Oh-My-Shoes! Nude, Aqua & Black Peep-Toe Pumps

I was at a shoe shop last week - after a long long time - and this is how it went (If my Hindi is bad, please excuse.) :

Me to Salesman: "Yeh sabse chhota size dikhao" (Show me the smallest size in this)

Salesman: "Madam, 34 sabse chhota hai" (Madam, 34 is smallest size)

Me: "Haan, dikhao!" (Yes, show me!) 

I try the 34 and it's still a little bit loose.

Me: "Bhaiya! Size 33 dikhao please", I made a pleading face...okay, desperate face. (Brother! (We call all salesmen 'brother' in India) show me size 33 please)

Salesman: "Madam, 33 nahin milta" (Madam, we don't keep size 33) 

Me: "Bhaiya, aagar 33 hain toh mein sab colors khareedoongi!"- with a dramatic hand gesture (Brother, if you have size 33, I will buy all the colors)

Salesman looked stunned for a 3 seconds, then he told me to sit down. He asked for some black spongy things from some boy, stuck them to the front & back of shoes (refer to pics), then told me to try them again. They fit! Opera 'aaahhh....' in my head.

Illamasqua Naked Strangers Collection For Summer 2012

A place where alter egos are laid bare and naked flesh is a source of unashamed inspiration. In this delicate tipping point between intimacy and pleasurable detachment, we revel in the unknown; exploring the distance between pure Monogamous, gilded Faithful and uninhibited Swinger. Exposed nude tones, adorned with rich licks of gold, leave you gasping for more. Don’t restrain yourself. Unless, of course, you enjoy it. 

“Naked Strangers captures inner glows and depths. The deeply and darkly alluring exists alongside ethereal shimmering brilliance. We are complex and multifaceted whilst also being naked to the world.” ~ Alex Box, Illamasqua Creative Director.

“Naked Strangers represents everything about borderlines...the human edge between romance and permissive intimacy...a step beyond control, a step past the edge and a collection of gilded moments upon the tip of sensation. Beautiful nudes with metallic edge set amongst eclectic textures.” ~ David Horne, Illamasqua Director of Product Development.

Products:

Nail Varnish (£13.50)

Dress up your nails and explore your fantasies with our award-winning Nail Varnishes. Are you Monogamous (creamy flesh pink, matt finish), Faithful (coppered metal) or Swinger (glistening platinum gold)? Apply a lustful layer then answer our question. 

Lipglosses (£13.00)

Lick your lips then smooth on a rich layer of Intense Lipgloss in Stranger (platinum gold) for obscene levels of pigment. Alternatively, apply Sheer Lipgloss in Intimacy (nude pink brown) on naked lips, to tease and tempt your lover. Or lovers… 

Blushers (£16.50)

Stark naked might mean no clothes, but who said anything about no make-up? Create a provocative flush that lasts all night with Powder Blusher in Naked Rose (neutral beige brown) and Cream Blusher in Zygomatic (naked pink brown).

The Naked Strangers collection is available from Thursday 31st May 2012 globally.  Illamasqua ships internationally.

♥ Cynthia Z *.*

Inglot 4 Eye Shadow Square Palette & Swatches

How have I never laid eyes on the Inglot 4 Square Eye Shadow Palette before? It is so damn cute! I feel like I'm holding some kind of gadget, like, one of those hand-held Tetris games....or Blackberry?

And....Why the heck did I buy the 5 Round Palette when the Squares are bigger & priced the same??!!

Anyways, it's only Squares from now onwards. This is my favorite palette I made at Inglot, I think. Though the colors together don't make much sense, they are all amazing! But they do wear better over an eyeshadow primer.

L'Oreal L'Or Electric Collection For Cannes International Film Festival 2012

This year the prestigious Cannes International Film Festival is being held from 16th May to the 27th May 2012. 2012 is especially significant to us as L’Oreal Paris is celebrating a 15 year partnership with the Film Festival as its official Make Up artiste. For the last 15 years, many talented makeup artistes of the Brand have created glamorous looks for a wide range of celebrities that have walked the red carpet. 

To celebrate this year's Festival, which has been dubbed “Cannes electric”, L’Oréal Paris will electrify the event with its new "L'Or" range of makeup, entitled "L’Or Electric". This collection has been specially created for the Cannes Film Festival, and will enable L'Oréal Paris' make-up artists to create the most daring and glamorous looks on the Croisette. Eyes, lips and nails will be full of bold colour. Celebrities will sport the Glam Team's inspired creations on the red carpet throughout the 12 days of the Festival.

This collection, which is all set to electrify the red carpet, has been inspired by the extravagance of the 80s: post-modernism, neon, Studio.54, day-glo, new wave and the beginnings of electronic music. Three Indian faces- Freida Pinto, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Sonam A Kapoor, will sport this electrifying look on the red carpet. 

