My Everyday Makeup Bag // Winter Edition

Heya! I love looking at these sorts of blog posts because it really shows a lot of products that are worth buying and all in one post, and I have to say I highly recommend every single product shown! I have split the pictures into eyes, lips and cheeks and face to get a better view of the products. Details will be below each picture. The products I chose were ones I used most often, I do have a few other products that I use almost as regularly but these are ones I have been using most recently. Enjoy!

 

From L to R:

 

Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation in Vanilla

 

Clinique Superpowder Double Face Powder in Matte Neutral

 

Benefit Boi-ing Concealer in Light

 

Maybelline Eraser Eye Under Eye Concealer in Light 

 

 

 

From Top to Bottom:

 

Urban Decay Naked Palette

 

Collection 2000 Extreme Liquid Eyeliner in Black

 

Rimmel London Sexy Curves Mascara in Black Brown

 

Maybelline Great Lash in Blackest Black 

 

Miss Sporty Clear Mascara (For Brows)

 

MAC Paint Pot in Painterly

 

Sleek Brow Kit in Light

 

From Top to Bottom, L to R:

 

MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Earthshine (Limited Edition)

 

MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Stereo Rose (Limited Edition)

 

Revlon Just Bitten Balm Stain in Crush 

 

Maybelline Baby Lips in Cherry Me

 

MAC Lipstick in Rebel (Not Pictured, Can't Find It! Oops...)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed this sneak peek inside my makeup bag, have a lovely rest of your day!

 

 

 

Lauren xoxo

Trend Seeker // Winter 2013 Makeup Trends

Heya! Today I am starting a new 'trend seeker' series which will hopefully run seasonally and will contain all of the latest and hottest trends in makeup and possibly fashion! I am really excited about these posts because I love getting the gossip on all the latest catwalk and high street makeup trends because it gives you the opportunity to try something new whilst looking stylish and up-to-date at the same time! The posts will be in three sections- eyes, lips and face. Enjoy!

FACE:

Matte 'Finished' Skin

Following the previous long lasting trend of the natural 'dewy' finish, the current trend has gone in the opposite direction with matte, flawless and powdered makeup dominating the catwalks. Personally, I have never been a fan of the 'dewy' finish anyway because it is so easy for the skin to look too glowing and oily, so this trend works for me!


Products to try....

Clinique Superpowder Double Face Powder

 

 





 

EYES:



Thin Black Eyeliner

 

Moving away from the vintage style thick winged eyeliner, this winter it is all about a much thinner and more subtle line. This will give a subtle definition to your eyes without over shadowing them and will add a subtle hint of glamour. Personally I would also wing this out with a thin single line wing, but its all down to personal preference.

 

 

 

 

Products to try....



Maybelline Master Precise Eye Liner

 

 

 

LIPS:

 

 



 

 

 

Matte Wine/Berry Lips

 

This is probably by favourite trend of all- the matte dark lip. If you don't have a matte lipstick, use powder to blot the shine away. This trend can be made wearable for your everyday makeup routine, just tone down the eyes and let your lips do the talking!

 

 

 

Products to try....

 

 

 

 

 

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Crush

 

 

 

 

Hope you have fun trying out these new trends! Just to add, the three products mentioned have all been tried and tested by me and have been firm favourites of mine for a long time, so I highly recommend all of them.

 

 

 

Lauren xoxo





Christmas Party Outfit Ideas

 

Heya! Following on with the Christmas themed posts, I have created a few looks that would be perfect for a Christmas party or even a Christmas day outfit! I have tried to create looks for a variety of styles so that there is hopefully something for everyone. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Outfit #1 Girly With An Edge

I called this outfit girly with an edge because I think the black netted top of the dress gives it a slightly edgier look along with the plain black shoes, and for a pop of colour I added a glamorous gold clutch. The clutch shown is on the pricier side but I have seen so many similar clutches so I'm sure anyone interested will have no problem finding an affordable alternative.





