It’s back for its annual appearance by popular demand! Looking for a lusciously delicious body butter? Want to add another lip gloss to your collection? If you can’t get enough glam gorgeousness, check out 2012’s Beauty’s Best recommended by The Lady in Red.
Chanel Illusion D’Ombre long wear luminous eyeshadow (cream-to-powder formula) in shade 83 – Illusoire ($36)
I love trying new cosmetics. Admittedly, I have a lip gloss addiction and own just too many to count. But you know… you need that pink sparkly one, and then the less pink one over there without the sparkles, and what if you have a red moment? Sometimes I feel more magenta, or I’m in a neutral mood. This one smells like peppermint; that one tastes like strawberry. While I’d like a new sports car to match my every mood and outfit, make-up is much more affordable.
Last year I combed through the shelves of Sephora and a few other stores, and I came up with a list of my beauty favorites in 2011. It was a lot of fun. This year, I thought I’d do it all over again. The encore was partially inspired because my favorite eyeliner - tarte EmphasEYES™ Aqua-Gel Eyeliner (in both brown and black) was discontinued! How dare they! So, I was on a quest for a replacement product – and I found one – but we’ll get to that in a minute.
That said, beauty boxes became all the rage this year, and I’ve tried many for months. It’s so cool to get something in the mail that isn’t a bill and makes you beautiful! I finally settled on my favorite – ipsy’s glam bag for $10 a month delivers quality color cosmetics to my door time after time. Some products in the box are full-size, and some are sample size; brand names; and well-worth every penny.
I’m not one to really go gaga over travel size shampoos and pouches of skin cream. If I’m going to take the time to try a product, I want to really see it make a difference right away, introduce me to a new color or quality brand, and last long enough for me to try it more than once. I love to experiment with new colors and trends, too. Beyond the beauty box blog, I also tried Allure magazine’s Beauty Bar Sample Society, The Look Bag, and Beauty Army, but they just didn’t blow me away like ipsy does. I’m open to trying new box brands; but if you are new to the beauty box world, give ipsy a go first, and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
If you know me, I never go by what magazines recommend or celebs say when they pick their products. There are too many advertising dollars backing their brands. Some of these products I discovered on my own (without any compensation from companies) were included in beauty boxes; and others I found while skimming catalogues or browsing stores. No one twisted my arm to tout these. I just let temptation lead my way and lucked out with these finds.
So, without further ado, here are my favorite fashionable finds for pampering, colorizing, and beautifying yourself in 2012.
LaLicious Coconut Cream Body Butter ($25)
I’m a sucker for a great body butter. There’s one major qualification, though – it can’t sting my legs after I shave them. If it does, it promptly hits the trash. I’m not into long-lasting burning and stinging. I’m also a stickler when it comes to its scent. It can’t conflict with my perfume, and must be delicious enough to eat if you could. My fussbudget rant is not over. It also has to moisturize my skin thoroughly enough where that feeling lasts all day. But! It can’t be greasy! That said, I drift towards body creams on the thicker side, that might be a bit more costly, but to me are worth the decadence. My favorite is LaLicious Coconut Cream Body Butter. It smells like a real coconut cream pie – or a day at the beach – depending on your mindset. (I can’t stand those artificial scents that try to be something they’re not. Most vanilla scents are the worst offenders, I feel. Blech!) Anyway, LaLicious Coconut Cream Body Butter goes on thick and rich, and absorbs without rubbing it into your skin for five hours. It smells so good you might want to eat the tub for twenty-five dollars, but I don’t advise it! (Hah!) Whether you are into make-up or not, you’ll love this luxury.
Why you will like it:
- You will want to eat it – it smells THAT good.
- Anyone who gets close enough to you to smell it will want to lick you. (Well, that can be good or bad, I suppose, depending on who it is! *hee hee*)
- Your skin stays moisturized all day
- Doesn’t sting your legs after shaving
Next….
Chanel Illusion D’Ombre long wear luminous eyeshadow (cream-to-powder formula) in shade 83 – Illusoire ($36)
Chanel Illusion D’Ombre long wear luminous eyeshadow (cream-to-powder formula) in shade 83 – Illusoire sells for $36 - but is such a go-to color with the perfect blendable formula, it’s worth every penny. I saw this on a vlog. The gal sporting the color blended it effortlessly on her lids and didn’t even need other contouring and contrasting colors to accentuate how beautiful this eye shadow really is. The shade is a mix of grey, charcoal, smoky purple and a touch of brown. If you wear it with complementary colors, you can make it work with neutrals, violets, browns, or blacks. It has a light, whipped texture that is not powdery, yet not puddly. I can’t compare it to anything I’ve felt before. Let’s just say it’s a space age formula that is a bit spongy when you pat your fingertip on it.
