My Morphe Brushes Collection

Hello everyone! WOW, it has been a crazy amount of time since I've blogged, I won't get into it here but expect a post soon with some exciting news...anyway jumping straight into this post - brushes are a really important part of applying makeup and its hard to progress if you don't have a decent collection. I've loved building my collection for years now, and a brand that has slowly taken over in the past two-three years is Morphe. I know they have quite the reputation on social media, especially with the bigger U.S beauty gurus and their constant sharing of money off codes etc...which has lead a lot of people to speculate if the brand is any good at all. I decided to try out one eyeshadow brush from them, since they became easily available from beautybay, two years ago and I quickly become addicted! Now I own around 17 Morphe brushes, and today I'm finally going to be reviewing each and every one in depth, so read on for the must haves and also the ones to avoid...This post is roughly split into three sections, but bear with me, something went wrong with the photography order and I don't think I have close ups of every brush (which is why it has taken me the longest time to write this up 🙄) I've labelled everything anyway, so it should hopefully be clear enough.

Face Brushes

Let's start with the five face brushes - surprisingly each of these has the green light! I use them ALL on a regular basis and have been impressed with the durability of them too. Now I have to just point out, the second brush isn't actually a Morphe one, it looked so similar when I grabbed them from my brush basket! However I do have the actual one photographed and reviewed below (and yes, it looks like an eyeshadow brush, but just trust me on this one).

So starting with the two that I do not have an individual photo of:

M164 | £5.50 

This is the newest brush in my collection and probably the most unusual of the bunch. It is called a small angled contour brush and I picked it up to help me improve my nose contouring. The brush isn't too big, but I did expect it to be a little smaller...however it serves it's purpose well. I can easily dip this into my favourite contouring powder and use it to neatly apply contour. It hasn't magically transformed me into a master nose contourer, I still have a way to go, however I do think that it helps. Do I think it's a must have though? No. I could definitely create a nose contour without this, but for just over a fiver I'm glad I didn't dismiss it.

Repurchase? No.  Rating: 3/5

M501 | £8.00

The fluffy brush next, I LOVE this and I think my highlighting skills were immediately enhanced when I decided to purchase this brush. I did own fan brushes and ever the sigma tapered highlight before this, however nothing really does the job as well. The size of this brush is perfect, too small for blusher, but great for highlighting all over the face and I like how it is kind of tapered, but not super precise. I think it is the natural haired bristles which makes this brush what it is, not the softest to touch but because of the texture it picks up product really well and distributes it even better. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a new highlighting brush, it is wonderful. Also I don't think this is the super hyped up brush lots of youtubers use, I haven't purchased that one but I think its very similar!

Repurchase? Yes! Rating: 5/5

E6 | £15.00

This is the first foundation buffing brush that I purchased after being absolutely smitten with the R.T buffing brush for years and years. Then of course came the beauty blender and that is a love affair which I doubt will ever end! However I did was to try a couple of different blending brushes for foundatuon as I was getting more and more bored of the RT and sometimes, certain formulas just work better with a brush. Especially foundations which have a lighter coverage, like the MUFE F&B for example. I picked up this brush and absolutely loved it straight away! It's got a flat top and is fairly large, so I find that I can quickly blend my base with no streaks and it hardly soaks up any product (something which can't be said for any beauty sponge). I typically like to use this brush to stipple my foundation on first and then blend it out and I am a big fan.

Repurchase: Yes, it's my go-to brush for foundation!     Rating: 5/5

E8 | £6.00

Another brush from their 'elite' collection, which is as the name suggests, the most premium from their line and this one is AMAZING! I've actually just picked up a second one, because it is just that fantastic. The size of this brush is what makes it so versatile, it has a fluffy head and usually I wouldn't bother to try this with liquid products because looking at it, for me it just reminds me of a powder brush for applying onto particularly small areas. However it is infact, a wonderful brush for both powder and liquid. I have used it to blend out concealer beautifully, as well as apply powder strategically on only the areas I needed to. I can also contour with it and when if I'm ever working really hard on my base and I have that extra time, using a little brush like this will perfect my foundation application (as this brush gets into all the nooks and crannies!). Also THE PRICE IS A STEAL! Must have 🙌🏽

Repurchase: Yes, I already did ^_^      Rating: 5/5

M421 | £3.50

You may be wondering why such a small brush has ended up in the face brushes section, however if you’re a watcher of Wayne Goss, you will understand. I have tried to use flat brushes to pack shadow onto the lid and for the most part they aren’t my favourite, I much prefer a denser smaller brush which picks up product better. So this little brush, labelled as a mini concealer brush, is indeed fantastic for all things concealing. I love using this to spot conceal redness around the nose and discolouration around the mouth, but mainly I have become obsessed with using it to ‘clean up the brows’ when I have the time. Honestly the first time I used it I couldn’t believe how different my whole face looked, my brows fitted so much better and they looked sharp but not too bold - VERY pulled together. I really don’t know where this brush has been all my life, but I need back ups cause I cannot risk losing it (and at this price, I can afford back ups too!). 

