l'oreal lumi magique foundation

 

so i'm around four months too late to be reviewing l'oreal's lumi magique foundation but i thought i'd do it anyway! i really do try and cut my spending on certain products and foundation is one of them as not only are even the cheap ones quite expensive, but also if i like the way a foundation makes my skin look then i generally stick to it!

having said that, with all the great reviews i've read about this foundation i decided to give it a try as opposed to repurchasing rimmel's wake me up foundation when it ran out. so far, i'm impressed! it took me a while to work out which shade matched my skin tone - it seems the range only really covers various shades of light skin which isn't great for darker skin tones but also makes it a little trickier when trying to find a match! yellow undertones? pink undertones? arghhhhh!

i ended up picking 'gold linen' (after about 10 minutes...) and i've found it matches my skin well. lumi magique is quite runny in consistency (i didn't find this as much with rimmel's wake me up) although this makes it quite easy to blend. however for some reason i find i use more foundation than i usually would despite this - i can't blame lumi magique though, maybe it's just me wanting more coverage?! 

coverage wise i'd say that lumi magique is medium although is easily buildable. i've used it for nights out when i've wanted a heavier coverage and it's worked really well and stayed put all night.

about the 'as lit from within' claims - o.k it is a bit dramatic and i would really never ever describe someone's skin as being 'lit from within'. in l'oreal's defense though, lumi magique is illuminating and really does brighten your complexion. if you haven't already (i thought i was the only one..?!) then i'd give this a go :) even better, superdrug have a 3 for 2 offer on all l'oreal products at the moment and it's spf 18. yay!

e.l.f cosmetics mineral moisturising lip tint - rose

this mineral moisturising lip tint in rose is the third and final lip product i got in my recent e.l.f cosmetics haul. only one product left to review!

it's marketed as a lip tint but to me it's more like a lipstick as although the shade is quite subtle, (it does look darker in person than in pictures though) it has a thick and creamy feel similar to a lipstick as opposed to a lip balm. however, it's still very easy to wear and the shade works for day and night.

it's from the 'mineral' collection which claims to be made up of the 'purest and refined ingredients from the earth'. not really sure what aspect of my lip tint was made 'from the earth' but i like the idea that with this range you will supposedly 'forget you are even wearing make up' and that the lip tint contains spf 8.

overall i'm really pleased with this purchase, especially with summer's current attempt at sticking around! it is a little more pricy than usual e.l.f products at £3.50 but i still can't complain as it is a great product. hopefully i'll be getting myself some more lip tints in the near future!

e.l.f cosmetics - 'nostalgic' lipstick

      

this lipstick was my second attempt (first attempt here) at achieving nude lips that look more kim kardashian than ill-person-that-needs-a-steak and slowly but surely i think i'm getting there (colour wise!) 

'nostalgic' by e.l.f cosmetics is a pretty nude, slightly on the darker side, with a hint of dusty pink that makes all the difference. the formula glides onto the lips easily and has a similar smell - 'vanilla mint' - to their luscious liquid lipstick (review here) yummy :) it also only costs £1.50... another e.l.f bonus!

it has a creamy, slightly glossy finish to it, although i have to admit that these pictures were taken with a bit of this lip gloss worked into it for some extra shine. i think i now need to invest in a nude gloss to put over the top of the lipstick for a bit of an extra kick and i may finally have found my perfect nude lip colour! any recommendations?

e.l.f cosmetics - raspberry luscious liquid lipstick

this luscious liquid lipstick from e.l.f cosmetics is one of the three lip products i purchased in my recent e.l.f haul that i mentioned here. i liked the sound of a liquid lipstick as this means to me easy application with an end result like lipstick. it comes in plain, inoffensive packaging and is operated by a clicker thingy (technical name, anyone?!)

there is a choice of 12 colours which are £1.50 each. more than reasonable for any lip product. i chose raspberry which looked like the most wearable shade. i figured i'd test out the new formula before i decided to go for any dramatic colours! it comes out on a sort of furry applicator and - for want of a better description - genuinely feels like you're applying a liquid lipstick. it's easy to work with like a gloss so there isn't any need for lip liners or really precise application but once on looks like a creamy matte lipstick with great colour pay-off.

raspberry is a dark-ish pink without that browny undertone that lots of lipsticks have so is perfect for day and night and doesn't look old fashioned. i found the colour to last for a few hours and it's easy enough to put in your bag if need be for any re-application. it also smells really nice although i couldn't put a name to the smell. e.l.f tells me it's 'vanilla mint' - yummy! will definitely be repurchasing soon.

e.l.f cosmetics - pink passion blush

 

i was feeling a bit sorry for myself last week and decided that a cheeky e.l.f cosmetics haul would cheer me up. luckily, i know myself well and i was right! this saturday (the day after i received a text telling me that my package would arrive in 3-5 working days) a box turned up holding my seven chosen items that came to a grand total of £19.45 including delivery. yay!

i plan on reviewing all of the products as and when i use them as although they're cheap, sometimes it takes an unbiased description and review to decide whether you actually want to stray away from trusted brands and try something new and i really want you all to try e.l.f!

this blusher is from the 'studio' collection which is a little more expensive (£3.50 as opposed to £1.50...) but for that the packaging is a lot nicer and more sturdy and i assume the product is of higher quality (although i can't say for sure as this is my first e.l.f studio purchase.)

