The Princess Tag | Favourite Luxury Beauty Products

So Iv'e decided to do a little bit of a different post today. The Princess Tag (Favourite Luxury Beauty Products) was created by the beautiful Tati from Glam Life Guru. Although Iv'e not actually been tagged to do it, I thought it would be a bit of fun. Lets face it, we all love a good bargain, but theres something exciting about a high end splurge. I know a Lipstick purchase should be based upon pigmentation, shade, ease of application and longevity, but dont you agree when encased within a sleek black MAC bullet, or fancy gold packaging with an embossed YSL logo makes the product all the more special?! So what products leave me feeling like a Princess?! 

Foundation - 

No matter how many times I stray away from Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua (heres looking at you Estee Lauder DoubleWear and DiorSkin Nude BB), I always find myself coming back to it. This lightweight, long wearing, 'your skin but better' foundation, to me is the ultimate everyday essential. You can read my full review here.

Concealer - 

For me Collection 2000s Lasting perfection is the creme de la creme of Concealers. However if I were to splurge on a high end concealer it would have to be MAC's Studio Sculpt. This creamy offering applies like a dream, and due to its consistency is perfect for covering those problematic spots. Finish with a setting powder and your good to go. 

Powder - 

As a sufferer of oily/combination skin, I rely heavily upon powder to keep my makeup in tact throughout the day. Chanel's Les Beiges Healthy Glow Powder prevents me from becoming an oily mess. Unlike most powders this velvety soft beauty doesn't leave me looking cakey, infact its so sheer its practically unnoticeable. 

Bronzer - 

For Bronzer I've chosen Tarte's Park Avenue Princess (how ironic). This gorgeous bronzer has a slight hint of sparkle but doesn't leave you looking like a disco ball. Like the blushers, Park Avenue Princess is seriously pigmented, so much so that a little dusting definitely goes a long way. So what makes it the ultimate luxury bronzer for me?! Park Avenue Princess gives a lovely flush of colour without looking orange, or muddy like most (no one wants to look tango'ed right?!) 

Blush - 

Keeping with the Tarte theme, it will come as no suprise that I chose Tarte's Amazonian Clay Blush in Tipsy. This beautiful peach shade is seriously pigmented, easy to work with and long lasting (I seriously agree with Tarte's 12 hour claims). The fact that Tarte products are hard to get hold of in the UK makes this blush all the more special. 

Highlighter - 

Tom Ford's Shade and Illuminate is the ultimate luxury product. The highlighting shade, leaves a gorgeous sheer glow. Aside from the packaging and gulp worthy price tag, what makes it special is that it brightens the face without being overly shimmery. 

Eyeshadow - 

It will come as no suprise that I opted for the Urban Decay Naked Palette. Urban Decay shadows in general, blow all other competition out of the water. Ridiculously pigmented and buttery soft, whats not to love?!

Eyeliner - 

For me, an eyeliner needs to be jet black, super pigmented, long wearing (my eyes are forever watering) and easy to apply!! I am happy to say that I have found all this in Chanel's Liquid Eyeliner. I literally swatched every high end liquid liner in House Of Fraser before i settled on this.

Mascara - 

If you've read my posts for a while, you will be well aware that Im forever on the look out for the ultimate mascara. Although Iv'e yet to find the one, that holy grail Mascara that creates the perfect false lash effect, I always find myself going back to YSL's Shocking Mascara. With various sized plastic bristles, the wand makes applying the product a doddle, catching all of the lashes, resulting in a "shocking" fluttery effect. If that isn't enough to make you swoon, YSL's Shocking Mascara comes encased in luxurious gold packaging, embossed with the YSL logo. 

Lip Liner - 

My one and only high end Lip Liner RiRi Hearts M.A.C Pro Longwear Pencil (RiRiWoo) is a pigmented matte pencil, and the perfect base for bright reds to stop them migrating. 

Lipstick - 

As a total Lipstick junkie it was really hard to pick just one shade. After much contemplation Kate Spade won. Everything about the designers lipsticks are princess like from the fancy spring loaded gold packaging to the name "Supercalifragilipstick" (oh how whimsical). Fuchsia Fete is a fabulous wearable, sheer bright pink, with a smooth, moisturising formula, and balm like consistency.  

Lipgloss - 

Never before had a lipgloss made the grade, until Chanel's Jalousie's Glossimer came on the scene. Forget poor colour pay off and uber sticky lips. This highly pigmented bright pink is opaque enough to be worn alone or paired alongside Fuchsia Fete.

Brow Product - 

Benefit Brow Zings is the ultimate eyebrow shaping kit. With a small compact mirror, pigmented wax and powder, two brushes and a tweezer, what more could you ask for!

MISC - 

I couldn't talk about my favourite luxury beauty products without mentioning Chanel's Les Beiges Kabuki Brush. I searched high and low for this  brush after reading Claudia's rave reviews. Not only is it a perfect companion to the Les Beiges Powder (definitely a handbag essential for touchups throughout the day) but it is literally the softest brush I have come across. With chic black packaging adorning the iconic double 'C's this little kabuki screams luxury. 

