#2 WHAT'S IN MY MAKE-UP BAG?

 

Comparative Literature Student Jackie Ashworth-McLintock tells us about her make-up bag essentials:

Clinique Even Better Foundation with SPF15

Having tried somewhere between twenty and thirty different foundations in the last eight of so years of makeup wearing, this is one of the few I’ve repeatedly purchased.  The benefits of this foundation for me lie in its medium- to full-coverage and oil free formula, which is perfect for my blemish-prone, combination skin.  It covers blemishes and post-blemish redness, and only requires a small amount of complementary concealer and setting powder.  At £22.50, it’s not exactly a steal, but the 30ml bottle tends to last several months, even with my heavy usage.  Furthermore, the quality of this product I feel allows for more leeway in the quality of powder and concealer, on which I tend to look to save money.  It goes without saying that a foundation with an SPF is just plain good sense.

Benefit Hoola pressed bronzing powder.

Again, at £23.50, this is not a cheap product, but when I bought mine, it was £21.50 if my memory serves correctly, so that should give an indication of how long each box lasts.  The product is pretty much the perfect bronzer for me.  It’s entirely matte, and I was told by the “BeneBabes” (I’m so sorry for just saying that) at the counter that the formula contains no orange tones, only browns, so you’re pretty much guaranteed to not look “tangoed”.  Hoola is good for delivering a pretty glow, but the real beauty in the totally non-shimmery finish is in contouring.  A sweep under the place my cheekbones ought to be and under my chin, where a second one occasionally likes to hide, and I like to think I look about 4lbs lighter.

Benefit Miss Popularity

I don’t know if this product even still exists!  It doesn’t seem to be in Benefit stores or their website.  However, eBayers can snatch it online for only £6.95 at the moment.  It’s been over four years since I acquired this product by accidentally-on-purpose never returning it to a friend, and I imagine she’d had it for a while first, and it’s STILL going on strong.  It’s a tiny bottle of extremely pigmented shimmery highlighting powder.  I use it under my eyebrows every single day, to add some definition to my eye area and occasionally reflect the light away from unplucked straggling hairs.  If I’m going for a smoky eye look, I often dab a little smudge of this in the inner corners of my eyes, to open the area up a little more.

Makeup Academy Intense Colour Precision Eye Liner Pencils 

For some items in my makeup bag, I much prefer to spend a little more and get a little more quality.  In fact, I have two eyeliner pencils in grey and black by Benefit that I will always want to use and thus I think is fair to spend that little bit more on.  However, when it comes to shades of eyeliner that I just don’t expect to be using everyday, I look for a bargain.  I absolutely love MUA’s eyeliner pencils, not only do they come in eight different colours (black, white, brown, white, green, navy, turquoise, lilac and even orange), they have a sharpener in the lid, and they cost only £1!  I own every colour (yes even the orange), and although I barely use some of the colours, I just know how badly I’d kick myself if I needed orange eyeliner and didn’t have any – and at less than a tenner for a full set, I couldn’t say no.  The colour is very pigmented, and it’s surprisingly longwearing considering the price.  A surprise favourite among the colours for me is “Lovely Lilac”, which is slightly pearlescent and complements my brown eyes well.  I run it underneath my lower lashes if I have brown shades on top, and it adds an almost-unnoticeably smoky softness.

Makeup Academy Blusher

Another absolute steal at only £1 each!  Whilst I have a couple of more high-end blushers, I tend to gravitate towards one of these a lot of the time.  Personally, I can never decide which blusher the day calls for until I’ve done the rest of my makeup, and because of the price of this one, I was again able to buy the entire range of shades.  So I can decide if I want a delicate pink flush for an understated look, a bronzed pink for a summery day, or a deep purplish brown for a dramatic, contoured evening look, I’m covered.  And all for under a fiver.  I don’t think you can say fairer than that.