Favorites of 2012 - Chi-Chi Edition Hello lovely PD followers! Even though the post is a tad late since we’re getting into the later part of January, we wanted to share with your all our favorite products from 2012. Here are my choices and the reasons why - some of the products are not included in the pretty widget, but all of the links are down below! Personal Microderm (PMD) | $179 | link: Arabelle gave me this beauty tool a while ago because she a wonderful person and knew how frustrated I was getting with my acne scarring. My acne scarring was really dark and covered both of my cheeks completely – and this has helped immensely. By no means is my scarring gone, but my skin is the best it has been since middle school, and that’s an amazing feeling. I use the red disks (coarse grit), which works best for my skin. Dior ‘Diorsnow D-NA Reverse’ White Reveal Night Concentrate | $145 | link: I bit the bullet and purchased this from Sephora during their VIB sale last October because I was at my wits end on finding a topical treatment for my acne scarring that did not contain hydroquinone. Trying every drugstore product for scarring with absolutely no results, I must say, and this pains me because this means I’m going to repurchase this, I adore this serum. For my new scars, it fades almost immediately, and it’s slowly working on my scarring that I have had since high school. This is legitimately the only product I have seen work on my scarring and one of the best purchases I made in 2012. La Femme Blushes | ~$3 each | link: These blushes are amazing. I purchased them earlier in 2012 from makeupmania and posted about them here. The colors are insanely pigmented (the lightest hand is needed for application) and last on my oily/combination skin until I want to take them off. Are they something I would recommend to someone just started out with blush – no, because it is very easy to overapply because of their pigmentation. However, for someone who loves blush and wants to expand their collection, try these out! MUA Heaven and Earth Eyeshadow Palette | £4.00 | link: This is known as one of the Urban Decay Naked 1 dupes, which I own. However, I love neutral shadows and need to own all of them, so I purchased this anyway. I grab for this more than my Naked 1; I find that the shadows blend easier on my lids, and they last longer on my lids without primer than the Naked 1 shadows. Kose Softmyo Deep Cleansing Oil | ~$10-15 | 1 | 2 | 3: Both Arabelle and I have talked about this product at length and we even did a review on it professing our love. Is there anything more to say at this point – this product is a godsend. Mario Badescu Silver Powder | $12 | link: Also mentioned this in a skincare recommendation post previously, and I still feel the same way. For the amount of good it does for my skin and pores, it is ridiculously affordable. After using it twice a week for a couple months, I noticed that to keep blackheads at bay, I only need to use it once a week now. Completely worth every penny. Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Gel Exfoliant | $19.95 | link: This is the only product I use to control potential breakouts and it works wonderfully. I stopped using my prescription acne medication completely because of how well this product works for my skin and my needs. On the Paula’s Choice website it claims to do a lot more things than I have experienced, such as smoothing for firmer skin (I have not experienced this in over 7 months of use). However, it stops my acne in its tracks, which is what I use it for, and I could not be happier. Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Tipsy | $25 | link: This is my go-to year round blush color that makes me look awake, happy and refreshed all at the same time, regardless of how I actually feel. Easy to blend, pigmented and lasts for quite a long time, especially in the humid summer, which is when I purchased the product in 2012. And I adore the color – I absolutely love coral everything. Essential RICH PREMIER Ultra Honey Mask | ~$8-10 | 1 | 2: One of my first beauty buddies Charmaine recommended this to me…a really long time ago and I finally purchased it. It’s wonderful my hair feels rejuvenated, light, airy and moisturized yet not oily, which is rare for my natural hair. I attribute this to the continued health of my natural hair. I use it once every two weeks for deep conditioning and it works wonders. Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Pink Truffle | $6-9 | link: Whenever I can’t decide what lip color to choose to compliment the eye look I was wearing, I grab this. It’s one of favorite my lips but better lipsticks and I use it when I go to interviews as well for a great business-appropriate look. My favorite color of the lip butters I own, which I swatched here and here. Dickinson’s Original Witch Havel Oil Controlling Astringent | $5.99 | link: The best toner for my skin during the summer months – controls oil wonderfully, leaves my face moisturized, and is affordable since it goes on sale a lot. It’s also helped change the overall oiliness of my face long-term – I am not as oily in my T-Zone as I used to be, so this has definitely helped. Finally, it helps control my acne. What’s not to like?  High-res

Favorites of 2012 - Chi-Chi Edition

Hello lovely PD followers! Even though the post is a tad late since we’re getting into the later part of January, we wanted to share with your all our favorite products from 2012. Here are my choices and the reasons why - some of the products are not included in the pretty widget, but all of the links are down below!

