{Look Good, Feel Good}

At the weekend I asked my Twitter followers for some advice on under eye concealers. The lack of sleep is starting to take it's toll, and the current product I use just isn't good enough (Lancome Teint Miracle)! The consensus seemed to be Bobbi Brown, so I hit the shops, but unfortunately there wasn't a Bobbie Brown concession at the department store so I ended up getting a MAC concealer instead (Pro Longwear Concealer). So far so good and I'm impressed with my choice. Coverage is good, it doesn't feel too thick on my skin and it lasts the day too.

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer

I thought I'd share a few of my other make-up essentials. I've mentioned before my mum's mantra of 'look good, feel good' and I do believe that a bit of make up can do wonders for my mood & confidence level! A year ago I had a make-up lesson with a friend who is a MAC make-up artist, and I'm still using a number of the products that she recommended.

My current foundation of choice is MAC Studio Fix Fluid. For a while I was using Bare Minerals but my skin has become a bit spotty of late (stress I think!) and so I needed better coverage. When I have a night out I team this with a primer so it lasts longer.

Here are my fav eyeshadow colours that I layer up for a smokey-ish neutral eye:

MAC Shroom

MAC Satin Taupe

MAC Black Tied (black w/ silver sparkle)

My last essential product is mascara. I currently use Estee Lauder Double Wear, on the basis of my friend's recommendation. I'm less convinced with this product now than a year ago when I first tried it. I may revert back to the mascara I used to use - Chanel Inimitable. For night's out I've been applying strip false eyelashes from Sally Salon Services and I love the effect it has. I wish I could achieve a more dramatic look for day-to-day with mascara - suggestions anyone?

BTW, for those of you in Glasgow - there is a new MAC counter at Debenhams in Silverburn!

{My Capsule Wardrobe - Outerwear}

Here's the lowdown on my outerwear. I have a few coats in a wardrobe in my hall, and at the moment I have one on my coat stand in the hallway by the door. Seeing as it's winter, my current coat of choice is my new North Face parka. I love it. It was very expensive, but I see it as an investment and it will last me for years and years. It's very cosy and is fully waterproof - perfect for the cold weather we get here! Thank you to @Scottish_Mum for the recommendation.

North Face Arctic Parka

I also have two showerproof macs. They are both casual jackets that I throw on over my day-to-day clothes when the weather is a bit warmer for popping out on the nursery run or to the shops. I have a beige coloured mac from Joules that I picked up in their sale a few years ago and I have a black mac from M&S. I bought the black mac just after my son was born and I've got a lot of use out of it so far. It's still in great condition, and it can be chucked in the washing machine which is really handy.

Of all my coats, I wear my parka and two showerproof macs the most. These have hoods so they're great when I'm out pushing the double buggy round the local shops... the Glasgow weather is notoriously unpredictable and so a hood is essential in my eyes as it would be very difficult to push a buggy and hold an umbrella!

I have a few other coats and jackets that I haven't worn for a while now, mainly because they didn't fit me when I was pregnant or they don't have hoods so are useless for when I'm out with the buggy (which is most of the time!).

I have a fab mustard mac from M&S which I used to wear literally all the time... with jeans during the day, over dresses at night! I also have a beige mac with a belt from Next. These are both smarter than my showerproof macs, but due to the lack of hood I rarely wear them but I will dig them out in the summer months (please let us have some nice weather next year!).

My mustard mac from M&S (me as a brunette!)

I bought a black leather short jacket from Mango pre-babies which I wore a lot for nights out clubbing but I've not been able to fit into it in ages...however guess what, it fits me again! Don't really have nights out anymore though!!

Black leather jacket from Mango (Note to self, I look much better with a fringe!!)

I also have a cream leather short jacket from Costco which is possibly 15 years old now and still going strong! My mum bought it for my little sister and I ended up with it for some reason. I can't remember the last time I wore it, but I can't seem to part with it.

My denim jacket from Oasis is possibly 15 years old too! My hubby thought it was hilarious that I still had my old denim jacket, but it still fits me and a denim jacket is a denim jacket. I've not worn it in years, but like the cream leather one I can't seem to part with it just yet!

