I had another fun week participating in the @bellereneebeauty #JuneBeautyChallenge on Instagram (the complete challenge is shown below). While last week (linked here if you missed it), I was able to instantly come up with ways to participate, this week’s tasks were a little more thought provoking for me. Here are all of my favorite products (with links to purchase*) from week 2!
Day 8: Mani Monday
Nail polish was my first true love, so I have a polish collection that rivals most high-end nail salons. I have recently discovered, and fallen in love with, Butter London’s new Patent Shine 10x line. Seriously, these polishes are soooo shiny. Butter London claims that you do not need a base or top coat with this polish and it will stay shiny for 10 days, promote nail growth and health, all while giving the cushioned look of a salon gel manicure. I have yet to try the polish without base and top coats, but the combination of Orly Bonder Base Coat and Dior Gel Top Coat (my all time favorite top coat) I am able to rock a pristine manicure for well over a week. This week I am wearing one of my new favorite summer colors, Jolly Good!
Day 9: Repurchased Products
I am admittedly a product junkie. Very few things make me as happy as walking into my favorite beauty stores and finding a new product to try out. With that being said, I am also extremely loyal to favorite brands and products. Once I find items that transform my skin, nails, or makeup looks I repurchase and repurchase. For this challenge, I chose 8 items that I currently have backups of (and in some cases, backups for my backups).
IT Cosmetics You’re Skin but Better CC+ in Light. This is the best CC cream you can imagine. It is light with great coverage and makes my skin look immaculate!
IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Redness. This was a complete impulse purchase. I was at Ulta one day and one of the sales ladies asked if I wanted to have my world rocked. Of course I said yes, who doesn’t want their world rocked on a random Thursday afternoon? I let her apply this product to my red cheeks and nose and couldn’t believe the difference it made. I have never been without it since. This is not a product I use every day but it is perfect when I want a more polished look!
Trader Joes Spa Tea Tree Oil. Tea tree oil has so many fantastic uses but I use it to maintain my weekly blow outs. I apply it 4 nights a week to the tips of my fingers and massage it into my scalp. This curbs the effects of dry scalp, which is a huge problem of mine.
Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara. Back when my makeup routine consisted of nothing but mascara and lipgloss, this was my go to mascara. Now that I have discovered all sorts of new products, I still keep this mascara around. I often use it as a bottom layer mascara to lengthen my lashes before adding a higher end, volumizing mascara.
Tarte Lights Camera Lashes. Another fantastic mascara that I keep on hand. The combination of this mascara and my Lash Stiletto provides my favorite lash look. With a primer or on it’s own, Lights Camera Lashes is amazing and my lashes love it!
Tarte Maracuja Oil. When I first began exploring skin care, I watched a YouTube blogger named Miss Jen Fabulous who raved about this product. To be honest, I had no idea what she was talking about and the notion of putting oil on my face totally freaked me out. I slowly began reading more and more about it and when it went on sale last September as a part of Ulta’s 21 days of Beauty, I picked it up and it quickly became an integral part of my skin care routine.
Julep Bare Face Cleansing Oil. If I had to choose one product to bring with me to a deserted island, this would be it! I have been a Julep Maven for a few years and received this in one of my monthly boxes. Of course at the time I didn’t even wash my face so I had absolutely no use for this product and placed it in a basket beneath my sink. Then one day while watching a KellyLovesBeauty1 YouTube video, she started talking about the benefits of using cleansing oils in removing makeup (something I had just begun wearing) during your nightly routine. I quickly went and found this item and haven’t stopped using it since!
Julep Blank Canvas. Like Bare Face, I received this in a monthly box, had no use for it and put it in a basket of unused products beneath my sink. One day last summer, shortly after I began washing my face, I noticed how shiny my forehead was. I couldn’t decide if this was due to the Texas heat or because washing my face had somehow changed my skin. Either way, I knew I had a problem on my hand. I began reading about what to do and someone somewhere recommended mattifying primers. Again, I knew I had some under my sink and the transformation of my summer skin, both with and without makeup, was miraculous!
Day 10: Favorite Colored Liner
Confession time: I hate colored liners. I don’t wear them on my lips and can’t stand them on my eyes, so when this challenge came about I was stuck. While I do have a few that I have accumulated over the past year, I don’t have strong feelings for them and didn’t want to give them my stamp of approval. Instead I chose to share the opposite of a colored liner: a reverse liner! The clear colored reverse liner I use is by DuWop. I love this liner. It’s the perfect shape to give me full protection and does not leave the area around my lips looking waxy. It excels at preventing bleeding and (when applied 3 times in a row) does not need to be reapplied later in the day.
