What's In My Makeup Bag? #1 FACE

I always enjoy 'What's In My Makeup Bag?' blog posts. I like to know what people are using day to day and what they like enough to consider them essentials in their makeup bags, so I thought I'd do one of my own!

I don't have a huge makeup bag, and I don't think I carry around an excessive amount of products, but everyone has different opinions of what is essential and what they're likely to want or need throughout the day, so here's mine...

FACE
Foundation: I don't carry around a foundation everyday, especially if I'm carrying a lot about that day, and often concealer will fix any skin dilemmas that may arise. But I do often throw it in my bag before I go out, despite the fact I don't think I've ever re-applied foundation when out and about, unless I was going somewhere to get ready (like a friend's house before a night out or a special occasion where we want to get ready together) or if I'd rushed out without time to do my makeup (which is rare!). At the moment I am using the NYC All Day Long Foundation, which I love for a cheap foundation. It lasts really well and when hotter days come along it doesn't slip or sweat off.

Read my review of NYC All Day Long Foundation here! http://beautyimaginarium.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/nyc-all-day-long-foundation-review.html

Concealer: I carry concealer at all times! I used the Rimmel Hide The Blemish stick concealers for a really long time, until I recently bought the Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer. I know this concealer has a lot of fans on blogs, and I understand why. I love it! It lasts throughout the day, has great coverage, allows you to pinpoint blemishes, and doesn't go cakey when built up. This has quickly become a staple in my makeup routine and I don't go anywhere without it.

Read my review of Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer here!
http://beautyimaginarium.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/collection-2000-lasting-perfection.html

Powder: I am always a bit scared when I get my powder out of my makeup bag. I've suffered from broken powders, bronzers, blushers and eyeshadows many, many times in my life! However, in the Summer I can get a bit shiny, especially if I'm running about a bit and therefore like to keep powder on me for a quick fix. I always buy translucent powders because I am quite fair, I use the palest foundations generally, and I don't want any coloured powder that may not match up well and would look very obvious on my pale base. I was using Rimmel Stay Matte translucent powder untiil that broke recently, so I am know using Collection 2000 Pressed Powder.

Powder Brush: To apply my powder on the go I use a blusher brush by FCUK, which is great because it's slim and doesn't take up as much room as perhaps a larger powder brush would, and I only tend to put powder on a couple of places on my face, so it's good for keeping powder exactly where I want it.

Read my review of Collection 2000 Pressed Powder here!
http://beautyimaginarium.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/collection-2000-pressed-powder.html

Eyebrow Pencil: I actually use a pencil eyeliner for shaping and colouring my eyebrows. I often get a No7 gift set for Christmas or birthdays and these (luckily) often include the No7 Amazing Eyes Pencil in Brown. I really like this for my brows as it's easy to do light individual strokes and the colour is quite ashy so it doesn't leave me with gingery eyebrows (which has happened in the past). Eyebrow products may not be considered essential to everyone, but my brows aren't very dark naturally and are quite sparse, so I like to fill them in to make them more defined, and consider this one of my makeup musts everyday. I probably wouldn't use these liners for my eyebrows if I wasn't getting them in gifts as there are cheaper brow products out there, or even just eyeshadows, but when I've tried eyeshadows I've found it hard to find the right shade. Also these pencils are really convenient for on-the-go makeup.

Mascara Spoolie Brush: I keep an old, clean mascara wand in my makeup bag to brush through and shape my brows before adding pencil or brow mascara.

Brow Mascara: I have only started using brow mascara the last few months, but now I don't know how I ever managed without it!I use the ELF Wet Gloss Lash and Brow Clear Mascara. I keep it on my despite the fact it's never required touching up or another coat because hairs have fallen out of place. I find once I apply it in the morning, my eyebrows are set all day.

Read my review of ELF Wet Gloss Lash and Brow Clear Mascara here!
http://beautyimaginarium.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/elf-reviews-part-one-eyeshadow-eyeliner.html



Part Two of What's In My Makeup Bag? coming up!

Thanks for reading! xxx

NYC All Day Long Foundation Review!

I recently bought the NYC All Day Long Smooth Skin Foundation in an attempt to find a good bargain drugstore foundation.

I have pretty dry skin most of the time, but as things warm up for Summer my skin tends to get more moisture to it and become more of the 'normal' skin type.
When I began using this foundation the weather was a bit cooler and grey, therefore my skin was a bit dryer. Although I always moisturise before applying my foundation, I found the product was a bit cakey on my dry areas and dried in any lines or on blemishes.

Luckily, the weather got brighter and a lot warmer and, unlike a lot of pricier foundations you find in drugstores, I felt this is where it excelled. I found it blended really well on the skin and didn't feel heavy or too much for the skin in the hot weather. It gives a more matte finish than I normally go for, but it didn't make my skin look dull.

As a paler girl I found the colour great for my skin tone. A lot of paler foundations I've tried have been too pink for the tone of my skin.

It lived up to it's 'All Day Long' promise and stayed put on my skin all day, despite being in the sunshine and walking around a lot (and let's be honest, sweating a bit! - Sorry!). I liked that after a few days of using it I could put it on in the morning and not worry about it melting off and being left too shiny.
It has no SPF but I use my Superdrug Vitamin E SPF 15 Moisturising Day Cream everyday before applying.

While it might be too matte for me personally in other seasons, I'll be using this in the warmer weather for a non-moving, reliable base. I think it's a great buy for the price (£3.99 from Superdrug), but possibly not for you if you have particularly dry skin.

Let me know if you've tried it and what you thought or if there's any cheap drugstore foundations you'd recommend!

xxx

NYC All Day Long Smooth Skin Foundation - £3.99 from Superdrug http://www.superdrug.com/foundation/nyc-all-day-long-foundation-classic-beige/invt/380850/&bklist=

Superdrug Vitamin E Skin Care SPF 15 Moisturising Day Cream - £2.99 from Superdrug http://www.superdrug.com/superdrug/superdrug-vitamin-e-spf-15-moisture-cream-100ml/invt/398217/&bklist=

Beauty Bargain Hunting...

Is it just me or do all your beauty essentials seem to run out at the same time?
Although these must-haves might not be pricey individually, when you have to buy a handful of things at once, it can easily add up. So when I began to run low on a few things lately I thought I'd give some cheaper alternatives a go.

NYC All Day Long Smooth Skin foundation - £3.99 from Superdrug  
NYC Showtime Volumising Waterproof Mascara - £1.99 from Superdrug
2true Effortless Waterproof Eyeliner - £1.99 from Superdrug
Superdrug Vitamin E Skincare SPF 15 Moisturising Day Cream - £2.99 from Superdrug


A new foundation, mascara, eyeliner and moisturiser for less than £11 isn't bad at all. So I'm going to give these a go in my everyday routine and see how we get along. I don't expect miracles from cheaper brands but fingers crossed for some good results! 


Let me know if you've tried any of these and what you thought, or if there's any other cheaper brands you'd recommend!


xxx