Four New Additions

At the start of the year I found myself in one of those moods where I just wanted to have a massive clear out in terms of my dressing table. I admit I was hoarding an unrealistic amount of skincare that I knew I wouldn't use anymore, and a lot of eye shadow palettes that were sitting away being unloved and unused.

Instead of getting rid of the palettes I don't use anymore, I decided to pass these to people who I knew would use them and love them. Which means I have found room for some of the palettes I'd been keeping my eye on, without feeling guilty for having a ridiculous amount of palettes not being used enough.
The first one I've added to my collection is one that has actually been in the beauty industry for a long time now and it is the Jeffree Star Blood Sugar palette. This is a palette where I just didn't know whether to take the plunge or not, it has a lot of extremely good reviews but I just didn't know if it was worth the price point. Then Christmas rolled around and I thought I would ask for it as a present and now I am the proud owner of a cult classic palette from Jeffree Star Cosmetics.

Another palette that follows a similar colour scheme is the Urban Decay Naked Cherry, and I am a huge fan of Urban Decay shadows anyway and own almost all of the palettes so I felt like this was something that I would eventually pick up even if it wasn't right now. But I love the colours in this palette and until this and Blood Sugar palette entered my collection, I didn't have a huge variety of pink toned palettes that were a formula I liked to use. 
One that I have owned for a couple of months now but haven't had too much of a chance to experiment with is the Morphe James Charles palette, which just caught my eye. I told myself I didn't need it and I wasn't going to buy it but I just couldn't help myself seeing it in person, this palette has everything and I can't wait to start playing around with this and using all the different colours.

The last palette and the newest to the collection is the Sosu x Keilidh Cashell palette which is the perfect palette for a natural eye look, but also has pops of colour for those who want to add this into their looks. The size of the palette is great as well, and I'm excited to start using this and see what I can come up as I have seen so many different looks being created with just this one palette.

A couple of these palettes I have used a few times, a couple of them I have yet to test out but I'm sure I will letting you all know how I get on with them once I've given them a fair test run. Have any of you tried these palettes? Love, hate, gimme your thoughts in the comments!

A New Base

As summertime rolls around in the UK, it means that my face only gets oilier and trying to keep foundation in place becomes a pretty big task! But I have found a foundation that works so well for me and it is such a good price (I'm already on my second bottle).
I'm sure most of you have already heard of the Maybelline 24 hour Superstay foundation and if you haven't tried it yet, what are you waiting for? At only £9.99 a bottle, I'm quite happy to repurchase this and wear it all the time! I use this foundation for a day at work and it lasts in a very hot and greasy environment, but I will also use this for a night out or events because it just looks so lovely on the skin! Despite this being a very full coverage foundation I find that it looks so good on the skin and never cakey at all!

This foundation has a soft matte finish to it, but it is not in anyway drying on the skin which is great for all day wear, as it it not uncomfortable and I do feel as though it stays matte on the skin for me which is always a bonus! As someone with oily skin, I do always go for a matte foundation over anything else, but I also feel like this foundation would work so well on dry skin, just because it never clings to any dry patches I have even after a days wear!
Even though it is a matte foundation, I do set it with either the Laura Mercier powder or the RCMA No Colour powder as I would with any other foundation, and both of these seem to work really well with this one and keep it matte and on my face all day!

The only downfall with this foundation is that it could have has a bigger shade range as I feel like there isn't a huge variety and I struggled to find a shade light enough for me until they released the shade 103 which works perfectly me! And I do know that my hand looks rather tanned in the photo but my face really isn't as tanned as that!
I know this is only a short post but I thought I'd just let you all know about the new foundation that I just can't seem to put down! Let me know if you've tried it and what you think!

Most Used Palettes

I'm always so used to writing about all my favourite products as a collective, and so I thought that I would break it down and just write about my favourite palettes. So here's a mix of eyeshadow, contour and highlight palettes that I love and use all the time!
The first palette I love using is one of the newest ones in my collection I think, and it's the Urban Decay Naked Heat which I must say might just be my favourite out of the Urban Decay palettes! As someone who wears a lot of warm brown and orange tones on my eyes, this palette has everything that I love! And as all the other Urban Decay palettes, the pigmentation is amazing but it's still so easy to use and blend no matter how advanced you are with eyeshadow!

A brand that I continue to love is Anastasia Beverly Hills, and I have a few palettes that I continuously use from them! The first one is their Pro Series Contour Kit and I have mine in the shade light/medium which does work well for super fair skin although they could bring out a few fairer shades I think! I don't tend to use the banana shade in this because it just doesn't work for my skin, but the middle contour shade is the perfect colour for me, and the highlight is so subtle and pretty! If you haven't tried this palette, I would highly recommend to anyone who is into contouring and highlighting.

Another palette from this brand is a cult classic, and I feel like it would be wrong to not include it, as I can't imagine not having this and of course its the Modern Renaissance palette! This is the original eye shadow palette that everyone has and loves and if you don't own it yet, you need it! Filled with warm tones (which we all love) but you have the  lovely pops of colour that can spice up your eyeshadow look! This is a palette I could definitely take travelling and not need anything else!

