Benefit cheeky sweet spot box o’ blushes

When I first saw photo's of this I knew I had to own it! I love Benefit powder blushes and bronzers but hate the price of them at an eye watering £23.50 each, I'm a little reluctant to buy but with this you get the six powders at 4-6g & a sample of the highlighter for only £29.50 it was a no brainer for me .. It’s a blushin’ blockbuster! For the FIRST-TIME EVER, Benefit’s famous box o’ powders are all together in one cheeky sweet spot. With an exclusive Tips and Tricks booklet inside to show you how to create two easy looks: “do it up for daytime” and “pretty up for playtime.”

They are so pigmented, blend easily and smell divine! I already own a separate Hoola but as it's one of my favourites, i'll use them both easily and I also own a separate Coralista blusher that I have been nursing as I hit pan and didn't fancy splurging on another, but now I have another - yay!.. All the others including the highlighter are new to me which is great! 

I am a massive fan of palettes especially for travel and love the idea of a blush/bronzer palette,but wasn't  really keen on the packaging of this.. It's really cute and brightly coloured but it's rather chunky & impractical.. But I was so happy as on inspection they are just stuck on a foam cushion, so can easily be removed and placed into a more suitable palette like a Z palette or similar! Meaning I can just take one or two with me.

It you want this in your collection, I would be very quick as it is selling out super fast as you'd expect as the price is really good considering what you get! Available from Boots and other online beauty stores.

What's your favourite Benefit product?

My Top Five Blushers

1.Becca - Gypsy - BECCA Mineral Blush is a luxury powder for cheeks, imparting natural, luminous colour that is ultra-kind to skin.This longwearing mineral contains a hint of highlight to lift the complexion, with a delicate formula that never appears cakey or chalky. I love Becca blushers they are just so creamy and blend like a dream, This shade is a beautiful pale pink with slight shimmer, not glittery just provided the perfect highlight! £25.00.

2.Benefit - Coralista - The warm coral-pink cheek powder is your "coral blush for a tropical flush"! This shade cheers up every skin tone in seconds.Complete with soft, natural-bristle blush brush. I've owned this product for years and always find myself reaching for it in Spring/Summer provides just enough colour and shimmer without be over the top. £23.50.

3.Accessorize Baked Blushers - Pretty in Pink - Add a flush of colour to your cheeks with this beautiful blush, from a baked formula. I absolutely love these blushers, they have such great pigment, shimmer. I love the highlight the give me, they are quite hard to get your hands on but my Superdrug has a few shades left, maybe try eBay but you need to try them! £5.00.

4.Sleek Makeup - Rose Gold - These blushers are long lasting and highly pigmented available in a variety of finishes. Each shade glides on smoothly and enables you to create an array of stunning looks. We offer a wide range of shades to complement any skin tone, no matter the occasion. I own lots of sleek blushers and think they are all fantastic quality for the price, Rose gold pipped the others to the post - just, but depending on your skin tone, the shade will be personal to you. £4.49.

5.Nars -One night stand - Made with transparent pigments for a soft and sheer look. Imparts a natural, healthy glow for any skin tone and may be worn alone or layered together for more depth and intensity. I cheated sorry! But I LOVE this palette so much, I was lucky enough to snap one up and at first was scared to used it in case I damaged it.. But each shade is just perfect.. I have a few individual blushers from Nars and they are equally as fantastic! Singles retail for £22.50.

What's your favourite blusher? 

My Top Five Primers

I'm always on the look out for the latest primer that will smooth my skin, reduce my pores and make me look twenty again! - maybe the latter is a bit of a high expectation, but you never know!.... I have primers I like, Primers I love and Primers I hate.. Here are just a few of my most used..I have about 2-3 which I use but I've not included but I DO really like them, I just wanted to stick to series of top five! 

1.Clarins Instant Smooth Self Tanning - Have a good skin day every day with Clarins Instant Smooth Self Tanning, a caramel-tinted complexion perfector and self tanner all in one. Experience the magic of Clarins’ iconic Instant Smooth with the gorgeous glow of a self tan. The Instant Smooth Self Tanning formulation instantly tints the skin so that you can see where you’ve already applied the tan. It then progressively develops into a gorgeous, semi-permanent, sun-kissed glow in just 1-2 hours. Quick to apply and even quicker to dry, this is tanning like you’ve never experienced before. This leaves my skin soft and smooth, a great base to apply foundation over with the added bonus of a touch of colour! Available from £14.00.

