Monthly Must-Haves: March

Did you hear? It snowed today here in Michigan, breaking a record from 1880 with a total of 94.8" of snow this winter. Lovely, right? Yesterday, it was almost 70 degrees in the morning, and today I was pulling out my boots again! When will it ever end?? Just when I was getting exciting about pulling out my favorite springtime beauty products, I'm right back to slathering on facial cream and using hand lotion like it's nobody's business. The forecast for the rest of the week looks less bleak than today, so I'll stay optimistic that I'll be wearing my favorite spring Chloé fragrance soon.

This winter, I tried lots of new products and found some new favorites that will become part of my permanent arsenal. I figured I'd share my most-used products from March. Here's to hoping that April's favorites are more suitable for sunshiny days!

Clarisonic Mia 2: There is absolutely zero exaggeration in me saying that the Clarisonic is a lifesaver. We all hear bloggers and gurus wax poetic about how great a Clarisonic is for your skin, but until you've tried it for yourself, you won't be prepared for how beautiful it makes your skin look and feel. I'll do a separate post on my new love for my Clarisonic, but know that I've been using it every single day!
Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Bang: This creamy orangey-red lipstick was my go-to when my face was feeling a little blah. It really brightened up my complexion, wore for a long time, and felt very comfortable on the lips. I like the Revolution formula, and added a few more shades to my collection this month.
Oribe Crème for Style: I kind of have a love/hate relationship with Oribe products. Last year when I was using them, I felt like my hair got really greasy really quickly. It might be because of the fact that my hair is lighter now (meaning a little more texture), but I've been using this cream every day before blowdrying. It keeps my hair nice and sleek, and smells amazing.
Sephora Collection Classic Brow Filler Brush #100 and Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Ebony: It's been an ongoing struggle trying to find the perfect product to fill my brows in with. They look dark in person, but in pictures, you can barely see them (even though I keep them thick). This waxy cream makes my brows look sculpted and deep. Beware, though: a tiny bit goes a loooong way.
essie Nail Color in Forever Yummy: I've been looking for a classic lipstick red polish for some time, but am never satisfied. This is it.
Josie Maran Argan Oil: My skin is super oily, so the idea of putting even more oil on top of it is terrifying. Like I said, it has been a treacherous winter here in Michigan, and my skin was thirsty. I would dab a few drops of this on dry spots and watch them disappear. I am probably alone in this, but I do wish this oil was scented; I feel like a nice, light fragrance would make it feel more luxurious.
Prada Candy L'Eau: I wore the parfum version of this fragrance last winter, and oddly enough, it would make my chest break out every time I would put it on. This version is still sultry but a little lighter, and had no adverse effects on my skin. Did you see that there is now a Floral version of this scent? I might be in fragrance trouble…
Rimmel London Scandaleyes Retro Glam Mascara: I'm not really sure what the point of the hourglass wand is, but the formula is a beautiful inky black that allows me to wear multiple coats without looking clumpy or flakey. A new favorite formula, for sure.

What were some of your beauty necessities last month? Are there any products you're really hoping to try out this spring? Did it snow by you this week? Leave comments, and I'll talk to you all soon! Xx

Louboutin Nails

Hi dolls! While I can't claim this as my genius handiwork, I just had to share my friend Teslah's amazingly gorgeous manicure. Inspired by Christian Louboutin's Swarovski crystal-studded Dafodile pump, this is one luxe paint job. She went with stiletto-shaped tips, covered in a chunky silver glitter polish (I believe she said she used Essie's Set in Stones; see my review of the polish here) with a lipstick red on the underside. Below, her manicure compared to the Louboutin shoes, worn by the fabulous Beyoncé. Sorry the picture is a little blurry, I guess I got too excited to keep the camera shot still!

Even with a broken middle finger, this mani is fierce!!

 I think this take on the Louboutin manicure is fabulous! So, what do you think? Brave enough to try this look, or will you stick with something more demure for the holiday season? Xx

This Week's Beauty Purchases!

It's been quite a productive week in beauty buys for me. I haven't had a chance to try everything out yet, but I figured I'd introduce all of the products and we can go into them a little further later on. Let's get started!

NARS Bronzing Powder in Laguna: After a less-than-stellar experience with Too Faced Peach Leopard Bronzer, I thought I'd try this cult classic. I detest super-shimmery bronzers, but the shimmer in this bronzer is almost undetectable; it just imparts a radiant glow. The shade "Laguna" is good for my pale winter skin. Maybe I'll try "Casino" in the summer time.

Maybelline Volum' Express the Colossal Cat Eyes Mascara: Is it just me, or are long product names super annoying? Regardless, I have mixed feelings about this mascara. The curved brush doesn't really do much for me as far as volume, but it helps with curl. I think layering this with another mascara (probably my favorite L'Oréal Voluminous Carbon Black) would look nice. My only issue is that Maybelline mascaras are a real pain to take off.

