REVIEW: Gosh's Growth Mascara

I recently subscribed to Glossybox which for those of you who are not familiar with this service it is basically a beauty subscription service which you sign up to and receive a parcel each month with 5 sample products in it to try. Some months they can be amazing and other months a little disappointing but for the love of my blog I think it is worth it because I can get samples of things that I can use and review for you all. Often I come across stuff that I didn't know existed. Sound like something you would be interested in??? Take a look at all the details here. 

Anyway my September Glossybox (I always giggle when I say that word) was late and so as an apology they sent me on three deluxe/full size products for my inconvenience. The one which really caught my eye was the Gosh Growth Mascara. There are two sides to this mascara, the claim that it will give you naturally longer and fuller lashes in two weeks and then the mascara itself. 

Let's look at them both individually:

How does a mascara help your lashes grow I hear you say? Well Gosh have added in a very powerful little ingredient called SymPeptide® XLash which is proven to visibly length and thicken your lashes in as little as two weeks. I really didn't expect this to work so silly me didn't take a picture of my lashes beforehand but trust me on this one it actually works. My lashes are not incredibly longer but they definitely look healthier, shinier, thicker and slightly longer after using this mascara. 

The mascara itself is absolutely great. The wand is rubber which usually I am not a fan of but this one really works wonders. The little bristles really get down to the root of your lashes which ensures every tiny lash is coated in mascara which instantly adds length and volume.

This wand also coats your lashes with just the right amount of product. The consistency of the mascara itself is PERFECT, it is thick enough to add volume but doesn't clump or smudge at all while applying. This mascara also lasts throughout the day and night without smudging or flaking. It isn't waterproof which I usually need to hold a curl in my lashes but this mascara seems to hold it fine all day.

I love this mascara so much that I have opted not to wear fake lashes on two nights out which is for me is a first. I just felt my lashes looked good enough with just this mascara. Gosh's Growth Mascara is €9.99 to purchase from anywhere that sells Gosh products or from the Gosh website. There is also a growth serum in this range which is supposed to be used at night in conjunction with this mascara to get the full benefit but I have not tried this and I did definitely see a nice improvement in the health of my lashes. However, if you want to get the full benefits I would suggest giving both a go. I am definitely going to try the serum in the future and will update you all.

I really like the fact that this mascara is perfume free and paraben free so is safe to use even on the most sensitive eyes. 

Overall, I love this mascara. Even if it wasn't a treatment mascara I would still repurchase as I was very impressed with how it made my lashes look. It gives great length, amazing volume and at the same times is good for your lashes. What more could you want?????

Would you try this mascara? Or have you ever tried it? Please feel free to leave your comments below. I would love to hear your views.

Have a wonderful day my lovelies.
Anita xxxxxxx

Products I Regret Buying Part One!!

I often find blogs can concentrate on reviewing products that they love. I have to admit this has been the same for me so far on my blog. I tend to pick things that I like to write about because I find it easier to review them. However, I think that often we get more information from reviews of products that people don't like simply because it will give us an insight into why the product didn't work for that person and maybe make us more cautious of buying the product in the future.

Just a little disclaimer before I begin. This blog post is my honest opinion and the products mentioned are ones which I found didn't work for me or ones that I found a better alternative product for. This doesn't mean that they won't work for you and if you have tried them and loved them please comment below this post as this will also be helpful for other readers to see who the products do work for. This post is not being in any way offensive to the brands, its simply me telling my readers what I would not buy again.

So lets begin....

I am a big fan of the Macadamia Deep Repair Mask. This leaves my hair super soft. However, the same cannot be said about their Rejuvenating Shampoo and Moistuirizing Rinse Conditioner. These products did nothing at all for my hair. They made my hair greasy and I felt like no matter how much I rinsed my hair it always felt like there was still product left on my hair. I couldn't style my hair properly afterwards either. Definitely didn't like these products.

I bought a Mally set from QVC over a year ago and the kit contained a face primer, eye gel and eye primer. I liked the face primer and I used up all the eye gel but I really didn't like the eye primer. It says to apply this under your concealer to make it last longer and keep the skin hydrated. All this did for me was make my concealer crease and eventually disappear from my under-eye. Mally in general is a great brand but this product just did nothing for me.

