Currently Loving: Origins GinZing Brightening Mascara

Origins GinZing Brightening Mascara £17 here

The latest mascara to grace my lashes is Origins GinZing Brightening Mascara described to lengthen and lift. Coming from Origins natural skincare brand I was interested to see how this would preform - it's formulated without any parabens or synthetic fragrances but includes vitamins that help condition the lash and promote hydration. I'm happy to report it actually feels nourishing on my lashes as opposed to crunchy but haven't been using it long enough to see the difference in the condition but if it does anything spectacular I'll be sure to let you ladies know... 

Let's get one thing straight - it does what it says on the tin, exactly what I desire in all my products. It lengthens and lifts, which being someone that doesnt curl their lashes, is right up my street. It provides very natural, unclumpy fluttery lashes but one aspect that it lacks is providing volume.

One thing to note is the ginourmous wand! It's absolutely whoppingly huge, which at first glace I gathered would end up smudging all over my eyes as well as poking myself in the eye but I'm pleased to report it surprisingly induced neither and instead coats each lash brilliantly.

For the evening I tend to favour a more dramatic look as my mascara is often paired with a smokey eye, causing lashes to get lost with all the eyeshadow so Origins GinZing will remain a day time mascara for me which is excellent as it doesn't smudge one bit!

Have you tried any Origins Makeup?

Budget Buy: L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara

L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black £8.49

After hearing Kim Kardashian's makeup artist Mario Dedanovic talk repeatedly about L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black I knew it was one to add to the collection. Thick wand, long bristles and a heavily black formula is exactly what I was looking for to create really voluminous lashes.

On its own, it solely adds volume and my lashes are ones that need length and thickness added too so for that reason it's not one of my favourites. Being a mascara mixer (post here) paired over another mascara like Collection Multiplier Mascara, or Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill is where it really exceeds. It adds that extra oomph of volume that my lashes need, especially as I don't curl them on a regular basis. The perfect lashes in combination with a dramatic smokey eye!

I would recommend picking up the Carbon Black version as the Original is slightly greyer in colour. L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara is £8.49 and available here

New In: Lancome Hypnose Star

Previous posts here, such as Mascara Mixing, indicate the lack for finding 'the one' when it comes to mascara. The closest I've ever gotten is Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill which does an excellent job at lengthening and volumizing and has a similar brush to my latest purchase, Lancome Hypnose Star.

The brush is something very unique as it has two sides as well as being triangular shaped. One side that's practically flat, with medium length packed bristles which is for packing all the product onto the lash, being able to get right down to the root. The other side, with medium packed long bristles is made for separating and lengthening lashes. For application I use the flat side first then alternate between the two.

The overall effect isn't too dramatic, definitely a mascara I would slap on in the day time as it adds decent length and volume. It's pretty buildable, I managed to build up to three or four coats but I expect once the formula dries up a little that will grow. One thing it does lack a little is adding thickness, so I'm back with layering mascaras and this time I found L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black to be a great match! Overall very impress with my first Lancome mascara. Oh, and it also has a sparkly tube      

Lancome Hypnose Star is £21 

Have you ever tried any Lancome mascaras? What did you think?

Liana Beauty Award: Eyeko Skinny Mascara

As much as I love mixing mascaras (post here) to get uber long voluminous lashes, during the day it's all about subtle, natural and fluttery. I've recently been reaching for this one by Eyeko, the Skinny Mascara. Eyeko are a brand that have recently relaunched part of their collection are three different mascaras, fat, curvy and skinny.

The Skinny wand is really fine so is excellent at getting to the root of my lashes, which is where I tend to wriggle the wand and then pull upwards. It does a great job at separating lashes, as well as adding length. The shade I have is Black, it lasts well throughout the day and doesn't separate or smudge. 

Above: Eyeko Skinny Mascara & Shield
Below: Eyeko Skinny Mascara on uncurled lashes

One thing that really stood out to me about the Eyeko mascaras - they come with something Eyeko like to call, an 'Eyeko Shield' which is a pretty guitar pick look-a-like you hold behind your lashes to ensure you don't ruin your eyeshadow (shown above). Being someone that does apply a fair amount of eyeshadow, this is perfect for me! I do find myself slapping on coats of mascara in a hurry and getting little black dots on my eyelids, which the Eyeko Shield totally prevents! 

Eyeko Skinny Mascara is £15 and available here, on ASOS here & Harvey Nichols. 

