May Favorites: Beauty.
I’ve drank the summer koolaid!
I know I’m pushing it with it still being spring and all, but I’ve been all about the slightly tan, glowy bronzy look this month. And when I say slightly tan I’m pretty sure you’d still consider me as pale as a ghost. But tan for me. Fake tan in a bottle that is. And golden shimmer stuff on my face. Minimal summery makeup! Yes, that.
I’m still loving pretty much everything I talked about last month and am using it up. I really love that shiseido SPF, but tried something else below that I prefer under makeup. I’m still using all my normal hair products including my loves – the kenra blow dry spray and the batiste dry shampoo. And obviously, my too faced milk chocolate soleil bronzer which I photographed above but really don’t need to mention below. Broken record. It’s just so gorg.
So let’s get to it.
Okay first up, I have to talk about my favorite find this month. This alba daily SPF 15 lotion is AWESOME. It’s thick enough to moisturize but not too thick and greasy that you can’t pull on your jeans. I found it at Whole Foods after my cousin was telling me how much she loved it – it happened to be on sale (by “on sale” I mean it was like $22 instead of $28, oye) and I’ve been in love with it ever since. With it having the SPF, I use it mostly for daily use in the morning after I shower or whatever. I don’t use it at night, nor do I use it if I’m going out on a walk or going to be outside in the middle of the day (then I just slather on some regular sunscreen).
But I absolutely love that I have this on my entire body when I might be doing things like driving in the car on a sunny day or just being outside shopping or whatever. You know. That may sound stupid but I’m allllll about the SPF right now.
So speaking of, last month TONS of your were recommending the philosophy hope in a jar (both the non-SPF and SPF versions) and I grabbed some at Ulta after reading a bunch of reviews. I am so disappointed in the reformulated Josie Maran and it just doesn’t work under my tinted moisturizer at all. I really have been loving this and will use it from my face to my neck to my chest. I avoided philosophy products for years because I wasn’t a fan of the scent, but this is pretty great.
The only thing I’m not loving is that it seems very sunscreeny? I realize that sounds utterly ridiculous, but my previous moisturizers for the face have clearly been face moisturizers WITH SPF. This seems just like sunscreen. So I’m think it’s overpriced sunscreen? I don’t know. Either way, I’m loving it on my face under everything. Do you use this? Thoughts?
OMG OMG OMG. This too. Okay, so I saw this in Nordstrom and while staring at it, ended up searching makeup alley on my phone for reviews (again. that is my life.) and going for it. This clarins radiance glow booster is a serum-y type product that you add to your moisturizer to make your own self tanner. I’M IN LOVE. I use self tanner (more on that below) every once in awhile and I’ll even use it on my face, but my face ends up a lot paler quicker than my body since I exfoliate/use toner/use my clarisonic on it. With this, it gives it a really healthy glow and I can use it once a day or even twice a day and mix it with different moisturizers.
GAH. I can’t even convey how much I love this. I have been taking photos of it with my phone and sending it to friends being all YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE! The only thing I have to remember is to exfoliate or clarisonic my neck as well – because my neck will appear more tan than my face. Ick.
Since I’ve been using more self tanner as well as the clarins glow stuff, I bumped my favorite tarte tinter moisturizer a few shades. First off, my other bottle was almost gone and most likely waaaay too light for me anyway. I’m usually within the first one or two shades when it comes to face color things, but that first shade was making me look dead at times. I was afraid this shade may be a bit too dark, but the minute I tried it at home I was hooked. Since it’s just a tinted moisturizer, it blends out perfectly. It also is working on my skin with and without tanner – both shades.
And it goes on smoothly after the hope in a jar SPF above.
Okay okay. Can’t believe I’m about to talk about foundation.
I had seen the commercials, blog posts, samples and all the hype around this bare minerals bare skin foundation. I easily passed it by, not only because I loathe foundation but also because I really loathe everything bare minerals. Powder foundation is a nightmare to me, it has always made me look cakey, it’s messy and I’ve never found one thing in the line that I enjoy (besides a few lipglosses). My mom and I were in Ulta three weeks ago and I had somehow decided that I needed to try this (probably after boring myself with a billion reviews, of course). I had actually read a bunch of negative reviews too, but the idea of BARE SKIN and it not feeling like foundation had me so intrigued.
