Some Current Favorites - Beauty products

Okay, so I have had this post in my drafts for maybe a year.  No lie, I totally forgot about it. However, even though it's an old post, these are still the items I reach for time and time again. So maybe this post is more relevant since I've had almost a year of using and loving these products! So (finally) here are the beauty products I've been reaching for over and over the past few months year.

Clockwise from top:

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur concealer - it just blends so well and gives good coverage without caking. I have used this as a foundation substitute in a pinch when I was travelling.

Tony & Guy Wave Memorising balm - I like the way this worked.  They've discontinued it or changed it or something and I can't find it anymore (the link is to the only version I can find). I'm still partial to this one (which is also becoming impossible to find - of course).

Physicians Formula Eye Booster 2-in-1 Lash Boosting Eyeliner + Serum - this is a "holy grail" item for me, it's by far the easiest felt tip pen-type liquid eyeliner I've tried and it's long-lasting!  I've got it in the Black and Ultra-Black.  Not sure about the "lash boosting" aspect of this but that's not why I buy or use it.  The tip keeps it's shape too.

Here's an up close look at the tip.

Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil - I'm so bad at doing my brows, but I don't feel like such a brow idiot when I use this.  The shape and formula make it so easy and natural looking.

Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray - This stuff has changed my life.  Okay that's a bit dramatic, but it has totally helped with keeping my makeup in place throughout the day.  I've already used up the bottle in this picture and re-purchased. And to show how old this photo is, they've redesigned the packaging - lol!

ColourPop Super Shock Eyeshadow in "Bill" - The most beautiful matte mauve.  I've already hit pan on this and will repurchase for sure!

Here it is swatched on my hand.  It's a really lovely mauve.

Small Jewelry Tray (different patterns)

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Review - Lancome Artliner 24H Precision Eyeliner

Disclosure:  As member of theVogue Influencer Network, I was sent products for purpose of review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was super excited when I found out I was being sent Lancome's Artliner 24H Precision Eyeliner to try out.  I mean who doesn't love trying out a new liquid liner (this one is my gold standard) and who doesn't want to achieve that perfect winged eye?  Here's what the wand looks like.

The tip is sturdy, not a soft brush, but not hard plastic either. What I did notice when I first tried it out, was that the tip was really good at giving different line thicknesses.  Though it does require a bit of practice to get that perfect line.  The other thing you notice is that the formula has kind of an eggshell (to use a paint term) finish to it - see top right picture below. It's not glossy, but it's not matte either.  It dries really quickly too so you have to work fast.

The one really cool thing about this formula is that it just does not budge. See the bottom left picture above, I had just run water from the faucet over the liner marks on my hand and it didn't run, bleed, or wash off.  However, right after I took the picture if wiped my hand off on a towel and the liner just rubbed right off without a trace.  I wore it for a few days and I was impressed at the staying power, it was pretty easy to get off with eye makeup remover wipes. The black is a little dramatic for everyday (I actually prefer a brown liquid liner for everyday wear), however this would be perfection for an evening/more dramatic eye.  It comes in 10 shades, so you have a lot of options.  

If you are looking for a long-wearing liquid liner and are a bit more advanced with your liquid liner application technique then this may just be the formula for you.  If you are a liquid liner newbie, this may be a bit daunting (since you have to work quickly).   

Thanks to the Vogue Influencer Network and Lancome for this opportunity!

Happy Monday!

Hope everyone had a great weekend! I've been on the road for work and for fun since last Wednesday. So today I'm playing catch up. The best part was that I got to see my bestie for the first time in almost 2 years! She just moved into the most gorgeous house in the NC mountains.   Here is a picture of the view from her back deck yesterday morning.  Breathtaking, right?

I went up to help her paint her youngest son's bedroom (he wasn't on board with the existing pink walls). We painted (and laughed) for 2 straight days and ended up with a lovely sage green room! He is now one happy 4 year old!  Oh and a side note, she made me watch the movie Black Swan, which was made in the land of suck.  Seriously what a pointless dredge.  I just kept pointing out that the best part of the movie was the fact that both Spock and Luke Skywalker's mothers were in the film.  Because everything eventually comes back to Star Wars and Star Trek.  Oh and I kept yelling "Where's Bette Midler?" every time Barbara Hershey was on the screen.  I hope they made her look bad in the movie, because otherwise she's had some bad plastic surgery, Bless her heart.

I also bought some of Garnier's B.B. Cream this morning.  I came home and put some on and it's pretty good.  I usually use Olay's Total Effects Tone Correcting UV moisturizer - which is awesome, but at $23 I wanted to see if there was a more affordable option out there.  The B.B. Cream ($12) is thicker and a bit more tacky to the touch than the Olay, but it gives comparable coverage.  I'm not in love with the smell of it, it's a strong sort of fruity/floral.  I'll give it a few more days and figure it out.

Have a great week!

Love This! - Clinique Black Honey

I'm a little late to the Black Honey party (like 15+ years late), but better late than never!  I just bought a tube of this last week (thank you Sephora Christmas gift card) and I'm all in.  It is gorgeous, it glides right on and adds just enough color to make you feel "finished", even on days when you don't/can't do the full makeup routine.  I love it!  And Clinique is adding a whole array of new "Honey" colors soon, can't wait to give those a try too. 

*No, Clinique didn't pay me to say this, though if they want to float some of those new colors my way, I wouldn't turn them down - lol!

Image via Clinique.com

Completely extravagant

This beautiful mirror compact from Kenneth Jay Lane adorned with faux coral, turquoise and rhinestones. Boy, I would love to have this to touch up my makeup...

Image via Zitomer