Worth The Hype?- Maybelline Sky High Mascara

Yes. The answer is simply yes, this mascara is absolutely worth the hype. I’m sure many of you have seen all of the insta reels, TikTok testing vids and in store advertising for this product. Interestingly, this isn’t actually a new product, but rather something that has come into the limelight thanks to TikTok.

I have tried so many mascaras and found that only Benefit works for me. Despite trying many hyped up lash products before, I have always been let down BUT NOT BY THIS ONE! As you can tell I am overly excited, mainly being because it means I don’t need to splash out over £20 each time I run out of mascara anymore. This mascara is just £10 which is the going rate for a popular drug store brand but the results are that of a high end brand.

So as for the product itself… In the picture above I am wearing just two coats. Now you can actually keep layering it up quite easily but I prefer just two coats otherwise it creates a more voluminous effect, which is great as well if you’re going for a more dramatic look. My favourite thing about this is that is doesn’t smudge throughout the day, whereas usually I’m having to wipe under my eye to get rid of any smears. I think for this great price you should absolutely try this product and you can use my Look Fantastic code LFTFUCIAJ for 20% off!

LJL Rating: 10/10

Influenster- My Experience

Many of my Insta followers have often asked how I have received products from such reputeable brands and one of the reasons is by using Influenster. I promise this isn’t a promotion, I just wanted to share with you all my experience with the company as I don’t think its the most well known platform out there.

So for those who aren’t familiar, it’s a product review site for all sorts of brands, from pet food to mascaras. Naturally I use it for both writing and reading beauty reviews. It’s a great way to get honest opinions on products from all over the world. Now I know what you’re thinking…okay so freebies!? The site runs campaigns for various brands and if you use the site frequently, in terms of providing and reading reviews, then you may be selected for a campaign. You will be sent a survey relevant to the product and if you are successful you will be sent a product box known as a VoxBox to review. I have been using the site for about 8 months and have received two great boxes-one for St Tropez and one for OPI Nails. These are two huge brands so I was very excited to be selected. All I had to do in return was an Instagram post, featured below.

I would recommend creating an account for the reviews but if you are just hoping for freebies maybe this isn’t for you. They don’t pop up too often and it’s not always so clear how to increase your chances of receiving one. LJL Rating: 8/10

Lash Extensions- Are they worth it?

I will start by saying that I always feel 5x more confident wearing lash extensions. That being said I understand why so many people are on the fence about getting them done. The main concern is the cost, and the belief that once you start you can’t stop. The latter is not actually true because as much as I love them, I only get them done every now and then so that I can use falsies, eyeliner, etc to create different looks for my insta. As for the cost to get a full set, yes… it is a lot for a couple of weeks. I would say I would only advise getting them done if you can afford it, in case you do want to keep them up. which many do.

Now that I’ve got the bad stuff out the way, I do want to share my experience with lashes, as I have received several DMs asking about them. The most important thing is PICK THE RIGHT TECHNICIAN. It’s so important to check out pictures and reviews of their previous work to see if their work suits your style. My current lash lady is incredible. She listens to what I like and will make sure I am perfectly happy with her work. I was very unfortunate with my first two times getting lashed (great word!). My first lady stuck all my lashes together and the second set saw the lashes fall out within two days. For the cost of lashes it’s important to do your research!

Another thing I wanted to mention was the debate around if you can wear makeup. I still wear foundation and concealer daily so you can do that for sure. As for eye makeup I would say go for it as long as you take it off with a cotton bud….but maybe avoid eyeliner unless you are a makeup removing pro. The great thing about lashes is they make your eyes pop enough to not need eye makeup. In the image above I’m wearing none at all!

My experience has been pretty good. They last a good two to three weeks and do not irritate my eyes at all. It takes me 10mins to get ready which, of course, is a plus. If you want to give them a go and have the resources, I would absolutely recommend. Feel free to message me here or on my Insta Lucia_Jayne with any queries!

Kiss Magnetic Lashes Review

I was very fortunate to receive two pairs of Kiss Magnetic Lashes from falseeyelashes.co.uk (insta at welovelashes) this week and I am beyond impressed!

These lashes are insanely easy to apply. You simply apply the eyeliner as usual which is easy to do with the brush included then wait for the product to dry and apply the lashes. There is no fiddling around as the lashes instantly attach to the eyeliner. I was sceptical of these before as I worried the lash would look as though it was stuck to my eyelid as opposed to my lash line but this is not the case at all! They look so natural and you can’t even tell that they are falsies. Click here to follow the guide on how to apply!

I tried two different styles and loved both equally. Style 02 is perfect for a natural eyelash extension look and is great for every day wear. Style 05 is more fluffy and dramatic which works well with a bolder eye look.

I’m aware that a lot of people think they may be a little pricey compared to normal lashes however I believe that they are more reusable than standard lashes and they are easy to remove without the concern of glue damaging them. I really would recommend these to anyone as they are perfect for pros and beginners!                                                                                     LJL Rating 10/10

How To: Brunette to Silver-Grey Hair

So it is very well known that this is one of the hardest transitions to go through and I will say although the process was not too difficult, it did take time and it has really damaged my hair. I had to get quite a lot chopped off to stop the breakage each time I brushed it. I would only recommend this if you have quite long and healthy hair!

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STEP 1: This was the longest part for me…. getting to platinum blonde. If your hair is a light brown I would recommend skipping to step 2. First I bleached my hair with Garnier Nutrisse D+++ Bleach Lightener Permanent Hair Dye. I used three boxes and the first time I just ended up a lighter brunette. I waited two weeks then bleached it again which just made it very yellowy ginger. At this point however, my hair wasn’t too damaged.

