2015 Beauty Favourites

Today's post is all about a few of my beauty favourites from 2015. I have many favourite as there was some amazing launches of new products but I have decided to narrow it down to the top 10 so here they are in no particular order...

1. Mac Prep and Prime Skin Base Visage - £21.00  - I have had this for about a year now, it is my first primer but I can really tell the difference to my make up when I use this underneath it definitely works and make foundation go on so much more smoothly.

2. Sephora Matte Lip Cream in 03  I bought this last February while I was in Paris and I am so glad I did! It lasts so well and I really want to get some other colours.

3. Max Factor Creme Puff  Blush in Seductively Pink - £8.99 - I love this blush so much I have just bought another one as I have hit the bottom of this one! Its such a lovely colour and the slight shimmer gives a glow to the skin.

4. Loreal Colour Riche Lipstick in Beige A Nu - £7.99 - This lipstick is such a pretty nude and is so creamy. I also really love the smell of these lipsticks, I also have two other colours too.

5. Garnier Micellar Water - £4.99 - Since I discovered this I have never used anything else to take my make up off. Its so affordable and is so similar to the famous Bioderma. Also one bottle lasts for ages which is so good!

6. Collection Extreme 24 hour felt tip Liner in Black - £2.99 - I picked this up about 6 months ago because I wanted a different liner to using gel all the time and I am so glad I did. I am so impressed with this because every other felt tip style liner I have used had dried up too quickly and this one is still going strong! It is really black and so quick and easy to apply, I highly recommend!

7. Benefit Roller Lash - £19.50 -  I first tried this when I got a sample in a magazine and when it came out I bought one with my Boots card points. It is definitely the best mascara I have ever used and recommend to everyone to try if you like really defined, curled lashes! I got another one for Christmas which I was so happy about because my other one ran out.

8. Stila In The Moment Palette - £25 - I bought this on the Birchbox website after I earned points to spend after reviewing the boxes I used to get. It has such lovely eyeshadows from neutral to some dark browns and purples. I especially love the shade instinct for a brow bone and inner corner highlight.

9. My Mac Palette - £35 (so far) - I got this with some vouchers I got for my birthday and I love all the shades I have picked so far. I have Antiqued (dark copper orange shade), Sketch (a deep purple shade) and Charcoal Brown (medium brown shade).

10. Sigma E40 Tapered Blending Brush - £10.55  - I bought this from Feel Unique after my friend told me how good it was and I also didn't really have a brush like it. Its so good at blending shadows perfectly and I use it all the time.

Naked Smoky Palette

Today's post is going to be about one of the newest palettes from Urban Decay! I was lucky enough to receive the Naked smoky palette for Christmas this year and I was so happy about it because I really wanted it ever since I saw it come out in July. I have many palettes but I really wanted some darker colours and some cool tones. The palette has 12 shades including mattes and shimmers and also includes and a double ended brush with a pencil brush on one end and a fluffy blending brush on the other. The brushes from Urban Decay are really good so I can't wait to try it!

The shades from left to right; High, Dirtysweet, Radar, Armor, Slanted, Dagger, Black market, Smolder, Password, Whiskey, Combust, and Thirteen.

One of the things I love about this is of course the packaging! What make up lover doesn't?! The smoke pattern on the front and the box it comes in is so pretty! 

My favourite colours are Armor which is a dark grey with glitter in and combust which is matte very pale beige colour which is good to blend out the grey shades in the crease. Although I have used it quite a few times I am still playing with colours and I know I will get so much use out of it.

Zoeva Wishlist

A few weeks ago as I was looking on my Bloglovin feed I came across quite a few reviews on a really pretty eyeshadow palette and I found out that it was from the brand Zoeva. The eyeshadow palette I wanted was the new Cocoa Blend palette and is a palette of warm shades which I love! I had heard of them before but it wasn't until I was looking on Beauty Bay I realised how reasonably priced everything was so today I thought I would do a wishlist of the things I would really like to get at some point...

Cocoa Blend eyeshadow palette - £15.50

Rose Golden complete eye set - £56.95

125 Stippling Brush - £11.50

106 Powder Brush - £11.50

105 Luxe Highlighting Brush - £11.50

My top 5 favourite lip products

Today I thought I would do a post on some of my favourite lip products, here are my top 5...

1. Mac Brave Lisptick - £15.50 - This was my first Mac lipstick and most well loved lipstick in my collection, it is the perfect everyday colour.

2. Nivea Lip Butter in Raspberry Rose - £2.00 - One of the nicest lip balms I have used, really moisturising and smells so nice too.

3. Loreal Colour Riche Lipstick in 630 Beige a nu - £6.99 - A really pretty colour with a really nice finish.

4. Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Crayon in Raplumsel - £8.00 - A non sticky gloss that is a lovely deep plum shade.

5. Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Bang - £15.50 - A really good creamy lipstick in an amazing reddy orange shade.

(from left to right mac brave, soap and glory raplumsel, urban decay bang, loreal beige a nu and nivea raspberry rose)

Rusty red eyeshadow and glossy lips

This make up look is something I did quite a few weeks ago but I had only just remembered I had the photos. It was something I had played around with to create but in the end I really loved it. I think the colour combination of the eyes and lip look really good together and and I think the colours on my eyelids suit my greeny coloured eyes.

The products I used for this look were;

Seventeen stay all day concealer - £4.49

Maybelline matte maker powder in nude - £3.99

Kiko long lasting eye shadow stick in 37 Burgundy - £6.90

Mac eyeshadow in Antiqued - £10

Stila in the moment palette  (used colours instinct and spontaneous)- £25

Rimmel kohl kajal eyeliner in jet black - £2.99

Benefit Hoola Bronzer - £23.50

Max Factor creme puff blush in Seductive Pink - £8.99

Benefit They're real mascara (sample size) - Full size £19.50

Benefit high beam highlighter (sample size) - Full size £19.50

Soap and Glory sexy mother pucker gloss stick in Raplumsel - £8.00

My New Make Up Storage

So for ages I have been wanting some clear acrylic drawers for my make up stash. I have quite a lot of make up and I was sick of it as it always looked a mess on top of my chest of drawers. I had seen Muji storage and really wanted some but thought it was a little bit expensive. So I searched online at Ebay and Amazon but still couldn't find exactly want I wanted, that was until I went to TK Maxx. I never really go into TK Maxx but I went in with a friend and came across a small section in the store that was acrylic storage. I was so happy to find some sets of drawers which are quite deep and quite tall and for only £12.99 each I decided to get two as I thought this was such good value for money.

It fits all of my make up in with different drawers for small palettes, lipsticks, lip gloss and lip crayons, base and contour products, mascaras and blusher and a final drawer for single eyeshadows and cream eyeshadow sticks. I am so happy it fits everything and I would really recommend looking in your local TK Maxx as you never know what you might find. It is fast becoming my new favourite store!

It keeps it all nice and tidy and out of the way 

My Mac Collection so far

I have probably been buying Mac for about a year now. Its not something I buy all the time because I can't afford to but I love it and think the quality is definitely worth the price.

The first thing I bought from Mac was a lipstick. I bought the shade Brave which is a satin finish. I bought it online so had no idea if I would like the colour as I had only looked at swatches online. But when it came I loved it and the colour was perfect for everyday which is what I wanted.

And that is where my love for Mac all started and now I have quite a few products so I thought I would show you what I have...

Prep and Prime Skin Base Visage - £21.00 (review here)

Quad Pro Palette - £5.00

 Eye shadow in Charcoal Brown - £10.00

 Eye shadow in Antiqued - £10.00

 Eye shadow in Sketch - £10.00

Matte lipstick in Diva - £15.50

Satin lipstick in Brave - £15.50

Satin lipstick in Verve - £15.50

Lustre lipstick in Plumful - £15.50

Fluid line Eye liner in Blacktrack - £15.50

Pro long wear Paint pot - £15.50

On swatches photo from top to bottom Sketch, Antiqued and Charcoal Brown

From left to right Plumful, Verve, Brave, Diva

On swatches photo on the left it is swatched and the right it is blended

Mac can be bought from counters in Fenwicks, Debenhams and a few other store and also online at www.maccosmetics.co.uk

My New Make Up Purchases

A few weeks ago I spent the weekend in Newcastle with two of my best friends. We had a great weekend catching up and having early birthday celebrations for my friend Anna (stylishimoto).

On the saturday we went shopping which was really good and I decided to treat myself to a few new make up bits as I had just finished my second year and I felt like I deserved after all the work I had done so today I thought I would share with you what I got...

Nyx Blush in PB 11 Taupe - £6.00 - My friend bought this a while ago and kept telling me how good it was so when she ordered another one I asked her to get me one and she was right! Its such a nice colour for subtle blush or it can be used as a contour shade as it is matte. (in depth review coming soon)

Mac Sketch Eye shadow - £10.00 - I got another Mac eyeshadow to add to my quad palette I bought not so long ago (post about it here) I got the colour Sketch which is a dark purpley brown colour. I really love purple eyeshadows as I think they suit my hazel eyes.

Loreal Colour Riche Lipsticks in 630 Beige a nu, 640 Erotique, 373 Magnetic coral - £6.99

I had seen this lipsticks on quite a few You Tube videos and really wanted to try them as I needed some more neutral colours, I was originally going to get two but it was on three for two so I picked another one which was is a really nice summery coral shade,

Benefit Roller Lash - £19.50 - I have been wanting a full size of this mascara ever since I got a sample of it in an Elle magazine (review here) and I finally got it! I decided to buy it with my Boots advantage card points as I had about £35 pounds worth so I thought why not! I would seriously recommend getting a Boots card if you go to Boots a lot as it really is worth collect the points.

