A Life Update & An Apology ...

Image: weheartit

Hey there dolls! I hope you're all well and you're enjoying what appears to be the beginning of Summer 2013. Firstly, as you may have guessed from the title of this post, I owe all of my lovely readers and apology. I haven't blogged in about a month or so now, the reason being that I'm coming to the end of my course so I've been stressed beyond belief. I just haven't had the time or motivation to blog, and so I've decided to stop blogging temporarily until early July once I've completed my Media course and I have a stress free break where I can blog until my hearts content. I haven't lost my passion for blogging whatsoever, it's still a favourite hobby of mine - I just want to focus on getting the grades I've been working hard for so I can get into my first choice of university. As I said, the passion I have for make up and beauty products is highly unlikely to ever subside, and I really hope all you readers understand why I've chosen to put blogging to the back of my mind for the next 2 months. 

As this is a life update too, I'll also get cracking with what I've been up to recently. I mentioned in my New Years resolutions that I aimed to loose 2 stone before Summer and I can now officially say that I've done it! Through a very strict diet which turned into a milkshake diet I swear by and the infamous Insanity workout DVD (phew), I've finally hit my milestone and I'm so happy. My birthday is coming up in the next week so I'm looking forward to getting into some bodycon dresses. I also went to the Cosmopolitan Media Masterclass in Covent Garden a few weeks back and it was great - the goody bags were insane. A full size Benefit 'They're Real' mascara and some fake tan? Absolutely winning. I also went to my first ever bloggers meet up organised by the lovely Sophia over at Tattooed Tea Lady (check her out, she's a beaut!) and I had such a lovely time getting to know other like minded beauty addicts. I can't wait to go to more once I start blogging again, and it was a relief to also finally get my hands on the infamous Nars Laguna bronzer! I'm also in the middle of arranging a holiday with my god sister to Marbella (obviously) and were hoping to go mid July. All the while I get to stock up on neon lipsticks and update my Summer wardrobe, I feel a shopping spree coming on. 

I hope you all understand why I've taken myself out of blogging for the time being, and I promise I'll be back with tons of reviews and favourites as I'm sure to accumulate a fair few in between now until then! Have a lovely May and June. 

Lush Rub Rub Rub | Review

Lush Rub Rub Rub - £7.95 (Link here)

Hey dolls! Yep, I've only gone and bought more Lush goodies. I've well and truly caught the Lush bug recently, and I can't seem to stop buying bath bombs and skincare goodies. There's just something about it that gets me weak at the knees and I'm definitely like a kid in a sweet shop when it comes to choosing what to buy. I could happily spend all day in there having a play with all the samples and chatting with the lovely staff about all of the products! Up until now, I've seen Soap & Glory's 'Flake Away' as my go to body exfoliator but that's all changed now as I picked up 'Rub Rub Rub' - everything you could ask for when it comes to body scrubs. After the lovely staff scrubbed this stuff on the back of my hand it just had to be mine.

 It's definitely on the pricey side for such a small pot with a use by date, but I always find that if I spend a few extra pounds on an exfoliator it has good if not better results. What caught my eye was the electric blue colour it carries and the smell described as mimosa and orange flower blossom is to die for. The scent lingers on my skin throughout the entire day which of course is a huge bonus. Although it's quite a gritty body scrub it looks alot more watery at first glance, and there's no doubt always going to be some water residue lying ontop of the product inside the pot. Don't be put off - once it makes contact with the skin it gets to work really well, not to menti0n the salt in it's formula means it can be doubled up to use as a shampoo and shower gel too. How versatile!

I only wanted Rub Rub Rub to use as a body scrub, so the shop assistant gave me some good advice before I went ahead and bought the tub. She told me to apply it to clean but dry skin, as the salt in the ingredients would dissolve alot quicker and therefore you wouldn't be getting the best result. Don't get me wrong, it feels slightly uncomfortable to scrub and exfoliate on dry skin and your skin will be tomato red afterwards, but what it does to skin is just ah-mazing. I can honestly say I've never in my life tried a body scrub that has better results than this. It leaves my skin feeling ultra fresh and smooth, and there's no oil residue to help strengthen the feeling of smoothness. It's a lifesaver if you have stubborn dry skin around the knees or elbows as I have no flakey skin left over once I'm done.

