Cosmic Bronze Eyeshadow Quad by Fleur de Force

When it was announced Fleur was releasing a makeup range I was really excited - she was the first beauty blogger I started following and I always turn to her when I'm looking for a review of a product as I find she's almost always right and has brilliant taste in makeup. I knew her makeup line would be special, because I couldn't imagine her releasing something she wasn't 100% happy with. It's taken me a little while to get my hands on her products, but better late than never!

My All Time Favourite Lipgloss

I've always very much been a lipstick over lipgloss type of gal. I'm not one for constant reapplication, I don't enjoy the sticky feeling, and I certainly don't appreciate the inevitable hair stuck to lips situation, however the NARS lipgloss in Stolen Kisses* (£18.50) (one of their new ones!) has got me reaching for it ever so often.

So, what's so great about  this lipgloss? Well, it's just miles better in every possible way to anything I've tried…(I mean, it really should be considering the price).
The packaging is classic NARS, very simple yet it feels classy and expensive, and you do get a fair amount of product.
Now, the gloss itself is extremely pigmenting, and the colour payoff is stunning. Stolen Kisses is a very natural shade, almost 'my lips but better' but darker and much prettier with a slight hint of shimmer…that to be honest is barely noticeable, but I like that. The colour goes well with any makeup look, I've worn it with a smokey eye and with a 'no-makeup' look and both look pretty gorgeous. I do get complimented when I wear it as well…always a bonus.
The texture is spot on, it's not thick and gloopy nor is it running, and it ranks very low on the stickiness scale; meaning it's extremely comfortable to wear and it doesn't feel like my lips are being glued together.
When it comes down to how long the lipgloss actually stays on the lips I was highly impressed, without eating or drink the shade was still there a good 3 or 4 hours later, obviously it fades over time but nowhere near as much as I had expected from a gloss…I was really surprised!
So, NARS, I applaud you!

Sheer Red For Summer

Revlon Lip Butters are on of my all time favourite lip products, and definitely my favourite for Summer time. They're moisturising, not heavy, have a good colour pay off and the range of shades is fantastic.
For my birthday, back in March, I got the shade Wild Watermelon, which I've wanted for such a long time.

Sheer swatch
Built up swatch

Wild Watermelon is going to be my must have lip product for Summer, it's a beautiful bright red with pink undertones, it can be sheered out or built up to look rather intense. I quite like wearing it sheered out slightly, just so it's not so full on for an everyday look. However, I am going on holiday to Menorca in just over 2 weeks (eeeeek, prepare for an envy filling blogpost when I get back) and I reckon this shade will look oh so beautiful with a tan, especially when it's built up to a gorgeously bold colour.

When the weather is hot I really don't like wearing 'proper' lipsticks, you know the heavy ones, that can be quite matte, or have a thick constancy. They feel too much like they're suffocating my lips and I always have the urge to get a tissue and get rid! I always opt for the sheerer or more creamy products. Revlon Lip Butters fit the bill perfectly!

NARS Lovin'

Makeup lovers everywhere love NARS, everyone loves NARS, right? Right. So, when NARS sent me a little message saying they'd like to send me some products for being a loyal 'NARSissit' I was over the moon!

Only 2 days later I received 3 full size products in the post, all wrapped up in gorgeous black tissue paper and a ribbon. I got a duo eyeshadow in Tropical Princess, one of their illuminators in 413 BLKR and a lipgloss in Stolen Kisses.

The Tropical Princess duo eyeshadow (limited edition) definitely isn't a product I would have personally picked out, I'm very much a neutrals girl, however after swatching them I think I can make them work! I can blend the purple shade into champagne eyeshadow which would look very pretty, and the green shadow will bring out my brown eyes. It's always good to try new things.
The 413 BLKR illuminator is actually a product I've wanted for a while. The only highlighters I own are powders, so I was excited to try one in a liquid form, especially as summer is coming up and it'll give that gorgeous dewy effect. I have tried this out and I totally adore it, I can tell I'm going to be using it a lot!
Last, but certainly not least is my favourite of the bunch - Stolen Kisses lipgloss (from their new collection). I'm not the biggest lipgloss wearer, as I find they don't last long on me and you have to keep reapplying which is a bit of a faff, but I have been converted by this! The colour is absolutely beautiful, a very natural 'my lips but better' shade with slight shimmer running through it, and oh how it really does make my lips look better. It's gorgeously glossy, well pigmented, non-sticky, and it actually lasts a very, very long time. I need more from this range!

