5 products, 5 minutes

I'm sure we all have those mornings where for whatever reason we've left ourselves five minutes to do our make up. Whether you've over slept, have some last-minute plans, or just simply can't be bothered to do a full face of make up, we've all been there.  For me, most days, it's the latter.  I just can't bring myself to go all out with my make up when I'm going to work for various reasons, but put simply I don't see the point; anyone who's worked in a busy kitchen/restaurant/cafe will completely understand! That said, I still like to make a bit of an effort to look a little bit human, and I'm proud to say I've got my "work face" routine whittled down to just 5 products, all applied within just 5 minutes

A recent discovery for me is the Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation.  I've heard a lot of people complain that the shade range of Boujois isn't the best, and while there certainly isn't a great deal of shades, I'm one of the lucky ones as this is a pretty good match for my skin tone.  I'd say this foundation is leaning towards medium coverage, but it's very light weight and doesn't feel at all like you're wearing a mask.  It's quick and easy to blend into the skin, and doesn't accentuate any dry patches.  Concealer is a must for me, especially when I have a dreaded 7am start.  My trusty Collection concealer does a good job of minimising my dark circles; I've lost count of how many tubes of this I've gone through. I love it. I just wish they'd sort the packaging out; I hate how all the writing wears off after about a week!  Next up is a quick sweep of blusher to add a bit of much needed colour to my cheeks.  At the moment, I'm really liking this one by Boujois, but to be honest I just usually grab whichever one's closest! Almost done now, but not before a bit of bronzer.  I tend not to do any real contouring, I just sweep a light dusting all over, maybe concentrating slightly more under my cheek bones, nothing to drastic though, just enough to add a little shape.  Last but not least, mascara.  At the moment, I'm really enjoying the L'Oreal Miss Manga mascara.  I'd read mixed reviews on this, but decided to bite the bullet and give it a go, and I'm really pleased I did.

So that's my 5 minute face routine.  If I had a bit more time, I'd definitely do my eyebrows.  I'll occasionally use a bit of brow gel on them but for the most part I don't bother for work. Things like highlighter, eyeshadow and primer, I save for my days off.  This way, I know I'll look a bit different, and certainly feel that little bit more (dare I say?) glamorous on the days I've escaped from the madhouse that is work!

Handbag Makeup

I've never been one for carrying that much make up around with me on a day to day basis. For the longest time, it was simply my lipstick of choice.  These days I do tend to carry slightly more around with me, although if I'm honest I don't touch up my make up all that much while I'm out and about, but I guess it's good to know I have a few essentials handy in case I do need them.

I've mentioned this concealer and powder many times before, and pretty much every blogger has raved about one, or both, of these.  The Soap & Glory One Heck of a Blot powder is one of the best powders I've used, and is the only one that doesn't go cakey on me.  Similarly, Collection's Lasting Perfection is my all time favourite concealer.  I don't feel the need to carry foundation around with me, these two are all I need to cope with any blemishes that may appear during the day.  I also carry my Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray which is great for refreshing the skin, and giving an instant pick me up.  As you can see, I have a number of lip products; I tend to just throw in whatever I'm wearing that day and don't take them back out again so there's always a bit of a collection in there.  I'm loving Benetint by Benefit at the moment.  I use it mainly as a lip stain, so don't really need to apply it to my lips again, but I may use it on my cheeks if my blusher starts to fade.  This miniature bottle is perfect for carrying around and I really wish you could buy them separately.  I also have a Revlon Lip Butter  (Berry Smoothie) and a L'Oreal Rouge Caresse (Aphrodite Scarlet) as well as a Maybelline Baby Lips (Cherry Velvet) which I like to layer over the Benetint.  Lastly for make up is an Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Bourbon which I use mainly on my lower lash line. Apart from my Real Techniques Powder Brush, the only other thing I carry is my Travalo which at the moment contains my current favourite perfume; Viva La Juicy, La Fleur.  It's much easier and safer than carrying around a full size perfume bottle and I keep meaning to get a couple more for all my different perfumes.

I used to just have all these bits floating around the bottom of my bag, until I came across this little makeup bag while having a bit of a clear out.  It was one I got free from Clinique when I bought some skincare items a couple of years ago.  It's the perfect size for throwing in my handbag and keeps all my little bits and bobs in one place.  I absolutely love the colours and the print, and it's a wipe-clean too so there's no need to worry about getting make-up marks all over it! 

What makeup do you tend to carry around with you?

