Under £10 Makeup Challenge with Essence

If you have been following my blog for a while you will know that I was kindly invited to the launch of Essence in the UK back in June (here) and received an incredible goody bag. Since then I have genuinely loved pretty much every single Essence product I have tried - a few have made it into monthly favourites! I was challenged to create a look using Essence products but it had to cost less than £10. I came up with one day look and one party/evening look where all of the products for each look cost less than £10. 

For my day time look I started with the *Essence Stay All Day Concealer (£2.50, 10 Natural Beige) which I received at the launch event. It is an amazing concealer and it will definitely feature in my 2014 beauty favourites. I applied it under my eyes and on redness. Then for the cheeks and lips I used the same product - the *Essence Lipstick (£2, 44 Almost Famous) which is a pretty cherry red. Using your lipstick as a blusher is great time/cost saving tip if you can only take minimal makeup, on holiday or travelling for example. 

For my highlight I used the *Essence Soo Glow Cream to Powder Highlighter (£2.80, 20 Brighten Up Your Life) which does look too pink toned for my skin in the packaging but when applied it is a gorgeous highlight. As well as using it on the cheek bones I also applied it down the nose slightly, on the cupids bow, brow bone and inner corners. 

Onto the eyes, I used is the *Essence Get Big Lashes Mascara (£2.30) which is a gorgeous lengthening, natural mascara that is very black and adds natural volume to my long but straight lashes. The best part is the whole look costs £9.60 which is amazing in my opinion!

Now onto the evening/party look which is a bit more colourful and bolder than the day time look. I did cheat slightly as I used the same mascara and concealer from the day time look for my evening look...

Firstly, the eyes. I used the *Essence Liquid Ink High Shine Liner (£2.80) which is a gorgeous black, glossy liner although I do prefer the liquid ink waterproof also from Essence. As my eyes are quite deep set, it can be difficult to get a flick without it being hidden or crooked but it just takes practise - I also have a post about it, here.

The lips and nails are the focus of this look, for the lips I used the *Essence Lipstick (£2.30, 09 Wear Berries!) which is the most gorgeous shade. The colour is a mix between fuchsia pink and a bright lavender; it isn't something I would have picked myself but I LOVE it. For the nails, I wanted to match them to the lips and I used the *Essence Colour & Go Polish (£1.60, 152 Give Me Nude Baby!) all over the nails then while it was still wet I sprinkled the *Essence Multi-Dimensional Glitter Nail Effects (£2) as an effect/statement nail. 

Excluding the concealer and mascara as you could use whatever you already own, this statement party look only costs £8.70! I do love Essence products, I don't know how they can be such good quality at a cheap as chips price! You can buy Essence products from the Wilkinsons website or from the stand alone counter in the Manchester arndale or at Westfield Hammersmith. 

What do you think of the looks I have created? What Essence products do you love? 

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Autumn Day to Evening Looks ft. Essence

Back in June I was invited to the launch event for Essence which was the first blogger event I went to on my own and it was amazing (here)! Ever since I have genuinely loved pretty much all of the Essence products I have tried; especially the eyeshadows, liner and the incredibly amazing fixing powder! Here are my picks for a quick and easy day to evening look. Sorry the lighting isn't great in the photos below! Autumn/winter weather is not great for natural lighting and photography! 

First up, the day time look which consists of a very simple eye and a bold pink lip. I used the Essence All About Matte Foundation in Light. For concealer I used the amazing Essence Stay All Day Concealer which I actually love a lot more than the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer! A dusting of the Essence Silky Touch Blush in 20 Babydoll on the apples and back of the cheeks to finish the face.

For the eyes I only used one shade from the *Essence Quattro Eyeshadow Quad (15 Most Wanted) as I wanted a simple eye look to contrast with the bold lip. I used the white shimmer shade lightly on the lid and also in the inner corner; then a sweep of the Essence Lash Mania False Lash Waterproof Mascara. Lastly for this day time look I use the *, Essence lipstick in 10 Cotton Candy which looks really pretty but personally I don't think blue toned pinks suit me at all.

