Real Techniques Core Collection and Blush Brush Review

Hey everyone!

Remember a couple of posts ago, I said I'd bought something new that I was going to review for you? Well, here it is. I jumped on the bandwagon and got myself a Real Techniques Core Collection and Blush Brush. I've been on a brush hunt recently - I've been refining, adding to and narrowing my collection, so look out for a blog sale with some brushes in it soon!

I'll get straight on to the review, but don't forget to enter my Benefit giveaway!

So, I bought my Real Techniques brushes from Boots. The Core Collection cost £21.99 and the Blush Brush cost £9.99. I know some people have been mad because they cost so much less in the US - but if you divide it, each brush in the Core Collection is £5.50 - although my major gripe with the set is that they don't sell the brushes individually! I wish they did because I'd love to purchase a backup of a couple of the brushes. As you know, the brushes are by Samantha Chapman, one half of the Youtube Pixiwoo duo.

Here's the Blush Brush:

You can see here that it stands up on it's own thanks to the flat base - which I really don't like, but then I would never have my brushes standing alone on my vanity. It also has a pink handle (all the brushes are colour coded, which is cool) - which I'm not the biggest fan of - I do prefer the plain black handle on a makeup brush - but I do appreciate the fact that it's not just a carbon copy of MAC. The handle is big enough that it feels sturdy in your hand.

This brush is so soft. It has synthetic bristles which are contoured slightly for ease of application and it applies blush so well. This is by far my favourite blush brush that I have ever used. It applies colour fairly sheer but can build it up as well. I have been using this brush in my last week of FOTDs and cannot get over how soft it is!

I'll still be using my MAC 188 for cream blushes but this is perfect for powders and well worth the price.

This is the Buffing Brush, part of the Core Collection. Again it stands alone and the handle is coloured a sort of orange-gold. This is going to sound like gushing but I love this brush. The bristles are synthetic, again, and dense. But they are also very soft - they don't have a lot of give but they are not scratchy on your face at all. 

I use this to apply foundation and I love it! It buffs and sheers out my foundation really well, and leaves my skin looking airbrushed and streak-free. My only wish is that you could buy this separately from the main collection.

This is the Contour Brush, part of the Core Collection. As with the previous brushes it stands alone and has a colour-coded handle, and the bristles are synthetic. This is quite small, contoured and soft, although it is also quite dense as it doesn't splay. I use this every day to apply highlighter or sometimes a little contouring under my cheekbones as well. It may be too small for some people but it applies highlighter powders really well. 

This is the Pointed Foundation Brush, part of the Core Collection. This brush again stands on its own, had a colour-coded handle and synthetic bristles. It's a bit stiff, but still flexible. It's soft, doesn't scratch the face, but way too small for all-over foundation application. It's meant to be good for applying foundation to hard to reach places like the nose, but I have yet to find a way to work it for me since I already have a concealer brush that I use for this. It works for some people, but I don't have a use for it.

This is the Detailer Brush, part of the Core Collection. It has a colour-coded handle and synthetic bristles but is too slim to stand alone. This is very small, soft yet stiff. It's recommended for use as a concealer brush or lip brush but I already have each of those and like them, and find that this is too small for me to use as a concealer brush anyway.

The Core Collection comes with a stand which I am not using but some people might find handy, and for the price it's good that it was included.

I've spot-cleaned and fully washed all these brushes and I'm pleased to report no shedding, at least not so far, and brushes that dry quickly and back to their original shape!

Pros:

• Quality of Blush, Buffing, and Contour Brushes justify the prices.
• No shedding
• Shape retention
• Cheaper than other alternatives

Cons:

• Price hike for US - UK
• You can't buy your favourite brushes separately yet
• Flat bottoms (for me!)

What do you think of Real Techniques brushes? I love them and I'm so glad they are now part of my collection, although I may sell on the two from the Core Collection that I just can't justify keeping around as I have the brushes already. 

Do you own any? Do you want to?

S xx

FOTD: MUA & Chanel Les 4 Ombres

Hey everyone!
Before I get started today, I wanted to clarify a couple of things about my giveaway, which you can enter by clicking the link. First of all, following my blog and leaving a comment are both mandatory. You can't do one and not the other, because if you don't leave a comment it's really difficult for me to find you on my list of followers. Secondly, I don't know if it's Blogger acting up but some people I can't see as my followers and my numbers certainly haven't increased. Has anyone else spotted this issue on their own blogs?
Lastly, if you say you are following via Bloglovin', for an extra entry, I will be confirming that with a screenshot of blogs you follow on Bloglovin', since it's anonymous. Keep in mind that this entry is not mandatory and it's entirely up to you whether you do it or not!
With that out of the way, here's my FOTD!

