182. What's In My Everyday Make Up Bag?

I love looking for new make-up. In fact, Superdrug is probably my second home. I'm always on the look out for new products that are affordable and, frankly, do what they're supposed to. That's why I wanted to share, with you lovely lot, the contents of my Everyday Make Up Bag. These are the products that I use every single time I apply make-up; whether it's for work, a meal out or something more special, this is my go to selection of products to achieve that everyday look.

First up, skin. I've been using my two main skin products for such a long time now that I've actually lost track, but it must be well over a year! I start off by applying Seventeen's Phwoarr Paint, in Fair, under my eyes to eliminate any dark patches, as well as dabbing it on any ugly spots that have popped up. It reminds me of Benefit's Boi-ing concealor, which is equally good but a helluvalot more expensive. At just £5.49 you really can't complain - this stuff lasts months and works wonders. 

Next up, I use Rimmel's Match Perfection foundation in Ivory 100. It's a lovely, runny but not watery, liquid foundation and it applies seamlessly with a foundation brush. You hardly have to use any of it to get a good, medium coverage and, at just £6.99, it's definitely worth it. I get through a bottle of this every two months, and that's with daily use. 

To ensure my make-up stays put all day, I use Maybelline Matte Maker powder, in Classic Ivory. I apply this pressed powder with my Real Techniques powder brush all over my face, especially around my nose, chin and forehead as these are the areas where my foundation seems to want to escape from my face! The powder is only £3.99 and lasts a good few months for me. It's very handy for carrying around in your handbag whenever you need to get rid of that shine too. 

Finally, to add a pop of colour, I apply Bourjois Blusher in Rose De Jaspe to the apples of my cheeks and brush upwards and outwards, with the Real Techniques blush brush. It's a gorgeous deep, shimmery rose pink and is subtle enough to avoid the clown-like look, but pretty enough to make your skin look just that little bit healthier. I've been using this blusher for about six months and it's still about half full, definitely worth the modest £7.99 that I spent on it.

Once I've got my skin looking clear and healthy, I move onto my eyes. First up, my eyebrows which I think deserve a good bit of attention. I've always loved dark, statement brows but - unfortunately, being blonde, pale and with the tendency to frown a lot - I can't quite pull the Cara Delevigne look off. Instead, I try to find some middle ground by using the Collection Work the Colour Eyebrow Kit, which is just £3.99. I use the middle shade and apply it with the brush which is included in the palette, it's a double ended brush and is perfect for shaping and filling in your brows, giving off a natural look but enough definition for your eyebrows to really stand out.

Once my brows have been tamed, it's time to tackle the make-up nightmare that is liquid eyeliner. I've been applying liquid eye liner for a good 8 years now and I've done it the same way the entire time, so I don't struggle with it nowadays, but that may also have something to do with the eyeliner that I choose to use. I've recently been using Seventeen High Drama liquid eyeliner which I picked up for just £3.99 in Superdrug and it's honestly so good. I've never been sucked in to buying expensive, high-end eyeliners as I honestly believe that the budget versions do just as good of a job (in fact, I prefer this to my old Eyeko eyeliner which was triple the price!). This eyeliner creates a solid black silhouette around your eye and lasts all day long, even in the heat or the rain. I'd recommend it to anybody, plus the shape of the brush makes it so easy to apply, especially for those cat-flicks!

In an attempt to make myself look less zombie like, I use a white eyeliner pencil, in the form of Maybelline's Big Eyes Liner. I apply the eyeliner to the inner corner of my eye, both on the top and bottom water lines, as it really helps to make my eyes look brighter and wider. The eye liner is only £4.99 and includes both a black and white eyeliner pencil, so it's a real bargain!

Last but certainly not least, the mascara that I've sworn by for years: Max Factor's False Lash Effect, in black. At £10.99 it's actually, by far, the most expensive item in my make-up bag but it probably also lasts the longest. I find that the brush is brilliant for even, all over coverage and doesn't give me lashes that spidery effect which is all too common nowadays. I've tried numerous mascaras over the years but I always come crawling back to False Lash Effect as it really is just so good, even when the gods forgot bless you with gloriously long, thick lashes. 

So, ten minutes after unzipping my make-up bag and letting the contents spill out all over my bed, I just add a slick of colour to my lips depending on my mood, and I'm good to go!

What about your make-up essentials?

Have you tried any of my favourites?

168. From Fugly to Fresh Faced in 30 Seconds (Superdrug BB Cream)

We all have 'those days' where we either a) look crap, b) feel crap or c) both. Today is one of those days for me. I've woken up full of cold with a sore throat after a night of wee-break interrupted sleep and a whole load of new spots on my chin to keep me company on my day off.

