skin

Lust List: The Skin Edition

beauty, blog, face, highend, inspired, life, lifestyle, london, look, makeup, review, skin, skincare, trend, Uncategorized

So I know my posts recently have been a bit mixed in terms of content but I thought I’d get back to a bit of beauty today. Recently, I’ve been making a more conscious effort to use up my current products before buying new ones. Of course there are a few exceptions, but for the most part I’ve been pretty good at ‘shopping my stash’.

Whenever I discover a new product that I’d like to try, I add it to the notes on my phone. By doing this, I can refer back to it once I’ve used up a current favourite. So here are the skincare/makeup items I’m lusting after right now. Let me know of any others you think I should try!

Glossier Skin Tint – As a self confessed lover of full coverage, this may be somewhat of a suprise addition. Having seen Anniecherrymakeup feature this lightweight foundation regularly in her videos, I am keen to give it a go.  Perfect for evening out discolouration, this appears to be the solution to no makeup makeup. One downside to point out is the small shade range. Whilst it does appear to cater to a range of skintones, there are only 12 shades within the range, minimal compared to the likes of MAC and Fenty.

Ole Henriksen Bananna Bright Face Primer – This particular product has been raved about by a number of successful influencers over the past few months. Packed with Vitamin C, it promises a ‘dewy, healthy-looking glow’.As someone who isn’t massive on primer, this product appeals more so for the promise of radiance. This is one of many products from Ole Henriksen that I’m keen to try.

Khiels Daily Reviving Concentrate – Admittedly, I have used this serum before but at £38, I haven’t yet been able to justify a repurchase. As a massive fan of the Midnight Recovery Serum, I was hopeful that this would deliver on the same scale and it did. Definitely time to add it back into my routine!

Do you own any of these products? Anything you think I should be trying instead? Tweet me @sophieaiken.

Sophie

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My Current Favourites

bargain, beauty, celebrity, essentials, life, lifestyle, makeup, review, skin, skincare, trend

Everything is my favourite at the moment, even the word itself. So I thought I’d share some of my current loves with you all. From television to skincare here are just a few for you…

faves-SQScream Queens – I absolutely love this TV show! I’m watching along weekly in the UK so no spoilers please!! From the cast to the scripting this show is everything I love, but what else would you expect given that it was created by American Horror Story genius Ryan Murphy?! Despite the name it really isn’t particularly scary but it can venture into the gory zone on occasion. The show is set in a sorority house controlled by Queen bitch Chanel (Emma Roberts) and sees the cast being slowly picked off by the ‘Red Devil’. Jamie Lee Curtis is amazing as the slightly crazy, hard-faced Dean Cathy Munsch. Basically if you like pretty clothes, dark comedy and plenty of cliché rich white girl jokes then you need Scream Queens in your life!

faves-cliniqueClinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Oil – This stuff takes my makeup off in seconds. It’s amazing. I was using the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm but found that it often irritated my eyes, not enough to put me off using it but enough to make me want to explore other options. So I did my research and found the Clinique one to be a suitable alternative. I have found that whilst this is a great first cleanse you really do need to go in with a second one to get that fresh, clean skin feeling. For this I have been using an Elemis one (review coming soon). The Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Oil is perfect if you’re in a rush but want to avoid face wipes. 3 pumps for a full face of makeup, a warm flannel to remove and you’re done in seconds. Love. It.

faves-coatMissGuided Padded Faux Fur Hood Jacket– When it comes to jackets, I think I have a serious issue. I just cannot get enough! I feel like I need to have a different style for every occasion (funnily enough my mum disagrees). My justification for this most recent purchase however is that I was seriously lacking in the hood department. This jacket is sooo warm and the giant hood makes it perfect for walks in the rain (a must when you have two dogs). So that’s my reasoning, and I have donated an old one to charity in exchange which is a great idea if you want to rid yourself of a little shoppers guilt. On a side note I just have to say how impressive the MissGuided delivery service is, this arrived next day despite the fact I ordered after 8pm. They also have a great returns policy and bonus points for the 20% discount!!

Adele 25 – Despite spending hours and I mean serious hours attempting to buy tickets to her tour *to no avail* I have made the mature decision to forgive Adele. This new album might actually be my favourite of all her work. Hello is of course the ballad of the year but for me the number one song on 25 is When We Were Young (the video above), I bloody love it! I like the mix of uptempo and slow songs and basically I am just one of millions of passengers riding the Adele train right now.

Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge – I wrote about this in a blog post which you can read here. I won’t bang on about it, but I have just been loving using this to apply my concealer recently. I cover the sponge in setting spray, wait a couple of seconds and then lightly bounce it over the concealer until it has fully blended. This is particularly great for the under eye area and once set with powder there is definitely less creasing than when using a brush. Brilliant and affordable at just £5.99, what more do you want?!

What are your current favourites? Beauty or random I would love to know so please do share them in the comments. Or you can tweet me @sophieaiken.

Sophie xoxo

The Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge

beauty, face, makeup, skin

I didn’t get a long with the Real Techniques miracle complexion sponge for a while, it sat unused in my collection for a good 6 months. Recently I watched a makeup tutorial (can’t for the life of me remember which one) in which the YouTuber sprayed her sponge with a setting spray as oppose to soaking it in water. I gave it a go and have to say I’m a convert! That isn’t to say I’ll be ditching my buffing brush any time soon but for packing on concealer  it’s a definite winner. So what do I do?

I start by spraying a couple of pumps of Makeup Revolution Oil Fixing Spray (read my review here) onto the flat side of my miracle complexion sponge.

Next I apply MAC Prep+Prime highlighter generously under the eyes, on the bridge of the nose, centre of forehead and chin. I then use a patting motion with the sponge to blend this in. This is a little more time consuming than using a brush but the finish is a lot smoother.

I then apply Makeup Forever HD foundation over my entire face and use the same patting motion. Personally I like to build this in two layers in order to gain a medium/full coverage.

Finally, I spray the sponge again and apply the infamous Collection Lasting Perfection concealer in the same places I put the MAC highlighter in order to lighten these areas even further. I repeat the process of patting this in and then move onto the rest of my routine as usual.

I think what I love most about this sponge is that my makeup doesn’t feel like it’s sitting on top of my skin. Often when using brushes I find base products can crease and move but this tool eliminates those problems. Whilst it does require a little more time and effort the result is a flawless face and who can argue with that?!

I haven’t tried the beauty blender as it seems pricey compared to this one but let me know your thoughts, is it even better than Real Techniques?

Sophie xoxo

The Highlights

beauty, highlighter, makeup, skin

Day or night, I’m all about a highlight! These days I tend to skip blusher in favour of a contour/highlight combination. Previously I was using the infamous Mary Lou Manizer Luminizer from theBalm but at £17.50 it isn’t cheap and if I’m being honest I find it a bit much. I feel like it works a lot better on a pale complexion as it can look a little ashy with a tan. Having said that, it is amazing for brightening the eye area on the brow bone and inner corner! So what have I replaced it with?

Makeup Revolution Highlighter Pink Lights– I spoke about this highlighter in a post about Makeup Revolution products which you can read here. Basically it’s great for adding a bit of colour without using blush, is suitable for a wide variety of skintones and is incredibly easy to apply. I love this with a full coverage foundation as it helps put a bit of colour back into the skin without being overpowering. It photographs nicely which is a bonus if you want to wear it on a night out but most importantly it costs a grand total of just £3.00. Makeup Revolution does it again!!

MUA Undress Your Skin Highlighting Powder – A while back I wrote a blog post on my favourite face powder from Makeup Academy which you can read here. Since that discovery I’ve been intrigued to try more from the brand and with prices starting at a mere £1.00 it’s become impossible to ever leave a Superdrug store empty handed! This highlighter is the perfect ‘glowy skin’ product. The golden hues compliment tanned skin perfectly but can also work well on a pale complexion if applied lightly. The quality of the packaging far exceeds the £3.00 price tag as it is incredibly robust (I should know, I’ve dropped it on more than one occasion) and the product itself is beautifully designed to stop you going overboard with your brush.

This is by no means a comparison of the two products as they are very different. In my opinion they are equally as good in terms of the quality of makeup and value for money. I like Pink Lights for the cool pink undertones and I like Undress Your Skin for its golden shimmer. For me these two highlighters are the only options I really want on a daily basis in order to mix and match without needing thousands of products. Do you lean towards more expensive highlighters or are you more of a blush kind of person? Let me know!

Sophie xoxo

Don’t forget you can tweet me @sophieaiken2  🙂