Gem and Jo's Primer Picks

If you haven't tried a makeup primer stop what you are doing and get to your local drugstore. While primers have been around for donkeys years at this stage, hardly any of the high street makeup companies provided them. If you wanted long-lasting makeup, one of the only options was to fork out a few bob for a primer from the likes of Elizabeth Arden or YSL. Well those days a long gone, it seems like every drugstore brand has brought out numerous different primers, suited to a huge range of skin types.

Whether you're as shiny as an oil slick like us or you have dry patches, you are bound to find a primer to suit you. And best of all, you could probably find it in your local Boots store for an extremely reasonable price!

Rimmel's Fix and Perfect Pro: €8.99

                         

This primer is a god send, it has a great price (is always on sale), actually does what it claims and helps your makeup stay on all day long. There are 5 things Rimmel claim this primer does: Smoothes, Restores, Brightens, Mattifies and Perfects. And let us tell you, it actually does all of these things, it instantly mattifies and smoothes your complexion and it creates a lovely glow that works alone or under makeup. We certainly love this one!

We pop this on under our makeup to help it last all day long! This is perfect for our fellow oily peoples!

Makeup Revolution's Ultra Face Base Primer: £5.00

                          

If you haven't heard of Makeup Revolution, get out. We mean it. This is one of our favourite brands at the moment and we cannot stop raving about everything we buy from them! Including this primer. This is a more silicon like primer, which is great for blurring imperfections and smoothing over any lumps and bumps. However, if you are looking for a heavy duty primer, to hide everything and leave your makeup flawless all day, this is probably not the one for you. It's not as long lasting as the Rimmel Fix and Perfect but nonetheless is a gorgeous product that we enjoy using!

Again, we like to pop this on under our makeup to create a smooth, perfected base. 

Find it here. 

Rimmel's Fix and Protect: €8.99

                          

This is a new one for us, and to confess we're not totally sold on it, but for the purpose of this post (which is to give you guys a nice broad range of products) we shall include it. Rimmel just released this into their primer range and it's a welcome addition! Despite our love for the first primer mentioned in this post, the one thing it is lacking is an SPF. This primer fills in that gap. The Fix and Protect primer is basically a product designed to protect your face from everyday harm. Which includes pollution and harmful UV rays, and as a ginger Gem figured this would be perfect for her. As we all know she burns like that pizza your forgot about when your friend called with boy drama. 

So with it's SPF 25 and an anti-pollution protection we were reeled in, hook, line and sinker. 

However, the texture and staying power of this primer isn't the best. It goes on like a suncream, which wouldn't be too bad if it didn't have that suncream smell. It makes us think it's summer when it's not, sad times...

We've worn this one a couple of times under our makeup, but for extra staying power we added the Fix and Perfect primer to our T-zone.   

So there you have it, a nice range of primers for affordable prices. 

Let us know if you've tried any of these or if you have some primer recommendations! 

Thanks for reading!

Until next time,

Gem and Jo Review Rimmel's Fix and Perfect Pro Primer

Well looky here! We have returned... our exams have left and summer has arrived! We are free elves!! 

We are super excited to tell you guys our thoughts on this product, we are seriously in love with Rimmel London's Fix and Perfect Pro Primer! And to make things better, we picked it up while it was on sale in Boots! 

When it's applied, this primer first feels creamy but then as it's worked into the skin it becomes slightly serum-ish (that is most definitely not a real word...ah well.). It's a thick consistency but you can see immediate results! The packaging claims that it's a 5-in-1 product, saying it smoothes, resurfaces, brightens, mattifies and protects. And we are here to tell you that it does exactly what it says on the tin! 

Honestly, this is one products that does all it claims to do, and it most definitely resurfaces which is a tough one to perfect! When it's applied before your foundation, you can see such a difference in your skin! And don't even get us started on the amazing mattifying powers of this primer! As you probably know from our other makeup posts, we are super oily-faced people and no matter what we use we need to powder during the day or we risk looking like oil slicks. However, when we used this primer we didn't need to powder at all! That's a first in our books! It prolonged our foundation wear by hours! 

