Night Out Makeup

Hey everyone! So I went out in Stafford on Saturday and I quite liked how my makeup turned out, so I thought I'd write a post on it! This post turned out a longer than I thought it was going to be...

I forgot to include the Porefessional sample in this photo so let's pretend it's there too haha

I had moisturised my skin with the Avene Cleanance MAT Mattifying Emulsion, letting it sink in for a while before I primed my skin with Benefit's Porefessional, which I have a few sample sizes of (one was with a gift set, another with a magazine.) I don't think I like it enough to purchase the full size one when my samples run out - it's a nice product but I don't think it makes much difference on my pores and I feel like the siliconey formula is quite dupeable on the high street. However my makeup did last quite well despite me getting all sweaty in a nightclub - I'm not sure whether it's down to this, my foundation, my powder or just the combination of all three!

For foundation I went with the YSL Touche Eclat Foundation, which is the only high end foundation I own. This contains no SPF so it's ideal for night time makeup. When I bought it my skin was more normal and less blemish prone so because it's quite glowy and my skin became oily I was put off using it a bit. When I applied it last night though I really liked it - it blended beautifully when I used the Real Techniques Buffing Brush. Its coverage was light to medium but buildable without becoming cakey, as I did need to apply a little more than I normally would because of the amount of blemishes I have. (Quick foundation tip: obviously you can start applying it wherever you want on your face, but if you have an area that you think needs more coverage then you might like to start applying your foundation there.) I think I have the lightest shade and it matches me perfectly.

I did still powder it with MAC Blot Powder as although the dewy-ness of this foundation is nice, my oily skin means my face risks looking shiny as the night goes on. Again I have the lightest shade although this powder has barely any colour as it's not intended to add any more coverage! I have very much hit pan but I'm not sure I'd repurchase as it is expensive at £20.50.

I went for a neutral eye look because of how bright my lipstick (MAC's Show Orchid) is. So I blended together the MAC eyeshadows in Satin Taupe and Patina, which I've raved about before here.

Left: Patina Right: Satin Taupe

Swatched in the same order

I also applied Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Stag which came with the Naked on the Run kit. I rarely wear eyeliner but this one is great - a flattering dark brown with a lovely smooth formula. It also stays put for a long time, as the name suggests!

This lipstick is one of my all time favourites:

MAC's Show Orchid lipstick

For mascara, I used two - I used the Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara first because it's great for length, then I topped it up with Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara. As much as I like the 17 mascara I think I prefer the Maybelline one as it's better for volume and it also seems to hold a curl longer. I did a full review of the Maybelline mascara here.

I had some spots to conceal so Collection Ultimate Wear Concealer did the job, whilst I applied NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla (review here) under my eyes along with MAC Prep and Prime Highlighter in Radiant Rose to brighten the area. I also applied the highlighter on both brow bones and my cupid's bow.

Top - Soap and Glory Glow All Out, Bottom left: Mac's Blot Powder, Bottom right: Benefit Bella Bamba

For a mix of highlight and blush (because of how pale I am this product is like a blush on me!) I used Soap and Glory Glow All Out Luminizing Face Powder (review here) at the top of my cheekbones and then applied Benefit's Bella Bamba Blush to the apples of my cheeks - I love this blush but haven't wanted to rave about it on here because it's sadly been discontinued! Benefit should definitely bring it back. As you can see the packaging has faded as I've owned and used it since Christmas 2011!

I used the L'oreal Brow Artist Plumper in Dark Brunette, which is a ridiculously easy way to tidy up your brows, as I'm not fussed about properly attempting to fill them in.

The finished look. I feel like I look a bit evil in this photo lol.

As for my nails, it didn't really match my outfit but my current NOTW is Rimmel's 60 Seconds in Pulsating:

I really like this colour! I wouldn't say it dries in 60 seconds but I think it does dry slightly sooner than normal. (I can't find this online but I'm fairly sure it will still be in stores, if I'm wrong then I'm sorry!) I've had this for about five years and it's still going strong and applying well, and there's some gorgeous shades in this line!

