Back with a Swish and Flick

This weeks blog is the Harry Potter house eye shadow palettes from Boots.

The first thing that jumped out at me was the beautiful packaging. On a white background is a shimmery image of the house mascot in house colours. The palettes have magnetic closures with a small mirror on the inside shaped like a crest with three of the the house traits written underneath. If nothing else these are well designed and make a good keepsake for all the Potterheads out there. 

Full disclosure is that I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I have read, listened and watched the stories and films over and over and over again. So believe me when I tell you I wanted these palettes to be amazing, but they were somewhat of a mixed bag. 

GRYFFINDOR

The colours are well chosen and are representative of Gryffindor. The bottom three colours are the standouts, specifically the copper and champagne shades that blend well together. The dark brown shade is smooth as a swatch and if using it as a lid shade it goes on well, however in this palette I wanted to use it to deepen the outer corners and unfortunately it doesn't work well in that respect. The crimson shade that should be the siren of this palette is okay, you do get some good colour payoff but it goes on the lid in a slightly lighter shade and can come of pink if you don't pile it on. 

SLYTHERIN

The Slytherin palette has some truly magical shades but I would maybe make one major change. The black matte I would swap out for a uber dark green matte. As it stands when swatched the black is really black but because it is so pigmented it is hard to blend out and can look messy. My favourite shade is the dark green shimmer shade, it goes on smoothly and really shines. Champagne stand and the grey are nice and work well if the dark green if you want to add a pop of colour or a gradient. The pale green shade is hard to work with and I struggled getting colour pay off but once it's on the lid it is very bright and pretty. My feeling is that this is a palette that would apply well with the fingers as the swatches are out of this world. 

HUFFLEPUFF 

The Hufflepuff palette is by far the easiest to work with but then the Hufflepuff colour scheme lends itself to this. Golds and bronze type colours are usually the easiest colours to get right in a palette. The shade that lets it down is the matte brown in the bottom right hand corner. It just doesn't blend well at all. Had it worked it would have been a great little palette but as it is it has no shade that can deepen the outer corner. The shimmer shades in this palette really jumps out and are easy to blend together. My favourite is the bronze in the top row. It makes green eyes really pop.

RAVENCLAW

This palette is the worst of the four. The problem is blues/purples are hard colours to get right and this just doesn't work at all. There is just one colour that applies well and that is the copper shade in the bottom right hand corner, but the rest are just awful. The dark blue shade is patchy and the lighter blues just don't show up very well at all. For me this palette is a hard no. 

The one thing that all four palettes have is a soft pink shimmer shade that I can't make work at all, I don't know if its meant to be a highlight shade for the brow bone but it doesn't seem to apply well.  This can be seen in the last look for the Ravenclaw palette, it just doesn't blend and makes things more patchy than they were before. 

The key take away here is that these palettes swatch well and are very nice keepsakes. If you are buying them as Harry Potter memorabilia then go right ahead, they are fun items to have on display, however if you are buying them for their eyeshadow then you will be disappointed. I will keep these because I am a Potterhead, but I won't be using them on my face anytime soon. 

Freedom #ProArtist Magnetic Palette

One of my very early blogs was on the Freedom #ProArtist magnetic palette where I looked at three of the eye shadow shades.  Since then I have bought the rest of the shadows and some blushes and highlighter and I thought I would do swatches and some different looks for you.

There are 30 different shades in all, 10 Matte, 10 Colour and 10 Shimmer.  They range from cool to warm tones as well as neutrals and bright colours, so there really is something for everything.  The magnetic palette will set you back £5, its sturdy with a large mirror.  The shadows are £2 each so it is a relatively cheap way to build up a palette of colours you would use as apposed to a set palette where there are always colours you may not be enticed by.  If like me you want to buy all the shades you will need to buy 2 palettes as they won't all fit in one.  

