November Favourites!

I am so happy that we are FINALLY into December! I can finally openly enjoy Christmas without people giving out to me that it's too early to be talking about Christmas! :P

My favourites for the month are just hair care and a few makeup products! So, let's get started!

Like I've said in previous blog posts, right now, I have ombré hair. The only thing that I don't like about ombré hair is that the bleach leaves the ends of my hair very dry. I try to keep it has hydrated as possible. I use the John Frieda Highlight Activating Moisturising Conditioner to help with this! I try to keep the blonde part of my hair as bright as possible without it being brassy and this is great for doing just that! Another favourite for brightening up my hair is the John Frieda Lightening Spray. This has lightened my hair considerably! At €10.87 per bottle, it had better be good, eh?! :)

The next item is a little gem I've just recently found. It's the Schwarzkopf Got2B Power'ful Volumising Styling Powder. When I wash my hair, I lose all volume. Why, I hear you ask? Well, through sheer laziness and how crap I am at drying my hair, I can never add volume back to my hair using hair tools. That's why I LOVE this product! This adds instant volume. Whether it's a simple or glamorous hairstyle, this product is my new holy grail product!

Now, on to the last of my favourites for this month!

After reading reviews online about the L'Oréal Nude Magique Eau De Teint Foundation, I had to try it for myself! This is the perfect everyday foundation for me. It gives enough coverage to even out my skin tone but, it still leaves my skin looking natural. I will be following this up with a review very soon!

Next is the L'Oréal True Match foundation. I accidentally picked this up before I bought the L'Oréal Magique Eau De Teint Foundation, meaning to buy the latter. I was pleasantly surprised by it though! It is a little too pale for me and the Magique is a little too yellow so, I like to mix both foundations together, especially on those days when I need a little more coverage from my foundation! Perfect! :)

This month, I got new glasses. I need to wear glasses all of the time. Wearing glasses all of the time has made me more aware of the dark circles under my eyes. Because of the shadow that the frames cast, sometimes it can make that area look even darker. So I decided I needed a decent drugstore concealer that brightens that area up pronto! I really liked the Maybelline Fit Me concealer but I find when it oxidises on my skin, it makes that area look grey and makes my dark circles appear even darker over a short period. With that in mind, and after hearing some good reviews, I decided to give the Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer. It does exactly what it says on the tube! I'm loving it at the moment! :)

So, that's my favourites for this month! I'm keeping it short and sweet! :)
What's been your stand out product over the past month?

Linda, x

Festive/Party Makeup, Part 1: Winter Cranberry

I know that I have said this before, but can you believe that it's almost Christmas already?! It feels like this year has flown by!

As we're getting closer to "party season", I am starting a series of Christmas/Party makeup ideas and I'm starting with "Winter Cranberry". Usually I stick to fairly neutral/nude tones but when it comes to this time of the year, I love adding cranberry/burgundy tones to my makeup.

The products I used:

Face:

Foundation: Rimmel Stay Matte Mousse Foundation in 100 Ivory

Concealer: Essence Match 2 Cream Concealer

Powder: Maybelline Fit Me Powder in 120 Classic Ivory

Contour: Rimmel Natural Bronzer in 022 Sun Bronze
Highlight: Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighter

Eyes:

Primer: Inglot Eye Primer in 001
Highlight: MAC Satisfy (from Infatuating Rose palette from years ago!)
Browbone: Urban Decay Naked
Lid: MAC Bon Fete
Crease: MAC Cavort
Outer Crease: MAC Feast
Outer Corner: MAC Deep Feelings
Tear Duct: MAC Satisfy
Brows: Catrice Eye Brow Set
Mascara: Maybelline The Colossal Volume Waterproof Mascara
Eyeliner: Essence Gel Eyeliner

Lips
Essence Soft Rose Lip Liner

As there is so much going on with my eyes, I decided to keep the skin and lips fairly simple. I love using cranberry and burgundy colours during this time of the year! 

