Mid Year Makeup Favourites

Hey guys! I've definitely been missing you guys so while I'm on mid year holidays, I thought I would do a mid year favourites post. Kind of like a yearly one but half, hahaha and also because I've discovered some fantastic products this year so far that I really want to share with you.

Face

Dr. Jart Rejuvinating Blemish Base Silver Label BB Cream 

Oh mylanta. I have been obsessed with this product for the entire year so far. It is honestly the only foundation product I've used all year except for my Nars Sheer Glow twice for two formals because it photographs well.  I've even had Giorgio Armani foundation samples that I still haven't tried because this BB Cream is simply amazing. It completely trumps all the other foundations I've tried. I just love the ease and practicality of this product. It's so easy to apply with any tool, I prefer using my fingers or my beauty blender, it looks so seamless and natural on the skin. It doesn't look like you're wearing tons of makeup, just that you have really awesome skin! The coverage is also build-able, which is fantastic because you can use a tiny bit to get light coverage or you can build it up to get almost full coverage even. I usually wear it at medium coverage using about half a pea size give or take. If I'm in a pinch, it gives great brightening under the eyes too or even when dabbing it on a blemish. It also has SPF 35 which is awesome and helps fight blemishes/redness with decent oil control. I love this product so much and it's all I ever use now, it's just legendary!

Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener in Light-Med Peach

I've mentioned this product before so I'm not going to go in depth. This is just my favourite under eye concealer and it's quite a light formula which I like and it's peachy undertone is great at correcting dark circles. I can't wait to get the new packaging of a doe foot applicator when I'm finished. 

MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NC30

Again, another staple of mine. Still my favourite concealer. It just is fantastic at covering blemishes but still looking natural. 

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Dark

And once again, a staple of mine. Just such a fantastic natural powder that gives a really nice finish. However, not the best if you want really good oil control. Hence, I've been starting to use the next product quite a lot. 

Maybelline Dream Matte Powder in Beige Medium

Great powder for more oil control. I will still need to blot throughout the day but it's much better oil control than my MAC one. It looks pretty natural however, the finish isn't AS nice as the MAC one. Well you can't have everything can you?

Bobbi Brown Blush in Nude Peach

My all time favourite blush, I talk about this all the time so I'm not going to go into it too much. I just love how it's the perfect balance between peach and nude, matte and shimmer, and sheer and pigmented. 

MAC Cremeblend Blush in Something Special

I've been getting back into this amazing blush in the cooler months and because my skin has been clearing up. Cream blushes weren't usually my best friend because of my combination-oily complexion and blemished complexion. But as my skin produces less oil in the cooler months, I like to wear this blush when my skin is on the clearer side. It's a really pretty colour, a little more peachy than the Bobbi Brown blush but still very natural and it's easy to use. I just apply it with my fingers and then blend it out in a dabbing motion with my beauty blender and wah la! Natural cheeky flush!

MAC Cream Colour Base in Hush

Still my favourite highlighter, love how natural it is! However, I am in the market for a cream highlighter because I want more oil control. So do you guys have any recommendations for a powder highlighter that gives a natural glow, I don't wanna be a disco ball haha. 

Benefit Hoola Bronzer

Still my favourite Bronzer as well, I love it!

Lucas' Paw Paw Ointment

This is a topical product that I like to put on my skin before/after makeup. I usually dab a bit on dry patches before I put on my makeup and after on any dry patches I missed that were accentuated by the makeup. 

Urban Decay DeSlick Makeup Setting Spray

I've been using this as a setting spray instead of MAC's Fix+ and it has helped my makeup last so much longer. I spritz this before and after I do my face makeup, however, if I want more oil control, I instead spray it before I apply my makeup and after I've applied all my cream/liquid products and then I apply my powder products over it. 

Eyes

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Still a fantastic eye primer, I've been using this for ages!

Nars Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base

I started using this eye primer at the start of the year. I quite like it but I'm still not sure if it beats UDPP. 

Bobbi Brown Long Wear Cream Shadow in Cement

One of my must have products, such a fantastic eyeshadow base for evening out the skin tone and it's also fantastic on its own. I usually wear this to school on its own because it's the perfect shadow for my skintone so that it doesn't look like I'm wearing eyeshadow but my eyes are brightened. Great for a no makeup makeup look. 

