My First Benefit Beauty Purchase: Kitten Powder Puff

I started really getting into beauty products when I started making extra money from my high school job. I found that I could buy all kinds of things and could afford to splurge at Sephora almost every weekend. Back then, my car was paid off, my car insurance was cheap, and my mom still paid my phone bill. Growing up can be such a drag!

One of the very first makeup items I purchased was the Benefit Kitten Powder Puff. I still have it and it sits on my shelf in the bathroom with my perfumes. I've had it for years and I just can't part with it!


I remember seeing these powder puffs on display (there were other colors as well) and something about them was so classic and elegant. I just had to have one!



The powder puff inside the box is full of shimmer and you can blot the puff against your skin to release the shimmer. I've found that it's really nice in the summer across your chest and shoulders.

Do you remember your first 'higher end' beauty purchase? My other big splurge was a Nars eyeshadow in Night Fairy (also no longer available). It was a purple shimmer color and I wore it ALL the time!

Valentine's Day Beauty Wishlist & Gift Guide

I'll be honest, I've never been a big Valentine's Day fan. My friend's and I (back when we were all single) used to celebrate 'Single Awareness Day' instead. That is what Valentine's Day always felt like anyways! Nowadays, I'll make something delicious for dinner and my boyfriend and I will just watch a movie and eat candy. THAT is my favorite way to spend Valentine's Day!

Since Valentine's Day is this Friday, I thought I'd share a little wishlist of sorts. These are all beauty products that I think would be perfect for the upcoming holiday. Also, if you and your significant other exchange gifts this little list may help 'em out (hint hint), right?

1. Dior Miss Dior Eau de Parfum: Because smelling nice on Valentine's Day is a must and fragrances are usually a safe bet for gift giving.

2. Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush in Something About Berry: These blushes are the cutest! A heart box?! Yes, please!

3. Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Lovesick: I love these balm stains. They wear nicely and this color just screams Valentine's Day to me!

4. Essie Nail Polish in Fiji: This color is soft and romantic and will pair nicely with your date night dress or your sweatpants! :)

5. Tarte Amazonian Butter Lipstick in Poppy: The cases on these lipsticks are adorable and the color range is just gorgeous!

6. Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Scrub: You've gotta have soft skin whether you are going on a date or just hanging out at home. Since Winter is slowly fading you've got to start getting your legs ready for shorts and dresses!

What are your Valentine's Day plans this year?

January Favorites

I spent the majority of January sick and rarely left my apartment so I didn't end up wearing much in the makeup department. I did however end up using a lot of skin care products this month!


Makeup:

Physician's Formula Touch of Glow Nude Wear Concealer/Highlighter- I can't rave about this stuff enough! I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I do! The few times I did leave my place during the month of January (you know, when I ran out of chicken noodle soup or cough syrup) I would always put this stuff on under my eyes and it made me look a million times better. It conceals AND brightens and the packaging is super cute! I like the twist up design of this also but I've found I get a little overzealous when twisting the bottom and end up with a little more product than I wanted. I'm practicing though!

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Lip Stain in Smitten- I did end up going to a concert this month as my boyfriend and I received tickets for a Christmas gift. It was at the beginning of the month before I got sick so I did end up getting at least one good face of makeup on during the month of January. I wore this lip stain for the concert and ended up loving it so much it's been in my purse ever since. The color is SO beautiful. It's slightly darker than my lip color and the color stays on for hours. I also love that it feels like a lip balm on the lips. No sticky feeling!

Skin Care:


Softsoap Body Butter Coconut Scrub- I usually use the St Ives Oatmeal and Shea Butter Body Wash but when I ran out last month, I sent my boyfriend to the store for a new bottle and they didn't have it! He ended up picking up this coconut scrub for me instead (He knows me so well!) and it is amazing. I love coconut so the smell is so yummy but it's really the texture that is amazing. It's thick and creamy like a body butter with tiny exfoliating beads in it. I use this to wash my body and to shave my legs since it's so creamy.


Neutrogena Wave Vibrating Power Cleanser- I bought the Wave at Target about a year ago when it was on clearance. I'd always wanted to try it and it was about $5 so for that price I figured, why not? I don't use it every day but I use it whenever my skin starts to feel dry and dull. Since I was sick this month I ended up using it quite a few times. My skin just felt icky and dry and the Wave made my skin feel so much healthier.

Jurlique Moisture Replenishing Day Cream- This day cream came in a Birchbox last year and I used quite a bit of it this month. I use my Benefit Total Moisture at night but my skin was SO dry this month I needed more help. I don't love the smell of this (I'm so not an herbal scent person) but I love how thick it is and how it feels on my skin. It definitely helped revive my dry skin this month.

