Face of the Day! Featuring Mac, Chanel, Lancome & more!

This is my very first "face of the day" post, please let me know if you like these sort of things and I will try and do it more often!

So on Saturdays I wear a lot more makeup, basically because I have plenty of time to apply it! On weekdays when I am at work, I am lucky if I have time for a quick flick of mascara and a bit of blush.

So here are the products that I used...

I just realised there are a lot of high end stuff here.... I used to be such a lover of budget beauty but now I tend to buy just one "luxury" thing at a time, and I got quite a lot of this stuff for Christmas.

First I applied my Chanel Bronze Universal all over my face. I love this so much, I am not much into bronzers but since I got this I have worn it very frequently. I then used some MAC Face and Body over it. I used the YSL Touche Eclat under my eyes. I don't want to sound overly dramatic, but this little product has changed my life! At last my undereye area looks fairly decent and more like a 25 year old instead of a 70 year old!

For my eyes I used my trusty ArtDeco Eyeshadow Base, my new MAC Veluxe palette (applied using damp brush) and my favourite ArtDeco liquid eyeliner. My favourite mascara of all time is Lancome Hypnose, it works brilliantly for me. And I filled in my brows with the Essence eyebrow pencil.

I used only the beautiful shimmery coral blush out of this Lancome Blush Subtil palette, and finished it off with the Lancome Rouge in Love lipstick!

I just headed into town for some lunch, and now I am in my sister's house for some dinner and a bit of craic! It has been a really awful day, pouring rain all day! Roll on Spring!

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

The Best of 2013 (Beauty Edition)

It is so difficult for me to believe that 2013 is at an end. I have to say that it has been a wonderful year for me, and I hope 2014 will be just as good. I wish everyone a very happy and prosperous new year.

I started this blog in January 2013. I have always tried numerous, varied products but ever since I started blogging I find that I have bought things that I wouldn't normally have looked at, thanks to everyone's great reviews and blog posts. 

I had to think long and hard but I have chosen seven products which have entered my life in 2013 and hopefully will never leave!

1. Clarins Instant Eye Make Up Remover - This is one item which will now always be a staple in my skincare routine. This eye make up remover has an oil and water layer which you shake together and which really cuts through all eye make up with one swipe. It is so gentle on your eyes, there is no need to tug or pull on the skin. It is £15.00 a bottle which normally lasts me about 10 weeks. It is worth every penny!

2. Cocoa Brown 1 Hour Tan Mousse - I never used to wear fake tan, until I discovered this. Now I wear tan every single day. Isn't it funny how things change? I don't know what I would do without my Cocoa Brown. I don't look normal without it. Actually I don't even remember what I look like without tan. It is just the most natural looking tan, so easy to apply and it is dry almost instantly after applying. Sure it is so handy, why wouldn't you wear it all the time?!

3. Lancome Teint Idole Foundation - I decided to invest in a good foundation back in May and I am so delighted I chose this. I have not spent this much money on a foundation before, but I can tell you that you can actually feel the difference in quality compared to other foundations. This is without a doubt the best foundation to ever land in my make up collection. It is so light yet gives great coverage. It has a nice scent, and I love the glass bottle with the pump.

4. Art Deco Dip Eyeliner - I used to be so crap at applying liquid eyeliner. I don't know how I can apply this little beauty so easily, but I can. The formula, the brush, everything about it makes it so easy for me to line my eyes. And it has lasted so long too and hasn't started to dry up or anything. Although, I am incredibly upset now that I have just realised Debenhams do not stock this anymore! I don't know what I will do when this runs out!

5. Lancome Hypnose Mascara - After trying my first Lancome mascara earlier in the year (Hypnose Star) I can confirm that out of all the brands of mascaras I have tried, nothing even comes close to the quality of Lancome. I love the formula and the wand. My lashes are so amazing looking when I use this!

