January Empties | #33

Starting the new year off right - by getting rid of things! I really want to make a conscious effort in 2017 to pare down my stash of beauty things to just my favorite, most used items and not keep a massive backstock. So often I see a great deal and feel like I have to get something because the price is right, even when I have no need for it. Moving forward, I'm going to be more conscious of how many items I keep on hand. 

With that said... here's what I've used up in January...

• Batiste Dry Shampoo in Floral Essences (would repurchase) - Batiste is hands down my favorite dry shampoo. It works great for soaking up oil and doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Anything that saves me from having to wash my hair multiple days a week earns a repurchase in my book!

• Hask Mint Almond Oil Conditioner (would repurchase) - This is a nice conditioner. It has a nice mint scent and I think this line actually did help spur some new hair growth. See full review here. 

• It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Plus Keratin (would not repurchase) - This was fine. I sprayed it in my hair after I showered and used it to detangle my hair, which it did. I just prefer a keratin-free leave-in treatment - I don't want to develop breakage from overuse. 

• ARK Age Protect Skin Vitality Moisturizer (would repurchase) - This is a really nice moisturizer. It's light yet moisturizing, but also leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth. It didn't break me out either. My husband used it and liked it, too. See full review here. 

• Up & Up Eye Makeup Remover Liquid (would repurchase) - The Target brand eye makeup remover is the bomb. It competes with any name brand version, such as Neutrogena, out there. 

• Collective Wellbeing Honey Buff Gentle Exfoliator (would not repurchase) - This scrub was like a majorly watered down St. Ives. It ran everywhere when you tried to use it, which drove me crazy. So much was wasted because it ran all over. For that reason, I wouldn't buy this again. 

• CeraVe Eye Repair Cream (would repurchase) - This was a really nice eye cream. It's not too greasy but provides a good amount of hydration.

• Nooni Snowflake Cleanser (would repurchase) - I liked this little sample. Cleansing balms are my favorite way to remove makeup. See full review here. 

• Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in ZZ (would repurchase) - I loved this mauve lipstick sample so much that I bought a full size. It's creamy and hydrating on the lips and the color lasts for hours. This formula is one of my favorites. Definitely want to try more Vice lipsticks.

• Benefit Bad Gal Lash (would repurchase) - This was an OK mascara. Nothing overly special. It took a little bit of building to get the amount of volume I wanted, but overall it was good. I probably wouldn't spend much money on the full size though, because drugstore mascaras are good enough for me.

• Jack Black lip balm in Asian Pear & White Tea (would not repurchase) - I love Jack Black lip balms but I did not enjoy this scent. 

• Essence I Heart Extreme Mascara (would repurchase) - This is an awesome drugstore mascara. I love the short-bristled plastic brush - it makes it easy to coat your lashes and get up to the water line easily. This is super cheap and won't cost you more than $5! This isn't my first tube of this mascara and it won't be my last.

• Maybelline Stay Fit concelear (would not repurchase) - There's SO much hype around this concealer. People rant and rave all about this, but it does not work for me. It creases like mad and makes me look like I'm 50. Noooo thank you. 

• Blistex lip balm (would repurchase) - I like Blistex. It feels cooling and comfortable on the lips. Yeah, I'll buy it again.

• L'Oreal Revitalift Miracle Blur (would not purchase) - This was fine, but it's very synthetic and fake. I don't know if my sample was old, but it was thick and hard to smear around. My skin looked smooth, but there are other smoothing primers I like more than this one. 

• Shiseido Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Concentrate (would purchase) - This was an interesting product that's supposed to be a boost to anything you put on top of it. It smelled really nice and felt good on my skin. I'm sure it's expensive, but I'd be interested to see how my skin adjusts to using more than just a sample of this.

• Liquid BlenderCleanser (would not purchase) - Meh... not worth buying this cleanser made specifically for the beauty blender. It's really nothing special. Dr. Bronner's is my go-to, it's cheaper, and it does a better job. 

• Arbonne Cellular Renewal Masque (would purchase) - This mask was really nice. It felt kind of like lotion, but my skin felt refreshed after using it. I don't purchase pyramid-scheme products, but if I happened upon this randomly, I'd think about purchasing it.

• Keys Eye Butter (would not purchase) - Holy cow, the smell of this stuff was enough to make me throw out this sample. The ingredients are amazing and natural, but I think it's the rosemary oil mixing with something else that is just pungent and unsavory to sniff. Aside from that, it's a nice thick cream that adds moisture to the delicate undereye area, but beware of the scent!!

• 100% Pure Green Apple Nourishing Body Cream (would purchase) - A nice hand cream that smells just like green apples. Good if you like products that lean more natural.

• Jason Cranberry Pure Natural Hand Soap (would repurchase) - I loved this hand soap. It had an amazing light cranberry scent and the ingredients are A+. This big bottle lasted a long time, too. 

• Everyday Shea Peppermint Tingle Hand Soap (would repurchase) - Another natural hand soap, with a light minty smell. Cute packaging as well. 

