RiRi Hearts MAC Phresh Out Swatches

MAC released their holiday collection and it's a collaboration with Rihanna. The collection is gorgeous. The packaging is a beautiful winter white with R in rose gold and RiRi hearts MAC in white. One of the items I purchased was the eyeshadow palette in the color phresh out.

First impressions are this is a good natural shimmery palette. There are two glitters that are of poor quality but the other three I love. There is a shimmery golden shade much similar to MAC's nylon, the kind of shimmer that looks amazing in the inner duct to open up your eyes and make you look wide awake. The second shade is a glittery peach which swatches mostly of glitter. The third I'm afraid is much the same...a champagne glitter that swatches quite sheer and mostly glitter. However, I think these two would look gorgeous as a shimmer wash for the holidays. The last two are gorgeous...the fourth is the perfect shimmery purple taupe much similar to MAC's satin taupe but so shimmery and soft. The last one is a gray that swatches very dark but it's metallic and I think it'll offer a depth to the crease that some mattes may not be able to do due to it's shimmer effect. 

I think overall this is a great palette for a soft natural smokey eye and the glitter would be ok to wear during the holidays.

Hope you all are doing great. 

Loads of love

Ansa

Deborah Lippmann Bitches Brew

Ok the name of this polish is very clever and funny- I admit it was one of the reasons I wanted to see what this polish was all about but wow the color left me speechless. Deborah Lippman's Bitches Brew is a deep berry color that looks very luxurious and sultry on the nails. It is so glossy, sophisticated, chic and sexy all in one. It looks gorgeous on the nails and while it's deep it maintains it's berry color whilst a lot of darker polishes look black in some lights.

The above swatches are two coats. This was very easy to apply and it does need two coats to get to the true berry color as one coat wasn't enough. Overall, I think this is a must have for fall and winter.

Hope you all have had a great day.

Ansa 

Lush Fair Trade Honey Shampoo review

I love Lush for their soaps but haven't tried their shampoos till this year. I've tried their bar shampoo called New), Honey Shampoo, Blousey and Rehab. All great but of course I have my favorites.

The honey shampoo, I'm close to using up so this is a good time to review it. 

The Fair Trade Honey Shampoo is meant to very moisturizing, provide luster and shine to the hair. The weather has gotten quite cold so I've been focusing on putting some moisture back into my hair and this shampoo really does that. It keeps my hair healthy and soft. Below is a picture of how my hair behaves after washing it with this shampoo.

 What makes this shampoo so moisturizing is of course honey. More than half of this shampoo is honey which has antibacterial properties as well and hence this shampoo has no preservatives. It has other amazing ingredients such as Bergamot Oil, Sunflower Lecithin, Linseed Mucilage etc...all very moisturizing and perfect for dry hair or if you live in areas with hard water (where calcium build up can be so harsh on the hair)

Overall I love this shampoo especially for fall and winter when your hair needs moisture the most. I do wish this was LSL free as typically I use shampoos that are LSL free but overall great shampoo.

Hope you all are doing great. 

Loads of love

Ansa 

Essie's Rock The Croc Swatch and Kate Spade Bow ring

Hi everyone,
I have two current obssesions. Essie's nail polish in Croc The Rock. This is one of my all time favorite nail polishes and it's from an old old Essie Collection (2006 collection). This is a smoke red polish but what makes this unique is that it has a jelly finish. It is so glossy and it stays that way until I remove it. Amazing. This polish holds a very special place in my collection. It's one of the best fall and winter polishes I've ever tried. I wish Essie would bring old collections back the way MAC sometimes does.

Another thing I've been obsessed with is Kate Spade Rose Gold Bow Ring. I love this ring so much I have it both in gold and rose gold. It's so girly and pretty and so simple.

Hope you guys are having an amazing day.

Loads of love

Ansa

NARS Mississippi Mermaid eyeshadow swatches and review

NARS recently released the Guy Bourdin Holiday Collection. As part of this collection, there are four eyeshadows in shades inspired by legendary fashion photographer Guy Bourdin.  They are all goregous but the one I picked was the most natural one called Mississippi Mermaid. 

