High End Makeup Worth Your Money

High end makeup can cost an arm or a leg, especially if you're only a student or yet to be fully employed, working girl. Still, if you crave a pretty thing now and then, it's totally fine and you should be 100% happy with your newly picked makeup product at such a high price. Here's where I come around with my high end experiences - giving you some high end suggestions that are totally worth your hard earned money. I've only included categories in which I most certainly trust in - I have yet to discover perfect high end foundations or bronzers that are worth that extra splurge.

BRUSHES

Let's start with basics, brushes are definitely the best category to invest in some extra money. Good quality brushes will last for ages or a lifetime if you're maintaining them carefully and properly. Sigma is still my number one brush brand to relay upon as their brushes never disappoint with quality and high performance. I've been owning their Essential Kit (160$) for years now and my brushes are still spotless and beautiful as the first day. Extravaganza Face Kit 18K Gold (119,70$, quick look here) is a luxury version of normal Sigma sets but totally worth the investment on a long run. Still, I think beginners would be probably totally satisfied with their SigmaTech Essential Brush Set (122$, review here) as it's pretty affordable yet has the needed essential brushes for everyday. 3DHD line is perfect for effortless buffing of your liquid foundation and no wonder 3DHD Kabuki (24$) is crowned as Best Brush for 2015. I also recommend buying Sigma brushes when there's a special event or deal to get more out of your money. Monthly codes for 10% off (for October is SIGMAPINK) are also always updated.

CONCEALER

If we continue with base products, Clarins Instant Concealer (around  25€, Clarins counters) is an essential you won't regret. Generous amount of 15ml will last you for months with regular use. Formula offers medium coverage while the texture is so refined you can easily cover your under eye circles or larger areas with imperfections. No wonder it's a European classic and a serious Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer competitor with a lighter coverage. It comes in 4 different shades with different undertones to cover and revive tired eyes. Number 01 matches even the lightest skintypes. 

POWDER

Ah yes, the unbeatable and cult classic Guerlain Meteorites (around 50€, Guerlain counters). For some time, before even testing them out, Meteorites was just a pretty little collection of rainbow pearls for face. Trying them out, I've converted into a true Meteorites fan with rainbow pearl madness. It's true, classic Meteorites cost an arm and a leg together at about 50€ but rainbow pearls will probably last you for years at 25g amount. I'm no where near finishing my Meteorites even though they already updated their design and reformulated the product. It gives a glorious but subtle illuminating finish but also manages to prolong your foundation wear. It's a perfect fit for dry skin that looks dull and needs uplifting colour correction. On the other hand, Meteorites Compact (about 50€, Guerlain counters, review here) is definitely suitable for all skintypes as it manages to perfect skin texture and delicately mattifies for an airbrushed effect. They both are 100% worth the splurge, though Compact has only 7g which could be a huge downfall, and they both smell like violets. Basically, if you're rich or price doesn't matter to you, Compact Meteorites is the best powder on the beauty market. While original Meteorites have the best value for money and they're pretty illuminating and perfecting as well.

BLUSH

Packaging is a huge factor to notice a high end brand. While I utterly enjoy the luxurious packaging of YSL or Guerlain, Benefit (about 35€ a piece, Asos) is really good at concept ideas and unique shades of blushers. Benefit is the only blush brand with several shades in my blush collection. They look cute, every blush has a different scent and they perform with excellence. My favourites are Rockateur and Coralista but enjoy every single colour on it's own. I also owned Sugarbomb and Hoola but they weren't the best choice for my fair skintype. I admit, they are pretty addictive once you start collecting them. Coralista, Dandelion, Bella Bamba were reviewed here and Rockateur here.

EYESHADOW

I have only one single eyeshadow brand to mention. Burberry is hands down, the one and only when it comes to single eyeshadows. The texture of Burberry Eyeshadow (about 31€, FeelUnique) is perfectly buttery, highly pigmented with diverse colour range. All shades are unique and gorgeous for enhancing natural beauty of your eyes. I'm more than happy with my Pale Barley as it's a one of a kind camel shade with distinct, subtle shimmer. Worth every cent. More in depth review is here. Keep in mind that their quad eyeshadows supposedly don't have the same quality. 

