Fab Five Favourites

Hi Beauts.

 I wanted to do something a little different today, and share with you all my Fab Five Favourites. I'll still be posting my monthly favourites every month, but thought this might be a good way to share what I've been loving during the week. This week, I'm going to rave about my five favourite face products...There's a lot of F's flying about this post isn't there?!

1 - B. Flawless complete coverage Foundation in 'linen' I'd ran out of my foundation so was on the hunt for a new one to try out. I'd loved the lip crayons from the brand B. so figured I'd try out one of their foundations. The coverage of this is pretty good and it works well with my oily skin, however even the lightest shade is a little too dark. Which brings me to item number 2.

2 - NYC all day long foundation in 'classic ivory' I've tried this before amd loved the finish and staying power however the lightest shade is too light for me. Mixed with the foundation from B. and the two combined give the best cover, finish, staying power and the shade matches me perfectly.      

3 - B. Sheer finish Pressed powder in 'light' - Again, I'd ran out of my powder so needed to pick up a new one and this one was on offer in Superdrug so I thought, why not? It's a pretty yellow based foundation which I love as I wanted to tone down some of the warmth from the B.foundation. It doesn't add too much coverage but it does leave me matte and keeps my foundation on throughout the day. I love that it comes with a mirror too, very handy

4 - elf blush in 'blushing rose' - I've been trying to use more of my blushes because I've tended to stick to one or two the past few weeks. I'm not sure why I stopped using this little gem, it's the perfect berry shade which is my favourite shade to wear (no matter what the season is) it's highly pigmented too and stays put all day long.

5 - The Balm Mary-Lou Maniser - This is probably my all time favourite highlighter if I'm honest. It's         shimmery but not over the top and it gives the most gorgeous highlight to cheekbones. It's neutral toned too which is a must for me. This little beauty can also be used as an eyeshadow, browbone highlight and inner tear duct highlight too!

What are your current favourite face products? 

Stacey x

January favourites 2014

Hi Beauts.

Time for my very first favourites for 2014! How weird is that? Let's just hope this year doesn't go quite so fast, I have lots of fun planned and I don't want it to fly by!

Most of these products are new to me, but are things I've been using and loving literally the whole month.

Skincare:

* Nspa hot cloth cleanser - I use this as my second cleanse and just find that it leaves my skin feeling so soft, looking fresh and the biggy it doesn't break me out

* Lush Grease Lightning - This is, in my opinion, the best spot treatment on the market. Literally hours after applying this to a spot, the size had reduced and the redness had pretty much disappeared  

* Nspa Deep hydrating facial oil - I wasn't sure whether or not I wanted to use an oil as I have oily skin, but a lot of you lovelies told me to give one a try. This has no become my nighttime 'moisturiser' and I love using it. Each morning, my skin feels SO soft and looks pretty damn flawless, I've also noticed that my scaring on my chin is starting to fade too

Make up:

NYX matte finishing spray - I've tried a couple of setting sprays before and loved using them, so knew if had to try this one too. It's fab!! It definitely keeps my make up on all day and keeps my face looking 100% matte

The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer - This was a Christmas present from my sister and something that I've had my eye on forever. It's the perfect neutral champagne highlighter

Along came Betty Starlight shine highlighter in 'Glow' - Yup another highlighter! This is a cream one and it is stunning. Again it's a neutral champagne shade, and I think it gives the perfect glow

Along came Betty All concealed concealer kit in Light/Medium - I absolutely love this concealer, and now don't think I could be without it. It's full coverage, lasts all day and doesn't cake up at all. I tend to mix the light and medium shades to match my skin for any scars or blemishes I want to hide

Along came Betty Double whammy in 'Poochy' - Another product from the Along came Betty range. This is a lipstick and lipgloss duo, and the shade is right up my street. It's a pinky mauve kind of colour and looks absolutely gorgeous.

(Lots of reviews on the above products coming soon)

Which products have made it to your favourites this month? 

Stacey x

My favourite.......Face products

Hi Beauts.

A couple of posts back, I shared all of my current skin and hair care products with you all. Today I wanted to do a little post on all of my current favourite face products, please bare in mind I have oily skin so these won't be loved by everyone. Using all of these products together seems to really work well, and I've been loving the staying power and finish a lot.

