Breast Cancer Awareness month - Elemis

As per, one of my favourite brands in the whole wide world, Elemis, has stepped up to raise awareness and cashola for Breast Cancer Care, pledging £10,000 to the charity. Amaze.

You can show your support by picking up the Sparkling Beauty Collection for just £50 (and it's £143 - woah) and get your mitts on a gorgeous pink vanity case packed with Pro-Collagen Lifting Treatment Neck and Bust, Pro-Collagen Marine Cream, Cellular Recovery Skin Bliss capsules, Visible Brilliance and the new Elemis eau de parfum. I believe I'm what's commonly referred to as a vocal supporter of Elemis (also known as a gobby cow) and when I'm out of Pro-Collagen Marine Cream, I know it. My skin just isn't the same. Sob.

So do your bit for Breast Cancer Care and bag some seriously cheapity cheap prods into the bargain.
Result.

Breast Cancer Awareness month - The Sanctuary

I have been unbelievably slack in promoting Breast Cancer Awareness Month this year which is absolutely unforgivable, so basically prepare yourself for a barrage of wonderful things to get involved in for a very, very good cause...

Starting with something I'll definitely be booking when I get back to the UK at the end of the month, The Sanctuary is offering a Pink Pamper Day throughout October to help raise awareness. For every £99 booking, £5 will be donated directly to Breast Cancer Care.

The Pink Pamper Day will include:
Full use of the spa facilities with day admission
A rejuvenating 25 minute treatment
Pink Prosecco and cupcake
Complimentary Pink Jessica nail polish worth £8.95

And you can upgrade your treatment to 50 minutes for £20 - amaze.
So you can fight stress and cancer all in one go, what are you waiting for*?



*Don't say payday, this is what credit cards were made for. No buyer's remorse, it's CHARITY.

MAC Venomous Villains

I don't have word for how jealous I am of Ms Keren for this one so I'm not going to try.
Wah. I love Disney and I love MAC... I've been dying to get my mitts on this collection for the longest time. I'm off to MAC in Soho tomorrow to grab whatever I can.
So do your worse Keren, DO YOUR WORST.

Mwah ha ha! This evil cackle is brought to you courtesy of the MAC Venomous Villains range. Beautylover is turning green with envy, because I got my Evil Queen talons on the fiendishly fabulous collection last night at MACs first blogger’s preview.

Venomous Villains is a collaboration with Disney and is based on 3 of Disney’s most infamous femme fatales; Cruella de Vil, Snow White’s Evil Queen, Sleeping Beauty’s Maleficent, and also The Princess and the Frog’s Dr Facilier, those three ladies terrified me as a child, but also massively impressed me with their dark take on glamour. (I have to admit I haven’t seen The Princess and the Frog, yet.) I love the packaging, the illustrations really stand out against MAC's signature black. I am a children's book designer so I guess it's up my street, and I know Beautylover is a Disney lover too, but I can imagine it's a bit childish for some more grown-up 30 somethings (sorry Beautylover you are now part of the gang...)
Just so you all know, I hate her. SHE'S IN HER THIRTIES TOO - BL

At the preview there was a demo of the Cruella de Vil look... So I’ll start with that. (BTW I can't take credit for this photo, I only had my phone, so I asked MAC to send it!)

Cruella is known for her super arched eyebrows, chiselled cheekbones and red lipstick. I thought it was actually a completely wearable look, and there are plenty of products in the range that could be toned down for daytime. The make-up artist made it look super easy, I was amazed at how quickly she stuck on the eyelashes, there is no way a normal person could put them on that quickly, and also without sticking them to their finger instead of their eye!

One of the lovely MAC ladies from the High Street Kensington store, Tabby, helped me choose some items because I was suffering from major indecision, and also did me some Maleficent eyes which I did contemplate sleeping in, but thought the better of!

And in the end I went home with...

CRUELLA’S Wicked Ways Lipglass, well you never have too many lipglosses and this one is a lovely nude colourEVIL QUEEN’S Beauty Powder in Oh So FairMALEFICENT’S Mineralize Eye Shadow duo in My Dark Magic, Tabby used this on me - you like? Sorry for the dodgy self-portrait.
DR.FACILIER’S M·A·C Magically Cool Liquid Powder in Truth & Light which I am the most curious to see how it looks. As I tried a bit on my hand and it was completely shimmery and smooth to touch.

