My Nail Polish Collection

Whilst I've been updating my beauty storage (comment if you'd like to hear more about that?) I've been doing a lot of decluttering and I figured since I had all my nail polishes out, I might as well do a post giving you a round up of what I have.

So Firstly, Blues. I love the colour of Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish in the shade "Duvet Day" but it's just a nightmare to apply. For me it's thick but somehow still quite sheer and I haven't managed to apply this and make it look nice on the nails.

The next three are all shades that I mainly wear on my toes, KIKO Nail Lacquer "336", Misa Nail Lacquer "On The Edge" and Inglot Nail Enamel "942" are all lovely mid-tone bright blues and I love a bright blue on the toes, however I rarely wear any of these on the fingers.

Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish "New York Night" is a nice vampy purple that I'll be cracking out now that autumn is on it's way, her darker shades seem to be a much nicer texture than the lighter shades and this one looks almost black on the nails. I also think that No7's Speed Dry Nail Colour "Violetta 44" would be a nice autumn nail pick, it's slightly lighter and brighter than "New York Night", but it's still quite autumnal.

I like Topshop Nails in "Parma Violet" and this pink O.P.I Nail Lacquer which unfortunately doesn't have a shade name and was limited edition for spring. They're both nice pastels and while they take a bit of work to apply, you can get a nice finish from both.

My Favourite nail polish of all time for my fingers is the Maxfactor Nailfinity in "Disco Pink", I've very nearly finished this bottle and I'm currently on the hunt for a new bottle as it's just an amazing bright shade for summer that I just love. KIKO Nil Lacquer in "361" is also  nice bright pink but for me it doesn't compare to the Maxfactor, I think it would work for a beach-y holiday worn on both fingers and toes but so far it's not been a shade I've reached for a whole lot.

I come back to the Essie Nail Lacquer in "Bahama Mama" every year once it starts cooling down. It's a great burgundy and just can probably get away with just one coat if you were in a rush, I'd always go for two just to make sure though. A very similar shade is No7's Speed Dry Nail Colour in the shade "Queenie 60". It's that same tone of burgundy as "Bahama Mama", but instead of a creamy gloss finish, the No7 has a hint of golden shimmer running through it which gives it a more metallic finish on the nails.

I don't wear an awful lot of red on my nails (so naturally I have 3). I bought Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish in "Riding Hood" online and was expecting it be a bit darker than it actually turned out to be, It's actually quite similar to the Procco Nail Apparel in "7294 V.I.P Creme" which is my go to polish if I'm doing red. I also have a mini O.P.I Nail Lacquer which again was from a limited collection but it's not my favourite anyway.

I have three orangey/coral shades and I don't like any of them. Ted Baker Orange, LOLA Barcelona Nail Polish in "Rambla" and Wah London Nails in "384" are all amazing colour but I'm starting to think there's just something about orange-y shades that makes them horrible to apply. I'm holding onto them incase I discover a way to make them work because the colours are really something.

I love warm grey nil polish for autumn/winter and I have two. Maxfactor Nailfinity in "Boji" which was a limited edition one that I wear every now and again but my favourite is Essie Nail Lacquer in "Chinchilly". I think Essie polishes are generally a nice formula and "Chinchilly" is a great goes-with-everything shade.

I've already mentioned Butter London's 3 Free Nail Lacquer in "Knackered" on here and it's really something. It takes about 3/4 coats to get it to a nice opacity but it's worth the little bit of effort. It's a really unique colour, a green/pink dual chrome colour that give's that almost oil slick finish to the nails and it looks great with an all black outfit and my Whistles Small Clutch in "Oil Slick".

I'm a sucker for a good glitter topcoat and I have three. The NYC Long Wearing Nail Enamel in "105 Starry Silver Glitter" was the first one I picked up and it's like a slightly multi-coloured version of Topshop Nails in "Ice Crush" which is my favourite glitter top coat. I also have the O.P.I Nail Lacquer in "Silver Shatter" which is one of those crackle-finish nail polishes but this is a metallic shimmery silver one.

A couple of metallic nail polishes that I like are the No7 Stay Perfect Nail Colour in "Night Silver 92" and Topshop Nails "Crystal Clouds" and I like both of these year long. The No7 is a little bit more autumn/winter but I love it and the Topshop is a polish I'd happily wear year round.

