Hope all of you had an amazing new year, I also hope the trend continues for rest of the year! No, I won’t be recounting my year. It was great but I’m not really a resolutions or set goals kind of person. A few things I really need to achieve next year is buying a dining table, visiting more places and being more attentive to this blog. Moving on to the main subject, makeup! I haven’t done a post on just makeup for a long time. I’ve been using these products pretty regularly the past year and they definitely deserve a post.
Ever since Charlotte Tilbury came out with her Instant look palettes, I’ve always wanted one but they never quite had the right set of tones that would suit me. When Beauty Glow came out, it looked like it was made for me. I’ve been obsessed with it ever since I got it. I went for a management course for a few weeks in October and this is pretty much all I had with me in the eyeshadow and blush department. Really made me appreciate just how versatile it is, I never got bored with it. I’ve been on a few short weekend trips since and to Dubai recently. Without a doubt this has been my top choice to carry with me.
Today I’m just going to recreate a look I’ve been wearing frequently for the past few months (with some variations of course). Starting with primer, I love what the Marc Jacobs Perfecting Coconut Face Primer does for my skin. It imparts a very subtle glow but also makes the makeup last longer. In more humid weather as well, makeup is more likely to disappear more frequently and whenever I’ve had more time on my hands, I haven’t been skipping the primer step.
For my complexion, I’ve been sticking with my Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint in Dark which is a perfect sheer and buildable base. It looks incredibly natural on my skin. I don’t really rate it for longevity but I still wear this frequently because it’s an excellent colour match for me and it’s very lightweight. I always counter my mammoth dark circles with the Bobbi Brown Corrector in Dark Peach. I may skip concealer a lot of times but never this. I also carry another pot in my handbag, that’s how much I rely on this.
I have a love hate relationship with this next product, the Nars Creamy Radiant Concealer in Ginger. If I’m using a primer and a heavier base, this doesn’t crease on me but other times it does. To be honest, I just use this now because I don’t want it to go waste and I can sort of make it work but it’s defintiely not something I would repurchase. The Urban Decay Skin Concealer is far better ( and cheaper) in my opinion.
It’s pretty self explanatory but the Charlotte Tilbury Palette Instant Look In A Palette in Beauty Glow contains three eyeshadows, two blushes, one bronzer/contour shade and a highlight. The three eyeshadows Brighten, Enhance and Smoke really compliment each other well. I usually do a simple look with Enhance on the inner half of the lid and Smoke on the outer half and crease. Smoke is the only matte shade, a chocolate brown that’s a tinge darker than my actual lid colour. It works well as a crease shade for me. Enhance is my favourite of the bunch and a very fine rose gold shimmer shade. Brighten is more champagne with a bit more shimmer than Enhance. I love these colours a lot more after using them regularly than my first impressions of them which was a bit meh.
For blushes, we have the more dusty rose/brown “Swish” shade which works so well with darker lipsticks and as a high cheek blush. The peachy pink “Pop” shade is probably my least used product in this palette but it’s a good staple pink blush you can’t go wrong with. I’m honestly so happy I bought this. The bronze and highlight shades are very similar to the Filmstar Bronze and Glow, just a bit cooler. They are still very fine. I’m not much a bronzer user, so I really love that the “Bronze” shade is actually a perfect grey leaning contour shade for me. The highlight is also very subtle and fine. I’ve been on a lot of trips since I’ve bought this and I’ve carried it every single time. It really saves a lot of space and the large mirror is very handy. It’s hands down one of my best discoveries of 2017.
All through 2017, these eye products have been a constant for me and I’ve repurchased them so many times. I haven’t looked at another mascara since I discovered Dior Diorshow Iconic Overcurl Mascara. It gives me length and volume without going clumpy or looking too done. It’s exactly what I love in a mascara. It also doesn’t bleed or flake, lasts for a solid day. I pair it with the Hourglass 1.3mm Mechanical Gel Liner in Obsidian to tightline. It’s a soft and pigmented gel formula which applies swiftly, doesn’t irritate my eyes, doesn’t smudge easily and lasts long. It has a tiny nib which is great for precision and shaky hands like mine.
When I feel more confident to do a winged eye or anything more than a sharp line, I depend on the Kat von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper. The fine but bendable felt pen gives good control and precision. The black isn’t diluted and the ink doesn’t go out of place. I’ve found the formula to be very long lasting as well.
I’m a lot more attentive to my brows than I used to be. While I don’t do a large routine for it, I do like to fill them in in places. The Dior Brow Styler in Universal Dark Brown is a grey toned brown that suits me well. It’s not too pigmented, no accidents here but the waxy formula stays in place. If I need this to last longer than 6 hours, I do usually go over with a brow gel.
When it comes to lips, after nudes, I love plum and berry shades a lot for fall and winter. This time round my favourite combination is the Huda Beauty Lip Contour in Trophy Wife and Charlotte Tilbury Hot Lips Lipstick in Secret Salma. While Trophy Wife is more on the blue side, Secret Salma is a tinge warmer which gives a nice balanced berry tone verging on fuschia. The Huda Beauty lip liner formula is amazing. When applied on bare lips, it stays on for hours and remains intact even through food and drinks. I wore this liner just by itself for my wedding reception. The Charlotte Tilbury formula, much like the Matte Revolution lipsticks is one of the best weightless ones I’ve tried. I find it to be more resilient when layered rather than just by itself. It’s very comfortable and more of a demi-matte which isn’t drying at all.
Although my skin is most dry, I usually get a bit of shine around my dark circles and on my nose. I like to mattify that area with the YSL Touche Eclat Blur Perfector. It’s an untinted silicone base which truly blurs and mattifies any area. I find is works equally well over or under makeup. However, this isn’t something to replace your mattifying primer, I think it’s more suited as a on the go product.
Marc Jacobs Under(cover) Perfecting Coconut Face Primer – Sephora
Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint in Dark – Glossier
Bobbi Brown Corrector in Dark Peach – Sephora, Nordstrom, Nykaa
Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger – Sephora, Nordstrom
Charlotte Tilbury Palette Instant Look In A Palette in Beauty Glow – Nordstrom, CultBeauty, Beautylish,
Dior Diorshow Iconic Overcurl Mascara – Sephora, Nordstrom
Hourglass 1.3mm Mechanical Gel Liner in Obsidian – Sephora, Nordstrom
Kat von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper – Sephora
Dior Brow Styler in Universal Dark Brown – Sephora, Nordstrom
Huda Beauty Lip Contour in Trophy Wife – CultBeauty
Charlotte Tilbury Hot Lips Lipstick in Secret Salma – Nordstrom, CultBeauty
YSL Touche Eclat Blur Perfector – Sephora, Nordstrom
(Some links above are affiliate links)
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