Beauty

Favorite products for hair and makeup

Neutrogena has always been one of my favorite brands for both skincare and makeup. I partnered with Neutrogena to bring you some fall makeup inspo and swatch out some shades from their Skin Clearing Makeup line. I’ve used the Healthy Skin foundation in the past and it’s one of my favorite drugstore foundations. If you have fair skin like me and struggle finding a foundation that isn’t too dark, too pink or too yellow, hopefully these swatches will help you choose the perfect shade:

Neutrogena SkinClearing Review

Neutrogena Skin Clearing Review

I’m wearing the Skin Clearing Foundation in the shade Classic Ivory with a touch of the Healthy Skin Foundation in the shade Natural Ivory mixed in. Classic Ivory runs a bit yellow, so mixing it with the Natural Ivory helped balance everything out.

Other products used:

Neutrogena Skin Clearing Foundation Swatches

The Skin Clearing foundation is oil free, which is great because it helps prevent clogged pores. It also has salicylic acid. f you have acne-prone skin, it’s really important to make sure that your moisturizer and foundation are oil-free. This foundation has a natural finish and does dry down, but not completely matte. I think this is better than being matte if you have acne-prone skin because it won’t accentuate any breakouts you may have.

Neutrogena Skin Clearing Concealer Swatches

This concealer has a very lightweight consistency. The applicator does have a brush tip, so I would recommend squeezing a little onto your finger or brush instead of directly to a blemish to keep the applicator sanitary. Since it has salicylic acid, make sure you are only using it on your face and not under your eyes. 05 Fair runs a bit yellow, while 09 Buff runs neutral to pink.

Neutrogena Skin Clearing Powder Swatches

This mineral pressed powder is also going to help fight any breakouts you may be experiencing. As you can see with the powders, 20 Natural Ivory runs neutral to pink, while 30 Buff runs yellow. For all brands, you might not be the same shade in a foundation, concealer and powder. While this may make it a little tricky, keep in mind that different parts of your face are naturally different colors. You want your products to reflect that.

I recommend going lighter with your powders in case you need to reapply. That way, you don’t get progressively darker throughout the day. Plus, you’re probably applying powder in your T-Zone, which is typically highlighted anyway.

Shop these products:

Products were sent courtesy of Neutrogena. All opinions are my own.

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When it comes to makeup brushes, you really don’t need anything high end. Not to say that I don’t lust over the Marc Jacobs Bronzer Brush (come on…that thing just looks like luxury), but the drugstore really does get the job done beautifully. Since all of my brushes just got a much needed deep clean, I figured this was a great time to line them up for some headshots and update you on my current favorite brushes:

Best Drugstore Face Brushes.jpg

ecotools Define & Highlight Duo ($11.99): I love using the fan brush for my contour because it is easy for me to get a very straight line and then quickly diffuse it out. I use the rounded brush for my blush and absolutely love the way I can blend the blush out beautifully.

Real Techniques Setting Brush ($7.99): I have two of these brushes and use one every day. I like it for both setting my under eye as well as highlighting.

e.l.f. Small Tapered Brush ($3): This is an extremely versatile brush, I’ve used it as a contour brush, setting brush, highlighting brush and a touch-up powder brush.

e.l.f. Ultimate Blending Brush ($6): If you use powder foundation, you need this brush. This powder brush buffs in setting powder or foundation seamlessly and is so stinkin’ soft. If I go overboard on bronzer, this is also a great fix to soften the color and blend away.

Best Drugstore Eyeshadow Brushes.jpg

ecotools Flat Eyeliner Brush (varies): I just saw this brush in store at Ulta last week, but I’m struggling to track down a link. Real Techniques has a great angled eyeliner brush, which is another great option. I like an eyeliner brush for my brows as well as my eyeliner since I normally used shadow as my eyeliner.

e.l.f. Flawless Concealer Brush ($3): This is a great concealer brush for powders, creams and liquids. It’s held up surprisingly well considering it’s only a few dollars and I’ve really put this thing through the ringer.

e.l.f. Beautifully Precise Smudge Brush ($5): If you like to smoke out your lower lashline, you need a brush that can not only place the color, but also blend it out. This brush does just that without scratching your eyes.

L.A.B.2 Just Blending In Brush ($10, varies): So many great eyeshadow blending brushes are high end, but this one is magic at the drugstore. You can find L.A.B.2 on Amazon or at Walmart.

Real Techniques Eye Duo ($8.99): This brush is now sold in a set, but I love it so much because it’s a great brush for both cream eyeshadows and liquid eyeshadows. It also does a great job of really packing on your lid color for maximum impact.

TIPS: ecotools and Real Techniques go on sale at Ulta BOGO 1/2 off pretty frequently, so definitely stock up then!

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U.K. babes and boys…Glossier has crossed the pond! Glossier traveled north to Canada within the last few months and now they have made their move overseas. In honor of the big launch, I wanted to finally share my review for Glossier’s Wowder Powder, one of their newest products.

