HUDA BEAUTY VS FENTY BEAUTY - SONIAXFYZA REVIEW

It's been a while beauties! My blog writing days are back, so many of you told me how much you missed us blogging so I thought why not come back with the ultimate review?!

Foundation is one of the biggest makeup struggle for us all! Being a apart of the beauty industry my sister and I are constantly trying brands. Some have broken us out, made our skin dry patchy - that's the life of a beauty blogger!

Last year beauty guru Huda released 30 foundation shades! Catering to all skin & undertones. Rihanna also released foundations that have a wide shade range. Both these brands have constantly been compared. I tried both myself for a few months an decided to give my review as a professional make-up artist and a consumer.

I have sensitive combination skin so Fenty was my first option below is my experience with Fenty Beauty foundation

First time blending the pro filtr foundation i was amazed at how smooth it was and how well it matched me, it felt like velvet and I didn't even have to set it! As my skin started to get used to this product I noticed it wasn't working the same when I traveled. It oxidizes (changes color), sticks to dry patches, becomes flakey and makes fine lines more prominent. It came to realisation that this foundation is catered for oily skin only. when people would tell me they were wearing Fenty I noticed it didn't have that "radiant from within" look, after a few hours it makes me look dry and tired. Blending cream contour always felt like a race because I have to blend it so quick otherwise it doesn't blend.

Packaging: pretty and slender, not travel friendly, because it's long it tends to knock over. glass could break on a hard floor.

Huda Beauty Faux Filter foundation experience below

Sonia loves full coverage and encouraged me to try this, knowing I loved a natural finish I was surprised that she advised me to try it. Her skin looked amazing so I was sold on trying it. First pump scared me a little because of how thick it was! I used a gel based primer and one pump only of the HB foundation, the strong scent hit me but I ignored it and applied it with a flat brush and went to blend it with a damp beauty blender. My skin looked radiant, fresh almost doll like! I loved how it didn't dry so quick, it gave me time to blend in my cream contour and concealer with it. I had control over how much coverage I wanted & how I wanted the finish to be. The loose powder stuck to the foundation nicely and after I sprayed setting spray, I loved the finish look! I had it on for the whole day and at night so many people were complimenting my skin, it stayed looking fresh!

The primer broke me out into a cheek rash so I was scared to use it again.

Packaging: bulky, travel friendly, not keen on pumps.

Both foundations are great in their own way but Huda Beauty wins for us both! created by a woman with knowledge and experience in the beauty industry.

- Fyza

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SMOKEY KHAKI EYES & DEWY SKIN!

I haven't done Sonia's makeup in a while (since 2015!) Just to clear up the confusion again, Sonia is my sister who is my muse as well as a beauty blogger. I'm (Fyza) the Make-Up Artist. So recently I have been experimenting with some new products and brands so you will be in for a treat with the details for this look I created. Usually Sonia goes for the matte look but I went all j-lo glow with this one!

The thing we need to remember about creating a dewy look is that you don't have to have dry skin to pull this off. Anyone can rock it. It is all about the primers you use and how well you set your base. the glow is usually created after with powder highlighters. Here in the Middle East I find girls opt for the matte look because of the weather here. Don't be afraid to change up your style of makeup and experiment to find what works best for you.

Perfect your base.

Products used:

Charlotte Tilbury Magic cream

Smashbox Cosmetics photo finish matte finish primer with a spray of the Smashbox primer spray.

Tom Ford Traceless perfecting foundation in Buff

Applied with a Beauty Blender

Tarte Cosmetics Creaseless concealer in Medium Sand

Benefit Cosmetics Stay Don't Stray eye primer in light

EYES

I created a base for the eyes so the shadow has something to stick too.

Courreges Estee Lauder Eye Glide Pencil in Silver Streak

Blending it with a 217 by MAC

I started by added a crease colour using SMASHBOX Cosmetics Double Exposure Palette 

Matte -Espresso for crease

To deepen the outer crease I used Fig

On the lid I wet my brush and used the colour Mauve 

(This palette transforms shadows when wet!)

