My 12 favorite beauty products of 2012

Happy 2013 everyone!
Shockingly, I have found a bunch of HG or 'holy grail' products this year! It makes me happy to find amazing things that suit me, but at the same time it takes the fun away from hunting for something new.

Everything in this post are products I use daily or a few times per week.
You might recognize some of these items from my summer favorites post.
Sorry, I didn't take individual pictures of everything, I wanted to get this posted before 2014 ;) So; here are my top 12 beauty buys from 2012.

 

12. Clinique take the day off cleansing balm  $34 CAD

This was a recent discovery and I am so impressed with it. I've wasted so much money trying to find a 'gentle' cleanser that completely removes makeup.  I can't use foaming cleansers or wipes anymore, they make my face red and irritated. This balm easily takes off every single trace of makeup, even waterproof mascara - and it rinses off completely. No oily residue at all! I love this stuff so much.

11. Essence volumizing lash powder $3.99 CAD

I was skeptical, but this stuff works so well. I found that using wet mascara with it is best. Covergirl lash blast (orange tube) worked magically with it. It gave me fake looking lashes. The fibers won't irritate sensitive eyes, just be careful when applying and you will get amazing lashes.

10. ELF liquid eyeliner $1.50 CAD

I grabbed this back in the summer when I ran out of MAC penultimate liner (which dried out within 3 months of use :( And I don't think I will look back. I can get a thin dark line in one swipe, and it stays put all day. So cheap too!

9. Maybelline color tattoo cream shadow bad to the bronze $8.99 CAD

I use this all the time. It's one of my go-to shadows because it is so quick and easy to get a gorgeous taupe shimmery eye. Just apply to lids, add a few coats of mascara and then put on some more for a little more color intensity.

8. Wet n Wild color icon palette vanity $6.99 CAD

I think this is what I would consider my HG eyeshadow palette. I recently purchased a back up. It's so pigmented and gorgeous. The colors blend like a dream. I was using MAC blanc type as an all over base shadow before, but when I started using the matte beige in this quad I realized that it was even better than MAC! I will never be without this palette.

7. NARS larger than life lipgloss Tiber $30 CAD

I love NARS larger than life glosses. I think they are the best out there. They are shiny, long lasting and hydrating. No stickiness at all. Tiber is my favorite color, a nice neutral beige. I am going to buy more.

6. MAC lipstick blankety $18 CAD

This is my HG lipstick. It is the perfect mix of pink and beige and I can wear it with anything. It tones down the redness in my lips but it doesn't make me look like a corpse.

5. MAC paint pot constructivist $20 CAD

I love this as an all over lid color or as a liner. It's a nice rich brown with reddish pearl. It makes my green eyes pop. Genius color. Another item I will never be without.

4.  MAC eyebrow pencil lingering $18 CAD

This has become my HG brow product. I have tried lots. This is IT. The color is perfect, it looks totally natural, it defines and helps shape and fill in brows where needed. Most importantly, it stays on all day and it keeps brows in place. I couldn't ask for more. I have heard that maybelline has a dupe of this product so I will be checking that out too.

3. MAC mineralize skin finish light year (limited edition)  $34 CAD

I'm sorry I had to put an LE product in here, but this has become my everyday blush. I mix all the colors together and it gives me a luminous pink/beige/peach glow that I haven't got from anything else. It's exactly what I want in a blush. A little glow without looking overdone. All pale girls need this in their stash!

2. MAC play it proper beauty powder $34 CAD

This is my HG highlight product. It is a light pearly pink and it gives my cheekbones an amazing glow. I've hit pan and already have a backup because I use it pretty well every day. 

I highly recommend light pink highlighters for pale skin, I think they are the most flattering.

1. Make up forever face and body foundation $44 CAD

My number one favorite? MUFE face and body foundation. I love it. I haven't found any other foundation that gives such a youthful look to skin as this. It's dewy but it is so light feeling, and it lasts all day. I tried shade #20 and it was very dark on me, I ended up going for #38 porcelain ivory and it is a pretty decent match. It's expensive, and hard to get here but I will keep using it until I find something similar.

I hope you liked my top 12! What were your favorites of 2012? There were so many great things this year it was hard to pick!

