WINTER DATE NIGHT MAKE UP

Although I'm starting to get excited for spring, I'm still clutching on to the wintry reds, shimmery golds and frosty pastels. Since getting engaged, me and Alex have been enjoying going out more to celebrate and I've been wearing this make up look non stop on our date nights and days out.

I really love to wear frosty pastels in the winter and MAC Well Dressed (swatched here) is the perfect powdery cool pink blusher to wear together with a long lasting bold red matte lip, like Nars Cruella (full review and swatched here). 

On my eyes, I've been wearing a mixture of the rose and gold shades in Nars Alhambra, which is a beautiful eyeshadow duo that really brightens up the eye area. It's one of my favourite eyeshadow duo's and is great to take away with you travelling, see swatches here. I've also just recently repurchased my current favourite mascara, L'Oreal Miss Manga mascara which I apply after curling my lashes with my Shu Uemura eyelash curlers for long, fluttery lashes.

On my nails, I love wearing an ombre glitter accent finger and Essie Summit of Style is such a pretty bronze glitter that seems to work well with any dark nail polish.

Lastly, for highlighter, Topshop Glow highlighter in Polish is one of my all time favourites. There's something ethereal about the colour of this Topshop highlighter and it gives a such a beautiful luminescent glow. See me wearing it here.

What are your favourite date night products?

NARS DIGITAL WORLD LIP PENCIL COFFRET

Nars is one of my favourite make up brands and after being so impressed with the quality, pigmentation and texture of their blushers and eyeshadows I've been wanting to branch out and try a few more Nars products, especially Nars lip pencils.

I thought that the Nars Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret would be a great way to test out a few of the different Nars lip pencil finishes and shades, It's pretty good value for money at £32 for five shades and includes the beautiful acrylic box that they are contained in. The lip pencils are smaller in size than the normal 2.4g £18 pencils, these weigh in at 1.7g-1.8g making each pencil in this set £6.40 each, even though these pencils would normally work out at around £13.

Nars Digital World Lip pencil coffret contains five travel sized lip pencils - three are satin lip pencils and two velvet matte lip pencils. The bold shades are stunning and although initially I was concerned that the nude shades wouldn't suit my skintone, they look really pretty as a sheer wash of colour on the lips.

The shades included in the set (in swatched order above) are:

Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Yu - A beautiful blue toned shocking fuchsia pink.

Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Torres Del Paine - A pretty peach coral. 

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Iberico - A bold orange red.

Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Descanso - A peach-pink nude.

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella - A blue toned scarlet red.

These Nars Lip pencils all have great pigmentation, last well on the lips and are a nice formula. The only downside is that you have to sharpen these pencils which will waste some of the product.

All in all these Nars lip pencils didn't disappoint, I have my eye on Nars base products next!

WINTER BLUSHERS

As it's been getting colder I've been changing my make up and adding frosty pastels and rich winter tones to my make up routine. These are the blushers that I've added to my make up bag for winter:

Nars Dolce Vita: This deep, rose red blush is extremely pigmented and gives my cheeks a pretty rosy glow. You only need the smallest amount of this blusher to give you long lasting berry cheeks. I've been loving wearing Nars Dolce Vita with MAC all that glitters on my eyes, winged liner and Revlon Lip balm in crush on my lips and the combination is so pretty and great for Winter.

MAC Well Dressed: For the days when I want something a bit more subtle on my cheeks I opt for MAC well dressed. I love wearing frosty pastels in winter and this powdery cool pale pink blush really works well with a pastel bobble hat, shimmery champagne eyeshadow and MAC Soft & Gentle highlighter.

Sleek Blush by 3 in Sugar*: This contains three highly pigmented blushers that are perfect for Winter. The berry red shade is similar to Nars Dolce Vita, but with brighter red tones. The middle shade applies as a deep wine with copper tones running through it, it's such a beautiful shade that reminds me of a deeper version of my all time favourite blush, Sleek rose gold. The warm matte orange shade has peach undertones and looks so pretty with shimmery eyes and subtle pink lips.

