Crown Brushes

I have heard LOADS about Crown Brushes from twitter, bloggers, celebs and makeup artists all seem to rave about them so I had a look on their website (crownbrush.co.uk) and placed a naughty order last week. The brushes and prices I got were
C139 Stiff Tapered Crease £3.09
This is similar to MAC 224 and you can never have enough crease brushes right? I have used this one and it blends shadow really well.
C217 Bent Liner £2.79
I haven't use this brush yet but I've never had a bent liner brush before and I figure anything that can help me with winged liner is a must have. The tip is really fine on this brush so I look forward to trying it.
C433 Pro Blending Fluff £6.09
This is crowns dupe for a MAC 217, it's one of their best sellers and its the one I was most excited to get. It's very soft and does the job perfectly, at a third of the cost of the MAC brush.
The final three brushes I got are all from the recently released infinity range.
C454 Angle Contouring £4.99
C456 Pointed Blender £5.99
C457 Round Blender £4.99
These brushes are beautiful! So soft, brilliant for concealer, applying eyeshadow base, cream blush, highlight, the list goes on. I'm definitely going to be getting the others from the Infinity range .
I ordered these on a Friday evening and they came on Tuesday, really well packaged and all for under £30. I can't believe the amazing quality of these brushes for the price and I would highly recommend checking their website! Do you have any favourites from crown brush?
Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

NEW MUA Power Pout Intense Tint and Balm

I do love my Revlon version of these but at £7/8 they are pricey if you want them all! So when I saw the MUA Power Pouts had been released last week I ordered a couple online and they came this morning. I haven't tested wear time or anything yet but thought I do a kind of first impressions post.
MUA Power Pout Intense Tint and Balm are £3 each, and the packaging is identical to the Revlon and Clinique versions. It doesn't feel flimsy and the cap secures tightly so I won't be afraid to just throw one in my handbag. I bought shades "Irreplaceable" and "Broken Hearted" which are both pink shades.
Like the Revlon kissable balm stains these have a nice minty scent which disappears after application. The product screws up so no need to sharpen. The colours I have are nicely pigmented but I wouldn't use the word intense as the name suggests, however after trying to wash the swatches off my hand there was a stain left behind. All in all I'm glad I picked them up, £3 is a good price point for these and I look forward to wearing them.
Do you like the look of these? Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

Superdrug Goodies

It's Sunday, it's snowing and I had to venture out to the butchers so I of course had to go to Superdrug for a nosy! Here's what I picked up
GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Renaissance Gold
This is a new shade released a couple of weeks ago and once I saw it swatched online, I wanted it. It's a brighter gold pencil than my favourite MAC powersurge and it's very creamy and soft to use.

Barry M Gel Eyeliner in Champagne.
I've never seen a gel liner this colour before, again it's a new shade released and comes with a handy brush in the lid. It's more like a platinum silvery pink colour to me than champagne but I love it!

NYC Appleicious Glossy Lip Balm in Appleicious Pink
Another new release, this has good colour payoff considering its a lip balm, and it smells like apple flavoured Hubba Bubba mmmmm!
The Gosh pencil was £4.99, Barry M liner was £4.49 and the NYC balm was £2.49, both liners claim to be waterproof and though I've not used them yet they refused to budge when I tried to wash the swatches off!
Have you tried any of these? Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

Would you rather...?(beauty edition) TAG

I tag you reading! :)
Would you rather.....
1. Only be able to wear eye makeup or face makeup?
This question makes me sad, I heart all makeup! But as I don't have bad skin and feel naked without eye makeup ill have to go with only being able do my eyes.

2. Cut off all your hair or never cut your hair?
I am a bit crap with my hair and more often than not shove it up in a ponytail, however I do appreciate its presence, and definitely lack the cheekbones required to rock baldy chic, so I'd never cut my hair.

3. Always have to wear clothes either too big or too small?
Clothes that are too small are my pet peeve. If I put something on that doesn't fit I have to get it off immediately, it makes me feel all hot and sweaty and flustered. Bigger clothes all the way.

