Maybelline The Rocket Mascara vs Benefit They're Real Mascara

A while ago I put The Benefit They're Real mascara to the test. Could I find a drugstore alternative that was just as good or maybe even better than the bestselling highend product. I love Maybelline The Rocket mascara and thought there may be some similarities so I filmed a review and demonstration on how both perform during a standard working day. 

Watch the video to find out my verdict. 

Let me know if you have tried either and what your thoughts are on either mascara.  Do you have a different affordable mascara that can compete against highend mascaras?

Best Beauty Finds of 2013

2013 was such an amazing year for me, I graduated, went on my first cruise as well as a girls holiday to Aiya Napa, started my YouTube channel but above all that I was lucky enough to roll straight into a full time job in my chosen career.  So I would like to take the time to point out that I am very grateful for 2013, I like many others, anticipated an unlucky year, but mine was far from it.

I would also like to show my appreciation for some absolutely amazing beauty products that were released in 2013 both highend and highstreet.  Makeup world you never fail me.  And for that I filmed a little video showing what my favourite beauty finds of 2013 were.

Enjoy and I hope you all have a prosperous 2014.

Maybelline Colour Sensational Vivid Lipstick - Shocking Coral

If you are a regular on the blogging scene, you would have already heard about these little beauties.  Maybelline released a line of bright matte shade a few months ago and especially in the US people were raving about them.  I have only really gotten to grips with my shade Shocking Coral in the last month as I feel that bright shade are easier to wear in the summer time.

The Vivid lipsticks come in this bright orange neon packing which I love as it brightens up my lipstick drawer and make it so easy to find in a rush.  

The shade that I chose is a bright coral which does have a strong pink undertone.  I love this for nights out, or for that instant pop of colour during the day.

All the shades in this range are matte so are very long lasting on the lips.  They are also really opaque so they do make such an impact on a look.  They do have some what of a creamy texture but because I have such dry lips I do use a lip balm underneath.  If you don't have chapped lips then I don't think you will find them at all drying.

I definitely think these are the most vibrant and pigmented shades available on the UK high street at the moment. Word on the street is that the shade Fushia Flash is a dupe for MAC's Candy Yum Yum, but as I don't own either I can't comment on how true that is.

As I have yellow toned skin I found Shocking Coral to suit me quite well, but there is an amazing bright pink which I think would compliment blondes amazingly.

Maybelline Colour Sensational Vivid lipsticks have been compared to MAC Amplified finish lipsticks (shades and formulation), but at around £7 from Boots, they are the perfect way to add colour into your look this summer.  The only criticism I have is that there is only a small shade range, especially in the UK, I am yet to find the shade Vivid Rose that I know is available in the US, I may need to get Electric Orange instead. I really hope Maybelline bring out some more shades in the summer.

Products I Regret Buying #2

Oh it's that time again, I'm lowering the tone. Sozza! I normally read a lot of reviews before I buy products but sometimes a product might not work for me or the impulsive, crazy shopaholic gets the better of me and completely disregard reading reviews.

Please remember these products did not work for me but that's not saying that they won't work for anyone.  Do not take offence if I have included one of your favourite products.  Likewise, I may have been taken in by the hype of a product and been disappointed. 

Warning this post is quite photo heavy!

Boots and Superdrug Own Nose Strips

Everyone gets the odd blackhead on the nose and the easiest way to remove them are normally to use nose strips.  But these don't actually remove any dirt at all.  They make no difference, but I can't work out why.  They stick on the nose perfectly well and don't fall off. So it much be the actual formula that doesn't do anything.

Maybelline Fit Me Blush

I bought this out in America when I went to New York and thought I would love it as I really like the Fit Me Foundation. This may just be this particular shade but there is no pigmentation at all. In the pan this looks like a lovely everyday shade but I cannot get anything from it.  To get a swatch I rubbed the blusher on my arm for a good 2 minutes and the picture below shows the result.

Soap & Glory - Thick & Fast Mascara

I bought this mascara in a Christmas set this year so I didn't pay full price for this, and I would not recommend anyone to do so.  The brush is too big and the formula is really wet, so both factors combined means I get this mascara everywhere.  I have small eyes so for me it is more trouble than its worth to apply this in the morning.  I also find it transfers really quickly so I get panda eyes within a few hours.

