Naked Basics 2 preview….

I couldn't be more excited. I'm not a huge eyeshadow wearer - a slick of liquid liner and a bright lip is my signature look and I reserve the smokey eyes and fancy eyeshadow looks for makeup jobs on shoots etc. But every now and again a girl needs some kind of crease definition or a matte brown toned shadow to complement a nude lip or just to spice things up in general. I'm not one for crazy colours, and shimmers always get a bit messy on me so when Urban Decay bought out the Naked Basics palette it was instant love. It's the most worn palette in my collection by far, so when I saw the Naked Basics 2 in Sephora when I was in New York last week I did a little makeup squeal of excitement. This thing is gorgeous. 

The same sleek packaging as the original Basics palette this is spot on for travel or just throwing in a makeup bag. More cool toned than the original, it echoes the same theme with five matte shadows and one satin finish that acts as a perfect highlight. The darkest shade is on the grey side of things and actually acts as quite a nice brow shade for me so this really is all I need when travelling. 

The taupe shade shadows are great crease colours, all over lid shadows or accompaniments to other Urban Decay palettes like the Electric palette that need grounding with some neutral shadows to make them more wearable. Fans of the original Naked palette, of cool toned taupe shadows, good quality matte eyeshadows or just neutral eyes in general will love this. Released on the 1st of October in the UK, this one is a must have in any collection. 11 out of 10.

L-R Skimp (pale nude satin), Stark (nude-pink matte), Frisk (warm grey matte), Cover (muted red-brown matte), Primal (muted brown matte) and Undone (deep, smokey brown matte).

Loves

xxx

The best of The Body Shop...

First up we have skincare - something that I'm quite minimal with as my skin is extremely oily so doesn't need too much fuss and product overload. My most recent purchase is the Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil. I'd been using cream cleansers previously and found they were a real struggle to take off makeup with. This is an absolute dream; just one pump for eyes, another for skin, massage into dry skin until it turns milky and rinse off. Another night time product I've been loving is the Serum in Oil. I love using both serum AND oil on my face at night time but the combination of the two sometimes freaks my skin out, so finding this really light weight oil that combines the benefits of a serum was a dream! 

My favourite face mask of all time, in the history of face masks, is the Warming Mineral Clay mask. This warms up as you apply it and doesn't dry hard like a lot of clay masks tend to do, so there's non of that dry, tight feeling after you've taken this off. I've been through about 4 tubes of the Vitamin E eye cream (which I have a review on here), I love this stuff! It doesn't try to do everything, it just keeps the area hydrated and makes eye makeup apply so much smoother. Finally, another much re-purchased product is the Mattifying Seaweed Day Cream. Oh lord I love this stuff. I can sometimes even just use this without a primer and my makeup just sits so much better. Any oily skinned girls out there… you need this one in your life!

For makeup, I recently caved in to the hype and bought the Honey Bronzer in shade 03 medium matte. I love it almost as much as Benefit Hoola, and lord knows I'm a big fan of that bad boy! It doesn't have any shimmer, and is a very natural bronze colour - you won't see any nasty orange face streaks with this one! I also love that they come in such light shades, perfect for the paler ones among us! My Nan picked up the Body Shop Shimmer Waves highlighter in Blush for me as a present when I came back from Australia and, whenever I've been sporting a pale to mid toned pink blush, I'm also wearing this without fail. It's a gorgeous subtle shimmery highlighter that can be built up to look quite dramatic, and can even be worn without a blush underneath if you take the colour from the top of the palette. The Body Shop Shimmer Cubes are a bit of a cult product and for very good reason. I mentioned them in my recent shopping my stash post and have used them almost every day since - especially the copper colour all over the lid and underneath the lower lash line. 

Lastly are the Body Shop Lightening Touch pens; an absolute gem of a products and one that I think should be talked about a lot more. I have shade 03 which is perfect as a highlighter anywhere on the face, and my new discover in 01 which is a peach colour that I find counteracts my dark eye circles like a dream. 

What other products should I try from The Body Shop? Any other cult products or underdogs that I need to get my hands on?

Loves

xxx 

Shopping my stash #1...

I see a lot of these posts going around on blogs from one week to the next and I love the idea that it encourages using products that have long been forgotten and pushed to the back of the draw rather than going out and buying yet MORE new products. I had a rummage in the 'reserve' draws and pulled out these three beauties. 

Sax blusher in Rosy Glow, The Body Shop shimmer cubes palette 06, Topshop lip crayon in Coy.

This blush is a really beautiful rose pink with a lot of gold shimmer running through it. If you don't like any shimmer in your blushers, this isn't for you. I love the fact that it eliminates the need to add a highlighter afterwards….although thats not to say that I don't add one!

