My favourite transition shades

Hi Beauts.

Rather than a review or haul post, today I wanted to share with you all my favourite transition eyeshadow shades.

If you're unsure what a transition shade is (which I'm sure you all already know) it is a shadow that is added to the crease of your eye to soften an eye look, warm up said eye look or/and to help blend out any shadows that you are using.

I never really used transition shades until a few months ago, and since using them I've found doing my eye make up so much easier. Over the months I've discoverd some amazing shades to use that work perfectly for my skintone, and wanted to share my finds with you.

Without further ado, here we go:

* Shade 3 from the MUA 'Undressed' paltte - This is a light neutral brown

* Pink T from Soap and Glory's 'What's nude' quad - This is slightly warmer toned than Sade 3 from the MUA palette but works just as great

* Fade from MUA 'ever after' matte palette - Again a light neutral shadow

* The contour shade from Sleeks 'Light' contour kit - Although this is a contour for the cheeks, it works amazing as a transition shade for the eyes

* The orange toned shade from MUA's eyebrow kit - Although this is an orange, it works so well as a warm transion colour and looks great with a brown eye look

All of the shades I've mentioned above are matte, which is find works better for transition - we don't want to look like a glitter fairy socked us in the face do we?! 

The best wat to apply this to your crease is using a medium sized fluffy crease brush. My favourite to use, and the best and only one I use, is the C200 from Crown Brush. It's the perfect size for the crease and pretty much does all of the work for you.

What are your favourite shades and brushes for adding a transition colour to your eyes? 

Stacey x

Happy St Patricks day!

Hi Beauts.

Today I wanted to do something a little bit different as it is indeed st Patricks day. So instead of a product review or haul, I wanted to share a make up look I created using some sleek and MUA products.

Here's the look I came up with:

Here's what I used:

MUA 'Undressed'

Sleek 'Vintage Romance'

Sleek 'Garden of Eden'

Step one: Apply a base of your choice. I used NYX jumbo eye pencil in Horse Raddish in the outer half of my lid

Step two: Appy a mid toned brown to the crease. I used Shade 3 from MUA's Undressed palette. Applying this shade helped blend the other shadows and created a transition colour

Step  three: Apply a light shimmery green straight on top of the green NYX pencil, I used Evergreen from the Sleek Garden of Eden palette. Then apply a gold to the inner half of your lid, I used Meet in Madrid from the Sleek Vintage Romane palette. And lastly, a dark matte green shade to the outer third and blend into the crease. For this I used Tree of Life from the Garden of a Eden palette 

Step Four: Along the lower lash line, match the shadows to the ones used on the lid - gold in the inner third, light green in the centre and dark green in the outer third

Step five: To complete the look I applied P.S Love felt liner pen from Primark, and two coats of MUA's Lash Boom mascara

And that's it, look complete and ready to celebrate St Patricks day

Have a great day whatever you're up too

Stacey x

Sleek: Garden of Eden palette

Hi Beauts.

One thing I really don't need to add to my make up collection is eyeshadow, I have a ridiculous amount and always seem to reach for the same shades and palettes. 

However once again Sleek suckered me in with their Garden of Eden palette and I just knew that it was one I couldn't pass up. 

I only have one other eyeshadow palette from them, their Vintage Romance palette and I love it. The colours are gorgeous, the pigmentation is amazing and they blend like a dream. 

The thing that attracted me to the Garden of Eden palette was the selection of colours. I have hazel eyes and two of my favourite colours to wear are purples and greens, which is exactly what this palette contains. Again like all sleek palettes, you get 12 shades, a double ended sponge applicator and a rather large mirror which makes them great for travelling.

 Instead of all shimmer or matte shades, this beauty has 9 shimmers and 3 mattes which I love. There are 5 purple shades and 5green shades, and 2 brownish shades. Each shadow is named after things to do with Adam and Eve:

The pigmentation is once again amazing, there is very little fall out and they blend out great. There is definitely at least one shade that everyone will like, me? I like them all!! This is perfect for those of you who have brown, green or hazel eyes and want a little pop of colour. 

What's your favourite Sleek palette?

