Byoo-tuh-fuhl: Currently on my face

Hello lovelies!

Today's post is a quick snippet into what my summertime beauty regimen has consisted of. As I'm sure my readers know by now, I tend to suffer with an extremely oily t-zone area on my face - and this is particularly annoying in the warmer months! I mean, there's gorgeous goddess does summertime glow then there's the non-practical greaseball. For all you combination-oily skin ladies, I know you understand the struggle of looking overly shiny! The key to getting a gorgeous, dewy glow? Keep the shine in check.

I've been wearing Chanel's Vita Lumiere Aqua on my skin, this skin base is great because it not only contains SPF 15 (one less stage in my beauty routine) but it's also a water based foundation, which believe-it-or-not is what oily skin is lacking! Dermatologists are always raving about dehydrated skin, and although consuming water is the best option for combating that, but by putting a water based product onto your skin, you can retain moisture beneath cells. A good mattifying powder is also crucial. So I've been reaching for Mac's Mineralize Skin Finish - a light dusting of this accross the forehead and nose does a great job. Remember: only powder the areas where you get particularly oily and this is usually the center of the face.

What about radiancy? Although dry skin gals tend to get away with highlighting better than those with oilier skin, strategic highlighting is still an option! I like to gently dab Mac's Lustre drops onto the high points of my face - the tops of my cheekbones, cupid’s bow and a tiny bit on the bridge of my nose. Remember: avoid areas that are overly textured such as skin blemishes or pimples, or have larger pores as highlighting only emphasizes this!

On my lips, I've been rocking the infamous Velvet Teddy pout. If there's one lipstick that made it big at the start of 2015 it was Mac's matte lip in Velvet Teddy - all thanks to someone's (overly) pouty pout, Kylie Jenner. Paired with Mac's 'Whirl' liner, this creates the illusion of plumper lips, and due to my medium-warm skintone this lipstick appears more as a taupy-nude on me.

What have been some of your summer time skin treats?

Saina
xo

It's In The Details

Today's post is a little snippet of what I've been reaching for a lot in the past couple of weeks - just a quick insight into my current loves.

Nars Sheer glow is the perfect day time foundation for me. I apply it with a beauty blending sponge (I love the Real Techniques Miracle Sponge), creating a thin layer for a natural day time coverage. You can also use a slightly heavier application, by layering the foundation for a more full coverage, yet natural, appearance. Although my skin tends to get slightly greasier on the t-zone area, I have had no issues with this product in terms of excessive oiliness - I tend to carry my Mac MSF with me everywhere anyway. For concealing any stubborn blemishes, I dab this Bare Mineral's 'bisque' concealer and it does a great job at covering scars!

Nars Laguna bronzer is a very natural 'glow' looking colour on my yellow tone skin, and although it doesn't add much in the bronzing department, it does a great job at creating a defined and *contoured* face. If you want a lot of warmth and depth of colour added to your complexion, and you have medium-yellow toned skin, I would suggest you give Nars Casino a go.

On lazier days, I ditch the winged liner and apply a swipe of this Sephora brown eyeliner closer to the lash line, just enough to add slight definition and then I coat the lashes with a mascara that separates the lashes whilst creating volume - this Mac Haute & Naughty mascara is great for that! I also put a stroke of this 'highlight' shadow by Mac, into the tear duct area to create the illusion of a wider and brighter eye. Finally, I've been finishing my minimal look with my one of my all time favourite Mac lipsticks, Yash.

As a self acclaimed lover of all things silver, I'm always reaching for a few silver bits of jewelery to complete my outfit. I've rediscovered this aztec inspired piece from Primark - the assortment of stone colours really stand out on an all black outfit, and this necklace just gives off a very vintage vibe. Love it.

In My Kit: Travel Beauty Must Haves

Today I wanted to share some of beauty favourites and the contents of my travel makeup bag, which help keep me 'glam' on the go..
For keeping my skin fresh with an almost-perfect base, I like to use Laura Mercier's Tinted Moisturiser (shade Bisque). This evens out my skin tone as I tend to have some redness on my nose and cheeks, and although it doesn't cover all imperfections out completely it creates a more 'naturally flawless' face. As mentioned before my t-zone area is the most oily part of my face, so Mac's MSF lives with me everywhere I go. A light handed dusting of the finely milled powder goes a long way, and does a great job at keeping shine away without looking chalky.
As a long term user of Bare Mineral's skin makeup, I've grown a love affair with this bronzer in the shade Warmth. This is definitely a red based bronzer so it isn't great for defining and contouring your face, though it does a great job of creating the illusion of sun-kissed skin.

