Summer blush

As it's now summer i have changed my makeup routine up a little...although the sun is still nowhere to be seen it's always nice to switch up your daily essentials. One of the things i like to change for summer is my blush and recently i have been staying clear of any pink tones and opting for peachy warm tones instead. I have been tanning a lot more using Xentan dark lotion and these tones are definitely suiting me a lot more at the moment.

Nars Luster £20.50
Luster is my first ever nars blush and has become my favourite blush ever! It is an apricot peach with gold undertones, again like style i wouldn't need to wear a highlighter over this as the gold shimmer does the same job. This is such a gorgeous colour for summer, i am an NW25-30 but i think this blush would suit most skin tones.

Mac Style Blush £17
This one was abit of an impulse buy, i was in the mac shop picking up a lipstick and noticed the girl serving me was wearing the most gorgeous peachy shimmery blush,so i asked her to show me which one it was...and surprise surprise it ended up in my basket. Style is a gorgeous corally peach with a very subtle gold shimmery undertones. This blush acts as a bit of a 2-1 as you definitely don't need to use a highlighter over this. The gold shimmer gives such a lovely sheen to the cheeks and isn't in any way glittery.

Mac Coppertone £17
I bought Coppertone after i had just ran out of my favourite ever mac blush - Happy together (Discontinued) and was looking for something of a similar shade. Coppertone is a matte brown with copper undertones and can be used as a blush or for contouring. I prefer to use this blush in the evening and when i am more tanned as it is quite dark on my skin. This blush is perfect if you are going for a more bronzed look and want to still look quite natural as it is completely matte.

Nars Multiple Tint Turks & Caicos £27
This multiple tint is perfect if you want that 'dewy skin'. The colour looks a little scary in the tube but on the skin it gives a really natural golden sheen. I swipe this across my cheeks and then use my fingers to blend, it literally takes no effort at all...would be perfect to take on holiday.

What are your favourite summer blushes?

Wish List

1. Topshop Stud scatter kimono dress £56
2. Topshop Army military style boots £70
3. Origins Vitazing Moisturiser £25
4. Topshop Agate chain earrings £12.50
5. Mac Club Eyeshadow £13.50
6. Chanel Ombres Perlees de chanel £39
7. Mac Painterley Paint pot £13.50
8. Chanel Black Pearl polish £17
9. Asos Alesha leather platform chealsea boots £42

FINALLY!

I LOVE shopping online for make-up and skincare, mainly to avoid the hustle and bustle of shopping centers or more recently because i don't have time for an afternoon of shopping, but one of my biggest pet hates is the fact that i like to purchase from several different brands but HATE having to pay p&p for each website I use. As most of you know one of my favourite brands is MAC and i am so pleased that MAC Cosmetics are now finally available to buy at Debenhams Online. A few other brands Debenhams offer that i often buy from are Benefit, Chanel, Dior, Origins, Tom Ford, YSL and Xentan. FINALLY i can purchase most of my favourite brands on one website, meaning only one p&p fee....however Debenhams are currently offering FREE standard delivery on orders over £30, or FREE collection from store..take advantage girls!

Visit www.debenhams.com/

Recent Mac Purchases

Being a neutral lover and not one to shun a new Mac collection i went ahead and ordered a few products from one of Mac's newest collections 'Cham Pale.' These being Fix+ Lavender,Paint pot in Vintage selection, Eye pencil in I get no kick, and Nail Lacquer in Soiree.

Fix+ Lavender £12.50

I really cant explain how much I've come to loving this product over the past month, and I'm definitely kicking myself for not getting the regular fix+ sooner. I used to have my doubts about fix+, can spraying a liquid over your makeup really make a huge different....well turns out..it can, it's just knowing how to use it.
Before buying this product i watched Holly's video on how to use Fix+ and since then I have gone on to use this technique in my everyday routine (Click here for Holly's blog.) It's so simple, the best way to use fix+ is to apply it after you have finished your face makeup (foundation,powder,bronzer and blush etc) , spray 4-5 times to cover the face evenly then using a hairdryer, at arms length away blast the face until the product dries, this literally takes about 10-15 seconds.
The product leaves your skin with the most gorgeous dewy finish, it brings out the pigments in your blusher/highlighter and blends the products evenly on your skin As well as this it also makes your makeup last a lot longer than it regularly would. I really love the glow this product gives the skin and it's great to carry around with you to keep your makeup looking fresh. I highly recommend fix+!


