July 2016 Update | Eid, Beauty By Maryam Launch & Graduating!

Hello everyone, I hope you’re all doing well. July 2016 has probably been the best month of the year for me and I have so much to write in this update!

Eid

On the 6th of July it was Eid Ul Fitr which is the celebration at the end of the month of Ramadan. This year we all went out for lunch rather than have Eid at home and it was such a refreshing change! Usually each family cooks one or two things and then we tend to go to round to one families house and set out all the food. As great as Eid usually is, it was so nice to have a change and after the meal we went to my aunties, played a game of pass the parcel with the kids. I also made sure I had a little more time to do my makeup and used the beautiful Anastasia Beverly Hills MR palette and went for a much more bolder look than I usually would. I am definitely the type of person to stick to my usual look, perhaps switching up the blusher shade or lip colour but not being too adventurous. What can I say, I'm a creature of comfort! But having said that, making such an effort on Eid and really trying to follow tutorials and use colour was such a fun experience and I definitely want to continue. I also wore the most beautiful false lashes which I will be discussing in tomorrows blog post with you all, they're super affordable but look so lovely and fluttery on, I am obsessed. 

Also for prep I got the whole family to do the Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay which is essentially the best deep cleansing mask I have ever tried - and 100% natural. LOVE LOVE LOVE.

The Start of Teacher training

Yes that is correct, I have officially started my teacher training and I am SO excited! In the middle of July I attended the induction day and got to meet my fellow trainees, meet the staff and get the whole programme over-view. It's kind of insane that in less than a month I will have began the training and will be preparing for such a full on year and a part of me is very nervous - but theres comes a time where everyone has to stop being a student and transition into a 'real adult'! I thought it was really cool how we were gifted iPad minis to help us with out course. We have some homework to do and a little preparation which I do need to get on with. I am one of those stationary addicts and I am really enjoying organising myself and putting some of the pretty notebooks I already own to good use. It was great to meet with the other trainees, many of whom had decided their corporate job was not for them anymore and they wanted to get into teaching. There were a few like myself who were fresh graduates, pursuing their passion for working with children and there were also a couple of people who had been working as a T.A and already had a lot of classroom experience. The school direct course route for PGCE is very full on but thats kind of why I choose it and I will be doing a dedicated blog post on getting onto the course for those few people who have specifically asked me. If you're interested in reading more about my experiences then do keep an eye out for these monthly posts as I'll add a paragraph each time to catch you up, as well as document it for myself too.

Beauty By Maryam Launch

On the very same day as the teaching induction there was also an exciting beauty launch in London. At first I wasn't going to go, but when I emailed the lovely Maryam (IG here), she was so lovely and said I should come anyway even if I'd miss the first few hours! The event was sooo classy, beautiful decorations, great food and even a bouncer with a guest list, yes I felt very cool. I was gutted that I had to miss the start of the event but it was a pleasure to meet so many lovely ladies who I'd seen on the gram and also see the beautiful 3D silk lashes too! They are so lightweight yet fluttery and I am looking forwards to trying them out soon.

Graduation

And the BEST part of my July simply had to be donning the gown and cap and graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Developmental and Educational Psychology! Three years of hard work lead up to this day and without sounding like a packet of wotsits (or cheetos for those of you across the pond), it was genuinely one of the best days of my life. I didn't even realise how much graduation would mean to me, but I felt incredibly proud and a huge part of that is due to how lovely and supportive my family were. My dad bought me the most beautiful flowers I have ever received and my wonderful grandma (AKA Amijee) came down from London for the ceremony and stayed with us for a week which was amazing. Honestly although I have my post-grad plans in place a small part of me is still in shock that I've done the three years of Uni and come out with a degree! When I was a young teen I had imagined that once I have got to this stage I'd be very different...sophisticated, someone who has a signature scent and always smells good and yes as silly as that may sound that is genuinely what I thoughts haha. I'm not quite this fancy chic that I have described, but looking back to the person I was 3 years ago makes me realise how much I have changed and grown since then. I think the ages 16-21 are years where everyone changes a great deal, but I know going to University is a big part of why I am the person I am today. I genuinely feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to go to University and get on the career path I know I really want to do.

Anyway my eyes are shutting and I am nodding off as I type this, so I'd better stop nattering on!

How was your July?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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July 2016 Update | Eid, Beauty By Maryam Launch & Graduating!

Hello everyone, I hope you’re all doing well. July 2016 has probably been the best month of the year for me and I have so much to write in this update!

Haul & First Impressions | Charlotte Tilbury and Zoeva

Hello everyone, I hope you're all well. Again I've been so slow with the blog posts, life has just been going at an extremely fast pace and I am very grateful to have a few spare minutes to type this up! Todays post is a haul as you can see from the title, and it is one that I have been wanting to purchase for months and months. Both the brands Charlotte Tilbury and Zoeva are rather pricy and most definitely a splurge, so I had to wait for a worthy enough occasion before I treated myself. When graduation rolled around and I found out my grades it was pretty much the perfect reason to pick up some goodies I have wanted for quite some time. Some of these items I've been using and some are still brand new and I have no comment to make...yet!