Have you ever tried any of the eyeko mascaras?

How To: Remove Waterproof Mascara

Taking off eye makeup without rubbing and tugging at eyes and eyelashes is SO hard! It requires a lot of patience (which sometimes when I'm tired I just don't have!) and a really delicate hand so that I don't pull out any lashes or damage my eye area. Whenever I'm wearing waterproof mascara I find it so much harder to remove as the formula is different and much heavier.

To make the whole process a lot easier I coat my lashes in Vaseline and then continue to take off my mascara as usual. Vaseline really aids removing waterproof mascara without having to pull and tug at my lashes. 

Hope this helps!      

Mac Studio Fix Boldblack Lash Mascara

Hello chummys, should I tell you more about my nail polish obsession?!
 Mmm... I should probably go easy on that. Okay, let's talk mascara.

I stand before you with a giant smile on my face.

This little gem now has a permanent place in my make-up bag. And in my heart.

I seriously love the effect this mascara has on my eye lashes.

I'm a girl who is all about the lash lengthening; I prefer a more subtle look. If you’re looking for thickness and volume, look elsewhere.

As you can see Mac Studio Fix Boldblack Lash mascara has a plastic wand. Personally I am a huge fan of plastic wands, I just don't get on with the bristle ones. But hey, that's just me.
This wand is particularly fabulous because it is so thin, meaning you can easily get to the outer and inner corners of your eye, those pesky little lashes that get missed if you have a big wand. I also found it really great for separating the lashes without clumping. No clumping at all in fact, praise the Lord!

Studio fix is a great subtle yet noticeable daytime mascara. It's easy to build up, if you do want a more dramatic look, 2 or 3 coats will work. It has quite a wet formula, doesn't smudge throughout the day and is easy to remove. You can't ask for any more than that, can you?

Top marks from me, I can't recommend this mascara enough!

How To: Tired/Pick-Me-Up Beauty

There are often those nights where time in bed is very limited and I wake up feeling and looking very drained. I'm sure you've all been there too! Whenever I need a pick-me-up, makeup is definitely the thing thats gonna do it by helping me look a lot better!

Firstly I start with applying a primer, in this situation I would choose a really moisturising one like Laura Mercier Oil-Free Primer (link to review here) then onto foundation, which I choose depending on what time of day it is and how long I'll be going out for. In this situation probably a medium-full coverage like my lovely Dior Nude NudeSkin Foundation. To make myself look a lot more glowing and a lot less bla I mix my foundation with an liquid illuminator, my favourite has got to be Giorgio Armani Fluid Sheer Skin Illuminator as its very thin and subtle. Mixing the one pump illuminator two pumps foundation on the back of my hand and slapping that on with a foundation brush for maximum coverage.

Next up, the concealer - it's got to be the big guns for these tired eye bags! Just as I like to mix my foundation with an illuminator I do the same with concealer, using Dior Skinflash in 02 followed by Hourglass Hidden Corrective Concealer which I love as it's super creamy but very full coverage. Onto the cheeks, there's really only one colour I'll use on a day like this and that's pink, it just has the effect of lifting the skin helping me look less tired! My pink of choice is very appropriately named Dior Rosy Glow Awakening Blush. 

For the eyes I'll even out my eyelid colour with Mac Painterly Paint Pot (link to review here) followed by mascara but only applied to top lashes to give the effect of lifted eyes. To brighten and widen my eyes I'll apply Pixi Eye Bright Liner along my waterline. I'll finish with a really moisturising non sticky gloss, like the By Terry Laque De Rose SPF 15. 

What are the products you rely on to help you look more awake?

Liana Beauty Award: Anastasia Lash Genius

Anastasia Lash Genius

As much as I love my Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Mascara, which I sung praises about here, the waterproof version isn't the same. It makes my lashes clumpy, feel heavier and the overall effect isn't the as great as my beloved Eyes To Kill original. For the past four or five summers I have searched (and never found) a  waterproof mascara that I adore. Anastasia Lash Genius is a transparent top coat that 'waterproofs any mascara' essentially solving the waterproof mascara search! 

So here's the test...