I want to say a huge thankyou to NARS for being so kind and generous. They didn't ask me to write this post, sponsor me or anything like that. I think it's so lovely to see such a huge brand valuing their costumers. I now adore NARS even more!

Do you own any NARS products?

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Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquer in Galaxy*

If you haven't heard of the Apocalips Lip Lacquers from Rimmel then where have you been?! On Mars? The Moon? Were you born yesterday? These products have been talked about a lot in the blogging world since their release early last year, with everyone raving about them and buying all the shades. I did try them when they first came out and thought they were great, but I kind of forgot about them..until the lovely people at HQHair.com sent me the shade Galaxy to try out.

Galaxy isn't a shade I would have immediately opted for, especially around this time of year. It's quite a dark berry/plum shade with shimmer running through it, very much an Autumn/Winter colour. Don't get me wrong, it's super pretty and I'll definitely be reaching for it in the colder months, but for Spring/Summer it wouldn't be my personal choice.
The formation of these lip lacquers is lovely. They're a bit of a lipstick/lipgloss hybrid, as they apply like a lipgloss and have that liquid consistency but they're a lot thicker and extremely pigmented. When they dry they have quite a satin finish, and they're surprisingly matte, which can lead them to being a tad drying after a few hours but a quick top up solves that problem. The staying power is what really wins me over with these, they last ages! I didn't expect them to be quite so long lasting, but even if you're eating and drinking they'll last a good few hours, in my experience.

The packaging of the apocalips is one of my favourites from the high street. The tube is regular sized, but it's been jazzed up. You can see the shade of your lip lacquer at the bottom, then it fades up to black and the lid is shaped into almost an irregular prism shape, which I think is edgy, interesting and sticks to the 'apocalyptic' theme. I also adore the doe-foot applicator, so easy to use and picks up product really well.

Overal I think the Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquers are fantastic, real gems of the high street lip products. There are 10 shades, ranging from nude, to pink, to red, there's something for everyone. I'd definitely recommend trying these out if you haven't already, at £5.99 with free delivery at HQhair.com you can't go wrong.

Have you tried this product?

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The Products I Reach For The Most - Spring 2014

I like to switch around products I use quite a lot, but I thought I would share with you the things I have been reaching for almost every single day throughout the last few months.

I've always been had a problem with foundation not sitting right on my skin. It takes me ages to buff it in so it looks natural, and it can look either cakey or cling to dry patches (whatever foundation I choose), but recently I've been using the Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Reviver and it's been sorting that problem out for me, it's becoming a holy grail product. Full review here.
Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation has quickly become my favourite foundation ever. I feel it just works well for my skin, it feels moisturising and fresh but still gives me a good coverage that isn't heavy.
NYX Blush in Taupe, I use this to contour. It's the absolute best shade for creating a shadow effect under the cheekbones on pale skin, far better than using a bronzer.
Urban Decay Naked 2 eyeshadow palette. The best. All the shades are beautiful, creamy, pigmented, blendable and a dream. I use this every day! You can create so many different looks with it.
MAC Lipstick in Fanfare. I got this for my birthday in March and I adore it! It's a cremesheen finish, and I adore that formulation, the colour is so pretty and perfect for Spring.
Last but not least - Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in Transparent  is just the best powder for me. I have dry skin so I don't like powder to be heavy, which Stay Matte isn't. It's nice and light but manages to keep foundation and concealer set in place for a long time.

Which products do you reach for the most?

I'd love to know!

