2012 is so last year!

A few, some experimental looks, that I stumbled across from last year :) Enjoy.

MUA Haulin'

If you have me on Twitter, which most of you don’t! You’ll know that I went out to Superdrug the other day for a bit of an MUA haul. After being rushed along I only ended with two products which I thought I’d do a quick review of for you. 

The first product I picked up, and this was more of an experiment. The Matte Perfection Shine Control Foundation is only two pounds which is why I decided that if I don’t like it won’t kill me to throw it out. I wasn’t expecting this product to stand up to my more expensive foundations but you can never judge a book by its cover. Some of my favourite products are very cheap so anything is worth a try even if this only became an emergency foundation. I have mixed feelings about the foundation. On a daily basis I only really use foundation or conceal on blemishes and around my nose as my blackheads are more noticeable there.  

The packaging is pretty much what you would expect. It is cheap but it’s easy to look past that. I found that on first application the product matched my skin tone well (I use the shade –Fair) as the product is fairly neutral, perhaps a little on the yellow side which is good if you’re trying to combat redness. I felt that whilst this is supposed to me matt the finish was dewier than I expected but once set with setting spray and powder the product gave a healthy glow without shine. Throughout the day I found the foundation did keep shine at bay however the finish wasn’t as good as I would hope and it became slightly patchy as the day wore on. Coverage is definitely light and would work much better for evening wear when it’s not being battered by the elements. This is the foundation I would buy if I was ridiculously skint because for the price, it’s not too bad but, as I expected, it doesn’t match up to any of my other foundations.

The second product that I grabbed was MUA’s new Fixing Mist. RRP of £5 has been reduced to £4 pounds in Superdrug which is where MUA is sold exclusively. The bottle is 85ml which seems small but is bigger than Collection 2000’s £5.99 Fix Me Up Makeup Fixer.  Compared to most budget makeup fixing sprays this is almost fragrance free. It has a slight sent but unless I’m really paying attention I barely notice this. I would have liked this to be more ‘misty’ when sprayed, as suggested by the name but otherwise this does dry quickly and I have noticed a difference in how long my makeup lasts. This was tested with my regular foundations, not the MUA one. If you’re looking for a good but cheap fixing spray or you’re new to makeup fixers this is a good one to go for as it’s cheap enough and small enough that if you don’t like the product, you having paid a small fortune for it as you would for a Skindinavia or Urban Decay setting spray.

QUICK HINT: Skindinavia and Urban Decay’s product are the same formula but Skindinavia is cheaper. 

So if you’ve got any budget beauty finds that are must haves let me know.

My apologies!

Hello Beauty Addicts!

Well that feels weird; no 'Happy Holidays' or 'Merry Christmas.' Yes, it's finally happened, the new year has hit and my first post of the year is going to be a big apology. I am aware that I am a part timer. It's a fact. I have a lot of new commitments that are just eating up time but there is another reason of the more technical nature that explains why I haven't posted since... wait for it... the 20th of December! LAST YEAR! As far as I'm concerned, that's appalling. So here's the deal. Google mail for some reason suddenly decided that oh, my email address doesn't exist and let's face it, how can you sign into a blogger account with an email address that doesn't exist, oh, yes, you can't. A little bit of a pickle. So here's a quick one to say that yes, I have a lot of catching up to do. (Thanks computer, the internet is supposed to be revolutionary.) In the meantime, a quick beauty tip to keep you going and let you know I'm not dead?

     Vasaline acts as a protectant barrier between your lips and the world. It's moisturising properties are actually about nil to meh. Try using a moisturising lip balm (Hint hint: Burts Bees are superb!) and applying Vasiline over the top to lock that moisture in.

Tah Tah!

Clinique Gift Review

Hola!

It's time for me to stop being lazy and start getting on with the Christmas madness. I'm having so much fun buying all of my presents, especially those for my secret santa :) and I couldn't help buying myself a few gifts along the way. Recently I've been spending a long time browsing the Clinique website and adding pretty much all of their Christmas gift sets to my list to Santa. So whilst I was in House of Fraser and I saw they were giving away a free makeup bag with lots of lovely minis inside. I thought seeing as I had two products in mind that I wanted to buy I would and the fact that I haven't used Clinique for a while now that I would just bite the bullet and rekindle my love for the brand.

