Coastal Scents 22 Piece Brush Set Review

Coastal Scents 22 Piece Brush Set Review

*I do apologise for the low quality photos... in the process of saving for a camera* 

Hey everyone,

So for Christmas I was a very lucky girl and received the brush set that I had my eye on for a while from Coastal Scents. There has been a lot of reviews on this set and most of them are really positive. My mum (santa) ordered the set from Amazon, and it is priced at £34.50.  Before I say anything further, yes £34.50 may seem 'cheap' for the amount of brushes you are getting but let me say this... the quality of the brushes are FAR from cheap. Now I can honestly say I have never seen or used such amazing quality brushes for the price you are paying. You are getting 22 clean, soft, professional looking brushes all for £34.50 were as MAC for example charge £31.00 per brush.. crazy! 

  Now of course I am not saying these brushes are as good as MAC but to be truthful, they are not far off and do practically the same job, just as good. I have never been someone to want to spend lots of money on just one makeup brush, personally for me I would much rather be getting more for my money. When I came across this set on Amazon I was sold straight away as I already owned a Coastal Scents Eyeshadow Palette which I religiously use, so I knew I could trust the Coastal Scents brand. The 22 brushes came in a high quality leather look roll up case which is ideal for travelling and keeping the brushes organised. So far there have only been the odd brush which has lost a few hairs, mainly the face brushes; but nothing to complain about. I have used my MAC brush cleaner on a few of the brushes and they seem to be fine and have stayed exactly the same texture. This brush set is perfect for anyone wanting or who already is a makeup artist. 

                                                             Let me know what you think!

                                                                                 Ell x

Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull Makeup

Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull Makeup

Hey everyone,

Another full out makeup look that I created today. Really like this one, the colours seem to work well together. I do love to experiment with skull looks and make them my own.

                                                                            Ell x

Zombie Barbie Makeup

Zombie Barbie Makeup

Hey everyone,

Once again Elena kindly put up with me for a few hours working on her face creating a very theatrical look turning her into a creepy zombie Barbie. Alongside the rotting, dead Barbie I also did her original glamourous 'perfect' look. This inspired look is by Michelle Phan's Youtube Tutorial 'Zombie Barbie'. I hope I did this look justice and I had a lot of fun creating it although it took a very long time... and Elena is still standing next to me scrubbing her face with a wipe. Of course this look is purely suitable for Halloween but it's never to early to start practising ;).

Ell x 

Leopard Print Fashion

Leopard Print Fashion

Hey everyone,

Today I went to Bluewater with my mum and got two really individual, quirky staple pieces for my wardrobe. I never tend to buy Leopard print as I think certain pieces can look really tacky but if you buy the right thing it can look really nice. You also have to be really careful with what you pair leopard print with, nothing bright or extravagant; a simple black top or black skinny jeans does the trick. The first thing I bought was a long leopard print body con dress from Urban Outfitters which was in the sale for £20.00. Now for me this is very different to my usual style as I never feel fully comfortable in tight clothes but I wanted a change and I am glad I decided to get it in the end. On days where I just want to relax or just not feeling as self-confident I will throw on a oversized jumper to make the dress look like a long tight ankle skirt. This dress can really be made to look dressy or casual. The other thing I bought was a leopard print pencil skirt from Topshop which was also £20.00 in the sale. It has a smooth almost plastic texture and has a shine to it. The base of the skirt is a very dark redish brown with black. It is a statement piece which would look lovely with a black velvet crop top. 

                                              What do you all think of leopard print? 

                                                                            Ell x

Theatrical Mermaid Makeup

Theatrical Mermaid Makeup

Hey everyone,

Yesterday I had a very lazy Sunday and thought I would experiment with my makeup and create an exciting and dramatic look. I wanted to stick with the blues and purples as I haven't done many looks with cool colours. I didn't plan this look at all and it just started off with a very intense dark blue smokey eye, 20 brush stokes later the whole look changed and became very theatrical and vibrant. In my eyes the look I have created could be a Mermaid which is great for a fancy dress party/Halloween. If you didn't want it to be as theatrical you could just wear the fancy eyes and keep the skin a natural colour (foundation and bronzer) to create a masquerade mask look. I hope you like it..

               Any questions based on this look I would love for you to leave me a comment!

                                                                             Ell x

Theatrical Makeup

Theatrical Makeup

Hey everyone,

So last night I took the time to create three really different but quirky theatrical makeup looks on my best friend Elena. I had a lot of fun creating them and I hope you like them..

             Any questions that you may have I would love for you to leave me a comment! 

                                                                            Ell x

My MAC Eyeshadow Palette

My MAC Eyeshadow Palette

Hey everyone,

I was so excited today when my palette and x15 insert came in the post. I started to collect MAC eyeshadows quite a while ago but have never been someone to religiously get one every week or something. I have finally made a whole palette and love it. Having the eyeshadows laid out in the palette are so much easier to use, especially considering the palette lid is see through so you can easily pick out what colours you want. The eyeshadows just click into the holes in the insert and can be taken out and swapped for different colours. The palette I have made up is a mix of warm and cool colours, but eventually I would like to create a palette based around just warm/neutral colours and a palette for dark and cool colours. It really is worth building a palette. The insert eyeshadows (already depotted) are only £10, so it works out a lot cheaper. Where as if you buy the eyeshadows in the pots they are £12.50, and you then have to go through the process of depotting them if you want to put them in a palette. Altogether the empty palette without any eyeshadows in is £20.50. The pro palette large/single is £14 and the x15 insert is £6.50. If you are thinking about making up a MAC palette it is definitely worth while as in the long run it is cheaper, they eyeshadows look better presented/organised and it is a great necessity if you are wanting to become a makeup artist like I am. 

If you want to know what the names of certain eyeshadows are in my palette or if you would like me to do a post on how to depot MAC eyeshadows just leave me a comment below!

                                                                             Ell x