Happy New Year, everyone!
I am full of pudding and cheer -- there probably won't be any champagne for me tonight, but that's okay! What I do have are some of the new things I discovered and adored in 2009...
- MAC Sugarshot eyeshadow: Naturally I was excited about the MAC SugarShock collection -- with a sweet treat-themed collection, including one of the first mint green nail polishes on the scene, how could I resist? I picked up several things, but the one that's definitely become a staple in my kit is Sugarshot, one I wouldn't have even considered initially. It's a very pale shimmer with a touch of pink; at first I thought, I don't need any more highlight shadows, I have enough. But Sugarshot really is one of the eyeshadows I reach for all the time. It gives my eyes a bit of lightness and a little bit more green, due to the pale pink cast, and is the perfect base to build up any other color scheme.
- Chanel Jade nail polish: I recently went to the Bloomingdales Chanel counter in San Francisco and was looking at the new spring collection (beautiful, must get ASAP), chatting with the sales girl, when I casually mentioned that I had gotten my hands on Jade. She said, "We never got it!" Apparently there were rumors that they were getting a couple, that Saks was getting some, but it never really showed up. I secured mine by ordering it as soon as I heard it was live at Chanel.com -- which meant I was in the middle of NYFW. I wore it for Thanksgiving and I love the cool green with the light shimmer. Gorgeous!
- Hermes Elixir de Merveilles perfume: I don't know how I was inspired to pick this up -- I believe it was a blog post, likely from the Beauty Addict -- but I ordered a small decant from The Perfumed Court and fell for it hard. It's a warm gourmand citrus that's a little unisexy, so of course I dig it. My brother gave me a $50 gift card to Sephora (nicely played, sir!), so I may have to put that towards a full bottle. (Surprisingly, I'm ambivalent towards the original Eau de Merveilles.)
- Bliss Vanilla Bergamot body butter: After the BlogHer '09 event, I continued my tradition of going and getting a massage and facial at Bliss SF. I slicked myself up with this sweet moisturizer, which is so good and rich that it lasts all day. Plus, it doesn't smell like a cupcake, which is all well and good, but a rich, grown-up vanilla that makes me want to eat my arm. My 2010 wish is that they start offering the new Body Butter Lite in Vanilla Bergamot, too.
- Dior Addict Lip Glow: You all know that I'm always in search of a wonderful, moisturizing, SPF-havin', tinted lip balm, right? Well, with Dior Addict Lip Glow for pink and Fresh Sugar Rose for red, I'm set. The search is over.
- Bliss Steep Clean Mattifying Moisturizer: This was another find (actually, a recommendation from my facialist) when I went to Bliss in July; a good-smelling, oil-controlling, night cream. I've always been battling my skin, but this latter half of the year? Skin's been doing great.
- Urban Decay Bourbon 24/7 pencil: I got this eye pencil with the Get Baked palette this summer, and it has quickly jumped to one of my favorites, especially when used in tandem with Sugarshot for a simple daytime look. As I said earlier this year, "you wouldn't think that I'd get excited over a brown eyeliner pencil, but it's really flipping pretty and lasts all day."
What were your favorite product discoveries in 2009? What are you looking to find in 2010? (Chanel counter, I'm coming for you...) Do you want to find something specific, or do you want to be surprised? Any beauty trends you're interested in trying in the new year?
Here's to a great new year!
image from sephora.com
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Favorite Things 2009
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Favorite Things 2008
Jeanne:
Throughout the year, I kept a running tally in my mind of my favorite things just for this post. I'd be applying lipstick and I'd go, "Oooh, I like this. This is going to go on my best of '08 post!"... in March.
So here we go!
- Charred eyeshadow from MAC Originals - This was released in late '07, so technically it's an '07 pick, but it hung around on MACCosmetics.com for a while, and it hung around in my make-up box for a while too. But this year I took it out, played with it, and realized it makes for an awesome, awesome, and easy smokey eye. I love it.
