Lush Christmas Bath Round-up

Each year Lush comes out with an amazing line up of products for Christmas.  If you are unfamiliar with Lush they are a natural brand of bath products that is cruelty free and uses minimal, if any packaging to limit the environmental impact of their products.  If you are going to shop at Lush one time a year, make sure you do it around the holidays because it is hands down the best stuff they put out all year.  I am also such a sucker for anything seasonal, so naturally I adore all of the seasonal colors, shapes, and scents they have for the holidays.  Since I have discovered Lush I have been picking up a few items from their Christmas Line to make myself a special Christmas bath each year.  This year I picked up two bath bombs, the Northern Lights and Butterbear bath bombs, the Christmas Hedgehog Bubble Bar, and the Snow Angel bath melt.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush Palette

I am excited to share with you this week the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush Palette.  A year or so ago Hourglass released their Ambient Lighting Powders, that are very subtle luminous powders that give a soft focus finish.  They also created blushes that were marbled with color and an Ambient Lighting Powder mixed in to give the blush a subtle luminosity.  Early this fall they released a palette of their blushes, and I could not wait to pick it up!  I was planning on picking up a single of the blushes and I was having a hard time deciding which one I wanted (I wanted them all), so when the palette came out it was the perfect way to try out the blush line.  The palette is also a good value.  The blush singles are $35 each and you get .15 oz. of product, in the palette each blush is slightly smaller than in the singles at .11 oz. but you get a total of .33 oz. for $58.

Kevyn Aucoin Eyelash Curler

I am back from my holiday hiatus with this weeks post featuring a beauty tool, the Kevyn Aucoin Eyelash Curler.  I had not used an eyelash curler since my middle school and early high school days, but after hearing many other beauty bloggers and youtubers count it as a step the never skip, I figured I should give it another try.  After hearing Amelia Liana rave about this one I decided to pick it up.  It is also the first thing that I have purchased from the Kevyn Aucoin Brand.  It is a high end luxury brand that was started in 2001 by famed NYC makeup artist Kevyn Aucoin.  The aesthetic of the brand is timeless, classic beauty for the modern woman.  You won't find the latest fad product here but they have seasonal offerings and if you are looking for high quality staples to add to your makeup collection this is a great go to brand.

Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S. Thirst Quenching Serum

This week we have another skincare staple for me, the Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S. Thirst Quenching Serum.  This was the first product I picked up when I wanted to start expanding my skincare routine this summer, I got it for $49 for 1 oz.  I had heard Essie Button rave about this serum so I figured it would be a good one to start out with.  I had never tried a serum before, I guess I always figured that they were only to help prevent the aging process which I wasn't overly concerned about.  Really, serum is a step in your skincare routine aimed at fixing a skin concern you have.  There are ones for aging, but also brightening serums, serums for acne, and this serum is aimed at hydrating the skin.

Afternoon Adventure to NYC

This post is a little different from my normal reviews, but a few weekends ago I saw that two of my favorite you-tubers, Essie Button and Amelia Liana were having a meet up in New York City.  I live fairly close to the city, and I had the day off, so I figured I could make a little day trip out of it, why not?  Thursday rolled around and I packed up my new big girl camera for it's first outing, picked up a Pumpkin Spice Latte and hit the road.  I found parking at the train station fairly easily, hopped on the train, got a bench to myself (score!), and headed into the city.  

Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm

A while back Beauty Balm (BB) creams came into the beauty scene and I wanted to give them a try.  After some research I decided to pick up a set of four mini Dr. Jart+ BB creams, that included the Water Fuse Beauty Balm, Premium Beauty Balm, Black Label Detox Beauty Balm, and Renewalist Beauty Balm.  After testing them all out I determined that the Premium BB is my favorite, and this summer when I ran out of my small tube from the set I picked up the full size for $39.00 for 1.5 oz.  Please excuse the blurry pictures, the gold tube has a hard clear plastic jacket over it with print on it that casts a shadow onto the gold tube underneath that makes it really difficult to get crisp photos of the print.  When looking at the tube with your bare eyes the lettering looks a bit out of focus, so the pictures are a pretty good representation of what the packaging looks like.

