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

The POREfessional Matte Rescue / Your New Secret Weapon Against Pores.

If you haven't already heard, Benefit Cosmetics have finally extended the much loved POREfessional family, please welcome the Matte Rescue Mattifying Gel! 

Matte Rescue is a water based gel which mattifies the skin by absorbing excess surface oil whilst also blurring pores to leave a smooth, hydrated finish. You can pick this up from any local Benefit counter or online for £21.50, for 50ml. 

There are three star ingredients that works its wonders within this product, which are;

Glycerin; Hydrates and attracts moisture to the skin. 

Mushroom Extract; Clarifies pores.

Diamond Powder; Smooths and blurs the appearance of pores for a soft focus effect.

Benefit tested this product on 66 women over a one week period. 93% of them said it mattifies the skin instantly, 92% said their skin felt clean and refreshed and finally 89% said it absorbed excess surface oil. For all you dry skin ladies (like myself|) you're probably thinking this is not a product for you, well you're wrong. With Matte Rescue containing Glycerin it will in fact hydrate your skin whilst of course blurring those pores away at the same time. It's also great if you're going on a night out, or have a long day ahead of you and don't want to have to constantly touch up with powder. I have dry skin so I was a bit hesitant to try this product, but working for Benefit myself I wanted to be able to give honest feedback from my experience with having dry skin and using Matte Rescue. 

I recently went clubbing at the weekend just after receiving this product so what better time to try it out. I usually get quite oily throughout the night and touch up my face a couple of times as I wear quite heavy makeup on a night out. I applied the gel to my forehead, around my nose and on my chin, then moisturised and applied my makeup. I was out from around half 10pm to 2.45am and I didn't have to powder once. My skin looked beyond amazing, I had a lot of highlighter on, but not once did I look shiny or oily, I was amazed at how well my makeup had lasted. I would definitely now recommend this to anyone with dry skin as well as oily because as long as you're using a moisturiser as well, Matte Rescue is perfect for anyone.

If you already have the original POREfessional primer then the two also work perfectly well together.  Though its aimed for anyone with oilier skin, this product works so amazingly well whatever your skin type. Definitely come down to your local Benefit counter and try it out for yourself, we can do a little comparison (before & after) test in store to show you just how well it works on your skin. Let me know if you've already picked this up or tried it, or now you want to give it a go, I'd love to know your opinions! Thank you so much for reading once again, don't forget to follow my blog on Bloglovin'. Talk soon xxx

Whats In My Benefit Starter Kit?

Hey Everyone! So as I'm sure you all know, I've recently posted about starting my new job at Benefit Cosmetics. When you first start you have to send off some basic information in order to receive your starter kit. Today I'm just going to share with you what I received in mine. 

How To Look The Best At Everything - Light. 

This cute kit is everything you'd need to create a flawless base. I received mine in the shade Light but you can also get these in Medium or Deep as well. These are £25.50 and would make a perfect gift for someone just getting into wearing foundation or even someone who travels a lot. So what do you get inside?

You get inside; a mini Porefessional, Hello Flawless liquid Foundation, Two shades of Boiing Concealer and a Hello Flawless Powder. 

Rockitude Kit

I was so happy that I received this adorable little kit, mainly because I adore the Rockateur blush already. This kit focuses on the cheeks and lips. Again I've found that this is a popular item for presents and costs £25.50. If love more peach/pink toned blushes and makeup products then this is the one for you. 

You get inside; A mini Benetint & High Beam. Rockteaur Blush & the matching Lipgloss.

Big Beautiful Eyes Palette.

This is handy palette for on the go to contour, enhance and define your eyes. Very comparable to the Naked Basics, you receive three neutral shadows to create a basic soft smokey eye. You also get a Boiing concealer and two small brushes. This is again £25.50 and is perfect for travelling as you have all the shades you'd need in one small palette.

You get inside; Boiing Concealer, Pink Base Shadow, Cocoa Shimmer Contour & Chocolate Brown Liner Shadow and two small brushes. 

Brow zings Brow Kit - Light. 

This compact brow kit is everything you'd need to create a natural or defined brow. I got mine in the shade Light but this also comes in Medium and Dark. You apply the wax on the left first to fill in the brow then set it with the matching powder on the right. This also comes with two applicator brushes and a miniature pair of Tweezerman Tweezers. This works excellently with the Gimme Brow or any other brow gel over the top but also works perfectly on its own. This is really handy for on the go as it contains a decent sized mirror as well. This is also £24.50.

They're Real Push Up Liner - Black.

The They're Real Push Up Liner is a product I hadn't tried before working at Benefit. I was always reluctant to try it thinking it would be more difficult than a standard liquid. Once practising with it at work and on myself at home I think I've finally got the hang of it. It's a matte black gel liner, in the form of a pen with an angled tip that pushes your lashes down, to get right to the lash line. The angled tip makes drawing a wing so much easier. This stuff also doesn't budge all day, completely smudge proof, but a pain to get off! I would definitely give this a try if you love liner like me! This is £18.50.

