How I feel about Blogger/YouTube Recommendations? Rant

So, this post is not really anything similar to what I've done so far on my blog, but it is still something I wanted to share with all of you.

Word of warning: If you don't like people's opinions on things, you're free to click away from this post right now. If you can't understand that someone may have a different opinion from you, then please click away. OK? You have been warned.

This is just my opinion, and while I'm willing to hear other people's opinions (feel free to leave yours in the comments below), as always, with the internet, it's a hard thing to put your own opinion out there. People tend to pick up on anything you say that's "wrong" and sometimes can get quite nasty about it. So hopefully the little disclaimers work.

So now all that is done, let's get onto the actual post.

Valentine's Day Makeup

I've never been a "Valentine's day girl". To me this day wasn't particularly special or anything like that. I didn't rush to get chocolates or to put heart-shaped ornaments around or even to do anything special. I remember that in previous years all my Valentine's gifts were from girls because a lot of my friends in an all girls school used to give their friends presents. This year I decided to do my makeup nicely and try something different. I, very intelligently, did not take any pictures of the look I ended up with, but I hope that this gives you some idea of what I wore for V-day.

I started with the 17 Pwoarr paint I mentioned in my Project 10 pan post. I just patted on a little under my eyes as that's where I need just a little bit more help. 

I then used my favourite foundation at the moment which is the Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Airbrush Foundation. This is what I pull out when I want a really flawless finish that feels really light on the skin and keeps me from becoming too oily. I apply this with the Airbuki brush and really buff it into the skin and it's just amazing.

For blush it was a close tie between this Sleek Blush in Pomogranate and the one in Antique. In the end I went for this slightly shimmery, plummy colour to perk up the skin a bit more. As Sleek blushes are so pigmented, I applied this very lightly using the Real Techniques Blush Brush. Personally, for the look I ended up going for, I wish I went for Antique or Coral as they would have suited it better.

Of course in the spirit of project 10 pan, I used this trio as well. I used the Barry M Natural Dazzle Matt Bronzing Powder to add a bit of a contour as I am addicted to it. I used the Real Techniques Contour Brush (part of the core collection kit) for my cheekbones and around my face and used an Etude House angled eye contour brush for my nose. 

I then dusted the Soap and Glory Glow All Out powder just on the top of my cheekbones very slightly using the Real Techniques Setting Brush. This is currently my everyday contour/highlight routine.

I use the MUA single eyeshadow in 20 mixed with a little of the Barry M bronzer to define my eyebrows. I used to use this by itself, but lately I prefer a slightly lighter and browner eyebrow look, so just a little of the bronzer makes this perfect. I use the Zoeva Wing Liner brush to draw little strokes and I love it.

For eyes, I went for the Sleek Vintage Romance palette. I mean, it is Valentine's Day makeup. I wasn't lucky enough to get this in the limited edition packaging, but I really like the colours in this palette.

I used the shade Bliss in Barcelona (purple-blue shimmer), which is the 4th shade on the bottom row all over the lid, blended out for a simple smoky eye and a bit of it under my lower lash line. I used the Zoeva Smoky Shader to lay down the colour then used the Zoeva Luxe Soft Creaseto blend it out. I then used the shade Romance in Rome (dark blue shimmer) (5th on the top row) as a definer colour and I used the Zoeva Luxe Pencil to make a sideways V-shape on the outer corner. A lot of blending later I used the shade Love in London (black with multi-coloured glitter) (last shade, bottom row) as an eyeliner and I used the Crownbrush Angle Liner Brush for that. Finally, to add a bit of light into my inner corners, I used the shade Pretty in Paris (white shimmer) (1st shade, top row) and the Zoeva Detail Liner Brush. 

I then put on lots of the Benefit They're Real mascara and Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara and a few of the medium and short Tanya Burr individual Lashes. As you can tell, I had some time to do my makeup!

In my last step, I blended a very small amount of the 17 Pwoarr Paint on the outer edges of my lips then used the 2True Cheek and Lip Tint blended onto the middle. I think I have the Rose shade, but I can't really remember. This is a technique I saw for a lot of Korean makeup tutorials and I really like the "just-bitten" look. Also, a tint is great if you're going to be kissing/eating lots of chocolates!

I hope all of you had a very lovely Valentine's day! Let me know if you'd like me to recreate this look and post it on instagram or something as I know that not everyone can picture what I'm talking about. Also let me know what you think of Valentine's day. Love it or can't be bothered or is it a day of "enforced romanticism"? Comment down below!

