Creative Make-up Ideas

Since I started studying photography at college, I have been focusing a lot on makeup, to go along with portraiture. I have got some of my work together to show you, for some inspiration, or just for something interesting to look at. I did the makeup myself, as well as taking the photographs. I wouldn't wear these looks out, but I think they are fun to do and could be used as a Halloween look. If you want to see one of these looks in a tutorial, either on here, or on youtube, let me know :) 

Disclaimer* - I am not a makeup artist, nor a professional photographer (not quite yet anyway), so I'm not saying these are perfect.

My Current Everday Makeup Products

Hey everyone, haven't posted in a while, just been super busy with college. I'm studying photography (don't think I've even told you that), so let me know if you want to see any of my work? :) 

Anyway, because I haven't posted for so long, I have discovered some rather beautiful products that I want to share with you guys!:) 

So it seems I've been very drawn to L'Oreal? I think I just like how the packaging is always pretty damn good for drugstore products.

L'Oreal True Match Foundation -

 It's no secret that I'm a huge lover of the true match foundation, mainly because it genuinely matches my pale yellow skin (W1, Golden Ivory for all you lovely pasty people(me included)). It's also got a lovely, sort of satin finish, so it's good for dry skin, but doesn't look wet, I hate that. But I do powder, just to look extra matte, but that's just my preference. The reason it's not quite a 10 for me, is just because it wouldn't last all day without powder - 9/10 

Soap & Glory Hocus Pocus Higlighter -

Yes this sounds like some sort of witch craft, fairy tale potion, and I tell you, it is! It leaves a slight shimmer highlight, with a sort of iridescent sheen. It has both yellow and pink undertones, in a 'white' base, which makes it perfect for any skin tone. I mix it in with my foundation when I want to look bright and awake. When I want a more matte finish, I just apply it to the top of my cheek bones. But because I could live without it -  8/10

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder - Transparent - 

Oh yes, the trusty beauty blogger/gurus best friend. I love this stuff, especially the transparency, because like I mentioned, finding a skin tone match for me is near impossible. It's keeps shine away, and helps my foundation & more importantly concealer, last all day. Because I wish they did have a pale yellow shade, so that I could add a little coverage - 9/10

L'Oreal La Touche Magique True Match -

What a great creation. I love this stuff. I have the shade D.W 1-2 Ivory Beige, which is supposed to match my shade of foundation. It's slightly paler than my foundation, so it adds a definate highlight to under my eyes, but doesn't add a huge amount of coverage, which is why I apply my collection lasting perfection concealer before this. What it does do, is add a bright, awake look to my complexion - perfect for photography. Because I'd like more coverage ( I have the darkest under eye circles, thanks dad ) - 7/10

L'Oreal Brow Art Plumper -

More L'Oreal! This is the best brow gel that I have tried from the drugstore. I was a fan of both the Rimmel and Maybelline one, but not so much after finding this. The brush is super easy to use, and applies a nice amount of colour, some days this is all I'll use and it still gives me good brows. I use the shade 04 Dark, which is perfect for me, but they could have more colour selections, as they only have this and a blond. But they do have a clear one if you just need it to keep your brows in place. Because of the limited shades - 8/10

L'Oreal Superliner Perfect Slim -

Like the brow gel, this is my favourite drugstore liner. It is super fine, so you can be really precise with the line you want. It lasts longer than the Collection one (as in doesn't dry out) & stays on my eyes all day. I just love how easy it is to use - 10/10

Rimmel Lip Liner - Velvet Beige (Kylie Jenner Inspired)

It has been my fave to wear just a lip liner over my entire lip. I'm loving Kylie Jenner's style at the minute (who isn't?), and this shade was an attempt at a Mac Soar dupe. It lasts super long and the colour suits my skin one perfectly. - 10/10

L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes Mascara - 

I love this mainly for the brush. It has a plastic wand, which grabs each individual lash really nicely. The main downfall to this mascara is the fact that it doesn't really curl the lashes, and even if you use an eyelash curler, it still won't hold. - 7/10

