March 2017 Favorites

Rimmel “Match Perfection” Concealer – This concealer is truly amazing. It does a great job of covering up redness and dark circles under my eyes, but still looks natural. It doesn’t crease anywhere and lasts all day long.

Makeup Revolution “Matte Blush” – I don’t know that I have ever tried a more pigmented matte blush! This has a smooth, creamy formula and the color payoff is incredible… so be sure to go in with a light hand. I have the shade Nude and love it!!!

Nine West “Dress Pump” – Now that it is (finally) warming up where I live, these babies have been on repeat. They are versatile and comfortable. What else does a girl really need?!

Sofia Vergara “Tempting” Body Spray – While I’m not much into fragrance, I bought this on a whim at Marshall’s and have been loving it. It has scents of vanilla, tropical fruit, and flowers. I can’t get enough of it lately!

Short and sweet this month. Have you tried any of these products?!

Ipsy Review – February 2017

If you are unfamiliar with Ipsy, it is a ten dollar a month beauty subscription service. You can sign up here to get five deluxe or full size samples sent to you in a unique beauty bag every month. I have been a member for well over a year now and can say that it is so fun to play around with a set of new and customized products. It’s a perfect way to build your makeup, haircare, and skincare collection.

Here is what I got this month!!!

NYX “Butter Lipstick” – Lippies are my favorite!!! I got the shade Lifeguard, which is not a full on red but more of a deep magenta. The satin finish on this is amazing. It is super moisturizing and comfortable on the lips. I will definitely be on the look out for more of these babies in different shades.

Luxie “Rose Gold Blush Brush #514” – When I started getting back into makeup a couple of years ago, I bought myself a (cheap) brush set off of amazon. Since then, I have been upgrading brush by brush so I was super excited to get this! I love Luxie because it is a cruelty-free brand and is great quality. This brush has synthetic bristles and is in a small dome shape. It is meant for blush, which for me works perfectly.

BeFine “Gentle Face Cleanser” – This cleanser, while a good product, wasn’t my favorite. I do like that it is vegan with all natural ingredients and has a nice minty scent. However, my preference is to use a face wash that has scrubby beads in order to really feel like my skin is getting cleansed. This is more of a smooth texture so I likely won’t be using it regularly, but do love the brand. (Here is a tip: Keep products you won’t use in a small basket in your bathroom to put out for when you have guests over!)

Elizabeth Mott “Whatup Beaches Bronzer” – I LOVE this bronzer!!! It is so soft and silky with the perfect matte formula and the shade is on point. My only complaint is the tiny little pan it came in, but I am debating getting this in a full size because I love it that much.

 Winky Lux “Diamond Complexion Powder” – And last but not least a… diamond powder?! Apparently this powder has finely crushed diamonds in it and while I am skeptical at that, I do like this a lot. I have been using it to set my under eye concealer and that’s been working out great. It gives a little extra coverage than my normal loose translucent powder.

Sinful Colors “Strawberry Milk” Kandee Johnson Collection

Have you seen that Kandee Johnson released a nail polish collection?! She is a favorite beauty YouTuber of mine and that being said, I just HAD to try out one of her new polishes.

I did watch her review of the line prior to shopping and decided to only pick up one to start for two  reasons… I typically prefer gel polishes because they last longer and I didn’t know how much I’d love the matte finish. I opted for the shade “Strawberry Milk” because, for me, it’s hard to find a true opaque light pink and I wanted to put this one to the test. Well it did not disappoint! The photo above showcases the matte finish, though I did slap a top coat on top afterwards to make it shinier… pure preference. And for under $2 a bottle you can’t go wrong!

She has a few other colors in the line I’d like to try out and if I do, I’ll of course share my thoughts with you. Overall a great product, XOXO.

Clinique Beyond Perfecting Foundation

Welcome to another foundation review! This time I’ll be laying out the pros and cons to the Clinique Beyond Perfecting 2 in 1 Foundation and Concealer. Let’s jump right into it…

Pros:
-Full coverage
-Matte finish
-20 available shades
-Doesn’t settle into lines

Cons:
-Heavy formula
-Looks somewhat cakey
-Oxidizes
-Messy applicator

After weighing out the pros and cons, I will say that I do like this foundation, but don’t like it enough to wear it every day of the week. I have oily, acne prone skin so a huge pro is the matte finish but a huge con is that this formula feels very heavy on my skin. For me it’s a better fit in winter in regards to the formula, however it does oxidize quite a bit so that’s not great either. I do enjoy the coverage it gives me because, after all, it does double as a foundation and a concealer. It definitely covers up any imperfections in my skin, blemishes, and scars while also not settling into fine lines or wrinkles. The price point isn’t too bad at $27, though once I run out I likely won’t purchase it again. I don’t hate it but it isn’t worthy of a rebuy in my opinion.

Ipsy Review – January 2017

Pacifica – Blushious Blush – Besides lippies, blushes are my favorite item to find in my bag! I got the color Wildrose and while it isn’t a shade I would normally go for, I do like it, for winter especially. There is a really pretty sheen that makes this blush super unique.

Purlisse – Blue Lotus Mud Mask – Nothing beats a good mud mask. I plan to save this sample for traveling, when my skin typically needs a little bit more love. The size makes it really travel friendly and I have loved this brand in the past so look forward to trying it out.

It Cosmetics – Bye Bye Undereye Concealer – This concealer is supposed to illuminate your under eyes and double as an anti-aging product. I can totally see what they were going for, but for me personally it didn’t quite work out. I found that it actually brought more attention to my under eyes in a non-flattering way. I’ll stick with the regular Bye Bye Undereye concealer because the coverage is still amazing.

