I hope you all had an amazing month and a great time celebrating the holidays with friends and family! I can't believe how quickly it all went by! We spend weeks preparing and.. Poof- Its over in a split second! Lol! But, in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, I did have several favorites this past month!
As we all know, December is probably the busiest month of
the year. I've had plenty of late nights baking, wrapping gifts, decorating,
etc. and the next morning it’s a little difficult to really get going. I've
been opting for simpler makeup looks most of the months and grabbing for my Perricone
MD No Foundation- Foundation Serum! This stuff is awesome and so simple to use!
I start by applying my Milk of Magnesia as a primer and then apply the No
Foundation-Foundation Serum right over top of it and blend everything into my
skin using my fingers and then set it with a light dusting of powder. It is a
very liquidy consistency and extremely light! It almost feels as though you
have nothing on but a light moisturizer, but somehow you still get great
coverage! I find that this is actually perfect for my skin during the Winter
months and gives me a bit of added moisture. I don’t think this would be a
great option for my skin in the Summer or warmer months because my skin is very
oily, but for now, it is working wonderfully for me! I was using a deluxe sized
sample of this for a while (a little bit goes a long way) and just caved and
bought the full size a few weeks ago! :)
Keeping in theme with the issue of late nights and tired
eyes, I've also been obsessed with It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Anti-Aging Concealer.
This was actually a sample in my November Ipsy Bag and ever since I received it
I’ve been loving it! It is a thicker consistency and all you need is the
tiniest drop! It gives AMAZING coverage for dark circles, tired eyes, redness,
etc. and doesn't crease or get cakey at all! I just set it with a light powder
and I’m good to go! This is another one that I recently purchased a full size
of- and even turned my Mom and aunt on to it as well!
Another quick and easy product I've been using a lot is
cream shadow sticks! I’ve particularly been loving Mally Beauty’s Evercolor Shadow
stick in Champagne. It is great on its own for just a quick pop of color and
shimmer, or underneath powder shadows to give them a little extra hold and
oomph! They are especially good for loose eyeshadows, or ones with a bit of
glitter or shimmer! They eventually dry
on the eye and don’t stay sticky or crease like some cream eyeshadows can.
They’re definitely great for on the go use, or days when you just want to be a
little lazy with your makeup routine.
My other go to eye product has been Mac Cosmetics’ Soft
Brown eyeshadow! This is the most perfect crease shade I have come across in my
life! I have a pretty fair skin tone, so some crease shades can come off
looking too dark or too orangey on me. But, my go to girl at my Mac counter
steered me in the right direction with this one (Thanks, Lauren)! I love that
it is so versatile and can go with any eye look. It blends like a dream and is
so easy for me to use! I can’t believe I went so long without this in my life!
Lol!
I've also been using my Too Faced Chocolate Bar a lot this
past month! Sometimes eyeshadow palettes end up being something that I use to
death when I first get and then sort of phase out as I buy new products. I've
been trying to really look at what I have in my makeup collection and make
better use of the things I already own (yay saving money!) and this is probably
one of my favorite palettes that I own. The possibilities are endless with this
one! A lot of people look at The Chocolate Bar Palette and see a lot of shadows
that are basically all the same color. Not me! I tend to gravitate towards
golds, bronze, and cocoa-ish eyeshadow shades anyway, so for me this is great way
to use those shades that I love while still adding a pop of color here and
there! The texture of the shadows is so nice and smooth and they are easily
packed on or blended. And come on… that chocolate cocoa smell when you open
this baby up?! Who could pass that up! Lol!
My Mac girl, Lauren, also hooked me up with a fabulous lip
liner last time I saw her! She had used it on me way back in September when she
was helping me pick out a new lipstick for a wedding I was attending. At the
time, I opted to just go for the lipstick, being frugal and thinking I could
find a dupe, but nothing compared to the one she used. The shade is called
Absolutely It from the Pro Long-wear line! And the name is so fitting because
this lip liner is basically the most perfect shade in the world! It goes with
so many looks and is so flattering! I use this with basically every lipstick I
wear! I am so in love with it and glad I finally took the plunge and purchased
it!