We've been reading online reviews of this primer too, so we could tell what you guys would think about it too and boy were we surprised! We have yet to find a bad review, everyone we looked at said they loved the products and that they would most definitely be re-purchasing. And we feel the exact same, this is one super-duper product! 

We're giving this one a 10/10!

We bought ours from Boots for the sale price of €6.35 (The usual price is €8.85). You can find it on Boots here or on Rimmel London's website here. 

What's your favourite primer right now? Have you tried this one?

Until next time,

Gem and Jo's April Favourites

It's that time again when we tell all you lovely folk what we've been loving for the past month. So sit back, relax and enjoy. 

Don't forget to thumbs up and subscribe! We would be ever so grateful. 

Until next time, 

Gem and Jo Review Anne Weekes Camouflage Cream*

We all get bad skin days when nothing seems to work and we just feel like covering our heads with a paper bag (okay maybe not everyone gets like this but we can guarantee there's at least a few of us out there!).  Well recently we were introduced to this amazing Dublin based concealer company called Anne Weekes, and let us tell you, this stuff is a saviour.  Anne Weekes were kind enough to send us some of their concealers to try out and show you guys just how amazing they really are.

The concealer comes in 14 different shades so you are sure to find one that really suits your skin tone. There is also a green toned one which would be great as a base for cancelling out any redness. The website is fantastic for helping you pick out the perfect shade as each shade description has loads of information about the undertones of each colour and how they relate to other shades. You're not gonna end up looking like a oompa loompa on their watch. 

With this stuff, a little goes a long way. Each pot of this amazing stuff costs €25.00 but it will last you ages. The teeniest tiniest amount will cover even the worst spots and blends evenly into the skin.

If you're still not totally sure what shade would best suit you after looking at all the shade descriptors, they offer samples which are €3.50 for the top seven shades and €7.00 for all 14. These samples actually have a lot of product in them and will at least last you up to a weeks worth of applications. 

Anne Weekes also offer a finishing powder which makes their concealers waterproof. This stuff seriously works. We tried to scrub the concealers off our arms with water and it didn't budge at all. But a quick stroke of a makeup wipe and it is easily removed without any hassle. 

We had heard that their concealer was also great at hiding tattoos. We had to admit, we were a bit skeptical when trying this out but we just follow the instructions and we were seriously amazed. We just put a base of green to cancel out the black and then used a concealer that matched the skin tone. Vóila it had disappeared. 

We were incredibly impressed with this product and would definitely repurchase it. It comes in so many shades, covers just about anything and we haven't had any negative skin reactions to it at all. Plus at €25.00 a pot, this stuff comes in at much cheaper than highend concealers that aren't half as good. It's goodbye to the paper bag head forever!

Check out the Anne Weekes website here.

Also shout out to Jenny for the use of her arm and tattoo. Thanks gurl. 

Until next time,

Gem and Jo Review P.S. Beauty - Hard Nails

Well hello there person. Today we're talking Primark's PS. Beauty range. Specifically their range of nail saviours. Specifically their nail saviour named Hard Nails. Specifically... just kidding!
Primark have a couple of nail products in their beauty range and we've picked up the one which claims to harden nails - hence the products name being Hard Nails.
You've got to give it to Primark for their excellent branding, they are so unique and original with their product names and it really gives a sense of imagination....could you sense the sarcasm there? Was it a bit too strong, like a super smelly, fancy cheese?

So Gem was our guinea pig for this product because her nails have been in awful shape lately, the changing weather hasn't helped. Sad moment when the weather in your country is so horrible that it actually messes with your nails. Here's what Gem's nails looked like before she used the product:

As you can see there is quite a lot of damage to Gem's nails, they are not a pretty sight! They're quite brittle and are doing that really annoying peely thing. So in an attempt to fix them up, we picked up the PS Hard Nails and chucked it on. Here's what it looked like on Gem's nails:

The product goes onto your nails just like any normal nail polish and we have to say, it definitely hardened Gem's nails. They went from dull and brittle to shiny and strong with just one coat. We're gonna use this a couple more times and see if it strengthens our nails more and more over time. 

