14 Beauty Favourites of 2014

End of year beauty favourites are my favourite posts to both read and write. Being a beauty addict, I try a lot of products, so these really are the best of the best. 

As of last year, I split my favourites into two posts, beauty and makeup favourites. I find my beauty favourites a hell of a lot easier to pick than my makeup favourites. Mainly because I change my makeup so often, but with beauty products once I find something I love, I'm pretty loyal. As testament to that, half of these products were also in my 13 Beauty Favourites of 2013.

Enough rambling, here are my 14 favourite beauty products of 2014. Makeup favourites to come tomorrow! 

1. La Roche-Posay Serozinc

Like most people, I discovered this through Caroline Hirons, who I'm sure you know is amazing for skin care recommendations. This is a spray toner with zinc sulphate which targets blemishes and marks.  I use this after cleansing, spray on a cotton pad and wipe all over my face. This, in conjunction with their Effaclar Duo + has improved my skin no end and you can now finally get this in the UK! (Chloe you need to try this!)

Escentual £8.50

2. Moroccanoil 

(Featured in my 2013 favourites)

Along with Seche Vite, this is one of my all time favourite makeup discoveries. I rub 1-2 drops of this into the ends of my towel dried hair, every time I wash it. I can't really remember what life was like before Moroccanoil, frizzier!

Look Fantastic £31.85 

3. Babyliss Waving Wand

I had picked out my favourites and photographed them, then realised that I hadn't included this and had to redo the whole thing! Pretty much the only hair tool I used all year, if I curl my hair this is the only thing I use. Its quick, easy to use and gives me the big, loose vintage waves I crave. I shared my technique in this post back in 2013 and it hasn't changed.

Amazon £27.50

4. Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel

Oh I love this stuff. I originally discovered this back in 2013, loved it but then went on to try other cleansers. This year I have gone back to it and now I'm not straying. I take my makeup off every night religiously and this makes that process enjoyable. I just rub a blob all over my face and rinse of with a cloth. It feels really luxurious, doesn't sting my eyes and works well with my skin. 

Boots £20.00

5. Bumble and Bumble Surf Foam Wash Shampoo and Creme Rinse Conditioner

This shampoo and conditioner leave my hair feeling so soft and super bouncy. They also leave my hair feeling really clean and gives me some natural movement and wave. Plus the smell reminds me of holidays :)

Escentual £18.50/£20.00

6. Kate Somerville Goat Milk 

(Featured in my 2013 favourites)

When it comes to moisturisers I hate to admit but I am a bit of a diva. I hate the feeling of heavy moisturisers and having combination skin, I have to be careful that they don't break me out. Goat Milk sounds unappealing but its light, doesn't irritate my skin and calms any sensitivity. You can only get this in America but Sephora does now ship to the UK.

Sephora $65.00

7. COLAB Dry Shampoo London Classic Fragrance

A late entry but I cannot put into words my joy at finally finding a dry shampoo that doesn't leave my hair looking like an ash cloud and doesn't feel disgusting in my hair. This is so light you can barely feel it in your hair, its pretty much invisible apart from if you spray too much, or too close and it really cleans my hair. This has saved me from having to wash my hair everyday and for that, I cannot thank it enough.

Superdrug £3.49

8. Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water

For me, Micellar Water is a life saviour. I don't use makeup wipes as they irritate my skin but Micellar Water is so gentle and removes everything. Most brands seem to have released their own versions and to be honest I don't really notice a difference from brand to brand, but the Garnier wins for me as you get the most for your money.

Boots £3.33

9. Bobbi Brown Almost Bare Perfume 

(Featured in my 2013 Favourites)

This is my signature scent and I have got through countless bottles. This is a very fresh smelling perfume and the name describes it perfectly. I always get a lot of compliments on this scent, particularly from men. I have even had two strangers (both men) ask me what my perfume was, which I don't imagine is a very common occurrence. I have no shame in admitting that I live in fear of Bobbi Brown discontinuing this!

Bobbi Brown £49.50

10. Tangle Teezer Salon Elite

I take my Tangle Teezer for granted, until I use a different hairbrush and wince as I brush through those knots. This makes hair brushing a dream. 

Beauty Bay £8.09

11. Seche Vite 

(Featured in my 2013 Favourites)

If I had to pick my greatest makeup discovery of all time, including both makeup and beauty, Seche Vite would be it. In the most shallow of ways, this top coat is life changing. Your nails are dry in minutes. I can paint my nails, go to bed five minutes later and I won't wake up with a single smudge. As well as fast drying, this is also the glossiest top coat in the world and people regularly ask me if my nails are gel, no, no its Seche Vite. I would never use another top coat.