Essie Nail Polish in Bahama Mama: If you're trying to get in on autumn's oxblood trend but don't want to take the full dive, this is a great way to start. I thought this color would just be a deep fuchsia, but the deep burgundy/maroon color is much more than that. Pretty and rich, perfect for fall and winter. 

Mary Kay NouriShine Plus Lip Gloss in Café Au Lait: I got this lip gloss for free with a top I purchased from Lulu's. Honestly, I thought the gloss I received was a sample size, so I reordered it thinking the retail size would be bigger. I was a little disappointed to find out the petite container is what you get. This gloss is nice and moisturizing, and the color is a great neutral for every day. Would I pay $14 for it again? Probably not. 

Oribe Maximista Thickening Spray: I am so excited for this product, and I haven't even tried it yet. I absolutely loooved Oribe Dry Texturing Spray. Maximista is a "thermal-protective body-builder," and I think using it in conjunction with Oribe Crème for Style will give fantastic results. Did I mention how amazing Oribe products smell? Mmm!

Real Techniques Powder Brush: This is my first Real Techniques brush, and I think it's great. Right now I use an Ecotools Bamboo Bronzer Brush to apply bronzer, and I think it's a little too heavy-handed. For a lighter bronzer application, especially on my pale autumn/winter skin, I think this fluffy brush will do the trick. I had a coupon at Ulta (yay!) and was able to get this brush for around $7 USD. Quite a deal for such a fabulous brush. Now I really want to try the Expert Face Brush. It's supposed to be great for foundation.

YSL Rouge Volupté Lipstick in #001 Nude Beige: This lipstick is creamy. Too creamy? It's too early to pass judgement. The color is a beautiful pinkish-nude, and the packaging is luxe, to say the least. It's a great match for my NARS Fantasia Lipliner Pencil.

Phew! That was a lot. I'm very excited to get better acquainted will all of these products, and I'll definitely keep you posted on what I'm crazy about and what is underwhelming. Have you tried any of these products? Let me know in the comments. Until next time! Xx

Holiday Nails with Essie Luxeffects!

A couple of weeks ago, I picked up two of Essie's Luxeffects polishes. I think these are relatively new (they're the Holiday 2011 collection, so I guess that's as new as they could be) and I absolutely love them. Essie intends these polishes to be used a topcoat (which I didn't...Seche Vite goes on top of everything for me), and they add a seriously beautiful effect to any polish color. The two that I purchased are Set In Stones and Shine of the Times. Set In Stones is a silver glitter with hexagonal and micro-particle pieces, and Shine of the Times is an iridescent, almost opalescent flakey glitter. 

Both are stunning, especially when layered over another polish shade; I stuck to dark base shades so that the glitters would be more prominent (Russian Navy underneath the silver glitter, and Black Onyx underneath the gold). I tried to go for a snowflake-y thing with Set In Stones...I'm not sure if it turned out as well as I would've hoped, but it's still pretty. Oh, and excuse me for the sorry state of my cuticles in both pictures - yuck!

I'm usually a fan of glitters only in the wintertime, and I think the new Essie Luxeffects are a really pretty way to make your nails look more festive. Do you like glitter polishes? Have you tried any of these? Leave comments below and let me know what you think! Xx

Yellow Nails

While my nail polish collection is adventurous, I am not.  I'm always buying a million different colors, but usually stick to black, blue-black, purple-black...you get the idea.  When I saw Kimora Lee Simmons on "Fashion Police" wearing a cobalt blue dress and sunshine yellow nails, I instantly became obsessed with this unusual (albeit trendy) look and knew I had to try it.  So begins my foray into nail colors that are not shades of black.

I went to Walgreen's and picked up this Sally Hansen nail polish. It's Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in Mellow Yellow.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to go for a really neon, highlighter yellow shade, but I went with this true yellow.  I'm kind of a polish snob, as I have this notion that drugstore polishes don't go on as well and aren't as opaque as higher-end brands.  As you can tell in the picture, this polish probably needed three coats to be super opaque, but it wore really well.  I can't tell you exactly how long it wears, as I have a bad habit of picking my nail polish off after a couple of days.  If you're feeling the look but don't want to spend a ton on what will probably be a short lived trend, I recommend this polish, which cost less than three dollars.

Are yellow nails something you would try, or are you more of a polish traditionalist?  Let me know what your favorite summer polish shade is in the comments! Xx

A little more love...

My friend Anggie (who does wonderful nails) gave herself a Valentine's Day themed manicure, so I just had to share!

So festive.  I love them!