Current makeup wishlist

I am always on the lookout for new makeup products and make a list on my "notes" app on my iPhone of what I've seen, so here are the products that are currently on that list.

EYES

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette - How beautiful are the colours in this palette??? I'm absolutely in love! It is full of pinks, browns and greys and I've heard great reviews.

FOUNDATION/BB CREAM

Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation - I've noticed some beauty bloggers and youtubers go on and on about this foundation so I would love to try it out.

The Body Shop All In One BB Cream - Another product that I've seen youtubers rave about, especially Gabby (velvetgh0st).

BRONZER/HIGHLIGHTER

Nars Laguna Bronzer - I need to find a bronzer that doesn't show up so orange on my skin and I've heard that this bronzer has a great tone to it.

MAC Soft and Gentle Mineralize Skinfinish - This is another beautiful colour and think it would look great along the top of my cheekbones as a highlight.

LIPSTICK

                                                  

                                                   

L-R: Creme in your Coffee, Plumful, Jubilee, Diva - Now the Autumn/Winter seasons are upon us, lipstick shades change a lot. I've had my eye on Creme in your Coffee for a while as it looks like something Kylie Jenner would wear and I love the dark nude lipstick look. Jubilee also looks like a dark nude/beige colour. Plumful and Diva would look great for the A/W season as berry lips always look beautiful.

Picture from  http://www.milkteef.com/2014/01/revlon-colorburst-crayon-lacquer-balms.html

Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm - I think this colour looks amazing and I don't think I have a bright pink colour like this!

EYEBROWS

MAC Fluidline Brow Gelcreme in Dirty Blonde - While watching Shaaanxo's youtube videos, I've noticed that she used this product a lot and her eyebrows look to die for. I also need an eyebrow product that would last all day and as this is a gel formula, this would probably do the job.

What sort of thing would you like in your makeup collection?

Scarlett x

 

Glowing, bronzed skin

If you are blessed with naturally tanned skin then you honestly don't know how lucky you are! My skin is very fair and if I do tan in the summer, it will last about a week.

Bronzers and highlighters are literally my lifesavers, mostly because they actually make my skin have some life in it, rather than looking like a ghost...

I recently picked up the Soap and Glory Solar Powder from Boots and it is my new love! The two colours don't come up overly orange on my skin and are very easy to blend out.

There are tiny amounts of shimmer in the product which looks lovely on the cheeks. I use the darker colour along the contours of my cheeks with a Real Techniques Setting Brush, then swirl around both sides with a Real Techniques Blush Brush. The packaging of Soap and Glory products are my absolute fave, and I also love the puns they use for the names!

For highlighting, I use the ELF Baked Blush in Pinktastic, which I absolutely love. The gold specks are perfect for highlighting the cheekbones and down the T-zone. I use the Real Techniques Setting Brush as it picks up the right amount of product. I love ELF products as they are such great quality for extremely low prices.

Soap and Glory Solar Powder - £11.00

ELF Baked Blush Pinktastic - £3.95

Real Techniques Blush Brush - £9.99

Real Techniques Setting Brush - £8.99

Eyebrows, eyebrows, eyebrows

I think every beauty blogger can say that eyebrows are such a statement part of their daily routine...

Making sure eyebrows are tamed and look good seems to be such a big thing in society today, and I'm not really sure why?! 

However, I can honestly say that I do not go out of the house without making sure my skin, eyebrows and eyelashes look reasonable.

My daily eyebrow routine consists of a spooly, tweezers, MAC "Eyebrows" in Fling and ELF Eyebrow Treat and Tame.

I start by brushing through my brows with the spooly, making sure the hairs are going upwards, and then if there are any stray hairs that are annoying me, I will use some tweezers to pluck them out. I just use some plain, silver tweezers that you can buy from any supermarket or drugstore.

Then, I take the MAC pencil and use extremely light strokes to fill them in. I am totally against the idea of having appalling drawn on eyebrows, and I've just got to say I really do cringe when I see some people with black slugs on their face, but hey, they can do what they like...

Using lighter strokes can mimic the hairs of your eyebrows and also uses less of the product. I find with the MAC pencil it doesn't last very long if harder strokes are used constantly.

