Beauty Favorites :: January 2013

Hello everyone! So wow January is already over huh? I can't believe how quickly we are moving along in this New Year! Well anyways I've decided that after posting that huge long list of my favorites of 2012 it might be a good idea to start doing a sort of monthly favorites instead. There were products on that list that I really wanted to get into more detail on and just couldn't because it would have made that post go on forever and been really tedious towards the end. I also didn't even mention everything I wanted too. I found myself coming across things after posting that I was like, 'Hey I should have mentioned that!' So to remedy this monthly favorites it is! In this posts I will include a few of the products I've used often and really like over the past month. I'll include where you can purchase them and how I use/wear them as well. So let's get to it shall we?

 Starting from the top...of my head :D I didn't have a favorite shampoo/conditioner last year and a recent trip to the salon reminded me of my past love of the Matrix Biolage Haircare products. In particular I used to really love the shampoos and conditioners. So I picked some up and so far I'm soooo glad I did. I just love the smell of Biolage, it just smells like what I think the perfect shampoo smell should be. Light, crisp and clean.....awwww so nice! The two I picked up are the Scalp Therapie Normalizing Shampoo and the Hydratherapie Detangling Solution. I have naturally thin curly hair so its a weird mix of needing lots of moisture but easily weighed down. I have an oily scalp and dry ends as well, especially since I've been growing my hair longer. So with the combo I chose, the shampoo clarifies nicely and the detangler leaves behind just enough moisture. If my ends do need a little extra moisture I just use a touch of argan oil or coconut oil on the ends only. Biolage is one of those brands that you are suppose to only purchase from salons directly but I've seen them in grocery stores and even Target but buyer beware because the reason they are in regular stores is often because they are old....reallly old...you can tell by the packaging. Often the stuff in grocery stores has different looking packaging because again its old. But hey, if you find a set with updated packaging it probably isn't that bad.  I got mine from Ulta because I didn't want to chance it and because I had a coupon.

 Ok next product I've been loving are these Burt's Bees Sensitive Skin Towelettes that I picked up from Target. I got these randomly, I'm not usually a fan of makeup wipes as I prefer to just wash my face and I find they leave behind a residue. I got these because to take with me when I workout. These are nice to wipe off any makeup before I workout or to just wipe the sweat afterwards. I do rinse my face after toweling off with these and I do eventually wash my face fully later on. These are just nice for right after Hot Yoga where I'm super disgustingly sweaty and gross. These are scented but not heavily and they don't irritate my skin so that's nice too. Good stuff, try them, like them, let's move on!

Another face product I've recently rediscovered this month is Jergens Natural Glow for Face. Another Target purchase although I've seen these in other drugstores. This was actually a recommendation a few years ago from my lovely friend Nicole. It's a self tanner that gives your face a nice hint of color that can be built up overtime. Very natural, not orangey and is non-comedogenic which means it doesn't clog pores or cause acne...Nice! It also gives your skin some nice light moisture and has SPF20. This is just a perfect winter product really, when you're feeling all pale and ghostlike.

Continuing with winter skincare I've been using DERMAdoctor KP duty which is a moisturizer that helps control keratosis pilaris otherwise known as 'chicken skin'. Sounds lovely right? MMMMmmmm yeah chicken skin >.< Ok so you don't have to Google it, chicken skin is basically tiny acne, bumps, or ingrown hairs that can appear on the backs of your arms. I've dealt with it since High School and so far this is the best treatment I've found. It's pricey at $36 a tube but for me its worth it. I get it from Sephora and use it every time I get out of the shower and it make my arms nice and smooth again after a few days.

And for the rest of my body I've been using this Pacifica Tuscan Blood Orange body butter I received in my January Ipsy bag. My skin has been super dry this winter so this body butter has been a really nice thing to reach for and slather all over myself after showering. The scent is nice and citrusy and the ingredients are pretty naturally which is nice. Now I got this out of a beauty bag subscription but I've heard you can this at Whole Foods which I will need to check out when I run out of this.

