Moving onward and upward!!!!

Hey guys!

So this will be my last blog........ on this blog page anyway!

I've teamed up with the wonderfully talented mua Nichola Graham to create a new bigger and better page.
So please come follow us at http://makeupfixirl.blogspot.ie/ for regular updates, reviews, and general fun times! Thanks for the support so far, looking forward to what's to come........!!!

Til next time,
Toodles my loves!

Jen xx

Quick Pick: Rimmel Stay Matte Primer

When I  first started wearing makeup I didn't even know what primer was (except maybe the one you use when painting walls). Now it's a very rare occasion I will ever do my makeup without it. I'm a big fan of Rimmels Fix and Perfect Primer as it's wonderful value for money, so I thought I'd give their newest offering a whirl a few weeks back.

The primer promises to reduce the look of pores and keep shine at bay for up to 8 hours. I'm yet to find a primer that covers my pores the way they promise, but this didn't do a bad job. My t-zone is quite oily, so 8 hours is a bit of a stretch, but I gave it a good 5 hours before I had to powder again. Not too shabby! I do really like this, and probably will repurchase although I can't personally see a massive difference between this and their Fix and Perfect.

This retails at €7.99 on the Boots website, and will last you a while as a little goes a long way! Do you wear primer? What's your all time fav?

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

NYX Concealer Review

My favourite makeup product may in fact be concealer. As long as I can remember I've had high colouration in my cheeks. It's something that used to really bother me, and I found quite hard to cover. Over the years I've discovered products that do the job enough for me to not want to walk around with a bag on my head. But I'm always open to new products! So I thought I'd give these two a go!

Nyx isn't the easiest brand to acquire this side of the pond, but thankfully it's slowly but surely making it's way into some pharmacies. I picked these two up online so choosing a colour was guess work! Porcelain is generally the safest bet when you're as white as me. To say these are good value for money is a bit of an understatement. Although one is a cream consistency and the other a liquid, they both give lovely, buildable coverage.

I use the cream more for the redness in my cheeks (as I can't be bothered with colour correcting when I'm in a hurry) and the liquid for blemishes. You also don't need a whole lot of product as they are quite pigmented. So far so good right? My only slight complaint is that I find sometimes used under the eyes they can crease after a while, but let's be honest most concealers do! Here they are unblended:

I'm super impressed with these and would definitely recommend anyone to try them out if you like your coverage a little more on the full side.

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Quick Pick: Nivea Daily Essentials

As long as I can remember, my skin has always been a little troublesome. My cheeks have quite a bit of red pigmentation in them, and can vary from oily to very dry and sore. I also still have quite an oily t-zone. I have to be careful with what I use on my face. After a pretty severe reaction to a Clean and Clear wash a while ago, I'm pretty wary when it comes to washes and scrubs. However on a whim I picked the wash from this line a few months ago, and the scrub more recently.

I love nothing more than the clean feeling a nice face wash leaves, and as I've always been a fan of Nivea products I thought this would do the trick. It has a lovely clean, fresh scent, and a little goes a long way. It foams nicely and leaves my skin feeling lovely, albeit ever so slightly tight. I use this pretty much every morning, and have just bought a new one as they are on offer in Tesco right now. This is a staple of my skincare routine. The exfoliating scrub is a more recent purchase as I've been dealing with blemishes and blackheads recently. Again it has a lovely scent, and is gentle yet leaves my skin feeling thoroughly cleaned and refreshed. I highly recommend these products to even those with sensitive skin. They really are a budget friendly gem of a line. Nivea is available nationwide.

Do you use a face wash, or prefer to stick with cream cleansers, or perhaps even wipes?

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x 

Collection 'Work The Colour' Eyebrow Kit

Eyebrows... I have an obsession. The first thing I notice on anyone is their brows. I will not let anyone touch my own as it's taken me years to get them how I want them. I'm still not totally there yet. I feel a makeup look isn't complete with brows being filled in, so I picked up this little kit from Collection a few weeks ago as it was on offer.

(NO idea why these uploaded sideways, and for some reason it won't let me flip them) But I digress... This cute little set comes with 3 colours, a brow gel and a little double ended brush. The one strange thing I noticed was that once you remove the plastic packaging there's no where to store the gel. I'm not a big fan of brow gel anyway so this didn't bother me too much. Too be honest I didn't even open it :)

The powders themselves are quite a nice texture and a nice range of colours. I imagine this would be a nice addition to a students kit, or someone starting out in the business. Although you don't have to be an mua to use this, as the colours you don't use on your brows can double up as eye shadows too.