Repurchase: YES!     Rating: 5/5

M153 | £3.50

Now this brush is technically supposed to be in the second category, but I accidentally photographed it with the 421, so on we go. Unfortunately this one does not have such a glowing review, and yes its just as cheap but its one I rarely reach for. The 153 is a flat shader brush, much wider than the above and it has super soft bristles too. However it's not as good as packing colour onto the lid, as a smaller crease brush would be and that is mostly due to the size. I have medium lids, they're not super large and so packing on shadow with this would be very clumsy and messy, unless I'm going for that super basic one shadow look...and even then, I'd still have to pick up a blending brush as well as this one, which kind of defeats the whole base look, am I right? Wayne Goss dislikes flat shaders for eyeshadow and so does Charlotte Tilbury apparently, and since I purchased this brush, I totally get why. Anyways the best use I have found for this is for swatching...so not one I'm a fan of at all.

Repurchase: Nope.    Rating: 2/5

Detail/Miscellaneous brushes

These brushes are the ones that I think most beginners wouldn't think of first when they're trying to pick up some decent brushes. However, a lot of them are also the brushes that have upped my makeup game SO much, and I really don't know how I was applying shadow without them before. Again, some 5/5s and some eh ones. I think what Morphe has done really well, is created brushes that are affordable (more so than Zoeva and higher end brands), but also purposeful (most of them!). I've already reviewed the M153 above and that was NOT a fave, so lets move on to the rest of them.

E18 | £6.00

Another brush from the elite collection, this one is really useful, especially if you have a smaller lid space. I use this to pack on colours in smaller areas of the eyelid, as well as blend shades into my crease too. The unique thing about this brush, compared to the other smaller and detailed brushes in my collection is that I can actually use it to blend very well. It's not the smallest, but it is excellent at crease work and I reach for this when I want to blend a light shade under the lower lashline too. Not for a stronger colour as I prefer to use a smaller detailed brush for precise colour - however again, its super for blending out smaller areas! And if you know anything about eyeshadow, you'll agree with me that blending is key. I wish it were a little cheaper, but I use it regularly so I can't complain.

Repurchase: Yes ^_^     Rating: 4/5

M431 | £5.50

I would describe this as a pencil brush and I have several uses for it, with the first being a lower lash line brush. I primarily use this with lighter brown shades, as it’s a little bigger than the usual ‘detail’ brushes, which means it can actually blend out shadow to a certain extent. The other use is for inner corner highlight, especially if you’re going to more of an obvious look - it works a treat!! And finally for a brow bone highlight, the M431 is the perfect size. Also this brush is a great dupe for the Zoeva 230 pencil brush, which costs £9. The only difference is that the M431 is just a little smaller, which allows for more precision, so I tend to reach for the Morphe one much more often! You can see that in size, this pencil brush is more narrow than the crease one and I love the pointed end because it allows for a decent amount of precision. The bristles are made from goat hair and so pick up shadow very well - and its not scratchy either!

Repurchase: Yes, my inner corner highlight wouldn't be the same without!  Rating: 5/5

M507 | £6.00

One of the BEST brushes I have ever used, I love this brush SO much. Its slightly pointed and pretty small, which makes it perfect for anyone with small-medium lid space. I adore this for blending in colour, or adding specific colour to the outer/inner v or the eye and sometimes when I'm in a real rush, I use this to blend out a lighter shade under the lower lashline too. It is just the perfect size for blending or adding simple details. For example, I'll use a large fluffy brush for all over the lid and then go in with the M507 and a deeper shade into the crease, using the end to flick out the shade and add that special touch...the best £6 I could have ever spent - and I've not seen a better brush from any other brand out there. Honestly I strongly suggest you go and place this in your basket now, you will not regret it.

