Soap & Glory The Perfect Ten Palette

It'd be a crime if I didn't share this gorgeous Soap & Glory The Perfect Ten palette. Not only is it a hyaoouuuge dupe for the ole' Urban Decay Naked 1 palette, it's actually really beautiful and top-notch quality too in my humble opinion.

As you can see, there's a fair few lovely shades, all perfect for day looks. My current favourite combination to wear is Vanilla as an all-over base, Pink T on top, then Aubersheen in the crease (hit pan with these already!). I replace Pink T with Minky when I'm feeling like I need some brightening metallic in my life. I've also been using the palette for evening looks too, as the range of shades cater perfectly for a smokier look too. Loves me a good old sultry eye of an evening.

I've swatched the colours so you get a better idea of how they look on skin. How bloomin' beautiful do they look? The texture of the shadows is super soft and powdery, so I do gather a bit of excess when I sweep the brush over the shadow but it applies fine and holds to the eyelid well without leaving a powdery mess.

The palette is availabel from Boots now for a bargain £10. It's limited edition so be quick if you're keen.

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Effaclar Duo[+] Unifiant review

There's a new kid on the Effaclar block, and it's a corker. La Roche-Posay's Effaclar Duo(+) Unifiant* is probably best described as a tinted moisturiser comprising the same magic ingredients as Effaclar Duo(+) but with added mineral pigments to create a light, natural coverage, perfect for the day.

At times I look at my skin and wonder what I'm doing wrong. No-one (bar the basic bitch) deserves blotchy, porey skin. I often feel guilty wearing a full-on face of foundation, clogging up my pores, so this is where I find Effaclar Unifiant appealing - a moisturiser with the same efficacy of Effaclar Duo(+) but with actual coverage. Guilt-free. Boom.

Nitty-gritty wise; it contains anti-inflammatory niacinamide, LHA (for skin-cell renewal), linoleic acid to regulate oil, and Procerad™ to diffuse inflammation and treat hyperpigmentation. With three Effaclar products sold every minute worldwide, the popularity of the line speaks for itself.

Formula-wise, it's very light, non-sticky and reminds me of a lighter version of the Bourjois 123 CC cream (big fan). To avoid inflammation, it's recommended not to heavily rub in products, and I did find this hard to resist at first but after a few days' use, I mastered the art of simply smoothing it across my skin, and the melt-in texture really helps with this.

I've been using it daily for a couple of weeks, applying after LRP's foaming gel, which I use religiously (see why here). My skin was smoother, imperfections were concealed, and I felt confident enough not to add foundation. Alas, after a long day in the office, its staying power was tested and my skin didn't seem as 'flawless', so I found myself reapplying before after-work goings on. I also tried it as a primer to see how that fared; I was impressed and will definitely be incorporating it into my night-out routine but prefer wearing it alone during the day to let my skin breathe a bit.

While I can't say for sure that I noticed a reduction in marks and colour imperfections (clinically proven to, with 78% agreeing), I can say that I haven't had any breakouts since trying it, and my skin has been less oily. I'll take that.  Oh, and my mum has been complimenting my skin too so it's clearly faring well.

The Cinderella of tinted moisturisers, outshining its sister product of the almost-same name, Effaclar Duo(+) Unifiant is my new favourite daywear product. Interested in trying it? There's currently a £3 reduction online at Boots. Just saying.

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*sent to me free of charge for review purposes

W7 Africa bronzer

I recently reviewed another of W7's boxed products here and have to say I was super impressed with it, considering its price. Who doesn't love a good dupe? And a dupe of Benefit's box o' powders for that matter?

This Africa* powder claims to be an illuminating face powder, and while it certainly is illuminating - aided by the irridescent pink shade - it works best as a blusher in my opinion. As you can see from the swatch on my wrist below, it's too dark and pink to work all over the face...unless that's your thang. 

