A Budget Beauty Brand Discovery!

I love my bargain products and don't own anything make-up related which would have cost me more than a tenner. I just can't justify spending that much on something I will use a couple of times and most likely forget about or replace with something new and more interesting. I have been loving MUA over the last few months for their cheap as chips products which give you amazing value for money. I know they work under various different brand names but this post involves one of their brands which I had never seen before- Vivo. Vivo is stocked in Tesco, something lacking in my local city, which probably explains their absence in my life until now! They are currently holding a half price sale online so when I spotted them I had to give them a try.

This whole lovely haul cost me £14.88 including postage (£2.95) amazing yes? Nothing came to more than £2 and the nail polishes were about 50p, amazing bargain! The packaging isn't the best but I really like everything, the quality seems great for the price and the eye shadow palette will be getting a post of its own as it is amazing!

I love lip crayons so had to try some of these, the Colour Stay Lip Crayons in Sweet Dreams and Thing Called Love were £1.99 half price and the Laquer Shine Lip Gloss in Heavenly was 99p! The lip crayons look very similar to the MUA versions but with a better colour payoff. They also have the same minty scent. The Laquer Gloss is so pretty and a bargain for 99p, again it looks very similar to the MUA Intense Kisses. 

I also picked up a Blush and Highlighter Duo in Sweet Peach for £1.19. I LOVE this, the blush is such a perfect peachy shade without being too orangey, and the highlighter is a perfect shimmery match for the peach but isn't too glittery. I really want another of these, I love the idea of a matching blush and highlighter and who can go wrong for that price!

I wanted to try the Radiance Boost Highlighter as it was only £1.79 and I hoped it might work to cover up my dark eye circles. I doesn't seem to give much coverage and is a little pink for my skin but I will give it a go.

These lovelies were only £1.49 for the Nail Flare in When I Dance and an amazing 50p for the varnish in Funfair. I love the glitter polish and can't wait to try it. Funfair is the perfect pinky coral for summer.

Finally, the best product in the bunch, the 12 Shade Colour Block Palette in Unprotected, supposedly a dupe for MUA Undressed and the Naked palette. I can see the similarity between this and the MUA and I will be posting swatches soon but the colour payoff is sooo much better than you get from the Undressed palette so I will compare them. I love the look of the palette and prefer it to my MUA ones. I just think it looks more expensive and is a better shape to store. This was only £1.99 but even at the regular £3.99 it is still well worth buying.

I love the products I got and I'm really tempted to go back for more once the sale is over and they re-stock all the out of stock products. If you love MUA then Vivo are well worth a try and can be bought in Tesco or online at http://www.vivocosmetics.co.uk/ where everything is still half price!

NOTD: MUA Gemini Nail Constellations

There may have been a lot of drama in the past few months over twitter and people blogging about certain mistakes that MUA have made and the fact that most of their products seem to be copies of other brands products (like Essie style polish bottles, Urban Decay palette dupes, Revlon/Clinique style chubby lip pencils...). To be honest though this isn't something that bothers me too much. I love that MUA allow me to get dupes of much more expensive products at bargain prices and most of their products I have tried so far have been fantastic quality. As for the packaging copies, it isn't the best thing to do but I wouldn't buy a product for its packaging, I would only care about the quality of the product and how it works. Pretty packaging is nice, but doesn't sell a product. 

Anyway, the point of this rant is that MUA may not be perfect but they are pretty amazing when it comes to affordable products. They have quickly become one of my favourite brands and I think now I have more of their products than any other brand. 

One of the first things I tried from MUA was the nail constellations. I had been lusting after Ciate Caviar for ages when I spotted these on offer for £2! The Ciate was far too expensive for me but when I spotted the MUA dupes for £2 I bought 4 different colours. I hadn't used the MUA Constellations for ages and I'd been chatting to some of my new co-workers about them so decided to fish them out and give them another go to show them off. I may have only been there a month now but they are already well aware of my nail obsession (oops). 

