May Favourites

May Favourites

I am rather late this month with my favourites but believe me there is a really good reason! 
I have been one girl on cloud nine! I am engaged!!!!! A big surprise, a bigger smile and heart ready to burst. 

Anyway apologies for my lateness and I hope you find one or two products you like and would love to try out here. 

Jouer Luminizing Moisturising Tint

I was dying to try this product after hearing and reading so many good reviews of it so during a recent shopping frenzy on cultbeauty.co.uk (a great little find of a web-site may I add) I simply had to treat myself. I am a fan of all things illuminating therefore I was so excited to try this out. I chose the shade “bronzed” seeing as its approaching summer and I always live in hope of a tan be it a good bottle job or by my miracle of a hot summer (generally not a regular here in Ireland).

This product is a light weight, water resistant tined moisturiser. It is oil free, fragrance free and suitable for all skin types. It also contains an SPF 20. All of these characteristics are excellent from any cosmetic product in my opinion.

My first impressions of this product were good. It is extremely light weight and I genuinely felt as if I had nothing on my skin at all. It does provide a light coverage but the glow that it provides compensates for this. It adds a lovely bronzed look that is really great for the summer and would be excellent worn over tanned skin. I found I need a darker concealer to match correctly as the bronzed shade is a little darker than my normal choice of foundation but I simply added a little bit of this product to my concealer and it was perfect.

Over all I am happy with this product. On days that I need a fuller coverage I mix this product with my regular foundation and it works wonders. On brave skin days it is really nice on its own. I would really love to try the  matt moisture tint – it is now on my “to try” list.

lots of INFO click here 

Fake up by Benefit Cosmetics

lots of INFO click here

My favourite cosmetic buy for ages I am in with love this product. I chose shade medium as it matched my skin really well. This concealer claims to be hydrating, crease free, packed with vitamins and hides dark circles. All of the above is true!

Fake Up offers a dual product. The inner ring of the product is the concealer. It is rich and pigmented and does its job so well. I really like the texture of this product and the coverage is really great. The outer ring is that of a moisturiser which includes extracts of apple seeds and vitamin E. This results in hydrated skin which looks healthy and slightly glowing. There is no caking and this product does have staying power. I highly recommend this product. It comes in three shades meaning that there is one to suit most skin tones.

Anastasia Brow Wiz

Another buy as a result of my recent shopping spree on cultbeauty.co.uk and defiantly one I will be repurchasing. I chose the shade Brunette – Suggested for medium brown to black hair. This is the perfect shade for me.

This product is unlike many brow products I have bought in the past and I have to admit it is defiantly one of the best products. It is a dual product again, on one end you get a brow brush (spooley brush) – ideal for tidying up the brows and keeping them looking perfect. On the other end you get a ultra thin brow pencil. This pencil is not like the typical chalky pencil nor is it waxy. It has a really fine consistency that is perfect for filling in your brows and adds the perfect amount of shading and colour without leaving your brows with the horrible “drawn on look”.

I really like this product for all the above mentioned reasons but I also love it as it lasts all day on yours yet is really is removed really easily.

The only negative aspect of this product is that is rather difficult to find. I have only been able to purchase it online.  I am partial to internet shopping so this is not a problem for me. I highly recommend this product as it offers a one stop product for anyone who loves maintained polished eyebrows.

lots of INFO click here

Fresh Essential Moisture By Vasaline

lots of INFO click here

Hydrated and soft! These are the results achieved using this product! I was so surprised by how much I like it ! The aloe Vera is so so soothing, the consistency is rich but not oily and the smell is fresh and light! Priced at 1.99 this body lotion is a treat !

The Aloe Vera component is just go great for the skin. It smells so fresh and clean

There is not much more I can say only go try it !

 Trilogy shower Gel  -Botanical body wash

lots of INFO click here

I treated myself to this shower gel on one of those days when all you want is comfort!

Trilogy Botanical Body Wash is a gentle, daily body

The first thing you nautilus when you open the bottle is fabulous aroma.
It is a mixture of Roses citrus and gentle cleansing oils. The liquid is colourless and the consistency is gel like and really light on the skin. This body wash does not dry your skin in any way it cleanses beautifully and leaves the skin feeling soft smooth and smelling amazing. The oils contained in this was are so gentle that they do not leave your skin feeling oily in any way.

