Rose Smokes.

I felt like playing around with rose gold, purple and pink tones today and this is the look I somehow created. I only used two palettes, Huda Beauty Rose Gold and Urban Decay Naked Heat, of course all the products I've used for my entire will be listed below. I'm going to take you through how I did my eyes, step by step. I also used tape for this look to create the sharp, crisp edges, you don't have too, you can clean it up after with a makeup wipe or leave it blown out and extra smokey. I recently dark my hair slightly dark as well, so I'm currently enjoying playing around with different shades that compliment my darker hair. 

To prep my eyes for eyeshadow I always use some form of concealer to cover the entire lid to brow area. Today I used the Freedom HD Longwear Concealer in the white shade, I find that the white provides such a clean, bright base for my shadows, I usually set this with translucent powder or a white eyeshadow. For my crease shade I've used Flamingo as shown above. I buffed this through the crease right down to my inner corner using a fluffy crease brush. This is a gorgeous warm, vibrant pink shade that looks amazing in the crease with a smokey look like this. I applied a few layers of this colour and really built it up. 

I'm using the shade Ashes from the Naked Heat palette next, this is going in the outer corner of the eye and alongside the tape. This is a stunning deep plum toned purple that goes super well with the pink tones we've already used. For this shade I used a denser crease brush that allows me to pick up a lot of product and place it where I want it to stay. Once I've got this colour on, I went back in with the brush I used for the pink and blend it out towards the outer portion of my crease and along the tape. 

Now for the lid, I wanted to use one of the pressed glitter shades from the palette to bring the look together nicely. First I applied a tiny bit more of my white concealer just on the lid and blended it out with a flat brush to ever so slightly cut the crease, again I set it with my translucent powder. I decided on the shade Fling, a slightly deeper rose shade. I used a flat brush and my finger to press on as much shadow as I could over where I applied the concealer. Once again, I then took the pink one final time and blended it through the crease, down to the inner corner. 

Products I used:

Benefit Hello Flawless Liquid Foundation 

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer 

Freedom HD Longwear Concealer - White

RCMA No Colour Powder

NYX Contour Kit 

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush - Radiant Magenta

Jeffree Star Cosmetics Skin Frost - Ice Cold 

Benefit Roller Lash Mascara 

Huda Beauty Textured Rose Gold Palette

Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette

MAC Lip Liner - Subculture 

Jeffree Star Cosmetics Velour Liquid Lipstick - Mannequin 

Hope you liked this look I've created today, please let me know your thoughts in the comments below! I'll be posting more photos of this look and others over on my Instagram. ♡

Textured Shadows Palette - Rose Gold Edition.

The Huda Beauty Rose Gold Palette has been one of the most sought after makeup products since 2016 and I finally got my hands on it (better late than never). I read online that with the release of her new Desert Dusk Palette, the Rose Gold Edition was being discontinued. I knew that if I didn't buy it before it before it was gone, I'd most likely regret it so I ended up purchasing it at a recent trip to Sephora in Las Vegas. The palette consists of 18 powder shadows; six '3D metals', two 'chromatic pressed pearls' and 10 'saturated mattes'. The shades are warm toned, earthy and absolutely stunning, she really did choose an excellent selection of colours. The palette definitely has mixed reviews but I always had high expectations for it. I expected pigmented, blendable and buttery mattes and shimmer shades that oozed with glitter. I've used the palette a couple of times now and had a play around with different shades so I'll give you my overall thoughts and impression today!

I really do like the packaging, its simple, sleek and lightweight feeling. It displays the shadows perfectly allowing the focus to be on the shades themselves rather than an overly dramatic packaging design. The cardboard case that slips over the palette itself features a similar design to her lash packaging with the gold eyelid accents. I do feel that the packaging could be more sturdy, I'm someone who loves the feel of heavy, luxurious packaging like a lot of people are. With this I'd be really worried to drop it as theres only a thin piece of plastic protecting the shadows from breaking and maybe not as travel friendly as other palettes for that high price. Overall I do really like the packaging, the classy colour scheme and the overall design.

