FIX +

Up until around a fortnight ago, I hadn't seen the hype in makeup setting sprays. I had seen a lot of people on youtube rave about them, but I just thought it was pointless to spend money on something that didn't seem to make a difference - but then I bought Fix +.

Fix + is literally a genie in a bottle. A bottle retails for £14.50 from MAC and it is designed to be sprayed onto skin before makeup application to create a longer lasting base or after makeup application to prolong the staying power of your makeup. When I bought this I was a bit worried because I have oily skin and I didn't think it would work as well with my skin type.. but I was totally wrong. I spray Fix + onto my skin when I am just about to apply foundation and it makes foundation application so much easier and I have found that my foundation blends so much better when I have used this spray. I have also used Fix + to apply eyeshadow, I sprayed some of it onto a eyeshadow brush and then picked some of the eyeshadow up with the brush and patted the shadow onto the eyelid as I would normally. I was amazed at how vibrant the eyeshadow looked on my eyes compared to how it normally looks and the shadow also stayed on my eyes for longer than normal.

One thing that annoyed me about Fix + is the pump on the bottle. I was fiddling around with the bottle when I first got it and I must of tried for about half an hour to unlock it in order to spray it but it just wouldn't budge! I took to twitter to vent my frustration and then after a few google searches, I finally unlocked it. It really annoys me when pumps on foundation bottles/spray bottles don't work, considering how much money the product retails for - but thankfully the problem was solved.

Have you ever tried Fix + or any other setting sprays? 

WHAT I BOUGHT FROM LUSH

I don't really buy things from Lush as much as I would like to because of how expensive their products are, so it's a massive deal to me when I actually do pluck up the courage to purchase a few things from them. I must spend an hour each week simply trawling Lush's website just to research potential products. One thing about Lush that I love is the fact that they don't test on animals.

The first thing I picked up was Cupcake which is a face mask designed for oily skin. My skin has  been oily since I hit puberty and it is one of the biggest banes of my life. I went into Lush and had my mind set on buying a face mask and as soon as I read the words 'helps absorb excess oil' I knew this mask was the one for me. Since buying, I've used this face mask twice and I am really happy with how it leaves my skin. You are supposed to keep it on for about ten minutes but I am rubbish at time keeping so I normally leave it on for a tiny bit longer. When I wash the mask off it leaves my normally very oily t-zone slightly less matte. I paid  £6.25 for this wonder and I love how it leaves my skin, you get 75g of product but don't be put off by the price compared to proportion of product as a little goes a long way.

The second product I purchased was a dry shampoo called No Drought. I love dry shampoo because sometimes I am just too lazy to wash my hair and sometimes I feel like my hair needs a break from being washed constantly. For the past year I have stuck to Batiste's dry shampoo range but recently I read that their products contain alcohol because of their aerosol packaging and alcohol is seriously damaging for hair so I decided that I needed an alternative that would be a bit friendlier to my hair.

As you can see from the picture above, I made the right choice when it came to picking a new dry shampoo. Instead of other dry shampoos which contain nasty things such as alcohol, No Drought contains a variety of ingredients such as cornflour which is known to absorb oil and eliminates grease. I have used this dry shampoo countless times since buying it and I love how refreshed it makes my hair feel. It also smells absolutely gorgeous thanks to the Grapefruit Oil it contains.

I paid £6.75 for the big version (115g) of this dry shampoo. One thing I don't like about this dry shampoo is how sometimes the bottle sometimes squeezes too much powder out which is highly annoying as there has been occasions when my trousers have been covered in powder.

What was the last thing you bought from Lush?

CLEANING MY MAKEUP BRUSHES

I'm not going to lie, I really don't like washing my makeup brushes. This is primarily because of the amount of effort it takes and how messy it leaves my bathroom sink. This is disgusting to admit, but I have had my Real Techniques stippling brush for about two years and I've only washed it twice. I'm very lazy when it comes to things like brush washing and this is definitely one of my biggest beauty sins. I made a decision yesterday that I would kick the habit of neglecting my brushes and I would step up my cleansing game. That is exactly what I did. Today I collected all of my brushes from my trusty white pot in which they live in my bedroom and held them hostage for about twenty minutes in the bathroom and gave them a damn good clean.

