Nars Laguna Bronzer Review

Nars Laguna Bronzer - £26.00 - Nars - here

Hi lovelies, hope you're all okay & are having a nice week. Today I thought I'd blog about a product I've only recently discovered which is Nars (very famous) Laguna Bronzer. Now everyone and their mum and their mums, aunts, best friends daughter has tried this product and probably most of them have reviewed it at some stage but when you love something as much as I love this I feel like it's almost my duty to share it with you all. 

Firstly I can't even tell you how excited I am to finally own this product. I would say that this is one of the most hyped up products you can find in the beauty world, show me a well known blogger or You Tube guru that hasn't tried this stuff or doesn't want too and I'll be impressed, everyone loves this, it seems to be a permanent in peoples make up bag and actually on their face. I think when a product is respected and talked about that much that you just have to try it - despite it's ridiculous price tag (well that's what I'm telling myself) soo I made a cheeky trip to Space Nk's website, chucked it in my virtual basket and nearly died when it got delivered the next day. This is actually my first Nars product and let me tell you since having this in my life I have a wishlist as long as my arm and I'm lusting over practically everything on the Nars website. 

Now I won't bore you with too much information but Nars Laguna is just a really nice bronzing powder and if i'm completely honest when I first opened it I wasn't that inspired. But trust me you apply this baby to your face and you can completely see why people name this their 'HG product'. Firstly one of the most exciting points about this product was the packaging. I heard countless amount of people moaning about how Nars packaging just got messy as hell, and yes it does and I've spent just as much time cleaning the packaging up with a baby wipe as I have with actually using it. But I still love the case it comes in, yes it's rubber but it feels so luxurious and sturdy and has a really nice big mirror in too so it's perfect for touch ups.

I think I've worked out that the reason Laguna is so fab is because it pretty much has everything you'd want your bronzer to have and more. First of it contains tiny bits of glitter so doesn't leave your face looking flat but equally doesn't leave your face looking like a big, fat shiny disco ball. And also it doesn't leave you looking really flat due to it being completely matte. It's just a really nice medium which leaves you skin kissed and glowing but also allows you to contour and look well and truly bronzed. Another amazing thing about this product is the colour, I feel like this is a really universal shade and it's one of the only bronzers that really works and doesn't look to crazy on my pale complexion. I think one tiny tap of this on your bronzer brush will be enough for us pale girls but if you're a bit darker it's super easy to build it up and make it work for you. The reason why Laguna is so loved is simply because it has ticked every single box in the bronzer area and it suits a huge range of people which just makes it perfect.

Nars actually says "Bronzing Powder creates the ultimate healthy glow. Diffused powders with golden shimmer create an all-over warmth or contour for the face perfect for creating or enhancing the look of tanned skin. Finely milled powders fills in lines and pores for smoother, more even looking complexion" and I would have to completely agree with everything they say. This product just gives you the most natural sunkissed glow and you don't end up looking muddy or orange or fake, it's just an effortless bronzed glow. I also find this bronzer to be super easy to blend, it seems to have a really smooth formulation which I like because you can really blend the product out if you are a bit heavy handed.

Next thing that's amazing about this powder is the staying power, I have a lot of trouble with makeup really witholding the test of time on my face just because I have oily skin but this lasts all day no problem which is really good, I find blush and bronzer two of the worst offenders for not lasting too long so when I saw Nars Laguna still firmly on my face after a day at work I was well and truly chuffed. This stuff has awesome pigmentation too so as I mentioned before you only need a tiny bit, that's good because you don't use as much and also it won't clog your pores if you're only using a tiny bit where as if you're piling it on it won't look natural and will clog up your skin. I find that just tapping the very tip of my Real Techniques contour brush in it gives me enough to contour those cheekbones and for an all over glow I would sweep a bit on my Real Techniques Blush brush all over my face.

Overall, I can say that this is probably one of my favourite beauty discoveries ever, I absolutely love it and can imagine using it for years to come. It just does everything and more that I would expect a bronzer too and I find it works amazingly on my skin type. There's a reason that the beauty world has given Nars Laguna a massive seal of approval and I completely agree. I can't believe I waited soo long to give this ago, it's amazing and I love it. Although I still do love my Bourjois Bronzing powder and if you're slightly more on a budget and don't want to splurge I would recommend that one too so make sure you check out my post on it here. But for me bronzer is one of those products worth splurging on & the results of this one are brill!

Anyway thank you for reading,

And let me know your favourite Nars products,

Lots of Love,

Gem xxx

Spring Tag

Images from We Heart It - No Content is mine

Hi lovelies, It's been really Spring like in the UK over the last few days so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to do the Spring Tag on my blog. I saw this first on Fleur De Force and Miss Glamorazzi's You tube channels but after seeing it spread and seeing it on a few blogs I thought i'd jump on the band wagon. So I hope you enjoy this & it gets you in the mood for Spring.

1) What's your favourite spring nail polish?

