What's in my makeup bag 2015

The last time I wrote one of these blog posts was back in October 2012. Had I have known it was that long ago, I would have done this sooner.

Quite a few of the products have changed and since 2012 I have ditched the BB creams and powder and opted for a single foundation instead. There's an obvious distinction between summer and winter makeup too and it seems that I currently have a bareMinerals and Benefit obsession, but rather than babbling on, here's what I've been storing in my makeup bag in 2015 so far...



Rimmel Wake Me Up Make Up Foundation (£8.99/30ml) has actually been my go-to foundation for a couple of years now and I find it really hard to steer away. Don't get me wrong, it doesn't last the longest but it is great at giving skin a real boost in the mornings. It's super light and does give skin an instant flawless finish. I like to apply mine with a slightly damp makeup sponge (No7 Flawless Finish Sponge).

Benefit BADGal Lash Mascara (£17.50) is a product I received as a gift at Christmas. I'll admit, it's not really my mascara of choice but it's in my makeup bag as a backup and great for popping into your handbag on a night out.

Benefit Porefessional Primer (£22.05/22ml) I absolutely love this product but tend use it quite sparingly, on top of my makeup to stop any particularly greasy areas. This product is a true gem!

bareMinerals Original SPF15 Foundation (£22.50) is probably my most favourite foundation, ever, ever, ever! I was introduced to this around five years or so ago, by a PR friend who insisted that I give it a whirl. Despite being totally anti-powder, I was converted and I've re-purchased ever since!

Benefit Posietint (£22.50) is a bit of an undecided product for me. I like the idea of a tint but hate the shade and therefore, it gets used very rarely. If anyone wants to recommend any other tints with a slightly less than luminous shade, please let me know in the comments below.

Benefit Erase Paste Concealer and Highlighter (£18.45) is another product that I love which is great for masking pesky spots. Although the shade is slightly too dark for my skin tone, dabbing over with a sponge and setting with a little powder blends this concealer perfectly. 

Estée Lauder Advanced Time Zone Age Reversing Line/Wrinkle Cream (£54/50ml) is currently my moisturiser of choice. I recently blogged about this fab product and explained why I will be sticking with this it for some time. 

bareMinerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener (£22) was a product that I received as part of the bareMinerals Flawless Future Collection. To be honest, I find highlighters a slight waste of time (someone please tell me how to use this product more effectively) but I keep it in my make-up bag just in case. If you would like to read further, you can do so in my blog post here. 

bareMinerals Frame and Define Brow Styler (£13) is great for a quick fix. Although there isn't much else you can say, the brush on the end is perfect for taming unruly brows. 

Maybelline Lash Sensational Lash Multiplying Mascara (£7.99/9.5ml) I don't want to say too much about this product, because I will be reviewing soon in my Mascara Monologues series. Maybelline claims that this product contains their first "layer reveal brush to capture the tiniest of lashes you didn't know you had" as well as claiming to volumise and define the look of longer lashes. Keep your eyes peeled soon...

L'Oreal Paris Touche Magique Concealer (£8.19) also took pride of place in my makeup bag in 2012 and providing L'Oreal doesn't discontinue it, it will very much remain as my go to concealer for another three years. 

Benefit It's Potent Eye Cream (£25.50) this is a little sample pot I picked up off the internet, because I wanted to see if eye creams were worth the hype. Honestly, no they're not but it makes me feel better about myself knowing that I'm at least one step closer to minimising future wrinkles. 

Benefit Brow Zing (£24.50) a gift from my sister after she swore that this was the best eyebrow product to ever exist on the planet. It's pretty good, doesn't smudge or run and relatively easy to use. Because the brushes are quite small, it's a little fiddly, but nothing you won't get used to after a while. Shades are very limited however, the lightest of the three I find is quite dark for me. 

