Take Cover: My Favourite Concealers

Concealers. You name the brand, and I've tried it. Liquid, cream, drugstore or counter, I don't discriminate: if it's a great product, I'm all over it. Or more appropriately, it's all over me. Of all the contents of my many makeup bags, drawers and cupboards (I'd be a bag blogger if I only had one makeup bag...), it's probably the one I'd fight hardest to keep, as having skin that looks clear and even-toned is my biggest basic beauty goal.

Despite several months of blogging, this is my first comparison post, and given that I've owned just about every concealer on the market, I thought it would be a pretty good place to start!

I should point out that, although Estee Lauder Double Wear is in the photo, it's not reviewed here. I've only had it a couple of weeks and not sure it makes it into my 'favourites' list quite yet! Thanks to Holly for pointing out the potential confusion!

Affordable and effective: Maybelline's Pure Liquid Mineral Concealer, £6.19

This one is an old favourite of mine. Super affordable and long wearing, it gives great coverage and unsurprisingly, it works fantastically well with the Pure Mineral liquid and powder foundations, both of which I'm a fan of. It only comes in three shades, so you may not get a perfect match, but its definitely worth a swatch to see if this works for you. I tended to only use this under my eyes, but got great results with it.

MAC Select Cover-Up and Studio Finish, both £13.50

This is more a question of texture preference and purpose than anything else, as the Select Cover-Up is a liquid, and Studio Finish a cream. Studio Finish has the advantage of being water-resistant, so it's perfect for holidays, and Select Cover-Up has a nice, brightening effect yet gives good coverage. Invest in a brush for Studio Finish (Boots No. 7 concealer brush is great value)

Benefit LemonAid, £16.50

Although not strictly a concealer (it's an eyelid brightener/primer), I couldn't miss this one out. A sweep of this over lids leaves them looking bright and fresh, and it's also a great base for your eye makeup, so this is a good product to have anyway. It also has another use not mentioned on the box. This yellow-tinged product is fantastic at neutralising particularly dark circles on fair skins better than any concealer alone can. You need to add a layer of flesh-toned liquid concealer or foundation on top of it (it leaves the skin looking abnormally bright otherwise) but I guarantee it perks up even the sleepiest eyes!

And now for my holy grail concealer...

Giorgio Armani High Precision Retouch, around £27.50

This liquid is the daddy of all concealers for me, and having tried several other products since using it, I can't see myself straying. Dark circles are blasted with a hit of vitamin E and the product contains pearl which diffuses light and gives skin a radiant boost. It conceals brilliantly, and is just an all round fantastic product. Yes, it's pricey, but it lasts and lasts. Definitely my number one.

So, those are my favourites: what are yours?

Bye Bye, Bambi: Why I Can't Live Without Rimmel's Lash Accelerator

Tomorrow I am heading straight for Boots and no amount of snow will deter me from my quest. What I thought was an average product has turned out to be an essential, and it seems I'm finding out the hard way. The mascara that promises lash retention really did work, as evidenced by the fact that I have a newly lost lash to wish on every day. Rimmel Lash Accelerator (LA), I'm sorry for abandoning you. I hope you'll come home with me tomorrow!

Two weeks ago, I ran out of LA mascara and, after not seeing a massive increase in the length of my lashes, I decided to return to Maybelline's The Falsies. Despite loving the long, glossy lashes is gives me, I've noticed that, every day, I'm losing at least one lash per face wash, and over the months of using Lash Accelerator, I noticed only a couple of lashes lost. I'm not saying none fell out, but I was certainly better at holding onto them!

I'd always expected that I'd end up a hostage to fortune after taking the plunge with a lash growth product, but with my lashes thinning to the ocular equivalent of Cheryl Cole's barnet pre-extensions, I am very happy for my ransom to go unpaid, and for Rimmel LA and I to live out our days together!

Have you tried a lash growth product and then gone back to a regular mascara? If so, what happened?

