Beauty - Review of L'Oréal True Match Foundation

Hey everyone, and welcome back to my blog!

Just before Christmas, I found myself running short of foundation having used up all of my Rimmel Match Perfection one. I've done a review on the Rimmel Match Perfection one  HERE and while I thought it was a natural enough looking foundation, it didn't quite last all day and all night and I suppose I was looking for something a bit more.

Everyone knows how difficult it is to find a foundation that will match your skin tone. It's definitely an ordeal to find one that matches my porcelain Irish skintone exactly, and in many ranges, the lightest shade (Ivory) won't even suffice! I absolutely hate seeing that tell-tale sign of foundation "tide" mark on the neck of a girl, indicating it doesn't completely match her skin tone, but this beauty blunder has happened way too many times to myself than I'd care to remember! Luckily, L'Oréal have come to our aid and following research into skintones of women from around the world, they have developed a foundation with 23 skin-true shades.

I had heard so many good things about this foundation I was a little apprehensive about it, but decided to pick it up anyways. Retailing at £9.99, it was a bit more expensive than the Rimmel ones I'd usually go for, but I figured I may as well take a chance on it.

After priming with Rimmel primer, I applied a thin layer of this foundation with my Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge (review of that product is HERE) and the first thing that struck me about it was how it did indeed match my skintone exactly - hurray! I knew I was onto a winner from that alone.

Surprisingly, there's more goodness from this little guy! It covers up imperfections so well, meaning less concealer is used. And it doesn't look any bit cakey whatsoever.  And it lasts from day to night (9am to midnight).

What more could you ask for?

I think I've found "The One".

My verdict: 10/10 (obviously!).

Beauty - Review of Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge

I was one of those people who always used my hands to apply liquid foundation to my face, however since I started blogging and reading numerous beauty bloggers, using a makeup sponge was always advised to give an airbrushed, natural finish. So a few months back, I made the switch to an inexpensive Primark own brand make up sponge.

The Primark one was great. For just €1.50 it allowed my makeup to go on smoothly and did indeed give me an airbrushed effect. I immediately fell in love.

I recently moved to Cumbria for university and as everyone knows, there's no Primark here (I know, I'm barely coping without it!). I forgot my trusty Primark one at home in Ireland while packing (obviously didn't love it enough as I thought I did!). Next best thing was wander into Superdrug and there was a two pack of these Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponges for the bargain price of £9.99 (for one it was £6.99), so I said I'd try them out. It was surely fate!

I heard so many good things about these Real Techniques sponges that I was almost put off using them; I suspected them to be much too hyped up. I know their brushes are meant to be the holy grail of applying makeup but I haven't tried them out either!

First impressions - so unbelievably soft! Just putting that out there!

These eye catching orange-coloured sponges are developed in a more innovative way than other beauty sponges as you can see from the picture above.  The flat edge at the top is used for basically patting on product, such as concealer on blemishes. The middle bit is the widest part of the product and allows for more speedier product distribution around the entire face and neck. Then the pointier bit at the bottom allows for more precise application of makeup, so you can use it for contouring (if you use liquid products to contour).

You can use this product both when it's damp and when it's completely dry, I personally prefer to use it dry as I prefer my makeup to be a bit more matte, but when it's damp (not wet!), it allows for a much more glowing-from-within look. You can use this product to apply not only foundation or concealer but you can also use it to apply every other product in the makeup process - moisturiser, primer, blush, highlighter, bronzer and even powder, but obviously what you use with it depends whether your sponge is damp or completely dry.

This product is so soft that it doesn't hurt at all through the make up application process and it can also be used to apply makeup to the neck and doesn't hurt one bit, which was actually something I disliked about the Primark sponges, they were quite sore when applying makeup to my neck.

I think it's safe to say that it's worth every penny!

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Beauty - Review of Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation, Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer and Rimmel Fix and Perfect Pro Primer

I ran out of my usual daytime foundation, Rimmel Lasting Finish foundation, three weeks ago and nipped into my local Boots store one evening to find a replacement foundation.

I reviewed the Rimmel Lasting Finish foundation on my blog (See HERE), and while I thought it was an OK, natural-looking foundation, it didn't exactly make me want to rush out to buy another Rimmel product.

