January 2018 Favorites & Empties Recap

It's been a couple of months since I've done a monthly favorites post. While this will be considered January's favorites and fails, this is really more like a "mid-Winter favorites" edition.


First, a quick note about my utter failure of the brand focus for January. You'll see the best of the best reflected here, but the concept is one I'm not loving. It turns out that the brand that I picked for January (Smashbox) doesn't excite me. I found a few new loves, but my new favorite product out of the bunch was a CCO pick which is discontinued.


Primers, Foundations, and Concealers:

1- Smashbox Photo Finish Primerizer (a new discovery), 2- Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Pore Minimizing (rivals Benefit's Porefessional), 3- L'Oreal Magic Perfecting Base (does the job that I hope someday soon injectibles will take over), 4- Makeup Revolution Conceal & Define Concealer (a lovely drugstore concealer I've been reaching for), 5- Smashbox Studio Skin 24 Hour Waterproof Concealer (a fantastic discovery), 6- Guerlain L'Or Primer (is a HG, especially when paired with) 7- La Mer The Soft Fluid Foundation (I do love this, despite the price), 8- Kiko Skin Tone Concealer (is my favorite color corrector, sorry to see the local store closed), 9- Lancome Teint Idole Foundation (is too much on its own, but I've found an ideal mate in), 10- Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil (too much on its own but my new favorite mixing oil), 11- Too Faced Hangover Rx 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer and Setting Spray (perfect for winter), 12- Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer- Radiance (one of my new favorite discoveries, I just wish I didn't have so many radiance primers at the moment), 13- ColourPop No Filter Concealer (quite nice, just oxidizes a bit)


Powders:

1- Maybelline Fit Me! Loose Finishing Powder 05 Fair (the raves were real), 2- CoverFx Illuminating Setting Powder (is part of my project pan but I do like it under my eyes as it turns out), 3- Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Ethereal Light (my HG undereye powder), 4- MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural (my new HG)


Bronzer, Contour, and Brows:

1- Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow (the bronzer is outstanding on my pale complexion), 2- MAC Studio Sculpt Defning Bronzing Powder in Delicates (a new cool-toned favorite), 3- ELF Brow Kit in Light (multitasker-- I use the pomade on my brows and love the powder as a contour), 4- Benefit Browvo! Conditioning Primer (is something I love when I'm using it but always forget to repurchase), 5- Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Whiz in Medium Brown (no words necessary)


Blush:

1- Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow (has a lovely peach blush that leaves a healthy glow), 2- Smashbox Soft Lights in Prism (my absolute new favorite discovery and I'm gutted that the brand was foolish enough to discontinue it), 3- Physicians Formula Butter Blush in Plum Rose (a lovely nude blush only for fair complexions), 4- Clinique Cheek Pop in Nude Pop (one of my all-time favorites), 5- Chantecaille Cheek Shade in Blush (it's back in the philanthropy collection!)


Highlighter:

1- theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer (I'm sadly very late to this party), 2- Laura Geller Baked Highlighter in French Vanilla (a true favorite), 3- NYX Love You So Mochi Arcade Glam (a shockingly wonderful new discovery)

Eye Primers, Liners, and Mascaras:

1- Too Faced Glitter Glue (my go-to for glitters and shimmers), 2- Smashbox 24 hour Shadow Primer & Photo Finish Lid Primer (a wonderful duo of primers- one new, one an old favorite- that I've been enjoying), 3- Inglot AMC Gel Eyeliners in 77 & 78 (love these eyeliners and have been loving a teeny wing lately), 4- NYX Slide On, Glide On Eyeliner in Jewel (love this on the lower lash line with pinky looks), 5- NYX Metallic Eyeliner in Rose Gold (a great new Spring 2018 release), 6- Anastasia Beverly Hills Darkside Eyeliner (how did I ever live without this?), 7- Anastasia Beverly Hills Metallic Luster Liners in Liquid Silver and Liquid Gold (so lovely to use on a daily basis), 8- Urban Decay Subversion Lash Primer (my favorite lash primer to date), 9-Chanel Le Volume Mascara in Ultra Black (I'm so sorry to see my final tube done and gone. I love this so much)


Eyeshadow Palettes:

1- NARS Wanted Palette (Admittedly, this was an impulse purchase but the roses and pinks just called my name. Look for a full review from me soon), 2- LORAC California Dreaming Palette (this is new to me- I put it away, unused when I was able to nab it on sale. This seemed to be the perfect month to pull it out, and I'm thrilled), 3- NYX Love You So Mochi Palettes (these are the shocker of the spring for me so far. So, so good!), 4- Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette (I've been feeling rosy looks, so this came out to join the mix)

Lips:

1- NARS Audacious Lipstick in Anita (I was on a pinky nude kick this month and happy to pull this old favorite out), 2- Clinique Pop Lip Color- Nude Pop (this is in promo packaging but this is a lovely nude for daily wear), 3- Shea Moisture Luscious Lipstick in Tea Rose (one of my all-time cool-toned MLBB favorites), 4- Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Primrose (my best discovery of the month), 5- Butter London Sheer Wisdom Lip Oils (Ballet Blush pictured but several shades are stunning), 6- By Terry Baume de Rose (any version- I used the original potted, original gloss, and tinted glosses), 7- Hourglass GIRL Stylo in Creator (another lovely pink), 8- NYX Butter Lipstick in Root Beer Float (my favorite discovery from the Holiday 2017 kit), 9- bareMinerals GenNude Liquid Lipsticks in Smooch and Slay (my two favorite shades of the line, this shows the types of colors I'm into this time of year), 10- NudeStix Intense Matte Lip & Cheek Pencil in Belle (finally, a great discovery from the Macy's box!), 11- Smashbox Always On Liquid Lipstick in Babe Alert (my favorite of the line), 12- Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb in Fenty Glow (this ended up on my lips just about every day. I'm obsessed)




Now, a quick note on my empties. I've been tracking my personal Project Pan on Instagram, but here's some analysis on the regular products I've used up- and the dollar value.

This didn't include any decluttered items, so it's shocking to see my monthly total over $900. I've decided to track these stats this year with the hopes of making my future spending conform with it. I know the bath/body will diminish once it gets warmer.

What have you loved or used up?

January 2018 Brand Focus: Smashbox

My next post will be back to an actual product review, but I wanted to share a look into my vanity this month- and my thoughts on this brand focus intiaitve I've undertaken.

I've decided to challenge myself in 2018 to become more familiar with brands I just haven't tried much from. It was the Shadow & Highlight Palette set from Holiday 2017 that piqued my interest in Smashbox.

My history with the brand has been meh at best. I've previously used up an entire 24 Hour Photo Finish Eyeshadow Primer and loved it. I'm on my second bottle of Photo Finish Primer Water. I bought the L.A. Lights Palette for holiday 2016 and don't use it. It's unweildy and not a formula I've liked.

One of the reasons why I haven't been posting is that I'm not not testing different products every day. As of today I've got 14 primer-type products (face and eyes), one foundation, one concealer, four Cover Shot eyeshadow palettes, two Photo Edit Eyeshadow trios, two Photo Op Eyeshadow Trios (yes, the old ones), one Photo Op Eyeshadow Single, one Always On Gel Liner, one mascara, a contour trio, one Spotlight Palette, one large blush/highlight palette, one soft Lights blush (yes, discontinued- unfortunately, this is the best product I've discovered yet!), one Always Sharp Lip Liner, two Always On Liquid Lipsticks, one Be Legendary Lip Gloss, seven Be Legendary Lipsticks, and one lipstick transformer that I'm currently testing. That's 43 products I'm mostly testing for the first time- with an Ulta run planned for later today because I got a coupon for $10 off a $30 Smashbox purchase. So that's where I've been.

I did purchase most of these at my local CCO- and more than I'd planned to originally- because of the crazy sales going on. Think 40% off of outlet prices... even on current items. For example, I purchased the Studio Skin Foundation yesterday at about 58% off of the current retail price. (That sale killed my resolve to not buy new foundation.... I left with two!)

I'm not going to try any powders from the brand due to the price and because I have powders that I already love.... and I'm fighting the urge to pick up some more liners, but that's a category I'm trying to seriously reduce in my stash.

I hope you're also having a wonderful day... I'll be back this week with some actual reviews since I've been using some of these daily for two weeks already now and I feel ok to do so.

Smashbox Shadow & Highlight Palette Set

I'll readily admit that Smashbox isn't a brand that I typically get excited about. I bought last holiday's blush palette and have barely touched it. But I guess having most of the items that interest me combined with spotting a great value led me to be interested in this particular kit ($39, Ulta/Sephora, claims a $77 value).

Smashbox's Shadow & Highlight Palette kit has three small palettes in limited edition packaging:

Hiding in that packaging are two permanent releases and one palette I hadn't seen before: Cover Shot palettes in Ablaze and Sultry, and Spotlight Palette in Pearl. I'd been considering trying the Spotlight palette before (these were created with YouTuber Casey Holmes) and picking up a Cover Shot palette ($29 each), so why not try the trio I thought.

I'm going to spoil my review, but I'm really shocked and impressed. I may have nabbed two additional Cover Shot palettes when I spotted them at a discount because of my experience with this set.

Confession: I'm finishing posts that I've photographed weeks ago, and if I find a deficiency I can't always go back and correct it due to the eye reaction I'm currently experiencing. So there's only one eye look in this review, whereas I'd like to show at least one per palette. Sorry about that, but this is my window of opportunity to get posts completed.

Let's start with the palette that intrigued me the most- Cover Shot Sultry.

As far as I can tell, this is a new release for the holiday bundle. And since I've been craving cool tones recently it's perfect.

Sultry is decidedly cool-toned (yay) and features taupes and some purples.

There's a nice mix of mattes, satins, and metallics in this palette. As I played with it, I noticed some fallout, and I find this formula quite soft in the pan so it's prone to chunking.

