Prom Makeup

Prom season has come around again, so I've put together a few makeup looks that would be perfect for your big night! 

Pretty in Pink

This is the perfect soft and sophisticated eye makeup for your prom night.

What you will need:

Painterly Paintpot.

Pink Freeze, Sushi Flower, Cranberry & Sketch eye shadows.

Blacktrack Fluidline. 

Fascinating Kohl Pencil.

Haute & Naughty Mascara.

Number 3 False Lashes

• Start by pressing 'Pink Freeze' eye shadow in to the inner corner of your eye with a pencil brush. 
• Softly blend 'Sushi Flower' in to the middle and outer corner of your eye and blend just slightly above socket line but do not take too far up towards the brow. 
• Blend 'Cranberry' in the outer corner of the eye and in to the socket line, take it underneath to the bottom lash line as well and blend well.  
• To add extra definition use a small amount of the darkest colour 'Sketch' in to the outer corner and the socket line and blend well. 
• Add 'Blacktrack' liquid liner on top lash line and 'Fascinating' Eye Kohl in your bottom waterline. 
• Add your mascara and/or lashes

Quick tip: When applying lashes, put the lash glue along the base and leave to dry for about 60 secs. This way the lashes will stick straight away with out you having to hold them on. This makes putting lashes on a lot easier. Also make sure you measure the lashes to your eye before you stick them on, 9 times out of 10 you will need to trim them slightly. 

Glitz and Glam

If you want to add a little sparkle to your prom outfit, the perfect way to do this is with a simple glitter eye!

What you will need:

Eclair Paintpot 

Glam Crystal Eyeliner in Funk

Feline Eye Kohl

Wedge Eyesahdow

Opulash Mascara

• Apply Eclair Paintpot all over your eyelid and blend properly so it fades out towards the brow. 
• Use wedge eye shadow to make edge a little softer and blend a bit easier. 
• Use the Glam Crystals Eyeliner (You could use any colour, I have chosen the gold) and apply straight on to the eyelid from the wand. 
• Use feline Kohl pencil and blend this in to your lower lash line and also apply in your waterline. 
• Apply Mascara and/or lashes which ever you prefer. 

Quick Tip: Using glitter liners are easier than the loose pigment as you don't get any fall out. when using these liners build up the intensity of the pigment by layering up, make sure you wait a few seconds between each application for the glitter to dry. 

Feline 

This is a classic and timeless look that will go with any dress you choose! 

What you will need:

Painterly Paintpot

Smut & Carbon Eyeshadow

Blacktrack Fluidline

Feline Eye Kohl

Haute & Naughty Mascara

Number 20 Corner Lashes

• Apply 'Painterly' Paintpot all over your eyelid as a base. 
• Using a small angle brush take your 'Smut' eyeshadow and carefully etch out a line where  your crease is. Blend this out with a soft fluffy brush but try to keep the sharp edge in the crease for the 'Cut Crease' effect. 
• Add a small amount on 'Carbon' eyeshadow in to the outer part of the eye to make it look a little more dramatic. 
• Smudge 'Carbon' in to the lower lash line and blend well. 
• Create your flick liner using 'Blacktrack' Fluidline. (Click here for more detail on creating the perfect flick liner)
• Add 'Feline Kohl' Eye Pencil in to lower waterline.
• Finish with 'Haute & Naughty' Mascara or False Lashes. I used corner lashes to emphasize the feline shape even more. 

Natural Beauty

This is a great look for you girls who like to take it back to basics but still want a beautiful makeup! 

What you will need:

Painterly Paintpot.

All that glitters & Dazzlelight Eyeshadows

Coffee eye pencil

False Lash Mascara

• Apply 'Painterly' all over eyelid. 
• Use a fluffy brush and blend 'All that glitters' eye shadow on to eyelid and blend out towards the brow. 
• Take a small amount of 'Dazzlelight' eye shadow and press in to the center of the eye, creating a highlight. 
• Use 'Coffee' eye pencil to line your upper and lower lash line & smudge it in to make it softer. 
• Apply your mascara. 

Smokey Eye

Sexy smouldery eye is a certain way to make an impact!