Old Colorbar Blushes- Discontinued?

I was at the Colorbar store at Select City Walk the other day, and was shocked to see none of those Rs.250/375 blushes. You know, like: Peachy Rose, Just Earth, Cinnabar, etc. At first, I thought they just revamped the packaging, but then I saw the different shade names. I asked the SA, and she told me:

"We don't have those anymore.", she grinned, like it's good news she's telling me.

Huh?

Have they replaced them with those new Cheekillusion blushes with the new packaging which are priced at Rs.575? The shades are not even similar to the original ones. There's this one shade 'Coral Pink' which is NOT like Peachy Rose.

The old blushes are 'Out Of Stock' in the online stores I checked at. Even in the website, they are only selling 3 shades of the old blushes.

If they really are discontinued, I can imagine how many loyal customers they will lose. I, for one, was thinking about buying a few Peachy Rose blushes for a giveaway....and I ain't buying Cheekillusion.

I see what Colorbar is trying to be (read: copy)- INGLOT.

Colorbar Lip Pots = Inglot Lip Paints
Colorbar Take Me I Am Lip Pencils, Rs.699 = Inglot Lip Crayons, Rs.680 (Yeah, right)


Keep in mind INGLOT products are Paraben-free & Cruelty-free.

But whatever. Copy whoever. I just feel they shouldn't chuck something that made them 'popular' in the first place.


Can somebody confirm this? In case I'm wrong, you can go pull the SA's hair for wrong/disturbing information.

♥ Cynthia Z *.*

365Gorgeous Online Beauty Store Review & Haul (Psst...Giveaway Alert)

I got to experience another online beauty store called  365Gorgeous. 'Coz you gotta be  gorgeous every single day of the year, yo!' It houses brands that aren't available in India like: Bobbi Brown, Essie, China Glaze, etc. Other popular brands include: Maybelline, L'Oreal, Colorbar, Lakmé, Revlon, Lotus Herbals, MAC, Lancome, and lots more.

The Good:

• 5% OFF on most products like Maybelline
• Earn Points when you shop
• Cash On Delivery 
• Free Shipping above Rs.250
• Delivery within 2-5 days
• Products were packed in a little white box & they were bubble-wrapped properly.

 

The Bad:

• What really bothered me was, the different shades of a product weren't put together in one page. Like, each lipstick shade has it's own individual page, which is very frustrating. I like to see them all in one page- saves time that way, don't you think?
• 'View All' option is not there. You have to keep flipping pages. I'm a view all kind of person (read: impatient)
• Many products I wanted were 'Out Of Stock'. 

What I put in my cart: 

• Joy Pure Aloe Oil Control Face Wash, Rs.38.00
• NYX Trio Eye Shadow in Pink Purple Prune, Rs.520.00
• Maybelline Crayon Liner Pencil, Rs.118.75
• Maybelline Hyper Curl Volum' Express Mascara Waterproof Black, Rs.166.25
• Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Soft Plum, Rs.194.75  (One of my favorites & most-used blushes!)

Lipstick That Didn't Exist FOUND!

You remember I did a post on Lipsticks That Don't Exist? Just when I'd given up, I found something very very close to the plum one up there! Yippee! I didn't even remember the non-existent lippie when I got it, I only realized it until it was on my lips.

It is MAC Rebel. I always thought it's leans towards red when I saw swatches on other bloggers, but when I wore it, it's much more of a deep plum almost exactly like the one on the model. Thing is, it tends to look more red than it really is on camera, coz of the purple undertones.

It's described by MAC as a 'Midtonal Cream Plum' and has a Satin finish.

I will post swatches & a look soon to give you a better idea.

♥ Cynthia Z *.*

Colorbar Spearmint Eye Shadow + 3 More Shades

I'm obsessed with the color Mint these days, so I thought I should own a good mint eye shadow too. I googled, but couldn't find anything I liked:

• Too light.

• Too chalky.

•  Uhm, that's too green/blue to be mint!

Then I saw Colorbar Spearmint, and fancied it enough to buy it. Of course, 300 rupees ($5.35) made it easy. It has a pearl finish, which is better for a pastel shade, coz matte pastels tend to look chalky.

"Use Before 06/12" Wth? I forgot to check the manufacturing date!

The Make-up & Shoe Addict's Birthday Cake

I'm sowwie for disappearing for 4 days straight! I have no excuse, except maybe that I was feeling a bit uninspired, and on top of that, I was staying at my in-laws for 3 days- eating & gossiping, mostly. Now I'm on full blogging mode again....so much to say....to tell you...yes, I have some kinda big news too (for later)

Right now, it's all about the cake.We're talking GUCCI shoes  & MAC make-up! Oh-my-bows! \(^.^)/ My sis-in-law (Mr.CZ's elder sister) made me this cake (She completed her baking classes & is making a lot of cakes for practice these days) It's one of the most thoughtful, sweetest, things anybody's ever done for me, I couldn't thank her enough! Though my birthday is today, I cut this cake on Saturday already.

