Current favourites

This week I have been loving these four little lovelies in my day to day make-up routine...

Clarins Ever Matte Foundation*

I love the texture and finish of this, it's matte - but not too matte. Plus it still feels moisturising rather than drying like other matte foundations can be. It also lasts all day long without need to touch up or reapply. I've been topping this off with a little bit of my favourite Bare Minerals Foundation which really sets it.

Urban Decay All Nighter Spray

This is the mini sized setting spray from Urban Decay - I think this has played a part in keeping my foundations lasting through work and into the evening.

Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer*

I mentioned this in my recent YT video as a favourite and wanted to put it out there again - I'm loving this as my current under-eye concealer. This is seriously creamy, blends so easily and then the light powder sets it so it doesn't budge. I've been using a concealer brush to apply the cream and the Sigma 224 for the powder.

New CID i-mousse 'Tourmaline'*

I mentioned this one earlier this week and have been using this all week - I've become really obsessed with pinky eye shades (I need to do a post on my three favourites actually...)

What are your weekly favourites?

* denotes PR sample.

Currently loving...

These are three of my current make-up favourites that I'm using on a daily basis...

Clinique Superbalanced Makeup*:

I'm sure I tried this years ago and liked it, but it didn't blow me away. But I tried it again recently and I'm loving it. I find it really works for combination skin - keeps oily bits healthy, not too matte whilst keeping dry bits hydrated. I also find the Alabaster colour is a great match skin tone wise.

Benefit Hervana*:

Absolutely adore this blusher, the shade is a lovely warm pink that I find really flattering and lasts all day. Plus it hasn't got a heavy shimmer, so it's ideal for daytime when shimmer can be a bit disco ball.

MAC All That Glitters eye shadow:

It looks almost like Satin Taupe here!? But it's a much lighter peachy pink than it seems. Perfect for an easy early morning eye look. No faffing around with multiple shades - just one dust of colour and I'm done!

What are your current faves?


Items with * are PR samples.

Current favourites

I've been loving a few beauty bits recently, using them every day so thought it was worth doing a little round up post on what they are and why I love them...

YSL Shocking Mascara* - I love this mascara. It's dramatic and a little more on the clumpy side than I'm used to but I love the effect. It delivers super dark, thick but still long lashes. I will do a whole post with a review of this, but I'm loving it.

MAC MSF in 'By Candlelight' - This is my favourite of the MSF's I have, a peachy pink shimmery colour which delivers a glow. I used to avoid wearing MSF's in the day time but I've decided that I actually like the radiance they offer at the moment so I've been really liking it as a blusher in the daytime.

Top-Bottom:
Nars Concealer
Max Factor Lipstick
MAC MSF

NARS Concealer in 'Honey'* - For some reason I was convinced in my head that this was going to be a thick and chalky concealer that wasn't suitable for under my eyes. But when I gave it a try I discovered I was totally and utterly wrong. It's light, creamy, blends like a dream and has just enough peachy tones to make it ideal for concealing under the eyes. I love it. I've been using this with a big fluffy blending brush to conceal dark circles under my eyes.

Max Factor Elixir Lipstick in 'English Rose'* - Perfect warm pinky colour for day time. Moisturising and easy to apply on the go - love it. This has had pride of place in my handbag for the past couple of weeks.

What are your current favourites?

Products with * are PR samples. Others bought by me.

Some of my favourite blogs...

Over the years that I have been blogging I have built up a pretty substantial list of blogs that I like to read on a regular basis. So I decided to do a little favourites post as thought this might help you discover some more lovely blogs to read too.

Cupcakes and Cashmere

This blog is just absolutely beautiful, and is basically my dream life all summarised in a blog...

Bikinis and Passports

This is actually a fairly recent discovery for me, but I love Vicky's style (we share a love for Michael Kors watches) and I'm currently very jealous of her beach-view apartment in California.

25f London

The pictures on this blog are what really make it a favourite for me - they make everything look so good! Well worth checking out for super-accurate swatches, plus food pictures that will make you salivate!

British Beauty Blogger

I can't compile a list of favourite blogs without including this one. BBB is always first with the scoop on the latest launches - this is one of the few blogs I subscribe to by email, so I never miss a post.



As I said before, this really isn't the comprehensive list of blogs I love - as I've accumulated so many that I read regularly over the years I've been blogging!  So I might have to make this a regular thing to give a few more a little shout out.

Plus, if anyone else has any blogs to recommend then do post a comment below - always love to find more to read!

My five favourite eyeshadows

I love eyeshadow, but as this post is going to demonstrate... I'm not wildly adventurous. I know what I like and tend to stick with it. You would think this would make picking favourites really easy, but it's not.

Take a make-up drawer filled with a selection of neutrals and it can be hard to pick out the winners. Especially when trying not to make all the favourites from one brand! (I love MAC eyeshadow, but don't want to be a MAC-a-holic.... it's nice to mix it up!)

So these are the favourites I picked out...

MAC Naked Lunch

MAC Satin Taupe

Bourjois '08'*

Estee Lauder 'Twilight Rose'*

Boots 17 Not sure of the name, but it's a gorgeous silver/khaki type of colour...*

The favourites...

