Lancome Christmas Collection 2015 | La Palette 29 Faubourg Saint Honore Review

Hi Everyone!
Hope you all are well :)

It is finally December my favourite month of the year and I'm nothing short of over the moon. I could go on and on about why I love this time of year. My birthday is in December, I adore the lights, and the festivities in general. Also in the months of November and December two of my loves combine in the form of makeup Christmas Collections, which is what I'm talking to you about today.

At the beginning of November Lancome launched their Christmas Collection for 2015 and I was drooling over the range. In the collection there are some nail varnishes, a lipstick, a mascara, and a face powder but what really grabbed my attention was the eye and lip palette.

Prior to this palette I had never tried any makeup from Lancome so I suppose the range intrigued me in itself but I was very curious about the way in which the lip colours in the palette were stored. I'm yet to come across a single eye/lip combo palette that I have enjoyed. I just find they generally don't work. When you pick up a little eyeshadow on your brush 90% of the time you will have excess product in the pan. The problem then is having a cream product next to the eyeshadows, it usually ends with the two textures mixing which can be extremely inconvenient. Not to mention the aspect of cross-contamination!

However, that won't be the case with this palette as there is a swing lid which adds a layer of protection for the lip products. Such a simple concept but extremely effective!

For the price I had expected the palette to have been a little larger, I was slightly surprised when it arrived to be completely honest. 

The palette houses six eyeshadows, a hydrating lip base and two matte lip colours. There is a dual ended eye and lip brush contained in the palette and also a decent sized mirror. Stuck onto the mirror there is a step by step guide showing you how to create a day and night time look using the palette. The shadows and steps are numbered so it is very easy to follow, a great guide for beginners. Being that the palette is small and contains a brush and a mirror it is handy for on the go, especially if you need to top up the lipstick.

As you can see the eyeshadows are contained to the left hand side of the palette while the lip colours are towards the right.

Eyeshadow 1: Matte cream coloured shade

Eyeshadow 2: A shimmery golden coloured eyeshadow

Eyeshadow 3: A bronze shimmery eyeshadow

Eyeshadow 4: Slightly grey toned pink with a shimmer finish

Eyeshadow 5: Medium plum toned shade with a pearlescent finish

Eyeshadow 6: Dark purple eyeshadow with flecks of glitter running throughout

Lip A: Hydrating lip base

Lip B: Cherry red lipstick

Lip C: Burgundy lipstick

I rarely use the brushes that come with eyeshadow palettes because a lot of them generally aren't great. The limited edition Lancome palette comes with a dual ended eye and lip brush and it's pretty good! I love the angled eyeshadow brush it's great quality, nice and dense and packs eyeshadow onto the eye really well. It's also great for blending the edges of the eyeshadow to ensure no harsh lines.

The lip brush is also good, its not revolutionary but it gets the job done.

The only thing I feel that is missing from the palette is a dark matte shade to add depth to the eyes. I found the dark purple with the glitter in it a little too chunky and not ideal for creating depth. I just found the look too shimmery then overall. I would have preferred a matte black or brown eyeshadow in place of the hydrating lip base as I can't see myself using that too much.

Other than that its a really nice palette for creating a glamorous smokey eye. The lip colours in the palette compliment the eyeshadows nicely and when worn together I think they create a nice party ready look for the festive season...or for any season for that matter!

I've filmed a step by step tutorial showing you how to use the palette which includes all products in the palette! If you would like to see how I created the look then just click on the play button below :)

The Lancome Christmas Collection 2015 is available now at select counters in Debenhams and the La Palette 29 Faubourg Saint Honore will set you back €55. The range is limited edition for Christmas so if you see anything you like snap it up quickly!

Until next time :)

Eimear x

Essence Liquid Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner Swatches, Review and Tutorial

Hi Everyone!
Hope you all are well :)

I'm back again today with an eyeliner review for you all. If you have found my blog through my YouTube channel well then this post will come as no surprise to you. If you are new to my blog and unaware that I have a YouTube channel then you're in for a treat! Today I am reviewing my holy grail eyeliner product and better yet it costs a pittance. For those of you that watch my tutorials you will be very familiar with this product. If I'm creating a winged eyeliner as part of a makeup tutorial you can bet your life that I'm using this nifty liner here.