What you will need:

Blackground Paintpot

Carbon & Cinderfella Eyeshadow

Feline Eye Kohl

False Lash Mascara

• Using a fluffy brush, blend 'Blackground' Paintpot all over the eyelid. Use this as a guide to where you're going to add your eyeshadow. Make sure you blend well. 
• Add 'Carbon' eye shadow over the top of the paint pot. Pat the colour on and blend it outwards.
• Pat 'Cinderfella' over the top of the 'Carbon' eyeshadow and blend the edge. Don't over blend it or the glitter pigment will fall out. 
• Take 'Carbon' and 'Cinderfella' eyeshadow underneath the lower lash line and smudge it in. 
• Use 'Feline' Eye Kohl in the waterline.
• Apply False lash mascara and/or False Lashes.

Pop of Colour

A simple yet effective way to add a burst of colour to any outfit! 

What you will need:

Macroviolet Fluidline

Designer purple Pearlglide Liner

False Lash Mascara

Fascinating Eye Kohl

• Using the 'Perfect flick' technique, create a liner using 'Macroviolet' Fluidline. 
• In the lower lash line apply 'Designer Purple' Pencil and smudge in with a small brush. Be sure NOT to apply this pencil in to your waterline. It has small glitter particles which will irritate your eye.
• Use 'Fascinating' Eye Kohl in your waterline.
• Finish by applying your Mascara or False Lashes. 

Quick Tip: Using a lighter eyeliner in your waterline makes your eyes appear bigger. Apply the darker liner in to your lower lashes but not in the actual waterline. Use a colour like 'Fascinating' or a skin colour pencil to give the illusion of wider, bigger eyes. 

I would love to know what you think of these looks. Which one would you choose? 

5 Day Makeup Challenge

Last week I took part in MAC 5 Day Makeup Challenge on Instagram (Take a look at my Instagram here)
Basically what you had to do was take a photo of your makeup for 5 days stating what the focus was, what products you used and how long it took you to create. You can search the hash tag #5DayMakeupChallenge on Instagram and see what other artists have come up with for their daily looks!
I thought I'd share with you guys in a bit more detail my makeup looks from last week 

So here goes. 

(Please excuse the awkward self photos, I hate taking photos of myself, but it was for a good cause so I made an exception haha)

Day 1

Focus: Bold Lip

Time to do: 15 mins

Products used: 

Skin: Studio Sculpt Foundation in NW20

Mineralize skinfinish powder in Medium Plus

Warm soul Blusher

Eyes: Paintpot in Painterly

Liquid liner in Blacktrack

Lips: Lasting sensation Lipliner

Lady Danger Lipstick

This is the look I usually go for when I am a little pushed for time, a classic flicked liner and a bold lip. Only takes 15 mins to do and looks like you have made an effort!

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Day 2

 Focus: Soft brown smokey eye
Time to do: 15mins
Products used:
Skin: Studio Fix Fluid in NW20
Translucent finishing powder
Bronzer in Matte Bronze
Eyes: 'Quite Natural' paintpot
Espresso and Mystery Eyeshadows
Dipdown Liquid Eyeliner
Number 3 False Lashes
Lips: Ample pink Plushglass lipgloss with Saint Germain Lipglass over the top.

This is a really quick way to create a soft smokey eye. Use The paint pot in quite natural to create a base over your eyelid, this is a darker colour so does a lot of the work for you. Then I blended it out with a little espresso eyeshadow and created depth with Mystery eyeshadow which is slightly darker. All these colours are matte so creates a nice every day smokey eye. 
I used ample pink plush glass on my lips as my lips a fairly small and the plushglass gives them a little extra boost. I added Saint germain over the top to add a more pinky colour! 

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Day 3

 Focus: Viva Glam Friday!
Time to do: 20mins
Products used:
Skin: Studio Fix fluid in NW20
Mineralize skinfinish in Medium plus
Eyes: Vintage selection Paintpot
Blacktrack liquid liner
superslick nocturnelle liquid liner
Fascinating eye kohl
Lips: In Anticipation Pro long lip liner
Viva glam Nicki Minaj 1 & 2 together. 