So here's a little review of all the products inside (because the bag itself is fairly self explanatory) and I'm also going to do a little count up of how much the bag is worth. I'll divide up all the ml's, don't you worry, just leave the maths bit too me.

So starting from the left we have the Turnaround Overnight Radiance Moisturiser (15ml = £10.40)
I'm not sure what I think of this product. Granted I've only used it for a few days now but I fully intend on replaying my usual overnight cream with thins until the sample runs out to get a really good idea. So far though I am very impressed. Like I said, I haven't really noticed any lasting results but when I put this on at night it just feels indulgent. It's a perfect creamy consistency without being too heavy and absorbs within seconds. It's non greasy as well which makes it more comfortable for overnight as there's nothing I hate more than rolling over in bed and that really heave face cream that refuses to sink in just goes ll over your pillow. Final verdict: gorgeous and fuss free.

The Take The Day Off Makeup Remover (30ml = £3.84) is the star product in this bag for me. I really love oil based makeup removers as they just break down the makeup but this product is a miracle. The smallest amount of this and the makeup just slides of. It feels almost dry when you sweep it across the eye and doesn't tug or irritate the eye area. Plus it's suitable for contact lens wearers like myself so that's a bonus. I honestly have nothing bad to say about this product and it's at the top of my repurchase list.

Just right from the above is the first step in Clinique's 3 step process. The Mild Liquid Facial Soap (30ml = £2.25) I've found pretty much does what a lot of reviews have already said. It feels lovely and lathers up nice but it is a little drying. I wouldn't fancy using this with the very strong Clinique toners and you really do need the Turnaround... Moisturiser to give the skin that extra moisture. However this does leave the skin clean and soft which I like. If all I need is a good moisturiser then I can't complain that this gel wash really does strip away oils.

This next one is a bit of a oops as I haven't actually used it yet. This is definitely more of a first impressions review so yeah, it's the Sparkle Skin Body Exfoliating Cream (40ml = £3.20)

Okay! So after that embarrassment we move one of the products most suited to my picky tastes, the High Impact Mascara (3.5ml = £7) I wouldn't use this mascara alone for a night out because I have a five step system for my lashes (Which I will be sharing later this week, hint hint, wink wink.) but for day time wear this mascara has just about enough lengthening and volumising potential to be a lovely addition to any make up bag. It's definitely not a wonder product for me but it's mane selling point for me is it's defining power. The brush really separates the lashes and the formula isn't clumpy. I just wish it was a full size... *sigh*

Last but not least is the Superbalm Moisturising Gloss in Currant (7ml = £6.76) This lip gloss is much like any other. It's very much bang in the middle of what I like to think of as sticky glosses and wet glosses. The shade is also good, very good for a bag like this in fact as it comes out quite neutral so it'll suit pretty much everyone. I found that one coat of this in the morning really did last most of the day without drying up, settling into lip lines, gathering at the corners, you know, all those things you get with some glosses. Overall, an average product, no complaints but not my favourite.


So with a final total of £33.45 plus the price of the makeup bag I'm really really happy with this gift. With it only being a case of buying two Clinique products you don't have to spend a fortune to get this lovely set of indulgent items and if you've had a break from Clinique like I have it's a lovely way to get back in touch with their products.

If you're thinking of treating yourself this offer, as far as I'm aware, is only running in House of Fraser stores, NOT Clinique as a whole.

Hope everybody's having a lovely run up to Christmas and don't forget to buy presents for yourself too!

Bye. xoxo

Boots Points Treats: Mini Reviews.

Hello! 

The recent points event at Boots really got me in the mood for Christmas and spurred me on to start getting my Christmas shopping done stat. The event meant that for every fifty pounds you spent, you got twelve pounds worth of Boots point on your card. I also had a voucher to boost the total. May have been slightly helped by the obscene amount of money I spent as well but that's besides the point. 