Starting off with cheeky repurchase (cheeky because I haven't even finished the first one tut) the Charlotte Tilbury Air-brush flawless finish skin-perfecting micro-powder (£33.00). I had to pick up another one of these powders, in the shade medium, because it is the BEST powder I have ever used in my life. I used to be anti-powder, I hate my skin looking powdery, cakey and thick so I avoided powder at all cost. Plus I used to have dry skin, so I had no need for the stuff. However this powder really does airbrush the skin, I use a little of it to set the T-Zone when I'm wearing a dewy base, but my primary use for this is to touch up makeup. It pretty much lives in my floral makeup bag and comes around with me wherever I go. Using a small eco-tools powder brush, I gently pat a little of this powder where my skin starts looking shiny OR where I can see visible pores and it literally blurs the skin. Expensive, but well worth the price for sure.

Something I am yet to properly try, but have lusted after for months and months and months is the Charlotte Tilbury Colour Coded Eye Shadow in The Dolce Vita (£38.00). I know, that price tag is extremely eye-watering and I don't drop a lot of money of makeup like that without careful thought. The reason I did pick this palette up was because I KNOW it contains shades that are unique (mostly that stunning bronze/copper shade which seems to be un-dupeable) and shades that I will definitely wear. I have to a certain extent slowed down on buying eyeshadows because I have a gorgeous MUG collection, as well as quite a few high-end palettes too. Dolce Vita was always on the wishlist and it is such a treat to own this at last...although I have to say I expected the packaging to feel a little more expensive...when you pay so much money for eyeshadows I don't think thats an unreasonable expectation! I am really excited to start using this palette and will probably be recreating this look first ^_^

Another eye product (which is rare for me, I don't usually splurge on eye products ever!) is the Legendary Lashes Mascara (£25.00), which again is pretty pricy I KNOW. However my favourite mascara for the longest time was They're Real by Benefit and that was around the same price point so not too bad. I have been getting back into wearing mascara of late and I have to say I'm not very impressed with the ethical drugstore offerings...I don't have the time or patience for three coats! Legendary lashes is the newest offering in the mascara department from Charlotte Tilbury and I have heard nothing but amazing things, so I'm very excited to start using it. There is actually another highend mascara that will be featured on za blog in an upcoming favourites post..who would have though eh?

Two base products that I have wanted for the longest time are the Light Wonder Foundation (£32.00) and the Wonder glow skin illuminator (£38.50). I have been using both for about a fortnight and I have to say I don't understand why the illuminator is so pricy, it is BEAUTIFUL and really does give any base you apply over the top an extra glow, plus it can be used as a highlighter alone too. However why it is quite so pricy I'm not so sure...on the plus side you do get 40ml of product so hopefully it'll last a decent amount of time. When reading the product description there is a lot of techno-babble like 'Fluorescent Core Light Diffuser' and 'Collagen-boosting peptides and patented wrinkle-preventing ingredients' which is quite typical of the brand...I'm not sure how much boosting it does but I have enjoyed using it so far.

The foundation is GORGEOUS, in the shade 7 which is a little deeper than my skintone but it blends in so well I can hardly tell. In-fact it gives my skin more of a sunkissed healthy glow and I'd say this foundation is the slightly better version of the NARS Radiant Tinted Moisturiser (£29.00), it lasts better throughout the day but has a similar coverage - light and buildable and offers a similar dewy look. The biggest difference for me is that with the NARS TM, sometimes I feel like my face looks a tad shiny rather than glowy...not a big deal at all as a little air-brush powder can fix it up..but yeah there is not a lot between them from what I have tried so far.

Moving on to the brushes, Zoeva has been a brand that I have had my eye on for YEARS. Before that I briefly looked at Sigma but the brush sets were £200 and that was far out of my budget! Zoeva used to be a little more affordable...I know they're a business but I did think it was a little unnecessary for them to increases prices by such a large amount (each of the sets are at least £15 more). I totally regretted not buying a brush set back then, but hey ho thats just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. We've all seen and swooned over the rose gold brush sets, they are beyond beautiful! But I knew I didn't want either of the eyebrushes sets because they didn't have the brushes I needed. Since getting more into eyeshadows I've understood how important it is to have a good set of brushes, because the tools themselves do half the work.

I already have a decent collection of Morphe and ELF eyeshadow brushes, but I'm definitely missing a few. After watching Katy's video of must have brushes (here) I noted down the zoeva brushes she mentioned and amazingly I found almost all of them in this Zoeva En Taupe Brush Set (£40.00)! This is a brush set I've not heard of on any other blog, because the rose gold hype is still so real haha. However I'm really glad I didn't dismiss this, six eyeshadow brushes for £40 is a great deal as each brush is around £9 each, so you do save a fair bit of money. I am almost too excited to take them out of the plastic wrap and use them after saving up and lusting after these brushes for so long!

I also purchased two final brushes to add to my collection, the Zoeva 114 Luxe Face Focus brush (£13.00) which was heavily recommended by Onika beauty (post here!). I've been using this to set my under eye and then remove the quick bit of bake and it is just the perfect size! Its a very versatile brush and I totally get why Oni has more than one. Well worth the price tag too. The last brush I purchased was the Zoeva 234 Luxe Smoky Shader (£9.00) another recommendation from Katy. Its the perfect size for packing colour on and although it was expensive I know these brushes will last me for years as they're very well made.

And that is the end of my most splurgy haul in a while...the gradation gift to me which I am SUPER excited to start using properly #bloggerprobz!!!

Have you tried anything in this haul?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Haul & First Impressions | Charlotte Tilbury and Zoeva

Hello everyone, I hope you're all well. Again I've been so slow with the blog posts, life has just been going at an extremely fast pace and I am very grateful to have a few spare minutes to type this up! Todays post is a haul as you can see from the title, and it is one that I have been wanting to purchase for months and months. Both the brands Charlotte Tilbury and Zoeva are rather pricy and most definitely a splurge, so I had to wait for a worthy enough occasion before I treated myself. When graduation rolled around and I found out my grades it was pretty much the perfect reason to pick up some goodies I have wanted for quite some time. Some of these items I've been using and some are still brand new and I have no comment to make...yet!

