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Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation

I’ve already reviewed the concealer, so it only made sense for me to get my makeup loving mitts on the Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. If I can’t blame blogging on my need to buy makeup, what can I blame it on? 🙂 What are my thoughts on the Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation? Actually really similar to the concealer, I like it!

It comes in 24 shades as well as different undertones which is awesome. I have the shade F4.

It looks like a giant version of the concealer, only it comes in a glass bottle, which is always nice, and unusual for ‘drugstore’ brand. Something to note, the bottle only contains 23ml of product. Foundation usually comes in a standard 30ml quantity. It’s an affordable product though, so I won’t mark it down for that. It comes with a doe foot applicator on the lid (very Clinique-like). Not something I am particularly a fan of, I prefer a pump, but that’s completely personal preference.

I think the Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation does exactly what it says on the tin. They describe it as a ‘buildable, blend-able full coverage foundation’, and I have to agree. It has a fairly thin consistency, considering it does pack a punch in the coverage department.

It means you can go in hard with it if you like a really really flawless base, or blend out a thin layer if you prefer a more medium coverage finish. For me, it blends out well with a sponge or a brush. It does dry down quickly in my opinion though so it’s best to work pretty fast with it.

Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation Review

It definitely has a more matte finish and I find the longevity really decent, especially on my oilier skin. It might also be good to note that it’s oil and paraben free.

Overall I am a fan of the Revolution Conceal & Define Foundation. I will reach for it in my usual rotation, which is always a good sign for me. When I test base products, sometimes I have to force myself to use them when I know I’ll be out and about for a long period of time. I trust this though. I can put one layer on during the day, or a couple if I’m going out in the evening. It works for both and I’m not afraid of it sliding off of my face after a couple of hours. It’s cheap too coming in at around the 11-12 euro mark here in Ireland. depending on where you buy it. I’m a fan 🙂

xxx

November 24, 2018/1 Comment/by Gem

Makeup

Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette

I already gave my first impressions of the Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette here not too long ago, along with some other bits from the brand.

I finally got to go into the counter in Debenhams on Henry Street and check out everything in the flesh. How cool is it we have counters in Ireland now though? So exciting 🙂

After using the Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette consistently for the past couple of weeks, I feel I can give a decent enough opinion on it. I also wanted to swatch all of the shades so you can see them in action on the skin.

The packaging is pretty robust cardboard adorned with hand drawn calligraphy depicting the palette name done by the lovely Kat herself. It has a generous sized mirror in the lid too which is always handy. Although if you look at the American site here, you’ll see they have redone the packaging and the shades are now housed in a plastic palette.

The palette is described as: ‘Inspired by an artist’s palette and loaded with twelve matte shades that capture the true hues of shadow and light, this ‘Shade and Light’ eye contour palette is arranged by undertone for neutral, warm and cool shades. Use deeper contour shades to add natural shadow and depth to the face, then accentuate best angles with the brighter highlight shades. These silky, buildable powders blend effortlessly into the skin with a formula so incredibly fine, it’s like brushing on powdered silk.’

So we get 12 shades in this palette. All matte and they are a mix of neutral,cool and warm shades.

They are arranged in their tone families, each one has a base, contour, define and highlight shade. Of course you can mix them whatever way you see fit though! I’ll swatch them in their tone groupings (from left to right) just to give you an idea of what they look like together:

For me, the shadows are rich in pigment, soft and really easy to apply and blend. I do find you get some kickback when you dip your brush into the pan. But, that doesn’t take away from the quality, it is just something to be weary of. There is a good range of shades to suit everyone too! You can go from a really simple makeup look to a full on smoky eye with one palette. Matte colours aren’t always the easiest to get right, I find, but Kat Von D have done a stellar job. The shade range covers a multitude too! I’ll be honest and say I find the colour selection very similar to the Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette which I have a blogpost on here. The Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette did come before it though 🙂

The Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Contour Palette is available from Debenhams in store or online here. It’s priced at €46. It’s nice to note, the Kat Von D brand is 100% cruelty free!

Have you picked up anything yet? Do you have your eye on anything?

xxx

April 21, 2017/0 Comments/by Gem

Makeup, Makeup Tools

Favourite Makeup Brushes Right Now

Brushes are a crucial part of any makeup lovers arsenal. I think we sometimes forget just how important they are. I know I do. I thought I would do a run down on some of my favourite makeup brushes right now.

The ones I reach for time and time again. I have accumulated alot of brushes over the years and do dip in and out of some of them. Or as I’m sure you can relate, become obsessed with one in particular and then just forget about it a month later. This makeup addict business is very fickle 🙂

This little grouping has been in constant use over the past few months. So much so I’ve really only been washing and using them… dare I say exclusively. They are all from pretty affordable brands too. I have notions of owning some more fancy brushes in my makeup future. I find it hard to splurge though when I know there are affordable brands out there making great tools for a great price point.

There is no real rhyme or reason to this list, but if you’re in the market for a specific brush for a particular use, you might find it helpful 🙂

Zoeva 102 Silk Finish:

This is my go to foundation brush when I’m not using a sponge. I use and like others, this is just my most picked up. I like that it’s quite tightly packed so it doesn’t splay when you’re buffing in product. The rounded shape makes it easy to get around the contours of your face. It’s also really soft and quick to wash too. It’s €14.50 from the Zoeva website here.