I smoked out Noir and Espresso on the lower lash line.

I smudged MAC smoulder eye pencil in her water line and on her lash line I used MAC coffee kohl liner smoked out with a pencil brush.

I used two coats of Giorgio Armani Eyes to kill mascara on top and bottom.

BROWS

Kevyn Aucoin brow pencil

Clear Brow gel

Contour and Highlight

I used a cream contour by a Middle Eastern brand called Wojooh.

They have an amazing cream contour and highlight stick that blends like butter and is the perfect tone.

I blended the contour with a Beauty blender.

SETTING POWDERS & BLUSHER

I used Laura Mericer tranlucent powder to set under eyes

Smashbox cosmetics Crush On Blush Palette - Warm Apricot applied on cheeks

To buff everything out I used MAC mineralise skin finish natural 

GLOW!

to add the glow I used Benefit Cosmetics Sun Beam

LIPS

WOW BY Wojooh lip liner in 230 Woody Pink

with Matte Liquid Lipstick by Wojooh in 230 Sugar Tan

Set with MAC fix+

I enjoyed using all the products, some for the first time! You can be the judge of them from the photo's you see. I listed all products and I hope you enjoyed this post.

Fyza! x

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NOSE CONTOURING: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

I feel as if even the people that don't follow me on Instagram but just read my blog will really enjoy this one (don't look so guilty ;)). It's that one blog post that I spill ALL. My pet peeve is when I see obvious nose contour! As a perfectionist, harsh contour really irks me. I don't know if people know that they are doing it or are intentionally going for the drag queen contour? not that there's anything wrong with drag queen makeup, If you like it then that's ok. Each to their own.

If that's the look you're not going for then read on! I'm going to explain my knowledge on nose contouring as much as I can and I will include diagrams to show you. Many of you reading this have either a bulbous nose, hook, slight hook, drooping tip, wide bridge, crooked from the front, long, short...which ever shape you have there is ways to make it less prominent. I'm not a surgeon so I won't promise perfect results...just enough for it to look smaller? defined? Yes.

Some of you, like my sister Sonia might be blessed with a perfect sloped nose and others may have decided to choose to go under the knife and try rhinoplasty which is a personal preference. Some may fear of being unconscious and having their nose broken and reshaped. That's where contouring comes in (woohoo!)

The first thing to remember when contouring is: THE MORE YOU SHADE THE MORE OBVIOUS IT WILL LOOK! I see women in real life and all over social media and I am automatically drawn to the middle of their face because the contouring is either too harsh, too orange or too muddy making the nose look more prominent and masculine. 

The contour shade you choose for your nose must be lighter than the one you use for your cheeks and the rest of your face. Whether you're using cream or powder it always has to be a cool tone. Cool tones mimic the natural contours and shadows of the face. ORANGE IS A NO!

STOP following the contour pictures you see on IG, everyone's nose is different and seeing the same contour and highlight on everyone's nose bothers me.

HERE WE GO.

1. If you have a wide bridge concentrate on shading out the darker areas of this diagram and then connect with the sides of the nostrils. This is best done with a cream contour. It will take some practice before you perfect it.

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2. You want to make your nose appear shorter but a little wider too. down your nose use a concealer that's three shades lighter after that apply the contour shade. Concentrate on the tips and the sides of the nose. Blend well is a 224 brush by MAC until seamless. 

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3. STOP highlighting all the way down, you only need the tip highlighted. Shade out the bump, like shown in diagram. 

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4. Common mistake I see all the time. If you have a dent why make it look more obvious by adding darkness to it? Opt for the lighter concealer in this area. Don't worry it won't look funny, it's all about blending it well. 

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5. Use a flat concealer brush to apply cream contour for precision, follow where the light grey colour on the diagram. You want to stop where I have put the black line. Use a powder or a white eyeshadow in the centre, making sure it's a thin line. Buff and blend with any small blending brush.

