The Spring Smokey Eye | New Arrivals from Yves Rocher

Yves Rocher is a brand I've recently been introduced to.  After falling in love with one of their summer fragrances last year, I was quite excited to give some of their cosmetics a try.  As France's number one selling make-up and skincare brand, Yves Rocher uses home-grown botanical ingredients to create affordable, natural beauty products.  I've been putting some of their new arrivals to the test the past couple of weeks - a selection of eye make-up goodies perfect for creating a Spring Smokey Eye.  I have to say I instantly fell in the love with the  eyeshadow palette...the colours are simply perfect for the season and I couldn't wait to get creating some looks with it.  Anyway,  I shall refrain from rabbiting on and just get into the nitty gritty... Here's the lowdown on some of Yves Rocher's latest bits and bobs...

Intense Kajal 100%  / £9.95* / Link

Now then, I'll be honest - I've never quite cottoned on to these 'kajal' liners. I see them reviewed quite a bit and for the most part they're always well liked - but I just can't seem to grasp the concept.  I prefer a smudged line underneath my lower lash line as opposed to a clean line anyway so it does work for me in that sense - the product is soft to apply and provides good pigmentation and the shape of it means that it provides a soft and sultry look.  However, I'm a bit confused as to what happens once the tip has worn down slightly as I already find it a bit difficult to use. I reckon I'll end up using it as an eyeshadow stick for when I'm going a bit heavier and smokier with the eye makeup - i think it will make a nice base product.

Sumptuous Colour Eyeshadow Quad Palette in Red Hot Brown / £12.50* / Link

Yves Rocher have created a series of these quad eyeshadow palettes with a variety of tones and colour options.  Naturally, I opted for 'Red Hot Brown' - I'm such a neutrals obsessive after all.  Firstly - I love the simplicity of this quad - it has everything you need to create a variety of looks and it's lightweight and compact in size… the elegant gold casing and large mirror finishes it off nicely.  The first time I swatched this palette I was blown away by the consistency and pigmentation of the shadows.  They're incredibly soft and buttery to the touch - even the matte purple/brown shade is super creamy and pigmented. I usually find mattes to be a bit more chalky in texture but this palette really has got every shade spot on the mark… I certainly wasn't disappointed.  Whats more, the shadows can be applied wet or dry.  Applied wet, they create a more intense, metallic sort of finish.

I've been using this on a daily basis since I got it - the champagne shade is perfect for the inner corners of the eyes or for using across the lid, and the taupe shade is a gorgeous everyday sort of colour.  I adore the rust gold/brown as it really seems to bring out my eye colour - and I can definitely see myself wearing it on holiday with the dark brown blended onto the outer corners for a super quick and easy summer smokey eye. The slight purple hue is so pretty. The colour stays put really well on my eyelids (i always use a primer first) and stays looking smooth and radiant for a good few hours.  Overall - this is a fabulous little palette and totally worth the £12.50* - I've bought drugstore palettes for similar prices in the past but Yves Rocher really have stepped it up a gear with pigmentation and consistency and I definitely think it rivals my higher-end favourites.  I reckon this might be jetting away on holiday with me (not that I'm planning already or anything…) - the colours will be perfect with a tan!

Mascara Volume Vertige  / £11.50* / Link

I've heard good things about Yves Rocher mascaras in the past - I remember when they launched their 'Sexy Pulp' mascara a while back and reading a tonne of fab reviews so I couldn't wait to give this one a whirl.  The Volume Vertige mascara is enriched with a fixing botanical extract which helps lashes hold a curl for longer - something I always look for in a mascara as my lashes are straight as straight can be. The brush is also a unique 'Reservoir Wand' - which disperses product evenly and prevents clumping. I've only used this a couple of times so far but it seems to separate the lashes really nicely - creating natural looking volume and definition...not a clump in sight. It also seems to do a fab job of holding a curl but so far I've been using this mostly at weekends - I'm yet to see how it holds up through a whole day at work which will be the true test here... my lashes seem to lose their 'umph' a little when I'm at the office! It's worth mentioning that it removes easily - always a plus point in my opinion! Nobody likes scrubbing their peepers of an evening do they?  So far, so good.

