Sorting Out & Decluttering: Foundation Edition

After spending the last week or so & probably most of this week packing for moving house, I finally had to tackle to problem of where was I going to put my makeup? My beloved desk is being put into storage and I'll probably invest in something smaller like Muji, this being the case I thought it'd be best to sort out my 'stash' as such and I was more than surprised at the outcome, I own fourteen foundations, should I be ashamed? Probably! Am I? Not really but I did think it was way too many so I'm going to be making a real effort to use up two or three at least :) 

I thought it'd be nice to share my thoughts quite quickly on each of them (left to right), the first being the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum, I'd bought the foundation version originally but it was a little too yellow toned upon application so I picked this one up instead, it has quite a fruity smell but a lovely finish! The next along is MUA's undress your skin foundation which I actually featured in my disappointing products post so that says it all, its just not my sort of foundation. The most recent addition to the collection being my L'oreal True Match, its a wonderful drugstore option which is basically a dupe for MAC studio fix, isn't too expensive and gives amazing coverage in a range which suits every skin tone.

The Rimmel Stay Matte is another than I'm not too keen on, no matter how I apply it it always looks cakey so I think I just left it here for good but I might just throw it out. The Collection lasting perfection foundation, I picked up a while back when buying my trusty collection concealer but I haven't got round to testing that out yet so when I do, I'll inform you all if it went down a treat or not! The next, the Maybelline Fit Me foundation is a lot darker than my skin tone and is what I'd call my 'foundation for those nights when I dare to tan myself' and it works perfectly for that. After that is the Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation & this is probably one of the best drugstore foundations, I love wearing it throughout the summer, until recently there wasn't a really really pale shade but the then lightest shade still working for me, since they've released a paler one but either are still good, definitely makes you look more awake in the mornings as the name suggests :)

Next is the No7 Beautifully Matte foundation, this was something I bought last year with a No7 money off coupon and if I'm being honest haven't used all that much, the matte claim really appeals to me though and it may come in handy through the summer so I'll be sure to use it up! The Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation is a little too yellow toned for my skin tone but paired with the Rimmel Match Perfection beside it, it balances it out! The Rimmel one is something I use when I need to lighten a foundation but would be a perfect base if you like a lighter coverage. Another favourite for summer and those 'I don't want to wear make up days' is the Maybelline BB cream - I actually picked up the one for oily skin as its lighter and less orange than the original. I then had to mention my holy grail, Estee Lauder Double Wear which is superb and of course the MAC studio fix, both of which I've wrote posts about and I can't really fault - definitely worth the money! :)

So that's all my foundations in a pretty lengthy post, if you have any other questions about them, leave them below and I'll be sure to answer! Also this post was meant to go up last week so I have indeed moved house!

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s whats your absolute favourite foundation of all time?

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Revisited; L'oreal Loves

If you're an avid reader of my blog you'll know I've a bad habit of mentioning a product and not getting back to review it until months down the line which is sort of a blessing if you think about it as I'm able to trial & test the product to see whether I really love it or not but lately I'm determined to try and speed up the process a little so alas here's my review of my new favourite drugstore bits and bobs....

The first and probably favourite of mine in regards to the bits I picked up is the L'oreal True Match Foundation - now I know what you're thinking not another review, please no? but I thought it was about time I tried it out for myself after the hype had died down and boy am I glad I did. Although on the pricier end of the drugstore scale around £9/10 (its still not breaking the bank) its by far the best coverage foundation I've found in all my years of scouring Boots' makeup aisles - its a close second to my MAC studio fix and covers all blemishes and spots on the first application!

There's a superb shade range in the collection and you'll be damned if you don't find a close to perfect skin match - I ended up with N1 'Ivory' and it suits my oh so pale skin perfectly. The longevity of this is actually what surprised me the most, it lasted all day on my skin with the occasional once over with a powder brush & without melting off my face, definitely one to reach for on a day you'll be out of the house a lot! I'm also a big fan of the bottle itself, its adorable & it has SPF 17 for those sunnier days that we're experiencing in amongst all the rain.... can you tell I've found my new favourite foundation of the moment?

As for mascara I'm usually loyal & very rarely branch out and try others that aren't L'oreal Miss Manga or Maybelline The Falsies but this time I decided to try out another L'oreal mascara that I'd heard plenty of positive things about, their False Lash Telescopic Mascara in 'magnetic black'. I always think L'oreal packaging looks sleek & classy and this is no different to that, the only downside I'd say is the bristles which don't move all too much and takes a little longer to apply at first but after a few applications its just the same as any other.

