Friday 28 June 2013

My Piercings

Technically I was very young when I had my ear lobes done , I don't remember how old maybe 8 they were done in a hair salon with the old gun style way of piercing before sterilisation and proper techniques were in place. After this I was 18 and I wanted my tongue done initially but my dad was dead set against it so as my rebellious self at the time I went and had my lip pierced instead. I had it done at Feline Tattoos in Sheffield. I was shit scared but it was fine, very clean and hurt but for maybe a second and done with a needle. 

In no particular order as to be honest I can't remember.

 This is a micro dermal piercing from the side of the piercing it is an I shape where the base sits under the skin and the top screws on. I did have two here and I had them for maybe 4 months as I had to cover them at work and they just didn't seem to be holding in my skin well but people react differently. I loved the visual of them they just didn't suit my lifestyle and job. I still have the two scars on my arm they are pretty flat but can still see them even now. I don't regret having any of them done I think it was my way of experimenting with my body and personal style.



These are surface bars and I loved them very dearly, if I have any piercing done again and replaced these would be them. They sat above and below the collar bone and was something I'd never seen before and so it being unique at the time I wanted to try it out. I won't lie it hurt to have them done as the needle has to cut through a larger section of skin and one did get infected but I took care of it and it cleared up. Eventually my skin rejected them and started pushing them out which can happen  so I removed them before any real damage could be done. I miss them the most but maybe I'll get something in the future.

 
Two very old photos the left is the initial first tongue piercing , it hurt and it dose swell like a bitch and you have to eat soup and smash for about two weeks after. It seems a bit pointless now as who actually sees them or knows its there except for your partner but I still liked having them. I then had to go one further and have two extras on either side. They were a complete and utter whim I thought of it and happened to have money that day. I went in that day and had them done. This I swear was the most painful of all of them as they have to be done one after the other or the tongue will swell too much. I still don;t regret them even though I chipped my tooth which is why i made the final decision to take them out. I'm not rich and dentists are expensive I couldn't risk doing that twice. They lasted me a long time. I think I was testing how far I would go but it was fun at the time and saying no to your kids doesn't work but taking them somewhere clean and safe when they are old enough is important. 

At one point ear piercing were as close as one week between having them done. There's nothing wrong with this they don't hurt for long maybe a bit tender. However I had cold/flu between two and I think that made the healing period way longer than usual. So doing it while ill not the best idea but I think at the time I did it at the time as a pick me up they made me happy. I still have most of them including the lobe and tragus piercing (the one closest to my face in the middle). I have stretched the bottom two lobes but only to 5mm as i didn't want daft floppy ear lobes with huge holes in them. If I take them out or swap for a straight bar the hole closes up around the piercing and you can't tell they've been stretched which is how I like them.

In my experience if you keep them clean and check out reviews from other people before you pick a place to have them done then the risk is really low. Some piercing are rejected by your body and you don't know until after they are done. Make sure you think hard before you do it as some scar after removed but if you are happy with it then don't let other people decide for you whether they are for or against it . At the end of they day it's your body, your choice and you have to live with the end results. These are my personal experiences and views and I understand everyone won't agree with them.

I had almost all mine done at Thou Art Tattoo & Piercing Studio. They are serious about everything being clean down to the room being sterilised between each use. They also have all jewelry sterile and if you bring in used jewelry they will reuse your bars but only after they have sterilise it first. They are really informative and will answer any questions before and after .  I don't work for them, all my piercings were paid for by myself I just think they deserve a good review because of the service I've received over many years has been so good. No they are not the cheapest but that is for good reason they take good care of you.

If you want to know anything else just comment and ill get back to you.





