l'oréal infallible 24 hour eye shadow

I'll be honest, this product isn't exactly one of my most regularly used shadows because for some reason, the plastic presser-thingmabob annoys me and I simply can't be bothered to deal with it. But, every single time I use it, I think to myself "why do I not reach for this more often?"

These shadows (I only have this shade but I have swatched all of them) are so, so incredibly pigmented -- a small, gentle swipe of your finger in the pot is all you need. I have noticed they smell distinctly odd, almost a sort of chemical-y, factory-processed scent, it's quite hard to describe and I can't quite pin it down but it's not overly off-putting that I can't use the product. Side note -- I've also noticed that the Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill shadows smell exactly the same to these (I have wasted many hours milling about aimlessly in Sephora), and considering that both brands are run by the same umbrella company, I'm fairly certain they're the same product in different packaging. Anyway, I bought this shade, Iced Latte, with the intentions of it being mainly an inner corner highlight to brighten up my face a bit. However, with much experimentation and mucking around trying to find what combinations of creams and other powder shadows look good together, I've found that this always creates a bizarrely unique result.

This shade looks quite yellow and champagne-y in the pot but when applied, it looks almost slightly silver-y. In the autumn and winter months, I paired this with the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Pomegranate Punk and more recently with my much-loved MAC Paint Pot in Indianwood. A dab of this with your ring finger in the middle of the eyelid and gently blended out with a fluffy brush over the base shadow leaves your eyes looking almost ethereal, like you've got a pool of glimmering water over your lids. Glimmering water is really the only way I can think of describing it; it's not iridescent and not quite glittery, just unbelievably shimmery and radiant. It seems to last well on my oily eyelids when combined with some sort of base, but I'm doubtful as to whether it really is a '24 hour' eye shadow per se. Anyway, if you already have this shade, give it a go over a darker cream shadow to give it a bit of depth as it seems to just make everything perfectly glow-y.

loves of the summer so far: base

1. Maybelline Pure Mineral Concealer in 02

This is probably the best concealer of my life. I have been through countless tubes of this and thank god it is a fairly cheap product as I manage to get through it all quite quickly. It's the perfect consistency, blends evenly, can be layered for more coverage and is magically somehow the perfect shade for me from when I'm super pale to tan. I had a heart attack when I thought it was discontinued because it wasn't available in the US or UK, but then I found out it was only on the Asian market and all was right in the universe again. I love this to the moon and back and, god forbid, the day it becomes discontinued, I will buy my local drugstore's full stock then cry myself to sleep.

2. Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 02

I bought this quite a while ago when I decided I had to move away from the Maybelline Mineral Concealer and also when I was slightly more tanned. For quite a while I used it but decided that it was too dry and thick for my liking, then I got pale and it was completely the wrong shade for my ghastly face. Since I've gained a bit of colour again, I've been using this as an undereye conealer and found that the peachy-warm tones of it are perfect in masking the blue-y, green-y eyebags that seem to perpetually hang below my eyes. It's not as long lasting as I'd like it to be, but then again, my many undereye creases don't help when using any type of concealer in said region. It can get a bit powdery and cake-y looking when constantly reapplied but I've learned to mix this up with a bit of my Maybelline concealer to stop my eyes from looking like they have been dipped in flour.

3. Inglot Bronzing Powder in 75

One of the softest powder products of my collection, this gives a pleasant bit of colour to the face on those "why do I look like I've lived in a cave for the last month" days. I've been applying this with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush for god knows what reason, but it seems to deposit just the right amount of colour and shimmer on the areas of my face the sun would naturally hit, leaving me with a lovely dew-y "I've just sat out in the sun for the afternoon" glow. I like to think that it doesn't look overly orange or that it's a muddy bronzer and it looks like I've stuck my face in pot of dirt, but then again there are some days I might be wrong and I'm actually walking around looking like a giant Cheeto-face. Who knows.

4. Laura Mercier Invisible Loose Setting Powder in Universal

A long term favourite of mine, I have gone through quite a few tubs of this stuff and in-between have tried multiple other pressed powders (e.g. the Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder). Nothing quite gives the same smooth and silky finish to my skin the way this does, though I have to say I haven't had the guts to try any other loose powders because I just love this far too much and would carry this to my grave if I could. It is neither overly mattifying nor too dewy looking and manages to keep my oil at bay for most of the day.

5. Laura Mercier Smooth Focus Shine Control Pressed Setting Powder in Matte Translucent

I have almost finished up my MAC Pressed Blot Powder, (there is literally  the thinnest ring of product around the edge of the pan I have yet to use), but this has made it into my daily makeup bag in place of the aforementioned. Since my skin has become significantly less oily over the last year and almost a bit dry and dehydrated, I was starting to find that the MAC powder was sucking even more moisture out of my skin, leaving unappealing dry patches of flaky skin in certain areas. This looks oddly blue in the pan which can be ever so slightly off-putting. But when dusted over my face in the middle of the day after reapplying concealer where necessary, it manages to mattify my skin just the perfect amount without leaving my face feeling like it has turned into the Sahara Desert.