#FestivalFun | What Beauty Products to bring?

As I've already mentioned in my #FestivalFun series, less is more when it comes to grooming at festivals. You don't want to have too much stuff to carry or too much work getting ready in the mornings either. So below I've broken down the types of products I would recommend bringing and how to make the most of each product you choose. As much as possible if I can find more than one use for a product, all the better!

This is probably obvious, but from the outset I would like to specify I would not bring anything to a festival that I would be devastated if I lost. So (in my opinion) this is the not the place for your €40 foundation or your €25 concealers. Cheap and cheerful is key. If you absolutely cannot live without your favourite Chanel lipstick, my recommendation is to keep that in your day bag, so it's on you at all times.

Skincare

For the cleansing water and moisturiser, I will decant these into smaller containers for the weekend.

- Face Wipes

- Cleansing Water

- Moisturiser

Make Up

I would majorly reduce the number of tools I use compared to if I was at home, a brush to apply my foundation and that is it, everything else I can make do with my fingers. Firstly because then my favourite brushes are less likely to get lost and secondly I'm not as concerned about precision. This is of course a personal preference and just a guide, just bring what you're most comfortable with. The only product I have excess of is lipstick, just to make the looks a little different (so I have a bright pink, deep red and natural option).

- Bourjois Health Mix Serum Foundation (#51)
- Real Techniques Brush (Buffing)

- Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer (Cool Medium 2)

- Soap & Glory One Hell of a Blot, has a sponge inside (one shade only as it is translucent)

- Bourjois Blusher (#37 Pompom Rose)

- Rimmel Scandleyes Eye Liner (#001 Black)

- Topshop Mascara (Black)

- Inglot Eye Shadow Palette (shades: #355, #405, #452, #421, #07)
- Essence Eyebrow Pencil (#04 Blonde)

- Maybelline Super Stay 14 hours lipstick (#160 Infinitely Fuschia)
- Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick (#111)
- Rimmel Apocalips (#101 Celestial)
- Dior Addict Gloss (#684 Mervelle)

Hair Care

Day 1 you'll have beautiful hair, so for day 2 and 3, dry shampoo and clips/hairspray will be your friend. Some simple styling techniques such as high ponytails, braids, etc. will keep you going until your safely in the warm embrace of a proper hot shower back home at the end of day three! You can always jazz your look with clip in multi-coloured hair pieces or using chalk to temporarily colour your hair. Now is the time to go wild!

- Dry Shampoo (Batiste Original)

- Hair Spray / Texturising Spray (V05 give me texture)

- Hair Clips & Hair Ties

Extra Beauty Tips

Nails 

I would always paint my nails the day before I head off with a tried and tested polish that I know will easily last me the three days (and works with my outfit choices). You don't really have the same luxury of allowing it to dry when you're camping in a field!

Sun Protection

Remember although the weather may not necessarily be scorching, you'll be exposed to probably more sun than usual. It is really important to bring adequate sun protection for the duration. As well as sunglasses and hats.

Hopefully these product lists have given you some ideas on what you should bring yourself and highlighted how few products you should be aiming to get away with! If you have any other tips, please leave a comment!

For my other posts in this #FestivalFun series, please see below:

What's in my Bag?
Making the most of your Time
What to Bring - The Basics

#FestivalFun | What To Bring - The Basics

I am SO excited to be heading to Electric Picnic again this year, it will be fourth year in a row! In the lead up to EP, I thought I would do 5 part series on festivals using the hashtag #FestivalFun. Some general tips and hints. Whether you're an old timer or it's your first festival, it's never any harm to pick up some extra ideas on how to get the most out of your time! So there'll be one post each day from Wednesday to Sunday!

Ok to start the series off, I thought it would be most practical to start with  the essentials to bring along to a festival. To make this digestible, I will break it down by section.