Another beauty subscription love this month is the Instant Warming Foot Scrub I received in my December Julep Maven box. If you can't tell from the picture I have almost completely used this up. I use it almost every time I shower because while it is exfoliating it is not all that harsh especially on feet. The slight warming you get when you first apply it doesn't last more than a second but the smell is minty, fresh and very soothing. Even though I stated in my December Julep review that I would repurchase this I must admit that after getting in the habit of using this I do want to go out and try another foot scrub or even just reorder this one from Julep. It might also be because I have resisted the urge to get regular pedicures in a bid to save money. My poor feetsies just don't feel as loved lately :( Oh well deal with it feet! Julep's foot scrub is $22 so if anyone has a suggestion of a cheaper but good foot scrub let me know!

 Ok moving on to makeup stuff. My favorite face product has been this Dr. Jart+ Black Label Detox BB cream. OMG I love this stuff. It is just ultimate, lazy girl, all in one, dream product and really most BB creams are (the Asian ones anyway). I featured Skin79 Gold BB cream in my 2012 favorites and it still is really good but the Dr. Jart+ one is much easier to obtain (Sephora carries it). While the Skin79 did have some dark spot fighting properties the Dr. Jart+ one is more geared towards blemish and acne prone skin which is what I deal with. It's as if my Clinique Acne Solutions and my Skin79 BB had a baby. Like most Asian BB creams it comes in one universal shade which is a lot less grey than Skin79. It also has SPF 25, moisturizes, but still keeps me from getting shiny. It looks super natural even close up. My husband can't tell I'm wearing it unlike when I wear regular foundation. It provides good coverage but if you do have some acne spots or hyper pigmentation you will still need a concealer on top. One downside is that when taking pictures with flash the sunscreen in the product will reflect and wash you out so if you are going for a fancy event or night out where you expect to have photos taken I would suggest you go with a regular non-SPF foundation. For everyday though this is awesome. I through some one even when I'm just sitting at home because the skin benefits are really great. BTW the amount pictured on my hand is one pump and its enough to cover my whole face, that's less than it takes for when I use foundation.

 Now as I mentioned above I deal with adult hormonal acne and I think I might have found a really nice concealing product from Bare Minerals. Now there is not much I do like from Bare Minerals, if find there products have no staying power and are just a mess to deal with and impossible to travel with. There are some things I do like though and their Blemish Therapy is one of them. I use this as a concealer on fresh acne spots. The Sulfur and Tea Tree Oil help reduce the redness and clear up the pimple while concealing. My acne tends to leave dark marks though and for that I use my Nars Concealer Stick in Custard but that's a review for another time. A negative on this product is the smell, it has Sulfur so it does have a bit of a smell but honestly it doesn't bother me, I've used other Sulfur acne treatments and I expected the smell plus I associate it with blemish fighting power! So yeah this is a nice product. Thumbs up!

 The eyes have it and this shadow does too! Cheesy...sheesh forgive me. This was featured in my 2012 favorites as just a general eye shadow love but this color in particular I want to chat about. This is Loreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Amber Rush and ooohh this color is just the best color I've ever used. It's a rosegold that is just so shimmery and smooth and nice on your lids. The product itself is cool because its a mix between a loose powder and a cream shadow. It comes with a little dohickey that you use to compress the powder which I'm a fan of because I don't like mess. I've found it applies best with your fingers which makes it a nice color for on the go application. It stays on all day and doesn't crease especially if you use a primer on your lids (I use Mac Paintpot in Groundwork). This color is just awesome because it would look good on many a skintone and you only really need this one color to look nice. Easy peasy!

 On to the lips! Muah! I've mentioned these before but I just wanted to feature this color. This is the Revlon Lip Butter in Berrie Smoothie. For me this color is just a my lips but better color. I have naturally kind of pinkish brown so this color brings out the pink tones and just makes them look nice without being obvious I'm wearing lipstick. It is slightly shimmering and I would tend to wear this for evenings out or nighttime. I prefer a nude shade called Creme Brulee for daytime. I own several colors now and this one is just my favorite. These lip butters go on really smooth and creamy too. They feel like a lip balm and most of the colors are sheer but buildable really the perfect lip product for the makeup newbie.

