Weekly Wishlist | 004

This week has just flown by! I actually have some pretty exciting news to share with you all... I've just got my first job! Well, six month internship actually but, it's a start, it's paid, it's in London and it's in an industry I love. I can't believe how lucky I am! Another post will be up soon explaining some more details, but for now here's a little peek at some of the products I'm lusting after this month.

Empties #1

On regular basis I buy a lovely little of haul of beauty goodies, but then I get so excited to try them out that I forget to take any pictures before I rip them out the packaging. And more often than not I'm halfway through a product before I realise "I meant to blog about this!" Well, there's no need for that product to go unshared - I rounded up a few of my used up, or nearly used up, beauty products to share with you.

Dr Brandt. Pores No More Vacuum Cleaner: sample size
I actually received this sample in my first order from Beauty Bay. It's a great service, they offer free standard delivery but if you pay £1.50 they'll pack a couple of extra samples into your order before they ship it off - even if you only order one thing like me. After using this several times I still have mixed feelings about it. You are supposed to apply a thin layer to anywhere you suffer from blackheads and enlarged, wait for it to turn blue and wash it off - supposedly taking away the dirt and shrinking your pores. The first time I used it I was waiting for it to turn a bright, smurf shade of blue when it reality it's more a pale blue-grey. I'd like to think my skin looking smoother and cleaner after each use but not enough for me to fork out £31.64 for a full sized tube. I'll stick to nose strips thanks.

Rimmel Fix and Perfect Pro Primer: £6.99 from Superdrug
This is my go to drugstore primer. Cheap as chips and it really works. I bought this one after I used up my sample tube of Smashbox primer, I was umming and ahhing over whether to shell out nearly £30 for Smashbox (which really is an amazing primer) or just to pick another. As much as I'd love to have picked up the Smashbox one there wasn't really a spare £30 in my budget at that point. This primer really is a good budget alternative, it tackles shine, blurs imperfections and really helps your make up to stay in place for longer. I currently have four primers in my make up stash and I always like to mix and match them but this one will always have a special place with me.

Benefit The Porefessional: £24.50
You can read my full review of this amazing product here. This was the first full size Benefit product I ever bought and I have not been disappointed. I bought this tube back in February when I was getting my brows shaped and despite the fact that I have used it nearly everyday I am still managing to squeeze a little bit out of the tube everyday. So although spending £24.50 in one go on one product may look like a lot, it's definitely made it's money back from the amount of uses I've got out of it. This is hands down the best primer I have ever used, it feels silky soft when you apply it, it blends away enlarged pores, imperfections and oiliness and provides the perfect base for any foundation or BB cream. I can't wait to buy my next tube.

Bourjois Express Eye Make Up Remover £4.99 from Boots
I've always struggled with eye make up remover, no matter how sensitive the formula it just seems to dry my eyes out. I even find the Simple one too harsh sometimes as it completely dries out my eyelids and leaves them sore and irritated. This Bourjois has been slightly better because it has more an oily consistency. Okay, that doesn't sound very pleasant, but rather you shake to combine two formulas and you get a formula which is lighter than normal eye make up removers. I do like this one from Bourjois but I do think I will be exploring other brands to try and find a gentler one. If you have any recommendations let me know!

Have you tried any of these products?

Beth xx

Beauty Wishlist #1

Beauty Wishlist #1 

There's rarely a time where I am not lusting after new make up. A new season means new trends and my wish list growing ever longer. I have to admit I don't follow trends too passionately, I prefer to stick with what suits me, I don't believe you should wear something just because it's "in". Here's a few beauty pieces which I currently have my eye on.

Nails Inc Autumn Winter Collection feat: Old Bond Street (violet), St Martins Lane (deep wine), Oxford Street (toffee nude) and Regent Street (glossy grape): £25.00

Okay, so I really don't need any more nail polishes but I can't help myself. I really need to invest in an acrylic stand soon, my storage box is pretty but it's a right pain to try and find the right polish. This autumn is all about rich, deep colours which I just love for nails. I think my favourite is St Martins Lane because I adore berry shades and this would take you all the way through winter. I've never tried Nails Inc polishes but I love the range of shades they offer so I think a bottle could should make it's way into my collection soon.