Camping Equipment
Ensure you have adequate camping gear, at a minimum a tent and a sleeping bag. Now over the years I have seen people bring pillows and duvets, etc. My tip here is make use of bags/clothes when it comes to needing a pillow, trust me the less you need to haul from the car the better. I always try to bring everything in one trip from the car, the more trips you, the more you miss out on the festival itself. Also I'd take tent sizings rather loosely, if there's 2 people you're going to realistically want a 4 man tent unless you want to feel claustrophobic. This is me at EP 2010 in what is classed as a 4 man tent, but comfortably fits two with all your belongings I reckon!

Electric Picnic 2011

Then depending on your own preferences you can choose to bring deck chairs or inflatable mattresses, etc. But beware, this definitely adds a large amount of bulk to your already full hands when trekking from the car to the campsite. Depending where you're parked and where you're set up, the trip could be 30-40 minutes one way!

Clothes
I know festivals have their own dress code now and you might feel a little under pressure to dress a certain way, but trust me while on paper this all sounds great, the reality is often something very different. I cannot stress this enough, comfort, comfort comfort! You are sleeping on the ground, in desperate need of a proper shower and a decent toilet, don't add to the misery by feeling awkward in what you're wearing. If festival chic is your usual get-up, then great! If it isn't, don't force it. You will honestly find all sorts of people wearing all sorts of clothes, trust me, whatever you wear, you'll fit in fine!

Definitely try out new things and exciting looks but keep some key things in mind:
- Does it transition well from warm day time, to cold night time?
- Are you suitably covered if it starts lashing rain? (especially if heading to a festival in Ireland)
- Does it sit comfortably? (you'll be too busy dancing and having fun to spend your days fixing your outfit)

On top of whatever outfits you decide on make sure to include a rain coat and some cosy hoodies. It's amazing if you get great weather for the weekend, but do not underestimate just how cold it can get in the evenings and at night!

Beauty Products
This probably seems obvious but keeping it simple is key. Like clothes, I would recommend going with the tried and tested products here. Keep it all relatively natural and low key. The last thing you want to be doing is spending hours on your hair and makeup. The more time you spend faffing around in the morning, the more amazing experiences you're missing out on

Skincare
Although they're a cardinal beauty sin, this is the one occasion where everyone agrees face wipes are handy to have on hand. Another absolute must is hand sanitiser, I don't think that needs much explaining. Then think travel bag on everything else, decant a small bit of your cleanser, moisturiser, etc. Again the less you have to carry the better. This is definitely not the time to break out the face masks and body scrubs. Whatever the absolute minimum your skin can live on for 3 days is all you're bringing. That will differ for everyone, but once you have something to remove your makeup and something to put the mositure back in afterwards, you should be able to survive! If you're at a festival for a full three days and need to make use of the showers, a mini shower gel is also essential.

Make Up
Keep it basic, bring only the bare necessities. Bring your tried and tested products and make life easy on yourself by only bringing one of any given item. There is definitely no need for two types of mascara. And unless you're a pro at applying a full face of make up in a few minutes, I would definitely recommend scaling back your routine. It's definitely a matter of personal preference, but I reckon less is definitely more in this instance.

Hair Care
If you haven't noticed the theme yet, it's minimalist. Whatever you can do without, don't bother with. If you will need to use the shower, a mini shampoo and conditioner will be needed. Otherwise a small can of hairspray and then some dry shampoo/texturising spray should do it. I would of course recommend having a couple of hair ties and hair clips in the bottom of your bag. It at least gives you some options each day in terms of hairstyles.

Electric Picnic 2012

Other Random Essentials
Some other helpful random items that don't necessarily fit into the above categories

- A small day bag (for all your essentials)
- Sunglasses
- Toilet Paper
- Plastic bags (keeps things separated/dry, also handy for dirty clothes/shoes)
- Raincoat
- Scarf
- Hat
- Wellies & Thick Socks
- Back Up Phone / Battery
- Phone Charger (most festivals have charging facilities, they usually do cost money however)
- Towel (for shower or just in general, in case it rains heavily, etc)

My First | MAC Palette

I'm not entirely sure how I've done it, but I've somehow managed to get through life to date without owning a MAC palette. Yes I own a few single pots, but not even that many to be honest. While rooting through the MAC website recently, this dawned on me. So of course, with me being me, I needed to sort that out promptly. So the very next day I went to the BT2 MAC store on Henry street to rectify this injustice! Firstly I did a little research online to decide which shades I wanted specifically, using the MAC site and some of my favourite bloggers for reference.

