What’s in this professional MUA’s makeup bag? (It may surprise you!)

One of the things I often get asked when I am doing makeup in Liverpool is what products I use on myself the most. So I thought I would share what’s in my personal makeup bag with you! It’s all cruelty-free makeup brands, of course, but you might be in for a surprise or two!

I actually don’t have ONE makeup bag… I actually have 2 drawers full of makeup in my bedroom! It may surprise you that I don’t have more, I know people with entire makeup rooms. I keep my professional kit separate from the makeup for my personal use. This is for hygiene reasons, as I keep everything in my pro kit meticulously clean and sanitized.

My personal stuff… well I keep it as clean as the average person I would say! If something is looking particularly grubby I will give it a wipe or chuck it out. My personal brushes definitely don’t get cleaned as often as they should! I may dip into my pro kit for the odd thing from time to time, but when I do, I sanitize it and put it back straight away.

As I do have so much, I am going to focus on my ride or die everyday products that I use most of the time. Some of these I talked about in my

Base

Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow Instant Soft Focus Beauty Flash

One of the first Charlotte Tilbury Products I ever bought, this glowing primer is a magic wand that erases 5 years off my face, 10 on a good day.

Beauty Pie Sheer Tinted Oil-Free SPF 20

If I’m having a casual day of doing Mom stuff or doing admin at home etc. this is my go to base. If softly evens out my skin with a light glowing coverage, plus gives me basic SPF protection.

The Ordinary Coverage Foundation (2.0 P)

A drop of this highly pigmented fluid really packs a lot of coverage. It is weightless, flawless, and lasts all day and night. I adore this foundation because it looks like skin. Airbrushed, perfect skin.

Beauty Pie The Unbeatable Concealer

It says it’s unbeatable but you will be beat to the gods I’m telling you!!!!! This creamy camouflage concealer is simply amazing. It also makes an excellent eyeshadow primer. I adore it and use it everyday, even if I just wear tinted moisturiser.

NYX Wonder Stick (Universal)

I love this contour stick! It is the perfect cool tone for gently sculpting cheekbones and shading double chins. It blends easily so doesn’t leave horrible stripes. The highlight end gives a soft highlight that isn’t garish or too shiny. And I am weirdly obsessed with the smell of this product! It isn’t perfumey, I can’t explain what it smells like at all, but I have to sniff it because I love it. If anyone out there knows why it smells like it does, please tell me!

Brows

Tweezerman Tweezers

Classic and essential for grabbing any strays. Confession time – I use this more on my chin than my brows these days. Sad fact of middle-age female life, but I will always be straight with you!

NYX Micro Brow Pencil (Ash Brown)

I use this to fill in the gaps after I’ve styled my brows with the above. I’m going particularly sparse at the beginning of my brows which is unusual, as most go sparse from over plucking at the tail end. This tiny pencil draws perfect hair strokes. No stenciled on brows here! I also like Anastasia Brow Wiz pencil, but this one is half the price and pretty much identical.

Charlotte Tilbury Legendary Brows (Linda)

I love this teeny tiny wand for styling what few brows I have. I use this to brush up my brows and get them into shape. I think I actually prefer Glossier Boy Brow to this, but I ran out and this is what I am using at the moment!

Eyes

Beauty Pie Wondercream Longwear Cream Shadow Stick (En Taupe)

This basic brown goes with everything and can also work as a base for powder shadows. I just rub some on my lid and blend with my fingertip for a quick look. I use a little to line my bottom lash line too. This colour would suit most.

Tarte Tarteist Metallic Shadow (Exposed)

I love this bronzy pink shadow, I use it sooooo much. It is great for blue eyes! I wear it alone or use it as an accent colour on a smokey look. I’ve tried other shades in the Tarte metallic shadows and had allergic reactions to them, but this one I’ve always been fine with. Weird!

Pixi It’s Eye Time Palette

Another confession – I am a palette addict! But this is the one I use the most. It is a beautiful collection of warm browns and nudes. I can make a simple daytime look or a super sexy nighttime eye. It’s really versatile. And my favourite Tarte eyeshadow sits well with these colours too! I think I may have picked this palette up at TK Maxx, so I’m not sure if it is still available to buy. But I really really love it! The texture and payout of these shadows are amazing.

Charlotte Tilbury Rock n Kohl Pencil (Barbarella Brown)

I can’t live without this, the actually holy grail of eyeliner pencils! The ‘liquid pencil’-ness of this makes it the perfect eyeliner. You can use it with a brush to create flicks, or you can smoke it out. Once it sets it is bulletproof. I challenge you to find a better pencil. And I love this brown, dark enough to smolder but not as severe as black.

Catrice Better than Waterproof Mascara

I suffer with an eye condition called blepharitis, which is a problem with the oil glands in my eyelids. This means I had to stop wearing eye makeup for nearly 2 years, and then I had to gradually try different things until I found products that didn’t cause a flare up. Mascara was a tricky one, I can only use tubing mascaras like this one. I only started using this recently and it’s the best I’ve found so far. It is also vegan and £4.99! Winner all around.

Cheeks

Ciate Blush Pop (colour unknown- pink)

Another TK Maxx find, the perfect cruelty free dupe for my old favourite NARS Multiple Orgasm. I don’t think Ciate make this any more, so what will I do when I run out??? I do love a cream blush for the glow it gives.

Tarte Filtered Light Setting Powder

I couldn’t decide if I should put this with the bases or not, but I always apply this after my cream blusher, so I’m putting it here. This is one of those silicon based magic powders that erases pores and lines. But it doesn’t like flash photography, so use with caution! I just do a light dusting to set everything. It keeps the shine away too!

Lips

Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat (Bond Girl, Pillow Talk)

Like her eye liner pencils, these lip pencils are second to none. They glide on, don’t drag, and set to bulletproof levels. These two shades work for most of the lip shades I own. And that is A LOT. I am obsessed with lipstick and literally have hundreds of different tubes, glosses, mattes, paints, etc.

Charlotte Tilbury Hot Lips 2 (Glowing Jen)

Anyone who knows me knows that I love leopard print, so I absolutely had to have this lippy! The tawny rose shade is not my usual lippy, but once I started wearing it I was in love! It is now my go to, in my bag at all times.

Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Luminizer (Fenty Glow)

This is also in my bag at all times! It makes my lips look so much plumper without any menthol or cinnamon oils to tingle and sting (although, I really like that too!). I love this on it’s own with lip liner, or over pretty much any lipstick. It is so moisturising too!

So there you go! The mystery of my makeup bag revealed. Are you surprised that I happily brave digging through the TK Maxx beauty bin? I always make sure anything I buy there is sealed, because (eww) people have no shame and will stick their fingers in everything! If you hit it on the right day and time, you can find some gems! I am also partial to a bit of drugstore beauty like Catrice and NYX, but also bougie it up with Charlotte Tilbury because I’m worth it. I think I am probably boring with my day to day looks. I think I just know what works for me now, after many many years of wearing makeup.

So, what’s in your makeup bag? What is the one product that you have used for years and could never be without? Tell me all about it in the comments, or over on Instagram or Facebook!

Vicky xxx