Estee Lauder Lucidity Translucent Loose Powder

I’ll preface this by saying that I am a fan of Estee Lauder. They were one of the first high end brands that I ever purchased from. As such I feel almost guilty about saying that as loose powders go I’m not too crazy about this. That isn’t to say it’s bad by any means but it probably wasn’t the best choice for me. We’ll start with the packaging. It’s a sturdy plastic pot with a good quality powder puff inside (though I personally never use these). The black lid and gold logo look clean and simple though not spectacular on the dressing table. The holes in the sifter are quite small so I find I need to tap it quite enthusiastically in order to get product out though this has the advantage of being slightly less messy than some of the other loose powders I own. For £24.50 you get a whopping 21g. The girl who persuading me to get this (ironically she told me it wouldn’t make me orange but the pressed powder would. More on that later...) told me she’d been using hers daily for a year and it was still over a quarter full and I do believe her. 

So onto the product. Estee Lauder say:

“Special ingredients diffuse light as it hits your skin, creating a "soft-focus" effect that visibly smoothes the surface of skin and softens the appearance of lines. Provides translucent matte finish so that skin never looks dry or tight. Changes the way skin looks in harsh lighting providing a smooth finish while protecting skin against visible signs of premature ageing.”

There is an ever so slight sheen to the product. We aren’t talking disco face, you know how I love my matte finishes and I feel quite comfortable in this, and it does stop short of looking dry or powdery. I don’t have lines or wrinkles so I can’t comment on that. It is soft and finely milled and a little goes a long way. I use this to set my foundation and oiliness sets in on my nose after about 2-3 hours which is normal for me. I thought my nose would calm down in winter. It’s gotten worse just to spite me. 

Here’s the thing. I have shade 01 Light (there are only 3 shades). The word translucent is in the name so you’d expect a one size fits all powder but nope. In the summer this looks fab but in the winter it is just a touch dark/ orange. I *think* it oxidises slightly on me which could be the cause. Either way when I pulled it out again today to write this and tried it on it wasn’t working for me. That said I do blend into the snow at the moment so I can forgive it that little foible. 

Would I buy this again? No simply because if I spend £24.50 on a powder I want to use it all year round. It’s a nice powder though and I  can’t blame it for my pasty skin. 

*I got this free but only because I spent so much in Boots that I was able to buy this with my advantage points... oh the shame...*

Finished! November Edition

Few things are as gratifying to me as getting to the bottom of a product. It helps alleviate the guilt of having bought so much makeup. I’ve actually been very good lately and my spending has all but ceased. With the exception of one pigment set from the MAC Tartan Tale collection (does anyone want a post on that?), the newest Sleek Palettes (apparently there is ANOTHER coming out by the end of the month) some tinted lip balms and £1 glitter liners I haven’t bought anything in the last month. Oh... that’s actually quite a bit. Never mind. Anyway the following products have reached the end of their lives and are heading to the great makeup stash in the sky. Most of this stuff has been reviewed by me so check the tags for full reviews if you want.  Skin care first;

Simple Kind to Skin Vital Vitamin Night Cream – Some people complain that this is too basic and not rich enough for them but I find this to be perfect for my skin. I’m 23, I don’t need super heavy moisturisers but I do have the odd dry patch. This does the job beautifully and I have already started using my next tub. It’s £5.99 for 50ml but Simple’s stuff is always on offer in Boots or Superdrug. 

Estee Lauder Gentle Eye makeup Remover – I know some people love this but unfortunately for me it was a disaster. The skin under my eyes reacted really badly to the point of flaking and peeling. It stung my eyes too. Just goes to show what works for some won’t work for everyone. Thankfully I got this free as a gift with purchase but needless to say I wouldn’t buy it. 

Nivea Q10 Lip Effect lip balm – This is what appeared when I asked my husband to pick me up a ip balm at the supermarket. I think this is supposed to be an anti ageing lip balm... All I know is it tasted pretty awful and didn’t do a whole lot for my lips. As such it was relegated to the post of ‘bedside table lipbalm’ to be slapped on before bed. I wouldn’t bother buying it again. 

It’s been a bumper month for mascaras going off. I’ve noticed that all of these have the older style wire bristles and I’m sure this type goes bad faster than rubber wand. Here are all the makeup items I’ve finished recently;

17 Clear Definition Mascara – I used this for my brows. It still has plenty of product left but as you can see traces of foundation have turned it a delightful shade of murky brown. I liked this a lot but I won’t buy it again because (drum roll please)...... I have found an even cheaper clear mascara for my brows. Yes, cheaper than £4.69. Score. 

Lancôme Virtuose Mascara – As mascaras go this was nice enough but it wasn’t ‘oh my god this is amazing’. I’ve had cheaper, better mascaras. Like the 17 Wild Curls actually. At £20 a pop I certainly won’t be buying it again. 

