The Best of Brow Products

My eyebrows are the bane of my makeup-loving existence. Maybe that’s a slight exaggeration. But they definitely fall into the category of ‘hardest to achieve makeup perfection’. I know they say ‘eyebrows should be sisters, and not twins’, but my eyebrows don’t even look like they come from the same planet, never mind family. 

The main way I’ve solved this problem is the side fringe. I’m a big advocate of the side fringe. Side fringes are bloody brilliant. My fringe is heavy, and it swoops to what I refer to as the ‘problem corner’ of my face. The side with the eyebrow who has grown an extra appendage, and the site of most of my hormonal/pizza induced breakouts. A side fringe is the ultimate weapon when it comes to disguising a multitude of sins. Unless the sins are on your chin. A side fringe can’t help you there. 

But sometimes, you want to wear your hair up, or your fringe doesn’t quite behave itself, and your eyebrows are out there, exposed for every human you encounter to see. In that case, there’s a small army of products I’ve collected up to battle the brow issues, and at least make my brows look like they could be distant cousins, four or five times removed. 

The easiest option here is the Along Came Betty Br-wow Kit, a product I’ve raved about quite a bit here. This little compact contains a wax, two brow powders, and a highlight shade, and is pretty straightforward, although I do find that powders are probably the least natural way to fill in these bad boys. I take a little of the powder on an angled brush and brush it through my brows, concentrating on any sparse areas, and then use the wax on what I will call the ‘brow tails’ (i.e. the outer ends of the brows), to hold them in place since they tend to be a little disobedient. Highlight underneath if I need it and done. Simples. 

Something that took a little more practice, but is definitely worth the patience is the Soap and Glory Archery. It’s got a taupe toned (I have the shade Brownie Points) pencil on one end, which is slightly waxy so it holds all in place, and a felt tip end, with a sheer ink that is perfect for drawing in hairs where you don’t have any. I use the pen end to fill in sparse areas, and then the pencil to add definition, and it works a dream. 

My current go to and probably my favourite of the lot is the Anastasia DipBrow Pomade, also probably the weirdest of the bunch. This is essentially a gel liner for your eyebrows. I take a little of this (and I mean a tiny bit) on a small angled brush and fill in my brows. Do it right and it looks like you’ve got naturally defined brows, and they will stay in place all day with ease. 

 As far as setting gels go, I love the Maybelline Brow Drama, which weirdly, I use in the shade dark blonde. This just holds your brow hairs in place all day without looking crunchy or white. 

 Other essentials include the Nanshy Angled Detailer Brush, my favourite for any kind of brow maintenance, and a good spoolie. I like the ones from & Other Stories, because they have a super long handle, and they’re only £2. And of course a good pair of tweezers (I use the Tweezerman ones)! 

How do you look after your brows?

How I Wear Red Lipstick

Sometimes, a red lip is just necessary. In the interest of full disclosure I should probably tell you I'm a little bit terrified of red lipstick. It's a rare occasion that I slap it on, but when I do I always love it.

My favourite red lipstick is the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella, a gorgeous deep red that's super matte and long lasting, but not drying at all. This is by far the most long lasting lipstick I own, it never fails to impress.

The trick with red lipstick is figuring out how to make up the rest of your face. I like to keep things pretty basic and tend to go in with a good coverage matte base. I opted for the Jouer Matte Moisture Tint which you guys know I'm currently totally obsessed with. Just because you're after coverage and a matte finish doesn't mean you want to skip out on the glow, so I used the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Primer to brighten up my skin before the base, and then the YSL Touche Eclat under my eyes to perk everything up. I find that red lipstick can wash out the skin a little, so whilst you don't want a strong blush colour, a little something something is often required to fix that. My go to is the Benefit Rockateur Blush, and a little of NARS Laguna in the hollows of the cheeks, which adds a bit of colour back to the complexion and definition. I also tend to add a tiny amount of TheBalm Mary Lou Manizer to the tops of my cheekbones to give a little glow.

Eyes are a simple affair, you want lips to be the sole focus. I primed the eyes with the Smashbox Photo Finish Eye Primer, and then went in with the Wet and Wild Walking On Eggshells palette, taking the cream shade across the lid and the brown shade lightly in the crease. Finish off with the Soap and Glory Supercat Liner along the lash line, and lashings of the L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara. A little of the Anastasia DipBrow Pomade to fill in the sparse areas of my brows, but not too much.

And as far as the red lips go, the NARS Pencils aren't the most precise for application, so I take a little lipliner, the Rimmel Exaggerate Liner just to make sure the edges are precise.

How do you wear red lipstick?

The Best of Drugstore Blushes

I never used to be a big lover of drugstore blushes, as far as I'm concerned the lasting power just doesn't match up to that of more pricey blushes. I still stand by that, however there are a few blushes from the aisles of Boots, Superdrug and CVS that still get a thumbs up from me!

Soap and Glory Love at First Blush: Not one for anyone who is cautious of shimmer. This is a pretty segmented blush with a heavy shimmer. I tend to reach for this most in the Summer, I can skip the highlighter and this adds a real glow to the face. This doesn't last particularly well throughout the day, I'd say you'd get around 5 hours wear, but it is super pretty so I'm willing to overlook that.