But Boots were doing a pretty sweet offer that soon convinced me - spend over €12 on any Rimmel make-up products and recieve the Fix and Perfect Pro Primer worth €8.99 absolutely free! I posted a picture of these three products on my Instagram HERE, and a few of my followers said they got the same sweet deal that was on offer three weeks ago because of my post, so please do check out my Instagram if you're interested in keeping up to date in detail with my purchases because I update that a lot more frequently than I update this blog! But anyways,  I picked up the Match Perfection foundation, which was on special offer as well at €6.99 (in Penneys and other stockists it was retailing at €9.99), and the Wake Me Up concealer for €6.99 that I have heard such good things from fellow bloggers about.



Rimmel Fix and Perfect Pro Primer
This comes in a plastic white tube as you ca
n see, nothing too fancy packaging wise. It smells beautiful. It applies just like a balm, and sinks into my skin quickly. I usually apply my Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Moisturiser before applying this primer as my skin is often prone to dryness.
It is a super good primer and does live up to it's name in that sense! I find it works especially well combined with the Match Perfection foundation and doesn't make my skin appear oily or dry when on at all, as it mattifies and moisturises throughout the day. A great buy.





Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation
I picked up this foundation in the shade 100 Ivory. It isn't the lightest shade in the range, Porcelain is, but I felt that a porcelain shade on my face literally drains my face of any colour whatsoever and just isn't that flattering. The packaging is pretty similar to the Lasting Finish foundation in the sense that it's a glass tube with a plastic cap. The similarities don't end there - it also smells pretty similar to the Lasting Finish makeup - nice and fresh. It applies very smoothly to my face. I have used this with and without the primer mentioned above. Like I mentioned, it works best with the primer, but works pretty damn well on it's own too. In my honest opinion though, I don't see a huge difference between this and the Lasting Finish makeup, I find they're both very natural-looking foundations that last a few hours in the day, but wouldn't last all day unless worn with a primer.




Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer
From blogging for a last few months and checking out other blogs on both Instagram and Facebook, whenever this Rimmel concealer is mentioned it stands out as one of the best affordable concealers out there at the moment, so of course I needed to check it out to see would it suffice on my crazy skintone! I picked this up in the shade Classic Beige. Like the other Rimmel products, it's packaged quite basically, but the orange cap has come in ever so handy as it's easy to find in the makeup bag! It has a stranger smell than the other products, not as fresh and beautiful, more neutral for sure. I applied it under my eyes to test out it's effect. It works quite well. I wouldn't say it gets rid of the bags under my eyes completely, but covers them naturally, which I think is still quite good as it would look very unnatural if it covered them completely. It lasts for a good while too. I've used it on any blemishes too, and found that it conceals them quite well too, but you have to use quite a bit. But overall, a good natural-looking, affordable concealer that's well worth a try.

Beauty - Penneys Beauty Range Review

Over the past year, Penneys have introduced a beauty and makeup range called P.S. Love...Beauty. They are introducing new makeup products all the time to their range, and I have been trying them out bit by bit.
I will be doing another blogpost on this topic when I try out more and more of their range.

1. P.S. Love.... Eyebrow kit, €1.50.
This was actually the first thing I tried out in the Penneys Beauty range. I thought I had to buy a mega expensive kit like one of Benefit's kits to get my eyebrows on fleek (on point/whatever's on these days), but when I was getting my eyebrows done, the beautician recommended these Penneys beauty eyebrow kits - as if I needed another reason to go to Penneys! The packaging is not as fancy as the Benefit one (actually quite basic as you can see), but don't let that deter you!
As you can see, this small but powerful eyebrow kit contains an eyebrow wax and two eyebrow powders as well as a tweezers and a double sided brush for easy application. I don't use the wax and the eyebrow powder in the middle is a little too light for my naturally dark eyebrow colour, so I've always used the eyebrow powder on the right. I'm so impressed with this eyebrow kit. It is so easy to apply. This one is super buildable so makes the task even easier and if you mess up, a wipe with your finger is usually all it takes to get rid of the error.  It lasts all day and all night too, amazingly. The fact that it comes with a tweezers too is a great added bonus as well. Such a great find!




