July Favorites

I don't typically do monthly favorites just because I don't rotate out products as much as many other youtube or beauty bloggers do. But if you have read any of my previous travel/ packing blogs, you know that I have packed some variety of products to use too. So I figured, since these were different from a lot of my usual products...I could just show you which ones I opted to use the most this month.  (I'd also like to mention that having less products has been extremely relaxing because I don't feel so stressed out that I have so much to use up!) Without further comment, here are my July Most Used Products.

 Eyes Products:

Shadow: I have opted for this little trio from 

LA Colors (it's in the shade Nude) and love it.  Obviously I have

hit pan on two of the shadows.  I find this versatile and just very easy to use in 

very busy mornings.  This is also a really great basic trio where 

you can just add on shimmery or glittery shadows to bring it to an evening/ dramatic look. 

Look at those dents!

Liner: I have gone back to my gel liner roots! (and now expanded to liquid!)

I love this gel liner from ELF and believe it'll be one of those

that I'll always fall back to. The coffee color is great because it's still not as dark as black, but dark enough to line.  The liquid liner is something I've gotten into,
I've never previously been a fan but it's awesome to make a dramatic eye.
The shade Midnight is also nice because it's a dark navy.

Primer/Base: Of course, If you have been following my blog for a while,
you will know that I am in LOVE with my NYX eyeshadow base in
Skintone.  This small pot has lasted me for over a year and it still is running strong.  It does not
crease on me and I just find it makes my eyeshadows stay SO long.

Mascara: Benefit Badgal mascara is such an oldie but a goodie.
This was my first mascara (not same tube...this is a new one) that I got and was introduced to.
I find this one gives me dark but long lashes.  I keep coming back to this mascara!

Face:

Concealer: I have been loving my ELF Studio Line Under Eye Concealer and Highlighter due.

Ok scratch that, I love the concealer part of the due, I dislike

the Highlighter portion of it.  I have a whole review up on this product, so check it

out to find out why I like it so much!

Blush: Yep, I'm still working through my Rimmel London Blush.  

This is a great dupe for Benefit's Dandelion, the only downside is that I no longer see this

at my drugstores.  (womp womp womb) I like that I can be a bit heavy handed 

with this blush, and still not turn out looking like a clown. 

It's also great because it leave a slight sheen on the cheeks so you don't really need a 

highlighter. 

Bronzer: At home I use the Physicians Formula Bronze Booster, but that thing

is SO clunky.  So I opted to take along a sample of Hoola bronzer

from Benefit.  I like this bronzer, but haven't quite fallen in love with it. 

Finishing Powder: If you keep up with my previous "trying to finish out 

products" you'll know that I've been working on a different product, but I didn't want

to possibly risk smashing my powder in flight, so I opted to take the NYC Smooth Mineral Loose Finishing Powder in Natural Veil.  I'm not a huge fan of loose powders

because they cause a huge mess.  But this summer I've been using the heck out of it!

Body/ Skincare:

St. Ive Apricot Scrub: Oh my gosh, I forgot how much I actually love this product.

After finishing out my large bottle, and vowing to not buy another face wash until my big bottles were done, I almost forgot about how great this makes my skin feel.  I think I'll have to break my ban and purchase this again. 

bebebeauty Face Experts: I picked this up here in Poland as a makeup remover and I love it.  

It's best explained as a milky, makeup remover lotion.  I had a different brand 

but same product a long time ago and loved it.  This doesn't sting my eyes

and takes off EVERY bit of makeup.  

Nivea anti-perspirant Stress Protect: The USA doesn't mass market this product, but in some Polish

markets you can get your hands on this. At first I was skeptical because it's liquidy and I just

couldn't believe that if I had to use heavier duty stick deodorants back home,  this would work.  

Needless to say...I think I'll be picking up a few extra of these to take home!

Randoms!

Vitamin C Tablets: SO many people have been sick and even after going to 

the doctor and getting meds, they still can't shake their colds, so these tablets have been a staple

for me.  I pop one of these a day into a bottle of water, and just drink. It

tastes like lemonade too!

