Another month has gone by and I’m super excited as it’s almost May which means it’s almost time for my holiday to sunny Bali. But let’s not digress because the end of every month means it’s monthly favourites time so for a list of products that’s been rocking my boat these past few weeks, keep on reading.
So first up are two products from the Nyx lip gloss range; their Soft Matte Lip Cream in San Paolo and their Lip Gloss Mega Shine in Beige. I wrote a review of them quite recently (read it here) and have taken to wearing these pretty much most days. Both formulations, although different in texture and finish, are very comfortable to wear which is probably why they haven’t left my handbag since I got them (read my What’s In My Bag post here). More often than not, I wear both at the same time with the Mega Shine Lip Gloss on top of the Soft Matte Lip Cream.
My next favourites are the Zoeva Eyeliner Pencils in the shade Mr Marvelous described as a “Black Base with Purple Fine Glitter”, and Rock ‘n’ Roll Bride which is described as a “Dark Brown Infused with Pink and Red Glitter”. Now don’t be scared by the word glitter because it’s very fine and only really noticeable when you are up close and personal (wink, wink). I found that the glitter in the brown eyeliner more noticeable than the blue one but that’s not a bad thing. I got a compliment the very first day a wore it from a work colleague. The texture and formulation of these are absolutely incredible, so smooth that they glide on like butter (not that I’ve ever tried smearing butter along my lash line), and they give the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils a run for their money. I’ve been loving stepping away from wearing black liquid felt tip style eyeliners and using coloured kohl pencils recently, nothing wild colour-wise but just a bit different from the bog-standard black.
The next two are also from Zoeva (can you tell that I’ve got a bit of a brand crush?), and they are the 127 Luxe Sheer Cheek Face Brush and the 231 Petite Crease Brush. What can I say about them but that they a totes amazeballs! The 127 Luxe Sheer Cheek Face Brush is angled so perfectly that it fits the contours of your face making it ideal for contouring and carving cheekbones out of nothing. The 231 Petite Crease Brush is the perfect size for those of us with smaller eyes and little lid space to work with. As amazing as the Mac 217 Blending Brush is, I sometimes find it too big for my lack-of-lid space so that’s where the Zoeva 231 Petite Crease Brush comes in and makes applying eyeshadow so easy. It’s also tapered and small enough to blend out eye shadow along your bottom lash line (I do love brushes that can multitask). The best bit about them though is that they are so inexpensive. The 127 Luxe Sheer Cheek Face Brush comes in at €11.50 whilst the 231 Petite Crease Brush is a mere €6.20. Bargain buys I say!
My next favourite is one I picked up from my mini Sephora haul and it’s the famous (in the YouTube beauty world at least) Tarte Amazonian Clay 12- Hour Blush in the shade Exposed.I actually purchased two shades with the other one being Blissful but I found that with Blissful, the product is a lot more sheer and I really have to go into it a few times with my brush to get the pay off that I want. However, with the shade Exposed, I didn’t have this problem at all. One dab into the pan with my brush is generally all I need. Exposed is more of a warmer shade and I find more natural, whereas Blissful is much more of a perkier, pink flush. Both are matte, which I tend to prefer because they can be worn anytime of day and for any occasion you may have lined up. The only annoying thing with Tarte is that it’s only accessible online from Sephora which ships from the US (QVC has a very small range of Tarte products available on their site and from what I can see, the blush is not available).
I wrote about the next product in a previous post (for a recap, read it here). Until recently, I hadn’t heard to the name Deborah Milano and it’s only through Twitter that I became acquainted (gotta love Twitter). I was lucky enough to be able to test drive their Perfect Face Primer- Mattfying. As far as face primers go, this is a pretty decent offering from the brand. It’s only when I remember to apply it that I’ll throw on a bit of primer before my foundation and I primarily put it on my T-Zone as that’s where I get oily and where the makeup tends to disappear first. I also use it under my eyes in the hope that it will fill out those pesky fine lines and keep my under eye concealer intact. So you can imagine my surprise when I found that the under eye area was in fact pretty much still intact after a long day at work. This never happens. Even with products designed especially for the eye and under eye area (e.g. Benefit Stay Don’t Stray), I find them to do nothing much but to add an unnecessary extra step to my already long makeup routine. The Perfect Face Primer also doesn’t have that slippery texture (for those of you that have an aversion to this but I don’t really mind it) that you often get with silicone based primers but applies wet and pretty much disappears once massaged into the skin. In that sense it’s very light weight so doesn’t feel like your adding yet another layer to your makeup routine (even though essentially you are). The best part? It’s a mere £8.90 so it won’t break the bank. Definitely worth checking out if you’re in need of a primer.
The next product is also another one that I’ve raved about recently and because it’s that good it deserves a second mention. It’s the Expert Colour Care Illuminoil from Jo Hansford (click here for my review). I won’t go into too much detail because I have reviewed this product already but I have been using this religiously every day since the day I got it. In my review, I metioned it’s versatilty and for me personally, I like to use it post wash-pre blow-dry and therefore a conditioning treatment and heat protectant but also post styling to add a bit more shine and texture to my mane. This is luscious locks in a bottle and it smells sooo good….excuse me whilst I take another sniff.
My final favourite of the month has to go to the Nuxe Reve De Miel. It was one of the many products I picked up when I went a bit nuts in my recent French pharmacy haul (check out that post here) and another product that well and truly lives up to it’s hype. It’s unique thick but matte formulation feels nourishing the instant it touches your lips. I lather this on before I hit the sack and in the morning my lips are plump, not dry, and smooth, not flakey. My only gripe is that it comes in a pot which is not the most hygienic so I don’t like to carry it around with me when I’m on the go. However, I’ve just spotted that they do a Lip Moisturising Stick. Does anyone know if this is of the same formulation? I guess there’s only one way to find out…
So care to share what your favourites of the month are?