This shade was very hard to photograph as it tends to photograph white. This is a gorgeous shimmery peach, and why I think this is a bit more unique that the other champagne shades I have, is that this has a very distinct peach undertone which looks very well on my skintone. I have yellow undertones and this compliments it very well, warming up my eye look. Sometimes champagne shades that lean more pink, do not translate on my complexion and just make me look tired.  

Overall this is a gorgeous shade for those who like the warm shimmery shades on the lid (and I love them).

Hope you all are having a great start to the month of December.

Marc Jacobs The Lolita Palette Swatches

I've been watching several youtube videos of the perfect palette tag going around. It's an amazing tag for anyone who loves palettes and if I were to pick one of the top 5 eyeshadow palettes, Marc Jacobs The Lolita would make it on the top 5. This is an amazing combination of satin, mates and extremely shimmery shades of natural, earth tone shades. The shadows do not have names, but below are some swatches and shade descriptions from left to right.

1. The first shade is a white satin color. This is very bright and it would work really well to lighten up some darker shaders or lightly applied all over the lid for that wide awake look.
2. The second shade is a soft brown much like MAC's soft brown. A perfect shade to wear on your lid to get that "no makeup" look, but also perfect as a transition shade to warm up a darker shade.
3. The third shade is a matte brown. I love this to define the crease.

1. The fourth shade is a shimmery champagne infused with silver microglitter. This is the perffect shade for the holidays to add some fun glitter to your look.

2. The fifth shade is a golden with a pink duochrome. This is a satin finish and it's a fun shade to wear all over the lid with a ton of mascara for a very simple yet gorgeous look.

3. The sixth shade is a shimmery champagne very similar to Stila Kitten. This shade looks amazing on the lid. I've worn it so much I think I'll hit pan soon. This makes my eyes look wide wake. It's so natural but yet gorgeous shimmer.

4. The last shade is a warm taupe. I wear this quite a bit on the crease with the shimmery champagne and then use the mate black to define the crease. 

Overall this is an amazing palette that would work on any skintone. 

Hope you all are having an amazing day.

Happy December - Sharing some beauty and non beauty favorites

Hi everyone,
I'm so excited it's December as that means 25 days left till Christmas. I'm going to try and post something every day for the month of December, and I'm really excited about that. Today I wanted to share some products (beauty and not) that I've been loving lately.
1. Marc Jacobs The Lolita Palette. This is the perfect every day natural eye shadow palette but it packs a nice punch of shimmer. If you're a lover of earthy tones shimmery shadows, you will love this palette.

My favorite shades are the shimmery champagne shade which I wear all over the lid to get that wide awake look and the shimmery taupe which I use on the lid which is a very nice warm color. (see swatches below)

2. Essie Ballet Slippers - This is one of my all time favorite nail polishes. I've been wearing so many dark shades this fall that this is a nice change as it provides a very natural light look to the nails. This is your typical neutral color but it has an undertone of whitish-yellow which gives a very clean and classy look to the nails. Also being a nude, it goes with everything. 

3. Starbucks Christmas Collection cup. I know it's time to get excited about Christmas when Starbucks releases their red cups. I love this cup...yes it's not subtle and it is very very christmassy and something you could probably only use the month of December, but it's a true Christmas celebration in a cup. I love it...

4.  Yankee Candles Cherries On The Snow candle part of their Christmas Collection release. This is a combination of cherries and almonds  scents but there is something really crisp and wintery about this candle. With so many sweet Christmas candle scents being released, this is a unique scent being more on the crisp lighter side but yet very delicious. 

These are a few of the things I've been loving lately.

Hope you all are having an amazing day.

OPI Underneath the mistletoe - The perfect Christmas nail polish

OPI released their holiday/christmas 2013 collection which is a collaboration with Mariah Carey. Underneath the Misletoe is one of my favorite colors from this collection. It's a deep cranberry red with a ton of silver glitter. On the nails, the glitter seems to very understated, but I love that. It makes this nail polish very classic and timeless. When you look at it very closely, you can see the silver glitter running thru this polish which makes it perfect for a little holiday dazzle.

Hope you all have had a great start of the week.

