beauty blogger

Makeup trends – peel off makeup from Korea?!?!

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Hello my little buttons!

The world of Korean makeup is taking us by storm, I’ve been seeing and reading more and more reviews on products and am becoming increasingly curious. There is a company called Meme box which specialises in Korean make up and skin care. Last year I ordered one of their boxes and was extremely happy with the quality of the products inside, although this is the only contact I’ve had with Korean makeup.

I recently saw one of my favourite YouTubers Tati from ‘glamlifeguru’ make several reviews videos on a new trend hitting our screens, all the way from Korea – peel off makeup. From what I have found on instagram everyone seems to be loving the lipstain as well as the eyebrow tint. Both products apply like a thick gel, once dried you peel it off and it supposedly leaves a 12 hour stain. The novelty alone would sell this product, but the fact the stain lasts 12 hours? I need this in my life!! I was that interested i have actually ordered the whole set of lip stains from http://www.yesstyle.com as well as many other Korean items I have been looking at for a while. As soon as it arrives I’ll blog the haul!

I’m not overly excited about the eyebrow tint, from what I’ve seen the colour pay off can look a tad orange and I’m petrified it’ll go wrong and I’ll be stuck with wonkey dark brows for days so I decided against buying this….. for now.

The tints I bought are from the brand Berrisom, I have heard that there are quick a few “knock off” peel off lip stains that can contain some dangerous chemicals. I’m not sure how true this is but I have heard it several times which kind of persuaded me to stick to the Berrisom brand even though they were harder to find and a touch more expensive. I’m so excited to receive my Korean haul and try some new products and brands, testing them out and sharing my opinions with you all is going to be so much fun too. I love trying anything new and different when it comes to makeup! If there’s any other items you would like me to review please leave a comment down below.

Becca xxx 

Makeup trends – The Rainbow Highlighter!

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Hello my little buttons!!

The past few weeks everyone and their mothers aunt has been talking about the new “rainbow highlighter” it was created by a small indie brand called bitter.lace.beauty which is owned by a girl named Jenna who lovingly makes each product by hand. For a small company to blow up the way it has is phenomenal and shows the true powder of the Internet. The beautiful highlight called ‘prism’ has been selling out within hours of release and restock.

Some HUGE people in the online beauty community have been posting pics and reviews about this product, the attention on this product has been insane.

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YouTubers like grav3yardgirl and Jeffree star have been loving this product, that exposure alone can make a product go viral! Searching through instagram the past few days it also seems that many other companies will be producing their own rainbow highlighter, bit none are as stunning as the original.

I think this highlight looks amazing, definatly not for an everyday look but for summer festivals and crazy times I would happily rock this rainbow. Congratulations Jenna on your success! I’d love to hear in the comments below if this is something you think you would wear!

Becca xxxx

Makeup Porn – Anna Sui !!!

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Hello my little buttons!

Welcome to my new series of makeup Porn! In this series I’ll be showing you super sexy makeup photos from new and old brands that either I am already in love with or am desperate to try. Looking at and discovering new makeup is one of my favourite past times, so I thought I’d share the love! Some photos will b taken from the Web (which I will state) others I have taken myself. So if looking at makeup is your thing too, grab a cuppa n get ready to float into makeup heaven.

One of my favourite places in the world to order makeup from is beauty bay, you can find so many unique brands that aren’t always as easily avalible in the UK. One brand I discovered recently is Anna Sui. After some research I learnt that Anna is New York based fashion designer, who is huge in the fashion world creating some really unique pieces and stirring up a storm at New York fashion week. She also has a cosmetics line, the first thing I noticed was the packaging. It’s to die for! Each product has its own charm with some inspiring and intriguing qualities. All the photos used in this blog were found on beauty bays website,  without any further babble, get ready to druel!

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As a palette junkie they were the first thing I looked for, i found an eyeshadow palette and a lip palette. Really pretty designs and a great colour selection. I was drawn to the eyebrow palette at the top, the packaging is in the shape of a chunky black bow, just adorable! What makes the brow powders interesting is the colour selection, the green and yellow powders are something I haven’t seen before and am considering buying out of curiosity, it has some really good reviews and I just can’t stop looking at it.

