90th Oscars - Best Dressed

It's currently 1 AM (although this is going up the day after the Oscars) and I am so over-whelmed with all of the dazzling and magnificent dresses and gowns worn by all of the brilliant women at the Oscars. They've just kicked off and I couldn't not write this right this second. I'm too inspired by all the pretty dresses and women. 

I have a lot of names I have to mention in this list. Nearly 20. I couldn't narrow it down even if I really tried, I'm so blown away by the beauty on the red carpet. I will say that these are in no particular order, but I do have some real favourites that really stand out to me.

Lupita Nyong'o in Versace 

  

 

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

How gorgeous does Lupita Nyong'o look in this metallic gold, Versace dress? Although it's border-line costume to me, it still allows her to stand out and be elegant. Matched with neutral looking make up and a plain gold clutch, Lupita is working this dress and I think she looks absolutely breath-taking.

Viola Davis in Michael Kors

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Pretty in pink. Viola looks amazing in this Michael Kors gown. The hot pink colour works so well with her skin tone. The subtle shimmer on the gown gives it an edge without being too in your face. She looks like a beautiful vision, I absolutely love it.

Gina Rodriguez in Zuhair Murad Couture

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

This splendid Zuhair Murad gown totally flatters Gina Rodriguez; with the deep V neck and the stunning pastel pink colouring. Paired with her sleek ponytail, she looks incredibly elegant. 

Eiza Gonzalez in Ralph Lauren

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

With a bright pop of yellow the 'Baby Driver' actress really made an entrance. I think yellow is a really hard colour to pull off, but Eiza has managed to do just that. The simple, elegant gown looks unbelievable on her. 

Margot Robbie in Chanel Haute Couture

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

When I first saw this gown I wasn't a fan. But the more I looked at it the more I like it. Plain and simple dresses seem to be a theme this year, and I'm not complaining! Mrs Robbie is a vision in white. Her short blonde bob compliments this Chanel gown perfectly. The diamonds across the top brighten this dress up and give a bit of sparkle; it definitely wouldn't be the same with it. The best actress nominee turned it out. 

Jennifer Garner in Versace

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Jennifer Garner looks stunning in this royal blue Versace gown. The colour and long train really make a statement. Her long brunette hair in the side parting allows her to show off that lovely centre strap and neckline. Jennifer is really glowing! Beautiful.

Salma Hayek in Custom Gucci

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

I love, love, love this dress. They style, colour, layering, everything! Salma looks striking (she always does though), hair pinned back with two curls framing her face. The Gothic make up: dark lips and eyes. She looks so glorious, I want this dress for myself. Gucci is my favourite brand, and this dress for sure shows why I love them so much!

Andra Day in Zac Posen

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

How powerful is this image? That gown and that pose! Andra is a beauty in this unusual Zac Posen gown. The vintage looking fabric gives this dress a lot of character, and the French Renaissance looking silhouette is so quirky. I love this gown and I think Andra looks incredible.

Allison Janney in Reem Acra

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

This gorgeous, plain, red gown looks fabulous on Allison Janney. The tight fit shows off her incredible figure which is so flattering on her. The long sleeves give the dress some dimension and layering. Allison looks so elegant in this gown paired with her sleep bun, natural make up and lovely pearl necklace. 

Helen Mirren in Reem Acra

 Photo courtesy of Getty Images

 Also in a Reem Acra gown, Helen Mirren also displays an astounding elegance. The very simple, form fitting gown gives Helen a lovely silhouette. Matched with a statement necklace, and Mirrens grey bob in a side parting.  

Abbie Cornish in Elie Saab Couture

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Abbie Cornish looks so spectacular in this stunning gown from Elie Saab. This is one of my favourite looks of the night. I can't stop staring at it! The silver draping all over the dress gives it a vintage feel, and I'm all about vintage dresses. The deep V neck and the peek-a-boo shoulders are an elegant touch. She is glowing and looks exquisite. I love!