I have organised my palettes in the shade groupings above.  I put the neutrals in one and the brighter colours in the other.  There are a few stand out shades for me Colour 5 and 10 I really like.  Colour 5 is a purple pink shade that has a shimmer to it that really sets off my green eyes.  Similarly Colour 10 is a copper toned shimmery shade that is the perfect shade to add onto a day look for a little sparkly drama for a night out.  In the neutral palette I really love Shimmer 2, this is a bright gold/copper shade that works well on the inner corner.  Also Colour 8 is a shimmery grey, its close to silver without being that bright so is slightly more subtle but still packs a punch.  Finally you can't underestimate Matte 3.  This is a true matte black that is the perfect shade to add some smokiness or smudged liner without too much work.  

I created 6 looks that I will outline below. 

I have tried to do some neutral looks as well as some brights so feel free to jump down to the look that you are drawn to the most or carry on reading for all six.

Look 1

Look 1 is a wearable look for day or night. It is super easy and only uses two colours.  I put S8 over the lid and S7 in the inner corner. I finished this look off with a liquid liner and a brush of mascara.

Look 2

Look 2 is more colourful but still very wearable.  I started by putting C4 all over the lid.  Deepening in the outer corners with M3 and putting S1 in the inner corner.  This was one of my favourite looks that I did from this palette.

Look 3

Look 3 was a look that was slightly out of my comfort zone as although I love to play with colour I usually go with a gradient or a block of colour but I wanted to try this halo effect.  I started out by putting C3 in the outer and inner corners and then blended them together in the crease I then put S1 in the centre of the eye and added C3 to the lower lash line.  I then went in with a blue liquid liner and some mascara and this is the finished look.  While I liked this look there is a lot of effort in blending to make it look effective and I'm not sure I like it more than the others.  I may in the future try this out with other colour combos and see how I go.  I think this would look great with dark purple and pastel pink. 

Look 4

Look 4 is another very wearable look and is again fairly simple to achieve.  I put S4 all over the lid, S2 in the inner corner and blended M5 in the outer corner to deepen it up slightly.  Again it is finished off with some black liner and mascara.

Look 5

Look 5 is a very cool toned look.  It is C8 all over the lid and then M1 blended in the outer corner to deepen.  This look I have done again since as it is super easy and quick but very effective.

Look 6

Look 6 I am torn by.  While I love the reds I'm not sure it worked with my skin tone as it was a little too warm.  I started out with C9 in the crease, M10 over the lid, C10 on the lower half of the lid and then C2 to brighten the inner corner.  I think I needed to spend a little more time on this one just to blend a little better and I think it would have been more effective but that may just be me being picky.

If you want to see a look with the purple shades take a look at my earlier blog here. 

I also bought 2 blush shades a highlighter and a cream contour shade.

The cream contour shade I bought as a primer and that works fairly well but I still prefer my Maybelline Color Tattoo.  The highlight is subtle which is how I like it, I'm not into that stripe of highlighter as I think it accentuates my texture, so I only ever use the less shiny highlighters.  What is nice about this one is that there are no chunks of glitter in it which is sometimes a problem with the high street brands. Blush 2 is pretty and obviously when applying with the brush it doesn't come out that pink. Blush 5 I bought as a bronzer/contour shade because I felt that the contour shades in the collection may have been a little too dark for me.  It works nicely as a bronzer but is a little to orange to work as a contour shade but that's okay because I rarely if ever contour (I just don't have those skills!)

Over all I love this collection.  I think it is well worth the money and is a nice way to treat yourself on the way home from work without spending a fortune.  I would pick up a shade now and again and at £2 a pop it doesn't break the bank.  

As always I hope you found this helpful.  Much loves 

XOXO

W7 Nail Polish - Wear and Review

W7 is a brand that shows up in discount stores around the UK, I have always been tempted by it but never bought it until now.  I went to Cheshire Oaks designer outlet to the Beauty Outlet store and came across the brand again, this time for £1.99 so I thought why not.  I bought four colours in all.  I am on the prowl for a one coat white polish so I got white, I also bought the three colours that I use the most blue, pink and a shimmer shade in purple. 

