lük beautifood Lip Nourish Review and Swatches

This time of year, we're all on a health kick. Detox this, wellness that, you know the drill. Some of us even extend that to a wardrobe edit, a beauty product cull, and a bit of good old life admin. It'll all be worth it in the end. Promise. Think of all the health/edited wardrobes/tidiness/organisation.

Thank goodness January is almost over.

One thing I will not be leaving behind next month, however, is the beautiful, natural, cruelty-free, ethically sourced joy that is lük beautifood. Lük beautifood is an Australian company, producing natural, super-food full lipsticks - the aptly named Lip Nourish. You may have seen these sleek little tubes popping up on Instagram, in In Style and Allure recently - they are well on their way to the main stage, and with good reason. I already own a couple of these beauties, and lük beautifood were kind enough to send me a new shade to try out.

As usual, first thing - packaging. Beautifully wrapped in a little lens/screen cleaning-type cloth with all sorts of colour-coordinated healthiness on one side, and genuinely interesting food-in-beauty related information on the other. The lip bullet itself is a small, slim version (very similar to the packaging of my other favourite natural brand, Rituel de Fille) with a sturdy, satisfying click-closure - no risk of your handbag stealing all that Lip Nourish goodness.

There's also a little info sheet with each Lip Nourish - each shade is slightly different and contains different ingredients, contributing to each shade's unique smell and taste. Tea Rose, the shade I was kindly sent, tastes exactly as described - lemony, minty, and just a very slight sweet hint of herbiness. Having tested a few shades now, I am yet to find a Lip Nourish flavour I didn't love. The scents and tastes of each one are in no way plasticky or tacky-cheap; they are definitely a little daily luxury.

Lip Nourishes are all based on natural oils, cacao butter and beeswax - meaning that the formula is ultra moisturising and endlessly comfortable to wear. Infused with citrus fruits and spices, these little babies really are delicious. They have a natural, sheeny, healthy finish, and there is a nude lip shade for everyone.

Tea Rose is swatched above - it gives a lovely, natural, colour-enhancing sheen on my lips. All of the shades are on the sheer side, but that's kind of the point. If you're a MAC Liptensity devotee, these may not be for you - but for all you natural lip lovers out there, you've got to give these a try. They are the ultimate your-lips-but-better, nourishing, low maintenance option. They aren't in the least bit tacky, fade evenly, are a breeze to re-apply, and won't stain the lips. What's not to love?

I was also fortunate enough to recieve a Lip Nourish Tasting Plate - a little dot of each shade of Lip Nourish, allowing me to embark on a swatch-fest. Don't say I'm not good to you.

L-R Nude Cinnamon, Rose Lime, Pink Juniper, Tea Rose, Chai Shimmer, Vanilla Chocolate, Mandarin Spice, Tangerine Pomegranate

Above I've swatched all the shades in the tasting plate, and below I've swatched the other two Lip Nourishes I own - you can see that they are the embodiment of sheer, healthy, glowy goodness. To me, they just scream for sunny days. I can feel summer approaching, folks. Someone pass me a margarita.

Left - Peach Melon, Right - Rose Lime. Sheeny and beautiful.

Have you ever tried any lük beautifood products?

Some links above are affiliate links. Products in this review are a combination of personal gifts and products sent for review to me by lük beautifood.

Tarte Maneater Palette Review and Swatches

Tarte Maneater: you had me at hello.

Eco-chic, cruelty-free, and with super-speedy UK postage, I was already on board. It's worth holding out for a big order or a free shipping offer to order direct from the Tarte website. I've longed to try out Tarte's eyeshadow formula for a long time - often cited as smooth, buttery and pigmented - and this little compact palette is a really great representation of the brand.

Packaging - delightfully tasteful-tacky leopard print. I couldn't ask for more. I'm a leopard print obsessive. It's relatively sturdy, has a useable mirror, and so far has travelled well.

The palette is listed as containing seven warm-toned eyeshadows and a larger eye and cheek highlighter shade. If you like warm shadows - you are going to love this bad lad. 

The shades range from complete flat-matte to super-shimmering, and it's a dawdle to create a cohesive day/night/grungy/polished/whatever you like look with the shades included. You could quite happily use this palette with no other additional shadows for any occasion. Perfect. Pat on the back to whoever curated this little dreamboat at Tarte HQ.

