Review: MUA Eyeshadow Palettes in Undress Me & Undress Me Too

I'd been after some affordable neutral palettes after hitting pan on my usual favourites and when I saw swatches of the MUA palettes I knew I had to have one. Well, with me being quite indecisive and a bit of a sucker for shimmery browns I knew I actually had to have two.
On first inspection these were smaller than I thought they'd be but that was my own fault for only looking at online photos, and at 14x7.5cm they're handy to slip in your makeup bag without having to make rushed colour decisions. Each palette closes with a satisfying click and is pretty sturdy although I did have one casualty from the clumsy cat giving Undress Me a kick off the dressing table (jealousy, obv).
If you're looking particularly for matte shades then these won't be the palettes for you as the shimmer features very heavily and the mattes aren't the most pigmented I've ever used, but as a shimmer girl I'm not all that bothered and I don't like anything too strong in my crease. It would've been nice to see a matte black for lining the eyes though as then i'd have been sorted and wouldn't have to take another with me in my makeup bag.
As for the colours, they range from shimmery black and grey up through browns, golds and silvers to a light cream, so I'm always finding shades to wear whether I want to go warm, cool or natural. These last well on my eyes and don't fade much or crease but I do find they have a tendency to imprint above the lid if I don't use a neutral base colour from another brand. I also find there isn't much fallout down the cheeks which I'm really pleased about as with other affordable brands like ELF I've always had to do my eyes first to avoid dark smudges in my foundation.
These are widely reviewed as great dupes for Urban Decay's Naked and Naked 2 as you might be able to tell from the slightly risque names of the palettes. Only having individual UD shades I can't comment, but comparison photos are only a google search away and a lot of the shades do look very very similar! One thing that I like about Undress Me Too over Undress Me is that they've actually named the shades on the back of the packaging, it really gets to me when brands don't bother to do this- 'Corrupt', 'Exposed' and 'Devotion' sound a lot more appealing than 'Shade 12', 'Shade 8' and 'Shade 2' don't they?

Overall I'm much more pleased with these than I have been with an affordable eyeshadow palette for a long time. I think Undress Me Too is my favourite for having slightly lighter shades but Undress Me is great if I'm feeling more dramatic and for evening makeup, also for £4 each it's not a big deal if there are 1 or two shades that don't float my boat.

The Undress Me and Undress Me Too eyeshadow palettes are available from MUA Online or Superdrug for £4.

Spring Lip Balm Picks

After a long winter with chilly winds and dry radiator heat my lips always need a bit of extra care as the sun starts to come out. My lips tend to be a bit dry whatever the weather so these are my picks for lip care this spring:
Vaseline Aloe Vera Lip Therapy is an old favourite and this is the Vaseline variety that works best for me when my lips are particularly dry or sore. Carmex is another well established lip saver brand and this Vanilla Click Stick is a new addition to my collection. It contains vitamin E and has SPF 15 which is perfect for protecting against the sun, has a slightly waxy feel that means it lasts well on the lips, and also makes satisfying little clicks as you twist it up! Another slightly waxier pick is the Blistex Daily Lip Conditioner, I love Blistex products for their menthol tingly feels-like-its-actually-doing-something effect on the lips and this little pot doesn't disappoint. It also contains SPF 15 and added collagen to keep lips soft and smooth from the inside out. My two favourites for an amazing summer scent are the Nivea Lip Butter in Raspberry Rose and The Body Shop Born Lippy in Pink Berry. Honestly I don't really care whats in the Nivea one because I just love smelling it and literally want to eat it but I do know that it feels lovely on the lips (like butter not surprisingly) but without being greasy and very subtly lightens my lip colour. The Born Lippy balm is full of moisturising and nourishing oils and contains Community Fair Trade Beeswax from Cameroon. As this has a balmy texture it lasts a long time on the lips but I've been applying it frequently just so I can have a quick sniff! If you're not into fruity scents then there's the Caramel Cream Lip Butter from Nivea that has a sweet but more subtle fragrance with the same thick but not heavy buttery feel. Both Lip Butters contain Hydra IQ, a hydrating complex that allows water and moisturisers to reach cells in deep layers of the skin through osmosis -the movement of liquids from a higher to lower concentration through a partially permeable membrane (yes I did learn that at school, yes I do still know it off by heart!). If you're not into fancy fragrances but like a glossy moisturised lip then my final pick is perfect- the Simple Intensive Lip Moisturiser is like a thick gloss in a squeezy tube but isn't runny or sticky. It contains Pro Vitamin B5, Vitamin E and Glycerine and I always have one in my bag for its no nonsense does-what-it-says-on-the-tube goodness!

