Katy Perry Dark Horse Eye Makeup Tutorial

I always love a Katy Perry video, and although the plot of her newest video “dark horse” went over my head, as ever she looked amazing. I have loved the song since I bought the album and since watching the video I have been inspired to create a similar look. I decided to recreate the black wig look she has throughout most of the video. I didn't have the supplies to create the exact look but I think you’ll get the gist of it. Feel free to use any eye shadows you have to create a similar look.

Step 1. I primed my lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion

Step 2. Using my Sleek Mediterranean Monaco Palette I brushed the lightest shade “bamboo” all over my eyelid up to the crease.

Step 3. using an angled brush I applied a deep purple into the outer corner (unfortunately the only purple I owned was in my Disney villains palette but any will do)

Step 4. Then I applied “washed ashore” a orange shade from the Sleek Monaco Palette to the centre of my lid,

Step 5. I used “magenta Madness” over the top of the purple to blend the colours together.

Step 6. In my inner corner I used Barry M fine glitter dust in no15, which is a white pigment. Then I applied no10, a bright yellow, in-between that and the orange.

Step 7. Use a fluffy eye shadow brush to blend all the eye shadows so you have a gradient effect.

Step 8. This is the hard bit. Using a black eyeliner (I used Maybelline eyestudio lasting drama gel eyeliner and a felt pen style eyeliner for some of the trickier bits)draw a line along your top lashes, then draw another line starting underneath your eye, barely touching your waterline, and starting practically on your nose. The line should be fairly flat and shouldn’t meet with the corner of your eye. Its hard to explain but look at the picture and you might get it. after that draw another line that follows your crease from about halfway between you eyebrow and the corner of your eye and follow it to the outer corner, then join that to the point (again refer to the picture).

Step 9. Mascara, for the full Katy Perry effect, falsies are a necessity but I skipped this step. I used the Maybellinebig eyes mascara.

And that’s pretty much it. I did apply bronzer, blusher and lip stain. In the picture Katy appears to have very pink lips and Cheeks so I used Sleep Pomegranate blusher and Maybelline 24 hr super stay bold matte lip stain. There are some pictures of the other looks from the video below, all are more or less the same with slight variations, so have a go at them if you prefer. 

Only a short post today, I’m hoping to get back to posting regularly this week and if not you should all tell me off.

See you all soon. xoxo

Muji Storage Review

Hey guys. So this is just very simply a review of the Muji acrylic storage pieces I have been collecting since Christmas. I didn’t want to go into too much detail of what I store in my Muji drawers because there is sooo much, and I'm not one to boast. But if you want to see my full collection comment below and I'll see what I can do. The way my makeup is set up is temporary, as I will be moving the system back home and it may get changed around after May.

***Disclaimer*** I have far too much makeup, I am ashamed of this and I am cutting down significantly for my move to the states. Also I bought everything in the storage and all the storage myself. Not a sponsored post.***

These are the pieces I own

desk rack £7.95 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=15&Sub=63&PID=6098

rectangular pot £1.95 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=15&Sub=63&PID=189

3 pot partition £5.50 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=15&Sub=63&PID=3566

 5 drawer box £24.95 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=9&Sub=39&PID=6000

2 drawer wide £10.95 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=9&Sub=39&PID=2424

2 drawer wide with flip top lid £11.50 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=9&Sub=39&PID=2435

4 drawer unit £19.95 http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=9&Sub=39&PID=6004

I'm not really going to bother with the desk rack, as I'm not currently using it for any makeup, just a few biros and sharpies. Really useful for quick pen access though.

I'll go from top left to right starting with the rectangular pencil pot. I currently use this for the makeup brushes that get a lot of use, I find its nice to have them separate from all the millions of brushes I barely use, and it’s a nice size for my larger brushes. I don’t feel that this was a necessity for me and it has been a little bit of a spare part but for under £2.00 who's going to argue with that.

