The Lo Down - Clarins Sweet Kisses Kit

Hey Guys and Dolls,

I hope you're enjoying the series so far yesterdays post was by far the hardest post I dare I say I've written. The feedback so far has been phenomenal and if I even help one of you guys or gals I know it's a job well done. Today's post is a little easier and it's another beauty review which I love doing. I'm forever buying makeup so when I find products that I really like I love sharing them with you guys.

When I seen this set on CH Tralee's website I out it straight in my basket. I'm a big fan of Clarins and have been lucky enough to try alot of their products and I must say there's alot of good ones indeed.
I actually discovered these when my two favourite YouTuber sisters Melanie Murphy and Jessica Brennan if you haven't already checked out these girls YouTube videos I'd highly recommend as they are amazing and their content is just great. I always sit down with a nice cup of tea when I see their videos coming up in my subscriptions. I was lucky enough to meet Melanie a couple of years ago at a Cloud 10 Beauty event in town and she is such a lovely, nice friendly girl. It's great to see Irish YouTubers in the spotlight and I can see great things in the future for both of these girls.  Well back to the product both these girls mentioned the Clarins Lip Oils a while ago and when they say somethings good I listen so of course I couldn't wait to get my hands on one so to get three in a Christmas set is a bonus. There is only three shades available so to get them all was pretty good.

After the Winter what am I saying it's still practically Winter in Ireland. That blanket in Penneys was the best investment purchase I made. Back to the review in the cold months in Ireland my lips can go sooo sore it's unreal and I'm always looking for a nice lip product that does exactly what it says on the tin and Clarins lip oils do just that. They are so nourishing and moisturising on the lips and don't leave them to sticky. I put some on in the morning and when I'm going to bed. It says that you can use this over lipstick but I haven't put that to the test just about yet.

At €39 this set is great value as one lip oil costs €21. The set consists of  Honey, Raspberry and Cherry. The latter two give a slight hint of colour to the lips. As well being moisturising, these lip oils are handbag friendly and come with a pretty makeup bag in the kit. Perfect for inside my makeup bag!

As I said earlier I've tried alot of Clarins products in the past, I can't fault them and I enjoy using them. I'm in love with their blushes especially there pretty pink shades that give a dash of colour to the cheeks. I definitely want to give their tanning products a go next for a nice glow to take me out of the cold weather.

Have you tried the Clarins Lip oils? What's your favourite product of theres?

Laura<3

28 Days of Kisses - Day 28 = Clarins Jolie Rouge Brillant Perfect Shine Sheer Lipstick in Watermelon

I can't believe today is the last day in my 28 Days of Kisses tag, like where did the entire month go. Sorry I'm putting this post up a little later than usual, I spent the whole day with my lovely sister, Lisa and my nephew Ryan. I hadn't seen her in an age so it was nice to catch up and Ryan is the biggest rascal ever so he always cracks me up. We did a bit of shopping and had some lunch back in her place which was so yummy! My sister bought me some bits from Superdrug as a belated birthday gift which  I'm sure I'll feature on here very soon.

Here is my last lipstick look to show you guys, Clarins  Joli Rouge Brillant lipstick in Watermelon. I took this picture before I went to work this morning so excuse if it is a little blurry. No one is a 100% awake at 7AM. This is such a gorgeous wearable pink shade that looks amazing on the lips. The product itself is also moisturising and smells amazing. However for those of you who don't like shimmer/glitter this lipstick may not be for you cause it contains a lot of it. I've been super impressed lately with the products Clarins have been releasing so I'm looking forward to seeing what they come out with for the Summer months.

I've learnt two things from doing this tag, 1) I have a ridiculous amount of lipsticks that I really need to start using more of and 2) I salute anyone who does a daily tag post like this one on a regular basis. They may look easy but there such hard work, there was a couple of days that I was so busy that I was surprised I got a post up in time. I really enjoyed doing this 28 Days of Kisses series, I'm delighted Nykki let me take part on in such a great tag.  I'll definitely be taking part again next year for sure.

Until the next post,

Laura<3

28 Days of Kisses-Day 25 = Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Rose Shimmer

YAY I finally got my advertising assignment done today, bar a few references here and there it's pretty much complete. I HATE leaving things until the last minute and that was definitely the case with this seeing as it's due to be handed in on Wednesday. I feel like a big weight is off my shoulders and I treated myself to something from MAC while I was in Dundrum today to celebrate. When I came home today their was two boxes waiting for me at the door. The lovely Chie sent me some amazing goodies from the States, she was way too good to me. I wasn't expecting it at all so after the stress of this assignment it definitely made me feel better. I'll be putting up a post soon to show you guys all the lovely bits she got me.

(Excuse my weird baby hair fringe, dunno what's going on at the moment)

The product I've been using on my lips today is Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector (what a mouthful) in Rose Shimmer. I love this stuff! This product is raved about among bloggers. I haven't splurged and bought the full size yet but I'm sure it will only be short period of time before I do. I got this in one of their Christmas gift sets which are definitely worth investing in as you get so much. The Lip Perfectors are so light and not sticky at all on the lips. I use mine on it's own as I feel like it gives just the right amount of colour. It's a "my lips but better" shade and just so easy to work with. I seen on a couple of other blogs (Vivianna Does Makeup &  British Beauty Blogger) that the brand are adding three more shades to this range in May, I know I'll be swatching them when they hit counters.

