January Favorites 2013

1. My boyfriend got me this lotion a while back and I thought it was weird that it has a natural drug paraphernalia logo on the bottle lol. Anyhow, the Hempz Pure Herbal Extracts Age Defying Herbal Body Moistorizer is a beautiful rich lotion, not as rich as a body butter but its pretty rich for a lotion. Winter time is when I really doused myself in body lotion. I’m so lazy when it comes to lotion and I never learn either way. Every winter, my skin gets dry and itchy. All because I don’t moisturize my skin after the shower. I get these ugly scabs on my legs from razer burn and from excessive drying then results into uncontrollable itchiness. Anyway, sorry for the tmi or graphic mental picture but I am one of those who suffer from extreme dryness in the winter. So this has been a savior to my dry skin. Its natural, and enriched with 100% pure organic hemp seed oil. I love it! You know me, if it’s organic, if it has essential oil and it hydrates I’m all there! Plus it’s age-defying, hydrate + firming. You will wake up with super comfortable sexy satiny skin! I promise! Your skin will be on the best high ever! Haha *I wish they had a skincare line for this. It would be a totally hipster and organic brand.

2. I bought a bunch of bath and body fragrance lotions for stocking stuffers for friends and co-workers last Christmas. I came across this lotion on default when freshening up prior to seeing my boo boo bear aka my boyfriend. Thankfully to my advantage, they were still in the bag in my car. I pull up to the drive way, touched up and walked in to a nice hug. (Rule #1 ladies, always freshen up before seeing your man, even if its lip gloss, brushing your hair or putting some fragrance lotion on your wrists and neck, he will appreciate it.)

The response was sweet. Through the years of dating my boyfriend, he always seems to be brutally honest about how I smell or look. He either repels it, loves it, or is super neutral about it. So anyway, I always make a mental note on fragrances that he actually acknowledges. The winner this time was Bath and Body Works Signature Collection Carried Away Body Lotion with vitamin E, jojoba and shea butter. By the way, Bath and Body works is so middle school to me. But I still love it! Don’t be jelly! ❤

Another reason, why this won for January favorites, because most of my co-workers all complimented me on this beautiful fragrance.

3. You guys knew this was coming,  Burt’s Bees Intense Hydration Night Cream with Clary Sage . This cream is sooo effin’ good that I can’t believe it is a drugstore product. A pearl size of this all over the face with or without serum cures all dryness, finelines, redness, blotchiness, flakiness and tautness. I can’t recommend this enough. 🙂

4. When I first vlogged about this I was a shade too tan for this particular color. Now that I am pale for a tan filipina girl, this is my go to powder. It is one of the lightest powders I own that is not a highlighter powder. I love my Maybelline New York Fit Me! Powder, I wear shade 310 Sun Beige. It is a very light weight powder. I don’t recommend wearing it alone or as a compact cover up. It hardly has any coverage. But that is not why I love it. I love it because it sets my foundation very nicely without looking to heavy or cakey. Plus this compact does not alter the color of my foundation. This works perfectly well with my Winter Foundation. I set my t-zone with this powder as I don’t wear powder all over my face!

5. The L’oreal True Match Foundation is one of the best drugstore foundation ever created. I wear the shade W6 which is a warm undertone and was advertised as Jennifer Lopez’s shade in the commercial. (I’m honored to be her shade lol)  Although, this product has been in my foundation collection for quite sometime, I managed to pick it up again. I fell in love with this product earlier this month, when I took a quick trip to Las Vegas. This foundation is definitely my fuller coverage makeup. When I usually go out, I like to wear my Sally Hansen Airbrush Spray Makeup, which is a duplicate of the Diorskin Airflash Spray Foundation, but I ran out of it and haven’t been back to the drugstore to buy more so my L’oreal true match saved the day. L’oreal True Match will always have a spot in my makeup collection because of the exact precision in shade matching. Its unbelievable they offer this foundation in 32 shades!

6. On a more natural day for beauty this awesome foundation comes in handy, my Maybelline New York Fit Me! Foundation in 310. I love this foundation more when winter weather is here. This foundation reminds me of a super high end foundation that a savvy and sophisticated woman would wear on their already perfected complexions. The texture is light, semi liquidy and has some sweet light reflectors in it. I don’t recommend in the summertime because it will make you look oily. The coverage is super light and the finish is dewy. Perfect day time foundation and this goes well with the Maybelline New York Fit Me! Pressed Powder in 310.

