Wednesday 7 September 2016

RIDE OR DIE: MAKEUP TAG.


MY HOLY GRAIL MAKEUP PRODUCTS.

Hiya! Today I'm showing you my 'Ride or Die' makeup products- these are my ultimate one favourite product from each category (foundation, concealer, bronzer etc). I first saw this on YouTube by Jaclyn Hill and thought it would be a good idea for a blog post! I'm always interested to know what others' ultimate favourite products are and if anyone has the same ones as I do! I've tried to give a little explanation of why I love this product so much so this post is slightly lengthy!

  • PRIMER: NIVEA AFTER SHAVE BALM [SENSITIVE]


This Nivea After Shave Balm basically broke the internet after Nikkie Tutorials stumbled upon it as a really good face primer. The reason why it's so good is that it contains a lot of Glycerin, an ingredient which is an adhesive and as such whatever you put on top of it literally sticks to it. Suffice to say this product doesn't do a lot for controlling oil or minimising pores but it really does improve the longevity of makeup and you could always use a pore filling primer in targeted areas. Not only is it effective but it's also cheap- as it's not a beauty product this only retails for about £5-£6 and you get a load of product. Anyone who's looking for something to get their makeup to last all day should definitely give this a try!

  • FOUNDATION: NARS SHEER GLOW [PUNJAB]

I feel like everyone is always on the look out for their Holy Grail foundation. It took me a while, and a lot of money, to find mine, but it definitely is the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation (this is in the shade Punjab although I wear Deauville when I am not fake tanned). This foundation is just amazing. NARS foundations do tend to have quite yellow undertones though so if you're pinky it might be slightly difficult finding the right shade for you. The coverage is amazing, not sheer as the name would suggest and I love the finish. It is semi-dewy although depending on how you set it you could achieve a very dewy or very matte finish. Another bonus of this foundation is that it has no SPF- this isn't a problem for me here in Newcastle, England where the sun rarely shines, however, if you're in warmer climates I would suggest adding SPF. SPF in foundations causes bounce-back in flash photography, so, if your foundation has SPF in, which about 90% of foundations do, your face will look a lot paler than the rest of your body in the photo. This foundation is perfect for nights out or events where you know you're going to have pictures taken of you and your whole body can match. This isn't the cheapest of foundations (£31) but it genuinely is worth it and I will always be repurchasing this foundation. 

  • CONCEALER: URBAN DECAY NAKED SKIN CONCEALER [FAIR NEUTRAL]

Generally, I only use concealer to highlight my face (under eyes, forehead, chin) as I can usually get my desired coverage from foundation and powder as I don't have majorly problematic skin. The issue I always have with concealer is their colour, they're never light enough to achieve a highlighted effect! A few concealers I have found which are light enough are NARS Creamy Radiant Concealer [Chantilly]  and Lasting Perfection Concealer [Fair] although the formula of both of these products is quite thick and they tend to look a bit cakey especially on my occasionally dry under eye area. I got this last year and it is everything you could want in a concealer. I use the shade Fair Neutral which is light enough to be highlighting, it's also amazing coverage while still being a thinner consistency and easier to blend. Again, not the cheapest of products (£17.50) but a little goes a long way and it's definitely worth it. 

A close 2nd to this product is the L.A. Girl Pro Conceal in the shade Porcelain, however their lightest shade just isn't quite light enough for me to use when I'm at my palest although the coverage and price are amazing!

  • UNDER EYE SETTING POWDER: NYX CONTOUR PALETTE 

This contour palette is just amazing, I love and use every single shade and I love how the pans are refillable and customisable. I use the shades Bone (white), Soft Light (a light pink) and Cream (banana yellow) to highlight under my eyes, which one I use depends on my varying degree of paleness. I do also really like the bronzer and contour shades but they're not my ride or die of those categories.
I've got the Kat Von D Shade & Light palette, Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit, Smashbox Highlight & Contour Palette and genuinely the NYX one is my favourite and about half the price (£18). Additionally the refills on the pans are only £3.25 so this is so affordable and great quality. 