4. Only buy clothes or makeup if you were given £1000?
Me and makeup started being such good friends because it never let me down. When I struggled with my weight I hated clothes shopping, but at least makeup always fit and I wasn't excluded from any kind of makeup because of my size. Even now that I'm almost at the weight I want to be I don't love clothes shopping so I'd buy my old faithful, makeup!

5. Wear lipstick as eyeliner or eyeliner as lipstick?
Even the thought of the sticky lipstick on my eyes make me shudder. Eyeliner as lipstick all the way.

6. Wear MC Hammer (harem) pants or cycling shorts?
Due to the fact I've never ever seen anyone look good in a pair of cycling shorts ill stick with the MC Hammer pants.

7. Never be able to fill in your eyebrows or only use a sharpie marker to fill them in?
I don't want black marker eyebrows so maybe I'd never fill them in just make sure they were nicely shaped and dyed??? Is that cheating?

8. Never pluck your eyebrows or never shave your legs?
This one is hard! But as my eyebrows are on show a hell of a lot more than my legs I'd rather keep them tidy so I'd never shave my legs. Be extra cosy in the winter with the leg fuzz.

9. Never shop at MAC or only shop at MAC?
No brainer, I'd only shop at MAC.

10. Only wear 1 shade of eyeshadow or 1 shade of lipstick for the rest of your life?
The thought of only 1 shade of eyeshadow forevermore makes me want to cry. If you hadn't noticed that's where I spend all my time when I'm doing my makeup, and you can do so much with different colours and textures. I'd stick to nude pink lips forever and always change my eyeshadows.

11. Wear winter clothes in summer or summer clothes in winter?
I think I'd rather be too cold than too hot so I'd wear summer clothes in winter and never leave my house!

12. Never be able to paint your nails again or never wear lipgloss again?
I'd give up lipgloss(there's always lipstick) and be able to paint my nails.

Did you agree with some or any of my answers? Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

My Irish habits

So I am Irish as you may know, and with it being St.Patricks day tomorrow I thought I'd compile a list of things which are Irish quirks,or sayings or characteristics that have been pointed out to me by friends who are not Irish! In other words these are the things non Irish people take the piss out of me for.
1. My ability to drink.
I will never ever be the first to go to bed, I will never ever tell you to go home because I'm tired when having a few drinks, indeed if you do try to leave before I deem the night over I will try to imprison you in my house til I'm quite finished :))
2. Saying whenever instead of when.
This has been pointed out to me over and over again that I overuse the word "whenever" I.e "whenever I was younger" instead of "when I was younger" I don't know who is grammatically correct in these situations but because tomorrow is Paddys Day lets just say its me.
3. Potatoes
I do like potatoes, and in the past have been greeted with a high pitched "pertatoes" in a dodgy Irish accent. However I know there are other food groups too :)
4. My accent
This amuses my friends endlessly. I think they're jealous.
5. Scallions
A scallion is a spring onion. Scallion is a nicer shorter word and it's less confusing. Spring onion implies there should be an onion for all seasons.
6. Supper
Supper seems to be an Irish thing. It's like breakfast, but in the evening before you go to bed, in case your tummy isn't filled from the many potato-based meals during the day. Supper is administered particularly by grannies and great aunts and if not eaten they will be mortally offended. Think Mrs Doyle from Father Ted with the tea.
7. My love of the colour green
As I no longer live on the Emerald Isle, I like to stay true to my roots by having an obsession with the colour green.
8. More strange foods
Apparently non-Irish folks have never had the pleasure of fadge(potato bread), soda bread, Denny ham, Coleraine cheddar, Nambarrie tea bags, or Tayto cheese and onion. When I talk of these things I'm met by blank states and confused faces. IT'S NOT ME THAT'S WIERD IT'S YOU IF YOU'VE NEVER TRIED THESE THINGS.
This post is meant to be tongue in cheek and should not offend anyone. If it does ill set my leprechaun on you :)
I hope everyone has a brilliant St.Patricks Day! Thank you for reading, Love Steph xxx

