Tag Archives: Makeup

Beauty Wishlist for Summer

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I’ve never done one of these before, but there are certainly a lot of products I’ve been mentally wishlisting lately so I thought I’d make physical note, and you never know, you might get some summer inspiration too!wishlist

1. Jurlique Rose Finishing Powder – My No.7 Translucent Powder is about to run out, and I’ve been lusting after this light, gorgeously scented rose powder for as long as I’ve known what Jurlique is. I’m pretty sure it can be used over makeup, and if so, this is definitely my powder most wanted.

2. Lipstick Queen Frog Prince Lipstick – How on earth could you not want this in your life. First of all I tried it on my hand in Space NK and the colour was stunning – it’s a slightly translucent, beautiful pink, which is perfect for me because thick, heavily pigmented lipsticks just don’t work for me. I never really put anything luxurious on my lips, so this would be a lovely change.

3. Mario Badescu Flower Tonic Mask – I’m an absolute sucker for anything with a name like ‘Flower Tonic’ so this was always going to be on my list. However after reading that the ingredients include kaolin and Balsam of Peru (an extraordinarily effective healing extract) I was desperate to try it. Pore-clarifying and healing are two things my skin really needs.

4. Mario Badescu Botanical Exfoliating Scrub – Living right up to the stereotype I made for myself in the previous paragraph, the name of this scrub got my attention right away. However this does look amazing, with extracts of basically everything you need to restore a healthy, glowing and balanced complexion. Ginger, gingko, green tea, aloe and coconut together with palm seed powder to buff away dead skin….like…hell yes.

5. Philip Kingsley Geranium and Neroli Elasticizer – The reviews of this stuff are amazing, as are the awards it’s been lauded with. I love the idea of a ‘pre-shampoo’, as well as the fact that you can sleep with it on your hair. I’ve never actually seen it in stores so I have no idea what it smells like, but I can’t see how it wouldn’t be absolutely gorgeous. I just can’t shake the idea that my hair would be left silky smooth after using this, so I shall have  to try it.

6. Sukin Natural Deodorant – I’m anti antiperspirant, but the summer heat in London is proving too much for the lovely Deo My BO solid deodorant bar from Lush (despite it working wonderfully before it got so hot!) I definitely want to give this one a try, as I love everything I’ve tried from Sukin so far.

7. Frog Prince Wash Bag from Catseye – I’ve been lusting after this for over a year – I love the happy, cute design and it’s the perfect size for all the stuff I bring with me everywhere. Really I should just get a grip and buy it, but every time I go into Selfridge’s and see it, it just seems so frivolous (it isn’t, it’s only £15 so I don’t know what I’m on about really).

8. & Other Stories Nail Colour in Dot Peach – I recently bought the most gorgeous sandals from Topshop, but I need a muted nail colour to go with my work clothes. & Other Stories have really lovely nail polishes, and I adore this cute pink colour.

9. Bliss Ingrown Eliminating Pads – I’m really curious about these. Both my boyfriend and I get ingrown hairs occasionally (it’s really common for guys to get these on their legs!) and they’re bloody annoying, so if these work it would be fantastic – it is shorts season after all!

What’s on your summer wishlist? Any of these?

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Dr Paw Paw Tinted Ultimate Red Balm

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I’d heard about the Australian love of paw paw as an ingredient years ago, when I used to use Aussie hair care (I am aware that Aussie isn’t Australian, don’t worry). So when people started talking about how paw paw ointment is a staple in every Australian’s life, I was curious. Dr Paw Paw isn’t actually Australian, but it’s a great product and I’ve really enjoyed using it.

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I stumbled across Dr Paw Paw in Urban Outfitters and decided to go for the red tinted one because I’m always on the lookout for fuss free ways to apply pigment to my lips (lipstick stresses me out SO much). As well as the un-tinted original, they do a peach pink colour, and a giant tube of the original version.

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The reason for the giant tube is that paw paw ointment is a multipurpose antibacterial and antimicrobiral balm. Fermented paw paw (aka papaya) is an antioxidant, and helps repair the skin. There’s aloe in there to help calm and soothe, as well as olive oil to nourish and petroleum jelly to protect. This is one of those multipurpose magic balms that does it all for chapped, irritated or dry skin. I put mine to the test on the dry, cracked skin between my fingers. Aside from looking distinctly pink from the red pigment, the skin is smooth and soft, with no white bits at all. That’s something that almost all hand creams and balms struggle to get rid of, so I’m very impressed, and will be purchasing an original colourless balm as soon as I can!