Benefit Rockateur: £23.50

The latest in Benefit's famous box-o-powder range. Rockateur is a gorgeous shimmery rose gold which I think will be incredibly flattering.It's only recently been released but already the blogsphere is a-buzz with positive reviews. I'm not one to follow the hype but I genuinely think this is beautiful, I'm a bit worried the shimmer will look bad on my combination skin but luckily my cheeks aren't oily.

MAC Rebel: £15.00

I've have been driving my friends insane telling them I want to try a plum lipstick but it's just trying to find a flattering shade which is the difficult part. I'm quite fair skinned so I don't want something super dark, but I have quite full lips so I can pull off a statement colour. I saw Rebel on another beauty blog and thought how stunning it was, I was able to see from the swatches it was the perfect in-between shade I was looking for to start autumn.

Pixi Lip Blush in Energy: £12.50

This Lip Blush is a light coral apricot, which seems completely at odds with the MAC shade I picked but I genuinely do think this is a lovely colour and something which is much more wearable everyday. It's a lip stain which means the colour will sit on your lips, usually, for much longer than a stick or gloss.

ARTDECO Illuminating Shimmer Cream in Golden Glow or Bronzed Glow: £10.25

Just because summer is over doesn't mean we have to say goodbye to gorgeous glowing skin. I prefer golden based highlighters myself as I think they look more natural so I would go for Golden Glow. I used to love the highlighter from Benefit but now I find it's just a bit too glittery for me so I would love to try out this ARTDECO one instead.

Clinique Superprimer: £20.00

Last but by no means least on the beauty wishlist is the new Superprimer form Clinique. I tested this out in Boots a few weeks ago and it was lovely. So soft and silky, it glided on like a dream. I love trying new primers, they're probably one of the only beauty products, along with foundation, that I don't mind splashing out on. There are several in the range but most are designed for colour correcting, because my main problem is an oily t-zone the lady at the Clinique counter recommended the universal shade.

What beauty products are on your wish list for autumn?

Beth xx

Benefit creaseless cream shadow

Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow - My Two Cents *

I love Benefit products but unfortunately they're often out of my price range, that's why I was so pleased to find this eye shadow in my work experience goodie bag.
The creaseless cream shadows are part of the new Colour... by Benefit range, which also includes longwear powder shadow, ultra plush lipgloss and hydra-smooth lip colour.

My Two Cents is a soft, bronze colour which is perfect for everyday wear. I've worn it a few times now and find that although for a cream shadow it has good staying power, it lasts much longer when paired with an eye primer - I like to use Urban Decay's eyeshadow primer potion. The cream shadow is also great for creating a smoky eye I also like to layer the cream shadow with other neutral and dark brown shades from Sleeks' palette. I always think brown and bronze smoky eyes are much easier to pull than a harsh black and white. Plus a brown smoky eye is much more casual, taking you from work to bar without looking over or under done.

Prehaps my favourite thing about the Colour... By Benefit range though is the beautiful packaging. I love the little round box that my eyeshadow came in with it's green, blue and chocolate brown pattern. The eyeshadow itself comes in a lovely round pot, with a glass top which makes the eyeshadow look suspended in the middle and a ridged, plastic bottom.
There are ten shades n the creaseless cream shadow range, all of which are very wearable for any skin tone. Next on my wish list are Birthday Suit - a light creamy pink which would look great dabbed into the inner corner for a wide eyed look - and Bronze Have More Fun - a dark burnished bronze which would work well in the crease of the eye.

