E.L.F Cosmetics Haul

I was so excited this morning when a parcel arrived for me! It was my E.L.F delivery.  For those of you that are not familiar with this brand, it sells gorgeous cosmetics at really good prices without compromising on the quality.  I ordered my batch on Sunday,  I received an email on Wednesday stating that there was a slight delay due to the volume of orders so I was a little disappointed as I was so eager to check these beauties out :)  Anyways I could hardly complain as the postage was FREE, yes free if you spent over £30.00.  The cosmetics are at such great prices its hard not to spend £30.00 and considering the amount you get for your money it is definitely money well spent.

  
Top - Left to right 


Shimmering Facial Whip - Spotlight £1.50
Shimmering Facial Whip - Pink Lemonade £1.50

Studio Cream Blush - Flirt £6.50

Studio Cream Blush - Heartbreaker £6.50

Shine Eraser Sheets £1.50

Bottom - Left to right

Nourishing Cuticle Pen £1.50

Bronzing Brush £1.50

Angled Eyeliner Brush £3.50

Lipstick - Voodoo £1.50

Lipstick - Fantasy £1.50

Liquid Lipstick - Raspberry £1.50

Liquid Lipstick - Maple Sugar £1.50

Facial Whips - Spotlight & Raspberry

These highlighting creams can be used on the eyes, the face and even the lips.  I intend to use these on my cheekbones as a highlighter although I suspect they would make a good eye primer.  When I opened 'Spotlight' liquid literally poured out, in fact so much so that I had to rush to the sink and 'drain it' I was worried I would not have any product left.  After I shook it vigorously I was able to get an OK consistency although I found it very watery and hard to actually get a vibrant shade because of this.  I then tried the Raspberry one and luckily did not have the same problem.  This had a lovely even consistency and blended perfectly.  The colour looks so vibrant in the tube although it is actually very subtle so these would be perfect in the summer when you just want to add a little colour without feeling plastered in make up.  

 Studio Cream Blush - Flirt

These cream blushes were my favourite.  I have been looking for a cream blush for so long yet have never got around to getting one so on this occasion I bought 2 given that they were such a bargain.  These were from the Studio line and so are slightly more expensive at £6.50 than the standard E.L.F line. But its a great price in comparison to some higher end cream blushes on the market. This had a mousse like consistency and I loved the feel so much I had to literally force myself not to squish my finger right in the jar. The packaging of the Studio line looks more expensive and would look lovely on anyones dressing table.  I first tried 'Flirt'  This is a vibrant pink yet blends so well it does not look over the top - i can't wait to wear this.
  

 Studio Cream Blush - Flirt

As well as 'Flirt' I purchased 'Heartbreaker'.  This was more of a coral shade and the photos do not do 
it justice. It looks very bright here however it is actually more subtle. I am a big fan of Benefits Dandelion blush and this was in the same colour chart.  

Studio Cream Blush - Heartbreaker

Next I purchased some shine control sheets.  These are just similar to those found on the market by several other brands and are designed as a quick fix during the day.  You just wipe over the parts of the face where you are shiny and it instantly mattifies the face without ruining your make up - I definitely think these should be in every girls handbag if you are prone to an oily face.

Nourishing Cuticle Pen

In case you did not know I am obsessed with painting my nails. I do not think a week goes by where I have not bought at least one nail polish yet using nail polish remover constantly can have a drying effect on my cuticles and nail beds so I purchased this nourishing pen which you rub into your cuticles.  It contains Avocado and Almond oils so this is a real treat for your nails.

Bronzing Brush

I had been looking for a small angled brush for contouring. This is a lot smaller than I envisaged from the website and when I removed the plastic protective cover there was some hair loss. Im not sure how this brush will stand in comparison to my other brushes but it seems like a good little brush for the price and perfect if you are just starting to get into makeup and don't want to splash out too much on the right tools.

