Saturday Morning Market Dash 2 - Bourjois, Elizabeth Arden, MAC Bargains!

I hit up Portobello Market again the Saturday before last and hauled another batch of bargains.  I've had a good opportunity to try out most the products and honourable mention must be given to the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in shade 51.  This foundation has been on my wishlist for a few months now after I tested it in Superdrug and knew the colour would suit me perfectly.  Some of the delicious-sounding ingredients include Apricot (for radiance), Melon (for hydration), Apple (anti-oxidant) and Ginger (for energy).

Wearing Bourjois Healthy Mix in 51

It only cost £5 - half the shop price.  The coverage is not very heavy, but it gives your face a natural looking glow so it just looks like you have good skin, not that you are caked in slap.  However if you are determined to cover up freckles or looking for blemish coverage, you may prefer something heavier.  I hardly ever wear the same foundation two days in a row, but I've been wearing Bourjois everyday since I got it, even for going out at night.  It's my perfect summer foundation and I find it applies best with clean fingers.

I am also delighted with the shade (51 - the lightest in the range) which blends in well to my pale skin and doesn't leave a tide mark around the jaw or hairline.  I haven't tried any other Bourjois liquid foundations but now I'm tempted to.  Healthy Mix feels heavenly on your skin but its claim to give your a 'perfectly glowing complexion & toned skin' for 16 hours is a bit overstated - at best it last on my oily skin during this humid weather for about 4-5 hours, probably longer in winter.  It also has that lovely 'Bourjois' scent - although not everyone is keen on scented cosmetics.

I picked up this finishing powder as I hoped it will work out something like Benefit's Georgia box powder.  I have to admit I haven't had much of a chance to use it yet, but it comes out very dark on the sponge, so I will only use it to set liquid foundation with a large, fluffy face brush.  I'll let you know how I get on.  It cost £3.

I've owned a tube of Eight Hour Cream for about three years now and it's not even half finished.  I was saving it for a while as it's quite pricey, but now I use it on my lips before bed and also on any seriously dry patches of skin (my calves) and it's great.  It really isn't a cream but more of a gel/thick serum and has a very medicinal smell.  It's also great to use on dehydrating long-haul flights as it's such an all-rounder - it can be used to keep eyebrows in place, soften cuticles, heal minor burns.  Funny story actually - I had a disastrous spray tan a couple of years back and my face reacted badly to the moisturiser I used (can't remember which one now) but the only thing that calmed down my inflamed face was the Eight Hour Cream -  it was very greasy though!

I paid £8 for this cute retro jar - I know it's not as sanitary as a tube, but it's a lot more convenient in a jar.  It costs about £16 in the shops, but I found the 1980s jar edition for £4.99 at this website.  Can't vouch for it's reputability though!

My last find was a MAC eyeshadow in 'Woodwinked' - another wishlist item ticked off! Again I haven't had used it enough to give a proper review on it, but I can tell it's a great all over lid colour or will work nicely to darken the crease if I use a pale shade on my lids.

MAC Woodwinked

I only need one more eyeshadow to complete my MAC pro palette - YAY!  I got these little white labels in a £1 shop as I'm a saddo and like to know the name of the shadow I'm using :)  If I was really sad though I would have printed the labels out - I thought about it!  I love my neutrals! I do like bright eyeshadows but prefer to get these from Urban Decay and Ingot as they do them best, while MAC excel at pretty, multifaceted neutrals.  My current favourite is Shale, in the crease.

I also picked up another Saffron 48 eyeshadow palette to give away as part of a give-away coming very soon!
Click here to see my first haul from Portobello.

Have you tried any Bourjois foundations? Would you recommend any others than the Healthy Mix?  Which MAC eyeshadow should complete my first palette?

Mini Review: L'Oreal Perfect Clean Foaming Face Wash

Okay so I've heard tonnes of good things about the 'Scrublet' that comes with this face wash so I picked it up at the weekend.  Boots were out of the version for oily skin (which contains spot busting Salicylic acid) and the deep pore cleansing one, so I made do with the one for normal/combination skin since it was on offer (I think it was about £3.49).

Sorry about the poor picture quality of the 'scrublet' shots - I couldn't get my camera to focus in the dim light!

It's a good face wash and doesn't make my eyes sting or leave my skin feeling too tight afterwards.   The scent is clean and 'refreshing' as stated on the tin, and the soap lathers well.  However, the Scrublet action works best when used in the shower and is very gentle, but effective.  I would normally use this product at night after removing my make up and just wash my face in the sink - but it can get a bit messy if you're going over your whole face with the small pad.  I find it easier to just slap some lather on with my hands and wash my face in one go.  Saying that, the scrublet is nice for giving your face a little massage in the shower.  

