Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer vs. Make Up For Ever Full Cover Concealer

When it comes to concealers, I expect high coverage.  I wear light to medium coverage foundations and like to dot concealer in places that need the extra coverage.  I'm going to compare the infamous Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer against Make Up For Ever's Full Cover concealer.

  

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear Concealer; £4.19

This product has been seen everywhere over the last few months and has been famed for its great coverage and lasting power.  At £4.19 it hardly breaks the bank and is easy to get your hands on as it's available both in Boots and Superdrug.  Unfortunately, there are only four shades to choose from, making it hard to match up your skin tone.  Luckily, I wear Fair 01 which is perfect for my pasty skin.  It's creamy formulation is almost mousse like in texture and a little goes a long way. I find that this concealer can appear cakey on the skin if you use too much, but use the right amount and blemishes, dark circles and redness are hidden well.  The overall finish is matte, which is good for oilier skins.  My one big hang up with this product is that it's a doe foot applicator, which can become unhygienic when used on blemishes.  If you've used the product before, you'll know that eventually the writing on the packaging disappears.  

Make Up For Ever Full Cover Concealer; £21.95

A slightly less 'hyped' product in the bloggosphere is MUFE's Full Cover concealer, which I picked up in Spain.  It's a lot more expensive than the Collection 2000 alternative at £21.95 but it's a great product.  Designed to cover up tattoo's and scarring, you don't get any more coverage than from this product.  Like the Lasting Perfection concealer, it has a creamy formulation which has more of a gel like texture.  Again, a little goes a long way with this product, which is easily managed by the squeezy tube and nozzle. It's great for covering blemishes or redness but I prefer to use my YSL Touche Eclat under my eyes, for a more brightening finish.  The product leaves a dewy finish when blended in, which I prefer as it looks better alongside my foundation.  The only problem with this concealer, as with any MUFE product, is that it's hard to get hold of in the UK with only one stockist.  

Both concealers are great products.  If you're on a budget then Collection 2000 is great to have in your make up bag and a product I've repurchased over and over.  If you can afford the splurge and prefer products that give a dewy finish then MUFE's Full Cover is a great choice.  

What concealer do you use? 

Make Up Forever HD Foundation

(Face: MUFE HD Foundation, YSL Touche Eclat, Bourjois Little Round Pot Blush in #16, Benefit They're Real Mascara and Topshop Innocent Lipstick)

When I went on holiday in June, I knew the first thing I'd buy in Sephora would be some Make Up Forever products - the first being their HD Foundation.  I'd been wanting to try it for over a year, but as it's so hard to get hold of in the UK, I had to keep wanting on.  

I was matched up to shade 117 and I also bought the HD Primer in shade 1 (the green one) to go with. The foundation is medium coverage and is definitely buildable, depending on how you like your finish.  I usually use 1-2 pumps all over my face and then sometimes add an extra half pump on areas need that need a little extra coverage.  It's very lightweight in feel, I like how it doesn't sit or cake on my face and it's also very easy to work into the skin. It's also oil-free which is handy for those with oilier skins.  When applying, I use my Sigma F80, which gives a flawless finish. 

I prefer to use this foundation when I'm going out for special occasions where there might be flash photography. There is no SPF in the product, so it's definitely a no no when it comes to going out in the sun, unless you apply a little SPF beforehand but I feel that deters away from the products purpose.  After wearing this all day it doesn't oxidise but may need a touch up with powder, especially on my T-Zone.  For me it fits the bill, light but enough coverage to even out my skin tone.  

This product isn't the cheapest, retailing at £29.95 and can also be a pain to get your hands on. Aside from eBay, there's only one official UK stockist of MUFE which is Precious About Makeup (aka PAM). 

Have you tried this foundation?

Travel Essentials

I'm back after a short break as I've been interning in London for the past two weeks (more about that later in the week). Travelling to and from London everyday, spending around 12-14 hours out of the house, I quickly perfected my travel essentials.  

I kept my make up minimal whilst working so that getting ready didn't take too long in the morning.  For touch ups during the day, I packed the essentials. For concealer I've been using the Make Up For Ever 'Full Cover', which is extremely high coverage, even able to cover scars and tattoo's if needs be.  My skin has been a bit all over the place over the last week thanks to mother nature and I feel like I've had Mount Everest growing upon my chin, so this has been a godsend at hiding the redness. The weather has been gorgeous this week, but alas it meant sweaty looking skin - not a good look when surrounded by groomed-to-perfection fashion and beauty journos.  To mattify my skin I took my MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural and used the Real Techniques Contour Brush to apply the product. Although it's meant for contouring and highlighting, the brush wasn't bulky like the Powder Brush and allowed me a more precise product application.  I also popped in a sample size of Make Up For Ever's Smoky Lash mascara incase my lashes needed a pick me up and the lipstick of the day.  I've been loving this Jemma Kidd Hi-Shine Hydrating Glosstick in #04 Hibiscus, which admittedly I was given whilst at More! magazine after doing a favour for the beauty team.  It's a gorgeous product, creamy and highly pigmented and not at all sticky like a lipgloss.  

