The Best Makeup for Flawless Skin


The Sephora Fall Savings Event starts today! It’s that time of the year again where depending on your tier for their rewards program, you can score up to 20% off. I’ve included the dates for each tier below so you know when it’s your time to shop!  I wanted to show you what's in my makeup bag and what my makeup favorites of this year so far are. I'm really happy with everything I have that I can create the looks I like with it.

I only shop at Sephora during their sales and I save my purchases for the big sales each year because the prices of makeup is just wild to me. I think I've got their sale schedule down now: there's a Spring and Fall Savings Event, then there's a summer Friends and Family savings event where you have to get a code from an employee. Then in between that twice a year they have started copying Ulta's 21 Days of Beauty Sale in March and August where they have 50% off daily deals. In early October is the Hair  50% daily deals. And then the week of Thanksgiving there pick 2 brands a day to be 30% off. For Black Friday select products are 50% off. Finally, if you're lucky,  they put a few  $100 rouge rewards in the Rewards Bazaar when you check out. I was able to snag an elusive one this year! They post them once a month at 9am. When there's no sale, my cart sits for months. I buy nothing at full price. 



Eyebrows 

I always pencil in and shape my eyebrows first, before doing the rest of my face makeup. When you pencil in your eyebrows, the eyebrow hairs closer to your nose should be done lighter than the outer hairs, so don't overfill it.  I owned this brush for awhile before I figured out how to find both ends of it. lol This brow sculpt shape really gives your brows a nice fluffy shape and hold.   I've been getting my eyebrows threaded for a decade now as you can't wax when you use tretinoin. 

Sunscreen

Kosas DreamBeam in shade Sunlit 
This is the first tinted sunscreen I've ever found to be a shade match for me. A mineral sunscreen SPF 40 packed with ceramides and peptides to moisturize, visibly smooth and brighten, and create the dreamiest makeup base. Hyaluronic Acid + Allantoin: Hydrates and soothes skin. hydrates and soothes for softer, more supple skin. It is water-resistant Wear alone or as the perfect base for makeup. Holy grail sunscreen plus the tint, you can wear it alone or under your makeup it wears so beautifully!!  It gives a very nice tan glow (not glittery/shimmery) and is light coverage, Perfect coverage for no makeup makeup look.  initially it comes out a slight (kind of scary) green/grey tone, but I find it adjusts and helps correct/even out the skin tone. I love how this warms my complexion and provides a good amount of SPF. it’s more of a skin enhancer/skincare hybrid.



Complexion

A liquid illuminator that enhances the complexion and smooths the skin. It’s great for a glowy primer under foundation or by itself as a skin tint. It makes your skin look so radiant! The Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter (and Elf dupe) was too thick and glowy for me, I looked like the Tin Man. The Dior Filter is perfect for me! The Dior blends out to be a sheer tint of glow and color, it resembles skin that is juicy and hydrated. 


Skin Tint

 Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40 Foundation

It's a dewy skin tint that looks really radiant on the skin and gives you that no makeup as it's super sheer. It gives your skin such a healthy luminosity since it has squalene and shea butter as ingredients. It holds up very well throughout the day but I still use a setting powder for my t-zone. It's worth the price point because you're getting impressive skin care ingredients including niacinamide and hyaluronic acid.  You get the look of your skin but better without the look of makeup on but you get an even looking skin tone. It looks natural, your skin looks healthy and feels weightless on the skin. I'm wearing this in both pictures.

Shake the bottle well before opening. Never apply it straight to the face from the bottle. I apply it to the back of my hand, then add to my face with my fingertips, you don't need a brush but you can stamp it in with a beauty blender. I wear shade 11 and this provides medium coverage. It has SPF40 but I wouldn't rely on this for your SPF so I still wear sunblock underneath it.  It comes in 30 different shades. I wear shade 11 when I'm not tan and shade 12.75 when I'm tan. 

A woman stopped me at the grocery store and asked me what I had on because my skin looked amazing! I posted about this on Instagram and several of my friends said they wear this too and swear by it.

 


Givenchy Prisme Libre Concealer in shade C305

A very hydrating, luminous, creamy formula. Ingredients include glycerin, Capucine Extract, and Cornflower Complex. Comes in 24 shades with a medium coverage and a radiant finish. I talked about all my favorite concealers in this post. 

Bronzer

Kosas - The Sun Show Glowy Warmth Talc-Free Baked Bronzer in shade Beachy
I own quite a few bronzers but this is the one I reach for the most because it gives a soft, glowy, warm color with the prettiest subtle sheen.  It gives your cheeks a radiant glow as it acts like a golden-hour filter for a naturally bronzed look with the magical effect of sunset light. Shea butter is included to soften the skin. Some reviews don't like the scent but I don't smell anything. 


Blush

When liquid blushes first came on the scene I refused to jump on board the train as every time I tested them out at the store it was a disaster. But I've finally found two that I love! For blush color I always reach for a sad beige blush shade or a mauve tone. Otherwise very pink blush looks clownish on my face.


Ciele SPF blush in shade Kirsty, a warm nude
A mineral SPF 50+ liquid blush that blends into the cheeks with a creamy, hydrating formula that gives a burst of color and a natural finish. How innovative, SPF in your makeup! Its insanely pigmented! I apply it directly to my skin swiping left and right, then buff it out with a brush. I reach for this the most as it leaves a nice sheen on my cheeks.
Haus Labs Cheek Blush Balm Stick in shade Glassy Hibiscus, a deep mauve
A serum-based, high-pigment blush with more than 70% skincare and proprietary complexes that hydrate and make skin look plumper, all in a long-wearing, glassy balm. My cheeks look so plump, dewy, and fresh when I wear this. 



