august 2012 favorites

Another month down, another favorites post.
This month I re-discovered some old favorites and fell in love with some recent finds.
Here are my standout products for August 2012...

Skin 

Simple Hydrating Moisturizer

The Simple brand is new to the US this year, but has been very popular in the UK for quite some time. I’ve been looking for a daytime moisturizer that is very light since I have oily skin. I use just a little bit daily, and I think my skin has loved it. No breakouts so far!

Hair

Aveda Volumizing Tonic

An oldie but a goodie. I’m a loyal fan of Aveda products, but have been keeping this buried in the back. Started re-using it and I am now on a mission to finish this. I spray my roots with this when my hair is wet, put it in a pony while I do my makeup, and then blow dry. Instant volume and it smells amazing.

Nail polish

Orly - Rage

You can read my recent blog post here about why I love this polish.
Great polish for the fall!

Urban Outfitters - After Hours

I bought this glitter polish because it reminded me of OPI Teenage Dream from the Katy Perry collection. Except this one looked like it had finer glitter that would be easy to work with. Loved the way this applied and it stayed on for over a week as an accent nail.
Makes me want to try more UO polishes.

Essie - Lady Like

Such a classic. When I bought After Hours by UO, I had no clue what I would try pairing it with first. As soon as I saw this one in my drawer, it was a no-brainer.
I feel like these two polishes were made for each other.
To see how I wore Lady Like and After Hours together—here is my Instagram photo.

Tools

Real Techniques Brushes: Buffing and Shader

Bought these brushes recently at Ulta. I like using the buffing brush for contouring with bronzer; and the shader brush is perfect for applying eye shadow. I have a hard time finding the perfect eye shadow brushes because my eyes are small, and most shader brushes are too big for me. This one is perfect.

Tarte Eyelash Curler

My trusty Revlon eyelash curler finally got kicked to the curb. I needed to upgrade to something that was gentler and had better grip. This one by Tarte does not disappoint. And it came with a sample size of my favorite Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara. That may have swayed my decision just a little bit.

Makeup

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bold Gold and Bad to the Bronze
Don’t want to beat a dead horse since I just blogged about these. But holy moly—these are seriously amazing. Bad to the Bronze has been with me since these first came out, but of course I had to pull it out after buying some new colors. I’ve been wearing Bold Gold literally every day. I went tailgating in 100 degree weather, went to the LSU football game, and went out afterward with friends-- and this did not budge at all by the end of the night. I highly recommend that you check these out if you haven’t already!

Wet N Wild Blush in Pearlescent Pink

Wet n Wild does a lot of things right that many people still don’t know about. Nail polish, eyeshadow-- and definitely blush. Their blushes are SO pigmented and they last all day. This one is a gorgeous pink with a slight golden shimmer.
These retail for $2.99—a freaking steal.

Fresh Sugar Lip Balm
Got this as the Sephora birthday gift. Good thing it was free because I would not spend $22 on a lip balm. But this is so moisturizing and I can totally see why the price tag is so high. It feels like butter on your lips and it is one of the best lip balms I have ever used.

Have you been reaching for any of these same products?

What else have you been loving lately?

birchbox: august 2012

Before this posts becomes later than it already is, here is my August Birchbox. 

1. Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy La Fleur perfume

This smells amaaazing! Adding it to the perfume sampler collection. 

2. Talika Lash Conditioning Cleanser (oil free)

Claims to remove the toughest waterproof mascara. Sounds cool. Excited to try this one. 

3. Noir Black Mania Kohl Eyeliner

Can never have too many black eyeliners. But this oily eyelid girl is not a fan of pencil (kohl) liners. 

4. Blue Copper 5 Firming Elasticity Repair

Not sure how about this one. Might use as moisturizer for the neck area? 

5. Schick Hydro Silk Razor

This was a nice surprise. Five blade razor that I've heard really good things about. Came with coupons for refill and shave cream. 

This month's theme was "back to school," hints the Beauty School booklet with some fun beauty tips! If you're interested in signing up for Birchbox, click here! 

Posts for the rest of the week depend upon weather conditions. Hurricane Isaac is upon us in South Louisiana. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers! :)

high five for friday

It's Friday! Hooray!  

What kind of plans do you have for the weekend? 

1. Finally used my Ulta gift card from my birthday. That means I haven't shopped at Ulta in over a month. I don't know how I feel about that. Am I sick? I picked up a few Real Technique brushes I've been wanting; a new eyelash curler (desperately needed), the Maybelline Babylips in Pink Punch (lip product #68), and a new face primer. 

2. House shopping could not be going any slower. After failing to find anything in Houston last weekend, I hit up Pier 1. Saw a few things, and I just like taking pictures of the possibilities. House shopping is not for the indecisive mind. This could take years to complete. 

3. My new nail combo. I'm in love. Essie Ladylike + Urban Outfitters Afterhours. So pretty together yet so subtle even though I used glitter. Who knew Urban Outfitters had nail polish? 

4. I'm loving my new bow ring I got last weekend at Henri Bendel. So small, dainty, but fashionable. Love. 

5. Who doesn't love free food? Me and the bf hit up Rocco's for our favorite poboys after receiving some free drinks and an appetizer (fried pickles anyone?) at our previous visit for being good customers. Seriously, that place is amazing! 

 find more H54F posts on lauren's blog!

maybelline color tattoos review

I bet you didn’t know I have six tattoos. Yes, SIX!

Okay, lame joke. Everyone knows I’m scared of needles. So, no, I haven’t actually inked myself (yet), but I do own some of the best drugstore eye shadows ever.

These Maybelline Color Tattoos are a cream shadow that can be worn as eye shadow or used as a primer/base. 