So would I repurchase this? Yes, I definitely would. It's like heaven in a jar and I've happily replaced my trusty Soap & Glory Flake Away with this little beaut. Once again Lush have made a product which hasn't failed to disappoint me in the slightest, and I'll be slightly gutted once I come to the end of my tub.

Instagram Diary #1 | Life Update & Chit Chat

Nandos date with my girls - Swedish House Mafia play their last ever show in Miami - A trip to Muji to buy some new storage - Another new piercing - A quick pose before the gym - Lucky Charms for breakfast - Perks of the job being able to watch football matches - Easter Sunday dessert - Marc Jacobs coke bottles

Hey dolls! I hope you're having a great week. I figured that I rarely do any 'lifestyle' posts so to speak - considering my blog is lifestyle and beauty based, it's good to mix it up once in a while rather than write review after review. I've decided to do an 'Instagram Diary' post every month and update you all with what I've been getting up to. If you're a keen Instagrammer, then I'd love if you took the time to follow me - my username is misskendalwestonx 

I've been really busy lately. With work and my media course coming to an end I've barely had time to think. I finish my course in June and I'm starting university in September ... I'm a little nervous to say the least, but I can't wait for a fresh start with fresh faces. For that reason I'm desperately trying to finish off work so I can enjoy my Summer. Although my Summer will be full with work, I'm excited for some time to myself. If you didn't know, I work at Wembley Stadium part time, so Summer is our busiest time - especially this Summer as we have Robbie Williams for 5 nights and a ton of football on. A job in event management is tiring and means the food you eat is always unhealthy. If you follow me on Twitter (@MissEssex), then you may know I've been documenting my weight loss for the last year or so. I've lost close to two stone in the last year thanks to Weight Watchers and some hardcore gym time, but have made it my mission to get toned up before I go back to Marbella in the Summer and Australia in December. I love Weight Watchers - you can still allow yourself treats (hence the chocolate cake above) in moderation and still loose weight which works so well for me. I was awarded slimmer of the year from my borough in 2012 and since getting to goal I've also been asked to do training to become a representative. The whole concept is a bit scary to me, and I can be really shy so I definitely need to give it a bit more thought. 

Apart from loosing weight, I've also been channelling my energy into researching my DJ training course. I'm a huge house/electronic music fan and if you follow me on Twitter you may know of my heartbreak that my favourite music group broke up last week. I mentioned a while back I'd followed Swedish House Mafia around Europe during Summer 2010, and have seen them in the UK twice so to have something full of memories come to an end was a horrible feeling. I stayed up to watch the live stream of their last ever show streamed on YouTube from Miami and it was really emotional to say the least. Anyway, going slightly off topic now I have a few basic disk jokey skills but I'm really interested in taking it a bit further and learning some new techniques. I do it as a hobby and never really take it seriously, and it's something I rarely mention to people. Only my friends and family really know I do it, but a dream of mine is to spend a season in Ibiza and play clubs - one can dream hey! So I've been looking into getting my skills up to scratch for a reasonable price and once I finish for Summer and have some time off work I'll be there doing just that. 

I could sit and type for alot longer, but I don't want you girls to get bored to your teeth of my ramblings! I'll definitely be back in a month or so with another life update and I'll definitely be scheduling more lifestyle posts on my blog!

March Favourites

Hello dolls! I hope you all had an amazing Easter - I definitely ate and drunk my body weight in food and wine over the weekend so I'm straight back into the gym this week. I find it slightly odd to be writing up my March favourites at the moment; this year is going by so quickly and were already into the fourth month of the year. It feels like only yesterday I was writing my February favourites, but I've been loving a few products this month that I felt I just had to share them with you all. 

I used to use the Liz Earle 'Cleanse & Polish' religiously, but the steep price tag meant it wasn't easy on my bank balance when it came to repurchasing it. I've since rediscovered this little gem, and I would definitely pin it down as a holy grail cleanser. It's the creamiest formula imaginable, and softens/cleans my skin beyond belief. I've also been taking full advantage of the Boots 3 for 2 offer and although I'm besotted with the infamous Lasting Perfection concealer by Collection 2000, I thought it was time to dip my toes into the world of concealer and try something new. I picked up the Maybelline Dream Lumi, a highlighting concealer which is a godsend when it comes to contour and highlighting. It's a lovely texture and I don't find it to be cakey or crease throughout the day either. I've also been using fake tan alot more often recently as I picked up loads at the Professional Beauty exhibition last month. I'm definitely more a mousse person when it comes to tanning, and I'm not exaggerating when I say this dries almost instantly - no more waiting around awkwardly waiting to dry! It's not orange at all and it's streak free meaning you'll look like you've been in the Bahamas and not the Sugar Hut. 

