Prestige

April 2019 Favorites

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April 2019 FavoritesApril 2019 Favorites
MAC Paint Pot in Painterly, $22 / L’Oreal Blow Dry It Thermal Smoother Cream, $6 /
Clarins Glow Booster, $32 / Benefit Gimme Brow+, $24

I’m so, so happy that it is consistently not-cold. My windows have been open. I have been outside. I’m eschewing jackets. It is wonderful! April was a fairly minimal beauty month for me, but details on my April 2019 Favorites are after the jump.

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MAC Lover Loyalty Program

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MAC Lover

Back in 2016, I shared MAC’s then-new loyalty program, MAC Select. I went to their site to order a birthday gift last week and found that I was unable to access the MAC Select detail. Upon login, I was informed that I was enrolled into MAC Lover – their new-new loyalty program.

Well, I missed that memo. I blame my extended no/low-buy.

The 411 on MAC Lover

Really, MAC Lover seems to be mighty similar to MAC Select. The new program has some cutesier marketing, but there are a ton of similarities. Let’s jump into the tiers:

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Chatter: My Makeup Uniform – Winter 2019

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Chatter

For a long while, I was just throwing concealer on my eyelids, mascara on my lashes, and calling it a day most days. Then, I decided I wanted to try to Project Pan the contents of my Z-Palette. Amusingly, I am not making a ton of progress wearing the contents down. In the process, though, I inadvertently discovered what I like to do on auto-pilot for my eyes. Since my eyes tend to be the longest part of painting my face, this was a game-changer. So now, most weekdays, this is what I do to my face.

Base

I have a complicated relationship with base makeup. I haven’t worn, “real,” foundation in literal years now. In the fair weather months, I don’t bother with it. Between heavier usage of Clarins Glow Booster and my sunscreen-covered skin being incorrigible and taking color anyway, my skin generally looks good. I don’t want to cover up my skin when it is looking good; plus, it saves me steps and product which equal time and money.

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Benefit Roller Lash

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benefit Roller LashBenefit Roller Lash

This legacy post has been given a facelift. Content has been edited for clarity and flow, but the essence is the same. Enjoy!

Benefit Roller Lash may as well be old news, now, but I got a deluxe sample in the Paint it Pink set.

I was prepared to not be impressed. So far, most prestige mascaras I’ve tried haven’t done much for me except my favorite, bareMinerals Flawless Definition. I like they’re Real! from Benefit but not enough to spend $24 on it. By-and-large, the price-per-use of prestige products at their retail prices are rough. When you consider that mascara must be replaced every 3-6 months for performance and sanitary reasons, dropping $20+ on a tube just doesn’t jive with me.

Performance-wise, I was pleasantly surprised.

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Chatter: January 2019 Favorites

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Chatter

I cringed as I typed the title of this post. Seriously. And then I had to stop and think – hell, what were my favorites last month? I had to chew on it. And then, life prevailed and I had a hard time coming up with things, I put it on the back-burner, and here we are at nearly the end of February with no, “traditional,” favorites post.

Sigh.

So instead of the usual spread, here’s a brief, bulleted list:

  • Vaseline. I am not a seasonal pedicurist. Vaseline is inexpensive and unscented; slapping it on under socks immediately after showers and again before bed has kept my feet in great shape in between pedicures. Plus, it has other uses – makeup removal if you’re into that (I’m not), lip balm, addressing extremely disobedient dry patches, etc. (Target)
  • Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. At one point, I tried to switch to Biosilk. But after a calamity, I reverted to Super Skinny. It smells better, feels better on my hair and my hands. (Target, Ulta)
  • Dyson Supersonic. I mentioned buying one of these around the holidays. And, wow – yeah, it’s good. Review coming … well, when I come up for air. (Sephora, Nordstrom, Ulta)
  • Bliss What a Melon De-Stressing Overnight Mask. I don’t do a ton of masks, but picked this up in a recent haul. It applies easily, does not feel gross, and dries down quickly enough not to cover your pillowcase in goo. At $13, it’s inexpensive, too. (Target or Ulta).