Five For Fall: Lipstick

If there is one thing to get excited about at this time of year it is without a doubt berry and red toned lips. You’ve seen my blush choices for the new season but now it’s time to look at some of my favourite lip picks for Autumn, all of which of course follow the typical plum/red/berry tones.

First up is the darkest in the bunch and one of the budget options from the drugstore. Revlon Black Cherry is an intense plum toned shade that was basically created for this time of year. Personally I actually find this shade a little too dark on it’s own but when applied on top of the Benefit Benebalm tinted lip balm the shade is much more wearable. This is actually my only lipstick from Revlon, in fact the only product I own from the brand but I definitely need to pick up some more as the formula is beautiful. Super creamy, the lipstick glides on smoothly on the lips and is a dream to wear.

Speaking of fabulous formulas, I am a huge fan of the Nars Lip Pencils, in fact I think they are one of the best lip products around. The formulas are everything you could want in a lipstick, super creamy and comfortable to wear but also well pigmented and long lasting on the lips. The shade Mandore was part of the limited edition collection last Winter although it appears to be still available. It is a gorgeous deep red shade that will not look out of place during the colder months.

The shade I will probably be getting the most wear out of during the Autumn months is one of the new additions to my collection, Mac Plumful. I mean come on what is a lip post without a Mac lipstick! With a change in season I basically had to head to Mac (it’s like a tradition obvs?) and I had one shade in particular in my mind that I just had to pick up. Plumful is an incredibly popular shade and as the name suggests is a beautiful plum-y pink colour that is completely different to anything in my collection. It is a lustre finish so has a balmy texture whilst the colour appears more on the sheerer side of things although I find Plumful to be rather buildable and can be worn as more of statement lip. This is a lipstick I know I will love for a long time to come.

Another new addition from Mac is from their matte range namely the shade D for Danger. I had originally planned to pick this up at the same time as Plumful although it was out of stock. Luckily for me though I spotted this online at the House of Fraser and was rather surprised to find it slightly cheaper at £14 rather than the usual £15.50. Whilst not much a saving it’s always nice to grab some sort of bargain especially on Mac. The shade is gorgeous and perfect for Autumn. A typical dark berry red shade with a comfortable but long lasting matte finish.

Lastly, I obviously had to mention the Fall classic. Rimmel Kate Moss 107, the perfect berry lip at an affordable price. This is actually a very similar shade to D for Danger that it could be considered as a dupe. Again this one has a matte finish and lasts well on the lips whilst still feeling comfortable.

What is your favourite lip product for Fall?

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The Minimal Makeup Look

We all have those days were we want a fuss free makeup menu that will take a limited amount of time. I certainly have those days and since starting work this Summer I have nailed down a quick makeup routine that is easy and appropriate for a day at work. I am thinking those easy and convenient products but also ones that I can trust to create a good base. There are quite a few products in my stash that serve this purpose pretty well.

First up, when it comes to base I want something simple, lightweight but also creates radiant and flawless skin. Sounds like a lot but BareMinerals Complexion Rescue fits the bill. The light coverage base blends in like a dream and creates such gorgeous glowy fresh skin. Teamed with the Nars Creamy Concealer which gives the coverage it serves up a flawless base. Still sticking with the base, to warm things up a bit my new trusty Body Shop Honey Bronzer is a match made in heaven for my pale skin. For quick and easy application, the Rimmel Stay Blushed cheek tint works perfectly at adding a little flushed look to the cheeks. To keep on top of the glow the Topshop Glow Pot is the perfect product for adding a sheen to the tops of the cheekbones.

Moving on to eyes. there is nothing quite as easy and simple as a good eyeshadow stick. The By Terry Ombre Blackstars are as good as the hype suggests. The shade Misty Rock is simply beautiful and the formula is incredible gliding over the lids smoothly with a gorgeous finish. To finish the look, a quick swipe of the Benefit Bad Gal mascara for that natural fluttery style which is perfect for an everyday basis. For brows, the Soap and Glory Archery works wonders and is perfect for those minimal makeup days when you need something natural but still tidied up.  To finish the look, a simple sweep of the Clarins Lip Balm Perfector is a great choice, super moisturising and buttery smooth on the lips whilst still giving them a little colour.

