Ghost perfume

This is currently my favourite day scent. I used to use Giorgio Armani, Si, which I love more than Ghost but it's more of an occasional and special scent for me. Ghost on the other hand is a lighter scent that I like to use to spritz myself up after a day at work. It's not a floral scent and I think it's a little musky but not overwhelming.

Also, look how cool the bottle is.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream

When I found these lipsticks on feelunique, I thought I'd hit the jackpot. I'd been looking for nude colours with a matte texture for a long time.

Although the texture and longevity of these lipsticks are AMAZING, I don't really like the taste or smell. I don't know what you would compare it to but it's not nice. However, this does not stop me from using it. The smell and taste goes once it dries.

Even though this lipstick is matte, it isn't drying on the lips. Don't get me wrong, it's not moisturising either, but it doesn't destroy your lips.

My favourite colour is (insert brown colour here). But I've also tried the bright colours which, in my option is just as good as the nude colours.

One of the most appealing things about this is that it's really cheap at just £5.50 per lipstick on feelunique.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (Left to Right: Copenhagen, Prague, Monte Carlo, London)

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (Left to Right: Copenhagen, Prague, Monte Carlo, London)

Birthday Makeup

Today is my birthday and I am 20 years old!

But something that I feel I have spent a lot of time thinking about is the type of make up I wanted to wear. I'm not normally one to put a bunch of planning into my make up. I usually have a group of eyeshadows which I like to wear, and i just throw on whatever i'm feeling like wearing on that day.

I thought I would just add a couple of pictures in here and write what I've got on.

Nars sheer glow mant blanc

Nars creamy concealer chantilly

Rimmel stay matte powder transparent

Mac charcoal eyeshadow on my brows

Nars basic 2 pallette 1st shade as a base, 3rd shade through the crease layered with 4th and 6th shades and then the 4th shade underneath the eyes

L'oreal paris super liner in black

Lancome hypnose mascara

Charlotte tilbury sculpt and perfect contour (no highlight)

Rosy flush tanya burr blush

Mac lipliner spice

Charlotte tilbury K.I.S.S.I.N.G lipstick in bitch perfect

I started with benefits porefessional to help with the longevity of this look

*I actually wrote this on my birthday a week ago 12th April*

The Samples

I know i'm late to the party for most of these, but I'm always reluctant to buy things when they are being hyped up because it's more difficult to realise whether I genuinely like the product, or like it because everyone is telling me it's great.

Lets start with Benefits Porefessional. I use this on the areas where my pores are at their worst. It makes a smoother base without letting my make up slip away. I also love the packaging, it's cute. I never really used to wear a primer, when I first really got into makeup I used a cheaper one from Rimmel I think which would make the base look great for about 2 hours and then disappear, I think this kind of started a reluctance to use any other types. This has also lasted me so long even though it's a really small pot, I mean like weeks. Not only have I fallen in love with this, the area I live don't really have anywhere close by to buy higher branded makeup, but our boots has finally started to stock it, so my bank is going to start hating me.

The second Benefit product is the they're real mascara, I really like this for coverage on the lashes and it adds a lot of volume, but I do not love the heaviness. I have really long lashes so keeping them up and curled is quite difficult, and this just seems to weigh them down. I wanted to like this but it just doesn't work well with me.

Finally is the Lights Camera Lashes mascara from Tarte. This was another one that I always wanted to try but always forgot to buy. To be completely honest, I do prefer the Benefit mascara because this one was too much for me, I found it quite difficult to get my eyelashes to look how I wanted them too, I'm not sure why but I just did not get along with this. If you have shorter and thinner eyelashes I think this would work perfectly, giving length and volume, however it is quite thick.

REVIEW: Soap and Glory Brow Archery

I have been searching for a simpler way to do my eyebrows, something more travel-friendly. I usually just use some chocolate eyeshadow and that does the trick, however it's a pain to have to keep washing my brushes. I had heard mixed opinions on this, some saying it was fairly difficult to work with, and others singing it's praises. I can say that I have loved it for everyday use, it's not as dark as the eyeshadow that I would usually use for a stronger brow, but this makes the look softer. The felt tip type end is meant to be used as a tint, however this is the bit that looks like it's doing nothing when it's actually just filling out some of the more sparse areas. The other end is more like a crayon and works to strengthen the arch itself. I find that it stays all day and is difficult to go wrong with this. It's a lot more convenient. For £10 it's not too bad, but I would say for a budget this probably isn't the best there is. For special occasions I tend to stick with the eyeshadow just because it's stronger and makes my brows more defined.

Buy it HERE 

What do you use to fill in your brows?

That Smooth Base Though

Also wearing maybelline the falsies mascara, Rimmel eyebrow pencil, Mac lipstick in Patisserie and bourjois blush in Golden Rose.

