What is not to love about Summer?
My hair gets lighter, my skin gets darker, and the benefits of Vitamin D (also known as the “sunshine vitamin”) are endless. Not to mention that all the best songs are ones made about Summer (in my opinion 😉 ! It is just the happiest time of year!
I am a lover of all things gold, bronze, copper, and anything in between, which is why you can only imagine how I squealed with joy when I laid my eyes on the Clarins Summer 2017 collection! #HeartEyesEmoji
The inspiration for the Clarins Summer 2017 look is “A summer in the tropics”, and my goodness, does it take me there! We have had a couple sunny days thrown in between the clouds the past couple weeks, not enough for my liking, but I have brought summer in already with these gorgeous, bright and sunny orange beauties. The botanical motifs imprinted on the cases of the range make me crave a tropical experience, right here, right now! #TakeMeBackToBali (I am such a brat! I do live in sunny, beach-town Ballito!)
My favorite item of the collection has got to be the Bronzing and Blush Compact. The packaging is beautiful, of course, and then you open it up to three matte shades, and an iridescent coral blush shade. Just gorgeous. They work together beautifully to warm the complexion, and are arranged in the form of a setting sun for easy application.
I love contouring, and this compact has just been such a time saver because I can contour with the darkest shade, blend and then blush – All-In-One !! Yay for time-saving for this mama!
- Darkest shade under cheek bone
- Blend all 3 matte shades for blending over cheek bone
- Blush on cheeks with the peachy coral
- Darkest shade under jaw, either side of forehead and either side of my nose
An an even greater gift to the tired mama: the soft focus pigments combined with pearls help to visibly minimize wrinkles and imperfections through an optical effect, giving a luminous and radiant complexion. It also forms a film on the skin surface which limits evaporation of moisture and helps protect the skin from dehydration. AH-Mazing! It really does leave my skin feeling supple and comfortable.
I learnt about the Clarins anti-pollution complex which, through using extracts if white tea and nipplewort in the formulation, it helps defend the skin against harmful effects of pollution and free radicals which are responsible for premature aging and loss of radiance. A make up product that protects your skin – sounds like perfection to me!
My next fave product has got to be the Waterproof Eye Pencils. The shades of both the gold and the copper are lovely, and they really do make my eyes POP! The pencils have a light and creamy texture, allowing the tip to glide beautifully over the eyelid.
- I apply the gold (my fave) in a line above my black liquid liner
- I take the pencil around the inner corner of my eyes (slightly thicker and blend this with the rubber end of the pencil
- I run a line under my bottom eyelashes
Summer brings with it the humidity (especially in Durbs), sweat and of course swimming! So the fact that these babies are waterproof is music to my ears. Clarins claims that these waterproof and long-lasting pencils ensure you can take a dip in the pool without a second thought about your radiant eyes. I am yet to try that out!
I have to be honest and tell you that my 4-Colour Eye Shadow Palette remains untouched! That is partly because it looks almost too beautiful to ruin with brush strokes, but more because the one thing that intimidates me the most about make-up has got to be eye shadow! I don’t know why, I have just always felt that I suit the more natural look, and honestly I am just scared of looking “overdone”. I do, however, have a wedding to attend this weekend, and so I am going to attempt using the palette to give my make up a more intense look, and I am excited about it! I feel much more confident after watching the gorgeous Bailey Schneider‘s video tutorial on creating the perfect sun kissed, radiant and eye-catching look. You can watch that here: http://vanillablonde.co.za/clarins-summer-2017-sun-kissed-look/
Stay tuned to my Instagram to see if I manage to pull off the look half as well as Bailey does: Shan Fourie | @These3CallMeMommy
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