I absolutely love nail varnish in the spring and summer months, I'm a massive fan of pastel colours and I think they look really flattering and girly on the nails. I normally have gel nails so I don't get to paint my finger nails very often but I think pale pinks, lilacs and mint shades are perfect for this season. My favourite nail polish that I picked up lately was the Barry M Gelly Nail Polish in Lychee, I think the shade is just really neutral but pretty for spring, although I don't think that range of nail varnishes is really over impressive in terms of shine, the formula isn't amazing but the colour is gorgeous. I also really like the look of Essie's Candy Apple which is a bit of a hyped up product in the beauty and blogging world, I think that Essie have it spot on with that shade because it just looks like Spring in a bottle too me, wish it wasn't always sold out everywhere though, such a bummer!

2) What is your most have lip colour this spring?

I have a few lip colours that are just perfect for Spring, my favourite's would definitely have to be from the Revlon Lip Butter range, they were featured in this post here. I cheated a bit here because I couldn't just pick one shade but I think that the shades that are perfect for spring will be the lip butter in Sorbet, which is a bright, hot pink fuchsia, it's just the perfect colour for warming up your complexion as the weather gets hotter and it's always night to brighten up your lip colour as it comes into Spring. I think that the colour that I will be wearing the most these coming months though will be the Lip Butter in Cotton Candy (don't you just love the name!) it's a really nice baby pink that can be built up for a more intense colour but I just really love wearing it and think it fits in with the pastel and baby shades of Spring. I also think the Lip Butters are the best formula for warmer months and are really nice, moisturizing and creamy on the lips.

3) Show us your favourite Spring Dress?

I actually found this one quit hard to answer because I haven't actually been Spring Wardrobe shopping yet. If you live in the UK like I do you know the weather hasn't been very Spring like at all. In actual fact the only time we've seen some sun was over the last weekend where I saw all of the British out in force in shorts and sandals! (what's wrong with people it still wasn't even over 10 degrees!). Anyway I thought I would do some online browsing so I could see if I could answer this one and it led me to falling in complete and utter love with a lot of Lipsy's Spring Range, I think all of these dresses are gorgeous and it's nice that they can be worn during the day and also dressed up at nice. I love the pinks and purple shades with the white and think that will be a really big trend this Spring and I also love floral patterns for spring and think they are a must have. I just love all of these dresses especially the first one and also I love the little play-suit. So yeah, if you're looking for some Spring Inspiration I would defo check out the Lipsy website here.

4) What's your favourite Spring Flower?

I absolutely loveeee flowers all year round but I think my favourite season for flowers is definately Spring. For me flowers just say 'Spring'. I really like pink flowers in Spring and I think as soon as I see the blossom and bluebells coming out on the trees I really know that Spring has arrived so I really do enjoy it. Another favourite flower for me during this season would be Orchids, I absolutely love Orchids and think they are one of the nicest and rarest flowers and one day I will master keeping the buggers alive! But they're just so beautiful and fresh looking and the clean pink and white shades are perfect for the warmer months.

5) What is your favourite Spring Scarf/Accessory?

Hmm, this one was pretty hard for me. I picked up this gorgeous coral purse over the weekend from River Island for a bargain price of £10.00 and I think it's just perfect for Spring, I love Coral Accesories during Spring and I also picked up a really nice necklace from New look but I can't find it on the website. I think everyone needs a really big chunky necklace through Spring that you can throw on witg every outfit and a real 'statement' piece. I also think that pastel scarfs and scarfs with skulls on are really good and 'in' this season.

6) What Spring Trend(s) are you most excited for this year? (makeup, fashion or both)

For me I think I love Spring makeup because it's a time where you really get to play down your makeup and go for really natural, dewy skin a bit of mascara and then use a nice cream blush to liven the cheeks and a bright statement lipstick. So I really like the trend of minimal but flushed makeup. I also really like the trend which I've seen lately of different colour eyeliner or speckled eyeliner which makes the eyes instantly pop and look more interesting although I don't know if I'd be able to pull that one off. I've heard a lot about this from brands like Illamasque. In terms of Fashion Trends I just love pastels and really crisp and light clothing and also the maxi dresses and 'island' type clothing.

7) Favourite Spring Candle?

I really like lighter scent candles, I like Vanilla Candles because that's my favourite scent but I also really like more fruity and clean scented candles during the Spring seasons. I think you want a light scent in your room during Spring and nothing too strong or overpowering so citrus scents and fresh scents are the best this season.

8) Favourite Body Spray/Perfume?

This season my favourite scent or perfume would be the new fragrence from Lacoste. It's the Lacoste Eau de Lacoste Pour Femme Eau de Parfum. This is a really floral scent and contains notes of Juicy Pineapple and also Sparkling Mandarin  The heart notes of this parfum are Pineapple Flower, Rose and Jasmine. But it also has Vanilla and Sandalwood which make it perfect for my sweet scent preference. It's fruity but floral and also really fresh and clean which is what makes it the perfect fragrence for Spring. It's super light and easy to wear and just makes me think of Spring. 

9) What is Spring like where you live?

To be honest I'm not sure that we have had much of a Spring, it's been typical english weather which is doom and gloom and lots of rain and it's been bloomin freezing! But over the last few days I've seen a bit of sun shining so I'm hoping Spring will make a full apperance soon.

10) What is your favourite thing about Spring?

I just like that it cheers everyone up a bit, it's like a new fresh start and I love that the Sun is (meant to be) shining and the flowers have bloomed and it just cheers everybody up after a horrible and gloomy winter. I think Spring is one of the best months because it's so fresh and new and also I love that it means Summer is on it's way!

