FOTD: Playing With New Makeup

Makeup Look: Glossy Highlights

This makeup trend is all about wearing minimal makeup with some serious sheen - accentuating the high points of your face but also adding luminosity to areas that you might normally ignore. I already love adding highlighter to my cheekbones and cupid's bow but don't be afraid to really accentuate the inner corners of your eyes and your brow bone. 

Make your cheekbones glow

My favourite highlighters nearly always have a liquid or cream consistency. I generally find that they're easier to blend into the skin and give a glow rather than glitter or shimmer. My favourite highlighter at the moment is RMS' Living Luminizer, it is quite subtle but it leaves my skin looking oh so radiant. When I want something slightly more golden in tone I reach for MeMeMe's Beat the Blues in Sunbeam, it reminds me of Benefit's Moonbeam. It's formula is really easy to work with and blends seamlessly into the skin giving an amazing glow. 

Don't forget your eyes

Add some highlighter to the inner corner of your eyes and gently blend it into your skin to give the corner of your eyes a real glow. If you're already a fan of this look then try something a little bit different - blend a thicker cream highlighter like Catrice's Made to Stay Highlighter Pen, or a powder highlighter like Beauty UK's Baked Blush in Halo, along your upper or lower lash line. Just add a touch of mascara and some matte eyeshadow to your crease and you're done. If you're feeling brave (especially if you don't already have oily eyelids) add some highlighter to your lids and rock a sheer glow.

Lift those brows 

Many people already highlight their brow bone (the area underneath their eyebrows) as it gives the appearance of lifting the brow. Swap out powders for a cream or liquid highlighter - another great option is L'Oreal's Lumi Magique Primer - and blend the product into your skin but make sure you leave it looking glossy. To really accentuate your brows add some highlighter to the upper-outer brow area, blending from the eyebrow outwards.

Wearable ways to work the trend

You might think that this is all well and good but can you actually wear it out of the house. If you'd like to give a very subtle nod to trend then here's how. Swap out the liquid and cream highlighters for a less glossy highlighter such as L'Oreal's Lumi Magique Highlighting Concealer and apply it everywhere listed above - cheekbones, inner eye, lash line and around your brows. You'll be left with brighter, highlighted skin but without the sheen - it'll be wearable enough for work. 

Makeup Look: Wearable Metallics

I had my first mince pie last week and it completely switched on my Christmas spirit - and it's having an effect on my make-up bag. I've been really enjoying playing around with metallics, which are actually tipped to be a big spring/summer beauty trend. That being said, I still want a finished look that's wearable so I've been finding easy and subtle ways to update my look. It would be really easy for you to get on board with this trend too, you'd just need to swap out one of your existing makeup products for something with a bit of frost to it.

Lips

My two lip picks for this trend are Catrice's Ultimate Shine Lipstick in Good Nudes which is a warm, incredibly frosty, bronzed-nude. It's surprisingly pretty and easy to wear and works really well layered over other lipsticks for a subtle-but-not-too-subtle nod to the metallic trend. Alternatively, a really subtle way to wear this trend is to don Ilia's Lip Conditioner in the shade These Days. It's a rich, warm, bronzed nude that has the slightest frost to it that helps it catch the light and really enhance your lips.

Cheeks

Picking a golden or bronze highlighter is another easy way to wear metallic shades. Topshop's Glow in Gleam is a very pretty bronze highlighter (an alternative is Revlon's Illuminator in Bare Light). If you want something more full on then I'd opt for Illamasqua's Liquid Metals, I have the shade Electrum which is a yellow-toned gold that really packs a punch. It's all about blending this into a really sheer wash of colour and pairing it with a bronzer that suits your skin tone. It does look "different" bit it doesn't look clownish. Alternatively, you can add a bit of Electrum over the top of a nude lipstick to add a golden hue to your look. 

Eyes

Add some metallic highlighter to the inner corner of your eyes, and you could even sweep some across your eyelid for a sheer, reflective glow. I, personally, avoid metallic shadows for the daytime but I did see Eilish from Eyelash in Wonderland sporting Collection's Glam Crystals Dazzling Gel Liner and although it's a glitter liner it looks very pretty without being over the top. It also lasts incredibly well - we're talk all day - which makes it low maintenance and easy to wear. 

