FOTD: Orange Lava

Sleek Makeup's Pout Paint in "Lava"

Orange lips are all the rage this summer but I've been avoiding trying them out because I don't have a wish to look like Ronald McDonald. However, having seen plenty of dark-skinned ladies rocking this look lately, I thought "what the heck?" I rummaged in my makeup case and found Sleek's Pout Paint in "Lava". These Pout Paints are supposedly similar to the ones by OCC and it went on smoothly with the tiniest amount needed.

The finish wasn't as matte as I'd have liked but it's extremely long-lasting and there's very little fading even after eating and drinking. However, make sure your lips are properly exfoliated before using this as it WILL highlight every bit of dry skin, flakiness on your lips.

Pout Paint with flash (indoors)

Face

Foundation: Studio Fix Fluid in NW45 (MAC)

Concealer: Studio Finish concealer in NW45 (MAC), Select Cover-Up in NW40 (MAC)

Powder: Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in "Deep Dark" (MAC) 

Blush: "Taj Mahal" (NARS) 

Eyes

Mascara: Supercurl curling mascara (Urban Decay)

Lips

Pout Paint in "Lava" (Sleek)
Lipliner pencil in "Forever Red" (LA Colors)

I paired the Pout Paint with NARS' "Taj Mahal" blush and lashings of mascara. I can't even remember the last time I went out without eyeliner but I think it worked. This look took all of 10 minutes (I shocked myself) and it's a nice, no-fuss Summer look.

In natural light

Sleek Pout Paints are extremely affordable and I think I picked mine up in a deal in Superdrug last year for £5. They can be purchased here.

Have you tried Sleek Pout Paints before? Let me know.



Nana Adomah 

NOTD: Barry M Berry Ice Cream

Barry M's "Berry Ice-Cream with LA Colors' "Jewel Tone"

Like many people, I love wearing bright colours on my nails in the summer and Barry M's "Berry Ice-Cream" is one of my favourites. I decided to jazz it up a little by adding LA Colors glitter polish in "Jewel Tone". It dries really quickly and it doesn't need loads of coats so I"m a fan.

What my nails look like in natural light. (Ignore my tips, I singed them on a hot plate :-\ )

I definitely recommend both colours and they are extremely affordable. Barry M can be found in both Superdrug and Boots, whilst LA Colors can be found in Beauty Base in Westfield shopping centres.

What are your go-to summer colours? Let me know in the comments below!



Nana Adomah
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My Top 20 Cosmetic Products of the Year So Far

I originally intended to write this post highlighting my favourite cosmetics products way back in January but alas, I wasn't able to get my act together. I managed to whittle down my favourite/ most used products of the year so far and I thought I'd share:

Sleek blush in "Coral" (L), NARS blush in "Taos" (R)

I'm slowly building up a ridiculous blush collection (I only have two cheeks after all) but these two blushes were the ones I reached for the most. Sleek's "coral" blush gives me a really nice and natural flush and it's easily build-able. NARS' "Taos" was a favourite last year as well and I adore the gentle shimmer on top of the dusky rose colour. Sleek blushes are a steal at around £4.50, whilst NARS blushes are a lot more at £20.50.

MAC Select SPF 15 in NW45 (L), MAC Mineralize Skinfinish
Natural in "Dark Deep" (R)

This has been my go to foundation combo all year. I actually bought the Select foundation by mistake when I meant to buy the Studio Fix Fluid, however, I much prefer this one now. It's not too heavy, yet gives a good medium/ full coverage.

The MSF in "Dark Deep" has been my holy grail powder for around 3 years now and I don't see that changing anytime soon. It gives me the perfect "glowy" look and it can be used by itself with a bit of concealer if I want a really light coverage. I cannot recommend this enough.

Rimmel nail polish in "beige" (L), Barry M Nail Paint in
"Berry Ice Cream"

These are the polishes I've used the most this year. Barry M's "Berry Ice Cream" is the perfect summer shade in my opinion. It's fun and girly without being too vomit-inducing. The Rimmel polish, on the other hand, belongs on the other end of the spectrum. I've never been a fan of nude polishes but this makes my hands look so elegant and it particularly looks great when my nails are long. I'm a bit iffy about overly bright colours on my nails when I've grown them long because they run the risk of looking Cruella de Vil-ish. I highly recommend both colours.

Rimmel Day 2 Night mascara, E.L.F eyelid primer, Bobbi
Brown longwear gel eyeliner in "black ink"

So many accolades have been given to this mascara and I have to add mine to the list. This gives me crazy volume without clumpiness and I can't ask for much more in a mascara.
The E.L.F primer was a pleasant surprise because I chucked it into my online basket just so I could qualify for free shipping and it actually rivals my Urban Decay Primer Potion. It's very light and blends easily before I apply my eyeshadow. I'd even say it's better than the Two-Faced primer and the best part is that it's only one pound!
I bought the Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner as part of a deal they were having on the plane and I've used it religiously since. It's perfect on the waterline as well as the upper lid and once it's on, it truly does not budge. Yes, it's pricey but it's worth every penny.

