I was browsing LUSH’s UK website and saw their new foundation product!

I can’t wait to get my hands on it, but unfortunately for me the Vancouver store sales woman thinks it won’t be in Canada until some time in April, possibly later. So I’ll just have to bide my time and let all you lucky UK-side people try it first.

If you do get your hands on some, let me know if it’s any good. I love LUSH products and their philosophies, but that doesn’t guarantee a great product. I’m hoping that their passion and experience does though

Enjoy your Free High Impact Mascara duo including High Impact Mascara in Black 4g and High Impact Curling Mascara in Black 2.5g with any 2 purchases from the website (conditions apply!).

Simply enter offer code IMPACT at checkout.

Clinique Offer

“Energizing microbeads gently exfoliate skin while sweeping away dead skin cells. Light gel formula lathers into bubbly foam removing surface dirt, oil and make-up. Feel the surge of invigoration as the cooling gel cleans down to pores leaving skin feeling fresh, clean and energized.”

Another free sample from Glamour magazine!

There are plenty of scrubs with “micro beads” and to be honest this isn’t my favourite. I don’t like to be negative about skincare because the fact is different peoples skin reacts well/badly to different products, and the luck of the draw is that my skin doesn’t react well to this one!

There was enough in the free sample for two washes and both times my skin felt stretched (as with harsh soaps) and the fumes actually stung my eyes for a few seconds (which I definately wasn’t expecting!). Aside from the stretched feeling my skin did feel softer and it did feel as though it had received a really good clean! I’m tempted to say that with prolonged use my skin would benefit from this scrub, but my stinging eyes won’t let me.

I think that if your skin isn’t as sensitive as mine then this is probably a good product to try, especially if your skin tends to be on the oily side. If you buy magazines then you could always pop out and buy Glamour for the free sample (and articles! ) and try it yourself. Let me know how you find it

“Its feather-light soufflé texture extends seamlessly across the skin for a transformation you can see and feel. Pores appear virtually erased, the appearance of fine lines are reduced and skin feels peachy-soft.”

I’d seen L’Oreal Matte Morphose in shops and tried it on my hand to see what the texture was like and I really liked the silky feel. My plan was to buy some once I had the funds, but fate intervened and I received a free sample in the April edition of Glamour magazine! Score!

I tried it the day after we arrived in Vancouver and was very pleased to see that the shade was right for my skin tone.

It really does seem to melt into silk on your skin. I have large pores and they definitely appear reduced and less noticeable with this foundation. It blends nice and easily so less chance of “tide marks” for those who have trouble blending properly.

Greg and I went out for the day to explore Downtown Vancouver and when we got back my face was a little shiny (probably from the up hill walk from the sky train!) but my pores were still less noticable than usual and my skin still looked and felt silky.

I’m definately impressed. Could this be on my list of “things to buy with my first Canadian pay check” ? I reckon so!

Get your free sample with L’Oreal

Landed safe and sound (I don’t like flying!) and found our temporary home

So, now it’s a case of finding jobs, finding a temporary home fairly close to said job, making some friends so we’re not lonely and there we are! Hopefully I’ll find (and be allowed to attend) a short make-up course or two while we’re here. I’ve had a look on the internet and most courses seem to be in the Toronto area and we’re in Vancouver, but there’s one or two here with good reputations so I’ll see what they’re about and let you know how it goes

Wish me luck

Woo Hoo! It’s finally happening. Greg and I are moving to Canada for the year to work, and we set off at 5am :-/ tomorrow.

I just thought I’d mention it and make everyone jealous

Luxury for less
Avon are proud to introduce the eagerly anticipated Spotlight by Courteney Cox this campaign. The sparkling fragrance is glamorous, flirtatious and so sexy – plus there’s a FREE Pro-to-Go Lipstick in Natural Glisten with every Spotlight EDP bought.

Also on offer are:

Oasis Brushes £5 when you spend £10 across selected products

Free Eyeliner when you buy selected mascaras

Eye opening results with Clinical Eye Lift, save £5.50

Footworks, Naturals and Simply Delicate at £1.50

Don’t forget to enter your coupon code ATD to get free shipping when you spend £20 or more!