Angled Eyeliner Brush

Now this I am seriously excited about.  A few weeks ago I bought a gel liquid eyeliner and no matter how much I tried I could not use the brush that it came with.  I tried to use my angled eyeshadow brush but STILL could not get the technique right and I do not even have a shaky hand.  I watched a YouTube video and a girl took a thin paint brush and bent it and then applied her eyeliner so imagine my excitement when I found this on E,L.F.

Lipsticks - L-R Voodoo, Fantasy

These lipsticks smell absolutely lush, sort of like a sweet coffee but very subtle.  I will be honest Im not a big lipstick buyer and always opt for gloss but I have gradually been purchasing more and more lipsticks as I love the feel on my lips.  They are a lot less sticky than lipgloss, much to my bf's approval :).    

 Liquid Lipstick L-R Raspberry, Maple Sugar

I was somewhat intrigued by these on the website as they are called 'liquid lipsticks' however when they arrived they are more like lip glosses but less sticky.  The colours in this photo appear very dark but if you knock 2-3 shades off and your getting there! I had to twist these approximately 20 times before the colour came to the surface.  To be honest I'm not fan of the twisting types as I like to be able to just remove the lid and my products there.  But having said that now I have done the initial twisting I think these will only need half a twist at least per use.  The only thing I will say about these though is that it is a lot more packaging than product and I think that lets it down but I can't see these running out any time soon.


These products were definitely worth the wait and I will definitely be returning to the site to purchase more in the near future once I've given these all a good trial.  


Please let me know about your purchases from E.L.F and if you have a review please link it below as I would love to read it.  


Thanks for reading xx

Beckysmakeup.blogspot.com

Follow me on Twitter @BeckysMABBlogs 

Faves - YouTube

Hey Guys, 


I thought I would do a quick blog this afternoon.  I watch YouTube religiously however have never had the confidence or courage to actually start doing videos.  Most of the time you will find me watching video tutorials and reviews.  This was what ultimately prompted me to start a blog.  I thought as I relied on other girls for an honest opinion on products it was only fair that I gave a little back and had my say :)  So I would just like to share with you my Top 5 beauty bloggers and why.  


1.  Pixiwoo (www.youtube/pixiwoo.com) 


Pixiwoo are 2 sisters who happen to be well established makeup artists.  They are incredibly talented at what they do and make the application of make up seem so simple and natural.  I discovered these girls through my next.


2. Pixi2woo (www.youtube.com/pixi2woo)


Tanya Burr again is a well established make up artist yet I love how she comes across as just 'one of the girls' with her down to earth nature.  She actually dates the pixiwoo girls brother, Jim hence the name.


3.  Aebeidler (www,youtube.com/aebeidler)


Just because this was the first ever You Tube beauty guru that I discovered about 2 years ago and I have been fascinated by watching beauty gurus and reading blogs ever since so you could say that she 
kind of inspired me


4. Juicystar07 (www.youtube.com/juicystar07


I have to be honest with you girls this girl does annoy me to an extent but I just can't help watching her videos and good for her for making something of herself.  She might not be everyones cup of tea but she is a guilty pleasure of mine :)


5. Prettywildthings (www.youtube.com/prettywildthings) 


Last but by no means least! I only recently subscribed to this girl after discovering her by random a few weeks ago.  I love watching her videos.  She also has a blog http://lovesprettywildthings.blogspot.com so please check her out.   




Well thats it for my YouTube Top 5.  If you have a YouTube channel please link it in the comment bar below and I would love to watch.  


Bye for now xx   

The A - Z of ME...

I got this idea from Gabysbeautyblob - linked and thought it was such a good idea to allow bloggers to get to know you without revealing too much personal information.  So here is the A - Z of me...enjoy :)

Age

27 - moving closer to the big 30!  Eeeek

Bed Size 

Single...until I move in with my bf (saving for a house is soooo hard)

Chore you hate

Cleaning my car - its always a mess inside and out 

Dogs 

I would LOVE a dog but I do not have the time...plus i have cats...

Essential start of your day

Coffee

Favourite Colour

Red - Vibrant

Gold or Silver 

Silver generally or white gold, not a fan of yellow gold

Height

5'3 1/2

Instruments I play

I played the keyboard/piano in Juniors but soon learn I have no musical ability

Job Title 

Project Designer (quite technical really...) I went to college and everything :)

Kids

One day i hope

Live 

United Kingdom, in a little county outside London

Mums Name 

Mum?

