Irish Beauty Show RDS 8-9 March 2015 | Beauty

beauty


Hey everyone!
My love for these trade shows began a few years ago when I was new to the make up world and still hadn't a breeze what to do with eye brushes... I discovered a new world at the first show I ever attended. With the floor map in one hand and my purse in the other I spent hours wandering around a heaving RDS spending time looking at what the stalls had to offer.
I found some amazing brands that day that I still swear by 3 years on.

The Irish beauty show hosts some of the biggest names in beauty but also the smaller brands that you would not normally see on the shelves in boots. They also have Nail art competitions and seminars over the two days that are so beneficial.

I have put together a list of my Top 10 favourite brands that you should not go home without visiting this weekend!

10 - Dream Dots for Spots

This is a new brand for me. I picked up a sample recently and I was pretty impressed. Dream dots are literally clear patches that you place over your blemish over night. I broke out around my nose due to a flu and it cleared a humdinger for me so well worth a bash if your interested in checking them out.

9 - Flair Hair and Beauty Supplies

I have shopped in a number of suppliers over the last few years but Flair just blow me away with their reasonable pricing and product selection. They are the Irish version of Sally's in UK but cheaper. If you are looking to pick up supplies then check these out.

8- The Beauty School (HD Brows)

The girls at The Beauty School are great. They opened another centre in Cork last year which is testament to the fact that groomed brows are going nowhere! They also offer courses for the body wraps! 

7- Young Nails

This company offers training in Nail application in their Blanchardstown training centre. I have always been interested in nail art (never got around to training). Young Nails are down the road from me and are one of the cheapest course operators. They have some great reviews too. Young Nails offer training on Callus Peel too.

6 - Cocoa Brown Tan

Cocoa Black as we call it at home is one of THE BEST tans around and I am so happy for Marissa and the team that they are now selling state side! I was in Scotland recently and went for spray tan, the technician and i got talking (as we beauty  mad people do) about tans in Ireland and I raved so much about Cocoa Brown that she went on line as my tan was drying to price for her salon! 

5- CND Shellac 

Shellac seems to a firm favourite with the Irish public as a cheaper alternative to false nails. It is a polish that lasts weeks and nowhere near as harmful to nail bed as acrylic or gels. I have brittle nails so shellac is the way forward for me. There are always deals on the stand at time.

4- He - Shi Tan

I really considered putting Cocoa here. I love Cocoa Brown for the instant tan and spray tan but He -Shi is amazing for personal use wear off tan. I wore He - Shi tan on my wedding day and couldn't get over how beautiful it looked and the wear off is decent too. If you haven't tried He - Shi yet don't be put off by the price tag. You wont regret the purchase!

3 - Waxperts

Ellen Kavanagh like Marissa Carter from Cocoa Brown Tan started her business from her salon. Waxperts is an Irish owned company.
The wax is easy to use, suitable for sensitive skin and formulated to work on the most stubborn hairs. Have a look out for the stand, the girls do demo's of the wax at work. They also have a cool product that gets rid of ingrown hairs you should look out for.

2 - Nima Brush

Nima is another Irish brand! Flying the flag for the Paddy's today! Niamh Martin is a make up artist and teacher who created her own line of brushes. There is a 10% discount all year round for students on the website. I have three brushes from Nima's Elite Collection - Contour, Blush and a stippling brush. Nima has a mixture of real squirrel hair and high grade taklon brushes. Really affordable and durable. Oh and Nima also has a world famous mitt that you need in your life. Currently on special offer for €5 the Nima Mitt is a mitt that you use to remove all make up. The only extra you need is some water. Who needs cleanser????

1 - Blank Canvas Cosmetics

I love the F20 brush from Blank Canvas Cosmetics. It is a buffer brush. I have had mine well over a year now.I have put it through the wars. It washes well as is made from high grade taklon, blends beautifully and I prefer it to all my Real Technique brushes. I have a big fluffy brush that i love for highlight too. Really really affordable brushes and great quality. GO!



If you haven't gone to one of these shows and you are around the Dublin area this weekend it is well worth the journey. Free tickets are available if you pre register here - irishbeauty.

Click here for Floor Plan and List of exhibitors. Click here to register for tickets.

Love Louise xxxx

My Contouring Journey |Beauty

beauty

My Contouring Journey

Hey everyone!