Neutral smokey eyes using ELF neutral beauty book with photos & swatches

With all the overwhelming hype of the Urban Decay naked palette flowing from every beauty blog page there is out there, it's a little hard for me to accept the fact that I will never get it.
Sadly, I live an hour's drive away from Sephora, and I didn't get the chance to grab one up.
Of course it's completely sold out online and I refuse to purchase it on Ebay for ridiculously inflated prices. *end sob story*
So - I decided to try something a little bit different for a 'naked' look.
I recently stumbled across E.L.F.'s neutral beauty book and immediately thought the colors looked really nice and wearable. I often find most palettes with 'neutrals' tend to be on the warm side, mainly bronze and copper colors which I don't like much.

Front cover:

It includes 12 shades of really neutral colors, ranging from shimmer to matte and warm to cool tones.
It turns out that a lot of these colors are really similar to some MAC eyeshadow colors! A few a dupes and some of are just really close.
The best part is this only set me back $7 CAD. You can get it online on the E.L.F. site for $5 US.
What a steal!

Inside you will find:

On the left page there is a step by step tutorial on how to create a basic look using the palette.
Included is a double ended sponge tip applicator, and a mini brightening eyeliner.

Mini liner:

Swatched:

It's actually a nice mid tone brown color. Great to use as a base for the smoky neutral eye look. I wouldn't expect any real staying power on the waterline since it is a kohl type pencil and smudges easily.

The eyeshadows:

I will admit that these eyeshadows are not the nicest texture. Some go on better than the others, but they are all very loosely pressed and tend to fall out when you are applying. The palette can get messy.
They will work best over a good eyeshadow base, I tried them over NYX jumbo pencil in strawberry milk and the colors 'stuck' well and looked vibrant.

Here are swatches and descriptions; No base was used for the swatches, but I did heavily layer the colors so they would show up well.

Row 1 Left to Right:

- shimmery light ivory with gold undertone
- shimmery golden tan -> similar to MAC woodwinked
- shimmery medium golden brown -> MAC mulch dupe
- shimmery deep brown with a plum undertone -> Similar to MAC smut


Row 2 Left to Right:

- frosty whitish gold -> MAC nylon dupe
- frosty light pink -> Similar to MAC pink freeze
- mid-tone pink beige with slight shimmer -> MAC banshee dupe
- Deep blackened navy matte -> Similar to MAC Nehru

Row 3 Left to Right:

- flesh toned beige shimmer (looks the same shade as my skin!)
- copper shimmer -> MAC amber lights dupe
- reddened purple with slight shimmer -> somewhere between MAC cranberry and sketch
- Dark neutral brown matte -> MAC brun dupe

EOTD # 1 smokey neutral for daytime :

For this look I used these colors from the palette:

EOTD #2 smokey neutral look for night:

Not sure why I look like an oompaloompa here...bad lighting :/

For this one I used these colors from the palette:

Overall, I think this palette is worth it just because it's easy to use; and so so easy on the wallet! The shadows coordinate well with each other and you can create a wide variety of looks using them.
It's great to have in your kit for those days you want to do something simple and pretty.
Just be sure to use a good base or you will be disappointed.
In no way is this comparable to MAC quality, but the colors I mentioned in the descriptions are very close.

What do you think about ELF products? yay or nay?

My 10 favorite beauty products of 2010

I had originally wanted to do this post as a youtube video, but came across major technical problems while filming.
Looks like I won't be able to start youtubing anything until I get a new camera. Hopefully early in 2011!
With the new year just around the corner I figured this is the perfect time to reflect on the new products I tried in 2010 that really impressed me.
It was hard to choose just 10, but I went with my gut feelings. Everything I chose I actually use all the time (some of them everyday) and would recommend them.

Seeing as I use mostly high end products, I was surprised that I picked a lot of drugstore items!
I have to remind myself that just because a brand is expensive or overpriced doesn't mean it's any better than cheaper brands that go on sale regularly.

~ My beauty favorites of 2010 ~

#1. Lancome Rénergie Microlift Eye R.A.R.E.
This eye cream is superb. I have tried so many, brands from Neutrogena to La Mer - and this one blows them out all of the water.
After 2 days of use the little lines under my eyes were gone (plumped out) and dark circles from lack of sleep completely banished. This didn't irritate my eyes at all (I always have this problem with eye creams).
It is expensive but totally worth it.



#2. NARS eyeshadow duo in Eurydice (see swatches here)

Out of all the NARS eyeshadows I own Eurydice is my absolute favorite. Of course the pigmentation is wonderful and blending is smooth. I just love these colors and the smoky sexy eye they create. The aubergine side is breathtaking. I reach for this one a lot.