Here's one of the eye looks I created with this palette:

Of course I went for the purples.

Here's the swatches, all labeled and everything:

I love this little palette. It's prefect for my NW15 skintone, and I've been reaching for it a lot. It's what made me want to try more of the range.

Next up is what I believe to be the most recent release from the line- the Ablaze palette.

Don't ask me why they put Ablaze in blue artwork. I find these tough to keep apart, although I think the artwork is cute.

I know I'm a little blurry.

I'm just going to guess that you're probably more familiar with Ablaze- the very warm-toned Cover Shot palette.

Again, a good mix of formulas represented here. I did find them soft and prone to fallout, but just do your eyes first and you're good to go.

And Ablaze, swatched:

I'll be honest, I'm so tired of warm palettes that there's no way I would've purchased this on my own. However, I'm glad to have it and can see myself reaching for it. These are decidely travel-friendly, and I've liked the two looks from the palette that I've done to date.

Now, we move to the cheek palette.

If I was going to pick up one of these, it would've been the Pearl palette. I'm glad I got it in a kit.

I'm slowly coming to realize that I'm over the BAM highlighter trend and have been craving a more natural look. If that's you, this palette is completely wrong for you.

The three highlighters in this palette are beautiful and suited for me (mostly), but on the skin they're very noticable. For most people, that's a good thing. But I don't find those formulas to be as flattering on me as more subtle highlighters.

They're quite pretty, but I did see a lot of texture that I didn't even know that I had with them. Just a fair warning. Out of the three, this is my least favorite palette.


Bottom Line: This is an incredible gift for someone- from the teen on your shopping list to the professional looking for office-friendly looks. I'm surprised how often I reach for the eye palettes, and I'm slightly disappointed that I'm so far behind on this particular release. These are pigmented and beautiful palettes worth your beauty dollars.

Sephora Favorites Lip Service

One of the most hotly-anticipated beauty items every year are the Sephora Favorites sets. These mini collections offer huge value and allow you to try an assortment of deluxe minis and full-sized products.  Another key is that there are often different sets offered at Sephora/Sephora dot com and the Sephora inside JCPenney locations.

This Sephora Favorites Lip Service set is a Sephora inside JCPenney exclusive. It offers six products (2 full-sized) for $28 and claims a retail value of $83.

Let's start with the box.  The outer cardboard, which gives the details on the kit, simply slides off to reveal a rose gold box with a white Sephora logo:

 The lip products are nestled inside:

And now, the six lippies:


Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil- Pomegranate

It should be no secret that this is the lip product I was most excited to try out of the set.  Pomegranate is the cheeriest red I've tried in awhile.  I'm a newcomer to Bite's lip pencils, but I'm not wasting any time loving them.  These are mostly matte but have a bit of sheen to them and last for 4-5 hours.  Best of all, they're made of organic, food-grade ingredients so you don't have to worry about what you might be ingesting.

Swatches:

Outside

Inside, with flash

Outside

Inside, with flash

Buxom Full-On Lip Cream- Kir Royale

I unmistakeably mixed feelings about this product.  Color-wise, I love it.  It's exactly what I've been reaching for or wanting from lip colors this fall.  This is a beautiful wine-colored gloss.  Formula-wise, I loathe it.  I hate, hate, HATE any plumping/tingling products because my lips are so sensitive.  This product makes my lips feel like they're on fire, and beauty just isn't worth it.  I wish the plumping trend would just go away NOW.

Swatches:

outside

inside, with flash

Outside

Inside, with flash

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar- Pretty Boy

This is my first experience with a Lip Tar, and Pretty Boy is a vivid, matte magenta.  These come with their own brush, but not the primer that OCC recommends that you use with them.  I found Pretty Boy to apply easily- but the Lip Tar itself was far more liquidy than I was expecting; there's a splat of Pretty Boy on my white bath rug as a testament.  This is liquid rather than thick gloss- so user beware!

Outside

 

Inside, with flash

Outside

Inside, with flash

Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick- Nylon Nude

This is a beautiful nude lipstick.  The formula feels lovely, and I would've loved to have really worn this. However, I know it's a color that just won't work on me- hence the hand-only swatches.  I'll be passing this lipstick on to friends or family.  It should easily find a forever home because it's so lovely.

Outside

Inside, with flash

Stila Lip Glaze- Apricot

I think there's an unwritten rule that there has to be a Stila Lip Glaze in every lip kit.  Apricot is a popular inclusion.  It's a nearly colorless gloss.  For that reason, I'll just be showing you a swatch on my hand:

Tarte Glamazon Pure Performance 12-Hours Lipstick- Inspired

 This is the other product from this kit I was looking forward to trying.  After being introduced to Tarte this summer, I've been wanting to try the 12-hour Glamazon lipstick formula.  Inspired is a neutral mauvey MLBB.

Outside

Inside, with flash

Outside

Inside, with flash

Bottom Line: Overall, this is one of my favorite curated lip kits I've tried and I find the SiJCP version to be superior to the one offered at freestanding Sephora locations.