The last palette from Anastasia Beverly Hills is the newest to my collection, and this is the Sugar Glow Kit and as someone with super fair skin, highlights for my skin are difficult to find! And I bought this one mainly for the paler white and pink shades but I've found that the other two shades also work so nicely on my skin and can be doubled up as eyeshadows so I do get my wear out of all these shades! But they all have a lovely buildable formula and so I find that I can this for day time wear or night time wear, and they all blend in to the skin so nicely!
The last two palettes I have to talk about are both from Morphe which is the brand that just blew up on social media and everyone seems to love them! The first palette is another cult classic and this is the Morphe 35O which everyone and their dog owns! And if you don't own this, you probably should, because it's something that can work for everyone, it's filled with all the warm tones you could want from a palette! All the Morphe shadows I've tried have been incredible for the pigment whether its the matte or shimmer shades, and all the shadows are so easy to blend and this palette is no exception, and there's definitely a reason that this palette is always sold out!

And the last palette I have to talk about, is possibly my favourite out of all of them, and this is the Morphe x Jaclyn Hill which was unbelievably difficult to get hold of and still is! But it's the one palette I take everywhere with me because it's got all the warm brown tones that I love, but its also filled with an array of colours to brighten up any look, and the shimmers in this palette really pack a punch so I don't feel like you can go wrong with this one! I also love the first two pale shades in the palette as they make such an incredible for on the face as well as the eye!

Do any of you own any of these palettes and love them just as much as me? Or do you have any palettes you would recommend me picking up, I'd love to know in the comments!

Drugstore Beauty Wishlist

As someone who loves to wander round beauty aisles, I thought why don't I share what things I currently have on my beauty wish list for the drugstore?! Because who doesn't love a bargain when it comes to beauty, and I feel like the drugstore brands have really stepped their games up recently and so here's some things I've been eyeing up recently!
To begin, I need to mention the concealer that everyone has been raving about and this is the Makeup Revolution Conceal and Define Concealer and this has been duped for the Tarte Shape Tape which I do love but if you can get the same thing for more than half the price, who wouldn't give it a go? This has been so high in demand though and so I have been struggling to find it in stock anywhere in my shade, but as soon as I find it, it will be the newest addition to my collection and I'll let you know how I find it!

Keeping with the brand Makeup Revolution, for a long time now I've really wanted to pick up the Makeup Revolution X Soph Eyeshadow Palette but it wasn't stocked in the store closet to me! But as someone who is a lover of the warmer tones, this is the perfect drugstore palette because you do get all the nice warm tone browns (which everyone loves) but you do also get some pops of colour in there! And this is something that I'm really trying to incorporate into my makeup and so for £10 I really do need to pick this palette up!
Next is a brand that constantly seem to out do themselves and there is a few things I'm really wanting to try out from them, and this brand is L'Oreal! The first product is one that I seem to be struggling to find anywhere and this is the L'Oreal Crushed Foil Highlighter which is has been raved about by anyone who has it! And I mean, I'm always looking out for new highlighters and when you can get them for a reasonable price from the drugstore, it would be silly not to try them!

Another product from this brand is one that has been around for a very long time now and I just never ever pick it up but always think about it, and this is L'Oreal True Match Foundation. Now I feel like everyone has tried this and I'm yet to find someone that doesn't like it, but for me I just thought it was maybe too hyped to begin with but I'm starting to feel like I should give it a go. Plus I'm always on the lookout for a new foundation, this could be a new favourite!
The last thing from L'Oreal is a skincare item and I feel like I'm constantly trying out new skincare because of having such problematic skin. However the L'Oreal Smooth Sugars Clear Scrub sounds like something that could work really well for me as it would help to clear my skin of impurities but it also exfoliates the skin and as someone with combination skin, I feel like I am exfoliating regularly and so this would be an all rounder product for me! And it can be used a lip scrub as well as on the face which is always a bonus!

The next product I have really wanted to try for a long time now is the Physician's Formula Butter Bronzer and the only reason I haven't tried it is because of the brand not being in the UK. However, I have found a few places that stock it and so I think this might something I'll be ordering soon! This is a bronzer I've seen so many people rave about and I think it's supposed to be light enough for all us fair girls out there! Plus it smells divine as well from what I've heard!
The next two products are both from NYX and this is a brand that I always want to try out but isn't stocked in stores near me so I never want to just order things online without testing them out! The first product is the NYX Eyeshadow Pigments as I've been really enjoying cut creases lately and I just feel like pigments give such a good colour payoff in comparison to regular shadows. There's also a really large colour range so I feel like I could just go a bit crazy!
The final product on my wishlist is the NYX Highlight and Contour Pro Palette which is another product that has been around for a while now. But already owning the Anastasia Beverly Hills one, I just couldn't justify this as well, but I've seen how well it works for so many people and if I can find a cheaper alternative with more colours, it would be crazy not to try it, right?
What have you all got sat in your wishlists at the moment? Or do you own any of the products I've mentioned in this post? I'd love to know in the comments!

The Ultimate Glow

Just recently I feel like I've been really embracing being more glowy and less matte but only in the right areas for my face. I think I've been enjoying this look more as it doesn't make my face look so flat, and it just makes the skin look a lot healthier and bright which I've really been liking! And so I thought I'd share the products I've been using to achieve this look, because we all deserve to have a brighter, glowing look to our skin! 

