July 2011 favs

Hey my loves! Hope you've all had a lovely day, I actually meant to get this up sooner but I've been so distracted by other little projects in life. August to October will be a busy time for me trying to organize a lot and from October onwards I'll probably be even busier :'(. But theirs no excuse for neglecting you guys an I shall be back on form as much as I can be from now on.

I've been channeling the sun through my cheekbones with Mac's Mineralize Skin Finish Naturals in Sun Power. This is a gorgeous deep orange bronze shade, the fact that its matte makes it amazing as a bronzer or contour powder for deeper skin tones. A little goes a long way with this, I'd highly recommend taking it with a light hand and building up the intensity as you see fit. Lighter skin tones should check out "Give Me Sun" for a similar concept but more suitable for fairer complexions. I've loved using my Mac 188 brush for a precise application, and then to go over and buff out any harsh edges making the effect sun kissed and semi-natural.

Sorry guys pics were taken quite late in the day

I've played it safe with my cheek colours this month, its been between Mac's powder blush in Gingerly or Melba. Gingerly is a deep muted rose colour that looks absolutely gorgeous, I know this a fav by the likes of Kim Kardashian and I'm not surprised, I think it would look amazing on a variety of skin tones. Melba is a must-have for peach lovers, it is a matte peach shade similar to the likes of Benefits Coralista but less on the pink side. This is another flatterer of many skin tones.

I've been quite experimental with my shadow this month so I cannot pin point a favourite amongst the shadows but the Mac Eye Kohl in Teddy has looked amazing with any look that I throw together. I use this in my waterline for a less intense exaggeration of my eyes, its such a lovely dark bronze perfect to go with many key looks of the season. My choice of liner for my signature winged liner has been a black liner pen the Me Me Me Eye Sweep, I actually adore this, for such a low price its much better than most high street liner pens I've used. It hasn't dried yet and I have had it a while, the colour is strong and intense and the formula doesn't budge all day! Loving this!

(From Left to Right) Revlon Pink Crystals, MUA shade 11, Revlon Mauve It Over

My lipstick collection has become like lucky dip recently! I'm in midst of organizing my make up storage and all my lipsticks are jumbled inside a make up bag at the mo, so having a preference is pretty impossible! Even still one lipstick that I keep to the side because I know I can virtually rely on it for any occasion is Revlon's Mauve It Over. I know I bigged this up last month as well, but I totally love this lipstick, both colour and texture are both right up my street! Revlon are such a firm favourite for me when it comes to lip products. One other favourite I've had had for I think about eight years, has been Revlon's Lip gloss in Pink Crystals! I've adored this gloss since day one of my love affair with make up! Its a gorgeous peachy shade with tiny gold shimmers running through it. One of my best friends and I used to be obsessed with this gloss, its just that must have for a pretty, pink, glossy pout. A bolder lip fav that I have to include is a lipstick by MUA in shade 11. The inexpensive Superdrug brand has bowled me over with this lipstick. Its a has a creamy formula but the pigmentation is quite intense and does stain the lips. Above that the colour is really unusual much like a coral, pinky, brown... I don't know you guys tell me.

I'm rarely one to reach for just one fragrance for a long period of time but saying that I've had the Vera Wang Lovestruck for over a month now and I cannot stop spraying it. I've recommended this to nearly all my girlfriends and my mummy as its an amazing fruity floral scent that I think any girl would love. I don't think I've found anything more perfect for the summer time. Its sweet enough to make you feel dressed up and gorgeous yet, it has a lovely floral fresh side that really cheers you up. Definitely my most worn scent of the month! Being the clumsy oaf I am I've managed to damage the amazing bottle, a day of it rolling around in my hand bag resulted in one of the flowers breaking off and the ribbon untangling. This really upset my as one of the reasons I loved it was for the design of the bottle.

And that's all she wrote. Sorry if you guys feel its not as much as last time, but I there have been somethings I don't feel I've used for long enough, or some things that I've previously mentioned that I didn't think you needed to be reminded of or hear about just yet. Wishing you all a lovely day.

Hugs and Kisses
xoxo

My First Favs June 2011

Heya loves!!! I'm so excited to do my first ever favourites post! I'm so sorry this is definitely later than I wanted to put this up. I love reading the list of fav's on my fav bloggers posts and it really helps me think of products I could also incorporate into my day to day routines. So without further delay

Hair & Skincare

One of the main products I have been excited about using in my hair has been the most hyped Moroccan Oil. I personally use this as part of my leave in conditioning routine whilst my hair is still damp, and after day to day styling. This leaves my hair baby soft! They say if it ain't broke don't fix it and this seems to be my skin care moto of the month. And Neutrogenas Visibly Clear 2-in-1 Wash and Mask which has never hurt me has definitely stayed firm as part of my cleansing routine, I'm not a general fan of the mask though but as a wash it works quite well.

