Raiding My Sister's Make-Up Bag

 Don’t you just love going through other people’s make-up bags? This weekend I made a little spontaneous trip to London to see my sister and found myself riffling through her make-up bag to see what goodies I could find, the following are things that I would love to buy myself in my shade and other products I would like to sneak into my bag and take back with me…

1. Bobbi Brown Blush in Peony

This is the one I got most excited about as I had no idea she had it, it is Bobbi Brown’s much raved about blusher in the colour Peony. It looks a very scary bright pink in the compact but once applied it leaves a gorgeous, natural, healthy pink, matte finish.

2. Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation in B20

I would love to be able to use this foundation but none of the Chanel shades ever seem to match my skintone, they are all far too yellow based for my pale-pinky skin.  My sister, Charlotte describes it as having a dewy finish with light to medium coverage, she says it's quick and easy to blend and leaves a nice natural finish. However, she does also point out that her shade isn't quite the perfect match and would benefit from having the shade B10 to mix in.

3. Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer

This again is a very raved about product in the blogging world and I’m sure at some point in the near future I won’t be able to resist any longer and make the purchase. The unique product has two shades – one to match the skin’s depth of colour and the other to match the undertone. You can either mix the two shades together on the back of your hand to create your perfect shade or use the more pinky to counteract under eye dark circles and the more yellow-based one to hide any blemishes.  I think Charlotte uses her fingers to apply which is good as it warms the product up but I would then buff over with a fluffy brush to leave a super flawless finish

4. YSL Baby Doll Mascara

I actually recommended this to my sister after hearing Sophie’s great reviews about it and Charlotte loves it. It is quite a subtle, natural looking mascara perfect for everyday wear with a brush that easily coats every lash, making the more voluminous, longer and defined. Also – a mascara that actually smells nice, finally!

5. Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick Compact Highlighter in Pink Quartz

I am a big fan of these shimmer bricks even though I’ve never actually owned one myself, I’ve always just stolen a bit from my sister or Sophie! They are powder highlighters with 5 slightly different shades inside which when mixed together create a lovely natural looking pink highlighter – perfect for the top of cheek bones, on the brow bone and in the inner corner of the eye.

6. MAC Matte Lipstick in So Chaud

Now this is one statement lipstick! I’m surprised my sister has this as she is usually a very natural-looking-make up kind of girl. The best way to describe this colour is think of MAC’s famous Lady Danger Lipstick and add a bit more orange. MAC describe it as an intense reddish-orange, it also has the matte finish which I am really loving at the minute.

Favourite Birchbox Products

I have been subscribed to Birchbox now for 4 months and I absolutely love it! It's a great way to try out new products and brands which you wouldn't necessarily use or know about - it's also great getting a little treat through the front door every month too! I have loved pretty much everything I've got from Birchbox so far so I am going to try and narrow it down to my favourite few...

Laura Mercier Long Lash Mascara

I love to wear this mascara in the daytime as it looks so natural, much more so than my Le Volume De Chanel one which I reviewed a few weeks ago . It really separates the lashes and coats every single one without ever clumping. The small thin wand is not what I usually like with a mascara however, this one is an exception - it is especially good for bottom lashes too. It has the usual sleek Laura Mercier packaging and I will definitely be buying a full sized one when I get round to it. 

Philip Kingsley Hair Elasticizer

I only got this in this months box so have only tried it out once but on first impressions I really like it. It is a pre-shampoo treatment and I worked it into the ends of wet hair and left for 15 minutes before shampooing and conditioning as usual. I found it made my hair look and feel much nicer as well as leaving it tangle-free. I'm not sure if I will buy the full sized product as it is £28 which is a little on the pricey side, I'll see if I think its worth after using for about a month then decide. 

Korres Citrus Showergel

I keep hearing about the brand Korres so I was really excited when I got a (very large) sample of this shower gel last month. I have used it a couple of times but I have decided to save the rest for when I go on holiday as it is the perfect size and it has a really fresh, holiday scent. It lathers up into a really creamy texture and leaves my skin feeling very clean, refreshed and moisturised. I am definitely going to try some other Korres products- can anybody suggest any good stockists?

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser in Nude

I am a massive fan of Laura Mercier and have been using her Silk Crème foundation for a while now and I have had my eye on this tinted moisturiser for a while. It is a really lightweight tinted moisturiser and the coverage can be built up really easily. It is perfect if you are having 'a good face day' and you just want something to even out your skin tone and add a little radiance. It also has SPF20 which is another plus. I will certainly buying a full sized one in the summer.  

Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter

I have never heard of this brand before but I really like this highlighter pencil/crayon. I use it on my bottom waterline of my eyes to brighten and make them look wider but it is really multi-functional; it can be used on the brow bone, cheek bone, in the eye inner corner - basically anywhere you might want to highlight. The pencil is really soft so it doesn't scratch and it stays put for a really long time. It has definitely become a staple in my make up bag. 

Are you subscribed to any beauty boxes, if so, what have been your favourite products?

p.s. thinking of subscribing to beauty boxes? Click here to see Sophie's review of Birchbox and Glossybox.