The next section is the 2 drawer wide with the flip top lid. The two 2 drawer units and the 4 drawer unit I bought a little later than the 5 drawer and brush holders. I found I still needed storage for my fatter makeup and so I bought these. The top drawer with the flip top lid is currently housing my everyday skincare products and my brushes. I find if their in sight, I might just use them. So I just have them stood up with the lid flipped up. In the drawer underneath I have a foundation I want to use up, primers and skin bases, eye primers and setting sprays. The drawers are deep enough for foundations and other small bottles which is great as I found no other storage was working for them in my current location. Underneath in the two drawer unit (no flip lid) I have a drawer for my Foundations and powder foundations. These aren't all my foundations, some I am contemplating binning and have kept the separate not wanting to ruin my beautiful display (here's looking at you MAC Studio fix fluid, you little waste of money you). And under that is my blushes, highlighters and bronzers. I've not really had a problem with things not fitting height wise with these drawers, my lush lip scrubs can be a bit sketchy but they still just about fit. My foundations fit very snuggly indeed and some feel as though they were made to fit.

The four little drawers at the bottom are possibly my favourite, the unit wasn’t cheap at £19.95 but I feel like this has solved a lot of problems. I have one for concealers, eyeliners, miscellaneous and eyebrow things. The long thin drawers are just perfect for things that are also long and thin. I tried storing my eyeliners in the 5 drawer unit at first but they  kept rolling all over the place and were becoming a nightmare.

Moving on to the right hand side, the 3 partition pot is currently housing my makeup brushes (which are in need of a wash), the first pot is for foundation and concealer, second for powder and bush and 3rd for eye shadow and lip liner. I had to take a few brushes out because it was far too full, I couldn’t find anything. I think getting separate pots is a much easier way to store brushes but I have this now, I'm stuck with it. it still looks good though.

On top of my 5 drawer unit I have my 3 naked palettes, perfume, contact lenses and a few bits that I like to display or have nowhere for.

The five drawer unit has very low drawers and is best for lip and eye products , maybe blushes.

In the top drawer I have my Revlon colour bursts and similar products, which take pride of place in my top drawer as this is probably my prettiest drawer. Underneath are my lipsticks, then under that are the lip-glosses, stains and lacquers.  Under that eye shadows, then finally in the bottom drawer are my mascaras and sleek pallets'.

Overall I love these acrylic storage systems, they make your makeup look like a work of art. They are a bit of a pain to get everything looking attractive but once you have it how you want it its easy. I've always just had my makeup in a drawer, hidden away but its nice to be able to see what I have, I've been using a lot more of my stuff as its not all hidden underneath other things. Also its easy to clean and pretty sturdy. I'm just wondering where I can put these when I move back home :( .

Well that’s all for today. Sorry about the delay, still working out a system for getting these done on time. Hope to see you soon. xoxo

Valentines Makeup Look

So I’m not a huge valentine day person. Having only celebrated 3 prior to this one I’m not really used to the concept, but it is nice to have a day dedicated to love. So I decided to mark the occasion this tutorial Tuesday will be how I achieved this look. It’s quite simple and not too night time, but is still a bit glam (I wore this to uni today so if it is a little OTT, with confidence you can still pull it off, promise).

So first things first I used my Maybelline Baby Skin Pore Eraser to smooth my skin and help hide any lines and bumps in my skin. Then I used my L’oreal true match foundation all over my face and neck blending and applying with my Real Techniques  expert face brush. I then concealed any blemishes first with a light green coverstick called Even Tone from 17 cosmetics. This green counteracts the redness in the skin much better than a concealer alone can, but make sure you remember to cover it up, I swear I’ve been out of the house with green on my face before. Next I used Maybelline Cover Stick to cover the green and any more areas that need a little attention. I’ve always had a lipstick style concealer in my makeup collection in one form or another as I find they conceal and last a lot better than liquid products. In high school and college the only make up I used regularly was my trusty Cover Stick.