Moody Makeup: Embrace the Dark Side

One popular and recurring autumn/winter trend is to embrace the darker side of the makeup palette, bringing berry and burgundy shades out of the shadows and into the limelight. I'm all for this yearly makeup bag shakeup and these are the products that have made it into my routine.

Eyes

I've been using the right hand side of my the Balm Nude 'Tude palette quite a lot recently. Despite being wildly out of my comfort zone, the shade "Sexy" is surprisingly wearable. I've been enjoying wearing it smudged along my lash line giving a "soft underline" look.

Lips

An easy way to wear darker lip shades is to blot them onto your lips and wear them as a stain. The berry lipstick I've been enjoying this week is Catrice's Lipstick in Berry Bradshaw, and for a dark burgundy pout I always return to Rimmel's Kate Moss Matte Lipstick in shade 107. 

Tips

The only polish that's been on my radar this month is Ciaté's paint pot in Dangerous Affair*. It's a wonderful deep, deep red and I've found that it lasts really well on my nails. If you want to invest in a nail polish this autumn/winter then I'd definitely recommend this one.

Have you been reaching for berry and burgundy shades too?

What Made The Shortlist (AKA another travel beauty bag)

This week (since Monday) I've been in Shropshire visiting one of my best friends. Usually when I visit him we tend to do a lot of outdoorsy stuff so I'm don't spend a lot of time worrying about what I look like or what make-up I'm wearing. That being said, we did also make plans to visit some of the local towns on more gentile excursions so at least some make-up was going to be needed and today I'm going to share with you what I decided to take with me. In case you're interested in trying any of these products for yourself, and want to know more about them, I've included links to any reviews I've done on the products I'm mentioning.

I always seem to have a mini Benefit the PoreFessional Primer in my collection and it is my travel primer of choice. Nowadays, when I'm not travelling I very rarely use it - I much prefer mixing The Body Shop's Instablur All in One Primer with Revlon's PhotoReady Skin Illuminator in in Bare Light. I find that it's a more affordable option that not only adds radiance to my skin but really helps with the longevity of my make-up. However, when it comes to travelling I do prefer the dinky Benefit primer because it takes up so little space.

For my base I've generally been mixing my foundations because I am in between shades. When I was in Amsterdam I got a bit of a tan and now all of my foundations are too light for me, including Rimmel Wake Me Up in Ivory but being the darkest foundation I own it is the best of the bunch. For concealing, I've been reaching for Lavera's Natural Concealer in Ivory which offers very light coverage but is dreamily blendable. It doesn't cover as much as I'd like but it is very good for everyday wear and I'm going to be doing a full blog post on it in the near future.

For my cheeks I thought I'd take my Stila Convertible Colour Trio in Cool which gives me three shades to play with and I absolutely love these blushes. They last incredibly well on my skin and the colours are really flattering, I'd highly recommend them! For highlighting my cheekbones I'm taking my Catrice Made to Stay Highlighting Pen because I'm sort of between highlighters at the moment. Although I don't mind this highlighter from Catrice I am looking for something new, preferably a natural and cruelty free product, that I could swap into my routine. If you know of something I could try recommendations would be welcomed!

I've only planned on taking one lipstick (which is very unlike me) because I don't think I'll want to wear anything else. I've really been loving Living Nature's Lipstick in Summer Rain* and if you want to see what it looks like you can see me wearing it in yesterday's post. It's the most easy to wear raspberry shade and the formula is really moisturising. It's all I've worn on my lips this week, which is quite something because I love trying out new lipsticks. For eye makeup, I've opted for a couple of my old favourites. For mascara, I chose to take MaxFactor's Masterpiece Mascara in Black/Brown, I like this because it adds loads of length, doesn't flake or smudge but is still easy enough to remove (which is good because I'm not taking my full skincare routine away with me). I also decided to take Essence's Stays No Matter What Waterproof Eyeliner because it has become a bit of a daily staple. I find it lasts very well for such an incredibly affordable product and I primarily use it on my upper lash line to enhance the look of my eyelashes. 

