Mini Boots haul December 2nd

Today I indulged myself in a little bit of retail therapy, which I think is quite well deserved after a really hellish week last week. I had no intentions of buying anything. ... but Barry M had a special offer on, then there was a little sale basket when I got up to the till. Im only one woman, there's only so much I can resist.

My first little splurge was on a Barry M eyeshadow and nail polish, and because I spent over €9 I got a free special effects glitter polish worth €5.99 absolutely free!! The polish I bought is a lovely autumnal red, I love it. And the glitter goes on really thick and is really holographic on. The shadow is a lovely light bronze colour with a gorgeous shimmer.

So I went up to the till thinking I'd been really good only technically buying 2 things.... then the sale basket got me.... I got-

Seventeen Stay Time foundation €4
Seventeen Stay Pout (Date Night) €2
St Tropez Bronzing Mousse (500ml) €16.50

Whoops....... still though, I think I got some great bargains there!

Inglot glitter #59 glitter look

Last week I gleefully bought my first ever Inglot glitter pot on a trip to Blanchardstown shopping center. I've always been a bit skeptical about glitter as cleaning up the fallout, and plumping for the glue to keep it in place, just seemed like a lot of fuss.

The lovely GirlFriday, who's blog you can read  here encouraged me to buy the glitter but hold off on buying the Duo glue until I tried her little tip. Instead of glue, use a gel liner on your lid to keep the glitter in place! It works absolutely brilliantly!

To achieve this smokey eye glitter look I used Barry M Dazzle Dust in shade 98 to create a smokey eye. Then I used Seventeen Back Lash gel eyeliner to draw on a thick flick covering the entire eyelid. While the liner was still wet I used a flat eye shadow brush to dab on the glitter, patting it firmly in place as I went.

I was expecting there to be a huge amount of fallout as the glitter is so fine, and while there was some, not nearly as much as I thought there would be, and nothing that couldn't be brushed away with a powder brush.

I'll be wearing a toned down version of this,  with some killer lashes, for my birthday night out!

My lovely little mini haul- Wednesday 29th May

I stumbled into a bit of spare cash this week (thanks Tax back!) so I've been splurging left right and center. Today I well and truly treated myself, and damn near emptied my purse. I had gone into Superdrug because they were supposed to be getting an MUA delivery in and I had my eye on a primer and pallet, but they hadn't gotten around to putting the delivery out yet so I was FORCED to browse everything else in the shop..... poor me..... So, this is what I got....

Mini haul booty

Collection 2000 Primed and Ready smoothing primer- €7.75
Collection 2000 Shimmer Shades in Blushalicious- €5.35
NYC Smooth Skin pressed powder -€2.55
Barry M Brow Pen Liquid eyebrow pen- €6.45
*Hairspray Nail polish shade 662- €2.99

Superdrug have a 3 for 2 offer across all their cosmetics at the moment, so my blusher was free!! Also, the nail polish wasn't bought in Superdrug, but I am very impressed with it so it has to get a mention!

Primer- I love the feel of this on my skin, it makes it feel incredibly soft. It's late and I haven't had a chance to use this as a base yet, but it definitely does make my skin look a little less flawed, even without my regular foundation. I'll use it properly tomorrow and give a more precise review then!

Barry M Liquid eyebrow marker pen- Every now and then I spot something on a make up display that makes me absolutely loose my shit and go all fan girl in public. This was one of those things. I just think it's so clever! As a lot of people know, I'm an absolute demon for anything eyebrow, I'm obsessed! I was cheeky and had a go of the sample in Superdrug and I have to say...... Love it!! It's dark brown (that was the only shade Superdrug had, so im not even sure if it comes in any lighter shades) so suits me perfectly. It's quite similar to a felt tip eyeliner. I have found that certain eyebrow pencils/powders would rub off my glasses and leave marks above my brows. This hasn't budged, and I've been wearing sunglasses all day. This is definitely the gem in my splurges crown.

Hairspray nail polish- I love pastel polishes, they make me feel so summery and girly, but they can be an absolute nightmare at times. They can be so watery and sheer, and take 3-4 coats to get a good colour, so you have to dedicate quite a while to get your nails right. This is, without a doubt, the most opaque pastel polish I have ever used! In 1 coat it was perfectly lilac, the second coat wasn't strictly necessary. I've only really been typing (and sinking a sneaky drink) since i put in on so it's lasting time has yet to be determined, but i am definitely intrigued to try some of their other pastel polishes now!

Please ignore the dire state of my cuticles!

I've yet to use the other 2 products, but they'll get a thorough investigating tomorrow!

I'm trying something kinda new with my hair tomorrow, changing the colour and the style slightly, would anyone be interested in reading an account of it all?

Barry M lip gloss shade #201 Valentines

I got this lipgloss free when I bought 2 Dazzle Dusts a few weeks ago, and have gotten around to using it n the last week or so, and boy have I used it!! The colour is fantastic! Very vibrant, and a little goes a long way! There's a lovely gloss to it too, when it catches the light it's stunning! It's also fairly long lasting, I found myself touching it up every hour or so.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen this particular shade since, was it only a limited edition shade brought out for Valentines day? If it was, and you like red lips, then I'd try hunt this lipgloss down!

Barry M Dazzle Dust #98 Petrol Black

What would life be like without Dazzle Dust?.....It doesn't bare thinking about :(

I love dark eyeshadows, especially black, and ESPECIALLY when it has a little sparkle to it. This shadow is a very. very deep navy blue. It essentially black with a deep blue shimmer and a greenish glitter....and it's stunning!! I adore it!

As with all loose powder shadows, there was a little bit of spillage, but a lot less tan I expected!! This definitely gets my seal of approval!

Edit: After about 2 hours this shadow began to clump pretty badly in the crease of my eye, looked really unsightly :( Such a pity!

Barry M Lip paint, shade #146 Dolly pink

Another Barry M favourite! I adore pink lipstick, but most brands primarily do very tonal, natural looking pinks. No dice!! If i'm going o the bother of buying and wearing lipstick, everyone's gonna know I'm wearing lipstick!

After much deliberation, I opted for shade #146 'Dolly pink'. It looks a lot darker in he tube than it is on your lips, which was a tad disappointing. That said, it could never be described as a natural colour!

With flash:

Without flash:

As with shade #55, I found that after a few minutes  got clumping in he corner of my lips, but blotting sorted that out too!  The lipstick has a lovely gloss to it and felt nice and natural on my lips, nothing worse than sticky lippie! Next venture- Shocking Pink!!

Barry M Lip paint, shade #151

Barry M have been one of my favorite brands for lippie and eye shadows for as long I can remember. In my opinion they can't be beaten when it comes to their range of colours. Quality?....well, that's a different story!

I don't wear lipstick an awful lot, as I just find it too fussy. On a night out I'd rather be socialisng with friends that running in and out of the loo making sure my lipstick still looks good. With that said, I will openly admit that nothing can make you feel sexier that the right shade of lipstick!

Being a fan of more unusual colours, Barry M lipsticks have always appealed to me. The latest addition to my collection is shade #151. It's a beautiful orangey- coral colour that I fell in love with.

Being very, very pale I sometimes find it hard to get a lipstick shade that really suits me, but this one does. Barry M lipsticks have a tendency to be very chalky, particularly with the lighter shades, but this one was very moisturising and had a lovely shine to it.

I've worn this lippie numerous times already, and still haven't gotten tired of it! I did find that my first application tended to clump in the corners of my lips, but I fixed this by simply blotting, then applying a second coat. For just over €6 I'll be a Barry M lippie devotee for a long time to come.