Also if you're wondering (after my last post) if I've used the Nice and Easy Root Touch Up Kit yet - nope! I'm waiting for the right time; I didn't want to use it on Saturday in case it went wrong and I also don't want to use it before Thursday as I have a job interview that day! But I will give it a go soon and report back. :)

Hope you liked this post, and thanks for reading!
Sabrina xx

Mini Boots Haul

I swear it's practically impossible for a beauty-obsessed person such as myself to go into Boots intending to buy an essential such as toothpaste, without ending up with that and some other items that were...well, slightly less essential. That's what happened with this haul. To be fair, I didn't get that much - I really wanted to pick up a Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lipstick as they all look gorgeous and are getting a lot of hype right now in the beauty world, but I resisted. (I know, go me! Haha.)

I've pictured the Nivea Daily Essentials Night Cream, £2.24, which I actually bought the previous week and mentioned in my last post. So far I'm really liking this product, it calms my skin down overnight when it's being a bit temperamental. The other night I was breaking out, used this product anyway (which I thought was a bit risky as it's quite a thick lotion) and obviously it didn't make the spot go away, but it did definitely help with redness and made my skin a bit happier. It's also very cheap especially as it's still half price at Boots so I'd definitely recommend trying it!

I also repurchased the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair which is one I've repurchased a lot. I've raved about this so much on my blog before so I won't go on about it except to say that it's absolutely worth the hype if you ask me! I am still using the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer on dark circles and this one is for using on spots and blemishes. I did a post reviewing the Nars concealer and comparing it to Collection here.

I had my hair done on the same day I bought these items and I decided to try a new hair treatment seeing as though the ends of my hair get very dry. I've also just had it coloured again so it's now definitely in need of some TLC. I deliberated between the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Colour Deep Treatment (I've tried the normal version and loved it, it smells so good) or the Garnier Ultimate Blends Colour Illuminator 1-Minute Treatment but got the latter because it was cheaper on offer for £2.99. I have the shampoo version of it as well which I quite like, especially for the smell (Argon Oil and Cranberry). I rarely use hair treatments because my hair gets greasy quite quickly but I'm excited to try this!

The last thing I got was Soap and Glory's Peaches and Clean Cleansing Milk which was also on offer for £6 instead of £8 and was the main impulse buy of the bunch seeing as though I might not have noticed it at all if it hadn't been on offer. However I'm looking forward to giving this a go, I was on the lookout for a new cleanser and this one gets very positive reviews on both Boots.com and Makeupalley. Also Khila (Miss Budget Beauty) raves about it a lot!

I just hope my sensitive skin gets on with this as it contains active ingredients/'glycols' (I know - blank face) and interestingly although Soap and Glory describe it as gentle and able to remove waterproof mascara, they also say not to use it on the eye area. I've used it a few times and so far, so good. It tingles a bit but other than that there are no signs of it irritating my skin. It had a very unusual minty yet peachy smell which I'm not sure what to make of yet. Also as usual with Soap and Glory the packaging is gorgeous.

Do you have any thoughts on these products? Have you made any drugstore purchases lately? :)

PS: This is obviously very unrelated to the rest of this post, but I saw this kimono over on Heather at Of Beauty & Nothingness' Summer Clothing Wish List and wanted to mention it as I'm in love with it as well as the whole outfit below...which adds up to £133! (Not including the necklace or sandals! I don't own a single kimono in my wardrobe as it's just not an item I would usually wear but I think this one is so beautiful:

Sabrina xx

My MAC Lipstick Collection

Hi everyone! Today I want to share my thoughts on the seven MAC lipsticks I have, as I don't know about you, but I find it interesting to see what's in people's collections. It goes without saying really but I'm not trying to show off or anything with this post. It's funny because seven of one brand is a lot for most people but for a beauty blogger it's probably quite conservative!

