Lord & Berry | Luminizer Stick

Lord & Berry | Luminzer Stick | £12.00

For a while now, I've been on the hunt for a creamy highlighter that I can carry with me when I'm on the go.  I've had a select few of the Nars Multiples on my wish list for quite some time, and have debated with myself whether or not to invest in Benefit's 'Watts Up' - but really, when it comes down to it, I just don't fancy the price tag.  I wanted to hunt for a cheaper option, and immediately took to ASOS to browse their beauty section (a standard Sunday night past-time I shall never tire of). When I first began writing my blog, I mentioned and reviewed one of Lord & Berry's lipstick crayons (a must-have item for those of you who love a lippie or two..) - it still remains one of my firm summer favourites and when I saw their 'Luminzer Stick' - I threw it straight in the virtual basket.

The Luminizer Stick simply twists up from the bullet, and can be applied to the cheekbones, brow bone or any other area you wish to highlight. As you're all probably aware, I'm a bit of a contouring addict so having something like this in my makeup collection is very handy for on the go touch-ups.  I usually favour a powder highlight, but just recently I've been applying this over my foundation to give more of a natural, dewy finish and it works wonders. You don't need much at all, and because of the creamy texture it's very blendable and smooths onto the skin easily.  Wear time is a little less than my trusty Nars 'Albatross' - it does seem to fade a little easier but since I can carry this in my make-up bag in a handy little tube, I can overlook this. The consistency is quite thin, and is a little slippery, but I find it very easy to work with as it means blending and smoothing it in is a doddle.

The shade I have leans more towards a yellow, silvery tone and works very well with my skintone as it isn't overly warm. I couldn't see any other shades available on the ASOS website, and I can't seem to hunt down an alternative option on their website - there seems to be little or no variation in the shade selection - but personally this wouldn't fuss me too much as I prefer shades like this compared with warmer, pink shades anyway. The colour really brightens the complexion and I can't wait to bring this little beauty out in the summer once I start moving towards cream products on a more day-to-day basis. On tanned skin I can imagine this will look stunning.

I can safely say Lord & Berry have the potential to become a firm favourite of mine - their prices are spot on, the quality of the two products I've tried so far has been absolutely tip-top and I love the simplicity of the packaging (everything comes in a little box - yippee!) They most certainly need to be more well-known here on the bloggersphere and I urge you all to have a little nosey at the collection. I'm so glad I popped this little gem into my recent order with ASOS, and I can't wait to try some of their eyeliners next - I might even accidentally-on purpose slip another little lipstick crayon in there as well..

You can find the Lord & Berry website here

Or take advantage of student discount on ASOS here

 Have you tried any Lord & Berry products? What would you recommend from the range? Please do let me know if you decide to try anything from them! I'd love to know your thoughts.

 

POP Beauty | Lid 'Amethyst' Eyeshadow Palette

Happy Easter to all of my lovely readers - I do hope that Mr Easter bunny has hopped over to your neck of the woods and bought you some wonderful edible goodies! For most of you, I'm sure the day will consist mainly of chocolate-egg devouring - maybe with a cheeky Sunday roast thrown into the mix, all together with a little dose of crappy telly. Easter has got to be the one day of the year that you can eat all the chocolate you could ever want, purely guilt free. What's a girl not to love about that?! Anyway, chocolate aside, I thought I'd type up a little post today on one of my newest additions to my eyeshadow drawer - the POP lid eyeshadow palette in 'Amethyst'. I've wanted one of these palettes for yonks now, but never ordered myself one simply because I swear by my Urban Decay Naked Palettes so much - I just couldn't justify my need for another palette. However, justification flew out of the window well and truly when I spotted one in the lovely Gemma's blogsale. I simply had to get my mitts on it.

The palette contains 6 eye shadows which progress from the darker 'smoky' end of the scale to light neutrals. The shades are described on the website as 'cocoa and maroon' tones - and contain a selection of browns, pale pastels and pretty lilacs. I have green eyes, so I find lilac toned shadows bring out the colour of my eyes very well - and make a lovely change from the golds and taupes I usually opt for.  I'd heard through the bloggery-grapevine that these shadows were really buttery and soft to the touch - and I can indeed confirm that the blogger-grapevine was correct.  I don't find these shadows powdery at all - the darker shades inparticularly are unbelievably creamy and the pigmentation is fantastic. They smooth onto the lid perfectly, and are amazingly blendable.  I find that the 2 lightest shades need a little more building up, but that might just be my skin tone. I find all 6 of really great quality, and the subtle shimmer in a select few of them just gives that extra bit of something special.  I'm all for a little bit of shimmer in my shadows - I find it makes them show up a little more.

