Beauty | Everyday Make up Routine

An everyday make up routine is one of the hardest things to master for me. I can see your confusion so let me explain... I want my everyday make up to be quick and easy to do (so it sort of looks like you haven't made much effort but have naturally managed to look stunning- that's what we all want to look like right?!), to last all day, to be photo ready in case a spontaneous co-worker gets snap happy during the day (yes this has happened to me, and yes you did read it right I'm an accountant - but that's a story for another day haha) and one which uses products which last a while (as I'm using them everyday) and doesn't set me back a months wages everytime I need to replace everything. 

So as you can see it's quite a task to satisfy all these wants, and as I feel over the past few months or so I've somewhat mastered it I thought I'd share my favourite products, tools and top tips with you all :) I'd love to know your little beauty secrets too so remember to comment below!! 

Left to right; top to bottom: 

Benefit Cosmetics 'They're Real!' Mascara 

Rimmel London Matte BB Cream in Light 

Benefit Cosmetics The Pore-fessional pro balm (primer) 

Bourjois eyebrow pencil in 04 Blond Foncé 

Rimmel London 'Wake Me Up' concealer in 010 Ivory 

Eco tools blush brush (I use it for powder though - oops!) 

Superdrug own brand blush brush (which I actually use for blush!) 

Maybelline EyeStudio eyeshadow in 605 Beige Nude 

Bourjois little round pot of blush in 95 Rose de Jaspe 

DiorSkin Forever Compact Powder in 010 (lightest shade with pink undertones) 

As you can see, most of the products I use are drugstore ones with the exception of a few, but I often use drugstore replacements for these so if you're looking for cheaper alternatives which do pretty much the same job, my top ones are: 

Mascara - Bourjois Volume Glamour Ultra Black Mascara 

Primer - Maybelline New Baby Skin 

Powder - Rimmel London Stay Matte powder (which I've ran out of - I really need to buy some more!!) 

All of the products above last pretty much the whole working day for me, but as I do have super oily skin I tend to just dab a bit of extra powder on at lunch. The other plus is that the concealer is super duper at covering up tired eyes (does as it says on the tin!) and blemishes too meaning flawless skin can happen everyday - yay! I do have a full set of Real Techniques make up brushes but to be honest I never have time in a morning to get them out and use them so the only things I apply with brushes are my powder and blush, on a daily basis. 

My top everyday tips! 

1. Dab concealer! You've heard this one before I know, but this made the biggest difference to me when I found this out! Don't rub concealer if applying it with your fingers as you basically rub the whole lot off again! Just dab it with your ring finger to blend and voila - blemishes and dark circles will be gone! 

2. Pop some of the light eyeshadow on the inner corners of your eyes and just over the first part of the eyelid to brighten them up! I find it's best not to wear eyeshadow all over the lid if you're after a natural look in the daytime. 

3. When you've finished applying blusher to the apples of your cheeks and they're looking lovely and rosy, lightly sweep the blush brush over the top of your forehead, round your jawline and down your nose and chin. It adds a touch of warmth and colour back - which is needed if you have to use powder over your whole face to avoid oily-ness like me! Remember not to put extra blusher onto the brush before doing this though or you'll apply too much and end up looking flushed instead! (Nope I definitely haven't done that before ... ahem) 

The finished look! 

I hope you find my top tips useful! If you try or have tried any of the products or something similar then let me know as I'd love to try out your favourite products and top tips too :) 

If you hear slightly less from me over the next 3 weeks ish it's because I have exams coming up! Boo! :( but I will be back posting lots and lots once they're over at the start of September :) 

Lots of love and bye for now, 

Little Vintage Rose 

Xx 

Benefit make-up must-haves ♥

Benefit make-up must-haves ♥

^ My everday make up look is above ^ 

I always keep my makeup neutral, opting for no eyeliner and only a pale gloss or balm on my lips.

So as I reviewed all of my favourite Dior products, I thought I probably should give my second favourite brand (Benefit Cosmetics) a mention. In fact I think my favourite make-up product has to be Benefit's Porefessional - afterall it was my first 'expensive' make-up purchase and triggered my ever-growing make-up and beauty collection! 

Having called it expensive, at £24.50 a tube I think Porefessional is actually great value, but I say expensive in comparison to the cheaper brands such as Revlon/Maybelline/Bourjois (which I must add also do some amazing products at such good prices!)  It lasts for ages - for me about 3-4 months when I use it everyday. 

