Posts

dublin beauty blogI am sure you’ve seen buckets of social media pics of the new theBalm Cosmetics releases, so forgive me if this is repetitive.

irish blog

I received them all in a press pack though and was very eager to swatch. So, why not do it in blogpost form, right?

I am a huge fan of theBalm Cosmetics. They do some great products. I actually did a post a while here back creating a whole face of makeup using just them, if you fancy checking it out.

The newest products on the block from the brand consist of:

A new eyeshadow palette called Meet Matt(e) Shmaker.thebalm cosmetics eyeshadow

This actually has an intriguing concept. Every matte shade has a shimmery mate for company.thebalm cosmetics ireland

You get 12 shades, 6 matte, six shimmer. Here they are swatched from left to right.

First the top shades, which are lighter, more everyday colours.top irish blog

Then, the bottom. These are little bit darker and daring.irish beauty blog

Of course these are just swatched on my arm, so of course I can’t give a proper review, but they evenly and opaquely. Cloud10Beauty stock it online here.

Next up we have the Mr Write Long Lasting Eyeliner Pencils. (They have previously released Mr Write Now). There are six shades to choose from in the collection.top irish beauty blogger

I have five of them to swatch here. They are retractable kohl pencils.The sixth is a green shade called Seymour Vacations. There’s a Seymour theme throughout ๐Ÿ™‚irish beauty blog

I have:irish beauty blogger

Seymour Datenights which is a nude. Seymour Romance which is described as a prune shade. Purple to you and I. Seymour Compliments is a navy blue. Seymour Loveletters is medium brown. Then finally Seymour Diamonds is a matte black.top irish beauty blog

I’ve only really tried the brown shade properly so far. It smoothly lined my upper lash line and it worked well and lasted decently in my water line too.

As of yet, I cannot find a stockist of these online.

The last releases are probably everyone’s most anticipated!top beauty blog ireland

These are liquid versions of theBalm Cosmetics infamous Mary-Lou and Bonnie-Lou powder highlighters. Say hello to Mary-Dew Manizer and Bonnie-Dew Manizer. See what they did there? ๐Ÿ™‚top beauty blog ireland

They come in 5.5 gram tubes with a doe foot applicator.irish beauty sitetop irish beauty site

Here is Mary-Dew roughly swatched:

thebalm mary-dew manizer
beauty blog
beauty blogger

And then Bonnie-Dew:

thebalm highlighter
top beauty blog
top beauty blogger

Cloud10beauty have them online here.

Any of them tickle your fancy?
xxx
********PR SAMPLE********

 

 

Highlighters My Most Used At The MomentIf I’m wearing makeup, you best believe I have highlighter on! I sometimes just go for a more subtle liquid approach, or a mixture of liquid and powder. Generally though, powder highlighters are my jam.

most used powder highlighters

I am going to run you through the three powder highlighters in my collection that I gravitate towards the most. I’ve loads of lovely other ones, but these are my ‘don’t have to think about it’ picks. They work for me and last well throughout the day.

First up, is the infamous Mary-Lou Manizer from theBalm Cosmetics.thebalm

I think the majority of makeup lover have Mary-Lou in their lives, or one of her very lovely sisters.irish beauty blog

She isn’t too warm, she isn’t too cool. She’s the perfect in between slightly golden shade. The powder itself is soft and really easy to blend.irish beauty bloggerbeauty blog irelandirish beauty website

If you have yet to see Mary-Lou in the flesh, go check her out in your local Debenhams. You won’t be disappointed. She will set you back โ‚ฌ19 online here.

My next choice in my most used highlights is one I picked up at Christmas time last year.becca shimmering skin perfector
This is the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pearl.

top irish beauty bloggerbeauty blogger ireland

If you have pale skin like me or even paler, this could be your perfect shade! It has more of a silvery tone, that can be more suited to pink toned skin tones. It gives shine without sparkle (all of the Shimmering Skin Perfectors do). They melt into the skin effortlessly. top irish beauty website

You can also use this wet if you really want to amp up the glow. I did a whole review on this when I first picked it up here. Becca is in store from Spacenk or online from Cult Beauty here.

My last choice is the more pink shade out of the three highlighters. It’s still has a pale gold finish to it on the skin, so works really nicely for me without looking too obvious. I like that look sometimes, but generally everyday, I just want a bit of shine.too faced prismactic highlighter
It is the Too Faced Prismatic Highlighter in Blinded By The Light.beauty blogtop irish beauty blog

This is the lightest shade in the three Prismatic Highlighters from Too Faced. There is a more pink shade too that I do use too, but this is just the one I reach for the most. They give such a lovely shine, nearly wet look to the skin. top beauty blogdublin beauty blog

I tend to reach for this more in the evenings. It looks so pretty as an eye shadow too. You can find these in store or online from Debenhams here.