I though the Gemini Constellations would look lovely with Barry M Papaya Gelly, my new summer obsession shade. I decided to use Dragon Fruit under the beads though as I do find the base colour can bleed through the gaps and so a paler thinner shade is better. I love how simple the Constellations are to use and although I have used Gemini 3/4 times now, you can see that there is plenty left in the bottle. I always use a little tray to catch the beads so that any overspill isn't wasted and finish it all off with a generous sweep of top coat to keep the beads in place.

Gemini has to be my favourite Constellations shade. Its packed with pastel shades and the mix of colours is lovely. This lasted for 3 days which is pretty good for beads stuck onto your nail. I really love this look and always get lots of compliments so I think I will try to use these more often. I've seen some interesting patterns made with just a few beads so that might be one for me to try next.

Have you tried the MUA Constellations? What do you think of all the MUA drama? Has it put you off them as a brand or like me do you think the products are more important?

FashionistA Customisable Palette From MUA

I'm sure most of you will have seen that MUA are now stocking FashionistA products, which to be honest are a brand I'd never taken any notice of. I do love MUA for their amazing quality bargain products and when they announced they would be bringing over 200 new products to their website I was pretty excited to see what they would be offering, expecting some new MUA products. I was a little disappointed to see it was a different brand and the concept of a two-brand website is a little confusing to me, I can't see it working as the MUA products are cheaper, but I did like the idea of a customisable palette. At the moment, you can either choose a 4 pan palette and fill it for £7, or a 6 pan for £10 which seemed a bargain to me so I went for that one

I really like the idea of being able to choose the shades you want as no matter which palettes I seem to but there are always shades which I don't use so picking my own seems perfect. I also liked the idea of having one palette with everything I needed in it, so it would be good for when I am away. With that in mind I decided to fill my 6 pan palette with 3 eye shadows, 2 blushers and a bronzer. I have to say though, I have never been a fan of online make-up shopping as the shades are never quite what they seem so i would recommend having a nosy at the shades you like in Superdrug before you order as a couple of mine weren't quite what I expected from the pictures. 

My delivery arrived quickly and in perfect condition, and I couldn't wait to open it up and test it out. The pans come in little black cases so you don't have to have to have a palette you can just use them as they are or switch up different shades if you get bored. They very easily pop out of the packaging and click into place in the palette. Within a couple of minutes my beautiful, unique palette was complete.

When you pop the pans out the shade names are on the back so you can always see which you are using which is a nice touch. I was also expecting quite small pans and I was surprised to find they are a really decent size for the price.

Eye Shadows.                                                  Blushers and bronzer

           l-r Double take eye shadow in Radiant                                     Blush in Juicy Apricot and London                    
Mono eye shadow in Auburn Glow and Bronze                Custom design bronzer in Dubai

First up the eye shadows, I went for shimmery bronze and nude shades as those are the colours I tend to use the most. I really love Radiant and Bronze, although I was a little disappointed with the colour pay off with Auburn Glow. There are some lovely shades though and I am considering getting another with some darker shades for a night out smoky eye look. I would definitely check out the shades first though. This is due to the bronzer actually, I liked the look of Dubai on the site but it is far too dark in really life.

The blushers in this range are gorgeous and I love the two I have chosen, although I did expect Juicy Apricot to be a little peacher rather than pink, so again check out the shades first! London is gorgeous though!

I love the colour of Dubai although I think I will use it as an eye shadow as it is too dark as a bronzer but check out the colour pay off from one little sweep of my finger! 

I am pretty impressed with these palettes for the price and I'm considering getting another whilst the offer is still on. £10 for 6 large shades is a bargain and I would recommend giving them a go. I haven't been tempted by any of the other FashionistA products but I can see these being a success. The palettes are available from the MUA website and are currently on offer with a free lip plumping gloss and nail polish if you spend over £15. 

Have you tried any of the FashionistA products yet? Do you like the idea of a custom palette? I reckon MUA should do their own, I'd be buying those!