My next choice is in the same vein as the Silk Finish. This is like it’s little sister. The Zoeva 110 Face Shape.

It is pretty much the same brush just a third of the size. I saw Lisa Eldridge reach for this so much in her videos, I just had to have it. I adore it for buffing in concealer and cream contour. This is €13.50 here.

Next up is the Real Techniques Setting Brush:

This is quite a small tapered brush. I use it for setting product under the eyes or for when I want to apply a light powder contour. It also works really well for highlight too. The synthetic bristles are soft and moveable. So, it doesn’t apply too much product. I found it on the Feel Unique website here for €8.95.

The Zoeva 126 Luxe Cheek Finish brush has been the only blush brush I have used probably for about two years now.

It’s domed and is a mixture of natural and synthetic hair. It is super soft and allows you to build up product and buff it into the skin all at the same time. I love it. It is on the Zoeva website here for €17.50.

The Real Techniques Blush Brush is another favourite I’ve had for a while. This one is well loved.

It has rounded duo fiber bristles. They aren’t very tightly packed on top, so I love using this for bronzer. I think it’s a bit big to use as a blush brush. It applies powder product quite sheer, so you can build up as you go which is my personal preference. This is on the Boots website at the mo for €9.99 here which is great. It’s usually €14.99.

The Blank Canvas F28 is my go to for applying highlight.

There’s a bit of a domed brush theme going on here, I realise. They just seem to float my beauty boat. The F28 is small and fluffy. It’s a real hair brush, so is very soft. The bristles are long in comparison to the brush size, so it works great at blending highlight really well into the skin. This is currently €7.99 from the Blank Canvas website here.

My last face brush fave is another Real Techniques one. This is their Cheek Brush:

I use this for applying face powder. As someone with oily skin, I need to apply a good layer. I like using a smaller brush to make sure I am getting powder in to the places that really need it. Like the sides of my nose and my chin. This does a great job as I can be precise, but it doesn’t cake my face in product either. There’s a fine line 🙂 This was part of the Nic’s Picks Set, but I believe they do similar individually now.

The Inglot 31T is my go to for eyebrows whether I am using cream or powder:

It’s made of Taklon, so it can be used for either. It is really petite, slanted and narrow so you can be really precise with it. I’ve often used it for liner too and it washes out really well. It is €14 from Inglot in store or online here.

I have four eyeshadow brushes to end things with.

The Debs from Nima is the perfect goat haired blending brush:

It’s super soft and a little bigger than the OG Mac 217. I reach it for it more than the 217 generally because it covers more lid space and it blends out quicker as a result. It is €12 from the Nima website here.

Another Nima brush I use probably more is the Crease Blender from the 5 Piece Eye Detail Set:

It’s a natural hair brush. Great for blending out socket colours and I love it for applying washes of colour all over the lid too. The five piece set is €30 from the website here.

The Large Shader brush is another favourite of mine from the set.

I use this for the exact job it was created for. For applying base eyeshadow colours and for setting my eyeshadow primer too. Super soft and easy to use.

My final pick is the Zoeva 223 Petit Eye Blender:

It’s another Taklon brush, so great for creams. I use it to apply shadow on my lower lash line though. It’s quite dense but tapered at the top. So you can apply a good amount of product with it, blending it out as you go. A blown out lower lash line has been my go to look of late. The 223 is €10.50 from the Zoeva website here.

And there you have my favourite makeup brushes right at this moment in makeup time 🙂 Tell me, what are your favourites?

xxx

January 25, 2017/0 Comments/by Gem

Makeup

Zoeva Plaisir Box

The Zoeva Plaisir Box is one of the fanciest makeup products I have ever owned!

Well it’s actually three products in a very swish box, but you know what I mean 🙂

I spotted Anna from TheAnnaEdit chatting on her blog about it before Christmas and shared her post on the Beautynook Facebook page, just because it looked so pretty. So many of you lovely people told me just how much you loved the Zoeva eye shadows. That alone sold me so thank you! I have lots of Zoeva brushes in my possession, this is my first step into their makeup products. But, after this experience I would 100 percent buy more!

The Zoeva Plaisir Box comes impeccably packaged. It is in the same vein as a swanky box of chocolates. The box is sleeved as well as the individual palettes. Honestly, I know I sound a tad over the top, but it’s a joy to unbox.

The three palettes (which are available to buy separately) are all named very chocolate appropriately. There’s ‘Caramel Melange, ‘Blanc Fusion’ and ‘Cocoa Blend’.

The eye shadows themselves in my opinion are a joy to work with. They are soft, rich in pigment and I, as of yet have experienced minimal fall out when using them. There is a mixture of shimmers (almost foil like), mattes and a couple of satin finishes. You have warm and more cool toned colours within the mix too. The shades on a whole lean more towards the neutral side, but there is a couple of fun ones thrown in for good measure as well. I, myself wouldn’t use all of the shades on a general basis, but the majority as shades I would gravitate towards for everyday makeup and for the evening too. There is ten shadows in each palette, each pan is 1.5 grams.