It took me around twenty minutes to wash all of my makeup brushes individually and I was really happy with how clean they were when I'd finished. They normally take forever to dry but I was actually surprised with how quickly they dried on this occasion. 

To wash my brushes, I follow three simple steps. Firstly, I wet the brush with warm water to roughly rinse it of product. This is the first part of the cleansing process because it makes sure excess liquid (such as foundation) is quickly squeezed out. Next, I pump some of No 7's Makeup Brush Cleanser directly onto the bristles of the brush and swirl the brush on the palm of my hand which allows the cleanser to get to work. I've noticed that when I swirl the brush around in my hand, the remaining product that has been collected on the brush is washed away which is a vital step in the process. This is when I actually saw my brush gradually become cleaner.

I really like the No 7 brush cleaner that I used to wash my brushes. It was a very spontaneous purchase when I bought it a few months ago. I have been wanting to try Mac's Brush Cleaner for a while now but I wanted to buy a cheaper product first just to get to grips with how to clean my brushes. Although, now I think about it, I wish I had paid an extra £2.00 and bought Mac's version. I paid £8.00 for this brush cleaner, I do think it is good value for money and it has boosted my confidence in No 7's brand. The only thing I have really used from No 7 before buying this brush cleaner is a powder foundation that my best friend Beth bought a few years ago and that was an absolutely amazing product.

Have you got a specific routine when it comes to washing your brushes?

PIN IT UP

I have been wanting to try a pin up makeup/hair look for quite a while so I was more than thrilled on Wednesday night when my best friend came over as this was a perfect opportunity to experiment. Beth and I are both really interested in makeup and when boredom hits, we normally decide to do each other's makeup. Once, on New Year's eve, we decided at ten o'clock at night to do each other's makeup just because we were sick of waiting for the countdown! I love doing Beth's makeup because her skin is just so flawless and smooth. She has long dark hair which is amazing to experiment with, so naturally I seize the opportunity to take advantage of her amazing features and she becomes my guinea pig.

I was so happy with this look when I'd finished it and it meant that we just had to have a impromptu photoshoot in my garage (vinyls included)

ON THE FACE: Soap and Glory's Archery Brow Tint and Pencil in Brownie Points, Nooner eyeshadow by Urban Decay, Blanc Type eyeshadow by MAC, Studio Fix Fluid in NC15, Coppertone blush by MAC, Red lipstick from Avon.

Pin-up makeup is so simple, it mainly consists of a strong red lip with a nice crease cut or a pale eye. I used Mac's Blanc Type eyeshadow, which has a cosy home in Beth's makeup bag, as a base for the eyes and then blended 'Nooner' from Urban Decay's wonderful Naked 3 palette into the crease. This resulted in a nice nude eye. I then preceded to use my much loved Magic Liner from Topshop to create a winged eyeliner look which really completed the eye makeup. For the red lips I used a lipstick from Avon which I got for christmas as part of a set. 

The hairstyle was my favourite part of this look. To get this curly up do I simply curled Beth's hair towards her face and twisted it into one big curl. I curled all of her hair individually in the same direction to make one big ringlet style curl on each side of her head. The versatility of Beth's hair made this so easy to create. When I had created the two big ringlets, I twisted them to the back of her head and used bobby pins to secure them. The actual look turned out a lot messier than I had hoped but I think this gave a nice twist to the look (excuse the pun). To give the hair a bit of a 1950s vibe, I created a quiff on each side of her parting which made it quite edgy.

SOAP AND GLORY'S ARCHERY

I have recently become a bit sick of my natural eyebrows and have began a personal eyebrow revolution. My eyebrows used to be really thick when I was younger but after many waxing sessions they have lost their natural thickness and shape.  I have always longed for thinner eyebrows and now they're a little bit thinner I am totally bored of them.