Paint pot - Vintage selection £13.50 (Sold out online)

As i huge fan of Mac you'll probably be surprised to hear i have never tried one of their staple products..the paint pot! I'm not sure why because I've always loved the look of them, just never got round to swatching them instore. However, when i saw the swatch for Vintage selection online it seemed to tick all the round boxes...creamy, neutral and metallic. This product is so easy to apply, it blends very easily and looks great to wear on it's own, which is a plus if like me some mornings you don't have time to do full eyemakeup. Another way of using a paintpot which i have been doing a lot since buying vintage selection is using it as a base for your eyeshadows, this really makes the colours pop and adds a slight shimmer to any look.


Eye Pencil - I get no kick £13

I have to say i ordered this product purely from persuasion of seeing other bloggers talk about how great this product is. Now I'm guilty for doing this a lot, sometimes it's great because i end up loving the product as well, but othertimes I end up very disappointed...and with I got no kick i have to say there was a slight bit of disappointment for me. First of all i love this product for highlighting the inner corner of the eye, it opens up my eyes and makes me look more awake. However the reason i bought this product was for my waterline, mainly because i hardly ever wear dark colours on my waterline in the day-time i just don't think it suits me. When swatched this is a gorgeous champagne colour with a gold undertone but for some reason this just doesn't show up on my waterline. I have no idea if it is just me the product doesn't work for, but i will be sticking to using this as a highlighter.

Nail Lacquer - Soiree £9 (Sold out online)

I was in two minds whether to buy this polis from Mac as i am constantly reading about how bad the consistancy is of Mac polishes and how they tale 3-4 coats to apply evenly, but, as you all know I've been loving metallic polishes recently so i just had to snap up Soiree. This colour is really difficult to describe, it's the most beautiful rose gold but can also look pewter under different lights. I was pleasantly suprised with using this for the first time as i felt it applied easily,evenely and only took two coats as a normal polishes does, i definatly have no complaints. I've really love how unique this colour is and i haven't come across a dupe anywhere! If you can get hold of this i would definitely purchase it! I have been wearing this colour for work a lot this month!

What are your favourite's from Mac's Cham Pale?

Jordan

x

Nicki Minaj Pink Friday for MAC

It's hard to switch on the TV these days without seeing a glimpse of the singer/rapper, and just as you were thinking there isnt anybody Nicki Minaj hasn't collaborated with this year the she has gone and joined up with no.1 Cosmetics brand Mac. Nicki has personally designed a lipstick for Mac to celebrate the release of her debut album Pink Friday. The singer was in New York this week promoting her album and her first stop was the Times Square Mac store, where she spoke about her Limited edition lipstick.

Mac describes the lipstick as a bright pink, with a creamy satin formula. The Lipstick is only available to buy on Friday's at Selfridges and Mac online for £12.50 , starting this week,Friday 26th November. From then on the lipstick is only available for the next four Fridays, so if pinks your thing your going to have to grab this one fast!

Birthday Haul- Beauty products Part 1

Ok so this month I have done ALOT of shopping. For my birthday I went to Liverpool and bought all my birthday presents, and then I found out I had been successful with my interview for an internship on a fashion buying department, so I bought some new clothes for that. When I first wrote this post about the beauty products and clothing it turned into wayyy to much of an essay so I have decided to do this post in 3 separate entries, two parts for beauty products (1 for face and eyes and one for lips and cheeks) and then one for clothes and shoes.

So here's some of the make-up/beauty products I bought this month/for my birthday. It wasn't till I'd written this blog post that I realised just how much I've recently bought, I really need to ban myself for the next month!

Face

1. Laura Mercier foundation primer £27

This product is a creamy gel formula, as is used to prep your skin for foundation.It contains Vitamins A,B, C which act as antioxidants to protect the skin from any harmful ageing affects from the environment. I love this product, I saw so many positive reviews about it, but I just wasn't sure if primers really worked. I know this product is expensive for a small tube but it really does work! It makes my skin so even and smooth, and makes my foundation look really fresh. Most people buy primers to help make their foundation last all day, and this product really does do that, I apply my makeup at 6.45am and it lasts till around 6-7pm when I normally take it off. I'm guessing this is a mix of this primer and the new foundation I'm using (which is mentioned underneath) because before I used a primer and was using Chanel's pro lumiere my foundation looked fresh for a few hours then would gradually wear off, but I am amazed with these new results.