Here are they are in action:

‘Caramel Melange’ is the warmest of the three.

Wax Paper, Universal Delight, Aftertaste, 182º, Liquid Center

Alchemy, Start Soft, Finish Sensual, Almost Burnt, Edible Gem

Next up is ‘Blanc Fusion’.

Noble, Single Origin, Visions Of Gold, Late Bloomer, Sweetness Lingers

Travel Inspired, Joy In A Box,Conched, Question Of Taste, Last Bite

The third is ‘Cocoa Blend’.

Bitter Start, Sweeter End, Warm Notes, Subtle Blend, Beans Are White

Pure Ganache, Substitute For Love, Freshly Toasted, Infusion, Delicate Acidity

The palettes are available on their own for €22.50 each. The Zoeva Plaisir Box costs €62 from the Zoeva website here.

What do you think?

xxx

January 11, 2017/1 Comment/by Gem

Makeup

Real Techniques Miracle Sculpting Sponge

I am a big Pixiwoo fan as well as being a Real Techiniques fan. If you didn’t know Real Techniques stems from sisters Sam and Nic Chapman. They are both professional makeup artist, youtubers, authors and creators of Real Techniques.

I have alot of Real Techniques brushes in my collection and am a big fan of their Miracle Complexion sponge. This year they have expanded their makeup sponge range. I want to talk about one of them in this post, the Miracle Sculpting Sponge.

I bought the Miracle Sculpting Sponge after seeing Sharon Farrell talking about it and using it on her Youtube channel (which I will link here). You should totally check her out 🙂

It’s a funny looking sponge I know. I think it’s shaped a bit like a pointy snowman myself 🙂

It is described as having six surfaces, so you can use it to apply and blend contour, highlight as well as foundation, concealer and powder. They can say you can use it wet or dry too. I, so far have only used it wet. Here is the comparison in size between wet and dry.

In Gemma terms. I love this sponge. It is really soft and squidgy and it’s latex free. When wet, it expands so it covers more surface area. It also doesn’t soak up all your products and blends liquids in super easy. The shape does take a minute to get used too in your hand. I use it for applying foundation, concealer, cream contour and bronzer. But, I also really love using it for applying my setting powder. I am going through a bit of under eye baking faze and this sponge really works a treat for it because you you can get right in under the eyes using the small, flat pointed end.

I do like that it has a different sized em…ends. I use the big flat end for foundation then the more rounded end on the opposite side for cream concealer. But, when it comes to deep cleaning it can cause a bit of a problem. Mine was ruined by scrubbing it too hard and the skinnier neck part of it split. I didn’t have it very long when it happened which is annoying, so it’s just something to note. Don’t be too heavy handed with it. Although saying that, I am still using it damaged and it is working grand for me.

Overall, I am a big fan of the Real Techniques Miracle Sculpting Sponge.

For me, it wins over the Miracle Complexion Sponge, not because of the shape but because it’s softer and feels nicer (dare I say more bouncier) on the skin :).

You can buy them from Boots in store or online here and Cloud10Beauty here. They retail for between €7 and €8 depending on where you buy.

xxx

October 19, 2016/0 Comments/by Gem

Haul, Makeup

Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette

I only went and spent some of my Boots points on the Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette. I’ve wanted to try it for ages after seeing so many good things online about it. Using my Boots points made me feel less guilty about it because I definitely didn’t need another contour product, let alone a palette! 🙂

The description of the Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette on the Boots website: ‘Define your features like a pro with our highlight and contour palette! Each set includes eight customizable highlighting and contouring shades perfect for emphasizing your favorite features’.

The packaging is a little more flimsy than I expected for the price. Each pan contains 2.7 grams of product.

Powder contour and highlight palettes are a pretty common occurrence in the makeup world nowadays. Alot of brands have tried their hand at variations of them. I have the Anastasia one and I have the Makeup Revolution Ultra Contour Palette that I reviewed here a while back.

In the palette there is eight powder shades.

The four lighter highlight shades are on the top and look a bit like this swatched on the skin.

Ice Queen/ Soft Light/ Cream/ Nectar

‘Ice Queen’ and ‘Nectar’ are a shimmery highlight. Then, ‘Soft Light’ and ‘Cream’ are matte.

Then, there is four contour shades to hopefully cover a multitude of different skin tones.

Tan/ Toffee/ Sculpt/ Hollow

We all probably wouldn’t get use out of all four, but I always end up using these as eye shadows too so that doesn’t really bother me personally. What I do notice about the contour shades though is that they have more of a satin finish rather than being completely matte.

The powders are soft to the touch and they do blend. However, they are powdery and the pigment is softer when you apply the powders with a brush onto the skin.

The Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette is available from any good Nyx stockists. I bought mine from Boots with my points as I said, but you can get it in store or online here for €25. You can also buy refills for the palette here that are €4.75 each. I really like this idea. It means you can just buy the single shades you want, or you can refill the palette as you see fit.

xxx

September 11, 2016/0 Comments/by Gem