The Perfect Summer Lipstick From YSL

I think it's no surprise that YSL win when it comes to beautiful, luxurious packaging. I'm honestly like a dog to it's bone when it comes to the gold plated lipsticks with the stencilled logo over the shade teaser that just looks too pretty when on show in my cosmetic's storage. I own two other shades of these but both alternative formulas (including one of the Sheer Candy Lipsticks) so this is the first I tried with this type of finish. Therefore, it makes me very happy to say that I absolutely love YSL's Rouge Volupté Shines. It's creamy but perfectly pigmented. By that I mean that it has enough pigment to completely adapt the colour of lips but it doesn't apply like a mask such as, in comparison, MAC's Amplified Cream formula lipsticks. It didn't dry out my lips at all and made them, in overall, feel soft and buttery throughout the wear time. Yet, what really sold me with this product was, of course, the colour. Coral Intuitive 15 - a perfect peachy, coral shade that complimented my fair skin tone and I can imagine every other! It's bright but not bold with a lovely subtle shine that brings some dewiness to the face, a key ingredient for the perfect Summer look. The wear time is good considering the formula is very buttery and I still found evidence of the colour a good two to three hours later which I think is down to the subtle stain which is left on the lips after application. If you're after the perfect Summer shade and aren't afraid to spend a bit of extra cash (£25) then this is the one for you!

Let me know what you think in the comments.

What's your favourite Summer lipstick? 

Beauty| Born Pretty Store Product Review

Born Pretty Store, an American based online cosmetics website, was not a company I was familiar with until I was contacted by a lovely lady, Alicia, asking if I would be willing to review a couple of products from their store. Of course, I accepted and was delighted to pick from a massive selection of products on their website, ranging from eyeliners, make up brushes and eyeshadow palettes to name a few. I decided to try two products that I found to be unique to the Born Pretty company as both of these items I have not found anything similar elsewhere.

XXL Waterproof Gel Eyeliner in Blue 

The first product I had chosen was the Waterproof Gel Eyeliner in the shade blue. The thing that drew me the most towards this product was the unique packaging and the beautiful, bold colour, a shade that would be perfect for these brighter months. I would say that the formula of the liner was more waxy then gel but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The product didn't create too much of a colour payoff in my waterline due to the waxy texture but worked nicely once applied to my bottom lash line and blended across my top lashes for a colourful, smokey eye effect. If you're someone who loves a pop of colour in the Summer season definitely give this a go and for only £2.72 it's hard to find a reason not to. 

3 Colour Eyebrow Powder Compact with Applicator  

This has come to be my favourite product from the package. A trio of powders that make up the perfect team for big, beautiful, bold brows. I was a bit hesitant at first when I saw the black powder in the palette as even though I do have very dark brown brows, I was worried that the use of this could end up with me sporting the dreaded 'scouse' brow, a look I most definitely could not pull off. Yet, to my relief and surprise I found that when using the brown shade with a hint of the black, the colour matched my brows perfectly and has quickly become one of my 'go-to' brow products. I think the specific element that I love about this product the most is the white powder that acts as the perfect matte brow bone highlight and really is a pleasure to use, I've even opted to use this over some of my other more high end products. The long wear of these powders is what really impressed me as even after a full day at work, the products didn't budge and my brows still looked groomed and filled, exactly how I like them.  There's no reason for why you shouldn't give this a go, especially for all you brow beginners as for only £2.58 a palette, which come in a variety of shades, there really is little to be argued with. 

If you have enjoyed reading this post and would like to try out some products from the Born Pretty Store, head on over to their website and make sure to enter the discount code below to get 10% off your shop. 

What product do you like best from their website?

(This post was created in cooperation with Born Pretty Store but all views and opinions are my own)

Make Up| L'Oreal Superliner Gel Eyeliner vs. NYX Gel Eyeliner and Smudger

Hi everyone!

Today I will be doing a product comparison review between the L'Oreal Superliner Gel Intenza Pure Black Liner and the NYX Gel Liner and Smudger.