How do you keep your lips smooth and soft in spring?

April Favourites & May Wishlist

Cosmopolitan Blend Perfection Sponge £4.99- This is a product I had on my previous wishlist and was in two minds about. Well I'm glad I tried it thought, as it's replaced all foundation brushes I have. I prefer to use it dry or very slightly damp as when its properly damp it sheers out my foundation so much that I end up using loads. It gives a lovely uniform texture to the skin, smooths out uneven patches and application lines I didn't even realise I had! Also really great for blending out into the hairline and for colour on the cheeks, although it does take quite a bit of cleaning and I've scratched it with my nails already whoops!

Batiste Medium and Brunette* £3.99- If you read my post about Girlz Only Dry Shampoo from a while ago you'll know that I was never Batistes biggest fan as it would always give me the greying roots look, so I was really pleased to see the brown coloured version in my goody bag from the Brighton Blogger Meet. This is a medium brown powder spray that even before working in is so much less noticeable than the usual white sprays. This has a massive thumbs up from me!
MUA Out There Gloss in Candy Pink £2- You can read my full review with swatches of 8 of the shades here but Candy Pink is my definite favourite. Its a lovely light bluey pink and my lips aren't yet immune to the plumping action from these glosses. I also find my lips are a lot smoother and less dry or flaky when using these.

 MUA Lipstick Shade #16 Nectar £1- Another MUA purchase, I'm hooked! I bought three lipstick shades and will do a review post with swatches soon. This is quite a bright orange in the tube but tones down to a more corally colour on the skin. Its much less scary when you get it on your face and actually looks really nice blended out on the cheeks. I'm not a massive blush girl and don't tend to go for powders too much so this is just pigmented enough to make me look alive and awake without being some mental bright pink. Why I didn't actually get a cream blush I don't know, maybe they weren't out there on the stand? But I did half have my cheeks in mind when buying this and who says you cant put lipstick on your cheeks anyway? In the words of Wayne Goss 'Do whatever makes you happy'!

MUA Undress Your Skin Highlighter £3- When I first used this highlighter I was pretty disappointed as it didn't really seem to be doing anything, but as soon as I stepped back from the mirror into the light- wow, I looked glossy! The first thing that drew me to this was the gorgeous embossed pattern (although mine is a bit deformed now) and it has a lovely pinky pearlescence that goes well with my skintone. The only bad thing is that it isn't all that finely milled, so if you go a bit overboard it does tend to accentuate the pores a bit. I've been applying this with the MUA F2 Stippling Brush £3 which is another MUA product that I love as its soft and picks up just the right amount of product.

ILAH Semi Permanent Mineral Brow Travel Kit* £29.99- I was so pleased to see not only ashy browns in this little kit but also a black shade- I've had my eye on a few other kits but they just weren't dark enough, and for those us with very dark eyebrows a brown can look very noticeable and strange. This black isn't too pigmented which is good to avoid going overboard but mixed with the gloss it becomes a little darker and is great for creating defined ends. This really does have staying power as I do occasionally sleep in my makeup (cue gasps and finger wagging!) and happily my eyebrows have stopped wearing off in the night. This is so handy to throw in your makeup bag as its a nice sturdy compact that has a pretty big mirror for it's size.

Autograph Liquid Glow Illuminator £9.50- I'd been umming and ahhing over Mac Strobe Cream for months, swatching it over my hands and up my arms and wondering whether I really needed a lotion when I already had a cream highlighter. My answer came after reading some reviews and swatching the Autograph Liquid Glow Illuminator in the shop as its exactly the same but much cheaper! This is a light iridescent lotion with moisturising ingredients that's hypoallergenic and paraben free. It can be used under foundation, mixed with foundation or over the top for a dewy highlighted look. It also comes in two colours- white or bronze, with bronze being a lot darker than shown on the website but would be gorgeous in summer on tanned skin!

