My Holy Grail Makeup Products

For today’s blog post I am going to share with you guys some of my holy grail makeup products that I cannot stop using. I have done a post like this before and people seemed to really enjoy reading it, so I thought that I would do an update for people because it has been quite a while since I shared that with you. I try to make sure that I upload a favourite post at the beginning of each month, but in this post, I am going to talk about the products that I love all year around and that I keep going back to and using time and time again, no matter what other products I have tried and liked.

When I do posts like this, I never mean for it to come across like I am bragging about all of the makeup that I have in my collection. I know that I am incredibly lucky to have all of the makeup that I do. I just want to share some of the products that I love with people and that I fully recommend to other people. With this being me, this post is going to be heavily base products because they are what I use the most and what I tend to buy the most of. I am sure that you will have heard me mention these products before in other posts, but that just shows how much I really use and recommend these products. Anyway, without further rambling here are my holy grail makeup products…

Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream

First up, I need to start with the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream because this is always the first thing that I reach for in a morning when I put on my makeup for the day. I was very sceptical about purchasing this moisturiser to start with. For one, I had always had pretty oily skin, so I didn’t really feel the need for a moisturiser. Another thing was that this Magic Cream cost me £75, which is a pretty heavy price to pay for a moisturiser and it is a big commitment. In the end, after hearing Charlotte Tilbury herself talk about this, I knew I had to buy it. She was so passionate when I heard her speaking about this and it completely convinced me into buying this and trying it for myself.

I actually bought this Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream at a really good time because my skin recently has done a complete flip and I am now pretty dry. I apply this numerous time throughout the day and I have to admit that I am completely in love with it. Not only does this moisturise my skin and improve the look and texture of my skin, it also gives me a really smooth base to start going in with my makeup. I do have some dark pigmentation on my right cheek and I have seen a reduction in this over the past couple of months, even if it has been ever so slight. I know that this is a pricier product, but I know that I am going to be repurchasing when I hit the bottom of the pot!

Benefit Porefessional Primer

I am sure that this will come as no surprise to the people who have been reading my blog for some time. I was very late onto the bandwagon with this Benefit Porefessional Primer and that is because I didn’t use to believe in primers. I thought that they were just a money-making technique by big brands to try and squeeze every last penny out of you. It wasn’t until I bought my first Porefessional that I realised quite how much primers do for your skin and how your makeup looks. Since then, I always have to make sure that I have a full Porefessional sat on my shelf and ready to go.

When I use my Benefit Porefessional Primer, I literally use the smallest amount, which means that one tube of products lasts me for a really long time. I use a pea sized amount and just take this on and around my nose, where I usually get enlarged pores and excess oil. I just really massage it into the skin and within an instant you can see how much it blurs out the skin and makes it look flawless. With the help of this product I find that my oils are reduced throughout the day and it helps my makeup to last flawlessly throughout the whole day. I love this product and I know that I am going to be using it for a very long time.

Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow

I have used this primer for years now and I can quite confidently say that it is one of the best beauty products that I have ever used. I can’t quite put my finger on what makes this Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow Primer so incredible, but I am truly in love with it. I can remember seeing a YouTube video from years ago of Charlotte Tilbury doing Olivia Culpo’s makeup and she uses this product and describes it as an Instagram filter for your face, and I needed to have a slice of that. I think this primer set me back around £38.50, but in my opinion, it is worth every single penny that I paid for it and I continue to repurchase it when I am running low.

After I use my moisturiser, this is the product that I always find myself reaching for. I always go in and apply a generous layer of this all over my face and if my chest is going to be on show, I will even apply a little there too. What this product does is just gives a lovely and healthy glow to the skin, without being too much overboard. It has shimmer running through it which reflects the light and helps to give the illusion that your skin is glowing and perfect. I wouldn’t say that this product does anything to hide texture or smooth my pores, but it makes my skin look out of this world in a completely effortless kind of way.

Nars All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation

Time to move onto foundation and I had to start out with this bad boy. I only wanted to mention one Nars Foundation in this post and I was really torn between them because I love all three of them. I think the winner in my book has to be the Nars All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation. Anybody who has read my blog for some time will know that I am completely in love with Nars foundations and in particular this one. I have used this more or less every single day since I bought it, other than when I have been trying out new products and I really do love it. I don’t even want to mention how many of these I have bought over the past year.

