Illamasqua blusher in Hussy

 

I've had this for a little while now, and I can safely say Illamasqua's blushes have fast become one of my favourite formulations and I've accumulated quite a few over the past few weeks! Having discount codes doesn't help this.. From the Illamasqua blushes I own, I find them to be very pigmented, wiping one finger across and it picks up so much colour it's unbelievable. I love the packaging aswell, shiny black plastic in a unique shape. Large piece of clear plastic on top so you can easily see which colour it is. It's quite big, but fits perfectly in your hand. It seems like you get lots of product due to the size, but it is 4.5g, which is 1.5g less than MAC, but almost the same price. This is £16.50, and MAC's blushers are currently £17.50. But if you want to switch it up, and love bright colours in your make-up bag, you should give Illamasqua a go.

On Illamasqua's website, they describe Hussy as a matte bright candy pink, which is a pretty accurate description! I haven't really used it as much as I should of been doing, but it does give me a china doll rosy glow, especially with highlighter thrown into the mix. Hussy is probably one of Illamasqua's more popular powder blushes, and I can see why. It's a bright pink which will suit all skin tones, and is a great way to inject some brightness into your beauty routine. If you're afraid of bright lips, give this a go, you can apply lightly for a fresh glow, or really build up for some woooow. A perfect summer colour, bright and pink, need I say any more?

I'm going to get around to posting more of Illamasqua's blushes as I'm so impressed with their formulas and I think they're really worth the money.

xo.

Forever 21 Beauty: Blushers (and dupe!)

I think the reason I purchased these was for the packaging of the box... Anyway, these are two blushes I bought from Forever 21 when I went to the Westfield in Stratford. I was browsing round the accessories area, (which is amazing by the way!) when I came across their beauty section. Now I haven't really heard of Forever 21 beauty anywhere, but I was still intrigued. I saw these boxes, with the cute heart print and had to pick one up. Luckily they had some testers, and when I swatched them I was seriously impressed. Really pigmented and not chalky at all. Not bad for £2.40 eh! There was only 2 colours there,  (I've checked the website and they're the only 2 on there as well) and I couldn't decide on which colour to get, so I had to get them both, OBVIOUSLY.

Now, the packaging of the blush itself is really boring, plain black plastic case but then the blush itself is quite small within the palette. It only has 2.8g of product compared to let's say, MAC which is 6g. But then again, the price is worlds apart! But the quality is not... It's the same size as a MAC blush, but has a flat lid, and the plastic is matte rather than a shiny black finish.

These don't have colour names, the box for the pink one says 'pink' and the coral one says 'blush' (?!) but the coral blush is a new favourite of mine, and I've been using it constantly over the past few weeks. It's a gorgeous coral with yellow toned shimmer, but gives me the most gorgeous natural looking flush considering the colour. It's also very similar to a beauty heavyweight, as my swatches will show you :) The pink is brighter in pan than swatched, but it's probably very comparable to other pink blushes around and I probably have similar in my collection. 

Left to Right: Pink, Blush 

Left to Right: Pink, Blush, NARS Orgasm

As you can see, the colour is pretty much the same as NARS Orgasm, it's a tiny less pink and has a lot less shimmer, but it's so similar! It's also very similar to Benefit Bella Bamba, just again a little less pink, and it is the same colour as MAC Fleet Fast that came out with the recent Hey, Sailor! collection, FF has a lot less shimmer, but it's not that noticeable when worn.

I should of really swatched all of them together so you could of seen, but because they're all so popular, lots of people will have one or more of the similar shades I've mentioned! I've been using the F21 blush, MAC Fleet Fast, and Benefit BB the most recently, this shade suits me down to the ground. I know that I can just whack this on and it'll look fine, natural and flattering. Which is great as I'm always running late! This kind of shade is flattering on so many skin tones, I'm as pale as a ghost and this puts some life into my cheeks! Another thing, blusher is my current obsession, so be prepared for plenty of blusher posts!

So if you're looking for a cheap blusher and/or a cheaper alternative to NARS, MAC, or Benefit, look no further! :) 

xo.

ps. Just want to apologise for the quality of the pictures, had camera trouble for a while now! Another reason for my lack of posts, but thank you to everyone who reads and comments, they seriously make me smile :)

Mini Sleek Haul

Last Saturday I went to the new Westfield shopping centre in Stratford London for the first time. I can safely say I'm in love! I work in a shopping centre in Essex, and so I'm used to be in a shopping centre daily, but this just left me speechless! It's huge, and new, and just.. so clean..! Has lots of shops that I could only usually go to in London, and I rarely ever go nowadays. So it was a refreshing shopping experience! It was my birthday almost 2 weeks ago now (wow, time files when you're getting old!) and the boyf said he would take me shopping as a present, so I dragged him to Westfield early on a Saturday morning.. :) I bought a few things which I shall post in time, but here are a few to start off with!

