My Top 5 Foundations

Ello lovelies!
Foundations are probably my most loved item of makeup, so much so that at last count i have over twenty bottles of the stuff. I am forever trying to achieve flawless skin so up until recently I've been on a quest to find my perfect foundation, along the way I've found some that i really love. Although it hasn't stopped me from lusting after a few new ones lately, but no, no new foundation until September, hmph.

Estee Lauder - Double Wear Foundation
If for some reason all of my makeup disappeared, this would be the first thing I'd run in to town to buy. This is my second bottle of Double Wear in the shade Shell, and considering how fickle i am with foundations, that really does say something. Its a medium to full coverage foundation that for me works wonderfully over the top of a silicone primer, or one with a little slip. I have quite dry skin but with gentle exfoliating and a good moisturiser I've had no problems with it clinging to dry areas. I wont go on a night out without it, its long wearing and can survive a hot day, club or even a bit of rain! I just love it!

Skin79 - Hot Pink BB Cream
I'm on my third bottle of this beauty! I actually need to purchase my fourth one of these as a back up. It photographed below weirdly darker than it actually wears, it applies with a slightly grey cast but quickly adapts to your skin tone. It does only come in one shade though so it wouldn't be suitable for medium to darker skin tones. But its perfect for fairer complexion beauties that don't need a lot of coverage! Just be careful where you buy them from as there are sadly a LOT of fakes available online. Waaay back i did a whole review on this, you can check that out here!

Laura Mercier - Tinted Moisturiser
I love everything about this tinted moisturiser, apart from the price. I really am dreading running out of this! Its a smidge darker than I'm used to for foundations, but as it is such a sheer formula it blends into the skin beautifully. Its lightweight, evens out my skin tone and has an spf 20 to fight against sun damage, making it absolutely perfect for summer. I'm trying my hardest to save enough to take on holiday with me. I did a Recent Rediscoveries post on this a little while ago, you can read that here.

Skinfood - Red Bean BB Cream
Now this one was a toss up between this and my Missha Perfect BB Cream. But in the end it came down to what I'd reached for the most! Again, it was another Recent Rediscovery post, as I've been trying to stop spending and use up a lot of my unloved products. I'm so glad i hooked this one out, it has more coverage than the Skin79 and has a lovely dewy finish. This will be the other holiday pick for me as it too has a decent SPF in. Check out the full review here! (Only one more old post plug, i promise!)

Nars - Sheer Glow Foundation
Now my skins soaked up a little sun my sheer glow has been getting a lot more love. Its coverage depends on application and could probably get near to full coverage out of it without being too cakey, although i feel the more you apply the less dewy the appearance. Again, (yawn) I've done a full review on it here, so i won't bang on as you've probably seen hundreds of sheer glow reviews! I just wish it came in a lighter shade, i wear shade Light 2 Mont Blanc as shade 1 was just too yellow for me. High end brands really should make more shades at both ends of the spectrum *shakes fist*.

So thats it! My Top 5 Foundations! And as far as no buys go, i think I've done REALLY well, no new foundation for quite a while now. Although i go to Florida in September, so I'm fully expecting to bring back a couple, or five. Oops!

What are your favourite foundations / bb creams?!

xox

Updated: Makeup Storage

Ello lovelies!
Its been a long, long time since my first ever storage post and its all changed pretty drastically since then. The time where everything fit into a little set of drawers has well and truly passed. Since my last post, i invested in an Ikea Helmer but after a while found that a little cramped so decided to splash out on a larger, more practicable storage solution. If you'd like to see my previous post click here.

My set up is slightly awkwardly placed in the corner of my room which has made it a little more difficult to photograph. Firstly, I'd like to just say... Black furniture is never a good idea. It is a dust magnet and i find myself nearly constantly dusting. I now understand why my mother is so opposed to ornaments and having things on display, just gives you more to dust! Little rant over...

All my hair, makeup and beauty items are stored in this corner of my bedroom so they can be reached easily from my desk. I don't actually do my makeup in my bedroom as my Mum has her "dressing room" with a big ol' mirror that i like take over. The small pink plastic drawers hold random samples, nail polish (i don't have a huge amount) and false eyelashes. The large white drawers are my Alex which holds the entirety of my makeup and has room for quite a lot more. Two of the larger bottom drawers are empty currently and one holds all of my "backup" products. The black shelving unit is an Ikea (dust magnet) Expedit, its a pain in the ass. Its a bit empty as i was currently packing for a few days at the boyfriends house but it holds all my hair, body and skincare bits, with a few drawers spare at the bottom of the unit.

If you have enough space i highly recommend the Alex, its a bit pricey at £85, but its sturdy, doesn't look too shabby and holds more makeup than i could ever expect to own. Like mentioned before, the two bottom drawers are currently completely empty and there is a lot of spare space in other drawers, which to be honest is a bit dangerous because i just can't shift the urge to fill it! haha!

I probably should have tidied the drawers a little before jumping in and photographing everything, oops! These little drawers were a bargain at £5 from Wilkinson's but similar drawers can be found all over the high street and online. They are perfect for storing smaller items that don't warrant an entire drawer of the Alex. Oh and I'm a bit sad and keep stickers, or palette coverings to pop in the front of drawers, not sure why!

A little peak in to the top "indie" drawer!

