The Makeup || Casual Summer Evening Makeup

On these hot nights my standard evening makeup look which consists of winged eyeliner and a bright lip can look a bit too overdone. A much more appropriate look is a natural looking lip and a bit of smudgy eyeliner. I've constantly been wearing this look for all low key events, and I even wore it on New Years Eve and on my birthday. 

I start of by priming my face with the Nude By Nature Mineral Airbrush Primer and I contour using the MAC Select Coverup Concealer in NW40 with the Real Techniques Duo-Fibre Contour brush. The Bourjois Happy Light Foundation in shade 51 is stippled across my face using the Real Techniques Stippling brush. The MAC Studio Finish Concealer is then used for concealing. A hint of blush and shimmery highlighter, MAC Pink Swoon and MAC Soft and Gentle respectfully, is then applied to my cheeks. A dusting of the Jurlique Citrus Silk Finishing Powder finishes everything of nicely. 

Eyes are next, and I start by filling in my brows with the MAC Eyebrows in Lingering. I take the Real Techniques Duo Fibre eyeshadow brush and swirl it around in the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze. I build this up quite heavily to make quite a smokey effect. Once all the edges are blended out I take an eyeliner pencil, namely the MAC Technakohl Liner in Graphblack and smudge it across the upper lash line. Next I take the same eyeliner and line both my water line and my tight line. I smudge a little into my lower lash line to get a super smokey look. I finish up with by curling my eyelashes with the Shu Uemura eyelash curlers and lashings of the Maybelline Mega Plush Mascara.
Finally lips, because I have gone for such a strong eye look, I need a subtle lip to balance everything out. My choice of late is the YSL Glossy Stain in 107, Naughty Mauve. This is the most amazing lip colour, it's nude based but it has a purple shimmer through it. It's impossible to describe with out it sounding gross. Simply put, it's the perfect nude for my lips, with out looking too brown and boring. 

X Suzy

The Makeup || Cheeky Trio

For a while now I've been searching for the perfect blush for me. And I’ve found it in the form of MAC's Pink Swoon. This bright pink looks terrifying in the pan, definitely something I would never put on my cheeks, but it’s in the Sheertone formula, which means it’s...um...sheer (who would have guessed?). I have been a bit obsessed recently with this, and for good reason. It just looks fab. Full stop.

I usually wear Pink Swoon with my cheeks contoured from the MAC Select Cover Up Concealer in NW40 and highlighted with the MAC Mineralise Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle. I swirl a small blush brush in the pan, apply it right onto the apples of my cheeks, and bring it out along my cheek bones. Next I take a bigger fluffy brush and blend everything together. Top up the highlight (more sparkles durr) and I continue on with my makeup. 

The Makeup || Evening Eyes and Lips

Following on from yesterdays post about my evening base makeup, I bring you my evening eye and lip makeup. This routine is (hopefully) a lot shorter to read than yesterdays. However, it's the one which takes the most time because I like to do a winged eyeliner look, which is notorious for taking FOREVER. 

I start by taking MAC's Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle and sweeping this all over my eyelid, right up to the eyebrow as a very subtle eye shadow. The focus is on the eyeliner and the lashes rather than the eye shadow with this look. 

Next I take the Rimmel London Glam'Eyes liquid liner. I draw a thin line as close to my eyelashes as possible. From about halfway along the lash line to the outer corner I draw the line a bit thicker. Finally, I wing the eyeliner out as though it would connect to my eyebrow from the bottom lashes. Then I join the wing to the top lashes. 

Whilst waiting for my eyeliner to dry, I will put the first layer of the YSL Glossy Stain in colour #11. It's important to do this in layers so that it lasts as long as possible. 

Once my eyeliner is dry, I will give my lashes a curl. Mascara follows, which comes in the form of the Maybelline Mega Plush for the top lashes. Only on the top lashes. If I use this mascara on my bottom lashes, I find that it's wayyyy to clumpy. I usually apply 2-3 coats of mascara here. On my bottom lashes, I use the Covergirl Clump Crusher. This is so much better for the bottom lashes because it's clump free. Who would've guessed? 

Once that is done, I will pop a bit of more of the Soft and Gentle in the inner corners of my eyes for an added highlight. Next, I swipe on a second coat of my YSL Glossy Stain.

Eyebrows are next, and I use the Nars Eyebrow Pencil in Panama to fill them in a touch. I also give them a quick swipe over with an eyebrow brush. Finally, I add a third coat of the Glossy Stain and I'm done! 

