Hi everyone
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!
I feel like this year no one can say they have had a fantastic year or a bad year, so far everyone seems to be siding with the old mix up of both. 2015 has definitely been a year of ups and downs for everyone. Either way I hope you all had the best way of celebrating the end of 2015 whether that was out partying hard or snuggling in with friends and family like myself.
My resolutions this year are to use more notebooks as all I do is type, drink more water and lastly try to expand creatively...With this I thought I would round up the year with a beauty post. I have whittled down my ever growing makeup stash and gather the very best of this year. Its basically a mix up of high end and high street makeup that I think are the bomb. I have avoided any skin care products as that my friends is a post in its self, let me know if you want to see it!
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
I feel like I need to sing every time I see or talk about these brushes. By far Zoeva have been the brand for me when it comes to makeup brushes, with Real Techniques coming close. I do not believe in spending all the $$$ for makeup brushes as you can 100% get good quality synthetic brushes that are completely inexpensive. I find eye makeup particularly challenging and with this set it is EASY AS PIE. I got these as a gift but you can find them here.
FACE BASE
I love doing my face makeup, its the easiest, needs the least amount of concentration and always gives such satisfying results. My favourites this year have all been new discoveries. The Charlotte Tilbury Light Wonder foundation in shade 5 when tanned and shade 2 when not is absolutely gorgeous. Medium coverage, lightweight and luminous. The Becca Shimmering Skin Perfecting is my favourite discovery of all time. Acts as a beautiful primer and shines through all makeup to give that dewy finish, not great for porous skin as it tends to highlight problem areas. NARS is one of those brands that just delivers, the Sheer Glow foundation is stunning and the lip crayons are completely addictive. However those are nothing compared to the most popular concealer this year! NARS Radiant Concealer is by far the best concealer I have used, super creamy, high coverage, light weight and easily blendable. It also has the best colour range I have seen. NARS I love you. Adopt me.
Now the one piece that genuinely transforms my face, is the Bobbi Brown Intensive Skin Serum Corrector, not only does it have active ingredients that help to care for the under eye area and reduce dark circles it actually has cosmetic affect. The difference you see when using this under your concealer is incredible. The eye area is highlighted, brightened and perfected!
CONTOUR & HIGHLIGHT STARS
This year has been the year of the makeup trends in a big way. Contouring and strobing come through, come through hunnis. These trends have changed my life! However use with caution. I recommend contouring only for a night out, as the harsh light of day can make your perfectly blended contour look like a mud stripe, damn you sun... Highlight on the other hand you can go to town with. Just do what your heart tells you. I have tried out every single damn contour palette out there, ABH, SMASHBOX, KAT VON D, SLEEK etc however the best one is in fact high street, yasssssss can I get an amen. Bless those kind souls at Revolution makeup that spend precious hours creating the perfect palette of cool tones, warm tones and highlighting powders so that peasants like us can contour the F outta our chins/sins.
Speaking of contour palette I recently discovered their new brand sister 'I love makeup' and I love them aha, hilarious Chloe. But seriously £4 for the best most intense highlighting pigment ever. Just look at the swatch below if you need more proof...
Also I am having a love affair with Charlotte Tilbury right now, I may not believe in everything she stands for but BY GAWD her makeup is delicious. Filmstar Bronze & Glow is divine! If you can only buy one piece from her, make it this. It is pricey at £49 but see it as 3 products, bronzer, highlight and the perfect transition shade for your eyeshadows. Plus the packaging, I mean come on. WHY DO THIS TO ME CHARLOTTE.
ALL EYES ON THESE
Mascaras, something that just does not excite me. It just doesn't, I'm sorry. I feel everyone has felt the same, which is why I think at the end of the year companies had started to try and reformulate their original formulas and create something worth paying for. Introducing the Bobbi Brown Eye Opening Mascara. BEAUT BEAUT BEAUT. Seriously big brush for serious volume lashes. The brush takes some time getting used to, but if you are patient the end results are gorgeous. Due to the heavy nature of the product and the size of brush I personally used a separate brush for lower lashes. Its no surprise here as every blogger/vlogger I know uses this but the MAC Extended Play Gigalash is perfect due to its small size and serious staying power. You can watch the Notebook in this and it won't budge.
Now onto the liners of the world... Glam eyes by Rimmel is incredible. High street was a formidable force last year, with this liner being a firm favourite with professionals and for a good reason. The brush is tiny which makes your eye liner look so precise, its matte and carbon black. I would not recommend this for beginners as it can be tricky to work with, but once you have your practise the results are cut worthy.
I don't have much to say about the Bobbi Brown Sterling Nights palette because well...Just look at it, creamy, buttery, shimmering cool tone loveliness. My ride or die.
IF IN DOUBT POUT
If you know anything about me, it is that lipsticks and lip products excite the hell out of me, 2014 I was a red lip fanatic, 2015 it was all about those nudes, 2016...who knows. MAC is still my one and only high end brand for lipsticks, no other brand does them better in terms of colour and finish selection, staying power and price point. Having said this two new brands have appeared in my radar, Gerard cosmetics and NYX both highly affordable and both incredible in their quality. NYX in the shades Stockholm and Abu Dhabi and Gerard in the shade 1995 are my favourites although I want plenty more. The MAC lip I randomly chose is Morange, although I love all MAC lipsticks.
I feel now working within this industry professionally and from a business and creative view point that 2016 is going to be amazing for makeup. I cannot wait to get more creative and seek out new brands both high end and high street. I hope you have found something useful in this post and I will be back with a fashion one next time! Whoop whoop.
Enjoy the celebrations
xx