I was very excited to get home and put it all together. I went for a quad to start with, I though a full pro palette (which holds 15 shades) would look a little depressing with 11 empty pots. I think I am going to attempt to de-pot the four single pots I already have also. That would go a long way to filling up the pro palette. Ok so to get onto the shades I decided to go for...

So the four shades I chose are Espresso, Cranberry, All That Glitters and Woodwinked. I decided to start out practical and pick shades I know I would regularly use. My thought process being that Espresso could work in the crease of my eye as well as an eyebrow shade, Cranberry and Woodwinked could both work as crease colours or in the outter corners, depending on the look I was creating and All That Glitters would be perfect for all over the lid. So this one quad could provide all the basic colours I need to create a couple of different neutral eye looks. I know Cranberry wouldn't be everyone's pick for a neutral look, but I quite like using Toasted and Hustle from the NAKED 1 palette, so this type of shade does not scare me.

So there you have it, my very first MAC palette. Do you own a MAC palette and have any shade recommendations? I do intend to grow my collection over the coming years. Ultimately my intention will be to own the 15 shades pro palette and keep the quad for travelling, but I know I'm while off that just yet.

This first purchase was quite an investment and it certainly wasn't cheap, it came to €58.50 in total, but I knew the initial cost would be high and then I'll slowly build them up over time. It's €8.50 for the quad palette and then €12.50 for each shadow. However if you do intend to buy a few, it's cheaper than buying individual pots and also much neater for transporting and storing.

I hope you liked this post and definitely get commenting on what your favourite shades are, I love getting recommendations! That's it from me, hope you're having a great Sunday afternoon whatever you're up to!

#FOTD | Everyday Glam

This is a bit of a different post from yours truly. I've decided to share with you some of the products I would use for an everyday look with that little something extra. So what would be perfect for a day out with the girls, on a trip away with that special someone or just whenever you might want to go that little bit extra! I don't tend to go too dramatic with my night out makeup most of the time, for me, this look would be perfect for a night out too! I may even do more of these "Face of the Day" type posts down the line, should anyone find them useful!

Quite a natural look with a little shimmer around the eye

Unfortunately as with all (mine anyway) natural looks, there are quite a few products involved to get to this point! To start with I prepped my skin by using my cleanser, acid toner, serum & moisturiser as usual. Then I got started with the makeup itself, this is going to sound like quite a lot of products, but when you're used to all the steps it really doesn't take as long as this post will make it seem. To make it a little more digestible I've broken it down by area of the face.

Face
Foundation: Clinique Moisture Surge CC Cream applied using a flat foundation brush from Nima Brush
Concealer: Correction Lasting Perfect Concealer under the eye and on blemishes, using my finger and then finishing the blending with my foundation brush
Powder: One Heck of a Blot from Soap & Glory using my Real Techniques Powder Brush

Cheeks
Blush: NARS Orgasm which I applied using the Real Techniques Blusher Brush
Contour: NARS Laguna which I applied using Real Techniques Contour Brush
Highlight: Very very small bit of The Balm Mary Lou, applied with my fingers

Eyes
All over Lid: Sin from Urban Decay NAKED 1 palette, patted on with the brush in the palette
In the Crease: Smog from NAKED 1, patted on with the brush in palette (also brushed this along lower lash line)
In the Outer Corner: Darkhorse from NAKED 1, patter on with the brush in the palette
In the Inner Corner: The Balm Mary Lou, applied with my fingers

In all instances the shadow was of course blended out with my MAC 217 brush, the key (I've learned) is to build up colour through patting and blending and repeating, don't put it all on at once!