MAC Studio Fix Fluid

I have a love-hate relationship with this foundation.  I love how long lasting it is, I know if I want my makeup to stay put all night I should go to this foundation.  But that's all for the 'love' part.  I hate that this is sooooo yellow and therefore doesn't actually match me. (I could do a whole post ranting about how MAC do their warm and cool tones backwards as well.)  I don't like how thick the consistency is, combined with the smell it is literally like putting paint on your face. I could go on, so let me know if you would like a full review on this, I promise it won't be a complete rant though.

ELF Bronzer

For £1 I can bare this not being a good product, so this is a more of a 'not repurchase' sort of product.  The colour is too dark almost mud like.  I love a strong contour so normally it wouldn't be a problem for me but it is so hard to blend this out.  I have tried to use this various ways, but I always end up with a mud-like strip down my face.  I hate it but let me know if you have found a trick to how to use this.

Simple Eye Makeup Corrector Pen

I thought this would be a life saver for me and those little bloopers that I do sometimes when applying my eye makeup.  Oh no, this just smudges the nice areas or does completely nothing. After only 2 or 3 uses the nib is flatter and started to come away so is not as precise as it first was.  Shame because I like their makeup remover.

ELF Eyebrow Lifter and Filler

I really liked the idea of this and I think Benefit have a product similar to this so I thought I was getting a bit of a bargain.  The highlight side of this is really good and don't have any major complains.  My issue is with the filler section of this product, I didn't realise this was a wax.  Probably my fault it might say it on the website.  I don't like wax for my eyebrows I much prefer a pencil or powder.  Secondly, the barrel is really thick, so unless you have really bushy brows the wax can go everywhere. The swatch below is one straight line, so it is nicely pigmented but as just not what I expected.  I do like how there is a sharper than is attached to the lid, always handy.

2true Lip and Cheek Tints

These are just a bit of a nightmare to apply and get the right look. I don't like them on the lips at all, they have a horrible scent which would be horrible to accidentally lick and also I found them really drying on the lips. 

Cheek wise you have to be really careful where you place the liquid which for the darker shade is really runny.  Swatched below the light pink on the left blends out to nothing really.  The pigmentation completely goes. Whereas the darker shade on the right does have pigmentation but the product ran down my arm and set. If this was my cheek I wouldn't have any control of where the colour was going.  

Sorry this ended up being a longer post than anticipated. If you would like to see other products that I regret buying, have a peek at my first regret post here. It's not as long I promise.

Makeup to Go - Popping Down the Shops

As a self-confessed makeup lover, I use any excuse to get my makeup brushes out.  I know a lot of people won't be seen dead outside of their home without any makeup on.  I don't think I've reached that category, yet.  But sometimes I do still apply a bit even if I am only popping down Tesco or up to uni for an hour.  

I wouldn't bother with the primer as I don't need this to last all day, so quick and easy so I don't look like I've just got out of bed.  

Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation - I love this foundation, it matches my skin tone the best out of all my foundations.  It makes me look awake and my skin glowing.  

ELF Stick Concealer - I'm not a massive fan of this concealer, or stick concealers in general, but it does give full coverage. Perfect for any redness or spots that need to be removed quickly.

Sleek Face Contour Kit - I wouldn't go to town on the contour, I'd get a big fluffy brush and bronze my face where the sun would hit me or just under the cheek bones to shape my face.

Natural Collection Blush - These are lovely little things, full review here.  They don't last long but are perfect for adding a flush of colour.

HD Brow Kit - I use this everyday, depending on the situation I would go for a lighter shade for day time but mix that with a shade darker for an evening brow.

Maybelline One by One Mascara - I still haven't made my mind up about this mascara.  It's the one I am using at the moment but find it does give me panda eyes after a few hours.

If you would like to see what I apply when I am in a rush, take a peek at my Makeup to Go - Work/College post.

Makeup to Go - Work/College Face

This post is about quick makeup, what I literally throw on my face when I'm in a rush.

Basically I'm waking up when I should already be at work/school and panic sets in.

I am also trying to get my makeup looking as best as I can and as long lasting as possible as this is what I do for when I have a long day ahead of me.

There is quite a lot of products here but it takes me 3 to 5 minutes to apply all of them depending on what coverage I want that day.

Foundation - I've chosen this foundation purely on the shade as I have been fake tanning recently. If I'm in a rush I would pick up the foundation that I knew would match my skin tone the best as I don't have extra time to blend it out perfectly and don't want the tell tell line on my neck. If all my foundations matched me perfectly I would pick the one which was the longest lasting.

