Birthdays and Blusher

So technically my birthday is tomorrow, but who has a birthday party on a sunday night? So I'm at work while (hopefully) the husband is putting the details together. Of course I'd like to be well rested and such for my own birthday party instead of working a 9 hour day, but whatcha gonna do?

Well, if you're me, you type on your blog......

Started out my my day with Sun Silk Anti Flat shampoo, conditioner, and body serum . I had high hopes, since my hair is so fine, and it has given it a lot of body, but THE ITCH! I don't know if I'm just allergic to some ingredient in it or what, but I generally do not have crazy sensitive skin. I think maybe they're so afraid of weighing the hair down that they've made this stuff dry as the Kalahari! Oh my lordy, I want to rub olive oil on my head! Next time I'll just wash my hair with 20 Mule Team Borax. 

Well thank goodness for philosophy-world-famous-daily-facial-moisturizer HOPE IN A JAR  to make me feel better while I feel like scrubbing my scalp with a brillo pad. I use the 20 spf and love that it's moisturizing without feeling greasy and my makeup goes on like a dream. It does feel a little 'heavier' than some daytime moisturizers, but it absorbs quickly. I do try to be careful not to use too heavy a hand with it, particularly around my nose. A little goes a long way! It gives the skin a nice glow and it does a great job of protecting- when I use this I can tell that the spf has stuck around all day, as I don't get so red from running to the car, etc. There's a reason it won the Best Of Sephora award!

And I love the motto:

you want to give your skin a drink of water, not a cup of oil

In keeping with my Estee Lip Lust theme, I used Estee lauder Long last Lipstick in Tiger Eye

lined with another one of those swesome BeautyAddicts Lip Liners in Express (a near perfect neutral nude-y liner). 

These two babies go together like milk and cookies. Amazing how such a neutral mouth can look so full, ripe and sexy!

To complement the orange in my orange paisley maxi dress, I opted for Visage Bourjois Pastel Joues Blusher in Roux Bonne Mine, which by the name alone makes me feel like changing my own moniker to Fifi.

It's a baked blush, so the pigment is incredible- trust me when I say a little goes a long way. I'll probably still have this to pass down to my grandchildren as a family heirloom or something! It's got an itty little mirror in there, which is unusual for a blush, and a natural bristled brush (I'm guessing goat based on the texture, but I could be wrong.) At first the incredibly odd yet adorable brush took some getting used to, it's curved to fit inside on top of the rounded blush and seems awkward to use intially, but once I got the swing of it, I now quite like it.

The eyes today are lined in Sue-Devitt-Eye-Intensifier-Pencil-in Kalahari , areally interesting greyish sort of color. These pencils are crazy thick, so they're more intended for a smoky smudged look than a super sharp line. They have a handy dandy smudging sponge on the other end, too. The only bad thing about these is that they're so soft and smudgable that you have to make sure you haven't rubbed any off during a long day- I'll carry mine with me so i can do any necessary touchups.

I'm loving my Ulta Pink Corals quad, though I must admit to being confused as to why it's called that when all of the colors are earth tones, but what do I know? Ulta shadows are always a bargain, with good pigment (especially their metallics like the GORGEOUS copper shimmer in this set!) I love that there's a tiny mirror in the case, but the sponge brush is a joke. Making a dual ended brush that's less than an inch long is fairly useless, unless you WANT to have eyeshadow all over your hands. Why even insult my intelligence by throwing that in there? Oh well, I suppose I can forgive them :-)

 