- Strawbaby lipstick from MAC Fafi - This is from... February?, and is a coral pink/red with rainbow pearl. I love it, as I tend to do well with corals, and was stoked that in Cult of Cherry, there was a very similar lipgloss (Rich'n'Ripe) to Strawbaby. (My only complaint with Strawbaby, and the rest of the Fafi lipsticks, was that the decorative sleeve slips off of the tube.)
- A TIE: Mure et Musc Extreme and Dzing! from L'Artisan Parfumeur - I went poking around a beauty boutique in the spring, wasting time before having to be somewhere, and I was eying the L'Artisan shelf. The saleswoman (who I think might have been the owner, or at least the manager) talked to me about perfumes and I said things like "oh, I like citrus, I like flowers..." She sent me away with samples of Mure et Musc Extreme, Dzing!, Ambre Extreme (nice but not for me), and La Chasse aux Papillion. Of those four, only La Chasse Aux Papillion smells like flowers; the rest are musky, leathery, smoky, and AWESOME. I fell hard for Mure et Musc Extreme (blackberries and musk) and Dzing! (supposed to smell like the circus, smells like AMAZING). I took my mother to Barney's fragrance counter to find a new cologne for my brother (we got him Navegar, and when the sales rep took us over to the L'Artisan counter, I said, "Oh, Mure et Musc Extreme, that's a perfume I want for Christmas..." and so I now have a lovely full bottle. Dzing! will be my next one.
- Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask from Bliss - I went in to Bliss for a facial in January (since I had a day off in the middle of the week) and while I almost had a minor claustrophobic freakout, I really did like the Triple Oxygen mask (even though it was a little creepy). I first tried out the little travel-sized one from the Travel/Trial Essentials kit, and then went for the full size afterwards. I like how my skin feels after using it, I like the smell, and I like watching it foam up and then all the bubbles popping on my skin. Woo!
- China Glaze, period - This was the year that China Glaze rocked my socks off. I love OPI, but I kept reaching for China Glaze's fun colors over and over this year. From For Audrey to Ruby Pumps to Rodeo Fanatic to Tree Hugger to the entire Bahama Blues collection, I had to have all of it this year. And the best place to get it, I found, is Head2Toe Beauty.
- Imperial Bedroom palette from Fresh - I mentioned this in the second Sephora University post, but this is a great little palette. Sometimes when you get a palette of something, you only use one or two colors, but this is a complete face right here. I've used this for going out, for Halloween, for Christmas eve, for everything. It's easy to throw this (and an eyeliner brush) into an overnight kit and just take it traveling with you.
- SkinFlash from Dior - I just told you all about this magic trick illusion, but it has absolutely been a lifesaver for me and my dark undereyes. I use it pretty much every day if I'm going to be leaving the house for any reason.
- Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer with SPF - I've been trying out tinted moisturizers left and right, since I want decent coverage without looking cakey and SPF without it smelling like sunscreen (I'm looking at you, Revolotion!). And I think the Laura Mercier is the best one I've tried out. I'll dust some powder over and my skin looks amazing, which pleases me (as it is not amazing).
Karen:
Hi, folks! It's not often that I get all ga-ga over beauty products. This year, mostly thanks to Ms. Jeanne up there, I've invested a bit more time and energy into finding the right products that are worth my hard-earned dollar. I like to parse out my products sparsely and hold onto them for ages and ages--case in point, I've been using the same Neutrogena MoistureShine lipgloss in Chic for probably the last five years. Definitely at least three, since I had to throw out the last one at my brother's wedding when another bridesmaid PICKED IT UP AND USED IT...in 2004. Isn't that just terrible? Here are a few of my favorite products from 2008 that have left a good impression:
- Rimmel London 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Delicious Dark. Believe me when I say that I have tried every brand and shade of dark-purple nail polish on the market today, only limited by price. (I refuse to pay over $7 for a bottle of nail polish I'll inevitably spill.) Rimmel's quick-drying polish took a few coats and a very steady hand to achieve a chip-proof end result that was positively dramatic. The paint job lasted a good ten days until a bout of dishwashing and stovetop-scrubbing caused some chips.