What's your favourite look for this time of the year?

Linda, x

FOTD: Natural Everyday Look

My everyday makeup routine usually involves some neutral eyeshadows, flawless skin and a little bit of contouring to the cheekbones. Sound like a lot? It's actually not and takes under 5 minutes for me to do.

Products used:

Rimmel Stay Matte Foundation in 100 Ivory,
Essence Cream Concealer,
Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in 003 Peach Glow,

Catrice Prime and Fine Highlighting Powder,

Urban Decay Naked and Buck eyeshadow as a contour.

Catrice Eye Brow Duo,
Urban Decay Naked and Buck eyeshadows,
Essence Get Big Lashes Volume Boost Mascara.

I don't wear makeup everyday but this is what I wear if I'm going somewhere important or if I have something planned.

What's your favourite everyday makeup products?

Linda, x

Rimmel Stay Matte Mousse Foundation REVIEW!

When I saw the newly formulated Rimmel Stay Matte Mousse foundation, I could hardly contain myself! I picked this up for €6.99.

I wasn't a fan of the original Stay Matte foundation so I had high hopes for this newly formulated one! The original texture of this foundation was a liquid but they've changed the texture to a mousse. Not a massive fan of mousse foundations but I was willing to give this baby a go!

There are six shades. The shade that I chose was 100 Ivory. Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation is available in Boots, Superdrug and pharmacies nationwide.

Right...let's get down and dirty! The claims that come with this foundation...

"A Feather-light, liquid mousse that blends flawlessly for natural-looking and an all day shine control
Silky smooth formula for a perfectly matte, baby-soft finish.
Lightweight texture won’t feel heavy or greasy.
Minimises the appearance of pores."

So let's tackle these claims! When blended into the skin, it definitely is feather weight! It does blend beautifully on the skin, leaving the face looking natural but beautifully flawless. Regarding the all day shine control, I disagree. After a short time after applying this, shine began showing through. It definitely doesn't feel heavy or greasy but the more foundation that I applied to the skin, it began to feel a little tacky on the skin. On first application, it definitely minimised my pores but I needed to apply a primer beforehand though because without it, the foundation settled into my pores.

So on to the review! On first application, I was impressed. Initially, I applied this with the Real Techniques Stippling Brush and then gave a little extra blending using the Real Techniques Buffing Brush. However, I preferred using the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. It gave an airbrushed finish to the skin. This evened out my skin tone beautifully and covered up redness around my chin and my nose very well. An added bonus too, I needed to use less concealer with this!

So before I go on, I should say that I have combination skin but it tends to be more oilier than dry. It's not extremely oily but I can't get away with not applying powder to those parts of my face so this foundation was formulated for people with my skin type.

Back to business! I have used this foundation everyday for a month and I can honestly say, I'm disappointed. When initially applied to the skin, it leaves the skin looking flawless and beautiful but that's where my love affair with this ends. It didn't leave my skin completely matte which, was disappointing. Obviously, if you apply a face powder to those parts of the face, you will mattify that area but as the foundation claims to be a matte foundation, I definitely expected it.

After an hour, I noticed that my face was beginning to get oily. By the second hour my face was considerably more oilier and the foundation had started to fade from those areas of my face. Plus, it had settled into my pores and the drier areas of my face. Let me tell you, this wasn't a pretty sight! By the fourth hour, it had completely worn off of my face. So disappointing!

With that being said, when I applied face powder to my face, the foundation lasts a little bit longer but not a lot longer. I only wear this foundation during the day, when I don't need to be anywhere important because there's too much touching up to be done with it.

So there you go! But, hey, that's just my opinion. What doesn't work for me, may be your holy grail product!

What tried and tested products are you disappointed with?