Thursday 27 June 2013

Beauteco - June Box


This is Junes box it includes 4 full size items and one sample size, so as you can imagine I'm very pleased with this. Still loving the package in pretty purple shredded paper. The box is £10 + £3 postage and can be purchased (here)
Lustrous Locks - Vitamin Complex
These are vitamin tablets aimed at improving hair condition through the root growth. I'm taking them at the moment to at least give it a go and see but not quite sure how to review improvement if any. The ingredient are , Methyl-sulphoyl-methane, Vitamin C, Iron, Silica and N- Acetyl L-Cysteine. No I'm not sure what they all do either... and they aren't cheap at £15 which is for two weeks worth. For more information this is the website (here)


Organic Surge -Super Intensive Daily Moisturiser - For Dry Skin
This smells so nice that I catch myself opening it randomly just to have a sniff. It has organic geranium essential oil in it and I personally like it. I also like that it is made in the UK and the company is against animal testing and obviously organic too. I have been dipping in this all week, all you need is the lightest touch on the surface and it's like it melts on your finger tips warmth. When applied to the skin it sinks in and to me I can feel the difference. At £8.99 I think it is a fair price as you only use a very small amount of the 50 ml. At this moment in time Organic Surge have a 75% sale on (here). I also love the glass jar it comes in it just feels posh to me or at least well designed.

Balance Me - Wonder Eye Cream 
It says soothing, brightening and lifting and for all skin types. I don't love the smell but then again once its on you can't smell so not really a problem. I've not used this enough to give a proper review so I'll hopefully come back to it. It is a 10ml sample which is worth £14 so that covers the price of the box alone. It is 99% natural origins and also made in the UK. I like their promise as well....
Source from Balance Me (here)
Amie - New Leaf Skin Exfoliating Polish
This is a great budget exfoliator, not that it's cheap in quality but at a good price of £4.95 for 75 ml. I've only used this once but it spreads well and isn't overly abrasive but exfoliates without the stinging sensation so suitable for even sensitive skin I would think. You can really smell the orange and mango in this and my skin felt noticeably softer after use. It can also be used by vegetarians and vegans. Another full size winner in the bunch. They have other products I'm now interested in (here).
Headline Colors - Spotlight
This is such a pretty colour and I will do a post with my full nails done. I've tested it out on a few nails to give a mini review. The colour is very pearlescent lilac shade. I'm not loving the brush it just seems standard I expected more from a varnish that retails at £9 but it is a full size bottle at least. It drys quite fast and only need two coats which is good. The brush makes application harder than it should be but I do like the colour . There is a great range of unusual colours (here) .Not sure I'd go out and spend that much when there are brands I still prefer more at a quid cheaper.

Wednesday 26 June 2013

Another Argan Oil Cream - But A Good One



This was a magazine freebie with Cosmopolitan in May. It is Phil Smith Total Treat Moroccan Argan Oil. It retails for £10.99 for 100 ml (buy here). If I wash my hair and intend to blow dry it or not I semi towel dry my hair first then use this. I use a small blob so a don't make my hair accidentally greasy and avoid the roots. i rub it between my hands then try to evenly distribute it through the length. It smells devine and hold the smell even once it's dried. It is intended for dry, coloured or damaged hair. My hair afterwards feels soft, smooth and in great condition. If you can't order online the only place I know that sells it in store is Sainsbury's.

Tuesday 25 June 2013

Colour With Some Umph! - Color Tattoo


This is Maybelline Color Tattoo 24 hr. Its been all over the Internet and then some, it's not new but it is different. This is a gel cream eye shadow and cost £4.99. I've bought it in On and On Bronze. The reasoning for this is I can and have used it on it own. I found without a base it did crease on me but it was a rare warm day I think. After that I used Gosh Velvet Eye Primer I bought this a while back on offer but its usually £9.99. It works great under the eye shadow and I really think they work well together. 

Gosh Velvet Touch Eye Primer
Swatch
The other reason is it works perfectly in combination with the Make Up Academy - Undress Me Too Palette. The powder sits well on top of the cream and can create a good colour blend. My swatch doesn't do it justice so go in to a drugstore and swatch it. The quality really is there and gives an easy look without having to do much. I found it easiest to apply with my finger but I think the sponge cosmetic applicators would suit it too. 

Maybelline Color Tattoo, Gel Eyeliner & Blackest Black Mascara
I really want to try out some more now that I've seen the results. The ones I'm interested in are Turquoise Forever, Permanent Taupe and Pink Gold.

