Archive for May 2011

Last Thursday, straight after work, my friends and I trotted on down to Leeds' beautiful and historical Victoria Quarter to attend one of Leeds' ultimate shoppers events, The Mad Shopper's Tea Party. The event, a Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland style, Mad Hatter's Tea Party, had the whole of the Victoria Quarter fabulously decorated with bunting, balloons, giant teacups, 'drink me' bottles and white rabbits. Theatrically dressed entertainers, hosts and hostesses wondered the centre, some even on stilts, getting the party going and handing out bedazzled cupcakes and bubbly for all!

There was a great atmosphere with shoppers making the most of not only the discounts and special offers available on the evening, but also the the fabulous party atmosphere throughout the whole VQ. Most individual stores also held their own parties, with DJ's, drinks, canapes and gift bags. My personal favourites on the night were Mulberry, and L'Occitane, who both hosted particularly impressive events. Celebrating it's 40th anniversary, Mulberry had an atmosphere akin to an exclusive bar. Handing out mini bottles of bubbly, slices of special 40th anniversary edition victoria sponge cakes, balloons in the shape of Mulberry bags and with a photobooth, thongs of people were queing to get into that party! The newly opened L'Occitane, kept it's atmosphere de provence with champagne and the soothing melodies of a classical harpist... A lovely goodie bag was also greatly appreciated. I can't wait to try out the sample L'Occitane products!

L'Occitane goodie bag | Kiehl's samples | Liz Earle purchases | Mulberry 40th anniversary cake

Despite the party atmosphere, The Mad Shopper's Tea Party was a shopping event. So, after reading so many rave reviews around the blogosphere, I decided to use this opportunity to visit the Liz Earle store and finally treat myself to some Liz Earle products. After a consultation with a lovely advisor, I came away with the great summer skincare essentials offer, including the must-have Cleanse & Polish, plus free sample of Eyebright Soothing Eye Lotion. Stay tuned for a full review coming soon to this blog!

The whole event was just so much fun, so much so I didn't remember to take that many pictures, but I hope enjoyed these few! I just wish I hadn't been driving, as the champagne was flowing all round... I could have ended up pretty merry!

Thanks VQ for this great event!

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How excited was I when I came home to this little package of goodies!!

VERY!

Last week I took advantage of an offer e.l.f. had on, 50% off bamboo brushes... did any of you notice my tweet and take advantage of this great offer too?

I've bought a few bits and pieces from e.l.f. before and so when ordering the brushes I couldn't help but add a few more items to my virtual shopping basket!

I've bought a number of brushes from the e.l.f studio line in the past and have been really impressed with the quality verses price. I honestly get less hair fall out with the e.l.f brushes than I do with my MAC ones, and for roughly £3.50 a brush, I still find this fact absolutely amazing! I repurchased the famous powder brush from the studio line, which I love and used it to within an inch of its life. I think they have changed the hair used as it this new brush seems way softer than my first, and I didn't think it was possible to be even more happy with this brush!

The Bamboo Brushes, a little more expensive than the studio line, but at £5.50, still at a fraction of the price of more high end brushes. I am absolutely in love with the Bamboo Brushes, which have really soft, antibacterial Taklon bristled brush. It's even better that these brushes are 100% cruelty free with a natural and sustainable bamboo handle! The brushes aren't quite as soft as MAC or bobbi brown for example, however they give pretty much just as good a finish and look just as high end as bobbi brown.

So, I didn't just get make-up brushes from e.l.f...

Across the top: Eyebrow Kit in Dark

Middle and bottom rows (L-R): Studio Conditioning Lip Balm SPF 15 in nice & natural, Studio Single Eyeshadow in Saddle, Studio High Definition Powder

Firstly, for a price tag of between £3.50 and £6.00 per item, I think e.l.f.'s packaging is fabulous, really sleek and stylish. However I have to say that, as is the case when buying a lot of make-up products on line, the colours of the products I bought weren't quite what I was expecting. Saying that, I'm still really happy with all that I bought!