At the end of buying all my lovely Christmas presents for everyone else I decided to use my points and buy myself some treats. I jumped headfirst into Boots' three for two offer (okay, so it's not the first time this season) and bought myself two items I've been eyeing for awhile and my free item, but more on that one later.

The first products that I've been lusting after for a long time now is  Soap and Glory's concealer. Kick Ass Concealer is a three step concealer compact that has an eye brightening corrector, a facial blemish concealer and a translucent setting powder. My views on this product are a little mixed. I love the idea of this compact, it's super cute and great for travelling and touch ups, perfectly handbag sized. The consistency of the product is good too. The only thing I don't like is the colours. I have very very pale skin but the light concealer just wasn't a match for me at all. I got the medium. I can only assume that they will bring a darker one out at some point as it seems to be strange that they have light and medium. Why not just light and dark if there are just two? A mystery. The translucent powder is just white, it's way to light so I've been using it as a matt highlighter, which is always great to have, but still not what I brought the product for. As for the concealer, the brightening corrector is just too light for me, it makes my under eye area look very strange and mismatched to the rest of my face, the blemish concealer is far to dark. On the plus, whilst it is a hassle, I have found very good results in combining the two shades so for that reason it wasn't a total loss. It's also a lot more matt than my Collection 2000 one, which I love, but it's not as multi purpose as I can't really use the concealer on large areas. Overall, with the £10 price tag I'll give this product a 7/10.

The Revlon sections sits right next to Soap and Glory in my Boots store. In seeing it I was reminded of the frantic conversation I had with my best friend over whether I wanted to buy  the Passion or Frenzy shade in their Just Bitten Lipstain. I originally bought Passion and loved it and couldn't help going back for the red/plum colour that is Frenzy (think the mental image of when Rob Pattinson talks about his vampire frenzies in Twilight, yikes!) but yes, it does have that blood red, I've just vamped up my look impact. I won't ramble on about this lip stain as you can read exactly what I thought of it in my Kiss Proof Colour post along with several other lip stains out there.

Last but not least was my free product and let me just say this was a chance find. Due to the lack of time I challenge my friend Luke to choose me a product to get free. Don't worry, I chose some backup myself just in case. However, like a true shopper at heart he headed straight for the Maybelline ColorSensational lipstick. With a little bit of careful guidance I eventually walked away with the shade Cherry Candy. This lipstick is just sheer enough to look strangely natural and yet still give you a full colour pout. This shade comes the 'The Shine' collection so it's ultra moisturising and well... as you'd expect, shiny. These lipsticks are a bit similar to the Revlon Lip Butters in their consistency so they aren't particularly long wearing but do build well when reapplying so it's not a problem for me as I always have a mirror handy. 

So have you treated yourself to anything nice lately? Let me know! 

Bye x

Why I Wear Makeup Tag.

How I feel wearing mascara :) Well, not quite.

 Hello Amigos!

After doing my It's Only Makeup post I wrote up my answers to the 'Why I Wear Makeup' tag. At some point it got saved in a blogger file somewhere whilst I was looking for some photos or something equally unimportant and I forgot to upload it, so here it is. Why do I wear makeup?


1. When did you begin wearing makeup?

I started wearing makeup when I was about thirteen. Now, when I say wearing make up I do not, by any means, mean wearing it well. For example, this picture. Now ignore the glasses, the red eye and the freakish pale glare I'm getting of that flash. Look a bit closer, oh yes, that is red eyeliner! All over my lid. I think for me wearing makeup was just a natural part of growing up but also a weird way of expressing myself when I got to high school. That age is pretty hard to figure out who you are and makeup was my way of saying 'look, I'm a grown up' even if I wasn't.




