5 Recent Faves

Lately, I've been feeling like I have my beauty routine down pat. My makeup consists of products I trust, and reach for again and again. Here are a few of my favorite products of the moment that has made my life just that much easier in the past few months.

1. CoverGirl Flamed Out Mega Curl Mascara* - My new favorite mascara. It does everything a mascara should in my book - separates my lashes, thickens them, and curls them. The mascara stays on my lashes until I take it off at night, and its formula is really black! A+!

2. Almay Soothing & De-Puffing Gentle Eye Makeup Remover Pads* - There's nothing I hate more than having to rub my eyes with a remover in order to get all my makeup off. I don't want wrinkles! These Almay makeup remover pads are amazing! They don't pull at your lids when you're removing your makeup, just place them gently on your lids, and wipe the makeup away. It's that easy, and it removes every trace of makeup with ease. On top of this, they truly are soothing. My eyes are quite sensitive to makeup remove and this didn't irritate them at all! I'll definitely be repurchasing these!

3. NARS Laguna Bronzer - For a while, I wasn't wearing much bronzer. It's quite silly because it's the dead of winter and I'm pale as a ghost! But recently, I've rediscovered how much I love my NARS Laguna bronzer. It's the perfect color of bronzer for my skintone, and it blends beautifully. Plus, it gives me sculpted cheekbones - I just add a little bit of pink blush and I feel ready to face the day!

4. Estee Lauder Pure Color Crystal Lipstick in Crystal Baby - There has never been an easier lipstick for me to wear. This. goes. with. everything. Smokey eye? Perfect. No makeup-look? Even better. The creamy formula is moisturizing and the nude pink shade is absolutely gorgeous. There's a reason this baby is usually sold out at the Estee Lauder counter!

5. Clinique Superfine Liner for Brows - My absolute favorite brow product EVER. I recently ran out of my Anastasia Brow Whiz and was searching for a cheaper alternative. Enter this little gem in the shade Soft Brown. I have to say, I like it better in terms of formula than my trusty brow whiz because it is easier to use and more pigmented. Only downfall? It doesn't have the brow brush at the end like the Anastasia Brow Whiz. Bummer.

As always, thank you for reading!

*Disclosure: I am a #BeautyUnited blogger. As part of my affiliation with this group I receive products and special access to P&G events. The opinions on this blog are my own.

* I have received this product for consideration but my opinions are always my own. I am not being compensated for this review and I always strive to review products with honesty.

January favorites!

It's time for January favorites!

After some new additions, and products that were being reused over and over again during the month of January, I thought it would be fun to do a post on those items. Some of these haven't been reviewed yet, but they will soon!

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Curviest Caramel: The perfect on-the-go easy neutral lip. I've been wearing it a lot paired with a brown smokey eye.

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick Matte in Mauve it Over: Another slap and go lipstick. I picked this up on a whim, without much thought, and it turned out to be one of my favorite lipsticks of the month. It's matte formula doesn't always suit my dry lips, but it's really comfortable to wear, and definitely doesn't make dry lips worse. The Revlon Lustrous Matte formula is definitely worth a look if you haven't tried them yet.

Anastasia Brow Whiz in Brunette: Never thought I'd be one to love a pencil brow product, but this one is so easy to use. I also love that one side has a little brush for brushing my brows into place. It's also pretty much the perfect shade for my brow - no red tones in the pencil at all!

Hourglass Mineral Primer: Because of a few skin problems in the last month, I've been using this pretty much every day to make sure my blemishes are well covered, and stay that way.

MAC Painterly Paint Pot: I've been using this lately, in order to prime my lids and make sure eyeshadow stays in place. It's getting a bit dried up, so I'm hoping to make use out of it while it's still alive.

Laura Mercier Blush in Lush Nectarine: I reviewed this recently and spoke very positively about it - I must say my opinion hasn't change. It's an amazing blush that gives a pop of healthy color to the cheek. My dull January skin definitely needs it!

MAC Eyeshadow in Woodwinked (in the middle of the Z-Palette): This has been my quick out-the-door shadow of most of January. I didn't use to like Woodwinked that much before a few months ago, but now it's one of my favorites. There's something really pretty about having this shadow blended all over my lid and into the crease.

Guerlain Ecrin Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Fauves: I have not stopped wearing this palette since I got it a few weeks ago. It is absolutely stunning. Lucky for me, I didn't have to pay for it since I had saved up some Shoppers Optimum points for it. I think I'll keep saving em' and get Les Fumes next time. These palettes are amazing! I will review it soon.