Which blushers have you been wearing this Winter?

CHRISTMAS DAY MAKE UP

I can't believe it's Christmas tomorrow!

Every Christmas Eve, Alex drops me off at my mum's and me and my brother have a little tradition of watching Christmas films and eating festive treats. I've brought with me a festive collection of make up to wear tomorrow, my nails are already freshly painted with Essie Bordeaux but I have packed Essie rock at the top - a gold glitter as an option to add on top later.

I'm planning on priming my skin with Seventeen Skin Wow highlighting primer which is a shimmery iridescent pearl/pink primer to help to give my skin and foundation a dewy glow. For my eyes, I've opted for L'Oreal Color Riche Mono Eyeshadow in 205 Sable lamé (swatched here), as it has light gold glitter running through it to make my eyes look shimmery and sparkly on Christmas day.

For my cheeks, I've packed thebalm Mary Lou Manizer highligter which is a pigmented shimmery champagne highlighter. It works so well on the top of your cheekbones, under the brow bone and in the inner corners of your eyes. For blusher, I've chosen Nars Orgasm to give me warm golden peachy pink cheeks.

I'm keeping my lips simple with just a swipe of lip balm. I would brave a red lip but with all the chocolate and veggie roast dinner I plan on eating tomorrow, I'm not sure it would last! 

What are your plans for Christmas day?

FOUR EYESHADOW PALETTES

I love eyeshadow palettes because they work well in my make up kit, you generally get more for your money and they're great to take away with you when you travel! Here are four of my current favourite eyeshadow palettes: 

Sleek Oh So Special palette*: As with all Sleek eyeshadows that I've tried, the shades are all really pigmented and the palettes are really affordable for such great quality. I own a couple of other Sleek palettes (Storm and Au Naturel palette) but this is definitely my favourite. The colour selection is beautiful, perfect to create festive make up looks and it is also great as an every day palette. I've been loving wearing this throughout autumn as it contains quite a few matte shades which go perfectly with a bold berry lip.

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette: This was at the top of my Christmas wish list last year and a beautiful palette full of shimmery rose golds and coppery bronzes. I love using this palette when I want to go for a more girly look, you can create soft pink smokey eyes, or use the muted dusky pink and purple browns in the crease for definition. For a full review and swatches click here.

Nars And God Created the Woman palette: - Like the Sleek palette, the Nars shades are all so pigmented and long lasting on the eyes. Nars eyeshadows are so buttery in texture and all the shades in this palette are perfect for autumn. This Nars palette is great for travelling as the packaging is small and feels sturdy and the shades are so versatile and can take you easily from day to night.

Stila in the light palette: This is the newest addition to my palettes and I've just recently written a full review and swatched the palette here. This has become my current everyday palette. It's perfect for the transition into winter and has a great mixture of mattes and shimmery shades.

Which are your favourite eyeshadow palettes?

AUTUMN BLUSHERS

I'm drifting away from bright summer blushers and adding warmer, richer autumnal tones into my make up routine. I'm really missing a subtle plum blusher from my collection, I would love any suggestions for pretty plum shades please!

MAC Warm Soul - When you need to add a warm glow to dull skin on a gloomy day, this blusher really delivers. It is a pretty, beige pink blusher with golden shimmer running through it. It really brightens and adds a glow to your skin.

Bourjois Healthy Mix - This orange toned blusher can be built up to a slightly burnt orange colour that really warms the complexion and looks pretty autumnal. It works really well with MAC woodwinked on the eyes and Topshop infrared lipstick dabbed lightly on the lips. You can see it swatched and worn here.

Nars Orgasm - Although this golden peachy pink blusher is also well suited for the summer months, It shows up as a pigmented, deep warm pink on my skin tone. I love wearing this to give me a flush of colour to my cheeks and have been wearing it together with the sleek storm palette in this autumn make up look.

