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Saturday 10 November 2012

Reviewbyjen | Stila "In the Light" Palette


So... I've been naughty again.

This has been the toy I've been playing with for the past couple of days, so I thought I'd share some thoughts on how I've been finding it.  I had been wanting to buy this for a while, I've seen it a number of times popping up on some blogs and videos with rave reviews, but I couldn't get my hands on it without ordering it online. So what does my local Boots do? They get a Stila counter, with this lovely palette right at eye level... So of course I had to have it!




The Stila "In the Light" eyeshadow palette consists of ten gorgeous eye shadows, four of them being matte and six shimmery shades. It also includes a full-size smudge stick waterproof eye liner in Damsel and a "how to" styled mini booklet. 

The booklet contains a range of different styles that you can create with this palette and the eye liner alone, ranging from light day time to dramatic evening looks. It looks like the sky's the limit with this baby!



The eye shadows are so opaque I just can't get over it. When I was trying them out I literally just touched one of the pans lightly the colour picks up and transfers so evenly to the skin. I have found them incredibly easy to work with and blend. The drop down isn't too bad, a few bits with the super shimmery ones, but so little it's hardly noticeable. 



This is the perfect neutral palette and it's so easy to create loads of different looks, be it subtle or dramatic. This retails for £25... Which is a lot. But if you think about it (here comes me attempting to justify it..) the eye liner on its own retails for £18 so that technically makes the eye shadows a total of  £7, and that means that each eyeshadow on its own is... well, it's less than £1 each! So... I think that's a pretty good deal if you ask me, and I'll definitely get my use out of all the colours. My current favourites are Kitten and Champagne, they're so great for both a daytime and evening look.  From other reviews I've heard that this palette last ages so this will hopefully be a good investment into the future of eye makeup.

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Be sure to let me know your thoughts on this if you've tried it or your impressions even if you haven't. Hope you like the review and feel free to request anything you'd like to see in the future of Beautebyjen. Thanks for reading!


Much love, Jen Xxxxx

Friday 9 November 2012

October Favourites

I know, I know... It's been a while... I'm sorry and all that but I just have run out of inspiration as of late. I'm not quite ready for more videos just yet so I figured I'd get back in the zone with a monthly favourite post... A little bit late but better late than never, right? I'll just dive right in...


My first fave this month is Wedge by MAC. I'm just going to describe it by copying what it says about it on the website: a soft muted beige taupe (because I just suck ass at identifying colours properly... Maybe not a good thing considering I'm an art student). It's a really great warm brown, especially compared to Omega which is on the right of Wedge in the left image. 

I only really use this eyeshadow for one purpose and that's to give a little depth and warmth into my crease. I might do an updated everyday makeup routine including this if it would be helpful. My experience of MAC eyeshadows so far is that they are... okay. Perhaps better than your typical drugstore eyeshadow as you can create your own palettes with them. They are quite pigmented but maybe not so much as I had hoped. I'm pretty sure I won't be purchasing any more soon, maybe a quad as I approach my wedding but I'm interested in trying to build my own Inglot palette, seeing as they are about half the price with a hell of a lot more product for it too. 

So as much as this is a favourite this month I will not be indulging and buying any more. But at least I'm using this every day and will get my (eeek) £10's worth out of it. 



The next product I have had for a while and I kind of fell out of love with it over the summer months but now we're into Autumn and approaching Winter fast (in Scotland anyway) I'm definitely back to embracing my nudes again with Rimmel Moisture Renew in Nude Delight. I think it's a bit more brown toned than it appears in the photo and definitely isn't a pinky nude but more of a browny-peachy nude. 

This is great on nights out with a dramatic eye and is also a great everyday lippy as it's super moisturising and is easy to reapply because of both the colour and the finish.  These are currently £6.49 but I'm pretty sure it was cheaper when I bought it. These lipsticks are definitely worth taking a look at and wont break the bank, and this colour in particular I feel is definitely a must have in my makeup collection and will definitely repurchase. 



My next favourite has been Maybelline's Dream Fresh BB Cream. I bought this towards the end of Summer because I had a bit of a tan and needed something that matched my skin, so I bought this is the shade Medium and it's worked a charm. It's a very light coverage and really does make your skin feel quite fresh. The lasting power of it is adequate but isn't amazing, but with setting powder it bodes well. I think this would be suitable for all skin types as it said to be oil free but may not last as long on the skin with oilier skin types. There's not much in the bottle but I've found you don't need much at all and has lasted me well. I would definitely recommend you give this a go especially since its at drugstore prices.