It stays on my eyes all day even on the wetter days without making me look like a panda escaping from the zoo and is a breeze to take off at the end of the day, no rubbing for hours here so I'd say its an all round success and I might just have to repurchase it again (and thats saying something because I'm bloody fussy with mascaras)! So thats what I've been loving recently, trialed and tested, hope you enjoyed and if you have any mascara suggestions, please leave them down below:)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s what things do you absolutely love from L'oreal?

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Boots Haul ft L'oreal & Collection

I'm With working a lot  lately, I've not been able to take my time and enjoy perusing the aisles of Boots and Superdrug as much as I'd like, in fact I've built up quite an extensive wishlist so goodness help me and my bank balance when I finally do have the time. I did manage to sneak in one evening this week for like 10 minutes whilst waiting for my bus and when I say 10 minutes, it really was just that so I managed to quickly pick up a few things just.  

The first thing I was dying to pick up and have wanted for ages is the L'oreal True Match foundation, I was always a bit wary whether to order it online because of the undertones but whenever I saw the paler shades in store, I got swatching and found the 'perfect match'for my skin in N1. At the time Boots was having a bit of an offer spree and the one that naturally caught my eye was the 2 for £14 one on L'oreal makeup products, now the foundation usually retails around £9.99 so for £4 more I saw no harm in picking up an additional thing. 

After being torn between so many beaut products, I opted for the L'oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara, I'd recently ran out of mascara and I remember hearing lots of good things about this one so killing two birds with one stone for £4 seemed worth it. After that I stopped by the Collection stand and picked up another lasting perfection concealer, you can never have too many sitting about and realised that there was a foundation alongside it. Now I've heard plenty about the concealer, the foundation not so much and as it was reduced I thought I'd give it a whirl and see if the foundation is just as magical as the concealer so be sure to keep an eye out for that post. 

As I said I managed to pick up these four in the space of ten minutes and althought it's not a massive haul it's big enough for a ten minute stop off and surprisingly, or not so surprisingly I've bought a few more things since writing this post but I might just save that for an extra long haul post at some point. I'm just eager to start using them all :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s what drugstore items have you been loving/buying lately? & what else from L'oreal is a must have for the makeup bag? I need to branch out more 

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Review: L'oreal Elvive Fibrology Range

This is a bit of an unusual post for me, mainly because as bad as this is I never really change up my hair routine although I know I should, theres just so many brands it gets a little overwhelming. However in the summer months my hair needs a little extra tlc and so I decided to change things up a bit and try the L'oreal Elvive Fibrology range which is specifically aimed at thicker hair (and unfortunately thats what mine is).    

 

As I mentioned this shampoo and conditioner is specifcally aimed at thicker hair and also claims to thicken thinner hair as well, scientifically thickening the diameter of each strand of hair as is contains Filloxane. Now I haven't been using it long enough to notice those effects but I'm sure after a while of using it it would make a substantial difference. I have to admit I'm not that adventurous when it comes to haircare and my hair usually dries straight but I thought that this would give me a bit of a boost volume wise at my roots (which it has).

What I can say though is that even upon my first use my hair feels a lot healthier, its much shinier than usual (in a good way) giving it a healthy glow and both the shampoo and conditioner smell lovely which is an added bonus. I also decided to give reverse washing a go whilst using this and I'm pretty convinced its a deadly combination. Both the shampoo and conditioner are easy to work with and don't require a lot of product for results - surprisingly they left my hair with much more bounce and volume than usual.

Its also such good value for money as this smaller duo which is 200ml is only £2.99, now I opted for the smaller bottles as I wanted to be sure I liked the product but the larger 400ml are only £3.99 each, wow! My hair is also much softer and just all round fluffy as if I've just had my hair done at the hairdressers, you know the feeling. Overall I'm extremely pleased with the effect these two are having on my hair and I'd definitely recommend them to all, they're also on offer in Boots at the minute so now would be a good time to pick them up :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s have any of you tried anything from the fibrology range yet? 

April Favourites

At first I didn't think I'd had that many favourites this month and that I would be able to combine my beauty and non beauty faves instead of doing two separate posts as usual. Therefore this is going to be a pretty long one, I'm sorry, you might want to pop the kettle on and have a cuppa at the ready before you start. 

As you know if you read my other posts I went on a University fieldtrip to 

Cyprus two weeks ago and so I had to pack some beauty essentials, read: half my case full. Whenever I'm on holiday I barely wear any makeup but since I was going with my friends it was a bit different, I found myself reaching for my Maybelline BB Cream all the time as it gave me just the right amount of coverage, was surprisingly a really good colour match for me and the best part it had an SPF of 15. Therefore hand in hand with this was my 17 concealer with was perfect for covering the odd blemish or two and those dark circles after a late night. 

