My favorite beauty products {discussion}

I have been wholly uninspired fashion-wise lately, so I'm taking a break to talk about beauty products.  You know how it works: you buy a beauty product either on a whim or base on someone else's recommendation (whether it be a real person or just a hopeful advertisment), then days/weeks/months later you either realized that you don't use that product that much OR you've used it so much it's almost gone.  More than often, it's the former rather than the latter.  Like many women, I have gone through this same routine, throwing away $$$ hoping that one day my skin will glow just like the movie stars'.  After many years of trial and error, I finally have a 'stable' makeup bag of essentials that I simply cannot live without.

When looking for new beauty products, it's good to know your skin.  I have oily skin that is prone to breakouts.  These products, along with my cleanser and moisturizer (a post for the near future!) help me keep my skin under control even during my most stressful and hormonal periods.

This is why I am a Sephora Very Important Beauty Insider...

(1)  Avon ergonomic blush brush

A cheap but high quality brush.

(2)  Nars blush in Orgasm

The classic blush that goes with almost every skin tone.

(3)  Revlon lip butter in Sweet Tart 

This stuff is seriously amazing.  As a teenager, I use to try to achieve the lip butter feel by mixing chapstick and lipstick - lip butters does the trick without the mess.  (available in most convenience stores) 

(4)  Hourglass veil mineral primer

keeps my make up in place all day while controlling shine,  It even makes my makeup slightly water resistant!

(5)  Urban Decay De-Slick mattifying powder 

For when I need serious shine control.  It's a completely transparent unscented powder that mostly consists of rice powder.

(6)  Make Up For Ever full coverage concealer 

Doesn't clog my pores and provides amazing coverage.  A little bit goes a long way!  I use it for my undereye and acne scars.  It's also powerful enough to cover tattoos (*not tested by me, it's a claim by the manufacturer*).

(7)  Urban Decay Surreal Skin mineral powder foundation

In my opinion, this stuff is better than Bare Escentual's BareMinerals makeup.  The sponge applicator is completely useless though, get a brush like #9 to supplement.  A little goes a long way!  One bottle lasts me almost a year!  I just divide it into smaller sifters like these.

(8)  Avon Supershock mascara

The only mascara I've ever tried where the waterproof version works just as well as the regular version.  It is smudgeproof and does not flake on me for a good easy 8 hours!  The brush is a little intimidating at first, but once you get use to it, you'll get amazing results.

(9)  Mark mini retractable kabuki brush

Mini and retractable, need I say more?  It does the job that most full size kabuki brushes are unable to do!

(10)  Avon Glazewear lipgloss

I must have ~20 tubes of these stash in my purses, coat pockets, backpacks, sofa, and other random places.  It goes on like a lotion, is shiny and moisturizing, lasts pretty long for a gloss, and some colors are highly opaque while others are very sheer.

What are some of your favorite beauty products?  Please do share!

♥ C.