5 Of the Best: Highlighters.

I think using a highlighter makes such a difference, especially as I don't have the best skin. A good highlighter will brighten dull skin, have light-reflecting pigments to cover blemishes and imperfections, and smooth over skin, hiding pores. For me, this is essential in my everyday makeup routine. 

A highlighter can brighten your overall appearance, and make tired-looking skin looking full of life. 

I'm going to introduce you to my five favourite highlighters, some of which are creams whilst others are powders. 

MAC Strobe Cream

I'm sure everyone has at least heard of this product. I use this every day, and I love how it transforms my skin. I've been using it for a few months now and I love it. MAC say "Brightens and clarifies with iridescent particles and antioxidants. Enhances the effects of light on all skin" which is exactly what we want. It uses botanicals, vitamins and green tea to add some life to your skin. I use this all over my face, on top of moisturiser. Although it can be used on its own (I wish!) I always wear foundation on top, which gives me a lovely healthy glow. I've recently had a few compliments on my complexion and it's all down to this little lovely. If you don't already have this in your makeup bag, then I'd really recommend it. It doesn't make skin shine, just simply adds a subtle but gorgeous sheen.

Benefits High Beam

Ahh the famed High Beam. I can guarantee that everyone has this in their collection, it's just one of those cult products isn't it. High Beam is a "complexion enhancer" which creates "that natural, radiant glow you've always desired" say Benefit. I've been using this product for years now, and we've been through a turbulent relationship in this time but I've finally accepted this product for what it is. Whilst I use MAC Strobe Cream all over my face, High Beam is destined for those special areas you want to be noticed, such as your cheekbones, your brow bone or down your nose. I use this usually only on my brow bone, which I think works amazingly well. High Beam is quite pigmented, more so than MAC strobe cream I would say (but it is more of a pink undertone as the picture shows). I used to apply this over my foundation to my cheek bones, but I found that it didn't blend in so well with my foundation. I now use a powder for this area. Once I had worked that out, I began to see High Beam in a whole new light. 

High Beam is a lot thicker than other liquid highlighters such as Strobe Cream, and it's also quite gloopy. 

Although I do recommend this product, you really have to find out what works for you. I absolutely love High Beam just under my eyebrow to accentuate the arch but you may find other uses for this. 

Smashbox Soft Fusion Lights in Baked Stardust

This is one of the first Smashbox products I've tried and I don't think I've put it down since. Smashbox say "The illuminating formula softens the way light reflects on your skin and wakes up your complexion for a radiant look" which is what it does. I apply this to my cheekbones (sorry High Beam!) to give a subtle sheen and a lovely glow. I don't use a bronzer, but this does have a slight bronzed look to it, so this sort of is my bronzer. I can't fault this product, it's less noticeable than other powder highlighters I've tried and the 5 different colours give such a nice natural glow. I'm quite pale (NW20) and happy with that, so it's nice to have a small amount of bronze added to your face which will catch the light and brighten your appearance. 

I guess you could sweep this product around your face, but I find it works best with just a small amount on my cheeks. 

Bourjois Illuminating Touch

I've always been a massive fan of Bourjois little pots, especially their blush pots. I found this about a year ago, and it's always been something I reach for. It's more iridescent than the other highlighters i've mentioned, and a lovely natural peach colour. Although it's a bit more glittery, it gives a subtle glow which helps to sculpt the face. I think this is a bit more natural than the other highlighters. 

I'd definitely recommend this product, it goes really well with a nice pink/peach blush and really injects some glow into your skin. 

Topshop Highlighter in Sunbeam

Okay so I know I only bought this a few days ago, but I am seriously in love. This product is so lovely and pigmented, Topshop say it is a "Shimmering silky golden highlighter to add lightness and radiance to face and body". 

I know this will become a permanent product in my life, the lovely golden colour is gorgeous and it really does give you a gorgeous glow. I use this along my cheekbones and on my temples, but it can be used all over the body - on the collarbones or around your cleavage. 

This looks amazing on my slightly pale skin, but I know it will look lovely in the summer with a tan as well. 

If you don't already have this, you really need this in your life. 

So there is my 5 Best Highlighters, let me know what you think. I'm thinking about making this a regular feature so if you want to suggest something for me to review, I'd definitely be up for it. 