One of the reasons I love these shadows is because I don't have to apply a primer first. As you know, I have oily eyelids and this is the only shadow that I will wear with no primer. These will last around 8 hours on me w/ no primer. 

The color tattoos also don’t require a brush for application. I like just using my ring finger, and they blend nicely on their own without needing brushes. 

All but one of these shades are available on a regular basis. The only shade I'm mentioning that is limited edition is Barely Beige. 

Too Cool:

Too Cool is your basic shimmery bright white. I use Too Cool as a base for any light shadow to help it appear more like it’s true color. It can also be worn alone or in your inner color as a nice brightener/highlight.

Barely Beige:

Barely Beige is one of their four new shades for Fall. I haven’t used it much because, but so far I am loving it. Many people compare this to MAC's paint pot in painterly. 
**This shade is LIMITED EDITION** If you want your hands on it, I suggest looking for it now. 

Tough as Taupe:

Tough as Taupe I kind of regret buying and don’t think I will get much use of. It is a matte taupe and does not compliment my eyes that well. It’s a little dull for me. So, I don’t really recommend this one if you don’t like matte eye shadows.

Bad to the Bronze:

Bad to the Bronze is my most-used shade. I will toss this in my purse some days just because it’s the easiest color to apply to get an instant “full eye shadow” look in five seconds. It almost looks like multiple colors when on your eyes. I love it! This is probably their most popular shade.

Bold Gold:

Bold Gold is one of the original colors, but I bought it recently when I got Barely Beige. This is a gorgeous lighter gold color that will be great for Fall. I've worn it a couple times and it does not disappoint.

Pomegranate Punk:

This is the only one of the “colors that wasn’t neutral” that I could see myself wearing often. This is a really gorgeous shimmery plum/pomegranate color. Really, really pretty!

Other things to note:
I love the packaging. It’s in a sleek glass container-- very easy to pack if you’re traveling.

These claim to last 24 hours, but I don’t recommend wearing eye shadow for 24 hours. But, if you must, I would say use a primer for 24-hour wear.

There are four new limited edition shades at drugstores and Target right now. I found mine at Rite Aid. Have not seen them at Ulta, yet. I want to get my hands on one more-- Mossy Green. Looks like a shimmery dark olive green. Again, perfect for fall!

These retail for $6.99 and you can find them at any drugstore, Target, or Ulta. 
Click here to see their original shades that are regularly available.

Have you tried these Maybelline Color Tattoos yet? Do you own any of the new Fall shades? Tell me your favorites! 

operation: use what you got

A couple months before I started this blog, I began “Operation: Use What You Got.” The closet in my bathroom is filled with half-empty bottles of shampoo, conditioner, body wash, styling products, and much more. When you’re storage containers can’t fit any more bottles, that’s when you know you might be a hoarder have a problem. So, I started on a mission of using what I have. So genius, I know.

I’ve kept all my empty products so I can share the things I’ve used up during this “operation.” But now, I realize that at this point, I’m basically hoarding trash. It’s kind of weird not throwing away things that should be thrown away, so I had to finally sit down and do this post so I could now throw my empties away.

I have quite a few empty products so I’m dividing this into three parts: hair care, skin care, and makeup. I’m starting with hair care, so stay tuned for parts two and three!

Suave Keratin Infusion Shampoo

I’ve used Nexxus Shampoo for years. I love it. But, I do venture out and switch it up from time to time. Suave came out with their Keratin Infusion line this year, and I just couldn’t resist trying. I used this up fairly quickly, and I have to say that I really liked it. It was moisturizing and didn't leave any residue on my hair. For only $4.50, it’s worth a try!

Dove Dry Shampoo

I can go through dry shampoo rather quickly. But, the problem with dry shampoos is that most are made with that white powder substance, which can give a gray-hair look on us brunette ladies. This one by Dove does not say it’s for brunette shades because it’s supposed to work on all hair types and colors. Well, it would have been nice to see if that claim holds true if I had not run out of this product in just one use. I’m not kidding. I used this ONE time. A few sprays in my hair and the next time I went to use it, there was nothing in there! I don’t know what that was about. Someone at the Dove factory forgot to fill my bottle up all the way. I can’t really say if I like or dislike it, because I only used it once, and I’ve since moved on to the Batiste Dry Shampoo.

John Frieda Frizz-Ease Leave-In Conditioner

I wrote about this leave-in conditioner in my summer hair care post. Leave-in conditioner is key for ladies with long horse hair like myself. I like to soak my ends with this leave- in conditioner after a wash. I love this one and I always re-purchase it (for around $6.00).

 Aveda Smooth Infusion Shampoo

This is my most expensive shampoo, and it’s also my all-time favorite. I love most of the Aveda line of hair care. Each does what it says it’s going to do. And the Smooth Infusion line is no different. The shampoo alone is very moisturizing and reduces frizz. I also love the packaging of this shampoo because it’s lightweight and great for travel. I buy the 8.5oz bottle, which is $21.00. You can buy at Aveda salons or online.

Ojon Damage Reverse Conditioner

Ojon is another expensive hair care brand. So, I was very excited to receive a sample of this conditioner in a past Birchbox. I used it up fairly quickly and I loved it. It contains pure Ojon oil, brazillian buriti oil, and murmur butter; all of which made my ends silky and smooth. I highly recommend trying this conditioner if you have really damaged hair. 

So that’s what I used up in the hair care world over the past month or so. I’ll post parts two and three next week.

What kind of products do you use up frequently? Do you also have half empty bottles of shampoo and conditioners in your cabinets like me?

Let me know so I don’t feel alone! :)