I am a BIG lover of gel eyeliner as I feel my face doesn't look complete without me lining along my lashes. After trying and testing hundreds of different eyeliners from liquid to felt tip, having some that have worked better than others, I came to realise that gel was the way forward! I feel you get a more controlled effect and you can achieve a variety of different looks which usually wasn't the case with a liquid liner. 

These two have definitely become my clear favourite in the past year. I'll start by saying the packaging is very similar and both of them are convenient, travel friendly and come with no annoying problems (loose lids etc). I prefer the look of the L'Oreal Gel Eyeliner but thats really only because of the gold lid. 

I could not recommend the L'Oreal Superliner Gel eyeliner highly enough. It's very easy to apply and the actual product comes with a brush to assist you in doing so. I personally prefer to use one of my own fine liner brushes but this could be an added benefit for some of you. It's very similar to the Maybelline Gel Eyeliner but I preferred this one purely because my Maybelline liner seemed to dry out a lot quicker. Once the gel liner is applied it lasts well on skin, I wouldn't say the full 24 hours which the product claims to do as I have had bad problems with smudging but I usually set this with a black shadow to prevent this from happening. This being a common problem with most gel eyeliners! The superliner really has a glide on gel texture making it very easy to apply good looking lines, thick or thin! Priced at £9.99 it's definitely an affordable alternative to the Clinique or Bobby Brown Gel Eyeliners. 

Similarly, the Nyx Gel Eyeliner and Smudger has impressed me and my eye lids these past few months. The smudging quality of the product enables you to wear this also as an eyeshadow, I personally would rather use powder but for some of you this could be really beneficial. The colour payoff is amazing and it really gives a harsh, black colour which is exactly what I look for in eyeliners. Nobody has time for a dark grey like black! The first thing that I noticed about the NYX Gel Eyeliner which set it in front of the L'Oreal liner is how creamy and smooth the consistency of the product is. It glides on to the lids like a dream and is very quick drying meaning the smudging is limited (not gone completely but less in comparison to the L'Oreal Gel Eyeliner). They're also waterproof which is perfect! Especially when living in rainy England. Priced at £8 there is not a lot in it between this and the L'Oreal Superliner. It is definitely a product I would recommend all eyeliner lovers to get. The one main downside to the product is NYX is so hard to find in the UK, the only known place local to me who stock it is Next. 

Let me know what you guys think in the comments.

Have you tried either of these?

What's your favourite?

Lifestyle| Cake Making

Hi everyone!

Another quick post just to show the Birthday cake me and my Mum spent the day making for my Sister's 21st Birthday.

I know this is nothing to do with Beauty but I thought it fitted perfectly in the lifestyle category!

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Fragrance| Estée Lauder Modern Muse

Hello!

A nice early morning post for you all today.

I'm going to give you a quick review about one of my favourite fragrances the 

Estée Lauder Modern Muse Eau De Parfum.

I've had this for about 3 months and I honestly can not get enough of it.

This fell into my hands by accident and I blame the sales assistant because she did the usual Estée trick and sprayed the tissue paper that was covering my foundation (Estée Lauder Double Wear review here) and I was hooked!

First of all, it's like a love hate relationship with the packaging. I love the clear simplistic style of the body of the bottle and I love the bow elements but I don't know if it looks necessarily 'right' framing the square spray but I do think it looks really classy all the same. Well it IS Estée Lauder. The scent is a mixture between floral and sensual woods such as Suede Musk, Amber Wood and Honeysuckle Nectar with a hint of Vanilla and the contrasts between the two dominative notes makes the smell even more so amazing. The smell itself is meant to resemble the Modern Day woman, the contrast being between her life and personality and I definitely agree that it captures her creative energy and femininity as it does to whoever is wearing this. 

I have most definitely received the most comments on this fragrance then any other. I find the smell is actually distinctive and lasts a long time - perfect!

I would also honestly say, being Estée Lauder, this is perfect for all age types. 