Revlon Powder Blushes: These are a recent discovery and I'm so impressed. Super soft powder blushes, with pretty intense pigmentation. This shade in particular (Mauvalous) is a really gorgeous natural shade that adds a pretty flush to the skin. I really don't like the packaging of these, but I'm willing to overlook it because of the quality! 

Bourjois Little Round Pot: I always overlooked these, I find the Bourjois eyeshadows in the same packaging chalky and not pigmented at all so I never bothered to try the blush. However, I finally picked one up in the Boots 3 for 2 last month, and I'm seriously impressed. Great pigmentation, long lasting, and a huge colour range too. 

Gosh Natural Blush in Electric Pink: I've tried a couple of Gosh blushes but this is by far the standout shade. This shade is much more pigmented and soft than any of the others I've tried. The only blush I've ever entirely used up, I've even hit pan on my second one!

Look Beauty Blush in Sculpt: There are some really bizarre shades in this range, but I love this particular shade, a kind of blush/bronze hybrid with a hint of shimmer. Super soft and pigmented, this one's a winner.

Sleek Blushes: I used to be a massive fan of Sleek blushes, but it's been a while since I've reached for them. It's not a reflection of the quality of the blushes, I've just been reaching for other things. However, as research for this post I've pulled these out again, and I've fallen back in love. I wish they'd bring their cream blushes out in individual shades rather than just in palettes because they're fantastic. These are so buttery soft and pigmented, and they have a massive shade range. 

No7 Pop and Glow Blush in Soft Rose: My current drugstore blush favourite, a gorgeous rosey pink cream blush that almost has a powdery finish on the cheeks. Blends super easy, buildable, and gorgeous.

Topshop Cream Blushes: Some of my favourite cream blushes, I love the bright pretty colour range, and they're pigmented and blendable.

Max Factor Miracle Touch Creamy Blush: Crappy packaging, and a suspect colour range, but this shade is nice and the formula is awesome, slightly tacky and dewy looking on the skin. Perfect for Spring and Summer! 

 Nyx Powder Blush: Not the most pigmented, and the packaging is pretty crappy, but the shade range is awesome and they're easy to build up on the cheeks. You can't grumble at the price either! 

Milani Powder Blush in Luminoso: The most long lasting of all the drugstore blushes I've tried. Incredibly brightening and lifting on the skin, it just adds so much life back into the skin. Gorgeous.

Wet and Wild Colour Icon Blush: Super pigmented and soft, and you get so much product for your money. This shade (pearlescent pink) is incredibly pretty and natural on the skin.

What are your favourite drugstore blushes?

The Review: Maybelline Colour Sensational Shine Gloss in Cashmere Rose

The latest stop on my lipgloss loving journey is the Maybelline Colour Sensational Shine Gloss in Cashmere Rose. I picked this up during that damn Boots 3 for 2 a.k.a., the most dangerous time of the year to go shopping. This had been on my radar for a while anyway, so I don't feel too bad about succumbing!

Now, I'm not sure what you guys thing, but I personally thought the other colours in the line were just a bit off, I'm pretty sure out of all of them this is the only one I'd wear! It's a shame because the formula of these is totally delicious, a sheer hint of colour with an almost-undetectable hint of shimmer to it, that isn't sticky at all but gives a gorgeous glossy effect to the lips. Could you ask for anything else? The one gripe I would have is that if your lips are dry or cracked, this does tend to cling to them! A good lip scrub and balm first will sort you out though.

I love this shade, in the tube it looks pretty bold, but on the lips it's just a sheer nudey peach. It looks great on it's own for a super minimal look, or layered over lipstick!

If you want to see a swatch click here, I tried to photograph it on me for this post but it just wasn't working! 

What are your favourite drugstore lipglosses?

5 Things To Buy In June

A new month, a new wealth of products to spend your money on. If you're looking to conserve a little money this month, I've got you covered, with five products worth the splurge, you can forget the rest!

No7 Pop and Glow Blush in Classic Rose: I'm totally obsessed with this little thing. It's like a giant crayon for your cheek, what could be cuter?! A cream blush in stick form, this is super easy to apply and blend, even with your fingers, and it dries to a powder finish so it's super long lasting on the skin. I love this colour, it just gives a really natural pop of colour to the cheek, but you can build it up easily for something a bit bolder. Love love love.

NARS Duo in Isolde: Or really, just any good eyeshadow duo, I just have a soft spot for this. For days when you want a nice eyeshadow look but you don't want to have to think about it, or for weekends away, this little duo is perfect. One shimmery golden shade for all over the lid, and a darker copper shade for the crease, it's so easy to create a smokey eye with this duo, it's unreal. I love NARS eyeshadows so much, the quality of them is incredible, buttery soft and pigmented and so long lasting!

Anastasia DipBrow Pomade: Essentially, a gel liner for your eyebrows. Really strange, but oddly enough looks naturally defined when applied the right way. This stuff is the only eyebrow product that really stays perfectly applied all day. You need this.

L'Oreal Extraordinaire Liquid Lipstick in Rose Melody: I'm freaking obsessed with this. A gorgeous gloss/balm/stick hybrid that offers glossy hydrating lip colour, in my perfect pinky nude shade. It's love I tell you.

Revlon Nail Art Sun Candy in Lava Flame: If you plan on travelling this summer, here is your perfect on the go nail product. A gorgeous bright orange coral on one end and a pretty peachy gold shimmer topcoat in the other. The formula of this is actually quite long lasting, and glossy enough to wear alone.

What's on your wishlist this month?