Urban Decay Spring 2015 Collection

Urban Decay is a brand I haven't had too much exposure too, so when this package arrived, I squealed with absolute delight.  The Spring 2015 collection is nothing short of delightful and I have had great fun playing with these items.

Naked Skin Ultra Definition Powder Foundation - Package inside this beautiful purple floral string bag, is the new Naked Skin Ultra Definition Powder Foundation can be found in this sleek and beautiful shiny gunmental compact, which shows the Urban Decay logo clearly embossed on the top. With 9g of powder and an accompanying sponge double-sided sponge.

Available in 14 different shades to suit most skin shades, this powder is weightless, gives buildable coverage and leaves a demi-matte finish, I have shade Medium-Light and I find it works well with my skin tone.  The powder when used is really light and promises to give 8 hours of wear time, which it does.  I have combination skin, which leans to the oily side across my t-zone and it still manages to look flawless and doesn't cling to any dry skin making it perfect for using everyday and even though it does stay in place, if I feel the need to touch up any oily skin, the sponge is useful for doing that. RRP £26

Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer - to compliment the new powder foundations comes 8 different shades of the Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealers.  With what is described as being a modern flocked applicator, it uses just the right amount of product to cover redness, blemishes and those pesky dark-circles effortlessly.  

There is also a bit of science to this concealer "Naked Skin Concealer with so many ingredients that are good for your skin, it’s practically a concealer and a treatment in one! Matrixyl 3000 contains anti-wrinkle peptides to improve skin’s youthful appearance and elasticity. Japanese green tea revitalises and helps reduce the appearance of fine lines. Litchiderm™ (derived from lychee fruit) protects against dehydration, resulting in a brighter, more radiant complexion. And sodium hyaluronate helps skin attract and retain moisture".  

Now, since having this concealer, I am a tad obsessed with it, it is amazing, it blends really well, it looks natural and once applied it sticks, it doesn't disappear half-way through the day, it does the job it is meant to do and all for £17.50 - it is worth every penny!

Sheer Revolution Lipsticks - There are 10 offerings when it comes to the Sheer Revolution Lipsticks and every single one of them is beautiful. Described as being "creamy, badass luxury meets sheer, pigmented colour" the lipsticks are packaged inside this stunning lilac coloured case which I just adore. The formula is also amazing as they are infused with what is referred to as Maxi-Lip plus an added blend of nourishing oils and antioxidants into the formula along with Vitamin C and E, Shea butter and olive oil so your lips are left feeling hydrated and plumped. I wasn't too sure what to expect from Urban Decay because I am new to the lipsticks, but as well as being incredibly moisturising, the formula has a creamy consistancy which simply glides across the lips leaving behind great coverage of colour and shine but none of that horrible sticky tackiness you often get with lipsticks. 

I was sent two different shades - Sheer Ladyflower and Sheer Rapture, both very different shades but both utterly stunning. 

Sheer Rapture is described as being sheer dusty rose and once on the lips, you can see the transfer of colour which is more of a rosy plum shade, quite out of my comfort zone, but the colour which lasts for a good 4-5 hours before the shine wears off and whilst there is still a hint of colour, you might feel you want to touch up your lipstick.

Sheer Ladyflower is a sheer rose pink shade and when applied it is more of a medium pink, which looks really lovely.  As with Rapture, it lasts 4-5 hours before you need to re-apply.  Both lipsticks retail at £15.50

Moondust Eyeshadow is a product I have come across before, but this range has 4 new added shades which are called Ether, Scorpio and Cosmic. I was kindly sent Scorpio and Ether which are truly beautiful to look at, never mind play with and wear. Like all other Eyeshadows, each of the Moondust shades come packaged in a compact with the cool pop-out feature. You can pop these shadows out of their compacts with no problem and into an Urban Decay customisable Build Your Own Palettes (RRP £8) to create the ultimate travel-friendly collection. Each shade retails at £14.

Ether is described as being a “light purple with pink-blue 3D sparkles and it is quite a fine texture which you can apply with your fingers or a brush easily, though go careful with how much you choose to wear because there is a lot of sparkle! 

Scorpio is described as a “matte black with gold 3D sparkle and within this shade, the sparkles aren't quite as noticeable as they are in Ether, but they are present. For me, this isn't a shade that I wear across my entire eyelid, though it is possible and it looks amazing on a lot of looks ive seen, but I prefer to wear it under my lower lash line, which I fine much easier to applier than eyeliner and it is lovely and smokes out really nicely, again with your finger or a brush.

I am very much enamored with this collection, it includes something for everyone including those of us who are yet to be brave enough to try a lot more colour and on the reverse for those people who love their bright and bold shades.  

Is there anything within this collection that you want to get your hands on?