Nail Polish - 

This was such an easy product to pick. Chanel's Peridot is the one and only high end polish in my collection. Peridot is a beautiful green/gold duo chrome shade, which reflects a hint of blue in some light. Because of that, this shade adorns my nails for most of Autumn/Winter.

If you decide to give this Tag a go, please leave your link below so I can check it out

I tag - 

Claudia from Claudia Couture

Erica from EricaWears

Trina from TrinaWears

Ally from MissAllyV

Charlotte from Little Miss C

What are your Favourite Luxury Beauty Products?! 

Kate Spade New York Glitter Nail Polish Set

Guilty Pleasures | Spiked Punch | Night On The Town | Razzle Dazzle 

This post has seriously been a long time coming, patiently awaiting its turn in the limelight whilst burrowed under posts containing snaps of the latest and greatest products to hit my vanity!! 

Kate Spade is one of those brands that unless you live in London, isn't readily available in the UK (unless you fancy paying extortionate shipping fees from across the pond) and perhaps one of the reasons why im a little bit infatuated with the colourful brand. So when I saw this set of Kate Spade polishes pop up on eBay, I knew it was to good an opportunity to pass me by. Somewhat of an eBay novice, I shamefully have to admit that I fell into a crazy bidding war, and after what felt like forever triumphantly walked away with these beauties for a bargain price!! 

Enough of my ramblings, lets talk polish. The set itself contains four vibrant polishes each adorning the iconic Kate 'Spade' logo. In all honesty the bottles are a little small, but at the same time plenty big enough. 

The stand out shades for me are unsurprisingly the glitter ones. Guilty Pleasures is a beautiful topcoat brimming with various shades of gold glitter, which makes it the perfect polish to take a simple manicure from drab to fab. The same goes for Razzle Dazzle, a multicoloured topcoat which is not too disimilar to OPI's Rainbow Connection. You know the one, that gold dust shade from the Muppets Collection that manages to sell for silly money on eBay. 

Although the stars of the set, Spiked Punch and Night On The Town also deserve a piece of the limelight. These gorgeous creamy shades dry quickly and are opaque in just two coats. 

The only negative about this set? Im not to sure of its availability, however if your desperate to get your mitts on this set, theres nothing wrong in stalking eBay like a crazy woman (oh okay maybe its just me that does that haha).

"Playing dress-up begins at age five and never truly ends" ... (Kate Spade)

I dont think this Kate Spade quote could be much truer. From a very early age I acquired a serious love for dress up, which usually involved strutting infront of my mothers mirror in her favourite red heels. Adorning a dress fit for any budding Disney princess, whilst showered in pearls given to me by my Nana to sit pretty on my beloved Fischer Price vanity (ah memories).  

That thrilling sense of excitement standing infront of a mirror as a child, head to toe in beautiful things remains still at 21!! I long for the day that I possess my own walk in wardrobe filled with rows of beautiful clothes and accessories, sitting pretty, ready for me to play dress up all day to my hearts content.
So dress up these days doesn't include looking like Cinderella's sidekick, but there is still something special about putting on a pair of sparkly heels ready for a night on the town, using my favourite lipstick in all its beautifully packaged glory, and on a daily basis picking out a piece of jewellery, to dress up a plain tee and jeans!! 

When my mum came home with this beautiful yet edgy Kate Spade arm candy, crafted in smooth leather, with gold detailing, I couldn't wait to put it on. Okay so it may be a little extravagant per-say for everyday wear, but paired alongside a gold bangle and my beloved Michael Kors watch, I feel as if im playing a little game of dress up, yet nobody but myself knows. 

Do you still love playing dress up? 

Tuesday pick me up: Kate Spade ' Things We Love'

What things make you happy? personally for me I cant help but smile when I see a quirky quote, a pair of shoes adorning a cute bow, and anything related to the Big Apple (or the States in general). Faced with these things I cant help but wear a grin resembling that of a cheshire cat. Kate Spades latest coffee table read 'Things We Love' includes a few of my favourite feel good things, whilst having enough glitz to stand out in the bright lights of broadway, and make the greyest of days just that little brighter. 

From the moment I lunged at the courier and grabbed the great big box housing my latest read, I have been unable to put the beautiful book down. Unwrapping the plain brown paper, I acted like a child on Christmas morning when I was greeted with (in contrast to the boring paper) a vibrant hardback, with beautiful gold edges. 

Brimming with fabulous bold prints, photographs, and hilarious quotes, each page manages to incorporate a hint of that whimsical Kate Spade charm (Beware once you pick up this page turner, its a little hard to put it back down). Each of the 20 chapters include some of their favourite things, from the fabulous city of new york where the brand began 20 years ago. The love of bows, something which is heavily present with most of Kate's beautiful designs. Oh and what girl doesn't love a bit of sparkle (there is even a chapter on that). 

longing for summer, and in need of a little pick me up during this cold, dull weather? then this book is for you. things we love deserves a place on every girls coffee table, bedside table, or book shelf!! 

Now does anyone fancy taking me to London, to indulge in the treasure trove also known as Kate Spade New York? 

'Things We Love' can be purchased from Amazon for about £20