And finally, a topcoat and a nail care product. I rarely use a topcoat but when I do I use the O.P.I Rapidry Top Coat, it's nice and shiny and helps your polish last longer. Normally I just go in with the Orly Colour Care Nail Strong which is a shiny clear nail polish that can be used alone or under/over other polishes and helps strengthen your nails. I have problems with flaking on my nails and I find that this helps a lot.

The Friday Review: MaxFactor Miracle Match Blur & Nourish Foundation

On a recent trip to Boots I was looking around for something new to review and saw one of the little blue "New" stickers on the end of the MaxFactor counter, and with me being on the hunt for the perfect foundation I picked up their new Miracle Match Blur & Nourish Foundation to give it a go.

While the shade range wasn't extensive (those with a darker complexion may struggle with this one) I found that shade "40 - Light Ivory" was a really good skin tone match for me and I think we all know that I really struggle with foundations not going light enough for my ghostly complexion. I also like the packaging for the product, it's the typical MaxFactor oval glass bottle with a pump and a plastic lid but the pump on this one has a locking mechanism which is nice, while glass bottles aren't the best for travel, the locking mechanism makes it more travel-friendly.

On application, I did notice a very strong almost almond-biscuit-y scent to the product that was off-putting for me but once it's on the skin the scent isn't noticeable on the skin. The coverage is light-medium and buildable, I personally would still need to go in with a concealer to cover dark-circles and blemishes but it just evens out the skin tone. The formula feels light on the skin and blends to give a very natural finish and I went in with a powder to set the foundation as I do with all base products.

The product last relatively well but does begin to break down for me before I finish a whole day at work, I often have to re-touch products in my t-zone especially as this is where I have problems with oiliness. I think this foundation would be no good for oily complexions and combination will have to touch-up in areas of oiliness but for a drier skin type it's got a lot of moisture to it. On thing I will mention is the skin on my cheeks is quite dry and skin is usually relatively blemish-free, and within 1 day of applying this 3 white-heads appeared on my cheek and nothing else had changed in my routine. I'll do some more testing and update on that front but I think this may clog poe and cause blemishes from my experience and I'm a tad cautious to use it again.

The High-Street Makeup Starter Set

It wouldn't be a high-street-centric month without a post dedicated to my top high-street makeup picks, so I've rounded up my recommendations for what I'd pick up for someone just starting out in makeup. Maybe you don't need an item from every category but if you wanted to buy a full face with every step, here's what I rate from the high-street:

So for primer, there's only one, high-street or high-end, that I really reach for these days and that's the MaxFactor FaceFinity Foundation Primer. It's designed to make your makeup stick to your face better and I think it does a great job at just that. This is one of those products that I maybe don't reach for everyday, but when I need my base to really last I crack this out.

In my opinion, L'Oreal do some of the best foundations on the high-street, and their True Match Foundation is one I've been a fan of for a long time now. It feels light on the skin but the coverage is nice and last a long time without feeling heavy on the skin. Also? The shade range is great, so there should be something for most people.

Concealer was always that product that I thought high-street brands didn't do overly well, I'd tried a good few over the last few years and they were all just a bit heavy or drying on the skin. In the last year or so that seems to have changed dramatically and now you can pick up great formulas for less and my favourite at the moment is actually the New Look Liquid Concealer, it feels like it could be a skincare item it's so light on the skin, and the coverage is nice without being cakey, it's also insanely affordable.

My powder recommendation is obviously the Soap & Glory One Heck of a Blot, will I ever stop bleating on about this? Probably not. Its finely milled, controls oil amazingly. A must-have for all with oily skin.

I've foud that MaxFactor seem to do the best blushes on the highstreet, with both there Creamy Touch Blushes and their Creme Puff Blush formulas being lovely, L'Oreal do some nice powder blushes too but I think MaxFactor wins on the grounds that they offer two different but great formulas in a good range of shades and so I can imagine most would find something they liked from Maxfactor.

If you're into contouring, you can now have that on a budget with the release of Maybelline's Master Sculpt Contouring Palette. I really struggle to find contouring products even in the high end, they're always a bit dark or a bit orange or a bit muddy. But this one is amazing, and it comes with a small but perfectly formed highlighting powder too. Genius.

