Review | The Balm’s Mary-Lou Manizer Highlighter–HG STATUS

I have owned this highlighter for months, and it really is the best I’ve ever tried! Firstly The Balm is an American cosmetics company, and it sits between highend- drugstore. The prices are a little cheaper than MAC, and the quality is just as brilliant. I first heard about this from the YouTuber EmilyNoel83 who adores The Balm, so I would recommend checking out her channel for more info on the brand ^_^

Moving onto this highlighter, Mary-Lou it has the most adorable packaging ever. Its reminiscent of Soap and Glory and Benefit, with its cutesy retro theme. This one has a blonde woman with pouty red lips on the front named ‘Mary’ and the cardboard packaging was just as cute! Sadly I don’t have it anymore because this highlighter’s been tried and tested for a while!

The offence is ‘highlighter,shimmer, eyeshadow’ and the charge is ‘too pretty, too popular’ which made me giggle. When company's put the effort and detail into their products and packaging, it just makes me rate them that little bit higher! It is a multi-use powder, but primarily a highlighter which is encased in a sturdy silver packaging which is secured by a clip. There is a handy mirror inside (a real mirror not one of those funny ones).

The reason why this has earned a HG status (aside from the cuteness) is because of its colour and texture. Highlighters come in powder, liquids and creams and generally they are in either a golden tone, or a pink tone. Its pretty self-explanatory that if you have yellow undertones you’ll likely suit the golden toned ones more. I don’t like pink toned highlighters on me because they look odd, they just don't blend in with my skintone, so I’m most drawn towards the champagne coloured highlighters like this one. 

It is the most beautiful highlighter I have ever set eyes on! You can get other which are more subtle, but if you want to really HIGHLIGHT this is the one for you! It is super pigmented, but easily blendable so when applied to the tops of the cheekbones and other areas it makes the world of difference. I use the Real Techniques Setting Brush (review here) as it helps to put the highlighter precisely where I want some extra glow. 

I couldn’t believe the way it lit my face up and made me look healthier with a single sweep. I’ve tried other highlighters (admitably not any other high-end ones) but this by far is the best out there. It looks phenomenal with a gentle contour and a matte blusher, however with a shimmery blusher I’d most likely skip this or just about touch it onto my skin. 

For some people this would be over the top for the daytime, however it’s all about how strongly you apply the stuff. A gentle light sweeping (something the setting brush achieves effortlessly, or a thin fan brush) adds a subtle but beautiful glow. It looks amazing in the inner-corner too, a real ‘wide awake look’ and for evenings out, weddings and partys this is the finishing touch for getting your glam on!

It costs around the £17 mark and you get 8.5g of the stuff. I picked it up from Amazon,  however it is now cheaper on this website! I’ve used it so often and there’s still loads of the highlighter left because a little really does go a long way! It lasts for hours in the skin and would suit many skin-tones. I cannot get enough of this and really want to pick up their nudetude palette (when I’m off my spending ban which started last week ._.)

Final Verdict:

Product rating: 10

Pros: Its super soft, can be subtle or built up with ease, lights up the whole face, makes the world of difference! looks amazing as a inner-corner highlight, is the perfect colour for a medium skin tone especially, and you get a decent amount of product for a reasonable size. It’s super blendable and It’ll last me for years to come.

Cons: It can be overdone haha

Repurchase? Without a shadow of a doubt!

 

Have you tried anything from The Balm?

Thanks for reading!

 Follow Via Bloglovin' | Tweet Me | Follow on Instagram | Like The Blushing Giraffe on Facebook

Review | The Balm’s Mary-Lou Manizer Highlighter–HG STATUS

I have owned this highlighter for months, and it really is the best I’ve ever tried! Firstly The Balm is an American cosmetics company, and it sits between highend- drugstore. The prices are a little cheaper than MAC, and the quality is just as brilliant. I first heard about this from the YouTuber EmilyNoel83 who adores The Balm, so I would recommend checking out her channel for more info on the brand ^_^

Review | Seventeen Phwoarr Paint in Medium

Now being a beauty blogger I believe it is my duty to tell people about all the cosmetics and beauty products I’ve used, the great, the good and the not so brilliant. I’m the type of girl who reads reviews for 90% of the makeup I’m deciding to buy before I go ahead and purchase it. So I rely on those reviews that talk honestly about the not so great products! (ok this intro is far too long now..)