Another eye product which I bought and didn't feel stood up to the claims was Boots Botanics Hydrating eye cream. As the name suggests this is supposed to hydrate the eyes but it didn't do this for me. I didnt see any difference in my eye area after using this product and I used almost the full tube.

It's all about eyes for me in this post so far and another one to add to the list is Clinique's all about eyes (rich formulation). This claims to help diminish the look of dark circles, fine lines, shadows and puffiness. I have used this for a long time now and really have not seen any of the above improvements.

Now on to some makeup....

Everyone and their mother seems to love the Collection 16 Hour Wear concealer and I did love this for awhile last year but for some reason this year it just isn't doing anything for me. If I apply it under my eyes it makes me look like I have 90 year old wrinked eyes and if I apply it to a spot I feel it just cakes over the spot and makes it look more obvious. For me their are much better products on the market than this one.

For a while everyone in the blogging world raved about the Chanel Soleil tan de Chanel Bronzing Makeup base so of course being the addict that I am off I went to Chanel and spent a ridiculous €40+ on this bronzer. When I got it home I was happy enough with it and did use it. I would have a relatively sallow complexion but this is a little too orangey on me. I also don't like the way it is such a hard consistency. This means you have to really work your brush into it to get some product out and then your brush bristles end up getting stuck in the product.....not a good thing at all. To be honest its not the worst product but for the price I would have expected something amazing. I have found a much cheaper and in my eyes a much better product in the Boujour bronzing primer. You can read my review on this beauty HERE.

I trained as a makeup artist with Makeup Forever and am a massive fan of their products. Their foundations for me are second to none. So on a trip to top up on some kit essentials I decided to try one of their liquid highlighters. I bought the Uplight Face Luminizer Gel in Shade 22. The girl in the shop said it looked great on skin over foundation or mixed in with a foundation. I tried it both ways and when I layered it on top of foundation it was very intense looking and almost glittery looking and when I mixed it with foundation it just made my skin look oily and way too shiny. Also this product seemed to go off very quickly. After awhile it began to smell funny and broke my skin out very bad. This was over €30 so I definitely regret buying it because I didn't get much use out of it.

Bobbi Brown bronzers have been a favourite of mine for over a decade and on my trip to IMATS in June I decided to pick up one. The makeup artist there recommended I bought shade Medium 2. I thought this was fine because I used this shade previously but when I got it home and tried it it was completely the wrong colour for me. It was very dark and had a red tonne of it which is not suitable for my skin tone at all. I was watching a Youtube video and one of the girl I am subscribed to who is much darker than me had the exact same problem as me. So I included this bronzer in this blog, not because the product isn't good but because the shade they recommended for me was totally wrong. I would recommend the bronzers in general but just be very careful what shade they give you.

I love the look of bright undereyes and so was very excited to try the Bare Minerals well-rested eye brightener. The idea of this is that you can use it alone or over concealer under the eyes to make your eyes appear brighter. This really did not work for me and I tried it every way possible. It dried out my under eyes and made my fine lines much more visable. I have heard other people rave about this so it may be worth a  go but I just didn't like it at all.

MUA (Makeup academy) do some really great product at very reasonable prices but one product I have tried that really didn't work for me is the Brush-On Concealer pen. This claims to hide under eye discoloration and blemishes on the face. I tried it for both and it did neither. It is too watery and thin to give any amount of coverage.

Another Makeup Forever product that I wasn't too happy with is the Aqua Eyes pencil in 0L Black. This is a waterproof eyeliner and I have to say it does last all day. My main problem with this eyeliner is the colour, it is almost like a dark grey colour rather than a carbon black colour. Really not what I was expecting from this pencil. I wouldn't purchase this again because I believe there are alot of other much cheaper and much better products on the market.

Another eyeliner that I bought which I was let down on was the infamous Mac Blacktrack Fluidline. Don't get me wrong its not a bad eyeliner but when compared to the likes of Inglot's gel liner in No 77 it really doesn't stand up to the challenge. It is not as long wearing or as dark as the Inglot or other liners on the market. I definitely will use this on myself for everyday use but wouldn't repurchase it because I know there are better alternatives.

