Personal: March round up-95% awesome

This is a really strange post to write.  I had originally thought around my birthday 'oh I will do one of those monthly round up posts because March has been totally awesome' but then a life changing announcement on the 26th (I know, I know, the drama) has left me in a total tailspin.  This post is quite self indulgent and me trying to make sense of how I am feeling so if you do read-thanks!
There's a lot going on in this post-it's photo heavy, word heavy and I tried to insert two video clips for the first time ever!!

The awesomeness started early in the month....

My oldest (in terms of actually being friends!!) friend Sylvia came to Dubai with her (now!) fiance Robert and we did some nice Dubai things including Friday brunch!  Sylv and I also went to see Ed Sheeran who was mind-blowingly amazing! (Below clips are purely from my iphone)

Ali was naughty!  You can add me on snapchat at stadybelle.  Sylvia and Robert got engaged whilst in Dubai at the very swanky Burj Al Arab hotel and I purchased a new marquis diamond ring to add to my collection.

I went to see Michael Buble with friends Carole, Hannah and Andrew-he was pretty good too!

Mothers Day made me super homesick.  I got to meet the awesome Lis

Then it was my birthday and I had a big helium balloon and champagne on my desk.

There was a bit lot of shopping.  And lots of awesome presents (lots of reviews coming soon) including this mug from Vanessa.  Look how I have self censored it lol!

Birthday lunch with my awesome work colleagues at The Rib Room in Emirates Towers including selfies with my main man JP.

Birthday dinner at Rhodes Twenty10 at Le Royal Meridien was equally amazing.

There's a new glasses situation going on.  I haven't worn glasses since I was about 10 but needs must.
  There's also a new Chanel situation going on.
Loving the rings my mum and dad bought me for my birthday-a rose quartz/rose gold Pomellato and a Tiffany rose gold T.  Both go perfectly with my 'love' ring.
Two trips to Cairo this month for work (although that's a picture of the Dubai skyline)-I'm here right now.

All pretty awesome right?

Then on Thursday I was hit by a bombshell.  My boss Nick is moving back to the UK to work at our head office.  It's a great move for him and I knew it was coming eventually but I was unprepared and it hit me like a ton of bricks.  I would be lying if I said I wasn't devastated.  I cried all weekend.  I could barely string a sentence together on Thursday evening for tears.  I was heartbroken. 

I know that that will probably sound very strange and very weird.  But I've worked for Nick since I joined Barclays 4 years ago.  The second day in the role we flew out to Cairo on a business trip.  I've learned everything from Nick.  The past four years have been the best of my career and definitely the best of the 10 in Dubai.  The dynamics in our team are incredible.  Nick is the very very very best boss I have ever had.  He motivates me, inspires me and pushes me to be better every single day.  If you follow me on instagram or twitter no doubt you have heard me say countless times that I love the people I work with.  My job is challenging and some days are hard but my days are also full of laughs and support of the highest calibre.  Nick has been my mentor/coach/leader and even confidante at times for 4 years.  He is also smart, quick witted and hilarious.  During that time 15 people in my team have come and gone-moved on to other roles or relocated 'home' wherever that may be.  But all the time we were a solid team.  Then when I was diagnosed with cancer Nick was so supportive and helped me tell the rest of my team when I was still in shock.

It's also brought home to me something that I kind of knew deep down but didn't want to admit to myself.  Since that diagnosis 9 months ago I have felt incredibly lost.  I've constantly pushed down thoughts that kept popping up randomly but now they won't stay down however hard I push them away-like what am I doing with my life?  I have been in Dubai 10 years now, is it too long?  Shouldn't I be married and have kids? (although the latter is now impossible)  Will I ever feel complete without that 'expected' life path?  Should I be spending this much on lipstick every month?  You get the drift.

I have been on autopilot:  I was diagnosed with cancer in July and had the necessary surgery.  I just did it.  I pushed myself to go back to work and when I went back I went back full time and at full throttle immediately.  Week two I was back in Cairo.  I've always had Nicks support and guidance and now he is leaving I feel like that 'security blanket'/guidance/mentor is being taken away and I have fallen to pieces.

