Illamasqua Precision Brow Gel Review + Brow Tutorial

I have been through numerous of Liz Earle's Eyebrow Pencils (review here) now so I decided to try something a bit different.  The Illamasqua Precision Brow Gel has been around for a while but only recently have they added a wider colour range.  Strike was the original which is for brunettes; they have now added Glimpse for redheads; Awe for blondes and Stare for dark brown/black hair.  I went for Strike as although my hair is light brown with blonde through it I prefer my brows to be darker.

EOTN: Belated Christmas Night Out

This is how I did my make up for a night out I went on with my friends for Christmas, just a bit late!  I was wanting more of a purple effect on my eyes as the colours I used from the Urban Decay Naked Palette are purpley toned but it turned out quite neutral still, silly Urban Decay :(

Eyes

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Urban Decay Naked Palette - Sin, Toasted, Hustle and Virgin to highlight

Mac Fluidline in Blacktrack (not CF)

Liz Earle Brow Pencil in Dark 02

Bourjois Fan-Tastic Volume Mascara

Face

Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 51

Illamasqua Face Base in 02

MUA Pro Conceal & Brighten in Porcelain

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light

Illamasqua Powder Blush in Kiss

Lips

Bourjois Effet 3D Lipgloss in Rose Romantic

<3

1920s Themed Murder Mystery

On Saturday night I went to one of my close friends Emma's Hen Do, there was also a day part to it but unfortunately I was working so I just met everyone else later on.  The evening section was a Murder Mystery set in the 1920s so we all hard to dress up accordingly.  There were 4 actors, a 3 course meal and lots of audience interaction, so all in all it was a good night!  I finished work just after 4 so I had plenty of time to get ready - I planned to go all out with the dressing up!  I thought I would share with you my clothes and make up from the night:

Make Up

Eyes Lightest shade from Sleek Storm palette all over lid up to brows, Urban Decay Gunmetal in the crease and Creep in the very outer crease.  On lower lash line Creep, Gunmetal then Sleek shade going from outside to inner corner.  Black eyeliner on waterline & black mascara on upper & lower lashes.

Brows Liz Earle Brow Pencil in Dark

Base  Illamasqua Skin Base in Shade 02 & Bourjois Healthy Mix in Shade 51

Concealer MUA Pro Conceal & Brighten Kit

Powder ELF Translucent Setting Powder

Cheeks Nars Lovejoy Blusher

Lips Topshop Inhibition

Costume

Flapper Dress Fancy Dress website from years ago 

Beads Found in an old jewellery box!

Coat Vero Moda

Hat Dickens & Jones

Shoes Next

~

I actually had heated rollers in for a good hour would you believe - my hair hates me!!  Luckily I didn't have to buy anything for this as I already owned everything!  I hope you enjoyed this more lifestyle themed post, I wish I had a better photo of my make up.  I am going to be having a blog sale within the next week, just swithering whether to put it up before or after IMATS, hmm, we shall see!

<3

Paperbacks & Beauty Facts: OOTD

The second video for Paperbacks & Beauty Facts is an outfit of the day!  Subscribe to keep up to date with the other girls'.

Dress - Primark

Jacket - Primark

Shoes - Flossy

Foundation - Illamasqua Skin Base in Shade 2 & Bourjois Healthy Mix in 51

Eyebrows - Liz Earle Brow Pencil in Dark [review]

Eyes - Urban Decay e/s in Grifter (lid), Last Call (crease), Sin (brow highlight) and Polyester Bride (inner corners); and Nars Kuala Lumpur II (crease).

Blusher - Illamasqua Kiss

Lipstick - Avon Golden Wine (not CF)

<3

EOTN: Nars Paramaribo Duo

As promised here is how I've been doing my eye makeup for most of the Christmas nights out I went on earlier in the month.  It is nice and quick as it only uses a couple of products so it was handy for my college night out where I stayed at my friend's; I could just throw the few extra items into my everyday makeup bag.

So all I used for this was my Urban Decay Primer Potion, NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk (both of these are optional, but my eyes crease like crazy), Nars Paramaribo duo, Nars Albatross (as a highlight, any will do but I like the gold tones in that one), a gel liner and mascara.  On my brows I used Une Brow Pencil in B04.

