Nars Holiday Palette!

As you may already know, I am a huge sucker for everything NARS and really love to see what they offer during the Christmas period. I quite like how their Christmas palette this year is different previous years and like how they've incorporated the 'dual intensity' factor really nicely into an entire palette.

The Give In Take Dual-Intensity Eye & Cheek Palette contains 6 eyeshadows and 3 face powders. I've bought this palette for my mum because she'd appreciate the cooler tones of the eyeshadows slightly more than myself, but nevertheless the shades are beautiful. The eyeshadows would create a perfect smoky eye and would look amazing both wet or dry. The two lighter shades would look particularly good as an inner corner highlight or just all over the lid! On first glance they are very highly pigmented and everything you expect from Nars. There isn't much fallout and the payoff is so good.

The face shades are what excite me the most. The highlighter is to die for. It is an iridescent champagne/white colour with such a lovely glow and I can't wait to see how intense it could be when wet! The bronzer/neutral blusher is different from their favourite Laguna and it's quite nice that Laguna isn't in this one. It is much lighter, but still will provide a lovely warmth and the blush is such a nice light pink shade without being too reminiscent of a candy shop!

Have you tried anything from their Christmas collection? I hope you enjoyed reading,

Holly x

Winter Boots

I've been eyeing up the 'hiker' style boots for a while and when I saw this pair on the Topshop website they jumped out at me. They are a lot more bulky than I initially thought they'd be, but not bulky in a bad way. They don't make my feet look big at all and when wore over jeans or tights they look really good. I love how the suede provides a contrast to the leather rim which really promotes the 'hiker' style.

They are very sturdy and should keep me all toasty and warm throughout winter, especially as there is enough space for fluffy socks underneath. On first try the rim digs into my legs ankles ever so slightly so I think fluffy socks will be a must have with these. However they're really comfy and I can see myself wearing them a lot. They will go with many outfits and are a great alternative to converse/slip ons!

Do you own anything like this? I hope you enjoyed reading,

Holly x

Real Techniques Miracle Sculpting Sponge

For me, nothing beats the original beauty blender however Real Techniques recently released some new sponges and I was intriged to see how they compare. I picked up the Miracle Sculpting Sponge and it looked fairly different from just a normal sponge with all of the different sides to it.

On first impressions I was quite sceptical with what I'd use it for as the flat side is quite small i for applying foundation. However it expands to a decent size when it is wet and buffs in cream products really nicely. I find I get a heavier coverage using this sponge than I get with the beauty blender, but it still blends really well without leaving streaks. Also I find the smaller end is brilliant for concealer and getting in all of the small areas of the face. Its brilliant at blending out contour and I find it helps it to look really natural. It is quite a firm sponge unlike the Complexion Sponge, but is still very easy to use. I love how it's such a versatile tool with 6 different uses and I can definitely see it being used a lot!

Although this isn't a necessity it is a really nice product to own and a great alternative to the orginal sponges!

Have you tried this? I hope you enjoyed reading, 

Holly x

Favourite beauty sites.

During my many hours of procrastination I find myself perusing many different beauty sites in awe of all the products and articles, wishing I could afford it all.

My favourite site, or at least has been this year, is defintely Beauty Bay. I think the range of products they sell definitely cater towards the market I'm in with brand such as Makeup Geek, Morphe, Dose of Colours as well as some more exotic brands. I think their delivery service is amazing and I really enjoy the whole laid back, yet sophisticated look of the site. Plus their EDITed section is amazing. Similar to Beauty Bay is Cult Beauty. To me they have really nailed the combination of amazing brands and brilliant content. I love how they focus on such niche brands, especially where skincare is concerned and the aesthetics of their site are just dreamy!

Victoria Health is a site a customer introduced to me at work and I've been hooked since. The site focuses on botanical products mainly and delivers expert advice alongside the products. They have some well known brands such as Armotherapy Associates and a lot of up and coming brands too. I've been particularly attracted to the brand 'The Ordinary' and can see myself purchasing some of their skincare in the future.

Other favourites include the Liz Earle Website which I could spend hours on looking at all the different skincare products. Sephora's website is also very good - would you expect any less from the 'mothership'? I love all the categories and think their whole 'value sets' page is brilliant: heart eyed emoji everytime!

What beuaty websites do you enjoy? I hope you enjoyed reading, 

Holly x

The highlighter dreams are made of.

NARS has always been one of my favourite brands and their liquid highlighter in Copacabana is definitely up there with my favourite highlighters, alongside Becca Champagne pop, of course.

It's a beautiful soft pink/champagne colour with a silver reflects running through. It is incredibly pigmented, but not glittery. It has a lovely sheen to it and gives that glow from within look. It is a very creamy formula so I find it best to apply straight on top of my foundation. It doesn't interfere with my base at all, nor does it go patchy and blends in with everything really well. I find using my fingers gives it a much more intense look whereas using a sponge or a brush  helps it to blend even more so into the skin making it look slightly more natural. It dries in good time and if I layer products on top it provides the perfect base! Also unlike some highlighters I find that it doesn't emphasis pores which is always a bonus!

Have you tried any of the liquid highlighters?

I hope you enjoyed reading.

Holly x

Morphe 35O

Morphe has built up such a good reputation for itself within the beauty world, especially for the 350 palette. It's been out of stock for a very long time online however it came back in last week so I thought I'd buy it my sister as a very belated exam present.

I've had a play with it myself and can 100% confirm it is amazing. There are so shades to suit everyone and so many different looks can be created. They are extremely buttery shadows with high pigmentation and very little fall out. There are a couple of shades that are almost like foiled eyeshadows as they give off a vibrant, metallic finish and there are more than enough mattes and shimmers to please everyone.  It's such a good palette to go from day to night.

My sister is very pleased with it and I'm sure I'll be using it a lot too. It's definitely a staple!

Have you tried any Morphe eyeshadows? I hope you enjoyed reading,

Holly x

Nivea Skincare

I never used to be a fan of Nivea as I found their creams to be far too thick without any hydrating properties. However since I started using their Cleansing milk a while back I've been quite impressed so thought I'd try some other bits from their range.

Firstly I think their Cleansing Milk is really good, especially as a second cleanse. It is very gentle so not something I'd use to remove eye make up for example, but leaves my skin feeling clean and nourished. It is a creamy consistency which I really like and feel as though it melts into my skin whilst removing any last traces of makeup. The Refreshing Face Wash Gel is probably my least favourite out of the three I've discovered, however it is still pretty good. It is quite thick and takes some time to massage in to the skin and I find if I use it in the shower it can leave my skin feeling pretty tight. However it leaves my skin feeling so clean and is great for removing any mascara I have left, plus it smells good! I'm really impressed with the Gentle Exfoliating Scrub. In comparison to other scrubs it is much less abrasive and harsh to the skin and I believe the beads are slightly larger. I don't find it to be any less effective than other scrubs and my skin feels very soft after using it. It removes any dead skin without causing irritation! I love it.

Have you tried any of the Nivea skincare? I hope you enjoyed reading, 

Holly x