all week long - Ben Nye Eye Shadow and Rouge Palette

A while ago I pulled out my Ben Nye Essential Eye Shadow and Rouge Palette, as I ashamedly had not used it once since buying it at IMATS in 2011! I wanted to give it a good run, and have been dabbing my brush into the cheek and eye colours for over a week now. I thought that I would get sick of it, but I'm still going quite well and have only strayed a few times.

Vanilla, Shell, Cork, Espresso, Smokey Taupe and Black
Nectarine, Blushing Bride, Dusty Pink, Vintage Rose, Pink Bliss and Fresh Coral

 For what is I think the first time in my beauty-loving stage of life, I have been wearing a super toned down eye look every day! I feel quite strange not rocking the shimmer, but the fact that wearing a matte cream eyeshadow like Shell over the lid makes me excited is a wonderful thing. I sometimes run a little bit of Cork, Espresso or Smokey Taupe through the crease, but generally it is Cream and some essence Hot Chocolate eyeliner before I'm out the door. The matte shades in this palette are done so well, they aren't chalky and blend on the lid with such ease it makes mornings simple. Cream + Hot Chocolate, see?

I've been steadily working my way through all of these blushes, and I am happy to report that all of them are really lovely! Some are quite pale so might not suit darker complexions than mine, but I find them to sit really nicely on my fair skin. There is a definite stand out shade though, in the form of the booming bright Nectarine which is just divine. I've been returning to this shade quite a bit and pairing it with my Revlon Pango Peach lipgloss, which is also a big love of mine. Now that the weather is slowly heating up I refuse to take lipstick out with me in my handbag for fear of it melting, so I am turning to some lovely glosses like this one!

 

What do you think of this eye and cheek palette?

Have you tried anything from Ben Nye, or have you been to IMATS?

Do you like wearing gloss in the summer too?

 

Emma @emmabovarybeauty

Classique // a fragrance by Jean Paul Gaultier

Jean Paul Gaultier released his first fragrance in 1993, originally self titled but later renamed Classique.

Since I am far from a perfume expert, I headed online to to look up the notes for Classique. They include orange blossom (love!), rose (could detect that), musk (yep), mandarin, aniseed, ylang ylang, ginger, vanilla, wood, orchid, bergamot, iris and carnation.

I stumbled upon a great review of this fragrance on 'Now Smell This', and found this quote from Gaultier himself:

One part dusty loose powder, like my grandmother wore — I think it was old Coty; one part that smell you get when you are sitting in the front row of the theater — for me, I think of going to The Chatelet when I was 12, and the curtain goes up, and the hot lights are on the costumes, wigs and sets, and you breathe it all in. And, just to be modern, one part nail polish remover!

But listen, this is not a joke. I set out to create something you really want to wear. Smells are important because they remind you of certain people. If you smell this and you think of me, I want it to be good! And there are flowers, vanilla, a lot of things.” (via Women’s Wear Daily, 3/12/93)

On me, it smells powdery and sweet, with a floral edge that makes it wearable. My sister isn't a fan of 'nanna' fragrances like lavender, rose or anything powdery, but when she smelt it on me she really liked it. We both agreed that though it was definitely musky and powdery, there was something else that made it stand apart from a 'nanna' fragrance. I attribute that to the floral notes within the scent, and also to the inclusion of mandarin and vanilla within the concoction. Having said all of this, let it be known that I am partial to wearing 'nanna' fragrances, so it would be wise to sniff this and see how you feel about it on the skin as well.

I love the lace adorned frosted sample vial of this fragrance, and I love the quirky female torso design of the bottle that appeals to the classic and quirky sides of this fragrance.

 

Are you a fan of 'nanna' or powdery fragrances?

What notes are your favourites in perfumes?

*Pretty sure I obtained this in a beauty sample box. Honesty, always.