Lady In Red

I just wanted to wish you all a happy new year and I hope that you're all having fun wherever you are. I had the most low-key Christmas ever and I basically spent the entire day enjoying my 'Alias' marathon on Netflix. I also went to see 'Les Miserables' in the evening and I thought it was fantastic. It was unashamedly sentimental but it had some great performances and I'll definitely be seeing it again soon (after 'Django Unchained').

I'll leave you with an OOTD and FOTD from this past Sunday when I was actually in the Christmas spirit. I wore this great cropped jacket from Forever21 (!) and I loved it so much that I wore it again on new year's eve with my Christie Brown necklace.

Wearing my beloved NARS "Dragon Girl" lip crayon with MAC's "Ruby Woo" on top
Sleek's "Coral" blush on my cheeks
Urban Decay's "Sin" and "Zero" eyeshadows on my lids

Ha! Please excuse my ghetto pose in the following pic but at least you can see my shoes....

Jacket: Forever 21
Top: Forever 21
Jeans: Burlington Coat Factory
Shoes: JustFab.com
Bag: vintage Stuart Weitzman

Here's another one with new hair and a different look exactly a week later for new year's eve:

Face
Mat Velvet+ matifying foundation in #75 Coffee (Make Up For Ever)
LA Girl HD concealer in "Fawn"
Mineralize Skinfinish Natural Powder in "Dark" (under eyes) and "Dark Deep" (whole face) (MAC)
"Taos" blush (NARS)Lips
"Bare it all" lipstick (Wet 'n' Wild)
"Doug" lipgloss (Urban Decay)
Eyes
Loose pigment in "silver pearl" (NYX
Eye crayon in "black bean" (NYX)
"Zephyr", "Crystal" and "Skimp" eyeshadows (Urban Decay)
"Vanity Palette" (Wet 'n' Wild)
False lashes (Miss Adoro)

Jacket: Forever21
Top: Talbots
Necklace: Christie Brown

Hope you all had a wonderful festive period and here's to great things in 2013!

Love and life,

Nana Adomah

xx

Lime And Fur

Yes, this OOTD is about 3 weeks late but better late than never eh? We were having a bit of a cold spell so I took the opportunity to bust out my tattered "fur".

I went full-on with the makeup too. It was just that kind of day. I used my oft-neglected Sleek "Storm" palette and had "Jubilee" by MAC on my lips. I'm still not convinced that nude lipstick suits me but I had no other option with that heavy eye makeup.

Dress: Custom-made by my seamstress in Ghana
Blazer: Talbots
Bag: Zara
Shoes: Charlotte Russe
Fur Collar: New Look

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving which was made all the better with a visit from my sister from another mother (hey Aks!) all the way from London. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving too.

Love and joy,

Nana Adomah

Birthday FOTD

Greetings! Long time no blog and I won't waste both our times with excuses so onwards we go....

 It was my birthday last Friday and I really wasn't in the mood to do anything at all but my very lovely friends dragged me out to dinner and a good time was had by all. I kept my eye makeup pretty simple so I decided to jazz it up with a red lipstick.

Face
Mat Velvet+ matifying foundation in #75 Coffee (Make Up For Ever)
Pro Longwear concealer in NW40 (MAC)
Mineralize Skinfinish Natural Powder in "Dark" (under eyes) and "Dark Deep" (whole face) (MAC)
"Coral" blush (Sleek)

Eyes
Lids- Color Tattoo in "Bad to the bronze" (Maybelline)
Crease- "Galapagos" eyeshadow (NARS)
HIghlight- "Ricepaper" (MAC)
Eyeliner- Waterproof velvet touch eyeliner in 'black ink" (GOSH)
Supercurl curling mascara (Urban Decay)
False half lashes (Ardell)

Lips"Chestnut" lipliner (MAC)Lipstick in "Shade 1" (MUA

I bought this MUA lipstick about 2 years ago but I only remembered I had it last week (shame on me). I wanted something different from my usual matte, red lipstick and this could not be better. It glides on ridiculously smoothly and it's insanely pigmented. It also does a fantastic job of staying put. It survived a three-course meal and drinks with only one touch-up so it's a definite keeper.