Simple Nail Art 8: Scalloped Nails

Its been a while since I did one of these posts, which is a shame as I was quite enjoying the experimenting. I did find something new to try today though, once again dissertation boredom has driven me to googling nail art! I love the scalloped effect on clothes but I never thought of using it on my nails! If you google it though there are some lovely nail art post using this kind of effect.
I decided to keep it simple as I'm feeling lazy today and although I love the graduated scallops that seem to keep appearing, I just went for two colours.
These are super simple to do and you just need something to dot with, I use the dotting tools you can get from about a million different ebay sellers for about £2. I used the biggest end of one of my dotting tools and the bargain (old style) MUA nail polishes in Frozen Yoghurt for the base and Plum Noir for the detail.

I painted two coats of the lovely Frozen Yoghurt as a base and left it to dry. I then used the dotting tool and starting from half way up the left side of my nail, dotted Plum Noir down diagonally, trying to touch the dots and get as close as possible to the right corner of my nail. These aren't perfect but you can do the scallops any way you like, I just prefer this look to scalloped tips. 

 I then went back over each nail and filled in the space under the dots. I actually ended up taking pictures of my right hand as it somehow turned out neater than my left, for the first time ever!

I stuck on some top coat, left it all to dry and cleaned up.....and there we go, lovely scalloped nail art!

I really love this affect, its so simple and quick but so pretty! I'm gonna try the graduated scallops next as they look really amazing. I just have to mention the MUA polishes quickly too. They are really
amazing for £1 and I love the purpley colours they do! I have the old style bottles but the new Essie-esque bottles are so pretty too! If you haven't tried them you really should!

Would you try scalloped nails? I love things like this that can be done quickly but look so effective!

Simple Nail Art:
1. Ikat Print
2. Toothbrush Splodges
3. Striping Tape

4. Pastel Gradient
5. Glitter & Studs

6. Dotty Flowers

7. Nail Art Pens

NOTD: Purple Glitter

I've gone off glitter polishes recently and haven't been wanting to use them as much as normal. When I spotted this one though, I had to have it. I know the 2True Glitterati polishes are coveted among nail bloggers and to be honest, I had never really seen the appeal until I spotted the purple and pink Shade 4!

I decided to use it over one of my favourite bargain polishes, MUA Frozen Yoghurt. I bought this before they changed the packaging to the new Essie-esque style, but for £1 I think they are fantastic quality and there are some lovely colours!

I have to say, I think Frozen Yoghurt is replacing my Barry M Prickly Pear Gelly as my new go-to purple shade. It goes beautifully with the pink and purple glitters in the Glitterati polish. The glitter did need a bit of placing but dried quickly and has lasted really well.

This has actually been on my nails for about 3 days now and I'm still loving it. I usually get bored after a day or two and want to change, but it looks so pretty!

Have you tried the 2True polishes? I hadn't ever taken much notice of them before! They seem to be quite hard to get your hands on but are in Superdrug for £2.99, if you can find the Glitterati ones!

MUA Power Pouts

My post today is going to be probably exactly the same as every other review of these that has been gracing the blogging world in the past month or so, but I had to show a bit of love for them. By them I mean the MUA Power Pouts. I love the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains, so I had to get my hands on a couple of these for £3 a go. They work in the same way as the Revlon Balm, a beautifully packaged chubby pencil which can be twisted up from the bottom. I love this idea, they are so easily applied and can be built up for a more intense colour.

I picked up three colours, Rendezvous, a pinky nude, Justify, a pinky coral and Broken Hearted, a true pink. I was hoping there would be a little more difference between the shades, but once worn they look very similar (perhaps I need to build them up a little more). The formula is gorgeous though, they aren't a stain like the Revlon, but won't disappear as quickly as a lip balm. They are also glossier than the Revlon alternative. I do find they last really well though and you won't be constantly reapplying, although at £3 a go, reapplying can be forgiven.

  Bare lips                                                            Rendezvous

       Justify                                                           Broken Hearted

I have been reaching for these loads in the past few weeks as my lips are still a little dry and these don't show that and are really moisturising. I love Justify although Rendezvous is a gorgeous shade which goes with anything and is perfect for work. 