Fixing Eye Primer  / £7.50* / Link

I always like to use an eyeshadow primer.  Ever since I discovered the benefits a few years ago it's become a part of my daily makeup routine.  Not only does it lock in colour and keep it in place for longer, it also helps to intensify the colour of your shadows.  Enriched with Camellia Oil, this primer smoothes and fills wrinkles and imperfections, creating a smooth base for your eyeshadow. I've only used this a couple of times so far as I'm trying to save it for my holiday in July - the tube is so lightweight and is perfect for travelling with! I really like how smooth and easy it is to apply and it makes my eyeshadow much easier to blend as well as helping it to last through the day.  It seems to prevent it from creasing in the upper lid which I seem to struggle with after a long day at work.

Overall, a really nice little selection from Yves Rocher.  If you were going to treat yourself to anything I'd say go for the eyeshadow palette.  It really is a little gem of a palette and looks so much more expensive than it actually is...it really does rival some of my high end favourites and it looks set to go in my suitcase this July.  You can find Yves Rocher makeup online here - all products are really reasonably priced and I can't wait to treat myself to couple more things from them... their powder blushes look very tempting!

Have you tried anything from Yves Rocher? What would you recommend I try next?

Summer Scent | Yves Rocher 'Moment De Bonheur'

Yves Rocher | Moment De Bonheur L'eau | £38.00* | Link

As soon as the warmer weather rolls around, I tend to ditch the heavier perfumes and opt for something lighter, brighter and altogether more summery.  My newest addition to my perfume collection is this little beauty from Yves Rocher - 'Moment de Bonheur L'eau' (definitely a tricky one to roll off the tongue if anyone asks what it is you're wearing...I'm sure my accent doesn't do it justice whatsoever). If you're a bit of a summer-y perfume collector like myself, then you'll know exactly what I mean when I say this one falls under the same umbrella as Mac's 'Turquatic' or DKNY's famous 'apple' perfumes - perfect sunshine-y scents.  Yves Rocher's offering is a gorgeous, light fragrance with slight woody undertones - it's one of those 'clean' fragrances that instantly make you feel refreshed and awake. It definitely has a hint of fruity-ness to it but it's very sophisticated and not overly sweet.  Personally, I've grown quite addicted to it and I find myself spraying it even if I'm staying home for the day simply because I love it so much.What I like about it is that it isn't too 'young' - sometimes, summer scents can be a little too sweet for me but this one suits my tastes perfectly well - it has a sort of botanical hint to it that makes it a little bit different from what you'd usually expect.

The bottle reflects the scent - very simple, understated and fresh.  It's a lovely size to pop into your handbag too and I've been carrying it around with me for the past couple of weeks. Like a lot of summer perfumes, this one doesn't stick around for too long so I do find I have to top-up quite a bit throughout the day - but even once the zingy top notes have worn off you're left with a subtle summery scent (admittedly, I'm a bit of a perfume over-applier anyway...I'd probably bathe in the stuff if I could...) I've already decided that it's going to be the perfume I'm taking on holiday with me this year - it's much more of a daytime fragrance but I personally quite like the idea of wearing it out in the evening - plus, when I come home, I know it's going to remind me of sunny days, beach walks and balmy, Mediterranean evenings - isn't it funny how certain scents take you back to memories in an instant?! I'd certainly class this as a Duty Free treat - it's well worth having a spritz if you spy it in the airport before you jet away.  Overall, I'd say this will be a fabulous contender if you're looking for this year's summer scent or a new perfume to pop into your suitcase. You can find Yves Rocher perfumes and other products on the website here.

What's your favourite summer perfume?