L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint | Review

I used to wear fairly heavy foundation with a medium coverage but recently I've found that it just doesn't agree with my skin and I end up feeling unfomfortable throughout the day. I don't know about you but now that it's summer in the UK I only ever feel like wearing something light on my skin...or nothing at all. But the problem is I haven't quite built up enough confidence to go out with a completely bare face. (I am getting better though!) I'd heard great things about the L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint and was sold after reading the words 'Fresh Feel' and 'Weightless' on the bottle so decided to give it a go. 

After using this foundation on and off for the past few months I wanted to share my honest thoughts with you because I don't feel like this foundation is for me. The main thing I found difficult when choosing the foundation was the limited range of shades. There weren't many to choose from at all and they all seemed to be pretty dark. I haven't got fair skin and would usually go for something between medium and light (if they have it). I went for shade 110 'Warm Ivory' after trying a tester in the shop and hoped for the best! It's not an awful match but it does seem to have a very orangey tone to it...yes I know the shade does have the word warm in it! But it was literally the only shade that remotely matched my skin. 

The formulation of this foundation is very thin and liquid-y (which is obviously the point), I'd never seen a foundation like it before. The bottle instructs you to give it a shake before using and the good thing about this foundation is that a tiny bit of product tipped out onto your finger seems to go a long way.

Like I said before, the whole reason I wanted to try this is because I wanted a lighter foundation and didn't want to cake my face in product. But I still found myself using this and then applying a layer of bareMinerals foundation over the top, just to even everything out. That's probably just me being weird though and applying much more make up than I need! I think this foundation would be great for taking on holiday with you to a hot country if you didn't want to wear much make up. But I don't think I'll be continuing to use it and will just stick to the bareMinerals foundation alone. I will be sure to give the bareMinerals foundation it's very own review because it definitely deserves it! 

Have you tried this foundation? What are your thoughts? 

Beauty Haul: Recent Additions

I was on a clothes spending ban during January but I seem to have picked up more beauty items to make up for that...oops. To be fair, most of these products were on offer and I did purchase most of them with a gift voucher and my Boots points. So the damage isn't as bad as it looks. I'm also really pleased with everything that I bought, especially the Revlon Colourburst Matte and Lacquer Balms.

I've been using the Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean Cleanser for about two weeks and I am already starting to see a difference to my skin. I've also already incorporated the L'Oreal Cleansing Oil into my routine and it really helps to budge that last bit of eye make up. I haven't used the La Roche Possay Effaclar Duo Plus yet but I love using the Effaclar Duo twice a day and have a feeling this one might be even better. 

The little purple lipstick is from the Littlemix range by Collection. I don't normally pay much attention to lines like this but my friend was wearing Perrie's shade the other week and I thought it looked lovely so got one for myself. At £2.99 you can't really go wrong with Collection lipsticks. The Maybelline Colour Tattoos are amazing, so I finally added the shade 'Pomegranate' to my collection and find that it's great for creating a quick and easy smokey eye. I also picked up the MUA LUXE Power Brow and I'm liking that so far, however the colour range wasn't that great when I was trying to decide which one to get and I'm worried that it might be a bit too dark. What I do like about this brow pencil is that there's a highlighter at the other end. 

Lastly, we have the L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint. I love the formulation of this foundation and think it will be great for spring and summer time when you want less coverage and something less heavy. But I found it very difficult to pick a shade as the range isn't great so ended up choosing 110 Warm Ivory. I'm a bit worried that in the summer this might be too light, but all of the other shades were way too orange. Did anyone else find this?

Have you tried any of these products? What are your thoughts? Or have you picked up anything new recently that you would recommend? 

What's in my Make up Bag?

I'm so nosy and love seeing what other people have in their make up bags, so here's a peek at all of the products (I know it looks like a lot) that I like to take with me if I'm going away for the weekend. These are products that I enjoy using on a regular basis to create an everyday make up look and I was visiting Ben the weekend I took this lot with me so thought it would be the perfect opportunity to put this post together. 

Starting with face products, my favourite foundation is the Bourjois Healthy Mix. I love everything about it, the way I can apply it so easily with a Real Techniques Buffing Brush, the way the shade is such a good match to my skin and the great amount of coverage that it gives. For concealer I use either Rimmel Wake Me Up (I'm also a big fan of the foundation) or the Maybelline Dream Touch Lumi. Both of these are great highlighters for using under your eyes. I also take my Revlon Nearly Naked powder with me, although I haven't really been using powder recently. There's also a Soap and Glory pen liner that I used to create a winged effect.

I'll usually take one or two of my favourite lipsticks of the moment. I've really been enjoying using the Rimmel Kate Moss lipstick in shade 03.

My go to bronzer is the Bourjois Delice de Poudre, but I am looking for another one to try so if anyone can recommend a good bronzer that would be great! I use the MUA Pro-Brow kit every day to fill in my eyebrows and the white coloured powder from the Collection Shimmer Shades to highlight my cheekbones. A blush I've really been enjoying recently is a  No7 Powder in Cool Pink. It's such a pretty, rosy pink with the tiniest bit of shimmer.
I probably mention the Maybelline Colour Tattoos way too often, but I just love them...a lot. I usually wear the shade Pink Gold with some shades from the Urban Decay Naked Palette.