What do you wear on Minimal Makeup days?

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Blogger Enabled Purchases

Looking at my entire makeup collection, a very large percentage of it was some way or another enabled by other beauty blogs. Usually every-time I plan on buying a product I turn to other blogs in hope to find out if I should really be spending my money on a certain product. Basically I am a sucker for hype and my collection proves that. I have gathered a small bundle of products that I own that I basically bought because blogger hype. Although as I say this is only a small quantity so if anyone wants a round 2 then let us know! Warning: long post ahead, get a cuppa!

Anyway on to the beautifully hyped products. First up is the base I have been obsessed with lately. BareMinerals launched their Complexion Rescue earlier this year and was soon featured in so many favourites posts of many bloggers/YouTubers. Since I started to find a new love for light coverage bases I had wanted to try this out. This definitely lived up to the hype. Easy to apply, weightless on the skin and the most perfect radiant skin. A favourite of mine for a long time to come! Check my full review here.

Continuing with base products I’ve also got a concealer from Maybelline, namely the Anti-Age Eraser Eye. Now this product got a lot of loving from Anna (Vivianna Does Makeup) and being a drugstore product there was no guilt in picking this one up. Now this concealer was so popular that I couldn’t even get my hands on it for such a long time. I went to every Boots/Superdrug in my city and could not find the shade Light in any of them. It was also sold out online everywhere. Until luckily it came back in stock on Feel Unique and I quickly snapped it up. I bought this concealer for under the eyes as I did have a gap in my collection for a good under eye concealer. Although sadly I don’t think this has filled the gap. The shade range (in the UK anyway) is atrocious. Two shades both of which are too dark for my skin but neither of them are incredibly dark either. So the shade ‘Light’ is basically too dark for me which doesn’t help when trying to lighten up my under eye area. Nevertheless the concealer is ok and I do quite like the spongy applicator which everyone seemed to dislike. Honestly it’s not any bit less hygienic than a doe foot applicator.

Moving on as I realise how long this post is going to become, sorry guys! Back to a bit of product loving. I recently picked up the Body Shop Honey Bronzer which was basically enabled by Estee (Essie Button) who raves about this all the time. This is just such a lovely bronzer. The shade range is perfect. For a pale kid like me it’s spot on. The shade isn’t too muddy or orange on the skin, its just the perfect colour that warms up the skin beautifully. I think this one will become a long time fave!

On to lip products. Two very similar lip liners gained a lot of attention in the blogging world lately. First up the Rimmel Exaggerate lip liner in Eastend Snob, a dusky pink my lips but better shade. Now this got a lot of hype due to its similarities to the also well hyped Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk which also makes my list. The shades are very similar but the Rimmel counterparts edge just that little bit darker. Although If I am honest the CT version pips this to the post by a large margin. I really am not a fan of the Rimmel liner, in fact I’ve hardly used it but have so little product left as it keeps breaking each time I use it. I also much prefer the smoother finish of the CT liner in comparison to the Rimmel one which I find a little too waxy on the lips. Another hyped lip product was the Clinique Lip Pop range that basically every blogger spoke about for weeks on end. A new lip range boasting a moisturising finish with good lasting power and good pigmentation. Basically these were meant to be the top dogs. I picked up the shade Melon Pop, a gorgeous summer appropriate coral shaded pink. The moisture with these lipsticks are definitely there, they feel super comfortable on the lips. Although one thing that does let it down is the lasting power. I have heard better for other shades but this shade in particular doesn’t tend to last very long on the lips which is a shame as it’s such a pretty colour.

Another highly hyped product that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on was one of the By Terry Ombre Blackstar eyeshadow sticks. After seeing Lily Pebbles and Tanya Burr sporting the ‘Misty Rock’ shade on several occasions I couldn’t resist any longer. The mauve-plum-silvery indescribable shade is truly gorgeous and a super unique colour. The formula of this eyeshadow stick is unbeatable. Super smooth and glides easily over the eyes without tugging but with all the colour pigment. See my full review here. I need more!

