Mary Kay 'At Play' Collection

Make-up time! I haven't done a make-up post in a while now, so I was quite excited about this one. A few months ago Mary Kay sent me their At Play collection, and since them I've been having a good play around and getting used to them. 

I think the best way to sum this collection up is FUN! When I first saw this collection it did remind me of some of the make-up collections I'd get in my free Go Girl magazine back in the 90s. There definitely is an element of nostalgia here. But then it dawned on me that there's no reason why adult make-up shouldn't be fun. The colours featured here are bright, but Mary Kay have carefully created shades that stand out whilst complementing an adult look. 

All of these eyeliners look amazing with eyeshadows in complementing hues, but I thought I'd show you what they're like in their purest form. 

   Gold Metal: This shade really brightens up the eye and goes with absolutely everything. Perfect for        

   Christmas. I've tried it with a few pinky eye shadows too and it works so well.  

  

  The Real Teal: I'm not entirely sure if this shade of green suits my skin tone, as it is quite cool. However 

    this would look amazing on anyone with a paler complexion. It's a subtle burst of metallic colour. 

     

    Blue My Mind: This is the only matte shade out of the four, and I love it. It's so striking and dramatic. Make 

    this your statement piece of make-up, and make the rest of your face as bare as possible. 

    Hello Violet: This one is my ultimate favourite. With Halloween coming up I could see a lot of creative 

    potential, but at the same time, I thought it made such a nice change to the normal black eyeliner. 

    Feminine with a grunge twist. 

    Triple Layered Tinted Balms: (Top: In the Plum Bottom: Atomic)  

These are perfect for those times when you just want a hint of colour on your lips. They're incredibly moisturising and smell amazing. I can see these making lovely 

    stocking fillers. 

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The Make-Up Alphabet: To BB or to CC

 As you'll know by now, any beauty posts on this blog are part of my journey of make-up discovery. In 5 months I've gone from make-up Neanderthal to cosmetic addict, but there are still some products out there that throw me, and this post is about one product in particular.

For the last couple of years an alphabetical trend has emerged in the beauty world - I'm talking about BB/CC creams. 

These abbreviations have been thrown around with the assumption that we're supposed to know what they mean. I'm not one to buy products if it requires any guess work as to what it does. I'd only just come to understand that BB stands for Blemish Balm and was ready to give it a go when CC creams came and stomped all over my new-found knowledge, bringing with them a wave of confusion. So what's the bloomin' difference?! 

BB

BB creams are Blemish Balms and from what I can gather are basically foundations with added skincare benefits such as SPF or anti-oxidants. Slap-bang in the middle of foundation and tinted moisturizers in terms of consistency and coverage, they're good if you want to 'ditch the cake' (sorry Georgia, stole your line.)

CC

CC creams on the other hand are Colour Correctors. Using 'light-diffusing particles' CC Creams address skin issues like redness, dullness or blotchiness.

So coverage-wise there isn't much difference, but whether you use a BB or a CC all depends on what effect you want it to have on your skin.

CLINIQUE

To help me understand, Clinique were kind enough to send me their latest CC creams so I could figure out what all the fuss is about.

Despite the difference in packaging, both of these products are the Moisture Surge CC Cream. They just differ slightly in texture and SPF. Whilst the compacts are SPF 25, the bottle is SPF 30 . Also, the bottle is of a more fluid consistency, whilst the compacts are thick and moussy, and obviously this has an effect on the ability to build up coverage.

The bottle is available in 9 shades, whilst the compact is available in 6, which is a little bit of a nuisance if you find a shade you like with the bottle, but want a different consistency.

Personally, I prefer the bottle because of its lightweight, liquid texture. When using liquids of any sort, I prefer a dewy finish to a matte one, otherwise my skin can look quite dry. The coverage on both was excellent. My skin is quite patchy anyway due to a mixture of old acne scars, dry patches and recent Summer tanning, so having a product that evens that all out is brilliant.

Clinique sent me these before I went on holiday, and I was using the Light compact as it matched my skin best, however when I returned, my skin had knocked me up to a medium, so luckily I could test both shades. They are a perfect match and blend with my tan instead of changing it.

The bottle is £28, and the compacts are £30. Now if you're looking for full-on coverage, I wouldn't recommend these. But if moderate coverage as well as the added skincare benefits are what you're after, I can assure you that you're in good hands with Clinique. I've had these products for two and a half months now and am still not close to running out so they will last you a good while. They're also versatile in the way you can use them, whether it's underneath foundation or mixed with moisturiser, or even alone, they'll do the job.  

So, do you BB or CC, or are you sticking with the good ol' foundation? 