In other news, I'm selling two of my favourite dresses on ebay, which can be found here. 

Last nights FOTD.

Last night Graeme and I decided to go out for some drinks in Leeds, so I thought I'd put up some pictures of my outfit & makeup.
I basically just wore the same outfit as yesterday, the peter pan collared crop top and black bodycon skirt, but put my cameo necklace on and some lovely Topshop heart suspenders.

I got them a while ago, probably in October/November but I love them! I don't like the Henry Holland suspender tights because I think they look odd (why the three suspender straps?!) but these are so cute.
I also added some eyeshadow from my Too Faced Natural Eye Palette and a touch of Topshop Brighton Rock lipstick.

MAC Studio Fix foundation 

L'oreal Touche Magique concealer

MAC Strobe Cream

Topshop Blush in Pinch

Smashbox Soft Fusions Highlighter

Benefit Brow Zings

Too Faced Natural Eye Palette 

MAC Prolong Lash

Rimmel Liner 

Nude Beach on my brow bone. 

Honey Pot on lid. 

Cocoa Puff on crease. 

And obviously my homemade studded leather jacket! 

Planning on doing absolutely nothing today! I love sundays. 

Makeup Bag.

First of all, I'm so sorry about the quality of the pictures. It's 9pm and quite dark so they're not great (I also had to use the flash and it highlighted how dirty my makeup is... lovely) but this is just an overview of my daily make up (similar to the Skincare post I did).
Obviously I have literally tons of makeup stored away but this is what I leave out and use daily, and also take with me a lot of time if I'm going out or whatever.

My makeup bag used to be gorgeous, I bought this from Superdrug around 4 years ago and I can't bear to throw it away (even though its dirty, faded, the zip is broken and my makeup doesnt actually all fit in it). Its purple and has a black damask pattern all over it (now tragically faded, RIP).

Okay so I think it's important to prime my skin first, since my skin is yuck and bumpy and not lovely like everyone elses. I don't always use all these products, but these are the ones I use more than others. They are: 

Benefit High Beam: I use this as a highlighter on my brow bone and cheek bones.

ELF All Over Cover Stick: I use this to cover any blemishes pre-foundation.
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer: A cult product, excellent primer to smooth out skin.
MAC Strobe Cream: Lovely used a primer, gives a subtle sheen and brightens dull skin.
MAC Matte Gel: Absorbs any oils, giving a matte appearance. I sometimes use this instead of the other primers.
YSL Touche Eclat: Another cult product which I use to hide my eye-bags.
Smashbox Under Eye Brightener: I sometimes use this alone or under Touche Eclat.
ELF Eyelid Primer: Excellent eyelid primer, makes sure my eyeliner & mascara doesn't leave black marks on my eyelids & holds on eyeshadow when I wear it. 

Terrible picture. My two favourite foundations and my absolute favourite concealer.
MAC Pro Longwear foundation NW20: amazing, amazing, amazing!

MAC Studio Fix Fluid foundation NW20: I didn't like this at first and I prefer my Pro Longwear but sometimes I mix them together, and have only recently started wearing this alone for a more dewy look.
L'Oreal Touche Magique Concealer: The best concealer money can buy, such a bargain and better than my MAC Prolong wear concealer!

 

I have a heap of powders, blushes and highlighters as you can see. These are my main ones, and I swap them around each day.

Sleek One Finishing Powder: A recent purchase, but really nice and fine.
MAC Mineralize Blush in Dainty: Lovely rosy gold blush with a subtle glow. Perfect!

Smashbox Highlighter Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Stardust: Awesome highlighter.

MAC Select Sheer Loose Powder NW25: Slightly darker than my foundation, so I don't use this too much. Good for blending in & use it most at night.

MAC Prep + Prime Transparent Powder: Sets makeup, doesn't look cakey.
Bourjois Blush in Rose D'or: A new purchase, but definitely a favourite. Similar to the MAC Dainty blush. Very pink with a shimmer.

Bourjois Illuminating Touch: A great highlighter for cheekbones.

Topshop Cream Blush in Pinch: Another new purchase but so good!

I actually don't wear eyeshadow all that much... I'm not sure why! I use a few different mascaras at once though, but this one is my favourite at the moment. 

