E.L.F Haul

I have a confession to make.. Ready? Ok, this was my first time ordering from E.L.F. I know, I know.. I'm not even sure why cause I've known about them long enough! I had some pennies on my Paypal last weekend while E.L.F had £10 off a £25 spend so I thought it was about time. There were a few bits I knew I wanted, from reading other blogs and watching YouTube videos, like the matte lip colour and blush. I'm planning on doing some reviews on these products so I won't go into any detail, I'll just leave you with a bunch of pictures and prices :)

Eye shadow brush, eye crease brush, Blushing, bronzing and blending brush.

Matte lip color in tea rose, lip stain in fashionista.

Eye shadow - brightening eye colour - in brownstone and ethereal.

Nail polish in glamour girl.

Blush in mellow mauve and gotta glow.

So there is everything I ordered from E.L.F first time round. Do you have any of these products? - Thoughts? Is there anything else from them you recommend? Without giving too much away, I know I'd like more shades of a couple of things I got, others maybe not. xxx

Recent Beauty Purchases.

I haven't spent much on beauty products lately.. All of this was purchased over a couple of months and apart from this, I haven't bought anything else. I've been trying not to buy things just because everyone else is talking about them, as hard as that can be sometimes!!

L'Oreal Skin Perfection.. 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution and Cleansing & Perfecting Milk.

I bought these when the products I was using (Asdas own brand) had almost run out.. Unfortunately I can't understand the hype! Yes, they're gentle.. But so gentle it doesn't take all the make up off is no good. I've used so many cotton wool pads trying to take every last bit of my make up off with these products but if I use my old one at the end, make up comes off! I don't know if it's cause I have large pores but I just can't get on with these products and won't be repurchasing.

Soap & Glory.. Foam Call, Sugar Crush and Clean Girls.

If you read my last post, you'd know I bought more Soap & Glory smellies. They were on 3 for 2 in Boots. Sugar Crush was a repurchase but I'd never tried the other 2. Foam Call is pepperminty fresh and I absolutely love it.. It kind of reminds me of a mans smell but in a good way. Clean Girls has a pearly looking effect and is really soft and smells girly and nice. I will definitely repurchase both!

Johnsons Baby Shampoo.

Warning! Warning! I may need to be issued with a slap on the wrist.. Prior to this stuff, I'd never washed my make up brushes.. Sorry!!! It may be worth noting I've only really got into make up the last couple of years and haven't used the same brushes the whole time. Still.. I will be keeping on top of them now, pinky promise.

Barry M.. Pomegranate, Guava, Blueberry and Fuchsia.

Anyone that knows me well, knows I love my nail polish. I can't get enough! Pomegranate and Blueberry have quickly become my favourites and I've flicked between the 2 since purchasing them. I don't see a lot of difference in the Gelly range compared to the other range personally but some of the colours are gorgeous.

Natural Collection.. Lash Definition Mascara in black, Moisture Shine lipstick in Pink Mallow and Raspberry.

I picked these up on a 3 for 2 as well. I'd originally gone into Boots for the Raspberry lipstick (not pictured - I couldn't find it at the time, sorry.. I'm sure you know what colour raspberries are though so that!) but as there was an offer on, I picked up another lippy and a mascara too. The lipsticks are very long lasting compared to any others I have and the colours are gorgeous - I must get more of these. The mascara isn't too bad - it suprised me, it's more of an every day mascara.. It separates lashes and lengthens them a little but doesn't really give much volume, hence saying it's more for every day.

Montagne Jeunesse.. Sauna Masque, Apricot Scrub, Tea Tree Face Spa, Super Fruit Mud, Dragon Fruit Sauna and Iced Crystal.

Who doesn't love Montagne Jeunesse face masks?! I love finding new ones to try out. So far out of these ones I've used Apricot Scrub which was ok, didn't seem to do as much as others I've tried and Super Fruit Mud which I loved and will definitely repurchase. I love that I could feel it working when I put it on and my skin felt so soft and my pores looked lovely and clean afterwards. Having big pores is such a pain in the arse but masks like this are such a saviour. I can't wait to try the others!

