Review and swatches- NYX powder blushes

So I have 5 blushes they are Angel, Nutmeg, Raisin, Summer peach, and Pinky.
£6 for 5.2g
I have very pale skin (about NW15 in Mac, or shell in double wear)

Click on the photos to enlarge :)

Packaging
The packaging is nice, very plain and simple, nice and compact so it fits easily into your makeup bag, clear front so you can easily see what colour it is, and clearly labeled on the back so you know its name, nice and sturdy hinges as well.
It doesnt look very classy however, and it doesnt have a mirror but im not going to grumble about that when im only paying £6.

Staying power
None of these seem to disappear through out the day, and they keep their vibrancy well, I dont have oily skin however so I dont normally have any problems with my blushes melting off, no matter what brand I use!

Unblended, L-R Angel, Nutmeg, Raisin, Summer Peach, Pinky.

Blended, L-R Angel, Nutmeg, Raisin, Summer Peach, Pinky.

Angel

Colour- This is a light flesh toned colour, it isnt too pink or too orange just a perfect mix of the two, a lovely natural glow of colour. It has little flecks of silver frost in it which gives your cheeks a nice dewy glow.

Application- This is a very soft blush, that glides on effortlessly, a little goes a very long way, and it has a beautiful soft silky feel to it, it is not bitty or chalky.

I would recommend :)

Nutmeg

Colour- This is a similar colour to Angel but it is darker with a slightly more bronze tone, it blends out to a lovely bronze toned peach. it hasnt got any majorly noticeable frost or shimmer in it, it does have a dewy satin finish though.

Application- This is a very soft formula, that glides on effortlessly, a little goes a long way and you can build the intensity up with a couple of layers, it feels soft and silky and is not bitty or chalky.

I would recommend :)

Raisin

Colour- this is a mauve colour that gives a lovely sweep of a dusty plum colour to the cheeks, it looks very natural as its not too purple. Again there is no obvious frost but it does give a dewy satin finish.

Application- its lovely and soft, that glides on easily, you can build up the colour to make it more intense, and it isnt chalky or bitty, it is slightly more sheer then you would think looking at it in the pan, but I dont think thats necessarily a bad thing especially for pale girls like me.

I would recommend :)

Pinky

Colour- Its the perfect fun barbie pink, that is slightly more on the blue tone. you can layer this colour so it is very bright or just do a light sweep for rosy pink cheeks! It has got a very slight silver frost which gives a lovely dewy glow.

Application- this goes on very smoothly, the formula is very silky and fine, it doesnt crumble and isnt chalky or bitty, you can layer for more intensity as well.

I would recommend :)

Summer Peach

Colour- this is a very true peach colour that isnt too orange or too pink, its a very nice colour in the pan and gives a nice peach hint of colour to the cheeks, however the pigmentation is rather poor and you have to apply rather a lot of product, it also has this amazing gold shimmer in the pan (like Nars orgasm) but unfortunately it does not transfer onto the cheeks, its almost as if the gold glitter falls off.

Application- This is a very hard formula so it is hard to transfer the product onto your brush and therefore your cheeks so the pigmentation is poor, I also find it is slightly bittier then I like so it does not go on as smoothly as the others.

I would not recommend :(

Unblended top- 'summer peach', bottom- Sleek makeup
blush in 'Rose Gold'

Blended, Top- 'Summer peach', bottom- Sleek makeup blush in 'Rose Gold'

So the sleeks blush in rose gold is how I thought the summer peach would look (rather like Nars 'Orgasm' dont you think?) I would 100% recommend the sleek one over the NYX one, it is lovely!

Sleek blush reviews coming soon!

NYX lipstick swatches- click here!

Review- Elemis Absolute eye serum.

What is it?

A light and dynamic eye serum to decongest, and counteract dullness and puffiness.

Important ingredients:

Absolute of osmathus- this is rich in plant collagen so it helps to support and preserve the delicate eye tissue.

Rosewood essential oil:

This helps stimulate cell regeneration, therefore helps prevent and soften fine lines and wrinkles.

Chamomile essential oil:

This is a natural anti inflammatory, therefore it helps reduce puffiness and dark circles.

How to use:

You apply it around the eye area where your socket bone is and over the eyebrow bone, you do not apply it on the eyelid on the upper or lower, applying eye creams too close to the eye can actually cause puffiness and irritation.

You only need 1 drop (it says 2 but 1s more then enough) and using your middle or ring finger gently tap it around the eye socket.

