The Spring Lip

MAC Lipstick in Morange, Revlon Colour Burst Lip Lacquer Balm in Whimsical, Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid, Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in Bubblegum, MAC Lipstick in Girl About Town, No7 Sheer Temptation Lipstick in Blooming Pink, Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in In Love With Ginger

Lip colours are a key feature for makeup for every fashion season, with certain hues coming in for this season especially, plus the ones that come round every year too.

Just a note, I have done a general spring edit, but it turned out that there were a lot of spring lipsticks that I really liked and I kinda thought there were too many for them all to go in one edit. Anywayyyyyyy...


I'm ever so obsessed with the Revlon Colour Burst Lacquer Balm in Whimsical because it's not your standard spring pastel colour and that's what I like about it i think. It's not really over powering and it's really long lasting.

The Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid is a more intense version of the above product in terms of its pigmentation. It's a near identical match to the Whimsical Lacquer Balm but this isn't as glossy, making it better for daytime i think, and this lipstick better for the evening.

I bought the Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in Bubblegum because it's literally exactly the same as MAC St Germain - I wasn't sure if this kind of colour would suit me, hence me buying the cheaper one. This I suppose is a stereotypical spring colour, a clean pastel pink. I really like this and I think it would suit most skin tones.

Going a bit brighter, I absolutely LOVE MAC's Lipstick in Girl About Town. Let's be honest, everyone that owns this (and I know so many people that do!) absolutely loves it.

For a less intense lip compared to Girl About Town, I really like No7 Sheer Temptation Lipstick in Blooming Pink. It's actually a really similar colour to Girl About Town but less pigmented so definitely more wearable for daytime (which isn't to say you can't wear Girl About Town in the daytime, because I do).

Orange lips are huge this season, as they always are for spring summer. I really like the Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in In Love With Ginger because the formula is gorgeous and the pigmentation is fantastic.

An alternative orange lip is the ever loved MAC Lipstick in Morange. This is in their Amplified Creme formula, which means it literally stays put all day.

Revlon Colour Burst Lacquer Balm in Whimsical

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid

Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in Bubblegum

MAC Lipstick in Girl About Town

No7 Sheer Temptation Lipstick in Blooming Pink

Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in In Love With Ginger

MAC Lipstick in Morange

Orange Row:  MAC Lipstick in Morange, Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in In Love With Ginger
Pink Row: Revlon Colour Burst Lacquer Balm in Whimsical, Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid, Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in Bubblegum, MAC Lipstick in Girl About Town, No7 Sheer Temptation Lipstick in Blooming Pink

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Lily Lulu Fashion Event

Last night I was invited to a charity press event in Manchester for an online fashion store, Lily Lulu. Premiering their new collection, showcasing an array of florals, brights and my personal favourite of monochrome.

There were some beautiful pieces in their new collection - take a look at some on their website www.lilylulufashion.com 

For those of you wondering the details of my outfit, you can find it HERE on my fashion blog.

I apologise that the quality of the few photos I took isn't amazing, there wasn't much light plus iPhone cameras aren't that amazing! 

(Last night was actually the first blogging event I'd been to!)

Unfortunately I didn't end up getting a picture of my makeup up close, but for those of you that are interested, heres a list of the products I used:

BASE:

Illamasqua Hydra Veil Primer

MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation in NW15

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair and Cool Medium

L'Oreal Lumi Magique Highlighter in Medium

MAC Studio Fix Powder in NW15

No7 Duo Bronzer (contour)

Benefit Hervana Blush 

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft And Gentle

EYES:

MAC Charcoal Brown Eyeshadow (brows)

Clinique Chubby Stick for eyes in Fuller Fudge (all over lid and under eye)

MAC Woodwinked Eyeshadow (all over lid)

MAC Handwritten Eyeshadow (outer corner and crease)

Rimmel Exaggerate Automatic Waterproof Eye Definer in Noir

Rimmel ScandalEyes Rockin' Curves Mascara

Collection Glam Crystals Glitter Liner in Funk

LIPS:

MAC Lipstick in Creme Cup

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The Spring Edit

Spring is officially here! And though the weather is ever so on and off and the moment, I'm still going to give a little round up of some great spring-time products.

When I think of spring makeup, I always think of rather neutral on the eyes, so I've included the Bourjois Colour Edition 24 eyeshadow; now i'm not too sure of the shade, mainly because I don't actually think it has it on there, but it's a light shimmery pink shade. I love cream eyeshadows. It's no mystery to you that I do, and though this one is a cream-to-powder formulation, I still love it because it requires the smallest amount of effort to apply, plus it multitasks as a base too. I also really like the L'Oreal Colour Appeal Solo Eyeshadow in the shade 152 Platinum Beige. You know those days where you can't be bothered doing anything special with eyeshadow but you still want a bit of something? This is perfect for that.

A softer alternative to black eyeliner is using brown instead; I really like the Rimmel Soft Kohl Kajal Liner in Sable Brown. Gives a certain definition to the lash line without the harshness of black. I also really like the Rimmel ScandalEyes Liner in Nude on the lower waterline to really brighten the eye up (rather than using white which can look so harsh and over-powering, especially on darker skin tones).