Thank you so much to everybody who wished me a happy birthday. It was very much appreciated.

 Until next time,

Nana Adomah xx

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 

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 

Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara and FOTD

My beloved Rimmel "Day 2 Night" mascara ran out a few weeks ago and I couldn't find it anywhere here so when I saw the Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara on sale for just $5.00, I snapped it up. To be honest, I didn't have huge hopes for this as I have a hit and miss relationship with drugstore mascaras but this was a pleasant surprise.

The bristles are very firm, yet there isn't too much product deposited on the brush. It also manages to coat my eyelashes without making them look too clumpy. Once on, my eyelashes don't feel hard and crunchy as can happen with other mascaras.

My apologies for the deer in headlights look but it really gives me the false lash effect non?

I was also trying out a sample of the MAC Pro Longwear foundation here but I'm still on the fence about it. It just looks a little "ashy" to me when compared to my other MAC foundations. What do you think? (Click the pictures to make them larger)

Face

Foundation: Pro Longwear foundation in NW45 (MAC)

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

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

Blusher: "Sahara" (Sleek) 

Eyes

Lid: "woodwinked" eyeshadow (MAC)

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

Highlight: Select Cover-Up concealer in NW40 (MAC)

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

Mascara: Lash Stiletto mascara in "very black" (Maybelline)

Lips

Colour Sensational lipstick in "velvet beige" (Maybelline)

Hi-shine lip treatment in "Juicy Peach" (The Body Shop)

Love, life and pretty lashes 
Nana Adomah 
x

A week of pictures

I took a few OOTD and FOTD pictures this week but they never quite made it up so I'm lumping them all here. The weather has been utterly sublime and it's made me want to do nothing at all. I've been hanging out with friends and just generally loafing around.

What have you guys been up to in the fine weather? Let me know!

My friend Madeline and I decided to wander around Camden for the afternoon and we had fun just enjoying the usual Camden sights. We both picked up these silly Harry Potter-esque clear glasses so I could pretend to be a cool hipster and blend in with the Camden crowd! We also had some delicious (and cheap) Thai food at this little pub. We've been there a few times but it'd been a while so we decided to treat ourselves. After all, you can't go wrong with Thai.

My best hipster look

Jeans: ASOS
Top: George by Asda
Blazer: Talbots
Turban: Primark Scarf
Leather satchel: Oasis
Black Wedges: New Look

I was in the mood for bright eyes on this day and I wanted to pair it with a neutral lip. I'm convinced that "nude" lipsticks look terrible on me even though I like that look so I decided to make it work for me. I used "Touch" by MAC with Urban Decay's "Pocket Rocket" in "Kirk" over it. I kind of like it but I'm still firmly on the fence. Oh well, at least I tried something new. My eyes were done using the Urban Decay "UD Loves NYC" palette.

Finally, this is what I wore to church last week  and I actually bared my arms (shock, horror)! I detest my arms with a passion so they're usually under wraps, even the summer. I wore a simple tunic top I picked up in the New Look sale with my ASOS jeggings. I also wore my gorgeous, gorgeous wedges for the first time and I'm still in love. I'll be doing a detailed shoe post soon as I've picked up quite a few new ones (naughty naughty) so I'll talk about them there.

Top: New Look
Jeggings: ASOS
Wedges: ALDO
Bag: Ted Baker
Necklace: Monsoon Accesorize

Love, life and more sunshine!
Domzy
x

Summer days, make me feel fine....

My, my, my, haven't we been blessed with some stonkingly good weather in the UK these past few days? I won't hold my breath that it'll last but it's been nice to see everybody enjoying it in the meantime. I don't know what it is about sunshine that makes everything in London look great but I'm sure not complaining.

I went to church on Sunday and I was going to wear heels but switched them out for some espadrilles at the last moment. I'm glad I did because I ended up doing a lot of walking and there's not much worse than aching feet.

Outfit

Navy blazer- Talbots

White Shirt- Primark

Jeans- a random shop in Atlanta. It may have been Ross or Marshalls!

