Review: Maybelline Master Sculpt Contour & Highlight

Hoola bronzer will always be bae when it comes to contour, but I had been meaning to scout out a more affordable contour product for a while. Maybelline always has deals on (buy one get one half price, hello) so when I saw this I was pretty intrigued. The contour shade looked so similar to Hoola that I clicked add to basket without a second thought: for £6.99, you can't really complain. Today I'm talking about the Maybelline Master Sculpt Contour & Highlight kit.

The packaging looks pretty nice, and gets pretty fun when you open it up. The pan itself lifts up to reveal a mirror and a space containing a thin contour brush. I think this is pretty neat but at the same time, a little deceiving: you don't actually get that much of the product itself. It also seems to suggest that 'contouring on the go' is a thing. Is it? If I'm contouring, I require a full sized mirror, natural light and a bit of time on my hands...not an on-the-go kind of situation. Who knows how the rest of the world goes about it eh? The packaging also seems to feel not so durable, and very plasticky to touch. I hope it holds up...

 (As you can see above, the texture of the contour section may have got a little funny... I hadn't dried my brush properly on my first use so it went a bit weird! It still works though!) 

For the product itself, I chose the Light/Medium option seeing as I'm currently very pale. The other option, Medium/Dark, doesn't actually appear to be much darker though, simply a different tone.

I tried the brush provided for my first trial with this product, but found it to be scratchy and unpleasant. There goes the purpose for the cool(ish) under-pan section. Switching it up for my trusty Real Techniques contour brush, I found the product applies beautifully. It's got an almost satin finish, which glides on smoothly and doesn't cake up. I am super happy with the tone of this contour product- not too orange and cool enough to look perfect against my skin. I'm currently obsessed with the shade Buff in the Revlon Colorstay range: if anyone uses this foundation, this contour colour compliments it perfectly.

Happy with my contour, I had a play around with the highlighter. Usually with kits like this, reviewers shun the highlighter (never tried it, but the Bourjous Délice de Poudre contour/highlight palette seems to have had unanimously crappy highlighter reviews). This is amazing! It's a beautiful gold toned shade but still extremely suitable for paler skin tones. It also isn't like lots of drugstore highlighters I've tried, in that it doesn't leave you with a streak of warpaint-esque shimmer. Instead, it's subtle but buildable, making it perfect for everyday use.

The packaging gets a thumbs down from me, but I love this product. I think it's good value and a great choice for paler people looking to get their contour on without fear of orangeness/streaky sparkly cheekbones.

Have you tried this? Let me know! xo

Review: Le Volume De Chanel Ultra Black Mascara

Today I'm reviewing a relatively new addition to Chanel's mascara range, the 'ultra-noir' factor being the new spin on the classic volumising mascara: say hello to Le Volume De Chanel Ultra-Noir!* Ultra-black is definitely the thang in regard to lashes recently- this sample size was sent to me to try out and review.

I've tested this product out for a fortnight and here's what I think!

What I love:
- The wand. It's the back-in-trend rubber comb, and it does an excellent job of separating your lashes. It's very 'roller lash-esque' but much thicker. You don't get any clumps with this wand which is pretty amazing.
- It is indeed, super black. You might not register this until you actually take it off: the jet black smears on your makeup wipe let you know that your lashes have been seriously dark today. 
- The intensity of the colour and volume combined almost give the appearance of tightly lined upper lids.
- This mascara does not fade, crumble or lose its volume throughout the day. Your lashes look the same as when you applied the product at 7am.
- Those lashes being long, separated, dark and beautiful, with no 'crispy' ends and edges. They literally look soft to touch!

What I don't love so much:
- It takes forever to dry. I find myself watching the time tick by as this stuff lingers, smudgable and dangerous. Not very practical.
And finally, THE BIGGEST PEEVE when it comes to this mascara...
- Lower lashes are a no no with this. So many mascaras look great on the top lashes but make you look like a crazy smudgy manga cartoon gone wrong in regard to the other set of lashes we all possess. This mascara looks apalling on my lower lashes so I have had to use my Max Factor 2000 Calorie instead (flawless lower lashes every time- click the link to read my review!)

 Excuse foundation lips, but you really can see how hard this mascara works! (top lash only)

As much as I'm loving the way this performs on my top lashes, for £25, I would want this mascara to be a bit more practical to use and a lot more wearable if I was going to purchase. I won't be buying it for myself any time soon, but I will definitely use this on my upper lashes...I'm kind of addicted to it in that sense. If your lower lashes are quite strong, you'll probably be just fine with this- but steer clear if you have more delicate ones.

Have you tried this mascara? Let me know your thoughts! xo

*This product was gifted to me by the brand/company mentioned.