Another product I quickly fell in love with this past month
is Bite Beauty’s Agave Lip Mask in Champagne! You guys, it is amazing! It is
unlike anything I have ever put on my lips in my life! It feels so good having
it on! Between the cold weather, wind and matte lipstick trend, my lips were
definitely starting to need a little more TLC than usual. I splurged on this on
a whim and I am so glad that I did! It feels thick like a Vaseline type
consistency but thins out a bit when your lips warm it up. It doesn't get
goopy, gross, or that weird cakey flakey thing that some lip treatments can
sometimes get. It just stays smooth and continues feeling hydrating the entire
time you have it on! I love sleeping it, but also find that am using it a lot during the day too! I like
the champagne version because it gives just a bit more shimmer and shine! It is
a little on the pricier side, but a little bit of this goes such a long way and
the tube will last you quite a while! To me, this is one of those “Run, don’t
walk to your local Sephora!” products! You need this! Trust me! And you’re welcome!
In addition to the Lip Mask, I have really come to totally
fall head over heels for the entire Bite Beauty brand! It all started with the
Best Bite Remix set and since then I cannot be stopped! I have also picked up
several of the Mix N’ Mingle Lip Minis that they had out for the holidays. I
just can’t stop buying them! I bought several as gifts, and yes, several for
myself as well! Hahaha! So far, my favorite one is the Luminous Creme Lipstick Duo in Nude Rose/Light Brown. The nude shade is perfect and not too light,
while the pinker shade offers a really pretty and feminine color! They go on
super smooth and creamy, have tons of pigment, and feel really comfortable on
the lips! I honestly can’t say enough good things about this brand! If you
haven’t tried any of their lip products yet, definitely give one of the Mix N’
Mingles a try! As of now, they are still available on Sephora’s site and at $12
are super affordable!
This month I actually had a fragrance favorite! I typically
stick to my usual perfumes and rarely change it up, but when I saw this Snow
Mint Fragrance mist in Victoria’s Secret I was very intrigued! It was part of
their holiday collection this year and the mint greenish/blue bottle definitely
caught my eye! But then… I sprayed it and it was so wonderful!! It literally
smells like Winter, but better! I picture little kids playing in the snow, or
girls ice skating on a pond with rosy cheeks! Haha! To me it mostly smells like
vanilla, but there is definitely a subtle mint note that changes the whole tone
of the vanilla background! It’s so hard to describe! The first time I wore this
to work, one of my coworkers walked in the door and stopped in his tracks and
was like “Wow… you smell really good!” lol! It’s subtle but noticeable at the
same time! And the scent is so light that it’s not offensive or overpowering! I
don’t think I’ve ever used a body spray this much since I was 15. Haha! Annnnd
the Victoria’s Secret Semi Annual Sale is coming up this weekend, you might be
able to snag this for a great price!
Annnd now I will leave you with one more thing that I could absolutely not get enough of this month! You. Need. These. Now.! They are Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels by Maple Ridge Farms! This is actually a chocolate company that my mom does business with through corporate gift orders. These are the most amazing chocolates I have ever tastes in my entire life! They are so rich and creamy but still firm like a traditional caramel! The chocolate is really great quality and melts in your mouth perfectly! And mmm the teeny tiny salty sprinkles add the perfect touch to round out the sweetness of the chocolate and butteryness of the caramel! Seriously.. You NEED these!!! I could literally eat an entire box in one sitting (but I refrain and try to savor them)! Santa was even nice enough to leave me a box in my stocking! :) I will link to their website, and if you need a gift basket or what the hell, just want one for yourself, I highly reccomend this company! All of the products are amazing! I also particularly love their English Butter Toffee and Chocolate Covered Pretzels! Basically I would eat a shoe if they dipped it in their chocolate! Lol! :)