Cohorted Beauty Box for March

Having been disappointed not to get the first Cohorted box, I did manage to get my hands on the March box but not the April Box - ooh Cohorted you don't half know how to play with my emotions! Anyway, I shall be watching with interest as to what the April box contains before sobbing into my tissues.

I think the first thing I should be saying is that the actual box itself is really nicely put together, someone has put some thought into the presentation and whoever sits and ties all the bows, it is such a nice personal touch. When I opened my box, I had annoyingly seen some spoilers, not to self - Stay off Twitter! However, not deterred by the spoliers, I was still chuffed to see the contents which consisted of full sized products from Too Faced, Sleek, bareMinerals plus a sample size of Urban Decay mascara which I have been wanting to try.

The first item that caught my attention in the box comes from bareMinerals, which isn't a brand I have too much experience with.  Said to be worth a whopping £45 it is described as bring the 'Pure Transformation Night Treatment' in shade light.  Described as being:

"Our amazing ActiveSoil Complex in it's most concentrated form. This powder formula dramatically reduces the appearance of pores, improves skin tone and texture, and increases luminosity."

I am quite looking forward to giving this a try, more so because the brush really intrigues me.

The next product is by Sleek and it is the Precious Metals Highlighter Palette for face and body which has an RRP £9.99.  Within the palette there are four different shades, three are cream highlighters and one is a powder and they are accompanied by a little applicator brush and a handy mirror.  It is described as being:

"The versatile face and body highlighting palette compliments all skin tones, and the metallic finishes add a radiant glow and a luminous polish to the skin"

L-R Platinum, Royal Gold, Renaissance Gold and Antique Bronze

With shade names such as Platinum, Royal Gold, Renaissance Gold and Antique Bronze, it makes for a truly stunning palette.

The next item comes from one of my favourite brands Too Faced by way of a single eyeshadow and I got the shade Copper Peony which is a stunningly bright copper shade which is really pigmented and will suit all skin types, even my own almost porcelain shade. Described as follows:

"The eye-shadow shade will compliment any type of look you want to achieve. Elegant or rocker, a beautiful shimmer accessory for both day and night"

Now I am also a sucker for pretty packaging and this definitely wins the beauty in the box award for being pretty, flower shaped with a little clear see through circle, you can see the shade in the palette.

Finally, there is a sample of Urban Decays 'Perversion' mascara, an item that has been on my wishlist ever since I saw it at the counter in Debenhams. It is in shade black and described as being:

"A volumising mascara that defines each lash. The brush glides and creates bigger, blacker, badder lashes. Perversion mascara never gets brittle or clumpy"

I really like the wand on this mascara, it is huge and it is so easy to use.

So there you have it, the March Cohorted box and I am sure, like me, you will be hard pressed to find a single item to dislike or be disappointed with.  It is more than worth its £19.99 price tag and has so many items within the box that I want to use.

Did you get any of the Cohorted Boxes so far?

Exclusive Benefit Mascara Masterclass with Birchbox

Last weekend I attended an event with Birchbox and Benefit, two great brands in one amazing Curls Best Friend pop-up shop for exclusive Benefit Mascara Masterclass.

I arrived at the store on time after a powerwalk from the tube to be greeted with all the lovely Birchbox girls, whom I have had the pleasure of meeting before. Warmly welcomed with a choice of cocktail or mocktail, I quickly made my decision and had a lovely time chatting to fellow bloggers whilst we waited for the event to start.

The event. based upon the March Birchbox, which gave subscribers the choice of three different Benefit Mascaras - Bad Gal, They're Real or the brand new Roller Lash, Lisa Potter-Dixon, who is Benefit's Head Make-up Artist was on hand on to show us some looks she had created using each of the mascaras and an abundance of other Benefit products.  

We were also able to ask questions along the way including advice on which products we could and should be using as well as Lisa giving us some of her top tips - for example... have you ever used Hoola on your eyes or lips? No me neither, but it is a tip I shall be taking away with me and this video shows you some amazing tips and it features the lovely Jessica, Birchbox Editorial Director and Lisa herself.

After the make-up demonstrations we were given the opportunity to go down into the salon to have our make-up and hair done using the products that Lisa had used (not literally) to demonstrate each look with.  The Salon was amazing, I could have spent hours in there just chatting to the staff who were all so helpful and lovely.  I had my make-up done by the lovely Alison, who herself gave me lots of hints and tips when it came to using Boing, Fine One One and the fabulous World Famous Neutrals Most Glamorous Nudes Ever kit, which I now feel I need in my life.

Finally, alongside some amazing cupcakes that were well and truly divine, we were all given an amazing goody bag to take home and play with and it was so incredibly generous, thank you Birchbox and Benefit.

Now there's still time to subscribe and select your very own Benefit mascara! Which mascara will you be choosing?