Upper Lash Line: Bourjois Liner Feutre - also along outer corner of the lower lash line
Mascara: Benefit's They're Real, two generous coats (don't also forget to use your eyelash curler first)
Eyebrows: Essence Eyebrown pencil with Buck from NAKED 1, applied using the Real Techniques Brow Brush

Lips
Make Up For Ever Lip Liner Pencil in the shade 43 all over the entire lips and then a coat of Dior Addict Gloss in the shade 684 and then finally a light patting of Virgin from NAKED 1 the lips using my finger. I did this for two different reasons, one, to set the lipgloss in place and two, to give a nice sheen to the lips

A little disclaimer, buying make up is definitely my hobby, so while there are quite a few high end products in here, they have been built up over time, certainly not all bought at once! Then of course the look can easily be replicated by substituting these products with your own favourites!

Hopefully I might have given you some inspiration or ideas on how to create your own everyday glam look. If you do, definitely be sure to send me a pic through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram! If you've any recommendation on similar/better products, get commenting! I'm always looking for new products and shades to try.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you're having a great day whatever you're up to!

BeautyBaggage Competition | Mega Lip Giveaway

Ok so I've been trying to think of a way I could say thanks to everyone who has supported me and my blogging endeavours. After some thought, I've decided to go with a Mega Lip Giveaway. So all the prizes are (as you've probably guessed) lip related. They're all products I have owned and loved, so I hope you will feel the same about them. So let's get straight to the point, one lucky winner can win:

• 3 x MAC Lipsticks
• 2 x Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquers
• 2 x Bourjois Shine Edition Lipsticks
• 1 x Lush Lip Balm
• 1 x Lush Lip Scrub

That's over €100 worth of products for your lovely lips. You have all the products you need to look after your lips and make them fabulous. What's better, you'll notice I didn't mention any shades (or in the case of Lush, flavours), that's because the winner can choose ANY shades/flavours they want. So do you have any colours you wanted to try out, but have been too afraid or perhaps you just need a couple more colours to finish off your collection? Now's your chance!

Terms & Conditions
1. This competition is open internationally
2. Winner will get to choose the shade for each prize (I am happy to offer recommendations)
3. The closing date of the competition is Sunday 30th March 2014
4. The winner will be announced on BeautyBaggage Twitter & Facebook pages later that day, so make sure to check back.

To make it fair, I am using Rafflecopter. The more ways you enter, the better the chance you have of winning.

Good luck everyone!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway is no way sponsored, or in connection with, any of the above brands

Blogtober #1 | September Favourites

This is the first official post in Blogtober! I aim to do a blog each day for the whole month, so stay tuned!

I can't believe September is over already, Autumn is really upon us and we're seeing the last of the sunshine! This month I have not been wearing quite as much make up. I have been trying to give my skin a bit of a break. So with that, lets get straight into this month's favourites!

There has been one lipstick that has barely left my side and that's the Bourjois Shine Edition (shade #24). Not only is it in my favourite colour, the pigmentation is beautiful and it feels so moisturising on the lips, which is perfect for this time of year. It comes out a little darker on the lips than is shown here, but it eliminates the need for a gloss.

Another handbag essential this month has been yet another Bourjois product, their Healthy Mix Serum foundation (shade 51). I mentioned this in a blog about a light summer foundation. It is a low coverage and excellent for everyday wear (especially when you have dry skin like me). It only takes some bronzer, blush and lipstick to instantly turn a day look into night. It gives you that you-at-your-best look without looking too much like you are wearing foundation.

Another favourite this month has been a nail varnish. During the week I like to wear nail varnish, while making it seem like I'm not wearing any (due to working in an office, I can't wander around in all the bright colours I love). As a result I have been loving this shade (threadbare) from Topshop. It's neutral enough not to draw any attention, but I still get to wear polish midweek!

