Whats in my makeup bag? - Plus mini reviews

I thought I'd show you what currently lives in my makeup bag which I use every day when I'm just going to work and don't have time to do much with my makeup. I need to just get it on and get out the door. There is a mixture of higher end makeup and drugstore products - one of which has become one of my favourite mascaras from No 7 which I will be repurchasing.

Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation, Soap & Glory Kick Ass Concealer and Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer

Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation - £30
Lightweight and like the name says, looks like skin. Blends effortlessly and has a light to medium coverage. It is best suited to normal/dry skin. I really like this foundation, in fact I love the range of Bobbi Brown foundations as there is something suitable for everyone. Considering I am shade 3 in the colour range (I have a light/medium skin tone) which is the 5th shade from lightest, there are plenty of shades to try - Alabaster (0) being for the fairest skin and going to deep dark skin with Chestnut (9), a total of 16 shades!

Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer - £5.49 Boots
This has what Rimmel are calling an 'Anti-Fatigue Effect + Radiant Glow' which is supposed to make your skin look brighter and more awake. What that means in reality is that there are teeny tiny light reflecting particles in the product which bounce light off your skin creating to effect of radiance. Does it work? Yes it does. I like to use it under my eyes because of this, my permanent dark circles could do with a bit of brightening up. I don't use it on spots though because I don't want to be doing any highlighting of them. The coverage is pretty good, most people would find it substantial unless you are like myself - the only thing that is going to rid me of dark circles completely is Photoshop.

Soap & Glory Kick Ass Concealer - £10 Boots
This is a creamy concealer which includes two shades plus a setting powder and powder puff. The lighter shade of concealer is a bit more whipped and creamy as it is supposed to be used under your eyes to brighten them up and the texture making it easier to apply with no drag. The darker colour is supposed to be used on blemishes. I'm not too keen on using it under my eyes as it can look a bit crepey and sit in the fine lines due to my dry skin. It does work really nice over spots and blemishes though as it melts into the skin seamlessly. The powder is way too light and doesn't look like a transparent powder at all to me so that bit in my opinion is useless to me plus it is not as finely milled as I like. The colour range is appalling too, there are only two colour combinations to choose from, leaving anyone who has dark skin left out.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural, Topshop Blush Head Over Heels, Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner,
No 7 Lash Adapt Mascara

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural - £21
I've been using this powder for ages now. It is a great colour match for my skin tone and the powder is really finely milled. You can use it super lightly or apply it heavier. I've even applied it on it's own to even out my skin tone when I was in a rush. You get a ton of product in the pan too so even though it is quite expensive, you wont need to repurchase for a good while. There are 10 shades in the range and many people may find that they can cross over two colours because they are sheer.

Topshop Blush in Head Over Heels - £6
Topshop blushers are becoming really popular and I really like them too. This one is my favourite one because it gives a lovely natural glowy colour or you can build it up to become stronger. I love how the Topshop blushers set and still retain a slight dewiness. For the price of them, you can't really go wrong.

Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner - £14
I love a really inky black non flaky/smeary/runny eyeliner. I'm a fan of the feline flick so I need something that will stay put all day and not rub off if I get hot or run if my eyes water. I used to use a MAC Superslick but this one is cheaper and performs the same. It also has a different applicator, this one has a fine brush so you can get really thin lines but may require more practise and the MAC one has a tapered sponge applicator. I always found that the sponge would make me draw the line a bit thick at the flick and I'd have to remove and redo. This is one better for me. Oh and a lot of people find liquid liner hard to do, I've never had much problem with it but find pencil liners really hard to use unless I smudge them haha. The long handle of this one does make liquid much easier, it is like using a pen.

No 7 Lash Adapt Mascara - £12.95
This is a mascara I have really enjoyed using. It makes my lashes so full and voluminous. It doesn't flake on me and barely moves if I have watery eyes. Obviously it is not waterproof and it failed the onion chopping test (which my boyfriend found hilarious) but honestly, I don't like waterproof because it is so damn difficult to get off and I hate rubbing my lashes with remover. This one suits me perfectly well and even though it doesn't beat my favourite mascara, Chanel Inimitable Intense, Lash Adapt gives me just what I want from a mascara and the price isn't too bad. Oh and it lasts well too, usually a tube of the Chanel will dry out in a few weeks, making it useless. My Lash adapt is almost empty and I've used it for the past 3 months.