As with the Honey Queen blusher, I did also find this powder doesn't cling to the brush particularly well, but maybe I need to try using one of my Real Technique brushes, as it could be something to do with the brush it comes with (see first picture). Anyhow, this was an absolute dream to swatch as it showed up beautifully on my wrist; you can clearly see it's very pigmented and a much nicer blush shade than an overall face powder. It catches the light just right and makes for a great illuminator on the cheeks.

These W7 boxed products are a good budget-friendly solution if you can't afford to splash out on Benefit's range. While the packaging isn't the most appealing, this is highly pigmented, applies relatively well, and turns out a lovely plummy shade when the brush is swirled around the whole powder, which is ideal for the cooler months. I really feel like I can't complain about this product when it comes in at a mere £4.95. Yes, it may not be as high-quality as Benefit, but there has to be some element of compromise when you're spending a quarter of what you'd usually spend!

Have you tried W7 Cosmetics before? What do you think of this?

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 *sent to me free of charge for review purposes

Cathy Doll cheek tint and concealer

PINK! Just look at that PINK. This has literally been sitting unopened for a long time in my drawer of goodies, partly because I forgot about it, and partly because I've just not dared to use it yet. I mean it looks SO priddy...it's the perfect colour match for my blog (bet you looked!) and is probably the girliest pink in the world (deffo why I bought it), but it is silly pink and I've just not had the time to really test it out properly.

I spied it in Bangkok airport on my way back from my Thailand holiday, and I'd never heard of Cathy Doll before and haven't actually heard of the brand since, but I've read about the Korean beauty box Memebox on Gemma's blog over the past few months, so I'm aware Asian makeup brands are really quite popular - it's just a shame they aren't really easily available in European countries...unless I'm mistaken?

Anyway, this SPF15 cheek tint and concealer is smooth in texture and easy to apply with the slim applicators on either end. It comes in varying colours if you check out the site, but for some reason the concealer seems to be the same super light shade, and it's only the cheek tint that varies in colour from what I can tell, so this probably isn't everyone's cup of Tetley 

Here's a swatch of it on my arm, and as you can see the pink isn't as luminous as the applicator might suggest, thank gawd. I imagine the baby pink tiny looking lovely on paler skin tones, so I'm looking forward to having more of a play about with this.

I've tried to capture a snap of this applied but I'm not really sure the photo does it too much justice as it looks more rosy here than it actually is...damn winter light. Either way, it's definitely a very pigmented tint and you can really build it up if you prefer. It'd also look lovely on the lips for a really cutesy look.

The concealer is a dream to apply, smooth, creamy and easily blendable; it very much reminds me of Rimmel's Wake Me Up concealer formulation-wise. 

Have you heard of Cathy Doll before? What do you think of this?

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Empties #2

I've finally accumulated enough empties to write another post following my first one here back in August! So here goes, left to right...

Seascape Island Apothecary Body Lotion*

I won't say too much about this one, as I reviewed it when I first started using it. What I will say is that a little goes a long way; to say I reviewed it in July and it's only just appearing in my empties post is testament to that. You can see a more in-depth review of this here.

Yay or nay: Yay

Simple Kind to Skin Moisturising Facial Wash

Winner of Company's best cleanser award in 2011, this face wash does exactly what it says on the tin. It's simplistic: perfume- and colour-free but comprising super-duper vitamins to moisturise and restore skin. I initially bought this as I wanted a 'bead-free' clear wash that would work well with my Foreo Luna Mini (which contains bristles, so I didn't want anything getting caught up in it), and it's been absolutely ideal.

Yay or nay: Yay

Rimmel Exaggerate Automatic Lip Liner (Eastend Snob)

If I'm honest, I don't really wear that much lip liner, purely because I see it as more of a 'nice to have' rather than essential. Just me? However, I have been finding that I miss this a little bit now that it's run out, so I'm thinking I may have underestimated the ole' value of a liner for the lips. Its silky soft texture and fine tip makes it glide on the lips nicely, and the retractable applicator is a bonus! Pencil sharpeners be gone, be goooonne! It's a great base for lipstick, almost like a primer, and I also found that it looked quite nice on its own for a matte look. With the current 3 for 2 offer in Boots, this may well just be going back in my basket.