Lastly, for my eyebrows I've been opting for a heavier brow look using Cosmetics A La Carte's Brow Ink in Taupe and Catrice's Eyebrow Filler. I use the brow ink to fill in my brows and then go over them with the tinted eyebrow gel (if you want to know what this looks like I was using this combo in the FOTD in yesterday's lipstick post). I really like using these two products together and I think the brow ink is particularly good, it lasts incredibly well and is very easy to build up the exact look that you want.

That's all I'm taking with me, apart from a couple of Real Techniques' brushes - the Buffing Brush, Stipling Brush and Expert Face Brush. I hope that you've enjoyed having a peep into this week's make-up bag - if you like this sort of make-up overview post (I don't know if it is interesting or a bit too rambly) I could write them more often as regular weekly beauty feature. 

What make-up have you been wearing a lot this week? Would you recommend any of it?

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Amsterdam Beauty Haul

Last week I headed over to Amsterdam for a four-day holiday with my friend Sophia - she's about to move back home to Greece so our little four-day trip was a celebratory farewell to the time we'd spent together at University this year. It was our second trip to Amsterdam (I went with my friend Tom last year, and Sophia has visited before with her family) and it was a lovely break. I'm not sharing any of the photos we took on my blog but I did post a couple of snaps on Instagram so if you're interested in getting a glimpse of what we got up to then you can find me by searching for OneLittleVice. 

While we were there we did a spot of shopping and I picked up a couple of new bits from the drugstore. There was one repeat purchase (Catrice's Eyebrow Filler has become an make-up essential for me) as well as some great new beauty finds that I want to share with you. I had a serious make-up clear out just before I left so there were a couple of gaps in my collection that I needed to fill, as well as some impulse purchases based on very good first impressions. 

Etos' Matte Finish Lipstick in Shade 003

In my blog sale I sold my beloved Mac Costa Chic lipstick - I didn't wear it enough to justify keeping it. This Etos lipstick is a very close drugstore dupe for Costa Chic and at only €3 I couldn't pass up giving it a try. I'm not a big fan of the texture of the lipstick (it is very gritty) but the colour is really gorgeous and in my now reduced collection I can see myself reaching for it quite often.

Catrice's Ultimate Shine Gel Colour Lipstick in Shade 090, Better than Nude

This lipstick has the smoothest and most hydrating finish and the colour is a very flattering nude shade that is unlike anything in my collection. It is really easy to wear, easy to re-apply and because it is very creamy it lasts well on my lips. I think this is the nicest formula (for everyday lipsticks) that Catrice makes and I would very highly recommend it. 

Catrice's Ultimate Shine Lipstick in Shade 010, Good Nudes!

I bought this lipstick purely for the shade, it is a really unique find for the drugstore - it's a highly metallic gold. I know that shades like these can be found in Mac and other higher-end brands, but the colour and formula is almost unheard of in the drugstore. Good Nudes! works really well layered over other lipsticks, especially nude shades, to add dimension to lips. It's a bit of a marmite shade but I really love it and the formula is gorgeous, less creamy than the Gel formula but less matte than the Ultimate Colour range.

Catrice's Ultimate Colour Lipstick in 340, Berry Bradshaw

Having bopped through Mac in duty free and passed up the opportunity to get my hands on a reduced price lipstick I decided to pick up what I think is a very good dupe for Mac's Rebel lipstick, it is just a touch less purple which I actually prefer. Overall, Berry Bradshaw is a gorgeous berry shade with a lovely consistency. The formula of the Ultimate Colour range is thick and creamy, very reminiscent of Mac's amplified lipsticks, and since my purchase of the shade 'Matt-erial Girl' last year it has become one of my favourites.

Catrice's Eyebrow Filler Perfecting and Shaping Gel

Whenever I can't be bothered to fill in my eyebrows with a pencil I turn to Catrice's Eyebrow Filler (which is nearly everyday…) I've been using it for over a year now and I couldn't help repurchasing it when I returned to Amsterdam. I much prefer the consistency to other brow gels that I've tried and the colour is perfect for me.

