Drugstore Beauty Favourites Under £10

  1) Maybelline The Colossal Go Lash Mascara - £6.99 

 

 

I bought this mascara on impulse when I was in desperate need of a new mascara, without looking at any reviews of it as I usually would before buying a new beauty product. In the past, I've been very disappointed by drugstore mascaras, particularly Maybelline's Great Lash Mascara and L'Oreal's Extra Volume Collagen Mascara. I found that I disliked formulas and applicators and they never seemed to be long-lasting or waterproof; my two biggest requirements of Mascara. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the performance of this mascara. Despite this particular mascara not claiming to be waterproof, it lasts all day and never creates 'panda eyes' as many other mascaras do, yet still comes off easily when I use micellar water to remove my makeup. Overall, I would say this is a good drugstore mascara for providing a good amount of volume and length without weighing down your lashes and is impressively long-lasting for the price.

2) Soap & Glory Supercat Eyeliner - £6.00

 

This was the first felt-tip style eyeliner I ever tried after I found gel eyeliners to be a little tricky as a beginner at winged eyeliner. This product performs exactly as I expected; it is easy to use, highly pigmented and long-lasting. My only criticism of this is that it has a tendency to transfer to my eyelids when I blink if I don't powder due to it not being waterproof. However, this is a very good budget eyeliner, particularly for those new to liquid eyeliner.

3) Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in '03' - £5.49

 

 

After seeing so many other beauty bloggers say how good the formula of Kate Moss' collection of lipsticks for Rimmel were, I decided to try them for myself. My staple lipstick colour has always been nude/pink shades due to my pale complexion and dark hair, and therefore I decided to purchase the shade '03' which is a lovely light pink toned nude. The satin like finish is very comfortable to wear and moisturising and also lasts for a few hours before it needs topping up, unlike many budget lipsticks which tend to need touching up frequently.

4) Kiko Velvet Creamy Blush Stick in '01 Golden Sand' - £7.90

 

 

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I love this cream blush and although I have not tried many (others being Revlon PhotoReady Cream Blush and Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge), this is my favourite shade and the easiest to blend of those I have tried. Although it is not as pigmented and long-wearing as Bobbi Brown's formula, the beautiful shade and easy to blend formula are great for the price, and performs significantly better than other blushers at this price such as the Revlon cream blush.

5) Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in '01 Fair' - £4.19

 

This may possibly be my favourite concealer ever. For such a low price, the creamy, easy to blend formula provides full coverage and immediately hides spots and dark circles. This concealer out performs any other concealer I have tried; both high end and other drugstore concealers. I'd recommend this to everyone!

6) Rimmel Stay Matte Powder - £3.99

Although Mac's Select Sheer/Pressed Powder is my favourite, I have finally found a really good drugstore dupe. Despite this powder not being as fine as Mac's (only slightly), it is still lasts all day and unlike other drugstore powders, doesn't look cakey on top of foundation and concealer, and as you would expect, keeps your makeup in place all day, an essential in the warm weather we are having in the UK at the moment!

7) Essie Nail Polishes in 'Hubby for Dessert', 'Luxedo' and 'Russian Roulette' - £7.99 each

 

I often find myself to be extremely underwhelmed by any nail polishes from the drugstore due to the thick, gloopy formulas and the fact that most chip on the first day of application. However, I've never been able to justify paying for high-end nail polishes either as I only tend to wear a shade a few times before becoming tired of it and wanting a new colour, and I tend to switch up my nail colour every week or so anyway. Therefore, when I first tried an Essie polish, I was extremely pleased with the formula and wide brush, making application a dream. The slightly more expensive price tag for a drugstore polish can also be justified due to how long the polish lasts. I found that when my nails are painted with Essie without a top coat, they tend to last 5-7 days without chipping and even longer when I can be bothered to do a top coat! These polishes are definitely a must-have for any nail polish enthusiasts like myself!

8) Rimmel Sun Shimmer Self Tan Mousse in 'Medium Matte' - £7.99

 

Due to my pale complexion, I have always been a lover of tanning products, however I am also aware that dark tans make me look ridiculous due to how pale I naturally am. Though this tan states 'medium matte', it still provides me with a healthy, golden glow and the mousse is extremely easy to apply with a mitt and dries almost instantly. The result is always as I hope for; a golden tan and the lack of shimmer helps make the tan look even more natural look. This is definitely one of the best tanning products out there for a low price.

 

What are your drugstore favourites?

NARS Sheer Glow Foundation Review

After running out of my Bobbi Brown Long Wear Even-Finish Foundation and MAC Mineralise Moisture Foundation, I decided it was time to try a new foundation. My skin has been quite dry recently however I still have an oily t-zone so I was looking for a foundation that would moisturise my skin whilst staying in place all day.

