Style Appreciation: IIFA 2016

Hi everyone! Hope you all are doing well. As you may have guessed from the title, This week's post is a little different from the rest of our posts. Today we will be talking about our favourite celebrity looks at the IIFA Weekend 2016 that happened in Madrid, Spain.
 
Brinda's picks

Aditi Rao Hydari

Without a doubt, Aditi Rao Hydari had not one but two of my favourite looks from the IIFA weekend. She was styled by Sanam Ratansi and her make up was done by Elton Fernandez. Both her looks made her look like a Disney Princess.

For the main event, she was seen in a dark green strapless Shantanu and Nikhil gown. She paired this outfit with a golden head band, ring and heavy earrings from Outhouse Jewellery. Her hair was neatly done up in a pony which had a very natural look. Her make up seemed to have a dewy finish with well defined brows and a subtle winged liner. She went for a pink lip colour which complemented her outfit really well.

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For IIFA ROCKS on the weekend, she was seen in a white strapless Saiid Kobeisy gown. She paired this with diamond rings and earrings by Anmol Jewellers. Her make up again had a dewy finish with defined brows. However she ditched the winged liner this time. She choose a coral lip colour that completed her look.

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Nargis Fakhri

In all the gowns and saris, Nargis Fakhri stood out for me in her blue pant suit by Monisha Jaisingh which she wore for IIFA ROCKS. She was styled by Allia Al Rufai and Nayaa Randhawa. The pant suit had some gold detailing which I am not a big fan of but her nude heels, which complimented her look really well, made up for it. She went for a minimal accessories look and was seen only wearing a pair of diamond studs. As for her make up, she stuck to a matte look with defined brows and a nude lip colour. Sometimes less is more and Nargis' make up proves that really well.

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Ritu's  favourites:


Divya Khosla Kumar

Divya Khosla Kumar looked very elegant in a lehenga by Vikram Phadnis. Styled by Anisha Gandhi, she paired the lehenga with some jewellery by Shobha Shringar. She completed the traditional look with a simple bindi and some flowers with her Bun. Her makeup looked natural and radiant. She brightened her look with a light coral-pink toned lipstick. She looked beautiful and definitely stood out among the gowns.

 

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Deepika Padukone

Deepika Padukone surely grabbed all the attention in Madrid with her bold looks. Over the weekend, she experimented and stunned in 6 looks. Starting with a royal blue robed top and bottom set by Chloé, a red Prabal Gurung dress, a boho white dress by Chloe, and a fun summery white dress. For IIFA rocks she picked a black gown by Swapnil Shinde and wore a Sabyasachi outfit for the main event. Her makeup and hair was done by Daniel Bauer and was styled by Shaleena Nathani.

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Out of these, 2 looks that stood out were :

 

The Black Swapnil Shinde gown she wore at IIFA Rocks. The gown was paired with a Farah Khan chain and some rings by Anmol Jewellers. For her makeup, they focused on a dewy base and a winged smokey eye. However, the highlight of this look was her hairstyle which was a change from her waves and pulled back pony tails. It looked different and definitely got everyone talking

 

 

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Deepika looked hot in the red Prabal Gurung outfit. The red seemed fun and sexy specially with the slit which showed off her toned leg. The outfit was  teamed with gold earings from Outhouse and shoes by Giuseppe Zanotti. For her makeup, they went with a dewy base and some contouring. They completed the look with a bold red lip and well defined eyebrows.

 

 

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 Farhan Akhtar and Shahid Kapoor

The men are mostly seen dressed in black suits but this times we saw some take risks. Shahid, Ranveer, Farhan dared to try out some funky colours. Out of all we really liked Farhan's 3 piece light blue suit. The converse added some quirk to the plain suit and made his look really cool and edgy.

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This is all for now, do tell us your favourites in the comments below. We will  be back with a new post soon.

 

NYX is coming to India!

NYX Cosmetics is coming to India!! We absolutely love NYX and are extremely excited about the launch.  NYX is a reasonable drugstore cosmetic brand with an amazing range of products. You may have seen NYX if you have a Sephora in your city but trust me that small shelf is not the real deal. NYX is launching 550 products in India, which will be available on Nykaa.com by 8th July and a month later there will be an official store launch. We will soon have access to these amazing cosmetics, all thanks to L'Oreal.

