Holidays require
completely different makeup products than usual Most of my everyday
products won’t stand up to the rigors of heat and water, nor do I
want to wear a full face of makeup when spending my day by the pool.
A lot of products
that advertise themselves as being waterproof or long wear really
don’t live up to the claims. Very few products last 12 hours even
in normal English conditions, so they don’t even stand a hope in 35
degree heat and constant dunkings in the water. I am not one of
those women who sits next to the pool with perfect hair and makeup, I
dive in head first and then spend the rest of the day alternating
between drying off and jumping in. This means that I need products
that are genuinely waterproof.
When I'm applying
makeup to go down to the pool, I just usually wear a sunscreen, a bit
of under eye concealer and a heap of mascara and that's it. I don't
like the look of lots of makeup nor the feel. When you're wearing so
few clothes, wearing a ton of makeup seems silly.
I try to concentrate
on getting the evenest skin tone for both face and body rather than
smoky eyes or dramatic lips.
I don’t use
foundation on holiday as it feels too heavy over a high SPF facial
sunscreens. I usually just take a few longwear concealers in varying
shades to cover any dark circles and calm down any post-sun redness.
The 3 (yes I bought 3!) that made it in to my bag this year are;
This is a new
addition to my makeup bag and it lights up the undereye area
beautifully and doesn’t crease ever. This is great news when you
are starting to get fine lines under your eyes and are under no
intention of accentuating them. I have this concealer in the shade,
02 medium which is my summer colour but still too light for my
holiday colour so this is being used for just the first few days.
The only thing that stops this being my holy grail concealer is the
packaging, it is in a tube and you have to squeeze it out which can
result in you being left with more than you needed.
This beauty blogger
favourite is always in my makeup collection and because it is so
cheap, around £4, you can buy it in your darkest shade and not mind
that it will only be used for a few weeks. It can crease and
definitely will wear off over the day but it is yellow toned so is
good for muting sun frazzled skin and the wand applicator makes it
quick to apply. I have it in the shade Dark 4 for holiday use and in
2 and 3 for usual use.
The best concealer
for ease of application, it has sponge like head that you click
product into by turning the base and then you just dot it where
needed. Again this is yellow toned, I use the nude shade (the
light shade is more pink toned) and is very light on the skin, it
feels like you have nothing on and gives good buildable coverage.
I looked online to
buy this for the holiday recently and found out it has been
discontinued! The good side of this was that I could get it for £6
on eBay instead of £10 as usual, but it also means that I am now of
the look out for a lengthening waterproof mascara that actually
works, I've heard the L'oreal Shocking Extensions is exactly the same just rebranded. This has a slim plastic wand which is great for detail work,
the lower lashes which can be a pain to coat are covered easily with
this. It is a full on waterproof mascara and so needs a full
strength oil-based eye makeup remover to get it off, but it really
lasts, all day if needs be, and it never smears. I have oily skin
and this even stay put on me. Because it is so “strong” it can
cause breakage if you try to rub it off or pull at it, so fingers off
whilst your wearing it.
I first bought this
after a back-of-the-hand test in Superdrug, I went up and down the
makeup stands swatching liquid liners on the back of my hand and then
wiped them all at the same time to see which one stayed on.
Bizarrely it was this cheapy number that refused to budge. I prefer
a flexible fine tip brush applicator on a liquid eyeliner whereas
this has a felt tip end but it has some serious staying power. I buy
it in brown as the black looks too harsh against my skin.
I can't imagine there
is anything left to be said about these, in case your late to the
party they are easy to apply, super moisturising and this particular variation seems to be universally flattering.
These Chubby Stick
dupes has a knock off from every major brand, from top end to bargain
basement, but the Revlon ones I feel give the most bang for their
buck, there's no need for a separate lip balm.
This was supposed to
be a primer, and my intention was to use it to stop oil break through
on an everyday basis. It unfortunately is a shade too dark for
wearing at home, and it is nothing special when it comes to oil
production either. What it can do though is blur lines and pores
well. It's powdery silicone formula glides over your skin and feel
completely weightless, it provides air brushing without the heavy
layers needed. It doesn't last amazingly but it is enough when you
just want a light touch.
I cannot recommend
this highly enough, it is the easiest way ever to get natural looking
filled in brows. It isn't cheap, but I got mine from my Mum for my
Birthday back in February and 6 months later it's still going strong.
It is a waxy, very fine pointed, dial up pencil. It doesn't need to
be sharpened and the wax remains solid in the heat so it can be used
whatever the weather.
I like that you can
draw in individual hairs or just stroke it though to increase the
volume in sparse areas. The colour choice is great too, I have ash
brown which is a nice ashy medium brown and a near perfect match for
my eyebrows, I want to get another shade that is a tad lighter to be
able to achieve a bit more dimension, but it may have to wait till
Christmas as I have spent enough recently.
I got this in a
blogger goody bag recently and it is absolutely perfect for holidays.
The colour is a bronzey coral with a gorgeous shimmer, I layer it
over a pinky base such as the Revlon one above and it gives the most
beautiful effect. I tried to capture it on camera but the sheen
doesn't show up well. It doesn't look that promising in the tube,
but when you open it up the wand applicator and lovely summery smell
win you over. It glides on beautifully and is not at all sticky, so
it feels very comfortable. It doesn’t last that well though, which
is normal in a gloss, but that is a minor issue.
The original and in my opinion the best, what more can
be said about this, it's a classic for a reason. I like the bronzey,
goldy colours for evening as they look really pretty against a tan.
My favourite colours are Half-baked (a true gold) and Smog (a dirty
bronzey colour heavy on the sheen) I use the mattes to smooth the
lids first then just a slick of a glitter over the lids and into the
crease with a Real Techniques Shadow brush. Then I finish by rubbing
some of Darkhorse (a grungey deep brown) through the lash line with
my Laura Mercier smudge brush.
This is always in my
makeup kit as I have the world's roundest face coupled with podgy
cheeks so I need definition. I don't contour per se, more like just
rub a little of the darker shade into what small amount of hollow I
have beneath my cheekbones to give some attempt at bone structure to
my face. I also use the high sheen blush as a highlighter and rub it
from along the top of my cheekbones and back to the hair line to gibe
a pretty flushed sheen. I also like the big mirror on this.
What I'm not taking
on Holiday
Tinted Moisturiser
Hate this stuff,
what's the point? If I want coverage I use foundation, if I want
moisture, I use moisturiser. I find that having the two pre-blended
means that neither is ever quite at the right level. Seen as I have
oily skin anyway, moisturiser is never at the top of products that I
turn too, I tend to find my serum or sunscreen provide enough
protection and slip to make my skin feel comfortable so tinted
moisturiser is a waste of time for me.
Foundation
When your away you
want to look sun-kissed and fresh, like you've just stepped off the
yacht rather than heavy and try-hard like a TOWIE extra. Rosie from
The Londoner, does this look best. She has freckles which she shows
in all their glory whilst still looking picture perfect and the image
of health.
What do you take on
holiday? Is there any tricks I'm missing?