Monday 24 June 2013

Loreal Micellar ... The Solution? - Make Up Remover Without The Sting.

I love makeup but removing it at the end of the night can be tedious, painful and literally brings me to tears. My eyes are sensitive to begin with if I get a bit of make up in my eyes they tear up instantly. Just last weekend I decided I'd mess around with eyeliners and found an old one I got as a freebie and tried it out. Me being knackered at the time I used a face wipe to remove it and what I believe it did was smear the liner on my eyelids, half asleep and not caring I went to bed. The next morning I had crazy dry flaky patches on both my eyelids which I've being fixing using the Melvita Ultra Nourishing Cream I got as a sample from a Beauteco box.


I'd heard about micellar water from another blog and decided to give it a try. The one I bought was Loreal Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution. It looks like slightly bubbly water in the bottle and I was sceptical. I just put it on a cotton pad  though and  rub it over my face it's that simple. Now the first time I thought what the heck and went straight for my eyes with it. I'm a "If I buy it then I'm trying it", kind of girl. There was no stinging sensation when it went in my eyes even when I cleaned my eyeliner off with my eyes open. Its super sensitive as the micellar properties change how the cleaning part reacts to our skin. It has no alcohol , no perfume and is hypo-allergenic. 

It really dose work and my skin doesn't feel like anything is left on afterwards which I find some cleansers do. I had a shower after work and thought I'd been thorough as my job is very dirty and oily, on a whim i used it after and a lot of dirt still came off my skin which I was shocked at. I'm hoping more companies jump on the band waggon and make some cheaper ones or at least forces the others to reduce their prices. At £4.99 for 200 ml it seems like a lot of money but it works so that  beats everything else I had. As per the suggestion of my boyfriend I'm going to get a mini spray bottle to put it in as I find if I'm not being careful it comes out of the bottle too fast. I really don't want to waste it and that sounds like a good solution as well as being able to use it on my travels. I also have the Loreal Skin Perfection Oil Cleansing Oil as they were on offer at the time which I will try out in the near future.

Update

I still use this now but mainly as my eye make up remover which it dose a great job at. I'm about half way though the bottle and I did use this on my travels but the bottle is so badly designed that as you try to decant it into a smaller bottle half ends up down your hands so I really hope they bring out a smaller bottle. If you still want micellar as a travel edition Bioderma do 100 ml bottle online but this is more expensive at £4.50 (here).



Friday 21 June 2013

Updated Shower Duo


This is my new shower combo. It consists firstly of Anatomicals Don't Just Clean It Woman, Scrub It body scrub. This wasn't technically purchased but was part of a Beauteco Beauty Box (see here). It is normally £3.60 which I find totally reasonable and I know it can be purchased from Asos.com (here). It smells fruity and I love it. It is full of beads which don't just disappear instantly and the gel consistency means the scrub part doesn't go straight down the plug hole. It really super cleans my skin making my body feel nice and smooth. It turns cream like after being rubbed in but doesn't lather up but that means I can see the bead particles to carry on scrubbing. When it's washed off it comes straight off so I don't have to worry about finding grit on myself after.

The second part is Soap & Glory I-Foam Ultra Creamy Body Wash at. This smells amazing just like 99% of the brand dose. I believe I've had this so long its been renamed as Foam Call which is £6.50 for 500 ml. I'm glad I've made use of it. I like to lather it up on a shower puff to make it really bubbly and this spreads it really well. I love to use this when I shave as it feels really moisturising. I have many Soap & Glory products and have heard they are doing a brand relaunch to give it a modern more high end feel . From what I've seen I like what they've done , it also included improvements on existing products and launching of new ones which should be happening around September.

Tuesday 18 June 2013

If the Eyes are the Window to the Soul...then Eyeliner is the Frame

For a very long time my Rimmel Eyeliner Pencil was my trusted go to friend and it still will be when I'm in a rush or have a minimal kit to hand. At just £2.99 it's easy to apply even to the water line and has the desired look. I think I'd given up on being able to do great make up on myself but now I refuse to settle. It just doesn't have the staying power. If I'm ever going to manage the perfect cats eye flicks or even just create depth then I need to find a new medium.

