2018 Beauty Favourites

2018 was a weird year for me, you can read all about it here! Between finishing college and sorting my life out, I didn't really get a chance to play with as much makeup as I'd have liked to! I literally have a full drawer of unopened makeup that I've bought throughout the year but haven't managed to try yet. I did however get to play with a few things and here are my favourite finds of 2018!

Eyeshadow!

2018 was a year for eyeshadow palettes, every beauty guru from every corner of the internet launched there own palettes along with all the usual brands! Eyeshadow is one of my most favourite things about makeup so there is no complaining from me. I never understand why people seem to have an issue with bloggers/YouTubers coming out with their own makeup products but that's a whole other topic for another blog post! Anyway these are the few palettes that have found there way into my heart this year!

BPerfect StaceyMarie Carnival Palette
Everyone and their mother seemed to go mad for this palette when it launched, usually I avoid hyped products until the dust settles but I had high hopes as I had tried and adored the LMD palette by BPerfect last year. Thankfully I was right and the Carnival palette knocked every expectation I had out of the water. The eyeshadows are SO pigmented!!! They blend like a dream and there are so many wonderful versatile shades. It's definitely on the pricier side of things coming in at about €45 but if you catch it on sale,  I would recommend picking it up, especially if  you love makeup, you won't be disappointed.

Keilidh Mua x SoSu Palette
I must admit I was a little sceptical when this collab was announced, only because I really didn't rate the first So Su palette, but thankfully Keilidh and the SoSu team have knocked it out of the park!
This palette is honestly, amazing! Since I bought it about two months ago, I haven't used anything else! Without giving a full review on the palette, I love the versatility of the shades, they blend like a dream, the aesthetic & theme of the palette is fab, I love that it has a nice big mirror and the size of it is ideal for travelling! All in all, this is a wonderful palette and I love using it!

Jaclyn Hill Palette
I wanted this palette from the second Jaclyn announced it, but there was a lot of controversy around it at the time, so I held off on buying it until this year. Boy was I wrong to wait, this palette is unreal! While I definitely have a few gripes with the palette, overall I love it and the eyeshadows speak for themselves (not literally although that would amazing)The palette is so versatile and the colour payoff is amazing.

Tarte Mermaids Forever Palette
The second I saw this palette I was in love, the packaging is just on another level, even 6 months after buying this palette I still marvel at how pretty it is. But it's not just a pretty palette it's actually amazing quality too. The shimmer are stunning, so creamy and buttery, my favourites shimmer I've ever used I think. The mattes are great too, plenty of pigmentation and the blend really well. I was nervous to buy Tarte eyeshadows as I'd heard mixed reviews but this has been a great introduction to the brand and I'll definitely be buying more in the future!

Foundations

Along with eyeshadow, foundation is one of my favourite makeup items and realistically it's probably my favourite. I have relied on full coverage foundations for years to cover up my acne and make me feel more confident. The power of makeup is incredible and with the right foundation I feel amazing!

Seventeen Stay Time
I know, I know, you're probably all sick to death of me going on about the Seventeen Stay Time foundation, but it's my absolute holy grail and this year it left Ireland - I'm still devo six months on. I'm down to only four backups now! Anyway if they still sell it in your country, STOCK UP! Cannot recommend it enough!

Makeup Revolution Fast Base Stick
This was a massive surprise to me this year. I had tried a few of the foundations from makeup revolution before and they were terrible!! They seemed to have relaunched the brand again in the last 18 months and the quality of their products have been getting so much better! I have a whole video dedicated to this foundation if you wanna watch that, click here! But overall, this foundation has great coverage, gives a beautiful glow, lasts all day and just looks lovely on the skin! Oh and did I mention it's only €6!!!

It Cosmetics CC Cream
I am a bargain babe at the best of times but when I went to America, I splashed out in Sephora and bought all around me. One of the things I picked up was the IT Cosmetics CC Cream and I am so happy that I did. I never expected a CC cream to have such amazing coverage. I have a very quick Instagram video showing the coverage HERE. It does cost a pretty penny at about €50 but if you have the budget, it is a beautiful CC Cream. It gives a beautiful glow, it's very long lasting and has amazing coverage - sure what more could you want?

Penneys Foundation
I'll hold my hands up and say that I've only been using this foundation since the beginning of December but it's made a great impression on me and its cheap as chips so I wanted to include it! It's from the Penney's beauty range that is cruelty free and vegan as far as I'm aware. It's called My Perfect Colour Velvet Finish Foundation. It has medium to full coverage, has SPF 30 and gives a lovely mattifying effect. If you're looking for a everyday affordable foundation that has good coverage, give this guy a go and let me know how you get on!

