Everyday Makeup Picks

Today's post is going to be about the makeup I use everyday. I have a lot of favorites but these are the things I NEED when I'm getting ready for the day. Now I'm going to start by saying some of this has been changed since this photo was taken, as it was taken while I was in France and I am now home and have acquired some new products.

The first thing I do in the morning is I wash my face. It's very important to clean your face before you start applying makeup, but I also just love the way it feels when I'm trying to wake myself up. I use Lush's Dark Angels cleanser, followed with the Tea Tree Water toner, the Celestial moisturizer and ending with sunscreen. If you are interested in using Lush products but you aren't sure which ones would work best with your skin type, I highly recommend going to a store and talking to one of their employees. They are very knowledgeable and most of the time extremely nice!

I finish prepping my face by applying Bare Escentuals Prime Time Foundation Primer before I apply Bare Escentuals Foundation. After I apply foundation, I like to sweep some sort of highlighter over my cheeks and down my nose. I really like Soap & Glory's Glow All Out and Boujois's Java Rice Powder. (Side note: Did you know that Boujois product are exactly the same as Chanel's? Boujois makes all of Chanel's makeup and it's the same stuff as the drugstore brand).

Next I apply my L'Oreal eyeliner before using my potted eyeliner. I prefer the brown to the black because brown is definitely dark enough and black can be a bit too intense. After the eyeliner dries I curl my eyelashes and finish off with my Urban Decay mascara. I started curling my eyelashes at the beginning of college and now I do it religiously. It makes a huge difference!

I have a variety of lip colors and most of them are Urban Decay. I really trust Urban Decay as a brand, and I own a lot of their products. I always use a lip exfoliant and lip primer before my final lip color. When I'm feeling really ballsy, I use MAC's Russian Red with their Kiss Me Quick liner.

And finally, after I've put on everything, I finish with my perfume. I found this perfume by chance but it is my scent now. I think it's important for everyone to have a scent that they can be identified by. It also boosts my confidence when I know I smell nice.

Hope everyone has fun plans for this weekend!

Bisous mes cheris***

Photo credits to Lisa Cherkassky

My Current Obsession: Soap & Glory

I'm not sure how many of you have ever heard of the brand Soap & Glory, but if you haven't, I'll get you started.

Soap & Glory is a bath, body, and cosmetic company based in London and was founded in 2006 by Marcia Kilgore. Kilgore opened a spa in New York at the age of 26 and as a world renowed skincare expert, was wildly successful. Her philosophy is "beauty absolutely matters, [but] it doesn’t matter absolutely". The company believes in beauty being fun as well as environmentally conscious. Last year the company launched the 2 Minute Rinse Campaign as a way to approach the global water shortage. All in all, this company really cranks out some wonderful products that work well, while maintaining and positive message.

Now to my obsession. I like to try out new body products every once and a while to see if I can find something I like more than what I already have. I tend to stick to the same companies, but sometimes another brand will catch my attention and I just have to try it; Soap & Glory was one of those brands. Since the company is based out of London, they aren't the easiest to get in the United States. I can purchase them online but with the exchange rate of the pound being as crappy as it is and the cost of shipping, it wasn't looking too good. I recently went to London with my mom and spent most of that Sunday looking for Sobranie cigarettes (which I ended up finding later in Edinburgh). I was very discouraged and upset when I was unable to find them but my mood lifted drastically when I walked into a Boots and saw Soap & Glory products. It took me a minute to calm down and to stop being embarrassed since I had exclaimed quite loudly upon seeing the products, but once I composed myself, I proceeded to buy a gigantic bottle of their award winning lotion.

I use that sucker every day! It smells amazing and was pretty inexpensive for the big bottle. Above is a picture of those bottles as well as other products I bought when I went to Ireland. "Glow All Out" is a pressed sparkly powder (I say sparkly because I find words like "illuminating" or "luminescent" or whatever to be misleading). It goes on very lightly but that's what I like. I don't tend to put on a lot of face makeup since my skin can be very sensitive. My photographer got the "One Heck of a Blot". Though she has yet to try the powder, I have read nothing but good reviews online.

I also got two very neutral lip colors. They're both matte (my favorite!!!) and stay on very well. Sadly since the weather in Paris has been so cold, my lips have been very chapped and sad so the lipstick hasn't been looking super nice (matte finishes aren't as forgiving as glossy). However I am very pleased with the color and how long I can wear it before having to reapply.

And of course I can't live without a travel sized bottle of lotion so I have a cute tiny one for my purse.

Perfect size huh? Anyway, I hope this post inspires you to check their stuff out. If nothing else, the names of their products will give you a chuckle.

Bisous mes cheris***

References: http://www.soapandglory.com/blog/about-us/#

Photo credits to Lisa Cherkassky