Breaking down my faves today, because I can’t mentally sift through the “Top 100 Beauty Products”-type of spreads in magazines, and also because I know so much of that content is in there because X magazine has a good working relationship with Y skincare company… same with some of the blogs I troll for things like this – they’re also often sponsored content (which means the makers of the products pay a fee to have the bloggers include their jazz in a post), so I never know if people have actually used and would recommend them, or if someone just paid them to say they love em. The truth is, Karrie & I are too lazy aka busy to finagle sponsorships & such – and also, we’re both product snobs. So these picks are my legit tried & true, can’t-live-without-em beauty faves. Hope some of them work for you too!
1 – ARCONA WINE OIL, $58. Literally the only thing that gets my face through a Colorado winter. Smells like cloves, feels like your skin just drank a gallon of water as soon as you put it on. I used to use Arcona products exclusively, but have since switcheroo’d my daily regime over to R+F.
2 – RODAN + FIELDS REDEFINE REGIMEN, $208. I’ve been a happy Arcona customer for years, but my beloved cousin Jill (also a R+F rep) gave me this regimen as a wedding shower gift, so I gave it a whirl.
The first day I was like: “Neat! It smells like clean laundry and feels nice on my face. Who knows if it does anything?” – but I took a before + after photo and TWO WEEKS LATER the texture and tone of my skin was completely different. And I (thought) I had good skin before. Consider me converted.
PS: these pics are NOT becoming b/c I obviously have no makeup on and took them (basically while I was still asleep and stuck my face in the natural sunlight), but LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE. Two weeks, people. if you’re interested in trying R+F, give my cousin/more-like-a-sister, Jill, a holler: jillhouser78.myrandf.com – …sidenote, see #6 for a good eyebrow-plumper-upper.
3 – DOMINO SUGAR, $2.50. Cheapest & best exfoliant on the market, IMO. Definitely messy & sticky if you don’t rinse out the tub or shower after you’re done, but if you have a few extra minutes in the shower every other day to give yourself a nice scrub with a handful of this + body oil, your skin will literally feel like butter. Actual sweet cream, melted butter. You do have to be thorough – I do a heaping handful of sugar for each limb – go slowly, in a circular motion, and polish your crusty winter skin to perfection. The important thing about exfoliating is that you gotta do it if you want your lotion / moisturizer to soak in. Because it can’t penetrate a layer of scales on its own. Speaking of exfoliant, I still need to go shopping for a cleanser.
4 – NYX Golden Olive Eyeliner, $7.78. One of those things I randomly picked up at a Walgreens 10 years ago or so. It’s the perfect shade, imo – kind of charcoal-y but with a warm brown/green tint. Goes on nice & smooth, and blends easily.
5 – Goe Oil, $49. Does the same thing for my hands in the Winter or in dry climates as Wine Oil does for my face. Spendy but worth every penny. Also available at Anthro.
6 – Lise Watier Volumizing Eyebrow Fiber Gel, $23. Remember the time I went bananas with a pair of tweezers when I was 15 and then my eyebrows LITERALLY NEVER GREW BACK? I mean seriously. Of all the things we ladies *cough* pluck, tweeze & wax, this is the one thing that doesn’t come back? It’s sadly a doodle that can’t be undid. Anyway – since I’ll clearly never have my old Brooke Shields brows from the 90’s back, I use this stuff to plump them up. I’ve tried lots of others – including NARS – but none are as good as this guy. The makeup artist from the Bravo show I did earlier this year (What up, Mario!) turned me onto it. Next-best thing to Microblading.
7 – Naked Eyeshadow Palette by Urban Decay, $27. Karrie turned me onto this a year or so ago and it’s the only eyeshadow palette I’ll ever need. Retails for $54 on some other sites so this is a bargain.
8 – Estée Lauder “Rich Red” Lipstick, $35+. My bad because when I went to look this up, I just realized it’s been discontinued. SACRE BLEU! It’s still available from a few sellers on eBay though. PS this is what I wore on Thanksgiving this year. It goes on like velvet.
I also love Boots No. 7 “Love Red,” which has a nice blue undertone, but it’s also super elusive. You’re welcome for absolutely nothing on this one!
9 – Glo Lip Balm, $16. One of my clients sent me this in a Christmas Gift a few years ago and I’ve never gone back. Instant relief the second you put it on, and I love the chunky size – means it’s far less likely to get lost in the bottom of my bag.
10 – Dazzle Dry Nail Color, $18. There’s about 1 whole mani-pedi gal in Crested Butte, and she’s the one who turned me onto this. Listen, I love a gel mani as much as the next girl, but what I don’t love is how after 2 rounds of gel, if I take it off, my fingernails are so paper thin that they actually bend backwards when I’m washing my hair in the shower. Ouch. Dazzle Dry isn’t gel, but it’s just about as tough. My color stayed on for ALMOST TWO WEEKS last time I had it done. Hardly any nail salons carry it, but you can put your zip code in and check on Dazzle Dry’s website, or just grab a bottle and DIY at home or hand it to your nail tech to use during your next mani.
11 – Bionic Powerlight Blow Dryer, $99. Better than the Dyson blow dryer, and for about 1/4 of the price. Best hair dryer I’ve ever had.
12 – Kérastase L’Huile Originale, $31.99. Delightful, subtle scent, and one of the only things I’ve ever found that tames my frizz without putting a damper on my hair’s body.
Other than (actual products), I will say the best my hair ever looks is when I cut back on heat styling (trying to limit myself to 1x/week), and the best my skin EVER looks is when I cut gluten, dairy & alcohol and drink tons of water.
What are your faves??
xoxo,
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