A Small Confession.

The more I blog about beauty, and more relevantly beauty 'faux-pas', the more I feel the need to acknowledge the fact that I am not one for never having a 'beauty bad day.' So please take note that whilst I may point out others bad beauty choices, I have probably at one time or another done the same.

There.. I feel a bit better now.

photo- glamour.co.uk

BEAUTY ON A BUDGET

Students' Listen up!
Thanks to my flatmate for 're-introducing' me recently to an old website I'd totally forgotten about... eyeslipsface.co.uk
e.l.f. Cosmetics UK is 'where beauty meets value.' The website offers every beauty essential you could think of- and for budget prices... Mascara from £1.50 - Hello, that's my kind of prices!

"e.l.f cosmetics offers a line of luscious lip gloss, with various shades and styles to choose from, as well as intensive hydrating lipstick for long-lasting colour and shine. Our natural Mineral Makeup will help you on your way to healthier glowing skin. Try our colour-lock, chip resistant nail polish for an unforgettable shine. Our ergonomically designed makeup brushes are professionally tested to provide precision application of blush, bronzer, mascara or any other purpose. e.l.f.'s eye shadow and eyeliner products can be combined to form your personal favourite look. In addition to our online store, check out eyeslipsface.co.uk for professional makeup tips from our friendly trained makeup artists."

e.l.f also offers a 'studio' range - with everything from high definition powder to kabuki brushes, so you can be camera ready at every opportunity.

Now I am yet to try most of the make-up products within the range - as luckily for me, mother splashed out on all the Bobbi Brown I could ever want recently, but the natural brushes I have tried - and for £1.50, you wouldn't need anything more. Some may be pessimistic and think 'how good can the products really be for that price?" and I admit- I too think that when splashing out on make-up, you SEE the results. Yet with starting prices at £1, you'd be mad not to even try this cheap as chips website!

www.eyeslipsface.co.uk

In my beauty bag...

These are my "semi-basic/kiind-of everyday" beauty essentials..

yikes it looks like alot doesnt it?!

At first glance there seems to be ALOT of products for everyday wear,

however- there are a few variations of the same product within my routine..

1. YSL Top Secrets Flash Radiance Skincare brush.
I first bought this product within a set with the YSL Top Secrets foundation, but for me- the foundation seemed too heavy and claggy so I now just use the primer.
I don't tend to wear this everyday- but it works really well as a base for foundation, therefore I use it mostly when going out a night, when I use a little more foundation and base make-up.

2. Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation.
This foundation is now a staple within my beauty bag. It's around £30, so it's not the cheapest of foundations- but it really is the best I have found. Wearable for day and night, the coverage is realitively sheer, yet buildable for evening make-up. It also has quite a runny/wet texture, so doesnt feel claggy or caked- however, it does sometimes require a little matte powder over the top to keep the dewy'ness at bay.

3. Bobbi Brown Corrector.
This is the perfect product for undereye dark circles and bags. I spoke to a Bobbi Brown make-up artist about having dark-circles constantly and never being able to find the right product to cover them- YSL Touche Eclat did nothing!
As you can see, I am literally scrimping on the last morsel of it and desperately need to purchase some more because it is a definite MUST-HAVE.

4. Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer and Sheer Finish Loose Powder.
This concealer works well on any blemishes, and is also applied over the Bobbi Brown corrector.
The loose powder also lasts foreverrr and is the only powder I use as it covers well without feeling cakey at all.

5. Maxfactor Bronzing Powder
Even though I do often get abit heavy handed with the St Tropez, I'm not a massive user of bronzer- so I find the Maxfactor Bronzing Powder works well. I apply a small stroke to my T-Zone for the days when my skin looks dull.

6. Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge for Lips and Cheeks.
I LOVE this little pot. Applied with a blusher brush or fingers, straight ontop of foundation (no powder) it gives a fresh rosy glow. I use this blusher in the Summer the most, when I don't tend to wear powder; or it is perfect for those summer days in which you don't bother with foundation. It can also double up as a lip tint, and although I don't often wear lip colour I have on occassion used this as a light pink stain.

7. Chanel Powder Blush.
This is the blusher I use when using powder and often in the winter.
Its lasted me literally an ageee, and I use '99 Rose Petale' which is nice and light pink in colour.

8. Lancome Ink Artliner- Long Wear Caligraphy Gel Eyeliner.
I have started to wear more Gel/Pen liners, rather than Pencil- just because I find it has much better staying power and does not smudge like you can find with some pencils. I apply this with a Lancome eyeliner brush and once you master the technique it works really well and stays all day without smuding, cracking or crumbling.

9. YSL Easy Liner for Eyes.
This pen eyeliner is perfect for understated liner. The pen produces the thinest line possible, to which you can obviously build upon. I use colour number 1. which is black, however if you want a deep black colour, you do have to build upon the first line as it comes out more grey.

Tip: To stop that annoying re-print of eyeliner you can get on your top eyelid- apply the Bobbi Brown loose powder on your lids before applying liner.

10. YSL Volume Effet Faux Cils Mascara.
I have of course, blogged about this before- so you may be aware that this is my favorite mascara in-the-world. I must have tried hundreds of mascaras before this one, both expensive and cheap- and never really seen a huge difference. I ended up always sticking with a £4 Rimmel Volumising mascara, as I really didnt notice a difference between that and a £30 Bobbi Brown one. However, after using this- I will never return back to the days of Rimmel Lashes. (Well, unless the £30 pricetag bleeds me dry...)

11. Bobbi Brown Lip Gloss in Crystal.

Like I said before, I tend not to use lip products - largly due to the fact my pout isn't anything to shout about. However, for the days where Clarins Moisture Replenishing Lip Balm just isnt enough, it's always good to have a super-shiny gloss and this Bobbi Brown one does the trick. High-shine gloss with no sticky, gloopy-ness - all a small pout needs !

Mascara SECRETS

I have found THE BEST mascara... so good, I have to share.
















It's YSL's LUXURIOUS MASCARA FOR A FALSE LASH EFFECT

Totally worth the £20 pricetag... and thats coming from me- a poor student!
At LEAST ten people have asked me "What mascara have you got on?" since using it.. it thickens, fans out and lengthens the lashes - with no clumps, streaks or flakes. The perrrrrfect mascara for all. BIG LOVE


Now I'm just lusting after MAC falsies for the total VA-VA-VOOM effect. £10 per set, but also £10 for the glue. Hmmm, anyone want to treat me?!