Holy Grail High Street/Drugstore Foundation

It's taken me a while to find a high street foundation that I actually love and would repurchase again and again. I've tried quite a few cheaper foundations over the years, and none have impressed me that much, until I tried the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation.

With no makeup (I have redness and spot scarring)

Wearing only Bourjois Healthy Mix

There's quite a lot of hype around this product, but I put off buying it for a while as it is on the pricer side of high street foundations….it's £9.99, which isn't expensive but considering I'd been using the Rimmel foundations which are £4 cheaper it did seem like a leap.
But I took the plunge and bought it back in the Spring, and I'm so glad I did!

I purchased the Healthy Mix foundation in the lightest shade of Light Vanilla, which actually isn't that pale….that's the only complaint I have about this line, the shade range isn't brilliant.
Light Vanilla is slightly yellow toned, which suits my skin as I have olive undertones, and it's light but not so light that it would work on a very pale skinned girl.
The packaging is great. Pump - check, proper lid - check, non-cheap feeling bottle - check. Winner.
The scent is fruity, but not artificial. Healthy Mix is enriched with fruit therapy formulas; apricot for radiance, melon for hydration and apple to 'protect your youth'.
The coverage is medium, in my opinion. I've seen that most people say it's a light coverage, which it can be if it's sheered down, but on me and the way I apply it (with a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush) definitely gives me enough coverage for everyday wear. The finish it gives is natural, but glowing; not matte but not so dewy that you look sweaty either. I find it particularly great at minimising the appearance of pores and boosting complexion. It doesn't feel at all heavy or sticky on the skin either.
The consistency isn't runny like a quite a few lighter foundations, but it's not thick either. It's very easy to work into the skin, and blends seamlessly.
The wear Bourjois claim is up to 16 hours….who even wears their foundation for that long anyway?! 16 hours wear definitely is not the case on my skin - there's sure signs of fading away during the day, but not enough that it bothers me. By the end of the day (without any touch ups) the foundation is still there, it's just not as strong a coverage. Powdering obviously helps with the longevity.
The skin type Healthy Mix foundation would suit is probably anyone! A friend of mine with oily skin uses this and adores it, I have dry, sensitive skin and I adore it also.

I can't really fault it, and I can't see myself straying from it any time soon. It's a must-have for me!  

Well done, Bourjois. 

What's On My Face Today

This is quickly becoming my go-to everyday makeup look for Spring. It's natural, quick, easy, fresh and just makes me feel awake and ready for Spring.

I've really been enjoying Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation (£9.99), I got this recently after seeing practically every blogger rave about it and it's definitely worth the hype. Full review to come!
The golden shade (first top row) in the Sleek Storm palette is so gorgeous, and I've been pairing that with a little bit of Rimmel Sable  Brown eyeliner on the outer top lash line for more definition.
Revlon Lip Butter in Juicy Papaya is one of my all time favourite lip colours for the warmer months, it's such a gorgeous orangy coral that's not 'in your face'.

BASE
Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in Light Vanilla /// Maybelline Fit Me concealer in 15 /// Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in Transparent

CHEEKS
NYX Blush in Peach /// MAC Mineralize Skinfinsh in Soft & Gentle

EYES 
Sleek Storm Palette (first, top row) /// Rimmel Eyeliner in Sable Brown /// Maybelline The Flasies Mascara 

LIPS
Revlon Lip Butter in Juicy Papaya 

Choosing Your Foundation

As foundation is the base to your makeup it's important you find the right one for you. There are lots of things to consider when buying a foundation, here are some things to help you.

The Right Formula For You

When you choose a foundation you should consider your skin type. If you have oily skin you might be best going for a matte finish foundation, or one that is oil free. Whereas if you have dry skin it's best to go for something more dewy. Also, if you have sensitive skin it's best to stay clear of fragranced foundations, mineral foundations might be a good bet.
If you have combination skin it shouldn't matter too much which finish you go for, it's down to personal preference.

Coverage

Decide what sort of coverage you'd like your foundation to have. Consider what state your skin is in, if you have blemish-free skin then you won't need full coverage, if you are blemish-prone you'll probably want medium-full coverage. Another thing to consider is the season, in winter skin tends to be in worse condition so you may want a heavy coverage, but make sure it's creamy for that dehydrated skin! In the warmer months it's a lot more pleasant to be wearing a lighter coverage foundation, and something that'll last a long time in the heat.

Finding Your Perfect Colour Match

Normally I find it quite easy to colour match myself - applying on your hand isn't really a good way to judge a foundation shade, your hands tend not to be the same shade as your face. Apply a little tester amount to your neck, blend down and if the colour disappears it's a good match for you.
At highend makeup counters it may be more difficult to colour match yourself, sometimes they don't have samples out, perhaps there's much more choice so you can't decide, or maybe you're in MAC and are confused with the N's and C's (N means warm - best for pinkish skin, C means cool - best for yellow or olive toned skin) - If this is the case then ask for help. There'll be someone who works in the store to help colour match you perfectly. Something important to consider is a lot of foundations will oxidate, which means they can get darker after they've been on the skin for a while, so it's best to go away for a bit and see if this happens before purchasing your product.

SPF or No SPF

For an everyday foundation SPF is always a good idea, most foundations will have an SPF in them but it's always good to check. If they don't then make sure your moisturiser does!
However, if you're looking for a foundation for nighttime use only (going to clubs, parties, dinners) then an SPF free foundation will photograph better - you won't get that ghostly white face SPF gives you with flash photography.

I hope you found this post helpful!

Happy foundation shopping!

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Rimmel Wake Me Up Vs Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation

Rimmel foundations are, in my opinion, the best high street/drugstore foundations. I find the colour range to be good, the price to be excellent and the product you get is fantastic quality.
I own and regularly wear both their Wake Me Up foundation and the Match Perfection foundation and I thought I'd do a little comparison post about them!