Outfit #2 Glam Rock Chick

 

This outfit is very edgy and I kept it simple and edgy and added a pop of glam with the studded clutch. I love my leather jackets and I would probably wear an outfit like this as I do like my black clothing!

Outfit #3 Bold and Gold

Cobalt blue has always been one of my favourite party dress colours and it looks great with all skin tones and hair colours. I dressed this pretty dress up with black and gold accessories to add a touch of glam and I think this would be the perfect Christmas party dress.



Hope this was helpful, and enjoy your Christmas!


Lauren xoxo
 

Christmas Gift Ideas | Under £10

Heya! I know this may be a bit late for all of you super organised girls out there, but if like me you are a bit of a last minute girl when it comes to Christmas shopping, here are some brilliant gift ideas that I have found for under £10! With my budget forever decreasing and my list of people to buy for forever increasing, I have really had to budget this year and find reading these really helpful, so hopefully you will find this helpful too!


Paperchase Moustache Jewellery Stand £6

I love this gift because it is a little bit different but will put a smile on someone's face. Also, because of the colour it will match with any colour scheme in any bedroom so is a perfect quirky gift for anyone.





New Look 3D Reindeer Socks £7.99

How cute are these? Who wouldn't want a mini reindeer sat on their foot! Novelty socks are all the rage at Christmas and these little cuties are a little bit different to your conventional Christmas socks.




Lush Baby Frosty Gift Set £9.75





This is one of the cutest Lush gift sets I have ever seen! I wish I had seen this at my local Lush because this would make the perfect present for friends! It consists of two bath bombs wrapped up inside a snowman cloth and is just adorable, who wouldn't want to unwrap one of these on Christmas day?




Britney Spears Midnight Fantasy Perfume 30ml £9.99 at Boots

 

This is such an amazing bargain with an RRP of £22! I can tell you honestly that this smells amazing as I bought it for my sister and the bottle is also gorgeous. Perfect for an expensive looking present on a budget!

 

 

 

 

Have a lovely Christmas!

 

 

 

Lauren xoxo

Collection 2000 Little Mix 'Perrie' Lipstick Review

Heya! Recently I was in my local Superdrug when the new 'Little Mix' collection by Collection 2000 caught my eye. As soon as I saw the 'Perrie' lipstick, I knew I had to try it out. It is very different to your conventional plum toned lipstick and is more of a warm toned purple. I have never tried an actual purple lipstick so I was very excited when I saw this colour and at £3 it was a steal! I didn't really know what to expect when it came to pigmentation and staying power as I have only tried one other Collection 2000 lipstick and I have to say I hated it and gave it to my sister, so I was not very optimistic!

 

 

 

Pigmentation- 8/10 The lipstick was pretty pigmented and can be sheered out or applied opaque

 

Finish- 8/10 This lipstick has a creamy satin finish and is very smooth and buttery

 

Lasting Power- 5/10 This is where the lipstick let me down, it slides of the lips pretty quickly and easily leaving that annoying ring on the lip line and would have to be reapplied after eating and drinking and at other stages throughout the day

 

Colour- 10/10 I absolutely love the colour of this, it is a warmer toned purple but it does have cooler blue undertones and I have not seen a colour like this before

 

Overall rating- 7/10 I gave this quite a high rating considering the poor staying power because I love the colour and finish so much that I would say it was worth having to reapply it quite regularly. Saying that, if I found a dupe for this with a better staying power I would feel the need to purchase that and discard this one.

 

 

Lauren xoxo



October Makeup Favourites 2013

Heya! The month of October was the real changing point in my seasonal makeup as it really starts to get colder and I find myself reaching for those darker reds over the summery pinks I had been wearing. Because of all the great new products I have tried recently, I decided it would be a good idea to do a post on all my favourite products from the past month. If my daily makeup varies enough I may start making this a monthly thing as I find these really helpful whenever I read them.



