Breaking the routine

This Christmas I was lucky enough to get quite a bit of new makeup. But I find sometimes when it’s something that someone else is choosing for you, often you can be pushed outside of your comfort zone. In terms of brands, colours etc. But in the long run, I’ve came to discover that this isn’t a bad thing at all! I end up always getting stuck in the same makeup rut. Lusting over things that I want, but don’t need (note, this, and this, in cockney and something new) I do find that when it’s Mac related, I can see the swatches and reviews on temptalia. Which is a resource I trust and a massive help!

Benefit was the first makeup I ever dabbled in, through raiding my mum’s makeup bag (thanks mum) The packaging is always pretty, and I own a few sets with a selection of minis, rather than individual full size products. But for some reason, it is never the counter I go to first in Frasers or Boots. For some reason, this brand has became the brand that other people buy for me – I never buy it for myself. And I have no idea why! So I thought I’d bore you all and investigate a bit further…

This is the set my aunty bought me, think it’s got a pretty good wee selection! And here’s how I roll when it comes to my daily face…

My usual Simple, vs Dermalogica Clean Start my mumma got me for christmas. Ok… so it costs 3 times as much as the simple one, but this is as far as I go when caring for my face! I’ll regret it in years to come when I’m old and wrinkly. So I will defo be repurchasing this, think its a worthy investment. Up until now I was quite happy with my simple moisturiser, but good old dermalogica know what they’re doing when it comes to skincare. My face hasn’t broken out since I started using it, and I feel like my skin actually ‘sooked’ this in, rather than it just sitting on the surface. I’d love to find a body moisturiser that’s similar and soaks in really well! Suggestions welcome.

I used Mac prep and prime for so long that I actually started to wonder if it was making a difference at all to my makeup? After my friend Leah donated an almost full bottle to me (I love my friends) I can confirm that it DOES leave my skin feeling silky smooth, and almost ‘evened out’ before putting my foundation on. All good. ‘That Gal’ is actually pink in colour, which I was a bit dubious about (P&P is white and shimmery, but blends out fine!) but I discovered that it blended out fine too and didn’t make my face pink. The combination of the derma moisturiser with that gal, rather than my usual simple moisturiser with P&P, eliminated the need for any powder ontop of my foundation! This new combination base now makes my foundation more matte, which has NEVER happened to me before.

As far as concealing goes, my eyes are always the thing that needs most attention! Benefit’s ‘realness of concealness box’ is always my go to for this. So thats Lemon Aid to correct uneven skintone, Boi-ing which is an ‘industrial strength’ concealer, then some Ooh la lift on my bags to help cease the puffiness. I’d started to use a while kohl topshop liner on my waterline to help brighten up my eyes, and this pink/silver shimmery liner in the corners. I had never heard of Eye bright before, but now I have it I can ditch the two kohls – this new pencil does it all for me! I use blended into both corners and right along my waterline (when im not wearing black liner along there) and it does the trick nicely 🙂 Defo helps me to look awake in the mornings, even when I’m on the way to work and still not 100%!

Mac’s Bite of an Apple blush (right) was my first venture into a more coral blush. I had always been under the impression that my cheeks suit nothing but pink. Since falling in love with this blush, I soon learned otherwise! Coralista (left) is quite a browny coral, with a slight shimmer. Bite of an apple is quite a matte blush, so it was nice to try a coral with a bit of shimmer. At first I tried to put it on with my usual blusher brush, only to find it actually goes on better with the square shaped brush you get in the box! Only negative point about this blush, is that it definately doesn’t last as long as the mac one. I had to top Coralista up during the day, after catching myself in the mirror and looking a bit ghostly. If Benefit want to top Mac on the blusher front, I think they need to work on the staying power.

I have been having a really mascara dilemma for as long as I can remember. Basically… I am yet to find ‘the one!’ This clinique one was actually a sample, when they were offering them in exchange for handing any old mascara tubes in (strange, huh) And it has been fine… but still not the one I feel like I’ve been looking for 🙁 I was keen to try bad gal lash out again, but I’m feeling pretty indifferent about it to be honest. Its buildable, but the brush feels really dry, if that makes sense? Feels like I’m literally at my lashes for ages. Plus, I’m not a fan of the stumpy brush 🙁 I end up getting it on my fringe and hands! Maybe I’m just a fussy idiot. So if you have any great mascara suggestions then let me know! and if it turns out to be shit I’ll hunt you down! 😉 haha joooking obv.

So this is what else I used (and normally use every day) for a normal daytime face. The Mac MSF in ‘By Candlelight’ helps add a dewy glow over my foundation (now that I am matte-tastic and don’t need to use powder!) Cut A Caper is a lovely peachy coloured lipstick (again, Mac) which is my fave right now, Mac fix+ is what I spray over my finished face (but again… not sure if its actually doing anything?) I bet you’re reading this and just seeing blablablaMACblablaMAC! But you’ll be happy to know that my foundation is estee lauder double wear light, and it is the one 🙂

I used a Sleek pencil on my brows (pointless because they’re hidden all day anyways) Mac paint in ‘stilife’ as a base (the famous Urban Decay primer potion just creases on me) and I’ve used my new Caviar Dreams quad – ft Brule, Retrospeck, Et Tu Bouquet, and Caviar Dreams – which I mentioned in the last post. The colors are so pretty individually, but the name of this collection being Cham PALE is no understatement! They just don’t seem to read on my eyes at all 🙁 Combined together, they are just a bit lost. So I used Woodwinked to help it pop a bit more. But all in all, not the strongest wee collective of shadows I own! I thought i’d be able to make a nice look using this pallette alone, but in the future it will defo need a little bit of help from it’s friends. Oh, and eyeliner is Mac’s blacktrack 🙂 Ultimate fave. Haha I promise I am trying to change my ways, I am not a total Mac whore!

This post has established that I talk way too much. I fully don’t expect you to have read all of it! But if you did, well done 🙂 Should I work on making my blog posts a bit shorter? Less pictures? I hit 500 google connect followers a day or so ago, for which I feel very lucky ♥ So I’d appreciate your opinion on what you like to see on here, and what you don’t.

Since my last post, my to do list is going well! So far I’ve organised my gym induction for later on this morning, trip 1 of 2 to the spa at Blythswood Square next week, and my tattoo booked for the week after! Ayden too-ing and fro-ing like a headless chicken means some fun things to post about 🙂 So, stay tuned…

Ayden x