Brands I Want To Try in 2017

Long time, no see! I have been essentially buried under uni deadlines so I do apologise for leaving this place rather abandoned but hopefully I should be back posting again more regularly *fingers crossed* Anyway we may be in March already but I am still talking about the fact that it is 2017! Being a beauty hoarder enthusiast, I am always looking at new products and brands to try. Despite trying so many products, there is still plenty of brands that I am desperate to try out so I thought I would share what is next on my wishlist…

Estee Lauder 

Estee Lauder is such a classic beauty brand yet their makeup line has always seemed to be under my radar. They have so many classic cult products including the ever so popular Double Wear foundation, yet I am still yet to delve into the brand. I have actually already made a purchase, being the Double Wear Brush-On Glow BB Highlighter so this brand will quickly be ticked off my list. However, there is still many products I would love to get my hands on!

Products to try: Double Wear Light Foundation, Pure Colour Envy Sculpting Lipstick, Pure Colour Envy Blush (ooo that ombre!) and DayWear BB creme.

Tom Ford 

If there is one beauty brand I’ve been desperate to try for far too long it is Tom Ford. I mean who wouldn’t want one of those luxurious products in their stash!? The entire range from packaging to colour range is stunning although does come with a very steep price tag which is the main reason I haven’t caved yet! However, there is just far too many positive reviews on the brand and a tube of TF lippy would really look the part on my dressing table…

Products to try: Matte Lip Colour, Eye Colour Quad (Nude Dip looks gorgeous!) and Nail Lacquer (African Violet is top of the wishlist!)

Giorgio Armani 

Another luxurious brand that I have heard so much about is Armani. Again the range simply looks the part as you would expect from the luxury brand. They also have a great range of unique products that could certainly be welcomed into my makeup collection. Again their products are pricey but the brand always appear to have nailed it on quality!

Products to try: Eye Tint, Lip Magnet, Lip Maestro, and Power Fabric foundation.

Dior

There seems to be a luxury theme to this list, apologies, I really am the worst influence on my bank account! Again I’ve heard so much about the amazing Dior makeup range yet I still have not managed to try anything out! Their products are also gorgeous to look at which is always nice! From their bases to their lip collection, there is so many hyped cult products that I just need to get my hands on!

Products to try: Addict Lip Glow, Creme De Rose Lip Balm, Nude BB Cream and Star Fluid foundation.

What brands would you like to try?

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December Favourites

2016 may be so last year but before we get too focused on the excitement of the new year, it is time to go back and look at my favourites from the month of December. From a month of constant festivities, expect a lot of glitter…

Starting with the more sparkly additions in my stash lately that have been the front of my makeup routine in December, Mac pigments are always my favourite products to bring out for any sort of party season! I am always super excited about the limited edition Mac holiday pigment sets that are released each year and this year was no different. this time around I picked up the Bronze set. The set includes three pigments and one glitter in a range of gorgeous bronze-y shades. They create such an impact on the eyes and have such a gorgeous finish. My favourites are Stardream, and Handsome Prince. For Christmas, I also I added to my pigment collection with the addition of Kitschmas which is totally different to anything else I own. It is a gorgeous pearly shimmering pink! Only a recent addition but still one I am already loving!

Continuing with eye makeup, there has also been a new mascara love recently! To help achieve thick voluminous lashes perfect for the party season, Charlotte Tilbury Legendary Lashes has proved to be a winner. This mascara is responsible for creating a full on look of thickened and lengthened lashes! The only issue with this mascara is that as the formula is pretty wet it does smudge easy which is a pain but the impact it creates makes it worth it!

To create the ultimate party look, I can’t be without a good highlight. Becca is my go-to highlighter brand and I knew before trying the Moonstone Shimmering Skin Perfector that I would love it and of course I did! I love liquid highlighters as they create such a gorgeous natural but glowy look. This shade works perfectly too with my pale skin!

