My Makeup Bag Must-Haves! - The Base

I find such an abnormal sense of satisfaction when I have a new bag or makeup bag. Part 'OH MY GOD I LOVE SHINY NEW THINGS' and part 'I WILL BE A FANTASTIC NEW ORGANISED PERSON', I'm sure neither is healthy, but nevertheless my excitement at my new Zoella makeup bag is palpable...

Now, I'm fairly certain I don't need to explain to many of you who Zoe Sugg is, or the fact that she released a range of hot property bath and beauty items recently, but she recently added a new makeup bag/pencil case to the collection. The two designs she initially released weren't really my style, but her new 'Just Say Yes' bag is right up my alley, in all it's pastel peach and gold glory.

Inside I like to keep everday essentials I am using at the time, to avoid cracking out my whole makeup collection every morning.

Let's start with face and base.

For a long time Rimmel's Match Perfection was my staple foundation. Light Porcelain is absolutely ideal for my skin tone, which is hard to come by with pale skin. However, when Autumn came around I felt my skin was looking a bit dull and lacklustre so I wanted to give something else a try. I'd tried Rimmel's Wake Me Up foundation a couple of Summers ago and liked it, so thought that could give my skin the pep it needed - And it worked. 

I bought Ivory as I couldn't find Light Porcelain, but it matched well (if not as perfectly as my Match Perfection... But who could expect it to compete with a name like that?). Claiming to give a radiant glow and anti-fatigue effect, I certainly do feel it's livened my skin up, and with a 'Vitamin Moisturising complex' it works a treat for my dry skin.

I apply my foundation with a Real Techniques Buffing Brush, and occasionally pat over my face with a their Miracle Complexion Sponge slightly dampened at the end just to avoid any brush marks.

When it comes to concealer, I'd been a Collection Lasting Perfection girl for a long time... Years in fact, and that's not going to change. But a couple of months ago, I felt like branching out and had long wanted to try some more Soap & Glory makeup. I opted for their Kick-Ass Concealer in Light (still a tad dark for me so I like to keep my Fair Lasting Perfection in there too). 

A three-step plan to conceal anything unsightly - A yellow toned concealer for general face work, a peachy one for concealing those under eye shadows, and a transparent setting powder with 'INSTA-FIX' technology to keep it all in place. 

I really love this concealer. The smooth texture means I'm not left with cakey looking patches on my dry skin, and as someone who doesn't like to use powder for fear of flaking and other horrors, I like that the little powder puff and setting powder allow me to really pinpoint where I want to apply, and it helps keep my concealer locked in a treat... Let's ignore the fact I broke mine...

I like to keep my sample size Porefessional by Benefit in my makeup bag. I don't generally go for primers due to my skin type, but I really like using this just over my nose where I can have visible pores, and on my under eyes and lids just to give my eye makeup that bit more staying power. 

Lastly, brows. I always keep a spoolie in my bag to brush through my brows before and after applying a brow product, which at the moment is my Soap & Glory Arch De Triumph shaping and highlighting crayon. A lovely ashy light brown pencil on one end, and a matte creamy bone coloured highlighter on the other. The shade is perfect, it's a great duo to have on the go. As you can see, mine is well loved and on it's last legs.

So that is my base. I tend to embrace the pale this time of year, and only get out the bronzers on nights out or if I'm feeling particularly ghostly. I'll occasionally dab on some blusher, but I tend to crack them out more as Spring rolls in.

Thank you so much for reading!

I'd love to know you're everyday essentials and makeup bag must haves!

xxxx

For more information on products mentioned:

Soap & Glory

Benefit

Zoella Beauty

Rimmel

Collection

Real Techniques

Makeup Revolution Ultra Blush Palette - Sugar and Spice Review

Late to the game, I had somehow not tried any Makeup Revolution products until that fateful Christmas morning when I found some gems tucked away in my stocking, and I was very excited to give them a whirl.

If like me, you are new to Makeup Revolution, here's the basic low-down... A fairly new company (launching March 2014), the London based company's ethos is to create affordable, cruelty-free, and innovative makeup and skincare for people, catering to a large variety of skin colours and tones (Their 'The One Foundation' comes in 16 shades which is great for a cheaper drugstore brand). A great variety of products are available, especially for such a new company, with everything from nail polish to skincare covered.