Another fave last month was one of the typical blogger hyped up products and that is, of course, Essie's "Fiji" and I'm definitely as in love with it as everyone else. It's a gorgeous pastel pink, but unlike most is very opaque. I think this is perfect for every season, and makes your hands look beautiful. 

Before, Essie was quite hard to get your hands on but now have many of their colours out in Boots and, more recently, Superdrug. You can get your hands on Fiji for £7.99, which is a bit expensive, but I would repurchase this again and again for the high pigment and the fact that it last quite well on the nails, even in comparison with more expensive brands polishes. Rave rave rave...


Now, for makeup brushes this month I have gone back to one of my old bargains, and that is my £3.75 ELF Powder Brush.  I've been using this for my foundation and I find that it's just as good as my Real Techniques Buffing Brush! So when my trusty buffing brush is dirty and I can't be arsed cleaning it I turn to this bad boy. Now £3.75 is not going to set you back much at all and it's worth every penny.

The only drawbacks with this brush is that because it's not synthetic it can take a bit longer to dry than my Real Techniques ones.  It does have a tendency to collect a lot of your foundation that then ends up down the plug hole, which can be pretty peeving if you've been using a rather expensive foundation. 

All in all I think the pro's weigh out the con's and for the price you can't really expect a life changing brush. But in the way it applies your foundation I think it is very comparable to other brushes I've tried. 


For a daily moisturiser I have been constantly using Sanctuary's Protective 24-Hour Moisture Lotion SPF 15 and have fallen head over heals for it.  My mum gave me a box of samples from Sanctuary (she knows my love for miniatures) and haven't gone a day without this since. When I was trying to find the full size for this it's by a different name and different packaging but I have tried it (the one linked) and it is exactly the same.

The formula is really light and sinks in after a few minutes, but what really made me fall in love with this was the brightening formula. As soon as you put this on your skin you look instantly glowing and awake. It reminds me of a Loreal brightening primer I have (but not quite THAT obvious). I feel like I can get away with little or no makeup if I apply this.

The full size is around £12-13, which yes is a bit pricey, but I cannot recommend this enough! It is SO worth every penny! If you can't quite bring yourself to buy a full size there are miniatures usually right next to the fulls (in Boots, anyway) which are about £2.99. 




Another skincare bitty that I've been loving recently is Origins Drink-up Intensive Overnight Mask and I cannot get over how much I love this! Everything from the smell to the texture to the idea of it! I usually apply this about an hour or so before I go to bed (to avoid sticking to my pillow case) so it can sink in a bit. Mike always tells me that my face smells so good when I use it, it's a really fruity fresh scent but also isn't too overpowering. 

Its a hefty price at £20 but will last you ages and ages because you obviously don't use it every night. I use it about as often as I remember to and when I have especially dry skin. I have heard that this is also suitable for oily skin types as the reason for it is usually your skin being under hydrated and reacting by overproducing oils. I really recommend you have a look at this, or at least smell it! I haven't heard of anyone who hasn't liked this yet.



Now, this is definitely a love or hate product... And I LOVE it! This is NIP & FAB Pistachio Sundae body butter. This is definitely the sweetest thing I have ever smelt, EVER, and that's even compared to Soap & Glory's products. I cannot describe how good this smells so I can only say GO SMELL IT! I first bought the miniature of this just to see if I could really last through it, because I for one can get sick of smells really easily, and I finished that so quickly I had to buy the full size! 

I know there's also a mango and a chocolate, and perhaps a few new ones which I'd quite like to try also. You get a lot of product and the full size is lasting me really well. As well as smelling nice it does also combat and help your dry skin, which I need now that we're in November and my skin is drying. So I can recommend the product for doing what it says on the tin but I would say definitely try out the miniatures before purchasing a full just in case you end up hating it!

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So that's all for my October Favourites, I cannot believe it is November already! I mean it's almost Christmas, and then 2013! (That's if we don't all die in the end of the world at the end of 2012... Touch wood). 

Tell me your thoughts on some of my faves if you've tried any or if you want to try any! These are just my personal opinions so feel free to contradict me ;)

But I will leave you with my favourite song as of right now


Much love, Jen Xxxx