From L-R: MAC , E.L.F blush brush, E.L.F powder brush,
 Costco concealer/ foundation brush,
E.L.F concealer brush

I use these brushes everyday and they range from the very cheap (E.L.F) to the very expensive (MAC). The E.L.F brushes perform excellently, particularly when you factor in the ridiculously low price of £3 each. I bought my MAC kabuki brush on an impulse about 4 years ago (hey, when I'm depressed I buy makeup) and I remember asking myself if I was crazy as I forked over £30 for it. It's so soft and picks up powder so well. It has also endured numerous washes whilst losing only a minimal amount of hairs. Definitely worth the splurge.

MAC "Rebel" lipstick, The Body Shop.... lip gloss,
Smith's Rosebud Salve, Urban Decay Pocket Rocket
lip gloss in "Doug"

What can I say about MAC's "Rebel" lipstick that hasn't been said already? It's a wonderful deep pink that can be built up and looks especially great on darker skin tones. My pot of Smith's Rosebud Salve is still going strong after more than a year and I use this stuff every single day. It leaves my lips soft without being sticky.

These two lip glosses look good either on their own or on top of lipstick. They are not sticky (my biggest no-no when it comes to lip gloss) yet they have really good staying power.

I forgot to take smaller pics of the GOSH face primer and MUA eyeshadow above but both are excellent products. The MUA eyeshadow is a matte brown that only costs one pound and the pigmentation is superior to my MAC "embark" eyeshadow. I use this eyeshadow to contour my cheeks, as a crease colour and to fill in my eyebrows.

It was actually really hard to whittle this list down to just 20 (product junkie alert!) but these products have been good to me this year.

What are your top cosmetic products?



Love, life and lip gloss


Nana Adomah 

Leopard and Coral

Here's just a quick FOTD and OOTD of what I wore to church last week. I've lived in this shirt all summer as it's so easy to wear and goes with almost everything I own. I'm in desperate need of some new clothes since all of the clothes I have here are mainly autumn/ winter clothes from when I was in Atlanta in November.

I went for  pretty casual look and I accessorised with this great leather satchel I got in Ghana for the ridiculous price of 15GHC (about £5/ $8!) and these Pocahontas style sandals I picked up in Primark last year when my feet were hurting from wearing heels all day.

Shirt: New Look

Skirt: Forever 21

Top: Primark

Satchel: from a vendor in Osu (Ghana)

Sandals: Primark

Anklets: Ghana

Earrings: Primark

It was a staggering 41C/ 106F on this day and I actually thought I was going to have a heat stroke. Shockingly, my makeup actually survived the heat. I guess living in Ghana was good training ^_^ I primed my face with Milk of Magnesia and this stuff has made such a huge difference to the staying power of my makeup in the heat.

Face

Foundation: PhotoReady foundation in Cappuccino (Revlon)

Concealer: Studio Finish concealer in NW45 (MAC), Select Cover-Up in NW40 (MAC)

Powder: Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in "Deep Dark" (MAC) & HD Powder (Make Up Forever)

Blusher: "Sunrise" (Sleek) 

Eyes

Lid: "honey" eyeshadow (Urban Decay) and "Singapore sling" in the Curacao palette (Sleek)

Crease and transition: "Vanity" palette (Wet 'n' Wild)

Highlight and inner tear duct: "ricepaper" eyeshadow (MAC)
Eyeliner (lid): Random black liquid liner from Superdrug

Eyeliner (waterline): Waterproof velvet touch eyeliner in "black ink" (GOSH)

Mascara: Supercurl curling mascara (Urban Decay)
False lashes: Ardell

Lips

Luscious liquid lipstick in "raspberry" (E.L.F)

I decided to wear falsies and I think I'm getting better at the whole application process. I must admit that I'm not the biggest fan of falsies because I don't want to get used to them on my face and then feel as if I "need" them but they are fun to wear once in a while.

How are you all enjoying your summers?


Love, life and sunny days 


Nana Adomah 

Isn't it amazing just how much we are inextricably tied to technology these days? I've been trying to psych myself up to write a blog post for weeks and just when I actually sat down to do so, my laptop died. My dear Macbook is currently stuck on the "grey screen of death" and I've been too much of a wuss to take it to the Apple store because I know, deep down, that my hard drive is most likely fried. I've been sulking about it for about 2 weeks now because I'd just transferred most of my pictures from Ghana onto my laptop and I have no way of retrieving them. There's a valuable lesson about backing up etc etc somewhere but I'm in no mood to hear it.

I had a post planned about my grandfather's funeral but that will have to wait a while. In the mean time, before I get my laptop fixed, I'll be posting stuff I prepared a while back and things I managed to capture on my phone.

I'm currently back in Atlanta after spending the last 4/5 months in Ghana and it's good to be back even though I'm missing London something fierce right about now.

Anyway, enough moaning for now. My desktop computer works just fine so onwards and upwards!


Love, life and positivity 


Nana Adomah 


P.S. I'm amazed that people have still been reading my blog amidst all my shoddy updating and I've even amassed a few new followers. Thank you so much for sticking with me and I hope I can repay you all.