I thought I'd share some products that I fell in love with this year, some that continue to keep me in love (so worth mentioning again) and some things that I wouldn't purchase again.
New Loves
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Beauty Society Enormous Lash- Face Fab is a representative for this company and of course I had to try out the EL because I'm a mascara ho and anything that will enhance my lashes I will try- especially since there is a money back guarantee if not fully satisfied. I got in on EL buy one get one free and have definitely seen
results- as I have posted with photos on this blog.
* Lime Essential Oil- For several years I've been playing with melt and pour soap and making scrubs- using both essential oils and fragrance oils to scent. In general I tend to prefer EO over FO because FO can often have a "chemically" finish which I do not like. I seem to have a very sensitive nose (DD says I'm part beagle like our one dog Sully) so I notice scents being off. Even with EO, one can be disappointed with the scent-- for instance I have tangerine EO- expected to be bright and sweet like when one peels a tangerine and it was not very scented and rather bitter smell. So this year I ordered lime essential oil and it is my HG scent for the scrubs I make myself. I never seem to tire of the scent.
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Natural Soap Warehouse Key Lime Soap-- I've been a fan of natural soaps for a few years now but just ordered from Natural Soap Warehouse this year. By far my favorite is the
Key Lime Soap-- it has the bright, fruity scent of lime essential oil which I love so much and it's natural soap which leaves my skin softer and less dried out. For the NSW price, I won't be bothering with scenting melt and pour soap base and will just keep ordering loaves of this soap. Many of the other scents are quite lovely but the Key Lime will be a staple for me.
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LaCrosse Double Bar Lash Curler- at about $5.99 this curler does the best job on curling my lashes quickly and easily. I've already bought a backup in case they stop making it.
Post about it here.
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MMBB indelible liner pencil in Smolder- Lisa sometimes does a special order on these liner pencils and she suggested Smolder to me. I LOVE it- it's purple but smoky and just such a great liner color. When I travel, this pencil is always in the makeup case since it's great for so many different looks.
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Argan Oil- Lisa also recommended this- Sally's Beauty Supply sells a version of it and I picked it up. It can be used on wet or dry hair to help condition and prevent frizz. Usually this kind of product really weighs my fine hair down but this stuff works great. I bought the trial size for $1.99 and soon went back for the large size because I do not want to be without. When I was getting the large size the girl working at Sally's says "That stuff is great!" She even gave me a helpful hint of putting a little bit of it into hair dye to keep color longer.
*Revlon Eye shadow brush- I happen to find these at Big Lots for $1.99 if I remember correctly, but would even pay the real price (under $10) for this brush. I find myself grabbing this brush all the time.
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OCC Lip Tars- Due to the generosity of Lili, I was able to try almost all of their colors and can't tell you how fun they are. I only wish that they did smaller (more affordable) sizes so everyone could get the entire set and try them out. I am thinking about purchasing the entire set and breaking them down into smaller containers (like I put Lili's into the little paint containers that are 8 strung together with a round sticker on top with name) and sell to friends so more people get a chance at them. It only takes a tiny bit to get pigmented look- so the big tubes seem over the top. LMK if you think you'd be interested in a smaller sampler- if I get enough interest, I'd buy all the colors and do that.
Old Loves that still have my heart.
*Wen- (and Classy Minerals Hair Zen) cleansing conditioner. I just can not go back to shampoo since starting on this. My hair is super soft and conditioned but the added benefit is that I don't get "hair product" breakouts anymore.
* Emu oil-- LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this stuff for my dry skin. In the summer I use a few drops of emu oil (which I scent with EO- usually lavender, even though I'm not a lavender fan it's beneficial to skin so I "get over" it and lavender is definitely better than "chicken fat" scent) mixed with a bit of water. In winter I use this same mix and then apply Olay moisturizer over it to give a bit more moisturizing and "sealing" in. I really think that emu oil is responsible for how young my skin continues to look.
*Emu soap- I don't make this, I buy a melt and pour base online and then add a bit more emu oil to it- I leave unscented. This is the only cleanser I use on my face. It just seems to work for me.
*Sugar and Honey face scrub- I especially love this in the winter. I mix about a teaspoon of honey with sugar until I get the right consistency and then scrub my face (and lips) in a circular motion in the shower. My skin feels so soft and all dry flakey skin is removed. Sometimes I add a bit of lemon juice to the mix. It works and tastes good too. LOL
*Humidifiers in the winter. I run humidifiers all over the house during the winter. I think it helps my skin and also seems to keep illness at bay.