ANYWAYS so a few weeks ago I picked up this concealer. There wasn’t a massive buzz about it, but the reviews that I had read from some of my favourite bloggers promised great things and I’m always on the hunt for dark-circle banishing concealers. 

Unfortunately the first thing that let’s this down is the shade selection – there are only TWO. I just cannot understand why drugstore brands do not take into account the large variety of skin tones! Furthermore, the medium shade which I picked up is great if you’re an NC25 perhaps, but far too light for my NC35-NC37 skin tone.

I’m quite absent minded when it comes to paying attention with what brands claim their products can and will do, but because I was quite looking forwards to trying this and there aren't many drugstore concealers just for dark circles, I read all the great stuff and now I want to tell you how I feel this product lives up to it’s claims.

So it claims to ‘Wage war on under eye circles’ and as you can see from the above swatch it is salmon in colour. Because my main skin issue is my dark circles I’m constantly reading up on ways to get rid of the darkness, and many of you will know that correctors in peach or salmon tones are perfect for correcting the darkness. Salmon however does nothing for my darker circles and I am currently using a dark orange/peach tone from benefit. So yes this could work for you if you’re lighter in skin tone and your dark under eye circles aren’t a huge issue, but what frustrated me is the ‘light’ version of this should have been salmon and the ‘medium’ should be peach, as most people with medium skin tones have more yellow undertones and therefore salmon is pretty useless!

Instead of waging war on dark circles, it makes the area look ashy and highlights it so much so that I have to put a darker powder ontop to get rid of the white/ashy tone. Next this stuff is THICK. It’s creamy to touch in the pan, but far too easy to pick up too much and then struggle with the thickness of it under the eyes.  It isn’t easy to blend as seventeen claims, and I sometimes find myself tugging around my eyes to move the concealer about. Next issue is because of the consistency, putting any type of powder ontop will instantly cake and crease! Who wants that under their eyes?!

The good stuff is the packaging, they at least got this part right. It comes in a sleek little round circular pot, and I the little mirror inside is pretty useful for on the go touch-ups. There is a fairly sturdy clasp like system on the pot which is secure enough to not have to worry about coming undone.

You get 12g for £5.49 so the price is great, but I won’t ever be repurchasing this and struggled to find a use for it as I just cannot make it work for me. If you’re darker than NC35 or that skin tone, I’d advise you to save your money and go for the collection lasting perfection concealer, which is really creamy, heavy duty yet flawless looking for under the eyes if you have super dark circles! It also isn’t so thick that it couldn’t be used with a corrector shade underneath – something phwoarr paint struggled with. If dark circles aren’t a huge issue go for something even lighter!

I’m waiting patiently for the day when high-street brands open their eyes and realise that there are more skin tones than white and slightly tan, and hopefully they can start catering for all women of colour (take a leaf out of Sleek’s book!) I’m also in no way dismissing this brand, their ‘mirror shine’ lippies are a firm favourite of mine, but this just did not and can not work for me.

What are your favourite undereye circle saviours?

Review | Seventeen Phwoarr Paint in Medium

Review | Ben Nye Banana Powder

This has been a favourite of mine for quite a few months now, infact it’s become the kind of product that I find myself thinking ‘how did I manage without this before when doing my makeup??’ and most certainly if I had to pick 5 items from my collection to keep forever, this would be on that list!

