Summer Beauty


This Summer I've been hauling like crazy. I mean really crazy. I actually like having a small makeup collection but working in beauty has given me an excuse to buy excessive amounts of makeup (and it's actively encouraged). It's also made me experiment more as until recently I bought and used mostly MAC makeup. I've now changed almost every item I rely on daily so I thought I'd share some of the products I've been reaching for most this summer.


Bases & Primers 
Priming my skin is now an essential step for me and I've been using Illamasqua's Hydra Veil most*. It's super hydrating which in all honestly I don't totally need (as I have naturally oily skin) but I'm less fussed about having a super matte face recently. I also made the switch to NARS foundation after pretty much only using MAC bases for years. MAC has just been far too pink for my skin recently (even though the same shades used to match perfectly before), which means I constantly have to adjust the tone (see here for how). I'm used to foundations not matching straight out of the bottle so I wasn't expecting much but I'm using the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Barcelona and it's perfect. I also grabbed the radiant creamy concealer in Ginger as so many of you have recommended this concealer to me. I love the texture and have been using it to brighten my under-eye area.


Highlighters
A few months ago I didn't own a single highlighter. I now have 10. It's excessive and unnecessary but I've become obsessed with having glowy-looking skin. My favourites are the Becca Glow on the Go Minis I shared with you back in May (here) and the NARS Illuminator in Super Orgasm (I probably won't get over that name, it literally makes me blush). They're all richly pigmented so you barely need to use any to get beautiful glowy skin. I might actually get another of the NARS Illuminators but in a different tone. I love it but Super Orgasm is a peach/pink shade, so I prefer to use this on my cheeks only whereas the Becca minis look more natural applied anywhere.


Liquid lipstick 
I rarely reach for actual lipsticks anymore and instead liquid or glosses are the products I use most. There's a few brands I've been buying but I have bought more NYX lip colours than any other recently. They're so affordable (well they are until you buy loads at once) and I just love the colour range. I have a few of the Lip Lingerie shades and the Soft Matte Lip Creams but the Intense Butter Glosses are my go-to currently. The wear isn't amazing but the colour pay-off is absolutely gorgeous.

I've changed a lot of other aspects of my makeup routine (like how I do my brows) but I'll save the details for another post.

*sample - read my disclaimer here.

What beauty products have you been using this summer?

Lesley x