Mac lipsticks get a lot of hype in the beauty blogging world, and for a good reason - they do such a wide range of shades and formulas in usually excellent quality, with a pleasant light vanilla smell as a nice extra.

They are quite expensive at £15.50 each (and Mac keep increasing the price!) so I like to go for more unique shades that you might not be able to get a good dupe for on the high street. The lipsticks come in simple yet sleek black bullet-shaped packaging unless they're released in limited edition packaging for collections or in 'Viva Glam' red casing like Viva Glam Nicki below:

From left to right: Plumful, Show Orchid, Pink Popcorn, Moxie, Viva Glam Nicki, Ever Hip and Vegas Volt

Swatched in the same order - click for a closer look!

1. Plumful
This is a lovely plummy/rosy pink. It looks darker and therefore less wearable in the tube but it's actually very pretty and easy to wear. I really need to wear it more as this kind of shade really suits my skintone (although I think it would great on a variety of skintones) and is a great everyday lipstick. It is a lustre finish but has a very good colour payoff.

2. Show Orchid
I've raved about this before on the blog here. It's a stunning blue-toned fuchsia pink. I think it was my second MAC lipstick, and it's been worn on countless nights out. It has an amplified finish, which means it provides opaque coverage whilst not being drying like a Matte finish - I think that's my favourite of the bunch!

3. Pink Popcorn
I bought this when it was out in the limited edition 'Reel Sexy' collection about three years ago - it is quite a nice purpley-pink and quite unique in my collection. I think I'm guilty of forgetting about this one and I should definitely wear it more. It's nicely pigmented despite being a lustre finish, and it's a pretty and wearable way to wear a purple-tinged shade. A bold purple colour, Heroine, was released in the same collection and is permanent, but I didn't think it would suit me.

I think it particularly looks great layered over Benefit's Lollitint, another lilac lip (and cheek) colour, which I might do a review on soon! Out of all the lipsticks, this one wears off the soonest, but I think that's quite typical for lustre finishes.

4. Moxie
This is the only matte lipstick I have by Mac and another limited edition one, released in the 'Mac By Request' collection. It's a reddish pink that is very nicely pigmented. Matte shades are known to be quite drying but I think this one isn't too bad - but it's always a good idea to make sure your lips are well moisturised before applying.

5. Viva Glam Nicki
This is a yellow-toned bright pink with a hint of coral, and to be honest, I slightly regret buying this - I really wanted to like it, but both the colour and the formula are a bit 'off' on me, at least while I'm this pale. It's not awful but I can't help thinking someone else should own it who would love it far more than I do! It has a satin, semi-matte finish.

However it's not really a shame nor a waste of money that this lipstick was a bit of a miss, as when I bought this MAC donated my full £13.50 to their AIDS fund. I think it's great of a big brand like MAC to donate to charity. I don't think this is available anymore, but the Viva Glam Miley lipstick that's currently available looks gorgeous and is a great way to treat yourself whilst giving to charity :)

6. Ever Hip
This was the first MAC lipstick I ever bought so, as silly as this may sound, it has sentimental value! It's another limited edition one unfortunately, but hopefully MAC will be nice and re-release it in a collection again soon, or maybe even make it permanent. The closest permanent dupes, from what I can tell from swatches online, are probably either Flamingo or Coral Bliss. I wouldn't be surprised if there were very close dupes available from the high street though!

This is a beautiful coral-pink which I wear a lot in the Spring/Summer months. It does look better on tanned skin but it's still a nice colour to wear when pale, as it really perks up my face! It has a cremesheen finish which is very comfortable but does wear off fairly quickly. As you can see, it's the most worn shade in my collection.

7. Vegas Volt
This is the most recent purchase of the bunch, as I bought this duty free at the airport before I went on holiday to Spain last July. I'd misplaced Ever Hip and wanted a bright coral shade to go with a tan. I checked online and saw that it wasn't very similar to Ever Hip, so I can justify having both - it is a much darker, more orange-toned coral and therefore slightly harder for me to pull off - both shades definitely look better when my skin is warmer. It has an amplified finish that, like Show Orchid, provides full opacity whilst not being drying at all.

