My top 3 Bourjois products

 

When it comes to drugstore Make-up I love me some Bourjois, I find as a general rule when drugstore cosmetic shopping , if in doubt go the Bourjois route (if you're American you will get alot more out of that sentence than the Brits, or not ahem!) because they rarely put out a disappointing product, I actually can't think of one off the top of my head although if my arm was twisted I'd have to say I'm not a huge fan of the classic 'chocolate bronzer.'

Above are my all time favourites, the one's that shall be forever repurchased.

1.Healthy mix radiance reveal foundation 

I actually love this foundation so much that I often pick it over my higher end ones. For me this is a perfect all seasons base, it blends so easily (I like to apply this with my fingers), gives light/medium coverage which can be built into a decent medium with a satin finish, the bottle claims it lasts up to16hrs which is just silly but it does stick around well I get around 5-6 hours without powder before my beautiful nose redness starts peeking through.

2.Volume one second mascara

A mascara with balls! :o Seriously though I had high hopes when I picked this up and I wasn't disappointed.The rubber brush/tiny ball combo works wonders on the awkwardness that are my mid length crossed over lashes, it gives separation, length and volume that lasts the day without smudging/flaking (I have the non waterproof version)  and although it goes without saying that the 1 second claim is just daft it does the job quickly with minimal wand wiggle-age needed.

3.Bronzing primer

I honestly thought this had a better name until just now so I shall use the French...The Bourjois base lissante soleil (better) is currently my obsession, supposedly a dupe for the much hyped Soleil tan de Chanel or whatever it's called nowadays, I never gave into that hype because I didn't think I was missing out on a mousse formula bronzing primer, how wrong was I? Although the colour and consistency are quite scary at first glance, the BLS ;) blends into the skin like a dream leaving a smooth matte base for foundation which it then lends a hand to giving a suprisingly subtle bronzed healthy finish.So far I have only used this as a primer but apparently it works well as a contour so I'm going to have to give that a go!

NB: I'll be damned if there is a base product on this planet that smells this delicious!!

NB2: I over scooped in the above swatch picture...a little goes a long way with this.

What are your favourite's from Bourjois?

Drugstore basics- How do I choose the right foundation?

I'm presuming that if you have landed on this post then you are among the many women that walk into drug stores across the land and feel overwhelmed by the vast selection of cosmetics on offer, it is overwhelming, the cosmetics industry is super massive and growing all the time sometimes it would be nice, like most things in this day and age (ooooooh how old does that make me sound?? eek!) if things would pause, let us take a breather and catch up with it all. That's not going to happen though so I'll talk more generally about foundation, a tricky one to get right at the best of times, but throw in different finishes, formula's and a bunch of letters and numbers, it can be enough to make your head explode.Too dramatic??

Things to bear in mind when shopping for foundation.

These 4 things will work as your basic guide to picking an everyday foundation.

If you wanted a foundation for a specific occasion or one that will give you a specific quality to your skin then you would look at different factors, this is just the basic knowledge you need to be equipt with to begin.

1.Your skin tone- fair, medium,dark.

So that you know which section of the colour spectrum you should be looking at to begin with.Of course there are many variations within each tone...

2.Your undertone- cool, warm or neutral

  So that you pick a foundation with the correct base colour for your undertone

(The quickest way to check this is to look at the veins on your wrist if they are blue then you have a cool undertone, you have a warm undertone if they are more green, and if there is neither more green or blue then you have a neutral undertone.)

For example you could have fair skin but a warm undertone so you would want a pale colour foundation that is yellow based rather than pink.Those of us with neutral undertones should pick colours that have a balance of the two.

Just as a side note even if you have a cool undertone do steer clear of foundations that are overly pink based (fortunatley there aren't too many now a days!) as they never blend into the skin enough to leave a natural finish.

Test shades on your jawline in as natural a light as you can you will want to pick out the shade that best blends with your chest/shoulder colour.If you are stuck deciding between 2 shades pick out the lighter shade as you can always darken it with bronzer.

3.Your skin type normal, dry, oily or combination.

So that you pick a foundation with the formula and finish that is most beneficial to you regarding the application, longevity and overall look of the foundation you choose.

Generally, foundations aren't labelled up to specify which skin types they are most suitable for. Revlon colour stay shades do come in normal/dry and combination/oily however I can't think of another drugstore brand that specifically state skin type suitability on their foundation bottles.

4.Coverage 

This is personal preference all the way!

Ones to check out!

