Clean Brushes!

Hello everybody!

So I literally just finished cleaning ALL of my makeup brushes and let me be the first to say that that was long overdue. I haven't properly cleaned them in maybe over two weeks (Yikes!) and they were just looking so sad. 

One thing about makeup brushes is that you absolutely HAVE to clean them. I know that I personally forget to clean my brushes ALL the time, and that's how I know that you guys for get too. A very convincing reason to clean your brushes regularly is that, they get dirty with oils from your skin, bacteria and other residues and can make you break out like crazy! So do yourself a favour and clean your brushes weekly, if not more. Especially if you wear makeup everyday. Even if it seems like a huge faff, and you've got loads of brushes, just do it. Your skin and brushes will thank you for it. *cute cartoon voice: thank you!* imagine that being your skin and/or brushes. :)

Your  makeup brushes will collect tons of bacteria and natural oils from your skin. Think about how much bacteria is on your skin everyday, then think of that doubling every time you use your dirty brushes (ew). Another pro to my lovely list of brush cleaning pros is that it will make your brushes softer. Old makeup can make your brushes feel scratchy which isn't so nice for your skin. And LAST but certainly not least it will make your brushes last longer!! If that doesn't convince I don't know what will! We invest so much in our brushes so therefore we should take care of them.

By cleaning your brushes you are removing:

- old makeup

- dirt and debris

- dead skin cells

- bacteria

- oils

Wash your brushes at night so that they dry while you sleep and are ready to use the next day. Or you can clean them directly after using them.

So, if you're not quite sure what to use....

Try these!

• Brush Shampoo - Wet your brush in luke-warm (make sure the brush is saturated completely) water and put a small amount of shampoo onto a sponge or, your palm. Swirl the brush until its been nicely lathered up. Then rinse the brush and squish out the excess water and set it to dry on a towel.
• Olive or Almond Oil - (Best for brushes that are heavily embedded with makeup. i.e. a brush that you use for gel liner.) To cleanse with oil, apply a small amount (you don't want your brushes soaked with oil) to a paper towel and swirl your DRY brush onto the towel. You just want enough to break down the makeup. Then rinse the brush and set it to dry.
• Baby Shampoo or Dish Detergent - Wet your brush completely, again with luke-warm water, and apply your soap of choice onto a sponge and swirl until it's had a nice lather. Rinse, squish and dry.
• Those Brush Cleansers in a Spritzy Bottle! - just spritz your brushes thoroughly and swirl on a clean towel (paper or otherwise) until the makeup is gone from the brush. These are really better for an everyday sort of use. 

Here's a list of brush cleansers that I quite like.

1. Elf Brush Shampoo
2. Sephora Daily Brush Cleaner
3. MAC Cosmetics Brush Cleaner
4. Ben Nye Brush Cleaner (this was made for stage makeup so it works super well)
5. Sonia Kashuk Brush  and Sponge Cleaner

Well I hope you have decided to clean your brushes if you haven't in quite a while or even ever. Make not just your makeup brushes but YOUR SKIN happy and clean away!

Much love & Glitter

Xoxo <3

The Lékué Macaron Kit

Hello everybody!

So I received this Lékué Macaron Kit as a VERY belated christmas gift, and decided to make some macarons! And I thought I'd do a little review for you all. 

As you can see, it comes in this gorgeous packaging. On the lid it shows the contents of the kit, and when you open it the flaps are LITERALLY covered with pictures of delicious looking macarons.

The kit includes:

• A piping unit/thing
• A silicon baking mat with ridges to keep the macarons uniform and perfect in shape and size
• Six piping tips
• And a recipe a booklet! 

So here we go, into the nitty gritty. 

First off, I love that the kit includes a recipe booklet. It has wonderful recipes, and the first one is a basic macaron recipe which you can really customize to your hearts content. It also has recipes for Wasabi Macarons with Pistachio Filling, Tiramisu Macarons, Rose Macarons with Earl Grey Cream, Chocolate Macarons with Orange Cream, and Vanilla Macarons with Dark Chocolate Cream. 

