MAC Lipstick Collection & Mini Reviews

I absolutely love MAC lipsticks, they have a range of amazing colours and the quality is great. I'm going to show you the one’s I own and tell you quickly what I think of them.

MAC lipsticks aren't the cheapest with their £15 price tag however I do think that they are worth the money and are a more affordable high end lipstick if you want to treat yourself but not break the bank!!

The point of this post is to say which lipsticks I would recommend and which ones I wouldn't, I'm not intending to brag. I have collected these lipsticks over a few years and I am always careful when buying expensive makeup.

I'm going to mention the lipsticks in order, from left to right on the photos below. I have also inserted swatch photos of each lipstick so you can slightly see what they look like on the skin. Please be aware that lipstick's look different on everyone- you're skin tone may be different to mine so it's probably best to go and try the lipsticks on yourself in a MAC store to get a true look.  

The first one is called Girl About Town, it’s the perfect bright pink which I think would suit every skin tone. I haven’t worn this lipstick too much but when I have, I've loved it! I think that it would be a perfect summer colour and great for adding a pop of colour to your outfit. The formula of this lipstick is Amplified Creme which is one of my favourites. It’s very well pigmented but not drying and keeps your lips hydrated because it’s a very creamy formula.

Next is PLINK! This was my first ever MAC lipstick which I got over 2 years ago and I actually think it was my first ever purchase from MAC (very special for me!!!!haha!)  I absolutely love this one, I find myself grabbing this when I want something on my lips but can’t decide- it’s a beautiful warm, almost glittery pink.

I got Angel after hearing lots of good reviews about it however I was a little disappointed. It’s similar to Plink however I don’t like it as much. The colour looks very pretty on the stick but I find that it really doesn't suit my skin tone well and I think it's very sheer which I don't like. This lipstick is a frost finish which I don't usually like anyway- I find this formula very sheer and not well pigmented. I will admit that the swatch on the photo below doesn't look too sheer however I really don't like it on my lips. 

Going from bad to brilliant- Rebel is definitely one of my favourites and I’d love to say most worn if I was that confident but I only tend to wear it on special occasions. Rebel looks very scary on the stick but it’s a lot more wearable than you'd probably expect- It’s a beautiful deep vampy purple/deep pink. One of the best qualities is that it’s the longest wearing lipstick I've ever owned, it almost stains the lips which is perfect if you want to wear this to a meal out or for all day.

I love the Rebel lipstick so much that I got the lip glass in the same shade. This is perfect to apply over the lipstick if you want a glossier look. I do like this however it’s slightly sticky which I don’t like with lip glosses and it can get you into the ‘hair on lips’ situation!
I prefer the formula of Tanya Burr's lip-glosses because they aren't as sticky and are more wearable. 

Russian Red is the perfect red lipstick, it suit’s everyone and the formula is great. It’s a matte formula which may hint that the lipstick is drying however I have found that this isn't at all and it glides on the lips effortlessly. I love a classic red lip and this lipstick is the perfect one- I think that it should be a staple in every girl’s makeup bag.

Finally I have this Sheen Supreme lipstick in the shade Royal Azalea. I think that this was an impulse, unnecessary buy at Cheshire Oaks when I found it for a cheap price because I can never see myself wearing it. It’s a very bright barbie pink which could be used for media/ dramatic makeup however I can’t see myself wearing it regularly because it doesn't suit my skin tone.

Just because this one isn't for me, it may suit you. MAC customer service is great, if you go into a store and ask for help they will be more than happy to help you try on makeup and decide what suits you best. 

That’s all the lipsticks I have to show you. I am happy with what I own and currently don’t have any more MAC lipsticks on my wish list however if you can think of any others which you would recommend, leave them in the comments and you may be able to persuade me! 

Review : The Body Shop Honey Bronzer

I have always been a big fan of The Body Shop products and I've recently been more interested in their makeup after never trying it before.