Face Products:

 

 

 

 

Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation in 'Vanilla':
Lightweight but with buildable coverage, this is my current favourite foundation. It feels like nothing on your skin and is not greasy at all like other light foundations I have tried e.g. Maybelline 'Fit Me' and is a really good match for my pale winter skin tone (great for yellow/olive undertoned skin!).

Clinique Superpowder Double Face Powder in 'Matte Ivory':
Although the colour match is not perfect as there seems to be no yellow based powders in this line, I LOVE this powder at the moment. The coverage is amazing, you could wear this as a foundation. It is by far the best powder I have ever tried, worth the slightly hefty price tag.

Maybelline The Eraser Eye in 'Light':
This is the best under eye concealer I have ever tried. It covers dark circles very well leaving just a faint shadow visible under my eyes and is well needed after getting up at 5:50am for college half the week! It is very creamy and blendable and is very yellow toned (hooray!) so matches my foundation and skin perfectly!

 
 

 

 

 

Sleek Brow Kit in 'Light':

 

Although I don't use the wax, I do really like this handy little kit. The powder (like always) is slightly too much of warm brown but is the closest match to my eye brows so far. I have gone form someone who never felt the need to fill their brows in to using this every day, so that speaks for itself!

 

 

 

Collection 2000 Extreme Felt Tip Liner in 'Black':

I do really like this eyeliner for the price. Although it still doesn't beat the Maybelline version, at half the price I can deal with that! The only difference to me is it takes a little more skill to apply neatly and isn't quite as black, but apart from that I do like it a lot.

 

 

 

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in 'Crush'

This has been my go-to lip colour recently because it is so quick and easy to apply before leaving the door, and easy to take in your pocket for touch ups throughout the day. It is long lasting and very pigmented so I usually wear it sheer by just dabbing it on for a subtle hint of colour. I have tried many plum/red toned lipsticks, usually in deeper tones like this, and this is by far one of my favourites. Very good for people like me that seem to suit reds over pinks, especially if again like me your lips are naturally quite pigmented with red as it just deepens this colour and is very pretty.

 

 

 

 

Lots of Love,

 

 

Lauren x

Autumn Fashion Favourites

 

Heya!

I have been busy busy busy recently with work and college, so haven't had time to post but I am back now! Today I am doing my current autumn fashion favourites consisting of key pieces from my own autumn wardrobe. These have all been tried and tested by me so I can confidently recommend them all! Enjoy :)




New Look Petite Black Coated Disco Pants £22.99

http://www.newlook.com/shop/womens/petite/petite-black-coated-disco-pants_290692301

New Look Petite Monochrome Aztec Print Leggings £12.99


 http://www.newlook.com/shop/womens/petite/petite-monochrome-aztec-print-leggings-_292961609























H&M Purl-Knit Cardigan in Burgundy £14.99

http://www.hm.com/gb/product/12039?article=12039-E#article=12039-D

Summer Fashion Picks- American Apparel and Urban Outfitters

Heya! Today I decided to turn away from beauty and do a fashion post! I have seen so many amazing items of summer clothing recently that I had to get them out there! Some of these I have purchased so can tell you a bit more about and others I hope to purchase soon :)


1)

Pins and Needles at Urban Outfitters

I literally cannot tell you how obsessed I am with this brand! Not all their amazing clothing is shown online so I picked out one of my fave tops from the collection. It retails at £30 which is a bit much but their clothing is so gorgeous and unique I am willing to pay a bit more for it! (Just to say- yes I would wear a white vest top under this hehe).



2)

Cooperative at Urban Outfitters


Another Urban item I know but I love love love daisies and now they are a trend in clothing I cannot get enough! This trend was made for me- the girl who spent half her childhood making daisy chains and threading them in her plaits! Plus being the girly flouncy ridiculously feminine girl that I am, I practically live in skater skirts. Again, expensive at £35 but its gorgeous so I need it. End of story.