2. P.S. Love.... Liquid Foundation, €3.
Like I mentioned, there's new additions to this range all the time, and their latest product is foundation. To be honest, I hadn't high hopes about this - not because of the cheap price - but because I struggle to find a foundation that suits my sensitive skin and combination skintone. However, I was very impressed with this foundation. It has a beautiful smell. It glides on very smoothly, so you can apply it with your fingers or a foundation brush or a beauty blender - whatever you prefer. Once on, it gives a lovely matte appearance even without applying some powder. I tried it out for a night out to really determine it's staying power. To my surprise, it stayed on for the whole night and didn't make my skin look oily, dry or cakey, so I really couldn't recommend this enough. For that price, it's definitely worth giving a go. My shade is in Light, and it matches my complexion exactly.

3. P.S. Love.... Liquid Eyeliner, €1.50.
After the success of the eyebrow kit, I tried out the liquid eyeliner. It has a really thin brush for precise application. It smells very disinfectant like, almost like TCP Liquid. But when I tried to apply it, it stung my eyelid so had to remove it! I haven't used it since January, and even though the expiry date is six months from purchase, it has already started to go very gloopy. Definitely not impressed with this one! It does give a very subtle, precise line so if you don't have sensitive skin, give it a go, but for me personally it didn't work.









4. P.S. Love.... Volumising Ultra Black Mascara, €2.
Penneys have a number of mascaras in the range and I will be trying them out in due course. The first one I tried (randomly) was their volumising ultra black mascara. This comes in purple packaging like you can see. The brush is big to allow for easy application. My eyelashes are quite small and thin but even after one coat I noticed a massive difference - my eyelashes looked longer, thicker and fuller. I think it's definitely worth picking up.








5. P.S. Love.... Gel Eyeliner, €2.50.
After my misfortune with the liquid eyeliner from this range, I bought the gel eyeliner to see was that any better. it comes with a flat brush for easy application. You screw off the top and that is essentially the brush. I find it is quite watery and doesn't really have a strong pigment, and clumpy and difficult to apply. I think I only used this once - ever!

Fashion & Beauty - Spring time Outfit Of The Day

About two weeks ago, there was two days of sunny days in Ireland, and I decided to take advantage of it and do outfits on both of them days, one being the navy polka dot dress with red lips that was my last blogpost and the other being this cute springtime look!

The outfit is all Penneys. The floral dress is so so nice. I got it when I first started college in autumn 2011, so I cannot for the life of me remember the cost of it at the time, I think it was around €15 though. The black leather jacket is my absolute favourite item ever. I think every girl should have one of them - they go with absolutely every outfit I own and I wear it way too much - days and nights out. I bought this one in Penneys in Sligo last year and have got so many compliments about it and me and my sisters have had many an argument over it! It has really nice gold buttons on it which I think are a nice touch. I can't remember the exact price of it, I think it was around €25 though. The tights were basic ones from Penneys, they're about €3. The brown ankle boots were €15 and I bought them in Penneys just before Christmas.

I got the black hat from the same Chinese wholesale website I bought the concealer palette from called aliexpress.com. It cost €6. Everything on that website is so cheap and they sell everything from dresses to jewellery to shoes. For most items, it the shipping is free too. Bear in mind that it does take a whole five weeks to arrive to Ireland, so if you want something in a hurry - don't buy off this website! I love this hat so much, I got it two weeks ago and have worn it every time I leave the house since!

As for the bangles, three of the bracelets are Alex and Ani - I got the lotus one, the pawprint one (cos I love animals so much), and a sapphire one because that's my birthstone (September). The Alex and Ani bangles range around the €20-25 mark, I think they're really cute to collect. Two of the bracelets are cheap imitations from Penneys, they're a gold heart design and a pearl - I think they were around €3 for the two of them - and the other bangle is the Penneys ISPCC (Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children) Anti-Bullying Shield Bangle that I bought earlier in the month. All proceeds go to the ISPCC charity and it was only €2.50 so definitely worth buying!

For the hair, I didn't do anything drastic - straightened it last night after washing and conditioning it, was about to re-straighten it for this look but it looked nice and wavy as it was so this is essentially bed hair! 

