Wednesday 28 May 2014

Lana Del Rey Inspired Makeup Look

I've not posted on this for a while and I figured this would be a fabulous look to get my blog up and running again. 


To achieve this look, it involves making your crease stand out as much as you can and for you to wing your liner as long as you can bare it! 

The makeup I used to create this look is shown in the picture below:


Eyes:


For the lids, you want to pack as much white/champagne coloured shadow on your lids as you can, continuing up to your brow bone. This will help your lids stand out when you add shadow to your crease later. 

For the crease, I used these purple shades and blue from my BH Cosmetics palette mixed with browns from the BH Galaxy palette. 


Try and think of the colours you would use if you were trying to create a bruise. I know this is a horrible way of putting it, but it works! For every time you add a colour to your crease, you want to keep topping up your lid and brow bone with white, to ensure it stands out. 


In the following pictures, i used H for highlight/browbrone/tearduct and C for crease.



BH Galaxy Eye Palette:



BH Cosmetics Eye Palette:


Elf Eyeshadow Palette in 'Brights':



With this look, you want to avoid lining your waterline with anything other than a white/champagne colour as this keeps your eyes lovely and bright. Using Elf gel liner I lined my upper (remember to wing LARGE!) and lower lash line and with a small eyeshadow brush, smudged it slightly on the lower line. 




Finally, after applying Doll Me Up lashes by Velour Lashes and applying my favourite mascara - They're Real! By Benefit, I dotted a small amount of Melon pigment by Mac on a damp brush on my tear ducts. 

Eyebrows:


I usually use Michael Kors eyebrow pencil however I felt this look called for a little more precision. So, using a tiny damp angled brush, I used my MUA Eyebrow kit in the darkest shade on the top and bottom of my brows, leaving the inner part of my brows free, as I then used a light brown eye shadow to feather it out. I then applied some more white eyeshadow onto my brow bone. 

Face :


My current foundation routine can be found HERE

I used Elf contour kit and drew lines on my cheekbones, jawline, sides of my nose and temples and blended. I then went over my cheekbones and the rest of my face with Rimmel Sun Shimmer bronzer in Matte Medium which is amazing when applied with my favourite Laura Geller brush


Using Maybelline's Cover Stick concealer, I then went over the space between my eyebrows, forehead and under eye area to highlight. For highlighting the rest of my face, I used NARS highlighting powder on my cheekbones, nose and cupids bow.



This was the first time I tried Lord & Berry's luminizing stick and as you can see from the pictures is MEGA pigmented! So I only used a tiny little bit under my eyes.




The following photo is a swatch of Lord & Berry's Luminizer stick:



For blush, I used a mix between these two shades in my BH Cosmetics palette as I felt these are innocent "lana del rey" shades that complements the rest of the tones perfectly. 



Lips:


To line my lips, I used L'Oreal lipliner in 'Rosewood' but didn't fill my lips, instead I applied Pure Zen by Mac and finally, again with a damp brush, applied a small dot of Melon pigment by Mac on my Cupid's Bow. 





AND YOU'RE DONE!



I hope you all enjoyed my makeup look and please feel free to leave a comment!



With Love, 



xxx

Wednesday 26 February 2014

Beyoncé 'Drunk In Love' Makeup Look

After Beyoncé paying us a trip to Scotland, I felt that paying her a little tribute would be lovely. I had watched the Drunk in Love music video and fell in love with her messy yet elegant, simple yet striking, makeup look. Her look consists of a nude lip and very dramatic smokey eyes with a waved salt-sprayed look long bob. 

To achieve this look, I decided to try out my recently purchased Elf cosmetics. Including their contour/blush kit and amazing gel eyeliner.

{The following photos of Beyoncé are screencapped from her video and therefore do not belong to me}




For my eyes I used Elf gel eyeliner and my trusty They're Real! Benefit mascara. This look is supposed to look messy so the more smudged, the better. Applying generous amounts of the eyeliner to my upper and lower lash line, I smudged it out using a teeny tiny eyeliner brush. This liner can also be used on your waterline and will not sting or run into your eye like liquid eyeliner. 



