We have officially survived the first full month of the year and of Winter! January is always such a blah month to me and always seems to drag! But, as I'm sure you've noticed, a LOT of new beauty products have also hit the shelves this month and it's been pretty exciting! I like to think that it helped to keep those "Winter Blues" away so far! Hehe!
Speaking of surviving... one product that has definitely helped my skin get through the relentless cold and January wind is Mac Cosmetics Oil Control Lotion! Confession time- I rarely ever use a moisturizer on my face before applying makeup. I know, I know, I really should, but I've tried with other face moisturizes and lotions and my makeup just slides right off. That being said and despite my normally very oily skin, I do tend to get some dryness this time of year. Particularly on/around my nose, eye area, and chin. This Oil Control Lotion has been amazing! It helps to moisturize the areas that need a little extra lovin', but also dries quickly and doesn't stay tacky on the skin! I've had absolutely no problems with it making my skin feel more oily throughout the day and my makeup stays in place perfectly! I may actually be so bold as to say it has helped my makeup to apply better and stay longer! I'm still a tiny bit skeptical as to whether this will work well with my skin in the warmer months, but I am certainly hopeful! If you too struggle with oily skin, this product is definitely worth trying out! Keep in mind that your local Mac counter or store will give you a sample to test out if you ask!
Another product that has been working really well for my face this month is NYX Cosmetics Angel Veil Skin Perfecting Primer! Again, since I've been less oily and a tiny bit dry, I haven't had to use my
Milk Of Magnesia primer quite as much. I still use a primer of some kind every day though, and this has by far been my favorite, if not the BEST drugstore primer I've ever used! It is a little bit pricey for a drugstore brand, but I'm telling you, it's really worth every penny (and don't forget you can use your Ulta coupons too). It is so ridiculously smooth and makes your skin feel so soft! This may sound strange, but the consistency and texture of this almost makes me feel like they have somehow turned their HD Studio Finishing Powder into a primer... or maybe its mixed into the product? I don't know, but it feels soft and dries to almost a powder finish on the skin! It's truly wonderful! My makeup applies really well with this as my base and it lasts all day! I've tried it with several different types of foundations and it hasn't given me a single issue! I love everything about it!
One of the newer products to hit the drugstore shelves earlier this month was Maybelline's FaceStudio Master Conceal! I have seriously been loving this ever since I purchased it and I think I've used it almost everyday so far! It is a thinner consistency, and marketed as a "camouflaging" concealer so it gives medium - full coverage depending on how much of it you use or build up. I feel that it gives me great coverage under my eyes and the shade (I'm in Light) is perfect for me! It blends great with all of the foundations I've been wearing and wears really well throughout the day! One of the added bonus for this product is that a little bit goes a long way! This tube is a decent size and will easily last you a couple of months! :)
One product I really cannot seem to get enough of this month is Mac Cosmetics Mineralize Blush in Love Joy! My Mac girl, Lauren, used this on me just before the holidays and I have been obsessed with it ever since! I use this primarily to do a little contouring for my cheekbones and forehead and I LOVE the results I get with this! It's the perfect warm shade and really takes the guess work out of contouring for me! It's subtle, but really does help to make a difference in my makeup look! It does have shimmer in it, but honestly, its not really enough that its totally noticeable or anything. It just gives a nice glow to your skin! A little bit of this also goes a long way though, so I think I'll be using this for a while!
One of the new drugstore products that I could not wait to get my hands on was the Milani Rose Powder Blushes! At first I could not find them any where, but finally I found a single one all lonely and by itself in my Aunt's CVS! I pretty much jumped up and down and my Aunt realized I'm truly a lunatic! Lol! Luckily it was the shade I was after too! :) I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the rose design! It is so beautiful and makes you feel instantly pretty and girly even when you just look at it! I'm usually not one to care about the designs on a product, but this one actually makes me feel bad to mess up! It's just too adorable! The shade I have is Romantic Rose and it is a beautiful rosey, pinkish, mauvey color! It looks gorgeous on the skin and wears really well for me throughout the day! I actually feel like this is one of the better blush formulas from the drugstore brands! I'm so totally head over heals for this and seriously need to get my hands on the other two shades!!