Probably my favourite product throughout the entire month or even the year so far is the YSL Rogue Volupte lipstick. I finally got one after being put off by the £25 price tag, and I'm so glad I did. It takes luxury to a new level and is the best formula of lipstick I've ever tried. Unfortunately I've pushed all my trusty MACs to one side to make room for this, but for the product quality and beautiful packaging there's no turning back for me! Along with using fake tan alot more often I also needed to invest in a heavy duty body scrub. I discovered Lush's Rub Rub Rub at the beginning of the month and have been obsessed ever since. I don't want to say too much about it as I have a full review planned in the next few days, but until then you must know that you need it in your life. I've also been absolutely loving Sleek's Face Contour kit. A double panned contour and highlight duo which compliments most peoples skin tone without looking too 'done'. Both powders are silky soft to the touch and hollow out my cheekbones nicely without looking un-natural. You can tailor exactly how you wish your contour to look, it's buildable and the mocha/vanilla colour combination is to die for.

What products have you been loving over the past month?

L'Oreal True Match Foundation W4 | Review

L'Oreal True Match Foundation - £10.29 (Link here)

Hey Dolls! Happy Easter to all of you, I hope you eat your body weight in chocolate and are looking forward to indulging in some family time! I'm sure I'm not the only blogger out there who has been taking full advantage of the Boots 3 for 2 offer across make up, nails and accessories. I left with more than I bargained for a couple of days ago, but all in the name of beauty I suppose! Some of you may know that my go-to face during the week is all made up of drugstore products as I like to crack out my higher end products over the weekend. I've also made it no secret that I absolutely adore Rimmels 'Wake Me Up' foundation. A week or so ago I felt I wanted to experiment with something completely new. so I picked up the L'Oreal True Match foundation.

Of course it's a no brainer that I love the packaging - give me a sleek glass bottle any day and it's a winner to me! It comes with a mirrored pump applicator and transparent plastic lid, so is pretty handy if you wanted to pop it into your make up bag. I went for shade W4 as it's pretty much identical to a MAC NC25 which I got matched up with a few months back. It does have quite a yellow undertone, which I love as it cancels out any pigmentation on my cheeks nicely. To find your match a bit easier, the shades are broken up into three categories: Warm, Neutral and Cool. If you know your undertone, you can go straight to the appropriate category and figure out your exact shade which makes it a breeze choosing the right colour.

Don't be fooled by the bottle this comes in, the consistency is alot more liquid than I was expecting. At first I found it a little difficult to work with as I was used to the thicker consistency of Rimmel's Wake Me Up, but I soon got used to it. It's very lightweight so is a dream to glide onto the face and blend. What I love about its consistency is the fact it doesn't cake or dry before you've finished blending into your entire face like some drugstore foundations do, so once I set it with my Rimmel Stay Matte powder, my skin has a flawless matte finish. For a drugstore foundation, I was really surprised by the coverage True Match offered. I'd say it's medium to full but buildable coverage, and covers everything if I happen to be having a good skin day. I do still use my trusty Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer under my eyes, but only to add shadow and definition as I go ahead and contour/highlight once the foundation sets. I use Revlon's Photoready Primer and MUA's finishing spray on a daily basis which definitely contributes to its staying power, and I'm never left patchy or with dreaded make up sliding.  

Overall, I think I may have found yet another drugstore holy grail product. As much as I hate to admit it, I think I'll be putting my trusty Rimmel Wake Me Up to one side until I finish this bottle. I love discovering new drugstore gems, and I seem to be spending more and more time in Boots while their offer is on! I've also managed to collect £60 worth of points but have absolutely no idea what to spend them on, so if you have any recent posts on some Boots products your loving be sure to leave your link below!

