Top 10 Series: Drugstore/ High-street Makeup

Hi everyone!

 

I have decided to start a fun, new, top 10 series! I will select a category and discuss my top 10 products within that category for you! Today we have my favourite picks from high-street/ drugstore make up! These are the top 10 products  that really stand out to me for their amazing quality and, of course, affordable price! It was really tough to narrow it down to only 10!

My Top 5 Contouring Powders

CLICK here to read my updated contouring post from July 2016!

Hi Everyone!

More and more of us like to contour out faces nowadays and this technique can be done using a variety of products, I would recommend trying out a few and finding out which one is best for you. Here are few of my favourite products that I use to contour my face:

(Colour guide: I have MAC NW20 skin)

MAC Harmony Blush:
This is my favourite product to use when contouring my face. MAC describe Harmony as a 'Muted rose-beige brown'. I really like to use a blush product when contouring my face as my skin has pinkie undertones and the pinkie undertones in the blush help me to blend the product in and avoid that over-done look! Harmony contains no shimmer or glitter which is great as it can look a little obvious if you have a lot of shimmer on one section of your face!

You can purchase this from MAC for £17.50

Sleek Contour Kit in Light:
This is a great product and very popular (it's always out of stock!) The kit comes with both a highlighter and contouring powder. The colour of the contouring powder is great for my skin and blends well, I slightly prefer Harmony over this one even though they are very similar in colour as the MAC powder is a little easier to blend and work with in my opinion.

You can purchase this kit from Sleek for £6.50

NARS Laguna Bronzer:
I am a huge fan of the NARS Laguna bronzer which is described as a 'brown with golden shimmer'. This powder does contain some shimmer but it is quite subtle. I tend to use Laguna as a bronzer for an all-over colour but it does double up really well as a contouring powder too. As with all NARS products, this is great quality and is really easy to work with. NARS also offer the Laguna shade in the cream, multiple stick form which would also be great for facial contouring.

You can purchase the Laguna powder from NARS for £25

Benefit Hoola Bronzing Powder:
This is my most recent purchase from this post and I admit that I have only used it a handful of times so far. I have used this is a similar way to Laguna in that I use it more as a bronzing powder than a contouring powder but it makes a great contour powder due to it's lack of shimmer.

You can purchase Hoola from Benefit for £23.50

NYX Powder Blush in Raisin:
This Product is a lovely brown shade with a slightly red undertone. It does a great job at shaping your face and is really reasonably priced. The texture is silky smooth and applies brilliantly as all NYX blushes do!

You can purchase Raisin from NYX for £5.50

Swatches shown on NW20 skin:

So the big question, I am sure, is which of these products would I recommend if you are only going to buy one! I would probably go with the Sleek kit, it is very nearly as good as MAC's Harmony blush and is also great value for money especially if you are just starting to contour and highlight your face. Despite all of this, MAC's Harmony will always be my favourite, go-to contour powder!
In case anyone is wondering - my favourite brush to use when contouring my face is the Sigma F25!

I hope that you have enjoyed this post and found it useful. Please feel free to share your favourite contouring products in the comments section below.
Maz x

 

Sleek Pout Polish - Review & Swatch

Hi Everyone!

I have purchased a couple of things from Sleek Makeup over the past few months and I really like the brand as a whole. I was in Superdrug a few days ago and saw their Pout Polishes and thought that I'd give them a go! The pout polishes are tinted lip balms that provide you with a sheer wash of colour and also condition and protect your lips. I chose the colour 'Powder Pink' which is a really pretty medium pink colour:

The polishes contain Almond Oil, Shea Butter, Avocado Extract and Vitamins A, C and E which moisturise and condition your lips and they also contain SPF 15 to protect your lips from the sun. The pot contains 10g of product which is quite a lot and good value for money in my opinion. The texture of the product is quite glossy but not oily or sticky which is great. I love the glossy rosy tint that it gives to my lips and I think that it is perfect for work or college if you want a subtle bit of colour. I feel that the product is really moisturising and softening on the tips which is perfect for these cold winter months.

Here is a swatch of the polish for you:

Swatch shown on NW20 skin

I hope that you have enjoyed my quick review of the Pout Polish. Please let me know if you have purchased any of them and what you think of them!

I purchased mine from Superdrug for around £4.50

Maz x

Sleek MakeUp Face Contour Kit Review

Hi Everyone!

