Aamina Sheikh and Ayyan Ali model for L'Oreal Photoshoot

I came across this photoshoot done for the make-up brand L'Oreal, by prominent Pakistani models Aamina Sheikh and Ayyan Ali recently, and thought it was an interesting shoot in terms of trying out various colours and looks on the models. Although not all the looks were practical (such as the luminous and glittery eyeshadowed look!), it's still an interesting way to use colour and make-up, and both models look beautiful.

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I'm not sure all of these looks appeal to me, simply because some of them are a little dramatic or unpractical to use in everyday make up. I do like the use of jewellery and accessory though, and the use of colour in these images are certainly something which are well put together. I love the fact that well-known brands such as L'Oreal are using models from Pakistan to promote their brand, and certainly I am seeing more and more ambassadors from the East in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh being used more often to promote brands like this. In this case, I think Aamna Sheikh and Ayyan Ali both look beautiful and elegant - while I wouldn't exactly copy their looks, I still think it's an interesting range of looks and certainly quite dramatic. What did you think of this photoshoot?

Blue Glass Trinket Boxes

Thought I'd take some inspiration from my other blog today (the 'arty-farty' one, as my sisters call it), and post about some of the pretty things I've come across over the last few months (so apologies if you've already seen this post!)

I love trinket boxes, jewellery caskets, pill boxes and glass jars of all kinds , so I couldn’t resist when I saw these translucent, dreamy blue glass trinket boxes (and one mauve one!). The poet in me thinks of water-like  jewels and intricate filagree dull silver, which promise to hold your secrets (and your diamonds) and offer possibilities with their petite bodies. So of course I had to buy them, and I got one for each of  my sisters and sister-in-law (and one for myself of course). I’m sure if you were to look at their contents now, each glass bauble would hold something very different from the last.

Wedding Ideas at the 'Calling All Brides' Decorum Wedding Exhibition

My sisters and I have been been doing a lot of research for one of my sisters' upcoming wedding, which will be taking place later on this year. As I'm sure a lot of you are aware, there's a lot of details to be considered with wedding planning, and there's always new ideas to look at; different things to try and a lot of researching and running around! One big part of the planning is looking at the wedding decor, which actual covers a big range of things, like table decor, stage decorations, flowers, chair coverings, favour boxes etc etc.

My sister managed to get us a few tickets to a wedding exhibition which was taking place in Wanstead this weekend. Although it mainly catered to English brides, the services which were being offered were still quite useful and applicable for an Asian wedding, and has some interesting ideas to look at.

Above are the table centrepieces which were one display, which had a very pretty spring theme to it. I loved how it mixed the pink and the green together well on the background of white, and how unusual the centrepiece for the table looked, which mixed crystal hangings, flowers and thick stalks.

Below is the actual table settings, which had various favour boxes, napkin settings and examples of ribbons and petals to decorate the table. I do like how this look went well with the table centrepiece without looking too cluttered, although it may not be to everyone's tastes.

These were some brightly colour cakes amongst the collection on display. The best bit was tasting the samples (I took the chocolate sponge one, for necessary...um..chocolate tasting and because I'm a bit of a chocolate fiend). Again, there were some very pretty cakes, and some that didn't appeal so much (the yellow one, while showed some adventurousness, wasn't something that any of us could imaging wanting! The cupcakes looked scrumptious though (although we weren't allowed to taste any).

Another big trend I've noticed in weddings over the last few years is chair decorations, which can be as simple as a brightly coloured ribbon to match the colour scheme, to ornate embellishments at the back of the chair to add to the decor. The ideas used here were catered more to the English style weddings - the decorator even stated that the ivy chairs were their most popular. These did look very pretty, but I imagine that these flowers would probably get drowned in a traditional Asian wedding setting with lots of colour.  It did give us some ideas of what colours went with the chairs and what looked nice overall, though.

I think this was probably the best part of the exhibition, the flowers! I'm a huge flower fan, having grown up for years with a mum who's a avid gardener. These were some of the bouquets and corsages on display, which were again, in a very spring-y collection of peachy orange, creams and various pinks. I think that the theme in these flower bouquets was simplicity - that is, sticking to a single colour and not making it too OTT, which worked because of the light colours. However, this is, again, something I'm not sure will go with an Asian wedding unless the outfit specifically requires light coloured flowers.