My go to polish is Barry M simply because it is reasonably priced and it lasts on my nails. I have a few other more high end polishes that i bought for a discount from TK Maxx but for the most part I am all about budget nail polish.  

The W7 polishes are not as high standard as the Barry M polishes and to be honest they don't last as long.  Here is how each colour applied and lasted.

The first shade I used was 106 Purple Rain. The brush is a large flat brush that allows you to cover the nail in less strokes. However the formula is not at all opaque and I had to use three layers to get full coverage.  The problem with this is it that it takes longer to apply and even when leaving ample time in between layers to dry and using a quick dry topcoat the polish had a very thick layer and seemed very easy to smudge.  I would describe the colour as a midnight purple, and while the shade is beautiful its lasting power lets it down.  This one didn't chip in the traditional sense but it did pull back from the tip of the nail despite the fact that I wrapped* the nail with polish when I applied. (*a horizontal swipe of the brush along the top of the edge of the nail to stop the polish shrinking from the edge) 

The second colour I tried was the white polish, similarly to the purple I needed multiple coats to get the shade opaque.  While it took three coats it did go on better and smoother than the purple.  This is not a bright white shade and it seemed to get more cream coloured the longer I wore it.  I don't know whether it was my imagination but it was definitely closer to cream by the time I took it off.  While an off white can be a less intense polish and in most cases more flattering, I watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Clueless again recently and I really want a 90s bright white polish which this is not. Barry M does a white called Cotton in the Gelly formula that is quite good and better than this but I am still searching for a solid one coat white polish. 

Shade number three was 17 Flourescent Blue. This was the shade I was initially most excited by but also the shade that disappointed me the most.  I applied three coats of this colour and as you can see from the picture it was still not opaque.  In the flesh the colour has a slight more green in it which makes it very striking from a distance, in fact it was the shade out of the four that I was complemented on the most.  It also lasted the longest.  Another draw back it that it has a traditionally shaped brush which does make the application harder to get even. If this formula was more opaque it would have been my favourite by a mile but I won't be reaching for this bottle as I don't have time to be putting on four layers of colour.  

The best of the bunch was the fourth colour I tried which was 78 Fuchsia.  Now obviously if you are not into pink this is not the colour for you, but as always I love bright colours and this is a pink that doesn't disappoint. However, like the other shades this does not go on opaque and does chip easily.  In fact I picked up a very similar pink from Orly for £3.99 from TK Maxx that is so much better!

From this review you can tell that I wasn't overly impressed with the W7 formula.  I also hear you shouting "BUT IT WAS ONLY £1.99" and you would be right, however the classic Barry M polishes are £2.99 and their Gelly shades are £3.99, all of which are not much more costly and will last longer because you won't have to apply so many coats. While I am always up for a bargain I will relegate these polishes to be used for polka dots in nail art designs as that way I haven't wasted my money.  My advise is if you want a budget nail polish brand go with Barry M.

As Always I hope this was helpful, much love.

XOXO

4 Looks 1 Palette - Maybelline Blushed Nudes

 As promised a while back, today's blog is a more subtle palette, one that most people could get use out of.  There are no wild colours or crazy glitter shades, this is a palette that is much more grown up than I would normally go for.

 The Blushed Nudes Palette from Maybelline retails for £9.99 and can be picked up at most Boots or Superdrug stores.  This is the second palette from Maybelline after their Nudes Palette.  The difference is that the shades are more pink than brown.  

There are 12 shades in all, there are three main colours in varying shades, beige, pink and grey.  There is one matte shade, (top row, second from the right) some shimmers and a few glitters.  The four looks I did are not as strikingly different as I have done with other palettes just because when you use a brush with this palette the colours are very subtle in their differences.