Nickname 

Becky...my bf calls me Ruby?

Pet Peeve

Rudeness and ignorance.  There is no excuse for it.

Quote from a book 

You accept the love you think you deserve - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Right or left handed 

Right

Siblings

An older brother

Time you wake up

About 6am for work

Underwear

A lady never tells :)

Vegetables you dislike 

Hmmm im not a fan of vegetables, bad isn't it

What makes you late

I hate being late and it annoys me when others are late - like why is your time more important than mine? But sometimes it is unavoidable and generally this is down to traffic

X-rays

Foot when I was younger, nose (I broke it) and currently awaiting jaw surgery (maxiofacial) so tons on my face :) 

Yummy food you make 

I cook a good egg, boiled, fried you name it

zoo Animal 

Gorilla - so funny

Thanks for reading and please do one too and link me so I can read as I would love to know more about you guys. 

Beckysmakeup.blogspot.com

Follow me at twitter @beckysMABBlogs

Day from hell?

Seriously, could my day get any worse.  Firstly I get an irate email from a buyer on eBay as their parcel had not arrived as early as anticipated - they are going on holiday, despite me clearly stating 5 working days within the listing and then my car packs in and I get a quote for £500 to fix it!  As it stands I am waiting on a new car courtesy of my company although that could be another 10 weeks so in the mean time I need a car and have no other option but to get it fixed!  After ranting on the phone to the original garage who failed to notify me of the damage I was literally shaking with anger and frustration that my little car has cost me so much grief!  A glass of wine is needed tonight and its not even Friday...

Lush Hair Doctor

At the moment I am absolutely in love with Lush.  I first got into  Lush when my boyfriend bought me a gift set one Christmas a few years back which consisted of bath bombs, soaps and other goodies,  All the products smell divine!!! Ever since, I have been visiting the store to check out the latest products.  On a recent visit I came across 'Hair Doctor'.  As a sufferer of a dry scalp this pre wash product claims to eliminate and sooth flaky, dry scalps.  At £5.50 I thought I would give it a go plus Lush offer a free face mask if you return 5 containers so as I am collecting the containers to return this seemed like the ideal opportunity to buy - i know, any excuse :) 


The mask itself is designed to be used prior to washing.  When I first used this I failed to read the instructions and just used it in the shower and that was 1 usage gone...Second time round I was more savvy and read the instructions.  It says to apply to hair and leave for 20 mins.  I did it to dry hair whilst in the bath and massaged in.  Initially there is a cooling sensation and a smell almost like toothpaste. Personally I liked that but if you are not fond of mint then this is not the product for you.  Also if you have a really sensitive scalp then the tingling could be a bit much.


The consistency is quite thick and I found it hard to massage into the scalp due to this as it did not spread too well. The tub recommends that you use half for short hair and a whole one for long however I managed to get 2 usages and I have fairly long hair.  Given the price I feel that this is quite a lot for only one usage.  


After the 20 minutes I then shampooed and conditioned as per usual.  Initially I could see that my scalp was a lot clearer and I was impressed by this however after a few days of normal washing the dryness was back, so although this is good for a short term fix I do not think it stands the test of time in a permanent fix for the problem so I will not be purchasing this again. Although I loved the smell and the sensation its not worth the £5.50 for the 'quick fix' I would rather hold out for a permanent fix.  But please bear in mind that just because this did not work for me does not mean that it won't work for you and it is worth visiting your Lush store and requesting a free sample of this.  


Pros  


Smells gorgeous (if you like mint)
Lovely cooling sensation on the scalp, feels like it is really doing something 


Cons 


No long term effect 
price - given that a tub is recommended for my hair length 


Thanks for reading and please comment below, i love reading all your comments and always find the time to respond.  

Please note that all products mentioned were purchased by me.  I am not being sponsored in any way shape or form for this review and therefore all opinions are my own and for the benefit of my readers!