3)

American Apparel

Chiffon Double-Layered Shirred Waist Skirt in Cobalt

I literally have wanted this skirt for so long. I nearly bought it on numerous occasions but at £40 always decided against it. That was until I saw it on ASOS, in my size, in the colour I wanted, and nearly half price at £24! I picked up the last XS/S but other sizes may still be in stock if you are interested! Plus delivery is free- bonus! I love the colour- it has always suited my hair and skin tone the best and I cannot wait to wear it!







Lauren xoxo

Drugstore Haul ft. Maybelline and MUA

Heya! So I went shopping yesterday with the intention of buying some nice summer clothing. I came back with nothing but a pink Superdrug bag. Oh dear...  In my defence, I did pick up two items that I have wanted for a very long time, one of which I have only just seen in the UK so I just had to get it, any fellow UK citizens who are fed up of seeing all the lucky Americans with great products that we can't have understand, don't you? Anyway, I also picked up one product on a whim, and I also had an excuse for that as Superdrug are doing 2 for 3 on Maybelline so I convinced myself it would be silly not to take up on this offer. I also found a great alternative to my favourite felt tip liner that came in a quarter of the price! Enough rambling, here is where my makeup obsession drew me to buy yesterday!

Left to Right:  Maybelline BB Cream in Light, Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Hot Plum, Maybelline The Eraser Under Eye Concealer in Light, MUA Extreme Felt Tip Eye Liner in Black

So there is my cheeky little haul! I managed to get the lot for around £18, because Maybelline was 3 for 2 so I got the lipstick free! Bargain.

Here are my first opinions so far:

BB Cream- I bought 'Light' as I think it should be labelled 'Light to Medium' because there was a big jump between their 'Light' and 'Medium' shades so this could be misleading for girls like my who usually go for medium shades. I haven't tried it on my face yet but when I do I am likely to do a full review and maybe a comparison between this and my Garnier BB cream. One advantage it has already is when I swatched this it did not make my hand look shiny or greasy and that is why I wanted to purchase it as I wanted a BB cream I could wear as a foundation. It cost £7.99.

Lipstick- I have worn this once already and I must say the pigmentation is great. I love the colour- its very different to your usual pink as it has a very plum/purple tone to it and reminds me a lot of MAC Candy Yum Yum, so a possible dupe here? I cannot be sure as I don't not currently own the MAC version so I'm hoping I saved money here. The only downfall is the waxy texture that reminds me of cheap lipstick, and this was not the cheapest for drugstore at £7.19.

Concealer- I have tried this out once and I have to say I am impressed. The shade blends in to my skin well and I had reservations that it may be too light but it was more a medium light shade so it was perfect. That said, this may be too dark for those with porcelain skin. It had the best coverage I have ever seen from an under eye concealer, and beat my current concealer (Benefit Bo-ing) with the coverage of the under eye circles. It was £7.99.

Eyeliner- I usually have worn Maybelline Master Precise felt tip liner and have never tried another brand. Until yesterday. I decided I did not feel like shelling out the usual £5.99 for that, so when I saw this at £2 I picked it up. I do not regret it! It is very long wearing, a nice deep black colour- not quite as black as Maybelline with one layer but just as black with two, and easy to apply. In fact, it was easier to apply than the Maybelline liner because the felt tip brush was shorter so I have more control.



Want a more in depth review of any of these products? Let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading,





Lauren xoxo

Where have you been Lauren?!