I haven't noticed it unblocking my pores any better than my Soap & Glory Hot Cloth Fab Pore Cleanser (review to come), and I wouldn't repurchase this version of the soap, but I will use the scrublet with my other face washes when this one runs out.  I'm tempted to try the exfoliating foaming wash (the orange one).

The Scrublet up close:

Have you tried any of these L'Oreal cleansers yet?

NOTD: Rimmel PRO Coral Romance

I normally wear this shade on my toes as it's not completely office-friendly (especially not when chipped), and it looks fabulous with a bit of (fake) tan and gold sandals.  But I won't subject you to that, so here it is on my fingernails!

Without Flash

Unfortunately my camera didn't pick up the colour 100% accurately, as it actually has a bit of a pinkish undertone which makes this a flattering coral for pale skin.  I needed two coats to get the above effect - you can still see the white bits (scientific name) of my nail underneath so I really needed three coats but didn't have the patience!

With Flash

The Rimmel 'PRO' polish line is different in a few ways - the bottles are slightly larger that their other ranges, the consistency of the polish is very smooth and the brush is quite large - I have narrow nails so I could feasibly paint a nail in one swoop, but what actually happens is that I go over my first stroke and try to do the classic centre-side-side application and go over the edges, onto skin! (see snap with flash :s)

Despite having a respectably large collection of nail polish I don't own any OPI, Essie, China Glaze, other premium varnish brands, etc.  What would you recommend for my first office-friendly OPI purchase? 

Review: Sleek Face Contour Kit - Cheekbones in a Box!

My local Superdrug finally restocked the 'Light' version of the Sleek Contour Kit so I was delighted to give it a try.  I swatched the testers and was worried that the 'Contour' pressed powder would be too dark, but I liked the fact it it is completely matte.  At the moment the only matte powder I can use for contouring is Benefit Hoola, but again this is a bit dark for me.  I've used the Kit about six times now and it was a good buy, I think it cost about £5.99.

I use an angled contour brush like MAC's 168 with a VERY light hand as the pigmentation is excellent.  I dab off the excess on a tissue before applying to my face, and then blend out any harsh edges with a large, fluffy powder brush.  For someone with a darker skin tone the powder would probably work well as an all over matte bronzer.

I'm not overly keen on the highlighting powder, although it is a gorgeous colour, I prefer a very noticeable sheen on my cheekbones, so I use my beloved Prestige Skin Loving Minerals in True Shimmer.

The packaging is great - it's very sturdy and comes with a decent sized mirror in the lid - I wish MAC would include mirrors in their packaging to make on-the-go touch ups that bit easier!

I really liked the little instruction leaflet it came with too, a la Benefit.

A close up, sans eye makeup - eek!

All in all, a great contour kit, which comes in medium and dark shades also. 

Check out my BFF's (Angel of High Heels & Lipgloss) review of Sleek's Glo Bronzer.  I'm waiting for the light shade of this to get restocked, and when it does, standby for a review.

Have you found a Holy Grail contour powder for fair skin?

MAC Hang Loose Mineralize Blush - I caved!

I thought I was done once I got my hands on Petticoat MSF, but having seen swatches of Hang Loose I lemmed it, and relented today.  And of course, I finally swatched Jazzed, instantly fell in love, and then saw the 'Sold Out' sticker.  Damn.  It's sold out online too, so I am going to try the MAC near Carnaby St at lunch tomorrow.

Anyway, I love Hang Loose, it's beautiful, but I do hate spoiling it by mixing the lilac and pink together, but it's the only way to create a wearable colour.  I want to try the lilac on my lids, and see how the pink works as a cheek highlight on its own.

The last MAC Mineralize blush I got was Gentle, and I remember it being £16, so I was a bit miffed that Hang Loose was £17.50!  Definitely not the difference between 15% and 17.5% VAT! Grrrrr.  Is it just me or do you find MAC staff (esp. Westfield's) rude and more to the point, unknowledge-able? (is that a word?!).  Today the sales girl give me a confused/dirty look when I asked for Hang Loose blush - hello?! In The Groove is a major collection which most beauty addicts are familiar with!  For some reason I always end up going to MAC when I'm not wearing much slap, and the 'artists' are always a bit sniffy with me and adopt a sort of 'what are you doing in here' attitude - trying to get served or test something on your face is like running the gauntlet!  And don't even get me started on their colour matching 'skills'. Heh.  And breathe.

