Brand Review: The Body Shop - Cosmetics Edit

Well it's Monday guys, I hope you all had a lovely weekend. This means that its time for the second post in my Brand Review series, if you missed out on the first post be sure to check it out here. This week I decided to share with you a brand review on one of my favourites, The Body Shop.  Basically, there's nothing else to it, I love The Body Shop and after reading some comments on my previous posts I noticed that quite a lot of you share this love with me. So, I thought this would be a topic for you and anybody interested in trying products from The Body Shop. 

 All in One Face Base : £14.00 & Extra Virgin Minerals Compact Foundation: £16.00

First up is two base products which have been great to me over the years.

Starting on the left with the All in One Face Base, this is a lovely little compact with build in mirror which is great to carry around with you.  It's called the All in One Face Base because it is a foundation and powder in one neat compact. You can use it dry for a light matte finish or wet for a medium coverage. To do this I just wet the end of my foundation brush then rub it in the powder, this turns the powder into a liquid.  I mainly only ever use it wet for on-the-go touch-ups. This powder would be more suited for oily skin as if I use this on a dry day I can end up with skin flake offs. 

Next, is the Extra Virgin Minerals foundation which also comes in a mirrored compact, perfect for on the go. As you can see this product used to be much loved as I have hit pan. I say 'used to' because again this product would be more suited to oily skin and unfortunately my skin has recently changed. This is a cream-to-powder mineral matte foundation for a medium buildable  coverage. This product did come with a flat brush but I threw it away because the bristles constantly fell out onto my face, what a pain! 

I would recommend these two products to anybody with oily skin in the market for a reasonably priced matte foundation or powder. 

Super Volume Mascara : £10.00 & Liquid Eyeliner £9.00

Starting on the left with the Super Volume Mascara. If you have read my blog recently you will know that I also included this mascara in my 'Back to' Picks post,  this is one of the most wonderful and glamorous mascara I have ever used, I couldn't miss it out. It is definitely volumising and does not smudge, flake or run. There is no clumping at all and lashes actually look rather natural. 

Next, the Body Shop Liquid Eyeliner. Now, I used to be a huge liner fan, around this time last year I wouldn't leave the house without drawing my wings on first, so I have a fair bit of knowledge about good and bad liquid eyeliners. This one is perfect. It's super easy to apply, smudge resistant and it stays on all day, what else could you want? 

Lip and Check Stain in Rose Pink: £10.00 & Shimmer Wave in Bronze : £16.00

This Lip and Cheek stain on the left comes in two colours. This one is Rose Pink and the other is called 'Coral', I've used both an in my opinion this one is a lot better. This product is duel use, the lip stain is great for adding intensity to a lip gloss or as a base for lipstick and can also be used on the cheeks as blusher. It's save to say this is also a brilliant dupe for the Benefit 'Benetint', it's almost the same colour and it's of the same quality. 

Finally, and as always I've left the best till last. This bronzer is absolutely perfect, I use this almost everyday and it is definitely one of the best bronzers I've ever used. The five waves of colour blend together beautifully to create either a light tint or a built up bronzy glow. Using this product makes it easy to create a different look every time.  I often use the waves separately, sometimes I use the darkest shade for contouring and the lightest shade as a highlight. The best thing is the complements I get after I've used this bronzer, it really does brighten a pale face. 

What are your favourite products from The Body Shop?

Holley Maire 

'Back to' Picks

Well the end of the summer is definitely looming, with only a few weeks until the schools, colleges, universities are open again for the autumn term, I thought it would be a great time to share with you my 'Back to' picks. With the aim of creating an everyday look that is light, quick to apply and suitable for all ages.

Max Factor Face Finity All Day Flawless Foundation - £11.99 & Natural Collection Corrector Stick £1.99

Being a student I know what them rushed mornings can be like. The Max Factor Face Finity is a great 3 in 1 primer, concealer and foundation and is brilliant for them mornings when you are in a bit of a hurry!
Before using this product I do like use a moisturising primer because I have dry skin but if you don't have this problem the foundation may be fine without as it has a build it primer.

When applying this foundation, I firstly apply it like a concealer to the under eyes and any imperfections I may have on that day. This is quite a thick foundation which means that it does make a reasonable concealer. If not, the Natural Collection Corrector Stick may be for you.  This was  a godsend when I was at school as it removes any redness on the skin. This works as the creamy green colour of the concealer contouracts the red, colours that are opposite each other on the colour wheel neutralise each other.

 After that I use a brush and buff the liquid into my whole face. This foundation leaves you will a beautiful matte finish which is really long lasting. Again, great as you probably don't have time to be topping up your make up during your school or college day.

The Body Shop Super Volume Mascara - £10 & Bourjois Liner Feutre £6.99

Next up is eyes, when I was at school I could never be bothered to get up and spend time on eye shadow, I basically only put on the bare essentials. If you like an eyeshadow add this is here.

