Josie Maran's Liquid Metal

These Watercolor eyeshadows from Josie Maran are gorgeous, hands down... but are they worth the splurge?  Absolutely, but it's not an I-must-have-every-shade product. They are very pigmented and long-lasting. You have to work very fast because they do set quickly - I definitely recommend doing one eye at a time. I also suggest using a primer like UD Primer Potion or NARS Eyeshadow Base (my favorites) to avoid  possible creasing.

Belated Friday Favorites

The Short Version

1. Filmstar Bronze & Glow by Charlotte Tilbury - $65
2. Bad to the Bronze Color Tattoo by Maybelline - $7 $5.24 with Ulta's Buy 1 Get 1 50% sale
3. Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo by BedHead - $22
4. Gold Cuff Bracelet from Loft - $19.50  $11.70 with current 40% off sale
5. BB Cream (combo/oily) by Garnier - $13

The Long Version

I read SO many reviews before pulling the trigger and ordering Charlotte Tilbury's Filmstar Bronze & Glow online. I stopped by a few Nordstrom's to swatch it on my skin, but none of the ones near me have CT counters yet. I've been looking for a good powder highlighter, and then it seemed like this product became popular very fast on YouTube, it was just begging to be in my collection. Nordstrom's has a good return policy so I figured if it didn't blow my socks off, then I'd just return it. It is SO luxurious! The bronzer is very subtle and so luxurious! It gives your skin that supermodel, I've-been-rolling-in-sands-of-the-Bahamas-for-a-photo-shoot warm glow. You need to have a soft hand with the highlighter but it blends beautifully and has a golden-y sheen.

When I want to look like I tried but don't like it, I reach for my Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze, no brushes needed! I apply it with my ring finger, blend it out, then dip into the pot once more and apply another layer right on the outside 1/2 of my lids.

I reach for a dry shampoo for my 2nd day hair, there's no way I can go more than 1 day without it. While there are some decent drug store options, I always pick up a few bottles of Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo whenever Ulta has them on sale for $9.99! It's the best I've tried at ungreaseballing my hair and it has a yummy scent.

I picked up this Gold Cuff Bracelet at Loft when they started their 40% off everything sale and have been wearing it at least 3 times a week since.  (Honestly, I never buy ANY accessories from Loft if it's not steeply discounted, I just don't think they carry the quality to be worth the price.)  I like how this bracelet has a substantial weight without being over the top and it's opening is small enough that I don't have to worry that it will fall off.

Since my skin as been clearing up and looking surprisingly decent, I've rediscovered by love for the Garnier BB Cream - specifically the one for combination/oily skin (even though I have dry skin). I find the formula of this one to be better. It's light, moisturizing, covers up redness/discoloration without looking like you are wearing makeup. Tip: If you ever find a foundation to be too thick or goopy, add in a bit of BB cream to thin it out. 

XoXo, Stay Beautiful.

P.S. Wedding countdown = 7 days! 

Products mentioned in this post

Filmstar Bronze & Glow by Charlotte Tilbury - $65
Bad to the Bronze Color Tattoo by Maybelline - $7 $5.24 with Ulta's Buy 1 Get 1 50% sale
Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo by BedHead - $22
Gold Cuff Bracelet from Loft - $19.50  $11.70 with current 40% off sale
BB Cream (combo/oily) by Garnier - $13

The Best Palette w/ Swatches

I have a new favorite palette! IT Cosmetics' Naturally Pretty Palette is so gorgeous that I walk into the bathroom just to open and look at it. The formula of these shadows and the colors far surpass my Naked2 and Naked3 palettes - they are just so much more buttery, beautiful, and not glittery. I picked mine up at Ulta, but I'd recommend ordering it off IT Cosmetics' website and use promo code INSIDER to get 20% off sitewide.

The website says all the shade are mattes, but I think they wear more like a satin. If you dip your brush in your color and then in the Transforming Pearl shade, it becomes more shimmery (I noticed it tends to dilute the color a bit too). I'd recommend tapping your brush into the shadows rather than swirling it, as these shadows are incredibly soft so swirling would create a lot of fallout.

A few looks I've tried so far:

Rosey Neutral Eye - Warmth (crease) + Soulful (lid) + Mocha (outer-corner) + All Heart (lower lash line)

Purple Smokey Eye - Violet (crease) + Soft Light (lid) + Iconic (outer-V + along top/bottom lash line) + Sheer Joy (brow bone + inner corner)

2-Shadow Coral - Soulful (lid) + Sunset (outer 1/2 of lid + crease)

I am yet again very please with the quality of IT's products. The one negative I have is that the outer packaging is like a soft pink suede type of material, which I can imagine is going to get and look dirty very quickly.