Best done over your foundation because it shows more but not too obvious. the key is to blend. I took so much time out to do these images. It's pretty simple to follow the pictures that's why there's less description. Be patient and practice. I'm not promising miracles but it's a difference. 

Conquer that contour! wooop!

Fyza xoxo

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Dry skin tips and TOP 5 foundations for dry skin

Weather's getting colder and skin is getting drier. I find there's hardly ever any posts for dry skin people. I've worked with all skin types so it's come to a point where I know what foundation works best for what skin type. Dry skin is usually more difficult than oily, believe it or not.

I find there's so much on the market for oily and combination skin but dry skin barely gets  any attention. I get a lot of messages from girls that have dry skin and many emails from women who suffer from eczema and psoriasis. Eczema and psoriasis are both dry skin conditions. It isn't contagious because it's most likely genetic. A lot of foundations will look great when first applied on dry skin but after a few hours you will notice it can separate and cling on the dry patches that weren't even visible at first.

I like to prep a client that has any of those skin conditions well. The skin is always dehydrated and thirsty so it needs A LOT of moisture. I've talked about Ultra Bland by Lush Cosmetics before, It is a facial cleanser that contains almond oil, rose water, bees wax and honey. These ingredients work great for dry skin. When applying this it's best to use a decent amount and gently rub in the the skin not blending it in as well as you would a moisturiser. Leave it on the skin for approximately 8 minutes. You won't look crazy or funny whilst you wait because it's colourless once applied. You then run a few cotton facial pads under lukewarm water and gently remove the cleanser, tap dry with a face towel and you will be left with supple, baby soft skin. You then can start applying your regular skin care.

People that have dry skin like the glow, youthful foundation finish so I will tell you my favourite primers/bases and foundations to achieve this look. Applying a primer ill help your makeup last longer.

These products are in no order

Primers

1. Makeup Forever hydrating primer. Lovely consistency, blends to nothing and is light weight. You will notice after you have applied your foundation that this primer is great.

2. Smashbox Photo Finish hydrating primer. Lovely scent, very fresh. It is a blue colour but goes on clear. Feels refreshing and instantly perks up dry looking skin.

3. Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow primer. Gorg golden primer, not only is it great for a gorgeous dewy glow it gives a soft focus effect to the skin. Blurs out fine lines and reduces the look of pores leaving you with a Jlo-glow.

4. Bourjois Happy light luminous primer. The description is in the title! Light and luminous :) leaves you with a nice complexion and will look pretty when it shows through your foundation.

5. Lorac "I'm so sensitive" Primer. Free from oil, fragrance, silicone and parabens, this primer is perfect for sensitive dry skin. It is water based and hydrating. Helps your makeup to stay put for a while! It has ingredients that are beneficial to your skin too.


Foundations

I like to mix my products up. High end products don't necessarily mean they are better. You will find that sometimes drugstore makeup works just as good or sometimes better. It's all about personal preference and what your skin works well with.

Growing up I had super dry skin but as I hit 20's it got oily in my t-zone so I am now left with combination, unlike my sister Sonia who is just oily. I know a lot about dry skin, not only from my own experience but from clients too.

1. Dior Skin Nude. I always rave about this one but it has such a pretty finish and still looks and feels like skin.

2. Benefit Cosmetics Hello flawless foundation. Love the colour range, blends well and looks best when blended with a beauty blender.

3. Hourglass Veil foundation. Hydrating, evens skin out, smoothes fine lines and is perfect for every day wear.

4. Mac Face and Body. CLASSIC fave. I think it should be in every dry skin persons makeup bag! The coverage isn't full but it works well when you add this do any other foundation you are using (If you want more coverage). Better for day time, undertones are great, finish is like second skin and it is so light weight.

5. Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation. I think this brand is growing on me! It is a gel-like foundation and I know they are the best for dry skin. Makes skin look radiant and it contains vitamin-rich formula - FRUIT! litchi, goji berries and pomegranates. Long lasting and evens skin out as well as brightening.


These are my personal favourite's that I have used on so many of my clients and they have always been happy with their base. If you have dry skin be sure to try any of the recommendations and I can promise you that you won't be disappointed.


Glow on and try them!

Fyza xoxo

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Tom Ford Exclusive Scent Dinner In Dubai

I did not expect this heat in October! That's the first thing I thought as I walked out of Dubai airport in my thick jacket and comfy joggers. I had just flown from London to Dubai for an exclusive event with Tom Ford. I was invited by Estee Lauder for a scent dinner with Tom Ford. What's a scent dinner? I've never attended one before so this should be interesting.

"Scent Dinners are the combination of fine dining with a stimulating interactive master class in scent & perfume, two parallel dinners, one olfactory and invisible, the other gustatory and edible."

Prior to the evening event I was invited to have a private makeup session with Matthew Tyler who is the International Education Director for Tom ford Beauty. I got to try the new products that had launched in the Middle East, I got to ask questions about each product as he told me what suited my skin tone best. It was such a great experience.

I know that many of you are huge fans of Tom ford products, espcially his scents. They are rich, long lasting and unique. Hearing how much thought that goes into a scent was very facinating for me. I love how we all have been thought about in so much detail when this scent was created. If you love Tom Ford scents as much as I do you will really enjoy this post. I want to make you experience it as much as possible through me!

The scent dinner was held at the Burj Khalifa and I was with around 10 other beauty bloggers from around the Middle East. I tried to take down as much information as possible so I could share it with you all. 

This was our menu. This dinner was for the new fragrance launch of Tom ford's Noir Pour Femme in the Middle East. Each course represented an element of the fragrance, so each course we were handed a stick with a scent which made up of the final scent. we weren't allowed to try the actual scent till the end of the meal. This is what our minds/imaginations were for. We had to guess what the final scent would be like based on the scent broken down.

There was Opulent, Addictive and Provocative. The three sides to a woman? maybe.

The first meal was Heirloom Tomato 'Tarte Fine' and it contained Basil, wasabi mustard, burrata and orange sense. From looking at the menu I instantly knew this scent has a fruity side to it which is definitely a favourite of mine. Once the dish was placed in front of us all we could smell the richness of this pizza looking first course. It tasted like the first scent we were given. it was so strange but amazing at the same time. 

 

The flavours together worked beautifully and the feeling of tasting a perfume you could smell is so hard to put in to words.

We were given a Ginger Sorbet with Orange zest to cleanse our palate for the main corse

"This represents the top note, citrus based, the opulent. citruses including mandarin orange oil, bitter orange oil and ginger. This represents more of the confident side because its open, airy. We like to call this opulent" 

- First Note Scent Description

The main course was Brittany Lobster 'Open Lasagne' which was Kulfi royal cardamom-saffron sense and pistachio crust. 

with this dish I didn't really know what to expect. We were told that the base was a Kulfi cream, the middle was a pasta with lobster and a pistachio topping. Matthew explained what kulfi is and where it came from. The history to it was that it originates from India and it was a dessert that was made for the royals at the time. It was meant to be a cold dessert, much like ice cream. Ice would be collected from the Himalayan mountains and then this milk like texture was mixed in and topped with rose petals and pistachio. It was a dessert fit for a king! I thought this was really great to share as I love history of all countries.

This was the second note. 'Addictive'

"Sensual heart of florals, orange flower, Jasmine and rose absolute. this is where the sensual femininity comes."

- Second note scent description 

This scent was my fave and at this point I couldn't wait to try the actual perfume!

The final note was Provocative - the dessert.

This was Dame Blanche 'Profiteroles' - Pear Cremeux, vanilla ice cream and 72% chocolate. there was chocolate sauce on the side to pour over. 