Bolt Blogs Glossier Sweatshirt.JPG

ps – The Glossier Sweatshirt is crazy comfy. It has a soft, fuzzy inside and raglan sleeves, which I love on sweaters. I’m wearing a medium for reference.

Glossier Base Makeup Wowder Bolt Blogs.JPG

I have combination skin with dry patches on my cheeks/chin and an oily forehead/nose. My favorite way to apply this powder is with a damp Real Techniques sponge. I can stamp the powder into my skin, melting it into my foundation for a locked-in, flawless finish.

Glossier Wowder Review Before and After.jpg

This is how I look at the end of an 10 hour day without any touch ups to my face. When I do touch up, I use a Real Techniques setting brush. The website makes some serious claims about this powder, so I’m going to go through them all quickly to see how it holds up on my skin:

  • Cut shine: Yes (do you see the above picture?!)
  • Blur the appearance of pores: Yup
  • Set makeup, look like skin: Yes – but not under my eyes. Did not work there for me.
  • Won’t leave a chalky film: Yes, and using a sponge helps. Whenever you apply too much powder, mist with any facial spray.
  • Won’t cake into fine lines: True
  • Won’t flatten skin’s texture: In all honesty, I’m not sure what this claim means, so we’re just going to skip this one.
  • No camera flashback: YES! Even the Snapchat selfie flash. For real.

Wowder comes in three shades – Light/Medium, Dark/Deep and Rich. For $22 you get .25 oz. I got mine on August 6th and I have about half left.

Bottom line: I love this powder. If you want to shop it through my page, you can click HERE and you can check out some of my other faves.

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Happy October! During the summer, I always seem to take a break from makeup. I like to take it easy, sleep in, let a little tan act as my foundation and honestly, it’s just too hot. I’m excited for fall makeup looks with vampy lips and gold lids galore. Today I rounded up 9 different fall lippies at varying price points and 3 different finishes. Finding a darker lip can be intimidating, so start with an affordable gloss to test it out. Once you feel more comfortable, it’s easy to work your way up so something more full coverage.

Glossy Finish: To start

  1. e.l.f. Lip Laquer – Burgandy – These are crazy pigmented and super shiny
  2. Anastasia Beverly Hills Lipgloss – Vamp – Use a lip liner and you’re all set
  3. Buxxom Full-On Lip Polish – Hannah – Definitely minty!

Satin Finish: For everyday

  1. Bite Beauty Amuse Bouche – Pepper (I’m on my second tube of this)
  2. Kaplan MD Perfect Pout Lipstick – Rodeo – The twist-up packaging for this product is so handy and feels super luxe
  3. RevlonSuper Lustrous Lipstick – Plumalicious – So comfortable on the lips

Matte Finish: For the daring

  1. MAC Lipstick Retro Matte Finish – Ruby Woo – THE classic red
  2. Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick – Red Carpet Red – Charlotte would say, “You need this, darling.”
  3. Glossier Generation G Matte Lipstick – Jam – You can also shop other Glossier products through my page here.

Hope you enjoyed some of these fall picks! Let me know your favorites below!

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Today I wanted to update some of the products in my hair care favorites. I went back and did some digging through old blog posts and found that two of these have been in my favorites since at least 2015! My love affair with Bumble & Bumble started back in high school. If Spray de Mode came in a perfume, that would be my signature scent. Let’s dive into the products:

Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo: My friend has used this dry shampoo for awhile and I finally hopped on board. Amika products smell absolutely incredible and they come at a really great value when talking about high-end dry shampoos. You’re getting 5.3 oz for $22, when other comparable brands cost the same, if not more, and you’re only getting 2-3 ounces. Make sure you’re always checking ounces/grams when comparing prices!

DPHUE Cool Blonde Shampoo: This shampoo is POTENT! It truly is a royal purple shampoo, not just slightly tinted lavender. I mix a little in with my normal shampoo for regular washes and once a month will do a full wash with the straight purple. I like this shampoo so much because it doesn’t leave my hair dry like other purple shampoos can.

Bumble & Bumble Thickening Dryspun Spray: If you love the look of piecey texture and lots of volume, you need this spray. It has a bit of a manly smell, but it’s also very “salon” smelling if that makes any sense. It adds some serious grit to your hair and is great for revitalizing yesterday’s style or adding texture to your waves. I always use this in my hair to rough up my waves a little so they look natural and relaxed.

R+Co Chiffon Mousse: This is one of the lightest mousses I have ever used. It really helps add volume when you’re blow drying your hair. I would not recommend using this mousse just to let your hair air dry.

Bumble & Bumble Spray de Mode: I was so happy when I just picked up another bottle of this and found that they’ve changed the cap so it has a twist closure. The mist on this hairspray is so fine that it leaves your hair still feeling smooth and natural, while still giving enough hold to keep your style in place. I would love to know how many bottles of this I’ve gone through since high school…

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