Barry M Illuminating Highlighting Palette - Worth Picking Up? Drugstore, Affordable, Cruelty Free, Under £10

Ever just nipped into Boots or Superdrug for one thing, like baby wipes or toothpaste, stuck your finger in a sample on a product display out of sheer curiosity and then felt like you needed that product in your life?.... 

Recently, on a trip to Superdrug for some face wash, I did the above.

Barry M and I have a complicated history. Some of their products I love, some I hate, some I start loving and end hating. Dazzle Dust, Love, Concealer, hate. Primers (tried two or three of them), hate. Eyeliners, love. You get the idea... 

About a year ago, I decided to try their Natural Palette. Its a blusher and eyeshadow palette in some very natural shades. I thought I would like it, but I didn't. The product weas really stiff and hard to blend, and I found the colour payoff really poor (for both blush and eyeshadow). As it was around the same price as the To Be Cool in Copenhagen palette from Gosh I bought at the same time, and totally loved, I was more than a little disappointed and swore off Barry M powder products.

Barry M Natural Palette (image from Superdrug.com)

Fast forward to the face wash trip a few weeks ago, when I broke the just mentioned rule and got suckered in by one of those stand alone displays and some cute packaging. It has rockets on it.. nuff said??

So the thing that really attracted me to this palette was how soft and velvety the highlighters felt when I stuck my grubby paws in them. I mean, they are a pressed product so there's only so soft they can be, but they're definitely not smooshed into the pan with a huge amount of force. Also as a very pale girl, all three shades looked light enough for my peely-wally complexion.

LtR: Frosty Cream, Iced Pink and Gilded Bronze

The packaging is cute but it is cheap. It's card that looks like its been coated in thick black paper but not adhered together properly,  and you can see there is air between them in places. It has a magnetic closure but it's not really strong. The mirror is nice though and the design on the front is cute, however I've only had this a couple of weeks and bronze coating on the design has already started to wear off.

Across the second H and the T in highlighter the bronze coating is wearing off

So the palette costs £6.49 and you get three pans that each contains 4 grams. That's a cost per gram of £0.54, so very very cheap. The ingredients, like the packaging, aren't the highest quality with the main one being talc so definitely avoid it at all costs if you are sensitive to that.

So onto swatches, left to right we have Frosty Cream, Iced Pink and Gilded Bronze. Frosty Cream is a very pale yellow gold, Iced Pink is (as the name suggest) a very icy pink, and Gilded Bronze is a light bright coppery colour, but is definitely not bronze.  What I will say is these colours are all designed for very fair, peely-wally folk like me. I would say if your even a teeny bit tan these may be to frosty on you.

Some more intense finger swatches.

As I've already said these powders are very, very soft and as a result are a kick up quite a lot of product when you stick your brush (or fingers) into them. They apply really nicely to the skin, far nicer than expected and really aren't sparkly, which was always my biggest gripe about cheap highlighters. Is it weird to describe something as a work highlighter, because that's what these are to me.

I don't know how well these blended out swatches will show up.

So in summary...

Positive Points

Amazing value

Cruelty free

Good colour range

Not sparkly

Negative Points

Cheap packaging

Only works on fair skin

 Kicks up a lot of powder when using.

Would I recommend it? Maybe, but only to my really pale friends. 

Any Barry M products I really need to try? Let me know

xoxo Scruffy

Project Pan 2017 - Update 1. Kat Von D, MUA, Kiko Milano, Seventeen, Ralph Lauren, Too Faced, NYX

So it's been a little over a month now since I started my 2017 Project Pan (related blog post here) and I thought it was time to check back in and show you all how I'm doing. Rather than splitting it by product type this time, I'm going to do it by how used it is.

Update photos taken 21 May 2017, for later reference.

Products I used up

17 Va Va Voom Mascara & Kat Von D Tattoo Liner (Travel Sized).

 Loved and have repurchased both of these (two of the mascaras because they were on offer). All of them are currently in my unopened make-up drawer for a later date. 

Products I'm Binning

Models Own Kohl Pencil & Benefit Porefessional. 

My goal was to use up the Porefessional and decide if I liked the liner. I don't like the liner, it doesn't stay in the water line at all and just smudges if I use it for anything else. I own way to many opened liners I actually like and need to use up to even think about panning this properly. The Porefessional broke me out.It was all I changed in my routine and the breakouts only happened in areas I applied it (which are also not areas that normally have breakouts) . It's old, that's probably why this is happening, so bin. 

Products I barely used

I know I didn't use the mask or the hairspray at all. I did wear the perfume a couple of times but its more of a winter scent and its been really hot in the UK so I'll hopefully have more luck later in the year. As for the Sun Bunny bronzer, I do not like this as bronzer. I did use it both as an eyeshadow and on my body but not enough to really show any progress. 