Fridays at MAC are dedicated to Viva Glam! Viva glam is the charity that MAC supports and all money from out Viva Glam lipsticks goes to help those with HIV and AIDS. Read more about the charity here.

For this look I created a double flick liner using blacktrack fluid line and used silver superslick liner in between to make it stand out a little more. I put fascinating eye kohl in my water line which is a white kohl pencil (this is a good tip for making your eyes look bigger)
On my lips I combined the 2 Viva Glam Nicki lipsticks to make a soft pink. 

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Day 4

Focus: Saturday Theme day

Time to do: 20mins

Products used: 

Skin: Studio Sculpt foundation in NW20

Mineralize skinfinish in Medium plus

Bronzer in Give me sun!

Eyes: Groundwork Paintpot

Club and Brown down eyeshadows

Blacktrack liquid liner

Lips: Stripdown Lip liner and Viva Glam Nicki 2 Lipstick

Saturdays at MAC are theme days! All of us on the counter wear the same look and its usually based around a theme. This week was on the Trend Puri-Tan which you can read about here.

I used an eyeshadow called club on my eyelid and blended it out with Brown down eyeshadow which gives it a nice smokey look. On my lips I used a neutral lipliner and Nicki 2 Lipstick over the top!

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Day 5

Focus:  Metalic Smokey Eye 

Time to do: 20 mins

Products used: 

Skin: Studio Fix Fluid NW20
Mineralize Powder Medium Plus
Matte Bronze Bronzer 
Dainty Blusher

Eyes: Amber lights and Smut Eyeshadow
Feline and Blacktrack Eyeliner

Lips: Betty Bright Limited Edition Lipstick

To create this eye I used a metalic gold shade called Amber lights and pressed the colour in to the center of my eyelid. I then used a darker matte grey/brown colour called smut and added this to the inner and outer corners of the eye and blended slightly in to the crease. I lined my top lash line with gel eyeliner and used a kohl pencil for the inner waterline. The lipstick was a limited edition shade from the collection 'Archies Girls' which is a lovely pink/coral colour!

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Check out my looks on my Instagram @Makeup_bykerry I try to post on there as much as I can and put a lot of my work up on there!

Send me your Instagram links too!

Skincare lovin'

I recently had a little re-vamp of my skincare products. 

I was getting a little tired of my old ones and felt they weren't really working for me as well as they could and thought it was time for a change. I have been testing these products for a couple of weeks and I am so happy with the results!

so here goes

First up Take the Day off Cleansing Balm by Clinique - £20.50

If I'm honest I have never been a huge fan of Clinque skincare. The few products I have tried haven't really done what I wanted them too, but I thought I would give it another try in the form of this cleansing balm.

When I first got it I thought it looked a bit weird and wasn't sure how I was meant to apply it. It the pot it is a solid balm. I scooped a little out and massaged it straight on to dry skin. When you add water in then turns milky rather than lathering up which I love. I have never been too keen on facial cleansers that foam up too much as it hurts my eyes! 

I am slowly starting to love this product. It makes my skin feel so soft and clean after use and since using it I have seen great improvements in my skins texture and tone. Plus I haven't had any break outs (which are a regular occurrence for me unfortunately) so that's gotta be a bonus!! 

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Darphin Toner & Cleansing Milk

When it comes to cleansers and toners I have always used cheaper brands like Simple. I've never been really fussed about them but I thought I would give Darphin a try as I have heard nothing but good things.

I have been using these right before I moisturize and I am seeing some great results. 

Refreshing Cleansing Milk £19

The cleansing milk really does lifts off any makeup that has been left behind as well as any soap residue or impurities in the skin. It makes your skin feel soft and refreshed.

Refreshing Toner £19

When reading about this product I saw on the website that it contains Fig and Banana extract which revitalize and tone the look of the skin. 

This toner smells lovely and makes you skin feel tingly and clean. 

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Studio Moisture Cream by M.A.C - £23.50

I have tried many moisurisers in the last few years from Creme de la Mer to Nivea. I know how important it is to moisturise your skin regularly to keep skin looking healthy and glowing.