I've had this for longer than I can remember, but it really has laid unloved in my collection. The coppery and champagne shade in this palette are the kind of colours I reach for on a daily basis so I can see this becoming my everyday palette now I've bought it out of retirement. 

The Topshop lip crayons are very matte which is just how I like my lip products at the moment. They glide on beautifully (just make sure you exfoliate your lips first….) and have great staying power. This one in Coy is a beautiful peachy pink shade….and who doesn't love a peachy pink?! This will look gorgeous with a sweep of the above blusher and some of the copper shadow on the lids from the Body Shop shimmer cube palette.

Does anyone else do this regularly? What have you rediscovered from your stash?

Loves

xxx

April favourites….

Unsurprisingly, my April favourites is fairly lip product heavy. April also saw some resurrections from makeup favourites past…. one good thing about being on a budget is being more aware of raiding old makeup and digging into the long forgotten stash!

Bright lips have been the order of the day, particularly in shades of orange. First up is the Mac Pro Longwear lip pencil in What A Blast…I love this under almost every orange lip I wear, it makes it super long wearing and the colour so vivid. On top of this I've either been wearing my Napolian Perdis Set lipstick in Noosa. I don't actually think this is available in the UK but for any Aussie readers I have on here…..if you don't own this then WHY NOT? If I want something less matte and with a bit of sheen for the day time I'll pop on the Rimmel Moisture Renew lipstick in In Love With Ginger. If you saw my last post you'll see my other favourite lip colour is purple, so of course my favourite (and cheapest!) purple lipstick of the month has to be the Collection Little Mix lipstick in the shade Perrie. Lastly for lips, my neutral lip shade of choice has been the Benefit lip gloss in Sugarbomb, a beautiful pink with some shimmer running through it. 

Eye favourites have been all about the old faithfuls. You'll almost definitely have seen me talk about The Balm What's Your Type Volumising mascara over the past 18 months and it's still up there as one of the best mascara's I've ever used. I've been going back to basics on eyes with just a sweep of the Rimmel Scandaleyes eyeshadow stick in Bulletproof Beige over my eyes with loads of mascara, or a sweep of neutral shadow from my very old and very faithful Sleek Oh So Special palette. I love the pink shades in here for spring/summer, and the black is one of the best I've tried. As my eyelids are, and will forever be, particularly oily, I've re-discovered Benefit Stay Don't Stray eyelid primer which, I'll admit, I was not a fan of to start with. I still think the pump dispenser is wasteful but I've learnt that less is more with this one and I've really been loving it. 

Just a couple of face products, both from one of my favourite brands, NYX. First off is something that I'm sure has been in the last 3 months favourites and I'm almost certain everyone is fed up of hearing me harp on about; the NYX matte bronzing powder in light. And for a splash of colour I've been loving the NYX Rouge Cream Blush in Hot Pink blended (VERY lightly….this product has some serious pigment to it) into the apples of my cheeks and up lightly onto the cheekbones.

What are everyone else's favourites from April?

Loves

xxx

NYX natural palette...

So far, everything I've tried from NYX I've fallen in love with, most of the products making their way into my everyday makeup routine. This palette kept popping up on Pinterest (come follow me if you don't already!) and I'd never tried any of their shadows before so thought, for such great value for money I'd give it a go. My initial thoughts were, what a great range of shades! I thought this would be perfect to create light, shimmery day looks, and then the darker shades in the crease smoked out for a more dramatic night look. It's got two matte shades so great for subtle highlights, and the rest all have varying amounts of shimmer throughout them. 

My first thought on these was they were really hard to blend. I used the glitter champagne shade (second in from left) all over the lid, with the taupe satin shadow through the crease, and they just kid of sat there. I also really didn't think much to the consistency of them. Very powdery and chalky...when I wiped a clean finger over my lid the shadow just came away. Slightly better with a lid primer but still nothing to write home about. 

Pigmentation was pretty poor, the swatches above were done without a primer which, as I said, did help matters along a bit but they were no Urban Decay! The last thing was the glitter....the champaign shade was so glittery it took me back to my 15 year old self when I was glitter obsessed!

All in all, not great from NYX in my opinion; there are definitely better budget eyeshadow brands on the market (Rimmel and L'Oreal etc). I still love NYX for their cheek, base and lip products but I don't think I'll be reaching for the eye section any time soon!

Am I on my own with this?

Loves

xxx

Everyday eye look featuring Rimmel Lash Accelerator mascara..

More often than not I find myself reaching for the liquid liner to do a winged-out cat eye look which, combined with big thick lashes, I've found myself rocking on a day to day basis. Having ran out of my favourite mascara (Benefit They're Real) I reached into my stash (and trust me it's a big one) and pulled out my next mascara victim; Rimmel Lash Accelerator. 