As luck would have it, I treated myself to some of Superdrug's own BB Cream in the shade 'Light' yesterday on my lunch break, after a tip off from a friend. Sometimes you can't be bothered to spend twenty minutes applying a full face of make up, for example when you're having a day like I'm having (tired, ugly, poorly, I could go on and on...) and, on days like these, BB Cream is a total lifesaver.

Superdrug's BB Cream claims to act as a 5-in-1 Skin Perfecting Day Cream which conceals imperfections and enhances skin tone, provides 24 hour hydration, antioxidant protection, has UVA/UVB filters and contains SPF 15. It's a win-win situation. Great skin with minimal effort. But is that the case in reality?

I applied a generous blob (seriously, is there a better word for it?) to the entirety of my face, blending it in downwards motions and ensuring it was subtly blended into my neck to avoid the dreaded tide lines, as we called them in school. 

The BB Cream gave my skin a nicer, more even tone without that heavy feeling that you sometimes get with a full face of make up, but it didn't cover up the dark circles under my eyes or any of my particularly prominent spots. I touched it up with a light dusting of powder and was pretty impressed with the result, and in less than a minute too.

I quickly filled in my eyebrows and added a slick of mascara to complete the look and I was good to go. Although I wouldn't head out for a busy day in such minimal make-up, it's perfect for when you need to nip to the shops, you've got a couple of quick appointments to get to, or you're running late for work and just need a helping hand.

Superdrug's own brand range of BB Cream's are currently on offer at better than half price on their website and in-store, at just £3.48 for 50ml. The Light BB Cream is currently out of stock on the website but you can always check out your local store to see if they have it in stock. 

135. Beauty // Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm in Elusive

I'm always drawn to two things when I pop into Superdrug or Boots: nail polish and lip sticks. As I very rarely change my base make-up, I like to play around with lip and nail colours instead, so my collection of nail polishes and lip sticks are forever growing.

I've recently rediscovered a lip colour that I purchased months ago, and it's reignited my love for it! The product in question is Revlon's Colorburst Matte Balm in the shade 'Elusive'. 

The Colorburst Matte Balm's are gorgeous; they look just like one of Clinique's Chubby Sticks. The actual balm itself is almost velvety and has a lovely refreshing quality when applied. Elusive even smells deliciously of peppermint which is a little added bonus.

(L: Three swatches, R: One swatch)

The colour itself is like a deep rosy pink, it's perfect for those of us with pale skin and fair hair, and I think it compliments my colouring perfectly which is why it's become my 'go to' lip colour.

I think Elusive has a fantastic staying quality too and it lasts hours on me, even when I've eaten. It has - as you'd expect from the name - a lovely, matte look but doesn't feel dry on your lips at all, and can be built up for a brighter tint. 

For just £7.99 (or 2 for £10 currently at Boots) you really can't go wrong!

129. Beauty // Summer Saviours

Today I'm going to share two of my must-have beauty products for the summer. These products were my saviours whilst I was on holiday in Portugal earlier this month.

First up is Schwarzkopf 'got2b beach matt texturizing salt spray' which aims to create a mermaid look, beach wave hairstyle. 

I've heard a lot about salt sprays recently, and when I spotted this one on offer in Superdrug, I thought I'd give it a try. I used it near enough everyday on holiday as my hair was drying so quickly in the heat that I didn't need to use a hairdryer, so I simply spritzed about ten sprays of the salt spray on and let the wind and sun do the rest.

The result was actually pretty impressive. I have naturally wavy hair but the spray left it looking tousled, with individual curls, and I didn't even have to run the hairbrush through my usually tatty hair. My hair felt soft, rather than crunchy and brittle, too. 

The only downside was that, at the end of the day, it was quite hard to brush it out - but I guess you get that with most hair products, especially if you've applied it directly to wet hair without brushing it first. 

If you're heading off on a hot holiday this year, or simply want a low-maintenance, beach-style look, I'd recommend giving got2b beach matt texturizing salt spray a go!

I don't like to wear much make-up when it's hot, as I always feel like my skin ends up looking patchy, with huge pores and big shiny patches! But, at the same time, I find the idea of leaving the house without make-up on incredibly daunting. 

I have a red tint to my skin naturally, as well as a couple of unsightly spots, so I knew that I couldn't leave my skin completely uncovered - that's where SEVENTEEN Blemish Balm BB Cream (with SPF 25 - yay!) came to my rescue. 

I chose the shade medium as I had a spray tan the day before my holiday, and I found the colour to be a great match. It was slightly darker than the rest of me, but it was easily blendable and covered all my pores and blemishes. It gave me a lovely, summery glow, with even coverage, but to the naked eye you wouldn't even be able to tell I was wearing any product.

As my spray tan faded I started to mix a touch of my usual foundation in with the BB Cream, so that it matched my natural skin tone better, and this worked a dream too.