Hask Argan Oil Hair Treatment| Review

Hask Argan Oil Hair Treatment - £2.50 Primark

Hey dolls! As I mentioned in one of my recent posts, I've become a little obsessed with oils recently. Hair oils, body oils, nail oils - you name it, I love them. Something which is an absolute staple in my haircare routine is argan and moroccon oil. They really do make the world of difference to your hair, leaving it sleek, shiny and in all round better condition. I have to admit that I've tried my fair share, so buying anymore wasn't really necessary. But the Hask Argan Oil was an absolute steal at only £2.50 for the tube. Good old trusty Primark! It comes in a plastic brown opaque tube with a blue pop top lid. Definitely not ideal if you're travelling although it's really compact. I had an accident with my previous tube where the lid popped off and it leaked inside my vanity case - well that experience was horrific to say the least, but it didn't stop me from repurchasing it.

The only way I can describe the scent of this is that it's identical to Terrys chocolate orange - amazing. I find that the scent lingers for quite a long period of time, at least until the next time I apply it. It's not an overly greasy formula and it definitely doesn't weigh hair down, it's more of a watery like texture, but still has the same effect on my hair higher end brands do. It says it can be used on wet or dry hair, I've never personally used it on my own hair dry but it does work wonders on hair extensions. The oil itself softens the cuticles of the hair due to the added keratin which leaves it feeling silky soft and easy to style. I'm not usually a fan of freshly washed hair when it comes to styling as I find it quite unmanageable but after using this it leaves a nice enough consistency to style as normal.

I'm really impressed by this little gem. I'll definitely repurchase this time and time again, or at least until Primark discontinue it. I find it to have become a real staple in my haircare routine and can definitely tell the difference in the look and feel of my hair if I hadn't used it. You need the smallest amount to cover the mid lengths and ends of the hair, so a tube of this size will last a good while. Have you tried this type of Argan oil?Do you find that if you spend more on oils they have a better result?

Lush 'Oatifix' | Fresh Face Mask

Lush Oatifix Face Mask - £5.95 (Link here)

Hello lovely ladies! I hope you're all well and are enjoying the feeling of a brand new fresh week. I promised I'd got my blogging mojo back after lacking in posts recently, so I'm back with a review of something I've been absolutely loving lately. For some reason, I've become quite attached to Lush products recently. There's just something about them which really lifts my mood and make pamper evenings that bit more relaxing and girly. As I'm sure some of you also know, I love nothing better than a good face mask and have bought quite the collection over the past few weeks, one of my favourites being Lush's 'Oatifix'. 

Now if you're a regular reader of my blog then you'll know I'm an absolute sucker for anything with a shea butter/almond/honey/oat scent. I have no idea why, but anything which smells nutty and sweet is an absolute winner in my books! Products with ingredients like this in them tend to be for more dry skin, and although I have an oily skin type I couldn't resist picking this up. With the weather being ridiculously cold recently, I felt that my skin needed a bit more 'oomph' in terms of moisture to restore hydration, so was in search of some great new products to do just that (I've been loving the Botanics Facial Oil too, read my post here). I was tempted to pick up my beloved 'Cupcake' face mask, but after smelling this and have the lovely shop assistant apply it to the back of my hand it had to be mine. The same guidelines with all of Lush's products apply; you still need to keep it in the fridge and it still has a use by date. 

Oatifix is a blend of crushed bananas, ground almonds, oats and honey so as you can imagine works absolute wonders on dry and sensitive skin. It's a really thick formula, but at the same time really nice to apply. It doesn't apply in chunks, instead in glides onto the skin with ease without any product drop off. Other than smelling like absolute heaven, it deeply moisturises pores and eliminates flaky skin after only one use. After I leave it on for a good 10 or 15 minutes, I don't find that my face feels waxy or slippery, just really hydrated and extra soft. As you remove it, it also doubles up as an exfoliator because of the ground oats in the formula, so no more mixing two products for a decent home facial!  