2.Benefit Porefessional - POREfessional Quickly minimise the appearance of pores & fine lines for smoother-than-smooth skin! Apply this silky, lightweight balm alone, under or over makeup. Translucent, oil-free formula complements all skintones and helps makeup stay put. Contains a Vitamin E derivative, known to protect skin from free radicals. This does what it says on the tin! Smooths pores making make up last and look flawless. But very expensive for a tiny 22ml... Available from £24.50!

3.bareMinerals PrimeTime - A foundation primer developed to address flaky dryness, fine lines, excess oil, and enlarged pores. This mineral-infused formula glides on with no tacky feel to provide a skin-smoothing complexion prior to applying Foundation. I use this with both mineral and liquid foundation, gives a great finish to both. Available from £21.00.

4.Smashbox Photo Finish Light - Create a perfect canvas for foundation application with a silky, lightweight blend of vitamins A and E, grapeseed extract and green tea. Worn alone or under foundation to increase makeup wear, Smashbox's best-selling primer helps smooth fine lines and pores for flawless skin with a velvety-smooth finish. Long lasting and gives a great base for foundation. Available from £12.50 (travel size).

5.Urban Decay De Slick Spray - Meet your most powerful oil-control ally. De-Slick mists on weightlessly to control oil, deflect surface shine and keep skin looking beautifully matte. High-tech ingredients help keep foundation, shadow and blush from smudging, sliding or fading - so you hardly ever need to touch up. This groundbreaking, clinically tested formula features patented Temperature Control Technology. Yep, this baby actually lowers the temperature of your makeup to help it stay put and keep skin looking smooth (but never shiny). The spray delivers a microfine mist that goes on so light, you'll hardly feel it - and once you've applied it, you won't even know it's there. De Slick is a great product as you can put it directly on clean skin before foundation as a primer and then spray over your foundation to set your powder, It really is a great product, I was sent a deluxe sample of the all nighter spray as you can see above. It's good but it doesn't make my make up look as flawless as long as De Slick. Available from £9.00 (Travel size).

I'm going to a Wedding in Sicily soon and am trying to decide if any of the above will be coming with me or if there is a better one for hot climates to stop my make up from sliding down my face?!

What's your favourite holiday primer?

Blog Sale - MAC, URBAN DECAY, YSL, BENEFIT.

1. Paypal Only.

2. UK & Ireland Postage. International please enquire first.

3. Please leave a comment, stating which item/s you would like with your email address and I will send you an invoice.
4.All payments must be made within 24 hours or will be offered to next interested person.
5.Postage is £3.00 per item, extra 30p per additional item.
6.Sold as seen - any questions please ask - no refunds.
7.I always get proof of postage and can not be held responsible if an item gets lost or damaged in the post.  

For recorded delivery it's an extra 95p for posting in the UK.

MAC Discontinued Neo Sci Fi Collection Eye Shadow in Femme Fi £9.00 -  still in original packaging, Swatched, like new condition. (Rare)

MAC Discontinued Eye Shadow in Smoke & Diamonds £9.00 - Swatched, like new condition.

MAC Eye Shadow in Dazzlelight £8.00 used 2-3 times.

MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque £9.50 used Twice, like new condition.

MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer in NC15 £9.50 used a Few times over 90% left.

MAC Wonder Woman Collection in Emancipation £14.00 still in original packaging, swatched once. (Rare)

MAC lady Gaga Lipglass in Viva Glam Gaga £9.00 - still in original packaging, swatched once.

Benefit Cha Cha Tint Mini 4ml £1.50 - still in original packaging, Brand new.

YSL Lipgloss in Golden Gloss  £8.00 used a few of times.

URBAN DECAY sustainable shadow box Palette £12.50 used Twice, some shades untouched.

Thanks for looking, If you would like to buy please leave a comment below with your items & an email address & I will send an invoice asap.

Wedding Make up..... Highlighter

Highlighting goes hand in hand with contouring it allows you to brighten & gets part of your face noticed like your Cheekbones, cupids box or down your nose! I like to use a slightly shimmery product but if you prefer matte then you can use a Concealer 2-3 shades lighter than your skin tone, I'd personally steer clear of glittery products especially on your wedding day *Unless that's your thing!*, highlighting will make your face look healthy & glowing with a ' lit from within' result, There are lot's on offer from light concealer, to cream/liquid or powder highlighters choose the one you are most comfortable with!