Low Maintenence Thursday

Yeah, right!
Today is another electric hair day. Nothing like the Electric Slide, it's when the atmosphere is more highly charged than a hydroelectric plant. So of course my super fine hair likes to play electricity conductor and send little bits to attach onto my face and up my nose. Thank goodness for Phyto-Phytolisse Serum 

because a little dollop of this smoothed through my locks makes them behave without feeling greasy. 
"Ultra shine soothing serum with Althaea. Glossy shine is only a pump away. Designed to prevent hair from frizzing and instantly restores a smooth, shiny appearance. Botanical ingredients protect hair without weighing it down. Specially designed to discipline unwanted coils and rebellious ringlets of hair, Phytolisse instantly restores a sleek, shiny appearance to hair with smoothing and coating agents that work in synergy. Extract of Althaea, a plant better known as Mallow, together with Pro-vitamin B5, moisturizer and protect hair without weighing it down. Used as often as necessary, Phytolisse combines the benefits of hair care product and styling product. It is equally suitable for straight hair, to which it gives an ultra-smooth finish. From the very first application, hair becomes incomparably softer, silkier and shinier. Made in France"
While supposedly intended for curls, this really is a miracle worker for my flyaway straight mane as well. 

Today I perked up my "got up too early" face with the build A Blush Matte powder part of yesterday's beautyADDICTS-SleekCHEEKS-Blush-In Seduce 

(The powder is the lighter one on top). It starts off very sheer and can be built up to whatever level of drama you so desire. It's whisper soft and silky and easy to control. As tired as I am today, it makes me look more alive without being obvious that I even have blush on. A real perker-upper. 

I already discussed the shu uemerura Painting Liner yesterday, but today we're wearing the Metallic Green.

While it is referred to as metallic, it's not a flashy metallic- more of a subdued sheen. This one too can go many ways. A subtle line to add a flash of pop or full on dragon lady drama queen. Oooh, and let me tell you- I wasn't kidding about it's staying power! It took many swipes of the normally super gonzo Lancome Bi-Facil to get this stuff off! Love it!

Today's eyes are oh so very similar to yesterday's but today the Estee Lauder colors being used is the  Amethyst pallette (true beautiful amethysts, and the darker shade looks SOOOO much like the same shade as a birthstone necklace I have). 

The mouth is again with previously reviewed/discussed brands
Pierre Balmain Lip Liner, this time in Red Line 

which is a cheery cherry red. For some reason, this color seems to smudge more than the Pink Percussion I wore the other day, which sucks in a red lip liner. I got it really really cheap though, so no biggie, and in general it's still a pretty decent liner (and DOES do a good job doing total lip fill without looking flaky or dry).

I finished myself out with Estee-Lauder-Lasting-Lipstick in Pink Parfait
a very pretty shimmery pink that looks lovely over the aforementioned filled lip. What can I say? I love my Estee!

 The shimmers go on like a gloss, but stay on like a lipstick and there's just enough shimmer to create a prismatic pout.

Whatever gets you through the day

I work with someone who made me really upset today, so talking about pretty things will make me happy! 

Luckily, my hair was no mus no fuss today, thanks to Herbal-Essences-Set-Me-Up-Extra-Hold-Mousse  with a fusion of cactus flower & bamboo. My long fine hair can get flyaways really badly in the winter, but i find that squishing this (it's VERY foamy) into towel dried hair keeps my lock in control. If you twist or braid your hair while it dries ( I tend to do this overnight so I don't have to use a dryer) event he finest hair will will have fullness and thickness, and it really brings out my natural wave that normally gets pulled out by the length of my heavy long hair

.Revlon-ColorStay-Active-SoftFlex Foundation in Ivory is an excellent choice for when you want to have some foundation but will be doing something exerting, hot or ooky. 

Product Features

• ColorStay Active Light Makeup provides smooth, Natural, Light coverage that lasts up to 16 hours.
• Patented SoftFlex provides a Lightweight, comFortable feel.
• Makeup is sweat proof, sun proof, and rub-off proof*, even during exercise.
• Designed For all Skin types in 10 just-won't-quit shades.
• Oil-free. Non-pore-clogging. Non-irritating. SPF 25.

  I bought this for camping, and it really does the job, I like that it has a high enough SPF that I don't need to slather on multiple layers of stuff to protect my skin. And it really DOES last through torture. I've used it in the morning and had it last all day under grueling conditions. 

My problems? Goes on thick feeling- makes me want to scrape my face. The ivory is a bit orangey on me and makes me look a bit fake. I save this for things like camping trips, going to the State Fair, playing with cows. I do not recommend it for standard day to day use. 