For look 1 I used the four shades on the right.  I started with the matte pink all over the lid and crease.  I then moved over to the top right hand colour and went into the crease. I then took the pale crimson shade (bottom row, second from the right) and tried to pack it on to the lid.  I was most disappointed with this colour as it was my favourite in the swatches but when using a brush it comes out much more pale. I then deepened the outer corner with the charcoal grey colour in the bottom right corner.  

Look 2 was done in much the same way with the middle 4 colours.  This one was a little more sparkly in person as all the shades were either shimmer or glitter shades.  I started out with the pale grey all over the lid and in the crease, this colour is a shimmer shade so added a lovely shine.  I liked the subtle yet shiny nature of this one.  I then went into the crease with the taupe colour (bottom, middle, left) and on the lid with the pink shade.  I then deepened with the dark grey. What doesn't really come through as well as I like is the pop of pink in the middle of the lid, in person this was a little more vibrant.

Look 3 I used the four colours on the left.  I used the magnolia shade all over the lid and crease, went on the lid with the light pink, in the crease with the bronzey pink on the bottom left and deepened with the dark grey. I also went into the inner corner with the magnolia as it had a little bit of glitter in it that popped nicely. 

For look 4 I just used two colours, I used the bronzey pink (bottom row far left) all over the lid, I used a densely packed fluffy eyeshadow brush this time and the colour seemed to go on darker than it did the first time. I then deepened the outer corners with the the pale crimson (bottom row second from the right) again using a more fluffy but densely packed brush on the outer corners.  I think out of the four looks this is my favourite as for me, it stands out.  

This palette blends really well, what it could do with is a few more matte shades to use as transition shades so that your whole lids don't sparkle too much.  While I love sparkle you don't always want it during the day and couple more matte shades would have made this palette the perfect day to night palette.  As it stands at the moment I would recommend this for people who don't want crazy colours but would like a little bit of shimmer.  If you don't like glitter then I'm afraid this isn't the palette for you.  

This will be a palette I will dig out for weddings and christenings and those events where bright purple/green/orange eyeshadow wouldn't be appropriate.  If you are not into the pink, try The Nudes palette.  It is packed full of nudes with few more mattes and some truly beautiful copper shades.  If you want a similar review with that one let me know in the comments below.

As always thanks for reading and feel free to leave comments, hints and tips below

XOXO

Soap and Glory Makeup Review

Today's blog is a brand review of some of the Soap and Beauty makeup products.  I have been a fan of the bath and shower products for a while now and have been wanting to try out the makeup and decided that I would spend some of my Boots reward points that I had been hoarding and get a selection of products to try.

Within this selection there are some that I love, some that are okay and some that really don't work for me.  It is at this moment I need to point out that all skin is different and also people's preferences are different so I will describe my experiences and say why I did or didn't like them, but the most important thing to remember is that if you have any of these and you like them, rock them and screw what I think!

I am going to start with the products I'm not a huge fan of first and finish with my favourites so that we can end on a positive.

First up is the Smoulder Kohl waterproof eyeliner.  

This liner goes on the waterline beautifully and is a really deep black shade, which I loved however within a couple of hours I looked like someone had punched me in the eyes. The liner had crept it's way down my cheeks in an Alice Cooper style.  I was very disappointed as this is the perfect liner to travel with or to throw in your bag on a night out because it comes with it's own sharpener that also has a little cover so that you don't get smudges all over your bag post sharpen. This product retails for £5, I do think there are other comparably priced liners in the drugstore that work better. In a nutshell I love the idea and the application of this liner but the staying power makes it a no go for me.

Up next is the lip lacquer in Charm Offensive. Now I should start this by saying I struggle with glosses of any kind.  I don't have the full Instagram lips, they are thin and uneven and a pain to apply any lip product to, I also have issues with products bleeding which is why I tend to stick with matte lip colours.

