Review: The best BB cream EVER!

I am so excited right now to reviewing this product it's crazy!
I bought this BB cream a little over a month ago with the idea of wearing it on holidays in mind. I actually hardly wore it in the end but have been using it everyday at home in place of my foundation(Makeup Forever's HD foundation or Revlon Color Stay foundation).

I was very apprehensive about trying the BB cream for a few reasons.
1. I haven't been able to find a BB cream pale enough for me (although as you will see in the photos it is a little pale for me since returning home from Teneriefe with a bit of a 'glow')
2. 17 isn't known for being the best as it it is quite... affordable
3. I hadn't been reeled into the BB cream craze.

I was very pleasantly surprised  

The staying power of this BB cream is amazing, it lasts all day without any touch-ups. When I wear it to work it wears off a little after hours of running about but I still don't feel the need to add any more.
The coverage is excellent. I like a medium to high coverage; although I have pretty good skin- spot wise I have quite high pigmentation where I get quite red and patchy so having a good coverage is something I value, this BB cream doesn't let me down in this area.
A huge bonus to this BB cream is that it contains an SPF of 25 which is the reason I wanted it for holidays to wear during the day(but like I said I didn't use it, simply because I went bare face every day). But as you all know we should be waring SPF everyday rain or shine(something I'm guilty of not doing!) so even for at home I feel I'm being kind to my skin.
The BB cream says it actually enhances your skin and reduces blemishes which is always welcome in my books.
Being a 17 product you know it's nice on your wallet so you won't be forking out a fortune, I can't remember how much it was but I do remember not minding handing over the money either. 
Overall I would highly recommend trying out the 17 BB cream when you get a chance, I promise you won't be disappointed.

 Before(eyemakeup and eyebrows done)

 (after; with powder and contouring)

Until next time,

Love and Hugs,

Alice May xx

Haul: Louboutins, Skater Skirts & Eye Shadow

I haven't done a haul in quite some time but I got myself a few bits as I felt I deserved a wee treat!

Firstly are my very first pair of Christian Louboutins. You would expect to see sky high stilettos with the signature red sole. Although these beauties have the red sole they are anything but high!
I'm sure you're all familiar with Siopa Ella the 'swap boutique and consignment store'.  They stock a lot of designer gear and I always keep my eye on Siopa Ella's Facebook for anything extra special; which is exactly what happened when these Brown Christian Louboutin leather Chelsea boots showcased themselves. Before I knew it I was in the shop trying them and handing over my card.
They set me back €195 but considering they where hardly worn and worth a lot more I didn't get too upset! I've been looking for a nice pair of Chelsea boots for ages so actually I'm extremely happy!

The next thing was another thing I spied in my daily LivingSocial(discount coupan website) email. I usually hate these emails and always try to remember to unsubscribe myself from the annoying at least 5 a day subscription servive. But I saw that they had a deal on a 120 eye shadow palatte for €15 when normally it's about €60 from KwikStore. I've wanted a palette like this for my kit for ages so was delighted at the cheap price! I've used a few colours and so far so good!

 The last 2 things are from BooHoo.com. I love the skater skirt trend as their super flattering and really easy to wear. You don't have to worry about being bloated with  them either so this makes it all the better!

The first one is called the 'Jessie Scuba Skater Skirt' in sugar-coral and the second is the 'Jess Skater Skirt' in berry(no longer available) both where €15. I amn't 100% happy with the material of either of the skirts and if you're thinking of getting the sugar-coral get it in your size if not one size bigger but definitely not any smaller! 

So there you have it! My few purchases over the last while. If you'd like a more in dept post on any of the items I got just let me know!
I also bought my flights and put down a deposit on accomadation for my holiday with my friends this summer! I won't be spending any money for a while cause I'm officially broke again! ha ha

Until next time,

Love ya!

Alice May x

Battle of the Eyeliners!

(picture heavy)
Essence Cosmetics have a lot of eyeliners and I mean a lot. I decided to pick out a few randomly(in black) to test and see if they make the cut. For low prices you do sometimes expect low quality so let's see what i discovered...

