Lovely readers, you have been asking for the ins and outs of our make up bag for a really long time. Well, we’re pleased to inform you….it’s finally here! Our in depth make up bag post sharing all our must-have beauty buys that we can’t live without is just a few scrolls below. (N.B we’re not trying to say we’re makeup artists just big makeup junkies that have tried a thing or two throughout the years!)
First things first, we’ve got to put it out there, we’re not your natural no makeup makeup girls, there’s no ‘oh i just put on a swish of blush and a swipe of mascara and i’m ready to go!”…we have a plethora of tried and tested products that both of us swear by on a daily basis. They’ve been curated throughout the years from make up artists (on shoots for our day jobs), models and beauty journalists and whilst we have been known to add a few new things into the mix (like a Tom Ford mascara) most of them have been the same for the past ten years! Believe it or not, we share lots of the same loves but also have some of our own personal favourites for our skin types.
Scroll below for a breakdown of all our cult beauty buys….
FACE
Let’s start with the base – now for those that don’t use primer then you really really need to! Sarah who gets up quite a few days a week at 4am for her day job at ITV swears by the longevity Laura Mercier’s radiance primer gives to her foundation, plus it also helps makeup go on much smoother and less patchy.
Foundation – now here we are quite different…SHOCK! Philippa who is an avid Estee Lauder foundation fan loves the coverage of the ‘double wear light’ foundation (colour 3.0 & 3.5), it’s light yet gives a really great coverage, perfect for the day. She finds it does’t go patchy after a long day and is really long lasting. Sarah on the other hand loves the RMK creamy foundation (colour 104), it’s a Japenese brand that not many people have heard of but there’s nothing she recommends more. She finds it gives great coverage whilst still looking natural as well as keeping those eye bags under wraps at all times!
Concealer – we both love Nars concealers after being recommended to them only recently by a make up artist on a shoot. Sarah prefers the creamier one complete with wand (colour ginger) and Philippa prefers the classic stick one (colour custard usually but using biscuit now with a tan) as she likes to apply it with a brush to cover blemishes.
Powder – applying a powder over your foundation is so important – we can vouch that it helps set the foundation (making it stay put), takes off any shine and is great to keep in your bag for a sweep later on in the day if you’re feeling a bit hot and bothered. Laura Mercier’s mineral power (colour natural beige) is really light, doesn’t give that dusty looking skin and is great at taking away any shine. We apply a light coat over our foundation as well as throughout the day if and when we need it.
Bronzer – Chanel (colour No 50) all the way baby!! Another new addition to our make up bags but it gives the most amazing glow. No glitter or shimmer in sight and it doesn’t go patchy at 4pm – it’s a must buy of the highest order! It smells like holiday too 🙂
Brushes – unquestionably there’s lots of tools of the trade (which we keep neatly in our empty Diptique candles, obvs) that helps make applying all these products a whole lot easier. Whilst many like to apply foundation with their hands we love to use the classic Mac (187 stipling face brush), it uses less product and is excellent at blending. For bronzer we are a little obsessed with Bobbi Brown’s bronzer brush. Its rounded head makes blending really easy and avoids any hint of looking tangoed!
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BLUSH
We’re firm believers that a great blush can make you look instantly alive, zesty & fresh – however tired you might feel! Blushers are definitely one of the products we’ve tested the most of over the years…and for some reason it’s really hard to find one you really love. But we think we’ve got there – finally! Sarah is a recent convert to Delilah’s blush (colour clementine) especially in the summer months. It’s little bit more peachy than she usually wears but there’s something about it that gives those cheeks a lift when you need it the most. Philippa’s stayed true to Nars blusher (colour amour) for a really long time and is always asked what blusher she uses! So she must be on to a goodun! Our top tip – always apply your blusher BEFORE bronzing. Use the bronzer to blend in the blusher for a super natural look.