This would be handy to carry in your bag as it also has a small mirror inside and with the double ended brush you can fix brows and eyes on the go! This is priced at €4.99 in Boots at the moment which is pretty reasonable for 3 pretty matte shadows. Are you a fan of Collection? Is it all about the brows??

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Blank Canvas Cosmetics Eyeliner Pens

The first makeup product I remember buying was black eyeliner. I wore it all the time. In recent years I've learned about blending and, you know, not looking like a panda, but black liner has always held a special place in my heart. I own all types, pencil, liquid, gel and pen. However the latter isn't always easy to find, and certainly doesn't always live up to the standards some brands imply. Recently Blank Canvas Cosmetics have jumped on the band wagon. If you know me at all you know I love BCC brushes. They were some of the first brushes in my kit back when not many people even knew who they were. I still use those brushes today. So I was very intrigued to say the least when I saw these two new liners on their page.

First up is Winging It. This is my favourite of the two. It has a long pointed tip which makes it much easier to give a lovely defined cat eye look. You can also create thicker lines with this pen depending on your preference. Second is Borderlines. The tip on this is also nicely however not quite as thin and long. I prefer this for a thicker more dramatic liner effect.

Top: Winging It

Bottom: Borderlines

With a small amount of practice these are easy to use. The dry relatively quickly, are smudge proof, and leave a nice opaque black, slightly glossy line. You can also wear these alone or over shadow (which I was impressed by as I've purchased similar products before that didn't show up well on top of shadow). The only thing I will say is make sure when putting the lid back on you push it down till you hear a click as you don't want them drying out! 

Left: Borderlines

Right: Winging It

I do really like both of these for creating different looks but at a push I'd probably favour Winging It. My eye shape can be tough to create a liner flick on but this made it much easier for me. These are on offer on their website at €9.99 right now. (Normal retail €11.99) 

What do you think of pen liners? Would you give them a try or stick to the old reliables of pencil and liquid?

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Quick Pick: Original Source Shower Gels

There's nothing better then having a shower first thing in the morning to perk you up, or one after a long hard day to help you wind down. I love me a good oul shower gel. And I like to have a few different scents on the go at any one time. I'd never tried any Original Source products before so when I saw these on offer in Tesco, into the shopping basket they went.

They have a few choices, but I settled on Lemon and Tea Tree and Vanilla and Raspberry. I can't say enough nice things about these! They were great value at around €1.50, they both smell fantastic (reminiscent of Loop the Loop ice cream, and those little red and white strawberry flavoured hard sweets!), they foam up really nice, and even after drying my skin off I can still smell the scent of each. Plus, they're vegan, which is always wonderful! 

Are you a fan of Original Source products? 

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Rimmel Day 2 Night mascara vs Collection Supersize mascara

One makeup product I never like to spend a huge amount on is mascara. In my very humble opinion most are very similar, and dry out far to quick to fork out anything over €10. But nevertheless I love trying out new ones. So today I have reviewed two reasonably priced (even if one is slightly over my usual budget!) little gems.

First up is Rimmels Day 2 Night. The 'science' behind this double wand idea is one gives your lashes length for day time while one the other gives extra volume for night time. It's a nice idea, two mascaras in one, but does it work?

Well I'm happy to report back, yes it does! The length side really does give the appearance of longer lashes, while the volume side also does what it says on the tin (provided you don't go to heavy handed with it). It drys pretty quickly, and doesn't flake throughout the day. At €10.19 in Boots, it's definitely worth a try :)

Lengthening 

Volumising 

So next up is a slightly cheaper product, with no 'two fancy wands', yet it left me pleasantly surprised. I picked up Collections Supersize mascara on a whim as part of a deal in Boots. I didn't have great hopes as it retails at €3.99 but boy was I wrong.

It claims to give 'fat lashes'. That's what we all want, right?... I don't know about fat, but this definitely gave me volume and a little lengthening with any clumping at all. It's also possible to build up layers on this without ending up looking like a spider who fell into a bottle of ink. I highly recommend picking this up even if you aren't on a budget. Collection have gotten it right again.

What mascara would be your all time fav? Which ones do you repurchase again and again?

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

The Body Shop Colour Crush Shine Lipstick Review

Sometimes when you're used to the same lip colours it can be hard to venture out into different territories. People tend to stick to the safe colours they know. Yet it can be nice to try out new tones. So here is a lipstick you can do this with, which is still sheer enough to not shock you too much!