Sleek had a pop up stand there which I didn't actually know about, and apparently it's gone now! I don't usually buy much from Sleek, I have a few palettes and a blush or two, but whenever I go into Superdrug they hardly ever have the stand fully stocked, and Sleek haven't been releasing palettes/products as much as they usually do, so it never really catches my eye anymore. Never the less, I went over to the stand to investigate! Sorry I didn't get pictures, I saw make-up and that's all I had the time for! 

It was full of plenty of staff, all very friendly and constantly offering to help me find products. They were offering makeovers for a small price, and also foundation matching. I also got approached by a lady asking me to fill out a quick survey on her iPad in exchange for a mini pout polish, of course I agreed! 

They had everything in stock which was totally refreshing, and I actually got to try everything I wanted to, but never usually get to. I keep eyeing up the Blush by 3 palettes, but there's only 1/2 blushes in each palette I would actually use, so it seems like a bit of a waste! In the end I picked up a blush and a lipstick, as at the time I was trying to be good and just refrain from going mad! I fancied a bright pink blush, and I couldn't resist the bright pink lippie either. The lipstick I picked up is also a dupe for a sold out MAC lipstick from a recent collection, so watch this space as I have comparison swatches to post.. 

xo.

 

This is the mini pout polish I got free, it's a bright pink, but it applies as a balm, so the colour doesn't transfer as much. It smells sweet and vanilla like and is the perfect size to pop in your handbag. I don't own any other pout polishes, so I'm not sure if this is a permanent shade in the full size range or not.

 

Sleek blush in Flamingo. I really fancied a bright pink blush, so when I saw this shade I fell in love. I love the packaging of Sleeks blushers, small and quite literally sleek. They're all crazy pigmented and always worth the small price tag.

 

 

When I went to the lipstick bit, I was admiring all the colours, but for some reason this shade Candy Cane really stood out to me this time. It's a bright pink which leans red, very similar to MAC's Impassioned. My camera didn't like this shade so it looks funny in all pictures! This is a sheen finish, so it's not matte like the MAC dupe I have to show you!

Shop MAC Cremeblend blush - Florida

I just want to say straight away, that for some reason, when I upload the pictures onto here, the colour of the blush is a lot different, and I've tried saving it in different ways, but I have no idea whats going on! The colour is a lot more blue based - think MAC Pink Nouveau, that sort of shade. This picture here (from Temptalia) is pretty much right when I wear Florida on my lips.

I ordered this from Debenhams' website, getting 10% off and free delivery, can't complain! Once again, I thought the packaging of the blush was in the print from the collection but it was just a sleeve like the lipsticks. Anyway I'm sure I'll live! As soon as I opened the case I was in awe! Such a beautiful colour, and I love pink, seriously anything pink. If it was a pink toilet brush I'd want it, sad but true. I don't usually wear pink blushers as they just make me look flustered and hot! But like I said - as it was pink I had to have it. I first tried it on my lips, and oh wow it's like wearing a lipstick, I loved the colour. So creamy and yes extremely similar to Pink Nouveau which is one of my favourite lipsticks. So this is right up my street. When trying it on my cheeks, I did look a bit flustered unfortunately, but I think I was a little heavy handed. So I'll keep working with it, I'm going to make sure this baby doesn't go unloved!

This is a pink shade for everyone, I know mid to dark skin tones would look great sporting this. And I think pale skintones wise - definately blonde and blue eyed. Although when I tried it earlier I wasn't wearing my 'war paint' and as my skintone is uneven it might look a lot better when I'm wearing my foundation. Maybe I can make it look a bit doll like!

As with cremeblend blushes, natural oils like to seep out of the product, which is why there are usually droplets on the surface of the product. I hate it when this happens, it just reminds me of sweat for some reason haha gross! Fortunately mine wasn't like this yay, but when this does happen you can just use a clean finger and wipe over the top, or take a brush and just swirl around the palette and it should mix it all back together. Cremeblend blushes are definately very pigmented and creamy, and they last longer than powder blushers. I don't know the longevity of this particular blush as I haven't worn it all day yet, but they're are usually about 4-6 hours on average (approximately). This is also a repromote cremeblend, and will probably be repromoted again in the future.

If you're looking for a similar shade and this has sold out, try Illamasqua. I was looking on their website for similar shades and found 'Laid' and thought it looked pretty much the same, and then I googled for swatches as I don't actually own it, and I found this post, and look! They're really close! Yay :)

Out of curiosity, do you own any cream blushes by MAC and/or Illamasqua? Which do you prefer? I still need to buy a cream blusher by Illamasqua! Recommend me some shades :)

x

VIVO Baked Blush - Peaches and Cream

Once again I ended up in my local Tesco store yesterday. Which is never good for my purse. Constantly buying things that I don't actually need... So after browsing the clothes section, (there are a lot of nice chiffon blouses at the moment, I've picked up 3 now!) I headed to the next best section - cosmetics. I then found myself at the VIVO stand at the end of the aisle. Straightaway my attention was drawn to the baked blushes. There were 4 shades in total, I believe they were all more of a pink shade, so this shade caught my eye. It's a warm peach shade, with a small hint of pink, which completely warms up complexions. When swatching the product, it felt soft and smooth, and the colour pay-off was great. Very pigmented, with a light sheen. For a product that cost £4 the pigmentation is amazing!

