Products In 2017 That Have Stolen My Heart

2017 was a huge year for me, there is no denying that but especially in the makeup world, I have widened my collection massively and I have tested and trialed quite a lot of products to say the least. You know how makeup is, you can either love it, like it or hate it and I have had my fair share of all of those outcomes but keeping it positive, I wanted to make this post all about the products I have tested this year and have really loved. There is a lot so expect to be sitting here reading this for a while. I hope you enjoy reading it though and please comment some products you have love throughout 2017.

I feel like the best way tackle this post is to do that makeup and in order, then skincare followed by a haircare product. 2017 was also filled with reviews on this blog and so if I have reviewed any of the products I have mentioned, I will link them.

I bought the Primark Primer Water after hearing a lot about it through Instagram but I didn't really expect a lot. Spray primers, to me, never seemed like they would actually do anything to the skin, not sure if I feel that way now because I genuinely feel like this does something to my skin. Anyway this primer was super cheap and I love it surprisingly. I use it almost every time I do my makeup and it just leaves me with a hydrated base that feels prepped and ready for a foundation. I wont lie, I don't tend to wear this on its own because it does give quite a dewy finish, which is nice, but I could do with some oil control around the t-zone, but I love having this extra layer on my skin just to add some hydration.

Another primer I had fallen for in 2017 was the Urban Decay Self Adjusting Complexion Primer (review), which was kindly gifted to me for my birthday. This primer has such an unusual texture but I was willing to give it a go as a lot of people seemed to have really gotten on with it. I talk about the texture of this primer a lot but it very much feels like an exfoliant with really fine pieces in it but then when you blend it into the skin those little beads just disappear into the skin. I also didn't really believe that this primer could adjust to the colour of your skin but now that I have tried it, I find that it just makes your skin look so smooth and airbrushed, it's crazy.

For foundation, I only have one, but it is my all time favourite which is huge for me because I could never find my perfect formula and I was constantly mixing to find a finish I liked. Anyways, this is the LA Girl Pro Coverage Foundation (review), which I know a lot of people love, and I have joined that party for sure. This foundation is just so flawless and full coverage but it looks like skin because of its dewy finish. I find that I do have to set this but only lightly because the glow this foundation gives is just so beautiful. The one this I will say about this foundation that I wish they would change is there lack of lighter shades. If you have read my latest haul, you will know that I bought this foundation in white which I think was a great addition but that is because they didn't have a shade that looked light enough for me for when I was really pale now. I guess I can't complain now thought because I have that white shade. I also love this foundation because my skin has quite a yellow base to it and I find it really hard to find foundations with the right undertone for me, but this one is perfect so if you have the same problem as me then you might love the shade range of this product.

I have a lot of concealer favourites which seem to be a recurring theme in my yearly favourites posts but that is just because I freaking love concealer. For my first concealer favourite I have the LA Girl Pro Conceal Concealer, this concealer was probably my favourite and most used throughout 2017 and rightly so because it is so amazing. Not only is it super affordable but it is so highlighting, pigmented and hydrating. This concealer has everything I could ever want in it, it just makes your under eyes look so bright and awake. If you have read some of my makeup looks this year as well, you may have noticed that I also have this concealer in a darker colour, which I love to contour with. Since this concealer is so pigmented and easy to blend, it is perfect for cream contouring. In case you are wondering about my shades, because I know that they are quite awkward to order online from, I use the shade Porcelain for under my eyes and Toast to contour with.

Another concealer I want to shoutout is the Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer (review). From what I have tried from this concealer, I do really love it and that is why I wanted to mention it but the shade I still have is not right for me for when I am super pale so that is why I have not used it as much as what I would have liked this year. The concealer itself though, is so hydrating, the coverage is great again, but I just love the finish of this one, it is so dewy and just makes you look so luminous, it's stunning. I also love how light this one feels on the skin, it really is weightless.