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As you can see, the Ultimate Red Balm is a gorgeously rich colour, and I’m actually really impressed with the colour payoff. It’s subtle, but way better than any other coloured lipbalm I’ve tried. Because my lips are quite full and there isn’t a clean line between my lips and the skin around them, I find it really hard to get lipstick to look good. So a balm like this is perfect.

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This balm is great. It’s only £6.95 for a 25ml tube, and leaves the skin soft and nicely coloured for a good while. I think the clear one will go down really well with my boyfriend, who’s lip cracks in the middle a lot (poor baby), as well as with my cracked hands. After applying the red stuff between my fingers, it’s actually kept the dryness at bay for about 3 hours now, which is really impressive!

What’s in my makeup bag

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This combination of Laura Mercier, Eve Lom, Clarins, Benefit and No7 has transformed my skin over the past few months. Basically after I came back from North America my skin went rapidly downhill and I had dryness, dullness and spots. I had to change my routine completely, and I want to share all the things I’ve found, because they are uh-mazing.

Fair warning before we begin: Recently I’ve been on a what can only be described as an Eve Lom binge. Prepare your blog-reading eyes because this is just the first instalment.

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It’s kind ironic that I chose this Pamela Barsky bag while staying in New York in the summer. Since then I’ve been doing admin work and become horrendously well organised. Or have I? Perhaps I’m pretending…

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May as well start at the beginning of my routine. Also, sorry, these photos are not as good as I was hoping, I didn’t realise until I started writing but now I want to share, DAMMIT! I don’t have time to wait until I’m home during daylight hours again! Ok anyway. To be honest, I chose Laura Mercier’s Oil Free Primer because I was idly walking around Brighton with my boyfriend, went into a shop,  someone I used to work with was there, and she recommended it. But I’m really grateful she did.

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My foundation lasts longer, comes off easier, and looks WAY better. This stuff, if you have oily or combination skin, is perfect. It feels silky when it goes on, and there’s no colour to it, or GLITTER. I can’t stand glittery primer (it’s not ‘shimmer’ either, don’t start that now).  Get it for £29 – it lasts for quite a while too!

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This is such a bad picture. Urgh, just click the link and save me from myself. Clarins Instant Concealer is pretty good, I’d say it’s the only product in my makeup bag that I don’t love, just tolerate though. It’s £21, and it does last for a long time, but they only do three shades and I happen to be really lucky that one is my skin tone. While the concealer does do the job well, the bottle is horrendous. it holds air inside it because it’s a stiff plastic which doesn’t shrink down when you use the product, which I feel must mean it ruins the concealer after a while, or there are lots of preservatives in it. If you have any suggestions for better concealers, PLEASE COMMENT! Help me perfect my makeup bag.

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I had been using Clarins Everlasting Foundation for a long time, and it stopped feeling good. I got a sample of Eve Lom’s Radiance Lift Foundation and adored it, but I was concerned by the way it seemed to streak a bit when I applied it with a brush. This was why I was kind of absent mindedly browsing for a primer, and by using a makeup sponge to blot over it after I put it on, I have pretty much the smoothest face of my life (well, maybe since puberty hit).

IMG_5510Eve Lom Foundation is incredible, I love the colour and the way it feels on my skin. It’s £50, so do with that information what you will. I think it’s completely worth it though…

IMG_5499Yet another terrible photo. This is No7’s trusty Perfect Light Pressed Powder. You really can’t argue with a product like this, it absorbs oil and keeps my super greasy lids perfectly matte all day. I used to apply it all over when my skin was seriously oily, but I don’t need to do that anymore, just my lids. Very simple, very affordable, I highly recommend it as a powder for someone who doesn’t need to use powder very much. Plus it’s only £11.50!

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Lastly, here are my applicators. I’ve had this brush, and the one below, for about seven years. They’re from The Body Shop, and wow were they worth the investment. I buy cheap eyeliner brushes which I have to replace every few months, but these two have lasted so well…actually…WHY do I still buy cheap eyeliner brushes? Maybe it’s time for another minor investment. This is my foundation brush, it’s really soft, and spreads foundation perfectly.

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And this is a powder brush, which is what I use to apply powder to my eyelids. I wash these every few months in gentle shower gel like Dr Bronner’s or Weleda, and I think that must help them last longer too. They’re just great. Get them here – because mine are so old I don’t actually know exactly which ones they are, but I’m sure the new ones will be just as good!