I love the chubby pencil style lip products, I find them so easy and quick to apply. I have heard rumours of a Seventeen version hitting stands soon so I'll be on the hunt for that one to compare, but all in all another win for MUA in my opinion. I have a growing collection of their products, all of which are fantastic quality for the price and they are fast becoming a favourite brand despite many accusing them of lacking any originality in their products. I can't wait to see what they come up with next!

Power Pouts are available in six colours from the MUA website here.

Have you tried these? They don't quite match up to my Revlon favourites, but at less than half the price who can complain?

MUA Undress Your Skin Foundation

This is a product I have been trying for about a week now. I held off posting about it after a couple of uses as my first impressions weren't great, and I'm glad I did as my opinion has really changed! The Undress Your Skin foundations claims to:

"cover imperfections and blemishes whilst maintaining your skins natural glow with light-diffusing particles of shimmer that creates instant radiance"

Now as much as this review will be a positive one, I can't completely agree with the description. I expected a light, moisturising foundation with a little shimmer the likes of Rimmel's Wake Me Up. What you actually get is a medium/full matte finish. I have since realised this is the description given on the website, I picked it up without reading that and expected something different. I can't agree with the shimmer aspect though, it really is a matte foundation. I do really like this but it is a little thick for me as I do prefer light foundations and generally am not a fan of matte finishes which cling to dry skin. 

Anyway, I did say I really like it and I do! It does go on a little thick and initially I didn't like the look of it, but I found the best way to use it is to apply as normal and let it settle for a couple of minutes. I'm not sure why but this really makes all the difference for me as it somehow goes from a caked on look to a more natural, even matte finish. I have had loads of compliments for the look of my skin since wearing this and I have to agree, it does give a really gorgeous looking smooth base whilst being thick enough to cover blemishes and my horrible dark circles. This is the biggie for me, it really does brighten my dark circles! You do have to be a little careful with dry patches, this will cling, but leaving it to settle for a few minutes after applying and setting it with powder does seem to make it a little less obvious. 

 Left: wearing only foundation, Right: with powder and blusher.

Just a quick mention of the shade range, it is a little disappointing. I went for the middle of the three shades, beige, which I would usually expect to be fine for my skin but it is a little pale (I can only just get away with it which is fine whilst the weather isn't so nice, but I tan easily so I imagine this will be too pale in the coming months) so I am tempted to try the darker shade. Perfect for you paler beauties, but I am by no means dark skinned so anyone much more tan than me, there may not be a shade dark enough. 

I have mentioned a couple of negatives for this foundation, but on the whole I am impressed. I can apply this early morning and be working all day/running around as normal and it will still look perfect when  come home late at night. 

I managed to pick this up during the introductory offer for £3, but it usually sells for £5 which I still think is a reasonable price and I would repurchase, although perhaps in the darker shade! Don't be put off by the swatches on the website, beige is pale!

Have you tried this foundation? Would you try it? Despite it being a fuller coverage than I am used to I am really liking this one for those days where your skin just won't behave!

MUA and Barry M Haul

Not working full time is deadly for me. I can't stand sitting around the house doing nothing so more often than not I end up going for a wonder round the shops. So that's what happened today. I didn't buy much, just a couple of bits, but I thought I'd show you them anyway. My MUA order also arrived today (yay!) I have been waiting to get my hands on the Power Pouts since MUA announced their release and I finally gave in and ordered some (and a few other bits).

I have mentioned before how much I love the Revlon Just Bitten Balm Stains, so had to try MUA's bargain £3 versions! I chosen Broken Hearted, a gorgeous pink shade, Rendezvous, a lovely pinky nude and Justify, a shimmery coral shade. I haven't tried these properly yet but judging by the swatches, and how well they stained my hand, these are going to be amazing for the price! Another win for MUA!

I also picked up one of the new Merged Baked Eyeshadow Trios in Legendary, again £3. These look like perfect shades for a day-to-day look. I love blending shades like these to give a shimmery smoky eye. I can't wait to try them out!