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A Product That's Made A Real Difference

I have quite dry skin, and get hormonal blemishes, so using nothing in between my moisturiser and foundation often led to either the foundation not going on as smoothly as I would like, the foundation breaking apart on my skin throughout the day or it just left my skin looking quite dull. In the past I've tried different primers, moisturisers especially for dull skin and tried lots of foundations but nothing quite did the trick, until I found the Vitamin C Skin Reviver by The Body Shop.

The Vitamin C Skin Reviver is a serum type product that you apply after moisturiser but pre-foundation. The serum itself has a lovely smooth texture, and once applied to the skin it just feels really luxurious. Although I don't notice a huge amount of difference used alone, when I apply my foundation over the top I really see a big improvement compared to how my skin would look without the serum.
Firstly it's actually great if you're in a rush because your foundation will require less buffing and blending, as the skin reviver really helps to smooth everything out. Rather than my foundation looking so obvious, a bit dry and generally just not the best, it looks amazing. My skin feels and looks velvety soft, and my foundation blends perfectly. As well as this the product contains 'light reflecting particles', which I was concerned about as I hate those products that have glitter in them (Rimmel Wake Me Up, I'm looking at you!), however the skin reviver doesn't actually contain much, if any glitter, or shimmer, it's more of a pearlescent finish and any glittery particles it may contain don't transfer on the skin when blended, so rather than looking sparkly and unnatural you just look glowing, healthy and radiant. The product also contains fruit extracts and brazil nut oil which makes it feel really fresh, perfect for mornings, and will help to keep your skin feeling hydrated.

I really adore this product. I don't quite now how I'd live without it now! Before I would feel quite self conscious about how my foundation might look, and I'd spend ages getting it to look okay, but now I don't need to worry as this little product really helps me out. I've even had compliments from other people when I've used this, so it must be making a noticeable difference!
It's not the cheapest at £14 for 30ml but you only need the tiniest amount to cover your whole face, so it should last a long time, and for the quality and difference it makes I'd definitely say it's worth it!

No.7 Pop & Glow Cream Blush Stick in Classic Rose | Review

I think I've mentioned before I don't often try cream blushes, I'm not sure why because the ones I do have I really like and I think they're particularly great for Spring and Summer but I always seem to opt for powder. However, I recently tried the new No.7 Pop & Glow Blush Stick in Classic Rose and it's pretty darn good.

Firstly, I really do adore the packaging of this blush, it's in a stick form (much like Nars multiples) so you can just twist it up, dab it onto your check, smudge with your fingers or a brush and you're good to go! The application of this product is really great, it's easy to get a sheer wash of colour when blended or you can build it up to a more intense look if you wish, which still would only take a couple of swipes as the colour payoff is outstanding (swatches above).
The shade I have is Classic Rose which is a gorgeous hot pink, I think this is beautiful for Spring and Summer! I had my doubts that the colour would suit me, but I find it warms up my complexion and gives me a healthy glow - the fact it has a sheen helps with that.
Often cream blushes can be very sticky, but this blush stick is far from it - it almost feels powder like once it's dried. It's creamy, easy to blend and sets into the skin really well. But as it's that cream formula it hasn't got the longest staying power  -  I'd say it lasted about 5 hours maximum before it faded on me, however if you put powder over the top it will make it last longer and you can always carry this around in your bag for touchups during the day!
Overall I would definitely recommend this chubby stick style blush if you're new to cream blushes, or perhaps you're not keen on them because of the stickiness or difficult application but like the look they give, this will ease you in. They do 2 more blush shades and 1 highlighter in the same packaging and formulation which I must pick up! The price (£9.95) is definitely a bit much for a high street brand, I would say it shouldn't be more than £7…but if you'd like to treat yourself it's worth it for a lovely product.

Have you tried this yet?

What is your thoughts on cream blushes?

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Bronzer & Highlighter As Eyeshadow

One of the big makeup trends for Spring is shimmery, golden, warm eyes, one of my favourite eye makeup looks! There are loads of shadows out there that will do an amazing job creating this look, but the easier option is to use your bronzer and highlighter.

