My weekend away makeup bag.

This weekend I am super duper excited as I am going home from university to Devon for five days, which means I have got out my beloved Laura Mercier makeup case and filled it with some favourites and I thought I would share what is inside.  

In the first side I have my Mac prep & prime primer and Mac studio fix foundation in the colour NC15 along with my Revlon Photoready concealer, this is the base I use for my face everyday. In the same section I have Benefit rockateur blush, which I am still loving since I reviewed it in my 'one week wearing' blog post. I then have a selection of Lipsticks, Bobbi Brown in the colour Pink, Chanel Rouge Allure in the colour Envoutante  and Mac Lovelorn. Lipstick is the easiest part of your make up to change in order to create a whole new look. So bringing a few different colours means you can mix it up so much more. 

Talking of lip colours in the middle section I have put in a couple of Bourjois Color Boost lipsticks. I love these A LOT, I have five of the colours and the two I have chose for these week are 05 Red Island and 02 Fuschia Libre. In the middle section of the makeup case along with the Color Boosts I have my Benefit They're real, Jelly Pong Pong eyeliner and Nars Pro-prime eyeshadow base. 

In the last side I have a Nars Laguna bronzer, which I love using as a contour or all over bronzer. I then have a number of eye products starting with Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in the colour Black Ink. I then have six Mac eyeshadows in the colours Dazzle-Light, Naked Lunch, All that Glitters, Swish, Shale and Satin Taupe. These colours make up everyday basic eye colours but I also like to use them to make evening looks. I have also packed my Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes palette in the colour Wide Eyes, as I am unsure what plans I have for the weekend this can used for both day and evening looks. Finally I have one of my October favourites (spoiler) a HD brows kit in the colour Bombshell. 

With makeup you always need brushes, as these do not fit in my case I have used the packaging from Zoeva brushes, in one I have face brushes including a Zoeva 104 Buffer and Real Techniques Blush Brush. In the other I have eye brushes including Mac 217, the Queen of all eyeshadow brushes and a couple of Real Techniques Shading brushes along with my favourite Bobbi Brown ultra fine eye liner. I have also packed my Zoeva Make up mirror, which is perfect for doing make up trains. 

All the extra products in the background of the pictures are other items I will be taking away with me! 

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend filled with sunshine and smiles. 

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Simple Spooky Cheap Halloween looks.

Halloween is just around the corner, this year it seems to be way more 'in your face' than any other year, and unfortunately it's just not really my thing. But I decided I wanted to see what I faces I could make for halloween using only my makeup collection. Now when I had a look through I realised that although I could do pretty well the one thing you really need is a white face paint or a much lighter foundation. So I did have to buy one thing and that was a Snazaroo ghost and skull face painting kit, it was only £5 from Claire's Accessories, so it barely counts. 

I made three different makeup looks for halloween using only the small face painting kit (which only comes with white, black and green) and my makeup. I did not buy any extra sponges or brushes only what I already own. I did a zombie, witch and cat. All are very open to interpretation. 

Zombieeeeee

So I started by using the applying a primer to the face as a base and then applied white face paint all over the face using a real techniques sponge. I then blended black face paint and Jelly Pong Pong eyeliner/shadow stick to contour my cheeks. Using the same eyeliner I lined my eyes and blended with a finger. To give the effect of blood and cuts I used a me me me lip and cheek tint and let it drip down the face. Finally adding Topshop Really Ruby to my lips. 

Witch

I again used a primer and then applied the white face paint. I then drew small circles to look like moles with the green face paint. I lined the eye with collection fast stroke eyeliner, using the same eyeliner I drew a small spider, using Mac Water and Ice eye shadow along the wed to make it look silver. I then used jelly pong pong eyeliner to create the hairs on the moles and draw in harsh black eyebrows. Using the same Mac eyeshadow before on my eyelids to give some silver shimmer, I then coated my eyelashes with L'Oreal Voluminous mascara and finally painted my lips green. 

Cat

For the cat I used primer again but this time focused the white face paint to the lip, nose and eyebrow area. I then used the black face paint to draw a simple nose and whiskers, I also used the black face paint to do a simple winged eyeliner using a Zoeva 317 brush. Again applying Voluminous mascara to the lashes focusing on the outer edges and finally applied Mac Girl About Town lipstick to my lips. 

