Summer Haul '16

Over the last few weeks I've been slowly collecting a few bits and bobs, so I thought I'd stick them all together in a mish-mash haul. It's mostly beauty bits, with a few added extras.

Now that summer's rolling around and the UK weather is so hot its becoming unbearable, I wanted to kick-start the summer, glowy-bronze look. I've picked up a few products in order to help me accomplish this. I heard Alix from I Covet Thee talking about the new St. Tropez Gradual Tan Tinted Lotion, and after testing out the St. Tropez Gradual Tan in Shower Lotion I thought I'd give this one a go in the hope of a slightly more instant tan. I'm yet to try it, but I have high hopes. I will keep you updated!

Another product I've picked up in the hope of faking that summer glow is the Estee Lauder Estee Edit Flash Illuminator. The Estee Edit is brand new and currently exclusive to Selfridges, and offers beauty products for a slightly younger audience with a more budget-friendly price tag. Admittedly it's still not cheap but its at the lower end of the high end market. I picked up the shade 'Morning Light', the lightest but one, and it's a beautiful champagne shade. I use this mixed with my primer to get a glowy base, and although its a slightly thicker consistency than I was expecting it blends nicely to give a natural dewy effect under my foundation. So far this gets a thumbs up from me!

The foundation that I've been using recently and loving is the L'Oreal Nude Magique Cushion Foundation. I've got the shade Porcelain and it matches me pretty well for a drugstore foundation, I don't have to blend it far down my neck. So many beauty bloggers have been raving about this foundation, and since I love the cushion bronzer I decided to pick this up and give it a go. This foundation is on the higher end of the drugstore price-wise, but the easy application and decent shade range makes it worth the extra few pounds. Its great for everyday, with an easily buildable coverage and natural finish.

The final product base-wise is the NYX Dark Circle Concealer. I initially heard Amelia Liana talking about this in one of her monthly favourites and I've been thinking about picking it up since but I've always been a little scared of orange concealers. I understand that the orange counteracts the blue bags under your eyes, but having very pale skin means that my dark under eyes are pretty dark and orange concealer is very, well, orange on my pale skin! Since my bags are becoming pretty unbearable I thought I'd take the plunge but with a slightly more budget option. The NYX concealer also comes in 4 handy shades. So far so good - I like to use this under my foundation and concealer just to make sure there's no trace of orange left around my eyes and it seems to be doing the trick. As for the dark circles, they seem to be looking a lot more invisible.

After watching a few of Tanya Burr's older tutorials I loved the make up look she did with the Hollywood Eye palette and I've been coveting the Perfect Brow palette. Since these don't break the bank I figured why not pick them both up and after giving them a quick try I really love the Hollywood palette. The colours work well with my blue eyes and really make them pop. The pigmentation is really good and they're super blendable. As for the brow palette, I still need to have a bit more of a play around but I think the main shade for me is hot cocoa.

I wanted to quickly mention the Nivea Fruity Shine lip balms, in the shades/scents Watermelon and Peach. These exceeded my expectations - they smell great and they add a nice amount of sheer colour.

The last thing beauty-wise is the Real Techniques Blush Brush. I've been using the same brush for powder, bronzer and blush so I thought it was about time to pick another one up. You always know where you stand when it comes to Real Techniques, I knew I'd like it. It's soft and blends beautifully, great for a natural all over bronze look.

Finally, the Millie Mackintosh Lashes. I've bought the Soho lashes in the past and although they were pretty full on for my first pair of false lashes, they weren't too difficult to apply and wore nicely. I figured I'd pick up a few pairs for the summer and I found them here for a lot cheaper. I grabbed the Portobello and Camden lashes this time so I'll update the blog when I've tried them and remember to take some photos of me wearing them. 

All in all I'm pretty chuffed with everything I've picked up and I'm looking forward to trying them all out properly. If there's anything else I should pick let me know!