Products start from just £1 and claim to contain only the finest ingredients.

To read more about Makeup Revolution check out their website and online store HERE

Now, let's talk about the Ultra Blush Palette...

The Ultra Blush Palettes come in at £6 (the same, very reasonable, price as the Salvation Eyeshadow Palettes) for 8 blushes. My particular one (Sugar and Spice) includes a variety of matte and shimmery blushers, pinks, corals, bronze/brown shades, and two merged baked blushers.

The first two blushers are brown shades, a deeper, orange based brown, and a subtler tan tone. These cater to different skin tones brilliantly. Even with my very pale skin, the lighter colour can be used as a great contour and will be a go-to in Summer when I want a bit of bronzing. Both are great for contouring as they have no (visible to me anyway) shimmer. I found it a bit odd that the palette has no mention on the inner case about contouring, when the outer packaging (a lovely matte black box which I quickly discarded off in a Christmas Day present opening frenzy) is clearly named as a Blush and Contour Palette - once out of it's original box there is no mention of contouring in sight.

Next, there's two dark reddy pink shades (also matte). Whilst looking a little intimidating in the pan, they can be sheered out really nicely, and built up to match the rosiness you're after.

The hot pink and coral shades are my favourite of the six matte products. The hot pink, light and wearable, creates a lovely warmth on the skin without leaving you red faced. For me, it's that perfect 'just come in from the cold' colour, but I think it will also work wonderfully for a pop of colour in Spring/Summer. The peachy coral blush is just gorgeous. I have slightly red undertone on my cheeks so am sometimes wary of putting pink on them and tend to favour peachy tones instead. This shade reminds me a lot of Marissa Cooper's makeup in The OC (yes, I've been on a rewatching binge lately), all naturally peachy and sunkissed. I will definitely be using this a lot when the warmer weather hits.

Finally, we have the two merged baked blushers - one a frosty pale pink, the other a deep rosy pink - both packed with shimmer. I don't know if I'll get a lot of wear out of the darker pink, even though it is beautiful, it doesn't suit my skin colour particularly well, but if it suits you then consider me forever envious! The paler one, however, doubles as a beautiful highlighter. Not too frosty or obvious when applied, it just leaves a shimmery sheen in it's wake.

All the products in the Sugar and Spice palette are really nicely pigmented and have a good pay off on the skin. I'm really eager to try the All About Bronze and Golden Sugar palettes as I feel they'd suit my makeup style more. That said, these are a great selection of powder blushes to have in your collection and can be made wearable throughout the year, and for the £6 price tag I would definitely recommend giving them a go if you're into your cheeks.

Thanks so much for reading, and please let me know your opinions or recommendations!

xxx

Makeup Revolution products are available in most larger Superdrug stores, on the Superdrug website or on the Makeup Revolution site.

Makeup Revolution Salvation Palette Review - Girls On Film!

Late to the game, I had somehow not tried any Makeup Revolution products until that fateful Christmas morning when I found some gems tucked away in my stocking, and I was very excited to give them a whirl.

If like me, you are new to Makeup Revolution, here's the basic low-down... A fairly new company (launching March 2014), the London based company's ethos is to create affordable, cruelty-free, and innovative makeup and skincare for people, catering to a large variety of skin colours and tones (Their 'The One Foundation' comes in 16 shades which is great for a cheaper drugstore brand). A great variety of products are available, especially for such a new company, with everything from nail polish to skincare covered.

Products start from just £1 and claim to contain only the finest ingredients.

To read more about Makeup Revolution check out their website and online store HERE

For now, let's put the spotlight on the Girls On Film eyeshadow palette.

For the £6 price tag, you will get 18 gorgeous eyeshadows - 12 shimmering metallics and 6 matte shades, including pale pinks and taupes, rich bronze colours, deep plums and navys, and dark matte greys and blacks.