What I love most about this palette though, is the size.  I wish so much I'd taken a photograph of the sides (sorry..bad blogger..but let's be honest it wouldn't have made for a very interesting bit of photography would it?) The palette is wafer thin - at not even a centimetre tall it's practical for travel and storage, and above all else it's strangely satisfying. It almost feels as if you're gripping a little credit card in your hands! For someone who travels a lot, these little palettes are fantastic. It's almost weightless (hello extra room in your luggage!)

The palette also has little handy hints for eye-looks you can create on the inside - giving you a starting point for any smoky eye looks you might wish to create. I find the middle two shades perfect for a daytime bit of colour - it's subtle without being too dramatic. The lighter shades are lovely base colours, and are perfect for highlighting the brow bone or inner corners of the eyes. It also comes with a little handy applicator - I hardly ever use these to be honest but it's a nice little finishing touch for on the go. Wear time is up there with my beloved Urban Decay palettes - I use a primer beforehand but the stronger shades of the bunch will probably stay put regardless! Overall, a massive thumbs up for me. I love this palette more than I expected to. So much so that I have my eye on there other ones in the range (typical me.. I can't just stop at one) which include 'Monochrome' - perfect for smoky eyes, 'Nude' - a possible mini Naked Palette dupe?, 'Bronzer' (i reckon this will be my next one!) and 'Neon' - for the colour loving ladies amongst you. They also do other variations of palettes - some being stocked on ASOS here, alternatively you can have a nosey at the website for a bigger range.

Have you tried the POP lid palettes? Which one have you got your eye on?

 ♥

Rimmel Apocalips | 'Big Bang' 'Galaxy' & 'Luna'

Rimmel Apocalips | £5.99 each

When I first heard about the Rimmel Apocalips hitting the stores, I knew straight away they would be a winner in my books. So much so, I actually got into town superly-duperly-extra-specially early on the day they were released so that I could get my mitts on a few of them before the rest of the beauty bloggers in my area got there first. Yes.. I know... we are talking extreme measures here but surely you fellow bloggers know that as soon as there is hype created over something, rest assured the shelves of Boots and Superdrug will be empty within days - and I just couldn't risk such a thing happening. I simply HAD to have my pick of every single shade. I settled on 'Luna' - a bright orangey peach, 'Galaxy' - a rich purple-plum shade and 'Big Bang' - a classic bright red.  Already I'm really regretting not buying more. These lip lacquers are right up my street. Let me explain why...

Firstly, these little beauties are essentially a lipstick, a stain and a lipgloss all packaged to perfection into one tube. I wore 'Big Bang' on a recent night out and never before have I been so excited by a drugstore lip product on first application - the coverage is completely opaque right from the start. The consistency is thicker than a gloss, almost creamy in texture, but I don't find it at all sticky - once on it feels like any regular glossy/creamy lipstick (and that's coming from someone who cannot stand the majority of lipglosses on the market..fussy little madam, I know). I went out for drinks the night I wore this and it was still going strong a few hours later. The colour was almost exactly the same as when I'd applied it earlier (even after sipping drinks). Admittedly, the gloss does wear off after a while, but you are left with a satin-finish stain that still looks bright and smooth in texture on the lips. I find them to be the perfect lip product rolled into one - you're essentially skipping the need for gloss over the top, and are still getting the benefit of a lip stain and a pigmented lipstick. The doe-foot applicator is also surprisingly easy to use - and I managed to get a pretty even line without too much hassle.  I've recently been looking into the YSL Glossy Stains, and these are very similar in concept - just with a smaller price tag!

Big Bang has to be my favourite so far - it's such a wearable, classic red and looks so bright once applied. Luna is a lovely shade for every day wear - and I find it looks really nice dabbed over Mac's 'Shy Girl' for a more toned down look.  Galaxy admittedly isn't for everyone - I'm still unsure as to whether I can pull this one off but I don't own any other shade like this in my collection and I must have been feeling somewhat daring when I took it to the till! Lastly, I love the space-related shade names and the shape of the packaging (easily pleased) - it adds a little dose of quirkiness that helps to set them aside from any other products on the shelf.  It goes without saying that you will most certainly find me lurking around the Rimmel aisle sometime this week.  I really want to get my hands on 'Celestial' next - sadly, it's out of stock everywhere near me right now. Never mind... I shall sit and twiddle my thumbs, wait patiently for it to make an appearance and in the meantime I shall stock up on the rest of the collection.. I really love the shade range and simply need them all in my life. Like.. now.

Have you tried the Apocalips? What were your thoughts?

♥