Personal Microderm (PMD) | $179 | link: Arabelle gave me this beauty tool a while ago because she a wonderful person and knew how frustrated I was getting with my acne scarring. My acne scarring was really dark and covered both of my cheeks completely – and this has helped immensely. By no means is my scarring gone, but my skin is the best it has been since middle school, and that’s an amazing feeling. I use the red disks (coarse grit), which works best for my skin.

Dior ‘Diorsnow D-NA Reverse’ White Reveal Night Concentrate | $145 | link: I bit the bullet and purchased this from Sephora during their VIB sale last October because I was at my wits end on finding a topical treatment for my acne scarring that did not contain hydroquinone. Trying every drugstore product for scarring with absolutely no results, I must say, and this pains me because this means I’m going to repurchase this, I adore this serum. For my new scars, it fades almost immediately, and it’s slowly working on my scarring that I have had since high school. This is legitimately the only product I have seen work on my scarring and one of the best purchases I made in 2012.

La Femme Blushes | ~$3 each | link: These blushes are amazing. I purchased them earlier in 2012 from makeupmania and posted about them here. The colors are insanely pigmented (the lightest hand is needed for application) and last on my oily/combination skin until I want to take them off. Are they something I would recommend to someone just started out with blush – no, because it is very easy to overapply because of their pigmentation. However, for someone who loves blush and wants to expand their collection, try these out!

MUA Heaven and Earth Eyeshadow Palette | £4.00 | link: This is known as one of the Urban Decay Naked 1 dupes, which I own. However, I love neutral shadows and need to own all of them, so I purchased this anyway. I grab for this more than my Naked 1; I find that the shadows blend easier on my lids, and they last longer on my lids without primer than the Naked 1 shadows.

Kose Softmyo Deep Cleansing Oil | ~$10-15 | 1 | 2 | 3: Both Arabelle and I have talked about this product at length and we even did a review on it professing our love. Is there anything more to say at this point – this product is a godsend.

Mario Badescu Silver Powder | $12 | link: Also mentioned this in a skincare recommendation post previously, and I still feel the same way. For the amount of good it does for my skin and pores, it is ridiculously affordable. After using it twice a week for a couple months, I noticed that to keep blackheads at bay, I only need to use it once a week now. Completely worth every penny.

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Gel Exfoliant | $19.95 | link: This is the only product I use to control potential breakouts and it works wonderfully. I stopped using my prescription acne medication completely because of how well this product works for my skin and my needs. On the Paula’s Choice website it claims to do a lot more things than I have experienced, such as smoothing for firmer skin (I have not experienced this in over 7 months of use). However, it stops my acne in its tracks, which is what I use it for, and I could not be happier.

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Tipsy | $25 | link: This is my go-to year round blush color that makes me look awake, happy and refreshed all at the same time, regardless of how I actually feel. Easy to blend, pigmented and lasts for quite a long time, especially in the humid summer, which is when I purchased the product in 2012. And I adore the color – I absolutely love coral everything.

Essential RICH PREMIER Ultra Honey Mask | ~$8-10 | 1 | 2: One of my first beauty buddies Charmaine recommended this to me…a really long time ago and I finally purchased it. It’s wonderful my hair feels rejuvenated, light, airy and moisturized yet not oily, which is rare for my natural hair. I attribute this to the continued health of my natural hair. I use it once every two weeks for deep conditioning and it works wonders.

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Pink Truffle | $6-9 | link: Whenever I can’t decide what lip color to choose to compliment the eye look I was wearing, I grab this. It’s one of favorite my lips but better lipsticks and I use it when I go to interviews as well for a great business-appropriate look. My favorite color of the lip butters I own, which I swatched here and here.

