Entire 2010 Favorites

It's getting close to the end of the year so I decided to do my last favorites post of 2010.

Makeup Products:

Foundation- Chanel Vitalumiere  - Reviewed Here
Powder- Paul & Joe Finishing Powder in 001
Eyebrow- Kevyn Aucoin Eyebrow Pencil and K-Palette Real Lasting Eyebrow Pen in 02
Eye Primer- Urban Decay Primer Potion
Eyeshadow- MAC Shroom & Bronze, Burberry Rosewood & Porcelain, MUFE Aqua Cream #2 Steel
Eyeliner- L'oreal Liner Intense Black Eyeliner
Mascara- YSL Effet Faux Cils Mascara
Eyelash Curler- Le Metier de Beaute'
Blush- R&R Blushes Foreplay & Tease - Reviewed Here
Bronzer- Soleil Tan De Chanel AKA Universel Bronzer - Reviewed Here
Lipstick- Paul & Joe Lipstick in 064
Lip gloss- Chanel Glossimer in Magnifique #83

Highlighter- MAC's Mineralize Skinfinish in Perfect Topping

Haircare Products:

Shampoo- Kao Essential Rich Premier Shampoo

Condition- Kao Essential Rich Premier Conditioner

Hair Mask- Garnier Fructis Haircare Triple Nutrition 3-Minute Undo Dryness Reversal Treatment
Blow Dryer- Super Solano
Hair Styling Product- Oribe Royal Blowout Heat Styling Spray - Reviewed Here

Body Products:

Lotion- The Body Shop Coconut Milk Body Lotion

Exfoliator- Naive Peach Body Wash by Kracie + The Body Shop Exfoliating Gloves
Soap- Lush "I Should Coco" Soap - Reviewed Here

Skincare:

Cleanser- Laneige Multi Cleanser - Reviewed Here
Toner- Creme De La Mer Le Tonique
Serum- Paul & Joe Whitening Serum
Moisturizer- b*liv Submerge Me Moisturizing Booster - Reviewed Here
Exfoliator- MAC Volcanic Ash Exfoliator - Reviewed Here
Face Mask- Sasa Tinnie Black Caviar Nourishing Mask - Reviewed Here
Makeup Remover- Kirkland Facial Cleansing Towelettes

ORIBE Royal Blowout Heat Styling Spray

I am not one of those lucky people who can wash their hair and walk out the door. A friend asked me how long did it take to blow dry my hair, I couldn’t lie, I answered truthfully – about 25 minutes. She looked mortified and couldn’t quite figure out what to think. You see, I believe there is an art form to blow drying hair, and it can be achieved in your own home the same way it is achieved perfectly in your salon.

For a salon-like blow dry you need to have a good blow dryer, the proper styling tools, and the proper products to make it all come together and work. I have come across many products in my time that promise a lot of things; some have not worked at all, some were average, some were very good, and one knocked my socks off. I have had the best hair days ever since.

I’m in love with the Oribe Royal Blowout Heat Styling Spray. I purchased it at SpaceNK inside the Bloomingdales in South Coast Plaza.

Oribe Website Claims:
For the ultimate blowout. This ultra-lightweight mist smoothes even the worst-behaved mop while speeding dry time. It also repairs split ends, nourishes, softens and strengthens the hair, giving it healthy body and shine.
175 ml / 5.9 fl.oz
$42.00

Royal Blow Out Heat Styling Spray goes on with a few sprays from mid-shaft to the ends. The product is very light and weightless, in fact I was scared the first time I used it, it was so light it reminded me of the MAC Fix+ spray, I thought 42 dollars down the drain. After I sprayed my damp hair I blow dried it section by section per the instructions.

I was blown away with the results. My hair was so shiny, smooth, hydrated, and it resembled a perfect salon blow dry. I was very happy with the flawless finish I saw when I looked in the mirror. There was no frizz and my hair looked so healthy. Another great thing is that this product is also a heat protectant! Did it speed up the drying time? I don’t know, I didn’t really feel like my blow dry time was shorter, but keep in mind my hair is very thick. I’m sure someone with finer hair would see their dry time cut in half.

The most impressive part was I noticed my hair stayed behaved and shiny for the next 2 days!

Here is something I will say and I hope you keep this in mind. When I blow dry my hair I really blow dry it. I go section by section with a round brush drying and styling my hair. I really take my time to do it right. This product brought out the best in my hair while managing its tendency to misbehave. If you’re someone who blow dries their hair for 5 minutes just so it’s not wet this product I feel, would be lost on you. So keep that in mind and don’t waste your money.

But if you are like me and spend up to 20 minutes or more standing in front of a mirror in the morning instead of sleeping and love a perfectly salon looking coif, then this is for you.