Westman-Atelier Baby Cheeks - in shade Mimi, a tawny beige 
This color is only available on her website and never goes on sale. She sells mini versions of her other blushes at Sephora so that's a cheaper way to try them. This creates for dewy wet looking skin, and is so easy to apply and glides on really well. It lasts longer than my other cream blush. I love a sad beige blush color as I don't want too much bright pink on my cheeks. 

Armani Luminous Silk Glow Blush in shade 11, a warm nude
A silky powder blush that visibly smooths skin’s texture and delivers a luminous yet natural-looking flush of color. This ultra-finely milled blush glides on like silk and is infused with spherical, light-reflecting pigments for a soft-focus, glowy effect. Beautiful finish and amazing natural color that compliments all skin tone. It is a nude blush, but has the most subtle pink 


A buildable blush for cheeks and eyes with a hydrating, ultra-thin powder. The powder cares for all skin types with an infusion of shea butter, hyaluronic acid, and black rose oil, blending easily for a second-skin feel. The color is beautiful and is buildable. Although it’s a powder blush it feels super soft and has a really nice finish to it on the skin. I am not normally a blush girl but this blush is amazing. The texture is so smooth and soft. It applies beautifully. I prefer just a touch of color while using blush and this was perfect.I f you are a beige / off pink girly like me then this is the perfect blush for you


Eyeshadow

They came out with a couple new colors last month but my favorite is shade 100 Stora Dolls with cool nude beige, taupes and chocolate. I prefer to wear cool colors verses warm colors. The best time to buy this is now during the sale. 


Not from Sephora I also like Colourpop Jelly Shadow in mystical (rose gold) and if I'm wearing silver clothing and want a cool toned eye look I wear  RMS cream eyeshadow in Strobe which can be described a as a champagne mink, think taupe, not icy silver.


Eyeliner 

MAC eyeshadow used as an eyeliner, as I like this so much better than eyeliner pencils which just look too stark or harsh on me. The color is P for Potent mixed into an ombre with Nude Model. I think using an eyeshadow for eyeliner creates for a more softer, feathered, diffused look. It's not a sharp line from a pencil. I bought the case and colors separately from MAC and made this perfect compact for me. Eyes are the focal point of your face and I see a lot of harsh black eyeliner out there.

Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Shadow in rosegold

They reformulated the product this year and I bought a new one as I've used this for years and gone through many sticks. This shadow stick is really easy to apply and blendable. I add a little bit on the inner corners of my eye which opens everything up and brighten my eyes and completes the look. If you're keeping up, yes I have 3 colors under my eye creating for a full ombre look! Having sparkle/shimmer in the center under your eye really makes your eyes spark. It also comes in a mini size.


YSL Lash Clash Extreme Volume Mascara

I have this both in black and electric blue. Even though it's not waterproof, it is so hard to remove! I had to buy a special cleanser for it and I even wore it to the pool. I love wearing blue mascara on my no makeup days, I get so many compliments on it! It just really makes my brown eyes pop!





Highlighter

 I'm all about the liquid highlighters right now. 

I bought this from the Gucci website and it comes in a Gucci box and you get a whole luxury unboxing experience! The color is perfect on me, not light champagne gold, it's a warm gold, almost rose gold and slightly copper.

It's a liquid highlighter that creates a radiant glow on the skin. It can be worn on bare skin, or mixed it into foundation and primer, the golden drops create a healthy-looking finish. The formula has ultra-thin pearls and pearlescent pigments that illuminate skin by reflecting light in multiple directions. Skin looks plumped and feels refreshed and hydrated.


Dior Forever Glow Maximizer Longwear Liquid Highlighter  in nude

They released 6 colors first then later added the Nude shade but didn't update the photos for nude so what you see online isn't accurate. The swatched color on bottom is nude, its a rose gold. 






Givenchy Prisme Libre Loose Setting and Finishing Powder in 3 Voile Rosé

Its my favorite to set my eyes and blends in like butter. Because of the pink undertone, it also brightens the undereye.  You can buy the mini size to save money, but if you do the math per ounce, you are actually spending a lot more. I didn't buy this for the longest time because of the price, but this powder outperforms all my other powders, it really is incredible! You get that perfect instagram filtered look blurring out all your pores!  The only way to ensure that your makeup lasts all day long is to use setting powder. They did recently reformulate this and it has a sheen to it that got mixed reviews so I haven't tried the new version yet. Mine is matte. 


Hourglass Veil™ Translucent Setting Powder - Talc Free in translucent

I use this for all over my face to reduce shine and set my makeup. 


Cream products wear off after a few hours. The power of setting spray is that it makes everything look so much better in person and lasts longer. 

My go to powder brush for blush, bronzer and setting powder. I clean it regularly. 


Lipstick

Check out this post for my 6 Best Nude Lip Glosses.

Yves Saint Laurent Candy Glaze Lip Gloss Stick in 15 Showcasing Nude  link 
The shade is a pink sheer nude. The product has the shine of a gloss with the nourishment of a balm. This lip gloss stick has vitamin E and hyaluronic acid and gives medium coverage.  This feels amazing on my lips, lasts a long time, and leaves my lip feeling like it has a lip treatment on it. 


A new liner with a soft-matte finish that boosts hydration over time for visibly fuller, more defined lips.

NARS - Explicit Refillable Satin Lipstick in Rendez-Vous - rose brown
Nars released a new dimensional satin lipstick that delivers long-lasting comfort with vibrant, pure-color payoff and creamy, smudge-resistant wear. I decided to do a Project Pan for the remainder of the year to wear my three red lipsticks every day. Maybe one day I'll finish a tube! lol 


A long-lasting, peptide-packed lip balm/primer with a soft-matte finish that visibly blurs, fills, and minimizes lines while locking your lip color in place.

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