Dickinson’s Original Witch Havel Oil Controlling Astringent | $5.99 | link: The best toner for my skin during the summer months – controls oil wonderfully, leaves my face moisturized, and is affordable since it goes on sale a lot. It’s also helped change the overall oiliness of my face long-term – I am not as oily in my T-Zone as I used to be, so this has definitely helped. Finally, it helps control my acne. What’s not to like? 

instead of packing for la i ended up depotting a bunch of lipstick to save space for more since i’ve run out of room. this pill box i got in Taipei for a dollar is perfect for lipstick, a great cheap alternative to the japonesque lip palettes which run for $30+ a pop.

instead of packing for la i ended up depotting a bunch of lipstick to save space for more since i’ve run out of room. this pill box i got in Taipei for a dollar is perfect for lipstick, a great cheap alternative to the japonesque lip palettes which run for $30+ a pop.

Favorite Foundations - For both dry & oily skin types!

Hello lovely PD readers! A recent ask about good foundations and powders for keeping oil at bay during the day made us realize that we haven’t updated our base makeup recommendations for quite a while. So here’s our favorite base makeup recommendations list!

Chi-Chi

Skin profile

I have oily/combination skin with an oily T-zone and dry everywhere else. Also, my face is prone to breaking out at the drop of a hat and is ridiculously sensitive to life in general. I prefer medium to full coverage foundations since I have a lot of old acne scarring.

My favorites (in no particular order)

  1. Dior Diorskin Nude Skin-Glowing Makeup ($48): This has been one of my holy grail foundations off and on for the past year and half for a couple reasons. It controls my oil reasonably well, it doesn’t melt off my face in my oily spots, it moisturizes my dry spots and it looks flawless hours later. It provides medium to full coverage (with the ability to be sheered out to light coverage) and has a decent color range. The only thing is that when they expanded the range of foundations, they discontinued the color I used. T_____T
  2. Fashion Fair Perfect Finish Creme Makeup ($24): A new addition to my foundation, my experience with this foundation makes me think “why did I wait so long to try cream foundations.” This I would consider to be my current HG foundation simply because it makes me look flawless for however long I decide to have my makeup on that day. It provides medium to heavy coverage and comes in a great range of colors for darker skin tones.
  3. Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation ($38.50): This is the foundation I gravitate to when my skin isn’t reacting to anything and I just want to cover my scarring. I find that when my skin is being sensitive, this foundation just makes it worse. I love the coverage and it feels really light on the skin. Medium coverage with a minimal amount of product. 

Yeah there are no drugstore products on here. I was tempted to list the Revlon Colorstay Whipped Foundation but while I do like it, it takes a lot of work for my skin to look good with it. It doesn’t give me that flawfree yet skin feeling. Next on my list to try is the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation. I have been staring at it for a while, so when I go to the Dior makeup counter and find that none of the colors match me anymore (</3), I’ll try the Luminous Silk.

Arabelle

Skin Profile

I have it a lot easier than Chi-Chi when it comes to finding foundation because 1. I am super white and beauty brands bend over backwards for pale people, 2. My skin doesn’t really have breakouts anymore because of my acne medication (before you ask, just check the acne tag for what we’ve tried) so I only have to deal with covering up old scars, really. I have skin that is dry in the winter and oily in the summer. I don’t really wear foundation so my recommendations aren’t very helpful — but when I do, I prefer medium coverage for an utterly flawless finish. I also have pink undertones. 

My Favorites (in order)

  1. Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse BB Cream ($34) - Aren’t you bored of me recommending this by now? I know I’m bored of repeating it, but it’s honestly all I bother with when I bother with putting on more than concealer and powder. For the best results especially for dry, sensitive skin, apply it when your skin is still damp from cleansing or toning, it’ll make your skin so happy. I would say this is medium coverage. Best for cool toned pale people.
  2. Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation ($46) - I have only a few foundations, and I seldom use them because I simply don’t need the full coverage of them anymore. This is a nice buildable light-medium coverage foundation that works well on dry skin and when applied with a Beauty Blender or damp sponge, it provides the loveliest, natural looking finish. Breathable and light. It has a pretty decent range of shades from really pale to medium-dark.