Bourgeois Healthy Mix Foundation: As mentioned before, my skin had a bit of a break out last month. I actually traced the problem back to not having enough moisture in my skin. This Bourgeois foundation is actually my most moisturizing foundation and I feel like it's kept my skin healthy!

Shu Uemura blush in Pink 31: I picked this up on a blog sale not too long ago, and it is seriously one of my favorite blushes ever. It's so easy to put on as it's not too pigmented, but gives the most natural healthy flush. I wouldn't be surprised if this one hits pan (one day!).

Friday Favorites: Reads of the week

This Friday is just dragging on. Can it be 4:30 already? My brain is mush - I need the weekend!

I thought I'd share with you my favorite reads of the week. Some of these blogs are my long trusted sources of makeup information, others are newer blogs I've been readings and loving!

Little Red Bow shares with us her makeup storage space! I love to see how us makeup fiends store our stashes!

Wandz does one of the things she does best this week: editorial looks. These are one of my favorite posts of hers to read. She always nails the look, and makes it look so effortless on her flawless face. Love!

Jenny inspires me with her makeup looks. I can't count the amount of times that I've literally copied what I've read on her blog (cough) the next day. This one is definitely one of my favorites. Other notable looks include this and this. Stunning.

The High Life of Mars has me totally lusting after the new Clarins spring collection. That gloss needs a place in my collection!

Kelly over at A Blog of Vain Pleasures tells us about her experience with Lasik. I don't need glasses in every day life, but still found it a very interesting read!

Revlon's  Nearly Naked Foundation was reviewed this week by Amy from theprettyvain, one of my favorite bloggers lately. This is one I'll have to try!

Not technically a read, but definitely worth a mention. The Beauty Sample is having an amazing Jouer cosmetics giveaway on her blog. This has been one of my favorite blogs to read lately as well!

Rocaille shares with us an Inglot haul and makes me think that greens might not be so bad. Emerald is after all the color of the year.

Secret Life of a Pharmacy Student review's Maybelline's Color Tattoo shade in Inked in Pink. I love her review format!

And there are my favorite reads! I shall now resume to having mush brain for the rest of the day.

Have a great weekend everyone!

July favorites!

My July favorites are all over the place. I've been loving being more minimalistic with my makeup, usually leaving the house for work with a light base, brows done, blush, mascara and a balm. What has happened to me? Well, in short, the heat. Minimum effort has been my motto, but I've embraced it!

I've been using my Nuxe 24H Moisturizing Body Lotion a lot on my legs. I love that it sinks in immediately and doesn't leave a greasy residue. I also love that it has an easy to use pump, and it smells amazing. The smell is quite strong though, so I'm not wearing this to work. But this is another Nuxe winner for me!

I've been using MAC's Cremeblend blush in Posey a lot this past month, simply because I find it lasts longer on my skin than powder products, and its peachyness warms up my complexion. It is incredibly easy to use (I use a stippling brush) and doesn't slip off like some of my MAC powder blushes.

Not too sure why but I've been really enjoying my face brushes! Those include the Quo Bronzing Powder Brush, the Real Techniques Powder brush, and the MAC 129 blush brush. They are all incredibly soft, easy to clean, and do not shed. Well, let's be fair, the 129 does shed a bit, but I can live with it since it applies blush beautifully!

I've also been using my Clarins Instant Light Brush-On Perfector pretty much every day this month. Because my dark circles aren't extremely pronounced, this has been great at illuminating my under eye area, especially when I'm only wearing mascara. I've also been using my Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadow in 4E as a quick base under a lighter eye shadow, and my Maybelline Eye-Studio Master Precise Pen Eyeliner for a quick cat eye flick. I'm especially impressed with the Maybelline Eyeliner Pen for its durability on the eye during hot and humid weather and how easy it is to use. I'm definitely not buying the MAC version again - I prefer the Maybelline version by far.

For a refresher and as a toner, I've been using the Caudalie Eau de Beauté pretty much every day. I don't want to give away too much because I will be posting a review on this shortly, but it has been very good to my skin!

And lastly, for lips, I've been using L'Oreal's Color Riche Balm in Pink Satin. While this isn't pigmented at all, it was quite moisturizing and gave a hint of shimmer on the lips, perfect for home/beach uses. Clinique's Almost Lipstick in Spicy Honey has been an often used quick option for when I'm stepping out the door and need a quick wash of color on my lips.

Ouuffff... that's a lot more favorites than I thought I had! What's been on heavy rotation for you this month?