Here were some table centrepiece ideas using flowers, although I've seen some of these ideas before, they were quite tastefully done, although again, these were quite simple in arrangements. I liked how artful the flowers in the bowl looked with the long grass-leaves, although I wouldn't have picked this idea, seeing them in this way made me see how it can look pretty and creative.

My sisters and I quite liked this one with floating candles and gerbera flowers, and silver gravel at the bottom of the bowl. I've seen a similar idea to this used in a mehndi, and I think this is a lovely idea, it's quite simple and sweet, and looks great when the candles are lit in the evening.

 
There were also other alternatives to table centrepieces, such as this feathery one which I found a bit extravagant and colourful for my tastes, but definitely made a statement!

Overall, there was a range of ideas to look at, some which we had seen before from other vendors and some which looked different and fresh. I liked the spring theme best, although it wasn't really ideal for the kind of wedding that my sisters and I are researching for, which is a bit more traditional-looking! We did get a few tips from photographers and those nice cake ladies, and it allowed us to see a glimpse of what is available and how wide the scope is in the wedding market.

More research ideas and results to be posted soon!

KAPRAY SHAPRAY: Nida Azwer's Orange & Pink Gota Lengha

I'm not a big fan of orange (I may have mentioned that before!) as it's a colour which I'm not sure I could pull off, and I tend to stay away from colours which resemble Oompa Loompas. I really, really LOVED this outfit by Karachi-based designer Nida Azwer, however, which made used a lovely combination of colours, using orange, pink and black and teal, using rich silk and a 'gota' style hem. I think this would make a lovely, unusual mehndi outfit, and is a great alternative from the tradition yellow-and-green look which I've seen a lot of times. I also love how old-style the dupatta looked, it looks like a mix between a dupatta my mum owned in the 80s and a traditional, Indian style which I've also seen a lot. What did you think of these colours?

Images taken to Nida Azwer Facebook group

MAKE-UP REVIEW: Lip Tints by Lush

I love the yummy, soapy smell of Lush products, especially when you can smell it from down the road before you've even walked up to the shop. Also, I love the natural-products only ethics that Lush has, (the delicious chunks of soap always grabs me too though).

On my last visit to Lush, I came across the fairly new make-up and face product collections which they are starting to release (I really liked the look of these colour supplements!), and there were quite a few interesting other products which caught my eye.

Image from Lush website

I decided to try out a lip tint that was a different colour (for me!), rather than going for the usual pink-ish types of colours. After much testing and dabbing (and wiping), I picked Latte, which was a slightly shimmer, bronzey-pink shade, which I though would be a different look for me. The tub itself is quite small, but there's quite a lot of lip tint in there, which comes off in a satisfyingly creamy way. Here's the lip tint I bought in the Latte shade:

Overall the lip tint colour was quite pretty, although it did look a little shimmery than something you can wear on a normal day (i.e. something you may wear to dress up, more than something for work!). Although the colour of the tint was a lot lighter and more sheer than the images above, the shimmer still showed a little, and can be applied more heavily for a more pigmented look. I do like this colour, although I'm still in two minds about how well it suits me. The colour itself is a mix of corally-pink and bronzey-ness, which looks very pretty but not sure whether others will think the same as I do.

I love the fact that Lush are branching out their products to make-up products and skin products, it seems the natural step to do so, and it looks like the products are getting good reviews so far. The only let-down about some of their make-up/face products is that because of the natural ingredients used, a lot of their items have a use-by expiry date on them, usually around a year.

Having said that, the lip-tint itself seems good for a few years as it looks like it will last a while. Next time you go to Lush,  have a good browse around their colours, I'm still being intrigued by names (and colours) of the other lip tints, like 'Chilli Tingle' and 'Double Choc'! As expected, all of the lip tints smell of whatever the names are (mine gave off a strong coffee smell which may not appeal to all!), so have a good sniff too!

GLAMOROUS ACCESSORIES: The Top 5 Most Expensive Diamond Presents

Ice ice baby. Or something along those lines. We all like looking at sparkly things so here's a few of the most expensive diamonds which have been gifted to some lucky women, from all over the world.

5. Victoria Beckham's diamond studded bag

 This bag, called The Silver Himalayan was given to Victoria B by her hubby as a Christmas present, featuring a 3 carat diamond on the lock. It's made from crocodile skin too but that's less sparkly or interesting.