Normal-dry skin types

 Bourjois Healthy mix serum £10.99

Bourjois Healthy mix £9.99

Rimmel wake me up £8.99

Maybelline fit me! £7.99

Oily/combination 

Loreal True match (great shade range) £9.99

Revlon colourstay £12.49

Rimmel match perfection £6.99

Garnier nutritionist BB oil free miracle skin perfector £6.66

Bourjois 1,2,3 perfect £10.99

I really hope I explained this clearly and this was helpful to some of you!

Do tell me your drug store faves!!

xxx

MAC Monday #8 Face and body foundation!

So it just occurred to me as I was halfway through blabbering about MAC F&B that I disappeared for ages and now I've come back with 2 posts in a week both on the same subject...good going Natalie *tongue in chin*! 

Oooh well I've started now and the little OCD in me will make me finish....alternative blog posts to follow though I promise! 

MAC face and body has always been in my top five foundations, however much that list has changed since my very first bottle it has always clung on in there, but why?

1. Value for money

 For a long time it was only sold in those marvellous giant 120 ml bottles, which for the £23.50 that it was made it incredible value for money. Since MAC introduced the more compact 50 ml bottles for £21.50 the price of the large bottle has increased to £27.00,  it does still work out to be worth the price hike when you compare it to the price of other high end foundations.

2. The way it photographs

Aaaah it's an SPF free foundation... which means it doesn't give the dreaded ghostly flashback face if you get friend papped on a night out! 

3. The coverage

A buildable foundation that gives a decent medium coverage without caking, one of life's greatest pleasures if you ask me! A major part of F&B's charm is its ability to do that on all skin types while leaving skin feeling able to breathe and looking natural.

4. It lasts throughout the day

Even though it is a flimsy water based formula it does have some decent staying power even on oily skin types (which can be further helped with a powder and/or setting spray). I have normal/dry skin and get 8-10 hours wear without powder. 

4. The huge shade range

OK this is a good thing its also bloody confusing!! Face and body comes in 16 shades the N shades and the C shades, without going into a boring rant on the ins and outs of the strange world of MAC's shade naming basically in face and body the N shades are for skin with cool undertones and the C shades for skin with warm undertones.

As I wrote this I realised that face and body was one of the first higher end foundations I bought and helped massively in weaning me off the intense mask of studio fix fluid or whatever high street version of it I had knocking around back in the day and insisted on wearing for all occasions...very bad times! Maybe that's why I have such a soft spot for it!! 

Does MAC face and body make your top 5?

<3

xxx

First impressions: L'oreal Nude Magique eau de teint

Hi there! Nice to see you all, it's been a while hasn't it? 

Today I have been trying out the new foundation from L'oreal, the Nude magique eau de teint* (say it out loud in a French accent it makes you feel all fancy) and I wanted to pop a quick first impressions/mini review type of thing up!

Instead of a waffly review I want to keep it short and sweet so I'm going to break it down into digestable pieces of info that's how I like to read reviews anyway...

Packaging

Teeny tiny frosted glass bottle which makes it look quite chic, the "in yo face" print and lavender metallic lid kind of ruin that but it's what's on the inside that counts right?....

Price/size

£9.99 for a 20 ml bottle. 10 ml less than your average size at around the same price as your average high street foundation. If this was a high coverage foundation and you were needing to use less product I could understand the drop in ml however it is the opposite so that is a tad disappointing.

What L'oreal say/What I think

"OUR LIGHTEST FORMULA EVER"-

Agreed this is an ultra light water based foundation which when you apply it feels like you are literally putting water on your face, weird in a good way! 

"Instantly fuses with the skin , blending seamlessly to leave a silky second skin effect"-

I slightly disagree in terms of it instantly fusing with my skin, I used my fingers to apply the foundation but found that I had to work the product into my face almost as much as I would normally to get it to blend completely. 

"Naturally even, shine free look."-

There's no denying this! It does give you a "my skin but better" look! with a satin finish. The coverage is super light, its basically one small step up from a tinted moisturiser and although I doubt it would cake if you were to try and build it up, I'm pretty sure that you wouldn't be able to achieve even a medium coverage.

"Undetectable coverage"-

Absolutely! Even in a magnified mirror around the areas foundation tends to cling in (eyebrows, nostrils etc) there was no way that you could tell I had foundation on which is very impressive!!

Buy it if....

You have many a good skin day!

This is the perfect foundation for days when your skin is on its very best behaviour ie no breakouts of dry skin which as light as the formula is,the satin finish would most likely cling to, the same goes for fine lines. Any blemishes that you have, because of the light coverage this will not cover them up so a good concealer is recommended to use along side it which will definitely give a gorgeous "no make-up, make-up" skin finish! 

