Nars Blush Collection - with swatches

I'm a big fan of Nars blushers, they're all so pretty!  I used to work for House of Fraser so was lucky enough to get 10% off beauty items which I took full advantage of and have built up and small collection whilst I was there.

Click read more to see my collection and swatches of everything.

Beauty UK Matte FX Foundation & Blush

We had a bit of a kerfuffle dealing with Beauty UK to be honest...  When Paperbacks & Beauty Facts announced our launch, Beauty UK got in touch and offered to send us all some products to try.  We were all really excited about this as we were so new and it was amazing to be recognised at such an early stage.  HOWEVER, it all went downhill after that!  Basically we (I actually had nothing to do with it but thankfully a couple of the girls took charge of it!) ended up pretty much fighting with them in order to actually get the items, it seemed like they had changed their mind and didn't want to give us them anymore...  Finally we got them and although I did love the pink jiffy bag, it did seem a bit 'flung together'.  I think we were supposed to get a foundation, blush and nail varnish each but Charlotte got two nail varnishes and Hayley and I got none haha!

Anyway, rant over!  Firstly, the foundation is called Matte FX and I got the lightest shade, no. 1 Ivory, but it's too dark for me.  I am cool toned (i.e. pink based) and most high street foundations are warm (yellow) for some reason!  I can't wear this alone so obviously I can't give a very thorough review.  My Illamasqua foundation is too pale for me so I can mix it with this until I get a better colour.  In the photo I used a primer underneath, and as you can see the colour is definitely not right even though I did add a bit of the lighter one in.  I set it with an ELF powder which I don't really like but I'm trying to use it up...  It definitely does have a matte finish to it and it doesn't look too cakey - helps if you don't wear a crappy powder over it!  This foundation is only £2.99 and comes in 4 shades so if you can find a shade which matches your skintone then it's probably worth giving it a go, it is a bit of a bargain!

Fortunately the blusher from Beauty UK is a happier story.  I really like the colour, it's not something I would normally wear so it's always good to try those!  The one I got is called Rustic Peach and it's a peachy/coral colour with gold shimmer through it.  In the packaging it looks like really chunky gold glitter but fortunately it translates to just a nice gold glow on the skin.  This is also £2.99.

One issue I have with this brand is that I can't find the ingredients on the website and they are in tiny writing on the back of the packages.  As much as I would love to type them out for you, I nearly burst a blood vessel doing it last time (Buddha Beauty Night Cream) so I'm afraid I won't be doing that again in a hurry!  What I will say is that they contain what looks like a lot of synthetic chemicals, including parabens but what can you expect for £2.99?  Most of the high end brands still use those sort of things, but I felt I should give you that piece of info anyway.

I will probably use up the foundation and not repurchase, but I am looking forward to using the blusher.

<3

Louise Loves #7

I had this week off and I'm so glad, the weather in my area was horrendous on Monday and Tuesday, I would've hated the 40 minute journey driving to college!  Next week we start fashion makeup so that should be pretty good, although I'm glad we started with basic it was starting to get rather tedious!

Neve Cosmetics Mineral Blush in Noblesse

You may have seen this in my Neve Cosmetics swatches post here.  I only got this a few days ago but I really like Noblesse and I've been wearing it quite often (although I'm still trying to finish up a crappy Covergirl one which just seems to last forever!!!).  I am going out for lunch today - Wagamama, soo excited! - and I'll be wearing it for that :)
[£10.50 from cutECOsmetics]

New Look Ankle Boots

I actually bought these off my friend Ashleigh for £7 (bargain) as she bought herself "proper" ones and wanted these to go to new home where they would be worn!  They are from New Look a good wee while ago.  At first they weren't very comfy and the zips were playing up but now I've broken them in and they are pretty much my everyday boots (for when minimal driving is required!).  The heel is fine as it is really thick so it's not uncomfortable.  I think these were about £20 full price, however as it was age ago they're not available online but I did find these similar ones reduced to the same sort of price.

Face Off

In case you haven't heard of it, Face Off is a programme on Syfy which takes a group of prosthetic and special effect makeup artists and gives them various challenges to compete against each other.  I didn't love it to start with but now I am really enjoying it.  Although that is not a side I could see myself doing (it's far too creative and they are all amazing at art!), I do find it really interesting and it might even give me some tips for if I ever need to do anything like that.  Face Off is on Syfy on Mondays at 9pm.

