The Summer Line-Up Part Two

[Everything purchased by me]


When the weather gets warmer, I also tend to think warmer tones in terms of eyeshadows as well. Some of my favorite tones are a reddish copper, golden pink and bright teal.  I have a few examples of single shades and a couple palette recommendations.

Clockwise: Maybelline Seashore Frosts (LE), NARS California, L'oreal Pink Sapphire (LE) and Jesse's Girl Sunset Blvd

Sorry half of these are limited edition.  I think companies come out with these kinds of shades around the Summer months.

This is how they look swatched in the same order.  I'd recommend all of these formulas and obviously all these shades as well.

Too Faced Natural at Night and Summer Eye palettes

Fave Shades:  Top is from Natural at Night in Moonstone, Night Cap and Cocoa Star
Bottom is from Summer Eye in Coral Crush, Toasted Coconut and Cocoa Beach

I don't know why these both happen to be from Too Faced but these have the best shade selection of the palettes I own for the Summertime.  I believe the Natural at Night palette is available year-round and the Summer Eye palette is actually being re-launched this year in new packaging.  It comes in a tin now and I believe a couple shades may be different.  Overall, these palettes contain a great variety of true neutral shades and fun brights or more interested neutrals in the case of the Natural at Night palette.  I think the larger shadows on the left are actually kind of a miss in both of these palettes but otherwise, I think you can see from the swatches that these shadows are super smooth and pigmented.  

The Summer Line-Up Part One 

[All purchased by me or given by friends-yes I have generous friends who know I love makeup!]

Seems like just weeks ago since I did my "Spring Edit" post.  Oh wait it was only a few weeks ago?  Cue the typical "I can't believe Spring passed by so quickly" spiel. 


Starting things off with the boring stuff first, SPF is something I'm a big stickler about.   No skincare routine is complete without adequate sun protection and this is especially important when the weather gets hotter and the rays seem stronger.

Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer in Aloe
This scent in the original lotion form always reminds me of Summer and the added convenience of a spray form just makes it even more appealing.  This disperses in the same way that an aerosol hairspray would.  It has a continuous mist and is a really ingenious way to get lazy people like me to moisturize during the Summer.  I really recommend this for a refreshing twist on lotion.  Disclaimer:  contains parabens and non-spectacular ingredients.  Still like the concept-will continue using.

Paula's Choice Resist Ultimate Anti Aging Hand Cream with SPF 30
Sorry the glare is cutting off the degree of sun protection this has.  I got this since the regular offering of hand creams that contain SPF is abysmal.  I think since hands show age so easily, this is something more companies should address since last time I checked women drive cars and enjoy outdoor activities.  This is very non-greasy and absorbs easily for something with such a high SPF.  Reviewers have also used this as a facial moisturizer, something I cannot attest to.  Apply at your own risk to anything besides hands!

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist SPF 30
My go-to every year for easy application, light feel and general convenience.  I always buy a backup when I run out.  Probably not the best if there's even a slight breeze in the air but as I've stated before, I'm all about the convenience factor.

MAC Semi Precious Mineralize Skinfinish in Rose Quartz
This was a limited edition product from last year's MAC Summer launch but they do launch a mineral collection every year.  I tend to like shimmery blushes in the Summer even though my face gets oilier.  Maybe it's so my cheeks don't look overly matte if I use a non-shimmery blush?  Who knows, I just know this is so pretty.

Lancome Teint Idole Fresh Wear in Bisque 0W
For the warmest of months, the lightest and most long-lasting of bases is required.  My ultimate oil-controlling foundation and darkest shade owned is combined into one with this product.  It's a watery texture that's very oil-controlling.  It makes sense since this contains a lot of alcohol.  So does Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk (another fave-go figure) and many other high-end foundations that have long-wear claims.  I stand by this even knowing that and even with my paranoia that this shade is every so slightly too tan/peachy for me.

NYX Haute Melon, Essence Candy Bar, MAC Lychee Luxe and Dior Delice

Can you tell I like corals?