Rimmel Eyeliner-Matic
I tried the Collection (2000) Felt Tip Liner this is £2.99. The pros are if you can work it then it stays exactly where you put it. Cons are on my eyelids it just drags , I can't get my skin smooth enough to draw a nice line. It's tip is too broad for me I think. I'm just not the right artist or canvas for this product.

Collection - Extreme Felt Tip Liner
After searching high and low on the Internet and various magazines I found a possible winner. This is Maybelline Blackest Black Gel Eyeliner at £7.99. A much higher price than my usual choice but I'd had my eye on it a while so I went for it. I made the assumption before I bought it I would bin the brush it comes with as most free ones tend to be cheap and pointless. Not this one though. It's quite short in overall length but the brush is smooth and hold it's shape. It's easy to use, it glides over the eye and sits happily in my waterline. I still only use it under the upper eyelashes but the effect it gives it so beautiful. It adds the depth I wanted and the brush didn't irritate my eyes which when they start to water is such a hassle after applying all my makeup as by that point I'm almost done. I'm still working on the more advance techniques but for everyday use this will be it. I think I've found a favourite brand in Maybelline as I also picked up a Color Tattoo cream eyeshadow.
Maybelline Eyestudio Gel Eyeliner

Monday 17 June 2013

This is my Denman ... The Cleaning Brush To Clean My Brushes

This is my Denman. There are many like it, but this one is mine. Without my Denman I am nothing, without me my Denman is nothing.

My Denman
OK so a tad melodramatic. But I really couldn't have handled the knots my hair used to get in without this brush. I've had it a long time and its got me through many a tangle of bleached hair.I must have had it nearly 5 years and it's as good as the day I got it. The only tell tale is the gold inlay on the handle has worn away all bristles are intact.It retails at £9.09 (odd price but true). So why haven't I taken better care of it? I really love this brush but it fills with dusty bits and many strands of hair caught inside it and then there's the products luring at the base of bristles just waiting to give me greasy hair.The task of picking the hair out by hand is so monotonous and you can never really get all the dusty buildup completely, it would be easier to buy a new brush. I really didn't know that this was the answer. Not a new paddle brush but a brush designed just for cleaning brushes.


It kinda looks like torture devise if you ever were crazy enough to use it as a normal brush. The bristles are hard in tight sections bundled together and would hurt any head. But just run the main section through your hair brushes and it pulls the hair strands straight out of the other brush, which in turn build up in the cleaning brush but are then really easy to remove. Next I use Johnson's No Tears Baby Shampoo at £1.69 for 300ml with a bit of warm water. Using the pointed end I ran this through the gaps at the base of the bristles to clear the dusty buildup on the brush. All that's left is to rinse and let it dry.


Final thoughts, it takes just a few minutes to do this process but it's worth it. I find it so simple to do and it means my hair gets greasy less often because of it. The cleaning brush is £3.99 but I think this is great value as it removes the hassle from the task at hand. 


Wednesday 12 June 2013

Beauteco Box Update



A little review of the products that I've gotten round to trying.


I'm getting this one out of the way as I really thought this was going to be lovely and I thought it was nice that it was made in Britain. The problem is as soon as you smell it, that's as far as you can go. It smells like cheap grandma perfume. It really is that awful that I can't even bare to use it in case I can smell it on myself. So I'm going to leave it at £36 for 180ml for somebody else to buy.
I
Out of these three I've not used the Moa Balm yet as I'm not quite sure what to do with it but that's not to say I won't I just haven't yet. The Dr Braggi Ive been using sparingly under my eyes which I found feels really nice as well as the dry bit of skin on my forehead. It works but I just can't afford to ever replace at £100 for  60ml so once it's gone that it for me. The Melvita is by no means cheap at £27 for 40ml but its my favourite of the sample sizes of which I got 15ml. I use it for the skin problem I have on my eyebrows. It is really hydrating and lasts pretty much a full day at work. It smell so nice and fruity and if I save up this is what I'd get.