2. How do I feel without makeup?

How  I feel without makeup really depends on who I'm with. If I'm at home with my family I don't even think about the fact that I'm not wearing anything on my face and it's shiny with moisturiser. With friends I actually prefer it that way (Monkey-Mouse is revealed :)). If I'm going out then I feel quite awkward without it, you never know who you're going to meet and a lot of people, however wrong to do so, do judge on first impressions. I definitely feel more confident when I'm wearing makeup, especially for an evening out.



3. What do I like about makeup?

Buying it. As much as I love makeup I also really love buying it. Now maybe that just because it's of my shopaholic tendencies but there's just so much of it and everything is so colourful. Plus, unless I'm being really extravagant it doesn't cost half as much as a new dress. Makeup is the one think I can buy and KNOW that I'm going to wear it, unless I hate it of course. Makeup, whether it's buying it, putting it on, or just wearing it is an experience and it's the experience I enjoy.

4. My 3 Holy Grail items:

Wow, that is difficult. I have thinks that I'm loving at the moment but holy grails! I think I'll have to start with my foundation. I'm a bit of a foundation whore but I always end up going back to the Max Factor Xperience Foundation it's just so light and matt that I end up going to the mirror to give my makeup a touch up and then thinking, 'oh, it's not even shiny.' My second holy grail is my Collection 2000 Multiplier Mascara. This mascara is sooo cheap and so amazing. It thickens, lengthens and curls all at the same time and it's the perfect consistency formula. Lastly, my No.7 Natural Blush Cheek Colour in the shade Melon. It's an older blusher that's changed since No.7 went through their major revamp but Melon is pretty close to the shade I have. It's the perfect buildable, pigmented and matt blush that I have and I feel like I can wear this and nothing else because it just makes me look alive.


And that, my friends, is why I wear that colourful makeup stuff. What about you? Why do you wear makeup?


Bye!

Slightly Late... October Favourites.

Hey Beauty Addicts,

Halloween, bonfires, autumn... it's just all to much! I have no wish lists for September or October. Not a favourites in sight! I don't know what's going on but clearly all this busy season has gotten the best of me.

So here's some of the things I just can't get enough of, in October at least. I'm not going to do full reviews because let's face it, I've been rabbiting on about some of these products in posts (which I will link for you as always) for the past month.

I'll start my journey back in time to last month with, yes, again Soap & Glory Cheekmate. (Seven Shades of Autumn and The Beautiful Big Screen.) I won't even tell you how much I love this, because I'm sure you already know. If you don't, just go clickety click on those links in brackets there.


My next favourite of October is my Warehouse scarf. I got this beauty in the very last days of October, but my love for it is so strong that yes, it makes up for that lost time. 20% student discount at Warehouse going on at the moment, just so ya know. This scarf is a weave of cream, baby blue and pale pink wool with cute little tassells.

Whilst a still beauty related my next favourite isn't exactly an item but a website that I cannot tear myself away from. Fantasy Shopper is a style sharing website where you can shop real items in hundreds of stores right now and create outfits, mood boards, help other members find nice outfits and create your own outfits. It's a great way of trying pieces before you buy them and you can do just that, purchase them through the website with one click. I found out about the site from
the wonderful Makeup Savvy. Careful though, it's addictive! 


My last beauty favourite for October is the Herbal Essences Drama Clean shampoo and conditioner.
A clarifying shampoo but gentler this combo gets rid of excess oil and keeps hair naturally shiny without the grease all day.

What are you loving this month, or like me, last month?

Bye Addicts.

The Beautiful Big Screen

Hello Beauty Addicts,

I've been thinking about this post for quite a while mow, thinking, how am I going to present these looks. Should I do individual posts with tutorials? Or should I just stick with a classic show and tell. So here's how it runs. I wanted to create a post with what I have narrowed down to my favourite TV shows or movies BEAUTY wise. These shows/movies are not necessarily my favourite things to watch but they are the ones I've watched and thought, 'wow, their outfits are amazing,' or, 'I just love her make up.' Then I thought, that's all well and good but how do we make these looks real. So here's what I'll do, I'm going to do a top five and then recommend what I feel would be the fundamental product to getting that look, yes? Yes.

If you guys want to see tutorials for any of the following, let me know! Because they're all awesome.