"These are the base notes and what we smell are vanilla, amber and Australian sandalwood."

I wish you could smell the scent that I was smelling through the screen! It's so hard to put into words but i'm trying my best, haha!

We were finally given the Noir Pour Femme to try! This is probably my all time favourite by Tom Ford. I wasn't expecting this. It's made for every woman. It reminded me a lot of Bukhoor - بخور 

Which is wood chips that have been soaked in perfume oils and are burnt to create a beautiful scent around the house - mainly used in Middle Eastern households. The scent is usually rich and long lasting so this is what the new fragrance reminded me of. It is powdery, floral, fresh, zesty and rich all at the same time and we all agreed on this.

 

This was my first scent dinner and I learnt so much, I loved the atmosphere and I'm glad that this scent is finally launching in the Middle East. Thank you so much to Estee Lauder and Tom Ford for having me and thank you Matthew Tyler for your time. It's always great to learn more, whether it's makeup or fragrance related. Thank you for the all the makeup too, super excited to add more Tom Ford to my kit and makeup bag! 

Fyza Ali xxx

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Fun Blue Make-Up Look

I love a little colour once in a while! Recently I thought I haven't done make-up on my sister, Sonia in a while...so on one of my days off I decided to do that. I didn't think of a look in my head I just went with the flow.

She already had a fresh tan with the help of Million Dollar Tan and the 48C Middle East sun, so I knew I wanted the skin super bronzy.

SKIN PREP
I started skin prep with Kiehls ultra face moisturiser, Primed with Benefit Professional primer and i let that sit on the skin for a while before starting on the base.

FACE 
Colour Correction - of course I can't do a make over with out this. I corrected the redness around her nose with green corrector, a salmon coloured concealer around her eyes slightly. Once I blended that into her skin I used Benefit Cosmetics Boing concealer to conceal any blemishes individual with a small brush and also the under eyes, I used the concealer to go over the areas I corrected with the green and salmon concealer.

Using Motives Cosmetics colour perfection quad in medium dark I slightly contoured below her cheek bones, nose and forehead- I did this before applying any foundation, concentrating on perfecting the skin with concealer, it's always best to use more concealer than foundation. Using a mixture of L'oreal True Match and MAC face and body in C4 with a Beauty Blender to blend the contour and concealer together. I take a while to blend it all together until it is seamless, you're not supposed to be able to tell where you started and where you stopped. The skin should be glowing and contoured to perfection at this point - no harsh lines or muddy looking nose (if you want to know more about tones to contour i have a blog post on that too!)

To add a little OOMPH! to the under eyes I used Maybelline Age rewind foundation in Classic beige, this brightened the under eyes without the ashy/grey look. Blend with mini Beauty Blender for the best result.

EYES AND EYEBROWS
Primed with Benefit Stay Don't Stray eye primer, as a base colour I used a black kohl pencil starting form the lash line, I smudged that up to the crease using a Wayne Goss #20 Brush, I created a wing with the kohl pencil and smudged it to give a smokey effect, using the colour Naked from the Naked Palette I applied it to the crease using a Wayne Goss #19 brush, for the main blue colour I wet my Wayne Goss #18 brush  and with L'oreal infallible eye shadow in midnight blue and pressed it onto the lid, this intensified the colour. I blended that in the a clean fluffy brush so it blended in with the Naked crease colour, I finished the eyes by smoking out a black kohl pencil on the lash line and water line, wetting the brush again with the midnight blue colour and applying that on the bottom lash line.

I highlighted her brow bone and inner tear duct with Laura Mercier candle light highlighter.

For brows I used MAC brow pencils in lingering and spiked, setting them with Benefit Cosmetics Gimmie Brow blonde - this technique lightens the brows!

SETTING POWDERS AND BLUSHER
I set the under eyes with Colourless Ben Nye loose powder, I powder contoured with Smashbox bronzer, Cheek bone highlight by Laura Mercier loose powder in candle light, blusher is MAC fluer power.