NYX may not yet be available in India but we were lucky enough to get our hands on some NYX products. We are sharing few of our favourite products with you so you know what to buy once it's here.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams retails at Rs. 600. If I could buy only one product from NYX, I would pick up their soft matte lip cream without a doubt. You might have seen and used multiple dupes for this product but trust me nothing can compete with the original NYX soft matte lip creams. They are the most comfortable matte lipsticks and do not dry your lips at all. The colour variety in this range is insane. I also love how each lip cream has its name based on a city.
I have these lip creams in Stockholm, Morocco & Copenhagen.  

Stockholm, Morocco & Copenhagen.

NYX also has some liquid lipsticks in different textures like butter gloss and suede matte. We have not yet had the chance to try those, but thanks to L'Oreal we will be doing that soon.



NYX Matte Lipstick retails at Rs. 625. If you are not a big fan of liquid lipsticks but love how the soft matte lip creams look , you can find a great alternative in NYX Matte Lipsticks. Just like the lip creams, they do not dry the lips and do not transfer easily. Their range has multiple shades with simple black packaging with a transparent patch in the center.

I have the matte lipstick in Angel.



NYX Extra Creamy  Round Lipstick retails at Rs. 475. These lipsticks are definitely a good buy for anyone who likes creamy lipsticks or does not like matte lipsticks. I was really impressed by these. It is super pigmented and lasts for a long time. It glides on to the lips very smoothly and gets the colour on in the first glide. You don't need to put two three layers. It is really light, comfortable to wear and has a slight shine too. This lasts for about 4-5 hours and then may need a touch up. After a meal, some of it is wiped off but your lips will still have the colour. It does transfer a bit but its still a good buy. It is packed in a black plastic case, with the colour shown at the bottom.

I have these lipsticks in Fire Incendie & Electra.

Angel, Fire Incendie & Electra.

NYX HD Studio Finishing Powder retails at Rs. 825. If you think baking only happens in the kitchen, let us tell you more. It works really well for setting the base make up, especially the concealer. If you want to know more about baking with loose powder, comment below and we will soon put up a post on it. For those who are into baking, this product is a must have for you. It is a white powder that can be used for all shades and contains 100% pure mineral silica which helps with oil control on the face. It comes in a small plastic box with small holes between the container and the lid to prevent dispensing off too much product.



NYX Highlight & Contour Pro Palette retails at Rs. 2000. This palette is one of the most talked about NYX products by beauty bloggers all over the world. It is available in 8 shades and each palette has 8 different powders.  There are four contour shades which are highly pigmented and can help you slay your contour. It has two highlighting powders, one matte and the other shimmery. It has a banana powder and a setting powder that add a touch of glow to your base make up without being too over powering. It is not heavy and is a good buy for anyone looking out for a contour cum highlighting palette.


NYX Wonderstick retails at Rs. 835. This stick has a cream based contour shade on one end and a nude  highlighter on the other. It is available in 4 shades. It is highly pigmented and must be applied with a light hand. The creamy formula makes it easy to blend. It is light and portable. It is a good option for people who like to do their make up on the go and are not ready to compromise on their glow and contour for it.



NYX Born to Glow Liquid Illuminator retails at Rs. 850. This highlighter is my go to product when I want to add some glow to my base make up without going over the top. It does not have any flecks of shimmer, just a natural glow. It is available in four shades and comes in a plastic tube with a nozzle. A small amount of the product goes a long way.



NYX HD Concealer: If you have read our last post, you would know how much we love this concealer. With a cream like texture, it covers all the blemishes. To know more about this concealer, have a look at our previous post.



We hope you this post helps you finalise some products for your first NYX buy in India. Let us know if you have any feedback. We will be back with a new post soon.

Photography Credits: Shivam Bhatt.

Concealer Reviews.

Hey guys! In our last post we wrote about concealers and how you can use it to conceal all your blemishes. However, picking the right concealer may get difficult as there are various brands with different concealers having diverse claims. Don't worry, we are here to help you find some of the best concealers available. Keep reading to know more.