I also don’t have drugstore foundation selections, because I already found my HG face makeup and you don’t mess with perfection. I have plenty of BB creams to play with so I can always stray if I feel bored, but I don’t love them enough to mention them. I think I’ll likely buy another sheer to medium coverage foundation — perhaps NARS Sheer Glow? — to test out for a bit but I’m not going to bother right now. 

OCC Lip Tar - Hoochie CoverGirl Divine Inglot Lipstick in 65 occ, cg, then inglot

powderdoom:

We recently had a few questions on the best purple lippie out there, so I thought I’d share some more of my purples. I have already found my dream purple — worn and swatched here — but I have purchased several on the way to find it, these 3 being the main contenders. 

  • OCC Liptar in Hoochie ($14) - I love this product, it’s going to be my main haul at IMATS. They just released a darker purple which I’m definitely going to buy. I like this, it’s just not practical to swipe on, you need a brush or qtip. Mix with the black lip tar for a darker purple or a lighter one for a paler one. Great purchase imo. 
  • CoverGirl Divine ($6) - I love CG lipsticks, this one isn’t great though and I’d skip it. It tends to seperate weirdly on my lips. Color doesn’t spread evenly, it’s high maintenance. The other colors I’ve tried from CG are nice though. 
  • Inglot Lipstick in 65 - ($10???) Impulse rage purchase because the lipstick I wanted at Sephora was sold out (for the 6th time or something). I just went into Inglot and make puppy eyes at the SA and he soothed my makeup pains and led me to this. After wearing it a few times I wish I didn’t buy it, cause it is so SO sheer and separates in like .22424 seconds though it looks nice in these photos, it’s not something I’d recommend. You can even see it seperating in the last photo with the swatches! Blah. INGLOT makes better eyeshadow than lipstick I guess. 

The purple lipstick questions never cease, so I’m bringing back this swatch post. I have a few more colors now but this is still a good reference. 

Some of you have been asking what our favorite lip balms and glosses are, so here you are! Sorry there are no drugstore picks here, but neither of us have been very impressed with what drugstores have to offer in terms of glosses lately. Revlon always has nice glosses though, if you are wondering where to look.  Click the grey box for information on where to buy &amp; more info. High-res

Some of you have been asking what our favorite lip balms and glosses are, so here you are! Sorry there are no drugstore picks here, but neither of us have been very impressed with what drugstores have to offer in terms of glosses lately. Revlon always has nice glosses though, if you are wondering where to look. 
Click the grey box for information on where to buy & more info.