1: The Debt.

I'm a huge sucker for a spy movie. Thanks to my Dad I've grown up on a huge action heavy diet, meaning this 1965 set remake of the 2007 film of the same name is right up my street. However for me it's Jessica Chastain's make up that steals the limelight for me. This slightly rouged lip and deep set brown eyes is just awakening all of my early 1970's love. This look it just all about the eyes, sultry and doe-eyed all at the same time. To achieve this look I'd be looking for some super smooth eye shadows which is exactly what you get in the Rimmel Glam'Eyes Eyeshadow Quad in shade Smokey Brun. This quad provided four colours from highlight to contour allowing you to adapt this smokey brown eye to your eye shape.


2: Game of Thrones.


Yeah, you guessed it. How could I not put this in here with those hairstyles! Daenerys Targaryen's (yup, without even Googling the spelling)  hair veil is surprisingly easy and can be adapted to almost every hair length. All you need is a pair of crimpers, or plaits over night, some hairspray to give Dany's waves some volume and some clear elastic hair ties. As entertaining as it would be to give you a run down of each piece of hair involved, I think I'll leave it to YouTube's very own Game of Thrones hair expert LaDollyVeta33 to show you how it's done.

Oh, and product? The hair rings she wears are quite intricate from what i can see but some regular styling hair rings are fine. I like the look of the Regal Rose ones.


3: The Tudors.

Anybody who knows me well will know that the recent Virgin Media Tudor Marthon combined with my current Tudor's study at college has got me pretty much hooked on this period of history. In the show, as beautiful as Henry Cavill is, it's difficult not to love the soft rouge but barely there make up his wife Catherine Brooke (historically Catherine Willoughby) played by the stunning Rebekah Wainwrigh. This look is all porcelain skin, thick brows and most importantly that subtle rouge lip. The perfect product that springs to mind for me is Soap & Glory Cheekmate. Let's face it, I've mentioned it before in my Seven Shades of Autumn post,and I just love the stuff. 

4: Hunted.

Guns again! But wait, hello, who is doing  Melissa George's wardrobe in this show! Kicking some serious ass as Sam Hunter we've seen Melissa in everything from swanky LBD's to a beautiful dusky pink blazer in that very first episode and I cannot get enough of her style.It's impossible to just pick one look but how about Sam's distressed denim jacket and long scarf combo? Ya know, when it looked pre-shoot out hot.

Jacket:

The Boyfriend Grunge look: Forever 21 Destroyed Denim Jacket

Female Rocker: Topshop MOTO Denim Worker Jacket

Scarf: River Island Cream Sequin

           AllSaint Warp Scarf

5: Roman Holiday.

This is going to be a quick on as you don't really need to say anything other than: LOOK AT THOSE EYEBROWS! We all know Audrey has some serious eyebrow going on in this film, and pretty much all over the place in the 50's and there's nothing like the IT Cosmetic Brow Power.  This brow pencil is retractable at one end and has a spooly brush at the other to keep your brows tip top and Audrey perfect all day.

Let me know which TV shows and movies get you style pulse going.

Bye Addicts x

Halloween Horrors!

Happy Halloween Darlings! 

I think it's time to share with you some of the all hallows eve horrors that I have been loving this year. I wanted to truely pay homage to some of my favourite bloggers with this post as their work this year has not failed to inspire me. I also want to share some trends that I've seen going around his year coming up to Halloween that are, in my opinion, creative and really making Halloween as wacky as it ought to be.

My first shout out has to go to MissJen FABULOUS (Click, click, click!). Our Jen has been doing some fantastic nail tutorials with autumn from halloween candy inspires trick or treat, to blood stained vampire fangs. Personally though I can't wait to try out her spooky pumpkin nails! 

After seeing the lengths that many YouTubers were going to this season I couldn't help but have a scout around for my favourite Halloween make up and it doesn't get much better than these two offerings from Pixi2woo, A.K.A Tanya Burr, and dope2111. For me these are the all out real deal as far as crazy make up goes. Want to know how to create gruesome cuts, why not try out Tanya's Zombie tutorial. If you want something a little more pretty but horrific then I think dope2111's incredible Corpse Bride look is pretty inspiring.