I never wear foundation on a regular basis – but I will if I have to do some sort of photos, video or have a special occasion where the tarte tinted moisturizer may not be enough. Ummmmm. I love this. Love love love. It is incredibly weightless on my skin. It absolutely does NOT feel like foundation. At all. If I’ve said that before about another foundation, I take it back. This is as light on my skin as my tarte moisturizer. I still haven’t been wearing it everyday, but I’ve been wearing it a few times a week. I have dry skin and it did not stick to dry patches or anything. I have been putting it over the hope in a jar SPF and am so happy with it.
I got the shade 03 in bare linen after going between shades 03 and 04 and it’s perfect. I also was suckered into buying the brush because I don’t have many face brushes (I’m a fingers-only makeup applier). I like applying this with the brush, but I will say that I cleaned the brush last week and it was a giant pain in the ass. I’ve used MAC brush cleaner for ages and it only takes a few swipes to clean my other brushes on a paper towel. This took TONS of swipes (maybe 20?) and I still felt like I couldn’t get all the color out. So there’s that.
Since the reviews on this are really split 50/50, I’d say buy it someplace that will accept returns if you want to try it out!
Now that I rambled forever about foundation, here are two blushes I’ve talked about a million times.
Tarte exposed. Of course. Could I get any more predictable?
And milani dolce pink. I love this with a hint of sparkle. It’s so 1990s white trash ice pink. Luckily I can occasionally pull it off since cooler pinks look okay on my skin. It’s pretty light too. It’s usually one of my summer go-to pinks.
Eye things! I’m getting insanely boring with my eye shadow. It saddens me but then I feel like a five year old trying to do electric shades on my eyes. I caved and got the too faced chocolate bar eye palette, if only because I adore the bronzer so much and it SMELLS LIKE CHOCOLATE.
It really does.
I also liked that it was kind of a mix between neutral shades with some color?
I need to rant about palettes for a second. I used to HATE them. I didn’t own one single eyeshadow palette until Naked 2 came out. I loved it so much that I bought Naked 1. And then urban decay smoked. And then a smashbox summertime and lorac pro palette with pretty blues and greens and purples. And then naked 3. For years I only liked single eyeshadows, but now I almost exclusively have palettes. I still have a few single urban decay and MAC shadows, but I’m all aboard the palette train. This HAS to be my last one. Now that my count it up to six or whatever, I have to be done. I have every shade I’d ever need.
To go with my boring and bronzed eye look, I’ve been downright obsessed with two shades in the palette. In fact, they are the only two shades I’ve really used so far, but I adore them. The pinky-golden in the center called marzipan (left, center) goes on first and then I brush on the lighter pink shimmery shade called champagne truffle (right) over top. It cools down the look a little since warm colors don’t look great on my eyes. Then I’ve either been doing a little brown eye liner or no eyeliner and piles of mascara (and fake single lash clusters of course).
I don’t think these shadows are quite as great as urban decay (nothing can beat those for me) but they are pretty darn good. And I just inhale the entire time I’m applying them. Feed me chocolate.
Lip things this month!
First up, new-to-me flavor of burt’s bees – coconut pear. Dying over it. My go-to the last few years has been grapefruit, but this may take it’s place. I absolutely love it.
And for extra SPF for my lips, the coola peppermint vanilla chapstick. I had one of these in the past and love the coola sunscreen products, and this does not disappoint. It smells ridiculous.
To go with my pink and glowy golden look, I broke out my hourglass fortune lipgloss. This is some of my favorite gloss (maybe even more than MAC and buxom) and this shade in particular is one I’ve gone through an entire tube of. You know you love it if you finish a tube of lipgloss. It’s the prettiest pink with golden shimmer.
That’s the theme here apparently.
Another repeat is my current favorite butter gloss in merengue.
More cool pinks. It tastes like cake. Do it.
