Favorites of 2014!

By: Unknown on 5:30 PM

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Hi Everyone,

I can’t believe it’s the new year already, can you? 2014 wasn’t the best year for me, and to be honest I’m expecting a lot better from 2015. However, when it came to finding products that I can’t live without 2014 was actually pretty good! I’ve split this into two different posts; this is the beauty inspired one.

Eyes:

e.l.f. Eye Primer

I love the e.l.f. eye primer. It’s by far not the best eye primer, but for the price it does amazing things. I love the normal version, unfortunately a have completely ran out of it and haven’t been to the store since to get a new one. However, I’ve been using the pearl shade in the meantime but I honestly think it’s not nearly as good. It’s $1 at most stores (I find it at Meijer, local grocery stores, and Target) which is amazing to me.

Ofra Universal Eyebrow Pencil

I honestly hated this product the first few times I used it. I realized that a lot of the reason is because it was too dark and red tinted for my hair color. This is definitely not universal like it says. However, I color my hair about twice a year (late spring and late fall) and with my darker hair color that has a reddish tint to it, this product is amazing. I actually had this in my "Products I wouldn't repurchase" post back in July. It did take sharpening it for it to become softer and not as painful on my eyebrow area. It’s easy to use and easy to blend out if I make it too dark. This is $13.00 on the Ofra Cosmetics website.

City Color White Gold Mousse Eyeshadow

I received this is my April 2014 Ipsy bag. Honestly, I wasn’t really impressed when I first tried it. It looks white in the pot but once your lids heat it up it becomes more of a gold color and loses all of the white. However, in October I decided to give it another go. I absolutely love using this as a base. It creates this (in my sister’s words) snake scale like effect on my lids when I put other shadows over top. It’s unique and different and brings focus to my eyes. I definitely don’t do this for an everyday sort of thing but I do like it for the occasional night out look. I love the whipped mousse texture of this eyeshadow, I just wish the white stayed a little bit more. This is $5.99 on the City Color Cosmetics website.

‘Tini Beauty Eyetini Coridal Cream Shadow in Spiced Rum

I have been using this as a base for any brown eye that I’m doing. I do a lot of smoky browns in the fall, so this was a must have for me. I love the texture and feeling of this. Honestly if I don’t want to do a full out eye look I will wear this by itself out and about, especially when I go grocery shopping. I got this in my February 2014 Ipsy Bag, it costs $18.00 on the Tini Beauty website.

Napoleon Perdis Loose Eye Dust in Pink Champagne

I got this in a set at Ulta on sale (My Post about the set), they have since stopped selling Napoleon Perdis products. I absolutely love this shadow it is the most gorgeous champagne shade I have ever found. I’m a huge fan of loose shadows and pressed shadows. I just love the look they give. This has amazing pigmentation and is perfect for any going out look or weekend look when I want a brighter eye. This is available on the Napoleon Perdis website for $25.

Wet n Wild Coloricon trio in Walking on Eggshells

I honestly hated this at first; I didn’t think it showed up at all on my lids. Everyone on YouTube was raving about it and I just didn’t understand why. However, after I began using my City Color Mousse Eyeshadow underneath I began to understand why. This is a trio that needs a base if you’re pale skinned like me. It’s a perfect day to day look and works amazing if you want to wear a natural eye look at work or school. It is available at Walmart for about $2.93.

Urban Decay 24/7 Glid-On Eye Pencil in Black Velvet

Again I got this in my April 2014 Ipsy Bag. I love how dark this. I went most of July – November without wearing eyeliner. April – July I wore this at least once a week and wore it for my graduation because I knew how good it looked. In November I got back into this eyeliner and have been loving it. It is the perfect black and I honestly the formula is the thing that won me over. I have yet to find an Urban Decay products I don’t like (I’ve only tried four, but still!). This is available on the Urban Decay website for $20.

Sumita Beauty Kala Black Color Intense Pencil

I received this in my February 2014 Glossybox. Again I love how dark this is and I love the formula. Now unlike the Urban Decay eyeliner I used this one all year round. However, it was only to tight line my upper lash line. I didn’t use it for a dark upper eye liner or a lower liner. It was simply to tight line because I liked how it made my lashes look with mascara. I’m definitely a dramatic lash person! This is available for $15 on the Ziba Beauty website (Sumita is a sub group of Ziba).

CK One in Black

I received this as my birthday gift from Ulta back in July. I wore this up until I received my Urban Decay Mascara in an Ipsy Bag. However, I really liked the concept of this as well as the look it gave my lashes. I only used one coat at a time to find give my lashes a more natural look. I love the black and white packaging, it’s very simpletic, however because the black is rubberized it gets dirty very easily which is a downfall. This is available on the Ulta website for $18.

Lips:

NYX Round Tube Lipstick in Tea Rose

Honestly this was the year of lippies for me. I wore so many different shades and fell in love with so many new lipsticks, pencils, and balms that there would just be too many for me to put in this favorites list. So I decided what was the lipstick I wore most the one that I honestly loved and if it weren’t in my collection I would have to run out and buy a new one right away. This is that lipstick. It’s a gorgeous light rose shade with a cool undertone to it. The formula is creamy and has the perfect amount of sheen without being frosty. It’s kind of a “my lips but better” shade, but that’s just me because everyone has different pigmentation of the lips. This is available on the NYX Cosmetics website for $4.