Boots £9.00

12. Real Techniques Buffing Brush 

(Featured in my 2013 Favourites)

This has to be the most popular makeup brush in the YouTube and blogging community. I really dislike traditional, flat foundation brushes. I always found they left streaks and because of this never used a brush to apply my foundation. The Buffing Brush changed that completely and since discovering this, I haven't used my fingers to apply my foundation. This really gives you a flawless, airbrushed finish and I recommend it to everyone. The only annoying thing is that you cant buy it separately, its only available as part of their core collection but well worth the money.

Superdrug £20.99

13. La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo +

Hands down, my best discovery of 2014. The beginning of the year I found that my skin kept breaking out, particularly around my chin area. It was really starting to get me down as nothing was working and then I heard about this new release from La Roche Posay and thought I had nothing to lose by trying it. Effaclar Duo + is for people with blemish prone skin and it is designed to help with blemishes and fight against the appearance of marks. This stuff is amazing and has genuinely transformed my skin, I now rarely suffer from spots and if I do its the odd one and it goes very quickly. I can also vouch for this improving marks on the skin, as my chin area which I previously struggled with, is now clear. This is my 5th bottle and I would not be without this!

Boots £15.50

14. Zoya Remove + 

(Featured in my 2013 Favourites)

Pricey, but my favourite nail polish remover. I have tried to use your standard, cheap removers but this has spoilt me and now I cant go back. Gets rid of all polish quickly and doesn't dry out my nails at all, which is the thing I cant stand with those cheapo removers. This actually leaves my nails feeling nourished.

Amazon £10.50

Face of the Day for Afternoon Tea at the Savoy

To celebrate milestone birthdays for both my Nans, we went to the Savoy in London for Afternoon Tea. I have never had the experience of afternoon tea before, probably due to the fact I don't drink tea or coffee!

The Savoy is beautiful and for me the best thing about the afternoon was admiring the architecture and interiors. I took a few pictures which I thought were too beautiful not to share.

I fell in love with these pop art paintings of various famous guests who have stayed at the Savoy, including Marilyn Monroe, Alfred Hitchcock, Ava Gardner, Katharine Hepburn and Frank Sinatra.

From one form of art appreciation to another, makeup! I was in a mood to experiment slightly with my eye makeup but as I knew there was bound to be a family picture or two taken, I wasn't about to do anything too crazy!

Face

Foundation

Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet in B30

A fail safe, I love that this provides a good level of coverage but doesn't look or feel heavy on your skin.

Concealer

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla

I really have tried with this concealer but I just don't get the hype. The coverage is ok but not great, the lasting power is so so and the annoying applicator drags my skin. I just think there are better performing and cheaper concealers out there.

Bronzer

MAC Extra Dimension Bronzer in Aphrodite's Shell

This is lovely but no longer available. If you are looking for a new bronzer though I highly recommend Jouer, which you can buy from Cult Beauty.

Contour

MAC Sculpting Powder in Sculpt

This is available online as a MAC Pro product. I like to use a tiny bit to try and add some definition to my chubby cheeks.

Blush

MAC Cheeky Bugger Blush

Full review here

Powder

MAC Prep & Prime CC Colour Correcting Compact in Neutralize

Full review here

Eyes

Eyeshadow Primer

Nars Pro Prime Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base

My favourite eyeshadow primer

Eyeshadow

Too Faced Chocolate Eyeshadow Palette

Now is the time I have to try and remember what shades I used! All over the lid I used Marzipan with Salted Caramel and Milk Chocolate in the crease. I posted a more in depth review of this palette here.

Eyeliner

MAC Teddy and Powersurge Eye Kohl

Not one but two eyeliners, can you tell I was feeling wild?! I used Teddy, which is a metallic brown, smudged out on my upper lash line. I then used Powersurge which is a metallic gold in my waterline. I always forget I own this liner but its perfect for bronzey summer makeup looks.

Mascara

MAC Extended Play Gigablack Lash

A repurchase, one of the best lengthening mascaras I have tried. It also lasts all day without flaking or smudging.

Eyebrows

Hourglass Arch Brown Sculpting Pencil in Soft Brunette and Illamasqua Brow and Lash Gel

As always!

Lips

Lipstick

Nars Pure Matte Lipstick in Bangkok

As I did a slightly heavier eye makeup, I wanted to keep my lips pretty neutral so this matte lipstick by NARS was perfect.

When it comes to hair I am pretty boring and if I am going out there is only hair style I do, which is my Game of Thrones Hair. There are two tricks to this, number one my Babyliss Waving Wand, which makes curling your hair idiot proof and number two brushing your curls out. This is the key to getting those loose, big waves! 

