My current beauty favourites!

I haven't posted in a while, so I thought I would do a post on my current beauty gems. 

 I dug out my favourite bits, only to realise that I have a bit too much makeup that I don't use. 

Anyway onto the pictures!

From MAC

 L-R top-to-bottom-row 

Joie de vivre cremeblend blush, Skinfinish in light medium, Mac mineralize foundation, Satin taupe, Naked lunch, Paintpot in soft ochre,  Fleur power blush, Mac ungaro beauty powder

Joie de vivre cremeblend blush 
This blush is so pigmented and crazy! Its a beauty bright pink. It requires the use of a soft hand, unless you prefer the clown image. However a little dab on the cheeks gives a beautiful glow of pink.


Skinfinish in light medium
 It's a must have for everyone! Skinfinishes come in a variety of shades and help to pro-long makeup, making it a real need for every woman! I apply my foundation then grab my powder brush and sweep a light dusting over my face. Unlike some powders, it doesn't leave me looking paler than normal. It's got colour to it, but aslong as you get the right colour it will suit. But as I do not have particularly dry or oily skin I cannot comment on whether it can stay on for the whole day.


Mac mineralize foundation
I went into my local MAC counter one day, wanting a new foundation. The lady asked me about my skin and then she pulled out this to try on me. I've never used these types of foundation, the nearest I've got is probably dream matte mousse. However, I would happily trade up my studio sculpt for this anyday! It leaves my skin hydrated and fresh throughout the day! It does leave skin with a dewwy wet feel despite using skinfinish over it, so people who prefer their face matte should stay away. I think this would probably work best on drier skins and avoid this if you have oily skin! 


It's expensive for how much you get (I think it was £23.50?) but you only get 10g. But I find myself using hardly anything on my brush but getting a great medium coverage.


Satin taupe
A cult must have. And it is worth it. I got this quite a while ago when I was just getting into makeup. I remember just picking it up and going 'what a nice brown' and buying it. I later found out that it was one of the shadows everyone was going wild about. I think it's probably a staple for most collections, along with naked lunch.


Naked lunch
This is a great base for your shadows. I find myself reaching for it everytime I put my eyeshadow on! It's a pretty sheer pinky colour. But it looks natural and would be ideal for doing fifties pin-up inspired eyes!


Paintpot in soft ochre
No matter what primer I buy, this one will always win my heart. After spending ages buying different primers, trying them out and being constantly disappointed at the creasing that would be on my eyelid by the end of that day, I finally bought a paintpot. I like this one better than painterly and barestudy. The colour is lighter on me, but when I put it on my eyes it gives a beautiful whiteness to my lids! The shadows stay on all day without creasing and are more vibrant.


Fleur power blush
I picked this up the other day when I originally went into MAC to get another blush. After trying this out I just had to buy it! The colour is so beautiful and pigmented, so be careful when applying. It's a nice coral-y pink and blends really nicely. It gives a flowery spring kind of colour, which is funny because of the name of it. It's a very buildable blush which is nice, because it can give you the amount of coverage you desire. It's a matte finish, so it can be a little chalky and plain. I wouldn't really imagine layering this over a powder based foundation do to the matte finish.


Mac Ungaro beauty powder 
A soft powder with a pale pink colouring to it. It is a bit chalky, but I tend to use this after applying my skinfinish powder as a soft dusting of it. It could work as a blusher, but I do not believe my colouring is pale enough for it to show up. The bonus is that the packaging is so cute! I think you could build the colour on, but i prefer to not use beauty powders as blushes. Overall, I like it for the using it for a light dusting.

 Other brands

Elf eyebrow kit in dark

I've always wanted to try these eyebrow wax kits. But I was not really prepared to spend over £20 on one fromt benefit. So to try it out I ordered the one off e.l.f. Due to an accident with the post, I ended up being sent 2 instead of one. But that was hardly a problem! The wax stays on all day, and there is a powder to set it. The brush that comes with it is so small and diddly in your hand! It still gives a natural-ish look whilst defining the eybrows. I would buy this if I were you! The good thing about this is, the dark option is not too dark. It doesn't give a black finish, but rather a dark brown finish, making it more natural.

Sleek contour kit in light

I think this only really works on medium skin tones. And even then I have to be really careful not to put too much on. It's a very pigmented brown in there, which is matte and shimme free. The highlighter is sheer and is slightly glimmery, which is good for highlighting. The pigment in the highlighter is quite sheer though.

Bourjois bronzer in 52 (not pictured)

Silly me forgot to include this in the picture above. It's a really lovely bronzer, and smells amazing! It isn't matte, as it has as Bourjois describe it 'little flakes of sunshine' or something similar to that. It's quite pigmented, and it's something to purchase especially for the novelty of having a bronzer that looks like a chocolate bar!

 

 Benefit

 

Powder time lover

I have the bigger versions, but this is so compact and perfect for travels! I have to admit, I don't use benefit blushes very much anymore as I opt for MAC nowdays. However they smell so cute and fruity! The pigment is good. I think this box contains mini Hoola, Dandelion (used to be obsessed with that!) and coralista. The blushes are good but I prefer MAC now. However, if you haven't got any of the benefit blushes then I think it would be handy to get the smaller sizes to try them out. 

I think this was a limited edition thing though from the holiday collection.