On to lip products, I was super excited to see that Jeffree Star is now stocked on Beauty Bay making it really accessible in the UK! I picked up two of the liquid lipsticks in the shades Doll Parts and Gemini. The two shades are so gorgeous and super wearable, Doll Parts in particular is a shade I’ve wanted for so long. The formula is also easy and comfortable to wear! The shade range for the collection is impressive so these definitely won’t be my last liquid lipsticks from the brand!

Lastly, I mentioned this in my Beauty discoveries from 2016 post here, which already says a lot about this product! It is of course the By Terry Baume De Rose Lip Gloss. I wanted to try this for the longest time and I am now so happy I have. It is such a lovely moisturising balm with a pretty light pink sheen. The perfect no-makeup makeup!

What beauty products have you been loving lately?

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Life Lately #12

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas! It is crazy to think it’s been and gone already but I still count the time being as the Christmas period and of course we all still have New Years to look forward to! So on that note, Happy New Year when it comes as this will be my last post of 2016! How crazy!

Life

This month has been pretty crazy, and not just because of the build up to Christmas. I finished my semester at uni which of course meant exams. I spent the first half of December in exam mode which as you can imagine wasn’t the most exciting way to spend the start of the festive month! Obviously though the feeling of getting exams out the way and looking forward to Christmas was indeed very exciting! Annoyingly enough however after my exams past I felt in such a rush and ever so busy with work and preparing for Christmas that I never really felt as chilled as I imagined it would be. Nevertheless with it all cooled down now, I have been enjoying simply doing nothing over the last few days with lots of chocolate and cheesecake and finally catching up on TV that I’ve missed over the past month! I am very much excited to keep that going for the next few weeks before it’s back to uni again!

Blogging 

Of course with the busyness of the past month, I’ve not had a lot of time to spend on my blog. I’ve also felt a little uninspired too lately and I’ve been feeling like I’ve been in such a rush to come up with ideas, never mind write the posts. I took the decision before to cut my blog posts from three posts a week to two which has helped so much! However with a lack of inspiration, I feel pressured by myself to meet my two a week post schedule and it’s obviously no good when I have a lack of ideas and no one wants rushed poor quality blog posts. So to help get myself out of this rut, I have decided to get rid of my ‘Tuesday/Friday’ schedule and instead just post whenever. It isn’t the most ideal especially for my usual organised self but it does mean that I can post when I really want to with posts that I have put all my efforts into and that I really want to post instead of just random rushed posts that are published just to meet my schedule. This doesn’t mean that I will hardly post, there probably will be less posts but I am still going to be active on here and posting as often as I can. I read many other blogs which I love who post randomly without a set schedule so hopefully that won’t bother anyone too much!

On the other hand, I have been pretty active on Instagram this month! I did make a little goal for myself to post every day until Christmas and whilst I did miss a couple of days I did pretty well and it was good to finally get back on to the platform. It was also fun to share some extra stuff too so you can check out all my latest posts here.

Catch up with December posts: Nars Sarah Moon Collection, Things to do this Christmas, Christmas Party Makeup, Winter Skincare Essentials and 2016 Favourites Part 1 & Part 2

How did you spend your Christmas?

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The Best Beauty Discoveries of 2016: Part 2

Being a lipstick hoarder, naturally I had to have a separate 2016 favourites post dedicated just to lip products. This is part two of my yearly favourites, so if you missed my first part then you can catch up here on all my other beauty favourites. Back to the the topic of lipstick however, my favourite, there is a few different products I want to discuss from liquid lipsticks, lipsticks and lip balms which have made my year. Honestly, I could’ve maybe added more options to this post but I thought I would keep it streamlined to mention my top ultimate lip products from the year so here we go..

Starting with liquid lipsticks, 2016 has officially been the year of liquid lipstick. It seems like every brand has their own version of a liquid lipstick with so many to choose from now. There were quite a few I tried this year and particularly ones I hadn’t previously tried out. Kat Von D finally came to the UK this year (finally!) and of course I had to nab a couple of her ever popular everlasting liquid lipsticks. I have a few shades from the range including both Lovesick and Mother (pictured) and they are so gorgeous. Lovesick in particular is such a great everyday shade but also super unique too as well as having a great wearable formula.