Zoey Deutch in Elie Saab Couture

 Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Shock! Another Elie Saab gown I absolutely adore! This dress is the stuff of dreams. I love everything about this gown, I can't fault it at all. The colour is so gorgeous. Layering on the skirt gives it huge 20's vibes, so I am absolutely LIVING for this dress. Zoey looks incredibly classy with her long hair in loose waves and pinned behind her ear on one side. I'm welling up looking at this dress. It's for sure my all time favourite dress of the night.

Gal Gadot in Givenchy

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Just like Lupita, Gal is a shiny, metallic vision. This spaghetti strap, deep V gown looks incredible on her. Again, I'm getting 20's vibes with the slip dress style, gradient colour, tasselled skirt and long diamond necklace. It's stunning. 

Emma Stone in Louis Vuitton

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Emma Stone never fails to deliver on the red carpet and tonight was no exception. This wonderful satin blazer and trouser combo from Louis Vuitton is astonishing. Emma, herself looks gorgeous with neutral make up and pin-straight hair; keeping it simple. I love a good suit, and the red blazer with the pink sash is a great touch. Emma looks sublime.

Emily Blunt in Schiaparelli

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

I physically gasped when I saw this gown. Emily Blunt looks so marvellous in this baby blue gown. The design going around her waist then up to her neck is wonderful. I'm not normally a fan of anything that accentuates shoulders, but I think it works fantastically on this gown. 

Taraji P. Henson in Vera Wang

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

How ravishing does Taraji look this is cut-out chiffon gown by Vera Wang? Its simple but with character. The slit up the skirt, the bare shoulders and arms and cut-out in the mid section really makes this dress a show-stopper. 

I have been so impressed with all the stars this year, and their fashion choices. I already know I'm going to be looking at some of these gowns for the next million years wondering if I'll ever get to wear something a beautiful. Probably not. Oh well... Until next year!

Thanks for reading, and let me know your choice best dressed at this years Oscars. 

Bx

Photos courtesy of:

http://ew.com/awards/2018/02/27/when-are-the-oscars-2018/

How to deal with pale skin (and my favourite cruelty free make up products)

Having pale skin can be a real pain in the butt. I have to protect my skin from the sun every single time I go out no matter what the weather. Tanning? Forget it. I tend to avoid the sun as much as possible to be honest. The other struggle is finding make up products that don't make you look like you've just dipped your face in mud.

If you knew me in secondary school then you can vouch for how bad my make up was. I was constantly sporting that horrible orange line on my neck. The trouble wasn't that I didn't know how to apply make up, because I did, there was just never any products available for skin as pale as me. Granted there is a lot more now, which is brilliant, but when I was growing up there was no Fenty Beauty or Kat Von D foundations.

Looking after my skin is a full time job. If you haven't read my Skin Care Routine post yet then I recommend reading that just to get an understanding of what I go through every day looking after my skin. As someone with acne prone skin I always wanted a high coverage foundation or concealer to hide my pimples and also my freckles (I love freckles now but I don't have any anymore!), but alas, none were available.

Working with make up has given me a great opportunity to explore different brands and products to find out which ones work best for me and my (nearly) translucent skin. The best drug store brand I've found that caters to pale skin is GOSH cosmetics. They have lots of different base products in shades perfect for pale to medium skin. From their powers to their liquid foundations I've found something that works for me. I currently just use the GOSH cosmetics CCC stick in light 003 and the GOSH mineral full coverage foundation powder in Ivory 002. These two products alone provide me with great coverage and they're the perfect match for my white skin.

Quite a few brands now do lightening and darkening drops to mix in with foundations to alter the shade. My favourite are the MUA cool lightening drops. They work really well with my cool skin tone without making my product too yellow.

Although there are a lot more products for pale skin now than there was about 5 years ago it can still be hard to find shades that suit you right. This works for dark skin too. It's just as hard, if not harder to find shades to dark-very dark skin. But I think that now the make up industry is taking steps in the right direction, so I think we can expect to find more variety and choice when it comes to cosmetics. And honestly, black-owned make up brands are taking the industry by storm and creating all these beautiful, diverse products; so that is something really exciting to look forward to!

Thank you for reading

Bx

Photos from superdrug.com

First Impression Review: Revolution X Sophdoesnails eyeshadow palette!

