Max Factor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Stick

I'd been eying up the Max Factor Lip Giant Pen Sticks for a good while before I took the plunge and picked up one when there was a free gift offer at boots.

I went for Subtle Coral but the shade pictured above is Foxy Amber which was in the gift set I received. No idea why it was named Foxy Amber as it isn't an orangey shade at all, just a pretty pink.

The formula is somewhere between a lipstick and a lipgloss - closer to a gloss. When sharpened, the product on the shavings feels like a really thick gloss (yep, I dipped my finger in and swatched the pencil shavings...). Personally I prefer a balm to a gloss, I don't like the sticky feeling.

While these aren't the most gloopy/sticky they certainly will grab hold of any stray hairs if they wander close enough. If you're happy with a sheerer colour but don't want a sticky feeling, maybe try blotting and then applying a balm on top.

In terms of colour these dish out a sheer wash of pigment, very pretty and sheeny. Perfect if you want to experiment with colour but don't want something too dramatic. These are buildable, and some of the swatches for other colours I've seen look very bright. I think these would be a good choice if you want something fun but subtle enough to wear to school.

A plus side of the glossy finish is that these aren't the least bit drying though I'm not sure that they do anything beneficial for your lips. They last probably 3-4 hours, less if you're eating or drinking. But these are super easy to apply on the go and really small to carry around.

The pen sticks are £6.99 at Boots, Superdrug and other cosmetic stores. Personally  while I do enjoy using them I don't think I'll repurchase them or pick anymore up. I'm just not a gloss fan.

(sidenote: the pens are currently on offer in Superdrug for £4.99 if you wanted to pick one up!)

A Sweep of Teal: Collection Felt Tip Liner

I'm a neutral girl through and through, I must have a hundred different shimmery champagnes, metallic golds and buttery browns, but on occasion, once in a blue moon, I'm in the mood for something a little brighter.

When I do fancy swiping on a spot of colour, I tend to stick to something subtle. I think partially because I'm not very daring, but also I find that colour can be quite hard to work with. I lean towards graphic sweeps of colour because I think it's easier to keep it chic.

I bought Collection's Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in Teal last summer. I figured at just £2.99 it wouldn't be a huge loss if I seldom used it. It applies really nicely, heavily pigmented, quite wet but quick to dry and once it's on it will stay put for a long time. I swatched it on my arm this morning and it hasn't budged a bit. Even if I rub it like crazy it doesn't seem to fade. The felt tip format is also really easy to apply - perfect if you find liquid eyeliner tricky.

Unfortunately despite it's long wear this liner has a habit of transferring onto my crease. No matter how much powder I pat into my eyelid it always seems to settle there. The only thing I have found to counteract this is pressing a similar coloured powder on top of the liner. It works but it's risky, for some reason my left eye has a faint arc of green above the socket but my right eye is fine. And even if it does leave you crease-line free, it is a lot of effort to put in when it should take seconds to sweep on a line of colour.

This is also really difficult to get off. Eye make up remover quickly gets rid of most of the green but leaves a faint line that will probably stick around for a good 24 hours regardless of the amount of scrubbing.

If it didn't involve such effort and constant worry that I have a crazy sixties style crease line going on, I think I would wear this a lot. It really is a brilliant product with just one drawback. I'm sure I'll keep breaking it out every now and then but it isn't something I can use frequently.

Collection Felt Tip Liners are £2.99 from Boots & Superdrug.

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I wanted to mention that I have the same product in black and it is a completely different formula. I've heard good reviews about it, I know that Alix of I Covet Thee recommends it, but I find that it isn't very pigmented, and it wears off quickly.

Face of the Day #2 | Warm & Smoky

Today I wanted to put on a lot of make up. Not for any real reason, I'm not sure I actually left the house aside from a trip to Sainsburys. Sometimes I just want to play with my make up.

I used Revlon's Nearly Naked Foundation in Ivory and Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair for my base. The Foundation is a little to dark for me, even though it's the lightest shade, so I blended down my neck too. I contoured with Sleeks Face Form Palette in Light using just a touch of the blush on my cheeks. I filled in my brows with Benefit's Brow Zings Palette in Medium.