Skincare Update

I'm sure I've mentioned that I'm currently overhauling my skincare routine, and after making a few more additions today, I thought I'd give you all a sneek peek into what I'm using at the moment while it's looking all tidy in its new storage which I picked up from TKMaxx for £9.99. They do briliant storage bits I've discovered, it took me forever to decided which basket to pick up and I'll be going back for more I'm sure!

 

As you can see, I've built up a bit of a collection! I've a fair few cleansers on the go; I've been using the No7 hot cloth cleanser for a few years now and I'm still in love with it. The other No7 cleanser is the melting gel cleanser which is a bit of a dupe for the Clarins gel cleanser. I'll be reviewing this soon so keep an eye out for that.  My trusty L'Oreal micellar water is tucked in at the back there and we also have my Champneys cleansing balm, which I am yet to try out. It's supposed to be very exfoliating so I'm looking forward to giving that a go shortly.  Lastly for cleansers, there's my newest addition, the Clinique cleansing balm.

My face scrub of choice is again from No7 and is another product I've bought mulitple times. I use this about twice a week but this may change with the addition of the Champneys balm.  I have the Una Brennan tea tree mask which I turn to if my pores are a bit clogged, and I've just bought the Origins overnight mask for use when my skin is feeling dry.There's also my Sanctuary toner which I reviewed here so I won't go into detail about that, and my No7 day and night creams. Lastly I'm currently using two eye creams, yet another product from No7, as well as my new Origins GinZing eye cream.

I also stocked up on some flannels while in Primark.  I followed the rather amazing Caroline Hirons' advice regarding cleansing and got myself enough for each day, with a couple of spares. If you've not checked out her blog, then I highly reccommend you do if you have any skincare queries. Like I've said, some of these products I'm yet to try out.  I don't like to overload my skin with too many new things at once, I'd much rather introduce things gradually, see if they work for me, then add something else in at a later date. 

Obviously the little Rhino isn't part of my routine, I just thought he looked cute perched on top of my flannels! And yes, that's me in the photo, I'm the one in the grey and pink dress in case you were wondering!

What's in my Overnight Beauty Bag?

My boyfriend and I recently went away for the evening, nowhere far, just out for a nice meal then stayed over in a hotel.  He's in the Army and is currently on leave, and since we don't get very much time together, we thought it'd be nice just to have a little alone time, with just us and no interruptions.

The bag itself came with a No7 Christmas gift set a  good few years ago now, but it is one of my favourite toiletries bags, and trust me, I have a few! I love the colour, and the pattern inside, and also the two sections inside are clear so you can see exactly where everything is.

As I had to work the day we were due to go, a hair wash when we arrived was essential! I used my mini Organix shampoo and conditioner, which I'm a big fan of.  I like how they're a bit bigger than the usual travel size shampoos you get, so they last much longer. The spray bottle you can see contains some of my Amargan protect and shine spray, and I finished off my hair with my Lee Stafford Argan Oil serum. For shower gel I opted for The Body Shop's Satsuma body wash.  This stuff smells amazing! The scent really lingers in the bathroom afterwards too.  I also took the accompanying body butter in Jolly Orange

For skincare, I took my trusty L'Oreal Micellar Water. I didn't bother decanting this into anything smaller as although the bottle is quite large, it's a pretty compact shape. It also tones which is one less thing to take. The miniature Benefit face wash is pretty much empty, and the moisturiser now contains my usual No7 day cream. I was a bit naughty and didn't take any night cream. I had nothing to decant my usual one into, so decided that for one night, I'd just use the day cream again.

I based the makeup on my five minute face look I blogged about not too long ago, but added a few bits to make it more of an evening look.  The Benefit primer is a relatively new purchase, and I'm still making my mind up as to what I think of it. I changed the foundation to my Chanel Vita Lumiere Aqua, as it's more of a compact size for travelling.  I usually prefer a bit more coverage for an evening, but with the primer it was fine.  I kept cheeks and lips the same, but took a few extra bits to define my eyes, including my Benefit Brow-Zings palette.  For eye shadow I used my Soap and Glory palette in 'What's Nude' which is a really handy size for travelling, and lined my eyes with a Maybelline felt tip liner.  I also took my mini They're Real mascara by Benefit.  Lastly the nail varnish you see is from Accessorize and is called Amethyst.  This was already on my toes and just took it to go over any chips as I was wearing sandals, which is a bit lazy but we've all done it I'm sure...!

