August 2013 Beauty Favorites

Hello! I hope the start of your long day weekend is going well for all of you who celebrate labor  day! I am sharing my monthly favorites for the official last month of summer. I have so many mixed feelings about this time of year because while I love summer and it makes me sad to see it go, I absolutely love fall! I love the weather, the makeup, the fashion, and of course all the pumpkin flavored goodies! Oh well time will go on and I will proceed with my monthly favs!

I have a few lip products to share so I will begin with those. 

I never got in the habit of using a lip liner but I purchased NYX's lip liner in Nude Pink to help even out my lips and provide a base for my lipsticks. It goes well under any lipstick and helps in making my lipstick last longer than it normally would. Nude pink it just slightly lighter than my natural lip color which is great because it helps which ever lipstick i apply go on more true to color.

When I was planning on a night out in August, I would reach for Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable LipBalm Stain. I have the shade Sweetheart Valentine which is a vibrant pink. I love this because it's a very light weight product but it still provides your lips with a little bit of moisture. The Just Bitten Kissable LipBalm's have a slight sheen to them. As far as the staying power of the color - I would say I get about 3 hours out of it.

NYX Lip Butter Gloss in Peaches and Cream is a really pretty bright pink shade. I have been doing really simple eyes this month any playing up either my cheeks or lips. I like wearing Peaches and 

Cream for a pop of pink.

I have been experimenting with a couple of concealers recently but Tarte's Maracuja Creaseless  Concealer has been a favorite of mine this month. It is the most cream and moisturizing concealer that provides my under eye with a dewey finish. It stays put all day without creasing - full review here!

My blush of choice this month was Chanel's JC Blush in In Love - this I purcased off e bay. It was an authentic sample but I did not really care. I actually did not care for it the first few times I used it but it has really grown on me. There are photos and swatches here 

For mascara I have really enjoyed Maybelline's The Rocket. It provides nice volume and applies so easily! I have a full review of this mascara here

I included my MAC MSFN in this months favorites becuase I recently ran out and thought I would try something new. I ended up returning what I purchased because it just did not provide the flawless finish the MAC MSFN does for me. I wear the shade Medium plus for NC20. MAC's MSFN is really light weight and lasts all day. I find myself touching up about after 7 hours. 

Those are my August favorites! Thanks for stopping by and feel free to share some of your monthly favs in the comments below :)

July 2013 Beauty Favorites

Hello lovlies. I am finally getting around to posting a monthly favorites!

 Lets start with the roots! The BigSexyHair dry shampoo is the only dry shampoo (other than when I used baby powder way back when) that I have tried but I find it to be good stuff! I usually put this in my hair either the day after I wash my hair or on the third day. It gives your hair a thick, almost dry texture but even on the third day it gives you a second day look. BigSexyHair Dry Shampoo also provides great volume with no teasing necessary. Tousling your hair will provide it enough lift for nice volume. The one trait of this product that could make or break it for some people is the scent. It smells like coco coffee. I don't mind it at all, but if you are scent sensitive this may not be the dry shampoo for you.

Filling in my brows has been an overall favorite of mine during the months of June and July. I always thought my brows were dark enough but after using mac espresso to filly my brows in - I feel like my whole look changes! 

Along with Mac's Espresso eyeshadow, another favorite for the month of july is this angled brush from Crown Brush. The bristles are stiff so it works well for precision. 

Mac's Coral Bliss Lipstick is a practically perfect coral lipstick for summer. It's a creamsheen so it's nice and moisturzing on the lips and it provides a slight sheen. It's not too pink, peach, or orange - it's a perfect blend of all three! Normally creasheen's don't last very long but I find they last a couple of hours with a good lipliner.

Maybelline's Fit Me Blush in Medium Neutral is just a blush I've been wearing to give my face a very subtle flush. I have had this for a while but was not so enthused with it until now. It just provides a very pale rosy color to my cheeks and it does have a nice sheen to it. These are VERY sheer. Even the swatch below took a lot of building up before it came through in a photo. I was very into minimal makeup this July, and even throughout the summer so this was an easy choice for a daily blush - and it was only $5 :)

I know a lot of beauty bloggers are over the BB cream craze but the Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector B.B. Cream is very appealing to me! I wear this a couple of different ways. Sometimes I will use this as both my moisturizer and foundation, add some concealer and set it all with a little powder and head out the door. Sometimes I apply 2 layers to even out my skin tone and add a touch of either Nars Sheer Glow or the Revlon Colorstay Whipped foundation over top. It's a very hydrating BB cream so it does give a dewey look until you set it. My skin appears brighter and very even toned when I wear this as just my base. It comes out of the tube almost looking like a mix between a mousse and a cream. One negative to this is the scent. It has a strong smell like alcohol that's not pleasant, but it does dissipate after it's bended in.

I am so upset to have hit pan on my Mac's Prolongwear Sun Dipped Bronzer. Sun Dipped really warms up my face without looking muddy or orange. It lasts all day and the packaging is so perfect. I have a full review of this bronzer here. 

I started using the Sally Hansen Airbrushed Legs  at end of June when my tan really started to become apparent. I have the shade medium for  a little extra color on my legs, but what I really love this stuff for is how flawless it makes your legs look. This covers up any bruises or other imperfections you have on your legs. The spray makes your legs to appear to be wearing nude stockings. I don't know how you should apply it but I spray the product from the aerosol can into my hands and rub it all over my legs. This might sound like my legs would look really uneven with this method but this is a streak free product! Great for summer months when you are looking to show off a little leg!