This colour is beautiful, it is a fairly natural colour on me and could be used as an everyday gloss. However, it is a nightmare to apply. When you unscrew the lid the product is stringy and greasy which means that if I haven't lined my lips it will just slide all over my face, because of this it is not the type of gloss you can just throw on and leave the house wearing.  Having said that, if applied lightly it does look lovely on, but due to it's application issues it's not something I could wear on a night out. I want to have fun, not spend all my time making sure I don't look like the Joker. I bought this for £5, which doesn't break the bank but Makeup Revolution have lip lacquers that are £2 each and work better. 

Moving away from the products I didn't like onto the ones that I think are okay.  I'm not amazed by them, but neither do I hate them.  

These are the lip plumping glosses.  I got these in the sale around Christmas online. They are three neutral shades and one glitter shade.  From top to bottom they are called Super Peach, Bare Enough, Pink-Out-Loud and Spun Sugar.

They go on nicely and are not too slimy or gloppy.  They are plumping so you will get a tingling sensation when you apply them, it doesn't really plump up your lips any more than any other gloss does.  The colours are pretty and their staying power is that of a gloss in that you will need to reapply throughout the day.  The big downside to these is the smell.  They smell sickly sweet.  I don't particularly like sweet smelling products or products that have an overpowering scent and these really do.  I think they are supposed to smell like cake but it just makes me a little queasy.  I think they are probably aimed at the teen market so if you have a 13 year old who loves sparkles these might make a lovely birthday gift as they are very fun.  

The next lip product is the Gloss Stick in Nudist.  This gloss I did like.

As the name would suggest this gloss comes in a stick form so it isn't stringy, or gloppy and feels more like a lip balm.  I bought a neutral shade as I wanted something for the more natural makeup days and this really checked all the boxes.  It goes on nicely with a hint of a colour, no bleeding or sliding and because its a gloss stick it is super easy to apply.  This is by far my favourite and I will be trying out some of the other colours when I get a chance. The best bit? This retails for £3.50, which is an absolute bargain. This is a definite thumbs up product for me.

Moving on to lip products more in my wheelhouse, matte lipsticks. The two shades I have are Rougenie and 5th Avenue.

I have had Rougenie for a while and have always enjoyed it, as a result I thought that I would buy the neutral shade as well.  Since buying Rougenie I have also been wearing the Rouge Velvet lip paints from Bourjois which, when it comes to matte lip colour, are the ones to beat.  To be fair the Bourjois Rouge Velvets are a liquid lip colour and the Soap and Glory mattes are a lipstick so there will be a difference in how long they last.  The pros of a lipstick to a liquid lip are that they can be more moisturising but the con is that they will transfer more;  which is the case with these. They go on smoothly and are very opaque, they are comfortable to wear but if you are eating you will need to reapply.  I bought the neutral shade for work but I tend to reach for the Bourjois just because it lasts longer and I don't need to reapply half way through my shift.  In terms of a comparison to other lipsticks I prefer the formula to the Urban Decay comfort or mega matte formula and I actually think the staying power holds up in comparison to the more high end brand.  Also they are £9 which in comparison to the £15 of Urban Decay means that they are also better value. If they had the colour selection of Urban Decay they would beat them hands down. 

There were two stand out products in this haul. A blusher and a liquid eyeliner.  First the blusher.  This blusher is called Love at First Blush and has a slight shimmer too it.

As you can see from the picture you would swirl your brush in the pan to combine all the colours and you come away with a pale mauve colour.  What is nice about this is if you target the white shade with a small brush you can wear it as highlight.  So with just this one compact in your bag your have both a blush and a highlighter.  It blends out really well and is pigmented enough that you can build the colour but not too much that you end up looking like one of those creepy china dolls. This retails for £11 but if you keep your eye out for deals at Boots you can often get Soap and Glory on 3 for 2 or buy one get one half price, making this better value.

The product that is without a doubt my favourite is the Supercat liquid liner.  This is a felt tip liquid liner that really does stay put.  