17 Wild Curls Mascara – This was definitely a winner for me. For £6.29 you get some rather sexy packaging and a really nice mascara. It had started the flake off and smell a little funky though so I knew it had reached the end of its useful life. I’ll buy another one day but I have a tonne of mascaras to use up first. 

Estee Lauder Lash Primer Plus – This was a little sample that came in a gift set. It’s just a white base coat. I didn’t find this did much for me and I spend long enough doing my makeup in a morning, I don’t want to add yet another step in! If lash primers are your thing you might like this but I wouldn’t personally buy it again. 

Estee Lauder Projectionist High Definition Volume Mascara – Again this is a sample size. I actually really liked this. I have lots and lots of quite thick lashes so normally volumising mascaras end up giving me one great big eyelash all clumped together. This did a really nice job of separating my lashes whilst making them even thicker and more dramatic. At £18.50 I’d have to be feeling very flush to buy a full size tube but maybe one day I will treat myself to one.

Collection 2000 Illuminating Concealer - This was a decent undereye concealer but thepen applicator got properly disgusting towards the end. Washing it made it worse. I don't think I'll repurchase it though I do still like it as a concealer.

And finally my Maybelline Dream Creamy foundation has bitten the dust. I *think* this is the UK version of the US Smooth Mousse but correct me if I’m wrong. Now I don’t think this is a bad foundation. I can see that it would be perfect for someone with dry- normal skin who wanted a dewy finish and light-medium coverage. Why I bought it with my combination/ oily skin, preference for matte finishes and full coverage I will never know. It looked waxy and oily on me and lasted roughly half an hour on my super oily nose. I persevered and used it up but I won’t buy it again. 

What have you used up recently? Have you been trying to curb your makeup spending too? Let me know in the comment xx

*I bought all of the above items apart from the 17 Wild Curls Mascara which I was sent by 17*

For my fellow pasty faced readers: A pale foundation run down

I was recently asked what foundation I recommend for the truly pale amongst us. I’m pretty pale. Not Nicola Roberts pale (how I envy her porcelain skin!) but palest shade in every foundation range pale. I also have neutral undertones just for reference. This is just a brief rundown of the bases that I currently own ranked in order of palest to darkest. All are the palest shade the brand in question offers so hopefully this might help out some people who often find that brands just don’t cater to them. Please bear in mind that I find it very hard to tell how cool/ warm something is because a.) I’m neutral so most things look ok on me and b.) I’m pretty useless...

Palest for me is the L'Oreal Infallible foundation in the shade 015 Porcelain. During the summer this is slightly to pale even for me. I find this to be very pink toned too. If you’re cool toned and pale I’d recommend checking it out. 

Revlon Colorstay (I have the combination/ oily version) in 110 Ivory. I find this to be more neutral on me though it’s kind of hard to tell when you are neutral to start off with... again during summer this can sometimes look a little too light but in winter it’s a dead on match for my skin. 

Next is the Maybelline Dream Creamy Foundation in 04 Light Porcelain (I have a sneaking suspicion they may have come out with a lighter shade since I bought this though don’t quote me on that). I find this pretty neutral, if anything just a smidgen pink. It’s a good in between seasons shade for me though I do not recommend this foundation if you have oily skin as I find it can leave me looking a bit waxy at times. You know, like a madam Toussauds.

Then we have the Estee Lauder Double Wear Light in shade 1.0. I will probably get away with this shade in the winter providing I use a light powder to set it. I think this is slightly yellow toned but not overly so. It suits my neutral skin very well. 

Ah Clinique Superbalanced. I love your natural finish. I love the way you sooth my dry bits without exacerbating my oil slick nose. I hate the fact that you are now going to the back of the drawer until the sun returns next spring/ summer. Shade 27 Alabaster N (which I’m assuming stands for neutral) is fairly pale but if you are MAC NW15, which apparently I am in winter (ish...  long story), this will probably be a touch too dark and a touch too yellow for you. In summer it’s my perfect colour though. If only it lasted a little longer!

Benefit You Rebel Lite. Used sparingly and blended well I find it looks pretty good on me. Over applied and I see hints of Tango hues starting to appear. It’s handy right now but I worry that in the depths of winter even the Lite (it’s light damn it) version is going to be a bit deep. Why oh why Benefit do you think that the entire world population only comes in two shades? One size fits all is ok for scarves. It is not ok for skin tones!

For reference I don’t currently own any but I know that Rimmel and Chanel do not make any foundation pale enough for me. Both brands have left me looking like I’ve been Ronseal’d in the past. It’s a shame because I’m sure they both make fab foundations but the colour ranges apparently weren’t designed with porcelain skin in mind. 