Rimmel Glam Eyes Liquid Eye Liner (£5.29) I have been using Rimmel's liquid eyeliner since white eyeliner, on the eyelid, coated in brightly coloured eye shadow went out of fashion in the early noughties (if you were born in the late 80s, you will remember this dreadfully embarrassing fashion statement in secondary school). As much as I have tried gel liner, pen liner and pencil, nothing gives that super sleek line like a liquid liner, which is why it is still very much one of my must-have daily makeup products. 

Revlon Colourburst Laquer Balm (£7.99) in my bid to wear more lip products, I purchased this. I suffer horrendously with dry lips in the winter and the Triple Butter Complex has been brilliant at allowing me to wear a lip colour, without drying too much. I would definitely recommend for anyone who wants an easy, daily colour to wear. 

Benefit "That Gal" Brightening Face Primer (£20.25) aside from Porefessional, this is my other favourite primer but instead I apply this to the whole of my face to act as a base. It smells a little like bubblegum, which makes it slightly more fun to wear and really helps makeup stick. 

La Roche-Posay Targeted Breakout Corrector (£9.50/15ml) I blogged about this product back in February in my Best Beauty Products for Blemishes post and raved about how quick-acting this was at diminishing blemishes. This is still a favourite product of mine a year later. 

Max Factor Masterpiece Transform Mascara (£9.99) I have been using this mascara for some time. My favourite part is the brush - it's small which means it coats all of those tiny lashes you usually miss and perfect for bottom lashes too.

Maybelline Line Refine Expression Soft Kohl Liner (discontinued) your pretty standard black, pencil eyeliner which I believe, might have been discontinued. Not a huge wow product - what you see, is what you get. 

Eco Tools Bamboo Domed Bronzer Brush (£9.99) I really like Eco Tools make up brushes mostly because they're quite natural. They're 100% cruelty-free, the handles are made from bamboo and the bristles are extremely plush. They really are a lovely brush to use and don't cost you the earth to purchase!

So there we go, there are a lot of products in my makeup bag at the moment. I'd love to see what you keep in your makeup bag, so please leave links below! 

Estée Lauder Advanced Time Zone Age Reversing Line/Wrinkle Cream

I’m 27 years old and still very much in wrinkle denial. In fact, I’ve only just noticed that this cream is an anti-wrinkle cream after reading the label. And there was me thinking it was your average moisturiser! [scraps original blog post idea!] Needless to say, I think I may have discovered a moisturiser that I won’t be replacing for some time.

The hardest thing about writing this review is the ability to comment on how well it worked on fine lines. I may only be three years away from turning 30 (yes, I had to stop and think about that for a minute) but I'd say I'm pretty lucky when it comes down to the age of my skin. What I can comment, however, on is how it transformed the appearance and texture of my skin.

This advanced cream essentially helps to rewind the appearance of ageing, giving skin a fresher more radiant look, as well as supposedly plumping out fine lines and wrinkles. After using this moisturiser for a couple of weeks, my skin certainly felt softer and a lot smoother. It's lightweight texture sinks into skin quickly and actually provides the perfect base for make-up. I often suffer with the odd greasy patch on my nose, which can cause make-up to completely slide off my face, but this was great at almost matifying skin.

One other thing that I loved about this moisturiser was the smell. If you have this product, you'll know what I mean. It doesn't have a specific 'scent' but it smells quite fresh and exactly as I believe a moisturiser should smell. 

A little goes a long way with this product, so don't be fooled by the small size. This moisturiser will last you a good couple of weeks if you're using morning and night.   

You can pick up the Estée Lauder Advanced Time Zone Age Reversing Line/Wrinkle Cream from most drug stores for approximately £54/50ml.

My New Years resolutions...

So we’re nearly two weeks into January and I’m only just getting around to publishing this post. Not because I haven’t wanted too, but instead it’s given me plenty of time to think. Think, because I’ve never actually given myself a new year’s resolution before…

I’ve always been of the impression that if you want to change or better yourself and your lifestyle then, why wait until the start of a new year to do it? If you really want to change something, then you will, there’s no doubt about that. So instead of throwing myself in at the deep end (and inevitably failing) I wanted to set myself goals – goals that I can aim towards throughout the year and look back on at the end of 2015. Goals that aren’t impossible but still make an impact. So here goes…

To keep on top of my anxiety

During 2014 I was diagnosed with having health-related anxiety. Not something I have had for long time but a mental health issue that I was made aware of the year before when I experienced my first panic attack. 