The Mascara I have chosen is The Body Shop Super Volume Mascara, I originally bought this as a night time mascara but it surprising looks really natural on the eye lashes. This is a great quality leaving lashes looking lovely but not over done, there is no clumps after use and isn't at all messy. When I use this product it never takes much mascara to get the desired look meaning one tube will last you a long time.

If I decide not to wear eyeshadow I feel that my eyelids look to bare so I like to quickly put on a bit of eyeliner. This Bourjois liquid felt-tip like liner is perfect for this as it glides on nice and easy. As I'm going for an everyday look I only add a thin line but I feel this finishes the eyes off. This is probably my favourite liquid eyeliner of this style, its a one I'd recommend to anybody.

Rimmel Lasting Finish Blush in Santa Rose - £3.99 & MAC Lipstick in Hug Me £15.50

I've gone for subtle pink shade for both lips and cheeks, this will add a everyday amount of colour to the face, perfect for school.

This blush by Rimmel is probably one of my favourite drugstore blushers, its perfectly everyday and a gorgeous smokey rose colour. I'd say this is a great blush for anybody with fair skin but it would suit all skin colours due to the colour being buildable. The only disadvantage to this product is that it is a small size, making it hard to get an even spread on a brush. If you like a less subtle look add a darker blush or a bronzer here!

Last but definitely not least is the MAC lipstick in Hug me. If you have been reading my blog recently you will know that I've have quite an obsession with lipsticks, especially MAC ones. This one being my most recent purchase I had to give it mention as its a perfect match to the blush in my opinion! Hug Me is a darker smokey rose colour with a lustre finish meaning the formula gives a sheer coverage with a sheen. 

Have you tried any of these products? I'd love to hear what you think. 

HolleyMarie 

Brand Review: Seventeen

Seventeen is an area in makeup I've never really ventured too. Made by Boots in England I thought that this small cosmetics company may not be up to much to as much as other high street brands. Knowing that Boots are successful with their other cosmetics chain, No7, I thought I'd give their products a try.


Seventeen Eyes - Eyeshadows - £3.89 each

 Left to right:  Ivory coast -  Statuesque -  Mardi Gras

Firstly I picked up these single eyeshadows in three colours. The first is Ivory Coast, this is more of a transparent shimmer than an actual colour, as you can see from the picture it's not very pigmented. I find this can be good for a base or for in the tear duct.  Next is Statuesque which is a shimmery rose gold/bronze, I love this colour its my favourite out of the three. Finally, Mardi Gras is another metallic shade in a gold/brown. 

I must admit, I'm a new fan to eyeshadows and I still have to learn a lot. I used to just throw on some liquid eyeliner or something like the Maybelline Colour Tattoo cream eyeshadows, so I feel investing in some cheaper eyeshadows is a great idea before committing to a high end palette.

Overall, for the price of £3.89 each I feel these eyeshadows were a great purchase from the high street.

Seventeen - Faslifeye HD Mascara - £6.99

As soon as I saw this packaging I thought this mascara could be a possible dupe for the Benefit They're Real, being my curious self I had to buy it. So I've been using this mascara all week and I have to say I have mixed views, don't get me wrong this product is great for maximising the size of your lashes. I'm unlucky to have small eye lashes myself so products like this are my essential must haves  because of this I have tried quite a few from the hight street and this one is bare average. Although this mascara does increase the size of lashes it definitely  does not lengthen and add volume to the degree that is shown on the picture, or at least for me it doesn't. If you're looking for something new to try at an average price I'd say this would be a great to look into if you're looking for a Benefit Dupe, this is not your product. 

Seventeen Skin Wow Highlighter - £5.99 Seventeen Stay Time Concealer - £4.49

Leaving the best till last, I'd like to introduce you to my new favourite liquid highlighter and concealer. I couldn't be more impressed with these two products especially at small prices like they are. 

Firstly starting with the concealer, my go to concealer in the past has been the Collection Lasting Perfection because I love the formula and how long it lasts. I feel this Seventeen concealer is almost identical to the collection one with the only difference, that it is not as thick but provides the same coverage. This product covers spots effortlessly and is great under the eyes. This concealer feels more expensive than it is and smells like a Mac product. 

Now, on to the Wow 3 way highlighter from Seventeen. I prefer liquid highlighters to powder ones because I have very dry skin, this means there is less chance of my skin becoming flakey. It's called the 3 way highlighter because it states you can use it in three ways. You could use it as a primer for a highlighted base, add it to a matt foundation to make it more dewy or highlight the cheek bones. In reality this is not a great primer but is amazing for lightening foundations and making them less matt, if you like that look or just fancy a change. By far the best way to use this is as a highlight for the cheek bones, with bronzer this makes my cheek bones look more defined and adds a healthy shine to the face that doesn't look greasy.

Overall, I'd recommend these two products to anybody looking on the high street for a liquid  highlighter or concealer. 

Have you ever used cosmetics from Seventeen? If so, did you like them?

HolleyMarie