Guest Post

My Most-Used Makeup Products at the Moment

April 14th, 2016 by Adia Goss 28 Comments

I’m always trying new products, but I thought it would be fun to share what have been my most-used makeup products lately. For me, these are the products that “just work,” and they’re the things I reach for when I want to throw something on my face without having to give it any thought. The colors are just right, and they help me achieve my signature look — glowy skin and pinky/nude lips. 🙂

Foundations

I am a sucker for glowy, lightweight bases, and I’ve been constantly reaching for PUR Minerals HydraFluid Water Serum Foundation in Tan and NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Annapurna, which may be a tad too light for me, but it’s sheer enough that it still works.

The PUR Minerals foundation is amazing, by the way. Here are swatches and a full review. It’s available now at PUR Minerals for $39.

No brand matches my skin as well as NARS, and I love that NARS Pure Radiant has SPF 30. This was one of my first high-end foundations, and I’ve repurchased it time and again and will probably continue to do so because it’s a great everyday foundation. It’s available now at NARS Cosmetics for $44.

And, just to make sure my face is seriously glowy, I also like to use Pixi by Petra Glow Mist. It adds glow and helps my makeup last a bit longer. It’s definitely one of my favorite facial mists, and it’s available now at Target for $15.

most used makeup — L to R: Swatches of PUR Minerals HydraFluid Water Serum Foundation in Tan and NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Annapurna

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Use Double-Duty Products to Get Your Busy Booty out the Door Faster

April 14th, 2016 by Jen Clark 16 Comments

If you’re at all like me, most days you don’t even have time to find matching socks and brush your hair, let alone put on makeup, before rushing out the door. Luckily, I have a trick that may help out a little. Several of the products that you probably use when you DO have time to wear makeup can be used for more than one purpose, so they can help you cut down on the time it takes to get ready. Let me show ya!

Concealer/Eye Primer

Concealer is one of those magic products that I always keep close by because it can be used for so many different things. In this case, I’m using it to conceal underneath my eyes and to prime my eyelids for eyeshadow. To cut down on time even further, you can even use it to conceal problem areas instead of using foundation.

One of my favorites at the moment is Revlon Colorstay Concealer.

When using concealer as an eye primer, make sure you only use a tiny amount, and blend it in really well. If you glob it on, that’ll make your shadows crease and move around, and that’s not what you want! Not only is the concealer going to make your shadows look more vibrant and last longer, but it will help to even out any little veins that you have peeking through your lids.

Contour Kit/Eyeshadow

This is a trick I like to use even when I’m not in a hurry, and it’s also great for travel.

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The Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo 24HR Concentrated Crayons: An Amazing Drugstore Find

April 14th, 2016 by Adia Goss 33 Comments

I’ve talked about how much I love eyeshadow sticks, so I was already primed and ready to like these Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo 24HR Concentrated Crayons.

I was not, however, expecting to LOVE ❤ them!

Here’s just a quick look at all 10 of these incredibly smooth and crazy pigmented eyeshadow sticks. Plus, they have major staying power. The packaging says up to 24 hours…but I didn’t test them for that long. Suffice to say, they last a full workday with no fading at all. I am so impressed with these shadows that I won’t be disrespectful and say that they’re only “good for a drugstore brand.” They’re just awesome period, and the icing on the cake is that you can get them at Target for $6 each.

Since there are 10 shades in the line, I broke them down by color family.

The pinks and purples…

maybelline eye studio color tattoo 24 hr concentrated crayon — Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo 24HR Concentrated Crayons in Pink Parfait, Lilac Lust and Lavish Lavender

As you can see, these are very sparkly, but still very pigmented. I find Pink Parfait to be very similar to Pink Pearl by Boots No. 7, and Lilac Lust and Lavish Lavender seem more unique to me, especially among the world of eyeshadow sticks.

Of this group, my favorite is Lilac Lust.

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Beauty on the Go: My Minimal 7-Product Face

April 13th, 2016 by Anna Oh 36 Comments

My Minimal Face Beauty Bag — My “Minimal Face” Beauty Bag

When it comes to beauty…and really anything…there’s nothing very “minimal” about me. I either go all the way, or not at all! When I’m shopping with my girlfriends, I’ll usually only leave the store with an iced coffee. But, I’m also that same person who will use my entire budget for one amazing jacket or shoe that “represents everything I believe in.” (Yes, I do say this every time I buy something, haha! I’m a very passionate shopper.)

So when I had to pack up my home and move within the week, you can bet I used the least amount of products possible. I grabbed my glasses and a few old and new favorites before getting to work! I even opted out of foundation because I knew I’d be sweating and wearing glasses, and nothing good comes out of that!

A little glow

Pixi Book of Beauty "Minimal Makeup" No-Makeup Makeup — Pixi Book of Beauty in Minimal Makeup

The main face product I grabbed, was the Pixi Book of Beauty in Minimal Makeup ($24), new for spring 2016. The size was perfect, and since I wasn’t adding much else to my face, I only needed a few colors that I could dust on quickly with a large brush.