But every day I am slowly coming to terms with it (this would have been a very different post a few days ago) and I want to make the best of the next 30 days before he goes.  I will miss him so much.  I know I have been successful because of Nick and I am definitely a better person for knowing him.  I genuinely hope everyone gets the chance to work for someone like Nick once in their lifetime.

On Sunday I 'checked in' on facebook at the airport and a friend asked if I was going anywhere nice.  And my response was 'just the usual' as I fly to Cairo every 3 weeks with my job.  On the flight itself I was reflecting on this and realising I was actually very lucky that I could be so blasé about my regular work trips given 9 months ago I was diagnosed with cancer.  I am not usually one for taking the little things for granted because I believe that the little things mean the most but obviously in my current mindset it's difficult to always remember I am extremely lucky and I am continuously getting stronger when sometimes I have so little faith in myself.

 So I am in a bit of a weird head space at the moment and I don't suppose April will be very easy with Nick leaving at the end of it.  But I will be taking all the tools Nick has taught me and using them to try and work through the muddiness that I feel in my mind at the moment.

'If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two imposters just the same'

Make Up For Ever Artist Plexi-Gloss Review

Make Up For Ever is replacing their existing lipgloss range with the new range of Plexi-Glosses from 2 April 2015, which will be available in 35 shades at the Pro Loft, and smaller color selections at all Sephoras in Singapore.



The new line promises high shine, extreme color, and great staying power, and I received 5 shades for review, so I'm swatching them all below, and giving you my

MAC Julia Petit Eye Shadow x 2 in Sagu

I was fooling around with some of the items from the Julia Petit collection, and decided to do a look with one of the eye duos.The 2 colors in Sagu are Druzy (Luster) and Black Plum (Matte).I'm not usually a fan of Luster shadows; in fact with the exception of Tempting, I think they're incredibly troublesome to work with. So I wasn't entirely sure if I would like any of the eye duos in this

Lip Six

Lip Six is back this week after a weeks vacation!

Top row (L) NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Never Say Never  (R) Tom Ford Lips and Boys in Giacomo (LE) Full review here

Middle row (L) Hourglass Femme Nude lip stylo in #4 Full review here (R) MAC Amplified lipstick in Girl About Town

Bottom row (L) NudeStix lip/cheek pencil in Sin (review coming Friday!) (R) Gucci Vibrant Demi Glaze Lip Lacquer in Carnelian (review coming Sunday!)

My pick?  Tough choices this week.  I loved rediscovering Girl About Town from MAC-I saw it on my instagram feed this week and was like 'where's mine?'.  The Gucci gloss is fabulous, there is a full review on Sunday of this shade Carnelian.  And Giacomo.  Oh Giacomo, so beautiful.  I said to my assistant James that Giacomo was my favourite boy and he said 'well you do realise Giacomo is Italian for James?'  Typical!

Which is your favourite?

Dior Diorskin Nude Air Serum Foundation, Loose Powder and Healthy Glow Invisible Powder compact

Dior's updated the Nude range with 3 new products under the "Nude Air" series; a Serum Foundation, Loose Powder, and a pressed compact Healthy Glow Invisible Powder.



The first thing to talk about would be the drop-dead gorgeous silver packaging with the signature Dior quilting on the caps. Everything is sleek and luxe, from the silver dropped foundation bottle, to the silver capped loose

Charlotte Tilbury Rock n Kohl iconic liquid eye pencil review

Given that Charlotte Tilbury is known for her own love of eyeliner you would expect when she launched the 'Rock n khol iconic liquid eye pencil' that they would be good.

And they are.

But hold up-'liquid' plus 'pencil' doesn't seem to belong in the same sentence yet somehow I totally get what Charlotte means.  These kohl pencils apply so smoothly they feel almost liquid like and are super easy to work with.  They're soft so you can blend and smudge them easily but once set they don't budge all day.  They're also great on the inner waterline because of their soft texture and wax rich formula.

Barbarella Brown is a rich warm chocolate brown.  Veruschka Mink is my favourite (I already have a back up) and is a a kind of taupey-grey colour.  It looks great on green and blue eyes.  Eye Cheat is a little different and designed to be used on the inner rim to brighten eyes, reduce redness and make you look more awake.  I have tried dozens of this type of pencil (MAC, NARS, Illamasqua, Rimmel) and this one knocks the socks off all of them.  It's pigmented, creamy and lasts.  It's never going to last all day because you naturally blink it away but it's certainly the longest lasting one I have tried!

