REVIEW: Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge (Cabo Coral)

I couldn't resist picking this up as I walked past the Bobbi Brown counter in Harvey Nichols in the Landmark mall, which now has a twinkling Christmas tree in the lobby.



I know that it's winter and TECHNICALLY I should be wearing a rosy mulled wine stain on my cheeks but I was getting bored of my sensible "winter" powder blushes and decided to embrace the warm weather in Hong Kong (it was 25 celsius when I arrived) with a new coral cream blush.

Also, I love coral blushes :) MAC Peaches is my current favourite powder blush.

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Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge for Lips and Cheeks in Cabo Coral

PRODUCT

This is a hardened cream product that softens up with a quick swirl of a fingertip. In terms of texture, it is less sticky and gooey than the Stila Convertible Colors (love these though), more creamy than the Topshop Cream Blushes and gives a more dewy finish than the MAC Cremeblend Blushes.

Cabo Coral is a very peachy coral with much less pink in it than its sister Pot Rouge, Calypso Coral. I would go as far to say that this looks and applies like a sheer pastel orange, whereas Calypso Coral is a peachy pink which leans towards the pink spectrum.

As the name suggests, it is designed for use on both cheeks and lips for anything from subtle stain to a full-on flush. You get 11ml of product which I think is fairly generous as you need the smallest amount for great colour payoff - I don't think I'll be needing to repurchase this for years!

I paid HK$210 for this product.

APPLICATION

(a) CHEEKS

The lip balm style pot begs for a fingertip application but I have found that this applies best on CHEEKS with a regular foundation brush (i.e. the MAC 190 shape). I gently stroke the product with the brush and apply it to the whole cheek for a brightening kiss of coral on my cheeks. It is comparable to NARS Turks & Caicos Multiple Tint, but is less of a orange jelly tint and more of a sheer peach yoghurt flush.

Mmm peach yoghurt.

(b) LIPS

Contrary to my cheek method, I use my fingertips to apply this to the lips. Instead of swiping it on, I find that applying a bit of lip balm before pressing the colour onto my lips with the pad of my finger works best, otherwise it can be quite drying.

The colour on my lips is similar to MAC's Ravishing lipstick but is more of a pastel peachy orange. It is also similar to MAC's Freckletone lipstick but again is a bit more pastel and peachy.

Worn on both cheeks and lips:

VERDICT

This is a lovely cream blush in a sleek container that contains a generous amount of product. It definitely satisfied my craving for a true peachy-orange blush as there are hardly any pink, brown or rose tones in this!

Although this could be built up into a truly tropical colour, I enjoy wearing it as a sheer flush of product across my whole cheek. It is a bit drying on the lips but is a cheerful pastel peach colour which works great with a bit of lipbalm.

Staying power on my cheeks is excellent - I had class from 9am-5pm today and the colour was still there when I got home and I still looked healthy and glowing. I think this would look GORGEOUS on tanned skin but I like how it looks on my NC20-25 skin too.

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If you have any questions then please feel free to leave me a message in the comments :)

Do you have a favourite cream blush?

the Balm Cosmetics (& CHRISTMAS IN HONG KONG)

Darlings, I'm baaack - it's been far too long since my last post and I've really missed blogging! I've been reading all of your blogs but haven't had the time to blog myself or comment regularly.

I hope that you all had the merriest of Christmases filled with mince pies, port, carolling, brandy butter and all the other lovely things that come with the festive season. I arrived on Christmas eve and therefore spent most of it in a jet-lagged stupour, waking at midnight to eat a huge Christmas dinner... midnight munchies! I also had a truly good nosh fest at a Christmas day buffet hosted by the Marina club in Hong Kong. What does everyone have planned for new years eve? I will be at a cabaret themed club night, daintily slurping and guzzling my way through the open bar & unlimited canapes that will be on offer.

Diet, me?

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EUROTRIP



My previous post gives away the main event of the last few months - my trip to Luxembourg! It was absolutely wonderful and I say this as a complete bright-lights-big-city sort of gal. Despite it being a tiny, land-locked Grand Duchy, I found that it surprised me with its quaint beauty and strong international vibe, mainly due to the mix of people who work in Luxembourg City, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (which was where I was based). It is common for people to commute in from neighbouring countries (Germany, Belgium) and it is only a short train ride away from a huge range of exciting places that are perfect for a weekend trip (Paris, anyone?).


It's the building buried in the valley greenery on the bottom right corner of the photo!

I ended up staying at the Luxembourg City Youth Hostel for most of the time due to the short nature of my stay. I haven't stayed in many youth hostels, but this far exceeded my expectations (contrary to the horror stories told by friends and family) as it was almost like a hotel with dorm rooms! I ate delicious and reasonably priced meals in the hotel restaurant EVERY DAY and was never disappointed, which is more than you could say even for most hotel food (almost always mediocre and overpriced).