LIPS
Estee Lauder Lip liner in nude with Nars Lipstick in Chelsea Girl



I used the buffing technique to blend it all together at the end!
If you want to know more about the buffing technique I use you can watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7XjD4a7xv8


I hope you benefited from this post.

Fyza xoxo
Instagram.com/soniaxfyza
soniaxfyza@gmail.com

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BANISHING OILY SKIN!

What's worse than looking like you could fry an egg on your face after 4 hours of applying your makeup? I say nothing! I always see posts and products for people who suffer from dry skin but barely come across anything for oily skin. My sister Sonia suffers from terrible oily skin which is why I have gone through a lot of products to get the perfect looking base.

There's a difference from "Dewy" and "Greasy" we all want the JLO glow but how can we achieve that without looking like a hot mess?! keep reading ;)
I find that greasy skin makes the face appear larger, if you have an oily forehead it looks bigger, same with a shiny nose and chin. You don't want to pack on the powder because it will start to look cakey and oxidise which is awful for your pores - poor pores.

A great skin regime is the first step to fighting oily skin so go over to my post about skin prep if you want to know more about that. Using a good moisturiser (remember every skin needs moisture no matter what skin type you are) is key!

BEST moisturiser for oily skin

Origins - Zero Oil Moisturiser 

This moisturiser is light weight - I'm sure we all hate the feeling of a heavy moisturiser. This sinks into the skin beautifully, one of the key ingredients is mint which has so many benefits for the skin. It hydrates, controls oiliness as it contains vitamin A, Soothes, Rejuvenates and refreshes the skin making it bright and soft. It contains Salicylic Acid which stimulates exfoliation at skins surface helping to minimise and unclog pores.



What's the best foundation for oily skin?
probably the question millions of the people working at make-up counters get daily! From doing my own research and buying the products myself I have a few good choices that I think are great for oily skin.

Full to sheer coverage

Estee Lauder Double Wear

If you want full coverage this is a great choice. So many of us love this foundation, the finish is lovely, great consistency, doesn't transfer.



Clarins Ever Matte Foundation

This foundation is COMPLETELY MATTE! If you love a matte finish then this is the one for you. You have to be careful when you match this one though as it dries a different tone from when it is first applied. Full coverage, givers a powder matte finish.



Lancome - Teint Idole Ultra 24H

Gorgeous liquid foundation that has a nice consistency, completely matte coverage without the powdery look, long lasting, velvet feeling and a shine-free finish!



L'oreal - Magic Nude Liquid Powder

Yes, it's a drugstore foundation! L'oreal is one of my fave beauty brands! So the Magic Nude Liquid Powder foundation is more of a medium coverage, dries matte, transforms from a liquid to powder, looks like skin, great for no makeup makeup look but only if you have decent skin to begin with. If you have blemishes i suggest you conceal them first before applying this. Best used with fingers as a brush or sponge would absorb too much product and it would be a waste. very "every day" foundation. This product is very watery! reminds me so much of Giorgio Armani maestro...*FUN FACT L'oreal and Giorgio Armani makeup are made in the same factory!


Remember to apply your foundation to well moisturised skin.

WE ARE LOVING...
YSL TOUCHÉ ECLAT BLUR PERFECTOR

Walking through Selfridges (as you do..) I see something from the corner of my eye at the YSL counter... what is this pink thing? the packaging is divine! I dip my finger into the tester and I am instantly amazed at this product as I am applying it at the back of my hand. It's a balm? It can't be a primer...could it be? So i ask the kind lady working there to explain what this is, I needed to know! Apparently you apply this OVER your foundation!? first thing that popped into my head was.. cakey!? but she had already answered my thoughts. It's an invisible foundation, you use it during the day for touch ups when you are oily. I wanted to try this so she scraped some out and put some at the back of my hand, I started to apply it on my super oily chin, WOW! was my first thought, it was so light weight, no sign of cakeyness and it made it look like I had fresh foundation applied. It's great for minimising the look of large pores, comes in the cutest packaging! I had to let you all know about this. It is around £30 which isn't what i had expected it to be. (thought it would be more pricey!) BEST thing for oily skin that I have tried so far.