What actually got me interested in this product was the little paragraph of information next to this moisturiser on the MAC website. It says:

"A super-rich creamy moisturiser boosted with skin-nourishing extracts including passion fruit, spinach leaf, green tea, algae, wheat germ and coconut. Moistens, feeds, firms and protects the skin. Promotes a healthy radiance. diminishes the appearance of fine lines. Good for day and night."

Now, if you're a bit of an ingredients geek like me, that may interest you as much as it did me. Some of the ingredients listed I know are amazing for your skin, so I just had to give it a try. 

I love the fact that you can use and as both your day and night cream. I have never believed in having separate ones. 

It's also great that it firms the skin and reduces appearance of fine lines. I am not quite old enough to worry about fine lines yet but hopefully this will prolong a youthful skin!

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Hydrating eye cream by Bobbi Brown - £29

I have never used an eye cream before. I never really felt the need. But in recent months I have found my under eyes looking a little dehydrated, especially when I put foundation/concealer on it made me skin look a little dry and it's not a good look!

So I decided to invest in this Bobbi Brown eye cream. I have never used any of Bobbi Browns skincare before this, so I was intrigued to find out what it was like. 

I like the feel of this eye cream, its not sticky or greasy and absorbs straight in to the skin. I made the mistake of applying it too close to my eye the first time I used it and this did make my eyes sting a little but if you just dab a little around the socket bone with out going too close to your actual eye you should be fine. 

It contains Aloe Vera and Witch Hazel which soothe and comfort the skin as well as Jojoba seed, Avocado Oil and Squaland which condition and revive the skin. 

Overall I am pretty pleased with this product, it has stopped any dryness completely and brightens my eye area.  It also helps my concealer to go on a little more effortlessly and look more even. 

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Primed to Perfection

Before becoming a makeup artist I never really realized the importance or priming your skin before foundation. I have found that a lot of people miss out this step when applying their makeup.

If you use a decent primer it will keep your foundation on a lot longer, it gives a smoother base to put your fondation on to and can reduce how much foundation you actually need to use.

My all time favorite primer is Prep + Prime skin base by MAC. It is the one I have used for the past few years and it does the job for me. I find this primer really soothes my skin and reduces any red blotchy patches. My skin can get a little oily sometimes and this product really helps to blot away any excess oil, without drying my skin out. One or two pumps of this normally is enough to cover my whole face which means one bottle lasts for a good few months! Well worth its £19.50 price tag.

I have been hearing a lot of hype about the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer. It has won awards and got some great reviews so I thought I'd give it a try! It's good to try other products and brands as you never know, there might be something better out there for you!

I tried out this primer for a week under my foundation. My first thoughts were that when it goes on it has a slightly oily texture but once rubbed in it makes your skin feel silky soft. It did make the application of my foundation a little easier and for the first couple of days I was really happy with it.

But after the couple of days I found my skin was becoming increasing dry and flaky. I have combination skin but have never experienced this from previous primers! I hadn't changed anything in my skincare or makeup routine except for the switch of primers. So I knew it must have been this product drying my skin out. After this I converted back my old primer and my skin went back to normal. 

This smashbox primer is £25 which I think is a little pricey for a little tube.

I won't be re-buying this particular primer but would be interested to try the more hydrating version by Smashbox and see if that's any better.

I would love to hear if any of you have used this Smashbox primer and had the same outcome? I wonder if this primer would work better on a really oily skin tone? I'd love to hear your views!

My Makeup Bag

Today I'd really like to share with you my every day makeup essentials. These are my basic items which are always in my makeup bag. I love to experiment with different makeup products, but I always have them few items which I always go back to.

Here's whats there:

Primer: Prep + Prime Skin Base

Foundation: Studio Fix Fluid NW20

Powder: Mineralize Skinfinish in Medium Plus

Bronzer: Mineralize Skinfinish in Give me sun!

Blusher:  Warm Soul Mineralize Blush

Eyes: Paint pot in Painterly

Eyeliner: Blacktrack Fluid line & Engraved Powerpoint Eye Pencil. 

Mascara: False Lashes Extreme Black

Eyebrows: Spiked Eyebrow Pencil

Lipgloss: Ample Pink Plushglass.

