Hello my lovely people! I decided to do a quick update on myself, my blog and being mia etc. As most of you are aware, I was gone for around 5 months -which isn't a joke- that's almost half a year! And then a week a go, I sprang back into action, back into the picture like I was never gone! So I feel a little obliged to explain my absence just to keep you in the loop as I know a lot of you appreciate my presence and input on the blogosphere and I don't want to take advantage of or ignore that kind of loyalty and consideration that we have for each other. We're #instasisters at the end of the day ;) 

I don't want to divulge any details about my personal life or anything which I'm sure you all can understand. But basically....I had some things going on in my life that needed my care, concern and attention and I knew I would benefit from the mental space and the physical effort away from blogging. I won't claim to put truckloads of effort and dedication into my posts but I can't deny the whole process is definitely a time consuming one and I just didn't have the capacity to balance it all. My mind just wouldn't have been in it.

The time that I couldn't give to blogging then became an actual break from the blog and Instagram...it was quite refreshing to be honest. Though I did miss it, taking this time away didn't stop me from being a passionate beauty enthusiast and everything I saw or bought that excited me - I was itching to share with you all! I can't even begin to tell you how much I missed you all...you girls know who you are!

Then came the lazy stage of the break. I had collected so many goodies and had so many reviews lined up that I became a little overwhelmed with the amount of work that I had put on myself. I had what some may call a bloggers block! Like I said in my comeback / empties post (here) the bag just got heavier and heavier, so did the list of reviews that I wanted to write and I quite literally crept back and pussyfooted away from it all. It took lots of courage and planning to decide to come back and I told myself to take it one step at a time and hopefully that way I'd be able to manage it all.

Skin Update

Also in the last 5 months my skin has been all over the place. I was ill for a while and I think the combination of poor health, stress and lack of a routine made my skin almost unrecognisable. I developed dark circles, pigmentation, was ridiculously dehydrated, fine lines made an appearance all over my face, texture and flakes were at a record high and I had some active breakouts. I couldn't put a speck of makeup on my face, it looked absolutely awful atop of my skin.

Instead of crying into a pillow or locking myself in a tower, I went on a mission to nurse it back to health. I reduced the amount of acids I was using, especially Salicylic Acid as my skin doesn't seem to tolerate it if used too often. I applied my serums and antioxidants regularly and consistently (I have to thank my Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair, my Paula's Choice Resist Antioxidant Serum and Pestle & Mortar Hyaluronic Acid for replenishing my poor skin). I slathered on the oils and moisturisers and ingredients that strengthened my moisture barrier, wore my sunscreen daily and used acids every other day to help it all along. Along with plenty of water Alhumdulillah (all praise to God) my skin has improved a lot since doing this, it's still a little dehydrated and the fine lines are still there but I'm more at peace with my skin now.

Makeup Update

It's no lie I have done some makeup shopping in the past 5 months, I'm no saint and I've never claimed to be haha! It's not a lot but there's plenty to show and tell for. With regards to application I have become even more minimal with my makeup, especially the amount of foundation I use, because of my skins poor health I was forced to reduce the amount of foundation I put on as it would make my skin look much worse. 'Less is more' had really become me. I wanted the makeup to be invisible and flattering. I wanted to see skin, I wanted to achieve what foundation was intended for and that is healthy perfected skin. I've always known less foundation looked better on me but especially now that I have a slightly harder job at perfecting the imperfections, getting the right finish is vital for me. I have some new favourite products and techniques that I can't wait to share with you.

Now that I'm back I am trying to be more proactive with the blogging. I'm sure you've noticed that I've been throwing reviews at you this whole week, reason being I've tried sooooo many new things while I was away so I really want to share my experiences and thoughts with you, if I could I would throw it at you all at once but we know that's near impossible haha! So expect many more reviews to come your way and lots of new goodies to show. I hope you've all been well yourselves in these last 5 months my lovelies. See you soon. xxx

P.S. Since it's Ramadan I may do another disappearing act, just giving you a heads up hehe...It's the month of more prayers, self reflection, building on that connection with God, taking from His bountiful treasures and paving the way for the coming year...so please please remember me and the world in your humble prayers. Peace! xxx

I have been so intrigued by the brand since watching and lusting after them on YouTube for years only to be saddened by the fact that it was so hard to get hold of here in the UK. A lot of our prayers were answered when Britains favourite drugstore Boots launched NYX not only online but in a good few stores. Since then I have had my greedy beady eyes on soooo many of their products but am definitely rest assured and being patient in getting my hands on them as I'm sure they won't be going anywhere anytime soon!

