The Lorac Unzipped Palette | Review

Warning, if you're a bit of a sucker for a good eyeshadow palette then you might want to look away now. Seriously, I do not accept any responsibility for money that shouldn't be spent on make-up disappearing from your account after seeing this one. The Lorac Unzipped Eyeshadow Palette is by no means a new palette, in fact it's been around for a while now and been sat in my palette basket for nearly a year waiting to be reviewed but it's one that I fall in love with over and over again.

Brand Focus: MAC

If you're anything like me then your first dive into high-end or expensive makeup will have been with MAC Cosmetics. I still remember the rush getting my first lipstick, carrying around the little yellow Selfridges bag feeling fancy af, posting pictures all over Instagram like new lipstick, who dis? I also remember the slight heartbreak at spending £15 on one lipstick, HOW MUCH!? Little did I know a couple of years later I'd be spending twice that and then some with a makeup collection worth more than my car. After this time I've managed to accumulate a nice little collection of MAC product so I thought I'd take a post to talk you through the good, bad and ugly.

US Beauty Haul | First Impressions

Y'all know that the first thing on my mind when I landed in Florida in December was "oh my days imagine all the things I can buy in Sephora and Ulta" swiftly followed by the idea pancakes and maple bacon.  The black and white stripes were calling my name. Unfortunately due to a poor exchange rate, it actually didn't work out much cheaper to buy certain products abroad like it has in previous years so I tried to stick to things we can't necessarily get over here, haven't been released yet or are a little harder to access. This post will be a quick run down of everything with a few initial impressions, the real juicy stuff will come in the reviews to follow over the next few weeks. Ooooh the anticipation.

You're so Too Faced!

Of all the high end beauty brands, one that never fails to let me down and keeps me coming back, is Too Faced. After seeing countless beauty bloggers and vloggers using their makeup and being desperate to try out some of their products, I managed to grab a few while Stateside in December 2014 and have not looked back since. Especially now they're so easily accessible from Debenhams, the Too Faced website and a few other places. They're a brand that are instantly eye catching from the get go with packaging on point and the product to match. I never feel like I'm getting less than what I've paid for and let's me honest, they make pretty adorable additions to any makeup bag.

"On Wednesdays We Wear Pink"

 It's officially Spring here in the UK and though that would normally bring to mind images of bunny rabbits, daffodils and sunshine, it appears that we have been blessed with nothing but rain, hail and storms. I guess there's a reason they call them April Showers! But just because the world around me isn't exactly screaming Spring, doesn't mean my makeup can't and for me no other colour gets as much wear at this time of year as a good old pink. Whether it be on my lips, eyes, cheeks or nails, pink for me just screams Spring. It's the perfect transition shade between the Winter reds and Summer corals and there really is a pink for everyone, whether you want to go full on bubblegum Barbie, pastel or muted baby pink.

En Taupe Of The World with Zoeva

I would apologise for that terrible pun but I'm really not sorry. If someone had said the word taupe to me this time last year, I'd have no idea what they were talking about. I certainly wouldn't have imagined it would be a colour and a colour I would seriously grow to love. (Seriously, I want my bridesmaids in taupe dresses and as I type this I currently have taupe nails). So no palette currently speaks to me more than the Zoeva En Taupe eyeshadow palette.

Matte About Too Faced

Oh I do love a punny title, don't you? Now, I don't know what's happened to me but in the last few months I have officially become an eyeshadow addict. Lip products and blushers used to be my absolute jam but now I find myself drawn to eyeshadows and palettes more than ever before and as a result of this my collection has expanded massively. (Sorry not sorry bank balance). Experimenting with different colours and styles has become a daily occurrence (I still haven't quite picked up the courage to try anything garishly bright, maybe one day!) But one thing I had found lacking from my array of shades was a good selection of mattes.

Are you a Narsissist?