Face:

The Porefessional by Benefit Cosmetics

I got this by using my Birchbox points in their shop to get it free because I had a sample and had loved it but didn’t want to spend actual money to purchase a full-sized product. I love this because it combats my oily skin in the summer and it lessens the appearance of my pores (they are bad). I love the texture it gives me makeup and honestly my foundation does last longer when I use this primer. This is available on the Benefit Cosmetics website for $31.

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation in Classic Ivory

I liked this foundation in the summer. I have yet to find my perfect foundation that works with my skin tone in the winter. During the summer I’m combination Normal-Oily and in the winter I’m combination Dry-Oily (as in I have a lot of dry patches but other areas mainly my forehead is oily). I like this foundation for the price as well as the coverage that I receive from it. However, they don’t have a perfect shade match for me; this is about a shade or two too dark, simply because I’m so pale. So I do put this down my neck all the way to my collar bone just to make it look a bit more natural. This is available at Walmart for $4.97

Clinique Even Better Makeup (Foundation) in Linen

I love this foundation for a very natural dewy look. It gives a medium coverage and is actually the closest foundation shade match to my skin tone. I love the feeling of it and I love the dropper type packaging that makes it easier to get the right amount of product out. The only downfall is that it costs $27 on the Clinique website (and at most department stores).

City Color Be Matte Blush in Fresh Mellon

                I got this in my February 2014 Ipsy bag. I don’t have a Holy Grail blush simply because I have yet to find a good foundation and/or concealer to hide the natural redness in my cheeks which offsets a lot of blushes. I do like using a little bit of this on my cheeks just to add a little bit more of a pinkish/peach color. This is $4.99 on the City Cosmetics website.

Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray

I love this spray I honestly do feel that it makes my makeup last longer. I got this in the travel size because honestly it’s a lot cheaper and since I don’t use it more than a couple times a month it’s kind of silly for me to personally buy the bigger size. I was nervous to try this out because I had used the NYX Matte Finish spray and it left my makeup splotchy, but this doesn’t do that at all. I’ve ended up using this in conjunction with the NYX spray but I put the NYX spray under my makeup for as a prep spray. This is $14.00 on the Urban Decay website.

Nails:

Nailtini Straight Up Color Nail Lacquer in Champagne

I like this color for the summer. It’s a gorgeous gold/champagne color that is perfect for an accent nail. I also liked using this as a light coat over a red for Christmas. It’s the perfect amount of shimmer. I received this in my November 2013 Ipsy Bag. I didn’t instantly start wearing this, only over the red that Christmas. So I figure it’s more of a 2014 favorite. This is $13 on the ‘Tini Beauty website.

Zoya Nail Polish in Mason

I received this in my October 2013 Ipsy Bag. I love this dark purple shade, I definitely used it a lot both the beginning of 2014 and the end of 2014 because it’s such a perfect dark purple for winter. It’s on the glittery side so if you’re not into that I’d advise looking at the many colors Zoya has to offer. I’ve recently stopped wearing purples just because I am loving the dark red / burgundy right now. I love the Zoya formula and it’s a Big Five Free formula (aka no parabens, formaldehyde, etc.). This is available on the Zoya website for $9. They describe it as a red violet or “Fandango Pink” metallic, but honestly it’s not pink to me at all.

Body/Skin:

Victoria’s Secret Pink Sweet & Flirty Body Mist

I got this a couple years ago at Bath and Body Works. However, it is no longer available there but it is available at Victoria’s Secret but has different packaging. I think the name perfectly describes this. It’s the perfect sweet smell that gives just a little bit of flirty vibe. I wore it every time I went on a date with my ex-boyfriend. The Victoria’s Secret website says that it has notes of sugar berry and pink grapefruit. This is $18, 2/$25, or $3/30 on the Victoria’s Secret Website.

Lancer Eye Contour Lifting Cream

I got this in my May 2014 Glossybox. I have a sample size but I love using it around my eyes, even though honestly I’m not sure if it works since I don’t really have fine lines under my eyes. However, I do notice that my under eyes are the softest and least dry/oily place on my face. Unfortunately this is a very expensive high-end product. On the Lancer Skincare website this is $95 for .5oz. Honestly though it only moisturizes the under eye so I would definitely suggest a drugstore eye cream if you’re looking for an eye cream to moisturize your under eyes. I kind of just loved the packaging.

Hair:

TRESemme Keratin Smooth Heat Protection

I use this every single time I straighten or curl my hair. It’s definitely not a Holy Grail heat protectant but I like it well enough. I’m thinking for 2015 once I finish the last of my current bottle I’m going to try a different brand. I think this is your basic heat protectant. If you get a coupon it’s a good affordable option. It’s available at Walmart for $4.98.

I know a lot of these are fairly expensive products. To be honest most high-end products tend to be better quality. However, my best suggestion for you is to check Ebay or Amazon for these products to get them at a better price. This is particularly true for any that I mentioned getting from a subscription service. A lot of people don't want a particular product but get it anyways so they sell it there. I've turned to ebay for getting a lot of my high-end products.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

♥♥♥,
Aub