Temptu – Matte Primer – I have been enjoying this primer quite a bit! It’s great for everyday priming around the perimeter of my face, though I do go in with a separate pore-filling primer to take care of my stubborn t-zone area. The only thing I don’t really care for with this product is the smell, which is chemically.

theBalm – Matte Bronzer – Talk about an item I was excited to see! This is a cult favorite and I got the shade Bahama Mama. It is on the cooler tone side and pretty dark for my skin currently, but I think it will work well for me in the summer months… ohhhh summer 🙂 .

 

This month was a definite hit for me!!! Recently I have only been excited for one or two items in my bag, but January was good to me. I see myself using all of the items except the concealer, which I plan to pass along to a friend. Click here to sign up for Ipsy, it’s something I look forward to each and every month, XOXO.

Ipsy Review – December 2016

Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription service that allows you to try unique brands, use different products, and collect items items that you may not pick up on your own… AND it’s only $10 a month!!! I’ve been a member for about a year and half and love this service. You can join by clicking here if you’re interested.

Smashbox – InstaMatte Lipstick Transformer: I honestly think I am the only person on the planet that doesn’t love the matte lip trend. That being said, I did give this a quick shot and found it didn’t work too well for me so I did pass it along to someone else in my life who I think it may work better for.

Privai – Aqua Gel Masque: I have been meaning to try a gel moisturizer, as I have acne prone skin and use cream moisturizers, which I hear can enhance pimples. This one has worked nicely for me so far. It smells and feels great on the skin!

Royal & Langnickel – MODA Angle Shader Brush: Ipsy has sent me this brand of brushes before and I really love them! This is high quality and I’m in love with the purple!

City Cosmetics – Be Matte Blushes: This is my favorite item I got this month… I love trying out new blushes and don’t have any of these colors. The shades are called Fresh Melon, Blackberry, and Guava. They are great quality and I’ve found them to last all day long.

NYX – Prismatic Shadow: And my least favorite items I got is this little guy in the shade Fireball. I don’t love red-based shadows on my eyes and keep getting them sent to me, grrrrr.

Lorac POREfection Foundation

My search for the perfect foundation continues. I have been on the serious lookout for something that is liquid, provides full coverage, and stays matte the majority of the day. I tried a Lancome product first (see my review here) and next up is Lorac’s POREfection Foundation…

Pro’s:
-Full coverage upon first application
-Pump up type packaging
-Unscented

Con’s:
-Blotchy after just a few hours
-Doesn’t stay put even with powder application
-Full coverage fades… acne, scarring, and oil clearly shine through
-$36.00 per bottle

Overall, I didn’t love this foundation and would only recommend it for those with dry skin. I truly did give it about 2 weeks for a fair shot and each morning it looked amazing immediately after application. After a few hours, though, it was pretty bad. The coverage faded and it looked very uneven. With concealer underneath the foundation I was able to provide more coverage, but the staying power just wasn’t there. I’m sure you have had the experience when you look in the mirror mid-afternoon and see some blotching. Well, this was extreme, and when I went to try to save it the patches got bigger and more noticeable. It just doesn’t move around well. Again, I don’t mind paying a higher price for a product that does what it claims, this one just didn’t for me.

On to the next… XOXO.

Lipstick Challenge: Days 19-24

Here is my next round of lippies for my Lipstick challenge! Be sure to check out my past posts… Days 1-6, 7-12, and 13-18 to find out more about the challenge as well as to see all my past products I have been using, XOXO.

19. Lord & Berry “Matte Crayon Lipstick” in Prelude
20. Hikari “Lip Gloss” in Merlot
21. Beauty For Real “Light Up Lip Gloss” in Kiss Me
22. Ofra “Long Lasting Liquid Lipstick” in Laguna Beach
23. Mirabella “Velvet Lip Pencil” in Pop Velvet
24. Milani “Brilliant Shine Lip Gloss” in Sweet Grapefruit

Lipstick Challenge: Days 7-12

I’m back with my second round of lipsticks from my 30-day challenge! Click here to see my first six lip products and to learn more about the challenge. This has seriously been so much fun and  I think you should join the challenge too, XOXO.

Here are days 7-12…

7. Rimmel “Lasting Finish by Kate” in 31
8. Me Me Me “Lip Cream” in Persian Pink
9. LOC Tati “Vibrant Matte Lipstick” in Glam Life
10. Tarte “Wonder Lipsurgence” in Poppy
11. Almay “Smart Shade Butter” in Berry Light Medium
12. Bare Minerals “Marvelous Moxie” in Birthday Babe

Lipstick Challenge: Days 1-6

There is simply no better way to get myself to wear different lip products in my own collection than by joining this challenge. Each day, for 30 days, I challenge myself to wear a lip product without any repeats. I won’t layer products and I will wear the product for the entire day.

Interested in keeping up with my month long journey? Follow my blog and I will post an update in 6 day chunks. Or join the challenge and have a little fun for yourself!

Here is the first set of lip products I have used so far…
1. Trestique “Mini Matte Lip Crayon” in Chile Red
2. Jing Ai “Velvet Shine Lip Jewel” in Pink Star
3. Rimmel London “Stay Glossy” in Eternal Flirt
4. Rimmel “Lasting Finish By Kate” in 104
5. ModelCo “Lip Lacquer” in Morocco
6. Neutrogena “Moisture Smooth Color Stick” in Pink Grapefruit