If contouring isn't your thing but you just want a bronze-y glow, the Soap & Glory Solar Powder is probably a pick you'll enjoy. It's has two shades, a lighter and a darker bronze that can be used separately or swirled together which means you can customise how much bronze you get. And they're updated the packaging so it's not so flimsy anymore, yay!

Finding a traditional eye-primer on the high-street was a tough-y. The only brand that really seems to stock one was Rimmel, and while their Exaggerate Shadow Primer doesn't quite rival formulas from Urban Decay and such the like, this is still going to be a nice base for your eyeshadow that will make them apply a little easier and last a bit longer.

For a powder eyeshadow palette, I was going to choose the Maybelline The Nudes Palettes because the shadows in that palette are not messing around, they're buttery and pigmented and rival higher-end brands in terms of quality, but if you're trying to cut back the price even more then it's got to be the Revolution Redemption Iconic 1 Palette, as mentioned in my review post last week, it's a dupe for the Urban Decay Naked Palette for £4, who could ask for more?

Now for eye-liner I was going to recommend the Rimmel Scandaleyes, and if you want some nice coloured liners, that's where you need to go, but for a basic black the Maybelline Master Drama swooped in at the last minute and stole my heart. It's a great formula, a solid jet black, so comparable to Urban Decay's Perversion liner. I won't dwell on the Maxfactor 2000 Calorie Curved Brush Mascara because we all knew it would be in here. It's amazing, it's the best, need I say more?

For brows I'm loving the No7 Beautiful Brow Sculpting Pencil the chunky nib makes for a speedy application and the spool-y brush on the end is perfect. This has kicked my Soap & Glory Archery Brow Pencil to the back of the class in my collection.

And then for lip products, I had to pick two, a bold matte and a glossy neutral, becuase not everyone likes both. The bold? Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvets, again you've heard about them on here quite frequently but they're just great. The my glossy option would be the Maybelline Colour Sensational Shine Glosses, nicely tinted, not sticky, great shine.

And there we have it, a whole face of high-street products.

A Face Fit For A Wedding

The other half and I found ourselves at a wedding last weekend and with it being the first time the two of us were going to that kind of event I got really excited about getting to really dress up and obviously, I anted to share that with you guys.

While I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to wear black to a wedding, I saw this gorgeous black dress in River Island and I couldn't resist, I figured since we were only actually attending the reception it wouldn't be so bad and tried to drop a bit of colour into the mix with the oil-finish clutch bag from Whistles.

The bag was pretty much where all my colour matching came into play because the oil slick made it pink and green and I found it quite hard to match but I found a good match for my fingers and toes in Butter London's Nail Lacquer in "Knackered" which has that same pink/green effect with a tiny bit of glitter that in 2-3 coats builds up to a beautiful finish on the nails.

I then played up the eyes using a mix of MAC shades - "Petina" and "Greensmoke" to create a really subtle, light green smokey eye just as a nod to my chosen colour scheme. With green on the eyes I went for a more nude lip and went for a light layer of The Lipstick Queen's Big Bang Illusion Lip Gloss in the shade "Cosmic" and then Maxfactor's Creme Blush in "Soft Pink" helped give my skin that healthy glowy skin you'd hope to have at a wedding.

April Favourites

My First Favourite this month has been the By Terry Ombre Blackstar in “Misty Rock” it's a gorgeous medium-pink cream shadow with subtle silver shimmer that gives it an almost wet-look on the lids. It's perfect for a one-shadow sweep look and the twist-up-stick format make's it super easy and quick to apply. I've been wearing this 4/5 days for the last few weeks and it's just become a staple.

I've been wanting a softer brow for the upcoming spring and summer months and so I've been trying out the Model Co More Brows “Medium/Dark” which is essentially a tinted brow gel. I think the shade is a little on the cool side for my red hair but I love the effect that this product gives on my brows. I've pretty much used it everyday since I got it.

Again with spring in mind I've cracked out the Maxfactor Creme Blush in “Soft Pink” which is a lovely soft pink (as the name would imply) I stipple this on to the cheeks with a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush and it gives a lovely my-skin-but-better glow to my face.