REN Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask* £30- I had a skincare overhaul last month and REN is featuring pretty highly in my routine at the moment. Usually this would be out of my price league but I had a small sample tube I'd been trying and the full size was kindly bought for me. This has an orange fruity scent and the consistency of jam but as it works so well I don't mind having a sticky face. I avoid active blemishes and it doesn't tingle, burn or dry my face but I instantly notice how much smoother and softer my skin is. Hopefully it will continue to keep my skin smooth and I'll notice more radiance in my dull complexion. A tip for if you're not seeing results- I noticed after the 3rd and 4th time the effects weren't as good as the first, I saw a couple of posts saying that people were getting better results leaving the mask on for 40-60 mins. At the moment I leave it for about 40 mins and am still pleased every time!

Clinique Supermoisture Makeup £21.50- As I said above, I've had a skincare overhaul and my new regime contains quite a bit of Salicylic Acid and Niacinamide that can be drying to the skin until it gets used to them. Unfortunately I've had quite a lot of dryness in problem areas so dug out my Supermoisture Makeup and have fallen back in love! This is a thick and creamy foundation that says it has sheer to moderate coverage but I thinks its definitely more medium as it covers blemishes so well. Even though its moisturising and gives a dewy finish it still dries down (unlike a lot of dewy foundations, especially highstreet ones that stay wet and transfer), but the dewiness comes from quite a bit of shimmer that may or may not be your cup of tea. Despite the shimmer I've been wearing this a lot combined with Stila SPF 30 tinted moisturiser and my acidified skin (lurrvely!) is thanking me for it.

May Wishlist

I did really well with my wishlist last month, most of the items were very affordable so I managed to get a lot of them and wasn't lusting too much over expensive things I couldn't afford! This months wishlist is a little smaller than others but still affordable so am looking forward to getting down the shops!
NYX Cream Blush in Glow- Maybe its time to stop blending lipstick onto my cheeks? I'll only know once I get my hands on a cream blush and this looks so gorgeous on other people I've seen with a similar skin tone.
NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream- Shannon (Shaanxo on youtube) mentioned these and did some swatches in one of her recent videos, and they come in light colours that I've been loving but finding it hard to get in lipstick form. These are matte but long lasting on the lips so can be worn under gloss.
Wet n Wild Mega Last Lip Colour- I haven't yet tried any lip products from Wet n Wild so will be really interested to see what I think of these. I've been wanting them for the same reasons as the Lip Creme above.
Autograph Instant Radiance Primer- I swatched this when I went to buy the Illuminator and really liked the texture and finish, Its not as siliconey as other primers I've tried and is meant to illuminate the skin under foundation. I might do a primer post soon as they're so hit and miss!
Amie Spring Clean Cooling Clay Mask- I received a sample sachet of this mask and was so impressed even after just one use! I used to love clay masks but haven't tried any out since my favourite was discontinued. This one tingles with Menthol and smells just like lime jelly from the added Lime Butter, my face felt so clean and bright that I cant wait to get my hands on a full size tube.
Sleek Luminous Pressed Powder- I've been swatching this in Superdrug and can't really make my mind up so its going on the wishlist until I do. This is a powder with light reflecting particles that is meant to set foundation but add a healthy glow to avoid the dullness that powder can sometimes give. I used to completely powder and matte down my face which gave my makeup great longevity but now that I prefer a more dewy finish it does sound like the perfect product... I think I'll have another swatch....

What are your favourites from last month and wishlist items? Have you tried any of the products above?

Brighton Blogger Meet Up

On Saturday I headed off to the Globe pub in Brighton for the #BtonBloggerMeetup arranged by the lovely (and very organised!) Laura from Lola and Behold. Id never met any bloggers before but everyone was very friendly and I wasn't nervous for long!

At the Globe there was a demonstration from Lush of their Cosmetic Catastrophe facemask which unfortunately I missed, but after a little chat with the other girls came the distribution of the goodie bags (sneaky peak at the end of this post) and an exciting little raffle in which I won a bottle of Skinetica (review coming soon).

