Best Beauty Gifts for Mother’s Day

Okay so Mother’s Day is not quite a week away. Do you have a present yet? I’ll admit it – I don’t! It’s kind of one of those things that I remember only when I run in to the grocery store and see a big sign in the floral department reminding me. So since I’m a last minute shopper, and you might be too, here are my picks from the beauty world for mama. Also, as an added bonus, all of these things are available in an actual store. Because you might not want to wait for something to get shipped. We’re such slackers.

For The Techy Mama foreoheroIf your mama loves a nifty gadget, run– don’t walk (wait, who ever walks anywhere?) to your nearest Sephora and grab her a Foreo Luna. Okay come on you knew that was coming if you’ve read this blog before. I love the damn thing. It’s a gazillion times better than the Clarisonic because it’s way more sanitary and way more gentle. There’s also no add-on cost since you do not need to go out and buy brush heads. However, the initial up-front cost is $199. Ain’t your mama worth it?

Conair-Infiniti-Pro

 

Another great gift idea for your techy mama at a more affordable price point is the Conair Infiniti Pro hair dryer (available for around $30 at Ulta). This dryer comes with 2 different concentrator attachments, include a cold shot, and packs quite a punch in the power department. Not wild about the orange color? Ulta also carries a cobalt blue version, and a limited edition pink (may not be available everywhere).

For Mama Who Loves a Classic chanelIf your mom is a classic beauty who loves timeless, fail-safe beauty items, you can’t go wrong with Chanel. Head on over to your local Nordstrom and hit up your Chanel counter! The Chanel Le Brilliant Glossimer Duo is a perfect gift. It includes 2 Glossimers (the most luxurious lip gloss there is!) in Crushed Cherry and Wild Rose, along with a lip liner in Nude and a sharpener. They all come in a cute little zipper bag emblazoned with Chanel Beaute. The whole set runs you $64.00.

For Mama Who Loves Manisnail-polish-resort-2014-collection-mini-cube-4x-5ml-p8585-35047_image

Got a manicure-loving mama? Nail kits are the way to go. Ulta has the Essie Resort cube. It’ll run you $17.00 for 4 pretty minis. While you’re there, pick her up a bottle of Zoya Remove+. She’ll thank you later.

For The Girly Girl Mama

lavieIf mom loves all things pink and girly and feminine, she’ll love Lancome’s La Vie Est Belle. It’s a new version of an old favorite, and it’s divine. Depending on the size bottle you get, it runs $58 to $98 at Ulta (and lots of other places).

All that said, mom, if you’re reading this — none of these are your present!!! I’m saving another idea as a surprise. ;)

Real Life Skin Care Routine

skin care routine

I’ve been getting heaps of comments and questions about my skin lately. I hesitate to tell you all my routine because it’s NOT a routine really. I’ve read tons of these and watched tons of skin care routines. They usually have so many steps and so many products. Am I the only one who thinks “I ain’t got time for that!” ?? So lets talk about my skin care routine. The products I use, exactly how I actually use them.

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My Most Beloved Beauty Products of 2012

things_cats_need_540

It is the time of the year when we pause to reflect back…blah blah blah, here’s the stuff I was most obsessed with over the past 12 months. :)

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Lancome Tonique Radiance Review

A while back during Lancome’s Friends & Family sale I decided to bite the bullet and buy Vissionaire. I’m in love with that stuff. Seriously. And with that purchase I got a deluxe GWP size sample of this toner, Lancome Tonique Radiance.

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Coming Soon: Lancome Curler Chronicles

Because I’ve been loving me some Lancome lately, I wanted to share this cute little video they put together. It’s a teaser/trailer for a series of lash curling videos called The Curler Chronicles. So cute, right? Here’s the video…

Lancome also invites you to share your lash tips and tricks on their Facebook page. What are your lash-related secrets? Mine are…

– Comb your lashes before and after applying mascara to avoid clumps and tangles.
– Clean your lash comb with dental floss soaked in makeup remover.
– Always curl your lashes twice. (It just works better for me!)

Stuff I’m Trying Out

Helloooooo everyone! Just wanted to do a little update about stuff that I’m trying out right now or have tried recently. Sometimes products aren’t worth writing an entire review about but I still want to give you some quick thoughts in case you are considering them. But I will also have full in-depth reviews coming on a few of these as well.

Makeup! 