• Babyganics Face, Hand & Baby Wipes (would repurchase) - I love Babyganics wipes to remove swatches, but not so much for baby wipes. They don't smell like anything and have minimal ingredients. These are my go-to for cleaning up my beauty area and giving everything a good wipe-down. 

• Elizabeth & James Nirvana Black (would repurchase) - Love this perfume and have it in a full size. Just had to use up this mini. See full review here.

• Oscar de la Renta Something Blue (would not purchase) - I do not like this scent. It's very heavily floral and citrusy, the complete opposite of what I like to wear.

• Estee Lauder Modern Muse (would not repurchase) - I like Modern Muse, but not enough to want a full size. It's floral but has undertones of patchouli, woods and musk. I prefer the Modern Muse Rouge and would buy that before the original. 

• B&BW Red Velvet Cheer candle (would not repurchase) - This was from last year's holiday collection. If you like gourmand scents, you'd like this. Unfortunately it didn't have much throw so it was more for the aesthetic than anything.

• B&BW Winter candle (would repurchase) - This is a classic B&BW holiday scent that I really love, comprised of the smells of pine, woods and mandarin.

• Yankee Candle Golden Sands candle (would repurchase) - This smells so nice. It reminds me of Flowerbomb or some comparable perfume. Had a nice scent throw. 

• Yankee Candle Mountain Lodge candle (would repurchase) - A fresh scent, kind of manly. Had a good throw as well.

• Better Homes Scarlet Amaryllis Flowers melts (would repurchase) - This smelled kind of fruity to me in a weird way. It was a strong scent that filled my whole house. Not my favorite, but not bad.

What did you use up this month? Let me know!

April Empties | #25

You guys... where did April go?? Seriously. And how are we in week 2 of May? Obviously time is flying by too quickly and I can't keep up when my empties post has gotten so late it's being posted mid-way through the next month! YIKES! 

Anyway, let's dig through my trash and I'll let you know whether my empties are worth a repurchase or not. Here we go...

• Yu-Be Foaming Skin Polish (would repurchase) - This was pretty good. It certainly does foam up and it's gritty enough to exfoliate the skin, my only complaint is it doesn't smell nice at all. Full review here. 

• Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray (would repurchase) - I love this setting spray, it's one of the best I've ever used. I definitely notice a difference in the longevity of my makeup when I use it. I've already got another bottle of this on hand!

• LaVanila deodorant in Pure Vanilla (would repurchase) - LaVanila deodorants have no aluminum or nasty ingredients, which I prefer. This brand works really well for me, but keep in mind that natural deodorants seem to work differently from person to person, so it may or may not work for you.

• Origins Soothing Souffle whipped body cream (would not repurchase) - This stuff literally smells like spearmint toothpaste. About half way through the jar, the smell became  sickening and I was so happy when I finally used it up. Even my husband commented on how sickening the scent was, and he's usually pretty indifferent to what lotions I use. Never again.

• Redken All Soft Shampoo (would not repurchase) - There was nothing inherently wrong with this shampoo, but I just wasn't that impressed. I'd rather use Suave, which is significantly cheaper, than buy another bottle of this. My husband ended up using more of it than I actually did, and he thought it wasn't very foamy. Meh, no need to get it again.

• Yes To Blueberries Healthy Hair Repair Conditioner (would repurchase) - I enjoyed this conditioner. It made my hair feel really soft and smelled nice, and as an added bonus it's affordable and made up of good ingredients.

• Swisspers Cotton Rounds (would repurchase) - These are some of the best cotton rounds I've used. I get them in a mega pack from Costco and this certainly won't be the last pack in my future. 

• Vanedo Beauty Friends Rose Mask (would not repurchase) - This mask was just OK. It claims to soothe, moisturize and "converge"(???) the skin, but I didn't notice it doing much at all for me. It felt nice and was relaxing, but I'd rather use a mask that provides visible benefits. 

• Colgate MaxFresh toothpaste (would repurchase) - A boring empty, but this was a good toothpaste and I'd probably buy it again. I tend to stick with more natural toothpastes, but now and then I pick up a random tube of something like Colgate.

• Sensodyne Pronamel (would not repurchase) - I don't really need a toothpaste like Pronamel, but I was given a zillion sample tubes so I'm just using them up. It works fine, but won't make your mouth feel all that fresh and clean. 

• Physicians Formula Multi-Colored blush in Blushing Nude (would repurchase) - You can see it isn't all gone, but it was getting tough to get enough on my brush. I love this blush. It looks natural and blends really well. If I saw it again, I'd pick it up. I'm not even sure they make this anymore, to be honest. See it in action here.

• Sonia Kashuk Hidden Agenda Concealer Palette in Light (would not repurchase) - This concealer palette is awesome, don't get me wrong, but if you are pale like I am, these shades are WAY too dark. But, if you aren't as pale as I am and need some serious coverage, I would highly recommend picking up this palette. It's best used for covering up blemishes, which it does like a champ.