Stacey x

February favourites 2014

Hi Beauts.

Time for my second favourites of 2014!! I'm going to have to say it....HOW FAST HAVE THE PAST TWO MONTHS GONE?! Anyway on with the products I've been loving:

* Nuxe Rêve de Meil lip balm - I bought this at pretty much the beginning of February and I've used it every day since. I have a full review coming up soon, but I will tell you that it has sorted my dry lips out big time. I use it every night before bed and every morning before I apply my make up, and it has worked wonders!

* Along came Betty 'Fix Me' - This product shall be surprise to any of you who have red my previous review post. There was no way I couldn't add this to this months favourites. This is basically a mattifying primer in stick form, and it's the best thing I've ever used. It mattifies my skin and keeps my make up in place all day long

* Sleek 'Garden of Eden' palette - I'm a massive Sleek fan, especially their blushes, so when this beauty got released I knew I had to have it. Again, I have a review drafted up, but I will say if you haven't got this then go buy it ASAP! It's a palette perfect for brown and hazel eyes, filled with gorgeous purple and green shades. I've literally used this every day!

* Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in 'Blueberry - This has been my go to nail polish this month, and it's one shall continue to reach for. I have a full review here if you want to read my thoughts on it. It's a gorgeous blue/purple shade and lasts a good few days on the nails! Such a beaut!

Well that was short but sweet wasn't it? What have you been loving this month?

Stacey x

Small haul

Hi Beauts.

Over the past week or so I've picked up a few things that were on my latest wish list and thought I'd do a quick post and share them with you.

Skincare 

Asda currently have 3 for £10.00 on their Nspa products, so I bought the oil free moisturiser, melting cleansing gel and youthful eye cream. I can't wait to try them out!

After reading a ton of rave reviews of the Nuxe Riev de Miel lip balm, I decided to try it it.mige used it for the past week or so and I'm really enjoying it

Make up

As soon as Sleek released their new palette 'Garden of Eden' I knew I had to get my hands on it. It's filled with purples and greens, my favourite colours!

Barry M nail paints are my all time favourite nail polish, in particular their Gelly Hi-Shines. So I bought the shade Blueberry which I've wanted for ages

Random

I a HUGE fan of Wallace and Gromit, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. So when I spotted this in Aldi for £3.99 it when straight in my basket!

Well that's it folks. I've been trying not to buy too much lately, but couldn't resist this lot. What I've you been chucking in your shopping basket recently?

Stacey x

Wish List #1

Hi Beauts.

There are a billion and one products that I want to buy, ok probably not actually a billion and one, but pretty close to that. So I decided today to share with you my little wishlist 

* Nspa oil free moisture gel

* Nspa melting cleansing gel

* Sleek Garden of Eden palette

* Soap and Glory Trick and Treat treatment
* MUA Ever after matte palette
* Soap and Glory One heck of a blot powder

* Real Techniques setting brush
* Real Techniques Miracle complexion sponge

* Real Techniques powder brush

What's on your wish list?

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

Review - Sleek contour kit in Light

Hi Beauts.

Being a pale gal, I find it hard to get my mitts on a contour powder or bronzer that isn't either orange or muddy looking. That was until now thanks to the Sleek contour kit in Light

This kit comes with a neutral toned contour powder and a shimmery highlight

The first time I used this I knew I'd found a winner. The contour colour was the perfect shade for my skin tone (me being pale and cool toned) and it was amazing to blend out. There were no orange tones to my cheeks and I definitely didn't look like I'd been having a mud fight (I'm far too old for that kind a thing now........) 

The highlight in the kit compliments the contour shade massively. Unlike a lot of shimmery highlights out there, this one gives a healthy glow to the face as opposed to looking like a disco ball. This is definitely a winning duo and best of all, it's so inexpensive.

The packaging is like all sleek products, black and sleek (just like the name would suggest) and it comes with a handy size mirror which makes it perfect for carrying in your make up bag, or travelling with.

I haven't spotted the contour kits in any Superdrug's, they all have the face form kit which is the exact same thing - the contour and highlight, but with an added bonus....a blush.This duo retails for £6.49 where as the face form kit retails for £9.99, still a massive bargain if you ask me.