6. Illamasqua Cream Blush - Remember the Illamasqua 50% off sale everyone went crazy for? The only thing I bought was this cream blush in the shade "Dixie". I didn't really get on with it at first, but I have worn it every single day and have not even hit pan yet! I like to apply it with the Real Techniques Stippling Brush or I tap in on with my fingers. Even if I am wearing a powder blush, I always put on a bit of this underneath as a base. It is absolutely brilliant and well worth the money,

7. Urban Decay Naked Palette - I snubbed this palette for such a long time. I didn't like the idea of "nudes", I mean what is the point of wearing eyeshadow at all if you are going to go nude? But when I first saw this palette up close in real life, I quickly realised that my assumption was wrong. These shades are all so beautifully shimmery and in my opinion they are not what I would call "nudes". I love bronzey, gold shades and this palette is packed full of them. Since I got this palette I have worn no other eyeshadows! I like the idea of Naked 2 and now Naked 3, but in my opinion, the original Naked palette is the best.

Do you like any of these products? What products have you tried in 2013 that you love? Please let me know in the comments below.

How Much Is My Face Worth?

I saw this tag on a few blogs, and I was so intrigued to do it myself.... I'm frightened of the result though!

These are the products I would use on weekends when I have a lot more time to do my makeup. During the week when I work I just use whatever is the quickest and easiest! But I enjoy taking time to do makeup for going shopping, going for lunch, etc.  So let's take a closer look at what I use and how much they cost...

Illamasqua Cream Blush -  £9.00 - I absolutely love this blush and I use it every day. The RRP is £18 but I got this when Illamasqua had their 50% off sale. This is the shade "Dixie".

MUA Highlighting Powder - £3.00 - I don't often use highlighters to be honest but I am trying to get in the habit of using them. I love this MUA one, and I actually prefer it to the more expensive ones like Benefit High Beam.

Lancome Teint Idole Foundation - £27.50 -  Oh, I cannot say how much I love this foundation! It is on the expensive side, but it isn't comparable to any other foundation in my opinion. It's just the best and is so beautiful to wear.

Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer - £5.49 - This is a recent purchase. I am constantly trying out new concealers. I am completely paranoid about my undereye area. This one is probably the nicest one I have tried so far for under the eyes.

MAC Prep & Prime Line Filler - £16.00 - I told you I was paranoid about my undereyes! I got this recently too and although it makes only a small improvement, it is a great product and leaves the skin silky smooth.

Urban Decay Naked Palette - £37.00 - I am so in love with this palette. All my other eyeshadows have been neglected since I got this! All the shades are excellent and I use them all. This was so worth the money, if you break it down it costs around £3.00 per shadow.

Art Deco Dip Eyeliner - £9.00 - This eyeliner is fab. I am terrible at using liquid eyeliners, but for whatever reason I can apply this no problem. The applicator is just the right size/shape for me, and the formula is just the best and lasts all day.

Art Deco Eyeshadow Base - £8.00 - Many bloggers recommended I get this to prolong eyeshadow, so I went ahead and ordered it from BeautyBay.com and I have never looked back. It is, by far, the best eyeshadow base I have ever used (even better than Urban Decay Primer Potion, in my opinion). I use this every day I wear eyeshadow, and even after 12 hours of wear my eyeshadow still looks perfect.

Lancome Hypnose Star Mascara - £22.00 - I love this mascara so much! Sadly I am using the dregs of this one, I have put this mascara on my Christmas wish list though! I don't think I can go without it! What makes it so good, I think is the wand. It is just brilliant and it makes my lashes so long and full.

Essence Eyebrow Pencil - £1.50 - I have pretty horrid brows, but you can forget your fancy HD palettes and waxes, give me a brow pencil and I am a happy girl. This pencil is of an excellent quality and I wouldn't really bother spending any more than this when this one works so well for me!