Moving onto makeup - it's very similar to the routine I've done before in other blog posts. I cleansed my skin with Boots Tea Tree and Witch hazel foaming wash. I primed my skin using Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration primer. As I was going for quite a natural look, I applied Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour foundation (I reviewed this product in a previous post) using my Penneys Beauty blender. I used to always apply foundation using my fingers, but since discovering this beauty blender about two weeks ago I am that hooked I will never go back to using my fingers to apply my makeup! It gives a really airbrushed, natural finish, and is small to hold as well, making application even easier. I used Kubiss Light Reflecting Concealer under my eyes and on any blemishes and blended that in using the beauty blender. I set the foundation and concealer using Kubiss powder. I contoured my cheekbones using Benefit Hoola and also added that to my forehead and side of my face too (in the picture without flash you would never think I had bronzer on, but I have!). The blusher I used was Catrice Defining Blush but I just applied a tiny amount of this for a very natural look. I added a tiny amount of Catrice Highlighting Powder on my cheeks as well as well as my eyebrows. I created a smoky eye look using Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow using the two colours from the right and the shimmery champagne eyeshadow to highlight the inner corner of my eye. I mess up liquid eyeliner quite a bit, so to give me a light guide on where to apply and make the line super thin, I use Catrice Calligraph Ultra slim Eyeliner pen first before going over it with NYC Liquid Eyeliner. I added lots of Benefit They're Real! mascara to my top and bottom eyelashes. I filled in my brows using Penneys Beauty browkit and highlighted my eyebrows using the Catrice highlighting powder again. I used Nivea essential care lipbalm over my lips and because the dress was quite girly I decided to go for a dark pink lipstick on my lips. The colour I used was Catrice Ultimate Colour in 140 'Pinker-bell'. It's quite drying so that's why the step I mentioned previously with the lipbalm is essential!

I am still on the hunt for a cheaper alternative to both Benefit Hoola and Benefit They're Real!.

The dog in the photo is my pet Sam. I was trying to get a photo in the garden, but Sam is just mad for cuddles and kept jumping in the photos so I decided to embrace it and give him his moment in the spotlight!

Products Used

Boots Tea Tree and Witch Hazel Foaming Wash, €4.79, Boots.

Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer, €6.49, Penneys.

Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation in 100 Ivory, €9.99, Penneys.

Kubiss Light Reflecting Concealer in No.2 'Medium', €2, local chemist (I got 3 items for €4 that day though)

Primark Beauty Blender, €1.50, Penneys.

Kubiss London powder in No.2 'Candle', €2, local chemist.

Benefit Hoola, €34, Boots.

Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder, €4, Penneys.

Catrice Defining Blush in 080 'Sunrose Avenue', €4.49, Penneys.

Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette, €5.49, Penneys.

Catrice Calligraph Ultra Slim Eyeliner Pen, €3.49, Penneys.

NYC Liquid Eyeliner, €2.40, Penneys.

Benefit They're Real! Mascara, €26, Boots.

Primark Beauty Browkit, €1.50, Penneys.

Nivea Essential Care Lipbalm, €2.09, Penneys.

Catrice Ultimate Colour Lipstick in 140 'Pinker-bell', €4.49, Penneys.

Beauty - Review of Rimmel London Lasting Finish 25 Hour Nude Foundation

From reviews I had read online, this Rimmel foundation fared pretty well, so despite my previous dissatisfaction with this brand's foundations (I personally felt like they didn't cover my skin very well and started to wear away quickly on my combination skin), I decided to give this one a try as it promises to last for a whole 25 hours (don't know who would be awake that length, but sure!). It was priced at €9.99 in Penneys too, so I said why not. My shade is 100 Ivory, in case you can't see it clearly in the photo - I think this is the lightest shade in the range.

On the day I decided to review this product, I was going into my local town to do some shopping. After cleansing my face with Boots Tea Tree Oil & Witch Hazel Foaming Face Wash (€4.79) to get rid of any oil and dirt that may have built up over night and also to clean off the excess of my night face cream, and moisturising in 3 thin layers with Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser (€4.99, Penneys) in order to give it the best base in which to cling to, I put this foundation on at about 2pm. I set it with only a light dusting of powder to really investigate the foundation's staying power. I was going for quite a casual, natural look that day so I applied a little bit of NYC Volume by the Lash Mascara (€3.49, Penneys) to my upper eyelashes only and lightly filled in my eyebrows using my PS Beauty Browkit (€1.50, Penneys). I applied just a tiny bit of Vaseline to my lips.