Face

My got to foundation and maybe my HG foundation has to be the MAC Pro Long wear Foundation NC42, I always feel a little boring when saluting MAC products but this foundation gives me everything I ask for. An even medium base, works well to even my skin tone with a finish that I wouldn't necessarily describe as matte because it doesn't leave my face taught or dry. But matte enough and long wearing on my combination skin. I'm actually set to repurchase another bottle as mine has just finished. And I also want to give a brief shout out to my Mac MSFN in medium dark, which is a dream to set my foundation with! It melts seamlessly into the skin, refusing to show up cakey or ashy at all! Loves! Another great find of the month has been Collection 2000's Lasting Perfecting concealer in 04 Deep. This concealer actually applies beautifully, giving full coverage for my dark circles and lasts a substantial amount of time, for £4.19 its more than worth it.

Cheek

I've kind of been all over the place in terms of contouring. Its been a showdown between my Illamasqua bronzer in Burnish; which gives a nice healthy sun kissed glow, to the point where I've received compliments from other people as to how healthy I look with this on. Another is the Barry M Dazzle its a lovely mauve-brown with the faintest hint of shimmer, which works nicely for a healthier contour. For my cheeks I've been loving Mac's Creme Blend blush in Lady blush, its a lovely pink, very suitable for all skin tones, whilst the creme blend formula gives you a healthiness to your face. Another fav I've dug out of the back is my Creme Colour Base in Virgin Isle, those that are familiar with this product will know how shocking it is the very first time you work with it. This needs a very light hand to apply, and leaves a gorgeous coral flush on the cheeks. Another massive product has been Mac's Peach twist Blush, its an absolutely gorgeous deeper peach colour packed with shimmer. Definitely one to use without a highlighter!

Eyes

My eye routine has totally switched up in the past few weeks or so, I've given up my usual smokey crease look for either a whole wash of gold on the lid such as Mac's Wood winked (a bronze-gold). Or I've been leaving my lid totally bare with just a touch of gold like Mac's Creme Colour base in Pearl; in the tear duct to open up the eye. My mascara routine has been its usual fully loaded self! I've been piling on my favourite mascara Loreals Volume Millions in extra black but on top I've also been adding Collection 2000's Big Fake Lash mascara as a top coat. Unlike the volume millions this mascara does nothing for my lashes on its own, but when layered on top it does give that extra touch of pow! On top of that its also waterproof, great for non smudging! With the current bi-polar weather we're experiencing in London its probably safe to know that any dark eye products, would work best if waterproof, and with being a winged liner addict I turned to Lord & Berry's Waterproof Liquid Liner in black. This has a great applicator, very easy to work with and it doesn't budge.

Lips

I'm a big loather of my lips left bare, leaving them naked just wont do. So I do usually prefer lipsticks over glosses. But the Revlon Colour Burst lip gloss in Peony is a dream. Its a thick, non-sticky gloss with with a few particles of glitter in the formula, the colour has a hint of deep rose and it last for ages on the lips. Nars Turkish Delight is an odd favourite for me as for the longest time this gloss was my deepest regret, the colour was just to pale on me and I saw very little solution. But for the moment I'm loving pairing this with deeper lipstick shades. Plus I cant fault the formula on Nars Lipgloss's their damn near perfect I also love the Vaseline Lip care with Rose and Almond Oil, its the same petroleum Jelly formula but much better tailored for the lips, I apply it before I begin my make up routine and it sinks perfectly into my lips when I get to them. I don't know if the has something to do with the added oils but I'm very pleased. For my lipstick loves I have to firstly praise one of my favourite lipsticks whatever the weather or season Revlon's Matte lipstick in Mauve It Over. This is a gorgeous pastel, mauve-pink, even though the formula is matte it does glide on with a creamy matte finish. My other lippy love has to be Chanel's Rouge Coco Shine in Evasion, this is a lovely balmy lipstick that requires no gloss, the colour is slightly peachy, which I think would suit many. And Last but not least Mac's Creme Cup is another winner, I'd describe the colour as a softer version of Angel, in a lovely creme sheen formula.