Sunday 22 September 2013

What's worth to invest in #2: High End Makeup


Welcome back to the 2nd part of this 'What's worth to invest in series on High End Makeup'.  If you've missed part 1, you can click here to have a little read.

Last time I mainly focused on getting the complexion right, and this time I'll talk through products for the rest of the face that I think are worth your money.

Window of the soul: Eyeshadow palette

I was going through my eyeshadows collection and realised I am not such a fan of eye shadows although I do love them.  When it comes to high end eye shadows, needn't me to say it wasn't a difficult  task to pick out one to recommend.  Chantecaille is an exceptionally expensive brand you can find in my favourite beauty shop, Space NK.  Chantecaille Just Skin Tinted Moisturiser (£57) was something that I desperately wanted to try and later purchased.  I liked it but I wasn't wowed by it.  It's painful to say that because it's so expensive and I have to say I am a little disappointed because I was expecting amazing result.

I decided to give Chantecaille another go, this time I picked up The Coral Reefs Palette (It was reduced from £75 to £36.5 in the sale).


Oh My God!  It worths every single penny!  I created a look for my birthday using this palette, you can click here to have a little peek.  This palette serves multifunctionally which is very clever.  The lightest off-white, slightly peachy shade works as a highlighter as well as a shadow base.  It is a matte colour so it highlights the high points on your face (cheekbones, brow bones, etc.) by excenuate your features rather than making it all shimmery, a fantastic highlighter if you want a subtle finish.  The light brown shade is great as an eye shadow for the crease areas or all over eyelids to create a soft smokey eye looks.  The darker brownish burgundy shade can be used as an eyeliner but at the same time for creating a more dramatic look.  The rosy pink shade is actually a blusher, which is ever so subtle when you sweep it on your cheeks.  This is definitely a fantastically handy palette for travelling.

The colours in this palette is so soft, yet so pigmented and extremely easy to blend.  They give a healthy wash of colours on your face without making your face look all made up.  It's hard to explain how great this product is in words, you have to try swatching it in a shop to feel it for yourself.  I believe this product is not available anymore after the sale period in Space NK, but an alternative in the range is the Save The Sharks Palette.

Cheeky Blushers

When it comes to cheek products, I think Dior made it to the top for me.  I have two cheek products, one in powder form, the other in cream form that I want to recommend to you.


Diorblush Cheek Cream (£24)and Diorskin Rosy Glow (£30.5) win my vote.  I have done a fuller review on the Diorblush Cheek cream which you can remind yourself by clicking here.  All in all, I think this is the best cream blusher hands down (high street and high end).  The packaging, intensity of the colour, the stay put power and the ease of blending, ticked all the boxes!

Diorskin Rosy Glow is a cleverly designed powder blush.  I reach for that on days when I cannot decide what cheek colours to wear.  Diorskin Rosy Glow is clever because the powder reacts to the moisture level of your skin and adapt to individual's to give its colour - so let your mood swings a colour for you!  It's pigmented but easy to blend which is so important and what I'm looking for in beauty products.  The little brush that comes with it actually is a great tool, and the big mirror is fantastic, too if you decide to carry this compact with you.

Lippies and Nails

There is no doubt about the extremely high equality and competitively priced lip products and nail polish that the high street can offer.  There is, however something about owning a high end nail polish and taking out an extravagant lip sticks out from your handbag make every girl the happiest person in the world.

The classic Chanel Rouge Coco Shine Hydrating Sheer Lipshine (£24) was my no.1 choice when it comes to high end lipsticks.  The combination of black and gold packaging, with the double C logo on the top of the cap is to absolutely die for.  There are over 10 colour shades to choose from.  The formula is so hydrating that I don't need to worry about carrying around with me an extra lip balm.  You can apply it on your lips straight from the bullet but if you want extra precision, of course you can use a lip brush.


YSL Rouge Volupte lipstick (£24.5) is also another strong contender after Chanel's.  The packaging is more of an extravagant gold  bullet, with YSL logo engraved around the lipstick itself.  This is just the ultimate lipstick experience.  The bullet leans towards the slightly heavier side if compared with Chanel's one.  YSL Rouge Volupte lipstick also tops the moisturising level of Chanel, and also comes in over 10 different shades of colour.  I simply cannot choose between the two because they are both winners to me and have different positions in my heart.

Finally moving onto nail polishes, is it worth investing into high end nail polishes when Barry M, Rimmel, Revlon, Essie offer much better value and possibly equally good if not better quality nail polishes.  The answer is still a Yes to me, although I definitely don't go excessively obsessed with high end nail polishes because they can be a little damaging to my bank accounts if I was to buy in large quantities and frequently.


Chanel's Le Vernis Nail Colour (£18) is one that I would go for because of its ease of application despite the brush isn't one of those flat one which is known to be the best amongst the best.  The consistency of the polishes itself is just about right which makes the colour gelled and sat on the nails much better.  They dry rather fast, too even without the help of other fast drying agent.  The colour lasts long, too.  I can go without having to do anything to it for a week.

Tempted by all these products?  I hope you say YES!  I do enjoy browsing and having a nose round what's new in the high end beauty world.  I don't necessarily buy things all the time from it as high street brands are definitely my better friends when it comes to having a beauty splurge.  But high end beauty products do have their very special places in my heart.

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