...Urban Decay - Good Karma Optical Blurring Brush

This is a beauty!

I asked for a new foundation brush for Christmas out of sheer necessity. My poor Lancome Flat Brush was shedding bristles like a Persian cat sheds fur.

I was secretly hoping for the Real Techniques Stippling Brush, since I've heard so many good reviews, but when I unwrapped this sexy little thing I was just as thrilled!

The bristles are beautifully soft and the brush is nice and chunky. It requires no expertise to get lovely results when blending in foundation and powder.

I've tried it with a few different foundations and the results have been just as good with each. I've yet to try it with blusher, but the powder application is nice and easy - best if you apply quite liberally, there isn't much room for subtlety with this.

There is only one bad thing that I have to say about this brush: It eats foundation!

I have to use twice as much liquid foundation on this brush to get enough of it buffed into my face. With cream foundations this isn't as big an issue, but with any kind of liquid the brush sucks it away into oblivion.

Other than that little niggle - I'm in love! No more flat foundation brushes for me!

Xxxx

...Degree Really Comes in Handy Sometimes

Sometimes I read the descriptions on beauty products and think: "What are they talking about?"

It seems common place now to use long scientific jargon to describe products, simply because the makers know that the average-Joe won't know what the words really mean. Most people never really bother to find out either I suppose... If something sounds sciency and impressive, then it must work, right?

I read the label of a product today that said; "Arnica and Madecassoside, suspended in liposomes with powerful peptides and biodynes to initiate a uniquely soothing and collagen boosting process." 

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm sure that's true or they wouldn't be able to put it on the bottle. What I have a problem with, is that rubbing liposomes on your face is pretty much guaranteed to do nothing. Liposomes are like little hollow balls, and they have a phospholipid membrane meaning that they act like oil droplets in water. Their membranes are made up of little phospholipids that have hydrophobic tails and hydrophilic heads and they look a bit like lollipops. These things line up together and create a water-resistant bubble that things can be suspended within. 

The cells on your face won't be able to do anything with these little balls, they're too delicate and break up the minute they hit your skin. Your skin's whole purpose in life is to keep things out! To be a strong barrier against anything foreign, so no matter what's in those liposomes; it's not getting through. This cream costs £48 too. 

I'm not trying to come off as pretentious, it's just because I come across these kinds of words all the time in my lectures that I'm very skeptical about what face creams claim to do. 

CoEnzyme Q10, that's another one that doesn't work. But that's a rant for another time.

Xxxx 

...Winter Makeup Look... Super-Berry

Instagram has just been made available on Windows phones! I've been dying to try it out, so I thought I'd use it to take pictures of a makeup look I've been living in recently...

My orange towel looking casual there...

I think this look is not too much over the top but still quite glamorous. This is what I used for it...

My Benefit Sugarbomb blusher is really ready to die now, but I can still scrape the remnants from the bottom before I have to get a new one. The poor thing has worked hard for me these last two years, it's earn't it's retirement. 

Powder: Rimmel London Stay Matte - Translucent, cheap and cheerful powder. Great at keeping oily skin at bay.

Mascara: No.7 Intense Volume - A water-based mascara with a very thin formula, perfect for when you want to give your lashes a very natural boost. I never feel like I'm wearing heavy mascara with this and it doesn't make my eyes sore after a long day.

Primer: E.L.F. Mineral Infused Primer - Reviewed here.

Eyeshadow: Benefit World Famous Neutrals - Eyenessa's Most Glamorous Nudes Ever (colours used: It's Complicated all over lids and on inner corners, and Call my Buff on the brow bone.) Reviewed here.

Natural Collection Solo Eyeshadow in Crushed Walnut - A nice matte brown, great for contouring.

Eyebrows: Topshop Brows Pencil in Brown - A great brunette match, at least for me. This pencil is HUGE, I'd be sharpening this for days before it ran out.

Lips: Rimmel Kate Lipstick in 107 - A matte berry/purple... lovelovelove! 