I also do not like the e.l.f Cream eyeliners. They are not very strongly pigmented and they dry out super fast. Not my favourite e.l.f product at all.

I always loved Hypnose mascara by Lancome and purcahsed this a few months back. It just didnt give me the same wow factor as before. With this mascara you can build up layers to create more impact. I found with one coat my lashes just looked darker and when I began to build it up it would add slightly more volume but the mascara would clump. Again this won't be a repurchase for me and I have tried many other mascaras which for me work much better.

Another mascara I am just not pushed on is Maybelline's the Falsies. It did nothing for my lashes and really didn't make them look like I was wearing fake lashes. In general I like Maybelline mascara's but this one was not for me.

Some lip glosses which I really do not rate are e.l.f's minty lip gloss or their Luscious Liquid Lipstick. I do love alot of e.l.f products which you can check out in this older blog post.

I adore some of the Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lip glosses but the shade pink apricot is not for me. It went off very quickly and the shade was in my opinion not the nicest. It isn't a peach nor a nude shade so I didn't think it looked great on the lips.

Last but not least is Stila's Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer. This is supposed to add luminosity to the skin and make it looks fresh but it just made me look overly shiny, greasy and just down right unattractive. This didn't come cheap so I was very disappointed with this purchase.

I think that is enough for now. I have rambled on long enough. I hope you found this useful and I will continue to take note of the products I don't like because I think this would be so useful to my readers as it will save them wasting time on money on buying products that really don't live up to the hype.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and let me know if you found this helpful.

What products do you regret buying? Do you love any of the products I mentioned above, as ever you are welcome to comment below and tell me what you think.

Have a wonderful day xxx

Update Ur makeup wardrobe for A/W '13

Alot of people I talk to get very frustrated trying to decide how they should update their makeup for changes in seasons. Just when you got it right for last season suddenly there is a new trend in fashion!!! Very annoying. We see so many makeup trends gracing the catwalks and the problem is most of the time they are too exaggerated for everyday wear so in this post I will give you some great advice and inspiration on how to change up your makeup look for Autumn/Winter '13 aswell as how to make some of those crazy catwalk looks much easier to pull off.

I would like to firstly say that not all of the looks below will suit everyone, but you sure can have fun experimenting to find the perfect one for you. Also, not all of these looks should be worn together. Just because the nights are getting darker doesn't mean we have to go crazy on the makeup to make us stand out that bit  more!!

Some of you will be happy to know that perfected skin never goes out of fashion. This is as beautiful in the summer as it is in the colder months. I personally love a matte foundation for winter but alot of people opt for a more hydrating glowy skin in the winter. Find what suits you best and work with it. Whatever foundation finish you choose be sure to use a good concealer to hide any imperfections to create that perfected canvas. My product recommendations would be Rimmel's Stay Matte Liquid Mousse foundation (review here) or Estee Lauder's Double Wear for the perfect matte look, Revlon's Colour stay foundation or Laura Mercier's silk creme foundation for medium to full coverage but with a natural finish and Revlon's nearly naked foundation for a natural light coverage finish. Makeup Forever's full coverage concealer is amazing at hiding facial imperfections and discolouration or for a cheaper alternative I would recommend Revlon's Photo Finish concealer.

On trend this season is to wear no blush. Personally I would not wear this trend as for me blush is the finishing touch to any makeup look, even if it is only a slight wash of colour.

Your perfected skin will look amazing with a just pinched look to the cheeks. Peaches, pinks and plum tones are stunning on the cheeks. Opting for a cream blush is great for this time of the year aswell as summer to ensure makeup last longer while keeping skin hydrated. Absolutely loving Max Factors cream blush in soft pink aswell as boujours cream blushes. Benefits cheek and lip stains are great for adding a wash of colour and their original Benetint cheek stain would be perfect for this time of year. If you love the reddish, plum tones on cheeks but prefer powder blush Mac's Frankly Scarlet is to die for.