TATCHA TATCHA BLOTTING SHEETS

Our fave blotting sheets! They don't budge your makeup at all and keep you looking pretty and matte during the day. Apparently a beauty secret kept by Japanese Geishas for centuries. Gold-infused papers remove excess oil and sweat without disturbing makeup or stealing moisture from the skin.




We hope this post helps you control your oily skin!

Fyza & Sonia xoxo

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The BLACKEST eye liners EVER!!

There's nothing more annoying than your top liner fading during the day, or an eyeliner that turns light grey once it dries. No eye liner is perfect but our top 3 picks are close enough, We've tried and tested these long enough to say what we think about them including Pros and Cons. They all dry matte.

We have broken down around 10 eyeliners out there down to ONLY three - a high end, an affordable and one that is available in the Middle East so it's a win win for every one!

These are in no order! 

Benefit Cosmetics- They're Real - Push-up liner

So much to say about this product, It is a GEL, looks like a pen and has a screw on cap which is great because it won't fall off and end up at the bottom of your make-up bag. Love the grip, the fact that it's like a pen makes it so much easier to hold when applying. The end has a twist, you have to twist it to get the product out so you have fresh gel liner each time. In a pot you will notice gel liner dries up quick.

It has a rubber angled tip, it is a dream when creating your wing, glides on beautifully and you will find your self surprised when you get your liner perfect after using this for the first time. The angled applicator helps precision when placing your wing/flick, gets into the inner corner perfectly.

 Without Flash

With Flash

It's one of the blackest, the formula is great, staying power is 10/10, easy to remove with makeup remover.

CONS:
when you twist for the product to come out you have to apply it at the back of your hand first because there's a clump at the end of the applicator which is the only downside.


Kiko Cosmetics - Lasting Gel Eye Liner

So the packaging says it's a gel but it actually looks more like a thick ink, it has more of a jelly-like consistency, it is SO SO black! You will need a fine point brush to apply this. Kiko is a great affordable brand so you wouldn't be splurging out on this.

Without Flash

With Flash

You can see how black and matte this product is, the formula is great. If you're someone who has trouble with your top liners melting and transferring on to your crease this is the one for you, great for summer, vacation - waterproof so you can have the perfect liner stay put all day.

CONS:
To some people it will be a pro but this liner is VERY tough to remove, it's almost like a tattoo. You will need more than a makeup wipe to remove this stuff! Don't bother rubbing it. If you love your liners to stay put try this but we suggest you use an oil based makeup remover to remove this bad boy. More for a special occasion.

Elizabeth Helen Fluid Eyeliner

We ALWAYS stock up on this product when we visit the Middle East, the perfect liquid liner. SUPER BLACK Arabic eyeliner which is only available in the Middle East (We haven't searched online so maybe it is available outside the Middle East) Love the formula for everyday eyeliner. It dries matte, good size tube, has a screw on cap that is comfortable to hold when applying on yourself.

The applicator is a fine brush, easy to glide the very black fluid and to make a cat-eye wing.

Without Flash

With Flash

It's a liquid so it will take a while to dry. Gorgeous rich black colour, looks good in flash photography too!

CONS: The only thing we wish we good change about this product is how it transfers after around 5 hours if you have sweaty eye lids! some people will be okay but if you want to use this without an eyeshadow be sure to use an eye primer and dust some pressed powder on your eye lids before applying this.


We hope you found this post about the BLACKEST EYELINERS out there useful!

Fyza and Sonia xoxo

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The Contour Kits Hype!