These are all so simple and easy, many of the items used are very cheap high street brands so can be recreated on a budget. Have a go, and get spooooooky this Halloween. 

One year of the NAKED Palette

I'm going to start with a quote from a blog I follow on tumblr

"It's a modern makeup classic and must have, simple as that" - Powderdoom 

And to be perfectly honest I couldn't have put it better myself, the Urban Decay NAKED Palette is by far one of the best makeup products I have ever bought. I am always singing its praises and recommending it to people. Not only does it cover a range of eyeshadow colours for both day and night but it is blendable and workable. I would say this is the perfect starter for anyone who is looking to start out with some high end eyeshadows, you get 12 colours for a reasonable price, a mixture of mattes and shimer. Yes this is expensive compared to high street/drugstore eyeshadows but it is so worth it. 

My pallette is so used, but still have so much use left of the colours. My two most used colours are 'VIRGIN' and 'NAKED', VIRGIN because it is a great base colour so I use it when I am using other palettes too and NAKED because it is the perfect brown for my eyebrows, and if I am after a slightly dark brow I can blend BUCK in. Again this just shows how versatile it can be.

With the range of colours it is so simple to create an easy day look by combining different shadows, and then adding one extra colour to turn it into an evening look. 

1. Use VIRGIN as a base, then blend SIN over the top and apply TOASTED in the crease. And then for the evening add HUSTLE into the crease and along the bottom lashes. 

2. Use VIRGIN as a base, then apply NAKED all over the lid, use BUCK on the outer corner blending through to the middle, then apply SIDECAR to the crease. 

3. Use VIRGIN as a base, apply HALF BAKED all over the lid blending SMOG from the outer corner to the middle. The apply DARK HORSE to the lash line and then along the bottom lashes for an evening look. 

4. Use bothVIRGIN and SIN as a base, then apply TOASTED all over the lid blending HUSTLE into the crease and outer corner, then use crease as a liner along both top and bottom lashes. 

5. Create a smokey eye for an evening look using VIRGIN as a base, using more in the inner corner, then blend GUNMETAL in leaving the inner corner, then use CREEP to highlight the crease and lash line. 

I love the NAKED palette and recently bought the NAKED BASICS, I haven't felt the need for NAKED2, and have heard it said that the first is slightly better and after a year I am so happy with the results and longevity. For me it is always important that if I am going to spend money on a product that it last a reasonable length of time. The NAKED palette has done just that for me. 

The BASICS palette is also fabulous, I find that it is perfect for a nude eye. Again it comes with two colours that are great for eyebrows and the super blendable shadows, and a matte black which the NAKED palette doesn't have. I love this for travel as it is small and compact meaning I can carry around great eyeshadows and have a simple eyebrow kit. Two products in one. 

After a year I am so happy with this product, the quote at the beginning sum it up. 

One week wearing...

Last week I purchased two products to wear for one week and review. So for the last week I have worn benefit Rockateur and L'Oreal Nude Magique every day, which has been quite hard. I like to mix up my makeup and I often change my foundation depending on sort of day I'm having or where I am going. But I did it so that I can review them. 

benefit Rockateur 
I was super excited to try this blush as I had seen it in so many September favourite blogs and videos, so I ventured into boots before the cinema last Wednesday. I couldn't wait until I got home to have a look at the product. 

First impression: 
I had obviously seen pictures of the product so I knew from the outset that I wasn't a fan of the packaging, I much prefer something simple. This is very 'tarty' the lace and snakeskin just aren't my thing. It smells gorgeous it just adds something extra to the product. 

Using the product:
I have loved wearing this, it is the perfect mixture between bronze and peachy/pink, it add great colour to the cheeks. It isn't to heavy to start off with so you can really build it up depending on how much you want, on the same note it blends well with other blushes and contouring kits to create the cheeks that you want. As much as I love this I have an issue, the brush that comes with it just doesn't apply the blush how I would like it, and it is a small box therefore my blush brushes just don't quite fit inside. 

Overall: 
I love it, I can easily forgive the packaging and the brush situation because of how good it is generally. I am happy I have bought it and happily wore it everyday and will continue to do so. 