Vampy lips are HUGE this season. Hues of wine, pink, purples, plum and beautiful berry's graced the catwalks. But don't be scared if you are not brave enough to wear a full on lip then a nice berry tint on the lips is also spot on trend. A great tip is to buy cheaper lipsticks if you are not sure if a shade will suit you so that you don't waste your money on an expensive lipstick that you will never wear. Great A/W lipsticks are Urban Decay Venom, Mac's just a bite matte lipstick, Mac Rebel, Mac Up the Amp, and a lovely reddish orange is Mac's Ruby Woo Lipstick.

If you are not a fan of deep lips then how about dark eyes??? Deep colours on the lid are a fab way to update your look. I love navy blues, golds, greens and purples in Autumn/Winter time. Smoking this up with a grey, chocolate brown or black is a great way to add definition and drama to the eyes. My favourite smoky shades are :Inglot Shadow Pearl 428 (navy blue) or 426 (cobalt blue), Matte 348 (grey), Pearl 414 (dark green), Pearl 439 (deep purple) and Pearl 404 (Gold). I also love Mac's espresso which is a deep brown matte shade, perfect for smoking the eye.
If you don't want to do a full on smoky eye, dusting a matte grey eye shadow across the eyelid will give a really nice smoked up effect without looking overdone. This is great for wearing during the day or pairing with those deeper lips.

Deep dark eyes are best paired with nude lips. I love Revlon's lip butter in Creme Brulee or Inglot's lipgloss cube in shade 14. These are my go to nude lip products for this season.

Bold brows are never going out of fashion and autumn/winter is a great time to wear them. Deep lips, big brows and minimal eyes are amazing for this season but bold brows are equally as nice with smoky eyes. Just be sure not to bring the eyeshadow too high on the eye as this begins to look messy if you have big thick brows.

Winged cat eyeliner is also another trend that is great this A/W. It looks super sophisticated with any look and adds so much definition to the eyes. Don't be afraid to pair this with a nice set of flirty eyelashes to add some glam. My favorite eyeliners of all time are Catrice's Liquid Liner or Inglot's gel liner in shade 77 Black. Both do amazing jobs and last ALL day.

So that's all I have to say about makeup, just remember not to wear all of these looks together and have fun experimenting.

A small note before I finish up. During the colder months our skin tends to get dehydrated as we are fighting colder weather and central heating alot of the time. To ensure your skin looks its best and stays hydrated its often a good idea to use a richer face cream if your skin needs it. If you don't want to do this during the day then use a richer cream at night and add in a hydrating serum during the day which will not make your skin greasy.
If you are going to attempt the deep bold lip be sure to use a lip scrub and lip balm on regular occasions to keep your lips plump and ready for beautiful lippy.

I hope you found this post helpful. What trends will you be trying for Autumn/Winter 2013? Let me know

Have a great day

Anita xxxx

Karora's Express Bronzing Mousse.......... Rave Review

So let's face it, we all want to look our best at all times and that includes having a bronzed and beautiful body but most of us just don't have the time to primp and preen ourselves for hours. Well I have recently discovered a tan that gives you really amazing colour in minimal time. Interested? Keep reading my lovely....

Introducing one of the latest products from the Irish brand Karora. Their new Express Bronzing Mousse is described as "a new breed of luxury tanning mousse with skincare status and a development time quicker than ever before where you decide your personalised shade of bronze". Sounds good??

Love the packaging of this product.

Well in my opinion it is bloody well fantastic.....

First off I have to give some attention to the great packaging of this product. If you like expensive looking products that don't resemble tack in any way then this is a winner for you. The deep purple packaging with a hint of pink and gold peeping through screams velvet luxury. As this is a mousse consistency the pumps can often be hit or miss on these products but Karora has this one spot on. It isn't an aerosol type can but instead its a pump that dispenses the product perfectly and without any fuss. This tan is part of the Skinwear range from Karora which is a really big range of products that are perfect for getting you ready to bare all. This range includes a few new launches including a CC Cream aswell as some of their original products in new funky packaging. Their Original and Dark tanning mists are a favourite of mine and featured in my Current Fake Tan Favs post months back. You can read this here.