I have found a miracle product that makes my eyebrows look 'presentable' and is so easy to use. I'd like to introduce to you all Soap and Glory's It's no secret that I love Soap and Glory. I've never tried their beauty products before trying this product, only their skincare/bath range, but I was pleasantly surprised. I bought the colour 'Brownie Points' and it is a really good match. There isn't a massive colour range though which is a negative thing about this amazing product as there's only two shades available, one for blondes and one for brunettes. I really like how easy it is to apply, you run the brow tint through your brows with a few strokes with the felt tip applicator and then you switch ends and apply the eyebrow pencil to shape up the brows. It takes about two minutes and then you're good to go.

The photo below is what 'Archery' in Brownie Points looks like on my eyebrows. This picture was taken after I had been to school and I had worn my makeup for about 8 hours. The staying power of Archery is quite good but I think it could be improved as my eyebrows don't look as good at the end of the day as they do at the start.

I am so glad that I've found a decent product that actually does my eyebrows justice and is so easy to use! I absolutely love Soap and Glory.

                         Do you fill your eyebrows in or do you just leave them au natural?

THE MOTHER OF ALL MAKEUP

I was having a case of serious bloggers block and whilst I was busy taking pictures to include in a blog post, I spotted my mam's makeup bag sitting on the windowsill and suddenly a post idea came to my head. So, when I asked my mam to describe her makeup bag in three words she said "Stapled, Boring, Essential." I couldn't of summed it up better myself.

Included: Rimmel Day 2 Night mascara, Mac Cremesheen lipstick in Vegas Volt, 

Loreal Paris Colour Appeal Trio Pro eyeshadow, Tweezers, 

Eyebrow and lash brush, Estee Lauder eyeshadow set, Chanel Inimitable mascara.

My mam is not one for wearing makeup every day and she only really wears it on special occasions so it's not surprising that she only has a small collection of makeup. Her favourite brand is Estee Lauder, which she has used since she was younger.  My mam swears by Astra Cream to moisturise with and ever since I was little I have seen her use it nearly everyday. Her skin is quite clear so she doesn't need foundation (lucky or what?) Although her makeup collection is quite small, she owns the best mascara that I've ever used. I bought her Chanel's Inimitable mascara for her birthday, I've tried it out and I can confirm that it is amazing. 

THE NAIL GAME

Summer is my favourite time in terms of colours. In the winter months I feel like darker colours are more fashionable but when it comes to summer the bright colours always make an appearance. I don't paint my nails much when I have school but thanks to the six week summer holidays (which is going to last about ten weeks for me this year) I have the freedom to paint my nails whenever I want.

In summer I like colours that compliment my tan and when I went to Majorca last year I bought two really nice nail varnishes from Barry M's Hi Shine gel collection. I was really happy with the gel consistency of the nail varnishes, which are called Prickly Pear (the purple shade) and Pomegranate (the hot pink shade). They left my nails feeling and looking very nice. I must say, they have amazing staying power as I think I only had to repaint them once throughout the fortnight of of sun, sea and sand.

Another brand I absolutely love for nail varnishes, whatever season, is Sinful Colours. I first discovered Sinful Colours in Boots about a year ago. Their nail varnishes retail for £1.99 which is so cheap - it's a really good price for a drugstore high quality nail varnish. I particularly love the shade 'Unicorn' which is a cool toned yellow shade that just screams summer, however it's the type of colour that you need to wear on top of a white undercoat as yellow nail varnish has been known to stain nails.

I might have to go on a nail varnish haul sometime soon because at the moment I am craving nail varnish, I think the last time I bought nail varnish was in September! There's no doubt that I will probably have a huge obsession with colourful nail varnish again this summer.

Do you have a staple nail colour for summer?

PRODUCTS I WOULD NOT REPURCHASE

My blog is always so positive about products so I decided it was time to tell you all about a few products I really did not like. I feel a bit bitchy slagging these products off but here are my honest opinions on a few items that disappointed me.