I first heard about the Honey Bronzer after watching Essie Button’s YouTube videos and hearing her rave about it. I was very interested to see if it was worth the hype so I went and got it and now after testing the bronzer out for a few weeks I'm going to review it and I’ll be letting you know what my opinion is and if I would recommend the product.  

This bronzer gives a lovely matte finish on the skin without any shimmer. It’s hard to find a good matte bronzer for an affordable price but this one is great at just £13. You can choose between 4 different shades and the lightest is perfect for people with very fair skin which won’t make you look orange or dirty.

I really like the matte finish because it makes your overall face look more natural and it also works as a perfect contouring product to define the face.

The bronzer comes inside a little compact with a ‘honey like’ print and has a great mirror inside. I really like this packaging because it’s small and has a really handy mirror which I've found myself using a lot to touch up makeup whilst on the go.

I haven’t found this bronzer to appear cakey on the skin; it glides on effortlessly and blends into the skin very well.

Overall I really love this bronzer, from a girl who was always scared of bronzer before buying this product- you can probably tell how amazing it is!

I would definitely recommend The Body Shop Honey Bronzer to people with fair skin who struggle to find a good quality bronzer which won’t be too orange or shimmery on them.

I hope this review has helped and that you have enjoyed reading it,

Speak to you soon! 

My Skincare Routine

For me, looking after my skin is very important and I find that my makeup applies better if I look after it properly.

In this post I'm going to show you what products I use in the morning and evening to keep my skin spot free (almost!) and clean.

My routine is pretty simple but I've been using almost the same products for years now and they have helped keep my skin stay in good condition.

I have been using Bioderma for over 2 years now- It’s a micellar cleansing water which removes all makeup gently and works for even the most sensitive skin. Unfortunately you can’t buy Bioderma in the UK because it is a French brand; however you can order it online. I visit France at least once a year because my family is French so I always stock up when I'm over there.

MORNING ROUTINE-

I use Bioderma in the morning to cleanse my face- I find it really refreshing and its very gentle- almost like water.

Every morning I clean my face- I use this daily exfoliating scrub from the pink grapefruit range from Neutrogena.

This exfoliator is great for everyday use because the beads inside are very fine and aren't harsh on the skin. I get a small amount and gently massage it in circular motions on my skin, focusing on my nose and any problem areas. To wash it off I simply get a clean flannel and rinse my face with warm water. I like to exfoliate, especially because I have dry skin and it really clears down to the skin and gets rid of any dead skin cells.

Another daily exfoliator which I like and sometimes use is the Clean& Clear Daily Exfoliating Scrub.

After exfoliating I get this facial wash from the same range and scrub the product all over my face then rinse off like before.

I really like the pink grapefruit range from Neutrogena- its smells great and is really nice and gentle on the skin which makes it perfect for teenagers.

After this I usually go onto my makeup if I decide to wear it, If I am doing this I like to use The Body Shop Illuminating cream as my moisturiser however If I'm not wearing makeup on the day, I use Simple’s Kind to Skin Rich Moisturiser. The Illuminating cream is amazing to use under makeup if you’re after glowy skin because it has tiny light reflectors inside. However I wouldn't wear it if I wasn't wearing makeup because it turns your skin a little too illuminated if you don’t wear anything on top. 

You shouldn't use your normal face moisturiser on the eye area because it's a very sensitive area so it's important to use an eye cream. 

I've only recently discovered eye creams and I use this Boots essentials eye gel, it works fine for me but it does nothing special.

NIGHT TIME ROUTINE-

In the evening, I am always a bit lazy and don’t bother doing much to my skin. If I am feeling extremely lazy- I will just take my makeup off, however I will tell you what I do the majority of the time.

I go back to the Bioderma and use it to remove my makeup, I love it because it takes EVERYTHING off- even waterproof mascara. I have found other makeup removers tend to irritate my skin however Bioderma just feels like water so it would be perfect for you if you have sensitive skin. 