Nautical espadrilles- New Look

Bag- (very) vintage Burberry

Belt- Talbots

Bangles- Accessorize

Necklace- possibly Dorothy Perkins

 Face

Foundation: Studio Fix Fluid in NW45 (MAC)

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

Blusher: "Crazed" (NARS)

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

Eyes

Long-wear gel eyeliner in "Black Ink" (Bobbi Brown)

Waterline- 24/7 Glide-on eye pencil in "Ransom" (Urban Decay)

Lower lash line- 24/7 Glide-on eye pencil in "Stash" (Urban Decay)

Mascara: Studio Lash Instant Volume (Miss Sporty)

Lips

Lip Liner in "Chestnut" (MAC)

Lipstick in "Lickable" (MAC)

Lipgloss- Pocket Rocket in "Doug" (Urban Decay)

You may have noticed that I've changed my hair. I got some extensions put in on Thursday and I'll be telling you all about them in an upcoming post.

Finally, thank you to all my new followers. I appreciate every single one of you! How have you been enjoying the sunshine?

Love, life, and Spring-time fun

Domzy 
x

Friday's Face

I popped out to see a friend and decided to try out "Antiqued". I worried that it'd be really dark but I think it really brightens up my eyes. I even had a couple of random people stop me on the street to ask what eyeshadow I was wearing (!). I could have blended my eyebrow highlighter in a bit more but I kinda love it. I added a couple of clip-in hair extensions and curled my hair with my Babyliss Curling Wand. 

Last week, I got a sudden urge to find out what I would look like with a nose ring on. I've had my nose pierced for approximately 6 years now but I've never worn anything but a tiny stud in it. I've had a few funny looks from friends but I think I'm kind of digging it. I was bored and felt like a change, so why not? What do you think of it?

I'm on the fence about MAC's Face and Body foundation. I think it's way too sheer/ light for me and it's almost a step-up from a tinted moisturiser. It'll be great for the summer or for people who want very light coverage. I had to really pile on my Mineralize powder to feel like my skin looked even. Maybe I'll give it another go when my scars/ hyper pigmentation fade a little.

Face

Primer: Velvet touch foundation primer (GOSH)

Foundation: Face and Body in N9 (MAC)

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

Blusher: "Taj Mahal" (NARS)

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

Eyes

Primer: Primer Potion (Urban Decay)

Lid and lower lash line: "antiqued" (MAC)

Crease:

Inner eye: "jezebel" (Stila)

Highlight: "ricepaper" (MAC)

Eyeliner: Long-wear gel eyeliner in "Black ink" (Bobbi Brown)

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

Mascara: Studio Lash Instant Volume (Miss Sporty)

Lips

Base: Smith's Rosebud Salve

"Rebel" lipstick used as a stain (MAC)

Lipgloss: Hi-shine lip treatment in "Juicy Peach" (The Body Shop)

Love, life and daring
Domzy
x

CHILLaxing

I was dragged to a networking event last night on Kensington High Street with my wonderful friends and I surprisingly had a good time. I managed to persuade one of them to take a picture of me so I could fulfil my promise to the blog so here  goes:

I can't say that I was loving what I was wearing but I just slapped an outfit together and braved the disgusting cold. It was seriously COLD, the type of cold that chills you straight to the bone. I couldn't get a great close-up of my face because my camera decided it hates me but, hey, I tried.

Outfit

Slouch grey harem trousers: ASOS (Curve)

Blouse: Primark

Ankle boots: Primark

Coat: H&M

Snood: ASOS

Bag: Random leather bag from a man on the street

Earrings: H&M

Rings: assorted Dorothy Perkins, H&M, Evans

Eyes

Primer: Primer Potion (Urban Decay)

Lids: Liquid liner in "Smog" smeared all over lids (Urban Decay)

Inner eye: "Shag" eyeshadow (Urban Decay)

Lower lash line: 24/7 Glide-on pencil in "Stash" (Urban Decay)

Eyeliner: Felt tip liner (NYX)

Waterline: Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink (Bobbi Brown)

Mascara: Studio Lash Instant Volume (Miss Sporty)

Lips

Base: Smith's Rosebud Salve

Lipgloss: Hi-Shine lip treatment in "Juicy Peach" (The Body Shop)

