Avon Super Drama mascara

I mentioned in my last post that I had received a sample of Avon's latest mascara Super Drama. When I first saw the marketing material for this mascara it sounded like my kind of mascara, it promises volume, length, lift and drama. Exactly what I want from a mascara!

I have to admit however when I saw the pictures of the mascara wand I was a little scared! The wand is unlike any other I have seen with what I can only describe as triangular bristles.

The formula is a little dry but applies really nicely but I did find the bristles a little uncomfortable when trying to wiggle the formula right up into my lash line.

The formula lasts well all day and does give good volume and lift. I have really long lashes anyway so I can't really comment on the formula's lengthening qualities.

I'm not sure I would buy this mascara simply because I'm not that keen on the wand which is a shame because I actually think the formula is good.

If you want to give this mascara a try it is available in brochure 14 for £7 from your local Avon representative.

Below are my before and after pictures so you can see how this mascara works!

As usual please let me know if you have any questions!

Enjoy the weekend

Lauren xxxxx

Before

After

Avon haul!

Hi everyone,

Sorry I've been AWOL for a while I don't know where the time has gone recently!!

I thought I'd share with you some bits which I received from Avon recently. Whilst I work for Avon I will never feature products on my blog that I don't think are great. My opinions will always be honest and open. I bought all these products from Avon with my own money.

Firstly I bought two of avon's Glimmersticks. I have been a long term fan of the regular Glimmersticks but this time I bought a Glimmerstick Chrome in ultra violet and Glimmerstick Diamonds in smokey diamond. The chrome pencil is a vivid purple with a gorgeous metallic sheen, I can't wait to try it out!! The diamonds is a dark grey pencil with flecks of sparkle running through it. I've attached a swatch of the two pencils with the Glimmerstick diamonds on the top and the chrome underneath.

I also bought two lipsticks. I love Avon lipsticks because they are so moisturising. Firstly I bought the Ultra Colour rich lipstick in Frozen Rose which is a great every day colour. I also bought the Ultra Colour Rich Moisture seduction lipstick in Fushia Fever which is a great bright fuchsia colour. These are swatched with the Fushia on the top and frozen rose below.



I also bought two foundations one of which I've already featured on my blog, the ideal flawless invisible coverage foundation. I bought the liquid and the compact version. As you know I love the liquid and I can't wait to try the invisible coverage cream to powder foundation which has no SPF that will mean it will be great for photos so I will bring you review of how they compare.


Finally I also purchased the Avon Advanced Techniques 360 nourishment Moroccan Argan oil leave in treatment. This is available in the campaign 13 brochure from Avon and the brochure states that there are five benefits to using this Argan oil. First is stronger feeling hair, second instant shine, a smooth finish, silky perfection and weightless movement. It's suitable for all hair types and for use on wet or dry hair. I will be posting a review of this product once I've used it.

I'm also going to try the Avon Advanced Techniques volume shampoo. I have really fine hair that gets greasy quickly and recently I've been using the Tigi Bed Head shampoo which is the urban defence one in the green tube. I changed to this after getting frustrated with using shampoos like Pantene and Tresemme which you seem to make my hair greasy and weigh it down. Whilst the Tigi is great it costs £10 a tube which I think is a bit steep! I'll post a review on the Avon shampoo and conditioner as well once I've used it for a few weeks so that's something else to look out for.

I think I've got some great stuff from Avon and I'm looking forward to trying everything out. I will also have a sneak peak of the new Avon Super Drama mascara coming out in the next campaign that you can get your hands on soon.

Thanks for reading!!

Lauren xx

BB creams

I've talked about BB creams on my blog here before and was interested in seeing how some of the main high street BB creams compare so I've got the Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB cream the Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream and the Loreal Nude Magique BB cream to compare.

Firstly I'm a long-term fan of the Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB cream and I've been using this for a while now. This BB cream comes in two shades and I wear the light which is, I feel, a little bit dark if anyone had lighter skin than I do this could look very orange on them. It has SPF 15 and is also available in an oil free formula. It is priced at £9.99 and is available from Boots and Superdrug.

The second BB cream is the Maybelline Dream Skin BB cream. Unlike the Garnier BB cream the Maybelline dream fresh BB cream is available in four colours ranging from light to dark. This BB cream has an SPF of 30 which is something to consider if sunscreen is something that's important to you. This BB cream is also oil free and is lighter than the Garnier BB cream. It is priced at £7.99 and is also available from Boots and Superdrug.

Finally I have the L'Oreal Nude Magique BB cream, unlike the Maybelline and Garnier BB creams this does not have a colour to it but had Smart Pigment capsules which break on application to match your skin tone, giving the look of flawless nude skin. Having said it has no colouration you have to buy the shade that suits your skintone. It comes in two shades; light and medium, the formulation itself however is a grey fluid. This BB cream is priced at £9.99 and is also available from boots and Superdrug.




Before!  Scary no make up face!

To test these BB creams I applied a small amount of moisturiser to my skin. I then applied each BB cream with my fingers so that you can see the finish of each product. Here's the before so you can compare!