I had read several reviews about NARS Sheer Glow foundation and after reading about how lightweight and luminous it is, I decided to give it a try. When I visited London a few weeks ago, I visited Space NK and purchased myself a bottle and foundation pump in the shade 'Mont Blanc' which cost £31 for the foundation and £3 for the foundation pump. This shade was the perfect match for my skin, and I found it fairly easy to blend when using the Zoeva 102 Silk Finish brush to apply it, however I would recommend moisturising your skin first to make application easier, I use Lush's Celestial Moisturiser.
 

 

The foundation provides light to medium coverage, dependent on how much you use, which is perfect for me as I like to wear a light layer so that my skin still looks natural and not too 'cakey'. The finish is very glowing and radiant but is not too dewy and despite my oily t-zone, it stayed in place all day without powder which I was very impressed with!

 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this foundation to anyone who has dry skin or combination skin like myself as it is moisturising and dewy unlike matte finish foundations which tend to dry my skin out. Although this is a high end product and is quite expensive, I would definitely say that investing in a good foundation is advisable as it provides the base for your makeup and personally, I think, defines how your makeup will look.

Let me know what favourite foundation is!

Kathryn x

April Beauty Favourites

 

 

1) NARS Illuminator in 'Copacabana' - £23

 

 

 This has to be one of the best highlighters out there. The beautiful shimmery pink formula can be easily be blended using either your fingers or a highlighter brush to the cheekbones to create a beautiful highlight and when under light, looks stunning. Although this is a high end product and brand, I think this price is quite affordable compared to other high end highlighters and performs the best out of any other highlighters I have tried.

  

 2) NARS Blush in 'Orgasm' - £23

 

 

 

 

 I had read so many reviews about this blush for ages and decided that I would try it out and see if it was as good as everyone claimed it to be. I was sold the first time I used this blush. The lovely pink shade combined with the small gold pigments helps to create a natural, healthy glow and tint to the cheeks without looking too bold.  

 

3) NARS Contour Blush in 'Paloma' - £32

 

 

 

As a beginner of contouring, I purchased this as I thought it would be a pretty easy palette to start with. The matte bronzer performs superbly when blended properly on the cheeks and once topped with my 'Orgasm' blush and 'Copacobana' illuminator, creates a wonderful illusion of sharp cheekbones. However I found the matte powder highlighter to be of no use on the cheekbones and is more suitable as a translucent powder or subtle highlight on the brow bone. My only other criticism would be that the bronzing shade (Paloma) in this particular palette is a little red toned for my skin and therefore if I was to repurchase this product, I would choose the Olympia shade instead. However, overall, this is a great place to start for contouring beginners like myself.

 

4) Essie Nail Polish in 'Hubby for Dessert' - £7.99

 

Recently, I've grown bored of my nail polish collection and after seeing many people wearing and rocking white nail polish, I decided to try a slightly lilac/white shade from Essie. The colour looks lovely on, however it does take 3 or 4 coats to look fully pigmented with no streaks.

5) Zoeva Luxe Definer 227 - From the 'Rose Golden Luxury Set' - (Unfortunately only available in Vol.2 edition when sold separately) - £8.50

 

  6) Zoeva Luxe Petit Crease 231 - From the 'Rose Golden Luxury Set' - (Unfortunately only available in Vol.2 edition when sold separately) - £8.50

 

 

Ever since I received the Zoeva 'Rose Golden Luxury Set' for Christmas, I have completely fallen in love with these brushes. The 227 brush helps to blend eye shadow perfectly and the 231 brush can be used to add a darker shade into the crease of the eyelid - both together are perfect for creating a smoky eye effect. The brushes are also extremely easy to clean and I have not yet had one bristle fall out of any of the brushes in this set in the four months I have been using them. I cannot recommend these brushes enough!

 

7) Lush 'Mask of Magaminty' Face Mask - £5.75

 

 

 
 

As I mentioned in my Lush haul a few days ago, this face mask has literally saved my skin. The mask not only smells heavenly and exactly like peppermint tea, but helps to clear the skin of any blemishes, break outs and redness and leaves skin feeling super, super soft. I will definitely be repurchasing!

 

8) Lush 'Celestial' Moisturiser - £12.95

 

 

 

 

I have been on the hunt for a new moisturiser for quite some time now as I have always been quite hesitant to buy high end moisturisers due to the fear that they wouldn't be suitable for my skin and I don't think drugstore moisturisers perform too great. However Lush's skincare range meets perfectly in the middle of drugstore and high end, and to be honest, when I received amazing advice on which products would be best on my skin from a lovely lady working in the Oxford St Store, I was left questioning myself on why it has taken me this long to try out Lush's skincare. This moisturiser has definitely helped to repair my dry, blemished skin over the past few weeks and I have definitely noticed that I am having considerably less breakouts and my skin has a much healthier glow.  