COLOURPOP SERIES #2 | Wearable Browns | FOR BROWN GALS

Hello lovely people! Sorry for the little in-pronto blogging break I took, the heat and recent events were to blame, but I am back again today with another colourpop lips post. This time with a darker more brown themed colour family. I am going to be copying and pasting the application tips from the last post, incase you've stumbled upon this one first (but you can read the 'light nude shades' post here). In this set of three I'm happy to say there aren't any that I disliked formula wise, they all applied well and lasted the same amount of time (around 5 hours before it started fading).


I like the packaging it's lightweight, and has silver detailing which makes it look a little more pricey than it is. All liquid lipsticks cost $6 by the way, VERY affordable! I also like how the doefoot applicator is pretty small! Personally I'll only use a lipliner with a liquid lipstick if the shade is a little too light and I need some more definition, otherwise I'll just line my lips with that liquid lipstick itself as they normally have more than enough opacity and longevity alone.

Its also important to note that all liquid lipsticks are a little drying and colourpop's are no exception. Some people find them to be a lot more drying, however you simply need to remember to apply them to DRY lips (which have been balmed up before and of course scrubbed too), and also you only should apply ONE layer. Avoid applying it to the bottom lip and pressing them together, it is better to put on a single layer on both lips and wait for the application to dry down. This way the liquid lipstick will set well and last too. I also find that the more dehydrated that I am, the more the formula sets into fine lines on my lips.

Now on to the review and swatches of each shade!

1. Chi

Colourpop describes this as a cool toned nude and I totally agree with that. As with the vast majority of liquid lipsticks, Chi dries deeper than it appears in the tube. I thought this would be my perfect nude liquid lipstick and it was actually one of the shades I was most excited for, however it is just a little bit too cool toned against my complexion. I can definitely make it work for me, but not when I use it alone. Chi is cool toned a very nude, so it can wash me out a little.

My favourite way to wear this is with a deeper lip liner first (Rimmel Tiramisu) and the apply a small amount of this, blend it out with my finger and basically wear it as a light wash of colour, rather than a full on liquid lipstick in all of its intensity. Sometimes it does need a little adjusting even after blending, so I'll go back in with the lip liner and straighten it up...a bit of a faff! Its a workable colour but I'm not crazy over it and I'll only reach for it when I have the time. My favourite nude liquid lipstick from Colourpop is Bianca (reviewed here) if you were curious!

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 4/5

2. Beeper

Colourpop describes this as a warm mid-toned taupe and I'd say thats a pretty accurate description. I do find beeper to be quite an odd shade, its one of those colours that pulls differently on different skintones. The swatch on their site isn't too accurate (probably because of this!). I picked it up for my best friend and on her it looks a lot more brown toned, whereas on me its much more of a mauve and definitely pulls purple.  If you read the reviews on the CP website under this shade you'll see a lot of different shade descriptions, and I'm sure you'd find the same if you google swatches too!

Although I wish it was more warm toned and brown on me, I do like the colour and I will wear it now and again. Again its not a favourite but it is a shade I can wear alone and it goes with most looks too - dressed up or casual. Beeper is a supposed dupe for Kylie Jenner's lipkit in Dulce K, I don't own any of the lipkits so I can't compare them myself, but I recommend watching this youtube video by Shaanxo, which is super helpful!

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 4/5

3. Tulle

Colourpop describes this as a dusty mauve burgundy and I'd say thats a pretty accurate description. Tulle is actually my favourite shade form this trio, not because it is the most wearable - more because it really really flatters my medium yellow-toned skin, I am obsessed with how it adds so much life to my face! It pretty much is my all time favourite bold shade and the formula, though a little streaky, is very easy to work with. When I say streaky, I mean I apply it a little slower than the other shades to ensure it is evenly coated on the lips and that it doesn't go out of the lines or smudge. With darker and deeper colours it is much harder to conceal any mistakes so thats kinda a given!

Back to the shade, Tulle is a very wearable burgundy/purple mix and it truly is a MUST have shade for medium skintones, I urge all my fellow brown gals to purchase it. I was a little unsure when I saw this in the tube, but it does dry down darker which I was really happy about. Again the swatch on the website isn't quite how it translates on the lips, but I'm so so happy that its a colour that I love. Will I get through it quickly? Definitely not. However I would totally repurchase whenever it runs out because its a shade that I really like...y'know if you hadn't figured this out already.

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 5/5

That is the end of second colourpop liquid lips post! I hope you found it helpful and do head over to my IG for more swatches. I also hope my blogging will get back to a more regular schedule, I have family over and a lot of change going on at the moment so I have given myself some guilt free time off ^_^ But having said that I am very excited to get back to the blogging world too!

Thank-you for reading ♥

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COLOURPOP SERIES #2 | Wearable Browns | FOR BROWN GALS

Hello lovely people! Sorry for the little in-pronto blogging break I took, the heat and recent events were to blame, but I am back again today with another colourpop lips post. This time with a darker more brown themed colour family. I am going to be copying and pasting the application tips from the last post, incase you've stumbled upon this one first (but you can read the 'light nude shades' post here). In this set of three I'm happy to say there aren't any that I disliked formula wise, they all applied well and lasted the same amount of time (around 5 hours before it started fading).