EOS Lipbalm - £5.99 - Today, I cannot really be bothered wearing lipstick or anything that needs touching up! So long as my lips feel hydrated I will be happy enough. I am using my EOS which I love. The scent is lovely and the balm feels so nourishing. I wish they were tinted balms though, but nevermind. I ordered this one from Naturismo.

So the total is.... £144.48 .... I must say I am in total shock! I really didn't think it would be so much! Although this really is cheating, I should be dividing this amount by the number of times I will use these products, which will be many more times of course. But the final figure is quite shocking initially!

If you have done one of these posts, please leave me the link below because I would love to have a look!

Green Smokey Eye

Hi everyone! I was so inspired when I took out my palette collection to photograph them for the post below, when I rediscovered my Kat von D "Ludwig" Palette. I remember at the time choosing this palette for the green shades alone. I adore them so much! Anyway I thought I would put together a green kind of smokey eye look for you. Here are the products I used ...

Firstly I used the Art Deco eyeshadow base, which is absolutely brilliant and will make the eyeshadow stay all day. I used my Art Deco dip eyeliner for my lash line, Lancome Le Crayon Kohl for my waterline, and my beloved Lancome Hypnose Star mascara, which is on its last legs unfortunately!
Here are the eyeshadows that I used...

I used the light green all over the lid, the dark green in the crease, the black in the outer corner, and the white in the inner corner and on the brow bone.

I am really pleased how it turned out, considering the eyeshadow brushes I have at the moment are absolutely rubbish. Here's hoping I'll have a Real Techniques set by the weekend :) 

I love this look, even though green doesn't exactly compliment blue eyes I still think it looks really nice. I wore this all day on Sunday and by that night it was still looking great. The Kat von D eyeshadows are amazing quality. That reminds me, I wish we had Sephora over here! 

Have a great day! :) 

Art Deco - Dita Von Teese Vintage Eyelights

As shown in my previous blog post. I am addicted to vintage looking items so I could not let this one get away! I had a reward on my Debenhams card so I thought I may as well pick it up, and I am glad I did.

Even the box it came in looks glamorous! Inside, it is a beautiful shiny gold compact.

My camera is not able to capture the product in its full glory, but it is oh so shimmery! There is a nice sized little mirror in the compact too. So, time to get stuck in and try it out! I used the pink shade all over the lid and the brown in the crease. The neutral colour I used to highlight. Again, my camera is not able to capture the intense shimmer, no matter how hard I tried!

As you can see, it is quite a subdued look, but since I nearly always wear these sort of shades it suits me perfectly. The glitter particles are so fine, there was a little fall out but I still love this product. I tried this simple look with a little bit of red lipstick..

I love it! The packaging and the product itself! I will have to treat myself to more from Dita Von Teese's range...

Mini Haul!

I went shopping today and picked up a few things!

I picked up another couple of items from Essence (I told you it was my new favourite brand!). The 3 in 1 concealer was £2.30 and the foundation was £3.40. I didn't particularly need a new foundation or concealer but I thought I might as well give them a go. The foundation is quite nice, it's certainly not the worst that I have tried! This shade was the palest colour they had in the chemist, it's a little too dark for me but I could use it when I have fake tan on.
I can't really review the concealer properly, because I have only used the pink segment which is for under-eyes. It is really good! I don't have dark circles but my undereyes look quite dull and this really brightened them up. And it is so light in texture too.

 

I got this lovely China Glaze polish in the shade Ruby Pumps! I said before that the previous China Glaze polishes were quite gritty in texture, but this one is so lovely to apply, and I have a feeling it will wear better too. I know where it gets its name from, it totally reminds me of the Ruby Slippers from Wizard of Oz!

Finally, I treated myself to something I have had my eye on for a while now... it is Golden Vintage Eyelights by Dita Von Teese for Art Deco. It cost £25.00 from Debenhams.

I am going to post a little review of this product a little bit later on. It is absolutely stunning!

I am very happy with my purchases today, I will definitely get plenty of use out of all of them and I could recommend each product to others too!