I managed it get my hands on three of their shades from this ten shade range. My only qualm with these is that each shade doesn't have a name, but rather a number. However, I can get over this due to the quality of the product. Straight away I noticed the lovely scent. It thankfully isn't that waxy lipstick smell we're all too familiar with, but a much more subtle, sweet smell.

Although these aren't necessarily colours I would normally pick, a swatch on the back of my hand soon showed me just how pretty these all are. They have a lovely wash of colour. I love the shimmer in these too, but this definitely won't be to everyones taste.

I was surprised at how long these lasted, and you don't even need a mirror to reapply these which I found incredibly handy on the go. Their also quite moisturising so that gets a big thumbs up from me as I feel a lot of lipsticks can draw moisture from your lips. At  €12.95 each they're a little more than I would spend on a lippie of this kind, but they are certainly a nice treat! :)

Til next time, 

Toodles,

Jen x

  

Quick Pick: Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water

Sometimes we don't want to read a big massive review on a product. We just need to know is it good, and what it costs, right? So I'll have the odd blog under the title of 'Quick Pick' doing just that!

I've seen lots of reviews on this cleansing water already, but I felt like adding my two cents. I've never been this impressed with such an affordable, simple cleanser.

It literally does what it says on the tin. It cleanses the skin very gently, and leaves it soft and not feeling tight. I also use this to clean off eye makeup. I have used this on myself and many others and have had no complaints or reactions. Many have asked what it was, and where surprised when they found out it wasn't a more expensive brand! It isn't often you find a product that suits everyone, but I firmly believe this will suit most! Plus at €4.19 in Boots right now, it's an absolute bargain which will last you ages :)

Til nest time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Cheaper Brands, Fabulous or Fail? Enter: Creightons

I'm an absolute sucker for a bargain. I might not really want that top, but it's a fiver, how could I not buy it?! In general I try to rein it in a bit more with makeup and beauty products. I probably will wear the €5 top, however I probably won't use the €1 orange lipstick. With that being said, how will I ever find brilliant new products if I don't take a chance every now and then? So begins this blog....

While in Dealz the other day, randomly browsing, a pretty pink stand caught my eye. At first I thought "Wait a minute... isn't that? No they don't sell that brand in here. Do they?" On closer inspection I realised what I was seeing was in fact a very (very) similar packaged product to another glorious brand available in Boots (see what I did there?). Anyway, you can judge yourself just how similar Creightons line is.

They're were a few different products there, but I decided to pick up the 'Squeeky Clean Body Better Body Lotion' and the 'Movie Matte Photo Finish Moisturiser'. At €1.49 each I didn't exactly have high hopes but I've been pleasantly surprised with things I've bought in Dealz before. This time was no exception.

I'm very picky when it comes to moisturiser. My skin can be quite sensitive and I have reacted badly to skincare products before. Also it's incredibly combination with quite an oily t-zone, but dry cheeks prone to redness. Needless to say I was quite anxious when trying this! It claims to give 'camera ready skin that is kissably soft'. Straight away I loved the scent, so we were off to a good start. It's a very fresh, almost fruity smell. Although it looked quite thick in the container it melted into the skin with ease, and immediately my skin felt much softer. I used this for a week straight, both day and night. On my first try, my skin felt quite tight after but this seemed to be a one time thing! Even after sleeping, my skin still feels moisturised the next morning. I'm definitely a fan of this, and will continue to use it. With 100ml in the jar I feel it will last a long time too!

In my eyes, body lotion is body lotion. I've never really come across one that has 'blown my mind' so to speak. But the promise of evoking 'my inner siren with irresistibly soft skin' was to much to pass up :)

Again it goes on it make some fairly big promises 'deeply conditions and moisturises your skin, leaving it touchably soft and kissably smooth all day long'. Sure what more could a girl want?

It has the same beautiful scent as the face moisturiser which was a plus. The formula wasn't quite as thick however a little went a long way. My skin did indeed feel softer, and surprisingly even after a few hours I could still smell the scent on my arms. It may not have lasted all day long, but it absolutely lived up to it's €1.49 price tag.

Overall I'm very impressed. It goes to show that a massive price doesn't necessarily mean a quality product, just as cheap can be more than just cheerful. If nothing else, the packaging is amazing! Do you trust cheaper products, or do you stick with certain brand you know? 