The incredible thing about this foundation which makes it my all-time favourite is how it feels on the skin. This is a lightweight foundation with the coverage of a very full coverage product. For the longest time I didn’t buy this foundation thinking that with it being a luminous foundation that it wouldn’t work with my oily/combination skin, but I was very wrong. This Nars All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation just glides on the skin so nice and smoothly, blends in like an absolute dream, stays put all day long and the overall look is just to die for. I do still love my Nars Sheer Glow and my newer Nars Radiant Finish Foundation is beautiful, but this one in my eyes is just ever so slightly better!

Hourglass Vanish Stick Foundation

As soon as Hourglass started to give teasers of this Vanish Foundation Stick over on their Instagram and Twitter, I knew that I had to try it out for myself. When I saw the reviews start to go live about this foundation I knew that it was something I would love, so I longest straight onto the Space NK website and decided to treat myself to this. From the first moment that I tried this Hourglass Vanish Stick Foundation it was a winner for me. Now, I even have this foundation stick in four different shades so that I can do a full highlighting and contouring routine using them.

What makes this Hourglass Vanish Stick Foundation one of my favourite foundations is that they seem to have the balance of everything just perfect. Usually stick foundations are quite drying on the skin, but this is lovely and hydrating and glides onto the skin so beautifully and smoothly. It also is incredibly pigmented, and it has a lovely full coverage, which can be hard to achieve in a stick form and still be hydrating. It blends out beautifully whether I use a brush or a sponge and because of it being in a stick form, it is great for applying with I am on the go or for travelling with. I know that I am going to love this foundation for a very long time and I have even got all of my friends to try it out too!

Tarte Shape Tape Concealer

How could I not mention this concealer in this post? I have tried out so many different concealers over the past year in an attempt to try and push the Tarte Shape Tape off the top spot, but honestly, I don’t think that anything has even come close to this recently. I was pretty late onto the bandwagon with this Tarte concealer with it being a pain in the arse to try and get here in the UK, but once I finally got my hands on it, I have been using it ever since and I am completely head over heels with it and I find myself reaching for it every single morning when I am putting my makeup on.

Everything about this concealer in my book is just perfection. The coverage is very full coverage, which is what I need for hiding the darkness underneath my eyes. It is a thick feeling concealer, but it never feels too thick underneath my eyes and it blends out really lovely. I have a couple of these lined up on my shelves because I always buy these from Tarte have their free shipping weekends and I like to have them as a backup. I love how these look, feel and blend and that is why I know that I am going to continue using it for a really long time, or at least until somebody else brings out something to top it!

Nars Soft Matte Concealer

Nars really did create a winner when they made this concealer. I can remember seeing this on Carli Bybel’s YouTube, months before it was ever released, and she spoke about it and loved it and from that point I really wanted to get my hands on it. Little did I know at the time that it would be months before it was out in the UK and I just had to sit around and wait for it. The morning that it finally went live on the Space NK website, I logged straight onto their website and had to buy this for myself. I even bought this in two shades because I already knew that this was going to be a firm favourite of mine.

I am sure that most people already know that I am completely in love with pretty much every single Nars base products and that is why I knew this was going to be amazing. This is a beautifully creamy concealer that works great on areas around the face or to hide darkness and to brighten underneath the eyes. It is a lovely and creamy product and as the name suggests, it is beautifully soft on the skin which makes it blend in so smoothly. I have paired this with a whole array of products and no matter what I wear it with, it always looks so stunning. I have gone through probably around 4 of these over the past year and I know that I am going to continue to use it and have one sat in my drawer at all times!

Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Contour Wand

I don’t even know where to start talking about this product because I really cannot stop using this. When Charlotte Tilbury was teasing this on her Instagram in around September 2017, I was literally going crazy because I wanted to get my hands on it that badly. Then obviously she sent it out in PR to people and they were using it and sharing their thoughts about it on YouTube and I was so envious that they had it and I didn’t. All of the hype around this before it was released made me love it before I even got my hands on it. As soon as it went on sale on the Charlotte Tilbury website I had to log on and buy it for myself, I even paid through the nose for next day delivery because I was desperate to try this out.

I got the deepest shade in this because I thought that it would work the best for my tanned skin tone and I was right, the shade is beautiful. I will say that this looks a little intimidating when you first put it on your skin because it is quite dark, but it blends out and looks so seamless on the skin and it is the easiest product to blend out. This adds so much definition to the skin and really does help to chisel out the contours of your face. I know that the packaging on this product wasn’t very popular with the sponge tip applicator, but personally I loved it and found it great for travelling with. This is going to be a firm favourite for a very long time.

Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick in Chestnut

I first bought this Bobbi Brown foundation stick in a deeper shade many years ago to contour my face with. I love cream contouring and I wanted something with a good layer of coverage and that would last me for a long time. After using this product for such a long time, I honestly do not know why this product isn’t more talked about because it really is one of my favourite items from my makeup collection, but nobody seems to be talking about it. I have used these Bobbi Brown Foundation sticks to not only contour but as an all over foundation and the quality is really nice.

This Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick in the shade Chestnut has easily become one of my holy grail products because of how beautifully and seamlessly it blends into the skin. I feel like contouring products are very hit or miss and this one is a definite hit. What is great about this is that you can get a lovely looking contour and it doesn’t misplace your foundation underneath, which is a common issue when it comes to cream contouring products. Like I said, this is a really beautiful product, I love reaching for it, it always looks stunning and it is massively underrated.

RCMA No Colour Powder

I am sure that every single person reading this post who has visited my blog before will already know how much I adore this RCMA No Colour Powder. I have mentioned this in countless posts over the years and that is because I really believe in the product. I can remember hearing Wayne Goss talking about this powder in his YouTube videos and using it in tutorials and it looked perfect. From then, I hunted it down, bought it for myself and I have been loving it ever since. I am sure that people are sick of hearing me mention this, but it really does deserve so much attention because it is out of this world.

The best thing about this powder which keeps me going back to it time and time again is the amount of product that you get for your money. In this tube, you get around 100g of product, which is an incredible amount for a translucent powder. Plus, this tube only costs around £10, which is just astonishing for the price. I know that I always ramble on about that but for the quality of the product I think it is just brilliant. Not to mention that this translucent powder is nice and comfortable on my combination skin and doesn’t over accentuate my dry areas!

Laura Mercier Translucent Powder

Following on from talking about the RCMA, I feel like I have to mention my Laura Mercier Translucent Powder. Even though on a daily basis I do reach for my RCMA much more often, I love to use my Laura Mercier when I have an event and I know that I want my makeup to look at 100% all day long. This is another one of them products that I do find myself reaching for pretty regularly and I have to make sure that I have one in my drawer at all times. I am sure that everybody will have heard about this powder at some point over the past couple of years because it has just exploded, but I love reaching for this.

One of the main reasons why I like to keep this in my drawer and why I reach for it over the RCMA is because this lasts beautifully no the skin all day long and keeps me matte for a longer period time, which is what I need if I am applying my makeup in the morning and I have plans after work in an evening. Also, with this powder I can bake my face and really pack it on and I don’t have to worry about flashback on photos, and with the RCMA you can get a white cast every now and again if you go in a little too heavy. This is just a great standard powder to keep in your collection and it was one of my go to items when I was doing bridal freelance makeup.

Anastasia Modern Renaissance Palette

I am not a huge fan of eyeshadow palettes, I am sure people will know that about me from the lack of reviews on them. I’m just not very adventurous when it comes to eyeshadow and I tend to stick to what I know and nice and natural shades. But this eyeshadow palette by Anastasia is just out of this world and I cannot stop reaching for it again and again. I bought this after seeing it all over the likes of YouTube and Instagram and I couldn’t deny that it looked to die for, so I had to try it out for myself. In the end I loved it that much that I pretty much used the entirety of one palette and had to buy another!

What I love so much about the Anastasia Modern Renaissance Palette and what made me want to repurchase it was just how lovely and blendable every single shade was. The selection of shades is just perfection and they all pair together so beautifully. With minimal blending they just seem to gel together stunningly. Not to mention that the outer packaging of this product is a bloggers dream with the pink velvet. I know that since this palette came out that Anastasia have brought out new palettes, but having tried them out, I still think that this one is my favourite!

Charlotte Tilbury Instant Eye Palette

This is another Charlotte Tilbury product that she teased the shit out of on Instagram and she made me want it long before it was even released. The only reason why I actually purchased this eyeshadow palette was because of the beautiful packaging, and when I got it through the mail it really didn’t disappoint. I used to think that my Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow palette was the most beautiful makeup item that I owned, but this eyeshadow palette is like that, but a jumbo version and it is just out of this world beautiful.

If you have seen my review of this palette, you will know that I loved this the minute that I started playing around with it. The shades in this Charlotte Tilbury Instant Eye Palette just seem to marry together so nicely and they work like an absolute dream. The shades are separated into four different categories for day eye, desk eye, date eye and night. I just think that this is so beautiful because there is a good gradient to the shade and a brilliant mixture of mattes and shimmers. I have used this hell of a lot over the past couple of weeks and I still don’t feel like I am anywhere close to hitting pan!

Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara

Time to mention probably the only drugstore product that I am going to talk about in this blog post and that is the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara. I first tried this a couple of years ago and the only reason why I ever bought it was because it wanted the product to use in flat lays for my blog. Little did I know that when I finally got around to trying the product that I would fall in love with it and that it would become my go to product. This is the mascara that I use pretty much every single day, especially when I am just doing my makeup quickly in a morning to head out to work.

The applicator wand on this Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara really is lovely. It is a curved comb, so it helps to get every single lash hair and make sure that they are all evenly coated. With the wand being like a comb, it separates all of the lash hairs and stops them from clumping or looking spidery. The product sets around the lash hairs and is then in place all day long and doesn’t budge. I get no budging or smudging with this product throughout the day and another bonus is that it is pretty easy to remove, and I don’t end up losing my natural lash hairs.

Lancôme Grandiose Mascara

How could I not mention the world’s most beautiful mascara in this blog post? I bought this product for a similar reason as I did the Charlotte Tilbury Instant Eye Palette and the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara and that is because the packaging is to die for. I had seen this online for such a long time before I went ahead and bought it for myself, but I am so glad that I finally bit the bullet and purchased this for myself. I had always wanted to try a Lancôme mascara because I had only heard good things about them, and the fact that this is so beautiful was a big bonus.

Other than the packaging of this beautiful Lancôme Mascara, the other thing about this is that the product is amazing. I didn’t really expect any less because Lancôme are well known for their mascaras, but it really did exceed all of my expectations that I had. One of the main things that I adore about this is how short the wand is. I would say that the wand is about half the length of a normal mascara wand but that helps to get a really precise look and you can work it into each lash hair to get them completely coated and looking lovely and full. I have repurchased this a couple times and that is because I really believe in the product.

Benefit Precisely My Brow Pencil

Before I tried out this Benefit Precisely My Brow Pencil, I really wasn’t a fan of any form of eyebrow pencil because I would just stick to powders and pomades, but this changed the game. I saw this all over social media the other year when it was released, and I really wanted to try it out for myself. I had tried other brow pencils in the past such as the Anastasia Brow Wiz, and it just didn’t seem to work for me, so it got thrown to the back of my drawer and that is where it has lived ever since. But the Benefit Precisely My Brow has been an obsession of mine for a long time now and I love using it.

What is amazing about this brow pencil is that the colour pay off is incredible. It is a lovely and creamy pencil that glides onto the skin and into the brows really easily without having to apply too much pressure. I love that it is a wind-up kind of applicator to save on sharpening it down. No matter how much you use this, the end always stays really precise and it allows you to draw in individual brow hairs really easily. This is a great product for going the whole ‘Soap Brow’ technique which is so popular at the moment. I know for a fact that if I was still freelancing, this would be my brow product of choice!

Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade

I love the Anastasia Dip Brow Pomade because it really is the easiest thing in the world to use. I will admit that when I first bought this, it took me quite a while to master how to use it. For quite a while I had harsh and waxy looking brows, but just by practicing, I got to a point where I can get my brows on in seconds with the help of this Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade. This is a product that I will use without a doubt I my everyday makeup routine, whether it be using it on its own or to deepen up my brows when using something like the Benefit Precisely My Brow Pencil.

I love that with this product you can get a really intense colour and depth to your brows. This one pot of product has lasted me well over a year because all you need is the smallest amount to get a good colour pay off. You can draw in single brow hairs with this and a sharp angled brush and get really natural looking brows. I have been using this for around 5 years or so now and it is still one of my go to products that nothing else seems to be able to replace, much like the Tarte Shape Tape Concealer.

Tom Ford Bronzer

I know that this is another boujee Tom Ford product and people don’t normally like me talking about Tom Ford products because they get all crazy about how much they cost, but I think it is safe to say that I am completely hooked on this bronzer. I am sure that most of you will have seen me talk about this bronzer before here on my blog over the past couple of months and that is because it is a really stunning product that in my opinion well deserves the high price tag that goes hand in hand with Tom Ford makeup products.

The tone of this bronzer is what makes it special for me. This is a red tone bronzer, and I know that some people aren’t keen on that in a bronzer, but it is that what makes it look like a very natural holiday kind of glow rather than just a pile of bronzer on your skin. Plus, this paired with the Tom Ford Bronzer Brush is just a match made in heaven. The blendability of this product is just a dream and I love reaching for it. Even though I did get the smaller pan of this Tom Ford Bronzer, I have been using it more or less every day and I don’t feel like I am anywhere close to hitting pan!

