Anastasia Beverly Hills - Cream Contour Kit

Anastasia Beverly Hills is a brand I absolutely adore.. but only own one product of. Until now! I'm more into cream products rather than powder, especially when it comes to contour so when this was first released I knew I just had to have it! 

With my skin being dry I thought this would work wonders, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Just last week I got an email from Cult Beauty letting me know this was now available through their website to buy in the UK. Just like I did with Velvet Teddy I clicked the email and bought this straight away. I thought it would sell out quite quickly so I snapped it up as fast as I could. 

This came today (6/05) and I took my pictures before I tested it and couldn't wait to do the write up! When I did swatch this it wasn't as creamy as I perhaps thought however I've had a few products like it where it just takes a few uses to get them really creamy and nice to use. 

When I looked at the colours, if I'm honest I didn't have a clue what half of them were for but I thought that I would try using a few how I thought first and then do a bit of research! Firstly I used Cream as a concealer, Banana as a highlighter and then Cinnamon as my contour. I found these colours worked best but if I'm having a pale day I would probably have to use Nude and Cinnamon mixed together. When I done my whole face I did notice a huge differences and I can now offically say this kit is amazing and one you need to have in your collection if you love contouring as much as I do. Prepare to see this in many more posts! 

Paige, x

Cheap Treat Tuesday.. MAC Dupes

This weeks Cheap Treat Tuesday is something a little different, last week when I purchased some new MAC lipsticks I realised I already had a few lipsticks in my collection that were pretty close dupes! I thought that all of these close matches are relatively cheap and as their a match for a MAC product this is definitely a treat!

These are the lipsticks that I've found dupes for: 

Pink Plaid, Velvet Teddy, Pure Zen and Flamingo

 

And the dupes: 

Snob from Beauty UK, MUA shade 11, The Body Shop in shade 07 and MUA Juicy

MAC Pink Plaid + Snob from Beauty UK

Believe it or not this was my first ever high end lipstick and my first drugstore lipstick too. I cant believe its took me this long to notice how similar they are! They're both matte and both have that purple/ blue undertone and in my eyes exactly the same in every way.    

Velvet Teddy + MUA shade 11

Velvet Teddy with it being matte isn't my most favourite lipstick however shade 11 from MUA is one of my most favourite lipsticks! Shade 11 is very creamy and more pink toned instead of orange like the MAC one. With these I think their similar but not an exact match however when your only paying £1 compared to £15.50 then I think the MUA one is much, much nicer.

Pure Zen + The Body Shop in shade 07

With both of these are so incredibly creamy; Pure Zen is a cremesheen and shade 07 is just as creamy. They're both a very light pinky colour although shade 07 is a little darker. For these I do prefer Pure Zen just as its a nicer formulation and smells so good- unlike The Body Shop ones that smell so fake and plastic. 

Flamingo + MUA Juicy

With Flamingo I thought it was nothing like I had ever seen before.. until I swatched Juicy in Superdrug! Even though the MUA lipsticks are only £1 I really do prefer the MAC one. It's so sheer and for this colour I think its best that its like that. Juicy is a bit more intense and you can only really wear it lightly as its super pigmented. It's also more on the orange side instead of being more coral. 

 

Paige, x

Creating the perfect base

There's nothing like when you look in the mirror and your make up looks so on point- and it all starts with creating the right base. Without taking the right steps or using the right products your face can end up looking dull and lifeless and now its all about creating that glow from within and priming to perfect. 

Starting with a primer I've recently discovered InstaBlur from The Body Shop and after hearing all the hype I decided on a whim just to get it. When I tested it in the shop I felt like it probably wouldn't do anything and yet again I was wrong. This really does blur out your skin making it look so perfect and even, I apply this mainly on my T-zone but concentrating on my cheeks either side of my nose. I was hesitant about this product at first because with anything that has a wax like consistency it makes my skin even dryer and just looks awful, but this however does not (unlike the Porefessional!). I feel like this makes my make up look 100x better and I'm definitely going to be repurchasing this when I've run out. Expect to see this again! 

Something that's really 'in' at the moment is highlighting and having a really glowing complexion. With my skin being a little dull and lifeless I really need all the help I can get and when I'm having a really bad skin day powder highlight on top of my foundation needs a little help. I seen this NYX Liquid Illuminator was a dupe for the NARS and Stilla one so as it was really inexpensive I thought I would try it out. After priming I use this in places were you would normally highlight and it really just lightens up my face and make me look more alive. 

Finally to complete the perfect base you need a good foundation- my favourite one at the minute is the YSL Touche Eclat. Its so lightweight and just so gorgeous. If you want to know more about this foundation you can read my review of it here.

Paige, x

April favourites

 I think this monthly favourites post is the first I've ever done on my blog, yey for new content! Of course I have a list of favourite things however I'm not quite sure as to why I haven't shown you them! April has been a great month for me in terms of mak eup and finding new products so most of these are new things in my collection that I've just been loving!

First off is one of my latest MAC lipsticks in the shade Brave, this colour looks so good on anyone and is just the perfect mauve/ pink that looks good day and night. I find this is a lipstick that I can just chuck on and it looks great with any make up look. I think this is my favourite MAC lipstick off all time!

Next is a product I don't think I've ever mentioned but its the Barry M Dazzle Dust in shade 106. This is a perfect champagne colour and incorporating this loose pigment on top of regular eye shadow really makes your eyes pop! These can also be used wet and oh my does it look good, they turn sort of metallic looking and staying power is just incredible. Be sure to check out their other Dazzle Dusts as the colour range is impeccable.. even having a rose gold one! 

The Undress your skin highlighter from MUA is yet again in my favourites and it never leaves. I've yet to find a highlighter that does a good of a job as this does and for the same price!

Again a new product I've been loving this month is the Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade, I feel like this is a game changer in the eyebrow world and if you haven't picked this up I suggest you do! I know its £15 but its incredible and its bound to last you forever! 

I recently ordered the eye set from Real Techniques and this is now my all time favourite brush, I litterally use this for everything! Mostly for my crease but its also great at blending too and its soooo soft! 

These are all my favourites this month, what are yours? 

Paige, x