Sleek Face Contour Kit in Fair v Urban Decay Naked Flush Palette

 Sleek Face Contour Kit in Fair (£9.99) v Urban Decay Naked Flush Palette (£20)

Lately the make up world has been all about the contour.  I blame the Kardashians, Kim in particular, for making us feel completely insignificant for not having chiseled cheeks and bright brow bones.  Although the look may be hard to perfect, there are some great products on the market which can help us along our way.  These Urban Decay and Sleek palettes for example are basically a ‘contour in a kit’ and contain most of what we need to give it a go.  But which one do I like more?  I don’t need both...that’s for sure.

Urban Decay are trying to replicate the success of their Naked eyeshadow palettes with their offering: the Naked Flush palette.  The kit contains a bronzer, blusher and highlighter.  I like how the products are proportioned in the palette.  You get more bronzer than you would highlighter as you obviously use this product on a larger area of your face.  With the Sleek palette you get equal amounts of each and I can see me running out of the blush much quicker that I do the highlighter.  The Urban Decay blush is a vibrant pink which only needs a very small amount on the brush.  It blends in well but can be a little bright if you apply too much.  I’m not a fan of the highlighter in this trio.  I find it’s a little too pink toned and although it does look lovely over the blusher, it’s hard to blend into the rest of your face.  It’s not the right shade for my brown bone and I wouldn’t even attempt to add it down the centre of my nose (another prime highlighting point).

Sleek’s highlighter is a lot more face friendly and I find myself adding this everywhere on my face, including my cupids bow.  The bronzing powder is a beautiful matte brown shade and perfect for blending in the hollows of my cheeks to make my cheekbones stand out.  It suits my skin tone and doesn’t have any orangey tones unlike the Urban Decay bronzer which is more suitably used as a bronzing powder rather than a contour.  I love Sleek’s packaging too.  It’s really...well...sleek, and I love how each of the powders are in their own pans so they won’t smudge together and look messy.

If you haven’t guessed by now the Sleek palette is definitely my favourite.  It’s half the price yet does a better job of shaping, highlighting and accentuating my face.  It also contains the Rose Gold blush which is one of their most popular blushers and looks beautiful on most skin shades.  I think I’m in love! The Urban Decay is a nice palette however I think it only really works on my cheeks and doesn’t give the full contoured effect that I’m going for.

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Butter London Nail Foundation Flawless Base Coat

 Butter London Nail Foundation Flawless Base Coat (£15)

I was intrigued when I came across this nail care product from Butter London.  Foundation?  For your nails?  I was well and truly bemused.  Upon further investigation I found it was in fact a base coat.  Designed to prep and prime your nails for any colour and texture, this nude coloured formula gives a matte finish which enables your polish to glide on effortlessly.  

The bottle says you can wear this alone but it’s a little too sheer for my liking.  I prefer my nails to look a little more ‘done’ whereas this gives a natural look with a dull shine and barely any colour coverage.  It’s such a good idea to compare the product foundation as it essentially does the same job, just not on your face.

My manicure lasts a lot longer when I use this base coat, which is now religiously as I won’t paint my nails without it.  I’ve not experienced any discolouration or stains since using it and I’ve put a lot of deep, dark colours to the test.  Even my navy blue didn’t stand a chance.  I am very impressed. 

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Something Kinda Cloughton | 50 Facts About Me

I’ve been writing my blog for a while now and it dawned on me that I’ve never really done a personal type of post.  I just jumped straight in there and started reviewing products and rambling about beauty without giving any of you an introduction.  I thought the 50 Facts About Me tag would be an ideal way for you to learn a little more about me :) only if you want to of course, if not then don’t worry, it’s back to business with a beauty post tomorrow.

1.  I’ve just turned 24 but people often think I look a lot younger.  Thank you baby-face!

2.  I live in a small town in the North East of England.  It’s nothing special but it’s home.

3.  When I was a baby I was obsessed with the theme tune from Neighbours!  When it came on the TV I would stop whatever I was doing, whether it be eating, sleeping, playing and would stare at the screen in awe whilst I swayed backwards and forwards to the tune.