I had used this foundation before, for my first ever blog post (the gel eyeliner and pink lips look - Check. It. Out!), but for some reason I had only worn it then for about 3 hours, then wiped it off, which although showing me it achieved a natural look, didn't give any insight into how well it lasted.

First impression - it smelled quite nice, like most Rimmel foundations do. The packaging is quite basic though like a lot of other Rimmel foundations - a glass container with only a white top.

I found however, that it doesn't cover any spots at all. I know concealer is really supposed to cover the spots, but a lot of my other foundations (like Catrice and Maxfactor), do cover spots a little. This one scooted by the spots, which means the really obvious breakout I'm currently experiencing on my chin remained obvious as ever after application. I took pictures of the initial application then, both with and without flash, and without an Instagram filter (scary shit!), as you can see from the screenshot. First reaction was that it was quite natural and looked like I was wearing no makeup, which was the desired look. My sister commented that I had a 'healthy glow'.




















Coming back from town, 3 hours later, I took more photos, both with and without the flash, and without an Instagram filter. I don't touch my face at all during the day, because I'm a little paranoid about transferring germs to it, but noticed that the foundation had already started to fade around my nose and even moreso around my chin. My forehead had already started to become oily too!























For the purposes of research, I decided to keep this foundation on while I went for a run. I never ever ever  wear makeup while exercising, because it blocks your pores when you sweat, therefore causing breakouts, but I wanted to test this foundation to the maximum, exposing it to the cold Irish weather.

Two hours after the run, and 8 hours after application, with zero touch ups, I took more photos, both with and without the flash, and again without an Instagram filter. To give this makeup some credit, I found that in certain areas, it had lasted well, but it had started to wear away even more at the cheeks. So much so that my sister had even asked did I take off my foundation yet! Lasting Finish - yeah right!



















It sounds like I'm dwelling on the bad points of this, but this isn't a bad foundation though - if you are on the hunt for a natural-looking, medium coverage (for normal skin anyways!) foundation that is affordable too, then this is your guy. I'd recommend it for someone going for an interview who doesn't want to look too done up, or someone going to school that wants to wear makeup but doesn't want it to look like they are (if that makes sense?). I might even use this myself again if I'm going for an interview or I want the natural make-up look (provided I top it up every few hours!). It also contains SPF 20. But overall, for me personally, this just didn't work - I prefer a foundation with a bit more heavier coverage that doesn't wear away after just a few hours with my combination skin.

Beauty & Fashion - Valentines' Night Look

Decided to do a blog post about some of the outfits combined with makeup looks I have worn the past year.

One of my favourite looks on myself over the past year has been my Valentines' night outfit - I love wearing red lipstick so much. Better still - besides from the dress - every product used costs €10 or less - bargain! :)

The dress - if anyone is wondering - is from Swamp. I remember seeing it when it was in store first, but when I saw the price tag - €65 - it became less appealing! Just by chance I happened to be in the shop when they were having their after Christmas sales and I snapped it up for €20! Best.Bargain.Ever! I love this dress as it has a very classic neckline  and it also has a nice knee-length to it. It also has a tie belt so you can adjust it around the waist, to draw attention to your waist. I had worn it out New Year's Eve but decided to wear it Valentines' Night as it seemed appropriate to wear red that weekend!

Like most girls, when I go on a night out I like to wear a little bit (I emphasise the little bit!) of fake tan. I use Cocoa Brown Tough Stuff Body Scrub in the shower to exfoliate tough areas of skin like the hands, feet, elbows and knees, to avoid that manky orange tell-tale sign. I love this exfoliator as it smells really nice and is super effective too. I did this the night before I was going out, and moisturised my skin using the Supreme Cream Body Butter by Dirty works - it contains shea butter and sweet almond oil and as well as making even the roughest of skin super soft, it smells pretty good too, as well as being  super affordable! I forget what was the price of this was when I bought it six months ago, and after all my research,  I have been only able to find it online from a retailer in the UK (www.mysupermarket.co.uk), that sells it for a very purse-friendly £4 (€5.55). I applied a light layer of Cocoa Brown Day & Night Tan Mousse then. I like this tan as it doesn't have the horrible biscuit-tin smell that most have. I haven't used it too much though, so I'm going to do a blog post in the future reviewing both Tough Stuff and Day & Night tan in full.