Finally! Probably the most naivest purchases I could ever make although not regrettable. The Nars Laguna Bronzer and Nars Orgasm Blush are two of the most hyped products around and of course I had to have them for that reason. I bought these two back last year when I first started getting into makeup but honestly I had no idea what I was doing. At that point I probably had no idea what bronzer was for never mind spending nearly £30 on one and a blusher when blush wasn’t really my thing and the shade wasn’t even particularly me either. Although step forward a year and as you can see that bronzer has been well loved although thats because I used it everyday after buying it then when I hit pan I stopped, true story *fear of repurchase*. The blush as well is truly gorgeous, with specks of gold shimmer it really makes your complexion glow and doesn’t sit flat. Even if I never bought them last year then let’s be honest I would probably would have picked them up sooner or later cause hype… ya know.

Did you get sucked into the hype with any of these products?

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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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5 Beauty Products Under £5

There is no denying we all love a good bargain, am I right!? Quite often many of us especially myself are guilty of overlooking the sea of options available in the drugstore and instead turn to high end counters with higher expectations and a world of beautiful packaging. Although the drugstore holds so many amazing products at really amazing prices. Today I want to share 5 products to be exact from the drugstore that all come under the £5 mark and all deserve a round of applause!

Barry M Nail Polish – How could I not mention Barry M nail polish! With a wide collection of different shades and top notch formulas all under £5 you really cannot miss out on these wonderful creations! Every-time I pop into Boots I always have to have a little look at the Barry M display. You really don’t need to fork out a lot of money for a good nail polish, the drugstore have great options and Barry M is definitely one of my favourite brands for nails.

Rimmel Stay Blushed Liquid Cheek Tint – This cream/liquid blush from Rimmel really is great value for money! Rimmel are such a great affordable brand and still create really great products, ideal if you are on a budget. I have had this cheek tint for so long now and I still have a lot of product left. For a 14ml tube, you only need a tiny amount of this to create a lovely flush of colour on the cheeks.

Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover – Back to nails. This nail polish remover from Bourjois really is a game-changer. For ages now I relied on the old school method of a cotton pad and the usual bottle of nail polish remover then this entered my life and changed everything. It makes life so much easier, you simply put your nail into the pot and twist it around and magic, all the nail polish is removed. It really is magic!

Maybelline Colour Tattoo Cream Gel Eyeshadows – Probably one of my favourite products from the drugstore, if not my favourite. The formula of these are probably one of my favourites too, they are super creamy and glide on to the eyes super easily. The shades are also great and super pigmented! On and On Bronze and Metallic Pomegranate are my two favourites in the line and definitely worth picking up!

Nivea Lip Butter Raspberry Rose – You may know I am a big fan of this after mentioning it in my April Favourites. For only £2, yes I did say £2, this stuff is amazing! The raspberry scent is heavenly but more important the texture is super smooth and soft on the lips. I wear this at night and it keeps my lips super hydrated and moisturised. It really is a great buy!

What are your favourite drugstore products?

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The Spring Blush Edit

If there is one thing I am loving at the moment, its a bit of blush. Just a touch of pink on the cheeks is enough to add a little life and energy to a rather dull complexion. With Spring here (or not considering the weather lately) I’ve been stashing away my darker berry blushes in favour of light pinks and corals and I am loving it. In fact I am getting pretty blush obsessed recently and I could totally do some damage in the beauty aisles searching for some newbies for my collection… *hides bank card* Anyway here are some of my picks for Spring.

MAC Ripe Peach – Its pretty damn dreamy, am I right!? Now if you seen my full review on this one here, you may recall I was slightly disappointed with the formula of this pretty blush. The pigmentation isn’t great and it does take a bit of building to get any colour pay off but for this time of year the subtle peachy tones just add a little warmth to the complexion. It has a slight shimmer to it but not too much, this is a blush I can see myself reaching for during summer for just a little boost of colour.

Rimmel Stay Blushed Sunkissed Cherry – A cheap and cheerful choice from Rimmel. I love this liquid blush. When I say liquid, its more of a creamier thicker consistency but not too thick. The great thing about this blush is you only need the tiniest amount and it creates such a beautiful flush of pink on the cheeks. Due to the liquid/cream formula it also appears super natural on the cheeks, perfect for Spring.