I made lavander macarons with a lavender cream cheese filling. And they were DELICIOUS. 

I absolutely love the mat, it is a life saver. It makes keeping the macarons nice and uniform. You can put the mat directly on the rack in the oven, although It is silicon and a bit wobbly if put directly on rack; I put it on a baking sheet for more stability. I would recommend doing this. 

Next, the piping unit. Now I call it a unit because I'm not really sure what to call it.  This is the only part of the kit that I was disappointed in. :( To use, you take off the top and scoop in the batter and pipe away! I found the piping unit/pouch/circle/sphere-thing very difficult to use. It was a full of batter and and I had to apply so much pressure to get out enough batter for just ONE circle on the mat. not only that but the batter would ooze out where the tip attaches to the unit, and a bit where the lid screws on. Not so much fun. My wrists were very sore after piping, and it was quite difficult to clean afterwards. It's definitely easier to pipe something that isn't as dense as macaron batter, but still easier use a piping bag.

All in all, I would (unfortunately) not recommend this kit. Mainly because the piping unit was SO difficult to use. I loved everything else about it. The best part about the entire kit is really and truly the mat, because it has the ridges to keep the batter from oozing all together, so your macarons will turn out perfect every time. 

Even though this kit isn't great there are others out there that you can use, OR you could go ahead and just use parchment and a baking sheet with a piping bag. And even then you don't need a piping bag, all you really need a big zip top bag and to cut a 1cm opening ( not until you've filled the bag) in one of the corners and there you have a homemade piping bag! Macarons aren't really that hard to make, they're just a bit tedious. And the best part is that you can make them for less than how much you would pay in a shop. 

So, I hope this has inspired you to make some macarons yourself! 

Much love & Glitter

xoxo <3

Five Minute Makeup!

Hello everybody!

Today I'm going to share my five minute makeup! Yes you read that right, only five minutes. 

I've found myself running out of the house a bit rushed as of late and I've only had so much time for make up. So here's my five minute make-up routine for you all!

First apply some concealer under your eyes to conceal any dark circles and puffiness. I'm using the Garnier Nutrisse, anti-dark circle roller, it's just like their anti-puff eye roller but with concealer! I'm just rolling it three to four times under my eyes and patting it in with my C-shaped foundation brush.

Next I'm using my boi-ing concealer from Benefit Cosmetics to cover any blemishes I might have. I absolutely LOVE this concealer. It covers everything! It is a higher end concealer, but it is amazing. Feel free to use whatever you have! Just pat in your concealer with your fingers.

Now I'm going to apply a BB cream, I am going to use the Garnier BB Cream in shade light medium. If you can't find this one, I also like the maybelline BB Cream, or if you prefer a high end option the Dior BB Cream is really nice and has SPF 30, which is quite rare to find in BB creams.
Another nice thing about BB cream is that you don't need brush to apply it! Just apply your BB Cream with your fingers evenly, also make sure to go just below your jaw line so you don't get that weird shadow, that let's people know you're wearing foundation.

To add a bit of colour to my face I'm using a e.l.f. cheek stain/highlight in a shade called persimmon. It's a really nice peachy pink, that just add a gorgeous warm, peachy glow. It's great if you just want something simple or understated. 

Just do two brief swipes on the apples of your cheeks (smile, and where your cheeks rise and those are the apples!) and rub it in with your fingers in a circular motion.

EYE TIME!
I'm using my Pixi Endlessly Silky Eye Pen in Black Cocoa, it's a really nice dark brown. Just line your upper lash line as close to you lash line as you can. You can also smudge it a bit for a slightly smokey effect if you like.

Next I'm using my Maybelline the Falsies Volume Express mascara, in Black Drama. I am IN LOVE with this mascara. I wasn't really that thrilled at first, but then I used it again and it's just magnificent. It keeps my lashes curled and gives just the right amount of volume and lengthening.