So I've been collecting a few bits and pieces here and there and no surprise, they're all lip products! No word of a lie...I fricking ADORE them all!!!! I'm quite selective with the shades I decide to buy and they are usually wearable nudes and naturals for my complexion as well as the odd vibrant red, berry or pink shade. I've done some swatches of the current ones I own but watch this space as you probably know I always have room for expansion! Without any further ado, here are the swatches taken from my Instagram (@Zahra_Najam)

- Liquid Suede Cream in Soft Spoken

- Lip Lingerie in Ruffle Trim

- Lip Lingerie in Exotic

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Cannes

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Abu Dhabi

- Soft Matte Lip Cream in Rome

My favourite formula would have to be the Soft Matte Lip Creams, creamy, moussy and eventually sets to a velvety matte finish yet look really natural and effortless, though they may not be the most pigmented of the bunch, they seem to make my lips look so powdery velvety soft, plump and puffy and are really comfortable on the lips. They don't have the longest durability compared to the rest but the finish is what wins me over. I find these dry down to a slightly different tone on the lips compared to how they swatch. I usually have to go over my top lips pigmentation a couple of times to get an opaque coverage. So keep all this in mind.

P.S. Abu Dhabi has stolen my heart. If you've eyed this shade with intrigue like me, then definitely go for it, it's a gorgeous pinky beige sand nude on my olive / yellow NC35 - NC40 complexion, looks absolutely stunning!) 

The Suede Creams are much thinner and liquidy in consistency, pigmented yet feel soft and comfortable on the lips, though I find they take quite a while to dry down completely. Like the name suggests it's a suede finish and feel on the lips. Once dry they do last a while. They have the least exciting range of shades in my opinion, it's more suitable for those who like wacky vibrant shades and I'm not brave enough to pull 'em off at all!

The Liquid Lingerie are moussy and thick in consistency like the Soft Matte Lip Creams, very pigmented yet dry down in a few minutes. I feel like these are the most unflattering on the lips if I use too much, they can sink into the lines and crevices of my lips and have the potential of making my lips look smaller and a bit dehydrated, especially with the lighter colours. 

To tackle this problem I use a pore filling primer on my lips then I apply a thin layer of product on both my lips, let it dry completely and then go over my top lip once more (as I have discolouration / pigmentation on that lip) and I get a much nicer finish, smoother and plumper a bit like the Soft Matte Lip Creams.

I used to dislike Ruffle Trim because it looked too pasty on me for my liking but ever since I started using this technique of thin layers it's like whole new dimensions and depth of tones came out of the shade, I adooore it and have been asked so many times what I have on my lips when I've worn it!

Using a thin layer with these are what makes it look much nicer in my opinion. These Liquid Lingeries do last a good time on the lips and come off with a bit of a fight haha! 

There you have it, my lovely little NYX lip collection. I absolutely love them to bits! I'm super duper impressed with the quality and want so many more of their different products and formulas! Well done NYX and thank you soooo much for blessing us Brits with your presence! Xxx

You can clearly see how olive All Day Luminous Weightless is compared to the rest! The others have more of warm yellow / peachy tones. They're all very decent matches nonetheless. 

I wish they had a shade in between Ginger and Caramel in the concealer range that was more golden, I use Caramel to colour correct under eyes or add some depth of colour if my mouth area is looking a little grey and Ginger is good for concealing / brightening under my eyes and is also close to my skintone, just more on the peachy side.

Hope this helps

P.S. I totally mixed all the shades together and applied it to my face. It actually made for an interestingly beautiful finish and shade....! Just saying...

A lightweight and luminous liquid base, formulated with light diffusers which unify skin tone and cover imperfections effortlessly. Specially designed ‘true colour’ pigments work perfectly with your skins’ natural tones in an ultra-blendable formula.

The result? The perfect Invisiwear effect.