I have no preference on wether to wear this in Summer or Winter as I feel the floral hints make it a perfect Summer fragrance where as the sensual woods have a heavy, Wintery musk that make it feel warm and feminine. 

Priced at £44 for the 30ml, I must say, I was expecting a lot worst and I happily shoved my card into the machine without a second thought.

Have you tried it? What did you think?

Tell me your favourite fragrance in the comments, I'm always on the hunt for something new!

Make Up| Mini Cosmetics Haul

Hello again!

I accidentally did a bit of shopping today (which of course was necessary) and I thought I would do a quick post on what I bought. Obviously I won't be reviewing the products as such because I haven't properly tried them yet but watch this space as there probably will be comments on all of them in the near future!!

My first and favourite product from today is the Clinique 'take the day off' Cleansing Balm. I've seen loads of reviews for this and I was stuck between this or the Emma Hardie Amazing Face Cleansing Balm but I felt for almost £8 cheaper and it being my first time even using one, I thought this would be a good place to start. I love the packaging, it feels luxurious and expensive and I'm a sucker for the colour purple. I can only describe the consistency of the product as 'magical', is that sad? It's a solid balm that dissolves quickly into a silky, oil thats perfect for taking off foundation and hard-to-budge eye makeup. I can't wait to try it! 

I also picked up 3 face mask from Superdrug's own brand. There's no particular reason why I chose these specific ones but I felt they looked interesting and priced at only 99p I felt it would be silly not too try! Each mask does a different job as one purifies, another's cooling and the other is a heating one - my favourite! I really want to incorporate face masks into my skin care routine as I feel they're an affordable way to make you feel pampered and give you that post-facial feeling.  

The last 2 items I picked up were one of the Maybelline Colour Tattoo's in the colour Pink Gold and a Max Factor Miracle Touch Cream Blush in 03 Soft Copper. I already own 3 other colours in the Maybelline Colour Tattoo range and I absolutely love them for a quick and easy yet effective eye make up look. I haven't had a cream blush in my makeup collection for years and I liked the look of the Max Factor ones and priced at only £6.99 I was easily convinced. I chose this colour as I feel like it's more of a bronzed blush meaning when I'm feeling lazy I can just apply this without having to worrying about my usual contouring along with blusher. 

Have you tried this products? How did you find them?

Comment below!

xx

Fragrance| Marc Jacobs Daisy

Hello!

As one of my first fragrance related posts I thought I would do a quick rave and review about one of my favourite fragrances which is Daisy Eau So Fresh by Marc Jacobs. Now, I don't know about you guys but for starters I find all of the bottle designs beautiful and definitely eye catching . The particular one I have is in this pretty and attractive flower shape as its only a squidly 20ml where as the 75ml bottle (which I went out and bought not long after this one had ran out) is a much more of a generous sized bottle with the usual abundance of flowers on the lid.

Now the fragrance scent can only be described as floral with a hint of fruit thrown in there. It's definitely a light fragrance and is perfect for the summer but I've still found pleasure in wearing it through out these wintery days. This is definitely one of those fragrances which smells different on every person. I often find myself saying to a friend 'mmm I love your perfume what is that?!' And it in actual fact being the same one as I'm wearing. But I find this as more of a bonus as it means it's more personal. The main ingredients in the fragrance are grapefruit, pear and raspberry with a hint of jasmine and apple blossom in there too making it an abundance of fruity and floral favours which make it a nice fresh girly scent. AND the bottle pictured above only cost me £25(!) which I feel is quite a generous amount considering. 

Let me know some of your favourite fragrances in the comment section as I'm always on the hunt for something new :)

Make Up| Urban Decay Naked Illuminated Shimmering Powder for Face and Body

Hello!

Today I'm going to be reviewing a new addition to my make up bag which is the Naked illuminator by Urban Decay. I've tried many variations of illuminating/highlighting products before ranging from creams to powders and this is definitely one of my favourites. 

First of all, I think the packaging is gorgeous and the shimmer on the box really foreshadows what the product will be like inside. I can appreciate its quite a chunky box and it is a pain to fit into a Make Up bag so it may not necessarily be perfect for travel. 

