A Make Up Counter Grumble

I have had a few unpleasant experiences at cosmetic counters in stores, as have most people. Being matched to the wrong shade foundation and told it looks amazing only to realise when you step outside you are as orange as the counter assistant. Dawn had a horrible experience in Boots when they applied foundation with an old, unwashed brush. Now I've worked in retail and sales, not saying they are the best jobs in the world but some basic customer service would help. There are only a few things I buy from higher end brands, foundation being one. I know what shade suits me, I know what shade I am. A lady on the YSL counter tried to convince me the foundation I was wearing made me look ill as it was too pale. She insisted on applying a new foundation that made me look I had fallen in the mud. 

Many people I know try to go to Boots first thing in the morning to grab things they need to avoid the awful sales pitch and pestering. Last week I went to pick up an eyeshadow from MAC, I picked up of the shelf and walked toward the counter. Like in a normal shop. As I walked across a staff member grabbed it out of my hand, no idea why. No eye contact and just asked for the money. In stark contrast to the service I had at the MAC in Harvey Nichols, a lovely woman helped me find the perfect red lipstick to give to my sister.

The growth in beauty blogs and endless swatching means you don't need to spend as long at a beauty counter, basically grab your shade and go. I like going to Boots, having a dabble with the testers and walk out with a few treats. I have a fairly small "high end" collection. I think many blushers and nail varnishes are just as good at the £5 price point as £20, with the growth in online retail maybe counters might change and become more accessible.

One True Base

 

(L-R Estee Lauder Double Wear Maximum / Laura Mercier / YSL / Bourjois)

 I have given up trying to find my perfect foundation, I now have one of four which I go to depending on situation or what type of day I have ahead. One is pefect for a night out, no SPF so no dreaded ghost face but others have amazing staying power. I have blemish prone dry skin, I am always the lightest shade of "drug store" brands, Ivory by Rimmel for example is always too orange but am not the palest of skin tones. My boyfriend describes me as "porcelain"

YSL Le Teint Touche Éclat foundation BD20 - This was all over the blog world a while ago, so I hopped down to Boots and got myself colour matched and picked up a sample. The sales assistant matched me to B30 which was far too dark. A few months ago my skin was especially dull and I needed a foundation to give me a boost so was colour matched again and an amazing lady in House Of Fraser spent ages with me picking the right shade. I was bang in the middle of BD10 and BD20 so opted for the darker shade as I can sometimes look ill when wearing an exact match! It applies beautifully and is my foundation choice for a night out.

Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation Cream Ivory - Another hyped product, but it was Rebecca's glowing recommendation which made me shell out. The first time I applied it I felt a little disappointed as it looked a little caked on. However a few goes and I realised a little went a long way. The colour is a little off, I think I could easily go down a shade. As you can see from the swatches it is a lot thicker than the rest of the foundations and really important to work it into the skin. 

Estee Lauder Double Wear Maximum Very Light - First thing first, this isn't very light. It is fine for my skin, but the main amazing thing about this is the coverage! Oh my gosh. I have quite a few scars from acne and have to apply concealer and then foundation every day, this helps me skip that step on placement mornings. It also lasts and lasts through a 12 hour shift and does not move until I remove it in the evening. This isn't for the light hearted. 

Bourjois Healthy Mix 51 - Bourjois have recently changed the formula of this slightly to "provide more radiance". This is my ulitmate slap it on and go foundation. I just wish it lasted longer on my skin, even setting with powder doesn't seem to help. It also doesn't provide me with quite enough coverage but is perfect during the summer months when I can imagine the ones above making my face feel very full of make up. I don't need to say more as this is a well loved foundation all over.

So which will I buy again? Estee Lauder Double Wear Max for those full coverage days and my make up bag will never be without Healthy Mix. This must be around my 8th bottle. I'm trying more and more to improve the state of my skin under my foundation these days in a hope I won't feel I need as high coverage.