This is my latest purchase from Sleek Make up which is the Face Contour Kit in the colour option Light. The compact is made up of 2 powders, the powder on the left is dark and is for contouring your cheekbones and the powder on the right is lighter and for highlighting your cheekbones. The compact is a similar design to NARS blushes/ bronzers and is made from plastic, it has a snap shut closing and also has a handy mirror on  the inside of the lid.

I have fairly pale skin (MAC NW20) so I went for the Light option, there are also medium and dark options available, I would advise swatching the powders in the store before buying them. I apply the contouring powder using either a MAC 109 brush or a Sigma F25 brush, and use it to define my cheekbones and to contour my jaw. I apply the highlighting powder to the tops of my cheekbones, browbones and down the centre of my nose. The contour powder is matte and reminds me of MAC's Harmony blush which is my usual contouring shade but has a slightly less pinky tone to it in my opinion. The powder looks quite strong when you first apply it, depending on what type of brush you are using but it blends into the skin really well and can be built up to reach your desired affect. The highlighting shade is like no other highlighting powder I own, it is a golden, sand shade that has a frosty finish. This powder has quite a subtle effect on your skin but again, can be built up. I have used a Sigma F15 brush to apply this but you could also use your fingers.

Here are the swatches of the 2 powders shown on NW20 skin:

Overall I am once again really impressed with a Sleek Makeup product! I think that this product is great value for money and there is also no other product like it, as far as I know, in it's price range. The contour powder is definitely comparable to MAC's Harmony blush and is a brilliant cheaper alternative. The highlight powder is nice but the contour powder is definitely the star product in the palette. Due to the affordable price I think that this would be a great kit to buy if you are new to highlighting and contouring your face and the fact that the powders blend so well make them very easy to apply. Big thumbs up for Sleek once again!

You can purchase this kit from Sleek MakeUp or Superdrug stores in the UK for £6.50
Maz x

Sleek i-Divine Primer Palette

Hi Everyone!

I recently purchased the Sleek i-Divine Palette primer which I decided to try after being impressed with the Original i-Divine palette that I bought a few weeks ago (to read my review of this palette and to see swatches click here). I really like Sleek as a brand, their products are all reasonably priced and great quality. This palette contains 12 cream eyeshadow primers in an array of colours including blues, purples and greens. The shadows are described as primers but I would call them bases. I will use them after applying an eye primer, such as Too Faced Shadow Insurance, to make the colour of my powder shadows really pop. As you can see below the colours all have names.

(Top Row, L to R) Moonshine, Calypso, Ultra Violet, Dare Devil, Pink Frost, Silver Lining

(Bottom Row, L to R) Noir, Peach, Money Tree, Truffle, Money Honey, Hot Wired!

All of the shadows have a pretty good colour pay off but are not too pigmented which is ideal for an eyeshadow primer/ base. I tried wearing the shadows alone to see how they would perform but they creased pretty quickly. I have tried out a couple of the colours as bases and they work really well and definitely made a difference to the intensity of my pressed shadows.

Swatches shown on NW20 skin:

Overall this palette is great value for money and I find that the products are slightly easier to work with than some of the MAC paint pots are. It is also great to have such a vast array of eye shadow bases in your collection.

I purchased my palette from Sleek Makeup for £7 and it can also be purchased from selected Superdrug stores in the UK.

To see more pictures of the palette please click on the video below.

Maz x

Sleek Makeup i-Divine Original Palette

Hi Everyone!

This is a review of the Original i-Divine palette from Sleek Makeup. I have heard so much buzz on the internet surrounding this brand so I decided to go and see what all of the fuss is about! The brand is available via the official Sleek website and in selected Superdrug stores across the UK. I am unsure as to whether it is available in the US yet. I purchased this palette from Superdrug for £6.49.

The Original palette contains 12 shadows and has an excellent colour selection, included greens, pinks, blues and purples as well as a really nice black which is always great to have in a palette, there isn't, however, a colour that I feel would be suitable for highlighting the brow bone. The palette is a compact size and snaps shut. It contains a handy mirror on the inside of the lid and comes with a double ended sponge applicator.