The first product I like to use is one that I forgot I even had until I was clearing out my drawers is the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Primer which I used to be so scared to use and I think that's why it ended up at the back of drawer! Having oily skin, and using a product with shimmer or brightening properties in can seem like a recipe for disaster however, I decided to start using this as a primer everywhere except my t-zone and it has been great! It keeps the not so oily areas of my face looking dewy and so when the rest of my face decides to start producing the oil, everything all looks how it's supposed to! I think this would be a great product for anyone with dry skin!
The next product is something that I'm sure everyone is familiar with by now and most probably tried out and that is the Iconic London Illuminator. I use the shade Shine for my skin tone as it's the lightest one they sell but they do have a few different shades to choose from depending on what you want from this product! I've only used this product two different ways so far but I'm sure there's a lot more uses for it than that, and the first way I like to use this is mixed in to foundations just to give them a dewy look if they are a matte formula and I think it gives the skin a really nice healthy glow!

 The second way I use it is as a normal highlighter because there's just something about the way a liquid highlighter sinks in the skin and just looks so fresh and complete! But if you are feeling extra like me most of the time, you can always put a powder highlighter on top!!
Moving onto powder highlighters, I decided to take the plunge and buy an Anastasia Beverly Hills Glow Kit and I bought the Sugar version. I'm in love with it and I mean I was nervous spending that sort of money on highlighters, but these truly are worth the hype! They look so amazing on the skin, because they aren't a chunky formula and with having the range of colours it gives you so much variety in one place! I also think these would look so good on the eyes but that's something that I haven't done yet.

Do any of you have your holy grail products for being glowing to the Gods? I would love to know what you recommend!

The Everyday Face

I've always been someone who enjoys putting on makeup and takes my time doing it because it's therapeutic in a way, but just recently I have found myself putting on less and less makeup. I'm not sure if it's to reduce the time it takes me to get ready, or whether it's just because when I put on a full face of makeup I do look different! But either way, I thought I would share with you what I've been putting on my face as a basic everyday routine!

I swear by primer and just rceently I have been reaching for either the Nivea Men Post Shave balm (which I do think really works for my skin) or the Soap and Glory One Heck of a Blot Primer and these both just help the longevity of my makeup but if you want something to help fill pores, then the Soap and Glory one would be the better option for you! When it comes to foundation, I usually switch between a few different ones but my ski has been so dry and flaky in the mornings but will soon turn oily throughout the day and so nearly everyday I have been wearing the L'Oreal Infallible 24H foundation which I loved so much when I first bought and kind of just forgot about it but I need to go and buy a new bottle of this because I have nearly finished it all now! I find that this foundation is full coverage and that I don't use anywhere near as much concealer as I would with other foundations which is a bonus for me and it also just looks lovely on the skin and wears so well throughout the day!
As for concealer, I never find myself using anything besides the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer because it conceals everything perfectly and is a light enough shade for my whole face which is rare for a drugstore concealer! But I don't think I need to rave about this, because everyone has time and time again and I'm sure you've all tried it before now! Due to being oily, I do have to set my face, and for my under eye area I tend to lean towards using the MAC Mineralise Skin Finish Natural in Light because it sets the area for the whole day and also gives a tiny bit more coverage so that any darkness is completely concealed. Then for the rest of my face I have been using a recent purchase which is the Rimmel Match Perfection Silky Loose Powder and I find it stops my face from looking oily for most of the day, but I also love this because it's transparent meaning there is no extra coverage added to my face but also loose powders can be used for the "baking" method of the oilier areas of the face.

On a day to day basis I don't contour my face but I will bronze up just stop myself from looking like a ghost and bring a little dimension back to the face, and for this I have been leaning towards The Body Shop Honey Bronzer which I have loved for a long time now and I use the lightest shade because I find that isn't harsh on my skin and doesn't look orange at all which of course is a bonus! And if for any reason, I decide I want to wear blush, I will use the Max Factor Creme Puff Blush in the shade Nude Mauve which has a sheen to it so it colour as well as a little highlight which for me is a great 2 in 1!
For my brows, even though I keep my face simple, I will still use my beloved Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde to shape and fill them in and then to set them in place I use the L'Oreal Brow Artist Plumper which adds a little more volume as such tot he brows but you can trust this to set the brows in place for the whole day and a little more without being uncomfortable! Then for my eyes, I have been wearing either no eyeshadow or just a a matte skin tone shade to keep my eyelids from creasing throughout the day, but I have been using mascara for the top and bottom lashes to define my eyes. For the bottom lashes I always use the L'Oreal Telescopic just because the brush is so small and works perfectly for under the eye without getting mascara everywhere and then for my top lashes I don't have a specific mascara that I use, but I have been loving the Revlon Volume and Length and the Lash Sensational which both work well and can be built up to make the lashes look more dramatic if that's something you like to do!

That's all I've been using on my face recently, let me know if any of you use these products or if you're like me and use more makeup for different occasions instead of a day to day basis, I would love to know!

