July 2013 Favorites

It’s the end of July already?! Where did this month go?! July always goes fast for me for some reason. I’ve been traveling a lot since beginning of June. I went to:

• Niagara Falls, NY (almost made it to Canada except I didn’t have time to get a VISA beforehand *sad face*)
• Chicago and Arlington Heights, IL
• University Park, PA (PennState University)
• Elkhorn, WI
• Allegan, MI
• Indianapolis and Keystone Crossing, IN!

Wow, I didn’t realize I went to that many places! I love traveling and in fact, I prefer driving over flying because… I can bring as much stuff as I want and without having to separate liquids! (Airport security drives me nuts.)

Anyway, I have a few items to share for the month of July. These were what I brought with me to those places I visited, basically my staples for the last 2 months. They are easy to use, small to carry, and they are of top notch performance.

By Terry Hyarulonic eye primer in #2 Neutral

This eyeshadow primer performs just as well as the famous Too Faced Shadow Insurance and Urban Decay Primer Potion. What I like more about this primer is it has hyarulonic acid which adds the “plumping” effect on my hooded lids. I also like the slight cooling effect it provides upon contact with skin, just overall refreshing! The #2 Neutral shade blends perfectly on my skin.

Dolly Wink liquid eyeliner in Deep Black

This black liquid eyeliner is insane. It is so jet black and once it sets (literally in nanoseconds!), it will not budge! I’ve worn it through water (especially at the Niagara Falls), tears, and sweats and it’s still there at the end of the night in exactly the shape and intensity I applied in the morning. It has a brush type tip that glides on so easily across the lid. Doesn’t pull, doesn’t tug and therefore you can make a perfect line with such ease.

NARS And God Created The Woman eyeshadow palette

From day to night looks, this palette has all the colors covered. It is one of the most travel-friendly eye palettes I own. All colors apply like a butter except the matte taupe where I have a hard time getting the color to show up. This palette is part of a set that includes a mini eyeshadow brush and a travel size eye primer. Read my full review here.

Hourglass Opaque Rouge liquid lipstick in Ballet

This liquid lipstick is nothing I’ve eve used before. At first when I heard “matte”, I automatically assumed it’d be drying. But to my surprise, this is actually a moisturizing kind of matte! You don’t need a lot of it either since it is crazy out-of-the-world pigmented. I apply just a tiny dot on the center of my bottom lip and spread it out with a disposable lipgloss applicator. Then I squeeze my lips together to get the color onto the top lip. This gives me a sheer matte look that I’ve been sporting lately. I can’t confirm the claimed 14h wear but it does last longer than normal lipsticks even after meals.

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter lipstick in Strawberry Shortcake

I like to apply this moisturizing lip balm over the Hourglass liquid lipstick when I want a subtle shine and to tone down the bright pink or when I want to do the lip gradient effect. This is one of the true-to-color lipsticks, meaning the color you see on the packaging is basically the color you will get from the lipstick. The color payoff is quite rich for a tinted lip balm and lasts throughout the day for me. It doesn’t last as long when I wear it alone, though.

I hope you will get to check out some of these favorite items of mine. Let me know if you have any comments! :)

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