After a speedy M&S lunch on the go we were off to My Salon Looks at the Hove end of Western Road where we were kindly treated to hair demonstrations, a glass of Bucks Fizz and macaron or two.

We were shown the Shu Uemera experience, where lovely thick hair oils were dabbed with a sponge into the hair roots, and then combed through the hair to distribute the oil evenly and give the hair amazing softness and shine. George, the Styling Director, said the Shu Uemera products were the first in his career that he had 100% confidence in and they looked so luxurious, even the bowls and spoons used to hold the products looked chic!

Next we were shown a dyeing technique called Tissue Highlights, where tissue is used while the colour is developing instead of the traditional foil. The hair model was then sat under a very futuristic looking dryer (maybe these are common? I don't go in hairdressers often so I was fascinated!). The hair washing room is called The Oasis and it's an amazing dark and relaxing den with massaging chairs and lovely colour changing lights. After a quick rinse we saw how delicate and blended the tissue had made the highlights instead of the streaky look that a foil technique can occasionally create.

Soon it was time to leave the salon but not before we were very generously and unexpectedly treated to a £15 off voucher for the salon and a choice of a professional pair of straighteners or hairdryer. I chose a hairdryer which is the TI Sensual Salon Professional 3600 and has Argan Oil technology that helps produce smoothing ions as it dries the hair. I've been using mine everyday since I so kindly received it and my hair has never looked so good, it blows like a hurricane but is definitely not as hot as my ear burning previous dryer and my hair is looking silky smooth!

Next we were off to the Body Shop where a lovely representative helped some of the girls with new purchases and I had a good swatch and chat about favourite products with Holly from HC Beauty. Finally we split into little groups and some of us went off to the MAC shop for some more swatching (spreading of Pro Longwear and Strobe Cream up my arm!).
After a very quick stop in the Seven Stars, and too soon, it was time for me to rush off. Lots of the girls stayed in town for dinner together and I was sad to miss out as it would've been great to have more of a chat with everyone!

I was really blown away by the goodie bag as when I first put my name down I didnt even know that there would be goodies! We received an amazing array of samples so definitely keep your eye out for reviews of the products soon. Ive been trying out lots of the products already and so far am particularly impressed with the ILAH Semi Permanent Brow Kit (amazing staying power and great colours for girls with confusing brown hair/black eyebrow combos like me!), Skinetica blemish lotion and Bodhi Neroli face oil. We also received a full size Birchbox, which was a lovely surprise, and a polish from NailGirls that was hand picked based on our blogs- I received Pink 7 which is a lovely bluey bubblegum pink.

I had a really lovely day and it was so nice to chat with other beauty bloggers, I look forward to meeting up again sometime soon! 

New Cosmetic Bag Ideas

I'm a bit bored of my make up bag, Ive never been very keen on the design but use it because its easy to keep clean and a compact handy size. While having a look for a new one I came across some really lovely designs and thought Id share them in case anyone else is looking for a new make up bag as well.

1. Jan Constantine Romantic Make Up Bag £21.58
2. Disaster Designs Dandy Make Up Bag £15.60
3. In a Nutshell Make Up Bag £18
4. Disaster Designs Fleur De Jardin Make Up Bag £16.78
5. Ted Baker Eller Cosmetic Bag £22
6. In a Nutshell Wash Bag (not quite a makeup bag but love the design nonetheless) £21.58

I really like the Disaster Designs range of accessories and as my sister is a big traveller I bought her the Bon Voyage Make Up Bag above along with a scrapbook style travel diary for her birthday, I would've liked to have kept it for myself! Ive found a lot of lovely styles on TemptationGifts.com which is a site I use quite a lot looking for presents for my mum and sister (and sometimes myself!).

Another gorgeous bag that's just been released is the Aromatherapy Associates Little Beauty Bag (below), the design is inspired by the feeling you get when smelling essential oils and its available for just £12.

It was a toss up for me between number 1 and number 3 in the first picture above, they're both a bit more girly and twee (in a good way) than I usually go for but I settled on number 3, the In a Nutshell bag, as I think it's pretty unusual and really like the colour. It's matte rubber coated but made to look a bit like suede which is great so it can be wiped clean and I don't need to worry about getting my grubby makeup paws over it!