4.  Diet Coke is my favourite drink.  I drink it at least once a day.

5.  I’m a brown eyed girl.

6.  I’m also a shorty at only 5ft 3inches tall.

7.  My greatest fear/borderline phobia is of sharks.  I know it’s silly as I will probably never see one in my lifetime but I can’t watch them on TV or look at pictures of them without feeling sick to the stomach.  It’s made me scared of open water and I never go in the sea when I’m on holiday.  I even get a little panicky when I’m out of my depth in the swimming pool.

8.  Speaking of swimming, it’s not one of my strong points.  I had classes when I was younger but passed all of my tests by doing backstroke as I found it easiest.

9.  Being on my own makes me sad :( I’m much more myself when I’m around the people I love.

10.  I’m a movie fanatic!  I love going to the cinema to see the latest blockbusters and curling up with a pile of movies on a rainy day.  My favourite film is Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  I could watch it again and again.

11.  As you might have guessed, Audrey Hepburn is my idol.  I hope that doesn’t sounds too cliche as I know a lot of people love her but she is just perfect.  She was beautiful inside and out and truly a Hollywood great.

12.  My hangover cure is curry!

13.  I have no sense of smell.  Absolutely none whatsoever!  Yes I miss out on all of those disgusting horrible smells but it also means I’ve never smelt nice things like body creams and scented candles :(

14.  When I was growing up I used to say I wanted to be a lawyer...oh how things have changed!

15.  My favourite colour in the whole wide world is green.

16.  I love singing even though I can’t hold a note.  I always find myself singing when I’m really happy :) 

17.  I was Head Girl in Secondary School.  Geek chic! 

  

18.  I have a pet parrot.  She’s a Green-cheeked Conure called Verde (told you I was obsessed with green!)  She’s a little diva and can be a bit naughty but I wouldn’t change her for the world.   

19.  Travelling is one of my favourite things.  There’s so many places in the world I want to go.

20.  Disney is my obsession.  I’m still seven at heart <3     

21.  I like rainy days...even when I have to go outside.

22.  When I want to properly relax I read a good book.  I love escaping to another world.

23.  I’m more about shoes than bags.  Give me some Loubs over a Mulberry any day.

24.  My favourite topics in school were French and English.

25.  Zac Efron is my celeb crush.  He’s a total babe.

26.  Good friends are so important to me.  I would do anything for my friends and know they would do the same for me.

27.  My birthday is the 27th September - pop it in your diary because I'm big on birthdays ;)

28.  I’m fond of inspiring quotes.  I lose hours looking through the quote section on Pinterest.

29.  Lazy is my middle name.  I could lay in bed all day if I didn’t have anything else to get up for.

30.  Buying cute notebooks makes me happy but I don’t enjoy writing in them as I hate my handwriting.

31.  I like to think I give quite good advice.  How do I become an agony aunt?

32.  I have the worst taste in music.  I’m still stuck in the nineties.

33.  In school plays I was always the narrator because I was good at reading but longed to have a part where I wore a cool costume.

34.  I have an addictive personality hence the reason why I haven’t downloaded Candy Crush.

35.  I get extremely nostalgic about decades gone by.  I often think to myself “what would I be like if I lived in the forties?”

36.  Girl Power is extremely important to me.  I’m all about equal rights for both men and women.  See, the Spice Girls did learn us a lot!

37.  My heart hurts for anyone who is less fortunate than me.  Sometimes I can’t watch the news because it just makes me feel so sad.

38.  Christmas is what makes me happiest.  Prepare to see a very hyperactive Gemma over the next couple of months.

39.  Bad customer service really winds me up.  I can’t just drop it either...I have to complain, much to my boyfriend’s embarrassment.