Sleek Storm Palette: I've actually never used this, it's too pretty! I need to experiment, I love the colours.

Mac Pro Longwear Mascara: I didn't like this at first but I use it every day now.

Rimmel Professional Liquid Liner: You can't beat this, and it lasts for so long!

Benefit Eye Bright: A great highlighter for eyes, I use it in the corners of my eyes to make them look wider and brighter.

Benefit Brow Zings in Medium: I love Brow Zings, I use it with a small angled brush (see below).

Two of my favourite lipsticks.
MAC Cremesheen in Speed Dial: Lovely pink colour, but not over the top.
Revlon Lipstick in Pink in the Afternoon: More of a daytime colour.
17 Lipliner in Rose Blush: This goes perfectly with the Revlon lipstick. 

My main brushes which are all different brands.
Models Own Eye Shading Brush: Just in case I decide to wear eye shadow.
MAC 190 Foundation Brush: I think everyone has this. Excellent foundation brush (although I don't always use it and I'm really lazy and never wash it!)

ELF Small Angled Brush: Perfect for eyebrows.
ELF Angled Blush Brush: I'm actually a bit sick of this, I don't like it as much as I used to so looking for a new one to replace this.
H&M Powder brush: I love H&M brushes, I used to have one for blush too. Lovely and soft, they stay like this for years and they're only a few pounds. 

So there you have it. An insight into my makeup bag, and all my daily products. If this post has taught me anything, it's that I need to keep my products cleaner and wash my brushes more regularly!

Benefit Audition.

Thanks for all the lovely comments yesterday! I had my Benefit Audition today and it was one of the worst experiences of my life! Needless to say, I didn't get the job.
I'd read a few things online about how Benefit are sales driven and don't care about makeup but I don't think I was prepared for this. Overall, I think I did quite well. I knew most of the products already and how to use them, so I was good at demonstrating the products... but that didn't really seem to matter.
To start, we were told a bit about the products; what they did, their ingredients, how and where to apply, benefits etc. and then we were shown how to use them from the demonstrator - this meant putting the four Benefit products on top of (and therefore ruining) my perfectly applied MAC makeup. Honestly, this was awful! The four products were Dr. Feelgood (a waxy complection enhancer, like a primer), Rebel Lite (a tinted moisturiser), Benetint lip & cheek stain (which I have never been a fan of) and High Beam (highlighter). I got this all applied to me twice. Badly. But nevermind, I didn't complain and we moved on (with me looking like a clown - pale face, blemishes on show, bright pink stained lips and massive red circles on my cheeks...) to the traffic stopping.
The demonstrator explained that traffic stopping is what the job consisted of, so if we didn't enjoy it then to let her know because we weren't right for the job.
We were to go out into the shop floor, but not near the beauty counters... so that was just the handbags and swimwear sections (a very small area) and find customers to drag over. Keeping in mind, this is Debenhams so a lot of older women who weren't interested in having a makeover as most were on their lunch break. We were basically told not to ask them to come over, but to drag them over. It was awful! I'm not a quiet person, I'm chatty enough but I draw the line when someone says no, they don't want to come over. We were told not to take no, just use a whole list of lines to lure them in.
You really did have to be forceful about it, I backed down after they said no. I felt so mean, preying on middle aged women who had things to do, but couldn't say no to me! I got three girls over to do a demonstration altogether, but I had a feeling they didn't really want to be there and they didn't want to buy any products.
The demonstrations went well, but obviously that was the reason I applied for the job, I wanted it to be about the makeup. I was awful at traffic stopping, and the trainer noticed that.
I was dismissed after two hours, thankfully. Any longer and I think I would have asked to leave.
At one point, I noticed a group of girls with dark skin who looked like they would be up for a demonstration, but then I remembered we only had the Light tinted moisturiser, so I asked the trainer what I should do and she said to just "use it anyway" uhh... these girls would have to continue their day with a pale face! Is it just me or does that seem insane? Obviously the light version was faarrr too pale for them! At that point I think I sort of thought 'this is enough!' and gave up.

Overall, I am slightly disappointed but I'm more disappointed that that's what Benefit is all about. They don't care about the makeup, it's completely sales driven. I'm pleased I didn't get the job, I couldn't have handled doing that all day.
Has anyone else had any experiences with Benefit or any other makeup brands? I get the feeling other brands sell themselves so there's no need for traffic stopping...