A spring fragrance favourite is Diptique's Do Son Fragrance, I cant even begin to describe it but it's light and fresh and sweet. Just what I like in a spring fragrance. The notes are said to be: Tuberose, Orange Tree Leaves, Berries and Iris.

and finally the NUXE Re De Miel Lip Balm which will be featured in my weekly review post on Friday. This is just a lovely lip balm. Tastes like a lemony cake and actually hydrates the lips unlike some lip balms that just sit on top of the lips and need reapplying every half hour. I use this before I put on make-up everyday and it keeps my lips nice and soft.

The Spring Tag

I wasn't actually tagged to do this, but it looked cool so I thought why the hell not. Enjoy :)

1 . What three colours remind you of Spring?

Blue, Pink and White. Reminds me of clear skies and lovely flowers.

2. What is the first thing you add to your Spring wardrobe?

Light tshirts, and as of this year, white jeans.

3. What is the first item that you ditch from your wardrobe to make it more Spring-like?

Jumpers. I’ve become very much a jeans-and-jumper girl this winter, I can’t wait for it to be jeans-and-tshirt weather again.

4. What are your ultimate nude and bright lipsticks?

Nudes: Nars Satin Lip Pencil in “Descanso” and Revlon Lip Butter in "Peach Parfait"

Brights: Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in “Hot Pepper” and Estée Lauder Color Envy Lipstick in "Tumultuous Pink"

5. What is your signature Spring fragrance?

My general go-to perfume is “Nina” by Nina Ricci, but lately I’ve been loving Diptique’s “Do Son”.

6. What do you add or drop from your skin care routine?

I add in more deep cleansing or exfoliating masks as I tend to spend more time out doors and it can make my skin feel a bit dirty. My favourites are Origins Clear Improvements Active Charcoal Mask or if you fancy a real treat, the Omorovicza Deep Cleansing Mask.

7. Do you change your hair up in Spring?

Not particularly, although I’ve recently been embracing the bun, it’s such a convenient but put-together hair cheat.

8. Are there any exciting beauty releases that you can’t wait for?

Charlotte Tilbury’s Norman Parkinson collection looks lovely *sigh* must be patient.

9. What are your three favourite nail colours for Spring?

I’m not really a nails girl, but Inglots Nail Enamel in “942” is an amazing blue that’s always on my toes. For spring I like lights and brights so I find myself reaching for Topshop Nails in “Crystal Clouds” a lot, a light, sparkle-y gold. And then for a bright I love MaxFactor’s “Disco Pink” (finally been able to find another bottle after maybe 4 years of searching!) it’s the perfect spring/summer pink.

10. Who do I tag?

Anyone who wants a go :)

My Manic Monday-Morning Make-up Routine

Being a creature of habit, my weeks follow a very similar structure and Monday has recently become my gym day. Straight from work every Monday I hit the gym, do my 2 classes and get my self home for some well deserved dinner. Working in an office environment means I can't just rock up to work in my sweats with my greasy hair up in a pineapple-like fashion, so I've come up with this routine which means I can get away with long-overdue-a-wash hair and gym-bag combo.

So firstly, that hair needs to go. I slick it up into a high bun, secure with hair pins and load it up with hairspray, and while I hold no loyalty to a particular one I'm currently using the Professional Touch Salon Hairspray High Shine Extra Hold Curl Control (what a mouthful!). It holds buns and curls a like without that crispy feeling and smells pleasant, if a bit strong.

I'll then get to work on make-up, with it being a Monday morning I've more than likely woken up slightly later than planned so a quick work-appropriate look for me consists of this: Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation in shade "3", it's a nice coverage that blends best with fingers and matches my skin perfectly. I then go in with the Urban Decay Nake Skin Concealer in "Fair Neutral" where I need it. A light dusting of Soap & Glory's One Heck of a Blot Powder to set my base and a bit of the Benefit Sugar Bomb Box O' Powder on the cheeks for a slightly rosy flush.

With base done I tight-line with Lord & Berry's Polish Eye Pencil in "5071 Mirror Black" and line my lower water line with Rimmel's Skandaleyes Waterproof Khol Kajal in "Nude". I then wiggle some MaxFactor 2000 Calorie Curved Brush Volume and Curl mascara through my lashes and tame unruly brows with Maybelline's Brow Satin in "Medium Brown".