What have you been buying lately? xxx

Small Superdrug Haul

It's not often I get to treat myself to things, although now have a job I can't wait to have a good spend! It's been way too long. A big chunk of my first wage will go on clothes, it's shocking how old my clothes are and I very rarely leave the house feeling good about what I'm wearing so expect some outfit posts when I start spending :) Then I have a beauty product wishlist the size of my arm.. Plus I want to do my driving, we'd like a nice holiday, a newer car and to move to a nicer house too... There's no rush though, it's all just "stuff" at the end of the day, isn't it.. I'm grateful for everything I already have, anything else is a bonus :)
Anyway! Here's what I bought!

I tend to shop in Superdrug more than Boots because 99% of the time, their prices are lower. I also like how when you spend your loyalty card points, you can split it with money meaning you don't have to add it all up unlike at Boots where you can't split money with points and when you want to spend the points, you have to add your items up to make sure whatever you're buying falls within that. What a palava!!

If you saw my last wishlist, you'll know I've been after the Real Techniques Blush Brush (£9.99). I've never been a big wearer of blusher but since getting into make up (which is only really since blogging) I've wanted to make more of an effort and in order to wear blusher, I need a lovely soft, pink brush to apply it with, obviously! ;)

I never wore lipstick until I started blogging. There, I said it.. Blimey! I had a couple of lip glosses (clear ones!) but no lipstick. The only reason for this was that I just wasn't that bothered about make up before - I didn't even wear foundation until 2 years ago! :O I'd just wear mascara and lip gloss. Now I have a growing collection of lipsticks, which I much prefer to lip gloss. This is the Kate Moss for Rimmel Lasting Finish lipstick in #03 (£3.99). I do wish they had names! It's a lovely, creamy lipstick in a pinky/brown blue-toned nude colour. I like nude colours :)

Another product I've been lusting after is Barry M Gelly Hi Shine nail polish in Blueberry (£3.99). The matchbox sized Superdrug store in my town was always sold out so it wasn't until I went to the next town, I was actually able to pick it up! What a gorgeous colour it is. I can't stop looking at my nails when I wear it. Unfortunately it chips pretty quickly, even with a topcoat, I had a chip the following day. The longest lasting colour I've found from the Gelly range so far is Pomegranate, which easily lasts a week without chipping and I can't say that about many polishes at all.



Another product I've happily ticked off my wishlist is the Sleek Face Form Contouring and blush palette in light (£9.99). I have wanted this for so long, isn't it just the most beautiful thing you've ever seen!? I've never tried to contour my face but always been very intrigued so I'm finally going to push the boat out and give it a go!

The colours are very pigmented and so gorgeous, especially the blush which has a golden shimmer to it. I can't wait to try it out! I'll have to put pictures on when I do - providing I don't end up looking like a clown that is ;) hahaha. I love the packaging too, it feels nice to hold?! Ooh and a nice big mirror inside too, how handy!
The only thing that annoyed me about this was that someone had touched it, which unfortunately I didn't realise until I'd got home. It annoyed me more because there was a tray for samples to go and none had been put out for this particular palette. Even if you're going to open it, do you really need to stick your mitts in it if you're not going to purchase it?! And if you wanted to swatch it, ask a member of staff where the sample is! Lesson learned for me anyway, I'll make sure to check next time!

Do you have any of these products? I'd love to hear your thoughts on them! xxx

My Every Day Make Up.

My every day make up is literally the bare minimum, for me. Sort of because I want my make up to look more natural looking on an every day basis whilst at work (I don't bother wearing make up unless I'm actually going somewhere!) but mostly because I spend too long in our comfy bed and I don't end up having enough time! Whoops!