This was the very first liquid eyeliner that I ever used at the age of around 14 or 15 and its the only one thats stuck by me through thick and thin. By that I mean through my emo/Amy Winehouse phases, where you couldn't tell where the eyeliner started and my eyelid ended, and more recently then through my pin up style makeup phase which was much more polished, thankfully. All joking aside though this eyeliner allows you to create whatever style that you like with ease.

Over the years I have used high end eye liners that are about ten times the price of this Essence one and nothing compares. In the last nine years I can't even begin to imagine how many bottles I have gone through. I always keep at least 4 backed up in my makeup drawer at a time just incase I lose one (very likely) or it ends up being discontinued. I shuddered even typing that haha I'd be absolutely lost without this liner.

Thankfully the one thing that I have noticed over the years is that while the packaging may change from time to time the formula stays the same. Pheeew!

The packaging of the waterproof liquid eyeliner is blue and black while the standard formula comes in a black tube with silver writing. Along with the colouring, the label stating the name of the product is clearly defined so you will be able to distinguish between the two. The tube is pocket sized making it very handy for popping in your bag when you're on the go although you definitely won't be needing it for top ups!

The brush is of medium length and has a thin and thick side to it making creating a sharp precise wing very easy to do. While the bristles are nice and thin the applicator isn't flimsy in the slightest, you still have plenty of control. I like to use the thicker side of the brush to line the upper lash line and when it comes to creating the wing or the flick I switch to the side that is more thin.

I use the liquid eye liner to line my upper lash line daily and then on a night out I use it to line both my upper and lower lash line. The eye liner is jet black, dries to a matte finish and doesn't budge. It surpasses the 12 hour mark in terms of lasting power. The liner doesn't flake, smear, or smudge, the product does not move until I decide to remove it. It is completely waterproof which is fantastic and I find it particularly beneficial in the Summer when my eyes are streaming with hay fever. 

I've added a couple of recent makeup photos of me wearing the liner to show you what it looks like on the eyes which you can see below.

If you would like to see a step by step tutorial on how I use the product to get that nice cat eye flick then just click on the play button below. Would you believe that almost 5 million people have now viewed that video, I find it crazy!

Essence is widely available in Ireland its stocked in selected pharmacies nationwide and also in Penneys too so its easy to find! The Essence Liquid Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner retails for only €3.09, bargain!

Happy shopping :)

Eimear x

theBalm Nude 'Tude Palette Review, Swatches and Tutorial

Hi Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

Last Summer my Auntie went to Portugal and she told me that she had picked up an eyeshadow palette on the way home from the inflight catalogue on the plane. She had mentioned that she had never heard of the brand before and had just picked it up because she liked the shade range. I asked her to bring it down to show me, I wasn't really sure what to expect but to be honest, I hadn't really high hopes for what she had bought. She came back into the room and as she produced the eyeshadow palette she began "I'm not sure if it's any use but..". I cut her off mid sentence. I squealed with excitement at the sight of theBalm Nude'Tude, not knowing what all the fuss was about she continued "So it's alright then?". Oh if only she really knew! 

Initially, the highlighter Mary-Lou Manzier took the Blogging and YouTube world by storm. When the hype surrounding that product finally calmed down, then a new frenzy started and it was all about the Nude'Tude palette. Naturally enough as more and more Bloggers and YouTubers starting featuring the palette in blog posts and videos, the more requests I started getting from my viewers to create a look using the palette. There was just one thing though, I didn't own the palette, but I knew someone who did :) 

My trusty Auntie Edna came to the rescue and allowed me to borrow her palette for the video, heck she even told me I could keep it but I couldn't do that, I knew how much she loved it. I enjoyed the palette that much I figured I had to pick it up for myself but then theBalm launched their Nude'Dude palette and I was torn between the two. Recently, I attended the Debenhams winter event and sitting at the top of my very generous goodie bag was the Nude'Tude palette. I couldn't believe it. Now I just need to pick up the Nude'Dude palette and I'm golden. Very long intro aside, let's get on with the review!

