MUA Luxe Highlight Shimmer Stick

Hello guys!

Loads of you seemed to really like my MUA Luxe lip lacquer post that I did the other week, so today I thought i'd bring you another little gem from the MUA Luxe range. This beautiful highlight stick!

Now this little beauty is AMAZING! Bronzing and highlighting sticks seem to be everywhere at the moment, but I've never been tempted to try them before - I'm just way too attached to my shimmery powder highlighters - but when I saw this for the grand old price of £4 I just had to give it a go. 

I'm impressed. I thought it would be a thick, heavy consistency that would drag across the skin leaving a trail of thick glitter, but its really not. It's super lightweight, easy to blend, and leaves a smooth subtle shimmer on your skin. You can build it up for a more dramatic look (you can never have too much highlight!) or just swipe across the face for subtle sheen. 

It is a very golden tone, and I know some people prefer the pinky rose toned highlighters, but I urge you all to give this a chance as it leave such a beautiful glow. I always seem to be amazed buy the quality of MUA products, and this time is no different. My new go-to product! 

As usual, thank you all for popping by! Feel free to say hello in the comments, and follow/subscribe if you enjoyed my post! 

Love to you all x

#SkinLove

Hello everyone! 

Now this is going to be very different from the kind of thing I usually post, but it's something that I feel is very important and needs to be talked about. It's also something that is very personal to me and plays such a big part in my life; living with a skin disorder. 

You see a lot of posts online about body confidence. How you should feel good no matter what shape or size you are, or whether you have an illness or disability, and believe me I think this is super important. Every single person out there deserves to love themselves and feel good about the way they look, but what I'm trying to say is there isn't a lot out there (that I've seen anyway) about loving your body with a skin disorder. 

I've suffered with a lot of health problems and illnesses throughout my life, and I know that it can take its toll on you. You start to lose faith in your body and feel unmotivated about a lot of things, but when you have a condition that is so visible, it can also make you feel like you have to hide away.

I suffer with severe eczema over most of my body. It comes and goes, is unpredictable, and can also be extremely painful. The pain and irritation is hard to deal with in itself. I also feel like I live at the doctors, hospital and pharmacy (I've tried some experimental treatment too - unsuccessfully I might add) and there are days where no matter how well my makeup goes and no matter how exciting my plans are, I feel self conscious, unattractive and like I need to hide away. 

Behind all the carefully edited Instagram pictures, the Snapchat selfies and makeup look photos are a lot of people who are hiding the real way their skin looks. Eczema, Acne, Psoriasis and Dermatitis just to name a few, so many people like me have spent days wearing long sleeved tops in 30 degree heat to hide the rashes on their arms; have been too embarrassed to wear the pretty short dress because of the skin on their legs; have been too self conscious to take part in the group photo because today is a bad acne day. 

I know I'm rambling on, and for those of you still reading thank you for your dedication, I just feel like I've spent the last 25 years of my life hiding this part of me away from the eyes of strangers (and even the eyes of family and friends) and I don't want to anymore. It is a part of my identity and something that will be there for the rest of my life. I can either keep hiding, or I can embrace it and show those rashes, sores and blisters who's boss. 

Over the next few weeks I'm planing to start a blog series focusing on those of you out there with skin disorders - beauty products that don't irritate, make up appropriate for sensitive skin, ways to deal with the anxiety it causes and how we can start loving our skin, no matter what. If any of you are interested, please feel free to message me on twitter (@AmyBarden) or email me (faceitamy@gmail.com) and we can arrange collaborations and maybe even a twitter chat to raise awareness and spread the love :)  #skinlove

Thank you all for taking the time to read this, it is something very important to me and I'd love to hear from you! 

Love to you all x 

 

MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer

Hello everyone!

Now this lip lacquer from the lovely MUA is something that has been sitting in my lip product collection for some time now, and I've been meaning to review it ever since I first tried it. I'm having a slight love affair with liquid lipsticks and lip lacquers at the moment, and out of all the ones I've tried (and believe me, I've tried a lot!!) this one definitely has to be the most pigmented.

Now I know this isn't the most summery colour out there, but with the weather we've been having lately, I'm already fully embracing autumn; and during autumn my go-to shade is a deep plum purple. With all the rain these last few days, I've automatically found myself reaching for this lip lacquer and that is what reminded me to write this post. 

The lasting power of this is next to none. It is like a thick liquid lipstick crossed with a lip stain, and it is actually hard to get off at the end of the day. With most lip products I find myself re-applying throughout the day, but with this, I actually struggle to remove it before bed even during my makeup removing/cleansing routine. I currently have a deep purple mark on the back of my hand from taking that swatch! 

This can be both a good and bad thing. I love my lip products to last, but at the same time I don't want to be scrubbing my lips on a night trying to remove my lip colour. However the colour itself is so beautiful that you could happily just leave it on to stain your lips forever. 

Overall, I love this lip lacquer. It has a beautiful thick consistency, is super pigmented and would probably last on your lips for the rest of you life! It only cost a couple of pounds too which is amazing. 

I'm so glad I finally got round to talking about this, and I can see it becoming a handbag staple for me over the coming months. 

Thank you all for reading, and please comment below with any other lip lacquers you think I would love. 

Love to you all x 

Skintifique Cleanser P Review *

Hello guys!

Today I have a little review for you of a gorgeous facial cleanser that was kindly sent to me from the Brand Skintifique. They make a variety of products that are perfect for anyone with sensitive skin, or for those like me who suffer from eczema.

The cleaner itself is completely fragrance free, ideal for anyone with delicate skin, and it removes all traces of makeup as well as protecting from any nickle or metal irritants. Perfect. 

The fact that it is completely fragrance free does take some getting used to, and was something I noticed straight away the first few times I used it, but once I got used to it, I loved the product. It has a very thin and lightweight consistency, but works incredibly well. After using it three or four times a week for a couple of weeks, I noticed a big improvement in my skin. I wasn't getting dry patches around my nose and forehead which tends to happen with some other cleansers, and even during the day with my makeup on I noticed my skin felt softer and smoother. 

You can read more about the brand here and view the products they have to offer. I strongly urge all of you with sensitive or damaged skin to have a look, as for me personally, it has worked wonders. Of course you can also use the product if you have a normal skin type as well, as I'm sure you will still notice an improvement in the condition of your skin. 

I will definitely be trying the other products from the range! 

Thank you Skintifique for sending me this to try, it really has worked wonders. 

Thank you guys for reading, and if you have any questions or have tried any products from Skintifique that you think I should try then please leave a comment below :) 

Love to you all x