L'Oréal Collection Exclusive Pure Reds Lipstick Review: Doutzen's Red + Julianne's Red

Just in time for Mother's Day, L'Oréal Paris recently came out with a new lipstick collection, the L'Oréal Colour Riche Collection Exclusive Pure Reds. Similar to the last Collection Exclusive release, each lipstick shade in the Pure Reds line is named after a L'Oréal celebrity spokesmodel. I picked up 400 Doutzen's Red and 401 Julianne's Red, since my skintone is most similar to Doutzen Kroes and Julianne Moore's coloring. Check them out!

Shopping My Stash Post #1: L'Oréal HiP Studio Secrets Shadow Duo

As I'm trying to reign in the makeup "collecting," I'm starting a new series on my blog called Shopping My Stash. I've seen these circulate on YouTube and other beauty blogs, and I think it's a great way to rediscover an older item in your makeup collection and put it to good use. 

As I've been on a copper eyeshadow kick lately, I checked out some of the oldest eyeshadows in my collection, the L'Oréal HiP Studio Secrets Duos (retail $8.25). I have about six of these duos lying around. Most of the shades I have are now discontinued, but I found one duo that has a current dupe still in the HiP Studio Secrets collection. 

See pictures and swatches below, as well as some fun GIFs of the eyeshadows in action!

Review + Swatches: L'Oréal Infallible Eyeshadows 'Gilded Envy' + 'Always Pearly Pink'

L'Oréal Paris Infallible Eyesahdows Gilded Envy and Always Pearly Pink ($7.99 for 0.12 oz)

L'Oréal Paris recently added six new permanent shades to their (amazing) Infallible 24HR eyeshadow line. Since I've had such good luck with other Infallible shadows, I picked two up! I spotted the new 'Butterfly' display at my local Bed Bath and Beyond. The shades that caught my eye were Gilded Envy and Always Pearly Pink.

See swatches and an Eye of the Day featuring Gilded Envy and Always Pearly Pink below.

FOTD: Smoldering Dark Bronze Eyes

Today I found some pictures that I had sworn I had posted but I guess I never did, so here they are! I took these this past June, when I was nice and tan. This is a six month old FOTD, but it's worth sharing if I do say so myself. Most of the products I wore that day are especially made to be long-lasting, so it was supposed to be a "hot muggy nights" post, but of course all these would be great for a long night out in any weather. This dark bronzey eye look would be great for a night out or date night as it's sure to grab some attention.What I love about this look I created is that I didn't use liquid liner to let the shadows stand out more and to look more effortless.  I especially love the way I took the shadow down on the lower lashline to make the look extra smokey and worn-in, a la Kate Moss.

The Perfect Oxblood Nail | L'Oréal Nail Color Riche 'Haute Couture Red' Review and Swatches

As you may know from my last nail post, I am obsessed with bordeaux/oxblood nails for fall and winter. Oxblood was huge last fall season but I think it's such a classic, vampy shade so I doubt it ever going out of style. It's moody, yet still wearable for work.

FOTD: An Apricot/Rust Autumn Look

I wanted to share a Face of the Day from this past weekend that I think turned out pretty well, using apricot and rust colors. I wanted to play with just one warm color that I could use just as a wash all over my lids. I also had this new Korres blush I picked up in a Hautelook haul that I was dying to try out. All the products I used for the look will be listed at the bottom of this post.

Take a look!

Eyeshadow Review + Dupe Alert: Stila 'Kitten' and L'Oréal Paris Inflallible 'Blinged and Brilliant'

 

Stila's eyeshadow Kitten is one of the brand's best-selling products. It is a gorgeous shimmering nude peachy-pink. I've had my eye on this shadow for quite awhile now, especially since it's my friend Katy's go-to shadow and it looks gorgeous on her. When my birthday came around last month, I snapped it up!

L'Oréal Paris Infallible eyeshadow Blinged and Brilliant was part of the 2012 Diamonds Limited Edition collection. I remember picking this metallic champagne pink shadow last year and thinking to myself how it seemed like it'd be a great dupe to Kitten, and now I have both to compare.

See what I think about these two amazing shadows!

FOTD: Drugstore Smokey Blue Eyes

Last weekend, my friend Megan hosted an Oktoberfest party at her house, and since it was a nighttime party, I decided to take the opportunity to experiment with a relatively new purchase: L'Oréal Infallible eyeshadow in the shade Midnight Blue, a gorgeous blue/purple/black shade.

See how I got the look!

Peachy Corals: A Face of the Day with Tarte's Aqualillies Palette

Here's the look I'm wearing today. I'm actually going to a pool party/low-key dinner, so this is wayy too much makeup for the occasion, but I felt like taking my time today. It's incredibly hot and humid out, so my makeup will most likely melt off my face as soon as I'm outside for more than 10 minutes, finishing spray or not. WOMP.

Eye Makeup for Glasses Wearers

I wear my glasses a lot during the workweek, as the computer strains my eyes and dries my contacts out. But that doesn't mean I have to sacrifice the benefits of eye makeup! The problem with glasses is that they can create shadows around the eye area, especially the undereye area. With these products, I can still show off my eyes and look super awake all day. 

Parabens in Foundations

Bye Bye, Paraben-filled Foundations!

April 2015 Update: This post has been updated with new purchases.

Lately I've been reading a lot of articles about the terrible effects of parabens in beauty products. Parabens have been used for decades as very effective preservatives in moisturizers, cosmetics, sunscreens, and deodorants, but in recent years, scientific studies have shown that parabens are absorbed into the skin and contribute to abnormal estrogen levels. So I went through all my foundations (most are drugstore) and checked the ingredients, either by looking on the back label or with some expert googling. Pro tip: Drugstore.com and Paula's Choice Beautypedia list most makeup products' ingredients.

One important thing to note is the order in which ingredients are listed. Most of these foundations list either Methylparaben, Butylparaben or other parabens towards the end of the ingredient list, which means there's very little percentage of those ingredients, compared with the things listed at the beginning of the list. Still, I thought this list would be useful.

Makeup for Sick Days!

What a winter, huh? This flu season has been the worst in years, and this past week the arctic chill over the East Coast did not make things any better. I thought I had escaped unscathed until I woke up Friday morning with terrible cold symptoms. It got worse throughout the day and into Friday night, so I had to cancel my plans to join my boyfriend and his friends on a ski day trip Saturday. Yesterday, while my friends were having fun skiing, I cranked up the humidifier, turned on Bravo, and tried to get better. 

Usually when I'm sick at home, I don't have a lick of makeup on (what's the point?), but when I had to step out to Whole Foods for some lunch, I decided I would try to look the best I could. 

Here's are my top products for glowing, healthy-looking skin for even on your worst days.