Cocoa Brown Instant Tan Bronzing Gel Matte and Shimmer

Hi Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

A couple of months ago I was invited along to Cocoa Browns Passion Persistence Pink Event in the Shelbourne Hotel. I made some new friends at the event and got to catch up with some old ones too. I can safely say that an enjoyable afternoon was had by all. I Snapchatted the majority of the event including Marissa's reveal of the two brand new Cocoa Brown products. If you haven't already heard, these products are as follows:

• Cocoa Brown Instant Tan Bronzing Gel 'Matte'
• Cocoa Brown Instant Tan Bronzing Gel 'Shimmer'

I was extremely excited with the announcement of not one but two instant tans to the Cocoa Brown family, it's exactly what the range needed. I'm a massive fan of the 1 Hour Tan and the Night & Day Tan Mousse, I've reviewed those products already and you can find the posts here and here. While I absolutely adore both of these tans and use them religiously, sometimes I like to have the option of being able to wash my tan off completely the next day. I couldn't wait to put these two to the test. Unfortunately I had to wait until my eczema calmed down to do so but let me tell you it was well worth the wait!

Lets kick things off with the packaging. The packaging really didn't come as a surprise to me its typical of Cocoa Brown, it's pink, fun and girly. You would easily spot a Cocoa Brown product a mile off!

I only fake tan on special occasions as some of you will know, I embrace the pale the rest of the time. However when I do decide to fake tan I like to have quite a dark appearance to my skin. I started out by testing the matte shade of bronzing gel and I must admit even I was a little scared when I squeezed some of the product out of the tube. It is very dark.

The shimmer bronzing gel on the other hand looked to be a lighter shade of brown. Normally I favour a matte appearance to my skin but I was blown away by the gorgeous golden brown colour of the shimmer bronzing gel. 

Now to put the two to the test!

Before - Tan Free Skin

After - 1 Layer of Cocoa Brown Matte Bronzing Gel

Like the rest of the Cocoa Brown range the gels are scented with Cocoa Browns signature Tahitian Gardenia scent so absolutely no need to worry about the biscuit/curry smell that other tans give off.

The first night I wore this tan was to the Irish Blog Awards last month in the Tivoli Theatre. When it comes to important events I stick to my trusty makeup and tanning routine, I never try new products on the day of an event on the off chance disaster strikes. Unfortunately for me that day/night consisted of a series of unfortunate events, one being that I ran out of tan mid way through tanning myself from top to bottom. I had applied the Cocoa Brown Night & Day Tan Mousse to the top half of my body and when I went to squeeze some more out of the can.....nothing. I had ran out. Crisis adverted though when I found the Matte Bronzing Gel in the bottom of my bag. I must have put it in there by accident but I was very thankful that I did!

The tan is definitely splash proof as it passed the test on the night. It was very crowded in the theatre and someone knocked into me accidentally which caused me to drown myself in the lovely Prosecco I had been handed moments before. The tan on the top half of my body ran which was a given as it was an instant tan so I didn't mind too much, nothing some bronzer couldn't fix! My dress had a slit as you can see from the above photo so my legs were mostly covered but it wouldn't have mattered if they hadn't of been. The drink hit my right leg and the tan didn't budge, not one bit. I was extremely surprised!

After - 1 Layer of Cocoa BrownShimmer Bronzing Gel

I found it very hard to do the shimmer bronzing gel justice, in person it gives such a gorgeous sheen to the skin. You really have to get the gel and experience it for yourself, you will not be disappointed! If you click into the photos it enlarges them you'll see the shimmer more clearly that way. In the last two photos in particular, you can see the shimmer particles on my arm but its so much more stunning in person.

Both bronzing gels are lightweight and glide onto the skin with ease. You can build up the intensity of the bronzing gels by applying them in layers but one layer is dark enough for me. If you are pale like myself you can also mix the gels with your regular foundation to match your face to your body. You can even contour your skin with the gels or Tontour as Marissa calls it, to see how to tontour you can check out Marissa's post here.

The bronzing gels are fantastic multi use products that will set you back a mere €6.99 for 150ml of product. Honestly, you can't go wrong! Cocoa Brown is available from large retailers such as Penneys, Boots, and Superdrug. The range is also available in pharmacies nationwide. If you are outside of Ireland not to worry, Cocoa Brown is available from sites such as Cloud10Beauty and Feel Unique who ship worldwide :)

Happy Tanning!