Ive only tried the Help The Paw hand cream up to now and it's become my morning hand moisturiser since I got it. It smells awesome and rubs in easily I just love it. My hands get dry easily as I'm having to wash them all the time and I love to use this to nourish them afterwards. They are both reasonably prices, the hand cream is £3. The scrub is £3.60 I will get round to using it and reviewing it. I'm also wanting to try more Anatomicals products if anyone can make some suggestions for me.

Tuesday 11 June 2013

Batiste - Coco I'm Going Nuts For This

So this is definitely my favourite dry shampoo by far. The smell is Divine its coconut scent lasts longer than the others I've tried and i like that it stays. I kind of think of it as feminine and fresh. It goes on much less pure white but dose the job just as well as the rest. All Batiste need to do now is bring it out in a super size bottle. And I know I'm not saying much as I've show my love for dry shampoo here already. If you've not already tried it this is the one I would suggest as your first.




Monday 10 June 2013

Boots Extracts - Cocoa Butter Me Up

This is the Boots Extracts Cocoa Butter Set and is £10. So a bargain really when you get three full size products.

The Cocoa Butter Sugar Scrub I'm unsure I'd repurchase it again but it did smell gorgeous like it could be edible. This is a personal preference but I like a scrub to go on do it's job then wash back off, make me nice and smooth but feel like it was never there. This one is oily so leaves a film on my skin that I can't get used to. I understand that it's to hold moisture in but I used Oilatum shower gel as a child and ever since anything remotely like that has put me straight off it even if it works. So others may like that but I guess I'm weird. I'm trying to use it up but I got the Anotomicals scrub in my Beuteco Box and want to try that instead.


The body wash is the same it smells good but is super thick , I use it on a shower puff ball so I can lather it up so it's bubbly and I've started using it as a shaving gel sort of and I like it for that purpose. Last but not least is the body butter this is my favourite product out of them all. It's just a good all round body I like to use all over after a shower. This is being used up fast as i love the smell so much. It moisturises well to say I have dry skin it keeps it hydrated. I still wouldn't repurchase it as it's just not stand out special I've had problematic skin all my life this is just any other body butter I have at hand. I have quite a few already left to use up. I think I'd go back to the Sanctuary body butters first before this one so still looking for the one it is £13 so way higher than this set.


Saturday 8 June 2013

N07 - Revitalising Hand Saviour

Another item I've only just got round to trying from Christmas long ago. I thought it was just another hand cream so it got left behind with all the other bits yet to try. As I later realised it's actually an exfoliator. I didn't even know there were exfoliators for your hands. The closest to that is the product Swarfega which is a gritty, lime gel used for removing oil in engineering. It is so not the same thing as Swarfega.


It's the refined, gorgeous super gurly adult version. Just for us to pamper our hard working hands after a long day at work. It seemed strange but I'm not sure why but you put it on dry hands and rub it all over them. The salt crystals exfoliate while the liquid is creamy until rubbed in then its like an oil making your hands nice and soft and smooth. All you have to then do is wash it of with warm water .Ta Dah ! I like it, it feels and smells luxurious for a treat maybe used once a week as an extra to my hand creams. This retails at £11.50 a bit steep for every day but once a week to revive my hands I think it's worth it.

Tuesday 4 June 2013

Hair Today Gone Tomorrow

Well not quiet, the big cut has already happened but I thought I'd let you in on it. I had hair so long it touched
the top of my jeans. Just a few weeks ago I had a foot cut off. 