Eye bright 

I recieved this in Glamour magazine a while back, and thank god I did! I adore this so much! I use it as a highlighter on my brow bone and under my eye lids to brighten them up. The creamy stick blends really well, and instead of a peachy sheen (like ELF's version which is slightly sticky!) it leaves a pinky hue with a blue tint to it, which balances out any discolouration.

Bella Bamba

I popped into Debenhams today with some spare money. And look what I saw! I've been wanting to try this out of curiousity for a while. So I decided to increase my collection of benefit blushers. The boxing is small I believe, and the flip lid is ridiculously annoying when you use the blush. The powder has a slightly watermelon-y smell to it, which is different to their other powder scents. The packaging is really quite crazy to look at as it reflects the light in all directions which is cool. But I feel them stamping 3D all over it is a bit tacky and annoying.

However, I think I will grow to love this even though I've only had it for a few hours.

I will do a review on it another time focusing on the blush and why everyone is so crazy about it

(sorry if there's spelling errors in this post, I'm awfully tired and ill)

Get a free Nails Inc polish

Diet coke have recently joined with Nails Inc to bring us the limited edition Diet Coke Catwalk Collection down at Boots!

Nails Inc 10ml (full sized) normally retail at £11 each. So by buying 2 diet cokes (choose from either normal diet coke or cherry) at £1.18 each from Boots you are make a steal buy!

There's 4 polishes in the collection, so there's bound to be a shade you will love. 

 Shades avaliable are 

• Heather grey - a really nice pinky mauve (my fave!) 
• Delicious denim -a rich, deep blue (this ones on my list to get tomorrow!)
• Caramel - a stylish, sophisticated caramel shade
• Perfect plum - a rich purple with red tones

The promo pics don't do the colours any justice, but beautybutton's pictures are the best indicators of the real colours

(L-R caramel, perfect plum, delicious denim, heather grey)

And for those more snotty people, the diet coke sticker can be removed. It was the first thing I did! Haha!

Did you pick up on this deal?

Best makeup from Milan Spring 2011 shows

Allure made an article back in september summarising the makeup styles used in the recent spring 2011 show in Milan. 

Let's take a look at the fashion forecast for spring, shall we?

1. Romantic makeup at Dolce & Gabbana: With the nearly all-white clothing lineup, the bride-who's-run-away makeup concept was pretty and fresh and sensual. Makeup artist Pat McGrath wet and then lined the lashes with the deep brown and medium-toned mauve-y brown shadows from Dolce & Gabbana's Eye Shadow Quad in Nude. She drew a beige liner along the inner rims of the eyes to make them look larger, and finished with a few false lashes on the outer corners. On the mouth, she pressed on a red or raspberry lipstick with her finger to make a "light stain," and on the cheeks, she dusted pretty pink blush.

2. Magenta lips at Jil Sander: Obsession! The vivid magenta lips were, as makeup artist Peter Philips put it, "shocking"—in a very good way. He mixed a white pigment with a bluish pink lipstick to create the color, which looked strong and bold but somehow pure, since Philips left the rest of the face mostly bare.

3. Pale green eyes at Alberta Ferretti: Green shadow is usually on the makeup "don'ts" list, but makeup artist Lucia Pieroni made it work. To get the models to look like woodland fairies, she applied a golden leafy green shadow on the lids and along the lower lashes. Paired with soft pink-beige lipstick and slightly frizzed hair, the effect was ethereal.

4. Red lips and nails at Gucci: There's little else in the makeup world that says "power" quite like high-shine red lips and nails. (Check out the look backstage at Gucci, above.) "We looked at the rich colors in the collection, and that's where we took the idea for the lip. It's the new, modern, sophisticated seductress,” said McGrath. She used a mix of two orange-y red lipsticks and topped it with gloss. The nails were polished in a matching red shade.

5. Silver lids at Prada: The super-reflective silver shadow, applied from lashes to brows, is definitely a look—and not one for everyday. But it's inspiring, and we find the idea of a shiny shadow (and nothing on cheeks or lips) really appealing. "We wanted the models to look glamorous with an androgynous face," said McGrath, who used a theatrical silver powder that was so glossy, it looked like a liquid.

Val Garland for Vivienne Westwood

Dolce & Gabbana Secret Garden

 

Smooth eye colour Quad in Eden 157 (£35)

The pictures for the newest collection for Dolce and Gabbana's cosmetic line has been released. Its a 12 piece collection, and features stuff for eyes, nails and lips. The distinctive bright colours bring around the feeling of spring.

We've always been inspired by the lush gardens so unique to Sicily; they're like a secret paradise.  The aura of romance - the intoxicating wild flowers, the soft pastels - is such an integral part of our heritage and our aesthetic. – Stefano Gabbana

Eyes play a main role in this collection, with bright, bold colours in the quads. Bold lip colours and striking eyeliners add to the overall seductress and playful image.

I'm not a fan of wearing bright colours on the eyes, I prefer the browns and blacks opposed to the pastel colours, as they can look a bit tacky. But despite there being a wide use of bold and bright colour it still maintains the signature classy look, with the rich gold casing and the whole luxurious appearance of the collection.

Crayon Intense eyeliner in White or Lilac (£16)

 

Shine lipstick in Love or Romance (£20)

 

Smooth eye colour Duo in Romance £22)

 

Intense Nail Lacquer in Platinum (£16)

Secret Garden collection is available from Harrods from beginning of February 2011.