(Photo above showing look I created with the Mac eyeshadow in the outer corner and using the mascara too, lip colour is the Sephora Lip cream stain in 03)

Lip Product Wishlist

Recently there have so many lip products I have been wanting to try, mainly lipsticks and a couple of lip liners so I thought I would share them with you. If you have any opinions on these products please leave a comment.

Sleek Matte Me in Birthday Suit - £4.99 - I really love the colour of this is it a very neutral colour and I have heard it been described as the Kylie Jenner shade.

Gosh Lip Liners in Flirty Orange and Nougat Crisp - £4.99 - Last week I saw these been mentioned on a few You Tube video and I really want to try them as the colours look really nice and pigmented.

Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in Tangerine Dream and Cafe au Lait - £2.99 - I saw on a blog post a couple of weeks ago that there were some new shades and I really like the look of two of them and for £2.99 why not.

Rimmel Clear Lip Liner - £3.99 - I have been wanting a transparent lip liner for a while now because I don't have a lip liner for every lipstick I have and I thought this would be a good buy.

Loreal Colour Riche in 630 Beige a nu and 640 Wild Plum - £6.99 - I saw these on a You Tube video last week and really love these particular colours, one is a nude and one is a pale pinky purple. I have never tried a Loreal lipstick so I want to see what there are like.

Mac Wishlist

Mac is one of my favourite make up brands and there is always something I want from them so I thought I would share some of the items that are on my wish list...

Russian Red matte lipstick - £15.50 - I love Mac lipsticks and although I only own 4 I want my next one to be a classic red.

Cream Colour Base in Hush - £15.50 - I have seen this only a few times but I fell in love with how beautiful it looks as a highlight it gives the most amazing glow. It also says on the website it is a versatile and multi purpose product so I would love to play around with it.

Pro Longwear concealer - £17.00 - I have been wanting to try a high end concealer for a while and I have heard some good things about the one from Mac.

Soft and Gentle Mineralize Skin finish - £23.00 - I have seen this so many times and the pictures of it looks amazing and I do need a new highlighter. (currently using High Beam from Benefit)

Sketch Eye shadow - £10.00 - I recently bought a quad palette and I still have two spaces left to fill and I keep looking at swatches of this and I think its so pretty! Its a beautiful browny purple colour.

All products can be bought from the Mac website, Mac store or any Mac counter (only in certain stores)

Mini Boots Haul

Yesterday I met up with two of my best friends. We went for lunch and then of course did some shopping, how could we resist and anyone who knows me know that I always end up in Boots! I needed to go anyway to pick up some items I had ran out of but that's not all I got so today I thought I would share with you what I got...

Botanics Hydrating All Bright Day Cream - £2.49 was £4.99

Botanics Hydrating All Bright Night Cream -£2.49 was £4.99

I had been needing some new moisturiser and thought I would try the Botanics range from Boots as its all half price at the moment  (review coming soon) 

Simply Sensitive Hydrating Eye Cream - £1.74 was £3.49

Again I was needing some more and decided to try this one from a Boots own range which a I think is new.

Rimmel Rita Ora Nail Polish Bestival Blue - £2.99

Rimmel Rita Ora Nail Polish Wild-er-ness - £2.99

I saw these a few days ago and really loved the new spring collection. I was priginally going to just get one but it was 3 for 2 so I gt another one. The colours are perfect for the new season and I can't wait to try them. 

Rimmel Nail Base and Top Coat 5 in 1- £4.49

I usually use the Sally Hansen one but I like to try new products so I decided to try this one which claims to make nails smoother, stronger, longer, moisturised and shinier.

All the products I bought came to £14.20 which I thought was so good and I saved £9.74 and also got double points so I was very happy with my new beauty purchases. 

Seventeen Stay Time Concealer Review

A couple of weeks ago I needed a new concealer. I decided I wanted to try something else rather than my usual one which was the Maybelline Cover Stick Concealer which I like but it was time for a change. I have decided I want to save for a high end concealer but until then I chose the Seventeen stay time concealer.

On the Boots website it says ' Concealer with staying power! 18 hours wear for total blemish cover. This long lasting creamy formula gives a full coverage and a flawless finish' 

I only partly agree with this statement as it is creamy formula but I don't think it lasts 18 hours its  probably more around 5 hours.

 It comes in the traditional liquid concealer tube with doe foot applicator. I do like the packaging and it is really easy to apply and blend in. I have mine in the shade Fair and I have been using the Real Techniques Deluxe Crease brush and it works well to blend and cover the areas I need concealing. The colour is also a really good match for my complexion.

Photos before applying concealer under my eyes and on  spot scars on my chin.