- The Almay Bright Eyes Liner/Highlighter Duo is super smooth and easy to use, I keep one in my purse when I don't have time to put on makeup in the morning before I leave for work. The two ends are very complementary and frankly, I like the way it looks when they smudge together for a shiny, smokey eye.
images from artisanparfumeur.us, fresh.com, and strawberrynet.com
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Jeanne's top post picks of '08!
Yes, it's all retrospective around here lately! Here's a list of twelve of my favorite posts from 2008!
January: It's got to be the original steampunk boots post. Yes, I'm going to do another one! So don't you worry!
February: Soon the daphne's going to be blooming again, and so I'm thinking of nymph-chasing again. (Still haven't found that perfect daphne perfume...)
March: For a great post that all three of us contributed to, it has to be the top ten basics.
April: April was my first trip to Sephora University, so it makes the list!
May: May is when I went through my biggest change: going platinum blonde.
June: Only at PeriodicStyle will a product review feature LOLcats. (Well, maybe not only PS, but...)
July: I'm not only picking my own posts, yo: Kati wrote a bikini post about how dumb it is that bikinis go on sale at the end of June... right when summer's still just getting started.
August: And I loved the photo/Polyvore Karen put together for this post on heel heights. I would like all of those shoes, please and thank you.
September: Man, it is hard to choose what I love more: dinosaurs or nail polish, so I'm linking both.
October: Next year I'm definitely gathering up Etsy Halloween costume pieces and ideas much earlier...
November: We started up with our gift guides much earlier this year, and our first one, handmade and homemade gift ideas, was a fun post to put together with Karen. (I didn't wind up knitting anything for anyone this past Christmas, which was good.)
December: Yeah, December was kind of a sparse month for posting for us, since we were all so super-busy, but Karen and I managed to put together another gift guide, this time for dudes and such. (My subtitle for it is "Dudes And Other People Who Like DVDs and Books".) Also, soap stache.
All right, now you tell me -- what post of '08 do you think I should have included on this list? And, if you think there's a particular post that you really like (future or past), please go ahead and click one of the "add to kirtsy" or "stumble it" links at the bottom of our posts to share it!
We <3 you! xoxo
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
7 from 2007: Top Album Picks
Last year was a busy year for me, and I wasn't as involved in the music scene as I normally am, so I'm afraid my music picks this year are a little more mainstream than the norm. They're also heavily British (a disproportionate amount is, I have sources.) Still, here are my 7 favorite albums from last year in no particular order:
The Wombats: A Guide to Love, Loss and Desperation: This is not out in the US yet! (Like I said, sources.) Which is kind of tragic, because I have been listening to it constantly and I cannot tell my friends to buy it. It's just an upbeat fun album with clever lyrics-- exactly my style. 
Stars- In our Bedroom After The War: I wrestled a lot with putting this on my list. It's a very good, very cohesive album, and I like the story it's telling. It just doesn't have the personal resonance for me that Set Yourself on Fire did. Still taken on its own merits, it's a clever album and shouldn't be a disappointment for Stars fans.
Interpol- Our Love To Admire: I know some people absolutely hate Interpol. I am not one of them. This whole album is just dark and brooding, with a delight of an upbeat track in the "Heinrich Maneuver." How are things on the west coast indeed!
Arctic Monkeys- Favourite Worst Nightmare: And I know even more people that hate the Arctic Monkeys. This is a more complex album than Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, and not as immediately accessible. It's all the better for it. I took one of my friends with me to see their show, and she was like, "yeah, I could tell the difference between the songs from their first album and the songs on their second album. I liked the ones that were different." So please keep on rocking and making me new albums to dance to in the future, guys. Especially if they're different.
