Review: Skincare Saviours by Sunday Riley

Hi loves,

As I am sure many of you can relate, the world of cleansers, toners, and endless face masks can not only be overwhelming, but also unbelievably tiresome and expensive. I have recently undergone a total skincare overhaul, and my old routine has gone out of the window in a desperate bid to find the combination that will finally crack the code that is my skin.

I suppose you want to know whether I have found the secret to all of your skincare needs, and whilst I definitely am not completely there, I am pretty damn close. 

In my last post, I shared my latest hero product by Sunday Riley. It blew me away that much, that I decided to invest my hard-earned pennies into a cleanser and toner also within the same brand, and you can expect the full low-down below...

Step 1) Ceramic Slip Clay Cleanser (£35 - here) 
This little gem is designed to cleanse the skin and remove grime, all whilst leaving the skin feeling smoother, tighter and more refined. I often use 2-3 pumps on my (heavily!) made-up face, and massage into the skin, and rinse off.  I then go in again to really cleanse my skin, and that squeaky clean feeling is quite probably the best feeling in the world. In all seriousness, living in London can seriously make your skin feel congested and just not clean, but this product really makes a difference.

Step 2) Martian Mattifying Melting Water-Gel Toner (£48 - here)
Pricey, but oh my god, so worth it. As soon as you look past the interesting smell, you cannot ignore how good this is for your skin. I suffer with oiliness and breakouts, and this product is like a cool, soothing blanket for the skin. I really feel like it treats my skin, calming down angry breakouts and really reduces oiliness. I particularly love how the product melts and disappears into your skin, and I have really enjoyed working the product into my skin with out a rough cotton pad!

So in short, I believe this duo, combined with the UFO sleep-in oil (purchase here) is a winning combination for oily, acne-prone skin. Albeit pricey. I have noticed a massive step-change in my skin, and my breakouts are much less frequent, so who could complain about that eh?

Have you tried the Sunday Riley range?

Let me know your thoughts!

A.

Review: Sunday Riley U.F.O oil

Hi loves,

I wanted to write this blog post, simply because I cannot believe this product is not being raved about. I honestly think I have uncovered a magic potion that transforms the skin, I mean, seriously, this product is enough to convert even the most cynical of us.

So, my skin is by no means perfect as a result of using this product (I mean, there's only so much a single product can do right?), but it has for sure rolled its sleeves up and had a good bloody go at fixing the mess that is my skin.

Living in London does absolutely no wonders for the skin (the central line doesn't help either), but my once relatively clear skin has now become a congested, spotty, and red-tinged mess. So, I was sweeping through Sephora in my brief stint in the states, and picked picked up this little gem by Sunday Riley.

I definitely had great expectations from the brand, and have always been desperate to try the LUNA sleep oil, but I just didn't hold much hope, especially because it wasn't specifically designed to treat acne-prone skin and blemishes. The U.F.O, or Ultra-clarifying Face Oil, is specifically designed for oily to acne-prone skin, and is essentially a 1.5% Salicyloc Acid treatment oil that calms, soothes, and treats the skin.

I find that if I can feel a breakout coming on, and when my skin just feels sore from blemishes, a generous application of this oil before bed means I wake up dewy, soothed, and just generally looking a bit better.

I have definitely noticed a reduction in the size of my pores, and my skin overall just feels a bit softer, and I didn't even know this was an issue with my skin until I used this product.

I think the product will work so much better if I change up my cleanse and toner routine, so I have also just purchased both from the Sunday Riley Range, and will update on the progress!

Review: Huda Beauty Rose Gold Palette

Hey guys,

I'm back with another review for you all. Today I'll be sharing my thoughts on the incredibly anticipated Huda Beauty Rose Gold Palette.

I've had this palette for a while now, and in all honesty, it has taken me a while to really decide my thoughts on it. Generally I am pretty decisive when it comes to reviewing products, but this palette really was a tricky one.

In terms of first impressions, this palette really is stunning. If I could put together the perfect palette for me, it would pretty much look like this one. A good range of blending shadows, some neutrals, perfect darker shades, and not to mention the heavenly row of glitter pigments, at first glance, this palette seems to be an absolute winner.

