Saturday, 18 March 2017

Current Beauty Wishlist and Anti-Wishlist

When you love makeup as much as I do, the want is always strong, so I have a mental wishlist of makeup acquisitions on the go at all times in my head - the curiosity and willingness to try new beauty bits is like an illness. I thought that today, in sharing my wishlist, it would be good to also share my anti-wishlist i.e. the makeup things I am definitely not wishing for that haven't appealed or impressed me enough to justify parting with my hard earned dollas. As per always, this is just my personal opinion based on my own taste, likes, dislikes etc. so please don't take any offence (it's not personal lads, it's just makeup). 
So let's start with the positives - the things that I have been researching/ drooling over/ lusting after/ admiring over the last few weeks. 
1. The Zoeva Matte Palette - lord knows Zoeva do great eyeshadows and I've really enjoyed every other eyeshadow palette I've tried from them, including the matte shades, so this is something I will definitely purchase. In fact, I would have purchased already had it been available online but the Zoeva website has been sold out for weeks. Sad times. 
2. I don't think I have tried any Shiseido makeup ever (bad blogger) but the sound of the new Synchro Skin Glow foundation is getting me all hot and bovvered as it sounds right up my street. I do dip my toe into full coverage, matte or satin effect foundations from time to time but with the spring upon us, I'm feeling like a lighter base might be more in order. This is pretty pricey though so I am going to try to get a sample of this to try before forking out €48.
3. Since I hit the big 3-0 a few months back, I've been paranoid about interested in anti-aging skincare and taking care of my skin. I spend a small fortune in Space NK on skincare, thinking the more I spend on a cream the more effective it will be, but I'm not noticing any amazing benefits and I'm not happy with the texture of my skin currently either. I 100% am going to get myself an Image Skincare facial and prescription asap - I've tried some Image Skincare bits before that were gifted to me at a PR event where we got to meet the founders of the brand and my skin just lapped them up and loved life until they ran out. I don't want to just go into a salon to pick out some products randomly - I hold my hands up and am seeking expert advice. If you have any Image facialist recommendations in the South Dublin area, please let me know.
4. I was in London at the flagship Charlotte Tilbury store a few weeks back and I swatched the Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Powder on the back of my hands and it was so smooth and silky that I have thought of little else since, and I'm in the market for a new powder. The reason I didn't purchase there and then was because I have a love/hate relationship with Charlotte Tilbury products (I hated the Magic Foundation) so I didn't want to waste my money but I have loads of Brown Thomas vouchers burning a hole in my pocket and I think this powder just needs to be bought.
5. I was invited to the launch of the YSL Volupté Tint In Balm a few weeks back and I couldn't make it with work commitments but I have been suffering with dry chapped lips for weeks now and foregoing the lipstick where possible that this latest YSL innovation could be the answer to my prayers. PS look at the packaging - is it not divine! 
6. Another YSL offering on my radar is the new YSL The Shock mascara - I've gotten on well with Lancome mascaras in recent years and the before and after pictures I have seen of the newest mascara are literally pictorial depictions of what lash dreams are made of. 
7. Lastly but not leastly, I've seen pictures and reviews of the new Catrice Makeup Transformer Drops all over the interwebs but I have not yet found them instore or online to purchase yet and I am dying to! I'm all about a bit of foundation mixing to find that perfect blend and as someone with a drawer full of foundations both too dark and too light for my skintone, I could really do with these to help. I have high expectations of all Catrice products that I purchase because I think they are really an exceptional brand, particularly in base products. 
On to the anti-wishlist, these are things that have come across my radar that, frankly, didn't impress me much, certainly not enough to purchase them. I will elaborate below but suffice to say, it's just my opinion and it's purely based on my personal opinion. 
1. Benefit Galifornia Blush - the first of three Benefit offerings on this list. The colour is nice enough - a bright hot pinky coral - but it's not too dissimilar from any of the other blushes in my collection to justify paying €34 for it. I have completely outgrown the Benefit hype and packaging to be honest - 10 years ago I was obsessed with the brand, I think the Benefit Georgia Peach blush (inexplicably discontinued) was one of my absolute faves all through college. I don't like the look of the gold overlay on Galifornia and I am not a fan of the boxed blush packaging - it's too chunky for my packed makeup drawers. I'll be passing on this.