For me, the packaging just doesn't really do it. I also have a lipstick from the range, and I really don't like the casing for it. Quite big and chunky, and the cheap metallic look, which also appears on the back of this blush. I do like the clear lid where you can see the product, because the blush itself is beautiful! I am quite besotted with it to be honest! I would really recommend trying out these blushes, if you love a blush that isn't matte, and will you give you a natural glow without looking like a disco ball(!) for £4 you really can't grumble. Check your local tesco when you're next shopping! Make-up and food? The way to most girls hearts!

Looking a bit trampy, and you can't really tell the colour on my cheeks, but hopefully you get the idea...?! I'll try and do a better picture.

Have you bought anything from VIVO yet? What do you think of supermarkets branching out into clothing and cosmetics? Any other high streets gems you could recommend?

x

MAC Fleur Power

This blush had been on my wishlist for so long, and I regret not getting it sooner! MAC describe it as 'soft bright pinkish-coral' and I think that's a great description. This is one of my daily blushes, it's a satin finish, giving a natural glow. Looks gorgeous teamed with highlighter, I can't get enough of it. 

For reference, I'm reeeeeally pale! Like MAC 10/15 and it suits me really well, but I think this is a corally pink which will suit most skintones. I've seen it on plenty of other people and I think that anyway! 

Have you got this? What do you think of it? I think I want Melba next, can anybody recommend it?

x

Benefit Hervana

Purchased the new blush from Benefit from their website last week. They were offering free delivery to celebrate their website makeover. Also, with every purchase you're entitled to two free samples. I chose 'Hello Flawless!' powder in ivory, but it's way too dark for me, and their eyelid primer 'Stay Don't Stray'. 

Firstly, I am in love with the design on the box! I want to carry it around with me purely for that reason alone! It's just as cute inside as well...

The powder is similar to their other blusher - 'Sugarbomb', which is made up of 4 triangles in different shades, making it possible to customise the shade you end up with slightly. 'Hervana' also has 4 different shades ranging from a shimmery cream to a rosy pink. It's in a swirl pattern with two doses of each colour. Looking at the colours myself, when all blended together I thought it would be a bit more of a peachy colour, but it definately ends up being a pink with a natural shimmer that highlights the cheek perfectly.

This is what Benefit's website says:

Seeking a flush of enlightenment? Swirl on hervana... Our goodkarma face powder! Four complementary shades, lucky shell, divine peach, heavenly rose & berry delight - blend together perfectly for an orchid blossom blush. What goes around...comes around!

Achieve hervana! Swirl these blissful shades together & sweep on your cheekbones for an enlightened flush.

The box is similar to Benefit's last offering 'Bella Bamba' which is one of my favourite ever blushers. It's a sort of love/hate affair with the new packaging they're rolling out with all of their blushes. I know people have had problems with the new attached lid sometimes catching the blusher and breaking it. But I suppose with the old packaging, the lids were more likely to come off in your bag and such. They also house a mirror in the lid, which is always a popular feature on cosmetic products. For me, when I touch up on the go, I use a handheld compact no matter what products I'm touching up, so it doesn't bother me eitherway.

Something that has annoyed me though, is the amount of product Benefit give you in their blushers now. My 'Coralista' and 'Dandelion' are both 12g, and I think that was always the standard weight, but now they have made them all 8g. Meaning we've lost 4gs of product! So combine that with the rise of a £1 we had not long ago, we are all paying the same price that we used to pay for FOUR GRAMS LESS! 

Now, call me crazy, but I personally think that's a total rip-off and I only just realised the other day! Is it because they need to spend extra money on the packaging and mirror? Or just really making a good profit on them? I honestly think they need to drop it back down to £22.50 at least. Because if you think about it, a standard powder blush from MAC weighs 6g, and will set you back £17.50. Obviously, it's 2g less, but there's a £6 difference in price. Is it worth paying almost £24 for a blusher? I'm ashamed to admit I was sucked in to the pretty packaging....

The new brush that comes with it is angled as you can see. But when I tried picking up product and swatching it on my hand, I had to swipe over and over at least 6 times for much to even show up on my hand. So I never bother with the brushes that come with it. Waste of money and space if you ask me! 

Another thing to note about this blush, if you don't like scented face products, you might want to avoid. The blusher has a really strong perfumed smell, quite sweet, I don't know how else to describe it. When you swatch it, the scent is still definately there, but not as strong. I thought it was worth a mention though.

Swatches of all the separate colours and then swirled together.

Sorry for the pictures of swatches, I don't have the right lens for my camera at the moment, so they're not great!

Overall if you love Benefit and their blushers, I think it's worth picking up or at least have a snoop at one of their counters. I still prefer 'Bella Bamba' and 'Coralista', but it's still a pretty shade, and I'll keep trying it out. I think I was a sucker for the packaging and advert! I'll also have a look and see if any of the blushers in my collection are similar. You could always try layering/mixing different colours by using this as inspiration and see what shades you get :)

Are you interested in this blusher? Or do you have it already? What Benefit blush is your favourite?

x