I just got a bunch of Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadows – their new shadow pencils. LOVE so far!! I received 3 and they’re all lovely shades but I’ve really only had a chance to play with one of them, so a full review will come once I have been able to play with them all. But these are awesome!! If you’re thinking of trying one out, do it. :)

Earlier this month I randomly decided to buy some goodies from Tarte. I’ve been really into their Lipsurgence pencils lately, and I plan to do an overview/review of the ones I have soon (I have 3, soon to be more since I swapped for some). I also have a couple of new Amazonian Clay blushes to review, and one of their new (?) maracuja blush tints. Reviews reviews reviews!

The folks at Blanc to Noir sent me NYX‘s glide-on pencil in Jewel to review, and I quite like it. When I get a chance to take some pictures of it, I’ll have a review up. *crosses fingers* I really hope I have time to take product pics this weekend. Don’t worry poppets, they’re coming soon!!!!

Also going to be trying out a couple of lipsticks from Beauty Without Cruelty. I’ve only swatched these so far but the colors are lovely. And last but not least in the makeup category, I’m reviewing a lip product from It Cosmetics that I adore. 

Hair!

Oooooohhh you guys. I have recently had the joy of receiving the HANAair Professional Hair Dryer to review from Misikko. The peeps at Misikko are SO nice, and so is this hair dryer. Holy cow. I believe with tools that you do get what you pay for, and though this dryer is expensive, it’s AWESOME. Definitely watch out for a full review coming soon! I’ll also be reviewing the HANA Shine Shield Thermal Protectant at the same time.

Skin!

I bit the bullet. Big time. I don’t know if I’m an idiot or just brave, LOL. But during the Lancome Friends & Family sale I decided to finally break down and try Visionnaire. Visionnaire is their advanced skin corrector that claims to target wrinkles, pores, and uneven skin tone. It retails for a whopping $84 though, so uh who wants to shell out that kind of cash?! For 20% off though I thought okay, fine. I’ll give it a shot. My first impression is that it seems to have a calming effect on my skin, which I like. It’s way too soon to tell if it’s doing anything for me though. I also got a large sample of their Clarifying Toner, which I really like even though it’s kind of “stingy” – do not get this stuff in your eyes – FOR REAL. It’ll hurt! But it makes my skin feel really clean and fresh.

Recently I tried Beauty Without Cruelty aromatherapy AHA lotion, which is said to be for face or body. I have a love hate relationship with the product, so I’ll be reviewing that in full later – too much to talk about now. It deserves its own review.

Of the things I mentioned I’m reviewing soon, what should I do first? Tell me!

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

I know a lot of you are probably  like “Mother’s Day? ALREADY?!” but it’s on my mind because my mom has been on my mind a lot lately. About a week ago we had to say goodbye to one of our dearly beloved family pets, Silver the cat. He lived a very long happy life to the ripe old age of 16, but he was quite ill and we had to make a painful decision. Mom has taken it very hard as she and Silver had a special bond and spent a lot of time together. Sooo it’s gotten me thinking a lot about my mom and then logically, Mother’s Day. [Read more…]

Lancome Hypnose Doll Lashes Mascara

Remember how I said I don’t like reviewing products I feel “meh” about because I don’t think those posts are interesting to read, or products I don’t like…? Yeah. Well. Sorry in advance, because I feel ‘meh’ about this mascara! I was excited to try it since I’d never tried a Lancome mascara before and I know so many girls who love these. However, my results with this particular one are just blah.

One coat of Lancome Hypnose Doll Lashes
The brush (seen at the top image) comes out really gloppy. That’s a technical term. It comes out with a lot of mascara on the brush. It just doesn’t seem to do that much. It’s a really natural looking mascara. I saw Pursebuzz did a review of this on her youtube channel and she wasn’t that impressed either. Like her, when something says “doll lashes” I expect them to be like BAM. DOLLY LASHES, YO! But this is more like “hi, psst, dolly lashes.”
Yes, it looks better if you also curl your lashes, but uh…can’t that be said about ANY mascara? 

It also smudges a bit on me, and as someone with dry skin this is normally not an issue with me. I like a mascara that I don’t have to worry about if I wanna take a little catnap. This one will get all over the dang place if you do that. It’s also a bit on the flaky side. Blah.
If you want to try a mascara that I like a lot better, save yourself $20 and get L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes. Or if you’re a masochist, go to Sephora and spend $26 on this one. But don’t say I didn’t warn ya!
Sample provided for editorial purposes.