The duo kit is available to buy on the Superdrug website and the Sleek website.

Have you tried this yet? Love it too? 

Stacey x

Sleek blush in Antiqued

Hi Beauts.

As you may know, I'm a huge fan of Sleek blushes. Not too long ago I was kindly sent the new Sleek Vintage Romance collection from Tesco Beauty, which contained the blush in the shade Antiqued

When I first opened this up I didn't really think I'd use it much as it's kind of a taupe shade, and I usually go for pinks, berries or mauves. However, upon swatching this I knew I'd get lots of use out of it. It is, to me, a cool toned taupe shade which I've found works great when I don't want to contour. Because of the shade it works as a contour and blush in one. In the pan it does look a little shimmery but that shimmer doesn't transfer onto the cheeks.

As with all seek blushes this is extremely pigmented and blendable. I have been a little heavy handed with this, however that was soon rectified with a clean powder brush. I'm quite pale and this worked great on my skin, if you're pale too just make sure to apply a small amount and use a light hand. I think if you're a little darker you could try this as a contour shade.

What's your favourite blush from Sleek?

Where to buy:

Sleek website - Here

Tesco stores - (Kingston park, Newcastle andGateshead city centre)

Stacey x

31 blushes of October.....week Four

Hi Beauts.

Well it appears we're nearing the end of October already! This has been a funny old month for me for some odd reason, I think I need to go into hibernation until spring :P 

Today I bring to you my fourth week of blushes:

Monday:

Sleek lace palette - Crochet

Tuesday:

Sleek lace palette - Guipure

Wednesday:

Sleek lace palette - Chantilly

Thursday:

Rimmel - Berry

Friday:

Rimmel - Pink Rose

Saturday:

MUA cream blush - Yummy

Sunday:

MUA cream blush - Blossom

Well, that's it for this week. Only one week left then maybe I'll start on the lipsticks.......

Previous weekly blush posts:

Week one - here

Week two - here

Week three - here

Have a great week Beauts!

Stacey x

Sleek vintage romance palette

Hi Beauts.

So, a little while back I tweeted 'Beauty at Tesco' and asked if they stocked the new Sleek vintage romance palette because I couldn't find it ANYWHERE and needed to get my little mitts on it. I thought that they'd get back to me and say either yes they did have it, or no they didn't.

However they were super nice and asked if I'd like them to send it out to me! How nice was that?!! Obviously I ever so gratefully said yes please (I may have squealed a little, but shhhh) 

This is perfect for the Autumn and winter with those berry and burgundy shades. I love that there's a variety of colours too which allows you to create a nice subtle day look, or a dark intense evening look.

There are colours to suit everyone in this palette, and the thing I love is, the berry shades are pretty neutral. So if you're cool toned like I am you can still pull off the colours :)

There's one matte shade 'propose in Prague' which can be used as a transition shade, 3 glitter shadows 'Honeymoon in Hollywood' (the least glittery) 'Forever in Florence' and 'Love in London' Even though these shades are glittery in the pan, I don't find that the glitter transfers to my lid.

Each shadow is extremely pigmented and blendable, what you get in the pan is exactly what transfers to the lid. I've use these with and without a primer and found they worked great- pigmented and didn't crease at all.

Here are some looks I've worn using the palette:

* Meet in Madrid all over the lid

* Sleek contour kit in Light in crease as a transition shade

* A Vow in Venice in outer V and into crease

Same as above, but I added Forever in Florence in the outer V and crease to darken the look

* Meet in Venice all over lid

* Propose in Prague in the crease 

* Romance in Rome in the outer third and into crease

I've used the eyeshadow palette every day since I received it and I'm in complete love with it! It's my first Sleek eyeshadow palette and I shall definitely be buying more, the quality is amazing!

(*Sent for review)

Where to buy:

Tesco stores

Sleek

Previous Sleek blush post - Here

What are your favourite palettes? Any recommendations?

Stacey x

Let's haul shall we?

Hi Beauts. 

As you may or may not know, I put myself on a spending ban throughout September purely because I own a silly amount of make up. However, September has been and gone which means I can spend until my hearts content. Well that's a lie because I don't have a money tree in the back garden.