I always try to remember my perfume as it's always nice to freshen up at lunchtime or after stepping off the tube on your way home, with a spritz of your favourite scent. My go to everyday perfume is Stella McCartney 'Stella'.  I bought the Phil Smith Tame the Frizz serum a while ago as it's a handy travel size product and used it to manage any fly aways or hot weather frizz.  I never go anywhere without Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream now. It's a great lip balm, hand cream, cuticle cream and it's even good if you manage to cut yourself.  

On my first day I picked up some mints.  You've all been there, when someone's had something garlicky for their lunch and it's all you can smell whilst they are speaking to you.  Definitely not the embarrassing situation I wanted to get myself into.  Blister plasters, or plasters in general are always a must - there's nothing worse than limping around the office because your shoes are rubbing.  Paracetamols a given, no need to endure a headache when you've got plenty of work to be getting on with.  Hot weather + hair = frizzball, or at least it does for me anyway. I always carry around a hairband on my wrist or in my handbag for such occasions, or just to get my hair up off my face.  

Do you have any travel must haves?

A Spanish Beauty Haul

If you read my Sephora Wish List post (here) you would have known that as well as the blazing sun, I was excited to visit the local Sephora.  I was finally able to get my hands on some long sought after Make Up Forever products, as well as some other bits that had been high on my wish list for a while.  I also visited the duty free shop at Malaga airport too.  I posted a photo on Instagram of my Sephora bag (which, yes, I kept...) and was asked to write up a haul post, so without further adieu.  

SEPHORA

I wasn't in the market for a new primer, even though both my Porefessional and MAC Prep and Prime were running low.  While the make up artists - who by the way were extremely friendly and helpful - were trying to match me up, they used this green primer (shade #1) to neutralise the pink undertones in my skin. I would have said no to it, but they showed one side with and the other without it.  The side without the primer was distinctively orange, not a good look so needless to say I was sold on the primer.  

What I was in the market for however was the MUFE HD Foundation.  I was matched up to shade 117. Something I did notice about MUFE products - their shade numbers are all jumbled, they are not in numerical order from lightest to darkest, which might be something to do with the undertones in the products but it still made it confusing.  I've now used this foundation twice and I like it so far.  I will be reviewing this in a few weeks time to give it a fair trial.  

I also wanted to pick up the MUFE Full Cover concealer after hearing great things about it.  I was matched up to shade 4 (again, shades aren't in numerical order).  I've also used this twice now and on first impressions I think the packaging is great.  It has a long, thin nib which dispenses the product in small amounts, perfect if you hate wasting product because too much has come out of the tube.  

For a very long time, I've wanted to try the infamous YSL Touche Eclat.  I'd saved some euro's specifically to spend in Sephora and decided to finally cave and buy it.  I picked up shade 1 and like the other products, have used it twice now.  I really like it so far - I'm quite freckly after being in the sun everyday and I find it covers up the ones under my eyes perfectly and also illuminates the eye area.  The packaging is so luxurious - gold with a velvet 'Y' shape on the back, definitely an indulgent product.  

I picked up some Yes To Cucumber wipes as I've heard a lot of good things about them.  I find that they remove a lot more than standard wipes from Boots and they aren't that much more expensive. I might stock up on ASOS next time they have a 20% student event or something similar.  

I also managed to get the Sephora Professional Mineral Powder Brush #45.  I have yet to use this, simply because I wanted it clean for this blog post.  Like I mentioned in a previous post, YouTube guru meganisobel raves about this brush for both liquid fondation and also cream product application so I thought I would give it a go.  Because I bought 3+ make up items, I got 40% off of it, which was an added bonus.  

What I love about Sephora, is that they give samples with purchases.  I received a deluxe size Porefessional which was welcomed as my full size is running low and I love the product.  

DUTY FREE

I didn't pick up much in duty free.  I was hoping to get one of the MAC travel sets, but they didn't have any at Malaga airport.  I needed a new bottle of Stella McCartney's 'Stella' perfume, as the one I purchased in the January sales was running low.  They only had the 30ml bottles in the limited edition prints, which I didn't mind as they are beautiful.  

Whilst on the plane out to Spain I spied this Elizabeth Arden kit and decided that if I had some euro's left over on the way back I would buy it.  Miraculously Sephora didn't bankrupt me (although, it was hard not to buy everything) and I bought this kit. Another holy grail product for so many women that I had yet to try. You get the original Eight Hour Cream, the hand treatment and a lip stick which has SPF 15 in it.  