Lately, I have been all about Pixi, and these Beauty Books have come in very handy.

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Nail Understated Poolside Elegance With the Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess Collection for Summer 2016

April 13th, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 17 Comments

Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Summer 2016 — Wearing Estée Lauder Gelée Bronzer under my foundation, Summer Glow Multi-Palette on eyes and cheeks, and Lip and Cheek Summer Glow in Peach Glow on lips and cheeks.

For a makeup lover like myself, there is no more exciting sign of ☀ summer’s impending arrival than the annual appearance of Estée Lauder’s glowing, beachy Bronze Goddess collection and its effortlessly radiant sunlit nudes and bold brights.

This year’s release, which ranges from bonzing gels and powder bronzers to shadow palettes, fragrances and highlighters, has some seriously vintage poolside vibes, and I am loving it! ☺

Throw on your shimmering body oil, floppy hat and vintage sunglasses, and let’s take a look at some of the collection’s sumptuous summer treasures.

Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess 2016 Gelée Bronzer, Summer Glow Multi-Palette, and Lip and Cheek Summer Glow in Fuchsia Lights, Peach Glow

For me and many of the makeup lovers I know, it’s the highlight and bronzing palettes launched with the Bronze Goddess collections that set our hearts aflutter.

The classicly chic Summer Glow Multi-Palette ($50) comes in a tortoise-shell box and houses a soft pink illuminator, a rosy hued blush and an approachable bronzer. Although it was surely designed with faces in mind, it’s worth noting that the shades also work wonders on eyes as well (particularly the highlighter and bronzer). What a way to tie your look together when you’re in a hurry. ☺

The Gelée Bronzer ($32) has an interesting formula that reminds me of Hard Candy Cheeky Tint in Surfer Babe, except that Surfer Babe applies a transparent wash of iced tea color, while Gelée Bronzer deposits a highly pigmented shade a bit more like a liquified form of a powder bronzer.

Emollient and easy to blend, this bronzer gives you a long “working time” before it sets, but BEWARE! A little goes a long way, which you can see in these swatches.

I prefer to use products like Gelée Bronzer under my foundation to allow the slightest glow to show through; this in turn neutralizes some of the orangey-ness that often accompanies pigmented liquid bronzers.

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I Haven’t Used My Acne Medication in Four Weeks: Here’s What I’ve Been Using Instead

April 13th, 2016 by Marcella Yakalis 24 Comments

boots-no7-skincare-regimen — From L-R: Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Facial Oil, Protect and Perfect Day/Night Cream, Protect and Perfect Intense Eye Cream, and Youthful Eye Serum

If you’ve been reading my posts here, you know that I’ve really struggled with adult acne, and especially with being comfortable in my own skin. Recently with my dermatologist prescribed medications, I finally felt that I had found a routine that worked for me, but the products often left my skin dry, red and, at times, very itchy. Sometimes, after using these medications, applying different products and makeup on my skin would also cause irritations.

Then I found the Boots No7 Protect and Perfect and Boots No7 Youthful lines, and now I think I’ve finally figured out exactly what my skin’s problem is.

It’s moisture. I actually need more of it.

I was a little wary of all of the moisture in these products. After all, I can be sort of an oil slick, and I’m always afraid of waking up in the morning to discover that the products I applied the night before haven’t sunk into my skin, and now I have a giant grease face.

But these products didn’t just work well; they actually improved my skin over time. On the packaging they promise better looking skin in four weeks, so that’s how much time I gave them.

Let’s start with the Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Facial Oil. This is the product I start with every night before bed, applying it to a freshly washed and cleansed face.

boots-no7-youthful-replenishing-oil — Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Oil ($22.99 for 1 oz.)

Ingredients
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Rosa Moschata Seed Oil, Isostearyl Isostearate, Alcohol Denat,. Tocopheryl Acetate, Parfum (Fragrance), Isopropyl Myristate, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Salicyloyl Phytosphingosine, Tocopherol

This non-greasy blend of jojoba and rosehip seed oils sinks into my skin in but a moment. I usually concentrate it around the areas where I’m driest and red, like the apples of my cheeks; the sides of my nose, where I have some broken capillaries; and the areas on my chin where I have some acne scarring.

There’s also a little warning on the back that literally says, “May make surfaces slippery,” and they aren’t kidding. The bottle is glass, and I almost dropped it on my bathroom floor several times. In spite of that fact, though, it makes a wonderful precursor to…

protect-perfect-night-day-cream — T-B: Boots No7 Protect and Perfect Night and Day Cream ($22.99, 1.6 oz.)

The Boots No7 Protect and Perfect Night Cream, which is my follow-up to the Replenishing Oil. It blends in seamlessly, and has a clean scent that doesn’t irritate my skin. As far as the Day Cream goes, I wasn’t sure how it would work out, but I was pleasantly surprised. Most of the time when I use moisturizers with SPF, they tend to clump up when I try to put makeup on top of them, but that isn’t the case here. It dries nice and matte.