40.  Dressing up is one of my favourite things to do.  In recent years I’ve been a brownie, a Grecian Goddess, Ariel from The Little Mermaid, Tinkerbell, the Black Swan...and many more.

41.  My favourite cocktail is a cosmopolitan.

42.  I hate exercise.  I know that sounds so unhealthy but I just don’t get that ‘gym buzz’ that others do.

43.  I can’t name my favourite food because I like so much.

44.  Topshop, ASOS and Primark are my go-to places to shop.

45.  The proudest day of my life to date was graduating from university.  I felt such a sense of achievement.

46.  I have size five feet!

47.  My boyfriend knows me so well.  He could probably write 100 facts about me!

48.  I’ve only ever suffered from one broken bone, my collar bone, and ouch it hurt!

49.  I always have the most craziest, vidid dreams and I have to research them the next day.

50.  Cuddles are my favourite.  Nothing makes you feel warmer inside if you ask me.    

Okay so that was actually harder than I thought it would be but I got there in the end!  If you’re still reading then thank you!  I hope you all enjoyed it.  If you’ve done a ‘facts’ post then link it below because I’d love to read a little more about you guys too.

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Shu Uemura Depsea Water

 Shu Uemura Depsea Water (£16.50)

I previously didn’t own anything by Shu Uemura - not even their holy grail eyelash curler which so many people rave about.  I didn’t realise they had a skin care range (bad beauty blogger alert) but when I saw their Depsea Water I was immediately attracted to it.  Although this comes in many different fragrances, such as rose and lavender, I went for the mint scent because I love anything fresh and invigorating.  I really liked the colour too which looks exactly how I imagine the water to look at the the bottom of the deep sea.

Let’s not beat about the bush: this is simply scented water for your face.  I don’t think it has any real skin benefits other than a quick zap of hydration and it’s definitely not a life changing product.  However, if you do like a little bit of luxury in your skincare routine this would be a nice addition.  I tend to use it as soon as I get out of bed on a morning to help me wake up and it was a life saver during those hot Summer days as it feels very cooling on the skin.  

I was rather disappointed with the smell though as the scent of mint doesn’t really come through at all.  The size of the bottle is rather large so it’s not very handbag friendly and I also think the spray nozzle can be a little overpowering, soaking your face at times rather than giving you a light mist.  I really do like the idea of facial spritzes but I think there are better ones on the market than this one.  For example, the Simple Moisture Boost Hydro Mist is a fraction of the price and does a better job in my opinion.  Sorry Shu but I’m just not won over with this one.

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Manicure Monday 4: Revlon Nail Enamel in Vixen

Revlon Nail Enamel in Vixen (£6.49)

This week I've opted for something simple but a gorgeous colour nonetheless.  Vixen by Revlon is a deep dark brown/berry shade and I love the way it looks on my short nails.  It adds a touch of class and makes me feel very sophisticated when wearing it.

I feel it's perfect for these blustery Autumn days we are having and would look beautiful against a cream woolen jumper and a couple of gold midi rings.  As the colour is so dark it can be really unforgiving if you aren't careful with the brush.  Nobody likes a messy paint job so remember to give yourself extra time when using darker shades or better yet, book yourself into a salon for a professional mani.  There's the perfect excuse for a pamper right there!

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Wig Wam Bam

 Dress - ASOS | Shoes - ASOS | Necklace - Primark | Bag - Faith

My hangover is killing me right now.  Urgh!  I wouldn’t usually post if I was feeling like this but my Blogtober promise to myself has forced me to pull myself around and get behind the keyboard.  This is the outfit I wore last night for my friend’s engagement party.  I do not resemble the girl in these photographs right now.  My hair is matted, my eyes bleary and I’ve not moved from the comfort of my bed all day.  Why do I do it to myself?

