My Favorite Instagram Accounts

Ah, Instagram.  There are things I dislike about it (call me old fashioned, but sticking up a picture of your favorite lipstick does not make you a "blogger" and I really don't think people should be allowed to buy followers or sell exotic animals on there) but there are things that I just LOVE about it. Like Instagram-stalking people! Mainly the following people. Here's a list of the accounts that I Instagram-stalk the most. You're gonna want to follow them!

Kirsten Meet Simon

What happens when two of the most creative people in fashion decide to run an Instagram account together? It's basically just an explosion of amazingness. This fashion power couple makes me want to sell everything I own and travel the world. Although, I would look nowhere near as good as they do when they do it!

Botoxey

Between her amazing wardrobe, adorable German Shepard and insane ability to rock a red lip, Nora is one of my favorites on Instagram. I mean, look at the girl! She's just so cool. The fact that she's one of the sweetest people I've met online just makes me love her more. And by 'love', I mean 'want to kidnap her, steal her wardrobe and force her to teach me how to make my Instagram filters look that awesome'.

Drusilladoesdubai

This lovely lady has been taking the city by storm. The ultimate it-girl, Drusilla has been popping up at Dubai's coolest parties, venues and um, construction sites. Let me know if you spot her around town, I haven't been lucky enough :(

Weeshasworld

It's Weesha's World and we just live in it. Luanne has a kickass wardrobe and three adorable cats. The fact that she has the same sarcastic (some would say evil) sense of humor as I do just makes me love e-stalking her even more. Check out the images of her trip to Istanbul - girlfriend has me checking flights already!

Katiejanehughes

Katie is a stunner, that's for sure. I don't know how this woman manages to look so good when she always seems to be jetting around the world! Her Daily Face pictures have got me itching to try electric blue eyeliner. She is also the Global Color Ambassador for Butter London, so look out for her amazing nail work but be prepared to be very disappointed by your own boring nails.

Yihwahanna

Yi-Hwa admits that she is a little 'Instagram obsessed', but I love it! During the day she works for one of the city's biggest magazines, but during her spare time she blogs about her two loves; food and traveling. Her pictures always look so amazing and they always make me want to shop and eat (sometimes at the same time!)

As you can guess, I spend a fair amount of time on Instagram. You can always follow me (aseyainthedesert) for little snippets of my life, mainly my cat, my makeup and my roller skates!

L'occitane Almond Collection (Limited Edition)

L'occitane Amande Shaping Delight and Amande Foot Care cream

Depending on how you see it, summer can either be the most amazing time of the year, or it can throw you into a deep spiral of self-loathing and depression. Look, unless you happen to look like a Victoria's Secret model, baring lots of skin can be a pretty traumatic experience.

L'occitane is well aware of this and created Amande Shaping Delight to offer a little help. Shaping Delight is a light, gel cream that, according to L'occitane, aims to "visibly refine and reshape the silhouette". It contains almond tree buds to detox, almond extract to firm and a silicium derivative that encourages the body to create more collagen. More almond protein helps to tighten the surface of the skin.

Does it work? To be honest, I haven't measured the results or anything like that. What I do know is that I definitely feel like my skin is tighter and that makes me more confident when it comes to wearing shorter dresses. More than that, I absolutely love the texture of this cream! It's super light and soaks in almost immediately, which is a blessing in this heat! It doesn't feel sticky, but my skin feels softer and looks hydrated. This cream has been my go-to lotion for busy days. I just love how I don't have to worry about making sure I don't have streaks or anything like that. And the light scent doesn't compete with my perfume.

The Foot Care Cream is great, too. What I like about it is that it doesn't have that same tingling, menthol feeling that other foot creams have. It just feels like a really rich moisturizer and it also soaks in nicely, making it perfect for giving your feet a little TLC before you put on those pretty sandals!

*these products are media samples.

Sleek Makeup Lip4 Palettes

I'm gonna be honest with you guys, it is HOT out there! We may managed to put off summer for a couple of weeks, but it's here and it is here with a vengeance.

