My Beauty Bible Collection

Today's post is something a little different to my usual posts, but is still very much beauty related. In addition to make-up, I have a deep love for beauty books or bibles as they are more commonly known. I think this has been passed on to me by my Mum who originally owned two out of the five books in my collection and also has these type of bible/coffee table books for home décor and fashion. Another reason as to why I love beauty bibles is they are wonderfully visual. As a creative, particularly with layout and design, I could get lost in the way products and people are shot and laid onto a page. It presents the images as more than just accompaniments to the informative text, they are their own art form within this book. I thought I would do a post about my beauty bible collection because they span over 20 years and show how beauty trends have changed, but tips and techniques are still very similar to today.

The oldest book in my collection is Bobbi Brown Beauty: The Ultimate Beauty Resource by Bobbi Brown and Annemarie Iverson. There are three Bobbi Brown beauty bibles in my collection (clearly my Mum was a fan!) yet they are all different from each other. This book really is what it says on the tin, there are no defined demographics. Everyone and everything is catered for. The book starts off with beauty, skin and body care basics and how to find your own beauty style. It then dedicates chapters to different steps in your make-up routine such as your base, eyebrows, eyes and lips. In the latter half of the book, there is a chapter dedicated to every woman of every ethnicity, for every eventuality such as black-tie, bridal, pregnancy, chemotherapy and mature beauty. I've actually just noticed there is a chapter for men and male grooming! This book really is the ultimate beauty resource. The information in the book is ultimate as well with real advice about real situations. What kind of make-up to wear to an interview or for the camera whether it be a photoshoot, television or video. There is also advice for beauty counters and how not to be a victim to eager sales people, which I feel is something all women of all ages can feel the pressure of. Whilst this book is around 20 years old, the beauty advice is timeless.

The next oldest beauty bible in my collection is Bobbi Brown Teenage Beauty: Everything You Need To Look Pretty, Natural, Sexy & Awesome, again by Bobbi Brown and Annemarie Iverson. This was actually a gift from my Mum when I started to take an interest in make-up. I remember we were in a department store and looking at the Bobbi Brown counter, she spotted this book and asked me if I would like it to learn how to do my make-up. I would hazard a guess that I have had this book for around 10-12 years and flicking through it now, I still think it is a great book for a young girl/woman who is figuring out make-up. It's a very sensible guide with sensible advice that makes sure girls are age-appropriate yet still are able to have fun with make-up, as it should be! One thing about the book that I love is the many 'before and after' shots of ordinary teenage girls where you see them made up but not over-done. I think this is very comforting to young girls (it was to me anyway) to see other teenagers their age looking good in minimal make-up.

The third and final Bobbi Brown beauty bible in my collection is called Bobbi Brown Living Beauty from 2007. Flicking through this book, I think this is definitely geared towards the forty-something women (which makes sense as this was originally bought by my Mum). The content of this book is definitely geared towards anti-aging, menopause etc. which isn't necessarily my ideal demographic but one day it will and until then, it is still nice to flick through the pages of this book.

The final two books were both gifts from family members last Christmas. The first is a very popular release from famous celebrity make-up artist, Lisa Eldridge. What is different about her book which I absolutely love (having studied History too at university) is that the content is focused on the history of make-up, rather than advice. It looks at both ancient and modern make-up muses and the traditions of make-up with breathtaking photography to visually illustrate the content. It then progresses into the business of beauty as we know it now. When I re-decorate my room, I'd love to display this book on a shelf because I think it is so visually stunning that it deserves its own space.

Secondly and lastly is The Ultimate Natural Beauty Bible by Sarah Stacey & Josephine Fairley. I must admit, as much as I do love some good acids in my skincare I do enjoy going down the completely natural route for some beauty needs. This book has a ton of DIY face masks, foot sprays, teeth whiteners, tinted lip balms and more if you are feeling particularly fancy. I love the ability to customise products to your needs with DIY beauty and these can also make wonderful gifts for friends and family. The recipes allow you to learn about the properties of natural ingredients as well as understanding what it means when a company says their products are organic. Another part of this book that I love are the quick product reviews within the chapters and as this book was published fairly recently, the products are still available for purchase.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about my beauty bible collection! Let me know in the comments about your favourite beauty bibles and any great advice they have given you.

P x

First Impressions | EX1, L'Oréal, Bourjois & More!

Happy Tuesday, everyone! If you have become accustomed to the routine here on my blog and YouTube channel, you may know that is it new video day! Yay! However if you are completely new then, Hello! I'm Paris and I make new videos on Tuesdays and a blog post on Thursday's. Today's video is quite a good watch (if I must say so myself). I recently have bought a few new to me products both online and in my local Superdrug and I thought I would do a first impressions video; showing you the application and how the products wear throughout the day. 