Palette selection is much more wider in high end department. I have two brands to point out that are not necessarily high end brand but their palettes do come to around 50-58€ a piece, which is a lot if we put the total value of their eyeshadows on the side. My two total winners are Too Faced Chocolate Bar (57,90€, BeautyBay) palettes, they are absolutely superb despite funky design and concept. Shades are buttery smooth, highly pigmented and they smell like legit vanilla cocoa. An array of neutrals is just perfect and they both have a selection of mattes, shimmers and glitter shades. Semi Sweet Chocolate Bar is a more warm toned mix while original Chocolate Bar is heavy on burgundy shades and classic brown mattes.

This will not come as a surprise, but I also adore my Urban Decay Naked palettes (31,51€ for Naked Basics & 52€ for Naked palettes, FeelUnique). Naked, Naked 2, Naked 3 are an absolute must have. Naked Basics and Naked2 Basics, complimentary mattes, are also much more handy as you would thought in the first place. First and original Naked is full of basic bronze, matte browns and smokey shades. Quality and pigmentation is the best in the original. Naked 2 is on the other hand much more cooler, complex and unique. Naked 3 is a rose gold twist with an array of pinks, golds and coppers. Due to flattering hues, it's my favourite out of the bunch, but keep in mind that it has some sparkly shades with fallout. Naked Basics in particular has a mix of most useful matte shades, while Naked2 Basics has less intense mattes for shadow blending.

LIP PRODUCT

It's hard for me to pick out only one high end brand of lipsticks as I strive to try as many different brands as possible. But I had to point out my current favourite high end lipstick brand, it's probably Dior. Their textures and formulas are unbeatable and truly unique to the market. They are usually in the front line when it comes to new formulas and inventions. A solid pick are Dior Fluid Sticks (35€, Dior counters & online) and always intriguing, multitasking Cheek & Lip Tint (37€, Dior counters & online). Dior Addict (36€, Dior counters & online) and Addict Extreme (32€, Dior counters & online) also have a pleasant, comfortable texture with wide shade selection. Rouge Dior (36€, Dior counters & online) is a classic pick for a bolder shade and fully opaque color. My personal colour favourite is 786 Mysterious Mauve (review here), a unique buildable purple with blue sheen. Dior colour selection is out of this world and I'm pretty sure you'll find a perfect formula and shade at their counter.

Hope this post was helpful to you in any way. I'm especially pleased with Guerlain powders as they make all the difference to your face, while Clarins Instant Concealer is a pretty sweet deal at 15ml. Urban Decay and Too Faced palettes are already classics that shouldn't be missed out and they are all a good value for your money. Sigma brushes won't disappoint and will last a lifetime with good care. Not to be mistaken, these are not my only high end bits but rather products that are truly worth the extra mention. Who knows, maybe I'll do part 2 if this post turns out to be a successful one.

Burberry Kisses

A while ago, Burberry Beauty promote new lipstick line Burberry Kisses through nifty Twitter action. Luckily, a fellow UK blogger nominated me to try out a luxurious mini size of Burberry Kisses. This little guy travelled entire Europe with the help of my closer relatives, to whom I'm eternally grateful to watch over a lipstick mini with so much care. Being somehow happy with my previous Burberry lipstick here, I was anxious to try their new formula. Sophisticated packaging was as promising as my initial expectations but the product itself is nothing more than average. Why? Formula is indeed, ultra lightweight and comfortable to wear. It has a buildable formula so the pigmentation is pretty sheer to enhance natural beauty, which is also the main Burberry Beauty concept. However, lipstick itself is nothing spectacular for whooping 35,25€ price mark in Europe. Sure, it's comfortable and buildable but that's about it. Thankfully, they've decided to get rid of strong flower scent. Longevity and finish, again, as an average creamy lipstick. Other than that, there's not a single standout property to be worth splurging.

I got shade called Nude Pink, which is indeed a nude with pink tones. Actually, it's a perfect mix of MAC Creme Cup and MAC Hue. Light warm nude as Hue but with additional pink notes to make it a bit more wearable. Pretty and versatile for every day but already seen.

