NARS Torrid Blush.

I found this blush by accident and I'm so glad! I was putting in an order on Space NK online for a couple of things and saw that BECCA Mineral Blush in Flowerchild was still out of stock! I've been waiting since February and I always seem to miss it when it comes back onto stock. So I did what any beauty addict would do; I decided to google search for dupes.

I found a couple of pictures that compared it to NARS Torrid, and I actually liked Torrid better. It is less pink, more orangey-red coral and slightly more pigmented with less shimmer. I really wanted a new coral blush as my Benefit Coralista is quite sheer and my Illamasqua Lover is more neon-apricot. So I decided to forget Flowerchild and I ordered Torrid. 

This colour is so wearable. It has the perfect balance of pink and orange with a tiny bit of shimmer than translates as sheen on the cheeks. It will look perfect through Spring and Summer, I love the brightening effect it has on my face. I already own NARS Madly and I do think that NARS have one of the best blush formulas and the nicest colours. 

NARS Torrid on the cheeks. Revlon Peach Parfait Lip Butter on lips. 

I'm so happy to have found this by accident, I don't know if I'd have looked at it in the shop as it is quite dark in the pan! Have you found any gems through a random internet search?

L'Oreal Infallible 24h-Matte Review.

This foundation has been getting rave reviews and now I see why!

I can be a bit fussy with foundations and tend to believe that you get what you pay for. However in this instance I am wrong! This foundation costs £7.99 and it performs better than most of my high end foundations. 

I have oily skin so need a mattifying formula, but at the same time I don't like it to look heavy. That's exactly what this delivers! It's pigmented so you don't need to use much at all, and it blends so easily and evenly. It doesn't break up as the day goes on and looks as good at the end of the day as it did when I applied it that morning. For weekends and occasions where I want my makeup to look flawless all day without touch ups I will now reach for this!

I picked up shade 20 Sand for when I am more tanned and shade 11 Vanilla for paler days. I can then mix with these shades to create the rainbow of shades I can be (the perils of fake tanning!). 

I am so impressed by the magic formula L'Oreal has created that I bought the primer to use under my NARS powder foundation to see if it keeps me matte on more natural skin days. I don't feel the need to use the primer under the foundation as it lasts so well without it. I wore this foundation on a 15 hour nightshift and it somehow still looked perfect in the morning... It really is witchcraft. 

If you are oily and your makeup usually slides off your face you just need to try this foundation! If you are dry skinned I do believe there is a formulation for you as well in the Infallible range. Have you tried any of the range? Did you like it?

House of Lashes Haul.

I have a confession. I don't 'do' fake eyelashes. 

I know, I know. Shocking for a beauty blogger. But I have naturally long lashes and I can never be bothered with the fuss of it all. Plus I struggle to find lashes that compliment my eye shape.

But recently (after watching many, many Desi Perkins, Jaclyn Hill and Teni Panosian YouTube videos) I decided to give them another go. They seem to add that last bit of polish to a prettily made up eye. And they do photograph well (I remember from my uni days!). 

I went to the House of Lashes website after seeing them on lots of YouTube videos and all over Instagram and picked out a few pairs. 

I got 5 pairs, priced between $9-14, and a bottle of the $8 white adhesive for a total of $69.95 (roughly £45). This seemed quite reasonable for 5 pairs of lashes, glue and shipping from the US. They arrived in one week which was faster than expected. They are all good quality and seem like they will last multiple wears. 

I tried them all on to show you the styles. I have no other makeup on as I found when I was researching them it was difficult to get a clear view of them on a bare eye. Hopefully this helps someone out there! 

These are my favourite and are the most popular on Instagram. Will look nice with most eye looks but I'm envisioning copper eyeshadows and a winged liner. I'll probably be wearing these to Beautycon London at the end of the month! 

These are my least favourite as I'm not a fan of the massive winged out look of the outer lashes. I'm going to trim them as they are a tad too long for my eye which might help. These might benefit from a heavier smoked out eye. 