Which is my favourite foundation? Honestly I couldn’t say. I like them all for different things. If I was told I could only wear one of these for the rest of my life I’d probably say the Double Wear Light but I’d sorely miss the other. Except the Maybelline. I’ve almost finished it thank goodness and I will not be sorry to toss that sucker in the bin... x

*I bought all these myself because I’m a naughty makeup addict and yes I know I have too much foundation....*

Ow Ow Ow Ow

You know those big gift sets Estee Lauder come out with? I love those. Last time they were out my mum picked up a couple and I inherited one. It contained this rather lovely looking bottle of Gentle (yeah right) Eye makeup Remover. Bear in mind that a (100ml) bottle of this costs £17 so you’d expect it to be good. 

Erm... no? This stung my eyes like nothing else. I have extremely sensitive skin under my eyes and after desperately trying to use this up sp it wouldn’t go to waste the skin is tight, sore and flaky! My eyes were red more often than not after use.

Did it at least do a good job of removing eye makeup? Nope. It was ok but I wouldn’t use it with waterproof mascara. Or ever actually. After this and another disastrous product I’m now trying to rehabilitate my under eyes. I think I’ve found the right makeup remover (review coming soon) but I also need a seriously good under eye moisturiser. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated! Sorry I don’t really have anything else to say about this product. It was painful and it sucked. End of.

Estee Lauder Freebies!

Be proud of me! In an effort to spread the cost of Christmas out so I don’t end up reaching for the credit card come December I did a fair bit of Christmas shopping over the weekend, in Boots of course. I had a very nice surprise when I checked my advantage card balance afterwards. Almost £60 worth of points! (Saved up over time with the help of lots of vouchers). Hmm... new foundation!

Funny story – even though I recently had 2 weeks in a tropical paradise Chanel still don’t make a foundation pale enough for me. Even the Tango lady herself at the counter said they looked too orange. Undeterred I took my pasty pale arse over to Estee Lauder where a reassuringly porcelain girl was working. One bottle of Double Wear Light (in Ecru if you’re wondering) and a loose powder later and she informed me that I could pick a free gift. Basically you get a choice of two sets, both the same just with different shades, when you buy two or more items. They all come in this rather nice shiny purple makeup bag:

Inside is a dinky little eyeshadow quad with the coolest opening mechanism ever. You kind of slide then flick it. Fab!

A lipstick creatively named ‘Beige’. I like neutrals but prefer to go a bit darker in the colder months so this is right up my alley. Estee Lauder lipsticks do have a bit of a floral scent so be aware of that if you are sensitive to scents. 

I love this dinky little sample bottle of Pleasure. It’s a lovely fragrance and the teeny little spray pump is both adorable and much less messy than normal sample bottles. 

Aw a baby bottle of Advanced Night Repair serum. I won’t be trying this out until my skin has dried out a bit mid winter. 

The little pack of wipes is, again, super cute and I suspect it will come in very handy for a weekend away some time. 

Double Wear mascara. I’ve tried another EL sample mascara that I can’t for the life of me remember the name of and I did like it so I have high hopes for this one. 

Day Wear Plus with SPF15. Again I think I’ll be waiting until later in the year to try it. 

And the best thing (aside from the adorable miniature packaging)? FREE! I do love a good sample. The fact that I didn’t even pay actual money for the products I needed in order to get this makes it all the sweeter. If you’re an Estee Lauder fan, or you are Christmas shopping for someone who is, then head down to a counter quick! x

Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero Smudge Lengthening Mascara

I think most of us would agree that less is more when it comes to product names. Estee Lauder seem to disagree... anyway this little sample tube has great significance to me. It is the last of the little mascara samples in my back up drawer meaning that soon I will actually be able to go and buy a new mascara guilt free! Suggestions in the comments please :-D

The wand on this is a strange one. It’s very thin which actually suits me and my piggy little eyes down to the ground. It’s easy and fuss free to manoeuvre. The formula is a little trickier though. It gives a lovely glossy black finish but the consistency is very wet which can lead to a little bit of clumping on me. I suspect that after a few more weeks it will dry out a bit and become a little easier to work with. Here are the before pictures:

And the afters:

Hmm. Not much added length but plenty of volume and drama. I actually kind of like it although it isn’t the sort of formula I would normally gravitate towards. What I do love about the formula is that it definitely smudge proof. I have had no issues with flaking or running even when I’ve been running around in the constant drizzle that is hanging over Glasgow right now. Despite this it isn’t a pain in the arse to remove, it just takes a bit of warm water and off it comes.

The more I use this the more it’s growing on me. Almost enough to justify the £19.50 (eek!) price tag for the full size! X

*Received as part of a gift with purchase*