 

 

 

  It's time to get creative in the home and if you're like me and pumpkin carving isn't exactly you're forte, then perhaps a change of tactic is in order. I recently discovered these 'lantern pumpkins'. They're as easy as drawing your lantern in permanent marker and cutting out the windows. Artistic talent needed is minimal and the only skill you need is cutting in a straight line. If we can master liquid eyeliner I think we can handle this. 

Last but not least, grab you scissors and glue lovelies. It's time for a bit of cutting and sticking. Simply lay a piece of cardboard inside the shirt so that you're only cutting the one side and snip away. If you're worried about mistakes just sketch out your design lightly with a pencil before hand.  

This next one can be as simple as you like. If you're a bit more domestically inclined then you can stitch your shapes, as shown on the green and black design to the left, to create a neat effect, or simply glue them for a more rugged look. Use the fabric you cut from your other T-shirt to mak eyes, a nose, whatever you like. Go wild and add that cute collar if you really feel like it :) 

 Happy Halloween Addicts. 

Trick or Treat!

I ♥ Fall Tag!

Hello Beauty Addicts!

As you can see in my Seven Shades of Autumn post I'm feeling very Autumnal and let's face it, it's been a while since I did a tag. A quick reminder that Fall is just Autumn in America although, quick fact, 'Fall' was originally English and taken over to America during the colonisation. As the English language evolved Fall became Autumn but was kept in it's original form in the US to keep American English 'pure'. Geek moment for you there.

Anyway, the 'I ♥ Fall Tag' has become almost an obligation for any beauty addict this year so therefore, here it is.


Okay, so here we go:

1. Favourite Fall lip product?

    My favourite fall lip product was a chance find in my local Sainsbury's in the sale. It's a typical autumn shade, a deep purple and smells like palma violets. Again this is another discontinued shade so I can only get it on Amazon now, which is a shame, but I love it. The Loreal Paris Color Riche in shade 712.


2. Favourite Fall Nail Polish?
    During fall I actually tend to rock some summer nail polishes. Some corals and mint greens all year round for me usually. However, I do love a good deep blue and Wet n Wild Wild Shine nail polish has that sheen that makes it look so deep and pool-like it's just beautiful. intense colour in one coat, especially with my favourite blue - shade Denim Chrome. 
   

3. Favourite Starbucks Fall Drink?
    My Starbucks coffee doesn't really change throughout the year, I'm actually more of a Costa girl anyway. Although, I am more likely to order an ice tea in summer I guess but my coffee of choice is always a Mocha whether I'm at Starbucks or not.


4. Favourite Fall Candle?

    Surprisingly my favourite fall candle is actually a summer scent. I brought it during the summer clear out and I talked about this in my Fallen of the Waggon post. It's the Yankee Candle Bahama Breeze scent. The smell of this candle makes me reminiscent of summer as it's so refreshing but always makes me pleased for the change in scenery. Even in the rain and mist I can come home and go back to my summer scents for a little while to recover.

5. Favourite Fall Scarf or Accessory?
    My scarf! Definitely, it's just a plain cream wool from Republic but I really really want a deep purple one from Monsoon :)


6. Haunted house, haunted hay ride, or haunted corn maze?

    Well here in England we only really have haunted houses and those are at theme parks, but I'm a pretty easy scare so I would say I'm not a massive fan of those either. The Blackpool Pleasure Beach  I think I'd like a hay ride if I'd ever been on one.

7. Favourite Halloween movie?

    I'm always up for a good scary movie on Halloween but I do prefer the classics. The original Halloween is good for me!


8. Favourite candy to eat on Halloween?

    Toffee Apples! Okay, so it's not something you get when trick or treating but it's the bit that I love about Halloween.


9. What are you dressing up as for Halloween?
    Whilst I'm not dressing up this year I got a bit creative last year and went as a walking version of the cult classic A Clockwork Orange. When I was little I was always a witch, however I think I was Death for a few years... 

