Winky Lux Coffee Collection

We always need new make-up,  even if our make-up drawer is overflowing. Collectively we've lost count of how many mascaras we own (what an admission!) We at The Amazing Blog know how hard it is to resist new and exciting products, and recently we've fallen for some new products from Winky Lux. You may well remember their adorable Lip Pill Kit that we wrote about here. Based in New York City, Winky Lux is always up-to-date with the latest make-up trends and best of all, they make them affordable. Their newest innovation: coffee-scented make-up!

Both the Coffee Bronzer and Coffee Palette products have a slight waft of a coffee fragrance when you open the palettes.  We have to say the scent on the Bronzer is much more subtle than that of the Eyeshadows, but they're still a fun gimmick. We also like the cute packaging,  with the toffee-coloured boxes,  illustrated with flowers, and cups of coffee. The Bronzer is in an elegant gold casing compact and comes in two shades Mocha and Latte. We tried the deeper Mocha colour, which doubled as a contour powder for us. It has a buttery consistency and because it is matte, it's easy to wear and gives a soft bronzed look. It also comes with a mirror, making it easy to apply on-the-go.  

The Coffee Eyeshadow Palette is covered in wonderful colourful floral illustrations, making it a decorative addition to your dressing table. We were impressed with how authentic and pleasant the coffee scent is in the eyeshadow, but more importantly, we like the strength and the lasting quality of pigments in the powders. All nine shades have a velvety texture and blend nicely on the lid. The Coffee Eyeshadow Palette is every neutral-lovers dream, with matte, satin and shimmer finishes. The colours range from light beige tones into latte browns and finally darker espresso greys. With this variety of coffee shades, we recommend keeping this versatile eye palette as a staple in your handbag, for either a subtle day or a more enhanced glamorous night-out look.

If you want a different kind of coffee fix, the Coffee Bronzer is available to purchase here for £20 and the Coffee Eyeshadow Palette is £25 here. Winky Lux is also available on ASOS, Harvey Nichols and FeelUnique.com.

Moonglow Bronzer, Flirt Lip Balm & Magic Mitt - Jane Iredale

Make-up is a definite essential here at the Amazing Blog so we were very excited to try the new products by Jane Iredale. We were lucky enough to try theMoonglow Bronzer, Flirt lip balm and a Magic Mitt from their make up collection.

Contouring and highlighting has become a bit of an internet sensation over the past year, so if you've been as fascinated as we have then you should definitely try the Moonglow bronzer. It comes in a stunning rose gold palette, with four gorgeous shades for you to experiment with. Given the time of year, being able to get that golden bronzed holiday look without having to spend all your money on an actual holiday is all we want. This is definitely an achievable aim with the palette, whose shades include a bronzer that helps define your contour lines, as well as a blusher and a shimmer shade to highlight and accentuate your cheekbones.

Another benefit of this bronzer is how easily it blends and the fact it's highly pigmented means it is wonderfully long-lasting. You don't have to worry about reapplying constantly as it makes it through the day and the night with you. We also love the fact that it has a refillable palette!

The next product we tried was the lip balm 'Flirt', which is part of Jane Iredale's lip drink collection which has a variety of shades to choose from. Flirt came in a lovely, sweet, pink shade that compliments the lips natural colours so much so that it could easily be worn alone in place of a lipstick. We were very impressed with their packaging overall as the balm came in a sleek tube. It's a product you could wear every day and know that not only do your lips look great, but that they are being moisturised, and protected (Flirt is SPF 15). With a refreshing scent, being vegan, and cruelty free, this product is going to make you feel good in more than one way!

Last but by no means least, we bring you the Magic Mitt.  Made with new technology, this product removes all make up quickly and with only warm water. It cleaned our skin completely, removing all excess makeup - including our mascara! Made with knitted micro fibres the Mitt doesn't affect the skin's natural acid mantle and won't harm or affect the softness of your skin. It will also help aid the skin in protecting itself from bacteria. We would reccomend using the mitt daily to remove makeup, as well as clean the face, in order to see lasting effects.

You can purchase the all-in-one bronzer here for £29.95, you can purchase the lip balm here for £14.00 and the mitt is available here for £17.00.