The shadows themselves are all a pleasure to use - creamy, highly pigmented (think Anastasia Beverly Hills eyeshadow) and easy to blend. They are on the soft side, and the more matte shades do kick up quite a bit of excess in the pan - be sure to tap off the excess before applying to your eyelids. This softness does mean that blending is very straightforward, and due to the shade selection, it's easy to build up a beautiful, deep crease or cut crease with minimal effort. I haven't experienced ridiculous fallout, and over a good primer I get an easy 10 hours' wear with not a crease in sight. Theres a noticeable sweet vanilla smell, which fades quickly - just be aware if you're particularly sensitive to scents.

The highlight shade, Lace, looks quite chunky in the pan and is white and intense when swatched. It's not a highlight for the faint hearted (but then again, neither is a leopard print palette) but I am a fan of highlights of all incarnations. I was really pleasantly surprised at the smoothness, kindness to texture and pores, and blendability on application. The glittery pan translates beautifully to a glowy, shimmery highlight when on the skin. Perhaps a bit discotastic for the everyday browbone in my opinion, but lovely applied with a fan brush to the cheeks.

L-R Meow, Passion, Foxy, Purr, Saucy, Hypnotic, Midnight (Lace along top of swatch line)

'Scuse the shaky swatches. Three coffees today. Caffeine hands. As ever, they're one-swipe swatches.

Ok. Let's be honest, it's pretty dupable. MAC Cranberry and Hypnotic are cut from the same cloth, and I'm sure all of us own a matte deep brown somewhere in our collection.

Do I care? No. Would I still buy this palette again? Yes. It's freakin' gorgeous.

Have you tried any Tarte products? What did you think? What should I try next?

All products mentioned bought with my own money. Some links above are affiliate links.

Real Techniques Brushes - A few of my favourites

Decent makeup brushes are not cheap. It's very tempting to skimp on tools (let's be honest, they are a bit less fun than super shiny eyeshadows or dreamy highlighting powders) but a good product also requires some good tools for application. Sure, fingers are excellent, but unless you have seven hands or are as talented as Mary Greenwell, chances are you'll need to pick up a brush one of these days.

I have my fair share of classic MAC and beautiful Zoeva brushes at my disposal, but when it comes to reasonably priced, capable synthetic brushes, you really don't need to look much further than Real Techniques.

Above is one of my favourite brushes they make - the setting brush. A seriously soft, teeny tiny synthetic face brush, this applies every powder like a dream. It is so wee, and is perfect for small faces, hollows of cheeks, highlighting, and especially for setting the under eye area. I have three of them on rotation and they are fab. And for £6.99? Bargain.

I've previously harped on about their great little eye shading brush and its many uses - its a concealer application wizard - but another fantastic eye brush is the pointed liner brush(only currently available in the eyelining set). It is so small (you can see how teeny it is when compared to a Suqqu brow pen) and is excellent for cream/gel eyeliner application - or for using with a little MAC Fix + and a dark eyeshadow to create a smoky liner. It's a little too long and unwieldy for me to achieve kitten flicks, but for a no-holds-barred razor sharp I-will-cut-you wing, it's a great little tool.

Are you a Real Techniques fan?

Some links above are affiliate links. all products mentioned bought with my own money.

MAC Soba - The most underrated eyeshadow

You'd be forgiven for bypassing MAC Soba on the kaleidoscopic display of MAC eyeshadows on the in-store display.

Honestly, it's a shade I bypassed for years - another brown eyeshadow? Groan. I've got about five million of those. Why did I need Soba?

Soba is a mid-tone, warm satin brown. In other words, a poopy/beigey/boring/slightly offputting little pan of eyeshadow. It's kind of yellowy, camel-y, and not very appealing.

But on the lids - woah there. It's a different story entirely. The not-quite-matte finish is flattering on any and all eyelids of any age; and from the fairest complexion to deepest, richest tones, this eyeshadow will find a forever home in your collection.

It can be a one-wash wonder with a little liner. It can be a fantastic transition from a super-foiled finish to a matte shadow with no choppiness. It can be a light definition shade for the socket on minimal makeup days, or paired with full-on lashes without being OTT. On fair skins, you can make it super grungy; on darker skintones, this will be a beautiful, chic, sophisticated lighter lid shade.