I’ve always been a bit of a worrier and dwell on things far longer than I should. However, worring about my health and panicking every time I felt an ounce of pain, niggle or notice a change in my body, had never been something that I thought would overcome me. In eight months I went from having the attitude of 'it's nothing, stop worrying' to 'I must be dying' or 'I must have some dreadful disease'. 

I was lucky enough to get help in tackling this head on and after doing a lot of my own research and CBT sessions, I understand my anxiety more than ever but I still have a long way to go. Which is why my goal for 2015 is really push my anxiety to its limits and be completely in control, which leads nice too...

To stress less

It's a well known fact, stress does not do anxiety any favours and throughout 2014 I have felt myself becoming more stressed than ever before and most of the things I stress about are so small. 2015 is all about not allowing things to build up and get to me, rising above life's challenges and seeing how small things are in comparison to real problems other people have in the world.

The best way to deal with stress is to tackle it head on - take a step back, three deep breaths and think about the situation. Be it work, home life or money issues, there's never a reason to worry or stress. 

To incorporate a healthier lifestyle

Now I wouldn't exactly say I'm super unhealthy, but I'm not the healthiest person around. Don't get me wrong, I attend the gym whenever I can, I go walking with the dog at least five times a week, but what really lets me down is what I eat. Fruit and vegetables are few and far between. 

With Andrew working away from home four nights a week, I have used the excuse of it being too difficult to cook super healthy meals for one, for far too long. So 2015 is all about incorporating more vegetables into my evening meals and snacking on healthier snacks like fruit and nuts during the day. Opting for the chocolate snacks was becoming too easy and not doing my waistline any good! Now I don't want to jump right in so I want to start off small, incorporating lentils as a good substitute to meat and adding easy vegetables to dinners. Overtime this will become second nature and snacking will hopefully become a thing of the past!

In order to incorporate a healthier lifestyle, that also means becoming a fitter person, which means training more and not making excuses! This goal is going to be tough but I know I can do it and I'm going to keep reminding myself that!

So there we go, that's my three goals. Easy goals that I can work towards and better myself. And with that, here's to a bloody good 2015! 

December favourites

December has been an odd month beauty wise. I've been so wrapped up with Christmas (no pun intended) that I've hardly found the time to try and test new products. Therefore this months favourites are a little on the slim side.

Clinique Makeup Brush Cleanser

Boring this product may be, but every beauty addict needs a brush cleanser in their life. I love how easy this product is to use - just spritz a little on your brush and wipe with kitchen roll to clean. 

I like to clean my everyday brushes at least once a week and then give them a deep, thorough clean with Johnsons Baby Shampoo once a month. Clinique's Makeup Brush Cleanser is great at acting as an interim cleaner but there's nothing more satisfying than thoroughly clean brushes.

bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss

I blogged about this product back in September and have been loving it ever since - a fantastic product that accompanied many winter looks throughout December. It's a fantastic lipgloss that stays put much longer than any other I have tried and the colour is just perfect too. You can read the full review here.

You can purchase Clinique Make Brush Cleanser (£13/200ml) from all Clinique in store counters and bareMinerals' Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss (£16) from most bareMinerals in store counters. 

Lastly, just a little update - in November I blogged about the Eau Thermale Avene Cleanance Gel Soapless Cleanser. Since using the cleanser I discovered that I was developing copious amounts of zits that were appearing all over my hairline, chin, forehead and neck. When one lot cleared up, another two, three, four would appear. I actually ended up heading to the doctors and being prescribed an acne lotion but this only acted as an interim solution until the next ones appeared. I stopped using the cleanser over Christmas and low and behold my 'acne' cleared up. As much as I loved the idea of the product, it really didn't agree with my skin type. So I am on the lookout for an alternative. If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.