Another liquid lipstick that won me over is from the Mac Retro Matte range, in particular Lady Be Good. I heard a lot of mixed reviews regarding these matte liquid lipsticks however I am obsessed with this one. The formula is super comfortable as well as having an amazing doe foot applicator which is spongy and shaped perfectly to fit the lips. The colour is a beautiful peachy nude shade, perfect for everyday wear. With new shades of these being released, I definitely need to try more!

In terms of lipsticks, I fell in love with two new formulas. Firstly, lipstick queen Charlotte Tilbury when I finally tried her KISSING range out, in particular the shade Bitch Perfect. This is my perfect nude, a beautiful light peachy pink and the most comfortable creamy formula. Major Love! A new release this year came from Urban Decay when they revamped their lipstick range, introducing the vice collection of 100 lipsticks. With so many to choose from, I settled for the shade Backtalk which I am so glad I did. It is definitely one of my favourite lipstick shades, a beautiful cool toned rosy mauve shade in a comfortable matte formula. Definitely one I recommend!

Lastly, moving on to lip balm/glosses. I found a lip balm this year that I truly do not know what I would do without in my beauty stash! It is the Instant Light Lip Perfecting Base from Clarins. This works as a treat as my go-to lipstick base as it helps hydrate my lips before layering on the heavy liquid lipsticks. I honestly don’t find matte lipsticks uncomfortable at all, yes even the Mac Retro Matte range as this seems to work so well as if I am wearing nothing on my lips. A truly ground-breaking product in my stash!

Lastly, a newer product in my stash but still one I am already obsessed with. A lip gloss/balm hybrid. the By Terry Baume De Rose Lip Gloss. A special holiday release, this is essentially a pearly lip glossy version of their cult balm, except with a texture much like a balm in that it isn’t overly sticky like a gloss which I love. I always wanted to try the original so I am super excited to be able to try this and since I’ve been loving it, I desperately want the original in my stash! It is such a great minimal makeup option, a beautiful glossy nude pink shade.

What are your top lip products from 2016?

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The Best Beauty Discoveries of 2016: Part 1

The final fortnight of 2016 is upon us! So what better way to end the year than to discuss all of my favourite new beauty discoveries from the year. As of course there is many products to discuss, I have split this post into two so a lip product favourites will also follow this blog post on Friday!

Firstly, starting with face products I’ve been loving this year. The Mac Prep + Prime Highlighter in Light Boost has been my go-to for under eye concealing for its brightening properties. The twist pen style pen highlighter is super easy and convenient. In terms of bronzing and highlighting, I’ve found two products that I know will be long term favourites of mine! The first is the Too Faced Sweethearts bronzer which is only a fairly new addition to my stash but I am already obsessed with its glowy effect and pigmentation. Of course I also had to mention a Becca highlighter as they truly are incredible products. I love all the shades I’ve tried but in particular I am obsessed with Champagne Pop, the ultimate pigmented gold-y peachy glow.

In terms of tools, I had to mention the beauty blender. By far one of the best discoveries for me this year! I have became such a convert to the beauty blender and it is now my go-to for applying my base products. It creates the most flawless fresh base and makes even some of my poorer foundations sit better.

Moving on to eyes, for the brows there have been two products that I’ve been loving. The Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Pomade has been a long year favourite of mine, it is super easy to use whilst creating defined and long lasting brows. More recently, I’ve been enjoying the newer release of the Goof Proof Brow Pencil from Benefit. The twist up pencil is super easy to use and creates a minimal soft brow.

Other eye product shout-outs go to the Make Up For Ever Smoky Extravagant Mascara which has became a big favourite of mine this year. It has been my go-to mascara for creating voluminous and lengthened lashes. I’ve also got back into rocking eyeliner recently since I discovered the Kat Von D Tattoo Liner which is worth all the praise and hype it gets! It is incredibly pigmented and the fine nib makes it super easy to use. Lastly, the Too Faced Sweet Peach palette (which is back in stock!!) also deserves a lot of love. The Too Faced shadows are amazing quality but this palette also offers a dreamy and unique shade range!

