Masterclass - Eye Shadow Colours and Effects

Using different eye shadows colours can achieve different effects, depending how their use and where they are used. Eye shadows not only come in a pressed powder form but also loose powder and cream (as well as different variants in between). The best way to get used to these different textures is to explore and play with them. I prefer powder as this has more of use dry or wet, and I have more control over how I use it.

What we going to do for this masterclass is to break down the colours and what effect they have on the final look:

Dark, muted colours

Colours: Charcoal,browns, olive, plums

These are more for defying eye contour and are more flattering for a sophisticated look. Can look better on dark haired and eyed models, while for fair skins can be used with a finer brush as a more subtle liner effect.

Pastel Colours

Colours: Pale blue, light aqua, pale green, peach

These colours produce a softer effects, if they have a slight shimmer I use these more as a base for matching colours to go on top. Good for people with blond or grey hair and if matched with eyes can bring out their colour.

Pale Colours

Colours: White, pearl, cream.

In contrast to darker shadows produces a highlighting effect that can be on the brow bone and inside of the eyes to make them look wider. I also use these if what I have applied is too dark by buffing these colours over.

Muted Colours

Colours: Grey, beige, sage, mauve.

Produce a more delicate effect than the darker colours so are more suited to producing a everyday look, and then adding the darker ones to covert to more of an evening look.

Bright Colours

Colours: Blue, green, yellow, violet, red

As the 'fun' side of colouring, are more suited for fashion or glamour make up. However they can look harsh on maturer skins when used all over, so adapting it to use wet as a liner can be more flattering way of wearing colour.

Next week - How and where to wear eye shadow

I am a Collection Halloween Nail Art Finalist :)

I am really excited, my simple black and white Halloween nails have been picked by Collection Cosmetics (used to be know as Collection 2000) as their finalist for their Halloween nail art competition. I wanted to do something that mostly anyone can recreate themselves, and show a little of my (cheeky) personality.

There are four other really good designs up for the running, in the end I am happy to be there. If you want to vote for me it's very simple - Go to the Collection facebook page here and click the one you want (if me, then I'm number one).

Good luck to the other entries and thank you if you do vote for me.

NOTD: Beware of the Spider

I have been very unwell with a stinker of a cold the past few days, I have been going to work (much to my husbands distress), coming home and falling asleep on the sofa. I got to Friday night and after a snooze wanted to do something to make me feel better. I still wanted something that was Halloween themed as I wasn't going to any parties due to the cold.

I've had Rimmel's Camofluage Chic in my unused collection for a while and thought it would be great to use as it's still wintery but not too dark that I couldn't paint over it. This is two coats, then using a black stripper brush I painted on the webs and spider. Check out Poundland and a company called Art Deco, this is where mine is from and I cannot fault it, but don't forget your holding it and tip it over - I got black varnish everywhere. I then used another red glitter stripper to drop a few bits of glitter over the web and give the spider some eyes.

Another spooooky bit of nail art.

NOTD: Boo!

 

A little Halloween freehand nail art, simples.

 

Collection's Lasting Finish in Liqourice and French White. Used a stripping brush for the spiders web and dottings tools for the rest.

 

This however is not my final Halloween look....

ColourVue Fashion Lenses Giveaway

When I was went to Olympia Beauty last month, in my pack were these lenses. Now I need to make an admission, putting things into my eye freaks me out, and I didn't want these to go to waste. I know there is a good home for them out there where they will be used.

ColourVue are a company that are based in Malaysia but sell fashion contact lenses around the world. They're range goes from the simple colour enhancers to complete black out lenses, which retail for about £14.99.

The pair that are in the giveaway are from their Glamour range, that has subtle colourings with patterns inside. These are what they look like below.

 

There are two lenses as well as a storage case, they have a life span of 3 months if looked after properly. To do this you will need to provide you own lense solution that can be brought from any opticians or chemist. There is a information leaflet in the pack to be read before use.

 

 

 

The eyesbright.com website has been very useful in providing information for me, and if you fancy purchasing some they have a wide range.

Terms & Conditions

• Open for UK people (sorry)
• Compulsory to be a follower of the blog (This will be checking and  if you decide to stick afterwards that would be great)
• It'll run for one week (Final date is 28th October)
• I've used Rafflecopter to make it as fair as possible

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good Luck everyone!

Masterclass - Ageing and it's Effects on Cosmetics





Ageing does happen to all of us, it how we react and develop to these changes that shape us.

Cosmetics are there to highlight the best of what we have, not create something that is not there. As our bodies and skin changes over the years, the way we were cosmetics is going to change with this as our needs and wants changes. Women can still looks stunning into the later years (Helen Mirren is a brilliant example), its all about understanding what is happening and adapting techniques.

The skin changes occur over time and are gradual as the skin cell reproduction slow down. Lifestyle also plays a part to this as illness and unhealthy lifestyle can speed up these processes. Exposure to sunlight also is an ageing accelerator and why it is recommnend to put on the SPF early on. Women compared to men produce less collagen so it always seem to age faster than men.