11) Are you a Spring Cleaner?

I'm not a massive Spring Cleaner, I don't have one day where I Spring Clean all day but I do like to reorganise and get rid of some bits and pieces during Spring. I also think that Spring is the perfect opportunity for you to clean out your wardrobe and make way for much more summery clothes and it's also great to change up your makeup and nail varnish choices too so in that way I do Spring Clean. I guess I will have a day in Spring where I give my room a big Spring Clean but i'm not one of those people who has a specific day planned to get my clean on.

12) Any plan for a Spring Break or Upcoming Vacation?

I don't have any plans for an upcoming vacation :( booo! I want to go somewhere though but I haven't got anything planned so I don't think I am!

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed reading this post, I tag you all to give it ago because I love reading tag posts and love seeing what other bloggers have too say!

I'll speak to you all soon & thanks for reading,

Lots of Love

Gem xxx

Benefit 'Fake Up' Under Eye Concealer Review

Benefit Fake Up - No1 - £18.50 - 3.5g - Boots or Benefit - here

Hi ladies, hope you're all okay and had a good weekend. I had yesterday off work so went and did a bit of shopping with my mum and had a really nice day today as well chilling out so it's been a good weekend overall. Anyway today I thought I would share with you a product that I've been loving lately from Benefit which is their 'Fake Up' under eye concealer. 

Now, if you've read my blog for a while you may know that i'm constantly complaining that I have ridiculously dark under eye circles, the problem is that i'm super duper pale and I have a really hard time sleeping so therefore my under eyes look horrible, they're so dark and I have never seemed to find anything to help cover them up. I actually went to my local Benefit Counter in the hope of purchasing 'Erase Paste' which is another concealer that Benefit sell, I've heard that it's really good for the under eye area due to the fact that it has salmon tones to it which help counteract the purple in your under eye circles. Anyway I ended up walking away with 'Fake Up' because the lovely benebabe at the counter said that Fake Up is a much better concealer and is a lot more delicate and non-drying under the eyes. I have some trouble with dry-ness under my eyes so she popped this under my eyes and I saw such a dramatic difference that I just had to purchase it.

'Fake Up' is a concealer completely different to lots of the others on the market. The thing that makes 'Fake Up' so different, is that it contains both an eye cream and a concealer in one, the eye cream contains Vitamin E & Apple Seed extract which is meant to both hide dark circles and also diffuses fine lines. The outer ring of the concealer is the bit that contains the Vitamins and the eye cream and the inner part of the stick contains the concealer which Benefit say is 'light defusing' and 'skin smoothing'. So you really get the best of both worlds with this product and although it's slightly pricey you really are getting a 2 in 1 product. Another great thing about this product is that its going to last ages, you only need a tiny bit underneath your eyes too hide any circles you have. 

Another great thing about this concealer is the packaging. I am such a sucker for Benefit's packaging and everything from the box to the actual product just screams 'girly' and 'fun' too me. The 'Fake Up' Concealer comes in a really nice shiny packaging that looks almost like a lipstick and I love the pink detailing on the packaging which makes it much more fun. I think how small this concealer is means that it's really great for travelling and this is a product you can just throw in your bag and top up during the day which I think is a really good feature of it. In actual fact 'Fake Up' is barely bigger than a Mac lipstick (as you can see in the photographs above!) which means it's the perfect essential product to travel with during the day.

I really really love this concealer and as soon as the lovely lady popped this under my eyes I knew that I needed it in my life. My mum even commented on how amazing it looked and how my dark circles were reduced. I've never found anything that works under my eyes like this and the fact that it's soo easy to apply & looks super natural is also a massive plus from me. I don't have fine eyes around my eyes because I'm only 19 but what I have found is that this concealer just glides under the eye area and is really light weight and creamy. This has a really great coverage and really helps to brighten my circles and cover them up but it also feels really cooling and nice under the eyes and I actually feel like I'm just applying a really soothing eye cream rather than adding concealer. I think the reason that I love this concealer so much is because it really moisturises the area first which means when you add the concealer it doesn't settle, it doesn't dry or look cakey it just covers and sinks in and looks so natural. 

This product is also super easy to apply, you only need to use a teeny amount and it just glides under the eye area, the lady at the counter told me that the best thing to do is just too apply the concealer in a 'V' shape underneath the eye area and then blend it with your fingers in an upwards motion. The 'V' shape helps to cover the worst area's of the circle and also is going to help the concealer work as a natural highlight around the eye area. Also using your fingers to help blend it in means that your going to warm up the product a bit meaning it will be even easier for it to sink in and really glide on. Lastly blending the concealer upwards means that you get the maximum brightness right underneath the eye area that really will help to cover those bags all day long.

Overall, I absolutely adore the Benefit 'Fake Up' I just think it's one of the best products on the market for the under eye area and I'm glad that I picked this up over 'Erase Paste', I love that it is moisturizing and also has awesome coverage. The only problem that I do see with this product is the fact it has limited shades, in fact you will only find this product in 3 shades and although concealer can match quite a lot of skin tones I am worried that some people may not find a match for their skin tone  I'm in the shade light no.1 by the way and for me it's a really good match but I'm not too sure. Anyway thank you for reading & I will speak to you all really soon!