MAC Paint Poit in Bare Study

Another one of my must have eye products. Probably my favourite champagne toned cream shadow. I've tried a few and every time I come back to this one. The colour and formula is just fantastic. Unfortunately, the staying power isn't effective enough for my super oily eyelids so I still need to wear a primer underneath as I have to with every cream shadow. 

MAC Eyeshadow Quad - Naked Lunch, All That Glitters, Satin Taupe, Quarry

Even though I have quite a few fantastic neutral palettes, I always come back to this quad for my weekend eyeshadow looks (I don't wear much eyeshadow to school). Naked Lunch is a great classic champagne colour that looks amazing on the eyelids. I usually pair it with Quarry, which is a gorgeous matte neutral purple that adds a subtle purple to the eyes, or Wedge for subtle definition which I will mention down below. All That Glitters is a really nice warmer champagne shade, an 'almost' gold colour, kind of haha. I wear this more often in the evening with Satin Taupe, which is a beautiful taupe colour. Often I like to wear satin taupe on it's own all over the lid for a simple and soft smoky look. 

MAC Eyeshadows - Wedge, Brule

Wedge is my favourite 'blending' colour. It's one of those basic light brown matte shades. If I ever have a more dramatic look that needs to be muted, I blend with this shade to tone down all the frostiness. I also love this as subtle definition for Naked Lunch when I'm going for a really natural look. Brule is my all time favourite highlight colour. It's really velvety and pigmented, and it's a satin finish, so there's not shimmer but it has a sheen so it's not completely flat. I usually pair this with every eye look and for school I just sweep a bit under my brow with my finger for added brightness. 

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette - Blackout

I've never really loved how my eyes looked with black liner because it just seemed so dark. I love really natural makeup so black liner has always felt over the top for me, especially with my dark eyes, brows, lashes and glasses, it just seemed too much in my opinion. And then I found this great technique for applying powder as a liner from a video gossmakeupartist did on dailymixtv on YouTube. The technique is just to push the eyeshadow into your lash line with an angled eyeliner brush, which I find super fast and easier than applying powder eyeshadow with a gel liner 'dragging' technique. The look is really soft but still adds definition and an ever so slight sultry tone from the softness. I personally haven't used the two Naked palettes THAT MUCH except for the two formals this year, but that isn't saying the two palettes aren't great, as a whole I just haven't really used them that much this year so far. 

Too Faced Natural Eye Collection Palette - Sexpresso 

After that eyeshadow eyeliner technique discovery, I wanted to try it for a more neutral brown as well. I used this shade with the same technique and I love it for daytime. Again, it's really soft but gives added definition to your eyes and makes your lashes look a little thicker without undermining them. And again, is really quick and easy to do and I've been wearing this eyeshadow as eyeliner so much!

Urban Decay 24/7 Gilde On Eye Pencil in Demolition

I'd also been getting into pencil liner for most of this half year and I've been loving it. This is a fantastic brown colour that is really easy to apply. If I want a more natural look, I usually do a really thin rough line and then I smudge it out a bit with a cotton tip. The formulation of these are fantastic. I did also start tight lining with this and it generally stays on pretty well and creates a natural look. But I'm still a little iffy when tight lining so I've been leaning more to the eyeshadow eyeliner technique recently. 

Ardell Brow Sculpting Gel

I've been seriously slacking on my brows and I really don't care hahaha. I actually really like the natural, a bit messy & thick brow look. And I know this is terrible in the beauty world, but to people who don't care much about the beauty side of things (my parents, guy friends) it looks so much better and more natural. Every time I've filled in my brows, it felt like the face was too made up and I didn't like that. When it comes to makeup, I wanna just be me and hence, why I like natural makeup. I actually feel more uncomfortable with a cake face of makeup. So to the point of this product, if I'm going to some special event, I've just used this to ever so slightly shape my unruly brows a little better. 