The last concealer I am going to talk about is one I actually don't use to concealer with but to carve out my brows and prime my eyes with and that is the Hard Candy Glamoflauge Concealer. This concealer is so thick and full coverage but a little bit goes such a long way and if you distribute it properly it doesn't look caked but just looks flawless. I think I also love this concealer so much for the shade its in, which is Ivory, now this shade would be way too pale for my skin but on the eyes it looks amazing and gives such a natural highlight. I have also been known to mix it with either of the two previously mentioned concealers under the eyes just to give an extra brighter highlight. If you do manage to get your hands on this concealer, because I am pretty sure it is only sold in the US, then you are very lucky because I think it is so amazing. It blends so amazingly and the coverage you just can't beat. I also find that the best way to apply this is with a sponge because of how thick it is, you get the best finish with a damp sponge because that will prevent it from looking cakey. Even though this is not an eye primer, it was my favourite thing to prime my eyes with throughout 2017.

Onto more face products but these ones being in powder form. Loose powder, this year has been huge, with the whole baking trend taking off and being used by so many makeup artists now, a lot of people joined on the band wagon. The only loose powder that I have tried in 2017 that I have gotten along with was the RCMA No Colour Powder (review). This is one of the most popular powders I know of and rightly so as this powder is so finely milled and makes you just look so airbrushed and beautiful. I won't lie, if you bake with this and you leave it on too long, it can leave a white cast but if you wipe it all off properly it will look stunning. I just find that no other powder sets my concealer as good as this. I think this will be a makeup product I keep around for a long time.

For bronzer, I have played around and have tested a few but one that I have really loved is the Makeup Revolution Ultra Bronze Bronzer. This is super expensive and I sort of bought it, not expecting it to be amazing but just to see what I had to offer and turns out it was beautiful. I love this bronzer a lot because of the colour, it is so natural and perfect for a fairer completion, it just looks so flawless. This powder does look and apply beautifully onto the skin and even though I find I need to build up the colour, I don't mind doing that because it gives a really natural, skin-like finish.

Blush is something that I sort of just stick to what I know on. Realistically, it kind of scares me because some of them are just so pigmented that I end up looking like a clown, trust me, I have had quite a few of those moments but one that has not disappointed me this year is the Too Faced Sweethearts Blush in Candy Glow (review). This was actually my Christmas present off my two best friends last year and I love using it. I think that the colour is so beautiful and goes with every makeup look. Before this blusher though, I had only ever worn a matte blush because that is what I found to work best, but actually this blusher is super shimmer but not glittery as on the skin, it just looks like you have this natural glow within. I love this for super natural days when I just want to look a little luminous as it can act like a blusher and highlighter in one but I also wear it on some more full face days as a blush topper to just give my skin something extra that it was missing.

Onto highlight, a makeup release this year that I think the youtube beauty world were waiting for, NikkieTutorials released a highlighter. I knew I was going to love the Ofra X Nikkie Tutorials Everglow Highlighter (review) and I have been using it ever since my best friend got me it for my birthday. I love how you get three shades in the pan and I find that I always mix the two lightest shades. All of these shades are so metallic and look wet on the skin, definitely more for someone who loves to be seen from space but I love how it looks.

Another highlight that you might not have actually been expecting is an eye shadow but I am obsessed with it on the cheekbones. It is the Kiko Wet and Dry Eye Shadow in 208, this is the most beautiful pale gold shade and even though it makes a great eye shadow, it makes the perfect highlighter too. I find that the formula is so intense and metallic, and I love it. I would definitely recommend this shade for someone with a fair to medium skin tone who wants a blinding highlighter that is super affordable.

Onto a few eye products I have been loving and I won't lie, they are mainly eye shadows as for me, this year there have been so many amazing eye shadow singles and palettes that are going to be my favourites for a lifetime. I am going to do the palettes first as there have been quite a few I have discovered this year. As for drugstore palettes this year, there has been one stand out one that I can't believe no one talks about because it is amazing. I am talking about the MUA Fire Vixen 15 shade Eye Shadow Palette (review) which I have reviewed on my blog already and I have featured it in a lot of others posts. This palette has the most beautiful colour scheme of warm pinks, oranges and some really unique grey shades, something I have never seen before in the drugstore. As for the formula though, the mattes are nice, bendable, pigmented and creamy, and as for the shimmery shades they are like foiled eye shadows with an amazing shimmery, metallic finish. They are so creamy and apply beautifully, definitely a formula a want to see more of in the drugstore. I feel as though this palette is so underrated and it is one of my go-tos, perfect for all year round.