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Sleek 'Face Contour Kit' and 'Corrector and Concealer Palette' Review

Oh deary me it has been far too long..... I'm talking again today about one of my favourite affordable makeup brands, Sleek Makeup. As much as I love them, they do have a tendency to be quite a hit and miss brand. However when they get it right, they get it really right.
Contouring is an absolutely intricate part of makeup since Kim K showed us exactly how her makeup is done. Realistically, the amount of product used to create her look isn't going to fair very well in the average persons day to day makeup, however there's no harm in doing a more understated version of said effect. Our pale Irish complexion can be very tricky when it comes to this, so I generally prefer to use a powder product with a light hand. Enter Sleek...

This kit comes in 3 different colours. I, of course chose Light :) You get a lovely matte contour powder along with a complimentary highlighter. I was very impressed with this palette from off the bat. (I swatched the products quite heavily here so they would show up well in the photo)

The contour colour works well with my whiter than white complexion provided I build the product up slowly. The highlighter gives a beautiful glow, and the tone is gorgeous. I brush this across my cheekbones, down the centre of my nose and put a little on my cupids bow. As a little goes a long way, this is an absolute steal at  €6.49 in Boots.

Of course for the perfect complexion you cannot be without a good concealer! And of course Sleek do a palette to cater to our blemish covering needs.

These come in a variety of 5 different shades, and surprise surprise I've gone for the palest again! In the palette we have a correcter, a concealer and a setting powder. I really like this palette. The corrector and concealer give a nice amount of coverage with feeling too heavy on the skin, and the powder sets them just nicely with being cakey.

As someone who has quite a bit of pigmentation and redness in their skin, concealer is an absolute must for me. I carry this everywhere for quick touchups, and am very impressed by its staying power so far. Again at €6.40 in Boots right now you really can't go wrong!

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Wet n Wild 'Balm Stain' and 'Silk Finish' Lipstick Review

I'm a sucker when it comes to affordable makeup brands. So when I hear of a new brand such as this gracing our shores I'm all over it! However it took me a while to actually get my hands on some Wet n Wild products as they don't sell them in my area, so I'm a bit late with the review! Nevertheless, this is the first of three parts. So read on to see how I faired in round one....
I love new lippies! I have a tendency to go for the same colours, but who doesn't need 12 different shades of red, right?! Naturally the first thing I couldn't wait to try were their lipsticks and lip crayons, so I picked up one of each. So lets start with 'Megaslicks Balm Stain':

I went for the colour 'Lady and the Vamp' which is a lovely rich plum colour. As it's in crayon form I don't tend to use a lip pencil to line my lips with this. It's also super handy for touch ups on the go if needed.

It rings in at 3.99 which is very cheap compared to many products like this on the market today. It doesn't require a sharpener as it twists at the bottom to release more product, though this may make it sightly harder to get a clean edge on the lips when the crayon wears down slightly. It claims to be a moisturising lip colour and I absolutely agree with this statement. It glides on the lips with no dragging, is quite pigmented and last very well during the day even through eating and drinking.

The flash has slightly washed out the colour as it is more opaque in real life. I really do like this and definitely will be purchasing it in some different shades.

Next up we have 'Silk Finish Lipstick' in the colour 'Hot Red':

The first thing I noticed about this was how cheap the packaging looked, but I didn't let this put me off! These are only 1.99 and come in a range of shades from nude to pink to red. The colour is more of a true red than the orangey tone shown in the shot. Again I found this glided really easily on to the lips with a lovely colour pay off. I didn't use lip liner and it didn't seem to feather at all throughout the day. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality and longevity of this lipstick! I think I may be picking up a few more shades in this too. And fyi, for those obsessed with strong smells in makeup like myself, it doesn't have that "typical plastic cheap lipstick" smell!:)

(When you put these in your handbag you may want to pop them in a small makeup bag first as the lids aren't that sturdy and you don't wanna be scraping lipstick from the bottom of your favourite River Island tote :) )

Available in Dunnes Stores and selected pharmacies nationwide

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Blank Canvas Cosmetics F20 Flat Buffer Brush Review

Occasionally while sifting through the world of cosmetics out there, you come across a product that you cannot help but rave about. The F20 brush is one such product!

I picked up this brush over a year ago I think, and haven't put it down since! I had been searching for a brush that would give me a flawless base with minimal effort for those mornings where I was in a hurry. I never liked flat foundation brushes and had been useing a Duo Fibre one. I saw reviews online about the F20 and said I'd give it a go! I literally use this everyday. Even if you aren't used to applying you makeup with a brush, this quite literally does all the work for you. It's bristles are dense synthetic fibres that are perfect for both stippling and buffing.

