Black Girl Issues: Lipstick

Anyone who knows me personally or even knows my twitter name (@redlipstickchic), is sure of one fact, that I'm a lipstick whore. If there is a day where I'm not seen without lipstick its probably because I'm either depressed or woke up having an ugly day and thought that there was no way it could get any better.

But since on most days I view myself as an average looking girl, most days you'll see me in a variety of shades and brands. However, what kind of upsets me (a bit extreme I know) is that I don't really see many black girls wearing lipstick. I don't really know the particular reasons for this. Is it because we feel most shades won't suit us? Or just because we prefer to focus on other facial areas, like eyes? I've noticed a HUGE rise in the use of fake eyelashes in the past couple of years, including myself.

And while I love great eye makeup, what I really think has the ability of shifting an outfit from standard to 'a look', what really makes your face 'pop' is a good shade of lipstick. So I'm just going to talk you guys through a couple of looks and you can decide if any of them will work for you. :)

First up is THE RED LIPSTICK...it can really fit into any look you're going for:

The 'classic, I just adoreeeee Audrey Hepburn' girl.

The 'edgy, vintage denim hotpants, I'm so American in my Lakers jersey' girl

The 'I just want people to look at my face' look.

So here I'm wearing Collection 2000: Colour Extreme. The shade is 'Firecracker'. What I love about this lipstick is that its not too bright, and not too shimmery. Please, please, please stay away from lipsticks with 'shimmer' and 'crystals' and all that other tacky shit. Its moisturising and even stays on after I've pigged out Starbucks...which is an expensive and unhealthy habit of its own. I just think it brightens up my face and love that it contrasts with the green of my dress. The dress is quite matronly (no cleavage on show), so it definitely needed something to take it to the next level.

I would say that the lighter the skin tone the more extreme you can go with your shade of red. A shade like this>>>>>>>

Collection 2000: Lasting Colour Lipstick in 'Cherry Bomb'

 If you have a darker skintone then wear reds with darker undertones, something veering towards brick-red, something like this>>>>>>>

This is Collection 2000: Lasting Colour Lipstick in 'Queen of Hearts'

Next up is my next favourite shade to wear: pink! I'm not really a HUGE girly girl, but pink is just as attention grabbing as red except that its younger, and flirty. It kind of shows more risk taking if your shade is bright and bold.

Here I'm wearing MAC in 'Girl About Town' but my other favourite is Revlon's Moisture Rich Lipstick in Fuchsia  The trick for black girls and pink lipstick is to stay away from pastels, on most shades it just doesn't work. And yes I've found out the hard way. Stay with mid to hot pinks and you'll be just fine. Once again try and get a lipstick which is either matte or moisture rich. NO GLOSS AND NO SHIMMER. You want to look edgy rather than barbie gone wrong.

Last but not least is purple. Its not a very popular shade and it can take a lot of experimentation to get it right. One day I decided I was going to buy this shade...

And its pretty safe to say I have never left the house with it on. If you're braver than me you can give it a go but I pretty much advise against it. Instead, its better to go for deep purples like this:

When I first put it on, it was way too dark, I almost looked like an extra from a vampire film. So I mixed it with vaseline in order to make it sheer; more like a lipgloss than a lipstick. It made it easier to wear and I felt more 'dark and edgy' than 'blood sucker'. The greatest thing about wearing dark shades of purple is that it matches nearly every black skin tone. Just wear with a thin line of black liquid eyeliner, and around 3 layers of  mascara.

*Two tips you need to remember or else:

• Never wear bright lipsticks with over the top eyeshadow, neither with blusher. Eyeliner on the eyes and bronzer on the cheeks. 
• Make sure you invest in a lipbrush when applying your lipstick. Nothing worse than badly applied red lipstick. (Again, trust me I've learnt the hard way). It also allows to to really define your cupids bow; the middle of the top of your lips, (the pointy bits lol) 

Hope this helps even a little bit!

Feel free to comment with any questions etc

Jadeybaby xXx

Get Beyonce's look at Glastonbury.

