Hue Mac Lipstick Review

I’ve been eyeing up this lipstick for some time. Well Mac lipsticks in general. This Hue colour stuck out to me as having the soft pale pink nude tone which I have been harboring after.

I love smokey eye looks teamed with nude lip colours and this lipstick is the key ingredient to creating that look.

It has a very soft creamy feeling which glides on application without too much pressure. It is a Glaze finish which Mac defines as...

Low-colour impact with sheen-style finish. Glazes the lips, makes them shine !

The glaze finish means that this lipstick does sit on the dry spots of the lips so I would recommend using lip balm to ensure your lips are moisturised before. The staying power isn’t brilliant but this may not be a problem if you don’t mind repeated application.

The selling point on this lipstick is the very pretty nude pale pink tone which goes well with my NW20 skin, and would look great on all skin tones. It also has a nice chocolaty vanilla scent! 

This is my first Mac Lipstick purchase and at £14.00 full price I must admit you don’t get much product with the lipstick measuring at 2.5cm. I picked this up at Debenhams on the sale which they tend to have every year. 

The Hue Mac Lipstick is a bible lipstick for many and I would say the mixture of the pale pink and nude has made me a follower. This is great for starting my collection of nude lipsticks and I will be looking out for a Hue dupe in the future. 

Listening while I blog... 

Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars – Safe and Sound. I’ve never really been a fan of Taylor Swift until I heard this song. It has a played down folk quality which I like. The twangy guitar riff coupled with the harmonies from The Civil Wars make it an sad and eerie lullaby to Suzanne Collins trilogy and recent film adaptation The Hunger Games.  

Maybelline the Colossal Volum' Express Mascara Cat Eyes

I tend to ignore mascara advertising campaigns simply because it’s obvious the model is wearing fake eyelashes and has been touched up to the nines. 

I just want a mascara that gives some volume to my lashes, doesn’t clump, or do the dreaded slip up and smear all around the sides of my eyes when applying. 

Based on these guidelines I think Maybelline the Colossal Volum’ Express Mascara Cat Eyes hits at least two marks of three.

The advertising campaign for this mascara claims it brings out the "feline edge” by extending lashes with its “claw-like” brush. Well if you believe that you believe anything. I goggled cat-eye makeup and think you may need several other ingredients to achieve this look effectively like heavy black-eyeliner and a set of falsies with a winged outer edge.

I must say I do like this mascara.

The "claw-like" curved brush means that it is very easy to apply, and it doesn’t slip and smear during application, particularly on the bottom lashes. The shape of the brush also means it can give a good amount of volume. However after repeated applications my lashes do clump together and don’t look as separate and full as I’d like. I think the trick is to apply sparely to achieve a winged effect. 

I’ve never used a curved brush before and I think that’s the selling point for me on this mascara. In the future I will be on the look-out curved mascara that doesn’t clump.

Before

After

Maybelline the Colossal Volum’ Express Mascara Cat Eyes £7.19 at Boots

Listening while I blog..  
City and Colour- Fragile Bird. 

 

Body Shop Vitamin E Facial Range

This facial care set is hands down the best beauty purchase I’ve made! I had been divvying about whether to invest in a cleanser, toner, and moisturizer set simply because I’m lazy and it can be pricey.

I’ve had my eye on the Body Shop Vitamin E range since I had a free makeover at one of their stores and the assistant used this range. However at £7.00 each for the Vitamin E Cream Cleanser and Hydrating Toner, and £9.00 for the Moisture Cream I thought I wait around a bit.

I must say the good thing about Body Shop is that they do have offers on all the time I picked up this set in goodie bag plus another Moisture Cream for around £16.00.
 

To the Products:  

Vitamin E Cream Cleanser - A cleanser unclogs pores, removes dirt, oil, and makeup. This cleanser has a very soft water based consistency, although containing oils and shea butter it doesn’t leave my skin feeling oily or greasy.

Vitamin E Hydrating Toner - A toner gets rid of any excess dirt and closes pores. I have used toners in the past which have contained alcohol and have been quite harsh to my skin. However this is alcohol-free nice-smelling liquid which deep cleans any leftover dirt or oil leaving my skin feeling soft.

Vitamin E Moisture Cream - This moisturiser has a soft water based texture. It is not too thick and doesn’t leave my face looking shiny. I would recommend to use sparely just under the eyes and on any dry spots as a little goes a long way.

The condition of my skin has markedly improved since using this set. It is important to remove all your makeup with a facial wipe before bed. However I always find that there is still product left on my face and this set is brilliant accessing the leftovers. My pores feel a lot clearer and I am more confident about the appearance of my face without makeup. Another important thing is that this set is so gentle. It doesn’t leave my skin feeling red and irritable.

I use these three in the morning after using a face wash to remove the excess product, and in the evening after removing makeup.

I brought this set in February and it’s still going strong.

On a side note I thought I would provide some information on Vitamin E. A lot of beauty products seem to have Vitamin E but don’t actually say the benefits of it or what it does.

Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant which your body cannot produce itself. Your body is made up of set of atoms which try to maintain an even set of electrons. Daily life can wear out your skin and cause atoms with an uneven set of electrons and cellar damage such as wrinkles and skin dryness can follow. Vitamin E neutralizes these unstable atoms and prevents such cellar damage occurring. Vitamin E can reduce age spots, wrinkles, decrease drying, and acts as a moisturizer. It can also prevent cancer. Alongside being available in beauty products it also can be part of a healthy diet in foods such as almonds, asparagus, hazelnuts and broccoli. 

Listening while I blog..

Ben Howard - Only Love. I think Ben Howard is the sound of summer 2012. His music is all over the radio and I love solo acoustic artists are getting some airplay now after a slight drought since Jack Johnson and Jose Gonzalez. The guitar has a lovely sweet sound and his voice is so beautiful as well.

Smoothie Time

Summer has finally arrived after months of rain and cloud which means it is smoothie time!

I stumbled upon this idea on a particularly humid evening and now it has become my household's saviour in hot weather.

Take some fruit, I used strawberries, melon and grapes
Add 2 scoops of ice cream 
Pop in some ice cubes
Pour in half a pint/pint of milk 

                                                                         Blend
                                                               Serve up in a cool glass 

                                                                         Enjoy!

Listening while I blog...   

Amy Winehouse’s reggae cover of Sam Cooke’s Cupid. It has a nice chilled out feeling, perfect listening material for sun tanning :)

 

Put the Lime in the Coconut

About two years ago my hair was in terrible condition. I had over processed my hair with heat and repeated colouring to the point it looked like a lion’s mane, so I decided to make a hair resolution and take care of it properly. 

I heard regular hair treatments, among other methods, were the best way to go, and using coconut oil is a cheap and healthy way to moisturize hair.

What I like about using coconut oil is that you can easily insert it into your beauty routine without too much fuss. I tend to use it every week/fortnight, just before bed, by applying it to the ends then tying it up and washing it out in the morning. The important thing is to use sparingly and wash out the oil out completely otherwise your hair will be greasy during the day. 

After using coconut oil for about two years I have noticed an improvement to the condition of my hair. It feels a lot softer and is easier to manage. Along with this hair treatment I have been using other techniques for my hair resolution and I will do a post/s about them all.

I ordered this 460g tub from http://www.coconoil.co.uk/ for about £6.00. Although the company has expanded now and this tub costs around £11.49 they do offer free shipping. I would recommend picking up a tub from them as I have had mine for 2 years and have yet to run out. You also get a brochure detailing the ridiculous amount of uses for coconut oil - cooking, skin care, lubricant!

Listening while I blog..

I thought I would be topical with this post. Harry Nilsson - Coconut. This is one of my favourite drunk songs, I liked it ever since it was used in the Midnight Margaritas scene in Practical Magic. Movie trivia: the actresses were actually drunk in the scene on a bottle of tequila brought by Nicole Kidman :)

Mac Studio Finish Concealer NW20, Out Damn’d Spot Out!

A testament to how much I depend on this concealer is that I lost my original one the other day and spent the whole day CLEANING in order to try and find it.

I now have a cleaner room and have had to break into my backup version which I brought in anticipation that such an event would arise. 

I have fairly normal skin, however I do suffer from occasional break-outs, subject to occasional chocolate binges, and this concealer is great for covering blemishes and redness.

I use the NW20 which is a pink neutral tone and blends well into my fair skin.

What I think works about this concealer is the texture. It’s has a very thick yet creamy consistency which is perfect to just pat on "the damned spot" without looking too cakey.

I would say that its staying power is temperamental. I find myself every 3 hours topping up but if set properly it can stay for most of the daytime.

There is an aversion to using this concealer for the under eye area and I agree that when using it alone it can fix into creases and dry out. I use a liquid concealer underneath the eye however I see no problem in using the Mac Studio Finish lightly after that as it is highly pigmented and can cover any darkness particularly on the side on the nose.

At 7g this little pot goes a long way. I had my first version for a year and had not reached 
the bottom. It may be my MAC Mentality but this is my go-to concealer for blemishes and it is perfect for full-coverage top ups during the day.

I yet to find my original version, it’s probably in the same place my matching socks and bobby pins disappear to!

Mac Studio Concealer retails at £14.50 at Debenhams

Listening while I blog...  

I have been listening to The Black Keys since 2005. Their early sound had a raspy basement blues quality that can only be achieved from a guitar-drums duo and a distortion pedal. I must say I’m the possessive groupie type when it comes to music, and I don’t really know how I feel about their latest releases being blasted out on the Wimbledon coverage or TOWIE episodes. 

Needless to say I love Wimbledon, I love TOWIE (don’t judge), and I love The Black Keys progression to boppy organ rhythms and doubled-up girlie vocals. I can’t help but dance to every one of their new releases and if the EuroCup football crowd can belt out The White Stripes Seven Nation Army riff with such relish, I’ll have to get over some well-earned mainstream recognition on the part of The Black Keys.