Photos after applying  the concealer

Above are photos showing before and after of applying the concealer. I think it works really well under my eye as it seems to slightly brighten as well as conceal the dark and red areas. It also works quite well on my scars on my chin but that is usually where it starts to fade first. Overall I think this is a concealer worth trying and for £4.49 its good value for money.

It is available from Boots (here)

My Mini Mac Haul

A couple of months ago I received a Mac voucher for my birthday from my two best friends, they know me so well and knew I would love it. I really did appreciate it and couldn't thank them enough!(Look at both of their blogs here Ohabbiee and Stylishmoto) So today I thought I would share with you what I got...

Lipstick in Verve (Satin Finish) - £15.50

Charcoal Brown Eye shadow - £10

Antiqued - £10

Quad refill palette - £5

Images showing the look I created with the products

I really love everything I bought and I think the lipstick really suits me! The eye shadows are very pigmented and extremely smooth to apply and blend. I also think the eyeshadows and lipstick work well together in this make up look.

All products can be bought on the Mac cosmetics website or in store.

High End Beauty Wish List

As a make up obsessed person I constantly have a wish list and most of the things on it I get eventually when I have money but some are higher end items I just can't really afford but I thought today I would share them with you...

Tarte Tartelette Eye Shadow Palette $44 - This unfortunately I don't think is not available in the UK and I so wish it was because it is such a pretty palette, It has 12 matte shades from neutral to darker tones. I have seen so many reviews on it and its seems like a great palette to have so please if anyone knows how I can get it comment below! 

Chanel Rouge Coco Hydrating Creme Lip Colour in 402 Adrienne-  £26 - This is from the new collection of lipsticks by Chanel and every single one looks beautiful but the colour Adrienne stood out to me as it is a really pretty nude shade and something I would love to try.

 Mac Eye Shadow in Wedge £10 - I recently made a Mac order with a voucher I got for my birthday and I was going to get this eye shadow but it was out of stock so I chose a different one (more about that coming soon) but I still really want it. It is described as a soft muted beige taupe and is a matte shade. I feel like is essential to have a nice matte colours for the crease.

Mac Lipstick in Coral Bliss - £15.50 - I recently saw this shade on a Top 10 Mac lipstick video on You tube. It is a slightly frosted soft coral pink colour. I think it would be perfect for spring and summer.

 Benefit Roller Lash Mascara - £19.50 -  I have wanted to buy the full size of this mascara ever since I got a sample in Elle magazine back in February. (Review here)  It is really amazing and have never liked a mascara so much! I am thinking of buying it with my Boots advantage card points.

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick - £15 -  I saw these a while ago and ever since I tried the Sephora Lip cream (Review here) I have realised how good liquid lipsticks are! These Stila ones are supposed to be really good and come in 10 different shades but the one that stood out to me is Fiery which is a bold red.

Real Techniques Bold Metals Brushes Review

I love Real Techniques brushes and now I don't use any other because they are so good so when I saw a few months ago there was going to be a new collection I knew I wanted some for my birthday. 

There are 7 in the collection but I decided I wanted to get the ones I don't have anything like so I got the contour brush and the angled liner brush. I am not going to lie but the fact the handles are so pretty persuaded me to spend the money, especially the rose gold ones!

They are all priced between £10-£25 and in my opinion they are so worth the money! Not only have they got really soft bristles like all the Real Technique brushes but they are designed so they don't roll off the table and are also weighted so you can hold them easier.

The contour brush is perfect for contouring your cheeks as it is the perfect shape and the angled shape of the eye liner makes applying gel liner so much easier as you get get a really good point on your flick.

Photo of make up using both brushes

Contour Brush 301 - £22

Angled liner brush 202 - £10

Real Techniques Bold Metal Brushes are available from Boots, both in store and online and also the Real Techniques website

Collection Eyes Uncovered Nude Grey Palette Review

I am pretty sure that nearly every  beauty bloggers has seen these by now, and if you haven't you need to get to Boots! The new Collection Eyes Uncovered Palettes come in three different colour selections which include, Nude, Nude Bronze and Nude Grey. They are all really pretty and it was hard to decide which one to get but then again for £3.99 I could always get another one and it wouldn't break the bank!

The Nude Grey one that I got has some really nice shades and some are ones I don't have anything like. The colours from left to right are Parchment, Rubble, Under the Moon, Drift Wood, In a Nutshell and Eclipse,The colours are really pigmented and stay on really well with an eyeshadow primer. Although the product is really good I do think the packaging could be better as the magnetic close isn't very strong but its not something that would stop me buying another one.

This is a look I created the second time I used it. It is using the colours Under the Moon and In a Nutshell. I did a a really simple look with Under the Moon shade all over and then the darker shade In a Nutshell in the crease and blended it really well so it was suitable for everyday wear.

It can be bought in store and online at Boots for £3.99