An alternative to the Hourglass Ambient Lighting blushes?



Ever since laying my eyes on the ambient lighting blushes from Hourglass it has been hard to keep them off my mind. Baked blushes have always intrigued me yet I was sceptical of spending nearly £30 on something that I may not even like. Don't get me wrong the raving reviews on the Hourglass blushes suggest that I wouldn't be disappointed but I am always willing to try a drugstore alternative.

I discovered that Max Factor had brought out their own versions of a baked blush through another beauty blog and I knew instantly that the next time I visited Boots I would be buying one of these blushes.

Similarly to the Hourglass blushes, these Max Factor blushes are gorgeous just to look at in the pan. The shade I chose is '05 Lovely Pink' and is a mixture of pink and golden tones which also features some shimmer. I think it is this shimmer which gives a highlighting effect when applied to the cheeks as well as a healthy flush of colour from the shade itself. What I love about this blush in particular is that it is so buildable. I love the way that it can be used to add a subtle highlight and flush but I can also see how it could be easily built up to give a stronger look. At first I wasn't sure about the shimmer but it really does give your skin that extra glow without making you look obviously glittery or sparkly. The  formulation of this product is also great as it doesn't feel heavy or chalky on the skin. I find that my Real Techniques blush brush picks up exactly the right amount of product and it applies so well to the cheeks.

Another bonus of this product for me is the no-nonsense packaging. I love the very simple round compact and the fact that the clear lid showcases those beautiful shades. I also like that Max Factor haven't fussed around trying to squeeze a mirror in and has focused entirely on the product itself. Although these blushes are relatively small, I have been religiously using them every day for around a month now and it doesn't even look like I've touched the product aside from the fact that admittedly you can see where my brush has been swirling around the pan.

If anyone I knew was looking for a new blush I would steer them immediately in this direction. There are so many shade variations in this range and the product itself is fantastic. At only £8.99 they are considerably cheaper than the Hourglass blushes and will be a firm favourite of mine as we move into the Spring months. 

Get Ready With Me: A Typical Everyday Look

If you are like me and wear makeup almost everyday, you soon get into a routine and find that you have a 'typical' or 'trademark' makeup look which you go to regularly. Today I thought that I'd go through my typical everyday look and show how it is achieved. From start to finish, it usually takes me around 40 minutes to get ready, although I do speed it up and can get the process down to about 20 minutes if I'm in a hurry. I can also drag this process out, and usually do if I am going on a night out because I don't like to feel rushed when getting ready.

So to start with I firstly shower and wash my hair. Currently I am using the orange and satsuma shower gel from Superdrug's own brand to wash myself which is really refreshing and awakening and I am using the TRESemme platinum strength shampoo and conditioner which I've found to have improved my hair since I started using it. 

After my shower I then brush my teeth with my pink oral-b toothbrush and the colgate cavity protection toothpaste. I'm not really that fussy when it comes to toothpaste and so I just use whatever is in the bathroom at the time. 

Once I've brushed my teeth I then go back into my bedroom and towel dry my hair. Once I have got rid of all the excess water I tie my hair up in a loose bun to keep it out of my face. I then start the base of my makeup, including foundation, concealer and blusher, bronzer, eyeshadow and my eyebrows. As I have a side fringe it's much easier to do these stages before I dry my hair but I can't do my full eye makeup as I find my eyes run whilst I am drying my hair. 

   To start off my makeup I apply the Max Factor Colour Adapt foundation in natural using a foundation brush, making sure that I blend it all in evenly. I then apply the Helen E concealer (yellow side) to underneath my eyes to cover up any dark circles. If I have any particularly noticeable blemishes or spots I use the brown side of the compact to cover these up. 

My face after applying the foundation and concealer 

The next stage in my daily routine is to apply a face powder before contouring and applying blusher. For the powder I am currently using the Max Factor Creme Puff powder in translucent and I use this to simply set my base and not to add too much colour to my face. Then I use the sleek contour kit in light to subtly contour my cheekbones using the powder and highlighter. I don't contour my nose because I don't feel the need to, although Sleek does show you how to do this as well.
  I finish off my face by applying the Sleek blush in Flamingo to the apple of my cheeks. This stuff is really highly pigmented so I don't have to put much on my blush brush. I also don't apply too much because I want to keep my look natural and not too over the top.  

My face after foundation, concealer, powder, contouring and blusher

The next stage in my makeup is to fill in my eyebrows and apply some eyeshadow to my lids. My eyebrows are already quite thick and are shaped on a regular basis so I just use a thin brush to fill in any gaps and make them appear a bit stronger.
  The second brush I use is a shading brush from Models Own and I use this to sweep some eyeshadow onto my lids, as I only usually apply one colour in an everyday look. 

