New CID

If like me, you love trying out new make-up and getting pampered, you should go to the New Cid counter in Fenwicks. I received a complimentary ten minute make-over and was very pleased with the results. This offer is running for a while in order to promote their products as the counter has only been in store for about 6 months.

Battling fierce competition from Mac, Bobbi Brown and Benefit (to name a few), New Cid could still come out on top, with its versatile products and affordable prices, ranging from £11 to £26.50.

My make-up artist, Kate was really friendly. It was like chatting to one of my friends, which is what I’d hope for from a make-up counter. Someone young and vibrant who doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable. First, we chatted about what kind of look I wanted, what make-up I usually wear etc.

Kate started off with a product I hadn’t heard about before. Prmier, £23.50, is a water based product that you apply before foundation. It helps smoothen out lines and wrinkles, whilst making your make-up last longer. Kate told me to think of it like a base-coat that you apply to nails. It felt lovely on my skin - light and refeshing.

Normally I wear tinted moisturiser but I decided to try out the foundation, which still gave a natural finish and felt like I wasn’t wearing any make-up. I had on Vanilla, £26.50. Each comes with a brush applicator to smooth on, which uses less product. I also had on medium concealer, £17.50, which also contains a brush. I love these products - having to rush between my two jobs, university or meeting friends, I like to carry my make-up with me for touch ups. Having a brush already on my product, means more space for other essentials!

Next, Kate used a dark powder, £19, to give my face a bit colour and to get rid of shine. This also acts like a bronzer. Shimmer stick, £16, in Sorbet, was used on my cheeks to give a natural blush. I really like this, as you can use it on cheeks, eyes and lips. Then she brushed some of the pink i-glow compact shimmer powder,  £20, over my cheeks to give a bit more colour. This product is baked in the oven to give it a good texture.

On my eyes, Kate used the Choca Mocha eyeshadow quad, £20.50. She used medium brown on all my eye, then the darker one on my socket line and under my eye. I liked the effect and am going to practise at home! She also used charcoal smoulder, £16. This has an eye pencil on one end and a shadow on the other, which is ideal for smudging to create a smoky look. The i-groom eyebrow pencil, £13, also has a brush on the end to define brows. You can follow your natuaral line or if you want bigger eyeshadows, which is the look this season, you can use the pencil to thicken them. Since my 15-year-old cousin reckons I look like an alien, with my thin brows, maybe I should do this!

Kate used the shimmer stick again on my lips to give a pearly effect. I enjoyed about their new cocktail lipglosses, so Kate used Tequila Sunrise, £16, a peachy colour to match my look. These are halfway between a gloss and a matt lipstick. They come in small pots with a mirror. I liked the look of pina colda too, a pearly white, which smells of coconuts too!

I throughly enjoyed my make-over, especially since I got a glass of bucks fizz too! New Cid’s image is natuaral and fresh - all the make-up artists followed this. Not like some brands whose make-up often looks overdone!

There are three offers on at the moment - Buy any three products and get a make-up bag free. Powder and blusher brushes are £5 now, instead of £20. And if you pay £10, you get all your make-up done, free falsh eyelashes and they’ll fit them for you too. Ideal for a big night out.

Now all thats left to do is give my Mam my updated christmas list, including these products! I have a feeling Santa is going to be good to me this year!!

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Shopping Spotlight: Era Vintage

Era Vintage owner Carly Walkington with two of the pieces on sale

Initially set up as an online store Era Vintage has already grown a lot quicker than owner Carly Walkington thought it ever could have. The website, along with the occasional fashion show (such as Britain’s Next Top Model 2009 summer fashion show), began to develop as an idea just last November. Since online trade started in February Era Vintage has grown into both an online and physical shopping experience into the past. Each piece sold through Era Vintage is a one off piece from the past. And these aren’t just charity shop cast offs (although some of them are, just more fashionable ones) the clothes usually come from L.A., antique dealers or private sales that Carly is aware of. From 1920s embellished tops to 1980s Diesel rings the shop is widely stocked given everything is one of a kind.

At the beginning the stock would come straight from Carly’s own wardrobe and continued from there. Now she searches for new stock online every couple of days. With funding from Sunderland council Carly made the move from online store to real store  just one month ago and can now be found on the top floor of Van Mildert (near the Independent club).

The success behind the store, and many other vintage stores, is that owning something vintage is owning something unusual - you can create your own style and be safe in the knowledge that nobody else is going to have the exact same piece as you - and it provides a talking point. Vintage is growing and this local gem of shop provides a slice of the action.

Era Vintage can be found on the second floor of Van Mildert. Visit the website at www.eravintage.co.uk. Era Vintage is involved in the upcoming Vintage Fair - updates regarding the date will be available on the Era Vintage website.

Hangover Day Pamper Hamper

It is one of the few downfalls of an amazing night out, especially if you drank a little more than you originally intended.

 The Hangover cometh and you’re a lazy, ridiculous mess; unrecognisable by all, including yourself. The only thing that you want to do is hide in your bed and feel incredibly sorry for yourself, between thoughts of: “I’m never doing it again!” and flash backs of the cringingly awful things you did or said during the course of the evening, so terrible, you have to hide under the duvet. 

 You could lay in your bed at the mercy of the night before or you could immerse yourself in a day of pampering, detoxing and general chilling.