Sorry for the cropped photo, it was a full face but my eye bags are just so bad, ahhh!  I will be so sad when my Mac concealer runs out cos it works really well but obviously I can't repurchase... No idea what I'll use!  If anyone has any industrial strength dark circle concealer recommendations which are cruelty free and I can get in UK, please let me know!!!

Also my secret santa at work (no idea who it is, still on the hunt!) amazingly gave me loads of BUAV Approved makeup!  So I can't wait to try it out and let you know my thoughts on it.  I've never heard of it before but it's called Clubworks and it must be pretty cheap as the limit was £10 and I got those 3 sets!

<3

EOTD: Basic Neutral Eye with Liner

This is a very basic eye look - clearly! - but I thought I would show you it anyway.  The good thing about this makeup is that it's great for everyday but then it is also a perfect eye to pair with a matte red lip, add a flick and you've got a vintage 50s look.

Unfortunately as I didn't use a primer or base my eyeshadow had worn off a bit before I took the photos, so it was more defined when I left my house!  You can also vary the depth of the crease by using more or a darker shadow.

I just used Virgin all over then Naked in the crease, then lined my eyes with a black gel liner.  Apologies for my gross glasses marks haha oh the joys of being short sighted!

This is really random but I just thought I'd mention that I rarely put mascara on my bottom lashes because it always transfers onto my skin :( I've been meaning to buy a cheapo waterproof one for using on them but I just keep forgetting.  I think it looks kind of unfinished so for nights out and such I wear it but for everyday I don't bother!

I will probably do a 50s total makeup look quite soon as that is what we've been doing in college, so look out for that!

<3

Birthday Dinner Makeup and Outfit

On the thursday before my birthday I went out for dinner with my friends to a tapas restaurant called Barca which is in Princes Square, Glasgow.  It was very tasty, rather expensive though, but hey ho it was my birthday :D My makeup is quite subtle and very shimmery, but I think it looks quite nice, especially from a distance!  Here is the makeup and clothes I wore for it!

I am writing this a few days later so just trying to remember what I did, oops!  Here is what I think used:

• Primed with UDPP all over the lid.
• I mainly used the Naked palette for this so I started with Sin and used it on my lids.
• Virgin as a highlight on the brow bone and inner corner,
• Then Naked as a blending colour just down from my brown bone and in the crease.
• I then used Toasted in the crease,
• And Busted in the outer corner and slightly in the crease.
• Under my eye I mirrored Busted, Toasted and Virgin in the order the appeared on my lid.
• I decided not to use eyeliner and just used Benefit They're Real mascara (not CF).

I have Nars Sin on my cheeks (borrowed from my friend!), Physicians Formula highlighter (review here) and Revlon Just Bitten lip stain in Frenzy (not CF) - which is meant to be more of a berry colour but it comes out very red :(

Onto my outfit:

*awkward stance*

Dress £13 & jacket £19 both Primark

Wedge boots from New Look £22.99

<3

EOTN: Grunge

I had my first night out for a very long time the other night!  Unfortunately it was just local which is expensive and bit crap but still, it was better than nothing and good catching up with people I hadn't seen in a while.

This look turned out nowhere near what I had expected but it worked out quite well as I was wearing orange shorts so it matched!

Sorry for my weird expression and odd eyes... I hate full face photos!

• I primed my eyelids with Urban Decay Primer Potion, then applied Mac Painterly Paint Pot over this (not CF).
• Using Lounge eyeshadow by Urban Decay I packed this onto my lids and blended out until I got the desired shape.
• I also brought it underneath the eye bringing it about two thirds along.
• I then used Urban Decay eyeliner in Whiskey along the top lash line and blended it with a brush.
• Lastly I applied loads of Benefit They're Real mascara on the top and bottom lashes.

On my face I have Illamasqua Skin Base foundation in shade 2 mixed with a bit of Bourjois Healthy Mix in shade 51.  I filled my eyebrows with Avon brow pencil in Brown (not CF), on my cheeks I have Marine Life highlighter by Mac (not CF) and on my lips I am wearing Revlon Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti (not CF).

I did not expect Lounge to come out this colour!  I'm looking forward to trying it over a dark base to really see it come to life, it's so versatile.

<3

Cruelty Free Alternative to Mac Club Eyeshadow

I know I said I probably wouldn't be blogging much during my exams but meh, I'm an excellent procrastinator!

