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It's all vanity...
Aug. 16th, 2014 06:19 pmThought I'd do a post for those who are always complimenting me on my makeup & hair. I get quite a few questions about specific things I use (probably my eyeliner is the most commented on!), so I figured a list was in order. Here are some of my favorite, won't-do-without products involved in my beauty regimen.
Nyx Liquid Eyeliner, Noir Collection: This is a very close duplicate of Urban Decay's 24/7 Liquid Liner in Perversion, only the Nyx brand costs about a third of the UD. I have several colors of the UD, but I noticed that the black was my go-to, and I always ran out of it first. I went through several brands trying to find an acceptable dupe: L'Oreal (brush wasn't good), Makeup Forever (also crazy expensive & I didn't like the applicator), ELF (runs & transfers when you sweat). The Nyx turned out to be almost identical. It will easily wear 14 hours without transferring, running, or flaking. Love it.
Nyx Mascara: I am a mascara connoisseur. My preferred mascara look is volume: I want it to look like I have a veritable fur coat of thick eyelashes. Currently, I'm working my way through all the Nyx mascaras to see which ones are my favorite. So far, Full-Figured wins for my favorite waterproof. Le Provocateur is thus far my favorite non-waterproof, but Voluptuous (which I tried for the first time today) is possibly in the running. Again, these are about a third of the price of something like Urban Decay or MAC, and easily as good.
Urban Decay Primer Potion: I have never found an eyeshadow primer that works as well as this one. For those of you who've commented on the vibrancy of my eyeshadow, this is the secret. I use this on my lids & my eyeshadow remains very true to color and it will stay easily for 14 hours. I use the anti-aging formula, which doesn't have much color at all on its own; it's a sheer wash. If I need the color to show up a bit more brightly, I use...
Maybelline Color Tattoo or Nyx Eyeshadow Primer: Over the top of the primer potion. If I'm using Color Tattoo it's the very pale silver/white metallic color, or if it's the Nyx it's matte white. This gives me a perfect blank slate for the super, ultra bright colors.
Fresh lip balms: These come from Sephora, and they're one of my very few "must haves" among the really pricey makeup brands. These babies are $22 a tube, but I have never found anything that remotely duplicates the beautiful, sheer color wash or the incredible soft feel. They aren't sticky in the least. I wear these usually when I've done one of the extremely bright eye makeup looks. They feel incredible, they look amazing, and they are extremely good for your lips.
Blotting papers: These are awesome. Instead of using more powder when you get shiny during the day, you use one of these papers to blot the oil off your chin/nose/whatever. It keeps you from looking like you caked a lot of makeup on. These come in a million brands. I got a LOAD of them last Christmas when Target had the ELF brand in 3-packs, and I'm still using those up. Nyx has them as well.
Nyx Matte but Not Flat powder foundation: I use this over moisturizer or BB cream in the summer. It lays down just enough color to even out skin tone, but isn't heavy enough to melt off my face when I sweat.
Nyx BB Cream: Favorite tinted moisturizer, & I've tried MANY! Feels very light on your face, but will even out skin tone even if I have the whole redness/irritation thing going on around my nose or chin.
BH Cosmetics: Eyeshadows & blushes! Their palettes are INCREDIBLE deals! So are their brush sets. They have wonderful sales quite often. This is a perfect way to get a wide variety of colors all at once for a really low price. Their shadows have far more pigmentation & color payoff than anything you can get in a drugstore, but possibly slightly less than Urban Decay. However...drugstore price. :) So it balances out. Their brushes are not to be missed; soft & durable. From BH, I have the Galaxy Chic, blush duo, professional blush, 88 cool matte, 120 1st edition, & Take Me To Brazil palettes, bronzers in Diva & Starlet, and the 36 piece red snakeskin brush set.
Maybelline 24/7 Longwear Lipstick: Nurses, ever wanted a lipstick that would last your whole 12 hour shift? Found it for you. This is what I wear when I'm going to work & I want my lipstick to look perfect all the time, but I don't wanna mess with it. This stuff doesn't come off unless you take it off. It can be very, very drying, so if you have problems with cracking lips you're gonna want to miss this one. It's hardcore.
It's a 10: Leave in hair treatment. Works as a detangler, strengthener, conditioner, you name it.
Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry: Spray it on my hair before I blow dry it, and it shaves a good 10 minutes off my normally 25 minute drying time! It also seems to keep my hair straighter until I wash it again. It primes the hair as well so it's less damaged by the blow dryer heat. I really wish this hadn't worked so well, because it's a bit expensive. :(
Suave Keratin Infusion Dry Shampoo: Do I think there's a difference between this one & Suave's normal dry shampoo? Nope. This one just smells better. I wash my hair every 3-4 days, since it's incredibly time-consuming to wash, condition, & blow dry it, and if I don't blow dry it, it will stay wet for 10-12 hours. On the 2nd or 3rd night, I will spray my hair with this before I go to bed. It's an aerosolized powder that absorbs the oil & refreshes your hair. I don't think I'd recommend it for curly hair, & I certainly don't recommend it for dry-ish hair, but if you have long hair that tends toward the oily side? Give this a try.
