Author Archives: netnoise

This electric pale blue eyeliner is completely out of my comfort zone but I really, really like it. I was only playing about when I tried it on the lower waterline but then I looked in the mirror* and wham! Love it first sight! I think that it’s really fresh and brightening – perhaps because it’s such an icy, almost neon, blue – and as far as “statement” makeup goes, it’s very wearable indeed. I especially like it against summery bronzed skin and chalky, pale lips.

The liner is one of YSL’s amazing Dessin du Regard waterproof eyeliners. I find them to be so soft to apply and easy to smudge, but once they’re set they just don’t budge. And they don’t set like plastic, either, like some waterproof eyeliners do; there’s no “tightness” to the finish. Just comfortable and lovely with vibrant colours that look great both in the waterline and smudged into the base of the lashes. This electric pale blue shade is called Bleu Lumiere and you can find it on FeelUnique.com here – it’s £19.50. It’s part of the summer collection, so don’t hang about for too long if you want one – they also have it at Selfridges.com, though not with the free delivery.

What do you think? I might have to have a play with some other crazy eyeliner colours now – I’ve seen a few around. Though I’m not sure how flattering bright pink or bright yellow would be… Let me know if you’ve seen any you’d like me to test-run – and for those people who will very firmly stick to black or brown, thank you very much, I have some reviews coming up that might well interest you.

*Blatantly when I looked in the mirror I didn’t see the streak of cream blusher down my left cheek or the fact that my tinted moisturiser had started to go patchy, but hey ho. You can’t see it all. Especially when you don’t have your glasses on!

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I don’t usually indulge in “dupes” posts, but I’ve been beavering away trying to find a good alternative to the red shade in Chanel’s Candeur et Experience palette (shade on the far left above), a palette which sold out, unsurprisingly, almost the moment it landed on the shelves. If you want to witness the gorgeous eye-brightening effect of this autumnal red then do refer back to my original Chanel post – the Eros eyeliner was also a total winner, also sold out, but – thank me later – I’ve also managed to find a close-ish match for that. Hurrah!

I tried about a dozen or so different shadows in an attempt to find a good match to Chanel’s matte, brickish red, but it was Make Up Forever’s “M738” that came up trumps. (It’s the single shadow in the larger pan, photographed above.) A really close call, I think. If it was the red from the Le Rouge collection palette that took your fancy the most then MUFE’s version is a safe bet. Ever so slightly lighter and warmer, but brilliant pay-off and longevity and so soft and easily blendable. £13 online here, if you want to give it a go!

If you might prefer something a tiny bit brighter and lighter then MAC’s shadow in Coppering (the smaller single shadow on the far right above) has a brilliant sheen to it, it really lifts the eye area and is slightly more forgiving than the brickish matte red. It’s less edgy, less…editorial looking. You can find that here online – it’s also £13. Here’s the line up swatched on my hand – Chanel, MUFE, MAC:

And the eyeliner?

Chanel’s Eros was the most beautiful, sultry sort of plummy-red-brown. So unusual, and so incredibly flattering. It was harder to find a close match for this liner, but KIKO’s Spicy Burgundy was near enough and had the same soft application and good longevity. In some ways, KIKO’s liner is easier to wear – you can see a comparison of the shades below. KIKO’s is on the left, Chanel’s on the right:

Yes, Eros is more red, but it’s very difficult to tell once you have them on. And, as I said, KIKO’s is a bit more pedestrian, so perhaps you’d end up wearing it more often. It’s a total steal at just £7.90 online

Prada Candy Eau de Parfum 20ml – £24.99 – Fragrance Direct

Prada Amber is one of my all time favourite perfumes, and I decided to purchase a bottle of Prada Candy after getting a sample in an online order. Prada Candy is quite an expensive fragrance, so I decided to purchase the full size when I spotted that they’d recently launched a purse-friendly 20ml bottle. Prada Candy contains top notes of musk, an heart of benzoin and a base of sweet caramel. With a name like Candy, it was always going to be a sweet scent but it’s actually a little warmer than I expected it to be due to the caramel.

I love the bottle design of the miniature bottle, as it looks identical to the full size bottles except a little smaller but 20ml is still a decent amount of fragrance and it’s the perfect size for carrying around in your handbag or taking away on holiday. Prada Amber is completely different to Prada Candy, as Amber is a stunning woody scent which is more of a statement scent but Candy is a softer, sweeter fragrance in comparison. The bottles for Amber and Candy couldn’t be more different, but they both are gorgeous scents.

I would describe Candy as being a younger type of scent, and if you like Britney Spears Fantasy or Juicy Couture’s Viva La Juicy, I think you’d really like this fragrance but I couldn’t imagine my mum wearing it as it’s so sweet but the branding for Candy is very much targeted towards the younger generation although it’s pretty pricey considering its target audience. In my opinion, Prada Candy is more of a day scent and it’s not particularly long wearing at around the three to four hour mark but I love it so I don’t mind reapplying, but Prada Amber is incredibly long lasting in comparison. Overall, I am really pleased that I bought the Prada Candy Eau de Parfum as it’s a gorgeous, girly fragrance especially for Summer.