Covergirl Clump Crusher Mascara by LashBlast in Black Brown

OH MY GOSH I LOVE THIS MASCARA! I've only used this mascara all year so far, what a shocker for me hahaha! It fixed the one issue I had with the original Lash Blast Volume (my previous favourite mascara) which was clumping. It still gives pretty good lengthening and volume (I wouldn't say as crazy as other mascaras I've seen) but it still DOESN'T SMUDGE on me and can look natural or a little more dramatic. And it's funny because as soon as it starts smudging often I know that it's time to throw it out. I'd say the tube lasted about 4-5 months. It couldn't push the 6 months mark cuz it was just smudging every time so I bought a new one and it's smudgeproof once again! Yay! This is now my all time mascara and I'm hoping to get the waterproof one when I go to America, simply because whenever I cry, I just happen to be wearing mascara. 

Lips

Nuxe Reve de Miel Honey Lip Balm

This is probably, other than burt's bees simply because it's a more practical packaging, my favourite lip balm. My best friend got it for my birthday when she went to France at the start of the year and I absolutely love it. It's an incredibly luxurious formulation and lasts so long on the lips. It has a great finish that is mostly matte but feels very velvety. Just simply fantastic. The only down size is a not very portable pot packaging however, I don't think the formula would be as good if it was in a stick form. 

Lush Honey Trap Lip Balm

Another fantastic lip balm that definitely does rival the former, but has a creamier finish and doesn't last as long, but it still lasts so much longer than most lip balms. Also, it smells absolutely amazing, just like white chocolate, honey and a bit of mint. 

Burt's Bees Honey Lip Balm

I've been trying some more of the Burt's Bees lip balms, such as the nourishing mango and replenishing pomegranate ones which I love too, but my favourite of the year so far would be this one. This one has a bit more sheen than the original beeswax one but isn't as glossy as the other two mentioned. Just a generally great great lip balm and I prefer this scent of the original minty scent which is often overwhelming in my opinion. 

Nivea Repair & Protection SPF 20 Lip Balm

This is the lip balm that I usually use on going out in the day because it has SPF, especially in the warmer months or on days when the UV is quite high. Generally not bad lip balm and it's one that I've always repurchased. 

Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm in Hibiscus

Okay now moving into the coloured lip products. Still, my all time favourite lip product without question. Not going to talk about it too much because I've mentioned this a lot before. It's just a fantastic formulation, great finish and natural colour and easy to apply without a mirror. 

Maybelline Pink Glow Mixed Berry Lip Balm in Pink Blast

This is one of those lip balms that appear clear but change to give a kind of bright colour based on each person's unique lip chemistry. It gives a really nice natural medium fuchsia pink. The only downside is Maybelline lip balms have a really watery consistency and they don't wear off very nicely, but I love this for a fuss-free tint of colour. 

Revlon Lip Butter in Sweet Tart

I've been getting into more natural fuchsia lip colours and this one is really nice. I usually apply it really lightly because I think it's too dramatic when it's at thick application. It also leaves a hint of a stain that is quite natural. 

So they're my mid year makeup favourites. It's quite a lot for you guys to read hahaha. I'm currently on mid year school holidays which is why I'm posting this and because I've been missing this. Anyway, hope you guys liked this post and have a nice day!

Tag: 10 Products I'd Repurchase If All My Makeup Disappeared

This tag has been spreading like wildfire on the beauty community, although it has died down a bit, I still find it super interesting. It's basically about if you lost all your makeup and could only buy 10 products, what would you buy? This was actually super hard for me because I often change products depending on the weather or just my mood haha although I do have some essential products that I absolutely love. It's also really fun to read/watch other people's tags because it shows what your favourite or essential products are.

I was tagged by Amy of the great blog http://prettypinklipss.blogspot.com.au and her Instagram is @amyppl to do this tag on Instagram (@amywenting) and I thought I might do a proper blogpost about it on my blog.

I tag anyone who wants to do this, it's actually a really fun tag in my opinion and allows you to try and think that if it came to only 10 products, what you would get for makeup.

Products:

Bobbi Brown Haul

Recently bought some products online from Bobbi Brown because there was a skincare kit that I wanted to get although I made a silly mistake that I will later discuss. 

First it came in this gorgeous bag that I just had to snap a picture of it. 

I bought two of the new Bobbi's Skincare Essentials kit because I knew I would use these products and then I could get free shipping.