I think these are definitely worth the price tag and Elizabeth Violet is next on my wish list!

Have you tried these eye pencils from Charlotte Tilbury?

Oily-Skin Night Treatment: Clarins Lotus Face Treatment Oil

Once a month, when I'm PMS-ing my skin goes haywire. I get extremely sensitive and can come out in rashes and eczema spots at the slightest things. At the same time, I can get congested pores AND dry flaky skin at exactly the same time, so I do need to take care of both dry and oily areas while avoiding potentially sensitizing additives and preservatives.

Few skincare products are more

Disappointing Products #5

Here's my latest round up of products I have found disappointing and why:

Charlotte Tilbury Lip Lustre glosses
Why they're disappointing: Poor pigmentation

I dedicated a whole post recently to these glosses.  Whilst the formula is great (non sticky, relatively long lasting, glossy) the pigmentation was really poor.  These two especially-Portabello Girl and Hall of Fame look like clear gloss on my lips.

Lancome Artliner 24hr in Chrome
Why it's disappointing-It smudges everywhere

The colour of this liner is incredible-it's like a shiny steel grey and was pretty unique to my collection.  The problem with it is that it is so wet that as soon as you apply and then blink it transfers and it seems to go everywhere.  I have tried everything to stop it without fail.  Interestingly I have the 'normal' black version (not the 24hr) and it's one of my favourite liquid eyeliners ever but for some reason the 24hr one is a lot wetter and I just can't work with it.

Hourglass Immaculate foundation
Why it's disappointing-It splits and oxydises on the skin

This foundation was on my wishlist for so so long as it promises to stay matte all day, have full coverage and be oil free, humidity proof and waterproof.  I was advised against buying it when I was in Space NK by an adviser I would have trusted with my life a couple of years ago but when I was in Space NK at Xmas I picked one up.  I have only used it once but it was so horrendous I had to wash it off immediately.  When I applied it it buffed in fine but within minutes something I have never ever seen before happened.  The foundation started to split on my skin and oxydised so badly to a horrible orange colour.  It looked like it was stuck to my skin.  At £50 it is so expensive and is a very pricy mistake.

Tarte Amazonian Clay finishing powder
Why it's disappointing-the packaging makes the product so hard to get out

The reason this product is in this post is because the packaging is a nightmare.  It's smaller than a normal face powder and only has one tiny dispenser hole making it really frustrating to try and get enough product out.  I've shook it, tapped it and banged it to no avail.  The product itself could be holy grail but it's too much effort to get to it!

NARS Soft Touch eyeshadow pencil in Iraklion
Why it's disappointing-Poor pigmentation

This is my first eyeshadow pencil from NARS and if this is anything to go by will be my last.
On the hand it swatches great-the pigmentation seems good, the shade 'Iraklion' is a lovely light bronze colour, perfect for daytime.  But when I swipe it over my lids it is really hard to get detectable colour payoff and is impossible to build up.  It's really disappointing and leaves the lightest veil of colour on the lid.

I'd love to know if you have used and loved or hated any of these products!

MAC Philip Treacy Collection

MAC's Philip Treacy collection features just 3 key groups of products. 



A blush colored high-light powder, 3 deep, rich lipsticks and ultra bright cream eye colors. 



But I know everyone goes ga-ga over the blush-pink High-light Powder (SGD$53) first. I did as well.













This is an ultra-fine matte highlight powder in a soft lingerie pink. The texture is not pearlescent or

Serge Lutens Un Bois Vanille Review

Vanilla pod; photo credits: www.marcussamuelsson.com


Serge Lutens was one of the first truly avant-garde niche fragrance lines I ever tried, and - under the umbrella of Japanese cosmetics giant Shiseido - the creative genius himself paired up with Brit perfumer Christopher Sheldrake to paint vivid pictures, tell gripping stories, and convey complex moods and emotions, all through scent.His

Recent Obsessions: Cargo Beach Blush in Echo Beach, and Physicians Formula Sexy Booster Oh So Sexy Eyeshadow Quad

There are a few brands that are not available in Singapore, but that I wish were.

