New skincare additions: Arbonne

Accessories Boutique



I recently received the Belle and Flo daisy bracelet* from Accessories Boutique and thought it was too beautiful not to show you. This is such a gorgeous bracelet and probably one of the prettiest I own! I feel this is appropriate for everyday wear, but will also add something beautiful to an evening outfit - plus it's silver coloured so very wearable and will compliment most outfits.

 

Accessories Boutique are based in the UK and stock a range of products, such as jewellery, scarves and handbags. Their website is so pleasant to browse and their products are unique. If you have your ears pierced, they also stock some pretty daisy earrings!

 

If you have a browse on their website, I would love to know if there are any pieces you add to your wish-list!

 

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Clarins Graphic Expression powder

You may have seen this beautiful product popping up recently (here and here), so I thought I would write a full review for you. I received this for Christmas and it is so pretty. I love that Clarins products always come in lovely velvet pouches and the outside of this is like a mirror!

 

This is the Clarins Graphic Expression powder which is made up of pinks, bronzes and a little bit of glitter. The gold strip of shimmer on this left my skin quite glittery, however thankfully it goes after a couple of uses. Whilst the gold was still coming onto my brush, I found this too glittery to bring onto my temples as a bronzer.

 

Once the glitter had gone, I started using this more often and love it! It is made up of beautiful bronze and pink tones, which compliment each other and my skin really well. I find this very versatile, as I can use all the shades equally to add some colour all over my face, or focus more on the pinks for a rosy blush on my cheeks. 

 

I find this starts off light and is very buildable. I like this as I am fairly pale, so don't like something too heavy. This adds a lovely, natural glow to my skin, which I can easily build up if I would like to look more bronzed. This always leaves my skin looking natural and radiant, however much I build it up!

 

Have you tried this? I would love to know if you have used any similar products which I could try.

 

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Benefit Stay Flawless 15 Hour Primer

Hello! If you read my Benefit Stay Flawless Event post the other week, you will know that I was very kindly given a full size Stay Flawless Primer*, so I thought I would review it for you!

Benefit describe this primer as a makeup magnet to lock onto foundation for 15 hours. It comes in a stick which you are meant to apply directly onto your face - I wasn't sure I liked the idea of that at first but it is actually quite nice to apply! I just sweep a little onto my face and then blend it with my fingers. It feels so refreshing and light on the skin which makes it so easy to apply and blend!

I then apply my foundation immediately over the top. I can definitely tell a difference between applying foundation over this compared to my regular Laura Mercier primer. I can feel my foundation almost sticking onto this primer which makes it a little more difficult to blend, but not much! I like to spend a while buffing my foundation in and I can't spend as long when I use this primer as my foundation sets quicker. I have been using my YSL Touche Eclat foundation recently with this and I do feel it looks a little thicker and heavier as it dries so quickly onto the primer, but it's definitely not too bad!

This primer definitely helps my makeup last longer! I still use a setting spray and powder as this primer doesn't help with oily skin at all, however it really helps keep my makeup on! By the end of the day my face does look shiny but my makeup has not budged at all which I am really impressed about. 

I would definitely recommend this! Even though it makes applying foundation a little more difficult, it's not enough to worry about and it really makes up for it by keeping my foundation on all day! I honestly don't think this is something I would have bought myself as I didn't like the idea of it being in a stick, however I really do like it now.

The Benefit primer is available here for £24.50. It isn't released onto counters until June 29th!

I would love to know what you think of this!

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Max Factor Miracle Touch Creamy Blush

Hello! Lately I have been using cream blushes everyday instead of powder. I reviewed my Stila Convertible Colour a while ago and since then I have been on the hunt for some more!

The other week in Newquay I bought the Max Factor Creamy Blush which I have been using almost every single day since!

I bought this in the colour Soft Pink which is honestly the most gorgeous, pretty blush colour I own! It leaves my cheeks looking healthy, natural and glowing. I love that I can apply a little bit for a very sheer, glowing flush of pink. I can also build it up to a stronger pink that is still very natural and glowing! 

I did go a little over board the other day and at work I noticed my cheeks looked very pink! I just blended them out a little with my fingers though and they were fine :) That's what happens when I do my makeup at 6.30am!

This also blends incredibly easily! For the first few days, I just used my fingers to apply and blend this which worked really well. I have started using a brush now though which I do prefer! The brush I use is the Crown blush brush from their HD set. I will definitely be reviewing this brush set soon as I use most of them daily.

I love using cream products and definitely want to find some more! Please let me know if you have any recommendations :)

This blush is available here for £6.99.

I hope you are all having a great weekend!