Younger uses can use it on its own but more mature ladies should use this first then layer it with a richer cream such as the pro collagen eye renewal.

You apply in in the morning and at night before your moisturiser.

Texture and smell:

The texture is very light and watery, it feels like a slightly thicker almost slimy water, a tiny bit spreads forever! It is very weightless and very light and refreshing when applied, it almost has a cooling feeling which is nice when my eyes feel slightly irritated or tired.

You can't smell anything when applied and the product itself does not smell of much, I can smell the rosewood slightly though.

What do I think?

I always find it difficult to review eye creams as I think there more a prevention product rather then a instant results product.

I havent found the dark circles are any better however I do have very late nights and gene wise my family have dark circles, so it's hard for me to judge.

I have found that my eyes are not as puffy or irritated in the morning when I wake up, when I apply it in the morning it also makes me feel very awake and refreshed :)

I do think that my makeup sits better around my eye area now, it doesn't slip and slide around.

Who is this right for?

Someone younger that wants to prevent crows feet, that are concerned with puffiness and who maybe gets an irritated eye area, and who is concerned with dull dehydrated under eyes.

If you are a mature lady who wants to step up your eye care routine, you can use this serum underneath your richer eye cream to give yourself an extra lift in your later years :)

Review- Illamasqua skin base foundation.

"Inspired by the cult Asian market Beauty Balm creams, Skin Base Foundation is a brand new, refined formula unlike anything on the UK market. Easily blendable, it effortlessly creates a perfect complexion, and like the entire Illamasqua foundation range, is undetectable in a professional HD environment. Suitable for all skin types, it smoothes, softens and conditions your skin whilst providing natural, buildable coverage.

The Ultimate 'Skin Realism' Foundation."- Illamasqua website.

About my skin:

I would call my skin normal, it does get slightly oily just on the nose area but it is minimal, and my main skin concern would be open pores on my cheek and nose area.

Packaging:

The packaging looks really nice, but it totally isnt practical, its very hard plastic so it takes rather a lot of effort to squeeze the product out of the very small opening, especially if it has been lying on its side and not upright. I can imagine you would waste a lot of product just by not being able to squeeze it out.
The writing also rubs off after a couple of weeks use. the lid it nice and secure though.

Colour:

Colour is always hard for me as im very pale (the lightest foundations in rimmel etc are far to dark for me) illamasqua has done a very good job in supplying foundations for pale ladies and gents :) I got shade 2, which is perfect for my middle of winter foundation colour, the colour is described as 'pink undertone with yellow' I would say its more on the pink tone then the yellow tone.
They have 26 colours including a white.

Texture:

The texture of this foundation is rather thick (similar to revlon colorstay) but it feels creamier. It dries very fast! Too fast in fact so you have to apply it quickly!

How it applies:

I really cant get the hang of applying this foundation, you need the exact right amount of product, I have tried:
-Beauty blender, it dries before you can get it blended out fully, so you end up with patchy skin.
-187 stippling brush, this is ok, you really have to work very fast! else you end up with streaks, and it ends up looking cakey and uneven.
-Real techniques buffing brush, this was the worst of all of them, it was just a hot mess, it had dried before you could blend it in, and it ended up looking very patch, dry, cakey and uneven.
-fingers, I found this was the best, I could work the fastest with my fingers to get it blended evenly all over, but i found you could see finger marks in it, so I quickly pat over everything with my beauty blender, to smooth it over, and it gave quite an even finish.

This is just after I applied it, no concealer etc,
no flash.

Look:

Im not a fan unfortunately, the colours really nice but when i first apply it, it looks really dry, then an hour later it looks really oily.
I also find it sticks to any flacky areas, fine hair on your face, rough areas such as black heads, any spots, and it seems to settle into open pores and makes them more obvious. It is medium to full coverage.

and this is a couple of hours later,
with flash.

Staying power:

I find this slips and slides around my skin, and looks very oily, it transfers very easily and the smallest touch will make it come off your skin, even with setting powder.



Final thoughts:

I personally, for my skin do not like this foundation, if you are struggling to find a foundation thats light enough give it ago, but it really didnt work for me.
Pros:
Variety of colours, very pale shade, available in a white colour, smells lovely.
cons:bottle in annoying, hard to apply, makes my skin look dryer at first, makes my skin look oily after a few hours, transfers easily, slides around my skin, makes imperfections look worse, not good for open pores, does not photograph well, especially with flash.
Sorry skin base, I really wanted to like you!