The nightlife was limited in choice but always buzzing at the weekends, despite the size of the city and the nature of its residents - I have fond memories of Scott's Pub (an British themed bar with a difference... everyone working there was actually British! Including the resident jazz guitarist) and The Tube (pictured! This was loosely themed on the London Underground but the theme wasn't explored much further than a faded wall mural of the tube map)



If you happen to be road-tripping around that area of Europe or are planning a Eurotrip, I recommend that you take out a day or two (for that is all Luxembourg City really needs for a full tour) to explore this glorious little city. I haven't mentioned the great transport system, the charming eateries in the town centre, the breathtaking valleys on which the city is built on and the fascinating insight you can get of Luxembourg's fascinating history whilst admiring the beautiful stone structures dotted throughout the old town and exploring its mysterious underground cave system.

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BLOGGING FROM ABROAD

I am currently in Hong Kong for the next few months and am excited to be blogging from here. I am by no means a tourist as I am originally from HK and lived and went to school here for many years but I've been away for so long that everything has changed (shops seem to change every few months!) and I will enjoy sharing my opinions on everything from food to fashion as I re-discover Hong Kong for myself.

GLOW

I decided to have some fun with my make up today and use a few new products from theBalm Cosmetics that I recently bought from SaSa (our drugstore equivalent here in asia) to create a bronzy, shimmery look.

MAKE UP USED:

BASE:
- Maybelline Dream Satin foundation in Nude -

CHEEKS:
- Bobbi Brown blush in Desert Rose and Pale Pink (swirled together with a stippling brush) -
- theBalm cosmetics Mary-Lou Manizer AKA "the Luminizer" along cheekbones -

EYES:
- theBalm cosmetics Mary-Lou Manizer all over the lid up to the brow -
- theBalm cosmetics Shady Lady eyeshadow in All About Alex (swatch below) blended along the lashline and smudged upwards -
- L'oreal Contour Khol in Dark Chocolate to tightline -
- 17 Eyebrow Shaper in Natural Brown on the brows -
- Clinique High Impact Mascara in 01 Black -

LIPS:
- Estee Lauder Pure Color Crystal Lipstick in 301 Crystal Baby -

Mugshot for detail

i.D. magazine inspired



* NEW STUFF FROM THEBALM COSMETICS*

I was really excited to find this brand in Hong Kong as its not readily available in the UK and even in London I think it is exclusively stocked at Harvey Nichols. My attention was first brought to this brand by the lovely Ruth from A Model Recommends who reviewed the Luminizer in one of her videos.

Mary-Lou Manizer AKA the Luminizer

A gorgeous shimmery champagne gold highlight and eyeshadow with buttery textured powder. This is really easy to work with and may look scary when you swipe it but blends out nicely. It is a bit glittery so not the most subtle of highlighters but a tiny bit goes a long way and the sheen it imparts is really pretty.


Shady Lady eyeshadow in All About Alex

A gilded khaki with a pewter undertone. Glimmering goodness. The texture of all the eyeshadows are similar to the Luminizer and the pay-off and buildability are fairly good too, probably even better with UDPP or TFSI as a base (I don't have either - shame on me. I'm holding out for the UDPP in its new squeeze tube packaging!)



The other two Shady Lady shadows in:

Curvy Cami

A glittery mid-toned purple that leans slightly towards cranberry when swatched. Similar to Trax from MAC but I prefer this as the texture is much easier to work with - MAC shadows can sometimes be dry and hard to get good colour pay-off from.


Luscious Lani

A light glimmery pale pink, slightly frosty - the camera has picked up champagne for some reason but its definitely pink, almost how Benefit's High Beam looks in the bottle. Looks great with Curvy Cami :)

* Other close ups *

Estee Lauder Crystal Baby

You've probably heard of this from the Pixiwoo sisters and Tanya Burr of Pixi2woo who love using this for a natural full pink lip. Smells scrummy too.

Clinique High Impact Mascara

My current favourite. The story behind this purchase was that I recently discovered my ANCIENT old tube, which was only a tester but had not dried out at all after years and years! I was so impressed considering that I have owned mascaras that dry out after a month or two or, worse still, are dry and flaky to begin with! Obviously I wasn't about to use a mascara that was about 5 years old so I popped out and bought another sample for myself.