Illusoire is very blendable with your finger tips, and for more precise application it comes with a small eyeliner brush, which you can use for contouring the shape of your eyes or lining your lids. There’s a bit of sparkle to this shade, but not too much mica, so you can definitely sport this for a daytime look. I like using it as an accent color in the outer corner of my eye, blending in towards the center; but it looks equally stunning on the eyelid when you only want to apply one color to add some drama and dimension.
Why you will like it:
- It doesn’t gunk up when you apply it over (or with) other powder eye shadows.
- It’s not too sparkly, and you won’t look like a disco ball when you leave the house.
- It goes with everything – from charcoal, neutral, brown, to violet color collections.
- Being a high-end brand like Chanel, it’s hypoallergenic and made of quality stuff. Don’t worry about irritated eyes.
- It smudges when and where you want it to, then dries to a non-budgeable finish.
be a bombshell eyeliner in onyx ($14)
be a bombshell eyeliner in onyx – is the bomb! I got this in a beauty box and although it’s not a gel liner nor a replacement for my favorite tarte discontinued eyeliners, there’s a place in my cosmetics arsenal for this cool “crayon”. Well, it’s not a crayon – I’d like to call it an eye marker. It glides on somewhat like a marker, and has a firm-but-thin graduated tip so you can finally get those winged-out cat eyes that you’ve been wanting. I’ve tried eyeliner brushes, and liquid liners with a brush tip, and smudging crayons, and pencil liners that you sharpen and some that you don’t. I always wind up drawing the line too thick or too thin, or just wiggly-squiggly and plain wrong. The tip on this eye liner is thin and allows you to get close to your lash line, and you can backtrack over the line to make it slightly thicker if you wish. Just pull the outer corner of your eyelid taught when you get to the edge and you’ll be winging out with the pros. This is also really easy to use on the water line or lower lash line of your eyes, too.
You might be a bit intimidated thinking that this may be like a permanent marker, but it’s surprisingly easy to remove with eye makeup remover, and it lasts all day without smudging. I tested it. My eyes tear naturally in the cold winter wind, and there wasn’t a smudge to be seen. It costs $14 and does not dry out easily if you keep it covered with its cap. If you are into thicker lines just hold the liner at a slight angle and you’re good to go. This is cool. Get one.
Why you will like it:
- Glides on smooth
- Gives you the perfect cat’s eye (It’s idiot proof.)
- Doesn’t smudge
- Doesn’t dry out fast.
Smashbox's Proof Cream Eye Liner Palette ($32) - Colors top (L to R): Lava, Picasso, Midnight Purple, Midnight Brown, Putty - Colors bottom (L to R): Caviar, Thunder, Midnight Green, Deep Bronze, Cameo
I saw a picture of Smashbox’s Proof Cream Eye Liner Palette in an email I got from Sephora. It looked cute. At first glance I couldn’t tell how big it was and expected it to be about as big as most blushes or eye shadow palettes out there. I was curious about the colors, but at the same time a little afraid. When I saw that 2 out of the 10 shades were what looked like a light tan and a sparkly silver, I immediately thought that there was no way I’d wear those. But, I bit the bullet anyway because I was ready to give the other 8 more “normal” looking shades a serious try. If I like 80% of what’s in a pre-assembled palette I feel I’m doing pretty darn good.
It's about the size of a thick credit card.
When this arrived at my house I was pleasantly surprised. It’s the size of a credit card and about the width of 4 stacked on top of each other. It’s so teeny it can fit in your pocket or the tiniest clutch. It wasn’t going to suck up too much room in one of my 5 make-up bags forcing me to part with a product from the past. So far, it got a thumbs up from me.
Over about two weeks I was determined to try every color in the kit. I started out slow with Caviar which is a brown-black – a very safe color, I thought. It went on as smooth as a gel liner without snagging my skin. The flat-as-a-pancake (actually flatter than that), thin brush applied the line expertly, and the color was divine. It was the color of a coffee bean and I liked it! Then I ventured over to Midnight Brown, Midnight Green, and Midnight Purple as the days went on. I was a bit scared that the Midnight Purple would go on like a blue – and blues look very scary on me. (Take my word for it. No, I will not post a picture!) However, Midnight Purple is a black-violet that is totally wearable and not just your boring basic black!
Every. Single. Shade. Including the silvery-sparkly Lava, the tan-looking Putty, and the grayish-tan Thunder had depth and dimension and went on darker than it looks to define my eyes. That’s what liners are supposed to do; not wash out your lids and lashes! This is my favorite product of 2012, hands down. I hope they keep making it *knock on wood* because as far as lasting liners go, I don’t just WANT this Smashbox wonder, I NEED it. ‘Nuff said.