I have recently acquired yet another Real Techniques brush, this is their Blush brush. I just love the shape, size and feel of this brush. I can't see me going back to any other brush I've previously used for blusher. Real Techniques have converted me (yet again)!

So what have you been loving for the month of September?

August Favourites

It's that time of the month again where I recap on some of my favourite items from the last month.

As you can see from the Clarins cleanser it's almost gone, that definitely got a lot of use this month. It just has the most amazing smell of oranges, incredibly refreshing and leaves my skin feeling so soft, you can also use it on the eyes, so saves multiple product purchases. My Aussie leave-in conditioner is almost at the point of re-purchase and I've hit pan with my Bobbi Brown pressed powder. As I went to electric picnic last week, I definitely got great use out of Soap & Glory's hand sanitiser. The Collection concealer was also great for the summer (and Electric Picnic) for when I didn't want to have to go for the full make up look and avoid foundation altogether, it was perfect for under the eyes, red areas and blemishes. 

This month I have been loving two products from Make Up For Ever, their Face & Body foundation, as I have dry skin and their lip brush. I find the foundation has a very natural finish. Also as I have been wearing a lot of bold lips lately, the lip brush is perfect for controlling the amount of my product that goes onto my lip. On top of that, it folds into itself and is perfect for travelling!

Products Included

Clarins - One-Step Facial Cleanser with Orange Extract

Collection - Last Perfection Concealer (2 Light)

Soap & Glory - Hand Maid Hand Cleansing Gel 

Bobbi Brown - Sheer Finish Pressed Powder (Pale Yellow)

Make Up For Ever - Face & Body Foundation (#20)

Make Up For Ever - Lip Brush

Aussie - Leave-In Conditioner (Miracle Hair Insurance)

Do you use any of these products?

What did you love during the month of August?

Summer Series | Holiday Essentials

Okay apologies are in order. There has been a massive delay between my last post and this one. July seemed to pass me by in a flash. Granted it's now August, but until schools are back, it always still feels like summer, so I have the final post in my Summer Series, you can find post one here and post two here.

So the reason my July was so jam-packed was mostly due to holidays. This year I decided to do a series of small trips and as a result my make-up bag needed to stay light. So I'm going to share with you what made the cut.

Since I spent some time travelling around Ireland as well as the UK, airport security was also a factor. Keeping it basic was key (full details of products below).

I made sure to keep it really minimal, I left out things like primer, eye lash curlers, extra brushes, brought no more than one of each type of product.I brought the two essential brushes (and the NAKED palette comes with one), I figured anything else could be blended with fingers. I guess my main piece of advice, even if you think you need everything, there's surely a couple more things you can cut out. I know personally when I'm away on holidays, I just want to spend the minimal amount of time on getting ready as there is so much to go out and enjoy and experience. I even know some days I won't want to wear make up. So I really factor this into my final choices. Essentially a good rule of thumb is: no more than one of anything. I find the biggest thing that will weigh you down is have three different mascaras and five types of lip gloss. Choose the bare essentials and your back will thank you for it, when you don't have to lug it all around from city to city.

I teamed my make up collection with the a couple of nail varnishes (again look for cheats like using the same polish for your base coat and top coat). I kept it bright, summery and simple.

So the running theme is basic and minimal. What are you holiday essentials that you can't live without? Do you pack light or do you pack everything, including the kitchen sink?

Face
Make Up For Ever Face & Body Liquid Make Up (#20)
NARS Creamy Concealer (Custard)
Bobbi Brown Sheer Finish Pressed Powder (Pale Yellow)
Bourjois Blush (48 Ashes of Roses)

Brushes
Real Techniques Expert Face Brush
Real Techniques Powder Brush

Eyes
NAKED Palette (No. 1)
Essence Eye Liner Pen (Black)
Maybelline The Rocket Volume Mascara (Waterproof - Black)

Lips
Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquer (Big Bang)
Make Up For Ever Rough Artist Natural Lipstick (N22 Pink Peach)

Nails
Essie Top Coat (No Chips Ahead)
Rimmel Salon Pro - Kate Collection (Purple Rain)
Models Own Splash Collection (Pink Paradise)

Light Summer Foundation

Now that we're really getting some great sunshine out there, I thought I would talk about my go-to summertime foundation. It's perfect for summer days whether out on the beach (those couple of days a year when they're packed) or on a shopping trip with the girls. The foundation I am referring to is Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum.