These include names like Cargo, Physicians' Formula, Hourglass, NIA24, Cover Girl, Kevyn Aucoin, Becca, etc. Funnily enough, several of these brands like Hourglass, Becca, NIA24 and Cover Girl USED to be available in Singapore, but were dropped because not enough of the local crowd was interested in their

Anastasia Liquid Lipsticks-Lovely, Sweet Talk, Baby Pink and Retro Coral

For the past few weeks I feel like I have seen these Anastasia Liquid Lipsticks on my instagram feed every single day.  Tasha and I seemed to be lusting after them constantly during our daily whatsapp chats and when I woke up to her messaging me a discount code I took the plunge and ordered four.

They're a mixed bag to be honest.

Baby Pink is by far the worst.  Not only does the shade not suit me at all (it's too milky for my complexion and looks odd), the formula is just horrible.  I obviously knew that these were 'matte' liquid lipsticks but it highlights every dry patch on the lips, is extremely drying and looks almost chalky.  Add to that that it emphasises lip lines, stays tacky after application and leaves a horrible ring of colour as it fades I was pretty much ready to throw the rest out.

Lovely fairs better-it has more mauve in it so stops me looking so washed out.  It's still drying but not as drying as Baby Pink and when it fades it doesn't leave that nasty ring.

Sweet Talker and Retro Coral leave me on the fence.  I really like both colours (Sweet Talker is probably my favourite shade of them all) but again they feel quite uncomfortable on the lips and don't fade well.

Personally for a matte liquid lipstick I prefer either the Kat Von D everlasting liquid lipsticks or the Sephora Cream Lip Stains over these.  Latasha has also written a review on the two she picked up (forever mutual enablement) and you can read her thoughts here.

Thermage Total Tip 3.0 Experience and Post-Treatment Review

Now I'm usually all about the "shallow" stuff. Makeup, skincare; generally things that go on the surface of your skin and enhance your appearance from the outside.



But there comes a point in your life when you start getting problems that regular skincare cannot penetrate deep enough to fix, but you're not quite at the point where you need to start considering anything drastic yet.



Many of

Product Rave-Zoeva Mixed Metals eyeshadow palette

Sometimes there are products that come into your life that are SO good that you want to blog about them immediately and tell the whole goddamn world.  This is one of them.  There was a genuine OMG moment when I first started playing with this palette and I cannot get enough of it.

This is my first ever product from Zoeva and I ordered mine after seeing Sharon Farrell use it in one of her tutorials.  I thought it looked nice when she used it but I have been literally blown away by the consistency of this little palette now I own it myself.

The palette itself is housed in a super slim cardboard compact-nothing fancy but great for travelling.  It has no mirror which is slightly annoying but everything has a mirror these days so it's not a huge deal.

The shadows are so easy to use-they have that lovely silky, almost 'spongey' like texture, there is very little fall out and the pigmentation is fantastic.  They also blend so easily making smoky eyes a breeze and they keep their colour definition when blended-i.e they don't all blend into one shade.

Once on the eye they last all day.  Literally all day with no fading, creasing or fallout.  I could rave about this palette forever.  My favourites from it are Platinum which is such an unusual green toned steel, and Alloy a purply taupe.  But I have now used them all and there is not one dud.  Even the matte black is the easiest to work with one I have ever used.

Below I wore a simple combination of Warm Silver and Aluminum.

And here (taken in very bright sunlight in Cairo) Alloy all over the lid with Platinum in the crease and a touch of Rusty Steel in the centre of the lid.

Below I used Rusty Steel and Onyx

This palette is incredible value at EUR17.50 (about £12.50) and mine was shipped to Dubai.  I'm going to be raving about this for weeks to come and I think I may need to add a couple more to my collection-Rose Garden and Naturally Yours have my name all over them!
 

Tarte Tartelette Amazonian Clay Matte Palette tutorial: Smoky Neutral Eye with Stacked Liner

I promised I would do some look tutorials using the Tarte Tartelette palette, but I've been having some computer troubles lately, so it's taken a lot longer for me to get to a station to edit all my photos. But here it is!