Edit: Ps. I've been getting a ton of views on my post about my Homemade Studded Leather Jacket and a heap of searches on google, so I'm thinking about doing a tutorial on it if anyone's interested? Let me know!

Sleek & ELF Makeup!

Short post. Today I bought some nice things from ELF (eyes, lips, face) and Sleek Makeup. I've tried ELF before, but I don't think I've ever really bought anything from Sleek actually. 

From Sleek I bought the Storm Divine eyeshadow palette and also the One Finishing Powder because I've heard good things about it. I've not actually tried them yet (apart from the bottom second-right eyeshadow to fill in my eyebrows) but I will post about them when I've given them a few tests. 

From ELF I bought a small angled brush for my eyebrows, some eyebrow stencils (yes I love nice eyebrows), Mineral lipstick in Runaway Pink (such a lovely colour!), Studio Blush in Candid Coral and the Blush/Contour kit. I'm really into buying blushes at the moment, I think I want the whole of Bourjois Blush Pots and to try the Topshop creamy blushes. 

In other news, I tried to work my new tripod today but I failed miserably. It's 4pm and getting quite dark though so that might have something to do with it. You can have a photobooth picture instead. 

Also, tomorrow I have a Benefit Audition eek! I'm so nervous, especially as I'm ill!! I applied for a job with Benefit, and got through the phone interview. So tomorrow I have to go to the counter in Debenhams and try out for the job, competing with a group of girls for the job. Has anyone ever done this before? I have no experience so I don't feel too confident but it's worth a try! 

FOTD + London

FACE: 

MAC Strobe Cream

Benefit High Beam

MAC Studio Fix Fluid & MAC Prolongwear foundation

L'Oreal Touche Magique concealer

YSL Touche Eclat

MAC Prep+Prime Transparent Powder

MAC Mineralize Blush in Dainty

Bourjois Illuminating Touch in 96 Rose Universel

EYES:

Rimmel Glam Eyes Professional Liquid Liner

L'Oreal Volume Millions Mascara

MAC Zoom Lash Mascara 

Benefit Brow Zings

LIPS: 

17 Lip liner in Rose Blush

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick 415 Pink in the Afternoon

So I bought new Revlon lipstick & 17 lip liner for LONDON and I adore them both. I don't usually wear lip liner unless I'm going out but when I do use it, I notice the difference. Mainly, no colour bleeding and lovely, fuller lips! I got the colour to match the Revlon lipstick as well. I don't actually think I own a Revlon lipstick (I probably do, who knows) but overall, i'm impressed. It's moisturising and well pigmented so I'd definitely recommend it. 

London was great! We left on friday afternoon, the train from Leeds takes about 2.5 hours so we got to our friends house (where we were staying) around 6pm. Usually when we're in London (or anywhere) it means that Graeme has a gig, so it was weird not having to do the usual check into hotel stuff that comes with it. Also when Graeme is playing, he usually doesn't drink too much before he plays, which is boring! This time he had no excuse so we got suitably smashed along with everyone else. 

The gig we were going to was the Moda London gig, at XOYO with A-trak, Starsmith, Russ Chimes and Monarchy. One of my favourite bands Fenech Soler were meant to be playing but had to pull out :(

Even though Graeme wasn't playing, for some reason people kept recognising him and coming up and asking for pictures with him. This doesn't usually happen, especially at gigs he's not playing. People kept looking over at us all night (I thought they were admiring my sweet moves) but nope, they just wanted pictures with Grum haha. 

The gig was awesome overall, my bag was checked as we went in (must have been looking shifty) I had been thinking about taking my MAC Transparent powder out with me (it's white, by the way) and I was mega glad that I didn't. I can just imagine how it would look if they saw my big tub of white powder! 

Yesterday meant a massive breakfast and a hungover train ride back to Leeds, which wasn't actually too bad. 

I absolutely must put up an outfit post because my dress was fabulous! 

LEEDS!

