Keira Knightly & Sienna Miller at the Edinburgh Film Festival

With the launch of the Edinburgh Film Festival Keira Knightly & Sienna Miller took to the red carpet for the premiere of their new movie "The Edge of Love'. Both looked stunning as usual & Keira sported a very dramatic smokey eye effect which gave a striking finish to her over all look.

Here's some top tips on how to achieve a sultry smokey eye worthy of any red carpet! -

First of all ensure you have cotton buds at hand as these are your top tool for finishing off this look!

1 - Use a matte eye shadow & opt for a dark brown & black such as Mac Shadow in Brun & Carbon -
2 - First of all apply a primer base to the eye to hold the shadow as it will be a heavy application.
3 - Gradually build the colour, add the dark brown first & blend over the lid & into the socket line.
4 - With a blending brush blend outwards at the outer corners to soften the edges & bring it outwards for a dramatic finish (use circular motions for this)
5 - With your black shadow blend it into the outer corners of the eyes & again blend outwards.
6 - With a pencil brush use the dark brown & take it under the lower lash line to create a heavy finish then do the same with the black.
7 - With your cotton buds blend all round the eye ensuring the edges are soft & blended.
8 - Finally take a black kohl eye pencil & line the top lash line & into the inner lower lash lines & the inner corners so the whole eye is defined, this will create a dramatic finish to the look.

One other tip - as using these colours can be a bit messy, best to either place some loose powder under the eye to catch any excess shadow or do the eyes first, then your foundation!

Top Slimming Creams - Are They Worth it?

With our summer holidays growing closer & closer the emphasis really is on to try & get beach-bod confident!! We're all suckers for the cheats way to do this, even if we are all members of our local gym & the sales of slimming & firming products quadruples at this time of year!!
I've been looking at what are heralded as the top slimming creams made by cult brand Rodial, they'll set you back a cool £95-£100 so are they really worth it??
Firstly Tummy Tuck, this is proven to reduce the abdominal area by 2-3cm in 8wks, it has fig extract and neuropeptides which break down fatty cells and boost the cell metabolism & help slim & tighten the abdomen. Next is the Body Sculpture which is a slimming & anti cellulite gel & will reduce the hip & thigh area by 1cm in one month, it says it breaks down fatty deposits, stimulates tissue drainage, firms & tones your skin. The testimonials are good with customers seeing a difference in the tone & firmness of the areas treated, however as soon as you stop using the product this difference will no doubt diminish, so not a long term solution to body confidence really.....
Whilst I think these products are good to assist with the summer diet & help give you some confidence on the beach, I think when it comes to spending £100 to loose 2-3cm in 2 months then perhaps cutting down on sugary snacks, drinking more water & getting out for 30min walk each day as well as a quick 10 Sit Ups might be better idea for the same results!?

Best Toner - Darphin Purifying Toner

This fab toner, which now comes with the seal of approval from several beauty editors, works wonders to give you beautiful fresh clear skin!! It rejuvenates the skin, reduces pore size as well as removing dirt & make-up in one go, also it clears up blemishes in a matter of days & will prevent a build up of excess oil on the skin. All in all an excellent product & great for giving you the perfect complexion for your summer tan! (£18)

Max Factor Colour Collection Lipsticks

Max Factor along with top make-up artist Pat McGrath have put together a fantastic range of lipsticks to suit all skin tones, so no more trial & error with unflattering colours!!

Here are few golden rules when choosing any lipstick -

Fair Skin - Go for subtle pinks tones, cool beiges or if opting for red make sure it is blue toned, avoid lilacs & purple shades.
Olive Skins - Opt for peach tones to warm beiges & pinks, avoid bronze or gold as these can make the skin appear sallow.
Dark Skins - Warm browns or deep burgandy & plum, avoid pale frosted tones.

Best Foundations For Dry Skin

Dry skin sufferers can find it had to find the right foundation, most liquids can draw attention to the dry skin & create an uneven patch effect to the finish. Here are some top products that have been tried & tested and come up trumps for dry skin!

Firstly before applying your foundation it is best of course to use a good moisturiser, these are two of the best moisturisers I found to try out for dry skin, the Body Shop's Jojoba Hydrating Day Cream (£7.50) as well as Clinique's Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion (from £15), but also apply a Primer to create an even base for your foundation which will also help prevent patches, try Laura Mercier's Primer (£27) or Mac's Prep & Prime Primer (£16).
Id Bare Escentuals (£17) came top of the list for dry skin, it covers evenly & as it is gentle on the skin can help with dryness as well as giving a healthy glow to the finish.
Maybelline Dream Matte Mouse (£6.99) is another winner & creates a light weight finish that doesn't cake or draw attention to any dry areas.
Finally Mac Moistureblend Foundation (£20.50) this is a compact foundation that provides excellent moisture to dry skin & gives a smooth even finish.

Summer Colours - Bright & Neon.

With Summer here colours are going bright & neon with pink, orange & yellow at the top of the list!
Defintely go bright or neon on the Nails to give your look in instant up to the minute edge, try Nails Inc yellow polish in Carnaby Street (9.50) or for some neon energy try O.P.I's Atomic Orange.
Also clashing colours are very cool this season,
try a splash of orange on the eyes with a vibrant pink on the lips, best orange eyeshadows can be found at Mac & Shu Uemura, also Yves Saint Laurent lipstick in Fuchsia Pink gives a beautful luscious colour on the lips, if you want to go for a vibrant colour with a softer finish try the Bourjois Rouge Hi-Tech liptints.

New - Bourjois Rouge Hi-Tech Lip Tint

Everybody is going lip tint crazy just now & Bourjois's new Rouge Hi-Tech is just the ticket if you're after a long lasting natural colour with no heaviness or sticky gloss! It is water based so feels really light on application & gives you intense colour while keeping the feel of bare lips, it comes with a fab applicator too so precision is easy. Choose from six shades - £7.25.