These are also too long for me but not so dramatically winged out as the Noir Fairy. I'll trim them and they should look a bit better on my eye. I think these would be nice with a light brown and gold smoky eye. 

These are quite out there! But I think with the right makeup they could be one of my faves. I saw Kathleen Lights with these on, paired with bright red lips. They gave her eyes great definition without any liner. I'll give it a go!

These are probably the most natural. I wanted a lash that I could wear with minimal makeup and that wouldn't need a liner to cover the band. I'm thinking bronzed beachy makeup looks...

So I'll update you when I pair these with actual makeup! But hopefully these pictures will give you a good idea of the look of the lashes on the eye. 

The website was great, full of pictures of Instagrammers wearing each style which is helpful when choosing. The adhesive is also pretty good. It's a white glue but turns shimmery green-blue when tacky which is helpful for novices like me! 

Have you tried House of Lashes? What were your thoughts? 

Review: Palmers Cocoa Butter Natural Bronze Gradual Tanning Lotion.

It has been a month since my little Boots haul so I've had a fair chance to trial all the things I picked up. The product that stood out most (well, tied with another- next post!) is this Palmers gradual tan in spray form. 

I've used the original formula of the Natural Bronze range which is the same consistency as a body butter. I am oily and often found this broke me out and made me feel greasy in bed after application, however, the colour of the resultant tan is my favourite of all the gradual tanners I've ever used. 

So when I saw that they had released a spray version I grabbed it in the hope it would be a thinner and less rich lotion. And it is! The spray makes the process so quick, I just spray my body in sections and use my mitt to rub it in. It spreads easily and consistently, and dries within about 5 minutes. Seriously, I go to bed and I have no horrid sticky feeling. It's amazing!! 

The next morning it has a faint fake tan smell but nothing offensive. On me it gives the most natural and even olive tan, with no streaks. I use it on my face and it doesn't break me out. It's actually pretty dark for a gradual tan (it only comes in one shade as far as I know) so be aware if you are very pale that it's not as 'gradual' a tan as some. I applied it two nights in a row and I felt it looked a tad too dark for me; I prefer a light glow. 

These pictures are of me wearing one application;

Overall this is my new holy grail everyday tan. It's quick, easy to apply and has the perfect colour for me that lasts about 4 good days. It costs £7.99 for 200ml and is available at Boots and Superdrug. 

ASOS Outfit Haul.

I finally bought flared jeans after pinning numerous pictures of them on Pinterest! I chose these ASOS brand bell flare jeans as I liked the wash and that they were medium rise. I don't like buying jeans online as they are the hardest item of clothing to get a good fit (the struggles are real), but it's so easy to return ASOS I bit the bullet. They cost £35. 

I fancied a new outfit to wear with them so picked up a Vero Moda white tank top (£8), a New Look statement boho necklace (£17.99) and a new pack of Orelia flash tattoos in rose gold this time (£5). 

The jeans are super flattering on me as the bell bottom at the ankles balances out my rather large hips and derrière! I remember being horrified when skinny jeans came into style as they are not made for my shape, yet years later they are all I wear. It's nice to have flares back in style as I actually feel they do something for my curves. 

The material is stretchy so fits well round the hips and thighs, before coming out below the knee. The dark wash will go with everything. Shoe-wise I will either wear my Missguided chunky heeled boots (the jeans are long enough for heels) or my trusty Birkenstocks for a laid back look. 

The tank top is lush soft material and hangs really nicely. The necklace is really quite cool, it feels well made and gives an instant update to a plain top. I popped my tan Zara jacket (from a couple years ago) on yesterday as it was chilly and the whole outfit looked very 70's but in a good way (I think!). 

I haven't tried the flash tattoos yet but I'm sure I'll love them!

What do you think? Have you tried flares yet? Picked up anything amazing on ASOS?