I’ve talked about st tropez as my favorite tanner for well over a year now, and it still is. I do have a sample of the tarte tanner but have yet to try it. This just looks so natural on my skin, which is insanely difficult when you are as pasty as I am. I think it’s super easy to apply and dries instantly. I just adore it. It takes me around five minutes to apply and boom – done. It doesn’t break up on my skin or rub off weird. My usual routine is the night before or early morning, I shower, exfoliate the heck out of my skin, shave, dry off and apply a really thick moisturizer. Then, the next morning or later that night, I shower again but only exfoliate with a washcloth (no soap) and dry off. Then I apply the tanner to clean, dry skin. Easiest ever. It doesn’t even get on my bed sheets.
I.love.it.
Finally, I know this isn’t a true Jessica summer color but it’s my current favorite. It’s loreal never lacque-ing and with it being a cooler-toner grayish nude, it is the only nude that doesn’t make me look dead. I did wear some neons earlier this month, but this is my clear fave. I wore it a lot last fall but I actually love it more now that it’s warmer out. Apparently this was limited edition which is annoying, but oh well. It’s what I’ve been wearing.
But be warned, next month will probably be neon green and pink.
Annnd I’m done. You know the drill! What beauty junkie things are you loving this month? What are some of your summer faves? I need to know. Seriously.
{as usual, none of this is sponsored and all of these products were purchased by me. i am not affiliated with any of the companies above, nor do i accept free products. just love to talk about what i like, makeup junkie to makeup junkie. there are a few amazon affiliate links above. thank you for being here!}
53 Comments on “May Favorites: Beauty.”
That Philosophy moisturizer is my favorite! I buy the oil-free SPF 30 and I’ve been using it forev. It works really well under my foundation. (Which is Armani Luminous Silk and if you haven’t tried it, you have not lived. Best. Foundation. Ever.) I have to get that Alba lotion now! I’ve been using their body wash and their non-SPF body lotion for years. They make great products! They’re actually on sale quiet often. Although, yeah…the sale price is still a little steep for the product. Worth it, though!
I know what you mean about it feeling like sunscreen. One of my favorites is the clarins ecran multi-protection SPF 40. It is very liquidy and once you rub it in well you don’t feel it all on your face. Sunscreens tend to break me out, so once I find one I like I stick with it. I use it on top of my fave first aid beauty moisturizer. For eyes I am liking the mally shadow stick things. They are easy to apply in the morning and I can throw it in my purse to touch up if I need to at work. No brushes required. Loving the shades topaz and firework with my blue/green eyes.
i love the clairin sunscreen too ! i like that its liquidy and totally sinks right in. i just started using it and really love it !
I should try that Alba lotion – I swear by the Whole Foods 365 cleanser and moisturizer (for $5.99 a bottle!) but it doesn’t have sunscreen to it…I am going to recommend you try SkinCeuticals sunscreen. It is amazing for the face (and body) comes tinted and does not have any of the bad ingredients that most sunscreens contain. They also make a tinted sunscreen for the eyelids which also contains treatment.
oooh very interested in that eyelids sunscreen!
I buy that Alba lotion for summer (and use their regular very emollient lotions in the winter–I should stick to SPF year round I suppose!), but wanted to tell you–don’t pay Whole Foods prices next time! I but it off of Vitacost.com or iherb.com and you can get the 32 oz. bottle for between $12-17, depending on which one you buy. I order basically every beauty/personal care item from one of those sites, the prices are awesome and the selection is huge especially for natural stuff.
omg you just saved me. i thought finding it on amazon for $20 was cheap. thanks!!
I was just going to suggest ordering the Alba lotion on Vitacost and then saw that Megan already did! I’ve been able to switch to almost all natural home and skin care products because of how inexpensive Vitacost is compared to Whole Foods or other health food stores. They also have the desert essence coconut lotion that you talked about last month for only $5. There are some youtube beauty gurus like vlogwithkendra who do ‘Vitacost Hauls’ and I’ve gotten great suggestions from them on what to order on Vitacost as well. :-)
Omg! Alba makes a lotion with spf?! I love alba lotions and use them exclusively. I know they’re expensive but they last forever! Trying this immediately.
I’m also all about SPF right now. A glow is nice, but burns? No thanks.