A lovely afternoon....

So its September and oh my gosh its hot outside and thats a rarity for this time of year in the UK!  Apparently we have an 'Indian Summer' coming and its tipped to be 27 degrees this weekend so I am hoping to make the most of it.  


This afternoon I had some time off work and went to have lunch with my friend and her 18 month baby girl, Bella.   She is absolutely adorable and we spent the afternoon having a good chat and taking a little walk!  Lovely afternoon and good to catch up as we do not get to do it so often what with work and life getting in the way.  


What are your plans for this weekend?

Make Up Brush Collection - Requested :)

Hi Girls, 


I once learnt from a make up artist that having the right tools can make all the difference in the application of make up and boy, was she right.  So since I was advised this I invested in a quality brush set and over the past year or so my collection has grown so I would like to show you guys my current collection which is by far small in comparison to some that I have seen and also how I store them and clean them to ensure that they stay in top notch condition.


Storage  

I purchased the square vase on the left from HobbyCraft for approximately £4, the glass beaker is from Morrisons for just 40p and is actually of such good quality I bought several.  


I then filled them with beads from HobbyCraft which were on offer at the time for 99p a pack. I used 2 packs for both of the containers and was left with a Sephora inspired brush holder.  


First collection


I purchased these from the Body Shop where they range from £9 - £16.00.  They are synthetic and cruelty free so this prompted my purchase!

From left to right...


Face and Body Brush £16.00
Blusher Brush £12.00
Foundation Brush £12.00
Eyeshadow Blender Brush £9.00
Line Softener Brush £8.00
Angled Brush £9.00
Brow and Lash Comb £9.00
Smudger Brush £9.00
Lipstick Brush £9.00
Eyeshadow Brush £9.00


These are really good quality brushes and TBH I do not think that I have experienced any hair loss from them which can be an issue with cheaper brushes.  They are very soft material however in terms of the blusher brush I do not think that this goes in its favour as it can be a little too light on the face and not allow you to get as much control for conturing etc. Unfortunately the brow comb end broke which I need to glue which is quite disappointing given the price.  At the time of purchase I had little or few make up brushes and the ones which I did have were of the cheaper variety hence why I spent a little extra on a quality set without going too 'high end' with the likes of MAC, Bobby Brown etc.  


MAC 217 Blending Brush 


I am an avid YouTube subscriber (please let me know if you have a channel) and the make up artists on there were always banging on about this 217 brush and I did not understand the hype.  Now I do!  This is my one and only MAC make up brush and the prices have generally put me off even though I am a fan of their products.  This was £16.00 although in my opinion as far as make up brushes go this was worth it,  even if my boyfriend did think I was mad and my dad did refer me to the local DIY store for a similar model,  This has made blending and application of eyeshadow so much easier and I can definitely understand the hype although I do not think I will be investing in any further MAC brushes in the future purely on the basis that you can get some really good quality cheaper versions.  

Lancome Set


I have never actually bought anything from Lancome however my mum got me a voucher for my birthday for a department store which sells my favourite higher end make up brands and we went so I could spend it.  Whilst there my mum bought some Lancome moisturiser and as it had just been released they were doing a special offer and giving away a gift which included a Lancome bronzer and 3 make up brushes.  Now my mums not a massive bronzer fan and knowing my love for new products kindly 'donated' the gifts to me :)  Here are the brushes...

These are actually of amazing quality and I looked on the website and these go at approximately £20.00 a pop so to get them for free is AMAZING! I love the large blending brush which is excellent for contouring and applying bronzer,  the large, long handle means that you have perfect control over the application and the large soft brush blends perfectly so well done Lancome for this one!


Stipple Brush


This was purchased under my last haul blog.  It is by QVS.  I have been using this for the past few days now and I must say I love the stipple brush and the flawless finish it gives the only comment I will have on this particular brand is that there was quite a lot of hair loss but I am sure this was just first few usages.  I have heard that you should wash the brushes before use to eliminate this problem but I did not have time for that I just wanted to go ahead and use it :)

Finally...how I clean my brushes


Ideally they would be fully cleaned after every use but as you all know this is not practical so what I use is a pump action spray which I got from feel unique.com and I spot clean them after each use.  I keep an old towel or washcloth always on hand and spray the brush and gently rub on the cloth to remove a majority of the product.  The fast drying formula means that they are ready to use again pretty quickly as opposed to a full wash.  


