MY GO-TO SUMMER MAKE UP LOOK

I can't tell you how bloody excited I am to FINALLY be sharing this post with you all. It's my second dabble into beauty blogging with a difference, do you remember this post this time last year? Yeah I can't believe it's taken me this long to get another make up look onto meganellaby.com either! Terribly sorry about that, but what can I say, I'm a creature of habit and things don't tend to change make up-wise around here. Well, it didn't, until recently when I've been opting for a much more natural look when it comes to my face.
I mean, just look at my last beauty post just one summer ago for example! I have a lot more make up on and I was a little more experimental with colour.
And whilst I still love that look, with it's orange mascara, flawless foundation and cat flicks, nowadays I'm opting for lighter bases, dewy skin and sheer lip stains and with not a cat eye in sight!

So, without further ado let me talk you through what goes into making me look more human every single day, however a much more understated and natural human than my last.
I truly hope you enjoy this post, these photographs are my absolute fave to ever grace my blog, they're barely edited as I wanted you to see the smile lines that foundation finds itself sitting in halfway through the day, my dry under eyes and other things that make me, me!

Anyhooo onto the make up!

So first up we have my base of choice.
It's a tinted moisturiser by Nars and it's oil free; My skin's been a little troublesome lately and after consulting a dermatologist, they advised me to use oil-free where possible so after a quick Insta-story asking you lot for your oil-free recommendations, I picked up the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 30. It's a lightweight formula and I truly LOVE it, it gives a really natural look to the skin allowing my actual skin to show through, something I'm opting for more and more as I get a little older. I wear the shade Finland and it's the perfect colour all year round, with just a touch of bronzer to add a slight tan to my chops.

I touch up under my eyes and of course any unsightly breakouts with the Bare Minerals 16 hour full coverage Concealer stick. It's a really silky formula that is super easy to blend with my fingers alone and pretty much does exactly what it says on the tin, covers everything for a real long time! It's crease free, comes in a HUGE array of shades and is water and sweat resistant which is great as this is pretty much the only product I use when hitting up the gym.

I must admit that I'm not a big blush fan.
I never have been tbh (apart from that doll-like look I used to adore back in the early noughties... WHY!?) I'm much more of a contour/bronzer kinda gal however, a slight flush to the cheeks is always pretty during the warmer months.
And for that subtle flush of colour I've been using the Bare Minerals Gen-Nude blush in shade Bellini Brunch it's a gorgeous coral shade thats rather sheer so easy to build up if you desire. I just add a brief dusting to the apples of my cheeks using a Mac Stippling brush for a really natural look. There are SO many colours to choose from when it comes to the Gen-Nude blushes by Bare Minerals so you'll deffo be able to find the one for you.

If it's one thing I couldn't live without make up wise (aside from concealer) it would be this eye shadow palette!
Yup, you guessed it it's the Urban Decay Naked Heat palette aka the palette of all palettes! Featuring 12 absolutely outrageously beautiful shades ranging from the perfect base nude tones, to warm oranges, shimmery bronze shades and deep plum/brown shades, it's my absolute go-to and to be quite honest the only palette I need in my collection.
I've used each and every shade and adore them all, but my daily go-to's are Sauced or Cayenne or a little bit of both to mix it up a bit. If there's one thing from this post I would urge you to try out it would be this palette, it's honestly rocking!

When it comes to mascara I think I have FINALLY found the one! I've been a bit of a mascara floozy in previous years settling for whatever sample I could get my hands on or whatever was on offer in Boots, but alas I think me and the YSL The Shock Mascara will be together forever.
The wand is pretty hefty and packs a punch when it comes to dramatic, volumised, thick, full and dark lashes. Similarly to going a bit more natural with my base, I'm using less mascara than ever before. I've always been a fan of the sixties style spider lash, and whilst for a night out I'll still pile on the mascara, for day time I've been going for a much softer look.
The YSL The Shock Mascara allows me to achieve both of these looks, just one-two coats gives my lashes SO much length and volume and makes them super duper dark, however pile on another coat or two and I have the most dramatic sixties style lashes I could ever have hoped for, this one is a keeper thats for sure!

I've always been totally terrible at doing my eyebrows.
In fact I'd go as far as saying I bloody hate doing my eyebrows every single day and thats why I've recently had them micro-bladed (eee, more on that very soon)
However, pre micro-blading the products that had me a little (a lot) less stressed doing my brows in a morning come from Hourglass with the Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil to add shape and definition to my brows where they were lacking and the Hourglass Arch Brow Volumising Fiber Gel to set them in place and add some texture to my rather flat and lack lustre brows.
Both of these products are what I like to call "eyebrows for dummys" they make the whole process easy and keep my eyebrows looking a little ( a lot) less terrible.

And the final piece that I've been LOVING so so much this spring and will be taking with me through to the depths of summer is the Glossier Generation-G lipstick in shade Crush!
It's a beautiful deep pink shade that is SO easy to apply without the need of liner or even a mirror. It gives a really gorgeous touch of colour to the lips in a matte formula without being too heavy. I also add a touch of the La Mer Lip balm over the top to sheer it out some more for the ultimate barely there lip colour.
I have the entire colour range of the Glossier Generation-G's and I really do love wearing them all, particularly Crush as aforementioned but also Cake which is a lovely nude shade and Zip which is a really juicy coral/red shade, perfect for holidays.

And there we have it, everything I slap on my face each and every day whilst the weather is HOT HOT HOT!
I really hope you enjoyed hearing exactly what I use and why I love it so much and I truly hope you like the imagery, I'm really proud of this post and truly hope you love it as much as I do.
I'd love to hear if you've tried any of these pieces too? Or if you're tempted to now you've read this post? I'd also REALLY love to hear if you have any make up faves that you think I'll love, especially barely there lip colours that are comfortable (not too matte, not too sticky) and perfect for summer, I am all ears.

Lotsa love

x M

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROSIE BUTCHER