I love this pencil as it is a perfect match with my eyebrow colour and has a perfect amount of ash in it, I find that most eyebrow colours have too much red in them.

After lightly filling them in and adding some shape, I take the ELF Treat and Tame in Ash and run the 'tame' side over my eyebrows. This can be used as a dupe for Benefit Gimme Brow and it only cost something like £4...

It keeps my eyebrows in shape for most of the day and I think it is a great product. The colour, again, has a lot of ashy tones to it and it doesn't hold a great amount of red.

After watching Shaaanxo (youtuber) use MAC Fluidline for her brows and rating it highly, I am thinking of maybe making a purchase... Has anyone tried this? 

Hope you enjoyed reading my post today, and sorry for not posting as much as I should!

Scarlett x

L'oreal Paris True Match Foundation

Oh foundation, how you make my skin actually look nice and even...

Foundation is a massive part of my makeup routine and finding the right one which is not overly expensive, yet doesn't look like I've shoveled cement on my face, can take an extremely long time. 

I used to use Mac Studio Fix Fluid (which I have reviewed) but realised that it was actually way too pale for my skin tone and made me look quite ill, but I carried on using it up until it ran out due to the price. 

After watching many a youtuber rave about a certain foundation (yes, you Lauren Curtis) I simply had to try this out!

I bought this from my local Boots and got colour matched by a lovely lady on the counter (who said my skin was beautiful, hmmm confidence grew a little!). I use the shade "C1/Ivory Rose".

Now, down to the technical bit...

Consistency - Thin! (runs down my hand when I pump it out...)

Texture - silky, smooth, soft

Wear time - I would say it lasts all day when I powder and finish off my base, without powder it will last about 4 hours until I get a shiny forehead

Application - very easy, it is so blendable, doesn't streak and is definitely easier to apply with a brush (I use a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush)

Overall - 9/10

I would recommend this to anyone who is eager to find a foundation that is amazing for the price!

One thing I have to say is this might not work for you if you have dry skin, it will tend to cling to dry patches around my hairline (I have combination skin).

What's everyone's fave foundation? Has anyone tried this?

Scarlett x

Summer wishlist

Summer is just around the corner and I'm hoping us Brits actually get some nice weather this year...

Here is my Summer wishlist!

Both playsuits from BooHoo.com - so cute just to wear over bikinis or on their own casually.

Runner shorts from Topshop - nice to wear in the daytime for a more casual look.

Boyfriend coat from BooHoo.com - not really summery but I love it!

MAC Rebel lipstick - such a beautiful colour and would look amazing all year round.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Highlighter in Lightscapade to make my face shimmer and look healthy!

L'oreal Paris True Match Foundation - desperately need a light foundation that doesn't go cakey on my face...

What do you want for Summer? 

Scarlett x

May favourites!

Hey everyone,

I now have 2 days left of official school before 4 days of "study leave" so I'm really, really excited to leave. Ahhhh!!

Now, as promised, here are my favourite products of May.

I tried a lot of new beauty products last month, so here they are...

First up is the Real Techniques setting brush. I LOVE Real Techniques a lot and this brush is so versatile. I use it to contour the hollows of my cheeks as it is so small and useful for not going too bronzed. I then blend the bronzer out with a bigger powder brush. I also use it to set and blend concealer; it is so good just to pat onto blemishes and under-eye circles. Real Techniques brushes are also so easy to clean and there are no "malting" hairs which is great.

Next, we have Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser. I must say, I was never a fan of using primer but recently my skin has gotten more oily and my make up was slipping off easily throughout the day, even with face powder. I wanted to try a new primer which was light yet made my makeup stay on for a long time and I can say this is definitely working. I use it after moisturising then let it set into my skin before applying foundation. It makes the process so much easier and my makeup looks so much better. I still get a bit of shine after about 7 hours of wear but I've only been at school recently and I care way more about exams than what I look like at the moment!

