I have been reading soooo much about this lipstick online and yet they have not yet launched in Delhi NCR. How can they be a hit already? Good PR?
I bought the shade Peach Club from asos.com. It cost me around 900 bucks including customs which is the price in India.

It is a lipstain which is a mix of lipstick and lipgloss. The consistency is that of a thick lipgloss which is completely opaque. The applicator is doe foot and applies well. 

The shade is a coral... mix of pink, red and orange. 

 

It applies comfortably and becomes matte in a few minutes... stays on for 4-5 hours and then fills into the fine lines. It becomes dry and I generally have to apply a lipbalm on top which turns it glossy.
It stays on for light eating and drinking but starts to come off after a heavy meal. Thats when it looks bad and needs a touch up or application of lip balm.

This is what it looks like immediately on application.

All in all, am ok about it. It does feel dry after a few hours and enters into fine lines which is a big con. But the color lasts since it becomes a stain after application of lip balm.
I don't plan to buy any more of these. 

I went crazy shopping on body shop website during the 50% sale. I had been eyeing the blueberry range since it was launched but did not want to spend unnecessarily. But with 50% off, it is all affordable now.
Another range that I love is the Ginger Sparkle. I hate ginger in my food but love the Body Shop range. Love the spicy smell.

I bought:
- Ginger sparkle gift set
- Blueberry body scrub
- Blueberry body lotion
- Cramberry reed diffuser set

Blueberry body scrub: MRP Rs 1195. Got it for 50%
I have been drooling all year over this. It smells so delicious. But did not want to spend 1k on a scrub. And now I bought it. After this, I am set till 2015 and do not need any more body scrubs.

Blueberry body lotion: MRP Rs 695. 250 ml. 

Needed a body lotion and picked this up for 50% off. 

Cranberry reed diffuser: MRP Rs 2595
I have become obsessed with the house smelling nice and have placed a reed/oil diffuser in the living room, bedroom and bathroom. I have the cranberry diffuser oil (picked it up 50% off in the previous sale) and it smells awesome. So, I had to buy this one. Expensive even after the discount.

Ginger Sparkle gift set: MRP Rs 2495
Last year Body Shop launched their X'mas collection which had vanilla, ginger and cranberry ranges. I became obsessed with the vanilla range specially the bath gel. Then I tried the ginger one and vanilla was soon forgotten. Had to pick this up at 50%.

It includes :
Body butter 50 ml

Shower gel 250 ml

Body scrub 75 ml: And now I don't need a scrub till 2016

 A cute heart shaped soap

How cute is the container...

Really like Body Shop service. 2 days after ordering I mailed them asking when it was getting shipped. An executive called in the next hour and informed me. The order reached the very next day. Hope they keep this up. 

Finally... after months of waiting (yep, I was waiting)... Forever21 has started shipping to India. The shipping is free for orders above Rs 2500. For orders less than that, shipping charges are Rs 300-500.

I ordered a dress 3 days back and received it today. How fast is that!!!

Haul from forever21.com

Very happy with this. Now, I don't need to buy from asos.com. Anyway, the customs charges are killing. And I don't need to travel to Delhi to shop from this store.

Many times while wearing a dress I would wish for something to smoothen out the bulges. Of course the best way is to lose the bulge but that takes time. What do you do in the meantime? And how do those extremely curvy women like Kardashian have flat tummies?
So, I tried to find out online and the answer was shapewear. Basically, these garments are worn under the clothes (may or may not replace lingerie) and they smoothen out different parts of the body- waist, hips, thighs, tummy etc.
Unfortunately, I could not find any reviews for shapewear in India. I just found 1 post which was also a sponsored one. Finally, I had to experiment for myself and thats why am writing this post. I don't want another Indian woman to face such issues.
I bought shapewear from 3 brands- Marks and Spencers, Triumph and Hanes.
Rules to buy shapewear:
- Buy 1 size larger. I wear UK 10 and bought UK 12
- It should fit properly and not roll down or up
- It does not reduce your size. Example, if you wear UK 10, it will not make you look UK 6 or 8. It just smoothens out the bulges
- Buy in nude colour preferably so that it can be worn under anything
- A good brand product will be comfortable enough to wear even in summers
- You cannot wear it while sleeping (I read this question online)
- You should wear it only for short periods of time. I have worn it to office for 8 hours and it is mostly comfortable
- If washing in a machine, do not spin or use dryer. They will become loose.

And here they are:

1) Tummy control panty by Marks and Spencers:

Shapewear at M&S costs Rs 2400 and above. It has a whole section on shapewear. You should check it out. Out of all 4, this is my favorite.
- It holds your tummy in
- Does help in smoothening out thighs though
- Very comfortable and can be worn all day
- The top band rolls down slightly as the hours pass but it is not noticeable
- The material is thin and satiny making it very comfy
- Can be worn under everything- pants or dresses
- Reaches upto the high waist. I don't like shapewear which ends in the middle of the waist. I think it will push your bulge higher

 2) Tummy and thigh shaper by Triumph

This costs around 2k and is available in Lifestyle. Not available in Shoppers Stop.
- It starts from the high waist and reaches above the knee
- Cannot be worn with minis, short dresses or shorts
- Can be worn with pants
- Material is thick and satiny
- Comfortable enough to wear in summers
- Top band does not roll down which is a big plus
- This is my 2nd favourite of the lot