Seventeen Wet Look Lacquer Eye Liner

   

Seventeen Wet Look Lacquer Liquid Eyeliner

I love black eye liner, I feel a little naked without a quick cats flick on my eyes. I love my eye liner to be black, pigmented and have lasting power. Oh and cost under a tenner because I am forever losing them. This  one from 17 at Boots is only £3.99 and I am actually now on my third pot! It has a thin flexible brush end, I don't like felt tip liners as I find they constantly dry out. This is perfect as an every day eye liner, but due to my lid shape I find if worn over metallic eye shadow on a night out it does pick up the glitter and become less black. But that is my only bad point and that is down to me and not the product. It's not you, it's me and all that. 

So £3.99 for a wonderful little liquid eye liner, excuse my messy eyebrows in the photos below but I promise they have now been plucked and waxed back into shape!

I've created a new twitter account, would love if you would follow it :) @Zoey_Daisy

It will be all white on the night.

Barry M Creme Foundation in White

In my endless quest for a pale foundation I decided to go to the extreme and buy a white one to mix with too orange foundations. In steps Barry M's white foundation. This does come in your usual colours too, however the formulation is very thick. I'm not sure how it would go on by itself! But when it comes to mixing it is perfect. Most "drug store" foundations don't have enough shades so this is just what you need to lighten them a bit. I have found that higher end foundations do cater for paler skin tones, but sometimes they are just out of budget for us student types. 

It is worth buying if you are pale like me, good thing to have in your make-up stash to lighten up foundations

xo

Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Liner

Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner

First things first, I really didn't like this. I love my eyeliner black and black, every day a cat liner flick adorns my eyes. I only ask two things of my liquid eye liner, be pigmented and last all day, especially a 12 hour shift. This isn't either. It comes out grey / black and is nice and easy to draw a line on with. The felt tip end is fine for precise lines. I popped it on in the morning with my normal eye shadow base but by lunch time it had creased and smudged. Boo. This was however free with a purchase from Collection in Superdrug so I am not too disappointed. I will have another go but think I'll stick to my trusty Seventeen Liner, but more on that another day. You my little Collection liner friend may find yourself living in my nail art kit, perfect for leopard print!


Basically, not a fan. There are much better cheap eye liners out there.

xo

Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation

Still on the hunt for the perfect foundation I stumbled accross Vichy Dermablend when watching Lisa Eldridge's youtube video on covering acne.You may have heard of Dermablend after watching the fabulous "Go Beyond the Cover" with the gorgeous Zombie Boy. The Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation promises to give "total coverage" with twice as much coverage as a traditional foundtion. So off I went to Boots and found the foundation amonst the skin care, the lightest shade is "Opal 15" which is a little darker than I usually go for but the model in Lisa Eldridge's video seemed to be of similar shade to my skin so bought it anyway!

 

I have been using Double Wear religiously, it's staying power is unbeatable. It can look a little cakey and of course causes serious Ghost Face. So how does it compare? Well the coverage is the same, you can either apply it as a concealer as in the youtube tutorial, or buff into the skin as with a normal foundation. It blends beautifully into the skin, you don't have to work as fast as you do with Double Wear. You can also build on the coverage easily without it going to cakey. Now the shade is a little darker than I am used to, however I have had more compliments on my skin looking healthier instead of being the same me colour as paper.

It is currently my go to foundation, my skin is worse than in the Blemish Balms post to give you some idea of what it is covering beneath! 

Without flash / With Flash

The flash photograph has no blush on for some reason, I took these photos as I was curling my hair so did my make-up in-between letting the curls set! I am pretty impressed with the foundation, it is aimed at people who feel the need to cover up blemishes / scars and does the job perfectly for me. At £15.50 it is more than your average high street foundation but still cheaper than a high end one. It works with my skin, which is oily in places and dry in others. However the limited choice of shades will put many people off. I do have to be extra careful to blend it into my neck so no clear foundation line, but with my normal pale powder on top it is fine.

Zoey xox

Make-up 2: Lips

(L-R) MAC St Germain / 17 Dusky Pink / MAC Lustering / Models Own Deep Fushia /
Dainty Doll 003 / Natural Collection Cherry Red / No7 Stay Perfect 55

Top to Bottom - 1st Column: Models Own Deep Fushia /MAC Lustering / 17 Dusky Pink / MAC St Germain

2nd Coloumn: No7 Stay Perfect 55 / Natural Collection Cherry Red / Dainty Doll 003

Barry M Bubblegum / Bourjois Effet 3D Brun Poetic /  Avon Plump Pout / ELF Matte Lip Color Tea Rose

Oh if I showed my whole lipstick / lip gloss collection again we would be here forever. These posts however are making me condense my make-up down. I am actually throwing old make-up away! 

