What's In My Makeup Bag?

I store all of my makeup collection in some acrylic drawers from Homebase but I keep the stuff I tend to wear on a daily basis inside my makeup bag. I bought this from MAC a few years ago & it's still going strong. It is the signature medium rectangle bag. It's a good size as it can hold a lot of stuff and has a separate pocket to keep my brushes in. I tend to keep far too many things in here as I like to have a little bit of choice when it comes to what I'm gonna use that day. I would clear some of the products out but I just like too many things! Anyway here's a little peak at some of my most used makeup products.

Dr Jart+ Water Fuse BB Cream / Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation / Laura Mercier Foundation Primer
By Terry Touche Veloutee / Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer / Bobbi Brown Creamy Corrector
Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer

I keep a couple of different base products in my bag to use depending on how my skin is behaving & how much time I have to get ready. If I have time I prefer to use the Laura Mercier Silk Creme applied with a Beautyblender. If I'm running late a blob of the Dr Jart BB cream mixed with a tiny dot of the Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer helps to even out my skin and hide some of my blemishes & scarring. The BB cream alone is far too dark & sheer for me so adding the Sensual Skin Enhancer lightens it up & adds a bit more coverage. I use a few different concealers but tend to just go for some of the Bobbi Brown Creamy Corrector under my eyes most days.

Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch Primer / Illamasqua Naked Rose Blusher / NARS Deep Throat Blusher / theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer / MAC Omega Eyeshadow / Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette

As well as the Laura Mercier Foundation Primer I also keep the Clarins Instant Smooth one in my bag. The Clarins primer is better if I want to hide my pores & smooth over my skin so I use this one more often. I love blushers & have tons in my collection but the ones I've been using most are NARS Deep Throat & Illamasqua Naked Rose. They're both nice peachy pinks that add a much needed burst of colour to my complexion. My go-to highlighter is theBalm's Mary-Lou Manizer, I recommend this product for anyone who wants a highly metallic sheen to their skin. It's one of the most pigmented I've tried & really makes my skin glow. I use the Urban Decay Naked Basics palette every day as it's a great selection of neutral colours that are ideal for day or night. If I fancy using a powder to fill in my eyebrows I opt between the shade Naked2 from this palette and MAC's Omega eyeshadow.

Givenchy Noir Couture Mascara* / MAC Clear Brow Set / NUXE Reve De Miel Lip Balm / Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes Mascara / Benefit They're Real Mascara / MAC Fling Eye Brow Pencil / Anastasia Granite Tinted Brow Gel / Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara / Beaute Girlina Weightless Lip Creme / L'Oreal Carbon Gloss Superliner / Revlon Strawberry Shortcake Lip Butter / Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion / MAC NC15/NW20 Pencil
LORAC Front Of The Line Pro Eyeliner / SUQQU Eyebrow Liquid Pen

I have four mascaras in here which is probably overkill! At the minute I like to layer the last dregs of my Lancome Doll Eyes mascara with Benefit They're Real mascara and then use the Clinique mascara on my bottom lashes to stop them smudging. I didn't really like They're Real to begin with but it's starting to get better as it dries out a bit. Still clinging on to the Lancome one though! There's some more eye brow products here depending on how I want them to look. I love brushing on some of the Anastasia Tinted Brow Gel when I don't have time to fill them in properly. I have lip products galore but I tend to go for the Beaute Lip Creme or Revlon Lip Butter as I do love a nice pink lip. I use the L'Oreal Superliner to do my regular cat flick but the LORAC one is amazing for really thin lines. I use this to fill in any tiny gaps, neaten the end of the flick & sometimes I draw on bottom lashes with it a la Twiggy. And I can't go a day without using my MAC NC15/NW20 pencil on my lower lash line to brighten up my eyes.

