Christmas Beauty Haul: Sephora + Ulta

I went a little beauty product crazy this Christmas. I received a few amazing gifts, some gift cards as well as some good ol' hard cash, so I may or may not have gone a little overboard (okay, definitely went a little overboard). I get a little too "splurge-tastic" during the holiday season and I kind of just went all out at Sephora and Ulta! To ease my slightly guilty conscience, I thought it would be perfect to share all my naughty purchases with all you blog readers. I mean if all these products are for a nice blog post, then it's justifiable, right? RIGHT (...kinda). On to the haul...

1. Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette

Eeeeeeeeep! I am SO overwhelmed and excited about this palette. I love my Naked 2 palette and when I heard the 3rd was releasing, I literally could not control myself. I had to pick it up! I love the rosy theme and the color selection is on point. I have already played around with this a bunch and it's totally worth the hype! Every shade is gorgeous and they combine and play off each so beautifully. I'm just in love.

2. YSL All-in-one BB Cream

This is a total splurge item but I reallllly wanted to give this a try. I have played around with it and I am very impressed to say the least! The only thing that kind of "irks" me about this is the packaging. This is a super pricey product and I just expected a little more with the price point it's at. It's a simple plastic tube with a plastic gold cap. However, the product on the inside maybe one of the greatest things I've tried. I will have to try it out more before a full review!

3. Coach Love Perfume

I have wanted this perfume for months and months and I'm so thankful to finally have it! It's such a classy, romantic, and sophisticated scent. The notes a green violet, gardenia, patchouli, caramel, musk, mandarin, dewberry, freesia, magnolia, jasmine, sandalwood, and vanilla.

4. Dior Addict Lip Glow

This product is so intriguing to me. It's described as a "color reviver balm" and it's supposed to adjust to your body's chemistry and the natural color of your lips to make a perfect flattering shade of pink. It's supposed to look different on everybody. I was a little skeptical to see if it actually worked and I have to say that it does. This is such a neat lip product. My mom and I both put this on and it looked completely different on each of us. It was such a flattering shade on me and it's a really nice lip balm texture. Plus, the packaging is totally drool-worthy!

5. GlamGlow SUPERMUD Clearing Treatment + YOUTHMUD TingleExfoliate Treatment

I have heard such amazing things about this SUPERMUD face mask, but the price tag was always a little terrifying to me. But since I was in splurging mood, I decided to go for it. I can't wait to put it to the test and see if it really is as good as everyone is saying! I will definitely let you know how it goes in a future blog post! I decided to buy this little gift set because it was the exact price as just the SUPERMUD mask on it's own, so I thought that was a pretty nifty deal.

6. Benefit It's Potent Eye Cream

Holy adorable packaging. Like, I can't get over how cute this eye cream is. I really needed a new eye cream so I decided to give this one a shot and I am super excited to use it!

7. Urban Decay Chill Makeup Setting Spray

I love the Urban Decay Setting Sprays. I just ran out of my All-Nighter setting spray, so I decided to switch it up and try this one. I can't live without a good setting spray and I know I am going to love this one!

8. Real Techniques Core Collection

I think these Real Techniques brushes are so amazing and the best brushes for the value. I wanted to try several more so I picked up this collection. This includes (from left to right) a contour brush, pointed foundation brush, detailer brush, and a buffing brush. They all feel amazingly soft and I can't wait to put them to use!

9. Real Techniques Blush Brush

I needed another nice blush brush and I though this one looked perfect. It is the softest blush brush everrrr!

10. NYX HD Photogenic Concealer

I have read some really great reviews on this concealer and had to pick it up when I popped into Ulta. It is mega-cheap and I've played around with it a little and it seems really, really good. This may be a new favorite concealer!

11. Kate Somerville 3 Steps to Flawless

I redeemed my Sephora Beauty Insider points for this amazing sample of Kate Somerville products. I am so pleasantly surprised at the sizes of these samples! I've tried the moisturizer and I am hooooooked. It's the most amazing moisturizer. I can't wait to try the other products!

I am super thankful and excited about all these lovely products. I did go a little splurge crazy butttt I know I will put all these products to good use! I hope you had a fantastic Christmas (if you celebrate, of course)! I am so thankful to any one and every one who reads my posts, so thank you so much!

xoxo,
Paige

FOTD: Classic Holiday Makeup

Christmas time brings out the festive side in me. I love going all out with decorations, gift giving, baking, and the occasional ugly Christmas sweater. I like keeping things traditional this time of year and I adore a classic holiday makeup look with sparkly eyes, winged liner, and a bold red lip! I hope you enjoy this classic look I created! Oh, and you'll have to excuse my somewhat puffy face. I've been sick recently and my face has been looking abnormally puffy!

1. Primer + Foundation

First, like always, I primed with the Hourglass Veil Mineral primer to smooth my skin and help my foundation last all day. Next, I applied the Make Up For Ever HD Foundation and buffed that in with a flat top kabuki brush. This foundation is really nice when you are going to be taking lots of photos.

