E.L.F. Angled Blush Brush

Say hello to one of my new favourite brushes! This is the Angled Blush Brush from E.L.F.'s Studio range and I've been using it for about three months now. Its name would suggest that I've been using it for blush but the densely packed bristles and thinner shape mean it's a rubbish blush brush. However, it's excellent for foundation. 

As with all E.L.F. Studio brushes this one has a matte black handle and a black metal ferule with black bristles. Pretty sleek looking for £3.75, I reckon. I was expecting something similar to my beloved MAC 168 in terms of shape and density so was a tiny bit disappointed when I first got my hand on this. It languished in my brush collection for about a month until I realised that it might be great for foundation. 

It turns out that I was right; it's totally a foundation brush. It's similar to one of those traditional foundation brushes which make me feel like I'm painting my face but it's a bit fatter and the angle makes it great for getting into areas under the eyes and around the nose. I use it to blend concealer in under my eyes and on any other blemishes before dotting some foundation on my skin and blending it in. Right now I'll happily reach for this in place of my Real Techniques Buffing brush or Illamasqua Highlight brush which have both been long-time favourites of mine. 

My only issue with this brush is the fact that after about two uses I could tell that the ferule was getting loose. It hasn't fallen apart yet but every time I use it I think it's going to! I don't mind so much because it was so inexpensive but the inconsistency in quality of E.L.F. products is very frustrating. Thankfully it doesn't shed! 

Available from eyeslipsface.co.uk 

What's your favourite brush for foundation?

Stace xx

LUSH Love Lettuce Fresh Face Mask

I can always rely on LUSH for a pick-me-up when my skin is feeling a bit 'blah'. I meant to review this fresh face mask about two months ago but since I plan on picking up a new tub of the stuff this week, I thought it'd still be okay to rave about it today!

Love Lettuce is a face mask that I've avoided because I preferred less abrasive options such as BB Seaweed and Catastrophe Cosmetic. I liked using my own microdermabrastion exfoliator and then a mask but this one changed my mind because the ground almond shells aren't too harsh. Love Lettuce left my skin feeling clean, smooth, refreshed and soothed all at once! No mean feat for one little pot of gritty green goo, really. It's got something to do with seaweed, honey, almond oil and lavender, apparently. 

This and BB Seaweed are the two best 'all rounder' masks that I'd recommend to almost anyone. If you've got very sensitive skin I'd tell you to opt for BB Seaweed instead, though. 

I get six or seven uses out of these pots so I tend to use them twice a week before they go past their best before date. Make sure you remember to keep these in your fridge to keep them fresh!

Available from LUSH stores and online priced at £5.95

Do you like LUSH's fresh face masks? Have you got a favourite?

Stace xx

NOTD: Collection Hot Looks in 62 Dusk

Hello!

Once again, it's been a while! I've been pretty busy so sadly my wee blog has been neglected. In fact, so has a lot of my beauty regime and my skin is really starting to notice so I'm on a mission to get back on track. Any suggestions of great skincare ranges will be much appreciated! I'm thinking of giving Elemis a go if any of you have any thoughts on that brand.

Despite my low-key approach to skincare and make up, I've been maintaining some sort of effort with my nails (chipped nail polish will always drive me nuts!) I've been experimenting with lots of different drugstore brands and so far have found some absolute gems. First up is this Collection Hot Looks polish in the shade Dusk. 

It's a very dark green with a crème finish; not especially fitting for the season really! I bought it because under the lights in Boots it looked like a bottle green but in any sort of normal lighting it's more like an evergreen shade. I was slightly disappointed about that but it's a nice dark shade nonetheless. It's a bit different from black, dark reds and dark purples. 

The application of this polish was fairly easy. The brush isn't the widest in the world and the straight edge makes it a bit trickier around the cuticle area. The small cap was also a tiny bit fiddly so I did have a bit of cleaning up to do afterwards with this one. I only needed two coats for an opaque finish; I could have almost got away with just one if I'd taken my time! In my opinion, that's pretty good for a dark shade like this. The finish is a tiny bit matte which I don't particularly like. Nothing a slick of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat can't fix, though. 

One of the best things about this polish is the price. It costs a mere £1.99! If another shade catches my eye I'll definitely be picking it up. It contains 8ml which is slightly smaller than the average drugstore nail polish (and just over half the size of an OPI polish) but who ever uses an entire bottle of nail polish before it becomes too gloopy to use? 

Have you tried any polishes from Collection's Hot Looks range? Let me know in the comments!

Stace xx

Beauty Shopping List: February

Recently I've been hankering after a bright pink blush and NARS Desire is right at the top of my list. I've never been disappointed by a NARS blush so I expect great things from this one. The Tom Ford Black Orchid fragrance has been on my wish list for some time; I'm determined to pick it up this month! It's not for everyone but I think it smells sexy as hell. Another fragrance-related product I need (okay, want) to purchase in February is a Yankee candle in Clean Cotton. I've been through several of these in the past; they make my entire flat smell fresh and lovely. Two 'staple' products on my list are the Clinique Airbrush Concealer and Illamasqua Masquara; I've not tried a new concealer or mascara for a while and after reading good reviews for both of these, they've made their way onto my shopping list.

What's on your beauty shopping list?

Stace xx

Shopping My Stash #1: Lip Products

I had a wee rummage through my collection of lip products at the weekend and discovered a few hidden treasures! A couple of these products are fairly recent purchases which have yet to be used properly and the others are neglected old favourites. 

The two new products in this post are the Revlon ColorStay lip liner in Plum and the ELF Studio Matte Lip Color in Rich Red. I bought these over a month ago but have yet to use either. The lip liner is quite dry, which puts me off using it, but the staying power when swatched was impressive so I'm expecting great things in that respect. The ELF matte lipstick is a super bright red with a slight blue undertone. It's quite in-your-face so not really something I'd wear every day.

L-R: Revlon in Plum, ELF in Rich Red, MAC in Red Dwarf, MAC in Delectable, Revlon Nude Lustre

Two of my old favourites are limited edition MAC products; a Pro Longwear lipstick in Red Dwarf and a Mattene in Delectable. Red Dwarf is a beautiful pinky plum shade that I love to wear with loads of mascara and NARS Madly blush. I wore that combination today, actually! The texture of this lipstick is a bit odd and I don't think it's especially long lasting but I love the colour and it doesn't feel uncomfortable so I'm planning to wear this more regularly from now on. The Mattene is, as you'd expect, matte. However, unlike a lot of other matte lipsticks it doesn't feel or look heavy on the lips. This is particularly important to me because I find lighter shades like this peachy nude can look incredibly chalky if they have a matte finish. I've not been reaching for any shades like this recently but I remember loving it when I did wear it so I'm hoping to rekindle that! The last long-lost lip product is a Revlon Super Lustrous gloss in Nude Lustre. The tube is more than half used because I went through a phase of wearing this all the time; it looks nice over brighter lipsticks as it mutes them a bit but it's also great for warming up a nude shade.

Have you shopped your stash recently?

Stace xx

PS - I also set aside some bits and pieces for a blog sale when I was having a clear out. Check it out!