Okay, so me and mac lipsticks have had a bit of a love affair in the past couple of years. I went through a phase where I used to buy a lipstick a month from Mac (which was very silly). When I went to Glasgow with my cousins and my best friend last summer I picked up this lipstick from the Mac store on Buchanan Street. I had blonde hair and pale skin at the time and I really do not know why I bought it. The lipstick is from Nicki Minaj's Viva Glam range for Mac and it is a really light lilac colour. It is really the most unflattering colour on me, I think it's the worst lipstick shade I've ever bought. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Mac lipsticks and they are such good quality but I literally hate this particular lipstick. It cost me £14 and it was such a waste of money - I think I have worn it twice.

When Baby Lips launched in the UK I was so excited. For months I had seen various beauty gurus on youtube such as Sammi and Zoe rave about Baby Lips and I would get so upset because they were only available in America! I had seen so many people rave about them and I was so excited to try them. I love lip balms but unfortunately, I was let down by Maybelline's Baby Lips. The pink Baby Lips is absolutely awful, I really did not like it. It leaves an awful colour on your lips that looks like a lipstick you would get out of a children's magazine and it leaves a nasty residue on your lips. I bought mine for about £4 in Boots when they first launched last year and it really was not worth it. I would definitely not repurchase Baby Lips and I would much prefer to invest in a good lip butter rather than a lip balm which does nothing.

The last thing that I would not repurchase is MUA's Pro-Base Eye Primer . I really did not like the consistency of this primer, it was really liquidy which is not surprising as it only cost £2.50 from Superdrug. MUA is a good brand at times and I really like their naked palette dupes but this really let me down. I agree with the phrase 'you get what you pay for' and this is a prime example that sometimes you have to pay a little bit more for a good product. I don't think I would repurchase this product although I do like MUA as a brand on the whole.

What products do you feel haven't lived up to the hype?

THE SLEEK RESTORER

A shampoo and conditioner combo I am absolutely loving at the minute is Garnier's Sleek Restorer range. My mam always seems to purchase new shampoos on a weekly basis so I was pretty impressed with her choice this time. I have been using the Sleek Restore shampoo and conditioner for about 2 weeks now and I am honestly so impressed with how it has helped my hair. As I have mentioned in previous posts, my hair is in need of a little bit of TLC so I am constantly on the look out for anything that combats dryness or frizziness.

I was really surprised to see that Garnier have brought out a haircare range as I have always associated Garnier with skincare related items. One of my favourite things in the range is the '1 Minute Treatment'. I love deep conditioners and I especially love this one! This has made my hair so soft and lovely, I love it so much. It contains coconut oil which is amazing for your hair, a lot of people swear by it for healthy and strong hair - those people are totally right. My favourite thing about this product is how you can actually feel it on your hair, it is quite heavy and you can actually notice when it's still on your hair which is a massive advantage. I actually look forward to washing my hair when I use this.

THE ULTIMELT

I popped into boots when I was shopping yesterday and picked up a tube of the  Ultimelt Deep Purifying Hot Cloth Cleanser by Soap and Glory. It retails at £10.00 but it was reduced to £6.67 (I love a good bargain). I have seen a couple of blog posts about this little gem and I have been interested in purchasing a good 'deep pore' heavy duty cleanser for a while so I thought I'd give it a go.

I have always loved Soap and Glory since my sister got me a big gift set from Boots by them a few christmases ago. Soap and Glory are definitely a brand I trust, they have such a good range of products and everything smells so nice. I  used this cleanser a few hours ago when I had a shower as part of my facial cleansing routine and I really liked it. It smells a bit like lavender which is surprisingly really refreshing. Soap and Glory also gives you a muslin cloth with this cleanser which I really like considering many 'hot cloth' cleansers don't actually come with a cloth! The whole idea of the cleanser is to wash it off with a warm/hot cloth, thank you Soap and Glory for having some common sense. I am sitting writing this post now and my skin feels so soft and it actually feels clean! A lot of products make my face feel really greasy, like I haven't totally washed it off properly (even though I've washed my face with water 5 times), but this has left my face feeling totally cleansed.
My first impression on this product is positive, I really like it! Fingers crossed it keeps my face soft and spot free.

RECENT PURCHASES

I love reading/watching hauls and I thought that I would take the opportunity to show you all a collection of things that I have bought in the past couple of weeks.