Tea Time - Some recent Teavana Fall Tea Purchases

One of the best things I love about fall, is the cooler weather makes for amazing snuggling with a good book while burning a lovely candle and drinking a cup of hot tea. Teavana is one of my favorite stores for loose tea, but I also visit several local ones around my area (which are also amazing).

This time around I purchased:

1. Aztec fire- A combination of chocolate and strawberries with a kick of hot peppers. This is a spicy chocolate lover's paradise. The chocolate taste is very strong, and the spicy peppers are very mild. All together this is a very interesting taste. 

2. Tulsi Dosha Chai - Probably one of my all time faveoruite teas that I have ever purchased at Teavana. It's a rooibos tea (red tea, and not necessarly a tea), so you can drink this anytime. This has strong notes of ginger, pepper, nutmeg, cloves and big pieces of cinammon. This tastes amazingly sweet though and makes a very delicous chai late with vanilla almond milk. Yum! 

3. Pumpkin Spice Brule Oolong - This is an oolong tea meaning it has caffeine. This has pumpkin seeds, white and black chocolate, undertone of sweet spice and mocha. This is delicious and perfect for fall. 

Hope you all are as excited about Halloween tomorrow as I am. 

Happy trick and treating tomorrow 

Maine Trip Pictures

Hi everyone,

Early this month, I got the chance to travel to Maine. I can't imagine a more perfect time to visit Maine then October. I got to see Portland Head light and also took a lighthouse boat tour. Loved Maine and I can't wait to go back. Here are some pictures to share with you:

Hope you all have had a great day.

Lots of love

Ansa

Butter London Champers! Pure Rose Gold goodness in a bottle

When I think of fall and winter, I think of berry, maroon, reds and darker nail colors, but I also love the shimmer of the gold or rose golds to put me in the mood for the festivities and the holidays. Butter London Champers is one of those mesmerizing rose gold colors that makes me think of glasses of champagne and the holidays. It's so lovely on the nails.

Hope you all are staying warm and having a great day

Lots of love

Ansa

Zoya Nephratiti Swatch

I was browsing the nail polish isle yesterday at Ulta and zoomed into this color immediately. This is a very deep red which makes a huge statement. It has a deep cranberry hue which makes this the perfect holiday nail polish. The below is two coats. I love this color and I know I'll get a lot of wear out of this polish this holiday season.

Hope you all have had a lovely Monday.

Lots of love

Ansa 

Essie For The Twill Of It swatches - Essie's 2013 Fall Collection

Essie's for the Twill of It is such a gorgeous color. It's a silver based color with a ton of purple, blue and green duechrome. This is perfect for Autumn because it's dark but it also has a ton of lovely colors. It's a nice change from all the black or dark navy colors that companies always bring out during this time. It changes as you move your hands and depending on what the light catches.

I love this color.  The application was amazing. It went opaque with one coat. :)

Hope you all are as excited about Autumn as I am and are having a lovely week.

Butter London Shag Nail Polish Swatch! The most perfect fall color

Hi everyone,
I am so excited that september is here because it means autumn is around the corner. Autumn is of my favorite seasons. I was at Ulta recently browsing the isles and noticed a Butter London polish that is so perfect for fall. The color is called Shag and it's a burnished copper bronzy color that makes me think of leaves changing colors. The finish of it is a gorgeous metallic shimmery with a red undertone that warms up the skin.

The polish looks amazing with one coat but I always put two for good measure. I love this color. 

What do you guys think?

Hope you all have had an amazing weekend.

Tampa Florida Vacation Pictures

Hi Guys,
I've been back from vacation last month. We went to Tampa, FL and had an amazing time. Here are some pictures from the vacation.

Hope you all have had a lovely weekend. 

Stella & Dot and House of Harlow Haul

Hi Guys,
I've purchased a couple of items from Stella & Dot and House of Harlow. I love all of these pieces of Jewelry but the House of Harlow 1960 Station Necklace is the star of the show. I already own this necklace in black and love it but the red is just as eye catching. It dresses up any outfit and it's so nicely made.

Here is my latest video on these pieces:

Hope you all have had a great week.
Lots of Love
Ansa