Autumn haul | Makeup

I have a theory that Superdrug pumps out some sort of pheromone throughout the store that attracts me to new releases and makes me buy things. Lots and lots of wonderful, beautiful things. What other explanation can there be?! I am so excited about every single one of these gorgeous makeup goodies! I felt it was time for a makeup bag overhaul now that we're transitioning into Autumn, and there are some truly fabulous makeup releases on Superdrug shelves at the moment. 

Maxfactor Whipped Creme Foundation 'Light Ivory', on offer for £7.99 (usually £9.99)

This smells suspiciously like Maybelline's Dream Matte Mousse and the packaging is identical to CoverGirl's Whipped Clean foundation (which isn't really a surprise as CoverGirl and Maxfactor are owned by the same company!) I thought I'd give a mousse foundation a go as I love a matte base and it has a lovely velvet texture that melted easily on my wrist when I swatched a sample. Whipped Creme delivers a 'demi matte finish' which sounds promising for Autumn/Winter. I can't wait to give this a go and see how it fares.

Bourjois Pourdre de Riz (Java Rice Powder), £9.99

How absolutely adorable is this little lime green powder pot?! The vintage detailing sold it to me on appearance (I know, I know, shallow!) I couldn't resist, it just looks so pretty. Re-released to commemorate Bourjois' 150th anniversary, their original best-selling 1879 Poudre de Riz provides 'an ultra fine, velvety texture, for a smooth, and radiant complexion'. It comes in a suits-all translucent shade. I can't get enough of how wonderful the design is, and I'm hoping the powder is just as good! I will be reporting back soon!

Bourjois Blush Exclusif, £7.99

Another Bourjouis product that caught my eye, Blush Exclusif cream blush promises to adapt to your individual skin tone, creating a personalised foolproof flush of colour. Admittedly I'm a little wary of these types of products, as the lip ones in particular always seem to develop into really strange shades on me! But I was intrigued by the idea of a colour adapting cream blush and I'm looking forward to giving this a go. Appearance wise, it's very much like Bourjois' line of cream blushers released earlier this year, and in the pot it's a very pale baby pink colour. 

Sleek Matte Me Ultra Smooth Matte Lip Cream 'Petal' £4.99

Sleek have released two new lip collections, Gloss Me and Matte Me. I only spied Matte Me in Superdrug and went for 'Petal' as I am obsessed with matte pink lips! This feels very light on the lips and dries almost instantly to a budge-proof matte finish. I'd love to get my paws on a Gloss Me shimmer gloss and give that a go as well, to have all my lip needs covered!

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer 'Fair' on offer for £3.69 (usually £4.19)

This is my absolute favourite concealer. It beats Benefit, MAC and every drugstore concealer I've used in the past. I love the liquid-cream texture which makes it quite thick and easy to blend on problem areas without it slipping or sliding. 'Fair' is the perfect super pale shade for my skin tone and this wonder concealer wand covers EVERYTHING. Spots, scars, redness; you name it, this miracle worker covers it. I know Collection Lasting Perfection is raved about by many a blogger, and I'm sure it also has it's haters, but for me it's absolutely perfect in terms of formula and finish. The only slight downside is that the writing on the packaging wears off within days, and I have found that the tube starts to dry out a little after a month or so, making it harder to scoop out the last few dregs of concealer. But for under a fiver I really don't care!

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr 'Metallic Pomegranate' £4.99

I'm determined to break out of my neutral eyeshadow rut this Autumn, and this pomegranate cream shadow is just what I've been looking for. I've seen a few bloggers rocking cranberry shades and figured this slightly darker, smokier pomegranate colour would be a great way to introduce a little colour to my eye makeup routine. I love how easy the Color Tattoo shadows are to use; they blend well and are perfect for someone like me who hasn't quite got to grips with using eye makeup tools! I can't wait to give this a go, and I'll be sure to report back with my thoughts!

Maybelline Browdrama Sculpting Brow Mascara 'Medium Brown' £4.99

My beloved Benefit Brow Zings kit is coming to an end, and I'm reluctant to use it all up before I can afford to replace it. It has lasted me a good two years and I'm so attached to it that I doubt any other brow product will satisfy me! However, when I spotted Maybelline Browdrama Brow Mascara I thought I'd give it a go and see if it was any good. I like the thought of using this when I'm having a 'casual' (aka 'lazy') day! 'Medium Brown' seemed like the best fit for me, although it's also available in a blonde shade and in a darker brown shade. I'm very fair skinned with naturally dark blonde hair, but I've found blonde eyebrow products look really, really strange on me, hence going for a medium shade! I like a bit of noticeable definition; not quite a Scouse brow but definitely some colour and shape! 

Maybelline The Rocket Volum' Express 'Black' £7.99

For the life of me I cannot seem to find a mascara I'm happy with, and it's starting to really grate on my nerves! Recent tries have included Revlon Lash Potion (too wet and clumpy), Makeup Academy Every Lash (too dry and stumpy) and Seventeen Doll'd Up (it's supposed to curl but really doesn't, although it does lengthen!). The Rocket was the tube that caught my eye on Superdrug's Maybelline stand, so I chucked it in my basket and bought it without giving it too much thought. The best way to figure out the perfect mascara, right?! Chuck it in the basket and cross your fingers! When I opened it at home I immediately noticed it's got teeny tiny bristles rather than big bristles... I'm not sure how I feel about this! I've loved big bristles in the past but then Revlon Lash Potion had big bristles and I near blinded myself with it, so maybe smaller is a good thing?! I'm dying to try this out and see if it delivers. Fingers and toes crossed!