October Favourites

As you'll be seeing with this favourites collection, the past few months have been all about simple beauty products for me. I've worn red lipstick on one occasion and haven't touched an eyeliner or shadow for a very long time. However, since heavy contour and berry lips have started to infiltrate my Instagram, I'm feeling ready to hit Autumn beauty trends faster than you can say "Adele's contour in the Hello video" (seriously though) (her makeup paralysed me momentarily) (sharp contour, liquid liner and strong lips/brows are giving me all the Autumn feels).

With my new blog design, I've found a surge of inspiration: sometimes a lil shake up is all you need. I have some great product reviews coming up in the next few weeks, so look out for those. For now, let's talk about what I've been loving this month- a collection of simple products that are going to enhance your natural beauty (I'll be more adventurous next month I promise!) :

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer
Yes, this has been around forever, but I hadn't tried the fit me range at all until recently. This concealer and me were not friends at first- for the lightest shade, this is very warm- but with the arrival of deadlines and 9am lectures, my dark circles have well and truly settled in for the winter. This is a great concealer if you're in need of a little colour correction, just don't purchase this to highlight/bake with if you're on the fairer side!

Revolution E104 Brush
Perfect for filling in brows with gel or powder, this angled brush is super thin so you can get a really precise finish. I use this to 'outline' my brows and then use a thicker brush to fill them in (MUA's Pro Brow one is great).

Hema Cotton Rounds
Yes, the most boring product ever made it into my favourites. However, this Dutch store has landed in Birmingham's Grand Central station (which is new and fab and shiny); these bad boys cost a pound but are some of the best cotton rounds I've tried in a while! You can't usually get textured ones for this kind of price, so I'm pretty obsessed. With a cotton round. Yep.

Rimmel 60 Second Shine Polish 
I've bought a few of these this month but this shade is certainly my favourite. It doesn't have a shade name (grr), but I think it's shade 06. I posted an Instagram pic with it on, but note that I have a mattifying top coat on so it's less shiny than what comes straight out of the bottle. I love muted, pale pinks all year round.

Chanel Ultra Noir Mascara*
Not the perfect favourite (my review of this will go up next week...find out why it's not quite flawless then!) but the way this stuff elongates and volumises my top lashes is incredible. It genuinely looks like you have lash extensions!

Olay Complete Moisturiser
It's cold outside and my skin is getting drier, which is actually a nice change for someone with oily skin. I'm finding that an intense day time moisturiser is surprisingly necessary! Yes, it has the texture and scent of sunscreen (every oily-skinned-girl's nightmare) but it is indeed suitable for oily skin, absorbs quickly and doesn't leave you feeling greasy. My foundation glides on with this stuff, plus it has an SPF of 15 which is always a bonus.

Botanics Brightening Face Scrub
You probably know by now that I am the biggest fan girl of Boots' Botanics range, and this addition to my collection has been an extremely welcome one. Again, dry winter skin needs to be looked after, and this stuff buffs away dry patches to reveal skin that's bright and soft.

Have you tried any of these products? Let me know your thoughts! xo

*This product was sent to me by the brand for review purposes.

Alternative Ways To Fuel Your Day (From A Past Coffee Addict)

Ah, coffee. One of the great fuels of the 21^st century. The number of Instagram quote-posts on the subject of one beverage is quite baffling for someone who avoids the stuff entirely. Yes, true life: I eat breakfast, face blank pages and meet girlfriends… minus the coffee. The latter is probably the hardest- even in England, ‘wanna grab a tea?’ just doesn’t quite cut it.

My second post as an Editorial Contributor for the Lala is now live. Click here to find out how I fuel my day...minus coffee! Comments, likes and shares are seriously appreciated. xo

(Image source: the Lala)

How To Make That Tricky Foundation Work For You

Sometimes we buy a foundation and just can't make it work. Yes, it may well have had rave reviews, but if your skin is just not having it then it can feel like you've thrown your money away. To add to this issue, some of us have very changeable skin- sometimes mine is an oily mess, other days it's dry and painful on my cheeks and chin- I often find myself 'experimenting' each morning and see how well my foundation perfoms.

Revlon Colorstay is my fave foundation but it can be a bit tricky in terms of application- I recommend fingers then a buffing/stippling brush!

Here are a few tips and tricks I've found to be useful when dealing with either changeable skin or a foundation that you can't seem to get along with:

- Switch up your moisturiser. Because moisturisers are often skin-type specific, this can sometimes mess with your base. I like to use a matteifying moisturiser in the mornings and a rich one at night, but recently this has meant that my foundation 'cracks' and cakes up throughout the day. Try switching up that first step, or...

- Skip the moisturiser. Yes, I know you're not supposed to, but if you use a primer that leaves your skin feeling hydrated then that's one less thing to worry about that could potentially react with your foundation.