Just a quick post to say that if anyone was inspired by Beyonce's look at Glastonbury then never fear because French Connection also has something which will make you look all gold and sequined.

Ok, so its £165 and has been out a while but it does look better in a flesh, the colour of the gold is richer and deeper. (Do any of you remember the black version that was out last year? I don't know which I prefer)

Anyways, because this is such an 'in your face, look at me I'm a glamourous attention whore' kind of dress...I suggest you keep it edgy. No waist belt like Beyonce. Instead just get a pair of black ankle boots like hers, without the decoration. Or even chunky wedges like these from Topshop:

Then just have a slicked back ponytail, or if like me you have a weave and can't do that then either tie it back or have it dead straight, paired with huge amounts of black eyeliner, bronzed cheeks and nude lips.

To be honest I prefer this dress to what Beyonce was wearing, simply because it covers your thighs. And as we all know, not many of us have thighs like Mrs Carter.

Jade x 

Doing it like a dude...

Me and Mitra both take our inspiration for what we wear from both sexes...so every week we're going to feature someone on the blog who's style we love, someone we'd want to strip naked...not in a sexual way. More like I want your clothes so I'm going to take them and run kind of way. *no joke*

This week our style love is the one and only David. The pictures we post below will hopefully demonstrate to you why we think he's just the bestest (yes I know that isn't a word).

Introducing David!!! The fashion and singer extraordinaire...

This look I would call...Mod meets Sweden meets Vintage. Errr yeah, obviously thats a new trend...watch this space LOL

And obviously you'll want to know where everything is from so...

• T-shirt from Zara
• Skinny Jeans from Topman
• Brogues are Vintage from Rokit
• Bracelet from Aldo
• Grey Shirt with red piping is Vintage from Beyond Retro
• Shoulder Broach from Asos

Since a few of these items are vintage, the look can't really be copied but it can be recreated. Here are the websites you may want/need if you wanted to purchase any of the non-vintage items. 

Zara.com

Topman.com

Rokit.co.uk

Aldoshoes.com

Beyondretro.com

Asos.com

Feel free to comment and get a discussion going! Let us know if you're loving the look or not. (you better be lol)

And if you want to be featured on the blog email us a pic at poisonedcupid@hotmail.co.uk

Jade xXx

Kim Kardashian Inspired Look!

So I'm totally in love with Kim Kardashian, and I don't think I'm the only one.

Many of us girls love to have hair as long as hers, and eyebrows as thick as hers, and to look stunning just like her.  Basically we just wanna be her, no one can say she's not hot, cause that would really be hating, SHE IS AMAZING I HATE HER.

Anyway, for all you Kim wannabe's out there (this includes me) here is Huda, she is amazing when it comes to make up and hair, almost any make up and hair style you want, she can teach you! She inspires me so much, and she kinda resembles Kim don't you think? I LOVE HUDA!

Here's the video to how you can do your make up just like Kim's! Check Huda out for plenty more hair and beauty tips! And also keep up to date with our blog for the latest fashion and beauty trends and tips ;)

Laters Potaters! 

Mitra xxx

Breasts: the joy and the pain

So everyone kinda knows I have GG boobs and yeah people (mostly girls) love to grab em, squeeze em, sleep on em and generally perve over them.

HOWEVER...

Most people just don't get the trauma it causes me!

Just so you know...these are my boobs>>>>>

 

Now let me list the troubles they cause me...

• Back pain
• I can't shop for bras at La Senza and Ann Summers or all those 'sexy' shops
• I can't shop for cheap bras at places like Primark, H&M and New Look
• They're just so damn heavy...like imagine carrying two bags of sugar on your chest. SERIOUSLY.

And I haven't even started on the problems it causes when buying clothes. Backless dress? NO. Off the shoulder? MAYBE. Bralet tops? ARE YOU FUCKING CRAZY?! They make the cup sizes soooo small. Once I even bought a size 18, just to give my boobs a comfortable home, and still they were squashed like doughnuts at the bottom of a packed Sainsbury's bag. Tops need to be bought a size bigger, and even then they stretch over.