It does seem a lot to take for just the one night, but I really don't know how I could condense it further.  This little lot could probably last for a longer trip too, but like everyone else, the longer the trip, the more makeup I pack!

Colours of the Rainbow Tag!

I haven't actually been tagged by anyone to do this tag, but after watching so many videos and reading lots of blog posts about it, I felt inspired to do it myself.  It was actually harder than I thought it would be; I seemd to have lots of things of one colour (purple nail varnishes, I'm looking at you!) but then some colours (green!)  I struggled with.  I've tried to get a variety of products though and think I've done pretty well!

RED

Urban Decay Super-Saturated Lip Colour in 'F-Bomb'

I don't own many red lip colours but with this being one of them, I don't feel the need for any more.  It's a bright medium-dark red with just a hint of shimmer and a lovely glossy finish. I bought this to wear for a masquerade party, and teamed it with a blue dress and gold accessories and I loved the way the whole look came together.  It's really long lasting and I keep meaning to pick up another one of these in a more wearable colour.

ORANGE

Real Techniques Buffing Brush

I don't need to say too much about this brush do I?! It does a brilliant job with pretty much every foundation I've used it with and is so soft.  Best foundation brush I've ever used! When my original one started shedding, as if the hairs hadn't been glued in properly, I contacted Real Techniques who sent me another one straight away for free! Amazing service too!

YELLOW

Lush Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter

A bit of a cult product this one.  A brilliant multi-tasker that not only soften cuticles but is great for dry skin on your elbows, knees, feet, pretty much anywhere! My only gripe is that you get TOO MUCH product.  You generally get a year-18months of this before it goes 'off' and starts to smell funny. I've thrown out only half empty pots because of this. I'd rather pay the same amount but get less than waste so much of it that someone else could have used.

GREEN

Benefit Porefessional

I've seen this mentioned for both green and blue and since I can't find anything else for green, I'm putting it here! Recently I've found my pores to be quite enlarged on my forehead and sides of my nose.  I find a small amount of this over those areas helps disguise them and allows for a smoother application of foundation.  This is a mini size that came with a birthday gift set.

BLUE

L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes Mascara, Waterproof

I tend to stay away from waterproof mascaras for the simple reason that they're too much effort to remove. Lazy I know, but I hate the way I have to tug at my eyes to get it all off at the end of the day.  I recently broke this rule as I was to be a bridesmaid for my cousin and I knew there'd be tears.  After deliberating in Boots for ages, I decided on this one and I'm flipping glad I did! It gave a nice amount of volume to my lashes, and separated them brilliantly. And it stayed put all day!

INDIGO

Tangle Teezer

I held off getting one of these for so long and now I have two! This one stays on my dressing table as I'm worried the teeth will get damaged in my bag.  It's more gentle than any other brush I've used and I love how it can be used on wet or dry hair.  My hair is pretty long and tangles easily but this brush sorts it out no bother.  It feels weird using a regular brush now.  I also have one of the compact ones with the 'lid' which I keep in my handbag.

VIOLET

Travelo Perfume Atomiser

Such a simple concept put an absolute life saver when it comes to carrying your favourite scent around.  There's not a great deal to say about these; their compact, light as a feather and super easy to refill. They are a little pricey (I think the RRP is around the £11 mark) but they can often be found cheaper on various discount websites. Mine contains my Stella perfume, and I'm tempted to buy a couple more for my other perfumes too.

PINK

Benefit Bella Bamba

I love Benefit's boxed powders and this one is no exception.  Bella Bamba is a gorgeous pink colour, and is Benefit's only '3D effect' blush, which apparently just means it brightens, sculpts, and defines. I have a good selection of Benefit's blushers and this is by far the most pigmented. However it's really blendable so it can be easily corrected if you overdo it a bit.

MULTICOLOURED

Camden Lock, Nails Inc Graffiti

I was tempted to use a nail varnish for so many colours, but wanted to keep a bit of variety so I've saved it til the end.  This, as the name suggest, was part of the Graffiti collection by Nails Inc that was out late last year.  This is easily the most colourful of the set and contains different shapes and sizes of red, green, blue silver and gold glitter.  This makes a brilliant topcoat and would look great over pretty much any colour.  I prefer to use a pastel shade for a slightly more subtle look.

Have you done the Colours of the Rainbow Tag? Link me your blogspots and videos below and I'll be sure to check them out! If you're reading this and haven't done the tag then I tag you!! :)