Summer 2013 - Plans

Hey guys,

Today I’m going to be planning!              

Making plans is one of my favourite things to do, because it makes me feel organised and I feel like I always know where I’m supposed to be when I have a plan or to-do list to follow (I know, it’s a little bit OCD!)

Anyway, since I just finished my exams, and June is coming up (which means SUMMER for a lot of people) I decided to do a post about the things I plan/want to do this Summer.

(Image courtesy of 1ms.net)

 

1)      Have fun. This will be the most important thing for me to do. I had a pretty stressful first year in college so I just want to enjoy my time off and do lots of fun things throughout the Summer.

2)      Work hard for my show. Every year my dance school has a showcase in the Summer and this year it’s on the 22^nd June. I obviously want to do my best as always and practice lots at home aswell.

3)      After the show, keep dancing. Usually after the show dancing breaks up for the Summer, but this year I’ve decided I want to keep up some sort of dancing class, cause I love it and it’s something different to do with my friends when we’re not in college.

4)      Soak up the sun. Hopefully we get some sunny days in Ireland, but I’m going away with my younger brother to Portugal to visit my Auntie and Uncle for a week in June so that will be a great adventure and so much fun.

5)       Earn money! I’m so excited because I recently got offered a full time job in a local uniform shop for their busy months: July and August. I start on the 1^st of July and I’m so excited!

6)      Relax and treat myself. While I’m working I obviously won’t have much time off so I plan on just relaxing at home, going on walks and treating myself on my days off. Since I’ll have a lot more money than I’m used to, I also want to treat myself to some nice make up stuff or some new clothes. 

And that’s about it. I obviously don’t want to stress myself out with loads and loads of plans and restrictions but overall I just want to be positive and enjoy my time off. If you’re doing exams and don’t finish until mid or late June, just remember to keep calm, do your best and look forward to the holiday you will have afterwards.

Thanks guys, I hope it's been interesting to read what I plan on doing this Summer.

Talk soon,
Leona
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Face and Nails of the day

Hey guys,

 

Todays short post is just a FOTD (Face of the day) and NOTD (Nails of the day)

On my lips:

I just had an exam today but I decided to go for a red lip cause my clothes were black and grey so I wanted a pop of colour. On my lips is a Rimmel lipstick in 110 (from the Kate Moss collection) and a L'Oreal Caresse lipgloss in 200 'Princess'.

 

On my eyes:

I used ‘bootycall’ on the lid and browbone and ‘chopper’ in the outer corner and on the lower lash line (both are from the Naked 2 pallette). To blend the colours to make them look seamless I used the shadow ‘milk chocolate’ from the Boots natural collection. I finished off with a thin line of black liquid eyeliner at the outer corner, black pencil liner on the water lines and on the outer part of my lower lash line. Finally, a few layers of Benefits ‘They’re real’ mascara and then I was ready!

 



On my face: Rimmel ‘Wake me up foundation’  in 100 Ivory, Benefit ‘Erase paste’ in 02 medium, Benefit’ Boi-ing’ in 01, Rimmel ‘Stay matte’ powder on my t-zone in 001 Transparent, my MAC bronzer and an orangey blush from a brilliant palette I got off ebay as recommended by Louise from 'Sprinkle of glitter'. You should check out her blog if you haven't already!

 

On my nails:

 

I love this nail varnish. It’ s a lovely turquoise colour from topshop, called 'gone fishing'. I have had this for about 2 years and I sort of forgot about it but I’m happy to say it hasn’t become gloopy over time and it applies really well. I have 2 coats of this on today with a base and top coat also!

 

 

Thanks for reading this short post guys, I hope this has given you an idea for a makeup look you could try.

Talk soon,

Leona

x

 

 

Review: Benefit's Confessions of a Concealaholic

Hey everyone,

 

Today's (late) post is going to be a review of the 'Confessions of a Concealaholic' kit from Benefit Cosmetics (€39.50). I got this for Christmas last year so I think 5 months is long enough of a test for the product! I love these sets from Benefit as I think they're a great way to try out some of their products without paying the full price for something, or to make sure you will like it - as we all know Benefit is bloody expensive!

