too dark or too brown. Myface Nude is the shade I've been searching for and the pinky beige colour works perfectly as both a natural liner and also as a base for lighter lip colours. It blurs out my fairly pigmented, natural lip colour perfectly and allows me to wear some of the paler lipsticks in my stash.

Myface Lip Pencil: Nude

 

I've used Nude to fill in my lips in the photo below to give a good idea of the colour.

 

Myface Nude Lip Pencil Applied

 

The lip pencil isn't the creamiest I've tried but it's not drying either and draws nicely. It also stays put and increases wear time of any lip products I apply over the top. I don't normally get excited over lip or eye pencils, but I really am pleased with this one and will definitely be re-purchasing in the future.

Available from myface.co.uk/.com & Boots where they cost £6.49.

I'm really happy with both lip products I was sent from myface and I'm also impressed with the foundation. I'd actually go as far as to say, the products are some of the best quality I've tried from any drugstore brand and I wouldn't hesitate to purchase more products from the lip range in the future. I'm also really tempted to try some of the blush shades, which I've read some really positive reviews on recently. 

Have you tried anything from the myface range? What do you think of the products?

Chanel Nail Colour: 529 Graphite

Chanel Nail Colour: 529 Graphite

When I first saw pictures of Chanel's Fall nail colours, I almost immediately made up my mind that I didn't want any of them, because I'm not really a huge fan of shimmery/metallic polish. All the beautiful photos and swatches I've seen over the last few weeks managed to change my mind, though and I decided I needed at least one of the shades. I'd actually intended to pick up Peridot, but the sales assistant at the Chanel counter happened to be wearing Graphite and after seeing it, I couldn't resist.

Chanel Graphite

Graphite is a fairly dark grey shade infused with a lot of pretty silver and gold glitter. In certain light, the colour looks like a cool toned silver, and in other lighting the gold flecks of shimmer are more prominent and really warm the shade up.

Chanel Graphite 529

The first coat of Graphite applied quite sheer and a little bit uneven, but the colour smoothed out beautifully with a second coat and became almost opaque. I've only had the shade on since yesterday so I can't really comment on how it wears, I've not had any chips so far, though. The photo below was taken outside and it was a little bit chilly, so please excuse the pink/red hands.

Chanel Graphite: 2 coats

Chanel Graphite with flash

All in all, I'm happy with my purchase. Graphite is a pretty shade that I'll probably be reaching for quite a lot during during the cooler, autumn and winter months.

Graphite is available online and at Chanel counters now and costs £17.50 for a 13ml bottle

Have you picked up Graphite or either of the other two shades from the collection?