Concealer - Always got to make time to cover up any nasty spots and highlight under the eye area.  I personally like to spend more time on my base than anything else so if I'm lucky enough to have a good skin day, this whole routine would be done really quickly.

Powder - I normally like to use a primer to help my makeup stay put rather than powders.  They can take time though, especially if like me, you wait 5 minutes for it to be completely sinked into the skin before applying anything on top.  Powder is definitely a quick alternative and you can just top up throughout the day.

Eyes - I quickly fill in my brows.  Nowadays I can't leave the house without my brows filled in, even if its only slightly.  I think this makes such a big difference to my face.  Mascara will always be my enemy, I know it doesn't last more than 10 minutes before my lashes are weighed down so I would apply this as quickly as possible.

Cheeks - I take a big fluffy face brush and bronze with my Laguna Bronzer where a contour would normally be.  I would then take a long lasting blush and apply that to the tops of my cheek bones.

Lips - I have dry cracked lips so I would choose something that is moisturising and isn't going to show my lips for what they are.  I love these 17 lipsticks, but a tinted balm would also work in a rush.

So that is my face when I am in a rush, and trust me it happens all the time. There is going to be a few more posts with this theme so let me know if you liked this idea.

NOTD Simple Nude Twist

As much as I love nail varnish, and trust me I have my fair share of shades, I never get round to applying any. Last month I was determined to have something on my nails. I kept it simple but this is what I was sporting a lot in February.

 I applied Maybelline Forever Strong in Rose Poudre on all fingers apart from my ring finger. Then Models Own Northern Lights on the ring finger. I love this trend when it's subtle.

I only used one coat for each shade, so for a more opaque finish a second coat would be needed. I also finished off the Rose Poudre with a Sally Hanson topcoat.

This lasted about 4/5 days which I thought was really good.

What have you been wearing on your nails.

High Street Makeup Wishlist

So my Spending Ban and Project 10 Pan are driving me crazy. I have to put all my
shopping energy into something so I have decided to do some wishlist posts. 
As the title suggests there are some bits and bobs that I want to try out from the high
street so all can be found in either Boots or Superdrug. I haven't stepped foot in Boots
in about a month! A few products are new releases that I cannot wait to get my hands
on, and others are things that I didn't want to try out before but for one reason or another
I have changed my mind.

This is my very first Wishlist post so I hope you enjoyed this and let me know if you
have any tips or suggestions on how I could improve.  I am sorry about some of the
picture quality, a few have been taken from the Boots Website.

Maybelline Fit Me Foundation

Last year Maybelline released a new range called 'Fit Me' and consists on a foundation, concealer and a face powder. Being the foundation lover that I am, I dove straight in and bought the foundation, the other products didn't really appeal to me.

The main selling point behind this range is that the makeup should 'fit' your skin tone.  They cater for whether you have pink or yellow undertones, something that very few high street brands do.  If you have yellow undertones like myself then your shade will end in 0, whereas the pink undertone shades end in 5. There is also 9 shades within each undertone section and also have a larger darker shade range than many other high street brands.

I do like this foundation, and has become my everyday foundation throughout the Winter. I like the matte finish that it has as well as it's longevity. On me this foundation can last a good 6-8 hours, with powder. It has a medium coverage that can be built up, but what I like is how natural it looks on the skin. I haven't found this to be cakey or patchy at all.  It blends very nicely in to the skin and you don't have to work too hard with it.  I think this foundation can be used all year round as it never looks heavy but can provide enough coverage so that it can be worn in the evenings too.

I like the packaging, a sleek glass bottle and yes with a pump. I find it really annoying when you buy a foundation and then have to waste most of it because you have to pour it onto the back of your hand. I find 2-3 pumps is more than enough to achieve the flawless finish that I like. I also like that it's square, a lot of drugstore foundations are round so it's nice to have a change. Oh the little things in life keep me happy.

At around £7 I am really impressed with this foundation and the shade range is really good. So if you do struggle to find a good match, especially darker skin tones, I would definitely say to have a look for this foundation.  The only thing that I found a little weird is that the first couple of times I used it I think it broke me out.  I don't know if maybe it was a moisturiser that I was using that it had a problem with and I changed or whether my skin got used to it quickly, but it's absolutely fine now. 

