February 2012 Favorites

I'm afraid I'm going to have to make this short and sweet, or in the case of one of my favorites, Spicy & Sweet.
(ha. ha.)

Lorac Multiplex 3D Lip Gloss in 3D and 4D $22 each (so much Zazzz! Sticky kiss-repellant, but so pretty <3) on my lips here, here, here, and here.

Physicians Formula Happy Booster Blush in Natural $11 (a go-to when I don't want to deal with more-pigmented peachy blushers. Lovely scent and obviously adorable!)

Hard Candy Fox in a Box Blush in Spicy & Sweet $6 (surprisingly natural flush)

Benefit Hervana $28 (I have to pick up TONS of product to get this to show, but it gives a fittingly angelic flush to cheeks when it finally does... and of course it smells heavenly, too!)

Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment $13.50 for 1oz. size (not pictured) (controlled my frizzies, no smell really, didn't flake like other stylers, didn't make me break out, and I managed to finish up the 1oz. size!)

Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer $17 (non-silicone feel for the most part, and makes my L'oreal Magic Smooth Souffle Foundation hang around until the work bell rings)

Adventure Time (with Finn and Jake)
I couldn't get enough this month. It might have left me poo-brained, but I watched it non-stop!

Not my property - got this screen cap off Wikipedia

Spring 2012 Wish List

Images from British Beauty Blogger, Fruitylashes.com, and Musingsofamuse.com. Created with Polyvore. Products from Paul & Joe Beaute, Dior, Givenchy, and Benefit.

Are you guys starting your 2012 Wish List already like me?

FOTD: Maybe Roxy will Return Stila's Love

Elated Friday to all! Monday is my "Company Holiday" so I have a long weekend! So stoked <3
Here's my Round 2 FOTD with the Stila loves Roxy Palette. I think I knocked it out, what say you?

That's my car in the background, oops!

 Face: Origins Vitazing, Boscia BB Cream applied with a Beauty Blender, E.L.F. Personal Blend Mineral Foundation in Light applied as powder, Rimmel Stay Matte in 001 Transparent patted on top.

 Cheeks: NYC Matte Bronzer in Sunny to contour, Stila loves Roxy Gold Coast on apples of cheeks, Stila loves Roxy Swim lightly dusted on top of cheekbones.

My skin is sooo bad. PMS breakouts abound.  I don't currently own a full-coverage foundation, so I like to layer light-weight formulas to keep it comfortable.  It also helps the light formulations last on my oily skin.

 Eye Method: I applied TFSI, followed by "beach" on the inner corner of the eye and just beneath eyebrows.  Next, I dusted "bronzed" on the inner 1/2 eyelid up to the crease.  In the inner crease I applied "bikini" in a swishing motion.  On the outer lid, outer crease, and outer 1/3 of lower lashes I packed on "water." The waterline and outer half of the upper eyelid were given a bit of smudgey Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Oil Slick (black with silver glitter).  The line was kept as thin and close to lashes as possible on the inner half of my upper eyelid.  Lastly, I curled my lashes and applied a couple coats of Benefit BADgal black mascara on top and Clinique Bottom Lash mascara on the bottom lashes. Garnier Tinted Eye Roller is diminishing under-eye circles and puffiness.

Clockwise from Right: E.L.F. Studio Contour Brush (thanks to Stephanie C. for her review!), MAC Lustre lipstick in Lush Amber (a sheer beige nude), Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Oil Slick, Stila loves Roxy palette, Too Faced Shadow Insurance (TFSI), Benefit BADgal lash mascara in black, Clinique Bottom Lash mascara in black, Jill Stuart Mirror

Pink Chocolate Eyes with Almay

Good morning! I felt like doing an EOTD with this trio of Almay eyeshadows because I have a soft spot for pink chocolate looks, even though they're sort of neutral (you know my #1 love is color!). The trio is for hazel eyes but I think it would be nice on any eye color and easy to wear to an office or school:

Sorry my eyes are a little tired-looking because it's early in the morning!

Almay intense i-color trio for hazels 003 $8.49, ecotools blending brush (part of an Alicia Silverstone set), MAC Bare Study Paint Pot, Urban Decay Primer Potion (mini I got with BOSIII, I think?), Benefit BADgal brown mascara, Rimmel Exaggerate Waterproof Eye Definer in 211 Sable (sorry I only know the price I paid for the Almay trio because I bought another one last night to save for a future giveaway ~_^ )

Perfume Collection

The weekend is so close, I can smell it!  Or maybe that's just my DKNY Pure?  I don't know what a 'normal' number of perfumes to have in rotation at any given time is, but my current collection is the largest I've ever had:

