Could I look as good as Cindy Crawford?

Today I was sent two products from Cindy Crawford's beauty line - Meaningful Beauty.

Now personally, I'm suspicious of celeb branded products of any sort. I nearly died with irritation when the only oven dish that suited my needs was a Jamie Oliver one. If something's good, it should just be good, no need for the celeb branding. But maybe that's just me.

I've spent some time on the Meaningful Beauty website, and watched a very cheesy video with clips of ladies with perfect skin describing how they now have perfect skin like the 'icon' Cindy Crawford. Don't watch it, it's enough to put you off the brand before you've tried it.

But I'm going to try and put my cynicism aside. The range was developed with Dr John-Louis Sebagh, the famous cosmetic surgeon who is the brains behind the Dr Sebagh range. So there are serious credentials here, way beyond those of a model with fabulous skin.

I was sent the Eye Creme (why not cream? is Cindy Crawford French? I don't think so) and Glowing Serum, and I do need a new eye cream and I definitely need some glow. Reading the ingredients list there's nothing worrying, so I'm not concerned I'll get a reaction. Plus the Glowing Serum contains Vitamin C, and I've just been reading about the benefits of stabilised vitamin C  in beauty products - so I'm willing to give these a go.

So who knows, maybe they will make me look as good as Cindy, I mean we've got a lot in common, both 40ish (she's actually older than me, ha!), both married with kids, both....oh bugger that's where the similarities end. I'll give them a go and report back.

Origins VitaZing with Mangosteen - could it be magic?

Already a cult product in the USA, Origins VitaZing has just hit the UK. And it's easy to see why our American friends love it so much.

It's marketed as an energy boosting moisturiser, but it's so much more. It contains a mineral pigment, which is invisible at first, but releases a subtle sheer colour which adapts to your skintone, giving your skin a fresher - more awake appearance. Sounds impossible? Well I thought so, but then I tried it, and this baby really does what it says on the tube.

It might sound like something concocted out of nasty chemicals, but even on my hyper sensitive skin Origins products have always been brilliant, and this one is no different. So I'd recommend for others with skin of a sensitive disposition.

Use in place of your usual moisturiser, (it's SPF 15, which is a bonus)). Today I've only had a few hours sleep, so I experimented with dabbing it on on top of my make-up at lunch time to give my skin an extra boost. Probably not something the professionals would recommend, but at least it helped me brave the playground at school pick up.

So could it be magic? well it's the closest thing to magic I've tried in a while - though I'm still not sure what a mangosteen is!

VitaZing is available from Selfridges London during September, and nationwide from October 1st 2010 for £25.

Beauty stuff that sits on my desk

My desk is a tip. I'm not over egging it here, if it wasn't so messy I could find my camera battery recharge lead and take a photo of it for you. Amongst the chaos lurks various beauty products that for some reason or other never make it off my desk.

So here's the list:

Rococo Nail Apparal (packaging only) 
time on desk 2 months
This was a nail varnish I bought from Space NK in Bath on a romantic weekend away. My hubby decided this was the perfect weekend to buy himself a new guitar (his 7th), so I needed to shop. The nail varnish (Brown Button) was so-so, but the packaging is devine, never has more effort been put into packaging nail varnish.

Dr Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Mushroom Serum (unopened) 
time on desk - 8 months
I love this stuff but laziness has stopped me moving it into the bathroom and actually using it. I'm happy with my skincare routine at the moment, and because I often work on auto pilot, I just can't seem to remember to incorporate this stuff.

Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector (almost empty) 
time on desk - 6 months
The only thing that really helps my hands during the winter when they get painfully dry. Has probably been lurking here since last winter. Must get more.

Good Skin Instant Lightening Eye Cream (opened once, applied to hand)
time on desk 10 months
No idea if this is any good as applying to hand isn't best test. I only suffer from dark shadows after a particularly heavy weekend and my social life has been nearly non-existent lately so haven't had reason to try.

Oh and my Anika haul from previous post, as I'm too lazy to take them back to the bathroom - time on desk 1 day

So what beauty products lurk on your desk?

Italian make-up haul part one: Anika

Anyone heard of Anika Cosmetics? Nope, nor had I until a few weeks ago!

I'm lucky to spend a fair bit of time in Italy, and on a recent trip I came across a cosmetics shop I haven't seen before - Anika - in a shopping centre. We're talking cheap-as-chips cosmetics here, my haul of two eyeliners, one eyeshadow and one nail varnish came in at 8 euros. Cheap it may be, but in typical Italian style it was a gorgeous shop, with a gorgeous (if somewhat overly made-up) girl behind the counter.

So what did I think? The eyeliners are pretty good - not as lovely as my beloved Stilla, but for a couple of euros a good buy, and they didn't irritate my sensitive eyes. Plus they have a smudger at one end, which I always like. The eye shadow is a fab colour, a shiny grey with a pinkish hue, but it doens't last that well. The nail varnish is a fantastic colour, a sort of purpley pink (photo coming, camera battery just died) and after two coats has a lovely texture. Considering I never wear rubber gloves, wash my hands 300 times a day and do the gardening it survived for four days - good going in my book.

If anyone has seen Anika for sale anywhere else let me know, otherwise I'll be back there next time I'm in Italy stocking up!

PS For the detail lovers among you, the shopping centre in question was just outside Latiano, in Puglia, Southern Italy.

Yipee for copycat nail colours!

OK, for the purposes of any legal people, I'm 100% positive that this fabulous collection of nail colours is 'inspired' by Chanel's Khaki collection, and is in no way copied. But isn't it great that affordable brands are bringing out stylish colours almost as quickly as the high end brands?
Personally, I love Chanel's colours, but I've never been impressed with the quality of the nail polishes finding that they chip easily and just don't last as well as other brands. So however cool the shade, I'm not going to rush out and spend a small fortune on a product I don't think lasts.
So here's the latest offering from Models Own, the Car Key Collection (great pun eh). Are they gorgeous or what? I'm not going to show you on my nail because I'm pants at applying nail varnish. But these little lovelies are only £5 each, so go grab some and try them out yourselves.
Beauty Cult is currently sporting Becca's Brown on both fingers and toes, and in a word, it rocks.
Models Own is available from larger Boots stores or online at www.modelsownit.com

Love of the week: Stila Convertible Eye Colour

I'm all for an easy ride when it comes to make-up. Getting me and my seven year-old daughter out of the house on time is always a challenge, and I will never, ever set foot in the school playground without make-up on, so anything that makes life easier is worth a try.
I've loved my Stila Convertible Eye Colour in Slate for a long time (in fact I'm on my second one), it's perfect for creating smokey eyes in a millisecond, but personally I find it too dark for daytime use. On a whim I bought (yes bought! it does happen sometimes) another in Ivy. It's a greyish green, not a colour I've ever tried before, as I've always thought green eyeshadow was made for middle aged women, but on my very dark (some might say freakishly dark) eyes the effect is great!
For those of you who haven't played with one of these, it's an eyeshadow, eyeliner and smudger all-in-one, and it's foolproof.
I bought mine from Look Fantastic

Let's get ready to rumble...

Ok crap title, but after 6 months or neglect, Beauty Cult is waking up again, so forgive me for the cheesy headline.
Let me know what you want me to write about, having problems with your skin? can't find the perfect lipgloss? just want to tell me about an amazing new product? And if not I'll just let you know what's happening in the beauty world.