Benecos Lipstick Anmesty

If cleaning and green-ing up your make-up bag was one of your New Years resolutions then this post is just for you, for natural beauty line Benecos have launched a LipstickAmnesty!

Pantone: Colours of the Year 2016

For the first time in it's 16 year history, Pantone have for the first time chosen two shades to carry the accolade of being named PANTONE Colour of the Year 2016; Rose Quartz and Serenity...  

A harmonious pairing of inviting shades that embody a mindset of tranquility and inner peace.

From The Vault: UNE Lip Gloss

My last trip down memory lane for 2015 takes me back to a product which on the whole I admit to finding difficult to love; lip gloss. That said there are one or two that have caused me to give them a mention...

From Desk To Dancefloor

The Christmas season is now in full swing and many in-boxes and in-trays are full of emails, texts and memos arranging after work drinks and office dinners and parties. Those last minute invitations are great but can prove more than a little stressful if you don't feel you have time to prepare for the occasion.

New Additions: Summer 2014

This summer I have added very little new make-up items to my kit, however I have picked up a few pieces over the past couple of months and so thought I would put together my quarterly post to sum up the key purchases...

Wild Child by Ilia Beauty

Despite the somewhat sporadic summer we are having, the annual trend for bright lips remains steadfast and I have found myself turning to the more vibrant shades in my kit

Natural Lip Gloss by Lily Lolo

Lip gloss is not one of those products I usually keep large quantities of in my kit as it don't get a massive amount of use, but I do maintain a basic stock to cover most bases. This more invariably means that I carry a clear; a nude; a pink; a peach and a red at any one time - or at least variations on those themes.

From The Vault: Inika Organic Lip Liner Pencil

This months rummage into the vault of posts past brings to light possibly the only one I have ever written about lip pencils... 

Top five: Products I'm Loving - Summer 2015

After nearly four years of writing this little blog, I have yet to actually write a seasonal favourites post. After mulling over what I have been using both in my kit and on myself over the past couple of months, here we go...

UNE Beauty Casual Matt Lipstick in MO8

Many of my post are scheduled in advance however I like to write product posts in real time. By real time I mean that when I am working and I am feeling the love for one of the products I am using, I more often than not find myself thinking to myself this is the next post...

Top Five: In Flight Make-up Tips

With holidays on the horizon, here is the second of my Top Five tips to travel skincare and make-up...

Inika Light Reflect Highlighting Creme

An poor nights sleep followed by an early morning train a couple of weeks ago caused me to call in a little extra help in a desperate bid to look somewhat human for work that day. Rummaging through my make-up bag I plumped upon this little tube...

Top Five: In Flight Essentials

As Summer rapidly approaches, thoughts are turning into dreams of distant shores and holidays. Sadly I won't be leaving the UK this summer however my easter trip to Sardinia inspired me to put together something that will hopefully help put pay to those long distance travel woes...

Top Five: Purple Lips

OK. I am imagining that purple may not be everyones first pick when it comes to choosing a new lip colour and it certainly isn't for the feint hearted, however with both Rihanna and Lupita Nyongo seen rockin' shades that defiantely aren't for the shrinking violet, it seems that purple lips are here to stay...

Naturisimo Make-up Discovery Box

I feel that I'm jumping on a band wagon here but a few days ago I came across some posts on a couple of the blogs that I follow mentioning the Limited Edition Make-up Discovery Box from Naturisimo. Now this box had completely passed me by (despite almost constantly being on the Naturisimo website!) but as soon as I read about the box I had to pick one up.

Green People Instant Definition Lip Crayons

Back in the (very) early 1990's I rocked a deep plum or dark red lip. I was a fully paid up member of the Rimmel Black Cherry fan club (if there ever was such a thing). Deep red lips and black liquid liner along with patchouli oil perfume, long tasseled skirts or skinny black jeans and lots of big silver jewellery was my uniform (for want of a better word).

Over the years I became more and more passionate about animal welfare and cosmetic testing and so switched my allegiance to The Body Shop - the ethical high street option (pre-L'Oreal of course). My black cherry lipstick was replaced by a chunky lip pencil that (possibly) went by the name Cinnamon.

The Body Shop Cinnamon lip pencil (I'm going with Cinnamon but please correct me if you can better recall) was a deep, earthy, plum brown shade with a matte finish. Yes th formulation was slightly dry and yes there was drag but I loved it. The one draw back was that I never had a chunky pencil sharpener when I needed it so I remember using kitchen knives to sharpen it on a regular basis!

It is here (after that long pre-amble - apologies for that) that I bring in the Green People Lip Crayons...

A few months ago I was kindly sent the (then) latest additions to the Green People make-up collection; a trio of chunky pencil style lip colours. I have been playing with them on and off over the past few months and it has been great to use a lip pencil once more. It sounds corny but there was an overwhelming sense of familiarity; holding and applying a chunky pencil shaped lip colour brought back all of these memories from my youth.