Have you tried this? What did you think?

xxx

Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation review

I'm a foundation freak, you may already be aware of this if you have read this blog for any length of time, but when I initially saw this a while back in Superdrug I wasn't falling for it as I normally would, no, it appeared that I had malfunctioned or something that day and I didn't even pick it up in fact I had a little chuckle at it rolled my eyes and walked right past without even having a nosey! I think it was the name of it which on any other day would suck me right in but that day it didn't, it irritated me instead I wasn't prepared to be disappointed by another bold claiming high street foundation and remember thinking how very sensible I was and giving myself a little pat on the back for turning a corner.

But then I stumbled across a few reviews on it and became ever so slightly curious, then I noticed it appearing in monthly favourite video's on You Tube, curiosity got the better of me and BAM I was all over it like a tramp on chips, and I'm so pleased I gave in...

 ...never in my life has a high street brand foundation excited me as much as this one does, there are a couple that have come close (Bourjois healthy mix and healthy mix serum and more recently L'Oreal Lumi Magique) but even then I have always found that one teeny tiny reason not to truly love them... ie it breaks me out a'la healthy mix or it isn't long wearing enough in the case of Lumi Magique and with them being from the high street that's fine I had pretty much made peace with the fact that there would never be the perfect high street foundation for me when Rimmel go and come out with this bad boy! In fact, in the past couple of weeks of using this every day I am 99% sure that I shall be declaring it holy grail!

I loves it!!

Half a pump
(the formula reminds me of a lighter cosistancy MAC studio sculpt)

Coverage: Medium buildable

Finish: Radiant, really brightens skin without being shimmery or overly dewy, flawless but definitely doesn't leave skin looking cakey or too 'done' 

Staying power: Rimmel claim 10 hours its more like 8 

Shade range: 7 shades- My shade is 200 Soft beige and I am an NC25/30 in MAC foundations  

Price: RRP £8.99 for 30ml Currently on the Superdrug website for £4.99

Packaging: Glass bottle/pump combo. 

Suitable for: All skin types, it definitely doesn't emphasise dry skin or sink into fine lines or pores nor is it so light and dewy that it will look greasy and slip on oily skin the only down side is the shade range.

Random info: It smells amazing, it must be all the vitamins!! 

 I get the song 'Don't wake me up' stuck in my head for hours every time I get it out of my Make-up bag!

Repurchase? Definitely! this is a product that actually does what it says on the tin.

Have you tried this?

xxx

Review: Jemma Kidd light as air foundation

Hey Girlies,

 Happy New Year! 

I have neglected my blogging duties thus far in 2012 what with the beginning of the month always being a busy time with family birthdays, I am also in the process of setting up a new business (All Make-up and beauty related YAY!) with one of my best friends so that has taken up quite a bit of time in the past week too. Anyway I have been wanting to get this review up for quite a while and a couple of you asked what I thought, so I shall quit with my waffling ways and crack on with it...

Jemma Kidd Light as air foundation

Packaging

The JK Light as air is housed in a black plastic squeezable tube, which considering that the product is priced as a higher end foundation could be a disappointment to those who prefer their packaging to reflect the price that they pay for a product. 

Saying that I really rather like it, it certainly isn't going to smash in my make-up bag, and thinking about it, with the consistency being so runny, a glass bottle/pump combo would definitely have disaster written all over it.

 So thumbs up for the packaging!

Consistency/Coverage

As this is a water based foundation the consistency is super runny, I find it to be the happy medium between two of my all time favourite foundations, MAC Face and body and Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua. It gives medium coverage which feels light on the skin as the name suggests 

0-60 in 3 seconds!

Finish/Staying power

Upon application it appears to leave a very dewy, luminous finish. However after it settles into the skin it sets to a slight powdery finish, that said, it manages to retain luminosity and give an absolutely flawless finish.

As I have a normal/dry skin type I find that with this finish of this foundation I do not need to powder my skin at all and it will stick around all day.

Who will it suit

This is a great foundation for most skin types, however those with very dry skin should probably steer clear as the powdery finish tends to cake pretty badly on dry area's. 

Colour range

There are 7 shades to choose from ranging from ultra light to dark, so there is a shade for pretty much everyone I have shade 03 light/medium (NC25-30) it is a tad dark for my natural skin tone (NC20) but I generally wear fake tan so it's not a problem and it will definitely be the perfect shade for me in the summer.

