REVIEW: The NYX Butter Gloss

I've heard SO MANY good things about these glosses that I had to try some. I bought 3 shades that I thought will suit me the most in which they are - BLG 01 STRAWBERRY PARFAIT, BLG 02 ECLAIR and BLG 08 APPLE STRUDEL.

There are 12 shades in all in this range for the price of £5 each which I think it's a really good price for people with a budget. 

These things couldn't have been named better. When you're applying them on your lips they feel so soft - like you're spreading melted butter all over them. Also, how can one forget their sweet and delicious smell and taste - as a sugar cookie. They do make your lips look shiny hence the name - Butter GLOSS. Moreover these are not super sticky, one can get away with them without feeling scared that their lips might get sealed together, like some glosses do. 

Now to the downside of the product. Personally I am not a fan of glosses and these are not the best glosses out there, but they are not so bad. When first swatched on the back of my hands in the store I thought that they might look nice on the lips and that they will not turn up as sheer as other glosses do, but I thought wrong. Although I think that I bought a variety of colors - a light pink, a strong pink and an orange-y one, they all look the same on the lips which is frustrating. In fact I tried to take some pictures of them on my lips but I don't even know which one is the right shade. Other than that if you are the kind of person that does not like perfumed make up on your face then these are not for you because they do have a strong sweet-y scent (for me this doesn't bother me, because I am a sucker for sweet scented things but for someone with a sensitive smell might). Another thing, like other branded glosses, these do not stay for a long time (for an hour and a half maximum?!) because they are super glossy and even when you speak you are taking away all the "colour" that they have. 

When I saw that they all have the same colour effect on my lips, I decided to wear them over a lipstick for a creamy and shiny effect - especially if wearing a matte lipstick. They don't change the colour of the lipstick you're wearing but they just make your lips look better with them on top of your lipstick. I hate it when buying make up or fashion items and then don't end up wearing them because I don't like them anymore, but this time I can work my way around them - which I do like.  

Here are some swatches of them together with the lipsticks I chose to wear them with:

♥ NYX Butter Gloss in BLG 01 STRAWBERRY PARFAIT together with 

Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in 075 LOLLIPOP ♥

♥ NYX Butter Gloss in BLG 01 STRAWBERRY PARFAIT together with 

Essence in 53 ALL ABOUT CUPCAKE ♥

♥ NYX Butter Gloss in BLG 08 APPLE STRUDEL together with 

BeYu Star Lipstick in 09 ♥

From left to right: All about cupcake, Eclair, Lollipop, Strawberry Parfait, 09, Apple Strudel

So out of 10, I give these glosses a 6, just because I'm not that keen on them and I am much more of a matte lipstick person. As said before - yes they are like butter on the lips, and yes they aren't that sticky and yes they smell delicious, and let's face it with just £5 you can't really go wrong with these, but what's the purpose of putting something on your lips with no colour, just super shiny?! This is just my opinion. I know that a lot of you guys love ♥ these so much, and I did want them to work out for me, but they didn't. 

What's your opinion? Do you love/not so much these butter glosses? Do you own any shades?

Comment down below (if you feel like it). 

Stay Beautiful, 

Belle xxx

REVIEW: Rimmel Foundations - Wake Me Up and Match Perfection.

Hello beautiful ladies and gentlemen,

Having a great day? I hope you all do. 

So lately I've been alternating my favorite foundations, so that I can use them and don't leave them there unloved and came across my all time favorite drugstore foundation the Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation. I forgot about it and when I applied it on my face I just remembered how much I used to love it.  

So I decided to write a full review about it (although loads of other beauty bloggers have already made it a long time ago) in conjunction with a full review of the Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation. 

Hence, why don't you grab a cup of tea/coffee/hot choco - whatever floats your boat, your reading glasses (if you need any) and make yourself comfortable and start reading.

RIMMEL WAKE ME UP FOUNDATION

The Good
I must say that Rimmel foundations were never a great deal to my life and so the only reason that I tried this foundation is because a lot of beauty bloggers have raved about this all the time. I've purchased my first bottle maybe 18 months ago and I've went through 3 bottles since then. 