You can buy My Two Cents online here or at any Benefit counter for £15.50 

Beth xx

Benefit the Porefessional

Hi guys can you believe it's March already? Where is the year going? Sorry I've kinda been MIA vis a vis blogging for the last week. I've had a super busy week at uni and I've been doing overtime at work so blogging has fallen to the bottom of the to-do-list. It's a shame because I love blogging but it's just what happens sometimes.

Anyway, as I wrote about a couple of weeks ago, I had a free mini makeover at my local Benefit boutique after having my brows shaped - you can read about that here . They let me road test some of their everyday products and needless to say I was hooked, on all of them! Unfortunately I couldn't buy them all then and there, it would've been over £100, but I couldn't leave the store without at least one of them so I picked the POREfessional and I am so glad I did.

The POREfessional by Benefit -£23.50

I think every girl needs a decent primer in their make up bag and this is my go to one. Before I bought the porefessional I was using one from Rimmel, which was great considering it was under a tenner but it just can't compete with the Benefit one, not surprising when it's the UK's best selling primer. Although it comes in a nude shade (sorry I couldn't take a picture, the flash on my camera just kept draining the colour out of it) it blends easily with any skin tone. I've also found the oil free balm to be incredibly long lasting, I work part time in a kitchen which as you can image is busy, stressful and hot, so I often find my make up starting to slip off my face but the Porefessional helps keep it in place just that little bit longer. You can actually apply this one over your make up as well, which is really useful if you just need a quick touch up on your way out.

You can buy the Porefessional at your local benefit counter or online here for £23.50  

What is your favourite Benefit product?

Beth xx

Benefit's brow bar

Now waxing and tweezing aren't exactly the most thrilling of subjects but never-the-less they're part of every girl's life. So after work today I decided to stop by the Benefit Boutique, in Bournemouth's Debenhams store and get one of their signature Brow Arch Treatments.

This was the first time I have had my brows waxed but the service I recieved at Benefit was second to none. All the girls working on the counter were really friendly and helpful. My therapist, Sophie, took the time to explain what shape had been chosen for my brow and how this would be achieved. Every brow shape is individual and tailored to suit your face shape and feature, no stencils used here!

While I was there, several other women came in to have their brows shaped and/or tinted, which shows what a popular service this is.

I have to admit I was a bit shocked when I saw the outcome, but only because the waxing and tweezing had made the skin around my brows go bright red! But Sophie soon cleaned it up by applying a calming balm and some super-strong concealer, anyway all the redness and swelling has completely disapearing now (a couple of hours after the treatment). Having the treatment regularly will help your skin get used to the waxing and reduce the amount of redness and/or tenderness you have during and after.

Afterwards the girls at the Benefit counter were happy to show me the range of gorgeous products they have on offer, showing me ones which were perfect for my oily skin and they even gave me makeover using some of the recommended ones.

what a difference!

Now I've had a Signature Brow Arch it's safe to say I'll be another regular customer at the boutique!

What to expect at the Brow Bar

Before

• your therapist will check that you're not using any medication or have any conditions that may (potentially) react badly with wax and you'll be asked to sign a waiver
• then your therapist will talk you through what brow shape they have chosen for you and how they will achieve this

During

•  First your therapist will trim your brows 
• After testing the temperature of the wax on the back of your hand, they will apply the wax between your brows, above and underneath them to achieve the brow shape that will suit you best
• Any stray or loose hairs will then be tweezed to stop them ruining your look

After

• Your therapist will clean any excess wax will be cleaned from around your brow, then they will apply a cooling balm to help reduce any redness. If this is your first wax then the skin will look quite inflamed
• Another balm will be applied to close your pores so the therapist can then apply Boing! - a concealer - to help cover the redness.
• Your brows will be finished and defined with the use of Brow zings 

The signature Brow Arch treatment starts at £11.50, to find your nearest Benefit Boutique or Bar click here. There was no appointment necessary, although waiting time may vary from boutique to boutique depending how busy they are.

Have you had any treatments at a Benefit Boutique? What did you think?

Beth xx