Price

 RRP £25 for 30ml but is currently on sale at feel unique.com for £20 with free worldwide delivery and Beauty Bay for £19.95 with free worldwide delivery (this week only)

Another thing to point out is that even though it contains spf18 

it still photographs well with flash 

(I'm not too sure why I am cross eyed in this pic but hey ho ;))

Initially I did not fall for this foundation as hard as I had expected to and the reason for this was that I had been skipping out moisturiser from my skincare routine, which obviously with my skin type (normal/dry) is never a smart thing to do, and I was finding the finish drew attention to just how dehydrated my skin was!

 Since I have reunited my skin with it's much needed moisture, I have finally come to adore this foundation and everything about it, it is most definitely in my top 5 favourite foundations of all time, although not even I know the order in which that list goes (I'm ever so slightly fickle you see ;)) 

Have you tried this foundation? 

Do you wanna??

xxx

When you wish upon a blog...

Evening honey's 

I'm sure some of you will already be aware of the fairy hobmother (AKA David from appliances online) and how he has been busy giving Santa a serious run for his money by granting wishes and spreading joy around the blogosphere.

A little while ago I left a comment on the lovely Jennie's blog post after reading how her wish had been granted and not long after was granted my very own!

I received a £50 voucher to spend at Amazon.co.uk which I was so over the moon about! And as I am the kind of girl that money burns a hole in my pocket it didn't take me very long to spend...Originally I was going to buy Hunter wellies (Kid's sizes are a bargain just FYI) but then I remembered Amazon sell Make-up and all sensible thinking was swiftly tossed out of the window...

 (Although what I am going to wear on my feet when it snows, I do not know!)

After a tentative search I was happy to find that the item I had in mind was in fact available to purchase from Amazon... 

(Not gonna lie I did a l'il jig!)

Please excuse the dodgy photo's in this post. I am not at home early enough this week to catch the daylight 

So I have been lusting after the Jemma Kidd Light as air foundation for a good few months as Tanya Burr rates it so highly. Then when that pesky enabler Anna also gave it a rave review it became a case of the "have to have's!"

Review to come shortly...

Again sorry for the shoddy picture "/

I also picked up two Make-up books by the truly amazing Make-up artist Rae Morris (sorry for the vom fest!) 'Make-up the ultimate guide' and 'Express Make-up' and I can't tell you how happy I am with them , so far I'm only half way through the ultimate guide but It is, by far, the best Make-up book I have ever read, to me Rae Morris is God! (OK no more, Im over it, I swear )

The fairy hob mother is always watching, so do make sure to leave your wishes in the comments below...

xxx

Confessions and a MAC Studio sculpt foundation review

Evening girlies,

I thought that tonight seen as I am home alone, I would partake in a spot of late night (OK 9pm, I'm very,very old!) blogging, and seen as this one has been sat half written in my draft post box thingy for the past week, it should be a nice relaxing one to whip up while I relax in front of the TV with my decaf coffee mmm :)

So you may have heard me mention in a few past posts of my undying love for foundation, we all have a thing though, and any form of beige fluid (ahem) is definitely without a shadow of a doubt my bag baby, to prove this point I just made myself count exactly how many I actually own....are you ready?...

32!!

I'm not entirely convinced that this is normal! I had anticipated somewhere in that region and convinced myself that I must be overestimating to soften the blow when it came to counting, but seeing them all spread out like that made me so happy wonder if maybe I need checking in to some foundation rehab facility, this was a fleeting thought mind you and now that I have confessed my sins I will crack on with a short review of foundation number 32 which came into my possession on a fun filled shopping trip in Leeds a few weeks ago.

 MAC studio sculpt 

Application/price

This foundation only requires a pea size amount to cover the whole face (which means even if you used this quantity every day the 40ml tube will last for months) having said that this foundation can be built up to achieve a full coverage without going 'cakey.'I find studio sculpt applies best either with fingers or a wet sponge/beauty blender. Studio sculpt retails at £23.00 and can be purchased online or at any MAC counter or PRO store.

Who would/wouldn't it suit?

It's creamy gel based formula makes it a great foundation for normal/dry skin types, although don't completely discount it if you have a combination/oily type skin. I have even read reviews from people with oily skin that have raved about this foundation, but I would advise popping into MAC and asking for a sample if you have very oily skin as this might not be your best bet. If your skin has large open pores then this will definitely not be your best friend as it likes to settle itself in them and make them super noticeable. It also has a tendency to make a bee line for fine lines so I wouldn't suggest this foundation for a more mature skin type.

Finish/staying power

MAC describe studio sculpt as a satin finish.I agree with that, the finish is natural and dewy it has the coverage factor without looking mask like and leaves my skin feeling really silky smooth, in fact so very smooth that  I have found myself stroking my cheek a time or two...anyway moving on from that... even with all of the face stroking it lasts a good 6-8 hours on my skin (normal/dry) 

Overall I really,really love it! I wish that I could say that I had found my Holy Grail, it's very close but I feel I must continue in my quest for the perfect base and may or may not be awaiting a small delivery...ooops! 