This shimmering, brush-on powder creates a soft, rosy glow. Works well with neutral, pink and rose blush shades. Five bars of luminous colour work as individual eye shadows. Swirl the Brush through all five shades and dust lightly on cheekbones after Blush. Focus on applying shimmer on the top of cheekbones - where light naturally hits the face - for the most flattering look. I have mine in Rose Gold. £32.00

Dior Amber Diamonds, sheer and shimmering as silk, the Poudre Shimmer Diorskin brightens the complexion with thousands of sparkles and an airy caress of translucent light subtly shaded with delicate, sparkly gem-like effects.Just the right amount of pearlescent particles and pigments designed to give the skin a beautiful sheen. This is just *sings* "AHhhhhhh" stunning the effect it leaves is stunning! £32.00 for 10g

Accessorize Bronzer in Golden Sands, this is definately NOT a Bronzer! it is the perfect product to Highlight it's a perfect combination, a lovely shimmery shade and not glittery at all, leaving a gorgeous sheen to your skin, you get alot of product for your money, great quality product & comes in a few shades perfect for light to dark skintones. £5.00

Meet Mary-Lou Manizer by The Balm, a seemingly innocent honey hued luminiser that catches everybody’s eye. This highlighter, shadow and shimmer diffuses light so your skin looks softer and younger while adding a subtle glow. This is a brilliant product but if you prefer subtle then this probably isn't the one for you. £15.00

Becca Illuminating Skin Perfector is a water-based moisturizer with an SPF of 20+ and light-diffusing particles of shimmer that creates instant radiance and vitality and reduces imperfections. You can mix with your foundation to illuminate the whole face or just apply to the skin after your foundation is on areas you'd like to highlight. It gives a gorgeous finish. £33.00 for 50ml

Benefit High Beam is a pale pink shimmery highlighter that gives a radiant, dewy glow to all those who dab it on their faces. As it’s only used sparingly, one bottle will last for ages and it’s one of those products that goes on like a dream, is fairly difficult to mess up and looks great without looking too much. It’s a satiny pink highlighter that creates a young, radiant, fresh complexion on all skin tones. £19.50

You can make your highlighting look as natural or as noticeable as you wish just choose the formula you are happy with, for very subtle highlighting just use a light concealer either before or after your foundation.

What's your preferred Highlighter formula & product?

Wedding Make up... Primer

Primer is probably the most important step to long lasting Flawless skin, making you look Gorgeous on your big day & helping you stay perfectly made up until bedtime, after you've danced the night away with your new Husband! 

The ultimate pick-me-up for tired, stressed skin, a radiance booster that helps eliminate the signs of fatigue in a flash! Instantly moisturises, brightens and tightens facial contours so skin looks rested and relaxed. Olive and Witch Hazel extracts help smooth the skin’s surface, diffusing the look of lines and wrinkles. Soothing Bisabolol helps restore skin’s youthful glow. Preps skin for perfect make-up application and hours of luminous wear, I actually wore this on my Wedding Day & it gave me long lasting flawless finish a perfect base for my foundation. £29.50 for 50ml

These light-weight primers, instantly reduce the appearance of pores and create a flawless, uniform skin tone with clinically proven skin-perfecting ingredients. Containing proprietary skin care ingredients, this multitasking hero has been clinically proven to brighten and firm the skin's appearance while offsetting the look of redness from breakouts, irritation and more with color-correcting technology. Neutralise the look of dark circles, age spots, freckles and uneven skin tone with colour-perfecting ingredients. Smoothing away the look of lines with clinically proven skin care technology. I really like that you can buy a different one to suit your skin to improve any imperfections you may have. these Pür minerals* primers made my skin look flawless & improved the longevity of my foundation. Each one is £22.50 for 30ml

Quickly minimise the appearance of pores & fine lines for smoother-than-smooth skin! Apply this silky, lightweight balm alone, under or over makeup. Translucent, oil-free formula complements all skintones and helps makeup stay put. Contains a Vitamin E derivative, known to protect skin from free radicals. This is great if you need to disguise large pores, dab on & watch your pores disappear. £24.50 for 22ml

Freeze 24-7® & Go* is a skin perfecting, colorless cosmetic that instantly eliminates the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles & enlarged pores. It helps to brighten & illuminate skin instantly - giving tired, dull skin an enlivened glow. It also helps to defend skin against free radicals & environmental agressors. This beauty must-have can be used both over & under makeup to keep skin flawless all day long. A lovely product that actually brightens & smoothes. £45.00 for 20ml

This primer is the perfect combination of make-up and skin care. With an ultra-light, ultra-smooth texture it glides on skin, leaving a imperceptible veil on its surface, filling in and smoothing away the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and pores. Your skin is left ' foundation ready' to give your make-up a more even and flawless finish. This is a lovely base for foundation, it smoothes down any imperfections ready for you to apply your foundation. £26.00 for 15ml

Each of the primers mentioned although quite expensive, I think that if you were going to splurge on one item in your Make up bag, this is probably the step to spend it on as if your base is anything but perfect your foundation & other make up won't sit right or last very long - Dry skin will look hydrated & a primer should keep the face a shine free zone if you have combination or Oily skin.