I have no idea what brand or where this quad came from, but I love the neutral colours in it. When this runs out I will have to try and find similar shades because I am loving using this at the moment. I use the bottom right colour which is a dark brown for my brows and then use the top right to shade my lids. 

My face with the finished base along with filled brows and eyeshadow

I then move away from my makeup and focus on drying and sorting out my hair. I leave the rest of my eye makeup until afterwards as my eyes have a tendency to run. I start my hair routine by brushing through it with my tangle teezer brush and apply a heat protective spray. I then use a hairdryer to blow dry my hair, making sure I also get my parten in the correct place. 

Once my hair is dry I usually just brush through it once more using my tangle teezer brush and then leave it. Over the past few months I've cut down on the use of my straighteners and I've noticed that my hair is in a much better condition. 

Once my hair is complete I then move back to finish off my makeup. I firstly line my lower waterline with the Max Factor Kohl pencil in black.

My face after applying the Max Factor Kohl pencil in black

Once I've applied the pencil eyeliner to the bottom of my eyes, I take the Rimmel Glameyes liquid liner and use this to line my eyelids, as close to the lashline as possible. I then use a small amount and go over the pencil liner that I had done previously, which just makes it last that little bit longer. I usually do a small flick at the outer corner of my lashes to create the cat-eye effect and the size of this usually varies day to day. 

My face after pencil and liquid liner

I finish off my eyes using the Maybelline Falsies mascara in black drama and usually apply a couple of coats to my top lashes. I also find the brush is easy to use for the bottom lashes as well so I apply just one coat here. I find mascara really finishes off the look and opens the eyes up. 

Finally, the last stage in my makeup is to apply a lip product. Usually during the day I like to go for a natural looking shade which isn't too bright. I've recently brought some lipsticks from the Kate Moss for Rimmel collection and so I've been wearing these alot. My favourite at the moment is the shade 08, which is a pinky colour and I think perfect for autumn. They are really hydrating as well so I don't feel the need to apply lipgloss over the top. 

Kate Moss for Rimmel lipstick in 08

The finished look

Once I have finished my hair and makeup I then get changed into the outfit that I will be wearing during that day. This way I know I won't accidentally get makeup on me. This is my typical look and although it can take about 40 minutes to complete, I don't think that it is too extensive. I personally really like this makeup look, but over the past few weeks I have been trying to experiment with different looks as well. 

If I Had £100 To Spend: Makeup

I saw this post back in September and it got me thinking about the makeup products that I would purchase if I was given £100 and so I decided to write my own version of the post. You can read Rosie's original post here: http://itsalljustrosie.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/if-i-had-100.html

Rockateur by Benefit £23.50
The first product that I would buy with £100 would be the Rockateur cheek powder from Benefit. I've heard amazing things about this particular product and seen some pictures of other bloggers wearing the product and it looks amazing. I wouldn't usually spend this much money on a blusher so this would be a product that I would treat myself to.

Mac Lipstick in Ruby Woo £15.00
I have had my eye on this lipstick for a few months now and so if I had £100 to spend on makeup this would definitely be a purchase for me. Described as a matt blue-red shade it is supposed to suit almost every skin-tone and would set me back £15. 

Image from www.maccosmetics.co.uk

Mac Lipstick in Crème Cup £15.00
Another lipstick from Mac that I would buy as part of my £100 spending would be this gorgeous looking shade called Crème Cup. I am a massive fan of pinky shaded lipsticks and feel this would be a great addition to my collection. I think I also featured this on my September wishlist, but I still haven't found the opportunity to buy it yet.  

Image taken from www.maccosmetics.co.uk

Mac Eyeshadow in Nylon £12.50

Having never tried an eyeshadow from Mac before and being keen to try out new shadows and expand my collection, another purchase would be the Mac eyeshadow in Nylon. From the description online it is a gold shimmery shade and I think this would compliment my hazel eyes. 

Image taken from www.maccosmetics.co.uk

Mac Eyeshadow in Blanc Type £12.50
As I am running out of the eye shadow I am currently using, I on the lookout for a new shadow to replace it. I came across this shade when browsing on the Mac website and thought it was a really lovely beige shade so I've added it to this post. 

Image taken from www.maccosmetics.co.uk 

Mac Eyeshadow in Charcoal Brown £12.50
This is turning into a 'If I had to spend £100 in Mac' post at this rate and so to end my spending in Mac I would finish off by purchasing a final eyeshadow in Charcoal Brown. I think this colour would be perfect for the crease and also to fill in my brows, so that's two purposes for one product. Brilliant. 