Catrice's Made to Stay Smoothing Lip Polish in 020, Jen and Berry's

I bought this on a total whim. It's a lip product that is very reminiscent of L'Oreal's Glam Shine Stain Splash (a range I really fell in love with last year). However, this product from Catrice has a thinner and lighter consistency, in my opinion the colour range is much better and the products leave a light even stain on the lips after the gloss wears off. All in all, I'm really impressed and can see this lip product getting a lot of use. The colour is very 'me', a my lips but better pink/berry wash of colour that smells a little bit like gummy sweets (not too sickly, but very sweet).

Catrice's Made to Stay Highlighter Pen in Shade 010, Eye Like!

This might be the only product in my haul that I don't 100% love. It's a precise application highlighter which I imagined would be easy to use on cheekbones and brow bones. The colour is very nice but it has a lot of shimmer/glitter which I wasn't expecting. Despite this, I still like the finish, however, the product sets incredibly quickly making it difficult to blend and achieve a natural looking finish. I'll keep on trying with this one but for now I'm not entirely sold. 

BeYu Color Biggie Long Lasting Eyeshadow Stick Crayon in Shade 330 and 280

I've been keen to purchase a couple of Mac's Paint Pots, especially the shades Painterly and Groundwork. I purchased these Color Biggie Crayons from BeYu in place of Paint Pots as they are equally very creamy eyeshadow products which I intend to use as everyday eye bases. The Shade 280 is matte and has a similar colour and finish to Mac's Painterly. 330 has a very pretty and subtle shimmery finish that I really like and it is a more natural and taupe-y shade than my much beloved Maybelline Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze. I have high hopes for these two products, and if you'd be interested I could do a post on them featuring swatches and a couple of FOTDs.

Please let me know if you'd like to see some FOTD's featuring any of these products or some full reviews featuring swatches etc. Have you tried any of these products or any other products from these brands?

Amsterdam Beauty Haul

So, today is day seventy of my one hundred day spending ban  - and the day before yesterday I technically broke my ban. Over the last three months of not shopping I saved enough money (just from not shopping) to be able to afford to go on a holiday to Amsterdam with one of my friends. The cost of the whole trip was quite reasonable considering how much we did and saw, and on the last day of my trip I had about forty euros of spending money left over. On the way back to the station we walked past a shop called Kruidvat which is the Netherlands' drugstore, the equivalent to England's Superdrug. As we neared the store I made a decision to spend the leftover euros from my holiday. I knew it would make me happy to try out some make-up I can't get back home and as I knew that it was an expense that I could afford I decided to just go for it.

 The two main brands I was interested in were Essence and Catrice; Essence has very low prices (€1-3) and Catrice is more expensive (€3-5) but is still very affordable. I spent about €34 (approximately £28.50) and I bought thirteen products. I know this is excessive but as far as I am concerned I had budgeted to spend it anyway (and only hadn't spent it because Tom and I had skipped dinner and stayed in the night before) so to me this spending slip-up is not the end of the world, and I'll be continuing my spending ban.

Anyway, on to the make-up! I'll briefly go through what I bought and roughly how much it cost me. I hope this helps any of you looking to go beauty shopping in Amsterdam in the future!

(left to right) Essence Lisptick in All About Cupcake, Essence Lipstick in Natural Beauty and Catrice Ultimate Colour Lipstick in Matt-erial Girl.

Essence Lipstick in All About Cupcake (€1.99)

This is the only piece of make-up that I've already tried out. I absolutely love the colour of this but the formula is quite sheer and doesn't wear very well. I also find it very drying! I will definitely wear this lipstick but it isn't a winner in my book.

Essence Long Lasting Lipstick in Natural Beauty (€2.59)

Gorgeous colour and the formula of the Long Lasting Lipsticks is much nicer than the previously mentioned line of lipsticks. It is much more opaque and more matte. It is definitely worth the extra 60 cents. 

Catrice Ultimate Colour Lipstick in Matt-erial Girl (€3.99)

I think the colour is a real show stopper and although I haven't tried this out I loved the feel of this when I swatched it. It is really creamy for a matte lipstick and goes on very evenly, I'm very excited about wearing this one!

 (top to bottom) Essence Super Fine Eyeliner in Deep Black (close up is of this product), Essence Kajal Pencil in Teddy and Essence Stays No Matter What Eyeliner in Midnight Black.

