Tag Archives: beauty

GLOWWBOX review part 2

10th January 2015

Here’s part two of the Glowwbox December Box review- this time its all about how the Brown Girl aka Moi got on. For a start regular readers will know I’m a self confessed make-up dunce. So I like the idea of a beauty box service that provides an edit of the best products that work for my skin tone. I had given the Motions hair products and the Bellapierre shimmer to Tess and was left with Mehron Mascara, Inlight-Super Food Face Mask and Lord & Berry lipsticks.

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I loved the Lord & Berry lipstick and the Mehron Mascara. The lippy is a really flattering glossy nude and the mascara was a really deep intense black. The face mask is still untouched but I’m saving it for when I get a window of pamper time!

FullSizeRender (4) Copying what the BBloggers do- the holding of the lipstick shot!

Lord & BerryScreenshot of the pic I tweeted with the lippy on. The reply I got from a follower is quite possibly the funniest tweet I’ve ever got! LOLLL!

The picture isn’t that clear and it looks more subtle than the lipstick actually was- it’s a deeper pinky brown nude than the pic shows. I’m thinking its time I get a proper camera instead of my camera phone.

I do think the Glowwbox service is fab. For £15 a month there’s an array of products in each box and its great to be introduced to products that I don’t normally hear of. Suggestions for the Glowwbox team would be to aim products depending on subscriber. The Afro- Caribbean Motions product were great for Tess but not me. And I’d really like to see videos or blog posts that show how to use some of the products. Tess and I didn’t really know the best way to apply the shimmer and a tutorial would have been great.

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GLOWWBOX Review Part 1

9th January 2015

I’m kicking off the new year with a beauty post reviewing Glowwbox! Glowwbox is a beauty box subscription service that describes itself as…

a luxury beauty package of some of the best in beauty suitable for women with darker skin tones.

Opening the beautifully packaged box I found an array of gorgeous goodies! After having a read of the products I decided to enlist the help of my friend Tess from afrotee_tee. I thought seeing as the two full sized products- The Motions hair product is aimed at Afro- Carribean women. It would be good to get Tess to review them. I also gave her the Bellapierre- Mineral Eye Shadow, Celebration to check out too.

Here’s how she got on with the products. Full details on how to subscribe to Glowwbox are below.

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First product I tried out was what we both described as the “glitter stuff”. It’s a little pot of gold dust by Bellàpierre cosmetics, and to be honest with you I was skeptical of trying this out as it was “glitter stuff” and I didn’t want to look like a black Pat Butcher on bad day, not only that, unless I was having a ditzy moment ( and I do have a few) I didn’t know if this was eye shadow or highlighter or a body shimmer! None the less I gave it a go. Making sure I applied this stuff in the bathroom so my cream carpets were not marked gold, I was pleasantly surprised at how much power was on my eye brush but not a lot on my eyes. I found the more I blended the product in the less I saw of it. For something so shimmery I thought the opposite would have happened. As I was going to work I only applied to the tear ducts, subtle yet effective and off to work I went.

tess 1

The next time I decided to wear Bellàpierre cosmetics “glitter stuff” was on my 12th year anniversary with hubby (we have only been married for 4months, but together for 12) anyway I piled it on my eyes. Same effect happened the more I blended it in the more I felt it disappeared slightly, and the more glitter I found on my face rather than eyelids. I decided this time to apply it all over the lid with a black liner which I found helped protrude the colour a bit. In my bathroom light it looked too much but I rolled with it and went out. In the bathroom light of the restaurant it doesn’t look as bright but I liked the look. Overall as a choice of eyeshadow I’m not sure I like this colour as it didn’t give the pop that I thought it would, whether it being the way I applied it or due to my complexion! I wouldn’t mind trying out something brighter – I may just Ms Butcher a run for her money bless her fully covered lids!

tess 2

The other products I tried were two hair products from the Motions range. Since deciding to go natural in 2012 (that’s no chemicals to permanently straighten) I have become what’s known in the natural hair community as a “product junkie”. So to say I was excited to try these hair products, was an understatement.
The first was the naturals textures moisturizing cleanser. I had been wearing my hair in a weave (a protective style, less stress on my hair and easier to maintain) and decided to take it out during the xmas period to give my scalp a breather… Amen!

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Cleansers are less harsher than shampoos as they don’t usually contain sulfates that can strip hair of its oils, but do the same thing as a shampoo. There are many blogs and sites that speak about the difference between shampoos and cleansers so you can have a read in your spare time. Anywho – I found this cleanser great for my hair! If my hair hadn’t been in a weave for so long yuck, one lather would have been enough, I ended up washing my hair twice. My hair felt clean and my scalp was rid of all the build- up! Scalp and hair freee yay!!!

I then followed up with the natural textures deep conditioning masque! As a deep conditioner goes this was very runny and not as thick or creamy as other conditioners I have used before. Smelled nice and not to heavy so I wasn’t worried about my hair smelling like tutti fruity chewits! My hair didn’t feel covered like it does with others and I found that I was applying more and more of the conditioner onto my hair, by the time I looked in the container I realised that I could have potentially finished the lot in one go… not good. I left the conditioner in for half an hour with no heat . Once I washed it out my hair was soft and manageable and I was impressed. Still wasn’t sure if this was down to the amount I put in or just the fact the product did its thing. I still have some left so ill be applying it again but sparingly.

Look out for me on instagram: afrotee_tee where you can see my length check progress styles… my journey basically. Hopefully if I’m good I may be here again!
See ya’s laters!!

Subscribe to Glowwbox for £15 a month + P&P www.glowwbox.com

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Thanks Tess aka the black Pat Butcher! Ohhh Tess you know that’s going to be your new nickname lol!

Part 2: Will be out tomorrow!!