Hope you are all having a lovely night 

xxx

Cant live without:Foundation

If I had to pick just one item of make-up that I absolutely couldn't survive without (dramatic? Moi??) I would choose my foundation without question, Ok maybe I would look rather strange without the rest of my make-up there doing its thang for my eyes, lips, and cheeks, but foundation is the item that I would miss if I was forced into a cosmetic ultimatum! It's the item I get the most pleasure from,it's like a security blanket I suppose.

My l'il collection!

I am,  like alot of girls on a constant quest for the perfect skin, so when a new foundation pops onto the scene gaining rave reviews, Im there at that counter as soon as funds will allow, hoping that this will be the one to do it all, even skin tone, lift, illuminate,turn me into Kim Kardashian, bring about world peace (you never know!!)

My top 3 foundations

I cant really put these in order as being the fickle madam that I am I find myself using them on a rotational basis depending on my mood,time allowance and all that shiz!


1. MAC-Face and body.

Out of the 3 this is the one that I have used the longest. I love its light formulation that allows your natural skin to breathe, alongside the way it can be built to attain a good medium coverage if desired.And the huge 120ml bottle lasts for an age!! 


2. NARS-Sheer glow

A HG for many for good reason,sheer glow gives fantastic buildable coverage which is long lasting, and a flawless finish to boot. My Other thoughts on sheer glow here.


3. Chanel-Teint innocence compact foundation

I love this for when im in a rush, it applies beautifully with the supplied sponge to a light medium coverage, and is easy to carry around for touch ups throughout the day.It also feels really moisturising for a cream to powder formula and doesn't cake. I think I might have relied on this too much for touch ups though as I actually hit pan in about 3 weeks!!! My Review here.


Of course I have had some disasters in the past...

My least favourite foundation.

Estee Lauder Double wear

This is a HG foundation for alot of girls, and for good reason, It gives an incredible flawless long lasting finish.
But I wasn't so lucky, for me I found it way to heavy (I like a medium-full coverage) It felt like I was wearing a concrete mask when I wore it. The worst part of this foundation was that wherever I applied concealer, and blusher it created patches on my face as if these products had pulled the foundation off, I ended up walking around town once  looking in all seriousness like I had a skin disorder, I had to hot foot it to the Chanel counter to have a fresh base applied ha! I would however love to try out Double wear light as like I said the double wear finish is beautiful on the girls who get on with it.

Anyway I could ramble about foundation all day long, so ill leave it at that for now,however I have a few other's on my wish list that I will be picking up in the not too distant future, so I will be sure to let you lovelies know my thoughts. 

Which make-up item couldn't you live without?

Review: Chanel Teint innocence compact

Whoa well seen as the sun was gracing us with it's presence in the UK today,I decided to give my skin a bit of a breather and wear a lighter base on my face (im a poet!) So I picked out my Chanel Teint innocence compact foundation...

What chanel say...

"Innovative oil-free compact foundation offers luxurious glide-on application.Provides Ideal medium coverage,while still revealing skin's natural beauty.Delivers greater colour purity,for an even,luminous complexion."

And I say...

This compact has replaced the it's liquid counterpart which is to be discontinued.I have found that this compact has quickly become my 'go to' foundation on the more summery days we have had in the UK just lately,You know the days where you don't feel like clogging your pores and applying a full coverage liquid foundation? It is a medium coverage foundation that allows your natural skin to show through and applies and blends flawlessly with fingers,sponge or a foundation brush.

I had to hold my new 'swoopy' fringe out of the way hehe!

                                 

I have Normal/dry skin and have been lucky lately in that my problem dry areas ie nose and forehead have remained flake free (sorry for that gross term) What I will say is that if these area's were to flake up (again sorry!) then this foundation would most likely highlight that issue as it is a cream/powder foundation,even though the powder finish is hardly apparent and skin looks as luminous with this foundation as with a fluid.

If you have oily skin then this will work well  for you as it is an oil free formula but I would recommend using a good primer and powder to increase the length of wear.

The skin types best suited would be normal/dry or normal/oily as it will emphasise the very dry and probably be very short lasting on the very oily.

If I had to find fault with this foundation,it would be that it needs reapplying around every 3 hours but it's so very gorgeous and portable that reapplying is more a pleasure than a chore.

Chanel Teint innocence compact is available here  priced £34.72

refill pans are purchased at £26

Have you tried this compact?