ELF Haul

A couple of weeks ago I did a big ELF haul, all of which I ordered from the ELF website. Some of the products I ordered were in the sale, some were repurchases and some were new products that I thought I would try.

32pc Eyeshadow Palette - Natural - £5

This was a new purchase that I thought I would try because it had a large range of colours and was only £5! I have only used it a couple of times, but so far I'm not that pleased with it because the colours don't seem to be very pigmented and don't have a very good colour. They also don't seem to have very good lasting power and they tend to fade throughout the day, although that may just be the colours that I have tried so far. 

Eyelid Primer - Sheer - £1.50

This was a repurchase as I previously bought the Beauty Book and really liked the mini eyelid primer that came with it as it glided on well and blended in properly so that you couldn't see it on the eyelid. It also improves the lasting powder of any eyeshadow that I wear and so I bought the full size tube for when it runs out. 

Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder - Luminance - £1.50

This was a repurchase as my previous one ran out and so I bought this to replace it. This product is labelled as a bronzer, however I read reviews that it was a good highlight colour as the colour luminance is way too light for a bronzer so I thought I would try it and I love it, I find that it is the perfect colour for a highlighter. 

Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder - Turks & Caicos - £3.75

This was also a repurchase as my previous blush and bronze duo ran out. I love this product as I find that the bronze is perfect for contouring because it has hardly any shimmer to it and the colour isn't too dark but it is buildable. I also love the blush as I only like to wear subtle pale pink blushes with a bit of shimmer, and so this blusher is the perfect colour. Both the blush and the bronze also have a good lasting power so I don't have to reapply them throughout the day.

Studio Stipple Brush - £3.75

I bought this brush as I read good reviews on it, although I haven't used it yet. It doesn't seem too dense, but it is very soft and doesn't seem to shed any bristles.

Blending Eye Brush - £1.50

This brush is really soft and does the job of blending eye shadows into the crease and the corner of the eye so it is a good blending brush. The only downside I have found to this brush so far is that it does seem to shed quite a bit. 

Eyelash and Brow Wand - £1.50

I use this wand to comb through my eyebrows and shape them before I fill them in so it definitely does the job.

Studio Mascara Primer - £3.75

This was a repurchase as I bought it so that when my other mascara primer runs out I will have this one. I used to use another mascara primer previously but I stopped using it as it was too expensive and it was only a small tube so it didn't last long. I find that this primer is just as good as any other one as it lengthens my eyelashes and helps to prevent them from becoming thick and clumpy.

Wet Gloss Lash & Brow Clear Mascara - £1.50

This was a new purchase as I needed a product to set my eyebrows in place and prevent them from fading and smudging throughout the day. It definitely does the job as they do not move and look the same when I get home in the evening as they did in the morning. So far I have only used the brow clear mascara as I don't like wearing clear mascara.

Matte Lip Colour - Nearly Nude - £3.75
Matte Lip Colour - Coral - £3.75

I previously owned the Matte Lip Colour in Natural and I liked the product as it is long lasting and has a good colour that was very pigmented so I decided to try it in two other colours; nearly nude and coral. I always tend to wear pale pink and nude lipsticks and so nearly nude is my favourite shade as it is a pale pink colour and lasts a long time on the lips. I also like the coral colour although I don't tend to wear it as often as it isn't the type of colour that I usually wear everyday. The only downside to these is that they are quite drying on the lips because they are matte and I have quite a lot of lines in my lips so it tends to highlight them more than a moisturising lipstick would. 

Nail Polish - Innocent - usually £2.50 but bought for £1 in the sale
Nail Polish - Rosy Raisin - usually £2.50 but bought for £1 in the sale

I have other shades in the ELF Nail Polish but these two shades were new purchases and I bought them because they were in the sale. I like to wear pale and nude nail varnishes and so Innocent is the perfect colour for that, although it does take 2-3 coats to form the colour as it is a very pale colour and so not too pigmented. Rosy Raisin is a shade that I love as I wear a lot of deep red and burgundy colours and this nail polish is my favourite deep red colour that I have found so far. 

If you would like a full review or swatches of any of the products that I have mentioned or you just have a question then please leave me a comment!

♥

What's in my Make-up Bag?

My Make-up Bag

The short answer to what's in my make-up bag is a lot! I don't tend to vary the products that I use in my day-to-day make-up as I always use the same make-up on my face because once I've found a product that I like for my face I tend to stick to it. However I do vary the mascara, the eye-shadow and the lipstick that I use on a day-to-day basis. My current make-up bag as shown above is from Primark and it was between £3-£5!