The main changes to skin structure is the thinning of the skin due to the loss of fatty tissue, this can also make it look crepe as the skin becomes looser. It will be dryer and flakier as the skin as the cells slow down reproduction and the removal of them slows down. The skin will also look sluggish as the muscles have a reduced tension, this also leads to the winkles. Uneven melanin will also lead to patchy pigmentation of the skin know as 'age spots'.

Ageing has an effect on the blood vessels caused by the decrease in elasticity in the walls of the capillaries, instead of returning to their original shape after dilating they stay permanent. In fairer skins this appears to be pink or red on the skin, on dark skins they appear less as the surface layers are thicker and can appear as darker patches.

"Wear it where you want to be kissed" - Chanel No.5

Chanel No.5 is iconic in the fragrance world. It evokes legend and fantasy to any perfume lover.

The legend is that Coco Chanel has a choice of sample bottles labelled 1-5 and 20-24, she said to her perfumer Earnst Beaux,  "I present my dress collections on the fifth of May, the fifth month of the year and so we will let this sample number five keep the name it has already, it will bring good luck." Her official launch day of Chanel No.5 was May 5th 1921.

Coco Chanel 1937

This Floral-aldehydic blend of rose, jasmine, ylang-ylang, sandalwood (as well as 80 other ingredients), went on sale in 1921 in tiny vials only to exclusive clientele in Chanel rue Cambon boutique. The bottle we know today has only slightly evolved over time, however from 1924 the hand blown glass perfume bottle has stayed the same (while Eau de Toilette and Eau de Perfume bottles are mass produced).

Chanel have and always will be luxury and glamorous. There is something about owning a bottle of Chanel that lets you buy into a small part of the history of the perfume and the brand. I personally like No.5, it reminds me of a time that seems very lost to the past.

I also like this time of year where every two years the next No.5 campaign is launched, this year is another first with a man, Brad Pitt being the face of it. I'm still out whether I like it, so I shall leave you with my favourite, 2003/2004 with Nicole Kidman, I still get goosebumps with the final line....




 "Number five. Yes," Chanel said later, "that is what I was waiting for. A perfume like nothing else. A woman’s perfume, with the scent of a woman".

Masterclass - Colour Theory

 

The above is known as a colour wheel and is the the simplest way to explain how colour interact with each other.

 

Primary colours of Blue, Yellow and Red are known as this because they cannot be 'made' by mixing another colour. By mixing two of these colours they create secondary colours like orange, green and purple. By mixing a primary with a secondary, this then produces tertiary colours like red-orange or blue-green.

 

Colours that sit next to each other on the colour wheel are referred to as harmonious because they share the same base colour. A good example like this are the colours yellow-orange, orange or red-orange because they share the same base colour of orange. Strong tones of this colour look sophisticated when pastel coloured tones create more of subtle effect.

 

Complimentary colours are ones that one the opposite side of the colour wheel. These when put together make a bolder statement creating a more dramatic effect. Each primary colour has a complementary secondary colour and visa versa. When the colours are mixed together they also have a neutralising effect on each other, which is the key in colour correcting like green neutralises any red areas on the skin.

 

When we talk about the different tones to the skin being cool or warm this is referring to the colour sets that will compliment this tone. The colours yellow-green to blue-violet are know as more cool as they lean towards the blue tones. The warmer tones are from yellow-orange to red-violet lean more towards to the red.

 

 

World Mental Health Day

There is a majority of people who will read the title of this and skip over it, Mental Health still has a huge stigma clapped onto it. I am one of the 1 in 4 people who suffer with a 'illness', and I mean 'illness' loosely. Why do I mean 'illness' in that way? Because it's something that never be cured like an illness, and you will never really recover from it.

Mental illness is something that you live with, you learn how to cope, where to go if you need help and guidance. You have great, good, poor and horrid days (sometimes even minutes and seconds). Everyone also has different symptoms, different ways that it effects their life but also different ways of coping.

It's encouraging for someone like myself who are the 1 in 4, that there has been some progress - Time-To-Change that works towards openly talking about it, politicians and celebrities 'coming out', channel 4's Mad Season (however for me the name still re-enforced the 'mad part of mental health.). There are however many things that need to improve but the seeds have been sow.

There are many inspiring people out there who are knocking down the stigmas that people not in the know have. Rachael at Live, Food, Love writes the most honest and beautiful entries on her life that includes coping with Mental Health. Then, there's Amanda from Beauty From Pain Blog who not voices her opinions on Mental Health but SHOUTS about it for other sufferers, using her experiences to re-educate non-suffers.

You can also read my other entry Hope You're OK about my mental illness.

If you have read this, thank you for taking the time to stop, taking the first step of breaking the stigma and reading this rather than skipping over.

Anew PRO Line Corrector Treatment with A-F33

I was one of the 10,000 people who applied to try the new Avon Anew PRO Line Corrector Treatment with A-F33. The pack I got had 28 days of treatment in 6 little baby tubes, and is recommended to use day and night under moisturiser.