Night cream ingredients
Aqua (Water, Eau), Glycerin, PPG-15 Stearyl Ether, Sorbitan Stearate, Demethicone, Butrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter, Beurre De Karite), Ethylhexyl Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Polyacrylamide, C13-14 Acid Glycol Ester, Dimethiconol, Butylene Glycol, Parfum (Fragrance), Sucrose Cocoate, Methlparaben, Carbomer, Laureth-7, Ethylparaben, Dipropylene Glycol, Retinyl Palmitate, Xantham Gum, Ascorbyl Gluoside, Tetrasodium EDTA, Potassium Hydroxide, Lupinus Albus Seed Extract, Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol, Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract, Polysorbate 20, Gingko Biloba Leaf Extratc, BHT, Tocopherol, Butylparaben, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Silica, Propylparaben, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Day cream ingredients
Avobenzone (3.0%), Octinoxate (6.0%), Octisalate (2.5%), Aqua (Water),Glycerin,C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate,Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter,Dimethicone,Isononyl Isononanoate,Cetearyl Alcohol,C18-36 Acid Glycol Ester,Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Phenoxyethanol, Polyacrylamide,Sorbitan Stearate,Mica,Polysorbate 20,Alcohol Denat.,C13-14 Isoparaffin, Dimethiconol, Butylene Glycol,Methylparaben,Potassium Cetyl Phosphate,Ethylparaben,Parfum (Fragrance), Laureth-7, Retinyl Palmitate,Sucrose Cocoate, Dipropylene Glycol,Xanthan Gum,Ascorbyl Glucoside,Tetrasodium EDTA,Citric Acid,Lupinus Albus Seed Extract,Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol, Carbomer,Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract,Potassium Hydroxide,Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, BHT, Tocopherol, Butylparaben, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Propylparaben, Isobutylparaben,Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7,Cl 77891 (Titanium Dioxide).

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What’s in My (Very Streamlined) Travel Makeup Bag

April 12th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 24 Comments

Picture a 19th-century noblewoman waiting to board a steamer bound for faraway lands.

Can you see her? Standing there on the dock surrounded by wardrobe trunks and chest cases containing all of her earthly possessions?

You can?

Awesome. Because she looks exactly like I did up until a few years ago whenever I traveled anywhere. 🙂

Yep! I used to pack sooo much stuff, “just in case,” but those “cases” rarely happened, and I’d usually come home with half of the things I brought still untouched.

Thankfully, possibly because I discovered the joy of traveling with only my carry-on bag, I’ve finally learnt how to streamline and pack the bare minimum.

Travel Makeup Bag — The things in my (very streamlined) travel makeup bag

Case in point: I just spent a few days in Edinburgh, Scotland, and only brought along a minimal makeup stash (at least by a beauty lover’s standard).

I knew I wouldn’t want to waste the little time I’d have to explore the city on my weekend away doing my makeup, so I streamlined my beauty arsenal.

Edinburgh Castle Scotland — Hello from Edinburgh Castle! 🙂

Would you like to have a look inside my travel makeup bag?

Foundation: Chanel Perfection Lumière Velvet

With its matte yet luminous finish, I ❤ Chanel Perfection Lumière Velvet foundation every day of the year, but its plastic packaging makes it especially convenient for traveling.

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Let’s Chat! What’s Your Makeup Comfort Zone?

April 12th, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 46 Comments

Call me crazy, but I have a habit of thinking about habits.

Is that weird? Like, I notice things about myself, and then I spend a fair amount of time pondering whether it’s just me, or whether everyone else has the same quirks, and because I have a job that involves a lot of long-term quiet focus, my mind inevitably wanders…

“Am I the only one who does [INSERT QUIRK HERE]?” Or, “I wonder how she feels about [INSERT PONDERABLE TOPIC HERE]?” Or, “Why would the writers of The Walking Dead play with my emotions like that?!”

Of course, because I totally adore makeup, I most often find myself thinking about what’s hot now, or how we wear what we wear, or why we wear what we wear. For instance, where do the trends come from?? It’s sort of a chicken/egg situation, right? Because I think you could argue that sometimes the trends come directly from cosmetics companies (color correcting), and sometimes they come from us (strobing).

Anyway…now that I’m here helping Karen (and Tabs, who’s a real taskmaster, BTW!) on Makeup and Beauty Blog, I want to chat with you about something that’s been rolling around in my noggin.

Here’s my question: What’s your “beauty comfort zone,” so to speak, when it comes to lipstick colors?

My makeup comfort zone is pretty big where lipstick is concerned!

And I don’t just mean traditional lipstick. I’m also talking gloss, glitter, liquid lipstick (because it seems like errbody is talking about liquid lipstick right now) — you name it.

MAC x Halsey, that masterpiece of a grey lipstick, got me on this subject, because as wearable as it is for a grey lipstick, my brain automatically said, “Nope, that is not something you can wear everyday.”

Later after I thought about it some more, I wondered…why? Where was the girl who at 15 decided “I’m going to wear bright red lipstick to high school!” and did it fearlessly (despite the whispers in the hallway)?

Where was the girl who decided that bright purple lipstick was totally okay in the office on a Tuesday, just because?

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