August Favorites

I feel like every beauty blogger is contractually and ethically obligated to do this monthly round up. So, to not annoy the guru gods, here are my August favorites!

Becca Ombre Rouge Palette

This thing is beautiful. At first glance, it’s another set of neutrals. But put these colors on your eyes, and they turn into the most naturally, beautifully contoured creatures. I’m obsessed with this palette. I’ve delayed playing with new palettes because my commitment is so official to this palette. Full review to come, but needless to say, this thing is a revelation. Why is no one talking about it?

Rimmel Lash Accelerator

I thought it was me, that I had to get used to how mascara looked. Every mascara I had tried, including many trendy, pricey ones, made my lashes clumpy, thick, and spidery. One night, I was angry at the world, so grumbled my way around Target (we all do this, right?) and found this. It is really wonderful stuff. I’m not sure about its claims to lengthen lashes over time, but cosmetically, it creates long, thick, fluffy lashes. I’ve always been more into the “Oh, no, I totally look this way all the time” look rather than the “Go ahead, ask me how much money I spent on my face” look. This does that perfectly.

Makeup Forever Face and Body

Since having babies, my skin has been super dry. Like, scratch dry patches off of my mouth, wakeup unable to move my cheeks, dandruff in my eyebrows dry. It is IMPOSSIBLE to find foundations that play well with this kind of skin. This foundation, along with something later in the list, perform magic. It’s a sheer to light coverage, so I do have to poke at my face with concealer after, but that’s a small price to pay for this kind of dewy, healthy, comfortable, moisturized feeling.

Mac Strobe Cream

This is another product I might leave my husband for. In the world of glow givers, this one is a very subtle sneak. Again, it gives a glow that seems natural, like I just drank three green juices and have never had a cup of coffee in my life. Pearlescent, not glittery, and I’m obsessed.

Tweezerman Eyelash Curler for Round Eyes

I used to think I just sucked at using an eyelash curler, but this one proved me wrong. See how thin the top bar is? It reaches right into the edges of my Disney-esque round eyes and curls everything in one go; I’m almost disappointed after using it because it’s so quick. Plus, it’s rose gold. Who doesn’t love a rose gold?

Atelier Cologne Vanille Insensée

I’m obsessed with this smell, but don’t know enough about perfumes to tell you why. To me, it smells like a really sophisticated vanilla that fades into a spicy, comfortable, delicious scent. It also blends really well with my natural oils (mmmm body oils… that’s an image to walk away with…), to the point where I feel like I just always have smelt like this bottle of goodness. I bathe in this stuff.

Lush Buffy

(You don’t need a picture of the state of my Buffy bar. It ain’t pretty.)

I definitely feel that some of Lush is overhyped. Take a bath that costs $7? Kind of insane. But Buffy is actually quite useful, and feels and smells great. I’ve been using it to calm the red bumps on my shoulders and exfoliate and soften my elbows, and it has improved both dramatically. I don’t use it on the rest of my body in the hopes that it’ll last longer, plus I find the exfoliation too harsh for my more sensitive chest and tush.

Vintage Compacts

These are two of my favorite possessions. I’m a sucker for mid century things – I own 5 typewriters. Both are eBay finds, and boy did I scout well. The black one has a destroyed and remolded Makeup Geek blush (post on how I did that to come), and the purple one (oh my GOD it’s purple) still had its sifter, so I filled it with a Neutrogena loose powder. It was quite messy. But now I have to think of reasons to whip out these lovely ladies in public!