Favourites: January 2015

As promised, I'm starting off the year as I mean to go on and am sharing with you today the bits I've been loving this month!  I haven't done a favourites post since...I think it was July 2013.  I don't tend to buy myself bits too often, so I've always worried that I'd just have the same favourites month in month out, but with my mission to clear through my ridiculous stash of bits, I think I should have something different to share with you every month!

Starting with my ultimate favourite for this month - The Body Shop's Almond Body Butter.  I've had this in my stock for a while now, but had been working my way through other body moisturisers.  I can't even begin to say how much I love this body butter - it's super moisturising, but this one smells incredible.  Even though it's just almond, I feel like it smells a smidge like a cherry bakewell because it's also a bit sweet!  But because of all that...I'm absolutely gutted that this seems to have been discontinued.  I can't see it online, and when I asked The Body Shop they told me to check outlet stores and the sale in April - please let me know if you spot it!

The lip balm that I've loved this month is LUSH's Lip Service.  I got it for Christmas from Liam's parents and spoke about it in my LUSH Christmas Haul - I've never tried a lip balm from LUSH before but I really like it!  It smells a bit orangey, but it's not a tangy citrus scent...more of a sweet orange scent.  It's really helped my lips this month - they were seriously dry when I was poorly with the flu!  Revlon's Matte Balm in Sultry has been my lip shade of choice this month.  I have already spoken about it here, so I won't bang on about it again, but it's definitely one that's worth checking out if you're into the whole 90's lip look.

I have a review of this coming up soon, but don't wait for it - you need the Jouer Long Wear Creme Mousse Eyeshadow in your life.  I have the shade Dusk and I hardly wear anything else.  I bought the Maybelline Color Tattoo in On and On Bronze this month to see what the fuss was on that - it's got nothing on Jouer.  I've already got my eye on the rest of the shades, particularly Galaxy and Twilight!

This month, I also picked up my first Illamasqua Cream Pigment in the shade Delirium.  It was in the sale already, but I got an extra 15% off with my birthday discount code!  It's been my contour of choice since I bought it, and I can't see myself switching to anything else anytime soon - it's really long lasting, and creates a beautiful natural shadow on the face because of the grey undertones.  I've been applying it with the Eco Tools Complexion Blending Brush as it's perfect for contouring.  It's paddle shaped which makes it ideal for slipping under the cheekbones, and because the bristles aren't super dense you can easily blend upwards!

What have been your favourites this month?

Face Facts: Orange Pop

It's been quite a while since I've written one of these Face Facts posts!  I hate taking photographs of myself.  If you didn't know/couldn't tell, all of my blog photography is done on my phone.  I don't have a super fancy camera and I don't have fancy lighting so something I find quite hard is taking a quality photograph of myself.  All of this said, I really enjoy doing these types of posts and maybe in the future when I maybe have invested in some kit, I can look back on these and compare my old style to the new!

Onto the look...I'm fed up of being cold now, I'm just not a fan of Winter and can't stand being freezing all the time.  I decided I was going to hop into Spring a bit early this year - I've started to dismiss my darker lips in favour of bolder and brighter ones and the look I've been reaching for a bit quite lately is this one!

FACE FACTS

Rimmel Fix and Perfect Pro Primer in 002

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation in Ivory

Maybelline Instant Anti-Age The Eraser Eye Concealer in Light

Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in Translucent

Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Delirium

Naked Palette - Buck

NARS Eye Paint in Black Valley

Rimmel Scandaleyes Retro Glam Mascara in Black

Barry M Brow Kit

NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Iberico

Real Techniques Buffing Brush

Real Techniques Setting Brush

Eco Tools Complexion Blending Brush

Eco Tools Full Powder Brush

Naked 3 Palette Dual Ended Eyeshadow Brush

Real Techniques Silicone Liner Brush

Topshop Nails in Concrete

I started by prepping my skin with the Rimmel Fix and Perfect Pro Primer in 002.  I won this on a giveaway before Christmas (it and some other goodies look a total state because a nail varnish smashed during transit!) and haven't really used it too often.  It's really nice actually; velvety rather than feeling like your skin is coated in silicone so I'll start making an effort to use this more.  For foundation, I have been using my Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation in the shade Ivory.  This is actually my second bottle and it's currently my every day foundation - really illuminating with a medium coverage.  I concealed my under my eyes with the ever hyped Maybelline Anti-Age concealer and I like it, but I'm not sure if I love it just yet.  I only got it the other week, and I'm pretty hard to please concealer wise.  I set that with the Rimmel Stay Matte Powder.