The shades themselves are stunning. After the release of the Anastasia Modern Renaissance I've really loved pink/red tones and this palette has a gorgeous selection of them. Having blue eyes, I love experimenting with warm tones that compliment my eyes. I was immediately drawn to Henna, Sandalwood and Maneater for my go to crease/transition shades. I first tried the shade Rose Gold just with a dry brush to apply it to the lid but didn't get much colour payoff. The next time I tried the shimmer shades I used a setting spray to dampen my brush and managed to get more of the shade onto the lid. Overall I wasn't as impressed with the shimmer shades as I could have been, the mattes I really liked and worked really well in the crease. As gorgeous as the variety of shades are, I did have high expectations for the pigmentation and they unfortunately didn't meet them the first few times I've tried the palette. I'm hoping the more I use it and play around with techniques to apply the different textures the more I'll like the palette.

I'll definitely post a look using this soon to either here or my YouTube channel. I've seen so many great looks already using it so I'm hoping to create something stunning myself using my favourite shades. I'd love to know your thoughts on the palette, whether you enjoyed the shades or didn't get on with them, as there are so many mixed reviews. Let me know your thoughts on the palette in the comments below, I'd love to know! The palette is still available on Cult Beauty for £56 x

The Power Of Makeup; Nikkie Tutorials & Too Faced.

I recently picked up the new Power Of Makeup Collection by Nikkie Tutorials and Too Faced whilst shopping in Vegas. I was immediately drawn the purple shade 'Wham Bam' and knew I had to create a look with it. I'm going to show you step by step how I created the eye look I'm wearing above, I love the way that it turned out. I always start off by priming my eyes from lid to brow bone using a light concealer and setting it with translucent powder. 

I started off by blending the shade Painkiller into the crease. This is the perfect warm transition shade for starting off any eye look. Lightly dust this through the crease for definition and blend so there are no harsh lines. I can definitely see myself hitting pan on this shade first.

To deepen the crease even more, lightly add the shade Makeup & Chill. Blend this onto the Outer V to elongate the eyes. Continue to blend this shade into the crease until you reached your desired effect, depending on how light or dark you want the crease to be. Once more blend away any harsh lines to create a softer look. 

Apply a thin layer of a light concealer over the lid, below the crease, once more and set it with translucent powder. Appy the shade Wham Bam with a flat shader brush directly over it, all over the entire lid. Take your blending brush and blend through the crease once more to bring the look together. 

Apply the shade Mystic Hour to the outer corner and blend into the crease. This shade is stunning, a beautiful blue/green with silver reflects through it. This looks gorgeous when blended into the purple,  just for an extra bit of demension to the eye. 

Apply the shade Ivy to the brow bone and inner corners for a highlighted effect. I left mine liner free, but this look would look stunning with a winged liner as well. Apply a generous coat of mascara to your lashes, I used Benefit's Roller Lash. You can add false lashes if you want a more dramatic fuller lash effect. I added a pair of NYX Wicked lashes in the style Vixen, these are stunning! 

Sweep the shade Wham Bam along the lower lash liner from the outer corner to about halfway in. Deepen up the outer corner with Makeup & Chill and blend out to soften the edges.

And that is it! I hope you liked this look, I'll defintely be creating more looks using the palette soon as I love it! I usually stick to my neutral eyes so it was fun to play around with a bit of colour for a change. 

Las Vegas Beauty Haul!

I recently got back from an amazing 10 days in Las Vegas and of course spent far too much money in Sephora. I picked up quite a few things, some I've had on my wish list for a while and some are just things that caught my eye in the store. There were so many Sephora's, I had one right outside my hotel, it was hard not to shop! I had an amazing time in Vegas, I saw Britney and DRAKE, yes drake, I 'fangirled' so hard. There will be a post all about my trip coming soon. So today lets talk about all of the makeup that I bought!

The first thing that I saw when I walked into Sephora was a beautiful stand displaying the Nikkie Tutorials Power Of Makeup Collection by Too Faced. I didn't think twice, I just picked it up! I've actually had a chance to play around with this set a few times now, and I do love it. For $56 you get the palette itself with 9 shadows, 2 blush colours, a bronzer and highlight. You also get a mini purple Better Than Sex Mascara, a mini Shadow Insurance, a full size Sketch Marker liner in Black and a Glamour Dust Pigment. It's 100% worth the money, and I suggest you get one before they're all gone.

The second product I grabbed was the Anastasia Liquid Lipstick in the shade 'American Doll'. A beautiful true red. I love the formula of these liquid lipsticks and definitely want to collect them all. Also from Anastasia I picked up my first Glow Kit! I was so excited when I saw it, as I thought they were only sold online. I chose the Sun Dipped Glow kit, which has four stunning highlight shades, that are so pigmented.