I've wanted this Eyebrow Kit for sooo long, after reading countless rave reviews online comparing it to Benefit's Brow Zing. Plenty of other people must have had the same idea though, the colour that would probably be best suited to me, medium, has been sold out forever! In the end I decided to just go for the dark and I love it! The gel is very dark but once I've used the lighter powder to set and fill in my brows, I'm left with the perfect colour. This product is so easy to use, however the brush that comes with the kit is a little too small. I think I'll only be using that brush in an emergency!

What can I say about the Conditioning Lip Balm? It's very softening, I love the colour and a little SPF is always handy! Particularly as I'm not really a lipstick person, this is a great product for giving you that hint of colour. I'm definitely going to get this in a few more colours, mellow melon is next on my list!

The Single Eyeshadow in Saddle is a bit more burgundy than I expected. The image online seemed a lot more of a true brown, but it's still just the kind of colour I love. You get a lot of the product and the pigmentation is really great, you can layer up and blend the eyeshadow to create a really fab look!

The High Definition Powder was a bit of a spur of the moment, last minute addition to my shopping basket. I'd heard some really great things and really wanted an invisible powder to control the shininess that I'm prone to. I think I am probably still getting used to this product though as it seems to make me a bit paler than I'd like. I possibly just need to learn how to apply it with a lighter hand, however the large holes in the packaging doesn't make picking up a small amount of product easy.

The final item I bought from e.l.f. was something that if there was anything I was slightly disappointed in it was this, the Daily Brush Cleaner. When I opened the package this product had leaked, the lucky thing is that it wasn't enough to have wasted too much of the product and even the packaging was soggy it didn't ruin any of the other products. It's just a shame the packaging wasn't high quality enough to survive the postage, the plastic bottle does seem a little flimsy. The product itself is great idea though. I only really wash my brushes once a week, so to be able to easily disinfect the brushes in between uses is fab. The cleaner does smell very alcohol / chemically and takes a while to dry, but if it helps prevent spots or keep brushes fresh for longer it's well worth it!

Have you bought anything from e.l.f? Let me know about your favourite products!

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The first week of The Cannes Film Festival 2011 was one of fabulous French weather and even more fabulous celebrity fashion. Click here for my round up of the first five days. Days six to eleven proved to be just as amazing.

Day Six:

Wendi Deng Murdoch

You know, Day Six was the least inspiring day for fashion at Cannes. Yeah there were plenty of lovely dresses, but nothing that really stood out. I picked Wendi Deng Murdoch as my best dressed because she's ticked all the boxes with this dress at the premier of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. The neutral, feminine dress with beautiful embellishment detail was subtly given a bit of an edge with the black studded belt. Just lovely.

Day Seven:

Carine Roitfeld

The former French Vogue editor looked stunning in her signature colour of black. I'm absolutely loving lace at the moment and Carine, with her amazing figure, proved she was still able to pull off this near on see-through dress.

Day Eight:

Kirsten Dunst in Chloe

The ultimate summer dress, Kirsten's mustard chiffon Chloe dress is modern yet timeless. This colour looks amazing against Kirsten's pale skin and her red lipstick completes the look perfectly. I absolutely love pleating at the moment and the length of the skirt is perfect for a day time look.

Day 9:

Gwen Stefani in a custom L.A.M.B gown

Rocking her own design, Gwen certainly knows what suits her figure, colouring and style. The shape of this stunning sequinned gown really elongates Gwen's frame and I love the the smokey eye look she has gone for with her make-up, it really complements the style she's gone for with the dress.

Day Ten:
Zhang Ziyi in Dior

I'm such a sucker for a nice neautral gecian style gown, and Zhang Ziyi looked fabulous in this beautiful Dior number. A sequinned top is always a winner at such events and its shape flatters Zhang's slender frame amazingly. My favourite aspect of the dress is the layering of the stunning sheer maxi fabric over a just above the knee length skirt, a super feminie style that is currently being recreated on the highstreet, store over.

