Product Rave - Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate

This has got to be one of my favourite makeup purchases of all time!

Say hello to cheekbones in a pan and a real glow to the skin.

It is a luxurious cream duo to contour and highlight your face. 

Creams in my opinion are more superior than powders to do this as they are more skin-like and melt in with the foundation beautifully.

I used a Real techniques 'Contour brush' to apply the 'Shade' side to anywhere I wanted to push back; so underneath my cheekbones, temples, jawline etc. and patted on the 'Illuminate' side with my finger anywhere I wanted to bring forward; so tops of my cheekbones, brow bone, cupid's bow etc.   

For day to day wear I would certainly make it a little more subtle! And I did have to set the creams with a powder contour and highlight for a long lasting application that looked radiant and not greasy.

Other products used;

Eve Pearl - Cream Foundation Duo in 'Fair'

Tom Ford - Shade & Illuminate in 'Intensity One' (also used on eye lids)

Dior - 'Amber Diamond' Highlighting Powder (to set Illuminate side)

MAC - Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 (to correct dark circles)

Clinique - Chocolate Chip Matte Eye shadow

Clinique - High Impact Curling Mascara

Clinique - Superfine Liner for Brows '02 Soft Brown'

MAC - Eyeshadows in 'Omega' & 'Concrete' (to set brow pencil in place) 

Tom Ford - Eye Defining Pencil in 'Expresso' (smudged into water and lashline)

Elizabeth Arden - 8 Hour Cream (on eyes and lips for a glossy-wet look) 

Avaliable from Selfridges & Harrords for.. cough cough.. £55!!

I do think it is worth it if you are into your makeup and you struggle to find cream contours that aren't too orange and cream highlights that aren't too glittery.

I do love you Mr Ford!

A morning of making up...

My gorgeous friend Penny lent me her face for some natural makeup.

Used a few lovely bits and pieces including;

YSL - Le teint touche eclat Foundation in 'B20'

Benefit - 'Hoola' Bronzer

Daniel Sandler - Watercolour Blush in 'Charm'

Halloween Transformation

Halloween Transformation.

'The ghost of Marie Antoinette' Costume & wig is from ebay.

Such fun to do something gory with the slit neck!

Circus Themed Fancy Dress Party!

A speedy Jester & Joker makeup creation for a fancy dress party last year.

I made up Logan as Heath Ledger's character in the Christopher Nolan Film 'The Dark Knight' (2008)

We bought both our costumes off ebay, I believe you either gotta do it properly or not bother at all!

Fire (in the bathroom!)?

An evening playing around with the Sugar Pill Eye Shadow Palette in 'Burning Heart.' Not really a daytime makeup, but good fun for making yourself look too scary to leave the house!

Make-up storage 1.0

Here is a peak of my current make-up collection and storage.

(N.B: I will probably always be looking to improve how I store everything to get it meticulously organised, so this is layout is a work in progress and in no way a perfect example of how to do it!)

I am lucky enough to have been given my grandmothers dressing table to be able to hold and display my most treasured collection. I adore the elegant curved shape of the table top and the circular mirrors.

From L - R; My perfumes, a little decorative dish i picked up from a charity shop to hold my hair pins, an acrylic lipstick holder and storage pots both from amazon and a Revlon magnifying mirror from Boots.

In the first draw I keep skincare such as primers, moisturizers and serums as well as eyeliners, glitters and miscellaneous tools like sharpeners, tweezers and false eyelashes.

The next draw (not shown) holds less interesting stuff like body butters, hair products and brushes.

Underneath on the floor I have my hairdryer and straighteners in the lime green spotty box, and within the clear plastic bags is my pro-kit that I carry with me to use on clients. 

Misc photo of a make-up for evening.

Wish I could remember what lip product combo this was!