[LookBook] Oct'13... Studio

I know, I know. We're well into November and  we've only JUST posted October's LookBook's content. Our excuse? I could assure you though, we both have legit reasons; we're both equally busy as heck with uni/college work! Fortunately, we found an opportunity last month when one of Matthew's assignments was to produce two low-key and two hi-key studio images. 

The outfits I have choosen were simple, but mostly because I wasn't entirely sure what my photographer wanted because he changed his ideas a lot- men! In the end, I just took whatever the heck I felt that would meet the middle. Basically, I picked items that would contrast the background. 

We were especially impressed with how well the butterfly camisole dress showed up in the white background- the colours on the butterfly print played as a good accent to the photo as a whole.

For the black background, the idea was to give a ghost-like mood, with a lot of desaturation to the original photo- this is a very Matt-thing, rather different from how I would approach my own photos when editing. 

The outfit for this background coincidently reminded me of the painting "The Black Mirror" by William Nicholson, that I have been studying for my project in uni.... but all the same really, its all about contrast for us. We also played with my new hat and using it to create some shadowed effect. 

I did indeed retouched my skin in all these photos because I can get quite self-concious about how my skin looks, especially when I haven't been having any good-skin-days lately due to lack of sleep, a very poor diet and lots of stress (and mental breakdowns- har har). More on that later in another post of my new skin-care routine. Regardless, the original photos are (always) on Matt's page.

Look 1:

 

Camisole dress- Topshop

Cut-Out boots- New Look

Look 2:

Dress- H&M

Hat - H&M

Necklace- Dior

Bracelet- Tiffany&Co

Botanical!

At the beginning of this summer, I visited the Botanic Gardens in my hometown Edinburgh (of course). The purpose wasn't to look at pretty plants, but I was helping a friend with his photography course, obviously I was asked to be his model for the day. Because he was working with black and white film, I was requested to wear something with pattern and texture so that it comes off better. 

Luckily, the weather god was being good to us and it was sunny with warm temperatures (I sound like a forecaster haha). 

I haven't visited the Botanic Gardens probably since I was still in junior school! It was refreshing to go again, and it made me feel really relaxed again, especially this was at the time I had just finished and handed in all my assignments. 

So what did I wear on the day? 

Blazer from River Island

Romper from River Island

Shoes from H&M

Hat from H&M

Sunglasses from H&M

I always feel that, no matter what, I need to feel comfortable in my clothing wherever I am, so I went for a floral romper- easy, one piece, no fuss. Then a blazer in case it got chilly (living in Scotland, you never know, next thing you know it could be torrential rain - luckily that didn't happen).

I'm also so in love with the strap heels. These are very "on-trend" this summer after seeing them appear on a lot of fashion blogs. 

I do cringe at how I had a wee bump in this photo-haha! >< But whatever, I wasn't naturally model-made, just merely helping a friend. 

Ps. It's funny, because I will be at the Botanic Gardens for a wedding just as this post is schedule to go live. Looking forward to being the bride's MUA of the day. 

DISCLAIMER: All images were taken by Matthew Chan (but edited by myself). Permission was permitted to use these images on this blog =]

Haul 28/08/12

Just a quick post on what I bought today. I'm down with a bad cold and thought shopping was so much better than staying in the sick-bed all day.

Clothes:

Coral Knit £17.99 H&M

Bodycon dress £14.99 H&M*

Jewellery:

Black chucky gem droplet necklace £8.99 New Look

Charm Necklace £5.99 New Look*

*Buy one get one free on jewellery in New Look =D

And the follow are jewellery pieces I bought at Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair last Sunday...

 

Happy Shopping! haha! 

Review: Benefit's Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation

First of all, I was told by a few people said that this was good for oily skin. What a lie. But to be fair, I wouldn't know for sure if I hadn't tried it for myself.

I've been using this foundation for a week now and have been wearing through different sort of occasions depending what was happening during the week of course! Some days I wear it with a finishing powder some days just pressed powder.

The first thing I noticed about this foundation is that it gives a rather dewy complexion to the skin. I immediately thought "this is so not for oily skin!" because as much as how nice the dewy effect looks, if you have oily skin, your face will just become more and more shiny quicker. Nevertheless, I still wanted to see how long it will last until my face gets really shiny.

FACE BEFORE FOUNDATION WAS APPLIED 

So to start with, I had a few blemishes around my face (the most obvious one being on top of my lip) and redness around the nose area and the bit between my brows (the daylight meant the camera couldn't capture the redness but its there).

