Olympic Makeup

No, this isn't a tutorial on Union Jack Eyeshadow, sorry hehe :)

This is the look I'm going to be going for while I'm away. I'm going to want to be out early to enjoy the day so I don't want to faff about with doing lots of intricate makeup things.

I'll start off and do my base as usual, I wish I was someone who could just throw on some BB cream and look fabulous, but it takes me some work to make my skin look good. That in itself will take me about 5 minutes, so not too long. It includes foundation, concealer, and powder to set. Then a quick contour of my cheekbones, fill in my brows and highlight whatever needs it.

Once that's out the way, these are my steps to look fabulous quickly!

• Sweep some shimmer eyeshadow across the lids and under the tear ducts, this one is Champagne by Bobbi Brown. It's easy, simple and feminine.
• Line my top lid with black liner (I'm not a fan of brown on myself) and depending on my mood, either smudge it out, or add some to my waterline if it's night time. This is the Bobbi Brown pencil eyeliner.
• A couple of coats of dramatic mascara and my eyes are good to go! This one is Bobbi Brown's Extreme Party Mascara.

• Sweep a little bronzer across the high points of my face, add a pop of pretty pink blush (This duo is great as it includes a bronzer and a blush, perfect for on the go!)
• Swipe a coat of red lipstick across my lips. I'm not someone who worries about red lipstick, I think if you do it right, it wears nicely and I've never really had that whole lipstick teeth problem. This one is Red by Bobbi Brown.

------------

This will take me probably around 15 minutes. I can normally get ready in full in 35 minutes including a shower, so I don't think that's too bad!

As for the nail polish, I mentioned in my last post that I'm going to paint my nails in either red or blue with an accent nail in the opposite colour. I'm not sure which way around yet though!

I'm going to invest in Racing Green for either a change or for my toes, it's completely British and has an amazing shine! As always you can get Mavala Nail Varnishes online from The Beauty Bay for £3.50.

Lea

x

Bobbi Brown Starter Kit/ Recommendations

If you're new to makeup and just want to play around with it, I don't really recommend this as it is quite pricey. However if you want to start expanding your collection of high end makeup, or want to start out with a few high end essentials that you can use every day, or even just fancy a look at what I recommend, then read on!

I started out wearing Bobbi Brown makeup when I was 14. My mum could see that I was starting to wear makeup on a daily basis and thought the best idea was to take me to somewhere that I could get some high quality products and be taught how to us

e them properly at the same time. Enter Bobbi Brown. Her motto is to enhance what you naturally have and I couldn't agree more.

My starter kit was as follows:

Tinted Moisturiser

Creamy Concealer Kit

Sheer Finish loose setting powder

The Face Brush - has just been re-promoted

Eyeshadow in Black Plum to line my top lids with

An Ultra Fine Eyeliner Brush

Mascara - I think it's been rebranded as the Extreme Party Mascara

Rose Shimmer Brick

Face Blender Brush

Lipgloss in the shade Rosy (I think)

Over the years my collection has grown, and the other items I used on a daily basis when I was young were the Crystal Lip Gloss, Pot Rouge in Bright Pink, Shimmer Brick in Bronze and the lipsticks. I also switched out to a more full coverage foundation which was the Moisture Rich foundation I believe.

As a starter I can't recommend those products enough, but if I had to cut it down, this is what I would advise:

SPF 15 Tinted Moisturiser - £27

Creamy Concealer Kit - £23.50

Shimmer Wash Eyeshadow - £15.50 - choose a light pretty colour that complements your eyes such as rose gold or lilac, or a neutral colour such as Taupe from the regular eyeshadow range.

Extreme Party Mascara - £18

Crystal Lip Gloss - £14

I know these seem pricey, but I honestly feel that they are great staples that will really last, and will make you look great. The skin products especially are brilliant products and if you wanted to spend money somewhere I'd put it into a good base.

Here are a few of my favourites that I think would make great additions as you build your collection.

Makeup:

Sheer Finish Loose Powder - £23

Pot Rouge for Lips and Cheeks - £18 - I love Pale Pink, Raspberry and Calypso Rose

Blush - £18 - I love Apricot, Pale Pink and Plum

High Shimmer Lip Gloss - £17 - I love Bellini, Citrus and Naked Plum

Treatment Lip Shine - £17 - these are like a high end Lip Butter, I love Berry, Papaya and Pink Glisten

Lip Balm SPF 15 - £14

Long Wear Gel Eyeliner - £16.50

Brow Kit - £35

Shimmer Brick - £30.50 - The Nectar one is next on my list!

The Brushes:

The Bobbi Brown Brushes are extremely ex

pensive in my opinion, but there are a few that I feel are worth it, I've used mine every single day since I bought them.

The Face Brush - A short stubby brush that is great at dispensing powder. I've had mine for years but they disappeared and have now been re-promoted!

Ultra Fine Eyeliner Brush - does exactly what it's supposed to!

Face Blender Brush - works great with Shimmer Bricks.

Misc:

Bobbi Brown has a few books out that I really recommend, She had one on teen beauty that I used to read religiously when I first started and I really believe it helped me.

I'd love to know your favourite makeup brand and what you recommend, let me know!

Lea

x

(Images taken from BobbiBrown.co.uk, no copyright infringement intended)

Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Pink Quartz

It's no secret that I adore Bobbi Brown, I've been using their products for over 6 years now and I fall in love a little more every time I make a new purchase.

When I first started to wear makeup, my mum took me to Bobbi Brown to get some essentials. I'm going to do a post on a Bobbi Brown started kit, so I won't go into that now, but since I'm now 20 you can tell it's been a long standing relationship!

My most recent purchase has been the Shimmer Brick in Pink Quartz. I already have the shimmer bricks in Rose, Bronze and Limited Edition Gold. In the past I have also had an Apricot one, and Platinum Pink. Unfortunately these two didn't make it through the hold of a long haul flight, and I was heartbroken. I've always loved these as I find they're a fantastically versatile product and then literally do last for years, so while the price is a stinger at first, I feel that it is actually quite justifiable.

Pink Quartz is made up of pink and tan shades that can be used separately or swirled together, leaving an amazing rose gold sheen to the skin.

You may be wondering how this fares compared to the limited edition Rose Gold shimmer brick that is out, and my personal opinion is that this one is better. The Rose Gold one is made up of all pink tones, whereas the Rose Quartz shimmer brick has tan shades that can be used on it's own to create an amazing neutral shimmery eye as well as achieving that rose gold look.

At around £30 these are undoubtedly a luxury makeup item, but they're an amazing product that really lasts and the packaging is beautiful too. You just don't get things as special as these from somewhere like MAC!

What do you think lovelies?

Lea

x