And there you have my current faves. Any of them your favourites? What’s your most reached for highlighter?
xxx

 

 

I’m feeling very makeup video-y this week it seems ๐Ÿ™‚ I’m back with a more wearable everyday look. This is what I do when I am in a bit of a hurry but still want to look put together and presentable.

irish beauty bloggerirish beauty blog

I would more or less do a variation of this makeup look most days I wear it. I would just switch up the eye or lip colour. But, the principle and the application would be the same. Unless, I am trialing specific products or I’m feeling really fancy…or lazy.

makeup tutorial

It’s really simple and honestly takes no major skills at all. I adore makeup, but I’m no professional. I even added in me (kinda, sorta), doing my hair too ๐Ÿ™‚ Have a click here to watch the video in full, or you can watch it above.

beauty blog irelandHere is some of the main products I used:

  • Benefit Porefessional Primer. Buy here.
  • theBalm Put A Lid On It Eyeshadow Primer. Buy here.
  • Estรฉe Lauder Double Wear Nude Foundation. Full review here.
  • LA Girl Shade Slim Eyebrow Pencil Buy here.
  • Benefit Gimme Brow. Buy here.
  • Rimmel Lasting Finish Concealer. Buy here.
  • Chanel 268 eyeshadow quad. Not available online anymore.
  • Makeup Geek Whimsicial Eyeshadow. You can see it swatched here.
  • Huda Mauve Obsessions Palette. Blogpost about it here.
  • Max Factor Creme Bronzer. Review here.
  • Mac Spring Sheen blush. You can buy here.
  • theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter. Available here.
  • Rimmel Eastend Snob lip liner. Online here.
  • Mac Syrup lipstick. Available here.
  • Too Faced Setting Spray. Online here.

beauty blogger irelandtop irish beauty blog

Anything else you’re curious about just ask me, as always ๐Ÿ™‚

day time makeupmakeup in a hurry

Let me know what kind of YouTube videos you like to watch. Do you prefer watching to reading? I would love to know. I’m a big beauty YouTube fan, so I love making videos even though I’m not very good at it. Every time I edit it myself, I say, OK Gemma, next time enunciate more and stop saying ’em’. It never happens ๐Ÿ™‚
xxx

irish beauty blog

Major spoiler alert. Most of this video is slightly out of focus! Why may you ask? Because stupid Gemma (i.e me) focused the camera and then proceeded to sit in the wrong position like a dope! I debated on whether or not to scrap it. But I am mostly chatting about the confidence boosting beauty products in my life and just applying them as I go. Being able to see my potato head clearly really isn’t necessary in the grand scheme of things. Sure the beginning and end is in focus, you can see me in all of my glory there ๐Ÿ™‚

irish beauty blogger

I did a video a while ago here about products that make make me happy. Things that have a meaning to them whether they be connected with memories or people. I thought this was a good continuation on from that. We all have certain confidence boosting products in our beauty drawers right? Things that put a spring our step, that we know look good on us?

beauty blog ireland

I thought I would chat about mine. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that makeup necessarily equates to happiness. I am not that narrow minded, This is just me talking lightheartedly about certain products that I keep in my life because I know they work for me ๐Ÿ™‚

Confidence Boosting Beauty

  • The eyeshadow shade ‘half-baked from Urban Decay.
  • A good eyelash curlers.
  • Eyeliner in my waterline. I used the Inglot AMC Eyeliner Gel in 96 (you can see it swatched here).
  • Mac Cosmetics Springsheen blush. On the Brown Thomas website here.
  • theBalm Mary-Lou-Manizer highlighting powder. The tone of this just works for me. I have an old review of it here.
  • Mac ‘Girl About Town’ Amplified Lipstick. You can get it from Brown Thomas here. I just realised I have two Mac products listed! Not on purpose, promise ๐Ÿ™‚
  • Setting Spray. I am loving the L’Orรฉal Infallible Fixing Mist. (full review here).
  • My confidence boosting fragrance is Viktor & Rolf ‘Flowerbomb’. An oldie but a goodie. You can get it from Debenhams here.
  • Instant Tan! The ones I mention are the Vita Liberata Body Blur and the Bellamianta Skin Perfecting Instant Tan.
  • Then finally, my last confidence boosting beauty product is nail polish, or at least just having my nails did :). I chat about the Wet n Wild 1 Step Wonder Nail Polishes. I honestly love these!!
Confidence Boosting Beauty
beauty blogger ireland

And that concludes my ramblings. So tell me, do you have any particular confidence boosting beauty products in your stash? You can watch the video directly over on my YouTube channel here.

xxx

What did we do before highlighters? Actually I remember what I did, wore too much blush ๐Ÿ™‚

highlighters

My oily skin doesn’t really let me enjoy cream highlighters to their full capacity. They just don’t last on me and I have to powder pretty much my whole face so the premise is lost. Powder highlight is my jam though. For the sake of longevity I mattify everywhere. But, then I can go in with a powder highlight and bring some much needed dimension to everything.