Pixi Glow Tonic

This week on the blog we have a total skincare game changer, the Pixi Glow Tonic.  This gentle acid toner became part of my skincare routine on a recommendation from the skincare guru, Caroline Hirons.  I had heard her rave so much about acid toning and suggested this one for more sensitive younger skin types, so I decided to pick it up.  It is alcohol free and contains 5% Glycolic Acid, Aloe Vera, and Ginseng.  I ordered it from the Pixi Website for $29 for an 8.5 fl oz. bottle.  I don't know if you remember about that big breakout I had this past summer when I ran out of face wash.  It had settled down once I started using the Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel, but I still had quite a few under the skin bumps lingering around on my forehead.  Well once I began using this toner back in September those pesky lurkers were totally annihilated. 

Sigma Eye Brushes

Towards the end of the summer I wanted to pick up some eye shadow brushes so I could more successfully recreate different eye looks.  I particularly wanted to get a brush for precisely placing darker colors in the outer v and crease of the eye, as well as a good blending brush to blend out shadows and get rid of the harsh lines and edges of a eye shadow look.  I looked to Casey Holmes to see what she uses because she always creates the most beautiful and intricate looks, and she just about exclusively uses Sigma eye brushes.  I planned on getting two brushes, but I ended up getting four.  The ones I picked up from top to bottom in the photo above are the E39 buff and blend for $16, the E30 pencil brush for $14, the E45 small tapered blending brush for $14, and the E25 Blending brush for $14.  They are all about eight inches long with a shiny black handle labeled with the brush name, number, and sigma name.

Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate

This week on Eat Beauty Love we have a cult favorite skincare product that was a new addition to my nighttime routine over the summer, the Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate.  It is a facial oil available in three sizes: a 1oz bottle for $46, a 1.7 oz bottle for $70, and a 3.4 oz bottle for $120.  I opted for the mid sized bottle and I actually found it at a cosmetics outlet for $56, I had read a lot of good things about this product, so I pounced on the good deal.  

Lorac Pro Palette

I made an order from Ulta a couple weeks ago and the item I was most excited about in the order was the much coveted Lorac Pro Palette!  I opted for the original instead of the 2 because I thought I would get a lot more used out of the neutral color selection and thought the warmer shades would be more flattering on me.  Today I am here to tell you that this product deserves every bit of the hype it receives.  

First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer

This week I have another new addition to my skincare routine, the First Aid Beauty (FAB) Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer.  FAB is an awesome brand of skin care products especially if you have sensitive skin!  Their products are all fragrance free and made without nasty chemicals and allergens, making them a pretty safe choice for anyone who finds themselves reacting to many skincare products.  I previously tried their Face Cleanser and Ultra Repair Cream, both of which did a great job at what they were supposed to do, but most notably left my sensitive skin comfortable with less redness.  At the end of summer I went to repurchase the Ultra Repair Cream to use as my moisturizer for fall and winter when I saw they had made an Ultra Repair Moisturizer specifically for your face, so I picked it up for $24 for 50 mL at Sephora.  

Oskia Renaisance Cleansing Gel

Earlier this summer I was running low on face wash.  I wanted to try something new and change it up for fall and winter.  I had been hearing so many people rave about cleansing balms and was curious to give them a try.  I started doing some research on which cleansing balm to try out.  It seems as though they are more common in England than in the U.S.  I don't know if I have a case of the grass being greener on the other side, but it seems like the U.K. has so many amazing skincare products!  After reading several other bloggers recommend the Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel, including Caroline Hirons, Amelia Liana, and Vivianna I investigated how to get it stateside.  I found it on Beauty Bay on sale for $40 (originally $48) and with free shipping to the U.S.  I took these things as a sign and promptly ordered it.  The free international shipping said it would take 7-10 after it shipped, which I thought to be reasonable.  Sadly it took 3 weeks to arrive, and the last of my former cleanser was long gone before then.  There I was refusing to but another cleanser because I had just purchased a fairly expensive one and it was on its way, I was forced to turn to using my boyfriend's face wash.  The breakout that followed was not pretty and I was quite anxious for this face wash to come so I could get my skin back on track.  I am happy to report it was all worth the wait!