I’m sure many people heard about Ben Nye’s Banana Powder from Kim Kardashian’s makeup artist raving about it and let’s face it, no matter what you think of the soon to be Mrs West, she sure does manage to look flawless almost all the time - with contouring and highlighting done to perfection! This received so much hype on YouTube, and though I’m not always one to jump on the bandwagon, I am so so very pleased I did with this one!

I’m going to try and structure this review a little differently so do let me know what you think, just fancied a little change ^_^

what is it?

Essentially it is a finely milled yellow powder, suitable for use all over the face, but mainly under the eyes and for highlighting. The yellow colour will not do much for those who have strong pink tones in their skin, but for people with yellow undertones who struggle with dark circles, it is a little lifesaver! I have struggled with dark circles from mid-teens till now, due to a huge range of issues (but mainly genetics and insomnia too) so for me it has worked wonders. Ben Nye has a range of colours available, and there is bound to be one to cater to your skintone, however the banana powder tends to work fine for light/medium and ever slightly deeper shades.

What is so special about it?

The beautiful thing about this powder is, not only does it sets your concealer and prevents it from caking/creasing, but it also adds coverage too! It disguises the dark circles with it’s counter-acting yellow tones (much like the salmon/peach coloured correctors). The main difference between the salmon/peach colour and the yellow colour is that yellow is also brightening, so this covers and brightens rather than just disguising the dark under eye circles. I’ve tried normal powder under the eyes (Rimmel stay matte) and elf’s HD powder, but nothing beats Ben Nye’s Banana powder!

Packaging

This stuff isn’t packaged in the most glamorous way imaginable, it is simply in a clear plastic bottle with a black lid and holes through the top of the bottle, similar to that of baby powder. However it is easy to sprinkle a little into the lid, and the excess powder easily goes back into the bottle. It is a little bit messy, but never an issue.

The initial purpose of this was for stage makeup! To be worn under harsh lighting conditions and therefore you can imagine the least of Ben Nye’s worries were to make his bottle look extraordinary! Does the function, and the powder pays for itself so no problem to me :)

How do I apply it?

Now as I have mentioned, my dark circles are my biggest insecurity and though I don’t mind going out without concealer on, I feel a lot more comfortable with the pesky darks covered up! So because of this it is really important for me to use products that provide as much coverage as possible whilst still looking natural. I start with a peachy toned concealer (currently using Benefit’s boi-ing in shade 3 but lusting after Bobbi Brown’s corrector!!!) and pat lightly under the eyes. This instantly corrects the darkness. Then I dab a little of Collection’s lasting perfection, in whichever shade I have lying around. For some this is too thick for under the eyes, but for me it is perfect. After using my ring finger to blend/pat that in gently, I take my banana powder, and with a Real Techniques setting brush (tapping it on the side of my table so it’s not overloaded) I gently pat the brush under my eyes, and the with sweeping and patting motions set the excess powder in. Et voila! Happily covered up dark circles = happy Iqra!

Where to buy it from?

It can be a little tricky to get hold of, I know amazon sometimes have it in stock, though when checking online for this review, I have seen it being sold at extortionate prices! Having just checked my amazon order history, the seller I bought it from is no longer selling :( so I would recommend this online store (LINK) where the price is very reasonable (not too sure about delivery costs though!)

Overall:

Worth the hype? Definitely!

Essential for everyone? No. If you don’t suffer with dark circles, you’ll be fine using a normal powder to set concealer or even the translucent one they do. As I mentioned those who are very experienced with makeup use this powder as a highlighter all around the face (check YouTube for some pretty scary looking screenshots!) but personally I would only attempt that for a really special occasion, and even then I’d be hesitant!

Value for money? Without a doubt

Product rating : 10/10

Pros: Adds coverage, whilst setting concealer to last all day so no need to worry about touch ups. Doesn’t look cakey. You get a large amount for what you pay for. It is multi-functional (what’s not to love about that??) It makes covering dark circles up a lot easier!

Cons: It can be quite messy…that’s about it!

