MAC Monday: MAC Satin Taupe Eye Shadow

Satin Taupe was the first MAC eye shadow that I bought. It was a couple of years ago and I wandered into the White City Westfield MAC Store and asked them what I 'needed'. I had heard beauty bloggers mention Satin Taupe as a must have so it seemed a good place to start!

As it was my first MAC eye shadow I bought it in the single pot because I didn't have my larger pro-palette at this time. Nowadays I always choose the pro palette format as I find them much more convenient for travel. I also find that just like Woodwinked (which I also bought as a single pot - see my swatches HERE) my single pots tend to get lost amongst my expanding make up collection and I just reach for my palettes instead. What a waste! (Obviously I really need to improve my make up storage!).

At first glance, Satin Taupe doesn't look like much. But it is more than just a cool toned taupe. Satin Taupe is a Frost finish and this gives the eye shadow a slight iridescence and a silver shimmer. It also has a pinky colour to it in certain lights.

MAC Monday: MAC Woodwinked Eye Shadow

In my opinion, MAC eye shadows are the best out there. This perhaps goes some way to explain why I have so many of them! So this week's MAC Monday is dedicated to an eye shadow I have been wearing a lot recently - MAC Woodwinked.

I bought Woodwinked a year ago when I passing through an airport. I normally buy MAC eye shadows in the pro palette format - they are slightly cheaper and fit into my big palette. But in the airport they only had the single eyeshadow pots. I must admit that when I returned from that holiday the single pot got lost somewhere amidst the chaos of my make up collection. It was a case of out of sight out of mind for a while, until someone mentioned it online and I had to dig it out!

Woodwinked is a veluxe pearl finish eye shadow, so it has some shimmer to it - but not chunky glitter. It is very soft and easily blendable. Colour wise it is an antique gold colour with hints of a yellow toned bronze. It really brings out the blue of my eyes but would also look good with brown or green eyes.

Review: L'Oreal Skin Perfection Micellar Gel

I have been raving about micellar water as a fantastic make up remover for months. It started when I discovered the L'Oreal Skin Perfection Micellar Water. I reviewed it fully HERE but I was really impressed with how it removed even waterproof eye make up without scrubbing. So when I saw the new L'Oreal Skin Perfection Micellar Gel in the supermarket last week, I bought it straight away!

Seeing as I rely on my micellar water to remove eye make up I really liked the idea of gel rather than the water solution. I have always been an advocate of how effective micellar water is at removing make up without scrubbing at your eyes with cotton wool. But I will admit that as a force of habit I do tend to wipe at my eyes with the cotton wool pad - I know I shouldn't but it just happens! I thought that gel was a great idea because it would really coat my lashes and dissolve mascara and eye liner.

Sure enough - I was right! It feels gentle and cooling on my eyes too and because I can feel the gel on my eyes it stops that urge to wipe and pull at the skin around my eyes in the process. So far so good, but unfortunately it isn't without some issues.

MAC Monday: Sharon Osbourne Collection pt 1 - Duchess Eye Shadow Quad

Aside from my well documented MAC obsession, I was really excited when I first saw details about the MAC Osbournes collection. This wasn't because I hold any particular fascination with Sharon or Kelly Osbourne, but because I thought the Sharon Osbourne collection looked really amazing. Quite often in a MAC collection there are one or two stand out items, but this time I wanted nearly everything!

Having a habit of waiting to see swatches online before taking the plunge I often miss the boat. This time I already knew exactly what I wanted by the time the collection released online. I even continually scoured the internet for a couple of days waiting for the moment that the products appeared online. The big UK launch was in Selfridges last week and the collections were available on their website exclusively for the first day. I always resist buying online from Selfridges as I hate paying the huge delivery charge and I don't live close enough to click and collect. Luckily Debenhams sprang to my rescue the next afternoon and I immediately ordered my selection. Thank God I did! By that evening some of the products were already out of stock.

Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara: A review

I first heard about the Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara from Estee over at Essie Button. So when a few weeks ago El at The Beauty Isle mentioned that she had just picked it up it aroused my curiosity even more.

Mascara is my favourite make up item, if I could only wear one item of make up then I always choose mascara. I feel like it opens up my eyes, makes them look bigger and brightens my face. I never, ever skip wearing it. However, I never wear it on my lower lashes. I have tried, but I always felt that it looked 'too much' and of course it usually got messy. If I managed not to accidentally smear it on my skin whilst applying it then it would end up smudging and looking dreadful.