Foundation is a must for me, I have quite blemish prone skin and large pores (meow!) so foundation makes me look umm.. normal!? Haha :) I've tried a large handful of different foundations from different brands but I've finally found one I love (it's also the first foundation I've found that I don't need to use primer with!) that matches my skin tone nicely and that's Rimmels Wake Me Up foundation in ivory. I apply this using my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush, it's such a nice brush to use and also the first RT brush I bought. I've never used my fingers for applying foundation cause I hate getting grubby hands!

I also have quite oily skin so a matte powder is needed on top of my foundation and if it's hot a little top up may be needed half way through the day too. Since Miss Budget Beauty mentioned 17s Miracle Matte Pressed Powder (which I have in ivory/porcelain), I haven't been without it. I find 17s products to be rather hit or miss but for me, this is definitely a hit! I apply this using my Real Techniques Powder Brush which I love as so soft and huge, meaning it takes just a couple of seconds to sweep some powder across my face and I'm done, no messing about with this brush!

My mascara of choice, since 2/3 weeks ago is the Max Factor Wild Mega Volume in black. It's everything I've been looking for in a mascara since I started wearing the stuff! - You can read my review of it here. Before this one, the two I always went back to were Day to Night mascara or Volume Flash x10 mascara, both by Rimmel. The Max Factor mascara has the edge on them just about though because it holds the curl longer and needs less work for a good result.

As you may have noticed before, I have terrible eyebrows! I plucked them to death when I was younger and they never grew back properly as I done it for so long.. What a plank! Because of this, I have to pencil them in every day. I've tried a few different pencils and powders for doing my eyebrows but I've stuck with the MUA Intense Colour Eyeliner Pencil in rich brown the longest. It matches my hair well and is soft so it applies really easily - it also means if you press to hard, you'll look like a clown but I learned that early on! ;)

My lipgloss of choice for the last 8 months has been MUA Intense Kisses in lips are sealed. I just love the colour of this stuff, it's very much 'your lips but better' with a nice gloss but not stupidly glossy or sticky. Like most lip products out there, it doesn't have super staying powers but what's a few seconds just to top it up? If I could find a drugstore lipstick in the exact same colour, I'd purchase it as I do prefer lipstick but until then, this is doing just fine.

So these are the products I use on a regular day, like at work. Weekends and days/nights out, I make much more effort, use a lot more products and mix it up more!  
What products do you use on a regular day - do you just do the minimum like me or do you give yourself more time and do the lot? xxx

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion Review

I've read many positive reviews about this little purple tube and often wondered what it was like in comparison to the MUA eyeshadow primer, which I had first.. Now I know!
At first glance, the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potions* packaging looks really cheap - the box it comes in and the tube itself. The design and style is nice but it could have been made from better quality materials to give it a more expensive feel as at £15 it costs six times as much as the MUA eyeshadow primer.

The product comes out of a long thin nozzle which is handy for controlling exactly how much you'd like and isn't messy. One good thing about the tube is that when you can't squeeze anymore out, you can cut it open to use the last bit. I'm not the only one to do this with the more costly products am I?? It is quite thick in consistency and looks a little bit bobbley (see pic below) but it blends out smoothly and dries quickly which is a big plus as you don't need to worry about waiting to apply your eyeshadow.

Longevity wise.. I tested this out during hot, sticky weather at work with no air con, an evening out and numerous days out too. The first time I used it, I applied a really tiny amount and found it creased quite quickly so obviously I didn't use enough. After that, I applied a more generous amount and it lasted perfectly - no creases what so ever. I should also add that I have naturally quite oily lids. Just so you know. Lovely yes? :)

So how does Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion* compare to MUA eyeshadow primer - which will it be in future? Urban Decay without a doubt. The MUA primer creased for me every time after 2/3 hours but this one doesn't so it's a clear winner. MUA might be cheaper but it doesn't work for me - I'd happily pay more if I know it's actually going to work.

You can purchase Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion* here (free delivery too!)

Which eyeshadow primer do you use? xxx

*This product was sent to me for review. All words and opinions are my own.