Nearly everything I buy causes over-spilling cleavage...and people just assume I'm a slut. No, its because there's nowhere else for them to hide.

So my curse is being confined to Bras from Bravissimo. Erm but who can really afford bras at £30 a pop. This is why bras only get bought when mummy is paying LOL. I even went to SportsDirect for a sports bra and found out that they only went up to a C cup size. Yet, I still managed to squeeze myself in there.

To be honest, the best piece of advice I could give you big boobed girlies is to buy a sports bra...no matter what the size. your back will love it and you'll avoid the dreaded '4 boobs' situation.

And yes, of this, we're all guilty.

(If I could marry this I would, life saver)

Heels Heels, HEELS!

Kitten Heels. WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY??!! Lock em up and throw away the key! Matter of fact burn the key so it melts and is never found! I despise the silly little things. I've had this conversation with quite a few people now, and I'm not shocked to hear they all agree, you may as well wear flats for almighty heel sake!

And then we have the legendary POINTY kitten heels lol I don't even know which one I hate more. This should so be in my love and hate article! But I thought I'd add this in today's fashion tip of not being allowed to wear patent heels with outfits, as they do make the over all look really tacky. I've got photos to prove! HAHA!

 It's a pointy patent kitten heel! AHHHHHH!!!

So I wake up at 7:45am, and have to be at work for 9am...S*** FML!!
I quickly picked out my outfit and sorted myself before I had to rush out at 8:20am

PROBLEM!!!

OK, so yeah I wear heels like everyday, and people assume I have way too many shoes...I actually don't, and I realized that today! I actually had no idea what pair of heels to wear with my outfit. When I was trying them all on to see which best fitted my outfit, I realized how much I hate patent heels and do not know why I even own a pair???
They are being sold everywhere! I've taken photos of what I wore today with two different pairs of heels, one obviously being the patent pair, look at the difference guys!




( yeah soz, had to cut the face out :P)

This is with the patent heels (horrid)

And this is the pair I went for. :)
















Feel free to comment guys!...even if it's about the outfit! :D

Mitra xxx

VERSACE does HnM

So, Donatella has just finished a catwalk show in Milan of her new menswear range, which she also has mentioned will be hitting the high street through HnM with the rest of the collection...REALLY?? WHY?? Honestly I think that's such a big fat no no! Yeah its amazing for the brand, because they haven't had much recognition for a while. Yeah many designers have worked with HnM before such as; Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney, Madonna, Roberto Carvalli, Comme De Garcons, Matthew Williamson, Jimmy Choo.. and the list goes on.
(But I just personally have a thing against Versace being sold in HnM.)


So by having the one and only Gaga to be the promoter, well Donatella, you wont really be needing to hit HnM stores then! lol


Versace hitting the high street, at possibly high street prices (I mean it is only HnM :/) If I wanna buy Versace then by all means I shall go to the designer store and by it direct, so I know I have myself something so real and unique, that is the hole purpose of these amazing REAL brands, am I not right? (not that I can afford it lol). Its like walking into Primark and buying French Connection, I mean no offense to both Primark and French Connection, but you guys get my jizzle? 


I'm really annoyed about this, but knowing what people are like, they will go crazy about this and probably camp outside any HnM store that will be selling Versace, just because its a high street store selling DESIGNER. 


Anyways, enough about what I think, what do you guys say about this??!


Mitra xxx

Asos sale is on biatches!

Ok so usually when ASOS spam my email throughout the day I tend to ignore it, mainly because I'm always broke like a joke. However since my mother dearest has given me some money to buy holiday clothes for Florida (don't jealous me lol), I actually paid attention to their spam this morning...announcing that their summer sale has now started. Cue hyperventilation.

So I just wanted to share my purchases with you guys. Managed to get my order down to £54...from £208, and officially burnt out all my brain cells doing it. Bare in mind that these are all for holiday so I won't actually be walking around Tottenham with my ass cheeks hanging out lol.

So first of all are these wedges which I found for £20. And yeah they're nothing spectacular but they are a great pair of daytime heels which I'll actually be able to walk in for more than an hour. And because they're khaki, they'll pretty much go with everything I own.