Lots of Love,

Gem xxx

Revlon Lip Butters Review & Swatches

Creme Brulee, Sugar Frosting, Cotton Candy, Sorbet 

Revlon Lip Butters - Creme Brulee, Cotton Candy, Sugar Frosting & Sorbet - £7.99 here

Hi lovelies, hope you're all okay, if you saw my collective beauty haul on Sunday you would have seen I picked up my first Revlon Lip Butter shades, I got a lot of comments on that post from people saying that they thought the shades were really pretty so I thought I would dedicate a whole post to them so you could find out a bit more about them and see which shades I've been liking the most. Like I said in my haul post I had never tried a Revlon Lip butter before but they'd always been something i've heard a lot about from the blogging community and always been something i'm pretty interested in so I'm really glad I finally took the plunge and got my hands on them. I picked up four colours overall, Creme Brulee, Cotton Candy, Sugar Frosting (Sorry I annotated my picture wrong!) and Sorbet. I think all of them are from their normal collection apart from Sorbet which is one of the shades Revlon released as part of their recent Spring Collection.

The formula of the Revlon Lip Butters is something I really like and enjoy, I've never been someone that was really into lipstick into just a few months ago, now I love to experiment but I also find some of the more pigmented lipsticks quite hard to wear and I'd say i'm pretty rubbish at sporting the really 'out there' lip. These lip butters are absolutely perfect for that though, they are very sheer on first application and they are very glossy meaning that they are ridiculously easy for everyday wear and you can really just throw them on without a mirror. They're very sheeny and shiny which means they are super moisturizing on the lips and I find them really comfortable to wear. As I said they are very sheer and glossy on first application but you can really build them if you want more of a pigmented or statement lip, that's why I like them so much, I find that Sorbet which is the brightest colour can be built up and you can make it really bright but it's still super easy to wear because of the fact it has a really sheen and creamy finish which means it doesn't look too much. Also these are absolutely perfect for dry or dehydrated lips because this really won't settle into fine lines on the lips or dry patches and they will really work too smooth out your lips and make them look really perky and nice. I also think these Revlon Lip Butters are absolutely perfect as we come into Spring and Summer, especially as we get hotter weather because you can just quickly apply them and wear them and they have such cool shades that will work through the warmer months & look lovely on the lips. Anyway I thought I would do a run through of all of the different shades I picked up.

Creme Brulee

I love Creme Brulee, this was the lipstick that made me fall in love with the whole Revlon Lip butter range, this is the lipstick that I picked up first and I just think this is the absolute perfect lipstick for everyday. I've been looking for a really nice nude shade that I can wear every single day and also wear when I have a bit more of a smokey eye shadow look and I've found the absolute perfect shade. I can't even begin to explain how much love I have for this lipstick, I've never found a nude shade that actually suited me before but this one does and it really compliments my skin tone and it doesn't make me look dead at all (which is always nice!), I just really like this, this is the lipstick that I will carry around in my bag because I know whatever makeup look I am sporting or whatever I'm doing this will just be fool proof and never let me down on the lip front, I can just chuck this on whenever and wherever and I know that it will always look good. I just want to mention that the swatch of this lipstick is really built up and doesn't do it justice at all, on first application Creme Brulee looks really creamy and sheer and actually really like the swatch of Sugar Frosting (or Pink frosting as I like to call it). I just think that every girl needs to own a lipstick like this because it's pretty much perfect and I think this will be absolutely amazing in the Summer as well especially when it's worn with a tan. Revlon really got it right with this one.

Cotton Candy

Cotton Candy is probably my second favourite of the lip butters that I picked up, it's quite pink but it's a really nice pale, baby pink which could be worn pretty much everyday which is again why I like it so much. I find that I wear more of the wearable shades and therefore they are the ones I tend to go for. This shade is much more glossy than some of the other shades I've got and on the lips it looks pretty much like a really pretty pink gloss so is really complimentary. I find that if you build this up you can get quite a bright pink lip which you could wear more if you wanted to make a statement. The only problem that I have with this lip butter which I haven't had with the other lip butters is the fact that this one is broken, the lip butter doesn't twist up or down and is kind of stuck, I think I just got a duff one though so if you're picking this up make sure that you bare that in mind and test it first so you don't get one that's broke, it's not too much of an issue though just a bit annoying at times. I think this lipstick will work pretty much all year round and really makes your lips look full and glossy and I would recommend Creme Brulee & Cotton Candy to absolute everyone because they're just lovely shades that would work on absolutely everyone.

Sugar Frosting

Sugar Frosting is a really pretty frosty pink that really adds a nice sheen to the lips, if I'm completely honest Sugar Frosting is the one shade that I've picked up that slightly disappointed me a bit. I picked this up in a rush and I think I picked up the wrong shade because this is not the same lip butter that I swatched in store, I find the pigmentation of Sugar Frosting really poor and to be honest it takes a huge amount of work to get any colour payoff at all. It's pretty much just all gloss and no colour, I think this could work really nice with a tan or if you have a darker skin tone then mine you could probably pull this off and it would look really pretty on you. But for my skin tone it just seems to wash me out a little bit and although I will wear this I don't think it's going to become my favourite or the one I get the most use out of. This looks really similar too Cotton Candy in the tube but they are completely different on the lips, Cotton Candy has such a nice pale pink colour behind it and Sugar Frosting just has hardly any colour payoff. It is definitely a 'frosted' shade though and it kind of reminds me of a lip product an Ice Skater would wear? I don't know, I probably sound like a freak but hopefully you all get what I mean.