Progress - Bottles

As you can see I made steady progress with all of these. There's not much else to say really. 

Progress - Powders and Pots

I've made good progress on the moisturiser and hit definite pan on the powder. The NYX blush is showing no progress despite me using it about 70% of the time. Still liking it, determined to hit that pan too.

Went through my photos and I hadn't taken a start photo.. D'oh!

I feel like I've made really good progress on this palette. I've been mostly concentrating on the two light taupe brown shades on the bottom row and a little in the bottom right corner of the large matte cream. There's now a significant dip in the second last shade. I'm hoping to hit pan soon as I own way to much eyeshadow and want to hit my goal, bin this and move on to the next palette ASAP. 

And products I'm adding in...

1. Collection Extreme Liner in Black
2. MUA Lip Liner
3. Kiko Long Lasting Shadow Stick
4. Seventeen Brow Sculpting Pencil

Check out how professional I am right now...

Update 1 round up

Used up: 2
Given up: 2
Added in: 4

xoxo Scruffy

E.L.F. Aqua Beauty Molten Liquid Eyeshadow - Are they worth the money? Cruelty Free, Cream Eyeshadow, Affordable

So a wee while ago I finally placed an E.L.F. order from the UK site (and mistakenly thought it was coming from inside the UK) and had to patiently wait for the two brushes and two of these eyeshadows to show up. 

**Side note - I'm not going to do a separate review of the brushes, but I got Pointed Powder and Flawless Face Brushes and they are top notch. I love them both. They are maybe a tiny bit smaller than I expected, they're both maybe comparable to the Real Techniques blush brush, but well worth the £7.50 they each cost **

So E.L.F. or Eyes Lips Face are a U.S. based makeup brand, completely cruelty free, and very affordable.  Right now they are available direct from their website (UK or USA), through Superdrug and through some other bigger online retailers. I'm not sure if they're coming into Superdrug stores or not but I hope they do so I can go and swatch and play with things. They only announced they were coming to Superdrug within the past week or so, so if I'd been patient I could have just ordered from their and gained points too. Once they arrived and I'd had about a week to play with them, I decided I really liked them and when I was placing a LuxPlus order decided to pick up the other two colours they had available.

Top to Bottom:  Liquid Gold, Molten Bronze, Rose Gold and Brushed Copper

According to ELF's website "Wash this hydrating liquid eyeshadow over lids for a vibrant, metallic look (and an irresistible cooling effect). The formula is infused with Purified Water and Vitamin E to help hydrate". They retail for £5 each and are available in six shades, I have four of them.

So what do I think about them...

Packaging

They come in these tubes that I keep likening to lip gloss or liquid lipstick, but, in actual fact, are exactly the same as cream concealers. They are plastic but they have a nice amount of weight to them and don't feel cheap at all. I also really like the blue caps, I think they signify the Aqua Beauty range or something.

Application

So these come with a doe-foot wand, exactly the same as cream concealer, and that's what I use to apply them, although I guess you could wipe it on your finger and then apply with your finger tips or a brush. I actually like using the doe-foot, and I didn't think I would. It makes application really quick, which is great as I'm so lazy with makeup in the morning, but its not super precise, especially in the crease area. So if you want to do some super sharp cut crease look, I would recommend dabbing a brush onto the wand and using that instead. 

Top to Bottom:  Liquid Gold, Molten Bronze, Rose Gold and Brushed Copper

How do they wear?

The first time I tried them, not very well. Every time since then they've been amazing though.  

So the first time I wore these I wasn't really sure what I was doing as I hadn't ever used a product like this before, so I wouldn't take my one bad day to mean these are bad. I didn't prime my eyelid, applied a tiny bit of a soft, matte brown coloured powder shadow in my crease, wapped a bit of these on my eyelid and went about my day. That day was really hot and I was incredibly busy, squinting at computer screens and then trying to avoid the sun, and by the end of it my eyelids were a mess. It was creased by about 3pm and I was gutted, luckily I have hooded lids so the bunching up could only really have been seen if I closed my eyes.

Top to Bottom:  Liquid Gold, Molten Bronze, Rose Gold and Brushed Copper

Day two I decided to try again. This time I primed my whole lid with the original Urban Decay primer potion, put in my crease colour and applied the shadow. I then let it set for 10-20 seconds before very gently blending a tiny bit of my crease colour just along the edge of the shadow, to set it fully. 

It did not budge all day. No creasing or fading and it looked amazing. Like I'd put in ten times the effort I had. I've tried this way of applying with the Bronze, Copper and Rose Gold, and it worked really well with all of them. The only reason I've not tried it with the Yellow Gold colour is I'm not sure if I'd like it on me or not. I'm quite cool toned and I'm not sure how it would look. Its also not nearly as opaque as the others and I don't know how many coats it would need to make it really pop.