Linda, x

PS: I apologise for the quality of the lighting in these pictures. I'm still getting used to all of this! :)


Picture of Product Credit: http://ie.rimmellondon.com/

NOTD: Beige Style! 💅

Now that winters made it's debut here in Ireland, I usually love painting my nails darker colours. This year though, I'm leaning towards nude colours.

The colour that I'm loving at the moment is Rimmel Lycra Pro in Beige Style. 

What are your favourite nail polishes for Autumn/Winter? Any recommendations for me? 

Linda, x

October Favourites 💖

Now that Halloween's out of the way, we can all get excited about Christmas, right?!
But seriously though, how fast is this year going by?

This was a hectic month for me. With birthdays, parties and lots of other drama, this has been a crazy month but it was all gooood!

My favourites this month range from haircare to skincare and everything in between! So let's get down to business...

Last month, my best friend made my lifeless, unexciting hair into fabulous, beautiful ombré hair! The colour on the top part of my hair is a copper/brown and on the bottom is a dirty blonde colour. To keep the blonde part nourished and try to keep the brassiness away, I've been using the John Frieda Colour Renew Tone Correcting Shampoo. The conditioner I use is the John Frieda Go Blonder Lightening Conditioner. I love these two. They do an amazing job together!

Next is body moisturiser. The one that I have been loving recently is the Dove Intensive Nourishment Body Lotion for Extra Dry Skin. It does exactly what it says on the tin. My skin is noticeably more hydrated after just a short while of using it. LOVE!

As winter has well and truly arrived here in Ireland, my pale skin is in desperate need of some colour. My favourite (ever) tan is the Cocoa Brown Night and Day Tan. As I am so pale, I always find it hard to find a tan that actually looks natural on me, and this one definitely does just that! This winter, Cocoa Brown tan and I are going to be the best of friends!

As I've already mentioned, winter and the dreaded cold weather has arrived with a bang here in Ireland. Already, my skin, lips and hands are so dry. My holy grail lip balm for the past year has been the Burt's Bees Original Lip Balm. This is some serious stuff! A little piece of heaven in wax form! 😍

On to my favourite makeup products for ze month of October! For me, I always go back to the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation. No matter how many times I stray away, I always come back to this piece of amazingness. No other drugstore foundation ever compares to it for me! My favourite makeup tool to apply it? The Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. Check out my review here. For such a small, odd shaped thing, this thing can work wonders! *awkwardly hugs sponge*.

Last month, after hearing people say how surprisingly good they thought the Catrice Eyebrow Set was, I had to try it for myself. And I've got to admit, it is pretty good for the price. I think I paid €4.49 for this. It's a powder duo with a light brown and dark brown. I mix both together and it's a pretty dead on match for my brows. It's the only thing I have used on my eyebrows during October. The next two things are finds from Essence that I have been pleasantly surprised by. They're the Match 2 Cover Cream Concealer and Get Big Lashes Volume Boost Mascara. Both are great for everyday use and both save me a lot of money too! Bonus! 👍

I had to include the piece of jewellery that I have worn everytime I've gone out in October. It's a necklace - a black cross with diamonds in the middle. I think it looks beautiful for both casual wear or for a night out. It's from A-Wear and it's precious. So there.

With the arrival of October, saw the return of two of my favourite television shows The Walking Dead and Love/Hate. I adore this show. Both amazing shows definitely worth checking out if you haven't already.

So there you have it! My October favourites. What have your go to products for October been? What tv shows have you been loving?

Linda, x

Halloween Shenanigans! 🎃

When it comes to Halloween, I'm not really a massive fan of it but this year I really loved it and definitely got into the spirit of it! My nephew's excitement for Halloween was contagious. :)

Whilst watching The Nightmare Before Christmas, I got inspired by Jack Skellington. This was the finished look!

Judging by my nephew's reaction, I was afraid I'd scare the younger trick or treaters so I washed that off and this was the look I went for when bringing my nephew trick or treating! 

So now that Halloween's over, it means CHRISTMAS is only around the corner!! Exciting!!!