Sorbet

I love Sorbet, I love the name of Sorbet, the brightest of Sorbet, the colour payoff and just the shade it's self I think it's absolutely gorgeous and is such a brilliant lip butter. After purchasing and playing around with Sorbet I want to pick up some of the other lip butters that they released for the Spring Collection because it's gorgeous and as we get into Spring and Summer and hot weather I know this lipstick will just be constantly on my lips. This lipstick is just Summer in a tube for me, it's a bright pink shade which leans slightly red and it's just literally a really hot pink shade that is really bright and loud. Compared to all of the other lip butters I've tried this one has the most pigmentation and colour payoff and you hardly need any too get a really fun lip colour. I really like this because as I said before I'm really scared of bright lips and this is going to be a really nice colour to wear to intensify the lips but also has a really glossy finish meaning it's going to be much more flattering and wearable.

Overall, I honestly adore the Revlon Lip Butters, I just find them to really work for me, I really like the fact that they're glossy and you have to build up the colour which means during the day I can wear them a lot sheerer and then if i'm feeling brave I can build up the colour. I think the glossiness of them is really nice and makes them really wearable and I love that they're super creamy on the lips and moisturizing and just really comfortable too. I also love the packaging, I think it's really fun and nice and it's really lightweight so you can just chuck it in your bag and go. I also think that the packaging is cute because the lip butter tube matches the colour which means it's really easy to find the shade you're looking for when you're half asleep in the morning. I also really love the quilted design.

Anyway thanks for reading & let me know what you think of the Revlon Lip Butters!

Lots of love

Gem xxx

Makeup Academy Pro-Brow Ultimate Eyebrow Kit Review

Make Up Academy Pro-Brow Ultimate Eyebrow Kit - £3.50

Hello Ladies, Hope you're all doing okay, I thought I would pop up another little review for you on my blog today, I recently featured this MUA brow kit in a collective beauty haul I did and I thought I would review it and give you ladies a bit more information about it. Firstly if you've read my blog for a while you will know I'm quite a lover of Make Up Academy as a brand and I think they have some pretty good products for a really good price. Anyway when I ran out of my Elf Eyebrow Kit a few weeks ago I knew that I needed to pick up a new eyebrow option and decided that this MUA one would be a pretty good shout. I really have been digging (haha!) filling in my eyebrows for over a year or so now and I really do think it helps to frame your face and make your face look much more sculpted and Kim Kardashian-esq. I personally really like my eyebrows, I was never one of those people who over-plucked mine because my mum would have literally stabbed me in the eye, so as soon as my eyebrows started becoming a bushy mess my mum started dragging me along to her eyebrow waxing and shaping appointments, and thank god she did. My eyebrows are the one thing on my face that I actually like, they're a pretty nice shape and I don't really have a lot of sparse area's and in all fairness I think on the eyebrow front I'm pretty swag, so swag in fact that I get a lot of people telling me they 'wish they had my eyebrows' and I also get a lot of strangers stopping me in the street to compliment them, which is probably the weirdest thing in the world. Anyway before I go off on a full eyebrow tangent I think I need to get back to the point, which is no matter how nice your eyebrows are I think they can always do with a bit of extra definition, it just helps to bring them on par with the rest of your makeup and if you're doing the whole 'sha-bang' with your makeup you don't want to be leaving out the eyebrows because frankly you'll just look a big fat mess, which is why I decided on buying this kit.

Within this eyebrow kit you get 3 eye brow shades, a white or clear eyebrow wax, a teeny tiny pair of tweezers and a double sided little angled brush so you can apply the product to your eyebrows on the go. I think that this kit has pretty much everything you could need in terms of filling in the brows and I like that it comes housed in a really nice quality plastic case with a fairly big mirror. I find that although this product was cheap the whole kit feels really sturdy and I feel like it would travel well. The mini tweezers and mini brush aren't the best quality in the world but that's just because they're small but I would happily use these whilst I was on the move and I think they're a really nice addition to this kit. 

I've been using the 'Pro-Brow Kit' with my Real Techniques Brow Brush and grooming the darkest shade - which is pretty much a perfect match for my eyebrows - through my eyebrows and I think it works pretty well. I have no complaints about this really but I am a bit unsure what the other colours in this kit are for, it says on the back that you should use the lightest shade as a highlight but to be honest the light brown which is the lightest shade just looks muddy underneath my brow so i'm not quite sure if I'm doing it right, I do like having the lighter eyebrow shade though because I think it'll be perfect if I want too define my brows without making them look to heavy or if i'm doing the whole 'no makeup, makeup look' and also if i'm doing a friends makeup who has lighter brows than me I think this would work really well. The wax in this kit is also quite useful for setting the brows in place, at first I wasn't too sure about this just because I've always used an eyebrow wax that already had colour in it but once you apply it to the brows it works pretty much the same and I didn't find that it left a white cast at all. 

