Guilty Pleasures...

I have a bit of confession to make. I am sort of obsessed with cosmetics. I love looking at beauty magazines, trolling the makeup aisle at stores, watching makeup how to videos, and I desperately adore Sephora. I am sort of rubbish at applying it so I think I purchase more then I actually consume, but it remains a guilty pleasure.

I did have some thoughts on some popular products that I have tried and my experiences with them. Now, please remember these are my experiences (for better or worse) and your mileage may vary. Also, I know rubbish all about what I am doing. I thought though that might be why it is helpful information

MAKE UP FOR EVER 5 Camouflage Cream Palette - No. 1
I have generally very very fair skin and a lot of problem areas including somewhat impressive dark under-eye circles. In fact even though purple eyeshadow is highly recommended for my hazel eyes, I never where it for fear of looking like I lost a fist fight. I heard good things about this palette and decided to give it a try. The nice thing about this palette is that it gives you a green and a peachy tone for hiding redness and some common skin coloration issues. There is a also a variety of shades of concealer which can be blended for a multitude of skin types and skin problems. The problem is that these are very thick creams. And, you really need to let them warm up to cover well. I found that they drag across my skin a bit. They are good concealers, but if you have problems with blending (like I do) this may not be the best choice.

Revlon Color Stay Foundation – This was recommended for its coverage which is okay but it feels sticky/tacky on the skin and I thought that it smelled like paint. It definitely felt like makeup which rather than making me feel beautiful made me feel more aware of my imperfections. I am really not a fan of this product. I tried giving it a second chance but I just do not like the way it wears.

Revlon Photo Ready Compact – I actually really love the coverage of this cream to powder foundation. It really softens and smooths out skin’s imperfections. I find it a bit messy and I am often heavy handed with makeup so I have to be super careful when applying this. However, I have to say this is probably the best coverage foundation that I have found.

Mary Kay Eye Make-Up Remover – Probably the best eye make-up remover on the market hands down. Or at least I should say that for $15 this is the best product I have found and is good enough that I don’t feel the need to try more expensive versions out there. It is admittedly more expensive then the box store brands out there. However, it does an incredible job of removing your eye makeup and leaves your skin feeling soft and nourished afterwards. Worth every penny.

Tarte Smooth Operator – This tinted moisturizer is a recent find for me. I have really oily skin but it is also incredibly sensitive and so the products that deal with oil are too harsh for my face and the products that are for sensitive skin just get absorbed by the oil. This moisturizer seems to get along with my skin and it has pretty good coverage. It is not as good as the Photo Ready but it is a little more forgiving to apply for my non-skilled-ness and I can apply it with my fingers which gives me more control.

Eye Primers – I have tried Urban Decay’s Primer Portion and while I love the packaging I just don’t think that it delivers. Everyone speaks very highly of it and I realize that it is a generally well regarded product. I just don’t think it does its job as well as e.l.f.’s Eye Concealer. Granted I have thin and highly veined skin over my eyes so I like that e.l.f.’s Eye Concelear provides me some coverage, but I also think it does a better job of priming the lids for my shadows than Urban Decay. I haven’t had a chance yet to try e.l.f.’s eye primer product but I would like to after my positive experience with their concealer.

Girl Meets Pearl – I really want to like this product. It smells of raspberry’s, it provides a soft pinky glow to the skin, it is generally lovely. I just can’t figure out a way to work it into my beauty routine and have it do what my face needs. I keep playing with it though. It is one of the prettiest and subtlest illuminizing products that I have found which I also like.

L’Oreal HiP Eyeliner – I picked up a metallic silver in this pencil liner, and it is really creamy and really pigmented. It went on very smooth, and I am really interested to try some of their other HiP liners.

Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse Concealer – I love this stuff. Really great coverage. It blends into the skin. It seems almost fool proof. Love love love…which means they are probably discontinuing it.

Mascara - I have a mascara curse. I have long dark eyelashes which I would love to highlight with mascara. However, I always get dark fallout under my eyes which extenuates the circles and tiredness around my eyes. I have tried waterproof and smudge proof and smudgy waterproof of every brand I can afford and I have little to no success. Mary Kay had one years ago that was great and while their Ultimate is close I still get the fall out. I am crushed.