Playing with fire, red eyeshadows

After seeing Chanel’s le rouge collection No.1 everywhere, I realised the eyeshadow quad Candeur et experience looked awfully similar to a five eyeshadow palette that I already owned for the fraction of the price; Rimmel London’s five pan eyeshadow in Brixton Brown.The main difference between them being the Rimmel palette consists of mainly shimmery shades whereas the Chanel quad is all matte, but the colours themselves are very similar.

Here’s my favourite way to use this little palette:

I chose to do my eyes first as these shadows have slight fall out. I took the matte grey brown shade in my crease and then using the bottom left shade, a gorgeous dark browny red, I added this to the outside corner of my eyes. I took time to blend the shadows thoroughly with a fluffy brush. I packed the pale shimmery shade all over my lid using a flat eyeshadow brush, stopping when I reached the dark shade on the outer corner. Now time for my favourite part, the red! This colour is a beautiful coppery red. I packed this onto the centre of my lid, over the top of the pale shimmer. I made sure that these two shimmery shades were kept below the crease. Finally, I used the darkest shade in the palette on an angled brush to create a soft wing.

I finished the rest of my face makeup before going in with the pale grey brown shade on my lower lash line. I added some depth to the outer corners with the darkest shade and blended them together. I highlighted my inner corners with the pale shimmery shade. Curled my lashes, added mascara and I was done. I paired this look with a nude lip, Topshop lipstick in Nevada.

Here I am playing with autumnal colours and its 26 degrees outside. But I love this little Rimmel eyeshadow palette and the red was calling out to me.

Do you have any good dupes for the new Chanel collection? What is your favourite way to wear these eyeshadows?

Meg x 

My Breakfast Smoothie

Being a florist, some mornings I have to be out the house super early, therefore any extra minutes that I can get in bed are happily invited. But unfortunately I’m not one of these people who can skip on breakfast, especially if I am busy at work. So this would mean choosing between eating breakfast or putting concealer and mascara on; a choice I never want to make!

I have found that making a breakfast smoothie that I can take on the go is the perfect solution. Taking about five minutes to make, being super filling, and tasting so good, this smoothie is my saviour! Slight exaggeration, but it is really handy.

Using my blending machine at 4 o’clock in the morning wouldn’t go down so well with the parents, so make it the night before and store it in the fridge overnight. Just don’t walk out the house in your sleepy state, forgetting to pick it up!

 

So what’s in it, you ask?

250 ml of almond milk

I like Alpro almond original

2-3 dessert spoons of fat free vanilla yogurt

I chose Yeo Valley 0% fat vanilla yogurt

1 chopped banana

½ cup of porridge oats

½ cup of frozen blueberries

Squeeze of runny honey

I just use cheapest one at Sainsbury’s

This makes a pretty decent sized smoothie, filling a third of the blender cup which I just put the lid on and take with me. Drinking this throughout the morning keeps me feeling full until lunch, which is often after three. The banana and porridge oats are the two ingredients that mainly fill me up, the others are just to make it creamy and taste amazing.

Hope you give this recipe a go, let me know of any good breakfast smoothie recipes that you love!

Meg x

My Current Skincare Routine

My skin has recently become something I really care about. I had never thought about it too much, just whacked on some moisturiser as and when I thought I needed it. I’m only 20 but I thought ‘you’re never too young to take care of your skin’ and thanks to the queen of skincare that is CarolineHirons I’ve learnt a lot, looking after my skin better and enjoy doing it.

I knew nothing about skincare, so I read lots of blogs and reviews to get the best products for me and my skin. I had a lot of fun researching different products, I took my time as I knew I would be spending a fair amount and didn’t want to get it wrong. It took me a couple of months building up my skincare products to get to the point I am at now. And I still have a few more items I want to buy to get it perfect.

I’ve learnt a lot about my skin since starting my skincare journey. I have dehydrated skin with an oily t-zone. I can get a few spots around my chin, nose and forehead area. I also get redness on and around the nose and chin area, plus very dark circles.

So that’s the basics. Let’s get into the good stuff, the products!

Removing makeup: Simple, micellar cleansing water.

I love this micellar water; it is a great first step to remove most of my makeup. It’s powerful enough to remove mascara, but gentle on my eyes and skin that other micellar waters were not.

Cleanse: Emma Hardie, amazing face cleansing balm.

I look forward to using this balm every night; it feels great on my skin and does the job of removing remaining makeup and giving a general clean brilliantly.

Second/morning cleanse: Simple, pore minimising toning cleanser.

This is one of the steps I’m not completely happy with. I am on the lookout for a better morning/second cleanse that I can wash off with a face cloth, to feel fresher in the mornings. Any suggestions? However this does the job pretty well, plus its quick; just rub it on with a cotton pad.