Review and swatches- Rimmel Lipstick, incl on lip swatches!

Ok  so i want to start off by saying I love these lipsticks! Rimmel is my all time favorite lipstick brand even compared to more expensive ones like Mac and esta lauder.
The new packaging is nice, its slimmer and more classy looking, with stable twisty uppy mechanisms :P
They apply beautifully as the texture isnt too hard that it drags on and isnt too soft that it slides around your lips and melts in the tube!
all of them have a slightly different smell depending which 'collection' you get, non of them are over powering and non of them lingers.

Rose Bikini 020

Im not sure if this was a summer limited edition or not but i thought id add it anyways.
it is a rather sheer lipstick that gives a lovely rosey pink wash to the lips then has this amazing coral and gold shimmer blitzed through it!
as you can see the shimmer does accentuate the dryer areas on the lips, but not as much as a lot of shimmery lipsticks do.
it goes on perfectly smooth, and is very nourishing, you also cant feel the shimmer particles between your lips.

Moisture renew lipstick £6.29

So the smell of these lipsticks is VERY similar to MACs just not as strong and slightly less sugary, id describe it as cake mixture :P
The packaging is good and sturdy but it is bulkier then the rest (annoyingly!) and I dont like the purple, I think its slightly tacky looking, Sorry Rimmel!

Nude Delight 700

Im not normally a massive fan of nude lipsticks as I have a very pale and cool toned skin so they normally either make me look ill, or are too orangey yellow, but this is a nice colour! its almost a peach colour on my pale skin instead of nude. it is also a cream finish with no shimmer.
the formular of this lipstick is heavenly, I need to buy more of the moisture renew range! It glides on smoothly, does not slide around the lips and is very moisturising.

Lasting finish lipsticks £4.99

These lipsticks smell sweet yet refreshing and the smell isnt strong or overpowering, Id describe it as a sweet berry burst :)

The new packaging is lovely very secure, and classy looking, without being too long or bulky.

The formular of these lipsticks is really nice, goes on evenly, without pulling on the skin, and they are all nice and opaque.

Nude Pink 206

It is a flesh toned pink colour that has a very warm undertone, it isnt bright, its one of those 'your lips but better' colours, it really depends on the shade of your natural lips to how dark this colour comes out. It does have a light pink/ silver shimmer going through it, but the particles are very fine so you cant feel them between your lips, instead of glittery it is a frost finish. Like all frost lipsticks it does tend to gravitate towards the dryer areas of my lips.

Old packaging

Pink Blush 006

This is a pale barbie pink colour, with cool undertones. its nice and bright but in a pastel way (if that makes sense?) it is a very creamy texture that is very opaque and has a creamy slightly glossy finish. I dont find that it accentuates any dryness on my lips.

Old packaging

Asia 077

This is a your lips but better colour, I would describe it as a cool toned mauve that is a cream finish with no shimmer frost etc. It is very opaque and it doesn't settle into dry areas.

I love this lipstick, if I dont know what lippie will go with an outfit or if im in a rush this is the one I always go for, such a nice everyday colour.

Old packaging

Dare 138

Dare is a lovely deep red, it isnt as bright as most, slightly more on the muted brown side, so if you like a red lip but are not confident enough to go for it, this could be a good one to start with.
The finish is a frost finish, it is very opaque and creamy and I dont find it settles into dry areas.

Alarm 170

There isnt really anything I can say about this one apart from its your classic bright red lippie, which isnt too bluey or too pinky just a lovely creamy opaque no shimmer post box red.
Really nice texture and feel on the lips as well.

Starry- eyed 128

This is a really nice traditional dark plum colour, very nice for autumn and winter, it isnt too brown based either so paler ladies can defiantly pull this off, lovely dark plum colour.
It has no shimmer and is lovely and creamy opaque.

Kate Moss shade 12

So this is the lasting finish lipstick by Kate moss, the smell and things are exactly the same, just the tube is a little different.
This is my perfect orange based red, its a lovely coral that isnt too orangy or to reddy or too bright, with a cream finish with no glitter or shimmer.

Kate Moss spring collection

So the sent of this lipstick is rather strong and zesty, it has a very sweet and fruity smell yet smells rather sour at the same time.
The formular is very similar to the lasting finish lipsticks.

shade 20

So shade 20 is a fantastic bright magenta pink, That isnt too pastel and isnt too dark, just the perfect bright pink!
It goes on the lips smoothly and has a cream opaque finish with no shimmer, it doesnt stick to dryer areas

Matte lipsticks by Kate Moss £5.49

Ok so these are the same sent as the kate moss spring collection as mentioned above with the same packaging apart from these are red insted of black.