I also forgot to put the foundation I used in the picture; it was Estee Lauder Double Wear.

Xxxx

P.S. For anyone interested... I GOT THE JOB!!! (See two posts below...)

Winter Lips

I own a lot of lip products, I hate to admit it, but probably too many...

What am I talking about?! There's no such thing as too many lip products!

Here are a few that I've been reaching for most since it's gotten colder. Bolder lips are always a winner in the winter, they make a great contrast against paler, sun-less skin.

From left to right...

Mac Satin Lipstick in Film Noir - A very dark berry colour.

Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate in 107 - I think nearly everyone and their mother owns this, but for very good reason. A matte berry/purple; the photo does not do it justice.

Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate in 01 - A glossy, dark blue-red.

Diorific Haute Couture Long Wearing Lipstick in Dolce Vita - A matte orange-red.

MaxFactor Lipfinity Lasting Lip Tint in 03 - Another berry shade, more sheer than a lipstick but builds like a dream.

But what would winter be without some gorgeous lip balms to beat chapped lips away?!

Burt's Bees Lip Balm with Pink Grapefruit - Grapefruit is the best scent in the world; it's so cheerful and refreshing!

Clinique Chubby Stick in Two Ton Tomato - A sheer but fairly bright red. If I could buy one of these in every colour I would *sigh*.

Also... Isn't the fake snow in Plymouth so pretty? It hasn't snowed here in over 150 years, how depressing!

Xxxx

Lush, Topshop, Avene, Sanctuary and Natural Collection

I went shopping again today... *sigh* Retail therapy.

I went to find a matte chocolate brown eyeshadow for a job interview I have on Monday - with GlaxoSmithKline I might add! If you're a science undergraduate then you should already know that it's kind of a big deal. And for those who aren't... It's kind of a big deal ;)

I wanted that contoured eye look, that's very natural but still pretty, but the only eyeshadow that does the job is full of huge chunks of glitter - hardly professional looking. But here are some other things that sneakily made their way into my basket...

 In Lush I picked up...

Rose Jam Bubbleroon (£3.50)- A bubble bar that looks a bit weird, but smells divine! Kind of like roses and candyfloss.

Soft Coeur (The Honeymooner) Massage Bar (£4.75) - Melts into your hands and smells like vanilla, chocolate and something else that I just can't put my finger on... I can't wait to use this!

I'm staying a night in a hotel as the interview venue will take me several hours to reach, so I'm definitely making the most of this hotel's bathtub! I refuse to touch the one in our house - I live with 7 other students, 4 of them boys and 2 of them keen surfers. Sand and grime everywhere! Urghh.

 Avene Thermal Spring Water, 50ml (£3.15) - This looked interesting and the shop assistant recommended it to me for use when travelling and your skin becomes dehydrated. Priced very nicely and feels lovely when you spray it onto your face, even over makeup.

Topshop Brows Pencil in Brown (£6) - I really appreciate Topshop's pricings. They never fanny about with the whole .99p thing, so you don't get stuck with a measly penny to add to the other 5000 in your purse.
This is a nice medium brown, not as pigmented as many others out there (Rimmel London do a great brow pencil) but the colour suits my hair nicely and the spoolie is much better than the tough little brushes that come with so many pencils.

Sanctuary 5 Minute Thermal Detox Mask (£3) - My mum swears by Sanctuary masks, so I thought I'd pick up one of these nice little sachets.They do make full-size bottles of this but I wasn't up for spending that much. I'll let you know what I think.

Natural Collection Solo Eyeshadow in Crushed Walnut (£1.79) - What I actually went shopping for was the cheapest thing I came home with. Damn.
Not the best eyeshadow in the world, but what can you expect for that price? The colour is lovely and it blends beautifully! I'm actually extremely impressed with this, it's exactly what I was looking for, a beautiful matte brown to stuff in my handbag.

 Here's a bit of a closer look. It does look a little shimmery with the flash, but I can assure you that it isn't.

I'll give a more in-depth review of the Sanctuary and Lush products when I come to use them. Woo! My first actual bath in two and a half months! 