But she informed me I had to buy this album, and put it on my best of list. And you know what? She is ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. Favorite Soundtrack this year, hands down. I think it's helped that the majority of the songs are done by Glen Hansard. It's really just a stunning album, and it's been great background music for writing. Good stuff.
I'm looking forward to expanding my music horizons a bit beyond the Britrock this year and checking out some of what I missed last year. What's on your list?
Images from amazon.com.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Favorite Things 2007
I can't believe that it's already been a year since the three of us decided to jump into this blog. 2007, you have been a pretty neat year, and I know I'm looking forward to 2008, too. After all, it's going to be our year!
I know we wouldn't be here if it weren't for the amazing beauty blog community that's taught us a lot of things this past year, and so it's incredibly exciting to be included in Blogdorf Goodman's Favorite Things 2007 list. Thank you!!
So with that, in no particular order, here are some of my favorite beauty finds for 2007!
- Firespot Eyeshadow from MAC Moonbathe: This is the eyeshadow that made me realize that yes, I can wear bright vivid colors on my eyes as well as make them extra-green. I never would have guessed that sizzling orange would be a stand-out color for me, as orange isn't a color I wear on a regular basis unless I'm going to a baseball game. But Firespot is truly an incredible color. The Moonbathe collection in general was great for my coloring -- more spring and summer collections in warm tones! More! Like the Non-Blonde says, do more for olive skin!
- Bigarade Concentree from Frederic Malle Editions de Parfums: I originally reviewed this perfume in March after my first trip to New York. I still love this perfume and its tangy citrus qualities. I'm still learning about what I like in perfumes, and while sites like Now Smell This are definitely helping me learn more about perfume in general, there's still a lot of shooting in the dark. I never know what to say when I get asked by perfume sales assistants what I like, so managing to find this between my hemming and hawwing and "Well, I like citrus?" was a blessing.
- Clog-Dissolving Cleansing Milk from Bliss: I think that one of the best things I've done this year is realized that I don't have oily skin -- I have combination skin. After years of, well, being a teenage girl and a college student, I finally realized that my skin is really not as bad as I thought it was, and that bringing out the big guns to try and zap everything was just making it worse. On a trip to Seattle this August, I stopped at Sephora since I was running low on face wash (plus, hello, I love Sephora). I snagged the Clog-Dissolving Face Wash and I love it. It smells great and keeps my skin soft. (I will say, however, that it wasn't as effective at taking full geisha make-up off as I wanted it to be. How often one will be wearing a full face and neck of geisha make-up, I don't know.)
- Russian Navy from OPI: I have always loved blue nail polish, and so learning that navy was going to be the hot color for fall was even more awesome. I found my bottle of Russian Navy in a beauty supply shop this July, back when the buzz was just starting. I adore this color, and I'm so glad I have it. I've had it on my toes since September, and wore it for Halloween, too. I actually managed to get some street cred on this one ("oh, that's the one from all the magazines!" "Yes, it is!").
- Charm Factor from MAC A Muse (2006): Here's a little story about me. For over seven years, my hair had gone back and forth from shoulder-length to bobbed, and I was ready for a change. In July 2006, MAC released the A Muse collection, the first MAC collection I sat up and took notice of thanks to this blog post. And that kickstarted me into the MAC, make-up, and beauty blog addict I am now. I darted to Bloomingdales and picked up what I needed to recreate the signature look -- the duo eyeshadow, the Fluidline eyeliner, and the lipstick: Charm Factor. In December, I took in a picture of Sienna Miller and got my hair chopped off. This July, I went even shorter. Charm Factor stayed in my make up drawer until I said, "That's it, I'm doing this, I am going as a mod for Halloween, at the very least." And I did. And it was awesome.
- Butterball from Lush: Kati just wrote about this little guy, but it's true -- this is one of the best (and most basic) things from Lush. It smells great, moisturizes, and it's fun to just roll around in the bath water with it. I can't survive in a place without bathtubs. Just can't do it.
