Too Faced Better Than Sex | Styled By Lauren

We are well and truly in the swing of all things Christmas now! With the countdown fully on (3 weeks to go!!!) its time to get that party outfit sorted and of course make sure all the Christmas shopping is done. I truly love this time of year when it comes to beauty products as there is so many great deals but also those lust worthy limited edition gift sets that obviously make a great gift but are also a pretty good gift to yourself too! I couldn’t hold myself back this year and picked up a few Christmas beauty products that are a great way of trying products out without the commitment of a full size. There is a million gift guides out there but I thought I would share some of the best beauty holiday sets that would make the perfect gift for a beauty lover or maybe just yourself!

MAC never fail to disappoint at this time of year with their Festive collections. With brush kits, lip-gloss sets and mini palettes there is so much to choose from. Although something I’ve always wanted to try from Mac is their pigments and I am still kicking myself for not picking up the set last year although I made up for it this year. With three pigment sets available from a blue toned set, a purple and a bronze, I went for the more wearable bronze collection that contains 3 pigments and a 1 glitter. Shimmer and sparkle is perfect for this time of year so these pigments are great for the party season. I know loose pigments are a bit intimidating but after trying one of them out I have to say there is nothing to be worried about. I didn’t find them overly messy at all, simply spraying a flat shader brush with face mist, it picks up the product so well without any fall out. I really cannot wait to get these out for Christmas and New Year although any recommendations on using the glitter as it isn’t eye safe? Anyway at £26 its a pretty good deal and a great way to try your hand at pigments!

You can also always count on Benefit to have a fab selection of gift sets at this time of year to suit every budget. I am a huge fan of Benefit and if you haven’t tried a lot of their products then their gift sets are a great way to as they contain some of the Benefit classics that everyone loves. Again I am pretty annoyed at myself for not picking up the blush set from last year but a very similar product was released this year. The Real Cheeky Party set contains 5 of their Box O’ Powders; Dandelion, Rockateur, Sugarbomb, Hoola and Coralista which is one less than last year but also has the addition of a mini Watt’s up highlighter, They’re Real eyeliner and my favourite They’re Real mascara. In terms of the powders, I have only used Hoola before hand so the set is a great way to try out some of their popular blushes as well as their gorgeous highlighter. At £29.50 with a value of over £100 it is a complete steal.

For a budget friendly stocking filler, Too Faced have released a mini version of their Better Than Sex mascara for a more affordable £10. I spoke about my thoughts on this one here but this cute little mini is a great way to try it out if like me you have desperate to see what all the hype is about.

For skincare lovers, Emma Hardie also have the perfect stocking filler, a mini of their classic moringa cleansing balm with a cleansing cloth. I have heard so much about this cleanser and have been wanting to try it out for so long but with a high price tag it hadn’t been scored off the wishlist although this is a great way to try it out especially at a very decent £10! Skincare can be pretty tricky to buy as gifts if you don’t know about how someone else’s skin is although as this is suited to all skin types it will make a perfect gift!

Apologies for mentioning this for the billionth time but I couldn’t miss another opportunity to talk about the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit. A totally gorgeous palette set with six different powders including bronzer, blush and setting powder. It is the perfect palette with everything you need in it making it great for traveling and all the powders are great quality. At £65 the value for money is pretty awful but it looks super gorgeous! Check my full review here.

Lastly, one of my favourite little holiday sets comes from Becca. Their highlighters are super popular and I’ve been longing to try them for so long so the Glow on the Go set is the perfect gift for those trying to get their highlight on ‘fleek’. The set contains a mini of their Skin Perfector Pressed in the shade Opal and their Shimmering Skin Perfector Opal in a spotlight wand. The powder is super pigmented and creamy and the liquid perfector is super dewy on the skin. At £20 it is a fab buy and great to try the Becca range out!

Have you bought any beauty Christmas gift sets this year?

Twitter | Pinterest | Bloglovin | Instagram

It had been a long time since I tried a new mascara with my trusty Benefit options taking priority. Although that was until I got my hands on three newbies all within the last month, typical eh!? Anyway I thought I would give you a little first impression on them all which includes a cult fave mascara that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on…

Although first up comes from Mac in the form of their False Lashes Extreme Black. I got given this mini sample when I made a little Mac purchase during the month and was rather curious as to how this would perform since Mac don’t really have the best name when it comes to mascara. With a name like ‘False Lashes’ you would expect pretty dramatic lashes although it was actually quite the opposite. I don’t mean that in a bad way but the mascara created a much more natural everyday look which wasn’t really what I expected from the name. The brush isn’t too bad and slightly reminds me of Benefit Bad Gal Lash and the effect is quite similar too. It grips the lashes well and really separates them so I haven’t found any issues with clumping. It really lengthens your lashes and fans them out to look soft and fluttery. As I said it creates a very natural look so doesn’t have much volume or lift to it. It’s a nice one for wearing during the day but nothing I would run out to buy a full size of.

Next up is the mascara of 2015. I would find that a pretty accurate description considering the amount of praise it has received this year. The Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara is one I’ve been desperate to try out for the longest time so I was super happy to see that they released a mini version as part of their holiday collection which gave me the chance to try it out first. Whilst the name is a little shoddy, I adore the metallic pink packaging, how gorgeous! Anyway on to the stuff that matters, the actual mascara. I usually prefer quite fine and small mascara brushes so this one was a bit to get used to as it is pretty chunky. I did find it a slight problem though for the lower lashes so I would suggest using something a little smaller for that. On to the formula though, this does remind me a little of my favourite mascara; Benefit They’re Real although with a little less impact. It holds a curl really nicely and adds a bit of lift to the lashes too so is a nice one for a night time look. A downside though is that I would’ve liked it to separate my lashes better, I think it’s down to the brush but it tends to stick some of my lashes together so for that reason They’re Real sits firmly on top.

Lastly was a little magazine freebie this month, yes I know another one! I’ve wanted to try an Eyeko mascara for a while so I just had to pick this up. This months In Style includes a mini Eyeko Black Magic mascara which promises drama and curl. This reminds me very much of Benefit Roller Lash especially with the similar curved wand. Apologies for all the Benefit comparisons! The wand is a little thicker in comparison but hugs the lashes so nicely and also works well on the bottom lashes. Like Rollerlash, it separates the lashes really well and creates a nice soft curl. It adds a bit of volume too but still looks really natural. A pretty decent mascara overall but again not one I would go running for.

Are you a fan of any of these mascaras?

Twitter | Pinterest | Bloglovin | Instagram