What's your favourite Primer?

Beauty Haul! June 2013

Here's a few things I've picked up (Repurchased) over the last Week or so...

Let me know if you have any Qu's or if you'd like me to review any of it ASAP!

What have you been treating yourself to?

Would you like to Co-Host my Blog Hop?

Hello
I just want to say a massive Thank You to all my lovely readers, i love talking to you all & reading all your amazing comments, discovering your blogs & reading your posts daily

 

I will be hosting my 3rd 'Share the Love' Blog Hop on Tuesday 4th December.

I am looking for some lovely people to help me Co- Host it, Blog Hops are great fun & help you meet new friends, promoting your blog & gaining new followers.

I have seen people go from 1 to 100+ followers from Blog Hops.

If you would be interested please leave a comment below to let me know, if i get a lot of response i will keep your details until the next one as i host them fortnightly!

I will then send you all the details including the Blog Hop Button so you can include it in your post.

No More...Bags Galore........ Favourite Concealers

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection  rrp £4.19

Lasting Perfection concealer is one of Collection 2000's most popular products, available in just four shades Fair, Light, Medium, Deep, it's simple and straight to the point, a full strength, full coverage concealer.

The applicator is a sponge tipped wand, it's easy to clean and collects the right amount of product for one application - you only need to use a little of the concealer to conceal dark circles and blemishes because it's so blend-able. The formula is quite thick and creamy but blends out nicely and evenly - it's easy to work with and works well under or over foundation.I can say, hands down, this is the longest wear concealer I've ever used. I apply it in the morning and it doesn't budge all day, I sometimes need to touch up blemishes if they're really bad but my under eye circles are concealed all day long. I'm really impressed with the longevity!

Rimmel Match Perfection  rrp £5.99

 Rimmel claim that this product is a 'skin tone adapting concealer' it is also a 2 in 1 product that concealers and highlights at the same time. For me I wouldn't personally use this on blemishes because you don't really want to highlight those but it is perfect for under the eye. 

Now the colour range for this is pretty poor, there's only 3 shades which means if you're not pale to medium skin tone there won't be a shade for you which is such a shame. 

For me the shade Ivory is a pretty great shade for me, I find that it really brightens under my eyes whilst still covering any blue tones or dark circles. It doesn't give full coverage but is great for everyday when you don't need full coverage because it feels so light on the skin.

Bourjois Healthy Mix  rrp £7.00

This healthy mix formula contains apricot for radiance, raspberry for micro-circulation and melon for hydration. Lovely! This concealer is meant to smooth away dark circles and imperfections, giving you a more rested look. It is also meant to let your skin breathe with its oil-free formula.

This concealer is only available in three colours; eclat clair, eclat medium and eclat fonce. 
The healthy mix formula gives the concealer a nice smell. I applied this product underneath my eye, putting a small amount on my finger and then dabbing a few blobs underneath. I then used my finger to blend the concealer into my skin. The formula is smooth and blended easily and you really don't need much of the product to cover the problem area, a little goes a long way. This product has lasted me a long time

Benefit Erase Paste  rrp £19.50

The instructions on the box direct that it should be applied with the spatula included but I have to say it is a silly invention and I wouldn't waste your time. It creates large dints in the product and picks up way more than is needed. Instead, I dab my finger lightly on the surface and then apply it in dots under my eyes, mainly concentrating on the inner corners. 

The first thing I noticed upon application was the salmon toned colour and creamy consistency. there is an evident salmon tone to this product which is known to cancel out dark circles. As for the texture, it is amazingly smooth and blends into the skin like a dream. As well as being very creamy, it is relatively thick meaning the tiniest bit goes a long way. I didn't find that it caked under my eyes, but I imagine it could if too much was applied, much like any product. It didn't settle into any fine lines and it instantly made my under eye area look brighter. it takes away most of the darkness from under my eye and looks very natural. It only comes in two shades light & Medium. The only slight criticism I would give this product is that I find it needs to be set with a powder or it begins to look oily and shiny. This wasn't a huge issue for me though as I always set my foundation with a powder anyway.

These are all currently in my make up collection & are used on a regular basis, i like them all individually depending on how much concealing i need when i look in the mirror to do my make up!

What's your favourite concealer?