Everyday Makeup (eyes)

As continuation of a previous post about everyday makeup, here is my top eye products that I reach for everyday.
First up is the Urban Decay Naked Palette, obviously this has a huge following and for good reason! It has every neutral shade you could need, matte and shimmer. I mix Virgin and Sin as a base color and add either Toasted or Smog to my lash line/crease, I'll do a tutorial on this later.
Another eyeshadow palette is the Maybelline eye studio eye palette in copper chic (70) which has similar colors to the naked palette but they have more red tones in them. They are very shimmery but it's not an intense shimmer, just a pretty one. The first color is a great highlight under the brows or in the corner of the eyes, or you can mix it with one of the others to make a great base.
The mascaras I have been reaching for are the Lancome Definicils, which is a sample but I fell in love with it and am planning on getting full size. It gives great dramatic coverage and curls lashes very well, doesn't smudge and stays all day.
Maybelline falsies, which was in my drugstore favorites, is a great dramatic drugstore mascara. I would say it is very similar to the Lancome one, but is a little bit more clumpy so you have to work with it.
Almay get up and grow waterproof is a great natural mascara. It holds curl, gives natural coverage that lasts all day and doesn't clump.
The eyeshadow primer I swear by is the Urban Decay eyeshadow primer potion. It makes eyeshadow look so much better and keeps it on all day so it is a must in my routine.
The eyeliner that I have recently fallen in love with is the Pixi endless silky eye pen. I finally caved and got this while I was at Target and I regret not buying it sooner. It goes on so smooth and is easily blendable. I don't really like harsh liner or graphic liners so I tend to put a little on and smudge it into my lash line. This liner is a bit heavily pigmented so use a light hand and smudge it in and it will look great!

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Makeup Expiration

Image source

Here's going to be a little rant post about expired makeup. So we all know makeup will have little symbols that say something like 6M. 12M, 26M, etc telling you when that product is good until. Now cosmetic companies are required now to let you know how long a product is good for after you open it but they make it difficult. Most people don't really pay attention to when they should throw out makeup, either they lose track or think that it really doesn't matter. Hint: It does matter! Things like liquid foundation or concealer don't last as long as powder formulations and also carry more germs because you may be using your fingers to put them on. Mascara and eye products should be thrown out if you ever get an eye infection (pink eye or something else), also most eye products are only good for 6-12 months, especially mascara, which dries out very quickly. There are little batch codes on the bottom or side of most products which are the equivalent of an expiration date because they tell you when the product was manufactured. You could go into a store and buy an expired product that looks new but has been sitting around for forever. The website checkcosmetic.net is a great place to check if your makeup is expired. I've been trying to clean out my stash because I have had a lot of stuff for a while. I checked on this website and lo and behold the stuff I was planning on throwing out because the formulation had changed or it just wasn't applying the same, were expired! Expired makeup can make you break out or even cause infections, so get on it girls and check your makeup!

Here's the link again: www.checkcosmetic.net

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Everyday Face (Base + Cheeks)

I haven't been able to post in a while thanks to being extremely busy during the holidays. Our house is getting remodeled and I've been trying to keep up with wrapping presents and cards and all that stuff, but I finally got some free time!
These are the products I use basically everyday, not including eye makeup and the sort.
First off is Garnier skin renew bb cream, I mentioned this in my last post and said it was a least favorite of mine but since then I have changed my mind a bit and have realized that it works better as a base/primer which makes it possible to use less foundation. I'm trying to use it up but it is growing on me.
Next is foundation if I feel I need more coverage, Neutrogena healthy skin liquid foundation is a holy grail one for me, it isn't heavy but provides enough coverage so skin looks flawless, and it also lasts all day!
Maybelline super stay 24 hour concealer was mentioned in my last post as a dupe for MAC pro longwear and it does its job.
If I'm looking a little pale I'll use MAC powder blush in harmony as a bronzer all over my face. It's light enough so you can dust it all over and you won't look to dark, or you can use it on your cheeks and it looks like blush. It brightens your face significantly so it's great for "no makeup" days.
The blush I use almost everyday, that I'm about to hit pan on is Josie Maran blush in passion. It is a super natural buildable blush that lasts all day and is highly pigmented.
Last but not least is MAC pressed blot powder to use on areas where foundation or concealer might wear off easier. The shades for these powders really don't match the names because I got matched to medium dark and I was like "oh wow that sounds really dark" but its the second lightest one they have. So I recommend you buy these in the store because the shades are deceiving! This powder isn't cakey or heavy and doesn't dry your skin out, which most powders do on me.

