Christmas makeup medley - Drugstore edition.

Red and gold for Christmas - I know, groundbreaking. But you know what they say, if it ain't broken, don't fix it, right? To bring a little spice to an old and beloved classic, however, I thought I'd give my luxury products the day off and put together a full drugstore face for the party season instead. I just got my hands on a couple of drugstore goodies I couldn't wait to try and my stash is already packed with little budget gems that could give a run for their money to a few expensive picks. So, today I'm giving you the chance to rummage through my holiday makeup bag and see what I'm gonna wear for the big day. Here it goes.

Starting with the base, I'll definitely be reaching for the L'Oreal Infallible 24h Matte Foundation (£8.99), which is my absolute favourite when I need my foundation to stay put till bedtime. With it's dreamy formula and great coverage, it makes my skin look flawless but still very natural and never flat and dull. For a pop of lit-from-within glow, the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Primer (£9.99) - a great budget dupe for MAC's Strobe Lotion this one - is the most obvious choice, as it makes a lovely little duo with the Infallible foundation.
Finally, the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer (£3.99) is the perfect number to cover everything from dark circles to redness and blemishes, and subtly illuminate the under-eye area. It's like a matte take on the Nars Radiant concealer, I love it.

For my cheeks I'm still completely in love with the Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso (£4.27). A must-have shade for fair skin tones, it's radiant and brightening, and the baked formula is just lovely to work with. The Body Shop Honey Bronze Bronzing Powder 01 (£13) is also back on rotation. It's matte, but it looks almost satin on the skin and gives subtle definition to the contours of the face with an healthy finish. It's my top bronzer for this time of the year.

To define my brows, I picked up the Bourjois Brow Natural Pen in Blonde (£6.99) on a whim during the Black Friday sales and I haven't used it yet, but the shade - a golden light brown - looks perfect for me and the nib draws super fine hair-like strokes, which is quite promising. I'll keep you posted on this one.

Eye makeup wise, I've decided to skip primer entirely and use the Bourjois Colorband 2-in-1 Eyeshadow & Liner in Beige Minimaliste (£5.99) instead, as it's waterproof and once it sets it won't budge - it lasts ages on my eyes and it's so easy to use and blend, and makes for a lovely base for any powder eyeshadow.
The Tanya Burr Hollywood Eye Palette (£6) is for sure the most festive appropriate palette in my stash - with three eyeshadows and one glitter topper it reminds me of the Charlotte Tilbury quads, and even if the quality isn't as good, these are absolutely amazing for the price. The combination of vanilla, light gold, rich brown and glittery bronze is pretty fool proof and perfect for simple day-to-day looks or for something more glamorous and party-ready.

Big, bold lashes add the finishing touch to the soft smokey look - I'm forever repurchasing the Max Factor False Lash Effect Waterproof Mascara (£10.99), it's almost impossible to remove but it keeps my lashes nice and curved for ages and it's blacker than black. And for a bit of extra drama I adore the Eyelure Fleur de Force Fleur Loves lashes (£5.25), which are the perfect 3/4 falsies for fluttery volume and a bit of lift at the outer corners.

At last, and I'm sure everyone saw it coming, I'll be slathering on the Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Standout (£7.99), which is one of my favourite reds of all time. It's matte but it glides on like a dream and is super pigmented. I find that it lasts forever on my lips but it's also really easy to touch up and I won't have to worry too much about it as I cheerfully stuff my face.

What will you be wearing on Christmas Day? Are you sticking with the classics or going for a different look?
Have a lovely Christmas everyone! Mwah!

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Loves & Leaves: Something New From Maybelline.

*Sponsored Post

Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Lightweight Primer* // Baby Skin Instant Radiance Primers* in Warm Apricot & Cool Rose // The Colossal Go Extreme! Volume Mascara* // Baby Lips Lip Balms* in Hydrate, Intense Care, Mint Fresh, Cherry Me, Pink Punch and Peach Kiss. //

Although my secret passion for luxury products is not really a secret anymore, back in my high school days, I used to spend my spare time and all of my pocket-money at the drugstore, looking for budget gems and new offerings to lust on. Lately, I had the chance to try out some of the most recent launces from Maybelline, which used to be one of my most reliable beauty-dealers at the time, and after a few tests and experiments, here's a run down of my loves and leaves...

Down with the Loves list first, the Baby Lips Lip Balm (£2.99)* in the shade Cherry Me was an instant love and has been living in my makeup bag for the past few weeks. As I said in one of my previous post, I'm having a serious moment with pinks and Cherry Me is the perfect sheer bubblegummy pink with a fun glossy finish. Comfortable to wear and infused with vitamins, honey and aloe to protect the lips, it's super easy to touch up on the go and fades into a light kool-aid-ish stain. When the warmer season comes nearer I tend to reach less and less for heavy lipsticks and turn to light as air textures such as stains and tinted lips balms, and with a soft pop of colour and cheerful popsicle scents you can't really go wrong. If you're partial to cool pinks, Pink Punch is the way to go, while nude lip lovers will find that Peach Kiss - a low-key caramel shot through with gold shimmer - is perfect to tone down their lip color a little without washing them out.

The Colossal Go Extreme Mascara (£6.99)* is another hit for me. I'm a huge fan of big mascara wands and the egg-shaped brush of the latest Maybelline offering grabs the lashes right at the roots and applies lashing of mascara in thin layers, allowing to pile it on without loosing on definition. The formula is seriously spot on: extra black and loaded with collagen, it doesn’t crumble or make my lashes hard and crispy, although it does hold the curl pretty well for a non-waterproof mascara.

A product I didn't expect to enjoy as much as I do is the Baby Skin Primer in the shade Warm Apricot*, a color correcting primer with a touch of pale orange to neutralize tiredness and ashy tones and quickly revive tired skin. With a special blurring formula, it mattifies and refines the texture, leaving the skin baby soft and looking polished and overall firmer. I also really like the Cool Rose* version but, due to my redness-prone skin, I tend to save it for extra dull days, as a hint of brightening pink in my base can instantly perk my skin up and provide a much needed pick-me-up. The formula is super light and doesn't feel greasy or too slippery, and I would recommend these for all skin types, especially during the summer months.

The Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Lightweight Primer (£7.99)* unfortunately does fall in the Not-for-me's group. With dry skin and rather small pores I don't find myself reaching for it very often. Also, silicone-heavy formulas tend to have catastrophic effects on my sensitive skin and actually make my makeup last less than usual. I do think that oilier skinned girls might enjoy this primer better than I do - it's a good and purse-friendly take on the blogger favourite Benefit Porefessional after all -, but for me there's no room for it in my routine.
Last on my Leaves lineup, the clear Baby Lips* balms didn't wow me at all. The SPF20 is great for on the go and the scents are really nice but I can't find a place for them in my regular lip care rotation. Suffering from chronically dry lips, to keep my lips flake-free I need to use something that is truly hydrating and moisturizing and not simply soothing or smoothing that will actually make my lips feel drier on the long run.

Have you tried any of these products? What Maybelline product do you recommend I should try next?

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