11 December 2014

november favorites

star violet november favorites: naked2 basics, ysl lipsticks, bobbi brown corrector, laura mercier foundation primer, clinique spf 50 sunscreen

It's a little bit late for my November favorites, but at least it's not late December? I didn't do one last month because I didn't have many favorites I particularly liked throughout the month. For the ones that I did enjoy using, I started using them near the end of the month so there wasn't a lot of time for me to form an opinion on them other than "I like this!"

So without further ado, here are my favorites from November and a little bit of October!

star violet november favorites - naked2 basics and bobbi brown corrector in light bisque

Urban Decay Naked2 Basics is a palette I've been reaching for almost every time I do my eye makeup. I thought I really didn't need the original Naked Basics palette because I saw it as shelling out the extra money for the convenience of often-used shadows in a single palette, and of course I thought the same for Naked2 Basics. While it's kind of true, I also don't have anything quite like the shades in this one and I like that I'm getting a lot of use out of it. You can read the full review here.

Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque, I love you. If you don't know already, I have terrrrible dark circles that just won't go away Of course getting a few days of good sleep helps, but even so it's still a tad noticeable. One of the associates at Sephora helped me pick out this concealer when I told her about my dark circles problem, and she said these are supposed to go underneath your concealer/foundation to cancel out the discoloration. It works like a charm, and my under-eye area looks even more rested compared to using only concealer.

ysl rouge volupte lipsticks

ysl rouge volupe lipstick swatches in beige ultimate and peach passion

Formula-wise, YSL Rouge Volupte Sensual Radiant Lipsticks are the best I've tried so far. I only have (had) two of them: Beige Ultimate and Peach Passion. I wouldn't say it's balmy, though it's definitely nourishing like a balm. It's super wearable even on bad lip days, how the heck did YSL manage to create something like that? I did end up returning Peach Passion, though. There wasn't anything different about the formula, but unfortunately I didn't find the color as flattering on me as they did on others. However, I do recommend the entire line if you're looking for a great lipstick.

laura mercier foundation primer, clinique spf 50 sunscreen

And lastly, the very basics: a primer and a sunscreen. One of Laura Mercier's primers made it in my September favorites and it worked wonderfully, but it had a slight white cast to it with flash photography and that was a no-no when it came to taking pictures with my Instax camera if the flash fired. So I went for her (probably) original primer, which is just called... Foundation Primer. It's a water-based primer and it works a lot better than a silicone-based one. I found that silicone-based primers made my foundation and concealers patchy, while this one makes them look like a second skin!

The sunscreen I've been loving is Clinique Broad Spectrum SPF50 Sunscreen. Prior to this I've used Algenist Ultra Lightweight UV Defense Fluid SPF50 (a drying alcohol as the third ingredient - no thanks!) and Ole Henriksen Protect the Truth SPF50+ Sunscreen (pilled up horribly - think of it like rubbing dried glue off your hands). Clinique's sunscreen goes on very nicely, doesn't have any drying ingredients, doesn't create pillings, and is fragrance-free which is always great when it comes to skincare. Plus, it's inexpensive relative to the other two sunscreens mentioned before. I haven't taken any pictures with flash when I wore this, but hopefully the white cast (if any) won't be too noticeable.

What were some of your favorites this month? Leave me a link if you've written one, I'd love to see what you've been loving :)

13 comments:

  1. Peach Passion is such a beautiful shade. I really want to try some YSL products, I've heard amazing things about the brand. x
    www.jordanalice.co.uk

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  2. Oooo nice favoeites!! I want a ysl lipstick so bad haha! I love both those colors, especially the beige one!! I really don't think its necessary to have both naked basics (even though I do lol) unless you liked collecting all the naked palettes like me haha!!

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  3. Nice November Favorites c:
    The sunscreen by Clinque, I'm gonna keep
    that in mind for the next summer!
    Xx http://icepandora.blogspot.com

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  4. Ahh, I always want to buy the products you mention on you blog, but I've given myself a personal ban x) When it lifts, I'm definitely running out for those lipsticks!

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  5. Good overview. I think the Naked Basics pallette is great too! Though it's probably not something I would have bought for myself (it was a gift by my cousin) because I think the shades are so neutral.. and I already have Naked 1&3 and other nude colors.. Anywho, I'm really happy with it :) those YSL lippies look gorgeous too!

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  6. I just bought the LM primer in radiance...lets see how it fares! I love my BB corrector too. I have a YSL rouge volupte Ina beautiful shade. .09 but the formula sucks on me :( it's overly creamy yet drying at the same time if that makes any sense. I so love their packaging tho!! My recent favourite has been an Estee Lauder long wear lip pencil and macs paint pot in let's skate!

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  7. Yeah, I definitely don't think it's an absolute necessity to have if you already have so many neutrals. It's just nice to have for convenience knowing that you have a bunch of basic shades in one palette, haha. I really like my Naked3 palette, though I don't use it as often as I should.

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  8. I've tried only two of her primers and they're really nice! They have the same consistency and feeling, so I think it's only the effects that are different. I hope you'll like yours as much as I like mine!


    I'm really sad to hear that your YSL lipstick doesn't wear well for you since I really love mine! Their packaging too, it's like.... I feel a million times more badass than I actually am when I'm using it lol. I have Let's Skate! as well and I really like the color, though I don't use it very often - in fact you just reminded me that I have it haha. Gotta start using that one again!

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  9. I'll definitely have to! Maybe I'll use Christmas as an excuse to grab one or two, haha!

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  10. It is, I'm pretty bummed that it doesn't look as good on me as it did on others, but at the same time I'm happy for not keeping it in hopes that it'll magically work with my skin tone/lips/whatever one day! YSL lipsticks are really nice, you should go for it!

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  11. You should get one at least! They're sooooo good, I wish they made more shades in that line that I'd be comfortable with wearing color-wise. I guess both palettes have enough differences to have both of them ;)

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  12. Hehe, thank you! I really like that sunscreen, I'd recommend it to anyone!

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  13. You're making me blush, haha~ Good for you on the ban! I need to start spending less on makeup myself, but bans never end well for me ;-; You should at least try one of them, they're seriously a game changer in the lipstick world!

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