My Top 3 Mascaras

In my eyes, mascara is an essential to any make up collection, you can have a full face of make up on but if you leave mascara out your face just doesn’t look complete.
In the 5 years I’ve been wearing make up I’ve used a lot of different mascaras and now feel as though I’ve found the best 3 on the market that work the best for me.

L’Oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara – £10.99 Boots
This is one of the earliest mascaras I used and I’m still using it to this day so I must like it! You may not like this product if you’re not a fan of the long spider affect lashes though, as with a few coats that’s what this mascara achieves. Out of all three mascaras, this one gives you the longest lashes.

L’Oreal Volume Million Lashes Excess – £10.99 boots
This mascara really thickens up your lashes and lasts all day without smudging. One of my favourite things about this mascara is the brush, the bristles comb through your lashes making sure that there’s no clumps.

Chanel Volume Le Chanel – £25 Debenhams
This is by far my absolute favourite mascara! I know at £25 it’s quite pricey, but for the result it gives it’s so worth it. After having individual lash extensions last year, a lot of my own lashes fell out and as a result I now have quite short stumpy lashes, this mascara makes them bold, thick and long without being in your face.

What’s your favourite mascara?

Competition Goodies: BarryM Summer Love Palette & Gelly Hi Shine Lips

A few weeks ago I entered LazyDaysBeauty 100 follower giveaway to win this gorgeous BarryM Summer Love Shadow & Glow Palette and one of the new Gelly Hi Shine Lips.
I woke up Thursday morning completely shocked to find out that I had won & the package arrived on Saturday!

Up until now I’ve never tried anything from the BarryM make up line, but I have definitely been missing out. Every colour in the eyeshadow palette is so smooth and pigmented and creates the perfect summer eye look. The highlighter is a beautiful peachy gold shade which I adore and is going to look amazing on the cheekbones and inner corners of the eyes for the upcoming summer months. The packaging of the product is really good for the price and includes a large mirror which is great for travelling and on the go, it also comes with 2 double ended applications which also come in handy for emergencies.

Now onto the lip product, I wasn’t expecting much from the Gelly Hi Shines and mainly entered the competition just because of the palette, but I have to stay I’m amazed by how much I love this thing!I got the shade Sirius which is the perfect deep pink which I personally think would suit everyone! They apply so smoothly and feel more like a lip balm than a lipstick. As it says in the name they are really high shine and last a good 3/4 hours before needing to be reapplied.

Have you tried anything from the BarryM make up line that you love?

April Favourites

I can’t believe another month has passed by, where is the time going? Anyway this month my favourites have varied and I don’t just have beauty products, I read for the first time all year and cried my eyes out which is why the book has made it into my favourites. I also have some new products that I’ve bought this month and have fallen in love with.

My first favourite this month has to be The Fault In Our Stars by John Green, now I know I am way behind on the bandwagon with this book but to be honest I’ve just never got around to buying it. So when my mother bought me it for Easter and I had two weeks off from college I thought what better time to read it? I literally got through the whole book in two days and must have cried enough tears to fill a bucket, I honestly didn’t think I was going to get so into the story and fall in love with the characters as much as I did, without saying too much in really did not expect the huge twist and it completely broke me! After reading I now can’t wait to see the movie.

Now onto the beauty favourites, I’ve been LOVING Creme Cup by Mac I got it at the beginning of April and I don’t think I’ve used much else on my lips since, it’s just the perfect everyday colour and it goes perfectly with a smokey eye. If I want to darken it up I use a purpley brown colour on top of it and the combination is beautiful (I’ll do a post on it soon).

On the same line of lip products, I recently got the Elf Lip Exfoliator which I talked about in a haul here. I suffer with really dry cracked lips and this product has been a life saver since I got it, you can feel it working as soon as you apply it and after leaving it on for around 5 minutes you’re left with smooth lips ready for even a matte lipstick. This stuff smells and tastes amazing too!

Again another lip product favourite (I’ve gone a bit lip mad this month!), I finally got around to getting an Eos Lip Balm in Sweet Mint. First of all the packaging excites me so much and I love how you don’t have to use your fingers to apply it to your lips, making it really hygienic. The lip balm itself is extremely hydrating and you don’t feel the need to reapply it again and again.

