Favorite Things: Makeup Monday!

On any given Saturday, you can find me at ULTA. I honestly don’t know what comes over me…I run my normal errands and find myself soothed by the endless aisles of styling products. Sometimes I just take a peak around, but always come out with at least one new nail polish. Call it a sickness, a weakness, what have you, I am an ULTA addict.

I learned the importance of GOOD makeup after years of struggling with some fugly skin problems. I’ve had everything done from chemical peels to microdermabrasion, and let me say this: the biggest changes I noticed happened after I opened up my wallet, sucked it up, and spent some money on looking good. Let’s be honest, I was wasting tons of money constantly buying cheap products that I thought would MAYBE do the trick. I should have just known all along. Like a cheap bra, cheap makeup will do you no favors.

Let’s review!

BareMinerals Matte Bronzer: Enter the hallelujah chorus. This + my Sephora Powder Brush = heaven on my face. The colors blend perfectly with my skin tone while aiding in concealing my acne scars. Yes, this is my favorite makeup invention EVER. No breaking out, no smearing off, nothing. I. Love. It.

Lancome La Base Primer: A wee bit pricey, but it’s like liquid silk in a bottle. My number one pet peeve is when girls don’t use a brush to put on their primer or liquid foundation. YOUR HANDS ARE GREASY TRAPS OF DEATH. Use a brush, you will save yourself an outbreak. You will WANT to use a brush with this primer because it decreases the amount of product your using. You certainly do not need a ton by any means, two pea sized pumps to cover your whole face. Put it on with your fingers and your hands will be getting primed, not your face. This is ideal for gals like me who struggle with deep, deep, deep acne scars and HUGE HONKIN’ pores. My pores could swallow yours and then eat your neighbors for breakfast. They are ginormous.

Benefit Bella Bamba Blush: This is the perfect shade for going on on top of my foundation with a fan brush, but under my bronzer. It blends very well on my skin tone, easily avoiding the 1980’s Jane Fonda streaks. Or the overly contoured Kim K look. I just want to rub her lines and scream, “You’re not fooling anyone lady! Put the contouring brush DOWN!”

Benefit They’re Real! Mascara: No they’re not! They are eye lashes coated with a silicone infused fabulosity that makes my eyes POP. I really love this stuff. Be warned: Do not go overkill with this, you will wind up with clumps from here to Kingdom Come. That’s a look that went out with LiLo. Bless her heart.

Anastasia Eye Lights Brow Pencil in Camile: I have to be honest, I was torn between this and Benefit’s High Beam, but this took the cake. For an extra three bucks, I got the exact shade I wanted. This wasn’t shimmery at all, and I got the dual stick which has a shimmery  “Sand” color if I feeling fancy, that is exactly like High Beam. This shade isn’t quite as pink as Benefit’s version, and offers a long wearability. 15 hours, one long day at work, and no A/C, and my eye makeup has not budget a bit. Plus, my eyebrows look well arched and it conceals any stray unplucked hairs.

Too Faced Glamour Gloss in Barely Legal: Minty, nude, shiny, and not too sticky. A perfect combination with a gentle limp plumper. It doesn’t tingle and make me feel like I stuck my lips in an ice box. I put down my Anastasia Pencil as a base, and the color just popped. It looks awesome if you’re going for a super pale pink/nude lip.

e.l.f. Liquid Eyeliner: This is like a buck at Target, and I love this stuff. I have mastered the perfect cat eye (there have been some casualties along the way) in a few months, and have done it all with this handy dandy pot-wand-duo. I really love how this stuff doesn’t bleed, and allows me to “fill” in my “winged tip” if I make a mess up. Caution: this stuff will stain the ever livin’ out of anything you own. Don’t you dare wear it to bed or you’ll look like someone punched you with a car for the next two days.

Essie Nail Polish in Tart Deco: This reminded me of my mom’s bridesmaid’s dresses, so I got it. I really love the juicy peach color and have always loved Essie. You know the drill with Essie. Multiple coats, a good top coat with a high gloss finish, and you have yourself a fabulous manicure. Too few coats and no top coat is a streaky mess.

Stila eyeshadow in Kitten: Love the high champagne shimmer with this eye shadow, and the smooth, long lasting color. I was introduced to this color in a pallet that I have. I quickly realized how much I liked this shadow… because I hit pan a month. Oopsies. Don’t go over kill highlighting though; you’ll look you rubbed yourself down with fairy dust. Just keeping it real folks.

Kate Spade Eau De Parfum in Live Colorfully: Sassy floral notes that aren’t too overpowering. I switched to this scent for summer. I just needed a change, and really love scent. If my personality had a perfume, this would be it. Perky, happy, bubbly, fun, and just a smidge smartassy 🙂

Carol’s Daughter Rosemary Mint Clarifying Shampoo: About a year ago, I made the bold choice to stop dying my hair. Who knew I would LOVE the color of my natural hair? I was so excited to actually enjoy what God had given me, until my hair took a drastic change. Around Christmas time, my bouncy locks were so badly weighed down by oil (only at the top) that I had to wash my hair a certain way twice a day. I was so mad every morning after I showered because my hair would not look or feel clean. After researching a few brands, I came across this one on a blog. This blogger had stopped dying her hair and was experiencing the same crap I was. Well, let me tell you about the miracle that occurred the next week. My hair had really gotten it’s swag back. I still have “off” or “slightly” odd days, but NOTHING like how it used to be. I found as my hair grew out, the parts that were “virgin hair”, got oily very fast. This really isn’t that weird because when I was a kid before I dyed my hair, I always had really oily strands. Since this was essentially my childhood hair, and there was no dye in it to dry it out, I could totally understand. This shampoo was a quick (and eco friendly) fix to my troubles.

So there you have it guys! The first installment of my favorite things! Do you have anything you just can’t live without? Or are you the type of gal that can switch products on a dime?