Let's just say, I straighten my hair A LOT. I wanted to try a new heat protector as the one I was using before only went up to 180 degrees, whereas this Mark Hill Extreme Heat Protection Spray protected against a high 230 degrees which is what my GHD hair straighteners reach. After using this, I can feel the difference in my hair greatly. The breakage and split ends have dropped dramatically, which is what I was paranoid about because my hair is not growing at all. This has changed the condition and I can't wait to keep using it!

I love this Carmex Moisture Plus Beauty Balm soooo much! Dry lips are my worst enemy and this has helped defeat them so well. The added colour (Berry I think?) makes my lips look so nice and the taste/smell is gorgeous. Love love loveeee!

And to finish, here's the Paco Rabanne Lady Million Perfume. I always have to add a spray of perfume before I leave the house in the morning and this is so perfect just to wear everyday. The smell is really sophisticated and quite spicy but girly at the same time. The gold diamond shaped bottle is beautiful and adds to that sense of sophistication. 

Have any of you tried any of these? How have you got on?

Scarlett x

MAC Angel Frost Lipstick

Hi everyone,

I haven't been blogging a lot recently due to the stress of my GCSE exams... I'm literally counting down the days until I leave school!! 

In my last post, I reviewed MAC Lovelorn lipstick (here) and said that I would review Angel for my next post.. So here it is!

Angel is known as one of MAC's most famous and used lipsticks, even used by the beauty that is Kim Kardashian. It has a frost finish which sits so nicely on the lips with a subtle shine. For me, one swipe is not enough so it has to be built up for your desired finish, whether it be more opaque or just a little colour. 

On the MAC website it is described as a "soft pink". It is a beautiful colour to wear in the daytime with natural eyes or at nighttime with a more smokey look.

I feel that the only problem is that it doesn't have a very long wear time due to the finish, but touch ups don't really bother me too much! I love wearing this lipstick and think it suits my pale skin well as it doesn't wash me out - a problem many of us pales have with nude lipsticks. I think this will suit so many skin tones and is definitely worth the money.

I'm thinking of doing a May favourites soon, so keep an eye out!

Thanks for reading!

Scarlett

MAC Lovelorn Lustre Lipstick

I recently got the most beautiful pink MAC lipstick - Lovelorn.

I can honestly say it is my favourite lipstick at the moment, I love the colour and the "Lustre" finish.

MAC describes this as "an emotive blue pink". You can definitely tell there is blue/purple undertones in this lipstick and it really complements my skin tone.

The finish on this lipstick is my favourite. It glides on smoothly, and glistens on my lips. It doesn't last very long and transfers easily, but that doesn't bother me really! The cremesheen finish lipsticks (I reviewed Pink Pearl Pop and Crosswires here) made my lips feel extremely dry, but the Lustre finish actually makes my lips feel so so soft!

Overall, I would give this lipstick a 5/5, I am so in love with this!

I've worn it mostly every day since I got it and will definitely carry on. It is the most perfect nude/pink colour and looks amazing. 

I also got MAC Angel and will review this soon! 

Scarlett x

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

After reading beauty blogs and watching videos on Youtube, I've seen that everyone has been raving on about this concealer and at the cheap price of £4.19, I definitely had to try it.

I can honestly say this is one of the best concealers I have ever used. Normally I stick to the trusty MAC Studio Finish Concealer, (I have also tried their Select Moisturecover) and never really tend to go for drugstore concealers as I find them not having enough coverage over spots and under-eye circles. However, with this concealer, it stays put all day over blemishes and those horrible dark circles I seem to get under my eyes. 

It comes in a tube with a brush applicator so it is easy to apply to blemishes directly without having to use your finger. 

 

I use it in the colour "Fair" which is the lightest shade. I have ridiculously pale skin (I never realised this before so would always choose colours too dark for my skintone) and this blends perfectly with my face.

Left- swatch Right- blended in

The only bad thing I have to say is that when I apply the concealer under my eyes, it does tend to sting. I don't have any ideas why this happens, it must be an ingredient in the concealer but my under-eyes don't look any different so I hope nothing happens to my eyes (*PRAY*). Has anyone else experienced this? Please tell me!!!

I will definitely be repurchasing this concealer, forgetting the stinging it is absolutely amazing for a drugstore product and I love it!