And for those days when I opt for no color or really just whenever I want some moisture I go for this Sugar Lip Treatment from Fresh. This was a part of a little mini duo birthday gift from Sephora. It came with this plain one and a tinted on in Rose. I love both but this one I almost used up because its the one I keep in my purse. Sugar in the title is misleading too because these lip balms smell like lemon to me. They last on your lips too, I don't have to constantly apply this one. Sometimes I'm reapplying it just to smell it not because I actually need it. Downside is these are really expensive for just a lip balm at $22.50. Mine are smaller than the full size ones but still $22 is a lot for a lip balm. Thankfully though I would up with two sets because I went into Sephora twice during November and they gave me a set both times. Yay!

Ok so finally blush and me haven't always gotten along. I've been experimenting and researching different ones and I found this blush from NYX in Dusty Rose to be a really nice natural color for me. I'm not familiar with NYX products and have only heard about them online but they come highly recommended both for their quality and for their cheapness. I found this at Ulta but I think I've seen NYX at other drugstores. Be warned though these blushes are highly pigmented, it does not take much at all! When I apply it I just barely dust my brush across the pan and that is usually more than enough for one cheek so I recommend a super light hand when applying. Good news is though that this means this blush will last forever! So cheap and long-lasting A+ NYX!

 I just wanted to include these pics to show you how the makeup I talked about looks on my face. I'm wearing the BB cream, Blush (which is washed out from the camera), the lip butter, eyeshadow and concealer. Altogether these make for a nice quick everyday face. And my friends that is all I have for you this month. I hope you enjoyed this post Follow me, Comment, Pin, and Share! I would appreciate it and if you have a blog I'd love to read, share, follow and comment on yours too.

Let's be friends! Ciao!

Ipsy Glam Bag :: January 2012

Hola friends! It's time for another Ipsy Glambag review! Woohoo! I really am starting to anticipate getting these little goodie bags in the mail every month. Of the subscription boxes that I get, so far I look forward to Ipsy the most. They have been consistently good and I have incorporated products I've gotten in Ipsy bags into my regular routine. Love it! This month's bag is just a simple navy blue with a cute start print on the inside. Even though the bag was a touch larger than previous bags there was a product that was too big to fit inside(well the packaging anyway). No big deal. Let's get started shall we?

Product List/Value for the month:
Pacifica Body Butter in Tuscan Blood Orange 2.5oz $7
Josie Maran 100% pure Argan Oil sample size approx. $4.60 (full size $14)
Nailtini Nail Color in Frappe $13
Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play Volumizing travel size $6 (full size $17.50)
SoHo Eyeliner Brush $7.99 (Sold in-store only @ Walgreens)

Total Bag Worth: approx. $38.59

So I suppose you are still getting well over your money's worth for this month but compared to last month's bag value of almost $85 this bag does feel a bit skimpy. Although it's not too bad considering my December Glossybox which I pay twice the price for had a similar value of $38.67.

First off we have the Pacifica Body Butter in Tuscan Blood Orange. A pretty generous travel size which is cool. The thing I like most about Ipsy so far is that the size of the samples are large enough that you can definitely get enough uses out of them to actually make an educated evaluation on whether or not you like them/re-purchase them. This lotion upon first sniff and initial trail is...well...average I suppose. Smells ok, consistency is ok, didn't really sink in very quickly and was a little greasy which is again ok as a night lotion but meh. Yeah just your everyday, average, all around lotion is about all I can say.

Next we have the Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play Volumizing Spray in a nice travel size of 1.5 oz. I am pretty happy with this, I've heard good things about the brand. I only style or curl my hair for very special occasions such as weddings and semi-dressy parties which are frankly few and far between but now when I do have an occasion I will now have a nice setting spray to use. So pretty happy about that since I wont have to go and pick one of these out myself in the future.

Here we have Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil. Now this is really nice. I love oils and I use coconut and kukui nut oil regularly as natural moisturizers. I've heard good things about Argan Oil and what it can do for your hair especially. I did recieve an argan oil in my November Glossybox however it was not a pure argan oil it had other things mixed in. I'm probably going to try this on my face since it is a smaller size and I want this to last. I might do an overview of the oils I use in the future and perhaps I will include this one in there as well if it works for me.