The formular is nice, its not too hard or drying like most matte lipsticks and it doesnt drag on the lips when applying.

vibrant coral 110 

So this is a lovely red based coral that is nice and bright! (alot brighter then shade 12) bare in mind is is more red based then orange based for those of you looking for a orange lippie.

It is matte with no shimmer, I do find like with most matte lipstick that it can settle into dryer areas but it is minimal.

Wine 07

I think this could easily be my all time favorite lipstick, it is a beautiful wine red colour thats the perfect mix of red and purple and its not too bright or too dark.

It is matte with no shimmer, it does gravitate towards dry areas but it is minimal.

NYX lipstick swatches- click here!

Review- Elemis Pro-radiance cream cleanser

What is it?
It is an anti ageing cleanser that gently dissolves makeup and dirt without drying out the skin, whilst purifying oily areas.

Important ingrediants:
Moringa- Great antioxidant to keep the skin protect from pollutants we encounter through the day, which can cause skins ageing.

Assai Palm fruit- helps to reduces the appearance of redness.

Great burdock- helps to regulate the skins sebum (oil) production, so it doesnt dry out dryer areas but helps control and purify your oily zones.

Noni- Nourishes the skin, helping to soften and relax lines and wrinkles.

How to use:
I personally use this at night, as you massage it in and then leave it for 2-3 mins just to let it work and devolve makeup so I like to have a little extra time. then you just wipe off with a flannel and tone as usual. You can use it in the morning as well though.

Texture and smell:
The texture is very thick and slippery (almost waxy) between your fingers, I personally like the texture as I have normal-dry skin, if you have more of an oilier skin the texture may put you off.
It smells ok, I can defiantly smell lavender (which I dont particularly like) and patchouli, its very herby smelling and therefore doesnt smell like your typical Elemis facial product.

What did I think?
I really like this, its really good at removing makeup, due to the oily/waxy texture, it makes that makeup melt right off! It leaves my skin feeling really nice and soft after use and leaves a silky residue on my skin, my face looks instantly healthier with a nice dewy glow.

Is it right for your skin? 

Dry/Dehydrated-If you are concerned with lines and wrinkles and you suffer from very dry and dehydrated skin then I think you will love it, it feels like it is really giving your skin a drink, and your skin feels silky with a slight moisturising layer left behind even after toning. However you may want to look at the Elemis Pro collagen cleansing balm instead.

Combination skin- If you are concerned about anti ageing and find you have dehydrated patches but still find you sometimes get an oily chin etc when your hormones play up, I think this will be great for you, as it really leaves your skin feeling hydrated but the great burdock will help control that oil.

Oily skin- I dont think this will be the cleanser for you, as I said it does feel very slippy between the fingers and after use it does leave a silky film, I also find it gives my skin a dewy glow. all these things might put a person with an oily skin off the product.

Sensitive- I think this will be fine, Elemis products are very good when it comes to not putting 'nasty' ingredients in, also if you suffer from redness the palm fruit will really help to calm this down. The fact the you apply and leave it to dissolve makeup is good as well as it means you do not need to sit and rub your skin, which may cause your skins sensitivity to flare up.

Shellac- 'Cake Pop' from the spring collection

Without flash

without flash

with flash

About the colour
It really is just a lovely shade of pastel blue toned baby pink, it is very opaque and creamy looking with no shimmer, glitter, etc, I think its perfect for spring and summer and I always think of easter eggs when I wear this colour :)
I personally love it, it goes nicely with my very pale skin, and on darker skin tones I think it looks lovely, just like a variation of the white nail trend thats going about.

Application
The application is nice, it is a little bit runnier then I like (and runnier then most other shellac colours) which makes application a little harder as it tends to flood the cuticles easier and it also bubbles easier if you have it even the tiniest bit too thick.
It also isnt the most opaque colour iv seen, the photos are with 2 coats however if I had more time when i was doing these I defiantly would of added a third coat! and would recommend a third coat to anyone out there.

Final thoughts?
I love the colour on both fair and dark skin tones, its a perfect colour for spring and summer, however it takes a little more patients to apply to stop it running and bubbling, and it needs a third coat to make it look flawless.