Eimear x

Mermaid Halloween Makeup | Wearable Version

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

I'm not going to lie, I've already started a countdown......49 days!

Today marks the start of my Halloween tutorials which I am so excited about. I've been counting down the days for far longer than I would like to admit, eep!

I've a few exciting things happening over the next few weeks, some of which will bring a few changes but I'm excited none the less :)

A mermaid makeup look has been highly requested over the last little while so it seemed fitting to have this as my first Halloween tutorial of the year.

I'm not sure if I will have a Halloween tutorial up every Saturday because I'm starting back college on Monday... #finalyearproblems

But, I will have at least three more Halloween videos up this year.

Stay tuned for those!

Products Used:

Eyes

e.l.f cosmetics Eyelid Primer "Sheer"

Inglot Matte 373 (white eyeshadow)

Urban Decay "Painkiller" (light blue eyeshadow)

Urban Decay "Deep End" (teal eyeshadow)

Urban Decay "Junkshow" (pink eyeshadow)

Urban Decay "Hash" (purple eyeshadow) 

Urban Decay "Tainted" (baby pink eyeshadow)

Urban Decay "Evidence" (navy eyeshadow)
Inglot AMC Eyeshadow 45 (green pigment)

Stargazer Eyedust 105 (blue pigment)

Barry M DazzleDust 90 (purple pigment)

Urban Decay "Blackout" (black eyeshadow)

Wet n Wild Megaliner "861 Black"

Cala False Eyelashes 20

Gosh Growth Mascara

Face

Wet n Wild Coverall Foundation Fair/Light

Wet n Wild Coverall Powder Fair/Light

Sleek MakeUP Contour Kit Light (review here)
Sigma Creme de Couture Macaroon Blush "Blackberry Essence"

theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer 

Lips

Mac Heroine Lipstick

If you would like to see how I created this look, then just click on the play button below!

Thanks for tuning in as always :)

Talk soon!

Eimear x

Benefit Bella Bamba Blush Review

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

Not too long ago I decided to delve into the world of Benefit again. I only own a handful of their products and that is sorely down to the price. As a student with little disposable income I find it very hard to justify for example, spending €30+ on a blusher. If you have been reading my blog for a long time or even from the name of the blog, you will know I post about bargain buys. Sometimes I do purchase products from high end brands but for the most part I stick to the drugstore. I think we now have fantastic quality products in the supermarkets and pharmacies that are just as good as the high end brands but at a fraction of the price!

 But anyway thats just me I guess. A product has to be really special for me to fork out an arm and a leg. Back in August I attended Leeds Festival, there were a couple of makeup items that caught my eye in the inflight magazine on the way over so I decided if I had money left on the way home I would pick something up. To my surprise I didn't actually spend as much as I thought I would…well minus the fact I had to buy a new tent and blankets which I didn't foresee hahaha. If anything after some disasters I decided regardless I deserved some new makeup'y goodness :)

I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the Benefit set that was on offer, and even when I did know the name I wasn't able to find it online.

The Benefit pouch consisted of a range of different products from the company. Off the top of my head I remember it included the full size Bella Bamba you see here, a sample version of High Beam, a full size version of the Eye Bright pencil and a full sized Stay Don't Stray primer for around €30.

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY. 

Considering one of these full sized products alone is around that price I couldn't let this go. I tried to flag down the flight attendant as quickly as I could. While placing my order the lady next to me wanted a set too, and then my worst nightmare happened. 

"I'm afraid we only have one left." uttered the flight attendant. 

Holy Jesus my nerves, I thought it was going to be a fight to the death but the lady was going to be back on a flight next week for business so she let me have the set instead (God bless you)

Now that you know the background of how this product came into my possession….lets get on with the review! :)

 It comes as no surprise that the packaging is extremely cute, colourful and very pretty…very Benefit! The lid of this blush folds open opposed to coming clean off like other Benefit products before? Correct me if I'm wrong.

This 'new' packaging has its pro's and con's. The pro's are that its great for travel, for one it has a mirror and two you don't have to worry about the lid falling off and making a mess in your handbag. The con is that the lid is quite awkward and doesn't stay open without you having to hold it. When I was taking the product shot I had to take it upside down because the lid was casting a shadow over the blush…. #bloggerproblems

A brush is contained inside the little box too, again making it useful for on the go. I prefer this style of brush for applying my contour into the hollows of my cheeks. I'm not even joking it has become my holy grail brush for doing just that! However for my blush I want a brush that is rounded or slightly angled.