For the makeup look, I thought that the red lipstick would suit the look and kind of tie it in together. With that in mind, I decided to keep the rest of my makeup super simple and matte. So after cleansing my face with my Boots Tea Tree & Witch Hazel Foaming Face Wash to get rid of any dirt or oil that might have built up on my face throughout the day (I will be doing a blogpost about affordable skin care products soon), I primed my skin using my trusty Simple Kind to Skin Hydraing Light Moisturiser.  For my makeup base, I decided to mix two foundations together - apart from the godsend gem Max Factor Skin Luminizer foundation I have recently used - I really struggle to find a foundation that is light enough to match my Casper the ghost-esque skintone. I had been using Catrice All Matt Plus which is a great foundation for a while, but I made the mistake of buying it in a shade slightly too dark for my skin tone (Nude Beige) so when I bought Catrice Nude Illusion in a slightly lighter shade (Rose Vanilla) I stopped using All Matt Plus, but I have noticed that Nude Illusion tends to wipe off within a really short space of time and as I wanted my make up to be matte and stay put all night, I needed some input from All Matt Plus as well. I found these both together did the job pretty well! Of course, I was just using what I had handy at the time, but you can obviously just use a mattifying, long-lasting foundation in a shade that suits your skin tone. I set my foundation using Kubiss London powder. For blusher, I used Catrice Defining Blush. I filled in my eyebrows using Penneys PS Beauty Browkit. For eyes, I used Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette and the three shades on the left side to create a subtle smoky eye. I applied the second shade from the left all over my eye right up to my browbone. I then added the third shade from the left in the eye crease and created an outer V at the outer eye corner. I then blended these both together. I then used the champagne toned colour (the first on the left) on the inner corner of the eye to highlight and brighten the look up. For added drama, I added a pair of false eyelashes from Penneys. They were a bit long for my small eyes so I had to cut a little off at the ends. To hide the band, I applied some NYC Liquid Eyeliner over the top, and added lots of NYC Big Bold Volume By the Lash Mascara to blend the false eyelashes in with my real ones. I used Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighting powder over the cheeks, on my chin and on my browbone. For red lipstick, I used a favourite of mine - Catrice Ultimate Shine Lipstick in 130 'Ketch-me-up'.  It's super glossy, easy to apply, an affordable price and makes my teeth look really white, and I use it every week if I can (hence the mess of the label on my photo
below!). Plus how eye-catching is that pretty silver packaging? Definitely makes this lipstick easy to find in my makeup bag in between the black packaging of the Mac and Rimmel ones! The only thing I dislike about this lipstick is that it fades away within two hours so if you're going for a night out, make sure you stick it in your handbag so you can touch it up as the night goes on. so the colour stays super glossy like it does from first application.

Product Details

Cocoa Brown Tough Stuff 3-in-1 Body Scrub, €7.99, Penneys.

Cocoa Brown Day & Night Tan Mousse, €9.99, Penneys.

Boots Tea Tree & Witch Hazel Foaming Face Wash, €4.79, Boots.

Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser, €4.99, Boots.

Catrice All Matt Plus Shine Control Makeup in 'Nude Beige', €6.99, Penneys.

Catrice Nude Illusion Makeup in 'Rose Vanilla', €8.49, Penneys.

Kubiss London powder in No.2 'Candle', €2, local chemist.

PS Beauty Browkit, €1.50, Penneys.

NYC Liquid Eyeliner, €2.40, Penneys. 

Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette, €5.49, Penneys.

Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder, €4, Penneys.

Catrice Defining Blush in 080 'Sunrose Avenue', €4.49, Penneys.

NYC Big Bold Volume by the Lash Mascara, €3.49, Penneys.