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Ending on a slightly boring note…this is what I use to apply concealer and blend my foundation. I use the pointy bit for concealer, and the rounded bit for foundation. This came in a pack of 8 from Superdrug and cost basically nothing, but the great thing about it is that it doesn’t seem to absorb much makeup at all. I washed it for the photo, but very little actually came out! To be honest I bought it because the sponges were arranged in a flower shape…but they do a great job anyway, luckily.

IMG_5495So there you go! My current makeup essentials. What are yours? Any recommendations? 🙂

Bringing the beauty – a Travel Post!

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I’m super excited. Tomorrow I’ll be going to New York for the first time! And then up to Canada, to stay with a friend. I can’t wait, and I thought that before I go I’d share how I roll when it comes to travelling.

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These are my essentials for hand luggage. A good book. Palmer’s lipbalm. Weleda Skin Food (for my face). Weleda Rhinodoron spray for my nose (the dry air doesn’t like my sinuses). A mini Jurlique Rose Hand Cream (luxurious and nourishing, because I’ll be using a tonne of antibac hand wipes too). Pacifica Coconut Milk Wipes (for freshening up). Urbanears Headphones (the best, and prettiest). Gin Gin ginger sweets (for ear popping purposes). Benefit’s They’re Real! (because my eyelashes are more or less see through so I need mascara at all times). Buddha Nose Girl Balm (the smell is calming and refreshing at the same time).

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I’m so glad I invested in a few new mini bottles to decant all this in. Because it went from all that…

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To just these! So satisfying. I’m going to need to wash my hair while I’m away which is annoying, because I need to use so much shampoo and conditioner I have no choice but to bring whole bottles. But being able to shink the rest of the products down to just this has helped SO MUCH. Most of these bottles came from Muji, with the exception of the Travalo perfume bottle, and the oil bottle, which actually came from a Weleda Body Oil set.

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I’ve kept it super simple with make up. To be fair, my make up routine is very simple all the time anyway, as I rarely experiment. I just decanted a couple of broken eyeshadows into my tiniest travel pots to save a little space.

So that’s it! I’m really pleased with how much space I’ve saved with those Muji bottles. Happy travels, touch wood! And if you’re going away yourself this summer, I hope you have a great time 🙂

LGBT Pride-Proof: Clarins Everlasting Foundation Makeup Review

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I’m writing this review through the haze of the kind of hangover only LGBT Pride can produce. You know the one that comes of jumping and screaming all day with no water, then drinking and dancing all night with lots of not-water. So I wasn’t going to write today for fear I wouldn’t be able do justice to Clarins’ brilliant Everlasting Foundation. But then I remembered a thought I had when, at ridiculous o’clock this morning, I sat on my floor to take my makeup off. That thought?

“Wow, my foundation is still on, this stuff really is amazing”

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That’s right. Over 12 hours of sun, rain, sweat, tears and pride. I shook hands with Sir Ian McKellen, I danced to Conchita Wurst, I stuck stickers on my face, I painted it with a rainbow, and I sang along to Cher. This foundation stayed with me through it all. I’ve been using Everlasting Foundation for about five months now, so I’m fully aware of how much I love it. I think the only reason I haven’t reviewed it yet is because my old bottle was scruffy looking from being in my makeup bag, so since I knew I’d be repurchasing I decided to wait.

It gives a wonderfully even finish, the creamy liquid feels lovely going on, and you wouldn’t be able to make it streak even if you tried. I’ve used many foundations over the years and this is the only one that’s stood up to my perpetual distractedness and never left a streak. It blends so well, and covers dark circles up beautifully. I use shade 103 Ivory, and it comes in seven others.

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It’s been great for my skin too, being non-comedogenic and oil free, but I don’t find it drying or irritating which such things can sometimes be. It also contains a tea extract, which will give it an anti-oxidant, pollution protective effect.I just apply with my fingers, and I find that the drying time is perfect for that – you can dot it on everywhere and then blend without it setting in a blob, yay! It also doesn’t transfer onto clothes very easily at all. I highly, highly recommend this, it’s definitely the best foundation I’ve ever had, and at £27 for something that’ll last about 4 months, I think its very well priced. Get it here!

I also recently had a bit of a Clarins splurge…well, you can see the evidence here. The minis and bag were a free gift with the blush and concealer, and I’ll be reviewing all of them soon! Obviously I don’t want to attack my face with all these new things in one go, but I’m working my way through!

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I love Clarins.

 

Summer Beauty Essential: DHC Blotting Paper

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So I bought a box of DHC Oil Blotting Paper a while ago when I was having a serious shine issue, but then the oiliness stopped – so I didn’t have a chance to try them out! Until I came back from work the other day in the suddenly sweltering London heat.

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