A palette I have used from the start all of the way until the year is the Morphe 35O Eye Shadow Palette (review). This was huge last year and it took me a while to get on the hype but now that I have, I am never going back. I love this palette because it is so affordable but the quality is super nice. What I love so much about this palette is the colour scheme, it is just so warm and beautiful. I definitely prefer the mattes in this palette, they blend seamlessly and I like the shimmers as they are so pigmented but some of them can be a little consistent.

As for my final palette I have to mention, it is probably one of my favourite products from the whole year and I am obviously talking about the Jaclyn Hill X Morphe Eye Shadow Palette (review). I have been following Jaclyn for ages on Youtube and when I found out she was release a palette, I knew I would love it because I trust her quality and loyalty to her followers, and she definitely did not disappoint. This palette has such an amazing range of shades and I think she nailed the formulas. This palette was so affordable and I know how much wear I am going to get out of this. I have been wearing this palette so much recently, and I have created so many looks with this palette and I will continue to do so as those bright blue shades are screaming my name for summer. I would recommend this palette to everyone as I think it would be perfect for any skin tone and any eye colour.

Onto the single eye shadows, and starting with the ones that kick started my love for single pan eye shadows and building my own custom palette. The Makeup Geek Single Eye Shadows (review) started it all for me. I got them for Christmas last year and since then, I have been playing around with them. The quality, range of colours, texture, blendability, I could go on, all of them are amazing. What makes these shadows so amazing is that the quality is so affordable for the amazing quality. Over the past year, I have been building up this collection and I have discovered the foiled shadows also which are the most metallic and pigmented shadows, and they are some of my go-to all over the lid shades. I can't recommend these shadows enough and I know that these will products I keep with me for the rest of my life, as they are my staples and I have found nothing that beats them.

As for more single eye shadows, ones I love also and have discovered this year are the Colourpop Single Eye Shadows (review). These were a new release this year and I knew I needed them, boldly, I picked up a few colourful shades for summer and I managed to create loads of fun looks with them. What I love about these shadows is how smooth, creamy and pigmented they are, they blend beautifully. I definitely think that they are another great single shadow on the market and I think that they offer some really unique shades, ones that you wouldn't find anywhere else.

Finally, for single eye shadows I have ones that you all know I love, the Freedom Single Eye Shadows (review). These you can get from Superdrug and they come in sets which are crazy affordable. I will say, these are not as good quality as the two previously mentioned but they are still good. Both the mattes and shimmers in these sets are very pigmented and blend really well. I love that Freedom have brought out products like this and I really hope that they expand there collection in 2018 because I think that they are really good and have so much potential. I also know that I will be using these even more in 2018 and I really hope that they get some more love.

As for what I put the single eye shadows in, the Freedom Pro Artist Refill Palette has been the best. I randomly found this on Superdrug and knew I needed it. I know Z Palette is the typical go-to magnetic palette, but I always thought that they were quite overpriced and so I was looking for alternatives. These palettes are crazy affordable and the quality is great, you get a mirror and they are really secure so your single shadows won't be getting broken. I have been storing my shadows in these all year and I can't recommend them enough.

For liner, I only have one that has stolen my heart this year. I have never been one for liquid liner and so kohl is always my go-to choice. My favourite black kohl liner is the Seventeen Eye Kohl Black Liner. I love how pigmented this liner is and it doesn't tug on my eye, I find that it wears for a long time and I always go back to it. I don't really know what else I can say about this liner but I like it and until I can find something that beats it, I will continue to use it.