Yay or nay: Yay

Body Shop Vitamin E Eye Cream

I reviewed this eye cream here, and as I said back then, I do find it difficult to fairly review an eye cream, since it's so difficult to track wrinkles. Maybe I should have tried a before and after photo...note for next time. Anyway, for me, this wasn't anything outstanding, apart from the standard 'I'm so good and sensible for using eye cream' feeling. The only other point I would make with this is that it's quite a thin consistency; with eye cream, I prefer a bit of a thicker consistency as it feels somehow better when it takes a bit more effort to pat it on and gently rub in. So for me, I probably won't be repurchasing this, purely because I'd like to try others for comparison. 

Yay or nay: Nay

Rose & Co. Strawberry Cupcake Hand Cream

You might have read my last post, which mentioned how much I NEED hand cream in my life (see why here!). Anyway, I received this hand cream as part of a birthday gift, and I fell in love with the retro, old-school branding as soon as I saw it, not to mention the gorgeous strawberry scent too. I loved that it came in a glass jar too, making it feel a bit more high-end and perfect to be able to actually see the contents and use every last bit. The jar was easy to wash out afterwards too, making it perfect for reuse; great for when I travel with hand luggage (100 ml liquid restrictions!). Part of the Patisserie de Bain collection, it's a lovely, moisturising cream, and I've already made a mental note to check out their other products.

Yay or nay: Yay

What products have you been emptying this month? Have you tried any of these?

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W7 The Bronzer

Don't be too afraid by how dark this bronzer looks. At first glance, it scared me how much I might look like I'd been tangoed, and I wasn't keen on giving this a try. Hoowwwever, in the contouring age that we've more recently started embracing, W7's The Bronzer* is a potential if you're on a budget. 

The plastic black packaging is nothing to write home about, but you can't expect to have it all at only £4.95! One of the big plusses for me with this bronzer is that it's matte *does a little dance*. My skin is a little oil-prone, so I'm usually a bit wary of shimmery bronzers in case they accentuate this. No-one wants a face that looks like it could fry an egg. Cracking party trick though.

In terms of the application, I didn't find it as easily blendable as I'd have liked; it's the type of powder that when you put your brush to your face, that's where it'll settle unless you put some effort into it, so I felt like I had to put extra care into applying it where I wanted it. As such, I personally won't be using this all over my face as it's a bit too dark for my skin tone; instead, I've adopted it as a contouring powder to accentuate my cheekbones and subtly sculpt my face. I must admit I've not really been much of a 'contourer' in the past but I'm keen to practice as I'm learning more and more how effective it can be!

Overall, this highly pigmented powder will quite possibly be a hit for some and miss for others, purely because of its deep shade. For me, as mentioned, I've found the silver lining and plan on countouring with it.

What do you think of this bronzer? Have you tried it or any other W7 products?  

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*sent to me free of charge for review purposes



Magnetic mani Monday

Today, I'm wearing Nails Inc Trafalgar Square magnetic nail polish, and since it's all special and magneticky, I thought it'd be nice to share it. The metallic chrome grey shade is very on trend and a gorgeous colour for the colder months. The formula of this polish is also smooth and glossy, gliding on easily and reflecting the light beautifully; it consists of iron parts that attract to the magnet (cleverly positioned on the top of the lid, which also actually separates from the applicator making it more user friendly) when held over the second coat. I love the uniqueness of this polish; it's such a clever way to be more creative with your nails without being too much effort at all. And, I'm not gonna lie...there's just something so bladdy fun when you get to the part where you use the magnet. Just me?

What do you think of this? Have you tried any of these magenetic nail polishes? Leave your links if so, as I'd love to see the other shades and patterns available!