Acid toner: Pixi, glow tonic.

I use this in the mornings and I love this exfoliating toner. It reveals great glowing skin.

Nip+Fab,glycolic fix night pads.

I use this acid toner in the evenings as it is slightly harsher. I also love these pads, so handy to take away with you. Love to use these when I am slightly spottier.

Hydrating toner: Pixi, hydrating milky mist.

I love this step in my routine; it’s a burst of freshness and moisture on my skin. I have gone through a couple bottles already, I just mist is everywhere!

Eye cream: Balance me, wonder eye cream.

This is another step I haven’t quite perfected. This eye cream is good to keep my under eye hydrated but I don’t think it is doing much for the darkness that I have (thanks mum!). Any suggestions on good eye creams would also be appreciated.

Serum: Aurelia revitalise and glow serum.

I’m in love with this, such a nice consistency and texture. It smells great and gives my skin a beautiful glow. I’m nearly running out, but the price has gone up on cult beauty. Nooo!!

Daily moisturiser: Super Facialist by Una Brennan, vitamin C daily moisturiser.

This moisturiser is great, super hydrating and it contains UVA/UVB protection which is perfect after I use Pixi glow tonic in the mornings. It gives an amazing glow, almost too much glow if that is possible? Plus is it smells of oranges. I’d be interested to try the other products in the range.

Facial oil: Aurelia, cell repair night oil.

This facial oil feels and smells so luxurious. My combination skin means I don’t use this every night but is great 2-3 times a week for added moisture and goodness.

That’s a wrap.

Like I said, I haven’t completely perfected the routine and I don’t mind taking my time to get there, especially as these things cost money! Please let me know if you have suggestions of products or how I could improve my routine.

What’s your favourite skincare product at the moment?

Meg x 

My Everyday Makeup Look

A lot of the time I feel more comfortable wearing some makeup, but it has to be quick and simple. I quite often don’t have enough time to spend more than 10 minutes on my makeup in the morning. So I have perfected my everyday makeup look so I could do it without even looking. Well, maybe a mirror is needed for my brows - no one is that good!

Base - Nars, pure radiant tinted moisturiser, in the colour Alaska, light 2. For quick application I use my fingers to blend in. This tinted moisturiser has a small amount of coverage but gives the skin a lovely glow. It also has SPF 30, perfect for summer, if we’ll have one!

Concealer - Urban Decay, Naked skin, weightless complete coverage concealer, in the colour light warm. A very popular product amongst makeup lovers, so I probably don’t need to tell you why I love it so much! I blend this in with a damp Real Techniques, miracle complexion sponge; it helps give the concealer a beautiful finish.

Powder - Rimmel London, stay matte powder in the colour 005 silky beige. This isn’t the best powder in my opinion. It doesn’t stay matte as it claims to. But I am a bit of a stinger, I will not buy a new powder until this has run out, I have finally hit pan though. The end is in sight!

I use the Real Techniques,setting brush to pack on the powder under my eyes and other areas I had concealed. What a brilliant little brush this is!

Brows - Rimmel London, brow this way eyebrow gel in the colour dark brown. I don’t need to do much to my brows other than tame them. This does the job pretty well!

Bronzer - Rimmel London, natural bronzer in sun bronze. My thoughts on this are the same as the stay matte powder, and yet again I won’t buy a different one until this is all used up! I have bills to pay people!

I just use a random big fluffy brush for my bronzer, I don’t even remember the brand - it’s probably that old!

Highlight - Sleek, face form contouring and blush palette in fair. I love the highlight in this, great pigmentation and lasts pretty well too. An all-round great, affordable palette. I use the nifty Real Techniques, setting brush for my highlight. I don’t have time to find my other brushes!

Eyeliner - Rimmel London, waterproof exaggerate eye definer in rich brown. I think this is a great eyeliner, I love the colour for everyday and it lasts really well. It’s retractable so I don’t have to spend most my time sharpening the thing! It does however come with a mini sharpener the other end, if you so wish to use it!
 

Mascara - Bobbi Brown,smokey eye mascara, in black. I love this! It has the perfect sized wand and bristles, it gives great lashes for smokey eyes, but I love it for everyday use too!

 

Lipgloss - Tanya Burr Cosmetics, lipgloss in lunch date. This is the perfect everyday lipgloss, a great nude colour that just gives my lips an amazing shine. It also smells really good!

 

Aannnd Done!

 Most of the products I use are highstreet and affordable so great for those on a budget but still want to look great. If anyone has any recommendations for an under eye concealer that is affordable but works amazingly, I would love to know! I have nearly run out of my Urban Decay naked skin, so I am on the hunt for a new concealer.

 

Thanks for reading,

Meg  x