Nars Orgasm – Lets try get over the weird name. I have spoken about this one briefly here. Its a classic. When I bought this I wore it religiously and then as Winter approached I turned to darker shades but now its back out. Its a beautiful shimmery pink without being overly shimmery. The pigmentation and quality of this blush is fantastic and I really am lusting over a couple more from Nars. Again you only need a light-handed sweep of this to achieve a pretty and natural flush of colour.

Benefit Majorette – Of course if I had the chance I would mention this one again and again. This really does have Spring written all over it. A beautiful coral peach shade and in a great workable cream formula. You can use this as a blush booster (under another blush) or by itself (which is the option I do). Alone it creates such a beautiful pop of colour on the cheeks. I love it, you can see my full review here.

What blushes are you reaching for this Spring? 

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Disappointing Products

I like to think I remain pretty positive particularly on my blog but sadly some products just don’t impress me much (apologies for the Shania Twain connection). Speaking of which, today I am going to talk a little on some of those products. Now when it comes to beauty, everyone has different preferences and some things suit others better so I am sorry if I am about to slag off your holy grail product! Anyway here are my picks of the not so impressing products (for me anyway).

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation – Now I have mentioned this one before and I know a lot of people love it but sadly it just didn’t work well with my skin. Sometimes it would sit okay and others it just failed on me. It seemed to stick to my dry patches, it didn’t last long and I felt like it was slightly difficult to blend in to a good finish.

Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder & Highlighter – Again I know this bronzer is a favourite of many but again I just didn’t get on with it. I don’t know whether I got a bad product or its always like this but I found this pretty unusable. Both the bronzer and highlighter are really stiff in the pan. My finger doesn’t pick up the bronzer at all and while it does for the highlighter, my brush doesn’t pick up the product. Other than that it smells pretty damn amazing which is probably the reason why I haven’t chucked this one yet!

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer – I’ve spoke briefly on this one too here and again its a pretty hyped up favourite by many. It just didn’t offer me the coverage I needed for my heavily blemished and red skin. It was really cakey as well in my opinion and just stuck to dry patches and the lasting claim never really happened for me either.

Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser – Sorry for the repetitiveness as I know I have mentioned my dislike for this one too. I love my primers but this one just didn’t quite cut it. It felt really greasy on my skin and never did anything for my pores. I didn’t really feel like it helped pro-long the wear of my makeup much either which is what I look for in a primer.

Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner – Being a lover of eyeliner pens like the style of this one from Eyeko, I was pretty excited to receive this in the Latest in Beauty box. However after first use attempt I was pretty disappointed. It’s not easy trying to master the cat flick with eyeliner so I always felt using pen style liners were much easier but this one left me in a struggle. It was so difficult to apply that I actually had to swap back to my trusty Soap and Glory Supercat to finish the look. It didn’t apply smoothly and felt like it was dragging my eyelid, I wanted to like it but it was just far too difficult to apply.

Benefit They’re Real Push Up Liner – Yep another eyeliner and pretty much the same reasoning. I absolutely love Benefit, they hardly ever let me down and being a huge fan of the mascara from this line I got quite excited to receive this in one of the Christmas gift sets. I have heard many reviews of this one saying its a bit like marmite, some love it and some hate it. Sadly, I’m in the latter category, I just couldn’t work this, it was too difficult to apply and it wouldn’t give me the smooth line I was after.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Pore Minimiser – Another disappointing primer. Again I couldn’t really see what this did for my pores at all and I don’t think it really did much to help improve the base of my makeup. The tea tree scent does feel fresh on the skin but it wasn’t quite what I was looking for.

Are you a fan of any of these products?

 

 

Empties #2

Since I’ve built up quite a few empty products over the month, it’s time for another Empties post. With these products in their last days I thought I would review what I thought about them and whether I will be making a repurchase.