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Another gorgeous selection! Top left are, I think, the must stunning blushes I have seen in my entire life. I adore the lilac blue blush as well as how these are presented in the compacts. Next are the lipsticks with a twist, they are shaped in to a star instead of the traditional bullet, really nice touch. I had to include the cute trinkets on the bottom left which are eyeshadow holders! So you can pop one of your favourite Anna Sui eyeshadows all over the lid for a simple look and take it with you for touch ups through the day. I love this idea! Last but not least is the pot of gel foundation primer, I would buy this just to look pretty on my vanity!

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Thought I’d add these pics to show the attention to detail in items that normally are fairly plain and simple. Top left is concealer, top right is foundation beleive it or not! Bottom left is a creamy foundation primer and bottom right is rose shampoo.

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Last but not least I have to give a nod to these gorgeous nail polishes!!! As well as having some rich super pretty colours the little bird on top is the icing on the cake, again the attention to detail is phenomenal.

The whole line just looks fabulous, I’ll be honest it’s quite pricey, ranging from around £7 to £30. From what I have read online the products are worth every penny and are of a high quality so from the sounds of it you really do get what you pay for. What have you tried from Anna Sui? I’d love to hear in the comments below!

Becca xxx

Rimmel Sculpting Palette – First Impressions

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Hello my little buttons!

Here is my first impressions on Rimmels first sculpting palette. I bought the shade 002 Coral Glow for £6.99, from what I could gather this was the lightest shade avalible from the two they had.

The mini palette contains a blush, a contour shade and a highlight. I love the packaging, each product is easy to dip your brush into without touch other colours and the rose gold is a nice touch. Although I don’t think it’ll last long as after a day in my handbag some of the rose gold had chipped off, but in all fairness I wasn’t expecting for £6.99 it would be solid rose gold!!

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I adore the shades, so versatile and soft they are perfect for my pale skin. I was suprised of the formula, soft, creamy and really finely milled, i knew straight away they were going to blend into my skin with ease. When swatching there was some slight fall out but when I used brushes to apply the powders to my face there was none at all.

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The blush is so complimentary to pale skin tones, the perfect pinky peachy mix this would go with any makeup look which makes the palette very appealing to take on holiday or to throw in my bag day to day.

When I swatched the contour shade I was suprised to see a slight shimmer, my first thoughts were “what a shame I’m never going to use this now!” well I really shouldnt of been so quick to judge as on the face you couldn’t see the shimmer at all but it gave the skin a lovely glow, which we all know is super fashionable right now. It’s hard to describe but it looks gorgeous. The shade wasn’t too warm or cool and muddy, it was perfect. As predicted, it blended out beautifully and was buildable but still very subtle looking.

The highlight has a gold shimmer and is also wonderful. I dusted it lightly across the tops of my cheek bones as well as on the cupids bow, and spend about 3 minutes just looked at myself. It highlights without a crazy metalic shimmer, its noticable but natural. I think you could even take a big fluffy powder brush and cover your whole face for a dewy effect and it would still look good.

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Over all I’m so impressed with this little palette, it’s a total bargin and I find it quite rare to love every shade in a sculpting palette. The only thing that is a shame is that it’s only avalible in two shades, which is highly unlikely they’ll  match absolutely everyone. Apart from that this is my new go to sculpting palette! I’d love to hear in the comments below, which is your go to palette?

Becca xxx

The secret life of blogging – Insecurities and Hard Work

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Hello my little buttons!

This is a slightly different blog than I’d normally post, I’m not sure how well this will be received but I was recently inspired to write from the heart about something real, so here it goes. I write about skin care and makeup, what I like what I hate and what I genuinely think of products. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE reviewing and blogging but it’s not always a walk in the park. It requires you to try and test many many products, this involves wearing makeup…a lot of makeup! Making time every day to put my ‘face on’ while constantly checking the mirror for smudging, faded, makeup breaking down etc.