I was supposed to be getting my hair cut today but work got in the way, so hopefully I'll get another appointment for later in the week. While I was doing my makeup this morning, though, I found a palette I hadn't used in forever. My Chanel Les 4 Ombres Smokey Eyes, which was a birthday gift from my mum.
I think I hadn't used it much because the grey shades are more shimmer than pigment, if that makes sense? But hopefully the way I used them today works. I used the two lightest shades from that palette with the MUA Shade 12 single eyeshadow, which I wrote a whole post on here. It is absolutely stunning. Go buy it - seriously, it's £1 and it's one of my favourite eyeshadows ever.

Here's my FOTD:

Here it is with flash for the shimmer effect:

Face:
Lancome Teint Miracle 101 Beige Porcelaine
MAC Studio Finish Concealer NW20
No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter
Sleek Blush Suede (contouring)
Fashionista Blush Cinnamon
Eyes
MUA Shade 12 (crease)
Chanel Les 4 Ombres Smokey Eye top right shadow (inner corner and browbone)
Chanel Les 4 Ombres Smokey Eye bottom left shadow (lid)
Ardell Individual Lashes in Short black and Medium black
Avon 24hr Eyeliner Gold Black
Lips
Collection 2000 Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Cream Cotton Candy


Do you have any MUA/Chanel shadows?
S xx

250 Follower Giveaway!

Hello all my lovely followers!
I recently hit 250 followers which is mad! I can't believe that many of you want to read what I babble on about. Thank you to each and every one of you, you are all brilliant and I am so happy!
Because I have hit something of a landmark (I know to some it will seem small, but it's big to me) I'm having a giveaway!
First I'll lay down the rules, which I know are boring but read them anyway 'cause I'll be checking.

The Rules
1. The giveaway is open as of today, 19th February. It closes at midnight EST (not because that is my timezone, but rather the timezone Rafflecopter uses!) on the 29th February.
2. You must be either over 18 or have a parent's permission to enter.
3. Once the winner is announced, they have 24 hours to contact me or a new winner will be picked.
4. No blog created solely for giveaways can enter. I will be checking.

So here's the prize, and then you can enter using the Rafflecopter form below!

UPDATE
The extra entry of following me on Bloglovin' is not mandatory. However, if you check it I will assume you have done it. Because Bloglovin' is anonymous, if you do win, I will ask for a screenshot of your Bloglovin' with the name of my blog in the sidebar under Blogs I'm Following.
But I don't think anybody would check it without really doing it anyway!

The prize is one Benefit Porefessionally Pretty Set (purchased myself) which contains:

1x Benefit The Porefessional (22ml, full size)

1x Benefit Erase Paste in 02 Medium (3.2g)

1x Benefit Girl Meets Pearl (7.5ml)

Enter away everyone! Good luck!
And thanks to you all again for being so lovely and following me. You really have all been great.

S xx

FOTD: Lilac and Pink

Hey everyone!

I promised an FOTD that wasn't gold, so here it is! Lilac and silver on the eyes and very berry pink lips. I'm using my MUA Immaculate Collection palette again and I have done a similar look with this before, but I'm just trying to slowly get out of my eyeshadow comfort zone!

Also, I'm aware that my concealer is sitting terribly in my under eye creases here - I'm still using MAC Studio Finish on my under eye for lack of a better under eye concealer. Any recommendations? I love Studio Finish for blemishes but it's too dry for my eyes.

FINALLY - I'm getting this terrible mop of hair cut and coloured tomorrow. Any suggestions as to what I should do with it? I'll be sure to do a before and after! 

Here's a photo with the flash so you can see how lovely and iridescent the shadow is:

 Face
Lancome Teint Miracle in 101 Beige Porcelaine
MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW20
No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter
Sleek Blush in Suede (contouring)
MAC Blush in Pink Cult (LE)
Eyes
Sleek Brow Kit in Dark
Ardell Individual Lashes in Short Black and Medium Black
MUA Extreme Felt Eyeliner Pen
MUA Immaculate Collection Eyeshadow in Shade 11 (inner corner and brow highlight)
MUA Immaculate Collection Eyeshadow in Shade 17 (lid)
MUA Immaculate Collection Eyeshadow in Shade 24 (crease)
Lips
NYX Matte Lipstick in Tea Rose
MAC Dazzleglass in Love Alert

S x

EOTD: Ardell Lashes and Gold

Sleek Brow Kit in Dark

NYX HD Eye Primer

Ardell Individual Lashes in Short Black and Medium Black

MUA Immaculate Collection Palette Eyeshadow Shade 12 (inner corner)

MUA Immaculate Collection Palette Eyeshadow Shade 14 (lid)

MUA Immaculate Collection Palette Eyeshadow Shade 21 (crease)

No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter

Avon 24hr Eyeliner in Gold Black

I promise a non-gold EOTD soon!
Also my Ardell lashes are holding up fine. I added some more for some more drama today but other than that they are good. My only complaint is the increased amount of 'sleep gunk' in my eyes in the morning - gross! But fixable!

S xx

Ardell Individual Lashes Review (and FOTD)

Hey everyone!
Remember how I said I was on a February spending ban? That didn't last long.
I swear though, it was things I felt were necessary to buy - the Ardell LashTite Clear Eyelash Glue, a full bottle of Lancome Teint Miracle in 101 Beige Porcelaine (to replace my 7-day sample) - you can see my review of that here. Also a few other things that I'll be reviewing in the coming week so keep checking back!
I had to buy the Ardell LashTite on Amazon, because my local Boots doesn't stock it. It was only £2.99 though, so pretty much a bargain!
The point of using LashTite with the Ardell individual lashes is meant to be so that they stay put for longer, about as long as it would take for your natural lashes to fall out. This is of course dependent on not using oil-based makeup removers and being generally gentle on your eyes.

As you can see, I had Ardell Individual Knot-Free Lashes in Short Black and Medium Black (£5.20) each. I used the Mediums (4 lashes) on the outer corners and then the short (4 lashes) on the centre and inner corners. You are supposed to use 10-15 pairs of lashes on each eye but I wanted to a subtle effect at first. I can always add more later!

Now for some comparison photos. My natural lashes are long but very straight and blonde-tipped. Please excuse the bags under my eyes.

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

I'm pretty impressed with them, although you can tell I made a few mistakes placing the lashes. I'd probably add more throughout the week to add more volume and make it look more even. However, I think they add curl, volume and blackness to my lashes which is good enough for me at the moment.
Keep checking back as I'll update on their longevity!

Here's how I look in my FOTD wearing them. Keep in mind that I used no eyeshadow or liner so the lashes could stand alone.

Face:

NARS Pro-Prime

Lancome Teint Miracle 101 Beige Porcelaine

MAC Studio Finish Concealer NW20

NARS Oasis Blush

No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter

Eyes

Sleek Brow Kit in Dark

NYX HD Eye Primer

Ardell Individual Lashes in Short Black and Medium Black

Lips

YSL Rouge Volupte 2 Sensual Silk

S xx

Valentine's FOTD: Simple Liner and Balm

Hey everyone!
I know, I know, the blogs are awash with Valentine's FOTDs at the moment - tutorials on how to curl your hair and do a red lip and feminine eyeshadows - but to be honest, I'm not a massive Valentine's fan. For the past five Valentine's day my boyfriend and I have mostly gotten pizza delivered and that's about as special as it gets. Sometimes we make each other a card (never store bought!) but the rule is no gifts.
I much prefer making the effort for each other all year round.
However, this year we happen to be going to a gig on Valentine's night so I'll be putting on my makeup, and here it is. I chose simple and easy to reapply, as well as adding some falsies for added drama (I just used Eyelure glue for these so I could remove them straight away but will be ordering some Lashtite and doing a full review soon!). Plus, the NYX Tinted Lip Spa is much better for kissing than a matte red. I would have curled my hair or maybe done something fun with it but my heated styling ban is still in full effect!
What will you be doing this Valentine's? Whatever you're doing, remember to dress up or do makeup the way you like it, not to please the boy/girl in your life! :) As nice as it is to do something nice for your other half, it's always better to be comfortable! And if you're going solo this year, just ignore Valentine's and do something fun! That's what I do anyway and I'm in a couple.