Bella Bamba is a beautiful peachy pink shade of blush with shimmery gold undertones. Its a perfect shade for daily wear and I can imagine will be universally flattering across all skin tones. The quality of this blush is outstanding, it is so highly pigmented. The first time I applied the blush I went a little over board not realising just how pigmented it was. Even though I had applied quite a lot of product by accident the problem was easily fixed with a little extra blending. After some blending I had a nice flush of colour to my cheeks, its definitely a blush you can build on! 

As I mentioned, this watermelon blush is very pigmented. In the above picture the product was only swatched once, which was then transferred onto the back of my hand. So you can see for yourself the colour pay off is excellent. I couldn't see myself running out of this product any time soon, not matter how often I used it!

This is by no means a new blush on the market, I'm just late to hop on the band wagon as always! Classic Eimear.

When I had a little look online I couldn't find an exact price…

I would say its around €30-34 mark. Is it worth that much you ask? I'm torn. It is such a beautiful shade, beautifully packaged and applies like a dream. But unfortunately I just don't think its worth forking over that much money for. Especially for someone like myself who isn't an avid blush fan. Once I run out I more than likely won't repurchase, i'll just end up finding a drugstore alternative but thats just the bargain hunter in me!

What are your thoughts? Is it worth €€€

Eimear x

Born Pretty Store: 18 Color Eyeshadow Palette

Hey Everyone! 

Hope you all are well :)

Before Christmas I was contacted by the lovely Allison from the online "Born Pretty Store". Allison told me I could choose whatever makeup I liked off of the site to do a review/ tutorial on. I had not heard of the website before so I spent quite some time browsing the site before I made up my mind with regard to what I wanted to do. I was very impressed with the variety of products on the site and also the pricing. The site has everything from makeup to clothing, jewelry, stationary, toys, phone cases, nail art…the works!


 I had come across some of these products before from other companies however the ones on the Born Pretty Store won't break the bank. After hours of browsing and pondering over products I finally came to a decision about which products I was going to pick.

As you all know I love my colourful shadows so I picked a colourful eyeshadow palette and also a neutral palette. My items were so well packaged, they were wrapped in reams and reams of bubble wrap... they arrived safe and sound! I was super impressed with how efficiently the items were shipped out too, got them in no time!

Today I have a review of the 18 Color Eyeshadow Palette and also a tutorial on how to create a makeup look using some of the eyeshadows.

Over the next couple of weeks I will be doing the same for the colorful eyeshadow palette I received, so you will see how to create a colorful and neutral makeup look. You get the best of both worlds!
The palette arrived enclosed within a black cardboard case with the company logo on the front. Upon opening the case the eyeshadows come in the same style packaging, a black plastic case with the Carmella logo stamped on the front. Plain and simple like almost all of these eyeshadow palettes, nothing over the top fancy!

From the pictures on the website I had expected the eyeshadows to be larger than those in standard eyeshadow palettes. When I opened the palette I was pleasantly surprised with how large the eyeshadows actually were. 

There are no matte eyeshadows in the palette they are all shimmery shadows which I didn't mind too much. Perhaps a matte black or a matte highlight shade would have been nice! 
Almost all of the eyeshadows are highly pigmented with the exception of a couple of the lighter shades. They do not have a chalky consistency and blend easily! With the use of an eyeshadow base or primer there is little to no fallout from the eyeshadows. That is handy for anyone who applies their foundation first! In the picture below the eyeshadows are swatted once, you can see for yourself just how pigmented they are!

The palette retails at $9.99.
In terms of Euro that works out around €7.39…bargain!
Born Pretty Store offers free shipping worldwide, they ship within 24 hours and there is no minimum spend! The palette and site in general is perfect for anyone starting out in makeup and wants to experiment with eyeshadows without spending a fortune!

Allison has given me a coupon code for subscribers and readers to use :)

I don't earn any money from the code I was just sent the palette :) 
On the whole I'm very happy with the palette and overall experience with the company. I'd highly recommend them to anyone :)
If you are interested in picking up this palette you can do so here.
For more information or to browse some various other products head over to www.bornprettystore.com

If you want to see how to create a look from the palette then just click on the play button below!

Enjoy :)

Eimear x