I contoured my cheeks with the Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Delirium and ohhhhmahgod...I love it so much.  I only got it last week, but I've used it every single day since I bought it.  It creates the most perfect shadow that looks really natural.  I then blended that up lightly to give a hint of colour to my cheeks but nothing to dramatic because I wanted quite a simple look.  I used the shade Buck from the Naked palette to quickly add some depth to my eyes by applying that into my crease, and lined with the NARS Eye Paint in Black Valley.  For mascara, I chose the Rimmel Scandaleyes Retro Glam Mascara.  I hated this when I first got it because the formula was so wet and application was always so messy, but it's okay now - I don't think I'd buy it again though when it runs out.

For my brows, I once again used my Barry M Brow Kit.  I use this every day, but again I don't think I'd buy this again.  It's pretty warm toned and I just feel that there must be something better out there to try.  I have a review of this coming this week so keep an eye out for that!  And for the main part of the look, I used NARS Iberico on my lips.  This was a lip pencil that came in the Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret and is currently my most used shade!  It's a warm toned orange red which is really in your face - I love it and don't own anything like it already!

What's your current go-to make up?

Illamasqua Culminate Sheer Lip Gloss

I'm a funny one with lip gloss.  The bright colours, added sparkle or high shine always attracts my attention, but just as I'm about to reach for one and ram it into my basket, I always remember that I bloody hate lip gloss.  As smooth and as shiny as it looks, all of the lip glosses I've tried in the past have been one big, sticky mess and it's a mess that I can't stand - especially you Soap and Glory with your Sexy Mother Pucker lip glosses!

This Illamasqua lip gloss in Culminate is one that I followed from the initial concept to the finished product.  I'm sure that you will all know that it is part of their Creators collection and was designed by Milly from Pearls and Poodles.  I absolutely loved reading her journey and inspiration for this lip gloss, and was absolutely over the moon when I won this in her blog give away!  Culminate was the only product that I really wanted to try from the collection, and it's lived up to, if not gone beyond my expectations!

Inspired by space, this is described as an "iridescent sheer metallic copper."  Swatching on my hand, I can definitely see the copper, but on my lips, I think it comes out quite peachy with added lilac, copper and silver fine glitter flecks.  Don't be afraid of the glitter; it's a really pretty effect, and really plumps out my lips to give them that fuller look and still feels smooth.

The gloss is applied with a brush, which I personally love because applying light pressure means that the brush fans out across your lip contours.  It's ridiculously easy to apply, and is also easily buildable.  I go for one quick gloss over, and this gives me the perfect amount of coverage and shimmer for my liking.  What's even better is the feeling.  Of course, there is some stickiness, but it's a bearable stick!  I can wear this quite easily without feeling like I need to wipe it straight off again.  It's a lip gloss that is actually enjoyable and comfortable to wear.

I think Culminate will be perfect for Spring/Summer wearing, and if you'd like to try it, I spotted Culminate in the Illamasqua sale for the bargain price of £5, but I'd be fast as it's sure to sell out!  This is a Limited Edition collection, but I really hope that Culminate sticks around!

Have you tried Culminate?  What's your favourite lip gloss?
*Illamasqua Culminate lip gloss was given to me as a prize through a giveaway hosted on Milly's blog, Pearls and Poodles.

Illamasqua Apocalips

So this week I've been Christmas shopping...only I ended up buying myself  present.  You may have seen on one of my Wednesday Wishlists that I was eyeing up a certain Illamasqua lipstick, and well...I bought it.  I'm not even sorry!

