35mm Beauty

I thought I’d write abour possibly my favourite kind of makeup items – warm, bronze shimmer and glitter eyeshadows – of which I own potentially to many. You will never see me stop buying them, though.

Urban Decay Naked Heat: This palette is a one stop shop for reds/warm browns and some warm tone nude trasition and base shades. There is even a lovely deep aubergine for smoking out or lining. I did already have the original Naked palette, now sadly discontinued, but I only really found myself using Smog, and Smog is still a go-to bronze shade for me. The quality of the shadows are second to none, I also think the brush which came with the Naked Heat is pretty good, especially for applying cream eyeshadow as the synthetic fibres are quite dense and better at blending out formulas which dry quickly, such as the Charlotte Tilbury Colour Chameleons.

As for the shades, the red glitter Scorched is my favourite, but my most used is probably Low Blow as a transition shade. Overall, while I adore the quality and the colours of the shadows, I don’t find myself reaching for the palette too often, just due to how red it is. It’s definitely more of an evening eyeshadow look for me, but if you love warm browns and reds on a daily basis, this is a one stop shop for you.

Mac Pigment in Copper Sparkle: These are my favourite night out eyeshadows. They stay on all damn night. Copper Sparkle is stunning, especially if you have blue eyes like me. It honestly makes them look so blue. I use a slightly damped Real Techniques flat-ish shadow brush (base shadow brush, I believe) to pat this on top of a cream eyeshadow base, namely the CT Colour Chameleon in Bronze Garnet, and it stays on so well. It works beautifully with the warm, red-toned bronze Bronze Garnet.

Mac Glitter Galactic Glitter in Bronze: This is definitely more of a glitter than the sheeny yet soft-focus pigment. It still stays on wonderfully with the wet shadow brush + cream eyeshadow technique, and looks great just patted on the eye. It catches the light so beautiful, and is a divine true bronze. I like to wear it on top of the Colour Chameleon in Amber Haze, which mirrors its true bronze tone. Both the Mac pigment and glitter will last me literally forever, and I’m willing to pay the £16.50 (a discount can always be found) for such beautiful colours and long-lasting formulations.

Bobbi Brown Sparkle Eye Shadow in Allspice: This was one of my first luxury beauty purchases, and I have to say, one of the best. I had just bought a face powder from Bobbi Brown in John Lewis, Exeter, for which I had sneakily pursauded my Mum to let me use her John Lewis vouchers, when I saw a gorgeous sparkle on the saleswoman’s eyes. She told me it was the Sparkle Eye Shadow, and even though I was still in Sixth Form, had buggar all money, and had not planned on buying it, I was head over heels with Allspice (and still am). It’s the perfect warm, glittery but not too out there that it can’t be worn everyday, bronze eyeshdow. I even love the name. I have hit pan on this, and wear it all the time, just as a wash over the eyelid with a slick of mascara. It makes my eye colour pop, and just makes me feel pretty, without feeling like I’m drawing attention to my eyes with an intense glitter. I just love it, and I bought it years ago so I don’t think it costed as much as it does now (£25), but I would buy it again in a heart beat if anything happened (touch wood) to mine.

Charlotte Tilbury Colour Chameleon in Bronze Garnet and Amber Haze: These eyeshadow sticks are wonderful. Charlotte T does just make gorgeoous eyeshadow shades. Bronze Garnet is designed for green eyes as a daytime shadow, but it works beautifully on blue, in really bringing out the colour with the contrast of red tones. It is described as a ‘metallic red-toned bronze’, which hits the nail on the head. Amber Haze, an ‘antiqued amber’, is meant to be for brown eyes, but I find any bronze super flattering on blue eyes. These shadow sticks are easy to use, they can be blended out with fingers, altough I prefer a rather dense blending shadow brush (such as the one that comes with the Naked Heat), as they do dry quickly so need to be blended with some gumption quite speedily. However, these really do crease, even with primer. Now, I have extremely oily skin and have very fleshy eyelids. By that I mean I have a lot of excess skin there (lovely, I know), so literally everyshadow in the world creases on me. But without primer these crease really quickly, and with they crease after a while. That doesn’t mean they would crease on everyone, but it’s something to bear in mind. For the gorgeousness of the colours, I still think the £19 price is worth it. I bought Bronze Garnet for one of my best friend’s for Christmas – she has very true, gorgeous green eyes, and it looks divine on her too!

Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise in Bette: This cream shadow pot in an ‘amber gold’ is potentially my favourite in my stash. I know, high praise. I use the Naked Heat brush to apply this all over, day and night. It seems almost multi-tonal, as I never feel I need a transition or smoke shade to create depth. It’s a beautiful gold/bronze with a hint of copper, so perfect for blue eyes. The formula blends like a dream and sets down nicely, it definitely lasts longer than the CCs before creasing. It’s great as a base for, say, the Mac Bronze glitter, or just stunning on its own. At £22 I do think it is worth it, if you are after one beautiful shade which would do you both days and nights, and, like me, are obsessed with warm bronze shadows.

I personally would urge anyone to give Glossier a try if the brand appeals, having road tested quite a few bits myseld. Cruelty free, available online, cute and sleek packaging: it is the millenial’s makeup dream.

I did actually forget to photograph my Mega Greens Galazy Pack, a detoxing face mask. On this I would say that it’s nice, but nothing much more than that. It’s not going to transform your skin (will any mask do this…), but I do use it a couple of times a week if I remember when I’m feeling spotty. Which is all the damn time FYI. This Glossier’s description:
‘Made with simple, natural ingredients, the Mega Greens Galaxy Pack balances and conditions pores while helping to calm skin. Using the gentlest, most nourishing creamy white kaolin clay, this cleansing face mask detoxifies by drawing out excess oil and impurities—leaving your face with a velvety-matte, clean finish.’ I would agree that it leaves the skin velvety-matte and clean feeling, without feeling dried out. However, there is something about it that just feels a bit meh? As if I could be using another mask that would do a bit more? I will use my pot up but potentially not repurchase.

Glossier Haloscope: Iconic. Actually. Iconic. This is such a lovely, natural, sheeny highlighter which I use everyday. I originally bought Moonstone, which is the palest of the three shades, and has an iridescent, creamy, even slightly holographic finish. This is suitable for only very pale people I would say, and of Moonstone and Quartz, it is definitely the most obvious in its level of glitter. However, it is still beautiful. I saw that Rosie Huntington-Whitley had it on her on the red carpet and was immediately sold. I have nearly finished this and it lasted me yonks, with daily usage.

Quartz is more champagney, and actually more natural than Moonstone. The core of moisturiser in this product makes it v dewy and sheeny, and just makes it look beautiful on the skin. I use it everyday, and it stays on really quite well (given I’m one of the oiliest creatures alive). The stick packaging is highly convenient, and easy to travel with (not that I’m much of a jet setter), and make it easy to apply it on the high points of the face. These are just fabulous, and very reminiscent of pritt sticks (in the best way possible).

Glossier You Perfume: This is going to be really hard to describe. All I can say is that it smells divine, is a great day to day perfume, and it lasts really well. It’s meant to be able to mesh with your personal chemicals or whatever to produce a different smell on each person. I’m not entirely sold on this, but I have never knowingly smelled it on anyone else. I would say if you order from Glossier, get a tester of this and give it a smell. It’s sweet, but not too sweet, heady, warm, clean, comforting. It feels like a hug in a fragrance, and is really quite afforable.

Rose Balm Dotcom: I love this lipbalm, it is such a treat. My housemate bought it for me for Christmas and I soon after left it on the train (someone out there is one lucky sod if they picked it up!!!). I was actually gutted and replaced it soon after. The rose flavour/scent is lovely, I am not one for floral scented things but this is very subtle, and has a slight pink tint as well. Super hydrating, and smells lovely. What more can one ask for.

Boy Brow in Brown: If I were to be stranded on a desert island, allowed only one makeup product, it would be this. High praise, I know. I cannot describe how much I love it. It is thickening, and adds exactly the right amount and shade of colour for me (I’m blonde but tint my eyebrows brown), and makes what is actually a bit of a faff super easy. I hate to think of what my brows looked like when I first discovered brow makeup (I made them orange, actually orange), filling them in with powder feels like such a chore now. If my brow tint is wearing off, or if I’m going on a night out I would probably fill in my brows a bit with Benedfit Browzings (shade 3) as well as using Boy Brow, but otherwise on a day to day basis Boy Brow is more than enough. It keeps them in place, without looking too gelled up or spiky, and fills them in at the same time. I always have a back-up of this, that is how much I love it.

