My Work Face

Working with children definitely isn't one of the most glamorous jobs therefore minimal make up is 100% acceptable. Also having to be up early and late home means there's not much time to apply any decent make up. Therefore minimal is better especially for my job role and to be fair that's fine with me! It can only be a slight problem when my skin decides to play up and this light base is not enough to cover my spots.

I've been using these four products for work for the past month or so and it hasn't totally failed me yet. Yes I've had those days when spots aren't fully covered and a spot gets bigger throughout the day but it's been a pretty fool proof make up routine. I moisturise my skin first so balance out my oily parts and dry parts of my skin. Then I go on and apply the L'Oreal CC Cream for Anti-Redness using my fingers. This comes out pretty dark but I simply just keep blending it in with my fingers until it's all blended and looks ok. If I have any spots or areas I want to cover more then I just apply a small amount more on those and blend it in again. This is such an easy product to use which means quick application which is just what I'm after.

Next I will set that into place using my Bourjois Healthy Balance powder which is one of my all time favourite powders. It doesn't leave your skin looking cakey or powdery which is always a winner. I then go onto brows and use the Rimmel Brow This Way brow gel. This isn't my favourite brow gel I've ever used simply because of the large brush but the actual product inside is good. A brow gel for me is the quickest way to fill in my brows, a few brushes through and you're done, it really is that simple.

The final step is to curl my lashes, I don't bother with mascara on a work day as I'm such a perfectionist when it comes to my eyelashes. It can take me a long time to be ok with how my eyelashes look so on a work day I simply just curl them with this heated eyelash curler from eBay and be done with it. I have quite long eyelashes but they are quite straight so curling them just opens up my eyes a little more.

There you have it, my simple four product work face when you literally have no time and don't have to look glamorous. Let me know your simple work face routine if you're in the same boat as me with time etc. and leave a link if you've posted about it on your blog below, I'd love to have a read :-)

Rimmel Brow This Way Brow Styling Gel

Fairly recently there have been a few offerings on the high street of these brow styling gels. I have also tried the Maybelline brow drama offering which you can find here. I was really impressed with the Maybelline brow gel so when this version came out from Rimmel I really wanted to get my hands on it. The price was really appealing as well and I think I only paid £2.99 for this product which is a bargain.

The first thing that struck me was the brush, it's actually quite a large brush for eyebrows so was curious to see how this would work on my eye brows. The packaging is obviously pretty cheap and nothing spectacular but that's clearly down to the price. This product also comes in a few various shades which therefore appeals to all different hair shades.

On application I did find it slightly hard to not get this product on just my eye brows. I think due to the size and shape of the brush it's quite difficult to not get it on the skin around the eye brow. This is quite an annoying factor and in comparison to the Maybelline offering, the brush is so much better on the Maybelline version. Although saying that one down side, the rest of the product is actually pretty good. The formula is great and doesn't make your eye brows straw like which is always a bonus. If I'm in a rush then this product is perfect, just a couple of swipes and done. This product gives off plenty of colour so for those natural days there is no need for any other product underneath, for me. If you're looking for a night out product then this is great for putting over the top of another eye pencil.

Overall this is a great offering from Rimmel and perfect if you are on a budget. Again if I was to choose between the two offerings from Maybelline and Rimmel then I am leaning more towards the Maybelline brow drama, simply due to the brush provided. Although that definitely doesn't mean I am against this Rimmel one and will continue to use it up.

Have you tried any brow gels? Which ones are your favourites?

Maybelline Brow Drama

The last eyebrow product I spoke and raved about was Soap and Glory's Archery brow pen, I absolutely love the product and still do don't get me wrong. But those days when you're in a hurry for work and literally just want a slight filling in of your eyebrows then this product is definitely for you. It's such an effortlessly easy product to use that I can't not rave about it.

As you can see from the pictures the packaging is nothing special just black plastic but nice and compact for you if you travel a lot. It's just a simple round brush, exactly like a mascara basically, and it claims to sculpt your eyebrows into place whilst giving them colour and filling them in. I mean what more do you want with a eyebrow mascara? You want a nice cheap product too? Then this is definitely it, I can't remember the exact price but it definitely retails for under £5, bargain.

The shape of the brush is different, it has a round head at the end which did take me a while to get used to but once I did it's so much easier and saves you from getting the coloured mascara anywhere but on your eyebrows. I just simply swipe this through my eyebrows a few times, setting them in place and applying the right amount of colour I want through them. Honestly it takes no time at all to fill them in and make them look as if you've spent more time on them than you actually have, who's to know?

It keeps my eyebrows in place all day there's no question about that. If you're after more of a night time look from your day time brows then I would simply just swipe this through my eyebrows a few more times. It really does build up the colour intensity and simply just makes them more stand out and defined, something I don't need during the day but it's nice to know that you can use the same product to create a different look.

This is definitely my go to eye brow product for those days when I'm in a rush or am not feeling the fuller eyebrow look. It's so easy to use and quick! Have you tried this product? What's your favourite brow product? Hope you've all had a lovely weekend :-)

W7 Style Eyes Brow and Lash Gel

What a beautiful bank holiday weekend and yet again I worked throughout it all and the nasty flu seems to be going around my family recently and I seem to be the one next in line! Being at work at the same time is pretty darn naff so I apologise for the lack of posts and tweets (if you follow me on Twitter then you'll know, if not then you can follow me @natalieellis23) So onto slightly more exciting things, I recently made an order from Fragrance Direct which you may have seen in my last post so I've been using the products included to get up some new reviews for you ladies and here's the first one!

I seem to have been using this product the most so far so thought this would be the best one to review first as I have been able to get an all round feel for this product. I literally have been using this product every day and am really enjoying it. It's the first brow gel that I've ever tried so I don't have anything to compare it too but ever since filling in my eyebrows until now I had never even thought to use a brow gel. But when browsing the website I thought I'd give it a whirl.

It's literally like the simplest beauty product to use and it only takes a few seconds to apply, so why have I not used this before? I hate plucking my eyebrows especially those pesky ones that overnight poke out straight from your face so this product is perfect for setting them back into place. Because lets face it, we don't want to lose all our eyebrows now do we. So yes this product is simple, it sets your eyebrows in place and keeps the pesky ones at bay for the whole day (I'm a poet and I didn't even know it, sorry it had to be said haha) It also doesn't make my eyebrows feel or look like straw which was the one thing I was slightly worried about. Although quite a lot of product comes out on the brush I tend to take a little off the brush before I apply and it's perfect.

I have also been applying this before I apply my normal mascara on my lashes. I can't say I've noticed much of a difference apart from the application of my normal mascara, it just applies much more smoothly and it isn't any heavier on the eyes. It's the perfect product for a measly price of £1.99 and I really cannot pick one bad thing out about this product.

Have you tried any brow gels? I'd love to know your thoughts on them. Hope you've all had a lovely bank holiday weekend :)