Beauty Wise Wednesday:Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer

I ran out my beloved Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Radiant Highlighting Concealer and I thought I would try out something new. It was pretty sad on the one day I was without concealer Mat made a comment that I looked like I had black eyes. I quickly picked up the Maybelline instant age rewind concealer, in the color 215 fair/light, at Walgreen's the next day.

I was drawn to this not because of what I had heard about it like I have in the past (basically because I couldn't remember what other people had recommended) I liked that it had a build in applicator sponge. Of course who wouldn't like age rewind factors. I also played it safe with staying with the same brand of concealer as the Dream Lumi.

It claims to have instant age rewind and dark spot treatment corrector with vitamin C and goji berry. I have to be honest I don't know if I've noticed any instant age rewind but I have noticed that this concealer doesn't settle into the fine lines under my eyes. Well I guess maybe that does have something to do with the age rewind?

 I typically apply the concealer under my eyes, the corners of my nose and chin and then on any blemishes on my face, after I put on my foundation. It's funny because when I was younger I was taught that concealer should go under my foundation but YouTube has taught me differently. After I dab the concealer on with the sponge it comes with I blend it in with my blender sponge (from my previous post) and I find that, that works really well to blend the concealer into my foundation.

(where I typically apply concealer, please ignore my "end of the day" tired face)

Another thing I really enjoy about this concealer is that I don't feel like I have to use very much each day, where as I went through the Dream Lumi pretty quickly. You just twist this concealer a few clicks and it is enough to cover any discolorations you would like to hide.

Overall I think I would use this concealer again but I think I would like to use it in combo with the Dream Lumi simply because I really did enjoy the brightening that it gave to my face. I will be continuing to try a few other concealers before I come to a "must have" choice. The next one I wanna try is Physicians Formula Concealer Rx.

 

Beauty Wise Wednesday: My make up routine

As I mentioned last week, I want to tell you what my beauty routine is right now so that we can see how it changes through the year. Now as I have said before, I am not expert with make up but I really want to class up my look.

First I start with foundation and for that I just use Cover Girl Aquasmooth in creamy natural. This is a liquid to powder type compact foundation that I put on with just a make up sponge. I have been using this for quite a while and I really do enjoy how smooth it goes on and how long it lasts. There are a few foundations I will be trying out once I run out of this.

I, then, put on concealer. This is a new addition to my make up routine but I really like the effect it gives to my face, hiding flaws. I currently use Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch in Radiant. This is the foundation I reviewed in the past. I will be looking to try out some other concealers this year. Hopefully I'll get a couple to try in an Ipsy bag.

I finish off these with a powder to seal the foundation and concealer. For this I currently use Clinique Gentle Light Powder in 05 Glow. This is also an added step to my routine even though I have had this powder for years. I just recently figured out how to use it. It's a loose powder and it has a very light shimmer to it that gives me a glowing look. I need to get myself a powder brush cause right now I'm currently using a travel blush brush.

If I'm going out for a night or want my make up to last for a longer amount of time I have three primers I use. The POREfessional by Benefit, "That Gal" brightening face primer by benefit and Stay Don't Stray eyeshadow primer by Benefit. I have these in small sample sizes that I got as a Christmas gift the year before last. That just shows how often I use those eh?

I then, move onto my eyes. I do have a few eye shadows to play around with but nothing compared to probably most girls out there. I typically start out with a base color and I stick to safe neutrals, then add a darker color to my crease, usually a black or brown. If I'm feeling frisky I might do a dark purple in my crease. I really want to try branching out into other colors and doing more with my eyes.

I also put on eye liner and right now all I have is Cover Girl Perfect Blend pencil crayon. I usually apply a thin line on the top and bottom lash lines then smudge them a bit with the smudger on the pencil. I'll finish my eyes with mascara and right now I only have Maybelline The Falsies Volume Express in Blackest Black. I'm realizing that I'm not really loving this mascara so I really want to try out a few to really find what works for me.

For blush I use Mac in Coygirl a sheer tone blush. I have had this blush for a while too and would love to expand my collection once I get more comfortable with make up. I think part of me feels over done when I wear make up, but I'm quickly learning to get over that.

I also own just one lip product, Revlon Lip Butter in 025 Peach Parfait. This is a new product to me I have learned about from YouTube videos and I really enjoy using it. It goes on very smooth and isn't too crazy of a color. I swear, I used to think lipstick was a joke. I never really thought I'd able to pull off any shade. I'm hoping to figure out a few shades to enjoy.

Now for brushes I have the saddest collection out there I'm sure. My best brushes are the SOHO crease brush I got in my first Ipsy Bag and then I have a Sephora smudge and eyeliner brush that I think is the only brush I've bought and picked out for myself. The rest of my brushes are a collection of random hand me downs that I don't really know what the proper use is for them. I also have two eye lash curlers that I don't really use much. One is a black plastic curler from Sephora and another is a typical metal one by La Cross.

So this is my make up routine. Nothing too exciting, I just have a basic structure down. I'm hoping to discover better products that work with my skin and coloring. I'm excited to take you on this path of discovery with me and I hope you will be able to help me along the way.



What are your favorite products and what is a beauty "must have" that you would suggest I try out?

Beauty Wise Wednesday: Nail Polish Review

I want to start experimenting with beauty products but in an affordable way. To keep me motivated I've decided to bring my blog readers along for the ride as I discover new products. **A bit of a disclaimer I am extremely inexperienced with beauty products.** As a teenager I loved doing all my friends make up and hair but as I grew older and started paying for things on my own I discovered how expensive beauty products can be. I got discouraged from trying new things because I would spend the money on a product and then discover I didn't like it and be frustrated that I was out the money. As I move forward in my career and as an adult I realize how important your appearance can be (as shallow as it may sound) so I am going to try and find my own style, while reviewing products on my blog.

My first beauty product review is a simple one. NYC nail polish in 212 Mulberry Street. This is a sparkly nude tone. This nail polish says it claims it will dry in a minute and I have to say it lives up to it's claim. I love that because I have to do my nails between feeding Sloane and with a regular nail polish it would never be dry enough by the time she started getting fussy.

I painted two coats on my nails and then soon after took a shower. Now I will say there was a little bit of marking on my nails from the shower but not nearly as much as a regular polish. I painted a third coat on after my shower and my nails looked flawless. (well as flawless as I can get them) The polish is thin so it will dry quickly and it goes on quite smoothly.  It is a nice light pearl color with just a mild sparkle, which I really like and think would be a great color for any occasion.

The nail polish lasted a week without chipping. I then decided to change my nail color so I'm not sure just how long the polish would last but I'm thinking till it wore off, rather than chipping. The next nail polish I put on wasn't a quick dry and it was a disaster! Sloane of course woke up just as I was getting my nails done. I redid them once she was asleep again, let them dry (or so I thought) and went to bed. When I woke up I had imprints in the polish. Looks like I'll be sticking with the quick dry stuff for now on.

What is your favorite nail polish and why?