Real Techniques Shading Brush £6.99

My obsession with Real Techniques continues! I've been using the Expert Face Brush and Blusher Brush daily since purchasing a few weeks ago and I am completely obsessed! Brilliant quality and excellent results. I picked up the eye Shading Brush as I really want to practice defining my eyes properly with eyeshadow, and I've got a gorgeous new Revlon palette that I'd like to create some looks with (take a peek here). I can't wait to report back and tell of my eyeshadow application tales. Hopefully there will be a success story! 

Et voila, the first installment of my Autumn haul. Next up will be a skincare/bodycare haul, having recently popped into Lush and treated myself to a few beautiful smelling bits and bobs. Be sure to find me on Bloglovin' so you don't miss it! And feel free to comment below with your Autumn makeup faves and must haves. A girl can never chit chat about beauty too much!

Baci e abbracci, 

     

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The face wants what the face wants... feat. Maxfactor Face Finity All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Foundation

I like this foundation. I like this foundation a lot. So much so that I'm starting to feel awful pangs of guilt every morning when applying it as part of my everyday make-up routine. I'm doing the dirty on my beloved Revlon ColorStay and I just can't seem to stop myself!

When Maxfactor first released their Face Finity All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Foundation I wrote it off as being a bit of a gimmick, and I assumed it wouldn't suit my skin type (combination that turns into shine central come midday). I'm not sure where I got this idea from, but I recently purchased a bottle and it has totally exceeded my expectations, hence the serious case of make-up adultery I've got going on. 

Maxfactor Face Finity 3 in 1 Foundation, £11.99

The reason I've always loved Revlon ColorStay so much is because it gives full coverage and a matte finish. Maxfactor Face Finity does both these things but in some ways it manages to do them even better than ColorStay. It has a fairly thick, creamy texture, thicker than ColorStay, but it's super easy to blend and doesn't drag on the skin at all when applying. In my opinion it gives a slighly higher level of coverage than ColorStay, in that it seems to cover blemish marks and dark circles even better and makes the skin look more even prior to applying concealer and powder. It gives a very even finish and a very matte finish, which is what I like in a foundation. 

Face Finity lasts a little longer than ColorStay, in terms of not needing a powder top-up for at least five or six hours after first applying. I tested Face Finity's 'All Day Flawless' claim yesterday when it was particularly humid outside; after walking home from the shops my hair was stuck to the back of my neck, my top was clinging to me, but my face was still matte and my make-up hadn't budged. Woohoo! Top marks from me, as I'm usually a slave to the face powder during hot weather. While ColorStay has great lasting power, it can start to tire by the end of a long day, becoming a little patchy in places, unless I set it with the matching face powder. I haven't had this problem with Face Finity so far. Perhaps this is because of the 'primer' included in the foundation, as there is definitely a difference. It does feel like it 'sticks' well to the skin when applied. 

As for the concealer claim, while Face Finity does do a good job of evening out my skin tone, calming down the appearance of blemishes and dark circles, I still need to use a separate concealer to cover problem areas fully. This doesn't really bother me as I like using my MAC concealer pot and I use a concealer brush to target individual spots and blemishes. I reckon if my skin was clearer I could get away with wearing just the foundation, as it does provide great coverage, but for the moment this isn't really an option (my skin is a work in progress!)

Maxfactor Face Finity in 'Light Ivory 40'

The one slight downside of Face Finity is the limited colour range. I picked 'Light Ivory' which is the palest shade available, but it isn't quite a perfect match; I could do with a shade *slightly* lighter, especially come winter. It doesn't look noticeably odd or mismatched, but it's something that bugs me a little. On the plus side, Maxfactor foundations tend to have pink undertones which is in contrast to many of the 'ivory=yellow' high street foundations I've encountered in the past! On the colour front, Revlon ColorStay wins as it really is a perfect match for my fair skin and I know I can apply it without every worrying about having to be extra careful when blending around the hair line and jaw line. 

As far as packaging is concerned, Maxfactor Face Finity comes with a pump which wins out over Revlon ColorStay in terms of ease of use. Things are a lot less messy with a pump! Both foundations are housed in sturdy glass bottles, and although they're a little heavy they look and feel quite expensive, which is a nice little plus.

I still can't quite believe I'm saying this (oh, the guilt!) but Face Finity has become the foundation I reach for every morning, even more so than my bottle of Revlon ColorStay. Which makes my previous review of Revlon ColorStay a little awkward... Check out the title of the post to see why! What can I say? The face wants what the face wants! Aside from the minor colour matching issue, everything about Face Finity is perfect. From the texture to the excellent full coverage to the matte, long lasting finish, I'm totally hooked! Out of all the full coverage high street foundations I've tried so far, this is the clear winner. I just wish it hadn't taken me so long to give it a go!

Visit Maxfactor's official website here