Korres Lip Butter & Liquid Lipstick Swatches

Korres' makeup has entered TkMaxx! There are a lot of beauty bargains to hunt for by Korres (well in my local store anyway) they are packaged in two and the two products are often an eye one and a lip one. What I noticed was that the lip colours are quite nice but the eye ones are a bit... unfashionable; for example, there were a lot of purple mascaras and baby blue eye liners... hmmmm.... So naturally I did a sneaky switcharoo and opted for two decent lip colours which I thought I would use. 

 Lip butter in plum and liquid lipstick in raspberry (25)

Now a little about Korres. The Greek brand specialises in products with natural ingredients, so they are free from the nasties such as mineral oil, silicone oil, ethanollamine (whatever that is) and parabens. I have tried a lot of their skin and body care and I am in LOVE, they perform exceptionally well (none greasy/easily absorbed) and they all tend to smell fantastic. 

The liquid lipstick is described as water based formula for intense colour with a long lasting creamy texture. The lip butter.. has no description but is a glossy not sticky balm with a better punch of colour than other tinted lip products. 

I believe I got BOTH of these products for around the £6 mark, which is an absolute bargain. Price wise, I'm not disappointed at all but performance I'm a bit meh about them. As mentioned before their skincare is fantastic however both of these products I found a little drying after the day went on and both of them had no long term benefits. 

MAC Studio Fix Nc25

Now I know this product has been in existence since forever and in it's time has been a cult product however I do feel like it's been long forgotten and needs another mention in the blog world.

MAC studio fix + is a powder and foundation in one and that combination gives excellent coverage either used on its own or as a setting powder. It's finely milled and nicely buttery because so; it also has talk and silica in to create a smooth finish and to absorb excess oil.

I do love this product and I'm so ashamed that I didn't purchase this product sooner. The coverage is so good that I feel comfortable just using this as foundation along with some concealer. Also I love the fact, I finally have a worthy top up product in my handbag. The things I don't like about it, is that as a 2 in 1 product, I wouldn't consider using it as a setting powder again, as it made my skin look very heavy and it also felt so too. However when used on it's own it is very light and has the nearly naked skin feeling. 

Swatch on the right side of the vein on my zombie arm :-/ Can you see??

I would describe the coverage as light to medium, it is buildable but I wouldn't recommend it, as it makes the skin look very heavy. I apply this with a big fluffy brush and even when I sweep it vigorously, the fallout is minimal. Colour wise as can be seen in the swatch, it's quite adaptable, so I think even if I went one shade lighter or darker it still would look quite well on my skin. So thumbs up, very little risk in choosing a colour!  

Real Technique Brushes Dupe

Now I'm not sure if they are or if they are not a suitable dupe for Sam Chapman's brushes but I purchased these after seeing a blogger link these Ebay brushes as a suitable copy cat. I do not own any Real Technique brushes, there are a few reasons, one being, I hardly use make up brushes and two, I was never able to touch the brushes because they were in the packaging. After seeing some reviews of these brushes on blogs, I decided to purchase them, there was no risk of disappointment seeing as they are being sold for £2.29 each with free p&p.

Shipment is from China, so it took a long time for them to arrive (approx 3 weeks). However the wait was well worth it. They are SOOO SOFT! I can only liken it to stroking bunnies and kittens but fear not, they do state they are cruelty free and have artificial fibres. The brush is slightly weighted which apparently gives MUA better control. They are also so densely packed which when used the right way can give the skin an airbrushed finish. (Tip: Youtube, Wayne Goss on how to git rid of pores with makeup).

There is nothing bad to say about these brushes, whether or not they are dupe, stand alone this unknown brand 'Joursna' brushes offer great quality for little money.

Glossybox September 2013 - The London Edition

I've been away for the past days and was in between my adventure when I got my notification email from Glossybox - Your box is on its way! How exciting and what a nice thing to come home to - NOT!

Remember when I was disappointed with the last box? Well I think this month maybe just THE most terrible box EVER!!!!!!!!!!! Firstly, I found out it was a themed box; this is never a good sign. Secondly, it's British themed and there aren't many British brands that stand out to me.

TONI & GUY Shine Gloss Serum. 

It says it controls frizz with a lightweight shine. That's all it says! Oh but it does go on about this limited edition designed bottle by a Lulu Kennedy. Well T&G the packaging is fugly and you should get your money back. 

Sample is full sized priced at £7.19

Be A Bombshell Onyx Eye Liner.

Even though this a british themed box, this eye liner is made in China (ewwww) and it doesn't seem to be sold in the UK. Everything about this eye liner is off putting. The name of the brand! The design of the logo. It's so cringey - there is a little cartoon of a 'sexy' lady putting on make up as part of the logo. 

I think this is a full size product at $14 for 3g

Eyelure Pre-Glued Lashes.

It's exactly what it says, the false lashes have glue on them already, you just peel them off and put them on. I have experienced p/g lashes before and they don't last as long as the ones you glue yourself. Also my lashes are so boring and ugly!

Full sized sample at £5.06

Dr Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips.

Basically Dr Nip Nip invented this for nursing mothers, they found it to be so good as a lip balm, he re-branded it and it was sent to me as measly sample! And it's awful! at first it looks like Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream but it comes out thicker. So when I do put this on my lips, I drag it across, which feels like what's going to give me cracked lips!

Full size 15ml at £11.50. Received 3ml sample in GB.

Elizabeth Arden Untold Eau de Parfum.

I won't bother copying what it says on the new GB info card. It basically is a basic floral fragrance. There is no wow or intrigue. I personally find Elizabeth Arden a very outdated brand; from the horrible uniform they make their beauty counter ladies wear to the packaging of their products looking so plain and 90's. Elizabeth Arden's perfume are not very popular and that's because they are not very nice - simple as that. This is 5ml sample, I think the size GB should only EVER give away as part of the five items in each box. The bottle is like Chanel Chance but at a  twisted angle? I personally find the design of this bottle very old fashioned and not in a good way. 

Full size £69 at 100ml

I'm not too fussed that some people got an HD Brows blusher. I'm just unhappy that the whole selection of my box is just ...crap. Although some are British brands none of the items are actually made in the UK?!?! (just found out Elizabeth Arden isn't British?!) So the theme of this box was just a false gimmick...

What do you think of Glossybox's half arsed concept?

Did you like what you got in yours?

Maxfactor Nailfinity

549 Red Passion

Praises

- Quick drying

- Incredible shine

- Cheap, £3.99

- One coat for opaque finish

- Two coats for good level of shine

- Good chip resistance (approx 4 good days wear)

- Small bottle, so it means you can use most of the product before it goes gloopy

- Small and precise brush

- Short handle is also good for precision when painting

Oceane Make up Remover Pen

The majority, if not all the ladies, that received last months Glossybox had this item in their box. Oceane MU remover pen is not a new concept, it has been done before by brands like Simple but this is the first time I have tried one of these products. After using it, I must say my feelings of this being a crap concept has only deepened. Below are picture of the pen after one use on one eye! Now I wouldn't say I wear a tremendous amount of eye make up, only the standard eye liner and mascara but you can see that it's only one and use and then you have to replace the end with another. The product itself didn't irritate my eye however the tip is incredibly scratchy and uncomfortable to use around such a delicate area as the eye. The formula itself is really good, dissolved the waterproof make up smudges and didn't spread it. To save money, I would say don't buy this type of product; instead DIY snip cotton bud ends soaked in eye make up remover and store in a clean travel pot for one the go clean ups.