Next I focused on my eyes (I can never remember to do the damn things first and if I do I always smudge them), first I cover my lids with the Urban decay primer potion. I personally don’t rate this particular primer. The one I have was a free sample with the original Naked Pallet (the one with the little sponge applicator). The sample seems too watery and it just isn’t a good fit for me. I do find the cream based Primer Potions much better at keeping your makeup in place. After applying this I brushed my Bourjois eye shadow pot in number 08, all over my eyelid, pulling it up to my brow bone. Then using my Maybelline (there seems to be a theme here) Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in 01 Black, I drew a medium thickness line from my inner to outer corner. I then tidied up any squiffy lines or smudgy bits with my Oceane make up remover pen which I received in my august 2013 Glossybox. I don’t know if this is available in shops yet but a Simple Kind to eyes makeup corrector pen does the same job. I then used Bourjois Queen Attitude Khol Kajal on my upper water line and over the top of the gel eyeliner to make the colour more intense.  I find this eyeliner is brilliant for my upper waterline as its softer, last longer and doesn’t hurt if you accidentally poke yourself in the eye (common occurrence for me I’m afraid).  Next I loaded up my lashes with a few coat of “They’re Real” mascara by Benefit, my absolute favourite, and Voila the eyes are done.

Next the brows, at the moment I am trying to use up my Soap and Glory Archery brow tint and pencil. I love the idea of this pencil with a tint in the other end, and at first the results are amazing, but now the felt tip pen has dried up (didn’t last very long) and the pencil has snapped. But at £10 a go I really want to use it all up before I even consider throwing the poor guy in the bin. So I filled in my eyebrows with this, concentrating on the areas that are a little sparse and the inner corner. I’m a big fan of big brows and this look is no different. The bigger the better, within reason. Finally I ran my Maybelline Brow drama sculpting mascara over the top, teasing my eyebrows into position.

As for my lips, I lightly stained them with Mac Plumful lustre lipstick which is my favourite everyday lipstick, I feel that plum shades match my skin tone much better than others. Next I took my MaxFactor Colour Elixir in Princess Rose which is a slightly blue toned light pink, and applied this on top of the lipstick to lighten the look and create a lighter look.

The final few steps including applying my “Watts Up” Benefit high lighter to my cheek bones, brow bone and down the centre of my nose and then blending the product in. On my cheeks I dusted the tiniest amount of “Pomegranate” blush by Sleek, which is a gorgeous plummy colour, great for the winter months and a rosy looking cheek. Be warned though, as with all sleek blushes, this is pigmented. Use sparsely, we don’t want to look like tomatoes ladies. And finally I set the entire look with my Collection Sheer loose powder, which I’m still getting the hang of having always used pressed powders in the past.

 

So that is my finished look. This is the first makeup tutorial I’ve done and I really hope that you like it, I enjoyed making this tutorial and if you have any comments they would be greatly appreciated. If you don’t have any of the products mentioned in my tutorial feel free to chop and change. 

see you all soon. xoxo

*all the products I this tutorial were purchased by me.

REBRAND

So I recently changed my name again. I know “what’s this like the third time?” yes it is. Chic Picnique is gone and “Nic. All Things” is here.  “Nic. All things” is not condoning stealing but instead it means to make the most of everything. Get your hands on anything that you can, make the most of every situation and make the most of your life. I’m not writing this blog to gain hundreds of followers and to become the next Zoella, Honestly its more for my own benefit. It gives me something to focus on and it’s something I enjoy doing. I didn’t advertise my blog until recently as I was terrified of what my friends and family would think, but I finally realised if they are my friends, they would support me, and I was just being stupid really. I‘ve had a lot of support and positive feedback from my recent blog posts and you wouldn’t believe how good that’s made me feel, and how much of a difference that has made to my life. My plan for the future is that I will be posting a new blog entry every other day. Each day has a theme on a two week rotation. I’ll admit I am being a little ambitious, especially as I have a fair few deadlines coming up. But I’m going to have a go and I hope you can forgive me if there are a few missed entries.