I also know that Rose Gold and Brushed Copper look sheer in those swatches but they were done with only one coat and they do layer really nicely. Two layers of rose gold on the lid and then some really black winged liner looks amazing. I've tried liners from both ends of the spectrum over them too, Collection and Illamasqua and both applied fine and lasted amazingly, although the Illamasqua Precision Ink liner looked far better over the top (precise liquid verses clunky felt tip though).

Final thoughts

So overall I would give these a 8 out of 10, with there best points being their longevity, how easy they are to apply and the value for money. Probably the worst points are that the lighter colours are a little sheer, and that there's not a great color selection (the four "molten metals", a dark grey and a lilac). I would love to see a dark bottle green and navy blue in the same formulas as the bronze one, that would be so nice.

I would happily recommend these to anyone looking for a gorgeous, easy to apply, eyeshadow that packs a punch.

xoxo Scruffy

50 Days, 50 Lipsticks - Days 21 - 30 - Makeup Monsters, Bare Minerals, Tarte, Collection, Too Faced, NYX and Revolution

OK, going to be honest and say I wasn't sure I would even make it this far however I am so glad I have. Also, in the spirit of being honest, I'm not entirely sure the order I wore these in. I've made a point of collecting my thoughts and also keeping them together so I know what I wore, but I didn't keep track of when. I do know that the Lip Lingerie was day 26, day 20 was a Saturday and I wore it the following Saturday when I went out (didn't do anything on the Sunday so no lipstick required).

(If you've not been following this, or you want a recap, and explication and Days 1 - 10 here, and Days 11 - 20 here),

Day 21: Tarteist Lip Paint in TBT

I don't like this. I don't care if it suites me, I don't care if I got compliments, I don't care if I bought it in the States. I don't like it.

So I got this in the Sephora in Times Square in New York last year. I got it and Hangry (at least I think that was what it was called) and the other one was actually worse. The formula of this is incredibly mousse-like but it also sticks to itself and not your lips. You swipe and it all ends up in one corner of your mouth, so you swipe again and it all slips to the other. I found I had to kind of dab this on with the doe foot to make it stay. Such a pain. 

It didn't set completely (which I didn't hate) but it started to feeling powdery as the day wore on, which was gross, and then it wore off patchily. Yuck and no. Very disappointed. 

It's going in the bin.

Day 22: Collection Field Day Lipstick in 2 Tulip

I got this lipstick for around 50p online in from a clearance website and hadn't worn it before trying it here, so I really didn't expect much at all from it. However I was actually quite pleasantly surprised. 

The colour isn't really me, its a bright pink, and the only pinks I usually wear are either dusky rose type ones or bright but deep magenta type colours. This was a little more orangey-ish but not a coral kind of colour. I don't hate it, I'm just not sure I'll wear it all that often. Formula wise its matte-ish. It's definitely not a standard creamy sating finish but its also not a true matte. Demi-matte, that's the term I'm looking for. It doesn't feel the best though and it did go slightly chunky.

I'm going to put it in the "test it again" pile. I was going to keep it but the more I look at it, the less likely I think I'm going to get a lot of use out of it.

Day 23: Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss in Dazzler

So I googled this and I'm not actually sure if its part of their standard line of lipglosses or one they made specifically for Christmas Gift Sets. It is available on Amazon and eBay though they're are images online. 

I've made my feeling about lipgloss very clear on more than one occasion. I do not like it. However when I wore this I just needed something quick to bang onto my lips and get out the door and it seemed like a good idea at the time. 

Did I like it? No. Did I hate it as much as I thought I would? Also no. It isn't completely horrible. It smells really nice and I enjoyed the tingly mint feeling on my lips. It also really wasn't that sticky. It's still a lipgloss so it is still sticky, it's just not the worst. I'm going to add this to the one more chance pile too, as it might not be the worst idea to have one sheer and slightly sparkly lipgloss in my collection, but I don't want to keep it if I won't use it. 

Day 24: Revolution Iconic Pro Lipstick in Liberty (Matte)

This lipstick is like a slightly more blue toned version of the NYX Full Throttle Lipstick I wore on day 16. And that kind of purple suits me even less than the slightly more pinky one.

It wore pretty well for cheap lipstick but the formula sadly wasn't as good as Propaganda's (day 17). I know I'm not going to wear this again so I'm just going to get rid of it.

Day 25: NYX Extra Creamy Lipstick in Snow White

This lipstick lived in my work make-up for so long and it only every got used when I was going out after work and wanted to re-vamp my face. That meant it had never really got a good wear test.

I love the colour. It's a really nice dark vampy red, but a slightly brown red and I don't really own anything else like it. Also these lipsticks are like £4 so they're are the cheapest of the cheap and there's like a squillion colours. NYX lipsticks are a really good, affordable option.