These designs are familiar to most of us now, with MUA and Sleek offering up their incredibly popular, purse friendly palettes, which I am a sucker for. The Makeup Revolution offerings come middle of the price range here, but the quality of the palette itself feels like the best bang for your buck. I love having palettes to pop in my makeup bag and have a variety of shades at my fingertips on the go.

 However,  I have lost many a lid to broken hinges, leading to the dreaded 'tuck it against the side' or 'if I just face two broken palettes face to face...' makeup bag disasters and a fair amount of product mess and wastage. 

The Makeup Revolution one feels sturdy and solid in comparison, and I find the overall look of the packaging more attractive to look at - It gives off a sense of quality far beyond it's pricing. Not forgetting of course, the lovely big mirror (and one of those cheap applicators that I'd lost within minutes).

Now onto what truly matters, what's inside. 

I really like the mix of shimmery shadows and matte colours, and this gives you more to work with if this was your eyeshadow staple on the go. The colour range is fantastic, whilst nothing too bold and all fairly earthy shades, I would truly use each and every one, which I can't say of many of my other palettes (I LOVE the darker bronzes and the dark plum). 

The shimmery shades definitely have a better colour pay off and intensity than the matte, whether this is to do with the different presentation of them I am not sure. The pigment in them applies really well on the eye, and the texture is gorgeous - soft and clump-free. I have also found in the past some cheaper eyeshadows effect the colour of my eyeliner throughout the day, this was no problem here. Some touching up is necessary if you're wanting it to last all day, but nothing leaving you looking like you just did a dodgy job in the first place.

There is a good variety of matte colours in there too. some more muted, neutral shades which would be great for a basic eye makeup if you weren't feeling up to the glitter that day, a good brown that can be used for eyebrows or some softer lining, and a black and grey for a bit of smokeyness. 

I am loving the Girls On Film palette lots, and it truly is a daily go-to at the moment, if you're looking for a budget friendly, fairly neutral palette then I would absolutely recommend it!

Thanks for reading & be sure to let me know your thoughts or other recommendations I should try from the brand!

Coming up... Makeup Revolution Ultra Blush Palette Sugar and Spice Review!

xxx

You can get your hands on the Girls On Film palette in many Superdrug stores, on the Superdrug Website, or the Makeup Revolution Website.

Back To Blogging!

After a long old break, I really want to get back into writing and dedicating time to my blog. For some reason my photos on old blog posts aren't showing up any more which is a right old pain, but I have a new camera, and am excited to start fresh for 2015!

Thanks for sticking with it!

Love,

Sarah

xxx

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush!

When it comes to foundation, most of the time I want quite a full coverage. I have redness in my cheeks and am very prone to blemishes which can give an uneven skin tone that I hate and am very aware of.

There are some very good drugstore foundations that I really like, but as I have very dry skin I find it doesn't take long for them to go cakey, patchy and flakey. Not a good look!

I've always applied foundation with my fingers, as I've tried the generic flat foundation brushes before and found they just did nothing for me, except leave me with stroke marks on my face (that I had to then blend out with my fingers anyway!) and a brush to clean.

After watching many YouTube videos featuring the Real Techniques brushes by Samantha Chapman (of Pixiwoo, as I'm sure most of you know!) and reading countless blog posts about them, I became interested in the Buffing Brush and the Expert Face Brush and thought this may be a good solution to wanting to use my cheaper foundations but still getting a good coverage and finish.

They appealed to me as they weren't the average flat foundation brushes, and of course their reputation preceded them. Both have been raved about endlessly for their foundation application, and ultimately my choice, as I'm sure you can tell by the title of this post, was the Expert Face Brush. This decision was made pretty much purely because the Buffing Brush is only available as part the Real Techniques Core Collection, which retails at £21.99 from Boots. While this is a great deal for 4 brushes (Detailer Brush - which I looks brilliant for concealer, Pointed Foundation Brush, Buffing Brush, and Contour Brush), I justified buying just the one I really need at the moment. However, I would love to buy the Core Collection at a later date, and as it doesn't include the Expert Face Brush, I won't be left doubling up on brushes for the sake of a couple more.

I have really noticed a difference to my base since using this brush, and other people have even commented on it, which has made me feel a bit happier about my skin!

