Favorite Friday: Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Oil-Free Cleansing Wipes

So, lately I contemplate going to bed at 8:00 every night. Mommyhood will do this to you. There are nights when washing my face and doing my whole skin routine sounds equivalent to hiking Mount Everest. Some nights, more than I like to admit, I am just too drained for the whole shebang. Luckily, I found my new favorite thing this Friday:

Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Oil-Free Cleansing Wipes For Acne Prone Skin

These are a new product from Neutrogena. If you’ve ever tried the Neutrogena Make-up Remover Cleansing Towelettes, these are very similar, but for acne prone skin. I love the Neutrogena Grapefruit Facial Soap. This is just a quicker version of the face wash.  I am prone to breakouts, so these are perfect for me because they contain salicylic acid. Most of the facial wipes out there are formulated for people with no specific skin issues. I love that these target those who suffer with breakouts. They noticeably smell of citrus, which I think smells very refreshing. I keep these on my nightstand for the nights where I just can’t stomach spending 10 minutes prepping my face for bed.

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend! If you haven’t voted for me yet on The Indy A-List for Best Make-up, you can still vote for me here. I would greatly appreciate your vote. Voting ends tonight! Thank you SO much to all of you who’ve voted. You’re all wonderful!

Have you tried these new wipes from Neutrogena? What’s your favorite makeup wipe?

Favorite Friday: MAC Prep + Prime Highlighter in Bright Forecast

Dark circles are something that have haunted me for years. Last Friday I told you about my favorite new eye cream to help combat dark circles. This week I’m going to show you one of my favorite products I use to help conceal and brighten under my eyes. Here is my favorite thing this Friday:

MAC Prep + Prime Highlighter

This product has a very peachy undertone to it, so it helps to neutralize the dark, bluish tint we get with dark circles. Sometimes people suggest using a yellow concealer, topped with a flesh-toned concealer, to diminish the dark appearance. I’ve found that this can actually make you look gray or green. Yucky. The peach color actually works wonderfully to overcome this common problem. I do not necessarily suggest this color, Bright Forecast, for everyone. This product comes in 3 different shades. Based upon your skin tone there might be another color that works best for you. I am moderately fair with pink undertones, so this is perfect for me.

Bright Forecast color swatch

I use this product under my eyes to help conceal, but it also has many other uses. It’s a highlighter pen, so you can use it anywhere you want to brighten up your face. Common areas would be where we start to see shadowing– around the  nose, forehead, cheeks, etc. If you are familiar with the very popular YSL Touche Eclat, this is actually quite similar, but much less expensive. This product works as an eye primer too. When I’m in a hurry, I use it on my lids before I apply my eyeshadow and it keeps it from creasing. I usually use my finger to apply this product because I feel like it works the product into my skin nicely.

With a multitude of uses, this product can be a great investment. It retails for $23 and you can find it at Nordstrom or your local MAC store. I hope everyone enjoys this product as much as I do. Have a fabulous, safe weekend!

Have you ever used this product? What’s your favorite thing this Friday?

Favorite Friday: 100% Pure Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream

Eye cream is something that we all should be using. I always say, “If you’re old enough to drive, you should start using an eye cream.” I started using an eye cream around the age of 21, when I started working in cosmetics. Some of us probably won’t start this crucial step until we’re getting all salt and peppery, but it’s never too late to start. Our eye area is our most delicate area and it needs lots of special treatment. This eye cream was recommended to me by my beautiful cousin and author of Gourmet Beauty. Whenever she tells me I have to try something I always listen because I have yet to dislike anything Arantha recommends. She introduced me to the brand 100% Pure and I’m so glad because I’m in love. Here is my favorite thing this Friday:

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100% Pure Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream

I purchased this product in the 1 oz size. It’s huge! For the $19 price tag, you can’t beat it. This eye cream is extremely emollient and feels wonderful when applied. I can still feel the moisture for at least an hour after using it. It was also featured on Dr. Oz as a breakthrough wrinkle-fighter! Everyone knows I’m a total sucker for Dr. Oz.

This cream is infused with potent antioxidants and anti-aging ingredients to help prevent fine lines and wrinkles from forming. It also helps to diffuse the lines we’ve already developed.  It contains caffeine and green tea to help treat dark circles and puffiness. I have never had a problem with puffiness, but I have always suffered with dark circles. I have dark circles so bad that some days I actually grab my eye makeup remover thinking I have excess mascara under my eyes. I quickly realize that no eye makeup remover is capable of removing those black holes dark circles. Sad, but true. I have only been using this eye cream for a few weeks and have noticed a huge difference in the darkness under my eyes.