Something I have not stopped talking about and something you are probably sick of is my favourite mascara of the year. As my old favourite was not cruelty free and that was a transition I had made this year, I went on a hunt to find my new favourite. Luckily, I found the Collection Volumax Waterproof Mascara (review) and previously reviewed it but as time went on, I found myself reaching for it more and more. I love that the applicator is really simple. I find that the formula is super black and this mascara makes my lashes so voluminous but still adds a little length. I will say, I don't use the primer side of the mascara as I find that I don't really need it but as for the mascara part, I can't get enough of it. 

As for my final eye product, I have a product for my brow. The Freedom Duo Brow Powder in Soft Brown has probably been one of my most used brow products this year. Powder was never really my thing, I always thought that I made too much of a mess to be able to use it, but this powder is so light and easy to work with, I just really love it. I love that this powder is so easy to work with, and I like how it gives my brows a softer look rather than my pomade which could be a little harsh at times. I can't recommend this powder enough, the two shades makes it really easy to create an ombre brow which I find is the most natural look. Once I have set this powder with gel, it lasts all day and I really love how it looks. I definitely think that this product is going to continue to be well loved throughout 2018.

Moving onto the lip products of the year, my stand out lip liner has been the Misslyn Lip Liner in Rosewood. We all know I bought this for the name, but turns out it is a super beautiful universal nude, I find that the formula is pigmented, creamy but not so creamy that it bleeds, which I really like. I have found that I have been reaching for this lip liner over and over again throughout the whole year, and I guess you can tell that by how short the pencil is. Hopefully I might actually finish a lip liner in the new year and maybe even repurchase this one. I also might need to see if they have anymore shades because I am really impressed with the formula.

As for liquid lipsticks, I have a few I want to mention, the first one being one that really took me by surprise. The Jeffree Star Liquid Lipstick in I'm Nude has maybe been my most worn liquid lipstick of the year, I find that the shade is the perfect pale nude that goes with any look. As for the formula, it does dry down as super matte, but as long as you prep the lips with a little bit of lip balm, it won't dry them out. This shade does last a fair amount of time and when it does wear off, it doesn't go patchy which I appreciate. I do really like this shade and I will continue to use it as I have not yet found a pale nude lip that I love just as much.

We all know how much I love a good nude lip and so I have another one to share. While it is more on the higher end side, I really love the formula of this liquid lipstick. I did pick up the Too Faced Liquid Lipstick in Child Star (review) all the way back at the start of February but it was definitely a good purchase and it was my go-to spring/ summer lip this year. This shade is a warm, pinky/nude shade and the formula has such a hydrating, moussy texture to it which I really love. I find this lip to be so comfortable to wear and I just really love the colour too. Sadly, I don't think hat there are that many more shades in this formula that I would actually wear, which is a real shame because I really love this formula. I have been recommending this shade to everyone all year and I will continue to do so as I think it is a beautiful nude lip for anyone with a fair to medium complexion. 

As for the final liquid lip, I have been obsessed with this recently and it's the Colourpop Ultra Satin Lip in Likely (review). I got a few of these for my birthday but this shade is definitely my most worn. This is the most beautiful deep, orangey nude and this goes with every look I do. We all know that I love a good warm eye look and so I always struggled to find a really warm lip to match the eyes but now I have this. I also love the formula of this liquid lipstick because it is not fully matte but it still lasts a really long time and is really comfortable to wear. In majority of my makeup looks where you see me wearing a really warm lip, it is pretty much always this.

Moving onto gloss, I have quite a few because this year I have just been a total gloss wearer. I have had my fair share of glosses to test this year and I have loved a lot of them but I have managed to simplify them to three glosses and they are all different. For my first gloss, it's the Too Faced Sweet Peach Oil Lip Gloss in Papa Don't Peach (review) and I love this because it is nothing like a sticky, typical gloss. Like it says in the name, it has this oily formula that is not super greasy or sticky but it just makes your lips look wet. I like wearing this on its own because it is quite pigmented for a gloss. In terms of this shade, it is a deep, orangey nude but the finish of it is something else. It almost feels hydrating on the lips and it is anything but uncomfortable. Gloss tend to be the first thing to wear off when you are wearing your makeup for a long time, and I won't lie, this doesn't last an extraordinary amount of time but when it does begin to wear it does not look weird and it doesn't clump up which can be the case sometimes. This is definitely more of a spring/summer lip pick from me but never the less, I love this product so much, and I almost forgot to mention, it smells amazing, it has a really strong sweet peach scent, as you could have guess, but it smells insane.