All quite simple, standard stuff, right? Then to top it all off and make it look like I've put some effort in, I've been gravitating to a bold lip. Now I love my reds and I'll always go back to them but lately I've found a bold pink to be my go-to lip colour. It just seems more statement than a red. The one I've been picking up a lot is the Nars Satin Lip Pencil in "Yu" and it is b-e-autiful. I've just been finding that a bold lip is the best way to distract from a bad hair day and livens up an otherwise lack-luster make-up. And the best bit, just remove the bold lip with a make-up wipe and you're ready for the gym. Genius.

February Favourites

This month I've been testing out new products like a mad lady so quite a lot of my usual products have found themselves being neglected. However in light of this, I've found some real gems that I'm incorporating into my routine on a regular basis.

Firstly is the make-up things, I've already spoken about the two base products on here before but I just wanted to touch back and really hammer my love for them home. I picked up the Maxfactor FaceFinity Foundation Primer from Boots a while back and though I've used others in the past and even recently have been trying out some more pricey options, I think this one still comes out on top. It's basically the glue you need to keep your foundation on all day.

With that I've been wearing the Loréal True Match Foundation, I have the shade "N1 Ivory" which is the most perfect colour match for my skin tone I've ever found on the high street. In addition to being a better colour match for me, it's a little lighter in coverage than my usual Revlon Colourstay and it's a little more satin-y in texture which works better over the Maxfactor primer as I was finding that things were looking a bit flat when I wore a matte foundation over a mattifying primer.

I've also stopped being a lazy-bum when it comes to moisturising, the winter in England is getting a bit harsh on my skin and I've been finding that my usual Soap & Glory Whipped Clean Shower Butter just wasn't cutting it so I've been relying on their The Righteous Butter instead and it's made a world of difference to my skin.

I'm still religiously using and loving the Colorwow One-Minute Transformtion Styling Cream that I talked about in my "The Mother of all Goodie Bags" post. Incase you didn't catch that post it's basically a creamy texturing gel and I put a tiny blob through the ends of my hair to give it a bit more of a lived in look.

Another one from that post is the Jurlique Rosewater Hydrating Mist which has become my go-to evening second toner (so and exfoliating toner and then this) and it's just lovely. I spray around 3-4 sprays onto my skin before eyecream/serum/moisturiser and it's just very calming and hydrating on the skin. Smells lovely and provides a bit of slip for my serum afterwards. Love.

And finally, we have the Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel, oh my. The texture is amazing, the smell is amazing, even the packaging is amazing. I just love it. It's slightly smoother on the skin than the Emma Hardie Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm, although I do still love that one too. The mask from this range is also really nice, but I haven't used it enough to call it a "favourite" just yet. I've been using the cleanser most nights as my second evening cleanse and it really gets on with my skin and has left me eager to try more from the range.

The Valentines Take-Over Finale - The Girls Night Out

Now I dub this the option for the single girl. I suppose the option could be switched up to suit a date-night, maybe you and your other half are going out for a night on the tiles, but generally when I think clubbing, I think girls night. So dust off your heels (and your emergency flats) and here we go.

Again, a night-out option doesn't call for much on the pamper side (I find the day post-night out becomes all about the pampering) so besides jumping in the shower and washing my hair I focus mainly on the make-up side of things. I'm all about an SPF free base, some sheen to the skin, shimmer on the eyes and a bold lip option to give the look a bit of something.

To keep things in place all night I prep the skin with the Laura Mercier Foundation Primer before going in with a pump of Bourjois' Healthy Mix Foundation in "51 Vanilla", which is a decent match for me but still warms my complexion a little (yes, I'm that pale). I rely on my old faithful Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in "Vanilla" (are we sensing a theme here) to hide all my bags and blemishes and set my base in place with the (you guessed it) Soap & Glory One Heck Of A Blot setting powder. For a night out I go for more colour on the complexion than I normally would and so go for a triple hit. when it comes to contouring I've gone through multiple of E.L.F's Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder in the original shades, I rarely use the blush in this compact due to it's heavy shimmer but the contour shade is nice when applied with a light hand. For a hint of blush I dip my brush into Benefit's Sugarbomb box blush which swirls peachy, plummy and pinky tones into a subtle cheek colour and I finish with a light dusting of The Balm's Disco Disco highlight (from their Balm Jovi palette) onto the tops of my cheek bones.

