Eyeliner Crushing: Lauren Mayberry

Still from the 'Gun' video

Lauren Mayberry is the singer for a Glaswegian electropop band Chvrches (pronounced "churches"). She's adorable, right? Like a little pixie with her big brown eyes and delicate features. She reminds me a little of Emma Watson. 

I'm in love with the way she likes to wears her eyeliner. Long swooping lines that extend towards her nose on the inside and well out towards her temple. In the photo here, she's only got that long, extended line on one eye and there are tiny dots of eyeliner at the ends of each swoop. 

Sometimes she pairs it with some silver as in the photos here and here. 

Lips are kept rosy and slightly glossy. Skin is natural. It's a very simple look, but it's also very compelling. 

Sometimes she goes a bit heavier with her eye makeup, but keeps that elongated shape. In this photo it looks like she's got metallic (perhaps silver) swoops extended down onto her cheekbone. 

So pretty, and so cool. Referencing both the 1960s and the 1980s.

Here's the 'Gun' video - great tune. 

Check out Chvrches online here: 

http://chvrch.es/

http://www.youtube.com/user/CHVRCHES

American Apparel Nail Polish Reviewed

* Please note that hours after posting this entry, I became aware that American Apparel has pulled their nail lacquers from their stores and online retail store, citing that the glassware is dangerous. There's no official word just yet but here's where I heard it: http://www.fashionmagazine.com/blogs/fashion/fashion-news/2010/01/26/fashion-news-dellacqua-coming-back-to-the-runway-american-apparel-pulls-polish-and-headgear-consternation-at-couture-week/#more-12306


The direct quote is here: American Apparel is pulling their line of nail polishes. The official line is that there’s a problem with the glassware, but an employee is now saying the company is telling them it’s “hazardous material.”

It appears to be the bottles and not the product that is the problem. I will keep you updated as I learn more. 
C - 01/26/2010 




I blogged about the new American Apparel nail lacquers last month and finally picked some up. They retail for $7.50 CDN or three for $18.50 so I picked up three - Factory Grey, Peacock and Hunter.

 L to R (here and above): Hunter, Peacock and Factory Grey (view of bottle sides)

Hunter is a deep forest green and if you're looking for the perfect on trend polish, this is it. Peacock is a turquoisey blue that just screams peacock. Factory Grey is a cool soft grey, very on trend as well.

All of American Apparel's colours are matte. There's no sparkle, glitter, shimmer or iridescence to them. They're all colour, gloriously so. I adore these polishes. They're deliberately different and appeal to me since I like dramatic, sophisticated, edgy, creamy colours over glitter and girliness. Give me a black-red or dark blue short nail over a French manicure or neutral nail anyday.

With that being said, onto the review. My thoughts on these three polishes? I wore each shade until it began to chip or wear and wore 2 coats plus bottom and top coats. Each lasted about five days which is about average for me. With reapplication of top coat every few days, it'd last longer.

The scent is very light, markedly less so than other polishes. The consistency is smooth and creamy and goes on well. I needed two coats and no more. The first coat could be enough but with two the colour is more intense and the application fully opaque. I love the rectangular shaped bottles (easier to store!) although the script is of course, a bit too Miami Vice for me. My only complaint is that the brush is too long and difficult to navigate over your nails.

Of the three, my favourite was Factory Grey. I just love how it's neutral but not brown! I got the most compliments when I wore this shade as well.

Photos of the polish in action! (click on the image for a closer look)

Hunter Green

Factory Grey

Peacock

I recommend these polishes if unconventional, matte colours are your thing. American Apparel, it should be noted, carry more traditional shades like red and pink but these polishes are more like model car colours than nailpolishes. Would you expect anything else from American Apparel, really?

C.

The Beauty Squared Closet: The Candi Factory

From time to time on Beauty Squared we'll do a bit of fashion blogging. Not too much, mind you, as this is predominantly a blog about make-up and cosmetics. But we wouldn't get very far with just fabulous hair, skin and faces and no clothes, now would we?

So here's the first in our Beauty Squared Closet and we're starting with the basics - underwear!

I've seen these underwear at The Clothing Show and Sale, at shops like Fresh Collective and featured in newspapers and magazines. I've often taken a closer look and contemplated buying them but as I tend to be partial to fancy-looking knickers, these seemed a little too sporty, basic, a wee too crafty-looking for my taste and not my brand of sexy. I like my underthings to be sexy and functional, or just sexy. Rarely just functional and almost never full-coverage. There's also the pricetag - $20 (CDN) for one pair seemed a bit much for something that wasn't covered in lace, made in silk or had ribbon ties at the side. Not for me, I have always thought.

Recently, a friend (who I've always envied for her lithe figure and ability to look incredible in anything she puts on) and I were wander-shopping and popped into Fresh Collective for a browse. She told me how much she love-love-loves these undies and how they're incredibly comfortable, last forever and "prevent butt jiggle". Her butt jiggles??? I thought. Now I was listening!

I started digging through the display to see if there were any styles and colour combinations that I could satisfy my inner Belle with. I was surprised to see that there were! In addition to the polka-dot fabric daisy and bird styles there were lovely silk-screened birds, delightful ruffles, elegant bows in a criss-cross pattern and sweet flowery hearts. My friend ended up buying some for herself and bought the pair I had selected (white with pink trim and a silk-screened lace pattern on the front) as a belated birthday gift for me.

They're made from soft, breathable microfibre (88% nylon and 12% lycra with a cotton gusset) and let me tell you, these ARE incredibly comfy. They're stretchy, but not tight (unless you're wearing the wrong size) and the edges don't dig into your skin. You honestly forget you're wearing them they're so comfortable. There's no squirming, adjusting, digging out, pulling up and they do cover your tush, just as my friend told me they did.

Evidently they hold up remarkably well too - no pilling, fading or shrinking - no matter how you wash them. There's no tag with washing instructions on these - however you want to wash them is fine, although air-dry is better for drying than the drier, but that's the case for any stretchy fabric.

Oh and the men's briefs are pretty cheeky and awesome too. I'm partial to the streetcar/crossword puzzle one.

 

They're available across Canada and in a few places in the US (click here for locations) and you can order them online as well.

C.