Rimmel Skin Perfecting Foundation
This is a strange one for me, I have never gotten on with Rimmel foundations, they've never suited me but I pulled out the Rimmel skin perfecting foundation one day randomly this year and it looked beautiful on my skin! I was so shocked. It's quite lightweight but gives very decent coverage, ideal for covering my scars when my skin isn't freaking out! I loved wearing this during the summer!

Concealers

When I got to America, the first makeup I went to was Tarte! I still can't cope with their products!! I picked up the Tarte Shape Tape because every YouTuber I've ever watched has raved about it at some point or another. I was skeptical that paying $30 would be worth it for a concealer. Let me put it this way, I'm going back to America this year and will STOCKING UP!!! I can't explain how amazing it is, I love the applicator, the product seems to last forever, you only need a tiny amount, the coverage is &&& honestly I could sit here and write all day about how much I love this concealer.

Onto a cheaper concealer and actually a concealer that many have said is a dupe for shape tape and that is the MUR Conceal & Define. While it's a very very similar product, it's not a dupe. It does give great coverage, handy package, great applicator but I go through so many tubes of it! I'd say I've gone through 3 tubes at this point and have about 4 backups ( I usually order it online when it's on sale). If shape tape is out of your budget this concealer is a fantastic alternative.

Mascaras & Eyeliner

This year I seemed to try loads of mascaras and eyeliner but was sadly disappointed with almost all of them. There really was only about two products that I liked - but boy are they good and but from Essence too! The Essence I heart Extreme waterproof volume mascara is amazing. It lifts my lashes, holds a curl, is jet black, doesn't flake and looks bomb - what more could you ask for? The Essence Liquid Ink is a tiny product but lasts ages! The brush is small enough to do detailed eyeliner but is very flexible and gives you lots of freedom without being messy. It's also jet black and lasts all day!


Lipsticks

I used to be such a big lipstick fan, I'd rarely come home from town without a new one, but this year I actually picked up very few! My biggest find and love this year was the colorpop liquid lipsticks, everyone seems to go about how amazing they are and I'm happy to confirm that they are correct - They're amazing! Very pigmented, great applicator, lasts longer than any other liquid lip I've tried before and they're comfortable on the lip! I'll definitely be buying more of them!


Contour, Blush & Highlight!

I decided to lump contour, blush and highlight altogether as there's only a few things I loved this year. Starting with bronzer/contour I have adored using the Elf contour palette. The bronzer is the perfect shade for me and the contour shade is just cool enough without being grey - perfect for my complexion. I bought this in America for about $5 and will be restocking again when I go to America this year as I've already hit pan! Love this product - cannot recommend it enough!

Blush is never a makeup item that excites me, just something that I always seem to pick up and have in my collection. Saying that though, I have enjoyed using the Elf blush palette, they aren't too powdery, have great pigmentation so you only need a small amount and it's very affordable!

My favourite highlighter this year without a doubt is the Colourpop 'Flexitarian' Super Shock cheek highlighter! It's simply stunning. Absolutely blinding if you want it to be but also if you use just a tiny amount, you can get a really nice glow. It's super small and handy for travelling. When you touch it, it feels like a cream but it dries down as a powder very quickly so it doesn't disrupt your foundation. It does have a fair amount of sparkle to it so if that's not your thing maybe stay clear but I love wearing this one nights out and all the time really!

Everyone seems to be obsessed with glow drops this year, I gave in and tried the Penneys glow drops and well, I'm converted! When I first apply it, I resemble the tin man but once the foundation goes on over top, I look so glowy and fresh! I picked them up on sale so I think it was only €1 so for that price and

Primers

I haven't really steered away from my Elf Primers that I loved in 2017 but the only one that caught my eye this year was the Penneys PS Beauty's Matte Primer. It's a silcone based primer, it's oil free and I haven't stopped using it since I bought it. It's a complete bargain at €4 too. I have quite textured skin thanks to over a decade of acne so using this as a primer gives me a smooth base for my foundation, I know some people don't believe in primers but I  really notice a difference when I use this.