So there you have it, part two of my evening makeup ritual, hope you enjoyed it! 

X Suzy

The Makeup || Evening Base

Yesterday at Uni I was writing an evening makeup post (shhhhh, don’t tell!).  When I hit the second page of a word document, I knew that no one wanted to read a makeup essay. So I have decided to break it up into two sections: base, and eyes and lips. Today I bring you the base component of my evening makeup ritual.

I start off with a clean face. Next I smother on some of the Nude by Nature Undercover Airbrush Primer. This is my primer of choice because it’s natural and non-toxic. My theory behind it is that this will provide a barrier for my skin and all the nasties in my makeup won’t be absorbed. Well I hope so.

Contouring follows, and I like to use the MAC Select Cover-Up Concealer in NW40 for this. I take a flat foundation brush and draw two lines down the hollows of my cheeks. Two lines are also drawn either side of my nose for a bit of slimming. Then I take the L’Oreal Magique Lumi highlighting pen and draw a line down the centre of my nose, in-between the two contouring lines. The brow bone, cupids bow and the tops of the cheek bones are also highlighted. At this point, I have some pretty scary looking lines drawn all over my face.

In order to blend these contouring lines out, I need my base. At the moment, I am currently using my “customisable” tinted moisturiser.  I take a dollop of the Grown Organic Alchemist Matte Moisturiser and a dollop of the MAC Select Cover-Up Concealer in NW20. I usually use about half as much of the concealer, but that of course depends on the condition of my skin. I then take a big buffing brush and buff the tinted moisturiser into my skin and blend out the contouring. Start where there is the least amount of contouring, as the brush will get a bit dirty from buffing out the contouring – you don’t want NW40 ending up on your NW20 forehead.

We’re almost done, I promise. Next I take my Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 and conceal any pimples. I also might need some extra concealing under the eyes, which I use the Magique Lumi to conceal. I then take some of the MAC Mineralise Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle and apply this shimmery highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones. Finally, I dust some of the Jurlique Citrus Silk Finishing Powder through my T-Zone to set it all.

Phew! For a girl who likes her makeup to look natural, that is one extensive base routine. Stay tuned for my evening eye and lip makeup coming soon!

X Suzy

The Weekend Pamper || Traveling Beauty Essentials

I'm on holiday this week to get some much needed sun in the Australian North. With the sun, heat and humidity my skin tends to at its best, if anything it's a little dry. Pair the climate with some R&R and I'm confident enough to skip the makeup - almost. I apologise in advance, I'm writing this on my iPad which doesn't have the best spellchecker - please forgive me. Also, I can't seem to add links to all the products mentioned. When I get home I'll add them - if I remember.  

Skincare:

Whilst traveling I try to stick with my usual routine, minus the weekend face mask extravaganza. I honestly cannot be bothered - I'd much rather be sunning myself outside by a pool. 

I don't tend to bring big bottles of my skincare with me, I decant things into smaller recycled bottles. I've  filled two empty Body Shop bottles with some Bioderma and my favourite cleanser, the Jurlique Purifying Foaming Cleanser. As for exfoliating, I recived a sample of the Refining Skin Treatment from Jurlique a while ago and I though it would be a great time to try it out.

For toning, I've got a small bottle of the Jurlique Lavender Hydrating Toning Mist. I'm not a huge fan of Jurlique's range of toners, they are all filled with alcohol but the bottle is so cute and travel friendly. 

I've packed both my usual blemish treatments, the Jurlique Blemish Cream and the Origins Super Spot Remover, both in their original packaging. I popped in a tiny bit of the Aesop Primrose Facial Cleansing Masque into a little jar to use as an overnight blemish treatment if I get any serious spots. 

In terms of other skin treatments, there's a tiny sample of the Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair II, and the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Eye Cream. 

And finally we have moisturisers. It's the usual culprits, the Grown Organic  Alchemist Matte Moisturiser for day time and into a large plastic pot, I've decanted some of the Jurlique Callendular Cream for night time. For lips and cuticles, I've got my Love Balm from Jurlique. 

Makeup:

Before coming on holiday, I got both my eyebrows and eyelashes tinted to save some time in the mornings and I'm planing to do a lot of swimming this week, so it's super convenient. I want my makeup to be as effortless as possible - there are other things is rather be doing on holiday! 

