Make-Up Adventures

Happy Friday! How is everyone's winter going? Ready for it to be spring over here. Only a few more weeks of this stuff, right? Speaking of the winter blues, not too much has been going on in the home renovating department lately. I've just been doing a lot of Ebay selling and make-up experimenting. Ya know, my new projects to keep me busy. I'll have a post up soon about my recent Ebay selling adventures. Time for a (long!!) make-up related post today!

So, a couple of weeks ago, we went to the local Bridal expo and then shopped for a bunch of wedding related stuff. That shopping trip included a trip to Sephora where my sister Haley advised me on a bunch of awesome beauty products to get ready for our wedding. She's been a big help in the beauty department, since I have to admit I'm kind of clueless when it comes to that stuff sometimes. 

But, it's fun to play around with different products, so that's why getting samples is the best way to go when you're experimenting with new products and trying to perfect your look. For Christmas, Haley gifted me three free months of Birchbox, and it was super fun getting these little boxes in the mail each month. Monthly beauty samples, hello! So, needless to say, between these and free samples from Sephora with each order...the past few months, I've been doing a lot of experimenting in the beauty department!

I like to think it's all in preparation for the wedding in August, though it doesn't hurt to look good on a daily basis, too. So I thought I would do a brief little overview of some of the samples I've tried recently and am still in the midst of trying.

First up, these three products:

From left to right - 1. Number Four Lumiere d'hiver Super Comb Prep & Protect, 2. Juice Beauty Green Apple Brightening Gel Cleanser, 3. Davines Minu Shampoo.

The Prep & Protect spray is like a heat protectant-slash-leave-in conditioner for your hair. I've used probably half of the sample bottle so far, and it really is great for wet hair right out of the shower. I spray it on when I have a bunch of tangles, and it detangles it right away. My only complaint about it is it has a strong musty smell! I like my hair products to smell yummy, so it's kind of a downfall, but if you can get past that, it's a great product.

I haven't really used the Juice Beauty cleanser enough to give a review or really see a difference. But I like that it's certified organic, and it smells really yummy and fruity. I plan on using this when I travel so we'll see how I like it as I use it more.

I don't have too much to report about the Minu Shampoo either, it seems like it's a good shampoo and the smell isn't too bad. It's hard to tell if I've seen any results, since I've been using it interchangeably with my Aveeno shampoo. But no complaints yet!

Next up, the make-up! Some of these are products that I've purchased from Sephora and have just started trying, but a few of these, like the eye liner and the concealer, are Birchbox samples.

First, the Miracle Concealer, I've used quite often already. It said something in the description like, 'a little goes a long way,' and that's definitely true for this! I don't think it hides things the best, but it goes on really smooth and I really like the texture of it, so I've been using it everyday. And it blends really well with my other make-up. I still need a concealer with more coverage on top of my foundation, but this is great for underneath.

So I'm pretty much in love with this Supergoop CC Cream. Just started using it a few days ago, and I am loving it. I've been using it as my foundation under pressed powder, and it matches super well with my skin tone. This is the first CC cream I've ever used and it is a great color correction cream. I like it better than my BB cream, so might have to upgrade!

Next is the Too Faced Chocolate Soleil bronzer. I bought this from Sephora in a pack with the Too Faced mascara. Both came recommended by Haley. And I love both of these! My favorite thing about the bronzer is that it smells like chocolate. And it gives me a little tan, too, of course. The Too Faced mascara might be my favorite mascara yet. You can see that I also have the Make Up For Ever Smoky Extravagant Mascara, also from Sephora, that I've been using for a while. This was my favorite. Now, it's kind of being replaced. :) Both are great, but the Too Faced mascara is a bit more dramatic, and I like that.

The two items beneath the mascara are Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner, and the Brow Wiz brow pencil by Anastasia Beverly Hills. The eyeliner was a sample, and I'm not really a fan of liquid eyeliners. They're a little too harsh for everyday, and I try to apply them for special occasions, but I'm not really used to it yet. Liquid eyeliners can be difficult to get right sometimes, so they kind of scare me! This one is ok, but I feel like it has kind of a greenish tint to it - like it's not fully black. So that was one weird thing I noticed about it. The Brow Wiz on the other hand is pretty awesome! Another one of Haley's Sephora recommendations. I've always been scared of brow pencils too, but this one looks really natural and is just fine for everyday. It's a new part of my daily beauty routine now.

On to the Skin products...

I'll just give a brief overview for this one...there's the Clinique acne cleanser, which I got in a little sample kit - these products really work well, but I've found they're super drying (lots of alcohol and salicylic acid), so that's the only downfall for me. The Bobbi Brown Instant Long-wear make up remover works great - I've only used it on my eye makeup so far, but it is gentle on eyes and takes it off really fast. I LOVE both the Murad spot fix, and the Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream. They both work really well, and I plan on getting more when these samples are finished. Good staples to have in your skin care regimen. I'm kind of neutral on the Philosophy No Reason to Hide Transforming serum, and the Real Chemistry Peel mask. I haven't noticed a difference with the Philosophy serum, and peel masks tend to dry out my skin. So I could probably do without both of those products. As for the Urban Decay eye shadow primer, I have several samples of these - some are anti-aging, some are shimmery, etc., and they're really nice. A small amount lasts all day long.

And finally...the perfume samples! Most of these are from Sephora, but there's a couple in here from Victoria's Secret.

I haven't even tried all of these yet (I have enough to last me several months at this point!), but I love both Victoria's Secret scents - Dream Angels Heavenly - an oldie but a goodie - and Noir Tease - great for nights out. I've tried Viktor & Rolf's Flowerbomb and it's not too bad. Trent has a sample of the Spicebomb cologne, and I think it smells really good. Hanae Mori is the little black sample - I've worn this, and it's not bad either. I'm looking forward to trying all of the others!

Well that was kind of a long beauty review, but this is kind of my life these days...trying lots of products and perfecting my skincare routine six months out from the wedding! Not sure what I'll be doing for my make-up, if I'll be getting it done professionally, or if there will be some DIY make-up going on! We'll see.....

Tux appointment tomorrow and picking up my veil! Super excited to get a couple of more things out of the way!