My 2015 Beauty Favourites - Chads

Happy New Years! It's been a while since I last wrote a blog post.. I've just been so busy with work and spending time with friends and family over the holidays. But anyways, I'm back ♥.

I've been meaning to do my 2015 favourites for a while now, and I guess it's better late than never? So here are the beauty products I loved & reached out for the most in 2015 (they aren't in any particular order):

NARS All day Luminious Weightless Foundation:

 I'll admit, when I first bought this foundation from John Lewis (with high expectations) I wasn't really fond of it. The foundation would look flawless for the first 3 hours, but after that I would look extremely oily and I also found that the product really clung to my dry patches.. so I stored it in the back of my makeup drawers for a while. It was only after I really took a good look at my skin care routine and changed it up according to my skin type I realised that the only reason the foundation wasn't working on me was because of lack of skin prep! This foundation honestly looks so beautiful on the skin if you exfoliate and moisturise your skin well. So since I fixed that issue, it's been my most used foundation. It's easy to blend, light weight and has medium to high coverage, without looking cakey.

Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer:

I was introduced to this concealer by one of my close friends ♥ and I've fallen in love. I really wish I had tried this concealer sooner. The concealer is so pigmented but very light in consistency and blends flawlessly with a damp beauty blender.

 Highlighters:

There was a massive craze over highlighting & strobing in 2015 and I loved every bit of it.

Although so so many good highlighters were released last year, I controlled myself and only bought a few which I pretty much use on most days. My go-to highlighter which I reached out  for most on special occasions or evenings out was The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter - which I always receive compliments on. I use it mostly on my cheekbones and brow bone. 

Another highlighter which I absolutely love is the Topshop Horizon highlighter. It gives such a soft and glowy finish.

Palettes:

1: Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit: 
I received this as a birthday gift and since then I have pretty much used this everyday other day through summer to winter.
I love using 'Fawn' as a contour shade as it's quite cool in comparison to other contour shades so it's perfect for creating the illusion of 'natural' contours on the face. 'Banana' is also another favourite and I use this most days just to set my concealer and brighten the under eye and high points of my face. 

2: Urban Decay Naked Eyeshadow Palette:
The first and original Naked palette was one of my first high-end beauty purchases ever, and it will always hold a special place in my heart. I have several other eyeshadow palettes but to date this is my favourite and I always recommend this to others. There's a large variety of colours which can be used to create both subtle everyday looks or dramatic smokey eyes. I love how pigmented the colours are and the fall-out isn't bad either. I've found myself using this palette for so many occasions, especially to weddings and parties. 

Ardell Demi Wispies:

I purchase these lashes online from www.falseeyelashes.co.uk - £10.99 for a pack of 4 + free delivery :)
They are hands down my favourite and most worn lashes as they're perfect for those days where you want to dress up a bit more but still stay pretty casual and effortless. The lashes are easy to apply, look natural and are also comfortable. 

Lip Products:

1: Liquid Lipsticks:
Liquid lipsticks were one of my 2015 obsessions, especially the peachy, mauve and brown shades. My favourites out of the ones I own would definitely be:

a) Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in 'Lolita' - a rosey brown colour.

b) Sleek Matte Me 'Birthday Suit' - this shade is very similar to MACs 'velvet teddy' lipstick. On the lips it's a mauvey dusty rose colour, light enough to be considered a nude lippy, but one which doesn't wash me out or look like I have '"foundation lips".

c) LA Girl Matte Flat Finish Pigment Gloss in 'Fleur' - a neutral peach shade: which looks especially ahh-mazing  if you have yellow/olive/golden undertones in your skin.

I picked these 3 because they last super long, don't dry out my lips, aren't sticky and the colours really compliment my skin tone. 

2: MAC Lipsticks: 

2015 was the year I went a bit MAC crazy and started buying MAC lipsticks pretty much every month. My favourite formula's are definitely Satin & Matte finish. The lipstick shades which I used almost every day and are basically almost finished are Twig & Taupe. You can't really go wrong with these two colours and they look good on pretty much all skin tones. 

Beauty Blender:

I never really understood the hype around this tool until I used it. Before, I would always use my real techniques buffing brush or the real techniques 'miracle complexion sponge' but I just can't go back. The beauty blender just effortlessly blends the foundation and concealer on to my skin so flawlessly, especially when damp, and I even use it to bake and set my under eyes.


Clarisonic Mia II:

So, a lot of people probably don't know, but at the start of 2015 my skin went through a terrible hormonal breakout which lasted for over almost a year. After a lot of research I decided to invest in a Clarisonic. I got the Mia 2 model because it was the best option for acne and I am so grateful for purchasing this. After a 2 months of using this religiously every night with my chosen cleanser, my skin cleared up dramatically and it really helped keep my skin clear of cystic acne and white heads. Now I only use it about 2-3 times a week on days I wear heavy makeup, just to make sure my skin has been cleaned thoroughly.

I ordered mine from feelunique.com - they usually have offers where you can get 20-25% off. 

Skincare:

I discovered La Roche-Posay, a French brand, last year. I absolutely love their 
1) Effaclar Duo [+] - which I use every day and most nights. It acts as both primer and moisturiser on my skin. This cream has helped fade most of the blemishes and acne scars on my face, controlled my oily T-zone and kept dry skin at bay. 
2) Serozinc Spray - I use this as a toner before my moisturiser, as a face mist throughout the day to hydrate my face and it also soothes the skin and reduces redness after threading.

Another great brand is Nip + Fab. I use their Glycolic Fix Cleanser and Glycolic Fix Exfoliating Facial Pads every other day and they have both helped lighten blemishes, brighten my skin and smooth the appearance of my skin.

Almond Oil:

Yes, I know coconut has been all the rage last year, but to be honest I still stuck to my trusty almond oil. I use this stuff as a body moisturiser almost everyday and on my hair at least once a week. I like that it is non-scented and feels pretty light and non-sticky on the skin. Using this long-term, I've noticed that skin has improved in appearance, stretch marks are lighter and my skin is softer also. I don't even bother wasting money on buying all the nice fruity smelling fancy body moisturisers any more as this does the job.

What were your beauty favourites of the year? For 2016, I really want to branch out and try out more different products and brands and try out different makeup looks for myself.. So let me know if you have any recommendations :)

Oh and keep an eye out for Ishy's post, her 2015 favourites will up on the blog soon as well.

- Chads x