Signing off now

Dusty Foxes

Review: Crown Brush Part 2 - 626 - 11 Piece Studio Pro Brush Set

This is Part 2 of my Crown Brush Review. See part 1 here.

I got this set a number of months ago after seeing rave reviews by  Miss Makeup Magpie and The Black Pearl Blog. 

A few point I thought I would raise, both reviews showed the brushes wrapped individually.(plastic sheath things) Seeing that, I thought that I would receive those too. But I was mistaken, because mine came like this ( excepting the taped name tags. Those I did after). I did feel a bit put off by that, because it made me feel like the company gave a better service in the PR samples and that always annoys me. I did think that while the extra plastic is a bit more of an environmental problem, I would have liked it just to know my brushes definitely were kept securely for shipping, but onto the actual product...

I do reallylike the wrap the brushes came in. It is very soft and I actually like this better than the one I purchased which I reviewed in Part 1 of my Crown Brush reviews. The brushes slip out of the pockets really easily and you can change up what brushes are inside. However, I would note that the little spaces between the brushes can't actually fit any other brushes, but you can always stick one or two brushes into the same pocket.

First up is the Large Powder Brush. I like this brush as it is very soft and applies powder so nicely, without looking cakey or anything like that.

It did shed a LOT for me, which I was disappointed in, but it has since stopped (considering I washed it 5 or 6 times before it stopped.) 

Next is the Small Powder brush. I like this brush as well, and I use it for blush mostly. It isn't my favourite, but it gets the job done and gives a nice effect. 

This brush shed a lot as well and still sheds a little when I spot clean it. However, this one did come out with a bit of black dye the first time it was washed and still does sometimes, though less now.

The Large Duo Fibre Brush is one of the larger brushes within the set. In fact, I think it is the largest. I have used this to stipple on foundation and it works quite nicely, but I almost wish it was just a bit smaller so I can really get the small areas of my face (eg around my nose), but it works nicely for those areas as well. It's a bit too loose and fluffy to get the effect I wanted so I use this for powder and I really really like it for that.

It washes out so clean with no shedding at all.

This is the Angle Blush Brush, quite possibly the most disappointing brush of the set, mainly because I was looking forward to this one the most. It's good for applying blush, bronzer, highlight, and possibly contour (based on reviews as I personally like a smaller brush). It is super soft, and feels really nice on the skin.

So why don't I like it? It smells. Like actually stinks. It is made of goat hair so I was expecting it to have some smell, but this is too much for me. I do have a slightly sensitive nose, but when I put this anywhere near my face (eg my forehead), I actually feel like gagging. It is horrible. I don't know if it's just me or if it's just this brush, but I cannot use it. I have tried everything, washing it over 15 times now, using everything from brush shampoo to soap to dishwashing liquid and olive oil to my shampoo and conditioner. It still stinks. If anyone knows how to fix this, please let me know in the comments below because I really want to love this brush.

Edited to add: After a real attempt at using and washing this brush, I can now thankfully say that is doesn't smell as badly anymore. It is now one of my favourite brushes, but I recommend airing it as I found that helped the most.

Moving on from that, we have the pointed flat foundation brush. I kind of expected this to be a bit useless as I tend to prefer buffing brushes and I was pleasantly surprised. This brush doesn't leave strips on my face but rather leaves a nice smooth layer. However, I felt I used more product than usual and there was a feeling of a mask. So I am planning to use this brush a bit more and figure out how to use this brush a bit better. It helps that this brush is so incredibly soft, I use it to stroke my face sometimes... 

This brush washed out nicely and has not shed.

Moving on to eye brushes, this is the Pro Blending Eye Fluff Brush. I like this brush for blending and it does that really nicely. It is small and quite dense, but there is plenty of movement in the bristles for it to really buff out edges.

This washed well with a little shedding. Black dye does come out when I spot clean though, so I stick to deep cleaning it, which means this brush doesn't get as much use as I would like.

This is the Pro Blending Crease Brush and I love this brush. It has a slightly more squared off head, and is flatter than the usual blending brush shape. I use this when I am just putting a single colour on the lid because it lays the colour down nicely then buffs it out. I also like that it is white as I can see when it is dirty.

It washes out white with no shedding.

Last of the natural hair eye brushes we have the Precision Pencil Brush. I like this to smudge out anything I put on either top or bottom lashlines and it works well for that. I also use this to place colour on my lashlines as well as the inner corner. It isn't the absolute softest, but it doesn't irritate my eyes as long as I don't push too hard.

Washes out with with no shedding. 

Next up we have the small round applicator brush. Made of synthetic bristles, this brush is best used for cream products,

Personally, I don't use this brush much as I prefer to apply cream products with my finger then blend it out with a duo fibre eye brush, but I have used this brush for concealer and that works.