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Revlon lip butters

These were so raved about when they came out that I bought almost every color, but these are my top three.
The Revlon lip butters are more like a lipstick than a lip balm as they are marketed as. They have great pigmentation, a wide range of colors, and never feel dry or cake off. Some people complain that they don't last very long, but on me they last a long while and it's even tough to get them off with makeup remover. I don't really lick my lips a lot and I always use a straw when I drink, so that could be why.

From left to right: Sweet tart, tutti frutti, candy apple

I tried the new L'oreal caress lip butters after I tried these and the Revlon ones just top every other tinted balm I have used. Sweet tart looks like a hot pink in the tube, but when you put it on it is a little bit darker than normal lip color and just adds a perfect pop of color. Tutti frutti is good for warmer months when skin is darker, I also find that it looked better on me when I had blonde hair versus my light brown hair now. Candy apple is a cherry red that would look gorgeous on any skin tone/hair color. All in all these are great lip butters and everyone should own some, especially if you don't usually go for lipstick because it's either drying or doesn't last.

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Dior One Essential serum

Dior Capture Totale One Essential skin boosting super serum (wow that's a long name) is a clear anti aging serum designed to "help detoxify skin cells to correct all visible signs of aging...applied before other skincare products One Essential boosts their effectiveness and extends benefits over time." I got this as a sample and started using it every other night under my eyes and the rest of my face (you only need a tiny bit to cover your whole face) even though I wasn't really sure what it was supposed to do. A few weeks later and my under eye circles have faded considerably and my skin looks brighter. It is very expensive at $95 for a 1 oz bottle, but you can use a tiny bit and still get all the benefits. I don't think I'll be able to cave and shell out $95, but I will keep trying to get samples of it because this stuff is amazing!

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I heart drugstore makeup

1. Favorite brand?
          -Maybelline and Revlon are at the top of my list. They make very good quality products for the drugstore price and I've only ever not liked a couple of their products. I think all of Revlon products are great, especially their foundations and the new color range. Maybelline makes a great selection of mascaras and eyeliners and their eyeshadows are extremely pigmented and high quality for the price.

2. Favorite face, cheek and lip products?
         -Face products: Loreal true match lumi foundation has a great shade selection of cool and warm tones, has perfect medium coverage and makes your skin look more luminous just like it says.
Neutrogena healthy skin foundation is a new buy for me and it is already a holy grail foundation for me. It goes on smooth and blends perfectly while covering imperfections and not feeling or looking heavy.
        -Cheek: Physicians formula happy booster blush is a sheer pinky blush that is good for "no makeup" days or any natural look. It comes in two shades, a darker pink and the light one which I have. Revlon photo ready creme blush in flushed is a long lasting creme blush. It is very pigmented so a light hand is needed but it stays on all day and can either look natural or dramatic depending on how much you put on. This is the only creme blush I've actually liked so that says a lot.
        -Lip: Revlon colorburst lip butters were new over the summer and I went out and picked up a couple colors to try out and end up going back to get every color. They are a little less pigmented than lipstick but have more staying power and moisturizing benefits than even high end lipsticks. My favorite colors are candy apple and sweet tart, a cherry red and a candy pink. 
Revlon super lustrous lipstick are possibly the best lipsticks i've used. They are pigmented and stay on longer than most lipsticks. They also have a color range that reminds me of higher end lipsticks. I'll do a full review on these with swatches. Nivea mint & minerals lip balm is a perfect little winter lip balm. It doesn't dry out your lips even more like chapstick does and I have noticed that I need to use less lip balm after finishing a tube of this balm because it moisturizes your lips so much.

3. Least favorite products?
         -Garnier skin renew miracle skin perfector bb cream was something i picked up during the drugstore bb cream craze. This really just didn't give any coverage and even the lightest color was too dark for both my mom and I's skin (I'm not all that fair). It felt like a really heavy moisturizer mixed with foundation. It's nice for if you don't need a lot of coverage or you just want to even a little bit but it's just not as great as some other bb creams.
Covergirl nature luxe waterproof mascara is a product I thought I liked at first until I started using it on a daily basis and realized the scent made my eyes water. I'm not sensitive to scents so that was a shock but I do love the mascara for the light coverage it has, I just can't deal with the scent. It's a very natural coverage, similar to Maybelline great lash but more noticeable.

4. Underloved product?
        -Almay intese i-color liquid eyeliner I picked up on whim when I ran out of my other liner but I have stuck to this one religiously now. It is long lasting, the brush is small enough to be easy to maneuver and it is easy to blend and not too wet.