L'Oreal Color Riche - 461 Scarlett Creme -

I wear this if I'm in more of a bold mood, which is when I put the lip pencil down, and pick this up. This is a very classic pillar-box red, it suits a lot of different skin tones. The texture is really creamy and smooth, so doesn't dry the lips out. It lasts nicely, not all day though and you'll have to touch up after you've eaten. - 8/10

Thanks for reading :), If you'd like me to post a tutorial of this look, or just a picture to show it on, let me know :) 

Rosie xxx

Primark Haul

Yet another Primark Haul over on my YouTube channel! I upload more regularly on there than I do on my blog, so check that out :)

I'm in love with every single item I purchased, and I hope you  are too!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN3hMphxt-E

Rimmel Wonder'Full Mascara Review

So the other day I was browsing through the wonderful (get it?) world of the drugstore, when I came across a new mascara from Rimmel, containing argon oil. This interested me because I know argon oil is good for the air & although I have no interest in conditioning my eye lashes or whatever, I did also like the look of the brush. Plastic brushes work well with my lashes, but I know a lot of people do struggle with them. 

Packaging - 

The packaging is kinda cute. I like the rose gold tint to it. Apart from that there isn't much to it.

Price - 

As it's a new product, they have it on promotional offer and its £7.99, but it will soon go up to £9.99. So it's a more expensive drugstore mascara. 

Product - 

You can see in the images above how volumising this mascara is. It works very well, as long as you don't apply too much at once. It's best if you apply one coat, wait for it to dry, then apply more etc. Otherwise it gets too wet and doesn't actually coat the lashes. The mascara stays on all day which is a must for me. I would definitely recommend this product.

Please comment for more review suggestions :) 

Rosie xxx

Beauty Hauls - shopping overload

So, recently I have been doing more shopping than usual, so it, of course, calls for hauls. The first haul isn't as big, but has a few fashion bits, as well as beauty bits. The second haul is much larger and only includes beauty/makeup pieces. I also wanted to make this post to say I have been uploading videos on my youtube channel a lot more regularly, so if you want to check that out, here's the link - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR50fug50CZikfdgJVS3vhQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-CGcYLGBug This is the link to the first haul, including clothing, shoes and beauty bits.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XkELEksMeY In my opinion, this haul is better, just because I prefer longer hauls. & makeup is exciting me rather a lot at the moment. It includes lip products, mascaras, eyeliners, skincare etc. This haul is also more recent. 

Things I've been loving 23/07/14

Recently I have been seeing various bloggers, creating post with different things they've been loving that week, be it a beauty product or a tv show. Personally, I love these sorts of posts, so I decided to do one for myself. It may become a weekly/fortnightly thing, depending on how much time I have & if there are even new things to share with you.

To make this a more structured post, each post will include my favourites in the following categories: hairstyle, tv show, movie, drink & food, celebrity, makeup product & song. So that's what you can  expect from this & following posts.

Hairstyle:
Recently I have been obsessed with everything Kylie Jenner, including her blue/green hair. I think it suits her perfectly ( I didn't at all attempt cutting my hair to be like hers ;) ) 

TV Show:

Pretty Little Liars is by far my favourite show at the minute. It involves, drama, romance, murder, and most importantly, Ezra Fitz.. He is just visually perfect, bit of a meany sometimes though haha. When I first saw the ad for the series on Netflix, I thought it was going to be super girly, high school rubbish, but I couldn't have been more wrong. It's everything I could want in a series. Just for reference, if you like any of these shows: Prison Break, EastEnders, CSI, Lost, Heroes, The 100, Towie, etc, then this might be something you'd enjoy.

Movie:

The Other Woman, is probably one of the most hilarious films I have ever watched. It's so easy to relate to, too. If only cheating situations were really like this! haha. This film is perfect for a girly night in, as it's all about girl power.

Makeup Product:

Anything to do with brows. They are my most important feature at the minute & I take great pride knowing that my brows are in top shape, haha. I'm currently using the Beauty UK High Brow kit £3.99, which is perfect for all shades of hair, as there is a blonde, a brown and a black, you can mix the colours to get a perfect shade. The kit also comes with a brow gel thing (rubbish one) and some tweezers. I like to use the Maybelline Brow Drama to keep my brows in place, it does the job nicely :) £4.99.

