CONCEALING FAVOURITES

Concealers can work wonders for the face, and I tend to rely on them pretty much every day for ensuring a (near) flawless looking complexion. Concealers have the ability to hide the worst of blemishes; if you know how to apply them properly. So, in a collaboration with my friends at Into the Gloss and checking out their Best Concealers post, I am here to share my favourites, tips and tricks.

I know most people seem to prefer high end concealers, but in my opinion if you know where to look you can find some gems among the high street instead (particularly good if you are a student and have a part time wage which is the opposite of generous). Usually, I go for the Collection Lasting Perfection for the skin, and heavy duty concealing. Using your fingers is probably the best option because it can look a bit more caked on with a brush. For quick touching up in the day I wouldn't go for this, I would probably pick the Bourjois Healthy Mix because I don't feel the need to powder this when I reapply.

There's always the old trick of buying a shade lighter for under your eyes, but I don't tend to do this. For me it seems to look a bit odd, but I think nowadays there are far better brightening options. The Rimmel Wake Me Up and the L'Oreal Lumi Magique seem to be pretty luminous and do a better job of brightening than a lighter shade probably will. The best way for me to do this is to apply a triangle sort of shape and use something like the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion makes it smooth to apply and tends to work the product into the skin far better. The key for under the eyes is to set it (very lightly) to avoid creasing, as well as avoiding a whole lot of layers - a  h u g e  mistake I used to make with stick concealers in my early teens and ended up looking like I had reptilian skin under my eyes.

Once you know how to start with concealing, it's pretty self explanatory and you'll find a routine good for you. There's plenty of posts over at Into the Gloss about concealers if you want to broaden your knowledge even further.

A SUMMER FAUX GLOW

As much as I would love naturally radiant skin, it is often pretty dull and the only sheen I get is when I haven't powdered my face for hours and things are getting a little oily. That's why I seek the companionship of many products in order to amp up the glow in the summer.

Upon purchase, I was never really a fan of the Rimmel Wake Me Up Instant Shimmer Touches, but occasionally I like Radiant Rose on the cheeks as a pink hint of shimmery tint, or Shimmering Sand mixed in with foundation for some serious glow. These don't get used often, but they definitely don't go unnoticed.

A luminous primer was lacking in my makeup collection until I got the Bourjois Luminous Serum Primer a while back. There is no shimmer in this, but it just seems to add a glow without it, and I had a patch of forgetting about this guy but every time I reach for it again I start to use it again and realise why I loved it to begin with.

It's not just makeup that can help your glow out, it all starts with the skincare you use. I have managed to find a duo that gives me the glow without endless steps and more of an overnight glow-giver. The Balance Me Radiance Face Oil* is one I like to slap on in the evening, leave to soak in and  wake up in the morning with a complexion that looks radiant and blurred in tow and literally took me a minute to achieve.
In the same way the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask is another one step overnight fix that leaves you with plumped, glowing skin and the peach/apricot scent makes me literally want to eat it (Don't worry, I won't).

I look forward to finding more radiance enhancing gems in the drugstore in the upcoming months, and leave you recommendations in the comments too...

THE PRIMER COLLECTION

Using a primer is often a step that I miss out in my makeup routine, because I have struggled for a while now trying to find the perfect one, and sometimes I'm just too lazy. I do however have quite the compilation of primers so I thought I would categorize them and ramble.

BRIGHTENING: So, we all have dull skin days at times and on those of mine I quite enjoy the Bourjois Luminous Serum Primer, which doesn't have any shimmer in, but just seems to make the face look radiant. It really is glowy skin in a bottle, and although it doesn't help with longevity it is worth it for the glow.

SMOOTHING: Smoothing primers tend to be quite heavily silicon based at times so I do often experience breakouts after using them. The first is a love hate relationship primer; the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer, which is really smoothing, and keeps makeup on all day (I like to use it just on oily areas when I am using BB Cream or glowier bases), and I have just got back into using it so I will report back if I get any breakouts. I also have the Proactiv Smoothing Primer but I don't use it too often as it smooths but doesn't help with longevity all that much.

BRONZING: In the summer when you want to rack up the tan or in the winter when you are fed up of your pale skin, a bronzing primer is always a good'un to have in your stash. My personal favourite is the Bourjois Bronzing Primer which I also like to use over foundation around the outer areas of the face and on the cheekbones for an extra glow. I also like the Too Faced Primed and Poreless Tinted Primer as it is almost a mix of the Bourjois and Smashbox primers in one.

This post has actually inspired me to use my primers more often, we'll see how it goes tomorrow morning aye?

BOURJOIS HAPPY LIGHT LUMINOUS SERUM PRIMER

Primers are few and far in my collection, as they either make no difference to me, or overly silicon based (they tend to break me out), and since the Bourjois Happy Light release hit the shelves a while back, I have been tempted to try it out myself. Despite my combination skin, I have been obsessed with glowy, dewy skin and powder is always by my side if things get a little shiny so it seemed the perfect time to give this a go.

The texture of the Luminous Serum Primer is really nice, it is very much a serum as the name suggests - lightweight, and skins into the skin quickly leaving a smooth base to begin your makeup. There isn't actually shimmer in this which is a massive plus for me, but it honesty adds so much inner glow and radiance to the skin without it.

In terms of increasing longevity of makeup (although this doesn't claim to do so anyway), I don't see much difference and sometimes I feel like my makeup does disappear at the very end of the day but for the majority of the day with a stunning sheeny glow its worth that sacrifice. Might I add, the scent really reminds me of baby shampoo, but I'm not complaining by any means.

This has easily become a Spring/Summer staple for me, and perhaps we'll be seeing an embrace of even more illuminating products from me...