Hot Trend Alert: Hot Pink Lips For Spring

Make-up trends don't usually influence what products I buy or how I do my make-up each season. However with all the blogs I read and beauty videos I watch it's hard not to be aware of the big beauty trends. Sometimes I discover a trend and think there is no way I'm going to try that. Then it keeps popping everywhere and I can't help be drawn to it. After seeing it a few times it does not look as scary as it initially did. Does that happen to you as well?

(One of) The trends I was planning on skipping this year was the bright, hot pink lips. It's completely out of my comfort zone. I love my light pink lipsticks and sheer glosses, hot pink lips just didn't seem something I would try. The trend has started to grow on me though. I've seen so many celebs (Blake Lively, Alexis Bledel, Beyonce) and beauty guru's (missglamourazzi) sporting this look and I feel I can muster up the courage to inflame my lips with a little hot pink colour.

Lauren Conrad, Mahira Khan, Kate Bosworth, Alexis Bledel

This look was all over fashion week and the models were seen with minimum make-up with a pop of bright  colour on the lips. Ideally, It'll look great with a bold eye liner, peachy and peach pink cheeks. You can also skip the eye liner and go heavy on the mascara instead (like me).

Here are some lipsticks you can try to achieve this look

Luscious Cosmetic Signature Lipstick in- #16 Raspberry  (The one Mahira Khan is wearing in the adds)
Luscious Cosmetics Lip Couture in- Paparazzi
Loreal Caresse Lipstick In- Cheeky Magenta (They're releasing in Pakistan very soon. Review coming soon)
Revlon Lip Butter In- Lollipop
Maybelline #140 Fuchsia Fever 

Splurge

Dior Addict Lipstick In- Diorkiss (personal favourite) 

Nars lipstick in-Schiap 

This one of the biggest/hottest trends for spring. Are you going to try this look? I for one am going to take a plunge and rock bold pink lips this spring. 

Review: Luscious Studio Secret Concealer

Can you believe I didn't own a concealer till a few days ago? I thought it was time to invest in one after looking at a few recent pictures. I have horrible sleep timings! Well, okay I don't have any timings and thus my dark circles are a clear tell tale sign.

I bought the Luscious Studio Secret Concealer. Well, the name pretty much suggests that your dark circles won't be screaming out the truth so blatantly. Luscious cosmetics have pretty much always been a hit with me. I thought since Luscious products are made specially for our skin tones and weather, this had to be better than Rimmel. I should have followed my heart and not my head (okay, that hasn't been going so great for me either, but oh well) and gotten the Rimmel concealer instead which was less expensive. The Luscious concealer is for Rs775 and now it feels like a splurge compared to Rimmels Rs 575.

 The Luscious Studio Secret Concealer comes in a pen, which reminds me of the YSL Touche Éclat that everyone on Youtube keeps raving about. The packaging isn't as flashy though. The Luscious brightening concealer has a brush applicator, which is surprisingly soft (and got me really excited this concealer was going to be great). The texture is creamy and blends well. However it does not do a great job at concealing under eye circles. I thought I was being paranoid and asked around and all the (some quite irritated) answers I got were 'can't tell a difference', or 'dark circles don't look as bad as they were, but they aren't concealed either'.

Luscious Studio Secret Instant Brightening Concealer in Light Beige 

So there I was concealer-less again. I gave it another try and watched the progress with intent. Here is my report.

• It does not cover dark circles well (I had to use a ton of it)
• Does have brightening effect
• Starts fading within an hour or so
• It settles in to the fine lines a little 
• Works better on blemishes and dark spots
• Easy Application
• Blends well
• Not worth the price

This concealer does not live up to it's claim for me, but it can be useful for evening out the skin tone on the eye lids. If you're someone who does not have any under eye circles and just want a bit of a boost this will be great for you. It can also work on minor blemishes and redness around the nose.

So in order to fulfill the dream of concealing my dark circles I rushed to Jalal Sons (hey, don't judge me, it was a beauty emergency), my local grocery store and bought myself the Rimmel Match Perfection Highlighter and Concealer. I will let you know how the Rimmel one turns out. 

Have you tried the Luscious Studio Secret Concealer, and does it work for you?

(Pretty Little Liars Inspired) NOTD: Luscious Cleopatra & Rimmel 740 Clear

The exact colour of the nail polishes Aria was wearing in the episode Through Many Dangers, Toils and Snares are  Priti’s “Devil’s Blackbone”, which is a dark shimmery green and OPI’s gold glitter “Spark De Triomphe”.

I recreated the look by using Luscious's Cleopatra and Rimmel's 740 Clear.   

Luscious Cleopatra 

Rimmel 740 Clear

 I was expecting Luscious Cleopatra to be more of a sheer top coat. I was surprised at how opaque it is. I achieved this look with two coats of the nail polish. 

The Rimmel one is really opaque was well. 740 clear is a dark shimmery green just like the one Aria had on her nails. I just had to use one coat and got the desired result. 

