Curl Up, Curl Up

Hello there lovelies

I think long curled fluttery eyelashes look so pretty and flattering and can really enhance the look of someones eyes. Unfortunately I don’t have eyelashes that flick up beautifully with just mascara to aid them, no for that I need a helping hand from eyelash curlers. My eyelashes are kind of long, of course I’d love them to be longer but I make do with what I’ve got. My centre lashes are fine they flick up quite nicely with the right mascara but my outer lashes are poker straight!! I stopped using eyelash curlers for years after a friend told me they make your eyelashes fall out, I don’t know how true this is but it scared me enough to retire from using them for a long time- until recently.

I decided to start curling them again when Shu Uemura brought out the S curler a smaller version of the iconic regular curler. I thought this little contraption seemed really interesting and ideal for doing just my outer lashes, which need curling the most, so I invested in a pair. Now they’re really small but still cost the same as the regular ones which I find a bit strange but you can use them all along your lashes in sections. These give a good curl to the outer lashes and the inner ones too. Because they are so small you can get right into the corner to do the inner lashes. Shu Uemura are renowned for their curlers not inflicting the dreaded “pinch” when curling your lashes and these are just the same, I’ve been using them for a couple of months now and have yet to experience the “pinch”, of course I still brace myself every time though (seriously though, how much does it hurt when you do that). I can’t fault these curlers for what they actually do, the price is my one criticism, I think they should be a few pounds cheaper than the regular ones at least. You get one spare rubber with them but I’m not sure if you can purchase rubbers on their own of if you have to buy a complete new curler, which again wouldn’t be very good.

To round up I think these curlers are great for precision curling in targeted areas, and are small and slim to slip in your bag for a touch up pump during the day, its just a shame they’re not a few pounds cheaper than the big boy ones.

Do you use eyelash curlers, what ones do you think are good? Comment below or tweet @Beauty_full14 and don’t forget to leave your blog links.

Until next time

A Brush with Reality

Hello there lovelies.

So there are perks to having a BFF that’s a makeup artist (apart from the obvious, like getting to use her discounts). My best friend is a proper actual MUA who specialises in special fx make up for T.V. and film. When I need tips or advice she’s my go to gal. So I recently decided I wanted to try some new brushes (I usually use Real Techniques and Benefit) but didn’t want to pay out for new MAC brushes so I asked MissM what she recommends. I did say that I didn’t really need anything professional to which she replied, “Love, everybody needs professional makeup brushes”. OK I didn’t take much persuading, that was my excuse to invest (yes invest) in new brushes. She recommended Crown brushes to me as they are totally inexpensive and said she likes them and uses them quite a lot. It took me a while to decide on a few starter brushes, as I didn’t want to buy a set and not like them. I also had a 30% discount code so decided to take the plunge. I ordered 5 brushes as there was a minimum spend to qualify for the discount. I got the BK11 Angle Taklon Liner, IB137 Lip/Liner brush. C326 Pro Precision Smudger, C136-8 Oval Fluff and the C433 Pro Blending fluff brush. 

From left to right: BK11, IB137, C326, C136-8, C433.

Altogether they came to the grand total of £13.95, not bad for 5 brushes especially when I was considering MAC brushes. They arrived quickly and I couldn’t wait to get using them. I’m not so keen on the look of them apart from the one with Crown on it, but that’s from the pro range which is why I think it’s got the logo on. The others are just plain. As far as how well they work I think they are very good for the money. The angle liner is a bit bigger than I wanted and creates quite a thick line but application is smooth. The pro blending fluff is my favourite, very soft and excellent for blending, the precision smudger I use to line under my eyes and this is the perfect brush for that. I haven’t used the lipliner so much but will use it as an eyeliner brush instead and the oval fluff is good for applying all over eyelid colour. I can’t really fault these brushes for the price, if I was to buy more Crown brushes I would be getting ones from the pro range simply because I think they look smarter. I’d definitely recommend these brushes as a starting point or if you’re on a limited budget. I’m still lusting over a complete set of MAC brushes but until that day comes my current brush collection will do just nicely.

So have you ever used Crown Brushes? What brushes do you like using?

Until next time