Showing posts with label Makeup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Makeup. Show all posts

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua


It’s been a while since my last foundation review and an even longer time since I actually wore any. #Masklife has made wearing makeup almost redundant. When I graduated a couple months back, I decided to treat myself to some new foundation that I could wear on the day and as I started to go out more.


The foundation reminds me of Estee Lauder’s Double Wear Water Fresh foundation -which I think has been discontinued. Chanel's Vitalumière Aqua has a watery base that allows it to spread easily and sit perfectly on my skin.


Originally, I was planning on buying the Les Beiges foundation but I preferred the feel of the Vitalumière Aqua. It provides a very light coverage but is buildable. If you’re looking for a medium coverage to cover blemishes, this might not be one for you. 


The bottle is sold as 30ml for £36 and has SPF 15. I bought the shade 21 Beige. You can’t always rely on the SPF in foundation so I use Garnier’s Ambre Solaire Face Fluid and top up coverage later in the day with the Over Makeup Mist spray.


Chanel CC logo


I really like the satin-like finish and how my skin glows. I’m the type of person who doesn’t like the look or feel of foundation sitting on top of my skin. This blends in and dries so well, it’s hardly noticeable. 


The consistency is quite runny -it is water based after all- so I’m quite careful in applying it. I think it’s thinner than the Double Wear one. I’ve found that it’s important to have a hydrated base otherwise the foundation is at risk of caking and separating. I tend to pack in the moisture before I apply by using a little Aquafor to help create a tacky base.


The little booklet inside the box recommends applying it with your fingers for best results, which is great if you forget to wash your makeup brushes! It makes sense as well considering it’s water based and you are at risk of losing a lot of product by using brushes and sponges.


The one thing I will say is I haven’t yet mastered putting anything over the top of the foundation such as concealer or blush. As the foundation dries in a thin layer, you are at risk of rubbing it away so I think a liquid blusher would suit best. It’s the type of foundation that sells itself for creating a minimal barely-there look. I don’t think you’ll be able to use it for a full face beat.


I really like Chanel’s Vitalumière Aqua foundation. It’s definitely on the pricier side so is more of a luxury item. I’d consider buying it again if I feel like it’s something I want to spend that type of money on. I may need to increase my budget if it's something I want to make a regular appearance in my makeup collection. At the end of the day, it’s a very lightweight water-based foundation that provides light buildable coverage. It works for me because I prefer a minimal make up look and it suits my needs. 


Love, Aoife xo



If you’ve read my post on joining the sustainable fashion conversation then you may have gathered that as of recently I’m trying to encourage a change within my lifestyle. There is currently six of us at home and between us, we create a lot of rubbish. The kitchen bin gets full pretty much within a day or two. And, it’s starting to get quite disturbing at the amount that gets thrown away.

Looking at my own lifestyle and beauty routine, I decided to try and change one of the main culprits that fill up my own rubbish; cotton pads. Cotton pads are awesome. They’re so versatile; removing a full face of makeup, putting on toner, removing nail varnish, putting on cream… the list goes on. On an average day when I don’t wear makeup, I probably go through three cotton pads. When I wear a full face, you’re looking at five or six. And if you add that all up, using them every day, that’s a lot of cotton pads in my bin. 

Reusable cotton pads are something I’ve seen buzzing around on the internet. People are using them in tutorials and tweeting about how much they love them. So, in true Aoife fashion, I decided to put them to the test. 

Need to know: 

Reusable makeup pads are typically made from organic bamboo and have a texture similar to a microfibre flannel. To clean them all you need to do is put them in with your clothes wash. Most reusable pads come with a little pouch to put them in. I picked up a box of 20 Eco-Friendly Reusable Makeup pads made by a company called Bamboo Feels on Amazon. The general price range of most boxes fit in between £10 to £20, which can seem a little costly but you are able to use these a lot more than disposable ones. Therefore, in the long term, they can work out cheaper.



My Opinion 

The cotton pads, or Eco-friendly reusable makeup pads, I bought come in three different colours; white, grey and black. They are larger than normal cotton pads and are double-sided. I use them mainly for removing my makeup and I’ll use both sides of them. They are quite good at removing all my makeup, however, there is occasionally some residue left behind. 

With that said, I haven’t completely eliminated disposable cotton pads from my routine. I only use them for applying my Pixi Glow Tonic because it’s quite expensive and I feel like there’s less product waste on the disposable ones.



Conclusion:

I really like them. I like that they’re effective at removing makeup and good for the environment. Being able to wash them with my normal clothes wash is really handy. They're not as soft as I thought they would be but are still gentle on the skin. 

These are alternatives for removing makeup so I haven't used them for anything else such as applying toner or removing nail polish.

Even though I haven’t fully swapped my disposables, just incorporating them with has helped drastically reduce my waste. I’ll definitely be keeping these on.


Love, Aoife xo
* Falseeyelashes.co.uk sent Eylure false lashes to me as a gift in return for a mention in a blog post. All thoughts are my own. 

My makeup bag is always overflowing. I can’t remember the last time it wasn’t. Even when I hardly knew about makeup and was just starting out, the bag was full. Between travelling and staying at different houses, (Mum’s house, Dad’s house and uni), there are a few staples that make it into the bag every time...

Givenchy’s Noir Couture Volume Mascara- I have always struggled to find a good mascara. One that doesn’t clump my lashes or make them look like squashed spider legs. That was until I found this Givenchy number as part of Glamour’s Beauty club. I absolutely love this mascara and I won’t be going back to high street brands for a long time. The difference between the before and after one swipe is amazing, my lashes look naturally volumised. 



Tom Ford 03 Loveshade eye shadow- My eye shadow game is shocking. Shockingly bad. I very rarely experiment with colours instead I choose at most 3 shades of nude. This colour (as you can see) is a golden pink colour and perfect for swiping over the eyes for a work look. It has a slight shimmer to it and the golden colour warms up my eyes.

Eylure False Lashes*- Fake eyelashes are a staple in every makeup bag. These lashes are from falseeyelashes.co.uk I really like the No70 lashes as they’re closest to my natural lash pattern, enhancing my features rather than covering them.


Benefit Goof Proof Brow Pencil- I have to say no one does eyebrows quite like a Benefit brow. I like that the pencil is quite basic because 1, I don’t have the time to be doing them properly and 2, I don’t have the skill to do anything more than fill my brows in a little bit.


L’Oreal True Match concealer- I’m usually a stickler for the Maybelline Fit Me concealer but when your shade is always sold out its difficult to remain faithful. This True Match concealer (1.R/C Ivory Rose) was the palest one I could find in the store and one that had pinkish undertones. The pink undertones help to add a little colour to my face and it works perfectly for brightening under my eyes and covering red blemishes.

Eco Tools Brushes- Makeup isn’t the only thing in my makeup bag. After all, I need to apply it somehow. When I first started wearing makeup I was a beauty blender devotee. But when I changed my foundation to a water-based one, I started using my fingers to apply it and using brushes to apply the rest. I really like the feel of the Eco Tools brushes. They have a similar softness and quality to the Real Techniques brushes and they're also vegan!


What are your makeup staples?

Love, Aoife xo