Shade

There's a total of 5 shades in this range F100, F200, F300, F400 and F500. I got F200 which is meant to be for those that are between NC30 and NC35. Now I don't really like MAC foundation shades as I don't find them very olive yellow but rather I think they lean more towards warm/orange neutral. 

The shade F200 is a very good match to my skin tone, when I apply it to my skin, it disappears and blends in really well. It's almost like my skintone in a bottle! If I were to describe the shade I would say it's a olive beige shade with some yellow, it's not a very yellow shade but has just enough to work very well with my skin tone. It's definitely a better match for me than the F300 and I adore it! This is the third time I've given up on a potential favourite just because of trying the wrong shade!

Excuse my splotchy dry hands, the skin on my hand is quite translucent/transparent hence the splotchiness and veins.

Texture

The texture of the EX1 is very thick and creamy. I've travelled with my little sample pot and where some foundations can make a mess and coat all sides and end up on the lid, even possibly leak, the EX1 didn't budge one bit, so you know it's not a runny formula at all. I've applied it with both sponges and brushes and I've noticed that since it's a thick formula you have to bounce the sponge a little extra to blend it in and as expected you use more product with a sponge, the brush manoeuvres and blends the foundation in well and doesn't take as much effort and you get a bit more coverage. (I'm currently obsessed with a particular face brush at the moment and haven't been able to put it down, I haven't picked up a beauty blender since! All will be revealed soon...Check here for brush review!). Also even though I don't have the full size bottle, I really like the packaging for the EX1, it's simple and effective, I love how clean and efficient the pump action is, you'll never waste a drop!

Feel

This is a lightweight formula as advertised but I don't think it's as lightweight as some of the newer foundation releases. Back in 2013 when it had first released you could say it was one of the first of its kind to offer decent coverage yet an invisible look and feel but foundation technology has evolved since then and there are many products out there now that provide an even more lighter feel. But yes I would say this foundation has the potential of looking and feeling invisible depending on your skin type/condition and how you apply, prep or set your makeup.

Finish

The EX1 Invisiwear does set to a demi matte finish on me and I have combination dehydrated skin. I wasn't anticipating this at all. At first it looks like a satin finish and exudes a glow that satin foundations would leave but after around 5 minutes it sets to a matte finish. In fact I have to be weary of how much powder I put on top or else it dries down too much and I'm left looking a little matte and a touch cakey. I have to wait for the foundation to dry down/set first so that I can see where I can/need to powder. It dries down especially around my mouth for some reason where I also have some texture, so I've learnt to use extra moisturiser there and go easy with the powder.

A couple of months ago I was going through a very dehydrated and dry phase, many of my foundations would look really dry and dull on my skin and the texture and flakes would look more pronounced, this was also one of the foundations that looked awful on me. So I don't think the EX1 is good for those with very dry, dehydrated and textured skin. Thank God my skin has improved since then and I can comfortably wear this without too much trouble. Definitely do your skin prep and moisturise well as the matte finish may not be forgiving if you have very dry skin. 

In terms of pore filling and skin smoothing, the brand doesn't claim for this to fill in pores or anything but I think it fills them in enough like most foundations would do anyway, it also isn't a smoothing or plumping foundation like the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation (review here) or the Urban Decay One & Done (review here). This is more of second skin finish where it mimics the skins natural texture. I have no complaints with this, I still like it very much. 

Coverage

I would say this foundation offers medium to buildable full coverage. I have some mild redness and post acne marks, general uneven skin tone and hyperpigmentation. Since I don't have the full size bottle I can't tell you how many pumps I use but I can tell you that I use 6 small dots around my face and get a proper medium coverage on my self. I'm not very keen on full coverage so I tend to go for a more natural look and finish to my skin. I love how even this makes my skin look and because it's so close to my skins colour it really looks great on me. I colour correct under my eyes and around my mouth and I get a pretty flawless finish.

Build-ability

The EX1 sets so I suggest building one section before proceeding to the next, I prefer to build thin layers at a time and only were I need it. Since this blends so well into the skin I find this builds nicely too but take into consideration the dry down as this looks drier on me the more I  build it on my dry/dehydrated areas. 

Longevity 

This foundation sets to a demi matte finish so it lasts really long on my skin, especially after setting with powder. I like the way satin/matte foundations look on my skin as the day goes by as my natural oils come out and give my skin a healthy natural glow, the matte nature of this foundation works well with my skin type and I get really good longevity out of this.