Two High End Concealers That Disappointed Me

Hello everyone! If you're a regular reader of my blog, you'll know that I'm not one to avoid talking about products that have let me down. I think in the blogging community there is a bit of an awkward turtle vibe, when it comes to 'negative reviews', however the whole reason I read blogs in general is to get a well rounded opinion of a product. And if its not quite what that blogger expected, I want to know why and if it would impact me the same y'know? Especially when it it comes to high-end pricy items, because in some ways if I buy a £5 concealer and it doesn't work out, then it's not as big of a disappointment. But if I'm spending more than £15 on a concealer, then it had better be worth my monies!

I have products from both these brands that I really enjoy, so I am in no way dismissing either of them! However I paid quite a lot of money for both of these concealers and I have tried for months to get both of them to work, yet alas they are just not my cup of tea. To be totally honest though I am quite the concealer critic, I have tried many in my time and only really appreciated a few (with my most loved being the Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer - review here).

Charlotte Tilbury The Retoucher - Conceal and Treat Stick in 3 Medium (£25.00!)

I purchased this at the Harrods CT counter last August and it was definitely not what I went there for, but I kind of got coaxed into buying it. The sales assistant who was very nice (at least there was good service there), sat me down in the stool, took off my concealer and applied this. I was very sceptical because from the YouTube videos I had seen the coverage looked far too light and yes I should have gone with my instinct! The MUA on the counter spent a good couple of minutes buffing and layering and buffing layers on concealer on my under-eye, and I was so excited to be at an actual Charlotte Tilbury counter that I don't think I fully realised the amount of work that was going into my under-eye area! With the right techniques and the use of the CT Airbrush Flawless powder (which I adore by the way), the MUA had created a flawless undereye and I was mesmerised. So without even asking about the price, I was pretty much ushered to the till and walking away with a £25 concealer - ouch ._.

So basically the coverage of this concealer is light, if you have dark circles don't even bother. It has a similar vibe to the YSL Touche Eclat, in that its supposed to be brightening but as the shade I have is a close match to my skintone it just doesn't work well like that for me. The only way I've been able to use this is around light redness on my skin, however try as I might I just cannot recreate the same beautiful flawless undereye that the MUA created. I've used several different brushes, waiting in between layers to let the concealer set and also used it with a corrector, but I just can't do it and its really upsetting that I paid £25 for a concealer I rarely use. Whilst this doesn't ever look cakey on the skin, the lack of coverage is just not good enough and I don't really know who I'd recommend this too. Do let me know if you've enjoyed this, or if you've had a similar experience!

Tarte Maracuja Creaseless Concealer - Medium Sand (£20.27)

I picked this concealer up in my 20th birthday Sephora haul because I had heard a lot of great things about it on the YouTubesphere. I purchased the shade medium sand based on the fact that Huda Beauty uses it and she has a similar skintone to me, and the good news is I do like the colour. Its yellow toned and very brightening...however that is where the likes end pretty much. The formula of this concealer is what I cannot get along with no matter how hard I try, it is extremely WET. I understand the love for having a hydrating concealer, especially if you have dry under-eyes, but the maracuja concealer is just greasy looking to me! When you squeeze it out, it comes out in a thick paste which is pretty sticky, but easy to blend out. However even with powder it still doesn't set well for me. Perhaps if I use the baking technique it would work better, but in general I find it annoying that a bit of powder doesn't even work to set the concealer in place. I think the wet look is due to the amount of oils they have included, and I really do appreciate that Tarte care a lot about their ingredients they're one of the few brands who do. However for me the amount of oil in this stuff is far too much.

Another thing that is frustrating is the lack of coverage, even with the use of a corrector my darkness still shows through, despite it being labelled as a full coverage concealer. Also it is certainly not creaseless! I know i'm not the only person who has found this 'creaseless' concealer to actually crease under the eyes, which just isn't okay. I am aware that the majority of concealers do crease a little, especially if you have fine lines already. But this stuff creases like no tomorrow so I'm really unsure where they got the 'creaseless' part from. I'm sure this concealer COULD look okay with a heavy corrector, some baking and a lot of blending out to avoid the fine lines but for me it is far too effort to get it to work for me. Again please do let me know if you had a similar/different experience with this concealer and if you have any tips or tricks with either of them!

I've swatched them both together, as you can see the retoucher in medium is not as bright or light as I usually go for. It does look a little bit more peachy in the swatch by the way. So yeah there you have it! Sometimes high-end products work really well and other times they just aren't quite what you'd expect. I will not be purchasing any more highend concealers without doing a tonne of research, plus like I said I'm smitten with the Kevyn Aucoin SSE (so much so that I now have three shades!) so I'm all concealered out haha.

Have you tried either of these? When were you last disappointed by a high-end product?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Two High End Concealers That Disappointed Me

Hello everyone! If you're a regular reader of my blog, you'll know that I'm not one to avoid talking about products that have let me down. I think in the blogging community there is a bit of an awkward turtle vibe, when it comes to 'negative reviews', however the whole reason I read blogs in general is to get a well rounded opinion of a product. And if its not quite what that blogger expected, I want to know why and if it would impact me the same y'know? Especially when it it comes to high-end pricy items, because in some ways if I buy a £5 concealer and it doesn't work out, then it's not as big of a disappointment. But if I'm spending more than £15 on a concealer, then it had better be worth my monies!