One of my favorite makeup tips for beating the heat is to wear a bold or bright lip. That way you don't really have to wear much else on your face. And the less makeup you wear, the less you have to worry about melting off. A lot of people have asked me about lipsticks that last all day and don't slip off. Well, I've got your answer today!

Sleek Makeup is famed for it's eye palettes, but they get rave reviews for their lip and face products as well. I've only tried a few of their lipsticks but they all seem to have amazing lasting power and great pigmentation. I was recently sent two of their brand new Lip 4 Palettes to try out, and I've already taken shown them to almost everyone I know.

Sleek makeup Lip4 Lipstick Palettes in Showgirl and Siren

Let's start with Siren. Each shade in this palette has orange tones, making them perfect for summer. The description says that there are matte, satin and gloss shades in here and I love the variety of textures.

Sleek Makeup Lip4 Palette in Siren. Shades clockwise from top left: Love Me, Desire Me, Kiss Me, Miss Me

Shades clockwise from top left: Love Me, Desire Me, Kiss Me, Miss Me

 

Love Me and Kiss Me are my favorites from this palette. Between the matte texture and peachy tone, I found Miss Me to be pretty hard to apply. I'm pretty sure if I used lipliner and did it the right way it would have been a lot easier, though.

Sleek Makeup Lip4 palette in Showgirl. Shades clockwise from top left: Lola, Vegas, Dancer, Jewel

Showgirl is definitely one for the girlie girls! Packed with four different shades of pink in three different textures, there is a pretty pink for everyone.

Clockwise from top left: Lola, Vegas, Dancer, Jewel

I actually really like every shade in this palette, except for Jewel, which is a little too Nicki Minaj for me!

Most of the shades  (apart from the super glossy ones)  wear pretty well. I got a good 6 or 7 hours out of Dancer, and that was even when I was running to events all day. The rest of the matte and satin shades last pretty long as well and I didn't feel the need to touch any of them up. 

The negative thing about these palettes is that I'm worried the glossier lipsticks will melt quickly in the Dubai heat, even if you keep them in your handbag. So just look out for that! Otherwise, I think these palettes are great. They are the perfect size to throw into a clutch and I love the variety of looks you can get from each of them. 

You can order these online at sleekmakeup.com!

*These products were sent to me as press samples

Hairworks Jumeirah Beach Road

If you have bright colored hair, or you want to put something crazy like pink or green in your hair, I've got the perfect salon for you!

I was recently contacted by the lovely staff at Hairworks Jumeirah Beach Road to see if I would like to pop in and check out their brand, spanking new salon. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by their awesome manager Jay who was super excited that I have pink hair (she has pink hair, too!) I was also introduced to head stylist, Zahira, one of their top stylists. Funny coincidence, it turns out that Zahira and I actually went to beauty school together! Talk about a small world :)

The hair stations at Hairworks Jumeirah Beach Road

The salon is gorgeous. It has lots of natural light, which makes the whole place feel really spacious and airy. They also stock full ranges of Kérastase and Redken. Hurray!

The shampoo section is closed off from the rest of the salon, so it feels a little calmer and more relaxing when you are getting your massage

Jay offered to pump up the pink in my hair for me, since it was starting to fade a little bit. She also suggested adding in a little bit of purple, which turned out to be an amazing idea! Then I was treated to the Oleo Relax mask by Kérastase mask that would help smooth my hair and make it softer. The mask was left on my hair and then I was treated to the most amazing scalp massage!

Next, Zahira worked her magic on my hair. She gave me pretty, prom-queen waves that lasted for like three days. If you know me, you know how much I love me some big hair. So let's say I was more than happy about that. 

Pink hair at Hairworks! (Photo borrowed from Jay's Instagram)

Their selection of Redken and Kérastase

The whole team at Hairworks is amazing. They are all really sweet and super talented. And best of all....they stock all sorts of crazy hair colors! I highly recommend them if you are thinking of adding a little oomph to your 'do. Bright colors can easily go wrong, but they know just how to make them work.