Victoria's Secret Love Spell Fragrance Mist (freebie), Parlez-Moi d'Amour by John Galliano (was this ever released in the U.S.? I ordered it off eBay from the U.K.), Dior Miss Dior Cherie, Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Hair Mist, Harajuku Lovers Super G, Harajuku Lovers Mermaid G, Benefit So Hooked on Carmella (full size and mini), Benefit Ring My Bella, Versace Bright Crystal mini, Paco Rabanne Lady Million mini, pureDKNY mini rollerball, Stila Creme Bouquet rollerball, Mary Kay Exotic Passionfruit (gift from parents-in-law)

Harajuku Lovers Wicked Style Collection Love, Angel, Music, Baby, and G

Do you have any of these?  Victoria's Secret Love Spell is cloyingly peachy, and Parlez-Moi d'Amour is cloyingly blueberry-y.  I have to be careful with these because it's easy to go overboard and then I just feel nauseous!  Ring My Bella is a lightly-floral grapefruit scent to me. Super G is also strongly fruity, but fades quickly. I just love fresh and fruity scents like these!  I didn't like Creme Bouquet by Stila originally, but it has grown on me a lot.
I think my favorite of the bunch is a tie... Mermaid G is long-lasting, subtle and clean.  So Hooked On Carmella is my other fave because it is sweet but not overly so, and just a little sexy.  My husband likes it a lot! 

He also loved when I wore Guerlain Insolence (I went through TWO 1 oz. bottles in a year! There were too many other fragrances I wanted to try at the time, including the original lineup of Harajuku Lovers Fragrances -I love original G and Angel- so I haven't re-purchased yet, but I'd love to go back to its young, fresh, raspberry goodness!)  The other perfumes on my wishlist currently are Harajuku Lovers Jingle G (of course), and Burberry Brit Sheer (smells amazing, I just can't justify buying it while I own all of the above!). 

What perfumes are in your current rotation?  What past loves are you longing to buy again?  And what new scents are on your wish list?

Ulta and Pacsun Micro-haul

Today I went shopping for a short time with DH, and I thought I'd share my tiny haul with you guys because I only spent $17.99, total, including tax! I had Ulta rewards to cash in :)

Benefit So Hooked on Carmella, Macadamia Oil, Maybelline Colorsensational Lipsticks in Pink & Proper, Warm Me Up, and Born With It

The perfume was suggested by The Persian Babe from youtube, and it's so sweet and vanilla-y.  Definitely have to like foodie scents to like this one.  I have a miniature of this same scent I'm currently using, but I got this full-size free with the Ulta rewards.  I'm enjoying my sample of Ojon Damage Reverse Instant Restorative Hair Serum, but I have such short hair and I don't really want to spend a lot of money on styling products.  Why not try this Macadamia Oil for free with Ulta rewards?  Then, I had a $5 off $10 coupon I used on buy-2-get-1 free Maybelline lipsticks.  Born With It is just a back-up, but I thought Warm Me Up looked like a good MLBB nude candidate and various gurus have professed a love for Pink & Proper, so I checked nobody had made a tester out of them and snatched 'em up.

I had wanted floral-print shorts all summer, but I tend to wear dresses more often.  At $7, it was definitely time to indulge.

Do any shopping this weekend? 

REVEW: Cha Cha Tint by Benefit didn't make me dance

Full disclosure: I do not like Benetint, nor do I like Posietint. Can somebody please tell me why these quick-setting cheek and lip stains are so popular?  They stain my fingers (only the first offense and, like all the crimes these tints commit, it's a lot of little annoying problems that add up to dissatisfaction for me).  The fact that you have to apply many coats to get them to show up is the answer to their superglue-like quick-drying effect, but I think it's a lame answer.  Anyhow, I purchased them all with my own money over the years, and I had hopes for Cha Cha Tint to be a little improved, as the buzz around the internet makeup community suggested. Unfortunately for me, I didn't really see any improvement over the other tints' issues.

Regular brushstroke, dabbed and blended

Can you see the darker stain spot in the center of the blended swatch?  That's what happened to my cheeks.  Fortunately I was able to blend it up a bit with another application, but what's with the instant staining of a product you MUST blend out?  This was even worse on my lips, which wound up a lovely but BLOTCHY coral color.  While the blotchy staining lasted hours on my cheeks, it still managed to wear off my lips after a scone and coffee, to my surprise.  I had such high hopes for this because I am a coral lover, but these Benefit stains are just not user-friendly enough for me.  

I don't want to totally hate on this because obviously people love these tints, so here are the positives and negatives:
Positives: lovely color, long-lasting on even oily skin, did not sink into or emphasize pores with proper base makeup underneath
Negatives: tricky to blend quickly enough, doesn't stick around on lips through meals snacks, brings out natural ruddiness and blemishes

Sadly, this ends up in the Nonono Box-of-Shame with my Benetint and Posietint.

For the record, though, I LOVE Benefit Girl Meets Pearl and all their boxed powders, so please don't think I'm hating on the brand.
Any tips to make these stains work would be greatly appreciated!

Benefit Tints: Add a nice flush if you live in a blurry and poorly lit dimension!