I don't think it's any surprise that I was drawn to this product as soon as I saw it. I have magpie like tendencies when it comes to shiny, glittery things and this just suited me right done to the ground. It's a powdered highlighter that has microfine shimmery particles to allow the light to reflect upon it to create a healthy and dewey finish.  Even though it is beautiful, I can understand that the glitter may be too much for people and some may prefer to use it just for evenings as opposed to the daytime. It's also great for your body too, allowing you to add an extra bit of shimmer before a night out. 

As you can see it's quite pigmented but applying this with a Kabuki brush or a large powder brush allows the product to apply sparingly as so not to overdo it. It's light and beautiful and along with the pretty packaging, I feel this product is definitely something I'll be reaching for all year round.

It even has a hidden compartment underneath the powder that has a mini applicator. I personally never find much use for these but if you do it's definitely and added bonus!

Priced at £20, it definitely fits in to the high end market but what can we expect from Urban Decay? I like to think we are paying more for quality, don't you think?

What's your favourite highlighter? 

Skincare| Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser

Hello again!

Today I will be reviewing the Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser which is definitely a revolutionary product, I would say, in the skincare world. Perfect for all ages and skin types, it's the perfect cleanser that actually seems to make a visible difference.

It's a plant-based creamy cleanser that is perfect for taking off all types of make up including waterproof mascara (yay!). It works in two phases: cleansing and polishing. The polishing is done with a muslin cloth that actually comes with the cleanser (bigger ones can be bought from the baby section in Boots!) this, in effect, exfoliates your skin and removes all the dead skin cells that may have been lodging there.

What I like most about this product is that you're always guaranteed to be left with smooth and clean-looking skin. I owe the disappearance of many spots to this bottle. There's also the added bonus that it smells great too!

Have you tried it? What cleansers do you like it?

Make Up| Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara

Hello again! 

Today I'm reviewing a makeup product that has taken the beauty world by storm... the Clinique bottom lash mascara. This Clinique mascara is here too.. well it's in the name really. The idea of this cosmetic product is to eliminate clumps and smudges that would usually be the case when using a full size mascara wand. Gone are the days of lashes like spiders legs. 

Armed with a tiny wand, this mascara is perfect for getting in all the hard to get to places including the tiniest little lashes in the corners of your eyes! The packaging is super pretty with the silver detailed floral pattern and the size is perfect for travel! But with all the positives with a good product there is usually one or two negatives. The formula of the mascara seemed to dry out quickly for me meaning if you were to be a lover of this bottom lash mascara you may find yourself buying it sooner then you hoped.

Priced at £12 for a 2ml bottle, it does fit it in to the high end side of the spectrum as products go. But I think the price tag is only a minor problem for such a unique product. All in all it's definitely one to try. 

Have you tried it? If so what did you think? 

Lifestyle| New Years Resolutions

Hello!

It's that time of year again where we all promise to be healthier, happier version of ourselves. I'm aware this post may be somewhat delayed but I thought I may still get away with telling you all my New Years resolution for 2014. 

I, like I suspect most of you, always set myself goals which I never ever fulfill. I tell myself each year 'this will be the year I will get physically fitter' yet, again maybe like you, this is never the case. This is why this year I decided to try something completely different. Introducing... 

One Line A Day: A Five Year Memory Book! This unique and stupidly cute book was introduced to me thanks to Instagram and as soon as I saw it I knew it was something I had to have. This book is basically a diary but instead of writing page long ramblings of your day to day life you keep it to just a few sentences. This enables you to keep track of what you were doing or how you were feeling every day, all year long, for five years. 

The layout inside is set out in such away that allows you to compare each passage to the one before or the one after in a five year gap. Perfect for people who love anything nostalgic or sentimental. 

I thought this would be an obtainable goal to complete by the end of 2014 and hopefully the years following from that. I feel it would be interesting to see how I evolve as a person as time goes on. 

Is this your kind of thing? What's your New Years Resolution?