2. Estee Lauder Double wear foundation £25

I bought this product after hearing everyone go on about how it really does last all day. To be completely honest I didn't believe anybody, I've used so many different foundations and none of them were lasting, so I decided to just give double wear a go! I am absolutely amazed by the results of this foundation,it blends so easily, leaves my skin looking flawless and actually lasts all day! Like I said previously from starting a new job I really needed a product that would last from first thing in the morning to tea-time, and this foundation literally doesn't budge! I would really recommend anyone to try this product. I am using double wear in Desert Beige.

3. Estee Lauder Double wear powder £25

I bought this powder because when using Chanel's pro lumiere I found the foundation was wearing off to easily, and I was needing to touch it up a lot during the day. Now I know the double wear foundation lasts all day I don't need to use this product everyday, however I have been using it very lightly on top of the foundation just to set the foundation, and I think the combination of both is what is making my skin stay flawless all day. I was going to go for the Estee Lauder translucent powder but thought that if some days I didn't want a full face of makeup then I could just use this powder without any foundation and it would still give me a good cover. Again I would really recommend this product, if you have a foundation you like but that isn't lasting as long as you would like, use this product to set the foundation. I am using this product in Desert Beige.

4. MAC mineralize skin finish - Comfort £19.50

This product is a soft powder with a high frost finish,and can be used all over the face and body or as a highlighter. MAC has 6 MSF's and after finding out Stereo Rose and Petticoat were both completely sold out I decided to go for Comfort which is still a newer one from MAC's recent range 'In the groove.' I use this product either very lightly as a bronzer for all over the face or just on my cheeks as a highlighter. Comfort is a golden bronze colour with veins of a brighter champagne gold. Each msf has a different amount of veins, I chose one with with less amount of veins as in comfort the gold veins are the bit that adds a brighter high frost finish. High frost is perfect for a highlighter but when using all over the face you don't want too much. I really like this product, more as a highlighter than a bronzer, as I prefer my bronzer to be completely matte, but as a highlighter it adds the nicest bit of bronzy shimmer to your cheeks.

Eyes

5. MAC Eyeshadow- Satin Taupe £11

I love MAC's eyeshadows because their so pigmented, and so easy to blend. Satin Taupe is a taupe brown with a silvery bronze shimmer frost, which makes it look taupe/slightly purple. A lot of my favourite youtube tutorial looks have been created by using this product, which is what made me want to get it. Satin Taupe is great on it's own, or blended with browns or black to created a really nice smokey eye, it also really suits a pink lip.

6. MAC Eyeshadow - Nylon £11

I bought Nylon to use as a brow highlighter and for around the tear duct area. It's a gorgeous champagne/pale gold colour with a metallic shimmer. When I use this product as a brow highlighter it will last all day! It is perfect for creating the 'prom look' I previously posted, it looks so nice blended with bronzy golds and browns.

7. MAC Mineralize eyeshadow trio - In the groove £15

I haven't yet used this product but have swatched it and the colours are so so pretty! From the In the groove collection this trio (also called in the groove) contains 3 colours perfect for creating a summery smokey eye. The 3 colours are a light champagny colour with a very light green undertone, a dark burgandy colour and a shimmery coral. I think these colours will look so pretty when blended together but also used separately and mixed with other colours. I love mineralize products, there so pigmented but still have a velvety-matte finish. There are a few other eyeshadow trio's from MAC I am hoping to get.

8. ELF Duo eyeshadow cream- Butter Pecan £1.50

Ok so unfortunately I am very disappointed with this product. The colours are so perfect, Butter Pecan has the nicest shimmery nude/slightly coral colour with a shimmery bronze, BUT Elf claims the product is 'crease resistant'... this is definitely not the case. I applied this product first thing in the morning and by late morning all of my eyeshadow had creased. I was really disappointed with this product, I think if applied with the tiniest amount as a base this could be ok, but not as an eyeshadow on it's own. I suppose at £1.50 I can't really complain,and it definitely proved to me the reason why I always prefer expensive makeup!

