July Favourites!

July has been a lovely (mostly) sunny month in England; I've enjoyed walks in the sunshine, spontaneous ice cream van visits and I also got my degree results back! Graduation isn't until winter, so I have a while until I get to don my gown and mortar board, but I'm already excited. Now that August has arrived and the air is feeling a little more chilly and crisp, I thought I'd share some of the products I picked up during the month of July and have ended up loving!

Rimmel Stay Matte Long Lasting Pressed Powder in Transparent

Due to temperatures reaching new highs in the UK this month I was in need of a powder I could apply over my foundation to mattify my face and get rid of that awkward sweaty shine that I get when enjoying the glorious sunshine! My friend recommended this powder and that fact that I didn't have to choose a shade of skin tone to buy it in made my life even easier. 

Real Techniques Powder Brush

I have been after one (or all) of these brushes for god knows how long now (being a student/graduate = being penniless) and purchasing the powder gave me the perfect excuse to pick one of these up. The powder brush is incredibly soft and works better than any other brush I currently own.

Benefit Lemonaid Eye Primer

Do you ever find that you apply your eyeshadow just how you like it, only for it to disappear within hours? Using this eyelid primer creates a base for your shadow which allows not only for your eyeshadow to last much longer without budging but also lets the shadow cling on hence building a thicker layer and greater pigmentation.

Rose Gold Jewellery

I am really bad at looking after rings. I don't own a single ring I haven't lost or dropped down the back of my desk at some point. For this reason I went out to buy myself a new ring or two, and found a set of plain band Topshop rings in different sizes and colours (gold, silver, rose gold and black). I have always been a sucker for rose gold and it is for this reason that this ring has become my fave! Now I just need a bracelet to match...

Topshop Kohl Eyeliner

It took me a while to come round to the idea but I'm now loving the bright eyeliner trend and couldn't resist picking one up in Topshop. The pigmentation is much better than I thought it would be and the colour lasts hours and hours! Swatches below.

What has been your favourite thing about July? Let me know in the comments :)

Lil x

Cara Delevingne and Essence Goodies!

Very recently I won a competition on the Essence UK Facebook page (what? I never win anything!) In order to win you simply had to comment on the post and state which celeb's style you loved most - I wrote about how much I loved Cara Delevingne's casual yet glamorous style! In the post I received a selection of cosmetics by Essence (as shown above) and some of these are absolutely gorgeous. Here are my thoughts on some of my favourites.

Nail Polish

Unfortunately I am allergic to a chemical in most nail polishes so I can't use the nail art paper or the lovely sparkling nail polish that Essence have sent me, as much as I love the way they look! I will however be giving them to my friend Millie (check out her blog, Becoming Mrs P!) who I know will put them to great use!

BB Cream

I have been after a good BB cream for a while now so I was delighted to receive this! I was given the cream in the shade '02 natural' which is a little darker than my natural complexion, however it matches the darkest tones of my skin and therefore is perfect for summer and gives me that natural slight bronzed look! The BB cream claims to be hydrating, and while I can't say I have found it to be worthy of this I have not found it to be drying on my skin either - perhaps this would work best after using a moisturiser.

Lip Tint

After debating with my boyfriend over whether the colour was red or pink, I can definitely say I love it regardless! You can layer this to give as light or as bold pigmentation as you want.

Sun Club All-in-one Bronzing Highlighter

I have bronzers, I have highlighters and I have blushers. Since I found Sleek's Face Form palette I had no need to be carrying around each in a separate pot and I love having all three in one palette. This all-in-one bronzing highlighter offers something a bit different in that it has several shades of bronzer, blusher and a highlight which can be blended together with your brush to create your desired effect! Love it.

Eye Pencil in Black

This eye pencil is absolutely fab for creating a dark smokey eye effect like Cara's. This inspired me to re-create her look using my new make-up products, and some current favourites! 

Cara's Look

L-R: Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil, Essence Smokey Eye Pencil, Rimmel Scandaleyes by Kate Moss, Essence BB Cream, Essence lipstick, Essence All-in-one Bronzing Highlighter and Natural Collection Blush in Pink Cloud.

I used the Smokey Eye Pencil over my eyelids and along the crease to re-create Cara's signature dark smokey eye look. I then applied the Kate Moss Scandaleyes Mascara in Jet Black (current fave mascara) and the Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil for her dark eyebrows she is so well-known for.

I also used the brown tones of the bronzing highlighter to contour beneath my cheekbones, then blended a mixture of the blush and highlighter together with my Natural Collection blush (which is pretty old now but I still adore the shade). I applied these lightly to the apples of my cheeks and along the cheekbones to create a soft, subtle blush. Lastly I used the pink lipstick for a subtle neutral lip that Cara so often goes for!