Good point though! If you cry, it doesn't streak! So maybe add going to see Kate Winslet movies to the list of times to wear it!

beautyADDICTS-LusciousLIPS-Lipliner-Pencil in Seduce 
I have decided that I really like BeautyAddicts products! This made in Germany lip liner is in a twist up tube for no wasteage and makes a perfect thin line.It IS hard to touch up if you make a mistake though, since once it's on it's ON. 

I have almost decimated my Estee-Lauder-Tom-Ford-Azuree in Coral 
It is exceptionally creamy and gives a plumping illusion to rival any plumping gloss. "This lipstick gives a radiant color statement Creamy soft & feather-light texture Absolutely moisturizes & soften lips Fills in ridges & fine lines" I do really dig Estee lipsticks for how moisturizing they are and how beautiful they look on, but I do find myself having to reapply more often than some other brands if I dont use a primer or fill in my lips with pencil before application. I love how light they go on though, no gunkiness here!

beautyADDICTS-SleekCHEEKS in Seduce are a perfect accompaniment for their other products in the seduce line. The Velveteen Creme in this set goes on like a light gel and blends superbly for a seductive but not Nagel painting slut look. Because it's a creme, it's easy to use as little or as much as you want. I did a light application on my apples for a subtle glow then intensified it on the cheekbones to accentuate their angle. The compact itself is GREAT, with a very clear sharp mirror and a flashy silver look that says you mean business. Be forewarned, it does not come with applicators so have your own ready- though I prefer fingertip application with creme blushes so i fell that I have more control.

The color I'm wearing is the bottom one (the picture is flipped.)

Wedding bells are ringing for me and Lancome-Cils Booster XL-Mascara-Enhancer 

It's simply mind-blowing. Just like foundation primer and shadow primer, this stuff gets you the best performance out of your mascara for out of this world sixties sexpot lashes. It makes such a tremendous difference with the majority of mascara brands. You HAVE to put your mascara on right after application though or it doesn't go on right and thin formulas will need multiple coats. It takes some experimenting, butit's worth it! 

I used it today with my mascara experiment involving Estee-Lauder-Sumptuous-Lifting-Mascara in Black 01 

I always really like this mascara, but it was improved DRAMATICALLY with the booster. I used Booster on one eye to see what difference it made. My eyes actually look lopsided because of how much more boosted the mascara is. The enhanced lashes are visibly longer, thicker, and curlier. It also seemed to clot more on the nonprimed lash. I think the main difference is in curl. The non treated lashes stick out more straight, so I think that contributes to the lopsided eyes thing. This one seperates the lower lashes beautifully with no clumping and a nice light color without overdoing it. The brush is such that you can get the tiniest corner lashes easily. With a lash curler it's awesome. Oh, and it doesn't run with light tears..

I just got a jar of the new shu uemura Matte Vivid Blue painting Liner and it to DIE FOR! It is a true true vivid sky blue that goes on like a dream. It dries quickly and then it stays put. With spurs on! I think I'm going to definitely use the hardcore eyemakeup remover tonight. TEARS? HAH, it says. Suprisingly easy to get a perfect line right off the bat.I bet this would look astounding on someone with brown eyes. I did a top lid and bottom lid line with a tiny cat eye line extending out, but did it lightly enough to not be overwhelming. With subtle shadow, it made my liner be what got noticed and let her have the spotlight! I think I'm having a double wedding with my Cils Booster. 

So I'm Estee-ing all over the place today, huh? to balance out my space alien eye liner, I opted for a subdued pallette to round out the eyes. Since I already had a Shu line on the top lid, I used Estee Lauder Smokey

as my crease color. It's got a lot of purples in it that show up a lot next to the blue but also calm it down for a more professional enviroment. I used Rose Confetti as an upper inner lid highlighter 

and Pale Moon  to blend it all together. Believe it or not, the subtle rose and purples shimmers really look lovely with the matte blue liner. I really do love the Lauder shadows. So velvety soft, good color payoff, blend easily, and make your eyes look like a hundred bucks. 