9. Elf Duo eyeshadow cream - Berry Mix £1.50

(Read product above) Exactly the same case with this colour too, the product creased very badly, but again the colours are so pretty, Berry mix has a very light lilac and a darker burgandy/purple colour. Next time I will learn my lesson and only buy one of any product I haven't tried before.

10. Laura Mercier Brilliant liquid eye liner - Onyx

I got the product free when buying two products from Laura Mercier, I think it's around £20 to buy but I'm not sure if it's actually available to buy in the UK yet. Onyx is a bronze colour with a shimmer gold undertone, it goes really well with a gold smokey eye, or is nice to use if you like using eyeliner to define your eyes, but find that sometimes black can be too harsh with more natural looks. I used this product for the first time yesterday, it is so easy to apply with an angled brush, and lasted all day. As I'm a huge fan of gel liner's at the moment I'm not too sure whether I would buy this product, but I really love the gold undertone.

MAC In The Groove

The most recent collection to come from MAC is 'In the groove.' Described by mac as 'A modern, flowing and fabulous way with bold,kaleidoscopic colour combined with boho charm and up-to-the-minute catwalk style.' I know a lot of MAC lovers prefer the continuous products, but I love to have a mix of their up coming ranges as well as the continuous products, that way you can be on trend with make-up for every season. This is definitely one of my favourite ranges from mac, I am in love with the mineralize products and nourishing lipsticks.

Here are the products available

The mineralize Eye-shadow trio is available in 9 colour sets, from nudes to dark purple. At first I wasn't sure about how pigmented these colours would be but after watching several product review videos they seem to be perfectly blendable and very pigmented.
My favourite is the 'in the groove' set which includes a light champagne colour, burgundy and a lighter pink, perfect summer colours. This trio set is £15.

Powerpoint eye pencil. This pencil is said to be long wearing and smooth to apply and the colours are metallic with a matte finish. The pencils are available in three colours plum, a medium brown and medium blue and are £12.50.

Zoom Lash . This mascara is only available in 1 colour, black. The mascara volumizes and lifts and is available for £12.50

Lipstick. I loveee the colours available in this new lipstick, there are 6 to choose from and it ranges from nudes to purple. My two favourite are Creme d'Nude and Jazzed a light coral colour.Unfortunately Jazzed is sold out, these colours seem to be very popular for this season so get them while you can. The Lipstick is £12.50

Cremesheen glass. Available in 6 colours from nudes, pinks and light blue . This lipgloss is non-sticky and can be used over a similar shade of lipstick or on it's own and is £14.50.



Mineralize blush duo. I love these duo blushers, the colours are so refreshing. There are 5 to choose from. My favourite is A little bit of sunshine which includes a very dark coral/bronze and a medium brown, and my other is Happy together which includes a soft caramel colour and a darker beige . This duo set is £17.50

Mineralize skinfinish. This is definitely my favourite product from this collection. This product is a great highlighter, it's a soft powder with a high frost finish. I (as well as many other make-up bloggers) am in LOVE with Stereo rose, it's the most perfect coral highlighter, unfortunately this is sold out, as well as Petticoat my second favourite. I am hoping i can still get hold of Comfort, which is a really pretty gold and bronze mix. There are 4 colours to choose from at £19.50, but already two are sold out.

187 Duo fibre brush. The only brush available in this range, is the large circular foundation brush used to create a flawless complexion . This brush is £29.50

I managed to get a few of these products today for my birthday so i will do some swatches and product reviews this week!

Steal her style - Jessica Szohr

'Steal her style' is a popular feature in most gossip and fashion magazines, it shows the reader how to create a recent celebrity look if on a budget. I have decided this feature is going to be a regular post on my blog from now on,I will be starting with a look Jessica Szohr had at the 50th Monte Carlo TV festival.

1. Topshop denim western style jacket £40
2. River Island pocket racer top £6.99
3. ASOS Dallas clip purse £16
4. OPI Mimosas for Mr. & Mrs.
5. ASOS sports watch £20
6. New look ripped band mini skirt £16
7. Office pixie wedge boot £110
8. MAC black tied £11
9. Rayban original wayfarer comics £113.05


Feel free to ask any questions on my formspring, or suggest any 'steal her style' celebrity outfits, celebrity makeup looks, or product reviews you would like me to post. http://www.formspring.me/jordanmarshall

Make-up tutorial - Prom

This week I did my sisters make-up for her year 11 leavers prom, and she very kindly let me picture the make-up step by step for this blog. The look was natural but still with very prominent eyes.
All eye shadows used for this look were from Urban Decay's sustainable eyeshadow box.