Sleek Suede - The perfect blush to wear with a strong autumnal berry lip. This matte blush is a neutral peach brown that is similar to MAC gingerly. It works well with strong lips or eyes as it sculpts the face and brings warmth and colour whilst staying neutral.

Benefit Benetint - For a natural, wind bitten flush of colour to your cheeks Benefit Benetint is great for autumn and winter. It gives a subtle but buildable rosy glow to your cheeks. You have to work quite quickly with this to blend it in with your fingers in an upwards circular motion, I follow just under my cheekbones to get the right place for me.

What are your favourite autumn blushers?

AUTUMN MAKE UP

I've been wearing this look along with last year's copper eyes & red lips look a lot throughout September so far. I've also dyed my hair a bit darker this year and I'm so tempted to add a hint of plum through the ends!

For this autumnal make up look I used two colours from the Sleek storm palette that actually remind me of the infamous and now discontinued Estee Lauder Raisins. I applied MAC bare study as an eyeshadow base before sweeping the light pink colour from the storm palette all over my lids. I then blended the deep cranberry colour into the outer corner of my eye and up into the crease. I also ran it under my lower lash line for definition. For my brows I used Rimmel professional eyebrow pencil in dark brown and lined my eyes with a small flick using collection fast stroke liner.

For my base, I used Bourjois healthy mix foundation as it gives a nice dewy finish and is buildable to a medium coverage. I applied the bobbi brown corrector in bisque under my eyes to counteract any dark circles and swept Nars Orgasm blusher onto my cheeks to give me a flush of colour. I dabbed a bit of Topshop glow highlighter in polish to the tops of my cheeks and under my brow bone and finished with a touch of MAC Brave lipstick on my lips.

What make up have you been wearing this autumn?

FAIL SAFE BEAUTY PRODUCTS: EYES AND LIPS

I love finding products that always deliver great results and make me feel good when I use them. I can always count on these products to work for me, whether it's to brighten up a gloomy day, soften my lips or brighten up my eyes!

MAC Eye Kohl in Powersurge: This golden, shimmery antique bronze eyeliner is perfect smudged under the lower lash line. It glides on so easily and really brings out your eyes. This really is a lovely eye pencil for everyday wear especially throughout autumn.

Nars Eyeshadow Duo in Alhambra: This rose, golden duo gives a beautiful sheen of colour to your eyes. It really brightens the eye area bringing light and a pretty glow. For a full review and swatches click here.

Lush Mint Julips lip scrub: The smell of mint chocolate and the promise of smooth lips makes me so excited to use this as the months get colder. This lovely little sugar scrub works so well at buffing away any dry patches on your lips leaving them soft and smooth. 

Revlon Just Bitten Balm Stain in Lovesick: To brighten up a gloomy day, I always reach for Revlon Lovesick. This balm stain is a bright pink with a hint of purple that lasts ages on the lips, keeps them feeling moisturised and is so easy for quick application on the go.

What are your fail safe beauty products?

MAKE UP ADDITIONS FOR AUTUMN

As the days are slowly getting colder, i've been switching up my make up and adding little autumn touches to my routine. I've been starting to add warm browns and matte mauves to my eyes, a pink flush of colour to my cheeks and a hint of cherry to my lips. I've also been enjoying applying my foundation with a foundation brush to give me a bit more coverage.

Nars and God created the woman palette: This palette is stunning and perfect for autumn. The colours are all so beautiful and as with most Nars eyeshadows that I've tried, really pigmented and buttery in texture. I've been running Galapagos (a warm brown with gold flecks) under my eyes and Kalahari (a warm taupe with shimmer) all over my lids.

Benefit Posie tint: Although this is great as a summer blusher, benefit posie tint gives such a natural, barely there flush of slightly cool toned pink to your cheeks that I think it works well as a transitional blusher for autumn too.

Topshop Highlighter Glow in Polish: This is one of my favourite highlighters, as with all topshop highlighters i've tried there's something ethereal about the colour of them.  It blends really well to give a beautiful luminescent glow and you only need to use such a little amount - a little really does go such a long way with this topshop highlighter

Maybelline baby lips in Cherry Me: This gives the perfect hint of cherry/berry red, hinting at an autumn lip without being too bold. I like to wear it quite sheer on my lips but it can be build up to a glossy but still subtle cherry red lip.