It's not hard to use this palette; the texures are extremely smooth. You just need to remember this tip:

All-matte looks can tend to go patchy and uneven,

The Body Shop Fuji Green Tea Body Range

If you love the bracing, translucent freshness of green tea scents, heads-up as the Body Shop has just launched their new Fuji Green Tea range, which is made with real green tea imported from Japan.

Now besides smelling great, green tea also has a lot of antioxidant properties when ingested or applied topically. Now I don't know whether there is enough of a concentration in these products

YSL Volupté Tint In Oil-6 Peach me love

Last year, YSL launched their new Gloss Volupté lip glosses which were a big hit with me-I reviewed 206 Fuchsia Oran and have since picked up two more and wear them a lot.

YSL have now upped their gloss game to the next level with their newest release-the Volupté Tint In Oil.  When I first heard about them I was a bit on the fence-oil on the lips doesn't sound particularly pleasant-but then really how appealing does oil in your hair and on your face sound?  Not very yet we're all doing it.  It's nourishing and repairing we're told.  And my lips are constantly in need of nourishment and repair....

So when Lis and I found ourselves accidentally on purpose in Dubai Mall last week, in between mouthfuls of cake, gossip and Chuck Bass fawning we found ourselves in Bloomingdales, at YSL, swatching these little tubes of gloss.  I picked up three to swatch but all three seemed very sheer and looked the same colour on my hand.  So I just purchased up one-6 Peach me love (in truth the other one I wanted was out of stock) but I was surprised that they stained my hand and I needed a good old amount of Bioderma to shift them.

I really love the feel of the gloss on the lips-it feels so lightweight and water like and the initial effect is a glass like shine that I love.  And they're buildable!  As you can see from my pictures, a second coat gives a much deeper more intense colour.  After the gloss has gone there is a definite stain left behind that really stays well.  But my lips do feel really nourished and hydrated.  I need more.

These glosses have the same 'lip shaped' applicator as the Gloss Volupté's and application is very easy direct from the tube.  The only thing I would say is that this shade is definitely a pink rather than a peach on me so 'peach me love' doesn't seem the best shade description.

But don't be put off by the word 'oil'.  The 'oils' in the formula are super nourishing apricot kernal, jojoba seed, coriander fruit and possiflora edulis oils but the texture really is light as a feather without any trace of oiliness.

WIN!! NARS Dual Intensity Palette giveaway

Well good morning!

Today:

Marks the 500th post on my blog which is now 2.5 years old.
Is my birthday!

Two good reasons to say a massive thank you to everyone who takes the time to read my blog and an even bigger high five to those who comment and say nice things!

I recently hit 1800 followers on both twitter and instagram, 1300 on Bloglovin and 500,000 page views so as a thank you I am giving away a brand new NARS Dual Intensity Eye palette.  This is an international giveaway which will run for a month.  Follow the rafflecopter widget instructions below for how to enter.  Entries will be checked.  Yadda yadda yadda.

Good luck and thank you! 


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lip Six

Last week was hectic with a capital H!  I saw Ed Sheeran and Michael Bublé in concert.  I ate at the same Thai restaurant two nights in a row with amazing views of the Dubai Fountains (and had the same waitress both times which was quite amusing given I ordered the exact same dinner two nights in a row-she must have thought it was groundhog day), drank too much at Tuesday Club (thanks JP), had cake and coffee and shopping with Lis, did some pre-birthday 'treats to self' shopping and wished I could spend more time with all the Dubai visitors this week!

The weekend was all about chilling and regrouping ahead of this week.

Lipstick choices went something like this....

Top row- (L) Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution lipstick in Amazing Grace (R) MAC matte lipstick in Velvet Teddy

Middle row (L) Tom Ford lipstick in Spanish Pink (R) YSL Gloss Volupté in 202 Rose Jersey

Bottom row (L) L'Oreal L'Extraordinaire Liquid Lipstick in 304 Ruby Opera (R) Anastasia Liquid Lipstick in Baby Pink

Pick of the week?  I really like the Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution range-all three shades I have are beautiful and they're so comfortable to wear.  There is also a dud of the week which is the Anastasia Liquid Lipstick-keep your eyes peeled for a full review coming soon.....