Repurchase: YES!!!    Rating: 5/5

M575 | £6.00 

Unfortunately this particular brush isn't one  I’ve been too impressed with. On the beauty bay website, it is described as a brush that can ‘soften colour’ and it has a VERY tapered point, which is the main reason why I picked it up. However the bristles are far too long for any real blending (hence why I put it in this category). I have tried to diffuse colour out with it, but I much prefer using a smaller brush like to 507 to get a beautiful blend. I’ve also used this for adding colour to the crease, however its just a little too clumsy and difficult to manoeuvre. I wish I'd just picked up a second M507 instead (or maybe the 506!), but hey - we live and we learn.

Repurchase: Naaaah.    Rating: 2/5

Blending brushes

And on to my favourites - the brushes that we need to take a look from 0-100. They are such an essential that I own several and I'm constantly using them. Often these are great brushes for simple looks, as well as the more intricate and there are a lot of loved brushes in this section.

M521 | £6.00

Now I know I just went on and on about how much I love blending brushes, but this is actually one of the ones I DON'T recommend - they can't all be awesome hah. The reason I'm not a fan is because the whole brush is quite stiff, which means that it just isn't great for blending out product. It is designed to be a shader brush, but even applying shadow with it feels too rough and harsh on the eyelid, so I don't find myself reaching for this often at all. I'm going to try and use it as a highlighter brush maybe...I'm not sure if it's just too small for that to be honest! Bottomline - I don't use this and wish I could have spent my six quid on something better.

Repurchase? Noooooooo.     Rating: 1/5

M504 | £6.95

Firstly I'm very confused because this is currently nowhere to be seen on the beautybay website...I hope they are planning on bringing it back!  I did find it on another site, but its out of stock :( The 504 is one of my favourite super fluffy blending brushes, the bristles are the perfect length to really buff shadow out and I tend to reach for this when I am setting base down and also applying one colour all over the lid. It's a little large to be a 'one brush wonder', and if I'm ever doing a 3-4 colour look I'll always use smaller brushes alongside the M504, however this is an essential part of the mix. And for the days when I have less than 10 minutes to get ready, a bit of peach smoothie with this brush is all I need and I'm good to go! I've heard this is similar to the famous Sigma E40 and I definitely use it for the same purpose.

Repurchase? Yes!   Rating: 5/5

M502 | £6.00

This is the little sister to the M504, it is literally the same brush but just a smaller size and I love it! Because I don't have the biggest eyelid space, I really enjoy using this whenever I'm doing a look which requires more precision, as it is perfect for blending out smaller areas. To be honest this is the best crease blending brush I own, it fits perfectly and I find myself using this so so often. I'm genuinely struggling to describe WHY its my favourite, IT JUST WORKS SOOOOO WELL! Highly highly recommend!

Repurchase? Yes!!! Rating: 5/5

MB23 | £5.00

This brush I picked up on a total whim and it was only around 3 quid when I got it (and probably due to the lower price tag!), but it's actually one I reach for more often than not. With its longer than the norm, bristles and the soft fluffy finish I find it great for softly blending out shadows. Is it a must have? No. But it is nice to have in the collection and this is usually the brush I use when I need a clean blending brush inbetween shades. I love how soft the bristles feel on the delicate eye area and it gets the job done. Not the most versatile and not really one I'd purchase again and again, but I can't fault it.

Repurchase? Probably not, because for a fiver I'd rather repurchase an absolute fave.    Rating: 4/5

E21 | £4.00

This is weird...I feel like I purchased this for more than four quid...but anyway! The E21 is a slanted blending brush and it has quite a large head, so I tend to reach for it when I'm setting my concealer/base on my eyelid and also for the crease shade. I think for the price, the quality is fantastic, and it is a more versatile brush as I have used this for liquid products as well as powder. If you're looking for a precision blender, then this isn't for you, but in terms of a general good brush - it ticks a lot of boxes!

Repurchase? Not now that I've found a brush I prefer for concealer...no.    Rating: 4/5

M139 | £3.50

Moving back to more blender type of brushes, this is probably one of my all time favourite brushes in my collection and the fact that it costs the same amount as a coffee makes it just that much sweeter! The size of this brush is what makes it so fantastic, like I've mentioned before, I don't have the most eyelid space but I still love applying shadow and playing around with colour, so brushes of this size are perfection. It is great for blending out concentrated colour in small areas and for applying creases shades too. I love it and I'm waiting for it to come back into stock so I can purchase a back up!

