71% of you are willing to overlook commercialism in beauty products, and you’ll buy them if you like them, regardless of the product tie-in. 7% say hooray for capitalism and are all for it, while 21% of you disagree.
Today I’m all about nails. Gel nail polish, that is. You know, the kind that lasts up to three weeks without needing a touch-up and requires an ultra violet light in order to set properly?
I like to keep my makeup brushes clean.
Because really, if I don’t, I start to break out, so I’ve got more than just germophobia going on.
And I have always been a bit squicked out because my bathroom vanity gets dusty, and as a fairly logical human being, I assume it is going on my brushes as well. However, I don’t wash my brushes as often as I would like. My intentions are good, but life gets in the way sometimes.
Earlier today, I stumbled upon a little product called The Brush Guard. Now supposedly they are to be used when cleaning your brushes in order for them to keep their shape, but I have visions of keeping these suckers on all the time, except when I’m actually using the brushes.
I figure I can simply get some small hair elastics or some twist ties, tie the tops of those suckers up, and I’m good to go.
Yay.
Teenagers would be buying these in droves. Which I don’t think they are. Heck, I would be buying it in droves. Hitting forty did nothing to stop blemishes, which is not how I imagined forty to be.
Some say the Tanda Zap works, others say it doesn’t. Is it worth fifty bucks to find out?
Although as someone who grew up with some acne problems (not, thankfully, the cystic type) and a mother indifferent to the state of my skin, I have taken a vow to do whatever it takes to ensure that neither of my children have to endure unnecessary skin problems.
Hopefully they have inherited their dad’s skin, which is pretty much breakout-free. And to think, he doesn’t even really wash his face!
For some things, I can be a creature of habit. I would say that makeup brushes fall into that category.
I am extremely lazy about buying new makeup brushes, although I probably ought not to be. So when a mini kabuki brush came with my Bare Escentuals starter kit, I never really thought about purchasing a different one. It worked, after all.
Little did I know what was waiting for me the entire time.
I started thinking about getting a replacement buki brush about a year ago. Mine was at least six years old, and was starting to shed quite a bit. I also didn’t like the fact that when I packed it to go somewhere, it wouldn’t fit properly in my brush wallet, thus needing to hang out on its own in a Ziploc bag with the Bare Escentuals makeup itself. You know, because I’m classy like that. This was before they introduced the self-closing jars. And amen to those.
Ahem, getting off track here.
So for my next buki, I vowed that it would be a retractable one, and a mini one as well since I just don’t like the way the full sized bukis apply, but that could be all in my head.
After a long (and to be honest, intermittent) search, I came across the Too Faced Retractable Kabuki Brush. I ordered it with some trepidation, but it had five stars from Sephora reviewers, so I felt things couldn’t go too badly.
Long story short, I adore this brush.
It is so, so soft. And before using this brush, I equated a certain stiffness in a kabuki to be a desirable thing. But now I know that isn’t necessarily the case. I love that it comes in a very pretty, girly metallic casing, and I LOVE the way it retracts. It doesn’t twist down, but has a little “shield” that pops up before you put the cap on, thus ensuring the bristles don’t get smushed. Oh yeah, and it also does a better job at applying the powder than the BE brush. It does it a bit more subtly, although maybe that was just the age of my BE brush showing.
Should have bought it a loooong time ago and well worth the expense, especially for someone who regularly uses mineral makeup.
*Bought with my own damn money. I have NEVER gotten a freebie to review. Although, uh, I wouldn’t be against it.
It’s that time again! The time where I give some sage advice on things you can buy for those with an appreciation for the specialty of this blog. And all under fifty bucks!
Beautyblender Makeup Sponge Applicator (2)
For those that prefer liquid foundation/concealer, I have heard nothing but fantabulous things about these applicators. A bit pricey, but supposedly worth every penny. Definitely something to give someone who probably wouldn’t spring for it themselves.
Gal Pal The Original Retro Ice Bag
Ladies such as myself will remember that this type of ice bag was pretty much the only game in town when we were kids. And you know, I kind of miss them because they really did have a nice shape to them that made it easy just to plop it where it was needed. Comes in lots of cute designs, too!
THE NEW BLACK ‘Graffiti – Ombré Nail Shades’ 5-Piece Set
For the more adventurous nail enthusiast, everything they will need to create the perfect ombre look. Or not. That’s the beauty of this gift, because the colors still rock even if they don’t use them as originally intended.
Makeup Studio Blockbuster Palette
Not sure what colors they might like? This palette is guaranteed to have at least a dozen or so, seeing as it contains a whopping 197 products.
Three full sized M.A.C. products for a great price. And a bag to boot!
L’Occitane Verbena Harvest Perfumed Sachet
Nice, natural sachets are hard to come by any more. This is one of the best. And who says you have to buy just one? Makes a perfect hostess gift.
I’m a big fan of pretty packaging, and the box for this collection of Fekkai hair products is touted as a collectible. Inspired by Aix-en-Provence, France, this is the first year of a new series of gift sets from the company that brings you nice hair.
I’m of the opinion that you just can’t go wrong with this set. You can quote me on that.
Me! Bath Mini Bath Ice Cream Gift Set
Get a bunch or get just one! These bath fizzies are a fun, unique gift.
Sephora Deluxe Fragrance Sampler For Her
Another almost can’t-go-wrong gift. And a teensy secret is that if the receiver doesn’t like any of the sample fragrances, they can pick out any one in the store that has the approximate value. Or, you could do aLash Sampler, or a Sampler for Him.
I think I’ve mentioned this before, but if you have makeup and you want to use it to its best advantage, then you’ve gotta have the right tools.
Sure, you can buy Bare Escentuals foundation, but if you don’t have one of the kabuki brushes, then forget about it.
Want to do a smokey eye? Well, then you will need a large shadow brush and a crease brush at the very minimum.
How about using eye shadow as an eyeliner? Helps a lot if you have an angled brush to apply it with.
I know that my personal go-to beauty tools are my regular kabuki brush, my large domed brush, my large shadow brush and crease brush, my large angled contour brush, and my eyelash curler and my eyelash separator.
Wow.
No wonder people who don’t use a lot of makeup find it intimidating.
And I don’t even consider myself to be someone who has a lot of tools and brushes.
What I do find is that it’s worth it to pay a bit for your tools, but you don’t have to go top of the line to get something decent that will last and not shed on your face every time you use it.
How about you? What are your indispensable tools?