• Soap & Glory Vitamin C Facial Wash (would not repurchase) - This took me AGES to use up, anf my husband even helped me through it. I'm talking a solid 6 months or so. This is nothing special, and unfortunately it has microbeads in it (not cool, Soap & Glory!!) so I definitely won't buy it again.

• Oz Naturals Ocean Minerals Facial Cleanser (would not repurchase) - I didn't finish this up all the way because it burned my eyes so bad if it got in them and I don't like that. Also, the smell started to make me nauseous (thanks, pregnancy) so out it goes. The ingredients are good though, which is a plus! Full review here. 

• Rodan + Fields Pore Minimizing Toner (would repurchase) - This toner was nice. It's highly fragranced (a con in my book), but it did the job of prepping my skin for moisturizer and removing any extra traces of makeup left on my skin. Full review here.

• Rosehip Plus Organic Rosehip Oil (would repurchase) - Rosehip oil has many great benefits for the skin (reduces appearance of scars, wrinkles and more - yay!) and this was a nice option. I found it at TJ Maxx and if I saw it again and needed a night time moisturizer, I'd pick this up again. Full review here. 

• Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation Oil-Free Perfecting Creme (would not repurchase) - This creme is supposed to have tons of great benefits, but I did not notice it doing anything for me. It's really pricey and I wouldn't shell out the money for it again.

• MAC False Lashes Extreme Black Mascara (would not repurchase) - This mascara requires at least 3 coats to get the volume and length I prefer. For the price, I don't want to work that hard to make my lashes look nice. 

• Wet n Wild H20 Proof liquid eyeliner (would repurchase) - If you want a seriously waterproof eyeliner that won't break the bank, look no further. This stuff is awesome and this little tube lasts ages... I probably used it longer than I should have, but it didn't go bad. I've already got another bottle on back up. 

• Essence I Heart Extreme Waterproof Mascara (would not repurchase) - This stuff was awful. It clumped and flaked and made my lashes look like crap. I used this a couple times and promptly threw it in my empties bin.

• Nivea Kiss of Mint & Minerals lip balm (would not repurchase) - This stuff was okay, but it felt like it just sat on my lips without actually hydrating them. There are better drugstore options if you're in the market for a new lip balm. 

• Veriditas Peppermint essential oil (would repurchase) - Veriditas makes really great quality essential oils, and their peppermint oil was nice. Peppermint is one of my favorite oils to use and I have to admit I'm proud to have used a whole bottle! 

• Lush Santa's Lip Scrub (would repurchase) - As much as I love Lush's lip scrubs, I can never get through a whole jar before they go bad so they end up being a waste of money for me. This one tasted like cola and worked well to get rid of any dry skin on my lips.

• Lush Gorgeous Facial Moisturizer (would repurchase) - This sample was nice. It smells quite herbal, so be warned if you don't like things that smell overly "natural". It didn't break me out and did a good job of hydrating my skin. I'd consider getting this in a full size.

• BeautyBlender (would repurchase) - Mark my words, no other beauty sponges compare to the BeautyBlender. They are worth every penny. All other sponges I've tried end up soaking up more makeup than what they put on my face, but that's not the case with the BeautyBlender. Love it, and already have a new one to use.

• MyKind Organics Prenatal Once Daily (would repurchase) - These are the prenatals I've taken my entire pregnancy. They're made up of whole, organic foods and surprisingly, these once a day pills aren't too huge. They're certainly not the cheapest prenatal on the market, but the ingredients are so good that I'd highly recommend them if you're looking to get pregnant, already are, or just need a good multivitamin. 

• Alive Calcium Gummies (would repurchase) - I got sick of pill taking and opted to get my calcium in gummy form. It's really hard to find vegetarian gummy vitamins, but these are gelatin-free. They don't taste as good as I wish they would, but they do the trick. 

Have you used any of these products? Let me know! 

May Empties (#14)

Another month, another batch of empties. It feels like each month my bag fills up quicker and my sense of accomplishment knows no bounds. Here's what I finished over the last month....

• Tresemme Platinum Strength Shampoo & Conditioner (would repurchase)  - These massive bottles took me ages to go through. They smelled nice and made my hair soft, but I got quite sick of them towards the end. I didn't notice my hair seeming any stronger, but I liked these nonetheless. In the future, I'd buy smaller bottles. 

• eva nyc Freshen Up Dry Shampoo (would not repurchase) - This smelled really great, but it didn't do the best job of keeping me oil free or giving me a boost of volume. I will continue to stick to my tried and true, Batiste. 

• NIP + FAB Yoga Blend Body Wash (would repurchase) - This smelled really good, but I think it's sort of an acquired scent. This bottle took ages to use up, so again, I got a bit sick of it at the end (I like change!) but it was nice and made my skin fresh and clean. 

• Boots Cocoa Butter Body Wash (would repurchase) - This is my last little bottle of Boots body wash, which you've seen sprinkled in many of my empties posts. I love these body washes, they smell amazing and don't dry my skin out. And I'm sure you can imagine just how amazing the cocoa butter scent smells!