With complexion done I move onto eyes with the Urban Decay Primer Potion being the first product I reach for, I'm currently testing out some other eye bases but this one remains on the top spot for now, the dispenser is good for keeping the product clean and it makes most shadows I apply on top of it last a whole day (and I have some long days, trust me). I then carefully pack on one of my Helen E Cosmetics Loose Eyeshadow Pigments in "1" which is a mid-tone taupe-y shade with irresistible shimmer to it. I tight line and line my water line with my usual Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in "Perversion" and the Rimmel Scandaleyes Khol Liner in "Nude" and then apply a generous layer of Urbans Decay's Subversion Lash Primer. While that's drying I tend to unruly brows with the Maybelline Brow Satin in "Mahogany Red" (A brow product for red-heads, finally!) before topping off my lashes with a few lashings of the Urban Decay Perversion Mascara.

A bold lip is my favourite make-up pick-me-up right now and with my light skin and red hair I think a red suits me best so I have three of my favourites with different formulas to choose from. For the lip-pencil lover the Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in "Cruella" is a nice, deep red that's matte and lasts a good while without much need for topping up (although if an orange-y red is more your thing "Iberico" and "Red Square" from this line are nice too). A liquid red lip option is the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in "Hot Pepper" a slightly warmer toned red that's a comfortable matte finish and really perks up a pale complexion. And for the girl who loves a glossy finish? MAC's Luster Lipstick in "Lady Bug" is a beaut. A glossy finish that can be layered up to a full-coverage and feels hydrating on the lips. This one is more high maintenance if you want it to last all night as the glossy finish isn't as long lasting as the more matte options, although it should be noted that it fades flatteringly and doesn't leave you with that bright lip-line and bare centre look that other products may leave.

The Valentines Take-Over Part II - The Dinner Date

So whether your other half is treating you to a luxe meal at that restaurant you've been eyeing up for ages, or it's just you and your best mate going for a cheeky Nando's (My best friend and I just so happen to be frequenters of the cheeky Nando's). I've come prepared with a line up that's fool-proof.

When it comes to a night-out option, it's less about the pampering and all about the make-up for me really. I want to enjoy applying a night-out face, so this routine may contain more products than usual but it's a winner every time. While I would normally gravitate towards a bold lip, when it comes to food things can get a bit messy, and so I play up eyes with a dusting of something dark and shimmery, and lashings of mascara. Here's a typical dinner-date stash.



I'll kick things off with a primer and right now I'm all about the MaxFactor FaceFinity Foundation Primer, it' basically glue for your face and works well under the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation which will give you that my-skin-but-better glow. To amp up that glow a little more I add a tiny bit of Benefit High Beam highlighter to the tops of my cheekbones and then set everything in place with Soap & Glory's One Heck Of A Blot powder. With it still being cold outside (it's been snowing in Manchester *sigh*) I skip blush and just add a good dusting of Soap & Glory's Solar Powder to the cheeks for a winter glow.

With complexion done, we'll move to the main event, eyes. To prep I sweep a dot of the Urban Decay Primer Potion across my lids and then gravitate to something grey, bronze-y or slightly plum-y on the eye. My go-to's of late have been "Smog" (From the Urban Decay Naked Palette), "DTF" or "Angel" (Both from the Urban Decay Vice 3 Palette). I tight-line with Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in "Perversion" and line my water-line with Rimmel Scandeleyes Liner in "Nude". For an indulgent mascara option I'd go for Urban Decay Perversion Mascara but for something more budget I love the MaxFactor 200 Calroie Curved Brush Mascara and then fill my brows in with "Buck" eyeshadow from the Urban Decay Naked Palette.

For lips I'm keeping it simple but a girl's got to have options, I have 3 neutral-lip favourites in a format to suit everyone. For the lip-pencil-lover I'd say the Soap & Glory Sex Mother Pucker Gloss Stick in "Nudist", for a traditional bullet lipstick the Esteé Lauder Pure Colour Envy Lipstick in  "Dynamic" is great slightly deeper neutral. A new-to-me gloss option that I'm currently loving is the Lipstick Queen Big Bang Illusion Gloss in "Creation" - and for those saying "Lipgloss? On a date?" yes. Though this gloss is shiny and shimmery, it's not sticky at all and feels almost balm-like on the lips, wears off nicely and won't leave you in a mess.