Repurchase: YES!!!!  Rating: 5/5

M330 | £6.00

And finishing off this awfully long post with an absolute FAVOURITE - the 330 is again amazing if you have small/medium eyelid space and you're looking for a soft blending brush which has the slightest taper. It is such good value for money, I use it almost every single time I do my makeup and that is why I actually have two of these. The versatility (and the fact that I can both apply and blend shadow with this), is what makes it even more fantastic and it is one of this 'one brush wonders'. If I HAD to only take three brushes with me travelling, this would be one of them, so I think everyone and their auntie should own at least one, because it is a total must have!

Repurchase? Already have!   Rating: 5/5



THIS POST HONESTLY TOOK ME MONTHS TO WRITE. Somewhere inbetween starting this, I got way too busy with teaching prep and then I lost all motivation to blog and then I just got too busy with the actual NQT life. It does feel lovely to be blogging again though, even if it is stupid o'clock and I have a morning full of diary writing and P.E to face! Anyway, I hope this post was helpful for you all, honestly morphe is a brand that is worth trying out - it definitely rivals some of it's competitors and beats the price too. Obviously there are hits and misses, but everything that I've rated a 4-5/5 is worth trying...especially if you're looking to update your brush wardrobe ☺️

Have you tried Morphe brushes? Any recommendations?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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My Morphe Brushes Collection

Hello everyone! WOW, it has been a crazy amount of time since I've blogged, I won't get into it here but expect a post soon with some exciting news...anyway jumping straight into this post - brushes are a really important part of applying makeup and its hard to progress if you don't have a decent collection. I've loved building my collection for years now, and a brand that has slowly taken over in the past two-three years is Morphe. I know they have quite the reputation on social media, especially with the bigger U.S beauty gurus and their constant sharing of money off codes etc...which has lead a lot of people to speculate if the brand is any good at all. I decided to try out one eyeshadow brush from them, since they became easily available from beautybay, two years ago and I quickly become addicted! Now I own around 17 Morphe brushes, and today I'm finally going to be reviewing each and every one in depth, so read on for the must haves and also the ones to avoid...This post is roughly split into three sections, but bear with me, something went wrong with the photography order and I don't think I have close ups of every brush (which is why it has taken me the longest time to write this up 🙄) I've labelled everything anyway, so it should hopefully be clear enough.

July Makeup Haul

Although this is titled ‘July haul’, it’s really more of a May-July one but being too busy to blog, I decided to bulk it all into here. And to be honest there isn’t a LOT of makeup…I do have an ABH order to share soon with that controversial palette, but all in all I’ve kept makeup buying to the minimum. Mainly because I only started earning in July and that was just for three short weeks! I’ve been living on a proper student budget with absolutely no income at all from September 2016 and it wasn't fun, however it was valuable to have to live on a stricter budget and think carefully about where money was going. Anyway, I digress!  I justified myself the ABH haul and the things in this haul are kinda spontaneous and were mainly on sale so on with the haul!!

So starting off with Kiko, a store I now have in my local centre, I decided to pick up some things on whim. Lets start with the Everlasting colour precision lip liner in 402 (£5.90) - whilst the design is super cute, the packaging is pretty high end and it even comes with a sharpner and applicator (a rubber thing on the end, which is good for neating up application), I don't love to use this as an actual lip liner. 402 is faaaar too light to actually line my lips, however it can work all over the lips as a nude (though it is a smidge chalky looking). The formula itself is okay - I won't be rushing to purchase more shades in the future though.

What actually inspired this order was my search for the perfect mustard yellow eyeshadow, which I discovered was available from the kiko store thanks to Daria (a brilliant young woman who I’ve followed for a couple of years, love what she tweets about!). These are the Kiko high pigment wet and dry shadows and this is my first time trying them. They're currently £4.80 each (on sale), which is a similar price point to MUG, so it was a bit of a risk picking up five shades without swatching a single one. I’ve loved the water eyeshadows, with that golden one being a firm favourite (I have at least one back up), however this was an entirely new range to me. I’ve swatched their cheaper one in store and wasn’t impressed at all, definitely avoid those ones. These however are pretty darn great. They contain 2g of product per pan, which is 0.2g more than MUG. Also the shadows are removeable from the black packaging, which means you can take them out and put them into an empty metal palette - winning! 