Face
Lancome Teint Miracle Foundation in 101 Beige Porcelaine
MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW20
No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter
Sleek Blush in Suede (Contouring)
NYX Cream Blush in Glow
Eyes
Sleek Brown Kit in Dark
MAC Brule (lid)
MAC Brown Down (crease)
MAC Honey Lust (brow bone)
Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes Mascara
E.L.F Cream Eyeliner in Black
Ardell Natural Short Individual Lashes
Lips
NYX Tinted Lip Spa in Sake


S xx
P.S. - I'm almost up to 250 subscribers and I'm so excited! Thanks everyone who is following me! Once I get to 250, I have a prize to giveaway so keep checking back! :)

What's In My Bag?

Hey everyone!

I did promise a 'What's In My Bag?' post, so here it is. I don't think that what's in my bag is terribly interesting, but I love reading other people's posts on the same. If you have one, please link it in the comments below so that I can have a nosey! 

Bag: Primark, £8.

1. iPad 2. Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley 3. Carmex 4. Asthma inhaler 5. L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream 6. Keys 7. Highlighters 8. MAC Lipstick in Blankety 9. NARS Oasis Blush 10. Purse 11. Hair bands and kirby grips / bobby pins 12. Mobile phone

I carry my iPad around because it hosts most of my PDFs and journals for University, and the book is always the one I am reading for class that week (incidentally, Devil in a Blue Dress is awesome). Carmex for my dry lips, especially in winter. My inhaler is obvious. The L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream is travel size (£7.50) and my absolute favourite hand cream - I did a post on it here. 

Obviously, I take my keys with me, and my purse. The highlighters are for University work. The hairbands and bobby pins are for when my hair annoys me during the day and quick fixes. I also carry with me the blush and lipstick I am using that day, especially if the blush has a mirror. Recently MAC Blankety has been my go-to lipstick. And I love NARS Oasis. 

My phone is a cheap Vodafone own-brand that my friend gave me when my last phone broke. It texts and calls and that is it, which is actually kind of good for me since I tend to not use half the applications of a smartphone.

So, what's in your bag?

Let me know!

S xx

Mini Haul, Review and FOTD: Benefit, Barry M, No7, Primark

Hey everyone!
So, if you read my last post, you'll have seen that some of the presents I bought for my mum I also bought for myself. In the case of the No7 products, it was because of a 3 for 2 offer - so I thought why not? The other three things were splurges - oops!
Now I'm on a spending ban for the rest of February - so you'll probably be seeing a lot more FOTDs/OOTDs as I 'shop my stash' and maybe a 'What's in my bag?' post - I also picked up a new (very cheap) bag from Primark so I'll probably do it with that once I swap everything out.
Anyway, on to what I got!

First up, two Barry M Nail Paints (£2.99 each) in Strawberry Ice Cream and Blue Moon. I always fall back in love with pastels in the spring, so I'm sure you'll see these coming up in NOTDs soon!

Next was the No7 Vital Enlightening Highlighter (£13.00, I got it as part of a 3 for 2). I had to include more than one photo of the lovely embossed flower on the powder itself. 3D highlighting powders seem to be having something of a moment and this is the only highstreet one, as far as I'm aware. The packaging is gorgeous, in my opinion - I love pink and yellow together. As for the powder, it's so velvety soft, it's blendable and it brings a subtle champagne glow to the cheeks with a tiny hint of peach undertone. It's not pink - you can see how yellow-based it is in the finger swatch - which is great for me as I tend to flare pink on my cheeks.

And lastly, I shelled out for Benefit's Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in Birthday Suit (£14.00), one for me and one for my mum. I love this - I've worn it for a full day and it really lives up to it's name: it does not crease on me. Although, to be fair, I don't have particularly oily lids. This beautiful and very natural shimmer colour - which looks golden in the swatch but is more of a taupey colour with a brown base, in my opinion - feels softer than silk, is easy to apply with the ring finger, and lasts ages. It also works well as a base for shadows, although I've yet to try it as a liner.

Here I am, wearing both Birthday Suit and the No7 Highlighter, but looking very tired (dissertation writing and sleep do not mix!)

I like how the shadow adds a subtle glow but doesn't overpower the face - it's almost indistinguishable. So, I decided to pop a red lipstick on to balance out how nude the overall face look was. I chose No7 Stay Perfect Lipstick in Cherry (£10.00), a lovely true matte red.

And, as a parting note, I thought I'd share with you a ridiculous impulse purchase from Primark! These shades are so stupid but fun - I think I bought them because I wish it was summer already! Of course I won't be wearing these regularly but they might be funny on the beach come summer.

S xx