I then had to grab the Tarte 'Tartelette In Bloom' eyeshadow palette. Beautiful shades with excellent pigmentation, that smell like chocolate, what more could you ask for? As well as that I was also dying to get my hands on Urban Decay's Moondust Palette so I picked that up as well. I'm obsessed with the fun, glittery shades. So happy to have it in my collection finally. I then saw the new Moondust Liquid Shadows and swatched them all on my hand. It was so hard to choose just two to get because I wanted them all! I ended up going with the shades Zap, a deep gold and Solstice, a red/pink/green duochrome.

Ok so my hands were getting quite full by this point, but I also grabbed the Too Faced Born This Way Concealer in the shade Fair. I've used this a couple times since and I love it. Such a lovely texture, easy to blend out and amazing coverage. I even convinced my mum to buy one for herself. I also bought another Better Than Sex Mascara as we all know it's my absolute favourite. Well, It was, I actually finally bought Benefits Roller Lash and now that is my favourite. It gives so much length and curl, I was amazed when I first tried it, like why had I not tried this sooner.

I repurchased the amazing Champagne Pop by Becca. My last one smashed and I was fed up of using it broken so I thought I'd buy it again and be extra careful. I also bought one of their Champagne Splits with the shades Prosecco Pop and Pamplemousse Blush. I'm in love with this duo! Such stunning shades. I also picked up one of the Cover FX Custom Enhancer Drops in the shade Moonlight. This is second lightest shade, after the shade Celestial. These are absolutely stunning and I couldn't believe my eyes when I was swatching them on my hand. They're gorgeous mixed in with foundation or by itself as a bold highlight. Put it this way, I need them all.

I finally caved and bought the  Laura Mercier Translucent loose Power. Everyone raves about how amazing it is and I just had to see what all the fuss was about! From those adorable little minis that they keep by the tills, I got a small Urban Decay All Nighter, A Mini Better Than Sex Mascara and Two mini Dior Lash Enhancers.

So that is everything that I bought whilst in Las Vegas. I really hope you enjoyed this makeup haul, I'm really happy with everything that I got. xx

Hit or Miss? - Bioré Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips.

So I've recently noticed a lot of visible pores on and around my nose, which seem to be very clogged up. I've never properly noticed or been bothered by pores on my face before, but I recently went back to an old favourite foundation, the Nars All Day Luminous and it just didn't look the same on me as it did before. I popped into to my local Superdrug on the hunt for some pore strips, I've never tried them before but I always see people talking about them or using them so I thought I'd finally give them a try.

I searched up and down the skincare aisle and I could literally only find one brand that was selling them. My Superdrug isn't a huge store but I was expecting a lot more major skincare brands to have released their own versions of these, so I was shocked when I could only find one. After I quickly looked online and they actually don't stock very many at all. I picked up the Bioré Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips. There is 6 in the pack, I got them on special for £5.59, but they're normally £8.39 which is quite high for only 6 strips. I had a brief check on the Superdrug website for reviews and they were very mixed, with some people loving them and others not recommending them at all.

So they claim to lock onto and remove deep down dirt, oil and blackheads to provide the deepest clean. They contain Witch Hazel and Tea Tree Oil, which both are excellent for the skin. With regular use, these strips are supposed to actually shrink the size of your pores. So how do you use them? First remove any makeup and thoroughly wash your face with warm water, as the strips will not stick to your nose if its dry. Gently twist the strip to release the slits to fit around the nose, and peel off the plastic liner. With dry hands, apply to the nose area and press down to ensure good contact with the skin. Let this dry for around 15 minutes, it should feel similar to paper mache when its dried down. Slowly peel off, at the edges pulling towards the centre.

What did I think of them? Personally my expectations were high, purely because I've never tried a pore strip before! I've seen girls use them in YouTube videos and as gross as it may be, they always show so much on the strip after use. On my first try, it barely pulled anything out and I wasn't impressed, It was also really sore to pull off. After examining my nose in the mirror, I decided last night to try it again. This time around, I definitely noticed a lot more on the strip, It was still quite sore to pull off as it does really dry down. I preferred them a lot more on my second try. I've still got 4 more in the box and I'm going to continue to use them all up and see if they make any difference, but I'm hopeful they're going to help.