The products that I use in the video for the first time are:

• L'Oréal Infallible Mattifying Primer
• EX1 Invisiwear Foundation in F100
• Bourjois Radiance Reveal Concealer in Light Ivory
• MaxFactor Excess Shimmer Eyeshadow in Bronze
• Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara in Black

There were several instances during filming that really made me question how I was going to edit this into something remotely smooth or even putting this up at all. Both of my batteries ran out of charge, I had to change memory cards, I put too much eyeshadow on and looked a bit OTT so had to wipe it off and then both of my batteries ran out of charge AGAIN. Nevertheless, I have managed to string it together so I would really appreciate it if you would give it a watch, it's about 10 minutes long so grab a drink, a biscuit and get comfy! Oh and please do subscribe whilst you are there! Thanks! :)

Let me know if you have tried any of these products and what you thought of them!

P x

Wantfeed Beauty Wishlist | July

Hello again, lovely people!

Today's post is a small peek into my very large make-up shopping list! I keep several lists on my phone of products I want to buy from Sephora in Europe, the U.S., online and in stores in the UK. I thought it would be fun to share some of the products on my lists with you fellow beauty obsessives, share suggestions for products and inadvertently make each other spend more money on make-up than we initially intended to! Can one ever have too much make-up? Never.

I have decided to house my wishlist on Wantfeed because I believe it is a great tool to store your favourite products in a visual way so that other people can see them and your nearest and dearest will always know what to get you. If you do not watch the Michalaks, Stef is the creator of Wantfeed and you can watch their weekly vlogs here. They are a cute family with great ethics and values, plus their content quality is consistently fantastic and one of the best I've seen on YouTube in a long time.

To view these products and many others on my Wantfeed, click here.

Charlotte Tilbury Legendary Lashes Mascara

Why I want it: You may have seen the promo for this product a few weeks ago but in case you haven't, it showed before and after images of this mascara on a model's lashes and it was impressive to say the least. I do not own anything from Charlotte Tilbury (believe me, I'd love to!) but this mascara really caught my eye. I'm a mascara junkie and I used to love the YSL Effet Faux Cils, begging my Dad to buy me it from duty free when he would go away on business trips. I love long and thick lashes and I feel like this one from Charlotte Tilbury could really deliver. I also don't think £25 is too bad a price to pay for what seems to be a very quality product. 

Original Beauty Blender

Why I want it: I purely want to try out this beauty sponge because a) everyone and their mother talks about this in the beauty community and b) I have and love the Miracle Complexion sponge from Real Techniques. I just want to compare the technologies and see if it really is worth all of the hype!

MAC Fix+ Mist

Why I want it: This is, again, a beauty blogger driven want but I do love a good setting spray for finishing my make-up with and giving my eyeshadow more pigment, especially with the more metallic shades. I think I will end up buying the travel size first, then move on to the full size if I really like it. My question is: If you use it every day for example, how long does a full size bottle last? 

E.L.F. Studio Bronzer in 'Warm Bronzer'

Why I want it: I saw this featured in one of Tati's (GlamLifeGuru) Hot or Not videos on the brand E.L.F. I'm really into bronzers at the moment (appropriate, seeing as it is summer!) but I love given my extremely fair skin a healthy dose of colour. Given the extremely affordable price of this, I thought I couldn't pass it up!

Zoeva Nude Spectrum Palette

Why I want it: I have mentioned before my love for my Zoeva Cocoa Blend eyeshadow palette, I talked about it in my June Favourites video here. The quality of these shades has ignited a flame now where I want to try more of their products. 

E.L.F. Baked Eyeshadow in 'Enchanted'

Why I want it: A few weeks ago I was perusing Pinterest at beauty dupes between affordable and high-end products and I spotted that this eyeshadow is a dupe for the Jaclyn Hill X Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Champagne Pop. Now that product is on my Christmas list for this year but I'd like to try this supposed dupe, you know, as an experiment ;)

Physician's Formula Organic Wear Jumbo Lash Mascara

Why I want it: This is another product endorsed by Tati who for as long as I have been watching her has raved about this mascara. Physicians Formula is not a brand we can get in the UK, but I have found a website called iHerb that sells the brand and ships to the UK! I'm definitely going to be buying several items from this brand in addition to this mascara.

Make-Up Revolution Ultra Contour Palette

Why I want it: As I've been obsessing over bronzers over the last few weeks, I've been reaching less for my contour products and not picking them up in store either. However, I've really been missing adding definition to my face. I really like the palettes from Make-Up Revolution; the Hot Spice Blush palette is my every-day go-to for blush, they are great quality for the price so I think it is time to give the brand another visit next time I am in Superdrug.

So there is my Wantfeed Wishlist for July! Let me know if you have tried any of these products, letting me know what you think and also what is on your wishlist for this month!

P x

June Beauty Favourites! (+ NEW VIDEO!)

Hello there, lovely people!

So another month has passed and we are now over half way through the year. Yes I know, I can't quite believe it either. Nevertheless with any end of the month in the beauty blogger world, we gather together our beauty gems from the past month and tell other beauty obsessives why we love them and why they need to buy them ASAP. There are no guesses as to what I am going to be talking about today in this post so I might as well just jump in and tell you what I've been loving in June.