What did you do for Halloween this year? Did you know it's only 52 days until CHRISTMAS?!

Linda, x

The Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge REVIEW! 💖

I have heard so much about the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. So, when this little beauty caught my eye in Boots, I couldn't resist!

I picked this up for €5.89. Absolute bargain! 

The sponge is super soft and quite different to other sponges like the Beauty Blender in how it's shaped. It's egg shaped. At the top of the sponge, it has a tip but it's flat at the bottom is flat. At the opposite end, it's rounded. Unlike the Beauty Blender, you don't need to wet it but you still achieve the same result. You can use it damp but you achieve the same results, regardless.

So how do I use it? I pop some foundation, as usual, on the back of my hand. I pat a small amount it on to the flat side of the sponge. As usual, I start with the centre of my face. I stipple my foundation on with the flat part of the sponge. Like every other method when applying your base, less is always more. You can always apply more in the places where you need more coverage. 

Anyway, back to business! To ensure that the foundation I've already applied is blended, I turn the sponge around to the round part and again, in a stippling motion, I continue to blend it in. It blends it into the skin beautifully! It leaves you with a flawless finish.

One of my favourite things that about the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge, is that it minimises the appearance of my pores. It gives a flawless finish to my foundation without the foundation feeling heavy on my skin. This really is the perfect tool to use for your natural or daytime foundation!

I love this for blending in my concealer! I use the tip of the sponge in a stippling motion to blend it in. Concealer tends to crease and cake up under my eyes but I've found that, that happens less when I use the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. I also use this to apply my primer before I apply my foundation. I have found that my primer settles better into my pores because of using this sponge.

Here's a before and after, using the Real Texhniques Miracle Complexion Sponge.

Overall, I would award the real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge:

Packaging: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Performance: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Re-purchase?: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Real Techniques are fast becoming my favourite brand for makeup brushes. Their products are so easily accessible, affordable and very effective. 

If you see this baby lying around, I'd definitely recommend getting it! Believe me. You'll thank me for it! 👍

What makeup tool can you not live without? 

Love, Linda x

September Favourites

So, can you believe it's October already?! You know what that means, right? It's so close to Christmas! It's so close I can almost smell it! :)

Autumn is my favourite time of the year. I love the transition between Summer and Winter. Not just regarding the seasons but with fashion too. I love the darker, sophisticated colours, layering clothes, getting yo boots on, scarves. And of course there's the shorter evenings, hot chocolate, hoodies, duvet days watching Disney movies, the return of the X-Factor and of course the start of the season of one of my favourite things ever, rugby! (I'm a Leinster girl!)

Right, on to business! My 'September Favourites'.

I'll start with the peak and the pit of the month for me. One of the highlights of September for me was being a model for my best friend (who is a trainee hairdresser) for a hair competition. I had so much fun doing it! I now have amazing ombré hair thanks to Will. He is going to be an amazing hairdresser, and is proving it already. That wasn't the peak of the month for me though. It was getting to see my best friend more frequently. He is amazing and I'm so blessed to call him my best friend. :) The pit of my month was my aunt passing away. It really put things into perspective for me.

OK, on to my favourites.

This past month, my skin has been oilier than it's ever been. As a result of that, I've turned to my trusty Nivea Daily Essentials Light Moisturising Day Cream for Normal to Combination Skin. This is light weight, fast absorbing and doesn't leave my skin looking even oilier than before I applied it.

Something that has made a huge difference to my skin this month is, before brushing my teeth I apply a hydrating face mask to my face, *obviously* and let that work it's magic whilst I'm brushing my teeth. Then I wash it off and finish my usual morning skincare routine. I got this amazing tip from Lisa Eldridge's PMS video. It's something I've incorporated into my morning routine and it makes such a difference! The face mask that I use is Avon Planet Spa Mediterranean Olive Oil Hydrating Face Mask. Pure magic.