Despite my whinging I did have a really good night and it was totally worth me feeling this way.  Looking back at this outfit I think I may have been unintentionally inspired by Kim Kardashian.  A figure-flattering peplum style dress teamed with a pair of dainty strapped sandals is usually her signature look and although she sometimes has a few fashion faux pas, I think she always looks good.  If only I had her booty and her make up artist too - my life would be complete.

My dress was a steal from ASOS at only £16.50.  Go and put it in your basket now.   I bought in in navy too because it was such a good deal and I think it will be really nice to wear for work.  My shoes are from ASOS too as it’s one of my favourite places to shop.  

And now I have to go because a naughty Indian takeaway and a night in front of the TV is calling my name.  I suppose there are some advantages to being hungover.  Enjoy the rest of the weekend girls and guys.  See you tomorrow for Manicure Monday.

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What I Bought: The Beauty Edition

I've done quite a bit of shopping lately so thought I'd do my first ever haul post to show you what I've been buying.  This haul is beauty related but I've bought myself some new threads too so I'm going to do a separate post for my fashion related purchases.  I've accumulated this stuff over the last couple of weeks so I don't feel too bad when I think about how much I've spent.  Wouldn't it be lovely if I could afford a haul like this every week though?  A girl can dream!  So without further ado, here are the products that have made it into my beauty basket lately...

Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm (£21):  Oh look!  Another skin care purchase inspired by Caroline Hirons!  My purse is begging me to stop reading her blog.  This melting make up remover is one of her firm favourites and is a lot cheaper than the popular Emma Hardy Cleansing Balm which does the same sort of job.  I've used this a couple of times so far and love it already but need to use it a little more before I give you guys a full review.

Ciaté Emerald Collection (£25):  I actually got this amazing kit as a birthday gift from my friend Tonya.  She knows me so well.  Not quite a purchase of my own but I just had to include it because it’s so beautiful.  The kit includes an array of sprinkles, sparkles and fluff to create three different textured nail art looks.  I find myself in a trance-like state whenever I look at the glitter pot!  It's just so pretty...I can't wait to dip my nails in.  I've never seen anything like the velvet effect before so I'm rather intrigued with how that works.  Green is my favourite colour so this set is simply heaven for me.  It's like I've died and gone to the Emerald City.

Primark Face Cloths (£1.50):  To some, these flannels may be basic, boring and Nana-like but to me they are a godsend!  I use them on a daily basis to cleanse my face and remove my make up and they're a great little accompaniment to my new cleansing balm.  At £1.50 they're a steal!

Primark Plastic Travel Bottles (£1):  Another boring but practical purchase.  I'm going away for the weekend at the end of this month and have been warned in advance that I need to pack light.  These travel sized bottles were just £1 from Primark and are going to help me on my quest to take less products with me.  Now if only there was an easy solution for my shoes...

Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara (£12):  How cute is this?  This teeny tiny mascara is designed especially for your bottom eyelashes.  The minuscule brush is perfect for getting into the hard to reach inner corners of your eye and is great for avoiding those pesky mascara smudges.  Is it a necessity?  No.  But I was swayed by an offer on the Boots' website and thought it wouldn’t hurt to try.  I’ll review it for you soon.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer (£3.99):  I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve repurchased this.  It’s the only concealer I use and I’m not about to start changing it anytime soon.  The consistency is thick and creamy and the coverage is amazing.  Spots, redness, eye-bags...you name it, this covers it.  If there’s one thing I recommend you try it’s this.

Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask (£22):  I think this is the product I was most excited about buying.  After hearing so many rave reviews about how it transforms your skin I knew I had to try it for myself.  Leave this mask on your face overnight and your skin will literally drink up the moisture.  The next day my face felt hydrated and looked brighter than it had in a long time.  I am really impressed!

And that includes my beauty haul!  What do you think?  Any treats in there that you would like to purchase yourself?  Or is there anything you’d recommend I buy next?  I know I shouldn’t considering my recent beauty binge but I really don’t care.  A girl can’t have too many products in my opinion ;)

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