If you're a pore strip user, I'd love to know which ones you personally love and which ones work the best. As far as the Bioré Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips go, I didn't personally love them at first but after another use I've seen results, so I will definitely continue to use them and hopefully see a change with my pores. I probably would repurchase them, as they're convenient to buy at my local Superdrug, but I'm willing to experiment with other brands too. They were also really easy to use, if you're like me and new to pore strips they would be a good choice as they're simple and easy to get a hold of.

Thank you for reading. xx

My Current Favourite Drugstore Products ♥

Hey Lovelies, I hope you're all well. Welcome back to my blog! Today I'm going to be sharing some products from my collection that I've been constantly reaching for recently, oh and even better its all drugstore! 

Let me know your current drugstore favourites cause I've been really into finding new products from there recently, especially when its 3for2. Enjoy reading!! ♥ 

Foundation; Maybeline Fit Me. 

This foundation is gorgeous if you're after medium-full coverage and a natural dewy finish. This is my go to foundation when I'm wearing fake tan. Even though I have it in the shade '120 Classic Ivory', its a lot darker than my natural skin tone and more on the orange side. I know that there is only one shade lighter than this in the range so I don't think it's one for anyone very fair unfortunately. A stunning foundation that leaves the skin looking fresh and glowy! 

Concealer; NYX HD.

I've been using this concealer for a while now and I can defintely say that I love it. I use the lightest shade and it provides the perfect amount of under eye highlight whilst having great coverage. The only downside would be if you plan on using this everyday, you'll go through them rather fast. Other than that, I love it, it's very comparable to the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer which I used to use, but so much more affordable. 

Contour; Max Factor Pan Stik & NYX Contour Palette. 

The Max Factor Pan Stik is something I've literally heard no one talk about, like ever! I bought it a while ago as something to use for a cream contour, threw it in the drawer and forgot about it. I pulled it out a couple of weeks ago and now I'm obsessed. They're incredibly creamy, easy to blend and provide a natural looking contour which I love! I apply it straight from the stick to my face and then blend in with a large duo fiber brush. I've been setting it with the NYX Contour Palette, this is an amazing, affordable alternative (alliteration!!!) to the Anastasia or Kat Von D. Lovely pigmentation and excellent shades to choose from. Both are well worth checking out. 

Blush; Makeup Revolution Blush Palette (Hot Spice).

Ok wow. I wasn't expecting much from this palette when I picked it up if I'm honest, I saw all the peachy pink shades thatt I'm used too and thought it'd give it a try. These blushes are so pigmented, its unreal, I only have to tap my brush in gently once to get amazing colour payoff. For only £6 you're getting 7 blush shades and a highlighter, well worth the money. I believe theres 6 different blush palettes to choose from ranging from more peach and golden tones to more vibrant pinks. 

Highlight; Sleek Solstice Palette. 

Ok you knew this was coming right? Everyone has been talking about this palette and how incredible it is and I couldn't agree more. It has three beautiful powder highlight shades and one cream. I got mine from Superdrug for £10. It's amazing what can I say!? If you're fair and you find no highlighters show up on you, try this! It's also amazing combined with other highlighters for an even brighter glow. I couldn't recommened this enough, you need it in your collection. 

Brows; Freedom Brow Pomade. 

My holy grail brow product everyone! Seriously this brow pomade is only £5, it's creamy, blendable and so easy to use. There is an excellent shade range, just be sure to look at the testers or open them up to compare shades. When I was blonde I used the shade Soft Brown and now that my hair is darker I'm now using Dark Brown. Its the perfect shade, no red tones, not too ashy and doesn't look stupid against my fair skin. If you haven't already tried this product from Freedom, go get it now! 

Sleek Matte Me - Birthday Suit.

I've been seeing everyone talking about this shade from Sleek's Matte Me range, and how comparable it is to the Kylie Lip Kit in Candy K. I didn't own any of these but decided to pick it up as I'm beyond into collecting liquid lipsticks at the moment. The colour is gorgeous, and from what I can see in swatches, it's identical to Candy K. I'm not going to lie, it was a bit drying on me within half an hour of applying it but for days when I'm not going to be wearing lipstick for long it's fine. 

So thats everything! I really hope you enjoyed this quick read on some of the products I've been loving from the drugstore. Let me know your thoughts below. Speak soon! xx

My Most Loved Eyeshadow Palettes.