Sleek Blush in Rose Gold £4.49
I got slightly carried away when I was mentally purchasing products from the Mac website, so it leaves me with about £10 left to spend. I think for the last £10 I would go to Sleek and purchase two of their blushes because I have loved 'Flamingo' so much and would love to expand my collection even further.
  Whilst browsing on the website I came across this gorgeous shade. I've seen other beauty bloggers and Youtubers wearing this shade and it looks amazing. It would also be different from the blushes I already own and although it looks as though to have a fair bit of shimmer in it, I would still love to try it out.

Image from: www.sleekmakeup.com

 

Sleek Blush in Life's A Peach £4.49
For my final purchase I would buy another Sleek blush, this time in the shade 'Life's a Peach.' Although it looks extremely bright and orange in the picture online I would hope that like Flamingo it doesn't look as scary when it is on the cheeks as you don't need much product. That would bring my total to £99.98, leaving me with just 2p leftover. I'm actually surprised by the amount of products that I would be able to buy as I would get three blushes, 2 lipsticks and three eyeshadows for this price, with most of them being higher end products. 

Image from: www.sleekmakeup.com

Total: £99.98
It was a lot of fun to write this post and mentallu spend £100 on makeup and to plan what you would buy. However it has now made me want to buy all of these products, which may not turn out to be so great and will have a negative effect on my bank balance!

Sleek Contour Kit & Blush

I've been wanting to buy the Sleek Contour Kit and one of their blushes for a long time now. I've read so many other reviews by other bloggers and seen so many people rave about these products and after a few months of waiting, I finally ordered them.
  Unfortunately I'm not able to see any sleek products unless I order them online because there are not any sleek counters near where I live so buying these were a bit of a risk as I didn't know how they would look and whether or not they would be suitable for my skin type. However I must say that I've been really impressed by these two products and I thought that I would share them.

Sleek Face Contour Kit

First of all, I absolutely love the packaging of these products. They look professional and sophisticated and I love the logo as well. I like that the product clips shut so that it doesn't open whilst in your makeup bag and go everywhere, and I really like the colour as well.

Sleek Blush

Sleek Contour Kit in Light





The first product is the Sleek Contour Kit. This product consists of a pressed powder used to define the cheeks and nose and also a highlighter to be used alongside the powder. The powder itself is matt, but the highlight has a slight shimmer to it. I've been using a blush brush to apply this product so far, as I am waiting to buy a slanted contour brush to use in the future, but it does the job well.

  As I wasn't able to test the colour of the product to see what shade I needed, I decided to play it safe and go for the lightest shade Sleek make. I am glad I decided this because the product is really pigmented and you do not need a lot of product at all. However, the product does give you great definition, especially on your cheeks and along your cheekbones and it gives you a really healthy glow.

  Another big bonus of this product is that is so reasonably priced, at only £6.49. Usually you would pay this for a similar powder or bronzer alone, which makes it great value for money. As I've already said you don't need to use a lot of this product each time so it is bound to last you a considerable amount of time too.



Swatches of the Face Contour Kit in 'Light'
Left: Pressed Powder
Right: Highlighter

Sleek Blush in Flamingo

To compliment the contour kit, I also purchased a new blush. This was the first blush that I had brought from Sleek, so it was good to try something new.

  Like the contour kit, I've found that the blush is really pigmented and you don't need to use a lot of product. I usually just take my blush brush, give it a quick sweep across the blush and tap off any excess and apply to the apple of my cheeks. Sometimes I find that I don't need to reapply the blush to the brush before the second cheek, that's how pigmented the product is!

  As before I wasn't able to swatch the product before I brought it and on the website I fell in love with the shade 'Flamingo.' I have to say it is much pinker and brighter than the picture on their website and at first I was slightly scared of it. I thought it would make me look ridiculous but once I found out that I didn't need much product I was more confident about wearing it. Once it is on your face it doesn't look half as scary as expected and it gives a healthy looking and natural looking blush to your face. It really isn't harsh and it blends extremely well. I love that it is a matt blush as it contrasts to the other blushes I have which contain slight shimmers.

  Another bonus is obviously the price of the product. At £4.49 they are an absolute bargain and with a choice of 10 shades you really are spoilt for choice. In addition, each blush as well as the contour kit have a mirror half on the other side of the compact which is great if you are taking this out and about with you.

Swatch of Sleek Blush in Flamingo

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I've incorporated these two products into my makeup collection and now regularly wear them. I've noticed a massive difference in my makeup when I've worn these products and would thoroughly recommend these to people that are looking for a new blush or contour set. I plan on expanding my collection of 'Sleek' products even further, with my next purchase likely to be the blush in 'Rose Gold.'