The shades I purchased are:

57   - a rich cobalt blue, muted, yet still bright enough to be a pop of a colour. I had to purchase this because I literally have no blues in my collection - aside from a very deep one. I think blue shadows aren’t really the norm and I also know an eye shadow look with this along the lower lashline, or all over the lid and blended out with a warmer shade in the crease will look d-e-l-i-g-h-t-f-u-l.

19 - The very reason why I placed the haul in the first place, this is the perfect yellow shade and I've already posted an quick eyeshadow look using it on my instagram (@theblushinggiraffe). However you can get a sneak peak of the shade in the cover photo of this blog post here. The pigmentation of all the shades are really good, but this one impresses me each time I dip my brush in and pack it onto the lid! It definitely rivals MUG and ABH mattes, which is impressive for a drugstore shadow.

91 - Perhaps the only shade that I kinda regret purchasing? Only because its a pretty standard shade, and I own a bunch of golden colours already. Don't get me wrong its a good enough shadow, actually not as rich as the other four mattes - however I will try and get use out of it, or I'll pass it not.Definitely not a colour I'll be repurchasing. 

38 - A medium toned pink shade which again screams summer to me. I do actually own a couple of pinks from MUG as it is, but nothing this vibrant. Whether I use this in the crease, or packed all over the lid, I know it'll look beautiful and provide a twist to the usual neutrals I can get stuck in a rut with.

71 - Well this definitely has to be the most out there shade of the bunch, because can you imagine me wearing such a aqua-turquiose?? I'm not sure I can either, but I definitely will be trying it out...I'm thinking this paired with a gold should look pretty sweet...or maybe even as a funky pop of colour in the inner corner - oh the possibilities!

Moving on to Anastasia Beverly Hills, I managed to purchase two of her refillable shades from the beautybay sale, where they were only £4 each, and there are still a section available! Now neither of these would be my go-to shades, however they both work really quite well. Especially the darker contour shade: Ash brown, which is one of the most perfect contour shades I've come across! It is pretty deep but leans towards grey, so a little goes a long way to recreate the shadow and add definition. The lighter shade is called golden peach and whilst I don't prefer it to a yellow shade, it works well for everyday.

I had to repurchase one of my favourite lip liners of all time, the Jordana easyliner in tawny (£4.00), unlike the kiko one above, the shade of this is spot on just a tad deeper than my normal lip shade so I can ever so slightly overline, without it looking obvious. Such an under-rated lipliner which more people should know about for sure! 

And moving onto those stunning browns, I picked up three more MUG shadows because they're some of my favourites! I got a cute gift card from my lovely colleagues and just had to indulge in some of the newer shades from their line, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE THEY HAVE LOWERED THE PRICE AGAIN! Yaaay, no more ridiculous £6+ price tag, these are back to £4.95 and I couldn't be more pleased. Now in these swatches, the focus on my camera was a little off so excuse that, but left-right we have: Tan lines, pocket change and bake sale. The latter swatched the worst, but on the lid with a brush it is beautiful and has become a go-to on a day to day basis. 

The three brushes, and final part of this haul, are all from Morphe. I WILL be posting a Morphe brushes collection, it is a work in progress because they have a pretty overwhelming selection! Some I adore and use every other day, others I hardly ever pick up, so I'm looking forwards to sharing that with you. However, for now the newer brushes I purchased are:

M575 (£6.00) : Honestly this is an eyeshadow brush I don't love too much. What drew me in was the tapered point, but the bristles are quite long and hard to control, however it is okay at blended out colour once it has been applied. Not sure how much use I'll get from it, but yes I'm going to be using it a few more times before I post a full review in my Morphe brush collection, so stay tuned.

E8 (£6.00): I'm a big big fan of this one! And the price point is fantastic, I'll be picking up a back up at some point too. The E8 is very versatile, you can use it to blend in cream contour or powder contour, concealer or powder under the eyes due to the size. I was watching Jaclyn's morphe faves the other day and, whatever you think of her, we must all admit that the girl has SKILLZZZZ, especially when it comes to eyeshadow! She said a makeup artist was using the E8 to blend in her foundation flawlessly, so that is something I will be trying out and reporting to back to you all, but all-in-all, I'm highly recommend you pick on up.

M164 (£5.50): Definitely on of the most unusual brushes in my collection, this small angled brush is basically going to be your best friend if you dabble in nose contour! It makes contouring the nose sooo easy and as the brushes are synthetic, it works great with cream contour as well as powder shades. Whilst I don't think this is a MUST have, if you are a fan of contouring and no other brushes are cutting it, this little guy for just over a fiver is an absolute bargain.