- Switch up the primer. I went through an entire bottle of Rimmel Stay Matte and a small bottle of Porefessional over summer, but using them on my skin now is just not giving me a smooth coverage (probably because they both mattify). I'm currently loving Maybelline Baby Skin- a nightmare product for me in the summer (it made me a greasy mess) but beautiful on my drier winter skin!

- It's all in the application. Over summer I was addicted to using my Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge to apply my foundation. However, come colder weather, my skin is not liking it at all. Switch it up and find something else! I used to steer away from stippling brushes because I felt like they required too much effort, but I am currently using my hands to apply foundation and they buffing it all in with my Real Techniques Stippling Brush. Seriously flawless skin guaranteed!

-Experiment with 'setting'. Laying off the powder has really improved the look of my foundation recently. I literally apply some between my brows and around the sides of my nose and leave it at that! Maybe try a setting spray or a lighter, looser powder and see how your foundation agrees with it.

- If all else fails... mix! There is usually a purpose that can be found even for the most tricky foundations. Have a go at mixing it with another foundation or BB cream. I love mixing foundations with my Botanics BB Cream for a little more coverage than a basic BB base. Even if you hated the foundation alone, you might be surprised with the results!

How do you make your foundation work for you? Let me know!
Til next time xo

Review: The M By Montcalm Hotel, Shoreditch

Last week I was lucky enough to stay at The M By Montcalm Hotel in Shoreditch. My few days spent there were essentially an out-of-body experience (you might have seen on my Instagram that I was being all mysterious and lounging around in a robe and slippers): I was in London to do some modelling for the 2016 Mii Cosmetics ad campaign (crazy, I know!) I left my student house on Monday morning for a little London adventure, feeling very strange to be swapping my Stylistics seminar for such a different scenario! It was an incredible few days- I met some lovely people and did things I never thought I'd do- and staying in such a beautiful place really made it memorable.

My room was a beautiful Junior Suite: it did indeed turn out to be the 'study in sophistication' that the website promises! It was such a big space to relax and everything was so sleek and luxurious. The room provdies you all the essentials you need, from bottled water to fluffy slippers to Hermès toiletries (essentials, yep). My suite was essentially technology-operated as well (everything including the light switch, which was a bit odd) so it feels as though you're in an alternate universe...be it an extremely pleasant one.

The views from the hotel are stunning. I could happily have sat and watched the city go by but it was such a jam-packed few days. We did however have the chance to take full advantage of the swimming pool, spa and access to the club lounge...the hot chocolate there is absolute heaven. It tastes even better if enjoyed whilst giddily prancing round in robes after visiting the jacuzzi, surrounded by business men holding meetings... we seriously lived the suite life. 

And yes, I can confirm that selfie lighting is 10/10.

It was certainly a stay I will never forget. The staff were super helpful (providing seriously detailed instructions on where to go to do some shopping, ordering us taxis and making our beds just to sleep in) and made our stay so enjoyable. Take me back!

You can visit The Montcalm website to find out more.

Til next time...xo

Man, I Feel Like A (Zara) Woman

Duh duuh duh duh duh DUH DUH. Yeah I cringed at the title of this post too but my fingers wouldn't let me delete it (bless you Shania Twain). It's been a long time since I bought a product, tried it, and sat my ass down to dedicate a whole post to it. Never mind that, it's been a long time since my last post- editing a magazine and being back at uni has absolutely thrown me!

However, there was a nice sunset and I'm back in my Nottingham house with my lovely white desk (clichéd blogger necessities) and fancied doing a product review and so I did. This is Zara Woman Fruity Eau De Toilette.

Confession 1: I never really buy myself perfume/scent. As a student, I never feel like I can justify blowing my cash on perfume- it feels different to makeup somehow, even though both do just run out- I'm clearly living in ironic denial. 

Confession 2: I'm not a massive Zara fan. Please, I hear your shocked outcries, just let me explain myself: I just feel as though it's a bit... it's like an Instagrammable Primark. The clothes feel cheap and flimsy but the store has a "cool girl" status to it. And there's always an extremely serious-looking security guard posted, as though the clothes are worth thousands? I just don't understand. Anway...

 

I had seen a few bloggers and 'tubers raving about Zara's range of scents. I thought the bottles and the packaging looked super classy for their budget price so I scurried to the back of the store to pick one out. 

I absolutely love the smell of this. It is indeed, quite fruity, but that note dies down and you're left with a sweet but subtle smell. Think more stylishly feminine and "clean" smelling (?) (wow I'm so good at this) than sickly and girly. 

The scent doesn't fade quickly like most either, and instead it sticks around leaving you smelling lovely. Plus I just love the packaging and simplicity of the bottle.

I seriously want to go out and buy all of my friends one of these for their birthdays! I think they'd be great as part of a gift. No, the store itself will never be my favourite, but I will definitely be trying more scents from the Zara range. I don't really know if I'll ever be a "Zara Woman", but I certainly enjoy smelling like one.

Til next time xo