Although I've developed quite the 'signature' look featuring my everyday feline winged liner, on some of the more lazier days I like to focus just on the brows and lashes (at the least) to keep me looking healthy (alive). Benefit's Roller Lash is perfect for those no liner days, as it seperates the lashes whilst curling them. And the best part? The curl is held all day! I also keep my 'Gin & Tonic' perfume by The Library of Fragrance with me as it's super travel friendly - this 30ml bottle is the perfect size for my makeup bag, and I've never had issues with the lid coming off.

For an everyday lip I wear Burt's Bee's lip balm underneath one of my favourite matte nudes - Mac's Yash. Due to the texture of this lipsticks, I need to carry a lip balm with me to avoid any gathering of dry, dead skin and this Burt's Bee's addition does the trick. Yash accompanied by No 7's Precision lipliner in 'Nude' is the perfect nude combo on my skin tone, so I never leave the house without this holy grail pair! I also like to keep this nude lip Mega Shine gloss from NYX (colour Natural) just in case I fancy changing up a matte lip to a more glossier look.

What are some of your glam & go items?

Saina
xo

Treats for your Feets: Primark Sandals

With every season change I always seem to convince myself that I have nothing weather appropriate in my *ahem* ever growing wardrobe. Now I know I'm not alone on this struggle, so let's just all accept the fact that we like to delve into some retail therapy, all in the name of season change!
With such inconvenient and costly habits comes not only one too many trips to the high street, but also a pile of shoes that I no longer wear. So what better way to get new treats for your feets than to grab yourself some bargains, that you won't regret come next year.
Upon a recent trip to my local Primark, I found a few pairs of sandals that I'm super in love with, and of course they were also super pocket friendly. S/S 2015 fashion has seen a sudden influx in the trend of 'sliders' - and high street stores are doing a great job at releasing affordable variations of this trend.
Although these sandals are faux-leather including rubber soles, I've worn two pairs out and about and I had no issues with comfort.

My favourite pair was actually the cheapest buy - the all black slider purchased for £3! I've even contemplated picking up a spare pair of these because I've fallen in love with the casual, laid back vibe they bring to every outfit. I also picked up a snake print version of the sliders, this pair features a slightly slimmer band across the foot, which some people might find uncomfortable due to the lack of support. Again, I've had no issues with these but I did go up a size (usually a 6, purchased these in a 7). My last pair is this crossover style in rose gold (price: £8) - I only really picked these up in hopes of injecting some 'colour' into my wardrobe. This sandal is an example of how colour and simple detailing such as the cross over band can soften a somewhat more 'masculine' shoe. I will be featuring these sandals in future outfit posts so look out for those. You can also see how I styled the all black pair in my previous ootd.

Saina
xo

Todays FOTD: Everyday Natural Makeup

Despite being a makeup junkie, there are few firm favourites that I use pretty much everyday and serve as holy grail items in my beauty stash. This post is a quick insight into some of the main treats my face is fed on a daily basis.

Base: Nars Sheer Glow in Santa Fe
I've been using this foundation for 4 years now and I still have no complaints. It's the perfect everyday foundation for normal-dry skin, due to its luminous finish I wouldn't recommend this foundation for oilier skin types as it may make your skin super greasy without constant powder touch-ups. Personally, I tend to get slightly *greasier* in my t-zone area, but I use Macs MSF after a few hours use and I'm good to go for the rest of the day. I wouldn't say this foundation radiates that 'glow from within' look, but rather has a beautiful satin finish that smoothes over any imperfections without drawing any attention to them. In terms of coverage, this foundation is sheer in texture, though buildable for soft coverage of imperfections.

Bronzer: Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel (Bronze Universal)
This cream-gel bronzer was all the rage a couple of years back, and most people seemed to have gave up on the application of this makeup newbie. Though once you've caught the hang of what works best with this product, it really works a treat in warming up your skins base. The trick, for me at least, is to use the product as I would foundation. I like to use this with my Real Techniques Expert Face brush, and gently pat in upward motions from the hollow of my cheekbones.

Contour: Benefit Cosmetics Hoola
Although I'm not a massive contouring freak, I like to use this product to create a slight illusion of a shadow for my cheekbones and down my nose. For olive skin tones, I find this works best as a contour shade rather than a bronzer as it has 'cool' undertones rather than a red base. It's also a matte product, which is perfect for defining the face.