Then there’s the selfies and photos for my blog , this all involves time and looking at my face far more than I ever did before embarking on this bloggers journey. It also takes me ages to write my blogs, I’ll write it up in note form, then type it up, then reread and correct, reread and correct until I am 100% happy with how I’ve wordered everything and if I’ve gotten my point across.

Oh and I can’t forget the skin care aspect, if I have even 3 lazy days where I’m not on top of my cleanse tone and moisturise routine as well as serums and facemasks my skin texture starts to change and I get pimples which shows up in all the photos and makes me feel like crap! I never use skin smoothing apps or play with my photos too much. I might use the odd filter but I always state when I have, I don’t ever want anyone to be under the illusion that, how I look with a filter on, is real life. Because it’s not.

This nicely leads onto Instagram, oh Instagram how I love you, but how you can twist reality. There are so many stunning girls, and I mean stuuuunning, with perfect lighting and photoshop skills that could compete with the creators of Transformers or Jurassic World, that you see day in day out on your news feeds and no matter how hard you try you just can’t seem to look as perfect. In lots of ways I don’t want to look like that, it’s an unrealistic expectation that is not healthy to yearn for. Logically I know this. But there is, of course, that small part of me that thinks, wow I’d kill to look like that! As I’m heavily into the online beauty community it is something I see daily and have battled with as I’m sure we all have. I’m proud that I have stayed true to myself and that my biggest crime is the occasional cheeky flattering angle or a colour enhancing filter.

Everyone has insecurities about themselves and this blog has really led me to at least try to get over some of mine. I am not perfect, nor will I ever be, nor would I WANT to be. Yes I’m over weight, I have a chubby face, as I’m getting older my eyes are a lot more hooded than they used to be, my nose is quite nobbley and I get hormonal breakouts across my chin. Despite all this, I can still look in the mirror and think, you look ok today, or even, you look good today. There has been positives I have realised about myself, I actually like my lips, I hadn’t really paid much attention to them before although I’m pleased to say I’m happy with them! Yes my eyes are starting to droop, but I have adapted my eyeshadow skills, put on my big girl pants and let it go. When I look after my skin I’m quite pleased with that as well, over all life is not that bad! It’s the comparisons we make on ourselves that makes it a whole lot harder. I am now at a stage I can appreciate a highly edited photo for its skill and over all effect but I understand it’s not real, it’s a beautiful illusion on reality and that is one important thing I have learnt.

For those of you that don’t know I have two children, an 8 year old girl and a 3 year old boy. As my daughter is getting older I am more and more aware that she is watching and learning womanhood through me. I want her to grow up to love herself inside and out and realise that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and everyone is magical in their own way. How can I teach her this if I feel down about myself all the time? This is partly what pushed me to put myself out there online, I want her to see that even though im not perfect I’m proud of who I am and in my own way I am beautiful. I’m still not fully there yet, but day by day I feel better and more excepting of myself.

Blogging has been a big confidence booster for me, surprisingly I’ve not receive any hate what so ever through instagram or my blog. Everyone online and in the ‘real world’ has been so supportive and it turns out there are some people that really value my opinion, which to me is a huge compliment. So I guess I’m trying to say although blogging takes up a lot of time, thought, money, effort and occasional emotion trauma, it’s worth every second and is one of the best things I’ve ever been brave enough to do. This was a rather ranty emotional blog but I feel better for it and I hope that if there’s something you want to do in life, take the leap and go for it.

Becca xxx

£5 dupe for Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow?!

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Hello my little buttons!

