Swatches: Lily Lolo Mineral Cosmetics Blushes & Bronzers

I did some swatches of the blushers and bronzers that I ordered samples of from Lily Lolo Mineral Cosmetics. I did the swatches on my hand because I wanted a more textured surface to be able to really show you the shimmer in some of the products.

From left to right: Clementine Blush, Candy Girl Blush,
South Beach Bronzer and Waikiki Bronzer.

Both Candy Girl and Waikiki have shimmer in them, in fact they are so shimmery that I think that they are almost metallic looking. Because of this I do not use them on the cheeks since shimmery products tend to emphasize an uneven surface and therefore make the pores that I have on my cheeks look even more noticeable.
They are great as highlighters though if you use them with a big fluffy brush.

Both the Clementine Blush and the South Beach Bronzer are matte, but they aren't chalky looking at all but very soft in texture and also very pigmented. I do think that the South Beach bronzer has an orange tint to it, but I haven't used it enough to be able to tell you how it behaves on the skin.

My favorite so far out of the four is the Clementine Blush. I love the texture and the color of this. It is a very beautiful pink peach color and it looks very nice on the cheeks.


Update: I have used these products for some time now and I have written a review on the Bronzers.
superficialityblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-lily-lolo-mineral-bronzers.html

A quick sniff: Britney Spears Fantasy

When I am in town shopping I always seem to end up in the perfume departmente. I love to spray perfumes on small paper strips and to be able to smell a perfume that people are talking about and to see what all the hype is all about.

I have been watching some perfume collection videos on YouTube and did notice that many of the beauty gurus on YouTube have Britney Spears Fantasy in their perfume collection.
This made me curious and I decided that I needed to take a closer look at this perfume and I make a stop at my nearest perfume department and put some perfume on my wrist.

The first thing that I noticed was that this is a very sweet and powdery scent. The top notes include kiwi and red litchi but I couldn't sense the fruit in this perfume. The scent reminds me of caramel and I can definitely sense a powdery musc developing.

This perfume lasts a long time on my skin and it is very potent. I applied a very small amount but I could feel it for several hours after I had applied it.

This perfume wasn't for me it was way to sweet for me and it actually made me sneeze a couple of times. I so wanted to like this but I can't see myself buying this perfume in the future.

I do recommend this perfume to people who like sweet perfumes. It is a nice perfume and it last a long time on the skin so you don't have to reapply it during the day, so you do get a lot for your money.

The notes in this perfume are:
Top: kiwi and red litchi
Middle: white chocolate, jasmine and orchid
Base: musc, orris root and woodsy notes.

source: Frangrantica



This review is based on first impression made from a test spray on one of my wrists. I am not affiliated with the company and it is my own opinion.

Trying some new mineral makeup, a small haul from Lily Lolo Mineral Cosmetics

I have decided that it is time for me to try mineral makeup again. My experience with mineral makeup is minimal. I did try some samples from Everday Minerals but I wasn't super impressed. I think that I picked out the wrong colors and the wrong finish and the result wasn't very impressing.

I recently discovered a UK based brand called Lily Lolo Mineral Cosmetics. This company offers mineral makeup without chemicals and synthetic dyes. Their makeup is also Bismuth Oxychloride free which is always a plus since Bismuth Oxychloride can irritate the skin. I was also glad to see that the ingredient list for the foundation is talc free.

I ordered some samples and three of the samples where foundation shades. I have to say that the most negative thing with ordering makeup online is that it is very hard to find the right color for your foundation. I like that companies like Lily Lolo understands this and offers samples on their site.



These are the things that I picked up (all are samples)

Foundation
Warm Peach (light and warm undertones) this was a good match to my NC20 skin tone
Blondie (light and balanced undertones) this was also a good match
In The Buff (light-medium and balanced undertones) this was too dark for me.

Flawless Silk Finishing Powder
Stardust Shimmer Powder
Waikiki, a light shimmery bronzer for light complexions
South Beach, a matte bronzer

Blush
Candy Girl, a shimmery pale pink color
Clementine, a matte peachy pink color.

All of the samples except for the blushes came in small jars, the blushes came in small Zip Lock bags. I thought that the sample jars were quite messy to use since they don't have a sifter. When you open the lid you get powder everywhere.
The shimmery products are very finely milled so there is no chunky glitter in any of them. Both the Candy Girl Blush and the Waikiki Bronzer are very shimmery but there is no glitter in them.

I liked the online store, it was easy to order from and all of the products have good descriptions accompanying them and you get a good idea about the colors just by reading the descriptions.
It took a week from the day I ordered it until I received the package and the company shipped my order the day after I had ordered.


I paid for these products with my own money and it is my own opinion. I am not affiliated with Lily Lolo Mineral Cosmetics.

Review: Aqua Mirabilis Body Butter from LUSH

The Body Butters from LUSH are basically solid moisturizers that you use in the shower. They usually contain solid cocoa butter and sheah butters and most of them also contain exfoliating ingredients such as ground almonds. You can also find non-exfoliating ones such as King of Skin.

The Body Butters should often be used on damp skin. You use them in the shower after you have used your soap or shower gel. After I have used mine I rinse my body to remove the exfoliating bits and any excess of the body butter. Be careful not to rub your body with the towel when you are drying yourself. This will remove the moisturizing body butters from your body, instead gently pat yourself dry to ensure that you don't remove too much of the Body Butter.

So what do I think of Aqua Mirabilis?

