Sinful Makeup Haul

 Hey guys!

So I've been a little naughty... and I kind of did a little shopping. Oops. Although I felt as though it was a little justified. Because what makeup lover doesn't have the original Naked palette right now, amiright?! Well, however justified or not it was, it happened and here we are. Im caught up with the makeup world and also have a lot of awesome products to share with you. So its fine. 

Anastasia Beverly Hills contour palette, the original Naked palette, Rosebud Perfume Co. Rose & Mandarin Lip Balm,  Giorgio Armani Si rollerball, L'Oreal Color Riche Exclusive Collection lipsticks in Jennifer's Nude, Eva's Nude, Zoe's Red, L'Oreal Color Riche Lipcolor in Brass Coin and Spice. 

I went into Sephora with a clear goal, and I only deviated slightly, which Im pretty proud of. I researched and researched the Naked palette, trying to see if it was worth the hype, or if it was the high end neutral palette that I wanted to invest in. I was looking at the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palettes as well, but they just didn't wow me like the Naked palettes colors did. Also they had a random bright in there- a Purple in the Dark Chocolate palette I believe and a blue in the Milk Chocolate. And I knew I would never ever use those- probably not even at parties. Im just a neutral eye kinda girl. And with blue eyes, I feel like its more difficult to pull of brights like that. But maybe thats just me. 

In comparing the Naked palettes, I decided on the original because it had the most warm gold/brown shades. I think those look best with blue eyes- the orange-ish tones in browns and golds complement blue. It also has a deep black and beautiful grey, which Im excited to use for a classic cool smokey eye. It also has plenty of mattes for me- I know thats a lot of peoples beef with the Naked palettes. But Im a fan of some shimmer, so I find that the mattes in there  are definitely enough for me. Im in LOVE with the colors Virgin and Half Baked. I tried this palette for the first time this morning (besides the swatches in Sephora of course) and I was, of course, blown away. The shadows were so pigmented and dimensional and easy to blend. Like BUTTER these went on the eye. mmm. I don't know why its taken me so long to purchase this! 

My second sin was the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contouring Palette. I have heard SUCH incredible things about this palette, and again its one of those things that everyone has had and been loving for so long that Im just now investing in. So it comes with six powders, three highlight shades and three contour shades. I got the Light-Medium palette. At first I was like "but why do you need so many for just one skin tone?!" but then, I realized that with so many options, this palette is able to transcend seasons and contour styles. One of the contour shades is more warm, while the others are more cool, one is lighter and the other darker, etc. Thats so exciting because Ive been looking for a good cool toned highlighter for the autumn/winter, and the warmer one is great for summer and spring when you're getting your sun kissed glow on. The highlight shades are gorgeous, the Banana shade is excellent for setting under eye concealer, while the other two are lighter and highlight the cheek bones so well. I used it this morning as well, and I was really impressed with the formulation. So rich, pigmented and creamy. However, I noticed that it didn't sit very well on my under eye, but I think that might have been user error ;) Ill let you guys know if this palette is worth the money/hype, but I have high hopes for it. 

I have been really getting into scents lately. Ive been using the same cheap vanilla fragrance for years, but I picked up the Calvin Klein CK One scent the other day, and I love it. So I decided to try out some more high quality scents. Rollerballs are SUCH a great way to try out scents and also a great way to travel with scents. You're not paying full price for the scent, but you're able to give it a test drive as it were, beyond just sniffing it in the store. How a perfume fades over time, and also how it warms on the skin are really important aspects when choosing a fragrance. 

So I picked up the Giorgio Armani Si rollerball because I have heard really great things, and when I picked it up and smelled it, it was just so me. I am always going to gravitate towards warm, slightly musky scents like vanilla or cider. I am never going to be a sweet, candy, or floral girl when it comes to fragrances. My scents always have to have some depth to them. Si smells rich and sexy and simultaneously fresh and clean. It is deep, but so feminine at the same time. Its main note is vanilla, which might be why I like it so much. Its so much more "grown up" and complex than the cheaper vanilla scent I was using. So Ive graduated to a big girl vanilla scent. Im definitely a "signature scent" kind of girl, and this scent is definitely a contender for the scent I will start wearing all the time, although I'm still in the market. 

LASTLY, and most certainly my favorite part, the lipsticks! If it isn't obvious from my handle, lipstick is absolutely my favorite beauty product. I have so (too) many, and Im constantly looking for more. The lip is where Ill take chances in my makeup- bright pinks, purples, deep browns, DEEP reds, this is where Weirdly, I also own no high end lipsticks. All of my favorites are from the drugstore. Id love to invest in some high end products, but I just find it so difficult to spend the money when there are such great drugstore options! L'Oreal, NYX and Rimmel are my favorite drugstore brands for lip products.

The new(ish) L'Oreal line of celebrity lipsticks is soo gorgeous. They have nudes and reds for every skin tone inspired by celebrities like JLo and Blake Lively. The packaging is also incredible, I love the matte black and gold- it looks and feels like a high end lip product. I picked up JLo's Nude (top right), Evas Nude (middle right), and Zoes Red (bottom right). All of these are gorgeous and so creamy and opaque, and I'm especially exited about that beautiful berry red!! yaaas. 

