Kat Copies: Miss Dior Cherie

A few years ago I was desperate to get Dior Miss Cherie, but it was almost £50. I loved everything about it, especially the bottle. While on a smelling spree at the Boots perfume counter I picked up Katie Price's 'Stunning' for a joke, and found a great dupe for my Dior favourite! I spent ages going into Boots spraying the original and the imposter on both wrists and sniffing them as they developed over the day, and by the end of my experiments, I found that Stunning lasts longer on my skin.  At the time it was less than half the price of Miss Cherie, it's £18.99 for 30mls at Boots now.

I took this photo a little while ago and have since finished off Miss Cherie which my friend Rachel gave me for my 24th birthday.  I worked my way through a Stunning 50ml bottle and my friend Sinead got me the 30mls for my last birthday. I'm all Miss Cherie'd out at the moment, but if I ever want to repurchase it, I'll go for Stunning.   I get a lot of compliments on Stunning, and of course pass it off as Dior, even though Miss Cherie is widely recognised, no one has ever told the difference!

The perfume is extremely sweet and has notes of mandarin, strawberry leaf, violet, jasmine, caramel popcorn, wild strawberry sorbet, musk, and patchouli.  Over time it has begun to smell a bit too civet-y for me, but this is a pheromone, so hey!

Next also brought out a dupe, and the bottle is a bit similar to Stunning's.  It's called Diamonds and is only £12 for 100mls.

NOTD: Nails Inc. Picadilly Circus

This nail polish was one of my May Favourites so I thought it was worth showing you how it looks on...

With Flash                                                                                          Without Flash

Nails Inc. describe it as a 'deep pink' but it's more of a pinkish red.  Like many other polishes this one looks different in natural vs. artificial light.  I only applied one coat this time but normally I would apply a base coat of clear or whitening polish to avoid staining my nails.  A second coat of colour and top coat of clear makes makes ensures ultimate gloss and good durability.  Nails Inc. polishes are pretty chip resistant.  

Kat Copies: Benefit Dallas

I first started using Benefit's Dallas powder when it featured in the limited edition Powderpop! box which came out last year.  I'd always avoided it as I thought it was far too dark for me, and always thought it was just a funky coloured bronzer.  For pink undertoned fair skin, it's actually a great warming natural cheek colour.  Sometimes I contour with it.  But at £23.50 a go I was determined to find an alternative...

The original

Here is NYC's Cheek Glow in Riverside Rose, £2.99:

The packaging may not be as cute as Benefit's but it does the job!

Benefit left, NYC right.  Riverside Rose is slightly paler.

Riverside Rose doesn't show up well on the arm swatch, so you can check it out on my cheeks below.  I find that dallas can be a bit too crumbly and it's very easy to overdo the colour.  Riverside Rose can be layered on the skin to achieve the desired effect.

NYC Riverside Rose on the left, Benefit Dallas on the right

I piled both products onto my cheeks so that they would show up in the photo.  In real life Dallas can look a bit too much if you don't use a very light hand.  To get the best effect from Riverside Rose you need a stiff brush and a couple of applications.

You can find the NYC range in some larger Superdrug stores or on their website.  If you're in London try the ones in Queensway, Oxford Street, Tottenham Court Road or Kensington High Street.

FOTN

Since I curled my hair I kept my make up pretty low-key last night.  Well it looks quite plain in the photo but as you'll see I used a shed-load of products!

I used: 

Avon Magix Face Perfector: This was a great discovery.  I love L'Oreal Studio Secrets primer - Polyfilla for wrinkles and pores - but I don't like to use it all the time as it's quite heavy.  Avon's is just a step down in thickness and gives me the perfect canvas.

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear Foundation in Vanilla 1 (Oil free & SPF 20): This is one of my favourite foundations and it deserves a review of it's own soon...

Benefit Erase Paste in No.1 Fair: It conceals everything but can look cakey under your eyes.  Not a good idea if you have significant under-eye wrinkles as it settles into them.  I took it up over my lid to act as an eye shadow primer and even out the skin tone there too. However I like it for a night out as it stays put.

N.Y.C Colour Wheel Mosiac Face Powder in All Over Bronze Glow: I have this in place of their Soft Skin Bronzer in Sunny which I hear is great for fair skin.  It's too dark to use as a bronzer but great for a contour as it's completely matte.  I used my Ruby & Millie Enhance Brush 10 MM (in photo) to make the contour and then buff away any harsh edges with a larger brush.

Prestige Skin Loving Minerals Sunbaked Mineral Bronzing Powder in 03 Pure Shimmer: Now there's a mouthful! I don't know why they call this a bronzer as it's purely a highlighting powder.   You'd look like a disco ball if you put this all over your face, but it's perfect as a cheekbone and under eyebrow highlight.  It's been compared to MAC's Soft & Gentle MSF, but it is a shade lighter.  I've been using my for almost a year and haven't made a dent in it!

MAC MSF in Light Flush: This is quickly becoming one of my favourite finishing face powders as it gives me a lovely light glow.  Traditional bronzers can look orange or dirty one me.  It is iridescent, but it gives me more of a gleam than a shine.

MAC Sheertone Blush in Cowgirl: I wouldn't have bought this colour in the shop but I picked it up (new!) from a stall on Portobello Market for £8.  It's matte and I like it for a very pink cheek.

e.l.f High Definition Powder: This has been compared to MUFE's HD powder which I haven't tried yet.  I use it as a final dusting to set my look and give me a soft focus finish.  You need to go easy with it though or you'll look white and powdery in photos as it reflects light.  e.l.f's version is very finely milled and makes your skin feel so smooth.  I'm not keen on the packaging however as I get covered in it when opening...

Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in Skinny Jeans: This was another Portobello Market find.  I got it new in the box for £5 and I love it as a base when I'm doing a darker eye look.  I darkened up the crease with my MUA e/s in Shade 12 which actually has a russet undertone when applied to the skin, despite having an ever so teal sheen in the pan.  As a highlight I used my new firm favourite MUA e/s in Shade 1.  Normally I use a whole palette of different colours but as I curled my hair I didn't want to look like a total drag queen!

The Body Shop 11 Eye Definer in Vibrant Emerald: I got this as a freebie with InStyle and am impressed that it glides on easily enough without dragging the skin around my eyes too much.  It's not great for doing your top lid but I popped it under my lower lashes to emphasise my eye colour.

MAC Technakohl Liner in Graphblack: I applied this to my upper and lower waterlines.

Revlon ColourStay Liquid Liner in Blackest Black: I like this for making a retro flick.

MUFE Aqua Smoky Lash Waterproof Extra Black Mascara: I used to dream about this mascara until I got my hands on it on a trip to Florence last June (yes, yes, I know I should have thrown it away in 3 months).  Of all my mascaras it makes the biggest impact on my lashes but I shouldn't have got the waterproof version as it's a nightmare to remove.  However w/p mascaras do hold a curl better.

Maybelline Colour Sensational Lipstick in 112 Ambre Rose: This is my favourite shade of pink lipstick.  However it can be drying, but this makes it last longer.  All you need is a bit of gloss over the top.  A good one is...

Rimmel London's Stay Glossy Up to 6 Hours Last + Shine Lipgloss: this shade doesn't have a name but you can see the colour in the photo - beautiful.  It is extremely glossy but doesn't last anywhere near 6 hours!


And here they all are: