W7 Contour Stick

Hey all

Contour sticks are everywhere at the moment with the release of Fenty and the Kim Kardashian West contour sticks I've been wanting to try some myself as they make contouring so much easier but wanted a more budget friendly dupe of the one's mentioned above and that's where W7 didn't disappoint!!

Make Up Revolution Ultra Cream Contour Palette

Hey All

I'm finally getting round to sharing my thoughts on products I've had for a while. Make Up Revolution is a brand I've been using for a while now since going Cruelty Free as they have amazing palettes.

Ever since seeing the ABH cream contour palette I've been wanting to try one but reluctant to spend loads of I think with these products you don't use all shades.

Collection Conceal and Light Like a Pro Palette

Hey all!

As everyone else seems to be, I'm totally obsessed with concealing, contouring and highlighting my face. Sometimes you have the time to spend to do the job properly, other times (like Monday mornings....) you don't, and that's where the Collection Conceal and Light Like a Pro Palette comes in.

I picked this up on a random shopping trip when it was on offer, it was £3.99 then and is £5.99 now.

I was attracted to it firstly because of the price but also because of the range of colours that would suit my skin tone. The concealer was really light and the contour not orange, so this was hopeful!



There are 8 shades in the palette in total, all of which are cream concealers. I would say that 2 of these are typical concealers, 2 shades for contour and cream bronzer, 3 for colour correcting and then 1 for under eyes.

Obviously this is taking into account that I am super pale, anyone with a tan or darker skin would be able to use the shades differently to me.



So these are the first four, the top 2 I use as concealers and the bottom 2 I use as the contour/bronzer as appropriate - sometimes if I'm tired I'm totally washed out and the darker shade can look too orange but is a great shade for bronzer and bringing some much needed colour to my cheeks!

Helpfully I have swatched them in rows so the images don't match up - I will have to remember this next time!

Below are the other four shades, top are the reflective pink (undereyes) and yellow contour (good for covering up purple areas - under eyes, veins etc).
Bottom shows the green (good for redness) and blue/lilac (good for yellowing skin tones that may look a bit pasty and dull)





I've been using this the last few weeks with both a Real Techniques Expert Face brush and also a Beauty Blender sponge and have been getting on quite well (for my first cream product palette at least!)

They are swatched below for you to see, it should be pretty obvious which is which but they are arranged 1-4 is the top row, 5-8 is the bottom:





These are swatched quite heavily but blend easily into the skin to correct any issues. Primarily I use the lightest concealer and the pink reflective ones for undereyes and blemishes, the darker concealers I use for contour and bronzing. The others I use as and when depending on how i look in the mirror on that day!

I find they blend well with my make up and do the jobs they were intended for, however they may not last a full day. I've used them for work but by the time I've been to the gym after work there isn't much left, I'd probably get something longer lasting if I was intending to use similar shades for a wedding or full day event but for every day usage they have been great, especially for the price.

I've heard great things about concealer palettes like this and I'm glad I finally picked one up and had a go.

Have you tried concealer palettes like this? What are your favourites? Do you use all shades or just a few?

This is well worth the £5.99 price tag and I'd recommend anyone give this a try!

L xxx

NYX Contour Pro Single in Sculpt and Sculpt and Highlight Face Duo in Taupe/Ivory

Hey All

As you can probably guess from all of our NYX posts and features on our instagram L and I are totally in love with the products!

I'm a massive fan of a great contour so when we were at the counter the other day I couldn't resist a new sculpting powder as it looked a great tone and as I'm yet to own any cream/liquid contour I had to have the sculpt and highlight duo. 

I was instantly draw to the Highlight and Sculpt pro singles. I already have palettes I can put singles into so wasn't worried about buying the full palette. My only downside is that it didn't have a magnetised back for palettes but it's easy enough to stick one onto the back. As it also has a lid it's not necessary to keep it in a palette.

I choose the shade sculpt as it had a slight taupe shade to it and wasn't as brown toned as some of the others. The texture of these is so soft and blends into the skin so easily. I find myself reaching for this most days now as it's so easy to use. I've also layered it up with other contours for a stronger look for evenings.

Here is the contour shade on. If you're following my 100 days of make up on instagram you'll have seen it on more posts/

It's available from boots here for the bargain price of £3.25. They also do a palette of highlight and contour shades which is  £18 for 8 shades

Here is the face duo swatched first and the contour powder in sculpt at the end!

I've fancied trying a liquid contour and highlight for a while and when I saw the Sculpt and Highlight Face Duo it fell into my basket without question. It was the last one on the stand in Taupe/Ivory which made me want it more. 