Fuss free pump. A great little addition.

The consistency of this tan is beautiful, it is a mousse but it is so velvety and smooth to apply. It goes on effortlessly with a mitt meaning that you don't have to buff it into the skin at all. However, it does give you enough time to mess around with the product to ensure you cover all areas. When you first apply it it smells to me like citrus. However, as the tan develops you do get a hint of the nasty tan smell which I am not a fan but because you only leave this on for a short time its not so bad. The smell isn't overpowering like other tans though.

You can leave this on for one hour, two hours or three hours and customise your tan to suit you. The longer you leave it on the deeper the tan will be. This is fantastic as it allows you to have a light tan for midweek and a beautiful bronzed deeper tan for the weekend. So no need to buy separate tans for different occasions. Of course me being a tanaholic I left this on for the full 3 hours and before I washed it off I looked radiant, however when I washed it off I was very disappointed that I didn't look any darker than before applying (see second picture below). So I got out of the shower moisturised and went about my business. Then after around an hour I noticed that my skin was a beautiful bronzed colour (see third picture below), it must have taken longer to develop on me than three hours and it states on the packaging that the colour continues to develop after rinsing and this is exactly what it did. So what did I think of the tan when it did develop??

1)Before Application
2) After washing off after 3 hours
3) After rinsing I left for around 1 hour and this was the result

To say it was the nicest bronzed exotic looking tan I have ever used is not an understatement. It gave me a really deep but very natural looking tan, almost like I was just back from a week in the sun. I was so happy with the results. It lasted perfectly well for around 5 days and began to fade after that but very evenly and no streaking at all. I wanted to thoroughly test this tan and so I packed the product on my feet to see if it would cling to any drier areas. I was very happy to see that it was slightly darker in the drier areas but didn't look in any way unnatural or cakey, you could easily get away with wearing open sandals even after I applied it in this way.

The only thing I can say that I didn't like about this tan was that after application I knew the product had soaked into my skin but yet I felt sticky in place for the three hours until I washed it off. I thought it was just me the first time but then I tried it for the second time and it was the same again. It was a little disappointing in this regard. However, if you are happy to sit and wait for the tan to develop then it is definitely worth it because the results are damn right amazing.

Like all of Karora's range of products this tan is free from any nasty chemicals and has added skincare benefits that leave your skin looking plump, perfected and very well hydrated. I think this is why the tan looks so well because it leaves your skin so hydrated that this, mixed with the beautiful bronzed look makes your skin look youthful and just simply glowing. Honestly, the more I use this product the more I fall in love with it. It gives me such a beautiful but natural tan. 

Finally, the best thing about this tan is that is it is safe to use during pregnancy as it is all natural and free from all those nasty things that irritate sensitive skin. There is some essential oils in this but they are only used in minimal amounts so are not harmful at all. That comes straight from Karora's mouth too!! 
Have I talked enough? I tend to do that sometimes. Here are the details of where to buy this product:
You can get this product in Lloyd's pharmacies nationwide, Mccabes Blanchardstown and Dundrum, Sam McCauley chemist and pharmacies nationwide.This will set you back €29.99 for 150ml which may be a little pricey for some people but you do definitely get what you pay for.

Have you tried any products from Karora's new Skinwear range? What is your current Fake tanning essentials? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Have a wonderful day my lovelies.

Anita xxx



***This product was sent to me for review but this has in no way affected my opinion. My opinion is 100% honest and trustworthy. I would not recommend a product that I would not purchase myself.xxx

Green Angel Seaweed Body Lotion

For those of you have followed me for a while now know that I am obsessed with body products. I love nothing more than slathering a freshly scrubbed body with the most luxurious and nourishing lotion and getting into a nice snug pair of pyjamas.

So when I got the chance to try Green Angel's Seaweed Body Lotion I was Siked.

Image credited to Green Angel Skincare

Green Angel Seaweed Body Lotion is jam packed with amazing ingredients including Seaweed, Neroli, Camomile and Vitamin E. So what does this mean for the skin?

