review: catrice cosmetics prime and fine illuminating base;

I have quite oily skin, particularly on my nose and chin, and I suffer with large pores across my cheeks, so I am always on the hunt for a primer that will smooth out my skin and stop my foundation from sliding off during the day.  Over the last year or two, I have spent stupid money on primers that promise to do this, that, and the other but I had yet to find one that really worked for me.  After reading about Catrice's Prime And Fine primers on Melissa Gallagher's blog and passing them umpteen times on Catrice's stands in town, I decided to pick up the Prime And Fine Illuminating Base.  I had only ever tried Catrice eyeshadows before purchasing this, but for less than €6, why not?!

Out of the tube, the primer is a pink-peach colour but it blends and dries invisibly.  This product is an illuminating primer so it contains light-reflecting golden shimmer.  Although that seems quite scary for a face primer, I assure you that it is not as glitter-packed as it sounds (I hadn't even noticed the shimmer until I looked up the description online!) but it does help to give your face a subtle glow.  The consistency of this primer is very different from any other I've tried.  Instead of the matte, "blurry" application I was used to, this primer applies much more like a creamy moisturiser.  It does dry matte, but it doesn't feel dry at all and it really helps keeping my face moisturised without being greasy.

I have to say, I am very impressed with this product.  After just one use, I noticed a huge difference in how well my make-up lasted that day.  I found that it kept the oiliness at bay for several hours, which is a huge improvement on the two oil-free hours I might get without a primer.  This helps to keep my make-up in place with minimal touch-ups for almost an entire day(!) which was exactly what I was hoping for with this product.

The only downside of this primer is the scent.  It has a strong sugary smell which I find to be a little off-putting, especially when I can still smell it on my face through my foundation.

Overall:   This primer works perfectly for me and I've been using this primer every single day since I bought it.  I would definitely recommend it.

Rating:  8/10

What is your favourite primer?  What are your thoughts on this one?  Thanks for reading!

bloglovin;

I'm sure that most, if not all, of you will know by now that on July 1st, Google Reader (and as a result, Google Friend Connect) is being axed.  As a replacement, you can follow this blog (and your other subscriptions) through BlogLovin.  To import your current Google Reader subscriptions into BlogLovin, simply follow this link and click to authorise!  Very simple indeed.  Please take just a few minutes to follow this blog on BlogLovin, and let me know if you need any help!

 

haul: river island;

 (oversized oil-slick tshirt - €12)

(natural light vs. flash // grey leggings - €22 // wet-look leggings - €25)

In just over twenty-four hours, I will be seeing Rihanna in concert as part of her Diamonds World Tour at the Aviva stadium in Dublin.  I. am. so. excited!   In the spirit of the occasion, I took to River Island to buy a Riri-worthy outfit.  Unfortunately, none of these items are part of Rihnna's collection, but I'm really happy with what I managed to pick up.  

The oversized black tshirt has a metallic oil-slick print on the front, which I adore, and rolled-up sleeves.  It hangs really nicely, it's really comfortable, and it's long enough to cover my bum!  A steal for only €12!  The first pair of legging I got, for €22, are a dark-grey, distressed-looking pair.  Although the legs are just a bit longer than I'd like, these fit me well.  The sizes are quite big, though, so I'd suggest going for a size smaller than you'd usually wear.  As for the other pair, I love wet-look/disco pants-style leggings, so I picked this black pair up aswell.  For just €25, the fabric is quite thick and feels durable, not like it's going to fall apart in my hands like some cheaper pairs.

For the gig, I plan to wear the tshirt and black leggings with my black Dr. Martens and heaps of jewellery, and hope that it doesn't start to rain!  

Have you bought anything from the new Rihanna collection?  What would you wear to a gig?  Thanks for reading! 

review; essence single eyeshadow in out of the blue;

I've been a big fan of Essence nail polishes with a long time now but I recently picked up my first ever Essence eyeshadow, and I was so impressed that I thought I'd share my thoughts with you all.  I picked this up in my local Penneys/Primark.

