BRONZE + GLOW FOR UNDER £5 | PRIMARK BEAUTY FIRST IMPRESSION

 Hello everyone! Today i am back with another beauty related post, this time a Primark beauty first impression on two new items that i picked up whilst shopping in the store the other day. I have shared a bunch of different "testing" Primark beauty posts this year already, i have also mentioned how i feel like they are killing the makeup game this year and these two new products are no different...

For the past couple of months it has been all about the Nudes collection from Primark, which i have also been using and loving a handful of things from on a regular basis. This time i went into store to pick up another back up concealer that i mentioned in my five makeup favourites for £5 and under post, then i came across this new range of bronze products in the most beautiful bronze/rose-gold packaging. The collection includes products like contour kits, eyeshadow palettes and these two bronzing products which i believe will be a game changer this summer, coming in under £5 for both products!

bronze bronze queen matte bronzer in the shade sunset | £2 |

First up is this matte bronzer in the shade Sunset from the collection, i really wanted to pick this up because of how it looked super similar in shade to one of the Urban Decay bronzers. Fun fact one of my favourite bronzers this year has been the My Perfect Colour powder in the shade Caramel, so i had a feeling i was going to love this one too and i wasn't wrong. I love how it applies evenly, doesn't look muddy or patchy and it literally just gives you the most beautiful sun-kissed bronzed finish to your face. If you are fair/lighter in skin-tone then you will definitely want to go in with a light hand with this bronzer, as it is pigmented and slightly darker than some other bronzing powders (which is why i think this is perfect for summer). I also feel like if you used this up against a higher end bronzer, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference and the packaging again is really well made and not cheap looking. (review rating 4.5 out of 5)

bronze dewy glow face + body butter in the shade golden | £2.50 |

Next up is probably something that has gone straight to the top of my favourite Primark makeup products from the first try, which is crazy to think i wasn't even sure i would like it. I decided to pick this face and body butter up because i thought it really reminded me of my favourite bareMinerals Candlelight cream to powder highlighter, which was limited edition. From the first try i thought how i actually prefer how it looks on the skin, it gives you the most beautiful and natural dewy golden bronze highlighted look as it doesn't have glittery pieces through-out like a lot of highlighters. The way i have been liking to apply it is with a damp beauty blender to all the areas where you would normally put your highlighter. This product as it suggests could also be used to highlight certain areas on the body, to give that perfect dewy summer glow to the skin. I have a feeling this product is going to be an everyday favourite. (review rating 5 out of 5)

Catch up on my previous post HERE...

xo.

TESTING PRIMARK BEAUTY #2

Hello everyone! So last summer i first shared a testing primark beauty post and i mentioned how i had never really tried too many things from their beauty range. That being said just recently (over the last couple of months more specifically) i feel as if they have really upped their beauty/makeup game and they now have such a huge selection of things. With that in mind on Monday whilst i was near my local Primark i decided to see what looked good to try, which was a good selection of things. There was a few things i had seen other people talk about on social media that i wanted to pick up but my Primark didn't have some of them in-stock, so i will definitely have to pop into another store sometime soon.

| ps 3-in-1 brow in the shade tobacco | £2 |

So i have to start with probably my favourite item of everything i picked up and it is actually the item i thought i would like the least, as i am usually super fussy when it comes to brow pencils and more specifically the more affordable ones because they never tend to be the right tone for my brows. This one has completely thrown me at how good it is, not only is the shade Tobacco perfect for my brows this pencil is super easy to work with both the pencil, powder and the spoolie brush. I definitely think this is going to be my new everyday brow product!

| ps colour intensity lipstick in the shade nude | £1.50 |

I actually wanted to pick up one of the nude lip kits initially but my Primark was temporary out of all of the nude ones, so i actually decided to pick up one of these colour intensity lipsticks instead as i thought it could be a good dupe for the MAC liptensity lipsticks, how similar is the packaging and everything though? That being said i wasn't all that impressed, as i found the nude shade was way too pale once applied and looked like slightly concealer lips like, but the formula was really nice and felt hydrating on the lips. So maybe this will be one for mixing with another lip product to either lighten a darker shade slightly or darken this shade with another shade.

| ps my perfect colour mattifying powder in the shade caramel | £2 |

This is actually a product as i saw someone of YouTube using this particular shade as a bronzer, rather than as a face powder and it gave her the most beautiful bronzed look to the skin. Thankfully my Primark did have this shade of powder that i wanted to pick up, although they didn't have my shade i would of needed in the matching foundation as i wanted to give that a try as well. If you was to ask me the question of would i reach for this more than my ever so loved bareMinerals invisible bronze bronzer, then my answer would be probably not, although this is actually a really beautiful product and it looks stunning just blended out for an all over quick eyeshadow look. For £2 though this is a really great product, whether that be picking a deeper shade up for a bronzer or your correct shade as a setting powder.