There's two big lip colours in at the moment, the infamous Radiant Orchid, a la Pantone, and orange, the standard that comes back around each year. I picked up two gorgeous orchid lip shades last week, first one is the new (ish) release of the Revlon Colour Burst Lip Lacquer Balms (shade 'Whimsical') - they're a new formula of the chubby-stick-dupes of the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain, but these new ones have a slight amount of shimmer to them (there's also a line of matte formulations too). I also really like the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid, which I do believe seems to be a dupe of MAC Show Orchid which I think is discontinued.

Keeping to the theme of lips, orange is huge in again this year, and I think the standard orange lipstick that springs to mind for a lot of people is Morange lipstick by MAC; I've not worn this much yet but I can't wait to get a lot of use out of this when the sun is out! A great dupe of MAC Morange that I picked up a few weeks ago is Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in In Love With Ginger. It's slightly more red than Morange however still is the fantastic on-trend bright shade for this season!

Onto skin... One of the big trends for this season is 'no makeup-makeup' - it's been seen at loads of catwalks for the SS14 season, and to achieve this look I really like the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation, because it covers everything that it needs to be covered but still lets the skin show through and gives a radiant, bare-skinned look. I also really like MAC Face and Body Foundation for the same reason - also, Face and Body is so great in terms of its buildability; using one layer gives a really light finish but you can build it up to almost a full coverage (plus it's a perfect day to night foundation too). If you're wanting something lighter than a foundation, I love the Maybelline Dream Pure BB Cream. Again, this covers everything it needs to, but is so light on the skin (literally just feels like you're wearing moisturiser).

A beautiful blush for spring is the Topshop Blush in Head Over Heels, which is a cream formula blush which doesn't necessarily set, but also doesn't stay shiny and sticky either - it's honestly the perfect in-between. (They do however describe it as cream to powder however it doesn't set a lot in my opinion, if that makes any sense).

And finally for nails. I've selected the stereotypical spring hue of mint in the form of Barry M Nail Paint in Blue Moon. This does need a good three coats, however it's such a gorgeous pastley springy colour and i love it. Matte finish for nails has been all the rage for probably about a year now. I really like Barry M's Matte Nail Paint in Vanilla - this is not too far from my skin tone, which is why I really like it for spring because it's toned down and very neutral. The matte finish makes it even more understated but still looks very chic and classic. I've also included two of the Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paints, in some nice pastel shades, Light Blue and Lychee. 

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What products do you like for spring?

Tried and Tested: L'Oreal Fibrology

L'Oreal's newest line, Fibrology*, was designed specifically for fine hair to make it thicker, add more volume and make it easier to deal with. My hair isn't necessarily fine but there's not really a lot of it, so I thought that this range could still be good for me.

I've got the shampoo, conditioner and the thickness boosting serum, which you mix into the conditioner. The great thing with this is that you don't actually need to use it everyday to get the effects of it; I've used this a couple times a week, using my standard shampoo and condition (also L'Oreal) on the other days.

I can honestly say that this actually does work! My hair yesterday (when writing this) was feeling a bit limp and lifeless (I hadn't used this in about a week), I then used the conditioner mixed with the serum after using my normal shampoo and conditioner and my hair today (on the day of writing again) feels so much thicker!

It definitely does give more volume to your hair, but I'd suggest if you're going for a hairstyle that particularly needs a lot of volume then use this before and it'll make it a lot easier!

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*PR sample

The Wish List #3

What have I had my eye on this month so far?

ILLAMASQUA GLAMORE COLLECTION

Illamasqua.com | Range from £7 - £16.50

Lipstick in "Luster"

Lipstick in "Glissade"

Shattered Star Nail Varnish in "Trilliant" 

I saw this before it was launched being covered on a couple of blogs and it looks gorgeous. It includes three lipsticks, a bright orange, bright fuchsia and a bubblegum pink, as well as three nail polishes, sparkly orange, sparkly nude and sparkly pink. It looks lovely.

TONI & GUY CASUAL SEA SALT TEXTURISING SPRAY

Boots.com | £7.19

After seeing Lily Melrose's Toni & Guy Hair Wardrobe posts from LFW, I've really taken an interest in Toni & Guy's products. I bought their shine spray a couple weeks ago, and though I've not used it loads, I do quite like it, plus I got a shine serum from there in a Glossybox a few months back and I like that too. The texture spray I have at the moment can sometimes leave my hair feeling like I've put a lot of hairspray in it (not nice) so I'm eager to try a sea salt spray because hopefully that will feel a bit nicer in the hair!

TANYA BURR LIPGLOSSES

Feelunique.com | £6.99

Beauty blogger and YouTuber Tanya Burr has recently released her first makeup line with Eyekandy, and I really want to try one of her lip glosses! They're so affordable and literally everyone that has reviewed them has said that they're amazing!