Stretch Concealer in Light: This is a delightlfully hydrating concealer (as the name suggests) which I use under my eyes specifically. I have awful under eyes bags, they are perpetually there and perpetually brown/grey/blue. My sister has them too so it must be genetic. However, they are also stupidly dry, strange given how oily my skin is. They become even drier/flaky when I use prescription strength spot treatments. My dark circles being so prominent, however, I do want to cover them up, and this is the first concealer I’ve tried which is moisturising to do so. When I bought this Glossier’s shade range was a bit pants, I have the shade Light (at the time of purchase the lightest) and it is too dark for me, but is quite sheer and juicy so it was never an issue. They have just released a whole new range of shades, going much darker (and lighter) than they did which is obviously amazing. For a brand which is so on it with inclusivity, I’m surprised they didn’t do this sooner. Better late than never though… I have used this elsewhere on my skin, but for proper spot covering I prefer my Nars Soft Matte Complete Concealer. On days where I’m just faffing about and only want something very light, although, I do use this as a normal concealer.

Cloud Paint in Dusk: This is a very aesthetically pleasing product. Not the most important thing, I know, but I live the paint like packaging. Dusk is a lovely tawny, rosey nude shade which on me works as a blusher come bronzer. I apply it with my fingers and blend it across my cheeks, with a bit on my nose and temples to get the sunburnt/kissed/flushed look. It’s a liquidy cream so can get a bit messy, but looks so natural on the skin. I wouldnt say the colour last all that long, but nothing lasts that long on my skin to be fair to it.

So that is my Glossier round-up. I love the brand, their imagery and their easy to use, minimal, chic products. Well done Emily Weiss, u did good x

These two are just incredible. That is what I would like you to take home from this. I have very oily and acneic skin, and have thus far found nothing more efficaceous, delightful to use and calming than this combination.

I’ll start with the Clinque. I have never found a better make-up remover than this. Wipes can bog off, micellar water is just rubbish compared to this. I promise, once you’ve tried it you will not go back to anything else! I am also a big fan of the oil in the same range, but I find to balm to be ever so slightly better at removing mascara, and is more luxurious feeling, as well as slightly less messy to use. It being fragrance free, there is no chance of irritation, and even though it turns to an oil, I (the oiliest girl alive) love it. It eradicates make-up like no one’s business, and feels so bloody nice on the skin, I actually cannot be without it.

I always cleanse with a flannel, a clean one everyday. I have a whole drawer of them, which might sound ridiculous but there is nothing quite like hot cloth cleansing. It’s like an exfoliation and steam cleanse in one.

I use the balm to take my make-up off in the evening, and follow up with the REN. I had tried the REN when I was first getting into skincare aged 17/18, and first dealing with really severe and persistent cystic spots. I liked it then, but I think I couldn’t justify spending that much money on a cleanser (before the days of student loan tehe), and so stuck to the Body Shop Chamomile oil cleanser, without a second cleansing stage.

I bought the REN again recently, and soon after bought a back-up. That is how much I liked it. The smell is sort of herby, makes me think of an apothecary for some reason. It’s a clay texture but not too thick, and is easy to massage in. I use the Foreo Luna Play (the mini travel one, which by the way has lasted me over a year with twice daily usage) to work the cleanser around, before taking it off with a flannel. I also use it in the morning. It leaves my skin feeling clean (not squeaky – who wants squeaky clean skin?!), soft, and I feel like every time I use it I am properly calming the inflamation of my spots.

This is what REN say about it:
‘The purifying cleanser uses French Clay, Zinc, manuka Honey and Chamomile to sweep away excess oil from the skin surface whilst delving deep into pores to draw out impurities and toxins. A host of nourishing essential oils works to calm the inflammation caused by breakouts whilst forming a protective barrier over skin to defend against the damage caused by free radicals.’