B.Flawless Complete Coverage Foundation

I had read about the new "B.." Range of makeup exclusive to and by Superdrug. Essentially this is their own brand "premium" makeup line, akin to what No.7 is for Boots I suppose.
I haven't read many reviews on the products as I can't find any, and have seen none on this foundation, so I picked it up to try it and review for you.
I picked up the shade "Linen" which was the lightest available in my Superdrug. It is about half a shade too dark for me but I can work with it. This is billed as a "complete coverage" foundation claiming up to 16 hours of wear.
To start off I like the packaging, it's a nice glass bottle with a secure lid and a pump dispenser. Unfortunately the packaging is the only thing I like about this foundation. I hate being negative but I just found this a disaster. It's quite a solid liquid when pumped out if that makes sense, it doesn't run or move off the back of your hand and is quite sticky and gloopy. I applied mine with the Real Techniques Expert Face brush and it just didn't apply well on me. It seems to accentuate my pores and the fine hairs on my face, you can even see this on my hand when I've blended it out a bit below. It sits heavy on the face but the coverage is at best medium and fails to cover up any redness on my face. The foundation once applied stays sticky to the touch but does set with a powder, although I had to re powder after a few hours which was disappointing. Overall I just wish I'd spent my £10.99 on something else. With my tail between my legs, it's back to my fail proof Revlon Colourstay I go.
Have you tried this or any other "B" products?
Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

Beauty Things I SUCK at!

Two Irish Youtubers- LetzMakeup and SharonFarrell have done this tag and I loved watching it! They're both makeup artists sharing the fact that even they're not perfect at all things beauty. I'm not a makeup artist but thought I'd share the things I'm crap at! I tag everyone reading! Let me know if you do this tag :)
1. Hair
I'm at s**t with hair! I can do a ponytail, a half arsed plait on myself and I can straighten my hair. That's where my hair adventures end! I'd love to be able to do different things especially as my hair is quite long but alas I lack any skill.
2. Nails
Being right handed I can paint my left hand nails fairly well, but my right hand nails always look a bit dodgy. Neither am I artistic enough to do anything interesting than a bit of glitter on top.
3. Fake Tan
I have neither the patience or the desire to apply tan. It always goes patchy if I try it on myself, I can't reach my back etc and have never had a spray tan-I just don't think I could rock the paper panties ;) it's ok though I'm Irish so I'm meant to be pale, right?
4. Eyeliner
I cannot convey how frustrated I get when I try to do winged eyeliner symmetrically. I get one eye done, I'm happy, but then can never match the other eye. Makes me want to scream.
5. Mascara
I can apply mascara, but I think we all manage to get little blobs on our lid, nose, cheek etc at one time or another. I also seem to have long eyelashes on one eye and shorter thicker ones on the other eye which can be very annoying.
6. Bright Lipstick
Putting this on neatly and to my satisfaction I can do, as long as you give me half an hour to do it.
7. Plucking my Eyebrows
Wouldn't even attempt it and wouldn't know where to start, I leave this to the professionals.
So that's my list, what are you crap at?!
Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

