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

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

GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner Review

I have been an avid user of the GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliners  for years. Without a doubt they are my favourite eyeliners. I purchased my first eyeliner around 4 years ago in a pharmacy down the road from where I live. A GOSH stand had just been set up in the pharmacy and I was curious about the brand. I was immediately drawn to the eyeliners, they came in a rainbow of colours. So I decided to purchase one. It cost roughly €7.99 which I thought was pricey at first. But when I began to use the eyeliner I soon changed my view on the price.

The GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliners have a soft and creamy texture to them. They glide effortlessly across the lid without pulling or dragging on  them. Once applied the eyeliners can be easily spread out across the lid using a brush, or blended out with your fingers. You can easily create a smokey eye using this method.  A smokey eye using "Black Ink" looks amazing. However I would say if you are doing this, to work fast as once these eyeliners set they will not budge. That is another great thing about these eyeliners, once they set they will last all day long.  There is no need to re apply the eyeliner during the day. With other brands I have found that after a few hours the eyeliner has smudged down underneath my eyes, with the Velvet Touch Eyeliners this is not the case.

To my knowledge these eyeliners come in 33 shades. All of the eyeliners I have bought are extremely pigmented. I don't doubt that the rest are too. I have also found that these eyeliners make an excellent eyeshadow base. For example I have used "Blue Lagoon" as a base and applied a blue eyeshadow on top. It made the blue more bright and vibrant.

The eyeliners I own are listed below

• Black Ink
• 005 Golden Cadillac
• 008 Silver Screen
• Purple Stain
• Cool Mint
• Blue Lagoon
• Pretty Petrol

From Left to Right:

Pretty Petrol, Blue Lagoon, Cool Mint, Purple Stain, 008 Silver Screen, 005 Golden Cadillac, Black Ink

Pro's

• Reasonably priced
• Very Pigmented
• Wide variety of colours
• Last all day
• Not harsh on the eye area
• Multiple uses

Con's

• None :) these eyeliners are close to perfect for me