Here's the first wave and naturally, I cheated a little bit 'coz there aren't exactly only 10 items. Some tied with others. If you notice I entitled this post "Personal Makeup Picks" meaning these are the items I use the most for myself. I'm still contemplating whether I should do a "Pro Makeup Picks" list in addition to my "Bath, Body, and Skincare Picks". Let me know in the Disqus comments if you'd like me to put up a pro list as well.
There are one or two items that tied off in the process because either I wanted to mention a cheaper alternative that I use just as much or they address the same facial feature but just in a different color. If you factor in optional substitution it generally is my top 10 line up for last year. They're not ranked according to number, each are what I feel are the best for me in the purpose they serve. Click Read More to see the full post, my top 10 makeup lineup with my thoughts.
This Bobbi Brown Skin Weightless powder foundation comes in 20 shades and it hasn't left my handbag since I began using it. Apologies to those who have been requesting that I reveal this product but yes I still have to do an individual review for it. It's the lightest, matte 2-way (meaning it can be applied with a damp sponge or dry) powder foundation I've ever used which visually merges with skin as the day wears on. I like that I can put a full-on face for the evening using the damp method which gives you more coverage and then bring the compact and retouch my T-zone using the dry method with a brush later on. On most days I don't even put on the tinted moisturizer, I put concealer on target areas then dust this powder in the center of my face over redness and around my mouth. It will look like powder when you first apply it but once your face starts doing its "thing" throughout the day the powder melts beautifully into the skin then the compliments keep coming "What are you wearing, is it a liquid foundation?", that takes at least about an hour from application and the face never looks flat with this on. My mom got one of these, too.
I dub this the eye-bags buster with no shimmer. You're looking at my 2nd empty pen of this stuff, all the silver lettering on it has rubbed off from steady use. This semi light-reflective pen concealer with a proper amount of coverage works wonders over my dark circles. It works the same way the famous YSL Touche Eclat is supposed to but less as a highlighter and more as a concealer. I once had a senior lady client at a wedding ask me what I popped under her eyes because so far ever she claimed it was the only thing she's seen that helped mask her dark circles or at least give the illusion they didn't exist. This is also a Lisa Eldridge kit staple so it's been given that world-class stamp of approval. What sucks is locally they only carry my shade, hello?!! So when I want to use it on clients with deeper skin I need to mix it with dark foundation on the back of my hand. In Sephora Times Square in NYC there were 4 shades including a really dark one (which I should have grabbed). Clinique team, please bring naman at least one more shade in for deeper skin please.
"All That Glitters" by MAC Cosmetics is a beautiful pink tinted champagne Veluxe Pearl eye shadow with a subtle gold undertone. On the lids it looks like a bare-but-there wash of satin and ironically it isn't "glittery" as the name suggests. There are no solid chunks of glitter in this, just sophisticated shimmer. As you can see I've loved this one through to the bottom so far, it stays in my personal pouch and I often in a dash just use my ring finger to apply this to my lids, no other color just this.
Obviously they're the shades that look almost the same. They both look plain in the pan but when you put them on they give you a pretty glow that's more noticeable in person.
Ellana's Peach Passion pressed mineral blush (above) is slightly more pink than Pixi's "Subtly Suntouched" bronzer but both are just gorgeous, they also work well as eyeshadow over the lids which I demonstrated at an Ellana Makeup workshop. Helen Blas, the lady blogger behind Lucky Citrine is so over the moon with this Ellana blush and how I taught her to use it. Actually teaching them to use this blush in a workshop revived my romance with this sort of shade. If you're wondering what's on my lips...that's this next product.
This is the lip shade you see me wearing in the blush photo. What I like about Cover Girl's lip crayons is they don't just supply a balmy tint, they have a satin sort of sheen as well which is so leveled up and pretty plus balmy enough to wear comfortably, they come in about 6 or 8 shades. This one, #270 is a wearable mauve beige. I've decided that for lip-color it's an official tie for the list, because this particular next lipstick made me fall for red lips all over again.
I already have a couple of staple mascara favorites that you've heard about time and time again. I also get sent a lot of new ones, but often the ones I get sent aren't waterproof and have no chance of holding a hard-earned lash curl for more than a minute. I discovered that one of the mascaras CoverGirl sent me actually works the way I want a mascara to work, in fact it's a dream. Their dual sided Bombshell mascara boasts two steps, Step 1 I imagined is supposed to lengthen lashes then Step 2 boosts volume and curl. Step 1 on its own actually was an epic fail for me, it undid my curl in less than 30 seconds and adding Step 2 on top of it didn't help. BUT...using the Step 2 Bombshell mascara alone (as you can see above)...VOILA delivered near perfect bombshell lashes and yes they're waterproof and require a bi-phase or oil based makeup remover to undo completely. CoverGirl, whatever is in that Step 2 tube you should sell it on its own...unless you already are *wink wink*. I have a sneaking suspicion it might be the formula used in CoverGirl's British brand counterpart MaxFactor's Masterpiece Waterproof mascara (Max Factor is essentially the same brand under P&G with almost the exact same products), but I would have to order a tube to find out if it is the same thing.
As you can see this Bronze Beam endless silky eye pencil by Pixi is well-loved and more than halfway gone. I've already given it a full review last August here at this link, and many people kinda noticed when I posted that time (my Tita went out and bought two, one for herself and one for a friend) because I did a brown smoky eye using only this pencil. It goes on soft and sets waterproof, but before it sets you can blend it out like an eyeshadow over your lids within 2-3 minutes.
For black waterproof pencil eyeliner I've been using this repeatedly on myself, on clients, and the DollyWink team will have to forgive me for taking so long to mention this but I really like this LineBeat automatic eyeliner of theirs. If you saw Lisa Eldridge on one of her most recent tutorials use that slim Hourglass Mechanical Eye pencil this is like a local (and most likely more affordable) version. It's so easy to start your lines around your eyes thin even if it is a pencil because it's so slim, you sort of have more control and maneuverability, you can also do a sharper more defined kitty flick since it's got a slim nib. In the same manner that the MAC automatic brow pencils are shaped for easy defining, this eyeliner is just as user friendly and is waterproof since it seems to be a gel formula. Dolly Wink products are available at select Watsons, Landmark, and Purebeauty outlets.
This one is from a holiday set I received from Laneige which I reviewed at this link, but the Water Drop Tints are a permanent line with Laneige cosmetics, they have about 8 shades in the permanent range I think. The lovely unique think about this lip and cheek stain is it's a hydrating, moisturizing stain that makes your lips feel better, unlike other stains that look great when you first apply them but might rank a zero in the upkeep department. This actually makes your lips and cheeks feel good when you apply it, it releases moisture and the color is just so lovely to blend over the skin, it looks scary bright on the applicator but makes beautiful sense once you apply it.
I know it looks awful doesn't it, sorry, hahaha it's so gamit, if you're wondering about what it used to look like click over here. I've used this on my brows for over 2 or 3 months straight before Christmas last year, probably 3-4x a week and it's still going well on the pen end and there's still a lot on the pencil end. This eyebrow duo by booming Philippine brand Happy Skin is our locally available version of Soap & Glory UK's Brow Archery duo...Google it for photos, I'm telling you it's practically the same. I like penning my brows for the day and using both sides to define a little more heavily for evening looks. The tint of this pen is a nudge warmer than any of the shades of equally lovely brow pen brand K-Palette...so it matches my hair-color a bit better.
WHEW...so we got to the end, hope you enjoyed that post. Sorry, it took awhile, I'm actually still sick while typing this, but I really wanted to share my personal makeup favorites with you guys. Is there anything in this line up that you already use?