Origins Just Browsing   is a wand applied tinted brow gel that it took me a while to warm up to, but now I love it. It goes on so sublty that at first I was afraid that I wasn't really getting any product, but now that I've thinned my brows a bit, i really see the difference. It comes in only two shades, a soft blonde and a soft brown, but the brown works well on me.Hopefully they'll expand their color lines in the future, because I've always been fond of Origins products. I do like that it's almost impossible to overdo it and get Joan Crawford brows. It goes on lightly enough that you don't have to worry about a clumpy look as well. 

So I'm rocking the Bath & Body Works scents lately, but I've been overworked and overstressed and their scents seem to calm me and put me in a better mind set. /Bath-Body-Works-Vanilla Noir-Toilette 
is no exception. 

Bath & Body Works® Signature Collection

Eau de Toilette

Vanilla Noir

Master perfumers have transformed Madagascar vanilla into pure glamour with this tantalizing fine fragrance blend of dark vanilla bean, black plum, bergamot orange and warm, seductive musk. Spray on to pulse points, and enjoy our exclusive fragrance With a higher concentration of fragrance oils, our Eau de Toilette gives you a more intense, longer-lasting fragrance experience than Fragrance Mist Fragrance Top Notes: Living Black Plum, Exotic Dark Berries, Bergamot Fragrance Mid Notes: Silky Gardenia, Purple Carnation, Vanilla Orchid, Tuberose Mist Fragrance Base Notes: Living Vanilla Bean, Vanilla Extract, Whipped Toffee, Cinnamon Stick, Cashmeran, Sandalwood, Sensual Musks

This is definitely a much more elegant vanilla scent, with a still cookies and innocence aura to it. Like how Katie Holmes doesn't realize she looks glamorous in evening wear. Men particularly seem to like vanilla based smells. It's the maternal cookie thing again. This one adds enough of a dark glamour edge to make it interesting, however. 

 

Win a FREE bottle of Perricone MD Skin Cleanser!

Mom's Best Bets is having a Perricone giveaway, and it's easy peasy to enter! Just go to the link and follow the directions to have a chance to get this SUPER AWESOME cleanser. I received a sample of this from Sephora before, and it was like a Xanax for my stressed out skin. The contest is open till 3/8.

Good Morning, Sunshines!

I wonder if Activia yogurt is as good for you for breakfast if you also have a few handfuls of Fiddle Faddle? Does the Fiddle Faddle negate the Activia Challenge? I digress. 

Laura Mercier Foundation Primer 
is oil free, so it works for both dry skin and oily skin. If you have oily skin, the primer will keep your face grease from mixing with your foundation and changing it's color or making it slide off. If you have dry skin it will keep the powder ingredients in your makeup from sinking into pores or fine lines and holds in your skin's moisture. This formula lokos like a cream, but seems to transform into a gel as you smooth it on. I find this one to be most effective if you ignore the "apply liberally" directive and use a light touch- just enough to cover the skin but not so much that it doesn't 'settle in'. According to L. Hawkins on Amazon;
"How is Laura's Foundation Primer more than just a primer?
Laura's primer contains "unique light-reflecting ingredients" which create a "soft-focus appearance." This soft focus causes fine lines and imperfections to smooth over as well as gives skin a soft, luminous, and healthy looking glow. Not just for under foundation, in fact Laura considers Foundation Primer a must for non-foundation wearers. The same soft focus appearance makes bare skin look beautiful and naturally flawless. Top with a little Loose Setting Powder and you have a smooth and luminous, beautiful and natural, barefaced look.

This Primer also has added skin care benefits to improve the skin's appearance. Potent antioxidants Vitamins A, C, and E help protect skin from the harmful and dramatically aging effects of the environment. Foundation Primer also contains botanicals such as lavender, orange, jasmine, rose, geranium, grape, kiwi and aloe extracts to soothe and refresh the skin."
I learned a cool tip too- store your primer in the fridge and it will work even better to tighten pores, refresh your skin, reduce redness and puffiness, and in the summer will feel faboo! I will say that the one thing I do not like about this primer is the scent. Luckily it dissipates rapidly so it's really a moot point.

