Lancôme Hypnôse mascaras

If I could only choose one piece of makeup to use for the rest of my life *hyperventilates at the thought*, it would be the mighty mascara.  My skin is not great at the moment so I always even it out with foundation & I do love slicking on a fabulous splash of colour on my lips but....I could live without both...if I had to to!  Mascara on the other hand.......

I think it's because I wear glasses that I love mascara so much.  My eyes seem to disappear into 2 teeny tiny raisins behind the lenses if I don't wear it & without it, I truly feel naked!  So needless to say, over the years I have gone through many, many tubes of the stuff, my favourite being L'Oréal False Lash Telescopic....until now that is, as I think I may have just found my new best friend!!  Enter Lancôme Hypnôse!

I was wandering through Boots the other day getting some of life's essentials, you know, cotton buds, toothpaste, nail polish *ahem* when the SA on the Lancôme counter asked if I'd like to try their limited edition mascara gift set.  I've read endless glowing reports of the Hypnôse mascara but I'll be blunt & say that the £22.50 pricetag has always put me off.  However, this box set of 4 (1 full size, 3 travel size) Hypnôse mascaras was on offer at £22.50 - frankly, it would've been rude not to.....!

The full size tube is the original Hypnôse, which I think is my favourite of the four.  It has a great hourglass bristle wand that grabs & coats every single lash with one swoop - it's fabulous!  It adds the perfect amount of volume & length for an everyday mascara.  Apologies for the photo quality on my pics, autumn natural light is not good for photos!!

Next up is Hypnôse Drama.  This is my least favourite of the four as I couldn't get on with the wavy brush on this one.  Although the end result was good, it took a LOT of cleaning up my eyelids as the 'waves' kept touching the skin & smudging everywhere!  This one will be passed on to my daughter (who has her beady eye on the whole kit - errr, no missus!!) & is the only one I wouldn't buy the full size version of.

The third offering is Hypnose Star.  This has a really bizarre wand that looks like a flat tapered Christmas tree from one angle, but turn it 90° & it's flat & slim.  I didn't have high hopes for this but it's amazing!  I use the larger flat side to apply the mascara, then turn the brush & use the thin side to wiggle from the base of the lashes to give great uplift!  I would say this one gives the best volume. Love it!

And last but no means least is the Hypnôse Doll Eyes.  Again, this is one that I've read many blog reviews on so was very keen to try it.  This has a conical shaped brush & just slathers on the formula in one easy swipe.  The tapered end grabs all the teeny corner lashes & is also great for the bottom lashes.  It gives the best length of all the formulas.

The formula is perfect for me, jet black, not too wet & thick enough to give serious oomph straight away.  It doesn't smudge or crumble, removes like a dream & doesn't give me next-day-panda-eyes, my new go-to mascara!  I can't find this set online although they still had them instore yesterday, but now at £30.00.  They do however, have this set online for £22.50!!

Sorry about the lengthy post but I could rave about these all day long!! Have you tried them?

Quick update

Hi all,

Just a quick update to say that my home pc is very poorly at the minute - with all my blog photos on there, grrrrr - so bear with me until I get back to usual posts as I find it difficult/annoying trying to post from my ipad!!

I've got lots of new goodies to show you :)

Sarah

Autumn outfit - lunch date

                      

Autumn outfit - lunch date by fortytherapy


Oh I do love Polyvore, it's becoming very addictive!!  My latest outfit post, as you can see, is my ideal get-up for a lunch out with my fabulous husband - nothing too fancy or smart but I love it all the same.  We very rarely get to enjoy a nice, relaxed lunch these days so it'd be nice to smarten myself up a wee bit!

I've started with a really simple ivory jumper from Phase Eight at John Lewis, currently in the sale.  I love that it's not too fitted but is long enough to cover my bum & bits - nobody wants to look at that when they're eating thank you very much - or ever!!  It's quite a fine knit so I've added a nude vest to wear underneath from H&M - well, it says it's pink but it looks nude to me.

For the bottoms, I've chosen some comfortable high-waisted leggings, again from H&M, as is the gorgeous leather bag.  I've added these lovely wedge knee-high boots from M&S as I spotted them on their website & they very quietly - but very definitely - called my name!!  If I can actually zip them up over my wide calves, they're going in my basket.....

Camel coats are all over at the moment but I just can't find one I like enough to buy but this Mango cape, I love & would get an awful lot of wear from it.  The honey coloured faux-fur scarf from Next would look great with it as would the black hat & fabulous pony gloves & let's face it, they're all necessary additions in this cold, dreary weather!

The Citizen watch is another on my birthday wish-list, I love the splash of colour on the face.  And in keeping with the whole autumnal colour scheme, I'd stick with a nude lipstick & cocoa brown nails.

Do you love Polyvore too?

NOTD Barry M Gelly ~ Coconut

As you can see by the sunny garden photos, I took these quite a while ago & forgot to post them, doh!!  This colour is waaaay out of my comfort zone, polish wise but after seeing it worn almost permanently by Kris Jenner & the Kardashian girls, I fancied trying it. (I know, I know...what can I say?  Watching KUWTK is my guilty pleasure....don't judge!!!)  So when my beloved Barry M released their summer shades & this little beauty Coconut was one of them, I had to try it!

I really, really love these gelly polishes, they're just so easy to apply & last for ages.  I used two coats but in all honesty, I would've got a more even finish if I'd used a ridgefiller base coat as you could still faintly see the ridges in my nails.  However, this is usual of very pale polishes & it certainly didn't detract from the loveliness of the colour.  I wasn't sure at all if it was 'me' but I found myself wearing it an awful lot throughout summer.

I managed 5 days before it chipped so not quite as good as the darker gellys but still great in the grand scheme of things!

It's very much a Marmite shade so do you love it or hate it?! ;)

Black, grey & berry

             

            

Black, grey & berry by fortytherapy 


Berry is one of my favourite accent shades to wear in autumn & winter so I'm pleased to see so much of it around at the moment.  I'm also extremely fond of wearing a titfer or two & there are some great ones on the shelves although this year I'll be wearing trilbys & fedoras rather than my trusty berets & beanies!

This outfit is so simple to chuck on for everyday but whilst it's not too cold yet, I've teamed it with a poncho rather than a coat - it also helps with the *whispers* hot flushes!!!

I started with the grey denim leggings from Next as I have these in 3 other shades & I love them, they're just so comfortable & a really great fit - completely hold in the muffin top!!  With them, I've added a simple white vest & over-sized jumper with faux-leather sleeve panels, both from H&M.  I know that unfitted tops are not the most flattering on me & make me look bigger than I am but I just feel so comfortable in them!  And as long as they're teamed with skinny bottoms, I can get away with them!!

The long black poncho is from Next, as are the black slouchy boots.  The fabulous berry coloured fedora is from M&S, not somewhere I go in much these days as my local store is not much cop sadly but I found this online.  The bucket bag is from H&M, they have some fab things again this season.  I think they've tweaked their sizings as I find the tops a much better fit on me at the moment.....or maybe I've dropped a couple of pounds?!

I've thrown in a berry shaded matte lip crayon & nail polish too for good measure, sometimes a bit of co-ordination is good!  And I may just have sneaked this gorgeous Tissot watch on to my board too!  This is what I'm hankering after for my 'big' birthday next year from the hubby.  I've been leaving several hints lying around & have pointed it out to him in the jewellers - several times! - but unless I physically glue a picture of it with instructions where to buy it, I don't think it'll sink in.  Bless him, he's not great with hints!!!

How do you feel about berry shades?