*hearts*

Colours mixed together                       Lilac on it's own                               Pink on it's own

Did you manage to pick up Jazzed?!

Saturday Morning Market Dash - MAC Bargains!

Living in London, I'm not near any CCOs (Cosmetics Company Outlets), but I live next to Portobello market and in the last year I've picked up a few Benefit and MAC cosmetics there.  There used to be one guy - I call him Benefit Man - whose stall I was addicted to!  I never asked him where he got the stuff but I was pretty sure they weren't fakes.  The only one that seemed dodgy to me was a bottle of Posie Tint which had a slightly larger cap than my shop-bought High Beam.  Anyway, he went off the radar last autumn.

This morning I found another stall selling Benefit, Stilla and most MAC, plus some other premium brands.  The stall owner said MAC destroy unsold cosmetics, and so I guess someone intercepts this!   I picked up a few things I've wanted for a while; Dame blush and Twinks and Sketch eyeshadows.  My impulse buys were the lipglasses and Star Violet eyeshadow - which I think is actually my favourite of the three!  I've never bothered with MAC lipglosses before as £12 is over the top for something I'm not that into.

So anyway, here's the haul...

 Unpackaged...

I've wanted Dame blush for ages, and it really is a perfect pink for my pale skin.  It has tiny BLUE sparkles, but they only add a nice iridescence to my cheeks.  I got it for £8.

The pro pan eyeshadows were £5 each - I only need two more to complete my 12 pan palette!

The lipglasses were £7.50 each.  They are very pretty colours and quite long lasting, but I do find the lipglass formula stickier than I like.  They are both pretty sheer, and Nymphette is the most interesting with its goldy-green shimmer.

So I'm very happy with my bargain MAC haul, most of the bits were at least half the price of what they are in the shop - but this is all I think they're worth really!  I'll be keeping my eye out for more pro pan eyeshadows!

My bargain of the day was actually this 40 eyeshadow palette by a brand I've never heard of  - Saffron London - for £2!

I thought the pigmentation would be awful, but for £2 I couldn't say no.   Well, I got home and swatched them and the pigmentation is fabulous! Granted they are a bit chunky and flaky and some are quite glittery, but some of the colours are absolutely gorgeous!  They apply best with a sponge applicator.  The one that comes with them is a bit rubbish, but I have a couple of great ones from Urban Decay eyeshadows that work perfectly.

The palette is a really nice size - smaller than Coastal Scents 88 palettes but larger than a MAC 12 pan.

There are loads of great brownish/reddy/bricky colours which look great with blue eyes.

What's your best makeup bargain?

And Then There Were Three!

I picked up the Summer Fruits flavour from Urban Outfitters about a month ago and while I like the novelty factor and how it acts as a good base for lipstick, I wasn't crazy about paying £6 when they're so much cheaper in the US.  However, thanks to Miss Kei Kei  I was alerted to the Urban Outfitters sale and grabbed the Lemon Drop and Sweet Mint balms for £2.99 each.  That's just about what they're worth.  Of course if they'd never gone on sale I would have saved myself £6!

You can read more detail on what the balm is like here.

Having watched emilynoel83's Youtube video raving about Lemon Drop and how nice the flavour is I have to say I really don't think any of the flavours are very strong, and Lemon Drop definitely could be more citrus-y.  Sweet Mint is nice, but my least favourite of the three.

Anyway, now I have a full set I am going to learn to juggle! And have very smooth lips!

80+ Followers - Thank You!

When I switched on my phone this morning I saw that me wee blawg had gained 80 followers!

Despite having a Monumentally Bad Morning (rudely awakened by a nightmare well before my alarm, rain, arguments with builders, missing bus, having can of coke thrown at me from top deck of missed bus, getting off next bus due to fire on Westbourne Grove and practically having to walk to Oxford Circus from there, no breakfast and work stress.  Sorry for the rant! I'm sure I left something out!) seeing the '80' next to my followers box made everything okay and put a smile back on my face!  

So thanks y'all!  I'm so grateful to anyone who takes a few moments to catch up with my latest posts, and love reading and responding to your comments and emails!  I'm also very nosey when I get a new follower and like to check out if you've got a blog!  I also get excited when I see that I've had a new visitor from somewhere in the world that isn't already on my flag counter (bottom of left hand bar).  I have a ginormous list of things I want to blog about, and it never seems to get any shorter as I keep adding to it!  I try to blog at least every other day and work should be calming down next week so I'm planning to do one each day.  The most time consuming part of blogging for me is editing the photos as I only have Paint - but we all like a picture! 