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W7 Honey Queen Honeycomb Blusher

Benefit were probably one of the first brands to present their powders to us in the cute, gorgeous boxes that we're all now so accustomed to. It's pretty much their thing, so I was slightly surprised when this lovely powder arrived in my postbox, only for me to see it was from the lovely budget brand I've recently been enjoying - W7 Cosmetics.

The Honey Queen Honeycomb Blusher* is so Benefit-like, I  forget it's not when I look at it! I can only assume W7 were aiming for such comparisons, as we all love a good dupe, especially one at a fraction of the price.

I love the honeycomb pattern in the powder with the differing peach and bronze shades; detail like this helps to make it look higher end for me, and it fits in nicely with the 'honey' theme.

In terms of application, I have to say it doesn't cling to the brush particularly well, and I found myself having to keep sticking the brush back in and sweeping it up the sides of the box.

I couldn't get a good enough swatch on my wrist, so I thought it would be easier to show you this on my fingers…

Even though I couldn't picture a great swatch on my wrist, I do like how this looks when applied to my face. While it looks shimmery, it is very subtle and it adds a lovely highlighted peachy sheen. I actually felt that it worked well as an overall powder for my face rather than blush on its own. Maybe W7 themselves agree after all, since they actually describe it as a bronzer on their site. 

At £4.95, this is a great budget powder and could probably be described as a shimmered version of Benefit's Georgia powder but a fraction of the price. Definitely one to consider!

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*sent to me free of charge for review purposes

The ultimate guide to 2014's beauty advent calendars

Yes, I know it's far too early to be talking Christmas already, but this is one post I don't mind writing! It's my birthday on the first day of advent, so when I found out about the variety of alternative advent calendars on the market, I got a little bit excited about adding them to my birthday wishlist! After hearing about Benefit's super gorgeous one soon to grace our presence (praying I'll be lucky enough to grab one of the 8000 released), I decided to have a nose to see what else was available...and here are the fruits of my Googling!

FYI, I've purposefully tried to include images that don't show the contents; let's not lie, we're all kids at heart and love the surprise factor!

First off, just in case you haven't heard about it yet (have you been hiding?), Benefit's Candy Coated Countdown advent calendar is priced at £60 but holds 24 mini treasures to the value of nearly £110, so it's definitely worthy!

Available from Boots on 29th October, No 7's 25 Days of Beauty Secrets is probably one of the most appealing ones, purely for its quality. At only £35, it packs a value of £130 worth of skincare and makeup goodies including the best-selling Protect and Perfect range. Tempted much?

W7 has only recently been on my radar but I've been pretty impressed by the budget brand and have reviewed a few of their products before (lipstick, chunky lips, mascara, nail art set). At only £19.99 (currently £16.99 on Fragrance Direct), their offering includes nail polishes, lip gloss, glitter pots, mascara and various other bits of make up, ideal for the festive season. This would make for a great calendar for the younger generation.

Selfridges Enchanted Spells advent calendar is available now at £85 and features 24 luxurious skincare, makeup, and fragrance treats from the likes of YSL, Kiehl's, Urban Decay and Lancôme. Not bad at all if you're a fan of high-end brands.

The Jo Malone advent calendar is like the Rolls Royce of calendars price-wise. At a hefty £250, it delivers 24 treats in a combination of creams and fragrances. For your dollar, you're gifted with a pretty Georgian townhouse design, and it's available nationwide on 10th November or earlier from Harrods.

The Elemis 12 Days of Beauty set offers slightly less excitement with only 12 gifts, but the sample sizes are quite generous so you're still in for high-end treats, especially since it's worth double the cost (£59.50, with a value of £113).

Ciaté's Mini Mani Manor is usually a super popular choice and features a gorgeous pretty Christmas house design, consisting of festive nail transfers and polishes for a reasonable £49. Personally, I'll be holding off on this and hopefully picking it up in the sales (I saw last year's on Fragrance Direct for a fraction of the price!).