10. What is your Favourite thing about Fall?
       Fallen leaves and bonfires. Can anyone say smores? 


 What are your Fall Favourites? I tag everyone.

Bye Addicts.

Kiss proof colour? The lip stains that did NOT rock my world.

 

 

Hola Amigos!

Now lip tints, stains, whatever you want to call them aren't exactly new but what little sunshine we have had over the last few summers has brought with it an influx of stains onto the market. Frankly, the Autumn and Winter seasons are all about lipstick for me. With the fruity, flirty attitudes of the summer months slowly dwindling I can't help but reflecting on the lip colours that just haven't brightened up my year.


My first and should have been final tint came from the ultimate vintage lovers supplier - Benefit. However, as far as I'm concerned the Benefit Benetint just ain't fooling me. This thinner than water product is an ultimate lip bleeder that offers uneven coverage and leaves you thinking 'I could have swore my lips were red five minutes ago...'

So when MaxFactor released their Lipfinity Pin Tint Pen I thought my prayers had been ended. I think it became pretty clear to most people that these pens haven't quite been tried and tested as the pens dry out very quickly. Also, what is this colour selection? According to MaxFactor's website the Lipfinity pens are available in ten shades but from experience I've only ever seen them available in four shades including a highly unwearable purple and a muddy pinkish-brown colour that I can't imagine a skin tone in the world that it would look good with.

Enter in Revlon's Just Bitten Lipstain and Balm. This full colour lip stain is none drying, durable and most importantly, staying put! Eat, drink, kiss as you will, this stuff will not budge. A bright summer collection of shades from fire engine reds to precious pinks, subtle nudes, you name it adds a splash of colour to any look. The innovation of this product was the nourishing lip balm that came as part of the package. I agree with all of it, the balm is great.... oh, wait... the balm is great if you can get it to stay on! We've all done, wound our lipstick up to far and felt that horrifying break, well with this that break is inevitable. Even so, without the balm, (which doesn't bother me too much as I'm picky about my balms to begin with) I think this product is well worth the money, even if you can only use half of it.

Finally Rimmel's One Thousand Kisses copy cat lip stain fixes the balm problem. No, it's not retractable but it hasn't broken on me yet, however it is very sticky and doesn't possess a single hydrating ingredient as far as I can determine from use and is therefore just as useless as the Revlon one. For me the actually pen tip offers all the problems of the former two: colour longevity and pigment is none existent and the tip dries out in seconds! No. No. No.

Now, of to swoon over this seasons must have lipsticks.

Bye!

Seven Shades of Autumn

Welcome to Autumn ;)

Hello Beauty Addicts, time to hunker down with some hot chocolate because Autumn has officially arrived :)

I'm starting to feel a bit festive and although the cold weather may be a killer there are some beautiful and inspiring colours around at this time of year. So here are my autumn makeup must haves... by shade... and some autumnal images to get guide you into the festive season :)

Pumpkin - Orange. 

We've all seen the advert and yes, we've also all skipped it on YouTube after the first go, but if you have any bag to brighten up you look this autumn make it a stunner by The Cambridge Satchel Company. Grab it here: Batchel Please!




Mulled Wine - Deep Red.

Autumn just wouldn't be autumn without a deep red lip. It's time to get vampy for the Halloween season and I don't think there's a better way of doing that than with the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Rich Raisin Frost.




Icicles - Transparent Shine.

So this may not be a shade, but a good clear can protect and hydrate you're lips whilst still allowing you to rock the dark smoky eyes for a frosty evening. The No.7 High Shine Lip Gloss in shade Ice is perfect for a winter wet look without that sticky gloss getting into windswept hair. (Whilst discontinued from No.7 relaunch products, Ice is still available from Amazon retailers, for a much cheaper price.)




Holly Bush - Green.

Go green with the L'oreal Paris Star Secrets Quad Pro in Evangeline Lilly. These shimmering beauties will add subtle colour to any look.





