Budget Beauty Series - Primark Beauty - Pretty Picture Heavy xx

I have to say I've been in two minds whether or not to do this post, because if the rumours are to be believed Primark are going to be discontinuing their make up line. This certainly seems to be the case the last time I was in all the make up items were reduced to just £1.00. Believe it or not this makes me quite sad, over the last year or so I've picked up quite a few little bits from the line and for their remarkably low price they haven't been at all bad. So here is a little post for you just to show you some of things that I've picked and some of the things you might want to hunt down before they disappear for good .

Nail Polish

I've only ever purchased one nail varnish from said Pradamark in Beige Brilliance but I have to say I was impressed with it - this Glo Baby Glo polish is UV Reactive which means it glows in uv light, whilst I haven't tried that aspect of it (my clubbing days are behind me I think ;), I really liked the polish formula and the finish as per usual this is two coats x

pretty isn't a kind of nude / brown shade with a bit of sparkle to it, I have to say I like this polish both the quality and the finish.

Eyes

The true test of any make up brand is of course it's mascara, don't ever think that just because it's expensive it's good and because it's cheap it bad. I had just as many bad experiences with expensive mascara as I have had with cheaper. I don't care what anyone says sometimes cheap mascaras can do the business. I'd seen a few You Tube videos mentioning one a of Primark's mascaras so I decided to give one a go.

Primark Beauty's 9 1/2 Winks Extreme False Lash Mascara first came to me attention in a video from the lovely Sophie, originally retailing at £2.00 this mascara contains Pro Vitamin B5, and Vitamin E for added condition.

Promising clump free lashes with a false lash effect the wand doesn't look that special just an average bristle spool

but the colour is good, the shade here is Ebony Envy, a true black - looking good so far isn't it?

The true test of any mascara though is on the lashes so a little before and after for you - first up my bare lashes

yes there are lashes there somewhere, but what about afterwards, I bet you can see them now

I have to say I am impressed yes there is a little bit of fallout but with two coats I have spider lashes result! For around £1-£2 and despite the cheesy name 9 1/2 winks is a decent mascara and if I didn't already have about 10 mascara to use I would definitely try tracking this one down x

OK, time for another eye product or more specifically products. I've tried a few of the Primark Beauty eye products and to be honest they ain't rocked my world, this on the other hand did (well a bit anyway)

The Smoke Screen Smokey Eye Kit, originally retailing at just £3.50, is packaged in cardboard packaging, with a magnetic closure, the retro pop art style design reminds me a bit of something Benefit would use. The kit itself contains 3 powder eyeshadows, in black, grey and white, 1 white kohl pencil, and 1 black pencil, and 2 shadow brushes.

The first thing I did with this kit was bin the brushes, the brushes in the Primark line have a lot of devotees, and the kabuki is brilliant for a synthetic, but the brushes in the kit were horrid, very, very scratchy, the complete opposite of the lovely smooth eyeshadows, which were surprisingly ok pigmentation wise.

The brushes were definitely the low point of this kit, the kohl liners were also buttery soft and pigmented

The packaging also comes with a little how to guide showing you how to achieve the perfect smokey eye using the kit, I followed the instructions and this is how I got on :)

The pics aren't great but you get the idea, again for the price this kit is well worth it especially if your a bit scared of doing a smokey eye.

Cheeks

Man on man Primark Beauty certainly do/did a wide variety of cheek products from highlighters to blushers and bronzers, and do you know what I've tried quite a few of them for you. First up a highlighter / illuminator

Bloominous Gold Illuminator comes in a similar style of twist up packaging to Benefits Girl Meet Pearl and That Girl, you twist the bottom of the dispenser and the product comes out through the holes

Bloominous is a gold highlighter that you can use on the face or body, mixing it with foundation or body lotion or wearing it alone

This definitely isn't a product that I would wear during the day at the moment but on an evening or with darker skin I think it would give the skin a lovely slightly shimmery gold sheen. This was originally £3.00
Next up another gold toned highlighter, this time in powder format the High Beauty Baked Highlighter

The compact features a clear lid with a black animal print design on it, and on the base there is a mirror

The compact folds out to reveal a yellow / gold tone baked powder highlighter

Unlike some baked products this actually feels super soft to the touch, and you don't need to scrape a layer off to get any pigmentation

I used this one my eyes and cheeks here, again I think this might look a bit better with darker skin but you can certainly see the pretty glow that it gives

I haven't tried this wet yet but I think it would really good foiled onto the eyelids definitely something to try I think. This is definitely a versatile addition to my make up bag. Also if you missed out on the Top Shop Make Up Sunbeam highlighter from last year this is a pretty close dupe, not bad for a £1.00

From the useful to the cutesy and yes it's another highlighter, it markets itself as blush but My Hearts Desire Shimmer Blush Hearts is most definitely a highlighter

Along the same lines as the bronzing pearls you can often buy these are cute little shimmery pink heart shapes

They aren't pigmented enough to be a blusher in my opinion, but you can either use the heart individually to apply highlight or you can sweep a brush across the pot to pick up a lovely pink sheen

You can probably see the colour a little bit better in this picture, I've just used a brush to apply it as a highlight to my cheek bones

Are these an essential no I don't think so but I think they are pretty cute thing to have in your collection especially if you a youngster, if a pale pink shimmer isn't for you I believe they also do these in a bronzer x

Finally possibly the most bargainous purchase of all and probably the most impressive for the price, called simply Blusher Powder

I love this blush so much I've actually included it in a few swaps, originally retailing at just £1.00, this will probably be an absolute steal now if you can pick it up. In a clear, basic packaging you get the softest, silkiest peachy /coral powder blush you could ever stroke. It's not just soft but its actually pretty pigmented

This has been one of my go to summer blushers and it gives such a pretty glow to the skin

What are you waiting for go to Primark and see if they still have this baby!
So that was just some of the Primark Beauty items that I think deserve a bit of love, other good things I've tried include the Ta Ta For Now Under Eye Concealer, the Opia Kohl Pencils, the cotton wool pads and the Kabuki Brush! Whilst I don't think Primark's beauty range will appeal to the typically high end classical make up buyer, it's quirky. retro, Benefit like packaging has a definite appeal to the young and trendy customer. Lets be honest every single product isn't a winner and there are a few I haven't mentioned that did disappoint but if the range is to disappear from stores there are without a doubt some things that are well worth picking up, and even if your not keen for around £1.00 you haven't wasted too much money. If you have any questions please leave me a comment xx