Foundation: Barry M flawless matte foundation. I usually go for a full coverage foundation or a buildable medium at the least, but I'd say this was a light to medium coverage. However I love using it none the less. I wouldn't say it was a matte finish, but it does keep me shine free

Concealer: Along came Betty all concealed in Light/Medium and Gosh Click 'N conceal in Light. I mix the light and medium shades together in the Along Came Betty concealer kit to hide any scars or blemishes and use the Gosh concealer as an under eye concealer. Full reviews on both coming soon, but I will say they last all day, conceal great and don't cake up or crease at all

Setting Spray: NYX matte finish. I absolutely LOVE this setting spray (Again full review to follow) I've used the Urban Decay De slick and I have to say, this is just as good in my opinion. It helps my make up last all day, and definitely keeps me matte

Blush: Along with highlights, blush is one of my favourite things, and I have so many I love. Flushed by Sleek is one that I probably love using the most. I also love MUA cream blushes too, they work surprisingly well with my skin type

Bronzer: Bourjois chocolate bronzer. I never used to bronze up on a daily basis, just on nights out, but had this sitting in my drawer feeling unloved so decided to start using it. I use it every day now, and love the nice glow it gives to my cheeks

Highlight: The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer. I'm a complete highlight junkie, I just can't get enough of them. This one from The Balm has been my favourite since the day I got it and for a cream highlight, I've been loving Along Came Betty's starlight shine highlighter in glow. It gives such a beautiful glowy sheen to my cheekbones

I'm still on the hunt for a cruelty free setting powder if anyone has any recommendations?

What are your favourite face products? 

Stacey x

The Balm: Mary-Lou Manizer

Hi Beauts.

I hadn't heard too much about The Balm until I started watching YouTube and reading blog posts about their products. I think the thing that caught my eye first was the packaging - It's 50's inspired and I love it. I think the make up industry needs something a little different.

My sister bought me the Mary-Lou Manizer for Christmas and I have to say, it's definitely made me want more of their products. I have a slight addiction to highlighters for some reason and knew that I had to try this little beauty out.

Packaging:

As I mentioned earlier, I love the 50's themed packaging. It's definitely an eye catcher. On the front of the box (and the front of the compact) we have a blonde lady who has been arrested for being 'too pretty and too popular' The picture is actually really cool, it looks like a police mugshot - again full points for different packaging The Balm! On the back of the box we have the pretty blondes rap sheet and finger prints.

The compact itself is made from a pretty sturdy silver plastic and has a decent sized mirror, which makes it great for travelling or popping in your handbag.

Product:

Now onto the product itself. It is a stunning, highly pigmented, shimmery, neutral toned champagne kind of shade. When blended onto the cheekbones it gives a gorgeous glow. This is also a multi purpose product as it can be used as a highlight, shimmer or an eyeshadow - it makes for a very pretty brow bone highlight too.

You get 8.5g (0.3oz) of product in this little beauty for £15.00 ($24.00) which I think is a pretty great bargain. And another great thing (in my opinion) The Balm don't test their products or ingredients on animals! 

Overall thoughts:

In a nutshell, if like me you love highlighters, this is a must for your collection. It will work great on all skin tones, it's super pigmented, it's a stunning shade and it has more than one use. Lets not forget the amazing packaging too!

Are you a fan of the balm? Which other products should I add to my 'must have' list?

Don't forget to check out my Tumblr too ;)

Stacey x

High end lust list

Hi Beauts.

I shan't lie, I'm a bit of a sucker for high end make up goodies. However I very rarely buy myself anything because I have other things I need to spend my hard earned cash on. There are so many things that I'm lusting after so I've decided that I'm going to treat myself each payday with one thing from my wishlist. I thought I'd share with you said wishlist, if you've tried any of the products please let me know your thoughts:

* Nars blush in Crazed

* Nars blush in Sin

* Nars highlighter in Albatross

* MAC lipstick in Rebel

* MAC lipstick in up the amp
* MAC Paint pot in Soft Ocre 

* MAC 224 Brush

* Urban Decay primer potion in Greed

* Stila Kitten highlighter duo

* Stila smudge pot in Kitten

* Benefit box blush in Dallas

* Benefit box blush in Sugarbomb

* Too Faced highlight in Candlelight

* The Balm Mary-Lou manizer

* The Balm Nude 'tude eyeshadow palette
 

I'm pretty sure there'll soon be more added to the list :P

I'm thinking my first little treat shall be something from the MAC holiday collection. I have my beady little eyes on the Nocturnals mini lip gloss set.......

What's on your wish list?

Stacey x