NYX Round Lipstick in Haute Melon
Pardon the grubby packaging.  The lipstick bullet broke off pretty much as soon as I opened it (ordered from Cherry Culture) and I tried re-attaching with the freezer trick but it never worked.  This is a nice orange with a lot of pink undertones.  For me, this is perfect kind of coral.  The formula is also light and easy to wear but not the most moisturizing.

Essence Stay With Me in Candy Bar
From my "Top 5 Lip Products to Use Up" post, this is the lipgloss counterpart to the Haute Melon lipstick.  Great formula, highly recommend.

MAC Lipglass in Lychee Luxe
Totally picked this up on a whim.  I'd heard about this shade for years from die-hard MAC fans but was wary of trying their gloss because of how sticky the formula is.  Well, I don't regret this purchase because this shade is gorgeous and pigmented.  It's an orangey reddish color with gold shimmer running through it.  Yes it does have a heavier formula but I actually don't feel it's a dealbreaker for me. It's nowhere near as smooth as the Essence gloss but as you can see from the swatch, it has better color payoff.

Dior Addict Lipstick in Delice
I already talked about this in my last purchases post.  Easy, sheer orangey pink that is foolproof.  A glorified and overpriced tinted lip balm.  But I couldn't help myself.

I feel like my posts are usually too long.  Stay tuned for the eyes portion of this post!

Products Worth the Hype
[All purchased by me, or given as gifts from friends]

Inspiration strikes at the strangest times and I scrambled for my notebook and pen yesterday as I jotted down categories that I felt a comprehensive review series could be based off of.  None of these are original ideas, just categories that I can group parts of my makeup collection into that I think would be interesting to read.  Briefly I think the areas I can cover over the next couple of weeks include the one you are reading, it's counterpart "Products not Worth the Hype", "Products I'm on the Fence About", "Cult Products", and "Under-hyped Products".  Look forward to those and intermittent random posts as I feel inclined.

For the first category, I have two bases from different parts of the world raved about by girls spanning an even wider distance.  Included are a couple makeup brushes that have gotten nonstop attention recently.

Skin 79 Gold Label Super BB Cream 
This is one of those products that ignited the BB cream fever, for me at least.  It was the first true BB cream I've ever purchased and is an all-around fantastic base.  It looks natural, adapts to my skin tone, has light-medium coverage and blends out imperceptive-ly (just made that an adverb- GRAMMAR!)

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation in 52
It's the closest thing I've found to the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in terms of finish, meaning it's barely detectable with a light-medium coverage.  It's hardly drugstore price in the U.S., but it's definitely worth checking out if you're not about to shell out for a very high end foundation but want similar results.

Real Techniques Buffing and Contour Brushes
Highly raved across the board by the blogging community, these synthetic hair brushes blend out products like a dream.  The Buffing Brush is my go-to for most foundations (except the very thin) and the Contour Brush has a myriad of uses.  Currently, I'm loving it for buffing powder around my T-zone area.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze
As you saw a couple posts back, not all Color Tattoos are created equal.  However, this shade is cream eyeshadow perfection.  It's creamy, wears as well on me as a powder foundation and has enough pigmentation to be worn on it's own.  I very rarely find cream eyeshadows interesting enough to wear on their own but I'd make an exception for this one.

Wet n Wild ColorIcon Eyeshadow Palettes in Comfort Zone and Silent Treatment
These are soft, buttery pigmented shades that are easy to work with and come in a great selection of shades.  I think this is a strangely difficult combination to find in a drugstore eyeshadow but this formula is really top-notch.  For a fun variety of neutral and bright shades, check these out for $3-$5 each.

Real Techniques Base Shadow and Deluxe Crease Brushes
The eye counterparts to the last two face brushes I talked about, these brushes are an absolute must-have for me right now.  I use the Base Shadow Brush to apply and blend color effortlessly.  Something about the shape-how it's more tapered than the MAC 217 make me reach for this over my MAC brush every time.  I can say that I'd take a backup of this brush over the MAC 217 right now (crazy I know).  The Deluxe Crease Brush is an ideal brush for buffing into undereye concealer but I actually use it with a mineral foundation as a spot concealer and the combination is the best I have tried int terms of heavy-duty concealing.