Burberry Lipstick & Lip Gloss in Sepia, Burberry Blush in Russet

It's yet another trip down Burberry lane. I was at Nordstroms during their customer appreciation event and picked up a few more Burberry items I have been craving. Of course they were sold out of the Rosewood lipstick so I decided to go another route.

• Burberry 'Lip Cover' Soft Satin Lipstick in Sepia No.12
• Burberry 'Lip Glow' Natural Lip Gloss in Sepia No. 03
• Burberry 'Light Glow' Natural Blush in Russet No. 01

The Sepia lipstick is very interesting, in the tube it appears to be dark but once applied it takes on a neutral brownish/pink color. You can layer for a darker look or just apply once for more of a neutral wearable look. The Burberry lipsticks retail at $30 USD at Nordstrom and are available in 21 different colors. Like the other Burberry lipsticks I reviewed HERE this lipstick has a soft subtle fragrance and the trademark Burberry checked pattern.

The Sepia lip gloss is a match to the Sepia lipstick, and is a brownish/pink color. The lip gloss has the same fragrance as all the Burberry products do. I love the Burberry lip glosses, they are very hydrating, creamy, and long-lasting. Lets not forget my favorite part which is the doe-foot applicator. The Burberry lip glosses retail at $27 USD at Nordstrom and are available in 12 different colors.

From left to right:

Sepia lip gloss, 1 layer of Sepia lipstick, 2 layers of Sepia lipstick.

I have been wanting this blush in Russet for so long, actually I believe I wanted this since the first trip I made to the Burberry counter. But, like most great products they were sold out. So, I was very excited to finally have this baby in my greedy little makeup addicted hands! Once I got it home I realized right off the bat that it looked pretty similar to my other Burberry blush- Burberry Light Glow Blush in No.05 Blossom. Once I tested them both I did see the difference, Blossom on one hand leans more towards a coral color while Russet leans more towards a brownish color. I definitely feel like Russet is more of a unique color as opposed to Blossom. The Burberry blushes are very pigmented like all their other products, so it is important to use a light hand and blend well into the skin. The Burberry 'Light Glow' Natural Blushes retail at $42 USD at Nordstrom and are available in 5 different colors.

My Burberry wearable everyday office FOTD:
Burberry Lipstick in No.12 Sepia
Burberry Blush in No.01 Russet (blended out)
Burberry Eye Shadow in No.03 Porcelain

Other items used:
CHANEL Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliner in Espresso #20
Bobbi Brown Extreme Party Mascara in Black

NARS: Etrusque, Moon Fleet, and Hungry Heart

I purchased a few NARS items over the last 2 months. I'm not a huge NARS fan, in fact the only NARS items I have ever really liked are their blushes. During the Sephora F&F Sale I picked up a lip gloss in Moon Fleet, a face highlighter duo in Hungry Heart, and a single eye shadow in Etrusque. I have mixed emotions about these products.

NARS Single Eye Shadow in Etrusque.

I saw this on the Sephora website and in the catalog, I thought to myself "Diane, you need this in your life." It's listed as being "New" and let's be honest here- I'm not one of those girls who can pass up a gold eye shadow. I don't know why every year I buy a new gold eye shadow for the holidays, last year I bought NARS Silent Night and like Silent Night I have some issues.

The color is gorgeous, when I opened the box I almost didn't want to touch it and ruin it's perfect existence. The problem I have is even though the color itself is very pigmented to touch and wonderfully soft, I can't seem to apply it and get a smooth layer of color using a brush, it looked almost foiled. I tried a few different primers to see if it was the primer or the eye shadow. Eventually I had to grab another gold eyeshadow to put on top and blend. I love this color it's beautiful and it haunts me. Even with the issues I'm having I still try to use this shadow and will continue to fight with it and figure out what I'm doing wrong. This is only my 3rd NARS eye shadow and I have had this problem with 2 of them, both being gold colors. NARS what do you have against gold?

NARS Lip Gloss in Moon Fleet

Another item I saw on the website and thought "Diane, you need this in your life." You know what? It looks as though I am my own worst enemy when it comes to makeup purchases. At the time I thought, what a perfect lip gloss for the holidays! It's sparkling, it's gold, it even looks just a little happier than the other NARS lip glosses. This lip gloss is very pretty and the little sparkles in the gloss make it so that it looks great over lipstick or just by itself. What I like also is how the sparkles and gold are not annoying, I don't feel like a 15 year old with gold glitter shellacked over my lips, it's the perfect amount of "umph". I'm so happy that I liked this lip gloss, the last NARS lip gloss I bought was the Orgasm lip gloss and I didn't like it. Am I weird?