Nyx Liquid Eyeliner, Noir Collection: This is a very close duplicate of Urban Decay's 24/7 Liquid Liner in Perversion, only the Nyx brand costs about a third of the UD. I have several colors of the UD, but I noticed that the black was my go-to, and I always ran out of it first. I went through several brands trying to find an acceptable dupe: L'Oreal (brush wasn't good), Makeup Forever (also crazy expensive & I didn't like the applicator), ELF (runs & transfers when you sweat). The Nyx turned out to be almost identical. It will easily wear 14 hours without transferring, running, or flaking. Love it.
Nyx Mascara: I am a mascara connoisseur. My preferred mascara look is volume: I want it to look like I have a veritable fur coat of thick eyelashes. Currently, I'm working my way through all the Nyx mascaras to see which ones are my favorite. So far, Full-Figured wins for my favorite waterproof. Le Provocateur is thus far my favorite non-waterproof, but Voluptuous (which I tried for the first time today) is possibly in the running. Again, these are about a third of the price of something like Urban Decay or MAC, and easily as good.
Urban Decay Primer Potion: I have never found an eyeshadow primer that works as well as this one. For those of you who've commented on the vibrancy of my eyeshadow, this is the secret. I use this on my lids & my eyeshadow remains very true to color and it will stay easily for 14 hours. I use the anti-aging formula, which doesn't have much color at all on its own; it's a sheer wash. If I need the color to show up a bit more brightly, I use...
Maybelline Color Tattoo or Nyx Eyeshadow Primer: Over the top of the primer potion. If I'm using Color Tattoo it's the very pale silver/white metallic color, or if it's the Nyx it's matte white. This gives me a perfect blank slate for the super, ultra bright colors.
Fresh lip balms: These come from Sephora, and they're one of my very few "must haves" among the really pricey makeup brands. These babies are $22 a tube, but I have never found anything that remotely duplicates the beautiful, sheer color wash or the incredible soft feel. They aren't sticky in the least. I wear these usually when I've done one of the extremely bright eye makeup looks. They feel incredible, they look amazing, and they are extremely good for your lips.
Blotting papers: These are awesome. Instead of using more powder when you get shiny during the day, you use one of these papers to blot the oil off your chin/nose/whatever. It keeps you from looking like you caked a lot of makeup on. These come in a million brands. I got a LOAD of them last Christmas when Target had the ELF brand in 3-packs, and I'm still using those up. Nyx has them as well.
Nyx Matte but Not Flat powder foundation: I use this over moisturizer or BB cream in the summer. It lays down just enough color to even out skin tone, but isn't heavy enough to melt off my face when I sweat.
Nyx BB Cream: Favorite tinted moisturizer, & I've tried MANY! Feels very light on your face, but will even out skin tone even if I have the whole redness/irritation thing going on around my nose or chin.
BH Cosmetics: Eyeshadows & blushes! Their palettes are INCREDIBLE deals! So are their brush sets. They have wonderful sales quite often. This is a perfect way to get a wide variety of colors all at once for a really low price. Their shadows have far more pigmentation & color payoff than anything you can get in a drugstore, but possibly slightly less than Urban Decay. However...drugstore price. :) So it balances out. Their brushes are not to be missed; soft & durable. From BH, I have the Galaxy Chic, blush duo, professional blush, 88 cool matte, 120 1st edition, & Take Me To Brazil palettes, bronzers in Diva & Starlet, and the 36 piece red snakeskin brush set.
Maybelline 24/7 Longwear Lipstick: Nurses, ever wanted a lipstick that would last your whole 12 hour shift? Found it for you. This is what I wear when I'm going to work & I want my lipstick to look perfect all the time, but I don't wanna mess with it. This stuff doesn't come off unless you take it off. It can be very, very drying, so if you have problems with cracking lips you're gonna want to miss this one. It's hardcore.
It's a 10: Leave in hair treatment. Works as a detangler, strengthener, conditioner, you name it.
Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry: Spray it on my hair before I blow dry it, and it shaves a good 10 minutes off my normally 25 minute drying time! It also seems to keep my hair straighter until I wash it again. It primes the hair as well so it's less damaged by the blow dryer heat. I really wish this hadn't worked so well, because it's a bit expensive. :(
Suave Keratin Infusion Dry Shampoo: Do I think there's a difference between this one & Suave's normal dry shampoo? Nope. This one just smells better. I wash my hair every 3-4 days, since it's incredibly time-consuming to wash, condition, & blow dry it, and if I don't blow dry it, it will stay wet for 10-12 hours. On the 2nd or 3rd night, I will spray my hair with this before I go to bed. It's an aerosolized powder that absorbs the oil & refreshes your hair. I don't think I'd recommend it for curly hair, & I certainly don't recommend it for dry-ish hair, but if you have long hair that tends toward the oily side? Give this a try.
