Showing posts with label MAC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MAC. Show all posts

Sunday, 14 July 2013

Mac Pro Longwear Lip Creme Overtime - Review and Swatch

 
 
I've gone a little blog sale crazy lately, I've purchased some lovely products which I'm really happy with, one being Mac Pro Longwear Lip Crème Overtime. I have wanted this shade for a while after seeing Millie Mackintosh tweet that she was wearing it in a picture she posted of herself months ago. I jumped at the chance of buying it when I saw it on Gaelle's blog sale (see her lovely blog here).
 
I'm a big fan of pale pink or peach lipstick shades on me, it helps to lighten my very pigmented lips and I feel these pale shades suit me better than bolder colours. Overtime is a blue toned pink, it is a bubblegum barbie colour when swatched, but doesn't look so scary once applied to the lips. It's the first pro wear lip crème I own and I have to say I'm very impressed with the application, it applies so smoothly and almost feels like a lipbalm. It isn't sticky or drying and gives the lips a lovely pop of colour. My new favourite lipstick. Do you own any Mac pro longwear lip crèmes? What do you think?
 
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Wednesday, 3 July 2013

June 2013 Beauty Favourites

 
1. Benefit They're Real Mascara - A freebie with a previous issue of Elle magazine. This mascara really does lengthen and thicken lashes giving a noticeably fuller effect. I would compare this mascara to Bourjois Volume Clubbing Mascara, similarly the results are not subtle. I love the big fluttery fake look when it comes to my eyelashes. The only downside is if you apply too much the eyelashes can look quite clumpy...it's also a bugger to remove...but the product itself is great. I will definitely repurchase.
 
2. Laura Mercier Flawless Skin Repair Eye Creme - I received this eye cream free when I purchased two products from a Laura Mercier counter a few months ago. I don't tend to use an eye cream but after dabbing this on a few nights before bed I've been using it every night ever since. The product has a creamy, cooling effect on the eyes, it reduces puffiness and keeps skin feeling nourished.
 
3. Pantene Fine Hair Volume and Body Conditioner - This range not only smells gorgeous but also leaves hair feeling soft and smooth. This product made my hair feel conditioned whilst on holiday even though the sun and sea salt was trying its best to dry it out. I thank this conditioner for allowing me to walk around in the humidity without looking like Monica from Friends.
 
4. Clarins Smoothing Body Scrub For A New Skin - My top favourite of the month goes to this body scrub. This scrub leaves skin feeling silky smooth without feeling too abrasive. I was talking to a lady at the Clarins beauty counter who advised to apply this scrub before getting into the shower for a deeper exfoliation, or another tip was to mix with some body oil to moisturise the skin at the same time. A great body product from Clarins, I've yet to come across one I don't like.
 
5. Nivea In-Shower Body Moisturiser - The lazy girl in me loves this product, it allows me to apply moisturiser quickly in the shower after cleansing and means I don't have to apply anything when I've dried off. Skin is left feeling smooth and hydrated.
 
6. Dr Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm - I wore this on my face every day on my holiday to Spain instead of my normal foundation. The balm has a tinted moisturiser consistency with SPF25 (the main reason why I chose it as my daily base product) - other suncreams tend to break me out on my face but this one worked great. It gave me just enough coverage with a dewy effect whilst protecting my skin at the same time. Love.
 
7. Mac Fix+ - Perfect for freshening up my makeup, I've been using it everyday and twice a day on holiday. I can't rave about it enough, it gives the skin a dewy look on top of foundation, I have also been using this by spritzing a little on my foundation brush before applying my base, this enables me to blend the foundation much more easily and prevent any caky effects on the skin.
 
8. 17 Instant Glow Gold Bronze Shimmer Brick - Another holiday product. Gives the apples of cheeks a glow without too much shimmer, looks great with a tan....not so much without.
 
I love reading peoples monthly favourite posts so link yours below :).
 
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Wednesday, 29 May 2013

May Favourites


Not too many beauty favourites this month because I've been spending most of my money on clothes and new furniture for the house, but i'm happy with these products they have been serving me well this month.
 
1. Palmers Cocoa Butter Formula Natural Bronze Body Lotion
Gives the skin a slight natural looking tan, perfect for using mid week when the fake tan is starting to fade. This product is also very moisturising and sinks into the skin quite quickly, I hate thick moisturisers which seem to sit on the skin.
 
2. Caudalie Beauty Elixir
This has been my skin saviour for the past few weeks. Slightly drying but has helped to clear some pesky pimples I had on my chin. Many people complain about the smell, but I love it as it's so refreshing. This is the second small bottle i've purchased, when I run out I may have to get the bigger size.
 
3. Estee Lauder Sensuous
Gorgeous, a sweet and woody fragrance. It always makes me feel sophisticated when wearing it.
 
4. Mac Fix+
I've talked about this before, great for setting my makeup and removing the cakey/powdery look I sometimes get if I've applied too much powder. One bottle of this lasts forever!
 
5. Laura Mercier Mineral Powder
Helps to conceal blemishes and red patches after I've applied my foundation (great for coverage!), my makeup also lasts longer when I set it with this product. I like to spray Fix+ on top of this powder so that it doesn't look too drying and cakey.
 