My favourites are first Dainty Doll's 003 Lipstick. The range is obviously suited to pale skin lovelies like Nicola Roberts, oh and me. It is such a lovely colour against my skin and is a wonderful lasting lipstick. Models Own Deep Fushia is a new one, I bought on the recommendation of Claire and Hollie and love the colour. The two MAC Lipsticks are no brainers. I really need to increase my MAC collection however I am now POOR. Actually beyond poor. Lastly Elf's Matte Lip Color goes on wonderfully and is cheap. 

Zoey xox

Make-up 1: Blusher

   

ELF Studio Blush Candid Coral - Elf Natural Radiance Blush Glow - Revlon Powder Blush Tawny Peach

Models Own Cheeky Pink - 17 Blush Powder First Flush - Elf Natural Radiance Blush Flushed - MUA Blush Shade 1

Benetint / Posietint from Benefit (free samples from Glamour) - George Cheek and Lip Tint - Max Factor Creamy Blush

Candid Coral / Tawny Peach / Glow / Shade 1 / Flushed / First Flush / Cheeky Pink / Benetint / Posietint / George / Soft Pink

So blusher. I have actually only started wearing blusher in the past two years, I suffer from slight redness to my skin so was all about covering my face in a perfect pale base and didn't think to add blush. Oh how I was wrong. It can completely change the look of your face, from making your cheekbones stand out to dragging your hungover face from half death to looking half decent. This post would be about 5000 words long if I reviewed everyone in my arsenal so have picked my top 3.

ELF Natural Radiance Blusher in Glow - ELF is cheap, even though they are no longer running any 50% off promotions it is still very cheap. This costs £1.50, the packaging is awful. When I have falsies on I can't even open it. Product goes every where but we will ignore these facts. It is highly pigmented, just look at the 3rd swatch along! Gives a lovely glow on even my white as paper skin.

Boots 17 Blush Powder First Flush - I love 17 products and this blush is no exception. I love the colour, it isn't as highlighter pink as it looks in the pot. It blends nicely, I dropped it upside down on the pavement hence mine being slightly chipped. However every 17 blush I have owned has also smashed like this so don't  know if it is a design flaw!

Posietint from Benefit - If you have used Benefit's Benetint this is a little thicker in consistency. It is a wonderful pink colour that suits my complexion. You have to work quick as it will stain your skin (it is a cheek and lip stain after all!) instead of leaving lovely rosy cheeks. It also works well on lips, in fact I always have a pot in my bag. I collected a few from Glamour!

Zoey xox

Organising Makeup

 

- I am currently packing to move into a flat with my boyfriend, which means I need to sort everything. I haven't yet started my new job so have time to pack and sort both of our belongings. Apparently he really does need 5 candle holders and a random statue of Buddha.

- Not having a fixed "home" for the past two years have meant my makeup has been in my handbag, random bags or just lost in the boxes in my room. I have started the throw away and sort procedure but as I am not going to have much time to myself over the next week, staying with my sister, decided to do a little "my makeup" series and will schedule a few posts over the next week

- Anyone got any wonderful ideas for storing makeup? I bought some small drawers from Poundland on the advice of Claire but they are out of control now!

Zoey xox

ELF Review

This is part one of a few ELF reviews I have lined up. I no longer have Photoshop and apparently you can't resize photos in Picasa and then got confused by GIMP. I am now currently having to email my photos to my Photobucket account as I can't upload anything. OMG. Breathe. But excuses excuses. Every time there is a 50% code for ELF I end up ordering myself a little stash - receiving the little brown boxes are a wonderful treat after ridiculous work days. Just got in from a 10am-3am work day.

  Complexion Perfection / Eyebrow Kit in Medium / Complete Coverage Concealer in Light

First up is the Complexion Perfection. As with all the Studio Range the packaging is wonderful, a nice big mirror and the wonderful sleek black. The product itself looks slightly daunting to start with, but for someone like me who has pale skin that is prone to redness it is perfect. It has replaced using pressed powder and is perfect for touch ups on a night out. However it is on the pale side when applied to the face, this is fine for pasty me but when my sister played with it her fake tanned face didn't fair so well. 