So that's my Mac lipstick collection - for my next purchase I would love to try either Creme Cup or Angel!

You can buy Mac lipsticks here.

I would love to know, what are your favourite Mac lipsticks?

Thanks for reading!

Sabrina xx

Review: NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

Hi! So as promised, here's my review of the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer. I know this product has been reviewed a million times now on blogs, but I thought I'd express my thoughts on it anyway as I expected amazing things from it! Also, I'll compare it with the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer which I raved about before on the blog here.

First things first, I know packaging doesn't really matter but the packaging of the NARS concealer is definitely nicer, being in a glass tube with a rubberised lid (this rubberised packaging NARS products have is stylish and all, but attracts dirt quickly!) while the Collection one is pretty simple. Both have a sponge applicator which I like.

The text on the Collection concealer always rubs off quite quickly but that doesn't bother me, the only slight issue I've had with its packaging is that sometimes if you put the applicator back in while it's still got a lot of product on, some product can come out and clog in-between the lid and the concealer colour part of the packaging, which means that it gets dirty and wastes a little bit of product, but it's not a huge issue.

Shade wise the Collection's lightest shade (Fair) is perfect for me and on swatching, I thought the NARS shade 'Vanilla' might be a little too dark, but it looks fine when applied on my face. In this swatch on my hand you can see that the NARS one definitely has a pink undertone while the Collection concealer is quite neutral:

Top: Collection. Below: NARS.

I've applied different concealers under each eye so I can compare them on coverage. I think it's pretty close! (I know I've applied quite a lot, but that's because my dark circles are pretty bad!)

In the first picture I'm not wearing any makeup but have cleansed and moisturised. I also had some redness going on in-between my eyebrows that I concealed - some of it is actually just a very faint v-shaped birthmark that I have. I also applied the Seventeen Falsifye HD Mascara which I repurchased recently!

When I'm in a rush and don't have time to apply a full face of makeup I always like to wear at least concealer and mascara, it makes me look so much more awake!

Overall, I love both as they both give me great coverage but I think the NARS one is ever so slightly better - it has a more radiant and therefore brightening finish and is less drying under the eyes that the Collection one. So I'll probably be using the Collection one for concealing spots and the NARS one for concealing my dark circles (adding radiance to spots doesn't sound like too much of a good idea!)

Although this concealer is great, I don't think there's necessarily any need to splash out £22 on it. I've heard about a few other concealers from the high street being really good - both by Maybelline (Fit Me and The Eraser concealers) so I'd be interested to know if any of you have tried one of those or have any other favourite concealer? 

If you have any other thoughts on this post, please feel free to comment :)

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is available here for £22 and Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer is available here for £4.19.

Thanks for reading!

 Sabrina xx

Ten Makeup Favourites Under £10!

Hi! So I thought since I've mentioned high end brands in my other posts so far that it was about time I balanced it out a bit and talked about really good affordable products (I'm sticking to makeup, because it would be hard to talk about skincare as well and fit into a list of ten products!) They're all available at your local Boots or Superdrug unless stated otherwise, and they're all in no particular order. For each product I'll mention if there's a high end product it compares to and if I have any minor gripes with it. Enjoy!

1. Collection Ultimate Wear Lasting Perfection Concealer, £4.19

I'm starting with an obvious one! I mentioned this in my last post as I'm currently trying out the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer and I'm curious to see how it compares with this. This concealer is really, really good - there's a reason it gets so much hype in the beauty community (blogs and YouTube.) It gives you a high coverage and doesn't look cakey. It can sometimes be drying and settle into fine lines under my eyes, but other than that this concealer is amazing. I've repurchased it many times.

Here is a swatch along with the NARS one. The NARS concealer is making the Collection concealer look kind of orange but it's not! The fairest shade is a good match for my skin tone.

Top: Collection. Below: NARS.