Giorgio Armani Makeup Bloggers Event

Last week I had the great pleasure of going to a bloggers event at the Giorgio Armani beauty counter at Debenhams in Cardiff's St Davids centre.



I was excited to try out some more Armani products - I have already tried their 'Eyes to Kill' mascara (excellent - feather-like lashes in a stroke!) and I've previously talked about their wonderful lipstick in a true 1950's red in a video (here).  I've heard nothing but excellent things about their foundations (India Knight in the Sunday Times Style section raved about it, among others), but was keen to see the rest of their range, as they've recently released some 'Eyes to Kill' eyeshadows.





The staff did a demonstration for us, showing us how to achieve an 'Arabian Princess' look, with a dark, sultry eye and a bold and dark lip.  Most of us agreed that we shy away from dark eye looks, preferring brights or nudes, but I have to say this look had a hint of the 1920s and appealed to me on that level as a slightly more wearable vintage look (I find a true 1920s makeup look is a bit harsh on mere mortals!).



The products that stood out to me were the 'Smooth silk' eyeliner pencils (£18) which true to their name, don't drag at all on the skin, and come in some fabulous alternatives to black - there's a grey, a blue, a green, a brown, and a purple, but all with a subtlety to them that makes them a good everyday option. We were given samples of the 'Maestro Mediterranea Fusion Blush' (£35) and 'Maestro Fusion Make Up' foundation (£39) to take away - alas, the foundation was far, far too dark for my skin tone, even as a bronzer, but I quite liked the liquid blush. Beware, a little goes a long, long way! I'm wearing it in the pic below, I blended like crazy to get a subtle look but the product is highly pigmented, so easy to achieve a stronger look if you prefer. (I should mention the lipstick is 'Kiss Me Coral' by Revlon)



If you get a chance to walk past an Armani counter, it's well worth having a look at their products - they're fairly pricey, but for quality I think they're fantastic. I also have to mention the wonderful Armani Prive fragrances - do stop and have a sniff if you can. They're arranged logically, by ingredients and style, so you can work your way from light, citrus scents, through to heady, woody and dark ones. You can squirt them out of the bottle, but you're mainly getting topnotes there apparently, so if you pick up the little glass jars on display next to the bottles, you'll get the basenotes, i.e. the smell you'll be left with after a few hours wear. As well as fresh citrus scents (the Vitiver was divine) I quite like those smoky, woody scents and went straight for the Rose D'Arabie. Blimey, I was then told it was £230 a bottle! Apparently it's got gold in it... What can I say, champagne tastes, lemonade pockets!







Have you tried out any Armani makeup products?  What do you think?

A huge thanks to the lovely staff who made the event fun, friendly and informative, and for the goody bags to try out the foundation and blush.  Views are my own.