I am aware that when it comes to liquid liner people tend to be felt tip or brush fans, and there are pros and cons to each.  Brushes can be more pigmented and are less likely to skip over your eyelids giving you a jagged line. On the other hand, if like me, you never sweep on liquid liner in that way a felt tip may be the way to go. This felt tip enables me to place the tip length ways against my lashes, each time lifting up and moving along and placing it back down creating a straight line without smudging.  This means I very rarely have to take off the liner and start again.  I find it a lot less fuss.  I use this liner every day for work and when I go out, it is so very versatile. I love it so much I will definitely be repurchasing when this runs out.  This formula also comes with a smaller tip version called Skinny Cat and a large version called Fat Cat - so there is something for everyone.

I hope you find this review useful and as always leave any hints, tips or advice down below.

XOXO

Products I'm loving

I have wanted to do a post like this for a while but never got round to it, but I finally took some pictures and I have the results here.  Most of these items are not involved enough to do a blog on their own so I have combined a bunch of products for this one.

First up skincare.  If you have read my blog before you will know I have dry, sensitive skin.  This means that for the longest time I have not been able to wear powder products on my face. I had to use cream blush, and wasn't able to set any foundation or concealer, because they would just cling to the dry patches.  I have found my saving grace (or saving face, if you will allow).

Vitamin E Overnight Serum-in-oil

This is part of the Vitamin E range at The Body Shop and has absolutely transformed my skin.  So much so that I have gone out and bought powder products.  I put this on at night after I have cleansed and before my moisturiser (if your skin isn't as dry as mine you probably won't need the moisturiser). It is £16 which is up there in price if you compare it to drugstore, however most serums these days will cost you around that. Needless to say I will not be trying any other serums or moisturisers anytime soon because I just love this.

Still with The Body Shop is a new line that is wonderful.

The Almond Milk and Honey Range

I first bought this in the small trial sizes because I didn't want to shell out a crazy amount of money for something that made me breakout.  I was hooked from the first time I used it.  It smells great, I am fairly picky when it comes to The Body Shop fragrances because I find most of them too overpowering. I would normally go for the nut based fragrances rather than the fruit so this range was not too out of my wheelhouse.  The shower creme is lovely, it feels moisturising as it goes on and doesn't foam up too much which is good for dry skin.  The exfoliater is good, it isn't too scratchy which if you have sensitive skin can be an issue and the body butter is divine, probably my favourite.  I tend to use it before bed and I can still smell it on my skin in the morning.  It is silky without being greasy and the dry patches on my arms are gone, as well as my dry knees and elbows are like new.  Love it!

Recently I have started a new job and I wanted an everyday makeup look that I didn't need to think about.  I wanted a small, matte palette with neutral brown shades that would be quick and easy to apply.  I found it...

The Makeup Revolution Renaissance Palette Day

As you can see I have dipped into this already.  My routine is as follows:  
1. Prime the eye with Maybelline's Colortattoo in Creme De Rose
2. Set with the second shade from the left
3. Sweep the middle shade over the lid
4. The second shade from the right goes in the crease
5. The far right goes on the outer corners to deepen
It probably took me longer to type this than it does to apply.  This little palette blends like a dream, the shades are not to dissimilar to the Urban Decay Naked Basic Palette but the Makeup Revolution one retails for £8.  I will eventually run out of this but I will definitely repurchase. 

The next three products I have been searching for, for a long time.  I wanted a concealer that brightened under my eye but didn't sit in my wrinkles, a mascara that added volume but didn't flake and a powder to set the concealer.  It has taken me a while but I got there in the end.
Up first...

Bourjois Radiance Reveal Concealer 

I have tried other concealers, some came highly recommended, some I bought under my own steam but none of them seemed to be able to cover my dark circles, brighten and not sit in my wrinkles.  Now there are concealers that do two out of the three but I found the thick concealers that cover, sat in my wrinkles and the brightening concealers that didn't make me look 20 years older, didn't really cover, until I stumbled upon this beauty. It doesn't come in many shades unfortunately, in fact my Superdrug only stocks two, but I have the shade 01 Ivory and it is wonderful. It covers, brightens and doesn't make me look old. Woo hoo!