Then the fun started. I began with Soap & Glory's It's A Prime eyeshadow underbase, then blended Maybelline's Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze. I swiped on a bit of the Rimmel Scandal Eyes Shadow Stick in Bad Bronze on the outer corner and underneath my bottom lashes then blended it out. These created a lovely base for a heavy smoky eye.

I used shades from the Accessorize Lovely Day Palette to achieve a warm, bronzed smoky look. I applied a shimmery champagne shade to the inner corner of my eye then used a gorgeous shimmery bronze berry shade across the lid sheering out towards the brow. I used a matte brown shadow in the crease to add definition and Corrupt a matte black shadow from Mua's Undress Me Too Palette in the outer quarter of the lid and as a liner. I blended everything well with a clean fluffy brush before dotting on more of the berry shade in the centre of the lid for a more vibrant colour.

I finished with a few coats of Yves Rocher Sexy Pulp Mascara in Black to curled lashes and a swipe of 17's Mirror Shine Lipstick in Beehive. I love the dramatic effect of this eye. I couldn't quite capture the gorgeous berry colour in the photographs. It's such a bold bronze cranberry shade, perfect for adding colour but sticking to the safety of nudes at the same time.

Nails of the Day #1 | MUA Bright Coral

Another one of Mua's £1 nail polishes, Bright Coral is a lovely vivid coral shade that looks peachy pink in some light, orangey red in others. It reminds me of Essie's Cute as a Button but vamped up.

It applied easily but a little sheer, though it was opaque across most of the nail in two coats, I found that when it I was getting sheer patches at the bottom of my nails where the brush had pulled the polish. This is probably more to do with my application than the polish and was easily solved by carefully painting a third coat after I'd let the layers dry for a little longer than usual.

With a topcoat (Rimmel's Pro Super Wear) it lasted around 4/5 days before I had any big chips and wanted to take it off.

I think it's a pretty decent polish, such a beautiful colour and a bargain for £1.

You can buy Mua Polishes from Superdrug stores or online at Superdrug.com or Mua online.

The Red Lip

Sometimes, I just want to put on a coat of mascara, run some powder through my brows and slide on a red lipstick. A red lip is just timelessly chic and so effortless. Somehow a touch of rouge can transform a plain face into something bright.

My current red lip of choice is a smudge of Rimmel's Apocalips in Big Bang blended across my lips with a finger, reapplied and then blotted.

Rimmel Apocalips are £5.99, available in eight shades and can be found in drugstores and online from Superdrug, Boots and Asos. (currently at £4.49 in Asos).

P.s. bonus points if you spotted my boyfriends arm sneaking into the background of the picture!

Face of the Day #1 | Peachy Keen

Today I wanted something low key soft and summery. So I kept it minimal with peachy touches.

I skipped a primer and just went straight in with concealer - Vichy Dermablend in Porcelain for spots and Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair for under eyes. To even out the rest of my face I blended in a little of the Body Shop's Extra Virgin Minerals Compact Foundation in Rose Ivory.

For my eyes I dotted on Soap & Glory's It's About Prime eye primer and then applied shadow from the Mua Heaven Undress Me Too. I patted the shade Shy accross the inner 3rd of my lid then blended Wink across the rest before adding Lavish a matte brown shade in the crease for definition. I applied a thin line of Maybelline Gel Liner to my lash line, hardly drawing, more like patting into my lashes and finishing with a tiny flick, then a couple coats of Yves Rocher Sexy Pulp Mascara. I filled in my brows with Benefit's Browzings Palette in Medium.

For my cheeks and lips I used Benefit's Cha Cha Tint. I used my Real Techniques Stippling Brush  to blend across the apples of my cheeks and along my cheekbones, then I patted a little onto my lips before applying Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm. I love the warm peachy glow that this gives my face. To finish I used the contouring powder from Sleek's Face Form palette blended underneath my cheekbones with the Real Techniques Contour Brush from the Core Collection.

High Street Bargain: Primark Lace Trim Socks

I've been lusting over Topshop's lace trim socks for a while now. They're the perfect partner to a pair of ankle boots. The pretty lace trim looks so sweet peeping out above boot rims. Topshop charge £3.50 for a pair which I think it too pricey. Luckily Primark have caught on to the trend and sell pairs for just £1.50.