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer retails at Rs.500 for 6.8ml. It is a liquid concealer with a creamy texture, which can be used to conceal blemishes and highlight the high points of one’s face. It does not need regular touch ups but needs to be set with powder to avoid creases and transferring. It may be a little difficult to find the right shade as it has only 3 shades in the Indian market. However, if you have the wrong shade you can always use it for some other purpose. Light concealers can be used for highlighting and dark ones for contouring.  This is a really good option for people with bad dark circles. It is packed in a long plastic tube with a long applicator, making the application very easy.   
 

L’Oreal True Match Concealer retails at Rs.950 for 02oz.* It is available in 3 shades in the Indian market which may give you a limited choice. It is more liquid-y in texture and easy to blend compared to the Maybelline Fit Me. It does tend to wear off and crease after about 4 hours and thus must be set with powder for best results. This covers up blemishes well but does not highlight the high points of one’s face. It comes in a cylindrical plastic tube with a short applicator.

SEPHORA SMOOTHING&BRIGHTENING Concealer retails at Rs.950 for 12ml. This is a good concealer for a beginner since it provides sheer coverage, making blemishes less prominent while still providing a natural look. This works well as a highlighter by a providing one with a natural glow. It does not crease too much since it has a light texture and may or may not need to be set with powder. It comes in the shape of a pen with a brush as its nib. As you twist the pen, the product comes out through the brush with which it can be applied. The brush applicator helps to spread the product evenly. A reasonable alternative for this concealer is Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer which retails at Rs.500 for 1.5ml.  

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind retails at Rs.800 for 20ml. This comes in a plastic tube with a round sponge on top of it. Once you twist the knob, the  product comes through the sponge. Cleaning the sponge is not possible which gets me a little worried about the hygiene. However, this is the best concealer I have tried till date. I can totally skip the colour correcting under my eyes. It conceals blemishes really well and stays for long hours. It is also a good highlighting concealer. It is available on various websites and instagram stores. If you have bad dark circles and are in search of a good concealer, I highly recommend this concealer.

NYX HD Concealer retails at Rs.400 for 3g. I have the shade  CW12 which is a colour correcting concealer. It is a dupe for the NARS radiant creamy concealer. It has a creamy texture and blends easily. A small amount is sufficient to hide acne scars and blemishes. It comes in a glass tube with a long wand. It is light weight and affordable. This concealer may not be available in India right now but NYX is coming to India very soon! Stay tuned to our blog to know more about it.

   

We hope this post helps you finalise your buy. We will be back with a new post soon.

Concealers 101.

The foundation sets the base for rest of your makeup, but does not highlight your features or conceal any blemishes. It is the concealer that does this trick. To know more about concealers, keep reading.

What is a Concealer?

 A concealer is that product which helps to conceal your dark circles, spots and blemishes. It can also be used highlight the high points of your face and add a glow to your base. It is applied after the foundation and is followed by powder.

Types of Concealer:

Liquid Concealer is the most common kind of concealer used as it is easy to apply and blend. This helps you hide your dark circles and blemishes easily.

Stick Concealer is in the form of a crayon and may need to be sharpened from time to time. These are not very easy to blend but still do its work. This works best on spots, acne marks or blemishes.

Colour Correcting Concealer is a type of concealer that uses the properties of colour correctors to conceal discolouration. It is available in various colours like salmon, green, lavender and yellow. Each colour is used to get rid of a certain kind of discolouration. These are mostly available in cream or liquid form.

Picking the right concealer:

Picking the right shade of concealer is very important. Your concealer should be one or two shades lighter than your foundation. You must avoid picking a shade that's too light as it may highlight your problem areas and may end up looking like white patches on your face. Before making your final choice have a look and test out the various options available. While testing a concealer, apply a small amount of the product on your wrist, blend it out and see if it covers up your veins. Once you find a shade that conceals and brightens your face while not being too light for the rest of your face, you have a winner.

How to apply concealer?

