Well I figured it’s about time I jump on this bandwagon, because why not? I love reading other bloggers monthly favorites posts as it’s such a good way to learn about new products! Basically I’ll be sharing the products I loved throughout the month, as well as those that were letdowns and just didn’t work for me. Pretty much the same as a favorites and unfavorites post but I thought I’d switch up the words a bit because I’m different, like this goat:
I laughed way too hard at this – hope it made you giggle too! 🙂
Enough about goats, on to the topic at hand:
LOVES:
NYX Butter Gloss – Tiramisu ($7.99 CAD)
I picked up this gloss a few weeks ago at London Drugs and I’ve been using it every day since. It’s the perfect pinkish nude for every day use! I find it works great on it’s own or on top of a brighter lip color to tone it down. I love the formula – it’s super creamy, not sticky and glides on smoothly. It smells delicious as well, I’m not sure how describe it (maybe like a vanilla cupcake?) but not overly sweet. I’ll definitely be picking this one up again and I’d love to try the other shades at some point as well.
Maybelline Volum’Express The Colossal Mascara ($8.99 CAD)
Its been a long time since I’ve ventured out to try a new mascara; for years I was happy using L’Oreal’s Voluminous Carbon Black mascara. Then something changed and it began to flake and smudge on me and I was crushed. I’ve been in search of a replacement and so far this one has stood out the most. It has the natural bristle brush that I like and it lengthen and thickens my lashes really nicely with very little to almost no clumps – which is really rare! I find it flakes a little sometimes but I’m willing to live with that given it’s other benefits. The only thing I’m not crazy about is the scent – it smells flowery. Which I find kind of weird – mascara shouldn’t have a scent right?. Doesn’t bother me though so I will definitely be repurchasing this one!
Dove Nourishing Oil Care Leave-In Smoothing Cream ($7.99 CAD)
Lately I’ve found my hair is getting super dry, particularly around the ends. I attribute that to my use of my curling iron on a daily basis, in addition to my hair being colour-treated. I also tend to only wash my hair once every three days, using dry shampoo in between. I find my hair feels and looks pretty dry during those in-between days, particularly on day 3. I came across this and thought I’d give it a try.
This is meant to boost shine, control frizz and smooth your hair without making it feel greasy. I take a dime sized amount, and distribute it through my ends right before I use my curling iron. It definitely makes my curls feel smooth and sleek and I find it does help hold my curls a little longer when the humidity is present outside. It also smells amazing – a little bit fruity but nothing overpowering. I’m very careful to not get this anywhere close to my roots as I can see it weighing my hair down and making it super greasy (it also recommends against doing so right on the bottle). So far I’m loving this and would recommend it!
L’Oreal 12 Hour Infalliable The Super Slim Liquid Eyeliner ($11.99 CAD)
THIS.IS.AMAZING!!! Best liquid eyeliner pen I’ve ever used, hands down and I have tried them all from the super cheap drug store versions to the higher end brand-name types. Nothing beats this. It is the only liquid liner that I’ve tried that truly stays on all day long and does not budge. Yet it is simple to remove at the end of the day using my regular eye makeup remover! I’m just blown away by this! I also love the super slim tip, it makes it very easy to get precise line! I have a bad habit of pressing down too hard on the tip when I’m applying liner and damaging it. The tip on this is sturdy enough that I have yet to damage it (although I am trying to be more gentle!). It’s also very pigmented and build-able – if you don’t get a thick enough line to begin with you can easily go overtop of it without it dragging and erasing the previous line. If you wear liquid liner and you haven’t tried this yet – go out now and buy this! I can’t rave enough about this, I’m in love!
The Original Beauty Blender ($26.00 CAD)
Okay, I really didn’t want to like this. Previously I’ve used Beauty Blender knock-offs and convinced myself that there really wasn’t much difference between them and the original. The thought of paying close to $30 for a makeup sponge seemed ridiculous. However, I took the plunge over a month ago and ordered one to see what all the hype was about. And at first, I wasn’t crazy about it. But the more I used it, the more I grew to like it and eventually love it and now I’m not sure I can go back to the knockoffs. I feel like I’ve used and abused this and it’s practically in the exact same condition it was when I bought it. No rips and no tears, unlike the cheaper versions where that occurred within a couple of weeks of use. I can also get every trace of makeup out of it when I wash it which is impressive because I usually go an entire week of use before giving it a good cleanse. It also applies my foundation beautifully and I’m loving it for applying mineral makeup! So I suppose I’m a convert now. Which I’m okay with because I see the light now – this thing is really great!
LETDOWNS:
Essence I Love the Stage Eyeshadow Base – $3.99 CAD
I have super oily eyelids and I usually have trouble trying to find a primer that keeps my eye makeup set all day and doesn’t crease. Unfortunately this was another one to ad to the fail pile. It was super cheap so I’m not too crushed but it sure would have been nice if it had worked! Despite the fact that it did basically nothing to stop my eyelids from creasing, I also hated the formula. It’s super thick and dry and very difficult to blend! The color is a little odd too – it has an orange/yellow tint which I’m guessing is meant to hide any discoloration and even out your lids but the problem is if I got this anywhere near my eyebrows it turned them orange! Won’t be repurchasing this one!
Urban Decay Pore Perfecting Complexion Primer Potion – $37.00 CAD
In my hunt for the perfect primer I picked this up a few months ago, used it for a week and it was promptly thrown into my black hole of products never to be worn again. Which is disappointing because I used Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion for years and liked it. Also it was pretty expensive (I should have taken it back, I forgot and now its too late). I found this did absolutely nothing to minimize the appearance of my pores and my skin was just a complete oil slick halfway through the day. Consistency-wise it’s pretty thick and it definitely leaves a bit of a white cast on your face so I can’t see this working well for anyone with darker skin. I tried using it with different foundations and setting powders and I had the same result every time. This could possibly work for someone with super dry skin but it definitely wasn’t for me.
NYX Wonder Pencil (Light) – $5.99
This is supposed to be a 3 in 1 product that you can use as a concealer, eye brightener and lip liner. I’ve tried it for all 3 purposes and I haven’t been impressed. When using it to line my waterline, I could barely get any transfer. I think part of the problem is that it’s just too hard and dry. Same problem when using it as a concealer, I found it really highlighted any dry spots on my face, barely covered the areas that I applied it to and lasted an hour at most. As for using it as a lip liner, I found it hard to apply – again given how hard it was, and it didn’t make any difference in the lasting power of my lipstick. So all in all, a big thumbs down for this one.
That’s about it for May! Until next time!
Classic Maggie 