Song:
Ahhh, cannot decide.. Uhmm, Okay, not everyone will know it, but Milky Chance - Stolen Dance. I just love it. It's been on repeat since the moment I heard it. Must Listen if you like people like Ed Sheeran, Passenger or Boyce Avenue. 
Listen here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX-QaNzd-0Y

I hope you enjoyed this post, if you did, let me know & I'll make them a weekly thing :P 

Rosie xxx

Barry M Natural Glow shadow & blush palette review

Recently, more & more big drugstore brands are starting to bring out slightly larger eye shadow palettes, this Barry M one & also the Maybelline 'The Nudes' palette. I have decided to review the Barry M one as there are less reviews surrounding it. 

Packaging: 

First off, the packaging. i like how sleek it looks, but it is made out of that cardboard material that is a nightmare to clean, beware mascara smudges haha. The packaging is is very nude in colour, to go with the theme of natural shadows. 

Price: 

This palette retails for £6.49, so not as cheap as palettes from brands such as Make Up Academy or beauty UK, but still a lot cheaper than high end products.

Quality: 

The palette includes 6 eyes shadows and one blush. All of the colours a very nice & neutral, although, the two matte shades are quite chalky & powdery, so not very good for blending. the shimmery shades are very pretty and are much creamier than the matte shades. My favourite shades are the first one, a rose toned shimmer, the fifth one, a dark gold and then the sixth one, a dark shimmery brown, perfect for smoking out the look. The blush is perfect for me, which is hard to find. As you can see it's a very pretty, pink with gold shimmer running through it.

Overall: 

Because of the chalkiness of the matte shadows, I would much prefer to spend my money on an MUA palette, they are only £4 and are of much better quality. However, I do think this  palette is worth it, just for the blush.

Hope you enjoyed this post, please request reviews in the comments & I will try to do those for you :) 

Rosie xxx

An introduction to my YouTube channel

Since creating my YouTube channel, I haven't really said much about it here on my blog. I just wanted to explain to you guys what my channel will/already does include. Obviously my blog is based mostly on fashion & beauty, with the occasionally 'day in the life post', which is similar to what I want to do over on my YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/user/rosieblindell

So far I have done reviews, tutorials, hauls & lookbooks, but no lifestyle/day in the life videos. This is something I would love to do, but i'm not sure if it's something you guys would enjoy watching or not? I would love it if you could let me know in the comments. These videos would of course involve my new puppy Gracie, who I have done a blog post on (head over if you love cute things) -  It would probably involve extremely cute children, eg Izaaks sister (who has been featured on here before), as well as just what I've been up to in general. 

Here are the links to my top 3 personal favourite videos , so check them out if you want :) 

How to: subtle smokey eye & meeting Gracie -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3yNxQSO6Vo&list=UUR50fug50CZikfdgJVS3vhQ&index=2

Monthly favourites & missing my old hair - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMl4_NiGaxI&index=4&list=UUR50fug50CZikfdgJVS3vhQ

Colourful/fancy dress makeup - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReA-r4YeDDI&list=UUR50fug50CZikfdgJVS3vhQ&index=1

I got a puppy! Meet Gracie!

So, if you weren't already aware, I got a puppy. She is perfect. 

Everyone that comes up to me saying how cute she is, always asks the same three questions, it drives me mad, so I'll just let you all know. Name, breed, age. Her name is Gracie ( my fave from skins ) and she is a Jack Russell Terrier. She is just coming up to 3 months old, I've had her for about a month, because her mum was rejecting her litter :( so we had to take her early. I'm a bit nervous because she has her jabs & chip put in on Wednesday and shes just so tiny & delicate haha. 

Here are some super cute photos of her :) 

Just to show you how tiny. 

Cuteness overload.

Drugstore Makeup Essentials

I find it a huge task going into a drugstore, without knowing the exact product I want. Say I'm looking for a foundation, it's so hard to pick one, there are so many to chose from & I never now if they're even going to be any good. The solution? I plan ahead. I will go online & see what products are, then do a bit of research on those products, reading reviews etc. 

So today, I thought I'd make your trip a little easier, by recommending my favourite products, to create a full makeup bag. 