And LASTLY I'm just going to powder my T-zone with my Laura Mercier mineral powder, you can use whatever you have. if you are using a loose mineral powder there should be some powder residue  in the lid and that is all you need, just swirl your powder brush in the lid and brush across you forehead, nose, and chin.

Just add a bit of any kind of lip product you like and that's it! You're done! Makeup done in five minutes.

I hope you enjoyed my five minute makeup.
Much love & Glitter
xoxo <3

Finals Week Pick-Me/You-Up

Hello everybody!

So today marks the beginning my schools mid-year finals. And I thought what better way to make this week a little bit better than by making chocolate chip cookies! XD YUMMMM 

Right about now is when I'm feeling the pressure, and I know that all I need to do, is relax, and stop freaking out. And the best way to de-stress and relax is to make some chocolate chip cookies. And maybe eat some too ;)

This is my favourite chocolate chip recipe, in fact it's my go to recipe. So I thought I'd share it with all if you!

Now, this recipe is in metric measurements, I find these are more accurate, but it can easily be converted to US Standard. But, if you have a food scale then there's no need to convert!

Kendallina's Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Recipe-

225g of plain all-purpose flour

80g soft light brown sugar

80g of granulated (caster) sugar

150g of softened salted butter

1 large egg

2 tsp of vanilla

1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

1/4 tsp of salt

150-200g of plain chocolate chips to your liking.

Makes about 50 cookies

Method-

Preheat oven to 375F (190C)

Cream the butter and sugars together until fluffy.

Then add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined.

Sieve in flour, bicarbonate 

(baking soda), salt and add chocolate and combine.

Scoop table spoonfuls of dough well apart (aprox. 2in or 5cm) and bake for 9-10 mins.

Allow to firm on baking sheet then transfer to cooling rack and enjoy!

Whether your taking finals or not, or you're just having a stressful day or week nothing makes you feel better than a nice warm, homemade, chocolate chip cookie.  I hope this has made your week a little bit better! I know it's done mine. :)

Much love & Glitter

xoxo <3

SOTD(shoes of the day?)

Hello everybody!

So I got these lovely burgundy patent leather t-bars (or t-straps) with gold buckles on  for Christmas and I am just loving them to death. These are just perfect for autumn and winter and I think they look really cute with socks and tights and kind of remind me of elementary/primary school. They're a sort of reminiscent pair of shoes from a simpler time in life. 

I thought these are just so lovely and I can't not share them.

These were purchased from topshop and the socks are from h&m

Much love & Glitter

xoxo <3

Beauty Haul

Hello everybody!

So over the weekend I made a little trip to a little shop known as Sephora... I went with the remainder of my Christmas money in, hand and let's just say I don't have that money anymore. I also received a target gift card, for a lovely 60$ (thanks uncle robert and aunt leslyn!) and that also went to some cosmetic purchases...

The first two items from Sephora are the boi-ing concealer from benefit, and the bobbi brown tone corrector. 

The concealer covers everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. It's advertised as an industrial strength concealer. And it's fantastic and doesn't crease, provides great coverage and I definitely recommend this product. 

The tone corrector from bobbi brown, is perfect for covering up dark spots, skins discolorations, bruises, etc. It is magic in a pot. I bought it primarily because I have dark skin discolorations below my temples and just plain concealer wasn't doing the trick. So I swapped to a combination of the time corrector then covered by concealer, and you would never know I had skin discolorations. I highly, highly recommend these products. 

Then next things I picked up were some nail polishes/paints/lacquers/varnishes! 

I bought the essie nail paints from target and I just love them, and think that they're perfect for autumn/winter. The darker shade (carry on) I will primarily wear in autumn/winter while the lighter one (sand tropez) can be worn all year round since it a lovely beige shade. 

The middle shade I am currently sporting on my nails I bought at sephora and it is gorgeous! It's their Formula X line of nail paints and I think it's called perfection(?) not totally sure. But it looks fantastic for autumn and winter. I am so in love all three shades!

These are the last three things I got from sephora. 