 

9) Aussie Miracle Dry Shampoo - £3.14

 

 

I stopped using dry shampoo for a long time after I grew bored of Batiste's white, powdery, chemical filled formula. However I bought this on impulse when it was on offer in Boots and I have been very impressed. The spray adds an instant lift to hair and the Jojoba Seed Extract naturally conditions hair naturally; something I have convinced myself is much better for my hair than other dry shampoos.. however I'm not sure how true that is. Besides, I prefer this dry shampoo much more than Batiste's and I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a quick hair fix at an affordable price.

 

What have your favourite beauty products been this April?

 

Kathryn x

5 New Beauty Favourites

1. Daisy Dream - Marc Jacobs

 

 

I was very excited to receive his as a Christmas gift as I had actually been wanting to get a tester of it after running out of my beloved Marc Jacobs Daisy. I was surprised that I actually prefer this scent to Daisy as I find it is much more fresh and floral, so I think this will be the perfect scent for the Spring/Summer season.

2. Rimmel London Professional Eyebrow Pencil - Dark Brown

 

 

I was looking for a new brow product after I ran out of my Benefit Gimme Brow and so I decided to try out this Rimmel brow pencil that I had read amazing reviews about. I have never really been a fan of overly done, filled in eyebrows so I wanted a product that looked fairly natural and the brush supplied with the product helps to achieve exactly that.

3. Urban Decay Smoky Palette

 

 

This was also a wonderful Christmas gift I received that I had been longing after for months. I was sceptical about naked palettes at first as I wasn't sure whether they would meet my expectations however after reading  on many of my favourite beauty blogs say how amazing they were for months, I started to consider trying one of the palettes and when I saw the smoky palette I fell in love. Now that I actually own the palette, I can safely say it has exceeded all my expectations; I love all of the shades and the pigmentation is amazing. I will definitely be adding the 1, 2 and 3 palettes to my collection soon.

4. MAC Lipstick in 'Please Me'

 

 

 

 

I have recently grown quite bored of my nude lipsticks and as I have never really been that adventurous with lipstick colours, I wasn't sure which colours would suit me. I went on a visit to MAC and eventually decided on this gorgeous pink shade called 'Please Me'. This shade is a lot brighter than what I am used to and I also wouldn't usually choose a matte finish lipstick, however I think it will be perfect for a summer makeup look.

5. KIKO Cosmetics Velvet Touch Creamy Stick Blush in '01 Golden Sand'

 

I heard about KIKO Cosmetics quite a while ago however I never got around to ordering any products off their website as I did not live near any of their stores in the UK. However when they opened a store in Manchester, I got very excited and had a little spree! This is my favourite product of theirs that they have tried so far; the creamy stick blush. I have never really been a fan of creamy blushers as I find that they always look too pigmented and harsh against my skin tone compared to powder blushers, however this shade and the formula of the blush are perfect for my skin and create a natural, healthy glow with a touch of shimmer. The formula makes this blush incredibly easy to blend into the skin and is definitely the most long wearing blush I have ever tried.

 

What are your beauty favourites right now?

 

Kathryn x

Essie Master Plan - Spring/Summer Nails

In the transition from winter to spring, I've been searching Boots and Superdrug for the perfect nail colour. Usually in spring, I would choose pastel colours like baby blue or lilac, but after testing several pastel shades that I already own, I have realised that I have become very tired of them. However when I came across Essie's 'Master Plan' all my problems were solved. It is a perfect muted grey shade that goes so well with every outfit and any jewellery. One of my issues with pastel coloured nails is that I think they look odd with clothes that don't match, and you can't always dress accordingly to your nails!

I like to do a little manicure when I do them as I often bite them and so they need to be looked after. Firstly, I file my nails using this Soap & Glory Nail File that I received in their 'Nail Call' giftset at Christmas. (From here: http://www.soapandglory.com/christmas-gift-guide/nail-call.php) I then buff my nails using a Nails Inc buffer that was also from a gift set.

 

Once my nails are shaped, I apply Soap & Glory's Scrub + Happiness Dry Hand Smoothing Scrub which was also part of the Nail Call gift set, followed by Ciate's 'Love Me Oil' as my cuticles are quite damaged. (Available here: http://www.lookfantastic.com/ciate-love-me-oil-almond-cuticle-oil/10888414.html)

After this, I apply one coat of Essie's Master Plan (Available here: http://www.essie.co.uk/Colours/grays/master-plan.aspx), and then a top layer of Rimmel 60 Second Clear Nail Polish (Available here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rimmel-Seconds-Nail-Polish-Clear/dp/B0047XANXU) to ensure that my nails don't chip.

I then finish my nail routine using Body Shop's Almond Hand & Nail Cream (Available here: http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/shop-by-range/almond/almond-hand-nail-cream.aspx) which makes my hands much softer and smells divine too.

What's your favourite nail shade this spring?

 

Let me know in the comments x