I thought the wand seemed a little plasticky at first so wasn't intending on being too impressed but the thin want and short bristles make for perfectly defined lashes from corner to corner, and makes bottom lash application a dream. It take a lot of coats (this took about four) to reach my desired lash thickness, and a lot of time and patience, but the results are so worth it.

I used the Shu Uemura eyelash curlers first, then applied multiple coats of the Lash Accelerator mascara. I used a wash of coral eyeshadow across the lid and liner the top lash line with the Topshop liquid liner, and used Soap & Glory smoulder kohl liner in the waterline. 

Has anyone else tried and loved this mascara?

Loves

xxx

Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Branded...

I'll admit it, I'm lazy. I love the ease of sweeping a cream eyeshadow across my lid and generously applying a few coats of mascara before flying out of the door. That's where the likes of my Mac Paint Pots and Benefit cream shadows come in, but if there was ever a chance for a cheaper alternative, I'll take it! 

My first experience with the Maybelline Colour Tattoo's was the taupe shade and, well, I hated it. It was a horrible consistency, didn't blend well, and creased like a bitch. I gave them another chance and picked up Bad To The Bronze which is now my go-to everyday eye colour of choice, so when I saw yet another "me" shade sitting on the shelves, and in a shade conspicuously like my trusty Mac Bare Study, who was I to say no??

Barely There is a pinky gold champagne shade that I'd say is more on the golden shade of Bare Study. It does look great on the lid alone, but I've been in love with wearing it underneath a really shimmery pink shadow with a mid tone matte brown through the crease. All in all, a great easy to wear product, and a much cheaper alternative for Mac Bare Study paint pot if you're in the market for something similar.

What other shades do I need to pick up from this range?

Loves

xxx

Napoleon Perdis haul....

A brand that isn't too readily available in the UK, I thought it was something I should try out while I'm over in Australia. I thought I'd get a small range of things so I can get a feel for it and so far I'm loving it. They have the original range (which I haven't tried anything from yet) and the 'set' range which is a fresher, younger and better priced take on the originals. First up I love the sleek, white, simple packaging, and the range is named around places in the world, a cute idea.

The brow kit has two shades, a wax, a brush and mini tweezers. The tweeters are a good size, the brush is fairly decent for one in a palette, and light shade is maybe a bit light for my brows, but my god the darker shade mixed with the wax is brow heaven!!! I've had so many complements on my brows since I've switched to using this.

I also bought a new crease brush, and one of their eyeshadow duo's in 'Antigua'. The brush is so soft, really easy to use, and hasn't shed a hair since I've been using it. The brushes aren't cheap but if this one is anything to go for I'll be collecting more. They eyeshadows are a stand out product for me. They are so soft and creamy for a powder shadow. I love the pale pink brown colour right across the lid, blended up into the crease with a dark matte shadow, or the dark shadow in the crease and winged out. 

Lastly is the lipstick. I picked up 'Noosa' which is a matte orange-red shade and I adore it. I haven't worn this one yet but I think with a plain eye, huge lashes and dewy skin this is going to be the perfect spring look.

Has anyone else tried the Napoleon Perdis Set range and can recommend anything else for me to try?

Loves

xxx

Introducing Makeover Essentials...

I was stopped recently by a lovely representative from Makeover Essentials asking if I wanted to try some of their new makeup, soon to be making appearances in Debenhams near you! Of course I said yes and picked up a few bits from the range.

First up was the 'Complete Petite' which was, I have to say, an incredible little product. This little beauty that packs away to a tidy little handbag friendly cube, includes a mirror, sharpener with lid to catch sharpenings, two blushes, five lip colours, five matt day eyeshadows, five shimmer night eyeshadows, mascara, lip liner and an eyeliner, and even a couple of cute little brushes. I've not had chance to try this yet, but hopefully the quality is as good as the packaging.

Next up is the illuminating powder. Again I've not tried this apart from on the back of my hand, and as someone who doesn't really use powder illuminator it's quite fine and isn't too glittery on the skin. It's quite a bronze shade and I usually go for more of a pink shade, but with a bit of a tan when I go back to Australia I think this will look stunning.

I also got a cute little Kabuki in it's own little pouch, which I have used and loved. Nice and soft, doesn't shed, and spreads powder into the skin evenly. 

I saved the best till last; this is their bronzing powder which is a gorgeous soft silky powder with a tiny hint of shimmer. It's a very light bronze shade, and I've been using this for the past week daily, on top of my EL Double Wear, in place of my Mac MSF natural powder and I love it equally as much. 

This is definitely quite an interesting brand, and I'll look forward to seeing more of them when they reach Debenhams stores over the next few months. If you want to check out their products now they're available online here. 