I bought the shade Apocalips and I was a bit unsure about the colour, as you would expect, because it is nothing like any shade that I already own.  In fact, I don't know anyone else with a shade similar to this.  It is a gorgeous deep teal with a matte finish.  I've read reviews on Apocalips and I was a bit worried that the matte finish would be too drying, because I'd heard it drags on application and lips needed to be well prepared.


I was so surprised!  The lipstick applied amazingly well, and was very well pigmented.  I did a few swipes to ensure a total opaque finish, and I was so impressed.  I was too excited to try this when I got it, so didn't prepare my lips at all - they're averagely dry, but I thought that it applied really nicely!  It didn't cling to my dry areas, and I was left with a beautifully smooth, even colour application.  Because of the matte finish, this colour on your lips is going nowhere!



I can't tell you all enough how pleased I am that I bought this.  I am so happy with it, and I think that it is such an easy colour to wear.  It is an unusual colour and I do think that it will take other people to get used to me wearing the shade, but I don't think that it looks odd or an unflattering colour at all.  Apocalips came from the Human Fundamentalism collection released in 2012, and Illamasqua said that "Human Fundamentalism is an explosion of your alter ego.  It's becoming who you are and not who you're told to be" and I couldn't agree more!  If you want to try it, you can buy it here on the Illamasqua website!

What do you think of Apocalips?  Will you be trying it?

Wednesday Wishlist #3

I really don't know why I do this to myself...create these wishlists of all the things I'm loving at the moment when I know that I literally can't afford them.  First of all, I'm meant to be saving for a house with my boyfriend.  The last couple of months haven't gone so well as I've been topping up my winter wardrobe with shoes and coats...  And second of all, it's coming up to Christmas and I have so many people to buy for!  I can't really justify spending money on myself, but...if I slip up...I'll have probably bought one (or more!) of these beauties.

1/2/3/4/5/6

First up, we have the Illasmasqua lipstick in Apocalips.  It's an unusual choice; a gorgeous teal with a matte finish.  But before you question my choice, just Google some swatches.  It looks stunning.  A first look at this bizarre colour might put you off, who wears teal lipstick?  Well Rihanna did for one, but that's not my reasoning for needing it.  Greens are opposite reds in the colour wheel, meaning that green should be just as flattering as a red in theory!  This shade teamed with winter skin, and dark winter clothes seems to be right up my street...and to be honest, I'm not bothered if it's right up anyone elses as I love it!

All of the clothing on this wishlist is from Motel (because I've been insanely stalking their website lately) and the first is this patterned dress.  It's very bold and not something that I'd usually go for, but there's something about it that's making me want to give it a try.  I think this, some sheer black tights, an oversized dark coatigan and some chunky boots would look amazing.

The second dress is this gorgeous plain black dress in a skater style, with a nice Peter Pan lace collar.  I just think that this would be really nice for day to day wear and would again work nicely with my trusty chunky boots.

The fourth thing on my Wednesday Wishlist...this stunning Jouer limited edition palette.  Jouer isn't a brand I've tried before, but I've read so much about it.  This is the In the Red palette, and it doesn't even need explaining.  Look at it!  Connectable pieces of gorgeousness, and they're just screaming my name.  This would be perfect for winter parties, or perfecting your flawless Snow White look - neutral eyes, rosy cheeks and bold lips.  Be. Mine. Now.

Another seasonal screamer for me is the new Jo Malone Peony Blush Suede cologne.  I had a sample of this through the post when I ordered my Mums birthday present and it smells amazing.  It's the perfect mix of floral and musky and is something that I would wear a lot through winter.

To finish my somewhat seasonal ending to this wishlist...this amazing dress from Motel.  Sparkles and sequins are again something that I wouldn't normally go for, I tend to go for the more grungey look, but this would be the perfect party dress.  I'd either go for sky high heels, or tone down the sparkle with some high wedge boots.

So what do we think? Do I save or spend, spend, spend?!

As I am part of the Motel Rocks Street Team, I have a discount code available for all of my readers for a handy 20% off at Motel Rocks!  Just enter ceejayell at the checkout for discount across all Motel branded products.