Something that has been very apparent during September, were my pores. *le sigh|*
Fear not! I had my new bessie mate to help me. Yep, it's the Garnier 5 Second Perfect Blur Smoothing Perfecting Primer. Without this piece of heaven I'd be lost! It's inexpensive and easily accessible. It's something I've recommended to my friends and would definitely recommend to you.

Towards the end of September, I woke up one morning and looked in the mirror and got the absolute shock of my life. My lips were so swollen, sore and slightly cracked. My top lip was enormous! *scarlet for me*. In that situation you would hope to look like Angelina Jolie. Nope, not me. It was more like looking at Mick Jagger! What caused it? Well, it was a bad reaction to a lip product. Thankfully, my Burt's Bees Lip Balm was on hand to help me out! I'd apply Vaseline first, let that absorb and then apply my Burt's Bees lip balm about 20 times a day. *I'm actually serious*. It took a week for my lips to get back to normal but thankfully they're back to their usual uneven selves again!

My 'go to' foundation and concealer during September was Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation and Inglot Cream Concealer. My favourite makeup brushes were the Real Techniques Buffing Brush, Real Techniques Stippling Brush and Real Techniques Contouring Brush. I love Real Techniques which was created by the amazing Sam Chapman. None of my other makeup brushes compare to my Real Techniques ones. If they're available to you, I'd definitely recommend you getting them! Such amazing quality and really inexpensive too!

I can't let this post go without mentioning something that I have used everyday since I got it. That's my beloved Urban Decay Naked Palette. All of my other eyeshadows are very neglected at the moment at the expense of this piece of amazingness!

My favourite song that has inspired me this past month is the amazing The Script Hall of Fame. I love The Script's music, I just relate to it so much. Their album '3' is one of my favourite albums of all time. Love it! :)

So, there you have it! My 'September Best Bits'.
What's yours?

Linda, x

PS., here's a picture of my new hair! :)

A Bit of Bloglovin', baby!

So one of the things that I don't get along with when blogging...the technical side of things! Man can that stuff get complimicated?! Seriously, when it comes to me and anything that isn't my phone, there is bound to be a problem!

The whole, Google+, Blogger, Wordpress thing was starting to become a pain in the arse because I barely understand any of it and then this beauty came to my attention! It is SO easy to follow all your favourite blogs over on there! An added bonus, if you have an iPhone or an iPad, you can also download their free app in the App Store! I KNOW...AMAZE! I now only use Blogger to compose my blogposts. THIS is my new best friend!

OK, enough of the rambling! If you're feeling generous, feel free to click the link to give me an auld follow! :)

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/10660023/?claim=uatd8fueh9j">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Feel free to leave me your links below in the comments too! I'm always excited to find new blogs!

Linda, x

Welcome To 'My Make-up Vanity!

Hey and welcome to 'My Makeup-Up Vanity'. So after a few unsuccessful attempts to start and keep a blog up and running, I find myself here with yet another new blog. Why, I hear you pondering? Well, to be honest with you, I love blogging but over the past few months, I have been feeling quite down. Blogging became a chore. I was unmotivated, unhappy and was being a down right pain in the arse! What's that got to do with my blog? Well, I found that my posts were starting to portray those feelings and nobody wants to be a negative Nancy, eh?! Now, I know that my blogs weren't a huge success but I really love it and I believe in giving something 100% or nothing at all, and that's what I did so I stopped even trying. But, I'm in a better place so I've decided why not start off fresh and work harder than I ever have and actually ENJOY blogging!

Anyway enough of the babble...

You're wondering what you'll find here? The usual makeup and beauty reviews, makeup looks (both celebrity inspired and my own creations too), my beauty finds, hair care, nail tutorials and general randomness thrown into the mix too!

Don't be afraid to leave me a comment. I don't bite (unless you're Johnny Depp, that's a different story)... :)

Linda, x