While this holiday season will be unlike any we’ve experienced before. I felt a little sparkle is just the thing to help lift our spirits and bring back some joy. For more information or to shop the products I used, click here. xx
Book & Beauty Review: Euphoria by Lily King
When checking out at my local book store, the sales attendant said that Euphoria was a great escape. I liked the sound of that. I often read novels to escape into other worlds- letting my imagination take over and paint a picture to the corresponding words on the page. Not only is Euphoria set in a different time period (the early 1930s) but it was also cast in a completely foreign (to me) part of the world... the secluded tribal lands of New Guinea. Definitely all the makings for an escapism novel. Clap. Clap.
BOOK REVIEW: EUPHORIA BY LILY KING
When you first step into the world of Euphoria, it is hard to know who is guiding you. Who is speaking? From what view are you being introduced to the characters you will soon know so intimately? This becomes one of the things I like most about Euphoria. You gain perspective about personalities and events through multiple narrators, and it adds depth to the story.
You also fall in love with the lady lead, Nell Stone, almost immediately. A self-made woman who has had a successful start to her career as an anthropologist with a best-selling book and enough grant money to fund her expeditions. Smart, beautiful and American, Nell has built a reputation that proceeds her. Her only downfall is that she married an idiot. Enter Schyuler Fenwick, an Aussie anthropologist who is severely jealous of his wife's success and exhibits his inferiority by overpowering her across all areas. He's an ass, and as the story unfolds there are no redeeming qualities.
Luckily, there is one more anthropologist in their relative area. A gentleman named Andrew Bankson from Liverpool. Bankson brings sensitivity, intelligence and relatable humanness to the story.
In an isolated area with three anthropologist dedicated to work that at times feels crucial and then questionable at best, we escape into the intricacies of human relations (both between the Westerners and the tribal people) with poetic conversation at times and profound realizations that can't help but touch the reader. The result is a deeply satisfying read that stays with you days after you've read the last sentence. Proof of a true escape.
beauty review
Most of the book takes place on the remote island of New Guinea, casting a tropical radiance of dew and heat. Living amongst the indigenous tribes, life is simple and boiled down to Western luxuries as common as a cup of tea or a cigarette. Leading lady Nell Stone seems to have a subtle beauty that grows as you get to know her. Unconcerned with makeup or even the scary-looking wounds from a recent expedition, she is relaxed and any glow she gives off is her own.
Inspired by our fearless anthropologist, we can construct a look that captures an innate luminosity with balanced enhancement. For this look, less is more.
1. Start with a clean face. Mix face oil with foundation and apply evenly to face (including the eyelids). Use a touch more foundation where needed to cover spots or any redness. The oil helps hydrate the face and gives off a slightly dewy effect.
2. Using a goldish- coppery shadow, blend onto eyelids from lashline up to socket crease. Use a brush to blend away any lines.
3. Apply a creme blush to apples of cheeks and blend outward towards ears, and down into the hallow of the cheek.
4. Apply a light layer of lip stain to lips in an imperfect way (going slightly outside the natural edges of the lips) for a more full effect. Blot off with a tissue, and add a layer of clear lip balm for shine and moisture.
5. Finally, apply a light layer of mascara to lashes- taking care to separate lashes for a more natural and bright-eyed look.
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