Colourpop Series #1 | Light Nudes Shades

Hello everyone! Welcome to the first of my posts in the colourpop ultra matte liquid lipsticks series (but for short I'm calling it colourpop series haha). So as you may have seen in my hauls I ordered a LOT of liquid lipsticks from colourpop as well as a few satins, and I thought the best way to review them would be in groups of three. I also wanted to let you all know that COLOURPOP WILL BE SHIPPING INTERNATIONALLY ON TUESDAY 12TH OF JULY!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉 So I hope these posts will be helpful to you when placing orders, they have such a huge range of shades that it can be a little overwhelming, so check back on my blog every weekend for a new post with thorough reviews ^_^

For each of these posts there will be a corresponding swatch videos on IG, so you can see how the shades look against my skintone (medium/olive/yellow toned). I will also be using a lot of ratings in this post as I have found the colours to differ in terms of formula. Starting off with the things that don't change though, I do like the packaging it's lightweight, has silver detailing which makes it look a little more pricey than it is and I also like how the doefoot applicator is pretty small! Personally I'll only use a lipliner with a liquid lipstick if the shade is a little too light and I need some more definition, otherwise I'll just line my lips with that liquid lipstick itself as they normally have more than enough opacity and longevity alone.

Its also important to note that all liquid lipsticks are a little drying and colourpop's are no exception. Some people find them to be a lot more drying, however you simply need to remember to apply them to DRY lips (which have been balmed up before and of course scrubbed too), and also you only should apply ONE layer. Avoid applying it to the bottom lip and pressing them together, it is better to put on a single layer on both lips and wait for the application to dry down. This way the liquid lipstick will set well and last too. I also find that the more dehydrated that I am, the more the formula sets into fine lines on my lips.

The three colours in this post are: Bianca, Clueless and Solow.

1. Bianca 

Colourpop describes this as a soft mauve pink and I totally agree with that! Bianca is by far my all time favourite nude liquid lipstick from all the brands I have tried. Nude shades are really hard to get right, regardless of the formula as they can often look cakey or flaky and accentuate lines on the lips due to the lighter shade. Bianca however glides on in a thin layer and I can hardly feel it on my lips when it has dried, which I love. It lasts a really long time on my lips, easily passing the 5/6 hour mark and it not in the slightest bit streaky. I do go over the edges of my lips once this has dried down with a slightly darker lip liner which gives my lips more definition, as this shade is JUST a little bit too light for me and could wash me out without that lipliner. However like I said, so far its the best nude liquid lipstick in my stash and I envisage repurchasing this one a couple of times!

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 5/5

2. Clueless

Colourpop describes this as a dusty mauve pink and this shade is the supposed dupe for Kylie's lipkit in Candy K - when you look at online swatches, it certainly does look similar. I wanted to much to love this shade, but I have more of a love/hate relationship with it. All colourpop liquid lipsticks require special prep as I have touched upon above, however clueless is a shade which can look terrible if you're not extra extra careful. For some reason the formula of this shade is thicker than the others that I have tried, so when it does eventually dry down it almost sits thickly ontop of the lips and really accentuates any lines and ridges in the lips. Also I noticed that due to the thicker formula, it looks so weird around the inside edges of my mouth after a couple of hours - not a good look! So the best way to describe this shade is cakey, which is a shame as the colour is quite a flattering mauve shade. It definitely does have a blue tone to it, which makes my teeth look brighter but thats the only thing I like about it! I wouldn't repurchase it but I've not heard a lot of negative reviews so perhaps I got a dodgy one? Either way it looks darker than the swatch so do be aware of that.

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 2/5

3. Solow

Colourpop describes this as a neutral nude pink, however its definitely got a hint of peach. I'd say its more of a medium shade of pink rather than nude, and it is a little out of my comfort-zone as its quite a bit brighter than my typical go-to. So I'd only reach for this shade when its the summer time and I'm wearing lighter shades in general. I've mainly been using this colour to mix with lighter shades, as it looks beautiful with Bianca! Also when it comes to mixing colourpop ultra mattes, I'd highly recommend using your finger and working quickly, or a brush. This has a similar formula to Bianca, its quite thin and very liquidy and it sets well on the lips without accentuating any imperfections. Solow is a nice enough colour and it doesn't look too off against my skintone, however I don't think I'd repurchase. It's not a shade I'd reach for over and over like Bianca. I recommend this colour more to your fairer skinned ladies, as it can look a bit chalky against medium/dark skintones.

Overall Rating (colour, longevity, comfortableness) : 3/5

I do apologize for these swatches! I didn't have time to get a better one that this, however like I said I have swatched these over on my IG, so check those out if you want to see more. From left to right is Bianca, clueless and solow and from these three I will repurchase Bianca for sure! Although it looks darker in this swatch, it appears lighter and a good nude shade against my medium skintone (even if a lip liner is needed!).

Have you tried any of these shades? Which are your favourites?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Colourpop Series #1 | Light Nudes Shades

Hello everyone! Welcome to the first of my posts in the colourpop ultra matte liquid lipsticks series (but for short I'm calling it colourpop series haha). So as you may have seen in my hauls I ordered a LOT of liquid lipsticks from colourpop as well as a few satins, and I thought the best way to review them would be in groups of three. I also wanted to let you all know that COLOURPOP WILL BE SHIPPING INTERNATIONALLY ON TUESDAY 12TH OF JULY!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉 So I hope these posts will be helpful to you when placing orders, they have such a huge range of shades that it can be a little overwhelming, so check back on my blog every weekend for a new post with thorough reviews ^_^

My Must Have Makeup Geek Shadows | For Brown Gals

Hello lovely people, I hope you're doing well. Today I am going to be sharing my favourite Makeup geek eyeshadows with you, these are the ones I've had for a good few weeks and I have loved the most. I will be doing a full eyeshadow collection and swatch post, as well as a makeup geek starter kit but all in due time. I wanted to kick off my MUG posts with my favourites, the ones that should my whole collection go missing God forbid, I would want to repurchase immediately and these are also the shadows (from what I've tried so far) that look best on a brown/medium complexion. Now I'm not too happy with my swatches, but I tried to get them as accurate in colour as possible so I hope they're still helpful!