Zoeva En Taupe Palette

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a sucker for the Zoeva palettes, but every time a new one is released I know that I'll eventually buy it. And the latest addition to the family is the En Taupe palette which is built up of ten shades based around the autumnal browns and taupes, leaving us with a very versatile palette.
Like all of there other palettes, each shadow has a lot of product and I honestly think that these palettes can't be beaten especially when it comes to the price point. It also has a mixture of shimmers and mattes, and so I find that I can create natural day time looks with this as well as more dramatic night time looks because this palette has some beautiful glittery and shimmery shades in it! I do find that because this is a more taupe based palette, I don't use it as often as I would like purely because I'm not used to seeing some of the colour with my complexion. 

On the top row of the palette there is a shade perfect for highlighting which is called Stitch by Stitch, and this is just an off white matte shade and I always prefer to have a matte highlight as I'm someone who will go for shimmery shades on the lid and this always helps to balance it all out. There is also two amazing crease shades on the top row, the first being Hour by Hour which is has a peach tone to it and I love this because it reminds me of Makeup Geek's Peach Smoothie  shadow which I use as a transition shade for so many different looks and so whenever I use this palette, that is always my transitional colour. There is also the shade Gallery which is a lot more brown toned and so I find that this works well in the crease and it's a brown that will go with all the other shades in this palette! One of my favourite shades from this palette has to be Old Master and up until recently I was someone who would stay away from glittery eyeshadows but since trying some out, I feel like they look really flattering for special occasions and this is a shade that has a lot of purple to it and then it has fine gold shimmer running through it, and so it looks beautiful with any purple or taupe based looks. 

Then we have the bottom row, which holds more of the shimmery shades, and I think that the shade Outline is my favourite from all the shimmers because it is a lot more brown based and I just tend to find that browns suit more a lot better due to having blue eyes but all the shimmery shades in this palette are so buttery and soft as well as being so easy to work with and the bonus is that there is minimal fallout! But the best shade on this row, I would have to say is the only matte shade called Exquisite which is a straight up taupe purple shade which looks amazing in the crease and outer corner of the eye when using this palette to do an eye look, although I do have to admit that this shade is a lot harder to work with and I feel like you really have to build up colour especially if you're someone who doesn't use a primer for their eyeshadow.

Overall, I would have to say that this a lovely palette and for taupe lovers it is a must have but I do tend to find myself reaching for other Zoeva palettes over this one, plus the pigmentation is a few of these shadows could have been better. However I definitely do have my eye on the new palettes from the spectrum collection that recently launched!
Have any of you tried this palette, if so what are your thoughts? Are there any other Zoeva palettes that you would recommend?

Five Things // 10

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As the first Five Things of 2016, I thought it was appropriate for a quote, and I hope that this is something that not only myself but everyone else remembers this year. It's not a crime to love yourself.

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I really love the idea of having a bed without a frame, and I'm such a fan of monochrome decor so this is my absolute dream!

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It's almost my 21st and I've been looking for things to do, and this reminded me of a cute retreat type of idea, and would be such a nice thing to do with your partner.

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I love wearing all black and I don't think this will be the year that changes, but I am always on the hunt for black boots, and if anyone knows where to get some that look like this, please let me know!

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I want to start visiting more cities and just more countries in general, growing in a small town makes a girl curious!

2015 Favourites

It's unreal to think that its been a year since my last yearly favourites, and I can't lie, I feel as though many of these products will be the same as last year because I can't help but be a creature of habit! And I also wanted to say that I really want to stick to a post schedule this year, as last year started well for me and then went pretty downhill towards the end!

PRIMER: L'Oreal Skin Perfection Magic Instant Blur I've gone through two of these this year, and I did try to use other primers after I used up the first one but I decided to come back to it, as I feel like it works well blurring any pores or imperfections, and it does make my makeup last a little longer than it would without a primer FULL COVERAGE FOUNDATION: Mac Studio Fix Fluid SPF 15 I'm pretty sure that this would have been my favourite foundation for last year as well, but I still continue to love it and use it a lot. This year I did finish up a bottle and for about a month I didn't repurchase it but finally caved and had to buy a new one as I found myself not knowing what foundation to use and wishing that I still had this one to use! I also find that this does a good job at covering almost everything up, and so I use less concealer! MEDIUM COVERAGE FOUNDATION: Makeup Forever HD I know that some people will say that this is also a full coverage or at least build able, but I tend to find that on my skin, it is more a of a medium coverage because I'm used to the coverage of the MAC foundation but I would recommend this highly as it's such a nice finish and feels so lightweight on the skin! It's also perfect for photographs as there's no flashback. CONCEALER: Collection Lasting Perfection Probably one of the cheapest concealers and still everyone raves about how good it is, I love that this concealer is so light that it works for me and it has amazing coverage, I use it for both under the eye and covering any imperfections and once it's been set with a powder, it looks so nice and so I will continue to use this, but I do tend to find that I need to stock up whenever my shade is available because they sell out fast! POWDER: Mac Studio Fix I am someone who prefers a full finish foundation and ever since I've had this powder, I've been using it to set my liquid foundation and I just find that it helps keep my oiliness at bay and I now can't imagine using a lighter powder to set everything! CONTOUR: Benefit Hoola Bronzer So, at first I found this powder to be pretty scary because it's so pigmented and I'm someone who is so fair and bronzer shows up immediately, so I've learnt that less is more with this and I also like to use the brush that comes with it to blend out my contour and I just find that it works so well and doesn't look orange on my skin! BRONZER: The Body Shop Honey Bronzer I love this bronzer, I use the lightest shade and I've had this bronzer for well over a year and only just hit pan, but I just find that it looks so nice for my skin colour, it makes me look bronzed which is a miracle and doesn't make me look like I've just bathed myself in a bronzer that is way too dark. BLUSH: Natural Collection Peach Melba I had someone suggest this to me on a previous blog post and I can't thank them enough because this is my go to for every makeup look, it's so natural and I'm not too keen on pink blushes so I love this and will continue to use it every day, and for the price point its really a steal! HIGHLIGHT: Sand (Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Palette) This is one of the only highlights I can use that doesn't make me look oily by the end of the day and just looks like I have a glow as such, but I'm a fan of the whole palette so its a win win situation!