Next up were two pairs of jersey culottes. The first pair was £9 while the other was £10. I think I decided to go with jersey simply because they stretch as you eat. And I bloody love to eat. Also I'm trying to experiment with prints, rather than always wearing denim or black on the bottom.

Lastly, I got a pair of white palazzo trousers for £15. Easy, Breezy, Beautiful, Covergirl. I don't know why I just said that, but its what they make me think of. They're just really really easy to wear, and hopefully I won't need to iron them. 

I recommend you all get online before all the popular sizes run out. Happy shopping! 

Jade's Loves and Hates of the week...

So basically every Monday at least one of us will be doing our loves and hates of the week. Because of my cynical and pessimistic nature I'd prefer to just do my hates of the week. But here I go trying to be the positive girl that everyone tells me I should be lol.

Loves:

1. Beyonce's new album titled '4'. Its not your typical Beyonce album; less of the weave slinging in the club and more 'I just broke up with my boyfriend, can I please crawl up and die now?'

My favourite tracks from it at the moment would have to be: 'I Miss You', 'I Care', Party and 'Countdown'. Listen to 'Countdown' if you want to hear a vocal trick Beyonce does that you will NEVER be able to imitate.

• I've recently rediscovered my love of Converses, and I'm planning to get a pair of red ones for my holiday asap. However, while Office is selling them for £40 (were they always that expensive?), I'll be trawling for deals on ebay. Because unless your parents are buying them you should never spend more than £30 on Converses.  

• Palazzo trousers are like the perfect curvygirl/skinnygirl trousers. Its makes everyone look good (trust me I'm a size 14). Except if you bigger stay away from the highwaisted ones, because rather than holding you in it kinda just makes your stomach look bigger than it really is. I got a pair from River Island...back when I had my discount. The retail price was £34.99 and the legs are extremely wide, giving you the illusion that your wearing a maxi skirt. The cream and floral print is perfect for a holiday, because lets face it Palazzo's should really only be worn in sunny weather. And have you looked out the window lately? The trousers below are £35 from River Island. If your insistent on following the 70s trend with at least one piece then these are for you. They are less extreme and are more likely to be worn in all weather and all occasions.

• My hates of the week...

• Starting with Frank Ocean: He really pissed me off this week with his little rant against Chris Brown. For those that don't know, Brown paid Ocean a compliment, saying that he reminded him of a young James Fauntleroy. Yet Frank Ocean decided to throw it back in his face, replying that Brown reminded him of a young Ike Turner. If you don't get it then Google it lovers. Don't get me wrong, I love Frank Ocean but...who the hell do you think you are?! My reaction to his insult below. As you can tell I was PISSED:

• Second hate of the week has to be the rise in Primark's prices. I went there today say a tassled waistcoat worth £2 priced at £6. Needless to say I walked straight out.

• Erm another hate? Shops not making clothes big enough for my GG breasts. Pet bloody hate.

                   

My ‘Fashion’ trip to Norwich

Every day I had a new outfit planned. I was ecstatic about my week away to see my dearest Jade for her 21^st…

The day has arrived and I’ve just realized my suitcase is way too small, and I've packed way too many outfits, obviously this includes heels, jewelry, accessories and make up of course!

And the bag that all my shoes in has just torn! Where’s my pink suitcase?!

I've literally just shoved everything in there and it’s time to move now!

First night out in Norwich LOLA LO’s here we come!

 I've gone for the French ‘Chic’ meets Japanese school girl look!  I have to say this French ‘Chic’ look has been inspired to me mostly by Cheryl Cole, I think she’s a complete pro at it.

•  Blue basic long t-shirt (tucked in the skirt)
•  Black tube skirt
• Black knee high socks
• Black suede lace up stilettos
• Of course not to forget the geek frames!

A great nerdy look but also very chic!

The Big Party!

Days and days of thinking of what to wear has finally come to an end, and I have gone for the 70’s look,

·         High waisted wide leg polka dot trousers

·         Black bandeau

·         Big hair

·         Smokey eyes

·         Huge bangles, long chunky necklace

·         The most dangerous heels I’ve ever rested my feet in!