STEP 2: The bleach I used next seemed to work so well. I’m not sure if it’s a better bleach or if it was because I had already bleached my hair twice. This time I waited three weeks between applications. I used the BBlonde Jerome Russel Powder Bleach and Cream. This was so easy to use so don’t be scared that you have to mix it up yourself! It’s also cheaper than most boxed bleaches. After this I was fully blonde root to tip but my hair was really dry!

STEP 3: To remove the yellow tones in my hair I used the BBlonde Platinum Toner. Realistically it didn’t do too much so I used the Pro:Voke Touch of Silver Shampoo and Conditioner for month to get my hair to the perfect platinum blonde. It was over this month that my hair begun to snap off and lots was falling out every time I brushed it. I had to cut a lot off and it became quite thin. I used all kinds of treatments but they didn’t really help. For this reason. I waited a long time before I went Silver-Grey. This is why I only recommend on long hair as you may need to chop a chunk off!

STEP 4: FINALLY I used L’Oreal Colorista Silver Grey Permanent Gel Hair Dye. At first it was a little on the purple side but after a wash with the purple shampoo it toned down. I will say this didn’t destroy my hair much and I’m happy with the colour. The only massive downside is I have had this colour for 3 weeks and I was my hair every 4 days and already the colour has massively faded and I can see some blonde coming through. For a permanent dye that I bought three boxes of, this is pretty disappointing so I wouldn’t recommend this brand.

Overall, it’s a lengthy and damaging process. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out but as I’ve said I really do only recommend on thick and longer hair! I also massively recommend the Pro:Voke shampoo and conditioner throughout the process as it really helped in correcting my colour during my blonde stage!

Check out my Insta @Lucia_Jayne as I will be doing more video style posts soon!

Graphic Liner Look- My Fave Products!

Hi All! Slightly different post today. I’m going to be talking about some of the products I used to create this graphic liner look. This is one of my fave looks because the products really helped it come together and they are all affordable.

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For the eyeshadow, I used the Huda Beauty Ruby Obsessions Palette. I’ve actually had this for a while but haven’t used it as I felt it would only create one type of look. After having a little play I actually think you could create both subtle and dramatic looks! There is honestly no fallout, which is perfect because the pigment is intense! In true Huda Beauty nature, the colours blend beautifully and the eye look only took about 10 mins (half the time it took me to perfect the liner of course). I cannot recommend this enough. For a high end palette it’s really affordable at £25 and there are lots of other colour ranges. LJL Rating: 10/10

Next up, the eyeliner! I used Nyx’s Epic Ink Liner. This is a cult product and if you haven’t already tried it you should! I love how black and shiny it is, and when it dries down there is no creasing, fading or smudging- what more could a girl want!? It’s so easy to use and quite easy to correct (and I did….over and over) because it doesn’t dry instantly. This is only £9 and lasts months so it’s well worth the money. LJL Rating: 10/10

Finally, I want to talk about the base! For my foundation I used B. Cosmetics Flawless Silk Foundation! This is perfect if you want a foundation that does crack or dry out. It has a really lovely glowy finish and has a medium to full coverage. It blends like an absoute dream and I think it looks so pretty on the skin. The only downside is that it is a little oily so it does easily wipe off if you touch it and putting setting powder on to prevent this can make it look slightly dull. This is only £5 so it’s well worth a try! LJL Rating: 9/10

Find me on Infleunster @luciajayne and on Instagram @lucia_jayne

Brows on Fleek

I am a huge fan of Instagram brows, and I have tested so many products to find the perfect products to achieve this well-desired look. From pomades to pencils I have put together my faves.

So my go to has to be Benefit Ka-Brow Pomade. I know I usually go for drug store products but with brow products I’m happy to branch out as they usually last over a year anyway, which makes it worth it. . Brows are one of the hardest parts of a polished look and I love this as the application is so easy to work with. I used the ABH pomade for a year and was so committed until I found this. They are quite similar, however I find that unlike most pomades, including ABH Dipbrow, this doesn’t dry up. It lasts all day, and has a very natural look to it, but you can easily build on it for stronger looking brows.

LJL Rating: 10/10

Next is another Benefit product- they don’t get their brow success for nothing! When I’m in a hurry I use Gimme-Brow! This brushes on so easily and enhances your natural brows. So if you already have a good set of brows, I highly recommend this. The only downside is that it can look messy, so if you’re like me and prefer tidy brows, you can easily clean up the look with concealer.

LJL Rating: 9/10

Next, an underrated brand- Lottie London. Their Archival Brow Pen is only £6.50 and is  used to create a microblade effect. The end of this pen has 4 separate nibs which allow you to create natural looking brows in just a few fast strokes. This is great for either natural, bushy or insta-brows! The only flaw is that if you don’t use this with fast strokes, the product can bleed into fine lines.

LJL Rating: 8/10

Finally, for a simple pencil look, I use B. Pro Styler Brow Pencil, which is only £4.99 and is usually on offer. I use this either to quickly fill in my brows, or to neaten up the edges. The colour pay off is really strong, and the pencil is angled for ease. It also comes with a spoolie at the other end to help have a flawless look.

LJL Rating: 8/10

Overall, I do think that if you really care about how your brows look, then high end is always better. If you just like to fill in your brows, or lightly shape and define, then pencils and powders are the way to go.