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A/w 13 Beauty Trend: 1930’s glamour meets Vamp

2nd Sept 2013

Taking a break from fashion in this post and concentrating on beauty. I noticed that 1930’s Hollywood glamour meets Vamp was trending at the recent PCJ Delhi Couture Fashion Week and Lakme Fashion Week at both Manish Malhotra and Sabyasachi. It’s a fab look and the fact it works on every skin tone makes me love this trend even more! You can go for a more plummy brown shade or plummy black shade- either makes for a strong evening look.

beauty, trend. a/w, 13, manish malhotra, vamp, 1930's, hollywood glamour, lipstick, eyeshadow, MAC, Charlotte Tillbury, Eyeliner, taylor swift, selena gomez, vma, mtvStrong brows and Vampy lippy at Manish Malhotra’s PCJ Delhi Couture Fashion Week.

beauty, trend. a/w, 13, manish malhotra, vamp, 1930's, hollywood glamour, lipstick, eyeshadow, MAC, Charlotte Tillbury, Eyeliner, taylor swift, selena gomez, vma, mtvCeleb Make Up Artist- Charlotte Tilbury on the Right is due to launch her new Make Up range in a couple of days and here’s her ‘Vintage Vamp’

beauty, trend. a/w, 13, manish malhotra, vamp, 1930's, hollywood glamour, lipstick, eyeshadow, MAC, Charlotte Tillbury, Eyeliner, taylor swift, selena gomez, vma, mtvTaylor Swift rocking Old Hollywood glamour meets Vamp.

beauty, trend. a/w, 13, manish malhotra, vamp, 1930's, hollywood glamour, lipstick, eyeshadow, MAC, Charlotte Tillbury, Eyeliner, taylor swift, selena gomez, vma, mtvSabyasachi’s Old World Glamour Vampy lips and smokey eyes.

beauty, trend. a/w, 13, manish malhotra, vamp, 1930's, hollywood glamour, lipstick, eyeshadow, MAC, Charlotte Tillbury, Eyeliner, taylor swift, selena gomez, vma, mtvGo for these shades of plumy/brown to get the look. L-R Tom Ford Lipstick in Plum, M.A.C Matte Lipstick Diva, Bobbi Brown Lipstick in Black Raspberry.

Images: Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr

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Wedding Weds: Bridal Updo inspiration

21st August 2013

I’m in the midst of wedding hair trials so have been collecting plenty of inspiration to take to my appointments. For the Hindu wedding I’ve been looking at low bun options for two reasons- firstly the Mr. and I are around the same height (I’m 5’9) and secondly I want to have my dupatta draped over a low bun rather than the top of my head. I think the later option would just look too severe on me.

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & Nikhil, Frieda Pinto, Sonam Kapoor, Thank You, Neha Dupia, TOifa Neha Dupia’s sleek up do and retro bun looks fab. She totally rocked that Sabya lengha at Toifa!

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & Nikhil, Frieda PintoI love this romantic look on Frieda Pinto- the soft height at front and soft curls pinned up at the back.

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal Deepika in Love Aaj Kal. I like this in-between option. Heads covered but not fully.

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & NikhilDia Mirza in a gorgeous Shantanu & Nikhil Anarkali. I like the side parting and long fringe.

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & Nikhil, Frieda Pinto, Sonam Kapoor, Thank You I LOVE both these styles.

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & Nikhil, Frieda Pinto, Sonam Kapoor, Thank You, Neha Dupia, TOifa, Anushka Sharma Anushka Sharma’s HOT retro hair and make up at the Filmfare awards earlier this year. I’m still cooing over the canary yellow Victoria Beckham gown she wore at the event!

deepika padukone, bride, wedding, reception, updo, hairstyle, love aaj kal, Dia Mirza, Shantanu & Nikhil, Frieda Pinto, Sonam Kapoor, Thank You, Neha Dupia, TOifa, Anushka Sharma What do you think of this braid around the head?

A note to all brides with dark hair (without any highlights) when looking for inspiration remember that any styles on brides with highlights (esp blonde brides) will look very different on you. All the different hair tones add more interest to the hairstyle. This is not me saying to go get your hair dyed! just to be aware of the differences!

Images: High Heel Confidential, Miss Malini, Facebook, Instagram

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Friday Fives: Beauty

11th Jan 2013

This week’s Friday fives are my last five beauty purchases. I haven’t written many beauty posts and the reason’s simple- I am pretty clueless when it comes to make-up and ridiculously unadventurous in trying new trends. Ummm I’ve only just got my head around BB creams and the beauty/fash packs according to the glossies have moved on to CC creams? I might have heard of CC creams but do I know what they really are or which is the best? Nope- not a clueeeeee. Well seeing as it’s a new year I am going to try to master some eye shadow colours that aren’t gold or bronze and to whack on a bright lippy now and then. (I made a start- look below!)

11 jan 1

Burt’s Bees lip balm. It’s full on ugghhh winter in London and I alternate between Burt’s and Carmex.

M.A.C Ruby Woo- it is true this shade really does suit every skin colour (check out the video I made with make-up artist Dipali Damji on how to apply bright lippy here)

Shahnaz Husain Shamoist Plus Intensive Moisturising- I recently tried out a sample of this product and found it really soothing on my dull winter skin so have just ordered it online.

11 jan 2

M.A.C Hanging Loose Dirty Pink Nude. I thought I’d get on the S/s 13 nude nails bandwagon. I like this easy shade from M.A.C’s Apres- Chic collection.

Rimmel Exaggerate Eyeliner. I’ve been using this eyeliner for years. The long nib makes it super easy to use and perfect for adding a retro flick and unlike some other brands the colour stays a true black on dark skin too.

Images M.A.C, Burt’s Bee’s, Rimmel and Shahnaz Husain

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