Without a doubt Wake Me Up is the most popular of the two, with practically every beauty blogger raving about it, and the hype that surrounds it is deserved but I can't help but feel it's a bit exaggerated.
Wake Me Up claims to have an anti-fatigue and radiant effect on the skin, which is achieved by the dewy finish and the sparkly particles that run through the liquid….which I'm not a fan of. If you're wearing this foundation and you're under strong light, or bright sunlight you will end up looking like Edward Cullen, I just find it a bit too shimmery. The coverage is medium and buildable, and I love how smoothly it glides on. If you have dry skin though I do find this sticks a little bit, so exfoliating before is a must. The wear lasts all day on me (I have normal, sometimes dry, skin).

Match Perfection is the less talked about foundation of the two, but I prefer it. The colour range of this foundation is great, if you're super pale go check it out because they have a shade that is very very pale! I have the shade 100 Ivory. This foundation I find gives me a more anti-fatigue look than Wake Me Up, however it contains no glittery bits! The liquid goes on really smoothly and is a dream to blend, it looks lovely and natural on the skin while still giving a good coverage - I'd say this is  medium coverage foundation, but it can be sheered out or built up a bit as well. It's quite dewy but with a little bit of powder over the top it looks perfect. The wear is amazing too, lasts all day on me and my skin continues to have a healthy look about it. Another thing I adore about this is it doesn't make my skin feel clogged up, with some foundations I feel like I just want to get a cleanser and get everything off my face, but with Match Perfection that isn't the case at all. I also find you need less of this compared to WMU.

Wake Me Up is £8.99 and Match Perfection is £6.99.
Overall I'd definitely say Match Perfection is my favourite, and it's my most worn foundation.

What's your favourite highstreet

foundation?

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My Summer Beauty Essentials

As it was the first official day of summer yesterday, I thought I would share you with some products I think are essential for summer!

1. A light coverage foundation with an SPF, if it has no SPF then make sure you get a moisturiser with an SPF in it, BUT don't wear both an SPF foundation and an SPF moisturiser, as layering them cancels them out. My foundation of choice is Rimmel Wake Me Up (surprise surprise). I love this foundation a lot, when applied with fingers you can create such a lovely light coverage but it still makes your skin look really great, and as it creates radiance it is perfect for summer. You can buy it here for £8.99.

2. A cream blush. Cream blushes make the skin look a lot more radiant and glowy than powder blushes do, and I've found they feel lighter as well. My favourite is NYX cream blush in Natural. I did a more in depth review of this blush here in my May Favourites, and you can buy it cheapest from Amazon here for £4.99.

3. A bronzer, I think in the summer if you look pale it is more noticeable, so a bronzer to create a 'bronzed' look is essential for me. The bronzer I love most is Nars Luguna, it's amazing. I love it both for conturing, as it's only got a very very slight shimmer that doesn't really show on the face, and also just to bring a bit of colour to my complexion as the colour isn't orange at all and it lasts a long time. This is quite pricey at £26 but if you want to treat yourself then you can buy it here!

4. A brown eyeliner. I think in the summer a black eyeliner can look way too harsh, dark and wintery, so I like to use a brown, I used to hate brown eyeliner but now I think it looks so pretty - especially darker browns - it just gives a much more subtle look. The one I am currently using is Stila Smudge Stick in Damsel, which you can buy here.

5. A lighter, glossier lip colour. I don't know about you, but sometimes I find a proper lipstick too much in summer as they can often look matte or feel heavy, so I opt for either the Revlon lip butters (the one in the photo is strawberry shortcake, but I adore them all) or a lipgloss, this one is Revlon colour burst in Pink Ice which is a lovely light pink with shimmer. You can buy these both from here.

6. A summer colour nail varnish, summer is not the time for dark colours on the nails like black, dark blue or purple, etc. Although I HATE Barry M nail varnish this colour has to be one of my favourite summer shades, it's a lovely light, kind of duck egg, blue called Blue Moon, which you can buy here for £2.99.

7. My last summer beauty essential is a summery scented body moisturiser. I love this spray on one from Soap & Glory, it is called Girligo Body Moisturising Mist, it smells so lovely, of peach, strawberry, jasmine, mandarin and musk. It is such a summery, light scent and it works so well at making the skin softer, it also feels really refreshing when you spray it on and sinks in so fast. You can buy that here for £6.50.

That's it for my summer essentials!

What are your summer beauty must haves?

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Today's Makeup!

Today's Makeup

I'm one of those people who likes to change around what makeup they wear daily, I don't have a staple daily makeup routine or anything - however the past couple of weeks I have stuck to practically the same things, and I thought I'd share it with you!

I use my RImmel Wake Me Up Foundation, I know so many love this and I'm one of them. Best high street/drugstore foundation. 

My Fashionista Brow Kit, I got this from Superdrug for about £4, so cheap and works so well.

Collection Lasting Perfection concealer

Sleek Face Form palette in Light - I love this so much, £10 for an amazing bronzer, highlighter and blush - bargain.

Sleek Storm Eyeshadow palette I love Sleek a lot, these eyeshadows are great! I've been using a shimmery one (second along, top row) and a medium brown for the outer corner and crease (second from last, bottom row).

Stila Smudge Stick waterproof eyeliner in Damsel I got this free with a Stila eyeshadow palette and I really like it, it's a dark brown so it's more subtle than black, I like to blend it in to the eyeshadow at the lash line so it's not a harsh line.

Maybelline Falsies Mascara - love it. 

Revlon Lip Butter in Juicy Papaya I featured this in my May Favourites which you can read and see swatches of here, I love it a lot. Such a pretty colour.

What makeup have you been wearing daily recently?

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