So, here's why I picked them...

MAC Naked Lunch & MAC Satin Taupe

I kinda have to talk about this together because these are my first two MAC eyeshadows and the ones I am repeatedly drawn to whenever I browse a MAC stand, despite owning them both and having back ups. So easy to wear, they go together perfectly.

Bourjois '08'

This is one of the new 'intense' little round pots from Bourjois. The colour payoff on these is AMAZING! Just one swipe and the picture below shows how intense the colour is. This is actually the slight replacement of one of my other favourites (one of the original Bourjois Little Round Pots, in a warm reddish brown that's lovely) but I can't find it and this is a close colour match and even better pigmentation why.

Estee Lauder 'Twilight Rose'

Another easy to wear shadow, a pinky shimmer - this is ideal for lazy days where just a quick sweep of colour is all I can be bothered with. It's quite similar to Naked Lunch, but slightly pinker and less frosty.

Boots 17 Not sure of the name, but it's a gorgeous silver/khaki type of colour...

I love this colour - Boots 17 shadows are really worth checking out for excellent value colour payoff and texture. This colour is a favourite because I think it's quite unusual, it stands out to me amongst my sea of browns, gold and bronzes...

L-R: Naked Lunch, Satin Taupe, Twilight Rose, Bourjois Intense '08', Boots 17 mysterious shade...
Top: natural light
Bottom: flash

Seriously, look how pigmented that Bourjois shadow is!? Amazing...  plus the new intense pots are more compact and make-up bag friendly.

So there we have my favourites. If you had to pick your five favourite eyeshadows which would they be? I should add that I picked these as my five favourite single, powder, eyeshadows. If I was including creams then it would be a whole different blog post...


Those marked with a * provided as PR samples, others bought by me.

October favourites (very late)

So I had a bit of an impromptu break from blogging this week... but I'm back with a bit of a late post on my favourites from October...

Through the month of October I was mostly loving...

- Nars Pennylane Cream Blush
- Ciate Paint Pot in 'Dangerous Affair' (a freebie from Marie Claire Magazine)
- Vaseline Intensive Rescue Moisture Loving Body Butter
- Collection 2000 Big Fake Lashes Mascara
- MAC 'In The Groove' mineralise eyeshadow trio (from the In The Groove collection earlier this year)
- Bourjois Khol and Contour in '79 Bronze Raffine'

What have you been loving in October/early November?? Also - where has the year gone?! It seems like only yesterday it was January!


**The Small Print**
Only the Bourjois eyeliner was a PR sample. All other products bought by me (or given free with a mag bought by me...that's probably too much info!)

September favourites... a tad late!

A little late on this one... but here are my September favourites!

St Tropez Everyday Mousse

Love this, so easy and hassle free to use. A subtle colour, so perfect for going into winter - rather than a full on tan, it's a subtle glow. The mouse is colour-free, so no messy sheets and doesn't have that 'fake tan' smell.

Dermalogica Skin Hydrating Booster

I blogged about this one HERE, still loving it!

Denman 'Apple' Brush

Loving the size of this - it was a much easier to take away to New York with me than my normal larger brush. Plus it smells of apple...

Liz Earle Shampoo and Conditioner

These have already been ALL over the blogosphere, and I am loving them too. Especially the shampoo - hair just feels so perfectly clean and shiny. I like the conditioner, not *quite* as much as I love the shampoo - but this hair care range is definitely worth the hype.

Clinique Long Last Gloss Wear SPF 15

LOVING this gloss - honestly haven't found a gloss that actually lasts as long as this one. This will always be found in my bag,

What are you loving in September.... or early October?!


**The Small Print**


All products sent by PR for review.

July Favourites

This is a first on this blog, but I have seen it a few times on other blogs where people have done a round up of the things they are loving over a month. I like reading them, so I thought I would jump on the bandwagon. Some of the things I'm loving this month will be things I have mentioned on the blog - some of them are new.

Pantene Aqua Light - I love how silky but lightweight my hair feels after using this. I only realised exactly how much when I switched to using something else and it made a huge difference.

Kings and Queens Mango Shower Gel - Smells amazing first thing in the morning as a wake up and at night to relax. Doesn't dry skin out and lathers up a treat. Doesn't hurt that the packaging looks pretty nice too. I've almost finished the whole bottle but plan to buy more.

Epilating -Still going strong with the Braun Silk Epil. Starting to like it more and more as I get more used to it although I do think it's a little bit less smooth than shaving, the fact that it's longer lasting makes up for it.

Bourjois Volume Glamour Mascara Ultra Care - Despite having a pretty big selection of mascaras to choose from, this is the one I can't stop coming back to. It gives me long, defined lashes that still feel soft without irritation.

Estee Lauder Pure Colour Eye Shadow 'Sugar Biscuit' - Gorgeous silky shadow that has become my go-to neutral base. Or on lazy days this will be the only shadow I wear on my list.

**The Small Print**


All products received as PR samples except for the Bourjois mascara (which was initially from a PR but I bought another one when that ran out - just to be clear!)