Best Bar of Soap Out There

Trader Joes is one of my all time favorite stores.  I get excited every time I go there.  Can't say the same for other grocery stores.  Joe's definitely has a great thing going, a fun upbeat atmosphere and some of the happiest employees I have ever seen.  I'm not talking about put on your best face and pretend you are having a good time.  Every employee I have come in contact with seems really happy, like they enjoy what they are doing.

I discovered this gem several years ago and have been loyal to it ever since.  Not only is this one of the biggest bars of soap I have ever seen, it smells am-a-zing!  It says ginger almond scent, but I smell almond the most.  This creamy bar is chuck full of good for you and the environment ingredients and provides many sudsy showers.  There are chunks of oatmeal scattered throughout the bar for some added exfoliation.  

Best soap ever! $2.99

Hands down I would recommend this soap to anyone who loves a great smelling, moisturizing, and full of good for you ingredients.

MAC Iridescent Powder Review

MAC Iridescent Powder, Silver Dusk is one of my favorite highlight shades.  It is a beautiful pinkish beige colored powder with subtle silver shimmer.  You definitely need to be a fan of shimmer if you plan to rock this powder.  I love using it below my brow bone as a highlight shade and on my cheek bones for a light glowing effect.  I reach for this powder almost on a daily basis.

Silver Dusk (NW20) $23

Iridescent Powder is a finely milled mixture of Mica and pigments which gives the skin a beautiful sheen. It can be used on its own or mixed into other products like foundations or moisturizers to enhance their iridescent qualities. Designed to apply easily and uniformly without streaking and caking, it blends beautifully and can be applied on bare skin or over foundation. Because it's so concentrated it should be used sparingly at first.

As MAC's description says above, this powder packs a lot of shimmer so you only need to use a small amount unless you want to look like a disco ball (not really a problem for me). Sometimes I wish that I was a vampire from Twilight so that my skin would shimmer all the time.

I would definitely recommend this powder to anyone who loves shimmer and glitter as much as I do!!!

MAC Glitter and Ice Dazzlesphere

MAC's holiday collection for Winter 2011 is Glitter and Ice:

I only picked up one item from this years holiday collection, but I am in love with the colors.  I have developed a recent obsession with MAC pigments.  I have had some of the pigments for a few years and only used them every once and a while.  Now I cannot seem to get enough.

While checking out the new collection at my local MAC I instantly fell in love with the gorgeous pigment colors in the smoky berry kit.

Smoky Berry Ornament $32.50

Left to Right (NW20): Spicy Smoke, Roasted Chestnut, Rose Light, Pearl

MAC Wipes Review

I have heard so much hype about MAC's face wipes, but never tried them until recently.  Most people have a love or hate relationship with the wipes.  Many say that the wipes caused their skin to break out.  This is the main reason that I was so hesitant to try them.  My finicky skin does not need any help when it comes to breaking out.  After a recent visit to my local MAC store, I finally decided to breakdown and try them out for myself.

MAC Wipes 100 Count $28

At first I was a little put off because of their smell.  They have a very strong perfume smell to them.  To me the smell was not horrible, just strong, so I decided to give them a chance.  Since then the smell has actually grown on me.   I was completely shocked the first time the wipe touched my face.  It literally made all of the makeup disappear in one quick swipe.  I have never found another makeup removing wipe that could do this.  I was wearing lotion, SPF, Primer, foundation, blush, bronzer, powder, etc and one swipe took it all off!

I use these wipes before working out and sometimes at the end of the day to take off my makeup.  I read some where that the wipes are made with a sugar based emulsifier that helps breakdown makeup.

Besides the makeup melting strength my favorite thing about these bad boys is that they are moisturizing and leave my skin feeling as soft as a babies behind.   My biggest complaint of other makeup removing wipes is that they leave my dry skin feeling tight, uncomfortable, and even more dry. 

 

Birthday Simga Haul

I am a huge fan of Sigma Beauty.  I first learned about this company about 2 years ago from one of my favorite makeup gurus, MakeupbyTiffanyD.  I was new to makeup at the time and did not know anything about makeup brushes.  I did not think I even needed to use makeup brushes and had only used my hands for application.

I had first looked at MAC's brushes when I was thinking about investing in some brushes, but they are so expensive.   With my limited budget spending $40 on a single brush was not an option for me.

The brushes that Sigma Beauty make are high quality, affordable, and super soft.  You can buy an entire 12 piece brush kit for less than you could if you were to buy three or four brushes from MAC.

I now have several of the brushes that Sigma makes, and wanted to add to my collection with some of my birthday money.




I picked six brushes that I did not have. 

I also picked up another one of Sigma's Dry'n Shape Brush Rolls.  These things are really amazing.  They not only drastically cut the drying time of your brushes, but they also hold their shape so that the bristles are uniform and not sticking out everywhere.  I deep clean all of my makeup brushes about once a week and having two of the Dry'n Shape systems has made the process a lot easier for me.

Here is how Sigma describes the Dry'n Shape System:

"It works.
Tired of waiting for your brushes to dry after washing them? Wait no more! Introducing the revolutionary Sigma Beauty Dry’n Shape system! The Dry’n Shape was designed to completely dry and shape your most dense brushes within 4 to 6 hours, guaranteed.

The Dry’n Shape provides the necessary pressure to bristles to quickly and efficiently remove water from every fibre.  The fabric used to shape the bristles was specially engineered to accelerate water evaporation, resulting in a faster drying time for your brushes.

The Dry’n Shape is an easy, quick, and effective way to quickly dry and shape your makeup brushes."

I absolutely love Sigma Beauty.  They  provide great quality products and ship orders very quickly.  I would definitely recommend this company to anyone who is looking for high quality and affordable makeup brushes.

Anyone else tried these brushes?

MAC Prep+Prime Translucent Power Review

MAC Prep+Prime Translucent Powder ($23)

A silky finishing powder that provides an invisible way to set makeup. Reduces shine while optically minimizing the look of pores, lines, imperfections. Available in one universal colour that suits all shades. Wear over makeup or on bare, moisturized skin.

I bought this powder a few weeks ago after a MAC Street to Runway Makeup class.  I have been using it almost everyday to set my foundation since then.  I have found that this powder provides me with just the right amount of shine control that lasts me all day long.  I only have to use a small amount, which I apply with a large powder brush.  (My favorite large powder brush can be found here)

I use the powder along with the Prep+Prime Face Protect 50, and foundation.  This combination of products leaves me with shine-free skin and coverage that lasts all day.


I highly recommend this product!!

Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation Review

Tonight I wanted to give you all my review of the Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation ($42).

This foundation is well known in the beauty community.  It is the HG of all foundations for many women.  This formula is very creamy, is made with a hydrating base and provides full coverage. My skin is NW20 and I have two shades of the silk creme foundation, Rose Ivory (a perfect match in the winter) and Peach Ivory (my go to summer shade).

My favorite thing about this foundation is that the coverage is very build-able. There are some days when I am only looking for light coverage and some days when I feel that I need fuller coverage.  This foundation has always been able to deliver the type of coverage I am looking for.

The only con that I can think of for this foundation is the price.  $42 dollars is a lot of money to me to spend on any type of cosmetic product.  I definitely researched this foundation a lot before I dropped that amount of money.  Another great thing about the foundation is that you only need a small amount so a tube will more than likely last you forever.

I have a lot of redness in my skin and I love that a small amount of this foundation will cover it completely.  I have been using this foundation for about 8 months and it has not caused any breakouts to my acne prone skin.


I would recommend this foundation to anyone who is looking for a hydrating foundation that provides build-able coverage.

What is your favorite foundation?