Using my usual foundation routine, I then decided to try out this new powder by Elf. It comes with its own little powder puff which is very cute! I still need to get used to using loose powder as I always seem to get it everywhere! It left my face looking lovely and matte which I adore. The only downside is that the packaging is very big and chunky.




This eye palette is fabulous however does need some layering for this look we are going for. Using mainly blacks for my lid and outer-V, I smoked it out by using a dark brown for my crease and lower lash line. Finally, finishing off with a pale yellow and white for my brow bone and inner tear duct. 


Finishing off with a clear lipgloss, you're done!


Hope you enjoyed this look!

Ps. Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I'll get back on track.

Love, 




Monday 27 January 2014

Make Up for Acne (Basic - No Contouring)

I honestly can't remember a time when I've had no spots or redness. It's a pain in the you-know-what if you fancy having a no makeup day. You can't. 

{The following pictures are not edited or retouched}



I've been using this makeup routine for a while now and I love every product so much! Especially my concealer. If it's ever discontinued I will cry. Literally. 

This is done by using 3 products only (not including primer) and I swear by every single one of them. 

The products I use are in the picture below:





This gives the perfect coverage for my skin. I have combination skin so it's fine for my dry areas of skin however is a tad too wet for my oiler patches of skin.

This does wonders to conceal my acne as it adds more coverage and also, because it's a baked powder, it evens out the oily areas that the Mac foundation has created to leave a perfect matte finish without looking cakey

This is without a doubt the best concealer I have ever came across. Like. Ever. It's extremely affordable and has maximum coverage. Purchase it - you won't be disappointed!

This is an oil-free primer and leaves your skin feeling fresh before you apply your makeup. The way it changes the texture of your skin is amazing, like a flat blank canvas. It truly keeps my makeup on all day and I rarely have to touch it up.


Method:

  1. I place a pea-sized amount of primer over my freshly washed face and rub it in everywhere including my lips and eyelids, it's so moisturising! Plus it also acts as an eyeshadow primer. 
  2. Next step - concealer. The simplistic lipstick shape of this concealer makes it extremely easy to apply. I just draw over my red spots and acne until I've covered everything I want, then with a flat foundation brush, blend blend blend!
  3. Next, I pump a small amount of Mac foundation onto the back of my hand (a little goes a long way with this foundation, 1 pump will cover your entire face and then some!) using a stippling brush I apply it all over my face then buff it into my skin. 
  4. Laura Geller time. To finish off the process, swirl a soft brush in circular motions in the baked powder and, again in circular motions, apply this all over the face - or just over the sections you feel need to be more matte. 

And you're done! 

I hope this was helpful to any acne-sufferers such as myself,

Love,



Wednesday 22 January 2014

'Made By Niki' Lingerie

I am literally in awe over the beautiful set of underwear that arrived in the post today by the wonderful Niki at madebyniki.co.uk

I first saw the set in black, but it was out of stock so I opted for this colour in 'Dusty Pink' and I definitely think I made the right choice!

All my underwear is usually plain black or white and has to be stretchy (comfort first!) so this set caught my eye as the material looked so soft and when I unraveled the pretty blue tissue paper packaging, I was right!





£25.00

High waisted underwear is not to everyone's taste as it can make you look old-fashioned (but if granny-style is your fashion, go for it!) but the pretty lace, ribbon and (removable) suspenders make it that extra bit girly. I love high-waisted things because it makes me feel secure and comfy to control my much detested muffin top.. so no lumps and bumps (yay) After I ordered them I was scared in case the pants would be too small because I wasn't 100% sure if they were going to be that stretchy, but they're absolutely perfect and I'm so happy with them! Quite unusually, the briefs in this set have a zip up the back which makes you feel extra secure!





£29.00

This was the first time I've bought a bra over the internet because my size varies so much from shop to shop that I never want to risk it not fitting properly, but the high rise cup and the vintage Madonna-like style appealed to me very much and it fits beautifully with no over spill whatsoever. I will definitely be visiting her online store again!

