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| NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, NARS Highlighting Powder, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish, Glossier Stretch Concealer, Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Powder, Hourglass Bronzer, Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi. |
I seem to find myself getting into routines and then having a hard time breaking them. For example, I'll eat the same thing for lunch three months in a row just because it's easy and I don't have to think about it until I can't stand to look at a turkey sandwich anymore. Makeup usually isn't too different. Working in an office environment, I don't find myself going outside of the box too often with my makeup and tend to wear the same, fairly natural look a lot. This doesn't bother me because if it isn't broke, don't fix it, but it does make me think about the amount of makeup I have versus what I use.
Don't get me wrong, I am comfortable with the amount of makeup that I have considering it is a big interest of mine and it still fits in my vanity without spilling over. The thing that sometimes gets to me is that when I get a new product I will forget about something that I once loved. To try and combat this feeling of guilt, I've been more conscious about mixing up new and old products lately, and I've got to say that it helps! Here's the combo that I've been turning to lately after going back and mixing in some old favorites and giving new products a break.
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| NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Finland |
I'm going to focus on my face makeup here rather than eyes and brows. Ever since I picked up the Erborian CC Cream last April, I have been completely disrespecting my OG favorite base, the NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in the shade Finland. The NARS Tinted Moisturizer was one of the first bases that I found that provided the natural coverage I wanted and was easy enough to apply with my fingers and go. It will always hold a special place in my heart. I finally pulled this baby out and have been showing it love for the last few weeks. I still love the Erborian CC Cream, but they are honestly both fantastic products that give a very similar finish. I'd purchase them both again in a heartbeat.
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| Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Anti-Pollution Sunshine Drops |
To spice things up, I've been mixing a new favorite in with the NARS Tinted Moisturizer- the Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Anti-Pollution Sunshine Drops. I really fucked up the first time I used this stuff and decided I was gonna go straight in without mixing it into my base. The results were not great and my face was unnaturally orange. After that I mixed it into my CC cream and realized how gorgeous it really is. Apparently it doubles as skincare which is cool, but what I really love is the natural bronze glow that it gives when I use it properly. As you probably know if you've read previous posts, I am a skincare fanatic and sunscreen worshipper. I don't care if I'm not leaving the house, I put sunscreen on my face first thing in the morning. I am not as diligent about SPF on the rest of my body though unless I know I'm going to be in the sun. I'm not saying this is the right thing to do, it's just the truth. As a result, my body is about three shades darker than my face at the moment from going out and enjoying summer. D-Bronzi just helps even things out for me and make the difference in my face and body less noticeable.
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| Glossier Stretch Concealer in Light |
The next step in my routine is to conceal. I've been obssssessssseddddd with the Bare Minerals BARESKIN Complete Coverage Serum Concealer for the past year or so and it's honestly everything I've ever dreamed of. I used to be a fan of the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer, but started to really dislike how dry it was for my under-eye area. I tried the NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer when it launched and couldn't find a good shade match to save my life. After that heartbreak, I was really itching to try something new and after hearing about Jamie Paige rave about it forever I decided to give the Bare Minerals Serum Conclear a go. It is SUCH a gorgeous, hydrating formula that looks as good as it does on my under-eye on my face. It's also perfectly pigmented and covers redness really well, which is something I always need. The thing is, I don't always need perfect coverage. Sometimes I just want my skin to be evened out a bit and call it good. In comes one of my other favorites is the Glossier Stretch Concealer in the shade Light. The formula is also very hydrating, but the big different here is that it's not super pigmented. It is beautiful, but provides more of a natural wash of color than super bold coverage. I've always loved it for my under-eye, but not always for my face. Luckily, my skin has been pretty happy lately so I don't have too much redness to cover up and have been into the finish that the Stretch Concealer gives me. It's dewy and skin-like, which are two things I'm always down for with my makeup.
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| MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Plus |
Once I've finished all that, I like to set everything with a bit of powder. This is controversial for my fellow dry skinned folks, but I don't feel like my makeup is complete unless I powder. I'm really not into the sticky feeling of an unset face (okay I'm not touching my face constantly but if I do I'm like ewww). The MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in the shade Light Plus is perfect because it sets everything in place, but is undetectable on the skin. Even on my driest days, I don't look at my skin and see a caked up powdery mess. It just holds it down.
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| Hourglass Ambient Lighting Bronzer in Diffused Bronze Light |
Bronzer is something that I really could have cared less about when I first started experimenting with makeup, but this is 2018 now and I'm a changed woman. The way that bronzer just brings life and dimension back into my face after putting down my base is something to be admired. I've had a few loves over the years, including NARS Laguna and Marc Jacob's Omega Bronzer, which I still think are gorgeous, but once I saw the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Bronzer I was intrigued. I really liked how cool toned the color Diffused Bronze Light was compared to other bronzers that I had tried, as I feel that it's common for bronzers to look way too red toned on me. My skin leans olive so not sure if that has something to do with it, but I've tried some really unfortunate colors. Once I tried it I forgot that other bronzers existed. I still love my old favorites, but there is something about the Hourglass formula that is just so on point. It warms up my face with the most beautiful bronzed glow. It's really hard to go overboard with this bronzer as well, which I appreciate.
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| Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Contour Powder in Medium |
My favorite contour for sooo long has been the Marc Jacobs #Instamarc Light Filtering Contour Powder, despite the ridiculous name. I love that I can use the yellow powder to perfect my under-eye, and that the contour shade works so well to give my cheeks natural looking definition. Contour is a step in my routine that really gets me feeling myself, so I'd say it's pretty important to me. A while back I decided to give the Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Contour Powder in the shade Medium a try, and it is very different from the Marc Jacobs Powder. I tried to use my Marc Jacobs contour brush with the Kevyn Aucoin powder and quickly learned that it is a much more powdery formula that has a lot of kickback. I kind of put it away after that since I didn't have the patience to figure out how to make it work. I finally discovered that the correct brush makes all the difference. I tried it with a cheap little Elf Stipple brush and it's been love ever since. It's very pigmented so the bit of diffusion that the Elf brush gives makes a huge difference. The loveliest thing about the Kevyn Aucoin powder is the grey undertone that it has. It gives a very natural shadow effect (assuming I can control myself and not pile it on). In my attempt to switch up my routine, the Sculpting Powder has taken up frequent residence on my face lately.
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| NARS Highlighting Powder in Fort de France |
I didn't include blush here, because that is something that I am actually good about rotating, so my last step mentioned will be highlighting. I have a good selection of highlights to choose from, ranging from natural glow to "holy shit you look like a disco ball." The best thing about this NARS Highlighting Powder in Fort de France is that it is somewhere in between that. It gives a noticeable glow, but not one that looks too out there to wear on a day to day basis. There is something that is just so fun about swiping on a bit of highlighter once everything else is done. For me, it's the cherry on top of my makeup routine. I was debating whether I should get the shade Capri or Fort de France, and I'm really glad that I chose the latter. It looks a little darker than what I imagined in the pan, but once it's on the skin it blends in beautifully.
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| NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, NARS Highlighting Powder, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish, Glossier Stretch Concealer, Kevyn Aucoin Sculpting Powder, Hourglass Bronzer, Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi |
So that's what I've been into lately! It's always fun to try something new, but I really do think it feels just as good to rediscover a product that you haven't used in a while and shop your stash. What have you guys tried lately that is either a new found love or a forgotten treasure?
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