So since last year the hype of "contouring" hit social media with a bang! 'Contouring' is a beauty method that involves "carving" the face with a darker shade of foundation or powder - creating the illusion of more defined cheekbones, a slimmer nose, shorter nose, slimming the face, temporarily getting rid of a unwanted double chin and it's also used on the body for creating cleavage, abs etc - it's been used in the industry for years! Even Marylin Monroe's Make-Up Artist contoured her nose to make it look more narrow (she had her nose done and they said it still wasn't small enough so that's where contouring came to the rescue!)

using Sonia as my muse.

(This type of contouring is used for photo shoots and red carpet events)

Contouring isn't a new thing for people who have been in the industry for years, it's just become popular to the world because of social media, all the pictures and videos you see being posted on the Internet. I want to explain (my own thoughts) the types of contouring products you can get to use on yourself every day, I don't mean you have to spend two hours every morning drawing lines all over your face, Contouring is meant to be quick, easy, yet effective. If I could do it at the age of 18 with no social media pictures (I would have 15 minutes to get ready for college every morning) so can you! I would use a cheap eye shadow that was COOL toned and a shade darker than my skin to shade the sides of my nose and the tip, a little dust on the hollows of my cheeks too - in 5 minutes my contouring was done, I instantly had a smaller nose and high cheekbones!

Many companies out there have taken advantage of this contouring hype and created contour kits - but do we REALLY need those? do we need all 6 to 8 shades? Yes if you're a Make-Up Artist maybe, but I know of many Make-Up artists in the industry that don't store these contour kits in their make-up kit because there's either products that work better, just as good and they save more kit space. I have used almost every new contour kit out there, powder to cream to those contouring sticks, to realise what makes these so different to concealers and foundations? these companies have just stuck the word "contour" on anything so we buy them, it's the hype, the IT thing, we all want it!

I recently purchased the Laura Mercier contour kit, the shades are perfection, the consistency is heaven and I love how they glide on, but I realised the staying power of this product is not the best, I used it for weeks and I was really disappointed, it melts off after four hours and if you have oily skin it's not the best. People will say set it with powder contour but how many of us have the time to layer our makeup for work, school, college etc? not everyone is a professional Make-Up Artist with a whole day to do make-up and touch up. I decided to write this post to tell people out there you don't need to spend a ton of money on these hyped kits that have contour written on them when you can use any cream foundation or powder that's cool toned and a shade or two darker than your skin.

Many of us probably already have concealers in our make up bags that are a few shades darker because we use them for the summer or we got matched wrong - use those to practise your contour! I will give you a few examples of products that you can use to contour. I prefer cream concealers because they are quick to blend out, make sure they are cool toned - they help mimic colours of the natural shadows on our faces. (check out my post about cool and warm tones if you want to know how they are supposed to look.)

Fave products to contour with - that don't have the word contour on the packaging!

Laura Mercier Camouflage Concealer SC8

It has a warm and cool side - the warm shade is perfect for correcting and the cool is a great contour shade.

Milani Secret Cover Concealer Stick

lovely make-up brand with great products and the shade range for these are great, some cool toned concealer sticks that are affordable.

Cover Girl - TruBlend Fixstick Concealer 

love the tones and the easy use!

LA Girl Cosmetics - HD PRO Conceal

These concealers come in many colours, Love them for contour because it already has a brush applicator! 

Motives Color Perfection Quads

My most used, it's meant to be a foundation but I was one of the first Make-Up Artists on Instagram to use this for contour early last year. love the shades and consistency!

I'm not against contour kits, I have a fave too but for women who love to wear make-up you shouldn't have to break the bank to find the right beauty product. You can still be in trend but you don't have to follow what everyone else is using. Try any of these products and I know you will LOVE at least ONE, they save space in your makeup bag, easy to carry, pack and the staying power of these is much better because they are a concealer formula :)

I hope this helped some of you, I try my best to explain everything without going on and on. I don't always use high end products, I love to experiment with different brands just so I can give my feedback. If you have any confusion about shade picking be sure to check out my post where I explained all of that including powder contour products,

love, Fyza x

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