Daily blushes

My post about MLBB was quite popular, so I thought I'd continue on with the whole 'neutral' makeup concept and discuss some blushes that I have on rotation for everyday wear!

There are blushes that are natural enough to get away with wearing everyday. Then there are those that should be reserved for more special occasions. Here are some of the blushes that I like to wear on normal, boring days...

 L-R

NARS 'Luster'

Arbonne 'Blossom'

Sleek 'Rose Gold'

MAC 'Feeling'

Top going clockwise

MAC 'Feeling'

NARS 'Luster'

Arbonne 'Blossom'

Sleek 'Rose Gold'

L-R Swatches

Sleek 'Rose Gold'

Arbonne 'Blossom'

NARS 'Luster'

MAC 'Feeling'

NARS Luster (see full review here)
The perfect apricot blush for a gorgeous sunkissed glow! I adore this blush, it was love from day one. Well worth the money.

Sleek Rose Gold
This blush is similar to Luster, however it is more of a sunset colour and has more sheen to it. This is great for days when I feel dull and need a bit of extra glow to my face.

Arbonne Blossom
This one is like Rose Gold's peachy sister. It has a bit of shimmer to it and its great for when I want to have a natural, healthy look. Rather than the sleep deprived, zombie I've become lately.

MAC Feeling
This one is the only one without shimmer. I suppose it's like the odd one out and it's a bit more blue toned than the others which are warmer. A great everyday blush for winter.

What are some blushes that you like to wear on a daily basis? :)

Sleek Volume & Curl Mascara

Today I will be reviewing a mascara by the brand Sleek. So far I've only tried blushes by Sleek (reviews here) so I'm excited to try out this mascara. It is available from their website for $4.99. 

I am reviewing the shade 'black'. Standard tube, with 8mL of product. The tube reads 'special brush that curves and separates lashes from base to tip.' We'll see about that...

Here is the brush - it is a little bit narrower towards the middle of the brush. I like that when you pull the brush out, there is not much excess mascara on it.

This is what my eyes/lashes look like without any makeup on. I have fairly long lashes anyway.

Here is an after shot, after one coat on the top and bottom lashes. They appear a lot longer and curled. No clumping, score.

I've included this as a comparison shot - the left eye has mascara on and the right does not. The difference is substantial! 

I really do like this mascara for making my lashes look longer. I like mascaras that make your lashes look thicker, which this one doesn't seem to do, but for a $5 price tag, I can't say anything bad about it.

Have you tried any mascaras by Sleek?

My 10 drugstore favourites

In no particular order...

1. Sleek blushes
They are about $6-7 (AUD) and you get 8g of product in a compact rectangular case with a mirror. MAC powder blushes are 6g and don't have a mirror so I think I prefer the Sleek casing.
These blushes are incredibly pigmented. Warning - they can become addictive! I use them daily and my MAC blushes have been pushed aside for these guys.

Here are some pictures I have used on other blog posts

Sunrise (left) and Honour (right) - refer to my previous post for more info if you are interested in these two!

Sleek blushes: Sunrise and Honour 

Above: Honour 

Above: Rose Gold - said to be a dupe of NARS Orgasm blush

 Cases

If you're interested in Sleek, you can buy their products from their website.
http://www.sleekmakeup.com/



2. Milani Press Powder
I bought this for $5.75. I guess I've never really been a pressed powder girl before but I love this. It gives a flawless coverage on its own and is great for shine control. It comes with a handy mirror and sponge. I also find it is long lasting. It has 10g of product so its probably going to last me a while.

I bought this from beautyjoint.com




3. L.A Girl Pro Conceal
A fantastic concealer for $2.50. Again, concealer wasn't a product I paid much attention to but this changed my beauty routine. I use them almost every day to cover areas of redness. It has a creamy consistency to it and the brush tip applicator can be used to blend but I prefer to use my fingers.

I bought this from beautyjoint.com



4. Ecotools Brushes
Not only is this brand pocket friendly, they are doing their bit for the environment. Their products are 100% cruelty-free (as their website says) with recycled aluminium and bamboo for the handles. 1% of their profits go towards environmental organisations, so not only will you look good but you feel good too!
If you're ever used one of their brushes, you would know that they are incredibly soft. I use a kabuki brush of theirs for when I use mineral powder foundation and sometimes I find myself just aimlessly rubbing the brush on my face, because it feels so soft. Please tell me I'm not the only one...?