This next favorite I actually received as a Christmas gift and it was something I had been longing for in life! It's Becca's Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Powder in Opal! This is another one of those products I would "visit" and die over whenever I was in Sephora or Ulta! Lol! It is just the most gorgeous highlighting powder ever! In addition to using this on my cheek bones, I love using it to highlight my brow bones! However, my favorite way to use this has actually been as an eyeshadow on my lids! I absolutely love the eye look I get with this! It's perfect for everyday and can really been glammed up for evening looks! I love the shimmery, opaly, almost rose gold shade! It's just so gorgeous and I can't help but squeal a little bit inside every time I open it! Haha!
My bestie also gave me an awesome gift for Christmas that I have been loving! It was a set of Laura Mercier mini Caviar Stick Eye Colors! These are a really amazing and apply so incredibly smooth! I love how versatile these are being that they can be used as a liners, all over the lid shadows, or smudged and smoked out! My favorite way to use them has been as an all over the lid shadow! I also love how the darker shades easily blend into the crease for a transition shade or the outer corners for a more dramatic look! They're super creamy and nicely pigmented with great staying power! The gift set of minis is no longer available, but full size sticks are part of Laura Mercier's permanent line! I think they're definitely worth checking out the full size sticks if they're something your interested in trying! :)
Another eye product I've loved this month is Covergirl's Full Lash Bloom mascara! At first this wasn't a product that I was really interested in trying. I was happy with the 800 other mascaras I had been using, but ended up seeing it again one day caving. I really enjoy their Clump Crusher mascara, so I figured, what the hell, why not try this one too?! I am SO glad I did! I really love the formula of this mascara! It seems to be the perfect consistency- not too wet or too dry! It's really just right! The mascara brush does a really great job of coating each lash and creating awesome volume, but also separating well so they don't all stick together! I haven't noticed any flaking or smudging when I wear this, and it easily comes off at the end of the day with my usual makeup remover! I was never a huge Covergirl fan, but their mascaras seem to pretty on point lately!
Covergirl has also released a ton of new products this past month and I've been dying over the new Colorlicious Lipsticks! These too have been super hard to find in all of the stores around me! Every store's display is super picked over, especially of the nude shades in the line! But, after some searching and trips to multiple stores, I was finally able to grab a few of the colors I wanted! I really love the formula of these (at least the nudes)! They are so creamy, pigmented, and give off a slight shine to the lips! They feel extremely comfortable and not too "lipsticky" or too glossy. The staying power isn't the best in the world, especially when eating or drinking, but I wasn't really expecting them to be, so it wasn't a huge disappointment. I love the range of colors and how affordable they are! If I am lucky enough to find them, you can bet I will be buying more! :)
This past month I've also been really into curling my hair! I typically use hot rollers, but they can be a little time consuming and I always have to make sure I have time to leave them in. One of my other Christmas gifts I was lucky enough to receive is the Bed Head Curlipops 1 Inch Curling Iron Wand! I freaking LOVE this thing! I've tried so many curling wands over the last few years and none of them have really been that easy to use or worked great for me. I was really surprised by how well this works! It's super simple to use, sets to the perfect temperature, heats quickly, and my curls last! It gets the job done super fast for me (only takes me 10 minutes) and my hair always turns out great! I've been really impressed with it!
So that is January in a nut shell for me! Tons of great new products, and some great gifts I was lucky enough to get for the holidays! I'm super excited to see what next month brings! February is one of my favs because of all the cute lovey dovey stuff that gets released in stores (some of which you are probably already seeing). Rumor has it there are some great new Spring 2015 product launches happening this month too! So exciting! :)
Thanks so much for reading as always, let me know what some of your favs have been!
♥ Nichole