5. Overpriced product?
       -The new Loreal visible lift foundation is around $16 at all of the stores I have been too and even with a coupon that's too much for a drugstore foundation. I've been trying to find the cheapest price so I can try it out but I just don't want to shell out $16 for a foundation I might not like. I've heard great things about it though so maybe I'll cave soon.

6. Best drugstore dupe?
      -This was a tough one because usually if I like the higher end one I just stick with it, but I have been going back to drugstore concealers. The Maybelline super stay 24 hour concealer is very similar to MAC pro longwear concealer in texture, staying power and coverage.

7. Not worth the hype?
     -I generally only buy things that I know I will like, but there have been some things with big hypes that I thought just didn't fulfill my expectations for them. The first is Maybelline great lash mascara, now I used this mascara when I first got into makeup and it was perfect then because of the things I don't like about it now. It just doesn't show up well and so isn't noticeable, and for $6 a tube I could go buy a better mascara. Next is the Maybelline baby lips balm, I usually don't say I hate lip balms because they're just balms and can be used up and are cheap. The problem with these though is they're $5 for a tube and just dried my lips out even more. I ended up using them up so I wouldn't waste them, but they just aren't that great for all the hype, the nivea lip balms are much better and are cheaper.

I'll be doing separate reviews of some of these products!

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Top three drugstore mascaras

I tend to buy drugstore mascaras over high end ones because if you end up not liking it, you only wasted a couple dollars versus upwards of $20. I have used high end ones but never really found that I like them or can't deal with shelling out big bucks for them. So here are my favorite drugstore mascaras.

Almay get up & grow waterproof is a great natural looking mascara with buildable coverage. It isn't too wet but also holds a curl very well. I usually don't like Almay makeup but this is the one exception. The brush is nice as well as it gets the smaller lashes without trouble and makes getting to the root of the eyelash much not a chore.

Maybelline full'n soft is more of an intense natural (does that make sense?) coverage mascara. They have a waterproof version but I thought i'd try out the regular one. I generally find with non waterproof mascaras that they run and just generally don't work out well on me. This one is very different, it holds a curl, isn't too wet, and doesn't run. The brush is just a basic one but it does make a difference on the outside lashes as far as coverage. You can also use this mascara on your bottom lashes and it doesn't run or rub off.

Maybelline falsies is such a raved about mascara and it's easy to see why. It doesn't look that great when you look at the brush but trust me it is one of the best drugstore mascaras. The brush has a slight curl (doesn't show up in the picture) that gets to the root of the lashes and actually curls them a bit. Most mascaras that claim to curl, never do, but this one does. It is quite an intense mascara and so one coat is just enough. It holds a curl extremely well and lasts all day. 

All of these mascaras are great so I recomend you check them out! Personally the Maybelline falsies is my all time favorite and the Almay get up and grow comes in second. I like to layer them if I need more of an intense look. What are your favorite mascaras?

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John Frieda Luxurious Volume Dry Shampoo

I tend to lean toward dry shampoo a lot more in the winter time as your hair gets more oily in the cold months. Apparently naturally blonde hair also gets more oily in general, so that's no fun. This is a great new dry shampoo from the Luxurious Volume line by John Frieda. I don't use any of the other products just because I have so many hair products but I am definitely glad I added this one to my collection. It doesn't leave a white or gray "chalky" appearance to hair, doesn't smell bad or too strong and actually works! It is kind of a small bottle but it lasts forever, I've had it for months and have barely made a dent. You can use it as just a volume refresher as well, as the bottle says. It's not just for when you haven't washed your hair. I have used it to refresh an updo that's fallen flat and it worked great for it.

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Little Hair Bits

I pick up a lot of smaller versions or trial sizes of products before I give in to buy the full size. These are two things that I will definitely be buying full size. 

Redken All Soft heavy cream is the first, I got this for free at Ulta when they were having a sale on the full size pump bottles of Redken shampoo/conditioners. It is a leave in conditioner treatment that you put on after shampooing while your hair is still wet, leave it in for 10 minutes and then wash it out. The ends of my hair are dry because I have naturally blonde hair and end up having to dye it all the time to maintain it so I was really excited when I got this. It is quite possibly the best deep conditioner I have used. Before this I used the  Pantene beautiful lengths deep conditioner, which is still great, but this one beats it out. 

The full size version is around $17 and the mini versions are $5

Matrix wonder boost root lifter is a spray on volumizer that you use before blow drying. I never really like these because every single one I have tried hasn't really done much, but this was free so I gave it a shot. I still have so much left in the little bottle and I have used it every time I style my hair, so I know the full size will last forever. You can control the amount of volume you want, the more you put on the more volume you get. It never makes your hair sticky or hard and the style lasts.