Real Techniques Buffing Brush / Real Techniques Contour Brush x2 / Real Techniques Setting Brush / Sigma Tapered Highlighter Brush / Real Techniques Brow Brush / Laura Mercier Double Ended Eye Brow Brush / MAC 239 Brush / MAC 222 Brush / MAC 219 Brush / MAC 227 Brush / Tweezerman Tweezers / Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

I keep a few essential brushes in here but often dip into my brush pots when I'm getting ready. I typically apply foundation with a Beautyblender (but I keep that in a separate jar) or the Real Techniques Buffing Brush. I always keep two of the Contour Brushes in here - one for blending concealer & one for applying blusher. I use the setting brush with some loose powder to set under my eyes and the Sigma brush to apply highlighter. There's two angled brushes in here but they're quite different, the Real Techniques one is better for lining my eyes with black eyeshadow & the Laura Mercier one is my favourite eye brow brush. The bristles are a lot stiffer so it works a lot better. I also keep several eyeshadow brushes in here but I probably use the MAC 219 the most as I like to apply some brown eyeshadow under my eyes with it. Finally I have my tweezers & eyelash curlers, total essentials for me & you can't get better than Tweezerman & Shu Uemura.

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Favourite Products Of 2011

I have probably spent more on makeup in the last 12 months than in any other year of my life. It sure is expensive work being a beauty blogger! Luckily it means that I've found some products that I really love and can see myself using for a long time to come. Here are some of my favourite things that I used last year. I liked a lot more stuff than what I've listed here but these are the products that really stood out to me.


Skincare
Clarisonic Mia / Liz Earle Eyebright / Dermalogica Active Moist
The best thing that I invested in last year was my Clarisonic Mia. There is no other skincare product or treatment out there that compares to what this will do for your skin. I love how it makes my skin look, almost like I've had a spa facial every time I wash my face. I love all the Liz Earle products that I've tried so far. I use Cleanse & Polish with my Clarisonic & follow up with their Skin Tonic too. Eyebright is a bit of a wonder product as it instantly cools & refreshes your eyes. Its brilliant if you've had too many late nights or need to look & feel more awake. Active Moist has been my favourite moisturiser for a while now. Its perfect on my normal/combination skin type. I haven't really liked any of the moisturisers I tried last year so I'll be sticking with this one for the foreseeable future.


Haircare
Tangle Teezer / Kerastase Ciment Thermique / Batiste XXL Volume Dry Shampoo / Frédéric Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Cream
For anyone still wondering if Tangle Teezers work, yes they do & mine has saved me from some pretty horrific knots. I still really like the Kerastase Ciment Thermique & I don't think that any other heat protection product compares to this one. The grapefruit scent lingers on your hair & its absolutely beautiful. I only recently managed to purchase the XXL Volume Batiste as its been really hard to track it down. Its literally always sold out. I'm so glad I got this as although it does make your hair feel like utter crap, it does give you lots of volume. Just whack some serum on afterwards and you're good to go. The Brilliant Glossing Cream is kinda like a cream version of Moroccanoil so it helps to weigh down your hair more. Some people won't like that but I do as it means less flyaways & a more polished looking hairdo.


Base
Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation / Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer / Bobbi Brown Corrector / MAC Pearl Cream Colour Base / Illamasqua Hollow Cream Pigment / MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural / Dior Amber Diamond
Last year I became obsessed with finding the perfect base products. I bought a ton of different products but these are my favourites and I use all of these every day. Illamasqua's Skin Base Foundation has been a revelation. I finally have a foundation that matches my exact skintone and has no SPF in which stops the 'ghost face' that Estee Lauder Double Wear used to inflict upon me. Like everyone else I love that Collection 2000 concealer. Its practically opaque & covers pretty much everything. I couldn't live without my Bobbi Brown Corrector as although the Collection 2000 concealer is really good, this product colour corrects my dark circles making me look really awake & like I've slept for 12 hours each night. MAC MSF Natural has been my fave powder for ages, I just wear this with some concealer if I have no time at all to get ready. When I use the Illamasqua foundation I just use this to powder under my eyes because otherwise my mascara ends up all over my face. Pearl Cream Colour Base & Amber Diamond are the perfect highlighting duo. I've bought more highlighters than I can count in 2011 and these are the best of the best. I like a lot of glow so using a cream under the powder makes my cheeks look super shiny & it lasts all day. Hollow Cream Pigment is something I only bought recently but it is the best contour product ever.