Deborah Milano BB Cream

Hello! I hope you are all having a wonderful day and enjoying the little bit of sun we finally have in the UK! You may have seen my recent review on the Deborah Milano Mascara* which I absolutely love. I was also kindly sent the BB Cream 5 in 1* to try and I am going to be reviewing that for you today!

If you have read my latest review then you will know that on a daily basis I tend to go for foundations which I can build up to a higher coverage, so I wasn't really sure when I would use the BB Cream. It took me a little while to get round to using it as I always wanted something with a higher coverage. I finally tried it though and have been wearing it a lot since! 

I use my Real Techniques Buffing brush to apply this! The texture is extremely light and it almost feels like water is being buffed into my skin. The consistency isn't too runny or watery at all though, it's just quite thin and feels very hydrating.

As I'm buffing it in, it really doesn't look as though it is providing my skin with much coverage. It just disappears into the skin leaving it looking extremely evened out, flawless and radiant. The coverage is definitely slightly buildable though, but not very much.

This is called a 5 in 1 product as it claims to prime skin, conceal, even out skin tone, moisturise and protect skin. As for priming skin, I actually still use my Laura Mercier primer because I know that just works for me. I can honestly say it does everything else though. I have never used a product before that evens out my skin tone so much whilst still looking so natural as if I don't have any makeup on. My skin definitely feels hydrated when I use this as the texture is so light and moisturising. The cherry on top of the cake is that this contains an SPF 20 so will protect my skin!

Overall I am in love with this BB Cream! I have been using it a lot since I first tried it as it just leaves my skin looking flawless but incredibly natural. I never thought I would enjoy using a BB Cream so much as I do tend to go for full coverage foundations, however this is a fantastic product! I have the colour 00, Fair Rose which is a perfect match for me. I have never found something that matches my skin tone absolutely perfectly - it is basically my skin tone in a bottle, however strange that sounds! :)

This BB Cream is available here for £9.95.

Have you tried any BB creams? I would love to know if there are any you like!

Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation

Hello everyone! If you have watched my March Favourites video then you will know that I have been loving my Laura Mercier Silk Creme foundation recently.

I love foundations that are slightly glowy but also provide a good amount of buildable coverage. I only own one medium/full coverage foundation which is quite a matte finish so I was on the hunt for a new one!

When I first apply this, it can sit a little on my skin and look slightly thick for the first couple of minutes. After it's been on my skin for a few minutes though, it completely settles in and is left looking really natural, glowy and flawless. It's very light on my skin too so I don't feel as though I'm wearing foundation.

The coverage is very buildable and however much I build it up, the colour never darkens and it never looks or feels thick once it has settled in! It's called a full coverage foundation which it definitely is, but you can just apply a little bit and buff it in to achieve a lighter, medium coverage.

I use a primer with this and also set it with a powder and setting spray. I ran out of my setting spray for a couple of weeks though and this still lasted perfectly all day on my skin without me touching up at all!

I love that this foundation leaves my skin looking healthy, radiant and glowy whilst also looking very natural! This is definitely the best foundation I have and it's really perfect for me.

The colour I have is Soft Ivory which is the perfect shade for me as well. Sometimes I struggle to find foundations pale enough for me but this one is a great match!

Have you tried this foundation? I would love to know what your favourite foundation is :)

This is available here for £33.

Origins Super Spot Remover

Hello! I hope you are all having a wonderful day :)

I have never owned any specific spot treatments before because I never really get spots, so have never needed one. Last month however, my skin went a little crazy and started breaking out a lot, so Natalie recommended I try the Origins Super Spot Remover!

The bottle of this is teeny tiny, but you really do only need the tiniest amount each time so this will last for ages! The product itself is a clear gel which you squeeze out of the top. I then just dab a little bit over any spots or problem areas I have. I only use this at night time as it does tighten a bit, so I don't know how makeup would sit over it, plus I wouldn't want my spot to look dry in the daytime!

Last month I used this religiously every evening on my blemishes and they have all completely gone! I do have a little bit of redness left where some of them were, however I am still using this every few nights which is helping that to fade. Most of my spots reduced in size pretty quickly and completely disappeared within a few days to a week. I did have a few stubborn ones which hung around a little longer, but they were extremely teeny tiny and I could only see them when I looked in my magnified mirror with a light! Haha :)

I am very very impressed with this and would highly recommend this spot treatment! I have had about two spots pop up within this last week, so I used this on them every night for a few days and they disappeared!

Have you ever tried it? I would love to know if you have any other Origins recommendations too! I have a  few of their masks and love them :)

This is available here for £11.70.

