The Best Halloween Makeup and Costume Tutorials

 

Group Makeup and Costumes

Courtesy of ET Online

Make like a badass and dress up like the girls in Taylor Swift's Bad Blood music video. This post from The Gloss has helpfully put all the Youtube Bad Blood make up Tutorials in one place : 17 Bad Blood Tutorials To Make Your Group Costume Slay. If that's not your thing then Lauren Conrad's Party Animals post has some easy D.I.Y animal headbands you can make yourself.

Be inspired by the girls from Pretty Little Liars who wore Disney princess dresses for their prom.  Bustle gives you 12 tutorials to choose from. If you'd rather not go the princess route here are  7 Easy Disney Halloween makeup ideas of other characters you could take your inspiration from. There's also an amazing and I mean a-mazing D.I.Y mermaid costume tutorial (The Little Mermaid) by Lauren Conrad here. Georgina from She might be loved shows how to dress up as Ursula.

Going as the Ice Queen from Narnia or Hans Christian Anderson's Snow Queen is another idea and there's an incredible tutorial by Georgina on She might be Loved who used makeup glitter and eyelash glue to make the frozen ice eyelashes.

 Stitched mouth, Skull, Doll, Vampire & Double Eyes

Onto the gory looks, I've seen the stitched up look around Shannon from Shaaanxo shows that it's easier than you think.

Zoe Newlove  has a picture tutorial of drawing half a skull on her face, but ringing the changes is Sophie Jenner with her Skulls Galaxy tutorial below.

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Channel Pretty Little Liars with this easier than it looks broken doll tutorial from Dulce Candy.



Katerina of Katerina's Beauty Blog shows you how to do a sexy, simple Vampire face.




Another great tutorial from Shannon from Shaanxo she shows you how to do this creepily effective double eyed look.

More Halloween Makeup Tutorials & Costume Ideas

A beautiful Mess has some more unusual ideas in their 20 Halloween Costume Ideas such as a bubble gum sweet machine, cup cakes, disco ball and a Pineapple.If you don't want to do the sexy Halloween costumes and you don't want to do scary and gory then take inspiration from 18 Feminist Costumes To Spread some Girl Power This Halloween from Beyoncé to Pussy Riot.

I Heart Makeup The Chocolate Palettes

 
I Heart Makeup the sister brand of Makeup Revolution have brought out three Chocolate Palettes, I am reviewing the I Heart Chocolate palette and the Death by Chocolate Palette. They are quite similar to each other so you many only want to buy one of them or maybe collection all three.  The lid of each look like  3D chocolate bars. They actually remind me of the fake plastic chocolate bar from the Fisher Price Kitchen set from the 80's! The I Heart Chocolate has a warm reddish brown lid while the Death by Chocolate has a darker lid. Each palette has 16 eye shadows including two larger pans that I assume are for highlighting under the brow (one matte and one shimmer.) Each palette also has a large mirror which makes the palette heavier that most, but I'm glad they included it.

I Heart Chocolate Palette

 

The I Heart Chocolate palette is hailed as a dupe for the original Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette. There are 4 glitter shades, Piece Me Together (dark brown with gold glitter), Love Torn (aubergine with  multi coloured glitter), What A Way To Go ( a darker brown with multi coloured glitter) and Unforgivable (purple with glitter.) Alongside these there are 6 matte Shadows and 6 shimmer ones. I have used this palette a lot and like the fact that I Heart Makeup have included some other colours besides brown. Without primer they only lasted 4 hours on my oily lids so I definitely recommend using an eye primer.  The performance of the light coloured matte shadows (You Need Love and Meet Chocolate)  was disappointing, they were very chalky and not as pigmented as the other shadows. Additionally the glitter shade Unforgivable didn't seem to contain as much glitter than the others. It seemed as if the glitter was only on the surface and after a few swipes it went. However the three other glitter shadows are fine and I think the glitter just about shows up in the photos.

I don't have the original Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette on hand to swatch and test the difference between the two palettes. I think that if you aren't fussed about the 3 disappointing shades which aren't that unique (apart from Unforgivable) then this is a cheaper alternative dupe for the Too Faced Chocolate palette long as you use any eye primer.
 

 

Death By Chocolate Palette

 

The Death By Chocolate Palette contains 6 mattes and 10 shimmer shadows. There are no glitter shades and the palette consists mainly of metallic shades although there is one purple shade. Apart from White Light the mattes are much better quality than the I Heart Chocolate palette, in particular the black shade All is Not Lost and the dark brown Devour Me are incredibly pigmented.  

The I Heart Makeup Chocolate palettes contain 16 shadows for  £7.99 which works out on average as 50p a shadow which is a bargain! It also scores highly for the unique packaging. Although I included the I Heart Chocolate palette in my August Favourites post, after trying the Death by Chocolate palette I decided that I actually prefer that,  because the quality of almost all the shades are much better and I love the metallic shades. However  if you love glitter shadows then I Heart Chocolate would be a better choice.