I read an article by DonPower.me about how a lot of small local businesses don’t use the internet and social media to their full advantage and it made me think about how I will promote my business in the future.

I don’t have a business (yet) and I’m not self-employed (yet) but Rouge Make-up Artistry does already have an online presence and I feel that I am working towards the future. I have created pages on Facebook, MySpace, Bebo and Zimbio and although they are currently very basic they at least mean that RougeMUA is out there!

I’ve created a business plan (which constantly changes as I do more research and new ideas come to mind) and my hope is that when I do become a Freelance Make-up Artist I will already be out there with an online history spanning a year or two, maybe even three or four, and people will feel reassured that I haven’t just popped up out of obscurity.

Blondish.net comments on how smaller businesses tend to want to see results immediately, and like most types of advertising I think you need to give social networking sites time and definately plan ahead. My sights are on the future, but I don’t see a reason why I should wait to promote myself or get my name and that of Rouge Make-up Artistry out into the main stream. For me, sites like Facebook and MySpace give people with small businesses (or even just ideas) a way to reach a wider audience and more potential clients no matter what the type of business or how small it currently is.

If you have or plan to start a small business or are planning on becoming self-employed, perhaps as a cosmetics representative, a beautician or a make-up artist, then I would most definately suggest making the most of the internet and all it has to offer. You never know how far it could take you!

Today is IWD and as my tribute to women everywhere I’ve put together some quotes from some of the most famous women in the world, and some unknowns. Enjoy, and be inspired!

Audrey Hepburn – For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.

Coco Chanel – Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.

Whoopi Goldberg – Normal is in the eye of the beholder.

Eleanor Roosevelt - Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Marilyn Monroe – I want to grow old without facelifts… I want to have the courage to be loyal to the face I’ve made. Sometimes I think it would be easier to avoid old age, to die young, but then you’d never complete your life, would you? You’d never wholly know you.

Mother Teresa – Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

Oprah Winfrey – Do the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never tumble are those who never mount the high wire. This is your moment. Own it.

Dianne Feinstein, politician – [on women's role in government] Toughness doesn’t have to come in a pinstripe suit.

Mother Teresa – It is easy to love the people far away. It is not always easy to love those close to us. It is easier to give a cup of rice to relieve hunger than to relieve the loneliness and pain of someone unloved in our own home. Bring love into your home for this is where our love for each other must start.

Coco Chanel – A fashion that does not reach the streets is not a fashion.

Miss Piggy – Never eat more than you can lift.

Katherine Hepburn – If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun!

Gilda Radner – I base most of my fashion sense on what doesn’t itch!

Charlotte Whitton – Whatever women do, they must do it twice as well as men to be “half as good”. Luckily, this is not difficult.

Author Unknown – The Three Wise Women
Three wise women would have…
Asked directions,
Arrived on time,
Helped deliver the baby,
Cleaned the stable,
Made a casserole,
Brought practical gifts,
And there would be peace on Earth.

I read a post at newmummystips about a rather successful bedroom clearout, and at knittingjourney about general house purging, and it encouraged me to do the same with my bulging make-up bag!

Last September I won a small make-up competition where they wanted you to create a “Natural First Date Look”, explaining what you had done and why. The prize was a set amount of money towards an order at an online make-up store, so I splurged, adding to my already full bag! Of course what this meant was that my bag was overflowing with products, which is great for practicing, but not so great for travelling. I took the bare minimum to the Czech Republic over Christmas but I kept everything else in a bag which I quickly retrieved once home This time however, Greg and I are moving to Canada for a year (our work visas came through, Yay! ) and we want to travel light. So, I took a leaf out of the NewMummy’s book and started searching through all of my make-up to find the products that I “need“.

It didn’t actually take as long as I thought it would, and in truth is something that we all need to do once in a while to get rid of the 2 year old mascara, the eye liner that never gets used and that black lipstick bought for Halloween!

It’s good to get down to basics now and then! Besides, it’s also a great excuse to buy a new (and better) mascara, a fabulous eyeshadow to replace that old eye liner and a lip stick that you will wear for more than one day!