November Favourites

I cannot believe we are in December! It is craziness! I haven't posted about my favourites in a long time and that is basically because I have been trying out so many different products I use and abuse by replacing products all the time.  However I have some lovely bits that I would like to share with you all.

This is a bit random but I will start with the makeup and skincare items.

Maybelline Fit Me Foundation

This is a really nice gel based foundation, I didn't even realised that it was gel based for about a week after using this so it definitely does not have a waxy consistency. The main selling point behind this foundation is that there are so many shades that you will not only find the correct shade, but tone as there are warm and yellow toned shades. I really like the coverage and that it is long lasting.

Accessorize Bronzer

I actually did a review on this a couple of months ago and I still love it. Even in December we all need a good glow every now and again. I use this as a highlight on my cheek bones and down the bridge of my nose. Not too shimmer which is lovely.

Vitamin E Night Cream

I also reviewed this as part of my under £3 series last month. I am so glad I found this, even though I personally would prefer a thicker consistency I really like this night cream and really believe it has worked wonders with my dry skin.

Rituals Hand Cream

I am so in love with this hand cream. It smells amazing, literally makes me feel like I'm in a spa on a desert island. It is nice and thick without making your hands go greasy. I am going to do a review soon, so watch this space.

Superdrug Face Masks

This was a catch 22 situation because these face masks come in sachet form, so when you use them, you've finished it and it never looks pretty afterwards, but obviously didn't know I liked it until I tried it. Therefore, these are not actually pictured but you can see the variety that I have been using over the past couple of months.

M&S Boots

Yes I am well aware that you all now think I am 52, but I promise you I am not. But these are just too comfy to not shout about. Really good quality that I know won't fall apart in the rain, I have been wearing these none stop and they still look as good as new.

Tetley

It is so cold at the moment and normally I drink hot chocolate or coffee but recently I have been on a tea hype. Rich tea in hand and everything. Having a nice cup of tea and snuggling up to catch up with the beauty world is perfect right now.

What have you been loving recently?

Mascara Collection and Mini Reviews

I have a small obsession with mascara, for years I've been on a quest to get the longest, fullest lashes possible.  I am so envious of people with naturally beautiful lashes, because I have the priveledge of sporting the shortest, shubbest lashes going.  Also this list is not necesarily in the order of most favoruite to least favourite, however, the ones to the right are slightly less used.

Benefit Bad Girl mascara

The first thing people notice is the large wand, and yes for my small eyes I would have thought that this would be a nightmare. I was pleasantly surprised with my first high end mascara, and more so after a week so it wasn't quite as wet.  Instantly lengthens and slightly fills out the lashes I probably wouldn't buy this full size version again but when Glamour magazine were including a mini sample a couple of months back I did snap it up for £2.

Maybelline Mascaras

For a long time Maybelline was my favourite brand for mascara, when I found out there was a new release on the high street, I would be the first one buzzing about the makeup stand. The ones I would by again are Falsies, and Colossal.  One by one, im not a big fan of the plastic brush and this is by no means a bad mascara, but personally I prefer the result of the others. 

Comb Mascaras

For people with small eyes like myself, mascaras that have a comb-like wand are a godsend to us. To give the effect of bigger or rounder eyes the lashes should be made longer preferably in the centre of the eye, rather than volumising or fanning the lashes at the end as this makes them look smaller and longer. L'oreal Telscopic and No7 Extreme Length are perfect examples of how to achieve long clump-less lashes, even as the mascara dries out.  I'm one of these people that use lots of different mascaras in order to get the finish I want.  I would use various volumising mascaras to add some depth and then finish off combing my lashes through with either combing mascara. Writing this post really makes me want to get the new telescopic mascara because probably all in all this is my favourite type of mascara because it captures all the lashes and leaves a very natural looking lash so can be used to create a simple daytime or more dramatic night time look.

Voluminous Mascaras

These types of mascaras work best for larger eyes as the volume elongates them and really makes big eyes pop.  My favourite from the bunch is the Max Factor False Lash Effect, again a large wand which could lead to panda eyes if you're not careful.  I overcome that by getting into the habit of putting my mascara on my bottom lashes before the top ones, this way when I tilt my head back I don't get a line of mascara at the top of my eyelid.  My least favourite is between Maybelline Volum' Express and 17 Ultimate Volume, neither for me make a lot of difference on the lashes and can transfer easily onto the skin.

Thanks for reading... But Shh remember, it's a secret

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