I also have two gilets, one beige and one black, from Topshop. Again they are really old and I can't remember the last time I wore them. My sister wears the beige one occasionally when she visits, but other than that they don't get worn.

Here I am on my last day of secondary school wearing my black gilet!

I've got a long black 'Scottish Widows' type coat with a hood which I picked up at a Next sale a while ago, but the shape of it does nothing for me now and I think it is ready for the charity shop.

I'm not a hoarder (I've already put a few coats to the charity shop as they were drowning me and they didn't look flattering anymore), but sometimes I do find it difficult to be ruthless and let go. Watch out eBay - I have lots of items coming your way!!

I've heard that the rule should be if you've not worn an item in the last year then you should ditch it - is that really the case?

{Make-Up Tutorial}

A friend of mine, Shannon O'Neill, is a make-up artist for MAC and she popped over to mine last night to give my sister, Ali and The Grey House, Becky from The Olive Dragonfly and myself a make-up lesson. We were keen to find out how to do smokey eyeshadow, eyeliner and attach false eyelashes properly.

Here's the how-to for smokey eyes and I'll possibly have to come back and add some more photographs showing the different steps when I get a chance... (I should have taken more pics during the lesson, but I was too busy concentrating & taking notes!).

1. Moisturise as per your normal routine.

2. Apply primer to eyelid

I just want to add a little quote here from Shannon.... in her opinion eye primer is "definitely a must-have". It's something that I do have in my make-up bag (an Elizabeth Arden one) but I must admit that I have only used it once. I'll be using it more often now though! Shannon's recommendation is Laura Mercier.

3. Apply a nude eyeshadow all over eyelid and up to brow to set the primer. One recommendation from Shannon is MAC Shroom - a soft beige with a little shimmer.

4. Using a brush, pat on a mid-tone colour across the eyelid from the last to the crease. For brown smokey eyes, Shannon's recommendation is MAC Satin Taupe.

5. Using a blending brush, such as MAC 217, blend the line at the crease to make it less obvious.

6. Add more layers and blend until you have desired colour.

7. Using a brush, pat on the dark colour to the outer corner of the eye and pat into the eye crease. This darker shade can also be applied under the lower lashes for a more dramatic look. For black/grey smokey eyes Shannon recommends MAC Carbon for the dark colour; for brown smokey eyes her suggestion would be MAC Mystery.

8. Again, using the blending brush, blend this darker shade into the lighter one.

9. To apply eyeliner, Shannon recommends the MAC 208 Angled Brow Brush. It's meant for eyebrows but is really good for eyeliner (I can vouch for this as I borrowed Shannon's one to practice, and I'm about to buy my own one!). The eyeliner Shannon suggests (which I've also purchased today!) is Bobbie Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink. You want to apply this to the edge of the upper lashes and then you can do a flick at the side if you would like a more dramatic look.

10. Add a touch of light eyeshadow to the inner corner of your eyes and you can also apply a little under the brow bone.

11. For a dramatic look you can also apply eyeliner or pencil to the waterline.

12. Use a cotton bud with eye make-up remover or a baby wipe to touch up any areas

13. Then you can go ahead and apply your base (foundation, tinted moisturiser or whatever!) as normal.

14. Add some concealer under your eyes if needed (and I definitely need it!!)

15. Add a few coats of mascara (Shannon's recommendation is Estee Lauder Double Wear Mascara, which I'm also currently using!)

Here I am after doing my own make-up... unfortunately due to glasses you can't really see the eyeshadow... oops! Becky has some better photos so I'll post these soon.

This morning I've done a day-to-day brown smokey eye... Here are a few pics (taken with my phone so apologies for the photo quality).

After primer, nude colour (slight shimmer) and mid-tone applied.

I've applied the darkest shade to my left eye and the right eye hasn't been done yet.

As above but with eyes open so you can see the effect. (BTW I've not added under eye concealer at this point!!).

The finished look - this is me right now.

I placed an order with MAC online last night for the angled brow brush and two eyeshadow colours, so  once I receive these I'll do another post with some better photos and step-by-step guide. 

Let me know what you think... (I must add that I'm no make-up artist and the make-up in these photos has been done by myself, but hopefully with a bit of practice I'll get better at this...especially the eye liner!).