Review: Maybelline Color Elixir Lip Lacquer in '725 Caramel Infused'

To be honest, I bought this at the same time as my other lip lacquer by Maybelline (two for £10), and after deciding it was almost a waste of money, I was wondering or not whether to blog about this, but I decided to try it out anyway... 

Like the other lip lacquer, it has the same cute packaging (I'm not a huge fan of packaging, but I comment on it in case others are), and the same light, candy scent that wears away quickly. In the tube, the colour has a brownish caramel appearance (hence the name), but when it's applied, it's a lovely, creamy pink-brown (yes, you know me, love my nude lips - so predictable, Xen, well done!). After the disappointment of 'Signature Scarlet', I was completely ready to throw down my weapons and admit defeat against the evils of the tyrannical lip lacquer...

But I was pleasantly surprised. The colour was lovely, medium-pigmentation, looked good with just one swipe of the pear-shaped wand (forgot to take a pic, please see previous blog) and the colour didn't settle into the creases in my lips, making me one happy girl indeed. It reminds me of a lipgloss version of MAC's lipstick 'Modesty', which has been one of my favourite nude lipsticks of this year. 

This little beauty has impressed me, and will be joining the ranks of my other nude lip colours, for sure. 

Any lip colours you like/suggest? Have you tried these lip lacquers? Let me know! 

Maybelline Coloursensational Nude Lipstick in 725 Tantalizing Taupe

My super favourite colour on my lips have to be nudes. A nude lip goes with everything; got heavy smokey eye makeup going on? Nude lips are your eyes' best friend. Doing the no-makeup-makeup look? Nude lips sure do help! Worried that your lip and eyes are all mismatched? Nudes are there to take the stress away! Basically they take the worry out of your day to day makeup. Yes, they may be boring and predictable, but they're handy and reliable! 

So I knew that this lippie simply had to join the ranks of my other nude lipsticks such as my MAC Half 'n' Half and MAC Modesty. But this lipstick has the added benefit of being drugstore, so it doesn't have a £15 price tag, it's just under half that, at a more purse-friendly £6.99. 

On me it's a creamy, moisturising pinky brown, easy to apply and has a slightly sweet scent. This will be a definite go-to colour for me for the foreseeable future. 

Do you wear nude lips? Love or hate? Any lip colour suggestions? Xx

Review: Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Lips Pencil

I'm a huge fan of red lips (as you may well know) so when I saw this cute little pencil I thought I'd have to add it to my collection. 

If this colour has a name it doesn't seem to be on the pencil, so I'm going to call it Bright Pillarbox. It's a lovely, shiny, creamy, bright-yet-true red, that applies smoothly and has a great opaque colour. 

This is a lovely colour that's easy to wear, but like most balms/glosses, it does need to be reapplied after eating and drinking. Considering also that this is a pencil, it requires being sharpened, so there will be some loss, but these pencils are around £5 so it's not a huge issue. 

Apart from reapplication and loss, I still think that this colour is great and the price is reasonable. 

Anyone else like these pencils? Don't like them? Let me know xx

Review: Little Mix love All About The Eyes Palette

I went to my local Superdrug today. When I saw this cute little eyeshadow palette, at just £2.99 I knew I just had to have it. 

It's a little cardboard palette, just over 4 inches long, 2 & 1/2 inches wide and has 6 beautiful shades of cream, sparkly gold, shimmery brown and black. 

Colours from left to right: 

Feather, Sunkissed, Golden Sand, Dazzling Brown, Cocoa Dream & Blackbird. 

My thoughts: This palette is cute, small and the perfect size for travel (and if its cardboard packaging gets ruined, it only costs £2.99 so it's not the end of the world). The colours are quite creamy and pigmented ('Feather' being the exception, being slightly less pigmented and a little chalkier), apply and blend well and are perfect for natural looks (similar to the look I was sporting above) and darker, smokier looks, thanks to 'Cocoa Dream' and 'Blackbird'. It's a fab palette, and although the eyeshadows contain parabens, I use MAC paint pots as eyeshadow primer, so it's not a problem. Worth the money, for sure. Recommended for anyone wanting a decent eyeshadow palette on a budget! 

Bourjois Cream Blush 02 Healthy Glow

I've wanted to get my hands on another of Bourjois' beautiful cream blushers ever since I got my grubby little paws on their Blush Exclusif last year. 

So I went ahead and did just that! I had to go on the colour of the pot, as the tester in store had dried up so hard that it had cracked into about six pieces and fallen apart. 

It's a beautiful peachy colour, absolutely perfect for spring and summer. Also if you have light to medium skin, this will be a fantastic, all year round light flush. 

It swatches beautifully, blends easily into the powdery finish and lasts on my cheeks for a full 12hrs, as long as my t-zone has been primed with Milk of Magnesia first, otherwise the oil around my nose wears away the colour within about 4-6 hours. 

For me this is a definite must-have colour, perfect for all year round naturally flushed cheeks.