Philosophy Big Mouth Semi-Matte Lip Primer is actually a cross between a plumping balm and a primer. It has a bit of tingle upon application, but not a strong sting-ey one. now Duwop Venom, that stuff'll put hair on your chest, but this one is pretty subtle. I think this may have actually been Philosophy's answer to Venom and would probably be preferred by those who like Venom's effect but not it's bite. It can be worn alone for a natural enhanced lip or under lipstick or gloss. It seems to fill out the lip more than actually plump it, if that makes sense. My lips don't look bigger, but they seem to have more, um, juice in them. i guess that would be plumping, huh? Leave me alone, the coffee hasn't kicked in yet! Anyway, it also brings out the natural color of the lips. As an actual primer, I find that it does seem to lessen the impact of lighter lip colors, which kinda negates the point, but if you just want something to enhance your pout this stuff works well. Actually, if you want to tone down a super bright color, then this is perfect. 
It does keep your lips moist a lot longer and I like to wear it with a colored gloss for a subtle but sensual mouth. 

Disconcerting afterthought: They warn you on the box that the product can be transferred and to avoid kissing people. Ummmm, so what's it gonna do to me if I'm on purpose putting it on arguably the most porous skin on my body? I'm going to optimistically assume that since it's Philosophy and they pride themselves on their natural and healthful ingredients that they are merely concerned that you will startle people if their lips get all tingly. 

Side note- it freaks me out when people cough into their hand while holding something that they will then hand to me. Is it rude of me to look afraid to take said object? Part of being beautiful is to stay healthy and not give your funk to innocent bystanders! Cough on your sleeve, disease carrier! 

Ben Nye Lip Color Pencils are an old friend of mine. let's hop into The Wayback Machine to see when I first started using Ben Nye. I was in a children's acting troupe in the fifth grade. Ben Nye managed to make a fifth grader look like a fifty year old for A Thief In The House. Seriously, I have a photo from the play and when I show it to people they don't recognize that it's A: me or B: a small child. This stuff is serious! Ben Nye first started as a makeup artist back in Ye Olde Hollywoode.

Ben Nye

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Benjamin Emmet Nye, Sr. (January 12, 1907 in Fremont, Nebraska – February 9, 1986 in Santa Monica, California) was a renowned makeup artist for the Hollywood film industry for over four decades, from the 1930s to the early 1980s. He worked for such films as Gone with the Wind (1939), Miracle on 34th Street (1947), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), The King and I (1956), The Fly (1958), and Planet of the Apes (1968).
His brother was actor Carroll Nye, best remembered today as Frank Kennedy, Scarlett second husband in Gone with the Wind (1939).
A great legacy, a great lip pencil. This stuff is made to last under grueling conditions. If this lip pencil can keep my pucker pretty under stage lights for two hours, it can certainly handle a yogurt cup. These pencils are creamy, blendable and bold. When I was in high school, I used Nye pencils to draw on my face and the designs lasted all day (yeah, I was a "rebel"). Today I used the Plum color to fill in my lips on top of the primer to add some extra color. Now I have that bee-stung, just bitten thing going on. 

CoverGirl Clean Makeup  by Noxema.... Remember that jingle. They don't even use the word Noxema anywhere on the bottle now. The youngins will have no idea what I'm talking about.... Just like the loose powder, this is cheap, reliable, and looks good. I use Ivory 105 and it blends flawlessly, particularly with a primer. It's a classic for a reason! And while the name Noxema is gone, the intoxicating (to me anyway) smell is still there. Of course, lots of people don't like to have their foundation smell like medicinal high school-era fac cleaning goop, but I have a nostalgia for it. My only complaints are

A: No spf. I can use this for night, but if I want to have it on in the day I have to be sure and use a moisturizer with  an spf. This might be one of the reasons why it goes on so light and sheer though, and  after dark an spf foundation is a waste anyway.


