Makeup Revolution Ultra Base Corrector Palette : Colour Corrector

Last year was the year of the contour and this year appears to be the year of colour correction. So far, there aren't masses of colour correction palettes on the market, but as this trend gets bigger, I am sure that you will see palettes popping up left, right and centre.

One palette on the market in the UK is the Makeup Revolution Ultra Base Corrector Palette. (FYI Make Up Revolution ship internationally to all my non-UK readers). I really like the packaging of this palette too. It seems to be really well made sturdy, I actually have palettes that I've paid more for that don't feel this strong.

Home to 8 creamy colours, this palette seems to be a great first step into the colour correction market. But now you own the palette, what do you do with all of the colours? Although some of the colours are subtle and not too far from what you may already be using, there are a few colours which, like me, you may not have thought about using on your skin!

Pink : Brightens
Lavender : Neutralises yellow tones
Green : Neutralises redness
Orange : Neutralises blue tones
Peach : Helps to balance out slight discoloration
White : Adds natural highlight and brightens
Cream : Neutralises purple and covers dark areas
Brown : Balances ashiness in medium to dark skin tones

To get started,
1) Prep your skin as per usual e.g. cleanse, tone, moisturise and add your primer
2) Use your colour correction palette to reduce any marks or colours you don't to see
3) Apply your foundation and concealer over the top (I would recommend using a beauty blender to do this so you don't move any of the colours below)
4) Continue with your normal make up routine!

But does it really work? For a bargain price of £6 this palette is well worth a try. I mean for £6 you can't really go wrong can you? The colours area very creamy and do blend out really nicely. When you first blend everything out, your skin can look pretty 'white' so you couldn't use this without adding your foundation after. Also, I'm not sure this would work for people with dark skin tones. If you are fair or medium, then this palette will work for you. Sorry to my dark skinned beauties, fingers crossed Makeup Revolution will be bringing something to market just for you soon!

Overall, I've been so impressed with this palette. The colours have made a difference to the way my make up looks and has been great at hiding my patchy bits. I would be really keen to try out other brands, specifically the NYX palette so that I can have a palette to compare this one to. If your on a budget or not, this palette is a great start to the world of colour correction!

DLJ
Xoxo

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer Defined

I'm pretty sure that anyone who has an Instagram account at the moment will see images of this product popping onto their screens, whether their account is make up based or not. With a following of just under 8 million people, Anastasia has a pretty strong army of brow loving girls and boys. So it doesn't come as any shock to see how quickly this product is making it's way to the masses and onto my screen.

Being one of the 7.9 million followers and a user of ABH I was keen to be quick off the mark with trying out the new Brow Definer. 

Having used the ABH Dipbrow Pomade for well over a year, I knew that Taupe was going to be the right colour for me. I promptly placed my order with Cult Beauty and was chuffed to receive my order next day!! 

The Brow Definer pencil is unique in that it has three different ways to outline and fill in brows:

Thin : use the sharpest point of the tip to create fine, hair like strokes
Medium : use the back side of the pencil to create thicker, hair like strokes
Wide : use the pencil on its side to create broad strokes.
(source : http://www.anastasiabeverlyhills.com/brow-definer.html)

Personally, I would say that I feel that it has two ways to define your brows. However, I did mess up the thinnest part of the pencil on my first application because I didn't read the above! Had I have know this, maybe I woudn't have been so heavy handed at first application!

I love my dipbrow pomade, so the brow definer has a lot to live up to. So with a little bit of apprehension, I decided to take the plunge as soon as my brow definer arrived. As I guessed, the colour was a perfect match, but what about the final look?

Even though I have pretty dark hair, my skin is really pale, so for every day looks, I stick to Taupe as I can always add brow powder / eye shadows on top to make the colour darker if needs be.

It did take me a few attempts to get my brows right, but that is just down to the fact that it's a different technique to apply this pencil over the dipbrow. However, once I had finally got over using something new, I was very impressed. 

My brows look so much more natural and the colour stayed in place much longer than my dipbrow pomade. Because I have pretty oily skin, by the time I get home after along day on the road my brows can appear a little deflated. They don't smudge per say, but they aren't exactly in the right place if that makes sense?

The texture of the pencil is creamy, but with an undertone that has more 'friction' to it. The dipbrow pomade on the other hand is just very creamy and doesn't have much to really 'hold' it in place. It's hard to explain without physically touching the products.

According to CultBeauty.com, Anastasia designed the Brow Definer to work in conjunction with the Brow Wiz...'After defining the eyebrow outline with Brow Wiz, use the wide end of the Brow Definer's triangular 'nib' to fill in gaps, before using the narrow end to create finer, hair-like strokes for a more natural effect'.