The Bare Minerals Gloss in Groovvy (review) has been my most newest gloss but I honestly love it so so much. This is probably the most standard gloss out of the three I have chosen to talk about. It misquote thick, very glossy and when you apply too much, a little sticky. It has a little bit of pigment, with this shade, it is just a pale pinky nude so it looks good on top of anything. How I wear this is in the centre of the lips blended out on top of a matte lipstick. I find that this gloss makes your lips look so plump and just super glossy, which I love the look of. The shade does lighten whatever you have underneath it just a little but by just applying it in the centre and blending it out, there are no harsh lines and it can also make your lips look a little bigger. This gloss does actually last a couple of hours and I think it is because it is quite thick but I don't find it uncomfortable, it is not the most lightweight but it doesn't make you want to scrape it off your lips. The applicator on this gloss is also really unique and easy to apply. It has quite a long doe foot applicator but it is not too bendy and not too stiff so you can really distribute the product nicely.

As for my final gloss, it is an oldie but a goodie, the NYX Butter Gloss in Fortune Cookie (review). This is the newest shade in my collection and it is just the perfect light nude shade. I find this formula not to be too pigmented so it never really tends to adjust the shade of what I am wearing underneath but I find this the most universal gloss in my collection. If I ever go travelling and just need one staple gloss, I take this because I know it works and it works well on its own or over a lipstick. The gloss formula is super lightweight and comfortable to wear, it has a nice natural glossy finish, it is not super wet looking it is more subtle but you can still tell it's there and it also comes in so many shades. I love that you can reapply this gloss over and over again and it won't look like too much or crazy patchy and uneven. I find that the applicator on this is too small for my liking but I can work with it because the formula of the gloss itself is so nice.

My final lip favourite sort of has its own category because I would call it an in-between of a lip balm and a lipstick. I reviewed the Collection Lip Colour in Fudge Delight (review) back in summer and I really loved it. I thought that it was the perfect everyday lip product and still to this day I think that. The shade is shockingly another nude shade but it is the formula that I really love. When you apply this, it feels like a lip balm, it feels lightweight and moisturising but while it does that, it gives off a little bit of colour and a nice glossy finish. I find that I always wear this lip with a really natural makeup look because it is versatile and just so pretty looking. I know they offer this in a few more shades but I just like the nude colour because it is perfect for an everyday use. This was the only lip product I wore when I was on holiday in Jamaica because it has a little spf, it is so hydrating but it also gives you a little bit of colour. I can't say enough good things about this product and I really think that everyone needs a product like this in their collection.

I have just realised how long this post is going to be, so if you have made it this far then I am impressed but I am also going to try and shorten what I say about each product a little more as I don't want to keep you here until it is 2019. But now that I have finished with all of the makeup favourites, I am going to more onto some skincare, body care and a hair care product just to complete the beauty favourites of 2017. I have a few skincare favourites to talk about the first one being the Primark Makeup Wipes which shouldn't come as a shock to you if you have been reading my posts for a while. I love these face wipes. They are the best, most affordable and cruelty free makeup wipes I have ever found. They are super basic but they do the job of helping to remove my makeup, cleaning off swatches or dirty makeup products and just generally being able to throw them in my handbag knowing that they work. These are super affordable, I think you can get fifty for £1 which is just unheard of. I have been through so many of these packets this year as I use them all the time and usually once a day. I can't recommend these enough.

As for moisturiser, there has been one that has stood out to me this year and that is the Soap and Glory Speed Plump Moisturizer. This moisturiser smells amazing for one, it has a really nice fruity scent but I love this so much because it is so hydrating but also leaves a super beautiful luminous finish. It doesn't make you look greasy but it gives you this glow within that just looks amazing with or without makeup on top. I haven't really noticed it to plump my skin massively but I don't think I would notice it, even if it did so I can't say too much on that but I just love how this makes my skin feel and I will definitely have to repurchase it because it is the best moisturiser I have found for my skin.