Packaging wise, it's in a glass bottle which in my opinion appears to be far more expensive than it actually is, with a plastic orange cap and a pump.

The foundation itself has a creamy texture which makes it easier to blend in. Also it has some shimmery particles in it to give that radiant and glow effect which the product claims to have - and I agree with that 100%. But you can't actually see the shimmer, not on your face and not even in the bottle itself (it may be my defaulting eyes but I am pretty sure that I cannot see any actual shimmer in it). Even in the daylight - under the sun, you're no Edward Cullen (if you know what I mean haha.)
One can apply this foundation by their own hands and also with a foundation brush - I personally love the RealTechniques Expert Face Brush for this sort of beauty chore. You only need a pump or a pump and a half and you're good to go. It blends quite easily because of its consistency and it gives a medium to full coverage - it matters on how much foundation you put on your beautiful face.
Personally, when I use this foundation I feel that my skin looks so healthy and natural and it has that radiant glow which makes you feel and look more awake.
Also, this is one of those foundations which stays on for a pretty long time without wearing off. For instance, today I spent 10 hours with it on face and it still looks nice and not cake-y. The only place that it had fade away a bit is in my T zone - because I have oily skin on my nose and around it and also on my chin, but other then that, perfect!

The Bad
Now to the bad side of the product. Although it gives that natural look to your face, it does not feel light on your skin. You can feel that there is something on your face especially if you put on more than 1 pump on your face.
Also, people who has an oily skin, this foundation is not that suitable for them - because of the radiant glow effect. I have combination/oily skin, oily around my nose and my chin and normal to dry on my cheeks and on my forehead, and I find it that it gets a bit oily on those parts, which require 3-4 powder sessions in a whole day, which later on might look a bit cakey and too much for your skin. But then again it is great for people with dry, normal combination skin.
The downside of it as well is that there is only 6 shades in all (mine is in 303 True Nude) which may be difficult for some people to match the color to their skin tone, especially if they have darker skin because the shades consists of mostly lighter shades.
Lastly, since it is a glass bottle, you can't really get all the product out when you're almost ready with, in which you can't really use the whole stuff that it is in there.

Despite of these bad sides of the foundation, I still love it so much and always will. I work my way around it and as you can see in the pictures, I need another one soon because I have run out of it.

RIMMEL MATCH PERFECTION FOUNDATION
The Good.
I wanted to try another foundation because I get bored using always the same one and so I thought I'd buy this foundation because I heard a lot of good things about it. The color is perfectly matched to my skin which is a bonus and surprising because I don't usually find the exact color for my skin tone but then again this foundation is designed to adapt to your skin tone, so that you can get a great color match and it looks very natural.

The packaging is lovely as well - a glass bottle like the Wake Me Up one, but this time it has a blue plastic cap and a pump.
Also there is a wider shades (12 in all) of this foundation which obviously it is better so that much more people can match the color to their skin tone.
But unfortunately that is all the good that I can say about it. I was quite devastated when it didn't work for me because I've heard and read so many good things about it from a humongous amount of beauty bloggers.

The Bad.
So here we go. It may be just mine, but the consistency of the foundation is not that creamy, but a little bit oily - liquid-y, which is definitely not great for my combination/oily skin because it does glow a lot throughout the day (1-2 hours later of the application) on my face. It does say on the bottle that it has a radiance effect, but when compared to the Wake Me Up one, the radiance is far much more radiant (I don't know if I make sense) than it should be.
It is a light to medium coverage foundation (more likely to be light) which it can only cover some minor blemishes and a little bit of redness. It's like your skin, a bit better. Also, building up this foundation is an issue, because when I did so, I ended up with an even oilier skin.
Moreover, again on my personal experience with this product, somehow, I don't know if any of you guys found it the same, as soon as you apply it and put powder on it, it still feels sticky as the moment you put it on and definitely not comfortable on your skin.

