I don't regularly do a Favorites post, but there are some items I've been seriously loving in November that I wanted to mention!!
***All items purchased by me. Affiliate links included.
London Brush Company Goat Milk Brush Shampoo, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Plus , mini Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Highlight 01, Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque - www.gummyvision.com
Ok, I know...serious lack of fun colors here, but sometimes you gotta give some love to the basics ha ha!!
London Brush Company Goat Milk Brush Shampoo in Naturally Clean - $18/1oz or $28/2oz. There are other 'flavors' such as Lavender and Lemon Zest, but I opted to get the Naturally Clean version this time around. And when I say, this time around, I really mean it...I absolutely plan on buying this again!! Here are a few reasons why...
I know I have soft brushes - helloooooo Suqqu and Hakuhodo Kokutan - but this solid brush shampoo makes them even softer. Oooooh, puuuurrrr <insert kitty emoji here>. Believe it!!
This gets everything off and leaves even my Tom Ford brushes pristine and clean.
This leaves my brushes nice and conditioned...which I didn't realize was much of a thing until I tried the Benjabelle solid brush cleanser. Ouch. That one left my brushes dry and almost brittle?? HUGE difference between Benjabelle and this one from London Brush Company. Plus this one does so without a weird film like the Lavender Dr. Bronners.
Easy cleanup - wet the soap in the container, wet the brush, swirl brush in the container, swish swish away in your hand or other desired cleansing method, rinse, repeat as needed. Done :-) No squeezing containers or messing with goopy soap. Then to clean the brush soap container I simply run it under water until the bubbles are all gone and then let it air dry.
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Plus - $32 @ Nordstrom, MAC stores & online . I've actually wanted to try this for a really long time, but I rarely hit a MAC counter until recently. I went to get the Ochre Paint Pot on rec from a few people on Twitter, and decided to get the Mineralize Skinfinish Natural as well!
I've been on the hunt for the perfect setting powder...something that helps set my foundation, and that also isn't matte. I didn't want anything too glowy, but I did want something that would somewhat replicate the finish of my beloved Guerlain Wulong powder. The MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural does exactly that - all my foundation seems to last a little longer and the finish is really pretty...natural, oh so slightly luminous but not matte. I've been loving it so much that I finally decided to purge the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders in Diffused and Ethereal...which, yeah, was a battle unto itself LOL!!
Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Highlight 01 - This is a mini size that I received as part of a GWP earlier this year. The full size is $38 @ Nordstrom and Sephora. Full disclosure: I actually tried this before and didn't like it. Why I didn't like it I can't fully remember, though I vaguely have rambling thoughts of it maybe being too shimmery??? Whatever. I love it now!! Love it so much that I purged Kevyn Aucoin Candlelight!
This color 01 is a highlight shade, though the Matte Radiance Baked Powder line does include bronzers. The 01 Highlight so subtle (matte radiance is a perfect description), but can be built up to something more glowy...yet I never find this to be over the top. I've even taken to using it to even out my eyelids as a base for other shadows (Burberry Rosewood has been getting a lot of use lately!), or as a quick no makeup / slightly put together look. Lipstick Boulevards tried to convince me of its powers ages ago...sorry it took me so long to finally listen!! At some point I'd like to try the bronzer shades!
Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque - $25 @ Nordstrom, Sephora, Bobbibrown.com and Bobbi Brown counters (oh and check your local CCO). I think I'm probably one of the last self proclaimed beauty nuts to try this little magic pot. Oh, wait...that didn't come out right. But you know what I mean!! I don't really have to deal with dark circles, I do sometimes have luggage...er...bags that come from not enough sleep or too much salt. And not too long ago I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror at a weird angle and was all SHOCK-HORROR at just how bad my bags were that day. Of course, you could make the argument that not everyone including myself would ever really see my luggage at such an angle, but it was enough for me to order think twice and finally try out the famous Bobbi Brown Corrector.
I used the shade match from the Bobbi Brown site to get the right color - if you know what shade foundation you wear then it'll match you with the 'right' corrector shade. I was matched to Light Bisque.
This stuff is kinda magic. It somehow manages to mask my bags without looking cakey or feeling dry. I can even wear it alone with no concealer on top...it works that well for me! Even on days I don't have a full set of luggage under my eyes, I can still wear the corrector and it definitely helps me look more awake.
I've tried applying it with a brush, but find it blends much better using my finger. First I swirl my finger in the pot to warm some up, then I apply a tiny bit to my undereye area...continuing to use the warmth of my finger to blend it in. Even with my heavy eye cream this works really well and lasts throughout a long work day. I don't set with powder.
And that's that!! Not super exciting, but these are definitely products that have made a difference in my beauty life this past month :-) Have you tried any of these products - what did you think?!! What have you been loving lately?