It’s December, which in my family is Birthday Month. We celebrate four different family birthdays in December, including mine. But before I move on to holidays and birthdays, here’s what I loved last month:
Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter
I waxed enthusiastic about these in detail yesterday, so I’ll just say one more time that these are awesome and you should buy them and leave it at that.
The pointed foundation brush from the new Kirkland Signature Cosmetic Brush Set
I bought the Kirkland brush set that came out a couple of years ago and while a couple of those brushes have been duds, a few of them were really great and still get regular use. So when I spotted the new brush set at Costco, I snapped it up. For just over $30, I figured I could take a chance on Kirkland again. I haven’t been disappointed. The selection in this set is somewhat different from the last Kirkland brush set, and the bag is much better than the old one.
My favorite brush in the set, hands down, is the pointed foundation brush. It’s a round, dense, fingertip-shaped brush that’s perfect for concealer. I’ve been using it with Benefit Boi-ing in 01, which has been my go-to concealer for a couple of years. The Kirkland brush is a lot more effective than my finger. I also like the finishing brush for applying my setting powder, and I’ve been using that one pretty much every day as well, but if I had to pick a favorite (like if, say, I were writing a post about my monthly favorites), I’d have to say the pointed foundation brush. Of course, if you want one you have to buy the set, so I suppose I might as well have just named the entire set a favorite, but I really think the pointed foundation brush deserves special mention.
Maybelline Eye Studio MasterDrama Cream Pencil
Perhaps you’ve read that these Maybelline pencils are just as good as Stila Smudge Sticks at half the price. I can’t tell you that these pencils are just as good as Smudge Sticks across the board. I can, however, tell you unequivocally that the Maybelline MasterDrama pencil in Midnight Master is every bit as good as the Stila Smudge Stick in Stingray. I’ve been using the Maybelline pencil to line my upper waterline every day for a few weeks. It’s creamy and pigmented, and it stays put all day. I’m a convert. I won’t pay $20 for a cream pencil again.
Candied Ginger by The Body Shop
During The Body Shop’s Buy the Bag promotion, I picked up a few holiday products, including body scrub and body butter in Candied Ginger, a new holiday scent for 2011.
Oh. my. goodness. Let me tell you something: I SMELL AMAZING. I’ve been using the scrub in the shower and then following up afterward with the body butter, and I’ve honestly found myself distracted throughout the day by how spectacular I smell. I love that they picked ginger instead of gingerbread; I avoid holiday gingerbread scents because they tend to be so overpoweringly cinnamon/vanilla sweet. But these smell fresh and clean and warm and gingery, and I’m crazy about it. I want the whole line. Plus my skin is nice and moisturized.
Tonight the hubs and I are off to Las Vegas for the weekend, and I’m looking forward to a 40-minute milk and sugar scrub at the Bellagio spa on Saturday. If you’ve never experienced a Vichy shower, make it a priority. You won’t be sorry. Don’t stay away just because I’ll be gone, though; thanks to the magic of scheduled posts, I’ve got those promised holiday nail swatches coming up while I’m out of town. And you can follow me on Twitter for beauty updates from Sin City.