I'm looking forward to trying out all of these products and sharing my thoughts on them with you.  Are there any products in particular that you would like to see a review on? 

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Home Sweet Home

After ten lovely, ridiculously hot days in La Cala, Spain, I've returned home, slightly more bronzed than when I left.  I had such an amazing time with two of my girlfriends and I wanted to share with you what I got up to - and also to write down all my memories so that I can look back in a few months and remember myself! If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram (both @NickiShepShep) you would have seen my pictures along the way of what I got up to.

After a tedious morning of packing we left for the airport and luckily our flight was on time with no delays.  We had a quick mooch around the airport, mainly seeking food (Gatwick needed to invest in a McDonalds!) and set of for Spain.  Whilst we were waiting to board our flight, I noticed Lauren Pope and Chloe Sims of TOWIE fame arriving from Marbella.  After two or so hours, we touched down in Malaga.  I don't know about you, but I know when I'm holiday when I walk out of the plane and am hit by a wall of humidity.  We arrived at my friends house at about midnight and ended up in bed at around 4am.

The first day we all got our nails done, I had acrylics put on so I wouldn't have to worry about re-painting them. We then laid out by the pool for the rest of the afternoon before heading out for cocktails in the evening.  We went to a bar/restaurant on the beach which was lovely, although it was a little windy.  They did good Pina Colada's.

 

On the Thursday, we opted for a change of scenery and went to the beach. It was HOT, about 37 degrees in fact.  After plucking up the courage (and also melting in the heat) I decided to go into the water with one of the girls. The waves were ridiculously strong and I managed to loose my beloved Ray Bans whilst being thrashed about.  Needless to say I wasn't happy, but these things happen.  We planned on popping to the shopping mall the next evening so I could get another pair.  

Low and behold my new sunglasses - I WONT be loosing these babies.  I prefer them to my original pair - the old pair, lost at sea, were candy striped and were difficult to pair with outfits at times.  These are classic tortoise shell and will go with everything and anything.  I also feel that the lenses are a lot stronger, blocking out more sunlight.  After an expensive shopping trip, we headed into Puerto Banus for dinner and drinks. We all wore heels, which I soon realised was a bad idea.  I had gotten a blister on the ball of my foot and it made it impossible to walk in the pretty heels I'd bought for the holiday.  I'm still undecided about what to do with them! I know a certain someone will be reading this shouting 'SELL THEM NICOLA' at the screen.  At least I got them in some pictures.  

We went onto a cocktail bar after dinner called 'Astral' which was shaped like a pirate ship (they even had neon green swords in the fruit) - pretty cool.  The cocktails were incredible.  They had your five a day pilled on top and the drinks were lovely.  I had a Pina Colada which was delicious - if not a little heavy!

Saturday was an exciting day. We were invited to spend the day at my friends, friends fathers five star hotel (trying saying that after a few cocktails from Astral!), El Oceano.  We were treated to some beds and cocktails by the pool and we were also in the presence of celebrity - well, Riley from Hollyoaks turned up for a few drinks and a swim.  I totally regret not asking for a photo now, but he's now following me on Twitter (bonus!)

I also found out that just outside of the hotel is where The Saturdays filmed their 'Missing You' music video and because I'm in love with them, I took a photo of the rocks... 

On Sunday, we had a chilled out day. We grabbed lunch on the Port of Cabopino, and after we took a stroll along the beach, before returning to where we were staying and heading out for the pool.  We enjoyed another lazy day by the pool Monday, resting up for Tuesday when we went to Morocco for a day trip.  

I was pretty astonished when we arrived at Andalucia to get the Ferry over. Africa seemed only five minutes away, you could see it so clearly.  After a 35 minute ferry ride (and a nap as we had to get up rather early) we were in Morocco.  The tour guide took us on a coach. First stop was for camel rides, although I must admit I was too chicken to get on one (a smart move on my part I think, as my friend nearly had one run away with her!) 

The second stop was in Tangier, where we hopped off the coach and went on a walking tour.  One of the first things we saw were snake charmers, which scared me - I'm extremely scared of snakes and the fact that there was a Cobra in front of me, didn't help this fear!

We then ate a traditional Moroccan lunch which consisted of soup, shish kabob, chicken and cous cous, as well as mint tea and some pastry smothered in a syrup.  I was surprised I ate any of it! After lunch, we made our way to the shops and we ended up in a Moroccan pharmacy, where I bought some argan oil among other things.  When we got back to Spain, we grabbed a traditional Spanish meal - McDonalds (we'd been craving it since the airport). 