So I'm going to explain how I got to this point.I started dying my hair when I was 16. In the space of a week my sister dyed my mousy brown blonde hair from a light brown to black in three hair dye attempts. This was followed by many years of dying my hair black over and over again. I had no future intentions of doing anything else with it. Until I met my friend Jodie she is a very colourful person with a personality to match.
I loved my blue hair
She offered to bleach my hair and take it whatever colour I fancied and at the time that was Stargazer in Blue. The bleach went on and was left on and half my hair maybe from shoulder down fell off.  It was an oh crap moment !At this point the most I'd had cut off was a trim. I was devastated for maybe an hour in utter shock. I went ahead and put the blue on and was happy with the results. From then on until about a year ago I've gone every colour I fancied. That includes shades if blue, green, pink, red and purple. If your going to bleach your hair and don't know what your doing I recommend going to a hair dresser as bleach is damaging in the wrong hands I now know this. I should have learnt the first time.... I didn't.

This meant than when I did eventually stop the dying the main length of my hair was fried. Brushing my hair took forever it just knotted all the time. I went back to permanent dye using John Frieda Mousse dye in a Cherry Brown. It without a doubt is the easiest hair dye to use, it covers well goes on without dripping and gives a shiny warm colour. If you've ever wanted to dye your hair this is what I would suggest to a first timer. The gloves that come with it are so well made for the job you won't have stained hands afterwards. It's more expensive than regular cream dyes but completely worth every penny. The rrp price is £9.99.

So this is where I got to when I realised my hair needed the chop. It's now medium length with long layers. It's needs dying but I'm not sure what to try. I like the ombre look but I'm thinking a dip dye or a bright colour could be interesting. I can't help but want to experiment before dare I say it I'm too old. I'm liking the idea of a permanent plum colour.

My hair in a much better condition

Monday 3 June 2013

Something Different Comes This Way - Beauteco Box

So I'm a complete novice when it comes to beauty boxes. I didn't even know they existed until a few months ago. I like the concept it makes sense to try before you buy and have the convienience of them sent every month to your door.I looked into beauty boxes and the many versions but the reviews are both good and bad. Some can be taken both ways , expensive products I wouldn't normally be able to afford to try but that's only good until your sample is empty and you cant afford to replace them. I've also heard many times they ask for forms to be filled about skin type then products come that are useless to the recipient. I read this also from foundonfilm.com who understandably is upset with Glossy Boxes due to the nature of the random selections not being fair. So one box could be great for one person and another gets a completely different set of sample that don't appear to be the same quality or close value.

This is where Beauteco.com comes in to play. They are doing things a bit differently. To start with if you subscribe per month the first box doesn't automatically start a direct debit. The idea is they want you to try it first and see if your happy then subscribe. Next after I ordered it I was unsure if I'd orders two subscriptions instead of one. So I kinda freaked when there was no contact number just an email. The thing is there was no reason to worry. I emailed and had a reply in 6 minutes, since I ordered a week ago I've emailed 4 times as I have trouble with deliveries where I live and every time was a fast response it was polite and informative. When you go to pick your box you get three choices with similar items in all but a slightly different set so you can pick to suit your tastes and wants.

So here it is....
This is how the package comes in the post and to the right the
inside is simple but pretty 
Hello To You Too






This is the card that gives a small description of each item inside with discount codes for the month you are in if you want to purchase full size items.







I think the products were well packaged and nothing was damaged which I am pleased about.







Anatomicals - Body Scrub and Hand Cream
MOA - Balm , Dr Bragi - Age Management Moisturiser & Melvita - Ultra Nourishing Cream


Mitchel and Peach - Body Cream - An extra gift  came  too.
It comes in a simple sturdy cardboard box I know that others have stylish boxes but the whole point is it's aiming to be an Eco friendly company using recycled card and packaging. Even going Eco it's still such a cute box on the inside. It comes with a card with a description of each of the products. They are well packed and everything arrived safely. I think it would be great to get as a present.

Firstly I recieved two items from Anatomicals. I These are the body scrub and Hand Cream.Which are full size products at reasonable prices if I wish to buy them again which I'm already looking at the other products they do online. I also got sample sizes of MOA Balm - Daily Cleansing Ritual , Dr Braggi - Age Management Moisturiser and Melvita - Ultra Nourishing Cream. These I will do future reviews of as and when I try them out. The cost of the box is £10 + £2.99 p&p. If you order more than one month it is cheaper per box over 3 months or a year.


