Freedom Pro Contour Palette

Contour palettes are being hyped about a lot in make up whether it's the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit, Kat Von D Light and Shade Palette or the NYX Contour Palette. There is so many on the market now and recently I have been loving contouring! I was in Superdrug and came across a brand which I have never heard of but I knew it was new to Superdrug which is Freedom Cosmetics who aim to give you good high end products with a drug store price, they have a lot of beauty products which can be aimed at make up artists such as a brow bar similar to the Anastasia Beverly Hills one which has every shade you could possibly need.

I however fell in love with their Pro Contour Palette (buy it here) they do this in either a cream formulation or powder which both are only £10. I went for the powder one as I feel like I am much better at applying powders over cream products. In the palette you get 6 shades altogether 2 x Matte Highlighters, 1 x Shimmer Highlighter and 3 x Matte Contour Shades.

The variety of contour shades are amazing if you want a light, medium or dark contour or if you want to mix two of them. I noticed when I first used these they are VERY pigmented, trust me. I needed to do a hell of a lot of blending to reduce down the amount of product which I had put on as I wasn't expecting it to be so pigmented. A little definitely goes a long way!

With the higlighting shades I haven't really used the end shimmer highlighter but that is also very pigmented it has a very cool undertone to it and is again very pigmented. The middle highlight shade reminds me of the Ben Nye Banana Powder which I use this under my eyes to set my concealer and it works amazingly to prevent any creasing under my eye during the day. The first highlight shade in the palette is very skin toned for me it just being a little lighter than my foundation. I use this just below my contour so it makes my contour a little more prominent but not too much.

With the kit you get a Pro Strobe Brush which is ideal for contour, it is similar to the Nars Ita brush and the brushes you get when you purchase Benefit Hoola Bronzer etc. With it is being very slim it allows you to focus on certain points easily so you can pack the product on and then blend it out easily. This would also be ideal if you like to bake with your powder, if you like to use the technique which I have seen Jaclyn Hill use a lot when she bakes her powder under her contour. This is also ideal for people who are new to contouring and highlighting as the box shows you where to apply the different powders to get the best out of them.

Have you tried this? Do you know any good contouring and highlighting palettes? Let me know in the comments!

Until Next Time,

Paige x

Banana and Chocolate Cake

I'm writing this while eating my Banana and Chocolate cake and I can tell you it's amazing! I love banana bread and I have been craving it for ages, but with this I decided to add a twist of chocolate because what more can you possibly want in a cake. Chocolate and Banana? YUM! This recipe is quick and easy so anyone can make this whether you're a Great British Bake Off Expert or a more of a novice in the baking department.

What you will need;

- 100g or 4oz Butter

- 100g or 4oz Caster Sugar

- 100g or 4oz Self Raising Flour

- 2 Eggs

- 1 tsp Baking Powder

- 4 tbsp Cocoa Powder (use as much as you want)

- 2 Banana's, Mashed

- a dash of milk (only if the mixture is quite dry)

Preheat your oven at 180°C or Gas Mark 4.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Measure out your self raising flour along with baking powder and cocoa powder.

Beat eggs in one at a time, adding a little of the dry ingredients in.

Gently mix the remaining dry ingredients into the mixture.

Taking your two banana's peel these and mash, adding them into the mixture.

Once everything is mixed in fully, line a tin with greaseproof paper in my case I used a rectangle tin but you can use whichever you like.

Empty your mixture into the tin making sure you smooth out the mixture so it fills the tin.

Pop this in the oven for around 40 minutes or until it looks cooked and the top once pressed bounces back up. I use a skewer in the middle just to test that everything is cooked, if it comes out with no mixture on it that means it's perfectly cooked.

Take out of the oven and leave to cool in the tin.

When it's cool enough cut yourself a generous piece with a cup of tea mmm! I hope you enjoy making this as much as I did and I hope it turns out just as nice!

Until Next Time.

Paige x