Monday, November 10, 2014

My personal faves! (Part 2)

Hi Beauties!  A few of you have inspired me to start blogging much more often.  (You know who you are.  THANK YOU!).  I hadn't realized how many of you were reading! Definitely inspired, and excited me to put more of these out.  Going to aim for about twice a month :).


I am excited about this blog post, because I get to share with you all some of my own personal make-up faves.  As someone who is surrounded by beauty products ALL the time, you can trust that I've not only tried many of them, but also narrowed it down to the best of the best.  I have a part one of this a few posts back.  Definitely check that one out :)

I'm going to start off with make-up,  and then end with skin care.  I'd love if you all send me some of your faves too, and I'll feature you on this blog.  In the meantime, enjoy!


My favorite mascara of all time is STILL by Benefit Cosmetics. They have a mascara that not only elongates your lashes, but causes them to look fuller without clumping the lashes together at all.  I apply one coat on top of my lashes, followed by two coats underneath in a curling motion.  There isn't one thing negative I can say about this product.  I literally bought four at once.  It's THAT GOOD! Check out the model's lashes before/after (not my work; it was on the company website).  You can find this product at Sephora online, most department stores, and the actual Sephora store.
A must have that I also use is my highlighting wand by YSL called, Touche Eclat.  It's not a concealer, but rather a highlight wand that catches light in perfect key places throughout the face.  You apply it sparingly over your foundation/tinted moisturizer/BB cream where the light naturally falls: A couple dots above your eyes (not the bone, but actually above) under your eyes/more on your cheeks, your chin, and down the center of your nose.  This product is a little pricey, but I give you my word- it is well worth the investment.  It's the cost of 4-5 lattes to put it in perspective.  You can find this one online, or at high-end department stores.

Don't know what I would do without my Anastasia Brow Duality chunky pencil found at Sephora, or online.  How it works, is quite simple:  You apply underneath your eyebrow hairs.  The old school way make-up artists used to do it was by applying iridescent shadows, or white eyeliner pencils underneath, at it just would look dated now.  Anastasia's pencil comes in 3 different flesh tones, that look so natural!  It also lifts the brow a bit, and conceals hairs that may have grown back from your last tweeze/eyebrow appointment.  One side has shimmer (which I recommend using as an eye shadow, or on the inner rim of the eye) and the other is matte.  Use the matte either under the brows, or the middle of your lips followed by a gloss to give you more of a pout.  Picture found on the internet. 


Anastasia also has a pretty awesome eye-brow pencil, and powder I'm pretty loyal too as well.  I LOVE how precise it get's my brows looking.  And---they don't rub off---even if my skin get's oily!


My favorite blush of all time is by MAC: It's called, "Peaches".  And I can honestly say this color looks good on everyone except dark-chocolate hued beauties.  MAC is found online, or at most department stores.


After apply my foundation, and blush, I will put a little highlight on top along my cheek bones to give a nice luminous look.  What I use personally, and also own in my professional kit is the Bobbi Brown Cosmetics Shimmer Brick.  It doesn't look glittery at all, but rather glowy.  You can also find BB at Sephora, or most department stores.  Bronze looks great on mush darker skin tones, Nectar/Nude on fair skin tones, Pink Quartz, Rose, Copper Diamond, on olive skin tones, and Platinum Pink on those that love a pinkier cheek.


For my foundations, I'm a big fan of either Laura Mercier's tinted moisturizer, or MAC cosmetic BB Cream.  Laura gives me a nice sheer coverage for everyday, while the BB cream is still sheer, yet great for days that I have a modeling photo shoot.  Mac's also makes my skin feel smooth as butter.  You can find both products online, or department stores :)



Every girl wants to find an under eye concealer that not only lasts all day, but also doesn't crease.  I've searched high, AND low and found what I have been using for years: Smashbox Studios High Definition Concealer.  After I do my eye-make-up, I'll apply this concealer underneath my eyes, and go.  It's AMAZING.  Found online, Sephora, or most department stores.



I'm sure many of you are going to laugh about my lip of choice.  I still (since he 80's) love Bonne Bell's Lip Smackers in strawberry flavor.  Gives me a little bit of color, tastes yummy, and my little girl can borrow it too (smile).  You can get this one at any drug store :)




Now for skin care!  I have four must-haves that you can find at Sephora.  I'm 34, and haven't a wrinkle yet which I contribute partly to maintaining a great skin care regime:


I have washed my skin every day for the last six months (I do switch every six months so that my skin doesn't get so used to the product that it no longer responds as well) with Peter Thomas Roth's Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Cleansing gel.  It hydrates, replenishes, and has no parabens or other harmful agents that would affect my skin.  Plus, the bottle is the size of one that would hold shampoo, so it lasts at least 4-6 months.




I exfoliate my skin 3 times a week after I wash with Origins Cosmetic's, "Never a Dull Moment".  It sloughs away dead skin cells, and makes my skin look so fresh/dewy.  I don't switch up my exfoliators often FYI.  Just everything else.



Once a week after cleansing, and exfoliating, I'll used my Boscia Luminizing Black mask.  It's a peel off one that pull out black heads, and other gook off my skin.  If I have a special event the next day, I won't do it though because sometimes whatever I have pulled out off the top, uncovers what was underneath, and that means break-outs.    I believe that masking is a HUGE part of our regime however.  Definitely encourage you to find one to suit your needs.

Finally, for my moisturizer, I have been using (and loving) Shiseido's Benefiance cream.  It's a heavier cream that gives me plenty of moisture without feeling greasy.  I have more sensitive skin, and have been doing just fine with it.  If you have oily skin though, stick with a gel based moisturizer.  These are just my own personal faves.

Thank you all for reading! I hope Fall is treating you well! Back soon!

XOXO,


Xoxo,