I love The Body Shop Vitamin E Toner because it’s very fresh and hydrating. I have always been a bit confused about toners- but I've learnt that they help get rid of any dirt or left over makeup and also close pores considering pores tend to open when cleansing. 

Finally I moisturise my face, I have been testing out The Body Shop Vitamin E Aqua Boost Sorbet cream which is going ok at the moment however I'm not sure if it's suited for my skin type. 

Another moisturiser which I like to use in the evening is the Simple Kind to Skin Rich Moisturiser which is an all-round great moisturiser and would be perfect for every skin type. 

Something that I've been trying out recently are facial pore strips, these ones are from Boots and they are the tea tree and which hazel ones. 

They claim to remove dirt, oil and clear pores. I have only used them twice and haven't seen any difference in my skin yet. 

That's all I do to my skin, I hope you have enjoyed reading this post and have maybe picked up a few tips which you didn't know before. 

Bye! 

What's In My Travel Bag?

This weekend I am going to Paris with my dad to help my brother who has been living there for the past year pack up his stuff to come home.

I always struggle deciding what to take in my hand luggage so I thought I’d do a post showing you what I'm going to be taking this weekend.

I got this backpack from New Look recently for just £15, I wanted to get a practical bag for this trip because I will probably have my hands full, carrying bags and suitcases for my brother so I wanted my own bag to be easy to carry around and out of the way. I really like this bag, it’s got a beautiful white lace/crochet detail and I can see myself using it a lot in the future as well as for this trip.

I will be getting the plane to Paris and then I'm travelling back home on the megabus which is going to be a very long journey! (Any tips for surviving the megabus?!). Obviously I can’t take liquids onto the plane so the liquids which I'm showing you now will be either going into our suitcases or into little plastic bags for security.

Whenever I'm travelling, I hate wearing makeup because my skin gets so dehydrated- especially on planes. For this reason, I don’t like to wear any makeup whilst travelling so I won’t be showing you my makeup bag here however I will put it into our suitcase for me to use when we arrive. If you want to see what I tend to keep inside my makeup bag- click here 

The first thing I've pulled out of my bag is my Wreak This Journal. I've had this for a while now but hardly used it; I really love the idea and I am hoping to start doodling away this weekend.

I've still got two purses so I've obviously got these in here, however I will need to pick up some euros before I go. This floral purse is actually one of those handy clutch purses which fits your phone inside but I just use it for my cards and money because I love the design so much. Then I have a plain black pouch to keep all my change inside.

I love clipping back parts of my hair with these big clips so I've thrown a few of them in here for when I want to get my hair out of my face.

Hand sanitizer is a must when travelling, here I've got The Body Shop Mango hand cleanse gel which smells SO good and is great for keeping your hands squeaky clean!

To use after the hand sanitizer I've got the Burt’s Bees Almond & Milk Hand Cream which is perfect for travelling because it’s in this tiny pot. You also only need a small amount each time and it smells amazing.

I am currently learning to drive and have been for over 6 weeks now so I need to start learning my theory. I have the highway code hand book in my bag which I will hopefully read this weekend. I really love driving and I would definitely recommend it if you are unsure whether or not to start learning due to anxieties because it really helped my confidence and hopefully it will help yours.

However I will probably be more tempted to read my new Glamour magazine rather than the highway code which has the beautiful Alexa Chung on the front cover. I also got a free Eyeko eye liner with this magazine which I actually really like!

Of course I have my camera in my bag- I practically take it everywhere, you never know when there may be a photo opportunity! I will try and take some snaps of Paris this weekend however I may be slightly busy but if I do, I’ll definitely put them into a blog post next week.

I really like having a packet of wipes when I'm travelling because you never know when you may need them. I have a packet of Boots own cleansing handy wipes which help remove dirt and bacteria- great!

I like to keep a little compact mirror in my bag so I've got this little one which I've had for a very long time and I love it.