Xxxx

Maybelline Fit Me Anti-Shine Stick Review

I know I promised this review about a week ago, and apologies for that, but I've been busy visiting the boyf up in Leicester! You know it takes over 8 hours for me to get there from Plymouth?! Sheer commitment.

Anyway...

Maybelline Says: "Our first gel stick foundation with an anti-shine core. Fresh gel foundation blends to a natural matte finish. Lightweight powders in the anti-shine core instantly dissolve excess oil."

I got shade 115 - Ivory 

To begin with, the texture us not what you would expect. I thought it would be quite thick and creamy, and although it feels like this when you first apply it, the consistency then becomes a lot more powdery and quite lightweight.

Coverage - I would say light/medium. It's not very thick and although buildable it doesn't do that much for dark circles/redness. Concealer sits quite nicely on top of this so that's not really a problem and it evens skin tone moderately well. It blends well both with a brush and with your fingers so it's quite good to apply on the go.

Staying Power - Not too bad! The consistency is such that you don't really need to set it with powder (although I do from sheer habit) and it doesn't tend to move around your face or settle into fine lines. I do really have to recommend a primer under this though - it's quite drying.

Packaging - I really like this packaging, it's simple and very easy to apply! You don't have to get it all over the back of your hand like other foundations. The black case is very simple and looks great.

Price - £8.99 To be honest, I can't see this lasting all that long as there isn't really that much in it, so I don't really think the value for money is very spectacular.

Overall - I love the stick application, it's great on the go and is wonderful to take travelling because you don't need a brush to get good results from it. However, it's quite dry and the coverage isn't really what I go for. I think I'd give this a 3.8/5.

Maybelline, Bourjois and Olay.

Superdrug emailed me a couple of days ago telling me that if I didn't spend the points on my card, they would expire on the 1rst of December! I was a little bit gutted because I hate spending points. I hoard them. Hoard them like a hoarder hoards crap.
I love sitting on that little balance thinking: "One day. One day I'll have a MILLION points! Mwahahahaha..."

But anyway; here is what I bought...

Bourjois Lipstick in Rose Innocence - I've been wearing this since I applied it in the shopping centre. Its a very pretty pink, a tiny bit shimmery but nothing to balk at. It's staying power is very impressive and the packaging is just gorgeous! It looks so much more expensive than it is!

Olay Complete Care Normal/Dry Day Cream - Olay are my absolute favourite; I've used their mosturisers nearly every day since I was about 13! I normally use the beauty fluid but since I'm running a bit low I thought I'd try this. Its much thicker and creamier than the beauty fluids so I'm hoping this will be a better winter moisturiser. No matter how much I love the beauty fluids, they're very runny and although great moisturisers, I'm feeling something a bit more heavy-duty is in order at the moment- it's freezing outside!

And of course, it smells just as divine as all the other Olay products in existence! Mmm...

And Finally...
Maybelline Fit Me Anti-Shine Stick (115 - Ivory) - I've been dying to try these! I've walked into a shop so many times with the premise of buying it, and then I've always chickened out because I didn't want to spend my minute amount of cash. But here we are... I suppose it was just meant to be.

As you can see, it's got two little circles of colour... How strange! I'll upload a full review of this tomorrow probably, I don't want to scrub my makeup off to reapply it all now. And sorry for the awful photo quality, my phone hates me at the moment.

And that's that! Superdrug points well spent me-thinks!

Xxxx

Handmade Naturals

There is a little shop back in my hometown of Stoke-On-Trent called the Handmade Naturals Shop. They make beauty products that are completely vegan, cruelty free and contain no sulphates, petrochemicals, perfume, or chemical preservatives.

There are other organic shops out there that sell products like this, but I've never come across one that is so inexpensive. The people that run the shop are a family and they make everything themselves in a little rented factory, you can always tell that they really care about what they're doing.

On my last trip there, I came back with...

