Spring Wish List

I have extensive wishlists on Nordstrom and Sephora, but there are some things that are on my radar that I really want for spring.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Diffused- I have heard such great things about these new powders from Hourglass. They are supposed to be universally flattering and work with different lighting schemes to give your skin the desired effect. These are probably at the top of my list of things to get.

Stila Convertible Color in Sweet Pea- I was never into cream blushes, but as my skin keeps getting drier- they have been my savior! I really love the Stila formula and colors. This new color is a deep pink/fuschia.

Lorac Baked Matte Satin Blush in Flaunt- This is the same formula as Exposed- and I LOVE this texture, finish, and lasting power. This color is a bright pink with a silvery shimmer. On my fair skin, I would need to use a light touch, but this is really beautiful.

Josie Maran Argan Cleansing Oil- While I love my Caudalie cleansing water, I wanted something else to mix in so that I didn't go through it so quickly. I got samples of the Cleansing oil and fell in love. It really melts away all of your make up and leaves your skin feeling soft and smooth- not oily or greasy at all. I was expecting to hate this, but really like it. I am going to finish up my samples and decide whether this is an absolute purchase or not. ( I have a fear that this product could be breaking me out a little bit)

Bobbi Brown BB Cream in Fair- I had a sample of this in medium, which wasn't exactly my shade, but still worked OK. I really loved this- I have 2 other BB creams that I use, but this was really amazing and think that for summer time this will be great to have.

Illamasqua Gleam Cream in Aurora- my obsession with cream blushes has transferred to my intrigue in cream highlighters. I love Illamasqua cream products, so I think this stuff will be amazing.

Illamasqua powder blush in Hussy- I am also a BIG fan of the Illamasqua powder blushes. They really are the softest and most pigmented blushes I've ever tried. This color is a perfect bright coraly pink color. Yup, I need this.

Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Cream Eyeshadow in #15- This beautiful coppery color looks really pretty against my brown eyes, although the price is steep I justify it in that no other pressed pigments have the range of colors as the Armani.

Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder- I need a setting powder for my under eyes and this one happens to brightens as well as set concealer. Right now I am setting with the Makeup Forever HD, which works OK, I find it to be a bit white and photographs HORRIBLY.

Kevyn Aucoin Creamy Glow in Liquifuschia- I am kind of loving Kevyn Aucoin at the moment and feel like I need EVERYTHING!!! I have the sculpting powder and love it, and I think this will be my next purchase in the brand.

Spring Blush Picks

My current obsession with lipstick does not compare to my love of blush, and most recently cream blush. yadda yadda yadda... hoarding, pretty, spring colors- you know the drill.

From Left to Right:
1. Lorac exposed
2. Nars deep throat
3. Stila convertible color cream blush petunia
4. Nars Gaeity
5. Sephora cream blush coral flush
6. Sephora rose petal
7. Nars cream blush enchanted
8. Stila convertible color pink
9. Laura Mercier lush nectarine
10. Nars cream blush cactus flower
11. Estee Lauder peach nuance
12. Mac Hey Sailor (limited edition)
13. Bobbi Brown pale pink
14. Illamasqua thrust
15. Benefit coralista

Spring Lip Picks

Even though there is a blizzard outside, I am going to go with the groundhog and say "bring on spring"! Winter can not end soon enough, so instead I hoard similar shades of lipsticks to wear in warm weather (my strange addiction?) I had prepared a similar series for fall/winter... but ain't nobody got time for that (sweet brown reference, yup that just happened). Clearly I will be wearing a lot of bright pinks and corals- these are some of my favorites. My obsession with lipstick is recent, I only owned about 3-4 before about 6 months ago, and now I have a deep rooted obsession/problem.