I started of by using Niveas everyday moisturiser,using a moisturiser as your base is a good way to help your make-up last longer if you don't use a primer. I applied Bourjois 10 hour sleep effect foundation with a Mac 190 brush. This foundation blends so easily, and really does last longer than most other drug store brands. I then used Mac studio fix concealer under the eyes and on any blemishes, to create a flawless complexion.

I decided not to use any wax on the brows or to fill them in as I wanted a more natural look, and for the eyeshadows to stand out the most.
To start of with I used Benefits High brow to define the brow arch

Before applying any eyeshadow I applied Urban Decay's Primer Potion as a base to make sure the eyeshadow lasted.

The first eyeshadow I used was Half baked,a very vibrant gold. I applied this all over the eye lid and blended upwards into the crease

I then applied YDK a slightly more bronzy colour into the crease

and then mixed it with twice baked, going back over the crease and blending upwards to give more definition

Using the half baked colour I first put on the eye lids I used an angled eyeshadow brush and lined the lower lashes with this colour

Using Revlon's eyeliner pencil in sueded brown i lined the top of the lid, this pencil comes with a blending brush on the other end, so i used that to soften the liner.

I then applied two coats of the NYC sky rise lengthening mascara. This mascara is great if your going for a more natural look as the brush in quite small and uses a minimal amount of the product meaning the lashes don't get clumpy

I then used false lashes to really make the eyes stand out. The ones I used were very spaced out instead of full thick ones and were drug store lashes for around £3. After I applied the lashes I went over the lash line with Rimmels liquid liner to get rid of any glue marks.

To finish off the face i applied Benefit's Hoola bronzer all over the face, and instead of using a blusher I added more bronzer to the cheek bones and the top of the forehead.

I added Benefit's Moon Beam to the top of the cheekbones, under the brow bone and under the nose. This looks really pretty on pictures as it shows where the light hits your face

To finish off I used Gosh lipgloss in 107 which is a really pretty light pink.

Finishing look

My make-up bag!

Ok so I decided to do a post on my makeup-up bag, my favourite brands and the items i wear the most. This is my makeup bag, I know it's huge but thats due to me buying something new every time I go shopping.

I use the top for my flase eyelashes



and the bottom for all of my make-up


These are the brushes i mainly use, from left to right: Kabuki brush, Gosh large eyeshadow brush, Superdrug's smaller eyeshadow brush, Elf concealer brush (I'm not a fan and want a new one!) Elf blusher brush, Mac 190 Foundation brush- ammmazing! , Elf fan brush, Bobbi brown double ended blending brush and gel eyeliner brush, and Bobbi brown lip brush.

These are the items I wear the most - my everyday look.

Chanel Pro Lumiere foundation, I recently purchased this after being so tired of spending ridiculous amounts of money trying to find a foundation I liked, and i have to say I'm very impressed, it's definatly the best one ive tried so far, it can give you both a light and a full coverage, lasts all day, and gives your skin a very glowy look. Benefit Hoola bronzer, I know mine looks very battered but I've literally had it for about a year, It's my favourite bronzer and it lasts foreverrr. Hello Flawless face powder, I use this just to set my foundation, but it can be used as a very light foundation on it's own. Moon beam face highlighter, Sally Hansen lip-gloss (another favourite!), and Benefit's high brow. Maybelline Falsies mascara, i bought this after reading about it in every magazine and it definately does make your eyelashes alot thicker than any other mascara i've tried. The little box of orange eyeshadow is by Pure, and is my favourite ever eyeshadow colour, i always wear gold's and bronzy colours in the day. The other eyeshadow is 'fawn over me' by Benefit and is a bronzy mushroom colour, which goes perfect with the Pure eyeshadow. In the day i normally stick with a pinky blush, wear-as at night ill go with a much darker bronze/brown blush. And finally the little black box is the eyebrow set from Benefit, this has also lasted me forever.