Eyebrows

This year my beloved Brow Zings from Benefit finally ran out, I've been using it for a few years (definitely past the expiry date) but I hadn't replaced it because it's €34 and I know there are cheaper ones out there that do a similar job! So I was on a mission to find a dupe and I found something very very close and that it the eyebrow kit from ELF! I picked it up over in America and it was $3/4. I was delighted with myself. Now it's not an exact copy and if I'm being 100% honest I do still prefer the benefit product but with €30 in the difference, the Elf one is close enough! Since buying it in June, I haven't really used anything else and will definitely be repurchasing it when it runs out!

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2018

2018 seemed to last forever but fly by all at the same time. For me, this year was full of change and uncertainty. 2018 started with immense stress trying to submit the first draft of my thesis, I will never forget how tough that was. The next few months are a blur of finishing my Final Year Project, getting snow randomly in March thanks to Storm Ophelia and generally feeling very lost.

I've always been a planner, ever since I was a child. I would plan my outfits for the next day, plan what dinners I would have that week, plan my whole life out really. My plan was always, do well in school to get into university, do well in university and get a great job and the rest would fall into place. What I didn't account for however is that my mind would change about what I wanted and I never in a million years thought that I wouldn't have a plan for after college. So come April/May when I was finishing up with college and had no plan what so ever, it really REALLY threw me.

I like to think of myself as a glass half full kinda gal, I always try to find the silver lining and truly believe that everything will work out in the end. While I believe that everything will work out, the inbetween moments of doubt crippled me. In June myself and James headed away to America to go to Disneyland and Universal Studios, my dream holiday. I had saved up for a full year to be able to afford to travel after I finished college. A gift from me to me, for all the hard work over the previous five years. It was the most amazing holiday and I will never forget it! But when I came home, I had to face reality. I no longer had a plan, all throughout my life, my years, months and weeks were set out according to the academic calendar, every September I would be starting back at school/college, every December I would get a few weeks off for Christmas and every May/June I would have a few months off before it started all over again. But this time it was different, come September I knew I wouldn't have that routine anymore and I didn't have anything to replace it. I had a part time job but with so little hours, it would never have even covered the rent.

I thought life after college would resemble something from the movies where I would wear a fancy shirt and a long pencil skirt, go to a million job interviews and land my dream job. The reality was a greasy hunbun, pajamas all day everyday and wallowing in self doubt. After a few days of lazing around, I started applying to jobs and as luck would have it I got called for two interviews within a week, both scheduled for the same day! I headed up to Dublin for the first one, I was so nervous I could of been sick. I wanted the job so badly and to be honest, I thought I would have been perfect. But unfortunately nerves got the better of me and I make a complete balls of the interview. My mind went blank and that opportunity had been lost. I was completely devastated. I got the train home and prepped myself for the second interview, this one was over the phone so I felt a bit more comfortable. At that point I thought to myself, well it surely can't go as badly as the first one so let's just give it a go. And sure enough, it actually went really well. Within a day or two I got the job - YAY!!!

Even though I now had the beginnings of a plan, it was only a three month internship and I knew I would have to figure something more long-term out, but this bought me time. Getting this internship is definitely the highlight of my year, it has opened so many doors to me and I have learned so much! It also helped me focus on what industry I wanted to work in and start to help me carve my way into it. By August another opportunity came up, a chance to explore event management for a month too. I was able to extend my internship and go to Dublin for a month to learn.

The long term plan was that I would secure a full time position after my three (now four) month internship was complete. That unfortunately fell through. I was heartbroken if I'm honest. I was back to square one with no plan and all of my savings had been spent. This time though I had more experience on my side and I had learned a lot, mostly about myself.

In November I decided to take on some freelance work until I got a full time position somewhere. I did not expect what happened next. Due to the contacts I had made at the internship, I was booked out with work, in fact since starting my own business I have been so lucky to be fully booked and I have even had to turn away work. I am so grateful.

There was lots of days in between all of the above that I want to remember like my graduation day, going to Indiependence with my friends, booking a trip to America for next year, my birthday, many nights out and lots more, but if I'm honest grad life took over this year and was the biggest thing in my life. I know this may sound strange but I really feel like I've grown up so much this year, I'm much stronger than I ever was, I'm much more confident and I'm much more chilled out about not being able to plan every single detail of my life.

I'm actually immensely proud of myself and all that I've overcome this year! At one point I thought 2018 was very grey, not great, not bad just...grey. But looking back now, I can see that I've changed a lot over the past 12 months, I've adapted and I'm a better person for it. I have no idea what is in store for 2019 and I'm actually ok with that.

Oh also, did I mention we repealed the 8th? Definitely one of the most important, historical and monumental things that has happened this year!

Erin X

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