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Summer Radiance with Jane Iredale's Magic Hour Collection

                                       

   

 After returning from holiday with the best tan I've ever had (sorry to boast), I'm really enjoying exploring make-up that compliment it. 

Just recently, it was Jane Iredale's 20th Anniversary and to celebrate they released the Magic Hour collection. They were kind enough to send me some samples to try out, and I have been testing it for a few weeks, but never has it suited me as much as it does right now. 

The collection consists of the brands new Jelly Jar Gel Eyeliner, Comfort In Touch Highlighter, Golden Girl Purepressed Eyeshadow Triple, and New Shades of Lip Fixation. Packed full of golden, warm and shimmery hues, this collection is a tan's best friend. 

I've been playing around a lot with the Jelly Jar Gel Eyeliner because since using MUA's gel, I'm preferring it to liquid and pencil. Obviously Jane Iredale's is of a better quality and the brush that comes with it is perfect for applying thin, subtle wings. It dries pretty quickly so there's no smudging and you don't need a lot at all, so even though the pot is small I know it's going to last. 

The Comfort In Touch Highlighter was in all honesty my first ever use of a highlighter, so I don't have much to compare it to but I soooo love it. It's subtler than blusher but with a more enhancing effect on the cheek bone area, reflecting light and adding an elegant shimmer. Just one stroke of the stick at the very top of my cheeks was enough to create this effect. Again, a small but long lasting and worthy investment. 

As far as eye shadows are concerned, Jane Iredale's are as good as they come, especially when it comes to pigmentation. The three shades in the Golden Girl Purepressed Eye Shadow Triple work and blend so well together to create a golden and shimmery look that is perfect for both day and evening. 

To finish this look off perfectly, all that's needed is a summery lip. Jane Iredale's New Shades of Lip Fixation has really surprised me. It's pink for a start, a shade I never thought I'd be found wearing. The pink half of the stick is rather watery in texture which worried me a bit when I first tried it, but once it's been applied it darkens, dries and turns matte. It's at this point that you add the peachy, translucent and shimmery gloss on top to create a lovely vibrant apricot lip that contrasts brilliantly with tanned skin, and in fact emphasizes it. 

So head on out there and get your tan on, because make-up is much more fun with one!

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Hello Cheeky

Afternoon all!!!

Did you have a good Easter? How many Easter Eggs have you managed to devour? (I'm currently on my fourth, but that doesn't include all the cream eggs) 

Now before I have a chocolate induced spot outbreak, I'm currently enjoying trying out a sample of the Cheek Pop that the lovely people at Clinique sent me. 

LOOK HOW CUTE IT IS. I love the packaging, so much so that even though it's slowly decaying in my make-up bag, I still insist on keeping it. And the daisy pattern that the blush is set in makes me feel summery every time I open it, even though with each use it's slowly fading away, which makes me sad (so many feels). 

I'm really loving some of the summer shades for make-up that are out at the moment, and the Cheek Pop is such a perfect addition to your summer make-up collection. 

Now this blush is only available in four shades, which has received mixed opinions looking at customer reviews, but I really like the small selection. 

The four available shades are:

Ginger Pop 

Peach Pop

Berry Pop

Plum Pop

The first two are the two warmest shades, whilst the Berry and Plum Pops have a bluer, cooler hue. Each of these shades are vibrant yet natural in tone, and despite the small selection, there is a shade for every skin tone. All you have to do is break down the shades into a scale of dark warm-light warm- dark cool - light cool. Then you just need to figure out if you have a dark or cool skin tone and whether you prefer a dark or light blush. I feel when there are so many shades to choose from, that's when things start to get confusing. For me, I have quite an olive skin tone, and I usually wear quite warm, bronze coloured blushes, but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and go for a warm light blush: the Peach Pop. 

I am so happy with this choice. I was honestly worried it would be too light for me, but it works so well, and actually brightens up my face. For a casual day look, I go for the hue on the far left on the swatch above. It's so subtle, but there's just enough colour present to highlight your cheeks. For an evening look, if I want my eyes to be the statement area then I'll opt for the hue in the middle, however if my eyes are quite bare, then I'll brighten up the blush. 

What I really love about this blush is that even though it's technically a compact powder blush, it's really buttery and soft to the touch, and  applies and sits on the skin like a cream blush. This creamy texture means that it can be applied and blended into the skin very easily with the fingers, which I actually prefer with this particular blush over using a brush. 

Have you tried this product yet? If you have I'd love to hear your thoughts. Also I' love to hear your thoughts on this post. I definitely want to do more like it, and I was wondering whether to put up a picture of me wearing the blush, but thought the swatch showed it better. Let me know what you think, any feedback is welcome : D 

Steph

x x x 

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