6. Models Own Tweezers
Once again I lost my tweezers so in a panic (with bushy eyebrows) I rushed out to buy some and found these. I love the bright colour, it may prevent me from losing them! They are good, sturdy tweezers which are sharp enough to grab the smallest of hairs.
 
7. Topshop Lip Bullet Covet
I love this bright peach colour from Topshop. The application is smooth and the product is heavily pigmented as with all Topshop makeup items. I will definitely be purchasing the other bullets when I get chance (Heartbeat and There She Goes are next on the list).
 
8. Rimmel Pro 317 Coral Romance
My absolute favourite nail polish for the summer. It's more red toned than orange, a lovely coral colour which goes with everything. The lasting power on these nail varnishes are fab!


What are your beauty favourites this month? I'd love for you to send me your links!

Tuesday, 21 May 2013

FOTN

 


I went out in Birmingham on Saturday night and snapped a few pics before I left the house. My FOTN is quite simple and isn't too different from my every day look, I just like to add a pair of falsies and a brighter lipstick. I'm still loving my Foxy Locks hair extensions too, they are so easy to style and the curls stayed in place all night.


I started off by applying my usual foundation, Laura Mercier Silk Creme in Rose Ivory followed by Laura Mercier Mineral Powder in Real Sand. These two products apply like a dream and cover any blemishes so easily (deffo my HG brand for base products). I then used Soleil Tan De Chanel for contour and bronzing, then applied Mac Melba on the apples of my cheeks. For my eye makeup I used MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre as a base then used NARS Gstaad eyeshadow from The Happening Palette in the crease (this is basically my everyday look). I then applied Clinique Brush-on Creme Eyeliner in Black on my upper and lower lash line with some MaxFactor Falsh Lash Effect Fusion Mascara before applying Eyelure Naturalites Evening Wear Lashes. Lippie is the gorgeous MAC Chatterbox.
 
So overall quite a simple going out look. I wore my pearl earrings which I wear everyday without fail and my new gold chain from Miss Selfridge. Clothes wise I wore a H&M black jacket, Miss Selfridge lace top and lemon yellow pencil skirt from Ebay (didn't take a photo of my outfit).
Did you lovely ladies have a good weekend?

Wednesday, 3 April 2013

Current Beauty Favourites (my daily face)

 
Above are the beauty makeup products which have been gracing my face for the majority of the past month. I've spoke about a couple of them before but some are quite new to my routine and are products which i've fallen in love with. All are items which I will 100% repurchase when they run out.
 
1. Nars The Happening Palette
I got talked into buying this by the MUA at the Nars counter in Selfridges, Birmingham and i'm so glad I was. The palette contains a bronzer (laguna), a blush (orgasm) and four eyeshadows (night star, gstaad, kuala lumpur, coconut grove)... for £45 I thought this was quite a good deal. Laguna and Orgasm give the most gorgeous combination to the cheeks, especially for quite a muted daytime look. The eyeshadows are also really handy as the colour combinations can be used to create a soft daytime look or for a full on smoky eye. I am still planning on doing a full review on this palette so I wont say much more than this, I just love it.




2. Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation - Rose Ivory
My new favourite foundation. For the last few weeks this product has replaced my usual Bourjois Healthy Mix as I feel it gives much better coverage as well as giving a healthy glow to the skin. I buff into my skin using a Real Techniques buffing brush and I only need a small 10p size amount for my whole face. I can see this being my HG foundation, gorgeous.
 
3. Laura Mercier Foundation Primer - Radiance
I don't usually use a primer before applying my makeup as I feel that alot of them dry out my skin and do more damage than good. However this product is great, it gives a lovely glow to the skin and makes your makeup stay put all day long! I wore this primer in Iceland in -8 degree weather and my makeup did not budge....it has definitely passed the test! I only have a small sample size, so when I run out I will be running to make a purchase.
 
4. Topshop Creme Blush - Neon Rose
The only Topshop creme blush I own. I have used this product for about a year now and love the bright colour and the healthy look it gives to the cheeks. I love my blush to be quite pigmented, and this definitely is, only a tiny amound it needed. It applies so smoothly to the skin, it has a soft texture which stays put on the cheeks.
 
5. Clinique Brush-on Cream Liner - True Black
I'm yet to find an eyeliner which is as black or as long lasting as this one. I've been using this for about 7 months, my favourite!
 
6. Mac Vanilla Pigment
One of my new purchases, I've been wearing this on my brow bone and tear duct area as well as on the tops of my cheeks for nights out. I find it gives the best glow when mixed with a small amount of fix+ before applying (see below).


7. Mac Creme Cup Lipstick
I've gone back to using this little beauty lately, see my mini review in my mac lipstick post here.
 
8. Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara - Black
See my review here
 
9. Mac Paint Pot - Soft Ochre
See my review here
 
What are your current favourites?