Overall, I find that I actually really like this MUA pro-brow kit, I'm no eyebrow expert but for everyday defining the brows this seems to work really well for me and do everything I want it too. The only disappointment for me was the highlight shade within this palette but to be honest I have loads of highlight shades within my eye shadow collection and I would probably choose too only highlight the brows if I was doing an eye shadow look anyway. So yeah overall I would recommend this palette, it's cheap as chips and works pretty well for me!

Anyway thank you for reading & I'll catch up with you all really soon,
Lots of Love
Gem xxx

Bloggers I love - Best of Beauty #1

Hi lovely ladies, hope you're all okay. Today I thought I'd do something a bit different for my blog. I've never done this before but I thought I would share with you some of the blogs I love to read. The reason I started writing my own blog was because I loved reading other peoples and throughout the time I've been reading blogs I've found some amazing ones. A lot of you may already know the people I've featured within this post but for those of you who don't go and check them out and give them a cheeky follow, I can promise you you won't regret it. The blogs I've featured for me really are the best of the best and the ones I've read for months and months and months and so I thought I would dedicate a post to them all. 

Birds Words

http://birdle.blogspot.co.uk/

I love Beth from Birds Words, she writes one of the best blogs ever and she is honestly one of the nicest people you will ever meet, if you ever tweet her or leave a comment on her blog she'll always be happy to reply and have a chit chat and the fact that she's so nice and down to earth just makes me want to read her blog even more. Anyway Birds Words is an amazing beauty blog, the photo's are literally out of this world and every time I read one of her posts I swoon at how amazing the whole post looks! Beth always blogs about really lovely products and is really honest in giving her opinion about them. I'm sure you've all heard of Beth & her lovely blog before but if not please go and check it out because you'll be addicted for life, I promise. Probably my favourite post from Beth over the last few weeks would be her contouring tutorial featuring the Chanel Bronze Universal so make sure you check that out as well. Seriously got a lot of lovin for Beth & she's gorgeous too which always helps! She also always manages to make me chuckle all the time and I think she's really really relate-able and her personality shines loud and clear throughout all her posts! 

Couture Girl

http://x-couturegirl-x.blogspot.co.uk//

Kayleigh from Couture Girl has to be one of the most loved bloggers in the blogging world (and for good reason too!), even though a lot of you will already know all about her and her amazing blog I still wanted to give her a cheeky mention. See Kayleigh was the reason I started blogging myself, her blog was the first I ever read and the reason I loved blogs and got involved in the community. I started reading Couture Girl when Kayleigh had just started blogging so it's been amazing seeing her blog grow and grow, I followed her adventures in Australia and I am just hooked on all of her posts. Every single time she tweets saying she's got a new post up I literally load the page as fast as I can so I can read it and I enjoy every single one of them. Kayleigh's blog is full of something for everyone, she has amazing beauty posts, she throws in fashion posts and some lifestyle posts so really she's just an amazing all rounder and I think she's a really big inspiration. If you have somehow managed not to discover Kayleigh's blog yet (have you been living under a rock?!) go over and check it out, I can hand on heart say I enjoy every single one of her posts. One in particular I really enjoyed reading was her makeup storage/collection at the end of last month so make sure you check that out too. I just think Kayleigh is a great blogger and a really nice one too, she has a massive following but is still really nice and down to earth and I for one am really proud of her success. Her blog is my all time favourite and I could spend all day raving about it, she really is just the best. 

Sophia Meola

http://sophiameola.blogspot.co.uk/

I love Sophia, she's such a sweetheart, when I first started tweeting and getting involved with the blogging community more Sophia was always so lovely too me and I really appreciate that. Sophia is just a lovely beauty blogger, every time she posts a haul or a beauty review on her blog I literally die of jealously, this girl has a makeup collection to die for and she posts some of the best reviews around. She's also dipped her toe in the You Tube world and I enjoy watching her video's just as much as I enjoy reading her blog, her reviews are so in depth and informative and I love that about them. Sophia also runs a jewellery company called Sophia with Love which has some gorgeous jewellery you should try out. I just really like Sophia, I love her blog design and I see Sophia's blog as a little blog of luxury. Again a lot of you probably already follow Sophia but if not go over there & get following it straight away. I really enjoyed her latest post about the Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation (I want it soooo bad!) so whilst you're over there, give that a read! Sophia is just a lovely girl with a lovely blog so she defo makes the cut for one of my fav's.

Beauty and the Chic

http://beauty-and-the-chic.blogspot.co.uk/

Claudia was also a blogger that I became friends with on Twitter and I just really like her. Her blog is amazing and I'm a big fan, her blog is one of those blogs I keep going back to and catching up on her posts all the time. She's a lovely girl and I love that she has so much variation in all her posts. I discovered Claudia's blog not too long ago but one night when I couldn't sleep I decided to catch up and read back over nearly all of her blog posts and I really enjoyed it. I just really like her blog, she has a lot of variety between brands and is always switching things up. I just like Claudia & think she's a great all-rounder. One of the blog posts I absolutely loved was her Mac Haul recently for her beauty kit, the pictures literally blew me away! And she deserves way more followers so go and show her some love.

Lucy Rose Green - 

http://lucyrosex.blogspot.co.uk/

I love Lucy's Blog, it's amazing. I think I love Lucy's blog so much because she has the exact same taste in makeup as I do and therefore literally 99% of the things she posts about really interest me and I really enjoy reading, in actual fact the last two posts she's written are on two products that I absolutely love too. I just find my self enjoying a lot of Lucy's post and she just always talks about products I either already love or want to try so she's got it perfect. Her blog design is gorgeous too & she seems like a really nice girl as well. I think her blog deserves a lot more recognition then it gets! 

