Eyeliners - blackest blacks and fun colours

Hola chicas y chicos

How are you doing on this fine and dandy Wednesday? Hopefully you're on a quick coast to the weekend now you've broken the back of the week.

So I've been building up to The Eye posts for a while now…my name is Josephine and I'm a Liner-holic. I've been on a 16 year + quest to find the blackest blacks, the truest colours in eyeliner pencils. Hopefully in a medium that doesn't actually drag half of my eyelid to my ear to show some colour…

Day to Night make-up…(almost) all drugstore

Hi Girls and Guys,

There have been a few requests for day to night make-up (and indeed for more natural make up looks generally) so hopefully I can use this post to kill two birds with one stone…metaphorically speaking, of course.

The photos here are with no filter, but a few were taken in more direct sunlight (top left below for the natural look) and on the second camera on my iPhone. I was struggling to show the colours properly as they were quite pale.

Day to night and the Iconic 3 palette from Cosmetic
Revolution - available online & at Superdrug for now.

Scents of summer #2…re-living summer nights in September sun

Well, guys and dolls, more summer reminiscing...

We've had a think as to which fragrances make us remember burning sand on our toes and sun on our shoulders, but which fragrances will keep alive the memories of balmy evenings where you didn't need a jacket, skipped home along the beach - tracing the tideline and watching the moon...

For 2014, for me they'll be:

Liz Earle Botanical Essence No 15

This is actually quite a masculine scent - I've discovered by accident in work that it's very similar to Victor & Rolf's Spicebomb.

This one is going to be divisive, but I love it. Despite not liking clove and cinnamon in real life, they mix beautifully with the other extracts here to create a warm, organic scent which lasts all evening.

Opening with fresh, spice notes of pink pepper, cinnamon and bergamot this dries down to a heart of rose, while sandalwood and vanilla bean come out in the base notes.

Scents of summer #1…stretching warmer days to autumn evenings.

Hey guys and gals,

I don't know about you, but there are just certain scents and smells which make me think of summer. Probably picked up from particular holidays, friends or sisters' choices along the way. Some of these I don't wear everyday, as my tastes have changed over the years towards slightly deeper fragrances.

As August draws to a close - and I expect I lie nursing a slight sore head and much more painful feet from my first night on the tiles in Ibiza - I am sure I will be wondering how to make summer stretch out just a few more weeks after my return to London climes. If I can't actually bring the sun back with me, why don't we just bring back memories of sun and the scents that invoke them….

Summer days, for me mean...

L'Eau de Issey by Issey Miyake

I remember first picking this up on a family holiday to the States when I was about 16. It's just such a classic, light perfume but really feminine without being overly floral. I love this one - if the pocketbook won't stretch you can pick up something really similar in Isis from Marks & Spencer.