Seaweed is known to increase the blood flow when applied to the skin which in turn aids in healing damaged skin while at the same time leaves skin glowing, brighter and softer.

Neroli is extremely gentle and calming on the skin so it is fantastic for anyone who suffers from skin irritations. But the best bit of all is that it's not only great on the skin but it also works wonders for your mind set. When you apply this body lotion it has a really strong scent which when inhaled creates a calm and relaxed state of mind. I adore applying this before bed to aid in a peaceful nights sleep.

Likewise Camomile is super gentle and calming on the skin. So you are sure that this lotion will not irritate your skin. Vitamin E is one of the most basic but effective essential oils and when added to skincare it helps to moisturise, nourish and keep the skin subtle and youthful looking.

When all of these hard working ingredients are combined together it creates a luxurious, gentle, calming and soothing body lotion. This combination is also said to reduce the appearance of broken veins and capillaries under the skin, I cannot vouch for this though as I don't really have to deal with this problem.

I have been using this product for a while now so what do I think of it???

To say I love it is an understatement. I love that it is such a lightweight lotion but feels so moistuirising and luxurious on the skin. The scent reminds me of the oils used when getting a massage which in itself helps you feel relaxed when you use it.

It is not sticky at all on the skin. It soaks into the skin immediately and there is a very obvious difference in the skin after application. The skin looks hydrated, subtle and very youthful. A little goes a long way because it spreads very well on the skin.

Skin before applying Green Angel Seaweed Body Lotion

Skin after applying Green Angel Seaweed Body Lotion

The scent is very prominent during application but it doesn't linger too long so it won't alter the smell of your perfume or body spray.

This lotion would be amazing for using after a day in the sun but equally as nice to hydrate your skin on a winters evening. I will definitely be taking this with me on holidays next year.

I also love using this lotion to keep my fake tan hydrated which definitely keeps it looking better for longer.

The ONLY downfall to this product is the packaging. For me this does not do the product any justice. This lotion for me is so lavish that it deserves packaging to showcase this. The packaging is very simplistic and in my opinion doesn't look super fancy. However, it wouldn't stop me using or purchasing this product because the performance of the cream well outweighs any boring packaging.

Overall, I adore this product and would definitely advise you to give it a go.

Best of all Green Angel is a brand located and made in Ireland. They have a massive range of skincare products available which are sold country wide. See here for a list of stockists and they have also recently started to stock their products in Arnotts on Henry street, very fancy!!!

Green Angel have won countless awards for their products which includes an Image Magazine Beauty Award for Best Body Range. Definitely a worthy winner.

This body lotion will set you back around €15 but I do think its worth the money because the ingredients are second to none and there is definitely a difference in my skin after using this for a while!

A word of warning though to any of your ladies that are currently pregnant. This product is not recommended to use during pregnancy as it contains a lot of essential oils and the jury is still out on how safe essential oils are for use during pregnancy.

I am also currently testing out one of the Green Angel Face Creams but I need to use this for a little longer to give a full and honest review on it so be sure to check back in the coming weeks to see what I thought of this face cream.

So, that's enough on this little gem, although I feel I could speak about it all day.

Please let me know if you have tried any Green Angel Products and if you have any product recommendations. Also, what is your favourite body lotion/cream of all time? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Have a great day, much love.

Anita xxxx

***This product was sent to me for review but this has in no way affected my opinion. My opinion is 100% honest and trustworthy.

How to Treat and Hide Dark Circles

Whether it was a late night last night or if you have inherited them from your Mam (thanks Mam) dark circles under the eyes are something that we have all had to deal with at some stage of our life and let's face it, they really are not the most attractive. Let alone adding years on to you, they make you look washed out, sick and down right miserable. But not to worry I have compiled a few little tips that will have your eyes bright and glowing in no time. No one will ever know that you only had 2 hours sleep the night before.

There are definitely ways to conceal dark circles with makeup which we will talk about later on in this post but firstly let's talk about how to actually treat them rather than just disguising them.

-There are many causes of dark circles under the eyes which include lack of sleep, dehydration, allergies, congested nose and sometimes it can be hereditary. There isn't much you can do to prevent the lather but to avoid the rest happening be sure to get your beauty sleep, drink plenty of water every day and if you have any allergies be sure to consult your doctor or pharmacist so they can treat it effectively for you.