BROWS: Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow Pomade and L'Oreal Brow Artist Plumper These two products have been the best combination for my eyebrows this year, and I'm someone who is all in for the strong brow and so I use my dip brow to fill everything in and create the desired shape and then I use the brow plumper to add more volume and set them in place. Honestly this combination will insure that your brows are in place for hours and I love that the plumper is warm toned and so it works well with my hair colour and the eye looks I usually wear. EYE PRIMER: Nars Smudge Proof Eyeshadow base I can't rave about this eye primer enough, it's the only one I'll use now and it just keeps my oily lids at bay and I can trust that whatever eyeshadow is going on top of this will be there for the whole day with no creasing, so what more can I ask for? SINGLE SHADOW: Makeup Geek Frappe Ever since I've had this shadow, I tend to find that it's my go to warm toned brown for almost any eye look, and for the price of Makeup Geek shadows, I really don't think it gets much better! And this is a brown that looks good in a mixture of eye looks or just on its own and I use it both ways. CREAM SHADOW: Maybelline Colour Tattoo On and On Bronze I have loved this for a long time and I think that everyone and their cats own at least one of the colour tattoos, the formula of these is so incredible for a drugstore brand, and I use this on this own, as a base, or part of a complete eye look, and built up to full opacity this is a beautiful shade and I feel like it compliments blue eyes extremely well! SHADOW PALETTE: Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette Who doesn't like this palette? No one. I think everyone needs this palette in their collection because it's got so many different potential eye looks in there, and I can use this for both natural day to day and dramatic night looks. I tend to find myself taking this with me when I'm away from home because it has everything you need and it smells like chocolate, so it doesn't get much better! EYE LINER: Bobbi Brown Gel Liner I'm not someone who wears eyeliner too often, personally I find that it takes me far too long but I have to admit that whenever I want to wear some sort of eyeliner, I tend to go for this, as I find gels easier than pens and also this gel lasts so long on the eyes and doesn't transfer into the crease of my eye. MASCARA: Maybelline Lash Sensational I think this will be the only mascara I use from the drugstore for a long time now, I do tend to use the waterproof version purely because I prefer waterproof formulas, but this mascara makes my lashes look longer and thicker which is exactly what you want and it holds a curl which is pretty important for some people also!

NUDE LIPSTICK: Mac Velvet Teddy Is it really a surprise? I've yet to meet someone who doesn't like this lipstick and I feel like it's one that suits pretty much every skin tone and I just find that it's a go to nude and its a matte formula which is what I tend to lean towards so I will go back to this time and time again. BOLD LIPSTICK: Nars Audacious Lipstick in Liv As someone who wears a lot of berry and purple shades, I struggled to decide on one that is a favourite but I always find that people compliment this lipstick and its one that I find very comfortable on the lips and I die for the packaging of these lipsticks, as well as the inside product! LIP BALM: Nuxe Reve De Miel This has been my favourite lip balm for as long as I can remember now and admittedly sometimes I forget to use it and I know it because my lips will hate me, but I must admit if you use this as part of the skincare routine, you shouldn't ever experience dry lips as this is so highly moisturising and nourishing and I also love this its a matte finish because I hate the look of glossy balms on the lips!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year and that you also enjoyed my favourites from the past year. Let me know what you'd been loving, or if any of my favourites are the same as yours!

Getting into Pinks and Nudes

In previous posts, I've always said how I would usually steer clear of pink and nude lipsticks just because I never really felt like they suited me. But just recently I've been stepping out of this comfort zone and so I thought I would share them all with you! 