Available now, 24 Days of Joy is one I'm definitely considering, as The Body Shop will donate 4p to their charity partner War Child (sending children in war-affected areas to school) for every one sold, which is a brilliant incentive and also applies to other selected gifts. It's £50 with a product value of £83, featuring creams, body butters, fragrance, oils and nail colour!

L'Occitane en Provence is another lower quantity offering. However, I do like their justification; it features not 12, but 13 products, in line with the Provençal tradition to present 13 deserts on the festive table! It's nice to tie it in to the brand, and obviously nice to know we won't be the only ones munching on cake and goodies at Christmas time. At £45, you have to wait until 3rd November for this one.

And this last one isn't necessarily beauty related, but it's one I can't help but share! It's a standalone 3D house (too cool!) full of Yankee tea light goodness at £24.99. Heaven! It seems to be out of stock on the official site, but it's sold on Temptation Gifts a little cheaper and on Amazon too.

Update:

I've also just heard about the 12 Days of Christmas from Lush (£49.95). I'm admittedly a tad late to the Lush bandwagon as I've only recently started using their products more frequently, but I bladdy love them! Again, this isn't necessarily beauty, but who can resist their gorgeous products? 

Will you be treating yourself to one of these beauties this winter? Which one is your top pick?

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Sleek Makeup Eyebrow Stylist

I'll be honest; I've never really paid that much attention to my eyebrows. I've always plucked them to keep strays at bay, and I'm well aware of the length they should be, thanks to the whole 'line a pen up diagonally from the outer corner of your nose' trick, but until now I've never really bothered too much about styling them on a daily basis and filling them in colourwise. Nowadays, with the likes of Cara D's lucious brows on the scene, I realise how much of a difference styling them can make. They not only frame your eyes but they also balance your features and of course help to strengthen your facial expressions!

I already have Benefit's Brow Zings but I fail to use it on a daily basis - regardless of my 'I-will-look-amazing-today' intentions; I find the two-step, separate brush effort pretty hard work at fart o'clock in the morning...just me? So, I was purposefully looking for something that was fuss-free and easy to apply in a rush. Enter the Eyebrow Stylist from Sleek Makeup. While there's no compact mirror or tweezers included, at £5.99 this is a quarter of the price of Benefit's set - WIN.

In a nutshell, this is a twist applicator that contains an angled pencil on one end and a bristly grooming brush for styling on the other end. I clearly have no idea what this 'bristly' brush is called in the make-up world, but I digress (if you know, enlighten me!). The unique chiselled shape of the pencil is designed for both outlining using the thin angular side and filling in with ease using the flat side.

I find the matte formula glides on easily, and the 'light' shade is natural and matches nicely with my eyebrows. The styling brush is great for blending and combing through afterwards to set my brows. As you can see from the before and after picture below, my eyebrows do benefit from a little styling! And, yup, I'm aware I still gots some work to do on the old styling and shaping technique, but it's a start eh!

Here's a shameless selfie so you can get an overall idea of how it looks. I'm not big on taking posey photos of myself too much (honest!), but when I'm reading blog reviews I really like to see what products look like applied, so I try to remember this whenever I'm blogging about a product myself.

What do you use to style your eyebrows? Have you tried this eyebrow stylist?

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Mac Mineralize Skin Finish: Centre of Attention

I bagged this gorgeous Mac compact in America back in May for just $23, and I've been excited to try it and review it ever since. I just love the colours and thought it would look gorgeous lightly dusted over my makeup.

Here are swatches of the powder, first the gold bronze, then pink sheen and finally both mixed together, which I think looks gorgeous. While this looked absolutely great on my wrist, I didn't find that it transferred well to my face at all for some reason. Maybe I haven't give it enough of a chance or am being too shy with it, but I just don't see much difference bar a very subtle shimmer when I wear it. 

I couldn't even take a decent enough picture of it applied on my face - not overly impressive. I'm going to persevere with this for a while and be a bit more heavy handed when applying it in future in the hope I'll be happy with the result, but as it stands - and it pains me to say it since it's so priddy - I wouldn't recommend this.