Review | Ben Nye Banana Powder

This has been a favourite of mine for quite a few months now, infact it’s become the kind of product that I find myself thinking ‘how did I manage without this before when doing my makeup??’ and most certainly if I had to pick 5 items from my collection to keep forever, this would be on that list!

Review | MUA Blusher ‘bonbon’

Hello!

I’m sure many of you have heard of MUA’s Blusher range, and maybe some of you may have been uncertain on whether it’s worth buying such a cheap product, like I was too. A few months ago I picked up this shade (one from their newest range) partly because the name was so adorable bonbon and partly because I was curious as to if they’re any good and I loved it so much I went ahead and added candyfloss and cupcake to my collection too!

The packaging is a simple rectangular plastic pan, with a clear lid ideal for storage to pick the right colour out straight away, but certainly nothing special. ‘MUA’ is imprinted into the blush itself, and it has a small clip like contraption (you can see the hole bit) to keep it secure which makes popping one of these in your makeup bag that little bit easier as the chance of it opening and smoshing against everything else is a lot less (TAKES A DEEP BREATH) The cost is £1 and there are 12 shades in the range (six new ones for 2013) which I think is phenomenal for a drugstore brand! There must be a colour for every single skin tone out there and at one pound a pop and 2.4g of product, they’re more than affordable.

The colour bon bon is actually darker looking in the pan that the photo has shown, and with just one sweep of your brush you have more than enough for both cheeks and a third if you’re not careful! (read – VERY PIGMENTED) I find this easiest to apply with a fluffy brush, concentrating the first sweepmid cheek rather than on the apples of my cheeks because the colour can look too intense too quickly! It’s a lovely middlish pink colour, and a nice change from the more peachy tones that I tend to favour. WHICH is another reason why these are brilliant, if you want to invest in a high-end blush but aren’t sure about the tone why not pick up the closest swatch are try it out?

As you can see they are easy to build up, but look beautiful blended out. The lasting power is great, I’m not one to carry around makeup for touch-ups (other than lip stuff of course) but these last nicely! So to conclude (....you can tell I’ve not written a blog post for a whole week – damn you swollen eyelids) these are perfect for anyone on a budget, the shade range is brilliant, as is the pigmentation and they are well worth your pennies! If I ever want to pick up a MAC blusher (I own none as of yet) then I’ll certainly try to find a shade from the MUA collection that matches and test it out first :) Though I’ve not tried the much loved essence blushers these are reminiscent of those at an equally bargainlicious price – chaching!

Pros:                                                                                              

• huge shade selection                                                                  
• brilliant/unbeatable price!
• soft powder
• fantastic pigmentation

Cons:

• cheap packaging that isn’t spectacular (but it does the job so this is a bit of an unfair con)
• can be easy to over apply this particular shade if heavy handed

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE DRUGSTORE BLUSHERS?

Review | MUA Blusher ‘bonbon’

Hello!

Review | Laura Geller Blush ‘n’ Brighten–Berry

Today I am going to talk about one of the most beautiful blushes I’ve ever seen…Laura Geller’s whole Blush’n’Brighten range is absolutely stunning and yes whilst this post IS photo heavy, I have no regrets because it would simply be rude to not share these beauties (eye candy galore)

There is just something so gorgeous about marble products isn’t there?! Now although I don’t own any MAC mineralise skin finishes yet, the packaging and general beauty of these very much reminded me of them. However when swatched together the LG blush had a lot more pigmentation than the MSF suggesting these are more suited for use as BLUSHERS AND HIGHLIGHTERS rather than just skinfinishes.



Sadly I do not own this blush (get your violins out, it’s really a tragic fact). It was lent to me by my lovely auntie, however my mum also owns one of two of these blushers so I have the chance to play with them now and again. For the basic details this pan holds 5g (although full sized are 9g with a brush I believe) The lid of the blush is half a mirror, half clear plastic. She hit two birds with one stone – you can easily see the shade but you also have a handy mirror should you need it when traveling! I believe there are two ranges of these blushers ‘sugar’ which are the shimmery (NOT glittery) ones and ‘non-sugar’ the matte kind.

