Whats in my 'Holiday' Makeup Bag ?

On holiday I like to be quick & effortless with makeup, so I will be taking a small selection of makeup essentials for those days when I want to glam up or go for a more natural look.

I love my makeup bag which I purchased from Old Spitalfields Market, as it reminds me of Tory Burch …it is black, cute, sleek and was only £3. It is the perfect size to take in a holiday bag.

MAC Neutral Warm Palette – This is perfect for holiday as it has all the necessary neutral eye shadows to match any outfit plus it is compacted into one palette which saves space.

MAC Mineralize Powder in Dark – I don’t tend to wear foundation on holiday just a spot of powder to reduce any oil. Plus if I get a tan this is the best powder to match my skin tone.

MAC Fix + Spray - Useful for a dewy look plus it is great to spray on brushes when applying my Inglot Pigment dust

Lola Makeup Eye shadow Base – I never am without this base , it is good at holding my eye makeup in place all day ,  plus it enhances the colour payoff of my MAC eye shadows.

Inglot Pure Pigment Eye shadow dust no. 81 – This is without doubt my favourite eye shadow dust as the gold/pink iridescent is great for a party makeup look

Sleek Concealer Palette 05 - I tend to not use concealer regularly but it's only really used on my under eye circles,  if I have a late night or want a flawless finish.

Seventeen Tan Liquid Glow – I love to use a highlighter on holiday to give that extra sun glow look on the cheeks or even to just mix it with my moisturiser to provide that additional sun kissed look.  

Witch Skin Clearing Primer - This keeps my blemishes at bay, sometimes if I don’t want to use a moisturiser especially if it is too hot then I will just use the primer on my face.

Selection of Makeup Brushes – I like to pack most of makeup brushes as you never know when you need then as they all do different things (shading, powder, highlighting etc)

I hope you enjoyed seeing what I take in my Holiday Makeup bag...My final installment to my Ibiza holiday bag posts will be 'Whats in my Suitcase'.

What products do you take in your makeup bag on holiday?

Peace & Love

MAC 'Young Punk' Eyeshadow

One of the highlights over the past few months other than going away to hotter climates , is that I have had to chance to visit duty free MAC stores. Although I can't go too crazy, as I don't like to add uneccessary extra weight to my cabin or hand luggage. I did tend to pick up a couple of items to add to my collection, 2 eyeshadows (Trax & Young Punk) and re-purchased my NW45 studio fix powder.

Young Punk is my first Mineralize eyeshadow, it is described by MAC as a black with pinkish purple pearl shade.  I was instantly drawn to the pan when I saw this at the stand as it looked so pretty for a grungy smokey eye look.

One thing I like about this eyeshadow is the 2 in 1 effect. When used dry, it can be sheer but once used wet the colour pay off and pigmentation is beautifully intensified . I will admit that when applying the eyeshadow dry it has a really dark blackened base with purple shimmer particles resulting in a lot of glitter fall out, making it much harder to blend without weakening the actual shade colour .I prefer using a damp brush on application as the formula is easier to blend and shows more of an intense purple shimmer with less glitter fall out.

In terms of staying power,  without a primer or base it can stay on the lids for 4 hours without creasing, however after 6 hours, you will begin to notice significant creasing. The packaging is like most MAC products, housed in black plastic with a transparent lid with the signature MAC logo. It also comes with a small plastic cover to protect the eyeshadow and helps to keep the packaging clean from fall out during storage.  

MAC Young Punk retails for £17.00 online and instore. However due to purchasing it from duty free I believe I only paid £15.

Have you tried any of the MAC Mineralize eyeshadows?

Peace , Love & Besos

Topshop Lipcream - 'Lotus Flower'

Hello....

Apologies Its been so long since my last post. I believe 2 months to be exact due to my busy financial work schedule and going on holiday twice to Africa (Gambia & Morocco)...I am only now getting back on track.

Anyway, I went late night shopping last week and made my first Topshop makeup purchase, now I have been very good lately, only purchasing makeup in colours I don't already have but I have been obsessed with the purple/berry trend so I had to purchase this lip cream, it was too pretty to leave behind in the store.

Topshop lip cream in shade 'Lotus Flower'   is a beautiful, rich in colour berry pink shade with shimmery glitter particles.  It is highly pigmentated  and  has a 2 in 1 element  as after a few hours of wearing the lipcream it leaves you with subtle pink lip stain.

   
Though this is described as glossy finish, it is not overly sticky which is perfect for night and if your bold enough to wear it in the daytime.I love the consistency & vibrancy of this shade, as it is creamy in texture which is moisturising to the lips.

