How To Make Your Makeup Last Longer | Carelle Says Hi

Tips On How To Make Your Makeup Last Longer

For me nothing is more satisfying than brand new makeup in my makeup bag! 

There's something about that crisp new packaging, unblemished product and that sense of luxury (even if you are just repurchasing your standard go-to concealer).  Whether or not you buy your makeup from an upmarket department store or you stock up on your favourites from your local Superdrug it can be an expensive trip if your makeup decides to RUN OUT ALL AT THE SAME TIME (which seems to be forever happening to me!).  

Perhaps that has something to do with the fact I purchased it all at the same time in the first place. Yep, idiot...

In recent months I've been looking at my bank balance and thinking... "Well, technically I DO have enough money to stock up on new makeup... BUT that money needs to go towards rent, bills, petrol in my car, food and general living.." So where does that boring and incredibly sensible thought leave me and my dying makeup bag? I fought the urge to cover my face in the old, crusty foundation that has been shoved to the back of my bathroom cupboard since 2007 (when I totally thought buying the darkest shade of brown made me look tanned and exotic NOT bright orange and ridiculous) and instead I got inventive.


Over the years I have been using a few really useful tips and tricks on how to get the most out of my makeup without having to compromise on quality and I thought what better way to get my 'Carelle Says Hi' blog rolling than to share these with you?

Tip 1: Hot Water and Mug


Yep, that's all you need!  Boil the kettle and half fill your mug with hot water.  Place your dried up products inside the mug, (this works best with liquid based makeup such as foundations, mascaras, lipgloss etc).  Leave these items inside the water for about 5 minutes and you'll be amazed how much product you can now get out of your makeup.  The hot water gently heats up and loosens the excess makeup that has been stuck to the side of your product, HEY PRESTO you've now got more pumps left from that foundation you were so close to chucking away.  You're welcome ;)


Tip 2: The Power of Lipstick


I had recently run out of cream blusher and that boring and incredibly sensible voice in my head (whom i'm really starting to listen to...) said to me, "Don't buy a new one! I'm sure you've got another cream blusher knocking about somewhere." In fact I hadn't BUT what I did find was a lipstick the exact colour of my cream blusher!  So, on my cheeks it went and I immediately loved it. The texture was so dewy and the pigment lasted a long time and I haven't looked back since.  Go and have a rummage in your old make up bag and get the most out of your lipsticks!


Tip 3: Cotton Wool


To avoid the disastrous make up smash in your handbag from happening place a cotton pad in the lid of your powder palettes.  This acts as a cushion and a barrier between your makeup and the lid of your product - No more smashed makeup and wasted money ever again.  It's pretty simple but so effective. 


Tip 4: Mascara Swap


As I explained in my vlog the beauty behind a great mascara is often the style of wand rather than the mascara solution inside.  Now and again if my favourite mascara runs out and I can't quite bring myself to spend £20 replacing it I'll go to my nearest drugstore and purchase a much cheaper mascara.  I'll dip my favourite wand into the new mascara and suddenly my £20 mascara fave has been reborn! I can still use my favourite wand which now has brand new mascara solution inside spending only a fraction on what I would have paid if I had bought a new £20 mascara each time. GENIUS! (Don't forget to wash out those mascara wands though. Don't wanna be getting all gunky...)


I really hope you find these tips useful.  Let me know if you have any tips yourself as I would love to hear about them and try them out too!


I'm off to sort out that nasty bathroom cupboard and its tragic 2007 beauty contents... *shameful*

Thank you for reading.  See you soon...x

H&M Sale Trousers for £7 Each!

My H&M Sale Finds

As I was sipping my Carrot and Ginger juice and tucking into a glorious fried breakfast in the City of Chelmsford I felt my ankle boots dig into my bare feet. In my cooked breakfast excitement I must have run out the door without socks on. In fact - I had plenty of socks to choose from, but what I really wanted were a pair of ankle socks to fit nicely under my ankle boots and when you're mind is focused on a specific, only that specific will do.  So on the to-do list that day was to purchase copious amounts of ankle socks. The nearest store where this would be made possible was H&M, so in I went!

I was immediately struck by a big sale rail and a huge array of trousers, jeans, tracksuit bottoms, leggings - You name it!  Knowing full well that my luck with trousers is pretty non existent, (I swear by Topshop jeans and they're all I seem to purchase). I suddenly felt optimistic and before I knew it I had picked up a handful of trousers in my size.  My boyfriend entered the store 5 minutes later and saw me with a huge handful of clothes with the "Oh bloody hell... Really Carelle??" look on his face, so I decided to cut my selection by half (to keep him on side of course!).  He immediately deemed one pair of trousers to be "So last year..." So my 'Gok Wan' of a boyfriend and I whittled the selection down to just 3.  You can return sale items in H&M so I decided to purchase and try them on at home.  Each pair of trousers were £7 so I handed over my £21 and off I went, without ankle socks... Bugger.

H&M Animal Print Jeans - £7

These jeans feel so lovely on and are extremely well fitted.  I always like to buy my jeans as tight as possible because after a few washes they nearly always lose their elasticity and there's nothing worse than wrinkly 'Skinny Jeans'.  Sexy.

 My favourite thing about these jeans is that they will look great in the winter with grey or black tops but also wearable in the warmer months with a white t-shirt.  I'll certainly get my wear out of them and for £7 I think they're a bloomin good bargain!

The neighbours cat liked them too...

H&M Pinstripe Jeans - £7

These lovely black and white pinstripe jeans immediately caught my attention! It's commonly known that pinstripes create an illusion of length so with my 'long body and shorter legs' situation going on, these were a must have.

I feel with the pinstripe design these jeans can look quite smart with ankle boots but just as chilled and comfortable with casual converse. 

The neighbours cat REALLY liked this pair...

H&M Animal Print Trackies - £7

Trackie Bums have never been something I'd spend a lot of money

on and I'd say 98% of my tracksuit bottoms are my cheap and cheerful collection from Primark.  It almost feels a treat to have a stylish pair from somewhere other than my good friend "Primarni".

These extremely comfortable pair from H&M meant I... A). Not only branched out but B). Kept to my "Less Than A Tenner On Trackies" tradition and snapped these up for £7! 

They are so comfortable and have already been in the wash a handful of times and haven't once bobbled or shrunk.  I've been doing a lot of work from home recently and have had to be in comfortable clothes with my left leg raised on 3 pillows...Why you may ask? (I think i'll save that story for a future blog post...) but these trackie bums have been my most comfortable and stylish at a time where style is not something I'm rocking at the moment.  You should see what I've been wearing the last few weeks in order to be "comfortable".  Grim.

Unfortunately by this stage the neighbours cat was pretty bored of my posing...

I'm really pleased with my impulsive H&M sale items... Not bad for £21.  Never underestimate the power of an impulsive sale purchase.  If you can return sale items my advice is to buy quickly (to avoid frustrating tantrums in the fitting room) and promise to return any unwanted items EVEN if they were as cheap as chips! Don't just tell yourself you'll keep an item because it was cheap. If you're not going to wear it, return it. Now there's a good girl...

I'm finishing this blog post at midnight and i'm about to scoff my face with some Peanut Butter on toast... Going against all rules of healthy digestion and night time etiquette - Whoopsy

Thanks so much for reading and I'll see you in my next blog :)

C x

Read my previous blog here - http://heyitscarelle.blogspot.co.uk