Post-Workout Beauty

I like to workout in the morning, it makes me feel pumped for the day ahead. However, I'm generally running late in the morning, which means I need to be able to get ready as quick as possible, and out of the door. I've got it down now so that I can go from sweaty mess to sort of presentable in under ten minutes. Impressive, no?

I start off with a quick shower, I won't wash my hair, cause who has time to dry it? I'll just wash my body and get out as quick as possible. In the shower I'll also wash my face with the Nivea Gentle Cleansing Mousse, this cleanses my skin and stops me feeling all shiny and gross. I've mentioned before that my favourite deodorant is the Dove Go Fresh Cucumber and Green Tea Roll On, but for these situations I usually go for the spray, and just get it everywhere, is anyone else super self conscious about being sweaty after working out? If I really don't have time to shower I will literally use half a can of this. 

Body sorted, I'll move onto face. I always keep some blotting sheets to hand, to get rid of any excess shine, the ones I'm using right now are the Kleenex Shine Absorbing Sheets, which I like because they're super thick and soft! I usually then skip foundation and just go with concealer under my eyes and on any blemishes or red areas (read: all over my face). Right now I love the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, because it works equally well for under-eyes and blemishes, and offers really good coverage.

For eyes I keep it simple, a swipe of MAC's Painterly Paint Pot across my lids with my finger, to even out the skin colour. Then I apply lashings of the Max Factor Lash Extension Mascara, I feel like this really opens up my eyes, lengthens my lashes, and make me look more awake and alive! 

I then grab a multipurpose cheek and lip product, that I can apply with my fingers. Less to carry and easy to use. This is the Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge in Fresh Melon, a gorgeous peach shade. I just blend a little of this onto my cheeks with my fingers, and then tap a bit onto my lips to give them some colour. 

And Voila I'm done! All in under 10 minutes!

How do you get ready fast after a workout?

The Brush Edit

Brushes are something I use on a daily basis, but very rarely talk about. I'm not by any means a brush snob, I have a few MAC, Dior and NARS brushes, but for the most part, my most used brushes are high street ones. So here's the lowdown of the brushes in my daily rotation (if I had any brain cells I'd have photographed them in some kind of order that made sense, but I didn't think about that at the time and I don't fancy washing them again to photograph them!).

The first brush pictured is the Topshop Domed Shadow brush, which I don't think they actually do anymore (helpful I know). I picked this up on a whim, I think it was about seven pounds, and I actually love it. It's got quite densely packed bristles, and it's slightly domed, which means it fits perfectly into the crease of my eyelid, for applying shadow directly into the crease. 

Next is a little Angled Brush I got in a Umberto Gianni travel brush Christmas kit from Boots aeons ago. It's a small angled brush that I use for so much, usually either for filling in my brows with powder, applying shadow as liner, or taking eyeshadow along my lower lashline. It's really small and thin compared to most angled brushes, making it more precise.

Next is the NARS Eye Shader Brush, which came with my And God Created the Woman Palette. I use this occasionally to apply colour to the lid, but mostly to sweep under my browbone after I've finished my eyeshadow to blend out any harsh lines, or to apply highlight under my brow. It's super soft, but just a little too big for shadow application.

Next one along is the & Other Stories Artist Brush, think of it as the MAC 217, but with slightly longer bristles. This is my absolute favourite eye blending brush, it's so easy to use, I prefer it to my 217, and it's only £7!

You'll all know the next one, the Real Techniques Buffing Brush is the best foundation applier I've ever tried. I use this on a daily basis for seamless, flawless foundation. It's super soft, washes well, and just an all round good'un. I'm considering buying a second one because it's also super handy for powder too!

A recent addition to the tool ranks, the Eco Tools Buffing Concealer Brush is awesome for, you guessed it, blending in concealer. I like to use this on any redness or blemishes I want to conceal, I place the concealer where I need it, then use circular motions to buff it in. This brush is excellent, it blends in seamlessly but doesn't compromise the coverage.