I also couldn't resist trying out one of the new style nail polishes in Pistachio Ice Cream. I don't own many green shades and this is a gorgeous pale minty green which will be perfect for Spring. How pretty are the new bottles? I was really impressed with the old style for £1, so hopefully the new style will be just as good. I hope they will bring some new shades out soon though, there aren't many on the website, a lot seem to have been discontinued.

Finally, something else I have been waiting to get my hands on- the Barry M nail art pens. These were on 3-for-2 at Superdrug, so all 3 were only a tenner! (£4.99 each). I have seen some amazing reviews of these so I'm going to give them a go as I don't have the steadiest hand and find nail art quite tricky sometimes. I can see these colours working well on an Aztec style design which I have been wanting to try, so watch out for that one!

So there we go, I did buy a couple of other bits but nothing interesting just essentials like tights. I also realised I forgot to include the MUA Undress Your Skin Illuminating Foundation which was on offer for £3 instead of £5, and I can't find it! I tried it today though and really like it, so I'll review it soon, if I find it! I was in a rush this morning so it could be anywhere!
What have you been lusting over recently? I know the Power Pouts and Nails Art Pens have been on a lot of bloggers wishlists this month! Have you tried them yet?

NOTD: Galaxy Effect

I actually haven't had any nail polish on for two whole days! I feel lost! I need a job where I am allowed to wear it! So today I decided to try something a little different. I have seen loads of galaxy style nail art but never got round to trying it myself, but I wish I had tried it earlier! It is so simple and looks amazing!

Anyway, these are the colours I used.

I used the No7 Just Black as a base and sponged on small amounts of the other colours. I used the plastic wrapping off my Glamour magazine to allow me to get as little as possible on my sponge and not make too much or a mess (a perfect use for something I'd usually just throw away! Recycling at its finest!).

I sponged on a line of white polish first then used bits of the other colours around the white to blend it and give depth to the colour. I then used Models Own Jack Frost over the top for a little glitter, and a top coat to finish it off.

These don't look as good as some of the others I have seen but I do love the effect you get and I'm going to practise a little more with different colours. I do think Jack Frost is the perfect top coat for this effect though, it looks gorgeous over the top and is just glittery enough.

What do you think? Has anyone else tried this kind off effect? I'd love to see them!

February Favourites

I love seeing this kind of post from other people, so I thought I would do my own this month. It was really hard to pick my favourites as I seem to have a collection of things I have been using everyday so ended up with about 10 things I wanted to show here, but I have managed to narrow it down to the essentials.

So firstly, the only skincare product which made it onto my list of favourites, I really do love this one - Botanics All Bright Cleansing Toner. I use this daily after cleansing to remove any last bits of make-up and it really does brighten my skin and make it look smoother and more even.

I also included L'Oreal Confetti Top Coat as I have really loved using this and it has to be my favourite new polish at the moment. I know quite a few other people have included this in their favourites list this month because it is just that good!

Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation - I won't write too much about this as I'll have a proper review soon but I am loving this one despite its lack of pump!

MUA Undress Your Skin Highlighter - I had never really bothered using highlighters before I invested in this one but it is another MUA product I love! It gives a really lovely subtle but brightening shimmer for the dull winter days we have been having. I love MUA for their fantastic quality stuff at bargain prices.

Another MUA product in my favourites this month is the Pro-Brow Kit. You can blend the colours really easily to match your natural brows and this fills them in beautifully and lasts all day. You even get a little brush which I do actually use, and some mini tweezers.

I had to include the Seventeen Photo Flawless Primer as it is still one of my daily essentials and it amazes me every time I use it as my skin looks so smooth and my foundation blends so well. I reviewed it here.

Finally, I have been really impressed with the Rimmel Accelerator Endless Lash Mascara. I don't know whether it is helping my lashes grow, but it gives really good definition and lengthens without clumping, so it is worth a try just for that! I don't usually like thin brushes like this one but I am getting on really well with this!