I love a multi purpose product, it makes doing your makeup that much quicker, easier and if you're carrying your makeup around with you it means there's less to carry.
To create gorgeous golden eyes first apply your bronzer all over your eyelid, making sure to layer it up so there's less chance of creasing. I'm using the Nars Laguna Bronzer, which is lovely because it's so warm and matte. Bring it down along your lower lash line as well.
After you've applied the bronzer then go in with your powder highlighter over the top, this will create that gorgeous shimmer and sparkle to your eyes. I'm using the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft & Gentle, this is perfect as it's got a beautiful metallic finish.
There you have it, golden shimmery eyes - right on trend for Spring 2014!

Will you be giving this a go?

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MY MAKEUP GIVEAWAY

MUA Undress Me Too Palette

Today I bring to you a cheap as chips eyeshadow palette that's a dupe, colour wise, for the cult classic Urban Decay Naked 2 palette.

The MUA Undress Me Too (see what they did there with the name?) is a clear obvious attempt by MUA at creating a dupe for the Naked 2 palette. The colours of the eyeshadows are practically identical and even in the same order in the palettes, just with the MUA having 2 rows and Urban Decay being all on one strip. They've even called one of the shades Naked!

But enough of the comparisons, let's just get on with reviewing this bargain palette.
I'd heard a great deal about Undress Me Too from different bloggers, the majority singing it's praises, but I was still skeptical..I mean how pigmented can a 12 eyeshadow palette be when it's priced at £4?! Well, I shall tell you that to my shock they are brilliantly pigmented! Okay, they're not as pigmented as Urban Decay, but you definitely don't have to work hard to get good colour payoff from these shadows.

Top row of the palette
(2 of the shades are very light - hardly show up
in the photo)

Bottom row of the palette

As you can see from the swatches the shades with shimmer are definitely a lot more pigmented than the matte shades, which is often the case, and you do have to apply a few layers with the matte's to get the colour payoff that there is in the pan..but that's okay, I always layer up my shadows anyway.
All the eyeshadows are really wearable, great for everyday looks and you can easily create a smokey eye from them too.
With a primer these shadows last a good amount of time, without they will crease after a while - but I expected nothing else from a £4 palette so I'm not complaining!

All in all I totally recommend this little gem, especially if you can't afford the Naked 2 palette which is £30 more expensive! The quality isn't going to beat high-end brands, but the for the price it's unbeatable and a truly brilliant high-street/drugstore palette.

I'll be holding a GIVEAWAY including

one of the MUA palettes on my blog

very soon so make sure you're

following me on Bloglovin' so you

don't miss out!

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MAC Stereo Rose - Re-release!

MAC, as they so often do, are re-releasing one of their most popular limited edition products into a new limited edition collection, and it's the much talked about Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose.

If you've been an avid beauty blog follower for a while you'll have no doubt heard about this product before. It was first released years ago, then re-released last year, and will again be rereleased this year into the forthcoming Fantasy Of Flowers collection - which will be available 6th March (write it in your diary).

Stereo Rose is a gorgeous coral blush, with hints of pink and golden shimmer running through it - much like Nars Orgasm blush, and there are many other dupes out there. The shade itself looks very much like it would suit and compliment any skin tone. The golden shimmer running through will help highlight, so if you're in a rush there's no need to do both, and the colour will really help warm up your complexion.
Mineralize Skinfinishe's are really soft powders with a metallic finish to them, they're great for giving a healthy glow and a gorgeous sheen to the skin.

Stereo Rose will be ready for you to buy on 6th March this year, priced at £22.
Be quick, this will undoubtably sell out fast!

Best Bargain Eyeshadow Palette

One of the most asked questions I get is 'What's the best highstreet/drugstore eyeshadow?'. It seems most eyeshadows are either not good quality, have a rubbish shade range or are overpriced.
My favourite eyeshadow palettes you can get in high street shops are the Sleek palettes.