Have you tried this compact? What did you think? Do you recommend any other Mac Mineralize compacts?

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W7 Chunky Lips: Sultry

I've been showing W7 a lot of attention lately, predominantly because they kindly sent me some products to review, and I've been enjoying testing each and every one of them out. You may have noticed I waffle on far too much and find it difficult to avoid using 10 words when one will do, so individual posts on these W7 products is definitely doing your poor eyes a favour (if anyone is reading that is!).

The market has been pretty flooded with these crayon-style lip products; I personally don't see much difference in formula between these and lipstick, apart from the packaging, but it's refreshing to try something new. Here's a swatch of W7's Chunky Lips Sultry* shade...

It's a gorgeous hot pink shade, which is lovely if you're looking for some serious colour. I was very pleasantly surprised by the smooth and easy application; with budget products, there's always a niggling doubt that they'll be awful and disappointing. While some unfortunately are, this - for me - wasn't in terms of formula. It's not as matte as I initially thought, but the subtle shine adds a pleasant glow.

At £4.95, this is cheaper than some others on the market, and the ever-so-slight rattly tube and loose twist applicator gives this away, but I can handle this when the product itself is good. I've tried the Revlon and Clinique version of these products, so it was nice to try a budget version out to see how it compared. I plan on doing a comparison post of these three to see how they compare, so keep your eyes peeled for that! 

What do you think of lip crayons? Do you like this W7 one? Have you tried their products before? I'd love to hear from you!

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*sent to me free of charge for review purposes

Younique Moodstruck 3D Fiber Lashes

When I was contacted by Sarah at Younique about the Moodstruck 3D Fiber Lashes* set, I was intrigued and excited to try it out. I'd never seen a product like it before, and I'm ALWAYS keen to try new mascaras, in case you hadn't already guessed from previous posts (Miss Manga, Makeup Revolution and W7 Souffle).

The set arrived in a smart little leather-style casing, engraved wih Younique's logo - a nice touch and handy to keep both tubes in one place. A little guide was also included, and I have to say that I felt a little overwhelmed initially: a mascara that comes with a special instruction sheet. Should it really involve this much effort? I did wonder if it would be worth it, especially as I quite like to get up and go in the mornings; however, on second thoughts, it was helpful to receive these instructions as this isn't your average mascara after all.







The set consists of transplanting gel (which to me seemed just like a normal mascara) and a tube of natural fibers (from green tea of all things!), which you apply straight after the 'transplanting gel' before it dries. For a better and more long-lasting effect, the guidance recommends you apply a coat of your usual mascara before using this set. I did feel like using a separate mascara of your own beforehand slightly defeated the point, but it seems this is optional.

So, here are some applied pics. I've included a set of before pictures so you can see the difference (note: the before ones include one light layer of mascara as advised).

I was slightly apprehensive of the dreaded 'spider'-lash effect with the slightly more intricate application involved, but I do think it's all in the way you apply and what look you want to achieve. While it was ever so slightly clumpy, I was really happy with the finished look and did feel much more glam than usual. I loved the intensity of the black too. Usually, to me, black is just black, but this somehow seemed 'blacker'!

Here are some snaps of me wearing it on two different occasions.

The mascara and fibers are water-resistant, so I was expecting a bit of a removal struggle (not a fan of the panda-eye look), but I felt this washed off pretty easily with warm water and cleanser.

All in all, I was very pleasantly surprised by this set. While it looks like a lot of effort; once you know what you're doing, it's a doddle, and I'll definitely be using this on nights out when I want my eyes to stand out. In fact, as you can see I've already used it more than once; the before and after pictures were taken the second time I used it (this weekend for my mum's birthday).

Younique will be launching in the UK from 1st October, so I'm intrigued to see how their products will be received! What do you think of these Younique 3D Fiber Lashes? Are they something you'd get on board with? I'd love to hear what you think.

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*sent to me free of charge for review purposes