I never used to be a huge user of eyeshadow, I'd collect the odd palette here and there but I never reached for them on a daily basis. Recently I've worn shadow more or less every single day, mainly to work but also on the occasional day off if I'm going anywhere. Today I'm going to share with you a selection of Eyeshadow Palettes that I can't stop reaching for and yes I know a lot of them are from Urban Decay but what can I say!? They're amazing! Let me know if you'd like to see a more in depth post, such as an Eyeshadow Palette collection. Enjoy!!

Zoeva Cocoa Blend

This is such a stunning, convenient palette to have. When I don't know what eyeshadow look to create I usually end up grabbing this and creating some form of warm neutral smokey eye. There are champagne highlight shades, warm transition colours and even a matte black, all with amazing pigmentation. This palette only costs £15 on Beauty Bay so is fairly inexpensive for a high quality palette. The packaging is light and sleek so perfect for anyone on the go or who travels a lot with their makeup. I couldn't recommend this enough for anyone to add to their collections, I definitely want to collect more palettes from Zoeva in the near future. 

Too Faced Chocolate Bar

One very similar shade wise to the Cocoa Blend is Too Faced's famous Chocolate Bar Palette. I've been a frequent user of this ever since purchasing it last year. For someone like me who constantly sticks to warm neutrals this is an absolute must have in my opinion. The shades vary from gold and bronze tones, warm browns, to pinks and purples. These colours are buttery, super blendable and pigmented, the packaging is gorgeous and I LOVE the chocolate scent so much. What else could I possibly ask for?

Naked 1/Naked 3

These are without a doubt my ultimate favourites from Urban Decay's Naked range. I fell in immediate love when I bought the original Naked palette, the colours are literally to die for. If you don't already have this in your collection, you need it, like right now. My favourite shades from this have got to be Sidecar and Half Baked (my favourite gold shade ever). Naked 3 I love just as much, the beautiful rose gold shades are some of my favourites to wear. I love how you can create a soft pink or rose gold look or deepen it up with the darker shades. Both palettes staples in my collection and I constantly use. I'd highly recommend them both.

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani 

This is a new addition to my collection but I've 100% fallen in love with it. These shadows are so pigmented, you barely need to press your brush to them and you'll get amazing colour payoff, especially with the darker shades. I treated myself to this palette after seeing so many good reviews online, it was £40 from Debenhams but worth every penny. The packaging is slightly heavy and bulky but still a lovely design with a big mirror inside. I've been reaching for this almost every day since I got it and now desperately want to get the matching blush palette from this collection. If you haven't picked this up yet, what're you waiting for?? (Gwen Stefani pun intended there). 

Urban Decay Vice 4

This is a very new palette that I've added to my collection, I've only had it for a couple of weeks now. I wanted something with a bit more colour to it rather than the same neutrals I always reach for. I love the shade range in this palette and even though I'm yet to experiment with them all, I feel like theres a colour for every look you could ever want to create in here. I especially love the shade 'flame', a beautiful copper shade that makes my eyes pop like no other. I got this for £40 at my local Urban Decay counter and it was worth every penny. Definitely check it out if you want to inject some more colour into your shade range. 

My MAC 15 Pan Neutral Palette

I am clearly yet to completely fill up this palette but nevertheless Its still one that I always reach for. So far I have collected the shades; Phloof, Amber Lights, Patina, Wood winked, Satin Taupe, Sable and Espresso. The purple shade between Sable and Satin Taupe I'm not too sure the name of, If anyone thinks they recognise it, let me know in the comments below. I adore Mac shadows, they'll always be one of my favourites. They have an amazing shade range to choose from and I've loved creating my own palette so far. They're around £10 per pan shadow and the palette itself cost me around £15 from my local Mac counter. So much easier than rummaging around through several palettes to find shades when you can have all your favourites in one. 

Thank you so much for reading this post. If you think you know of any eyeshadow palettes that I'd love from seeing my favourites today, let me know as I'm always wanted to expand my collection. Don't forget to follow my blog via Bloglovin and check out my Instagram and YouTube accounts.

 If you don't already know I've recently created an Instagram account entirely makeup related, looks I've created etc. I really want to boost the amount of people seeing this account as I'm beginning freelancing very soon. I'd really appreciate if you took 2 seconds to follow my new makeup Instagram! I really appreciate it! Its 'phoebetaylormua', thank you so much!
Talk to you all soon. xx