Like many good quality products the consistency of this shower gel is rich therefore you only need a small amount. While the price does reflects the quality of the product however it is definitely value for money as a little goes a long way

This product has won many beauty awards and rightly so I am enjoying using this product and I intend to purchase the product again. 

Disappointing Products

BB Cream by Rimmel

lots of INFO click here

I have come find that in general BB Creams are just not for me but this BB cream was by far one of the most disappointing. I decided on the shade medium.  There are two shades to choose from light and medium and on testing both I found the light shade was too light where as on my wrist the medium seemed to be right for me. How wrong was I!

On application this cream was thick and really pigmented. I found the colour to be very  much so on orange side. It seemed to be completely different once it was applied to my face. It took so much buffing when applying. Unhappy with the shade I left it for a little while to see if it “settled”! Instead of settling I found that it wore off really unevenly.

Over all I really did not like this product. Am sure lots of other users love it but it simply is not for me.

 Hope you found this post helpful and some what interesting! 

what have you been loving this month? Please leave a comment below and share your great little finds with me ! 

xoxo 

Raise that Eyebrow!!

As I suggested in my New Season Post HERE  eyebrows are really on trend at the moment. Personally I have always been a massive fan of eyebrows. From the very first time that I had my brows shaped, their upkeep and appearance became top priority in my beauty routine. I also learnt at a young age that my talent for shaping, tweezing or waxing my own brows was literally nonexistent and for this reason I have always left this element of my eyebrow routine to the professionals.

I do however love my brows to be well presented and maintained. I always think that good brows literally shape the face. I have dark brown hair with a little ombre scattered throughout the ends so I like to go for a rich brown brow. I have found a few products which I love to use on my brows; I alternate between these products depending on the desired look.

•   MAC Deep Brunette Veluxe Brow Liner Crayon Sourcils

CLICK HERE for Info

This a quick fix for the brows. It is a soft texture pencil that matches my shade perfectly. It fills and shapes the brows. The formula is matt and a powdery rather than a wax texture. It applies really easily and has a good degree of pigmentation which means that it colours well. It also has good staying powder (stays put all day) but is also easily removed with eye makeup remover. One really good aspect of this product is that it has a handy little brow brush on the opposite side that helps to shape and define the brows a little more. This product comes in 5 shades so am sure the whole issue of finding a shade that suits you is not so difficult.

One little negative of using this product is that it wears down rather fast and I found that you need to have sharpener on hand.

Over all I enjoy using this product and it is just a great every day quick solution for brows.

• Eyebrow Sculptor By Tom Ford in Espresso

I have been a fan of this product for some time and have included it in my favourites – click here  to have a look.  

This product has a brow brush on one end and a shaped wax like applicator on the opposite end. The applicator is slanted meaning that application can be really precise as it goes from thin to fatter. The colour is I originally chose was chestnut but this was a little too light for me so I am now using espresso.  This is a good product but it is a little expensive and you need to apply a few coats to get my desired look.

• MAC Eyebrow Crayon in Spiked
  

This was my very first eye brow product and I have continued to repurchase it again and again because it is just a really good product and is the perfect shade for me. It provides the perfect tool for filling in, shading and colouring the brows. It needs no sharpeners and it is really long lasting. Available in 6 shades this product is a staple item in my makeup bag.

Want Info then Click Here

•    Benefits Brow Zings Brow Shaping Kit

For lots of info Click Here  

I had read a lot about this product and had been between minds about purchasing it for ages and finally decided to give in to my inner shopper.

This kit contains:

§  pigmented wax for shaping

§  natural-shaded powder for setting

§  discreet tweezers

§  hard angle brush

§  blending brush

§  mirror

Benefit suggests that you have everything you need to create perfect clean brows.

Once you get used to using all the products in this kit am sure it does provide you with all the tools to create your perfect brow look. The pigmented wax is easy to apply and the colour was ok (it has a little too much of a red hue for me to be totally in love with it). The natural shaded powder is good and easy to use. I don’t generally use the tweezers, as I mentioned I leave that whole process to the professional. I find the blending brush a little small so I use an angled brush. I tend to use this product if I have time to be careful and precise. It did take me a few tries (a fair few) to get the hang of this product. If I am being totally honest I like this product but I don’t love it. I do use it but not too often.