Boots Botanics | 100% Organic Facial Oil

Boots Botanics Facial Oil - £9.99 £4.99 (Link here)

Hey dolls! I've somehow lost my blogging mojo a bit over the last week - I haven't really felt up to posting anything new, but I promise I'm here to stay now! Being a bit of a self confessed skincare junkie, I'm constantly on the lookout for new products to try out. I have an oily skin type so anything which screams 'oil free' or 'deep cleansing' is a winner in my books. 'Why have you been using a straight up oil then?' I hear some of you ask. After doing some research, I found out that by using some kind of oil on an oily skin type, it actually eliminates excess oil (how many times did I just say the word oil?) around the T-zone. I was a bit apprehensive to say the least as I had visions of being an oil slick after using something like this, but I actually have to say I my skin has never looked and felt so great in a really long time. 

'This aromatic oil melts into lacklustre skin to lock in moisture for 8 hours while softening, conditioning, and helping to restore its natural glow. Use regularly to boost the performance of your daily skincare regime'

Whilst I was out shopping, I came across the Botanics range which is a collaboration between Boots and Kew Gardens in London. They offer 100% natural products which all smell absolutely amazing, not to mention all of the products were half price too. I'm not too keen on the packaging, which is odd as I usually really like sleek and simple designs. It's a matte glass bottle with a pipette applicator which isn't ideal if you're travelling anywhere but this is definitely made up for as it's definitely become a staple in my skincare routine. You can never overdo application as the pipette picks up the perfect amount to cover the entire face. It says to apply after cleansing and toning, and it literally melts into my skin; for that reason, I only tend to use it at night. 

I've gone a bit oil crazy at the moment. What's great about this is the fact that it's so multi purpose. You can use it on nails, hair, your body, just about anything. The smell is slightly nutty which of course is right up my street as anything with a shea butter/honey/almond scent has to be mine! I've been using this religiously every night for about three weeks now and I honestly have noticed a huge difference in my skin. It's alot softer, more supple and has calmed down uneven pigmentation in my cheeks. I don't suffer with dry skin at all, but if you were more on the dry side then I think this would be a real godsend. Once this finishes (which will be a long while as a little goes a long way) I'll definitely be repurchasing it, even at full price. Have you tried any facial oils? Have you tried anything from the Boots Botanics range? What did you think?

Sleek Blush in 'Suede' | Review

Sleek Blush in Suede - £4.49 (Link here)

Hey dolls! I've been really quiet in the beauty blogosphere for the past week. I haven't had the chance to just sit down and write as I've been so busy, but I promise I have loads of posts planned for the next couple of weeks or so. I took to the #bbloggers chat on Twitter on Wednesday evening, and shocked a few of you when I mentioned that I've never worn blush. I have no idea why, I just always skipped it and reached for my bronzer to sculpt and define my cheekbones instead. Over the past few weeks I've also been watching loads and loads of beauty hauls over on YouTube, and it shocked me just how many people named Sleek's 'Suede' as their go-to peach blush. With that being said, I decided to take the plunge and pick up one from Superdrug. I absolutely love Sleek make-up and swear by their 'Face Contour Kit', so was hoping the blush would impress me just as much. 

One thing that stood out for me was the packaging. It's a really sleek, matte black case with a slight rubber feeling to it (think Nars packaging) which is so compact and easy to pop in your make up bag on the go. It also has a full size mirror inside which you can never go wrong with. I have one little thing to pick on, and that's the fact it's quite hard to open. Just like the Urban Decay Naked Basics palette, it's really easy to either break your nail or dent the powder inside while opening it. For a drugstore product though it definitely ticks all the boxes packaging wise, and for the price I'm definitely not one to complain. 

What drew me to 'Suede' was the fact it was a really warm, tawny shade. Sleek say it's a blush that 'elicits a wintery mocha glow' which I think is bang on, and although were beginning to go into Spring, I think I could get wear out of this year round. I also love the fact that it's matte as I'm not really a fan of shimmer on my face apart from my brow bone. It's pretty versatile on what it can do too, as it can be used to contour with or used as a blush and applied to the apples of the cheeks. It provides a really warm and natural wash of colour without looking ashy against my skin tone which is definitely a pet peeve of mine when it comes to make up. Another thing which stood out for me was the pigmentation, not just with this blush but all Sleek products. For a drugstore product this is ridiculously pigmented yet buildable if you want a more defined finish on the cheeks. It blends so easily if you were to go in with contour, blush and bronzer and is silky soft to the touch without having any colour fall out. 