We give it a 9/10: It does what it's supposed to do and for a great price (only €1.50!) Can't get much better than that!

Have you tried this product or anything similar? 

Until next time,

Gem and Jo's Hair We Go - Curls Edition

We love to curl our hair so we have decided to show you guys some of our favourite hair curling tools. These pretty babies help us to not look like we've been dragged backwards through a bush, so that's always a plus. Check out the video below.

What are your favourite curling tools?

Gem and Jo Take On No.7 Beautifully Matte Foundation

Well ladies and gents, the festive season is coming to a close and the new year is fast approaching and with that comes the inevitable New Years party that we all know and love. Now if there is one thing you need for a new years party it's some kick ass makeup and some seriously durable, flawless foundation for all that cheek kissing.
Introducing No.7's Beautifully Matte Foundation.

Now when it comes to foundation reviews people tend to read them and "OMG, this blogger/reviewer loves this foundation and it made her skin matte all night long, so it must do that for me too!!" - Not the case. Foundation is so dependent on the individuals skin and coverage/radiance preference. While some products might be great for a few, it may not be for you. The best way to avoid this? Ask for a sample, most makeup counters are more than welcome to give you a little sample and they'll even find the right shade for you so you don't spend a fortune on something that is just not for you.
Give it a go, they worst the makeup counter can do is say no.

We were a little skeptical when we tried this foundation at first, just for the simple fact that it boasted about "up to 14 hours shine free" which as we all know in the beauty world should be taken with a pinch of salt. This foundation by no means left us shine free (but we are very shiny people, Shiny Faces Unite!) however the coverage of this is just beautiful. It claims to be medium/full coverage and it does not disappoint in that category. It glides on very easily with either a brush or a damp sponge and lasts all day, with a few powder touch-ups required (nothing drastic though).

Before Gem tried this product she worshiped Estée Lauder Double Wear, however after trying No.7's products she has hardly gone back to EL, with the exception of a small bit used for concealer cause that stuff does not budge! It is a genuinely good product with a much smaller price tag than Estée Lauder at just €17.50. And if you're a bargain hunter like us then you'll be thrilled that Boots always give out No.7 vouchers for money off their products!
 However the only let down? There aren't that many shades, Jo found it incredibly difficult to find a shade and ended up mixing it with others she had at home, sad times...
If you're incredibly pale like Gemma then fortunately their lightest shade is very pale (it suited Gem perfectly), which is quite hard to find too!

Also bonus feature of this foundation? It has Salicylic Acid which helps fight acne!

We give this product: 7.5/10 
It has great staying power, good coverage and an SPF but let us down a little on the shine free side of things.

Have you tried this foundation? What did you think?
Until next time,

Gem and Jo's Makeup Rumours Review

You may have seen our recent Makeup Rumours Haul with all the goodies Makeup Rumours gifted us, well here's what we think of all those products!

                            

Don't forget to stick around for the bloopers! We always end up making fools of ourselves, this time there may or may not be some shadow puppets!

Thanks for watching, Check out Makeup Rumours' website here . Let us know what you think in the comments we love to hear from you.
Until next time,

Click here to see why we've

gone pink this month>

Gem and Jo and The W7 Eyeshadow Palette

Now everyone has heard of the Urban Decay Naked palettes and if you haven't then you've probably been living under an eyeshadow-less rock for the last few years. As beautiful and pretty as they are, the Naked palettes can be kinda expensive, even the mini ones! However do not fret lovelies, there is an alternative to spending all yo money! 

Drum roll...... 

                 

Ladies and Gentlemen, the W7 'In The Nude' eyeshadow palette. This palette is practically identical to Urban Decay's Naked 3! 