One of my most used brushes, this is the angle liner brush. I use this with my Anastasia Dip Brow Pomade to define and shape my eyebrows and it works so nicely. I've also used it with powder, but it doesn't work as well in my opinion. 

Finally we have the liner brush. I originally dismissed this brush, having been obsessed with the Silicone liner brush from Real Techniques, but this brush is really good. I used with gel liner to get a really precise and thin line just on my upper lashline and I was really impressed with the ease of application and the thin crisp line I got.

Overall, really impressed with this kit, besides the horrible smelling Angle Blush Brush. The shedding is annoying, but now it has stopped I am less fussed.

This set is £39.99 and is available on their website.

Do you have this kit, let me know what you think in the comments below! If you don't, let me know your opinion on it anyway. What do you think about the Angle Blush Brush and most importantly, is there anything I can do to make it smell somewhat more normal? 

Signing off now,

Dusty Foxes.

Review: Crown Brush Part 1 - Random Brushes and a Case

I've had these brushes for about a year now so I thought I would talk a bit about this "cheap" brush brand, Crownbrush. 

These are the few single brushes I picked up (as well as a case) so this is part 1. Stay tuned for Part 2 which is a set.

I added a picture comparing it to a bobby pin for size. 

First of all is the C321 Bullet Crease brush. This is £2.49 and is made of  sable and goat hair. It is a tiny little brush and I use this to blend colour along my upper and lower lashline. It is a little scratchy on the lower lashline, especially as my eyes are very sensitive, so I use this with more pigmented products that I won't need to use too much pressure to apply.  

This washed well, with no shedding.

This is the C441 Pro Blending Crease. (on my brush is printed DLX Blending Crease, but it isn't that.) It is £3.99 and made of goat hair. I have a slight (very large) obsession with eye blending brushes so I really wanted to try this as I heard good things about it (it's one of their bestsellers.) but I was in all honesty, a little disappointed in this. I have a small-ish lid space on my eyes, so I prefer more precision in my blending brushes. This was just a bit too large, but I imagine if you have a large lid space, this brush may work better for the crease. On the other hand, I use this to sweep colour all over my lid and that works a treat as it blends it out at the same time. So it's nice, but wasn't what I was expecting, considering it is called a Blending CREASE brush. 

This washed well with no shedding.

This is one of my least used brushes, but it is still one of my favourites. It's the SS029 Syntho Angle Fluff. It is £3.49 and synthetic. It's a very small brush, and I like using it to contour my nose. It's also quite good at roughly smudging colour onto the lashlines, and is softer than the Bullet Crease brush, but I find it's less precise due to the wider tip. It's also good for placing and blending colour in precise areas so I use this more when I do full on makeup (which explains why it is one of my least used brushes). This is similar in shape to the Angled Shadow brush from the Nic's Picks set from Real Techniques but is quite a bit smaller and less fluffy.

Again this washed well with no shedding.

This is the C430 Duo Fibre Crease. It costs £4.70 and is made of goat and microfibre bristles. It is my favourite purchase from Crownbrush and I use it all the time. I like this for blending cream/ liquid formulas and it gives a really nice finish.  Mainly I use it for eyeshadows, but it works well for concealer as well.

This washes out really nicely and no shedding.

To be honest, this brush was a bit of a waste to me. It is the C600 Design Fan. It costs £4.39 and is made of... I'm not actually sure as it isn't listed on the site.  I use this mainly to dust off any powdery bits on my palettes and such, but don't really use it on my face as I don't tend to use heavy makeup that has lots of fall out. It is a strange brush, feeling both rough and soft at the same time.

It shed a little but has stopped after the 3rd wash. 

Finally this is the SCS Leatherine Snap case costing £9.53. It is a brush wrap type thing and is supposed to fit 12 brushes, but I have gotten away with about 15-17 brushes. I got this to bring some of my favourite brushes with me on holiday and it did that well. 

The large pockets fit most brushes, but I couldn't fit the Real Techniques Blush Brush inside, nor the Expert face brush as those widen at the ends. So that was a bit of a shame. I like how there's the plastic part at the top to protect the brush and you can't really see it in the photo but there are 2 layers to it so it protects the case from any product left on the brush and is easy to wipe down. The metallic clasps feel secure and the case is soft and it feels like it protects the brushes inside well. 

Overall, I thought these Crownbrushes were really nice but stay tuned for part 2 coming next week!

Signing off now,

Dusty Foxes

P.S.: To make sure you don't miss the next part, follow my blog! Links on the right. :)