Sunday 2 June 2013

My Basic Make Up - My Minimum Kit

1) No Make Up
This is one hell of a sunny day so I took it upon myself to do a basic make up guide to what I wear as an every day look. The first photo is just after I've used a face wipe to start with a clean base. I used a N07 - Quick Thinking Wipe , which I've never  paid full price for which is £7 it's always been about £2 after I've got a Boots voucher and didn't want to spend much. Also before I started this earlier in the day I used an exfoliator necessary for my dry skin.
2) Moisturise
Then to give a good base I always moisturise. I use Cliniques - Dramatically Difference Moisturising Lotion. It's expensive but as my skin is ridiculously dry and due to my skin condition it's the only thing I use right now. That is until I finish it which will be soon so I intend to find a dupe in the process. I'm wanting to replace it with an spf in it.

3) Foundation
Foundation to me is the overall layer of make up that evens the face out. This can include a primer first, I have yet to find one as good as Benefits - Porefessional that I only had a sample size of. I'm looking at Elfs Primers or maybe a drug store equivalent but until then I'm sticking with good old foundation. Mine at the moment is Revlon - Age Defying for Dry Skin in Nude Beige. It has spf 15 so great for summer on the rare sunny days. For dry skin this just feels light and comfortable. Its not heavy coverage but it gives a base that doesn't look like I'm wearing foundation which is how I want basic make up. It is however build able without caking so coverage how and where I want it. I use Max Factor Facefinity Compact Foundation but only a bit usually down my t-zone.
4) Concealer
When I was younger I thought the more expensive within my range something was the better it must be. I always bought N07 - Instant Radiance Concealer now this it not to say it's not a great product. It is. But why pay more than double if something can give the same effect. Collection (2000) - Lasting Perfection Concealer in Light. This is god send it's £4.19 and I almost couldn't live without it. It put it just where it is in the photo and pat it in with my finger.
5) Eye Brows


 This is something I never did for fear of looking like I'd drawn them on. In summer the outer half of my eyebrow goes bleach blond and it looks like I must have gone mad with tweezers while drunk. So it's needed, I have done them in two different ways sometimes i mix the two bust usually don't do one on each cause it looks weird. The first is to use Rimmels - Eyebrow Pencil in Hazel , just run the brush across the brow to pull in strays. Then using the pencil in fine strokes to build the shape up slowly, it's easier to add more than take back. The other way is finding an eye shadow which is easier to match your natural eye brow colour, I find it a little trickier to master. I use Natural Collection in Crushed Walnut. Using an angled brush push it onto the shadow pot so it only goes on the tip ends of the brush. Then carefully use this to build colour in your brow in the direction of the hair. Once this is done I run Collection (2000) Clear Mascara sparingly over my eye brows to seal the colour in place.

6) Eye Shadow
This photo doesn't do justice to the colours I used. I failed miserably but that's fine because I will try again. I used Make Up Academy - Undress Me Too palette. This is a great basics set where its really hard to go wrong, I think the sun washed the colour out and id go much stronger with it next time. I think to get this look again I'm going to purchase the Maybeline - Tattoo Colour - On and On Bronze hopefully my next investment into more daring shades. I use my Eco tools brush to put it on which are reasonably priced in a 5 piece set for £15.
Eyeliner & Mascara
The finishing touches are to use an eyelash curler, I think any will do they all look the same to me but I'm sure someone will prove me wrong I've yet to see it. My mascara is the one every time I try a new one then don't like it this is my fail safe. Maybelline - Great Lash - Blackest Black . Its easy to use it goes on well and just hasn't failed me yet. I only use eyeliner on my eye line and water line. I'm still trying to learn to do flicks and cats eyes and not making myself look like I've got into a fight. So I use Maybelline - Eyeliner Matic in Intense Black. I find it easiest using a large mirror to do this so I have a steady hand to put it on.

The Kit :


This set cost £76.27 which is a lot if your just starting out on make up. It wasn't all bought at the same time so not too bad but I want to come up with a set that can be affordable to everyone and that is comparably good as the set above.