It's my birthday on 20 July and it would be amazing to reach 100 followers by then so I can launch my giveaway!  Another excuse for a trip to Westfield this weekend!

So, thankyouplease again :)

Hugs 'n' snogs,

Kat x

It's in the Bag! Dorothy Perkins Premium Collection

Sorry for the cheesy title.  It's just because I don't have a name for this bag as it doesn't say it on the label and I can't find it on the internet at all!  However there are a few lurking around DP shops.  I saw  this bag in Westfield (I don't live there, promise!) on Sunday and fell in love straight away! However both bags in the shop had broken clasps, so I picked it up from the Oxford Circus branch before work on Monday.

To me it's like a stylish, feminine, mini-briefcase and I used it today for work.  I normally carry a shedload around in my Longchamp, but had to cut down to the bare essentials - latest True Blood novel, notebook, wallet, umbrella, oyster card, keys, antibac gel and lippie!

The one thing I'm not keen on are the blingin' gold chains which attach the handle to the bag - you can't really see them well in the photo.  I sound like the ghost of Christmas past (or one of them!) but at least people hear me coming up behind them when I'm steamrollering down Oxford Street (I HATE dawdlers...in fact, I may use the chain to donk them on the head in future!).
This bag is similar to it, but not the same.  My one was £35.  My other favourite bag comes from DP too, it's one of those Chanelesque black quilted shoulder bags. 

MAC In The Groove & Viva Glam Lady Gaga

I don't normally buy into MAC collections.  The last one that had me interested was the Hello Kitty collaboration in February 2009.  Typically, I got into MAC just after everything decent from this collection sold out!

After seeing some gorgeous swatches in blogland last week I was tempted by In The Groove's Petticoat, Stereo Rose and By Candlelight MSFs.  I ran to MAC Westfield on Saturday determined to do some wallet damage, and was sadly underwhelmed by the products in the flesh.  They looked beautiful in the packaging, but I tried on all three and Stereo Rose was did not suit me at all, and you could hardly notice I had By Candlelight on.  So I left the shop and went to watch the Argetina-Germany match...

I mulled it over and decided to go for Petticoat, since it suited me best and there is ALL that hype about it!  I LOVE my MSF in Light Flush, and so I hope Petticoat grows on me too.  And here it is!

With Flash

Without Flash

Petticoat on cheeks - bit washed out

I passed up By Candlelight as although beautiful in the pan, it didn't give me a sheen on my cheekbones like I'd expected, and I find Prestige's Skin Loving Minerals in Pure Shimmer much more effective, and better value!  I also liked the look of Happy Together Mineralize Blush, so I might pick it up soon if it doesn't sell out.

I also spotted the Viva Glam Lady Gaga, didn't expect to like it on, but ended up loving it! My boyfriend hated it (he doesn't want to get that colour on his lips!) and my friend Flora loved it, so of course I went with my girl!

 

Petticoat on cheeks and VG Gaga on lips

Did you get something from this collection?

Update: MAC's Disney Venomous Villians Collection Coming Sept. 2010

You've probably already seen this picture, but I just had to post it as I am waiting for this collection like it's Christmas!

News first broke of the collection back on 18th May and late last week the official packaging was revealed - it's very similar to the photos which surfaced a couple of weeks ago.

To watch MAC's promotional video for the collection click here.  For more info on the collection check out Kim Porter's blog.

The previous leaked shots featured Ursula from The Little Mermaid, but sadly it looks as though she won't be part of the collection...looks like I'll go for the Evil Queen (Snow White)...or actually, just wait until I see the colours on offer!

Have you come across any other shots of this collection?

UPDATE! Sleek iDivine Circus Palette in Superdrug Today!

I popped into Superdrug in Westfield this afternoon to pick up a Sleek Face Contour Kit and guess what I saw?!

Oh yes! They put it out early!  It's not on Sleek's website yet.  I got the second last one and the poor girl at the till was sighing with everything she scanned through for me saying 'I want to get one of these!'  The packaging is bright but I love it, what else could a 'circus' one be?! 

Without Flash

With Flash

The colours are extremely bright, but more workable that the Acid iDivine.  The midnight blue colour (on the far right in the photo below) is my favourite, and all the others are as pigmented as we've come to expect from Sleek.  The only disappointment is the white shade - not pigmented at all as you can see from the swatch (or not as the case may be!) between the purple and dark blue swatches below.  There's also a good balance between matte and shimmery shadows.

Without Flash

With Flash

I'm looking forward to creating some bright summer looks with this palette!

Will you be picking up Circus?