| ps double dimension highlighter in the shade gold dust | £2.50 |

So in my Primark they actually had quite a few different products with this more "gun metal" style packaging including blushes, but it was this highlighting powder that caught my eye and even more so once i swatch-ed the tester on my hand. This product is one of those products that doesn't look much in the pan but once swatch-ed or applied you are like wow, as it is a simply stunning golden shade and surprisingly pigmented. These little hidden gems are the ones that blow my mind at the fact they are so little in cost, supposed to some more high end products that aren't as pigmented and retail for about ten times more.

| ps pure glow highlighter in the shade brunch club | £3 |

Finally i had to pick one of these highlighters up as it seems everyone else is and loving it, i also believe this comes in a few different shades but this is definitely the type of highlighter shade i would typically reach for. Just like the double dimension highlighter it amazes me how pigmented it is for the price and definitely gives you a "pure glow". The only thing that is really frustrating me is i have been trying to find of the pure glow highlighter palettes, which look similar to the Anastasia Beverly Hills ones as the swatches look absolutely beautiful and for £5 for four shades, you are getting an absolute bargain there.

So all in all i was super impressed with every single thing i picked up on my recent trip to Primark, apart from maybe the colour intensity lipstick but all i would probably change about that is i would make it a slightly darker nude shade.

xo.

BUDGET BEAUTY WEEK: FULL COVERAGE GLOW-Y BASE FOR UNDER £50

Hello everyone and welcome to the final instalment of "budget beauty week" on my blog! To finish the theme week off, i thought i would re-visit and share an updated version of a popular post from earlier in the year which you can catch here. Since that post i have discovered a bunch of new products/ways to get products for less, that all go towards creating a perfect full coverage yet glow-y looking base for under £50. All of the products in this post are equally as good as some high-end products, extremely pigmented and easy to work with. I have also linked where to get what at the best offer/the lowest prices.

rimmel #insta fix & go 2-in-1 prime and setting spray (£6.99)

Kicking things off with the primer/setting spray duo that i have been personally not been able to put down, ever since i first tried it. Not only are you saving space in your makeup bag, but you are also saving money rather than buying two different products, you only need to buy one as you can use this to prime and set the face. I love how quickly this sinks into the skin, as well as leaving your skin feeling super fresh and hydrated.

revlon colorstay 24h foundation in the shade 220 (£7.25)

I think as of recent this is probably my second favourite drugstore/affordable foundation, next to my beloved maybelline fit me matte and poreless foundation (but i always talk about that). The finish of this foundation is simply beautiful, it looks super flawless yet light-weight feeling on the skin, it has build-able medium/full coverage. The great thing about this foundation is that it comes in two different finishes for different skin types, normal/dry and combination/oily. If you want to take that natural radiant look to the next step, a drop of facial oil looks stunning added with the foundation. 

bourjois radiance reveal concealer in the shade light (£7.99)

This particular concealer was my concealer of choice for pretty much the whole of last year and that still continued this year also, along side the maybelline fit me concealer. If you want that highlighted/healthy radiant look both under the eyes and other highlighted areas of the face, then this concealer is a must try. I love how super light-weight it is yet still has amazing coverage and stays in place without creasing, it is honestly just an all round beautiful concealer.

maybelline fit me matte and poreless powder (£3.98)

If you are like me and love the maybelline fit me foundation/concealer, then you are going to love this powder equally as much. This particular powder is a newer release by the brand and like the other products in the fit me range, it is super affordable and does exactly what it says it does. The great thing about this powder is that it comes in a wide range of different skin-tone shades, as well as a translucent shade which is the one i personally like the most as i would rather not add any further colour or change the colour of my foundation/concealer.

makeup revolution liquid highlighter in the shade luminous gold (£6)

If you are scared to give liquid highlight a try but you really want to, i highly recommend giving the newly released highlighters from makeup revolution a try. These liquid highlighters are super easy to apply, blend and they have a super natural finish so there is no danger of accidentally making yourself look like the tin man. Applying a small amount of this to the highlighted areas of your face, a drop into your foundation or before as a glow-y base can make all the difference.  

makeup revolution skin kiss highlighter in the shade golden kiss (£5)

To set that liquid highlighter in place/add a further glow to the skin, also another makeup revolution highlighter that is simply stunning and not to mention pigmented. If you are like me and love a golden toned highlighter then you will love this and be crazy not to give it a try, especially as it is only £5 and for such a huge pan/amount of product you get. If a golden glow isn't for you don't worry as this highlight comes in two other shades, a peach kiss and a ice kiss.

freedom shimmer bronzer in the shade 115 shimmer (£2)

Finally we have bronzer, which can be a tricky one to get right but this particular one might sound off putting with "shimmer" in the title, that couldn't be further from the truth as it actually gives more of a healthy glow/warmth to the face. I have mentioned before how this bronzer looks really warm in the pan but it honestly applies beautifully and effortlessly blends out, also £2 is an absolute bargain considering you can pay anything from £28-£40 for a great more "high-end" bronzer. 

total look cost: £39.21 (£10.79 under budget)

Catch up on yesterdays budget beauty week post HERE...

xo.