I just saw the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Palette the other day on Sephora’s site. Looks like a good mix of neutrals. Definitely going to have to pick up that one!
Have you tried the Josie Maran Argan Illuminizer (http://www.sephora.com/product/productDetail.jsp?keyword=JOSIE%20MARAN%20Argan%20Illuminizer%20P281607&skuId=1308196&productId=P281607&_requestid=82416)??
I LOVE it. I mix a little tiny bit in with my tinted moisturizer and it gives the BEST summer glow. The perfect little bit of sparkle, but you don’t look orange or fake at all (and I have very pale skin, so this is a feat). Try it! GREAT summer product. I totally agree about their reformulated moisturizer – so disappointing.
i haven’t but i look at it all the time in sephora! i might have to bite the bullet.
That Alba Botanica lotion is AMAZING! You can buy it super cheap on Vitacost.com :)
I just bought st tropez!! I’m so excited to use it, and worried I would look streaky. I also bought the sephora face tanning water (something weird like that) and I got compliments from two different ppl about my “glow” I was shocked how natural it looks. I’m pale as pale can be, so I definitely recommend it!
i have never looked streaky from st tropez! it has a color guard so you can easily see where you are applying it. very interested in this tanning water…
i love dr. dennis gross glow pads. they are like a treatment (glycolic acid) + tanner and they work so well on my medium olive-y skin! i’ve also been making my own face wash and moisturizers…um say wuuuut? yes. and it’s been kinda awesome! http://thedelicateplace.com/2014/05/18/diy-the-best-cleanser-ever-skincare-update/
these sound awesome!
Ok I don’t mean to encourage your palette collection any more but the It Cosmetics Naturally Pretty palette is pretty much the best palette I own (and I own quite a few). It’s seriously perfect, especially if you’re pale! So many beautiful neutral shades and it’s practically foolproof to blend them.
Just sayin’…..
Ahhh! Can’t wait to get my hands on that Clarins!! I’m loving the Buxom gloss in Amber, Benifits Fake Up under eye concealer in light (try under you under eye concealer!), and Bare Minerals Mineral Veil with SPF 15! <3
i look at the it cosmetics palette in ulta… it looks SO pretty but then when i test the shadows on my hand they just don’t seem as buttery as urban decay!
and abby, the clarins stuff is awesome. so cool.
These posts are super helpful to me as a person who just wants to know what products are actually good and which aren’t, without having to read hundreds of reviews or risk spending tons of money. I’ve made several purchases because of you, and I share your pale skin and green eyes so, thank you for these posts!! They are just as fun and helpful as your recipes :)
I love reading your beauty favorites/reviews because it is so refreshing how honest you are! I have that exact same Loreal polish and I love it for the summer months! So interesting to hear your thoughts on Bareskin, I have considered it due to a few posts I saw on other blogs..but they were all sponsored so I just wasnt sure if it was actually a good product!
I stopped in the Benefit store in Boston the other day to pick up my eyebrow go to, their eyebrow pencil..and they salesperson persuaded me to buy their http://www.sephora.com/the-big-easy-liquid-to-powder-spf-35-foundation-P384630?skuId=1580885 I wasnt so sure at first about it because I liked my laura mercier tinted moisturizer..but I have been surprisingly so impressed with this and I am constantly reaching for it ever morning over my laura mercier.
i’ve look at reviews for the big easy and kinda want to try it too! it looks interesting…
So- Quesht….You love Kenra Blow Dry Spray…Kate @thesmallthings blog loves it and being a sucker to peer pressure, I bought it. I use it, I love the smell- I just dont get it! I have no idea if I’m using enough/too much and really what it’s even supposed to do! What is it that you love about it? How much do you use? I dont find it to cut drying time in half or really any faster. I hope the more I use it the more likely it will be that I’ll stumble upon its magic quality!
haha! you’re too cute.
okay, so first, the blowdry spray is a heat protectant. so i don’t think you would necessarily see or “feel” the benefits from that (maybe unless your hair was super damaged or something before and you used it for years?) – but i really like the idea of a heat protectant.
second, i definitely feel like it cuts my drying time in half, but i have a crapton of hair. i’ve had people that buy it tell me both – it cuts the time in half and others see no difference. who knows – it could totally be all in my head! i don’t know if it has anything to do with hair type – my hair is fairly thick and has a wave, but still really manageable? i wish i could help you more!! haha.
