July Favourites 2013

Hello There!

So I know I've been away for a while but I'm coming back full speed ahead. And in my opinion there's no better comeback post than a favourites post. So, here come my July favourites. 

MaxFactor Liquid Illusion Foundation: So at the beginning of this month it was cooler so I was still wearing full foundations, and I was really enjoying the Liquid Illusion foundation. Basically I was really enjoying the finish. It's a dewey, not shiny finish and your skin just looks flawless. It's a medium-full coverage, but it is way way way too heavy for the weather we're having in the UK at the moment, so I'll probably put this bad boy away until November time. 

Barry M Lash Vegas: I'd been getting a bit bored of my mascara routine and when I was looking through my mascaras I decided to try this again, and just fell in love again. I think I get a bit caught up in my love for products and so the other products just get overlooked. On the plus side, it's great to rediscover a great product! Full review here.

Avon Supershock Gel Eyeliner:  I've really been enjoying these eyeliners this month. I've only recently discovered gel eyeliners because I've always been a bit wary of them. I'm rubbish with liquid liner and never like the way it looks on me, so pencil/kajal eyeliner's have been my saviours. But, I've been branching out and these are just fabulous. They are so easy to apply, because they have exactly the same consistency as potted gel eyeliners but in stick form! These are the two colours that I have - Black and Blackberry. Blackberry is the most beautiful deep purple-black and looks amazing on green eyes, and the black is beautifully pigmented. 

Full reviews coming soon :)

Elf Daily Brush Cleaner: I mentioned that I liked this in my ELF haul last month, and I've put it in my July favourites simply because I've been loving it for the whole month, and I'm sure the love will continue for August...

Joursna Blush Brush: This is a brush I bought from ebay a while ago. This seems to be a knock-off version of the Real Techniques brushes. I have since bought the genuine articles and realised that it isn't really a dupe for any brush in particular. It is a very special brush. It is actually amazing. I completely love it. It is a complete multi-tasker - blush, contour, highlight it does it all. If you have a spare £2.50 then you need this in your collection! Available here.

Elf Contouring Blush & Bronzer Powder: I've been on the move a bit this month and I've enjoyed this because not only is it great quality, but also a massive space saver in my makeup case. The bronzer doubles as contour as well as bronzer and the blush doubles as blush and highlighter. I can't pack lightly so I take other blushes and bronzers and whatnot, but in when you're in a rush this is perfect product. 

L'Oreal 3-In-1 Micellar Solution: This is a new staple in my skincare routine. It's just completely fabulous. There's nothing more I can say except full review soon :)

So, I hope that you've been inspired to try some of these products - they truly are great products, I wouldn't mention them otherwise! 

What are your favourites this month? 

Let me know in a comment!

Ciao for now, G x

ELF Haul!!!

Hello There!

So, recently ELF has been calling to me and I had to answer. So this is what happened...

 I've seen bigger hauls out there, but for me this is pretty big all in one go. I usually space orders out. But I really enjoyed this haul because I could get my hands on several 'must-have' products that get raved about a lot. 

I've tried most of these products out now and I thought I'd just go through and give you a first impressions/worth the hype? type description on a few. So here I go...

Elf Essentials Tinted Moisturiser: This is a disappointment for me. I bought spares of this as well because I thought if I like it, it will be cheaper to just buy more now than paying shipping again. How wrong was I. It's fine on its own, as a moisturiser, although you do have to use a lot. But the minute you apply contour/blush/bronzer the moisturiser comes off. And it doesn't matter if I use a brush or a sponge or my fingers, I just can't get it to work :/

Elf Studio Lip Exfoliator: This is really good. Like really good. I've got the Lush Lip Scrub in Bubblegum, but I actually prefer this. Yes, they both smell insanely delicious, and both exfoliate to give nice soft lips. But the Elf one cuts the mustard just a little bit more because it's in stick form. It's so much more convenient and less messy and even handbag friendly!

Elf Studio Complexion Brush: I know there are great reviews for the Kabuki Brush and Powder Brush and yeah they are good brushes, but they really don't come close to the complexion brush in my opinion, and I don't think it gets enough attention. I really like this for applying bronzer. I prefer to the other brushes that I have, and for me this was the gem of the order!

Elf Studio Daily Brush Cleaner: I haven't used another type of daily brush cleaner before so I have nothing to compare it to. However, I can compare having a daily cleaner to not having a daily cleaner. And it is Amazing. I feel so much better now that I know that germs aren't reproducing on my brushes during the week. I've bought spares of this because I don't want to be without it!

What are your favourite Elf products? Let me know in a comment!

Ciao for now, G x

Hauling It About | Drugstore Hauls | Elf, MUA, W7

Hello There!

I've been hauling it about recently so I thought I'd show you some of my spoils from my sprees. 

I've noticed that we don't really cherish the really budget brands over here in the UK. I know that MUA has made its name in the budget make-up zone recently, but before that range came out, the other budget brands - technic and w7 were usually overlooked.  

Whereas in the USA - ELF has long been regarded as a 'good quality' but insanely affordable make-up range. So I went on their site to grab the Mineral Eyeshadow Primer and then I saw on their site that it was buy-one-get-one-free and I couldn't not buy more stuff off it. Oh well...  So, apparently their blushes are great, so I was sure to pick one up - this one is 'Candid Coral' and I'm really excited to try it out!

The other pick I've been enjoying is the w7 Honolulu bronzer, which is amazing. It's evidently a dupe for the Benefit Hoola bronzer, but I think this is just as good. At a measly £2, I'd have tried it anyway because I always get excited when I find a really cheap product with the same quality as a higher end product - those gems have to be found somehow!

And an update on me would be that I've had some highlights put in my hair, which I'm going to be building up because I want a lighter look for summer, but I may give up on them and just dye it blonde. I've done the sad thing of using Photoshop to make my hair blonde, and I'm not sure whether that with my skin tone I'm going to look really washed out, so I thought I'd start with the highlights. I used to dye my hair blonde from when I was 10-12yrs old (I actually can't believe my parents let me!), anyway, my skintone has just got paler and paler since then, so it might not be the same now. But it has taken me this long to dye my hair again - I had to grow my blonde out last time, and it took 2 years - I looked incredibly strange until it  grew out of my fringe.... So I've decided to do it all over again :)

Have you been hauling it about recently? Are you changing your hair for summer?

Let me know in a comment  - I'd love to know!

Ciao for now, G x