To do a more thorough clean I use good old baby shampoo which I usually pick up from my local poundland.  Basically I put a small amount of shampoo onto a wet sponge and then rub the brush over until all the debris has gone and then rinse under the tap.  Its also important that you avoid submersing the metal of the brush for too long as it can cause it to rust and also the bristles can start to come away.  After they have been washed, I reshape them and leave them to dry flat. Usually if I do this before bed then they are good to go in the morning. 


Well thats it for my brush collection and review - I hope that you enjoyed and I love reading your comments and try to respond to all of them.  

I would love to see your collections so please feel free to do a blog response to this and just tag/link me so that I can see it too :)

Beckysmakeup.blogspot.com

Follow me on Twitter @BeckysMABBlogs

All items mentioned were purchased by myself and the views expressed are purely my own, I am in no way shape or form being sponsored for anything mentioned and I will always be honest with my reader should this not be the case.

Get Me Gorgeous - Trio Eyes

Good Evening Girls, 

I just thought I would share with you a little eyeshadow palette which I recently purchased.  This is called the "Get Me Gorgeous' Trio Eyes.  Firstly I absolutely adore the packaging.   When I opened the stunning pink shimmery box i was greeted with a 'wolf whistle'.  Yes the box really does wolf whistle at you!  There is clearly some mechanism inside however this kept me amused for several minutes before I even got to the eyeshadow palette!  

The eyeshadows are in sets of 3 colours, each carefully matched so that you can create individual looks by layering different shades or use one block colour.  Personally I like to use a variety of colours on my eyes so this was perfect as they are all matched already for you to use.  There are 15 'sets' and 45 colours altogether.   A majority of the colours are shimmery and vibrant along with neutral and highlighter colours so would suit all skin types as there are so many to choose from.  
The palette is BRIGHT pink and has a large mirror inside which is always handy! In addition to this it comes with 2 double ended eyeshadow applicators however I do not tend to get on well with these and will use my own eyeshadow brushes which are either a BOdy Shop eyeshadow blending brush and a MAC 217 blending brush.

Their website address is www.go-cosmetics.co.uk.  All of their products from what I have seen are reasonably priced and the swatches that I have already done on these shadows are highly pigmented from a first impression.  

As far as I know these are only available in the UK at present though :(


Let me know of any recent bargains you have found...

Becky xx

Follow Me @BeckysMABBlogs

Beckysmakeup.blogspot.com

Disclaimer - all items mentioned were purchased by me and I am not being compensated in any way for this review this is purely for the benefit of my readers and to let them know about recent products :)

What does make up mean to you?

Today I had a discussion with my work colleagues about make up and one colleague in particular was against women wearing make up, so it go me thinking - what does make up mean to me?  Personally, I do not wear make up in order to cover up what is beneath, I use it to enhance what nature gave me.  I believe that the confidence that make up can give a woman can only be a good thing and if make up and products give a woman confidence then who is anyone to pass judgement?  Make up to me is a representation of my mood and can completely transform my look depending on my mood that day.  


So fellow bloggers, what I really want to ask is - what does make up mean to you?

Interview by nykki @ www.mymaneblog.com

When I heard that a fellow blogger was doing interviews with other fellow bloggers I was intrigued.  Being new to blogging and inexperienced I felt that by applying it would help gain my experience as a blogger and allow other people to get to know me a little better.  Further to me applying to Nykki she has kindly invited me to be interviewed.  Due to the shear volume of responses she has advised me this won't be for another 8 weeks.  I would just like to say though - thank you to Nykki for inviting me to do this and please keep an eye out for the interview.


And people, please check out her blog!  


