Exams and a laptop break down mean I haven't been able to post! Many of my photos are on the laptop and I'm having trouble retrieving them from the corrupted hard drive.

Hopefully I'll be able to have some content for you guys shortly :)

I sampled a few more mascaras this year. Some good, most bad. Mascaras are the one makeup item I'm more than content to be unadventurous with, seeing as about three work for me and no other do, so why not stick with what works?



Maybelline "The Colossal" Volume Express Waterproof
This was good! It's a sufficiently wet-but-dry formula that it doesn't end up all over my eyes, and it certainly is waterproof. The brush is chunky style, which I don't usually get on with, but it works perfectly with this formula.

Thumbs up from me.

Benefit BadGal Lash Mascara

This was a sample sized picked up from when Glamour magazine were giving away free Benefit bits and bobs, so perhaps not completely comparable with the real deal as it were, but I found this sample to be fairly bad.
It seeks out my eyelids and glues itself to them, ruining any eyeshadow/primer there. It doesn't really have any lengthening or curling effect, and doesn't even really do much in the way of volume. The only thing I can see it doing well is making my lashes darker, but I'd much prefer it did what it was meant to do first.


No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara

Seeing as I've repurchased this three, maybe four times (in fact, it was featured in one of my most recent posts) this mascara is clearly doing something right. It doesn't flake, is reasonably easy to apply, and the brush is in segments which means you can use different parts for different areas of the eye (i.e, shorter bristles on the lower eyelashes). I do think it's a triumph of mascara design. I hope Boots don't discontinue it any time soon.

Am I the only one with this problem of getting mascara all over my eyelid? Feeling rather clumsy!

Good morning and welcome to my blog in 2013! It feels so strange to be entering yet another year...

I focused a lot on lip products and brushes in 2012, but there was a product family that I was continually hitting pan on, repurchasing, and then just never blogging about. Yep, you guessed it: Eyeliners! Admittedly, the clue was in the title ;)


Maybelline 'Master Drama' Kohl Liner
I actually own this in black and brown. I bought the brown first on a whim, as during the Summer Maybelline released a load of new products and these were included in the line up. As I was going swimming later and was fully aware that a certain rugby player male type of eye-candy would be there, I decided to invest in some waterproof cosmetics. You know, just completely coincidentally.

Anyway, after a long discussion between myself and a friendly sales assistant in Boots who told me she owned this very pencil and used it on her eyebrows, I walked home with this. And it is incredible - so, so robust and waterproof. It lasted me two hours of swimming, which I was more than impressed with. On the hand, it persists for about a day with just casual handwashing.

I haven't actually tested out the black on the waterline yet, but I'm hoping it'll be more of the same story. Best part? This liner was about a fiver, and as Maybelline was 3 for 2, it worked out to be considerably cheaper.

The only downside for me is just how soft they are - it's easy to overapply if you're a little heavy handed (as I often am). I end up having to sharpen these fairly frequently, maybe every four or so uses. I'd still recommend them to anyone looking for a budget, waterproof kohl liner.


MUA Extreme Felt Eyeliner

This was my first felt liner (yes, I am always late to the game, and what?) so I have a little soft spot in my heart for it. It doesn't last too long, usage wise. Perhaps three weeks to a month of use before it dries out and the ink gets grey. But at only £2, it fits squarely into that "cheap and cheerful staple" category.


MUA swatch


Maybelline Swatch (closest brown to camera)


Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner - Black
This Maybelline offering is my second gel eyeliner (the first being Sleek's InkPot) and it has left a much better impression on me than my first.
It looks like the sort of thing that will stay moist for a long time - the lid is sturdy and seals tightly each time, and the frosted glass looks quite classy and evokes ideas of higher end brands such as Bobbi Brown. So I'm more than happy leaving the pot on my makeshift vanity.

For me, this is not a 24 hour liner, though. Out of all the liners I've posted, this gel liner actually survives the least amount of time before running; about six, seven hours. By the end of my college day, I end up with visible smudges by the corners of my eyes. It's quite disappointing. I've tried to remedy the problem by extending my eye primer over the parameters where it'd usually be, but it doesn't always stop the smudging. Boo.