4. The Elizabeth Taylor diamond given by Richard Burton

The famous 'Taylor-Burton' diamond was a gift from Taylor's then-husband, who got the raw diamond from South Africa. It's been sold a few times and is often seen as symbolic of their love.

3. Beyonce's engagement ring

Beyonce's beautiful 18 carat ring, currently valued at 5 million cool ones, and designed by jeweller Lorraine Schwartz. Apparently Beyonce wears a a $5000 imitation as a safety measure in public. Makes sense.

2. The Russain Orlov diamond

Count Grigory Orlov presented the Russian Empress, Catherine the Great with a diamond in 1798, after she lavished him with a palace, several hundreds of workers and servants, and bought him a country estate. The diamond itself is named Orlov and was fitted into the Empress' sceptre. It is considered priceless and has yet to be valued.

1. The Kohi Noor diamond

Probably one of the world's most famous diamonds (in my opinion anyways), this diamond came from India originally and belonged to its royalty. When India was taken over by the British, it was eventually given to Queen Victoria as a reluctant 'gift', although the size of the diamond has been reduced due to re-shaping for the Crown Jewels. Again, this has not been valued, but it is believed to be worth literally billions of pounds.

DESIGNER MODE: Pretty Dresses by Sonas Couture

I've been browsing different outfits by vendors Sonas Couture, based in Wembley, UK, for a while and have found some pretty outfits which I thought I'd share.While I'm not a huge fan of their bridal wear, as their styles are more fusion and I'm more of a traditional-bridal kinda gal, their party and formal wear definitely caught my eye. I loved the beautifully fresh colours which don't look overly bright, and which make good use of the rich materials used.

All images belong to Sonas Couture

While I am not a huge fan of net material which is often used in outfits nowadays, especially in the UK, I think it was utilised pretty well in these outfits. I also love the use of brocade and jamawar print in some of the design, as well as the flattering shapes. I think I probably like the first two outfits the best, although there's plenty more that appealed to me. Haven't seen any of these up close for myself, so can't say whether they are as lovely in real life as they seem here, but I'm planning a trip to Wembley soon so hopefully will be able to let you know!

BRIDAL COUTURE: A Red-Lipped Bride

I found this picture on Paklinks wedding threads, and have no idea whether this is a real bride or whether it was part of a photo shoot (I suspect this is a real bride), and was blown away by how pretty the bride looked, with a combination of well-done make up, rich colours and pretty features. I don't tend to post pictures of real brides as I don't like to post personal wedding pictures, but I felt like this was one I had to share as it shows how well put together the make-up and jewellery of a bride can be. I haven't seen any other images of this bride, but I just loved how rich and immaculate the lipstick looked, and how well it went with her smokey eyes.
Personally I've always favoured the smokey eyes and light lips looks, even on brides, and this is one picture which would change my mind about red lips because it just looks so pretty!

Anyone seen anymore pictures of this bride? I'd love to see!

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Bunto at the Oscars...

...although not literally!

Pakistani director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, praised Oscar winner for 'Saving Face' looked glamorous on the red carpet last night, wearing a richly-worked outfit designed by Pakistani designer Bunto Kazmi, consisting of an off-white outfit with beautifully embellished work and richly embroidered "Persian motifs". An elegant and not too over-the-top outfit which was certainly suitable for an event like this, and Sharmeen looked lovely having done her own make-up as well.

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The jewellery worn by Sharmeen was also designed by a Pakistani designer - Kiran Aman of Kiran Fine Jewellery, who describes the gold cuff and earrings as vintage gold, diamonds and pearls, with the small flag motif attached to the cuff made of diamonds and green sapphires. Again, this complemented the outfit well, and was elegant enough to be subtle yet very classic-looking.

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What I love is the fact that Sharmeen chose to showcase a variety of Karachi designers and jewellers throughout the Oscars in order to emphasise local Pakistani talent. Although the Bunto Kazmi outfit worn by Sharmeen wasn't in the designer's typical style, and nor was it as blingy as her bridals, it's style was suitable enough for the occaison, and the colours blend wonderfully together - and I definitely think that Sharmeen sparkled more than the outfit did on the night!

EYE CANDY WISH LIST: Colour Co-ordinated Booties

Not sure how practical these would be to wear in real life, but sometimes you just want pretty shoes to show off about. I'm off to tidy my shoe collection now.

Source: Image Shack US