Sadly when I wore this for more than a couple of hours, I just really didn't like the way it felt, but that's just me. The lipstick feels like it dries down and kind of locks in place, Which I guess is maybe what you're looking for in a dark, creamy, bullet lipstick. I will say, we're half this now and my lips are probably like "What are you doing to us you crazy witch??" So, this is going to go in the one more chance pile. I'm thinking once I'm done this I might give it a couple of weeks before I go through that and retry all the ones in that pile, after treating my lips to all the sugar scrubs and a full tube of lipbalm.

I feel like this 10 days has been pretty brutal so far, out of the first five there's none that are definitely getting kept.

Why did I decide to swatch this time around?

Day 26: NYX Lip Lingerie Liquid Lipstick in 12 Exotic

Well I know I'm keeping this.

I only own two of these Lip Lingeries, one in Embellishment (which I think is shade 2) and this one. I know it's meant to be a nudier line but I just found the other ten shades in the initial line too nude, too concealer lip-esque, and really boring.  They have just released 12 more shades in the UK and once my local NYX counter gets them I may pick up one of them as there's a darker greige kind of colour that I'm very interested in. The other eleven new ones I'm pretty meh about as well.

It's a shame though because I really like the formula of these. It's really comfortable and applies thick and almost moussey then dries down. If I could get it in a brighter red or like a deep dark magenta I would be all over it. It's probably my favourite NYX Liquid Lip formula. Worth trying if you want something nice for the office but not really fun for the weekend.

Day 27: Too Faced Melted Matte Liquid Lipstick in Lady Balls

So this lipstick is so popular in the beauty communities I'm part of, but then again so are the Tarte Lip Paints, so I don't think that's a good indicator of anything. They got this right though.

I got this in an mini pack at Christmas along with two of the Melted Lipsticks and one of the Melted Chocolate ones, and I'd tried all of them (Chihuahua and Chocolate Honey have been regular work shades for a while now) except this one. I need to be in the right place to want a red before I'll play with them, or at least I did before I started this madness.

This lipstick is so nice though. It lasted really well, not so well it didn't need touched up, but it was just a touch up after food and nothing major. Also I didn't need to wipe red lipstick off my chin. Does that happen to anyone else? Like f you eat something big you have to bite off, like a baguette, you end up with lipstick all over your chin? Let me know about that, for science.

Also, going off on a tangent here, don't ever let packaging fool you, The Lip Lingerie packaging is nearly twice the size, but that thing actually contains 0.4ml less (allegedly, the fl. oz. conversion is wrong and doesn't make a lot of sense). What I'm trying to say is don't be fooled by huge packaging, it could just be huge packaging.

Day 28: NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in 27 Madrid

So I have a real love hate relationship with these creams. Some of them look great and last forever, some of them apply streaky, smudge on everything, look gross and stain your lips.

This was one of the good ones, at least this time. It applied and wore fairly well, and was the most stunning red colour. All of these lip creams seem to dissolve in water so if you drink a lot of tea like I do then it will need reapplied regularly. Overall it's not bad though, and I am going to keep it. For now at least.

Day 29: NYX Intense Butter Gloss in 03 Toasted Marshmallow

I think I bought three of these Glosses because YouTube told me they we we're good and picked the shades based on how much I liked the name. I was promised all kind of things and every time I've worn them I've just felt really let down.

There's a lot of pigment but it wears off fast and leaves me with a weird line of glossy purple round the edge of my lips, can look streaky and is sticky. Also when I was wearing this I checked it in the mirror at the start of lunch (before I ate anything) and was like  "What a mess!". I know its only a gloss but I'm way to busy to have to re-apply every 25 minutes.

I'm only keeping this so I can finally finish the review of these I've been working on, then it's going in the bin. We'll consider it gone now though, as it won't be going back into my makeup collection.

Day 30: Makeup Monsters Liquid Lipstick in Rebound

Makeup Monsters are my favourite indie brand and they make the best magenta lipstick I've every seen (I've not worn it during this challenge yet, I've been saving it in case there was a special occasion or something). This orange is equally as nice, and once I'm done with this I can see me getting a lot of use out of it.

I'm not going to do a dedicated review as I think this colour is discontinued but once the UK supplier gets re-stocked with the new shades (there's a gorgeous dusky rose one I need) I'm going to pick up some more and will include it when I review them.

If you want a wee taster though, the formula is really thin, and takes a minute or two to dry down completely, but once it does, its totally matte. It lasts a really long time, minor touch ups after lunch and dinner, and because the formula is really thin it doesn't seem to go weird and chunky if you have to touch up and accidentally go over some of the product thats still on your face.