Thanks - Becky x

Follow Me @BeckysMABBlogs

Nail Art with NYC Fashion Avenue Fushcia

Hi Girls, 


As my previous blog mentioned I recently purchased some nail varnishes from NYC (New York Colours, that is - not the state :)) I thought I would try them out starting with NYC Fashion Avenue Fushcia.  All I can say right now is...WOW!  This colour cost me £1.79 and although I can't comment on its durability right now, in terms of application this goes beyond my expectations.  Firstly the long cap means that you can get a good, comfortable grip on the brush meaning that you have total control over the application.  The brush is fairly large but not too large in comparison to the likes of Barry M and so forth.  The nail varnish itself just glides on and I found that 1 application was enough to get enough coverage, however I did 2 coats to ensure that it really stood out.  This particular colour is so vibrant and shiny that I cannot fault this product yet, given the price I think its a bargain.  

The added black is from my Poundland Haul detailed below and applied with an obsolete eyeliner brush.  

If you would like a tutorial on this look, please comment below or contact me :)

Thanks for watching - Becky x 

Follow Me @BeckysMABBlogs

Saturday 24th September HAUL

Today I went shopping with my lovely boyfriend.  And he definitely has the patience of a saint to stand around Beauty counters and drugstores whilst I hover and browse at the latest products....so i thought I would share with you guys some of my bargains of the day!


1st stop - Poundland - Seriously! Everything a pound???  


It is absolutely shocking (in a seriously good way) the bargains that are right under your nose in this shop and many people bypass it!  I had been looking for a glass jar of somewhat to store cotton buds.  I had looked on eBay and other homeware stores but they were all about £10 and even I thought this was a little much for a jar to make my cotton buds look pretty.  So you can imagine my excitement (yes, over a jar) when I stumbled across this little jar for only £1.00!

I also grabbed 2 sets of 3 nail varnishes.  All for £1 each for the set.  Thats 6 large nail varnishes for £2, now being a nail varnish fanatic thats a serious bargain and I will be sure to do a review later on. I purchased one glitter set which came with 3 x clear nail varnishes with glitter particles in and a superstar set which has a silver, a black and a gun metal colour.  They all came with a small emery board and the nail varnishes are 14ml bottles. 

Next stop - Superdrug


I have recently signed up for their beauty points card.  For every £1 you spend in store you get a point and every point I understand is worth 1p.  Its not as good as the Boots advantage card but seeing as I spend a lot in both of these stores on a yearly basis it was worth it to save throughout the year to use at Christmas etc.  


I have been looking for a black eyeshadow as I recently saw a review whereby it was used as an eyeliner across the top lashes and gave a much more subtle effect.  The eyeshadow used was MAC carbon however this is approximately £11.  I purchased the Bourjois Paris Intense Extrait 10 for £6.99 which claims to have a 16 hour hold and is also hypoallergenic.  I have not tried this on my eyes yet but just by doing a swatch this appears to be highly pigmented and good value for a higher end drugstore eyeshadow.

I have been looking for a stipple make up brush for some time now and I picked one up for £7.98 by QVS and also a dome eyeshadow brush by Revlon for £5.99. The only thing that I did not like was the fact that you could not feel the quality in store as they were well packaged.  Having now got these home I can say that for the price they do feel very high end. The real test will be when I use them, let me know if you would like a brush collection review.

And last but not least in keeping with the nail varnish theme above I purchased some New york colour NYC vanishes.  These again were from Superdrug and were on special offer for buy 3 and pay for 2.  These were £1.79 each and they are 9.7ml bottles.  I actually love the shape and packaging of these as despite being the somewhat cheaper brand they actually look high end.  These are from the 'In a New York Colour Minute' range and claim to be fast drying, which is great for me as I am guilty for smudging the second I apply it!  The colours that I got were Fashion Avenue Fuchsia, Times Square, and Prince Street.  Being a lover of New York, these were perfect for me and came in such vibrant colours which I look forward to trying and showing you! 

So that is it for my Haul this week.  Be sure to follow me via the follow me link above.  If you have any suggestions for future topics please get in touch.  

Twitter me @beckysMABBlogs