And that is the end of this haul! Expect another one coming up soon exclusively focused on Anastasia Beverly Hills, but I hope that you enjoyed reading this and perhaps got some inspo for your next makeup splurge 🙊

Thank-you for reading ♥

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July Makeup Haul

Although this is titled ‘July haul’, it’s really more of a May-July one but being too busy to blog, I decided to bulk it all into here. And to be honest there isn’t a LOT of makeup…I do have an ABH order to share soon with that controversial palette, but all in all I’ve kept makeup buying to the minimum. Mainly because I only started earning in July and that was just for three short weeks! I’ve been living on a proper student budget with absolutely no income at all from September 2016 and it wasn't fun, however it was valuable to have to live on a stricter budget and think carefully about where money was going. Anyway, I digress!  I justified myself the ABH haul and the things in this haul are kinda spontaneous and were mainly on sale so on with the haul!!

Everyday makeup routine // current favourites

It's been a while since I've had a proper chat about my current makeup routine and my favourites, so I decided to combine the two and discuss what I've been loving so much, that I've been using them all on the regular. It is officially the summer holidays!! So I've spent the last couple of days either shopping for my first ever classroom, or just lounging about and relaxing at long last. So this makeup routine is more what I was doing in the final weeks of term, whist I was supply teaching (more on that in an update post!).

Starting with the base, I have been LOVING using the Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow (£38.50) after applying my favourite moisturiser. As I have been so exhausted since way Easter time - really there has been SO much going on, I feel like my skin really has suffered the consequences 😪. Late nights, stress, dehydration, you all know the drill and my skin will need a good amount of pampering this summer to get back on track. As a little cheat, I've been using the wonder glow to add some glow and not only does my foundation look better over the top, but it just adds a gorgeous sheen to the skin. On no makeup days I like mixing a little in with my moisturiser too. I think there are better liquid lighters out there in terms of intensity, but this is a beautiful before foundation step. The base of choice, has been the Wet'n'wild photo foundation in golden beige ($5.99) . I've linked the site where I purchased mine from, and if you don't spend over £15 you won't be charged customs. Anyways this foundation is gorgeous, I love it and I can't believe it's so incredibly affordable! I definitely will be repurchasing it - the shade match is amaaaazing, the coverage is medium and the finish is pretty natural. Let me know if you'd like a full review.

Also it's not often that I talk about foundation brushes, because I am a HUGE beauty blender fan...but I have just gone about 3 months without using one. I really couldn't justify picking another one up whilst I was training and not earning a penny, so I decided to use face brushes and fingers. Don't get me wrong, beauty blenders are still the one and only tool for me if I HAD to pick, but actually the Morphe E6 brush (£15.00) is brilliant. I felt like I was using less product with this brush and with a stippling motion, the size of the brush meant my face was blended in next to no time - perfect for anyone with a busy morning routine. I used to adore the RT buffing brush, but I've literally chucked those out since I've had this in my collection, cause they just do not compare!

Moving on to concealer, old habits die hard here! Well, actually in the last couple of months I did try this phase of going for a lighter coverage undereye, but nothing would work as well as my beloved Kevyn Aucoin Sensual skin enhancer in SX07 (£38.00) reviewed here.  And what I love most about this pot of goodness is that you can actually adjust the coverage if need be. It's my tried and tested and has definitely earned the title of H.G. And to set it, as you can tell from the photo I have been loving yet another U.S drugtore product - the wet'n'wild contouring powder in caramel toffee ($5.99). Majorly hit pan and I will be ordering another one soon, because I love it, the yellow powder is so brightening and its really comparable to more high end powders. I also still do my 'light bake' with whatever loose powder I am using, I don't have a particular favourite at the moment, but just search loose powder in the side bar if you want to know my thoughts on the ones I've used.

Brows...really not much has changed here either! I am still smitten with the ABH dip brow in chocolate (£15.00) and in total shock that it has lasted this long. I have often added a couple of drops of the kiko mixing solution (not on the website for some strange reason!) which works really well at reviving it. The brush I've been obsessed with for the last few months is actually the primark brow brush (£2.50), it honestly rivals brushes that are 4-5X the price, I highly recommend you picking it up.