A Boots Moment

So I had a bit of a moment in boots the other day. I had points boosters, there were offers on, it was dangerous territory and some serious spending may have happened. After wandering into the isles looking for a tube of my old favourite mascara, I ended up having to go back for a basket, and the contents of the final purchase looked like this:

Left to right, from top left corner: MaxFactor 2000 Calorie Curved Brush Mascara, Maybelline Colour Tattoo in "Eternal Gold", Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in "Frambourjoise", MaxFactor Miracle Touch Creamy Blush in "Soft Pink", Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in "No. 51", Maybelline Colour Tatto in "Vintage Plum", Bourjois Rouge Edition Velver in "Hot Pepper", MaxFactor Facefinity Foundation Primer

So I was a tad indulgent, but as I said there were offers on and most of these are products that I've been eyeing up for ages, and with my points boosters enabling me greatly I gave in to temptation.

My first base product purchase of the day was the MaxFactor FaceFinity Foundation Primer, and as mentioned in previous posts, I'm an oily-skin sufferer. This primer is intended to extend the wear of your foundation and claims to be an "all day" primer. I wouldn't say the "all day" claim is quite lived up to (at least not on my face) but I should say I can have some lengthy days, I can spend anywhere up to 11 hours in the office some days and I have a good 1.5 hour commute each way, so I didn't really expect it to last until I got home, but it definitely gets me through the bulk of the day. It smells a bit funny, slightly glue-esque, but since it pretty much glues your foundation to your face I guess that's slightly appropriate.

I'm not normally a girl to change things up foundation-wise, I have my Revlon Colourstay for everyday, Illamasqua's Skin Base for when I feel like something a bit more luxe, and I rarely buy any other foundations. That being said the Bourjois counter had an offer on so I picked up a bottle of their Healthy Mix Foundation in the original formula. It's more glow-y than I'm used to, but I was finding that layering a matte powder over a matte foundation with a mattifying primer underneathe, everything was just looking a bit flat, so the glow is definitely welcomed. It smells delightful when applying and when worn over a primer it lasts most of the day and adds a bit of life to the skin. And best of all? Even though I'm ungodly pale, they have a colour that matches my skin fairly well (the lightest one, surprise surprise).

A final complexion Product I picked up is the MaxFactor Miracle Touch Creamy Blush in "Soft Pink". This is kind of a blogger-classic product these days, so I figured I had to try it. I've tried it once to give it a test run and it's pretty, a sheer, sheeny, healthy pink on the cheeks. I personally apply it after foundation and then use my normal face powder all over my face to set everything in place. While I can't see it being something I'll reach for much in winter, come spring and sumer I think this might even make it into the makeup bag.

So while I did get distracted, I managed to pick up the product I was intending to get, the MaxFactor 2000 Calorie Curved Brush Mascara. While I love my Urban Decay Perversion, it is pricey, and for day-to day use, I wanted something a little more on the purse-friendly side of things. This one is an oldie but a goodie, I used it back in my poor-student uni days and it's definitely something I'm happy to have back in my collection. It's very black, holds a curl well and adds length as well as thickness.

Again a product that's so hyped here in the online beauty world, the Maybelline Colour Tattoos. They were buy-one-get-one-half-price so I picked up two shades, "Eternal Gold" and "Vintage Plum" and I can finally see what all the fuss is about. "Eternal Gold" is one of the standard more metallic finishes and blends in beautifully on the eyes, and while the leather-effect-finish "Vintage Plum" is slightly more sheer and requires a little more work to get the desired finish, I can say it's also a good'en.

So finally, we have my favourite category, lip products. I love a good bold and have heard a lot about the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvets, so I thought I'd pick a couple up and see for myself. I picked up shades "Hot Pepper" (a statement orange-y red) and "Frambourjoise" (a slightly deeper bright pink). They're comfortable to apply and set down to a a lush matte texture (that, admittedly, can be a bit drying after a few hours) and haven't got any nasty smell going on. And while they're not quite as long lasting as I'd hoped (lets face it, I don't think the bold, all-day lipstick will ever exist - but a a girl can dream), they stick around for a good few hours and I find that only the centre of the lip ever needs touching up. If you're looking for an affordable, long-wearing bold, they're definitely worth a go.

Next post coming up on Friday - A Winter Skin Saviour. Hope you enjoy! - Jodie