Stila In The Garden Palette

This is my first go with this palette, and I wanted to create something really wearable. Looking at the colour selection, it can come across a little bold: mossy greens and bright blues which might be bit outside your comfort zone. 

I think greens can definitely be wearable, especially at this time of year, and I really love this combination.

First of all, I washed Nectar in my crease just to create a little depth. There definitely wasn't a good selection of matte shades in this palette, which could be a downside for some people, but Nectar was just about dark enough to give the lid a little dimension.
I then went ahead and washed Breeze all over  the lid and Bark on the outer third and on the lower lash line. I added a hint of Chinois in the inner 1/4 and finished with a small dash of the liner which was included along the top lash line.

The shadows and the liner lasted so nicely all day, and I really love the soft day time look I managed to get from this palette.

I will hopefully manage to do a full swatch review on the whooole palette so you can see the beautifulness of it. I'm also really excited about using the blues... which look amaaazinggg...hang tight, coming soon!

Thanks for reading!
Lou xxx

Naked during the day | Eyes

When you think Naked Palette, you think amazing smoky evening eyes, or least a nice beach-y bronze look. I've been experimenting with the original Naked palette for a relaxed daytime look with a tiny bit of smoke, and this is my favourite so far.

I used Buck  in the crease, Sin over the main part of the lid and the browbone, and Naked  to blend the edges. The real star of the show is Darkhorse- which I used on the lower lash line and outer v to create a daytime smoky look.
This combo is perfect for during the day on Saturday. I'll tell you why. It's enough to look 'done' if you are going out for the day or just spending time with friends or family. But what makes it great is that it can be a great base for anything extra you might want to add in the evening. Nothing too shimmery or dark which would be hard to blend over, but just enough so that I could go back in 6 hours and really make it night-time appropriate. Or, leave the shadow, wack on some liner, lashes and a bold lip and you're good to go. Fabulous.

I used the Seventeen Va Va Voom mascara, and a tiny smudge of Blackout from the Naked2 palette along my top lash line. Like, a tiny amount.

Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading
Lou x

5 tips for 5 minute morning make-up | Sunday Chat

I am two weeks into my first full-time, real- life, serious job. Eek. So far, one of the hardest things I've faced is squeezing my leisurely morning skin,hair and make-up dawdle into a seriously quick, to-the-point routine. I'm just getting the hang of it, and here are a few tips I've learnt so far.

1. Minimise your morning skin routine.
Save the masking, toning, exfoliating and serious double- cleansing for the evenings. In the morning, stick to a swipe of micellar water and moisturiser. How anyone does more than that is beyond me.

2.Full- coverage face is still not the one.
When you're at work you want to look awake, fresh and ready, and your first thought is- oh, I'll put  a real, serious foundation all over my face to go with my real, serious job. Wrong. I've spent too long in the morning blending that stuff around my chops to decide that it just isn't the one. Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue you are the one. Yet again.

3.Prioritise your face.
There are certain parts of your make- up routine you can do on the train to work, and certain parts you can't. Mascara and eyeliner are a no-no. So is prodding that fresh spot around with concealer whilst sitting next to a smart business man. That just isn't cute. My rule of thumb is: get your base, brows and lashes done at home. Bare minimum. If  you have to sacrifice one of the three, your brows can be done on the train, trust me.

4.Highlight is taking a back seat.
a) I have trouble even fitting both bronzer and blusher into the space of time I have on the train
b) I'm not sure my colleagues are ready for my J-Lo glow.

5. Convenience products for the win.
I have only just realised that I do not own any eyeshadow quads or trios which are handy to throw in my train make- up bag for the commute. That Naked Palette just isn't going to cut it for a nice grown-up day time look. At the moment, my MAC Cinderella palette is saving the day, and I seriously need to find a few matte- heavy, small palettes for work make- up. (Apart from my Naked Basics 2 which is life)


PS: If you drive to work, leave ten minutes early and sort your business out in the toilets before you  start. It's just logical.

Lou x

A Budget Base

I really love a good cream eyeshadow base, and when it comes in at £1.99, it's even more exciting. This is the Miss Sporty Glossy Shadow in 160 Peanut Butter, and I think it is amazing and you need to go buy it right now.

You can see here that the colour is a beautiful, high- gloss, almost wet- look mauvey browny pink? Would you say? This is such a versatile colour, and can be used as a base for a bronzey brown eye look, a pink look, a purple look, or a peach look. Pretty much all the looks I regularly do, and I love the glossy finish so it looks great by itself too. Powder eyeshadow miraculously blend into the cream seamlessly, without setting it first, and I haven't noticed any creasing once I've layered other products over the top.

I finished my eyes off with these products (as well as liner and mascara, obviously). I used Kiko shadows in 233, which is a beautiful cranberry/ purple satin shadow, and 220, which is a really shimmery golden peach. I used 233 in the crease and on the outer half, and then dusted 220, which is fairly sheer, over the inner part. I then used this cream eyeshadow pencil from Collection on my inner corners.

I really love this look, and especially the Miss Sporty eyeshadow pencil, which I think is amazing quality and a beautiful colour for the price.

Hope you enjoyed this!
Thanks for reading,
Lou x