Price: Luscious Cleopatra: RS 225

Rimmel 740 Clear: Rs 350 

NOTD: Luscious Nail Lacquer In Valentine

I'm going out with one of my friends today. It's going to be another day of sitting at our favourite coffee place and talking about conspiracy theories (we've just started watching The Arrivals and trust me when I say its captivating). Sounds exciting doesn't it?! Ha!Ha! 

Since I'm going out I thought I'd paint my nails a bright red. Luscious nail polishes are always a hit or a miss for me. This red (in Valentine) is my absolute favourite!! It applies smoothly and lasts a decent amount of time, but the gorgeous shade is what wins me over time and again.

 Luscious nail polishes are inexpensive compared to some other high end brands, which is always a plus point. 

Price:225

Sana

Review: Luscious Blush In Peach Melba

I know I don't need another blush (still here I'm obsessing over three blushes that are on my wish list *sigh*) but I figured buying a budget friendly blush wouldn't hurt. Right? I've had this blush for quite a while now and I didn't get to use it until two weeks ago. I was just wanted to perk my complexion up a bit and surprisingly I reached for this.

Review: Luscious Super Moisturizing Lipstick

I've been wanting to try more products from Luscious for a while, and I finally got off the lazy wagon and got my hands on a few things (well, actually just two). Out of the two, the lipstick is definitely a favourite. 

Luscious Claims:

Our long-lasting formula enriched with Vitamin E and the super antioxidant Grape Seed Oil speaks for itself. It will never change color or dry out, keeping lips moisturised and happy. We’ve added extra color for great coverage. Try it to believe it!

Review: Luscious Bold Metallic Eye Liner In Rockstar

I'm constantly on the hunt for good eye pencils and kajals because I can never find one that stays on my water line for more than ten minutes. I'm not exaggerating, after ten minutes I start looking like a raccoon. I hardly ever wear eye pencil on my water line because it's just pointless for me. There have been times recently when I've given in to the temptation to wear an eye pencil, poor Aroosa has to keep wiping of the access with a cotton swab.

A few weeks ago, I bought the Luscious Bold Metallic Waterproof Eye liner in Rockstar. This is what Luscious says about their Bold Metallic eye liners, 'a waterproof, smudge-proof, fade-proof formula that glides on for a long-lasting finish. At last, an eye-liner pencil that keeps its promises!' After purchasing it, I swatched it on my hand for my sister while we were still in the car. I rubbed my finger over the swatched area to check if it was actually smudge proof. I was so disappointed when it not only smudged but disappeared within seconds. After my initial disappointment, I decided to try it out nonetheless. 

After using it almost every day for weeks, I can honestly say I love it. It lasts forever, and it does not budge from the waterline. It does get a little lighter, but I think I'm the only one who actually notices that.

It did not apply as softly as I would have liked. I had to rub it on the back of my hands to soften it up. Since then I've sharpened it once, and now it applies like a dream. It goes on really black, with a hint of silver shimmer to it. The shimmer does transfer on to your waterline, and it looks gorgeous.

I've rubbed my eyes while wearing this eye liner and it did not smudge or give me raccoon eyes. Just to check if it was actually water proof, I swatched the eye liner on the back of my hand and held it under running water. It did NOT smear, smudge or fade. It works really well in this hot and humid weather. Trust me, if it can work for me, it can work on anyone. My sisters have already started stealing borrowing it.

Luscious, has done an amazing job with these eye liners. They're available in eight dazzling shades in all leading stores nationwide. They're for RS 245, which is pretty cheap considering you're getting a really good product. I can't wait to get my hands on Metallic Purple and Aque Blue <3!

Is this something you're excited to try out? Do you have the same problem I do?

Sana

No Chance To Shine With The Perfect Face Powder

With every sun rise, the hot weather keeps rising in Lahore, and one of the biggest problems that we all face (apart from loadshedding) is an oily face which can be quite irritable when going out. An oily face is one of the things that we dread the most about summers. We had been on the lookout for the perfect face powder for a year or two and yes, Aroosa and I thought we’d found it when we got our hands on the ‘Luscious’ face powder. Both of us have really oily skin and for us this face powder was heaven sent.

It has excellent staying power. It keeps the face neat and matte for hours. We’d get compliments for looking "fresh" even during the hottest days when everyone else's face used to be shiny.

However, there came a sudden change with Rimmel Stay Matte Face Powder which we have now fallen in love with. It glides on smoothly and evens out the skin tone and doesn't look cakey at all. This face powder won us over after Sana started appllying it over sun block and moisturizer, the result was flawless light coverage and matte skin. She had it on for hours and there were no tell tale signs of shine despite the sun block and moisturiser underneath. Comparatively, Luscious face powder does not do so well covering the shine when there’s sun block or a moisturiser underneath.

Even though we love the Lusicous face powder which has three colors to choose from for different skin tones which sure is a good variety for us Asians. Our new favourite is Rimmel Stay Matte which is truly perfect for people with really oily skin. The only downside to the Rimmel Stay Matte is that it doesn't come up with a mirror, which the Luscious one does. There is only slight difference between their prices, Luscious Face Powder being slightly cheaper. The packaging of both the face powders is light and secure enough to pop in your bag.

Which is your favourite face powder?