I have never really been one for eye cream but I bought the Superdrug Vitamin E Eye Cream to see whether it would help prevent my concealer from creasing and I have just loved using it this year. I think that other things have also played a part in my concealer not creasing but I don't think this eye cream did much harm either. This is quite a thick cream and I probably only use it once or twice a week because I don't want to weight down or clog my skin, but when I do use this, I just feel like my skin is that little bit more hydrated. It makes my under eyes feel really smooth and it is also really cooling when you apply it which makes me feel like it is giving my under eyes even more hydration. I have never tried any other eye cream so I have nothing else to compare it to, but I really like this one and I will continue to enjoy using it in 2018.

Another moisturiser I have to mention is the Superdrug Vitamin E Intense Moisture Cream, which I like to use as my night cream. This is thicker than my daily moisturiser but it is not as thick as the eye cream. I just really like this product because it is super simple and basic, it is not super scented and it just does the one job I need it to. I find that it makes my skin feel super soft and moisturised, it also is not super heavy to the point were it clogs up my pores and I can't feel it on my skin once it has sunken in which I love because then I can go to sleep peacefully without thinking that I have a face mask on. I have just really enjoyed using this product all year and sadly I am running out of it as I am writing this but I am sure I will repurchase it as I have found nothing I prefer just yet.

My final skincare product is the Tropic Mini Tamanu Balm which is a bit of a weird product to talk about because it is just like a multipurpose balm that you can use for all sorts of things. Most of the time, I use this on my scaring or spots that are healing and I just find that it doesn't mess with them but also speeds up the healing process, but you can also use it on the lips, on the body or just anything. I guess you could say it acts a little bit like coconut oil. I will say though, that I cannot stand the smell of this but once I have applied it and have let it settle not the skin, the scent disappears quickly after. I have used this balm a fair bit this year but it still manages to look untouched as you don't need a lot but I think it has been a really important product to have had on hand this year and I think a lot of people would like it so I wanted to give it a mention.

As for body care, there has not been a stand out formula that I have loved and wanted to mention apart from the Bilou Sweet Watermelon Foaming Body Wash. This, I love to shave my legs with because it is a foam body wash. The foam itself is very thick but it feels so moisturising and nourishing on the skin. This company does offer a bunch of scents and I will say, if you don't like the smell of watermelons, you will hate this as it is very potent and sweet but I just can't get enough of this. I don't really use this to wash my body with as I just find it a little too heavy and I have others to prefer but to shave with, this is perfect. It makes my skin feel so soft after I have used this and even as an in shower body lotion, this works great, not to mention that it is really fun to watch when it foams up.

Finally for hair care and the final product I will talk about in this post is the Dyson Hairdryer. This is a very expensive and luxurious buy but I needed to mention it because it has been one of the biggest stand out beauty products for me this year and I think it is a total game changer for the hair beauty game. This hair dryer is so powerful, you wouldn't believe. It use to take me about 20 minute to dry my hair as it is fairly thick but no joke, with this hair dryer it takes me 5-7 minutes maximum which is just insane. The other thing I love so much about this hairdryer and the main reason I think it is so good as a hairdryer is that it does not get super hot. I think we have all had that moment when we dry our hair the then take a sniff and it smells like you have been burning something, and it always really worried me whenever I blow dried my hair because I thought I was going to damage it massively. With this hairdryer though, it stays at a pleasant slightly hotter than room temperature, temperature which does not make my hair smell or feel burnt. You can also adjust the heat on this hairdryer which is really easy and you can also manipulate how powerful it is which I think is a great addition that Dyson added. I just really love this hairdryer and I can't recommend it enough and I know how expensive it is, but I really think that this is the sort of investment that is going to stay with me for the rest of my life and still work for me in 20 years time.

That was a lot of favourites, but I really hope you enjoyed reading and hopefully during 2018, I will discover some beauty products just as much as these. Happy New Year!

Grace xx