Left - Burberry Cream shadow in Mink. Right - MAC Soba

Overall - Glorious. Necessary. And surprisingly hard to dupe.

Get it in your makeup bag.

Some links above are affiliate links. All products mentioned bought with my own money.

Burberry Eye Colour Cream in Mink No.102

We all love an effortless makeup product. One that requires absolutely no skill in application. One which hangs around, and looks even better as the day goes on. One which basically writes its own review.

Enter Burberry Eye Colour Cream in Mink No.102.

I've only ever found one cream eyeshadow that really delivers the goods for me and my oily eyelids - that's By Terry's Ombre Blackstar formula. Luxurious, molten, sophisticated sheen that hangs around forever. Most of the time, with other cream shadows, I end up with a rather creased slimy mess in my crease after about 4 hours' wear. Nice.

However - I think I'm on to a winner here.

Burberry describe this formula as delivering an "effortless wash of luminising colour". The formula is also described as crease-free, buildable and long wearing. So far, so good.

Packaging - gorgeously luxurious, as you'd expect for the price tag/Burberry name. Heavy glass, signature lid, and a very cute little brush (though, admittedly, this brush isn't great for anything else except smudging out a lash line).

The colour - described as a warm taupe - is just that. A super flattering, neutral shade that is silky, satiny, chic perfection for just about any occasion. The texture is incredibly smooth. Somewhere between Colourpop Super Shock Shadows and Chanel Illusion D'Ombres - bouncy, creamy, but drier and with less slip than Colourpop's shimmery shades. I think this is the reason for the decent longevity - I get a solid 5 hours crease-free without primer (a borderline miracle, let me tell you) and 8ish hours with a primer beneath.

 The formula is indeed buildable and plays well with other products - cream or powder based. I love using this with a little MAC Soba in the crease and some super-black eyeliner for a really quick but looks-like-it-took-you-ages eye look. Minimum effort, maximum perceived effort. Win.

You can see in the swatches above how fine and elegant the sheen is in this product. It's a really beautiful, versatile little pot that can steal the show on its' own, or be part of a beautiful canvas for a megawatt red lip.

I'm really impressed with this luxurious pot of joy from Burberry - I'll be keeping an eye out for some other shades!

Have you tried any of these Burberry Eye Colour Creams? What did you think?

Some links above are affiliate links. All products mentioned bought with my own money.

The post-gym bag - the speediest, easiest face

I hate the gym. I love me some HIIT, but I'd rather do it in front of the telly in the confines of my living room than get my perspire on in a room full of equally sweaty strangers. Bleurgh. However, sometimes, needs must (especially in January, amirite friends).

On the other hand, I am a huge advocate of genuine 5 minute makeup - and sometimes you need that arsenal for the post-gym touch-up. Especially if you don't really do "glowing" and more "red, slightly swollen beacon" after a workout *raises hand* and you've got places to be. This little edit requires max 2 brushes (one if you're not averse to blending with a finger or three) and will genuinely take you under the magic 5 minutes. Promise.

1. Moisturise. Start off with a quick squidge of the super-luxe YSL Instant Moisture Glow. I've got a sample size of this and I love it. Moisturising, blurring, all the good things for post-sweat skin without clogging pores. It'll fake that glow for you when you just feel like a tomato.

2. Express base. It's got to be Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue. Rapid, apply-with-fingers, hydrating, and enough coverage to take off the worst of that redness without suffocating the skin.

3. Cheeks. Cream products = speed. I'm still in love with my Rituel de Fille Inner Glow Cream Blush and Rare Light Luminizer (you can read an in depth review of the blush over here and the amazing luminizer here). Just tap these two beauties on to your cheeks for a fresh-faced warmth and highlight without the sweat factor.

4. Eyes. I've already talked about my favourite eye primer and the most beautiful cream shadow known to man before, but they feature here again. NARS Pro Prime keeps everything in place, and By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Bronze Moon = speedy, glossy, grown up lids without being too in your face. You'll want a small synthetic brush to blend out the edges (I use my Real Techniques one) but apart from that BOOM. Done. One shadow eyes.

