Three From Collection | Review

Hello,
Sorry I've been a bit missing in action recently. I'm just going to stick with my usual excuse of "eugh degree, eugh reading, eugh essays, eugh too drunk all the time". I think that should suffice really.

Anyway, between drowning in referencing and bibliographies I did manage a sneaky trip into town. Do you ever just run out of all your make up at once? It happens to me all the time! So I popped into dearly beloved Boots to stock up little essentials.

My plan was to buy higher end high street but after swatching every foundation ever and realising that I need to STOP BEING SO DAMN PALE. I settled for some bits and bobs from Collection. I find that Collection suits my colour so much better than a lot of the high end products so why would I waste money on something that's going to turn me fluorescent?

I picked up the 'Collection Cover & Go Foundation & Concealer Duo', the 'Collection Primed & Ready Smoothing Make Up Primer' and 'Collection Volumnising Mascara'.

I'd never really been into primer before and I actually when I went into Boots I was intending to by the new Baby Skin thing. I was really skeptical because of all the dodgy reviews I'd read and when I swatched it on my skin it felt so greasy that I opted against it and went for the Collection one instead. I'm really impressed by this product. I'm pretty sure it's a silicon based formula (although I can't actually get the labels off to have a look at the ingredients). It leaves my skin incredibly smooth even after I've put my foundation on top. I really recommend this, it makes my make up look 100x better!

When I bought this I didn't even realise it had concealer in the lid. Top notch job on that packaging Boots it's brilliant. You can put it in your handbag and voila two in one! The concealer coverage is really good, I really rate this product (as you can tell by how used it looks). I'm still humming and harring about the foundation. It's ok but the consistency is a bit odd and it looks really streaky if you apply it with a brush rather than a sponge.

Whenever I buy anything new I instantly don't like it - it takes a while to convince me it's actually good. This was no different, when I first opened it I didn't love it. The brush is quite brittle and not the big fluffy mascara brush I usually like. However, after using this for a week I am converted and I admit the error of my ways. This mascara is really great, it gives a really volumnised look, kind of fake lash effect. The only thing I don't get is why it says '10x volumnising' on it. Can you imagine if a mascara made you lashes TEN TIMES BIGGER? You'd look like a maniac!

Overall I'm well chuffed with the Collection things I picked up. I think they're all fairly new products to the line and they all work fantastically. Collection is definitely starting to give some of the other high street brands a run for their money.

Primed, concealed, volumnised and ready to hit the rain

So have you tried any of these products? Did you like 'em? Lemme know 

My 2012 Make-Up Favourites

In the year just gone I made a conscious effort to invest in better, more effective make-up rather than drowning in heaps of cheap lipsticks which I never use. So it's much easier for me to decide on my favourite products of 2012 because in truth I didn't buy that many...

I recently bought myself Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair. I bought it mainly because of the huge amount of hype I've heard about it on YouTube and it definitely lives up to it! Before this I used a concealer which was really hard to blend. This one on the other hand blends beautifully and is a great match for my skin, plus it's a total steal at £3ish... Another skin product I've been loving is Rimmel Clear Complexion Clarifying Powder in Transparent. I really wanted a matt powder but I was a bit nervous about ending up with that orange dust so this was a right find! It's transparent so matches your foundation beautifully. I've been applying this with a E.L.F Total Face Brush which is a great blending brush! I use it to apply powder but also just to even out my foundation etc. and it works brilliantly!  I love E.L.F brushes - they feel professional and soft and are really reasonably priced!

Rimmel Clear Complexion Powder, Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer, E.L.F Total Face Brush, Primark Crackle Nail Polish, Chit Chat Juicy Lipstick, Bourjois Liner Stylo

There's been a big trend for nail art this season but considering I am a fiendish nail biter I didn't want to invest in super expensive stuff. I opted for Primark just so I could test the waters, for £3 I got a base coat, crackle coat and top coat! They work brilliantly and the top coat is so useful for brightening up other colours! Another product I cannot stop singing the praises of is Bourjois Liner Stylo in Noir. I love a good kohl eyeliner and this is the best one I've tried. It lasts all day which is often a problem with pencil liners and gives a really good dark colour - the only slight problem I have is with the packaging which is really easy to break if you're as heavy handed as me...

When I said I was investing in good-quality, slightly more expensive make-up I may have told a slight white lie! One of my favourite lip products this year was Chit Chat Juicy Lipstick in Damson. It offers a really vibrant pink colour which is extremely long lasting - enough to rival the Clinque Chubby Stick or Revlon Just Bitten! And the best part is it's from Poundland's make up range and cost £1! Ah-mah-zing!

So what have your favourite products of 2012 been? Anything to recommend? What should I try in 2013?