Liebster Award

I was nominated by the amazing Carol from Intrice Blog, thank you so much!

Her blog covers beauty and skincare.  She takes a great analytical approach to the products she reviews, going over all the pros and cons and concludes with if she overall recommends the product.  My favorite posts she has recently put up were on Benefits Posie Balm and Push up Liner!  You should all really go check out her blog and you can also follow her on twitter @intriceblog!

L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil

A while back I received a little sample bag when I made a purchase at Sephora.  One of the samples inside was L'Occitane's Almond Shower Oil.  I had never tried a shower oil in place of a normal shower gel or cream, so I gave it a whirl.  It was so amazing, and I savored my little sample of golden oil for as long as humanly possible.  I really like nutty scents for fall and winter, so with the arrival of autumn I picked up the full size of the Almond Shower Oil which retails at $25.00 for 8.4 oz.

My Butter London Nail Polish Picks for Fall

Butter London is a British nail polish brand that makes beautiful unique nail polish colors all without formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP.  Additionally to not having those nasty chemicals in the formula the polishes are a nice consistency, not to thick or thin, and they have good staying power on the nails.  I absolutely love the packaging it comes in.  They come in a rectangle glass bottle with a heavy bottom, and a glossy black top that pops off to reveal a more ergonomic brush handle that is topped with an image of a crown wearing raven.  The brush is on the thinner side which is really the only thing I don't like about these polishes.  I find that with the first coat I apply the brush doesn't spread out nicely on the nail and it tends to apply a bit streaky, however the brush does spread out more when applying the second coat and evens things out.  As with a lot of nail polish companies they come up with delightful names for their colors and Butter London has a wide range of shades and finishes.  Each polish is $15.00 and my fall picks from their line are Yummy Mummy, Lady Muck, British Racing Green, Big Smoke, and Branwen's Feather.  

Maybelline Color Tattoo Leather

Maybelline recently released a line of their color tattoo cream eyeshadows in a new leather finish.  I have two of the original color tattoo eyeshadows in Bad to the Bronze, and inked in pink.  I like both of them and I found the idea of a less shimmery cream shadow to be quite appealing.  I picked up the two brown shades, Creamy Beige and Chocolate Suede from CVS for $6.99 each.  The formula is described as being a cream gel, but I don't really find anything gel-like about it, it is a pretty standard cream shadow formula.  I do find the leather formula to be creamier and smoother than the original color tattoo shadows which I found to be a bit dry.  Compared to Mac Paint Pots the leather formula is still a bit drier.

Make Up Forever HD Microfinish Powder

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I have been curious about trying Make Up Forever's HD Microfinish Powder for a long time, so I was really excited to see it being offered as a 100 point perk at Sephora.  The powder is translucent and made of 100 percent mineral silica, and it is REALLY finely milled.  The full size product has a mesh screen to prevent too much powder from coming out, but my mini had a plastic divider with holes that got clogged and didn't let any product out, so I removed it.  I just have to dip my powder brush directly into the product.  I end up getting a lot of powder on my brush even after tapping the brush to get the excess powder off, and I was worried my face would look obviously over powdered.  Fortunately I was left with a natural, not overly matte finish and was pleasantly surprised with how goof-proof application was.

Bath and Body Works Silky Smooth Shave Cream

For over a year I have been using the Silky Smooth Shave Cream with shea butter from Bath and Body Work's True Blue Spa line when I shave.  The formula is infused with Shea Butter and Vitamin E to help moisturize your skin.  

Caudalie Vinosourse S.O.S Morning Eye Rescue

Currently I have been revising my skincare routine.  I used to just cleanse and moisturize and then use an eye serum at night.  From watching and reading about other bloggers' routines it made me want to try new items and add more steps to my skincare routine.  I initially thought that all of the extra steps were unnecessary, but I was still curious to see what it was all about.  I first picked up Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S. Thirst Quenching Serum, and wow did it make a difference.  Needless to say I was totally sold on a skincare routine that is a little more elaborate.  Slowly but surely I am revamping my entire skincare routine.