The first thing on the list is a pair of curling tongs. I have been looking for some curlers that will define my curls when I have it natural, as I find it really hard to curl my hair with straighteners. I picked up the Remington Keratin Therapy Hair Tongs from Boots! I paid £24.99 for them which is a pretty good price for a quality pair of curlers! I have used them once already since buying them on Saturday and I think they work really well. They have a variety of heat settings so they can be adapted to use on any hair type.

After seeing Gabriella aka Velvetgh0st include Topshop's Magic Liner in one of her makeup tutorials, I just knew that I was going to buy it. I had previously been using a liquid eyeliner by Loreal and I felt the need to find a new one because the one I was using was drying up really quickly. I really like the Magic Liner because it is so easy to use, it is highly pigmented and it has a really pointy nib which helps you get the perfect line.

I also bought a lipstick from Kate Moss's Collection. I owned this lipstick a while back and I lost it but I am so glad I finally found it again! The shade is 016, which is a lovely coral colour, it's really moisturising to your lips as well which is a big advantage. Coral coloured lipsticks are great for summer.

CURRENT FAVOURITES

I just can not believe that it's March already! I was going to call this post 'March Favourites' but realised it was gonna be a bit out of context seeing as we're only half way through! Instead I'll just make it a generalised 'favourites' post. One thing I've been loving at the moment is UD's Naked 3 palette, I love the colours and I find they are perfect for daytime looks. I must say, I was absolutely thrown by how gorgeous the naked 2 palette was and it will always be a staple in my makeup bag, but the naked 3 palette is slowly creeping up to being a second favourite. It retails at about £35 but it lasts ages and is so highly pigmented. 

I have also been loving a perfume by Burberry, which is called Burberry (how straight to the point is that!). The perfume comes in a circular bottle and looks a little bit like wee in the bottle, don't be fooled because this perfume literally smells lovely. The bottle in question belongs to my Mam but I have borrowed a few spritzes over the past couple of weeks and I am slowly becoming addicted to it. Burberry just screams amazing in general, from it's advertising campaigns to it's famous check design. I'm so glad it's perfume range lives up to expectation.

Another thing that I have been loving is 'Harmony' by Mac which I have raved about a few times. It is a lovely brown toned blush which I'm finding really handy for contouring as well as using as a blush! I don't think I can praise Mac blushes anymore than I have. I love them.

CRAVING CONDITIONED HAIR

If there were two words to describe my hair, the two words would be dry and damaged. My hair has been put through numerous dyes and even a bleach as a result of my ambitions to become blonde. I have since given up with that ambition after finally getting the colour I wanted and then deciding to dye it back brown, typical.

I am trying my best to give my hair some TLC and one of the ways I am doing this is by treating it to a dose of high conditioning every now and again, that could be through using a hair mask or leaving my conditioner on for a little bit longer than usual. My favourite technique for giving my hair a little bit of nourishment is via a hair mask, which I normally leave on my hair for about 3 to 5 minutes. One of my favourite hair masks is Aussie's famous 3 Minute Miracle. As the name suggests, you are advised to leave it on as a deep conditioner for 3 minutes. You can leave it on for longer than 3 minutes if you like, the longer the better. It has a divine smelling creamy formula which provides a total treat to your hair. My bottle also has a funky label which is apparently limited edition (how swanky). I love Aussie products in general, they are amazing. This is no exception. Aussie's 3 minute miracle leaves your hair feeling and smelling unreal. It basically smells of heaven.

MAC Studio Fix Fluid: A REVIEW

I have tried countless foundations but every time I always find myself sticking to my roots and returning to MAC's Studio Fix Fluid, it is definitely my favourite foundation. 

Studio Fix Fluid has everything I like in a foundation. It makes a great matte base, it is long lasting and works well with my skin. My skin is very oily in the t zone area but it can also become dry on my chin, so I like it when a foundation is oil free; which is also one of the reasons why I love this foundation. It stays on my face for about 8 hours as long as I set it with my trusty Rimmel Stay Matte powder which is my staple setting powder. 