I am also currently loving the Lee Stafford Argan Oil Flexible Hold Hairspray. Smells amazing and not a single strand of crispy hair in sight. The hold is quite light though, so bear that in mind.

For nails I went with my current favourite polish, Essie's Lilacism <3

I also just wanted to share my earrings as I think they are pretty cool ;) Jules Smith has some amazing, unique jewellery designs and I loved these art deco inspired Sunburst earrings. You can drool over her pieces on Shop Bop.

Messy Waves

When it comes to hair I have learnt (the hard way!) to keep things simple, the trick is to make it look like you made no effort at all.

This hairstyle is essentially a more messy version of my Game of Thrones hair. Wavy, messy hair with a lot of texture, think Jennifer Aniston, the Olsen Twins etc.

Here is my piss easy guide for messy wavy hair

1. Brush your hair and start. This hairstyle works a lot better on day two hair, so you can skip the shower!

2. Get out your curling wand, mine is the Babyliss Waving Wand which I love. Its the only thing I use to curl my hair and was quite the revelation when I discovered it, I cannot recommend it enough. 

Now you can be fancy here and section your hair but I was not feeling very fancy so just started curling. Make sure to curl AWAY from your face (oh 18 to 23 year old Laura if only you knew that very important fact). Curl away until.......

3. You have a head of curls and look like the Lion from The Wizard of Oz after hes been beautified.

4. Fight the urge to brush through those curls! Its ok you wont have to stay like little orphan Annie for long but if you can just leave your hair until it cools down your curls will hold so much better. I tend to do my makeup in this time.

5. DESTROY THE RINGLETS! Get your hands in there and shake, shake, shake. 

6. Straighten - Now I know using two hair tools seems like a lot of effort but trust me this is the key to this look. Straighten random sections of your hair, particularly focusing on the ends. No rhyme or reason to this, just grab whatever bits you fancy. Make sure you run the straightener through your hair quickly.

7. Now you just want to add some product to your hair to give it extra texture, body and hold. You can use whatever you want, I like using the Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray or the Oribe Apres Beach Wave and Shine Spray. Today though I used Trevor Sorbie's Goop, which is a texturising paste. 

And you're done

Game of Thrones Hair

This is what I like to call my Game of Thrones hair, long brushed out waves ala Queen Cersei.

The tools you will need:

Curling wand - (You can use straighteners but for this kind of wave, a curling wand is better) I have the Babyliss Waving Wand which I love as its so quick and easy to use and gives me the exact waves I want. Plus you can buy them for £20.00, bargain. I never use my GHD's to curl my hair now.

Hairbrush - Any hairbrush will do, my favourite one to use for this is my Mason and Pearson brush as it helps smooth the hair but my little brother keeps stealing it, so I had to do with any ole brush.

Hairspray - Now I don't always use this but if its particularly windy or I want my curls to last all day then I will.

Moroccanoil - Again optional, I sometimes smooth 1 pump of this through the lengths and ends of my hair after I have curled and brushed it, to tame any frizz.

Game of Thrones toys are optional!

1. Start with clean, reasonably straight hair (if you hair is particularly frizzy you may need to straighten first). I always set my Waving Wand to the highest temperature, my hair has never snapped but as my hair is so straight I need a high temperature to keep a curl!

(I have serious bitch face when I curl my hair, its the concentration!)

2. Start curling - I don't bother sectioning my hair or anything fancy like that, I just start! The important thing to remember is to curl away from your face! I cannot stress that highly enough! Also don't curl from the root, you want to curl from about mid way down your head. I take quite big sections of hair, remember you want loose waves not tight ringlets so the wider section of hair you take, the bigger the wave will be.

3. Repeat on the other side of your head, again curl away from the face my friends.

4. Brush out - Once you have curled all your hair, leave it to cool down. Once your curls are cool you can then brush them out. If you brush out when they are still warm you risk loosing the curl (that sounds a lot more traumatic than it actually is!) 

Again I don't do this is in a particularly neat fashion, I just brush my hair from root to ends.

5. Styling products - Now your hair is brushed out this is the point where you can add your oil if your ends are a bit frizzy and any other styling products you want. Grab that hairspray!

Et voila

This is my go to hairstyle if I am going out, or for any special event. In fact its pretty much the only way I really style my hair. Brushed out waves are the best!

The next day I will usually just twist the front 2 sections of my hair and clip them back but if you want to channel your inner Khaleesi, plait the front 2 sections instead and clip back.

Now I just need to find my very own Khal Drogo