Maybelline Colour Sensational Vivids

I have found thee brightest lipsticks known to man (or woman as the case may be)! These are the new Maybelline Colour Sensational Vivid lipsticks, I have three in the colours "Shocking Coral", "Neon Red" and "Fuchsia Flash" (listed in order as they appear below).
I'm not always brave when it comes to lip colours, I think it would scare the mums on the school run, but I'm trying to be more adventurous and test colours out to see what works for me and suits me best. So I chucked myself in at the deep end and bought these 3 bad boys (£7.99 at Boots/Superdrug).
Shocking Coral is a bright but pastelly orange if that makes sense. This is the one I'm most afraid of as I think corals can be hard to pull off. Neon red is exactly what it says on the tin, although in my swatch below it appears more orange than in real life. Fuchsia Flash is a bright bright pink which reminds me of the colour all my Barbies used to wear. If its good enough for Barbie...!
You can see how strong the colours come out below which is brilliant pigmentation, the formula is really creamy, but it lasts well and doesn't bleed or move around. The only thing I would say is that you definitely need a lip brush to apply these colours, they stand out so much that any minor mistakes will be noticeable. There are other colours in the range which weren't on the stand at the time I bought these but I want the bright pinky purple too. What do you think of them? I think they're a welcome fun addition to my makeup bag and I can't wait to wear them if/when the weather brightens up a bit...maybe even in public if I'm brave enough!
Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx

Best Budget Buys

I love a good bargain and I don't like to pay too much for something high-end if a cheaper product works just as well. So I thought I'd share my best bargain makeup buys, these are things that I've tried, tested, love and will repurchase.
Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation
Foundation is the one thing I will spend money on, I usually use Revlon Colourstay but it's almost £13 and having read rave reviews on the Nearly Naked I thought I'd give it a whirl, especially as its £6.99 in Superdrug now. I was sceptical as I like a fuller coverage and this is billed as a sheer to medium coverage, which I was a bit unsure of given my oily/combination skin but I love it! It evens out skin tone, has a medium coverage in my opinion, and set with some powder it lasted all day. It gives me a really healthy glow, definitely my current favourite.
Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer
Everyone raves about this and with good cause. It's £4.29, it gives brilliant coverage under the eye and on any blemishes, it doesn't crease and it lasts all day. Job done!
Makeup Academy (MUA)
I had to include this brand as a whole, but special mention goes to the £1 range found in Superdrug. The single eyeshadows are well pigmented with a massive shade range,I've depotted mine into a 15pan pallette for easier storage. The lipsticks are also crazily pigmented for the price and I find them to be quite moisturising, and at £1 a pop it's easy to build a good range of colours in your collection. Same goes for the blushers. It's an amazing brand for teenagers just starting out in makeup and those who want nice makeup without spending a fortune!
Maybelline Colour Tattoos
Best cream eyeshadows ever. These have some gorgeous shades, although they have more in America :( What I love about these is whilst they're good as a base for eyeshadows they are also lovely on their own as a wash of colour on the lid as they set and don't crease. They are the only high street product I've come across that are comparable to MAC paint pots but they retail at £4.99 and last forever.
Barry M Nail Polish/Dazzle Dusts
I hate spending too much on nail polish because as a mum of 3 I just think my nails will chip no matter what brand I use. Barry M are always ahead of the latest nail trends having just released some textured polishes. I love the Gelly hi shine polishes, they're so shiny! Polishes are between £2.99-£4.99 for the swanky ones.And the glitter polishes make me swoon. Their tiny pots of pigments and glitter have been around for as long as I can remember and I have so many of them. Vast colour range and they're so versatile, they can be used dry as a shadow or wet as an intense colour or eyeliner, and at less than a fiver too.
NYC Showtime Mascara/Expert Last Lipstick
NYC are a brand I'd ignored but their expert last lipsticks are under £2 each and amazing. Nicely scented, pigmented and don't dry my lips out. The Showtime mascara may not be my favourite ever but it's nice and adds length and volume, an if you're on a budget £2.99 is a fantastic price for a mascara.
Sleek Eyeshadow Pallettes
I think I own every single one of these ever released. Best eyeshadow hands down to be found on the high street. I've been buying these since my teenage years and I will forevermore. They have a huge colour range, they don't fade off my lids like other eyeshadows can and are so well priced at £7.99 for 12 eyeshadows.
Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder
Another product I've use for years, I've never liked any other powder to set my makeup. This does what it says on the tin and does it well. And if its good enough for Tanya Burr it's good enough for me. This costs £3.99 and lasts me a good 4/5 months.
So those are my bargain buys, what are yours?
Thanks for reading, Love Steph xxx