Heya! So this is not a beauty related post of any kind, but I would like to say that I have not forgotten this blog, I am very sorry for not posting for the whole of July (Lauren? Sort yourself out girl!) and I will be posting this week! I do have a sort of excuse- I got a job! I have been doing a lot of overtime recently so that is why I was so busy for the whole of July as that was when I got given the job. On the up side, the job is in Debenhams- which for all of you who don't live in the wonderful UK which has decided to mark the end of an unbearable heat wave with very scary thunder storms that have often made me jump, is a large nationwide department store so that does mean more makeup hauls and reviews because... 25% of MAC, Bobbi Brown, Urban Decay, Benefit.. so watch out for those ;)



Lauren xoxo

Bare Minerals Faux Tan Review

Heya! Sorry I've been gone so long, I finished my exams at the beginning of last week but its been a bit hectic since. I missed blogging, so I promise I will try my best to be consistent from now on!
That said, its review time! I have two reviews I've prepared, but the first that I will post about is on a new fake tan I have been trying out. I ordered the Bare Minerals 'Faux Tan' last week, but have managed to use it four times since so I still have a lot to say about it! I've not tried many fake tans, mainly gradual tanners as you've seen me write about before so I was sceptical as to what the results would be. I decided to invest in a mid priced product- I wanted something with good reviews but from a well known company but wasn't ready to invest in anything like 'St Tropez' until I am comfortable with using 'proper' fake tans as I like to call them!

The packaging- A bit tacky and cheap don't you think?

The bottle

The product colour (I was stingy and didn't want to waste product so took it like this!)

Overall first impressions were clouded by the outer packaging. It's lucky I bought this online because if saw this in a store it certainly would not entice me! It looks like something I could pick up at Primark for a quid! That aside, the actual bottle is acceptable and the dark colour of the product meant I could see where I had put it- very handy for avoiding streaks, although it did turn my tanning mit mossy green!

The actual product itself dried very quickly- about fifteen minutes in fact. This means it would be great for popping on in the morning and going out the door. It developed within three or four hours which again is very fast compared to other tans I have used which need evening application so they can develop over night. It smelled of marzipan, and personally I liked this and it did not bother me but I can see how this might put other people off.

One thing I found was an issue is the dark colour that is supposed to help you see where you have put the tan. After reading other reviews people said they waited a few hours then took a shower to wash this off revealing a lovely golden tan. I did two coats in one day, then two hours after the second coat took a shower and watched my lovely tan go down the plug hole. I don't know if leaving it longer would improve this, but I was left with a light barely there tan as apposed to my deep olive glow that was previously there. Because of this I have found I actually prefer this 'indicator' colour to the actual colour of the tan- so today I left it how it was and I love the result! It has given me a lovely olive glow that matches with my natural olive tones in my skin and I really like the result. I guess this isn't how the manufacturers expected it to be worn, but I like it much better this way! I will of course be taking a shower tonight so I will see if my lovely glow disappears again, but I will let you guys know if it doesn't!

Price- £12.50 feelunique.com
Smell- Marzipan. Yum.
Lasting Power- In the water- not great! Might improve if left for much longer then suggested.
Colour- Lovely olive tan with two coats.
Overall Rating- 6.5/10 (might improve if it stays on tonight!)



Lauren xoxo

New Drugstore Product Launches- May/June 2013

Heya! I always like to keep up to date with new product launches, because you never know when something amazing will come along! Often I only find out about these launches when I next go shopping, and sometime if the product is a really big craze, this is too late and the colour I want is always sold out. This is why I decided to do a series on 'product launch' posts every month or two, just to update you on all the most exciting releases so you never have to miss out again! Another bonus of finding out early are that certain brands (Revlon for example) have 'new launch' prices where you can save a pound or too, another reason why I thought this series would be particularly helpful- for you and me both! Enjoy!


Revlon:

Image Credit: nouveaucheap.blogspot.com

I am very excited about these new colours! I already own three of the 'old' style lip-glosses from the 'super lustrous' line, and have always been very fond of them. I'm not sure if the formulation has been changed, but as these are not in the UK yet I guess it will be a while before I find out! I love the new packaging, very similar to MAC lip-glosses, and the colours are gorgeous! I am particularly excited about 'Sugar Violet' and 'Berry Allure' and can't wait to try them out!