Have you tried the Tarte CC primer? http://tartecosmetics.com/tarte-item-colored-clay-cc-primer.
You can use it alone or under a tinted moisturizer/foundation. Either way, I recently purchased it for the summer instead of using my usual: Tarte 12hr full-coverage foundation (which I used all winter).
I really like it, it’s lightweight, blends easily, color corrects, and you can build on it if you want to.
I love reading you Beauty Favorites, I’ve tried a few things you’ve recommended!
i tried a sample of it last year i think – i didn’t love it alone (at least not more than the tarte tinter moisturizer) and i really loathe primers. they just don’t do anything for my dry skin and make me feel cakey and feel weird on my skin! i wish i loved it.
i just bought that coola chapstick yesterday – love it!
YES TO IT ALL! I also love St Tropez, it is pure instant tan magic. I love reading your makeup posts, we recently moved to Italy and I no longer can make my 2 hour Ulta trips, so your recaps are a perfect substitute! (They have Sephora here, but everything is more expensive!
I’ve been using the Bare Mineral powder for many years and I love it! I’ve heard about their new foundation but haven’t given it a try yet. I’ve heard good things about it and might consider trying it!
I purchased the Kendra blow dry spray a few months ago after reading your post. It is my go to in the morning! Love it!!!!! I recently got the St. Tropez as a gift and can’t want to use it!
I’m in love with the Burt’s Bees Coconut Pear lip balm. I bought it for my husband to try (he’s a Burt’s Bees Lip balm whore and always has it in his pocket) but I ended up stealing it back. SO MUCH LOVE FOR IT.
:'( :'( :'( :'( it’s not fair
I can’t get any of these luscious things where I am. Its enough to make an old girl cry.
Oh Jessica!
No commiserations even ?
Have to say, I’m loving the Smashbox Full Exposure palatte I got! Honestly, they are just perfect shades and blend so well. Plus, you can make them way darker, or keep them simple and light.
I’m so bummed I wasn’t able to score much from the new Mac Aquatic Collection… it was the first of theirs in a long time that I was super excited about. Finally found a blush on Macys and can’t wait for it to arrive. Missed the boat on that one… it’s sold out every where. Oh well, the billions of other makeup products I have will have to hold me over, lol!
Oh, and I’m so DIY-in it with a friend who’s helping me build a nail polish wall rack. Yep, wall rack… I think I have too many!
oh my gosh – i was obsessed with getting something from the aquatic collection (if only because of the packaging!) and got to macys while they still had mostly everything and was so disappointed! i just didn’t see any colors that wowed me. sad face.
I love the Tarte tinted moisturizer and use it a ton. I liked Tarte’s Amazonian Clay 12-hour Full Coverage Foundation with SPF 15 ( http://www.sephora.com/amazonian-clay-12-hour-full-coverage-foundation-spf-15-P302918?skuId=1393370 ). It’s a thicker coverage (I’d say medium to sorta full) than the tinted moisturizer. And it looks airbrushed if you use a brush or – even better – a Beauty Blender (which I only recently discovered).
Essie has some gorgeous new colors out, including a beautiful radiant orchid, a bright orange (my go-to color) and a deep bright pink. Love!
Have you tried the Burt’s Bees flavor in dark chocolate and blueberry? It’s my new fave, though I’m probably going to switch to the coconut and pear you have. I’m such a sucker for anything coconut! And that Clarins serum looks awesome. I’ll have to try too.
Love love love the Too Faced Chocolate Bar. Great colors and you get the chocolate fix (smell is amazing) without the calories!
I look forward to these posts every month! I just made my 5 year old twins spend an hour in ulta yesterday with me. I bought them nail polish so we’re cool ;-) Anyway, I bought the too faced bb cream yesterday and I’m really liking it so far. I also got Living Proof restore recovery regimen so I’m excited to see how that works! The St. Tropez tanner is my absolute favorite.