3) Tummy, hips and thigh shaper by M&S

Costs above Rs 2400 and available only in M&S stores
- I loved this when I bought it initially. In fact, this was my 1st purchase but after a few washes its true colours are visible
- The skirt rolls up and so it cannot be worn as a slip. For a sheer dress/skirt I need to wear a slip over this making it very uncomfortable. 3 layers of under clothes is a bit much
- The top band has started rolling down making it uncomfortable
- Comfortable enough to wear in summers
- I wouldn't recommend this product to anyone. In fact, after this experience I won't be purchasing from M&S shapewear. They cost a bomb and the quality changes after a few washes

4) Full body from Hanes

MRP Rs 600/700 on flipkart.com. It came with a hole in it but I saw it much later and could not return it. flipkart.com really sucks these days. Their 3rd party vendors send any crap across.
- The material is thick and cheap. But considering the price that is expected
- It shapes the body moderately
- The biggest problem is it is so uncomfortable. If you have to pee, the entire thing needs to come off. I don't think this is a brand problem I just bought the wrong product
- Can be uncomfortable in summers since material is thick

If you ask me, Triumph comes out tops. It is affordable with good quality.

Want to see the difference shapewear can make?

On the left : I am not wearing shapewear and you can make out the uneven shape
On the right: Wearing Triumph shapewear and my tummy looks flat.

Which is real? Both are.

I went to Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj for some work today and came across MAC's new collection. Below is my haul:

Top to bottom:
- NYX lipstick in Fig. Bought it from Sephora for Rs 360. Online everyone has been raving about these and I decided to try them out
- Inglot lip brush. MRP Rs 1000. I like Inglot brushes. They are cheaper than MAC and good quality
- MAC lipstick Up the Amp. MRP Rs 1100 from Playland collection
- MAC lipstick Candy Yum Yum. MRP Rs 1100 from Playland collection
- MAC long wear waterproof brow set. MRP Rs 1300. This is part of a new collection. The collection has gel liner for the brows, brow sets and mascara.

The brow set has to be applied over the brows (of course) with a mascara type wand. I am using a NARS brow pencil gifted by my sister right now and previously was using Oriflame's super cheap brow pencil. Have decided to try something new.

It is brown in color and has a mascara wand. Can I use it as a mascara too???

Left to right: MAC candy yum yum, MAC Up the Amp, NYX in fig.

Candy Yum Yum is a neon pink. I had to stand and recollect for 10 mins if I have this shade but then decided that I don't. It is a very neon pink and instantly brightened up my face. It is matte and has a crayon like consistency.

Up the Amp is a berry colour. I do not have this shade and decided to buy it.

NYX fig. An everyday colour... nudish... coral... for daily wear.

Swatches: Top to bottom : NYX fig, Up the Amp, Candy yum yum

MAC has launched a new collection this week. This is the mailer I received from the company few days back. Generally, the mailer comes in a week earlier and so I had expected the collection to be launched in stores next week. MAC launches new products on a Thursday and everytime I go on a Monday to check them out, they are already stocked out... or all the products are not launched in stores. Which is quite a bummer. Makes me think they launch like 5 pcs of each product.

Here it is... it has:
- bright lipsticks in matte and glossy
- cream blushes in pop colours
- liners in super pop colours like blue, orange, pink. I loved these but didn't want to spend on something I will wear rarely
- lipglosses
- eye pigments

Do check it out.

I bought blue linen shorts from asos.com. I had been eyeing them for a long time and when asos sent me a 10% off coupon for my b'day (yippie!!!) I finally bought it. The fit is kind of off and I didn't know what to wear it with.

White? Black? And then I decided to pair it with blue shirt from forever21. 

The shorts needed a belt to look presentable and I have only the pink one which is slightly broad. So, I had to wear pink flats from Rockport. I bought these flats online from flipkart/myntra/jabong/fashionandyou.com at a discount... don't remember which. They are sort of uncomfortable which is surprising considering Rockport is a very expensive brand. 

This is what I wore today. A new pairing with a red skirt. 

Tulip shaped skirt from Koovs. This was my 1st purchase from koovs.com and I am very impressed with the clothes and delivery timeline. They even have models walking on the runway wearing the clothes making it easier to assess them. The website is built just like asos. 

The tie shirt is an old purchase from forever21. I like the store for such purchases... things that can be layered and worn with everything. I wear this shirt with low cut dresses to cover up. Very handy.

Footwear is from Charles and Keith. Honestly, I don't like their footwear... they are so uncomfortable. The heels make a lot of noise. I bought the footwear when I was alone and killing time at the mall in Mumbai. 

I just finished my Lakme Youth Infinity serum and went to Dabur New U looking for a new serum. The Lakme one did not benefit at all.

I have not tried many Olay products... just the under eye cream (did not do anything for me) and the day cream when it was newly launched. Hope this serum fares better. MRP Rs 749 for 50 ml.

And then I picked by the Neutrogena sunscreen which I apply while swimming and its about to run out. But then decided to try the L'Oreal one. MRP Rs 475 for 30 ml.

I saw this nail paint here and checked it out at Sephora. Sephora has opened a new store in Gurgaon and am loving it. They stock a brand called 'The Face Shop'. I bought the first BB cream from this brand.

Anyway, I picked up a sky blue colour nail paint for Rs 100. 

They have 2 other pastel shades in this. 

The paint goes on opaque in 1 coat and dries very fast. The second coat makes it completely opaque and takes a little more time to dry.