The MAC 215 is the only MAC brush of mine that actually gets used a fair bit. It's got short, densely packed natural fibre bristles that are perfect for really packing shadow and colour onto the eyelids. I haven't found anything better than this!

For under eye concealer, I really love the Real Techniques Duo Fibre Eye Brush, it blends out concealer flawlessly, and doesn't let it settle into any creases. It's the perfect partner to the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer.

For setting powder, no surprises here, the Real Techniques Powder Brush is my first love. I don't wear powder everyday, but when I do I love to just dust it all over my face with this, it doesn't disperse product too heavily which I really like. On a daily basis though, I like to use this after I apply blush and bronzer to just blend out the edges a little more, I find that when I take the time to do that my makeup looks much more natural. 

The Real Techniques Expert Face Brush is a great all rounder brush, I actually have two of these in my collection, they are so handy. This is what I use to apply my foundation when I'm after a little more coverage, the bristles are slightly denser than the Buffing Brush, so it gives a fuller coverage finish. I also love this for cream cheek products, particularly the Chanel Cream Blushes, Benefit Sunbeam and the Bourjois Bronzing Primer. It really buffs them into the skin leaving a natural finish.

And last but certainly not least, the Space N.K. Contour Brush is just one of those brushes that everyone needs. Perfect for applying blush and contour, it's slightly angled and very fluffy. I also use this to apply the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders. I love this because it really picks up product, the natural bristles give a lot more pigmentation than artificial ones would. 

Those aren't all the brushes I own, but they are definitely my favourites! 

Phew! If you made it that far, I salute you! Let me know in the comments what your favourite makeup brushes are!

The Review: Urban Decay Naked 3

 So a few weeks back, before Christmas, I did a first impressions review of the Naked 3 Palette. One of the most highly anticipated releases of 2013, even if it did sneak up on us. I've had over a month now to play with it, and I've worn it everyday,

Strange: a soft, buttery matte cream shade, perfect as a base colour, or to highlight the browbone. Highly pigmented and quite lovely.

Dust: the only shade in this palette that's been a bit of a let down for me. A really heavy glitter shade, that looks like a pretty pale pink, but it's such a heavy glitter that when you put it on it looks like it's just silver glitter.

Burnout: this shade makes up for dust, it's a very similar shade, a touch darker, but with a finer vein of shimmer, meaning it looks lovely. This is the colour I've been applying all over the lid most, as a base colour.

Limit: a matte dusky pale pink shade. Incredible pigmentation, I've been reaching for this when I'm after an easy eye look, just blending this into the crease with Burnout on the lid, to add a little depth.

Buzz: similar shade to Burnout, just slightly darker. Same light vein of shimmer, but a bit pinker. Nice all over the lid. 

Trick: a nice shade but I can't see me using this, it just doesn't flatter my skin tone at all. It's a gold shade with a hint of rosiness to it, and a slight shimmer, very pretty but just doesn't look right on me at all.

Nooner: a darker version of Limit. Also great for the crease, but I reach for this when I'm using darker shades on the lid. 

Liar: a light bronzy shade with a hint of pink. My go to colour for across the lid, this has a slight shimmer but looks gorgeous. 

Factory: a deeper bronze without a rosy hint! Slight shimmer, kind of reminds me of a darker On and On Bronze. Probably my favourite shade in the whole palette.

Mugshot: a silvery bronze shade, reminiscent of MAC's Satin Taupe.

Darkside: a subtley shimmery dark grey. Looks beautiful in the outer corner paired with Mugshot.

Blackheart: side note; if I bought out a clothing line, I'd call it Blackheart. This is a really deep slate grey with gold and red shimmer, gorgeous as a liner. 

In terms of the packaging, it's much the same as the Naked 2, I like the big mirror and the brush that comes with it too. The brush is double ended, one flat end that's great for packing on colour to the lid, and a fluffier brush that fits perfectly in the crease of the eye. If only it came with a blending brush!