Aqua Mirabilis contains cocoa and almond butter to moisturize and ground almonds to exfoliate your body. It works great as an exfoliator but I find that it is a little bit harsh on the skin. I usually use this on my legs and gently on my arms but it is way too abrasive to be used on the chest area and the stomach area.

I have previously used Buffy an other exfoliating Body Butter from LUSH and found that it left a greasy residue on the skin after I used it. I am glad to say that Aqua Mirabilis doesn't do this and after I have used it my skin feels very soft.

Aqua Mirabilis also contains sandalwood and rose oil which gives this Body Butter a dry and woody kind of scent. I cannot make out any rose in the scent but there is also a nutty note in the scent that I think comes from the cocoa butter since I can feel this in almost every solid moisturizer from LUSH.

Overall Grade: This is so far my favorite Body Butter from LUSH. I think that this is more of an exfoliator than a moisturizer and a little too abrasive on the skin. It makes my skin feel soft after I used it and I will definitely buy this again.

Source: LUSH UK


I paid for this product with my own money and it is my own opinion. I am not affiliated with this company.

On my lips: Chanel Rouge Allure in 59 Nude

Here is a picture of the Chanel lipstick I found on sale. It is called 59 Nude but I don't think that this classifies as a nude. I would describe the color as a terracotta with fine glitter particle in it and not as a nude color.

I love this color it isn't too strong and it works great with a tan. It looks a little bit pink in the picture but I think that it is my natural lip color that shines through, making it look more pink toned.

The formula of the lipstick resembles the Lustre lipsticks from MAC and it gives the lips some shine. It isn't drying at all and it is possible to build up the color so you can decide if you want bold lips or just a hint of color.

A little Tip on how to use the Lustre Drops from MAC

The Lustre Drops from MAC are basically liquid highlighters in a small bottle. They were first released with the Style Warriors collection that came out during spring 2009, but they made a comeback in the To The Beach collection released this spring/summer. I own one bottle of Lustre Drops in the color Sun Rush, a peachy bronze color with lots of gold pearl, and I picked mine up when it came out with the Style Warriors collection.

The Lustre Drops are a multipurpose product and when I first bought mine I didn't exactly know what to do with it. So I thought that it would be a good idea to list some different ways you can use this product and also do a little mini review at the same time.

1. Highlighter: You can use this as a highlighter, however I find that Sun Rush is way to metallic and pigmented for my fair skin. It may look better on people that have a darker skin tone, but be careful because there is a lot of shimmer in this one. I think that Pink Rebel, a pink color with gold pearl, would look better as a highlighter on fair skin tones .
If I am using this as a highlighter I dilute it by mixing it with a foundation or a face cream.

2. Mix it with products to give the skin some glow. You can mix your Lustre Drops with your foundation if you want to give your face an all over glow. You can also mix it with your moisturizer if you don't like to wear foundation in the summer.
Another great way to use this is to mix it with your body lotion. This will give your body a nice golden glow.

3. As a cream shadow on your lids. This is my favorite way to use the Lustre Drops. I apply it to my lids and it looks really nice. It gives the lids a subtle peach color but a lot of golden sheen. This is a favorite on hot summer days when I don't like to wear a lot of eyeshadow.

This is three examples on how to use the Lustre Drops. They are a multipurpose products so there is probably more ways to use them than the ones that I have listed, just use you imagination.

So what do I think of the Lustre Drops?

It is a nice product but It isn't a must have product. If you missed it when it was released you don't have to be upset because you can live without it.
It is a product that can be used in many ways but I think that Sun Rush is much too dark and much too shimmery to work as a highlighter. If you don't use it lightly you will end up with a very metallic looking cheekbones and that isn't really I look that you should go for.

I paid for this product with my own money and it is my own opinion.

Some new things: Hitting the sales

A I mentioned in my earlier post I have been on a little shopping spree and I got some new stuff. My main goal was to check out the summer sales but I also went to the local MAC counter.

From Left to Right: Beautiful Iris, Amber Lights and Steamy

The first place I went to was MAC and I picked up three eyeshadows, Amber Lights (Frost), Beautiful Iris ( Veluxe Pearl) and Steamy (Frost). There wasn't any sales at MAC at least I don't think so.
Steamy was an impulse buy because I loved the way it looked when I swatched it on my hands. When I came home I felt that it was similar to Parrot a MAC eyeshadow that I already own, but there is more green in Steamy.


After my visit to the MAC counter I saw that the Smashbox counter had a little sale going on and amongst the small number of items I found the Self Adjusting Powder Foundation for 50% off.
I have been looking at this before but I felt it was a little bit too expensive for what you get so I never picked it up. The SA mentioned that it was on sale because they were discontinuing it. I picked up the shade Light L3-L4 and for reference I have the shade NC20 at MAC.



My last stop was NK a luxury department store here in Sweden. They always have great sales in their beauty department and you can find high-end brands for 40-50% off. I picked up two things at the department store, a Shiseido lip gloss for 40% off and a great bargain, a Chanel Rouge Allure lipstick for 50% off.

The lipgloss from Shiseido is a white golden shimmer gloss and it is called G29 Mellow Gold. This doesn't give much color on the lips but I think it will look nice layered on top of lipsticks and too give the lips some sparkle.

Finding the Rouge Allure lipstick for 50 % off completely made my day. The lipstick is gorgeous and it is in the color 59 Nude. It looks great on the lips and feels great to it feels like a better version of the Lustre lipsticks from MAC.

If you happen to have a NK department store near you I definitely recommend that you check out their sales. There are some great items in the stores right now.