Festive Makeup Look #1 | Quick Classic Glamour

We are now well into christmas party season so I thought I would do a series of festive makeup looks, suitable for lots of occasions. Today’s look is for those in a hurry, but still want to look glamorous. A classic red lip and winged liner combo is a look I turn to when I need to look nice fast, and it will make it look like you have put much more effort than you actually have. 

Base:
I started off with Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 52 with a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush which gives me quick medium coverage, that isn’t completely matte but is one of those foundations that gives the look of a glow from within. I concealed under the eyes and on any blemishes with the Mac Studio Finish Concealer in NC20, then set everything with the Mac Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Plus.

Eyes:
I first filled in my brows with the Mac Eye Brows in Fling and then set them in place with the Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara in Dark Blonde. I primed the eyes with Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion and washed Revlon Matte Eyeshadow in Vintage Lace all over the lid and up to the brows to brighten. I believe this shade may have been discontinued, but any shadow a shade or two lighter than your skin tone will work fine. I then contoured my eye slightly with the Inglot Eyeshadow in Matte 349, and by sweeping a light taupey-grey through the crease gives subtle definition without requiring too much blending and effort. I then lined the eyes with Mac Fluidline in Blacktrack with a Sigma E10 Small Eye Liner Brush, and created a medium-sized flick (winged eyeliner post coming soon!). Finally, I curled the lashes and applied lots of the  Chanel Le Volume De Chanel Mascara.

Cheeks:
I contoured the cheeks with the Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel Bronzing Makeup Base (and I do find this fine to apply over powder) and applied the Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Exposed (sadly not available in the UK), which is a great goes-with-anything blush especially for bright lips.

Lips:
I lined and filled in the lips completely with the Kiko Precision Lip Pencil in 306 Geranium Red and applied the Kiko Velvet Mat Satin Lipstick in 606 Fire Red. A completely Kiko lipstick wasn’t intentional, but they are two red lip products that I have been loving recently.

This look could easily be added to if you have more time – some false lashes and glitter would be good additions. Next up in this festive make up series will be a going out christmas look.























RachelElizabeth

Best of Mac | My Top Lipsticks

Mac was probably the brand that really got me into makeup. I remember walking into a Mac store for the first time and being so overwhelmed with the amount of shades of eyeshadows, lipsticks and everything in between. About 5 years on I am much more confident, and practically know the whole brand inside and out, which has resulted in building quite a substantial Mac collection. I was planning a favourite Mac product post, but my list got so long that I thought I should separate into different categories: lipsticks, eyeshadows and face products. 


Mac lipsticks (£15 here) are by far my favourite out there – the range of finishes and shades means that there is one for every occasion, and you are more than likely going to find the exact shade you are looking for. 

Creme Cup is described as a ‘light blue pink’, with a Cremesheen finish. Cremesheens apply, like the name suggests, very creamily and smooth and leave a slightly glossy finish to the lips, but are still opaque. Out of the finishes  mentioned in this post, it is the most moisturising. I love using this lipstick when I’m going for a nude lip – it has just enough pink in it that it doesn’t make me look dead. 





















Ravishing is described as a ‘clean light peachy coral’, again with a cremesheen finish. I sometimes find that when I am at my palest this can pull a little too orange on me, but it is a great everyday summer colour. I find that cremesheens last about 4 hours on my lips, especially these light colours.

Morange is described as a ‘loudmouth orange’ with an amplified finish. This is my go-to summer colour, and definitely not one for the faint-hearted. It does lean slightly red when on the lips, but is still very orange. The amplified finish is probably my favourite – it is completely opaque and has a semi-matte finish so it is not as drying. They are also really long-lasting, and just an all-round perfect formula for someone who loves bold lips. 

Impassioned is described as a ‘amped-up fuchsia’ with an amplified finish. This to me is more of a yellow-toned pink than a fuchsia and can pull slightly red on my lips. I have seen this lipstick on several different people and it can look different on everyone depending on skin tone and natural lip pigmentation. It is a lipstick that I get most complimented on, and think it is a perfect colour for those with pale skin or blonde hair – although it seems like a lipstick that would work on all skin tones. 









Candy Yum Yum is described as a ‘neon pink’ with a matte finish. Forget morange, this is the brightest lipstick I have ever come across. It is definitely a neon lipstick, and wearing it brings a lot of attention – I find a lot of people staring at my lips when I wear this! Even though its matte, I don’t find it to be too drying. This stays on my lips like no other but it can be quite difficult to remove.



Rebel is described as a ‘midtonal cream plum’ with a satin finish. I find that it is a purple-toned berry, and is quite a versatile lipstick. I sometimes like to wear this blended into the lips like a stain for a subtle berry lip or full on to create a bold dark lip. The satin finish is much like the amplified finish, but with less of a sheen. It almost has the longevity of a matte, but without the drying nature (candy yum yum being an exception of course), so it sits somewhere in between.

Dark Side is described as a ‘deep burgundy’ with an amplified finish. This is a very vampy lip, perfect for autumn/winter. This is a versatile lipstick as I either leave it glossy or blot it and leave it as a matte lipstick. It can be hard to wear a dark lip, but I find it looks best with fresh natural-looking skin and not too much on the eyes which creates a really chic and modern look.






















From left to right: Dark side, Rebel, Candy Yum Yum, Impassioned, Morange, Ravishing, Creme Cup

Honourable Mentions
There were some lipsticks that I couldn’t show in this post but I thought I should put them in the end anyway. Hue is a nude lipstick and one of my favourite lipsticks, but I stupidly took it on a night out and lost it. Riri Woo – a blue toned matte red, very similar to Ruby Woo, is also worth a mention, because even though it isn’t currently available, it will be out again in a collection soon. It is a great limited edition lipstick to own, and always sells out.

Mac lipsticks are an addiction of mine, and my collection will no doubt continue to grow. Coming up soon – my top Mac eyeshadows.

RachelElizabeth