First up it's the Garnier BB cream. This has quite a thick consistency with the product itself looking quite pigmented. This BB cream applies and blends really really nicely and gives good colour and coverage. I have really dry skin and this it sits really nicely on the skin and isn't patchy. This BB cream provides long-term hydration to the skin so your skin will feel really comfortable all day. The picture shows my skin with the Garnier BB cream applied with no concealer or blusher. As you can see it has covered a lot of the redness that I have in my skin and given my skin a nice even glow.

Next it's the Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream. I've got the Maybelline dream fresh BB cream in the shade light. It's a really lightweight gel feel which is lighter than the Garnier BB cream. It applies smoothly and feels like it's really going to be hydrating for the skin. Because this product is so light I feel like you don't need that much of it however, that said, it gives a more sheer coverage. It has managed to cover some of my redness but not quite as well as the Garnier cream. The light shade is less yellow than the Garnier BB cream so would be better for those with a lighter skintone. My only concern with this BB cream is that as it contains SPF 30 if you wear it and are photographed with flash you might get quite a lot of flashback in photos. If you are just wearing this day to day to the office this probably isn't a concern for you but just something to consider.

Finally it's the turn of L'Oreal Nude Magique. When you dispense the product it's a white gel with small grey particles in it. As you start to apply to the skin cream changes from being grey to a skintone shade. It blends really well and the skin and feels really lightweight. I was sent a sample of this BB cream to try and it's in the shade medium however I feel this is actually a little dark for me so I've applied it and blended it well down the neck to ensure that my face wasn't a different colour to the rest of my body. It's given good coverage, has covered my redness well and blended nicely into the skin.


Having tried all three BB creams I can honestly say that none of them are horrible or not worth buying, I think it'll come down to your personal preference is what you want from a BB cream. If you want the coverage then you might want to go for the Garnier BB cream, if you prefer a more light weight feel the Maybelline BB cream might be better for you.  The Maybelline BB cream might also be better for you if you are very fair skinned.  I really like the light weight coverage that the L'oreal offers however I feel that this might not be as hydrating as the Maybelline and the Garnier products. The only thing that will put me off buying the Maybelline BB cream is the high amount of sunscreen in it, that said if you're only wearing it to the office all day that might not be such an issue here. I think that the L'Oreal Nude Magique actually is my favourite in terms of finish, so I might have to go out and buy the light formula as this is just a tad dark!

I think that all three of these BB creams are worth the money and with all of them coming in under £10 I think they're a great buy. They're particularly good for the summer and the warmer months, if we ever get that in UK!

I hope this has been helpful for everybody and as always please let me know if you have any questions.

Lauren XXX

Looking after your make up brushes

As make up artist I spend a lot of time cleaning the brushes from my kit however I admit that I'm not that good at cleaning the ones I use on myself. That said I know how important it is to keep your brushes clean, firstly for convenience sake, with your eyeshadow brushes if you clean them regularly it means that you don't end up mixing lots of different colours never getting the true colour pay off of the shadow.

Secondly brushes perform better when they're not clogged with products. This is particularly true of your foundation and concealer brushes that can leave streaky marks on your face when applying your make up if they are clogged up with old products.

Finally and most importantly to kill all the bacteria that is harboured within the bristles. This is particularly important if you have oily skin or acne prone skin. Bacteria will transfer from your face onto the brush and grow freely in the moist environment. On young, problem skin it's particularly important to keep your brushes clean so that if you are spending a fortune on skin care trying to clear your acne you're not undoing all your good work by spreading bacteria on your face with your make up brushes.

Most people wash their brushes with baby shampoo thinking that this will suffice however while this will remove product build up this will not kill the bacteria that are harbouring in your brushes.

Mac sell a brush cleanser which you can use in two ways, firstly you can use it like a shampoo, taking your brushes to the sink rinsing them in water and then working the brush cleanser through the brush before rinsing it out. Secondly you can pour a small amount of the cleanser onto a kitchen towel and work the brush in little circles gently on the towel to spot clean your brushes. This second method is what I use when I work on fashion shows when I make up multiple models and don't have enough different sets of make up brushes. The mac brush cleanser is antibacterial and and has a conditioning formula to help keep your brushes in good condition. I also use Beauty so clean to clean my brushes which works in exactly the same way.

I use the brush cleaner to spot clean my own brushes in between taking them to sink and giving them a really thorough clean. For this purpose I actually use The Body Shop's Tea Tree facial wash because tea tree is a natural antibacterial without being too harsh on your brush bristles.

I first rinse my bristles with warm water and then apply some of the facial wash to the palm of my hand and swirl the brush around in my hand rinsing regularly and squeezing the brush to see if product is still coming out of the brush. I keep swirling the brush on my hand during the rinsing process to make sure that there are no bubbles still being produced from soap left on the brush. Only when I am sure that the brush is rinsed clean do I squeeze the water out, blot the brush on a towel and transfer onto a towel to dry horizontally to avoid water getting into the ferrel of the brush and dislodging the glue which will lead to the brushes shedding their bristles.