I also received my uniform of two basic black tshirts with Benefit written on the back. I wear these with either black trousers or a skirt and tights. I also excitingly received a Benefit Brush Belt and the basic selection of brushes for use at work. 

So that's everything I got in my Benefit Starter Kit. I just want add that you also will get a They're Real Mascara but I've already given that to my mum as I'm unfortunately allergic. Hope you enjoyed reading this post! Please be sure to follow my blog on Bloglovin and follow me over on Instagram for more photos. Thank you!! xxxx

The Benefit Recruitment Process / My Experience.

Hello everyone! Today I have some really exciting news to share with you all, which is that I am now officially working for Benefit Cosmetics! I am super happy with how my interviews and recruitment process went so I'm going to share the ins and outs with you all today just in case you're also applying or thinking about it. 

Now I actually didn't even apply for this job, but if you are directly applying then there are always plenty of vacancies on the Benefit careers website. So I bet you're wondering how I got an interview in the first place, well it was actually through Linked In. If you don't use Linked In, then I highly recommend it. Its kind of like Facebook for professionals. I posted a status/update saying that I was currently looking for a new career opportunity within the Beauty Industry. Later on that night I was emailed by a Manager in Benefits Head Office inviting me for an interview just two days later, you can image how excited I was. Now I know there are plenty of videos and blog posts already explaining how the interviews go but as mines more recent I thought I'd share it anyway.

I was told to come to Debenhams on Oxford Street, wearing all black and to meet her in the cafe on the top floor. I wore a little black smart/casual dress from H&M, with black tights, a Pull & Bear Black simple blazer and ankle black flat boots. I was also told to wear a full face of makeup so I went for my usual flawless base, a gold smokey eye using my Chocolate Bar Palette and I wore Mac's So Chaud on my lips. I tried to use a few Benefit products too, I used Hello Flawless liquid foundation, Hoola and Rockateur.

I showed up early and waited in the cafe before going over and sitting with her for the first stage of the interview process. I was asked very simple and easy to answer questions for example; 'How would your friends describe you in three words?'. Then it was simple things like my availability, where I live and currently work, It was thankfully very relaxed. I was then told I'd passed the first interview and to come back to the Benefit Counter in 10 minutes for the second stage. I was so nervous at this point cause I can be quite shy and I knew it would be approaching people, and at this point the store was getting busy with Christmas shoppers. I came back to find two other girls also waiting there as well. We were briefly walked around the counter, informed about their strict hygiene rules and talked through every product from skincare to makeup. Benefit are incredibly big on 'Traffic Stopping' so rather than letting the customers come to you, you must approach them and use the simple line 'Hi have you heard about Benefit before?' or 'Hi can I offer you a mini pamper with Benefit products today?'. The aim is to get as many customers back to the counter with you and sitting down.

I managed to get three ladies back in 15 minutes, which I was very proud of. I stuck to simple things like adding some blush, bronzer or highlighter, maybe putting some product in their brows or a simple colour on the lips. I felt very comfortable and made sure I was bubbly and chatty whilst with anyone, keeping the conversation flowing rather than staying awkwardly silent. When our time was up we all got called into a little room behind the counter one by one. The first girl went in and straight back out within seconds so I kind of gathered she didn't pass that stage. Next was me, I went in to collect my bag and was told that she was so pleased with how well I did and wanted me to meet one of the managers in the next room there and then. I felt so overwhelmed but so happy. I introduced myself to her and then was told I'd recieve a call soon inviting me to the final stage which is known as a 'Store Approval'. I then went and had a browse around Selfridges because why not!?

A couple days passed and I recieved a phone call from the other manager who works on that counter inviting me in for the 14th (yesterday) for my store approval. I wore the same outfit but with a leather jacket from Topshop as it was a lot colder outside but I still wanted to look smart. I arrived at the counter and was taken up to the cafe again for a chat with the lovely manager there. This interview was short, it must of lasted around 10 minutes. She was interested in my customer service experience and what I knew about Debenhams more so then Benefit on this occasion, making sure I was suitable for that store. I mentioned the Store Card and the Beauty Points Card which was exactly what they wanted to hear. I was asked the same question as before about describing myself in three words, I went for Positive, Bubbly and Organized. From there on it was talking about training, when I can start as well as the pay and discounts I'd receive. I was so thrilled with how it went.

Overall It was a great experience and I am pleased that I went through with it and have now come out with a job I've always wanted. Finally have my foot in the door of the beauty industry and I couldn't be happier. Its also a fresh start for me in the new year. I have a week and a bit left at my current job before I leave. If you have any questions at all or need any other advice if you're doing this yourself then feel free to ask. Thank you so much for reading. Talk soon xx