 

I Heart Chocolate palette is available on Superdrug while the Death By Chocolate palette can be found on Makeup Revolution online.

 

Hand and Nail Creams Review: Lacura and Champneys

Champney's Hand and Nail Cream comes in two sizes, full sized 75ml and the mini size 40ml which I find great for popping into your handbag or on your desk and applying throughout the day. The packaging is a tube with a gold flip lid with gold and brown print and is actually quite simple for a luxury brand. 

Champney's Hand and Nail Cream contains shea butter and sweet almond oil, both staples hand cream ingredients as well as Vitamin E and Pro-Vitamin B5 to strengthen nails and soothe your skin and sodium PCA to soften hands. The addition of  liquorice and vitamin A is supposed to reduce the appearance of age spots but as I don't have any I couldn't test this. It smells of liquorice and essential oils- particularly lemon and Bergamot although it also contains orange and other essential oils. It does contain silicon which I thought I'd mention it as some people are allergic to it.    

It is a light cream but does take around 10 minutes to dry. It did make my hands softer as well as moisturised and repaired the skin around the edges of my nails which often gets dry and raggedy. I did notice that my nails became a little bit softer and less dry but the difference was slight.

At full price £3.50 for 40ml and £6 for 75ml, you don't get much product for the price. However it's currently on sale in Boots for half price (£1.75 for 40ml and £3 for 75ml.)  As it's no longer on the Champney's website I think these will soon be discontinued so grab them while you can.

Lacura, the Aldi skincare and makeup brand have three hand creams in their range, but this is the only one for both hands and nails. They all come in one size, a generous 125ml for just 75p! The tube is an easy flip lid but perhaps a bit too big to chuck in your handbag.

Lacura Hand and Nail Cream contains beeswax and lanolin. Lanolin is used for it's moisturising properties while the beeswax acts as a protective barrier against water and the elements. The fragrance is light and not overpowering at all, it smells pleasant: a fresh, sweet smell. The cream is light, like a lotion and absorbs quickly, so you can get on with other things after applying it. The cream is not sticky or greasy as such, but it does leave a waxy protective layer on the skin. The beeswax locks in the moisture rather than restores it. The benefit being that when you later wash your hands the water won't wash all the cream off. The not so good thing is that while it locks in some moisture it's not incredibly nourishing. This explains why when I first used it, it felt drying on my knuckles because it doesn't restore moisture. However apart from that one occasion it has felt comfortable on the skin and repeated use has made my hands feel really, really soft. I've tried other hand creams and they've never left my hands feeling this soft. It has also healed the raggedy skin around my nails. As for the nails it coats them in beeswax and kind of waterproofs them when you wash your hands so that they don't lose as much moisture. My nails gradually became a little softer over time but the difference was fairly small. You don't need much, the swatch above was enough to coat both hands.

 

I would say that the Lacura Hand and Nail cream is great for making your hands silky soft and is incredibly good value for money- you can't beat it.  Although I would say that if you're after a more intensive moisturiser for sore hands to try something else. However this is an excellent bargain and would be good for students and those on a budget. Available at Aldi in store 125ml for 75p

 

To sum up both creams make your hands softer and can heal the skin around your nails, although they only made a sight difference to my nails. Champney's hand cream has more expensive ingredients such as the essential oils which explains the higher price and reflects the luxury brand.  Personally I prefer the Lancura over the Champneys Spa Hand and nail cream since I like the smell better, it dries quicker and is better value. Saying that the Champneys spa hand cream is currently half price at Boots which makes it better value for money.

 

 

8 Autumn Winter 2015-2016 Makeup Trends

The Autumn Winter 2015-2016 runway beauty trends roughly fell into two main camps : the dark and dramatic look with the focus either on heavily made up eyes or dark lips. Others went for the natural look with a softer definition of features -nude lips and understated eyes with full thick brows dominating the catwalks (aka the Cara Delevingne Effect but at least we can hold the tweezers!)

1. Graphic Eyes

Statement eyes with creative shapes were trending across the catwalks, from the bold cat eye at Chanel (top left) to the strong dark colour blocks at Dior (top right). Bambi eyes were seen at Rochas where makeup artist Lucia Poeroni graphically painted the models' upper and lower eyelids with floating black liner (Middle right.) Similar but less elaborate shapes were spotted at House of Holland and Proenza Schouler.  Over at Vaccarello models wore half stars at the corner of their eyes (middle left) while at Giamba models had small arrows on their cheeks. More wearable winged liner was also seen at Oscar de la Renta (Bottom left) while a lighter double winged eyeliner in  brown was adopted at Anna Sui. (Bottom Right)



Top Right Chanel Vogue, Top Left Dior Jason Lloyd Evans Harpers Bazaar Bottom Left Anthony Vaccarello Jason Lloyd -Evans Harpers Bazaar, Bottom Right Rochas Vogue

Left Oscar De La Renta Vogue Right Anna Sui Hapers Bazaar

2.  Kohl Rimmed Waterline

If graphic eyes seem too adventurous try lining the inner eyes. The look varied from classic kohl lined eyes at Lavin (top left), a slept in rock/grunge look, at Versace (top right) to smoked out liner at DVF (bottom left) Kohl rimmed eyes were also seen at Erdem, Issa and Jenny Packham.