Packing Makeup

Holy Moly... 
Ever try to narrow down the makeup products you might feel like using for the next three months? I was going through my makeup collection and deciding which products I might want to take along...it soon ended looking like this:

Yikes! This reminds me a bit of that Victoria's Secret commercial a few years back for the fashion show where the clothing suitcase is TEEEENY tiny, and the makeup trunk was insanely huge? Yep I had a minor flashback of that one. I know for sure I CAN'T take all of that makeup because I actually need to fit a decent amount of clothes, and now airlines are a lot more strict about weight and size of suitcases and carry ons (no thank you 50 dollar fees).  Needless to say...even Guam has makeup stores so if I realize I need something, I can easily pick it up from a Sephora, Inglot or drugstore.

So this was round two, three,  four and five (yep took that many rounds for my real bare basics) of pairing things down.  Still you can tell I was really wanting to take a LOT of eyeshadow...when in reality I'll be lucky to just finish one or two shadows the next few months.  This is still probably going to be picked through because I'm not 100% sure on some products but it's safe to say that I've got some great eye looks, great combos, etc available.

It took forever to finally narrow down my choices!

The bag I chose is a part of a 3 bag set that I got as a birthday gift a few years back.  I'm using the middle sized bag which compared to my computer is still a decent size. 

So let's really see what I plan to take on my trip:

Lips:
I am taking a good variety of products, but colors that I know I will use. 
I always need a few lip balms because my lips get painfully chapped. 

Products from L-R in top image: Fresh Sugar Rose (x2), Buxom Lip Gloss in Sandy,
NYC Applelicious Lip Balm in Applelicious Pink, NYC Lipstick in Violet Shine, ELF Studio Matte
Lip Color in Coral, Buxom Lip Stick in Two-Timer, Anastasia Lip Gloss in Bellini, Rimmel Kiss Off!
Lip Gloss in First Time, Love & Beauty Lip stick in coral/pink

Face:

When it came to face I knew I needed products that were small, and that would not shatter, 
that is why I went with the blush and bronzer.  I also don't switch those as often so it's really
not a big deal to just use these two. 

L-R: Laura Geller Spackle Primer in Bronze, Smashbox Photo Finish Primer,
Wet n Wild Coverall Foundation in Fair, NYC Smoother Mineral Finishing Powder in Natural,
Rimmel London Blush in Pink Sorbet, ELF Under Eye Concealer in Fair, Benefit Hoola Brozer

                          

Eyes: This is my favorite category!

I had a really hard time trying to figure out which products I would love, 

and which would be less fussy.  While I'm boring when it comes to colors,

there is just something about the packaging and the product itself that makes the application 

so much nicer.  I chose products that I knew would not fail me (even though some are already 

running low).  

L-R: ELF Exact Lash Mascara, ELF Waterproof Eyeliner in Midnight, Jordana Fabuliner in Brown, LA Colors Trio
 in Nude, MAC Mineralized Single in Aurora, Physicians Formula Trio in Baked Sands,
NYC Quad in Best of Broadway, NYX Eyeshadow Base in Skintone, Rimmel London Single in Royal
Linen, ELF Cream Liner in Coffee, Benefit Badgal Lash. 

                                    

Now I know this is a good amount of stuff I plan to bring, but I also wanted to have certain extras if I finish a product, it gets lost or stolen or smashes.  If you want to have a review on any product let me know! 

xoxo,
Emi

Project Pan: May

Hi all,
   So you would think that once graduation passes, things get easier, but with two jobs it's actually pretty nutso.  I'm trying to take on as many hours now because I will be away for a while (more on that in the next post).  Anyways I took these photos on my usual monthly 24th day mark, but until now didn't have a chance to sit down and write about them (boo). Anyways, I figured people wouldn't mind too much (sorry if I offend you?)

I feel like I've been making a lot of progress, especially since yesterday I went through all my makeup and put it into a use up asap/ giveaway and then a core collection.  I have much less makeup in my core collection, but feel much happier.

Anyways, let's get back to the products and my current progress on them.

The first right is actually the Wet N Wild Nutty eyeshadow! Holy crow it looks very different than my last post about it, but I'm so glad that it's basically done.  I'm fairly sure I'll have it done in the month of June, which amusingly enough...was my "expected" finish date (it has taken about 8 months to get this far!)