7. Prior to this blog was my favorite winter foundation. Why does this foundation set them apart from my other foundations that I have previously mentioned as my monthly favorite? Well my Rimmel London Match Perfection Foundation in shade 340 Nude, is the lightest foundation color that I own. I love the moisturizing texture. The packaging should have been in a pump because this product is not overly liquidy and doesn’t just pour out easily. The color is perfect. I am my lightest by far in my life. I like this because it is light enough to brighten up dull boring skin, feels hydrating enough to give my skin a subtle glow and it doesn’t make me look all dark after I’m done contouring with bronzer or setting with my e.l.f. Studio Makeup and Mist Set.

8. I love this serum so much, it has been featured in two other blog posts! (The Product that saved my winter skin and Winterize your Skincare…) This serum from Lumene Vitamin C+ Dry Skin Comfort Radiance Cocktail, product is so lovely. It’s one of the best serums for dry skin found at the drugstore. Lumene Finland skincare seems more highend to me. It sorta reminds me of Clarins Paris skincare. I love my serum and that is why it is a favorite because it zaps out dullness and cures dryness. Plus it brightens. My skin feels velvety and silky smooth. Plus its mostly natural ingredients. Now, I definitely want to try out more products from Lumene skincare line.

9. Okay, this favorite right here, is not your typical scrub or cleanser. My Clean and Clear Morning Burst In-Shower Facial is an awesome product. Its a mask, a treatment, a scrub, and a cleanser all in one. I bought this a while ago at Big Lots for $3.80. I always freak out when I buy stuff at Big Lots because usually all the stuff I buy from there is discontinued products. But I was happy to see that this product is not discontinued. Thank Goodness! This is my go product for the days I fell asleep with my makeup the night before. I have to admit I am not that disciplined when it comes to my night time skincare routine. I know shame on me!!! Anyway, instead of your regular cleanser you apply this on in the shower all over face as a mask and then let it sit on your face for a few minutes, in the mean time you can shave your legs or wash your hair. Once the steam in the shower activates the product you massage it all in. Your skin will forget about sleeping with all your makeup night before. It contains some alpha hydroxy acid, which is probably why this product is the bomb-digetty. *just make sure you wear broad spectrum sunscreen before going outdoors.

10. Last but not least, here it is Aleeda Baby Oil . Baby oil is a household product that many families keep in there bathrooms for generations. I keep this for the vicious winterlicious weather. Plus it makes me skin look like I’ve been in the spa for a few hours. It gives your skin that celebrity glow. Plus, here is a little beauty secret, when going out at night, and your dress is on the skimpy side and a crazy over coat is definitely going to ruin your fashion statement, opt for baby oil all over your body before you put your sexy dress on and then settle for a cropped jacket or a sexy cashmere wrap. A layer of baby oil actually keeps your skin insulated and you stay warmer and sexier the whole night. I like to get my baby oil at the 99 cent store.

My favorite Winter Foundation

As we are in the peak of winter, so is the peak of my paleness. I guess I don’t mind my decreasing pigment luster. But I’ve been noticing my makeup hasn’t been adjusting or blending that well in the last few weeks.

What is a girl going to do? I shopped around and realized my mental awareness for finding the right foundation match is still behind 3 weeks. Subconsciously, I am still tan, or what is left over from a tan. I have bought foundations for reviews in almost all the wrong colors. When you are a blogger, vlogger, reviewer there are so many hits or misses in makeup shopping.

I decided to clean out my makeup drawer and tada! I found a hit or miss foundation that was too light for me then. I discovered the Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation (this is a reformulated version of the product, I think the sole difference is that the new one has a higher SPF, more shades, and is more of a light reflective makeup, think of Lumi foundation by L’oreal)

Anyhow, this foundation when I initially purchased this color was too dark and too pink. I gave it to my younger sister. Then I went back and purchased it in a shade lighter to see if it was the perfect match, in 340 Nude. Ugh, guess again, it was way too light.

Now as I apply it, it matches perfectly. I don’t know what’s up with my skin these days but I think this is the lightest I’ve been. I don’t mind it, I’m filipino. We like being less tan. I think the difference may be my skin care, and all those serums for brightening has literally brightened by look. LOL Who knows? Anyway, thanks for reading.

I hope you guys like my new foundation look.

This was a few nights ago…

This was taken right before I wrote the blog.

*Sorry for the ugly shadows in my face. 😦

December 2012 Favorites

Here are a list of products that made the favorites for December 2012. These products made the cut due to awesome results that I see on myself.