What's in your everyday makeup bag?

Jennifer xx

Urban Decay Vice Palette

Most makeup lovers will have at least one Urban Decay palette in their collection, they are so popular - especially their Naked palette. Now, if you are someone who likes their neutrals but also playing with brights, you need to get this one. It is fantastic. Really.

Almost every single colour in this palette is gorgeous, well pigmented, easy to apply, blendable and long lasting. It does however have a couple that aren't as great, one being pretty nasty for fallout and pigmentation - Jagged - shame because it is a lovely colour in the pan. I still don't feel let down though. Every single colour in this palette is brand new and exclusive to it which is great because a lot of UD palettes have crossovers. It is fantastic value at £42 for 20 shades and a double ended eyeshadow brush and all housed in a lovely palette complete with a full size mirror. £42! Bargain!

Read on for more and swatches.

Naked 2 Now On Debenhams!

Urban Decay's Naked 2 palette was released last Friday and I missed out as I thought it was due for release today, 9th January. Never mind though, I secured mine this morning as it has been restocked.

To get yours, head over to http://www.debenhams.com/beauty/urban-decay

Can't wait for it to arrive!

Jennifer x

Urban Decay to release Naked 2!

Oh I cannot tell you how excited I am for this! I adore Urban Decay's Naked palette and they have just released version 2 in the USA today! It is slated for release in the UK (and I would assume Europe) in January and I cannot wait! I know... exclamation mark overload haha but I really am that excited :D

Lets take a quick look. (Photos from Temptalia)

Isn't it lovely!?

It includes 12 shades of eyeshadow, 5 of which are exclusive to this brand new palette (Booty Call, Busted, Pistol, Snake Bite and Tease). The rest of the shades are either permanent or were released with other palettes but not available individually, plus there is one discontinued shade.

It also comes with a dual ended brush which has the Good Karma Shadow brush on one end and the crease brush on the other. Plus a mini Lip Junkie gloss in the shade Naked.

It is in a new type of palette too, more like a pencil tin than the velvety case from the original.

It retails for $50 in the USA and will be £36 in the UK.

Check out viviannadoesmakeup for swatches and reviews. It looks smashing :)

Jennifer x

October Favourites

This month it took me a while to choose my favourites as I've been switching between products quite a lot. I'm fickle like that haha. Also, apologies for the quality of this photo, you may notice them not coming out so bright for the time being, I just don't get a chance to use daylight at the moment unless it I do my photography at the weekend. I'm going to try to take lots of swatch photos during weekends when I can take advantage of the daylight so that I have them done for when I post during the week. Anyway, here is what I picked this month:

Urban Decay Naked Palete

You have probably seen this thing everywhere, all over the internet but I truly love it. The colours are so easy to use and work well together in pretty much any combination. It is a foolproof palette and is very flattering. It is a really good staple to have in your collection and many people will find that these are the only neutral shades they need... unless you are a hardcore makeup fanatic!

MAC Lightscapade

This came from one of the recent collections from MAC. Mine isn't one of the most beautiful pans of this but it is still lovely. It gives me a nice glow to my cheek bones and has made it's home in my everyday makeup bag.

Enchanted foaming sugar scrubs (Gingerbread Ghosts, from the Halloween line is pictured but I have been loving the scrubs in general). I doubt many people have heard of Enchanted Bath and Body, if you haven't, I suggest you head over to enchantedbath.co.uk and have a look. I've been a fan of Sarah's scrubs for a while, in fact a like a lot of her products. She is a one man band at the moment but she works amazingly hard to get her orders done to top notch quality. If you have heard of or are a fan of Isle of Eden, Enchanted makes a great alternative to anyone based in Europe. Sarah will ship further afield too however. The Halloween line will be discontinued soon so get in quick if any take your fancy. I will get a quick review of my latest order up soon.

Bronzer

I have been using bronzer to contour my cheeks a lot this month, mainly this one which is MAC's Golden. It is subtle and most suited to lighter skintones. It has a very subtle shimmer in it but is still fine to use for contouring. I've also been enjoying NARS Laguna.