The product on the top right is the Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light to Medium, and I finally hit pan on it! I don't know why or how it has taken so long to just hit a tiny corner of the product.  I feel like I'll have this around for YEARS!

The next product on the left is a Physicians Formula Tone Correcting Powder...and sad to say...but I like the ELF version of this much more.  This still leaves a dewy finish and doesn't keep my face oil free for long.  I really can't wait till this is done.

On the right is the Rimmel Blush in Pink Sorbet, and this is another blush I would consider as a dupe for Benefit's Dandelion blush.  I have finally started to wear down the crown design in the middle. It's a pretty sheen of pink on the cheeks that also works great as a highlight.

The last product on the left is the ELF Studio Liner and Shadowstick in Green/Moss.  The "green" is more of a coppered/ antiqued gold black-green.  But this still looks nice.  I haven't started to use the Shadowstick although my swatches show that it's pretty. 

The last product is my Softlips lip balm in Wildberry.  I'd like to take a moment and say woohoo for not losing the dang thing! I have not lost it ONCE this entire month and a half block...THANK GOD. This lip balm has a carmex-y tingle, which I personally love and find that it works great on my lips.  I might actually be sad when I finish this out as I have still so many more to get through. 

What have you finished on your project pan?
xoxo,
Emi

Mini Lip Haul

Hi Readers!
  So after watching a bunch of youtubers and gurus I realized that I had no "fall" lip colors. Granted I have my reds, my pinks, a bronze shade and random ones I am not crazy about but I had none that I could officially claim as my go-to dark lip color! SO, I had some time on my hands and walked my tush over to my nearest Walgreens. It was so funny, because I've been staying away from stores in general, but hey...sometimes I need a lil therapy haha. I picked up several items and came across some brand new lip colors that I had not seen from Jordana.

1. Rimmel Moisture Renew in 540 Burgundy Lustre
  I was SO nervous when I saw this color because it really is a deep wine color. There is some fine red shimmer, but overal the lipstick is very smooth and as the name states: moisturizing. It is sheer so I can build it up, or leave it as an almost "just bitten" tinge. I really love this formulation and color!

2. Rimmel Moisture Renew in 500 Berry Rose
  I wanted to get a berry toned lipcolor that could be used for fall/spring/winter. I had heard some guru (don't remember which one) mention that this color is very lovely. It is similar to the Burgundy Lustre in how it is on the sheer side but very buildable. This lipstick has a glossiness to it, which leaves just the right amount of shine. It leans towards a strawberry tinge, another color that I love!





3. Revlon Colorburst in Soft Nude

  I have two previous lipsticks from Revlon and have heard people rant and rave about the soft nude. That said, I hate it....well the color at least. I think I should have gone with my gut to get rose nude, but because I had heard everyone say how perfect this nude is, I got it. I think it is more about me, and being the type of person who wants to see my lips, not have a conceler on my lips, which is what I felt I looked like. I'll try to go back to my store and return it/ exchange it. It was a little bit of a disappointment, but I know that if I don't feel comfortable or confident it will show in my temperment.

4. Jordana easyshine glossy lip color in 07 Watermelon Juice, 02 Berry Colada, & 01 Sugar Plum.

  I never saw these glosses in my local Jordana counters, so I figure they are newer products.  All of the glosses smell similar to their names, so Berry Colada has a pinapple- pina coloda - coconut scent to it. Out of all of them Watermelon Juice is the most sheer but leaves a hint of bright pink on the lips. Berry Colada leaves a sheer sided coat of color, but is buildable. Sugar Plum is the most opaque out of all of them, and while is lovely to wear, I really need to have a very light hand with them.  They have a lovely gloss like finish, and don't leave my lips feeling very dry. The downside though is that they fade out relatively soon. So for longwear don't get these, but for a fun day at the park or class, I say why not. Berry Colada is the only one of mine that has glitter in it, but it does not feel chunky on the lips. hmmmm, I think these were the best investment! (1.99)
 
Anyways, lipsticks are a great way to perk up and change everyday looks. Switch up a few and see how you feel! Any one else use these products?

Have a great day!
Ema