I like to dot my foundation (currently Rimmel's Wake Me Up Foundation, which despite being Ivory is my Summer foundation for when I'm a bit tanned) on my cheeks, nose, forehead and chin and then buff it out in circular motions, before finally smoothly going over the whole face to make sure it's well blended. The brush also makes it really easy to pop your foundation down your neck quickly and over the ears if necessary to make the whole look more seamless.

I've found I have so much more coverage now, particularly on my cheeks which would in the past make it hard to apply blusher if there was redness coming through. It gives a beautiful flawless finish to my foundation  and makes it last a lot longer when I'm at work etc. It also makes me feel like I'm getting more from my cheaper foundations, and the brush isn't left caked in foundation, which leads me to believe the majority of the product is getting actually on my face instead of stuck on the brush.

I've used the Expert Face Brush everyday since I bought it, and am so glad I did as it's made me a bit more confident with my skin and makeup, which is well worth the £9.99 I paid for it!

Let me know if there's any other Real Techniques brushes I should try!

Thanks for reading! xxx

You can buy the Expert Face Brush here as well as the other Real Techniques brushes!

Models Own Fruit Pastel Collection!

This Spring I have been obsessed with all things pastel. I immediately lust after anything candy coloured I see. It's a slight problem. So when I saw the Models Own Fruit Pastel scented nail polishes in Boots on offer (buy one, get one half price) I couldn't resist!

I was drawn to the shades Apple Pie and Strawberry Tart as I was just running out of my old pale pink and mint green nail polishes, and they're always go-to nail colours for me. I stupidly didn't even notice they were scented until I bought them, so whether that would've changed my decision I simply do not know!

The Scratch 'n' Sniff lids (in the scent of the shade name) were a cute little addition, and it's always nice to add a bit of fun to your make-up.

Strawberry Tart is a gorgeous, baby pink shade. Sometimes baby pinks can be quite neutral and plain, but I really liked this shade as whilst still being a pale pastel pink, the colour really pops nicely when on the nail and stands out.

Apple Tart is the perfect pastel pale green in my opinion. I love minty green nail polishes and have enjoyed a few different brands' interpretations of the shade. I think this has been my favourite as often they can too bright of a green, or a bit too dusky. Apple Tart is the exact colour I think of when I think of a mint green.


The formula does tend to 2-3 coats to get past the streaky looking stage, which doesn't bother me too much as I normally like to build my nail polish up with a few layers. However, when more than one coat has been applied it can take a while to dry (and I'm sooo impatient when waiting for my nails to dry anyway) so be wary.

The formula doesn't have it's scent when in the bottle, so I don't recommend taking the lid off and have a big sniff like I did when I first opened them! The scents are like synthetic sugary versions of what the name suggests, but they do still smell nice. Although I think they could have made the scents a bit stronger. To be honest, it doesn't bother me too much. It's a nice gimmick and an interesting twist, but I don't spend all day sniffing my nails so I'm not really bothered if they don't smell like freshly baked apple pie!

I found that when the nail polish was dried on the nails it became quite brittle and easy to shatter/chip. Whether this was because I put a few coats on, I'm not sure. However, when I used a top coat (I use Collection's 2 in 1 Top Coat and Gloss Enhancer) they lasted much better.

Whilst I'm not sure the formula is worth £5 each normally (especially with the Barry M Nail Paints being cheaper and having a better formula in my opinion), the colour is a real selling point of these and that is what would make me really consider buying more in the future.

Thanks for reading! Let me know your opinion on the Models Own colours and if there's any I should try!

xxx

All Models Own Nail Polishes are Buy One, Get One Half Price at Boots!

Soap & Glory - 3 for 2 at Boots!

I popped into Boots the other day on the hunt for Soap & Glory's Original Pink perfume. Sadly it was out of stock. However, I did notice that the Soap & Glory range was all 3 for 2, and as some of their products can be relatively pricey, I thought it would be a good opportunity to pick up a few things and get one free!

I was keen to save some money for when I did track down the perfume, but I did grab a some of the smaller size products...