Finally moving away from lip products, my penultimate favourite this month is an old favourite of mine, the NYC Smooth Skin Bronzer in Sunny. I used to use this product around a year ago and adored it! It unfortunately broke when I was travelling though and after searching high and low I couldn’t find it anywhere in shops or online. So as you can imagine I was ecstatic when I found it in a large Superdrug store while in Birmingham at the beginning of the month. This is the best and cheapest bronzer I’ve ever used, it’s matte which means it’s great for contouring and is the perfect shade for my skin.

The last favourite this month is something I’d never imagine using as I didn’t think they’d ever work, but it’s actually a foot cream. I was given a few soap and glory items for Easter which included the Heel Genius Amazing Foot Cream, and I can say that it is indeed amazing! I used this stuff the night I had it to see what all the fuss was about, I applied a small amount to each foot and put socks over the top before sleeping and to my amazement I woke up with the softest feet I’ve ever felt! Honestly they felt amazing and all the dry skin around my heels was gone. I recommend you try it out if if like me you never thought a foot cream would make much difference because believe me, it does!

That’s all my favourites for this month guys, I wish you all a happy May!

What did you love this month?

Three Products I Couldn’t Live Without

Whilst getting ready this morning I thought to myself ”If my house was to burn down at this very moment what three make up products would I save?” I then decided within less than a minute what those three products would be. I use these products every day without fail and even if I use a new product for a while I’ll always find myself coming back to them.

1. Benefit Brows A Go-Go – This eyebrow kit has been in my collection for over two years now and as you can tell by the picture it has been well used..Since getting it I’ve not used anything else on my brows, although at first I thought £28 was a lot to pay for something to fill your eyebrows in I can’t imagine using anything else now. The kit comes with two eyebrow powders, an eyebrow wax, an eyeliner, eye bright, a brow highlighter, a mini hard angle brush and a mini tweezers. When I first started using this product I used the wax to fill in my eyebrows but looking back it was way too harsh and ‘scouse brow’ looking, I now use a mix of the dark and light powders which are incredibly pigmented and give my eyebrows a natural defined look. I honestly could not live without this product! Get it here.

2. Naked Palettes – This counts as one item right?… Since first using the original naked palette nearly three years ago I’ve barley used any other eyeshadows, the pigmentation of them is great and they blend so effortlessly. I’ve recently got the naked 2 and along with original palette I can create so many looks with them that I could happily never use anything else.
You can get them here and here

3. Sleek blush in Rose Gold – The third product was originally going to be a foundation but then I realised I don’t have a firm favourite one that I couldn’t live without and tend to go back and forth between them, that’s a different story when it comes to blush though. My last favourite has to be a sleek blush in rose gold, I honestly think this colour would suit any skintone and it also works as a highlighter as it has a beautiful shimmer in it.
You get it here

What products could you not live without?

Mac All Fired Up Dupe

Whilst swatching Mac’s All Fired Up for a blog post on it recently here, I realised how similar it was to the colour I had on my lips at the time. That was the Catrice Ultimate Colour lipstick in Pink Me Up. The Catrice lipsticks are extremely underrated in my opinion, they’re creamy with high shine and last for ages on the lips. I have three, all of which I love and wish I could get my hands on more.

Catrice – Pink Me Up

Now side by side the colours are close to identical, All Fired Up however is slightly darker on the lips and is matte where as Pink Me Up Is not, it is however highly pigmented as is the Mac one. I’d say it stays on your lips for up to 4-5 hours without needing to be reapplied compared to All Fired Up staying on the lips for a good 6-7 hours. I find that the Pink Me Up is easier to pull off due to finish of it and is easier to apply than All Fired Up.

All Fired Up

If you’re not interested in the finish of the lipstick then I would I highly recommend that you get the Catrice lipstick before buying the Mac one as you’d be saving a massive £10!

Unfortunately I picked up this lipstick whilst in Germany and they don’t sell Catrice products in the UK (fingers crossed they will soon), you can however get the Mac one here.