What do you think of this bloggers' favourite? Have you tried it yourself?

Laura<3

28 Days of Kisses - Day 9=Clarins Rouge Prodige lipstick in Dark Cherry

This is a lipstick that I'd never imagine myself wearing as I'm a more neutral lippie sort of girl. Clarins Rouge Prodige in Dark Cherry is a intense cherry red shade. Before I get into what I think of the product, let me just say it doesn't show up too well in the picture below. I think my camera has had its day, it's not taking good pictures anymore at all. Plus the lighting is terrible!  The lipstick comes out more of a bright shade when in fact it's more of a vampy red in person. I'm surprised to tell you guys I actually ended up rather liking this lipstick. I know I'm in shock myself! I did dab it down a bit to get a more wearable shade for me but that aside I did really like it  Throughout this year I've decided to use more vibrant shades and stop being so scared of them. I have quite dark hair so they should work well for me, but I just feel self conscious wearing them on my lips. Does anyone else feel the same?

Today I headed into town to meet Paddy. Seeing as it's my birthday next Friday he wanted to have a look around the shops and pick out some presents for me. Yes they are mostly beauty related and I love them! I can't show you guys cause he took them home with him to put up for my birthday. I'll definitely do a post though after my birthday to show you guys the gifts I got. I did pick him up some bits in town for Valentines Day aswell. I got him a Brian Cox book and a jumper. My craft skill are coming out and I'm also making him a collage of photos of us. It's something thoughtful and special, I know he'll love it.

What do you think of this Clarins lipstick? Do you like bright vibrant shades?

Laura<3

Clarins Rouge Eclat Collection for Spring

We are slowing but surely moving out of the Winter months. I have two things to look forward to during February, my 23rd birthday and of course the new Spring makeup collections for 2013. The  first to catch my eye was the gorgeous limited edition products from Clarins. After falling in love with the palettes from their Winter collection last year, I was looking forward to see if they'd wow me again with their new offerings and I wasn't disappointed. First off the campaign image for this collection is beautiful it will definitely catch your eye in store. I love how the makeup look is simple but yet so elegant.

Like with their Winter collection, the face palette* is the  hands down winner for me. I could use it as a blush or all over face powder. It gives a natural flush to the cheeks when used as a blush which you'll be able to see in my picture. Staying with the theme of this collection, there's a lovely Iris flower pattern embossed onto the powder. After a couple of uses this will disappear which is a shame as it's so pretty. When I first opened the Iris Blossom Eye Quartet palette* my eyes popped. The shades that are included are right up my street. There's a beautiful plumy purple shade in it, if you seen my 50 Random Facts post you'll know that's my favourite colour. Lets just say Iwas happy to see this shade included in this palette. All the shadows are wearable and very pigmented, these shades could be used for both day and night looks.

A product that I was surprised I liked was the Mineral  Loose Powder*. I thought the medium shade would be way too dark for me which couldn't be further from the truth. It matches my skin tone perfectly and keeps my foundation staying in place. It's also quite light on the skin so it doesn't look powdery. One thing I do find when I use loose powders in general is that I tend to lose a lot of product. I'm quite clumsy, I usually pick up too much powder on my brush which results in it flying everywhere when I tap off the excess. That reason alone would make me stick to using pressed powders as I know I won't make a mess. The lip products shouldn't be looked over either. If like me you don't get on too well with vibrant lipsticks, I've been loving the brands Perfect Shine Sheer Lipstick in Watermelon*. This may look bright pink in the bullet but once on the lips it gives a nice hint of colour, it's also buildable for those who want a more intense colour. The shade Watermelon does have tiny bits of shimmer in it so if that's not your cup of tea, stay clear of this one. I'm going to feature this lipstick in one of my 28 Days of Kisses posts in the coming weeks so keep an eye out for that. I usually choose lipsticks or glosses but I've really enjoyed using the Prodige lip gloss* from this collection. The shade Vibrant Rose is stunning on the lips, it's one of those products I could see myself using all year round.  Again a great shade for someone who doesn't like 'out there' lip colours. I almost forgot to mention this lipgloss smells amazing, it has such a gorgeous sweet scent which I'm sure people will love too.

Here's the look I cam up with using the products from the Spring 2013 collection...

What do you think of Clarins Spring collection for 2013?

Laura<3

Christmas Gift Ideas #2 - Clarins All About Lips Set

This is my first ever purchase from Clarins. All About Lips Set is a present I could see girls loving this christmas. It contains four mini lip products that come in wearable shades.

All the products come in this gorgeous gold cosmetic bag which is big enough to store makeup brushes or some of your go-to products in your handbag.

Here are the lip products you get in the set:

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in 01 Rose Shimmer  & 03 Nude Shimmer

Clarins Colour Quench Lip Balm in 03 Candy Pink & 02 Peach Nectar

The Instant Light Natural Lip Perfectors have gotten rave reviews throughout the blogosphere so it's safe to say their brilliant. Rose Shimmer is the shade I've been using the most, it looks so nice on. I always have it in my bag. I hadn't heard much about the Colour Quench Lip Balms before I seen them in this set.These little gems are so moisturising, not sticky at all and smell like cherries (need I say more!) Clarins is a brand that I've never been drawn towards. After using this set I am going to try some more of their products in the future, Passion Face Palette I'm looking at you!


Clarins All About Lips Set retails for €20 (£17) and is available at counters and online.


What have you tried from Clarins?

Laura<3