Safe to say, my expectations were high, and as much as it grieves me to say this, I'm just not blown away. I absolutely love Huda, and her liquid lipsticks are firm favourites of mine, but the glitter pigments are quite disappointing.

Forget having the luxury to dip your brush into these glitters, you can pretty much only get some pigment after several swipes with your finger. I know most won't mind not being able to use a brush, but when it comes to use on professional clients, or even when doing my own make-up, it's just not ideal. It's such a shame because the shades are absolutely gorgeous, I just wish the formula could have been a little better.

Having said that, the quality of the rest of the eyeshadows are insane. They are smooth, velvety, and an absolute dream to blend. The only downside is that you lose a lot of powder when dipping your brush into these shadows, which isn't great.

Overall, this palette is definitely one that a beauty lover should try, but if you're looking for a trusty make-up palette, I'm not sure if this is the one for you, especially for the price (£56 - Cult Beauty )

Have you tried it? Let me know your thoughts! 

NEW IN: Becca, Huda Beauty and Violet Voss

Hi guys,

How are we all? It's been a while!

So - in the last couple of weeks there's been three trips, and a move from Birmingham to London, so it's been a little busy to say the least!

But, I'm back, and hoping that now I'm settled into my new home and life in London that blogging will just become a norm again like it used to.

Of course, in all the madness that has been my life for the last few months, I still managed to squeeze some make-up shopping in. So here goes, the three gorgeous new products that I've been loving recently....

First up - an eyeshadow palette I was literally DROOLING over for weeks - the Violet Voss Holy Grail Eyeshadow Palette. Sometimes products come out, and they can cause a huge stir in the make-up world, even though they may not necessarily live up to the excitement, but I can definitely say this palette is worth the hype.

If I could make myself an eyeshadow palette - I would 100% make myself this one. The colours, are absolutely divine, incredibly pigmented, and so blendable. I think its a really versatile palette and you can create so many beautiful combinations with them.

Some of my favourite colours...

The only criticism I have for this palette is that whilst the colour choice is incredible, the value for money and versatility is so good, the longevity of the shadows could be much better. Personally, these shadows are nowhere near the quality of Makeup Geek shadows (a firm fave of mine), in terms of their longevity, quality and pigmentation. They initially apply super pigmented, but after a while, the colours kind of disappear and lose their vibrancy, which is a little disappointing.

I always use shadows with a primer, but even with the best of primers this issue didn't really disappear. I definitely wouldn't let this put you off the palette though, as it really is a good one, especially for around £34! I just wish the formula could be improved a teeny bit.

Next up - something I was SO excited about - the Huda Beauty Liquid Mattes. Priced at £18 each, these are the longest lasting liquid lipsticks I have used to date. The colour choices are so beautiful, and the formula is so comfortable! The two shades I purchased were Trendsetter and Bombshell, and I am honestly in love.

Top - Trendsetter - Bottom - Bombshell

 I had high hopes for these after using the Huda Beauty Lip Contours, and they certainly didn't disappoint.

The only downfall (which is so picky I know), is that if you change your mind, or want to take off the lipstick, it is a completely bugger to remove! Which can be either a good or bad thing depending on how you look at things!  But overall - you should definitely try these if you're a fan of liquid lipsticks, as Huda has mastered the perfect formula for a perfectly comfortable matte lip. No more dry, cracked and stiff lips, yay!

Finally, saving the best till last, the Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Splits Shimmering Skin Perfector.  Anyone who's been alive the last few months would know about Jaclyn Hill's first collaboration with Becca to create what is most probably the most beautiful highlighter to exist, Champagne Pop. So naturally, I couldn't wait to get my hands on her latest collection which feature a blush/highlighter duo.

I picked up the shade "Prosecco Pop / Amaretto" which features a beautiful bronzer and a (for now) limited edition highlighter. If you love Champagne Pop - you'll 100% love Prosecco Pop. It's a beautiful golden highlighter with just the right touch of shimmer.

The bronzer is equally beautiful - I just wish there was more of it! It's a beautiful velvety finish and adds the perfect sheen to the cheeks. I wouldn't use this without a bronzer underneath, as it's not quite matte enough for my preference.

And, that's it! I hope you've enjoyed! Let me know if there's anything you've tried recently that you've loved.