Make sure you’re using eye cream morning and night. Use your ring finger to apply it because this finger has the lightest touch. You only need to use the size of a rice grain for each eye. If you would like to try this eye cream, you can order it here. I’m so happy I was introduced to this product and can’t wait to try more from this great brand!

Are you currently using an eye cream? What is your favorite thing this Friday?

Favorite Friday: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

I’ve been borderline stalking the Ulta across from my house waiting on them to receive these lip colors. As I previously wrote in a post, Emma Stone actually wore one of these balms at the MTV Movie Awards. I knew it was just a matter of time before all of the good colors sold out. After interrogating the girls at Ulta about why they didn’t have this product in stock, I gave up and went to Target. Somehow, I lucked out and got the last two they had. Here are my favorite products this Friday:

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Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain, $8

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These balms are great because they’re long-wearing. I wore one of these to the recent Dave Matthews Concert and it stayed on all night! The glossiness does wear off, but the pigment doesn’t. They are very similar (basically identical) to the Clinique Chubby Stick, but half the cost. I will say that the Chubby Stick is a bit more moisturizing. To solve this problem, I simply applied one coat of lip balm underneath the Revlon Balm Stain to add a little moisture. Problem solved! Here is the Clinique and Revlon side by side:

Fraternal Twins

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I bought two colors, Rendezvous and Sweetheart. Rendezvous is the color Emma Stone recently wore. I bought Sweetheart at the recommendation of my good friend, Caiti. I’m glad I did because this one is my favorite. The pigment in these are incredible and they are perfect for summertime. Both of these colors are so trendy and hot for this season. Here is an idea of what my lips look like wearing each color:

Rendezvous

.Sweetheart

The perfect look to pair this with is my, “How To Wear Makeup Without Looking Like it.” Pop one of these colors on with a minimal makeup look and you’re ready for summertime fun!

Wishing everyone a fabulous, fun weekend!

What do you think of these colors? What’s your favorite thing this Friday?

Favorite Friday: Source Naturals Skin Eternal DMAE Serum

When you think “serum,” you think, “I’m going to have to spend a small fortune at the department store that I should be using to pay my utility bills.”  At least that’s what I think. Typically, buying a serum at the department store is going to cost anywhere from $50 to well over $100. They have all sorts of fancy schmancy ingredients in them that have been hand-gathered from The Red Sea or The Great Barrier Reef. Whatever. Anyways, I found a serum that I truly love and that doesn’t break the bank! It was recommended to me by my Mother (kudos to her!), she always suggests the best stuff. She recommended my favorite product last Friday to me, too! Here is the serum that gets voted as my favorite thing this Friday:

Source Naturals Skin Eternal DMAE Serum, $18

This product is from a company called Source Naturals. They are a health and wellness company that sells beauty products, vitamins, supplements, and much more. I bought this product at a local health food store, but you can also purchase it online. DMAE is short for Dimethylaminoethanol. No wonder they shortened it up! This is an antioxidant that helps to firm, brighten and tighten the skin.  DMAE actually helps to tighten the cell membrane, helping to protect the skin from free radicals.  We encounter free radicals on a daily basis from smoke, pollution, etc. This serum also contains Vitamin C, which is essential to collagen production and also helps to firm and tighten the skin. It has Alpha-Lipoic Acid which is one of my favorite things. Alpha-Lipoic Acid is another potent antioxidant that helps to improve the texture of skin and prevents lines and wrinkles from forming.

This product retails for $29, but you can find it here and on many other sites for only $18. For only $18, this product is packed full of wonderful ingredients for the skin. I use this product in the morning and evening and have noticed quite the difference in the overall texture and appearance of my skin.  My makeup seems to go on much smoother, too! It is very lightweight and has a light coconut fragrance. It feels very moisturizing and it’s also paraben free. Here is my morning skincare routine:

My morning essentials: Burt’s Bees Radiance Facial Cleanser, Source Naturals DMAE serum, Mario Badescu Oil Free Moisturizer

Who ever said you can’t find quality skincare products that won’t break the bank?

What’s your favorite thing this Friday?