I haven’t tried the Philosophy moisturizer, but I’ve been using Cetaphil’s spf 50 moisturizer for a couple years now, and I love with mixed with Skin by Anne Web’s manogsteen serum (which I buy at Whole Foods.)
Your post made me want to try Bare Minerals new liquid foundation! I’ve bought a couple mineral foundations from both Bare Minerals and Laura Mercier, and I hated them. They were both really pink and didn’t blend into my skin at all. I did fall in love with Neutrogena’s mineral sheers SPF 20 powder foundation, but I still prefer Shu Uemura’s powder foundation (which you can only buy in Asia now. bummer.) Overall, though I’ve been moving a way from powder foundation and using more liquid, since it does a better job evening out my skin tone. Shu Uemura is my current fave (and you can actually order it online in the US.) Benefit’s Hello Flawless is my #2.
I must buy Alba’s body lotion now… I slather on body lotion every day, but I should start using one with spf.
No commiserations even ?
I’ve gone back to loving Benefit’s Stay Flawless 15 hour primer. I love that it keeps my makeup on all day through work and a Pure Barre class. it’s amazing. I’m also loving Tarte’s Amazonian clay full-coverage foundation. I was using NARS for the longest time but I love that this stays on longer, matches my skin color even better than the NARS (which was near perfect), and looks more natural. In combination with the milk chocolate bronzer you love, I feel like I’ve achieved my perfect summer look!
I recently bought NYX butter gloss in Cherry Cheesecake. I wasn’t sure if I would like it because it is pretty orange but I LOVE IT! It is a flattering coral shade. I have a whole dessert bar of butter glosses currently in my purse.
You mentioned you almost exclusively put on makeup with your fingers. Does that include eye makeup? I also have the Nakeds 2 and 3 but use the brushes primarily. Do you find putting it on with your fingers is better? I have more trouble with the brushes with the Nakeds 3 palette, I can’t seem to get the coverage I want with the brushes. And I agree with you, once you get one palette you really want to get more!
i pretty much do! i’ve tried so hard to use brushes but i can NEVER get the pigment i get with my fingers, even with urban decay shadows which i consider the best. now i do use a fluffy brush (an old mac one) to put some lighter brown/tan in my crease, but after that i mostly use my fingers. I do use a brush for highlighter shade on my browbone.
i tend to do -> tinted moisturizer, concealer, eye primer -> wash hands well -> eyeshadow crease with brush, eyeshadow with fingers – > wash hands well -> finish remaining makeup. it’s annoying but the only thing that really works for me!
now i will say that if i’m doing a smoky eye or darker look, i might start with my fingers but finish the darker colors with a brush. my fingers aren’t the best for getting darker shadows on the outer edge of my lid.
So excited to try the Clarins and St. Tropez tanners- thanks so much for the awesome reviews! Lately I’ve been in love with the Marc Jacobs eyeliners (called “highliners”) – have you tried them? They are super long lasting and come in the most gorgeous, unique colors. I highly recommend! They’re worth the splurge :)
Would you be able to do some reviews on drug store brands? Not all of us can afford the really expensive stuff. Thanks!
Late to the party, but I’m absolutely loving Midnight Fleur, E&J White perfume (both per your rec!) and Josie Maran’s lip and cheek tint in Endless Guava. Also, I might have missed it, but what’s the shade in the Loreal Infallible shadow? Thanks!!
thoughts on sharing some of the hardware you use? blow dryer/straightener/curling iron… make up brushes… applicators… other hair/nail/make-up tools… etc etc?
I had to buy two of the coconut pear Burt’s Bees because… my dog ate my first tube! I guess she liked it too.
My FAVE new lip product is this: http://www.sephora.com/product/productDetail.jsp?keyword=JACK%20BLACK%20Intense%20Therapy%20Lip%20Balm%20SPF%2025%20P12573&skuId=564344&productId=P12573&_requestid=116486
in grapefruit & ginger. Ugh. So good.
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Oh man this post always overwhelms me. So much makeup!
I am obsessed with the BareSkin Foundation! And Tarte’s Exposed Blush is one of my favorites! I’m still dying to try the Chocolate Bar Palette but I hear such great things about it!