I'm someone who will use a lip liner almost every time I wear lipstick, and I think this is because it makes it last so much longer on the lips but it's helpful for when wearing darker colours because you have the outline instead of going straight in with the bullet! The two lip liners that I tend to use the most are East End Snob by Rimmel and Whirl by MAC. I find that I can wear both of these shades on their own as well as under lipsticks, East End Snob is a dusty pink and I find that this can be used under pretty much any pink lipstick and works well! For the price of this lip liner, it is well worth picking up, it's so easy to wear, and the formula is so creamy on the lips but still lasts so well! This has also been rumoured as a dupe for one of the Charlotte Tilbury lip liners, what's not convincing you to pick it up?! Then there is Whirl which is a a dirty rose colour and on me, it works so well as a "my lips but better" shade and so I do use this a lot! I find that it works well with both nude and pink lipsticks, and would say that is a must have lip liner for those of you who like to wear the muted pinks and dirty rose type colours!
There's a couple of MAC lipsticks that I can use as everyday shades and I find that these two are shades that are spoken about highly in the beauty community. The first one is Velvet Teddy which for ages was so difficult to find in any MAC store, and this is a deep beige toned lipstick that I find can dress any look up, I wear this both as an everyday lipstick and as an evening lipstick because it works so well with a lot of different makeup looks, and I would probably have to say that it is one of my favourite nude lipsticks to wear! The other shade from MAC is Brave which when I first starting wearing this was strange for me, because I'm someone who tends to wear matte finish lipsticks all the time, and this lipstick has a satin finish to it, but this is ridiculously easy to wear and feels so comfortable on the lips! This shade also holds some beige tone to it, but it is a lot more pink than Velvet Teddy, and I find that when I use this with the Whirl lip liner, it really is a 'mlbb' look, and it looks lovely for everyday makeup!

I think the lipstick that started off the pink and nude wearing for me personally is the lipstick Resist from Illamasqua and this is a brand that I haven't tried anything else from but when I saw this lipstick in their sale I couldn't resist - no pun intended - and so immediately picked it up! I would describe this is a wearable brighter pink and again is a rosey toned pink rather than fuchsia pink, and this is another matte lipstick and I do find that this can be a little bit drying on the lips if I wear it for a long period of time but that is probably due to the formula!
The next two lipsticks are both from Gerard Cosmetics and they are in the shades Buttercup and Rodeo Drive, which are both extremely wearable shades, that are non drying on the lips and have a pretty good longevity on the lips! Rodeo Drive is a shade that is pretty similar to the Illamasqua one, except a little bit darker and has more of a purple undertone to it, and this is one that I think would look good on anyone. Whereas Buttercup is a lot more of a nude shade with pink undertones to it and when applied to the lips it looks quite sheer due to the creamy formulation, and so I tend to use this one with a lipliner to make the lipstick more opaque.

The final lipstick that I used all the time when I first bought it is the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in the shade Nude-ist and I love these because they have a little doe foot applicator which makes them so easy to apply with or without a lipliner, and the opacity of these is unreal! I find that I only need one layer and the jobs done, these are technically a liquid lpstick and this shade in particular dries to a semi matte finish which I love and because of the finish, I tend to find that it lasts all day on my lips which I'm not complaining about however they can be quite drying which is the only downside! This shade in particular is pretty much Rodeo Drive in a liquid lipstick with a more matte finish to it.
I hope this was helpful to anyone wanting to try out more nude or pink lipsticks and if you have any reccomendations for other lipsticks that are similar to these, please let me know in the comments!

July Favourites

Another month has rolled around at a ridiculously fast pace and so that can only mean that it's time for me to ramble about what products I've been loving for the month of July! I do have to admit that July has been a month where the weather got ridiculously hot for the UK, to then be raining at the current time of writing this post! And so due to all this, it's safe to say that my skin is rebelling and really doesn't like me at the moment!
So the weather has made my skin a little drier than usual and so I have been using The Body Shop Vitamin C Glow Boosting Moisturiser which not only provides my skin with a hydrating layer to help battle my dry patches but also leaves my skin looking so refreshed and glowing like the name would suggest! Due to the colour of this moisturiser, it helps to prevent the look of tiredness to the skin and I really think that it does improve this, at least one me. It's one that is a little pricey for a drugstore option, but if you suffer with skin that looks a little lifeless and dull, I would highly recommend trying this out!

The first of my makeup favourites comes from Makeup Geek, and their eyeshadows are something that I wish I had discovered a long time ago because the quality of these shadows are incredible for the price! But the one shade that I really want to mention is Peach Smoothie which is the perfect transition shade for any eye look and honestly this has been my go to for almost every time I've done my makeup, and I can see me hitting pan on this before any other of the shadows from Makeup Geek! I've also been using my MAC Quad again which honestly, I'd kind of forgotten about and glad I've rediscovered, it houses Vanilla, Charcoal Brown, All That Glitters and Woodwinked which all together create the sort of eye look that I create all the time! There's something about MAC shadows that I really love, the pigment is amazing and I have yet to find one that doesn't blend out beautifully and although these are pricier than the Makeup Geek ones, I would still highly recommend if you want to splash out a little more!
Sticking with the eyes, I have also been using the Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Liner but not in the typical black shade, instead I have been opting for brown which I have found is a lot easier to wear and goes with a lot more of the shadow colours that I tend to wear! And I have found that the Maybelline gel liner is so easy to use, and because it's so creamy, it just glides straight onto the eye and really does stay in place for the day! And even though I have been using brown liner, I have still been loving my Maybelline Lash Sensational because it's the one mascara that really separates my lashes while still giving them length and definition, and it doesn't transfer onto my eyelids! But everyone has raved about this mascara and so I feel like I don't need to say too much about it, just buy it if you haven't already!

