2017 favorites

Happy new year and happy 2018! I wanted to share my top 10 favorites  of 2017 with you.

10. NYX Away We Glow in 08 moon glow - I ran out of my beloved Becca shimmering skin perfector in pearl and replaced it with NYX for two reasons: 1) I'm a grad student on a budget, and more importantly, 2) There is no known universe where I could finish a full size shimmering skin perfector. The mini spotlight size took me 2 years! The NYX isn't a perfect dupe (not as gel like of a texture, doesn't blend as well over powder), but is 90% there and meets my needs perfectly. Like everyone else on the planet, glowy skin and I were friends all year long.

9. Whole Foods organic lip balm - I went through about a dozen of these in 2017, 50/50 lost vs. used up. I love the honey vanilla version, it moisturizes without irritating my skin and only costs about $3. Sold for life <3

8. Sheer glossy lips - My skin is too dry and I am too impatient for the perfectly carved out lip line and matte liquid lips. I need my skin and lips to feel comfortable and I'm permanently running late, so for me that means tinted lip balm, glosses, and sheer lipsticks I can apply on the bus without a mirror. Some of my favorites: Urban Decay and Too Faced La Creme lipsticks layered over lip balm, Clinique almost lipstick in black honey, Fresh tinted lip balm in rose and petal, and Bite's (discontinued?!) lip gloss in currant.

7. My Japanese brushes - My everyday brushes never fail me and I'm still amazed that some of these brands aren't more popular. Chikuhodo, Hakuhodo, Koyudo, and Mizuho all have some relatively affordable brushes (MAC or MUFE price range) that blow everything else out of the water in terms of quality. I like more natural and sheer looks with powder products, so my soft natural hair brushes deliver. Pictured: Hakuhodo tapered candle 5521, Hakuhodo J521 eyeliner, Chikuhodo Z-5 large eye shader, Mizuho PM11 brow brush, Koyudo 035 medium shader, Hakuhodo K022 blush/powder . I don't think everyone needs these exact brushes, but I do think it is worth buying high quality brushes of which ever shapes you use every day.

6. NARS Laguna - Check out that huge pan! I wear bronzer everyday and Laguna was easily my most reached for this year. Even on my cool toned fair skin, this is never too orange. I don't know how, but Laguna always makes me look healthy and pretty.

Concealer comparison swatches - NARS Radiant Creamy / Urban Decay Naked Skin / Maybelline Instant Age Rewind

Today's post is a quick swatch comparison of the three under eye concealers I have in rotation right now. I have fair, dry skin with blue-purple dark circles, so I am always looking for a concealer that will be pigmented enough to cover discoloration, brightening enough to make me look awake, and not exaggerate dry skin or fine lines.

Urban Decay Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla is my favorite of the three for all purpose use. Especially now that I'm nearing the end of my tube, the drier texture can look cakey on dry skin under my eyes. I find it has the best coverage of the three, especially for post acne pigmentation or blue - purple dark circles. The shade Vanilla is a hair too deep for my face and doesn't provide any brightening under the eyes - I wish they made a shade between Vanilla and Chantilly!

Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer in Fair Neutral is the newest concealer to my collection. I kept seeing it in 2015 favorites videos on YouTube, so I wanted to give it a try and see if it lives up to the hype. Fair Neutral is quite a bit lighter than I thought it would be, but the next shade deeper is quite a bit deeper and more yellow. Even on my fair skin, Fair Neutral can give me a reverse panda effect if I am heavy handed. I absolutely love the thin texture - it blends into my skin beautifully and brightens well. It is pigmented compared to a standard concealer like Maybelline Fit Me, but it has less coverage than NARS RCC or Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage.

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer in Fair is in between textures of the NARS and Urban Decay. It feels a little more creamy than the Urban Decay, but is much more thin than the NARS. This is a great concealer if you are worried about dry skin texture and want a little bit of coverage and brightening. It isn't as high coverage as the NARS and it isn't as brightening as the Urban Decay, but it is a good compromising formula. I'm sure a different shade would be more brightening, but this is the lightest in the range as far as I know. This is my hands down favorite drugstore concealer - I haven't found anything with as nice of a texture around the same price.