Closing Ceremony:
Uma Thurman in Armani Privé

How daring must you be to wear such a clingy dress? Even better, how reassuring to know that even the likes of Uma Thurman need a little help from the good ol' spanx to hold everything in??... Yep, this electric blue doesn't let you hide much! However Uma looked stunning, head to toe in the most perfect blue colour of the moment, she looked ten feet tall in the Armani dress. A perfect way to close the 2011 Cannes Film Festival with a bang!

I hope you've enjoyed my round up of My Best Dressed from Cannes. Be sure to let me know what you think of my picks and tell me about your favourites from the fabulous fashion filled festival!

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The Cannes Film Festival 2011 has been yet another triumph for fashion as the worlds top models, actresses, singers, designers and celebrities have all been battling to out shine each other at one of Europe's most stunning social centres.

Like most of the fashion loving public, I have been fiercely following what 'they' wore in Cannes over that last 11 days. Here are my picks of the best dressed from each glamourous day of this French festival. First up, Days One to Five.

Day One:

Fan Bingbing in a Traditional Oriental inspired gown

The stunning Chinese actress had all eyes on her as her gown, inspired by traditional Oriental dress, stole the show on the film festival's opening night. Completely different from anything worn by other stars over the course of the festival, Fan Bingbing paid tribute to her asian culture with a white crane design and that beautiful train coming out from the top of the dress. A great start to the festival which had everyone watching out for what Fan would wear next.

Day Two:

Rachel McAdams in Monique L'Huillier

Rachel controversially broke from red carpet tradition with this beaded bustier and linen trousers. I love the style and detail of the beaded top and I love the idea of statement high wasted trousers on the red carpet. I think the controversy behind Rachel's choice is possibly the linen trouser material, now this does look great but I think a more luxurious fabric was expected for the premier of Sleeping Beauty. However, despite the slightly casual feel to this outfit I still think it stood out as one of the best on day two.

Day Three:

Sarah Jessica Parker in Elie Saab

This was probably one of my favourite dress from the whole festival! SJP stunned the fashion world on the red carpet, yet again, in this floaty floral A/W 2011 design. The black lace at the waist, shoulder and sleeves really set off the shape of the dress and its print detail. I loved the way the dress moved with Sarah Jessica too, elegantly billowing behind her, this dress really made SJP stand out from the crowd!

Before I move on to Day Four, there are some dresses I feel require a special mention from Day three, which for me was one of the best for fashion.

Firstly, Sarah Jessica Parker again. SJP has received a lot of criticism for this Dolce & Gabbana outfit, which I just can't understand at all! This white lace dress is amazing, I love the lace neck line and absolutely adore how SJP has accessorised the outfit. The pearls and large belt really give the whole look a fab rocky edge. Well done again Sarah Jessica. I want this outfit!

Secondly, I wanted to mention the beautiful Chiara Ferragni. The Blonde Salad fashion blogger, turned shoe designer, looked absolutely stunning on the red carpet! Chiara wowed her followers in the blogging community in this Albeta Ferretti lace dress. We've all really enjoyed following Chiara's Cannes journey on her blog and twitter... although with a hint of jealousy, if we are totally honest! ;-) Really big well done Chiara, you are a true inspiration!

Day Four:

Alma Zack (centre)

It's absolutely crazy but I really struggled to find any decent pictures of Israeli actress Alma Zack in this fabulous black dress with red detail, so I'm sorry but I have no idea who the designer is! I think the feminine shape with a high collar and sheer fabric is really stunning. The bold statement flower design is very on trend and it was this that made this one of a kind dress really stand out for me!

Day Five:

Elizabeth Olsen in The Row

The younger sister of Mary-Kate & Ashley loyally wore a design from her twin sisters new fashion range, The Row. Elizabeth looked elegant, classy, timeless yet very modern in this back columned gown with a very flattering sequinned top. I love the fact that she accessorised her understated wavy hair with a matching sequinned hairband. Lovely.

I hope you enjoyed my picks from the first five days of The Cannes Film Festival 2011.

As always, let me know what you think of these outfits and let me know who your favourites were, I love hearing from you guys!

Stay tuned for Part 2, days Six to Eleven, coming soon!