Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer - Restoring my Faith in Concealer

I without a doubt have a strained relationship with concealer. I love it. I need it. But I hate shopping for it, I hate the limited shade selection. I hate how much I need under my eyes. And the list goes on...

But step in Urban Decay's Naked Skin Concealer, and we have a wonderfully large tube restoring my faith in ye olde imperfection erasers.

To get the negative out of the way, the shades are odd. "Fair Neutral" is WHITE, like reverse panda eyes face white... So I picked up "Light Neutral" (I'm pale, but neutral skin-toned) and it was SO dark. Like normal panda eyes dark. Oddly, "Light Warm" is lighter in colour. Don't ask me why, but shopping outside your usual skin tone may help with the colour match due to the variant in shade.

Now, the positive...

Immediately, you see it's size. Its HUGE for a concealer, significantly larger than the ever so popular Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer that comes in a little more expensive. With it's intense pigmentation, a little goes a long way, meaning if you don't use concealer heavily, this should last quite a while.

The doe foot applicator works a charm to any double-dipping, and if you're applying to spots, contamination can be easily avoided by applying to your hand, and pressing over the area with a clean finger. Otherwise the applicator is ideal for applying with precision to small areas around the eyes and nose. While it can be blended out with whatever technique you prefer, I've used both fingers and a blending sponge (and Mac Fix+ setting spray) and found them to disperse the product perfectly, meshing it with the skin and making it almost undetectable.

It's major selling point for me is the creamy consistency, which unlike Laura Mercier's Secret Camouflage (my previous go-to) is easier to disguise on the skin, and much more forgiving to textured or dry skin. Unlike the dry, hard formula of LM Secret Camouflage, you will need a small amount of setting powder to stop any budging or creasing, especially if you're applying over a dewy, or water-based foundation.

This has undoubtedly made my routine easier, abolished all my worries about caking and coverage on my dark under-eye circles, and made me a happy bunny at £17.50 for 5ml. (You can buy on Feelunique, here.)

And with my faith restoring, how do people feel about Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer? Y'know, for experimentation...

Fragrance Layering - Creativity in Scent

If you don't follow me on Instagram you're doing Instagram wrong you won't know how deep my obsession with perfume goes. It feels like only every other week I'm posting a picture proclaiming my love for my latest perfume purchase.

There's something about fragrance that manages to convey an array emotions, evoke memories, and just look damn cute on your dresser. So that one bottle that reminds you of summer, makes you feel feminine, sexy and powerful... who's to say you can't stretch it further? Tailoring your scent with fragrance layering (or fragrance combining) is a surefire way to make a bespoke fragrance that conveys everything you aim to achieve usually from the one bottle.

While I'm not going to suggest you stop buying one bottle at a time, fragrance layering is an ideal way to repurpose (or experiment with- if you're that way inclined) you're favourite scents.

The first thing to remember about fight club fragrance layering, is that there are no indefinite rules, rather a set of guidelines that will assist in a little scent creativity:

An ideal starting point is to create a little understanding on which notes work well with each other. Typically, perfumes with a common note (both with notes of rose, for example) are likely to combine well, already with scent families created that compliment in their individual bottles.

Heady, intense scents when combined with light can switch perfumes perfectly from night to day but the combination of two intense scents (think Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir/Tom Ford Noir Pour Femme) can descend into nauseating "I bathed in this sh*t" territory.

A fresh, airy floral fragrance can be made significantly more unique through the inclusion of a masculine cologne.

Before you begin layering, a little oil or moisturiser on your pulse points (where you're perfume should be directed for optimum scent distribution FYI) will help longevity of your scent - creating a minor moisture barrier to stop fragrance permeating immediately into skin.

While some combine fragrance by applying different scents to different pulse points, I much prefer to lay down the heavier scent with a spritz of the lighter over the top - ensuring the light doesn't become masked... And that I don't have a feminine smelling wrist, with a masculine smelling neck.

My favourite combination at the moment is Jo Malone Peony and Blush Suede and their Wood Sage and Sea Salt - a fragrance completely reminiscent of summer. The beachy, salty vibes of the latter cutting through the distinctive floral of Peony Blush Suede creates something significantly more unique and ambiguous than a traditional floral summer scent.

What do you think of fragrance layering? Have you tried it before, and would you be open to? I think it's a fun way of experimenting with scent - and especially to innovate one which may be getting a little tired.

Tom Ford Fragrance - Velvet Orchid and Noir Pour Femme

I'm forever strolling into Debenhams to "kill some time," only leaving when I smell of approximately 60 different perfumes and I'm a little nauseous and dizzy from the fumes. After throwing on the entire Tom Ford range, I noticed these two standouts, Velvet Orchid and Noir. Only as much as I tell myself through teary eyes that I don't need over ten bottles of perfume, I find myself googling them for days doing sad puppy eyes. So I settled on purchasing one. Then a week later... I settled on the other. (Shopaholics anonymous, anyone?)

Every now and then, there comes along a product, one you just need to have. Regardless of how many packs of noodles you'll have to live off, you just need it. So, my latest positively ridiculous indulgence? Not one, but two Tom Ford perfumes.

Both are beautiful, unique scents. Velvet Orchid (£105 for 100ml) is described as an oriental floral, designed as the feminine little sister to Tom Ford's iconic Black Orchid. With notes of citrus, sensual petals, honey and rum, it is undoubtedly an incredible, timeless scent. To me, I could imagine myself as a flapper girl off to a jazz club wearing this scent. But a girl can dream, eh? It's longevity is unrivalled, with me occasionally waking up 24 hours later and still catching a whiff of this feminine, classic dream. 10/10 - Tom Ford. You know how to make a girl feel sexy.

Meanwhile, Noir Pour Femme (£105 for 100ml) could be overpowering for those unprepared. It is a strong, heady scent, increasing it's longevity - but requiring slight of hand when it comes to application. While Velvet Orchid is distinctively feminine, this arguably could be appropriate for men as much as women. This is where it's beauty comes in... It is very unique for this reason. Whereas other perfumes could be seen as similar to another scent on the market, I have never encountered anything like this oriental fragrance. With notes of citrus, spice and vanilla to name just a few, it encompasses the ethic of the Tom Ford woman - powerful assuredness, and vulnerable romanticism. A perfume that encapsulated femininity as power and romanticism? Count me in.