The kit comes with smaller sizes of the Hydrating Face Cream, Hydrating Eye Cream and Cleansing Oil. Unfortunately when I was buying the kit, I thought the Hydrating Face Cream was the moisturiser that I had been using all year but I had actually mistaken it for the Hydrating Gel Cream which is the moisturiser that I actually use. This is really frustrating for me because now I have two of these moisturisers that I won't use. The moisturiser wasn't that bad but it smells a bit funny that I'm not a fan of. Although, I do still love the Hydrating Eye Cream and Cleansing Oil.

It also came with two samples that come with every online purchase and there was also an offer for a deluxe sample of the Cleansing Oil. The samples that I chose were the Hydrating Face Cream because they sold out of the new Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation and then I also got a sample of the Tinted Moisturiser Oil-Free in Medium Tint.

September Empties

This is actually my first ever Empties post. I've never finished a reasonable amount of products in a month for it to be at least a tiny bit worthwhile to post about.

Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Clearing Moisturiser. This is probably my 2nd or 3rd bottle of this. This moisturiser is fantastic for oil control and helps to battle breakouts at the same time.
The Bobbi Brown Hydrating Face Cream is my favourite basic moisturiser. This is my 2nd pot that I've finished and I love it! It's great for combination skin because it's good at keeping the skin balanced.
This is probably around my 10th bottle of the Body Shop Tea Tree Oil. I love this for smaller breakouts and it's not too harsh because you don't want to freak your skin out by over using super harsh acne fighting products.
I love the Batiste Dry Shampoo Fresh, it's just so great at making my hair still look good on the 2nd day. I think this is my 3rd can and I keep buying it. The white residue doesn't bother me too much, even though I have black hair, I can just massage it in. I have really oily roots but this works fantastic and it's cheap! I also love the scent, I'm extremely picky when it comes to scents in hair products and I love this one, but I'm too scared to try the other Batiste scents because I probably won't like them.

Day 04 — Your favorite foundation (Mini Reviews)

Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation SPF 15 in Warm Beige 3.5

Source: Bobbi Brown Australia

This is my favourite conventional foundation for multiple reasons. First, in my opinion, it gives me the best natural finish but still covering imperfections, it has medium coverage. I just love how natural it feels, much like the way that the Chanel Vita Lumiere Aqua foundation feels. It is a really perfect foundation for combination skin as it is hydrating but not to the extent that my face looks oily or anything, it just feels very comfortable. I also looooove the shade selection the Bobbi Brown provides, there is always a shade for every skin tone! My shade is Warm Beige 3.5, this shade is perfect for me, even when I'm at my palest and in the summer when I naturally tanner. I do have the Chanel Vita Lumiere Aqua foundation and I prefer this one as it is my perfect shade (the Chanel one I have is in the shade B40 and it's a bit dark for me in the colder months) and I think the Bobbi Brown foundation lasts much longer on the skin.

Skin 79 Super + Beblesh Balm Triple Functions - Hot Pink

Source: skin79northamerica

I just had to include this as well. This isn't a typical foundation, but a BB Cream. It is the most natural looking and feels the lightest. It is also very build able and can be used to dab on spots for a bit more coverage. I still prefer the Bobbi Brown foundation but I love using the BB Cream for school, it doesn't even look like I'm wearing makeup but my skin looks much more radiant and better looking, haha. I also quite like using this in the summer as it is even lighter feeling than the Bobbi Brown foundation, which already feels very natural on the skin.

China & Hong Kong Haul

Hi everyone! It's been a really long time since I last posted. I was on vacation to China & Hong Kong and then when I came back, I was going to post this haul earlier, but I was so busy with homework and then I got really really really sick on my birthday haha, what an unlucky coincidence. I'm still sick right now and it will take months for me to fully recover, but today I felt a bit better so I thought I might put this up. I also have a mini haul at the end which is just from the holidays but in Melbourne. 
Oh and do you prefer Helvetica or Arial? Just in case you aren't sure, this is Helvetica by the way. 
Oh, and this is a whopper of a haul (:

Tiffany & Co. Bracelet I didn't actual buy this, my very lucky aunty and uncle won it in a raffle at Christmas dinner, and I'm so thankful that they gifted it to me. This is actually my first ever piece of Tiffany jewellery.

Tiffany & Co. Necklace with snow hat charm This is actually one of my birthday presents. My Mum promised to buy me something from Tiffany, as I didn't actually have any, until my relatives won the bracelet lol. I wish they had a guitar or something, but I love this snow hat so much!