-Smoking is also a large contributor to dark circles as it causes the blood vessels under the skin to become blue hence adding to the darkness under eyes.

-Eating a well balanced diet, full of fresh fruit and veg is essential for your everyday health but will also contribute to reducing darkness under the eye. Too much salt in your diet causes water retention which in turn creates darkness and puffiness under the eyes so be sure to keep salt intake to a minimum.

-Using a really good eye cream is essential. Some skincare brands do have specific eye creams designed to tackle the problem of dark circles but if you cannot find one you like be sure to find an eye cream that is jam packed with Retinol and Vitamin K as both ingredients are a great way to help reduce dark circles. My recommendation for an eye cream to aid with dark circles would be Clinique's Even Better Eyes Dark Circle Corrector which is €38 from Boots or any Clinique counter.

-Keeping yourself stress free is a great way to keep under eyes bright and radiant.

- Plenty of exercise is also great for distressing and keeping healthy but be sure to protect yourself from the sun as over exposure to the sun creates pigmentation which will only add to darkness.

A quick little remedy to help reduce dark circles is to take 10-20 minutes out and place two used teabags (can be warm or room temperature) over your eyes and lay down and relax. Do this once a day for two weeks and you will see a difference. Slices of cucumber can also do the same thing and also help reduce puffiness too.

Now we will deal with how to use makeup to conceal these dreaded dark circles.

-The main thing to be aware of when concealing the under eye is that less is more. Packing too many heavy products under the eye will only make the area look old and caked and will draw more attention to the eye.

Maybelline Age Rewind Concealer

-Peach, salmon or orange toned concealers work really well under the eye to correct any discolouration.
If your dark circles are not too bad then I would opt for a concealer like Maybelline's Age Rewind Concealer especially in the shade Nude (if this colour isn't too dark for your skin) as it has a peach tone to it, is very light weight but covers very well.

Bobbi Brown Corrector

-If however your dark circles are bad I would suggest using a peach toned corrector under the eye first, the best one on the market is Bobbi Brown's Corrector which comes in a huge range of shades. For best results I apply this with my ring finger, gently pressing it into the skin. By using your finger you are warming up the product which will help give a light even application that won't cake under the eyes.
Once this corrector has had time to set I would then apply a concealer on top of this to match your under-eye with the rest of your face. Apply your foundation and make sure they all blend well.

Ben Nye Banana Powder

-Setting your under eye concealer to me is the most important step as there is no point applying expensive products if they are just going to settle into fine lines or worse run off your face during the day. Only use a very light textured powder for under your eyes and use a very small amount of it. I like to set my concealer with an eye shadow blending brush because I know that this will not add too much product. My favourite powders for under the eyes are Ben Nye's Banana powder available here from Ireland or can be bought from ebay or amazon aswell (this is a yellow powder that adds light to anywhere it is applied) or Mac's minerlaized skin finish natural powder. Do not use any mattifying powders under the eyes!!

Rimmel scandaleyes waterproof kohl in Nude

-Another little tip is when you are applying eyeshadow do not add too much darkness under the eye as this will only make your eyes look worse. Also applying dark eyeliner in the inner rim is often too much so opt for a flesh coloured pencil on your waterline to add brightness to your eyes. My favourite is Rimmel's scandaleyes waterproof kohl in the shade nude.

Well I think thats enough rambling for one day....I hope you found this post helpful and please feel free to comment below and let me know if my tips have helped you with your dark circles.

Have a great day wherever you are.

Anita xxx

Rimmel's NEW Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation REVIEW!!!

One of my all time favourite powders is Rimmel's Stay Matte Pressed Powder. I did try the original Stay Matte foundation (which is still available in shops so don't get confused) and wasn't too gone on it but when I seen that they had launched a new addition to the Stay Matte collection but this time in a Liquid Mousse formulation I was eager to try. 

Rimmel claims that the new Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation "leaves skin shineless yet feels weightless & cakeless" Sounds like the perfect Matte foundation right??