MAC FLAT OUT FABULOUS LIPSTICK + MAGENTA LIP PENCIL 

Maccosmetics.co.uk | £15 (lipstick) + £14 (lip pencil)

Now I'm not entirely sure if these two will go together or not, but I really want these two products. The lipstick, "Flat Out Fabulous", is described as "bright plum" and is in the extremely matte formula. The lip pencil in "Magenta" is described as "vivid pinkish purple". Next time I do a MAC order I am definitely in need of buying both of these they're gorgeous!!

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The Best of High End Beauty

I'm a lover of finding a bargain when it comes to anything really, and I absolutely love drugstore makeup, however sometimes it's nice to treat yourself and get some more expensive high end makeup. Here are my top best picks of high beauty products.

Whatever your preference for a primer, Clinique have it covered with their new Superprimer (Clinique.co.uk, £20). I have the universal 'shade', as so to speak, to give my makeup a good base to sit on.

One of my favourite foundations definitely has to be the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation (Selfridges, £30.50). Raved about by many beauty critics and bloggers, this foundation will work great for most people.

Also loved by near enough everyone (even my mum!) are MAC's lipsticks (Maccosmetics.co.uk, £15). There's literally a colour for everyone in any finish, they're just fantastic, and, in my opinion, they're actually quite affordable, which is good considering how many of these I own.

Another lipstick, rather more expensive, are the beautiful YSL Rouge Volupte Lipsticks (Boots.com, £24.50). These glide on so easily and feel so soft like a lip balm almost. Worth every penny in my opinion (plus look at the packaging!!).



MACs eyeshadows (Maccosmetics.co.uk, £10 each) are also very much loved by most beauty bloggers too (mine here are in a large pro palette with a 15 eyeshadow insert). Alike their lipsticks, there are hundreds of colours in different finishes. Definitely any colour that you could want!!




A cult favourite is the Urban Decay Naked Palette (Debenhams.com, £37). I don't know anyone that doesn't love their Naked Palette. It's so versatile and you can make so many different looks just from this one palette.




I love using the Benefit Hoola bronzer (Benefitcosmetics.co.uk, £23.50) for contouring - I think this is also a cult product alongside the Naked Palette. I've had rather a love hate relationship with this but I've grown to love it so much and it's fair to say that it has very much been loved a lot.

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New MAC Additions

More things from MAC... 

My dad recently just got back from Abu Dhabi and very kindly brought this lot back with him...

RiRi <3 MAC BRONZER 
Limited Edition - discontinued in the UK

This is now sold out in the UK however my Dad managed to get me one whilst he was away and omg help, it's just too beautiful I can't cope. The main part of the bronzer is very similar to Benefit Hoola but it has a little bit of shimmer through it, and then there's the 'R' shape, which is a metallic coppery bronze shade. This actually would be gorgeous eyeshadow too.

RiRi <3 MAC VELUXE PEARLFUSION EYESHADOW PALETTE
Limited Edition - discontinued in the UK
Another limited edition RiRi <3 MAC product is this beautiful eyeshadow palette in Presh Out. This is such a great daytime/nighttime transferrable palette because for daytime you can just use the light colours but for evening you can really build up the darker colours for a deep sultry smokey eye.

EYESHADOWS in CONTRAST, CHARCOAL BROWN and WOODWINKED
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £10 each
You know my love for Mac Eyeshadows (post here), and I got three more shades, Contrast (purplish blue with blue pearl), Charcoal Brown (muted taupe brown) and Woodwinked (warm antique gold). I've only used Charcoal Brown so far, which is a great eyebrow colour, but I'm really looking forward to using the other two because they're gorgeous!

LIPSTICK IN MORANGE
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £15
I've been wanting this for quite a while now but I've just never got round to getting it because it's typically quite a summery colour, but now the weather is getting ever so slightly warmer and we are actually seeing the sun, I think that it's now starting to be more acceptable wearing brighter lip colours!

217 Blending Brush
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £18
I actually already own one of these but I felt like I needed another for those in-between days where I can't be bothered washing the other one. The MAC 217 is the perfect multitasking brush - it's perfect for applying colour all over the lid and through the crease, as well as for its primary use of blending.

PAINT POT IN PAINTERLY
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £15
Another thing I've been wanting for ages. This is a nude beige cream eyeshadow base which is great for wearing under any eyeshadow colour or alone with winged liner for example. The great thing with this is that it does not budge at all, meaning that your eyeshadow stays put all day long.

STUDIO FIX FLUID (shade NW15)
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £21.50
I know I know, I don't need anymore foundations, I own too many as it is, but I've heard from so many people how great this is so I just needed to try it. I've only used it once and I do quite like it, however the only problem with it is that it's an absolute pain to get out of the bottle! I would definitely recommend getting the pump for it as it's quite a thick formula so it doesn't come out of the bottle very easily! I'm hopefully going to get a pump for mine tomorrow or next week at least so that I can actually use it easily!



STUDIO FIX POWDER + FOUNDATION
Maccosmetics.co.uk | £21.50
The last thing now! I wanted to get the powder to match my Studio Fix Fluid foundation to give even more coverage. I've used this with the matching liquid foundation and with another foundation too and it literally lasts all day, its fantastic!

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