The Glueless Scr4pbook.

I had just finished cleaning my brushes the other night and I thought, why not do a post about them and all the other tools that I couldn't live without, so here they are.

Brushes- an obvious one, but there are definitely a few in my collection that I couldn't go a day without; the Elf Stipple Brush for bronzer and highlighter, the Mac 217 for applying and blending eyeshadow, the Zoeva Luxe Highlight Brush for setting powder, the Real Techniques Setting Brush for concealer and  mini Benefit Kabuki Brush for contour.

Cotton pads- for quick and easy make up and nail polish removal.

Cotton buds- for touching up eye make up, lipstick, nail polish and for applying blemish treatments.

Muslin cloth- for a gentle way to exfoliate while I cleanse when there's no time for both.

The sponge- I use two, the Dior Backstage Blender which is egg shaped and does not expand in water, and the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge which has flat edges as well as Roy d to make sure every surface is catered for. These are without a doubt the best tool for a natural looking base.

Nail file- both a glass one and a metal one, the glass because they are best for filing and so long lasting, and the metal for cleaning underneath the nail.

Tweezers- for everything. Plucking stray hairs, applying false lashes, peeling that dry flake ( you know you do it too). 

Eyelash curlers- for me, these are not a necessity as I actually have pretty naturally curly lashes, but I do find that they help to make my eyes look more open when wearing a smokey eye so I always keep them handy.

Magnifying mirror- the eyes and the brows.

Wipes- even though these are naughty, I always have to have a pack lying around, even if only to wipe the foundation from the back of my hand.

Baby wash- to keep brushes clean and soft.

This is my first monthly favourites post woooohoo! Although I am ashamed to say that you will recognise a fair few of these products since I've been raving about them already. I have picked 11 favourites that I've been using the most this month and I have split them into Make Up and Skincare & Miscellaneous.

Well I must confess that I was never really an eyeshadow girl, until, that is, I spotted this palette on my mums dresser just before Christmas. It is the Make Up Academy 'Heaven and Earth' palette (£4) which I then actually received as one of my Christmas presents and have since fallen in love with so I thought I would just talk to you guys about the palette and my routine.

I bought MACs Paint Pot in 'Painterly' (£15) for myself just before Christmas as I had heard so much about it and thought it would give a nice 'finished' look to my make up (I used to use concealer on my lids but it often creased and ended up looking messy as opposed to polished). I started off just using it by itself which I must say looks perfectly nice for a fresh daytime look as it brightens the eye area, covers the veins and the bruised look on very pale skin like mine, doesn't crease and doesn't budge throughout the day. Most people use it as an eyeshadow base for all of those reasons, which is what I do now when I am using my palette and it definitely does help keep my shadows put.

This palette is the only set of eyeshadows that I own (I am planning on getting the Naked Basics palette for some matte shades) but I am really happy with this, it's so reasonably priced, definitely a great starter palette for someone who loves their neutrals like me. The shades almost all contain a slight shimmer, very natural though nothing too flashy, they are easy to blend and all mix and match very well, so there are lots of looks to be made out of these for both day and night. I have used this palette around 3 times a week since I got it, usually on work days, and I usually go for a light taupe colour across the lid and a deeper brown blended into the crease. 

As for application, I use my ring finger to swipe the Painterly base across my eyelid, I then use 2 brushes to apply the eyeshadows, I use the Real Techniques Setting brush (£8.99) to apply the base colour and then I use a flat brush by Beauties Factory to get the darker colour into the crease, I then blend them together with the Setting brush.

I've done a bit of make up shopping since Christmas and I was just waiting for one more delivery before I posted this, and it came yesterday so here we go. I'm not gonna blab on too much because I will probably be doing reviews on everything at some point anyway.