Running total

Days: 30

Lipsticks Worn: 32

Lipsticks being binned: 6 (+ 6 maybes)

Top 3

1. (Joint) Too Faced Melted Matte in Lady Balls/ Makeup Monsters Liquid Lipstick in Rebound

3. (Joint) NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Madrid/NYX Lip Lingerie in Exotic

Bottom 3

1. Tartist Lip Paint in TBT

2. Revelution Iconic Pro Lipstick in Liberty

3. NYX Intense Butter Gloss in Toasted Marshmallow

xoxo Scruffy

Project Pan 2017 - Start Point. Garnier, Gliss, NYX, Revolution, Too Faced, Boots, Kat Von D

So it's been a while since the last time I attempted a Project Pan type thing and maybe I'm being a little crazy to start it during my 50 Days, 50 Lipsticks projects but I figured as long as I didn't add any lip products in, I could probably give it a bash.

All photos here were taken on 16 April 2017, for updates sake later on.

So I've selected seventeen products as its 2017, to start with. A mix of hair and body care, make-up and perfume and as I finish or hit my goals with things I'll add more in. I've marked all the products I'm including with washi tape, more for my benefit as it makes them easier to identify when I'm half asleep first thing in the morning,

• Gliss Liquid Silk Hair Repair Conditioner. I've had this bottle since forever and just really want it gone now. I'm not sure if it does anything or not but it does smell pretty and I've only got a tiny bit left so it should be easy enough to use up.
• Percy and Reed Hairspray. I don't like this and I don't normally use hairspray but I got this in a sample box and I don't like binning usable things so I guess I'll be constructing some up-do's from my crazy mop in the near future.
• Garnier Body Repair Maple Sap Lotion. This is another product I've had forever and really need rid of it.  This wont take me long to use up so hopefully this'll be gone withing the next four weeks.
• Boots Tea Tree and Witch Hazel Mask with Active Charcoal. It's not a bad mask, it's just not my favourite. I've probably used it three or four times already so I guess I maybe had four or five more uses left. 
• B. Pure Micellar Water. It's OK. Its a micellar water, I don't love the twist top on it so I think thats why it's still kicking about. Lets get it used.
• (Asda)The Skin System Radiance SPF15 Daycream. Again, not something I love but it's usable. Also it's a glass jar which I find a little strange seeing as this really isn't expensive at all.

• Collection Lasting Perfection Powder in Fair. I want to say its powder and I should just suck it up and use it up but this has a really warm yellow tone and if I use it for anything other than just dusting my nose (like setting concealer) it looks so yellow I have to wipe it off. We should be heading into Summer here in Scotland soon (hahahahahahaha I wish) so I will hopefully be able to get this used up soon.
• Too Faced Sun Bunny Bronzer (mini size). I tend to avoid shimmery bronzer like I would a zombie that's on fire and spreading an airborne strain of measles(I don't actually know how measles spreads, is it airborne?) however I have somehow ended up with two of these wee Sun Bunny bronzers. I'm hoping to get some use out of this during the three days of previously mentioned Scottish summer, most likely across my chest, or maybe on my legs if I shave them and then decided to wear shorts. If not its a very pretty and very big eyeshadow. Goal - Hit Pan
• Benefit Porefessional Primer, its the brown stuff in the pot because I managed to loose the lid for the tube. I don't love it. It doesn't do anything for my oily T-Zone or dry spots but I will use it up.
• NYX HD Blush in Amber. I don't want to finish it, my goal is just to hit pan and then swap it out. I really like this blush, it's one of my favourites but I feel it gets completely lost in my collection. Goal - Hit Pan
• New Look Fix Makeup Setting Spray - Hey Kirstie, how about you don't buy stuff on a whim? I picked up a couple of the New Look Beauty products on a whim and both the lipstick and the foundation are actually OK, This spray does nothing though, Noooooooothing. Can't wait till its done.