Products I have been liking/What I&#8217;ve purchased recently Ohai PD! Since the semester started, I have put most of my beauty hauls and purchases on hold because uni is expensive, so I&#8217;ve started to &#8216;shop my collection&#8217; and spend less than 10 dollars on beauty every two weeks. &#8230;surprisingly easier than expected and I&#8217;ve been finishing products left and right. I finally finished another one of my base products so I&#8217;ve started to use the L&#8217;Oreal Lumi foundation, which I will be doing a full review on when I&#8217;ve used it for a longer period of time. Speaking of my collection, I&#8217;ve never actually taken pictures of it&#8230;hm. Maybe another time. Anyway! Onto my recent likes and things I&#8217;ve purchased (semi)recently. Bobbi Brown Sheer Finish Loose Powder in Golden Orange | $36: I actually got this because the nicest person ever who sold me my Bobbi Brown Tinted Moisturizer gave me one of her unopened testers. Fast forward a year, I opened it and fell in love (why is it the expensive things I fall in love with most of the time really). Up until recently, I set my foundation with the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural and liked it for the most part, but I found that it does start to look cakey and I would get oily regardless. With this loose powder, it does not look cakey, it feels very light on the skin and I get oily around hour 11 instead of three hours after applying my foundation.  Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick - Kate Moss Collection in 06 | $4.99-$7.99: I know I said that I do not need any lip products for a very long time, but I met the nicest couponers when I was in CVS one night and we bonded over the fact that American BB Creams are horrible and they gave me coupons so I got it for $1.99. Could not resist and I am so happy that I caved in to the pretty lipstick - this is one of my favorite drugstore lipsticks that I own. Completely opaque coverage with a great color for fall and decent lasting power - with minor drinking, it lasted for four and a half hours. It&#8217;s actually the lipstick I wore in this post and I feel especially awesome when wearing it. I think Rimmel lipsticks get overlooked when it comes to their formula, and I completely recommend this lipstick. YSL Rouge Pur Couture Vernis à Lèvres Glossy Stain in No. 11 Rouge Gouache | $32: Continuing with the lip products, I actually did a full review on this product previously here. Pretty much I may have forgotten I owned this product, used it again recently and remembered why I adored this product. Wore it at work the other day and had five people complement me on my lips. Great fall red yes/yes? Wet n Wild MegaLast Salon Nail Color in Bite the Bullet (207B) | $1.99: I got this polish for free because CVS had buy one get one free on all of their Wet n Wild products (purchased the Wet n Wild Crème Eyeliner - never tried it). I already own eight of these polishes and these are hands down my favorite drugstore formula, especially for the flat applicator brush. Opaque in two coats, and with a top coat, lasts on my nails for six days. And it&#8217;s cheap! Koji Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Deep Black | $12-$17: This is my favorite black liquid eyeliner, and this semester has reminded me of that again because it&#8217;s easy to apply when half-asleep and running late for class. Just enough control to do a quick flick or cat eye but not too fine of an applicator that makes building a thick line tedious. I did a full review of this product previously here. Maybelline Eye Studio Color Plush Silk Eyeshadow in Olive Martini (LE) | $9.99: After seeing one of my favorite YT gurus emilynoel83 rave about this quad, I decided I must own it. After using it a couple times, I&#8217;m torn. It swatches absolutely beautifully, but I found that building up the color on my lids to be a tad difficult, which is odd because I own the Give me Gold quad from the same line and those shadows apply beautifully. However, with a little bit of work, the colors look absolutely amazing on the lids and create a great smokey eye. If you can still find it, I recommend purchasing! And that&#8217;s it! Next up, either a finished products post, mini products on blast post or a collection collage. Toodles~ o/ High-res

Products I have been liking/What I’ve purchased recently

Ohai PD! Since the semester started, I have put most of my beauty hauls and purchases on hold because uni is expensive, so I’ve started to ‘shop my collection’ and spend less than 10 dollars on beauty every two weeks. …surprisingly easier than expected and I’ve been finishing products left and right. I finally finished another one of my base products so I’ve started to use the L’Oreal Lumi foundation, which I will be doing a full review on when I’ve used it for a longer period of time. Speaking of my collection, I’ve never actually taken pictures of it…hm. Maybe another time. Anyway! Onto my recent likes and things I’ve purchased (semi)recently.