So does it stand up to it's claims??



-Well, it doesn't keep my skin 100% shine free on it's own but to help it stay matte for longer I do powder over it because I noticed that when I didn't I seen some shine creeping through around 11am (applied it at 8am). 

      NO MAKEUP                             WITH FOUNDATION        

-It definitely feels weightless on my skin. I was actually really surprised at how light it feels as the coverage can be built up to be medium/heavy coverage(but not full coverage). You need a really tiny amount to cover the entire face. I needed very little concealer to hide my pigmentation and blemishes after using this. The after picture above is me with just this foundation on and nothing else!!!

-As for the cakeless this is true for the most part although I did notice that it does cling to my drier areas like the area around my nose. However, I must add that it doesn't cake half as much as some other, more expensive matte foundations!!

-It blends really well onto the skin with no effort at all. The texture is kind of mousse like and feels soft and almost fluffy once you work the product into the skin. It also contains gel emulsifiers so this adds extra blend-ability!!!

Quiet a thick consistency to begin with

Dab it with your brush to soften the product before applying to the face

To apply this foundation I used Sigma's F80 flat top Kabuki Brush or Real Techniques Buffing brush from the Core Collection and both worked well. I do feel that this foundation would work just as well with your clean fingers. I don't like to use it with a normal foundation brush though. The main reason for this is when you squirt some product out it is quiet thick and needs to be worked well into the skin. I don't feel the regular foundation brushes do this well so if you have a kabuki/buffing brush use this or alternatively use your clean fingers. Also, because the foundation is thick if you use a regular foundation brush it will leave brush marks on your face....not a good look. For best results you should apply a small amount to the back of your hand, dab it with your brush like I did in the above picture to soften the product and then work it well into the skin. 

Use this ...............or this.................but not this

I have combination skin so my face isn't ultra oily but I would definitely see shine creeping through around my T-zone with other foundations. I am not sure that this would control shine for really oily skin though, it would help mattify it for a certain amount of time but as far as shine free skin all day long....I am not so sure. If you used a mattifying primer underneath and topped it with powder it would work well but that may be matte overload for some people. 

When I applied this foundation and set with powder I felt like it washed my skin out completely because it was so matte but once I added blush, bronzer and some highlight I really did like the look of my skin and it stayed in place with absolutely no touch ups for at least 6-8 hours which is pretty cool for such an inexpensive product. I don't use a matifying powder over the top of this. I used Mac's Mineralized Skin Finish Natural which is a very light powder which, if worn with another non matte foundation I would be an oily mess in a few minutes so it's not that the powder is doing the work but I just think that the foundation needs a little bit of help for it do it's job best. 

Neat and user friendly packaging

I also have to give some props to the packaging. Not the most exciting I have ever seen but none the less I love that it is a very compact little tube that won't take up too much room in your makeup bag. The packaging feels almost matte which I thought was a really cool little touch seems as this is a matte foundation. Usually I hate matte packaging because the product from your hands usually clings to it but this one can be easily wiped down and it doesn't stain the tube. The fact that it is a tube aswell is a big plus for me because it's easy to use and I feel I get to use all the product up as I can give it a good squeeze when it gets to the end. 

Rimmel's Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation is available in 6 shades. Just a little note that the shades start at 010 Light Porcelain as opposed to some of the Rimmel foundations which start at 100 Ivory. It costs €7.95 for a 30ml tube. I got mine at Boots and at the time of purchase it was Buy 1 Get 1 Half Price on all makeup so I got this for less than €4. At the time of posting this the offer is still available. 

I will definitely continue to use this product and would definitely recommend this to people who have combination bordering on slightly oily skin but not for those of you who suffer from dryness. I think this foundation would be fantastic for teenagers who suffer from acne because it gives a lovely finish to the skin that looks matte but natural and gives great coverage plus for the price its great for a teenagers pocket. I know if this product was around when I was a teen I would have been very happy to buy it. 

Have you tried this foundation and if so what did you think of it? Would love to hear what you oily skinned gals thought of it.

Have a wonderful day, Much love. 

Anita xxxxx