Cinnamon - Brown.

Nothing makes me feel more festive than a trip to my local Christmas shop which always smells so strongly of cinnamon and oranges. Who doesn't love a good warm brown eyeshadow to subtly smoke up any day time eye. You can get Urban Decay Eyeshadow Pots in Busted in the Naked2 palette or separately from Debenhams or House of Fraser.





 Wind bitten - Pink. 

The cold winds are rising! (Geek moment, over it) Pink lips and rosy cheeks are the key to covering up the cold, frostbitten face and getting that post snowball fight, wind bitten flush that only ever appears in the movies. Duel use products are always a big yes for the budget and the make up bag and this autumn I'm loving the Soap & Glory Cheekmate. It's a rosy cheek and lip tint that just keeps on giving, super staying power.

Snowman - White.

Last but not least a shimmery white eye can keep a winter look clean and icy plus it makes a good red lip pop. Bobbi Brown Metallic Long Wear Cream Shadow in Opal is the perfect mix of pigment and sparkle. This product is the most buildable and versatile cream shadow I've used and sits tight so a perfect winter eye.





And there we have it. Autumn has made it's entry and it's already time to go and grab the big scarfs and ditch those new sunnies.


Cheerio!

Five Brushes I Cannot Live Without

Hello Beauty Addicts!

  My brush obsession has taken me to a place over the years where I have now collected a mixed up collection of brushes from all over the place. One day a few years ago I decided to throw everything out and buy myself a 21 piece brushes wrap from the German company, Fraulein 3.8 . Since then I've thrown out any of the ones I don't use and replaced them with a few staple brushes that I couldn't believe were not included to begin with. After all that though, I have just five brushes that I cannot travel, live, or generally do without. So here they are, the staples of my collection:


1. This first brush frankly is the brush that if it's missing from your collection, I ask you, how do you keep your makeup on? It's the Faulein 3.8 Powder Brush (Third from the right.) The Fraulein brushes come in a variety of sets, I got these with the red bristles and they're surprisingly soft for the low price. Most importantly for me when talking about face makeup brushes is after the first wash these brushes are definitely minimal fall out and therefore an investment of under £15 pounds goes a very long way.

2.  These next two are both Fraulein's again - can you tell I'm a fan? The Fraulein 3.8 Blush Brush (Fourth from the right.) is the perfect domed shape brush to get the wind bitten blush and for any other powdering needs as it's basically a smaller version of the powder brush. 

3. My third staple as I said is another Fraulein but this time it's the Fraulein 3.8 Concealer Brush (First one.) Actually when I saw this brush I wasn't sure what it was. Personally I think it's too big for anything in the eyeshadow field and does indeed look like a mini foundation brush for which reason I've took to using this to blend my concealer and now I couldn't do it with my finders knowing that this brush gives flawless application.

 

4. Finally we move onto a different brand! I don't like heavy foundations as I'm not much for coverage, just an evening out of skin tone and for which reason I've been struggling to find a brush that gives even and light layers of foundation. The RealTechniques Stippling Brush when used in circular motions effectively eliminates pores as the duel-fiber brush really works foundation into the skin for a flawless skin feel coverage. 

 

5. My fifth and final brush is one of the best blending brushes I've ever used. The No.7 Blend and Contour Eyeshadow Brush is a few years old now just like my well worn one but it's still as soft and amazing as the day I bought it. This brush has stark white bristles and is therefore very easy to tell when it needs washing and I love the size. It's big enough for smudgy blends but small enough for accuracy if you've got awkward creases like me. 

So there you have it, my staple kit brushes that I need in my life. Care to share, what are your brush must haves? 

Bye addicts!

Hiatus Over!

Hello Beauty Addicts! 

Have you enjoyed my little hiatus? No, me niether... 

I just wanted to say hi, I'm back! do not be afeared (insert scottish accent here). 

So whilst I'm here, why don't I drop you a few cheeky links for some new posts:

Products I regret buying.

Opps, I've fallen of the waggon!

Booyah!

Bye addicts. xoxo