Ace of Base: Glowing Face Trio

With every change in season my skin seems to succumb to some sort of episode; and the onset of Autumn triggered an especially monumental epidermal flip-out. It was dull; it was dry; my cheeks and nose were flaky. Makeup refused to blend into my skin - it just sat on the surface in a cake mess.

I tried scrubs, masks, exfoliants and various creams and lotions but nothing seemed to help. Then one day as I was staring ingot he mirror lamenting the state of my skin I realised that my troubles all began when I started using the BareMinerals Prime Time Primer. When I applied my foundation sans primer, all was well again.

I replaced my old primer with the Bourjois Happy Light Luminous Serum Primer and was instantly impressed with the way it melded with my foundation and the brightened, fresh look it gave my skin.

For extra glow I like to add Dior Glow Maximizer to the high points of my face as a highlight. Technically, it's a primer but it's shimmer is a little too intense to use all over the face for me and mine, but I do love the gleam it adds to my cheekbones.

Finally, to revive the freshness powder can sometimes take away, I like to spritz MAC's Fix+ Spray to not only refresh my makeup but also meld everything together. I haven't really payed much attention to MAC since my uni days but this spray has rekindled that little flame.

With these three products there is no way your face could look anything but fresh and radiant.

What Would Alexa Chung Do?

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When plagued by life's many complexities, I often stop and ask myself "What would Alexa Chung do?"And while answers such as "date a rockstar" may not provide the prudent guidance one might require, I have found that the question WWAD? has never led me astray in the serious matters of style.

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She is a graceful waif; a classic 60s kitten; a retro beauty. Her style is feminine without flounce. While trying not to embarrass myself too deeply, I admit hers is the style I attempt to emulate when I'm feeling especially girly. The kitten heels, baby doll dresses, shifts, fedoras and eyeliner flicks create striking silhouettes. 

Above all, though, her look is effortlessly undone. Understated. Never more than it needs to be.

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In the immortal words of Charles Dickens: "God bless you, Alexa Chung, every one."

Sorting Through the Rubbish: EMPTIES!

The voyeur in us all loves a little peek at choose to slather on or about their person, and Heaven knows I love me an empties post so I've saved all of my rubbish and all of my opinions for this here post.

1. Lush Ro's Argan Body Conditioner - This was a mini sized tub I received as part of a Valentines pack to which I treated myself. The sales assistant asked if I was buying it for anyone special, I replied no - the whole event was very depressing but these sorry circumstances have no bearing on the product itself which I really enjoyed. This was extremely moisturising (even for my Saharan skin) and the rose scent made me smell like Turkish delight, which cannot be a bad thing. I would repurchase this but $32 for a full sized tub seems a little excessive.

2. Lancome Genifique Yeux Light Pearl - Again, this was a mini I received in a Christmas set with a mascara and a travel sized eye makeup remover. It's an eye serum which you apply with a tear-shaped metal ball applicator which really just looks like a little silver testicle in the end on a pole. Resemblances to genitalia aside, the "light pearl" provides a lovely, soothing sensation when applied to the under eye area. I liked this, but the expense would drive me to seek out a more reasonably price alternative.

3. Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation - I've spoken of my love for this foundation before. It's not matte but not dewy - more of a satin finish and blends into the skin so well. I'm trying to experiment a bit with my bases and try some new products but I would definitely repurchase this baby.

4. Smashbox Photo Finish Oil-Free Primer - Now, let me preface this my saying that I don't know too much about primers. I've been told I need to use one so that's what I do - but as far as being able to discern the good from the mediocre? Forget about it. This did seem to provide a smoother base for my foundation but I'm not convinced it really made my makeup last for much longer than it would sans primer. Everyone and their Mum raves about this primer but it was only just OK for me. I think I could find something better for that price.

5. Kevyn Aucoin The Curl Mascara - If you don't like tubing mascaras, you will not like this mascara. I don't like tubing mascaras. I find them difficult to remove - almost gooey. Unfortunately, I didn't realise this was a tubing mascara when I bought it. It's fine for length but it doesn't do much in the way of volumising lashes and I didn't feel as though it held a curl any better than other mascaras I've tried.

6. Simple Clear Skin Oil Balancing Moisturiser - If you have oily kin, this might be a good daytime moisturiser for you. It's very light and sinks in quickly. However, this wasn't enough for my combination skin which tends to get dehydrated around my cheeks. I ended up using this as a quick fix for any dry patches before applying my makeup, which it was fine for but I wouldn't repurchase this as it just wasn't suited to my skin type.

7. Polished London Dry Shampoo - This is meant to smell like coconut. I most assuredly does not. What it does smell of is cheap dry shampoo, which is exactly what it is. All this product seemed to do was leave my hair looking dull and full of residue. It was awful.

So, there you have it. Opinions.

Chanel Pastel Tweed Nail Art Tutorial

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I saw this tutorial from Spindle magazine via @effynails on instagram (an infinite source of nail art inspiration) and knew that this was something worthy of procrastination of other, more adult, tasks.

This tutorial is so simple - it's really just a collection of lines painted haphazardly in pretty colours. Here's what you'll need:

• Cream/ off-white nail polish (I used Lime Crime's Milky Ways)
• Pastel striper polishes in Blue, green, pink and purple (or pastel nail polishes and a very fine brush if you don't have striper polishes)
• Gold Glitter nail polish
• Black striper polish

Apply two coats of the cream coloured polish. Once dry to the touch, using the pastel blue polish, paint two vertical and two horizontal lines as shown above.

Then, with the pastel green polish, paint three horizontal and three vertical lines.

Using the pastel pink polish, paint three vertical lines and four incomplete horizontal lines (two coming out from each side), as shown above.

Paint a few incomplete purple lines close to the pink lines.

Do the same with the gold glitter polish, painting over a few of the other colours to create the tweed effect.

Finally, sung the black polish, paint some thin crosses  on the nail and finish it off by painting two tin borders down either side of the nail.

When everything is dry apply a topcoat to protect your efforts.

Well done, you!

Now Playing: Wild Beats - Present Tense

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When Wild Beasts play they conjure up a vision of a bawdy Midsummer Night’s Dream. Their music sounds like a prayer to Dionysus; a frenzied Pagan ritual. Their lyrics evoke humanity’s basest emotions – fear, desire, and lust. A sense of “otherness,” entirely dissimilar to anything you may hear elsewhere, pervades much of their music.

There is a primitive hunger in songs like Wanderlust, the lead single from their latest album Present Tense: “Now that you belong to me/ I’ll tell you how I want to feel…” The percussion is both propulsive and jarring, driving the song yet also providing a slight discordant unease, imbuing it with a slightly unsettling air.

Vocal harmonising, although still present, has given way to more synth arrangements. However, the songs are no less intricate than their previous albums and standouts such as Mecca, Pregnant Pause and Daughters are each underscored by a murky bass, shrouding harmonies in earthy, atmospheric tones.

In short: this is very good.