Generation Next - The Spring Collection from KIKO

One brand of make-up I haven't ever used or played with is KIKO, a brand I know a lot of my blogging friends adored, so imagine how excited I was when this little lot dropped through my door!

KIKO Milano Generation Next Colletion is new for the spring and it is full of all kinds of amazing shiny packaging that every magpie would love, not to mention lots of colour with the main theme being celebrating the future.  The dynamic geomatric packaging has been inspired by the famous italian Murano glassware, using those designed to capture the playful multicolours used throughout his work. 

Starting with the KIKO Mosaic Highlighter in 01 Future Light.  Everything about this highlighter is stunning, from the outer box, to the silver casing within which the highlighter sits.  Once opened, as you can see, in front of you is a mixture of matte and shimmery shades which help to create a perfect glow. Enriched with multi-reflective pearls the soft powder makes it easy to blend, highlight, illuminate, enhance and brighten any skin tone.  As you can see from the swatch below, it is a very delicate shimmer and that is just one swipe of my finger across the top of the mosaic pattern, you can of course build it up.

What I also love is that there is also a mirror which is always handy to have. This highlighter has an RRP £14.90

KIKO Cool Touch Eyeshadow in 01 Original Cream is one of eight creamy intense eyeshadows.  Once applied it gives a long-lasting metallic and glossy finish. Again it is packaged inside a truly stunning case which compliments the highlighter and the shade I have is absolutely stunning, it works with any shade and highlights the eye area.  There is an RRP £8.90

KIKO Frosted Look Lipstick in shade 01 of 6 shades.  To look at, as you can see, it is a creamy chubby pencil lipstick which makes the application quick and easy, especially if are on the go.  Given that it is called a frosted lipstick it gives you a satin finish with colour that holds for a good 4-5 hours after application.  I applied this when I went to see Slipnot at Wembley as I left work at 5pm, when we got home at midnight, there was still a hint of the colour on my lips, which considering I had eaten some chilli beef nachos and had a few bottles of desperado beer, is quite impressive! you easy and quick application on-the-go. There is an RRP £7.50

To work alongside lipsticks is a lip gloss and the KIKO Glassy Lipgloss which I have in shade 02 is again beautiful, from the outer casing which again looks stunning alongside the Highlighter and eyeshadow compacts with the silvery finish, is one of six shades.  This liquid lipgloss provides intense pigmentation with a really glossy wet-look finish.  It is described as being a hybrid of a lipstick and lipgloss and has a water-based formula which coats the lips whilst moisturizing them at the same time, but it is not at all sticky or tacky when applied. When you first come to use it, there is a really subtle vanillery scent which soon disappears. There is an RRP £7.90 

The final item in my little bundle of joy is two KIKO Crystal Eyeliner in shades (5) which is a stunning bright blue and shade (6) which is an almost black shade.  As these are pencil eyeliners, they are really smooth on the eye area, given they are formulated with a combination of waxes and filmogens, it gives the feel of a liquid liner and once it has been applied, nothing budges it, not even a day in front of a computer screen, even with a hand swatch, it is really hard to remove. There are six shades available and they have an RRP £6.90

As someone who has just been introduced to the world of KIKO, I am really impressed with these products and love everything about them from the amazing packaging to the long-lasting formulas, it is an exciting collection to have and it doesn't stop there.  The collection also includes a Generation Next Face Brush, CC Cream Cushion, Masterpiece Bronzer, Mosaic Blush and Crystal Fusion Super Moisture Face Serum which sounds amazing. The Generation Next collection launches in March.

What do you think to this collection? Are you a KIKO fan?

{Guest Post} Pixi Silky Eye Pens

Today's Guest Post comes from the lovely Karen from A Delicate Rosie Beauty.

I'm no stranger to raccoon eyes. I have slightly oily eyelids which usually results in whatever eyeliner I'm wearing migrating from my lash line to under my eyes within about 30 minutes. For years I had given up on wearing anything other than powder eye liner because every time I tried a pencil co-workers would look at me in horror and beg to know why I as crying. 

However, I found these Pixi Silky Eye Pens last year, and it's been a game changer for me. These don't budge. The colors are gorgeous, and they're fairly inexpensive. The only eye liner I've found that's even better at staying put is Chantecaille's 24 Hour Eye Liner pens, but those are more than double the price of these Pixi eye liners and Pixi offers a wider range of colors. Needless to say I'm a fan. 

Pixi Endless Silky Eye Pens in Bronze Beam and Cafe Gold

from left: Bronze Beam, Cafe Gold

cute green floral design

Swatches from top: Bronze Beam, Cafe Gold

Look at how pretty these colors are! Bronze Beam is a limited edition so it has slightly swankier packaging. It's a shimmering bronze that just adds a subtle pop to your eyes. It's gorgeous. Cafe Gold has more glitter and is an antique gold. I love it. It reminds me of a few higher end Chanel liners I've had in the past....except unlike those it stays in place. These last all day on me without traveling. Thank goodness. 

These each retail for $12. I purchased them at Target, and I've been using them every day since. I use these with Chantecaille's Wild Horses palette for a subtle smoky brown eye, but these could be used with Urban Decay's Naked palette or any brown/bronze eye shadow combination. They're gorgeous, but most importantly they don't melt off of your face.

My E.L.F Haul!

I finally took advantage of the 50% Discount Offer from E.L.F at the weekend and my god do they ship things super quick, I was really impressed.  

I had had my eye on quite a few products from the E.L.F range since being introduced to them HERE and decided now was as good a time as any to bite the bullet and make a purchase and this is my haul.  First off the packaging, not exciting I know, but everything was so well packaged, a few Beauty Boxes that I subscribe too could learn a lesson here!

Then the actual contents of the box - there are two items missing from my haul as they are for a competition winner and I don't want to spoil her surprise.  Everything else is for me!

Here we have the Baked eyeshadow Palette and the name given to this product is Texas. It is packed full with 10 gorgeous shades that I would wear and it is a perfect addition to my palette collection.  I have been wanting to try a baked eyeshadow for a long time and this little set cost just £10 and it comes encased in this stunning, really well made palette and it has a mirror, which is naturally really really helpful

I am determined to get the hand of eye-liner and am on a mission to find a product that makes life easy.  I am a HUGE fan of lip crayons, like a serious convert and my collection is growing rather quickly.  When I saw this Waterproof Eyeliner crayon, I thought at £3.75 it was worth purchasing to give it a try.  The colour I chose was Pitch Black.

You can never have too many lip exfolators, especially in this weather and this is one I intend to keep in my work make-up bag which I keep in my desk drawer at all times. Described as follows "A sweet sugar and smoothing sensation, infused with Vitamin E, Shea Butter, Avocado, Grape and Jojoba Oils to nourish and protect. This Lip Exfoliator treats and smoothes lips for a conditioned and revitalised feel". it costs just £3.75 and is a total bargain.

I had originally purchased this product for a friend for Christmas, I loved the look of the Beauty Book as soon as I saw it.  This is the natural set which includes 6 eye-shadows, 1 Eyelid Primer, 1 Eyeliner Pencil, 1 Built-in Mirror and 1 Dual Ended Applicator.  Everything I need in one package, plus some helpful guides and instructions and all for £6

No beauty order is complete without a nail polish or two right? well I saw these two stunning polishes and decided that I needed them in my life. To the left is Dream Maker and to the right is Fairy Dust, both of which are simply perfect for this time of year and will be shown in a future post.

Did you take advantage of the 50% off offer with E.L.F? What did you get? Have you got any of these products?