This particular Nude'Tude palette is part of a limited edition set. The only difference between buying this set and the palette on its own is that there is a mini 'Put a Lid on It' eyeshadow primer included in this set.

The palette is very well packaged. It comes in a box with one end revealing the mini primer and the other end opening up to reveal the eyeshadow palette. There is then a removable sleeve containing the palette that matches the design on the palette itself. I really like when products come with a sleeve, it just adds a layer of protection and stops your palette getting dirty. In relation to the packaging design, I adore the vintage vibe the palette has.

Within the palette you get 12 eyeshadows that range in textures and finishes. I feel based on the shade range the palette has something for everybody. Also included is a double ended shadow liner brush. I haven't used this brush yet and to be honest based on how the brush feels, I more than likely won't bother with it. The palette opens up to also reveal a large mirror making it handy for when you're on the move.

Let's take a closer look at the eyeshadows.

Sassy: This is a frosted white eyeshadow with good pigmentation. 

Stubborn: A light to medium pinky peach shade that also has a frosted finish.

Selfish: Is a frosted taupe brown shade with grey undertones.

Snobby: Shimmery light gold shade. I'd almost say its more of a yellow.

Stand-Offish: In the pan this looks like a light pink but when applied it is more of a light golden brown shade that has a sort of metallic finish.

Sultry: Matte warm brown. Another highly pigmented shade and very easy to blend.

Sophisticated: Warm dark brown shade with shimmer running throughout.

Sexy: Matte warm cranberry/burgandy shade. One of my favourites in the palette, really pigmented and very easy to work with.

Serious: Matte black, its not the most pigmented matte black I have come across. You do need to layer it to get an intense colour payoff.

Seductive: Warm toned golden brown shade with a satin finish.

Silly: Dark brown with red and golden flecks running throughout the shadow. This is another firm favourite of mine!

Sleek: A very dark matte brown shade that is almost black. Pigmentation is fantastic and its nice and buttery so very easy to work with.

Swatches Top Row (L-R)

Sassy, Stubborn, Selfish, Sophisticated, Sexy, and Serious.

Swatches Bottom Row (L-R)

Snobby, Stand-Offish, Sultry, Seductive, Silly, and Sleek.

As I've said there is something for everyone in this palette. You can create neutral smokey eyes with this palette or really intense dark smokey eyes either. I love deep smokey eyes so I was immediately drawn to the cluster of darker shades along the right hand side of the palette.

To create this grunge inspired makeup look I used the shades:

• Sleek
• Sexy
• Silly
• Serious
• Sassy

I've a full tutorial on my channel showing you how to create this look. If you are interested in finding out how, then just click on the play button below!

I am very pleased with how this palette performs. The quality of the shadows is outstanding, they are highly pigmented and are buttery smooth to the touch so they make the blending process very easy to do. The only shade I found that needed a little extra work was the matte black in the palette 'Serious'. It isn't as pigmented as the other shadows in the palette, you need to layer it to get a nice intense payoff. My least favourite shade in the palette is the yellow/golden eyeshadow 'Snobby' and that is just purely because of its colour. The only thing that I feel the palette is missing is a matte highlight shade. If 'Snobby' was replaced with a matte highlight colour I think the palette would be absolutely perfect.

Overall though I'm delighted with the palette and I'd highly recommend. It will set you €35 which I think is quite affordable for what you are getting in terms of quality. Thankfully theBalm products are becoming a lot easier to find here in Ireland. theBalm can be purchased online and in store from Debenhams. For a direct link to the palette on the site you can click here.

Have you tried any products from theBalm yet? If you have, 

let me know your favourite!

Until next time,

Eimear x

Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette Review, Tutorials and Swatches

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

If you follow me on social media or even just here on the blog you will know that a while ago I attended the big reveal of the Urban Decay Naked Smoky palette at the Dean Hotel in Dublin. I put up a little post with information regarding the event and product, I also included some very quick swatches, if you missed that post you can catch it here. The week after the event I was sent out the Naked Smoky palette to try for myself and I'm here today to give you my final thoughts on Urban Decay's latest edition to the Naked range.

