Just before we’re all sucked in to Christmas/ the holiday season and our minds turn to gifting, why not forget the dark nights and noticeable chill in the air and treat yourself to a little something something. I thought I’d share a few of my favourite makeup and beauty treats…obviously great for stocking fillers/ secret santa-ing, but as it’s still November and I love Christmas, but not until December…more a suggestion (as per the title) to treat yo’ self!
Everything I’ve picked out is cruelty free and great makeup bag/ skin updates for the change in season! It was hard narrowing it down to just 5 things, but here they are…
➕Kat Von D Beauty Everlasting Lip/ Eye Liners (UK* / IE*) –
I LOVE these liners! There’s 30 highly pigmented shades to choose from and they can be used on lips or eyes*. From classic nudes, bold oranges, reds and vampy tones (including black) to statement pops of blue, purple and green…there’s something for everyone! The formula is smooth, blendable and non drying with a weightless feel on the lips and with them being long wear (according to KVD, 24-hour to be exact!) and water resistant…I’ve never used a pencil that lasts as long on the waterline as these! That includes my other long time fave, the 24/7 pencils from Urban Decay (UK* / IE*) and they give gel liner on the waterline a run for it’s money too as well as feeling a lot more comfortable on!
I wear them on my lips either alone or with the KVD Everlasting Liquid Lipstick (UK* / IE*) which is one of my favourite liquid lip formulas…one of the most comfortable around in my opinion!
Bow N Arrow is my most used lip shade (Lolita’s beautiful and a classic suits everyone shade too) and then I use them as eyeliner everyday also and normally go for either Swanly (nude), Crucifix (deep chocolate) or Skully (blackest black) day to day and then sometimes work in some warm, deep berry tones to really pop my green eye colour too. I’m obsessed with Bloodmilk and Homegirl especially! Creamy long wearing perfection!
(*obviously only tested for the lips and it’s your choice, but I have have pretty sensitive eyes and have had no problem with any of the shades)
➕Montagne Jeunesse 7th Heaven Peel Off Face Masks* –
Widely available/ easy to get your hands on and super inexpensive. Best of all they work really well, leave your skin feeling amazing and the brand is cruelty free (a lot of their masks are actually Vegan too, check their website for more info). I’ve spoken about the Black Seaweed Peel Off version before (read more about it here) and also like the Passion Peel Off Mask* with Pomegranate, Raspberry and passion flower. I try and patch test a mask before applying all over (and would always recommend you do the same) but my sometimes sensitive skin seems to get on really well with these! It’s 20 minutes of chill time, peel off satisfaction and then the result is nice healthy glow. All dead skin cells are gone and your skin is ready for skincare, primer and makeup. Using a mask a few times a week as part of your skincare routine is massively beneficial, especially during the winter months…you’ll notice the difference!
➕Becca Backlight Priming Filter Travel Size –
As well as being under budget for the purpose of this post, I normally go for the travel size in this anyway! So I prefer the lighter tube style packaging of the travel size, way lighter/ more compact for travel and takes up less makeup bag space for one…another reason, it also works out a bit cheaper to get 2 travel size (15ml) than one full size (30ml) for some reason and although a pump can be handy, I like the way you can use as much as a little as you need without waste fro the travel size tube.
Anyway…the Backlight Priming Filter is beautiful! It’s suitable for all skin types (I’m combo/ oily), gives skin a lit from within healthy glow without looking glittery or oily and although in my opinion it doesn’t seem to effect the longevity of my foundation as much as some of my other most used primers eg. Kat Von D Lock It Primer (UK* / IE*), it gives me the perfect base for makeup. It’s like a soft focus filter that instantly makes you look way more awake and radiant than you are! Foundation sits really nicely over the top of this without balling up and I’ll actually wear this alone/ with spot concealing on ’no makeup – makeup’ days too.
➕Urban Decay Primer Potion in Caffeine (UK* / IE*) –
Another thing that I’ve spoken about on here before (read more about all shades of UD Primer Potion here) the Urban Decay Primer Potion…it’s my holygrail of eye primer and has been for years! There’s been others that I’ve liked, but nothing keeps my eye makeup in place and looking good for as long as this one does! I normally use the shades Eden or Enigma under every single eye makeup and even if I’m not wearing eye makeup I’ll stick a bit on anyway, it disguises any redness/ discolouration (which I have quite a bit of on my eyeballs!) and makes me look less tired, always good! I’ve been using the shade Caffeine a lot recently and it’s becoming my go to…with it’s rich warm brown tone and matte finish it’d work great as a neutralizer primer for deeper skin tones, but I’ve been loving it either buffed on alone for a bit of quick shade and definition or under shadows to create a bit of extra depth and warmth. You can’t go far wrong with any of these if you haven’t tried them before, go with whichever you fancy (there’s also shimmer finish if matte isn’t your thing) but am definitely feeling the earthier tone of Caffeine this Autumn!
Lone Wolf Cosmetics previously known as Takin’ Care Of Lashes (TCOL) is one of my favourite cruelty free and Vegan lash brands (read more about them here)…they’re UK based and I’m all about supporting local/ indie/ smaller brands, especially with lashes as good as theirs! (They do ship worldwide too!)
For any fellow Makeup Artists out there, they do offer a pro discount (just give them a mail) but for all you makeup enthusiasts/ addicts… considering the quality of these lashes and how long they last (seriously ages, 20-25 wears if not more if you take care of them!) they’re a lot of lash for the relatively affordable price tag. The band is made from light weight cotton and the lashes are some of the most comfortable lashes I have ever worn. Available in plenty of different styles/ intensities depending on preference and with more styles in the pipeline (exciting!) they’re fluffy, magical and the perfect finish to any eye makeup look. If I had to pick one style that I wear and love the most (also that would suit pretty much any eye shape) it would be The Agenda. Super fluffy, naturally dramatic and really pretty. Perfect for the up coming party season and just for life and pretty eyes in general!
Here’s some of my eye looks wearing them, so you can see them on…check out my Instagram for other favourite lash styles (I post up new eye looks pretty regularly and you can find full product breakdowns/ see what I’ve used for each look there too!)
Will you be picking up any of these? Or what have you treated yourself to recently that I need to buy and try…enable away!
Lyd x
PLEASE NOTE:
I’m now based in Cork, Ireland. Although I do still take select bookings for North Wales/ Cheshire and Dublin (get in touch for more info) and am available to travel country wide…I’m mainly taking makeup bookings for Cork City and surrounding areas.
As a bridal makeup specialist, I do get booked up well in advance so if you’re looking for wedding makeup in Cork contact me asap to check availability, secure your date and avoid disappointment! I’m freelance and travel to your home/ venue of choice.
Also available for makeup for any occasion/ event, lessons and master class makeup…find more information and a full list of services here.
Contact us for enquiries/ bookings and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
Cruelty free.