  • Bobbi Brown Sheer Finish Loose Powder in Golden Orange | $36: I actually got this because the nicest person ever who sold me my Bobbi Brown Tinted Moisturizer gave me one of her unopened testers. Fast forward a year, I opened it and fell in love (why is it the expensive things I fall in love with most of the time really). Up until recently, I set my foundation with the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural and liked it for the most part, but I found that it does start to look cakey and I would get oily regardless. With this loose powder, it does not look cakey, it feels very light on the skin and I get oily around hour 11 instead of three hours after applying my foundation. 
  • Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick - Kate Moss Collection in 06 | $4.99-$7.99: I know I said that I do not need any lip products for a very long time, but I met the nicest couponers when I was in CVS one night and we bonded over the fact that American BB Creams are horrible and they gave me coupons so I got it for $1.99. Could not resist and I am so happy that I caved in to the pretty lipstick - this is one of my favorite drugstore lipsticks that I own. Completely opaque coverage with a great color for fall and decent lasting power - with minor drinking, it lasted for four and a half hours. It’s actually the lipstick I wore in this post and I feel especially awesome when wearing it. I think Rimmel lipsticks get overlooked when it comes to their formula, and I completely recommend this lipstick.
  • YSL Rouge Pur Couture Vernis à Lèvres Glossy Stain in No. 11 Rouge Gouache | $32: Continuing with the lip products, I actually did a full review on this product previously here. Pretty much I may have forgotten I owned this product, used it again recently and remembered why I adored this product. Wore it at work the other day and had five people complement me on my lips. Great fall red yes/yes?
  • Wet n Wild MegaLast Salon Nail Color in Bite the Bullet (207B) | $1.99: I got this polish for free because CVS had buy one get one free on all of their Wet n Wild products (purchased the Wet n Wild Crème Eyeliner - never tried it). I already own eight of these polishes and these are hands down my favorite drugstore formula, especially for the flat applicator brush. Opaque in two coats, and with a top coat, lasts on my nails for six days. And it’s cheap!
  • Koji Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Deep Black | $12-$17: This is my favorite black liquid eyeliner, and this semester has reminded me of that again because it’s easy to apply when half-asleep and running late for class. Just enough control to do a quick flick or cat eye but not too fine of an applicator that makes building a thick line tedious. I did a full review of this product previously here.
  • Maybelline Eye Studio Color Plush Silk Eyeshadow in Olive Martini (LE) | $9.99: After seeing one of my favorite YT gurus emilynoel83 rave about this quad, I decided I must own it. After using it a couple times, I’m torn. It swatches absolutely beautifully, but I found that building up the color on my lids to be a tad difficult, which is odd because I own the Give me Gold quad from the same line and those shadows apply beautifully. However, with a little bit of work, the colors look absolutely amazing on the lids and create a great smokey eye. If you can still find it, I recommend purchasing!

And that’s it! Next up, either a finished products post, mini products on blast post or a collection collage. Toodles~ o/

hungrylikethewolfie:

blackpooled:

gnomees:

I was recently asked if there are any other makeup brands I don’t work with, since I’m as unenthusiastic about MAC as I am.  My answer?  Only one.

I won’t use anything by Smashbox.  I’ve heard their products are amazing, and I’d love to work with the photo finish product set, but I won’t do it.

Several years ago, I walked into Sephora.  I had a date that night, a Very Important Date, and I’d scheduled a makeover.  Someone screwed up their schedules, and the only person who could do the appointment was the visiting Smashbox artist.

I have rarely in my life been so insulted.  He scanned me up and down, curled his lip, and told me he didn’t work with fat people.  That Smashbox didn’t need my fat money.  That he’d like to personally have me escorted from the store, because my fat body offended his sight.

Seriously.

I’ve worked in fashion as a model, fitting model, and design assistant for most of my life.  My mom is a designer, and that’s where it all got started.  Over time, I’ve been privileged to work with other designers over the years, and only one of them worked with fat people explicitly.  Still, with all the horror stories of Karl Lagerfeld and other remarkably shitty pros in the field, I was never so slapped across the face as that day.

I marched, furious, humiliated, and on the edge of tears, straight back to my car, where I broke down before cancelling my date.  It took me a couple of days to summon the courage, and then called Sephora to lodge a complaint.  Sephora was amazing, and instantly won my loyalty.  I won’t go into details, but they did their best to make things right, including putting me in touch with the regional vice president.  

Smashbox did not do so well.  The same day I dealt with Sephora, I called Smashbox.  And they literally laughed at me over the phone.  They told me that the artist was more important to them than a client was, and that they weren’t going to have anything more to do with it.  And then they hung up.

They hung up on a legitimate, honest complaint from a client.

So, no.  I don’t use Smashbox products.  I’d love to see other people stop using them, even if they have gotten their act together—I have no evidence either way.  To this day, walking into Sephora and seeing their displays makes me angry.

The only product I’ve ever bought from them, I returned.

I’ve never heard any of their products praised above similar products from other companies.

AND NOTHING OF VALUE WAS LOST. Fuck Smashbox.

Wow.  Note to self.

Holy shit. Ok, well if you were expecting any Smashbox reviews on PD — don’t hold your breath. 

(via popca)