• Korres Body Butter in Jasmine (would not repurchase) - The Korres body butters are quite hydrating and nice to use, but I have yet to find a scent I truly adore. Jasmine wasn't for me, but it wasn't bad. It smelled fresh and floral and it kept my skin hydrated.

• Dickinson's Pore Perfecting Toner (would repurchase) - This is a really nice, gentle toner. Witch Hazel has many beneficial properties for the skin, plus it's all natural. I am sure this toner will make a reappearance in my skincare lineup again in the future.

• Michael Todd Charcoal Detox Cleanser (would repurchase) - I did a full review of this product here.

• Hydraluron (would repurchase) - This is a well loved, and mega-hyped skincare product that has a high dosage of hyaluronic acid to plump the skin. I thought this was a nice lightweight serum to use both day and night. See more of my thoughts on this here.

• Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser (would not repurchase) - I know people go apeshit over this cleanser, but I can't say I loved it. It was fine... it removed my makeup and didn't leave any nasty film behind, but I could only massage it so far in to my skin before it sort of stuck and I didn't like that. I just didn't think it was as amazing as I was led to believe it is. 

• Essence All About Matt Powder (would repurchase) - This was a nice translucent powder that performed really well for the cost! This is like $3 at Ulta and it lasted me a long time and did a good job of keeping oil at bay.

• Dolce & Gabana Desire Perfume (would not purchase) - A nice scent, but nothing I absolutely need in my collection.

• Burt's Bees Lip Treatment with Kokum Butter (would not repurchase) - This was the worst lip balm I've tried in a long time. It just sits on the lips and doesn't moisturize at all.

• L'Oreal Voluminous Original Mascara (would repurchase) - I love this mascara. It's a tried and true, buy it again and again mascara. It gives great volume and length and this won't be my last tube. 

• Wet n Wild Color Icon Brow Pencil in Taupe (would repurchase) - This brow pencil is a perfect color match for me. It's just creamy enough and it's super cheap. I've already got a backup of this but I'll buy it again for sure.

• Tarte Maracuja Creasless Concealer (would not repurchase) - I used to love this concealer when I had bad acne because it covers anything. But now that my acne has cleared, this is way too thick for under my eyes (it definitely creases) and I don't need it for spots anymore. I do have one more tube of it, but it'll be a long time before you see that guy in my empties. 

• Molton Brown Pink Peppered Body Wash (would repurchase) - This smells really peppery and nice. I brought this on a couple vacations with me so I have great memories tied to this scent - I'll want it again for sure!

• eos Lip Balm in Honeysuckle Honeydew (would not repurchase) - I feel SO accomplished for using this up. I think the eos lip balms are entirely overrated and not very hydrating so I won't be buying this again. 

• Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Buttercream (would repurchase) - This smells SO amazing, like a key lime pie, and it's really moisturizing. This is a favorite of mine. 

• Benefit Stay Flawless 15-hour Primer (would not repurchase) - This was just a sample, but I got many uses out of it. I didn't notice this doing a whole lot to keep my makeup in tact. It was OK, but not worth the price. 

• LOVE Shampoo by Davines (would not repurchase) - I took this shampoo traveling and got many uses out of this sample size. It smelled nice, but wasn't anything special. It's expensive and I wouldn't shell the cash out for it.

• Up & Up Cosmetic Wedges (would repurchase) - My tried and true favorite way to apply my makeup is a simple latex-free cosmetic wedge. The original beauty blender!

• Karuna Hydrating Treatment Mask (would not repurchase) - Karuna masks are pricey, and this wasn't worth the money. It had a backing to it so the sheet mask stayed in form until I applied it to my face, which I appreciated, but this mask left my face sticky and I think it broke me out a bit, too.

• Swisspers Cotton Rounds (would repurchase) - Still working my way through this massive box of cotton rounds from Costco. It's super economical to buy them from Costco, and these are quite good, so I'll buy these again when I finally run out!

• Yves Rocher Micellar Cleansing Water (would repurchase) - This was my first foray in to the micellar cleansing water world. This worked really well to remove all of my makeup, plus it was affordable, and it didn't break me out. 

• Colgate Optic White Platinum (would repurchase) - It's just toothpaste.... I didn't notice my teeth were any whiter, but they felt clean so I'd buy it again. 

• Suave Moroccan Infusion Body Lotion (would repurchase) - I used this as a hand lotion and it made my hands soft without being greasy. It smelled nice, too. 

• Beauty Secrets Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover (would not repurchase) - This is the Sally beauty brand of nail polish remover. Despite it being way worse for your nails, I much prefer acetone remover and I'll only purchase that from now on.

• Zarbees Naturals Elderberry Gummies (would repurchase) - I like these and I honestly think they keep a cold at bay when I feel one coming on. 

• Chesapeake Bay Candle in Hinoki Bonsai (would not repurchase) - I got this ages ago on sale on Kohl's for next to nothing. It smelled OK but it didn't have great scent throw. 