So, when Sophdoesnails first announced her very own eyeshadow palette in collaboration with Makeup Revolution I was so excited. Makeup Revolution is one of my favourite brands ever, and I have most of their eyeshadow palettes already so I had an idea of what to expect. In the announcement video Sophdoesnails showed us the palette and did swatches of the shadows in the palette. The colours were gorgeous! I was hooked and knew right there and then I had to get this palette. So, as someone who works in the make up department of Superdrug I snatched it right up as soon as it came in to store. 

On first glance the product looks smart and attractive. The box is a pastel peach shade with gold metallic marks which Soph explained are paint 'splodges'. Even though I wouldn't have been able to guess what they were the packaging is attractive none the less. In the middle of the box is 'SophX' in the same gold metallic material. Once you open the box and take out the palette you're greeted with a matte nude palette. Once again 'SophX' is written on the actual palette itself. I like it! Its just a plain package, like most if not all of the Makeup Revolution palettes.

As soon as you open the palette you can see on the top there is a huge mirror! Which is amazing. Its the size of the palette so will make the application of the shadows incredibly easy. I remember in the video Soph said she wanted a big mirror in the palette so people can apply their eyeshadow, and the rest of their make up, easily; which I believe she achieved brilliantly. I'm always grateful for a palette with a considerate mirror. The palette comes with twenty-four shades; thirteen matte shades and eleven glitter/shimmer shades. All of the shades are so striking and beautiful. It includes a matte white and a matte black which is amazing as I often find that palettes don't just come with matte black and white shades, it's either one or the other or they're shimmer shades. So, this was a delight. There are plenty of nude shades in this palette which I feel would work incredibly with all skin tones. 

I swatched all the shades and I was pleasantly surprised with most of them! I'll insert pictures of all the swatches I did below:
Here we have Penguin, Pancakes and fairy lights;

The top photo is without flash and the bottom photo is with flash. As you can see here the shades a very pale, I believe they are the palest shades in the whole palette which makes the fantastic base colours or transition shades. Penguin, the matte white shade is perfect for placing on your lid as a base before you apply any other shades. It's blend-able with a light coverage over the lid. Pancakes the more orange nude shade is perfect as a crease shade, its also blend-able. The third shade in the palette is Fairy Lights which is a beautiful pale shimmer shade. Its a very pale pink that works brilliantly as an inner corner and brow bone highlighter. All of these shades are very subtle and perfect if you're looking for a subtle, barely-there eyeshadow look.

The next three shades in the palette are Pink Champagne, Iced Coffee and cuppa tea:

Top photo with flash and bottom photo without flash. So the first shade in this trio is Pink Champagne which is a gorgeous light pink shimmer shade. It's brilliant for a very subtle eye look, good for school or work, that sort of thing. Iced Coffee the shade in the middle is a warm nude shade with orange undertones is a great transition shade and works well with the next shade Cuppa Tea. All three of these shades are highly pigmented therefore I wasn't disappointed with the palette so far.

Grow Old, Sparks Fly and Smokey Bronze are three more of the shimmer shades:

Top photo is without flash and bottom photo is with flash. These next three shades are very pigmented shimmer shades. I found with these shades there was quite a lot of fall out, but I find that with basically every Makeup Revolution palette so I wasn't particularly surprised, also it didn't really make a difference for me really as it's easily sorted out with a simple swipe of a brush. They're very pigmented but also very blend-able which is the make or break moment for eyeshadows.  

Mixed Berries, Tiramisu, Peaches:

Top with flash, bottom without. Mixed Berries is that gorgeous purple shimmer shade. It truly is a beautiful shade. I was shocked when I swatched it for the first shade. Love at first sight. Its so so, so pigmented and is intensly rich. Its got to be my favourite shade in the whole palette. Again with these shades there was rather a lot of fall out. All blend-able again and pigmented, so perfect shades.

Cloudberry, Pumpkin and Pine Tree:

Top with flash, bottom without. As you can see these shades look a little different from the rest of the shades. Personally I love this as she has included lots of shades that work really well together to create so many different looks. I also believe that these shades will look lovely on all skin tones, they're rather adjustable and also build-able if you have a darker complexion. Again with these ones they're very pigmented.