Second is the Eyebrow Kit. Now I have dark hair naturally, dyed to a reddy brown but have light thin eyebrows. I usually use Gosh's Eyebrow Kit - the medium colour is perfect for my eyebrows. I am not a fan of pencils for the eyebrow instead I much prefer using a brush. I've heard many rave reviews but am not in love with this product yet. The gel, on the left, is much darker than the powder and you cannot use it like the GOSH wax to just set your eyebrows. Instead you have to be much more careful with application. I will persevere, the little brush that comes with the product is perfect for eyebrows. I am on an eyebrow mission after falling in love with these HD eyebrows but obviously do not have the money to spend on even an eyebrow wax. (This ELF order was my last spend before realising I couldn't actually buy food)

Lastly is the Complete Coverage Concealer. I currently use Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer which is amazing for the price. The Complete Coverage Concealer (mouthful much) has four different shades so you can find your perfect shade. The two darkest ones are however useless on my skin even mixed with the lighter ones. On the website it recommends you apply before foundation, I have always been taught to apply after but even following these instructions it is fairly drying on my skin. But the concealers are highly pigmented and almost cover my dark circles under my eye. But in all fairness I need something much stronger than a concealer to fix them.

Overall I love Complexion Perfection, in fact this is my second one after dropping my first and the powder broke up just leaving me with the green corner. I will persevere with the other two as I do see there positives. All in all I love ELF Studio products!

Zoey xox

Wishful Thinking

- MAC Prep + Prime Beauty Balm

- Mint Carmex Lip Balm

- Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Pencil

- Stila Perfect and Correct Foundation

- Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream

- Benefit Cha Cha Tint

- Models Own Pro Nail Varnish 

- Rapidlash

- I really want to try BB Creams, MACs is already on the market but I have already tried Garnier's BB Cream and am still trying to get the best out of it. What are they? They help "even skin tone and create a natural, naked finish". Perfect!

- Stila's foundation just looks amazing. Simple

- After borrowing my friends Urban Decay eyeliners I remembered my love for coloured eye liner. Currently using 17 at Boot's version but they just don't have the staying power of Urban Decay's.

- Even though I have thick dark brown hair and dark eyes my eyebrows just decided to be different. I pencil them in every day (GOSH's eyebrow kit is perfect for this!) I have heard that Rapidlash can also help eyebrows. For now I will just carry on colouring them in. I actually feel naked without my eyebrows "did".

I am again on a makeup buying ban. I have far too much! However I have already filled my Model's Own basket waiting for the 50% Sale to start!

Zoey xox

Teenage Dirtbag

This is really what is in my bag when I got back from work monday afternoon. A few of these have popped up recently on my google reader, the oldest blogger cliche I'm sure but it is fun for nosey people like me! It isn't lovely laid out selection of high end electricals and wonderful MAC products but you have http://fuckyeahwhatsinyourbag.tumblr.com/ for that.

Make up, medication, work fliers, stolen menus, two purses, hair dye, dry shampoo, hair bands, macaroni cheese, paper...

A second review of ELF makeup is on its way, my makeup bag is slowly being filled up with their products. So cheap and do the job. I obviously don't usually carry hair dye and bleach around with me but this is after a trip to Asda, hence the macaroni cheese! The bleach was in fact to attempt red ends. I'm pretty happy with the result! I currently have no internet, stealing wifi from somewhere but it isn't very reliable so this post has actually taken me 2 hours to even try and post!

Zoey xox

17 Falsifeye Mascara Review

I used to own about 10 mascaras however have managed to lose 9 of them while packing and moving over the last few weeks. The new "Falsifeye" Mascara from 17 in Boots looked good and came with a free Gel Eyeliner. Why not! The mascara itself has a nice big brush like that of Bad Gal from Benefit. So is it any good? 

It is not a replacement for False Eyelashes that is for sure. The big brush doesn't create long, volumized, curled eyelashes like one of my favorites L'Oreal's Lash Architect 4D. It will do for day wear - I like big black lashes even in day time, not one for brown mascara.