I felt a bit of shoppers remorse for a few minutes, but when I got home and had another look I think these will be well loved and wished I'd bought more!

Available October 2010 at all M·A·C locations on 0870 034 2676 andwww.maccosmetics.co.uk
images courtesy of M.A.C cosmetics (except for my dodgy self-portrait)

Elemis Pro-Intense Eye and Lip Contour Cream

I am someone who is incredibly easily impressed.
Mostly by things and hardly ever by people.


Today's impressive thing is Elemis' new Pro-Intense Eye and Lip Contour Cream. I think I might have casually mentioned my forthcoming thirtieth birthday and while I'm perfectly happy with the state of my skin, I have become incredibly paranoid over the last couple of years. When I was seventeen, I got contact lenses. The optician fitting them said it might be tricky at first because my eyelids were really tight. 'They'll get looser as you get older,' he assured me. 'And you know, contact lenses tend to get lines around their eyes earlier because they're always messing with the skin.'

This scared me shitless.

But no fear... for the last two months, I've been using the latest Elemis eye cream and I have to say, it's not just preventing lines, it seems to be improving the texture of the lines that are already there. Apparently the cream has new 'chaperone technology' with 'scientifically proven plant stem cells to help redensify aging skin' and defends against lifestyle influences.

I believe this means I can continue to wear a ridiculous amount of eyeliner, stay up late and get drunk far too often and this wonder cream will continue to reverse the effects of my thirty years.
Result.

Calvin Klein X Underwear: Elements

This has nothing to do with BeautyMecca whatsoever but a PR just sent it to me and I'm working really hard at the moment so the distraction was more than welcome.

The PR says:

Be sure to head to http://www.cku.com to check out Calvin Klein X Underwear: Elements now.
If you like what you’ve seen so far, be sure to check out how men around the world are using their webcams to show off their X at http://xmarkyourspot.com/xmarkstheworld

I feel like me and Kellan Lutz would get along at a really deep, psychological level. We'd totally talk all day long about politics and religion and, I don't know, books? He's in films based on books.

MAC Cream Colour Base

As my thirtieth rolls ever closer I am becoming increasingly obsessed with make up that looks fresh and fun (e.g. young). Clear skin, colour pop lips, healthy cheeks and sparkling eyes. SO far, my greatest ally in this quest has been MAC's Colour Cream Base in Pearl.


It's a gorgeous, gorgeous product. Originally presented to me as a highlighter, I've also found it makes a wonderful cream shadow on its own a a great base. For a super fresh look, swipe it on alone, to make it last a little longer, add MAC shadow in Retrospeck to set it and for a beautiful shimmer smokey eye, add Satin Taupe over the Retrospeck, line your eyes with a dark chocolate brown pencil (I like Urban Decay 24/7 pencil in Bourbon) and smudge a black pencil into the inner and outer lashline (Benefit Bad Gal Waterproof is my fave). To really add drama, I whack some Club into the mix and smoke the shit out of it all. Amaze. The pearl base adds depth and shimmer to the whole shebang and also helps hold it all night long.

Just don't get it in your crows feet. Not that I have any crows feet.
*throws self across the sofa sobbing 'I don't want to be thirty' over and over and over*

Fashion's Night Out

So tomorrow is one of the most exciting days in the calendar for anyone into fashion and beauty - it's Fashion's Night Out time ladies! And gents, of course. I can't believe it's come around again so quickly. It only seems like two minutes since I was choking on a Diet Pepsi in a cab, watching Anna Wintour hanging out in Queens. Looking like she might die.

Regardless, I'm looking forward to hitting a billion different thinks in New York, Susan Miller from AstrologyZone will be at Bendels giving readings for a 25 dollar donation to , Asos is holding a block party with Vogue, awesome band, Bearhands is playing at Rockefeller Center, Vinny from the Jersey Shore is DJing at CO Bigelows (which is a pharmacy weirdly) and pretty much everyone else is having a party. Wella has teamed up with Cynthia Rowley, Molton Brown with Hanky Panky and Stila with Betsey Johnson (that might be my favourite pairing).

Back in London, there is just as much stuff going on - check out the Fashion's Night Out website for more info. Super sad to be missing any of it anywhere but you should definitely get involved. So. Much. Fun.