Lush Sweet Lips Lip Scrub-I've had this product for a while now and I don't even think they sell it anymore but since it's only a sugar scrub I still use it. Along with dry skin this month I've had crazy dry lips. I use this stuff to scrub away the dead skin on my lips before I slather on my lip balm. Even my boyfriend uses this stuff! You can find similar scrubs here.

Random:

Books:

I did quite a bit of reading this month and somehow have ended up with too many library books checked out (I use an online library check out app on my phone/iPad) so now I'm trying to get through them all. I read Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight and I really enjoyed it! It's almost like a dark Gossip Girl murder mystery full of twists and by the end of it I was dying to finish it so I could piece everything together. I also started reading the Little House on the Prairie Collection. My mom bought me the boxed set of books when I was a child and I've already read them but I decided to read them again after she found the collection the last time I visited her. They are pretty quick reads but I really enjoy them. I'm currently almost done with the second book and am reading them in between all of my library check outs!

TV Show:

Friday Night Lights- OH. MY. GOSH. I am obsessed. I watched all 5 seasons of Friday Night Lights in 2 weeks while I was sick. I couldn't stop. I have had it in my Netflix Queue forever and always wanted to watch it because HELLO CONNIE BRITTON (love her!) but always avoided it because...football. I am SO happy I started watching it though because the show was amazing. I already miss it and feel the need to start it over again. Also, Tim Riggins. He is probably my favorite character off any TV show I have ever seen. My boyfriend is tired of me saying the words Tim Riggins but I mean look at him!!! Did you watch this show? If so, we could talk about it all day if you want to! ;)

I cannot believe it is already February, where is the year going?!

A Beauty-full Christmas

Cheesy title, I know! But my Christmas really was full of beauty as I got quite a few beauty related products. I didn't want to do a full 'What I got for Christmas' post but I did want to share the beauty related items I was gifted as I was VERY excited about them. I will probably do some full reviews on some of these items at a later date but since I just got them I will have to play around with them a bit first.

My boyfriend really surprised me this year with his gifts! He told me that he bought my gifts based on things he's heard me talk about or mention throughout the year so I was definitely curious as to what they were going to be. He bought me the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette and I was practically speechless! I've always admired the Naked palettes but being on a budget I never allowed myself to actually purchase one. I couldn't believe that he had remembered that I wanted one and even picked the perfect one for me!

The most surprising gift from him though was my new Lancome Le Curler eyelash curler. My beloved Shu Uemura eyelash curler broke last year (Boo!) and I had to make do with a drugstore lash curler for the time being. My boyfriend told me he actually checked with Sephora and went to go pick up the last Shu Uemura left at the store and when he got there they didn't have one. The lady who was helping him suggested the Lancome Le Curler instead and he purchased that for me. I can't believe he remembered my eyelash curler sob story and thought to replace it. He's the best! I am ECSTATIC to have a nice, new eyelash curler. I'm telling you, the higher end ones really are worth it!

Another thoughtful gift from my boyfriend was a set of Tweezerman Nail clippers. I have an unhealthy obsession with my nails. I can't stand for them to be long and they can't be too short either. The nails have to match on both hands and if I feel a piece that doesn't feel right I have to clip it. Basically, I trim my nails every day without fail. So far, I am loving these clippers and it is so nice to have a brand new pair!

In my stocking (which my boyfriend fills every year), I found 2 packages of Softlips lip balm. I've used this lip balm since high school and it's the best. My favorite is Vanilla (although they had a special one for Halloween called Marshmallow Ghost that I wish I could find again as I lost mine!). These lip balms are super hydrating and so small they fit anywhere! I have one in my purse, one in my bathroom cabinet and one on my nightstand (ummm...obsessed!).

We went to my mom's for Christmas and my mom told me that she experienced Ulta for the first time this year when buying my gifts. I had no idea she'd never been there but she thought it was so neat! I told my mom I wanted a curling iron in the size 1 1/4 and she picked up this Hot Tools one for me. I usually use a 1 inch curling iron to make curls in my hair but I've been wanting a larger one to make softer waves so I'm super excited about it!

My mom also picked up 3 Essie nail colors for me along with a Seche Clear base coat that a lady at Ulta recommended. She gave me Shearling Darling which is a dark berry red, Sable Collar which is a plummy brown shimmery color, and Pure Pearlfection which is clear polish with iridescent shimmer.

This year I was surprised to get a Victoria's Secret body lotion and fragrance mist from my Grandma. I just can't picture her in Victoria's Secret shopping! :) She picked out the Sheer Love scent for me and the scent is described as fresh white cotton and luminous pink lily. It smells really light, fresh and slightly floral and I think it will be great for Spring!

I'm so excited to start the new year off with my new beauty products!