REVIEW: MannyMua x Makeup Geek palette

I've seen a lot of amazing eyeshadows and palettes in my time, and for some reason, Makeup Geek shadows excite me the most. Maybe it's because I've been following Marlena since her first video YEARS ago, but I feel like she's a friend, and I'm so proud of how far she has come!

So as you can imagine, when I heard about the Mannymua x makeup geek palette - I was SO excited.

I expected nothing more than Marlena's usual quality of shadows, and I could not have been more thrilled with this palette. (Even after import and shipping disasters!)

The palette consists of 9 shades - each as beautiful as the next. Insomnia (the beautiful green shade) is one of my all time favourite pigments from Makeup geek, so I was beyond happy Manny decided to make it into a shadow!

There are 3 existing Makeup geek shadows, and 6 new shadows that Manny created exclusively for this palette.

Here are some swatches of my favourite shades:

These are the shades I probably reach for less (bar the shade cosmpolitan which is a beautiful rose gold shade) - but I would say Frappe is a BEAUTIFUL blending shade! 

What I love most about this palette:

• Perfect for me since I love dark, coppery eyes 
• Beautiful blending shades, as well as statement colours - so it's ideal to take on holiday! 
• The shadows are so smooth, blendable, and incredibly pigmented 
• Last for hours - with ZERO primer needed 
• Shades are amazing - with some trusty shades from MUG's existing range 

I just wish it wasn't limited edition! I would say that my only, and i mean tiny, hesitation was that I expected the shade Mars to be more cranberry, however, on me, it just looks super red, so out of all shades, this is probably the one I reach for the least. 

Hope you enjoy! 

Tuesday Message: Going with the flow

Good morning lovies,

I'm not too sure what I'd like to say in this post to be honest, but I'm at a very interesting stage in my life at the minute, and have been having quite a lot of thinking and mulling over sessions. Ha. Such an understatement!

But basically, I've really come to notice just how much I always seem to be looking forward. Always thinking about the next step, always planning my next move, worrying about what might happen, and even what won't happen! Why are we constantly wishing our lives away?

What happened to just, dare I say it, going with the flow? Not too sure what a flow even is, but I like the sound of it. Sometimes, it should just be enough to look at the now, not tomorrow, or what happened yesterday, but just one minute at a time. Overthinking and worrying about something that hasn't even happened is only going to ruin the now, and you'll only end up regretting the time and energy you wasted over nothing!

So guys and gals, this week we're going back to basics. We're totally going with the flow.

(P.S, I totally wrote this post as a Monday Message, and then realised it's Tuesday. Ah.)

X

REVIEW: Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation

Good afternoon little ones,

Today's post is going to be a review of Urban Decay's Naked Skin foundation. I picked this up around three weeks ago, and this has been one of those foundations that I have been dying to try.

I picked up the foundation in shade 3.0, which in hindsight was a little too light for me. I'm an absolute nightmare to match for foundation, because my face is oddly paler than the rest of my body.

So, my initial thoughts were that the foundation is incredibly long-wearing. This isn't normally something I look for in a foundation... obviously it wouldn't be ideal if a foundation were to slither off your face at any given moment, but I never normally have any trouble with foundation wearing off throughout the day. I have combination skin, with a slightly oily T-zone, and this foundation honestly prevented any shininess and did not make my skin feel oily or congested. Win.

I also liked how the foundation felt incredibly light on the skin, but still had the right amount of coverage. The consistency of the foundation was a little messy if I'm honest - it's quite liquidy (if that's a word), which was fine once on my face, but a little tricky when applied to my hand.

It has a slightly more matte finish than I am used to. Normally I opt for dewy/satin finish foundations, and although this was not completely matte, it definitely isn't a foundation that is going to make you look super radiant and glowing.

Things were going really well with this foundation, until I went on holiday. Naturally the shade became far too light, which was fine, but I found that it really stuck to parts of my face that had dried because of the sun. It looked flakey, and totally different on drier areas.

So, in hindsight, I would definitely recommend this foundation to someone with combination/oily skin, but from my experience, I would avoid this if you have dry skin.

Not quite found a foundation that trumps Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk or Lancôme Teint Miracle yet!

Have you tried it yet? I'd love to know what you all think!

A.
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