I will mention products in the order that I apply them.. My all time favourite foundation is L'Oreal True Match. It gives a medium coverage & can be layered up to give more coverage, without becoming cakey. There are a huge range of colours, this suits my skin tone better than any other drugstore foundation I have tried (a lot). Price - £9.99 

To apply my foundation, I use the Real Techniques expert face brush, it is super soft & gives a more full coverage than if you were to use your fingers. It applies my foundation evenly. Price - £9.99 

Oopsy, I forgot to photograph my concealer.. It is the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer. I use this under my eyes more than anything else, as I find it can cling to dry patches (whenever I have a spot or something, the skin around it dries out, but I very rarely get spots so it's fine). This concealer has a very good, high coverage & does last all day after it's been set by a powder. Price - £4.19

To set my foundation & concealer, I use my trusty Rimmel Stay Matte Powder, in the colour transparent, although if you wanted more coverage, you could go for a coloured one. This powder is perfect at keeping my foundation in place all day. I don't have oily skin, so I don't know about that side of things. However, it doesn't cling to my dry patches. Price - £3.99

 As a highlighter, I use the Soap & Glory Hocus Focus highlighter. It is kind of gold & pink, so works well with both warm & cool skin tones. It gives a nice subtle glow to the skin, whether that's mixed into your foundation, or just applied to the high points of your face. Price - £11

I love the MUA Blush in the colour Bubblegum for the summer. It's super bright & has good lasting power. It only costs £1!!

The Bourjois Delice De Poudre bronzer is the first bronzer I've found at the drugstore, that doesn't look too much on my skin tone. It looks like it has a slight shimmer to it when it's in the packaging, but when applied to the face its matte, which personally, I prefer. This bronzer lasts all day. Price - £7.99 

For my brows, I love using the Maybelline Brow Drama, as it keeps my brows in place, whilst adding colour to them as well, which creates a natural looking full brow. Price - £4.99

For the days that I want a more prominent brow, I use the Beauty UK High Brow kit, i mix the darkest shades to get the perfect colour, then go over with my Brow Drama. Price - £3.99

The Maybelline colour tattoos are my favourite product to use as a base, as they don't crease, & keep shadows on all day. I love the colour On & On Bronze as it's easy to use & isn't too out there like some of the other colours, making it wearable for everyday. Price - £4.99

My favourite eyeshadow pallete is the Make Up Academy Undressed palette, as it has some really pretty shades in, from rose golds, to actual golds. There is a range of shades, from light to dark, meaning you can create both daytime & night time looks.The palette is really nicely pigmented and the shadows blend well. Price - £4

To blend my eye shadow, i use the No7 eye shadow crease & contour brush. It's just good, haha. Price - Don't know, came in a set.

My favourite mascara at the minute (it changes a lot) is the Soap & Glory 'Thick & Fast' mascara, as it holds the curl in the lashes quite well. Price - £10

For my eyeliner, I use Collection, Extreme 24h felt tip liner, because it's very easy to use  & lasts all day. Price - £2.99

I have chosen a couple of lip products, that are all quite similar (creature of habit). For a toned down lip, I will use the Bourjois, effect 3D lip gloss in 'Rose Hypothetic', its very pretty & glossy. Price - £7.99

 The next one is a Rimmel Apocalips, in 'Celestial', this is my most bold choice as it's very opaque, this product lasts a long time on the lips. Price - £6.49

Next is Soap & Glorys Sexy Mother Pucker Extreme Plump in 'very berry', which makes my lips tingle like crazy, I think this product just makes your lips look better. Price - £10

So that's the makeup bag complete! I hope this gave you some inspiration :) <3 

Healthy eating?!

So recently I have started trying to eat healthier, so I wanted to share with you my three main meals & just what I got up to :)

For breakfast I had natural yogurt, with chopped nectarine, pomegranate seeds, cherries & tinned raspberries. This is my fave. Although, it is better with banana in.

Here is a quick outfit run down! I was feeling pretty girly today, haha.

Gracie (puppy) was being a little so & so, and kept running off so I had to hold her haha.

Dress - Primark - £10

Shoes - Primark - £10/12

Sunglasses - Newlook - £5.99

We popped into asda to pick up some bits for lunch & produced this amazingly tasty sandwich.