What more can I say? Burberry Kisses is a comfortable, creamy lipstick line with buildable colour. I really like it but I don't love it. The thing is, I always search for at least one standout property to justify hefty price tag. If you're having some spare money, than by all means, try Burberry Kisses. If not, you can easily find similar texture in the drugstore. It reminds me a bit on Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Glossy Sticks but with less glossy finish. Burberry Kisses retail for around 35,25€ on FeelUnique.

Burberry Lipsticks Worth the Hype? And FREE Mini Lipstick Burberry Kisses

As a self-proclaimed lip junkie, I had to try at least one of ever-so-famous Burberry lipstick. With some extra help from my international friends (in particular Beauty Sketch by Jacq), I managed to grab Burberry Lip Cover in Primrose Hill Pink. Highly impressed by Burberry lipstick? Not really.

High hopes and major anticipation made me dream about Burberry makeup for months. Excitement was raising up until the last few moments of opening Burberry luxurious packaging. Perfectly weighted metallic lipstick tube and magnetic closure made everything already worth the wait. While I didn't care about texture and quality at that moment, I most certainly took product itself into consideration after a few weeks. Lip Cover is known by high pigmentation and a perfect mixture of longevity and hydration. I'm afraid this line was discontinued a while ago, but was replaced by totally new Burberry Kisses lipstick line. In my case, #30 Primrose Hill Pink is a coral-pink-red, leaning more towards coral side on my skintone. Truthfully, texture is hydrating and super creamy but nothing exceptional. It's comfortable yet the strong floral granny-ish scent bothers me with every application. It's luminous and enhances your lips but shade itself is pretty dupable. Average longevity and creamy finish left me cold hearted. Let's just say I'm in love with the packaging and impact this lipstick has.

Overall, I think I might got too excited over Burberry lipstick line beforehand. I perfectly understand Burberry's philosophy of enhancing natural beauty with their beautiful campaigns. While I adore Pale Barley eyeshadow (review here), I'm not too fond to their lipsticks. If Burberry was more widely available, I'm pretty sure I would snatch a lipstick or two more. By being so unreachable to my side of the Europe, I can't even bother to look at Lip Velvets or Lip Mists. However, I'm excited to try a free sample version of Burberry Kisses. You can still nominate a friend or two on Twitter for a free sample of Burberry Kisses lipstick here (only UK addresses).

You can still find Lip Cover on Harrods, Nordstrom, John Lewis from 25-30€.

Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow Pale Barley

If you're confident proclaiming Mac Patina as one of your favourite eyeshadows, you shouldn't miss out on Burberry Pale Barley. Medium satin/shimmery muted browns are never out of fashion and compliment every eye shape, color or size. They enhance your eyes without looking too harsh or unnatural, yet you don't look like a washed out puppy. Burberry in specific, nailed formula and color selection with their Sheer Eyeshadow range. They made a perfect synergy between buttery soft texture and everyday shades.  

Being poetic and all, I actually think Burberry deserves a poetry for their exquisite quality and ever so glamorous color selection. Burberry thinks about all little details, from flawless packaging to astonishing product inside. Sheer Eyeshadows come in a perfectly weighted metal packaging with magnetic closure. Velvet pouch and outside packaging make the product feel even more luxurious. Product itself is embossed with Burberry signature print. Colourwise, Pale Barley is a muted antique gold-brown with a camel-like shimmery particles. It's not too shimmery yet appropriate to enhance your eyes or to do a wash of colour. Pitch perfect!

What I hate the most about the brand, is Burberry availability. It's almost as if they were trying to be unreachable to make you want their products even more. For around 20€, nothing can beat perfect formula of Sheer eyeshadows. I usually don't raise a lot of noise around eyeshadows, but Pale Barley truly deserves a golden medal for being ''The most perfect eyeshadow'' you'll ever come across. It's not as multidimensional as my beloved Mac Patina but it's the texture that makes the final cut. Sorry, Patina, you'll have to share your first place with Pale Barley. You can find a small variety of Burberry products on Net-A-Porter , John Lewis, Nordstrom with worldwide shipping.