I was working today which kind of sucked as we are having really nice weather this week in Scotland for a change!  I work beside a loch so it was mobbed with everyone in their summery clothes and ice creams, so jealous!  But anyway, I came home to lots of parcels which was really exciting!  One of them was this eyeshadow.

I can't even remember how I came across this eyeshadow but I think I hunted it down after hearing it was similar to Mac's Club.  I first saw Club in one of Tanya Burr's (Pixi2woo) youtube make up tutorials and thought it was just stunning!  However, I don't buy Mac because of them selling in China i.e. not cruelty free, so finding a cruelty free alternative to it was very exciting!

Unfortunately this post is not going to contain swatches, just because I don't have the best camera and trying to do this shade justice was impossible!  So instead I am going to do a make up look using this eyeshadow, which should be easier to photograph, hopefully!

As Urban Decay have rebranded all their eyeshadows with the new palette system I had to get this from eBay as I couldn't find it on legit websites, I'm pretty sure it's real... haha!  I got it here for £5.85, but it's now out of stock!

<3

Urban Decay, make up your mind!

 
Well, I'm sure you all remember the palaver about Urban Decay deciding to sell in China to try to 'change them from the inside', and therefore revoking their cruelty-free status.  This lead to an outcry from the beauty community, particularly those against animal testing.

However they made a statement on the 6th I believe it was, saying that they had decided not to sell in China anymore, you can read this statement here.  They don't go into specifics about what exactly made them change their mind.  A lot of people have been really relieved and are so proud of their decision, for listening to their customers, the power of us all getting together and making a stand.   For example PETA have given a Courage in Commerce Award for deciding that animals are more important than profit.  Which I find rather patronising to be honest - sorry, I really don't like PETA!

But then there has been a lot of speculation about what really happened, what went wrong?  They were so determined to try and change the world then suddenly they were backpedaling.  Was it really the outcry from their cruelty free customers that made them change their mind?  I have even heard people talking about how perhaps it could just be an elaborate publicity stunt!

Personally, I will continue to buy from them but I definitely don't feel the same way about them as I did before.  The fact that they were willing to give up their Leaping Bunny status and have their products tested on animals still has a lingering effect on me.

I thought I would link in a couple of other cruelty free blogger's opinions on what UD have done:

Alex at The Modern Vegetarian's thoughts here
Karris blogging for Mindful Mum's thoughts here

What are your thoughts?

<3

Collection: DIY Palettes #1

I decided to created my own mini palettes to condense my individual eyeshadow collection a little bit.  I was going to show them all in the one post but it started to get a bit long so I am going to divide it up into either 2 or 3 posts instead!  Here are the 3 palettes that I have so far:

The first one I am going to talk about, the big red one, is a Unii palette.  These are really great as they are so sturdy and durable, and they also come with a sheet of adhesive magnetic for you to cut out and stick to your products.  Inside it has a massive mirror and a rubber bumper to help prevent any damages if it gets bashed, which makes it perfect for travelling.  It also comes with a little thumb grip but I have removed this as it was taking up too much room.

The downside to it is that it's really quite expensive considering it's an empty palette!  I think mine worked out to be about £21 if not slightly more, due to exchange rate and shipping.  However this was when they were relatively new and I got it directly from the Unii's US website, now they have a UK website which is fantastic and are available at an introductory price of only £15!  They are also discounting it if you buy in bulk, so if you buy four or more you will get them for £12 each!  The p&p is £2.95, which isn't too bad, and free for over £60.  Unfortunately they have totally changed all the colours and the one I have isn't available anymore, but they do have a nice selection of pastelly colours which are really pretty!

The Unii palette fits a lot of different brands which are all listed on their website (link above) and it also explains how to depot any products which have got packaging which is quite handy if you're not familiar with the techniques.

In my palette I have got quite a few different brands: Avon (not CF), Too Faced, MAC (not CF), Urban Decay (not CF) and Virgin Vie (no idea about their cruelty-free status but I would assume they are not!  I've never bought anything from them before, this was part of a gift set.).  I have tried to group colours together and this one is my earthy/neutrals palette!

<3

EOTN: Makeshift Teal

Tonight my friends and I sang at friends and family night at a cancer unit.  We really enjoy singing as a group and have put together a choir totally just for fun!  We have been to a few different places now; we sang at that cancer unit and a care home around Christmas time last year, and we also sang at my friend Beckie's wedding (who is in the choir but obviously being the bride she didn't join in!).  Our general theme has been to wear black and then we all have different coloured folders for our song words which we match to our eyeshadow!  My folder is a dark teal sort of colour which is quite a tricky colour to find a matching eyeshadow for, so I just used blue and green and hoped for the best!

