Another mini haul...

I was recently shopping again, (I have a problem) and I decided to pick up a few bits from Boots.. (They seriously need me as a representative or something at this stage!) and also from Penneys/Primark.

Real Techniques Core Collection: I have been wanting to pick this product up for an absolute age! I already own the Real Techniques stippling brush and I love it. It applies my foundation perfectly and its just amazing overall. After watching Pixiwoos videos (for about two or three years now) I was delighted when Samantha launched her own brush range. I just knew they had to be good. Watching Sam and Nic's tutorials made me crave the buffing brush. Whenever they would use this brush to apply their foundation they would look flawless. I needed this in my life. I had spotted the core collection (a collection of base brushes) months ago but I could not justify the €28.99 price tag. In the end though I decided to bite the bullet and just go for it. I am so glad I did. I have only tried the buffing brush and the contour brush that comes with the kit and I adore both of them.(It also comes with a detailer brush for concealer or lipstick and a flat foundation brush) The contour brush is perfect for getting really sculpted cheeks, something I love doing. The buffing brush also lives up to my expectations of being perfect. I can honestly say that I would highly recommend this kit especially to anyone who is starting out in makeup as there is also an eye kit you can pick up for around the same price.

Rimmel Wake me up Foundation: I was on the hunt for a darker foundation as I have been wanting to start tanning like a mad yoke! As I am so fair my regular foundation just would not do. I have heard great reviews about this foundation from people such as Zoe (Zoella) and Tanya (Pixi2woo). They both love this foundation and claim it makes their skin look amazing (which it does) so I decided it would be a great one to try out. It cost around €9.95 I believe in my Boots and the only downside would be the colour range. There was literally four shades for me to choose from. In the end though I picked the shade "True Ivory" which looks as though it will match me once I am tanned. One other thing I am slightly worried about is I detect it has some light shimmer in it, which would be the reason it makes you all glowy and nice, but as I have combination skin I am worried it might make me look oily.. Never a great look. Once I have started using it more I will have a better, more in depth review for you all.

Essence Waterproof Liquid Liner/Catrice Waterproof Liquid Liner: OMG. Amazing. I think both of these cost me around €1.49 in Penneys and my god they are fab! Such amazing quality for so little cash! Both liners are black, waterproof liquid liners. Liquid liner is my favourite to use as I have oily eyelids and it does not smudge or move on me unlike gel liners. These liners are super waterproof and I still have a small amount left on my hand three days after swatching them! (Yes I wash.)They are just that good. Up until I had discovered these liners, the L'Oreal Linear Intense liner was my all-time fave. That retails for about €9, and the nib is also quite flimsy compared to these two. I usually end up messing my liner because I find the nib too long on the L'Oreal one but the Catrice and essence ones have shorter, stiffer tips which are perfect for creating that cat eye effect. Amazing!

Essence Long Lasting Eye Pencils: I have an addiction to anything turquoise or blue. I love it. When I spotted these two Essence Pencil liners I just had to have them. I swatched them in the store and I thought that they were really pigmented for again, around €1.49. The two shades I picked up were 17 Tu Tu Turquoise and 09 Cool Down. I have not tried them on my eyes yet but I will add in a picture of the swatches down below.

Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipsticks

One of my favorite makeup items has to be lipstick. I adore the stuff. Mac, Revlon, Sleek any brand of lipstick will catch my eye and I will have to try it. I recently stumbled upon these Kate Moss for Rimmel lipsticks on one of many ventures to Boots. (I should be their mascot at this stage). I had heard some great things about these lipsticks from reading other blogs or watching reviews online. So, naturally, I was interested. There are nine shades in this collection but the first two I picked up were 05 and 20.

05 is the most natural of the three colors I own. Its what I would describe as a cherry pink colour. Its super pigmented as you can see from the swatches above. 20 is a bright fuschia pink which I love wearing on nights out if I don't feel like going to heavy on my eyes. Again this is a very pigmented lipstick. 04 has to be my favorite out of all three. It is a dark plum color, very vampy and very on trend at the moment. I don't actually follow trends and when I find one I like I usually wear it until I move onto something new. Vampy lips has to be one of my all time faves. I find these dark colours to be more flattering on my skin tone as I am very fair.

As you can see from the swatches, all three are pigmented. They are also not matte, but not too glossy either. None of these have any shimmer in them, which is a plus for me as I hate shimmery lipsticks. They retail in Boots for around €7 which I think is bargainous considering the quality. They are also €11 cheaper than a MAC lipstick. BARGAIN. Rimmel also have other Kate Moss lipsticks in red packaging. These are matte lipsticks which I have yet to try.

So if you find yourself wandering around your local pharmacy/drugstore (or boots in my case)pick up one of these lipsticks and I guarantee you will not be dissapointed.

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation

Have you ever tried a foundation that you just absolutely love? Me neither, until I found this one! I had never read or seen any reviews of this foundation but when I was living in Galway I spotted this in Boots. I was mostly excited when I discovered it came in a super pale shade, which you may or may not know I am super fair. Snow White has nothing on me. I was interested to see would it match my skin tone so I purchased it. It retails for around €9.95 in boots, which I think is actually quite reasonably. A little goes a long way with this foundation.

So after I had purchased this foundation (it cost me nothing, thank you boots advantage card!)I immediately went home to try it out. I purchased it in the shade Light Porcelain. At the time I was using the MAC Matchmaster foundation in number one I believe, and I thought that it matched me pretty well, until this. I am much paler than an nc15 from MAC so I found it hard to get any foundations from them that matched well. MAC make very yellow foundations and should consider making them in paler shades as I love their formulas.

I was pleasantly surprised when this actually matched me amazingly. I tested it using a mirror in front of a window and you literally could not see it on my skin. Brilliant! Its a very light foundation as you might be able to tell from the swatch (I pumped out a little too much..) but you can build it up. I don't find this foundation to be heavy at all. I have combination skin and this does work well on me although I would not recommend this for people with oily skin as it is very dewy. I am usually not a fan of dewy skin and much prefer a matte finish but lately I feel dewy skin makes me look less dead. Always a good thing!

So, if like me you are super pale or even if you aren't, I highly suggest you hot foot it to Boots and try this out! You will not be disappointed.