Let me know in the comments your favourite celebrity looks and whose style you most admire! :)

Lil x

Lily Lolo

One of my favorite brushes I own is the Lily Lolo eye blending brush. Maybe I bought this because I liked the name of the company, or perhaps it was to do with the gorgeous design of their products, but I knew I was in need of something that would blend my eye-shadow well and this does the trick!

The brand is vegan friendly and have a range of lovely brushes to choose from, including a socket line brush, which may just be the next purchase I make! The eye blending brush itself is wonderfully soft and feels so smooth on my eyelids (which are super sensitive so I appreciate this more than you'd think!). After applying my eye-shadow I use this to blend the separate colours in gently, and to smudge any harsh lines around the corners of eyes, and boy does this make it easy for me. The only slight gripe I have is that while the brush blends really well it does tend to take some of the colour away, which is not ideal when using a light colour or one that is not overly pigmented. This means I usually have to apply a little extra eye-shadow after using this brush.

Despite the one gripe I would definitely recommend this brush to someone looking for a soft brush which won't irritate skin and allows you to blend your eye-shadow with ease.

Sleek!

I mentioned having bought this in a previous post so here is the full review! This is something I had been after for a while. I wanted an affordable contour kit which wasn't too pricey, worked with my skin tone and had a bronzer that wasn't too orangey or shimmery.

I'm always trotting over to the Sleek section in Superdrug to eye up their gorgeous eye shadow palettes, I really love the design of the Sleek palettes but I don't wear eye shadow often enough to justify spending money on one, so I found myself trying to find excuses to buy them, for example my friend's birthday. Then I noticed the little blush, bronzer and highlighter kits they had. I went away and ended up reading many reviews which had recently sprung up on my Bloglovin' dashboard, featuring the Sleek Face Form palettes, so I went and bought one didn't I?

I picked up the Sleek Face Form Contouring and Blush Palette in the colour Fair (looks like Neapolitan ice cream doesn't it?!) and in order of appearance, here's how each of the trio work :

 

Pressed Powder:

To contour I prefer to use a powder/bronzer that does not have an orange tint or shimmer (so that I can use it to create a shadow effect under my jawline and in the hollows of my cheeks) so this works nicely. It's quite pigmented so I have to make sure I blend it in well to avoid streaks.

Highlighter: 

The highlighter is great for a fair skin tone like my own, however it is also shimmery so if you prefer more of a matte look like I do then this one is not so much the one for you. I do love the way it looks when used on the tops of your cheekbones though!

Blush: 

When you look at the photograph below you'll see the blush is a strong pink colour (very on trend right now) but you'll also notice that it has hints of gold shimmer flecked through it, which I think looks so so pretty. On my skin it is quite a bright colour so I thought I would have to mix it with one of my other blushes, however I have found that when used on its own and blended slightly with the highlighter it actually looks gorgeous and definitely creates that cute 'pop' of pink that everyone is talking about for spring!

(This photograph was taken in pure daylight and should show you the true colour of each section in the palette).

Tanya Burr Lipgloss

Earlier this year one of my favorite Youtubers, Tanya Burr, released her own make-up line - how exciting! When the line first came out I couldn't wait to get my hands on one of her products. Tanya's collection includes a range of lip glosses and nail polishes in some absolutely gorgeous colours. I took forever to decide which colour I wanted, and I'm a bit indecisive but I eventually picked two, one of which I bought to give to a friend as part of her birthday present. Unfortunately I couldn't try the polishes because I have an allergy to an ingredient which is used in most nail polishes, however the colour 'Little Duck' looks beautiful and I know that would be the one I'd order if I could!

The Colour

The lip glosses come in a variety of shades and colours. I chose one I thought would be pretty and girly and not too bold or glittery (some shimmer and some shine!) so I went for a kind of nude pink, named 'Afternoon Tea', how cute! In the tube it looks slightly brighter than it actually goes on (see my swatch below) however the subtle pink makes for a perfect day-time look, and I find it suits my pale skin very nicely. It's definitely one of these my-lips-but-better products and has been finding its way into my handbag on a regular basis.

The Design

I love the design of the tube, from the simple black lid and matching brand name text to the little pink heart printed on the top. The wand tip has a curve to it which fits to the shape of your lip, which makes for super smooth and easy application. As for the gloss itself you'll notice that it smells incredible, like strawberries and cream, it's lovely. I like to apply two coats when I wear 'Afternoon Tea' for the best coverage, however the gloss is very pigmented and creates high shine which lasts longer than I expected it to. It's also not too sticky which is great as I find some lip glosses to be a bit 'oh-good-the-wind-blew-and-now-all-my-hair-is-stuck-to-my-mouth'.

Whats more, both the lip glosses and nail polishes are pretty cheap to purchase. I ordered mine from Feel Unique and the delivery did not take long at all, very impressed. If you bought one of Tanya's products let me know, which one do you like the most? (I'm so jealous of all of you who can wear her nail polishes!)