  • FACE POWDER: KAT VON D LOCK IT POWDER FOUNDATION 

Face powders are always a bit hit and miss for me. I've got combination skin meaning that when I apply my makeup my skin feels quite dry and dehydrated, but during the course of the day I do get oily, especially in my T-Zone. I also do look for extra coverage from my face powders as I just enjoy a full coverage look in general. This powder from Kat Von D is everything I was looking for. It adds extra coverage without looking cakey or chunky and paired with my favourite foundation it just makes my skin look absolutely flawless. In addition it's very long wearing and I can trust it to keep my makeup in place throughout the day. Again, it's a higher end product and retails at $35 but I use mine every day it lasts a long time!

  • BROW PRODUCT: ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS DIPBROW POMADE [CHOCOLATE]

Anastasia Beverly Hills is queen of brows so it's no surprise that my favourite brow-filler product is the Dipbrow Pomade. I used to use the shade Dark Brown but switched to Chocolate as I found Dark Brown to be too cool toned for my hair. A little of this product goes a long way, it's easy to use (I use mine with a ABH small angled brow brush) and gives a great effect to the brows. It's £15 per tub but it lasts a life time- I know people have complained about theirs drying out but this hasn't happened with either of mine, I just ensure to replace the cap every time I use it. 

  • BROW GEL: L'OREAL BROW ARTIST PLUMPER [MEDIUM/DARK]

For ages I didn't realise what a difference brow gels made, I always used brow products on their own and didn't set them. Using a brow gel or brow mascara sets all the hairs in place and faces them the way that you want them to face. I usually brush the hairs at the front of my brows upwards and then the rest of the hairs flat towards the tail. This ensures you can get a sharper brow with a more definite shape without errand hairs going all over the place ruining it. This brow gel is the perfect colour and consistency. It also contains tiny little fibres which cling to your natural brows and help make them look fuller, which I love. Best of all this brow gel is bullet proof, to the point where, at the end of the day, I have to completely scrub my brows to get the product off. This product is only £5.99 and I've had mine for over a year and there's still loads of product left in there- definitely recommend. 

  • EYESHADOW PALETTE: ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS MODERN RENAISSANCE EYESHADOW PALETTE

This one was difficult! I have quite a few eyeshadow palettes and making this decision was really hard, but it came down to two, this one and the Morphe 35o palette (of course). On a normal day warm smoky eyes are everything I want and I genuinely feel like this palette just encapsulates that. Obviously the Morphe 35o is all warm shades as well but what really sets this palette apart for me is the quality of the shadows, they're the best I've ever used, so pigmented, buttery and blendable. I am genuinely in love with this palette, despite having only had it for around 4-5 months and I'd still recommend it to everyone looking for warm shadows. This palette is £41 but worth every penny in my opinion. 

  • LIQUID EYELINER: RIMMEL GLAM EYES LIQUID LINER [BLACK] 

Anyone who knows me knows that I ALWAYS have winged liner on, it's the one part of my makeup that I can't go without. As you can therefore imagine I've tried SO many liquid liners hoping to find the perfect one. What's most important to me is the width of the brush- I've got really small eyes with not a lot of eyelid space so if the brush is too wide my liner is too thick and takes up too much of my eyelid. This liquid liner has the smallest, most narrow little brush I've used meaning that you can keep a nice thin line and also get a very very sharp point at the wing. I have to admit that this liner isn't the best for actually filling in the wing, for that I use the NYX matte black liquid liner but this one is my ultimate for getting the outline and it's also only £5.29- bargain!

  • MASCARA: EYEKO SKINNY BRUSH MASCARA [BLACK]

To be honest I still don't feel like I've found my ultimate Holy Grail mascara but out of all the ones I've used this is definitely my favourite. As with liquid liner, what I'm most looking for in a mascara wand is something small and precise. Massive wands are so difficult for me to use and I always end up smearing mascara all over my eyelids so for me smaller is better. This mascara is £15 from the eyeko website although this one I have here was a free sample I got from Beauty Bay- I'll definitely be purchasing it full size. 

