Shop My Stash #5

I'm behind by a week on this one, but better late than never, right? These following 5 products will be on my to-use list for the next two weeks.

Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly Tousling Spray Gel
This is a hair product I have that has just been sitting around. Time to pull it out and try use it up!

Revlon ColorStay Mineral Finishing Powder in 010 Brighten 
I picked up this product almost two years ago, and have hardly used it. It does say it is a finishing powder, but this is definitely a highlighter - much like the MAC Mineralize Skinfinishes. I've really been loving highlighting recently, so I'm sure I can use this product no problem!

Clinique Blushing Blush Powder in Bashful Plum 
My blush mission seems never ending. The one blush I can use over and over again is Benefit Coralista. This shade seems like it would be a good one for winter, so I'm going to try it out (and hopefully fall in love).

Almay intense i-color in 031 Trio for Browns 
A friend of mine (view her beauty blog here) gave this to me as a gift and the first shade in the trio I can't stop staring at. It has slowly become harder to go all out with eyeshadow when I'm at work, but I'll try my hardest to reach for this one over the coming weeks.

Elf Eyelid Primer in Sheer 
This eyelid primer is almost used up, so hopefully I can add this to the Empties bag soon. This is a relatively cheap primer, and it does the job well.

Thanks for reading,
x

Shop My Stash #4

I want to revamp this series on my blog. Basically, every fortnight I will go through my collection and pick out five products I hardly touch, haven't reached for in a while, etc. This fortnight, I will be reaching for blush products, eyeshadows, and a lipstick.

I purchased the MUA Blush Perfection Cream Blusher in Bittersweet a while ago to try out cream blushers. And I've only swatched it once. Although the shade isn't the most appropriate for winter, I want to try and incorporate blushes into my everyday routine (which I've been trying to do lately). This could work, if anything, as a base for a powder blush. 

MUA Pearl Eyeshadow in Shade 1 is a nice shimmery yellow beige shade, perfect as an allover lid colour during the day time, and can even be used as a highlighter. This eyeshadow has hardly been touched, and I hope to change that over the next few weeks.

I must have bought the Elf Duo Eye Shadow Cream in Butter Pecan years ago, and until last weekend, forgot I had it in my collection. Back then, I wasn't a huge fan of cream eyeshadows, but now I love them, and can definitely see myself getting some use out of this duo. There is a lighter warm toned beige and a more bronze cream eyeshadow, and I can imagine myself getting a lot of use out of these shadows (now that I've found them, of course). 

Since working full time and in an office, I like to look put together, but in all honesty, with minimal effort. The Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in 240 Undressed is a nice darker nude, and I've been all about the nude lip recently. 

The FashionistA 4 Pan Custom Design Palette is one I put together last year (see review here). I have the blush shades Juicy Apricot, Cinnamon and Butterscotch, and a nice highlight shade, Barcelona. I actually really do like these blushes. They are super affordable, and pigmented. More than anything, I tend to avoid blush. I have accumulated a few throughout the years, so I do really need to give them some love. 

And these are the products I will be reaching for over the next two weeks!

X

Shop My Stash #3

I apologise for my absence the past week, as I have been extremely busy with uni and assessments. Here is my Shop My Stash #3.

I've mentioned this bronzer on my blog quite a few times, and the NARS Laguna Bronzer is one I have a love/hate relationship with. I put this on the shimmer in the product, but I absolutely love the shade and it blends like a dream. See review here.

The Wet n Wild Comfort Zone Palette is a cult classic in the beauty world. I love this palette, but it is lacking in matte shades and that is why I don't reach for it all that often. Definitely will try my hardest over the next two weeks!

Benefit Watt's Up is a beautiful highlighter, but I have neglected it over the last month. It's added to the list.

The Essence Match2Cover Cream concealer is a favourite of mine, and it's getting close to an empty. I have neglected it recently, so I want to try use it up over the next few weeks.

Last is the MAC Honeylove lipstick. It's a nude, and I got it when I was coming back from England. It's an easy everyday colour, so I need to get into using it more often. Below is a swatch. 

(L to R: Benefit Watt's Up and MAC Honeylove)

Shop My Stash #2 - How Did It Go?

This post is a little late, it should have been up on Sunday. Sorry! To see my original post, click here.