Top Left Lavin,Vogue Top Right Versace, Vogue Bottom Left  Cavalli Vogue Bottom Right Diane Von Furstenburg

 3.  Shades of Grey

Yep 50 Shades of Grey is back. No I'm not talking about trending the bestseller book list but the autumn/winter 2015 catwalks. I think grey shadow is a universal shade and will suit everyone. It's also versatile: neutral for work or glammed up for a sexy smoky eye. At Dries Van Norton a dot of charcoal eye shadow was applied to the inner corner of the eyes and then a slate colour was washed across the eye lids (top left.) The look was soft at Marni with a wash of colour (bottom left) and more defined at Burberry (top right) Marc Jacobs (bottom right) and Paul Smith.

Top Left Dries Van Norton Vogue Right Burberry, Jason Lloyd Evans Harpers Bazaar, Bottom Left Marni Jason Lloyd-Evans, Harpers Bazaar Bottom Right Marc Jacobs Vogue

 

4. Shades of Terracotta

Terracotta orange eye shadow was seen at Alexander Mcqueen ( top right along with white mascara which I hope doesn't catch on), Preen and more subtle and wearable at Pucci (bottom right) and Thakoon (Top left.) On the catwalks it was worn with pale porcelain skin, but I think it could work with other skin tones it's just a question of being confident enough to pull it off.

Top Left Thakoon Vogue Top Right Alexander Mcqueen Vogue Bottom Left Preen by Thornton Braggazzi Jason Lloyd-Evans, Harpers Bazaar,  Bottom Right Pucci Vogue

5. Doll Eyed lashes

Elsewhere the 60's influence could be seen in the wide eyed Twiggy look, with defined doll like lashes at Rachel Zoe (Bottom left) and Rochas (Top left.) Giambattista Valli saw more natural looking lashes (top right.) Heavy 'spider legged lashes' (see bottom left photo)  were sported at Versace  and Fendi so don't throw out that thick clumpy mascara yet!



Top Left Rochas She look book, Top Right Giambattista Valli  Vogue  Bottom left Rachel Zoe, Bottom right Getty Cosmopolitan

6. Dark lips

Dark red and berry colours were spotted at  Dolce and Gabbana, Carolina Herrera, 3.1 Phillip Lim and many others. Lipsticks were blotted down to give a softer stain appearance which looked more natural instead of perfect overly made up lips. Black 'blackberry' lipstick was seen at Giles along with matte skin, eyes slightly contoured but free of mascara so that the main focus was on the lips (bottom left.)  Black lipsticks were also spotted at Emanuel Ungaro.

Top Left 3.1 Phillip Lim Jason Lloyd-Evans Harpers Bazaar, Top Right Dolce & Gabbana Vogue, Bottom Left Giles Vogue, Bottom Right Carolina Herrera Jason Lloyd Evans Harpers Bazaar,

 

7. The Natural Look

The natural look saw full thick brows brushed through but not heavily made up, concealer, mascara and subtle neutral eye shadows to lightly define the eyes. Lips were bare or had a slick of clear lip gloss. At Hugo Boss, makeup artist Pat McGrath went for luminous skin, groomed brows and subtle definition on the eyes using beige shadow (bottom left.) While at Ralph Lauren, makeup artist Tom Pecheux used a little bronzer and brown mascara paired with a natural looking light base for a fresh healthy look (Top left.) 




Top  Left Ralph Lauren Vogue  Top Right Jill Sandler Bottom Right Gucci Vogue Bottom Left Hugo Boss Vogue

 

8. Rosy Cheeks

Flushed cheeks were seen at Topshop Unique, Michael Kors, Donna Karen, Palmer//Harding and David Korma. At David Korma Andrew Gallimore used Nars Matte Multiple in Anguilla for a 'natural rose flush' (bottom left) while at Michael kors, Michael Kors Bronze Powder in Flush, Beam and Glow was applied. At Topshop the look was for "healthy, windswept skin, freckles, handsome eyebrows and wind-burnt lips." (See top and Bottom left)

Top Left Michael Kors Jason Lloyd-Evans  Harpers Barzaar Top Right Topshop Unique Vogue , Bottom Left David Korma Bottom Right Topshop Unique Vogue

 

So there you have it, what trend will you be copying?