Oxidation

The EX1 Invisiwear does oxidise and deepen a bit to a slightly orange tinge, but not too much that it looses the olive yellow tones that work so well with my skin, it makes me look a little more tanned and golden and I don't mind that too much, I actually quite like it. A lot of people have complained about how orange it goes on them but there isn't much you can do as the shade range is very limited, having only 5 shades means you can't go down a shade as the shade differences between all 5 shades are quite distinct. Shade F100 is actually more on the neutral pink side which doesn't really make sense. But we can only hope Farah Naz (the creator) brings more shades to the range as I think that would do very well for the targeted consumers of this brand. 

Overall I really like the EX1 Invisiwear foundation. I adore the shade more so as it contains a nice balance of beige, green and yellow to match my skin so well, even the oxidation colour is manageable. I don't have many foundations that flatter my skintone that well but this one is definitely one of them along with bareMinerals Original Golden Medium (review here and here) and Nars Stromboli (review here and here). With the right skin prep I can make the demi-matte finish work really well for me, the skin like finish and the longevity is great. If you have an olive yellow complexion and haven't tried F200 in this range I suggest you get a sample and give it a go. My success with the EX1 Inivisiwear Foundation has made me want to try more of their products now! As usual I hope this was helpful. Toodles!

Description from website:

AIR MAT FOUNDATION

MATTIFYING HIGH COVERAGE FOUNDATION FOR AN UNDETECTABLE FINISH THAT LASTS FOR UP TO 24 HOURS.

Finish

This has a soft velvety matte finish on the skin, it's not a flat matte and the skin still has nice dimension to it but if you are quite dry and dull to begin with this can look a bit flat. Because it's summer now (well...) and my skin gets a teeny bit oily in warm weather conditions I find this looks soft and skin like on me. It fills in my pores and smoothens my skin nicely giving a soft focus blurred effect which I really really like.

I have worn this when my skin was very dry, dehydrated and flaky and this foundation was a big no no! It looked absolutely horrendous on me, picking up on every bit of texture/bump and sitting and highlighting every line, extra moisturiser nor the beauty blender was making it work, after trying and trying I was ready to give it away but now that my skins in better condition and not so dry I do like how it looks on me.

Coverage
I'm really impressed with the coverage you get with the Air Mat foundation. I'd say this is a medium to buildable full coverage foundation. I use a small pea sized amount and get medium coverage which is more than enough for me. It evens my skin out really nicely and naturally and conceals any redness and mild marks on my face whilst still looking skin like. I really like how skin smoothing it is and the soft focus effect this gives to my skin.

Like I mentioned earlier this can look cakey on me if my skin is more on the dehydrated side and has more texture which is why I'd avoid building too much coverage with this foundation, it can be unforgiving if I wanted to get this to full coverage as my skin isn't 100% smooth even on its good days, I do have a little texture at the moment in certain areas of my face and I am also slightly dry in these areas too so building coverage can look cakey in those specific places.

Build-ability
The Air Mat sets so I suggest you blend it in quickly. When I try to build layers with this foundation I find it can sometimes get a bit cakey if I'm not adequately moisturised, reason being since it's a powder finish, the powder dissolves into the moisture on your skin giving it an invisible finish, so if there isn't enough moisture on the skin to take more product the foundation can sort of sit on top of the skin instead of melting in to it. So if you have my skin type, use extra moisturiser if you want more coverage and no cakiness. And since this sets I recommend building layers one area at a time before moving on to the next area.

Longevity
I actually don't set the Air Mat foundation with any powder, I don't feel the need to and I find it lasts a decent amount of time on me. Because it's matte and it sets I feel like it really meshes into the skin and becomes one with it. Nor does it really transfer much. Also as it's a matte finish my skin doesn't get too oily by the end of the day and the foundation is still holding pretty well. Some people with oily skin have complained that they get really shiny with this, which is probably why it works well for me as on me it's a comfortable matte and isn't overly drying for my dehydrated combination skin. I also find that this looks better on me as the day goes by and sometimes by the end of the day I will have a radiant sheen to my skin which I quite like as it looks pretty with the soft focus smoothing effect on the skin.

Oxidisation