I think the most noticeable difference however is the amount of product you get for your money. The Brow Definer is £16 at CultBeauty.com and for 0.2g of product, the Brow Wiz is £15.50 for 0.08g of product and the Dipbrow Pomade is £15 for a whapping 4g of product. Now that is a hell of a difference. I find that on average, my Dipbrow Pomade will last me around 5 months, after just two applications of the Brow Definer, this is how much I have left....

 The verdict? I love this product so much, that even though you get so much less product for your money VS the dipbrow pomade, I'm still going to be adding it to my shopping cart! If you find something you love, then you just have to take a deep breath and click 'proceed to checkout'.

DLJ

Xoxo

Chanel Hydra Beauty Nutrition Lip Care

With the heating being on full pretty much everywhere I go, I find that my lips really take a battering this time of year. Because I'm constantly in and out of buildings for work, moving between heating that is on full wack and bitterly cold weather makes my lips dry and painful.  

No one likes have dry lips, so I am constantly on the look out for new products that soothe and repair. The newest treatment to be added to my collection is the Chanel Hydra Beauty Nutrition Lip Balm.

The Chanel Hydra range 'responds to the hydration needs of every woman, regardless of age or skin concern'...according to Chanel.com. The whole range is specifically designed to promote moisture retention and consists of serums, creams, masks and this lip balm. 

As you can imagine with any Chanel skin care product, the price tag is a little on the heavy side. This 10g tub is £30 in the UK. So with that price tag, for the amount of product you get, you'd hope to get some amazing results, fast! 

Because of its price, I opted to leave my lip balm on my bed side table to use as part of my night time skin regime. I go through lip balms like no bodies business and seem to loose them all the time (a risk I wasn't willing to take with this baby).

After applying my face oil, I put a nice think layer on my lips before bed to make sure they are feeling soft and ready for the next day. 

The balm itself has a beautiful silky texture and glides on. It sounds hard to believe, but within around 30 seconds my lips aleady feel smoother and the horrible chapped bits seem to disappear! But let's face it, you'd expect nothing less from Chanel, right? The texture is light and isn't greasy at all. It seems to almost melt into your skin. 

It's smell is also really delicate and fresh so you don't end up with anything too over powering on your face before bed which is also really nice. Small things, but they do make a difference. 

So to sum up, is the Chanel Hyrda Beauty Nutrition Lip Balm worth the price tag? I would honestly say that it really is. It does what it says on the tin and leaves my lips feeling wonderfully soft and smooth. Are there other lip balms on the market that can do the same job but for less? I would imagine so...I just haven't found them yet! Will I be buying another one of these when it runs out? I sure will. And after having so much success with this balm, I've decided I want to try some other products from the Chanel Hydra range. Watch this space. 

DLJ

Xoxo

Eylure Pre Glued Lashes

Anyone who wears lashes will know the pain of waiting for lash glue to dry. But what if there was another way to apply your lashes that didn't require waiting? 

Eylure have launched 'Pre Glued' lashes to their extensive range and I wanted to see if they really are the god send they first appear to be. 

I have a few sets of these lashes and recently tried out a set from their 'texture range'. I'm already a real fan of this range as I find they give a beautiful natural appearance with extra va va voom!

Unlike normal lashes, the pre glued lashes come with a thick band across the top of the lash which is, as you may have guessed from the name, pre glued! Other than this the lashes are exactily that same, and when on, appear the same as lashes what you glue yourself. 

But now for the important stuff, application. Are they any easier to apply? Well for me, this all depends on if you are a 'well seasoned' lash wearer. I have tried these lashes on two occasions. Once around 5 months ago before I really started wear lashes on a regular basis, and oh my god they were so hard to apply!! Because they are already sticky, they do not leave room for any error and if you have already done your beautiful eye make and then you stick you lash on wrong, it lifts your shadows leave patches and well, that's really not what you want when your about to head out. 

If on the other thand, you are a regular lash user, these are great. Now that I apply lashes on a weekly basis, I'm getting pretty nifty at the old lash application process. Because I apply lashes so often, I generally have pretty good aim, so find I can add these babies where they are meant to be. 

Each box comes with a spare pre glued strip which to be honest, I haven't had to change yet (as I've only worn each set once) and because quite frankly I don't think the lashes would come out well. Another issue with them being pre glued is that they are a bit of a pain to get out of the box because they are literally stuck to the surface. Pulling the lashes away from the box needs to be done in a quick and smooth motion or else the lashes can become disformed. Again, not always great if your getting ready to head out (and if your anything like me, already late). 

Here's how they look on

The verdict? They are a really nice idea. I don't think they are great for first time users but may be handy to throw into your handbag or make up bag. Price wise they are the same price as the normal lashes, so if I had the choice between pre glue and normal lashes? Normal lashes every time.

DLJ

Xoxo