Apologies for the lack of updates! I've been busy, busy, busy. As some of you know, I was leaving at home in Aberdeenshire after a rough few months in Leeds. However, I felt isolated and cut off living in the countryside and since I had no car, my life was literally non-existent! My boyfriend, pictured above :) asked me to come down and stay with him in Leeds as his flatmate was moving out. So I'm back! I didn't enjoy Leeds first time round as I was homesick and I got two jobs I despised, but I'm feeling good about it now. 

Graemes lease ends in March so I would like to move back to Scotland then but we'll see. 

We went out on Saturday night to a restaurant which is famous for being good, it's called Salvos and it's in Headingley. It has appeared on Gordon Ramseys The F Word, we went with two other couples that we know and I can honestly say it was the best meal of my life! 

I really recommend a visit if you're ever in Leeds (the lamb is incredible!). 

In other news, I have an essay to do for my course so I should really get that done soon... or at least make a start on it. My boyfriend doesn't have any gigs for a couple of weeks so it's lovely to just stay home with him and not having to deal with him jetting off to lovely places without me! 

We're going to London on friday as some of our friends are DJing so I will post some pictures of that, I'm so excited! I love London and we have lots of friends there we rarely see. I neeeed to find an outfit though. I bought this top from ebay, as I had seen it on Katy Perry but never actually seen it in Topshop. I am in love with it, but I have no idea what to wear it with! 

Isn't it lovely? I'm sure everyone and their mum has seen it before, but I'm really glad to have snapped it up at the very reasonable price of £13! 

If you have any suggestions on what I could wear this with, that would be appreciated! It's slightly cropped but I don't want to show off my love handles a'thankyaa. 

I've been having serious issues with my skin as of late, I've never had perfect skin but I go through stages of it being nice and then being completely disgusting, with breakouts all over the shop. The first thing I did when I got to Leeds was head to the Liz Earle shop and get her Hot Cloth Cleanser and the Skin Tonic. I also got a complimentary trial moisturiser for spending so much. I've never tried Liz Earles products before but now I have been converted. If you haven't tried these products, you absolutely must! My skin is looking a heap better (hopefully you can see that from the picture at the top...) 

EDIT: I'm sorry in all my rambling, I forgot to mention what I had on in my picture! Okaayyyy, here is a long list!

FACE: 

MAC Strobe Cream

Benefit High Beam

MAC Studio Fix Fluid & MAC Prolongwear foundation

L'Oreal Touche Magique concealer

YSL Touche Eclat

MAC Prep+Prime Transparent Powder

Bourjois Blush 48 Cendre de Rose Brune

Smashbox Fushion Soft Lights - Baked Stardust 

EYES:

Urban Decay Eyelid Primer Potion

Too Faced Naked Palette 

Rimmel Glam Eyes Professional Liquid Liner

L'Oreal Volume Millions Mascara

MAC Zoom Lash Mascara 

LIPS: 

MAC Cremesheen Shy Girl 

Benefit Hello Flawless Powder

Benefit Hello Flawless Powder

Benefit Cosmetics are one of my favourite brands, I love the cute packaging and I find that most of their products have been great. The same goes for this, Benefit Hello Flawless Powder Foundation. My friend recommended I buy this last year, and I haven't stopped using it since (buying about one a month!) Before this, I'd always used loose mineral powder, so I was apprehensive at first about buying a compact powder, especially as Benefit products aren't cheap. However, I noticed when I used Hello Flawless that the powder would become loose easily when you brushed it. This means the powder goes on smoothly and any blemishes are covered - skin appears completely flawless. The product comes with instructions, a small brush and a small sponge, however I always use my own powder brush for application. I load the brush with powder (some people prefer to give the brush a blow to remove excess, but I don't think this is necessary) and then apply in circular motions, usually starting with my cheeks, and then covering the whole of the t-zone (forehead, nose and chin) and then I use the brush under my jawline to blend the powder in (covering up those foundation lines, more importantly). If you have oily skin, it's good to use some blotting paper before applying the powder, so it goes on evenly and mattifies the skin. One of the best things about this powder is that it doesn't make dry skin any drier, and hides any dry patches.

My skin isn't perfect, so I use the powder over foundation and concealer, but I know people who happily use it on its own with great results. I use this product often, using more or less depending on how my skin is looking. Personally, for me (and the girls I have recommended it to) this is the best powder I have come across. 

I would definitely recommend! 5/5