Also you may have noticed the 'For Brown Gals' in the title, so I hereby welcome you to a brand new series on my blog - these posts are totally for every single skintone, but especially for my fellow olive/brownskinned girls who want makeup recommendations that are catered to them. I will be doing a couple of these posts here and there from now on ^_^

When I asked on twitter how you guys would like these swatches, with or without primer the general consensus was both. So I have put a line of primer on top (the milani eyeshadow primer £5.99 which is a dupe of the Urban Decay and Too Faced one so I've heard) and as you can see the line went a bit wonky haha. I hope you can also see that primer makes a pretty big difference with the matte shades in the swatches, even though these mattes are great when applied alone on the lids! For some reason bare skin one-swipe swatches don't do them justice at all, which is why I wanted to show the colour with a base underneath as I usually always use one. All in all makeup geek eyeshadows show up well with one swipe of the brush which is why I love them. I should also mention that although I do highly recommend this primer, half the time I'll end up using a concealer instead, so long as it brightens up the lid and gives the shadow something to stick to, it works ^_^

The Crease Shades

Creme Brulee (£6.00): This is the shade most of you will have seen on YouTube over and over, it was one of the shades that was top of my wishlist. It has not disappointed me in the slightest, I use this almost every single time I wear eyeshadow, because it is the most perfect crease/transition shade to ever exist. I never could quite understand why so many girls raved about it, but trust me this is the type of colour to make your eyeshadow look go from a 3 to a 7, if you were judging it in numbers! A sweep of this in the crease helps other colours blend seemlessly and look as if you've spent a long time on the eyes, which is why its effortless and a total essential for me.


Tiki Hut (£6.00): Tiki hut is one of the newer shades that was released this summer and the formula reflects that, very pigmented and it blends like a dream. I would describe Tiki Hut as a medium brown shade with a mix of dark yellow, which makes it an amazing crease shade. It's a little more on the warm side, but could easily be used with a cool eyeshadow look to add some depth. I am very much a neutral girl, so these colours which are a little off the standard browns, really excite me as they add so much even though they look like nothing special in the swatches haha.

Frappe (£6.00): This shade is a must have with creme brulee, the two are like inseparable sisters I usually always use them together! Frappe is a warm toned brown which has a tiny tiny hint of pink. It is a lot warmer than Tiki Hut, but it's not darker if that makes sense, so you can apply a wash of frappe all over the crease and then apply a brighter/ligher shade all over the lid et voila you are good to go! So basically frappe is another one of those basic looking shades that I can't imagine not owning now, its great for adding a little bit of warmth along the lower-lashline for a day-time look too. However my primary reason for loving this shade, is just how effortless it is in the crease, clearly I am using the word effortless a lot in this post thus far - but thats what you want in a crease shade!


Tuscan Sun (£6.00): This is the only shade that didn't come out very clearly in the swatch above, boo! So I'll describe it as more of a subtle dusky shade and I adore this so much! Another one of the newer shadows for the MUG summer collection, tuscan sun is the most beautiful warm shade I have ever used in my crease. When I first purchased it I wasn't sure that I would be getting a lot of use out of it, however just a little tap of the blending brush and a sweep in the crease and it makes your eyeshadow look appear a lot more complex than just a simple brown (or creme brulee!). Another favourite way to wear this shade is to apply it happhazardly all over the crease area with a large blending brush and then taken a smaller more precise brush, loaded with frappe and blend it more precisely into the crease itself. It takes about 30 seconds but again looks so beautifully blended out, without any hard work!

Moving onto the bolder lid shades, these were really hard to photograph and swatch accurately (this particular photo is like my 38927743 attempt), but I think I've just about got it! Some of these are the foiled eyeshadows which do cost a little more so thats why I've included prices. However each of these four are amazingly pigmented, like one swipe wonders and so buttery to apply on the lids.

Magic Act (£9.25): Okay I know I just said I got these swatches right🙄, but Magic Act is a lot more of a true gold and that is why I ADORE IT. If you know me, you know I love a good gold shade because that pop of shine is everything, especially on a medium skintone/brown eyes. What I really like about this shade, aside from the creamy foiled formula, is how it blends so beautifully with lots of shades, browns, greens, reds, khakis etc. Its literally the perfect gold shade, not too cool or too orange...I LAVE IT. I do tend to apply this with my ring finger as the warmth of my finger seems to pick on the most pigment over a brush.


Grandstand (£9.25): This is a gorgeous rich rose gold mixed with brown and again the formula is second to none, totally worth the extra £3 because the pigment packs a punch. Grandstand makes for a stunning base colour if you are creating a brown smokey eye, or you can just pack it onto the outer half of the lid for some extra omph and a bit of depth during the day time. I haven't used this shade much so far, but I know I will get a lot of use out of this pan because the shade is just so stunning and very wearable.