Out Of The Blue is a beautiful, deep navy-blue.  It has a soft frosted finish which reflects a brighter blue, and it has some, but not too many, silver glitter pieces.  It has a very soft, almost creamy texture and it isn't chalky at all, which is pleasantly surprising considering how inexpensive it was!  This eyeshadow is very highly pigmented and swatched easily without a primer.  It's also very opaque which is a huge plus because not only  it saves time and product when applying, but that's quite unusual for a frost eyeshadow.  When I applied it, there was no pesky fallout and it blended really easily.  As for it's lasting power, I wore this for eight+ plus hours (primer-less!) and apart from some minimal fading, it still looked fresh!  Thumbs-up all round!

The only issue I had with this eyeshadow was the packaging.  I like the clear casing and the labelling, and it's easy to see the colour without opening the lid, but it's not nearly as sturdy as I would like.  After just a few days, the plastic clasp that keeps the lid closed snapped off.  Now, the lid flaps around like crazy which would/will spell disaster if I needed to throw it into my makeup bag for travelling.

(swatched in natural light vs. with flash)

Overall:  I have fallen in love with this eyeshadow and I've been reaching for it a lot since I bought it.  I never expected to get such a high-quality product for such a small price tag. I'm definitely going to pick up some more Essence eyeshadows in future.
Rating:  8/10

(circle lenses are Geo Princess Mimi Sesame Grey)

Have you tried Essence eyeshadows before?  What are your favourite shades?  Thanks for reading!

may in photos;

unlucky amy awhh // ice cream, nutella, peanut butter, and cookies. mmm // max sleeps weird // haircut

hello piercings // closeup of this collar // mr magorium's wonder emporium // so.much.chinese.food

absolutely gorg necklace from clothingloves.net // end of college countdown // sweets! // last ever day as a student

at the hospital with my sister // ghetto-fabulous earrings // watching the office with my cat // 2mm

fotd // big hair don't care // macarons! // i bought an iphone

switched to a new mobile network

I'M OFFICIALLY QUALIFIED!  As of the 10th of June 2013, I now have an honours degree!  Four long years of college have finally paid off, and now that I have finished studying, I have more time to blog.  Win-win?  So now that I have more time to dedicate to all of my lovely readers, I thought it was about time that I set myself a schedule.  From now on, I will post every Tuesday and Friday for definite, but I'll try to fit in as many posts as I can during the week.  How does that sound?  Thanks again for your patience.  I love you all!

ootd: ice-cream;

I have a bit of a confession to make.  I didn't wear this outfit today (!!).  I actually wore this last Tuesday, but I haven't had a chance to post since then.  Sorry!  I wore this into college to watch my classmates demo their video editing module assignments and was told several times that I looked "adorable" and "like an ice-cream.  Hmm...

Anyway, the polka dot dress with the cutest collar and the lilac jumper are both from Penneys/Primark.  This jumper is really comfortable and really summery, and I've been wearing almost non-stop since I bought it.  The chunky gold necklace is from River Island, as is the clip-in hair braid (I love this so much!  Reminds me of being a child again!) that you can kind of see in the first picture.  I kept my make-up pretty simple with my everyday brown smoky eye, with MAC's Please Me lipstick.

This is only my second outfit post and, seeing as I don't own a full-length mirror or a tripod, I hope this one turned out a bit better than the last one.

Thanks for reading!

april in photos;

re-dying my hair, finally // all finished! // panda ear college selfies // elastic band my counsellor gave me

snapchat, anyone? // peach & apricot mmm // bubble tea is yuck! // max is special

bailey sleeping with toast // notd // caramel mocha mmm //  bronze and gold fotd

last day of lectures with two of my favourite girls :(( // iced cocktails and pyjamas // nyx jumbo eye pencils review // pizza!

shameless selfie // best cuppa i've ever tasted!

Sorry I'm a bit late with this one!  As I mentioned last month, college and assignments are my first priority right now. Sorry!  April was a month filled with noms and memory making.  April 26th was my last day of lectures and my last day as a college student, and I'm really going to miss spending every day with my wonderful friends.  Thankfully we've got a few more deadlines before we all go our separate ways, but I'm missing them already!  My final hand-up date is the 23rd of May, so after that my blogging will hopefully become more regular and scheduled.  Thank you all so much for your patience, and thanks for reading!