In terms of availability I know my auntie purchased it from QVC and I think the range changes there all the time so it’s worth keeping an eye on that site, I also know my friend’s mum buys a lot of her range from e-bay but I’m not sure if I have the guts to buy makeup myself from there so sorry to be of little help D: (I do know her range is widely available in the US though so another brand to add to my USA wishlist!)



In terms of application, the product picks up on the brush very easily and applies beautifully. When first opening this I expected it to be VERY shimmery on the skin, but much to my delight it is a lot more subtle than expected. The shade berry is perfect for autumn! but thats a total given right?! The gorgeous traces of gold amongst the pinks and plums blend together to create a classy, sophisticated shade which just screams cosy jumpers and leather boots.



I can never align my swatches right urgh ._. So on the left we have the swatch without flash, it’s probably the more accurate view of this blusher, as you can see a slight berry colour which would no doubt compliment any skin tone and also not be too harsh for the paler tones (as some plum shades can be). On the right is the shade with flash and it looks equally as stunning, needless to say highlighting is unnecessary with this as the subtle gold tone does the job just fine. I think it’s such a gorgeous shade mainly because, in the colder months our skin lack that warmth and the skin can sometimes look dull/dry – this is the perfect product to bring some life back into it.

In short I think for the price (around £18 for a full sized product) these are of course pricier than drugstore but they are well worth it. The colour is long lasting and because they are baked blushes its a mixture of colours rather than one flat colour – making it look more special (and sometimes more natural).

I’ll be sure to look out for some holiday giftsets to see if I can get one or two of these in my collection! What are your favourite baked products?

Review | Laura Geller Blush ‘n’ Brighten–Berry

Review | No7 Beautiful Skin BB Cream Normal/Dry

           No7 Beautiful Skin BB Cream for Normal / Dry skin - £12.95 – link

One of the things I got the opportunity to try for a few days was this BB cream from No7. To be honest I’ve never been that interested in this type of product since finding my HG (link). The way I see it a BB cream is a lighter version of a tinted moisturiser with added benefits like SPF etc.;

My skin is pretty good, the main problems are uneven skin tones and the odd blemishes, so when it comes to a base on a good day I opt for concealer where I need it, on a ‘normal’ day my beloved F&B and then when my skin is playing up and I don’t have a lot of time it’ll be my L’oreal True Match. Essentially I’d rather have nothing spread all over my face, than something that gives such a light base I’d have to dot concealer over it anyways.

Ok so I’ve painted quite a negative picture of my perception of BB creams, but believe me I approached this with positive curiosity ^_^

‘Its unique 3-in-1 formula evens and enhances skin tone and disguises imperfections, while the nutrient-enriched formula helps to banish blemishes.

The added protective power of SPF 15 and 5 * UVA technology to help skin stay youthful, No7 BB is the only way to wear this season’s must-have essential - perfectly-pared back, beautiful skin.’

Packaging: It is pretty simple, no pump just a squeeze bottle with a screw lid. It is pretty compact so easy to slip into a makeup bag for travelling and it won’t take up lots of space on the dressing table. It is easy to wipe clean and the tube contains 40ml of product. I actually think for the price and considering its a ‘drugstore brand’ this is quite pricy, and so would expect great results from it.

shade: So I had the shade fair to try, I did think it would be too light but actually has a warmer tone. According to the boots website it is only available in two shades fair and medium which isn’t brilliant as again a lack of choices for fair skins or darker tones. I was pleasantly surprised with the colour as I have a medium skin tone (I’m guessing around a NC35 but not 100% sure).

Application and feel: The consistency is very thin as expected, and on the packaging it is recommended to apply it with hands or a sponge. I worked this into my skin using my fingers and it blended very nicely. For a short while afterwards it did feel and look a little shiny, as it’s made for those with dry skin so once wearing it, I did feel like it was providing my skin with lots of moisture.