Have you been adding any autumn make up additions to your routine?

DATE NIGHT MAKE UP

Me and Alex rarely go on date nights, instead if we want to spend time together then we normally put our jammies on, make some chocolate covered popcorn and watch films, play lego games on his Xbox the or bake! When we do go out on a date night I like to make a bit of an effort, using luxurious items and some of my favourite products:

For my nails I love wearing Nails Inc Tate as it's such a lovely dark cherry red, it gives a touch of sophistication and lasts well on my nails.

For blusher, I'm normally drawn to Nars Orgasm. Probably one of the most well known blushers in the blogosphere, it's such a pretty golden peachy pink that gives a lovely flush of colour to your cheeks.

My favourite lipstick at the moment is Revlon Sultry Samba which is a bright cool toned matte pink. I like to pat a small amount of this onto my lips and rub it in to make a stain so that it's long lasting and a bit more subtle on the lips.

For highlighter I love MAC Soft & Gentle, it's probably my all time favourite champagne highlighter. It gives such a beautiful glow and you only need a small amount brushed on the top of your cheekbones and on the brow bone to really make your skin look luminous and glowing.

I always reach for MAC eyeshadows to wear on evenings out and I love to use my MAC Quad when I want to create a subtle date night look. I use Naked Lunch all over the eyelid and then Sable blended into the outer corner and under the eye to give a subtle smokey eye. The plum pearl in sable really helps to bring out the brown in my eyes whilst Naked lunch (a pretty champagne pink) really helps to brighten and open my eyes.

I then add some winged liner, my accessorize statement necklace and I'm ready to go!

What are your favourite date night products?

NARS DUO EYESHADOWS

Nars is one of my favourite make up brands, these eyeshadow duos are so pretty, they're really pigmented, long lasting without creasing and buttery in texture meaning they blend so easily and effortlessly. These duo's are great for travelling if you don't want to bring a whole palette away with you, I took Alhambra away with me to Vienna last December and loved wearing it every day!

Alhambra is a beautiful natural duo consisting of a 'mellalic rose mist' and 'golden champagne'. These colours really brighten up the eye area and are subtle enough for every day wear. There are a few great combinations you can do with this duo, I like to wear the rose colour all over the eye and the gold in the inner corners and slightly under the eye. It gives a pretty, girly look whilst bringing light to the eyes. 

Violetta is great for a purple smudgy, smoky eye. It consists of a 'smoky lavender' and a 'soft metallic violet'. I love wearing the violet shade under the eye to bring out the brown in my eyes and for a hint of colour, also applying the smoky lavender first and blending the violet over the top creates a fuss free quick smoky eye.

Have you tried any Nars eyeshadow duo's? I've got my eye on the Sugarland duo next!

January's 'Pink' Favourites

These are my current favourite 'Pinks'. During January's dreary rainy days, a pop of pink felt like just what I needed to brighten up my days!

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette - My full review of this palette is here. I've been wearing 'Dust' all over the lid and 'Nooner' in the crease and under the lower lashes a lot this month which is great for a pretty and natural every day look.

Nars Orgasm - Nars blushers are lovely, so pigmented long lasting and such pretty colours. I'm looking to expand my collection soon as I've been loving this pretty pink shade so much!

Revlon Lip Butter Sweet Tart - This gives a pretty bright pink lip without looking too bold. It's my favourite lip butter shade, I feel it brightens up my complexion and is easy to apply for a sheer pink lip.

Essie A cut above - A pink gitter nail varnish with various sized glitter chunks, I've loved wearing this over a grey nail varnish this month. Full review here

So far in February I've been lusting after Nars Gina and Luster and reaching for Revlon Audacious Matte balm and Revlon Lip butter in Tutti Frutti. Something tells me the theme for this month is going to be orange!

xx