Goddess (£6.00): This is a shade from their standard line and it isn't as metallic as the two above, nor as pigmented as their newer shades, but for quite a strong colour this makes it a lot more wearable in my opinion. I adore this colour, which I'd describe as a dark copper shade which looks incredible used alone or with one transition shade if you fancy a little more depth. Again a perfect shade for medium skintones, and if you have brown eyes you simply NEED this colour in your life, its the one wash wonder I'll be using all summer long, with just a simple pop of highlight in the inner corner. I have quite a few of the copper/orange/red shades from MUG and I will be doing an indepth comparison post, but this so far is definitely my favourite and it really stands out if you apply it with a damp brush too.


Venom (£6.00): And finally the most 'out there' shade from my must-haves, which won't be everyones cuppa tea - venom is the most gorgeous, richly pigmented dark moss green shade with a very subtle golden shimmer. I honestly thought this shade was one of the foiled finishes when I first opened it, because it is super duper pigmented. Now venom is not the easiest shade to wear obviously, but I feel like once I watch enough tutorials I'll become confident enough to wear this at least a couple of times a month haha. This tutorial has seriously inspired me, look how beautiful!! Anyway if you're as big of a fan as green as I am, then you should definitely pick this up ^_^

And the final four, I call these shades the 'deepening/depth' shades, which are essential for adding a little more definition to any looks in my opinion. I have a mix of cool and warm tones here and I enjoy using them all equally.

Wild West (£6.00): Another one of the newer shades, I love wild west because it is such a unique muted kind of shade. A hint of brown, but more plum-like, which makes it really lovely for a 'gentle smoke' (a bit of definition without getting too dramatic y'know?). It's so different to your average dark brown or even black, which is why its in my must haves because again its a lovely versatile shade.

Pretentious (£6.00): this is not strictly a deepening up shade, but there wasn’t any room for it in the other two, so here it went! Pretentious is a beautiful antique/bronze shade which is one of my go-tos for all over the lid. Again its a shade that I love against my olive skin tone and brown eyes, either used alone as a one wash shade or used for more of an intricate look with deeper matte browns. Seriously a must have (this shade also looks GORGEOUS with a damp brush by the way - thats the only way you'll get a colour like the one in the swatch I have found!).

Cocoa Bear (£6.00): Another shade which is raved about over and over on YouTube, and for very good reason! CB is the perfect brown shade in my eyes, very warm toned and beautifully pigmented/blendable. It's my go-to shade for smoking out the lower lashline, even for a day to day look which makes a change for me, but I just cannot get enough of how beautiful it looks! Seriously one of the most beautiful browns ever created, that touch of red adds so much depth to any eyelook. I also love pairing this up with cream brulee for a really simple, warm eyeshadow look, that takes me about 30 seconds to create but it looks a lot more complex!

Mocha (£6.00): And last but not least, OF COURSE I had to include a standard deep matte brown! I adore smoking out my lower lashline with mocha, its the perfect neutral dark brown in my opinion and it looks beautiful on the lower and upper lash line. I am definitely a black-liner kind of girl every single day, however if I do fancy a bit of a softer and more sultry look I'll reach for mocha on a small pencil brush and use it instead. Its an essential because it creates so much depth to my eyeshadow looks and it's a colour that can take you from day-to-night, with no issues whatsoever! 

There you have it ladies! MY personal must-haves, although these aren't all shades I reach for on a regular basis, they're the ones that I absolutely adore and would repurchase instantly. I will be doing a MUG starter shadow post, which'll include the shades I think everyone needs (especially those of you with an olive/brown complexion). I am in the process of reviewing and swatching every shade in colour families, so keep an eye out! 

Have you got any Makeup Geek shadows? Which ones are YOUR must haves?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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My Must Have Makeup Geek Shadows | For Brown Gals

Hello lovely people, I hope you're doing well. Today I am going to be sharing my favourite Makeup geek eyeshadows with you, these are the ones I've had for a good few weeks and I have loved the most. I will be doing a full eyeshadow collection and swatch post, as well as a makeup geek starter kit but all in due time. I wanted to kick off my MUG posts with my favourites, the ones that should my whole collection go missing God forbid, I would want to repurchase immediately and these are also the shadows (from what I've tried so far) that look best on a brown/medium complexion. Now I'm not too happy with my swatches, but I tried to get them as accurate in colour as possible so I hope they're still helpful!

Also you may have noticed the 'For Brown Gals' in the title, so I hereby welcome you to a brand new series on my blog - these posts are totally for every single skintone, but especially for my fellow olive/brownskinned girls who want makeup recommendations that are catered to them. I will be doing a couple of these posts here and there from now on ^_^

June 2016 Favourites

Hello everyone! It's been a while since I've blogged, because I've just been trying to enjoy the end of Ramadan as much as I can, however I did want to get my favourites up because I'm the type of person who hates posting mid-month faves haha. This month I have got a BUNCH of new things, due to birthday money and treating myself for my final year university results, however because I've been fasting I've not been wearing a lot of makeup or trying out a lot of new things. So this is probably one of the smallest favourites post I have ever typed up, but y'know with my fabulous ability to ramble on and on this'll still be rather long.

In the month of June the AMAZING summer collection from Anastasia Beverly Hills was released, and the hype was and IS REAL! Seriously they did an amazing job with these new products and I treated myself to the Modern Renaissance Palette (£41) and Glow Kit in Sun dipped glow (£39) and both of these are worth every single penny. The eyeshadow palette is for the first time, permanently available which is awesome because you don't have to worry about it not being available in the future unlike her other palettes! Also you get more pans with this palette AND the size of the pans are slightly larger. There were two reasons why I was excited about this palette, firstly the colour selection is right up my ally - mostly warm but a couple of cool and a LOT of matte shades. Secondly the quality of ABH shadows are incredible. I picked some of the single shadows up in my May birthday sephora haul here, and I was blown away, seriously some of the best eyeshadows I have tried EVER.