Tuesday- Tutorials

Thursday- Review

Saturday- Tags, a little about me and general musings and thoughts

Monday- motivation and lifestyle

Wednesday- Miscellaneous day (generally things that don’t fit in  to any other category or monthly favourites, Glossybox reviews etc)

Friday- Money saving

Sunday- Haul blogs

I really hope I can stick to this and I’m starting tomorrow with a valentines makeup look. Please pop back and check it out

See you all very soon  xoxo

January 2014 Favorites

Where has January gone? What its February already? Bonkers. I guess it’s time for my first monthly favourites of 2014.

So what happened to me in January?

I moved back to Huddersfield after the Christmas break, I had 2 university deadlines, I said goodbye to an old friend and family member, met up with an old friend who was back from Canada for the holiday and I had a long weekend in Liverpool celebrating a friends 21^st birthday. Its now less than 5 months till I move to the USA and the clocks ticking. 

Skin care

My first favorite product from January 2014 is the Bioderma, Solution Micellaire. I figured it was about time I tried this product as my trusty makeup wipes were no longer doing the job sufficiently. I ordered a 500ml bottle from Escentual during the January sale for £11.60 saving £2.90 from the original price. Honestly now I understand the hype, it’s so light and non-greasy and it seems to effortlessly lift off any makeup.  Gone are the days of mascara smudges under my eyes. it feels like water, looks like water, smells like water but removes waterproof mascara. Mental.  

The next product I have been loving this month is the soap and glory Dr Spot super strength breakout clearing gel.  I’ve been using a lot of soap and glory since Christmas after receiving the “Yule Monty” soap and glory gift set. SnG is a brand I have dabbled into in the past but I've never really got truly stuck into, I’d heard great things but the price was always an issue with me. But I had been wanting to change my face wash routine for a while and since Christmas I have purchased Dr Spot, the Scrubatomic daily face polish and the No Clogs Allowed detox mask. I was surprised at the results. I have also been using these with my Peaches and Clean 3 in 1 face wash which feels so refreshing, almost minty somehow. The Dr Spot gel was recommended to me by a friend and she was bang on the money with that one. I have been breaking out a lot in the past few weeks due to hormones and stress but whenever I apply this little tube of gel, I see a difference in the morning.

Makeup

This month has seen some highly anticipated products finally be released. The two I was waiting for were the Maybelline Big Eyes mascara with a bottom lash brush, and the Revlon Colourburst Matte balm and Lacquer balm. Although for me the Maybelline mascara fell a little flat in my opinion, the Revlon balms did not disappoint. I have always loved the Revlon Balm stains and the Honey 001 shade would probably be one of my desert island beauty products. I went a little mad when these finally appeared in my local Boots store, and I bought 3 matte and 3 lacquer shades. My favourite are whimsical 115 and Elusive 205. The lacquer shades are slightly glittery shiny formulas while the matte balms are just as they say on the tin, with a brighter more potent colour. They still smell like peppermint which I love although others may not.  I find that you do have to touch up the colour half way through your day but they still have pretty decent staying power and the colour and texture are beautiful. I never even notice these on my lips after a bit and at £7.99 a pop their not too shabby really.

The next product is an obvious one, honestly I must be the slowest person to mention this in a blog. It is of course the Urban Decay Naked 3 Pallet. Now if you read my blog regularly you will know that I was recently bamboozled by a eBay account selling fake naked 3 palettes but luckily I received a full refund and finally got my hands on the real thing. Okay so this one’s a little steep at £37.00 but it’s certainly an investment. I now currently own all 3 of the full sized Naked pallets and my only quarrel is that my other two are getting neglected. I’m still working out how to use all the colours but surprisingly it’s pretty difficult to mess up. My worry with this pallet was the pink toned eye shadows, although beautiful, they do have the tendency to make the wearer look as though they have a bout of conjunctivitis, Grim. But surprisingly I haven’t yet achieved this look. the shadows are as ever just as pigmented, just as long wearing and just as beautiful as all the other eye-shadows.