 If I need a drama infusion, I'll smudge a line of YSL waterproof eyeliner in to my lashline with the same brush. Easy peasy. I've featured my favourite MAC quad here too as it goes everywhere with me - but honestly, it's not what I reach for in a hurry! Finish it all off with your mascara au choix. 

5 Lips. Simples. No contest. MAC Liptensity Lipstick in Medium Rare. Beautiful, plush pink in an easy, slick-on-and-go satin finish.

See? That wasn't so bad! If you're a powder lover/requirer like me, finish it all off with a swoosh of pressed powder and you're done. 5 minutes, polished but not caked, and you've not hogged the only decent mirror in the changing room. Winner. 

Some links above are affiliate links. All products mentioned bought with my own money.

L'Oreal Glam Bronze Cushion de Soleil

Yeah yeah, it's January. I've already kicked off winter with an SPF review, why not continue in an unseasonally sunny vein with bronzer?!


We all need a bit of a complexion pick-me-up in the UK this time of year. In Scotland, we've got this perfect word for those grey, overcast, grim winter days - dreich. Dreich is just UK winter all over. Eurgh.


Anyway. The perfect antidote to a grey winter face is a lovely, fresh, glowy bronzer. L'Oreal Glam Bronze Cushion de Soleil, you had me at hello.


Following on from all of the cushion foundations we've seen in the last 12 months or so, L'Oreal also launched their cushion bronzer. If you're not familiar with cushion products, they're a lovely Korean beauty product that our U.K. market is embracing wholeheartedly (along with sheet masks). They're spongy, slightly weird textured little compacts, usually containing dewy, glow-enhancing loveliness.

The packaging is simple, and does the job. If you've ever known the frustration of smashing an expensive powder bronzer in transit, you'll have no worries of anything similar with this wee cushion. There's a decent mirror too, and the seal on the cushion cover is pretty good - I've had no spillage issues so far.

But what's really special is the product itself - what a dream. It is so easy to apply and blends perfectly with fingers or a brush - absolutely ideal for on-the-go application, or a speedy complexion update. Although sheer, it's buildable, but hard to go crazy with.

The colour is a neutral-to-warm toned bronze; not the slightest bit orange, but come on L'Oreal - one freakin' shade?! I don't think I've ever met a universal colour in my life. If you're porcelain fair - go easy with this chap. If you're any darker than approximately MAC NC30, you'll hate this as a bronzer-it'll simply blend in with your natural skin tone. If you're NC/NW 45 or above - this might be a really nice, subtle, dewy highlighting option.

 The formula is relatively sheer - allowing for a natural, believeable bronze-up with no streaky disasters. it sits beautifully over foundation or on bare skin. I've mostly been using this over bare skin for a pick-me-up on no makeup days, and get about 6 hours' wear without fading. 

You can see in the swatches above (swatched heavily then blended out to the right with a finger) the slightly dewy finish on the Cushion de Soleil. I think that in the summer my greaseball face will eat this for breakfast, but for now - I am in love.

Have you tried any cushion products? What did you think?



Some links are affiliate links. all products mentioned bought with my own money. 

Make Up For Ever Artist Rouge Creme Lipsticks: C105 and C211 Review and Swatches

I'm ashamed to admit it given that I'm a beauty blogger, but here it is.

 I'm a complete noob when it comes to Make Up For Ever.

 Temptalia's raved about their eyeshadows for years, Anna's a huge fan of their bronzer, and when Karen of MBB tells you their lipsticks are bomb - you know this is a brand you need to get involved with.

Thankfully, lovely Debenhams started to stock the previously elusive MUFE last year - whoever you are, Debenhams' buyer/beauty edit curator, you are a wonderful human/genius. I decided to dip my toes in the Artist Rouge water with two Make Up for Ever Artist Rouge Creme Lipsticks in C105 (below) and C211.

Make Up For Ever reformulated their Artist Rouge formula last year. I can't compare these with the previous edition, but I can tell you, categorically, that you gotta try these babies on for size. C105 is a  not-too-nude and C211 is a rosy, mauvey pink (I am nothing if not predictable, dear reader. Smoky eyes and nude lips 4 lyf.).

Holy pigmentation, Batman! The colour! The smoothness! These are off the pigment charts. One swipe is enough for full, flattering coverage, and the super pointy bullet makes corners and cupid's bows a doddle. The Artist Rouge Creme formula is very forgiving on dry patches, and on me definitely makes lips look a little fuller. The finish is sheeny-natural, and as such is very easy and comfortable to wear.