Wrigleys Extra White Bubblemint chewing gum is my addiction! I go through at least one pot a week because I absolutely love it. I'm taking a pot with me this weekend to keep my breath nice and fresh throughout the journey. I do however only have a few left in this pot so I’ll probably have to buy a new one before I go.

The Body Shop Coconut Body mist will probably be making an appearance in this month’s favourites because I have been using it nonstop- nearly every day! It’s the perfect light summer scent which isn't too overpowering however it does linger on you for a long time so you don’t have to re apply too much. I like to feel and smell as fresh as I can when travelling- especially on long journeys so this will be great for me this weekend.

I am obsessed with coffee and I suspect that I will be drinking a fair few cups this weekend considering I will be in the city which is known for their good coffee! (I can’t wait!)- I like to sweeten my drinks so I always keep a sweetener dispenser (I think that’s what It’s called?) in my bag when I'm travelling.

I have downloaded a few episodes of Gossip Girl onto my Iphone after my friend recommended the program to me, hopefully that will keep me occupied on my 9+ hour coach journey (yes, it’s that long!). Of course I’ll need my headphones to watch Gossip Girl and listen to my favourite songs, I have been loving Pharrell Williams recently so I'm sure his album will be played a lot this weekend.

I have these pink Panasonic headphones which are good- I'm not an expert on headphones but these work fine for me!

Hopefully the weather will be nice this weekend so I've got my favourite Primark sunglasses in here- I really love them so hopefully I will get to wear them :) 

I really wanted a nice notebook which didn't have any scribblings or drawings I created 5 years ago so I went and got this funky glittery notebook from Paperchase. I really love it; it's covered in purple glitter and has a little drawing of the Eiffel Tower on the front which is really cute and very relevant for me considering I am going to Paris! 

In this book I'm hoping to jot down a few things to remember for my driving theory test and It could also be useful If I'm bored and fancy doodling. 

I'll probably be walking a lot this weekend so I need to make sure my feet will be comfy- I've got a packet of extra tough waterproof plasters in my bag in case my shoes rub my feet. 

Finally I've got a few mini's to show you. I got this summer essentials Nivea travel set from Primark for just over £4- It has lots of mini products inside including sun cream, deodorant, lip balm, hand cream, shower cream and face wipes. I think it's a great little set and it claims that all of the products are suitable for plane hand luggage. I will probably just take the sun cream, face wipes, deodorant and lip balm because I can see myself using them on my journeys. 

I think that's everything! I've probably forgotten something but I hope this has helped you out if you're off on your travels soon and were unsure what to take in your hand luggage. 

I will also be taking lots of water and snacks to keep me going throughout the journey but I've not packed them yet- I really like energy/ protein snack bars like CLIF, Trek and Eat Natural because they're super healthy and give you a good slow releasing boost. 

Thank's for reading! 

Speak to you soon! :) 

Makeup Storage/ Collection

Last weekend my parents kindly let me turn our front room into my ‘makeup room’. It’s not being used for anything particularly so it’s the perfect room. I've brought all my makeup from my bedroom and organised it neatly onto a desk in the corner of the new room, I've also set up my tripod in front of a plain backdrop to hopefully encourage me to start making beauty videos in the future. 

I have my own eBay business so I needed a place to store all the clothes/items that I'm selling so I'm also keeping that stuff in this room.

In this post I'm going to be showing you how I store my makeup and briefly showing you a few of my favourite products from my collection.

I’d like to say quickly that this is not me bragging about what I own at all, I am always conscious of what I buy and the things in my collection have been built up over a period of time.

Saying this, I know that I don’t have the biggest makeup collection but I am very happy with that I have got.

So as you can see in the photo’s, I have a small desk in the corner of the room with all my makeup on, my brushes and I also have a circler mirror on the wall which I love. I keep all of my makeup in clear acrylic storage because it’s very practical and it’s easy to see inside.