The newest glow kit (there are now three in the range) IS limited edition, so if you guys want to get your glow on I'd suggest not hanging around! I have had the biggest stress with these glow kits and I will be explaining everything in an upcoming haul, but anyways this particular glow kit is STUNNING. The formula of the ABH glowkits are what make them super special, creamy, pigmented and long lasting. I love the Becca highlighters (even though I only have one) but I have to admit that sometimes they can look TOO intense and even accentuate any texture on the skin. That just doesn't happen with the glow kits formula, they look good EVERY TIME and the range of colours is fantastic, plus the pan size for the price?? Amazing. 100% worth the £££.

The brush I have been loving to use with this is the Morphe M501 (£6.25) which is a natural hair brush (sable) and it picks up the highlight so perfectly, you literally just need to tap the brush into the pan once and you have enough pigment. When I want a lighter application I'll use a synthetic fan brush as that picks up less product! Also the M501 is the ONLY brush that shows the Laura Geller Gilded Honey highlight up properly, such a great budget buy! I was umming and ahhing over the ABH highlight brush, but this is just over one fifth of the price and does the job perfectly!

Moving onto a skincare favourite, I am really excited to talk about this on my blog: the Spin for perfect skin vanity planet brush which I have been seeing all over YouTube for months now. I've never been interested in the Clarisonic and similar face brushes, although they appealed to me were a little bit too expensive for me to buy on a whim. I didn't want to spent over £60 on a brush and then end up not liking it, so the price point of the vanity planet brushes were the first thing that drew me in. I knew a lot of YouTubers were getting commission for promoting these brushes, which is totally fine of course, but I do think its a bit silly how they're being sold for $100 and then if you apply a code you get it for only $30...why not just sell it for $30 in the first place?? Seeing it all over YouTube kind of put me off too, but recently due to a lot of stress my skin just wasn't cooperating and it was getting more oily than ever which made me reevaluate my current cleansing routine. I basically went onto their site and created an account, then I placed it in my basket and without typing in any code because somehow when I put it into my basket it was already discounted??? (lol). Then I got distracted and forgot about it and a day later I got an email saying 'looks like you forgot something, heres an extra 10% off to help you make up your mind'...and I paid a total of $20 which is £15!! BARGAIN. Okay now on to the actual product 🤗

So this is what you get in the box, I was planning on doing a separate post but now I'm just going to combine it with my faves as I don't have loads of products to talk about this month. You get a pumice stone, a large body cleansing brush, an exfoliating brush and a daily cleaning brush too. So far I have used all of them, apart from the pumice stone and I have been thoroughly pleased. My skin has never been this soft and smooth, I can finally see why so many girls on youtube are raving about it! I've been using the daily cleansing brush almost every single day after I have removed my makeup and the amount of extra makeup and yuckiness it manages to get off in the most gentle manner possible is amazing. I'm also really impressed with the tougher exfoliating brush, I swear since using this my skin has been less congested and my T-zone is less oily which brilliant! The speed of the brush is slower than I expected, but I do like it because it feels very relaxing whilst also doing what it needs to do.

I wanted to note that this was delivered from a UK address which I was surprised about, but that also explains the affordable shipping costs and why it arrived really quickly. Also this means that it'll be really affordable when it comes to picking up extra brush heads and I'm really interested in trying their teeth whitening kits too. The spin for perfect skin takes 4 AA batteries, I'm using rechargeable ones cause yknow ecofriendly and all zat good stuff, but I was speaking to a lovely reader who's been using this for months and she said she's yet to replace her batteries. So basically if you're not using a facial brush currently, I HIGHLY recommend getting this (remember to keep it in the basket and leave it there for a day or two, maybe you'll be lucky enough to get that extra 10% off too ;D). My face feels cleaner than ever at the end of the day and my makeup actually applies a lot smoother too. I don't have a discount code, but type in spin for perfect skin on YouTube and loads will come up!

And the final makeup product, the blush I have been LOVING is Sleek's Suede (£4.95). It is such a gorgeous nude shade blush, inbetween a pink and a brown it is very flattering on all skintones but especially those of you who have a medium skintone like me! I love applying a small amount of this onto the apples of my cheeks, it makes such a nice change from pinks and shimmers which I typically reach for and it is great for everyday. I highly recommend suede to those of you who aren't really blush people, because it adds a bit of dimension and colour without being over the top ever.

I had to mention the QuayXChrisspy Jetlagged sunglasses (£40.00) which I purchased when I got my 20% off birthday discount code from ASOS! I love a good pair of sunnies and I own one of the Quay glasses already which are matte black and a lot more subtle than these. Quay glasses are very very good quality for a decent price, to be honesy £20+ is expensive to me but provided I take care of them I should still be using them in the next 20 years of so...which makes them an investment right?!? Anyway I really wanted the pair called Gemini and of course those are the only ones the U.K ASOS don't stock 🙄 these were my second faves and they are HUGE, the biggest sunglasses I own so if you're not a fan of large/oversized lens skip these. However I love the rose-gold mirror tint on them and how they provide a lot of protection, especially on those no makeup lack of sleep days too.

Those were my June favourites! What were you loving in June?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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