Ok so while it is summer-time , I am still Irish and I am still rather pale. So I use the lighest colour available "51 - Vanille Clair". Which, when you are very pale, it's great they have such light shades as the last thing you want to do is have your face a few shades darker than the rest of you!

This product is available is available in a few places in Ireland, most notably Boots Pharmacy and is approximately €16 to buy. The reason this foundation is a great edition to your summer make-up collection is the finish. A fair warning, it is a low coverage foundation, however the liquid glides on your face and quickly blends in, leaving a soft, natural finish. I know for some higher coverage is important, but I think a low coverage is great for the summer months. It just evens out your skin tone and reduces redness, while leaving you looking very natural. If you pop on some of your favourite mascara, it's very minimal work for a great, fresh summer look.

While it is great for summer time, it is important to be aware there is no SPF in this foundation, so you will need to ensure to have SPF in your moisturiser/primer.

For those of you, like myself, who may suffer from blemishes, you can always make use of one of my May Favourites, Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer. The concealer can just be used in any area you need a little extra attention (including under your eyes).

I have dry skin and I think it is great to fine a foundation that does not dry my skin out. I also find I do not necessarily need powder to set, however for someone with oilier skin, a translucent powder would still offer you the fresh "bare-faced" look.

There is however the disadvantage of this light airy foundation in that you won't get a full day and night out of one application. I find when I have had this product on for approx 8 or 9 hours and I am heading out that evening, I would need to top up as it doesn't have the strong lasting power of some it's higher end counterparts.

Pros for Summer: Natural, lighweight, low coverage, not too expensive, pale shades
Cons for Summer: No SPF, no longevity


Have you tried any Bourjois foundations, what do you think of them?
What are your favourite summer foundations?

Review: Benefit peek-a-bright eyes

I am a really big fan of using different shades on my eyes to accentuate them. I like it when eyes are made to be the main feature of your face! As far as I'm concerned, they're built for it, who doesn't want all the focus on them?

So while I know this product isn't brand new, it's relatively new to my collection, so I thought I would review it. I thought it would be a perfect addition, as it has all the shadows I need to create a full look for my eyes!

As you can see I have made quite the dent and have used it quite a number of times, to really get a feel for the product. The set contains:

- eye bright (for the corner of your eyes)
- base shadow
- contour shadow (for the crease of your eyes and to use as a liner)
- highlight shadow (for the main colour of the eye)
- concealer brush (for the eye bright)
- contour brush/liner brush

In theory, this set is great, gives you all the basics you need and to be honest, while I prefer a gold/brown colour combo for this type of look, I was really drawn to the convenience of having everything (including brushes) in one place! Unfortunately however that is where my fascination ended. It goes on okay and is very easy to use and the brushes are fine for what you are doing. However the big problem is, it does not last. I am not even talking for the day, it does not last past a few hours.

The colours are very neutral and for a day time subtle look, that is perfect. You do not however want something that becomes too subtle, in that it fades over (such a short) time. I also found that the pigmentation of the shadows was not great. Overall I was very underwhelmed with this product from Benefit.

Pros: Convenient set, attractive packaging
Cons: It does not last, pigmentation is poor

In summary, would I re-purchase this product? Definitely not. It is not worth the money at all. I know plenty of lower end brands that last significantly longer than this and will revert to them in future.

Have you tried the peek-a-bright eyes set? Let me know know what you thought.

Have you any suggestions for an all-in-one eye set?