Modern Renaissance Spotlight Eyes

It may seem that I'm late jumping on the Modern Renaissance bandwagon but the reality is that this post is just extremely overdue! About a month ago I purchased this palette in a little pre-holiday Cult Beauty haul and oh my goodness it is just luxury. The eyeshadows are pigmented and blend out like an absolute dream! Plus, a palette with warm tones in it? You already know I'm about that!

So after priming my eyelids and setting them with a cream eyeshadow I used a MAC 224 brush and the shade Burnt Orange and blended this into my crease using back wards and forwards motions.

I then used a MAC 217 brush and the shade Realgar and packed this onto the outer corner and inner corners of my eyes, leaving the centre of the lid free from any shadow. 

I then used the same 217 brush and the shade Red Ochre and repeated the previous step to add more depth and dimention to the inner and outer corners. 

For the centre of the lid I used a MAC 242 brush and the shade Primavera and packed this in the centre and then buffed the edges with the 217 used previously.

For the lower lashline I used my favourite undereye brush from Morphe which is the E17 and the shade Realgar and just buffed this on the lower lashline. 

I finished off the look with a quick sweep of Morphe Gel Liner in Slate using a MAC 210 brush and a pair of Ardell Demi Wispie lashes!

Let me know what your thoughts are on this palette and leave a link to any looks you have done with this palette too! (I love a little inspiration!) See you soon!

Rebecca x

Everyday Eyes

Back again with a little eye tutorial! This one is for one of my everyday eye looks. This is my personal eyeshadow look for when I can't decide what I want to do, when i'm not feeling very inspired or when I just want something simple. I understand that this may not be an everyday eye look for some but it works for me!

After priming my eyelids using a concealer and setting with a cream eyeshadow I use Makeup Geek eyeshadow in the shade Creme Brulee as my transition colour. Using a MAC 224 brush I use backwards and forward motions from the outer corner to the inner corner of the eye and gradually move it up into the upper crease when there is less product on the brush.  

Next I used Makeup Geek eyeshadow in Frappe with a MAC 217 brush to sculpt out my crease using the same backwards and forwards motions. To do this I keep my eye open and looking down into the mirror so I can see where I am focusing the eyeshadow so I dont go too far either way. I turn the brush vertically to make sure the eyeshadow blends seemlessly rather than focusing too much into the crease. I then go back in with the MAC 224 brush and blend the two shadows together further.

I repeat the last step using the Makeup Geek eyeshadow in Cocoa Bear. By using 2 or 3 colours in the crease area it gives the illusion of a deeper socket. After this step I use the same 217 brush and pack the Cocoa Bear eyeshadow all over the lid between the crease and the lashline. 

I then use a Morphe E23 brush and the Makeup Geek Frappe eyeshadow and blended this on the lower lash line, this brush is small enough for the lower lashline but fluffy enough to blend the eyeshadow seemlessly. 

I used a MAC 210 brush and Morphe gel liner in the shade Slate to line my lashline before applying mascara (Benefit Rollerlash of course!) and then apply my favourite false lashes which are Eylure lashes in the style 157. 

To put the icing on the cake I pop Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter from theBalm on the inner corner of the eyes using a pencil brush. This is my favourite product for an inner corner highlight as a little goes a long way and I do like that bright glow in the corner of my eye.

So that's my everyday eye look for when I've no idea what look I want to do. What are your favourite everyday looks? What are your favourite products to use? Let me know in the comments! See you soon!

Rebecca x

Let's Talk Brushes

When it comes to good makeup, good brushes are just as imporant as the products you use. I've used many different brushes over the years and whilst I've discovered new brushes, I've got a few which are my favourites.

My top four face brushes are (from left to right) the MAC 129, MAC 168, MAC 188 and the Real Techniques Setting Brush.

MAC 129 is the brush I use to set my foundation with powder after I've used my loose powder to set my concealer (for more details here's my How To: Flawless Base post). I love this brush because it's the perfect size and it's pinched at the base so it's not perfectly round. The only problem I have is that sometimes the bristles on the brush shed, but this doesn't happen too often but it can be quite annoying trying to remove a bristle stuck to your foundation it's enough to drive a gal crazy on a Monday morning. Whenever I wash this brush I find that if I don't apply conditioner to it and let it soak it in for a while before rinsing, the bristles can be quite harsh. 

MAC 168 is the brush that I use to apply my contour, bronzer and blusher. The bristles are natural hairs which means that my powder products blend out seemlessly. I love that this brush is angled as it allows me to easily sculpt underneath my cheekbone. The angled brush also makes it easier to sweep blusher across the apples of my cheeks.

MAC 188 is a new recent favourite of mine. I have two of these brushes and I use one for foundation and one for highlight (this is a very versatile brush). Because this brush is a duofibre brush it blends out my foundation flawlessly and it's also great for applying highlight to the tops of the cheekbones too (not after it's had foundation on obviously). 

Real Techniques Setting Brush is a brush I've had for a very long time, just over two years I think and it's still going strong. I used this for a long time as a highlighter brush but when "baking" became more popular I now use it to apply loose powder underneath my eyes to set my concealer as it's small so it's the perfect shape to fit underneath my eyes.

I have 6 eye brushes which are my absolute favourites (from left to right) MAC 224, MAC 217, Real Techniques domed shadow brush, Morphe E17, Anastasia Beverly Hills 12 brow brush, MAC 210. 

MAC 224 is my little baby, I would be seriously lost without this brush. Because this brush has natural bristles it's perfect for blending eyeshadow. I use it to blend my transition colours and I also use it for nose contouring as well. The bristles on this brush are the same as the MAC 129 so again when I've washed the brush I condition it, this also makes the bristles softer on the skin around my eyes when I'm blending as this is thinest skin on the body. 

MAC 217 is the blending brush I use after blending my transition colour into my crease using the 224, the 217 is smaller so it really helps to sculpt out the crease and create the illusion of a really deep socket.

Real Techniques Domed Shadow Brush is the brush I use to apply and blend my eyeshadow primer, the brush has synthetic bristles so it's great for blending out cream products like eyeshadow primers. This brush is similar to the Real Techniques crease brush but this one is pinched at the bottom which makes it easier to pack on the primer. 

Morphe E17 is a brush which I use to apply eyeshadow to my lower lashline. Before this brush I used a pencil brush but it didn't blend the eyeshadow low enough underneath my eye and didnt blend seemlessly enough. Because this brush is fluffier it makes it so much easier to blend eyeshadow underneath my eyes.

Anastasia Beverly Hills 12 Brow Brush I don't know what on earth I was doing before this brow brush. I purchased it when I ordered my first Dipbrow and I've never looked back. The brow brush is so thin and stiff that it makes defined brows easy to do and because it's so thin it makes it super easy to make the brow have a thin taper at the end. 

MAC 210 is my favourite eyeliner brush because it's so thin. This brush makes eyeliner so easy because you don't have to worry about making the line too thick straight away. This brush also makes it very easy to do winged eyeliner because the brush is so fine. 

Those are my favourite all time brushes! Let me know what your favourite brushes are and why you love them in the comments! See you soon!

Rebecca x