•  MAC Palette
  

Last but certainly not least is my MAC Palette. I put this palette together myself and I use it most days either for brows or for eyes. I am a real lover of naturals, matt shades and blending and this palette contains all the shades I find perfect for these tasks.

The palette contains (top left to bottom right)

-          Omega

-          Espresso

-          Embark

-          Wedge

I use a MAC (OK yes I am a good fan of MAC) 263 angled brush for brow application. I love espresso or a tiny bit of embark to fill in and add a dept to the colour and I like wedge to add a little tone. Really I just love to mess around and try different combination of the colours to achieve my desired brow look.

These are all the products I have tried to create my desired brow look. I have loved some and liked others. I hope you find this post helpful and maybe you too will find a product you will come to love.

Do you have any suggestions on brow products? Any products you love or you hate? Please leave a comment below.

XOXO

P.S don’t forget my competition  CLICK HERE

March Favourites

Like last few months March seems to have flown by. I loved the change of season this month even if the weather seems to be forgetting how to complete the whole change element this month. Spring/Summer 2013 trends are full of corals, nudes and light delicate shades combined with natural beauty. I just love browsing all new products and trying one or two. So this month my favourites have been some oldies and some newbie’s which I am now going to share with you.

1.     Rituals Shower Foam in Rice Milk and Cherry Blossom

£ 7.00 or €10 200ml

This shower foam is from the sensations collection. I was first introduced to the whole Rituals brand of products after receiving a trial size body lotion in a recent Glossy Box and now I am addicted. I have gone on to purchase a number of different products (all which I will review and share my experiences as I use them). This shower foam is really great value for money as it the foam pump allocates just enough of the luxurious foam and contact with water turns it in soft relaxing foam. The rice milk is said to leave the skin really soft while the cherry blossom acts as a cleanser.  My skin is definitely enjoying the experience and I will be repurchasing this product.

Want info on Rituals ? Click HERE

2. .    Barry M Gel Like High Shine Polish In Lychee

£3.99 or €4.99

I have always been a massive fan of nude nail polish so you can imagine my excitement when the turn of the seasons brought with it an influx of nude polishes. I have a few favourites but the forerunner in my favourite’s league is definitely Lychee by Barry M. The Hi Shine Gel range is very impressive. It aims to give a gel like finish and is long wearing and both of these are true. It dries really fast and has a really great shine. This shade is perfect for my skin tone. It is a nude shade that is light and fresh and compliments tanned skin or tan free skin (I have tried both). This polish is also a perfect base for nail art or a simple nail jewel or two. I have a few different shades from this collection and I like them all.  My must have nail polish for the coming months.

Want more info on Barry M? Click HERE

3. Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait 

£7.99 or €11.50

I am certainly not the first to love Revlon’s Lip Butter and am sure the fan base for this product will continue to grow.  I have tried a few of shades but at the moment I love Peach Parfait. Lip butter’s are exactly as described they are soft buttery colour burst for the lips. They condition and colour and leave a hint of shine and glamour all at the same time. This shade, peach parfait, is a natural almost nude colour with peach tones and gold flecks. This shade adds a glow to your lips and for me is the perfect summer shade. The only problem I have like so many others is that it does not last a very long time and needs reapplying.

Want more info on Lip Butter's? Click HERE

4.    They’re Real Mascara by Benefit

£18.50 or €23

I absolutely love mascara and I absolutely love this mascara. It is dark, long lasting and gives what only can be described as amazing eyelashes. The wand is plastic which I know some people do not like but I have to say it works wonders. It has a tiny application spikes on the top which allows you to apply the mascara to even the shortest of eyelashes. It is a little expensive as mascara’s go but in my opinion it is defiantly worth the spends. I have tried a lot of mascara’s and I am sure I will continue to try new products but I feel at the moment this product will be hard beaten.

Want more info on Benefit? Click HERE

5.    Cloud Nine The Wide Iron

     £109.95 or €120 (with discount for bringing in an old electrical appliance)

Recently I have had to purchase a new hair iron. I originally had a GHD which had lasted me well over 5 years and I was really happy with it. Due to use, age and wear and tear my iron needed replacing. As I was really happy with my GHD I simply just repurchased. However my experience was less then satisfying. I found the new hair iron simply did not straighten my hair. I would straighten it and within a couple of hours my hair was mess. Long story short I returned my item. On research I decided on a Cloud Nine Wide Irons. End result I absolutely love it. This iron works perfectly. It straightens my hair, ads shine, can be used to add a kink or wave to my hair. The wide iron plates mean you only have to run the iron once or twice through the hair to achieve the desired look (I have long bouncy hair). It has a number of different tempeture settings, comes with a heat mat and has a protective cap. I am extremely happy with my purchase and would recommend highly. I am now saving to treat myself to another Cloud Nice Product – The Wand.

 http://www.cloudninehair.com/irons/the-cloud-nine-wide-iron/

March Products That Disappointed Me !!!