I noticed that upon opening the tube, the product was lightly scented with a vanilla based scent, similarly to MAC lipsticks but not as sweet/strong. Also the lipcream comes with a doe foot applicator making it easier to apply the creamy formula to lips without wasting a lot of product.

I must admit, Im not really the type of person who is obsessed with product packaging, but I do like the minimalistic design incorporating the quirky polka dot lid.


These lipcreams retail online and in Topshop stores for £7 , but if you are a student make sure you have your student card at hand as they offer 10% off discount (even on sale items),  so it will only cost only £6.30.

Have you tried Topshops Makeup, if so what are your favourites?

Peace, Love & Besos 

A Day in a life:Through La Belle Aventure's Eyes

Hello Belles,

Last week we were contacted by the Lucy about getting involved with the Boots health eye check campaign, we were very excited to be selected & apart of the campaign as our sight is affected everyday on a daily basis due to being short sighted and having to wear glasses for pretty much every minute of the day.

This challenge was so much fun not only because it consisted of taking pictures of our what we saw in a day but because of the underlying reason for the campaign which is the importance of taking good care of your eyes to ensure they are regularly protected and checked to ensure continued health for the future.

We decided to document our Saturday when we took a trip to Oxford, so here is what happened throughout the day.

Our Boots Inspirational Eye Health Kit sent from Lucy Arrived

Mystery Sender, provided us with a Package of Keracare Hair Products

My new cleansing product from Bzzagent

Kamarla doing last minute touch ups on bus into Oxford



Had a look around Mum's workplace (Oxford University)

Kamarla Painting her nails

Picked up some 'Mixed Millions' from Hardy's Sweet Shop

Beautiful streets of Oxford

Candid shoot of us walking around Oxford

Cute Pastel mini cakes from the Cake Shop

Amazing Pret A Manger set in Historic building

Menu from Opium Den Resturant

Mum & Kamarla

Vegetable rice & chow mein with Spring rolls

Lunchtime

Amazing Hand Carved Spoons

Loving the Jaegar Wool coat

Waiting for the bus home

Beautiful sunset on way back to Northampton

Relaxing with a Hot Ribena & Fiona Cairn Cupcake after long day of exploring

                                      

Care – Why?

As me and Kamarla work full time our role includes staring at a computer screen for most of the day and then being bloggers, we spend alot of time in front of our laptop screens, Ipad and smartphones, and although it may not affect your sight straightaway, over time it can damage your eyes.It is important to eat a balance diet and remove your makeup at night so your eyes do not become uncomfortable or irritated. 

Protect – Why?

As it is important to protect your skin with SPF sun lotion in hot sunny weather,  it is necessary to protect your eyes from UVA/UVB rays damage using  sunglasses or even tinted lenses.

Check – Why?

Going to the opticians regularly every 2 years will help to detect any eye or health issues in its early stage but also ensure you are seeing things clearly.

What did you see today #Bootseyecheck ?

Peace, Love & Besos

DUPE ALERT - Sleek Grape vs MAC Violetta

A while back , I done a blog post about my first MAC Lipstick Purchase in Violetta which in turn has become my holy grail lipstick colour. It’s such an amazing vibrant violet purple shade.

Anyway, last week I went to my local hair store (Beauty Queen Cosmetics) in Northampton and noticed they had a Sleek lipstick stand. To my surprise whilst browsing the stand, I saw a shade called Grape and it reminded me alot of my MAC Violetta . Due to using Violetta so much , I needed to find a new alternative lipstick so I could preserve Violetta and within 2 minutes I was at the till purchasing the Sleek Grape lipstick.

As soon as I got home I compared both lipsticks MAC v Sleek & identified they were an exact dupe.


I wanted to show you guys a swatch comparisons of the two lipsticks together. Sleek Grape is on the left and MAC Violetta is on the right in all photos!

Both lipsticks are very creamy in texture and although MAC is a satin finish, the Sleek creme lipstick contains small glitter particles to counteract that sheen finish. They are both have a non-drying formula to help condition the lips to keep them soft and plump.Unlike MAC lipsticks, the Sleek lipstick does not come attached with the famous vanilla scent.
The high pigmentation is excellent on both lipsticks, though MAC has a longer staying power as it slightly stains your lips;whereas Sleek - Grape wears off after a couple of hours.

Although Sleek Grape does not have a long staying power and a nice vanilla scent unlike MAC, I am still going to stock up on a couple more Sleek lipsticks incase they are discontinued, as MAC Violetta is only available in MAC Pro stores so it is not easily accessible .

Sleek Grape retails for £2.49 , an amazing price difference of over £10  in comparison to £14 for MAC Lipsticks.

Although I was able to purchase mine for £2.49, the cheapest I could find online was £3.80 via Amazon here.

Peace, Love & Besos