What are your top products from 2016?

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The Christmas Party Makeup

It’s the season of red lips and glitter, my favourite! I had a Christmas party last weekend so thought I was the perfect excuse to show some of my top picks for the party season. Expect the standard cliché red lips, glitter and lots of highlighter!

In terms of base, I like to go for something I can trust to be long wearing and provide the coverage! Of course I opted for my trusty Nars Sheer Glow along with my usual concealer combo of the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer and Mac Prep + Prime highlighter in Light Boost. To top it off, I applied a light layer of the Chanel Les Beiges powder to keep things in place!

To add more warmth to my skin, I bronzed up with the Too Faced Sweethearts bronzer which I love! I then added more definition with the Kevin Aucoin sculpting powder and topped it off with a lot of the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed highlighter in Pearl because if you can’t have go overboard with highlighter at Christmas, when can you!?

For eyes, the Mac pigments came out to play! I picked up the Bronze set from holiday collection, using the a combination of both Stardream and Handsome Prince. Of course I added some liner using my favourite Kat Von D Tattoo Liner. I finished my eyes with the Make Up For Ever Smoky Extravagant mascara.

Finally, I obviously finished with some red lips for the ultimate Christmas party look using Mac Russian Red.

What are your party picks?

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Nars Sarah Moon Holiday 2016 Collection

Nars is without a doubt one of, if not, my favourite makeup brand. Everything I try from the brand excels in quality with a great shade range and selection to chose from as well as the uber sleek packaging. When it comes round to Christmas, Nars are always on top form with their amazing holiday collections and this year was no exception. This year’s collection was based around Sarah Moon, a French photographer with packaging inspired by her work. Instead of the usual gift sets that I am always going for, this year the colour collection appealed to me again.

I picked up two products from the colour collection, an eyeshadow duo and a lipstick. Starting with the eyeshadow pick, I have always had my eye on some of the Nars eyeshadow duos but never picked one up. When I caught my eye on Quai Des Brumes, I just had to pick it up, isn’t limited edition products such a great marketing trick! The duo features two grey toned shades, one a silvery mauve lilac shimmer shade and the other a charcoal grey with specks of gold shimmer. The shades are super unique, particularly the shimmer shade and they both work so beautifully together. They are both amazingly pigmented too however one problem I have with the duo is the longevity. These shadows seem to disappear in no time on my lids! I may have to try out a few different primers because the shades are too beautiful to not use!

The other product I picked up was a lipstick (of course!). The collection features a selection of the slim Nars lipsticks which I had not previously tried. Named the Moon Matte lipsticks, I picked up the nude shade Indecent Proposal. The colour is my perfect shade, a gorgeous warm rosy nude brown which a matte finish. What I love the most about this lipstick however is the incredible formula. For being a matte lipstick, it is incredibly creamy and comfortable. Probably one of the best matte formulas I’ve came across!

Are you a fan of this collection?

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November Favourites

I have been in such a routine with my beauty products recently that I haven’t been trying too many new products or changing much up. However with Winter making an appearance lately I have been changing a couple of products in my skincare routine that I have been enjoying. So here is what I’ve been loving this month…

Starting briefly with makeup which surprisingly is in the minority this time around! I only have two makeup picks, although really one… If you follow me on Instagram then you may have seen my recent Too Faced purchase. I had some Debenhams points to use up and I had wanted to get my hands on the Too Faced Sweethearts bronzer for far too long so felt like the perfect opportunity! Shaped like a heart, Too Faced standard pretty packaging, it has two halves of a lighter and darker bronze-y shade in a shimmery baked formula. It reminds me slightly of the Hourglass bronzers but a fraction of the price and a much lighter shade. The shimmer is also not too over the top and just the right amount. It has great pigmentation and creates such a lovely sculpting effect on the skin which I love.