Base:

I brought the Clinique Super City Block SPF30 specially for this trip but I've been using a sample of it prior to purchasing it. I really like using this suncream, it dosent feel rank on my skin at all, and has a slight tint to it. Another recent purchase is the BareMinerals Origninal Foundation in Fairly Light. This gives a beautiful finish to my skin perfect for those good skin days. It also sets the Super City Block and wipes out enough shine and grease but the finish isn't too matte. Of course I brought my Jurlique Citrus Finishing Powder along - just in case of an oily episode. 

For concealers, I've got the MAC Studio Finish and the Select Cover-Up both in NW20. If I fancy a bit more coverage in the day, I'll blend a blob of the Select Cover-Up with the Clinique Super City Block, and for night time, I'll pop a bit with my daily moisturiser. If I develop any pimples I dab some of the Studio Finish concealer on them. 

Colour:

I did pack one mascara, the Maybeline Mega Plush for evenings, but I doubt I'll bother with it, instead I'll focus on eyeliner. I've got both liquid and pencil eyeliner, namely the Rimmel Glam'Eyes liquid liner and the MAC Technakohl Liner in Graphblack. For the checks, I've got my usuall blush-bronzer hybrid, the MAC Sheertone Blush in Sincere and my MAC Mineralise Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle for a highlight. I also packed the Maybeline Colour Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze but once again I'm skeptical that I'll bother using it. And finally, I packed my Lanolips in Apples for nights out sipping gin & tonics and watching the sunset. 

Tools:

I just brought the basics in the tool department: an eyelash curler from Manicare, an eyebrow brush (cheap un-branded one) an Ecotools blush brush (for bronzer), a Naito blush brush (for highlighting), TheBalm double ended eye brush (for spot concealing) and a Natio kabuki brush for my mineral foundation.

There you have it. My traveling beauty essentials. It all fits into that beautiful toiletry bag which I got in Bali and I've even got some more room in there! Of course I realise I'm missing an entire category of body bits, but I won't bore you with all of that - it's far less interesting!

X Suzy 

The Makeup || The Winter Face #1

My makeup philosophy is very much 'Yeah, I rolled out of bed looking this good.' I strive to find the look that is both polished, concealing, yet natural. To get this natural look I use a good tinted moisturiser or BB cream, a swipe of a natural looking mascara, a touch of bronzer and a hint of lipgloss. 

Base:

After the conclusion of my morning skincare (missed it? read the post here) I start of with the MAC Prep & Prime BB Cream in light plus. It seams as though people either hate this or love it. I'm firmly in the love category, I find provides the perfect amount of coverage, hiding all my blemishes but letting my freckles shine through. Look out for a review soon.  Do be careful with your blending technique, like to blend it out with a dual fibre stippling brush, it can look a bit odd blended with the fingers.

Next I tap on some of the MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 onto the blemishes that haven't been quite covered by the BB cream. Sometimes my nose and under eyes can use some more concealing so I pop on some of the MAC Select Cover-up Concealer in NW20. To set the base, I use the Jurlique Citrus Silk Finishing Powder. This is an AH-MAZ-ING setting powder that is so fine and doesn't go cakey or chalky at all. And it smells delicious - bonus points! 

Colour: 

For a bit of colour in the cheeks, I brush on the MAC Sheertone Blush in Sincere as a bronzer. I find that most bronzers look too dark on me, and this blush is just perfect - a good two in one. 

Mascara is up next, and my choice is the Maybelline Full 'N Soft Mascara in the non waterproof formula. I really hate using waterproof formulas because they are such a pain to get off at the end of the day. This mascara gives me a really natural looking lash which I love for during the day. As I mentioned before, my lashes are already full and quite long so during the day I just look for something to give me some colour on my lashes otherwise I look like I've put false lashes on for the day, which is sooooo not me. 

And finally, lips. I'm a lipgloss kinda gal but having said that, I hate sticky lipglosses, which is almost all of them. *Sad face*. But there is a solution: enter Lanolips. I absolutely love the Lanolips Lip Ointment with Colour SPF15. They tick all the boxes for me, they aren't sticky, long lasting(ish), moisturising, protective AND really pigmented! I have both the colours Apples (pictured) and Rhubarb. I pop Apples on in the morning to add a bit of colour into my complexion. I'm not a fan of whipping out the mirror and reapplying, so Rhubarb comes in handy. Rhubarb is a neutral 'my lips just better' and handbag staple which I can slap on without a mirror on the go.  

There you have it, my go to daily makeup that I have been wearing throughout winter. I hoped you enjoyed it! 

X Suzy