Being home has meant little overheads and much accumulation. Said accumulation has produced some new makeup favourites and some serious revelations. Makeup is as seasonal as clothes amd I'll post on my Summer cosmetics routine soon as the weather recently has been so unbelievably warm and face-melty that it's entirely relevant. But, for now, I just wanna talk about new things for Summer that I've been trying and loving.
(And just so y'all know - anything marked like so * has been sent to me - this is something I'll be more conscious of doing from now on)
Scent.
Chupa Chups Love Trap - Mam randomly picked this up for me as it reminds her of perfumes I wore as a teen. It's quite like Anna Sui perfumes or Touch of Pink by Lacoste. Sweet, floral, girly, light. Really a perfect summer day smell and, surprisingly, a nice slightly more mature version of those higher end scents.
Skin.
Maxfactor Facefinity Primer * - I'd been rotating between using the Porefessional and Aloe Vera as my go-to primers up until now. The Porefessional is lovely to apply but doesn't extend the wear of my makeup overly and the Aloe Vera really suits breakout days and minimal makeup days better. But this is the perfect everyday, longwear primer. It applies smoothly and the formula is quite soothing to the skin. I love that it has a pump to make application ultra-easy and the SPF is always a bonus for me.
Dermalogica Sheer Tint - As a general rule, I only wear BB creams. I just don't want too much coverage or to feel or look as though I'm caked in makeup. I find that even tinted moisturisers look too thickly applied to my eye on my skin. Another general rule for me is that higher end bases are too heavy and I rely entirely on drugstore brands generally. This, however, is a large exception to those rules. The colour match is great and it gives me enough coverage to even out my skin tone without feeling uncomfortable on the skin or covering my freckles.
Shiseido The Makeup Concealer - I'd been searching for a new concealer for a while. In summer, if I'm wearing makeup at all, I tend to just apply a little BB cream as a concealer instead. Then I fell for Mam's Clarins concealer and what it did for my under-eye area. After coveting that for some time, she handed this to me. I love Shiseido as a brand - the sleek, slightly dodgy packaging and all. This concealer is exactly enough coverage. If I feel I need to wear at least a little makeup to something - a little of this, brows and mascara and I'm ready to go. It's great for both blemishes and under-eye and doesn't crease or flake as it's super-moisturising.
Rimmel Match Perfection Silky Loose Face Powder - All that needs to be said here is that this needs no topping up and looks as though you're wearing no powder at all - it competes easily with much more expensive, finely milled powders.
Eyes.
Clinique High Impact Mascara - For me, I rarely use dramatic, clumpy mascaras. I just want to give my natural lashes a boost but look as though I've barely touched them. This is great for that and it doesn't run all over the place despite watery, hayfever-prone eyes.
Sleek i-Divine Bad Girl Palette - These colours are so great. There's a neutral end for light Summer day looks and the purple, blues and greens are awesome for colourful night looks. The rich lighter green is a dupe for a Chanel shade in a quad they had out for this Summer except better. Yeah, you heard me. Better. It's more pigmented and applies the way you wish the Chanel would. The applicator that comes with it is utter shite, however, so bring a brush along if you plan on using the palette.
Benefit They're Real! Push-up Liner - I was wary of this product. Wary it couldn't be that good. But it's easy to use, dries slow enough to fix if mistakes are made and stays in place enough when dry not to do that annoying transferal to crease of the eyelid thing. Thank God. Note: In extreme heat as the other day, it moves a little but melted less than the rest of my face.
Brows.
Billion Dollar Brows Hint of Tint Gel and Brow Gel * - I'll definitely be writing on raising your brow game soon but for now, note that these guys rock. I use the hint of tint alone for minimal makeup days or to finish more dramatic already filled-in, bushy brow looks and the clear gel for looks somewhere in the middle. Neither do that horrible crispy thing and the mascara-like applicators are great for precision. Much love.
Lips.
Eve Lom Kiss Mix - Very expensive? Yes. Worth it? Totes. At €20, it's about four times the amount of lip balms I normally buy but it works so well and it's so sleek and luxurious looking. And I LOVE how it feels. Handbag staple.
Etude House Etoinette Crystal Shine Lips - The cutest thing ever? Hells YEAH! The nicest nude-pink shade? Definitely. But mostly...SO CUTE. I just look at it sometimes.
So, have you guys tried any of the above? Do you want to?