Is it a dupe? Nars radiant creamy concealer vs. Maybelline fit me concealer

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer and Maybelline Fit Me Concealer is another one of those internet famous dupes. I see this one everywhere online, from blogs to reddit to YouTube. As the owner of both of those products, I feel compelled to put them to the test.

I have shade Light 2 Vanilla in the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer ($29, .22oz) and shade #10 Light in the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer ($6.99, .23oz). Vanilla is the second to lightest shade of the NARS (Light 1 Chantilly is much lighter) and the NARS comes in 10 shades. #10 Light is theoretically the lightest shade in the Maybelline Fit Me range of 6 options, but is much darker than Vanilla and is rumored to be darker than shade #15.

Comparison: NARS Douceur vs NARS Laguna vs NARS Madly

Today I have comparison swatches of my three favorite NARS cheek products - Douceur blush (sadly discontinued), Laguna bronzer, and Madly blush. All three are beautiful nude cheek colors, so let's take a look at the similarities and differences.

NARS blushes retail for $30 for .16 oz and the bronzers retail for $39 for .28 oz. I bought all of these at Sephora with my own money.

L to R: NARS Douceur blush, Laguna bronzer, & Madly blush in indirect natural light 

Mega bronzer comparison on fair skin [review] [swatches]

I absolutely adore bronzer - it gives my face a healthy glow with more dimension. Today I wanted to share my bronzer collection with you all and show you my favorite bronzers for fair skin. I own bronzers at many different price points and with different finishes, so hopefully you can find one that suits you. Disclaimer: I bought all of these myself with my own money.

Keep reading for comparisons and swatches!

Summer makeup inspiration: 5 picks to try

I love the stock summer makeup trends - natural skin, glowy, healthy finishes, and warm bronzes, peach, and pink. Lately, I have  been head over heels for this picture and used it as inspiration for a look I did at a friend's wedding. The photo is from a blog I love by Cole Townsend called New Old Stock - he curates copyright free vintage photographs. This photo is called Fringed Poppy and was taken in 1930.

My 5 picks to try for summer: 

1. Urban Decay Freelove eyeshadow single - a beautiful peachy pink shimmer that works well as a sheer wash or a more dramatic eye

2. Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector liquid in Opal - a believable golden pink glow that looks healthy and natural

3. NARS Laguna bronzer - Laguna is a cult classic staple for a reason. I love the subtle golden pearl throughout both on my eyelids and cheekbones.

4. Clinique Lash Doubling mascara - The natural bristle triangle shaped wand manages both volume and separation, while really delivering on accentuating the length of my lashes

5. Individual Flare False Lashes - I have been loving individual flare falsies lately because they add fluttery drama to my natural eye lashes without the necessity to use lots of eyeliner to cover the lash band from a traditional strip. I place 3 to 4 flares on each eye, focusing on the outer half of the lid. My favorites right now are the knot free Ardell Duralash Natural Flares in Medium Black paired with the Duo Brush On Striplash Adhesive. 

Bare Minerals Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balm - Rose Passion [review]

Today I bring you a review of the new Bare Minerals Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balm in Rose Passion. I love trying out tinted lip balms, because my lips are always dry and they are work friendly. I chose the shade Rose Passion because it looked like a nice muted red rose pink and most of the line is made up of brighter shades. I bought mine for $16 at Ulta.

If the color Rose Passion doesn't float your boat, I swatched the entire line of Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balms here.

Sephora vs. Ulta 2015 birthday gift comparison

I have had the Sephora and Ulta free 2015 makeup gifts for a little while now, so I thought I would do a comparison smackdown post. The 2015 Sephora gift is two NARS lip pencils - Cruella (velvet) and Rikugien (satin).  The 2015 January, February, & March Ulta gift is an Ulta store brand complete eye palette in Indie.

So which one is better? 