A few new purchases have made their way into this months favourites, the first of them being the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit which I am questioning to why I didn't buy earlier! My most used shades from this kit are definitely Sand and Fawn which I use for my contour and highlight and I don't feel like I would use any other contour shade (except maybe Hoola) now just because it is so grey and really looks like a shadow on the face and not bronzer in the wrong place! And as for the highlight, it isn't chunky or too glittery, instead it looks subtle on the cheekbones and is a shade that really reflects in the light! And to go with this I have been using the Real Techniques Sculpting brush with the fawn shade as the brush fits into the hollows of the cheeks perfectly and really helps to create the defined contour!
As I have been trying to get into using pink lipsticks, I picked up Brave from MAC and I have been loving using this shade as it is one that is so easy to wear! I feel like if I have been wearing a lipstick this month, it has most likely been this one and for someone who wasn't into pink lipstick a few months ago, they have really started to grow on me as long as I'm wearing the right shade of pink to suit me! As well as this I have been using the Max Factor Creme Puff Blush in the shade Nude Mauve which I have found is so subtle on the cheek, while still giving a glow due to the marbled effect of the blush! And this is one that I have been using a lot because it goes with almost any make up look and any lip colour and so it's definitely been my go to blush! And my final favourite for this month has been the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer which I have been mixing with the concealer for my under eye area as it this concealer really brightens and reflects in the light which is perfect for the under eye area! But I do find that using this on its own doesn't hold enough coverage and so this is why I mix it with other concealers!
So these have been my favourites for this month and as you can see there has been a lot of make up involved in this one! I would love to know if any of you have been loving the same products as me? Or any products you have been loving this month, I'm always looking for new things to try! 

Confessions of A Beauty Blogger

I saw a post a couple of weeks ago where someone was talking about the things they find difficult when it comes to beauty and so I thought I would give it a go! We all have things we aren't good at even as bloggers or enthusiasts in beauty and so here are a few of the things, I probably should work on, or accept will never work for me!
Winged Liner Oh, the dreaded winged eye liner, I often feel like this will never be an achievement for me no matter how much I practice it! I have tried with gel liners, pencil liners and liquid liners but I am no further forward in mastering this makeup magic (and yes, I really am beginning to believe it's magic!) I've found that the only way I can get reasonably presentable looking liner is by using tape, and even then they can still be a little uneven where I've put the tape on! Any tips or tricks?!

Eye Cream Reaching 20 years of age, means I really should have stepped up the skincare game and whilst I take a lot of steps to maintain my skin and keep the acne at bay, one step that I really don't see myself doing enough it eye cream! Now, I don't want wrinkles around my eyes by the time I'm 30 and so I feel like I really should be searching for an eye cream to put in my skincare routine but I will admit that I am rather lazy and just never know what I'm looking for when it comes to eye creams!
Cleaning Brushes  Okay, so I can go from washing my brushes once a week to once every three weeks and it really just depends on the time I have to wash them and let them dry before needing to use them again and I stupidly think that if they don't look lean, I won't need to clean them... Bacteria is my enemy! I also haven't found a way that to clean my brushes that is quick and easy while still being thorough so if any of you have any product suggestions, I would love to know!

Hair Care I'm someone who is lucky to have thick hair that grows very quickly and so you'd assume that I look after it pretty well, which really isn't the case! I am someone who tries to wash their hair as little as possible, using far too much dry shampoo as a result of this and the only product that I use regularly is argon oil so really my hair should hate me! I am trying to get myself to use more products though but I just find hair care to be time consuming and so skip a lot of it which I know I really shouldn't do!
Cream Products There's just something about cream products that don't seem to work with me and I know that as an oily skinned person, creams aren't the best but sometimes a product is too pretty to resist! It doesn't matter what method I use for putting the products on, it always seems as though the cream product just takes my foundation straight off and so for now I think that I'll just stick to using my powders until I find a way to use those pesky creams!
So these are the things that I'm not so good at and I'll happily admit that, is there anything that you find yourself not being good at yourself? I'd love to know!

Makeup Haulin'

Some of you may have seen the little Superdug session I posted on Instagram and I also picked up a couple of things from Debenhams, Cult Beauty and MAC, so I thought is there anything better than to share with you all what I got? I did purchase these products all at different times but since then, I have had the chance to use quite a few of them, and so for some products I will give mini reviews for you all!
Starting with all the purchases I made from Superdrug as it's the largest part of the haul, I think it's safe to say I went a little crazy, and I think it's because I've mainly been buying higher products recently and I saw some new things in the drugstore that I decided I need to pick up! There were a couple of products that I knew I wanted to find in store and the first one of these is the Real Techniques Sculpting Kit which I already use every single time I do my makeup! Even if you don't want to buy this set, you need to buy the sculpting brush because it makes contouring so easy! I use this with either my Benefit Hoola bronzer or Sleek Contour palette and it just makes it quicker and easier than it's ever been! I honestly think this would be a good one for beginners in contouring!