Unfortunately this foundation gets a big thumbs down from me. But then again, it might be like this to my skin only (which if it is, it's a shame, because I really wanted it to work).

I hope that I did good with reviewing these two foundations (since this is the first time in doing so) and helped you a bit if you're just starting your make up kit.

How about you guys? Do you own any of these two foundations? If yes, what are your thoughts about them?

Stay Beautiful, 

Belle xxx

♥

My Current Skincare/Nighttime Routine.

Hello my beautiful ladies and gentlemen,
I must start by saying that skincare products are not only used to have the most amazing and healthy skin. Sure they are used to help your skin in achieving a healthier looking skin, but I do think that lifestyle and nutrition play a GIGANTIC role in your skincare. This means that drinking lots of water, using SPF, getting plenty of sleep and eating foods rich in antioxidants will surely help your skin excessively. 

So with that being said here are the products in order of use that I use to help more my skin.

1. The Body Shop Pomegranate Softening Facial Wash - £10

I've been using this facial wash for about three months now and I repurchased it three times. It really cleanses your face, leaving your skin feeling very soft and firm. It is suitable for all skin types and also good for sensitive skin. It has a nice smell but nothing too powering, just a nice spa-like smell. I will surely keep on repurchasing this product over and over again. Moreover this product is quite cheap and affordable. 

2. The Body Shop Pomegranate Softening Cream Cleanser - £10

After trying the facial wash from this range I went out and bought this to give it a try. This cleanser adequately removes all the remaining make-up and impurities, leaving your skin feeling softer, firmer and brighter. It is suitable for all skin types and also good for sensitive skin.

3. The Body Shop Pomegranate Facial Toner - £10

Obviously I had to try the whole range, because it is amazing. This clarifying toner removes the last traces of the previous apply of the cleanser and residual impurities leaving your skin fresh and brighter. It also primes your face for moisturizer. Also this product is cheap as the others where and therefore quite affordable. 

4. Simple Replenishing Rich Moisturizer - £3.89

After the toner, I moisturize with this very inexpensive but quite good moisturizer which gives 12 hours of moisturisation without leaving your face sticky and slippery. The Pro-Vitamin B5 which the product has is just the perfect job for smooth and moisturizing face. It is good for all skin types and it is even great for sensitive skin.

5. Carmex Cherry Lip Balm - £2.55

Looking for an affordable, good lip balm? This little thing right here is the perfect lip balm that I ever owned, I reach for it in the morning (although I don't really applicate much because my lips will still feel moisturized from the night), during the night and before I go to sleep. It has a nice cherry-minty smell which I particularly love, since mint is my favorite everything and also since it is minty it leaves your lips quite fresh and kissable all the time. This is my fourth one and I will definitely buy it over and over again. 

6. Cath Kidston Rose & Peony Hand Cream 100ml - £6

This beautifully packaged hand cream saved my life back in the summer season, and it is still being there for me when I need it. It has a rose scented smell, it is not sticky and it blends into the skin nicely, leaving your hands smooth and touchable. I don't recommend this to those who don't like floral scents because it is quite strongly scented but everything else about it is amazing. 

7. The Body Shop Ginger Sparkle Body Butter - £5

If you don't own this body butter here, you should stop doing what you are doing right now and go purchase it NOW as it is still in stock. I bought this at the very beginning of December and oh my! As soon as I swatched it in the store, I just grabbed two of them because it was a Christmas edition and I knew that they will not be available for a long time. When I went into the store I was 100% sure that I were going to buy the cranberry one, but it doesn't smell as good as this one. It leaves your skin very soft and it dries immediately but don't worry the smell stays for a pretty long time. 

So these were my drugstore skincare products, I hope that this was helpful to you and hopefully you will try some of them if you don't already own them. I will soon write about the high-end skincare products, so stay tuned for that. 

What are your favorite skincare products? Comment them in the section below. 

Goodbye and remain beautiful as always.

Belle xxx