The entirety of the trip I had my nails painted in the new Barry M Aquarium polish in Mediterranean and considering the work we were doing I was surprised that they didn't even chip once - thats a first and in fact when I came home if I hadn't of taken the nail polish off myself goodness knows how long it would have lasted. Talking about space earlier I decided to cut down a little and brought my sleek face form with me instead of individual bronzers, blushes and highlighter - this little trio is definitely a life saver and I was constantly reaching for it, more so than normal.

As for my lip product of choice I wanted a pop of colour as my base makeup and usually eyes were kept quite neutral and so my trusted and favourite Revlon lip crayon in Unapologetic was constantly in my bag. The last beauty related product that I've been loving is the L'oreal Tangle Teaser for kids, this may be a bit of an odd choice but when I go on holiday the heat destroys my hair and especially after a day in the pool its all ratty and horrible which I hate so I bought this to save my hair and it did just that making my life a heck of a lot easier.   

For non beauty favourites for the month of April I had to include Malteaser bunnies, their my all time favourite Easter treat and I don't even want to think about how many I've consumed this past month, I have a weakness for chocolate and they taste superb. The last favourite is the Amazing Spiderman 2 Movie, I couldn't wait for this to come out as I've always been a Spiderman fan from way back when Toby M'Guire had the role but I love Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone just as much therefore I was an emotional wreck. I don't want to spoil it for those who haven't seen it but the ending killed me, bring tissues with you, just saying. Anyways its super :) 

I hope you enjoyed my monthly faves for April, thanks for reading, Jenny xo  

Empties #1

This is a short post for a change and my first time doing an empties or products I've used up post, mainly because I never usually use products fully which is a really bad thing to admit but so true. Instead of waiting for something to run out, I'll just get a replacement and use it instead - a habit I should probably change.  

Most of these are just day to day essentials that I've used up over the past month, since it's coming in to the Spring weather and my skin hasn't been acting up I've been reaching for a lighter coverage foundation, that being the Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation in the shade '010' which is surprisingly pale enough for my skin tone. I've already repurchased a new one whilst it was on offer so I'm all stocked up again.   

As well as this I've finally used up my 'the Falsies' Mascara, my all time favourite drugstore mascara to date. This is a product I can always rely on, it gives just the right amount of length and volume that I need without going overboard - perfect for wearing throughout the day. The last makeup empty of the month is my Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer which has been a blogging fave for years creating a well deserved buzz about it. After it disappearing from my local stores for a bit I began to worry as other drugstore concealers just don't do it for me but luckily enough the packaging was only being altered and this is the newly packaged collection concealer that I've used up. I'm still having doubts as to whether its the same formula or not but regardless it still manages to cover all my blemishes perfectly.

Another thing that I've managed to finish is my Batiste Dry Shampoo in 'floral and flirty blush', I'd heard so much praise about the Batiste range throughout the blogging community and this was my first product of theirs I'd tried. As far as a dry shampoo goes it does all the things it needs to do and is definitely a blessing on a bad or lazy hair day, for that reason I'll probably pick up a replacement but maybe in another type, I keep going to say shade silly me lol! Lastly I'm nearly finished, (that still counts right?) my L'oreal Micellar Water something I've been using up over the past few months. Since makeup wipes are so bad and all that I've been trying to make a conscious effort to use this instead and its worked well so far - eye makeup that usually would have been a hassle to get off now wipes off in an instance making my bedtime routine a lot quicker and me a lot happier. I now want to try other Micellar Waters to see which one works the best for me.  

So that's my empties for March/April I guess.... if you enjoyed this type of post be sure to let me know. It was a lovely change to write rather than my usual posts. Feel free to let me know what products you've used up lately. Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

January Beauty Favourites;

Where has the month of January gone? It feels like yesterday that we were celebrating New Years and soon enough it'll be Easter! Throughout the month I've loved using so many products - old and new and had a hard time narrowing them down but I eventually managed to for you lovely readers.

With all this cold weather I've found myself reaching for my Baby Lips Hydrate in the morning to keep my lips in good condition because let's be honest chapped lips are not attractive. I've been using this along with my Revlon Lip Butters and these two lip products together work like a dream, out of the ones I own my favourite shade is Macaroon as it gives colour to the lips but not too much and is super moisturising.

For my face I've found an incredible duo in my Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation and Wake Me Up Foundation - usually I wouldn't mix my foundations but on a whim I tried it and well it's definitely a winner. As for eye products about halfway through the month I decided to purchase the L'oreal Miss Manga Mascara whilst on offer and I can safely say since then it has been my trusty go to mascara in the morning. It makes my lashes look long and volumized which always helps in the morning when I need to look more awake.

