STASH STAPLES

Being a beauty fiend, I have lots of beauty products, and in particular makeup. I’m always interested in trying the next best thing and finding the product that works best for me or trying to decipher why many people don’t get on with certain products. Despite having more than an average amount of makeup, there are some products that are firm favourites of mine that I constantly go back to, regardless of any new and innovative products.

My go to primer is the Maybelline Pore Eraser (review), which is a lightweight, silicon based primer. I often use this as I know what I’m getting with this product when I use it. It not only creates a nice, even base for my foundation, but it increases the longevity of it as well as the minimisation of my ever-enlarging pores. The Maybelline Fit Me Matte and Poreless (review) foundation is my current favourite foundation and has been for months now, even out of my high-end foundations. It gives such a lovely medium coverage and the satin finish gives me a beautiful flawless base, not to mention, the shade coconut is perfect for my skin tone! I’ve tried my fair share of concealers and nothing surpasses the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer (review). This has been compared to the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer (comparison here) however this just beats it. It’s an extremely pigmented, medium coverage concealer with a creamy, not liquid consistency, which is really easy to blend into the skin and doesn’t feel heavy or cakey on the skin. The Vichy Dermablend Setting Powder* (review) is another staple of mine as it works well at setting both under eye highlight and my base makeup. Unlike other ‘translucent’ powders, this is actually translucent and doesn’t leave me looking like a ghost. Being a loose powder, its finely milled and doesn’t cake up on my face. If you’ve read my blog for a while, you’ll know that the Sleek Contour Kit (review) is a firm favourite of mine. It’s a cool tone dark brown, which imitates the appearance of a shadow, providing a really natural finish to the cheekbones, temples and jawline. I’m not really a blush person, I much prefer contour and highlight, but the Revolution Vivid Blush Lacquer happens to be one of my favourites. The shade desire is a lovely muted pink, which would suit so many different skin tones and is extremely pigmented, so I only need a pea-sized amount and it blends out so effortlessly. I have been using the Bobbi Brown Highlighting Powder non-stop for months now and it has firmly taken first place in the highlighter department. It’s the most beautiful golden bronze highlighter and catches the light so nicely. If I want it to be intense, I can add a bit of Fix+ however for a daytime look, I use a duo fiber brush to evenly deposit the product.

I am all about the brows and the Soap & Glory Brow Archery is a product that I have repurchased many times. The fine nib allows me to naturally fill in any sparse areas and have more precision when enhancing my arch. Unlike some other brow pencils that I’ve tried, it’s not a warm brown so looks really good on the brows and doesn’t have any reddy undertones. The Maybelline Brow Drama was a favourite for almost two years, however the Rimmel Brow This Way is ever so slightly better. From the short, fine brush to the hint of tint I really like using this product. This also holds my brows a bit better than the Maybelline brow gel too, without feeling the firmness. I haven’t opted for eyeliner recently, but whenever I do chose to use it, I always go to my trustee Collection Felt Tip Liner (review). It has a medium sized tip, which allows me to do a fine or thick liner so is very versatile. The liner itself is extremely black, not grey and the nib isn’t too flexible and therefore gives a bit more control as to where it’s being applied. The Laura Mercier Eye Canvas is my absolute favourite eye primer, potentially even more so than the Urban Decay Primer Potion. It has a salmon pink undertone, which reduces the appearance of any veins on the lids. As my eyes are annoyingly oily, I crave a thicker consistency and this primer is one of the few primers that actually work for me as I never get any creasing when I use this! A while back, I would have said that the Maybelline Colour Tattoo was my favourite eyeshadow, however I’ve been obsessed with the Max Factor Excess Shimmer Bronze for about a year now. This shade bronze in particular is a stunning bronzey brown with an orange undertone and has a load of shimmer, giving the appearance of a wet/ 3D look. I do find that I need a primer with this, but it’s great for a quick wash of colour on the lids but also blends so nicely when using a synthetic brush.

What are your staple products?

*PR Samples.