highlighters current favourites

Here, I have five highlighters from my collection that I’ve been reaching for alot over the past while. I’ve done posts in the past on all of them so I’ll link them as I go. I just thought it would be good to dedicate one post so some of my very faves.

beauty blog

irish beauty blog

First up, we have the cheapest of the group.

sleek solstice palette

This is the Sleek Solstice Highlighting Palette. I am only adding one shade within it into my most used. The other three don’t really get much use. I have full swatches of the palette here. ‘Equinox’ is my shade of choice. It is a baked peachy champagne colour.

sleek makeup
irish beauty blogger

This is just a great all round colour. It is the most powdery formula of the bunch, but for the price point, it’s bloody lovely. Sleek,if you’re reading this, you should totally bring ‘Equinox’ out on it’s own!

My second choice in Mary-Lou Manizer by theBalm. This really is an infamous highlighter.

thebalm

I have an old post on this here. I’ve had Mary-Lou for nearly two years now and she is still going strong.

maryloumanizer
top irish beauty blog

It’s a light champagne colour that works for so many skin types and blends really nicely into the skin. At just over 20 quid it’s not quite budget or high end, but she’s worth every penny ๐Ÿ™‚

My third choice is the Urban Decay Afterglow Highlighter in ‘Sin’.

urban decay afterglow

When these first came out last year, I ran to Debenhams and picked one up. I am a bit of an Urban Decay fan girl! ‘Sin’ is like Mary Lou’s lighter sister.

urban decay
top irish beauty blog

The formula of these is so long lasting on my skin. This is nearly what makes me reach for it so much! I did a first impressions video on ‘Sin’ here when I first bought it. Not the best quality, but you can see me ramble out it more ๐Ÿ™‚

My fourth and fifth choices are both by Becca Cosmetics. Becca know how to formulate a good highlighter. The consistency is always super creamy and a dream to blend.

‘Champagne Pop’ doesn’t really need much introduction. If you are a makeup fan you will know all about it and probably own one yourself.

becca cosmetics

This was their first collaboration with Jaclyn Hill. It’s a gorgeous peach champagne colour. More deep in colour than ‘Equinox’.

becca champagne pop
beauty blog ireland

If I am being honest with myself it’s too deep for my skin tone, but I love it so much I wear it anyways. I just have to bronze up a little more. I have a really old blog showcasing it here. Excuse my eyebrows in it. They are awful ha!

My last fave is ‘Pearl’ from Becca. This is the newest highlighter in my collection but I think it’s the most complimentary out of all of them on my skin.

beauty blogger ireland

As the name would suggest is a white pearl colour. It swatches quite icy.

beauty blogger ireland
powder highlighters

But it does blend into a really lovely wearable shine. It’s honestly one of the best highlighters I have found for lighter skin tones. You can see it applied to the face here.

Here they are all swatched together for colour reference.

irish beauty site

What do you look for in a highlighter? Do you use one in your day to day makeup? Let me know ๐Ÿ™‚

xxx

 

I know it’s a tad early, but Christmas is only a few weeks away now. I am a big fan of Santy season, I’ll take any excuse to talk about it here on Beautynook ๐Ÿ™‚ I haven’t done a Get Ready With Me style video in a while so, I thought I would start the season off with a Festive Makeup GRWM ๐Ÿ™‚

festive makeup get ready with me

I reckon I can call it festive makeup because I added some Christmas music over it and used a bit of sparkle.

I did speed the video up, but I edited very little of it out, so this is my makeup pretty much from start to finish, just 4 times as fast. I was going out that night so I did apply a fair bit of slap, but sure we’re all makeup lovers here, right? ๐Ÿ™‚

beauty blog ireland
irish beauty blogger

Some of the main products I used were:

  • Dermalogica Hydra Blur Primer.
  • L’Oreal Infallible 24 HR Matte (full review here). Mixed with the L’Oreal True Match Foundation.
  • Nyx Micro Brow Pencil (full review here).
  • Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer with the Too Faced Born This Way one over top.
  • theBalm Put A Lid On It Eyeshadow Primer (review here).
  • WetnWild Dual Ended Contour Stick (Video on this here).
  • Too Faced Merry Macaron Palette.
  • Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette (Post on this here).
  • Fairydrops Scandal Queen Waterproof Mascara (Review here).
  • Hourglass Mood Exposure Blush. (You can see it swatched here).
  • theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer (Review here).
  • L’Oreal Infallible Fixing Mist. (Review here).

irish beauty blogbeauty blog ireland

Anything I missed and you are curious about, just ask ๐Ÿ™‚ As always, you can watch the video above by just clicking on it. Or head over to my YouTube channel here to watch my festive makeup get ready with me video there.

As always thanks for taking the time to click. I personally love watching these types of videos as well as making them myself.

Happy Christmas….countdown ๐Ÿ™‚

xxx