One of my biggest insecurities is the weight on my face and I just love how clever contouring can really make a difference in how I see myself making me feel more confident.

I am not ashamed to admit I have been through the mill when it comes to the racing strips that seems to end up on my face (not as much any more thank god). 
Creating the perfect contoured look became an obsession during and after studying make up. I over thought the layout, put way too much on, then not enough. I used the wrong colours!!!! Tell me I'm not on my own here! LOL. 

After a lot of YouTube videos and through blogging believe it or not, I eventually relaxed on the aul destruction path I was on and out of nowhere came effortlessly beautiful contouring...
Sculpting Kit -Shade 2 Neutral Light 



Well better than before anyway :)

I realised that I was putting way too much pressure on myself to have cheekbones like the cool skinny girls. So I decided to start investing in good products that suited me! I bought some decent brushes to apply said products and the rest they say is history...

I prefer powders for contouring over creams as I just find powder easier to work with. My favourite powder by far comes from Make Up Forever. At €36.50 the Sculpting Kit is at the higher end of the price scale but you get a lot for your money. 

You get a contour colour and a highlighter (2 * 5.5g). Both powders are super pigmented so you only lightly run brush over product and then you still have to tap off the excess. There are 4 shades altogether to suit paler skin tones to Afro skin tones. I use the shade No. 2 and it looks great on. 




To highlight I like to use Charlotte Tilbury Re Toucher in Fair. I prefer to have a subtle but dewy highlight for every day wear and then more shimmers for a night out.

I use the same brush to contour and highlight from Irish brand Nima. This slanted contour kabuki brush is amazing. It is made from high grade Taklon (the exact same material as the real technique brushes) and retails at €18. It fits the contours of the face perfectly, is easy to keep clean and I have had this brush for over a year now and it is still going strong! Keep an eye out for a review soon! :)

Love Louise xxx

Charlotte Tilbury - Retoucher Shade: Fair

Blogger Meet up and Charity Raffle 6th October 2013

blogger
Hey everyone!

As mentioned in my last post I went to a blogger meet up last Sunday! It was arranged by Aisling at Total Make up Addict to allow us all a catch up and to celebrate the end to #SBBC a monthly event dreamt up by Girl Friday Beauty Blog.

It was great to see so many familiar faces and to meet some more new bloggers! These meet ups stop being so scary after a while and everyone is so welcoming.

We were all treated to goodies by some extremely generous brands which I am extremely excited about. Thanks so much to the following who have kindly introduced us to their brand. Some are new to the Irish market and some are favourites already!

We had some great speakers at the event. everyone was offering advice and genuinely were passionate about the brand they represented so we all felt part of something special!

We had fellow blogger Anita from Precious polish tell us all about her new venture with her own range of nail polishes. Anita's range is fabulous and it is great to support Irish companies so please drop by her site for more information!

We also had a wonderful woman called Catherine talk to us about a range of natural beauty products called Surya Brazil. I am all about keeping things natural especially with my sensitive skin so I was amazed at the lengths Catherine went to in order to bring this brand to Ireland. Well done to her because I would love to see this brand grow. They launched here in June and have also got a range of Henna hair colouring that I am totally going to review for you all!



Lastly of all the speakers I was most fascinated with Niamh Martin, The creator behind Nima Brush.
Niamh launched Nima this time last year at the Professional Beauty show. Happy Birthday Nima! In that year the success of the business has grown tremendously! They use only the highest grade of synthetic materials and are free from animal cruelty! The brushes are just the best quality and feel lovely on your skin. They have every type of brush you can imagine and are already launching their third collection. SHHH... It will be called the Miami Chrome collection... Head to the website for more information! 
Niamh gave us a tutorial using brushes from all collections to show the multi purpose function of the lines. She also gave us all a Nima Mitt to add to our collections. All will be revealed shortly!!

We also met the owners of FX Make up who specialise in special FX make up brands like Kryolan and also the owner of a new Irish brush range called UR Brushes. 

The last section of the night was a charity raffle for the Irish Cancer Society. Of course I jumped at the chance to support. We have just come to the end of a cancer battle so I felt compelled to donate! 




I was lucky enough to win an amazing candle from Marie Reynolds. Beauty Emporium kindly donated this candle as a prize and I couldn't believe it as I have been lusting after this for a while. 

Great night with great company! Thanks to everyone involved! 

Louise xxx