Overall, I cannot believe I haven't tried blush sooner - what was I thinking?! I'll definitely be picking up more from Sleek soon (I've got my eye on 'Life's A Peach) and once I get to grips with them properly, I see myself splurging on some high end ones too. Are there any blush phobics out there or just me?

Real Techniques | Core Collection

Real Techniques Core Collection - £21.99 (Link here)

Hey there dolls, I hope you're all well now were approaching the weekend! If you'd have asked me a year ago what my favourite make up brushes were, I honestly wouldn't have had a clue. But a year on, I can safely say that Real Techniques are by far the best I've come across in terms of price and quality, and I've built up quite the collection. One thing I had on my wishlist for what seemed like forever was the infamous 'Core Collection' brush set, and I finally bit the bullet and popped one into my basket at Boots two weeks ago. Since then I've been using them religiously everyday and I have no idea what I done without them, they really are amazing. I always think that using good quality brushes makes the world of difference to the appearance of my make up, and Real Techniques is a brand that never fails to impress me. I recently posted about my favourite tools by them (read the post here), but after discovering the Core Collection, I can safely say I've added a couple more to my favourites.

The Core Collection contains four brushes and a stand alone panoramic case - for a mere £21.99 it works out at just over £5.00 for each brush which is an abolute steal. All of the brushes are part of the base collection, colour coded by the gold toned alluminium handle and the label/name on the side. I love the look and feel of all the brushes from Real Techniques, they're so sleek and I think the colour coding system (gold for base, pink for finishing and purple for eyes) is such a nice touch. It's a bonus that all of the brushes are 100% cruelty free, synthetic and stand up to maintain storage space. The brushes in the Core Collection aren't available for individual sale, however I think you could easily get use out of each brush. The brushes included are;

• Detailer Brush - 'Precision cut to effortlessly conceal problem areas; or, use with lipstick for long lasting shape and definition'. Out of the four brushes, I haven't found that I reach for this as often. I like to blend my concealer using my usual foundation brush, but could see this being great for applying a darker lipstick if you were after a really defined lip.

• Pointed Foundation Brush - 'Use with liquid foundation to build custom coverage'. I'm pretty happy with my 'Expert Face Brush' for my foundation, however I've got some use out of this and I quite like it. It applies my Rimmel Wake Me Up with ease and gets into eye sockets and hard to reach areas but I won't be completely parting ways with my other trusty brush.

• Buffing Brush - 'Ideal for full coverage application of powder and mineral foundation'. This is the one item everyone gets most excited about! I'm yet to get into the mineral foundation hype, but when I do, this will be my go-to brush for application. The flat top makes it so easy to cover a larger area, and as the bristles are longer and wider than the Expert Face Brush, it's alot more flexible to work with.

• Contour Brush - 'Delicately applies highlighter to contour or create sheer, soft-focus finish'. This for me was the one I got most excited about, I love a bit of contour! It's a very similar shape to the Blush Brush, only smaller making it a breeze to really get in to the hollows of my cheeks.

Once again, Real Techniques hasn't disappointed me in the slightest. I think the Core Collection is a great investment to my make-up brush collection, although I'm now on the lookout for nicer ways to store them. They all wash like a dream too, and don't malt like some high end brushes (ahem, MAC I'm looking at you). I'm considering buying the starter set for eyes, so if any of you lovely ladies have any reviews on it pretty please let me know in the comments. Have you tried the Real Techniques Core Collection?

HD Brows Palette in 'Vamp' | Review

HD Eye & Brow Palette - £19.99 (Link here)

Hey Dolls! Unfortunately we have come to the end of the week once again - it always seems that Monday to Friday drags and once the weekend is here it's over in a flash! I hope you all had an amazing Mothers Day and treated your Mum like royalty. I treated my Mum to the tinted moisturiser by Laura Mercier and some bath oils so as you can imagine she was over the moon. We also went out for the biggest roast lunch ever, and I think it's safe to say I won't be eating for weeks now. If you read my blog regularly, you may know I went along to the Professional Beauty exhibition at ExCel a few weeks ago (read my blog post here) and managed to come back with bags and bags full to the brim of both new products to try and some all time favourites. I'm still finding myself trawling through them, but one of my favourite things I picked up was the legendary HD Brows Palette. If you haven't heard of 'HD Brows', it's a relatively new salon treatment which combines methods such as tinting, waxing and threading to achieve the ultimate high definition brow. The company also have a range of products on the market to keep them looking fresh for up to 5 weeks, and probably their most popular product is the brow palette.