Highlight: Mac Lustre Drops
With this product, a little goes a long way. I like to use a couple of drops of this over my cheekbones and down my nose to create a luminous and radiant base.

Lips: Mac Soar & Blankety
Soar is a mauve-pink liner that works perfectly to create the illusion of fuller lips. I fill around and in my lips with this shade and then tap Blankety ontop for a fuller, but also glossier pout.


Saina
xo

New York Beauty Haul

Now by no means is 15 lip products justifiable, but I’m going to try my hardest here! As most of you, I’m assuming will already know, most of the USA’s drugstore products are not available to us in different parts of the world. Or often, we have to wait for months until something as simple as a lip balm can be released to the UK’s beauty market. Therefore my mission for this trip was to hit the drugstore’s in full force and grab as many things that I’ve been lusting over.

Evidently, the incredibly cheap brand Wet & Wild won me over! With lipsticks and blushers priced around $3 I took no chances and grabbed almost every shade that suits my complexion and I can confirm they were my star purchases of the trip. The Wet & Wild matte lipsticks are products that I’ve not heard anything about, but the risk I made was totally worth it as these are now my favourite matte lips. The texture of these products are moisturizing when first applied and then dry to a semi matte, velvety finish with incredibly long staying power.

A US trip would not be successful without an EOS lipbalm, I picked up this one in ‘Strawberry Sorbet’ and it’s just your average lip balm with quirky packaging- not much to add to that. I also picked up a Maybeline Color Whisper in the shade ‘Lust for Blush’ a natural, pinkey nude with an added sheen – very moisturizing and due to the added buttery texture the lasting power is not great. Re-application is required after 15 minutes!

A product that has always gained my interest is the Ben Nye Banana Powder, so I picked up a bottle and I’ve loved using these over my t-zone and under eye area over concealer. It’s an extremely, finely milled powder with a non chalky finish allowing your own skin to shine through but keeps greasiness at bay.

Of course I had to hop on to the bandwagon and pick up a bottle of Makeup Forever HD Foundation – although due to the hot weather I’ve been sticking to Tinted Moisturizer and haven’t been able to test this product out yet. Another cult product is Sephora’s Mineral Powder brush, so I quickly picked it up and I’ve loved the finish this gives to my skin and it’s quickly replaced my Real Techniques Buffing Brush! From Sephora, I also picked a Color-Adapt Bronzer, Highlight in ‘Star Dust’, an eye crayon in ‘Matte Dark Brown’ and a waterproof eyeliner in  ‘Cocoa’ and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by these.

I discovered a New York based brand called Nikka K and picked up a couple of their eye crayons and lip products, the crayons have a living power of a few hours, so I’ll suggest an eye shadow primer before application.

A few NYX blushers and lip products were quickly placed into my shopping basket too as I’ve been wanting to test these out for months. Once again, the reviews and raves have not failed me and these products have earned a spot in my favourites.

Finally, I picked up a couple of mascara’s – Revlon’s Grow Luscious, and L’oreal’s Telecsopic Shocking Extensions. And a lipstick from Milani in the shade ‘Nude Crème’ which is basically a dupe for Mac’s Hue both in texture and colour. 

Let me know if you would like an in-depth review of any of the products! 

xo

Travel Post – Back from New York

So, the reason for my absence, I hope will be justified by the excuse that I was too busy soaking up American goodness in New York City! Having been back for almost a week, I’m still going through an intense holiday blues period whereby everything brings back memories of my amazing time away, and almost nothing has managed to brighten my mood – not even the sun! 

Needless to mention, New York was out-of-this-world. The City That Never Sleeps - a well fitted label with the bright lights and sky scrapers of Times Square always sparkling like diamonds, looking down at crowds upon crowds of people, shops open practically until midnight with some open even beyond that. Restaurants and bars filled with happy people, such welcoming smiles and conversations. The city is filled with fashion, media, art and entertainment, of which it oozes creativity from its every corner. A comforting feeling of never being alone accompanies you on the streets of New York. Car horns, the sounds of people talking, the smell of carbon monoxide mixed with smells of food being cooked on stalls, from every corner, bring life to your surroundings. I could literally go on and on. You can tell I’ve been mesmerized and fallen head over heels for the hustle and bustle that comes with the city of New York.

I have attached some images from my trip and will follow this post with some snaps and short details of what I bought on my one too many shopping trips out there!