TOP FIVE FAVOURITE BRONZERS

Hey guys, i hope you are all having an amazing day whatever you are up to! Let's all just take a moment to appreciate the beauty of bronzing/contouring, i mean even the smallest amount applied can make a massive difference to any makeup look as well as adding warmth/shape back into your face. So for today's blog post i thought i would share with you my top 5 favourite bronzers, some are old favourites and some are just mind blowing go-to products...

I have to start off with my favourite favourite favourite bronzer of all time... Yep you guessed it NARS bronzing powder in Laguna! I honestly can't deal without this bronzer and you can probably tell that from the huge dent i have made in it.

Next i have to mention the Define & Conquer Contour Kit by Seventeen, if you read my posts often you will know this has become a recent favourite of mine especially along side NARS Laguna. I will use Laguna to contour and then the bronze shade in this kit to bronze/warm up my face. The highlight shade in this palette is perfect for setting your under eye area also.

Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder (aka the chocolate bronzer) is probably one of my favourite drugstore bronzers besides the one from Seventeen. It is a perfect bronzer for an everyday look where you don't want anything to harsh but still a little something something ha ha. Another bonus to this product is it smells incredible!

Topshop Bronzer in the shade Sandcastle is one of those bronzers that i will always hold a place in my heart as it was my holy grail bronzer of mine way back. In fact after choosing which bronzers to place in my top five, i have been reaching for it a little more. I love re discovering products i used to love and forgot about.

To finish up this top five post we have my HD Brows Bronzer in the shade 002, this is the most perfect bronzer in summer time as it gives you that perfect sun kissed glow but still looks very natural. The only downside to this bronzer is the packaging is so fiddly to get into and then it has a lid with in a lid (which i broke off because it was that annoying). Saying that i think they have changed the packaging slightly since i purchased the product.

♥

HIGHEND VS DRUGSTORE: BRONZERS

Hey guys, i hope you are all having a great day whatever you are up to! I have had this idea to share with you all a new mini series of blog posts i am planning on doing; high-end products verses drugstore products. I want to share with you that sometimes you don't have to spend a ton of money of certain items when there is a lot of "dupe" type products available but also sometimes it is nice to splurge on one or two items (only if they are worth it). So first up is bronzers...

1. NARS bronzing powder in the shade Laguna - £26 (high-end).

As i mentioned above it is good to splurge on one or two things if they are worth it and let me start off by saying this is worth it! I think if i had to go without all my makeup collection except for a couple of things this would be the first and then probably concealer after that. This bronzer gives you a really beautiful healthy glow as it contains a slight shimmer but nothing too harsh and still makes the skin looking natural.

http://www.hqhair.com/nars-cosmetics-bronzing-powder-various-shades/10449302.html

2. Bourjois Delice de Poudre bronzing powder in the shade Medium/Dark - £7.99 (drugstore).

This particular bronzer by Bourjois is the perfect "dupe" for the NARS Laguna but obviously costs around a third of the price. Like the NARS bronzer this gives you a really healthy glow with a slight shimmer but not at all shiny. Another bonus to this bronzer as it smells like chocolate and who doesn't love chocolate right?

http://www.boots.com/en/Bourjois-Delice-de-Poudre-Bronzing-Powder-Medium-Dark_35023/ 

♥

MAKEUP MONDAY: FOTD ITEMS

Hey guys, hope you all had a great weekend whatever you were up to! I had a really nice weekend away for my friends birthday and the weather was gorgeous which is always an added bonus. One of my favourite makeup looks in late spring/summer is an obvious one "glowing skin" but whilst keeping it looking natural and neutral which will go with so many different looks. So seeing as i haven't done a "FOTD items" blog post in a while i thought i would share with you some of the items i have been using to achieve summer glowing skin...

L'Oreal Lumi Magique - Pure Light Primer.

L'Oreal True Match - SPF17 Foundation in N2 Vanilla.

Maybelline The Eraser Eye - Concealer in Light.

NARS - Bronzer in Laguna.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish - Highlighting Powder in Soft and Gentle.

Benefit Gimme Brow - Fiber Brow Gel in Medium/Deep.

Maybelline Color Tattoo - Cream Eye Shadow in Eternal Gold.

Maybelline The Falsies - Mascara in Black Drama.

NYX Butter Gloss - Lip Gloss in Éclair.

NYX Dewy Finish - Makeup Setting Spray.