1) I have spent an entire week breathing through my mouth because I still have the world’s most persistent cold. Honestly, it’s becoming very distracting. I’ve taken to sipping water every five seconds to stop the inside of my throat drying out – I feel like I need to install a kind of mini sprinkler system in my mouth! (Actually, why has nobody designed something like that for when you have a cold? Something that coats the inside of your mouth with an edible moisturiser? If you see me on Dragons’ Den next year….) Anyway, I have bought this Vicks humidifier thing from Amazon and I’m hoping that’ll work – if you’re at all curious as to which one it is, you can find it here. Have any of you used a humidifier before? Tips and tricks please, if you have any. I have no idea how to use one – I’m assuming it’s a bit like a steam iron and you just fill it up and plug it in?

2) I also have a new pillow to test – and this is no ordinary pillow, either. This is (apparently) “the most luxurious and supportive pillow in the world”, the Knightsbridge pillow from The London Pillow Company. I don’t know whether you can see from the photograph, but it is literally about the same thickness as a mattress. I think (I’m skim-reading the pamphlet here) that you take out layers from inside the casing to suit your body shape. Hold on – it all depends on the broadness of your shoulders, if you lie on your side, which I do. Interesting! I’ll let you know how I get on and how many layers I end up using – if I have a head that looks as though it’s been stuck on at a right angle in my next video, you’ll know why! You can take a look at the Knightsbridge pillow here.

3) Pets. Dexter has entered a new phase of his recovery called “Cone of Shame”. He itched his neck so much that he caused an infection and so now he is wearing a silly plastic collar and bumping into every piece of furniture as he bumbles around the house. Mr Bear, below, only seems even more dignified in comparison – here he is appraising the new pillow. He thinks it’s his new bed and has already done a bit of a test.

The post Sunday Tittle Tattle: Mouth Breathing and the Cone of Shame appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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Apologies in advance for my “before and after” photos (below): I didn’t ever think I’d be zooming in so close, so I have millions of bits all over my face! Just to clarify, the black bits aren’t flakes of this mascara, they are – shamefully – tiny flecks of mascara that I hadn’t removed properly from the night before. Oh dear. The things you see when you zoom right in on a computer screen! I’m just grateful I plucked my various face hairs before I started shooting.

Anyway, back to the main event here, which is Lancome’s new Hypnose Volume-a-Porter mascara. I wasn’t wowed by this at first, preferring their “swan neck”-wanded Grandiose, which is slightly wetter and smoother to apply; but I must say that Volume-a-Porter is a bit of a grower.

The formula is creamy but has enough tackiness to make it easy and quick to build. without forming blobs or clumps or making the lashes stick together. Here’s my before pic, complete with specks of old mascara:

and here’s the after – post-foundation, just in the interests of transparency! (Foundation is Max Factor’s Miracle Match.)

Nice, eh? This is after two quick coats. I’m sure you could build the mascara even further, but I just didn’t feel the need. This wears well, doesn’t flake, doesn’t irritate my eyes and (as I mentioned in my post last week) seems to hold my lashes into something resembling a curl. At the very least it keeps them slightly lifted, making my eyes seem a bit wider and more awake.

I may go so far as to say that this is now my favourite Lancome mascara. I know that the Hypnose range is incredibly popular anyway, but I can see this recent addition being a top seller. It has all the volume and intensity of a much heavier and claggier mascara but is in fact quite lightweight and doesn’t make my lashes feel thick or plasticised.

Nice. I’ve added it to my new favourites, the one from Diego Dalla Palma (see post here) and Chanel’s Le Volume Ultra-Noir (post coming up). You can find Volume-a-Porter online here – it’s £22.50.