I bought the Naked Skin liquid foundation by Urban Decay in shade 4.0, and it is brilliant, it's light and it barely feels like you're wearing foundation made of clouds. 

I also bought a NARS blusher in the shade Gaiety, and it's just so pretty! It's gives you this slightly 'I've been out in the cold' rosiness that just look gorgeous, it's a really nice matte blusher. 

And I also got a small pot of rose radiance by bare minerals which came in a set my Mum bought and she gave it to me, because she already has a bigger version. It's a beautiful mineral blusher with gold flecks in, that just gives you a warm glow. Perfect for winter or all year round if you fancy.

Here are the two pieces of eye makeup that I purchased at Target, mascara and a new eye pencil. 

I bought the falsies volume express mascara by maybelline which I haven't tried yet but I've been wanting too for quite some time now. A lot of people swear by it so I hope it lives up to it's reputation! 

The eye pencil I bought is a pixi endlessly silky eye pencil in black cocoa, and I kid you not, it is THE best eye liner I have ever used. I only ever used to use the 24/7 glide on eye pencil by urban decay, I used to swear by it. But no longer! The pixi endlessly silky eye pencil is even better (I didn't even know that was possible) and a nice little bonus is that it's only 12$. So go and buy yourself a nice new eye pencil!

And last but certainly not least my lip products! 

The first is a Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in shade 477 Black Cherry, and it's a gorgeous dark plum colour optimal for autumn/winter, but an also be worn all year round. I wore it today and got many a compliment. :) 

The next is a Revlon lip butter, I got a new one! This one is shade 027 Juicy Papaya and it's a really nice peachy color. It's perfect for spring and summer or if you want to bring a little pop of color to your winter makeup/apparel. I love the lip butters, because they're a perfect cross between a tinted balm and a lipstick, ultra moisturizing, with lots of pigment. They are amazing. 

And lastly a maybelline baby lips, lip balm in quenched SPF 20. It's just a nice clear balm to wear underneath my lipsticks and I know so many people who raved about and love these balms, but after using it all week, I'm honestly a little underwhelmed. :/ Don't get me wrong it's great and it does feel ultra sleek and smooth when it goes on, and its quite moisturizing  which is super lovely. But I think it was a bit too hyped up.

I will leave links below to where you can purchase everything I have mentioned above. I hope you have enjoyed, and found something new to try!

Much love & Glitter

xoxo <3

Boi-ing Concealer
http://www.sephora.com/product/productDetail.jsp?keyword=BENEFIT%20COSMETICS%20Boi-ing%20P1273&skuId=1073980&productId=P1273&_requestid=161811

Bobbi Brown Corrector
http://www.sephora.com/corrector-P270555?skuId=1317650

Essie Nail Polishes
http://www.ulta.com/ulta/browse/productDetail.jsp?productId=xlsImpprod1320170&skuId=2228359&_requestid=439191

http://www.ulta.com/ulta/browse/productDetail.jsp?productId=xlsImpprod1320170&skuId=2236277&_requestid=439352

Formula X nail polish
http://www.sephora.com/new-neutrals-P382113?skuId=1547041&icid2=FormulaX_LP_Colors_carousel_P382113_image

Foundation
http://www.sephora.com/naked-weightless-ultra-definition-liquid-makeup-P374830?skuId=1434919

Bare Minerales All Over Face Color
http://www.sephora.com/bareminerals-all-over-face-color-P61005?skuId=1073113

NARS Blusher
http://www.sephora.com/blush-P2855?skuId=248930

Maybelline The Falsies Mascara
http://www.target.com/p/maybelline-volum-express-the-falsies-mascara/-/A-12404736#prodSlot=medium_1_2&term=maybelline+the+falsies
(this can also be purchased at most drug stores)

Pixi Endlessly Silky Eyeliner
http://www.target.com/p/pixi-endless-silky-eye-pen/-/A-13962977#prodSlot=medium_1_20&term=pixi+