1. Garnier Nutritioniste Ultra-Lift Daily Target Wrinkle Treatment this super affordable serum is packed with antioxidants and pro-retinol from nature this product delivers results. My mini lines always creep up during drier climate seasons. I apply this every morning and night as my first serum, and massage it all over my forehead, around the outer corners of my eyes, my laugh lines in an upward motion. The product smells like bananas and sinks in immediately. Lines or creases are plumped up in a flash.

2. Trader Joe’s Tea Tree Oil

Due to increased amounts of stress my skin has been prone to ugly acne flare ups. The only solution to sap impurities in there place is this awesome essential oil. Tea tree oil is a cleansing and clarifying oil that banishes bacteria to the infection. I apply this right after toner on the acne itself or areas on the face that are prone to break outs. I like this before serums or moisturizers so the oil can penetrate to the deepest layer of skin first before all other treatments. Highly effective and very affordable. I hate the way my skin reacts with benzoyl peroxide and other very stripping harsh chemicals. So tea tree oil is my first choice. Also in my experience the tea tree oil at your local Trader Joe’s is the most affordable.

3. Clarins Paris Beauty Flash Balm

I received a sample of this when I was at Nordstroms, while I was there I went to pick up my boyfriend’s Clarins Men’s Anti Rides Fermetes Line Control Cream. The sales associate that assisted me gifted me with a generous sample of the Clarins Beauty Flash Balm. Wow! Is what I first said when I applied this product. You can use this as a primer and as a hydrating mask. All I could say is that I am definitely impressed. Since my skin is dry right now and prone to dullness and lines around the ultra dry areas. This allowed my makeup to stay put in a sexy smooth kind of way. Thank God my sample is large enough to try a few more times. Next time I need to get my boyfriend’s cream I may pick up a full size of this product.

4. Estee Lauder Idealist Cooling Eye Illuminator I was raving about this product in one of my blogs I recently posted on best eye cream for puffiness. This is offically a holy grail item. It is quite pricey but its worth every drop and every penny. Puffiness is definitely something you don’t want to get carried away in the delicate eye area. Once the eye bag has stretched the skin around the eye area there will be no use for a product like this. The only resort would be to cut loose skin there or get a bit of lipo around the eye area or other extreme options. While I’m still young, and the concern is just starting to show, I definitely think this is a necessary treatment for maintenance. However, quick tip, this product is wonderful and all but if you are on the drier side after the application, use a more hydrating eye cream on the outer corners for extra defense against dryness. Wrinkles and puffiness begone!

5. Shiseido Eyelash Curler – this has been my instant beauty must have all month. I have been on the go and have been a busy bee! Curling my eyelashes is the only way I wear mascara. On a quick, I want to look good day, I curl my lashes, apply mascara, apply powder, lipstick and setting spray. This 5 minute look works everytime.

6. Shiseido Perfect Mascara Defining Volume , This my holy grail mascara. I have never really tried that many mascaras but since I am of Asian Filipina descent, I have uber straight lashes. This is the only mascara that works on my. It doesn’t clump, smudge, smear, or fade. I love the brush and I also wear this with my Shiseido Nourishing Mascara Base. (only if I have extra time or I want uber long lashes and don’t want to wear any falsies.) *The only thing that drives me bonkers on this mascara is the fact that it never comes off. I can go work a 10 hour day at work, stop by the gym, do a cycle class, relax in the sauna, and then freshen up and see my honey bunny afterwards, girl the mascara is still on!

7. Shiseido Foundation Stick in O60, was discovered in my makeup collection earlier this month. I hardly ever gravitate towards a foundation stick. I bought one a while ago when a great gal friend of mine recommended it to me. To my surprise, this stuff is awesome. Another great product. This product offers moisture, great coverage and uber easy application. I have been applying this all over my face that needs coverage while I drive on the freeway. (please beware, this is what I do since I commute about 2 hours a day roundtrip) It covers imperfections like a dream, doesn’t get cakey and can be used as a concealer. Color/shade is perfect. On the other hand this color is perfect because it is winter time. I’m pale!!!

8. Shiseido Sheer Matifying Compact in O60, is a perfect product for setting foundation or for on the go coverage. Although, it has sheer on the title of the compact, it still seems to deliver great coverage. I have been using this instead of myMilani The Multitasker Face Powder. It offers a little more skincare benefits, great coverage, more SPF (great for communters like me) and is a bit more velvety and buttery than my alternative powder.

And that concludes my December 2012 Favorites! I hope you guys found this helpful and entertaining. Thanks again for reading and please follow if you love makeup. xoxo Happy New Year!