Welp, those are my monthly favorites! I have already begun making notes of my August favorites - maybe I will post in time for September :)

February Favorites 2013

March is here and we are one step closer to spring :) I am surprised I got this post done in time considering there were only 28 days to February! Allow me to get started

Eyes and Cheeks:

Wet n' Wild Brule: This is the my lids but better eyeshadow I have been looking for! It has been sold out pretty much every time I go to search for it in any drugstore. I finally found it at a CVS and I am already regretting not purchasing a bunch of backups. It is a creamy nude tone color that matches my skin tone perfectly. I have been using this as a wash of color all of my lid and then something like Soft Brown  or Wedge by Mac in the crease for a simple everyday - work look.

Mac Blush Cantaloupe - This is one of Macs Pro shades that I received in a swap. It does not look like much in the pan by any means but on my NC20 skintone it gives a really nice neutral flush.

L'Oreal Colour Caresse Shine Stains - I am going to do a proper review on this product very soon but I had to share this today because I have but I have been wearing this all month! These are especially good for going out at night when I don't have room in my wristlet for any sort of lip product. I swipe some on before I head out at it lasts a good portion on the night! After the gloss fades it leaves a nice color stain on your lips. I have the shade Rose On and On - a wearable pink shade.

Lip Combo Alert - NYX Pumpkin Pie + Laura Mercier Lip Glace Bare Naked: A nude combo I have been loving. Bothe of these products are amazing enough on their own but together they look so nice. They can be seen work together here


Nyx Jumbo Pencil in Milk - This was a product I rediscovered this month. I really disliked this product when I first bought it. I wore it as a base but it creased terribly on me. This month I have been only wearing this in my inner corner to brighten my eyes up and I find it works really well for this purpose!

Queen Helene Scrub I was looking for a new exfoliator and I came across this in the drugstore - Honey and Oats Scrub by Queen Helene. It's such a successful scrub because unlike most other scrubs I have used, the ingredient that is actually meant to scrub does not dissolve!! Your not working quickly to scrub each part of your face before the exfoliators disappear on you. I only really use then when I find I have dry patches of skin that I need to scrub away.

My favorite nail polish this month was definitely L'Oreal's Now You Sea Me. I rarely wear the same polish more that 2x in a year let a long in one month! I have a full post on this polish here

January 2013 Favorites

It is my favorite time of the month! Favorites posts & videos. This month I have been focusing on my skin and have not been doing much makeup, mostly because I am too lazy in the morning at 7:30AM to do a complete face. Since this is also my first favorites I thought I would show you essential products that are ALWAYS in my makeup/beauty routine 

• BareMinerals The Shinging Moment Limunizer: review here
• Revlon Colorstay Whipped Foundation review here. 
• Mac Careblend Powder This is my first compact but it is quite a nice powder. It's very smooth and gives nice coverage. Prior to this I used the Mac MSFN but I broke mine, unfortunately.  find this has a little bit more coverage than the MSFN.
• L'Oreal Liner Intense felt tip liner I have been using this for years now. It's the only liner I will use on my upper lash line.  It allows you to draw such precise lines and it lasts ALL DAY.
• Nars Luster: Nars blushes are hands down my favorite. I purchased this because this seems to be in everyone's top three Nars blushes. It is a nice apricot shade with gold shimmers. It's a great everyday blush, going out blush, I wanna be lazy and wear minimal makeup blush lol - seriously, it's great with any kind of look. I find Nars blushes to be very long lasting as well. 
• Elizabeth Arden body lotion + Perfume. I found this while cleaning out my bathroom cabinets. I'm assuming I received it in a gift set and just never used it. I am so glad I found it because the scent is a lovely fresh burst of green tea. It lingers quiet nicely also. I also found a sample size of this in it's perfume form - lovely as well! I would suggest being careful if you have sensitive skin. I did read a lot of negative reviews saying the body lotion gave them a rash. 
• Origins A Perfect World Antioxidant Moisturizer with white tea +  A Perfect World White Tea skin guardian. During Cyber Monday I was browsing the Origins site and found The Perfect World set that contained these two products plus a face wash and toner. The brand states that this line has all of these wonderful anti-aging benefits which was what I was looking for. These two items really stood out to me. My skin has been drier than usual this winter and I find this is the only moisturizer in my small collection that really moisturizes my skin enough. I apply this morning and night as soon as I wash my face. There have been complaints that this doesn't sink into the skin right away but I always apply my moisturizer when my skin and hands are damp to help it absorb into my skin quicker. I love the scent of this! The white tea gives it a very soothing and relaxing feeling. The skin guardian has been my go to 'primer.' While this is not it's purpose it does have silicone (which does not effect my skin negatively) so it does a good job at filling in pores and fine lines. It makes your skin feel like silk! The main purpose of this is to protect your skin from pollutants in the air. I really like it as a barrier for my skin.I have not been using these products enough to see anti aging benefits but they are lovely products nonetheless. 
• C.O. Bigelow Rose Salve - for my lips I have not been sticking to one specific color but I always  put this on my lips - it is basically glorified vaseline but it smells much nicer (it also comes in mint and strawberry I believe). This stuff is also great if you have try patches of skin or problem cuticles

What are some of your monthly favorites?