Goodies!

So my goodies arrived the other day and I was jumping with glee to get my hands on them! I don't quite understand why Boots thought it necessary to pack my stuff into such a large box, seems a bit of a waste to be perfectly honest. 

I instinctively opened the Clinique package first because I was just too excited about this foundation! And I must say, after a few days of trying it out, I am absolutely in love! Although it is a little pale for me at the moment because I've just come back off holiday and have a little bit of a tan. But I don't mind because I can save it for the winter where it is going to be absolutely essential in my collection. During the summer months I tend to try keep my make-up quite minimal. However, I will still use this when I feel I need a little more coverage, especially on those days that my skin is misbehaving! And I will just use some bronzer over the top to keep a little colour in my face. 

I love the packaging and design of this foundation also, although I have never completely understood some people's aversion towards certain brands packaging (I mean it's about the product at the end of the day, not how pretty it is!). 

I did also get these little free samples with my order from Clinique. I was surprised by the eye cream as I thought it would just be one of those little sachets of cream (like the ones you get in magazines) but it was such a cute little pot and contains quite a reasonable amount of product for a sample. I am enjoying the eye cream at the moment and is definitely helping with those dark circles! The mascara is good, although I don't really dislike many mascaras to be honest, I'm quite easy when it comes to them. 

Then we have these beauties! I got this Fest Of All gift free with my 17 purchases because I spent over £6, which I forgot that my friend already give me the nail polish from her one so now I have two! Silly me. I ripped open the brushes straight away and sat in front of my mirror with Clinique foundation and started a necessary application of coverage. I fell in love immediately with both the foundation and the brushes. Particularly the buffing brush from the Core Collection which works like an absolute dream with the foundation. It blends and applies so perfectly on my skin and I finally feel like I have my holy grail! I definitely think these brushes play a big part in the application of probably any foundation but especially with this Clinique one. The contour brush in the Core Collection is like perfection, it makes my blusher/bronzer look so perfect and above all natural! I don't look caked in make-up and I feel so confident went out and about. I can't comment on the staying power of the foundation yet because I just haven't had it long enough to give you all an accurate and honest opinion. The Stippling brush helps to apply a light layer of product which is perfect for those hot days! I am so pleased with these brushes and they were definitely worth the investment. 

I also just wanted to give a quick mention to this 17 Glow Shimmer Brick. The colours are gorgeous and looks lovely on the skin. You can use each colour individually or mix them together to create a unique colour. For a drug store brand I think this product gives a great colour! And it's cheap, what for could you ask for, eh? 

Overall I love everything I bought (thank god!) and would definitely recommend these real techniques brushes to anyone looking for good quality make - up brushes! I will definitely do a more in depth review of the Clinique Foundation once I've tried it out a bit more! 

Loves, 

Louise

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Update!

I've wanted to blog for a few days now but what I want to post is going to be quite time consuming and I just haven't managed to find a spare minute to get it up! So all my items from my previous post arrived so I want to let you know about them, hopefully on Sunday. I've had a really lovely week so far and part of the reason for my lack of bloggage! :p Between going back to work, I have packed in seeing my girls, seeing Regina Spektor, cinema dates with my boy, getting my results for uni and obviously catching up on pretty little liars! Oh and going the doctors :( Anyway, I just wanted to say that I haven't disappeared! Love, Louise! x

Regina Spektor...

Went to see Regina Spektor last night in Manchester and she was so much better than I could imagine. Her new album is insane and definitely going to pick it up when I get paid tomorrow! :)

Louise
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Being Cheeky....

Okay so I caved, don't judge. After writing my daily make up post I realised I really should step up my make-up collection. I have no excuse for not investing in some quality products, especially as I do suffer from problem areas such as blemishes. I've always really liked the brand Clinique and I have previously had a foundation from them, back when I very first started at university. It was a liquid foundation and I've always had a love/hate relationship with liquid foundations since I can remember. I don't think it was a bad foundation, it gave me good coverage and applied very easily but I just felt like it was missing something, but to this day I still cannot put my finger on it. At a hefty £20, I decided not to re-purchase the foundation after it ran out because I thought the price was ridiculous for what it was. However, compared to drug store brands I have tried (and there have been a lot), I now appreciate why these high end brands are at such a price. I find the drug store brands are very thick, cakey, heavy and packed full of fragrances that aggravate and irritate the skin. Clinique caters especially for these issues, claiming they are 100% fragrance free and I don't have a reason not to believe them. So, after watching a few youtube videos and in particular Pixie-woo's  review of Clinique foundations, I really liked the look of Super balanced powder foundation. As I've said I have a love/hate relationship with liquid foundations so thought I would invest in a quality powder formula. It is not cheap, coming in at £27.50 and is the first part of my 'Cheeky Purchase'.