I've never had such an airbrushed effect from any brush before. I recommend that everyone who does any kind of makeup, be it their own or other peoples, to have it as part of there kit. 

I have lost count of the amount of times clients have complimented how soft this brush is, saying it is like having a face massage while I apply their foundation! This is part of the HD collection on blankcanvascosmetics.com and can be bought in a set or on its own for 13.99. Great price, great quality:)

Til next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Sleek Matte Me Lip Cream Review

Hey hey hey :) So back with another review today. In general I don't like putting up negative reviews, however when I'm reading blogs myself I like to get an honest review. I also had very high hopes for this product.....

So this is Sleeks Matte Me Lip Cream. The blurb from the site reads as follows : 

"Sleek Matte Me is a lipgloss with a smooth matte finish that glides on in one smooth application, with no need for a second coat.

The light as air texture provides you with comfortable wear for hours, that doesn’t cake, flake or dry out, ensuring long lasting colour all day."

The colour was the first thing that caught my eye. Lately I have been venturing into the more vibrant colours for lips so this shade was a must have! Also I love the look for a matte lip (provided it doesn't look dried out). Let me show you want the colour looks like when first applied:

The pictures aren't showing quite how vibrant it is on the skin. It's a quite bright, which I love. Unfortunately it's the only thing I love about it. When first applied it wasn't nearly as pigmented as I imagined. I had to build about three layers on to my lips to get it as opaque as I felt it should look. I immediately noticed it felt dry and tight on my lips. I would have taken it off there and then but I was running out the door to a shoot. Needless to say after an hour and two drinks from a water bottle, it had faded greatly and started to flake. I tried to reapply over the remainder but this just made the flaking worse. So off to the bathroom I went, scrubbed off the last, and stuck with Carmex for the rest of the day. It has since gone in the bin! One of my least favourite lip products ever :(  

If you do want to pick this up(!), it's available in Boots priced at 5.99

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

Reusable silicone mascara wands - a MUST HAVE for every makeup artists kit!

I'm excited to share todays post with you! As a makeup artist, I must use disposable mascara wands on clients for hygiene reasons. I usually pick up the packs in Flair. However I find these cheap looking and basically rubbish for putting mascara on someone. But now, my prayers (to the god of makeup) have been answered! Behold, reusable silicone mascara wands!

I've put the word reusable in italics as this is my favourite part about these. Ordinarily you have to throw out your mascara wands after one go, but these can be easily cleaned with hot water and antibacterial soap making them much more economical. The wands come in various styles. The silicone material also makes it incredibly easy to coat the lashes in comparison to the fluffy crappy wands we're used to! :)

These wands were created by makeup artist Nichola Graham and are available from www.urmakeup.com starting at 3.00 for a pack of 20. Trust me, you need these in your kit. :)

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x

L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara Review

I'll be the first to admit I love nothing more then picking up some new makeup, whether it's repurchasing old favourites, or trying something new. However, I'm never too adventurous when it comes to one product: mascara. 
I usually stick to the cheaper brands (namely Catrice) when it comes to mascara as I feel most are pretty much the same. My lashes are reasonably full (on one eye anyway!) and long enough. I don't feel any super formula or new style of brush is going to really change this!
Earlier this week I was in Boots and the stand for the new L'Oreal Miss Manga mascara caught my eye. I threw caution to the wind and decided to give it a go :) It comes in black, turquoise and purple. I stuck to good old black.

The most interesting thing about this product is the wand. It's their first '360 degree flexible cone shaped brush'. It also contains collagen spheres and a trilogy of polymers for hold and staying power.

So all these claims aside, how did it fair? Well I have to say I really like the shape of this wand. I find it easy to cover all my lashes, even the smallest. However if you are too heavy handed you can end up with spider lashes so tread lightly. With regards to the flexible wand, in my opinion it's pointless. You would need to push the brush quite roughly against your lashes for it to bend at all, so to me it seems like a pointless gimmick. The formula doesn't flake during the day, and it is a deep black colour which I'm happy with. And about it's claim of 'mega volume'... judge for yourself:

Overall I'm not too impressed with this mascara. I mainly only picked it up as it was on sale for 8.99. It's regular price will be 13.49, which I think is more than it's worth. I really don't feel it's that much better than my usual 4.49 one! Although I will use this tube, I won't be repurchasing.

Till next time,

Toodles,

Jen x