Day 11: Red
Red is my absolute favorite color so the only trouble I would have with this challenge would be deciding how exactly to accomplish it! Rather than focusing solely on red makeup items, I decided to display an entire red inspired outfit. At the time of this picture, it had been raining in Dallas for (what felt like) months. I was rarely seen without my two favorite red accessories, my Lulu Guiness umbrella** and red Hunter Huntress Glossy Rain Boots. To complete my black and red ensemble I added my favorite red lipstick and lipglass: Viva Glam Rhianna!
Note: The photo I posted for the challenge was cropped to fit the “Instagram Square.” I am sharing the full photo.
Day 12: All Glammed Up
Most makeup lovers probably found this to be one of our easiest challenges. Not me. While I do love makeup I do not consider myself even remotely glamorous. I wear fairly basic looks topped off with bright lips. For this task, I went through some pictures and chose a selfie that I took at the Academy of Country Music Awards in April. I loved my look that night! My hair was done at The Hair Bar and I had my makeup done at Mac. I showed my makeup artist my dress and a basic idea for my eyes (a smokey ombre look) and she took it to the next level!
Note: the lighting of this picture is a little funky due to the lights at the awards show, the photo is not filtered!
Day 13: What’s in my Shower
For this photo I decided to show the full size products of what is in my shower. My actual shower contains dozens of travel size items for two reasons: I have limited space and I like to alternate products (especially shampoos regularly). Here is a sample of what’s in my shower:
Clarisonic Plus. When I bought my first Clarisonic, it took me nearly three weeks to warm up to it. Once I did it became the focal point of my skin care routine. I quickly began coveting the body brush function. Around Christmas, the Clarisonic Plus was on special at Ulta (and 5X points!) so I snatched it up. My skin has never felt cleaner or smoother.
Trader Joe’s Lavender Salt Scrub. Although the Clarisonic Plus came with a body polish, I already had this scrub in my shower. The combination of this sweet smelling scrub with my Clarisonic Plus is amazing!
Joico Color Endure Violet Sulfate-Free Shampoo. As I have mentioned in previous blog entries, I only wash my hair once a week. This is one of the few products I use EVERY wash because it keeps all of the brassy tones out of my highlighted blonde hair!
Redken Hair Cleansing Cream Shampoo. It takes numerous products to maintain a blow out for a week so product build up is fairly common. My hairdresser recommended using this shampoo to help diminish the buildup and maintaining a shiny, healthy look. It’s important not to overuse this shampoo or your hair will begin looking dull!
AG Hair Cosmetics Conditioner Deep Reconstructing Treatment. I typically use this products on the same days as the clarifying shampoo. While it should be used sparingly, it leaves my hair so soft and healthy!
Redken Smooth Lock Shampoo and Conditioner. I am a huge fan of Redken products, but this is my favorite of their lines! It leaves my hair frizz free (always a plus) while also protecting from the various heat tools I use throughout the week.
Day 14: Best Sun Care
Sun care is always important, but living in Texas, where the sun is always blazing, it is especially imperative. I take numerous strides to keep my fair complexion safe!
Panama Hat. I look terrible in hats! I have a huge head so they rarely fit me right. I often sport short hair which makes me feel like I look manly when wearing them. This hat is different. It’s a little bigger and now that I have longer hair, I don’t feel self conscious about wearing it.
Ray Ban Purple Mirrored Aviators. I am obsessed with this line of glasses. I own numerous pairs and they make any outfit pop. When they released mirrored aviators in purple, I quickly snatched them up.
ColoreScience Sunforgettable – SPF 50. This stuff is amazing! A lady I work with mentioned that her dermatologist recommended it and asked if I had heard of it. I hadn’t but began reading about it and couldn’t wait to try it. It is a mineral sunscreen that comes inside an application brush. You apply it directly to your face and you are good to go. My favorite part of this product is that it doesn’t leave me greasy looking, which is a huge issue in the summer.
Kiehls Lip Balm – SPF 15. Lip protection is often forgotten when considering sun safety. I make sure I always have a lip balm with SPF and in the summer this is my favorite. Not only does it protect my lips from the sun rays, it is also super moisturizing.
Ocean Potion Cool Dry Touch – SPF 50. Surprisingly enough, I don’t have strong opinions about sunscreen brands (I’m sure that will change). I like a lot of Ocean Potion products but what I specifically like about this one is that it applies cool (always a bonus in Texas) and does not leave my skin greasy, which I hate!
That concludes this week’s challenge. Stay tuned for next week when I will reveal my hair essentials, pink, best sale purchase, neutral nail polish, Friday favorites, green, and skin essentials (my favorite!).
*I have linked to the website of each product whenever possible. In cases where the product is not sold directly from the brand’s website, I linked to Amazon.
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