i'm not sure why i chose this particular colour as i'm quite pale and 'pink passion' is a really bright pink but i wanted to try something new and i'm glad i did. i applied with caution slowly building up the colour and ended up with a fresh, flushed look perfect for summer. the formula is easy to blend too and it's stuck around all day. 'candid coral' is now on my wish list and considering that it's only £3.50 there won't be a problem if i don't like it. :)

kiss me lip plumping gloss

 

i got this the other day at new look for £2 because i quite liked the cute and simple packaging and i haven't tried a lip plumping product in a while. 

unfortunately, it was a bit of a disappointment. it says on the front 'tint and shine' so i was thinking a light pink gloss. turns out it's completely see through (hence including the picture... i didn't want anyone to think i was lying or just a bit stupid!)

it is shiny but that's about it. it's not plumping at all. not even a little bit, which isn't great for a gloss that says 'lip plumping' on the front. i'll probably still use it once in a while but not for its plumping qualities, just for a bit of extra gloss!

gold by giles lip gloss - berry

 

'gold by giles' is the new make up collaboration of giles deacon and new look. there are 44 products in total and as make up goes it's really cheap. the most expensive item is the nail wraps which are £5.99, and the cheapest is the lip gloss featured which is £1.99. 

this lip gloss is in shade 'berry' and i liked the strong colour in the tube. it has a brush applicator which i quite like and is a really good size, especially for the price. the packaging is a bit dull but i don't think it looks as cheap as some of the other products which is good.

the colour pay off isn't great. i do appreciate that it's a lip gloss and so won't be anywhere near as bright as a lipstick, but i was a bit disappointed that it comes out as just a subtle pink. it also doesn't last long (an hour maybe?) but then again this is lip gloss and longevity of this product is never great.

i wouldn't say i'm disappointed with this purchase but i don't think i'll be collecting all the shades. i did like the look of some of the nail varnishes though so maybe i'll try one of those soon. you can see the full range here.

shiseido: blusher - innocent rose

 

i was given this shiseido blusher quite a while ago and just haven't got round to using it. recently i decided i was in need of a lighter blusher than my current one (the body shop's cheek colour in 'tea rose' for anyone wondering) but decided to check my overflowing make-up storage bags before i went out and bought anything.

i'm glad i looked because this is such a pretty shade of pink. it's a light almost baby pink colour that isn't at all overpowering but can be built up if need be. it also has a hint of shimmer which reflects the light nicely. the powder is easy to apply and not cakey or dull looking as some powder blushers can look.

i love the look of the packaging but i think it's a shame that the blusher itself is in a long thin shape. personally i wouldn't really use the brush as i think something so small makes application a bit too focused and so i feel this is wasted space! instead, i'd rather more of the blush or a smaller compact. the big mirror is a nice addition though, so i'm willing to forgive and forget :)

models own grow fast mascara - update!

  

before...

after...

 exactly two months ago i posted about models own grow fast mascara. although i said i liked the mascara, i wasn't really sure if the claims that it would 'strengthen and increase the length of my lashes' would be true. i even researched the ingredients and found out what procapil and panthenol are designed to do, yet still didn't believe that it would work.


oh how wrong i was. it took two compliments from different people and questions asking about whether i was using a new mascara or wearing false eyelashes to make me take a photo and actually compare my old lashes with my new lashes.

...and LOOK! yes they're different eyes but i can't imagine they would've been that different beforehand. i'm just so impressed with the massive difference in length and that's coming from a cynic. they're looking thicker without mascara aswell but unfortunately i don't have a before shot (because i didn't think it would work... silly me!) for £6 i think this mascara is really worth a shot. yes it took two months to notice the difference but considering i wasn't expecting anything at all it was definitely a nice surprise :)

rimmel wake me up foundation

before

 

after

i wasn't really sure about whether or not to purchase rimmel's new wake me up foundation. although i know of the brand well, i can't say i've ever really used their products and the past few times i've purchased foundation i've always gone back to my comfort zone - clinique's superbalanced make up in 01 petal. but after reading a lot of good reviews i decided that it should be my 'freebie' in the 3 for 2 offer boots are running at the moment.


wake me up foundation comes in a glass bottle which can be frustrating when the product starts to run out, but it does have a pump dispenser which is a lot less messy than the usual shake-it-until-some-comes-out approach i took with superbalanced make-up.


a lot of people have noted that there's a limited shade selection. this didn't bother me as i have what i call an english rose complexion so can generally find colours to suit my skin tone quite easily, but i imagine this can be frustrating for some.


i would say the coverage is medium and have show this above on a freckle on the back of my hand. i don't like anything too cakey, but i also feel i need enough coverage to even out my skin tone and cover occasional blemishes so this suits me well.


the finish is quite dewy, although not overly so. i can get a bit oily on my t-zone later in the day but i have found that the finish actually compliments my skin as opposed to making it look greasy.


i would put the 'wake me up' name down to the tiny little shimmery particles found in the foundation. they're not prominent at all for those worried about looking clownish (!) and i definitely wouldn't describe them as glitter. actually i think the addition of shimmery particles is just a clever way of using a well known method of brightening.


overall, i'm really pleased with this purchase and at £8.99 you can't really go wrong. i've made a £12.50 saving on my usual foundation and it's a really light and easy foundation to wear (with spf 15) in the summer months. plus, if you get it now in the boots 3 for 2 offer, it's practically free!