I've yet to find someone who doesn't love the Mayeblline Colour Tattoos and I so what would a little haul be without a couple of new shades?! I already have a lot of the shades and so I decided to pick up Immortal Charcoal and Timeless Black, the black shade being more for a base when I'm using darker eyeshadows to make them pop that little bit more and the charcoal colour is so pretty and I think that it will be a good way for me to step out of my eyeshadow comfort zone! But honestly, I can't even fault these cream eyeshadows and if you're looking for alternatives to higher end cream shadows, I wouldn't look much further than these! And for a drugstore product the shade range isn't all that bad so these come highly recommended from a lot of different people!
One of my favourite purple lipsticks is the Collection Little Mix Perrie, and recently Collection have launched the colour Mulberry Burst into their ordinary lipstick line and when I heard this, I was so happy and decided that I needed to pick it up in this version (I don't even know why!) I have yet to try this lipstick out but I'm pretty sure it's the same formulation as the Little Mix ones and if it is, I know I will love it because they aren't too matte nor too glossy but they are very  creamy on the lips meaning that whenever I wear this, it doesn't dry out my lips which is always a bonus!    Something that I think goes unnoticed by most people is the MUA counter in Superdrug's, and in all honestly, I've only ever tried one of their products but after using it, I decided to pick one up in a different colour! And this product is the Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer which I bought in the colour Tranquillity, which is a very neutral brown beige colour, and when swatched really reminds me of Velvet Teddy but just a little bit lighter! As well as this lip product, I also picked up another one of the Maybelline Colour Drama Lipsticks in the shade Red Essential and I probably do have enough red lipsticks but having one in a pencil form seemed so much easier, and everyone loves these so can you ever have too many?
I also picked up a few more things from Maybelline - they did have an offer on and so I took advantage! A product that I had been seeing pop up a lot, is the Lash Sensational Mascara and I picked mine up in the waterproof version, thank you oily eyelids! But so far, I have been loving this mascara and I use it pretty much everyday, the wand on this is small and so I find it's easier to use, and it actually holds my lashes in a curl and makes them look longer which I love! I was a fan of the Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner in Black and Black Chrome, but recently I have been liking the idea of using a brown liner as it's a lot softer and so I picked it up in Brown and so far I really like it! It's a gel liner that's very easy to use and I find that I like to create a liner close to the lashes and then smudge it in, to make it look more rough and undone! The final thing that I got from Maybelline is a newer product, the Master Sculpt and I'm a good fan of contour and highlights so I knew this would be something to pick up! I picked up the lighter shade and the contour shade is really good for my skin tone but I've found that I'm not overly keen on the highlight but if you are just starting out with contouring, this could be a good one to get!

A couple of new things from MAC is never a bad thing, and something that I had wanted for such a long time now is the Fix + and for some reason I just never picked it up, but now that I have it, I'm really questioning why it took me so long! As I'm someone who gets super oily especially now the weather is getting a lot hotter, I find that powder is my best friend but I never want to look cakey, who does? And so, I find that giving my makeup a spray of this after powdering just stops it from looking cakey and keeps it fresher and so I have fallen in love! I'm usually someone who goes for a matte lip but I purchased the lipstick Brave a while ago for one of my friends and since seeing them wear it, I knew I needed it, which led to the purchase of that for myself!
The Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation is something that is highly coveted by a lot of beauty bloggers that I follow, and so I'm someone who can't stay away from a hype even if I don't give in right away and so, this saw me purchase this foundation! I love it already, I've had it for a few weeks now and it really does stay on the skin for a long time, which is a bonus for me! I also found the shade range was pretty good and although I am the lightest shade, there would something for a everyone I think! If you want a new foundation and feel like splurging, I would highly recommend this, but I do find it works best when my face is hydrated and primed properly!

So, it's safe to say that we all went a little crazy with the launch of Makeup Forever in the UK, and with the ever talked about HD Foundation and Full Cover Concealer I knew that I needed to try them out and so that's what I purchased from Debenhams! I did have high expectations for the foundation and I have to admit I'm not overly in love with it, but I think it's because I prefer a full cover foundation and this gives medium but I feel like it doesn't build up well on my skin, but I will keep trying to use this as it does look nice when first put on! However, the concealer is my new holy grail product over most things, don't get me wrong I still love my Collection concealer but I find that I can really target conceal certain areas of my face because there is no applicator with this and I use a brush for it instead of using a concealer on unnecessary places due to using one with a doe foot applicator!

I have to admit that this purchase was one that I'd wanted to make since the launch of this product and I'm pretty sure that I placed it at like 2am one morning, but I really don't regret the decision! The Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit is all kinds of beautiful and I feel like my contour has never been as good as it is now! The Fawn shade I've found actually works pretty well for me even though I am super pale, and I know a lot of people also rave about the Banana shade but I find that for my skin tone, I just can't use it because the under eye area will just look yellow and so out of place instead of looking highlighting so I'm steering away from using that! But what I really love about this palette, is the highlight shade Sand, which I find is really beautiful on my skin and doesn't look like too much! I find that having oily skin can often be a problem when it comes to highlights, but this one doesn't look super sheeny or wet on the skin and actually stays in place for the duration of my makeup which is a bonus! 
Have any of you done some makeup shopping lately, or got some of the products that I've mentioned? Let me know what you think of them, and if you want any in depth reviews of products I've purchased!