In all honesty, I haven't reached for much makeup over the last two weeks. My days have generally involved staying home and doing university work, or going to work, or just catching up with friends. During the first week, I did try and use these products, but for simple makeup I really only reach for foundation, concealer, some powder in my brows and mascara, and maybe a bit of bronzer. I really have been trying to incorporate blush into my routine, though! 

The first product isn't in the photo here, because I used it up. That is the Maybelline The Falsies Mascara. I have a tonne of mascara to get through, but I absolutely adore this one and will repurchase it eventually. I found the Jordana Best Lash Extreme Mascara in a cosmetic store about fifteen minutes from my house last week, and have been loving it! These two are definitely my top two drugstore mascaras. 

If you look closely, you would be able to see that the Sleek Storm Palette looks a little worse for wear. This would be because I bought a Z Palette and all the other three Sleek palettes I own are depotted and in that palette, but this one is so hard to do! I shattered the black quite a bit, and have only been able to get one of the shadows out. Once next week is over (and most of my assignments for the semester are done), I'll try open the palette up again. Besides that, I did use this palette quite a bit for the first week. The shadows are lovely and pigmented, and I absolutely adore the first two shadows in the palette. I definitely recommend this Sleek palette if you are looking to buy one, or the Au Naturel Palette. Both are super pigmented and can be used for both neutral day and night looks. 

In my blush endeavours, I have found theBalm Frat Boy blush to be the most long lasting blush I own. In the summer months, I think I will get a lot of wear from this. It is super pigmented though, so a little goes a long way! I would definitely recommend this blush, and I do want to try some more of theBalm blushes. 

The Rimmel Natural Bronzer in 022 Sun Bronze, like I said in the original post, was the first bronzer I ever bought. I've probably had this for over four years, and a couple of weeks ago I did some research on make up expiry and I should probably throw this out (I'll have a post on this soon, I promise!). I find it a little too warm, but in summer this would work out. I recommend this bronzer, though (if they still sell it, I'm not too sure). 

The Revlon PhotoReady Skinlights in 200 Pink Light is a product I was really excited to try. Because I haven't been wearing too much makeup, highlighter isn't a step I'd go out of my way to do. This does work as a primer also, but I don't like too much shimmer on my face. For a luminous look, though, I'd try this out. You could even mix this in with your foundation. I think in summer I'd get more use out of this, because it is a liquid highlighter and at the moment I prefer powder highlighters. 

And that's how my second Shop My Stash went! This week I won't be doing one, and I'll try to next week, but it depends on how much time I have! No point doing a Shop My Stash and not being able to use the products! Thanks for reading, and if you haven't already, follow me on Bloglovin'! 

Shop My Stash #2 Update

I think I need to span the time frame from one week to two weeks for the Shop My Stash series, because I like to change up my make up routine and some days I don't use specific products - for example, I don't wear eye makeup (mainly eyeshadows) on a daily basis, maybe 3 out of 7 days a week. The days I do work (early morning) I don't have enough time in the morning to do a whole eye look, so mascara and eyeliner on my tightline and waterline is about the extent to which my eye makeup goes (this is something I do everyday, I feel incomplete without mascara). I do actually want to give these products a chance (right now I'm thinking more of the palettes I know I will include in these posts) as I don't think one week is enough to get a grasp for some products - especially a palette with 12 beautiful eyeshadows! So every post in the Shop My Stash series will now run for two weeks, so I have another week and a bit to trial out the products I included in Shop My Stash #2 (see post here).

Shop My Stash #2

First up is the Sleek Storm Palette. This palette is a recent purchase I made when I was overseas in England, and I haven't really used it all too much (because I have a million eyeshadows). However, this week I aim to get some use out of it and I've already put it on for today. Into hour four and there is absolutely no creasing! I love Sleek eyeshadows.

This blush was the first theBalm blush I bought. theBalm Frat Boy is a lovely, peachy shade and the packaging is absolutely adorable. 

Rimmel Natural Bronzer in 022 Sun Bronze was the first bronzer I ever bought. I hit pan on it ages ago, but I just want to give it a go and hopefully make the pan a little bigger! 

Revlon Photoready Skinlights in 200 Pink Light is a new product to me, which my Mum got in a Revlon gift set last week. I want to give this product a go, but I'm not too sure what to do with it! If it is only a skin illuminator, this is such a huge bottle! I've tried it out as a primer today, because I really don't want to mix it with my foundation (don't like shimmer, remember?) The colour of the product looks to me like Benefit High Beam, but I don't have it to compare. I've also popped the product on my cheek bones.

