Maybelline FIT Me! Foundation Review

Before I start with the review, I know this is only a sample, but as it is a very generously sized sample I believe I have had enough use out of it to be able to give it a fair review. I used this foundation for around 4 weeks before reviewing.

 

Now that's out of the way, this is the new foundation from Maybelline, which is called "fit me!". I believe there's a range of products including this foundation, a powder and a concealer.

 

 

I won't mention the packaging as this is only a sample and therefore is not in the same packaging as the full-sized bottle.

 

Maybelline were offering people the chance to try this foundation for free on their website, but unfortunately they have now run out of samples! Naturally I jumped at the chance to try this as I had heard so many good things about it. I didn't want to purchase the full-sized one just yet as I still have half a bottle of the Benefit foundation left and I hate wasting products, so I thought I'd try a sample and see what I thought before purchasing the full-sized.

 

In all honesty this is the wrong shade for me, it's slightly too orange. It's not too bad and I have worn it but I think I would be inclined to purchase the shade lighter than this.

 

There's 12 shades available in this range, and although it's a pretty good range if you are pale-skinned, if you are dark-skinned then unfortunately there's not a lot of choice with this foundation!

 

I have the shade Classic Ivory but as I mentioned it's slightly too dark so I would probably purchase Ivory.

 

 

 

Maybelline describe this as "flawless, let the real you come through", and their tagline for the range is "don't mask me, fit me" so the focus is on a natural look which enhances your skin rather than covering it up. It's actually very similar to the Hello Flawless Benefit foundation I have been using (review here) in the fact that it's quite runny, and the coverage is sheer at first but it is buildable without looking 'cakey'.

 

It's very easy to blend into your skin - I tend to blend with my fingers and the buff it into my skin with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush as I find it hard to apply this with a brush alone. It lasts around 6 hours without primer or setting powder, but with both of these it lasts me all day.

 

Overall I am really impressed with this. I will be purchasing this instead of my Benefit foundation when it runs out as I think it's extremely similar and also a third of the price! I really want to try the powder and concealer now because if the foundation is anything to go by, they will probably be amazing!

 

This is £7.99 from Boots and Superdrug (and most major supermarkets too!)

Anyone tried this?

xx



Benefit Coralista Ultra Plush Lipgloss

Another of the items in the Go TropiCORAL Kit from Benefit was this lipgloss. Benefit recently lauched a range of lipglosses, each designed to match one of their famous box blushes/bronzers. As this was the coralista blush, the coralista lipgloss came in it.

 

 

 

 

The packaging of this is pretty - it's a simple coral coloured tube with a leopard print pattern and the name coralista written in fancy font. I personally like the design of the tube - it's a pretty traditional lipgloss applicator, and I'm just glad it doesn't come with one of those doe-foot applicators because I cannot stand those!

 

 

 

The gloss itself is a really lovely coral-y colour with just a hint of golden shimmer running through it. It smells absolutely lovely as well - very much like coralista blush itself! I really like the consistency of the lipgloss, it's quite thick but it's surprisingly easy to apply and isn't sticky in the slightest. I am not one for lipglosses at all, I hate the stickiness of most of them, but I actually really like this. Once you've applied it, you can barely feel it on your lips, they just feel super moisturised.

 

I was surprised by how much I liked this. It was the item in the box set I was least excited about but actually I find myself reaching for it quite a lot. I either use it on it's own for a really subtle colour, or over the top of Cha Cha Tint when I don't fancy the matte lip look.

 

I would recommend this, although I do think they're expensive for lipglosses, they are extremely good quality and by far the best lipgloss I've ever tried.

 

This is available from Boots and the Benefit Website for £13.50.

Or, at the minute, if you fancy trying all 6 different colours, you can buy a set of the mini versions for £19.50 here and here.

 

xx



Benefit Cha Cha Tint

When I did my post about Benefit's High Beam ages ago, I said I would do seperate reviews of each product in the Go TropiCORAL Set, but it completely slipped my mind so here I am, weeks and weeks later, with a review of Cha Cha Tint for you all.

 

 

 

 

Cha Cha Tint is a "mango tinted cheek and lip stain".  It is a similar concept to Benetint (review here), but obviously, a different colour! It's also a lot thicker in consistency than Benetint, which makes it a really weird texture to apply to your lips! In comparison to Benetint, this does actually show up when you blend it onto your cheeks, but you do have to work at lightning speed because it dries so fast.

 

The packaging of this is lovely, which is usual for Benefit products. I really like the mirrored finish the bottle has, and the brush that comes with it is surprisingly good quality. This is a mini size so the bottle is plastic, but I believe that the full-sized one comes in a glass bottle.

 

I prefer to use this on my lips than cheeks, as I tend to stick with powder blushes for colour on my cheeks. However, I do find myself reaching for this a lot when choosing a lip colour. I haven't included a swatch on my lips as they are super dry at the minute and no one wants to see that! It has a definite orange tint to it, but it's not too in your face. It just provides a nice subtle tint to your lips.

 

I find this lasts around 3/4 hours on my lips, which isn't bad. I can't really comment on it's lasting power on cheeks, but the one time I did apply it to my cheeks, it lasted pretty much all day with the rest of my make-up!

 

This is only a mini size as I got it in one of Benefit's sets, and it has lasted me absolutely ages. The full sized one is £24.50 for 12.5ml. I'm not sure if I would purchase the full sized one, as I do think it's so expensive, but I do like the product :).

 

This is available from Boots and from Benefit's website.

xx

 



Weekly Wishlist #13

wishlist


I decided to set this week's wishlist out differently! Last week, I read a post by the lovely Kayleigh at Couture Girl who mentioned a fab new website called Beautysets. I actually had an email about this but completely forgot, so when I read Kayleigh's post I went straight over to the site and set about designing this wishlist! I think it looks so much better than my usual layout! What do you think?
xx

Soap & Glory Face Soap and Clarity

As I mentioned in my post on Soap & Glory's Peaches and Clean, I have been using this alongside that in my daily skincare routine. Face Soap and Clarity is a "3-in-1 daily detox vitamin c facial wash", which S&G describe as a high-tech, non-drying, foaming facial wash. It contains a "skin brigtening complex" of superfruit plum.

 

 

 

 

Firstly, apologies for the quality of those pictures - it goes dark around 4pm at the minute and I didn't get chance to take any photos while there was still some natural lighting!

Anyway, I have been using this for a good few weeks now, and I have really seen a difference in the overall appearance of my skin. After using this, it feels much softer and smoother, and I would say my skin has been much clearer.

 

The wash is a light blue coloured gel with little pink exfoliating beads in which looks so pretty on my bathroom shelf! The packaging of this is really cool too, something which is usual of Soap and Glory products.

 

It actually doesn't smell very nice at all to me, but my mum smelt it and she really liked the smell so it's probably just me being fussy! It smells quite fruity but there's something which I can't quite put my finger on which I don't like.

 

When you apply this to your face, it foams up almost instantly, which I like as I feel foaming washes are making my skin cleaner (I don't know if this is just me?!). Anyway, I tend to use this in the morning so I don't actually use it to remove make-up, so I can't tell you if it's good for that!

 

Overall I really like this. Alongside Peaches and Clean, this has made my skin clearer and I haven't had any major breakouts since using it, just the odd spot here and there which is normal for my skin anyway.

 

This is available for £7.00 from larger Boots stores.

 

xx



Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

I have seen so many reviews for this that I thought it was about time I tried it out myself. I'm also trying a new way of setting out my pictures so let me know what you think!

 

 

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri is a topcoat for your nails, which claims to dry any nail polish colour within 30 seconds, and prevent it from chipping for up to 10 days. I paint my nails quite often but I absolutely hate waiting for them to dry! However, with this, my nails are touch dry extremely quickly. I wouldn't say it was 30 seconds, I tend to leave them for about 2 minutes, but to me, 2 minutes is better than waiting half an hour before you can do anything without fear of smudging your nails!

 

As I said, I paint my nails quite often, and so it's rare I would have a colour on my nails for 10 days. When I use this topcoat, my nails do tend to stay chip-free for the amount of time I have the colour on my nails, but I haven't tested to see if it helps keep them chip-free for 10 days so I can't comment on that claim!

 

There's not much else to say about this really. If you're looking for a top coat which dries y0ur nails quickly then I really recommend this.

 

This is available from Boots (£5.99) and Superdrug (£4.99).

 

xx

Maybelline SuperStay 10hr Tint Gloss

Recently I have been trying to be more experimental with lip colours. I tend to favour more subtle colours, so this particular colour was a bit 'out-there' for me! That being said, I have gotten used to it and it's definitely growing on me.

 

 

 

The Maybelline SuperStay 10hr Tint Gloss (mouthful!) claims to provide a lasting colour with a vibrant sheen. It is available in 5 shades and claims to last up to 10 hours.

 

Essentially it is a lip stain, but with a glossy finish rather than the usual matte finish you get with lip stains. The texture of this is really odd, and I have to say I'm not personally a fan. It just feels like a really really thick lipgloss.

 

The applicator, which you can see above, is quite probably the worst thing I have ever used to apply a lip product! It's quite big, and I find it's not very easy to be precise when using it. I'd recommend using your own lip brush with this product.

 

Besides the texture and the applicator, I really like this product. The texture isn't too much of an issue though, as it calms down after a few minutes so you can barely feel you have anything on your lips.

 

The shade I have is 'Lasting Pink', which is a dark reddy-pink colour. There's not a massive shade range so there's not a huge amount of variety to choose from.

 

I find this does last a long time - I'm not sure it lasts 10 hours but it certainly lasts a good few! The glossiness sort of disappears after an hour or two so it just looks like a regular lipstain after this. I find this is quite drying so if you suffer from really dry lips like I do sometimes, I probably wouldn't recommend you use this if you're having one of them days.

 

Overall, I do like this and will probably look into purchasing some more of the colours - there's a plum one I really like the look of!

 

xx

 



Weekly Wishlist #12

 

[1] Mix Yarn Hat

[2] Metallic Toe Cap Ballerinas

[3] Bumble and Bumble Thickening Shampoo

[4] Alice Hannah Grey Sequin Heart Gloves

[5] Navy Padded Jacket

 

xx

Natural Collection Loose Powder

I used to hate loose powders. With a passion. But that was until I stumbled across this loose powder in Boots, and for the bargain price I thought I'd try it out for a change to my usual pressed powders!

 

 

 

 

 

The packaging of this is what you'd expect from a loose powder - nothing too fancy, just practical so that the powder doesn't go absolutely everywhere when you open the lid.

 

This comes in two shades - neutral translucent and warm translucent. I use warm translucent, and I am aware that it looks extremely orange in the pan, but I can assure you it's not when you apply it to your face! The neutral translucent colour is far less orange-looking, but I found that one to be slightly too light for me.

 

The powder is very fine, and is really easy to apply. I normally just tip a small amount of powder into the lid and then apply with my Real Techniques buffing brush. You do only need a small amount of this as it can look a bit cakey if you use too much.

 

Over the top of my foundation, which is quite dewy, this just mattifies the look completely, which is obviously what you want a powder to do! This tends to last just as long as my foundation, so I get roughly 7/8 hours wear from this.

 

I honestly can't praise this product enough. I just love it, and plus it's an absolute bargain!

 

This is available from Boots and is priced at £1.99.

xx

 

 

 



Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean Cleansing Milk

My skin has recently been having some serious issues. I rarely ever get breakouts, but when I do, they are awful. I had been using a Garnier cleanser and toner, and had been doing so for a while, so I decided to change them and see if that made any difference, as I hadn't changed anything in my routine make-up wise etc.

 

I didn't really know which cleanser to buy, so when I was in Boots a few weeks ago I came across some of the Soap & Glory skincare, and having heard good things about S&G I decided to buy this on a bit of a whim, which is unusual for me as I normally like to read reviews and such about a product before I buy it.

 

I'll start by saying that I have normal-dry skin, so this is my experiences of the product. I obviously can't say that this will definitely work for you as what works for one person in terms of skincare may not work for someone else.

 

 

 

 

Soap & Glory say this is "a special clogged T-zone formula which includes peach extract, quillaja bark, jojoba oil, Detoxyboost technology (to help purify and deep clean) and Poreshrink R2 (for a clearer, fresher and brighter complexion)".

 

This smells (unsurprisingly) like peaches, which is a really lovely smell. It's quite a strong scent however, so if strong scents put you off or you have senstitive skin which may react with scented products then bear this in mind.

 

It has quite a thick consistency, but you don't need much of it at all. I usually use two pumps and that's enough to remove all of my make-up. If, however, I have a lot of make up on, for example if I have been on a night out etc, I would repeat the process twice as I don't feel this takes very stubborn make-up off in one go!

 

I have been using this now for nearly two months and I have noticed a significant improvement in my skin. I do still get the odd spot here and there, but I haven't had a major breakout since I started using this. It leaves your skin feeling super soft, and the scent tends to linger around a bit as well, but this is something I like.

 

I have been using this alongside Soap & Glory's Facial Soap and Clarity (which I will also do a review on), so it's difficult to credit a particular product on the condition of my skin, but I can say that the combination of the two is working very well for my skin!

 

This is available from larger Boots stores, and is priced at £7.00.

 

xx

 

 

UPDATE (22/12/12) - I have now actually stopped using this as it eventually broke me out something rotten! I don't know if it was the scent in it, but I do know that it gave me quite a few bad breakouts. I am by no means saying this is a bad product - it's not - it just doesn't work for me! I felt the need to address this as I don't want to leave this post up entirely positively when I no longer use this.

 



Weekly Wishist #11

 

 

[1] Pink Stud Shoulder Jumper

[2] Kardashian Black Small Tote

[3] Black Beaded Collar Belted Dress

[4] Topshop Lips in Whimsical

[5] Topshop Eye Pallete in Prism

 

xx

 

 

 

Collection Primed and Ready

I have had this to write about for literally the longest time - in fact, I'm now onto my third tube of this stuff so I thought it was definitely about time I reviewed it on my blog!

 

Primed and Ready is a new-ish release from Collection (formerly Collection 2000), and it is essentially just a base for your make up. I was never a fan of primers, and didn't see their use, but after using one everyday for the past few months I can't apply make up without one! A good primer should make your foundation apply smoothly and give you a flawless finish.

 

 

 

 

The packaging of this is quite simple - it's a matte black tube with bright pink writing. I personally quite like it, but obviously not everyone will!

 

As you can see, the actual primer is clear and quite thick in consistency. I can't for the life of me find an ingredients list for this, but it definitely feels like a silicone based primer. It makes your skin feel smooth and soft, but I know some people aren't too keen on the silicone based primers so if that's you then steer clear of this!

 

Collection claim that this "preps the skin, provding a beautiful base for easier make-up application and ensures your make-up remains intact throughout the day". I have to say, it does make your skin soft and smooth, and it conceals pores quite well so it does make an excellent base for your make up. The only thing I'm not 100% sold on is the fact that it keeps your make up in place all day, but in all honesty, I have yet to find a primer that is amazing at this.

 

I have seen quite a few people say that this reminds them of the POREfessional by Benefit. I have tried both of these, and although they are similar, the Benefit primer just edges this one, although to be fair, I would have expected that from the price difference between the two.

 

The only thing I will say about this is use it sparingly! If you use a small amount it works perfectly - use too much and it just won't blend into your skin and it just sort of clumps together (not nice in the slightest!).

 

Overall I really like this primer. It's the best high street primer I have tried, and if you're looking for something similar to the porefessional but don't want to fork out the massive price tag then this may just be for you.

 

This is £5.99 for 18ml and is available from Boots and Superdrug.

xx

Limited Edition Vaseline Pink Bubbly

Vaseline is one of them products that people either love or hate. Me personally, I love it. I suffer from quite dry lips, and aside from Carmex, Vaseline is the one thing that keeps them moisturised. I remember seeing a blog post by Fleur from FleurDeForce about this absolutely ages ago, and I knew I wanted to try it as soon as I saw what the 'mystery flavour' was! (You can find the post here)

 

I don't actually like regular Vaseline. I use the cocoa butter one because the smell of standard Vaseline makes me feel a bit queasy!

 

 

 

 

This particular Vaseline has a slight pink tint to it, meaning that when you apply it to your lips, it gives your lips a really pretty and subtle tint!

 

To me, it doesn't smell exactly like champagne, and had it not been written on the tin, I probably wouldn't have guessed the 'flavour' from the smell! It does however smell pleasant, which is good enough for me!

 

There's not much else to say about this really. It's as good as the cocoa butter one I normally use, obviously the tin is much prettier but the product is essentially the same just with a slightly different scent!

 

This is a multiuse product, and you can use it in many different ways but I do tend to just use this to rescue my extremely dry lips that always seem to pop up in the winter!

 

Overall, it's a nice product, the packaging is pretty, but I would say stick to the permanent Vaseline line (regular, aloe vera, cocoa butter etc). The standard ones are £1.99 a tin whereas this limited edition one is almost twice the price at £3.49 and they essentially do the same job (and I actually think the cocoa butter smells nicer).

 

This is available from Boots and Superdrug.  

xx

 



I Heart Fall | TAG

I've seen this on loads of blogs recently and have really enjoyed reading everyone's answers so I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon and add my own!

 

 

The I Heart Fall TAG.

 

image from weheartit

 

1) Favourite Fall Lip Product?

Mine is actually probably a really boring one like Carmex or something like that. My lips are naturally quite dry anyway but they get so much worse around this time of year that I need to keep a lip balm on me at all times!

 

2) Favourite Fall Nail Polish?

I really like Grey by Barry M or a deep reddy-purple coloured on like Raspberry by Barry M.

 

3) Favourite Starbucks Fall Drink?

Ok, I have to confess I hate coffee and the only thing I ever order from Starbucks is hot chocolate, so it'd have to be that!

 

4) Favourite Fall Candle?

I love the Cinnamon Stick one by Yankee Candle! Always makes me feel so festive.

 

image from weheartit

 

5) Favourite Fall Scarf or Accessory?

I love chunky knitted scarves and gloves. I also love those hats that are designed to look like animals with the ears, but I'm not brave enough to pull one off!

 

6) Haunted House, Haunted Hay Ride or Haunted Corn Maze?

I've only ever been in a haunted house so I'll have to say that!

 

7) Favourite Halloween Movie?

I hate scary movies! I never end up watching them because I always hide behind a cushion. Wuss, I know haha!

 

8) Favourite Candy to eat on Halloween?

I love Double Lollies (I think that's what they're called?). They're like a lollipop made out of like actual candy stuff rather than like a boiled sweet kind of thing? I don't really know how to describe them but they are amazing!

 

image from Pinterest

 

9) What are you Dressing up as for Halloween?

I'm doing this tag way too late! I didn't dress up as anything, boring I know!

 

10) What is your Favourite Thing about Fall?

Putting the fire one and laying on the sofa in chunky cardigans and blankets! I also like how dark it goes so early, am I the only one?!

 

 

Fall (or Autumn as we call it in England!) is my favourite season (after summer of course). I love being able to stay in by the fire, drinking hot chocolate and wearing cosy clothes!

I tag anyone who sees this to do the tag!

xx

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint in Prickly Pear

Along with the seven new glitter polishes Barry M brought out recently, they also introduced a new line of nail paints - the Gelly Hi-Shine range. This range is basically just a range of nail paints which have a wet-look, high-shine finish.

 

There are nine colours to choose from, ranging from very light, subtle colours to bold and bright colours. I picked up Prickly Pear, which is a lilac shade - very pretty and easy to wear.

 

 

 

The bottles are distinguished from the regular Barry M range by their silver cap instead of the usual black one.

 

Without flash

 

With flash

 

The top picture is more accurate in terms of color! The swatch is of three coats, as the polish is extremely sheer after just one/two! This is a gorgeous colour, and although it's more suited to summer, I can still see myself reaching for it in the very near future.

 

Also, they are extremely shiny even without a top coat, which obviously is the main claim of the range! I haven't actually worn this on my nails yet, so I can't comment on wear time etc, but judging by the usual Barry M nail paints, they should stay put for quite a while!

 

These are £3.99 nd available from www.barrym.com, Superdrug and Boots.

xx

Weekly Wishlist #10

 

 

[1] Benefit b.right Radiant Skincare Intro Set

[2] ASOS Mini Crosses Necklace

[3] Benefit Sun Beam

[4] Black Ponte Skater Skirt

[5] Blue Multi Coloured Dogtooth Print Onesie

 

xx

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lipstick - Shade 16

I have heard some mixed reviews on the Kate Moss for Rimmel lipstick range, so thought I would try them out for myself, seeing as Superdrug currently have a 3 for 2 offer on all cosmetics!

 

 

 

The packaging is matte black, with Kate's signature embossed in pink on the cap, with Rimmel's crown logo on the top of the cap. I really like the packaging as it seems more expensive than the product actually is.

 

I picked up shade 16, which is a yellow-based coraly pink colour:

 

 

 

This is not the most pigmented lipstick I have ever used, however, this suits me fine as I don't often wear a very bold, bright lip. The consistency is very creamy which I love, as they don't dry out my already-dry lips as some lipsticks do.

 

The staying power isn't amazing on these, but I personally have yet to find a lipstick which does stay on all day so maybe it's just me! They tend to last around 2/3 hours on me. They also have a slight scent, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is they smell of! I know that it's probably a scent that will put some people off these, as it's not the most pleasant of smells, but I can live with it.

 

Overall, I probably would recommend this as it's a gorgeous colour and it doesn't dry out the lips. However, if you're after a bold lip that will last you all day, then look somewhere else as these just will not do the job!

 

The Kate Moss lipsticks are £5.49 and are available from Boots, Superdrug, and most of the major supermarkets.

xx



MUA Pro Brow Kit

MUA have recently brought out some amazing products, and obviously, being MUA, they are at amazing prices too! I have been wanting to try a lot of their new stuff for a while, mainly the nail constellations and this, the eyebrow kit!

 

I've been looking for an affordable brow kit for a while, and as soon as I heard MUA were bringing out one, I knew I had to try it. I am a big fan of most of the MUA products, they are such good quality for the prices.

 

 

 

 

 

The kit contains three coloured powders - two for the brows, and one highlighter for underneath the brow bones, and a gel for setting the brows, tweezers and a bush to apply the powders and gel. I use the darkest colour for my brows as they are naturally very dark brown, and it's quite a good match.

 

The packaging is actually really sturdy. It's quite small so it's easy to take around with you, yet the mirror inside it is the perfect size.

 

The powders are really pigmented, and I find them to wear for around 7/8 hours without fading - which is good considering the price!

 

The only negatives I can find about this product are that there is quite a lot of fall-out from the powders, so I anticipate that this little kit could get quite grubby over time! The other thing is that if you have super super dark eyebrows or very fair eyebrows, this probably won't be a good match for you, and currently this is the only shade range MUA offer.

 

Despite the two negatives, I do love this kit and it's amazing to think that everything you need to do your eyebrows is contained in this little kit which only costs £3.50! Compared to other brow kits out there, this is a complete bargain, and it's really good quality too!

 

This is £3.50 and available from selected Superdrug stores (although I believe it's quite hard to find at the minute!) and online at the MUA Store.

 

xx