Continuing on we have a SoHo eyeliner brush which is just a cheapy drugstore brand. When searching for a link to purchase this online I found that this particular brush is only available for purchase in-store in Walgreens and similar brushes from this line retail for $7.99 but were on sale for $4.99 currently. Brushes are something I do invest in because I've gone through cheap brushes and they just don't last, are coarse, and the bristles tend to fall out after some use. So I prefer to spend a little more initially on brushes so that they will last. I did try this brush out and it did alright. It would be good for smudging out your eyeliner but for anything precise I wouldn't recommend this. It did do a nice job of lining my lower-lash line with eyeshadow though, better than a smudger brush I had been using so I will be keeping this in my little makeup bag.

Finally I received another Nailtini Polish this time in Frappe. Ok....*yawn*....can there be a more boring color than sheer pale pink? This polish would be nice if it was more opaque I think. In the picture above my first two fingers I did three coats on in an attempt to get a more opaque pale pink which I like. The last two fingers are just one coat. I don't know these polishes are pretty pricey at $13 and I can get the same effect with a cheaper Essie polish like Ballet Slippers which can also be layered up to opaqueness. Yeah....just bored with this color which is unfortunate because the color they feature online is a bright fun red. Wish I had gotten that one. Oh well.

SO yeah! That's it for this month. Overall I think this bag was a little lackluster but you know I suppose it is too much to expect to be pleased with every single bag. There are still products I will be using and trying out like the argan oil, eyeliner brush, and the hairspray. Not a terrible bag just a bit boring. Ahnnnywhayzzzz see you guys in the next post! Let me know what you think and thanks for stopping by!

Julep Maven :: January 2013

Hello Lovely Ladies! Today I bring you my first beauty box of 2013! Woohoo! And it's Julep Maven to arrive first on my doorstep for the new year and I'm excited :D Now the cool thing about Julep is that you get to preview your box before they ship it so that you can either pick a different box if you don't like the looks of what you are getting or just opt to skip the whole month altogether and not get charged. I think you can even gift the box to someone else for the month too, cool huh? Birthday present idea maybe? Anyways I opted to go for a different box than the one they picked for me this month because when I reviewed all the boxes I noticed one of them had three polishes instead of just two so I thought why not?! I'm getting the box for the polishes not the little extra products.

For the month of January, Julep is featuring neons and nudes. How exciting do those colors look huh? I thought some bright colors would be a great way to get through the last few chilly months of the season plus I don't own anything like any of these colors already so that's always fun to try something new and different I wouldn't normally go for.

So the first color is a bright citric orange called Nina, which also happens to be my mom's name lol! I actually prefer names that reflect at least in some small way the color of the polish. I think brands like Essie and OPI do that really well. Naming polishes after just random girl names kind of makes me think that their naming process just involves going down the list of top baby names for girls or something. Not to creative but whatever, just a name right? It's the color and formula that's important here! And this is a very cool color to me, formulation though leaves a little something to be desired which I will get into later.

Next we have a neon tennis ball green/yellow called Nikki. I don't know, I can't ever decide if a tennis ball looks green or yellow to me. With the camera it's looking a little green but in person its more of a highlighter yellow. Again, cool color in the tube, formulation I found to be less than satisfying as you will see down below in the swatches and it must be noted that this polishes was very gooey. It was almost tacky and was tough to work with to get a smooth coat. More on that in a bit.

Finally we have a lovely pearly nude called Amelia. No complaints on this one, formulation was nice and easy to apply. Nice neutral shade that will go with everything and just something that will get worn a lot. Very happy with this one.

And for this month's extra items they including a sticker swatching system. Ok cool I guess. Could be nice for storage. One little annoyance is that they applied stickers to the tops of the bottles for me....now how am I supposed to swatch the color in the tube when they've already stuck it to the top of the lid?? Hmmmm....yeah you know sometimes inefficiency annoys me. Or just lack of thought >.< Whatev.... Ok I'm over it :D

One more little tidbit are these cute little neon hair-ties. I have some similar ones and I actually really like these. They don't pull your hair and they don't leave creases like the standard black elastics do. These are not as stretchy as other ones I have so I think they may not suit someone with thicker hair but more my thin fine locks this is just right. Thanks Julep :D

Ok, so as promised I wanted to go into a bit more detail on the formulation of the neon polishes. Honestly at first I was really disappointed when I applied the colors to my nails. The picture on the right shows the color payoff after SEVERAL coats. The yellow color looks like I took a highlighter to my nail. It's so sheer and unimpressive on its own. The orange is a little better but not much. Instead of being bright and happy on my nails it just looks dull and dark. So what to do? Well I scrambled around in my polishes and found a plain white Essie polish that I had gotten for doing french tips and had the brilliant idea to apply a coat of white first! So as you can see in the photo on the left I did just that and was much MUCH happier with the results. Now these are not the best pictures because my camera is too forgiving but in real life, let me tell you there is such a big difference the white polish makes. I also needed a lot less coats of the colored polish to get a nice effect. After discovering this I am now tempted to go back through some of my other polishes that I haven't been happy with to see if adding a coat of white underneath helps brighten up otherwise dull or sheer colors. I suggest you guys try this too!

