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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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An American Request

beauty, haul, makeup, question

I’m going to New York in a couple of weeks and am making a list of all the makeup I need/want to get my hands on. I’m looking for both drugstore and high end products that are either cheaper out there or hard to find in the UK.

I’ve already got my eye on the Anastasia Beverley Hills liquid lipsticks as well as a number of items from the Kat Von Dee range but what else can you guys suggest?! I’d love to hear from you, what are your favourites from the drugstore? Let me know in the comments or tweet me @sophieaiken

Sophie xoxo

MAC Warm Neutrals Palette

eyeshadow, MAC, makeup, palette

Let’s just put it out there, the MAC Warm Neutral Palette is the only eyeshadow palette I will ever need!! It is my favourite and as a fan of warm, brown eyeshadows this is just perfection!

At £65 this was a big beauty treat to myself whilst writing my dissertation but when you consider the price of all the components individually, the saving is actually pretty significant! Of course like with any palette I have my favourite shades and lesser used ones. Here are some of the best…

Saddle (2nd row far right) – This is my go to all over eyeshadow. It’s basically a really intense matte bronzer colour. The pigment of this shadow is utter heaven and there is pretty much zero fallout. I could stare at it all day!!

Gingersnap (1st row, middle) – Firstly can we just talk about how cute the name is!! This is a gorgeous eyeshadow that changes colour under different lights (in a good way). It has reddish undertones but applies with a soft pink sheen. There is just enough sparkle to be subtle without overwhelming the makeup. I like to wear this across my upper eyelid and pair it with Dark Brew (the dark reddish brown shade next to it) on the lower lash line. I find this works well with a winged liner and lashes for a night out.

Divine Decadence (3rd row, fourth shadow) – This mulch brown shade is perfect for creating a grungey eye look with a touch of glamour. So easy to work with, lovely on its own or as a crease colour. Beautifully pigmented and looks great with tanned or pale skin.

There isn’t one bad eyeshadow in this palette and I think that’s quite a rarity these days. I love that they all work well on their own or mixed together, the possibilities are endless! This palette is always next to my mirror ready to be used (did I mention it’s my favourite?!) There is a cool neutral palette available if this isn’t your cup of tea but for me it is a cup of pure gold paradise!!

Sophie xoxo

Clinique Facial Soap

face, highend, review, skincare

This was a bit of a random purchase a couple of weeks ago, I was running low on my Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm and thought I’d try something different. I’m by no means a skincare expert, in fact I have to admit for the last few weeks I’ve been reaching for the devil themselves *facewipes* and I am ashamed!!

What is it?

I bought the Clinique Facial Soap for ‘dry combination skin’ but there are two other soaps available for ‘combination oily to oily skin’ and ‘very dry to dry skin’ . Clinique say ‘our hand-milled non-drying bar soap maintains protective lipids while loosening surface flakes. Leaves skin clean, comfortable, refreshed-never taut or dry.’

Thoughts?

The first time I used this facial soap I wanted to test how well it removed makeup so used it in the way I would use the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm. It worked well, my makeup was completely removed but my eyes were on fire! I have very sensitive eyes so to be fair this was a likely side effect for me but they really were quite sore.

I wasn’t blown away by the results this had on my face, it didn’t feel dry but it didn’t feel particularly fresh and clean in the way that it can with other products. At £15 I’m not prepared to let this go to waste. I ended up using it to clean my makeup brushes and it works an absolute dream! I mainly use Real Techniques brushes which have white tipped bristles and this soap was able to get my most used brush *the buffing brush* back to new. So whilst I’m not against using the Clinique Facial Soap on my face I will definitely be avoiding the eye area in future. But mostly I’m just looking forward to washing my brushes again!

Sophie xoxo

Green Gimmicks?

beauty, budget, highend, lipstick, makeup

If you’ve ever found yourself at a Barry M stand you might have spotted their green lipstick – Genie. If you went one step further and swatched the Halloween green product you will have discovered it actually transpires to be a rather bright shade of pink. I bought this lipstick a few years ago, don’t ask why it was just one of those weird impulse buys with a budget friendly price tag of just £4.49. It now lives at the back of the bottom draw of my Muji storage because it is a far brighter shade of pink than I would go for (think Barbie!) 

About a month ago I got my hands on the Lipstick Queen lipstick in Frog Prince. This has the same green to pink principles as the Barry M one but with a very different result. I had been wanting to try the Lipstick Queen range for a while but my deep love of MAC lipsticks always seemed to prevent this. The verdict? I really, really like this lipstick! Providing a subtle soft pink sheen, Frog Prince is seriously moisturising without being at all sticky and leaves a soft pink stain on the lips.

The idea of Frog Prince is that it adapts itself based on your pH and skin tone (as does Barry M Genie), so in theory it should be the perfect pink for everyone. At £22 this isn’t cheap for what it is but I know I will make maximum use of this because it is such a wearable colour. I love that it is so easy to wear you don’t have to bother with a mirror. Also the shade it applies is pretty much the finished result as oppose to Genie which slowly develops from barely there to shocking pink.

On Application Left: Frog Prince Right: Genie

Left: Frog Prince Right: Genie

Have you guys ever tried any Lipstick Queen makeup and if so what do I need? Enable me, please!

Sophie xoxo