I’ll start with this lipstick holder- I keep all of my lipsticks in here and also a few other mini things like samples and lip balms. I love this holder and I got it from amazon- click here if you want to have a look and buy it yourself.I don’t have a massive collection of lipsticks because I don’t tend to wear them too often but a few of my favourites at the moment are; MAC Girl About Town, Rimmel In Love With Ginger, MAC Russian Red and Natural Collection Raspberry. The Rimmel orange toned lipstick is a perfect one for summer and I really love the formula- its super moisturising!

Behind the lipstick holder I have this trio compartment open box which I got from Ikea. In here I keep mascaras that I'm using at the moment, all of my lip glosses and a few random things like funky coloured eyeliners and lip liners. My most used mascaras are Rimmel’s Day to Night mascara, Soap & Glory Thick and Fast and a new favourite which is Natural Collection’s Lash definition mascara.

I don’t wear lip gloss very often but 3 of my favourites are Tanya Burr’s Picnic in the Park, Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker and MAC Lip glass in Rebel. I like the more natural lip glosses for an everyday look, Tanya Burr has a lot of lovely neutrals in her new collection.

On the desk I've got the moisturiser which I'm using at the moment- its The Body Shop’s Illuminating Moisture cream which has tiny light reflectors in which gives you a nice glow that slightly comes through your makeup. I'm still testing this out to get my full opinion but I’ll hopefully be reviewing it very soon.

The main storage boxes in the middle of my desk are both from Muji which you can find in London (I think?) and also online at http://www.muji.eu/.  I really love Muji storage; their stuff is very practical and comes in lots of different designs. I have two acrylic 2 draw boxes with flippy lids which were £11.50 each.

I keep the majority of my makeup in these boxes. Starting with the one on the right- In the top compartment I tend to keep the things I use the most and are my favourites because they’re the easiest to get to. In here I've got my MAC quad pallet (now complete!), foundation, bronzer, concealer, powder and a few more things as you can see in the picture.

In the draw below I like to keep brand new products which I'm not ready to use yet, for example if my favourite concealer or powder was on offer in Boots I’d buy it and store it in here until I've finished my current one. I like doing this because it saves money and you always know you've got a new product if you’re almost out of the current one. I also have 2 old foundations in the back (probably not in their best state!) and a Ted Baker beauty bronzer which is nice but I have other favourites at the moment so I'm not using it right now.

Now onto my second Muji box; in the top of this one I have a few random bits and bobs including my Boujours chocolate bronzer which is good if you’re after a great drugstore bronzer and in here I also have 3 foundations which are nearly empty and I need to try and remind myself to finish them! I really like the blush from Seventeen here in the shade China Pink, it’s really well pigmented and is beautiful colour.

Under this draw I mainly have lots of different pallets including the MUA neutral eye shadow pallet which is really good and I need to remind myself to use it more often because it’s a great, affordable product. I have two eyebrow kits in here which I don’t use anymore but they are very good however I prefer the quicker method of using my Benefit Gimmie Brow gel.

The final products that I’ve got to show you are in this little box in the far corner of the desk. This is actually an empty ferrero rocher box which I thought would be a perfect mini storage box- and it is! In here I keep a few bright colourful loose pigment eye shadows. I would possibly like to go into the media makeup industry in the future and these are perfect to practice fun and bright eye looks with. If you want me to do a colourful makeup tutorial on my blog, leave a comment below and I will try and have a go.

Finally I have my makeup brushes stored in these pretty white plant pots from Ikea. I keep my face brushes in one pot and my eye brushes in the other. I’ve picked out a few of my favourites which include the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush, Eco Tools Tapered Blush Brush, Ted Baker Beauty Blush Brush, MAC 217 Blending Brush (dupe) and the Elf Small Angled Brush.

And we’re done! I hope you enjoyed finding out how I store my makeup and having a sneaky peak into my collection. 

Speak to you soon! X