 Left: Sephora 2015 birthday gift, Right: Ulta 2015 birthday gift

NARS satin lip pencils, a geography lesson (Part 1)

The NARS Satin Lip Pencil shades are all named after parks and gardens, but I doubt many of us could find all of the places connected with our favorite shades on Google Maps. With a few exceptions (like Hyde Park, a "cardinal red"), NARS' shade names belong in a game of Trivia Crack. I love that NARS offers globally connected branding and large shade ranges, but for me the shades are more special when I can imagine the places the shades are named for.

I have researched the places in this post to the best of my ability and profiled the most iconic place for each name. I have also chosen a picture that shows both the natural beauty of the location and a color reference to the NARS satin lip pencil shade. If I have an error in my research, please leave me a comment and I will correct it ASAP!

NARS satin lip pencils launched in Spring 2013 and there are 16 shades available currently. This post covers the first eight shades and part two will cover the remaining eight.

1. Biscayne Park - Pink guava | Florida, USA

Biscayne National Park is in southern Florida, near Miami. 95% of Biscayne National Park is water, as the park protects its namesake, Biscayne Bay. I feel like Stefan, but Biscayne National Park seems to have everything: shipwrecks, coral reefs, incredible aquatic life, and is close to the Everglades and Miami.

Photo credit: USA Today / NARS

Sephora birthday gift 2015: NARS Rikugien & Cruella

Sephora's 2015 free birthday gift for Beauty Insiders is a NARS lip pencil pairing - Rikugien and Cruella. NARS satin lip pencil in Rikugien is described as a "rose pink"and contains pearl. Cruella, a velvet matte lip pencil, is described as a "scarlet red." I was really excited to receive my birthday gift - NARS lip pencils are cult products and I have never tried the formula before.

Sephora Beauty Insider 2015 birthday gift


Happy birthday to me!

5 Disappointing Products - Recent Makeup Fails

I love reading about other people's disappointing makeup products, especially when the item in question is on my wishlist. The 5 makeup items below were total fails for me, but they might work for you just fine. I bought this all myself and I wish I hadn't.

Let's get started, shall we?

Makeup for Engagement Pictures & Special Occasion Photography

Planning makeup for important pictures, like engagement photos, prom pictures, or senior portraits, can be stressful. In this post, I'm going to show you what makeup I chose for my engagement pictures. I wanted products that would look natural and effortless in real life, but pigmented enough to show up in pictures.

I highly recommend doing a trial run for your makeup to make sure it photographs well. Make sure to check it in natural light, in artificial indoor light, and with flash. If you don't feel comfortable doing your own makeup for a special event, you can always hire a professional makeup artist or get your makeup done at a department store counter.

Darling Girl Haul & Swatches: Blush and Eyeshadow

I love trying out indie cosmetics because indie companies offer interesting colors and great value! Today, I'm showing you my very first Darling Girl Cosmetics order. I chose a variety of blushes, including a contour shade and a bronzer, and a few satin finish eyeshadows. My order shipped out within the stated turn around time (TAT) and was packed in a pretty pink mailer.

Let's see what I ordered!

September Makeup Favorites

This month, I have been loving a natural look with defined brows, bold (er) blush, and lots of mascara. I've been hanging on to summer and skipping eyeliner most days and keeping it easy with a minimal matte nude eye.

I wanted to round up what I have been reaching for most this month and share! Not every category of product is included here - I wanted to show you what I have been truly loving this month, day in & day out.

NARS Douceur Blush (nude pink) review & swatches

You have probably walked right past Douceur at a NARS counter. Compared to all of the beautiful shiny colors in the NARS blush range, Douceur could easily be mistaken as a nobody. In the pan, Douceur is a dull, matte nude tan pink. On your face, Douceur is pure magic - a neutral, goes with anything complexion boosting blush. If you have never tried a nude blush, you are missing out. I bought mine at Sephora for $29.

When I first bought this, I didn't talk about it for a long time because I didn't know how to say the name. Douceur is pronounced "doo-sir" (roughly), is of French origin, and means sweetness. Compared to racy NARS blush names like Orgasm, Deep Throat, Sex Fantasy, and the like, Douceur is a welcome change of pace. Douceur can also mean a bribe (presumably in a "sweeten the deal" type of usage), so its not a completely innocent name, but it is refreshing to own a NARS blush I can tell my mom about.