B: If I'm having one of my 'red face' days, it's too sheer to hide it, so I have to use a concealer.

 

Physicians-Formula-Organic-Finishing-Veil inTranslucent
A 100% natural origin powder veil, formulated with 24.9% certified organic ingredients, including safflower seed oil and jojoba seed oil to moisturize the skin.
This was the very first mineral finishing veil I ever saw in a drugstore. Props for that! I was blown away by the packaging and still appreciate it. There's a mirror on the cap and a screw on top with a flow through to the the brush so you can carry it with you for touch ups without it getting everywhere. I do usually take the top off and dip  the brush in directly for shiny nose, but as long as you keep the flow-hole (?) clear it works great. Not as good on the actual product front as the non-drugstore brands, but the price is good and it's a great alternative to gunky pressed powder. The brush is goat hair, which might freak some people, but I'm going to hope that since this is being pushed as an organic line they'd harvest the hair in a humane fashion. I like that I can carry this with me like a compact but I get the effect of a loose powder. And the translucent really is just that, so it works on most skin tones. 

Maybelline-ExpertWear-Liner-Medium-Brown 
is a good all purpose pencil. I like that it works equally well as a brow pencil and an eye pencil.Cheap, convenient, and easy to find. I'll be honest here, I actually would take one of these over my previously slammed Elizabeth Arden pencil in a heartbeat. As a brow pencil, this color has a light reddish undertone that is perfect for my red hair, and the color really accentuates the eyes when used as a liner, giving the appearance of more roundness (great for my squinty eyes.)

Unfortunately, it does pull on the skin more than I would like, but once it's on it does not budge all day. 

I've said it before and I'll say it again- Christian Dior Shadows are the bomb diggity bomb. 
Excellent color payoff, absolutely no fallout, applies like velvet, and always looks elegant. Their shimmers are poised instead of teenagerish and I truly feel like an adult when I wear it. Granted, this is coming from someone who truly admires the beauty of hot pink mascara, but even I have to play grown up sometimes!

Allrighty then. Remember that Ben Nye lip pencil? Well, I just ate an apple and my lips are still fairly tinted. Just FYI.  

Lancome-Virtuose-Divine-Lasting-Mascara in Noir 
is the mascara that I'd name as my favorite ever if you put a gun to my head. You know, those crazy chicks from Vogue that go around pulling guns on makeup bloggers? You didn't hear about that? It was all over the news. I'm joking, please no one sue me. The curved brush curls and extends the lashes and if you put on a coupla coats you look like you're wearing false eyelashes! The curling effect starts to wane after the tube's been open a while, but that's about the time to throw it away anyway. Now if you use lash primer first, your lashes will be toucing the top of your head with this stuff. Again, exaggerating somewhat!

Lancome Star Bronzer in Solaire  gives a gorgeous kiss of healthy color without being so dark that it looks freaky on palefaces. It's the lightest of the bronzers in this collection and I love how it gives a glow without even really changing the color of my skin much. I apply it to the apples of my cheeks and my chin and I look much less pasty without it being too much. 

And as for being smelly today? I'm getting some more mileageout of  AVON-In-The-Clouds-NATURAL-REACTIONS-Toilette-Spray, which is discontinued, but you can get it from the above link off of Ebay. It smells clean and pretty and has good staying power. Oddly, I really like the way this smells in my hair. Reminds me of a just bathed baby.  

It's A Sweet Candy Colored World

So everyone knows Wet N Wild nail polishes, right? Who didn't have a  ton of these back in the day? They're as American as Bonne Belle Lipsmackers. What I like about them is that they're cheap (who can't spring 99 cents to try out a funky color you'd be reluctuant to drop a tenner on?), sold everywhere, and reliable enough to know they'll at least make it through the evening and the color will be true. Granted, they are made in China and they are certainly no Zoya- I imagine the chemicals in this stuff would preserve a small animal if it was forced to ingest it. Oddly, it seems to chip worse now than it did when I was a kid, don't know if that's because the formulas have changed over the years or if I'm just harder on my nails now. They do touch up easily enough though, and if you are careful you can have it last for a week without getting too rough. 
Today I needed to redo my nails before work, so I had a flash of inspiration and got creative. Lucky for me, my creativity with my appearance is not just tolerated at work but also a source of entertainment and occasional astonishment :-) In the past I've had jobs where I could do absolutely ANYTHING, but working in an educational enviroment for a government entity does cause me to be a tidge more subtle. These nails were the perfect thing! Wacky, but on my fingers so not as obvious as wearing silver glitter eyeshadow! 
So I did a pseudo french manicure, but using these colors