Photo from my phone, shows off the highlights better as they get washed out from the flash!

I actually hated this during the process but this happens most of the time for me lol!  I just persevered with it and ended up quite pleased with how it looked.  I used quite a lot of products so I will use bulletpoints below to try and make it clearer!

• UDPP all over the lid (no longer CF - grrrr).
• Covergirl 'green' all over the lid (not CF).
• I then pressed Barry M dazzle dust in 92 over the 'green' (which ends up blue anyway!)
• Then mixing Mildew and Oil Slick from the Urban Decay Ammo Palette (no longer CF) together on a tapered brush I applied this into my crease and blended it out.
• I then used the blue and green shadows from the E.L.F. Eye Transformer palette, blue around the inner corner and up then green under the brow bone, blending them together.
• I used the Covergirl 'green' under my lower lash line.
• Finally I applied black gel eyeliner along the upper lashline, and then mascara - Bourjois Fast & Perfect - on upper and lower eyelashes.

'Green' is second on the right - got this in Florida years ago

I used the two outer shadows here

The E.L.F. palette is fantastic, it is an almost-but-not-really dupe for the Naked Cosmetics Ivory stack.  These are perfect for highlighting the inner corner as they are subtley coloured.  From left to right they are green, gold, pink and blue.  You can also apply them over different colours such as black and it creates a really nice iridescent shimmer.

Oh and I had my music exam yesterday!!  It wasn't too bad,  it wasn't perfect and my nerves were definitely showing but we'll see in two weeks when I get my results!  I feel like I can finally relax for a bit now, phew!

<3 

Urban Decay's Change of Heart

I literally just found out about 3 hours ago that Urban Decay have decided to sell their products in China... Now, there is a law in China which means that cosmetics can be tested on animals by the government if they so wish, before they are allowed to be sold (which is obviously absurd!).  So Urban Decay are no longer cruelty free!  I can't even tell you how disappointed I am in them, I thought no matter what happened, at least UD would be around with CF alternatives, but no!

I found out this upsetting news from Liz who has written a good, more in depth post about it so click here to go and read hers.

I am just keeping this quite short as words have failed me, I'm in shock!  Urban Decay will be removed from my cruelty free list after this has been posted.

Source: Leaping Bunny

Urban Decay give their reasons here.

Hugo being naughty, sitting on a box on top of my wardrobe!

 <3

[Edit: Urban Decay have removed their press statement which I have linked to above which is even more shocking!  I wish I had copied and pasted :( ]

EOTD: Copper on Mother's Day

Today was Mother's Day so we had my grandparents and a family friend over for afternoon tea!  I decided to do something with my eyes - as much as I love eye make up I hardly ever do it, only really for nights out or special occasions!  This is a really quick and simple look which I've done a few times now.

I took this quite late on so it's a bit creased (even though I used primer!)

• I applied Urban Decay Primer Potion all over my eye up to my eyebrow and underneath too.
• Next I used Urban Decay 24/7 Pencil in Whiskey over the lid and I blended it in with my finger.
• I then used the darker side of Too Faced eyeshadow duo in George & Weezie all over the lid and used the lighter side to blend it in slightly.
• I used the eyeliner pencil under my eye along the outer half.
• Then I used the darker side of George and Weezie again over the eyeliner under my eye.
• Lastly I applied Bourjois Volume Fast & Perfect mascara on top and bottom lashes and filled in my eyebrows with the E.L.F. eyebrow kit.

I was going to put either a liquid eyeliner or pencil in black on my top lid but by this time I was supposed to be making pancakes and tidying the living room so I just finished it off with mascara!  I also used a peachy/orange blusher from a random Virgin Vie kit I got for Christmas and my Mac Studio Finish Concealer under my eyes.

Hope you all had a lovely day and my thoughts are with those who have lost their mums as today must be so difficult.  My mum's friend's mother died on Friday so today must be so hard for her.

<3

Wedding Make Up!

I posted this on Tumblr a few days before my friend's wedding when I was trying to decide what to do with my makeup so I thought I'd put it on here too for anyone interested :)

Trying out make up for the wedding!  For some reason I totally forgot about my lips so I've just cropped them out... whoops, I'll worry about them later!  Also I am getting my eyebrows waxed tomorrow, cannot wait! They're actually driving me crazy so just try not to look at them...