Anyway I haven't actually told you what it is yet...oops! Porefessional is Benefit's primer and it is honestly the best one I've found yet! It makes skin feel silky smooth and helps to even out any blemishes or fine lines. Not only is it a great make-up base, when my skin is fairly clear I can often just wear this with no concealer or foundation as it has a slight tint to it, unlike many other primers which are just clear. 

Although this is by far the best primer I have tried yet, Maybelline do a fantastic high street alternative at around 1/4 of the price - and it lasts just as long! While trying to save money I looked for good alternatives to my more expensive products, and found that Maybelline's Baby Skin face primer gives the same silky smooth effect. It isn't tinted so I've found it's best to apply a bbcream or foundation over the top, but it works just as well for this purpose. The only downside to it (hence why it's so much cheaper!) is that it can feel a bit greasy, which isn't great for days when my skin is already feeling blemish prone.

My other benefit find that deserves a mention is the 'browzings' eyebrow palette. It comes in either light or dark shades, which you can select depending on your hair colour and skin tone. The palette contains a wax for shaping eyebrows and a powder for filling in any gaps - with a little teeny tiny brush for each, which just adds to the cuteness! (I love mini things!!) And as if it couldn't get any more adorable, you get a miniature pair of tweezers for any stray eyebrow hairs! It's perfect for everyday use and also for travel as it contains everything you need to keep your eyebrows in shape in a compact palette. 

I hope you all find my reviews helpful! I have tried many more make-up products and won't be writing reviews for them all, so if you're interested to know if I've tried something just ask in the comments and I will write you a review if I've tried it ☺ 

Thank you for reading (if anyone has!!) 

Little Vintage Rose 

xx

My favourite beauty items ♥

My favourite beauty items ♥

So for my first blog post I thought I'd review some of my absolute favourite beauty items! I've tried so many different make up brands all claiming to make you look beautiful and after trying nearly all of them I've finally whittled them down to the ones that work and the ones that don't! 

You can see just a few of my favourites above!! ^^^

I'll start with my favourite brand of all - DIOR ♥

I cannot praise their makeup enough! For younger skin it is the perfect combination of light consistency (for those that have quite oily skin like me) and enough coverage to mask any unsightly blemishes. 

DiorSkin Airflash - this product is perfect for an early morning start as you can get quick even foundation coverage in seconds. I must admit when I bought this product I wasn't too sure it would actually work - surely a spray on foundation would look messy?! However as long as you shake the can before application, the spray is even and gives a lovely light coverage - perfect for daytime. Despite the hype you DO have to blend this in after spraying, but nowhere near as much as you have to with an ordinary foundation. (they did try to say that no blending would be needed at all, but no matter how good you are there's always a few bits that need a tweak!!) The only down side is that the can does seem to run out quickly if you use it every day, but I will certainly be buying it again! 

I have very pale skin and often find that even ivory shades look orange, but the lightest shade (100) is perfect.

HydraLife Pro-Youth Sorbet Creme - I have oily blemish prone skin and struggle to find moisturisers that don't cause break outs but still moisturise my skin enough. I was so pleased to find this creme which does both! It's a little pricey at around £60, but is perfect for younger skin and lasts ages! I use it almost everyday, twice a day, and have had the pot for about 6 months! It comes with a handy applicator to avoid putting dirt from your fingertips onto freshly cleansed skin. My favourite thing about this moisturiser is that it gives a light dewy feeling to my skin after application - great as a make up base! Certainly worth the investment!

DiorSkin Nude Foundation and Compact Powder - The perfect duo! Dior's light coverage Nude foundation and powder are perfect together. With many foundations and powders, mixing between brands and ranges to find what suits you best is nearly always the way forward - with the exception of these two products!! The powder takes the shine away from oily skin without clogging up pores and sticking to the foundation (I have tried using the Dior Forever powder over the top and although it still looks okay, you lose the dewy skin look!) I use the lightest shade of both (010) and it is perfect fro my porcelain skin tone.

Top Tip - Sign up for a Debenhams beauty card! You get £5 off your next purchase just for signing up and earn loads of points every time you buy from there! I don't buy ridiculous amounts of make up and often have £10 off to spend as if you purchase make up items in one month you get £5 to spend the next month! Watch out though - each £5 only lasts for 6 months so you can't save them up forever! Plus it's just a points card so you're not having to pay on a store card to receive these great benefits! Don't miss out ☺

Anyway that's enough from me for now! I hope my reviews are useful if you're looking to try new make up! I'll post again soon with more reviews of benefit make up (which I also love!!). Look out for more blog posts on lipsticks/glosses and my summer fashion finds. 

Little Vintage Rose 

xx