Recently I purchased Anastasia Beverly Hills dipbrow in the shade blonde for £15, soon after that I found out Freedom Makeup London also did a blonde brow pomade for £5, naturally I ordered it lol! The past two weeks has been the battle of the brows, to see how these both perform side by side and if Freedom Makeups version could really be a good dupe for me to recommend. I blogged a first impression of the dipbrow and long story short I loved it, so easy to use, great colour, lasts litrally all day. It really does something magic to your brows, if you have used it you know what I mean! It is avaliable in 11 shades, you receive 4g of product and it has a 6 month expiry after opening. I ordered mine through http://beautybay.com and received free delivery (I’m in the UK)

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The first thing I noticed about the Freedom Makeup brow pomade in comparison to dipbrow was how similar the packaging is, both are cute little glass pots with sleek black lids. The next thing I noticed, that really shocked me was how similar the colours were!

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Freedoms was a hair darker (do you see what I did there haha) but the similarity is impressive. Anyone with blonde hair/brows knows that most drugstore ‘blonde’ products really aren’t blonde, and even if they look blonde in the pan when you apply them they seem far darker. Don’t get me wrong these are still a darker shade of blonde but thats perfect for my brows and I imagine if you had lighter brow hair it would appear lighter on the skin. Getting back to my original point it’s hard to find affordable blonde brow products but the Freedom pomade was spot on. They felt very similar in texture and throughout the day both swatches lasted equally as well on the back of my hand, once they had set they didn’t budge. I also thought it was fab that Freedom also carried 11 shades, which again for drug store is a rarity. There is less product though, you get 2.5g but the product expires after 12 months instead of 6 so if you didn’t use it every day it’s still good for twice as long as the dipbrow and it is £10 cheaper. I ordered mine through http://freedommakeuplondon.com

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Next up are the brow swatches, again super impressive! They both acheive a very similar result which I wasn’t expecting. I found the Freedom pomade adhered to the hair slightly more than the skin but after good comb through with my spoolie it evened out nicely. I found the dipbrow adhered to skin and hair more smoothly but I would still brush them through so really it doesn’t matter too much. With both products you can lightly fill in your brows or go full on defined “instabrow” depending on what you prefer.

In conclusion I think the Freedom pomade is a brilliant dupe for the more pricey dipbrow, both are fantastic and get the job done. They both wear well and last all day with no flaking or running all over your face in the rain (nothing worse than loosing your brows!). The shade range in both lines is unbelievable there really is something for everyone, what more could you want for your brows? What’s your fav brow product? I’d love you hear in the comments below!

Becca x

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Manna Kadar conditioning lash primer review

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Hello my little buttons! 

Recently I have been reviewing a lot of mascaras so I thought after received this Manna Kadar Conditioning Lash Primer in my August Glossy Box it would fit in nicely. As next week I’ll be reviewing an eyeshadowpalette, while trying to use up all my new mascaras! I haven’t really dabbled with lash primers so wasn’t sure what to expect. I decided the test this with my current favourite mascara, Rimmel Extra 3d Lash, I thought the rubberised brush would be handy for separating my lashes if the primer stuck them together.

The primer applied smoothly and evenly with very little clumping, the product is white so although it was harder to see I could already tell it had added length. I left it for a few seconds to dry slightly then added my mascara. I instantly noticed a difference in volume especially towards the roots of the lashes as well as toward the ends. There was some added length and it really helped hold my lashes up almost like lash hair spray!!  I was really pleased with the finished look, it was just enough umph to make a difference. 

One tip for the product, don’t apply your mascara when the primer is too wet or too dry, the best result I found was when it was somewhere in between! This product was $24 for 4grams and is avalible from 

http://www.mannakadarcosmetics.com

 

The world scariest mascara ever???

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Hello my little buttons!

Welcome to the frightening world of Avons Mega Effects Mascara. I have been literally itching to try this for the longest time. The cute little brush and novelty of this mascara had me intrigued, I wanted to see how it would apply and if it was as fun as it looked. A good friend didn’t use hers to offered it to me, I bit her hand off!! 

I was surprised how small it was for some reason I thought it would of been bigger, which is a bit daft really as it goes near your eyes lol. After removing the grey lid it reminded me of a brush in a pot of paint, you give the brush a wiggle and out come the bristles with a flexible handle so you can get at the right angle. I thought this was awesome, in the same way you might like looking at a pointless little ornament or miniature dolls house furniture. 