Do you have any dupes?

Mac Mineralize Moisture Foundation

I recently bought this foundation on the suggestion of a mac worker, I asked her for a foundation that would suit my dry combination skin and she told me that the Minerlize Moisture Foundation would work like a dream! She suggested the shade nc15 which I thought would be too light but it actually matches my skin perfectly.

I really appreciate the packaging of this product as it looks quite expensive and comes with a pump which is always great. It is however glass so isn’t the best for travelling.

Now the actual consistency of this product is quite watery and provides light to medium coverage once built up, it feels more like a tinted moisturiser on the skin than a foundation and blends like a dream. This foundation does however have a strong sheen/glow to it, which if you’re into that is great but if you’re not I’d stay away as it doesn’t seem to matteify even with powder.

unblended

blended

I’d say this foundation lasts around 5-6 hours before starting to disappear and after 7 hours it’s pretty much gone from the skin, this means it’s not the best for a long day at the office or a late night out but is great for an afternoon out.

I can imagine this product becoming a holy grail for many people with dry skin as it does apply like a moisturiser and glide over any dry patches you may have. However if you suffer with oily skin and are thinking of buying this product I’d stay well away as it will just highlight any oiliness you may have.

My final verdict
For £27 I was expecting a longer wear from this foundation and a tiny bit more coverage but apart from that it’s probably going to become one of my holy grail winter foundations just for the hydration it gives my skin.
I doubt I will be wearing this much in the summer though which is a shame as it has spf15 in it, but as my skin tends to get more oily in the warmer months this product will only highlight that, even with a layer of powder.
7/10

You can get this foundation for £27 here

Have you tried this foundation, what are your thoughts?

The Lipstick Tag

I’ve seen this tag floating around so seeing as I love my lipsticks and didn’t have anything else to blog about today I thought I’d give it a go.

1. How many lipsticks do you own?
Not including any lip glosses, stains, butters or liquid lipsticks I have 20 traditional lipsticks.

2. What was the first lipstick you owned?
This is a tricky question. After looking through my collection and thinking hard I think the first lipstick I bought (that I still own) is an extremely old Maybeline one in the shade clear diamonds. It’s essentially a clear lipstick with a tiny bit of sparkle.

3. What is your favourite lipstick brand?
Although I currently only have 2 I’m going to have to say Mac, they just apply beautifully and come in the widest range of colours.

4. What is your most worn lipstick?
Lately it’s been creme cup by mac but if we’re going with long term then it’s going to have to be Calvin Klein Dangerous, it’s a dark berry shade and I wore it almost every day last year.

5. What is your favourite finish?
Although I love the look of matte lipsticks they tend to cling to the dry patches on my lips and require a lot of maintenance. So I’m going to say creme sheens as they are extremely hydrating and looking beautiful on.

6. What was the last lipstick you bought?
The last lipstick I bought was Mac’s Creme Cup and I haven’t used anything else on my lips since. AMAZING!

7. How many lip products do you currently have in your bag?
This question is made for me as I constantly have a collection of different lip products at the bottom of my bag! After digging through I found 3 products, which is actually quite reasonable for me. There’s a Rimmel Apoclips in Luna, a random H&M lipgloss which is actually really pretty and Carmex which is always in my bag for emergencies.

8. What is your favourite red lip colour?
I actually only own one red lipsticks as I feel like they don’t suit me as much as other colours, the one I do own however is a Avon lipstick in the colour red. This is a stereotypical blue toned red with a creamy finish and lasts all day!

9. How do you store your lipsticks?
I store my lipsticks in acrylic storage I got from muji which sits in my dressing room, I’m yet to fill the whole container which is just an excuse for me to buy more…

10. Which lipsticks are you currently lusting after?
This answer could go on forever but I’ll just give you a list of 3 Mac lipsticks that are going to be my next purchases. First is Rebel, I’ve been wanting to try this lipstick out for ages now so it’s definitely going to be my next purchase. Pink Plaid , this is the perfect pink lipstick which I think would suit anyone! Lastly I really want to go out of my comfort zone and try Morange .

Feel free to do this tag and link me to your post in the comments!