Haircuts start at 255AED and color starts at 100AED for just a tint or gloss. Give them a call on (04) 385 4777. You can also check out their Instagram account and Facebook page to check out some of their awesome work.

CND Shellac Summer 2013 Collection

CND Shellac Spring/Summer 2013 Collection: (Left to right) Cake Pop, Azure Wish, Lilac Longing, Limeade (the collection also includes a sheer, shimmery shade called Grapefruit Sparkle)

CND welcomed this summer with a collection of  beautiful pastel Shellac polishes. I was invited to try out the collection at the brand new Tips and Toes Nail Haven in Al Barsha. It was kinda rough at first because I did get lost, but once I got some more directions, it was pretty easy to find. The nail area in the new branch is huge! Although it still looks exactly like the other ones and the service is exactly the same quality as well. They must have a really great branding team!

The giant nail room

Onto the actual Shellac service...I chose to go with the beautiful Lilac Longing. I originally wanted to go with Cake Pop, but when I was told that it was the most popular option I decided to switch it up. I got a full Shellac manicure, which included a short arm massage and full cuticle grooming, and took about an hour. It's been over ten days and my manicure is still going strong! Not a chip in there at all, which is great! I didn't have the greatest experience with my last Shellac manicure, but I am super impressed with this one. I think it's because my nails are in much better shape. They are still peeling, but it's nowhere near as bad as it was last time. Yay!
 

Shellac Lilac Longing

I was all about the neons last summer, but this collection may have changed my mind. What do you guys think? Are you fans of Shellac? Will you be rocking a little pastel polish this summer?

Introducing Sephora's Loyalty Card for The Middle East - Sephora White!

Sephora White Card

It's finally here, you guys! Sephora's loyalty programs in the rest of the world are almost as well-known as the store itself, so it was kind of a bummer that we didn't have anything like that over here. You may remember that we did have a short-lived loyalty card that provided some discounts (If I remember correctly) That card was still nothing compared to the loyalty cards in the US.

But good news! Sephora Middle East has heard our cries and answered them. We now have the Sephora White Card!

How does it work?

You can sign up for the card with any purchase from a Sephora store in the UAE, Saudi, Qatar or Bahrain. So whether you spend 10dhs or 1,000dhs in there, you are eligible for the card.

You will receive 1 point for every 10dhs you spend and when you collect 200 points you get to choose an awesome gift. You will also be upgraded to a Sephora Black Card, which entitles you to a special birthday gift (eee!) as well as invites to special sales (double eee!)

A little more info on the Sephora White card

Just a few of the gifts you can choose from when you reach 200 points

So, yeah! That's pretty exciting! Have any of you signed up for the card yet? If you live outside the Gulf, what kind of benefits do you get with your loyalty card?

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Bark

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Bark

I generally love cream pencils. Or in Bobbi Brown's case, Long-wear Cream Shadow Sticks. I'm pretty much always running late so I like that I can just swipe and blend these on, throw on some mascara and head out the door looking half-way decent.

Bobbi Brown's Shadow Sticks are creamy, but not so creamy that they slide off your lids. I usually get a good 6 hours of wear or so before I take this one off. I find that this blends out really well, almost too well if you are looking for a really rich, deep color.  I usually use my fingers to blend it out (like I said, I'm pretty lazy and I'm always running late!) and have no problems with that. If I have the time, I will use my fluffy brush and that seems to work just as well. 

Bark is described as 'a rich brown'. Which describes it perfectly. While it's not totally matte, there are no shimmer particles in this whatsoever, so it's great for wearing during the day. It's perfect for that daytime smokey look. I also like to layer a shimmery gold shadow on top of it at night to really open up my eyes (Hello, faux candlelight effect!) Anyway, here are some swatches so you can see what the shade looks like.

Bobbi Brown Long Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Bark swiped on (left) and blended out (right)

While they're definitely not cheap at 170Dhs a piece, they will last at least 8 months to a year, even with regular use. And because they are by Bobbi Brown, they come in colors that can actually be worn every day.

Have you used any of these shadowsticks? What do you think?

PS I've been playing around with my swatches, what do you think of the labels?