• I didn't use a primer but I will use UDPP on the day as it is going to need to last!
• Painterly Paint Pot by Mac over the lid.
• I then used a mixture of Sin and Virgin from the Naked palette over the lid.
• Then using the two purpley colours from a limited edition Mac mineralize eyeshadow in Eccentricity, I applied these to the outer corner but unfortunately they ended up looking quite muddy and didn't appear very pigmented - probably my manky brushes...
• So I then used my Sugarpill eyeshadow in Poison Plum which is really nice and strong, to go over this in the outer corner and into the crease.
• I also brought this underneath the eye, and went over it with Last Call from the Urban Decay Ammo palette, to darken it as the red pigments in the purple made me look slightly ill!
• I also tightlined using Avon Glimmerstick in Black.

Here it goes slightly odd because I used different eyeliner on each eye:

• On the right eye (pictured) I used blue gel eyeliner in Indigo from Coastal Scents and used Avon Supershock pencil in Golden Fawn on my waterline.
• On the left I used Mac Fluidline in Blacktrack and Avon Supershock in Blackberry on my waterline.
• Lastly I applied Bourjois Volume Fast & Perfect Mascara.

So now I just need to decide on eyeliner colours, how big to make the wing, lipstick and blusher!

<3

Day 7. One Favorite Of Each: lipstick, lipgloss, eyeshadow, mascara, eyeliner, blush, contour

Lipstick: Avon Ultra Colour Rich Mega Impact Lipstick in Fuchsia Fun

L - MUA Shade 12, R - Avon Fuchsia Fun

I really found choosing a favourite lipstick difficult!  I don't wear lipstick on a daily basis only on special occasions and I have quite a lot so I change it often.  I have chosen Fuchsia Fun by Avon as I think I've used this quite a lot, it's so sparkly too and I love a bit of sparkle!  Because Avon are not cruelty free I have also found this alternative by MUA in Shade 12 by Superdrug who are BUAV approved.  In 'real life' The MUA one is more corally but they are quite interchangeable, both have nice sparkles!

Lipgloss: Bourjois Gloss Effet 3D in 48 Rose Romantic

Again, like lipsticks I found it hard to choose a lipgloss 'cause I don't really wear them.  My favourite lipglosses are these Bourjois Gloss Effet 3D and I have them in 3 shades.  I have chosen Rose Romantic out of these as my favourite as it is the most versatile and because of the gorgeous gold shimmer in it, it can make any lipstick more interesting.

Eyeshadow: Sin by Urban Decay

Top right eyeshadow is Sin, underneath is YDK.

I had my first experience of Sin in the Ammo palette and I fell in love with it.  It's a lovely shimmery shell pink colour which can be used in so many way - wash over the eye, as a brow highlight (with a gentle hand!), as a base colour then add definition in crease and outer corner.  It is also really pretty as a face highlight.  Unfortunately the eyeshadow pictured is no more, tragic!  I really want to get another one as although it is in the Ammo and Naked palette, I don't want to use these ones too much!

Mascara: Bourjois Volume Fast & Perfect

I have mentioned this a few times before so yeahh... It's good!  See Day 1 for info on it.

Eyeliner: Avon SuperShock in Blackberry

On the left in both photos.

I got this at the end of January just before I found out about Avon testing on animals - grrrr!  So this was on my last Avon purchases!  I did a mini haul/review here talking about the other colour pictured and another item I got if you are interested.  The eyeliner is a deep, warm brown but it has got purple glitter specks which are subtle but really pretty and unusual.  It is also very long lasting and it does not move once you've put it on!

Blusher: Any berry colour!

I just love purpley/berry blushers and the one I have used the most is Berry Merry by E.L.F.  Sorry the photo is quite blurry, it's from a while ago and I only seem to have one!  It can also be seen in the wee palette above which is more recent - but I thought it would be better to show a photo of it before I hit pan.

Bronzer (instead of contour):  Nars Laguna

On the right, also in palette are Orgasm and Albatross.

I don't use bronzer very often, only really if I am going on a night out, and I only tend to apply it to the back of my cheekbones.  I like this one as it isn't muddy looking, and also isn't orange - which is good!  It does have some gold shimmer in it which some people might not like but it's not overwhelming.

<3