Hand Food

I was never a big hand cream person. I found a lot of the time they left my hands feeling greasy or smelling like an old lady, and it was certainly never something I'd splash out on.

However, when I started my new job in September I noticed my hands were getting very dry and generally a bit mistreated from moving things around, carrying things up and down stairs etc. I was given Hand Food in my stocking at Christmas, and it instantly became a heavily relied upon product. 

I've used my old one every day I've worked since Christmas and it's only just run out (although I only used a pea-sized amount as I found a little goes a long way). So I thought the 3 for 2 offer would be a good chance to pick up a new one. 

Hand Food does also come in a 250ml pump bottle for £7, which is clearly better value! Even so, I opted for the 50ml handbag friendly sized tube, costing £5 (the behaviour of a crazy person, I am well aware!).

The packaging comes ready with the alluring 'The most astonishing hand cream ever? You decide!' slogan, and it is certainly the best I have tried. Hand Food has the Soap & Glory trademark 'Original Pink' scent, that I've loved in their Clean On Me shower gel and Calm One, Calm All bubble bath in the past (and would have no doubt loved if I could've gotten my well-moisturised hands on the perfume!). This was a big tick in for the product in my eyes as I find a lot of hand creams tend to have very floral or peculiar smells that just don't do it for me. 

The formula contains shea butter, macadamia oil and marshmallow which contribute to it's gorgeous scent, as well as making it incredibly softening. Hand Food feels a little greasy at first but is absorbed very quickly with no residue or greasiness whatsoever, which I find great at work as it means I'm able to touch products without fear of leaving sticky hand prints all over them. 

If I had to find a flaw with Hand Food it would be that that it hasn't had much affect on my nails or helped protect them in any way, however it never claimed to so I can't really fault it for that!

The Righteous Butter

The Righteous Butter is a body butter that I'd never tried before, so I thought the mini size would be a good one to trial. I do tend to get very dry skin, especially after a Winter of heating drying it out. I also tend to take better care of my skin as Summer approaches and I want to start showing off a bit more skin and feeling confident enough to do so. 

You apply the product to damp skin, after getting out the bath or shower, and massage it in well. I've found that you don't need to use an awful lot, perhaps as it's being used on damp skin it helps it spread further. The formula is also quite rich, so it may be too much for some people. I, however, loved it. It sinks into the skin well, so you aren't left unable to get dressed for ages afterwards like you can be with some body lotions or butters. It also has the same scent as Hand Food (the Original Pink scent) so you're left smelling great too!

As with many of the Soap & Glory body and skin products, it also contains shea butter and aloe vera, making it very soothing to the skin, which I loved as my skin can get quite sore and irritated. 

The mini size costs £2.50 for 50ml. The big pump bottle is £10 for 500ml which again is much better value, but I thought I'd see how I got on with it first. Unlike Hand Food (purely because it's more convenient for my to have hand cream travel sized), I would definitely buy the large size of The Righteous Butter. 

Clean, Girls Body Wash

The Clean, Girls body wash was another product I was keen to try out and therefore bought a miniature of. I'd owned the large Clean On Me shower gel before and really loved it, but as I currently have a Lush shower gel on the go I thought I'd try a small version of something new for when I need to purchase a new one. 

I was drawn to Clean, Girls as the scent is described as 'natural vanilla, fruit and orchid extracts' and I am a sucker for anything vanilla scented! The body wash does smell really nice, however I do think I'm more of a fan of the classic Soap & Glory scent (Clean, Girls has the Mist You Madly fragrance that they have available in body sprays). The formula was lovely and creamy, and claims to have a 'built-in moisturisng matrix'. I can't say I personally noticed it softening my skin much but, as I have said, I do have dry skin and rarely do I find a shower gel that would have any noticeable impact on this. 

I don't think I'd purchase the full sized product, however at £6 for 500ml I do think it's great value if you are a fan of the Mist You Madly scent, or just in the market for any Soap & Glory shower gels/body wash.

Thanks so much for reading! Let me know your thoughts and your favourite Soap & Glory products!

xxx

Find all Soap & Glory products 3 for 2 here from Boots!