I have been shopping though, and picked up a few bits that I thought I'd share with you all. None of which, may I just add, were on my October wishlist........

Superdrug online:

Superdrug coconut oil £1.52. I really need a decent hair mask and decided to give this a shot

Superdrug pure cleansing gel and mattifying moisturiser £1.78 each. I'm still on the hunt for the perfect skincare routine, so the testing continues

Batiste dry shampoo 'Tropical' £2.99. My holy grail hair product.....enough said?

Sleek face contour kit 'Light' £6.49. I've drooled over for this for way too long so finally bit the bullet and bought it - loving it btw!!

Fragrance direct:

NYC applelicious glossy balm 'Garnet Gala' 99p. I've wanted to try this and thought at 99p I had to have it

NYC metro quartet eyeshadow 'Riverside Park' 99p. I saw a few swatches of this online and it looked so pretty - into my basket it went

Real Techniques blush brush £8.99. Another product I've been in two minds about, and it was a little cheaper online so who was I to pass that up? 

Other:

NYX Bluch 'Pinched' £6.00. I actually bought this in Next. NYX tweeted about Next stoking some of their items, so I had to run straight out and check out what they had

Radox Cherry blast shower gel £1.00 from Wilkinsons. I LOVE anything cherry flavoured or scented so I just had to get this

Not a massive or really interesting haul but I'm excited to try everything out properly :) What have you been buying lately?

Online stores:

Superdrug - here

Fragrance direct - here

NYX - here

Stacey x

Highlighter overview

Hi Beauts.

So, for some oddball reason I have a current obsession with highlighters. Not the pen but the cheek variety. And I seem to have accumulated probably more than I need if I'm honest, but I can't seem to stop buying them

Today I thought I'd do a little overview of the ones I have in my collection, and maybe you can recommend more to me? *flutters eyelashes*

Lets get on with the show:

* Milani Glimmer stripes all over colour in 'Honey Glimmer' £1.00 - I found this little gem in Poundland and I wish I'd bought a back up. This is a great multipurpose product, each colour can be used as an eyeshadow, the darker shades can be used as a shimmery bronzer, or the lighter colours (which I use) can be used as a highlighter. It gives a very pretty pearlescent sheen to the cheekbones

* MUA Undress your skin £3.00 - This is a product that I knew I had to have as soon as it was released. Again this is a pearlescent shade and it just gives a gorgeous glow. I've also used this as an all over lid shadow before and it looks so pretty. This is very similar to MAC's pigment in 'Pink Opal' too ;)

* e.l.f  Baked blush in 'Pinktastic' £3.75 - I bought this in NYC after watching MsBudgetBeauty rave about it, and I'm so glad I got it. Although this is labelled a blush, I'd definitely say it's a highlight. It just gives off a healthy glow to the face without looking too much. I've also just discovered that this is verrrrrry similar to MAC's Soft and Gentle

* Collection Shimmer & shade in 'Just peachy' (Discontinued? Can be found on eBay) - This is probably my favourite out of the bunch and very clearly my most used. This is another product I picked up in Poundland and luckily I bought a back up. This highlighter is a matte white shade which looks amazing on paler skins.

* Sleek Contour kit in 'Light' £6.49 - This one is the newest in my collection, and one that I haven't stopped using since I bought it. I have no idea why it took me so long to buy this contour kit but I'm SO happy that I got it. This is a nice sheeny highlighter but not as dark as the elf or MAC, definitely for those looking for a natural glow

* MAC Mineralize skin finish in 'Soft and Gentle' £22.00 - Last but not least a cult favourite. I'd been eyeing this up forever and my sister very kindly bought it for me for Christmas! Like I mentioned above, this is VERY similar to the elf baked blush. It has the same texture and finish, but I'd say the elf one is a little more pink toned. This is also probably the only warm toned highlighter out of all the ones I own

Products mentioned in previous posts:

MUA Vs MAC pink opal - here

What are your favourite highlighters? One that is in the very top of my list is The Balm 'May Lou Manizer' I know what I'll be asking Santa for ;) 

Stacey x