Step One: Showered with coffee before, no? ‘Perk up’ by Philosophy is a three in one trio, each of the three bottles is a shampoo,shower gel and bubble bath - it’s like giving your hair and body a cup of coffee: £32.00 from QVC.

After the shower, moisturise with ‘Vanilla Dee-Lite’ it will leave your skin smelling and feeling fabulous! £10.50 from Lush

Step Two: It’s essential to cleanse, exfoliate and moisturise your skin daily: if you don’t already have a skincare regime, then Clinique’s 3 Step skincare routine is an excellent way to start. Check-out your nearest counter for advice.

Step Three: Now that you’ve showered and refreshed your skin, use Soap and Glory’s ‘You Wont Believe Your Eyes,’ which will revitalise and freshen your eyes and reduce puffiness:£9.00 from Boots.

Step Four: Go totally spa-chic with Boots’ Essentials ‘Cucumber 3-Minute Clay Mask’ is full of cucumber and, well, clay - sure to give your skin an extra boost and make you feel uber relaxed and fresh: only £1.99 - from Boots.

Step Five: This bit doesn’t involve any products which you apply from a bottle or a tube… You need to get yourself a rediculously over-sized Hoodie - Superdry is a good place to go, they sell a range which starts from £44.99 and are fleece lined, delightful for a day on the sofa.

Next, you need some friends; I wouldn’t suggest having real people over, you might not be ready to socialise, but a session of Friends the programme will do your soul some good: Amazon.co.uk (from £54.99), and that’s for the whole set.

 So, if you’re not feeling any better by now, I don’t know what to suggest,  perhaps eat a bacon sandwich. If you’re nearly cured, then I’ve done my job.

They worked for me, so they might work for you too.

Very Berry

Take inspiration from Mother Nature this winter and don a berry shade of lippy for a perfect looking pout. Dark matt lips in a plum or raspberry hue are bang on trend- check out M.A.C lipstick in ‘Diva’ and ‘Dubonnet’ for inspiration. Make sure you apply product with a lip brush for a flawless finish and top with gloss in a similar shade for ultimate impact, very John Galliano. Keep eyes free of make-up to avoid looking OTT (pencil in brows if you must).  If you prefer something a tad more wearable use a gloss, it’ll give you a subtle flush of colour but won’t overpower your overall look, we love Bobbi Brown’s Shimmer Lip Gloss in Iced Mauve. Skin tone is a key factor when choosing your ideal berry shade. As a general rule, blondes suit cool reds and mauves, brunettes suit warmer plums with a hint of brown and redheads suit warm strawberry tones. And remember the golden rule, only focus on one area of the face- your features should not be fighting for attention!

Get The Look - Pete Doherty

This week’s for the boys. A stalwart on both the best and worst dressed lists, you can’t deny that Pete’s style has something. Here Emily Solan is going to show you how you too can get his scruffy sex appeal.

• Accessories - Pete is rarely seen without some form of accessory, with his favourites appearing to be his Rosary Beads (as seen on a few other celebs recently), some form of headwear, usually his trusty trilby, a festival favourite spotted every summer, and occasionally some knatty scarf or a skinny tie.
• Tailored suit - Doherty often uses these to shows his more respectable side to your mum. When teamed with a skinny tie and your shirt not quite tucked in, you get his “just got offstage after being ravaged by fans” look with none of the effort of learning to play an instrument and forming a band.
• Polo Shirt - For the more casual moments, the polo shirt and skinny jeans are your best friend. Pete’s look harks back to the 60’s mods, 80’s indie and 90’s Britpop, this is a tried and trusted look. For the best polo shirts try Fred Perry, but nowadays most high streets stock a wide selection, just pick the colours to suit your style.
• Leather Jacket - It’s all about the battered, the better with Pete’s look. For one of these a vintage shop is your best friend, highly recommended is Rare Ape on Holmeside in Sunderland. 

So here are my top tips for stealing Pete’s look:

• Polo Shirt - As I said before, you’re best off looking at Fred Perry to nail Pete’s look. The original slim-fit polo cost £45 and comes in a variety of different colour ways, so you can pick and mix to get just the look you’re after.
• Skinny Ties - Available from £10 www.topman.com. Stick to just plain black like Pete, or they offer a wide variety of colours and prints to suit your mood.
• Trilby - You can find these anywhere, but you’re best bet for Pete’s signature summer straw trilby is to check out that little stall on the market that looks like your grandad should shop there, thye usually have the best hats.

The key to Pete’s look is pretty much look like you fell in the bin at the back of Oxfam, but with a little flair. So go out have fun and work the rock star look with none of the effort.

Black Magic

‘Goth’ is the word on every make up artists’ lips this season. No doubt inspired by the plethora of vamp- inspired films being released over the coming weeks (Twilight: New Moon, The Vampires Assistant, Jennifer’s Body…you get the idea) this trend is all about embracing your dark side. Agness Deyn channelled the look with newly dyed jet-black hair, heavy fringe and bold eyes at the Coco Avant Chanel premiere earlier this year. The trick is not to be neat when applying your make up, think less Dita Von Teese and more Sid and Nancy; the punkier the better. For even more drama, after applying eye shadow, cake the eyes thickly with a layer of black glitter (Barry M dazzle dust in charcoal is ideal) and brush up your eyebrows for an ultimate hint of rock and roll. If you’re feeling extra brave complete the look with noired-up nails and a slick of black lipstick- it’ll make kissing interesting at least!

Build A Shrine

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