I really like the packaging of the palette - a glossy black compact with the HD Brows logo on the front set out into four separate pans with a mirror on the inside and a little double ended brush makes it so easy to carry around for any touch ups throughout the day, not to mention it fits snugly in my make up bag. One of my pet peeves is getting products dirty in my make up bag, but because this isn't a felt material it's easily cleaned and ready for action. Because the show was offering trade prices, I nabbed this for £14.00 whereas the usual price is £20.00, so I definitely picked up a bargain! Alot of people will be put off the price of this bad boy, but it's definitely an investment as it lasts forever and the quality is amazing. I love the look of a well defined, dark brow so I went for the darkest option 'Vamp'. There are three colours available in these, each suited to your skin tone and hair colour so choosing a colour is relatively easy. I decided a few months ago that I much prefer powders to pencils when it comes to eyebrows, so this ticks the box perfectly. 

Clockwise from top left: Nude, Carbon, Dark Brown, Rich Brown

I've become a bit brow obsessed recently, and I have no idea why. This sought after palette hasn't disappointed me in the slightest, and it also doubles up as eyeshadow too, not that I need any more of those than I already do! I combine 'Carbon' and 'Dark Brown' for my brows, and use 'Nude' and 'Rich Brown' as an eyeshadow base. I don't honestly use the brush it comes with, purely because it's such a small size and I find it hard to work with. Instead, I use my Smashbox Angled Brow brush which does the job perfectly. The pans themselves are really good quality. They're extremely pigmented, set in place easily and above all, don't smudge throughout the day. I don't find any problem with colour fall out either which is a huge bonus, and a little goes a long way. I've gotten into eyebrow gels and waxes the last few months, so to set my brows and lock in the colour, I'll go over them with my GOSH 'Defining Brow Gel, and I find they really compliment eachother. 

Overall I'm really impressed with the HD Brows Palette. I definitely made the right choice colour wise, and it's nicely replaced my Benefit 'Browzings' palette. Once I hit pan with this I'll definitely be repurchasing it. Have you tried the HD Brows Palette?

MAC 'Lady Danger' Matte Lipstick | Review & Swatches

MAC Lady Danger Lipstick - £14.00 (Link here)

Hello Girls! I took myself along to Westfield in Stratford on Thursday and only intended to do a bit of window shopping and pick up some hairspray and a few toiletries; of course this didn't happen, and I ended up coming home with bags and bags full of stuff. I finally got my hands on my first YSL Rouge Volupte lipstick too which I'm so excited to share with you all soon, but one thing I had to show you all was the newest addition to my MAC lipstick collection, 'Lady Danger'. I've been on the lookout for a matte red for as long as I can remember, and after swiping this on the back of my hand it was love at first sight. 

I dipped my toes into the 'Matte' finish lipstick pond a few weeks ago when I purchased 'Please Me', and I really love the formula of these. It makes a lovely change from the usual Cremesheen finishes, and I don't find them to be drying either. Lady Danger dons the regular black bullet style MAC casing which I really like, along with the silver band around the tube. The colour itself is described as a fiery orange-red which is definitely accurate to me. Because it has orange undertones, I reckon this would suit people with all skin tones and I love the little pop of glamour it gives to my make-up. I personally think that red lipsticks look alot nicer when I use a lip liner. I used my MAC 'Redd' lip liner to do the job yesterday and the colours really complimented eachother without looking too obvious.

I wore this all day yesterday and was super impressed with its staying power. I did use my Lush Bubblegum lip scrub to prime my lips before I applied it, and it took me up until about 3pm before I needed a top up - I didn't use any Lipcote with it either! Although I love the finish of Matte lipsticks, they do have a tendancy to dry in the cracks of my lips, but this had a way of avoiding that. Over the course of the day, it turned to a slight sheen rather than point blank matte, which still looked lovely. I can quickly see this becoming yet another favourite, and I think it will be great in Summer too. I've got my eye on 'Morange' as my next purchase, which I'll definitely be sharing with you all!

Have you tried MAC's Lady Danger?