All products by MAC

Skin

I always use a primer underneath my foundation mainly because it keeps my foundation on a lot longer than if I just apply the foundation straight on to bare skin. I have tried a few primers but find the Skin Base by MAC to be the most effective. It calms and smooths the skin and reduces redness (which I find means less foundation is needed) It also blots away excess oil, and gives a smooth base to apply your foundation on top.  

I tend to have a lot of trouble with my skin because it doesn't fit in to one category.  Its sometimes dry, sometimes oily and I get break outs every so often. 

I still haven't found the perfect foundation for me (and believe me, I've tried them all!)

The Studio Fix fluid seems to be the best that I've tried so far. 

It is a matte finish full coverage foundation which exactly what I love about it. 

A little bit goes a long way with this foundation so you don't end up looking 'Caked' in makeup (as long as you use the right amount, if you put a lot on its going to look like a lot, obviously?)

The matte finish is great as it prevents your skin from looking oily or greasy throughout the day. I find this foundation gives me the coverage I want without having to use a concealer. Although if I have a few spots I use a small amount of Studio Finish Concealer to give that extra bit of coverage. 

The powder I use is Mineralize Skinfinish in Medium Plus. I absolutely love this powder. It sets the foundation and gives that extra bit of coverage which helps your skin to look just that extra bit more flawless. It doesn't stick to any dry patches but also eliminates shine which is great for people like me with combination skin. 

Cheeks

The bronzer I normally use is Mineralize Skin Finish in Give Me Sun! As in the winter my skin is very fair I do need to be careful with this one. This powder is very pigmented so a little bit on the brush is all that's needed. I love this bronzer for the summer months as it gives a lovely glow and is the perfect colour to use when you have a tan!

My favorite blusher is also part of the Mineralize range and is called Warm Soul. It is a lovely Brown/Peachy shade with a slight shimmer. I use this just on the apples of the cheeks to add a colour and glow.

I normally use a cream colour base as a highlighter on my cheek bones and my favorite colour to use is hush. It has a slight pinky tone to it and a lovely pearlized finish which reflects the light beautifully.

Eyes

I always use a paint pot on my eyelids even if in not wearing any eyeshadow. The Paint pots are smudge and crease proof and prevent oily eyelids! If you wear an eyeliner like me these help to keep that in place too. I usually use the colour Painterly as it is the closest to my skin colour so looks very natural. These do come in several  different shades to suit everyone. 

The eyeliner I use is Blacktrack Fluidline. Its a gel based liner which means it glides on effortlessly  I use this eyeliner on my top lash line only.  I normally use my 210 precise liner brush to get a really sharp flick! 

I use Engraved Powerpoint eyeliner on my bottom lashline. I normally just draw it as close to my lashes as possible (not actually in the waterline, this can make your eyes look smaller and will also wear off quicker) and then just smudge it in with a brush.

My favorite mascara at the moment is False Lash Extreme black. It is a great lengthening mascara, but what I love about it the most is the brush. The brush is narrow at the tip and gets thicker towards the base, this defines each lash making your lashes look lovely and thick.

Eyebrows

I must admit, I do use several different products on my eyebrows depending on how I'm feeling. I sometimes use Mystery eyeshadow with a small angled brush. Or I use Dipdown fluid line mixed with a tiny bit on concealer to lighten it slightly. But my 'go to' eyebrow product has to be Spiked eyebrow pencil. This is the easiest, quickest and most convenient way to do your eyebrows. It is a twist up pencil so no need for sharpening, it has a really precise point so you can get a really sharp brow which I love, or you can get a softer looking brow by lightly drawing in the missing hairs. The only downside to this product is you can't tell when its about to run out, so I always carry a spare just in case! 

Lips

My all time favorite lipgloss is Ample Pink Plushglass! It is the perfect everyday pink. It doesn't have a sparkle in , just a simple gloss. The thing I love about it the most is its a Plushglass, this has a lip plumping technology in it that gives you fuller looking lips. I have fairly small lips so this is a perfect solution for me! 

Hope you found this post helpful, I would love to see what your everyday makeup essentials are!