Maybelline Baby Lips in Cherry Me and Grape Vine
I had the original Baby Lips at one point after a successful Secret Santa gift exchange.  The two that stood out to me in the end were these two, especially Cherry Me.  I think the sheer red is a perfect shade for any skin tone.  It's my go-to easy lip in the colder months.  Grape Vine is just as the name implies, a grape-y shade that doesn't go too vampy.  Both of these can be built up to a decent opacity so beware when applying these without a mirror.  These are moisturizing and smooth just like others have said.

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in 01 Rose Shimmer
This was floating around the British blogosphere for a while and I was pretty impressed with the reviews.  I picked one up and determined that this would become my handbag staple.  A light, balmy gloss with only a hint of tint, this is very comfortable to wear and actually leaves my lips feeling more moisturized after it wears off.  

An encore and an appearance of two products I couldn't put into their own category because there was only one of each!

Batiste Dry Shampoo in Original
Choose a scent that you like, spray into roots, go do makeup, brush out and voila- second day hair that looks presentable.  This is a lifesaver for oily skin girls like me and this is one of the best I've tried so far.  Very worth the hype.

Clarisonic Mia
You've heard enough about this I'm sure.  Basically, my rationale for including this product is that it is the only thing that actually minimizes the appearance of pores for me.  Blackheads are much less noticeable and there's pretty much no cleanser/treatment that has a similar result.  I see this more as a treatment rather than a daily use product.  

Hope you found that useful and stay tuned for more!

Quick Tip! Perfect Nails with ELF Concealer Brush

[Purchased by me]

I know I can't be the only one who paints outside the lines when I'm doing my nails.  Even my favorite brushes can be a little bit difficult to control.  A really easy way to clean up the edges of a new manicure is using the ELF Profession Concealer Brush dipped in nail polish remover to wipe away the pesky polish on the outside of your nails.  This brush costs $1 at Target so there's very little investment with very high reward!  I actually got this tip from NouveauCheap (a great blog!).

The polish I'm wearing is Ulta's Let the Flames Begin.  It's a bright red with orangey undertones and it comes with a wide brush which is really nice.  

Comparison:  Anastasia Brow Wiz Medium Ash vs. Perfect Brow Pencil in Brunette

[Purchased by me]


One of the things that's so true about brows is that once you start filling them in, you can't stop!  You just get used to the way they look when they're bold and it becomes unnatural to have the rest of your face "done" without your brows.

Anastasia brow products are supposed to be the gold standard in arch-grooming technology and I first purchased a kit of her products at Ulta.  In the kit was the Brow Wiz in Medium Ash.  When Ulta had their 20% of sale, I also picked up a regular pencil in Brunette.

As you can see, one is a regular pencil and one is super slim and retractable.  Both have spoolies on the other end which are differing in width.

Brow Wiz on Left, Brow Pencil on Right

The spoolie on the Brow Wiz is very thin and is actually very good at brushing through the hairs in your brows because it has harsher bristles.  The spoolie on the regular brow pencil is the standard kind that you would find on a spoolie that is sold separately.  I prefer the thinner spoolie because I think it guides the hairs a bit better if that makes any sense.  

Apart from the spoolie, the pencil also have different widths.  

The Brow Wiz is much much thinner and very precise. I think that it gives the brows a more arched appearance because you can get in between the brow hairs very easily.  The Perfect Brow Pencil gives a softer look because the point is much bigger but also because the texture is more of a powder/wax hybrid whereas the Brow Wiz has a very waxy feeling.  

Brunette on the left and Medium Ash on the right

The Perfect Brow Pencil is on the left and the Brow Wiz is on the right.  As you can see, Brunette is deeper and also warmer.  I find on my deep brown/black hair that the Medium Ash is actually a better match because it's ashier.  It might also be because I purchase that shade first and I'm just used to seeing my brows in that tone.  I think Brunette is a nice shade but warmer brow pencils are easier to find than cool-toned ones.  

I think the Brow Wiz is better at filling in sparse gaps because the texture clings to skin.  The Perfect Brow Pencil seems to attach easily to individual hairs, but not skin.  It's a better product for subtly giving your brows a little more "oomph" whereas you can actually draw in your brows with the Brow Wiz.  Depending on the condition of your brows and the look you want, one of these two products will really appeal to you.