Well, I think that's all I have to say for this box. I hope you guys liked it :D If you did please feel free to leave a comment, share this post, and/or subscribe! If you guys also do blogs I'd love to follow and read your thoughts and ideas on beauty, lifestyle, or whatever as well! Let's be friends! Thanks for reading!                                  

My Beauty Favorites of 2012!!!

 

 Happy New Year Everyone and Welcome to 2013!! Hope you all had a great holiday. I thought it appropriate for my first post of the year to take a look back and feature my makeup and beauty favorites from the past year. These are products that I either discovered and fell in love with in 2012 or just products I've used and loved consistently throughout the years. I've come across so many great products in the last year and not all of them have made the cut, if they had this post would be ridicuously long so I've really tried to narrow it down and pick only my top of the tippy top products for you. As a side note I've put links on the product names throughout the post so you can research/purchase them for yourself. So let's get on with it shall we?

Hair Care:

 Starting with haircare I have three products that I've really enjoyed using. I do not have a shampoo or conditioner favorite because I'm a bit of a shampoo slut and I switch it up every time I use up a bottle. I've used all kinds of shampoo/conditioners this year and none really made me say, 'Wow! I like that!' Maybe some day I will find a brand that I like and can stick too. I just recently purchased a set of Biolage because I know I really liked it in High School but haven't used it in years since, so I don't know maybe I will love it again maybe not, I will get back to you on that! Anywhoozes I have fine curly brown hair that I've been trying to grow long so moisturizing products have been really important to me to keep the ends of my hair split end free and all that jazz. 

 The first product is the Macadamia Deep Repair Masque which is a really nice hair mask you use in the shower in place of your conditioner once a week. Its smells gorgeous and leaves my hair so soft and bouncy like a Victoria's Secret model. The mask features a lot of good for your hair oils such as macadamia, argan, and tea tree oils. 

 My hair tends to get tangled so I got It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product which has been the best detangler/leave-in conditioner I've ever used. I spray it on lightly right after my shower and comb it through my hair. Keeps my hair from getting tangled later and also smells pretty great too. 

 Finally, I have liked Alterna Bamboo Volume Uplifting Root Blast. I don't style my hair much but when I do have the occasional evening out or fancy party this product has just helped give my thin hair the little extra oomph it just doesn't normally have. I spray it on my roots before styling or curling my hair and it helps keep my hair from falling flat. It also puts a little texture in my hair so that if I'm working with bobby pins its helps them grip and stay put so they don't slide out as easily. It's not sticky or anything and my hair stays touchable which is nice. Before trying this spray I truly hated any kind of holding spray or gel type stuff. I just don't like crunchy curls you know?

Skincare:

 A little about my skin before I get into the skincare. I do suffer from adult hormonal acne and it has been a real journey to find products that work. I think I might do a future more in depth post on what I use to treat and prevent my acne but number one on my list is this face wash. the best face wash I've ever used is First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser. It's super gentle, great for calming redness or irritation and still manages to take everything off my face and leave it clean. 

 The only thing it doesn't remove is waterproof eye makeup and for that I've discovered Mac Cleanse Off Oil. This is just a travel size because when I bought it I was just testing it out, plus I do travel fairly often so I do like my products to come is smaller sizes. I've tried lots of eye makeup removers and this one is just by far the best. I suppose it shouldn't be a surprise if you've ever seen anyone who works at Mac....umm...yeah they must have some industrial strength to take off those masks.

 Since I do suffer from acne I tend to have scarring especially in my cheeks where I've had some deep pimples. Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Correcter has been an awesome product for getting rid of dark spots and I must warn it was an investment. It's pricey but I've been using it a year and I'm still on my first bottle. You only use a tiny amount at a time and I don't use it every day. I use it for about a week after a really bad breakout and it works magic to help fade away spots. 