We’re quite new to contouring and it’s not something we do on a daily basis (sometimes when we shoot our blog pics it’s nice to have a little extra cheekbone action!) but we absolutely love Charlotte Tilbury filmstar bronze & glow palette along with the powder & sculpt brush. (Top tip – if you’re going to invest in the palette the brush is worth buying too as it is the best for application – plus we religiously watch her YouTube tutorials on how to apply!) We’ve yet to find a duo that even competes with this, it’s definitely a bit of a splurge but it actually lasts a long time as well. Even when we don’t want to go the whole hog with contouring, we often just swish a layer of the shimmer over our blush for that extra glow. Having both come back from recent trips and with a bit of a tan we’re also loving Nars’ illumination in Orgasm it’s great on the cheekbones as a highlighter as well as on tips of shoulders & collar bones on holiday.
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EYES
Oh the eyes – where would we be without our cat eyes we wonder?! It’s our thing, we don’t feel ourselves without our feline flicks and don’t you all know it?!
Sarah is a Rimmel eyeliner girl at heart (exaggerate liquid liner in black), she’s never found anything to compare it to and better still it’s just £5.29. Essentially it’s just a felt tip pen, in a pot that you paint on… It’s so easy to use, it literally glides on and doesn’t budge all day. Whilst Philippa can appreciate the love of the Rimmel liner she’s a Tom Ford (eye defining pen in black) girl through and through and prefers the precision of a thinner nib. What’s great about the Tom Ford liner is that there’s a thin and thick end, great for day to night application when you need a bit on wing action!
For a kohl liner which we both use on the lower lashes, Sarah is a fan of Charlotte Tilbury’s pencil (colour Barbarella brown) and Philippa loves Mac’s kohl pencil (colour teddy). We both prefer to use a brown liner in the day as it feels a little softer, but for the night we love Mac’s kohl pencil in black (colour Feline.)
On our eyebrows we love the Hourglass Arch Brow pencil (Philippa wears soft brunette & Sarah likes warm brunette) It combines powder, pencil and wax and literally fills, shapes and holds in one. We love that there’s a brush at the end as well perfect for taming pre application!
As for mascaras; Philippa has been loyal to Maxfactor’s masterpiece mascara in black for years. It was recommended to her by a top makeup artist and is a definite trade secret amongst the make up world. It’s defines, thickens and lengthens in one and never goes clumpy. Sarah’s Tom Ford extreme mascara in black is another newbie to her makeup bag but she’s been so impressed with it. The brush is really chunky giving loads of volume as well as lengthening at the same time.
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LIPS
Now in case you hadn’t come to realise…we have a little obsession with nude lips. We love them all, pinky shades, beigey tones as well as everything in between. Throughout the years we’ve amassed a pretty epic collection…
Would you believe it if we said there are different nudes for different occasions?!
Here’s our breakdown of THE best nude lips:
Kate Moss for Rimmel nude – 55 & 56 – we are so impressed with this range for Rimmel, (we actually have every shade!) and they are such good price points, just £5.50! Number 55 is literally the colour of our lips – but better! (in stores today)
Tom Ford – Spanish Pink this was Philippa’s wedding lipstick and has such a feel good factor when she wears it. It is a pinkier nude with the most amazing texture and depth of colour.
Charlotte Tilbury – Stoned Rose – this is a little darker than our usual nudes but it’s great for holiday when your nudes seem a little too pale. Here’s our top tip…wear a bit under your normal nude when you’re tanned to balance out those paler tones.
Tom Ford – Very Victoria – a few months back we had our makeup done by Tom Ford for the British Fashion Awards and this was recommended to us as the nude of all nudes. The makeupartist wasn’t wrong, we love this glossy nude!
Charlotte Tilbury – B*itch Perfect – our go to everyday nude that we have to replace every few months as we use it so much! Plus we’re pretty sure the colour suits everyone…
Kate Moss for Rimmel – colour 43 – one of the original nudes in Kate Moss’s collection for Rimmel and a great colour. All the shades are very similar in tone but this one is our favourite and has a slightly peachy feel to it.
As for lip liners, we both switch between two faves, Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk and the Estee Edit’s The Barest Contour Lip Liner depending on our mood! Both are barely there lip colours that enhance your natural lips plus help lipstick last a lot longer. If you don’t use a liner then give either of these a whirl, we think you will <3.
JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content.Let us know any makeup products we’re missing from our makeup bags and if there are any must-haves we should try!
We hop you enjoyed the post,
S & P x