Petrol, Pug and Danger:

Top without flash, bottom with flash. So, one issue I have with these shades is that Petrol, the first shade in the trio pictured above, did not swatch the same colour it is in the pan. In the pan, as you can see from the photos I posted at the beginning, is like a very dark shimmery silver with blue undertones, yet when swatched it comes out a brown shimmer. To me this is disappointing as the shade in the pan is beautiful and I was looking forward to using it this Autumn/Winter. It is still usable, but I'm just a little disappointed with it. On another note, Danger is beautiful. I'm really in to red/orange/pink shades at the minute and this one fills all my warm toned dreams. Its blend-able and works with most of the shades in the palette.

Strawberry Sweets, Festive Flames and Copper Coin:

Top without flash, bottom with flash. Look at the first shade. Look at it. Isn't it just perfect?! So pigmented, so striking! I love it. It is bold and bright. It's everything you'd want/expect in an eyeshadow. I can't fault these three shades AT ALL. no complaints here. 

Mug Cake, Rosewood, Nightmare:

Top with flash, bottom without flash. Okay, so I need to explain this swatch. I know it looks awful but that black matte shade, Nightmare, had so much fall out it crumbled when I swatched it. I wanted to give a true impression of this product so I added this photo. Although fall out is extremely easy to combat this one took me by surprise. As you can see it's pigmented but again, it's very blend-able. The other two shades are faultless, they're also pigmented, blend-able and diverse with all the different shades you can use them with and the looks you can create. 

Overall I highly recommend this product, even with the few minor faults I found with it. I also discovered when swatching it kicks up a lot of product. Each pan claims to contain 1.1g of product which I think is pretty good considering you're getting twenty-four shades for £10. this makes each shade about 42p each. Can you complain? No, not really. It's an incredibly affordable palette and is available at Superdrug. I really recommend investing in this palette this Autumn/Winter to create lots of different looks. As this is very new product, this is first impressions review. I will come back to this product once I've had chance to properly wear it with the rest of my makeup and give you a review about how long it lasts, what it's like to apply and the different looks I can create with this one palette. I want to give it a really good test. 

Thanks for reading!
Bx

Introduction to myself

Hey Guys, so my name is Brenna and I've decided to start my own blog. I intend to blog about beauty (makeup, hair and smellies), fashion and lifestyle really. I'm really in to all of these things and I really wanted to write about them. I'll be writing reviews for products I use and try out, also my opinions on the latest fashion trends or shows.

So, a little about me; I have two dogs, and three hamsters. My dogs are named Tilly and Herb. Tilly is a Labrador X greyhound and Herb is a border collie X lurcher. I love them both to pieces. My hamsters are named Hershel, Judith and Fez. Yes... Hershel and Judith are named after The Walking Dead characters! And Fez is of course named after the best character from That 70's Show.

I live in Cornwall, UK. I intend to either move to London or Ireland within the next year for a new adventure. It's beautiful down here but when you can't drive it's rather boring.

I love reading, I have a huge collection of books. My favourite novel is The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I also intend on writing my very own novel in the future. I'm a huge fan of The Walking Dead of you hadn't have guessed already! I also enjoy Game of Thrones, although I wouldn't say I'm the biggest fan in the world. Horror movies are my favourite genre of film; I am yet to find one that truly scares me unfortunately! My favourite films include Rocky Horror Picture Show, Disney's Hercules, Carrie Pilby and Trolls. Music is one of my favourite things in the world, I love love love The Neighbourhood, Ed Sheeran and Lady Gaga. I'd say I have a well rounded like for all sorts of music.

I love tattoos and have seven of them. They all have personal meanings to me which I wont share on here just yet, maybe I'll a blog post about them in the future! 

Drew Barrymore is one of my favourite human beings ever. She is such a style icon and woman power model. I am a strong believer of woman power and I think all women are beautiful, majestic beings. 

I apologise for the most boring first blog post in the history of first blog posts, I thought this would be a good ice breaker. Feel free to follow me on all my social media, I often follow back!
Twitter: brewdarrymore
Instagram: brennaahenryy
Snapchat: brennaahenryy

Thank you all, and please stick around for all my future blog posts!:)

Bx