The amount of compliments I got that night! Unbelievable, I felt like a complete 70’s chick!  

The excitement of having a chance to wear whatever got the better of me, (that’s why I overloaded my suitcase and had to drag a big one, and suffered with muscle pain the next day).
Working at New Look has got me buying only New Look clothes, and unfortunately that’s all we’re allowed to wear at work, so the minute I get a chance to wear whatever I want, I go crazy…LITERALLY!

I’ll have pictures of these outfits very soon! So you guys can rock it yourselves!

Mitra xxx

The Joys of Interning.

So, since the whole world and her goldfish have been asking me about my new internship, I’ve decided to write an exposé about the shocking world of fashion and its terrible treatment of its interns. Except I won’t be, since there’s nothing slightly shocking about the world of interning. However, I am learning that it is definitely more than ‘just getting the coffee’s in.

I’ll start from the beginning. For those that don’t know, my name is Jade. Also known as Jadeybaby along with a host of other nicknames which are infinitely more interesting that ‘Jade’. And since Wednesday I’ve been interning at the New Look Press Office just off Oxford St. The night before, a host of thoughts began stamping their way through my already overly crowded brain. The most overbearing being the fear of not being pretty or skinny enough to work in fashion; especially when I was certain to be surrounded by those ‘types’.  Not to sound cliché, but I was actually surprised to walk in and see smiles, not fake, bitchy smiles but genuine ones.

I don’t want to really go into too much detail about the day to day jobs handed to me such as leafing through newspapers for New Look press coverage or finding image requests for magazines to possibly use, because I would probably bore you with the mundane nature of it all. As an intern your mind is not important, but your body certainly is. Your ability to type, run to Costa, pack boxes, rip open plastic bags and answer the most complicated phone ever invented become the most important things about you. On my first day, I was sure my brain would simply melt from lack of use and leak through my overly pierced ears.

(yes I spent my day ripping open plastic bags from THE Vogue. Made it a little less boring I guess)

However, on Thursday something miraculous was about to take place. The Holy Grail of shopping: The Sample Sale. This particular sample sale was a collection of all the samples the buying department had acquired during the fashion year, and it was their time to unload. So we, the interns – the lucky fashion bitches – had to set up the sample sale, and therefore had first dibs on the clothes. For every girl in the room it could only have been described as a fashion orgasm. So after a long and bloody hard day, I left work at 18:00 laden with three bags of free garments. They don’t pay us in money but they certainly pay us in clothes. Yeah a dream, but also hard to navigate a packed 73 bus on the way home; where you’ve been left standing next to a tramp who smells bad like a piss and sweat cocktail.

For those of you who are thinking about doing an internship in Press/PR I would say go for it. Especially if you are confused about the career path you want to follow. I’ve always been confused about whether fashion was the right path for me; teaching also dominates my passion. And while this internship has shown me that free clothes are nothing to be turned down, it has also proved to me that if I’m going to work in fashion, I need to be my own boss. I need to tell myself what to do. I need to decide my day. After being in university for three years I’ve learnt to be fiercely independent, and it’s not something I can easily turn my back on.

However, keep the free clothes coming and I may just change my mind.

P.S. photographs of my sample sale clothing coming soon. Haven’t decided whether to take photographs of them on my bed or model them for you...watch this space! Lol

Jade x

Mitra Mirlashari

Ridiculous heels. If its not dangerous, Its not worth being worn. Bat my eyelashes and get what I want ;). A neck and fingers adorned with edgy gold and silver, flowing….Art is a way of life..and make up is certainly a girls best friend... Living to be free...if success is in your mind then make it your reality. 

Jade Tucker

A walking contradiction, real heart, real soul, fake hair, fake nails. Inspired by history. Viva La Revolucion! A fetish for trashy bright pink lipstick, quilted Chanel handbags, Reebok high-tops and tattoos, a wannabe black Amy Winehouse. In love with love or the idea of it anyways.