#3. MAC Briar Rose beauty powder (see swatches here)

I know this is limited edition, but I just had to put it in. Honestly it's the prettiest most unique colored blush I've ever used. It gives a really pretty flushed cheek. Out of all my blushes this is one I usually reach for. I will let you all know if I find a dupe!



#4. Hard candy meteor eyes baked meteor eyeshadows (see my EOTD using lunar eclipse here)

I am so absolutely in love with these eyeshadows. They are really great quality for the price. There are so many colors to choose from, and some of them are great dupes for MAC mineralize eyeshadows. pictured above are the two I have, outerspace (right) and lunar eclipse (left).
I can't wait to try more colors, and some of the duos too!


#5. Gosh waterproof eyeshadow primer

If you thought pixi epoxy was good, then you would love this waterproof eyeshadow primer. I liked pixi expoxy and it worked well, but it was too sticky and it irritated my eyelids. Not to mention it creased. This primer comes in a tube just like MAC shadesticks. After blending it onto your lids you have a slightly sticky, pearly shimmery base that's perfect for patting loose pigments onto. It really makes your eyeshadow color pop, and it doesn't crease at all. love!


#6. ELF Eyeshadow 'C' brush

This brush is awesome! It packs on color so well, better than any MAC brush. I use it all the time and I want to get another one. For the price, I might get two. Trust me, you will love this brush.

#7. Hard Candy blush crush baked baked blush in living doll (see my FOTD wearing this here)

This color is so pretty. In the pot it appears pink with yellow veining. When applied it gives the prettiest cool shimmery pink glow. It's fairly pigmented and I only need to use a little bit. I can't get over the price of this line, so inexpensive and the products are sweet!

#8. Maybelline color sensational lipsticks (see photos and swatches of pink please here)

I'm totally impressed with these new Maybelline lipsticks. They are so nice I can't believe you can buy them from the drugstore. I love my MAC lipsticks but they tend to dry out my lips, and these don't at all. The color selection is superb as well. I am picking up more colors soon.

#9. Maybelline purestay powder foundation

Another winner from Maybelline. I was looking high and low for a good powder foundation to use when I'm in a rush. I adore MAC studio fix powder, but it broke me out. Maybelline purestay is just like MAC studio fix, only better. I say better because it doesn't break me out, and the color actually matches my skin perfectly! I use Ivory, which is nice and neutral unlike MAC NC15 which is just completely yellow on me. The coverage is great, it even covers acne scars!


#10. L'oreal true match liquid foundation

Out of all foundations I've tried, (MAC, NARS, Clarins, Clinique, etc.) I keep coming back this. I love how it blends so well into my skin I can't tell I am wearing it. N1 soft ivory is my absolute best skin tone match in any foundation I've used. It is light to medium coverage, so I use a concealer and powder as well if I need to. I've tried all the true match products, and I like this one the best. The cream to powder version broke me out (too much silicone) and the roller seemed to be a gimmick so that I would waste product (I ran out really fast) . I also don't like the true match pressed powder, it's really cakey and awful! But this liquid foundation is a total winner and I keep going back to it.


What was your favorite product of 2010?
I hope everyone had a nice holiday and got lots of makeup goodies!

NARS Albatross dupe - ELF Gotta Glow Blush comparison

NARS Albatross

I had some great swatches for these on my computer, (and lot's of other pics for my blog) but then it crashed...and I lost them all *cries*.

I salvaged a couple to show you just how similar these two products are.

Elf gotta glow on the left, and Albatross on the right:

Albatross ($26 USD) is a super finely milled powder. You can get a nice glow if you build it up, but I prefer a little more shimmer.
Gotta Glow ($3 USD) is not quite so finely milled, it's a bit 'chunkier' in texture and there are little fine glitter particles (which are not present in Albatross). It also tends to fall-out a bit since it is not so densely pressed.
I could not find much of a difference when I applied each as a highlight on either side of my face.
I found that I actually like Gotta Glow better because it is easier to build up and has some noticeable shimmer.

Up close Left: Gotta Glow Right: Albatross

For the price, I say go with ELF. See picture of me wearing ELF gotta glow here.
If you can't stand glitter, then I'd have to recommend Albatross for a more subtle highlight.

Other Albatross dupes:

-MAC pigment in vanilla -> similar, but vanilla has a slight pink sheen to it as well as the white/gold.