March Beauty Favourites

Somehow I've only gotten round to doing my first favourite post of the year, and we're three, well four months in... what can I say this year has started off crazy and hasn't slowed down since, its been all systems go and sadly blogging has fallen by the wayside as a result. This month however thats going to change, no it needs to, I miss blogging. I'm inspired and can't wait to write some new posts  & you bet as soon as I get some proper lighting I'll be getting my routine back up and running, so as a sort of apology, here's my March beauty favourites.....      

As its coming into Spring (well meant to be, we'll ignore the thunder storms outside for the sake of this post) I like to switch things about and although I'm usually a full coverage, matte kind of gal I like to wear as light a base as possible when the suns out, praying my skin isn't acting up and making me self conscious (big tip: drink as much water as you can, clears your skin up in no time), last summer BB cream was my best friend. 

I'm sort of in the middle of mixing up my foundation routine and also just wearing concealer a lot of the time so thats why I haven't featured any this month but primers a different story. I've been switching between two primers as of late, to combat the shine, the well loved Benefit Porefessional which just so happens to keep my skin looking fresh all day and the second being the 17 wow three way highlight which I didn't think would be my cup of tea at all. I simply mix a little in with my foundation and it creates the perfect healthy glow. 

Lips and blush are the main switch in the spring/summer seasons, they're a must. Is it just me or do baby pinks just scream spring? The two lip favourites I've been loving is an Urban Decay revoloution lipstick in Streak which I bought late last year in the summer but never really got the benefit from because in no time it was time for the Autumn shades. It's a brighter pink than I'm used to but it's not too Barbie-esque either so I'm hoping I get my my use out of it this year, the formulas really creamy and it actually lasts quite a while. I've also featured one of my favourite MAC lipsticks, please me, it's matte (I couldn't stray from the matte too much) and is the most gorgeous everyday baby pink. 

Lastly I've been loving my Illamasqua powder blush in 'Hussy' which I always manage to forget about, its a really lovely colour and honestly I should probably put it on my dresser to make a conscious effort to use it! So that's it for March, I know I usually do two favourites post, beauty and non beauty but I haven't loved anything overly non beauty so I'll make up for it in Aprils posts. 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s what have you been loving through March, beauty or non beauty? 

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Maybelline vs 17

Lazy mornings and rushing to leave the house are an awful habit of mine and this is where these wonderful little things come into play - cream eyeshadows, making life a heck of a lot easier. There was a lot of hype surrounding the Maybelline Colour Tattoo when it was first released but barely any for the 17 offering so I thought I'd try something new and do a bit of a comparison post for you all.  

It might be slightly noticeable from the photos that both of these are well loved and as unlikely as it seems I've used them a lot since I bought them and there isn't really that much of a dent in them showing that they're definitely long lasting.  

The Maybelline Colour Tattoo in the colour 'On and On Bronze' (top left and bottom right) is described as a 'gel cream eyeshadow' and I would have to agree it does have the perfect mix of the two. As for application its really quick and easy, a whole of two seconds as I use my fingers to apply one swipe, let it stick (so to speak) and then one more swipe to make the colour pop a little more. I tend to use it as an eyeshadow but the colour tattoo's can always be used as a primer as well to prevent creasing from other shadows and really make a wow statement. 

At first it was a bit of a nuisance to get to grips with as the product is solid and you need to let it melt a little on your fingers before applying. The whole 24 hours statement thats something I'm not too sure about, there'll probably never be a chance for me to wear it for a whole day but regardless it lasted a long time so I'll take their word. The packaging although I love the glass bottom is a little bit misleading with how much product there actually is - thats the only downside but overall its just the perfect bronzey colour for everyday use.

The 17 Wild Metallic Cream Eyeshadow in 'Wild Bronze' is more of a creamy, mousse formula compared to the Maybelline offering. This just means its a little messier if you're using your fingers, I usually use a small eyeshadow brush for application. Although I'm a fan of the packaging or pot, I'm not too keen on the lid (this is just personal opinion, I'm not big on leopard print). The eyeshadow itself applies well although slightly slippery and would work well with a primer underneath to stop it from doing so. Its highly pigmented and has shimmer particles - thankfully no chunks of glitter! and less is definitely more in this case. 

In the swatch photo you can definitely see the difference, the 17 offering is more creamy and shimmery and darker in colour to the Maybelline swatch which is more of a matte shade. Both however are wonderfully pigmented, last all day and definitely help when you sleep in. Let me know if you've tried any cream eyeshadows lately or your all time favourite shadows? Or if you enjoy comparison posts like these? 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s what do you think of the maybelline/seventeen eyeshadows?  

Drugstore Concealer Post

I've never really been a concealer kind of girl until about a year or so ago, I luckily didn't wear makeup on a daily basis to school (which I think saved my skin), didn't suffer from any bags under my eyes or mass breakouts and honestly I didn't think it made much of a difference if I had a high enough coverage foundation on my face. Oh how wrong was I?

Most University students suffer from a lack of sleep, although you'd think it would be the opposite... mine usually stemming from the early morning lectures, others usually because they were enjoying themselves far too much the night before but still, concealer has became a miracle cure to help me some how not look like death warmed up in the mornings. As of yet I haven't tried any high end concealers as I find these do the trick just fine and are super affordable for all budgets so I thought I'd compile a few of my favourites at the moment.

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer: If you haven't heard practically everyone and their mother raving about this, I don't know where you've been. This concealer is raved about all the time and for good reason, before I even started reading blogs this was my concealer of choice mainly because it did the trick and was so budget friendly but I'd no idea everyone felt the same way. It provides the best coverage and the shade 'fair' is a perfect match for my skin, it doesn't emphasis any dry patches and lasts throughout the day. It hands down is my favourite concealer I've tried to date, the only downside being that the packaging rubs off and is left a bit unsightly as you can see in the pictures, or you could say well loved.

MUA Hide & Conceal: This is an old concealer that I had lying around in my makeup stash but its well loved nonetheless as its almost empty, I think I picked it up on a whim one day in Superdrug. Its a close match to my skin tone and I used it not as a concealer as you might think but rather a highlight around my eyebrows and above my eyes in case I needed to fix something or brighten it up a little. Its slightly drying but I didn't use it all over my face so I guess thats a good thing, honestly for a £1 you can't really expect it to be faultless but who knows it might work better on others than it did for me.

Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer: This concealer is slightly darker than my skin tone, similar to its foundation but its ever so creamy in formula. As strange as this seems I don't actually like covering blemishes with it as similar to the foundation it provides a 'radiant glow' and emphasis them rather than hiding them. Therefore it is now my beloved under eye concealer/highlighter and it makes all the difference in the mornings giving the impression that I'm wide awake and got a whole 8 hours sleep instead of 5.

Seventeen Phwoarr Paint: I popped this concealer into my basket mainly because the packaging intrigued me, until recently I'd only used concealers that had a wand and this was something completely different. At first I wasn't really fussed with it because I couldn't for the life of me work out how to get it to sit right but after some playing about and a little warming of the product it is now my go to blemish concealer. It states that its 'heavy duty' and originally for under the eyes but I don't like anything too heavy under my eyes so this works just fine. I thought it would be a little drying but its sooo creamy and lasts all through the day, a lovely surprise! :)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo