Wonders of Beauty

What's New | MAC 163 Brush and CLARINS Beauty Flash Balm..♥

How sad, I've saved this what's new post in my drafts for nearly a month now and I never got around to completing it until now.
Yes I know there are only two products in this post but I guess nearly every little beauty buy is worth mentioning right? Although the MAC 163 brush is currently sold out, the Clarins Beauty Balm is still available to buy. I have a feeling the MAC brush will be back in stock sooner or later as I've heard it's always in and out of stock but you have to keep an eye on the site as it is a limited edition brush!

MAC 163 Contour Brush

The MAC 163 brush came out with the MAC Face and Body Collection. It's a contour brush designed to be used with the MAC Sculpting Cream. The shape of the brush is really good for use on the cheekbones to achieve prominent face definition with either a contour cream or powder. After reading reviews of the MAC Sculpting Cream at the time of purchase, I decided not to get them (I was also unsure of which shade I'd use and I was too lazy to check them out in a MAC store). I am after a product with a cream finish that I can use to contour with. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

Price: £26

Availability: MAC

Clarins Beauty Flash Balm

This is one of those products that there's so much hype around. I'd been contemplating buying it for a long time so when it finally went on a 3-day sale at CheapSmells for £13.99, I grabbed it as soon as I could. The product is a favourite of Tanya Burr (Pixi2woo) so I really wanted to see what it was about. It is said to be an instant radiance booster which gives a softer, smoother and healthier looking complexion. It also claims to "promote firmer looking features and reduce the appearance of fine lines and "Enhances make-up's luminous appearance and lasting wear." Sounds appealing right?

RRP: £28
CheapSmells Price: £17.95

Did anyone manage to grab the MAC 163 brush?

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Brush - 14:29

What's New | MAC 163 Brush and Clarins Beauty Flash Balm

What's New | MAC 163 Brush and CLARINS Beauty Flash Balm.. ♥ How sad, I've saved this what's new post in my drafts for near...

Makeup - 19:02

Autumn Lippies

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What's New | Sigma F88, Lancome Teint Idole Ultra, Maybelline BB Cream, Body Shop Tea Tree Range..♥

Aside infrequent posts, I also haven't done much makeup shopping recently but I thought I'd show you the few things I have added to my collection though some are repurchases.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil

After taking a liking to the Tea Tree Blemish Night Fade Lotion, I wanted to try more from The Body Shop Tea Tree range. If you're subscribed to receiving emails from The Body Shop, you will know that they're always sending discount codes or having offers. At the time they were having an offer where if you spend over £5, you get free shipping and 30% off your order so I decided to make use of the discount code and purchase. The oil can be used as a massage oil, in your shampoo, in your bath, in your makeup cleansing solution and is also meant to be good for blemished skin. It is one of their best selling products so I'm interested to see how well it works.

Original Price: £6.50

The Body Shop Tea Tree Blemish Fade Night Lotion

This is a repurchase. If you have not already seen my review on this product, click HERE.

Lancome Teint Idole Ultra 24H Foundation

I did decide to repurchase this foundation as it has quickly become one of my favourites. I stuck with the shade #11 which I had been using before as I tried #10 again and I didn't like it. I'm sure many of you have already read my review on it but if not, click HERE to read it.

Maybelline Dream Fresh 8-in-1 BB Cream - Deep Sheer Tint

So lately there's been this whole hype about BB creams. At first I never really took interest because there seemed to be a lack of colour range amongst brands. But as time goes, more and more brands are offering BB creams for women of colour. After seeing lilpumpkinpie05 and teasedblackpearlz on YouTube use it, I thought I'd give it a try. I haven't had a chance to wear it properly because I recently had an allergy on my face but it does look a tad dark and the shade before looks light. This shade is not available in England so I had to order it off eBay from a US seller. For those interested, click HERE for the link. The seller also has other shades. Once I've tested it out fully, I'll write a review.

Price: £7.68

Sigma F88 Flat Angled Kabuki Brush
I received the F88 brush this morning that was very kindly sent from Sigma. I am in love with their Sigmax brushes and those who know me know that I cannot live without my F80 Flat Kabuki brush. That has to be the best foundation brush I have ever used for an flawless and good coverage. I always recommend it to people. I'm due to write a review on it actually! This brush is very similar to the F80 but instead it is angled. It can also be used as a foundation brush but since it is angled, it may be easier to use on certain areas of the face. Even though it is very similar to my F80, I will try it out as a foundation brush but I can see myself using it more to contour! Click HERE to view the range or purchase Sigma brushes. For those in England, they do provide worldwide shipping. You can also get 10% until September 30th by using the code SB2012!

Price: $16

If there's anything that I have mentioned in my 'What's New' posts that you would like me to review, do let me know!

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BB Cream - 16:45

What's New | Sigma F88, Lancome Teint Idole Ultra, Maybelline BB Cream, Body Shop Tea Tree Range

What's New | Sigma F88, Lancome Teint Idole Ultra, Maybelline BB Cream, Body Shop Tea Tree Range.. ♥ Aside infrequent posts, I als...

Blush - 19:54

La Femme Blush Swatches

La Femme Blush Swatches.. ♥ Feels like it has been ages since my last post. I'm in the process of redecorating my room so everything is...

How I Highlight My Face..♥

For those that have asked, this is a post to show you how I use concealer to highlight my face. I know other people also highlight their cupids bow and chin but I personally don't. I only highlight the centre of my forehead and my undereye area for that "Kim K glow". I am not a professional so apologies if I highlight incorrectly but this is the way I feel comfortable with.

The concealer used for highlighting is entirely up to you but if you do have fine lines under your eyes and you want to avoid creasing, be sure to set your concealer with a powder of choice. Click HERE to read my post on how to prevent your concealer from creasing.

Depending on my mood, the concealers that I use vary, though I tend to pick up my MAC Prolongwear concealer more often. I have this concealer in NC42, NC45 and NW40. The shade NC42 is the one I use majority of the time. NC45 is worn on days where I'm going for something more natural or I don't want my undereye area to be so bright. I never use the NW40 because after purchasing it, I realised that I don't really like the shade against my skin tone. If you're like me and usually use MAC concealers, the MAC Studio Finish concealers are also nice to use for highlighting provided that they are set very well. If you're not careful, yes this concealer will crease like crazy. If set, it is a good concealer to use for highlighting and out of the MAC concealers, will give you the most coverage and can also be used to achieve a glam look if that's what you're after. I own this concealer in the shade NC45.

All my highlighting is done after my liquid foundation has been applied. When highlighting my under-eye area, I highlight in the shape of an upside down triangle. Using a makeup sponge, I then blend out the edges of my concealer into my foundation. Once the concealer has been blended, I use my under-eye setting powder to prevent the concealer from creasing.

Using the same concealer, I apply the concealer to the centre of my forehead and the bridge of my nose. Once again, I blend the concealer into my foundation using a sponge. I also set this area with the same powder.

Once I've highlighted these areas, I go on to apply my finishing powder and complete the rest of my face.

When highlighting, go for a shade about 2 shades lighter than your skin tone making sure you try your best to blend.

Anyone who has tried YSL Touche Eclat or Estee Lauder Double Wear concealer, please let me know how you found these for under-eye application. Is there any other concealer you would recommend for this as I would like to branch out and try other brands.

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Face - 14:13