Comparing the crayons to their early/mid nineties predecessor, times have defiantely changed and product development has moved on. This trio of pencils do need sharpening (they also kindly included a sharpener in the package) but that is pretty much where the similarities end; the texture, application, not to mention the ingredients are significantly improved (what would you expect?).

The crayons are rich and creamy in texture, making them easy to apply and means they don't drag uncomfortably on the lip. They are also super handy for scribbling on napkins - I never have a pen when I need one!

Ingredients wise, the Instant Definition Lip Crayons tick nearly every box. Packed full of botanical extracts such as Carnauba Wax, Shea Butter and Baobab Seed Oil, they hydrate and nourish the delicate skin on the lips. Their beeswax content does mean they are not suitable for vegans, however they are cruelty free and of course certified natural by ECOCERT.

The three shades break down like this; Praline is a neutral earthy shade which can be built up to a deep matte brown; Blossom a delicate floral pink with a softly shimmering finish and Sangria is a rich burnished russet with a slight satin sheen. Of the three there is one that has had far more excursions than the others; Praline. I was surprised by this as I imagined that Sangria would be be pick of the bunch but Praline's matte finish has won me over.

As with most pencil products, the Instant Definition Crayons longevity of wear is pretty good - even if you are a lip licker like me. Green People also released Enrich & Enhance Lip Primer* around the same time which is designed to provide hydration to the lips whilst giving them a solid base on which to apply lip colour and increase wear.

The crayons are priced at £12.95 and are available from Naturisimo and Lucy Rose (amongst others).

Green People was founded in 1997 by Charlotte Vøhtz after her young daughter battled with multiple skin allergies and eczema. With over 100 award-winning, certified organic products that are free from SLS, parabens, phalates, petrochemical, alcohol, synthetic fragrances and colourants, the range is designed to protect, balance and respect your body.

www.greenpeople.co.uk

*I have yet to give the Pimer a proper go, so stay tuned for an update on this

Ingredients:

(* denotes organic ingredient)

Sangria: RICINUS COMMUNIS (CASTOR) SEED OIL*, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE (NATURAL EMULSIFIER), MICA (NATURAL MINERAL), GLYCERYL RICINOLEATE, EUPHORBIA CERIFERA CERA (CANDELILLA WAX), CERA ALBA (BEESWAX), COPERNICIA CERIFERA CERA* (CARNAUBA WAX), MYRISTYL MYRISTATE, BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII (SHEA) BUTTER*, CETYL ALCOHOL, ADANSONIA DIGITATA (BAOBAB) SEED OIL*, ARGANIA SPINOSA (ARGAN) SHELL POWDER*, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, TOCOPHEROL, CI 77891, CI 77491, CI 77499

Blossom: RICINUS COMMUNIS (CASTOR) SEED OIL*, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE (NATURAL EMULSIFIER), MICA (NATURAL MINERAL), GLYCERYL RICINOLEATE, EUPHORBIA CERIFERA CERA (CANDELILLA WAX), CERA ALBA (BEESWAX), COPERNICIA CERIFERA CERA* (CARNAUBA WAX), MYRISTYL MYRISTATE, BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII (SHEA) BUTTER*, CETYL ALCOHOL, ADANSONIA DIGITATA (BAOBAB) SEED OIL*, ARGANIA SPINOSA (ARGAN) SHELL POWDER*, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, TOCOPHEROL, CI 77891, CI 77491, CI 77499

Praline: RICINUS COMMUNIS (CASTOR) SEED OIL*, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE (NATURAL EMULSIFIER), GLYCERYL RICINOLEATE, EUPHORBIA CERIFERA CERA (CANDELILLA WAX), MICA (NATURAL MINERAL), CERA ALBA (BEESWAX), COPERNICIA CERIFERA CERA* (CARNAUBA WAX), MYRISTYL MYRISTATE, BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII (SHEA) BUTTER*, CETYL ALCOHOL, ADANSONIA DIGITATA (BAOBAB) SEED OIL*, ARGANIA SPINOSA (ARGAN) SHELL POWDER*, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, TOCOPHEROL, CI 77891, CI 77491, CI 77499

From The Vault: The Kiss

This months trip down memory lane takes us back to Valentine's day 2013 and five steps to getting your lips in tip, top kissable condition for the most romantic day of the year...

Love: kjaer Weis Valentines Colours

The products that have caught my eye this month are the the new lip tints from kjaer Weis. Launching just in time for Valentines day (still plenty of time to get your doers in), I am utterly in Love.

Top 5: Lip Treatments

With many parts of the country enveloped in a white blanket, icy winds whipping around every corner, temperatures regularly sinking below 0ºc and the local drugstore running dangerously low on petroleum based lip protecting products, it is safe to say that winter is well and truly here...

New Additions: Winter 2014

I have accumulated quite a lot of products over the last couple of months; I haven't been actively looking to but it has just happened. Here's what's new...