Friday, February 21, 2014

Beauty Products I've Been Loving

Over the past few months, I have really been trying to step out of my comfort zone when it comes to beauty products and change up the products that I use. Since my sophomore or junior year of high school, I had been using almost all of the same products and the same makeup routine. I've tried out countless products recently but here are some of my favourites!
The first thing I've been absolutely loving are the Real Techniques brushes. I watch some beauty gurus on YouTube and so many of them rave about these brushes, so when I saw some of them at Kohl's, I had to try them out. I currently have the kabuki brush, foundation brush, and my favourite, the expert face brush. These brushes are so soft and are really great to apply face makeup with. I use the kabuki brush for powder and bronzer, the foundation brush for applying concealer and powder under my eyes, and the expert face brush for my foundation. The expert face brush is especially amazing because as you apply your foundation, the brush buffs it into your skin, giving you a really smooth and natural finish. And to make the brushes even more awesome, they are really inexpensive (around $10 or less for most brushes) and you can buy them in lots of places like Kohl's, Ulta, and Walmart. I love these brushes so much and definitely plan to buy more! Next up on my "to-buy" list are the blush brush and the eye brushes!
brushes from left to right: expert face brush, kabuki brush, and foundation brush

Another product I've been using a lot are the eye shadow palettes by Wet N Wild. I had never tried this brand out until this past autumn. I think it must be a newer brand since I didn't see it in many stores until recently, but I've been really pleasantly surprised by their products. They're a really inexpensive brand, so I didn't expect much from them, but I really like a lot of their products—especially the eye shadows! They come in really nice palettes that are labelled so you know what to apply to your eyelid, crease, and browbone and the colour sets are really good. My favourite palette is called "Walking on Eggshells" and is a very neutral palette with a shimmery beige colour that goes on the eyelid. Their shadows are really pigmented and they last a long time without creasing (which is a big deal for me, since eye shadow doesn't tend to last very long on my lids!) I also have palettes in "Sweet as Candy" and "Knock on Wood" and will probably be adding more to my collection as well!
colour sets from left to right: Sweet as Candy, Walking on Eggshells, and Knock on Wood

Next, I have been wanting to try out a new foundation for a while. I had always used the same one from Covergirl, but in the winter when my skin gets paler, I found that my normal shade was too dark and the next shade lighter made me look too pasty. So I decided to try something totally new and bought L'Oréal True Match Lumi foundation. The first time I used it, I was so amazed at how great my skin looked that I found myself just staring at it in the mirror throughout the day haha! Something really cool about this foundation is that it comes in "undertones" (warm, neutral, and cool) so you can really get a shade that's perfect for you. I use the Neutral 1-2 shade. The only critique I have is that it is not oil free, so for oily-skinned people, it could make their skin look even more oily. But, I tend to have oily skin and I've found that if I use a matte powder and then reapply once or twice later in the day, it's not a problem!

Another product I hadn't branched out with in years was mascara, so I recently decided to try out something different. I have heard so many great things about Maybelline The Falsies mascara, so when I heard about Maybelline The Falsies Big Eyes, I decided to try it. I absolutely LOVE this mascara! It makes your lashes look so full and long, doesn't clump, and really does make your eyes look big! My favourite part is that it comes with separate applicators for your top lashes and your bottom lashes, so I don't need to worry about getting too much product on my bottom lashes and make them smudge. I would really really recommend this to anyone looking to try out a new mascara!

As I mentioned in my 25 Things About Me post, I am a huge fan of red lipstick. The most recent red lipsticks I have tried out have been the Rimmel Kate Moss collection. There are a ton of colours, not just reds, and they are all so gorgeous, but I especially love the red ones! I currently have shades 01 and 10. 01 has a darker tone and seems to have warmer undertones and 10 seems to have cooler undertones. If you apply this lipstick, blot it, and then reapply, it lasts for so long. There are also some really pretty coral and pink colours that I will probably try out for Spring!

In both photos, shade 01 is on the left and 10 is on the right

Next up is another product from Rimmel—their 60 Second nail polishes. I've tried a bunch of other nail polishes that claim to dry instantly, but have smudged even after an hour of drying. But this nail polish actually does dry pretty much instantly. After I apply a second coat, I let it dry for about 5 minutes and then can do literally whatever I want and don't need to worry about it smudging. I am someone that gets so impatient waiting for my nails to dry so this nail polish is so perfect for me! The nail polish lasts a while without chipping, and to make it even better, it's so cheap! Less than $3 for a bottle. The only problem is that I haven't been able to find it anywhere other than the Walmart near my school in North Carolina. I wanted to buy some for my sister while I was home in Massachusetts at Christmastime, but couldn't find it in any of the stores near my house. I'm going to have to research some more about where to buy it at home, but I think to be safe, I'll probably stock up on all the colours before I graduate this May! :)
colours from left to right: Red Steady Go, Caramel Cupcake, and Mintilicious

And last, but definitely not least are the Revlon Just Bitten Balm Stain (which I believe are now called ColorBurst Balm Stain). I actually tried this product for the first time in the summer of 2012, but I love them so much and use them almost every day, that I had to include them in this post! I have the colours Smitten, Sweetheart, and Romantic. The Smitten (magenta) and Sweetheart (bright pink) are super pigmented so I only use a light amount of those, but the Romantic (red) isn't quite as pigmented so I find that I need to apply quite a lot to get the colour dark enough for my liking. These are a balm stain, so once you apply it, you don't need to worry about it creasing in your lips at all or making them look dry, and it lasts super long. More recently, Revlon released more of these balm stains in matte and lacquer colours, so I'm definitely going to be getting more for the spring!
Colours from top to bottom: Smitten, Sweetheart, and Romantic


I hope you've enjoyed reading about some of the products that I love at the moment! Once I start buying new products for spring and summer, I will likely be posting again with some of my warm weather favourites! If you have any products that you absolutely love, please tell me about it in a comment. I love to hear recommendations on products to try :)


xo Christie

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