 Since it is pricey I also have First Aid Beauty 5 in 1 Face Cream. This stuff is an awesome multipurpose product. I use it when I'm not using the Clinique because it also helps fade dark spots but it also moisturizes pretty well and has an SPF 30 which is awesome because SPF is pretty important when you are trying to get rid of scars and prevent wrinkles. 

 Finally to finish off skincare for the face as night time moisturizer I've been in love with Philosophy Hope in a Jar. Oh, you guys this is soooo nice. The cream feels so silky and smooth when you apply it and in the morning your face just feels nice and awesome. It's pretty basic as far as moisturizers go but sometimes simple is best right? One other thing I would suggest is to purchase the smallest size that they have at Sephora in the little goodie buckets you walk through when waiting in line. You use such a small amount at a time that I found with a larger jar it kind of separated and wasn't as nice after a few months. That could be more because I was traveling with it and it got jostled around and dropped a bunch and made airplane altitude wasn't to good for it. Who knows.

Foundation/Powder:

 For foundation I tried a few this year and my favorite has been Clinique Acne Solutions Liquid Makeup. I don't care for heavy coverage foundations at all, I really like to have a natural finish to my foundation and this stuff gives you that. Now I use the acne one because that's what I struggle with but I've also tried a sample of their Even Better makeup which is for clearing scars and I liked it just as much. It will likely be my next purchase after I've used up this bottle. During the summer though I did not wear much foundation as I found in the heat it would just melt off my face and be all horrible. 

 So for summer I took a chance and tried an authentic Korean BB cream called Skin79 VIP Gold Super Plus Beblesh Balm. Now what is a beblesh you ask? I have absolutely no freaking idea but I know that other similar products are referred to a blemish balms. Now you may have noticed that a lot of American brands have jumped on the BB cream bandwagon but for me they just don't compare to what actual Asian BB cream does. Most American brands have just taken their preexisting tinted moisturizers added some SPF and slapped on a BB cream label. The Asian creams just do so much more. This one in particular has anti-aging ingredients as well as whitening properties. Whitening just means it helps even skin tone and reduce hyper pigmentation caused by acne scarring. Now using a BB cream is a little different from a regular foundation mostly because they tend to only come in one shade that adjust to your skin as you apply it. Still its probably not suitable for darker skin tones, it is marketed for Asian skin after all but I found it works well on my skin. Purchasing these can be tricky, I lucked out and live in a big city with access to Asian markets that carry beauty products but their are some legit sellers online you can get these BB creams from. I linked to the Skin79 one but do you research because there are lots of fakes out there on eBay and Amazon. Do a YouTube search for fake BB creams and you will see tons of videos showing you the differences so Be Careful in general when purchasing foreign products.

 For face powder I found the Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder was best for setting my makeup in summer and keeping oil at bay. It's just a nice translucent powder that doesn't look too powdery and is great for touching up your face during the day or to take away shine if you are anticipating a photo op. I really used this a lot in summer but not as much in winter just because my skin has been really dry it just isn't necessary.

Eye Makeup:

 So this shouldn't be too surprising I too am in love with the Naked Palettes from Urban Decay. I feel like these have been raved about to death on blogs and on YouTube so I'll keep my rave review in check. These palettes are awesome, they have every color you could ever need for a natural eye or a smokey eye. You do not need both by any means, they are equally amazing the difference being the original palette has warmer coppery shades and the Naked 2 has cooler silvery shades. Both nice, decide what looks better on you and go for that one. They are pricey but worth every penny. In fact I would say if you wanted to invest in only one makeup product get one of these palettes, you will not be disappointed.

 Moving on with eye stuff I did want to mention that if you aren't quite ready to invest in a Naked palette some really awesome drugstore shadows are the Loreal Infallible Eyeshadows. They come in every color, I own three Amber Rush, Eternal Sunshine, and Bronzed Taupe. Amber Rush is the best color ever! It's a beautiful rose gold that would just look good on anyone. They don't crease, are highly pigmented, and go on smoothly. They are a sort of cross between a loose shadow and a cream shadow so they apply best with your finger and only using a brush to blend. 