You may now bow in thanks for this wonderous product!

The palette contains some mattes, some shimmers and some that are more on the glitzy side which means it practically covers you for all occasions! 

The texture of the shadows is really soft and silky, almost a creamy feel and even though this isn't a well known cosmetic brand, their brush seems to be really good! This definitely surprised us as some times eyeshadow palettes don't come with the best brushes, only those spongy ones that we personally never use. 

The last shade seen in the picture above, Fashionista, is very similar to MAC's Knight Divine and is gorgeous for a special occasion as it has little pink sparkles in it!!  In fact every shade in this palette could be used for a special occasion as they are all beautiful and have amazing staying power! 

We love to use 'Latte' as a base colour and 'Angel' for a hint of shimmer in our inner eye to make our eyes pop! 
'Alice' and 'Tokyo' can be used for shading in the crease of your eye and 'Bad Manners' can be added to the eye lid for a glizty, glam look!  

And so we ask you, which palette do you prefer? The Naked or the W7? 
Let us know in the comments! 
Until Next Time, 

Gem and Jo take on the Crucible

This past week we were given the chance to get our culture hats on and see Waterford Youth Arts' latest play, The Crucible, in Garter Lane Theatre Co. Waterford. Waterford Youth Arts is a youth and community based organisation which gives teenagers the chance to participate in artistic activities. They've spent this last summer getting ready for their production of the Crucible.

For those you unfamiliar with the Crucible, it was written by the American playwright Arthur Miller in 1953, and tells the story of the 1690s Salem witch trials. Since it's first production, the play has become part of the canon of American drama and has seen many professional reproductions. As the cast of the play is usually professional adult actors, we must admit that we were a little curious of how a teenage cast would present the play. However, we needn't have worried at all.

Waterford Youth Art's production was fantastic! As soon as the first act began we were enthralled. Each character contributed something different to the play and in all made it into something highly engaging. The acting was superb and rivaled some of the professional performances we've seen. These are some truly talented teens.
 If you are around the Waterford area in the next few days and get the chance to see this play, go! You won't regret it and if you are anything like us, you'll truly enjoy it.

The play runs from now until Saturday August 30th and tickets cost €18.00 with concessions at €15.50.
Buy tickets from Gater Lane's Website here
Check out Waterford Youth Arts here 

Thanks for Reading!
Until next time,

Gem and Jo's July Favourites

So it's August. Can you believe it, cause we can't. July went by so fast and before we knew it we had a whole lot of new products to show you guys. Here are our July favourites.
Gem's Favourites:

 

Pandora Breast Cancer Awareness Necklace. 

This necklace is so adorable, has a lovely weight to it and a nice length chain, so hangs really nicely whether you wear it with a dress or a shirt. Plus proceeds go to Breast Cancer research which means you're giving to a charity and have a gorgeous necklace too. 

This necklace has unfortunately been discontinued but maybe you're local stores have some left! 

check out Pandora Here

Pearl Drops Beauty Sleep Serum 

This stuff seems to work a miracle! It's for use after you brush your teeth at night and you simply brush it off in the morning. Now my teeth weren't exactly yellow but they just needed a little brightening and this has definitely worked, a confidence boost that was direly needed. 

It can be bought in Boots for €4.49 Here

Dove Go Fresh Deodorant

This stuff smells so good!!! I mean it's pomegranate, so how couldn't you smell good! As an anti-perspirant it works brilliantly and it makes you smell good all day long! There's also a body wash available in the same scent! Heaven! 

Buy it from Tesco Here 

Wet n Wild H2O Proof liquid eyeliner

I have been wearing this eyeliner all month and it is serious stuff. I does not budge all day long and is definitely waterproof (I tested it in the shower just for you guys, Wet n Wild: 1, Gemma: 0). The applicator has a really nice feel to it and is really easy to use, which is always a bonus!

I use Ultra Black, E881

Buy it Here

Tommy Hilfiger Denim Jacket. 