 



As you can see, the packaging (as with all Benefit packaging) is GORGEOUS. A definite 5/5.

 

 

In total, you get to try 5 products in this kit. ('that gal' primer, 'erase paste', 'boi-ing' concealer, 'eye bright' and 'lemon aid'). You also get 2 double-ended brushes with the kit that have the names for what they are supposed to be used for on them.

1)    'That gal' primer (€31) is supposed to be a brightening primer that you can wear under foundation or on its own. As a primer, it's good for smoothing the skin so the foundation glides on, but I don't see much of a brightening effect to be honest. I would like to try their 'Porefessional' primer instead and I won't be purchasing the full size 'that gal' primer.

2)   ‘Erase paste’ (€27.50) is a pink toned concealer that is used to correct under-eye circles. At first I tried applying it with my fingers and the allocated brush and I thought this was very hard to work with, as it’s quite thick and sticky. However, it blends really well with a wet makeup sponge/beauty blender or a duo fibre brush. Now, I love this, it’s only downfall is the price. 4/5

3)   ‘Boi-ing’ concealer (€24) is Benefits’ ‘industrial strength’ concealer, and in the kit it comes in the shades 01 and 02. I think that’s a great touch as it means people can mix the colours to fit their skin tone. The shade 01 is perfect for me and I love it, but I sometimes mix some of the shade 02 with it just so I’m not wasting the darker shade. Easily 5/5 even though it's quite expensive, as I think it’s ok to spend more money on something that will hide red patches and spots really well.

4)   'Eye bright’ (€21.50) comes as a pencil in its’ full size. It’s a pinkey milk coloured brightener that can be used to brighten the inner corner of the eye, under the brow or anywhere around the eye really. I personally couldn’t find any use for it, and when I did try it, I thought it was very hard to work with and it didn’t make much difference. It could be a personal thing, but I’m giving it 1/5

5)   ‘Lemon aid’ (€24) was a surprise for me. It’s a yellow corrector that I think looks good all over the lids when I haven’t got much makeup on or if I don’t want to bother with eyeshadow. It looks great and stays on well. However, I wouldn’t pay €24 for it, as I could find cheaper alternatives that do the same thing. 3.5/5



  

This is what the kit looks like when it's opened up.

 



That’s it for my review, as I’ve said, this product is great. I think the kits are a brilliant idea so people can try out the Benefit products without committing to paying the full price.

Thanks guys, talk soon.

Slán,

Leona

x

 

Beauty birthday presents

 

Hello!

Today I'm going to show you the make up products I received for my 19th birthday which was last Sunday the 5th. My mams friend went to America and got me some stuff (pictured below) for a hell of a lot cheaper than we would have paid over here for the same stuff. For now I'll give a first impressions review and maybe in the future I'll do a more in depth review on some stuff.

 

I got almost all of the real techniques brush collection and 2 mac products

 

I'll start with the mac stuff. As you can see below I got a Mineralised Skin Finish (MSF as they're commonly known) in 'soft and gentle' and a Paint Pot in 'painterly'. The MSF is gorgeous, I knew I would love it because of the reviews it has gotten and so far it has definately lived up to my expectations. Its so glowey on the skin and just a gorgeous highlight. The Paint Pot is actually better than I thought it would be. The colour 'painterly' is so nice as a base for eyeshadow and the eyeshadow litterally doesn't budge with this underneath. It's also gorgeous just on its own with lots of mascara on a day where you don't want to be too dolled up. I was worried when I saw lots of reviews of the Paint Pot from girls with all different skin types, but I think It's one of those universal type shades that looks good on everyone - definately try it out if you can !

 

 

The MSF 'soft and gentle' on the left and the Paint Pot 'painterly' on the right

 

I'll talk about the make up brushes I got next. I got a whole load of the Real Techniques brushes, Samantha Chapmans brand. I almost got all of the collection, but as I said they were much cheaper, and the brushes are such good value for money even if you pay the price asked for them in boots or anywhere else that sells them here.

