January Favourites

Here it is, the first monthly favourites of the year! I love doing these, they are definitely some of my favourite posts to write!

The first thing I have been loving is a perfume, it's the YSL Black Opium Perfume, I got it just before Christmas and I honestly have been wearing this every single day since I got it. Even in the weeks before I got it I was wearing it. That's the perks of working on a fragrance counter in boots! I won't even try and describe what it smells like because I am the worst at that so this is what it describes it like on the YSL website: 'With a glam rock aesthetic, this addictive gourmand floral entices with notes of black coffee for a shot of adrenaline, white florals to instantly seduce, and vanilla for sweetness and sensuality. Playing on the incongruity between the bitterness of the coffee bean accord, an ingredient never used before in such a high quantity in a feminine fragrance and radiant white flowers, BLACK OPIUM gives a sensation of light-headedness, bordering on ecstasy.' I can't recommend this perfume enough, it's gorgeous!

The mascara I have been loving is the Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara, I got the mini size in my stocking on Christmas morning, and I tried it straight away. I fell in love with it straight away, it's so volumizing and lengthening and I didn't find that it went clumpy which is what I've heard it does on other people so I'm very glad about that. I find that it stays on all day with very minimal fall down. I think the packaging is really lovely and it feels very luxurious to hold. The only thing I'd say is it's not (if you know what I mean)! ;)

The first of three eyeshadow related favourites is the Maybelline The Nudes Palette, for a drugstore product this is very good. The colours are all very nice and neutral and great for everyday use. I do find they are more pigmented with a primer but that's fine, normally I'd use a primer before wearing eyeshadow regardless of if it's more pigmented or not. You can create so many makeup looks with this and the thing I loved about this when got it was that there is a sort of chart on the back of the palette which has so many different combinations that you can try out which also makes this palette very good for people who are starting out with makeup.

My next favourite is the Benefit Stay Don't Stray eyeshadow primer, I find the texture very nice and creamy, it's very long lasting and this is what I've been using underneath the Maybelline palette and they've worked so well together. You hardly need to use any product and when you blend it in on your eyelids it gets rid of any redness and veins. It doesn't make my eyeshadow crease at all which is normally a problem for me when I use other eyeshadow primers. Can't recommend this product enough, I love it.

The last eyeshadow product I have been loving is the No7 Stay Perfect Eyeshadow (middle shade from 'Good Earth' trio), I got this as a little prize from work because we had a little competition when No7 launched a new mascara and I sold the most on that day. I also got a few other sample bits but this is the one I have been loving. It's a silvery shimmery colour and it looks beautiful all over the lid either on it's own or paired with other shades. When I'm in  rush getting ready I will just apply this all over the lid and it just looks like you've spent a lot more time on your makeup which is great because in reality you've only spent about 5 minutes on it. I'm not sure that you can buy this shade on it's own but you can get in the Good Earth trio from No7. I haven't got the trio but I am so tempted because the other colours are so pretty and they compliment this shade so well!