First up we have the 24h Stays No Matter What felt tip style liner. I've recently got into the felt tip liner craze after finally being converted, I wouldn't use them on clients unless I was giving it to them to keep but they are great for creating a precise line and easy to do the must have flick at the end too.
This one is really pigmented, does stay on all day and is of course easy to apply. I did find that on top of shop eye shadows it wasn't as pigmented but for €3.49 you can't really complain! This is a definite yes on the list!

Moving onto this liquid liner called exactly that 'Essence Liquid Eyeliner'. The product is very pigmented but I'm not sold on the applicator I have to say it's a little big for my taste but I did manage to use it to create a nice look. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't 100% confident in liner yet so therefore I'm going to give this one a miss, sorry!

Next up is the 100% splash-proof eye pencil. This one surprised me immensely, it glides onto the skin so easily meaning none of that rubbing back and forth for what seems like an eternity. This one has a slight sparkle to it which might not be to everyone's taste but I like it and even then you can't really see it that much once it's on. To me it resembles the Urban Decay 24/7 pencil's but at a fraction of the price so it's a perfect dupe without the costly price tag. So we have a another liner making the cut!

Finally we the 2in1 eyeliner pen. if you saw my essence haul video I was really excited about this one. The thicker angled side for the bulk of things and the thinner side for getting those precise flicks. The thin side is amazing, really pigmented and easy to use but the thicker end's pigment is lacking compared to the thin side and almost looks a little brown. maybe I just got a bad pen but going off of this one I would give it a miss and just go with the  24h Stays No Matter What felt tip style liner I spoke about before.

So there you have it! My thoughts on a few of the Essence eyeliners. They're all so affordable so trying them out don't exactly empty the wallet so off you to the penny's or a pharmacy that stocks essence and get some yourself, of course there are still a lot more that I haven't written about so go on in and have a look see.

Have any of you tried out any of the Essence eyeliners? What are your thoughts on them?

Until next time I hope you're all well and I'll talk to you soon,

Alice May x

Catrice Waterproof Liquid Liner Review

I have been loving eyeliner recently and for the first time I am actually rotating between all different types- pencil, liquid, gel, powder.. I am getting great use out of all my makeup but of course I'm still trying new things out. This Catrice Cosmetics waterproof Liqud Liner is perfect for people starting out with liquid eye liner as it has a super fine but firm applicator (very important, I hate flimsy long brushes). 

The applicator brush(well it's more of a sponge-y type thing then a brush!) means you can do a very slim line and build it up to the thickness you want.

Here are 2 simple lines I did very quickly on my eyes to show you. I added some mascara for the pictures so imagine this with a little more makeup and keep in mind as well that I have very small eye space!

The liner dries super fast and stays put all day. It's waterproof so if you wear contacts like me and your eyes tend to water this is ideal. Also great for those seriously windy days we've been having of late , my makeup has run all over the place in recent days so waterproof is my new best friend.
Using a little bit of eye makeup remover on a cotton pad gets it all off quickly so none of that harsh rubbing at your eyes ladies! This eyeliner gets a thumbs up from me and with catrice products being so affordable you'd be crazy not pick one up for yourself! 

What are your guys favourite type of eyeliners? What's the best one you've tried- I want to know so leave it below in the comments.

Until next time,

I hope your all well and I'll talk to you soon,

Alice x

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Working at the Justin Bieber concert with Essence Cosmetics

Well if you don't follow me on twitter or like my Facebook page you won't be in the know on the latest(amazing) happening's in my life.
Well I was lucky enough to be 'Head Makeup Artist' at the Justin Bieber concert working with Essence Cosmetics. 

Now to clear some things up I wasn't Justin's makeup artist and no, I didn't meet him(so sad!). Essence had a booth at the concert where anyone could get a mini makeover, get their picture taken with a Justin Bieber cut out and whatever product was used in their make over was given to them courtesy of Essence. 