I am a massive fan of Urban Decay and have been for years. I own numerous palettes (not only from their Naked range), their primers and I've always been a lover of their 24/7 glide on eye pencils. I can honestly say that I have never been disappointed with a product I've purchased from the brand. However, this latest release has left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. I'll tell you a bit more about that later on.

When the first images of this palette emerged online I was jumping up and down I was that excited. Out of all of the Naked palettes on the market, the colour combination of the Naked Smoky was definitely my favourite. I simply couldn't wait to get my hands on it.

Before I go into detail about the eyeshadows I want to talk to you about the packaging. To me, the packaging is pretty much spot on. It is most definitely my favourite packaging from the range to date. Design wise there is some smokey detailing on the front and back of not only the palette itself, but on the cardboard box too. The plastic casing is sleek and sturdy yet doesn't appear bulky which I like. I also think the addition of a magnetic closure is a nice touch. As per the other palettes, there is a large mirror making the palette perfect for on the go. 

If you're not familiar with the previous releases from the Naked range, encased in the palettes are 12 eyeshadows with matte, satin and shimmer finishes.

One of the things about this palette that is different from the rest of the naked releases, is that the shadows are grouped together according to texture. This was a fantastic idea and I believe it will prove to be beneficial for any beginners out there.

Textures:

Shimmer 

• High
• Dirtysweet
• Radar
• Armor

Satin 

• Slanted
• Dagger
• Black Market
• Smolder

Matte 

• Password
• Whiskey
• Combust
• Thirteen

All of the shadows are new to the market with the exception of Radar, Armor, and Black Market. Armor and Black Market previously appeared in The Vice 2 palette while Radar appeared in The Vice palette.

The Naked Smoky comes with a leaflet that gives a detailed step by step guide on how to create four different looks using the palette. Again, something that would prove very useful for beginners or simply for people who are looking for a little inspiration.

Also included in this palette is a double ended brush. Let's take a closer look!

On one end we have a tapered blending brush. If you have seen my video on my favourite eye makeup brushes you will know that I like to use different blending brushes for different reasons. This is the type of brush that I would use last for blending. This brush is slightly stiff so I don't like it for blending colour into the crease. Once I have my shadows applied and blended out in the crease I like to use this brush to buff around the edges of the shadows to ensure that the colours are diffused nicely. It works great for this purpose.

On the other end then we have a pencil brush. I would use this type of brush for smoking shadow down along my lower lash line but I just found that this particular brush was too harsh. The bristles felt like they were scratchy underneath my eye when I tried to apply some eyeshadow. I decided to wash the brush to see if that would soften up the bristles but it didn't, so this end was a no go for me!

As I've said before I had a ridiculous amount of requests from viewers looking for a tutorial using the Naked Smoky Palette. I received this palette on a Thursday morning so I got up and spent my time solidly filming and editing to ensure I got the video up at my normal time of 6pm on a Friday. *Sigh* now we move onto the disappointing part, the quality of the shadows. 

I'm all for the deep dark smoky eyes so naturally enough for my first look I gravitated towards the grey tones in the palette.

The Urban Decay Primer Potion is one of my all time favourite eyeshadow primers so I popped this on before eyeshadow application to prep my eye area. The first shadows that I used from the palette were matte. Matte shades sometimes can be a little tricky to apply but I found myself really struggling with 'Whiskey' and 'Password' in particular.

Whiskey is the dark brown matte shade in the palette and this was the colour I used in my crease. I had to keep layering and layering in order to get the colour pay off that was in the pan. Layering matte shades isn't unusual, for me the problem was the amount of layers I needed to apply. Due to the amount of layers I was applying I found I was then getting a bit of a patchy appearance, which is noticeable in the finished look.

I wanted the grey smokey eye to be quite intense so I decided to apply the shadow Password as my base. That way, it would make the satin finish shadow 'Dagger' really pop when I applied it on top. I found the shade Password very hard to apply evenly, I had to pat the shadow onto the lid over and over again to ensure I had a nice opaque finish to the lid. Similar to my gripe with Whiskey, patting the shadow on the lid to get an even layer wouldn't be unusual, it was the fact that I had to spend a lot of time doing so. Not only that but I found Password just didn't wear well on the eyes, it separated on the lids after a couple of hours wear time. I never have a problem with my eyeshadows fading or creasing but this should definitely not be the case especially when I prepped with the primer potion first.