TIGI S-Factor True Lasting Colour Shampoo and Conditioner

£20 or €25 for Shampoo and Conditioner 200ml set

I was recommended to use these products and had to try them out. Unfortunately I was disappointed! The products are rich and this may have been part of the problem for me as the products were a little too rich. The result was my hair was left a little weighed down. This meant that my hair had to be washed more often. I also found that the shape of the bottles meant that it was so difficult to squeeze the product out and either too much came out too fast or it took an age to get it out. Over all I did not like these products.

There you have it my fav's for March. 

What have been your favourites this month? Leave a comment and share some of your fav products......

xoxo 

February Favourites

Well that month simply fly by in flash. It is no nice to finally see the spring to show it face even only for a few minutes at a time. The weather may be still very chilly and extremely unpredictable but the days defiantly seem to hold a little more day light. I love this time of year. As I mentioned before I have a growing appreciation for plants and flowers and I love that the little daffodils are beginning to show their little yellow faces!!

Anyway as February draws to an end I am pleased to tell you all about my favourite products I have been using this month. This month see’s a mixture of body/face care and make up. As always I would just like to tell you that I have tried each and every one of these products myself and my opinions are based on my experience of the products. Seeing as spring is on the way I have started upping my body care routine so I will start here....

1.     Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Honey Drops Body Cream 

€17.25 for 250ml

HAVE A LOOK CLICK HERE  

I love this body cream. It is really rich and smells amazing. It is gentle on your skin and leaves the skin unbelievably soft. It dries in really fast; it is almost like your skin simply drinks the moisture. It defiantly softens smoothes and condition the skin. The Green tea extract is perfect for sensitive or dry skin as it acts to calm the skin and nourish it at the same time. The cream is rich so you only need a little amount at a time meaning the 250 ml tube goes a long way, I have been using it for well over 2 months now.

2.   Benefit It’s Potent Eye Cream 

€30.55 for 14.2g 

HAVE A LOOK CLICK HERE

This eye cream was purchased as part of a trial size set. I written a post on the full set so if you want to have a look at the post just click on ME!

This eye cream is said to help the appearance of fine lines, dark circles and other nasty aging tell tale sign. It is rich and cooling on the eye area.  Benefit claims this cream help restore elasticity & firmness, a blend of hydrating botanical extracts including apple extract, known to help boost collagen. It is correctly named “it’s potent” as it is rich. It is really hydrating and over all I have had a really good experience with this eye cream. I have bought another benefit trial size kit with different products but it contains this eye cream again which I am so happy about.

I believe it is trial and error until you find the correct eye cream or skin care products that suit you and your skin type but this little potent pot is good place to start. 

3.     L’occitane Hand Cream in Cherry Blossom 30ml

TO HAVE A LOOK CLICK HERE

With the weather still chilly and ever changeable a good hand cream is a must in my hand bag. I simply love all L’occitane products but the hand cream is just amazing. Enriched with shea butter, this creamy and non-greasy moisturiser nourishes and protects hands, leaving them delicately scented. It contains cherry extract so smells amazing. A little treat your hands deserve. 

4.     Real Techniques Expert Brush 

TO HAVE A LOOK CLICK HERE

There is not much I can say about this fabulous face brush that has not been already been said and I have to admit all the positive reviews are spot on and completely correct. It is just a great face brush. It is light weight and has the perfect handle for gripping. It buffs makeup on the skin so well. It allows you to apply for foundation flawlessly leaving a lovely dewy look.  It is ultra-plush, synthetic taklon bristles are hand-cut. I love this range of brushes and am building my collection nicely. I actually like this brush so much that I want to add another one to my collection so when I was one and have it drying naturally for a day or 2 I will not be without one to use!!. Addicted much? (“,)

5.     Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector . 