 

The brushes are so well made and really worth the money, as brushes are definitely an investment that will last you a very long time. Btw, I also got this cute make up bag for my birthday.. it's from Pennys :)

 

So there's way too many to talk about all of them right now but I'll just mention the ones that have stood out to me since I got them. Firstly, from the starter set I love the duluxe contour brush for applying concealer, it's absolutely amazing. I also love the base shadow brush and I've been using that to apply the paint pot (or my fingers are good too).

 

 Left to right: Duluxe crease brush, Base shadow brush, Brow brush, Pixel-point eyeliner brush and Accent brush

 

From the core collection I'm loving the buffing brush for applying my liquid foundations, it's great. I'm also using the contour brush to apply the MSF I got, it's a perfect size for highlighting above the cheek bones and I love it.

 Left to right: Detailer brush, pointed foundation brush, Contour brush and Buffing brush

 

Finally I got 4 of the brushes that come on their own. My favourite of those is the powder brush. It's a great size and is brilliant for applying powder to set my foundation. However, I quickly found uses for all 4, especially the stippling brush which I've used for cream and powder blushes, and it's supposed to be a great brush for applying liquid foundations.

 



Left to right: Stippling brush, blush brush, powder brush and the one at the front is the shading brush
 

That's all I'm going to say about the Real Techniques brushes and mac products I got for my birthday.

 

As I said, I'll do more in depth reviews on the products in the future if I need to, but for now I hope you have seen what I like about the stuff I got and I have helped you make a decision about buying something.

Thanks guys, talk soon.

Slán,
Leona
x

Review : Urban Decay's Naked Basics palette

Hello lovely people!

I’m back today with a very exciting review of a product that I have so much good things to say about.

It’s the infamous Urban Decay Naked basics eye shadow palette! Putting the two original Naked palettes aside, I believe that on its own, this little baby is a godsent! A little miracle and something I have sworn by since I picked mine up in February.

As you can see, it's quite small. Perfect for your makup bag in my opinion!

At just €26, this little palette is so handy to have in your makeup bag, perfect for any neutral eye look and an absolute gem in terms of value for money. If you ask me they could charge a hell of a lot more for this product, although I’m glad they don’t!

So, let’s say something about the colours. The palette (as I’m sure you all know) comes with 6 shades (pictured below) ranging from a shimmery highlight shade to a matte black, so you can keep your look very simple and natural, or you have the option to really darken it up and add more drama and definition.

Ahhh they're so beautiful !

 

The colours are so versatile, and often I find myself using them for more than one thing. For example, I use ‘naked’ and ‘faint’ in the crease, but I also use both of those for filling in my brows. I go with ‘naked’ if I want a subtle brow and ‘faint’ if I want a strong brow, like for a night out. In the same way, I use ‘venus’ in the inner corner to brighten up my eye, and I also love the way it looks on the brow bone if I want a shimmery highlight shade there. The list of possibilities is endless with this palette, and I’m sure you’ll find your own new ways of using the colours if you pick one up.

I did have one slight issue, but it’s a personal thing. The colour ‘foxy’ just isn’t for me. This is a real shame because I have another foxy shadow in my Naked 2 palette and neither of them get much love from me unfortunately. I think it’s the tone that foxy is, it’s too yellow for my skin tone. However, that doesn’t mean you won’t like foxy, and that being said… I have to say I still ADORE this palette and I wouldn’t care if there was only the other 5 shades, I still think it would be enough to make me repurchase it if I ever ran out!

Ok, one more thing – the packaging. I just have to mention it quickly because oh my god, it’s gorgeous. It’s a perfect size, it’s very sleek and it feels amazing to hold. It also is very sturdy and it would never do anything crazy in your handbag like open on its own or anything. It’s just great!

'Buy meeeee!'

So I think I’ve ranted and raved about this product quite enough for one day, and without further ado, I urge you to BUY IT!!!

Let me know if you want to try/have tried the Naked basics palette. What would/do you use each shade for?  Do you find any of them have more than one use like me?
Thanks guys, Talk soon.

Slán,

Leona
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