NARS is one of those brands for me that just screams amazing. From the matte black packaging and gorgeous collaborations with designers to the products themselves, everything feels expensive and quality (I guess part of this is reflected in the price). After experimenting a lot more with NARS this year, I thought I'd put together a small post about all the bits I've tried that might hopefully give you a few ideas on some bits and pieces to pick up, whether you're new to the brand or not.

Starting My Mac Palette

One thing that always bothers me about buying eyeshadow palettes is the fact that more often than not, there's at least one or two shades that I don't like or never end up using. Don't get me wrong, I love the palettes I have but it's so difficult to find one where I love absolutely every shade and will use them all on a regular basis. That's why I decided to start my own Mac palette. I love the idea of having something completely customisable, giving me the ability to swap colours in and out as I need. It's also going to eventually be full of shades that I will wear all the time that I have hand picked and organised myself. I'd never really looked at the eyeshadows in Mac as naturally I gravitate towards the blushers and lipsticks but I now completely understand the hype and I am 100% on board.

New Year's Eve Party Beauty

Though I will be spending New Years Eve as I have spent the last three years, serving pints to others who are actually enjoying their night (booo bar work), I thought I'd share a couple of my makeup picks that I've been loving recently and I would wear if I were to go out. And with every makeup look I've had this month, it's all about the glow. Dewy base, metallic eyeshadow and highlight on fleek. Because there's only so I long I feel I can get away with looking like a human glitter ball.

Christmas Face Of The Day

I don't know about you but I've had my Christmas Day makeup planned for at least two weeks now. What can I say... I'm organised (or just mad, I'll let you decide). This will be the first year that I'm going all out with my makeup, normally you'll find me bare faced in my pyjamas but since we're having lots of family and friends round and possibly off visiting others, I thought I'd make a special effort. I wanted something that was going to give me a flawless finish, last all day and still be massively festive. So a gold eye and red lips was the obvious choice for me!

Festive Lips, Cheeks and Eyes

It's officially party season and what better time to crack out the super shimmery eyeshadows, glitter, intense highlight and red lips. If you're anything like me, you'll already have your Christmas day makeup planned. (Is it way too early?) But I wanted to put together a few different bits that I think will work across the festive season up until the New Year, including some adorable antlers from Asda. how cute are these? They're a nice festive addition for parties for those of you who don't feel like going the whole hog with a Christmas jumper.

Makeup Geek Haul | Review & Swatches

I'll be the first to admit that when I heard Makeup Geek were being released on Beauty Bay, I went a litttttle bit crazy. And when I say crazy I mean I originally thought I'd fill a medium Z Palette and then ended up having to order the large which I seem to have nearly filled already. My bad! This is the result of combining dissertation procrastination and late nights. All the shadows I have were bought from 3 separate orders, basically whenever they were back in stock and I could get my hands on some, I went for it.

Thank You NARS

Everything I've tried from NARS, I've loved. Their Deepthroat blush is in my all time favourites and my most recent purchase from them, the One Shocking Moment palette, is an absolute dream. They're one of those brands that although on the pricey side of things, always nail it with their products and make me feel like I'm really getting something luxurious and quality. So I'm sure you can imagine my excitement when a message popped up in my Instagram recently from NARS, asking for my details so they could send me a thank you gift for being a loyal #NARSISSIST. I had to double check and then check again that it wasn't some sort of hoax or joke and had really come from their official account before I scrambled to send along my details. I even checked again in the morning that it hadn't been some sort of dream. 

Let's Talk Eyeshadow Palettes

It's only within the last month or so that I've really gotten into wearing eyeshadow on a regular basis, despite having a couple of really beautiful palettes at my disposal. I guess it was a combination of the time it takes in the morning coupled with the worry of looking like I've been punched in the eye that stopped me delving further into the world of crease colours, blending and smoky eyes. I can't wait to start expanding my collection and really jumping into and experimenting with loads of different colours and styles. But for now, here's a look at the three eyeshadow palettes that I've kept stored away in my drawers until recently as well as a few of my favourite shades from each.