THE DRUGSTORE FOUNDATION BATTLE

For me, when it comes to bases, I have never ventured out into the high end area, because there are so many gems hidden in the high street/drugstore. I've put my 5 current bases into categories so hopefully you can find a foundation that is the best for you.

The Natural Base: In this category, I have 3 foundations which slot in. First up, probably one of my favourite foundations ever, which is Revlon Nearly Naked, which has a light-medium somewhat buildable coverage, that looks like skin, and is slightly dewy. I only have about 1-2 uses left out of this bottle so I'm holding onto it.
Then, we have Rimmel Match Perfection, which literally makes your skin look like silk. It is yet again a light coverage but can be built up to something a little heavier if you wish. The colour is a little dark, but because it is so natural looking, once blended down the neck it looks seamless.
The Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum is one that got everyone a little bit excited when people started to rave about it. This is another light-medium coverage but I find it easy to build this one if I need a touch more coverage. I'll briefly touch on the scent - its gorgeous. Fruity goodness which makes you want to smother it all over your face.

The Glow-Getter: It's safe to say that most of you will have known which bottle was going to be slotting into this category. If you guessed the orange-lidded, shimmery stuff which goes by the name of Rimmel Wake Me Up, you get a round of applause. This has mixed reviews, and I am sitting on the fence. It is shimmery, but I have yet to experience the Edward Cullen look. The colour is what puts me off, this is about 2 shades too dark for me, and being the lightest shade in the range - it's slightly disappointing.

The One for Coverage: Revlon Colorstay. This is my third bottle of the stuff, and being someone with bad skin I like this a lot. But, nowadays in some areas (I had a crazy 'dry skin everywhere' week recently), it looks a little too heavy, but maybe I'm just not blending it enough. But with an hours wear or so, I think it fades evenly and looks a much more natural, but maintains the coverage.

Which one will you be going for? I think the Bourjois Happy Light is next on my wishlist, Not that I'm in need of a stock up...

THE BATTLE OF THE BALM STAINS

Balms, Stains, Chubby Sticks, Crayons, whatever you want to call them - they are everywhere.

I've tried my share, across 3 brands, and it would be rude not to compare them. They are all over a range of prices, starting at £3 up to £7.99, ticking everyone's boxes.

Starting off, we have the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey - £7.99. My first ever balm stain product was this, and I fell in love with it - as demonstrated by the 'nub' stage I have on this one. This is the wearable option of them all, as these balm stains are meant to be long lasting, and 'stain' the lips, a quality we all desire in a bright. I wear this at least once a week, I am in love. Lasting power wise, this does stain, but isn't drying, and fades naturally so you don't have that dodgy-lip-liner-style pout.

Second, we have the Rimmel Colour Rush in On Fire - £5.99. This is the most recent purchase of the chubby sticks. I am a little bit scared of red lips, but the cherry tone in this one is gorgeous. I have been wearing this lots on the weekends, I adore it for a bright. The texture and lasting power side of things, this is the closest I have gotten to a Revlon one, and they are £2 cheaper, not a major saving, but I will definitely be getting more. They smell nicer too, I used to be a fan of the Revlon scent...but now it has dawned on me that there is nicer.

Finally, we have the MUA Power Pout in Justify - £3. I have another one of these, but they aren't my favourite. They don't stain like the Revlon or Rimmel, as they wear off a lot and are more like a lip balm. They are quite pigmented, but not so much as the others. They taste a bit funny too, like the Sleek Pout Polish I own, the vanilla is almost a bit plastic tasting. If you want something that isn't going to break the bank, the colour selection is nice too, then these are an option if you want to try out the (not so)new lip crayon trend. 

Lip crayons play a big part in my lip product collection, and they are the easiest thing to use when you want to be quick and long lasting. After writing this, I am very tempted to run to Boots and try some other brands, Bourjois, 17, and even the Clinique Chubby Sticks if I can fork out - or maybe I can divert to the eye crayons.