Ever since MAC launched their two pre-filled x15 eyeshadow palettes, I’ve been contemplating purchasing one but at £65 I couldn’t really justify one since I own a ridiculous amount of eyeshadow palettes but that still didn’t stop me lusting after them. The two x 15 pre-filled palettes are the MAC Warm Neutral Eyeshadow Palette and MAC Cool Neutral Eyeshadow Palette and each palettes contains fifteen full size MAC eyeshadows within one of their clear plastic palettes, however you can’t take the shadows out of these palettes like you can do with their standard palettes. If you were to make your own fifteen pan MAC palette, it’d set you back £10 for the empty Pro Palette, £2.50 for the Palette Insert and then £150 for the fifteen eyeshadows totalling £162.50 so £65 was a pretty great price.

However recently, MAC lowered the prices of their x 15 pre-filled palettes to £49.50 instead of £65 which makes it an even better deal, and I decided it was time to finally purchase one and I opted for the MAC Warm Neutral Eyeshadow Palette as the shades within the Cool palette looked a little pale and insipid for my liking. I purchased my palette through Octer which is an online marketplace which allows you to view products from different retailers all in one place, as well as seeing which retailers have sales or promotions on to save you some money where possible. Octer also allows you to search for items such as “eyeshadow palette” and see products you perhaps wouldn’t have seen by browsing a single retailer, but you can browse for items via specific retailers, or by price bracket too making it easier to find what you’re looking for.

The MAC Warm Neutral Eyeshadow Palette comes packaged within a very plain and simple black cardboard box, and the palette itself has a clear lid which is handy to see the shades inside. On the back of the palette there is a sticker which lists all of the names of the shadows inside the palette as well as what finish they are too. I like the packaging but I do feel it’s a little bulky for my liking, and the lid is magnetic and I have a habit of catching my finger in the hinges on the back due to the way it’s made. I love the convenience of having 15 shadows all in one palette but I wouldn’t travel with it as it’s too bulky and heavy but it’s a nice addition to my palette collection.

When it comes to mascara, I always feel that I’m left underwhelmed by the most hyped mascaras which is exactly what happened with the massively popular MAC Extended Play Gigablack Lash Mascara; I’d read endless rave reviews on it and when I tried it for myself, I really wasn’t as impressed as I thought I would be. Whilst perusing the Feelunique website, I spotted the NYX The Skinny Mascara and it really caught my eye as it’s so unlike any other mascara I’ve tried so I added it into my basket and figured it was worth a try, especially as it’s only £6.50 which is pretty great value. NYX describe their The Skinny Mascara as being perfect for coating heard to reach lashes from root to tip, with a water resistant formula which particularly appealed to me as my lower lashes always seem to smudge so I’m consciously checking throughout the day to make sure the mascara on my lower lashes hasn’t smudged or crumbled all over my face.

From what I can gather, the NYX The Skinny Mascara is only available in black but that’s ideal for me as I much prefer black mascara over brown as my lashes are practically black anyway. The brush on the mascara is so strange in that it’s long and very narrow without any tapering like typical mascara brushes so I thought it would be amazing for the lower lashline and I’d hoped it’d be less messy too as I always end up coating my under eyes in mascara when applying to my lower lashes as they’re such short lashes.

I’ve seen reviews where people rave about using the NYX The Skinny Mascara on their upper lashes, but I think it would possibly work best for those who are already gifted in the lash department as my pathetic stumpy upper lashes don’t work well with a wand like this as it just ends up coating them in product without a curl, or any volume. On my lower lashes however, it performs considerably better and has replaced all of my other lower lash mascara options as it does a great job of catching every single tiny lash without making a mess which is a massive bonus. The formula is definitely smudge proof, and it doesn’t crumble or flake during the day but I wouldn’t describe it as being water resistant as it smudged when I got caught in the rain but the fact it doesn’t smudge or crumble throughout the day makes it a definite winner. I can’t believe this mascara is only £6.50; it’s such great value, especially if I’m only using it on my lower lashes every day.. I imagine this 6ml tube will last me ages, as I’m already six weeks in and the formula is identical to how it was when it was new so I’d really recommend giving it a try if you’re in the market for a fantastic bottom lash mascara regardless of budget.

Buy your's today at Boots.com or in-store

NYX HD Studio Finishing Powder is my current favorite product to finish off my makeup look!  It is so soft and silky and gives a very natural finish to the skin.

 The product comes weighing a mere .21 oz (6g) but do not let the weight fool you! It is so lightweight, there actually is a lot of product that will last a very long time.

Buy your NYX HD Studio Photogenic Finishing Powder today at Boots.com or in-store!