They're regular Colour Riche line is also amazing, and they have such a great amount of color options. They come in a gold packaging, similar to the celebrity lipsticks. I picked up Spice (top left), and Brass Coin (bottom left). Gorgeous browns, one creamy and one with a little shimmer.

Alright thats all of my bad choices for today! 

Thanks for reading, see you next time!

XOXO

June Favorites!

Hey guys!

So I know that this is coming about a week late, since you know, its July. But better late than never right? Anyway, here are my favorite things that Ive been obsessed with over the month of June. A lot of summery colors, shimmery things, and some great brushes! 

Alright, first off perhaps a kind of boring favorite (unless you love makeup brushes as much as I do). These brushes are AMAZING. They're also cruelty free and super soft. They have synthetic taklon bristles, so unlike real-hair or natural bristles, they don't absorb all of your product and waste it. Which is super great. I have the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush, the Multi Task Brush, the Essential Foundation Brush, and the Domed Shadow Brush. My favorite is the expert face brush because its just so versatile. You can use it for foundation application, blending, blush, contouring, anything really. Another thing about these brushes is that they're so cheap. They're found in drugstores- I've only seen them in Walgreens, but you can probably find them elsewhere as well. So for a cheap, excellent, drugstore product, 10/10 highly recommend. 

It's extremely important to clean your brushes, so that your brushes last longer, and it also prevents bacteria from being spread over your face. Since I loved the beauty blender I decided to try their cleanser. And its SO GOOD. Ive never seen a brush cleanser work so well and quickly. Basically you just swoosh a wet brush (or beauty blender) around in the tin and then rinse them and all the makeup is GONE. Its actually a miracle. I got this at Sephora. It is rather pricey, but I will say that Ive had it for months now and you can't even tell Ive used it at all, so it will last you for a while. 

For the summer months, Ive been really really loving a dewey, natural skin finish for my face. Not only is it really summery, but dewey looks tend to be more light and easier to keep throughout the day. I can't stand heavy makeup when its hot like this- it just makes me feel gross and even more hot. Gross. 

Anyway, Ive been loving L'Oreal's True Match LUMI line for all my dewey skin needs. They have a primer, a foundation, and a liquid illuminator that I also love, but this powder glow illuminator is my ultimate favorite. They have a couple different colors of this illuminator, I think one was more pink, and the other was more like a bronzer. I chose this one because my face is already too pink as it is, and I was looking for more of a highlighter instead of a more brown bronzer (which it would have been on me because Im so pale). So this ones more of a cool toned illuminator and it looks so great on the high planes of your cheeks. It makes you look so glowy! Ah!

Another thing Ive been loving for the summer is an orange-y lip. Ive tried a lot of orange lippies, and many times they're more of a gloss or sheer color or they're REALLY bright like highlighter orange. I love both, but this lipstick from the Rimmel Kate Moss collection is the perfect middle ground. Its the color 110. Its not super bright orange, it has a little coral in it. But its also incredibly pigmented as all Kate Moss Lipsticks are. All of the lipsticks in this line are incredibly pigmented, amazingly creamy, and they also smell really good. Which might be weird, but its true. They all go on so well and have insane staying power as well. 

For summer, I really appreciate a moisturizing lip product. Usually lipsticks kind of dehydrate my lips, especially if they are a matte shade. This lipstick is more of a cream finish, and it is absolutely the most moisturizing lipstick I've ever tried. Thats true for the whole Kate Moss line, but this one especially. 

For a while, I had incredibly dry skin on my face. My face felt rough and painful and dry and uncomfortable. Makeup did not sit well on my skin at all, and I have no idea where it came from. I usually have combination skin, but usually my skin leaned towards too oily rather than too dry. So I was desperate for a moisturizer that could save my skin. I tried other Neutrogena moisturizers, No7 moisturizers, and pretty much everything I could find. And NOTHING worked. One day I was in Walmart of all places with Boyfriend, and I saw this. It is for Extra Dry Skin, and it claims to "instantly quench skin" which sounded perfect. And it cleared up my skin literally after one use. I put it on at night and my skin was almost back to normal the next day when I woke up. It was incredible. This moisturizer is also oil free, fragrance free and dye free, so its great for my sensitive and combination skin.

Another summery shade of lipstick for you. Im loving this barbie pink color. Its the color 585 Persian Melon from Revlon. Ugh its so creamy and pigmented. And so summery. Ugh. Creamy finish. Moisturizing. Thats it.

As far as music, I'm loving Chris Thile's album How to Grow A Woman from the Ground. It has a great blue grass feel which I always love during the summer because Im outside or farming most of the time.

Ive also been watching Gran Hotel on Netflix. Its so bad. But so good. But we all watch terrible TV during the summer right? Its basically an extremely dramatic Spanish hotel drama. If you are bored and have nothing to do, plz watch. Because you'll love it. And watch all the seasons. Sorry not sorry.

Thanks for reading guys! 

XOXO