It comes in a concealer wand type packaging with the doe foot applicator making it really easily to apply in a specific area and makes contouring precise and easy especially on the nose area.

The sculpt and highlight due really blend into the skin easy and give a flawless finish. I blend it out with a real techniques miracle complexion sponge (my favourite sponge I grabbed the primark ones hoping for a bargain but they just don't cut it!) to gently blend the product out. I find this works best. 

Here it is on. You can see it shapes my nose and cheek bones and adds definition to the face.

It's available from boots here for £9 and comes in different shades for different skin tones. I'm really pale and this one is perfect for me. 

NYX is also all cruelty free hence why I'm heading there and buying out most of the shop at the moment!

Have you tried the nyx contouring products?

Love M

xxx

Kat Von D Shade and Light Eye Contour Palette Review

Hey all

As soon as the Kat Von D make up hit the scene I knew I had to have some. I'm still desperate for the liquid liner, liquid lipsticks and the foundations as they're meant to be great for pale skin tones. My first product was the Shade and Light Eye Contour Palette. I initially wanted the contour palette but opted for this instead. 

I was drawn to the eye palette as it was a totally matte palette (something I didn't previously own) and the top three shades were large pans and I thought I could use them as contour and highlight shades and get a multi use from these palettes. I love that it comes with some ideas for looks to create to so is great for beginners or to help grow make up confidence. 

Apologies for the used palette photos. I initially took them brand new but wasn't happy with them when I uploaded them. The palette contains 12 different shades set up in three sections. The large shade is meant to be the base, the 1st shade underneath the contour, the second shade define and the third shade highlight. All the colours are really pigmented and blend out easily. I don't tend to follow what the shades are for and mix it up. I love that it comes with warm and cool tone so will suit most skin tones!!

Here I used the large shade called Lazerous to add some definition in the creases Laetus and Lucious on the lid. I love using these shades for a natural eye look. Lazerous also works as a great brow shade.

Here I went heavier with the colours and blended lots of the brown shades through the outer v to deepen it. The colours all blend really well together. I've also used Lazerous to contour here and Laetus to set under the eyes. I love this as a contour shade. It looks so natural against my pale skin as it's more of a taupe shade. I'm wearing the lip liner featured on the blog on Monday Rimmel 1000 kisses in Tiramisu. With Revlon Mauve it Over (which I've now learnt is discontinued, sad times !!)

I love this palette and can't wait to try more of the Kat Von D range, the foundation is next on my list. I'm tempted to purchase a sample of it to try out. It's not the easiest make up range to get but Sephora do now ship to the UK. I personally use a facebook group to order my American make up from. 

How do you get American products? Have you tried Kat Von D products?

Love M

xxx

Makebelieve Enhance Sunbeam Bronzer and Brush!

Hey All

Happy Tuesday! It's definitely the worse day of the week for me and always the one that drags! I'm hoping to get another gym session in tonight to hopefully distract me!

Anyway onto today's review. Apologies for the messy packaging but at least you can see it's well loved. Lately I've been trying to shop my stash and found this gem from the Bristol Bloggers meet around a year ago. We had such amazing goodie bags I've been working my way through them.

Makebelieve isn't a brand I've tried much off but after getting my hands on this and falling in love when I eventually tried it I think I need to get my hands on the fake tan!

A matte bronzer is a daily must have for me. My cheeks get contoured everyday. Anyone who has read the blog for a while may know I'm a huge fan of the Liz Earle bronzer and that bad boy didn't leave my face for well over a year!! Since trying this one it's been replaced!

The packaging I don't love as it is cardboard and gets really messy and covered in my mucky finger prints. But saying that it has held together well. First impressive thing the the amazing kabuki brush it comes with. Usually brushes that come with products aren't that great! This bad boy is so soft. I can't believe I left it untouched for so long! It's also the perfect size to fill in my cheek bones.

The bronzer itself has great pigmentation and not much is needed. As you can see from the picture after about 3 months use it still has the embossed mark visible.

A good matte bronzer isn't the easiest to find. It has to be non orange, non muddy looking and non shimmer. In the pan I thought this would be slightly too orange for my pale skin but after trying it I was totally hooked and it's become an everyday staple for me.

Natural skin

With bronzer applied under the cheek bones.

I love using this to add shape to my face! I really like the colour it comes out on my skin. It adds a natural colour and really lasts well. I like to flatten the kabuki brush so it fits perfectly into my cheek bones. I then use it as is to sweep colour around my temples to give me a glow!

I'm totally converted from my Liz Earle and I hadn't expected that. This is a great quality product with an amazing brush. It's perfect for make up application in a hurry as the brush is always there.

Love M

xxx