Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Double Ended Pencil in Naked Basics

Hello there!

It's taken me some time to get this written today as I'm in a post gym coma. Followed by lunch I'm in a whole world of ache and warmth so my typing is rather slow!

Being a massive fan of Urban Decay and their impressive range of palettes it was no surprise to me when they came out with matching eye pencils. I mean, eyeshadow and eye liner go hand in hand together. There's one for every Naked palette including the newest one Naked 3. Obviously I want them all, but I picked up Naked Basics for a starter.

The 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils are very much a popular product, they released a set last year called the Vault which had all 40 of the new eye pencils in the new range and it retailed for a good few hundred dollars although allegedly only 50 were made. Quite a disappointing amount as I imagine there were many who didn't get the chance to snap it up!

The 24/7 pencils are super creamy and highly pigmented, containing Vitamin E and jojoba oil they also don't drag on the skin which is a must when your eyes are concerned.

Crave and Venus are not part of the full collection as they are specific to Naked Basics. Crave matches the dark brown/black colour in the palette as does Venus, a creamy off white with a slight shimmer.

Clearly I would, in an ideal world, love to own all of the colours but this is a great way to get your make up bag full of basics without breaking the bank. At £12 each for the double ended pencils, for the most part you are getting 2 really great and useable colours for just £6 each and considering how good the quality is it's a pretty good price.

I like the design of the products too, you can clearly see the Naked Basics label in the centre so you can tell which palette it is designed to match. If you look on the internet at the other pencils (I use either Debenhams, Beauty Bay or Look Fantastic) you can see that 5 of the shades used in the 4 pencils are exclusive and only 3 are part of the original range (Zero, Perversion and Whiskey).

I think if I were to buy another it would by the one to match Naked 2 which although i don't own Naked 2 I think I would use these colours most as the matte black of Perversion and grey brown of Pistol I could wear every day with products I already own.

So how does it look on?

I've blended the pencil along the bottom of my eyes and also along the waterline. Crave is on the outer of my eye and Venus is in the inside corner.
The eyeshadow I have on in this picture is from Naked 3 and was one of the first times i used it. I can see it getting a lot of use!



I really like this look and it was so easy to blend the liners together even though they are quite opposite in their shades. I used the 24/7 blending brush from UD (review coming soon!) and as long as you do it fairly soon after application you should have no trouble. Once it sets and dries however you can be assured that they do not budge for the day! I was amazing how well they stayed on and didn't smudge or disappear.

I would definitely recommend this pencil as a starter for your make up and generally on the whole everyone needs it! Venus is great for brightening up the inside corner of the eye and Crave is great for a more dramatic look or even day wear depending on how much you apply.

For £12 you cannot go wrong and I'm sure I'll be picking up more in future. I'd love to be able to justify collecting the entire range but with 40 pencils at £15 that calculates to a quite unaffordable £600 if my maths is correct which is terrifying!

A girl can dream eh?

Which of the pencils would you snap up? Would you go for a double ended one of one from the original range?

L xxx

   

Fitness Fridays: Protein Pancake Mix

Afternoon!

I mentioned in a previous post that my brother had picked up a bag of Go Nutrition's Protein Pancake Mix. I know I've posted about other products from GN but I promise I'm on no commission! We made a huge order of products to try as they have such a wide range of protein and fitness related foods so there might be more in future too.

The protein pancake mix comes in a bag like this:

It's the typical style of GN as all of their powdered products come in bags with zip lock tops to them. This makes it a lot easier to store for longer periods and know that it will still be as fresh as it was when you first opened it.

The bag contains 1kg of product and is unflavoured. I've never tried an unflavoured protein product before so I knew this was going to be interesting! As each serving is 50g and the bag is 1kg, this will give you 20 servings. That's not bad for the £8.99 price tag. It works out at 45p per serving and you can add any kind of topping you like!

Here's the info on the back of the pack; you can see the ingredients are pretty simple.

GN say:

Protein Pancake Mix is a fantastic healthy snack suitable to support all training goals. For those that train and compete on a regular basis a diet high in protein is essential for muscle growth, repair and recovery and our Protein Pancake Mix can really help you increase your daily protein intake. Furthermore, our Protein Pancake Mix provides 10g of low GI carbohydrates from oats to slowly release energy, making them ideal any time of day. Each serving of Protein Pancake Mix also provides 2.5g of medium chain triglyceride (MCT) health fats and 1g of flax seed which is high in Omega-3 Linolenic Acid.