PS Beauty False Eyelashes in 'Sultry', €1.50, Penneys.

Catrice Ultimate Shine Lipstick in 130 'Ketch-me-up', €5.49, Penneys.

Beauty - Dramatic Eyeliner and Pink Lips Makeup Inspired by Shaaanxo

Kind of a quirky look I went for today!

I had just bought the Rimmel London foundation Lasting Finish in 100 'Ivory' so wanted really to try that out (full review on this product is to come!)

Firstly, I used Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer to prime my skin. I've been using this primer for a few weeks and to be honest I'm a little disappointed! It's not that much better than my ordinary Simple moisturiser I had been using in the past, but I like the smell of this and it's very gentle on my skin.

I used the green in my concealer palette to hide any redness caused by the horrible cold Irish weather around my nose and on my cheeks, and used the light pink concealer under my eyes to get rid of any dark circles.

I used the Rimmel London foundation then - first impressions were that it matched my skintone exactly and was a buildable coverage. I used the concealer in the palette to conceal any spots then. I set my foundation using the Kubiss London powder in No.2 'Candle'.

I used Boots Seventeen Define and Conquer Contour Kit primarily the contour - the highlighter side of this kit is a bit too light for my fair Irish skin - and applied that on my cheekbones, over my forehead, sides of my nose and chin. 

For blush I used the Catrice Defining Blush in 080 'Sunrose Avenue'.

For the eyes I was kind of trying to copy a makeup look I see on an New Zealand blogger Shaaanxo - I was obsessed with it! It involved using a gel eyeliner (I used Mac) and smudging it out along the outer corner. I'm not sure I really did it like her, but I made an attempt at it anyways! I used the Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette just to brighten the look up. I used Benefit They're Real! Mascara on my upper and lower eyelashes. I then used Mac's Pink Noveau as a lipstick. I then used Catrice Prime and Fine highlighting powder to add highlight to my face. I used Penneys PS Beauty Brow Kit to fill in my brows.

As my blog is aimed towards the budget conscious, I was aware that some of the products used don't exactly match the criteria. Benefit They're Real! Mascara being one of them. This was a product I wanted to try out for ages, and I wasn't disappointed with it - makes your eyelashes look like they're false (no messing around with glue and false eyelashes, yes to that!) and the top of the brush is super small to coat even the smallest of eyelashes. I am in the process of reviewing a product that's a little cheaper than this baby though.

The MAC lipsticks I wanted to try out for a long time. I ordered the classics like Russian Red, but I randomly picked Pink Noveau. I have tried it out a few times on myself and I absolutely adore the colour and the staying power - it will literally stay put the whole night. The horrendously bad lighting in the photo of me makes it look slightly darker on me than it actually is as you can see from the picture of it taken from the Mac website. I am in the process of looking for cheaper alternatives at the moment though, as the Mac products are expensive.

As for the MAC gel eyeliner, this was actually my first time using gel eyeliner. Most of the time, I use liquid eyeliner  but was wanting to choose a gel eyeliner as this look involved smudging it (you can't really smudge liquid eyeliner any bit to be honest - ends up everywhere!) and this one seemed to get quite good reviews online. I love it myself as it glides on super easy and lasts all day, but I'm currently in the process of looking for a cheaper gel eyeliner alternative and will update the blog when I do.










Product Details:


Rimmel Lasting Finish Foundation in '100 Ivory'. €9.99, Penneys.
Concealer Palette. €10, Chinese wholesale website.
Boots Seventeen Define and Contour Contouring Kit. €7.59, Boots.
Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer. €6.49, Penneys.
MAC Lipstick in 'Pink Noveau'. £15.50 (around €21), maccosmetics.co.uk
Benefit They're Real! Mascara. €26.00, Boots.
Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder, €4, Penneys.
Kubiss London Powder in No.2 'Candle'. €2, local chemist.
Catrice Absolute Nude Eyeshadow Palette, €5.49, Penneys.
PS Beauty Brow Kit, €1.50, Penneys.
Catrice Defining Blush in 080 'Sunrose Avenue'. €4.49, Penneys.
MAC Fluidline Gel Eyeliner, £15.50, (around €21), maccosmetics.co.uk