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I am seriously obsessed with Zoeva right now, and they’ve fast become my favourite makeup brush brand. Until I discovered the magic that is, the Zoeva makeup brushes, I used to swear by Sigma eyeshadow brushes but Zoeva’s brushes are so much better quality and they’re so affordable too. I have quite a large collection of Zoeva brushes and I want to review them all for you so today I’m starting with the very first four brushes I purchased. I purchase my single Zoeva brushes from BeautyBay as they offer free UK delivery on orders over £10, but if you’re ordering a collection of brushes, I’d recommend purchasing via the Zoeva website as it would more affordable.

Zoeva 322 Brow Line Brush £5.95

I bought this brush with a view to use it with the Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade, but it has a fair few uses. The bristles are slightly angled, and are very short and dense but as the brush head is so thin and narrow, it’s amazing for creating precise hair-like strokes throughout the brows. The angled shape also makes the brush perfect for eyeliner as it does all of the hard work for you as you can drag along your lashline for the perfect line. I love how short and stiff the bristles are, as they make eyeliner so easy as they don’t move around too much but glide over the contours of the eye. I haven’t got any other brushes like this in my collection, but it’s an amazing brush and I’ve bought a second one so I can use one for my brows and one for liner. It works well with cream, powder and gel products and the bristles are cruelty free Taklon bristles which are so quick and easy to clean.

Zoeva 227 Luxe Soft Definer £6.95

This is Zoeva’s answer to the MAC 217, and is the perfect blending brush. The bristles are a flat and oval shape which fits perfectly into the crease for blending crease and transition shades. The bristles of this brush are made from super soft goat hair, but Zoeva do a vegan version of this brush which is such an amazing idea and it’s called the 227v which has synthetic bristles. I like that the brush head is quite compact and rounded so it moves through the crease easily, diffusing colour very well. I really want to get a couple of backups of this brush as I use it every single day with every makeup look and if I had to recommend one Zoeva brush it would be this one as it’s just so useful, and it makes your eyeshadow look so polished and blended. The price is incredible, especially as the MAC 217 is £20 so you could get nearly three of these Zoeva brushes for the price of one MAC 217 which is crazy.

Zoeva 225 Eye Blender £6.95

This is another natural brush with natural (squirrel) bristles, but the bristles on this brush are a little stiffer and they aren’t as soft as the 227 brush. The bristles of this brush are more domed compared to the 227 so it’s a little more precise at blending, and the stiffness really helps to blend. I would describe this brush as being a slightly fluffier version of a pencil brush, and I particularly like using it for blending colour through the outer crease or for gently blending shadows on top of eachother. This brush has a little more control compared to the 227, and you can use it for blending along your lower lashline or even for packing colour onto the lid.

Zoeva 232 Classic Shader Brush £6.95

I bought this brush a couple of months ago, but from what I can see they’ve changed the bristles since I bought it as they’re now white but apart from that the 232 is exactly the same. The bristles are a mixture of synthetic and natural, and are shaped into a thin, dome shape and are ideal for packing colour onto the eyelids. The rounded edge allows for precision around the crease, and along the lashline and the brush works well for both powder and cream shadows thanks to the mixture of synthetic and natural bristles. Due to the flatness of the brush, it could work well for applying pigments or loose shadows as it can press shadow onto the lids and I like to use the edge of the bristles for adding shadow along my lashline as it’s quite precise. These bristles are soft, but I imagine the new 232 with the white bristles will be super soft just like the 227 so I’d be interested to see how the new version compares.

I am so impressed with all four of these brushes.. they’re all essentials in my everyday makeup routine, and the quality is incredible. I have never experienced any shedding with any of my Zoeva brushes, and they all wash amazingly well and retain their shape wash after wash. I really love that all of the Zoeva brushes when bought individually, come packaged in individual sealable plastic wallets to protect the brush and they can be reused, so you could use them to carry your brushes when travelling to protect them from damage. I cannot recommend Zoeva eye brushes enough.. they really are the best brushes I’ve ever tried, and are considerably better quality than Sigma, Crownbrush or Real Techniques. Continue reading →