I used the BB Cream everyday and it lasted all day, throughout the heat. For the price (just £6.99 for 30ml) I'd definitely recommend this incredible BB Cream, which I think I'll be using all summer instead of my more expensive, heavier foundation!

125. Guest Post // Everyday Eye Shadows

Hi everyone, I am Emily Napier, I have a little beauty blog over at What Beauty Taught, and can more often than not be found tweeting over on What Beauty Taught.  I have been allowed by Becci (very brave of her!) to guest post today to chat about my favourite eye shadows.

I have to say I'm a little lazy when it comes to applying eye shadow on a day to day basis, sleeping is just way more appealing! But on those days where a fancy looking a bit more presentable and ladylike, I always opt for neutral tones for an effortless yet polished look. And these are the ones I reach for...

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr Cream Gel Eyeshadow - 35 On and On Bronze and 70 Metallic Pomegranate.

These are my ultimate favourite Eye shadows of all time. Seriously, these have incredible staying power, great colour pay off and are a perfect base if you want to pack on more products for a more intense look. Metallic Pomegranate is a gorgeous deep purple colour with a slight gold shimmer running through it and On and On bronze is almost taupe, making it so versatile and wearable. The cream consistency makes these effortless to apply and blend - fool proof. If you don't have these already, what are you waiting for?

MAC Eye Shadow in Woodwinked

An intense copper, bronze which is highly pigmented and blends like a dream. For day time I only put on a very small amount and blend it out with a brush to make it look more sheer. I usually put MAC Pro Long Wear Paint Pot in the shadow Painterly underneath as it is a neutral base that holds product amazingly, but you could even put Maybelline colour tattoo underneath for more impact. 

Oriflame The ONE Colour Impact Cream Eyeshadow in Beige Pearl

I was lucky enough to win this through a Twitter competition about month ago and it has become a staple of mine when I want a really subtle, light look. I would say this is more pale pink than beige and it has a slight silver iridescence when the light hits it. The cream consistency makes it super easy to apply with your fingers and lasts rather well too (not as good as Maybelline but what is??) Perfect for that spring/summer freshness without  the effort.

MUA Professional Eyeshadow Palette - Heaven and Earth

In this palette you get 12 neutral shimmery shades ranging from pale pink which are great for inner corner highlighting, coppers for defining the crease and dark browns for all out smoke! The shades blend well together meaning you never have to create the same look twice (unless you want to of course!). I would suggest putting an eye primer underneath as they don't have great stay power on their own. Nevertheless, at £4 for 12 shades, who can complain?

108. Beauty // Bourjois Beauties

I'm a sucker for a bargain so when I saw that Superdrug had a special offer on Bourjois products, I couldn't resist.

Since my Sleek FaceForm palette ran out last month, I've been on the look out for a gorgeous, rose coloured blusher and Bourjois' 'Jasper Rose' blush really caught my eye. For starters, the packaging is adorable - the little pot is so cute and handy! It's got a beautiful pigment, so much so that it looks more like a blusher and a highlighter blended together. 

I find that I have to apply a fair bit - which I do with my Real Techniques blush brush, rather than the small, flat brush provided - to get my desired look, but it is also fantastic at contouring and I feel that it makes my cheekbones stand out more, without looking over the top. 

I also picked up a new powder, in the form of Bourjois' Healthy Balance in Vanilla. It claims to provide a 10 hour matte finish and a healthy glow but I have to admit, I haven't been bowled over. The packaging is lovely and the sleek design means that you can take it just about anywhere with you, but I don't think that it is suited to my skin at all.

Within a couple of hours of wearing the powder, my skin begins to look almost scale-y (y'know, like a lizard?) and my pores look huge. One thing that I've also noticed is that, by the time I get in from work, it looks so patchy and my skin can be, in parts, pale and, in others, very orange which is a look that I've managed to avoid even with the cheapest of powders, so to say I was disappointed is - unfortunately - an understatement. 

I've never been a particularly good sleeper and, since starting working for the company I'm with now, my sleep pattern has been more erratic than usual. I struggle to drop off in the evenings and find it even harder to get out of bed in the morning, so under-eye bags are somewhat of a problem for me. So when I spotted Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Eye Cream, I knew that I had to add it to my everyday make-up kit!

It's a liquid concealer which is quite thick in consistency. Unlike a lot of concealers that I've tried, it doesn't appear cakey or begin to crack after it's been on for a while; it just blends really nicely either under or over my foundation and lasts all day. 

I can honestly say that the skin beneath my eyes now looks the same colour as the rest of my face which - for me - is a success! I'd definitely recommend this concealer although I don't think it lives up to it's claim of being an 'illuminating' concealer. 

Have you tried any of these products?

Which of Bourjois' products would you recommend?