L'Oréal Glam Bronze Cushion De Soleil

This cushion bronzer was released at the same time as the highly anticipated Nude Magique Cushion foundation by L'Oréal. It is a wonderful amalgamation of innovative technology and a cult product everyone wants at this time of year. This is neither a powder or cream formula, it is more of a liquid that is so ridiculously easy to use. When blending onto the skin it doesn't disrupt the base underneath, it just adds a beautifully even veil of bronze. An absolute must-have in your make-up bag for a holiday or vacation.

http://www.superdrug.com/Make-Up/Face/Bronzer/L%27Oreal-Cushion-De-Soleil-Bronzer/p/700820

L'Oréal Glam Bronze La Terra Face & Body Sun Powder 02

A perfect multi-purpose product for summer. This HUGE bronzer from L'Oréal (they are killing it with bronzers this year) is seriously pigmented so do go in with a light hand and a tap of your bronzer brush before you sweep this onto the face. However if you are wanting to bronze up the body as well, I would say you don't really have to worry about this because you want it to show up. The texture of this product is ironically not very powdery at all, it feels very smooth which is great for blending into the skin seamlessly. Another bonus: it smells like holidays! *heart emoji*

http://www.superdrug.com/Make-Up/Face/Bronzer/L%27Oreal-Glam-Bronze-La-Terra-Tribal-Powder-Natural-Capri-6ml/p/461701?singleResultSearchPage=true

Sleek Make-Up Solstice Highlighting Palette

If you haven't heard of this product yet... Where have you been?! It seems the entire beauty community have been loving this product in the last few weeks and it's not hard to see why. I haven't picked up any other highlighter this month because this just gives me all I would need in that department. The pigment of the 4 shades in the palette are so incredible for the price and you are really able to tailor the intensity of your highlight to your tastes. I'm really into a very glowing look right now so you can imagine how heavy I go in with this.

http://www.superdrug.com/Sleek/Sleek-MakeUP-Highlighter-palette-Solstice-9g-32/p/576803?singleResultSearchPage=true

Make-Up Revolution Ultra Blush Palette in Hot Spice

This palette is more than just a favourite of June, it's a favourite from many months. It's the only palette I reach for for blush and it's only £6! Less than a £1 pound a blush! Each blush pan has great pigment to it and a real variety of shades that are great on their own but also mixed with each other on your blush brush. I personally reach for the 3 more muted tones on the left hand side of the palette as you look at it. I do sometimes dip into the more orangey shade amongst them to add a bronzed feel to my blush. If you're a little intimidated by blush and are not sure which shade to go for, I'd highly recommend this palette for experimenting.

http://www.superdrug.com/Makeup-Revolution/Makeup-Revolution-Ultra-Blush-Palette-Hot-Spice/p/246717?singleResultSearchPage=true

Zoeva Cocoa Blend Eyeshadow Palette

If you love your warm toned eyeshadows both matte and shimmery, look no further. I have been loving this palette from Zoeva this month as the gorgeous shimmery shades always add a bit of something special to any eye look. The packaging of this palette also makes it great for travel and the creaminess of the shades means application is easy and the pigment isn't compromised.

http://www.beautybay.com/cosmetics/zoeva/cocoablendpalette/

Essence Lip Liner in '11 In The Nude'

This lip liner is my new everyday go-to for my lips. I struggle sometimes to find a nude that is a true nude. I don't like anything too mauve-toned nor do I like very terracotta tones either. Geez I sound very high maintenance with my lip colours, don't I? Nevertheless, I had heard great things about this liner so for the super low low cost, I decided to pick it up. Such a great true nude on my lips and surprisingly creamy given the price. I'd definitely recommend it if you love your nude lips.

(I can't seem to find a link to buy this liner, best to check in Wilkinson's stores!)

Gosh Velvet Touch Lip Liner in '001 Nougat Crisp'

The struggle with getting ahold of this lip liner was real. I waited 2 months for this to come back into stock both in store and online, after which I soon gave up hope. Until I was browsing the Superdrug website and saw it in stock AND half price! Now that I have this in my life now, I can't seem to put it away when I'm going out for dinner or drinks (or both!). It stays on the lips really well and I do really love the colour. It is leaning towards the mauve-y end of the spectrum more than the Essence one but I still really love it.

http://www.superdrug.com/GOSH/Gosh-Velvet-Touch-Lip-Liner-Nougat-Crisp/p/281255 

Look Good Feel Better Powder Brush

I have written a blog post already on Look Good Feel Better brushes and the wonderful work they do and support they provide to those dealing with cancer, particularly the side affects. You can read that post here. I have continued to love this brush for a multitude of reasons in June. Predominantly I use it to blend all of my base powder products (blusher, bronzer, translucent powder) together to remedy any harsher than I'd like lines. I do also use it to dust away any 'baking' I do under the eyes or on my chin. If you are in need of some new brushes, take a look at LGFB.

http://www.boots.com/en/Look-Good-Feel-Better-Powder-brush_1691017/

And that is it for another month! I hope you have enjoyed reading this post, or even watching the video! Let me know what your favourites were from the month of June in the comments under this post.

If you want to check out my June Favourites video over on my YouTube channel, click the video below.

P x