Rimmel's Lash Accelerator: The Two Week Report

I've been using Rimmel's Lash Accelerator for just over two weeks now, and I have to say, I'm rather impressed. My lashes don't quite look like the ones above, but I've noticed increased length, softness and retention, which is exactly what the product promises. Normally, I'd see a lash on my cheek every few days, or one would fall out when I rubbed my eyes, but I realised this morning that I haven't seen one for at least a week. Coincidence? I don't think so

Lash 'growth' products work by conditioning and nourishing lashes to promote natural growth, thus allowing the lash follicle to retain the hair for longer, rather than containing some miracle ingredient that causes hair to grow faster and longer (if that had been invested, you can bet I'd be brushing it onto my hair every morning!) I've read that lots of people use flaxseed and other oils as a conditioner that provides similar results, but for me, the convenience of having similarly nourishing ingredients incorporated into a core part of my beauty routine is something I'm very happy to invest in. I love a product that multi-tasks, and Lash Accelerator definitely falls into that category.

But this isn't just about lash growth: it's about how good a mascara it is. If it was on performance alone, I'd still prefer Maybelline's The Falsies, but as this has the added bonus of moisturising the lashes, I will definitely be repurchasing. It was a little wet when I first started using it, but has improved as it's dried in the same way that so many mascaras do. The wand looks a little thin and flimsy, but it provides great coverage, coating even the tiniest lashes. Lashes are glossy and well defined, with no clumping at all. It is incredibly lengthening (that's before your lashes have grown!), and so it works much better when you've curled your lashes beforehand.

I'll post some more photos after a month's use, but all in all, this gets a big thumbs up from me. Have you taken the plunge with a lash growth product?

Birthday giveaway prizes!

You'll be pleased to know that I braved Oxford Street in the rain to secure the birthday giveaway prize today: you should count yourselves very lucky! I selected a few of my favourite products at the moment and have gone for some light, summery colours, despite the hideous weather we're having here in London. The winner will receive:

1 x Maybelline The Falsies mascara in Black

1 x No 17 Mirror Shine Lipstick in Flirtini, a gorgeous sheer pink that kind of looks like you've been eating a few too many cherries!

1 x Barry M limited edition nail paint in 30, a beautiful and intense lilac (a little darker and warmer than standard lilac and really pretty!)

1 x Aussie 3 Minute Miracle sachet

1 x Dermalogica Ultra Calming Cleanser sacher

1 x Armani Silk lipstick tester blister pack including Satin Silk (a rich, caramel nude), Pure Silk (a vamp-it-up Russian red) and Sparkling Silk (a slightly shimmery gloss)

1 x 7ml sample of Aveda Tourmaline Charged Hydrating Creme moisturiser

1 x 5ml sample of Aveda Tourmaline Charged Eye Creme

This competition will be open to the first 50 followers of this blog only, and for your chance to win, simply become a follower and tell me what your favourite, can't-live-without product is in the comments section below. The winner will be selected at random from the first 50 followers who have posted a comment. There are no restrictions on postage so you can enter this competition no matter where in the world you live! So what are you waiting for?

My first mascara re-purchase: Maybelline's The Falsies

Source: Maybelline

In my little beauty land, this equates to breaking news: I am going to re-purchase Maybelline's The Falsies mascara. This is significant because I have no loyalty when it comes to mascara. As soon as I spy a new product promising whatever-percentage volume increase, thickening, length and all kinds of wonderful things I never knew my lashes needed, the product I was using goes into my 'occassional use' basket, never to be resurrected again. But things have changed: I have actually managed to run out of The Falsies, and have no back up product to tuck into. This is very surprising for me. It also seems that I have binned all the others in what was evidently some empassioned declaration of love to my new found mascara-bestie. Weird.

So, why the newfound mascara-monogamy? It gives me long, volumised, glossy black lashes, and the curved brush manages to keep those pesky clumps at bay, no matter how many coats I apply: I like a good three coats for extra length. In short, I love this mascara!

Most likely I'll still buy whatever new mascaras are in Boots today (surely a mascara that cooks for you is an innovation that's only a matter of weeks away...) but I will also definitely be picking up another tube of The Falsies. It feels nice to finally have settled down and found my perfect mascara. I guess this is the beauty equivalent of being a 'smug married'!

I've already done my makeup for today (see below) but I will post some shots of my eyes with and without the mascara so you can see for yourselves. And I promise that, unlike the adverts, they will be filmed without lash inserts, and not enhanced in post-production...

