What’s in My Travel Makeup Bag?

So I mentioned briefly in my June Monthly Roundup that I am going away on holiday this month. So I thought I would share with you all some of the makeup pieces that have made the cut in my makeup bag. I am going with a streamlined approach, as I like to think anyway by only taking essentials and pretty much one of each beauty product except for lips (obviously, gal needs choices!). So here is what is in my travel makeup bag…

Starting with the makeup bag itself. It deserves its own mention alone because of course its from Charlotte Tilbury. I did a little CT splurge last month and since I never had a decent makeup bag and I was going away I thought I needed this beauty in my life. I love it but I will talk about it all in a little more detail another time…

Onto the makeup. Firstly, base. I have packed my trusty Laura Mercier foundation primer to help pro-long the wear of my makeup in the heat. Not as good as the Smashbox primer in my opinion but it’s still one of the best ones I’ve tried. I also picked up a new base in the form of the Topshop BB cream. I wanted something lightweight for Summer and so far so good with this one, the coverage is actually pretty decent! On top of that of course my favourite Nars Creamy concealer (review here) and the Maybelline Eraser Eye concealer for under the eyes which truthfully I am still a bit iffy about.

Then to give my complexion a bit of a boost. I have also added in my Rimmel Stay Blushed liquid blush in Sunkissed Cherry which is super lightweight but offers such a nice colour to the cheeks. For a little added warmth and glow the Soap and Glory Wonderbronze is a fab bronzer for the Summer months. Also, the Topshop Glow stick highlighter in Play Up makes an addition for an easy swipe of glow and radiance.

Then, in terms of eyes I’ve stuck with two reliable Benefit products. Firstly, the Rollerlash mascara (review here) which lengthens and curls the lashes super well and the Benefit Gimme Brow (review here) to give my eyebrows a little colour and definition. Of course I’ve also got the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze which is one of my favourites, great formula and perfect bronze-y gold colour.

Then I have all the choices when it comes to lips! As I am out and about for once I’ve added in some bright bold shades that deserve a little loving. I love the Nars Lip Pencils, super long lasting formula and super creamy and smooth to apply. I have Yu which I mentioned in my June Favourites, a bold fuschia pink and Iberico (LE) a stunning orange-y red that I am so excited to wear (swatches for both here). I’ve also got my two new Charlotte Tilbury lipsticks in Sexy Sienna and Lost Cherry, both perfect for Summer! Lastly, I also had to get one of the Clinique Lip Pop lipsticks and chose Melon Pop, a beautiful coral-y peach perfect for everyday wear and a little lower key than my other choices.

If you have succeeded to this line then well done, sorry for the uber long post!

What makeup will you be wearing this Summer?

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The Benefit Mascara Trio

If there is one brand that do mascara pretty darn well without a doubt it is Benefit. Benefit have a trio of offerings in the mascara department and each offers something pretty special. Mascara is one thing that one person will like and another won’t but for me personally Benefit mascaras are worth the rave and here is why…

Benefit They’re Real – The most popular out of the three, the much hyped They’re Real mascara. From what I am aware this is the best selling mascara in the UK and rightly so it is pretty darn good! This mascara is definitely a winner when it comes to lengthening the lashes and also adds volume and lifts the lashes. The wand is pretty good too by not being too thick allowing the bristles to separate the lashes.

Benefit Bad Gal Lash – Probably the least mentioned of them all. It is bit of throwback for many I am sure but still a decent offering. It isn’t as popular as the other two which is expected since the other two are much better options however that isn’t to say that it’s not good. I mentioned this one in my Spring Edit and it really is perfect for a natural everyday makeup look. It creates such lovely fluttery natural but voluminous lashes. The brush is pretty thick which would put many off but it isn’t actually all that scary, it really works to help lift and coat the lashes.

Benefit Roller Lash – I always save the best til last and this time is no exception. This is the newest of the bunch being released at the start of the year were it received a lot of hype from many bloggers. Suggested by the name, this mascara is said to give curl without the use of eye-lash curlers and it really does. This is definitely my favourite of the three, it does everything you would expect from a mascara. It creates such lovely full curled lashes, what more could you want!? You can see my full review on this one here.

What is your favourite Benefit mascara? 

 

New Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Review

 

If there is one product that has a lot of hype at the minute it is the Benefit Roller Lash mascara. I am a huge fan of Benefit’s mascaras, in particular They’re Real which was my go-to for the last month before I got my hands on this gem which you may recall seeing in my February Favourites. With the mascara just realised, Elle Magazine were giving us all a little taster with a free sample with their March issue of their magazine. Of course I did what I do best and picked it up on its first day on sale.

Benefit always have some great marketing behind their products and this was no exception. I think everyone knew everything about this mascara before it was even released. The concept behind this mascara is the idea of hair rollers back from the 50s. This concept has been well documented through their campaigns and the product packaging and image. The full sized tube is styled with the look of a hair roller and the idea of the product is meant to capture quite that.

The “Hook & Roll” brush is said to grip, lift and curl the lashes without the use of eyelash curlers. Essentially a hair roller for your lashes. There is no doubt about this that it does quite that. The brush is one I really am fond of, It fits the eye well to capture each lash and really helps to separate the lashes. I always find thinner brushes much better and provides better results than thicker brushes which are prone to clumping. Saying that, this mascara does not make the lashes clumpy and really does lift, separate, lengthen and curl, everything a good mascara should do. It holds a curl really well which you would expect from the name.

If there is a slight let down on this mascara I would only say I would like a tad more volume, just a little more. I do have to compare this to the They’re Real mascara and after comparing the two side to side I didn’t really feel a big difference but the more I wore this I was continued to be wooed. Difficult to say but I do think this is better than They’re Real as it always looks that bit better at the end of the day and the curl is still in place. At a pricey £19.50 for a full size I may hold off this purchase for a while until I am finally sure this is the one. Knowing me, I will probably be snapping this up sometime anyway oh well! Well done Benefit, you’ve done it again!

Have you tried the Roller Lash? Are you a fan?