Category Archives: beauty news

I had the privilege of attending an evening reception at 10 Downing Street this week. It was held by Samantha Cameron for the Mariposa Trust, a charity that helps parents and families who have lost a baby, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth or death in early infancy. There are four parts to the charity, the main division being Saying Goodbye, which supports people who have suffered a baby loss and also holds the remembrance services (the first in the UK) so that parents and families can grieve properly. It’s an incredibly sad thing to have to think about, but millions of people have to face this loss every single year and I think that Saying Goodbye are providing an amazing service to those who are feeling utterly devastated and alone. They reach in excess of 50,000 people globally every week – no mean feat.

I also noted with interest that there are more divisions of the charity in development – GrowingYou, which offers support and advice to women who are pregnant after a loss, and Holding Hope which supports people going through the IVF process. Again, brilliant and much-needed care for those who need guidance and reassurance in what is a very nerve-wracking and emotionally fraught time.

You can find Saying Goodbye here and the Mariposa Trust homepage here.

On a lighter note; after a very tearful speech by one of Saying Goodbye‘s ambassadors, during which both Caroline Hirons and I had to stare at the ceiling very hard so as not to burst into tears, we emerged into a beautiful blue-skied Westminster evening and had our pictures taken at the front door of Number 10. It had to be done; Mr AMR made it very clear that he would be extremely disappointed if I didn’t get a photo. So we whipped out our iPhones and abandoned any sense of dignity or professionalism and posed at Number 10, even roping Dave the policeman in for a quick snap. It was some much needed comic relief after an intense and thoughtful couple of hours.

And whilst on the subject of charity: one of my favourite clothing brands, Hush, is helping to raise funds for Fashion Targets Breast Cancer this season. 30% of sales of three specially selected items will be donated to the charity; the summer jumpsuit, the feather t-shirt (pictured above) and the gorgeous sequin dress. You can find all of the pieces online here.

The post Sunday Tittle Tattle: Mariposa, Saying Goodbye appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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My love-in with the cushion foundations continues: I’m still using the Lancome (reviewed here) but when such a heavy coverage isn’t required, it’s on with YSL’s new Fusion Ink. Actually, Fusion Ink isn’t new at all (I video reviewed it here almost exactly two years ago) but the cushion format is a recent launch. If you’re not familiar with these cushion foundations (and there are plenty coming out) then – in brief – it’s a foundation-saturated piece of foam housed in a compact.

It can be applied using the little pad provided (I only use in an emergency) but far better, I think, is a short and stubby foundation brush such as Bobbi Brown’s Full Coverage or Zoeva Buffer Brush. There’s just something about the squishy nature of these cushion foundations that makes them very satisfying to apply with a stubby brush – you can squash it into the pad and almost hear the squidge!

But onto the Fusion Ink, and, like its bottled counterpart, the light texture and gorgeously fresh feel. It’s just beautiful and the formula works so well in cushion form, too – non-claggy, easy to blend and with a natural, non-cakey finish. Those lamenting the loss of the original Teint Touche Eclat may quite simply rejoice at this launch – I feel that the results are quite similar. Good coverage but not total coverage, and a very fresh-faced finish that is almost on the dewy side.

Here are my before-and-afters:

And from the side, trying to catch a bit of light so that you can see the glow:

As you can hopefully see, the Fusion Ink Cushion does a great job at concealing the darkness under my eyes, redness around the nose and general skintone unevenness – I’d say that the coverage is actually a bit more comprehensive than in the original (discontinued) Le Teint Touche Eclat, or Touche Eclat Le Teint or whatever the Gareth it was called.

Close-ups? Alrighty then. Before and after:

On closer-inspection, the coverage is far greater than I first thought – look at the small mole to the side of my nose. It’s very pigmented, yet the foundation completely covers it. Interesting, because at a (relative) distance, the finish is so juicy and fresh that it feels very “real skin”.

Browse more foundation reviews…

Longevity and general wear seems pretty impressive – I’ve worn this now on normal, rushing about days and also to an event where I was photographed under bright light. I never get to the end of the day and find that it’s disappeared, though I am the sort of person who removes makeup at 6pm if they can possibly get away with it!

Just one prob with this foundation, though – the shade range is incredibly small. Bearing in mind I’m fair and I’m wearing a 40 in these photos, you’ll be disheartened to know that shades only go up to 60. I’m hoping hoping that this is addressed, it looks as though this launch has been hugely successful as the shades keep going out of stock all of the time, so perhaps it’ll give YSL a kick in the right direction!

YSL.co.uk has the best stock of this, with all shades available – you can find the website HERE. Compacts with a refill are £35 and a refill on its own costs £25.

The post YSL Fusion Ink Cushion Foundation Review appeared first on A Model Recommends.

© 2016 A Model Recommends®: all opinions are my own and any sponsored or paid posts will always be very clearly marked. I accept press samples and receive product and services to review as part of my job. Outward links to retailers will usually be affiliate links. Please see here for full “about” section and disclaimer.  A Model Recommends and Ruth Crilly are registered trademarks.

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