A Very Late Princess...

You may remember, that on the 12th of May, I posted about fundraising for ME Awareness Day, by dressing up as a princess. Except I didn't actually dress up as a princess that day, as I felt too ill. The thing about having ME, is that you feel 'too ill' an awful lot. My depression has also been worse lately, I seem to have lost all motivation, the past month or so. 

Actual footage from my life.

Me trying to get stuff done.

So, I didn't get around to taking my princess pictures for a while, and I haven't got around to posting them until now. What can I say, I like leaving you in suspense!

Do you want to see my princess pics? Go on, then...

I chose to base my look around how ME makes me feel. Grief, for the life I could've had. Frustration, from having to push through debilitating fatigue in order to do anything. Envy, watching others live their lives, healthy and unencumbered. Basically, I threw a pity party on my face, with make-up. I'm carrying a powder brush to represent my (sometime) job, and a spoon to represent the 'spoon theory' explanation of illness, and me as a 'spoonie'.

Product list!

Face-

Kiss My Face Sunscreen SPF 50 Face Factor

 - I actually forgot I was wearing this, it's why I have a bit of a white cast from the flash on my face and neck - oops!
Illuminare Concealing Extra Coverage Mineral Foundation in Alabaster and Porcelain, as concealer.
Lily Lolo Mineral Foundation in China Doll.
Lunatick Cosmetic Labs Cool Contour Palette in 1 to highlight, and 2 and 3 to contour.

She bravely posted a side profile pic. #schnoz

Eyes
E.L.F Mineral Eyeshadow Primer
Diggy Diggy Hole by Shiro on lid and undereye.
A touch of an acid green shimmer Yaby Shadow on inner corner
A mixture of forest green and brown matte Yaby Shadows on crease and inner socket.
Barry M Black Kohl liner all around eyes, on waterline and tightline.
Brows Smoking by Neve Cosmetics. 

Tears Mystery by Beauty Without Cruelty mixed with acid green shimmer from Yaby and Holographic glitter from OCC. Mixed with E.L.F Mixing medium and a touch of clear OCC Lip Tar.

Mascara - Barry M Lash Vegas
Ardell Demi Wispie Lashes

Lips
Women's Weapons by Shiro Mixed with E.L.F mixing medium and clear OCC lip Tar. Topped with 1 from Lunatick Cosmetic Labs Cool Contour Palette in centre of lips.

What do you think of the look? Hopefully I can raise some money for ME Research UK! I have already raised £40 (yay!) at the time of writing on my JustGiving page, so I should get a bit more now that I've come up with the goods, right? I'm really hoping to get to my goal of £100. If you can, please donate! It's so important, ME research is extremely under funded.
In order to encourage you to donate, I present to you these silly pics from my princess 'shoot'.

Theodore getting on on the fun.

Spoooooooon.

Ballgown & socks, the new fashion trend, because sometimes princesses have cold feet!

Click here to donate, or text CFSM51 £3 to 70070. (Or replace £3 with how much you want to donate.) It really means a lot to me.

It means a lot to kitty, too.

That's all from me for now. I have a couple of posts in the pipeline, so don't be too surprised if you see another post soon!

Til Next Time,
Emma
xXx

Review: Lunatick Cosmetic Labs Cool Contour Palette & a Brief History of Contouring

Apart from my birth (obvs), one of the great things that happened in the 80s was the rise of the contour. The art of sculpting the cheekbones using makeup moved from stage and film, into fashion and everyday wear. Women and men were using colour to give their faces definition and enhance their features. It was awesome, but in the bold blush colours of the day, it didn't look natural. At all. 

What do you mean? We woke up like this! (Pics via Google Images)

In the 90s, the contour trend waned a little, although makeup god Kevyn Aucoin was giving celebs and top models the sculpted look, using lighter and darker shades of foundation to add light and shade.

Technique diagram, from Kevyn Aucoin's Book 'Making Faces'

Fast forward to the 2000s and it was all about the tan. Everyone and their Nan was on the sunbeds and fake tan. People smelled of dirty biscuits, and calling a girl 'pale' or 'white' was the harshest of insults. Contouring was in again, and this time it was done with bronzer, applied in an orange-brown stripe under the cheekbones.

Britney, being a Slave 4 Bronzer. Pic via Google Images.

The problem with all of these techniques is that they don't take into account the colour of actual shadows. Shadows are not hot pink, bronze, or even a darker foundation colour. They are a cool greyish taupe. And this is where I think Lunatick Cosmetic Labs has got it spot on with their Cool Contour Palette.

The palette itself is coffin shaped, and is decorated with Ouija boards, ghouls and monsters! But even if you're not a fan of creepy kitch, the 5 shades inside will more than make up for it.

The shades don't have names, so I have imaginatively called them, from L-R, 1,2,3,4 & 5.

I think the lightest shade, 1, is supposed to be a highlight. With shades 2-5, you can create a truly real looking contour on the lightest to the darkest of skintones. It doesn't look like makeup, it looks like shadow, a true hollow in your skin. 

The colours are extremely pigmented, so you only need a little on your brush. They work wonderfully as eyeshadows, too. They have a silky texture, which means they blend easily into the skin with little effort.

One swipe, no primer.

I've really enjoyed using this palette, but I'm afraid this can't be a 100% glowing rave review. When I first received it, I noticed there seemed to be a little powder that had leaked between the outside of the palette and the plastic it was wrapped in. Uh-oh. This was what I found when I first opened it -

As you can see, the powder has leaked a little and made a mess inside the palette.  Each pan came with a glass counter on top to help you re-press the powders. Hmm, this doesn't bode well. You see, as soon as you touch the surface with finger or brush, the powder turns from pressed to loose and goes everywhere! Massive pain in the bum! I was worried the powders would break and go everywhere during transport in my kit, but luckily they have stayed intact so far. I've put one of the counters in my kit so I can re-press them before I pack my things away. I've tried spritzing them with alcohol before pressing them, to see if they would stay solid longer, but as soon as I touched them with a brush, they turned powdery again. 

Does this put me off the product? I think the colours and performance outweigh the negatives, but I kind of wish Lunatick Cosmetic Labs had just made them loose contouring powders, and sold them separately, with an option to buy the full set. I do think it's worth having all the colours though, because they do all work wonderfully as eyeshadows, too. Plus you can blend them together to get the shade that is right for you. 

Lunatick Cosmetic Labs Cool Contour Palette is £22.95 from CuteCosmetics. 

Keep an eye on my Instagram, I'm going to post a pic of this in action in a day or two!

Til Next Time,

Emma

xXx

This product was purchased by me. My reviews and opinions will always remain unbiased and impartial. Please see skimlinks disclosure in the sidebar.