HK sells samples of everything - perfume (cute little 5ml bottles), skincare, make up. A bit of a rip-off considering they are samples which should be provided for free BUT:

a) I'd rather pay £2 for a generous 4g sample-size tube of mascara (which is what I did) rather than have to wheedle and beg a snobby sales assistant to hand one over.

b) I doubt that, even if I did beg and plead, I would be able to get a mascara sample unless it was posted to my doorstep by PR for review as make up counter SA's make it seem like sample pots of foundation are a hugest deal already.


Hope that was useful :)

I'm planning to delve into the world of BB (Blemish Balm) creams which seem to be the new hot thing in Asia. Have you heard anything about them or used them yourself? I must admit that I first heard about them in Ingrid's youtube videos!

Love,
Geisha
xoxo

AZURE POP

Hi beauties!

This is my gold & bronze eye make up for today, as inspired by the gorgeous Dara of Belle Du Jour NYC - check her videos out, they are some of my favourites on youtube.

I used the Sleek Safari palette that I got at their recent event:

Picture A

Picture B

1. GOLD colour (Picture A, centre of bottom row) all over my lid.
2. DARK CHOCOLATE colour (Picture A, right of bottom row) in the outer corner,
3. MATTE SANDY BROWN (Picture B, bottom row on the left) in the crease.
4. DARK TURQUOISE (Picture A, top row on the left) smudged along the outer half of bottom lashes.
5. LIGHT TURQUOISE (Picture A, bottom row on the left) smudged along the inner half of bottom lashes.
6. Black eyeliner to tightline my upper lashline.
7. Mascara on the outer half of my lashes.

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Lunch today: This awesome pre-packed caesar salad which comes with all the extras! This is when you appreciate the laziness of human nature & the developments that result.

And a cold coffee to go with it :)

Love,

Geisha

xoxo

Benefit from Glamour

Hello lovelies,

I am on a blogging roll! It's so nice to be free of exam stress and I'm in the mood to start blogging like crazy :)

I wanted to share some new purchases of mine:

Firstly - Of course I had to get these wonderful freebies! This months edition of Glamour magazine only came out yesterday and already the products are sweeping the blogosphere. I haven't managed to get an It stick yet (oh but I will!) but I managed to snag these 2 from the nearest 2 newsagents to my house. Each newsagent only had 1 copy of Glamour each! I don't think they got the memo that they'll be selling like hot cakes because of the Benefit freebies :)

The silly thing is that I actually already have the BadGal liner pencil but I thought I'd get a backup - you can never have enough of a good thing right? Do I hear you say "make up addict"? Hush now. But I highly recommend the liner - its the only product out of the 3 I've used before. It's a lovely smudgy intense black kohl eyeliner, perfect for dramatic smoky eyes.. what I really need now is a pencil sharpener for large pencils!

Alternatively, if there are any international readers who would like me to send them a copy of UK Glamour sealed with the BadGal pencil then I'd be happy to do that at cost + P&P.

Just leave me a comment!

This is my minimal make up today - I'm getting so lazy about my hair and have taken to just sweeping it up in any manner and braiding random bits. Please excuse the random trailing ipod earphone, I was watching Tali's new video whilst taking these pictures :)

Products used:

Bare Minerals foundation in Light

Rimmel London Orion Eye palette on my eyes (2 lighter colours)

No 7 Lash 360 Mascara

Bobbi Brown Rose Shimmer brick on cheeks

Korres Monoi Oil bronzer in Sunglow Warm 02 (IN LOVE)

MAC Florabundance lipgloss (ALSO IN LOVE)

And my outfit of the day:

Cardigan - Lungta de Fancy (Korean brand, bought from London Fashion Weekend)

Crochet detail fuchsia top - Zara (this has subtle kimono sleeves and is casual and really pretty)

Dark blue jeggings - A market in Hong Kong

Pastel peach brogues - Primark (Surprisingly comfortable and waterproof... I tested this when I got caught in torrential rain in Oxford!)

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Blog sale goodies from Rowena at Cosmetic Candy :) One of my favourite make up bloggers and a personal inspiration and guru who has helped me hone my formerly scattered and uninformed approach to make up!

I think Row must have sent these by rocket mail because they arrived in the flashest of flashes!

What I bought:

Korres Monoi Oil Bronzing Powder in 02 Sunglow Warm

LOVE THIS. So much. Subtle bronzing goodness.

Korres Cherry Lip Gloss

Holy pigmentation! This packs a punch with the most gorgeous berry stain. I absolutely love this colour and can't wait to wear it to go for summer evening cocktails and dancing.

MAC Lipglass in Florabundance

You all know and love this :) I'm wearing it on my lips now and have included a gratuitous lip shot. It doesn't show up as much of a colour on my lips but just adds a lovely sheen and evens out the colour of them.

Left: Korres cherry gloss, Right: MAC Florabundance

Love,

Geisha

xoxo