Now onto the night look, I used the same foundation, concealer and mascara that I used for the day time look. For the eyes I used the *Essence Quattro Eyeshadow Quad (15 Most Wanted) which contains all of the shades for pretty autumnal eyeshadow looks! I used the golden shade all over the lid as a brightening base and also in the inner corner of the eyes. I then used the deep purple shade in the crease, along the upper and lower lash lines and across the outer third of the eye. I LOVE the combination of gold and purple, especially for the upcoming festive season. 

To finish I used the *Essence Colour & Go Polish in 111 English Rose which applies so smoothly and it is a very pretty everyday shade. Overall, I am so impressed by all of the Essence makeup I have tried and I am so glad it finally arrived in the UK back in July. You can buy Essence makeup from select Wilkinsons stores (such as the Manchester arndale store and there is a stand alone counter in the arndale too) as well as on the Wilkinsons website.

Have you tried Essence products? What do you think of my day to evening looks? 

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August Beauty + Travel Favourites

Well if I thought last month was filled with favourites, this month has to be the largest number of beauty favourites ever! For two weeks out of the month of august I was on an amazing Royal Caribbean cruise around the Mediterranean (lucky me) so most of these product are not just august favourites but holiday/vacation/travel favourites.

Makeup: The first makeup favourite is a foundation by Benefit, it is their Hello Flawless foundation in 'believe in me ivory'. I loved the foundation while on holiday for two weeks in august, it was perfect paired with the amazing Essence All About Matt Fixing Powder which I sadly used up completely on holiday. Another Essence base product I loved for the past couple of months is the Essence Stay All Day Concealer which is just fantastic and all Essence products are really inexpensive! My next makeup item is a very long term favourite, the NYX Blush in 'taupe', it is fantastic for contouring especially if you have pale skin as I do. I have a contouring post coming soon. The last makeup bits are lip products both of which are stains (my favourite kind of lip product). Firstly, the Topshop Gloss Ink in 'sugar rush', it is a gorgeous bright pink glossy stain that does last well; secondly the Loreal...splash stain...things! I have the shade 'lolita' which is a perfect neutral shade - at the time these were released they had a lot of negative reviews but I don't know why, I love this lip stain!

Skincare + Haircare: The product I am going to talk about next is a mix between skincare and makeup, it is the Decleor DD Cream which is an SPF and tinted moisturiser combined in my opinion. It was in a previous favourites post. My favourite moisturiser for the past couple of months has been the Nivea Sensitive Day Cream, I took it on holiday and it was just perfect. I am currently using the night cream and it is equally great although the packaging breaks very easily! The last couple of skincare products are from Guinot, you may have seen them already in my travel beauty posts (here) and (here). They are cute mini SPF products, the lip balm was a life saver on holiday! Onto the only hair care favourite for August, the Moroccan Oil Anti-Frizz Spray which does exactly what it says on the bottle, it really helps to reduce frizz - I have been using it every single time I wash my hair this month. 

Tools + Accessories: A few makeup brush favourites, the first is the powder brush I have been using everyday this month - it is from the Ecotools travel brush set that I purchased from Feelunique back in January. Ecotools brushes are amazing in my opinion and inexpensive. Next up some trusty brushes from Real Techniques, they are all from the core collection - the bristles are super soft, smooth and blend products quickly and easily. My last favourite for august is my Sewlomax Grey Lipstick Pouch which is personalised - it says Heather on the back! I love the Sewlomax makeup bags, I used this one on holiday as my mini-mergency bag.

There are all of my favourites for the month of august, I am missing a few products such as the Ted Baker Mia Perfume and the L'Occitane Almond Hand Cream but I thought the post was very long already! 

Have you tried any of these products, if you have what did you think of them? What were your stand out products throughout august?

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