2. Natasha Denona Star Palette - now this is a beautiful palette and the colours really appeal to me but there is no way EV-ER that I would pay €165 for one single, 18 shade eyeshadow palette. Lunacy! 
3. The second Benefit offering is the rather silly Benefit They're Real Duo Eyeshadows. The premise of these is that you can use a weird sponge applicator yolk to apply the light and dark eyeshadow to your eye in one foul swoop and have a perfect eye look in about 1.5 seconds. I just don't buy this at all, but granted, I have not tried it out myself. I cannot see how that big sponge applicator yolk would apply one colour of eyeshadow well, never mind two different shades. Also, how pressed for time or lazy would you have to be to not have an extra 10 seconds to just do the job properly. The only thing this palette does to my eyeballs is make me roll them. 
4. Next on my anti-wishlist is the Smashbox Cover Shot palette (the Matte version is pictured). Main reasons I would not purchase this is that I have found Smashbox eyeshadow palettes to be SO hit and miss - and more miss than hit if I am being very honest. I've also seen some pretty damning reviews of these on social media so I'm more than happy to sit this one out.
5. Inglot have super impressed me since they released their amazing What a Spice Eyeshadows and What a Spice HD Lip Tints but one of their latest releases - the Freedom Highlighters - which admittedly grabbed my attention on release - does not appeal to me since I swatched them in person on my hand and was underwhelmed and heard a damning report from my hairdresser who was so annoyed that she forked out €40 blindly on the full set. 
6. The last Benefit instalment in my anti-wishlist is the Benefit They're Real Double the Lip lipsticks. These are supposed to be lipsticks with inbuilt lip liners and when I first spied these in a Christmas gift set months back, I thought they were ludicrous to be honest. Huge clunky packaging hides the fact that you actually get HALF the product in this lipstick that you would in a MAC lipstick (Benefit 1.5g v MAC 3g) , despite the fact that the Benefit offering is more expensive. I enjoy a gimmick as much as the next person but this is one gimmick I cannot in good conscience as a 30 year old woman get behind. Even if the lipliner part of the tip of their "unique" teardrop applicator does apply lipliner neatly, I can't see it lasting too long or prolonging the longevity of your lip colour/desired lip shape. 
7. I'm generally a huge fan of MAC cosmetics - I really feel like you get what it says on the tin for the most part. One recent release that didn't even slightly tickle my pickle is the MAC Quiktrik stick, a double ended, multi use stick for highlighting, contouring, bronzing or adding a pop of colour. I'm not the biggest fan of these purported multi-use products, and similarly I'm not really a fan of cream highlighting or contouring products so I'm happy to sit this one out.
8. Lastly but not leastly, Kylie Jenner's new Velvet Lip Kits are the latest in a long line of Kylie lip products and I'm not feeling too enthused about them. I will hold out to hear reports of how these hold up, but I would have concerns that a velvet finish wouldn't have great longevity. I might also just wait for a high street brand to bring out a cheaper alternative like Barry M did recently with their Matte Me Up Lip Kits. 

So there you have it - controversial or not - those are the products that have jumped out at me for both the right and wrong reasons this month. If you like the idea of anti-haul posts (i.e. someone explaining why they are not going to purchase a product), I recommend Anti Haul Blog because she regularly posts about makeup that she cannot justify buying and that inspired me to write this post. There is no way you can love and want all makeup products so why not talk about what doesn't appeal to you and why as well as what you are currently coveting?

What do you think of my picks? Do we have any lusts/ loathes in common?



  1. I absolutely love the shiseido foundation - I urge you to get a sample (and or regular synchro skin it's also lovely). I love it, I feel like I have a snapchat filter on my face when I'm wearing it.

    Am with you big time on the benefit eyeshadows - how will the suit different shaped eyes. I fear there is too much gimick with the brand and not enough thought behind he product

    You also have to try the new stila glitter eyeshadow HAVE TO

    1. Ok I'm so going over to Dundrum tomorrow for a sample of that Shiseido foundation - need all the filters I can get! And as for the Stila eyeshadows, I have Kitten Karma and Bronzed Bell already and may or may not have Smoldering Satin on the way also thanks to the ASOS sale at the weekend :) they are FAB!!



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