Maybelline The Falsies Mascara is an absolute favourite of mine! I bought this tube late June, and it's about dried up. I want to finish as much product as I can, so that's why I decided to include it in this weeks Shop My Stash!

And those are the products I've grabbed for this weeks Shop My Stash! So far, the products are working well and I absolutely love the Sleek palette! The second shade from the top row of the palette reminds me of Urban Decay Booty Call! 

Shop My Stash #1 - How Did It Go?

This week has been quite hectic for me, I've worked more than I usually do so in those cases I like to stick to what I know and using these products hasn't been on the top of my list (see my first Shop My Stash post here). However, one of the products I have used on a daily basis, and that is the Vivo Cheeky Cream Blusher in Bloom. It isn't the longest lasting product I've ever used, but if I paired it with a powder blush I'm sure it would last much longer. I've enjoyed using my fingers to place the product on my cheeks, and then blend it out with my Sigma F50 Duo Fibre Brush - which makes me happy because I'm getting some use out of this brush! I hardly touch it.
The Coastal Scents Eclipse Palette on the other hand, is a product I really don't like. Not because it is bad or anything, but the concealers are really pink based (the lighter ones, at least) and it doesn't work for me well. I'd then have to apply foundation on top of this concealer to match me better. It is a good palette, and I think I'll include it in my kit (when I start doing freelance work) because it is a good, all-rounder palette. I did try the darker shades out as a contour, using my beloved MAC 130 Brush, and it worked well. But for day to day, it's just too much work doing a cream contour (it has been this week, at least).
The MUA Undress Your Skin Shimmer Highlighter is another product that didn't work well for me. I have the same problem with MAC Soft and Gentle - while they both look lovely swatched, I don't like pinkish highlighters. I love theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer because it is more of a yellow champagne and it works well. Pink and me just don't mix.

I ended up finishing two of the products (kind of), which makes me happy! When I use up a make up product, I feel accomplished! I've had the Australis Ready Set Go Finishing Powder in True Translucent since last year, and I'm happy to have used it up. When I was half way through this, I discovered the Face of Australia Translucent Loose Powder, which I adore as an under eye setting powder. This isn't a horrible powder, it is pretty good! I'm happy to have used this up to make some room in my makeup drawers. The Australis Eyeshadow Primer I have had for probably two years. The bottle is at the point where it doesn't distribute much product, and I've had it for a while so I figure it's time it went. This is a good eyeshadow primer, it was the first eyeshadow primer I purchased, and if you're in Australia or New Zealand I recommend this primer!

And that is all for my first Shop My Stash. I'm excited for next week's Shop My Stash - I might discover I product I will really enjoy, like the Vivo Cream Blusher!

Shop My Stash #1

It has recently come to my attention that I own way too many products. I like sticking to some products, but I need to work on reducing the size of my stash so I've come up with this idea. Every week, I'll go through my draws and pick out 5 items that I have to use that week - blush, an eyeshadow, or an eyeshadow palette, a lipstick, highlighter, bronzer, nail polish - anything! On Mondays I'll post about which products I have chosen, and on Sunday I'll give a review of how it went.

Here are the products I've chosen for my first Shop My Stash.

Australis Ready Set Go Finishing Powder True Translucent 

I've had this powder for a while, and it's about finished. I have dry skin, so I only really use powder to set under my eyes. The container is getting to the point where I can't get product out, so maybe by the end of the week I'll have used it up. 

Coastal Scents Eclipse Palette

I reviewed this back in April (see review here). I have used it, but it's not the best because it isn't really creamy - it needs to be warmed up with your hands. I've had some pimples pop up, so this will be good to use to cover those up. 

Vivo Cheeky Cream Blusher in Bloom

I'm not really the biggest on blush, but I'm going to try. I love this blush colour, it's a nice pinky peach and very suitable for spring. I find cream blush is better suited for me at the moment because it is more subtle than powder. 

Australis Eyeshadow Primer

This was the first eyeshadow primer I bought. It's okay, but like the Australis Finishing Powder I just want to use it up. I use a base, but I always use primer beforehand. 

MUA Undress Your Skin Shimmer Highlight 

I bought this highlight last time I ordered from MUA (see haul here). I haven't really used it, because at the same time I purchased theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer which I absolutely love. But I will try use this over the next week and see how I go. 

(L to R: Vivo Cheeky Cream Blusher in Bloom, MUA Undress Your Skin Shimmer Highlighter)