From Left to Right:
1. Dior Addict St. Tropez
2. Dior Addict Extreme Candide
3. Burberry Tea Rose
4. Burberry Nude Beige
5. YSL rouge volupte #30
6. Nars  Schiap
7. Nars Roman Holiday
8. Bobbi Brown creamy matte true pink
9. Too Faced la creme Juicy Melons
10. Tarte Glamazon Fierce
11. Makeup Forever Rouge Artist Intense #38
12. Makeup Forever Rouge Artist Intense #37
13. Mac cut a caper
14. Mac chatterbox
15. Mac lovelorn
16. Mac impassioned

January Empties 2013

January was a horrendous month full of snow, obscenely cold weather, and slight hibernation, and apparently I felt like going through a shit ton of samples. (shit ton= a whole lot) I finally organized my samples, so it is much easier to see what I have, and be able to get through them- and possibly bought my own weight in beauty products this month. Sorry not sorry.

YSL le teint touche eclat foundation in B30- So I had another sample of this, and got different results this time. 1. I find this color to be just a bit too dark for me right now, and has a bit of an orangey tint to it. 2. VERY liquidy texture, but easy to blend 3. wear was OK- lasted about 4 hours with no powder 4. clung to my dry patches like a mother!! did not look very cute. 5. The finish was OK, not as glowy as you would think. -- after this sample I was not as in love with this product. It really clung to dry patches, which I have a lot of. So, no dice.
L'occitane Precious Cream- This was a thicker cream- and I only used it at night. I maybe got 3-5 uses from this sachet, and didn't really notice any differences. The smell was nice, but unless I get more samples of it, and can give it a solid 2 weeks- I won't be picking it up.
Philosophy take a deep breath moisturizer- this had a great smell and texture (gel- like). It sunk in really well and left my skin feeling great. I think this would be a really good day-time moisturizer for summer time, and will probably be my go to.
Lancer Natural Sea Mineral Polish- OH MY GOD! I am in love! This has stolen my heart from my Laura Mercier face polish. They both have similar textures, but this has the best smell. I love that algae, ocean smell that this has ( as well as OSEA products--yumm). So at $50, I am probably going to pick this up after I finish my Laura Mercier, and luckily I have about 4 more sachets of this.
Ole Henriksen truth creme- was not blown away at all by this. The cream was thick and smelled like citrus and vanilla, which to me don't go together, it was sickly sweet. Not a fan and I didn't notice any differences in my skin, not brightening, not moisturizing, nothing.
 Givenchy Photo'perfexion in 5 Perfect Praline- again, this was one shade too dark for me and as it sat open it was oxidizing darker and darker. The first time I used it I was able to blend it and make it work- after that it was a touch of the Wonka look. This was even MORE liquidy than the touche eclat,  but did not cling to my dry spots- and left a pretty gorgeous finish. I would be interested in getting another sample from Sephora in my actual shade and see how that goes.
Rodial dragon's blood sculpting gel- I can not even put my finger on why I love this stuff so much. The smell, the texture, love it all. This is supposed to be a plumping formula, which I noticed slightly after only 3 uses. This is another expensive purchase- but its a possibility.
Laura Mercier foundation primer- I know this gets a lot of hype of being the best primer, but I honestly didn't notice that it did much of anything. I have dry skin, so I never really have a problem with foundations lasting on my skin, so I look for covering pores and fine lines, which I don't feel like this did at all. (debbie downer trumpet solo)
Sephora fond de teint eclat- another instant radiance foundation, except at a fraction of the price- and MUCH better. This had a similar texture, but didn't cling to dry spots and had a similar finish. Pretty decent foundation.
Strivectin Get Even Brightening Serum- I only got about 5 uses out of this, and it says to expect results after two weeks. So needless to say, I didn't notice anything. It sunk in quickly, wasn't very moisturizing, and didn't notice any brightening.
Stila in the light palette- I got this sample in a Sephora gift bag. I have been eyeing this in Sephora for a while, but every time that I swatch it, the pigments kind of crumble and make SUCH a mess! I know this gets really good reviews, but the powderyness scares me. The colors are really nice, but I am not sure if I should go for this or the Lorac pro palette. I am leaning more towards the Lorac. 