*MMBB sprays- I use these for every makeup application I do. My favorite is the grape spray but I also love the neroli & immortelle. Lisa can attest that I insist on having a backup long before I run out.
*Fit Flops- I just love these shoes. I think I owe 6 pairs. I kind of hate winter because it's too cold to continue to wear these and I'm not really a fan of the clog versions they make because they are lined. They are the only flip flops I will wear because my feet never hurt when I wear them.
*Natural Soaps- last year I gave my mom and MIL a gallon each of the unscented (although I scented later)
gel soap from Vermont Soap Works. My mom said she preferred this one to the Soap Factory one because it lathered better. Since I liked the Soap Factory one, I guess I would love the VSW version and plan to order some soon, although I have lots of bar soaps from Natural Soap Warehouse to use up first.
*Philosophy Falling In Love, Baby Grace and Pure Grace perfumes- as I mentioned before, I tend to have a sensitive nose and most perfumes do not agree with me. I love these three fragrances and can't say how happy I am to know that they will always be around. My signature scent is Falling In Love, but I still find myself grabbing Pure Grace (especially if I'm going in public after a workout) for it's clean, soapy scent and when I want a little more sweetness I grab Baby Grace. My DD loves Amazing Grace and it looks like I will have to buy my mom some because she kept using Amazing Grace lotion in DD's bath on her hands and commenting on how she liked it.
*Maybelline Full N Soft Mascara- I've tried many, many, many mascaras (see multiple posts of various mascara reviews- just look up tag of "mascara review") but haven't found anything better than FNS
*Mineral Foundation- don't see myself ever going to anything else. Recently I found my foundation looking a little eh, but I found that a change to Lumiere Flat Top brush, MMBB spray and less foundation is producing the look I love again.
Makeup Diary- Even though I do less FOTD photos, I still rely on a small little notebook to mark down what I wore, ideas to blog about, etc. It keeps me sane because if I didn't write these things down, I would not be able to post many FOTD and actually remember the products.
Things I was disappointed with-
Soy products- I started drinking soy milk daily as a way to combat belly fat but found that they are just not for me. I found that my skin started breaking out like crazy and didn't particularly like the bloated and gassy side effects. I guess I'll take working out harder to combat the belly fat-- not like some other parts of my body can't use this too. LOL
Pricy mascaras- I got the Sephora Lash Stash mini mascara set and all I can say, not one of them is worth the price when I can get Maybelline Full N Soft Mascara for half the price.
See review.
Chagrin Falls Shampoo Bars- This is just because my hair is really fine- my hair was once described as a forest of skinny trees- so these Shampoo Bars really weighed my hair down and left it rather oily looking. My DD has coarse hair and she actually found these helpful for her hair (although the one that has patchouli scent annoyed DH so I passed those along to a friend that I knew enjoyed them.)
Here's the final two FOTD for 2009- I'll post them now and will be starting on Makeup Diary #3... kind of funny that I ran out of pages with this post.
Dec. 26 (My mom and Brian were visiting and we went to see a local band play later that evening.)
Dayna foundation using Lumiere Flat Top brush, MMBB Grape Spray and less foundation.
Tarte Dollface and Flush gel blushes
Eyes- Coastal Scent Bare Necessity indelible, Apricot Dreamzzz all over lid. Cocoa Nut in crease, Mad Magnetism indelible on waterline, Iced Sugar Plums as liner and outer corner. Luminous White Gold as brow and inner corner highlighter. Loreal Extra Volume with Collagen and Maybelline Full N Soft (WP) mascaras
Lips- Botanics Chicory pencil. Cover Girl Plum Shine (lipstick like tube but sheerer than lipstick) Dec. 30
Dec. 30
Dayna (applied as Dec. 26)
Tarte Dollface and Merry gel blushes
Eyes- CS Bare Necessity as base, Sunbeam (inner 1/2) Iced Tee (outer 1/2) Magnetism waterline and upper lash line. Black Sparks over GD as liner and then a little dry on outer corner.
Lips- Jordana Mauve Silk liner, Cover Girl Wet Slicks No Care Bare.
NEIGHBORHOOD CHECK OUT MY PREVIOUS POST ON YEAR IN REVIEW