For most of the month I ditched the eyeshadow that I've ever so fond of and decided to bare all wearing just mascara and then eyeliner. This was mainly due to finding my collection eyeliner in a drawer after being thrown in and forgotten about and I felt like I should give it another chance. For being so inexpensive it really does the trick, it creates a lovely look perfect for everyday wear and I seriously love it.

The last thing I've been properly loving is my perfume of the month Taylor Swifts Wonderstruck Enchanted - last Christmas I received Taylor's original perfume Enchanted and loved it so I felt like asking for her second for Christmas was ideal. At first I thought they smelt quite similar but after smelling them again I realised Wonderstruck Enchanted has more of a floral and sweeter smell whereas Enchanted is quite musky - both however smell amazing and I would definitely recommend them! They are such nice everyday perfumes to spritz on and they last throughout the entire day.

These types of my posts (excuse the irony) are one of my favourites to read so I hope you all enjoy reading mine as well. Have you tried anything in January that you've really loved? Let me know :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

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FOTD;

I thought I'd share with you lovely readers my FOTD, I was only popping into town for a few things and it was just one of those days when I had little time and didn't want to spend hours doing a full face of makeup. It also seemed a bit wasteful and for this reason I opted for a fairly quick and natural look. 

For my base I experimented a little and mixed together my Wake Me Up Foundation in shade 100 - Ivory and my Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in the shade 51 to create a flawless base (I'll definitely be using this duo again in the future). I then used my Real Techniques powder brush to apply my Stay Matte powder just to make sure everything would stay in place and after that used the Rimmel Sun Shimmer Bronzer on my cheeks to give them a pop of colour. I then used my MUA brow pencil in blonde to fill in my brows and after touched them up with the darkest shade of eyeshadow in my MUA heaven and earth palette - I cannot express just how handy this little palette is. I usually just apply eyeshadow and mascara in the mornings and eyeliner on a special occasion but strangely enough today I decided to go without eyeshadow and apply eyeliner instead, weird right. The one I applied along my upper lash line was my Collection 24 hour felt tip liner in black and then I applied a black pencil along my lower lash instead. Then for mascara I used the new L'oreal Miss Manga mascara which really makes all the difference to my natural lashes. And for lips I used my Babylips in Hydrate to ensure my lips were moisturised and then my Rimmel Kate Moss Matte Lipstick in Shade 101 - definitely keeping the neutral theme going on. (oh and I apologise for the topsy turvy photos but the landscape photos of my face just didn't show the make up at all).  

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

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Beauty Haul

You know you have a problem when you go in to Boots to buy the Stay Matte Powder and you come out with a heck of a lot more. There's so many amazing offers across all of the brands at the minute and I couldn't help but be lured in yet again oops. 

When I walk around the drugstore I tend to forget about why I actually went in and get distracted by all of the other amazing products instead - I really should start making shopping lists. Firstly I picked up the MUA eyebrow pencil in blonde, this may seem a little odd since my hairs now been dyed brunette but strangely enough it still suits and does all an eyebrow pencil needs to do and more. I then saw a huge stand in Boots advertising the new LOreal Paris Miss Manga Mascara, this and the numerous adverts on my t.v (I'll blame them) made me pop it in my basket. My lashes are quite short so I'm always on the look out for something which will both lengthen and volumize them so here's hoping. Once I've used it a couple of times I'll be sure to post a review letting you lovely readers know whether its been a success or not.    

Also Rimmel in particular has loads of great offers on at the moment and I was able to repurchase my trusted Wake Me Up Foundation in the shade 100-Ivory as my one at present is definitely on it's way out with it being my everyday go to foundation and all. Then I popped in my basket the famous Stay Matte Powder (the one thing that I actually needed) - an essential for every makeup bag. Whilst at the stand I realised that although the foundation is one of my favourites I'd never tried the Wake Me Up Concealer and with it being £2 cheaper than normal I decided this would be a good time to, picking up the same shade as my foundation 'Ivory'. Since I was going a little concealer crazy I also picked up the MUA concealer stick in 'fair', I remember buying this months ago and I haven't a clue where it disappeared to so hopefully this one won't do the same. 

Finally I decided to purchase one of the new(ish) Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipsticks. There was an offer in which these ever so popular lipsticks were only £4 something and when I popped in to the shops there were very little left, maybe I just picked the wrong day to go shopping. As there were so little I was only able to pick up one in the shade '180-Vintage Pink', it's the most amazing colour and it really stood out to me as a nice wearable everyday shade. I'm definitely going to purchase a few more of these and I'll be sure to write a little review when they've been tested out properly. 

So that's a couple of the things that I've picked up over the past week (I know its a lot but I got my student loan in and treated myself). Has anyone else been bought anything nice lately? Or any of the above products? Let me know :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo