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Lancome Liqui-Pencil delivers drama for days!

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When the Lancome Liqui-Pencil eyeliners landed on my desk I was excited about the wide range of shades, from fun brights, to smokey eye staples. I was very pleasantly surprised when I swatched and tested them out on my watery, allergy prone eyes that they ARE super long wearing and pigmented. YAY!

The Liqui-Liners from Lancome have become my most reached for eyeliners as of late. I find them extremely soft in texture, comfortable to apply and wear, and they last all day. Even when I tightline and line my lower waterline, there is no irritation or migration of the liner. They set quickly, and just to give you an example of how long wearing they are, after I swatched the shades on my arm (pic below) I tried to wipe them off with a makeup remover wipe. They didn’t budge. I had to use an oil based makeup remover.

Lancome Drama Liqui-Pencils daydreamingbeauty.com

I’ve been using Lame in my waterline to brighten up my eyes, and have been especially loving Minuit, Parisian Night, and Ampoule. And of course, a girl can never have too many browns and a solid black.

Lancome Liqui-Pencil liners are available at Lancome and Sephora for $23 each.

Keep up with Lancome on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube

Kismet Cosmetics Succulent Liquid Lipstick | Flamingo & On Point

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Kismet cosmetics brand was created by a makeup artist with a love for fashion. She wanted Kismet to be an extension of your fashion style. I tested out two of the liquid lipsticks from Kismet’s Fall Succulent Collection. Flamingo is a bright, cool pink, and On Point is a classic pink, with orchid and nude undertones. First let me say I’m not a huge fan of the currently popular super matte long lasting lip look. My lips tend to be dry, and I just don’t like the matte texture of most liquid lipsticks.
The Succulent lipsticks are an entirely different product. They are creamy and lightweight, almost a mousse like texture. They aren’t quite matte, but not glossy either. They leave a comfortable and soft feel on the lip. They do transfer when eating and drinking, but once that has worn off you are left with a nice stain. They don’t dry out my lips despite the lengthy wear time.

Flamingo is a color I love, but it’s a bit too bright on me. On Point is a perfect pinkish shade. Kismet claims it is versatile enough to work on any skin tone, and I believe it. There are 6 shades in the Fall/Winter collection from Kismet, so there is sure to be a shade that speaks to you! Kismet is made in the US, and vegan, cruelty free, and free of gluten, parabens, and lanolin. Each liquid lipstick is $22. Kismet also offers Velvet Semi Matte lipsticks and nail polish. I love that the brand is dedicated to giving back to local charities.

Find Kismet online, on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Guerlain Winter Fairy Tale Holiday collection

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Guerlain Winter Fairy Tale Holiday collection daydreamingbeauty.com*press samples, affiliate links*

The Guerlain Winter Fairy Tale holiday collection is SO beautiful, it may just take your breath away! The collection includes Ors et Merveilles Eye & Blush Palette, Terracotta Collector Bronzing Powder, Météorites Perle des Neiges, Météorites Voyage Enchanté Illuminating Matte Powder, Maxi Shine Lip Gloss, Maxi Velvet Matte Liquid Lipstick, and Nuit Merveilleuse Nail Polish.

Whether you are a Guerlain collector, makeup aficionado, or just love limited edition cosmetics, this collection is sure to please. This is my first Guerlain Holiday collection, and will not be the last. The refillable compact is an investment, but one that will last years to come. The Météorites Perle des Neiges looks like a beautiful frost covered snow globe. Though you may feel this collection is too pretty to use, it’s quite versatile and I find myself reaching for these items quite often! Find more info about each item in the Winter Fairy Tale Holiday Collection below.

Ors et Merveilles Eye & Blush Palette $90 – The velvet pouch holds two brushes and a sleek gold compact housing five delicately opalescent eyeshadows. These shades are buttery soft, and easily blendable. Shades of champagne, brown, gold, plum, and pink easily take you from a soft daytime look, to a sultry smokey eye for your holiday parties. Beneath the shadows, you will find four pink toned blushes of varying intensity and finish. The softly milled and highly pigmented pinks are beautiful used alone, or layered. Use a light hand, as they pack a punch of pink! This palette holds quite a bit, including a generous sized mirror. Perfect for holiday travels, or just a touch up at a festive party.

Terracotta Collector Bronzing Powder $55 – Guerlain is well-known for their renowned Terracotta bronzers. This limited Holiday compact looks like it’s covered with a shimmering sprinkle of fresh snow. The buildable and smooth powder mimics the kiss of sun with its golden amber tones. As always, the Terracotta bronzer is enriched with moisturizing properties, so skin never looks dry. The bronzers come in an array of tones to suit your bronzing desires.

Météorites Perle des Neiges $80 – The ever popular Météorites are housed in a beautiful round compact with baubles of light reflecting and iridescent pearly highlights in magical balls and stars. Illuminating shades included are: beige to even skin tone, champagne to illuminate and gold for a slight sun-kissed look. This years Holiday Météorites comes with a mirror in the top of the lid, and a powder puff with a gold bow. This has been a go-to highlight for me since receiving it. Not only do I feel like a princess using this compact, the light shades are subtle and easily wearable.

Météorites Voyage Enchanté Illuminating Matte Powder  $179 – This limited edition refillable compact holds Météorites Voyage Enchanté, a white powder meant for reducing shine and illuminating the skin.

Maxi Shine Lip Gloss $30 – Maxi Shine Reflets Etoilés adds an intense pearlescent shimmer to your lips on its own or over lipstick.

Maxi Velvet Matte Liquid Lipstick – $30 This limited edition liquid lipstick provides long-lasting and intense color with a matte finish.

Nuit Merveilleuse Nail Polish $26 – This beautiful blue toned purple is filled with snow like shimmer and enriched with adhesive and acrylic resins for long lasting wear.

What do you think about the Guerlain Winter Fairy Tale Holiday Collection? Are there any must haves for you? You can find the collection at Saks by clicking the individual links above, or at Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom, and Sephora.

Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil

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Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil daydreamingbeauty.com*press sample, affiliate links*

The new Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencils are my brow BFFs! My thin brows need some major filling in, and extending of the tails. The Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting pencils are triangle shaped to easily fill in brows of all shapes and sizes, and the semi firm formula combines the best qualities of a pencil, powder and wax. The pencil adds dimension to fine brow hair giving them density and fullness, and the wax provides a light hold. The result is natural looking fuller brows in one step, with just one product.

Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil daydreamingbeauty.com

The pencil is a sleek metal tube with a brow spoolie on the opposite end from the triangle tipped pencil. The design offers control and precision when filling in brows. There are 9 shades available. I have the shades Warm Blonde and Soft Brunette. They both work perfectly for my brows. The shades are very close in color, and I am able to use them interchangeably. They are both quite ash toned, which is perfect for me.

Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil daydreamingbeauty.com

You can find the new Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencils at Sephora for $32. Hourglass cosmetics are formulated without parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and GMOs. Hourglass is also cruelty free, and the wax in these pencils is vegan.

BECCA Afterglow Palette

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BECCA knows how to make us glow for the Holidays! This season they have several new items to help us get our glow on. The Afterglow palette houses 5 pans with 1.4-1.6 grams of product. Included shades are Moonstone, Rose Gold and Topaz Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed, and Wild Honey and Flowerchild Mineral Blushes. None of these are new releases, but the palette is brand new and limited edition. The best sellers housed in the Afterglow Palette will work on a variety of skin tones and shades. I love to use the Moonstone as a highlight, and Rose Gold and Topaz as eyeshadows. You can mix and match to customize your look.

If you’ve never tried BECCA’s Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed formula, you are missing out. It’s a smooth powder that almost feels like a satiny cream. The Wild Honey shade looks like a basic bronzey shade, but it’s oh so versatile! I love to use it as a blush, or even as a contour shade with a pop of Flowerchild on the apples of my cheeks. Flowerchild is a vibrant peach with a hint of gold shimmer. (Think NARS Orgasm, but much softer and less pink) I’ve been putting this palette to good use almost daily for the past week. It’s so pigmented, I’ve barely made a dent. You can find the Afterglow Palette at ULTA for $39.50

BECCA Cosmetics Afterglow palette swatches daydreamingbeauty.com

Also new to the Define Your Light collection this Fall is the Backlight Priming Filter. This primer adds radiance and a healthy glow to illuminate and even your skin under your foundation. The whipped cream is infused with three filtering luminescent pearls. Backlighting Pearls are inspired by photography’s golden hour, and diffuse light to soften your complexion. Filtering Pearls even skin tone and provide warmth and radiance by filtering the light between your skin and foundation. Afterlighting Pearls create a soft focus effect and radiate through your foundation for a sophisticated glow.

The texture of the Backlight Priming Filter is beautiful, smooth and applies easily to skin. It smells fantastic, just like the Bronzing Skin Perfector. Personally, I found this to be a bit too glowy for my skin. I’ve been oily in my t zone lately and I just can’t make this work all over my face. However, it looks stunning applied on the cheekbones, down the center of my nose, and on top of my cupid’s bow. So, I have been using this as a highlighting cream either before or after applying my foundation. I’ve also used it on my decolletage, and it looks gorgeous for a night out!

Starting 10/27 on Sephora you will be able to grab the BECCA x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Glow palette. This LE beauty consists of Champagne Pop, Blushed Copper and Pearl Pressed Shimmering Skin Perfectors. All three shades are LE, and Pearl is brand new. You can find pics and swatches on Crazy Beautiful Makeup. It’s gorgeous isn’t it?

Check out BECCA on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. You can search for their products on social media with this hashtag: #DefineYourLight. Let me know if you have any BECCA faves below!

Osmosis Water Color Eyeshadow

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*press samples*
Osmosis Skin care and Colour Cosmetics are getting a lot of press lately, and with good reason. This cruelty free brand supports skin’s own ability to repair itself and eliminate inflammation. I haven’t tried the skin care products myself, but have heard positive feedback from several trusted blogger friends.


I tested out the Osmosis Water Color eyeshadows in Topaz (warm bronze) and Pink Champagne (silvery pink). These unique shadows are not a pigment, not a cream shadow, nor powder. They combine the best qualities and pigmentation of them all. They have a crease free hydrating formula Infused with green tea, vitamins A,C,E, and an antioxidant rich goji berry blend to nurture and benefit the skin. Water Colors come in 7 colors, and each jar contains 2 grams of product for $14. Other shades available are Opal, Pewter, Amethyst, Azure, and Onyx.

I’ve found the best application method for me is to gently pat a small amount on my lid with my finger. Build up as needed. The shades can be worn alone, or combined. As promised, there is no creasing and the shadows stay vibrant and locked in place all day.

To be honest, pictures don’t quite capture the beauty and shine of these gorgeous shadows. To compare them with other pigment/shadow hybrids, I would say they are more vibrant, not as dry, and don’t crease like Stila Magnificent Metals. They are brighter and creamier than L’Oreal Infalliable eyeshadow. The Water Color shadows are much smoother, more pigmented and easier to work with than the Milani Fierce Foil shadows. They have the beauty and depth of a glitter pigment, but they are easier to work with. Basically the Osmosis Water Color shadows are in a makeup league of their own. Have you tried them? I’d love to hear your Osmosis skin care or cosmetics faves in the comments below!

Smashbox Cosmetics Favorites

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Camera Ready BB Water - This spf30 BB Water is a very thin liquid offering sheer coverage. While it’s not for me on its own(need more coverage to hide redness and acne scarring), I find it makes a nice primer under foundation. You might like this if you prefer sheer, weightless coverage. This is the shade light/neutral which I would compare to Too Faced Born This Way foundation in the shade Nude, or IT Cosmetics CC Cream in medium. After lots of experimenting with the BB Water, I’ve found a combination that works beautifully for my needs. I combine this with two or three drops of my CoverFX Custom Cover drops in N20, which is slightly too light. This combination works beautifully to cover up redness, unevenness and acne scarring. I usually will mix the two foundations, apply with my fingers then buff in lightly to blend. The other way I’ve been wearing this is mixed with my favorite, IT Cosmetics CC+ cream. Both of these combinations give fantastic coverage and lasting power, with a beautiful finish and lightweight feel.

The Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer is something I didn’t know I needed until I tried it. I look at it as a lightweight eye cream, primer and brightener in one. It has a hint of pink iridescence to brighten up those tired eyes. Helps ensure a smooth application of under eye concealer that stays put.

The Smashbox CC Spot Concealer has earned its way into my “favorite concealer” spot. I have NEVER used a concealer that worked well at both hiding dark under eye circles and acne scars/hyperpigmentation. It sets quickly, so be sure to blend right after you apply. Works well with a brush or fingers. This super pigmented concealer is extremely lightweight, blends easily and lasts all day. I haven’t tested it’s 24 hour wear claim! I love that it comes with a tiny applicator that allows you to pinpoint areas to conceal. So handy! I use Fair/Light under my eyes and Light/Neutral on my face. 

The Smashbox Photo Finish Eye Primer is my go-to eyelid primer. It’s thick, and you only need a small dab. Your shadows won’t budge, even in hot and humid weather. 

You know I’m a sucker for eyeshadow palettes, and I love the Smashbox Full Exposure and Double Exposure palettes. I love neutrals, which is basically what you get with both. The purple shadows in Double Exposure are outstanding. The double ended shadow brushes that come with the palette are fantastic. 

Do you have any Smashbox faves? I’d love to hear! 

Wander Beauty on QVC

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Wander Beauty is a new to me brand founded by supermodel Lindsay Ellingson and Divya Gugnani. The line focuses on innovative and easy to apply formulas, with chic and compact packaging. I’ve been testing out several pieces from the recent collections that are available on QVC.

The Four-Piece Paris Collection consists of a luxurious collection that captures the vibrancy of Paris. This set includes Catch the Light Highlighter, Exquisite Eye Liquid Shadow, Love Lock Hydrating Lip Gel, and The Wanderess Cheek Tint. The first thing I notice is how chic the packaging is. This collection is also super travel friendly. I’m planning on taking this on my birthday overnight to Boston, and not overpack with too much makeup. ? This collection is available at QVC for $49. If you purchased each item separately, you’d pay $100.

The Exquisite Eye Liquid Shadow goes on as a silky and cooling liquid and dries to a budge proof eye brightening solid. You can use it as an eyeshadow base, wear on its own, layer them, or use as eyeliner. This is my favorite product that I tested. I’m having a moment wearing bronze all over my lid on its own. It’s gorgeous, and super easy to do a pulled together look that makes my blue-gray eyes pop! The shadows come in Champagne, Dove Grey, Mocha and Bronze. The formula contains green tea and vitamins c and e, for added antioxidant benefits. The liquid shadows are $26 each, or you can get a duo on QVC for $34.

The Wanderess Cheek Tint in Dusty Rose is a serum formula including iron, zinc, magnesium, and copper to restore and balance the skin while giving it a radiant glow. It’s a super blendable formula, and complementary color for a wide range of skin tones.

The Love Lock Hydrating Lip Gel is a luxe gel formula with a smooth balm texture and light feel. It contains natural humectants and antioxidants to hydrate and nourish lips. Parisian Red is a classic shade, suitable for all skin tones.

The Up Close Kiss Lipstick is smooth and creamy, from the addition of coconut oil. The rich long lasting formula comes in two shades: Rose and Spice. The lipstick retails for $24, or you can get the duo on QVC for $30. I would grab the sets on QVC while they are available, for a super value!

Next on my to try list are the On-The-Glow Blush and Illuminator stick and the Hydrating Foundation Stick. I’m impressed with the brand so far, and can’t recommend them highly enough! Have you tried Wander Beauty yet?

Find Wander Beauty on Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram.

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