Revlon Lip Butter
http://www.target.com/p/revlon-colorburst-lip-butter/-/A-14305587#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=juicy+papaya+lip+butter
(can also be purchased at most drug stores)

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Stick
http://www.target.com/p/revlon-super-lustrous-lipstick/-/A-12290849#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=black+cherry+revlon+lip+stick
(can also be purchased at most drug stores)

Maybelline Baby Lips
http://www.target.com/p/maybelline-baby-lips-moisturizing-lip-balm-0-15-oz/-/A-13521056#prodSlot=medium_1_2&term=baby+lips
(can also be purchased at most drug stores)

Follow Me on Bloglovin'!

Hey there glitter bugs!

I've just created a bloglovin account so you can follow me there too!

What is bloglovin you ask? Bloglovin is a fantastic website where you can read all of your favorite blogs in one place. :) You can follow me there by clicking on the 'follow Kendallina beauty on Bloglovin' right underneath the blogger subscribe button, or you can click on the link below!

Much love & Glitter
xoxo <3

PS. Bloglovin also has mobile app for the iPhone which you can download in the app store, so you can read your favorite blogs on the go! Happy reading. :)

Here's a screenshot from the mobile app!

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11519101/?claim=vtnmqj3tknh">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

My Top Ten Favourite Lip Products

Hey there Glitterbugs!

I went through a bunch of my lip products and plucked out my top ten favourites, and thought I would share. And these are by no means in any specific order. And I hope that you all enjoy and find something new!

I have also uploaded a video for this post on my YouTube channel which you can get to in the links box in the sidebar. :)

The first product (these are going from right to left) is the fresh SUGAR lip treatment that is just plain clear, it has SPF 15 which is quite nice and keeps your lips soft and supple. 

Can be purchased at Sephora for $22.50.

The second is the Cover Girl Natureluxe Gloss Balm in shade 230 which is Coral. It's really nice tinted lip balm that has mango butter in it, and it is fantastic. By the way that's my second one :) This can be purchased at most drug stores for about $7.59

The third is the Revlon Lip Butter in shade 015 Tutti Fruitti this moisturizes like a lip balm but applies color like a lipstick. It comes in a multitude of clours and is quite nice. This can also be purchased at most drug stores for $6.49.

The fourth is No.7 Poppy King in Number Three Glamour it's a quite lovely neutral pink cream lipstick. It's great for all year round and goes with almost everything. This can be purchased at Target for $9.99 and at Boots for I'm not sure how much because I live in America...

The fifth is a Sephora brand lipstick in Sexy Game, it's perfect for autumn/winter (although I wear it all the time) and is a lovely berry shade. And this can be purchased at Sephora for $12.50.

The sixth is an Urban Decay Super-Saturated High Gloss Color in Fbomb it's a bright orangey red that looks quite like a candy apple. Great for really all the time, or maybe just special occasion ;) It can be purchased at Sephora for $19.00

The seventh and eighth are Stila Lip Glaze Sticks in shades Fruit punch and Peach. These are really nice lip glosses, although the lip glaze sticks can be quite sticky and tacky, so be careful! They can be purchased at Urban Outfitters in a 5 pack for $18.00 and I can't find these at Sephora or Ulta...hmmmm I did buy these quite a long time ago *cough two years cough cough*

The ninth is a Buxom Lips plumping gloss in Bambi, which unfortunately they don't make anymore :(. BUT! A similar shade that you can get is the Buxom Full-Bodied Lip Gloss in YOW for $19.00 from Sephora. It's a really pretty pearlescent pink, with plumping qualities.

And the last is a Laura Mercier Lip Stain in Mulberry. It looks quite dark but goes on much lighter and it's really nice for autumn/winter and spring as well. But I mean you could definitely wear it year round. And it can be purchased from lauramervier.com for $20.00

(Me wearing Sexy Game it's my current go-to lipstick. What sort of face am I making?) 

Hope you all enjoyed this post!

Cheers!

Much love & Glitter

xoxo <3

PS. Happy New Year!