Eyes
Lancome Doll Eyes Mascara / L'Oreal Carbon Gloss Superliner / HD Brows Palette / MAC Shroom & Patina Eyeshadows / MAC NC15/NW20 Pencil
The mascara that I've most recently fallen in love with is the Lancome Doll Eyes one. When I first got it the formula was a lot more fluid and didn't really give me the volume I wanted. But as it dried up a bit it got thicker and it is everything I could want in a mascara. It makes my lashes super long, thick & black. I use the L'Oreal eyeliner on a daily basis as I think I look weird without it. This one is really black, long lasting and pretty cheap too which makes it the best eyeliner I've bought this year. I love the eyebrow powders in the HD Brows Palette, they're so pigmented and just brilliant. I only use the one in the bottom right corner as the others don't suit me but I use the others as eyeshadows so its a fab product. The eyeshadows I've reached for most are Shroom & Patina by MAC. I don't really wear eyeshadow much but these are subtle enough for everyday wear. I love this MAC eyeliner pencil as it makes my eyes look bigger & brighter without being a really obvious white line.


Blusher
Illamasqua Katie / Illamasqua Thrust / NARS Deep Throat / Topshop Head Over Heels
I like to wear a lot of blush as it adds some pretty colour to my deathly pallor which saves me from bronzing my whole face to an unnatural colour. My fave blusher at the moment is NARS Deep Throat, I think its the perfect colour for me with just the right amount of sparkle. I adore Illamasqua's powder blushers. Katie is a lovely pastel pink & Thrust is a bright magenta. It looks so scary in the pan but its a gorgeous colour if you apply it with a light hand & blend it properly. I want to try some of Illamasqua's cream blushers next as they seem really good too. The only cream blushers I own are from Topshop but they are great quality for the price. I like the shade Head Over Heels best as its a very pretty peachy colour thats perfect for Summer.


Lip Products
Philosophy Kiss Me Tonight / Beaute Wanted Weightless Lip Creme / MAC Hue Lipstick / MAC Enchantée Kissable Lip Colour
I bought a lot of lipsticks this year. In order to keep my lips lovely & smooth I use Philosophy's Kiss Me Tonight lip treatment. Its a balm that you put on before you go to bed and you wake up with beautifully soft lips. I also put some on before I do my makeup then blot it off when I'm ready to apply my lipstick. I bought the Beaute Weightless Lip Creme in Wanted after I heard that Kristen Stewart loves it. Its a lovely nude thats halfway between a lipstick and gloss. The MAC Kissable Lip Colours from their Peacocky collection use a similar formula. I love the colour Enchantée which is a cool toned bright pink. My fave everyday lipstick is MAC Hue. Its the most perfect pinky nude that looks brilliant on everyone.


Nail Polishes
Illamasqua Jo'Mina / Models Own Utopia / Models Own Pink Punch / Barry M Peach Melba
This was such a hard decision as I adore all the nail polishes I bought last year and believe me, I bought a lot! These ones stood out to me as unique colours that I always get complimented on. They all apply really well and don't chip too badly with some Seche Vite on top.

May Favourites

Bobbi Brown Corrector
Sometimes when I apply concealer I notice that my dark circles are still really noticeable. This is because concealers tend to cover up just one colour shade. In order to really eradicate dark circles you need a different coloured corrector underneath. This product is the perfect dark circle corrector. It blends easily, doesn't cake under the eyes and it really does help to brighten your whole face. I would suggest getting matched at a counter as the colour of your dark circles will define whether you need a bisque or peach shade rather than your skin tone. I use Light Bisque and find that it is the perfect colour for me. You only need the tiniest amount too as you pat it directly onto the discolouration rather than underneath your whole eye. It works amazingly well with the Collection 2000 concealer.

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer
I had to see for myself why this concealer was getting so much hype. It really does its job well. The quality of this product is pretty much on par with the Estee Lauder Doublewear Concealer so its definitely worth the miniscule price tag. I prefer this to the Doublewear one as the Fair shade I use is actually a bit lighter, meaning that my under eye circles are barely visible & any imperfections are pretty much eradicated from sight. I like to use my Bobbi Brown corrector, apply my Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua with a MAC 187 brush and then blend this into my skin with the same brush. Flawless skin in a flash.