The Sleek eyeshadow palettes consist of 12 eyeshadows and are priced at £7.99 - BARGAIN!
My favourite of the selection is Storm (pictured). I use it often as most of the shades are natural and neutral, but there are some more daring shades in there like dark green or pink, and there's so many different looks you can get out of it. There's a mixture of light and dark colours, shimmery and matte. For the price I really don't think you can beat the quality of these shadows, they're so pigmented and you can really built them up to an intense colour. The wear of them isn't as long as high end shadows, that's expected, but they still last all day with a primer, without a primer they would last a good time still but just may crease a little - it's best to try and build them up to avoid this.

TOP ROW SWATCHES

BOTTOM ROW SWATCHES

Other than Storm there are 14 other palettes to choose from, so there'll be something to please everyone. There's some really bright and intense coloured palettes, some naturals palettes, matte palettes and of course palettes with a mixture.
The packaging is very sleek (yep) and doesn't feel too cheap. The lid on my palette has broken because I dropped it, but I think they're quite durable.

Sleek, in my opinion, do the best eyeshadows for such a barginous price. You can buy Sleek eyeshadow palettes on their website anywhere in the world and in Superdrug in the UK.
I've got my eye on the Oh So Special and the Au Naturals palettes next!

A Pretty Pink Pairing

I've never really delved into the world of lip product pairing, I always just stick to one product on my lips at one time, but recently I tried pairing a lipstick and a lipgloss together and to my surprise I really liked it!

Whilst looking through my draw of lipsticks recently I came across one of the first lipsticks I got that had been shoved to the back of the draw and forgotten about, it's a lipstick by Avon called Pout.
Pout is a really pretty cool toned pale pink, it's a gorgeous creamy texture and I really love the packaging. Although I do like the lipstick I have found that I much prefer the look of it paired with a lipgloss, and my lipgloss of choice is from the Revlon Colorburst range, the shade is Pink Ice. 

Lipstick only

Lipstick and gloss together

 SWATCHES TOP TO BOTTOM -
Avon lipstick in Pout
Revlon lipgloss in Pink Ice
Both products together

Pink Ice is a a very pale pink with silver shimmer particles running through it, I find it makes the lipstick look a bit lighter but also adds dimension and more shine. I'm glad I've found a lipstick to wear with this lipgloss because on it's on I'm not too fond of it, purely because on pale skin like mine it can make me look a bit washed out.

Both products feel nice on the lips, the Revlon lipgloss isn't sticky and isn't gloopy like some glosses can be, they're not the longest wearing products in the world, I'd say a 2-3 hours, but I can overlook that.
The two products work together really well and I really love this combination for a pretty and subtle lip look.

Clinique Chubby Stick Instense in Grandest Grape | REVIEW

If there's one makeup product I could buy endless amounts of it's definitely lipsticks or any lip product to be honest - I'm obsessed. From lipsticks, to lip glosses, to lip stains, to lip balms, I love them all…but one of my favourite type of lip product is definitely the crayon style ones. It seems more or less every makeup brand has jumped on Clinique's bandwagon and made their own (and some are damn good) but for Christmas I got a chubby stick by the lip crayon trendsetter - Clinique.

The colour I got was one that featured in one of my wish lists a few months back, it's called Grandest Grape. I'm quite big on bolder lip colours for Autumn and Winter, so the beautiful dark purple/dark pink/berry colour is right up my street!

swatch

The texture of this chubby stick is amazing, if you're someone who doesn't like lipstick to feel too heavy then this is for you! It glides on smoothly, and is so creamy it can be applied to the lips without any tugging, but at the same time it isn't so creamy that it'll slide around.
The finish is gorgeously glossy, and the product feels lovely and hydrating which is the biggest bonus when the weather isn't at its best.
The wear time for the chubby stick is good, I'd say about four hours if you're not eating or drinking, and it leaves behind a slight stain.

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense is priced at £17, which is more expensive than the alternatives out there, but having tried a few of them I'd say the original is the best. Chubby sticks feel more luxurious, they make my lips feel softer, and the colour payoff is better.
I'd definitely recommend this product, it'd make a lovely treat for yourself!

Have you tried this product?

Or do you want to?

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