I can honestly say it does what it says on the tin, and all the ingredients sound lovely to me (zinc, honey, chamomile, French clay).

The Clinque I would say is suitable for all skintones, and the REN is most likely best suited to oily/spotty skins. If you aren’t oily or spotty, there are probably many cleansing milks and creams which you would like more for daily use. Having said that, the REN is by no strech of the imagination drying or strippy, but it more thick and clay-like which in my mind doesn’t really gel well with dry skins. The Clearcalm range is aimed I believe at sensitive skins, and they have Clearcalm milks and gels, if you’re not keen on clay.

It must be said that Clinque do not count as a cruelty free company. This is something I’m working on – but if it is sold in the EU it won’t have been tested on animals as it is banned here. However, that’s not to say that that same product being sold in China won’t have been. So it depends on whether you don’t want to buy from a company which tests on animals, full stop, or if you don’t mind a product being tested in territories where it is required, but that hasn’t been tested on animals in the EU.

REN, conversely, prides itself on being ‘clean’ and creulty free. I’m not fussed about something being ‘clean’, I’m not entirely sure what it means and I figure it’s skincare, so I want the chemicals if they’re effective and not harmful. I think terms like clean and non-toxic are being bandied around, more as marketing ploys than anything else.

Anyway, if anyone is reading this, haha, please do give one or both of these guys a go if they seem like they would float your boat. It’s quite easy to get them at a discounted price, on Asos for example, and Look Fantastic always seem to be handing out discount codes like sweets !

I managed to bag these ‘lil gems in the Space NK Christmas sale, they were around £30 for the three down from £60 I believe, but are worth £90 altogether. They are descibed on the Space NK website as ‘soft serums, which blend colour control capabilities, with a gentle exfoliating action, revitalising age spots and working to prevent further discolouration. The result is a long-lasting, natural looking freshness that optimises the complexion, and lasts throughout the day.’

The trio came in the shades Sunny Flash (centre), Abricot Glow (right) and Rose Elixir (left).

I don’t use them as serums, rather as glow-giving primers. My skin being v oily, they don’t worsen the oiliness and add a sort of radiance, without looking too spangly or obvious. For that reason, I can’t say how effective its skincare properties are. As for exfoliation, I prefer to stick to exfoliating acids than to reach for a tinted serum like these, and being 21 I have no age spots, so can’t report on that front.

For a product which makes rather steep claims, I found that they simply add a lovely glow and sheen to my skin, and in the case of Sunny Flash, a bronziness which will come in very handy in summer. My skin being wholly white, blue even, Sunny Flash is not the oppurtune shade for me curerently.

Abricot Glow is my favourite of the three, if I’m wearing a heavier coverage foundation, this is perfect to avoid any clinging to dry patches and to add a ‘radiance from within’ (I hate that phrase, but I must admit it is what this product does).

Rose Elixir I find to be the least effective of the three, it strangely doesn’t seem to create the same luminosity as the other two, and even though from the outside it appears to be the most suitable for my white/pink skintone, I much prefer Abricot Glow, which does what it says on the tin (glows…).

While greatly reduced in the sale, these serums are still very expensive, and all in all I don’t think I would repurchase given the price. If you have the money to spend on By Terry and are after a bronzy glow-giver then by all means give this product a go. However there are dozens of glowy primers/make-up bases out there at a less painful price point (this CC serum is £61 for 30ml).

These are just a few snaps of my semester abroad at Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, in summer 2018.

This is not strictly beauty on 35mm, I know, first post and I’ve already strayed from the tagline. However, I thought it seems a shame for these shots to go to waste, and someone out there might enjoy them. If one person does, then that’s enough for me.

For a bit of context, I’m currently in my final year of studying French and German at the University of Manchester, and I spent second semester of my third year studying in Berlin. These are a few of my favourite snaps taken there on my mum’s old Olympus StylusEpic Zoom 80 (if anyone is interested). Please do excuse the awful cliché of a student spending a semester in Berlin and shooting on film (snore), hopefully you will enjoy them as much as I do !

Krumme Lanke, well worth a visit in the summer for a spot of sunbathing. NB: as is the case with all German lakes, they are popular with nudists, old male nudists, to be precise.