The Eyeshadow For Early Winter Mornings

A pink ribbon in honour of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Here's my secret to looking extra beautiful in the morning. And it doesn't involve setting your alarms to go off 30 minutes earlier...

Move over On and On Bronze. I have a new favourite shade from the Maybelline NY Colour 24HR Tattoo by EyeStudio range.

I'm trying my best to experiment with my eyeshadow and go beyond reaching for the golds, browns and bronze shades. Which is something I can't help but do naturally. Metallic Pomegranate is a deep  burgundy shade with an odd yet flattering tinge of rust running through it. I've been counting on this  product to encourage a sweet and subtle transition into Winter when it comes to my eye make-up.

I love a good cream eyeshadow as they're a great product to use for beginners, busy women or for people that just can't be bothered but want to look some what presentable. (i.e me before university.) And they're a dream to use. I almost think that it's impossible to make a cream eyeshadow look bad.

I've been wearing Metallic Pomegranate daily and on it's own. With a dab of my finger, some blending with the help of a fluffy brush and lashings of mascara, my eyes are done within seconds. And it looks decent!

The warmth of this beautiful cream is what i'm most drawn to. Nothing beats wearing a sultry smokey eye with your scarf half way up your face and having a stroll through the crisp Winter air. It makes Monday morning's a wee bit more bearable.

What I admire about this particular range of cream shadows is that they really are great value for money. £4.99 can no way be argued with. They have an impressive staying power and the texture isn't at all drying. As with most cream eyeshadows, they can be used as a base product to prime the lids but I think that they look lovely on their own.

I do plan on buying more. From time to time I wander into Boots to have a nose but the crowd around the Maybelline shelves is always either too overwhelming or there aren't enough testers on show. First world problems, hey.

Have you tried the Maybelline 24HR Tattoo Gel Creams yet? If not, WHY?

Sensational?

When it comes to drugstore mascara's, I never usually stray far from Seventeen's Falsieye HD! in Blackest Black. However, when I saw this pretty pearly pink Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara on the shelves of Boots I decided to pick it up and give it a whirl. Admittedly, before writing this post I realised that I picked up the waterproof version, oops. But i'll go ahead and give you my thoughts.

I was apprehensive on whether to buy this as I haven't been majorly blown away by a Maybelline mascara for yonks, but after a few weeks of experimenting, I have come to my final verdict.

The mascara is presented to you in your typical Maybelline oval-ly packaging. (That word definitely isn't in the Oxford Dictionary.) I am a fan of the design but I equally find it to be quite bulky. Nevertheless you can't miss it in your make-up bag.

The benefits:

• Lengthening
• Thickening
• Adds volume
• Affordable and Accessible at £7.99

The not so beneficial factors:

• I'm the type of girl that likes to build up mascara but not to an excessive extent. Only a couple of coats. When it comes to Lash Sensational, I find it extremely difficult to built the product up without feeling like my lashes are going to rip out.
• Adding onto the latter point, it can look and almost feel very clumpy. Clumpy mascara is a huge problem for me! 
• A couple of weeks down the line and the product is already drying up. 
• Definitely not suitable for under the eyes. But then again, I find it difficult to find any mascara that doesn't transfer below my lower lash line.
• REALLY difficult to remove. That obviously comes with the 'waterproof' territory but this is really hard to take off and puts me off wanting to use it. 

Do I sound like too much of a Negative Nancy?

It may come as a surprise but I do honestly really like this mascara. It does all of the things I want it to do, it's affordable and I love Maybelline as a brand. The only mascara I like to splash my cash on is Benefit's Roller Lash but apart from that i'm a drugstore gal all the way. Will I repurchase? Probably. Just not the waterproof version!

Have you tried Maybelline's Lash Sensational?

The Estée Lauder Haul

Welcome to my first Estée Lauder Haul and a very image heavy post!

It has been a long time coming but i've finally purchased Estée Lauder's Double Wear foundation, and conveniently from Boots as you have got to keep wracking up those points! Christmas is very much just around the corner after all.

I've never purchased anything from Estée Lauder before and the service was wonderful. It's always nice to hear that you have lovely skin and that the foundation and lipstick looks gorgeous on you. It makes it much easier to hand over your cash and say to yourself 'Go on then, take my money.' I was also given a very generous gift bag at the check out as a reward for spending. *Happy dance*

When it comes to Winter beauty I think, flawless base and dark bold lips. And I think that I've hit the nail on the head with these two.

Here's the haul:

1. Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Make Up SPF 10 in Cashew 

This product definitely does what it says on the tin. Stays-in-place! I almost have to do a triple cleanse to make sure that my face is free of it at the end of the day. Regardless of the effort you have to put in to take it off, it's a fabulous product. Initially, I was reluctant to buy this because of how full coverage it is. I'm not into the whole cake face thing, or even worse feeling like your base is wearing you. But I have been pleasantly surprised and so far, so good. 

2. Pure Color Envy Sculpting Lipstick Matte in Desirous

The launch of these lipsticks have sparked a lot of joy for me. I've always known that Estée Lauder have some of the best skincare on the market and some great make-up products. But I've also had the impression that their target market is aimed more towards the mature side. Until the gorgeous Kendall Jenner became the new face and they came out with these beautiful matte lipsticks. I think that I could happily spend a lot of money on all of them. The shade Desirous is my new favourite Autumn/Winter shade. The sales advisor on the counter at Boots claimed that these lipstick's don't require a lip liner. Because Desirous is an extremely dark shade, I prefer to pair it with a lip liner but there is a substantial amount of staying power there and The Pure Color Envy's are an extremely comfortable wear. 

My purchases were rewarded with a gift bag filled with cute little miniatures, decent sized samples and a lipstick:

1. Take It Away Make-up Remover Lotion
2. Daywear (Love) 
3. Modern Muse Perfume
4. Doublewear Foundation
5. Advanced Night Repair
6. Pure Color Lasting Lipstick CREME 17 Rose Tea

Best gift bag ever!

I can't wait to experiment with all the goodies. Do you have any Estée Lauder favourites?

For The Khaki Lovers

My love for Khaki doesn't stop at clothing. I had been on the look out for the perfect army green eyeliner for a while and the hunt came to an end when I walked into MAC the other day and discovered Forever Green. I'm a brown-eyed girl, therefore technically I should be reaching for the purples to flatter my eye colour (Permaplum, a gorgeous purple Powerpoint Eye Pencil is on my wish-list.), but i'm counting on this gem to spice up my make-up throughout the winter.

Coloured eye pencils can be quite frightening, but this is such a wearable shade and not at all offensive so i've been wearing it daily. On Nights out, to lectures, out shopping and even to the gym. (Come on girls, I know at least some of you wear make-up to the gym!) The description claims this product to have a metallic shimmer with a matte finish, which it 100% does but it looks flattering.

I'm a big fan of the formula when it comes to the MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil's. They have a buttery and easy to blend texture, meaning minimal tugging of the eye. So far I have been wearing this sultry green on my waterline to dare I say it, add a 'pop' of colour to my make-up. However, my next experiment is to apply it all over the lid, which I can imagine to look rather beautiful.

Colour doesn't just have to be for the warmer months of the year.

Have you been Forever Green-ed?