Avon says, "Gel lotion formulation with patented+ A-F33 for Avon's ultimate in fighting fine and deep wrinkles. 30ml.Our fastest wrinkle fighter EVER+U.S. patent. All cosmetic product results are achieved with continued use"

At the moment I noticed that my skin is now showing little signs of age, it's not as bright as it was nor as forgiving. As yet I have had no wrinkles show, the closest I have is lines on my forehead and that only comes because I know I can be expressive with my face.

When I started using this what I want from it is to even the tone of my skin, and make it look a little 'fresher'. During the day I used it with an moisturer with a SPF in and night with a little richer moisturise (which I did before this).

After a week my skin looked a lot more smoother, the lines I had on my forehead were lessened. Week two the lines were even lesson, but for me it was all about week three. I work in a dentist reception and one afternoon I got to talking about age to one person, he asked how old I was and I replied 30. He was shocked, he had me down at about 23 years old.

That to me is the ultimate validation that it was doing some good.

In the end I liked the result I had, I wanted it to smooth and freshen my skin, it did just that and I was overjoyed. I think it is a great product that can be added to an anti-ageing regime. I know that some people will stick their noses up that it is Avon, please do not let you put this off. For a product that can produce this kind of result for £30 (Currently on offer at £20), which with some premium lines will be £70 upwards, is phemoenmal.

Montagne Jeunesse (Chapped) Lip Balm

This is my second youtube video and my first review on the Montagne Jeunesse lip balm. This is BUVA approved and vegetarian friendly.

They are available online at Montagne Jeunesse's Website

Dear 16 Year Old Me

Hi Helen,

You are now writing this at 30, yes, 30 - The age that you think is really old and grown up. Well, older, yes but the jury is still out on grown up ;)

You are the time where your are still not sure what you're going to do next year, to be honest it's just been the past few years that I've realised the road I want to take. That little spark of interest in nail varnish will become an obsession, so instead of just picking something because your friend is doing it, go and join the beauty girls.

You will spend hours in the room opposite watching them in their whites and wishing you were there with them. Do it, you will not regret it. I did eventually do evening classes and am now steadily building up the portfolio of services. It would of been easier (and much cheaper, evening classes cost a lot!) to start when I was your age.

It does help that you are actually very good at it, as well as have a great passion for it.
As soon as you start earning, save it, I currently own a house (yes a whole house!) and you are not struggling but also not rich in money. Go out with friends and socialise but realise that the friends you make now will know you amazingly well. This doesn't mean the friends you make out are any less important, they all prove to be the best lot of people you know.

Boys - Ah yes, stop giggling! I know you've started dating now, and yes you do date a few 'boys'. A majority of your serious ones stay on as really good friends (one doesn't and if you can avoid him, please for the love of god do, you deserved so much more). You are now happily married, to would you believe, Mark. Yes, Mark the tall chap who leans on you like a post, and then you pull his tie. He is very much like he is now, very cheeky!

There is so much of my life so far that I would of done earlier if I had the confidence to do. You are a bright, smart, and wonderful person, Helen. When your passionate about something you really grab the bull by the horns! You are pretty, but keep the tomboy, indie look it really suit you (and I have it on great authority that's why Mark fell in love with you).

Life isn't about finding yourself, it's about creating yourself.

 

Masterclass - Lighting and How It Effects Colour Cosmetics

Your shopping for foundation and it looks great in the shop, you skip home put it there and well it's just turns out wrong. One of the factors is the lighting and this not only effects what foundation looks like but any colours cosmetics that you are going to use.

To understand this more we're going to look at the different categories of light: Natural and artificial to see what effects they have on cosmetics.

Natural Light

Unfortunately natural light is the leas forgiving for showing any imperfections and badly done make up. Daylight is the purest form of white light, and shows colours and textures to their fullest in make up. Sunlight does only falls on the face from above, it reflects onto the face from any light coloured surface that it hits, including walls and floors. Colour also looks more stronger in daylight.

White light is made up of seven colours: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet.

Artificial Light

These effects can vary depending on the light used.

Filament lamps using normal light bulbs can produce a yellowish light, this can dull effects of blue-toned colours and make red tones darker. If the light bulb is covered then it pushes the light downwards which then can produce sharper shadows.

Fluorescent lamps (mostly used in retail stores) give out a harsh bluish-white light which take any warmth of colour out of it. These tubes are usually covered by diffusers which can soften the light and disperse it better so it seems less harsh on the face.

There are some warmer fluorescent tubes in stores and in artificial light these are the closest to 'natural' light that you can get.

With any lighting you will also need to consider he intensity of the lighting that is being used. This is the distance that the light needs to travel to reach the surface that is being worked on. Intense lighting of theatre or camera shoots can provide a very washed out effect with little colour coming through. this is why stronger colours are used these type of uses so they can still show up when being used.

Light also plays a significant part in contouring a face (which we covered in last weeks Masterclass). Light falling onto the face from above reflects off of the boner parts of the face like nose, cheekbones and chin. Typically shadows fall under brow bone, under the eyes, nose to mouth line (called naso-labial folds), under the cheekbones, and under the chin.

This can be balanced by using other directional lights. These pictures below were from a lecture I went to the other week at Olympia Beauty. They demonstrate a mini photo shot using directional lighting to illuminate the face and counteract any shadows.