L'Oreal Nude Magique 
I had seen this in boots and I was after a lightweight foundation, this one seemed like the perfect one to try. Especially as it was on offer. 

First impression:
The bottle is super cute and small, it seems almost like the perfect holiday foundation as it is lightweight in both actual weight and coverage. On the instructions it indicates to use your finger to apply but I wanted to apply with a sponge so whilst I was in boots I picked up a Real Techniques sponge too. 

Using the product:
I have really like the product and it defiantly does what it says on the tin, it is lightweight and non pore-clogging. I did find that on top of primer it almost feels slimy and is too dewy so I have had to wear a powder on top. For days where I was wearing it for 12hrs at work it didn't last the whole day, but thats not surprising really. It also doesn't cover blemishes well and I needed a strong concealer for blemishes and under the eye. I found the sponge worked well, the foundation is defiantly too light for a brush. It also provides a great base for other face products such as blush and bronzer. 

Overall: 
I would recommend this as an easy wear everyday foundation when you need a small amount of coverage, but for anything you need more coverage it would need to be built up. As I said it seems to be great for holidays. If you suffer from lots of redness or blemishes it just isn't going to cut the mustard. 

Woo hoo to reviews. And to finish something my Mum said to me this week 
'The task ahead is never greater than the strength within you.' 

September Favourites

Oh October here you are, the gateway to my favourite months. I love autumn/fall and winter, I am so ready for crisp blue skies, snow, wooly jumpers, boots, fires and seasonal greetings. October/November/December are my favourite months and here they are, ready to be enjoyed. 

As September has drawn to a close I have some favourites to show you, I have four makeup/beauty favourites, one food, one home and one music. Oooh how exciting. Lets make a start with some makeup, my favourite place to start. 

I'm starting with some MAC eyeshadows, in the colours Dazzle Light and Shale. Dazzle Light is a light shimmery white/cream colour fantastic to use as an all over base on the lid of the eye, right up to the brow bone as a highlighter. Shale is a dark purple, still shimmery but slightly more matte than Dazzle light. I love to pair both of these colours with MAC Satin Taupe and Naked Lunch for a light purple smokey eye, which with the addition of eyeliner can be made into an evening look. 

My second makeup favourite was a long awaited purchase, I knew I would love it but I just had to wait, and then finally for my birthday at the end of August I got some John Lewis vouchers. I went in and purchased the Bobbi Brown Long-wear gel liner in the colour Black Ink. It is by far the best gel liner I have found. It is like they say 'long-wear', it is also very highly pigmented and very easy to apply. I either use the Bobbi Brown Ultra Fine Eye Liner brush or the Real Techniques pixel-point eyeliner brush. 

My third favourite is a beauty fave, it is the La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo. It is a face cream/lotion which is to be used for correcting and unclogging anti-imperfection care. It works as a spot cream, I apply morning and evening after washing my face before moisturiser. It has just made my skin feel cleaner and any spots seem to clear up faster and I haven't had as many since using this product. I really like it and it is recommended by so many beauty bloggers. 

Ahh perfume, my fourth favourite is a perfume. One I have wanted for ages, it was on my birthday list but I didn't receive it off anyone but I did buy it with my birthday money. It is Lancome La vie est belle. It just smells so beautiful, it is long lasting on the skin and on clothes. I get so many compliments I can't help but love wearing it. 

Ice Breakers Sours, need I say more? These are my food favourite. I have had maybe one pack of these before in my life and I fell IN LOVE with them, they are an American sweet that are sold in very few shops in the UK. My best friend at university knows of my love of these beautiful sweets and she got me two packets for my birthday, I savoured these. Then she gave another eight packets. My life was made. 

My last two favourites are a home favourite and music favourite, my home favourite is a candle from Urban Outfitters, it is their Fig and Wild Pear candle. I love the scent this candle gives off, it is light and fruity but not summery almost an autumnal smell, I have had in burning a few hours a day for a quite a lot through out September and I am pretty sure it still has a while left. And my music favourite is Arctic Monkeys new album AM, I have it on now, and I have had it on repeat since it came out. It is just so good, if you haven't heard it have a listen because it is so good, also listen to their cover of Drake Hold On, We're Going Home, because that is fabulous too!!

Now go on an October walk, be inspired by the falling leaves, the crisp air and the change in seasons.