The eyeshadow palette of choice has been the Zoeva Cocoa blend (£18.00), which is genuinely one of the best palette out there right now. The mattes are creamy enough and have good pigment and the shimmer shades are beautiful on the lid. Colourwise, it is just perfection - with all the shades I need for a basic look. Don't get me wrong, my single shadows palette is still my all time favourite because of the amazing variety and formula - but I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone looking for a daily palette with the basics you need if you're a warm toned lover! The mascara of choice has been the Essence rock n doll (£2.80) because it adds a lovely amount of volume - not the most length, but its a goodie!

Moving on to the face powders, it has been a bit of a Narssist party! The laguna-orgasm duo (which you can get an adorable mini version of for just £15!!), is something I kept with my throughout my time in Pakistan, partly for the mirror but also because laguna is a must have for me. As for that iconic blush shade, I certainly don't mind it, but its not something I would purchase the full size of. That mini size is literally perfection, I mean I've not had the chance to see it in person yet, but what an affordable and great way to try some NARS iconics! The second NARS product is the One shocking moment palette (limited edition). I have loved using the various shades in this and I'm so pleased I picked it up, because again it was a very affordable way to try several of their products in one go! To be honest it was tucked away, for far too long, so I've ensured I'm using it on a regular basis and I've got a really good feel for those, so keep an eye out. And finally a non-nars product! The Anastasia Beverly Hills Glow Kit in that glow (£40) reviewed here is just my favourite for everyday, its beautiful and if you don't own a glow kit yet....YA NEED ONE OKAY.

And finally on to the lips, I have been obsessed with my oldschool jordana lip liner in tawny ($),which I saw years ago on Carli Bybel's channel. It is perfect, the ideal MLBB shade and great for slightly over lining. The formula is fantastic too, so much so that I had to pick up a back up last month. The Huda Beauty Liquid Lipstick in bombshell (£18.00) and The Balm Meet Matte Hughes in committed (£15.00) reviewed here are the two liquid lippies that have been used the most recently. They're both beautiful pink shades, with fairly similar formulas actually - neither are too thick or heavy and to be honest they don't have the best longevity, but they're lovely! That colourpop lippie is actually their ultra glossy lip in weho (I think!), because I've been loving to switch it up with a different finish. YES, colourpop is a pain in the butt to ship over, but I am soooo impressed with weho, because it's such a comfortable creamy, non-sticky gloss - big big fan.


And that is just about it everybody! Those are my current favourites and go-to products, a mix of high end and low, U.S and UK.

What have you been loving recently? 

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Everyday makeup routine // current favourites

My go-to / 'everyday' makeup routine

Hello everyone, it has been over a week since I have had the chance to sit down and blog because I have started my teacher training journey and all I can say thus-far is that I'm VERY TIRED. It'll inevitably get a little easier once I get out of the erratic and super relaxed university lifestyle (i.e no real routine and plenty of late nights followed by lie-ins). I thought I'd ease back into blogging with my go-to makeup as of late. This was kind of my everyday summer makeup, because I had a lot more time of course and this is kind of like my favourites post of August too, because these are the products I reached for again and again.

My base of choice has been the Charlotte Tilbury Light Wonder Foundation in 7 (£32.00), I wore this throughout my London trip and pretty much every-time I wore makeup in August. It is so beautiful when applied, whether my skin was in a good state or more on the dry/rough side, some how light wonder foundation manages to not accentuate any flaw whilst still providing enough coverage to get me that 'my skin but lets face it, way better'. My skin glows like no tomorrow, without looking sweaty or disco-balling. In fact it looks VERY similar to that famous tutorial Charlotte T did on her youtube channel, recreating Amal Clooney's wedding makeup. I've probably watched it about 20 times, if you don't know what I'm on about this is what I'm talking about! Just to give you an idea of how much I love this, I'm thinking about purchasing the shade 6 for the winter time, as 7 will be far too light. Now I own a silly amount of bases, so to even consider picking up another shade of one I already have really speaks volumes.

Application: I've liked applying this with the Real Techniques Buffing brush, I find it doesn't alter the coverage unlike when I tried it with a damp beauty blender. 

Concealer wise I have been OBSESSED with the Soap and Glory Kick Ass Concealer in medium (£10.00) and I really cannot believe I have skipped over this time and time again in the highstreet! This is probably the most perfect corrector shade I have ever tried for my dark circles, I've recently been using the Benefit erase paste again, which I used to swear by and it has nothing on this at all - plus its double the price! As for concealer, I've been using the Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer in SX07 (£38.00) which is true HG status for me and I adore it. The coverage is fantastic, a little goes a long way and when set correctly. I have a detailed post of the SSEs coming up in the near future because they're rather expensive and not the easiest to work with, but I can't imagine my makeup routine without it now, so it must be pretty fantastic.

