Freedom Make Up Review

Recently Freedom Make Up has found its way into my local Superdrug and I was immediately drawn in, due to the large variety of products they had and the affordable price tags for what looked like really good quality products. 

I picked up the Pro Powder Strobe Palette which came with a flat edge contour brush (£10), the Pro Studio Strobe Cream (£8) and the Pro Brow Pomade (£5). 

The Pro Strobe Palette is a powder palette and contains a top row of highlighters, two matte and one shimmery, and a bottom row of three matte contour shades. All powders are easy to blend and pigmented. I like to use the yellow shade powder to brighten under my eyes. The brush that comes with it is also nice, with a flat edge it is perfect for contouring and using to define your cheekbones.  

The strobe cream when blended out is a pinky shimmer, and as I haven't tried a strobe cream before such as the Mac one, I don't have anything to compare it to. As far as liquid highlights go, it's good, not my favourite but offers a lovely shimmer to the skin for a natural looking highlight. At 50ml the tube is a decent size for £8. 

My favourite of the three I picked is the brow pomade. I haven't tried the Anastasia one, so once again I can not compare this to anything, but I was really pleasantly surprised with how good this product is. It's creamy and easy to use and work with, and has a great colour pay off. It doesn't seem to be drying out at all, and so overall I am really impressed with this product and this is all I am currently using to define my brows. There are eleven shades to choose from, but the only downside is that I have mid-dark brown eyebrows and the colour shade I had to choose for me was 'blonde' as it seemed to match me perfectly, so the shade range seems to be quite dark and not suitable for people with light eyebrows. 

I would really recommend this brand, it's affordable and great quality and has a good range of products to choose from. 

Lauta Elizabeth xo 

November Birchbox x Skinny Dip - Product Review

I originally wanted this post to go up on my blog during November so this box would still be available for you to get your hands on. However, University  became very demanding very fast, and I found myself squashed under piles of work, with my exciting blog posts being pushed to the background. Despite this, the products that were within this box are available to purchase anyway, and so I thought I would do a little mini review of the items within last month's box. 

When I heard that Birchbox and Skinnydip were collaborating I knew immediately that it would be something I was going to be very interested in. I was also so attracted to the design on the outside of the box that I felt that I would have probably purchased this anyway without even knowing the products inside! This was my first box from Birchbox so I have nothing to compare it to, unfortunately this box got a few bad reviews from regular customers, however I was very impressed with the selection I got in my box. 

• Lord and Berry Silhouette Neutral Lip Liner 
• Cowshed Cow Pat Hand Cream (50ml) 
• REN Wake Wonderful Night-Time Facial
• Living Proof Restore Instant Repair Cream
• Trilogy Make-Up Be Gone Cleansing Balm 
• English Laundry Notting Hill Femme Eau De Parfum 

The neutral lip liner I haven't actually used all that much yet as I have been wearing the same lip combo for pretty much the last two months, but I think I will get a lot more use out of this one in the coming weeks as will definitely be getting in the christmas spirit and wearing much more red and burgundy coloured lipsticks. This liner will stop the lipstick from bleeding as it is a clear and helps in achieving a more precise lip. 

The Cowshed cow pat hand cream isn't greasy or sticky and is really nourishing. However I am not all that keen on the scent. I looked into the ingredients and I like the scent of everything that is in the hand cream individually, but all together I am not so keen on. Despite this, the scent doesn't linger and I can also see an improvement in my nails. 

I have never tried any REN products before but have been enjoying using this product before I apply my moisturiser. After using it for a few days my skin appears to be brighter when I wake up in the morning and it leaves it feeling super soft. 

I have so many flyaway bits of hair and when I apply the repair cream to my hair a little goes a long way. I apply it to damp hair and when it dries naturally, my hair appears much more smoother without so many frizzy or frayed bits. 

The perfume is one of my absolute favourite items from this box. I love it. My favourtite perfume of all time is 'Si' by Georgio Armani and this smells so much like it, that it's no wonder I love it so much. It lasts all day long and I get so many compliments when I wear it. 

The collboration with Skinny Dip - despite the beautiful box design, was pretty disappointing. The box came with a £10 voucher for Skinny Dip, which is great, but you have to spend a minimum of £24 to use the voucher. I'm not sure if I will use it and so I was disappointed with that. 

I would like to try another Birchbox at some point as I think they offer really great products within a box for an inexpensive price, without having to sign up for a monthly subscription. 

Laura Elizabeth xo