Which colours do you want to try? Or have you already tried them? Let me know in the comments! :)



Maybelline:

Image Credit- nouveaucheap.blogspot.com

These are the newest additions to the 'colour tattoo' collection, and the line is called 'Metal Rush'. I really hope these come to the UK, as we rarely get many of the latest Maybelline releases, if any. The formula appears to be similar to some of the existing shades from the original line like 'On and On Bronze' as that too has a metallic sheen to it. The shades from L to R are: Silver Strike, Inked in Pink, Gold Rush, Barely Branded and Electric Blue. The shades I would like to get (if Maybelline are nice enough to give us these fab colours!) are 'Inked in Pink' which is something different but very pretty and 'Barely Branded' which looks like the perfect neutral base.



Which colours do you want to try? Or have you already tried them? Let me know in the comments! :)




Rimmel London:

Image Credit- www.beautynl.nl

 Rimmel has launched a new stay glossy line! I have previously tried these glosses a year or two ago, and really loved the silky formula. The colours are very pretty and summery, and the glittery '3D' effect will be create the perfect summer pout. 'Red Carpet Glam' looks like a nice pretty sophisticated 'dinner out' colour and I also like the look of 'Lights Camera Action' for a daytime nude.



Which colours do you want to try? Or have you already tried them? Let me know in the comments! :)




 NEW LINE AT SUPERDRUG!

Image Credit- pieseyes.blogspot.com



 As you can see from me writing the title in caps, I was very excited when I spotted this is my local Superdrug! I have been waiting to see OPI in a UK drugstore for like, forever! I haven't purchased any colours yet as there are too many I'm in love with! Ones that will most likely appear in my collection in the future are: 'A Like-Haley Story' a hot coral pink from the Modern Family collection, 'Alex By The Books' also from that collection, 'Change the World' a fuchsia plum, 'Deeply in Love' a deep red, and 'Stand By Your Manny' a cornflower blue from MF collection. These are definitely worth checking out, at just £7.99 they are much cheaper than the usual OPI polish and just as gorgeous!




 Which colours do you want to try? Or have you already tried them? Let me know in the comments! :)










Lauren xoxo

Revlon Colorstay Ultimate Suede Lipstick Review

Heya! I'm sorry its been a few days since my last post, I've been so busy with exams this past week and have them all of next week too so I apologize if this trend continues for another week! I will have plenty of spare time on my hands for shopping and reviews after that so don't worry! Today I decided to review a product that I showed to you in my last post- one of the new Revlon Ultimate Suede lipsticks. I had been pining over this shade for a while after seeing a similar one in MAC, and finally took the plunge when Superdrug had a 3 for 2 (this offer may still be on, so I would check it out!).

As you can see (pics were on my iphone so are not quite as good as usual!) the lipstick is a bright pink toned red or red toned pink, which ever way you want to see it! I love the colour of this, but my overall opinions are as follows:

Pigmentation- Brilliant, can also be worn sheer by dabbing it on.
Texture- Smooth and buttery to apply but not as soft as the lip butters which is great because they were too soft! Downside: when the lip butter has dried it has a gluey dry sticky texture that sticks your lips together!
Staying Power- Lasts all day on the majority of the lips, but I did find it wore off in the center of my lips leaving an awkward line!
Smell- Nothing unpleasant.
Price- £8.99 at Superdrug.

This was on the higher end of drugstore lipstick pricing, and although the amazing colour and pigmentation lived up to it, I was very dissapointed with the staying power in the middle of my lips and that awkward sticky texture when it dried. I will continue to wear this as I love the colour, but will not 'dare to leave my lipstick at home' as the advert claims because I don't want bright pink/red lips with pale pink in the middle! I would consider repurchasing it, but then again I may just go to MAC and get one I can trust!

Have you tried this lipstick or another in the line? Let me know if you had the same experience, or maybe a different one? I would also love to know if any of the other colours in this line are worth purchasing, so comment below I would love to hear from you!


Lauren xoxo