Samantha Wills Jewellery Designer

While living in Sydney 7 years ago I first met the gorgeous Samantha Wills. We worked together in retail and as I got to know Sam I realised her loved of all things fashion and her talent for making jewellery. She started out selling her pieces in the Bondi markets and got a real taste for business here. She soon knew this was what she wanted to do and at 20 years of age set her sights at making her statement jewellery business a brand. In 2004 she unveiled her first collection at Australia Fashion Week and hasn’t looked back since.

She is now based between Sydney and New York, flying around the world researching materials and using her travels as inspiration for her work. Her pieces have been worn by the likes of Eva Mendes, Drew Barrymore, Pink, Kate Hudson and Rihanna, to name but a few, and has appeared in the Sex & The City 2 film.

So why is Sam an inspiration to me? She knew what she wanted, loved what she did and went for it. She is still the beautiful, lovely, down to earth girl she was when I first met her and still stays true to what she believes in. I love following her journey and seeing how her business and work progresses and I am so happy for her and her success. I still have my first pair of Samantha Wills earrings I bought from her stall 🙂 . I really admire strong business women who go after their dreams and Sam is definitely one of them.

Below is a tiny example of some of her pieces but to read more about Sam, follow her blog and see her full range go to http://www.samanthawills.com.au. Be warned though, you’ll want it all and in my opinion every woman should have at least one piece of Samantha Wills in her jewellery box!

Clare xox

samantha wills

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Happy Holidays!

2011 was a very busy, exciting year for me and I met so many brilliant and lovely people, from photographers, designers, models and of course all the beautiful brides and their families and friends I had the pleasure of working with.

Thank you all so much for your support over the last year and I wish you all a fabulous and safe Christmas and New Year. I’m really looking forward to what 2012 has to bring and all the new experiences that lie ahead!

Clare xox

Seasons Greetings

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Simple Eye Makeup Corrector Pen

I was stocking up for my kit in Boots over the weekend and I came across the Simple Eye Makeup Corrector Pen. Can’t believe I haven’t spotted it before now… must have been shopping with my eye’s closed!

Anyway, I love the Simple products, the cleanser, toner and moisturisers are all great and the eye make-up remover, I think,  is one of the best, I always have it in my kit. It’s cheap, great for all skin types, doesn’t irritate your eye’s and it works. If I’m touching up my own or a clients make-up I usually use it with a Qtip and it removes any mistakes in an instant. However, with the Christmas party season coming up, that means a lot of you will be getting ready on the go, maybe going from the office to the pub or to the Christmas party so you might be re-applying your make-up at the desk so you may not want to lug a bottle and Qtips around with you. If so, this is perfect. It’s small and the nib is brilliant for precision, so if you’re touching up your eyeliner for instance, and make a mistake this will work perfectly.

The downside? It does need to be cleaned after every use to keep it fresh and hygienic so I won’t be giving up my my usual method on a daily basis but it is very handy for those on the run moments when you want convenience.

Clare xox

Simple Eye Makeup Remover

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Liz Earle Skin Tint

It’s no secret really that I’m in LOVE with Liz Earle products and when I heard that she was launching the Liz Earle Skin Tint I was more than excited to say the least. I had heard great reports of it and it was a few weeks after the UK launch that I got mine delivered, all wrapped up beautifully, in their fabulous green packaging :). I’ve been using it now for the last few weeks and I have to say I love it!

Firstly, this isn’t a foundation or a tinted moisturiser. This has more coverage than a tinted moisturiser but less than a foundation and where the last two are just really for evening out your skin tone and don’t really benefit your skin, this Skin Tint can actually help improve your skins condition. It has mineral UV SPF15 and contains vitamin E, borage and avocado which are all really good for your skin. They describe it as “A rich and creamy, yet lightweight formula leaves all skin types looking naturally dewy, even and radiant”, which it certainly does for me. However, if you like your base with more coverage then this probably isn’t a product for you.

My first impression was it was quite rich, with a slightly tacky feel when applied, which I wasn’t mad about. I thought it was going to be too greasy for my skin as I’m quite oily on my T-zone, however it settled really nicely and didn’t feel like I was wearing anything after a while. I did need to use a little powder on top to get ride of some shine but I always have to use powder with my foundation so that wasn’t a big deal for me. It also doesn’t clog your pores or settle in fine lines, which will be a big plus for a lot of us! You also don’t need to use a lot of it so the tube should last quite a long time and it wears really well throughout the day. For someone who only really wears powder mineral make-up during the day, this is great for those days I have a meeting or I’m going out after work.

It comes in 3 shades, which isn’t a lot really but my understanding is that this is just the initial launch and they will be releasing new products over the next year, with possibly more tint shades. The shades are:

Bare 01 – The palest shade, this suits fair, alabaster complexions

Beige 02 – The medium shade, this suits the majority of Caucasian skins.

Beach 03 – The darkest shade, this works well for suntanned, olive-toned and most Asian skin tones.

When you get your foundation, it comes with a sample sachet of all three shades also. They ask you to try them all first to see if the shade you have order is correct for your skin colour which is a great idea. It means then if the one you have ordered is wrong for you you can exchange it no problem. The colour I ordered, Beige 02 was a perfect match for my skin shade so I was very happy with that.

Skin Ttint might not suit everyone, especially very young or oily skin but my mum, who would have more mature skin and finds she needs something more moisturising, loves this and finds it perfect for her skin.

On my last trip into Wilde & Green in Miltown they hadn’t got it in stock yet but I think they’re stocking it from December (you might need to double check that), or you can get it on the website http://ie.lizearle.com/make-up/sheer-skin-tint-spf15.html and it’s €24 for a 40ml tube.

Another Liz Earle product to add to my ‘Love List’ and I’d love to hear what you guys think of it if you do give it a try.

Clare xox

Liz Earle Skin Tint

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MAC Glitter & Ice

I love seeing what goodies MAC launch every Christmas and this years 2011 range does not disappoint.

As some of you will know, I’m a complete package junkie and the packaging on the MAC Glitter & Ice range is gorgeous… it’s white! A complete contrast from their usual black and although they tried something different with the red Wonder Woman range, which I didn’t really like, I LOVE the white. It’s crisp and clean and so festive. However, if you’re make-up bag is a little messy with loose make-up and dirty brushes they may not stay white for long so watch out!

All the pieces, bar the lashes, are limited editions so if any of the items are on your Christmas list then get them fast as they normally sell out pretty fast and they only get in a limited amount.

The range includes:

6 Mineralize Eye Shadows – Fresh Ice, Snow Season, Hold that Pose!, Frozen Blue, Shimmermint and Winterized

3 Paint Pots – Let’s Skate!, Morning Frost and For Effect

6 Technakohl Eye Liners – Silver Skates, Going for Gold, Seasonally Spicy, Fancy Moves, Practice Makes Perfect and Smooth Manoeuvre

Opulash Mascara in Black

2 beauty powders – Snowglobe and How Beautiful

6 Dazzleglass lipglosses –  Pleasure Principle, Dressed to Dazzle, Glitter and Ice, She-zam, Love Alert and Spanking Rich

6 Lipsticks – Whirls and Twirls, Double Spin, Soft Sable, Eloquent Air, Such Flare and What Joy!

3 Nail Lacquers – Unconditionally Fabulous, Get Noticed! and Festive Finery

Personally I can’t wait to try the lipsticks, LOVE them all, especially the purple one, What Joy!

Clare xox

MAC Glitter & Ice

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