Here are the eye shadow swatches shown on NW20 skin: 

Top Row, Left to Right

Bottom Row, Left to Right

As you can see, all of the colours are really nicely pigmented and provide amazing colour pay off for the price. I have to say that the shadows aren't very smooth to apply, compared to a MAC eyeshadow for example, but do blend in to the skin pretty well. I only found problems with fall-out with 2 of the shadows (Bottom row, the 2 shadows on the left) which seem to have quite a chunky consistency compared to the others, but they were the only 2. The colour combinations that you can create using this palette is amazing and the palette is amazing value for money.

I highly recommend this palette as an affordable way to add some extra colour to your eye shadow collection. Sleek also produce several other gorgeous palettes, take a look by visiting their website.

For more pictures of the palette please click on the video below.

Maz x

Smashbox, MAC, Illamasqua, Sleek & Jose Eber Haul

Hi Everyone!

I went shopping at the Trafford Centre in Manchester with my best friend yesterday and I wanted to share the things that I bought with you all!

Firstly I picked up the Original iDivine palette from Sleek Makeup. I have heard so much buzz around this brand online recently so I really wanted to check it out. This one and the 'Bad Girl' palette appealed to me the most and I am amazed at the colour choice and pigmentation over the range of eye shadows that the brand has to offer. The palette was from Superdrug and cost £6.50 which is an amazing price for 12 eye shadows. I will do a full review and swatches post for this palette soon!

I then went to the Smashbox counter and purchased this Complexion Perfection Kit in Light for £45. I have heard so much about Smashbox and have seen their studios featured on the Hills and I really wanted to try out a few products so this kit seemed perfect. It comes with the High Definition Foundation in light L3 in a travel size, the High Definition Concealer in Light, also in a travel size, you also get a mini Photo Finish Foundation Primer and a portable size Halo to Go Hydrating Perfecting Powder in Light. You basically have everything you need for a light, medium or full coverage face! This kit is quite expensive but you do get quite a decent amount of product and I suppose it is cheaper to buy the 4 products like this to begin with before buying the items in full size which would be much more expensive.

Next I went over to the Illamasqua counter and I fell in love with Underground Lipstick from the new Magenta Muse collection for 2011 which was £15.50. Illamasqua describe this lipstick as an 'Irridescent blueberry violet with a shimmer finish'. This lipstick reminds me of one of my favourite pigments from MAC called Pink Pearl. It is a beautiful rich pink colour with a purple/ violet duochrome. It isn't quite as scary as it looks in the tube! It applies quite sheer and you can build it up to your desired finish, the Illamasqua artist layered it over a bright fuchsia lip liner which made it look even more amazing! I tried it over MAC's Magenta Lip Pencil to get the same effect (shown below). I also picked up their Cream Blusher in Rude for £16.50. I have been after a coral cream blush for ages now and I really like this one. It is described as a 'Warm peach pink with a dewy finish'. It looks much brighter and more orange in the pan than it applies on the skin. It has quite a sheer application which is great as it makes it easier to build up and blend out. Here are the swatches of the 2 products shown on NW20 skin.

(L to R) Underground Lipstick, Rude Cream Blusher, Underground Lipstick over MAC Magenta Lip Pencil

No shopping trip would be complete for me without a visit to the MAC counter! Yesterday I picked up one of their new Mineralize Eye Shadows in Quartz Fusion from the new Semi Precious Collection which was £16. This is a beautiful glittery pink eye shadow that MAC describes as a 'Soft Pink, Silver, Deep Pink'. I love pink eye shadows and was drawn to this one when I saw JulieG713 use it in a recent make up tutorial on YouTube! Here is the eye shadow swatch:

Finally, when we entered one of the large department stores in the Trafford Centre we were approached by a sales lady from Jose Eber. She was promoting their curling irons and asked if we would like to try them. She firstly tried it out on my friend who has long, thick hair that always curls really easily so it was no surprise when they curled her hair really well! I, however, have long, fine hair that only likes to be straight! I have tried many different methods over the years to try and get my hair to curl including, rollers, GHD irons and regular curling irons and never had a very good result so I wasn't expecting much from these curlers! Well I have to say I am amazed and overjoyed at the curls that these irons create! I have never seen anything create such an amazing curl like these irons do! I actually had gorgeous ringlets in my hair for the first time in my life! All you do is take a piece of hair and wrap it around the barrel, you then count to 3 and release the hair and there is your curl! I went for the 19mm Pro Series Curling Iron in Pink Zebra. I can't remember exactly how much they are as we both purchased them and had a few discounts applied! I highly recommend that you check them out, especially if you have difficult to curl hair like me!

Maz x