 ** and a  cameo from a very curious kitten paw

Flora by Gucci Body Lotion- I used this once, and the packaging of this lotion INFURIATED me. The top unscrews and you are supposed to dump the product in your hand, but the product is a thick lotion that is IMPOSSIBLE to get out. Pretty sure I bruised my hand trying to get this out. Thanks for nothing giving me this with my perfume. 

Sensodyne Pronamel- same as every other month

Lush Mint Julips Lip Scrub- This smelled like Girl Scout thin mint cookies, and that is where the compliments end. Okay the whole telling everyone to lick this off of their lips after they scrub them- eww. Licking off my dead skin? No thanks. It barely exfoliated my lips at all, the top of the container the crystals were loose, but when you get to the bottom it is super oily. Clearly it need to be mixed or something. I would never purchase this again. 

Lancome Triple Action Anti-Wrinkle Cream- this was probably the lightest weight anti wrinkle cream I have ever tried, but didn't notice any differences in my fine lines on my forehead or around my eyes. The smell was clinical, and because it has SPF 15, I used this as a day cream. It was OK, but definitely not worth the price. 

Lierac gommage sensoriel- Words can not express how much I hate this product, at least not eloquently. I got this in my Glossybox, and switched out my Laura Mercier for this- UGH! the granules were so big that it just felt like it was scratching my skin. This was supposed to be a cleanser that when water hits it, it activates a milky cleanser- well it does, and it does leave this horrible greasy film on your skin afterward. Meaning that I have to double cleanse after using this exfoliating cleanser. Nonsense. Oh, and the packaging was terrible, after I decided this was going nowhere near my face I started using it to scrub my feet, but there's definitely product left in the tube that I have no way of getting without cutting it open. Not worth it.

Clinique dramatically different moisturizing lotion- another one with a clinical smell, and there was nothing dramatic about this lotion. It was very standard, no frills, and no results. Not impressed at all. 

Ole Henriksen truth serum- I was so excited for this when I got it in my Glossybox. The smell of oranges were nice at first- got annoying towards the end. I didn't notice ANY results after using this. This was very disappointing. 

Ren micropolish cleanser- the granules were very small, so it was not an aggressive exfoliant. The smell was nice, but I didn't feel like this was an AMAZING cleanser, but it wasn't terrible.

Revlon Whipped Foundation in Buff- When I first got this, the color was WAY too light for me. It sat for a good 2 months, and I tried it again- and sure enough it had oxidized and now was a good match. The packaging is terrible. Bulky, and I have to dip my fingers into the pot to get the foundation??? The finish was OK, but it made me break out like crazy- so this is going in the garbage.
Stila stay all day waterproof mascara- this was a really good mascara if you want waterproof. It was a little difficult to get off at the end of the day. But it separated my lashes nicely, and looked nice- I don't lean towards waterproof because they are a bitch to get off.
Smashbox Photo Finish Bronzing primer- I am not even sure if they sell this anymore, and I know they have changed their packaging. But this was a decent primer, and definitely gave my skin a little color. It was nice to put on with some concealer- it evened my skin out enough for those days where I don't feel like wearing foundation. I think Clarins has a product similar to this.
Bare Minerals stroke of light- this was a pinkish eye brightener. It was OK, I honestly couldn't notice a difference.
Nars sheer glow foundation in Fiji- this was a really nice foundation- very light coverage, but left the skin looking really glowy and fresh. I have the sheer matte and can't stand it, but I would love to get this.
BCBGMAXAZRIA eau de parfum- this was a really fresh, clean scent. It wasn't too floral or too fruity- just the right, light, spring scent. Another one that got a thumbs up from the boyfriend.
Acacia Protein oil- another sample from Glossybox, this was a thick oil for your hair. It actually worked really well and noticed my dead ombre'd hair felt more nourished. I am going through numerous other hair oils right now and probably have enough for a year and a half, so this is not on my immediate radar.
Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara- this mascara was pretty good at volume and length. It didn't transfer at all on me. It didn't BLOW me away or anything, but considering that I got this at ulta on sale for 10 dollars, I think it was definitely worth it.