Applying any kind of concealer involves the same steps. Once you have applied your foundation you are ready to conceal. To cover up your dark circles you can start by making an inverted triangle under your eye. Starting from the inner corner, dragging it down and then extending it above your check bone. After making your outline, fill it up with the product but do not put too much or it may look caked up.

The next step it blending your concealer, this can be done using a buffing brush or a damp beauty bender. Remember to use dabbing motions in order to prevent your concealer from shifting. This step may take a while but it is important.

Once you have covered your dark circles you can use the concealer to cover any spots or acne marks. You may use a shade lighter shade for your dark circles, but to conceal marks and spots, use a shade that matches your foundation. Spot concealing can be done by taking some product on the brush and then applying it directly on the mark. Once you blend it, your good to go. This can be done with the stick concealer as well.

 Since the concealer used on your dark circles is one or two shades lighter than the foundation, it can be used to highlight your cheek bones, cupids bow, chin, brow bone and fore head. 

Once you have concealed all areas, it needs to be set with some powder. You need to take some powder on a powder brush and dab it on the concealed areas. This will help to set the concealer and prevent any kinds of creases and cracks.

With colour corrector and foundation, Application of concealer, With colour corrector, foundation and concealer.

With foundation,  Application of concealer, With foundation and concealer.

Photography by Shivam Bhatt and Ananya Khatri.

 

 We hope you found this post helpful. We will be back with a new post next week. 

 

Fabindia Skincare Product Reviews.

For most of us Indians, Fabindia is a company that has been there forever. We generally associate it with ethnic wear in some beautiful  earthy colours. So it might sound a little surprising to some of you that today we are here to review some skincare products from Fabindia. Fabindia has a range of skin care products which include body washes, creams, soaps, face packs and a lot of other products. What I love about their range is that  it is very affordable and most  ingredients are natural. Most product are under Rs. 550 and are easily available in their stores and on their website.

Fabindia under eye gel aloe vera retails for Rs.240 for 24gms. This was the first product I used from their range and has been a regular item in my night routine for almost 9 months now. It has a gel like consistency and smells like fresh aloe vera. It comes in a small circular box and is really light. You can apply it by taking a small amount of it on your fingers and dab it under your eyes. It really helps to reduce the puffiness under your eyes and gives the illusion of a goodnight’s sleep. With regular use, it has a lasting effect on your dark circles as well. This is one product I highly recommend.

Fabindia tea tree face wash retails for Rs.240 for 120ml. Tea tree products are a good option for people prone to acne and breakouts , but since we deal with so much dust and sweat using tea tree products are a good idea for everybody.The face wash comes in a plastic tube like most face face washes and is easy to carry. You apply a small amount of it on your wet face, massage it for a minute and then wash it off. The face wash contains citric acid along with tea tree oil which gives it a beautiful fresh smell that is enough to wake your skin. With regular use, it reduces break outs.

Fabindia charcoal face pack retails for Rs.350 for 100ml. Recently there have been a lot of charcoal products in the market since charcoal absorbs impurities. This pack uses multani mitti or muller’s earth as its base to which the charcoal is added. It also contains lemongrass oil which gives it a pleasant  fragrance. It comes in a circular box which is slightly heavy. You can apply it with a face pack brush or with your fingers. Keep it on for 10-15 minutes and rinse it off. While washing it off, it may drip and mess up your clothes so be careful about what you wear. In my opinion, this mask can be used once in 2 weeks to mix up your skincare routine or to pamper yourself on the weekend.

Fabindia make up remover panch pushup retails for Rs.295 for 100ml. It is a liquid that comes in a plastic bottle with a dispenser and a cap. When taken on a cotton pad, the consistency is foam like. However it is soap free. It is made up of extracts of rose, jasmine, lavender, chamomile, and geranium. I am not a big fan of floral smells, but this is  relatively mild in nature. A little product on a cotton pad can remove a full face of make up. For my satisfaction, I like to go over it with a fresh piece of cotton once I am done with it with for the first time. I recommend this product when you want to remove your entire make up and not just wipe of the winged liner or re-do your lipstick.

 You can buy these products on http://www.fabindia.com

We hope you found this post helpful. We will be back with a new post next week.

Photography Credits:Shivam Bhatt.