Romancing the Glow

Something about this Summer has reinvigorated my love of a tan. I have been responsibly beach going on the weekends since my return from vacation and as such have had my first real summer tan in over a decade. 

As such I am starting to dread losing my color. I know a couple of months down the line I'll be loving my Snow White winter complexion with a nice dark lip but for now I'm all about holding on to what's left of my Summer glow. 

Catrice: First Impressions

 This is going to be an extraordinarily well timed post, especially for me.

While I was in Dublin with my family in the first few days of July I picked up a small selection of Catrice products because at the time they were only available across Europe. Since then (like in the last 2 weeks) they became available on the the Ulta website and in a few exclusive stores.

Let me tell you if you are a fan of good beauty on a budget this is GREAT news for you.

Look Alive

 Organic and "all natural" makeup is a tricky thing. With brands constantly on the hunt to find ways of selling customers a more green angle it's hard to know what brands that claim to be organic are legit.

RMS Beauty has long been regarded as one of the forerunners in organic and green beauty products. While this isn't necessarily a huge concern for me when it comes to beauty (I'm an equal opportunity hoarder) when you hear enough about any given product it's hard not to cave and give it a try. 

So when a little coupon code incentive surfaced for DermStore last week I went ahead and finally picked up the RMS Living Luminizer. 

Capsule|Extra Glow

Now I love me a good highlighter. All year long but especially lately and, despite my laziness in the mornings, I have been making time to add a touch of shine to my daily face.

Especially because the warmer weather has made me extra uh,,,social...which means I am extra dehydrated.

Don't drink and make up.

That Contour Thing

I don't know about you but this whole "sculpted face" contouring thing that's taking over lately has me a little confused.

Now don't get me wrong, I like a bit of shape just like anyone else. As you can clearly see my collection of products and tools for the purpose is certainly not lacking. I'm just not certain that I need a palette of shades that may or may not work for my skin or a collection of cream colors that can be mixed.

I am not a makeup artist and therefore do not need to make my contour work for all kinds of people...just me. 

So what do I reach for when I want to carve out a little space on my face?

My Blush But Better

Sometimes a product comes along that is just so basic, so pretty and so easy to use that it's place in your everyday collection is immediately secured. 

Over this past weekend I stopped at a CCO on my way home from a bachelorette party and picked up an item that has been on my list for what feels like ages.

It is just as perfect and versatile as everyone said it was and it is MAC's Mineralize Blush in Warm Soul.

The Spring Series:Cheeks

The final installment of the Spring Series!

This one is going to cover all things blush. I do love a good cheek color and nothing really says springtime like a good coral pink cheek.

These puppies run the gamut from cream to powder, pink to coral and, high end to budget so if you are looking for something to refresh your look for the impending (hopefully) warm days I should have you covered. 

A Fan-fucking-tastic Mascara (But It's Not Better Than Sex)

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara...

...Ok so the name of this mascara is such a huge load of marketing crap that I just cannot get behind. Which is really something coming from me. I am the definition of a marketing department's wet dream.

I'm all about cheeky names from the beauty industry (no matter how inappropriate I can get behind NARS 100%) but this is just kind of lame.

It's one of the reasons why I put off trying this mascara for such a long time. Despite the fact that it got positive reviews from the beauty community and rave reviews from my friends I just don't think the whole "sex sells" thing works here. 

No mascara is better than sex.

It does happen to be one really excellent mascara though.

Capsule Wardrobe| Cheeks

I love a good cheek product.
The funny thing is on really desperate beauty days (ie: I've slept until 8 and need to leave in 20 minutes.) it's one of the first things I omit.

Despite that, the impact blush creates on the face is not lost on me.

So today I thought I would cover my capsule cheek collection and include the blushed, bronzer and highlighter that i think would make the perfect lineup for a basic makeup collection.

Cream Contour

2014 was the year I really started experimenting with contouring my face. I learned pretty quickly that cream products were my friend in this arena. 

While any contour can get out of hand without careful application I think cream products just blend out better and give you a little more freedom to fix your mistakes.

Since my go-to cream contour is no longer available in the states (why Illamasqua?! Why?!) and because I wanted free shipping on my last SpaceNK order I picked up the Kevin Aucoin Candleight and Sculpting Creamy Glow Duo. I have one of the Creamy Glow blush shades (Tansoleil?) and it is a fantastic cream formula but, does it measure up to Illamasqua's Cream Pigment in Hollow?

The Every-look Blush

I may have accidentally bought myself a Chanel blush this holiday season. I say accidentally because it wasn't initially for me.

I knew I wanted a Chanel blush for my mom's stocking and really wanted to give her the cream blush formula but, when I went to Bloomingdales to find it for her they were out of the color I really wanted for her. A little disappointed and thinking I wouldn't have anymore time before the Christmas to shop I picked up the next best thing:the powder blush in the shade #68 Rose Ecrin.

Ultimately I did find the cream color I wanted for her and since my receipt for this was already gone I found myself with an new very expensive blush.

One of their bestselling shades according to the very aggressive pre-Christmas sales associate but true or not it is a welcome addition to my cheek round up.

Apples of Your Cheeks Part Deux

This is not a new beauty concept for me.

The idea of Snow White-esque pinched cheeks just make me weak at the knees. In fact looking at this I think I may have doubled up on a product here...whoops. 

In fact we're just going to make this a follow up post.

Not sorry. 

Back in September I talked all about the beauty of a windswept cheek and now I'm going to do it again. 

There is nothing quite like a healthy glow gained from rushing in out of the cold. 

Faking it, however, is way less drying and way more fun!

The first up to bat is Benefit's Bella Bomba Box Powder. This puppy is a finely milled, delicately scented watermelon shade with a hit on pinky-gold sheen running throughout. This shade is nicely pigmented but not difficult to use and looks especially good on fair cool toned cheeks.I've heard wind that the brand may be letting this one go so it might not be a bad time to look into it.

For something a little bit darker I like to reach for the Sleek Makeup Blush in the shade Flushed which true to it's name gives a nice soft flush across the cheeks. This one is a satin finish like the Bella Bomba but doesn't seem to be as gleam-y which might make it more friendly to those of you who shy away from shimmery blushes.

...and finally my repeat product is the Milani Baked Blush in Bella Rose. It is a matte finish bright magenta pink. It's terrifying if you've never tried anything quite this bright before but with a light hand and a fluffy brush this can look SO pretty and effortless. For the accessibility and the price this could be a great place to try out a product like this if you are a little hesitant.

So now that I've throughly beaten this topic to death expect a more exciting dose of beauty business tomorrow.
...but I still hope you give these a try.

Ed Note:Party Season Basics

 With the festive season fast approaching the beauty community is going to be inundated with posts and videos about the best red lips and how to force a little extra sparkle into your nights. 

Don't worry it's coming from me too.

...but first I want to talk about those Monday mornings.

The ones you were really hoping would miraculously never come. 

Well come they do and I have a few products set aside for when I really need a pick me up.

So go ahead, have one more.* I've got your morning covered.

Apples of Your Cheeks

The one kind of blush color I always come back to when the weather is cool is a bright red-toned berry shade. 

When applied lightly these give a wind bitten flush on the cheeks that is really brightening and flattering on the skin. 

The added bonus of dramatic blush colors like these is that they work on every single skin tone no matter how light or dark.

Very unusually for me two of my three favorite shades for this kind of flush are creams. I think it adds to liveliness of the shade and as this is a look I go for mostly in fall and winter I don't have to worry about the product migrating.