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Target Haul

While Christmas shopping I couldn't resist picking up some new beauty items (you can never leave Target with only what you came for). So here we go!

Herbal Essences Honey I'm Strong Conditioner-It smelled good and I've been looking for a new conditioner so I thought I'd try it out!
Garnier Sleek & Shine Hairspray-This is my go to hairspray, doesn't leave hair hard or sticky but holds the style and keeps humidity away
Redken Smooth Lock heat glide protectant-My hair stylist used this on me and it made my hair super soft so of course I bought full size
Neutrogena clear pore cleanser/mask-I used this way back in middle school and it worked so I thought I would try it out again
Johnsons Melt away stress lotion-Just a random little lotion that looked nice, smells good too!
Neutrogena Makeup removing wipes-My go to remover wipes
Pixi nail color trio (limited edition)-This looked pretty and I'd been looking for some glitter polish
Pixi endless silky eye pen-I have been meaning to buy this for a while now and finally caved, really hope it's worth the $15
Neutrogena Healthy Skin foundation-My old foundation was starting to break me out so hopefully this one doesn't. I've heard great things so my hopes are high
NP set lip balm with benefits-Saw this in a magazine tutorial for red lips and it looked nice so I picked it up, review to come
Eucerin skin calming creme-Another little lotion
OPI ridge filler-For some reason my nails are in bad shape lately so nail polish doesn't look very good, hopefully this helps
St. Ives green tea scrub-I've used the apricot scrub before but I wanted to try something new so this one it was, plus it smells so good!
Nivea creme-perfect little hand creme for winter and purse friendly
Revlon nail polish in Vixen and Scandalous-Pretty dark winter shades. Scandalous is a dark purple and black glitter shade while Vixen is a dark red wine purple
Ardell 305 and 135 false lashes+Duo lash adhesive-I've never used false lashes before so I figured I'd get some cheap ones to start off with
Exfoliating cotton pads-I heard these take off more makeup than the normal ones so here's hoping!
Plus some other little bits shown in the pictures. I'm planning on doing reviews of some of the stuff so look out for those.

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Winter skincare routine

Hello all! So since it's getting a bit cold most places (for some reason here it's in the 70's) I figured that a winter skincare routine would be in order. I don't think I use that many products, but in the winter you do need to add some things to the routine.
I rotate my treatments every other day since I use glycolic acid and so my skin doesn't get used to anything to quick.
First step is to remove my makeup with Almay oil free makeup removing liquid. I have been using this stuff for years because it doesn't break me out, isn't heavy and gets everything off. I sometimes add in wipes if I wore mascara that doesn't want to come off.
Cleansers:
Next is cleansing for which I have two cleansers. The one I am using at night is the Ponds luminous daily exfoliating cleanser which is gentle enough to use everyday. It has tiny exfoliating beads in it that actually make your skin look brighter just like it says! I usually don't like exfoliators because they're too rough or just don't do what they say but this one is perfect.
The other cleanser I use in the morning is the Philosophy purity one step facial cleanser which I'm sure everyone knows about by now. I find that it's not the best cleanser but it does its job and also softens my skin so I like it. I used to use this as my nightly cleanser but I've been needing more of a deep cleansing lately so I switched to the Ponds cleanser.
Treatments:
I use the Mario Badescu glycolic acid toner every other day to make sure all the makeup and dirt is gone and it clears up any little breakouts you may have as well. It's just a basic toner but I would say it is better than drugstore ones I have used because it's very gentle but still works very well, also for the price you get a lot of product.
Next treatment I use on the other days is Alpha H liquid gold which has an obvious cult following. I started using it after A Model Recommends on YouTube said she swears by it and it's been a mainstay in my product lineup ever since. You can use it every other day if your skin isn't very sensitive, but some people need to use it less than that. I leave it on as a treatment over night, so it's the last step in my plan and I don't use moisturizer afterwards. On the days I use my toner I use moisturizer.
Moisturizers:
I switch to the Cetaphil moisturizing lotion in the winter because I need heavier moisturizers in the winter as my skin gets very dry. This one is heavy enough to keep my skin from getting dry but is non-comedogenic so it won't break me out like other heavy ones seem to do.
Last is the Origins gin zing eye cream which I did a previous review on. It's still to soon to say anything on dark circles fading but I do notice my eye area is a lot brighter and I use less concealer. It's also good on "no makeup" days if you don't feel like wearing a ton of concealer/foundation it still makes you look more awake.

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