April Wishlist

April wishlist by xcourtneypaige 

1. Mac Blush in Warm Soul – I’m not a big blush fan and only own around 3 colours but I feel as though this colour would suit my skintone perfectly.

2. Eos Lipbalm – I’ve been searching for these in the UK foreverrrrr! Now that I know they sell them here I’m dying to get one.

3. Mac Strobe Cream – I’ve wanted this product ever since the woman in mac applied it under my foundation, it made my skin so radiant. I need!

4. Naked 3 palette – I feel as though I need this more than I want it just so I can say that I own all 3 of the naked palettes. It does however look stunning!

5. Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel – I cannot express to you enough about how much I want this product in my life! I’m a huge fan of bronzing and contouring as I think it completely lifts your face and complexion and this stuff just looks to die for.

6. Bourjois Helathy Mix Foundation – I recently run out of my match perfection foundation and picked up the Mac Mineralize Moisture foundation as a replacement, but at £27 I feel rather bad about using it everyday so I’m thinking of picking up the healthy mix foundation as an everyday one and keeping my mac one for special occasions.

What are you lusting after this month?

March Favourites

I’m so sad that March has come to an end, it’s one of my favourite months for many reasons. (mainly because it’s the month of my birthday) During March I picked up a lot of new products most of which are going to appear in this favourites post and there are some old classics which I’ve been loving for a while now.

Naked 2 Palette – Being a lover of the original naked palette, as soon as the second palette was released I had to get it but unfortunately my bank balance wouldn’t allow me. This valentines day however, my boyfriend surprised me with it and I haven’t used anything else since! I love how I can not only use this palette for everyday looks but also classic evening looks too. My favourite colours are foxy, Ydk, tease and busted.

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation – I absolutely LOVE this foundation and haven’t used anything all month. it gives the perfect dewy everyday look and leaves my skin looking radiant. I’d say the coverage is sheer to medium but could be built up to full with a few layers (which doesn’t cause it to cake may I add!)

Avon Eyeshadow Primer in Light Beige – I was bought this product for my birthday so I haven’t had it for too long but, I can say that it’s absolutely amazing and makes your eyeshadow last long over 24hrs! The colour isn’t too different from my natural skin tone and it glides on like a moose and makes putting your eyeshadow on a breeze! Having owned the urban decay eyeshadow primer I actually can’t see much of a difference between the two and would go as far as saying that I actually prefer the Avon one!

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water – I recently featured this product in my skincare favourites because it’s so amazing! It’s so quick and easy to use and being the lazy person I am, I love that you don’t have to wash it off or anything. It’s extremely refreshing and leaves your skin feeling alive and refreshed. I used this on my boyfriends acne prone skin a few days ago and it made his face look instantly clearer! ( he even said he was going to get some)

Sleek Contour Kit – My last favourite this month is the sleek contour kit in light, the colour is a great grey toned brown which works brilliantly for contouring and doesn’t make you look muddy. The highlighter brightens up your complexion and is great for every day too. I not only love this for contouring and highlighting but for also using on my eyes for when I’m having a lazy make up day.

What were your favourites this month?

Rimmel Apocalips Review

From left to right – Nude Eclipse, Luna, Apocoliptic and Galaxy

Now before I start I know that I’m way behind with the whole bandwagon of this product but I was sorting out my make up today and realised how much of a statement they are in my collection and thought why not do a review?

If you aren’t a bold lip person this product probably isn’t for you as the colour payoff from these things is amazing! Nude Eclipse is my go to everyday lip colour and goes amazingly with a smokey eye. Although the lighter colours I own are easy to wear, I wouldn’t say the same for the darker colours as they are insanely pigmented and opaque.
When using the bolder colours I recommend using the back side of the applicator so that you’re not getting as much colour and to blot your lips afterwards, especially with Apocoliptic!

The only fault I have with these is that they can be quite drying if you don’t prepare your lips beforehand and tend to seep into the cracks of your lips, this however can be easily avoided by using a lip scrub before hand.

These retail for £5.99 each which for a product of this type I think is a bargain!

Do you own any of the Apocalips? What’s your favourite colour?