Friday, 22 March 2013

Mac Paint Pot Soft Ochre





Another MAC item I purchased in my pre-birthday haul was the Paint Pot in Soft Ochre. This is the first Paint Pot I have ordered, inspired after watching one of Lisalisad1's friday hauls (link). The shade Soft Ochre is supposed to give your eyelids a good base underneath eyeshadow to allow the colours to really pop. I find that it applies like a creamy concealor both in texture and colour, it really helps to brighten any darkness or discolouration on the eyelid so I've even been applying it even when I haven't worn eyeshadow. The Paint Pot has also been acting as my eyeshadow primer, creating a  perfect canvas on the eyelid.

This product allows eyeshadow to stay put all day, it also means the colour of the eyeshadow does not fade or crease (one of my pet hates as I have oily eyelids)..I have found when using this paint pot my eyeshadow looks great at the end of the day which is very unusual for me.

I'm so impressed with this product I'm thinking of branching out and buying some more MAC Paint Pot shades, any recommendations?





Thursday, 21 March 2013

MAC Chatterbox and Birthday Meal






Before my birthday I went and treated myself to a few bits from MAC. A lipstick that has been on my wishlist for a while is Chatterbox. Chatterbox is an amplified creme finish, so it applies smoothly and adds a little shine to the lips. The colour is lovely, ideal if you're the type of person who tends to wear more muted colours and usually afraid of the bright daring lipsticks - it is a bright rosy pink colour but not as daring as others such as vegas volt / morange. To be honest the photograph below isn't really a good representation of the colour, it's not as deep pink as it seems to show up on my lips (not sure if that's because my lips are already quite pigmented). The swatch above is more representative of the actual colour of the lipstick.

For my birthday (about 3 weeks ago), I went to a lovely bar / restaurant called 'Lost and Found' in central Birmingham. The restaurant has a really vintage feel with wine glasses/cups as light fittings and type writers on the bar. I chose to have the fish pie which was lovely, where as my parents went for the fish and chips which came in a cute little wired frying pan. I had a lovely time and it was all washed down with half a bottle of wine. I love finding new little restaurants like this that are quite quirky. What have you been up to lately?








Sunday, 24 February 2013

Pre Birthday Haul


It's my 25th birthday on Wednesday so my parents gave me some money to go and treat myself. Typical me, I spent it all on makeup! The Karen Millen bag contains a top which was a birthday present to myself (I just had to). I got a few bits i've been wanting to try for ages and also spent alot of the time getting hints and tips off the MUA's at the different counters. Here's a quick list of the things I picked up;

MAC Fix + I've never tried this product but i've wanted to for ages, i've had a quick spritz ontop of my makeup today and I really like how refreshing it is and the glow it gives to my face.
 
MAC Lipstick in Chatterbox A beautiful pink shade, I cannot wait to wear it.
 
MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre I saw this on Lisalisad1's latest friday haul youtube video. It's supposed to provide a base for your eyeshadows to allow their true colour to 'pop' out.
 
Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation in Rose Ivory I'm getting bored of using bourjois healthy mix so purchased another product i've never used from my favourite makeup brand.
 
Nars The Happening Eye & Cheek Palette I originally went to the Nars counter to purchase Laguna, but after talking to the MUA about the makeup she was wearing (gorgeous) she pointed out this palette which contains both Laguna and Orgasm as well as 4 eyeshadows in Night Star, Gstaad, Kuala Lumpur and Coconut Grove. All for £45 which I thought was quite a good deal. This is my favourite purchase of the day.
 
Look Beauty Blush in Flirt I first saw this on llymlrs beauty blog. I love how she does her makeup and this is one of her favourite shades. I like my blush shades to be quite pigmented and this definitely is, can't wait to try it.
 
Look Beauty Lip Liner in Toffee Cup An impulse buy, there wasn't even a tester but i've been looking for a nude/baby pink liner for a while. For only £2 I didn't really care.
 
There were some other products I was dying to try but I couldn't really justify buying. Including Aveda Pure Abundance Style Prep, Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Lip Balm & a few more MAC products.
 
I will do separate blog posts on each of the products purchased when i've had chance to use them. Do you own any of these products? What are your thoughts?

Tuesday, 22 January 2013

Mac Mythology Lustre Eye Shadow





MAC Mythology eye shadow is a product which I wear on a daily basis. It is a coppery/rust colour which I feel suits my hazel eyes perfectly. The reason I bought it initially was because I thought it looked very Olsen-esque, and I decided I would try to copy their style by placing it below my bottom lashes (FYI - I'm not sure the Olsens use this exact colour but it looks similar). I apply the eye shadow all over my eyelids and below my bottom lash before adding eye liner and mascara. (I attempted to take photographs wearing the shadow but my camera would just not pick up the gorgeous colour).

When swatched, the product looks a little lighter than it does in the pan. Mythology is very shimmery so if you prefer a matte shadow then this colour may not be for you. As with most MAC products this eye shadow is quite pigmented, a little goes a long way so i'm hoping it will last me a long time. I love this shade and would 100% recommend, it doesn't crease (even on my oily hooded eyelids!) and hence has found its way into my daily makeup bag.

What should my next MAC eyeshadow purchase be? What are your favourites?