It was fast pace and great fun, I think we did about 1,000 people over the 2 nights which is just crazy! You can see all of the photo's on Essence Ireland's facebook page here. The hype and atmosphere was great as all of Justin's fans got more excited for him on stage, It was wonderful to just be apart of it all. 

All the promo girls, myself and 'The Biebs'

On the second day I arrived earlier then the previous day and did 3 of the 'meet & greet' winners(so jealous!) makeup which was nice as I got to spend more time with each of the girls and give them their 'concert look' for meeting with Justin. Two of the winners didn't actually know they had won so when we did tell them they wouldn't have to settle for the card board cut out it was all worth it, they were so happy and so deserving of it. I am really happy that they were the ones that won it as they were such lovely girls and huge fans of the man himself(I saw two girls wondering around when Justin was on stage the first night, when I asked why they weren't watching they told me they didn't like him-they had just come because they won tickets..)

I got to see about 20 minutes of the concert and from what I saw he was pretty good, the crowd loved him anyway! The stage actual show was put together really well with all of the lights and pre filmed bits. I heard pretty much the whole of the concert the first day which was great fun I was dancing around and singing all of his songs... bitta' fan girling really! 

It was such an amazing experience and I am so unbelievably thankful to Essence and Rave Communications for this amazing opportunity. I have lot's of essence goodies that I can't wait to do a giveaway/competition on but I need to figure a few things out first!

There will probably be a lot about essence on the blog for a while only because I am so excited about the brand at the moment, doing that many 'mini-makeovers' made me pretty familiar with a lot of the products which in turn made me love a lot of them!

Until next time

I hope you're all well and I'll talk to you soon,

Alice x

Cheeky pic of him in action! 

Mac Strobe Cream Review

 Hey everyone! Today I am reviewing something I hauled a few months ago. MAC Cosmetics 'Strobe Cream'. I got this 50ml cream in the airport in London back in October so thought it was was about time I reviewed it! It is priced at around €30 in Ireland for the biggest size. I got mine for £17. something.

In college we were doing our bridal makeup look when my teacher started to rave about this miracle cream/primer. She said it made you glow and just looked beautiful. I tried it on my hand and I thought 'hmm this is quite nice!'

What the product looks look when squeezed out and above what it looks like rubbed in

I decided that I would buy it if I had enough money on the way home which I did so what  the heck I thought 'may as well'

You put this under foundation, either all over the face or as I like to do where the sun would hit so the places you would put highlighter (the upper cheek bones, bridge of the nose, little on the forehead and even sometimes on the chin). I used this in my bridal look which you can see in my portfolio section of my blog.(6th photo down on page)

Okay so yes this is a really nice product and it does enhance your look and it does give you this undeniable glow that all blushing brides seem to have but at the same time it's nothing life changing. I don't really use it on myself but I suppose I will have it in my kit and to be honest I'll use it so clients will see the name. I don't use a lot of mac products which a lot of people who get their makeup done consider to be bad thing. Maybe it's just because they know the brand is good(it is, just way too expensive for buying a lot of it!)

So all in all this is a 'meh' product I do really like it but when it runs out I won't be in a rush to replace it at the same time. 

Have any of you tried the Mac Strobe cream or the liquid version of it at that point? Let me know your thoughts as you can probably tell I'm a little confused on my opinion!
  

 Until next time,

Love & Kisses,

Alice x

Flawless Finish with Blank Canvas F18 Brush

I received an email recently showing the Blank Canvas F18 Brush and right away I wanted to write about it as it looks just AMAZING!

The F18 brush is a small duo fibre brush made from a blend of natural and synthetic fibres  costing just €14 and is perfect for buffing/stippling foundation on but great for all other cream products like blush as well. I've wanted a small one for quite some time for those little areas a big one just can't reach like the corners of your nose so maybe this is the one for me!?