Clinique Super Balanced Powder Foundation - Natural 2.5 

I opted for the colour Natural 2.5 because I felt it did not look too pale to wash me out but was not too dark for my skin tone. Obviously buying from the website you are never 100% certain that it is going to be the right match for you but I assume I could take it to a store and they would exchange it for me (well that's what I hope anyway!) and also was allowed to pick two free samples from them too which was quite nice. 

Naturally, buying a new foundation I thought I ought to get some new brushes. I have always tried to keep my brushes in good condition and clean but sometimes life gets in the way and you just can't do it as regularly as you would like. Luckily, the brushes I have aren't overly expensive so I don't mind so much that they are a bit worse for wear. I have a collection of Elf Brushes and also a collection a MAC Brushes (which believe it or not I barely use and don't particularly like), I have a few bare minerals brushes and I absolutely love their powder brush! All my little eye shadow and blending brushes from mac, elf and front cover are in great condition so I did not need to invest in any more of them. However, my foundation brushes have seen better days, particularly my elf ones. I have heard only good things about the real techniques brushes, which are by one of the pixie-woo sisters (as mentioned before), Samantha Chapman. Make-up brushes aren't cheap, particularly the high end brands such as MAC, and although £9.99 & £11.99 (for individual brushes) still aren't the cheapest brushes they are a lot more affordable than most. So I took the plunge and purchased the Stippling Brush and the Core Collection (which is £21.99) brushes to accompany my new foundation. 

Real Techniques Core Collection 

Real Techniques Stippling Brush

These can be purchased from Boots, which is where I got mine from as I receive advantage points which is always a plus as I'm saving them to get an expensive face cream :p. Amongst my brushes from boots I also ordered some bronzer from the brand 17, just because after forking out for the other stuff I wasn't prepared to pay £25 for a Clinique bronzer. All in all I'm quite happy with my purchases and I will definitely keep you updated on how these all fair! I hope they don't take too long to arrive! 

Much love, 

Louise! 

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Everyday Make-Up

Hi Guys, so I thought I'd give you a little look at my everyday make-up products. Now, don't expect anything fancy because I don't really invest in expensive products, even though I keep meaning to purchase a  good quality foundation but as of yet still have not got around to it. I do find my cheaper products do the job and that's all that matters right? 

Everything I use on a day to day basis. 

Face: 
Garnier BB Cream: Used as my 'foundation' for summer.
Collection 2000 Shine Away Compressed Powder: Used to eliminate shine and also acts as a 'setter'.
Natural Collection Blusher in Peach Melba: Used on my lower cheek bone for a splash of colour. 

Eyes:FCUK Eye Shadow Palette: First Eye Shadow used as a base, second colour in the crease and third on the edge and blended out.
Natural Collection Eye Shadows: Left one used to compliment the brown on the edge and the right one used to highlight inner corner.
NO7 Eyeliner: Used on bottom water line.
ELF Eye Primer: Used before applying eye shadow.
Collection 2000 Extreme Felt Tip Eyeliner: Used to create a winged look.
NO7 Mascra: Used first to create curl.
Rimmel Day 2 Night: Used over NO7 to add thickness and volume. 

Eyebrows: 
ELF Eyebrow Kit in Ash: Used to fill in and set eyebrows.
NO7 Eyebrow Pencil: Used to tame and shape eyebrows into place. 

Lips: 
Revlon Lip Butter in Berry Smoothie. 

Brushes: 

Left to Right: Bourjois Kabuki, ELF Kabuki, Bare Minerals Powder Brush, ELF Blending Brush, ELF Crease Brush, Front Cover Blend Brush, ELF Concealer Brush. 

And here is the look that is achieved, a very basic everyday look. 

:)

Love, 

Louise

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Just a little something...

I had some errands to run this morning so while I was out I picked up these coasters for my bedroom. They came in a pack of 4 and have purple flowers on them. I wanted something for my candles to go on and also for my drinks so I don't ruin my wood. How pretty? :) I will do a skin care routine & daily make up routine for you some time this afternoon if I get time :)

Louise
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The Introductions

Hello, just thought I'd introduce myself properly and what better way than with a photo? So yeah, I'm Louise and I hope you enjoy my random posts! :)

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