To get any sort of lasting power out of the eyeshadow I had to use a primer followed by a grey base and even at that longevity wise things weren't great!

Based on the above look, the last shadow that I had a problem with was the shade 'Smolder'. The moment I set eyes on the palette I fell in love with the shade Smolder, it is the most beautiful deep plum shade. I'm more so just let down by this shade as I find that the colour in the pan doesn't transfer onto the eyes. I find it applies more so like a muddy grey.

Now it isn't all doom and gloom I did use five other shadows to create the above look and these shadows I did enjoy. These shadows were:

Combust, Thirteen, Black Market, Slanted and Dagger.

If you would like to see the shades in action and if you are curious as to how I created the above look then just click on the play button below and it will open the tutorial! 

The response I got from that video was fantastic and again, I received numerous requests to record another look using the palette. I had other requests so I decided to kill two birds with the one stone and combine them. The following Friday then I recorded a 'no brushes' makeup look using the Naked Smoky again.

The only shade that I used that was different from my last look was the eyeshadow 'Dirtysweet' one of the shimmer shades. I've nothing bad to say about this eyeshadow it applied and lasted well on the eyes.

The other eyeshadows I used to create this look were:

Thirteen, Combust, Black Market and Whiskey.

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

From the above video's I have shown you nine out of the twelve eyeshadow in action. To date I have used all the eyeshadows in the palette, combining them in different ways. The only other shadow that I haven't discussed yet that I had an issue with is the shade 'High'. I don't have a major problem with this eyeshadow it was just something I noted. The texture of the rest of the shimmery shades to be fine, but I found the glitter particles in the shadow 'High' were a little bit chunky.

Overall I just feel that the quality of the eyeshadows has majorly dropped. The issues that I had with the shadows in this palette, I never had with the rest of the Naked range. I couldn't fault the original Naked palette, same applied with Naked 2, with regard to the Naked 3 palette I just wasn't keen on a palette filled with rose toned eyeshadows but the quality was great and then finally we have Naked Smoky. Unfortunately I love the range of colours in the palette but sadly the quality just isn't there.

The Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette retails for €46 and is available in store and online from House of Fraser and Debenhams. 

Have you tried the Naked Smoky Palette? If you have I would be very interested to know your thoughts!

Chat soon,

Eimear x

Retro Pin Up Makeup

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

Sorry there was no tutorial on Wednesday, I'm still sick at the moment and I wasn't able to record one. Todays tutorial is in collaboration with Gosh cosmetics, I created this really nice retro pin up style makeup look.

Its one of my go to makeup looks when I'm in a hurry, once you get the hang of the winged liner its very quick and easy to do! 

Products Used

Face

Gosh X-Ceptional Wear Foundation '11 Porcelain'

Gosh Click n Conceal Concealer '04 Anti Redness'

Gosh Natural Blush Box '36 Rose Whisper'

Gosh Bronzing Powder 'Natural Glow 02'

Lips

Gosh Waterproof Velvet Touch Lip Liner 'Simply Red'

Gosh Velvet Touch Lipstick 'Lambada'

Eyebrows

Gosh Eyebrow Kit

Eyes

Gosh Matte Duo '001 Brown Base'

Gosh Matte Duo '002 Melting Pale'

Gosh Matte Duo '003 Darn n Dusty'

Gosh New Intense Eyeliner 'Black'

Gosh Growth Mascara 

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

Eimear x

Summer Makeup 2014: Envious Embers

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

Well I've gotten week one of the new schedule down, chuffed! 

Today's tutorial is long overdue, I posted this picture on my Facebook page last year and a lot of people wanted to see a tutorial on it. I find that sometimes when I create a look on a whim, I have a very hard time trying to recreate that exact makeup look. I don't know what it is but I find it just never turns out as good as the original. So for today's look I have ever so slightly altered the original look :)

It was funny because originally last year, I had actually recorded this tutorial but when I went to edit it I noticed some clips were missing. I could not and I stress, could not find those clips for the life of me.