Contents - Bread ;) , cheese, mayo, sliced southern fried chicken, tomatoes & lettuce.

Then I attempted taking a selfie with Gracie.. 

Then we went to the beach while my dad 'babysat' Gracie.

Super healthy I know...

We accidentally had fish & cheesy chips for tea.. along with a very healthy curry sauce.. It was totally worth it though.. 

Eyeshadow Experimenting & Giveaway

Just a fun little post, with some images of my experimental eye shadow (none of which I would wear out). I'm also including a little giveaway; all you have to do is create an experimental make up look. You will be winning the MUA eye shadow palette in Dusk til Dawn (image below)

 an MUA lipstick and a nail polish, both inspired by the look you create. I chose this palette because it has both neutral colours to create natural looks and bright colours for more experimental looks. I have done a review of this palette on my channel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaKHit3lNro

To enter, subscribe to my YouTube channel ( https://www.youtube.com/user/rosieblindell ) and email me a picture of your make up look ( rosieblindell@gmail.com ) with the subject 'GIVEAWAY'. I will be choosing the winner, by how creative the make up look is.

The first look was made using the MUA poptastic palette, I wanted to create a bright, rainbow effect. 

The next look is kinda crazy and I went a bit over the top.. But it was super fun :). I can't remember what eyeshadows i used, but they're pretty simple blacks and greys.

This next one was inspired by Tanya Burr's recent arab inspired tutorial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NL1PdbTmthc . I love the pop of colour, in a wearable look. I used the Urban Decay 15th Anniversary palette.

The next look is inspired by the Disney movie Frozen. To achieve this I used plenty of blues, along with some glitter, to create an icy effect. (this did not photograph well) 

The next one just didn't work with my camera. I used the MUA Dusk til Dawn (the winning palette) , to create a black and gold look.

I hope you have fun experimenting, good luck :) 

Let the competition begin ;)

Rosie xxx

Make Up Academy Palette reviews

Over on my YouTube channel ( https://www.youtube.com/user/rosieblindell ) , I have reviewed 3 MUA palettes; Undressed, Undress Me Too & Dusk til Dawn. 

The Undressed palette has some gorgeous rose toned and bronze shades. It has some highlight colours, brown/orange matte crease shades & some dark brown and black shades. To see the swatches, click on the link below :) - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmoM-FsUueE

The Undress Me Too palette has more silver/purple toned shades. With both a matte and a shimmer highlight shade, a matte purpleish crease shade, some beautiful outer corner shades and a deep purple and black.

To see swatches click the link below :) - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6oCNDR15lw

The Dusk til Dawn palette has neutral shades, with a turqouise, a deep blue and a deep purple, for a pop of colour. This palette has super shimmery shades.

To see swatches click the link below :) - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaKHit3lNro

Make Up Academy Poptastic palette review

.Urban Decay have recently released their Electric palette, which is full of bright, summery colours. This made me want to find a cheaper alternative, so I came across the Poptastic palette by MUA. I was pleasantly surprised at the pigmentation of these colours, as they are actually have better pigment than the bright coloured sleek palette. Poptastic is a super cheap alternative to the Urban Decay Electric palette, retailing at only £4.

Sorry about the size of the images, blogger is being weird and wont let me adjust the sizes.
 

 

The packaging has the simple MUA palette style. Not very luxurious, just a clear and black Plastic. It's pretty convenient for travel as it fits nicely in my make up bag (not that this is going to be a regular of mine, the colours scare me!).

The colours, as I said are pretty pigmented, as are most of the MUA palettes. The  However the blueish purple does not swatch very well :/ (second purple in the top row of swatches). The annoying thing is, the colours don't have names, so it's hard to explain what you're using. The palette contains 12 colours, with only one matte shade which is the blue on the top row, next to the purple. I was shocked at how pigmented it actually was because matte shades are usually useless.

You can see in the images above how well the colours swatch. My favourite colour is the first blue in the second row. It's super shimmery and so pigmented (my favourite colour is this blue/green in general).

Here's where you can get the palette - http://www.superdrug.com/mua-professional/mua-eyeshadow-palette-poptastic/invt/267778

 

Rosie xxx