Why you will like it:
- Lots of colors all in one place – so you don’t have to go searching for individual eye pencils
- No sharpening required
- Glides on smooth
- Doesn’t smudge
- The colors go on darker than they appear, which means they are very wearable colors that you can walk out of the house sporting and not feel like you are a color experiment gone bad.
Let’s talk about Sephora by OPI Trend Tips Real Lacquer Nail Strips – I tried it in “Feathers”.
Sephora by OPI Trend Tips Real Lacquer Nail Strips in Feathers ($12)
I’m a perfectionist. I need nice nails. When I see someone with scraggly nails, bitten or broken, I want to hand them a file. I go beyond that, though, and love my colors, designs, and patterns on my manicure. Press-on polish has been around for several years now but I never really got into it. The color choices were always too limited for my tastes. But then I saw that Sephora by OPI came out with patterns you could place on your nails. I’m sure there are nail artists out there who are capable of painting animal prints, lace, and amazing designs, but that takes a long time and I certainly can’t do it myself. Sometimes I want a quick color change, and I want it to look “Wow!” I also hate the drying time involved between coats.
Sephora by OPI Trend Tips Real Nail Lacquer Nail Strips in Feathers applied to my nails
I thought these nail strips came in cool colors and combinations. They also had that razzle-dazzle factor. It was something different. If you have a nice nail shape, you can press these strips on your nails, smooth them out, and have a really cool design, all done, without enduring drying time. Regular ol’ nail polish remover takes them off. I don’t know the chemistry involved in their creation, but something in them allows for the color to last for over a week as well, too, without chipping or peeling.
Why you will like it:
- The patterns are just so cool. You can’t do this with real nail polish.
- No drying time.
- Comes off with regular nail polish remover.
- Lasts longer than regular nail polish.
Skintimate Signature Scents Moisturizing Shave Gel in Flirty Mango ($3 - $4)
I will admit that I like Skintimate Signature Scents Moisturizing Shave Gel in Flirty Mango – (sold for between $3 and $4 at most drugstores). Being and feeling beautiful doesn’t have to break your bank. Everyone has to shave. (Ok, if you don’t – you should.) So you might as well enjoy the scent of the shaving cream you use.
When I was a teen and started shaving my legs I just soaped them up. I didn’t know any better and got nicks and scrapes from the razor because it wasn’t gliding over my skin as it should. Then one day I borrowed a friend’s shaving cream in college and what a difference! The razor gave me a closer shave and my legs were silky not scathed with scrapes. Since that day, I use shaving cream and won’t ever go back to the ways of my youth.
My one problem with shaving creams and gels is that most seem to be scented for men. I don’t like that medicine-y, menthol, or manly fragrance. I want to smell like a girl. I’ve tried many shave gels and I like ones that give a good lather and also smell delicious. Flirty Mango is my fave. I tend to find it stocked in stores more in the summer months, but you can also buy it in bulk at amazon.com if you are determined to get it like me. Hey, it’s shaving cream – it doesn’t go bad, so why not stock up?
Why you will like it:
- Smells awesome
- Gives you a really smooth shave
- Inexpensive
Whish Three Whishes Body Butter in pomegranate ($24)
Whish Three Whishes Body Butter in pomegranate is my choice for a less-thick body butter or just when I want a break from smelling like the beach (or a yummy coconut cream pie). I like to change my fragrances, so it follows accordingly that I get bored with just one body butter and like to switch it up sometimes. This is not as thick as the LaLicious Coconut Cream Body Butter I love, but it moisturizes just as well. It has a barely-there pomegranate scent, so there’s no worries about conflicting with your perfume selection.
Why you will like it:
- It moisturizes all day
- Absorbs quickly into your skin
- Doesn’t sting your legs after shaving
- It has organic and natural ingredients
Smashbox Lip Enhancing Gloss Sheer Color in Radiant ($18)
I saved the best for last. Smashbox is scoring big with me this year. Now you know I just had to recommend a luscious lip gloss given my propensity for not passing up a liquid lip color! If you can only add one to your wardrobe, make it Smashbox’s Lip Enhancing Gloss Sheer Color in Radiant. It’s a sparkly medium-raspberry color with a cookie scent/taste. It gives your lips a barely-bitten color (but doesn’t wash them out so they blend into your face). If you layer this over your lipstick, the subtle sparkles add some dimension to your pinkish pout. The tube is thin, long, and allows you to grab the wand easily. It has a traditional “swab-like” applicator. This gloss is not sticky, but rather smooth. It’s also not one of those horrid “lip plumpers” that sting the bejesus out of your lips. Yay Smashbox! I got mine at Sephora. You can, too.
Why you will like it:
- Excellent color suitable for all skin tones
- Adds life to your lips
- Tastes/smells delicious, not nauseating
- Doesn’t sting your lips
Happy shopping! Don’t let those beauty books and ads fool you! It’s always best to try before you buy and make your own choices not based on brand!
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