As for brushes, I've really been enjoying using the Real Techniques Core Collection. I also have a couple of trusty elf brushes, which aren't amazing but do the job nicely and a DirtyWorks brush for my eyebrows which I picked up in Sainsbury's. I probably could get away with taking less brushes and would if I was just packing up my make up bag for the day, but it's nice to have the choice if you are away for a weekend or longer.
As well as using the MUA Pro-Brow kit I also like to use the Rimmel brow pencil in 002 Hazel, which I will either use alone or with a powder. I highly recommend this, it's great if you are doing your make up in a hurry.

I change my mascara a lot but have been using this travel size Benefit Bad Gal Lash recently...I'd forgotten how brilliant this mascara is. I also have my much loved MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study which I would say is my holy grail product. It's brilliant and I often use it over an eye primer before I apply powder or cream eyeshadow. Last but not least is an eye crayon from Topshop in the shade Equinox, which I purchased a while ago. It's a beautiful gold and I like to use it in the inner corners of my eyes to make them look a bit brighter. 

So there you have it, that is everything in my make up bag. I know it looks like a lot but I really do use every single product if I'm applying a full face of make up. I feel like all of the things I take are really versatile and can be worn throughout the day but also used to create a different look in the evening.

What's always in your make up bag?

Tried & Tested | Summer Samples

I've seen a few people write posts like this and thought that it would be a great way of using up samples from magazines and subscription boxes etc that I have sitting at home. I even had a couple of sachets for each product so I was able to test out everything (apart from the Viper Venom) more than once.  

Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser

This product came in a Glossybox a while ago and I am so impressed with it. A 200ml bottle is £29 which is pretty pricey but this stuff works miracles so I would spend that much on it any day. I don't have acne but I use this whenever I break out and it clears any spots up so quickly. 

Benefit Total Moisture Facial Cream 
This moisturiser came in a six piece skincare set. I thought this would be a great way to try out each product from the range and this is the one which stood out the most. I love the smell, it's really clean and fresh. The consistency of this moisturiser is quite thick which is great because it absorbs quickly without being greasy at all. It's incredibly hydrating...in fact I don't have a bad word to say about this moisturiser and I would definitely purchase the full sized product. The glass packaging is also beautiful and this can be said for the whole range.

Mary Kay Nourishine Lip Gloss  
I don't think Mary Kay products are available in the UK, so when my cousin came to visit from America she brought a sample of their latest lip gloss for me to try. I absolutely love it and the bright shade is so pretty for summer. I don't usually wear lip glosses but like this one because it's more of a tint and is very pigmented. The staying power is pretty good but not amazing as it doesn't cope too well with drinks and food but that's not too much of a problem because it does seem to last longer than a standard lip gloss. It is sticky to begin with but the stickiness seems to disappear after a couple of minutes and it becomes smooth and moisturising. I wish that Mary Kay was available in the UK because i'd love to try this product in more shades. After using this product I read that Mary Kay claim that it adds shine to your lips and softens them, making them look younger. I can see what they mean because this is the most moisturising lip gloss i've come across!

Nivea Express Hydration Primer

This product smells lovely, but that's the only thing I liked about it. I appiled it underneath foundation but instead of acting like a primer and creating a nice base it seemed to almost repel the foundation. I really didn't like using this primer so will not ever be purchasing it, which is such a shame because I really like Nivea's facial moisturisers and liked the idea of a 2 in 1 product.

Nip & Fab Viper Venom Wrinkle Fix

I don't use products for wrinkles but decided to give this a try anyway to see if it 'blurs imperfections' and what the product is like to apply. The things I didn't like about it were the smell and the fact that it has an odd texture which is very sticky when you take it out of the packet. However, it did apply onto my skin nicely and absorbed straight away, which meant it lost the horrible sticky texture. It also made my skin feel smooth when I had applied it so i'm sure that after using in morning and night (which is what it says to do on the product) you will be left with lovely soft skin.  I'm not entirely sure that it would 'fix wrinkles' though, but it probably does help to even out your skin in some way. 

Max Factor Face Finity Foundation

This product claims to be a primer concealer and foundation in one. This may be the reason that I found it horrible and awkward to apply. I really disliked this foundation as it is way too thick and just seemed to sit on my skin. I guess if you like using a foundation with a lot of coverage then you might enjoy this product.

Rimmel 9 in 1 BB Cream 
I've seen mixed reviews about this BB cream and apart from Bourjois bronzing one it was the first BB cream that I have tried. I'm really skeptical about these types of products. But after trying this one I am really tempted to get a full sized bottle. I don't really understand how a BB cream can be 'skin perfecting' when it doesn't give any coverage! But, after I applied this, my face did look different and I couldn't really explain why. I think it would be a great product to use over the summer though instead of foundation and I really like the fact that the consistency of it is like a moisturiser and I love the natural glow that it gives to your skin. I'm still undecided, but it's definitely made me want to give BB creams a chance.

Quite a mix of products there with a mix of opinions. But, that's the beauty of samples and being able to try something before you splash out on it, especially if it's higher end product.
Let me know if you have tried any good beauty products recently, or if there are any you think I should steer clear of. 

Disclosure: The views expressed are based on my own experience.