1. Applied a non waterproof mascara to my lashes (Collection Multiplier Mascara)

2. Applied Anastasia Beverly Hills Lash Genius over the mascara to only one of my eyes

Sprayed both my eyes with water

3. My finger pressed down on my lid without Anastasia Lash Genius

4. My finger pressed down on my lid with Anastasia Lash Genius

Lash genius did alter my lashes slightly, if you can notice the slight difference between the clumsiness of my lashes in pictures 1 and 2 but in terms of making the Mascara waterproof i'll let the pictures speak for themselves! Overall I think its a great option if you don't want to run round searching for what waterproof mascara works for you lashes, just apply Anastasia Lash Genius on top of the one you use already and all good       

Thankfully one of my favourite beauty websites Cult Beauty are the first ones to stock Anastasia Beverly Hills in the UK! You can purchase Anastasia Beverly Hills Lash Genius for £14 here or shop the whole range here

My Holy Grail Mascara...

My Mom always tells me I discover the best products, but really its her that discovers the stuff that sticks around. One of her discoveries a couple of years ago was the Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Mascara and it has definitely stuck around in mine, my sister and my moms makeup bag for well over a year! The reason we all love this is it lengthens lashes, thickens lashes as well as creates volume, which is very important as none of us use an eyelash curler on a daily basis. 

The brush is unlike any I've used as it has two sides to it. One with really short gapped bristles and one with medium packed long bristles. I tend to use the shorter side first to create some volume as I press my lashes upwards followed by the longer bristles side to lengthen and thicken. As you can see in the picture above I've been through quite a few of these mascaras! I absolutely love it combined with my Dior Diorshow Lash Serum and Primer which you can read more about here, for much thicker lashes and I do find they last longer then any I buy in the drugstore.

Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Wand 

For summer I use the Eyes To Kill Waterproof which is housed in the light silver tubes but I do find it clumps a little and isn't as great as the original. Theres also an Eyes To Kill Excess which I'm not so keen on when I use it alone as my lashes tend to go clumpy but applied after Eyes To Kill adds a bit of length and volume.

Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Mascara (on uncurled lashes) 

Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill is £24 and available at Giorgio Armani counters. 

Budget Buy MaxFactor Mascara

I can't believe I haven't included this before seeing as MaxFactor mascara is probably the only drugstore mascara I repurchase and regard it just as highly as high end mascaras. There are three in the range that I adore, Masterpiece Max, False Lash Effect Fusion and False Lash Effect. Out of all three Masterpiece Max is probably my favourite as it's easily buildable from subtle lashes to big full on fluttery ones. The wands are one of those spiky plastic kind which I find the easiest to use out of the bunch. Only problem is they do tend to dry up pretty quickly.

 

MaxFactor Mascara is around £10 each and available from Boots and Superdrug

Dior Light Painting At Selfridges!

You guys have GOT to try this! In Selfridges between now and the 4th of April in the Beauty Hall Dior have created a light painting room to showcase their new DiorShow New Look mascara & heated eyelash curlers - think of it as graffiti with lights that are shaped like the mascara! See below

The mascara lights had a button at the bottom that enabled different coloured lights!

The team there were super friendly and let us do a couple and you even get a printed copy to keep :)

You can even book a make over using my favourite eyeshadow palettes - 5 couleur! I recently picked up the eye shadow palette in Grege 734 at the last Dior Selfridges Event - link and absolutely love it! If you're a neutral eyeshadow lover make sure to check that one out!

Book in advance on - 020 7318 3696

My 10 Must Dos Of...Mascara!

1. Use a primer to protect & enhance lashes. My favourite - DiorShow Lash Primer. 


2. Don't pump the wand in and out of the tube as this adds air to the mascara formula and can dry it out faster.

3. Curl your lashes for added drama & to open up your eyes!


My Preferred lash curler: Shu Uemura. Read how to help your lashes hold their curl here.

4. Avoid messing up your eye makeup while applying mascara by resting tissue or a card above your lid so you dont ruin eyeshadow. Or hold your mirror by your chin and look down into it while applying. 

5. Mascara Mixing! Mix and Match your mascaras to layer and make use of different effects. Currently I love layering DiorShow Primer followed with L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara.

6. Clumpy lashes are never cute so make sure your lashes are clump free with a lash comb (read my post on this here)

7. Use Waterproof only when needed as the hard formula is very hard to get off and can damage and break lashes


8. Black works on everyone but for a subtle look brown looks best - especially for lower lashes


9. Try using a water based makeup remover such as Bioderma to remove mascara gently without pulling out lashes


10. Having trouble removing waterproof mascara? Coat them in vaseline this will make it easier to remove! Read more about this trick here.