Posts Tagged ‘cream’
Gorgeous, don’t you think? These are part of the new Dior Summer Mix collection, a 7-piece grouping of cream blush and nail polish. They’re making their way onto counters now!
I did a quick comparison of the Dior cream blush with a few others; Maybelline Dream Bounce Blush, YSL Cream Blush and L’Oreal Visible Lift. You can check it out on my Instagram page.
Available: Dior counters & Dior Boutique in Las Vegas
Until next time…
❤Liz
©MyBeautyBlackBook.com All rights reserved. Your support of my Beauty Black Book is always appreciated so please do feel free to share a link back to this post. However, no part of this post (including any photos I’ve taken – which I obsess over in a most ridiculous way) may be reproduced, tweeted or posted without my okay…okay?
It’s no surprise to anyone who knows me well that I’m not a morning person. Nope. I linger in bed thinking about what I want to create that day and who I can inspire. While still in my pj’s, I might choose to meditate (yup, in bed), write in my journal and get my body and mind to cooperate with my heart.
Morning is a sacred time of day for me and one that I keep as simple as possible, including my skincare.
For the past several months I’ve maintained a simple, efficient and effective (for me) skincare regime using a combo of products from spa, drugstore and department store.
Here’s a complete look at my a.m. products of choice and part 5 of my Love List:
I’m not one to use an entire brands range because I find most “systems” rarely address the unique daily needs of my sensitive and dry skin.
Cleanser & Toner: I’ll share how I remove makeup and cleanse my skin at night in my next post. In the morning, I use a gentle soap from Sibu that removes any oils and debris from my nights slumber. It’s incredibly gentle, gets my skin clean without feeling dry. The main ingredient is coconut oil making it a soothing choice. I’ll then follow by spritzing Rose Water onto my skin. I find it counteracts the harsh water in my area plus, it smells fantastic!
You can find this glorious, and inexpensive product, at most health food stores. I’ve been using this for years and always repurchase.
Serums: For morning, Dior Capture Totale One Essential and Ole Henriksen Truth serums are my favorite. I rarely use them at the same time – it’s important to listen to your skin and give it what it asks for – but I will occasionally layer both, if needed. What I love about Capture Totale One Essential is how well it smooths my skin and, as Dior claims, seems to jump start my other products. For a shot of vitamin C and a brightening effect I’ve yet to duplicate with another serum, Ole Henriksen Truth Serum Collagen Booster is a must try! No other product instantly makes my skin brighter. And the soft citrus aroma perks me right up in the morning.
Face & Eye Creams: I liked the Ole Henriksen Truth Serum so much I gave the Truth Creme Advanced Hydration a try and found a winner! It has a nearly sheer consistency that absorbs quickly into my skin and feels, decadent. Just a touch and my skin is hydrated, looks smooth and bright and ready for the next step. On days when my skin is extra parched, I’ve been grabbing the Epionce Renewal Facial Cream. My mother turned me on to this product over a year ago and I continue to repurchase. It’s a more dense cream that absorbs beautifully into the skin. Created by a dermatologist, originally for burn patients, it restores the skin gently and leaves a glow to the skin that radiates ever so lightly underneath my makeup. I’m the finickiest eye cream wearer I know but this Tarte C Brightening Eye Cream won me over. It’s light, not greasy, doesn’t interfere (in any way) with my makeup, doesn’t cause my sensitive eyes any irritation and hydrates my eye area. I can’t speak to the brightening effect around my eye but I suspect someone with dark circles might notice.
Sunscreen: It’s called Miracle Blur for a reason…because the effect it leaves on my skin is miraculous! If I could suggest one product for you to consider, this would be the one. Not only does it contain an SPF30 – which I love because I prefer my SPF mid-range and separate from my moisturizers, but it has a blurring effect that makes my skin texture instantly smoother. Yes, instantly! It is lightweight, spreads easily and absorbs well. On my dry skin, it also adds a hint more moisture. What I appreciate most about this product is how well it works as a primer – any foundation I’ve layered over L’Oreal Miracle Blur looks (almost) air brushed perfect.