Aloe, Lemon and Manuka Foaming Face Wash - This is the second time I've bought this. It's the best face wash I've ever used and I just can't get enough of the stuff! I bought this when I was looking for a face wash that didn't contain Sodium Lauryl (Laureth) Sulphate, which is a very cheap detergent that is used in nearly all foaming bath products. It's very drying and harsh and it aggravates my skin to bring me out in spots.
This contains aloe vera, lemon, manuka and grapefruit oils and manages to be very gentle whilst still removing every speck of makeup!

Organic Coconut Oil - I know a lot of people will have already tried coconut oil as a moisturiser, or hair mask or maybe you've just been eating it. If you haven't tried it, then you definitely should! It soothes dry skin like nothing else and smells amazing. Plus, you only need a tiny amount so a jar like this can last for ages!
It is a bit weird having a moisturiser you can eat, but if anybody wants to try it, put a spoonful in a good hot cup of green tea. It's so good!

Antioxidant Face and Eye Roll-On - This stuff is glorious! It's so soothing on sore eyes! I love applying this straight after I've taken mascara off, gently massaging it in to the skin and my eyelashes. It absorbs really nicely and leaves the skin looking brighter and well looked-after.
The Rosehip, Wheatgerm and Jojoba oils are full of vitamins A, B, D, E and Fatty Acids, great for nourishing and soothing skin. Jojoba oil is especially good at reducing inflammation and Rosehip is known for it's huge levels of vitamin A which is recommended for treating hyper-pigmentation, acne scars and the appearance of wrinkles.

They have a great little website and deliver all over the UK. It would be so good to get a little company like this some more customers, using products that have never, ever been tested on animals.

Next on my list of things to try are their shampoos and conditioners, clay masks and virgin shea butter!

http://www.handmadenaturals.co.uk/

I beseech you to try them out!
Xxxx

These are a Few of my Favourite Things...

The candle (lemon scented - Next) makes everything look so much prettier.

The lipstick above is Christian Dior - Diorific Haute Couture Long Wearing Lipstick in Dolce Vita. It is without a doubt, the nicest lipstick I've ever used.

Now, honestly, my photos still aren't great. I put that down having a camera that is 7 years old! (Excuses, excuses.) But I think they're getting better! Putting the candle in the background was just for the light at first, because my camera flash is broken, but it came out rather festive!

But I'm not saying the "C" word... Not yet.

Xxxx

If Everything on ASOS was Free...

I've just been doing some seriously wishful shopping. ASOS is tied with Topshop for my favourite online shop, and I couldn't help but add a few lovely things to my saved items list...

Socks: Monki £6 for 2 pairs, Nars Highligher in Albatross £21.50, Trousers: Monki £25, ASOS Petite Jeans £21, Black Boots: Pull&Bear £59.99, ASOS Baseball Top £12, Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Mysterious Red £17.50, Maxi Dress: Monki £12

Why does everything have to be so pretty?!

Xxxx

Homeopathy and the Girl in the Denim Hotpants

I dragged my sorry behind into my 9am biochemistry lecture this morning. I didn't want to, but I hate falling behind.
Thankfully, my self pity was short-lived when my amazing lecturer put this picture up at the beginning:

 No offence intended, of course, to those who do have faith in homeopathy.

As for the girl's story: I was walking home from the lecture and I saw a girl walking in front of me wearing only, I kid you not, denim hotpants (the kind where the bum-cheeks are on show) and a t-shirt.
I was wearing Ugg boots, thermal leggings, a t-shirt, a jumper, gloves, a scarf, a wooly hat and a coat.
She wasn't even wearing tights!

These are pretty much what she was wearing, (Topshop, by the way, £32, yum).
At first I thought she must be insane.
Then I thought; "It must be me. Maybe it's this cold I've got? It could actually be really warm outside." - but then I realised I could see my breath.
Then I was just impressed; "You GO girl! Way to hang on to your summer wardrobe!"


And then the penny dropped. Wednesday night is 'Sports Societies Social Night' (Pound a pint in The Skiving Scholar) - She was doing the walk of shame.

