Gifted (This post contains products which have been gifted to me for consideration, all thoughts are my own).
It has been longer than I intended since my last post. Let’s just say that life seems super busy once more, long gone are the days when I can come home after work and can sit and write a blog post for an hour or so. Nevertheless, I am back today to share with you three spring beauty picks to recently cross my path. They are perfect for spring and summer and I am just in love with them.
It is funny how a new beauty product can get you excited once more. At the moment I am in between my home and my boyfriends about four days a week, therefore I find myself using the same makeup products all the time. The ones that fit in my make up bag. I use the same ones day in and day out as I never really have the opportunity to explore my collection like I used to. I just reach for the bag now and go with it. That being said, I have been getting a bit of use out of some new arrivals and since receiving them I have had a big makeup clear out and reshuffled a few things.
The first new product to come into my routine is the Urban Decay Naked Reloaded Palette* which is somewhat of a reinvention of the original Naked Palette that was discontinued. This palette is warmer than the original and I think in truth perhaps a bit better in terms of the shade range. I still adore the original version, however, there are one or two shades in that which I never reach for. The new palette has twelve shades which range from mattes to shimmers, it is a nicely balanced palette and I think that it is a lovely addition to the Naked lineup. I have noticed that there are four shades which are bigger than the rest, these are the two at either end of the palette; I presume that this was intentional.
The packaging itself is unlike any of the Naked palettes before, it is soft to touch which I find a little strange in comparison to previous palettes. I do like it though and I can’t see this being an issue in terms of protecting the eyeshadows inside.
Like all Urban Decay Eyeshadows, the quality is fantastic. Longevity is there and so is pigmentation, they also blend as one would expect, like a dream. I have experienced minimal fallout, even from the shimmer shades which I find tend to be the shades more prone to this. My favourite shades so far definitely have to be Bucked, Distilled and Dreamweaver, I, of course, love my neutral shades and enjoy creating a darker smokey eye when I can and these shades allow me to do just that.
The NARS Dual Intensity Blush* in the shade Fervor is the first of this kind that I have used in terms of a blush. I do own an eyeshadow palette from NARS from this range which I quite like, although in truth I tend to not reach for it very often these days. I find it harder to use than other palettes for some reason.
As you can see, there are two shades available, one is a light soft pink and the other is a coppery rose shade, which incidentally makes a lovely eyeshadow colour. You can use the shades both wet and dry, this, of course, alters the finish. Personally, I only use them dry as I find using them wet makes them a bit more difficult to control; I like to build up colour with products until I am happy with the finish. Sometimes I find with products such as this is that when you do use them wet that they can be really intense from the offset making them difficult to work with resulting in having to remove the product or blend like crazy.
Perhaps my favourite of all three spring picks today is the Maison Margiela Replica Under The Lemon Trees Fragrance* which is the first of these fragrances that I have ever tried. Let me tell you, I am already hooked. If money were, of course, no object I would have gone out and tried (and no doubt purchased) a few more by now. This is a unisex fragrance (the first within my collection) although, I personally think it is more feminine than masculine. This scent is so incredibly refreshing and light, when I first sprayed it I was shocked at how powerful it initially was, although don’t let this put you off as it calmed down nicely on the skin. I also think that out of the many fragrances that I have tried and loved over the years that this is one of the better ones in terms of longevity on the skin, I can still smell it hours afterwards and even on my clothes a few days later. If you like citrus scents then I could not urge you more to try this, it is incredible and is fast becoming one of my go-to scents already.
Containing notes of lime, cardamom, green tea, cedarwood, white musk and more, this creates the most beautiful refreshing scent I have experienced in a long time. I especially enjoy spritzing this in the morning as it wakes me up in no time. There are some lovely sounding scents from Maison Margiela, I already have a couple of my list to try next time I see them out and about, those two being Flower Market and Beach Walk.
Overall I think these three products are a fantastic way to kick off somewhat of a spring beauty re-vamp for me. What have you been testing out lately? Have you switched things up this season?
You can find more of these products over on World Duty-Free where there are lots of great savings to be made before you fly off on your holidays this year.
*This post contains PR samples, for more please read my disclaimer.