 Next eye product was my first ever purchase from Mac and its a Mac Paint Pot in Groundwork. Yes, I braved the scary masked ladies of Mac just to get my hands on this product. I'm just kidding I don't have anything against Mac it's just that style of makeup is not my taste. The lady that helped me was very nice. Anyways, I bought groundwork upon recommendations from friends and a lot of the Beauty Gurus on YouTube that I follow talked about it a lot. Since buying it quickly became a staple in my makeup routine. I use it as a primer for my eyeshadow but even buy itself its a nice subtle everyday color.

 For Eyeliner I got the most use out of Nars Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Via Veneto. I tried lots of eyeliners this past year pencil, gel, liquid, and powder. I had lots of issues with smudging until I found this Nars eyeliner. There was one Urban Decay that I liked too but the Nars made the list because it applies smoother. It last forever and does well in my waterline too.

 Now this next one was a hard decision. I used lots of great mascaras this year but I'd have to say Benefit They're Real! was just the all around best. It goes on nice, picks up every little baby lash, doesn't clump, and doesn't smudge. The brush has a unique shape that I think has more to do with what makes it so good than the actual formulation of the mascara.

Cheeks:

 2012 was the first year I really discovered blushes and bonzers. I've just always ignored my cheeks and felt blush was too much for me. Bonzer I just didn't get and Highlighting was like what for? All that change though with my obsession of watching beauty videos on YouTube and later tutorials found via Pinterest and Blogs. So finding a good blush/bronze/highlight technique was all new to me. When choosing what products to start with I went for a Nars Duo that contained their highest rated colors Orgasm and Laguna. YouTubers rave about the Laguna Bonzer and after using this duo I think I might purchase a full size. The blush takes just the lightest of touch to apply. It is a highly pigmented blush that is easy to get too much of and go crazy. The bonzer was different, I don't the palest of skin I tend toward a medium fair skin tone so Laguna was actually very subtle on me.

 With highlighter it was an easy choice because the Sephora I went to only carried one Nars Highlighter in Albatross. I supposed I could have tried others but I wanted to stay in the same family with my blush and bronzer and why not? It turned out to be a great highlighter for me. I use it on the tops of my cheekbones, under my brow bone, and in the inner corners of my eyes on a pretty regular basis. 

Lips:

Now I am a lip balm fanatic.  I have a drawer full of Chapstick, Burts Bees, and just random lip soothing products. So without getting into too much unnecessary detail my favorite balm for daytime has been the Nivea Milk & Honey and for nighttime I like EOS in Pomegranate. Both are good at what they are for, they leave my lips soothed and moisturizes and smell OK and otherwise pretty boring to talk about. I wont even include links because you can just pick these up in practically any drugstore they are pretty easy to find.

My real discovery in lip balms was Maybelline Baby Lips. OMG I love Baby Lips! These were my gateway lip product this year. I never wear lipstick or lipgloss. I don't like gooey, sticky, brightly colored lips. A tinted lipbalm however has broken me out of my colorless lip shell. I now own every Baby Lip color but my favorite has been Cherry Me which just gives your lips a hint of red. Plus these taste and smell delicious. Nice product.

Now after trying Baby Lips I gained a bit of confidence at adding just a nice hint of color to my lips and upon some more YouTube research I decided to try the Revlon Lip Butters. Now these I do not own every color I only have three. I think my favorite is Creme Brulee which is a nice nude color that I feel safe wearing everyday. I also have Pink Truffle which is pictured and is a nice brownish pink that is more like my lips but better in color. And the third color I have is my boldest which is Berry Smoothie which is a sheer berry color that I could build up and have it really noticeable but I like to keep it sheer and subtle. The nice thing about these Lip Butters is that they are really hydrating and are somewhere between a tinted balm and a lipstick which is great for me. 