As you can see from the following photos, Studio Fix Fluid is of a medium consistency but is very good for building coverage. I apply the foundation with my Real Technique's stippling brush and it takes about three pumps of foundation to build a good base. It has a smooth feel when you apply it to your face and it feels smooth, like a second skin. I use the shade NC15 which is a yellow toned colour, and it suits me pretty well. It makes me look quite pale when I wear it when I come back from holiday though, as my body and face normally tan.

One thing I do not like about this foundation is the smell. It smells a lot like paint but thankfully it does not resemble the consistency of paint on your skin (thank god). Studio Fix Fluid is sold in MAC for £21.50 and I would say it is worth every single penny, it is a really good foundation and is best suited for combination/oily skin. Even though it is quite expensive, a bottle lasts me at least three months before it runs out - it is very good value for money.

BEAUTY THINGS I SUCK AT

I have seen this topic floating around youtube/blogger for a while so I thought I would get in on it and take the time to tell you a few of the the beauty things I suck at.

I am rubbish at painting my nails on my right hand. I'm right handed so half of the time I do it really well on my left hand along as I use a topcoat to dry it. When it comes to painting my right hand, it always ends up a total disaster. Somehow the nail varnish never stays inside the lines of my nails and looks so messy and unprofessional. 

I am so reluctant to pluck my eyebrows. I have done nearly everything possible in attempts to get nice eyebrows, such as threading (which hurts like a bitch) and waxing, I still am somehow left with unruly brows. I used to get my eyebrows waxed because it is the easiest option for me, it doesn't hurt at all and it offers really good results.. but I got really lazy about getting them waxed and decided that I was getting bored of paying £12 a month to get them done. So I decided I would start plucking my eyebrows. I hate any type of pain, and plucking makes the pain individual so I have always hated plucking as a technique to maintain my eyebrows. When I feel like it, or my eyebrows are looking really messy, I will pluck my eyebrows.. but I hardly ever do it as a part of my routine.

An accurate representation of my experiences with eyeliner.

I suck at getting my eyeliner to look even. I wear eyeliner whenever I wear a full face of makeup, which is mostly on the weekends and I can never get my eyeliner to be even! I use L'oreal's super liner when I am wearing liquid eyeliner and I always end up picking too little product onto the brush or too much product. I always wear my eyeliner flicked and it is the most frustrating thing ever when you get a perfect flick on one eye and on the other it just doesn't happen the way you want. 

MAC'S MOCHA

I must confess I do not spend a awful lot of money on blush and to be quite honest I could probably live without blush as long I owned a good bronzer. One of the two blushes I own is a lovely blush called Harmony which is by Mac, it is a lovely muted brown toned matte and is absolutely amazing at contouring. 

I am quite pale (NC15) and I used to think my skin only suited brown toned blushes as I had tried a very very pink blush on my cheeks and the end result made me look like a china doll, because of the contrast between the present pink tones in the blush and the paleness of my skin.. but then I met Mocha by Mac, (which when bought, pushed my blush collection up to two!) and my opinion of pink hued blushes changed for the better. 

This is a swatch of mocha under the flash, it looks like it has a hint of shimmer on this photo,
but I can promise you that it is completely matte.

One of the things I love about Mocha is it's colour payoff, it leaves my skin looking natural and not too flushed, which a lot of pink blushes often do. It is matte, so it does not leave my cheeks looking too unnatural which is good for those days where you don't want to look too made up and I find that it blends wonderfully. 

I do believe that you pay for quality, and Mac is on the expensive side but the blushes sold by Mac are of a high quality. I've had my Harmony blush, which set me back £18, for about a year and after religious use, I still haven't hit pan which is astounding! A little really does go a long way, and I only really use a little bit of blush every day so it isn't a surprise that I still have plenty of product left. Mocha, which was also £18, is applied on my cheeks every day and it basically looks brand new.

A swatch of 'Mocha' without the flash. It is a lovely matte.

If you are looking for a really nice matte shade for your cheeks, I would recommend popping along to your local mac store and browsing their blush selection! I hope you are led to love matte blushes such as Mocha as much as I do.