Overall finish: Once blended into my skin it did look slightly too light for my skin tone (but I do like picking a slightly warmer colour for my skin tone to add colour). This however wasn’t too much of an issue as that is the purpose of bronzer, however the actual look of the cream with its lack of coverage was fine for an ‘au natural’ day but for me personally as I’ve already said, I’d much rather skip the lightest base and use moisturiser and concealer instead. It did slightly even out my skintone, but I feel that it showed too many blemishes to be regarded as a quick go-to product and although it was non-patchy or sticky and did blend in nicely, if it was mine I wouldn’t repurchase it.

I do understand the appeal of BB creams, but once a girl has a HG it’s hard to measure up to that. Have you tried this BB cream? Also I’d love to know if there are any BB creams that you really recommend – challenge my opinion on them ;D

Review | No7 Beautiful Skin BB Cream Normal/Dry

Review | Sleek Blush – Flamingo

Hi lovelies! Today I’m going to be talking about one of my favourite blushers ever –> Flamingo

Before I get into the review, I just wanted to say a huge well done to those of you who’ve got into Uni today! I got my first choice and my grades surprised me ^_^ glad to know I’ll be doing a course I know is right for me!

Anyways Sleek is one of my favourite makeup brands hands down. It continuously delivers in good quality, highly pigmented cosmetics which suit a range of skin tone all at a very reasonable price. They’re the only high-street makeup brand with 30 shades of foundation! Sleek really does tick all the boxes. I only own two of their blushers, but I do own a few eyeshadow palettes, the brow kit and the face form kit (contour kit)

For some reason my camera didn’t quite pick up the vividness of the blush in the pan. On my finger and in the picture below is a more accurate colour match, but basically at a first glance this blush looks pretty intimidating. Its a bright in-ya-face pink, almost florescent but not quite that highlighter shade and something I’d imagine many people would shy away from.

However when used with a light hand and a fluffy (NOT dense) brush (I love using the Real Techniques blush brush) it becomes a beautiful, natural glowing pink. The slight blue tone in the makes it a cooler blush. I do tend to favour peachy tones and warmer pinks, but I have loved popping this shade onto my cheeks recently to switch things up a little bit as I think it’s all too easy to get stuck in a rut and a change is as good as a rest (refreshing ^.^) The slight sheen gives such a beautiful healthy appearance! It’s not massively shimmery as such but wearing a highlighter isn’t necessary. It can of course be built up (the more you build up the stronger the pink), but you gotta be careful with the amount of pressure applied when brushing this on because it’s one of those shade that could easily make you look like a china doll who fell into a tub of pink paint!

Price point these blushers cost £4.49. UNDER A FIVER – WINNING! Sleek also have the blush-by-3s which are £10 each with 3 different shades pinks/red/peaches) They’re on my wish list!

It has great lasting power for a drugstore brand, and the pan contains 8g which is a very decent amount, as MAC blushes only contain 6g. I also love the sleek packaging, it’s small enough to fit comfortably into your makeup bag, and it’s shape means it’s easy to stack up together with its brothers and sisters unlike SOME brand’s packaging (I'm looking at you elf studio blushers). It also has a generously sized mirror in the pan, again increasing it’s usefulness to pop into the handbag. The two swatches above show the blush in different lights. On the left is the colour close up to a window with bright sunlight shining directly at it, and on the right in warmer lighting. Either way it’s a very pretty colour that’s fast become one of my favourites.

I’m so glad I was feeling daring and picked this up, it’s a total winner. It’s also made me more interested in looking at the other brighter or unusual blusher shades in the collection, because they usually appear completely different on the skin than in the pan!

Pros:
Fantastic pigmentation
Very affordable price for the quality
decent lasting power
Good amount in the pan
Sleek packaging (tehe)
Will suit all skin tones
Great sized mirror
Cons:
can look a little cray if over applied

What’s your favourite blusher and shade?