92. Beauty // What's On My Face?

I'm ridiculously nosey, let's face it, so posts about bloggers' beauty essentials or their everyday face really intruige me. Give me somebody else's make-up bag and - oh yes - I will root through it. No shame. So, after months of snooping on people's blogs, finding out about their favourite products, watching YouTube videos of people literally just applying make-up (you beauty bloggers know what I'm on about, it's awesome!) I thought maybe I would share my everyday make-up routine, and my beauty essentials in a post I have aptly named What's On My Face.

So, what is on my face?

I have fairly oily skin but I'm prone to dry skin on my forehead and nose. I start off by applying Rimmel Fix & Perfect Pro primer which is my holy grail of primers; I've tried Nivea's primer (good), Collection 2000's (horrendous) and Benefit's Porefessional (nothing special) but this primer really stands out for me. I squeeze a pea-sized amount into the palm of my hand, rub my hands together and then apply it all over my face, getting into all the nooks and crannys. It's a lovely smooth and almost silky texture, and it helps my foundation to stay in place all day - plus, it's super cheap.

I then apply Max Factor Colour Adapt in shade 55, Blushing Beige, with a foundation brush to even out my skin tone. Again, I've used a million and one foundations, but this gives me a fantastic medium-high coverage and lasts all day. Under my eyes and on the dreaded spots around my chin, I then apply 2013's must have high-street product: Seventeen's Phwoar Paint with my finger tips. It's similar to Benefit's Boi-ing concealer in both consistency and effectiveness, but it's a fraction of the price. I finish off my base with Max Factor Creme Puff pressed powder in shade 05, translucent, and I apply this with my Real Techniques powder brush to get rid of any shine and ensure my make-up stays put.

Once my base is complete, I use a couple of amazing products to contour, highlight and add some colour to my face. When I first bought the Sleek Face Form palette in shade 373, Light, I slated it in a review after I felt it left me looking very shiny and almost metallic. Since then, I've learnt how to actually use it and how much I need to apply (about 0.0000037% of how much I was previously using). I use the blusher everyday as it adds colour and some sparkle to me cheeks - I apply it using my Real Techniques blush brush - and I then use the highlighter on the top of my cheeks, on my cupids bow and one quick sweep across my forehead.

I personally find Sleek's contouring powder to be far too dark my skin tone, and it leaves me looking like I either haven't washed my face, or have side-burns... Not a good look. Instead, I've been using Benefit's Hoola which is a brilliant bronzer that can be used for contouring also. I apply a quick sweep beneath my cheekbones, then around my hair line and under my jaw. Since I've started contouring, I have noticed a huge difference in the overall shape of my face once my make-up is applied. 

I picked up this GOSH brow kit on a whim after spotting it in Superdrug, around the time that everyone was going crazy for Benefit's Browzings and the whole HD brows shabang. Being a cheap skate, I bought this for under a tenner, and I've used it just about everyday since. There are three shades to choose from inside and, although I'm fair haired and light skinned, I tend to use the darkest shade and finish it off with the gel and then my bargain MUA eyebrow pencil in brunette, for natural looking brows.

I'm not a big eye shadow gal, in fact I barely ever wear it, despite owning numerous palettes. However, when I clocked eyes - excuse the pun - on MUA's trio eyeshadow in Pink Sorbet, I had to have it. The three shades are absolutley gorgeous, each of them being beautifully pigmented with a wonderful shimmer in there too. Perfect for building up a wide-eyed look. I also use Benefit's High Beam around my eye area and beneath my brow bone.

The final stage of my morning make-up routine is my eyes. I've done my eye make-up exactly (and I mean exactly) the same since I was 15. I go for the classic feline flick - however the thickness and length of said flick does differ massively depending on how awake/much effort I put in - using Collection 2000 Fast Stroke eye liner. Again, I've used so many different eye liners, but I always come back to this one. Not only is the price fantastic (it only costs a couple of quid) but it's so easy to apply, the brush is the perfect shape, and it always comes out jet black rather than the watery grey that you sometimes get with liquid eye liners.

For my lashes, I use both Max Factor's False Lash Effect and Benefit's They're Real. I've got to admit, I'm not completely bowled over by They're Real (I think I must be the only person in the world who wouldn't repurchase it) but I find it works really well on my bottom lashes, due to the size and shape of the brush. I've been using Max Factor's False Lash Effect for years, and I still love it today.

The only thing left to do after all is said and done, is a pop of colour to my lips using one of my numerous lipsticks, glosses and balms, but as the colour changes daily, I couldn't choose one to share today. However, I will be posting My Top 5 Lip Products very soon.

As you can see, all of the products that I use are available on the high-street (apart from Sleek's palette which I ordered online) and the only ones that cost over £10 are the Benefit products, which I bought as part of their Best Of... set as a Christmas present to myself.

My whole make-up routine takes roughly 10-15 minutes but leaves me feeling good, with clear skin and bright eyes, what more could you want?