I did the nail bed with the turqouise and the tips with the pink. I made the tips a pretty wide strip, so it's almost more a stripe than a tip, and the pink with the blue really goes kabang! With the turqouise and silver suede jacket I'm wearing, it's an awesome peep of color! Next time I'll remember a base coat so it'll last more than a few days.....

A while back a friend of mine got married in another state, so we stayed at a Westin Hotel. I didn't know that they have their own award winning line of spa products, and i became so obsessed with the White Tea Aloe bath products that I ended up begging a housekeeper to give me a bunch of extra bottles and bribed all of my friends staying at the same hotel to let me have theirs. I have hoarded this stuff like a scented squirrel. "A harmonizing blend of beautiful fragrance, vitamins and botanicals. Used for centuries in China as an elixir of youth because of its antioxidant and revitalizing properties." The lotion is so luxurious that as I rub my hands together at this exact moment it feels like sheets of velvet rubbing together. I wholeheartedly recommend trying their travel set, as you can check out many of the products for a really low ($12.00) price. This scent hands down is just as good, if not better than most Bath & Body works stuff, and I find the lotion to be less greasy to boot. Check it out HERE. 

 

Too-Faced-Shadow-Insurance is hands down my favorite shadow primer thus far. Absorbs quickly, doesn't affect my applied color- other than making it absolutely 100% true to it's color in the pan, that is- gets me through a 10 hour work day without a crease, and seemingly one tiny tube will last for about 45 freakin' years! Can't live without it, don't understand how I considered myself a lover of the all things lovely before i found it, must convert everyone into believers. I am a missionary with a blending brush. Why haven't you bought some yet? GO! GO NOW!

3 Custom-Color-Specialists-Brow-Powder-#3 
is a great brow color for redheads who lean to the more auburn side. It blends quite well and doesn't have a lot of fallout. I applied it with a small brush and it went on perfectly. You do need to be careful to not be too heavy handed, because this stuff is really pigmented and a little goes a long way. I do wish the compact had a mirror in it, it seems counterintuitive with the compact style, but you can't have everything. I recommend using a soft brush, as a harder brush seems to pick up too much powder and it doesn't blend in as smoothly. 

Calvin-Klein-Fully-Delicious-Plumping-Gloss in Bloom 
"What it is:A sheer, shiny color infused gloss.What it is formulated to do: Fully Delicious lip gloss is infused with marine collagen micro-spheres to create the appearance of a fuller lip by increasing moisture, adding volume, and defining the lips.What else you need to know:Apply to a naked lip for fuller, more hydrated lips or wear over a lipstick to magnify color. Dermatologist tested." I can't really comment on marine collagen micro-spheres, but boy they aren't kidding about color magnification. By itself, it's a sheery pink, but put it on over a color and it really packs a punch! It does give the appearance of a full pout, though I'm not crazy about it's stickiness. It looks fab though! When I came in today, my lips got immediate compliments, and it was decided that my lips were so shiny they looked like they were made out of plastic! (In a good way, of course). This makes me have Barbie lips. Unlike a lot of glosses, this one stays put and doesn't require constant touching up, even after drinking out of my big ol' water bottle. It also remains perfectly evenly applied. So other than some tackiness, it gets a thumbs up! Also, despite the price tag, it lasts a lot longer than cheaper glosses so it's more cost effective in the long run.

Pierre Balmain Pink Percussion lip liner under the gloss is what is giving me today's Barbie Doll mouth. 