Their prices vary depending on which brush/set you buy, but they can be purchased from Priceline as well as on their website.

This eyeshadow brush costs $4 on ecotools.com

5. Face of Australia Liquid Eyeliner

I bought this for around $9 quite a while ago and this is the third time I've repurchased it. It makes liquid eyeliner application really easy with the precise tip. I always get compliments when I use it to do a winged eyeliner look. A great tool to have in your makeup kit for doing a dramatic look.

I bought this from Big W.



6. MUA eyeshadow palettes
I have two of these so far and they are amazing. They are about 4 pounds on the MUA website. Talk about value for money! There has been a lot of hype about these lately and rightfully so. 12 eyeshadows at an affordable price. I want them all. 

Here are the ones I have

Above: The Undressed palette - read more about it here

Above: The Dusk til Dawn palette - read more about it here

7. Rimmel Extra Super Lash Mascara
$12.95 for this, pretty cheap (in Aus!) for a mascara. Nothing too fancy, but it does the job for daily wear. The brush is good and so far I haven't experienced clumping. 

Rimmel products can be bought from Big W, supermarkets such as Coles and Bilo, Target and I'm sure there are other stores too.




8. NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss
Soo shiny! Bought this one for $5.49 and its generous with its 11ml of gloss. It pretty much gives you everything you want in a lipgloss - shine, colour and its not all gooey and sticky. Super cute tube too.

The colour above is Spongecake. 
This can be bought from beautyjoint.com



9. Ulta3 nail polish
$2 polish. What more can I say? The formula is excellent quality, the brush is small but that can be forgiven. You get 13mL of polish which is quite a lot. The colour range is also great. With a base coat and top coat, they last me about 5-7 days. 

Above: the colour 'Jade'

Above: the colour 'Bouquet'



10. Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick
These are $10 and are one of my most reliable lipsticks. Great colour and lasts about 4 hours on me. I have quite a few of these and will continue to repurchase.

The colour above is Birthday Suit.
Again, Rimmel products are widely available in Australia.


Well, this concludes my list! What are some of your drugstore faves?

Sleek blushes: Sunrise and Honour

Since my Year 12 formal in 2009, I have been trying to find a blush similar to the one used by the MUA who did my make up for that night. Here is a (bad) photo -

The reason I didn't ask her on the day is you can probably see my fail eye make up! I asked for a smokey eye to go with my black dress and ended up with glittery eye lids, leading to glitter all over my face. And racoon-like eyeliner. I didn't have the time to fix my eyes properly as I was trying to get glitter off my face! Anyway, you can see that the blush is a brown-bronze colour.

I've tried a few that I thought would be close. MAC - Margin, which is a great blush but it was a bit too bronze. I also tried E.l.f - Berry Merry but it was too plum like.

This is what led me to buy two Sleek blushes, Sunrise and Honour (a limited edition blush from the 2012 Collection). From browsing through swatches, they appeared quite similar, so I thought why not buy both and see if either of them happened to be similar to that blush I've been trying to find.

Sunrise on the left and Honour on the right.

Sunrise on the left and Honour on the right. It's hard to explain the difference but Honour is a deeper and more brown. The lids are a bit difficult to open but the cases are sturdy - when trying to open Sunrise, I dropped it onto the floor (floorboards, mind you) and I was expecting the blush to break but it didn't! 

Swatched on my hand (ignore the veins) - Sunrise on the left, Honour on the right.

Same as above, swatches in sunlight. I think this is where you can really see the difference. Honour looks more bronzey-gold-browny. Hey, wasn't that the type of blush I was searching for...

Both of the pictures above are Sunrise. It comes out like a nice flushed colour. This blush is REALLY pigmented so go easy! The first time I tried, it looked like I had been punched in the face. 

Moving on, this is Honour. In the sun, it certainly manages to show off. I should mention that Honour is 7.2g whereas Sunrise is 8g.

Both the pictures above are Honour. This one is more brown that Sunrise and I think it looks quite similar to the blush I was wearing for my Year 12 formal. What do you think?

Either way, I'm really glad I purchased both!

What are your thoughts on Sleek blushes?