The next one of the searched for products is a translucent/setting powder. Since I sorted out my dry skin I wanted to try out some powders. I already had one from Clinique, No 7 and Revlon but they were all too powdery, I found that they would gather in my lines and around my nose and would look cakey.  Enter stage right...

MUA Translucent Pressed Powder

This is by far the best value for money of all the products I am writing about today.  This costs a massive £1, yes you read that right. £1. It is finely milled and works fantastically at setting my concealer.  No more slipping or wearing away.  This with the Bourjois Radiance Reveal is the dream team, it truly is.

The final product of the power three is a mascara.  I had been using the same mascara for a while and had never really been happy with it. I got some mascara over Christmas in gift boxes and they all seemed to flake or be too clumpy.  Eventually I found Makeup Revolution's Amazing Volume Mascara which went on okay and didn't flake but the brush was big and it was awkward to apply, so I used that one until I found the 3 for 2 offer at Superdrug.  I was buying the Bourjois concealer and another of the Rouge Velvet lip paints and I thought that I would give the mascara a go. 

When I opened the bottle I found the wand to be medium in size, not too big that it's a struggle to do the lower lashes and not to small that it takes forever to do the top lashes.  The formula is great, no clumps and I chose the Ultra Black which looks amazing. Primarily I look for volume in a mascara because I am blessed with long lashes (not at all smug) and this does not disappoint.  In fact the first time I wore it a colleague asked if I was wearing falsies.  The best thing about this is that there is no flaking. I wear this every day at work and when I get home there is no sign of it anywhere on my cheeks. 

This next product is not drugstore and is pricey.  I bought this as a gift to myself for getting the new job.  I had been investigating powders since my skin got better and I finally decided that I would go ahead and treat myself.

Benefit Cheek Parade

This comes with two bronzers and three blushes, all of which are beautiful in their own way.  There is the Hoola bronzer in the top left hand corner and the Hoola Lite in the bottom left.  Now I am pale so I use the Hoola Lite as a bronzer and the Hoola to contour. All of these powders are so finely milled that they go on like a dream and stay there.  The blushes are all different. Dandelion on the bottom is like an everyday blush, it is pink and matte and blends wonderfully.  Galifornia on the top in the middle is more peach toned with a hint of a gold shine.  My favourite though is Rockateur, this is still pink but has a little more of a mauve shade, it has a little bit of shine but not too much that it makes you look crazy just enough to give you a glow.  This retails at £49.50, which I know, is expensive, however if you spread the cost over the five colours it works out at £10 a pop.  Which while still on the pricey side for blusher compared with the drugstore, it is well worth the money.  It will make a fabulous gift and will absolutely make whoever has it smile, well it does for me each morning when I use it.

The final product in my run down is a setting spray. I will be the first to admit that I was sceptical about setting spray, I didn't really believe it would work and I held off buying one for a long while. Then I popped in to Superdrug... a 3 for 2 offer and a full basket later and I had bought it.  

L'oreal Infallible Fixing Mist

My primary concern with this was would it break my sensitive skin out.  I need not have worried it didn't, and it really does work. I do a job that involves a 15 minute walk to the station, lifting, carrying, sorting stuff, on my feet all day and then the train ride home and another 15 minute walk.  Through all of this when I get home my makeup still looks great.  I haven't tried it on a night out yet because I am not really an out kind of person. Out involves people and I like to hang out at my friends house, eat pizza and relax rather that stand in a sweaty club next to people I have nothing in common with, anyway I digress, this fixing spray works and doesn't break me out, what more is there to say?

Remember these are my opinions and if they differ from yours that's okay - that's why they have plenty of products on the market.

If you have any favourite products or recommendations feel free to post them below.

XOXO