Hair care

I have had no time throughout January, with two deadlines and a family related drama, so my hair has had to take a back seat. Now those that know me know my hair is the bane of my existence. I probably have enough hair for two people (maybe three), there’s thick hair and then there’s my hair. I want to do a blog post on this soon as I feel I have a lot of advice for all my thick haired ladies. I know you’re thinking, why is having a lot of hair a bad thing. Well it takes a lifetime to dry, style and just generally stop it looking like a birds nest. So my first product has been a life saver in the past month. This is the Lee Stafford Blow Dry Your Hair Faster Spray or “Wonder Spray”. I had heard fables about products like this for a while, my hair dresser used a serum on my hair which she claimed “cut your drying time in half”, as at that moment I was paying a lot of money to have my hair done, I couldn't afford the fabled product and had to leave it. When I finally had the money, I had no clue of the name. So instead I found this product. All I can say is it works. It doesn't appear to do much else, it doesn't dry out my hair, it fells exactly as it would had I took the extra time to dry it without the product. It works as a pretty good detangler too. When I've just sprayed this onto my hair without blow-drying, the water just seems to pour off making air-drying a lot faster too. When blow-drying my hair normally I would say it takes about 15 minutes if I just tip my head upside down and blow, 45 if I give a damn. With this spray it takes 10 or less to dry roughly and about 30 to dry nicely. At £6.19 for 200ml it’s not a bad price, especially if you consider the time you save. And time is money after all.

Music

So this month I've listened to very little new music. While bashing out my Management Theory essay I spent a lot of time listening to the newest self-titled Beyoncé album. I admit its no “I am Sasha Fierce” or “4” but it’s still pretty awesome. The videos are amazing (but put your bum away Bey). My favorite songs are Flawless (my personal singing in the shower favorite), XO and Blow. The whole album has this way of making you feel like a woman. She is just so body confident and maybe feminist isn't the word to describe this album but it does have a way of making you feel more self-assured, empowered and sexy just by listening to it or watching the videos. I was fortunate enough to get tickets to see her next month so keep an eye out for the blog post on that. 

Film

I finally watched Frozen (yes I’m behind, I know) stunning film. Maybe it’s not my favorite Disney film (that place in my heart will forever be reserved for Finding Nemo and the Lion King), but its pretty close. I adore the “Let it go” scene. Am I the only one that wants hair like Elsa? It makes me miss my blonde days. Other films I saw this month were the Artist (beautiful), the Wolf of Wall Street (drugs and nakedness) and 12 Years a Slave (emotional). 

So that's it for January 2014. I hope February brings you all love and happiness. Have a lovely valentines day and I hope to reach you all soon. :) xoxo

Heed my warning

Just a very quick post today I'm afraid. I've been royally pissed off this weekend by an order I made over EBay a few days ago. I ordered the brand new Naked 3 palette thinking I was getting a bargain. Idiot. this was the first time I'd used EBay as I found it confusing and somehow i'd managed to get round it. so i was feeling pretty clever having finally worked out Paypal, I thought I'd order what i had wanted for months but hadn't the courage to purchase. Man I wish I'd just waited till Debenhams got it back in stock. this is quite obviously a fake. The packaging isn't the same, the pictures on the back are ever so slightly blurry, the eye shadows are probably pretty good but they don't feel the same as my Naked 1 & 2 Palletes do and the colours are way off. The colour black heart is black rather than the very dark burgundy shade, Strange the first shade is a medium pink. So please please please don't do what I did. Buy it from a proper retailer, I only wish I'd done more research but the seller had brilliant reviews so I trusted him, silly moo. you never know it might be a faulty one (doubt it) either way that's £30 spent on a shoddy eyeshadow pallete. lesson learnt.
back later in the week with a proper post (promise)

Basics Review

Happy 2014 to you, my dear reader. I hope all your New Year resolutions are going well. Today I am going to be reviewing a few basic products which I have purchased recently. I want to also create 2013 favourites but unfortunately some of my products are at university and I can’t review them until maybe next week (boo). So today instead I'm looking at a few bits and pieces that i may or may not like but I wished to share with you.