One Direction Our Moment – First on the list is a shower gel. How exciting! I am going to try and refrain from mentioning my love for One Direction too much here and focus purely on their wonderfully scented shower gel. This came alongside their perfume ‘Our Moment’ and the scent is incredibly similar. The scent is very fruity and floral and isn’t too bad in terms of longevity on the skin. Would I repurchase? No not really, I don’t really go out my way to purchase shower gel and this one would probably be quite a hassle to find and continuously buy, it is lovely though 🙂

Lush Mask of Magnaminty – Next up is a peppermint mask from Lush. I heard quite a lot about this mask and thought it would be a good addition to help clear my skin. The peppermint scent is dreamy and feels so fresh on the skin. It does leave your skin feeling super soft and fresh. In terms of blemishes, I don’t think its a miracle worker but what is!? Would I repurchase? Probably, I do love a bit of peppermint and it does make my skin feel hydrated and clean.

The Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum-in-oil – You may be familiar with me talking about this Body Shop oil before. I absolutely love face oils, they are such a great way to add a layer of hydration and help with any dry skin especially around Winter time. This one lasted me quite a while so it really is great value and really does help recharge my skin as well as making my skin more radiant. Would I repurchase? Hell yes!

Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser – I am without a doubt a true primer gal, I really can’t go a day without putting a layer of primer on before anything else. In a constant hunt for the perfect primer I thought I would try this one from Maybelline which many suggested as being a dupe for the much loved Benefit Porefessional. Sadly, I have to disagree on that one. The aim of ‘erasing’ pores sadly just doesn’t do it for me and the primer feels very heavy and greasy on my skin contradicting with the lightweight feel it says it is supposed to give. Would I repurchase? No.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer – It is the incredibly hyped up product from a brand I never ever made eye contact with (until the hype sucked me up!). For many this is holy grail status, for me it isn’t anywhere near that I’m afraid. I tried but I really couldn’t get on with this. With my skin suffering from blemishes and redness, i really need something to help camouflage this, sadly this concealer just didn’t offer me the coverage I needed. It also stuck to my dry patches and the lasting power wasn’t quite good enough for me either. Would I repurchase? No.

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation – Again this is another popular beauty item that I’m sure many of you are a fan of. For me yet again sadly it never lived up to the hype. At first I liked this and then when I began to continuously use it, I got put off. Firstly, I think I must have picked the wrong shade as it was a little too light for my skin. The main problems for me however was that it didn’t last long at all which is something I look for in foundation and it clung to dry areas of my skin. Would I repurchase? No.

Are you a fan of any of these products?

 

 

 

 

March Favourites

Happy April Fools Day! I would make a joke but its after 12 now and I’m no good at jokes so yeah I will pass on that one! Anyway can you believe its already April! Where has time gone!? I am so excited for the warmer spring weather and the chance to wear lighter and glowy makeup. So its time to look back at some of my favourites from the month of March…

MAC Soar Lip liner – First on the list is this highly-coveted-hard-to-get-a-hold-of lip-liner from MAC. Since the Kylie Jenner nude lip craze happened basically MAC nude lip-liners were no were to be seen. I had my eye on this one for ages to pair with my MAC Twig and I spotted a single one left on a trip to the MAC store and obviously had to buy it! MAC lip-liners are the perfect quality and this just looks great paired with Twig.

Benefit Gimme Brow – You may recall seeing my review here I did this month on this beauty. I picked this up in a bid to give my brows a quick fix and there is no turning back on this one. Its fab but slightly expensive.

Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick 107 – A blast from the past! This was the coveted berry lip everyone needed to get their hands on and it still is. I’ve turned to this one several times this month before I say goodbye to the dark lips in time for spring. I keep getting reminded how much I love this lipstick, its creamy, pigmented and super long lasting as well as being such a gorgeous shade!

Topshop Glow-stick in Play Up – Another old favourite. I picked up this highlighter a while back from Topshop but have been using it on a daily basis lately. It is incredible. As a big fan of highlighters, I highly recommend this one and for £10, its fab! It so pigmented and glowy on the skin without looking sparkly or glittery. Its great for daily wear use without looking overboard and even know I haven’t tried either it look like a dupe for the Clinque chubby stick highlighter and the Nars Copacabana Multiple?

The Body Shop Coconut Body Mist – Last but not least is a lush smelling body mist from The Body Shop. I have worn this quite a lot recently despite having it for quite a while. Its a great fragrance for everyday wear and I have gotten so many compliments on it. Its affordable, a long lasting scent and smells pretty damn good, what is not to love!?

What have you been loving this month?