NARS Highlighting/Bronzing Blush Duo in Hungry Heart

First let me remind you, I love highlighters- and I mean love not like. I have many highlighters by various brands and can't seem to get enough of them, so I tend to be hard on highlighters when I don't like them. Okay here we go. I really can't tell you why I bought this, I must have been in a Sephora frenzy. This duo is described as "iridescent gold ivory/pink sand with golden sheen" and retails for $38USD. I don't really understand the concept of how this can be a Highlighting/Bronzing Blush Duo, I bought this thinking it was just a highlighter, foolish me. I don't believe this product could function as a blush it's just too sheer, the ivory and pink powder can barely be seen on skin; it's mostly just chalky powder with lots of glitter. I tried to swatch these and realized it simply can not be seen on my skin. I'm not dark nor am I super pale and still all you can see is glitter. I used this for 2 weeks alternating with my Giorgio Armani highlighter and I must admit, NARS can in no way compare with the GA highlighter.

What's wrong with me, why do I not have any luck with NARS products?

Are you a NARS lover? What products will blow me away? What's on your NARS must have list?

November Favorites

I know it's sort of late to post my November favorites but since I have some new items on the list I decided it's better late than never.

1. Giorgio Armani 'Gold Rush' Holiday 2010 Palette
I can't help it I really love highlighters and this is my current favorite, I have been wearing this everyday since I bought it. I love the gold shimmer and I think it's great for the holidays.

2. Bobbi Brown Palettes
These Bobbi Brown palettes are so gorgeous. These palettes are actually the first products I have ever bought from Bobbi Brown. I wonder what was my problem with BB that I never would even look at their counter? Now I'm obsessed with these palettes and Bobbi Brown. The palette in this picture is the Sultry Eye Palette.

3. Rock & Republic Blush in Foreplay
Everyone loves R&R blushes, and everyone by now has to have a few. But my favorite blush right now is not one of the popular R&R blush colors it's Foreplay, a nude looking brownish color. I was surprised the first time I used it, I didn't think it would be a color I would like that much but I ended up really liking it and now I have been using it almost everyday. I really need to stop buying blushes.

4. Giorgio Armani Rouge d'Armani in 510
This lipstick was apart of one of the Giorgio Armani holiday kits. This is a great color it is very bright and really pops so it's a good color for those days that call for minimal eye color but a fun lip.

5. Paul & Joe Lipstick in 064
This has been my everyday color, just a simple soft pink beige color great for any look. This has been on my favorites list before I always get scared and stop using it because it's LE but I figure I have so many lipsticks now I need to start using some of them up.

6. NARS Smudge Proof Eye Shadow Primer
I bought this during the Sephora F&F sale and I have to say I like it more than my Urban Decay Primer Potion. The NARS primer is more creamy and gel like, once I apply it I can really work it around my eye before it dries. With UDPP I feel like I have to work super fast before it dries stiff on my lid. I also think my eyeshadow blends much better over the NARS, I have been loving my eye makeup lately and I think NARS Smudge Proof Primer is the reason. I still like UDPP but the NARS primer is my current favorite.

7. Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Mascara
I have only been using this out for about 2 weeks but I'm already in love with it. I have been wanting to try Giorgio Armani products forever but didn't know where to start. Thanks to Sabrina over at thebeautylookbook.com I had a list of products to drool over. One of the things she recommended was this mascara, at first I was scared I'm not a huge Megan Fox fan and with her picture plastered all over the advertisement I was backing away from the counter. But with Sabrina's stamp of approval I figured I trusted her more than Mrs. Fox, and I'm so glad I did. I'm loving this mascara- it makes my lashes bold, black, and thick! What more can you ask for?

8. Dolce & Gabbana Ultra-Shine Lip Gloss in #100 Seduction
I was in a rush at the beginning of the month and grabbed the first gloss in my drawer, its been in my makeup bag ever since. I fell in love with this color in November after not being totally crazy about it when I bought it. I'm glad I gave it a 2nd chance.

9. Hourglass Face Primer

I have written about this before, this is another product I bought during Sephoras F&F Sale. I have tried a lot of primers and I have to admit most of the time I don't really see a huge difference. The Hourglass Face Primer is a little different. I don't see a huge difference but I see enough of an improvement to make me very happy. I noticed my foundation lasts longer, and settles smoothly on my skin. With this primer and the Le Metier de Beaute foundation I've been trying out I'm unstoppable!

10. Le Metier de Beaute Eyelash Curler

I received this as a free gift with purchase and have been using it everyday. I don't know if it's the eyelash curler itself or the fact that it's from Le Metier de Beaute that makes me love it so much. This eyelash curler works on my lashes perfectly and leaves them soft and curled.