Maybelline Rocket Volume Mascara

As the third British Beauty Blog Box comes out I am still working through the bits from the second, but that didn't put me off getting the third!

I am not a huge fan of big volume mascaras as from experience they will have huge fibres that will drop on the bottom of my eyes and climbs looking like I have spiders crawling across my eyes. Why did I try this? Easy, I trust Jane, it's in her box for a reason and gave it the benefit of doubt. The sales blurb is the usual high orcane american fast paced you need this thing "Expolsive volume in Rocket Time!"

Past the blurb, it is a rich black mascara with a plastic brush. The brush has masses of fine bristles which coat evenly no matter how many coats you add (I go for about two to three).It leave my lashes more thicker but also defined and seperated. It also removes cleanly without needing to feel like you require about 6 pads of eye make up remover for each eye.

At £7.99 it's not bad value, it definatly competes wtih They're Real at £19.50, and it also comes in a waterproof. Avaialble at all high street chemists/shops.

Superdrug BB Eye Cream*

I think that some emails have a great sense of timing, I got the email from Superdrug regrading their new BB eye cream after another sleepless night with Bethany (3.30am is not playtime). It claims to be a 5-in-1 product that conceals dark circles, smooths the appearance of fine lines, reduces puffiness/bags, hydrates and improves radiance. I was chomping at the bit to get my hands on this.

It comes in a thin tube with a brush at the end, I got sent the medium colour which I thought could of been too dark but actually blended into my skin really well. I used this under my eyes and at first glance my tired eyes did look concealed and illuminated. I left it a few hours before I looked again (this time at playgroup) and my puffiness had gone down and everything looked smoothed out. I bumped into some friends afterwards who asked the compulsory, "How are you?" question , I said I was tired and was told I did not look like it at all, I looked surprising well. One point to the BB Eye Cream.

It also lasted much of the day, when I took off my eye make up at the end of the night, it was still there to be removed. I found easy to use as the brush dispensed that right amount for each eye, it just needed a pat with a ring finger to blend in. Compare this to another magic wand, YSL Touche Eclat, and at £6.99 (compared to £25), it is a good value dupe. Exclusive to Superdrug.

*Product supplied for my review, opinion my own after use.

FOTD - Christmas Work Party

I left my work place on 29t November for the start of my maternity leave, and on 20th December we were meeting up again to catch up one last time before Christmas. The place was Stoke Pages, a mass gathering of different workplaces and tables of wine. You could imagine how that ended up. I had one small glass of wine with my main meal, the most delicious salmon I had ever had but being a high standard restaurant and being pregnant,  I was soon day dreaming of chippie chips.

The thing I was happy with the most was how my dress that I ordered months ago still fitted even with my ever increasing bump as well as how glowing my make up looked for the night. I was determined to look as glamorous as possible as recently I had not being feeling it. I wanted to focus more on my eyes as I had some wonderful eye shadow palettes that I rarely get to go mad with, I also added on false lashes which I rarely get an opportunity to wear.

I did all the prep the night before after a shower to steam the skin I put on a clay mask, REN's Invisible Pores Detox Mask (Sample size). This was first time of using it and loved the results, I had a spot coming out on the side of my nose and this stopped it from fully forming as well as reduced the redness around the area. This was followed by my current Facial Oil (B.Skincare replishment Oil), moisturier on my cheeks and eye cream (a tiny amount of Lancome's Renergie Facial cream and eye cream).

I had saved up for a trip to the hairdressers and threaders (more on that coming up another day), to give myself a pamper before the event. After the quick cleanse with Philopshys 3-in-1 cleanser, I used Sothy's Day Cream and let that sink in before adding Witch's Anti-Blemish Primer.

Base: Max Factor Face Finity Light Ivory mixed with NARS Orgasm Illuminator
Conclearer: Estee Lauder Disappear Concleaer in Light
Powder: GOSH BB Powder in 04
EyeShadow base colour: Bobbi Brown in white (comes out in a matt skin tone colour)
Eye shadow contouring/colour: Sleek Make Up eye shadow palette in Sparkle 2 (Using Tinsel - silver, and Twinkle - Navy glitter)
Eye liner: Eye of Horus liquid eye definer in Black with Twinkle over the top (also used to line the bottoms lashes)
Mascara: Maybelline Mascara
False Lashes: Salon Systems strip lashes in Natural
Blusher: Dainty Doll in Money Talks
Lip: MUA lipgloss in Let's Talk

The dress was a eBay bargain at £8 brand new, it expanded well with the bump but covered up what I really didn't want to show off. The shrug is from eBay as well and I wore this when I got married nearly four years ago, it was about £10 second hand. I went with a simple long silver necklace and black pumps (I wasn't even going to attempt heels!). I'm glad I did go for a bit of colour in the end, out of the 12 ladies who went only 2 of us wore a different colour!

Masterclass - Eyeliner

Eyeliner comes in 4 different forms - Pencil, liquid, pens or cake liners. Pencil is the most common and versatile of the 4, as not only gives you more control but can change the finish to sharp or blended depending on what you need. Liquid is more defined and sharper, I also find a majority of pens come in liquid form (Liquids have a pot to dip into, while pens have a nib attached that you use to apply). With cake you use a brush, wet the bristles and paint the liner on, this can also give a stronger finish.

With any liner, I find applying it at first really fiddly, and can recommend to practise! I find it easier to lift the eyebrow up with one hand and using the other hand to put dashes along the lash line, and then join these up. If I'm using a pencil I would use a bit on the hand first to warm the tip as I find this goes on smoother. If you can sit down at a desk to start with this will you steady yours arms when applying until you feel more confident.

Always start inwards going outwards as not to drag the skin, and check your work regularly as not to get uneven eyes. If you want to apply any liner to the inside of the eye (also known as the waterline), pencils is best as this will be softer on the delicate area.

Examples of different looks