Makeup Magpie - 

http://missmakeupmagpie.com/

I love Gem from Miss Makeup Magpie, she has the same name as me which is only part of the reason but she's a lovely girl, I get on with her ridiculously well and can always have a gossip and a chat with her on twitter but besides that I really like her blog. I find that Gem's blog is very individual and quite different to the blogs I normally love, nevertheless Gem's blog is absolutely full to the brim of beauty and that is only where my love begins, she has pale skin like me which means I can always trust her judgement on products, she does brill swatches and she reviews loads of products from budget to high end and everything in between and she has a lot of variety she switches from beauty to candles to jewellery and back again but I really like all of her posts, something I love about Gem is her blunt honesty it really makes me trust her reviews. I also really like that she changes up the backgrounds in her photos and she's always been super lovely too me and always makes to check up on my blog and comment too which is really sweet! 

Sandy @ Absolute Beaut

http://www.absolutebeaut.com/

Last but definitely not least is the lovely Sandy who writes at Absolute Beaut, I really love Sandy, if you've read my blog for a while then you would have known that me and Sandy recently did a guest post on each others blogs and I really enjoyed the whole experience because Sandy was just amazing and we just worked really well together. I was honored to be able to do a post on Sandy's blog and have her post on mine because her blog is amazing and one of my fav's. I love that Sandy goes one step further with her blog, a lot of people review their products and then never mention them again but Sandy is always doing posts like her fav colour products of spring, her favourite drugstore products and her fake tan hero's so you really get too see the products she rates and which products she would recommend you to spend your money on. I really love Sandy's blog set up and the fact she is so nice. I always stay in contact with Sandy and she's always around for a natter and she's a lovely girl, I know a lot of people like her and read her blog and I can completely understand why. She is definitely one of my favourite bloggers in the world and someone I really respect & like. I really liked her March Haul! Sandy went mad and bought quite a bit but it was a really good read and to say I was a little bit jealous is a complete understatement! Make sure you go and give Sandy some lovin'.

Anyway I hope you all enjoyed this post & you discovered some new beauty blogs from it, for me these are the best picks of beauty bloggers and definitely the ones I would recommend to absolutely everyone. I actually enjoyed writing this post so much that I'm thinking of doing a second part to it next week so that you can see the rest of my favourite bloggers so look out for that too. Thanks for reading anyway & I'll speak too you all really soon! xxx

Collective Beauty Haul

Hi Ladies, hope you're all doing okay! Today I thought I would share with you a beauty haul of some bits and bobs I've been buying lately. I've gone a bit crazy to be fair but I think a mix of Easter and all the amazing offers that are around in both Superdrug and Boots lately have kind of made me want too pick up some new beauty products. Plus every girl needs a splurge once in a while right? Anyway I haven't shared a great amount of haul posts with you guys just because I'm rubbish, as soon as I get home from buying something new I have to try it and then the photo's always look rubbish and it just isn't the same, I was pretty good this time though so thought it was definitely time to share. I'll be doing reviews on some of the products featured over the next few weeks too, so let me know if there's anything you want too see in a little bit more 

detail.

Revlon Lip Butters - here
Creme Brulee, Sugar Frosting, Cotton Candy & Sorbet

Firstly is some Revlon Lip Butters, I realise it was probably a little bit excessive to pick up four of these but I already love them. I was in Boots and I saw the Revlon stand and started swatching them, I remember last year when I first started blogging there was a massive hype around these lip products and every single blogger was talking about them but I never actually took the plunge and picked them up because to be honest it wasn't until the end of last year I really started wearing lipstick. Anyway I picked up the shades Creme Brulee and Cotton Candy, went home and tried them and fell soooo in love with them that I went back the next day and picked up Pink Frosting and Sorbet. These have a really nice formula, you can wear them pretty sheer on the lips or you can build them up, but they're so comfortable and moisturizing and they're perfect for wearing every day. I really like these and will definitely be picking up more of these, so look out for a post about these baby's sometime soon! 

Make up Academy (MUA) Brow Kit - here

The next thing I did was pop along to Superdrug to pick up a few MUA goodies, I love MUA as a brand, they're cheap and cheerful and have some really good quality products. Anyway I picked up there 'Pro Brow Ultimate Eyebrow Kit'. I love filling in my brows and up until now I've been using the Elf eyebrow kit but mines recently ran out and I wanted to try something new. This is a really cool product you get 3 different shades that you can mix together to create the perfect eyebrow colour and you also get a white, clear wax which you can use to set your brows in place. You also get a teeny, tiny pair of tweezers and little brush housed in this really sturdy plastic case so this was a winner for me. Only £3.50 too!

Make Up Academy - Undressed Palette - here

I know,  I know, I'm late to the party, I think every single blogger has owned this palette and gave their two cents on it but I actually hadn't tried this until recently. I actually bought this palette for my mum for Christmas as a little stocking filler and she was really enjoying using it and I kept stealing it because I think it's ah-maaaazing! This is apparently a dupe for the Urban Decay Naked Palette which I've wanted since I picked up Naked 2 and I just think all the shades in this are gorgeous & really compliment your eyes. Plus these shadows are lovely quality and really pigmented too so I thought it was time I picked up my own. This is a bargain at £4.00 too.