To apply my Too Faced Bronzer,  I have been enjoying using my new Eco Tools Blending and Bronzing brush. I picked this up from Love Me Beauty as part of their subscription service. This is actually the first time I’ve tried Eco Tools brushes but I am already loving this brush. It works perfectly with the bronzer in that it is the perfect size and works great when applying.

Moving on to skin-body care products, my skin has felt so dehydrated lately that I’ve been looking to nourish and hydrate my skin so I have changed up a couple of products in my routine. Now and again, I’ve been opting for the Emma Hardie Cleansing balm as my second cleanse as it is super nourishing on the skin. It is such a great option for Winter skin and now I am desperate to get my hands on more cleansing balms! Another skincare product I’ve changed up is my moisturiser, again there has been times when my skin has been craving more hydration and the Origins GinZing Energy Boosting Moisturiser is the perfect product for dehydrated skin. I mentioned this on my repurchase list post, it is such a great moisturiser and I definitely need to pick up the full size!

Lastly, I have been loving the Snow Fairy body conditioner from Lush which I mentioned in my post here. I am such a fan of the original Snow Fairy scent that I knew I would love this. It is much more subtle but has such a gorgeous luxurious texture that is just perfect for this time of year!

Have you tried any of these products?

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Life Lately #11

Happy Black Friday everyone and hope all you US gals and guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I swear over the last couple of years Black Friday has transformed from being a one day event to a whole weekend to now an entire week of sales, crazy! So having said that, I have already made a couple of splurges, treat yo self and all that! However I did the smart thing and am trying to stick to items that have been on my wishlist for a while rather than impulse buying! So I have already bought a couple of things from All Saints with their amazing 30% off offer and also I picked up a couple of items from my Holiday Beauty Wishlist on ASOS! I also hope to get my Christmas shopping done or most of it by Monday by taking advantage of all the discounts available!

Life 

Other than crazy amounts of shopping, I have also been finishing up on uni work with my last couple of weeks of the semester. That of course means exams are looming so my December will be pretty hectic with studying towards that so my festive excitement may have to take a back step for the time being! Hopefully my blogging schedule won’t be affected but I can’t predict the future so apologies in advance if I do miss a post!It’s crazy to think that December is starting next week and is of course the last month of 2016, how insane! I am super excited though to get all festive and in the Christmas spirit!

In other news, as you can see above I did a little phone upgrade to the iPhone 7. I wasn’t ridiculously fussed over the new model but I am very much a loyal iPhone user so it was natural progression. I got the rose gold shade, obviously, and it is super beautiful! In my opinion, not much different from the 6 model but the design is super pretty although the whole no headphone jack situation is rather frustrating!

Blogging 

One of my goals for this month was to get back into Instagram! Whilst I left it a little late I have been back on! So my return to Instagram is official! To make it even more official, I thought I would do a little instagram challenge and post everyday from the 1st December until the 24th. Like Insta-mas rather than blogmas, nice! So of course don’t forget to follow me to catch my other content here (styledbylaurenblog).

TV/Music 

In terms of TV, I haven’t been watching much! In the UK, I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is back on TV so I’ve dedicating my evenings to that! I am definitely a wimp when it comes to bugs and that kind of thing but I love the show! Also, I have started watching the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt which stars Ellie Kemper who of course played Erin in The Office. I am only a few episodes into the first season however it is already such an easy pleasant watch!

In terms of music, I haven’t quite got into the Christmas tunes yet (speaking of which I have surprisingly not heard much anyway!). There has been quite a few catchy songs released at the moment that I am really enjoying. I am really liking the debut tune from Noah Cyrus and also the song Rockbye is super catchy and always played on the radio! I’ve been a fan of Gabrielle Aplin for a while so was nice to hear her new release which is rather different but again ridiculously catchy, love it! To break away from listening to the same pop songs again and again, I started listening to Catfish and the Bottlemen who I am already obsessed with! Their album ‘The Ride’ is just too good!

Catch up with November posts: Nars Lip Pencil collection, Urban Decay Ultimate Basics Palette, The Repurchase List, How to get Inspired in Blogging Again, Lush Christmas Haul and Holiday Beauty Wishlist.

How have you spent your November?

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