L'Occitane Ultra Rich Body Cream

My skin especially on my legs is very dry. It gets worse after shaving but I normally hate using body moisturisers as they take ages to sink in and they make it hard to get dressed after using them which is not good if you like to wear skinny jeans like me. This one is different, it sinks into my skin so quickly even though it is so thick. You can hold the pot over your head and it wont come out. It has 25% shea butter in it which helps so much with my skin. My skin is much more supple and glowy than it was before and best of all, it no longer flakes!

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle EDP

This was a birthday present from my Grandad. It is such a beautiful and sophisticated yet youthful perfume. I always thought that Chanel perfumes were a little too mature for my liking but I adore this one. If you have smelt Miss Dior Cherie, it is on a similar line to that but it doesn't smell the same to me. I find this one more sophisticated and elegant, not as sweet and the end of the perfume has a lovely muskiness to it. I find that it smells different on me every day, I never know exactly what I'm going to get so it makes it even more enjoyable to wear. Amazing thing, skin chemistry!

Jennifer xx

June 2011 Favourites!

It is the end of the month again, I can't believe we are half way through the year already! So these are the products I have been enjoying during June.

I've recently gotten into NARS, the blushes are such a cult favourite and I can totally see why, they are Divine! I have been using the Blush/Bronzing duo which contains Orgasm Blush and Laguna Bronzer. I'm loving bronzer at the moment, I like using it to add a subtle contour to my face as it helps give my cheeks more shape and definition. I also use it through my temples and then lightly across my forehead, down my nose and on my chin. Laguna is such a pretty bronzer, it is not orange at all and can be built up (you do need to lightly tap the brush into the product as it is so pigmented). I love the shimmer in it, it is very subtle but when the sun hits your face, it looks so pretty. The Orgasm blush is one of NARS' cult products and since getting into beauty blogs I have seen this pop up all over the place. It is a gorgeous shade of pink and has subtle gold shimmer through it. Again, quite a pigmented product so a fluffy or duo fibre brush is best to help blend.

The Urban Decay Naked palette has been in my favourites before but this month I have been favouring neutral shades over brights. This palette is perfect and so handy. I've also been taking it to my boyfriend's house when I stay over as it gives me a choice whilst there of different colours to choose from and it is quite compact that I can just slide it down the side of my bag without taking up lots of room. Mine came with a double ended 24/7 pencil but I have taken this out to put a brush in it instead for when I travel.

Boots Botanics Soothing Eye Makeup Remover. I saw this featured in one of Loveislikemusic's videos on Youtube (Love Daisy's chanel by the way, she is so creative!) and it just blew me away at the ease of use. You can watch the video about it here. It is such a fantastic makeup remover. It is a duo phase type cleanser where you have to give the product a good shake before using it to mix the oily half with the liquid half. I put it onto a cotton pad and hold it on my eyes for just a couple of seconds and it melts all of my makeup away with such ease. It doesn't sting at all, is so gentle and never dries out my skin. Really great product.

For lips, I have been into nudes and light pinks. I've been using the NARS Turkish Delight lipgloss which is a beautiful milky pink shade which goes with everything. I have also been loving MAC Shy Girl lipstick which is a nude peach cremesheen. I think I have found a really good nude for me, it is warm enough not to wash me out and is another colour which I can wear with anything. I love the finish too, it gives a nice glossy finish and is moisturising. Finally MAC Angel lipstick. This is quite similar to Creme Cup but the finish is different. Angel is a frost but it really isn't very frosty, it is a flattering light pink and would work for both warm and cool skintones. I think it is one of the prettiest pinks that MAC does. You can also go a bit Kim Kardashian and use it with NARS Turkish Delight on top to get her signature lip combination! I know barely anything about her but I do really like how she does her makeup lol. Please note that the photo above is not very accurate colourwise for any of the products, it was a bit dark when I took it. If you would like accurate photos/swatches, let me know :)

What are your favourites this month?

- Jennifer

Surf Baby FOTD

I played with some of my new Surf Baby products today, I was quite happy with how it came out. I also really like yellow on my eyes, this was the first time I'd tried it.