Essence Super Fine Eyeliner in Deep Black (€2.79 approx.)

The nib on this eyeliner is so fine. I've tried it on my hand and it gives the finest line you can imagine. I was planning on getting the newly released Rimmel fine/micro eyeliner pen once my spending ban ended so when I saw this (which is much cheaper) I thought I'd try this instead. I have very high hopes for this.

Essence Kajal Pencil in Teddy (€0.99)

I've heard a lot of good things about this eyeliner and at less than a euro I couldn't say no to it. This is a very deep, rich brown which I think will be very flattering.

Essence Stays No Matter What Eyeliner in Midnight Black (€1.59 approx.)

I've tried some of Rimmel's Kohl Kajals which are very long lasting but I don't have a black version. I'll be interested to see if these Essence eyeliners are a dupe - if so that will be amazing as they are so, so cheap.

 (Top to bottom) Catrice Eyebrow Filler and Catrice Eye Brow Stylist in Blond but Brow'd.

Catrice Eyebrow Filler (€3.59)

Maybelline has recently come out with a tinted eyebrow taming gel that I was keen to try after my spending ban ends, so when I saw this I thought I would try this Catrice version instead. I'm very excited by this product as I haven't tried anything like it before. 

Catrice Eye Brow Stylist in Blond but Brow'd (€3.59 approx.)
Again, I was keen to try the Maybelline Eyebrow Pencil that I saw over on Amy's blog (Srsly,Lou) not so long ago. However, I liked the look of this one and am hoping it will be just as good, if not better.

 Catrice Cosmetics Lip and Cheek Colour in the shade Bed of Flowers

Catrice Cosmetics Lip and Cheek Colour in the shade Bed of Flowers (€4.99)

Now, I haven't used this much yet but I think this could just be the best drugstore cream cheek product I've tried. It is pretty sheer but is easily buildable and I love the colour. This comes in three shades, a coral, a true red and a purple (I chose the purple). I think the red shade could potentially be a dupe for Mac's Frankly Scarlet which seems to be getting more and more popular.

Essence I Love Stage Eye Shadow Base, Essence Metallic Eye Shadow in the shade Party All Night and Essence Shimmer Effect Eye Shadow in Cappuccino, please! 

Essence I Love Stage Eye Shadow Base (€3 approx.)

I'm really happy I found this as my current eye shadow base (which is from Darling Girl) is nearing its expiration date. This Essence Eye Shadow Base is  very affordable and on first inspection seems good quality. My only concern is that it is very opaquely coloured so might not work with very light eye shadows. Still, I think this could well be quite the bargain.

Essence Metallic Eye Shadow in Party All Night (€1.49 approx.)(bottom eye shadow in close up image)

This swatches very prettily but it is absolutely transformed when applied over the eye shadow base. It is gorgeous over a base, incredibly metallic but a very subtle colour which I think will be easily wearable. I love it and will probably be using it a lot now I'm back at university and will be "going out" more.

Essence Shimmer Effect Eye Shadow in Cappucino, please! (€1.49 approx.) (top eye shadow in close up image)

I love the name! And the colour is very pretty and wearable. It isn't glittery at all, the shimmer is subtle but looks as though it will really brighten the eye. I'm hoping that this will be easy to wear during the day with black liner for a quick, but pretty, day-time look. 

The last item!

Labello (Nivea) Fruity Shine Lip Balm in Guava (€2.39)

I often see Nivea's Fruity Shine Lip Balms in American drugstore hauls and I always really wanted one! Tinted lip balms are some of my favourite things to wear, especially if they smell good. This Guava scented one has a very sheer pink tint and it smells unbelievably good, like no other lip balm I've ever owned. I'm so glad I saw it in the shop and (I know this sounds lame) but if I had only bought this I would have honestly still been very happy.

It was a pretty massive haul considering I'm not supposed to be buying everything but all my choices were very well thought out. I am happy with everything I bought and if you're going to the Netherlands then definitely check out Kruidvat for these Essence and Catrice make-up (or the store Douglas if you're after a more Sephora-esque shopping experience).

Is there anything you'd like to see an in depth review of? What item did you like the look of the most?

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