Excuse my rough eyeliner skills, was in a rush! But am using my trusty Rimmel Exaggerate Eyeliner. Top is my natural lashes bottom with the mascara on. Too many coats and you would easily end up with clumpy lashes. I tried to take a few better photos but relying on a blackberry camera is hard work!

Now the free gel eyeliner is jumping on the bandwagon of high street makeup brands creating gel eyeliners. They are meant to be highly pigmented and lasting. This is neither. The brush that comes with it looks like a cheap lip liner brush you get in £2 makeup palettes and the eyeliner itself is more of a dark grey than black. I haven't actually applied it to my eyes yet but left it for 10 minutes on my hand and it rubbed off after not even applying much pressure. It is a nice idea but I think they need to re think the formula.

Zoey xox

Eyes Lips Face

I have been meaning to place an ELF order for quite some time. The other week they had a 50% off few days so decided to take the plunge. Quite a few items I wanted were out of stock but still bought a fair few things.

Matte Eyeshadow in Baked Berry & Cream Eyeliner in Gunmetal

These are both from the 'Studio' range. The packaging is wonderful and the included brushes are also lovely. The eyeshadow is a bit messy when applying but this is helped by ensuring you shake all the excess of the brush. It makes a lovely base and has good staying power. Will be ordering more colours of this! The eyeliner   is a lovely metalltic silver, I was going to buy it in black but already have 100 different eyeliners including the Maybelline Gel Eyeliner. It goes on nice and smooth and again has good staying power. Am going to wear it for work tonight (after a week off!) and will see how it lasts behind the bar.

Duo Eyeshadow Cream in Sugar Cookie

This I was less impressed with. I love the colour combination but it doesn't seem to be highly pigmented, as the swatches below hopefully show. It just gives a hint of colour, it is nice on the eye and stays put when put over a primer or neutral eyeshadow but isn't for a dramatic eye look. I will persevere with this as I love the colours and it is so easy to apply!

Just realised my skin is completely different colours in these, it is not the lighting but my fake tanned arm vs. my pale hand!

"High Definition Powder"

I did have more photos of this but they seem to have got lost between phone / camera and laptop. They will turn up in a random photo one day. It is basically a white powder that aims to create a "soft focus" on the skin. It does create a lovely matte look when used to set foundation. My sister used too much and ended up with a ghost white face which isn't the aim. It is very messy to apply and is in a hefty tub so isn't for on the go touch ups. I wouldn't say it masks fine lines as it says on the website but it does create a lovely finish.

"Flirty Eye Lash Pallet"

I often just buy my eyelashes from Body Care so £2-3 a pair. This set of two was £3, or £1.50 with the 50% off code. I've not yet worn them but as you can see from the picture the glue is showing so I don't have high hopes. I am one of those people who can never be arsed to complain, instead I will just try and pick the glue off and if that doesn't work just throw them away. 

Natural Radiance Blush in 'Glow'

Now it might have just been my current false nails but I literally couldn't get into this blush. It took me a while to work out it was a slide packaging. There is a vast difference between the packaging from the 'Studio' range  the normal basic ELF stuff. The blush its self has a nice shimmer and is highly pigmented. In fact the blush on my fingers was just from opening the packaging. I only bought this to see if my yellow based pale skin could handle a coral blusher. The answer? No. I'll stick to bright pinks. But for less than £2 who cares! I would look nicer when my skin has a tan so will just go in my blusher drawer.

I also bought a nail polish in 'chocolate', my sister described the colour as mud, which goes on nice and opaque after two coats and a Small Angled Brush which is perfect for filling in eyebrows - both shown in the top photo. I did purchase the Brightening Eye Liner in Gilded but when I tested it on the back of my hand it just scratched my skin so that's going no where near my eye. Shame as it is a lovely colour.

Will I be ordering again? Yes but I will stick to the Studio Range. I really want to try the Complexion Perfection and the Studio Blushes. 

Zoey xox 

Sorry for any obvious spelling mistakes in this, my computer is now convinced it is American every time I close a window so Spell Check is spelling everything with a "z". I've given up changing it back to British English every 10 minutes and might just throw the laptop out of the window.