What I used:

MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation

Bobbi Brown Corrector and Concealer with powder.

Collection 2000 translucent powder through t-zone.

MAC Lush-Light Bronze Studio Careblend Powder on cheeks, into hairline, up to temples.

Urban Decay Primer Potion

MAC Sun Blonde Eye shadow all over lid

MAC Surf USA Eye shadow through crease, blended into the yellow and then blended upwards to get the true colour. Also along lower lashes.

Urban Decay Virgin Eye shadow under brow bone and blended into Surf USA.

MAC Spiked brow pencil

Bobbi Brown Longwear Gel Liner in Black Ink

Chanel Imitable Intense Mascara

MAC Hibiscus Lipstick

I felt very summery today :)

- Jennifer

March Favourites and Harvey Dog!

Happy April! I hope everyone had a good month, it was my boyfriend's birthday at the end of it and we had a great weekend doing things around the town he lives in and in Eastbourne :) I got to see the gorgeous Harvey dog who kept us both very occupied playing with him in the garden, he likes to jump on the trampoline! (photo at the end) I made birthday cupcakes and we went out for a yummy Sunday lunch.

Here are five products that I've liked over March.

First, in the top left, we have Sally Hansen nail polish remover for dry brittle nails. You might be thinking that it is just a nail polish remover but it is a really good'n. My nails like to peel and break and since using this my nails have been pretty good... apart from the one I banged so it bled and now has a lovely crack in it. Other than being very gentle on my nails and conditioning them when I use it, it makes removing nail polish a doddle. Even glitter comes off easier than any other bottled remover I've used. I got it from the 99p Store. BARGAIN! I'm going to stock up on a few bottles as they are so cheap in case they stop stocking it. It is also sold in Superdrug (along with other removers for different types of nails) for £2 odd.

Next to that is Batiste Dry Shampoo in Dark and Deep Brown Hair. I bought this before I got my hair dyed to see if I could get on with it as I didn't want to wash my hair as often as I used to. It is pretty good. It comes out an ashy black/dark brown so completely dissappears into my hair which is great. I've always been put off dry shampoo as they are usually white and having dark hair it would show. This is good for me to get an extra day before shampooing again. I don't know if I'd get any more than that because my hair can get quite lank if left longer than two days when using normal shampoo, so I get three days before the next wash out of this. It doesn't make my hair feel as nice as when it has been washed but it is fine, it looks okay and I can put it up and it wont look greasy. Thumbs up.

Underneath is the Urban Decay Naked Palete. I'm not going to bother saying much about this, it has been reviewed so many times all over the place. If you want swatches, Temptalia always has good ones. I've been reaching for this more often than usual, just to get quick neutral eyeshadow done. It is great if I'm in a rush to get to work (always happens) and has some beautiful colours. There are so many possibilities in this palete and you can add a single brighter colour to change it up a bit. I like to use green... surprise surprise. I love Virgin for my brow bone and Sin is one of my favourite eyeshadows, it goes with everything and great for brightening the inner corner. I also really like Baked and Darkhorse, I use them a lot.

Bottom left is MAC My Highland Honey Blush from the Tartan Tale collection. This has been a bit neglected so I decided to pull it out one day and then ended up wearing it pretty much all month. It looks a bit orangy but isn't, it gives a nice warmth so my cheeks.

Finally, Bobbi Brown Longwear Gel Liner in Espresso Ink. I absolutely love this. I'd wanted a brown eyeliner for ages but browns are often too light for my taste, I wanted something very dark, verging on black but wouldn't look so harsh if I wanted more subtle makeup. This is perfect. I love BB gel liners, the formula is great and they last so well. I often use this with neutral makeup, like in the Naked palete and also with greens as it looks more subtle. Definately a staple for me.

...

Anyway, here is the photo of Harvey on the trampoline that I promised. He is a seven month old Springer Spaniel and is just crazy. He loves to get in everything and since he discovered the trampoline you can't go on it without him trying to climb up haha. He runs in circles and pounces on you if you sit down and he likes to catch balls on it.

And here is one where he isn't leaping into the air so you can see his pretty face. I love him. This is his favourite spot in the garden. He is holding his newest toy, the peanut.

- Jennifer