• I <3 Makeup Naked Chocolate Palette. I pulled this palette out at the start of April in a vague effort to kind of shop my stash. I say kind of as I use what I pull out for about two weeks, get bored and end up going through everything every day again. I do not love this palette, and I find the shimmers are hard to apply with any intensity and the mattes really fade throughout the day. But dammit I paid for it, so I will get some use out of it. My goal for this is to hit pan on one of the shades, and I already know from the past two and a half weeks it will be a struggle. Also place your bets on which one, my moneys on either the second from the right on the top or second left or second right on the bottom. Once I've done that, if I've not fallen back in love its going in the bin, but at least it will feel less like a waste of money. Goal - Hit Pan
• Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper (Mini Size). I love this, but I'm conscious its getting old and I have no way of cleaning the tip that gets rubbed all over my eye lid every time I use it, which is every time I do winged liner. The plan is to use it up and buy a full sized one, and then not open the full sized one till I've gotten through another three black liquid liners as I have a fair few.
• 17 Va Va Voom Mascara, Like the liner I love it, but it's getting old. This will be done before my next update most likely, and it will get replaces with my mini Perversion Mascara from Urban decay.
• Models Own I-Definer Kohl Pencil in Black. I bought a big set of these just after Christmas and the only one I really played with was the Peacock blue shade which was beautiful. Sadly though, I somehow managed to pull the bottom coloured stopper off of it and that was really messy and I had to bin it. I just want to try and use this a bit, as I always seem to reach for my NYX Slide On Pencil, when I want a black liner pencil. I'll swap it out when I feel like it, or bin it if its not good. Goal - Play with it a bit
• Ralph Lauren Polo Sport 2 Perfume - I like this perfume, but I tend not to use it as I don't love it, and I have other small bottles of perfume I love. It has, at various points in time, lived in my handbag and now the paint on the bottle is chipping off and its looking crazy. It's a very sweet and summery smell, and is the UK is now in Spring, lets get it finished. I'm just below the top of the 2 on  the packaging and if I wear it to work four days a week, it'll be gone before we hit Autumn,
• M&S Nuit Perfume - I got this out a subscription box a while ago and, like the Polo Sport 2, I like it but I don't love it. Unlike it though, it's really, really strong, not very summery and not really suitable for work. I've barely made a dent in it so far (that line is way to close to the top for my liking) but I will get through it, and if I haven't by the end of the year, I'll get rid of it

So that's everything for now, wish me luck as I usually get bored around week three and give up.

XOXO Scruffy

50 Days, 50 Lipsticks - Days 11 - 20 - Sleek, Revolution, Kat Von D, NYX, Lime Crime, Kiko Milano

So if you're wondering what this 50 days, 50 Lipsticks thing is all about you can check out my intro and first ten days post here.

Day 11: NYX Butter Lipstick in Pops/Root Beer Float

So if you've read anything I've written about this lipstick, ever, you'll know I love it and it usually lives in my makeup bag. I was reluctant to wear it before the half way point in case I needed it for something work based, but then I remembered I still hadn't worn any of my Too Faced lipsticks yet (Chihuahua, Chocolate Honey and Queen B are usual weekly wears to work) and I still had the NYX Matte lipstick in Eurotrash to wear as well, so it was far from the last nude in my collection.

These lipsticks have a gorgeous buttery (har har) formula, they're comfortable, glossy but not sticky and pretty opaque. Only think is they transfer a lot and don't last the longest time. 

Today was a really, really busy day in the office and I didn't get a chance to reapply this at all. Luckily, as its a nice nude, that didn't matter. If I'd worn anything else I would have looked straight up odd from 11am onwards. 

Day 12: Lime Crimes Velvetine in Teddy Bear

I have this feeling everyone has this one item of makeup in their collection that they always think is a good idea in theory and it never is in practice. They may own other colours from the same line that work fine, they may own other formulas in the same colour that are lovely, but something about that colour and formula mix is a disaster. That is Teddy Bear for me.

Spurred on by the success of revisiting Cashmere, I decided to pull out some other Velvetines from the back of the drawer and have a play. Teddy Bear was a colour I always loved, its described as a Lilac Brown on the official website and its just lovely. Dark enough not to highlight how red I am, light enough not to make me look washed out and brown enough not to highlight that purple looks hideous on me. 

This wore the same as Cashmere, great. But by the time I went to touch up after lunch (and it barely needed a touch up) I remembered why I never wear it. For some reason, I don't know if its bleed or fade, but this one Velvetine seems to separate on my lip line and I get left with this weird bright pink ring around my lips. It looks like I've lined my lips, badly and with the wrong colour, rather than my usual "not used a lipliner at all and improvised with the applicator/edge of the lipstick" look, and at least the latter is actually accurate. 

I'm not sure if I maybe have a bad one. I don't think I've even owned this 6 months and it still smells completely fine but I asked in a beauty group I'm a member of and no one else had the same issue with it. 

I'll give it one more go after I'm done this challenge, and I'll line my lips with something before I apply it to see if that makes a difference and report back. I don't own another colour quite like it and its really pretty when its not making me look like a crazy person so I want to salvage it if I can.

Day 13: Sleek Matte Me Lip Cream in Shabby-Chic

So a while ago I did a review of three colours from this range (here) and Shabby-Chic was my overall favourite, so when I say it sitting in my lipstick drawer, I was like "Yassssssss". I really wanted a good lipstick day seeing as I'd spent the second half of yesterday looking like I got ready in the dark.

Sadly, this did a reverse Cashmere and felt worse this time around. I used to love this as well. So after lunch I re-applied it and it just started to feel cakey, chunky and weird. I don't know why as that hasn't happened before. I ended up having to rub the MUA Sweet Sheen Lipbalm in Dusky Rose (which they've either renamed or no longer make) over it. This is usually what I do when I want to take a liquid lipstick off (lipbalm, rub lips together and then wipe, far more effective and less harsh than scrubbing) but when I rubbed my lips together it didn't look awful and was a bit more comfortable.