The way it was packaged to me, I actually thought someone had sent me a gift! It arrived in a black shiny envelope and when I opened it up, each item was parceled up beautifully in blue tissue paper. It was a shame to waste it but I couldn't wait to see what the set was like! It also included a little catalogue of her stock!

I hope you all love my new lingerie set as much as I do. You should purchase her underwear, I highly recommend it & you won't be disappointed!




Love, 

Tuesday 21 January 2014

Kim K Inspired Look

I decided to do an inspired look on the wonderful Kim Kardashian

Kim is the star of dramatic makeup and I thought I would pay a tribute for her signature style.

This look is dramatic and I would not recommend doing this makeup for your everyday 'popping-round-to-asda' look. 

{I do not own the following picture of Kim Kardashian}




For this look I paired a smokey eye with false lashes and a deep red, ombré lip by applying MAC lip liner, Rosato lipstick and using a black eye shadow from the 88 palette to blend the sides. Here is the majority of makeup I used for this look, excluding false lashes and liquid eyeliner.




Laura Geller Lipstick in 'Rosato' 
I love love love this lipstick. It's so creamy which is a great match with MAC lip liner as it it very dry. It leaves my lips feeling as if I've just put chap-stick on! The best thing I love about this is that it comes from her scented range and smells like red wine mmmm.... and it's anti-aging! What more could you want?!

BH Cosmetics 88 Palette
I really love this palette as it holds mostly brown colours which is what I love the most to work with, but the shadows aren't very pigmented and most of the colours come out looking really similar so it's hard to produce a smokey eye with vibrant colours (boo)

Laura Geller Highlighter in 'French Vanilla' 
Most powder highlighters never work for me as it just makes it look as if I've smeared yellow/white eye shadow on my cheeks but this works wonders for me! It not only highlights the areas i want, it also leaves the skin with a dewy look as if you had used a liquid. 

They're Real by Benefit
Wow. Where do I start with this beauty?! This is by far the greatest mascara I've ever came across. I've lost count of the amount of times people have complimented me on the length of my eyelashes when I'm wearing this. They're Real, I swear!

MAC Studio Fix Foundation NW22
This foundation has worked wonders for me as I need really heavy coverage because my skin is awful. Most people think it's too cakey on their skin but when I pair it with Laura Geller baked powder, it goes on and stays on.

Bourjois Chocolate Bronzing Powder
I bought this bronzer a while ago and I've just recently discovered it again. I like it because it has zero shimmer in it which I love for a matte finish and for contouring. Plus - it smells like chocolate! Yum!

MUA Brow Kit
This is my go-to everyday brow shaper kit. Using an angled brush, the dark brown in this set is a perfect match for me and my hair colour, It's bulletproof.

Barry M Kohl  Eye Pencil in 'Black'
God knows how long I've had this. It really has served me well! It's so easy to apply, smudge, blend, whatever you like! It lasts the full night and you'll look fierce as it really extenuates my eyes.


I hope you all love my Kim K look just as much as I do! 

Love, 



Monday 20 January 2014

Brand Spankin' New!

So I've decided to start a beauty blog as I've been interested in doing it for a while - buying makeup and reviewing it. The dream, am I right?! I'm really looking forward to getting into this.


I painted my nails just a few minutes ago so let's get this off to a flying start, shall we?





This nail polish, as you can see, is by Sally Hansen and the colour is Kook A Mango. I'm in denial about it being winter and can't seem to get away from the bright, summery tones. It seems to brighten up a dull day (especially if you're from Scotland like me...)

The Colour is a blood orange, reddish tone which would go great with a tan!

The Durability is amazing! I've recently wore her nail polish in Scarlet Fever and the length of time it lasts without a chip (even when you're stuck washing glasses in work) is outstanding. 

The Price is so affordable at a purse-friendly drugstore price of only £6.99!

I haven't heard of her brand for a long time, however, I'm glad I found her