<3

Neve Cosmetics: French Royalty Collection Swatches

Neve Cosmetics are an Italian, cruelty free brand.  All the products are vegetarian and the majority are vegan.  They have a really nice collection of loose and pressed mineral eyeshadows and blushers which can be used wet and dry.

Their most recent collection is called French Royalty and is inspired by the ostentatious pomp of the French courts of the 1700s with a realm of precious stones and metals.  All of the products in this collection are vegan and it is made up of 4 eyeshadows, 2 blushers and 2 eye pencils.

You can buy Neve Cosmetics from cutECOsmetics and they have very kindly sent me the eyeshadows and blushers to try out and share with you!

Before we go onto the swatches I just feel I need to warn you about my gross, veiny hands hahah so enjoy that...

Mineral Blush

Noblesse is "pink brick with lilac satin".  I really love this one and have been wearing it quite a lot recently!

Boudoir is a "light peach pink with delicate mauve satin".  I haven't tried this one on my face yet as I tend to avoid pinks for some reason but I think the blue/purple duo chrome gives it a really unusual edge.

These are safe for use on lips and the full size (4g) costs £10.50.  [link]

Chateau Mineral Eyeshadow

Chateau is a "duo chrome brown with hints of mauve and pistachio green".  Swatched, this one looks quite similar to Mac Club or Urban Decay Lounge - see here.

Sang Bleu Mineral Eyeshadow

Sang Bleu is a "duo chrome with purple and blue highlights".  This is a really pretty colour both wet and dry, but wet it is so bold!

Versailles Mineral Eyeshadow

Versailles is a "bright and shiny gold with amber undertones".  This one applied like a dream!  There is not much difference between wet and dry except I think that the wet brings out the yellow/gold colours more.

Collier Mineral Eyeshadow

Collier is "silver with a light grey base, with slight blue satin sheet and glitter".  This one really comes alive when wet, all the colours are hugely magnified!

The full size pot (2g) costs £6.50. [link]

I will do a couple of eye makeup looks using these shadows later on, so look out for those :)

<3

Collection: DIY Palettes #2

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

In my last post I showed you the Unii Palette (the red one) and so the next ones to discuss are the small E.L.F. ones.  I actually have 3 of these but only 2 are filled at the moment!  These palettes are quite handy, they come with an insert to fit 4 standard size eyeshadows/blushes which E.L.F. sell individually on their website.  The palette and refills are £1.50 (well they were last time I checked, they are bumping up their prices something awful, argh!) which is quite a bargain!  In all honesty the refills are not the best, they are really gritty and I won't be buying anymore of these.  The palette however is great, you just need to pop out the insert and then using some double sided sticky tape, stick down the metal sheet which lies beneath the insert.  So then you can use however many products you want/can fit in it!  You can also decorate your palette as well if you want - I had little rhinestones on the corners but they fell off as I used to keep it in my make up bag!

So although they are quite small, for £1.50 they are really easy for putting together a few similar colours.  They are definitely not as durable as the Unii palette for travel, I had one eyeshadow smash on me in one, and that was with the insert in place!  But I think for the price they are fantastic!

In the left-hand side one I have got black and white themed eyeshadows.  They are by Too Faced (grey and black), Avon (the white and grey - not CF) and E.L.F. (the white one, see how gritty it is?!)

In the other one I have got some blushes.  The big one is Berry Merry by E.L.F. (love this blush!), beside it is Merlot by Arbonne, and the round one is another £1.50 E.L.F. one (again note the grittiness).

I am going to a post about my obsession with purple toned blusher at some point, I'd like to get my hands on NARS Sin first but it's just so damn expensive!

<3

Day 9. Your Nine Step Daily Makeup Routine

I'm going to be honest... I am terrible with routines!  So, hmmm, this will be interesting!  Okay so let's assume that this is a day where I have enough time to do my make up - minimally - but properly i.e. not on the train!

Rinse face (I don't cleanse in the morning... or at night - BAD!)

Apply Origins VitaZing Moisturizer and leave for 5/10 minutes.

Foundation: Avon Cream-to-Powder foundation in Ivory - I don't love this product but I did a big clear out so this is the only foundation I have left, it is nearly finished so I'll be getting a new one soon.  Hopefully Illamasqua Skin Base!

Concealer: MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 under my eyes.

Blusher: At the moment I am just trying to use up and old Covergirl one (not cruelty free) to get rid of it!