Favorite Friday: Revlon PhotoReady Foundation

This Friday, I decided to feature one of my favorite products that you can find at the drugstore. I typically never buy drugstore foundation because I find it extremely difficult to just guess what shade I should buy, hoping it gives me the coverage I want. I love being able to test a shade on my skin before I buy it. A few months ago, I completely ran out of foundation and was unable to run to Nordstrom to get the brand I typically use. I went to the drugstore and picked up this foundation. (My Mom had told me she had used it before and it was really great, so of course I trusted her opinion!) I was reluctant to buy it because I couldn’t try it on and also because it was from the drugstore. I’m not going to lie, I have been known to be somewhat of a foundation snob. I will use mounds of anything else from the drugstore but when it comes to what I’m actually putting on my face, I’ve always been a little skeptical. I have always believed you probably need to pay a little more to get good coverage, good ingredients and something that won’t break you out. You can probably credit that to the fact that I worked around high-end cosmetics for years and this is how I was trained. Trying to get me to convert to a drugstore foundation from my Laura Mercier foundation was kind of like trying to convince a man who drives a Mercedes that he needs to go test drive a Pontiac Aztec. Ok, that was a little drastic. Here is my favorite thing this Friday:

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Revlon PhotoReady Foundation, $10 at drugstores

This foundation converted me. Ok, I’ll admit it: Good foundation really can come in small, wrapped up packages, that you can’t open until you get home. This product gives a medium coverage that is also buildable. What I like most about this foundation is that my skin still looks like skin after I apply it. I don’t look shiny, but I also don’t look matte. It blends easily, goes on smoothly and leaves my skin with an enhanced radiance. It has yet to break me out and it looks great in photos. The shade I am currently using is called Natural Beige. Revlon also just came out with a NEW PhotoReady Airbrush Mousse and I cannot wait to try it. Not only is PhotoReady a great product, it’s only $10. This is department store quality at a drugstore price. You can’t beat that!

Have you ever tried PhotoReady? What’s your favorite drugstore foundation?

Favorite Friday: NARS Roman Holiday Lipstick

Instead of using my time wisely this week, when I had a moment of free time, I made a pit stop two hour trip to Sephora. The good news is that I found my new favorite lip color. It’s my favorite thing this Friday. Here it is:

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.NARS Sheer Lipstick in Roman Holiday, $24 at narscosmetics.com

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I’m pretty finicky when it comes to lipstick. The best way to describe what I’m looking for is, “natural, light pink with blue undertones, not too pink, but kinda pink, hint of color, somewhat sheer but not too sheer, visible in photos but not overly visible, non-metallic, moisturizing, must feel good on the lips, lipstick.” What, is that too much to ask? Tell that to the cosmetic salesperson and you will forever be labeled as the “crazy lipstick lady” and everyone will run for cover when they see you coming. True story. I worked at a cosmetic counter for years, I know how it goes down.  I usually just keep my crazy demands to myself and quietly roam around the store for two hours searching, wandering aimlessly and hoping it falls into my lap. That pretty much never happens, but this time it actually did! I love this color because it meets my seemingly unattainable list & I don’t even know how that’s possible. It feels great on my lips and it’s infused with lip conditioning ingredients and antioxidants that keep my lips feeling nourished.  It gives me that little hint of color I was searching for. It also goes with everything. It looks pretty pink in the above photo but it has a buildable coverage, so you can obtain a very sheer coverage to a very pigmented baby pink lip if you keep reapplying. I usually just apply one coat for a more sheer application. Here is what my lips look like after two coats:

.I hope everyone enjoys this color as much as I did. Have a great weekend!

What are you loving this Friday?

Favorite Friday: Benefit Hervana Blush

It’s Friday (woot!)  and there’s not a better time to dedicate this post to my favorite product of the week. Here is my fav for this Friday…

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.Benefit Cosmetics Blush in Hervana

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I was recently given this product to try from one of my best friends who happens to work for Benefit Cosmetics. I don’t get to visit her often, but when I do she usually has a few goodies for me! She told me I would love this product & it would look great with my skin tone. I knew she was right from the moment I saw the colors. I have a naturally pink undertone to my skin, so using a pink blush isn’t flattering on me. This happens to be a cool-toned blush and it has all the right colors to complement my fair to medium skin tone. It consists of four separate shades–Lucky Shell, Heavenly Rose, Divine Peach and Berry Delight. The best way to describe it would be a rose-berry swirl with subtle, light shimmer.  This blush works great when I’m at my fairest and even when I have a bit more color than usual.  I love that Benefit has included a brush inside the packaging as well. Typically I don’t use the brushes that already come with a product (I tend to prefer my own brushes), but this brush actually works so well that I don’t even have to use my own blush brush. If you’re looking for a subtle blush with a wonderful flush of color, I think you would really enjoy Hervana.  You can check it out here. Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!

What’s your favorite thing this Friday?