Picking a favourite here is like asking me to choose between custard and ice cream on sticky toffee pudding (anyone else have this trauma? No?). They're both creamy, gorgeous, infinitely wearable, and generally glorious. I'll definitely be wading deeper in the MUFE pool in 2017.

C105 top, C211 bottom. One swipe swatches as ever!

Do you have any Make Up For Ever Favourites? What should I try out next?

Some links above are affiliate links. All products mentioned bought with my own money.

Yves Saint Laurent Babydoll Mascara

Oooooh don't you just love it when you've clocked up a slew of Boots points?! Especially when that also coincides with Christmas gift sets going on sale. Yaasssssss. 

Hello, YSL Babydoll Mascara.

I'm not really a super-high-end mascara gal - honestly, I've never struggled to find a decent mascara in a more reasonable price bracket. Usually, I'm a Rimmel fan - they just get it right -  but when you can pick up a weeny glowy moisturiser and a smudgy, super-black waterproof eyeliner at the same time, and for zero real pennies - I'm in.

The packaging is, unsurprisingly, luxurious and lovely. The brush is tiny - and minimally stabby, thankfully (I am prone to eye stabbing with these plasticky type mascara wands - cue tears and mascara face. Nightmare.).

This mascara is definitely scented - bear that in mind if you're sensitive when it comes to smells - and is quite a wet, shiny formula. I find the formula to be volumising without being excessive; and it definitely does catch all the teeny, new little lashes at the lash line without looking gunky or clumpy. The tiny brush does a grand job of separating lashes, and gives a doe-eyed, sixties lash look with one or two coats.

Sorry for the unsolicited face shot - it's pretty impossible to show mascara in a genuine, real light - but you can see it's really increased the volume at the base of my lashes and found all the baby ones beautifully.

All in all - volume, thickness, separation, lovely. If you've got a spare lots-of-money and fancy a splurge, it's a very lovely mascara. You don't need it, but it's a top-drawer treat.

All products mentioned bought with my own funds. Some links above are affiliate links.

MAC Liptensity Lipsticks - Claretcast and Medium Rare

Everyone loves a good MAC lipstick. From creamy nuanced nudes to full-on, Candy Yum Yum lips - MAC has you covered. Their newest lipstick formulation offering, however, is really interesting. 

MAC Liptensity lipsticks promise "extreme colour intensity, clarity and vibrancy" with "fully saturated colour" in a satin finish. I'm quite glad to see a bit of a shift away from flat-matte lips - as much as a velvety-matte lip looks amazing on a full pout, for us mere mortals I find it's often a less than flattering finish. 

I picked up two of these lipsticks on a recent Fenwicks trip - Medium Rare, a nudey neutral pink (obvs); and Claretcast, a rich, ruby-berry.

Firstly - packaging. a vast improvement on normal MAC bullets! They have a secure feeling click-closure, and the colour-coded tubes make finding the right shade in an embarrasingly vast MAC lipstick collection a breeze. 

The texture is quite different to your average MAC lipstick - quite gel-like and shiny in the tube. It warms on contact with the lips (there is a tiny drag on initial application) and basically melts into the lip on application. I find that this formula is extremely forgiving on lines and dryness, and is borderline plumping - my lips look considerably smoother with one of these lipsticks, which is a nice change from moisture-sapping matte lipsticks. They have the same classic light vanilla scent as the normal MAC line.

 These do feel ever so slightly tacky to touch - barely noticeable if you're a regular wearer of any lipglosses, but worth bearing in mind if you're a super-matte fan. 

Then, the swatches - one swipe. Jings. The pigment is indeed there. They are really bright and strongly pigmented - I have applied them as a light stain for experimentations' sake, but if you love sheer lips, you won't love these - look at Rituel de Fille's offerings instead.

I'm afraid our current dull, rubbish weather isn't doing my swatches any favours here, but you can still see just how intense these are on one swipe. Personally, I am absolutely loving this new formulation from MAC - I can't wait to try some more!

Have you tried these lipsticks? Which ones should I pick up next?

Some links above are affiliate links. all products mentioned bought with my own money.