Product Reviewed: Anastasia Highlighting Brow Kit
Anastasia is undeniably THE go-to brow line. Founder Anastasia has been shaping the brows of celebrities for years. Her product line allows you to achieve salon-quality shaping at home. This brow kit showcases what Anastasia does best: shape/color and highlight. The brow powder trio fits all shades so you'll always look natural. (Bye-bye mismatched brows!) The highlighting trio contains silver, gold, and rose shimmer powders that will compliment any eye shadow look.
I much prefer using powder to pencil--it gives more control and precision, and also provides a more natural texture. Set this powder with a clear gel (Anastasia's Clear Brow Gel gives great hold without any crunchiness or white residue.), and you'll be set from coffee to cocktails!
The highlight powders add the perfect amount of shimmer to lift brows and brighten the eye area. Adding shimmer just under the brow will make any dramatic eye look more wearable by balancing darker shadows. Shimmer can also be applied just above the outer half of your brow, or into the inner corner of your eye, to add additional brightness.
Tip: To give brows the most natural look, use a slightly darker powder on outer half of the brow, and a slightly lighter shade to fill in the inner half. This will mimic the natural shading of brows.
Another Tip: If you're not a shimmer kind of gal, try using a lighter matte shadow under brows to create a lifted look and add lightness to avoid overly-heavy eye shadow looks.
Product Reviewed: Benefit "Hello Flawless!" Oxygen Wow Liquid Foundation
Benefit Cosmetics is the epitome of sass. From its packaging to its clever product names, Benefit is one of the most unique cosmetic lines out there. Their latest foundation is no exception. The Oxygen Wow foundation's list of benefits is even longer that its mouthful of a name. SPF 25+++ protects skin from sun damage; a vitamin, mineral, and peptide complex plumps up skin and adds radiance; and a hyaluronic complex boosts cellular respiration. These same ingredients also combat aging. It's no wonder Allure magazine named this foundation 2012's Best Brightening Foundation.
Tip: Oxygen Wow tends took look yellow/orange at first, but once you apply and blend it, the shades have a very natural tone. Don't try matching on the wrist, use the cheek or jaw to find your most true match.
Product Reviewed: Sephora Collection Outrageous Volume Mascara
Sephora's namesake product line is a go-to for affordable, quality, and on-trend products. The brand's latest mascara was fell short of my expectations. The rubber brushes short bristles are designed do douse lashes with a heavy dose of color and pumped-up volume. Unfortunately, the heavy formula overwhelms lashes leaving them looking clumpy and weighted-down. (I kid you not, when I used this mascara it was so heavy it condensed all lashes into three giant claw-like clumps.) The rubber bristles are too short to effectively comb through and separate lashes. I love the idea that the formula includes hyaluronic acid to hydrate lashes, but the uncomfortably heavy and unattractively clumpy formula make this mascara a no-go for me.
Tip: If you're looking for a volumizing mascara with a rubber brush, try Buxom's Buxom Lash. It's been a consistent best-seller and achieves all that this Sephora mascara it shooting for.
Product Reviewed: Korres Holiday 2011 Guava Indulgences Kit
I bought this kit as a Christmas treat for myself months ago. Since then, I've been enjoying Korres' luxurious natural body products. The light guava scent leaves me feeling fresh and relaxed. The scent is light enough so as to not mix with any perfume I might add. The body butter absorbs instantly and leaves skin feeling velvety soft for hours. The body wash works up to a rich lather. Both body butter and body wash last FOREVER! The Lip Butter is nice, but not life-changing. I wouldn't buy it by itself but in a kit, why not! These Korres products are all paraben, sulfate, and synthetic free. Shea butter softens, moisturizes, and rejuvenates skin. Almond, sunflower, and avocado oils provide nourishment to improve skin elasticity and smoothness. I look forward to the delicious scent and luxurious texture or Korres' body products after each and every shower!
Tip: Transform your body butter into a body shimmer by adding an illuminizer or shimmer powder into the lotion before applying. This look is especially sexy during the summer when you're showing a little extra skin.
Product Reviewed: NARS Pore Refining Primer
This is one of the most liquid-y primers I've ever tried. Not necessarily bad, just different. I liked the fact that the primer promised to address pores as well as fine lines and wrinkles. At first I was disappointed by the small bottle, but found that a little goes a very long way. I've heard relatively positive things about this primer, but myself had a reaction to it. Every time I use this primer, I break out. Not ideal. The texture isn't heavy, and the formula is fragrance free yet somehow this primer and I can't seem to get along. Luckily, I didn't fall in love with the texture so no big loss. Overall, impressions I get from clients seem to be mixed. Overall rating: Mehh....
Tip: For those with sensitive or reactive skins (prone to irritation and/or reactions), do a patch test on a small area of your face to test for sensitivity. If you want to jump right in, be sure to only try one new product at a time so as to not overwhelm your delicate skin. Additionally, by only trying one new product at a time you'll be able to quickly isolate the genesis of any problems that may arise.
Product Reviewed: Revlon ColorStay
Disclaimer: Normally I am vehemently opposed to using drugstore foundation. Why? Several reasons: 1) Less expensive formulas tend to have a lot of cheap "filler" ingredients, many of which are not good for your skin. 2) Even as someone who works with foundation on a daily basis, I find it nearly impossible to determine a good match through without a tester. 3) At drugstores, you can never be sure how long the product has been sitting on the shelf. 4) Not all drugstores have a flexible return policy, meaning you could get stuck with a few foundations you don't love before finding your match. (Even at less than $15 each, it's still a risk.) Ok, so now that I've come clean about my anti-drugstore-makeup bias, let tell you Revlon ColorStay has changed my world.
The consistency of the foundation was nice and creamy, and provided excellent coverage without being heavy. ColorStay has a natural finish, and wears well throughout the day. Flexible coverage allowed me to apply heavier in areas where I need more coverage and lighter in areas where I don't need as much help. I particularly like that Revlon has created two ColorStay formulas: one for combination/oily skin and one for normal/dry skin. I chose the oil-free formula for oily/combination skin. So far, so good in terms of breakouts (I was worried it would be comedogenic.) I must say, I owe Revlon on apology on this one--ColorStay was $15 well spent.
Tip: If you're having trouble guessing your correct color through the bottle, go for a color with neutral undertones. Unless you know you have warm or cool undertones, a neutral foundation is a safer bet.
Another tip: Make sure to wear an SPF with this foundation, as the 6 SPF it provides is negligible.
Product Reviewed: Sephora by OPI, Meet Me at the Disco
This new polish is the PERFECT glitter polish! A lot of glitter polishes are pretty stingy with the glitter, and leave nails looking relatively bare. Not this pretty little polish! Meet Me at the Disco delivers an opaque layer of sparkle in just one coat. (I used two coats in the picture, in order to even out coat and add a little extra pizzazz). Even with two coats, my at-home mani was dry in less than five minutes. After a full day of work, not even a chip. Best part is, this polish goes with everything--it has silver and iridescent flecks so it reflects a prismatic shine of all colors. Absolute bling.
Tip: Add Meet Me at the Disco to your existing by painting glitter only on your ring fingers. It's a more subtle shine, and so trendy right now!