Application: The corrector I always apply with my ring finger in the darkest areas under my eyes. One layer is more than enough to actually correct the darkness and it doesn't cake up at all - so great! I've recently been doing most of the concealer application with the same finger too, getting the majority of it blended in and then finishing off with the beauty blender before setting. 

Setting wise, theres nothing better than the Kat Von D Shade + Light palette ($45.00) coming to the UK really soon 🎉 which is definitely HG status for me. I love mixing the lightest colour with the yellow shade and it both sets and highlights the face perfectly. When I don't use this palette, I massively notice a difference in my makeup so it is another staple. If I have time I'll lightly bake under the eyes with the Coty Airspun loose powder ($8.99), which works really well to set down such a creamy formula like the KA SSE!

Application: Real Techniques Setting brush (£4.89) for the yellow powder and a damp beauty blender for the bake!

Moving on to the cheeks, this summer I have been using my usual blusher of choice: NARS Deep Throat (£23.00) which is basically the most beautiful blush for everyday that was ever invented. I tent to stick to the same KVD palette for bronzing up the face, using the middle shade in a 3 shape for adding warmth and the shade on the left to sculpt out the cheeks. For highlight, Laura Geller's Gilded Honey (£21.00) has been my go-to. When I first got this, I didn't love the baked formula but if you use more of a stiffer brush it picks up the product better.

Application: for blusher I use pretty much any synthetic round brush, my favourite of late has been one from an ebay set I reviewed here. I've been using the large fluffy powder brush in the same set for bronzer and for highlight it's been all about the Morphe M501 (£6.25). Like I said the bristles are a little more firm as a natural haired brush, which makes it excellent for picking up powder formulas. 

Finally moving on to the eye makeup (as I change up the lips all the time), I have really loved wearing a warm eyemakeup look whenever I've had the time. When I went to London, I decided to use my lovely ABH palette to create a quad of shades I could use everyday. Since then I've not actually switched them out because I've been enjoying them so much. The red shade is ABH Sienna - basically the most perfect terracotta brown there ever was in all the lands, a little bit of this in the crease and along the lower lashline is all I need to add some depth and warmth. The shade to the right of Sienna is ABH Peach Sorbet - a lovely all over the lid colour for brightening up any look and it is perfect for everyday too. Going clockwise, I had to pick MUG's Mirage - my all time fave brow bone highlight. It is a beautiful satin formula which is slightly off-white and again works fantastically as an inner corner highlight too for everyday. Finally the most wonderful crease shade to ever exist: MUG Creme Brulee SO MUCH LOVE FOR THIS EYESHADOW! You can already see I've made a bit of a dent in it and it is by far a game changer. Yes it looks like nothing much in the pan, but trust me it makes a world of difference.

My eyeliner of choice has been The Balm's Schwing Liquid Liner (£13.50) which is SUPER pigmented. It's actually the darkest liner I have ever used in my life and the best part is the colour lasts all day. Sadly it is not without its issues however, if you happen to get water on your face it transfers instantly and runs down the cheeks very dramatically. Still it works well for the most part and I can create a dramatic sharp line with little to no effort. Finally, last but not least, my mascara of choice in the Tarte Gifted Mascara (£21.52) which has knocked benefit's They're Real out of the water for me. It separates and adds volume like no other mascara, it layers up well and the best part is that it's really easy to remove, major dealbreaker! 


So that is my go-to makeup routine, especially for the summer time. Of course I switched things up now and again, however I did largely stick to these products and I wanted to share them all with you. I do however want to reduce these kinds of posts in which I talk about loads of products, they're getting really uninspiring for me to type and I feel like they're kind of repetitive too. Just to let you know, I am currently deep into my teacher training course and I am REALLY busy. However I do want to continue blogging and reading other blogs and commenting whenever I can, just bear with me! The next two posts are going to be quite specific as they have been requested and on my to-do list for quite a long while. After those posts I'm not really sure, but I imagine I'll be trying to switch up my content a little and do more focused reviews as they're the most 'useful' posts I feel like I share!

What are some of your staple makeup products that you reach for without even thinking about?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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