I went straight the the mirror to try it out, it was then I realised how impractical this mascara is!! It felt as unnatural as pushing a new born baby back up yourself. From a young age you train you hand and eye coordination to use a mascara wand a certain way, it takes time, dedication and a lot of messy black dots on your face. Using this mascara felt like someone else was waving the wand near my eyes, I had to move super slow and couldn’t take my gaze off the mirror for even a second. Another thing that was irritating is there was no where to wipe the excess off so I was worried about big clumps but it was fairly easy to brush them through. I do have to say I did kinda like the end result, my lashes looked longer and the mascara itself was super black which is something I love in a mascara. I will definitely keep trying this crazy contraption out to see if I can get used to it but as it stands today im just baffled lol. 

I’d LOVE to hear your thoughts on this mascara! Please comment down below and subscribe if you’d like to read more! 

My HONEST review on Younique Moodstruck 3d fibre lashes + mascara! 

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Hello my little buttons! 

I was sent the brand spanking new Moodstruck 3d fiber lashes + mascara from a lovely presenter called Asia I met on Instagram, her account is @asiamwh. Asia started selling younique so she could stay at home with her 7 month old gorgeous baby, she has been selling since May 2015 and lives in the USA. 

I was really intrigued to see how this mascara would perform as like most people on the online beauty community I have seen it EVERYWHERE!! I was also rather sceptical as some presenters (please do understand I do only mean some) are incredibly pushy, and flood my page with ‘check out my new mascara!’ I almost didn’t want to like it!!! But as the open minded person I am I didn’t want to punish presenters such as Asia and the product itself because the actions of others. I also loved that the new formula is gluten, soy, paraben and sulphate free and is 100% hypoallergenic. The wand is now cone shaped to reduce clumping and it’s made in the USA.  

I really liked the packaging, the product was presented in a lovely black box and the two mascara tubes came in a soft black bag which is great for storage to keep them together and for travel. It’s a nice added little luxury that made it feel very high end. There was one tube of transplanting gel and another tube of fibres. The tubes had a rubberised feel and were matte black which looks awesome. There is also windows on both tubes to show what was inside and how much you have left. There was a handy instruction sheet of how to apply the mascara step by step with pictures. 

  

I had heard from several people that ‘at first it can be tricky to apply’ and ‘you’ll need a bit of practice’ but first impressions I was surprised how easy it was!! The transplantation gel even on its own looked great it felt like applying any other normal mascara and really lengthened my lashes. I then applied the fibres, which I was fairly nervous about as I didn’t want to get any in my eyes and wasn’t sure how they would adhere to the gel. Again I was surprised as they stuck perfectly on the gel, they were scattered all over my lashes with zero in the eyes. I then used the gel again to smooth the fibres over and to stick to my lashes and seal them in. I repeated the process again and was really impressed with the final result. They didn’t look like big chunky spider legs, it’s looked gorgeous! Adding volume and length and really lifting the lashes up. I didn’t use the fibres on the bottom, I added a touch of gel and I felt that was enough. 

 
The next time I used it I tried out one coat and was pleased with the natural look the mascara achieved. On lot of photos on Instagram I had seen huge built up lashes which for a dramatic or night time look is great but for day to day I prefere something lighter and wasn’t sure this mascara was up to the job but I was pleasantly surprised at how diverse this product is. 

  

For this smokey eye I wanted to added lots of volume to my lashes so I added 3 coats of the mascara. It layered up great with very little fiddling and playing about. The most time consuming thing is chopping and changing tubes but even then I think it is well worth the added few minutes. 