Face

Foundation: Studio Fix Fluid in NW45 (MAC)

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

Blusher: "Taj Mahal" (NARS)

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

Love, life and warm nights
Domzy x

Wraps 'R' Us

This is just a quick face of the day (FOTD) I put together sometime earlier in the week and I just thought I'd share. I've wanted a turban for ages but I wasn't prepared to pay the silly prices some places were asking for them so I decided to have a go at making one myself and it didn't turn out too badly if I may say so myself! I used a scarf from Primark I got not too long ago and I absolutely love it. It was only £3.00 but it's really good quality and it has a great classic, vintage look. I didn't want to go overboard on my makeup since I wanted to keep the attention on my turban so I stuck with simple eyes and a strong, red lip. Excuse the crappy iPod touch quality but it's handy for snapping quick pics on the go.

Eyes

Eyeliner: Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink (Bobbi Brown)

Mascara: Studio Lash Instant Volume (Miss Sporty)

Highlighter: "Shag" eyeshadow (Urban Decay)

Lips

Base: Smith's Rosebud Salve

Lipliner: "Chestnut" (MAC)

Lipstick: "Ruby Woo" (MAC)

Lipgloss: Sheer gloss in "Cherry" (NYX)

Face

Foundation: Studio Fix Fluid in NW45 (MAC)

Concealer: Studio Finish concealer in NW45 (MAC)

Blusher: "Exhibit A" (NARS)

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

Headscarf: Primark

Scarf: Dorothy Perkins

Love, life and lipstick,
Domzy x

Urban Decay Book of Shadows III and FOTD!

I finally received my Urban Decay Book of Shadows III from Debenham's a few days ago and after I jumped up and down in joy for a few minutes, I took a few pics for you guys. There are far more detailed pictures and swatches by Yinka of Vex and the City and also on Lipglossiping you can check out but I wanted to show what the colours looked liked on a darker skin tone like mine. I'm an NW45 in MAC foundations as a reference. I also used it for the first time yesterday and I swallowed my shyness and apprehension to show you my first ever Face of the Day (FOTD) so be kind.

The top of the box

Lift the lid and you get a cool light up, pop-up effect

The shadows with a mini primer potion and 24/7 eyeliners

I took some swatches of the colours and believe me when I say that my camera does them no justice. I took a set without the flash and a set with the flash to give you more of an idea of the true colours in the set.

From left to right:

Perversion- a matte charcoal grey/black colour; Uzi- a silver shade with  silver glitter pieces; Loaded- a deep, dark green; Kush- a bright green with a silvery sheen; Midnight Cowboy Rides Again- a neutral champagne/ beige with glitter chunks; Last Call- pinky purplish; Rockstar- aubergine purple; Money- a platinum with a slight tinge of blue-green.

Haight- a lovely teal; Maui Wowie- a pale gold with glitter; Smog- bronze; Bordello- lighter pink with small bits of gold glitter; Radium- a bright metallic blue; Snatch- a peach with bits of glitter; Suspect- pearlescent dark beige; Psychedelic Sister- medium purple

The set also comes with two of Urban Decay's 24/7 liners in Ransom (a bright purple) and Zero (a jet black) in addition to a mini vial of their primer potion. I've already gone through several "zero" liners and while it goes on great on my upper eye lid, it just doesn't agree with my waterline because it melts itself into the corner of my eyes. I still love their liners though because they go on so damn smoothly! As for the primer potion, there's nothing I can say that hasn't been said before and I heartily recommend using this before applying any eye shadow.


As for the colours, once again my camera really does them no justice. My favourites so far are "money", "haight" and "loaded" but I'm sure that will change from week to week. I absolutely can't stand "uzi" as it's a certified glitter monster. I already own the full-size eye shadow of this I got in a sale a couple of years ago and I've only used it once. The silver glitter pieces really do go EVERYWHERE. The other glittery eye shadows in this collection aren't anywhere as bad as this.


The box itself is quite big so I can't imagine it'd be very portable for everybody but I carry huge bags anyway so I wouldn't blink at carrying this around with me. The packaging is really cool though and the lights in the pop-up section are a nice touch.