Overall, I think I'll get a lot more use from the darker shades in this palette than I will the lighter shades. I don't think this is a palette you need, but it is a nice addition to the makeup ranks. 

Into The Makeup Bag

 It's not often I carry around a makeup bag (if I did, it would probably be double the size of my handbag) so I haven't ever given you a peak inside one, but being back in Bournemouth means I'm splitting my nights between my parents house, and my boyfriend's parents' house, so for the first time in a long time, I've been lugging a face worth of products around. 

I've ditched the primer and powder over the last few weeks, being home and bad weather means I haven't been out of the house from seven til eight, like I often am in London, so I don't need my makeup to last as long. The foundation I've been sporting the L'Oreal True Match foundation, which is a recent addition to the makeup ranks. It's pretty comparable to my YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation, in finish and formula, even in colour. It's a lightweight foundation but with a buildable level of coverage. It's not a matte finish by any means, but it's not full on dewy either, I'd say it's almost satin-esque, but it feels nice on the skin, and is a perfect colour match.

On the cheeks, I've been alternating between two bronzing products. This sample size of the Benefit Hoola Bronzer has been sat unloved in my drawers for a long time, I've only just started using it now. It's nice, but I think it might be a little muddy for my complexion, maybe one to revisit when I have a bit of a tan. The other bronzer I've been trying out is the Soap and Glory Solar Powder, which I actually really like. It's got two shades in, which when swirled together work really well on my skin tone. It's matte so it's great for contouring as well as just brightening up the face. I find this lasts on the skin really well too. From the same Soap and Glory palette I've been using the Love at First Blush cheek colour, which I actually really like. It's got ten segments of four different colours, that you can wear alone, but I like to blend together. It gives a really pretty pink glow to the cheeks, and it's got just enough shimmer to mean you don't need a highlighter. 

On the eyes, I've been reaching for two particular palettes when I'm out and about (the Naked 3 is taking pride of place when I'm home), mostly because they're small and handbag perfect. The Laura Mercier Trio I picked up in the Space NK Sale is perfect for when you're in a rush, I take the lightest shade all over the lid, the middle shade in the outer corner, the darkest shade through the crease, and then blend it all with a fluffy brush. Takes less than two minutes and looks like you've made an effort. I've also been using this MAC Quad, the darker of the two I have. I've been wearing Satin Taupe a lot, it looks great all over the lid on its own, or with a little bit of Sketch or Blackberry in the crease. Satin Taupe also looks great when paired with the liner I've been loving, the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Pencil in Rockstar, a deep purple shade. These 24/7 liners are fantastic, they can be easily smudged out across the lash line, but after a minute or so, they set and stay put all day, even on the waterline. I've been pairing this with the Lancome Hypnose Star mascara, which I love the wand of, but I'm not sure about the formula.

For brows, I'm totally in love with the Soap and Glory Archery brow tint and pencil. I don't really use the pencil side much, unless I'm going out and want big bold brows, but I've been using the tint to draw in little hairs where my brows are sparse, and I LOVE the effect! Natural looking full brows. 

And lastly, on my lips I've been loving the Revlon gloss in Berry Allure. It's a beautiful muted berry pink that applies pretty sheer but imparts just a hint of deep pink. It's not sticky and it lasts a surprising amount of time.

 So those are the beauty picks gracing my face at the moment, what have you been wearing?

The Review: Benefit Rockateur Boxed Blush

I put off picking up the Benefit Rockateur blusher for a long time, because, well my god isn't the packaging tacky? It totally put me off. However, a lovely friend picked this up for me as a Christmas gift, and I've fallen in love with it. 

Packaging gripes aside, this is a dusty pink blush with a slight vein of shimmer. The top is coated in a film of full on shimmer, but once you've used it once, that disappears and you're left with a fine shimmer. This blush is the perfect partner to the Naked 3 palette, so if you've got that, you need this.

I love Benefit blushes, the formulations are great, they last really well, and you only need a tiny bit of product, plus they smell amazing!

Have you tried this blush?