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend! I am off on holiday tomorrow with my parents to the seaside! I will try and take lots of photos and hopefully the weather will be lovely :)

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Clarins Hydra Matte Lotion

I went to the Clarins counter a while ago to purchase the Beauty Flash Balm and I was asking the lady if there was anything I could do to control my oily skin. She advised using the Hydra Matte lotion for combination skin instead of a cream as creams can be too heavy and could make my skin oilier. I have now been using this for almost three months now and thought I would review it for you!

If you read my blog regularly you will know I have an oily t zone and normal cheeks! I have used products before for oily skin that make my cheeks dry and products for normal skin that make my t zone even oilier! This lotion is for combination skin but I was still a bit worried it would do one of those things. 

This lotion is great and I really like it! It doesn't completely stop my t zone getting oily but it does seem to control the shine and stop it getting quite as oily as fast! Usually I would have my makeup on for a couple of hours before my nose would start to look shiny and then get oilier throughout the day until I powdered it. Now I don't need to powder until mid after noon and most days I don't powder at all throughout the day as my skin just isn't that shiny.

It is quite thin and feels very light on my skin. It does feel extremely hydrating which is lovely and then it sinks in leaving my skin looking fairly matte, soft and smooth. It is hydrating and moisturising enough for my cheeks, whilst not making my t zone any oiler! It also smells amazing which is nice!

This lotion is available here for £24.

Have you tried any Clarins skin care products? What is your favourite moisturiser?

Mac Melba Blush

If you have read my August Favourites post then you would have seen that Mac Melba blush was mentioned! I have honestly been using this blush everyday and I never usually use the same blush everyday! I just swap between which ever ones I feel like wearing, so sticking to one shows how much I love it.

Melba is a matte coral peach shade and this colour suits my skin tone so much. It almost makes me look like I have a tan as well as leaving a gorgeous peachy shade. I find it pretty pigmented, so I only need a tiny bit of this to add colour to my cheeks, unless I want to look like a clown!

This blush lasts very well on me. I find some blushes apply lovely and then a couple of hours later I can't see the colour any more. This blush leaves a healthy, peachy, warm shade on my cheeks which I don't need to reapply at all during the day!

I absolutely love this colour - it's so warm and peachy! I would highly recommend this blush.

Mac blushes are available here for £17.50.

Have you tried this blush? What is your favourite blush to wear?

Nars Laguna Bronzer

Some of you may know if you follow me on twitter, that just over a week ago was my birthday! One of my presents was Nars Laguna bronzer which I was so happy about as I have wanted this for ages!

I have pale skin so I do struggle sometimes to find a bronzer that doesn't leave me looking orange or muddy! This bronzer is perfect - it adds gorgeous warmth and a bronze, sun kissed glow to my face which looks very natural.

It does contain slight shimmer but I think it is definitely very subtle. It also blends very nicely and easily without leaving any lines! I apply this with my real techniques blush brush on my cheeks and up to my temples, I then pop anything left on the brush under my jaw line. 

I used to be quite scared of using a bronzer and especially contouring as I was worried that it would be too obvious, however I feel happy just sweeping this all over my face and knowing it will look natural!

I would highly recommend this bronzer. I find it is very buildable so if I want a tanned look rather than just a sun kissed glow, I can just add more! I can therefore imagine this would work well for people with skin not as pale as mine.

Nars Laguna is available here for £25.

Have you tried Nars Laguna? What is your favourite bronzer?

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Topshop Infrared Lipstick

Infrared lipstick has been on my wishlist for many many months now. The Topshop in my town doesn't have make up and when I have gone to other Topshops I have forgotten about it (too busy trying on all of their clothes probably!) I finally purchased it the other day and I have been absolutely loving it!

First of all, the packaging is so cute! It's not at all luxurious but it feels strong enough to just be thrown in my bag and the stripes are sweet.

Infrared is an orange, red lipstick and it is such a pretty colour. I have seen a few bloggers wearing this and it looks so beautiful but I couldn't imagine myself wearing orange lipstick! 

As soon as I got home I put it on for the first time and I fell in love with it straight away. I have worn it everyday since! Usually I wear very neutral lipsticks during the day (think Mac Hue) so this is a big difference for me to be wearing orange but it's such a lovely colour! It's really pigmented as well - this photo below is with two sweeps of lipstick!

This lipstick is surprisingly moisturising. If I don't apply lip balm first then it doesn't matter as this lipstick will not cling to any dry bits and it actually helps moisturise my lips itself! It feels quite hydrating and really soft. It makes my lips look and feel super soft and smooth. 

This lasts a good few hours on me as well (a bonus for a moisturising lippy) and wears so nicely! 

I love this lipstick and what's even better - it costs £8! You can buy it here.

Have you tried any Topshop lipsticks? Which ones do you want or would you recommend?

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