My first product has been out for a little while now, I think it was a new release in 2013 (or at least I hadn't seen it before then), this is the Vaseline Spray & Go Body Moisturizer(£4.99 190ml). I have found I am incredibly lazy with body moisturizers, body butters or body lotions. Purchasing this item was meant to be the solution to this problem. This product comes in a choice of 3 "scents" Cocoa, Aloe and Oat. Naturally I chose the cocoa butter which is meant to be non-greasy, Bonus. The smell is amazing. It reminds me of a body-wash I had as a kid, but it’s not too over powering and it won’t tamper with your perfume too much. I think the packaging is convenient for this product as well, with no lids and just a twist lock cap for easy traveling, and no leakage (so far). The actual product is a great idea, a quick and easy way to moisturize which absorbs instantly.

Unfortunately this isn't as efficient as other moisturizers I have used in the past. It helps and it does moisturize the skin but I prefer this as a top up product, meaning I might use body butter in the evening after having a shower but in the morning I may use this product to top it up when I don’t have as much time. It’s therefore not a solution to my problem but it smells nice and it is a nice thing to have when you have no time but feel really dry. I think with all those things in mind I would give it 6/10. Meaning I may repurchase this item, but I don’t think it will be missed if I didn’t.

The second product is the Nivea Express Hydration Primer (£3.99 50ml) from their Daily Essentials range. At £3.99 this is a very cheap primer, and honestly it isn’t the worst primer I’ve tried (ahem Rimmel). It works as a moisturiser as well as a primer and therefore in typical Nivea fashion, leaves your skin feeling beautiful, no debate. I am a strong believer in mouse primers like the L’Oreal studio secrets or even the Garnier 5 second perfect blur. I have never been a huge fan on the creamy gel like consistency primers. This unfortunately falls into that category. It minimalizes pores, to an extent but not as well as I would like. The product does very little to stop blemishes and imperfections showing through and does little to dark circles. As for keeping my makeup in place for longer, there isn’t any evidence to say it prolongs my makeup, but it make it any worse. Overall I think it’s a nice product, it’s another time saver product which sort of does its job half-heartedly. But although I’ve given this product a hard time, it does make my skin appear better, and if I use a better primer and a good concealer in those problem areas, it comes out well. I would give this product a 7/10 for its hydration and its skin improvement qualities. Had it been a primer on its own it would have got a lot lower score.

The Bourjois Bronzing Primer was an impulse purchase I decided I really needed for New Year’s Eve. I’ve only tried this product a few times and it can be a little tricky to get right, especially when trying to contour, but when done correctly it looks so natural and beautiful. I have found that it can be worn on bare skin, just to add a little bit of a bronze glow to a bare face, or on top of foundation or for the best result under foundation for a really seamless glow which appears to radiating from within. I have heard of others using it as a full face primer but I think it is a little dark for me. I’ve also used this as a contour on my temples and the sides of my nose, as it’s a little more subtle than some bronzers or contour powders. Apparently this product smooth’s, evens and matifies the skin which it does seem to. Overall I am very impressed with this product, it is a little difficult to apply and therefore I may not use it every day but I hope when I master the application process this will make its way into my regular makeup bag. I think I’ll give it 9/10 its only down side being the application process. But this is made easier if you apply less rather than more.

Coming soon—Face of the day and maybe a health and fitness diary.