Has anybody else checked out anything from this brand yet? Will you be heading to Debenhams to check them out?

Loves

xxx

Sax Eye Delight eyeshadow palette review...

Browsing in a pharmacy before I came back from Australia I spotted a brand called Sax....sleek packaging, great colours, strong pigmentation and a reasonable price. I had to pick a few bits up to try them out, and as I was short of eyeshadows while overseas, I thought their palette was a good start.

The packaging is very much like Nars, with a slight rubbery finish that gets dirty very quickly, but does give it more of a high end feel. 

Six great neutral shades, all with a slight shimmer and a variety of highlight, lid, crease and outer corner colours. It've found it a very easy palette to create a subtle smokey eye, an evening look, or even to use the lighter colours for a solid wash of colour across the lid. 

Sax is an Australian company, stocked in both Aus and NZ but if you want to check them out head to the website and click on Stockist where there's a contact email for anybody overseas looking to find out more about the brand. The palette retails at 19.95 Australian dollars, great value for that price!

Loves

xxx

Face of the day....

Not normally one for eyeshadow, I donned my (limited collection) of Mac shadows and tried out a bit of a golden/purple smokey eye for mine and my Ty's 6 month anniversary meal (altogether now....ahhhhhh).

Dress - Jay Jays (Australian)

Foundation - Revlon photo ready

Concealer - Benefit erase paste

Brows - Rimmel eyebrow pencil

Eyes - Mac shadows Retrospeck, Sketch and Cognac, L'Oreal HIP colour truth cream eyeliner

Lashes - Cover Girl Clump Crusher

Blush - Mac Well drressed

Highlighter - Essence Circus Circus in It's Magic

Lips - Chi Chi in Shake that booty and Revlon gloss in Glitz and Glam

 

I'd love to start a Mac palette one day, any suggestions of some first basic colours to get me started would be much appreciated...

Loves

xxx

Top 5 eyeshadows...

Hey lovelies, sorry I've been quiet on here this week, I've had a bit of a mad one! I'm not really an eyeshadow fan, but there are one or two I do reach for when I'm in the mood...

Urban Decay Roach: This is gorgeous all over the lid then smoked out to create a subtle daytime look, or heavily in the crease with huge false lashes for something a bit more dramatic at night

The Body Shop shimmer cube in Honeycomb: I LOVE this shade, I've used it daily for months and it's hardly gone down. Just damp an eyeshadow brush and sweep it through the colour then over the lid. These will definitely be coming to Oz with me!

Not so much a shadow, but Mac Paint Pot in Bare Study is an everyday base colour, either by itself or as a base for a pale smokey eye at night. Pain Pots are fast becoming one of my favourite collectable Mac items! 

Back to Urban Decay, and of course the trusty Naked Palette! Hustle is an incredible purply brown that I smudge across the outer corner over the top of Bar Study as a staple night out look. 

Yet again UD, and this time Sin from the Naked palette. Another colour that I love as an all over colour wash for the lid, or as a base for a pink smokey eye!

Do any of these make your top 5?

Loves

xxx

Weekly review....17 All About Nude quad...

Hey lovelies...I've literally only had this a day and I have to tell you all about it. You may have seen it in Boots, if you buy any two items of their makeup you get this nude quad free....

First of all, gorgeous packaging. Shiny white colour with black writing, nice and chunky feeling, with a sturdy clasp and a good mirror inside. So far, so good...

On first impression, I wouldn't have assumed these were particularly 'nude' colours, especially the lip colour. 

These are the eyeshadows, a bronze/brown and a pinky gold. They have amazing pigmentation, don't crumble, and stay put ALL day (trust me I wore them both on my eyes today)

The cream blush doesn't really show up as having much colour pay-off on here, but it actually gave me a lovely glow, and as a firm lover of powder blushes over cream, this actually surprised me a lot. I want to find out if they do this shade in their core collection and if they do I'm most definitely buying it as a makeup bag staple.

I love this lipgloss, and with all the other shades worn at the same time it really complements them well.

All in all I love this. It's great to have a quad/palette with nearly a full face all in one place where all the colours and shades look great together so you don't have to give it too much thought as you rush to leave the house in the morning. 

I took a close up of the eyeshadows for you to see how they work blended together...

(please excuse the eyebrows, I'm getting them waxed on Saturday so can't pluck!!)

And here's my face with all four elements of the quad used. Apologies for looking rough, this was before 7am this morning! 

All in all, my advice is to get yourself to Boots and buy a couple of 17 products so you can pick one of these up. So handy to not have to think about what blush goes with what eyeshadow in the morning. Anything for an easy life in my opinion!!

Loves

xxx