There we are - my favourites for February. What do you think of them? I'd love to see some of yours, link me if you've done a similar post!

MUA Gemini Nail Constellations

I haven't been doing much interesting with my nails recently (lazy I know!), so thought I would use one of my favourite effects from the last few months, MUA Nail Constellations. These are amazing and really simple to use, perfect if you aren't the best at nail art but want something different. I ended up with four colours of these and today I am using Gemini, a lovely mix of pale pink, deep pink and turquoise beads. I posted a little how to with these effects here so I won't repeat it but you can look if you want to :).

I didn't have a colour close enough to match these so went for MUA's bargainous £1 polish in Amaretto Crush, a gorgeous shade on its own! I have quite a few of these polishes now and you really can't beat them for the price! They give really good coverage and only need two coats. The only let down for me is the brush as I find it quick difficult to use as it is short and the lid is wide which gets in the way, but for £1 you can forgive them this!

I really do love the Constellations, they are really quick and easy to use once you get used to them, and if you use something to catch the overspill of beads, they can go back into the container meaning you get loads of uses from one little pot of beads! I love the colour of Gemini, its really pretty and the perfect pastely colour for spring. I'm going to try to get more use of these beauties, I really do love them (have I said that before?).

I usually find these last a good couple of days if you add a topcoat, they aren't the best wearing effect, but what do you expect with beads stuck to your nails! Has anyone else tried them? Do you love them as much as I do?

Another Midweek Haul

So, it would seem I can't even survive one day off work without having to go out and do something to stop me getting bored. Today that involved a trip to the White Rose centre, so I thought I'd show you what I bought...again!

The first stop for me always has to be New Look, I am loving their stuff at the moment, so much of it is similar to Topshop but half the price and better quality. They have 25% off jeans at the moment so I had to pick up a pair and have been eyeing these up for ages. They also had them in 34" length which I usually struggle to find (I'm 5'8) so I took it as a sign to buy them! (Pulled the pics from the website as its pretty dull today and my pictures were rubbish!)

I am currently living in plan/striped long sleeve tops as they are nice and warm and go with anything so picked up another colour, there seems to be a theme here, loving burgundy at the moment!

I finally gave in and bought the bag I have been wanting for ages, I really wanted the Topshop version but it was £40 and having just bought a Marc B bag, didn't want to pay that much so settled for the Primark £12 copy. This will be perfect for chucking in everything I need when I am working.

I then made the mistake of going into Superdrug. To be honest, I intended to treat myself to a few new bits as I am taking part in a spending ban on make-up and beauty products throughout March and this was my last chance to shop before March begins! 

After reading lots of good reviews I thought I needed to try the new Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation, on offer for £6.99 (usually £8.99). I don't like using heavy foundations and don't really have any problems with my skin so this seemed perfect for me. I went for shade 150 Nude so I'm hoping it will be a good match.

I have been wanting to try the new range of moisturisers from Garnier which contain different ingredients designed to tackle different skin problems. I debated getting the dry skin one but in the end thought I'd go for the Wake Me Up formula for dull skin. I am hoping this will be really good to use on a morning to brighten my skin up and set a good base for my make-up. £3.99 at the moment (usually £5.99).

I have been suffering with chapped lips all Winter so have been trying all sorts of lip balms  and as Palmer's is one of my favourites, I had to try the new formula - Dark Chocolate and Cherry. It is gorgeous!! It has a slight red tint to it which looks lovely on and for £1.99 you can't go wrong.

Finally, I wanted to treat myself to a few new make-up bits. In the end after deciding I really don't need or want any new nail polishes, I chose some more lipsticks from MUA. I really liked the three shades I got in my 50% off haul so chose a few different colours. These are shades 2, 6 and 11. I'm particularly liking shade 2!

So there we go, my last haul before Make-Up Free March. I'm really not looking forward to this now, I wish I'd never said I'd do it, but hopefully it will save me some money to go towards a deposit for when I move out. What have you all been buying this week, I love reading haul posts.