CREAM SHADOWS THAT ROCK

Cream shadows are my go-to for quick morning eye makeup, especially for school when I am running late on time. I always like to have something on my eyes, so a wash of cream shadow and a bit of definition of liner generally does it for me. I have 5 in my collection at the moment and I love them all, so here we go...

MAC BARE STUDY PAINT POT: This is the cult classic from Mac, and I bought it on a whim a while ago. Although I don't really like this alone as it is quite pale, as a champagne base for eye looks this is the bomb dot com. The formula is great and it seems to set after a short while.

MAYBELLINE 24HR COLOR TATTOO: I have three from this collection, all of which I like, but one that I love so much I have hit the bottom of the pan, and if I run out, a new one will 100% be repurchased. That is On and On Bronze as it's known in the UK, and is the perfect sheeny/shimmer bronze-brown shade which I love.
I also have Pink Gold, which I was quite a fan of in the Autumn when doing red/purple eye looks, but alone with my green eyes it doesn't look so great.
Finally is Timeless Black, which I tend to use as a liner and set down with black shadow just in case, but it is pretty longwearing. I am on the hunt for Permanent Taupe at the moment, and I have also seen 'Punk Nude' spaces in my local Boots so I hope to see them soon.

SMASHBOX LIMITLESS 15HR WEAR CREAM SHADOW 'GEMSTONE': This is the most recent addition to my collection; I bought it less than a month ago but I really do like this. It isn't a shade I would normally opt for, but I have grown to love the mauve/bronze/taupe shade. It has quite a bit of shimmer too, but with careful application things aren't overly glittery, and boy this lasts a long time on the eye.

What are your favourite cream shadows?

HIGH END EYES

When it comes to makeup, I am very much a drugstore/high street kind of a gal, but I think it's safe to say that on the high end front I have the most products which slot into the eye category. I'll talk you through what's in my collection...

Bases: For some odd reason, I love a good base, and I have 2 which I have been loving recently. For a standard primer, there is the Smashbox Photo Finish Lid Primer, which just primes the eye like a dream, and my eyeshadow wears like steel on it. For something more creamy, with a bit of shimmer, is MAC Bare Study Paint Pot. The champagne, shimmery goodness makes me weak at the knees every time I open it.

Shadows: Of course, I have the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette, which was purchased as a rather large impulse buy at the end of 2012 for my birthday - wild, I know. This is just the perfect palette with endless amounts of looks housed in a travel friendly metal tin, and only writing this has made me realise that I have been neglecting this guy a bit recently. The brush is pretty good too. Next up, I have this Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Quad (mini) which I cannot find the name of anywhere, but it contains the shades Seashell, Bronze Lustre, Truffle, and Cinnamon, and this is an eye look in a quad, which I have been reaching for a lot recently. Last on the shadow-front, we have MAC Woodwinked, which is my first MAC Shadow. This bronze, sheeny shadow is perfect all over the lid and feathered out for an effortless approach.

Liners: Strictly speaking, I'm not sure whether Stila is considered high end, but more so somewhere in between, but the quality of the Smudge Stick Liners is good enough to be classified high end in my eyes (excuse the pun). In particular, I have been using Angelfish (the taupe-nude), and Oscar Fish (the chocolate-brown shade) all over the lids and blended, and they don't budge.

Mascara: I never really thought of buying high end mascaras, because I am perfectly satisfied with the drugstore offerings, but when this Too Faced Lash Gasm mascara came in a set, I was shocked at just how good it is. It holds a curl amazingly, lengthens and adds volume, and I just love it. My only fault is that it isn't waterproof. Although, this is being rivalled in my collection by a certain Thick & Fast by Soap and Glory, so we'll see how that goes.

Yet again, another ridiculously long post, but perhaps I have enabled some purchases. Apologies..

BEST 5 OF 2013: EYES

Another 'best of 2013' again today. I promise there is one more to come after this, and that will be the lip installment, and after that, you can escape from me praising categorised products day in, day out.

First up, the ELF Single Eyeshadow in Pebble has been gaining daily wear from me this year, not only for crease definition, but this is the perfect shade for my brows, not too red, not too ashy.

A little cheat here from me, this is MAC Bare Study Paint Pot which I only just bought in the last month of the year on my birthday, but it is just simply too good not to include. It's the perfect base, or the best option to sweep over the lid in a hurry, and it even looks good with the next product on the menu...

Maybelline 24HR Color Tattoo in On and On Bronze. How many times have you hard about this guy over the year. There is even a little bit of pan-hitting going on in this now, and that goes to say something good about a cream eyeshadow. This, just over the lid, with minimal blending, is an entire eye look in a pot, and I blimmin' love the stuff. Expect more praise for this one throughout this year too.

The Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette has been my eye shadow best friend throughout the year. All the prettiest neutrals packed into a sleek palette, buttery soft on the lids, and blendable too, what more could you want? This palette is giving me the itching to buy the first offering of the Naked Palettes and maybe eyen the third... Who knows what this year holds. 

Finally, the Too Faced Lash Gasm Mascara has managed to sneak it's way into this post. I was wanting to include a mascara, and this was the best of the ones I own. My only gripe is that it isn't waterproof, but I can get used to it I guess, because this does some pretty good stuff to my lashes.

What have your lids been sporting this year?