My Face Products

1. Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer  - 1 Fair
2. Revlon ColorStay Foundation for Combination/Oily Skin - 180 Sand Beige
3. ELF Studio Powder Brush (used for foundation)
4. Rimmel Clear Complexion Powder Transpare 
5. Face Brush - not sure which brand as the writing has rubbed off (used for powder)
6. Small Brush - not sure which brand as the writing has rubbed off (used for powder)
7. ELF Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder - Turks & Caicos
8. ELF Essentials Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder - Luminance (used as highlighter as it's way too light and shimmery for a bronzer!)
9. Brush by Dirty Works (used for bronzer, blusher & highlighter)
10. Double Sided Brow Brush - not sure which brand as the writing has rubbed off
11. Jordana Brow Powder Duo or Jordana Brow Powder Duo - Light (only available online in the UK)
12. ELF Small Angled Brush (used to fill in eyebrows)

My Eye Products

1. ELF Eyelid Primer - Sheer
2. Make Up Academy Professional Eye Palette - Heaven & Earth
3. The Body Shop Eyeshadow Brush 
4. ELF Professional Eyeshadow Brush
5. The Body Shop Lipstick & Concealer Brush (used for eyeshadow)
6. Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner - Black
7. Brush that comes with eyeliner above
8. Eyelash curlers - not sure which brand as the writing has rubbed off
9. ELF Studio Mascara Primer 
10. Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara or Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara - Black (only available online in the UK)
11. 17 Va Va Voom Mascara - Blackest Black
12. Maybelline Illegal Length Mascara - Black
13. Barry M Kohl Eye Pencil - White

My Lip Products

1. ELF Studio Matte Lip Colour - Natural
2. NYX Black Label Lipstick or NYX Black Label Lipstick - India (only available in the UK)
3. Natural Collection Moisture Shine Lipstick - Apple Blossom
4. Barry M Lip Paint - Marshmallow 

If you would like me to do reviews or swatches of any of the products that I have mentioned then leave me a comment and I will do a review :) 

♥ 

Review: Primark False Eyelashes!

I stumbled across these eyelashes in Primark a couple of months ago and they have now become an obsession of mine. I LOVE these eyelashes! I could not believe it when I was just browsing in Primark and saw a stand of false eyelashes all for £1 each! They come in several different types and styles, some of which are more subtle and natural looking, and some of which are fuller and thicker for a more dramatic look. Previously to finding these, I never used to wear false eyelashes for two reasons; one, because I always found them too fiddly to apply, and two, because many other brands of eyelashes come at around £5-£6 a packet which I didn't like to pay for something which I was only going to wear maybe 2 or 3 times. If I look after these eyelashes then I tend to be able to get a maximum of about 5 wears out of each pair, which for £1 is amazing! 

I would say that the only downside to these eyelashes is the adhesive glue that they come with. I tried the glue out the first time I bought these false eyelashes and I found that the main problem with it was that the eyelashes kept lifting at the ends so that I had to keep reapplying the glue throughout the day which isn't ideal! Although I wasn't expecting much of the glue when I bought these eyelashes anyway due to the low price tag, so you can't really complain! To get around this problem I just use the DUO eyelash adhesive as shown above which you can buy from many places including Debenhams, MAC, and other online stores including some eBay sellers - where it can often be found cheaper! It comes in two colours, clear-white and dark-tone. They both work just as well as each other so really it just depends on personal preference as to whether you prefer your eyelash glue to be clear or black. I usually tend to lean towards the dark-tone adhesive as I just find that the way the glue is the same colour as my eyeliner means that the eyelashes blend in with my own lash line better.

The Natural Look Lashes as shown above are my go to eyelashes and my favourite out of the two that I use, as they are the most natural looking and most suited to everyday wear because I like my false eyelashes to look like my own rather than looking 'false'. When I wear these eyelashes I have to trim about 1cm off of the outer corner so that they fit my eye in the best possible way otherwise they are just too big for my eyes. But this is the same with any brand of eyelashes that I wear as I always find myself having to trim about 1cm off the end of them.

The Sultry Lashes are my second favourite pair to wear out of the range as these are the eyelashes that I turn to when I am going clubbing or for a night out because they are longer and fuller than the Natural Look Lashes whilst still remaining relatively natural. When I wear these eyelashes I again have to trim about 1cm off the outer corner in order for them to fit my eye in the best possible way. 

These eyelashes are amazing, if like me, you are a bit of a novice when it comes to applying false eyelashes, as at £1, if you mess up and end up having to throw them away then you're not really wasting your money as you can easily just buy another pair seeing as you can buy 5 or 6 pairs of the Primark eyelashes for the price of one pair of other brand eyelashes such as eyelure! And after all practice makes perfect! Overall I would give these eyelashes a 9/10 just purely for the fact that the glue they come with lets them down!

Have you tried these eyelashes? What did you think of them?

♥