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em

After last night's winter-themed post, I have decided that I need to shut up and put up: as the saying goes, 'you can't fight City Hall'. Yes, I felt like the only way to go with my makeup today was forth into the sunshine, hence I am a walking pallette of gold and bronze. See below: hello, sunshine girl!
I looked in the mirror this morning and saw that the freckle party has well and truly begun, and that there's no point in having a face full of cool-coloured makeup when I've got the ginger brigade running rampant on my face. I started thinking about 'summer chic' and as I'm not quite the natural, surfy, boho babe who always looks so effortless in the warm weather, there seemed only one way to go: Riviera Glam. The photo has washed my brows and eyes out slightly, but they're both quite strong today. The lipstick is Chanel's Bali, which is where I'd like to be for the rest of the month: guess the lipstick is the best some of us can do!

To create this warming, sunny look, I used:

-Maybelline Pure Liquid Mineral foundation in Cameo
-Body Shop Tinted Glow Enhancer in 2
- MAC eyeshadow in Era
-Bourjois eyeshadow in Marron Glace
- Jemma Kidd I-Silk in Vintage
- Rimmel kohl pencil in Brown
-MAC Blush Creme in Lillicent
-Maybelline The Falsies mascara in Black
- MAC brow pencil
- Chanel lipstick in Bali

What are your favourite summer products?

Looking fierce while yawning...A 'How To' guide!

After the makeup and the products used. Still looking sleepy, but it's an improvement!

*Inserts match sticks under eyelids and stifles a yawn*

Good morning, all. I hope you're feeling a bit brighter than me today. I got about four hours sleep last night and my Bliss-face has been replaced by something altogether less desirable. Make up application on days like today feels extra special, as it's sole purpose is to hide and disguise what lies beneath, so I always let myself go a little more experimental with colour than I would do on a normal day. I also like to treat myself very nicely when I'm tired: so a large sushi lunch is already on the cards. This all makes being tired a lot easier (and actually maybe incentivises it somewhat!)

Now, I must point out that a dedicated blogger would probably post a 'before' makeup shot, but I am not going to do that. Why? Because my tired, pre-makeup visage is something that MI5 and the CIA are probably looking for to aid them in extracting top secret information during interrogation. Maybe not that bad, but I don't want to risk you seeing this before you've had your Cornflakes.

So what's my tiredness makeup routine? Your key words should be; conceal, brighten, define. Your base should provide coverage, but must still have a sheer/radiance enhancing component. Greyness should be covered, and your face needs definition today like no other day! Also, look to warm shades - anything that can make you look a little more healthy is always a plus.

I started with Bliss Triple Oxygen energising mask. Before I found this product, I'd never do a pre-work mask, but as this only takes five minutes, it seems crazy not to. It's also the first time I've used it when I've really needed it, and I am pleased to say, my skin looks so much brighter.

Now onto the products. I prep my skin with my usual moisturiser (at the moment Crema Nera by Armani), and then start with my number one brightening product, Benefit's Lemon-aid,a yellow concealer which is perfect for covering grey. I mix Clinique's City Block Sheer SPF 25 with the Body Shop's Tinted Glow Enhancer in 2 and apply this as my base (you can add some foundation if more coverage is needed). I top with a MAC cream concealer where needed (under eyes, around nose and chin) and we're starting to look human.

Eyes can often look heavy so it's essential that you open them up as much as possible. I use an eyelash curler, and if needed, you can line your waterline (inside your lower eyelid) with a flesh toned pencil (don't use white: it's too harsh and looks unnatural). I apply Jemma Kidd's I-Silk in Vintage and then Maybelline's The Falsies to boost my lashes.

Now for colour! MAC's Blankety lipstick topped with their Big Baby lip gloss. MAC's Mineralize Warm Soul blush on the cheeks and their brow liner in the lightest shade to bring out my very fair brows and that's it! Now you should be able to tolerate the pic, although the eyes are still a little heavy!

Hope this helps you on your sleepy days! Do you have any brightening beauty tips, and what are your favourite 'comfort' products when you're not feeling quite yourself?