On an odd note, my brush collection seems to have REALLY expanded, although i haven't splashed out on brushes since IMATS which is slightly confusing! I certainly don't need any more!

I can see myself keeping the storage for a good few years, but the layout needs tweaking because I'm constantly changing it, never happy eh! Hope this post has covered any questions as it has been requested a couple of times. But if you do have any, don't hesitate to drop me a comment and ask!

Thanks for reading!

xox

Future Posts + A Little Bit Of Summer!

Heya Lovelies!
Just a quick little update post from me today. If you're from the UK you'll probably, like me, have spent the last few days basking in the glorious sun. Sun, in England? I know its normally a myth but the weather is just plain gorgeous! So with my week off work I've been spending my time having a good ol' catch up with the bestie and relaxing in my slightly fail paddling pool! I say fail, because its one of those that "inflates itself", well it does if its on a flat surface... So mine is nicely propped up by a lounger. But it does the job!
 

I thought I'd also take today to talk about things I'm planning to do in future with the blog. I'm planning to carry on both my Recent Rediscoveries and my Top 5 posts and work my way through a lot of my unloved collection, that way you get a chance to see products that may not be the current hype, but are good, old favourites. And after a little request I'll be doing an updated storage post too, as it has drastically changed since the one i posted back in the first few months of blogging.

But what I'd love to know is, what would you like to see?

 
What posts interest you the most? And if there any any specific topics, brands or products you'd like to see covered? I really appreciate every single person that reads my blog and would love you to have some input.

Of course I'll still be buying the things i like and sticking to what i love, but if you lot can point me in the direction of new goodies or things i may not have considered, thats great!

Hope your all enjoying the fabulous sun!

xox

Chinovi Cosmetics - Haul & Review!

 Ello Lovelies!

If you've seen my latest haul post you would of noticed the goodies i picked up from Chinovi Cosmetics, well I've finally given them a fair trial and thought it was about time i reviewed the beauties. I used a few shades in my last FOTD post which you can see here.

Chinovi Cosmetics as a relatively new indie cosmetics company, and so far I'm thoroughly impressed! The website is really user friendly and easy to navigate and has soooo many shade choices to choose from, it took me a good while to narrow it down to just eight! I opted for the clam shell sample size which are priced at an extremely reasonable $1.25 and hold a very generous amount of product. The only downside is that with me being clumsy its VERY easy to spill, but a minor downside in my opinion.

My package arrived in a little over a week, which is pretty damn good for shipping from the USA and had some of neatest packaging i have ever seen! Everything was neatly packaged in baggies, with an extra baggie sample (which i forgot to photopgraph, doh!) and my order came with a small selection of American sweeties, which was a lovely (yummy) touch! Postage and packaging is also really reasonable at around $5 to the UK.

Now, onto the shadows!

 Party - Speechless - Nude Pearl + - Smoke Out

 For a little over a dollar that is a LOT of product. I can see myself getting a good 10 uses at least out of these before i repurchase full sizes of a few. Yep, I'm already sold on full sizes of Nude Pearl + and Smoke Out. Those two make the easiest day time smokey eye combo, i am slightly obsessed with them! I seriously need more taupey browns in my collection...

  Party - Speechless - Nude Pearl + - Smoke Out

Cool Runnings - Dream - Tree - Fun Day

 

I'm such a sucker for greens and i've been lusting over a shimmery lime green and yellow for quite some time now, so Cool Runnings and Fun Day have sated my obsession for now. I won't try and describe colours too much, because frankly, i suck at it, but as usual the pictures don't do these justice. They are gorgeous!

 Cool Runnings - Dream - Tree - Fun Day

They are all so pigmented, soft and blend beautifully, i am REALLY enjoying using them. My go to colours this week have been exactly the same as my last FOTD (lazy, i know) I've been loving it that much! Think i may have to place another cheeky order to try out a few more neutrals!

You can check out Chinovi Cosmetics here!

Whats your favourite shade?

xox

FOTD: Chinovi Neutrals

So i have finally gotten around to playing with my Chinovi Cosmetics goodies from my recent haul, hurray! And lets just say, i am not disappointed! But i wont go into that as my next post will be my full review and swatches, I'll just share a quick FOTD with you lovelies!

I've been on a real neutral kick lately, even my Naked palette is getting a bit of love, although on a whole its still far too warm for me. After swatching my new Chinovi shades i fell in love with a couple and have finally found a day time, smokey, neutral combo that doesn't pull too warm on me, yay! Just as per usual, ignore the brows, I've still not mastered those...

Eyes:
MUA - Eyeshadow Primer
Fyrinnae - Pixie Epoxy
Chinovi - Smoke Out
Chinovi - Nude Pearl +
Chinovi - Speechless
Elf - Black Liquid Eyeliner
MUFE - Smoky Lash
Mac - Fling Pencil

Face:
Estee Lauder - Double Wear Foundation
Bare Minerals - Blush (shade update later)
Nars - Laguna Bronzer
Inglot - Makeup Base

Lips:
L'occitane - Lip Balm

They were a dream to apply and such an easy look to do that i think this will be getting a lot of wear over the next few months. Also, I've managed to finally get my skin somewhat clear, I've changed a few things in my routine, like using non abrasive exfoliators and adding a few drops of tea tree to my toner and my skin is seeming to LOVE it! But again, another post on that soon!

What are your favourite neutrals?

xox