Spoiler Alert! On the bind of the palette it says Vol. 1, which means they are planning on coming out with at least one more! ... or it's just a cruel, cruel joke.

I definitely recommend grabbing this palette. When you do, let me know some of the looks you've created? Help me help you Be More Beautiful.

Products Mentioned in this blog:

IT Cosmetics Naturally Pretty Volume 1 Matte Luxe Transforming Eye Shadow Palette - $42  $33.60 w/ promo code INSIDER
Urban Decay Naked2 Palette - $54
Urban Decay Naked3 Palette - $54

Oops I Haul'd It Again!

I took a trip to Sephora the other day to get a new fragrance for my Fiance's birthday... and accidentally had a mini-haul for myself (thanks honey!). Disclaimer, I did have 2 products to return, so that's how I justified it to myself, I'll talk about these in another post. Here's a little preview of what jumped into my basket (minus Nick's gift because I didn't know if I'd be posting this before I had given him his gift or not):

I began at the overwhelming wall of men's fragrances, gravitating towards the ones with the coolest bottles. Nick wears Dolce & Gabbana's Light Blue everyday - which I really do like, but it has very soft, subtle notes - so I knew I wanted to get him a more "spicy" fragrance for nighttime. Here's a glimpse of the image I had in my mind:

I honed in on two fragrances, Viktor & Rolf's Spicebomb and YSL's L'Homme. While both have spicier, peppery notes, I decided on the YSL one because I felt it was a bit more of a middle ground. If Nick gets into switching up his fragrances, I would definitely like to add Spicebomb because it is so yummy! 

Foreground:  YSL L'Homme  Background: birthday card I made for him

Now onto my beauty finds, I have been looking for a nice pinky-nude lipstick for a bit now and found NARS' lipstick in Crusing and one from BITE in Retsina. The colors read similarly, but they do have different finishes, when swatched and on the lip. Retsina is more opaque with a satin finish, while the Crusing one has more of a semi-sheen/semi-gloss. Both look good with MAC's lipliner in Dervish (if you want to bring out the pink tones) or Whirl (if you want to bring out the brownish tones) and layered with MAC Nymphette gloss.

While in the NARS aisle, there was a NARS rep there giving someone a demo of the Dual Intensity eyeshadows that got me so interested I became less and less nonchalant with my eavesdropping. She showed how to use it dry to get a more subtle wash of color, and wet for a more opaque, metallic finish. I threw the Himalia color in my basket figuring with it's brownish-taupe color would work well with my everyday neutral eye looks. I wanted to be able to get the most use of out the product because it's so frickin' pricey! After using it for only a few days, I have found it to be buildable and I'm already having dreams of what shade I would like to get next. Also, she recommended using a synthetic hair brush. 

I picked up Viktor & Rolf's Flowerbomb ladies fragrance in a rollerball on my way to the checkout. It has a very sweet, floral, and addictive smell. I spontaneously grabbed a mini size Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer

to give it a try. I've heard good things about this, I'll be interested to see if it's really worth the price and can replace my Garnier BB Cream (specifically the combo-oily skin one). This may be going back if it doesn't blow me away - $20 is pricey for only 1oz of product. 

Last but not least... I was looking around at Nordstrom for the Armani counter wanting to see what all the hype is about surrounding the Luminous Silk Foundation (which I couldn't find at any department store in my mall), I was stopped in my tracks. My eyes were drawn to the Illuminating Bronzing Powder at the Bobbi Brown counter. I don't know why it is considered a bronzer, but the Antigua shade gives a beautiful rosey, glow-from-within color to the cheeks. Sephora only seems to carry 2 of the 6 shades online. To me, these are much more wearable than the much obsessed about shimmer bricks, which I find way too sparkly. I definitely recommend checking these out!!! So that wraps up my haul for this time. 

I always have this internal argument with myself when purchasing from Sephora, I LOVE swatching the products to really determine whether I like them or not. However, I also REALLY love getting the cash back from Ebates (right now Sephora is offering 8% cash back!). If you can hold back from that "I MUST HAVE THIS NOW" urge, I recommend waiting to put your order in online using Ebates - Sephora online usually offers better samples and rewards gifts as well. In fact, I recommend checking out Ebates when purchasing from any store online for available cash back and coupon codes. Who doesn't want make money for shopping?  (That's another justification I make to myself for my online shopping habits.) 

Until next time... stay beautiful!

Products mentioned in this post:

Yves Saint Laurent L'Homme (2oz) - $65

NARS Dual-Intensity eye shadow - Himalia - $29

NARS lipstick - Cruising - $26

BITE BEAUTY Luminous Creme lipstick - Retsina - $24

Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder - Antigua - $40

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer (1oz) - Nude - $20.50

Viktor & Rolf: Flowerbomb rollerball - $29

Garnier BB Cream - light - $10