Marc Jacobs Bronzer

The Marc Jacobs Bronzer is another one of them products that I lusted after for a very long time before I actually went ahead and bought it for myself. I am sure that you saw all of the YouTubers talking about this last year and it looked so stunning. They had the one in the white packaging that was like gold dust to try and get your hands on, but I went ahead and bought the normal version and I am in love with it. The reason why it took me so long to get my hands on is because Marc Jacobs Beauty don’t have many stockists in the UK and in the end, I had to buy this from Harrods and I had to pay an arm and a leg for the carriage.

What is simply stunning about this bronzer and why I have to keep reaching for it is because of how stunning and buttery the bronzer is. When I apply this to my face, it feels almost like a powder to cream formula because of how lovely and soft it feels as you apply it to the face. The other good thing about this bronzer is that it set me back around £35 and you get the biggest pan of product that I have ever seen with a bronzer, so I can see this lasting me for a very long time indeed. I also tend to go in quite heavy with the bronzer, but this never looks too intense because of how easily it blends out.

MAC Fix +

This is a product that I have rediscovered this year and I have fallen completely back in love with it over the past year of so. I used to use the MAC Fix + many years ago when I first fell in love with makeup and I can remember loving it, but I have no idea why I didn’t repurchase it when I ran out the first time. Then, one day when I was browsing around the MAC store I saw this sitting on a shelf and I decided to give it another try, and I fell in love with it almost straight away. I have literally used this every single day since I bought it for a second time and it makes my skin look so lovely.

Like I said earlier on in this post, my skin is going through a dry snap at the moment and I need something to give my skin a little bit of moisture once I have gone in and set my face with powder. I feel like not only does the MAC Fix + give me moisture, it helps all of my liquids, creams and powders to gel together and look hell of a lot more natural on my skin. I will also give my skin a light spritz with this after a long day at work just to spruce up my skin a little and make my makeup look much fresher, especially if I have to re-powder throughout the day.

Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk

I am sure that everybody out there that is a beauty lover with have heard of the Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk at some point over the past couple of years, but I think that this deserves another mention. I have been using this constantly since I first got it and it is by a country mile my most used lip pencil. I first bought this many year ago, probably when it was first released, and I am now on my 5^th or 6^th of these things.  I am sure that everybody knows that I have an unhealthy obsession with everything Charlotte Tilbury, but this one really is in my top 3 Charlotte Tilbury picks!

What this Lip Cheat does that is so different to any other lip pencil is that it helps to redefine the shape of your lips because of how beautiful and creamy the product is. What I like to do is very lightly build up the shade that I want my lips to be, then once I have the rough shape mapped out, I go back in with it to built it up. In the end, I will be left with a very natural looking lip line that does look very natural. I also love this shade for filling in the entire lips because it is the perfect neutral shade. Not to mention that it obviously goes with her Pillow Talk lipstick like a dream come true!

Tom Ford Lipstick in India Rose

I have done posts about this lipstick before, because it really is one of my all-time favourite shades that I find myself reaching for so often. I had wanted a Tom Ford lipstick for the longest time, but I just couldn’t bring myself to spend almost £40 on a lipstick. People probably know that I don’t mind spending my money on high quality makeup, but the most I had ever spend on a lipstick was £23 for a Charlotte Tilbury one, and I thought that was even quite steep. After a while, I was just sick of toying with the idea of buying one and I found myself on the House of Fraser website and within.

The shade that I selected was ‘India Rose’ which is a stunning nude/rose colour which matches my lips almost perfectly. I can guarantee you that I will always have this lipstick in my handbag with me because it is just the most stunning neutral shade for everyday where. This Tom Ford formulation of the lipstick is so lovely and nourishing and it almost feels like you are wearing lip balm instead of an actual lipstick. By trying and loving this lipstick I have fallen in love with the whole range and I have gone onto try more out, but the shade India Rose will always be my favourite.

So, there you have it. Quite possibly the longest post that I have ever uploaded here on my blog, but I just get so excited when I am writing about something that I am so passionate about. If you want to see my full review of anything that I have mentioned, just click the name of the item in the post above. I have also left a link down below to everything that I have mentioned in case you want to check anything out for yourself. Make sure to leave me a comment down below and let me know what some of your favourite ride or die makeup products are!