This post is my 499th on expatmakeupaddict-my 500th and a little giveaway will be live on Wednesday xxx

Laneige Two Tone Lip Bars: Swatches and Best Way To Apply Them

Ombre lips have been a big thing for a few years now, especially in Asia where the preferred style of "ombre" is more of the "stained" look, where there is a deeper or more intense color on the insides of the lips and a lighter, more muted shade around the outsides. 



This is not the same as the more dramatic style of ombre lips featured more commonly on social media among Western

Charlotte Tilbury Cheek to Chic Swish and Pop Blusher-First Love

Here's a story about love and heartbreak.

Charlotte Tilbury products are no stranger here on my blog.  So far I have reviewed three of her 'Cheek to Chic Swish and Pop blushers' (ridiculously long name and hereby known as CTCSAP which is equally as ridic) Love Glow, Love Is The Drug and Ecstasy-all rated well on the Expat Make Up Addict scale but I wasn't obsessed with any of them.

Until I tried First Love.

And I was immediately obsessed.

First Love was bordering on all time holy grail status in the blush category (previously occupied by NARS Deep Throat)-it just went with everything.  It made me look healthy and perky with its subtle tan undertones.  It had a very slight shimmer to it that just made me look glowy.  It literally moulded to the skin and I wore it constantly for two weeks, every time falling deeper in love.

And then this happened.

This picture has a filter on it as I posted in on instagram!  The pictures of my face above clearly do not have a filter!! That's my real skin...

 I dropped it on the floor in the office and it smashed to smithereens.  Last week I had taught my assistant James what 'hitting pan' was and he was like 'oh you've hit pan' whilst I silently wept!  This is not pan JP, this is heartbreak.

Luckily the Selfridges website offered some solace in that I was able to order one online, pay the ridiculous £8 express delivery fee and it will be in my clammy little hands today.

This blush is simply perfection, I utterly love it and think it's a must for all pale girls who want a blush that can make you look alive, give shape to the face and give glow in all the right places!

At the Michael Bublé concert on Thursday evening my friend Andrew said 'surely you just could have replaced it from your existing make up items?'.  I think my look of horror probably told him that simply wasn't an option with this blush.  It's true love....

Jo Malone Orange Blossom Cologne and Bath Oil

Few things brighten my day as much as a be-ribboned bone and black Jo Malone box.

I'm a fan of white florals, and Orange Blossom (sometimes also called Neroli) is one of my favorites. I would consider the gorgeous girl-next-door, alongside the king of plush white florals - Jasmine - and the more loud and busty Tuberose, or the more virginal Lily of the Valley.

So it's kinda odd that I've

Bite Matte Creme Lip Crayon-Fraise, Sucre and Tatin

Bite is one of those brands that I own quite a lot of stuff from but don't write about so today I am going to share my thoughts on the three Matte Creme Lip Crayons that I own.

Bite is a US brand but can be shipped to the UK via Sephora.  If you're in the US though I highly recommend checking out this brand-they are exclusively a lip product producer so know their stuff.

If you've ever thought about how much lipstick you have consumed over the years (honestly I don't but some may), Bite use food grade ingredients meaning you could (if you wanted to) eat the lipstick.

So it's probably no surprise, given that Bite only do lipstick products that these are excellent.

The first plus is they are a crayon-I love stick formulas because they're just so easy to swipe and go.  I have to say though, these do apply best when sharped to a pencil point but luckily, in the base of each pencil is a handy (albeit messy) sharpener.

Marketed as matte, I would say they have a more satin finish when they dry down.  The colours are opaque and even and the formula is very hydrating, it doesn't tug or suck moisture from the lips at all.  They're so comfortable to wear and leave an even stain as they wear off.  They also don't mograte outside your natural lip line.

These are perfect for low maintenance lips and are a real swipe and go lip product.

Sucre is a warm pink with a slightly coral tone to it.  Reminds me of Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution in Lost Cherry.

Tatin is a more muted rose pink and has quite a glossy finish

Fraise is much darker and redder than I expected it to be from the bullet but works well as a strong red lip and the pointed pencil shape means you don't need a liner.

Have you tried any Bite lip products?  I must get round to sharing a few more on my blog as I really rate this brand!