Trystal Minerals Self Tanning Bronzing Minerals - Vita Liberata

It is not a secret anymore that at The Amazing Blog, we are passionate about beauty especially about tanning products. So obviously we can’t resist trying the Trystal Minerals Self-Tanning Bronzing Minerals from Vita Liberata.

Available in two shades, Sunkissed (01) and Bronze (02), the powder offers an instant pure mineral bronzing along with lasting gradual tan results. Apply the powder over your liquid foundation or your moisturiser onto your face, neck and décolleté, and then the formula will develop into a tan that will last up to 5 days. Based on the Crystal Technology, the powder is composed of Micronized crystals that give you a smooth and healthy skin finish by reflecting light. It utilises Ecocert Dihydroxyacetone to tan the skin and give you a radiant glow. We fell in love with the lovely packaging and the handy kabuki brush included that makes application a breeze.

Get a perfect, natural-looking tan with the Trystal Minerals available here for £35. 

Make Believe - Instant Tan Wash Off Bronzer & Self Tan Mist

With that bout of heat hitting London in July, and many of us jetting off to sunnier climes, some of us in The Amazing Blog office are sporting pretty impressive tans. Unfortunately, some of us are on the paler side, and although we embrace this English Rose look most of the time, it would be nice to achieve a sun-kissed glow, without risking the inevitable sunburn. Thanks to Make Believe Self Tan Skincare, we can stick to our trusty SPF 50, and perfect the look of those bronzed goddesses we envy.

For a longer lasting tan, we really enjoyed using the Self Tan Mist. Infused with Argan Oil, it’ll make your skin feel as good as it looks, and the super dark colour was great for achieving a deep golden bronze. Our favourite, however, was the Instant Tan Wash Off Bronzer. Often wash-off colours can have a bit of a shimmer, but this matte cream is perfect for a natural looking tan. The streak-free formula goes on so smoothly and easily, and, although it is wash off, it takes quite a lot of washing to budge it, so there’s really no worry of a sweaty festival or rainy day dampening your tanned style. We used the Medium Dark shade, and loved the sun-kissed effect. We haven’t braved using it on our face yet, as we think that may take a more experienced hand. However, it is suitable for both face and body, if you have more tan expertise than we do. With none of that horrid biscuit smell (the tell-tale sign of a self tanner), it’s perfect for an inconspicuous holiday look.

Join us pale girls in playing ‘make believe’ this summer and cheat the perfect tan with the Instant Tan Wash Off Bronzer and Self Tan Mist. Grab the bronzer here for £2.00 (it's on special offer!) and the mist here for £14.99.   

Yves Rocher Sunkissed Glow Cheek Stain

Here at The Amazing Blog, we were lucky enough to be sent Yves Rocher Sunkissed Glow Cheek Stain to try out. Yves Rocher is a trusted cosmetic brand from France and they offer an incredibly wide range of cosmetics, skin care, and body care. As blushers and bronzers are my favourite of all beauty products, I just couldn’t wait to try this out to see how it compared to others I have tried.

Unlike most cheek stains, it is very dark brown in colour rather than a rosy pink which can be a bit unsettling at first, but this is not a blusher stain, it can be used as an all over bronzer or to contour the face. The stain is not a roll on, or a stick like many similar products. It is actually tinted water containing Witch Hazel, which means that it lets your skin breathe, and it has very soothing properties.

However as the bottle doesn’t have an applicator, you need to put a small amount on a cotton pad, and then wipe it onto the desired areas on the face. While this stain is not a self-tanning product, it can be used to achieve a natural healthy glow, and personally I preferred to use the stain as an all over tint. You can create a beautiful shimmer by simply shaking the bottle, mixing the tinted water with iridescent gold pearl particles which illuminate the skin in a subtle way. There are no chunks of glitter that can be found in some bronzers, but rather a soft sheen that will make you look sunkissed and radiant. The product applies smoothly onto the skin, although does require some blending if being used to contour the face. I think that it is perfect to use as a face tanner as is a lovely golden colour that doesn’t look fake.

The Sunkissed Cheek Stain is part of the Yves Rocher Retropical collection and can be purchased exclusively on their website for £7.50.