• Better Homes & Gardens Wax Cubes in French Lilac Flowers (would repurchase) - These smelled just like fresh lilacs and made my home smell great. I love wax cubes and these were really nice.

• B&BW candle in Sparkling Limeade (would repurchase) - How cute is the mini mason jar? This smelled good, but not really like limeade. I don't know what it does smell like, but it's not quite limeade to me.

And that's it! Have you tried any of these products? Let me know!

Face of the Day | Simple everyday look

My apologies if the picture above is completely blinding you with my whiteness! Pale is my middle name... hello - I'm a redhead living in the frozen tundra known as Minnesota. But let's be real - I simply blend in with everyone else in the frozen tundra... I'm still just as white come July. (Praise be to the spray tan gods!) 

It's been quite a while since I've done a "FOTD" post, so I thought I'd show you an easy everyday look that's totally appropriate for the office, or a night out with friends, and it won't take you very long either!

I decided to break out my Coastal Scents shadows to achieve this look. It uses just 4 colors, but could easily use less or more if you wish. From top to bottom, L to R, I used Kokomo Cafe, Southern Wood, and Deep Merlot - each are Coastal Scents hot pots. The three shades are starred on the photo below.

The eyes are simple. Prime them first to get the best staying power as well as color pop (I used MAC's Soft Ochre paint pot), and then take Kokomo Cafe on a fluffy blending brush and sweep it along the crease of your eye. You don't have to be super precise, this will just help the shadows blend in to each other and keep your eye look from having sharp lines. 

Next take Deep Merlot on an eyeshadow brush and put that in to the outer corner of your eye and blend it inwards towards your tear duct. Blend, blend, blend! Then grab Southern Wood, and dab that on the outer corner and blend it through, not taking it quite as far as you did Deep Merlot. This will deepen the look just slightly. Grab your clean, fluffy blending brush and blend all the colors together. No harsh lines is the goal!

I did pop a bit of Wet n Wild's Creme Brulee in the middle of my eyelid to make the browns pop, and then used Sigma's eye shadow base in Strike along my lower lash line as it matched the shirt I wore that day. I then lined my eyes with Wet n Wild's Mega Liner liquid eyeliner in black (and it didn't apply as nicely as I wanted to, so if it looks wonky to you... it looks wonky to me, too), and applied a couple coats of Calvin Klein CK One Color mascara in True Black. 

The rest of the look (and really ANY of it) can be modified to fit your skin type and preferences. I used my favorite Covergirl 3-in-1 foundation (review here) set with the Essence All About Matt powder and the Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch concealer under my eyes, set with the Tarte Smooth Operator powder.

I filled in my eyebrows with NYX's eyeshadow in True Taupe (can you tell I love it - I hit MAJOR pan on it!), touched up with the Wet n Wild eyebrow pencil in Taupe, all set with Maybelline Great Lash in clear. 

On my cheeks I used Benefit's Rockateaur blush (not pictured - it's part of a big set), contoured with Pixi's Beauty Bronzer in Subtly Suntouched and Victoria's Secret Illuminating Face Powder in Impassioned as a highlight. I dabbed a touch of C.O. Bigelow Rose Salve on my lips, and voila! Look complete!

You could totally up your game and throw some lipstick on to look extra glam, but I was keeping this look a bit played down. See what I mean - super easy! You don't have to have the exact colors I featured - use what you have that's similar. That's the fun and creative part of makeup application.



What is your go-to eye eyeshadow? What lip would you pair with this look? 

Top 14 Products of 2014 | Year in Review

Happy New Year, lovelies!! It's time we say au revoir to 2014 and HELLO to 2015! While I'm not one for making resolutions or getting too starry-eyed about the new year, I do like the thought of a fresh start and all the possibilities that a new year holds. 

Long story short.... in 2014 I traveled around the country to Las Vegas and Orlando, I saw good friends and family members get married, my husband and I celebrated our 2nd year of marriage and one year in our home, and we got a brand new puppy that has really become our spoiled little baby. It was a fabulous year! I hope you all had a great one, too!

The end of a year marks a great time to look back at all the fabulous products that were staples in my beauty routine. I've picked out 14 of the things that I reached for more than all the others in 2014.

When my skin needed a detox, I couldn't help but reach for the Barefaced Mud Mask. It has a really nice herbal scent and makes my skin feel soft and clean. I think this is a nice option for those of you who like the GlamGlow mask but don't want to shell out the ridiculous amount of money for it. It's not an exact dupe, but it's close! Read my full review on the Barefaced Mud Mask here. 

After washing my hair, I typically need a little something to help combat frizz, and this year that product was Josie Maran's Argan Oil Hair Serum. This magical product tames frizz, makes my hair super soft, and never weighs it down. Plus, this little sample bottle has lasted me a long time. 

I always get asked how to make eye shadow last all day without creasing. The answer? A good primer. And nothing works like MAC paint pots. I have the shade Soft Ochre which is a yellow-toned nude. I can get 10+ hours of wear out of my eyeshadow without creasing. This has trumped last year's favorite - theBalm's Put a Lid on It.

