Beauty and Bentley

Over the last year or two, I've tried out quite a few beauty products from Primark and they just keep upping their game and improving their range so today I'm reviewing one of their new products, the Prep and Perfect Skin Illuminator. 

I picked up the shade Champagne, I believe there are two other shades, a pale iridescent shade and a deeper bronzy shade so there should be an option for most skin tones. This illuminator costs £3.50 and contains 25ml of product which is 5ml less than this kind of product usually has but considering the price it's not a big deal plus it comes with an airless pump which means you get more product out of the bottle than with a standard pump bottle. 

I was really excited to try out this illuminator as we're heading into summer and this is when we all love to have glowy sun-kissed skin You can use this product in a few different ways, you can apply it all over the skin as a base or pop it on the high points of the face after your foundation as a liquid highlighter. My favourite way to apply it is as a base, I just put it on the high points of the face and blend out to keep the glow focused on specific areas of the face as I don't want to look overly shiny. It gives a really lovely sheen to the skin but you do need to make sure you blend out the edges properly or it will dry down with a slightly obvious edge where the product is placed. 

I've checked out this illuminator in different lighting to see if it looks glittery which if you've read my blog for a while you'll know I don't like, overall it's pretty good, in direct sunlight you can see some fine glitter particles but it's not too obvious so I don't mind. Once you apply your foundation on top of the illuminator you are left with a subtle glow which I really like. I think the thing I love most about this product is that you can get different results depending on how you use it, how much you use and how you layer it.

A while back I tried out the Primark Strobe Face and Body Highlighting Cream and it was okay but I didn't love it, this Skin Illuminator gives more of the result I hoped I would get from that cream so I definitely prefer it to Primark Strobe Cream and would recommend picking this one up if you are debating between the two.

Okay, so overall I'm enjoying using this illuminator and I think it'll be great for giving your skin a glow in the summer, I actually think it'll look great on the body as well!


Thanks for checking out my blog, I hope you enjoyed this little review!

Did you know I have an Etsy store selling digital downloads, including art prints, planners and clipart - check it out here!

I've just come back from a two-night stay in Scotlands capital, Edinburgh which by the way is a beautiful city with tons to see and do so if you've never been, stick it on your travel list! Anyway, while I was packing I thought it might be a good idea to blog about what make-up I packed so today as you've already guessed from the title I'm sharing my travel make-up bag essentials for a two-night city break.

Okay so a good idea when thinking about what products you want to pack is to think about the order that you apply them, so start with any skincare you need then move on to primer, foundation, concealer, powder and so on and so on till you have everything packed up and ready to go.

The first thing I grabbed was lip balm, this is an absolute essential as I apply lip balm multiple times a day, I chose the Nivea Lip Butter in Blueberry Blush which smells great and keeps my lips soft and smooth.

For my skincare I kept things very simple all I need for a two-night stay is some cleanser and moisturiser this is the perfect time to use up any miniatures and testers which is exactly what I did, I packed the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm, this is a lovely rich cleanser that melts away all traces of make-up, I like to use a microfibre make-up remover cloth with any cleansers which you can actually use alone if you want to be even more minimalistic and skip packing a cleanser. Next, I packed my current moisturiser which is the Liz Earle Skin Repair Moisturiser, which is perfect as it comes in a nice slim travel-friendly tube and it does a great job of moisturising the skin without feeling heavy or oily.

I packed my number one favourite foundation, Estee Lauder Double Wear, this foundation is perfect for any kind of travelling as it's got great coverage and lasts all day long so if you're out exploring the city you won't need to worry about how you're looking. It does come in a glass bottle and it doesn't have a pump so it's not the greatest for travelling but so long as you pack it carefully you shouldn't have any issues.

Next, I grabbed one of my favourite concealers the Maybelline Instant Anti-Age Rewind Concealer, I love this because it's very brightening and I can use it to conceal my undereyes as well as any imperfections and blemishes.

For blush, I picked out the Bourjois Healthy Mix Sorbet Blush which is really nice as it is multipurpose you can use this as a blush and a lip stain which is perfect when you're trying to pack light. This is a lovely lightweight product that gives a natural blush to the cheeks.


To set everything in place I wanted to take my Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder which is one of my favourites but there was only a little left in the pan and I was worried it would get smashed so I brought the Primark Pressed Powder Foundation instead, a powder foundation is a good option because you can use it alone for light coverage and quick make-up on the go or you can use it very lightly over your regular foundation to set everything in place.

To finish my base I packed some bronzer and highlighter because you just can't skip these, I chose the L'Oreal Back To Bronze Matte Bronzing Powder and the Laura Geller Gilded Honey Highlight, the bronzer is a nice light easy to use bronzer that comes with a little brush and mirror which can come in handy when travelling and the highlighter is a mini so it's perfect to pack away for a trip, plus it gives an amazing glow to the skin.


For my eye make-up I wanted to keep things super simple and didn't want to pack a big palette so I packed the Brow FX Brow Powder Selection (full review here) which I used for my brows and eyeshadow, all you really need is a little highlight shade, a brown and a black to create an eye look so this little palette has everything you need. I should also mention I have eyelash extensions so I don't use mascara on my top lashes but I did take a Mini Estee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme Mascara to use on my bottom lashes.


And finally, I picked up the Urban Decay Comfort Matte Vice Lipstick in the shade 1993 which is a medium brown neutral shade that can take you easily from a day to night look depending on how you apply it.

So, there you have it, my mini make-up bag full of my top picks for a few days away, I hope you enjoyed this post and I'd love to hear your own travel make-up essentials! Like I said in the beginning of this post I had the best time in Edinburgh and I highly recommend visiting the city if you've never been!

Did you know I have an Etsy store selling digital downloads, including art prints, planners and clipart - check it out here!