- Feline Kohl Power Pencil from MAC Smoke Signals/McQueen: I really do love this eye pencil. I wrote about it in a joking manner, but it is truly out of love. They just moved it to the Goodbye section in the MAC website, so go get it. Seriously. I've also been using the Orpheus pencil for holiday wearin', and I'm hanging onto my Jealous. I will be so very sad to say goodbye to this pencil once it's gone.
- Pucker Tendertone from MAC Tendertones: This is another "why, why, why do you introduce such awesome things and take them away from me, MAC?" item. I don't know; I just kind of have that sort of relationship with MAC, I guess. The Tendertones are lip glosses that come in a little jar, which is usually my least favorite kind. I don't like putting my fingers in a jar, I also don't want to have to carry around a lip brush, and I also don't want to carry around a jar instead of a little stick I can pop in my pocket. That said, I will put all of that aside for Pucker. It's the perfect sheer raspberry lip balm, and it has SPF in it. And it smells and tastes delicious. Because that is also important.
- Supernova mascara from Fresh: My ultimate black mascara; I'm really surprised more bloggers aren't writing about this one. I will say that I did buy a mascara in Japan that I'm looking forward to trying out -- it's Rose of Versailles mascara, Oscar-style (Oscar being the protagonist of Rose of Versailles). That said, I'm also apprehensive about trying mascara that I can't find easily again, especially since it's, hello, mascara based on a manga character that I bought in Japan, and you're not supposed to keep mascara after three months, and wouldn't it be sad if that suddenly became my favorite mascara and I couldn't get it anymore. So knowing that I can pick up Fresh mascara from Sephora or Beauty.com makes me feel better about declaring it my favorite because it will never go away and leave me.
In addition to my picks, here's Kati's favorites from 2007:
- #55 nail polish from Sephora: While this year was all about the navy blue for Jeanne, I was all over the turquoise. I spent all spring searching for the perfect matte shade, and it wasn't until I was down in San Francisco over Memorial Day weekend that I found this little number. I've been wearing it on my toes pretty much ever since. J'adore!
- Lip Service from Napoleon Perdis: Okay, so everyone I know would've expected me to pick Stila's It Gloss here, but that's a last year's find for me. Lip Service was something I picked up this year, and hello, this is my favorite gloss ever. Clear and tastes like vanilla cupcakes, perfect for a simple tastes girl like me.
- Angelica eyeshadow from Boots Botanics: This has been my workhorse shade all year (sensing a theme with my color palate this year?) and bonus points for it a) being drugstore cheap, and b) looking remarkably similar in the package to MAC's Parrot, the infamous shade that I bought last week and have yet to try (blame all the at-home family time and not wanting to share with my sister.) I'll let you know how it holds up in comparison to the Parrot, but so far, this is my favorite eyeshadow ever. And I'm not just saying that because I wore it for my University graduation and it was super flattering in the pictures.
- Crush on You Sugar Scrub from Product Body: I don't think it's really a secret that the most important weapon in my beauty arsenal is my skin. I don't wear a full face of makeup every day, and I don't want to. I'm a low maintenance girl and I like it that way. Crush on You is hands down my favorite exfoliator, and without it, I am itchy and sad from my eczema. [I gave her a sample after I read about Crush on You in last year's Favorite Things round-ups! - Jeanne]
- Dream Cream Moisturizer from Lush: Okay, so this is a bit of a cheat, since I've known about this for more than a year, but it and Butterball (see above) are my all time favorites for moisturizing. Dream Cream has a bit of an odd scent in the tub, but the scent fades very quickly (good for you perfume addicts who want to layer, and good for me, who just likes smelling like soap or vanilla or a citrus farm). Plus, I have yet to find another moisturizer that is as non-irritating for all over.
So what will 2008 bring for us? And what goodies from 2007 will we find from this amazing list of bloggers? Click around and see if you can guess what we'll be aiming to get our hands on...
image from blogdorfgoodman.blogspot.com -- thank you for including us!!