If you take good care of your brushes there is absolutely no reason why your brushes will not last for years!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!!!

Lauren x x

Revlon Lip Butters

I have to admit that I can get a bit swept up in product hype sometimes and I had heard about the Revlon Lip Butter from other bloggers in the US and couldn't wait for them to be released here.

First of all the price - these are meant to be £7.99 but I got mine on an introductory offer of only £5.99! A bit steep for what is essentially a drug store coloured lip balm. Despite the price I decided that I wanted to see what all the hype was all about so I purchased just one, I didn't want to buy multiple shades only to find that I didn't like the product.

The shades - it comes in a variety of different shades one that will suit everyone's taste.

The packaging - the product comes in a silver bullet with a plastic top which actually is quite bulky but it didn't bother me that much. the bullet itself looks quite well made but the cap looks a bit cheap and I fear if it was just slung into a hand bag and got banged around too much it would crack and fall off.

The product - the product applies smoothly to the lips but the shade I have, 045 Cotton Candy, is very glittery so I wouldn't buy this if you were hoping to have a subtle colour to wear in the office. I know some of the other shades are also really sparkly so be careful to try them before you buy if this isn't for you. The formula is quite smooth but I haven't found it to be that moisturising on my super dry lips and sometimes can actually make them look worse. However the pigmentation is excellent and on some of the brighter colours I was really surprised how pigmented they were. Unfortunately I found that this product does not last that long, probably 20 minutes to half an hour. If I put it on before I drive to work it's normally gone by the time I get in the office which is a huge disappointment!

I love the colour lollipop but I'm not sure that I'm impressed enough with my current lip butter to go and spend more money on one!

I'm not saying this is a bad product but given the hype I really wanted to love this product and I just don't!

Hope you all had amazing weekends!

L x x x x

Simple Flawless make up Katy Perry style

When I saw this stunning picture of Katy Perry on the cover of More magazine I instantly loved it. It's simple and clean looking, perfect for a casual night out with friends and the berry lips add a fun touch to the look.

I recreated this look using some of my favourite products.

Firstly I used a foundation a couple of shades lighter than my own as Katy is quite pale in this photo. I used Yves Saint Laurent Teint Radiance radiance enhancing flawless foundation in shade number 1. I buffed this into the skin really well using my Real Techniques buffing brush. I then used my touché éclat radiant touch concealer under my eyes to keep this look really fresh.

I applied some urban decay primer potion to my lids and then applied Sin which is a really pretty shimmery pink eyeshadow from the Urban Decay Naked palette all over the lid but not above the crease.

I then used my L'Oreal black Super Liner to apply a thin line to my upper lash line taking the liner right to the edge of the eye before creating a very small flick.

Katy's lashes are really long and defined without looking like false lashes so I used Yves Saint Laurent Faux Cils mascara for great length and definition.

Katy's eyebrows are dark and angular so I filled in my own brows with Mac's mystery eyeshadow and an angled brush.

I then powdered the skin as Katy's look is quite matte, before applying the smallest amount of Avon's Ideal luminous blush in peach. I don't think that these blushes have been released yet but believe this will be available very shortly from your Avon representatives.

Finally I coloured in my lips with Barry M lip pencil in number 2 and then layered it with Avon Anew lip plumping lip balm for a slightly glossy look.

I realise now that I've used an awful lot of Yves Saint Laurent products but you can use what ever you have to recreate this look.

If you would like a video tutorial of this look let me know!

Lauren xx

Can you buy a good foundation for £3???

I was in boots last weekend stocking up on some beauty essentials and having a nose around the new make up products and noticed that Collection 2000 have rereleased their Naturally Matt foundation which costs just £3!

Having been impressed by some of Collection 2000's products in the past I thought I would give this one a try and see if you really can get a decent foundation for less than £5.

First of all I bought shade no 2 blonde which I thought would be my colour and without any testers it was impossible to tell. When I got it home I couldn't get over how dark the colour was and was unsure as to whether I would be able to use it. You can see how dark it is below both in the tube and when blended into the skin.

However I was determined to try this and actually managed to make it work by ensuring it was well blended down my neck.

The formula is very thick and I applied it with my Real Techniques buffing brush to make sure it was buffed into the skin. It wasn't as matte as I was expecting/hoping so that was the first disappointment and secondly when applying my concealer I noticed, as I blended my concealer in, some of the foundation lifted from my skin into little bits which looked dirty. I did solve this by applying the concealer with a brush. This lifting of the product seems to stop once the foundation has dried and set on the skin.

Overall I'm not particularly excited by this foundation but it's not terrible. I was surprised, given that it's designed to be a matte foundation, and therefore more suitable for those with an oily skin, that it sat so well on my skin. Despite the issues above I have worn this foundation to work on several occasions now so I think that this will get used but it's certainly not something I would use on a client.

Given it's price I wasn't expecting too much but its definitely a usable product.

Hope you are all keeping well!!

L x x x