Two eyeliners rocked my world in 2014. I still very much love the Wet n Wild Liquid Liner, but these two were pleasant additions to my top 5 favorite eyeliners mental list. The first is Essence's Liquid Eyeliner. I picked this up on a complete whim and I absolutely love it. It has great pigmentation and it's really easy to draw a perfect line with. The second is Wet n Wild's Mega Eyes Creme Eyeliner in black. As you'd expect from the name, this eyeliner is really creamy and super easy to work with. It has good color payoff and lasts all day. It's not quite the same consistency as a gel liner, as it will smudge, but it doesn't claim to be waterproof or smudge-proof.

If you read this blog often, you surely aren't surprised that the Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous foundation made this year's list. I wear this pretty much every day and I rave about it to everyone I know (and constantly on this blog, too). This is a full coverage foundation that never looks cakey, and is super long-wearing. I fell in love with it when I had bad acne as it reduced the amount of concealer I needed, and even now, with a clear face, this foundation ranks as queen in my book. See a full review on this foundation here. 

2014 was the year of Jo Malone for me. I searched and searched in the beginning of the year for a Jo Malone scent I loved, and after months of sniffing, I ended up purchasing two scents towards the end of the year. Jo Malone's Pomegranate Noir is a scent I could not resist purchasing and I have been wearing it nonstop throughout the winter months. It's a really sexy fragrance that's fruity yet musky and could be classified as unisex. I now know why everyone raves about this perfume. Go smell it if you haven't!

I feel bad even including this as was discontinued this year (fingers crossed for a comeback!), but Lush's Creme Anglaise hand and body lotion really was a highlight of the year. My husband calls it "that stuff that makes you smell like baby powder", but in all actuality it's a super luxurious body lotion with notes of vanilla, saffron (I read somewhere once that it takes around 150-170 handpicked saffron flowers to make just one gram of this lotion), almond and cocoa butter. I have never used a lotion quite like this - it makes my skin softer than any lotion I have ever used, and it's exceptionally amazing for just-shaved legs. If Lush ever re-releases this, you can bet I'll be stocking up - and you should, too!

For a girl who likes to go a few days between hair washes, Batiste dry shampoo is my savior! I've tried many many many different kinds of dry shampo, but I always come back around to Batiste. I especially love the Wild scent, which I can smell in my hair for most of the day after I spray it in my roots. It smells like a luxurious perfume and I absolutely love it. If you want to go 2-3 days between hair washes and are prone to oily hair, pick up a bottle of Batiste and your hair will look clean and oil-free! It's a wondrous thing. 

Another perfume that rocked my world in 2014 was Elizabeth & James Nirvana Black. This perfume is a Sephora exclusive and was created by Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen. This smells amazing - it's dark and sexy with notes of violet, sandalwood and vanilla ... definitely a night time scent that's warm and alluring. The packaging also definitely deserves recognition as it's so unique and modern! 

Praise be to the amazing lipstick that is MAC's Viva Glam Rihanna. This was limited edition, too - sorry, don't hate me! I lusted after this after seeing it on a million blogs and my amazing bestie got it for me for my birthday! It's the perfect blue-toned red that has the slightest hint of shimmer, but isn't overwhelming. Take it from a girl who doesn't like shimmer on her lips, this is just right. It's extremely long wearing and it looks AMAZING on us pale girls. I never want this lipstick to end!

An oldie but a goodie, Benefit's Coralista blush is still absolutely amazing to me, and I reached for it over and over in 2014. See swatches of it here. This is a beautiful, shimmery coral blush that adds just the right amount of flush. It's perfect to grab if you're sporting dramatic eyeshadow and just need to look alive but not overdone. This will forever be a favorite of mine.

A completely underrated blush that I get compliments on nearly every time I wear it is the Covergirl Trublend Minerals blush in Shimmering Sands. This is more of a pinky-gold highlighter but I brush it all over my cheeks and then pop a brighter pink on the apples of my cheeks and BAM. It's the most beautiful flush to the face ever. Guaranteed. I have this fear Covergirl is going to discontinue this product, so I really should grab a back up of this when I get a chance. See it in action here and GO TRY IT! 

I did not expect at all that I would fall in love with NYC's Smooth Skin Pressed Powder. I had an old compact of this sitting in my stash, so I pulled it out to use and completely fell in love. I've now gone through 2 or 3 this year and I will definitely keep on buying it. This is a finely-milled powder that does an excellent job of setting foundation without making you look like a ghost, or cakey, or too dry, or all the bad things that can happen when you use a bad powder. The best part? This costs less than $5! Wooo! See it on my face here.




*BIG SIGH*.... wow! That's a wrap on my top 14 products of 2014! I'd love to know what YOU loved this year - let me know in the comments! Happy New Year!!!!

Birthday Haul!