Maxfactor Lipstick in Lilac Wine (655)  - here

I love Maxfactor as a brand I think they're face products, powders and mascara's are definitely the best quality from the drugstore and I really enjoy trying out some of their products, I also love the classy gold packaging. Anyway I thought I'd try out a lipstick from the brand and the shade Lilac Wine is pretty perfect,  it's one of those lipsticks that looks like your lips but better, it's quite a rosy pink colour and has a bit of shimmer in it, but I think this will be really pretty on the lips. I love the big Max Factor X imprinted on the lipstick too. 

Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint in Lychee 303 - here

I won't ramble on about this purchase too much, this is the Barry M Gelly Nail Paint in Lychee, I pretty much had to pick up one of these Gelly Nail Paints by Barry M, they are soooo talked about in the beauty world right now and after seeing them featured on loads of blogs I had to pick one up. I thought i'd pick up Lychee because it's a lovely shade, this is perfect for everyday and just really neutral and nice and I don't actually own a shade like this. I really look forward to trying this one out and doing a nail of the day for you all.

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation - Ivory here

I bought this foundation a few weeks ago but thought I'd include it in this haul because it's a recent beauty buy all the less. I love this, this foundation is incredible and if you're on the market for a new drugstore foundation then I can already tell you that this one is one to watch. If you've read my blog for a while you will know I'm the biggest fan of Rimmel Wake Me Up but this one is a massive hit with me too, It's got the coverage of Wake Me Up but doesn't have all the glitter and is literally light as air on the skin, the colour match is a bit better for all you paler girls too. This is fab!

Max factor Facefinity Compact Foundation - 01 Porcelain here

I love this compact, if you read my last Boots haul you would have seen me rave about this product and tell you all that I love it. I have really oily skin so I like to use a powder to set my foundation. My favourite ones are from Mac but for a cheaper option I like to use the Max factor one, it's probably the best powder I have found on the high street (and I've tried a lot) and this gives a bit of coverage too which is always good. I was in two minds whether to pick this one up or repurchase the Rimmel Stay Matte but I find this one much better for touch up's and it's a better colour for me so I went for Max factor once again.

Max factor MasterPiece Colour Precision Eyeshadow - here

Coffee 3 & Pearl Beige 5

I haven't really tried a lot of liquid eye shadows but these ones from Max Factor are lovely because they're really creamy and not too watery. My lovely mum actually picked these two up but she said I could feature them in this haul because she knows I'm bound to steal them anyway haha! The lightest shade is Pearl Beige and it's a gorgeous champagne colour which will look lovely on the inner corner of the eye and the second shade is coffee, which is more of a deep chocolate brown. I think these will be really nice for a really simple eye look and they are sooo creamy and easy to apply. I just hope they last on the eyelids.

Paco Rabanne - Lady Million Eau De Parfum - 30ml - here

This perfume is probably my favourite thing in the world right now, I picked this up over the Easter Weekend after loving the smell for such a long time, my friend has this and we went out a few weeks ago and literally everyone was stopping and asking her what she was wearing (including me). I find it really hard to describe scents but this is a really strong perfume and it's a really classic and quite grown up scent. It's quite a floral scent and I think I like it so much because it's sweet enough for my tastes but is really mature and sensual too, I just love it. If you're in Boots or Debenhams give this a spray and you'll love it, I promise. The gold blingy bottle is pretty cool too.

Lacoste Eau De Lacoste - 50ml - here

This perfume wasn't actually one that I bought, I won this in a competition that I entered on Glamour Magazines website months and months and months ago and I actually forgot about it until I got an email from them saying I had won a competition, if I've completely honest I couldn't even remember what I entered for but I got this about 2 weeks ago now and I love it. I think this is their new fragrence for Spring and oh boy! It smells amazing, the bottle of this perfume really reminds me of a golf ball though, so that's a bit strange haha! Anyway this again is a very floral scent but it's a lot sweeter which I love, this reminds me of Spring and it's really fresh and clean smelling, I've worn it a few times and people keep telling me I smell fresh and really Spring like which I think is a pretty good thing, it lasts really long too.

Primark - Backcombing Brush - £1.00

I've been doing a bit of clothes shopping in Primark over the last week too so I will get a clothing haul up soon but I thought I would include this Primark Backcombing brush in this beauty haul, I saw Zoella feature a backcombing brush in one of her video's not too long ago and I thought it looked pretty cool. I have pretty flat hair and I think this brush just makes it really simple to give your hair some volume, I'm actually really enjoying using this brush and think it works pretty well, feels well made too & I love that it's pink! Plus it's an absolute bargain at just £1.00!! 

Anyway lovelies, this post has taken me what feels like a year to write so if you're still here & you made it this far then thanks for reading & let me know if you want me to do a post on any of these bits down below! Hopefully I can stay away from buying anything else for a little while, although I am really eyeing up the Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation at the mo! Eeeep, someone help me! Anyway I hope you all have a lovely Sunday & i'll speak to you all really soon! :)
Lots of Love,

Gem

xxxx