Body:

These next two products are both holy grail discoveries for me. Honestly I had to give up all my other skincare and just use these to oils for the rest of my life I would be OK with that. They are both very similar in that they are natural nut oils and they both tackle skin related issues, however I find I use each oil for different purposes. First off Kukui Nut Oil was a little gem my husband and I discovered on our Hawaiian Honeymoon. We are both pretty good about applying sunblock and all that but when we went on a snorkeling trip we both burned a little. We weren't lobster red or anything but we were uncomfortable enough to go on a search for some Aloe Vera Gel. We searched several of the ever present ABC stores in Waikiki but had no luck. I finally just asked a store clerk what they did have to treat sunburns and this is what she showed me, she told me its an old Hawaiian remedy which honestly we rolled our eyes at a bit but hey, we were tired of looking and ready to try anything. OMG this stuff WORKS!!! We applied some to our burns before bed and in the morning...like magic....our burns where almost completely gone! It was awesome! So I took some home and kept using it just as a moisturizer and to keep my tan nice and then discovered another nice little benefit...my acne had vanished! At first I wasn't sure if it had been the oil or not but when I did my research sure enough I found that Kukui Nut Oil has some antibacterial properties that can help fight acne, inflammation, eczema, and other skin irritations. Awesome! 

After discovering this awesome natural remedy I did a little more research and noticed that Coconut Oil also popped up a lot as a miracle remedy. It's a much more diverse oil that you can consume as well as slather it all over your body. It is antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral! You can use it to treat anything from colds to weight management to foot fungus! Yummy right? Now I've tried a few different brands but I think I've liked the Trader Joe's variety the best. I use it the most as a body moisturizer, I especially like how smooth and nice it leaves my feet. You can use it for your face but I find the Kukui oil absorbs quicker. I have even swapped out my vegetable oil in my cooking for coconut oil. A lot of health websites really push consuming up to 3 or 4 tablespoons a day to help weight loss and strengthen your immune system and that can be challenging as eating a glob of coconut oil is like eating some melted crayon wax.....ewww! One way I have been able to make it more palatable is to melt some together with a little dark chocolate in an ice cube tray and freeze it to make little coconut chocolate candies. Those are pretty yummy :D OK enough about oils, they could honestly become an entire posts by themselves but let's move on we are almost finished!

 Now this product is a little weird and I bought it for a very specific reason but I thought I'd mention it anyways because it is something I've used regularly in the past year. Last March I had a little bit of a health scare and wound up in the ER to check for a DVT or deep vein thrombosis in my right calf otherwise known as a blood clot. Thankfully no clot was found but I was advised to no longer take any form of hormonal birth control as it can increase your chances of clotting. My doctor also told me to focus more on improving circulation in my legs by exercising more and some massage therapy. that pushed me to really focus on my yoga again and to also purchase this little tool the Fat Girl Simulator which is actually meant for cellulite but I got it just as a way to massage my legs in the shower. I found this at a NEX on my husband's base but I think you can also find it in Sephora or Ulta. After using this I believe it really does help improve blood circulation in my legs plus it feels good after an especially tough workout session. My muscles feel less stiff and if you are interested in getting rid or reducing cellulite this tool probably wouldn't hurt. Good circulation is good for weight loss so i can see how it helps in reducing cellulite.

Nails:

Alrighty! Last but not least nail polish! I have gone crazy with my nails this year. I don't my naked nails saw the light of day this entire year. My new obsession even sparked me to take on the Julep Maven subscription which has quickly become my favorite brand of polish.  I also love Essie polishes and the occasional OPI but I've found Julep to be especially nice! I would highly HIGHLY recommend the Julep Maven subscription service and if you do it would be lovely if you use my referral code (6129970) or not no pressure :) I do feel though that if you love nails then Julep will not disappoint. Currently I do not own any Julep Topcoats or basecoats which I will try out some day but Essie makes an awesome basecoat and topcoat. The Essie Good to Go! Topcoat is particularly nice because it helps your polish dry faster and really makes your manicure last. The Essie First Base Coat keeps your nails from yellowing so it's really nice as well.

 I think that's it! Wow! Well I really want to thank everyone who made it through this whole post! It felt really long and I hope I didn't ramble too much. Now I know a lot of the products I've listed are on the pricier side but remember this a year's worth of accumulation and my purchased were spread out over the months. Plus I think its OK to splurge a little bit on a quality product rather than acquire u bunch of cheap so-so products. This stuff is going on your body after all, doesn't your body deserve quality? Anyways, thakns for reading, I'd love to hear about your favorite products of 2012 or maybe even what products you are excited to try in 2013! Let me know! Check you guys laterzzzzz! Muah!