TO HAVE A LOOK CLICK HERE

Once again a product carries in my hand bag at all times and in 2 shades.  I have this product in shades 01 Rose Shimmer and 03 Nude Shimmer.

This Lip gel is really light weight with a brilliant 3d shimmer and shine. It is lightly pigmented leaving your lips bright and shiny with your chosen colour. This product also conditions your lips really well. It is by far one of my most favourite lip products at the moment. 

With a lot of focus on skin care this month I have enjoyed using all of these products so much. I love mixing up my body care products. I hope you find one or two products that you may like to try.

Have you found any products this month that you have been really enjoying using? Please share with your finds with me by leaving a comment.

Am off to begin my search for my new favourites for next month!

Xoxo 

Benefit’s Trail Size Sets

 Recently during a rummage thought my sisters cosmetics I convinced her to gift me two fabulous Benefit sets, one from the skin care range and one from the makeup range. Traditionally I would not be drawn to Benefit but I have to admit since I began using these sets my opinion has changed from somewhat indifferent to being very positive.

 First off, 

I have been using Benefit Porefect Radiance Gift Set. 

This set contains;

·           

  The Porefessional (7.5 ml or 0.25 fl.oz) – This balm is designed to minimise the appearance of pores; fine lines and leave your skin feeling super soft and pampered.

I did like this balm and it did leave my skin soft. I am glad to say I don’t have many noticeable pores so if it does reduces the appearance of fine lines and pores all I can say is I hope it worked on me. 

·         It’s Potent – Eye Cream (30g net weight) – this eye cream claims to work wonders on the delicate skin around the eye area. It aims to fade dark circles and smooth fine lines so you are left with younger looking eyes. I have to say I liked this eye cream so much so I have it all used up. I used it mainly at night after my cleansing routine. I had not been using an eye cream at all before so I have noticed brightness around my eye area. I would definitely consider repurchasing this product in a larger size. 

·         Triple Performance Facial Emulsion (8.9ml or 0.3 fl oz) – Such a cute little bottle! This emulsion has SPF 15 and claims to hydrate, protect and comfort the skin. It is oil free and light weight. I used this lotion at night and I liked it. Again I don’t feel there is enough provided in this set to help you form a definite opinion but I did like it while I used it and my skin was bright and hydrated.

Over all I did enjoy using this set. My favourite item was the eye cream. I liked how all 3 products had a very delicate yet creamy texture and had no smell. I would recommend purchasing a set like this to try the products before purchasing a larger size.

Click HERE to have a look !!

The Second Benefit Set was from the makeup range, in particular the Illuminating Collection - Finding Mr Bright.

The set contains;

1.      

Girl Meets Pearl – this little potion claims to provide “an all over glow from within”. It’s a really light pinky gold consistency. You are advised to wear it on top of your make up or with no makeup at all. It did give a nice gleam which was subtle, though I think that may be due to me being rather sparing with the application. It is nice and the little tube will do me ages.

2.    Posietint – This is a really nice liquid blush. 2 or 3 drops rubbed into the apple of your cheeks is really nice and delicate. I advise to wear with natural look make up for a really fresh faced look. Again I would be very sparing with the application in attempt to try to avoid the clown look so this little bottle will last you a while. 

3.    High Beam – This is my favourite element of this set. It is a perfect high lighter for the face that can be worn all over face from cheek bones to eyebrows. I intend on repurchasing this product in a full size version I liked it that much. 

4.    Erase Paste – described as an “industrial strength concealer” this product hopes to erase all imperfections, flaws and blemishes. Nice as it is, personally I prefer my regular concealer as I am sure of the shade as I found this one to have a slightly pink tone to it. For those who like a general concealer this is good and it defiantly covers and last.

I am really glad that I tried this set. I liked it a lot, as mentioned my favourite product being the high beam high lighter. Again I would recommend this set to anyone who is curious to try the products as you are given ample opportunity to try each one in this set as you are given a generous sample of each.

To have a better look click FINDING MR BRIGHT 

Since I have been using these sets I was intrigued to what other skin care or makeup sets Benefit has to offer. I was nicely surprised to find that they have quite a few to choose from. A favourite beauty emporium website feelunique have a great variety.

Also have a look at the BENEFIT website 

Have you tried any trial size products and loved or hated them? Do tell (“,) by leaving a comment below I love to hear recommendations.

Have a lovely evening ya’ll

Xoxo