I mentioned in Friday's post that my husband and I celebrated my birthday shopping all over the place. We had a blast - I'm lucky to have a husband who enjoys shopping as much as I do. I found some goodies, and I allowed myself to splurge on myself as a birthday treat. I thought I'd share with you all what I picked up. The above shows some purchases I made, as well as some gifts!

• Rimmel Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation - I've heard lots about this foundation, and as an avid lover of the Stay Matte Powder, I had to give this a go. I've tried it a couple times so far, and you'll hear more from me about this in a future post.

• Dior Creme De Rose Smoothing Plumping Lip Balm - Ya'll know I was lusting after this in February, and my sweet husband gifted this to me for my birthday. It's everything I thought it would be and more! I'm in love.  

• It's a 10 Miracle Leave In plus Keratin - I got this sample for free for spending over $20 at Ulta. I've never used anything from It's a 10 so I'm excited to try it!

• Mario Badescu Drying Lotion - I get the occasional zit, and I've heard this little bottle is all you need to zap any unfortunate spot. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm glad to have it in my army of acne-fighting products.

• The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter - I've never tried any cleansing balms before, and this gem was half off so had to throw it in the bag.

• China Glaze: It's a Trap-Eze - It's not like me to grab a nail polish that isn't in the clearance aisle, but this one spoke to me! It has a milky base with multicolored glitter and it just looks awesome.

• RoC Daily Resurfacing Disks - I don't know what possessed me to grab these off the shelf, but I did and I'm excited to use them.

• Calvin Klein ck one mascara - This was my free Ulta birthday gift. This normally retails for $18, which is a pretty generous giveaway!

• Freeman Pineapple Facial Enzyme Mask - I'm a sucker for anything pineapple scented, and this mask smells SO good. I love facial masks, and I love pineapple... win win!

• Lush Prince shaving cream - I think this is actually geared toward men, but I wanted to try it out on my legs. It smells really earthy and nice.

• Lush Yuzu and Cocoa Bubble Bar - This smells divine. I take baths regularly so I treated myself to a new bubble bar.

I also got some lippies, too! My favorite!!! Lipsticks are listed left to right.

• Revlon Jungle Peach lipstick - This is one of the limited edition Legacy lipsticks, and unfortunately it doesn't look very good on me. It looks much more orange when on my lips. :(

• NYX Butter Gloss in Sugar Cookie - I am obsessed with these butter glosses. They're really hydrating and have great color pay off. Sugar Cookie is a really pretty hot pink shade, and I believe it's one of the new shades recently released.

• Revlon Snow Peach lipstick - Another Legacy lipstick and I absolutely LOVE this color. It's going to be great for summer. Swatches to come!

• NYX Butter Gloss in Angel Food Cake - This is another one of the new butter gloss shades. This is a my lips but better color, perfect for a neutral lip.

• NYX Butter Lipstick in Sweet Tart - I can't escape reviews of these everywhere. I finally picked one up and I really like it! 

• essence Stay With Me Long Lasting lipgloss in My Favorite Milkshake - I picked this up on a whim, and it's excellent!

• NYX Matte Lipstick in Street Cred - Another bright pink lipstick. I love a good matte lipstick, and this is completely shine-free. 

Have you tried any of these products? Let me know!

Out with the old, in with the new! | Empties #4

Since my last empties post in December, I've been using things up like mad and I can't stand to see this bag of trash in my room for a second longer! If you're unfamiliar with "empties" posts, I show you what I've used up and give a brief review on each product. By the time I've used something up entirely, I've got a pretty good idea of what I like and don't like and I know if I'd repurchase it. Plus, these are some of my favorite posts from others to read so I enjoy writing them just as much! Let's dive in....

• epielle Green Tea Cleansing Tissues (repurchased) - I get these at Big Lots, primarily for spot cleaning brushes and wiping swatches off my arms/hands. They do a good job. I've already repurchased another version of the epielle tissues.

• Pond's Evening Soothe Wet Cleansing Towelettes (would repurchase) - These are in my top 3 favorites for cleansing cloths, and you probably recognize these from past empties posts. These cloths are quilted, smell amazing and do a great job scrubbing my makeup off.

• Alba Botanica Hawaiian 3-in-1 Clean Towelettes (would not repurchase) - This was the first time I've ever tried anything from Alba Botanica, and sadly these wipes just didn't do it for me. They weren't wet enough for my taste and I just didn't feel like they got rid of all my makeup well enough. 

• Oscar Blandi Daily Leave-In Detangler (would not repurchase) - I feel like it took me forever to get through this bottle. I wasn't a big fan. It smelled faintly of pickle juice, and was just okay at getting tangles out of my tangle-prone hair. 

• Batiste Dry Shampoo in Floral & Flirty Blush (would repurchase) - I really like Batiste dry shampoos. I come back to them again and again because there always seems to be a new scent I haven't tried. This had an okay floral scent and did the job of soaking up excess oil in my hair.

• Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Moisturizing   Conditioner (would repurchase) - This was nice. It wasn't anything special, and it definitely isn't my favorite out of the Herbal Essences line, but it was good. 

