This post is dedicated to my favorite makeup/beauty products from the first three months of this year. There's not much this go round as I didn’t purchase anything new for over a month. Going forward I will do my best to update you monthly. If I mention a product in a shopping haul but it doesn’t make my favorites list, it doesn’t mean I didn’t like it. My “favorites” are things I absolutely fell in love with.
I feel like the first product I HAVE to talk about is the Urban Decay Naked 2 eyeshadow palette. I used it extensively during the month of February. The palette has twelve gorgeous shades of neutral eyeshadows. It comes with a dual-sided eyeshadow brush and a baby lipgloss. It retails for $50 and can be purchased at Sephora, Ulta or the Urban Decay website. I threw this palette in my suitcase a couple of weeks ago when I was heading out of town for the weekend. The metal art case packaging keeps the eyeshadows from getting damaged and with this variety of shades you can create several different looks for day and evening. It’s the perfect on-the-go palette. The more I use it, the more I love it.
In keeping with the eyes AND Urban Decay, my next favorites are their 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils. Perversion (Black), Deviant (Royal Blue) and Flipside (Turquoise) are now a part of my makeup collection. The cosmetic company describes this product as “The best Eye Pencil ever, ever, ever!”, and I’d have to agree. The formula is so creamy that the liner truly does “glide-on”. There is very little tugging or pulling on the eye. These liners are also great when used as an eyeshadow base. I will be looking for dupes for this product. Not because I don’t love these eyeliners but $19 seems like a lot. Similar to the Naked 2 eyeshadow palette you can purchase these eyeliners at Sephora, Ulta or the Urban Decay website.
Moving on down to the lips, I blogged about purchasing one of these products but not the other. Back in January, I picked up Narcissus Cremesheen lip glass from MAC. It’s a magenta purple lip gloss. For the past few months I have been drawn to the fuchsia and magenta colors so it’s easy to see how I fell in love with Narcissus. It was part of the Daphne Guinness collection which was limited edition and retailed for $18.50. It’s not too sticky and the coverage is buildable. It can be worn by itself or over a lipstick. As this was a limited edition item it’s no longer available for purchase however you could check EBay.
The next lip product is Demure lip tar from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (OCC Makeup).These lip tars were unveiled in the summer of 2009. For the record they do not contain actual tar. They are a cross between a lipstick and a lip stain. These bad boys pack a serious punch. They come in colors you wouldn’t imagine like green, yellow, black and purple. They are meant to be worn by themselves or mixed with other colors. I have three. Strumpet (“DEEP SEEDLESS GRAPE”), Pretty Boy (“RICH, SATURATED FUSCHIA”) and Demure (“BERRY-TONED FUSCHIA”). These “tars” are the longest wearing lip product I have ever come across. The smallest amount, literally a drop, goes a long way. I would suggest applying this product with a lip brush. Putting the tube to your lips and squeezing could create a huge mess. It goes on like a creamy liquid but quickly dries to a semi-matte finish. A lot of people apply lipgloss on top. Once it dries your lips are stained for at least 6 hours. AT LEAST. Will the color be as dark or opaque as when first applied? No, but it’s not too far off. It’s great to use for a night out when you don’t want to constantly reapply your lipstick. Recently OCC Makeup changed the packaging of the lip tars. It’s sleeker and you get 25% more product. At the time I purchased mine, the cost was $13.50. They now go for $14.00. I would love to check out the new packaging so I’ll probably buy another color soon to be able to compare it with what I have. I believe this product is only offered on their website. 
Last but certainly not least are two brushes that I’ve had for a long time but rediscovered recently. This was definitely a case of user error. What I’ve learned over time is, brushes, although they have a specific purpose, have to be handled properly when applying makeup. Too much pressure or too little pressure can unknowingly change an eye look. MAC’s 224 brush ($30) is perfect for blending products in the crease of the eye. I’ve also seen it used for dusting concealer and powder under the eyes. Sigma’s E45 brush ($9) is a dupe for MAC long sought after 226 brush. The
226 is a limited edition brush that pops up here and there when collections are released. It normally sells out very quickly. I have never been able to get my hands on one. No bother. I have the E45. It does the same thing and for less than half the price. I use it to precisely apply eyeshadow in the crease of my eye and then I use MAC’s 224 brush to blend it out. These two bushes work well together. Sigma’s dupe for MAC’s 224 brush is the E35 ($11). I’m sure it works just as well and again for a fraction of what you’d pay for a MAC brush. I’m not knocking MAC, but like the Payless Shoe commercial slogan, “Why pay more when you can pay less”.
Do you have any makeup or beauty favorites? I’d love to hear about them.
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