This is a great liner. Goes on smoothly, doesn't bleed, keeps it's color, doesn't rub off, and did I mention the Barbie Doll pout? I got this from the gi-normous Makeup.com sale, but it's probably too late to shop there now. I've been trying all day to do some last minute stocking up before they closed out the site, but apparently so was the rest of the world cause their site crashed. Noooooo!!!!!!!!! So on second thought, don't go there so maybe I can get in and make my last minute order :-)

Beauty Addicts Face2Face Weightless Gel Foundation is a new love. Another makeup.com discovery, but you can get this in quite a few places. It's not quite as a good a price, but the link above is a site that has it for about $15.00 off the regular cost. It comes in a SUPERB compact with a huge mirror that stays open by itself, ventilation to keep the applicator dry, and a plastic hinged door over the foundation to keep it clean and from getting on anything. There's also a little black velvet sack to slide the compact into. I'd buy it for the compact alone! Oh, but the foundation itself...... It truly is weightless! My skin looks flawless and I feel as if I have literally NOTHING on my face! Applying it, I thought maybe I wasn't getting any on the applicator, because I just could not feel anything. It needs no finishing powder, and it lasts and lasts. I applied this without primer to get an idea of it's staying power, and hours later it's going strong and looks just as good as it did when I first applied it. We have a winner! Beauty Addicts indeed.

Obviously that's not the color I'm using, but you get the idea of the compact, anyway. 
Check out Clutch Magazine HERE for their review referring to it as a "perfect" foundation  

Clinique Blushing Blush In Cupid 
Remember what I said about my realizing that I have a big crush on Clinique blush? Ohhhhh, I love this color. It's so soft and girly and for such a pinky pink, it's not at all garish. Because my lips are so standing at attention today, I needed a complimentary color that let my lips do the talking( har har) This lovely shade adds to my Barbie Girl feeling and makes my cheeks look like some kind of fluffy candy. 

A perfect ingenue pink.


As much as I love Clinique blushes, I feel kinda the same way about Estee Lauder shadows. They're such elegant colors, and are perfect for my 'pretending to be a grownup' days. They also work well with my more obnoxious sartorial choices to balance out my look. The SMOKY PINK
quad is hands down one of my favorite shadow sets of all time. I wear these colors constantly. They work well with so many different colors and blend flawlessly. I have been told they really bring out the blue in my blue green eyes and give my eyes the effect of being quite piercing. Cool! Estee Lauder shadows are so durable i can wear them without a primer and get the same results as a lot of other brands WITH the stuff. 

What's a day of favorites without my favorite brand of mascara? Lancome, you have my heart. Or at least my eyelashes. Lancome-Hypnose-Mascara-Black goes on like a dream, no flakes, no clumps. You control the volume, from a single coat to full on eyelash falsies look. This is one of their most popular products in general, and it's easy to see why. With lash primer, my lashes actually rub on my glasses with this!

Lastly, my smelliness. Since I have a pink and romance theme going with my makeup today, I decided I needed a light floral with a hint of sexiness. Enter Bath & Body Works Velvet Tuberose Eau de Toilette. 

The Bath & Bodyworks site describes it as:
"

Bath & Body Works® Signature Collection

Eau de Toilette

Velvet Tuberose

To compose this glamorous symphony of creamy florals and intoxicating spices, master perfumers have blended night-blooming white tuberose, ylang ylang, Indian jasmine and rare diamond orchid. Spray on to pulse points, and enjoy our exclusive, incomparable fragrance With a higher concentration of fragrance oils, our Eau de Toilette gives you a more intense, longer-lasting fragrance experience than Fragrance Mist Fragrance Top Notes: Modern Citrus, Dewy Magnolia, Juicy Apricot, Ylang Ylang, Green Fragrance Mid Notes: Tuberose Accord, White Freesia, Tender Cyclamen, Diamond Orchid, Heady Gardenia, Indian Jasmine, Succulent Fig Fragrance Base Notes: Addictive Ambers, Sensual Sandalwood, Exotic Spices, Cashmere Accord, Warm Musks"