I live in this jacket. My mam convinced me to buy it a couple of years ago when it was on sale and true to her word, I never take it off. I think it looks good with practically everything I own and when it gets a little chilly I stick a hoodie underneath and boom, it looks just a good. 

Check out Hilfiger's site Here

Jo's favourites:

Gillette Venus Breeze razor heads.

I have been loving these razor heads over the past month. They have a shave gel bar built in which means that you don't need to use shaving foam along with them. And as opposed to some other razor heads that claim to give an easier shave, these actually work. Great for travel and these will fit any gillette razor. 

Check out their website here

Buy them here 

No7 Stay perfect lipstick in the colour sweet lips.

This lipstick is a great purple(y) pink colour and is great if you want a little more colour on your lips but don't want to go all out. This lipstick is matte too, which I love, and stays on your lips for ages. I got mine from boots and they almost always have a coupon for money off No7 beauty products so you should definitely check it out.   

You can Find it here

Pantene Pro V 2 min Deep smoothening Masque for normal to thick hair.

This masque is great for those of us who have frizzy hair. I have used this masque all month and I can really feel a difference on the days that I use it. I use this in the shower by first shampooing my hair, then applying this product before putting my hair in a bun. I then wash my face etc and then rinse it out. It really does work. 

Check out their website here

Sleek cosmetics eyeshadow pallet in the colour sunset

I love sleek eyeshadow pallets and this one is no exception. With this pallet you can create really gorgeous looks, especially beautiful bronzed looks which I have been loving this past month. The shadows have incredible pigmentation and at €9.99 a pallet it is an absolute steal.

Get it on the sleek website

Or from Cloudtenbeauty.com

Style Pen Nail polish remover pads with the scent of lemon.

These Nail polish remover pads are great for travel. They have 32 pads in the pack and take off your polish with ease. They also smell like lemon which is awesome. They come in a few different scents as well so if lemon isn't your thing that's okay. 

Find them here at bluescandal.com 

So there you have it, the round up of the products we have been loving this past month. Don't forget to let us know what products you have been loving in the comments below ( we love to hear from you). Oh and don't forget to subscribe to both the blog and our youtube channel. 

Until next time, 

XO Gem and Jo 

Gem and Jo's Polish Picks

Jo's Pick:

So this week I've strayed (but not too far) away from the blue nail polishes, and chose to try out Wet n Wild's Megalast Salon Nail Color, in the shade On a Trip. This is a beautiful cream purple colour. 

This polish has a great shine, even without a top coat (as seen above) and  it isn't streaky at all. I found that three coats were needed for a fully opaque look, however I was really please with the finished result!.

This nail polish is super inexpensive too and I purchase mine for only €2.99!!

If you are living in Ireland the only place that you can find Wet n Wild cosmetics at the moment is in Dunnes Stores around the country (that's where I bought mine), however if you are living in the states, you can pretty much find this in most drugstores.  

Find it here

Gem's Pick

While Jo has steered away from the blues today, I have cannot say the same. I'm using Rimmel London's I Love Long Lasting in the colour Azure (198). Its a gorgeous bright, iridescent blue with just a hint of shimmer, and who doesn't love a bit of shimmer! This particular shade has been discontinued but I was lucky enough to pick it up while it was still in stores and there are a ton of new colours to choose from!

                                             

The colour is really fresh on Irish skin tones and is perfect for summer! Plus application of this polish is a breeze, it is a treat to apply, only two coats are needed for that opaque look we all want!

                                          

This nail varnish is available in most drugstores and Boots stores across Ireland for only €4.55, which is a great price for such a good product!
If you're lucky enough to live in the UK, Boots are doing Buy 1 get the 2nd half price, take a look here.
Irish viewers can purchase the varnish from Boots.ie Here
For everyone else, you can see the product Here

                                            

Thanks for reading and we hope you like our picks for today! If you have a favourite varnish or one you would like us to try, let us know in the comments below!
Until Next Time!