 Wednesday was another chilled day at the pool, mostly tanning and reading Fifty Shades of Grey, which is an amazing book (so far anyway). On Thursday we ventured out to the shopping mall and I went shopping in Sephora.  I was like a kid in the candy shop, needless to say I spent a lot!  I mainly brought MUFE products, but some other products also ended up in my basket too.  Keep an eye out for my Spanish haul in the next few days.  

Our last day was spent soaking up as many rays as possible - which I must admit left me a bit pink (oops).  Our journey home was a bit manic, we were delayed and ended up getting home at about 3am which wasn't fun! I did however come home to two parcels, one from Amazon with One Tree Hill season 9 to complete my collection (boxsets are just like beauty products to me!) and another containing a new Nikon S3300 camera, which I won via Revlon's Facebook - bonus!

 I had an amazing time and wish I could go back again next week! A massive thanks has to go out to my friends mum for letting us stay with us - it was the best holiday I've had in a while!

What have you been up to since I've been away? It feels like an eternity since I last sat and blogged!

Sephora Wish List

I'm going on holiday in four days (eek!) and while I'm in Spain I am going to take full advantage of the Sephora.  I'm a youtube and blog addict and I always watch or read american bloggers and wish that the UK could be blessed with a Sephora.  I've compiled a wish list of things that I've had my eye on for a while, but have never really been able to get hold of.  

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

1. Make Up Forever HD Complexion Starter Kit - There is no doubt about it that MUFE is the brand that I most want to buy from. I've wanted to try the HD foundation for over a year now, and although we do have a stockist in the UK, I don't always have the time to pop into London to get matched up. This kit gives you a full size HD foundation, along with a primer, kabuki and setting powder. 

2. Make Up Forever Full Coverage Concealer - I've heard Ingrid from MissGlamorazzi talk about this product a lot in her latest videos and I'm always up for trying new concealers.  This one boasts that it it full coverage so would be a great pairing with some of my lighter foundations, to add some more coverage to certain areas, if needed.  

3. Beauty Blender - I've tried the Cosmopolitan dupe to the beauty blender and liked the finish it gave to my foundation but have since lost it.  I've read a lot of reviews on the original beauty blender and would love to give it a go. This kit also comes with a sponge cleanser which is an added extra! 

4. Sephora + Pantone 'Colour of the Year' Prism Chrome Blush in 'Apricot Brandy' - A bit of a mouthful.  I've seen this crop up a couple of times on YouTube and think it's a beautiful colour for brightening up the complexion.  I also quite like the look of the packaging too!

5.  Sephora Collection Mineral Powder Brush - I think brushes are one of my biggest beauty weaknesses.  I really like trying new ones out to get the best possible make up application.  I owe this one in particular to Meg from meganisobel who raves about this brush a lot.  

6.  Chloe Eau De Parfum Roller Ball - Chloe is my favourite perfume, but because of the price I use it on special occasions and nights out.  I always like to top up my pefume when I'm out and about but usually quite scared that I will drop my clutch with it in and smash it.  Hence why I want the rollerball version. Handbag friendly and great for top ups during the day.  I have my nephew's Christening coming up so this would definitely come in handy.  

I will also be picking up one or two MUFE Smoky Lash mascara as I LOVE mine and don't want it ever to run out.  Have you got a Sephora wish list? If so, what's on it?

April 2012 Favourites

Another month gone, where is 2012 going? April was an extremely busy month with the magazine unit due (see the finished product here) and then work experience starting, I haven't really stopped.  When it came to my make up for this month it was quick and simple which is reflected in my favourites.  

For my base I've kept it light and dewy as I haven't really had the time to buff out a heavy duty foundation, plus my skin hasn't really needed that extra coverage. I've switched between my Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow in shade 'I'm pure 4 sure' and my Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in B10.  These both give a dewy finish which leaves your skin looking really natural.  My brush of choice is the Sigma F80 flat top kabuki which makes life so much easier! It applies the foundation extremely quickly, leaving a flawless finish. 

To add warmth to my cheeks I've been using the Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel Bronze Universel with my Real Techniques Buffing Brush from the Core Collection.  As I am so fair at the moment, I use the tiniest amount otherwise I might look like an oompa loompa (sorry Roald Dahl, it was never a good look).  I'm looking forward to taking this on holiday and using it when I have a tan! I've also been picking up my Sleek Face Contour Kit and using the highlighter to brighten the inner corners of my eyes as there was a lot of early mornings and late nights through April.  

Keeping with the simple look, I haven't really done anything other than kohl liner on my tight line and mascara.  My mascara of choice is MUFE Smoky Lash in black which I will definitely be stocking up on when I go to Sephora in Spain next month.  For lips I've kept things pretty nude or sheer in colour.  My favourites have been the Clinique Chubby Stick in wooping watermelon and 17 Mirror Shine On Lipstick in Beehive.  

What have been your favourite products of April?