Scarlett x

Skin problems

Skin problems

Today's post is something different to a beauty review or an OOTD. 

My skin was never really a problem, only just after puberty had taken it's toll.

The skin on my face, I think, is just "combination". I have a rather oily T zone yet my cheeks can feel somewhat dry if I don't moisturise. The skin on my legs and arms can get very dry, but I have recently just started moisturising a lot more as I don't really want my legs to look and feel horrible during Summer!

So, just after starting puberty (periods and stuff) I experienced my first spot. I was about 12 and thought it was the worst thing ever! My mum decided to buy me some face scrub; I can't remember the exact one but now I use Neutrogena Spot Stress Control. It makes my skin feel so so so soft and I love it, I've used it for about 3 years now.

So, after getting my first spot, I don't think I had another for at least a year. In the summer of 2011, I started to break out a lot. I didn't wear any type of foundation, powder, or concealer, so this was a big thing for me. I used a lot of spot products and over time they started to disappear. 

All was good until about this time last year. Yes, I got the odd breakout but nothing major. One day, I just broke out with lots of disgusting spots and it was horrible. I always exfoliated, moisturised and hardly wore any makeup so I still have no idea as what caused my skin to go so bad. Like everyone, it really knocked my confidence and just didn't know what to do as I couldn't find any spot product that would clear them. 

(I know this wasn't Acne as such, but still a horrible thing)

You can kind of see the spots here, mostly on my cheek

I decided to make an appointment with the doctor and see what they could offer me. They decided to prescribe me something called Zineryt. It is a clear liquid that you rub over the area and it literally saved my confidence from hitting rock bottom. 

The side effects were dry skin, but I was told to moisturise a lot. I apply this before I go to sleep and when I wake up and do my makeup. 

I've used Zineryt for about 11 months now and my skin looks better than ever. It has helped me so much and I don't think I've had a whitehead on my face for about 8 months now. Result!!

This is the last picture I took where you can see my skin quite well. I am so happy that my skin has got clearer and I feel so much happier within myself (especially after getting my braces off!!)

If you've got problems with your skin, don't know what do and no skin products work for you, I would suggest going to the doctor and asking which service would be best for you.

Thanks for reading, 

Scarlett x

No7 Lash Impact Mascara

No7 Lash Impact Mascara

So, yesterday I had a long-awaited shopping trip with my Auntie who had just come back to England after living in Germany for 2 and a half years. She decided that she wanted to get her foundation matched at the No7 counter, which she couldn't in Germany as she didn't really try to learn German and it would have been extremely hard to try and talk makeup...

 It was 3 for 2 so she also bought a blusher and the new Lash Impact Mascara. I had seen the advert on tv and wanted to try this out, so I got one too. 

I think the packaging is absolutely GORGEOUS! I love glitter and think it makes the product look so pretty, rather than your normal plain black mascara tube.

 

There is a large bristle brush, perfect if you love volume and have no lashes at all (like moi!). The texture doesn't seem sticky on my lashes at all, and it doesn't clump either which is great. One thing I hate about mascara is that they can leave smudges under your eye, and after wearing it all day today and stressing at school, I am happy to say there was no smudge! I'm always worrying if there's a black mark under my eye in case it looks like I've been punched, and so far I am definitely glad I made the choice to get this.

I have a few coats on here, I just love it!!

The next great thing is that with the mascara, you receive a free gift box! (I think this is only on for a limited time, plus the mascara being £10 to start, so get yourself down to Boots!!)

You get:

 a full size Felt Tip Eyeliner

 a full size High Shine lipgloss (mine was in Whisper)

a pot of eyeshadow (sheer brown)

and a minature Extreme Length Extend mascara

I thought this gift was absolutely amazing to get for free, and it contains things that I would definitely use so it is not a waste!

I can't wait to keep using the Lash Impact mascara to see if it lasts a good length of time.

I think No7 is a great brand if you're looking for affordable, lovely makeup. They also have a great range of products which can offer dupes for high end makeup brands. 

And plus, if they're giving away gifts for free, I will definitely be using them a lot more.

Thanks for reading!

Scarlett x