I'm not sure what's happened with this, maybe I'm just getting more picky with that I'll wear and won't wear. I don't think its gone bad, the tube says it lasts for 36 months (which is a scary long time for a liquid product). Like Teddy Bear I'll give it one more but it might be an item I de-clutter.

Day 14: NYX High Voltage Lipstick in 12 Dirty Talk

So I mentioned two of these lipsticks in the Days 1-10. One I love, one I did not. This one I was OK. I really, really love the colour. My other half actually commented he'd never seen me in such a dark lipstick. It's too dark for work but for a Saturday night meal and a couple of drinks.

It was a bit tricky to apply as it's just a small round stick with a slanted top and no point or angle but once I've worn it a couple of times I'll shape it into something I can use.

It lasted fairly well for a dark colour. These lipsticks don't really seem to come off when you drink, I noticed that with Flutter Kiss, and it survived two pinks intact. I did need to re-apply after my (veggie) burger and chips as its had worn down a lot, but it wasn't completely gone.

Definitely keeping this.

Day 15: NYX Matte Lipstick in 19 Eurotrash

Dam I own a lot of NYX lipsticks, some of them are great, some of them are not, some of them like Pops and this were specifically bought for work.

This is pretty much the exact same colour as Pops but in a Matte formula. and if you change glossy to matte in the above review of Pops, you have my review of this.

Day 16: NYX Full Throttle Lipstick in 10 Locked

So this lipstick is nice if you only wear it for a couple of hours, but after wearing it for nearly 12 hours, I've now decided I'm getting rid.

It's a nice dark pinky purple colour, that I want to love, I'm just not sure it suits me that much. I wore it fairly intensely for several hours and had to touch up a couple of times and it went chalky and powdery on my lips. I also got the line of doom on the inner rim of my mouth and it was like it wore away on the inner edges of the bigger creases in my lips and looked really odd.

I must have looked crazy on the bus home.

Day 17: Revolution Iconic Pro Lipstick in Propaganda (Matte)

So I bought this in my June 2016 haul from Revolution and I honestly don't think I'd ever worn it until now, many months later (see this is why I need this project). Why hadn't I worn this until now? Oh yeah because I own like a bijillion matte red liquid lipsticks and I always thought it would be crap. Could you be more wrong about something Kirstie?

This lipstick really surprised me, it was comfortable, it lasted really well, there was no bleeding or fading. It was amazing to wear all day. This is being upgraded from an "eh, maybe" lipstick at the back of the lipstick drawer of doom (its a dark scary place and I don't know whats in there) to living in my everyday lipstick bundle once this project is over.

Two comments/minor criticisms. The packaging feels really cheap, it cost me £2 so its not an issue, it just a fact. Cheap lipsticks tend to have cheap packaging. And as touched on in the haul post it has a slightly weird almost edible smell. Its almost like vanilla sponge, but with something not quite right about it. Or like sweet play-dough. Its not bad and I didn't notice once it was on my face, but its maybe something to watch out for.

Day 18: Kiko Milano Unlimited Stylo Lipstick in 17 Tulip Red

Riding high on the success of yesterdays red lip look, I thought I'd crack this guy out and give him a go.

So everything that Propaganda lacks in awesome packaging this guy makes up for. Although we've already establishes I love Kikos' packaging (currently lusting after but managing to resist there Spring/Summer ones for this year, I know they have the magnetic closure though and its so difficult).  Its cold, hard metal, with a clasp closure and just feels so nice and solid, it can't be stood on its end though so that's slightly annoying.

I don't like the colour as much as the one I wore the previous day though, it's a slightly lighter and far brighter red and although its still blue toned, it does look slightly more orange on my skin. Also it is another one of these lipsticks with a flat, round top and unlike the High Voltage ones from NYX, the actual stick of lipstick is full width, making it so difficult to apply precisely.

Did I like it? Yeah. Did I get paid a compliment by a co-worked that is well aware of this project? Yeah. Do I need this and Propaganda (and also Duel, which I bought in the same Revolution Haul)? Probably not. I'll cross that bridge when I get to Duel though. For the time being, it stays.

Day 19: Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in Bow 'n' Arrow

So I really, really wanted to wear Stone Fox from NYX today, and I I had it on my face and chickened out at the last minute. Might have been good thing though as I'm not sure how the people I work with would have reacted to that.

As for Bow 'n' Arrow, its a Kat Von D lipstick and I've already talked about these loads. I like them, they wear well, I'm keeping it.

Day 20: NYX Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick in 01 Stone Fox

Yeah that's right. I actually wore this. On a Saturday, outside the house, and people saw me. I felt so brave.