I am a huge fan of duo fibre brushes I've been using the MAC 187 for years now, have a Makeup4Ladies(funny name I know) one in my makeup kit and a Crown brush sadly sitting isolated as I melted some of the bristles(long story). Basically I just love them! They give such a flawless air brushed appearance that just can't be compared to your bog standard flat foundation brush.

I think I will treat myself to a Blank Canvas F18 Brush once I finish my Christmas shopping(if I have any money left over!) as I've wanted to try out the blank canvas brushes for quite some time so getting this email has certainly made me want to give it a real try!

Do any of you own this or any other blank canvas brush? Will you be getting your hands on one of these babies?

Blank Canvas Cosmetics are available to purchase online at www.blankcanvascosmetics.com.

Until next time I hope you're all well and I'll talk to you soon,
Alice x

Eldora Handmade Lashes Review

I had never heard of Eldora lashes before but when I was given the chance to try them after doing some research I was really excited to give them a go! Then weirdly enough one of my Teacher's in college was raving about them a few days ago!

The lashes I was given to try are the H121 Human Hair 'light and curvy natural lashes with shorter width'

 I held on to them until the right time so when I was doing a look in college that they fit into I got super excited! The lashes aren't on me but they they look fab on my gorgeous friend Kate!

 The lashes are really easy to apply, I can't say anything about the glue that comes with them as I always use my Duo glue as it's never failed me before but I'm sure it does the job!

My favourite thing about the lashes is that the band is really thin so you don't have to have a really thick eyeliner to hide the fact that their fake in fact I didn't apply any liner to the lash line!

All lashes are hand made which is kinda cool really! 

The company sell a huge variety of lashes from day to theatrical to feathers to individuals in both synthetic and real human hair. 

The lashes start at £3.90 I believe. The pair I am reviewing sells for £4.50

Ultimately I am really pleased with the lashes and would encourage you all to check out their website to find out a bit more and the shop if you want a sneaky purchase! 

I hope you guys enjoyed this review, let me know if you've ever tried these lashes or if you will now ha ha!

Until next time,
I hope you're all well and I'll talk to you soon,
Alice x
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My portfolio/Makeup course update

If you're new to my blog then you might not know that I am currently attending college studying Theatrical and Media Makeup so I thought I'd do an update on the course!

Well firstly let me just say.. it is HARD! I honestly thought it was going to be really easy but there is so much work to be done it's crazy!

We have 19 fashion looks to be examined in and to be honest I don't know how many theatrical/special effects we have and then there are a few more on top to include a few body paints... yeah I know. Crazy.

The work behind each look is quite difficult and time consuming. For each look you must have a cover page, written research/introduction, mood board, step by step guide, consultation form, face chart and before & after pictures which you must style accordingly.

If anyone would like me to go into more detail as to what each step entails just drop me a comment or a tweet and will do!

So that's a quick update I may do little things like this in the future but for now I'll just show you a few picture's that I will be including in my portfolio and that I have completed.

Until Next Time I Hope You're All Well and I'll Talk To You Soon,
Alice x

Benefit's First Cream Blush Reveal!

I mentioned in the last post that we were shown a brand new product by Benefit but wasn't sure if we could talk about it.. turns out. We can(yeay!). Benefit always realeses something just gawjuz at the end of January usually a box powder(who said Hoola bronzer!?..okay I'll stop) but they decided to shake things up and have invented this cream blush/highligher!

The lighting wasn't the best in the event location and I kinda forgot to take a photo of the swatch on my hand.

Basically there are 3 colours:

Pink Blush

Coral Blush

Highlighter

So you can just swipe it on your cheek, blend and voila the perfect cheek combo! You can always pick out one of the colours of blush and apply it to your lips(does bene tint have cometition!?) 

The wee slogan behind this product is 'You have the right to get gorgeous'. How cute is that!

The name of this product is(drum roll please) 'Fine One One' and will be available to buy at the end of January 2013(well that's scary to write!)

How excited are you? Will you be snapping one of  these up?

Let me know in comment form!

Until next time I hope you're all well and I'l talk to you soon,

Alice x