I have finally settled on a few base make up items that I think are ones I have trust in and have learned how to use them to suit my skin. I am super fussy with foundation cause I like the base that will stay put without budging and still look how it did in the first place covering up the redness I get on my cheeks and chin, rare but there are a few foundations out there that do the best that I think a foundation can do.

To start with I prep my skin with the Aveeno Skin Relief moisturiser (Review: HERE), and then just a tiny amount of Maybelline New York baby skin instant pore eraser primer because I think if you use too much it does actually make the foundation slip around, so a minute amount just to reduce any imperfections on the surface does the trick. Then I dot my Nars Sheer Glow in Mont Blanc (pale I know) onto my face and blend it in with the Zoeva silk finish brush, this brush makes foundation so quick to blend and leaves it looking even.

I really like to use the Mac Studio Fix Fluid concealer in NC15, which admittedly I think I would prefer NW15 because I think it would brighten and illuminate under the eyes but the NC15 does the job well enough, giving great coverage and stays put almost all day, it might need touching up once in a whole day but it is good. I just use the same Zoeva silk finish brush for ease of cleaning everything and it blends in well.

I sometimes dip into using the Bourjois healthy mix powder (Review: HERE) and just a Collection bronze glow mosaic powder in Radiant just to put a subtle warmth into my pale complexion.

All of these products can be found online but only some in store. 

Whats your favourite foundation?

Recently Under The Radar

I make a lot of purchases that seem to glide under the radar and so I thought it would be good to put together things that I have bought over the past few months, but don't seem to have made it onto foundmygrace.

   First up, it was my birthday over a month ago, and as it was my 18th my cousins sort of spent a lot on my presents. They got me three things from mac, studio fix foundation, studio fix concealer and mac lipstick in Patisserie. I have absolutely fallen in love with them. I had been meaning to get them for a while, and had never got round to it. The concealer stays put and does not budge, it's not too cakey and I feel that it illuminates the skin. The foundation is full coverage, and makes the skin look naturally flawless even if it is full coverage. Finally the mac lipstick is a perfect everyday colour. It stays put for a good number of hours, it's shade is a my lips but better product, and it's actually fairly moisturising what more could you want for an everyday lipstick shade. These purchases came with a free sample of the mac prep and prime primer, which I think is a good primer but there's nothing special about it. It provides a good base for it but I feel that it just smoothes out the skin and thats it.

   I also may have had a little shopping spree on feel unique and treated myself to a few items including;

1. Ren Evercalm Gentle Cleansing Milk (REVIEWED HERE)

2. Rimmel London Kate Moss Lipstick in 05

3. Nude Magique l'oreal paris Anti redness CC Cream

Also, because I spent enough, I got 2 free samples so I chose to try the Dr Branat self adjusting BB Cream and La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo, I haven't got round to testing the BB cream but The Effaclar Duo I am actually planning on repurchasing, it has helped with redness, moisture and reduces a terrible breakout that had started to show. The Kate moss lipstick is as good as drugstore lipsticks get, it's a nice pink colour. I don't tend to wear pinky colours often but this one is subtle but kind of bright and a little sheer. Thirdly The CC Cream is not something I would ever wear, EVER. It's a little dark, I can never find a shade light enough for my skin. The coverage wasn't very equal and it was just a lot of work, I pretty much threw out the whole tube.

   I am also a sucker for the 3 for 2 deals that go on in boots and superdrug so the last time I popped in I came out with 3 things. Firstly the maybelline baby skin pore eraser is probably the best drugstore primer that I have ever tried. It really does reduce pores, so I actually only use this on the places where my pores show through the most, especially around my nose and on the apples of my cheeks. I also bought 3 Revlon colorstay shadow links, Oyster 020, Petal 070 and cocoa 290 I don't think much of these if I'm honest. They are just eye shadows that aren't the greatest eyeshadows that I've ever used, but they certainly aren't bad. Finally I bought the Revlon Colorburst Matte balm in 240, Striking Spectaculaire, this is an amazing everyday reddish orange colour. It's not too bold, not drying, and the colour holds most of the day.
   I bought some zoeva brushes that, once thoroughly inspected will have a review.
   Finally, the final 3 purchases I got was the Rimmel Exaggerate Automatic Eye Definer which is my favourite waterproof eyeliner. It lasts and lines the eyes perfectly, the other thing is that you don't need to use a sharpener, it twists up which is always a bonus in my book. Alongside this I bought 2 other lipsticks from topshop, Lips in Ooh La La which is a really nice sheer coral lipstick, easy to just glide on on-the-go lipstick, and also the Topshop Lip bullet in Wine Gum which is a purple shade that I haven't loved so much because it gets everywhere and I've had no where to wear it too.

What's your most recent favourite purchase?