Liz Earle Eyebright Soothing Eye Lotion
Although every Liz Earle product is perfectly lovely, my favourite would have to be Eyebright. This was especially welcome on my eyes this morning after getting drunk last night. Its so cooling and refreshing on my skin. This is the perfect cure for tired, puffy eyes and it really helps to wake me up in the morning. It works even better if you keep it in the fridge.

L'Oreal Renewal Lash Serum
I posted about it when I first bought this product and now I've had a chance to trial it properly I can safely say its worked wonders for my lashes. All the gaps in my eyelashes have filled in and its helped my eyebrows to grow a lot too. I still don't like the applicator as I don't think it fits around my lashes properly making it really cumbersome to actually put on. The actual serum however works really well and is a lot cheaper than the likes of RapidLash.

Beaute Luminous Volume Gloss
I have a lot of Beaute lip products as I love the colours, the application, the feel and the longevity. The only thing I dislike about them is the price tag which is quite frankly ludicrous. This lipgloss cost a whopping £21! If you're willing to pay that however you're left with a magical product. It plumps up your lips slightly giving you really lovely kissable lips. The formula is a bit on the sticky side but I think that helps the lipgloss to last. This shade is called Medusa and its a gorgeous creamy pink beige. Its all I've worn on my lips lately. It photographs beautifully which I think is probably why all the Beaute lip products are favourites of many celebrities. I also love love love the Weightless Lip Cremes.



Ben & Jerry's Fairly Nuts Ice Cream
Mmm this is the best ice cream I've tasted in ages. Got this by accident as Asda didn't have any Cookie Dough left. Its caramel ice cream with praline almond clusters & caramel swirls. I could sit here right now and eat a whole tub. Yum.



Bones
I harp on a lot about how much I love Bones on Twitter but this show has been my life for the past month. Every night before bed I watch a couple of episodes and have almost made my way through the whole box set. I'm halfway through season 5 at the moment. Seriously its so good. If you like crime solving shows with amazing character development & interaction then you need to watch Bones. Apparently the 6th season isn't as good but I'll still download it. Dreading the inevitable drain that will be on my bandwidth allowance! Now that I've nearly finished watching this, I'm looking for some new TV shows to watch. Any recommendations? Pretty much all the good shows have finished for the Summer and the only thing to look forward to now is True Blood. Tell me your faves!

Silver Hair & Some Goodies

Yesterday I finally went back to Cutting Room Creative in Leeds and got my roots done. I'd not been since February so they were looking pretty horrendous. This time I asked them to tone it really silvery and I'm really happy with how its turned out. The horrible yellow banding I had from getting my roots done last time has completely gone with this application of toner too. Its quite nice having my hair all one colour for a change haha! For anyone trying to get a silver look they used a L'Oreal Luocolor P01 toner, which you can buy at Sallys.

Considering Leeds has loads of nice shops that we don't have here I figured I would indulge in some retail therapy after my appointment. I popped into Space.NK and got a Nars illuminator in Copacabana & blush in Deep Throat. Seriously in love with both of these bad boys. I've bought a million different highlighters, (some as recently as last week!) but once I swatched this one on my hand I knew it was a bit special. It really is dazzling on the skin. I used it under my foundation as well as over and my skin looks positively gleaming. I found it hard to choose between all the blushers. I was so tempted to go for Orgasm or Super Orgasm but I chose Deep Throat because it has more of a silvery sheen to it rather than the gold sheen of the Orgasm family. Its a lot pinker too rather than peachy so I felt it would suit my skintone better. 'Tis a beaut!

I also went into House Of Fraser to get a Bobbi Brown creamy concealer kit. This product is an old favourite of mine and I much prefer it to MAC's Studio Finish concealer. I find that it completely hides my dark circles & blends into the rest of my makeup a lot easier. They recently repackaged & reformulated it & my old one had run out quite a while ago. I'm so glad that they changed the loose powder to pressed as it was always really messy & most of the powder ended up down my top. The change in packaging is definitely an upgrade too as both the concealer & powder are on the same part & you get a nice mirror too. This product is a complete essential for me.