  • EYELASHES: ARDELL DEMI WISPIES

Yet another issue with having small eyes is finding eyelashes that aren't going to look too big and too bold. Demi Wispies by Ardell fit my eyes perfectly and also because they're longer on the outside they give that cat eye effect which I love and suits a dramatic winged liner look, which is usually what I'm wearing. They're also reasonably inexpensive, around £6 per pack, although you can get them cheaper online. I am still searching for slightly more dramatic lashes but I will always return to these. 

  • BRONZER: TOO FACED CHOCOLATE SOLEIL BRONZER [MILK CHOCOLATE]

Let me just start this by saying I've had this product for over 3 years and I haven't hit pan yet. Given, I don't use boat loads as I am quite pale and don't need to, but that's because this product is so pigmented. It does have a matte finish, so isn't the most natural of products but I genuinely love the way this product looks on the skin and not forgetting it smells absolutely incredible. It is £25 but for the quality and the time I've had it it's absolutely worth it.

  • CONTOUR SHADE: KEVYN AUCOIN THE SHAPING POWDER [MEDIUM]

Contour powders are always a difficult one for me, if they're even the slightest bit too warm they can look like a big muddy splodge all over your face. This powder is just the right amount of cool toned that it looks a lot more natural, like an actual shadow on your face where your natural contour line would be. Additionally, the powder is so buttery and blendable, it doesn't leave streaks all over your face in a stark line. Yes, at £35, it is expensive but finding the right contour shade can be so important to bring a whole look together. 

  • BLUSH: MILANI BAKED BLUSH [LUMINOSO] 

Let me start this by saying I do not like blushes. I have a lot of natural redness in my face which I work quite hard to cover up, so the idea of putting redness back onto my face doesn't really agree with me. However, I do really like this one blush by Milani. It's very very popular amongst online beauty gurus. It's not too strong in colour but it's just formulated so that it adds a really nice glow to the skin, blending into bronzer and contour beautifully. It's very inexpensive, around £6, and although I don't use a lot of blush it does last a long time- I've had mine over 3 years and it looks basically new. 

  • HIGHLIGHT: THE BALM MARY-LOU MANIZER

It can be very difficult to find highlighters for those with pale skin, a lot of the time they're not light enough or don't show up properly. I do quite like quite a strong highlight, especially on the end of my nose, and despite trying quite a few different highlighting kits (ABH, Sleek, Becca) nothing compares to this one, for me. It's a pale yellowish colour but isn't at all chunky and it blends out well, meaning you can avoid that stark line of highlight which can sometimes happen. I think this retails in UK stores for about £20, although you can get it cheaper on Amazon. Again with all these products I'd had mine years and had only just hit pan on it until I dropped it and smashed it everywhere, I've obviously repurchased as I can't live without it!

  • LIPSTICK: KAT VON D EVERLASTING LIQUID LIPSICK [BOW N ARROW]

Not Jeffree Star Dominatrix Liquid Lipstick!? Yes I absolutely love Dominatrix Velour Liquid Lipstick and if I could wear it every day without it looking inappropriate, I would, but the sad fact is it isn't the most wearable of shades. The colour I find myself reaching for most often is Bow N Arrow, an Everlasting Liquid Lipstick by Kat Von D. This shade is amazing, it's a slightly darkish nude brown but goes with so many makeup looks and I just think it would suit almost anyone. I especially like lightening up the centre with either NYX soft matte lip cream in Cairo (although this can transfer) or I'm Nude by Jeffree Star. Kat Von D liquid lipsticks are great quality and very reasonably priced ($18), I can't wait until she launches her brand in the UK next month!

  • SETTING SPRAY: MAC COSMETICS FIX+ 

This one was another difficult one, it was either this or the Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray. What swung it for this one is how well it settles powders on my face. I do tend to use a lot of powders to achieve a full coverage finish but that means it can often look a bit too powdery and too matte, if that's not your thing spraying a setting spray when you've finished your makeup will take away that excess powder and give you a slightly dewier finish. I absolutely love the way this feels when you spray it on your face, it's so refreshing and it smells and feels amazing. It is £17.50 but if you try not to completely douse your face every day it lasts a long time! 

They are my favourite ever products from each category, it'll be interesting to see whether I have the same set of products in a year or so! Let me know what your ride or die products are, I'm always looking to try new things and experiment. 

thanks for reading,

CATRIONA

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