Stone Fox actually really really surprised me. It was nothing like Tea and Cookies from my previous post, and although it didn't dry down completely, it did dry down far more. It also transferred far less, like I had three or four pints and it didn't get on the glass for any of them, right till the end. I actually really liked it. Would recommend 100% for anyone else that likes weird. grey lipsticks.  It actually makes me wonder if my Tea and Cookies maybe came from a bad batch, but not enough to spend my money on another one to check.

Running total

Days: 20

Lipsticks Worn: 12

Lipsticks being binned: 3 (+ three maybes)

Top 3

1. NYX Liquid Suede Lip Creme in Stone Fox

2. Revolution Iconic Pro Lipstick in Propaganda (Matte)

3. NYX High Voltage Lipstick in 12 Dirty Talk

Bottom 3

1. Lime Crimes Velvetine in Teddy Bear

2. Sleek Matte Me Lip Cream in Shabby-Chic

3. NYX Full Throttle Lipstick in 10 Locked

xoxo Scruffy 

2017 Quarter One Empties - Hair Care - Yes To, DGJ Organics, Superdrug, 7th Heaven, Batiste

So, if anyone read my life update in January, you'll know things were a little chaotic at the end of last year/start of this year. I haven't done empties since November, December and early January don't count because of Christmas and travel, so I've been collecting these since the start of January. The only sensible thing to do seemed to be to split them down into categories and hair care was the smallest so I decided to start with it.

Not crazy big or scary. Anyone that's been here for a while might recognise one or two of these from my 17 by 2017 project, which sadly got scrapped when the boiler died in my old flat. 

So we have the Yes to Blueberries Shampoo and Conditioner (full review here) which I loved, and sadly Boots now only stock online in the UK. They smell great, don't irritate my scalp and sort my hair out. I'll definetly buy them again. Having to order online and collect in store is a pain in the bum but, in all honesty, I really think they're worth it.

DGJ Orangics Hair Juice Shampoo and Conditioner. I didn't love these as much as the Yes To Blueberries ones but they're still pretty nice. Again, zero scalp irritation and worked fine with my crazy hair. The smell is to die for though. I never thought I would like melon scented shampoo, that sounds kind of gross I think about it, but it was so nice. Thinking about it again (I finished these over a month ago) makes me really want to re-order it. Bad Kirstie, Bad. I have three or four shampoo and conditioner sets in my stash right now, and thats not including whats in my bathroom so I need to get through them before I re-purchase anything.

Onto masques and treatments (and the photo had to be blurry!!). On the left is the Superdrugs Coconut Water and Coconut Oil Masque, it's the only other product in this particular post I've done a dedicated review on (here). I really like this, its more like a thick conditioner than what I expect a masque to be, and it leaves my hair really soft and shiny. I've already re-purchased it and am half way through that one. Also because it's not so masque-like its really easy to wash out, meaning I can use it during the week and not have to stress about it taking seven rinses and an extra 23 minutes to wash my hair. 

So, want to know something funny, this is the second time I've typed up this next bit. Blogger thought it would be hilarious to not save, despite me hammering the save button about twenty times. So, I'm sorry if it sames extra sassy and angry but I worked two hours overtime, had salad for dinner and took the time to actually spell check the original post, only for my hard work to disappear off into the ether. 

And then we have this little stinker. And by stinker I mean it literally stinks. It has the same strong fake powdery honey sent of a Lemon & Honey Lemsip, and that smell does not bring back good memories (because who wants their hair to smell strongly of "my nose is snotty, I'm coughing and my ears need to pop so badly they hurt" medicine. I don't like it, it didn't do much for my hair and I wouldn't repurchase or recommend it.

So now we have an *shrug* product, something I hated with a passion and dry shampoo. If its OK with you I'll skip the Batiste as everyone knows what it is and what it does. It's that magic in a bottle that gives me an extra 20 minutes in bed some morning, if I don't mind a slightly irritated scalp for the rest of the day.

Pantene Aqua Light Something Spray, I've binned the bottle already. I got this out the Poundshop a couple of years ago and it didn't do very much for my hair so it just hung about in my collection. I don't really know what else to say, it didn't do a lot, but it smelled nice, There we go, lets be positive here.

And last, and also least, we have the DGJ Organics Argan Oil. Smelled OK but weighed my hair down more than I thought was possible. It also felt sticky and I had to wash my hands after using it. Normally with hair oil I'm wet, my hairs wet and I'm wearing a wet towel so I can just rub my hand on my hair and then rub them on the towel and bobs your teapot, no more hair oil. This stuff needed a proper soapy lather to get it off. 

Like I said, I can't believe how much more curly and bouncy my hairs been since I went back the Superdrug Macadamia Oil. Lesson learned, the thing that costs at least 2x what the thing you know works won't always be better.   

So thats all, not to painful (despite the double type). Thinking next it will either by makeup or body care. I'm currently undecided.

XOXO Scruffy

Enquiry? Message me ascruffyduck@gmail.com