They recommend you use their Organic Coconut Oil to cook them in to ensure the maximum benefits from the meal.

They are super easy to make, all you need is two scoops of powder with 100ml of milk or water. Shake them together, they suggest you use a protein shaker but I've also used a jug and fork and achieved a pretty consistent batter.

This will create two pancakes, so all you need to do is add half the batter to a frying pan and bake it for 60-90 seconds each side and hey presto you're done!

I have made these a number of times and each one has been consistently good. I've added bananas and maple syrup, greek yogurt and fruit, and obviously slapped some peanut butter and nutella on them for a good old treat!

You can see my pictures of some of them below:

These were bought by my brother on a whim but I can honestly say that when they've run out I'll be buying them again, they're so easy for a nutritious, filling and fun breakfast on weekends.

You can buy this protein pancake mix in a maple syrup flavour as well as unflavoured, though I think I'd prefer to add my own separately and change it every time!

What do you think of the protein pancake mix? Would you try it?

L xxx

Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint

Hi there!

I'm having a bit of a 'brights' moment now that the weather is finally starting to brighten up. now the clocks have turned back its definitely time to start playing with brights and I can't wait!

After purchasing Barry M's Rose quartz (finally) after a long time of lusting after it i also picked up this beauty; Gelly Hi Shine nail paint in Passion Fruit 407.

This is a gorgeous bright colour for spring and summer and great for nails and toes. It's one that seems to go with everything and any occasion, and I've had tonnes of compliments!

It's one of the good ones; requires 2 coats for opacity and is easily applied with the brush (although I do prefer Essie brushes as they are wider - I'm lazy).



Please excuse my messy application, I was in a massive rush on Sunday night painting them before I was out like a light ready for Monday morning! So they're definitely not my neatest but you can still appreciate the colour.
The photo above was taken without flash in natural light and the photo below was taken with a flash; you can see its a lot redder than the initial picture and it does change in different lights/





This has lasted pretty well considering the usual lab testing (chemicals and equipment normally means chips and cracks in polish). It's still on as I'm writing this late on Wednesday night and I'm only changing it now as I'm itching to try another polish! Fickle thing I am.

I've seen and heard so much about the Gelly Hi Shine range and I found it so hard to pick just one colour. I have a massive list of others I'd love to try particularly the nudes, pastels and other brights - basically the whole range!

Which colour is your favourite? Any recommendations?

I'm sure I'll be back to pick up more before the offer ends.....

L xxx

Maybelline The Eraser Eye Perfect and Cover Concealer

Evening All

It's hump day finally! It's feeling like a long week for me. I'm just chilling out post gym and very achy already. I dread waking up in the morning for the pain.

A while back when boots had 3 for 2 on I needed to pick up a few bits. The third thing I wasn't sure what to get so when I saw the Eraser Eye Perfect and Cover concealer I decided to give it a try. I'd heard a few good reviews

I was intrigued by the instant anti-age claim as I was hoping this would help prevent under eye creasing. The concealer comes in 6 shades with different tones. Annoyingly my store only had 3 so I settled for the shade light which to be honest is too dark for me for a concealer and too yellow toned.

The applicator is a soft sponge. Which although it's not the most hygienic it is aimed for the aims so isn't going to be getting as much bacteria as concealer used on spots. I do find product is wasted a little though. 

One thing I really love about this concealer is how light it feels on the skin and how easy it is to blend in. It feels almost air whipped on the skin and not at all cakey but still provides great coverage.

bare skin

where I apply the concealer

fully blended

with full make up

I do think even though I prefer concealer to be a bit lighter (I should probably try fair) it does blend really well under the eyes and doesn't settle.

I can't put my finger on it but there is something I don't like about it. I think it's the yellow tone. As something that is targeted for under eyes to have yellow tone doesn't seem right as peach or pink is usually used for dark circles and to brighten but maybe that's my personal opinion.

I like this concealer but it won't be a repurchase for me. I find the applicator a little pointless, it's soft but I still have to use my finger to blend and it's just not as good as other concealers I have. It does crease on me after a few hours. I find most concealers do but as this is aimed to be instant anti-age it disappointed me.

If you are after a lightweight feeling concealer this may be one for you to try.

Love M

xxx