• Clear Damage & Color Repair Nourishing Shampoo (would repurchase) - Holy cow, this took me FOREVER to get through (as shampoos always do). This had a creamy consistency which I liked and foamed up really well. I have lots of other shampoos to go through first, but I would repurchase it in the future.

• Essence I Heart Extreme Crazy Volume Mascara (would repurchase) - I loved this stuff! It gave me awesome length and tons of volume without being clumpy. It's also mega cheap, which you can't beat! I did experience some flaking during the day, but minimal enough that it didn't bug me. I can't wait to get more of this stuff!

• Covergirl Clump Crusher by Lashblast Mascara (would repurchase) - Another mascara I totally loved. It made my Best of Beauty for 2013, so you know it's good stuff! Lengthening, volumizing and never clumpy, this is where it's at for drugstore mascara.

• L'Oreal Shocking Extensions Waterproof Telescopic Mascara (would not repurchase) - While I normally love the Telescopic line, I didn't like this waterproof version. It didn't apply as smoothly as the normal formula, unfortunately. I'd stick to the normal formula in the future.

• Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes! Mascara (repurchased) - I think the tube I got was dried out because this was not usable. I know people rave about this mascara, and I can't believe the formula I got is the same one others rave about. I tried to use it a couple times, but I couldn't stand it. I got a couple more of these for Christmas so I'll be keen to find out if the formula is different. 

• Olay Anti-Wrinkle Nutrients Night Renewal Cream (would repurchase) - This night cream was nice. It hydrated my skin and smelled pleasant. I have another night cream I'm using now, but I would probably give this a shot again in the future.

• Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous 3-in-1 Foundation (repurchased) - I won't even go on about this. You know I love it. For an in-depth review, click here. 

• Aquaphor Healing Ointment (would repurchase) - I used this for dry skin patches and lip balm and I love it. Nothing heals dry skin and chapped lips like Aquaphor. I've got a big tub of this to get through yet, but I will definitely repurchase in the future.

• Kiss My Face Ultra Moisturizer (would repurchase) - I used this lotion for my hands as it was too thick for use on my face, but it was nice. It has no fragrance so I never had to worry about it competing with my perfume. Nice and simple, I liked it.

• Grand Central Beauty S.M.A.R.T. Skin Perfecting Polisher (would not repurchase) - I got this little sample in a past Birchbox. I didn't notice this doing anything for my skin at all. I can't say I enjoyed using it.

• Bath & Body Works Anti-Bacterial Hand Gel in Peach Poppy (would repurchase) - There's always one of these in my empties! Peach Poppy smelled really nice, and the packaging is super cute. I liked this a lot!

• Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion (would not repurchase) - I kept this little guy in my purse for use on the go. I didn't think it was anything special and I just wanted to get through it.

• Boots Brazil Nut Body Wash (would repurchase) - This smelled AMAZING. I don't like to eat brazil nuts, but I sure loved using this scent of body wash! I've got more body wash to use for now, but this will be making a comeback in my stash at some point.

• The Body Shop Cocoa Butter Creamy Body Wash (would not repurchase) - I thought this was going to smell much better than it actually did. I don't know if it was just old (purchased it from TJ Maxx) or if that's actually how The Body Shop's Cocoa Butter line smells, but I wasn't a fan.

• Bath & Body Works Festive Vanilla Fig Body Lotion (would repurchase) - I didn't use this up entirely, but it's been in my stash for far too long and needs to be thrown out. It smelled really nice and hydrated well.

• Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat (repurchased) - This is my holy grail top coat. I've gone through a few of these, and I'm already working my way through another. It leaves your nails shiny and dries super fast. A+!

• Chapstick in Green Apple (would repurchase) - I got sent a bunch of these quite a ways back, and I have to say I like it! It smells just like you'd imagine it would and does a good job of hydrating my lips. I've still got a couple more of these left to use up.

• Weleda Pampering Body Lotion in Wild Rose (would not repurchase) - I got this sample in a past Birchbox (grrr tear-open samples!) and remembered to use this the other day. I didn't really like this smell, and I typically like rose scents. This just didn't do it for me.

• fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Face Cream (would repurchase) - I don't even remember where I got this, but I really liked it. The smell wasn't my favorite, but it moisturized well.

• Studio Beauty Calming Mask & Detoxifying Mask (would repurchase) - These little face mask packets are from Walgreens' own beauty line. I liked the Detoxifying Mask more than the Calming Mask, although my husband said it smelled like asian beetles. They were cheap and fun to try, and I got 2-3 uses from each packet.

• Bath & Body Works Candle in Merry Cookie (would repurchase) - This smelled SO good, super sweet like a sugar cookie! I loved the adorable packaging this came in, too.

• Holiday Time Candle in Winter (would not repurchase) - This candle is from Walmart and is part of their "Holiday Time" Christmas collection. The scent throw on this was weak and it burned rather quickly. I wasn't really expecting much from this, and should have listened to my gut that it wasn't worth picking up.

What did you get through this month?