I kept the footage so I would know what products I had used if I did ever want to re record the tutorial. I imported the clips back into my iMovie the other day and guess what?………..The missing clips magically re appeared. HOW. 

I will never know. I imported, reimported…you name it I did it haha. In the end I would have had to have recorded the look again anyway as I had some seriously dodgy lighting and eyebrows going on….eeeek!

After much frustration this was the new and hopefully improved look I came up with :)

Products Used

Eyes

E.L.F Eyelid Primer 'Sheer'

Smashbox Eyeshadow 'Pronto'

Smashbox Eyeshadow 'Smashing Ingenue'

Inglot Amc Eyeshadow '86'

Smashbox Eyeshadow 'ASAP'

Sleek Makeup iDivine Ultra Mattes Palette Darks v2 (review here)

Ardell Natural Style Demi Wispies False Eyelashes

Face

Smashbox Photo Finish Face Primer

L'oreal True Match Foundation 'C1 Rose Ivory'

Inglot Amc Multi Colour System Highlighting Powder '86'

Lips

Catrice Ultimate Colour '190 The Nuder The Better'

If you want to see how I created this look then just click on the play button below :) I hope you enjoy the tutorial!

Eimear x

Collection Smokey Eyes Palette #3 Smokey

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all are well :)

Today I have an eyeshadow palette review for you all.

I have been looking around trying to find some budget buys for my cheap and cheerful series that I am currently doing. 

First stop...Boots!

Currently there are tonnes and tonnes of offers on across different ranges in Boots. As I was browsing through the different stands I wasn't seeing anything that was jumping out at me...until I came to the Collection stand.

I think the only things I have ever tried from Collection was a tinted moisturiser and a green concealer back when I was 14 and they were called Collection 2000. I have been lusting over the much hyped Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer, however each time I have popped in it has been out of stock! Well in the ghostly shade that I want anyway :)

On the Collection stand there was an offer running:

Buy one get one half price

Buy 2 get the cheapest one half price

FINALLY, I found the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in the shade 'Fair' in stock in the Boots on Grafton Street. I picked that up along with this beautiful eyeshadow palette that caught my eye.

I love the packaging, it stood out from every other eyeshadow palette on display in there! On the reverse side of the palette it explains to you how to create the smokey eye look. I always like to see this on the palette as the step by steps are great for everyone, especially beginners! 

Inside the palette you will find 9 eyeshadows each labelled either 

'Dark', 'Light' or 'Medium', meaning you have the option of creating 3 entirely different looks..minimum!

To use the palette, Collection suggest the following steps:

1. Blend the Medium shade over the eyelid.

2. Brush the Dark shade from the outer corner and blend to the centre of the lid. For more impact, sweep along the lower lash line.

3. Use the light shade to highlight the brow bone.

4. Brighten the inner corner of the eye with the cream.

Starting with the first row, as you can see from the swatch below the light shade is almost non existent. I only swatched the shadow once on my arm, for the white to appear on the skin you needed 2-3 layers of the shadow.

Here is the look I created using the palette :)

I love the second row of shadows. The three shadows are highly pigmented and give off such a beautiful sheen when blended across the eye lid.

Here is how they look in action :)

This is a swatch of the third row. In this row we have a medium shade, a dark shade, followed by a cream shade. We have two different highlight shades we can choose between and the cream shade is used in all three makeup looks as a highlight around the tear duct of the eye.

Here is the third look :)

I decided to use the medium and dark shade on the third row, followed by the pink iridescent 'light' shade on the second row as my brow bone highlight.

I am extremely impressed with the quality and pigmentation of these shadows.

All of the eyeshadows in the palette except for the white shade are very vibrant with just one swatch of the colours. This was the only palette of the range available in Boots at the time I was in the store. After looking up online I am definitely interested in checking out some more...especially the more colourful ones! 

I picked up the palette and the concealer for around €9!

The palette is around €6 which is only €2 per makeup look I think we can all agree that Bargain Hunter Byrne strikes again >:)

If you would like to see how I created the three makeup looks, just click on the play button below! Hope you enjoy the tutorial :D 

Thanks a million for tuning in guys.

See you in my next video/review!

Eimear x