If you prefer to use Miracle Blur as a primer alone (it’s remarkable as a primer!) and/or if you have an oilier skin condition, an oil-free and spf-free version is due to launch this July!
I’ve got a slightly more involved approach to my p.m. skincare approach which I’ll share with you next week. In the meantime, who’s going to the movies this weekend? The Great Gatsby looks SOOOO good (peeking the makeup alone is worth the price of admission) but I’m also a Trekkie so Star Trek is another weekend option.
Until next time…
❤Liz
©MyBeautyBlackBook.com All rights reserved. Your support of my Beauty Black Book is always appreciated so please do feel free to share a link back to this post. However, no part of this post (including any photos I’ve taken – which I obsess over in a most ridiculous way) may be reproduced, tweeted or posted without my okay…okay?
When I first read the promotional copy for Illamasqua’s Toxic Nature collection I had visions of a futuristic time, a time when society had a veritable breakdown devastated by chaos – dark, dingy, dirty, dystopic – something reminiscent of Mad Max with the smell of brutality in the air and survival the goal of the day.
But since this is, after all, a makeup collection the promotional imagery was colorful and rich. I can always count on Illamasqua to make the unnatural and distorted look stunning.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this collection and went straight to the source on launch day. When my package arrived from the UK I opened it with trembling hands and out tumbled one of my favorite color collections, to date, of 2011.
The collection consists of six cream pigments (the star of this show!), two lipsticks, two glosses, five polishes, a precision ink eyeliner and a handmade toxic claw. Nope. That wasn’t a typo.
Let me begin with my personal pick of the collection…the cream pigments.
All six were consistent in texture, that is to say they were all creamy without going on sticky or wet. They dry down to a matte finish in no time. And the wear is amazing! All day (8+ hours) with no creasing, fading or movement of any kind. And did I say I did not use a base?
What makes these cream pigments so especially cool is they are a multipurpose product. Don’t you just love it when a product really goes to work for you? I tried the cream pigments as eye shadows (my favorite way to wear them), as eyeshadow bases, as a cheek color, lip color and color corrector. Yup. You read right a color corrector. These nifty little pots are excellent to color correct dark circles, redness, and hyperpigmentation.
Now to be fair, if your discoloration is severe, these babies may need some extra muscle to fully neutralize what you’re concealing but if what ails you is slight to light, give ether the peach (*Emerge) or the green (Bedaub) a try.
If you’ve never tried an Illamasqua lipstick what you should know is they are…slammin’! Really, the color pay off is top notch and toxic nature’s Atomic (a vibrant fuschia) and Flare (a bright orange) are no exception. The wear time on me is average at about 6 hours and because of the intensity of the matte formulation there is a slight stain left on lips – which I rather like.
Although I’m not a big collector of nail polish, I couldn’t pass up on the shade Bacterium. While the name conjures images of sludge and slime splattered with bug bits, the color is exquisite. Illamasqua describes it as a pearlized ash/ochre and I have to agree. It’s not only a lovely shade for the summer but will work just as beautifully come fall. Oh, and I can’t forget to mention that after six days there was no chipping. Gotta ‘ love that.
And last but not least, the precision ink eyeliner. The beauty grapevine touted this as the most unique item of the collection but quite honestly, it’s a waterproof pen eyeliner folks. The color is called Glister, an opalescent nude. I’d love to jump up and down over this item (it does glide on easily and wears well on lids but not on the waterline) but lets just say my socks weren’t knocked off BUT they did roll down a bit ☺
My alter ego, Maxine, had a field day with this collection. She donned her black patent leather pants, swept Atomic on her lips, Delirium on eyes, and cheeks affixed a pair of handcuffs to her belt loop (hey, it’s my alter egos accessory of the day and we are talking about toxic nature), gave herself a wink in the mirror before she straddled her steel horse and rode off to face the unpredictable, uncharted and unnatural world that is toxic nature…
What did you (or your alter ego – I know you have one) pick up from the collection? Let me know below!
xo♡Liz
*Available in the EU only.
All items available now at sephora.com
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