That's a shoe box & the white is supposed to be a silk mat- it's so cute that she made the fold

What's On My Coffee Table?

Coffee addict lover in the house! *Ting, ting, ting, clank, clank, clank.....* I mixed my coffee- hopefully into a cream-colored creamy frothy goodness. He hears it. The annoying sounds are too familiar.

Mr.CZ: "Are you making coffee again??!! I really don't think you should have it anymore...it's not good for your migraine." (Coffee usually gave me headaches.)

Me:  "I read on the internet that coffee actually cures migraine!" (Hah!) 

No, I wasn't lying, I read it here. I think one cup a day is fine. Now that I have a cup every evening (I call it best part of my day), I don't feel weird in my head, anymore.

• Wooden square coasters (far left)
• The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Africa Honey & Beeswax Hand & Foot Butter (One of my favorite TBS Product)
• Mr.CZ ;p Really, he looks like him! It's a Fizzy Moon bear that came with a cup Mr.CZ gifted me one Christmas.
• Goofy mug- It holds pencils, makeup brushes, eyeliner....random things.
• Mini Zodiac Books ~ I just find little books very cute! Gemini & Virgo = Moi & Mr.CZ.
• Nici Donkey Picture Clip ~ No pictures here, just some notes & reminders (....& greetings)
• eos Lip balm in Sweet Mint ~ My current lip balm for this room.
• Mobile Phone: Samsung Galaxy Ace ~ DON'T BUY IT! It keeps shutting down for no reason =[
• Art d'inox tea/coffee set
• And yeah, the very fake yellow flowers.

Books: My 'Princess' Diary (filled with nonsense), The Sense Of An Ending- Julian Barnes (Brilliant! Re-read material), The Magic-Rhonda Byrne (Yet to practice it everyday, but I will! I so believe in Magic!)

Bourjois Bubble Chic Paris Collection

Bourjois launched another cute nail polish collection called Bubble Chic Paris. All cute words !  Bubble. Chic. Paris. But I really like only 1 shade.

45 Rose Wonder

46 Apricot Hoodies

Adele Inspired EOTD

"The scars of your love remind me of us... They keep me thinking that we almost had it all.......
.....You had my heart inside of your hand....But you played it to the beat."

How To:

• After priming lids, apply a shimmery white or a beige shade close to your skin on your lids. I used Virgin from Urban Decay Naked Palette

• Apply a light brown shadow on the crease using a pencil brush. Also apply some on your lower lash line. I used Buck & Naked from Urban Decay Naked Palette with Inglot 80 HP/S
• Line your eyes with liquid or gel liner. Make it thick towards the outer corner. It's a thick version of the Cat Eyeliner. I used  Maybelline Hyper Sharp Liner
• Curl lashes & apply 3-4 coats of mascara on top & bottom lashes.
• Optional: Apply a nude pencil on the waterline. I did it with MAC Chromagraphic Pencil & then used a Q-tip to done down the color.
• Optional: Put on false lashes that are longer at the outer corners, like Adele's here. I was lazy ;p 

*The liner dried up on me before I could retouch & darken the liner =\

Inspiration

Hope you like! :)

♥ Cynthia Z *.*

Early Birthday Gifts & Haul...Woohoo!

Early Birthday Gift: My brother (elder/only) came to Delhi & stayed with us for a night. He thoughtfully/generously told me to buy something for my birthday (I lub him!). The only disturbing thing was, we went to the mall LATE- almost closing time! How am I supposed to do full justice to free money in 10-15 minutes?! Mr.CZ & bro went on to do their own things, and I was alone. Ok, no dilly-dally, I told myself. I went from one shop to another like a crazy person!

Debenhams- Nothing! 

Mark's & Spencer- Nothing! Well, actually, I adored some lingerie, but I would never buy those with my brother's money... haha!

Guess- I couldn't see the store. Later, I asked Mr.CZ if it's shut down or something, but he said he went there. It was there, yet I didn't see it! I plead temporary insanity. 

Accessorize- Jewelry needs time, which I didn't have *argh!*

This time, it's officially closing time. I saw a guard in one of the boring shops put the CLOSED thingy on the door. I panicked and ran.....and I landed in Mango. Long story short, I decided on a Polka Dot Dress (which is S, and I'm waiting for them to call & tell me XS is available, so I can go exchange) and white sunglasses - I thought 'Ooh....full-on retro look!' [Detailed pics of the dress here]

The following are what i hauled recently:

2 more bow sunglasses from Ebay. The ones below are the same as the pink ones I wore here