FACE AFTER FOUNDATION IS APPLIED

The coverage for this foundation is light - medium, but I felt that it was build-able. In fact, I found that since I normally use my fingers to apply, I decided to switch to using a flat-top brush and that gave more coverage with fewer layers.

On a hot day, the shine comes through quicker, maybe 4hours? and then I would feel I need to use oil blotting papers. On cold dry days, it lasts longer, perhaps a maximum of 8hours for me personally. I have mix feelings about this foundation partly because I do love the shade, it does feel hydrating, it's not heavy, has SPF25 and oil-free (this was probably the bit that was misleading some people) but I was rather gutted to notice instantly that my face wasn't going to stay matte. 

However, I will still keep using this foundation because I discovered that by using a finishing powder or blotting powder the foundation will stay longer so its the end of the world with this product -just invest in a really good finishing powder instead (and because its £24.50 non-refundable.....I am forced to keep it anyway).

My shade is Champagne which when blended, matches my skin very well

Also just to note: the liquid comes out more on the watery/thinner side than I thought, which is why it gives only light-medium coverage.

Also the only reason I'm looking for a foundation/base for oily skin is because all of a sudden my skin decided to lean more to the oily side, I'm not sure if its because of the change in weather or the act of my hormones. 

Next I am going to try Maybelline's SuperStay 24hr foundation. If you have any review/make-up look requests then feel free to leave a comment below OR you can follow me on my Twitter account @SoapyC and I will reply you there. =]

OOTD: Vintage Maxi Dress

Just a quick post on my outfit of the day:

I was at a vintage fair yesterday and this dress (out of only 3 garments I bought) was my best buy! £5 and the pattern and fit was perfect. I thought there maybe some damage to the hem or armhole etc because I found a few dresses that were damaged, but this was one was still intact like new.
To accessorize, I wrapped a belt (H&M) around my waist to accentuate my body's silhouette and a neck/collar jewellery piece (also from H&M) that I thought would complete the whole outfit. =]

OOTD: Cake Date

Recently amongst the Edinburgh community (that I know of) there has been a rave about Patisserie Valerie opened in town. Of course I could not help but drag my lovely friend to the place and indulged on a piece of gateau each (and an excuse to have a girl date).
On this occassion, I finally wore my top I got a few weeks ago but never had a chance to wear it (had you lived in Edinburgh and knew the weather you'd understand). I bought it obviously because of its long tail at the back which floats romantically about as you walk through the breeze (I was sort of worried a passer-by may grab my tail haha). Had the weather been even warmer I would have worn shorts but I teamed it up with leggings instead and a cropped denim jacket to keep warm, keeping the look casual with a hint of making a fashion statement.
And the cake? It was a chocolate and custard layered cake that tasted just right. I'm really not a fan of desserts that makes you feel sickly after.
So are you a fan of cakes? If so what kind?

Top- H&M
Denim jacket- Primark
Leggings- Urban Outfitters
Necklace- New Look
Wedges- New Look
Hat- H&M

OOTD 18/06/12

So it has been a while since I have last posted and I will admit that I got lazy as soon as summer holidays started.
Here is a look at my outfit for today.
It was a rather sunny outside and temperatures were mild (you can not ask for better when you live in Scotland). I took this opportunity and decided to divert myself away from my usual leggings fancy and wore a skirt instead.
I rarely wear skirts (unless it's a nightout), but eversince I've entered fashion school, I believe I've become a little more confident in them.
I picked up this pretty hi-low skirt when shopping with my friends. At first I was reluctant in purchasing it but as most friends would do; they convinced me to!
Teaming a top with this skirt was a headache for me as I couldn't decide whether to wear a loose-fit t-shirt or a lace top or a cropped jumper! They all matched but none felt right to me so I ended with a bodycon-fit top (its actually a dress but works as a top when you -obviously- tuck it into the skirt).
Since I was just running some errands (and foolishly went shopping again) I wore flats and carried my beloved French Connection bag which I believe I have shown you previously.
Oh and on my way driving home (with my window down because it was so hot in the car) a VERY nasty bug decided to land on my skirt. Needless to say I had freaked out big time(!) and the car in front must've thought I was going mental!

Skirt- Miso (Republic)
Bodycon- H&M
Bag- French Connection
Necklace- Topshop
Pumps- Topshop
Bracelet- Tiffany & Co