Wow, less then one month to Christmas now, who can believe that?! This month I have been using a lot of different makeup products, delving into my collection and using things that I don't usually use on a everyday basis - it has been a lot of fun trying out different looks and products! But despite that there have been quite a few items I have been reaching for pretty much every day, let's get into it!
BEAUTY
001. Stila In The Light Palette
First off is the gorgeous Stila palette (that is partly damaged... more on that to come). These shadows are all beautiful, highly pigmented and glide and blend like a dream! My favourite of all is the infamous Kitten, I also have been dipping my brush into Bliss and Sandstone a fair amount as well.
002. MUA Ever After Matte Palette
To compliment with the shimmery shades in the Stila palette I have reaching for this MUA Matte palette to either use as base colours or as blending shades. For days when I want a more neutral look I usually go for Bare (creamy colour) all over the lid and Penny (medium brown) in the crease and outer edges. You can find a full review with swatches that I did on my blog here.
003. Revlon ColorStay Blemish Concealer in Light
I have been loving this concealer from Revlon, purely because it has 0.5% salicylic acid which helps to treat any break outs, a bonus really considering you want to cover them up and generally putting product on blemishes can make them even worse. I am all for makeup products with double duty! It is the perfect shade for my skin tone and is creamy and blends easily.
004. MUA Pro-Base Prime & Conceal
Another concealer I have been loving is this scary looking yellow concealer from MUA. I use it under my foundation to put it on red/dark spots to help fade them down before placing foundation and concealer on. It means less product on my face and works pretty well to help lessen redness. It was also super cheap, I think around £1.50 - a total bargain!
005. Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Eyeliner in 005 Nude
These Rimmel eyeliners are brilliant, I love the nude shade to use in my waterline to cover redness, which makes my eyes look more open and awake. It is waterproof, glides on very smoothly and I have been using it everyday this month and will continue to do so!
006. NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 625 Sparkle Nude
Eye shadow sticks were something I had never dabbled in, but this month I have been loving them. The NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils are great, they don't tug at the eye and go on smooth and are very pigmented and long wearing. On lazier days, eye shadow sticks are my best friend as you can glide on and go - so easy!
007. MUA Colour Blast Eyeshadow Tint in Stay
Another eye shadow/chubby stick product is the MUA version. I love this shimmery nude shade as it makes an excellent base for other shadows as it has a bit of tack to it and makes colours more vibrant. It is definitely not as long wearing as the NYX pencils but still a great product.
008. Napoleon Perdis Lashes To Lashes Mascara in Black
This mascara came free with the November Instyle magazine (read post about it here) and I have gotta say, it is really impressive! NP is a great brand but I have never tried any of their mascaras as I tend to go for much loved Maybelline or Covergirl options, but I have been using this most days paired with the Covergirl Clump Crusher. I find that it doesn't clump much at all, and provides pretty good volume and density. For a magazine freebie, it has seriously impressed!
009. e.l.f. Complexion Brush
I have finally delved into e.l.f. brushes and they are amazing quality for a really low price! I got this one and two others with my Beauty Joint haul and have been using them heaps. This one is making the perfect bronzer brush; it's dense, soft and has not shed one hair!
010. W7 Flat Brush
Another brush I have been loving is from the W7 Face Brightening Powder in Candy Floss, which I had purchased a month or so ago and wrote off the brush as useless until this month and now it is a complete favourite! Its soul purpose is for contouring and is the perfect shape to get a nice shadow going on to fake those cheekbones. It seems like a pretty close dupe for the brushes from the Benefit boxed blushes, but for a fraction of the price; I brought mine at Postie for $10.
MUSIC
011. Katy Perry - Prism
Of course I have been loving KP's new offering and finding it so fun and catchy. It is much more mature then the previous albums but does still have some very fun, girly songs on it. My favourites are Dark Horse, Legendary Lovers, Birthday and International Smile.
012. Lady Gaga - ARTPOP
This month can be defined simply as Gaga Month. I have been waiting and counting down until this album arrived and have been listening to each day ever since my pre-order was downloaded. ARTPOP is all kinds of brilliant and Gaga never fails to deliver an amazing album. Must listens are G.U.Y., Sexx Dreams, Gypsy, Do What U Want and Dontella - actually just listen to the album in full! Some songs are super upbeat where others are heartfelt and emotional, all in Gaga fashion.
013. Pentatonix - PTX Vol. 2
PTX were a group I found on Youtube after they did an amazing acapella style cover to Thrift Shop and I have been hooked ever since. They released a second album with a mix of covers and originals - all absolutely incredible. You have to listen to Daft Punk, an amazing medley of the best Daft Punk songs and also their originals Natural Disaster and Love Again.
Phew, I sure had a few favourites this month! Let me know in the comments what you have been loving or if you have tried or listened to anything I mentioned above.