I then fill in my holey eyebrows using No7 Beautiful Brows Pencil in Blonde.

Lastly I apply my Bourjois Volume Fast & Perfect mascara. 

 
but if I've got time... I like to put some liquid eyeliner on, I'm using MAC Penultimate Liner in Black, but NYX also do a really good felt tip one too.

Powder!  I am trying to use MAC Blot powder as I smashed it so it's just in a wee tub now all loose and I'm trying to finish it!

Yasss I think I managed to fudge 9 steps there!  Proud!

<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

Day 3. Three Makeup Products You Wish You Had

Sugarpill eyeshadow in Buttercupcake:

I have the purple colour from Sugarpill called Poison Plum and I really like it.  Honestly it wasn't as good as I expected, I thought it was completely matte (This one claims to be but I'll need to look up swatches!) and it felt more rough to the touch.  However,  other than this it is a really good colour and nice pigment, so I would like this bright yellow one, it's just so eye-catching!  Photo from Sugarpill online no copyright infringement intended.  Cost $12 or £7.99 from here if you are in UK.

Sin blusher by Nars:
Unfortunately I can't find a photo of this without stealing someone else's so if you don't know what colour this is then just google it!  It is quite similar to E.L.F's Berry Merry which I own but you know that way I just feel like I need Sin just to compare the two even though it is £20.50 and Berry Merry is £3... It's just a bit of an obsession!

Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation in Shade 2:
Again I do not have a photo of this, I'm not even sure what it looks like to be honest...  I saw this being used in the Pixiwoos videos quite often and I really want to try it.  However I am trying to cut out using products which have animal products in them (not vegan as such, more vegetarian make up!) and I have emailed Illamasqua twice, tweeted them twice, I then told them this via Twitter and they asked what I was wanting to find out.  I asked them again if the foundation is vegetarian, they didn't reply, I sent my request again and they said they would look into without actually getting back to me... I asked if they had found out a while later again to no response.  So needless to say they are not in my good books!  I think I am going to phone them then they can't escape, mwahaha!  Cost £25.

<3

Things I bought today even though I have no money and really shouldn’t have:

Today was payday, yippeeee!!  So I decided to treat myself with a wee shopping trip because I have literally not bought any clothes other than wedding pieces for a looong time, last thing I bought was one top for a night out at the end of January, and before then… who knows!
Unfortunately even though I got paid I am still broke so it was Primark for me!  I got a few bits so here they are :)

 I found this shirt just lying in a random stand (as you do in Primark!) and loved it, especially the back.  It is quite long on me, I’m only 5’4 so not a big fan of long things but never mind, I can see past it!  Luckily the size I found fitted me fine, it was a 6 and I’d usually take an 8 but it was quite big and baggy. Cost £10.

 One can never have too many white shirts! Cost £10.

 This little aztec print mini skirt caught my eye once I thought I’d finished clothes shopping of course!  I haven’t tried it on properly (I shimmied on over my jeans, all myself, what an embarrassment!) so it might end up going back if it doesn’t fit - hope it does though, love the colours!  Cost £4.

 Lastly I got this pair of bright orange shorts.  If you know me well in person you will probably know that I’ve been quite obsessed with the colour orange recently…  So I obviously couldn’t resist these!  They also had a navy pair and I was torn between them until my friend reminded me that I already have a pair of navy shorts, so I went for orange.  The material has a sheen to it which you can see reflected the flash in the photo.  Cost £10.

I also went to Superdrug because I really wanted to look at MUA and GOSH stuff, and I had some points to spend on my beauty card so I figured it wouldn’t be too bad going, even though I am still pretty much boycotting them (excuses, excuses!).  I got MUA blusher in shade 6 because obsessed with berry blush - I have about 3 on the go at the moment!  It is really lovely and smooth, very finely milled considering it costs a pound, A POUND!!!!  Then I saw the MUA nail varnish in a khaki green colour and I don’t have any colours like that, and for a pound again, you can’t really go wrong.  Finally I was having a look in clearance section and came across this eyeliner in Bananas (love it!) by GOSH for £2 so I got that thinking it might be a nice waterline colour for when white is just too white.  It came to £4 and I could use £3 of my points so I think that wee selection isn’t too bad for £1!  Also, you still get points… when you spend your points… mind blown!  Damn you Superdrug, I wish I wasn’t boycotting you!
Okay I am done… Well done if you made it through that, or at least looked at the pictures ;)

<3