Now for some pros and cons, I liked the finished look it was better than I expected and I really liked that you have control on how big you want your lashes to go. Several times I was asked if I was wearing falsies and that’s a big thumbs up in my book. I didn’t notice very much eye irritation, although after maybe 10 hours or so I did have some fall out and my eyes did get a bit itchy but then again even with normal mascara my eyes get sore and tiered by the night time. On the odd occasion I did get a fibre in my eye it’s wasn’t painful and was easy to remove so this wasn’t an issue for me. I did notice that during the day I had to keep my hands off my eyes, if I accidentally knocked my lashes I was at risk of loosing the extention of fibres that were on the end!! 

Overal I think this mascara is a big win, I’m not sure if I’d wear it every day but for an event, big day out or night on the town I’ll definitely be using this when I don’t fancy wearing lashes. It was comfy to wear and you really can get the look you want with this product it’s not just for big crazy lashes, although it’s very good at that too!! I can see why it’s so popular and how several of my friends (in real life) swear by it. Such a clever idea that doesn’t take long to master. I can also see how it wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea as it does take longer to use than regular mascara but as I said before the final look far out weights the additional effort! 

If you’d like to give this mascara a go for yourself you can order it from: 

http://www.youniqueproducts.com/asiaholcomb  
  
Disclaimer: This was sent to me to review but that doesn’t remotely effect the honest review I have given I have not been sponsored or paid to promote this product. I would not sell my soul for makeup. 

My July favourites!! 

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Hello my little buttons!!

Here’s a count down of my favourite products from the month of July 2015. This month for me has all been about trying new things, as well as lightening up my makeup for the summer. I’ve been super busy with work and the kids so I’ve needed practical products that get the job done fast. 

  
The Pro Decadance Magic eyeshadow palette from Freedom Makeup London has been a staple in collection, I have done an in depth review on this on my blog recently so if you scroll down it should be there! To keep it short and sweet, fantastic quality all shades are pigmented blendable and just stunning I really can’t praise it enough. For £6 I was bowled over.

  
Blush highlight and contour palette from Makeup Revolution £3.50 I have owned for a while but rediscovered this month. Beautiful shades that are easy to work with, I would say use a light hand with the contour shade (I would use this more as a bronzer or for suble contour) as it’s highly pigmented. The highlight is pretty and also works very well as an eyeshadow, the shimmer is to die for! The blush is a dupe for the sleek blush rose gold, side by side there is very little difference. 

  
I might have found my Holy Grail liquid eyeliner, again a Freedom Makeup London product, the brush is perfection. It’s a rubber tip that is mainly firm to get your line straight but the end is flexible to get your wing on!! It’s really helped with my eyeliner application  and as you can do very fine lines with ease I can do for a lighter look without it going wrong and ending up super thick, you all know what I’m talking about!!!! 

  
I will have a review up soon on this product as I have bought a few other colours, this is the Bourjois Color Band eyeshadow and liner 2 in 1 pencil. I LOVE this pencil, the rose gold colour is so metallic and smooth to apply no matter how I wear it im always happy with the result. It’s sets really well and lasts most of the day even on my oily lids. Can’t wait to try more looks with the other colours they are quick and convenient, great for if your in a rush. 

  

Another Boujois product that I can’t believe I’ve not mentioned sooner in a favourites as it lives in my handbag and this is my second one!! Color Boost Lip crayon in Proudly Naked. Balmy, creamy this glides on the lips with just the right amount of colour. It’s sheer but packs a punch it’s my perfect pinky nude and the best thing is you don’t need a mirror to apply, it also goes with nearly every makeup look so it’s very diverse. 

  
 
I have an in depth review on this product too which I wrote recently. The swatch speaks for itself, if I could paint my whole body in this I would. Super affordable, the cream to powder formula feels good on the skin and works well over liquid and powder foundations. 

  
Last but defiantly not least is House of Glam Dolls lashes, here I’ve used the half strip. I’ve always struggled with applying lashes, mainly getting the glue tackiness correct. The glue that goes with these lashes is the bomb, it applies blue and is ready to be instantly applied. It also holds them in place all day with zero slippage. The lashes are made with natural hairs and are light and comfy to wear there is also a huge range of styles to suit everyone and anyone. At £5 a set these were my deal of the month!