Getting a cold. Actually, it's definitely Ebola.

So I woke up today and wished I hadn't. I feel like I have the beginnings of tonsillitis, which would really worry me if I had tonsils.

It's probably just your average cold, but I'm a wimp. So I spent the day in bed watching PewDiePie walk through Beyond: Two Souls. If you don't know what that is, go and find out.

This is what got me through the day today, and is a little shout out to anyone else who's feels like ****.

Those pyjamas are the best thing I've ever got from Primark *sigh*. And I powered through that entire box of celebrations (except the Bounty obviously - blehh).
Starve a fever; feed a cold and all that!

This mug was £6 from the Disney Store, back when they were having their 25 year anniversary, it's just great.

And then, of course, the sacred texts. Some girls may choose Cosmo, some girls may choose Glamour, some girls may even choose Take A Break. I choose Elle.
25% off Kurt Geiger and a Benefit Lipgloss? No competition.

I read an article by Charlie Brooker describing his own sore throat:
"Even a drink of water becomes a mug of shattered twigs."

Right there with you, Charlie.

p-p-p-Primark!

I went into Primark for some gloves today, silly me forgot to bring any down to uni, but obviously that's not all I came out with.

I had a bit of a burgundy crisis. Everything I came home with is that colour, I think the purple hair dye must be seeping through my skull. Anyway, this is what I picked up...

Admittedly the tights aren't that colour, but if that was an option then I'm sure they would have been.

I picked this up on an impulse, expecting to probably return it the next day, but I love it! It's so comfy and just the right length! (*cough* and only £12 *cough*)

I should give myself a little slap on the wrist for this really. I'm supposed to be saving to buy Christmas presents... Ahh well.

Xxxx

So... Purple.

I've been wanting to dye my hair for a while, but I've never had the manhood for it. But after a couple of weeks of pestering from my housemates...
"Uni is the time to get to do things like this!"
"Come on, take a little risk for a change!"
"You can't got through your whole life with only one hair colour!"
...I've bitten the bullet and bought some dye.

Semi-Permanent obviously; I'm not THAT brave.

It wasn't that hard to do really. The only tough part was not dyeing my face or ears, and I did have a bit of a falling-out with the shower head. I dropped it whilst it was still turned on and then I couldn't catch it while it was flailing about. But at least the bathroom walls got a good wash. 

So anyway...

When I first dried it I freaked out a little bit... "Oh my God, it's BLACK!!" but the girls have told me that it should fade in a couple of days and be more of the Plum colour that the box promised. We'll see...

I probably should have eased myself into this whole 'hair-dyeing' fiasco a bit more slowly. Perhaps gone for a chocolate brown, instead of straight in there with purple. Still, it could be a lot worse...

And at least it matches my Mac - Film Noir lipstick!

Xxxx

Benefit - Eyenessa's Most Glamorous Nudes Ever!

Hello there,
I thought today I'd show you the way that I like to use one of my Benefit eyeshadow palates; and even better, one of the World Famous Neutrals Kits!

Each of these beautiful palates comes with two Creaseless Cream Shadows and four of the lovely Longwear Powder Shadows. There are three different sets to choose from, either the Easiest Nudes Ever, Sexiest Nudes Ever, or the one that I went for; Most Glamorous Nudes Ever! And let me tell you, it was not an easy decision!

For just a normal, everyday look, those are the four that I normally use. The cream eyeshadow is in the shade Birthday Suit.

It's Complicated is my absolute favourite! It's the prettiest pink colour that makes an amazing highlighter, as well as a lovely base to build up a more contoured look.

Also, the cream eyeshadows are some of the best I've ever used. I usually can't stand that kind of consistency on my eyelids, it just feels so thick and goopy, but these have a really light texture and really do stay put all day. I've never had that experience with these, where I look in the mirror and I have three solid lines of glittery gunk in my eyelid creases! Winner, winner.

Products also used: Benefit, They're Real Mascara £19.50, Maybelline Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner £5.99.

World Famous Neutrals Eyeshadow Kits £23.50