2. Concealer + Setting Powder/Spray

I applied L'Oreal Magic Lumi Concealer under my eyes to brighten and conceal that area and set it with the Laura Mercier Secret Brightening powder. I covered up any hyperpigmentation and acne spots with the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Spot Corrector. I finished by setting all of my face makeup with the Urban Decay All-Nighter Makeup setting spray (seriously love this stuff!).

3. Eyeshadow

For these simple classic holiday eyes, I used the Marc Jacobs Lolita palette which is absolutely perfect for this look.

Steps

1. white matte: inner corner + highlight brow bone

2. glitter: all across lid; applied with my finger for greatest color payoff

3. matte light brown: buffed all through the crease + lower lash line

4. shimmery bronze: outer lid, slightly buffed into crease + lower lash line

 (swatch of glitter shade, placed on lid)

4. Liner + Mascara

On the upper lash line, I used the Maybelline Gel Liner in "Blackest Black" and winged it out. For mascara, I applied two coats of the CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume in "Very Black" on my upper and lower lashes.

5. Blush + Bronzer + Highlighter

To contour and bronze the face, I used NARS Laguna, per usual. I dusted Benefit "Rocketeur" blush on the apples of my cheeks (obessssed with this blush at the moment). To highlight, I placed Dior "Amber Diamond" on the tops of the cheekbones and on the cupid's bow. This highlighter is on the pricier side of life but it is THE most gorgeous highlight I have ever used.

6. Lips!

I am not a huge red lip girl, but for the holidays, I love, love, love it. This may be my favorite red lip combo ever! I first lined my lips with the NYX Lip Liner in "Red", which is a great universal red lip liner for many different red lipsticks. Then I used the Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in "Icon". This is my first time trying this product and I am in love. It's a liquid lipstick that dries matte. It stains your lips so it lasts for a really long time. As soon as it dries, it does not transfer whatsoever, which is amazing. This color is really flattering; it is a blue-based red that makes your teeth look nice and white! 

And done...

xoxo, 

Paige

FOTD: Romantic Rose Gold

I am the first to admit that I have fallen victim to the ever-so-popular Rose Gold trend in makeup, clothes, nails- pretty much everything. Rose Gold is so flattering on so many skin tones and is gorgeous for any holiday-esque makeup look. I played around with rose golds for this soft and romantic FOTD. Hope you enjoy!

1. Primer + Foundation

First, I primed my face with my all time favorite Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer. This smooths out the skin and allows for a very even application of foundation and it also prolongs the wear of foundation. I am a big fan of priming before any and every foundation...it makes such a huge difference! For foundation, I decided to try out the Revlon Nearly Naked foundation. I purchased this product a few months ago and I've never really used it so I decided to test it out with this look. Unfortunately, I'm not really loving it. It looks good in photos, but in person, it clung to any dry spots on my face and it was not very flattering. I will do a full review of this to further explain my issues with this foundation.

2. Concealer

For concealer, I went with two trusty favorites. I used the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser for under my eyes to cover up my dark circles and then I used Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Spot Eraser to cover up any hyperpigmentation and redness. I set my under eye concealer with the Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder. I set the rest of my face with the Urban Decay All-Nighter Setting Spray.

3. Eye Shadow

For the eyes, I started with the L'Oreal Infallible Shadow in "Amber Rush", which is the most gorgeous rose gold shade and is the shadow swatched above. I applied this with my finger for the most color payoff and placed it all across the lid. For the crease, I wanted a medium pink shade that would play up the rosiness of the look so I used this Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in "Exposed" on a big fluffy crease brush and buffed it all through the crease. Next, I took MAC "Soft Brown" eye shadow and placed it more precisely into the crease to add depth to the eye. Even more percisely, I took "Tease" from the Naked 2 palette on a pencil brush and placed it right into the crease of the eye. I then took a clean blending brush and blended everything out. Lastly, I took "Bootycall" from the Naked 2 and placed it on the brow bone and inner corner to highlight those areas. I also placed "Tease" along the lower lash line.

4. Liner + Mascara

To finish the eyes, I lined the upper lash line with the Maybelline Define-A-Line liner in "Brownish Black" and smudged it out with a angled brush for a softer effect. I then applied two coats of CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume in "Very Black" on the top and bottom lashes. I filled in my eyebrows with the Anastasia Perfect Brow Pencil in "Soft Brown".

5. Blush + Bronzer

For the cheeks, I contoured and bronzed up the face using Nars "Laguna" and also applied Benefit "Rocketeur" which is a perfect rose gold blush for this look.

6. Lips

To finish off the entire face, I chose to go with a nude lip, but the rose gold eyes would look beautiful with many different lip colors. This nude shade is the Maybelline Elixir in "Nude Illusion". 

The finished look...

xoxo,
Paige