Fall Favorites

These aren't all new-to-me products or even new products, but these are what I've really been loving this Fall, whether I figured out how to make something work or a great color combination. I'll provide links to the products/companies when I can.

 Goldilux loose eyeshadow by Sugarpill. I bought this months ago and only just opened it. Why did I wait so long? How  can I even describe how beautiful this is? Have you ever wanted to make yourself just gold. This isn't some sparkly, fly-away powder; Goldilux gilds whatever you put it on. By far and away the best gold eyeshadow, ever.

 Know what goes great with Goldilux? NYX Heat single eyeshadow. My camera didn't quite pick up just how gorgeous this color is. It's a warm, slightly shimmery cranberry. I couldn't even find a swatch online that really shows how beautiful this color is in person. The great thing about NYX is it's affordable, high quality,  and you can find it at the drugstore














Doucce is a brand I discovered through my Boxycharm subscription. I have one of their lipsticks, which is okay (I'm a liquid to matte lipstick fan and this was a traditional style lipstick I got) however they've knocked it out of the park with their Punk Volumizer mascara. I've been a die-hard fan of waterproof Diorshow for years. It was my holy grail. But I think Doucce has given Dior a run for the money. While the price is comparable to Dior, so there's no savings, there are some things about this mascara I like more than Dior. First off, I can touch my lashes throughout the day and they feel soft and flexible, not crusty, stiff, and brittle. This coats, volumizes, and separates beautifully. And another huge thing that shouldn't be a thing? It comes off like a dream with a makeup wipe. I love Diorshow but man, it's a pain in the ass to remove at the end of the day. Doucce Punk Volumizer comes off easily with my generic, Walmart-brand wipes. No raccoon eyes from slept-in mascara in the morning!

 Palmetto Derma Rejuvenating Antioxidant Mask, I love you! This was another Boxycharm find, and it is expensive (this jar is $64 alone, so it tripled the value of the box itself) but it leaves my skin feeling amazing after. It's a clay-based mask that lifts oils but doesn't dry me out. The wonderful thing about it too is that you don't need a lot, which makes the product last longer. I apply with a flat foundation brush and let it sit for the recommended 20 minutes, and after, my skin feels clean, soft, and refreshed. My skin is both aging and freaking out with acne breakouts so this has given me some much-needed relief.














 I bought the Stila Stay All Day liquid liner with my Birchbox points  before I canceled my subscription because I didn't want to lose them. I had never tried this liner and decided to give it a try. Guys, this really does stay all day. I've cried on this liner, slept in it (shh, don't tell), sweat with it on and it doesn't budge. But, if your eyes water before it's dried, it does make a damn mess, so I will provide that disclaimer. Oily lids will make it smear a little, which makes sense since oil will break down most waterproof products, so it's best to use this with a primer or a shadow underneath. I've been reaching for this instead of my MAC liquid and gel liners because it goes on so damn easy and stays forever. It's actually kind of a pain to take off with a makeup wipe, even.











 Ulta Buffing brush. It doesn't look like much, does it? I don't obsess over specific brushes very often, and when I do, they're usually eye brushes. But guys... this has changed my foundation game. I was having a super hard time getting the Smashbox BB cream to work for me (and I bought it, so I want to use it) and I had tried different brushes, sponges, and out of desperation applied it with my fingers once. Nothing seemed to make it work. The other day I angry-shopped at Ulta and was browsing brushes and saw this one. I petted the display brush, felt the soft, densely-packed bristles, and decided to buy it. The next day I used it with the BB cream and it went on like a dream. Simple little $16 brush has saved my foundation game. No streaks, doesn't shed, and small enough to get under my eyes and in the crevices of my nose. I've found my holy grail foundation brush and paid almost nothing for it thanks to sales, coupons, and spending Ulta points. Win!














Cult Nail Polish in Boneyards. Guys, can we talk about this color? This is my perfect cool-toned dark grey. It's 5-free and (I think) vegan. I've gotten so many compliments on my nails while wearing this color. It's just... so beautiful. That's all I can say.

FOTD-- Kat Von D Makeup!

Vamp level: Queen

Welcome to Beauty Crow! I am by no means a professional when it comes to makeup, just someone who loves makeup and has a strong sense of vanity. I also love reviewing stuff and have recently started subscribing to beauty boxes, which are exposing me to a lot of new products that I thought I'd share with you all. I'm doing this purely for the fun of it, and it also gets me using some stuff that I buy or maybe get a sample of and then don't touch for ages and ages. It's also helping me branch out from only using MAC, which I love, but I'm finding out there are so many amazing brands out there, especially some indie brands that are awesome, and drugstore brands are also upping their game.

For my introductory post, I thought I would try out some new (to me) products and write about them, since anyone who knows me knows how brutally honest I am about stuff. I used several Kat Von D products today, as I had a sample of foundation, a travel size mascara and liner, and of course, the Shade and Light contour kit. Also featured are some items I got from beautyboxes and some drugstore stuff, as well as some other prestige brands. Let's play! I linked most stuff in my post, as well as links to the beauty boxes themselves if you'd like to join (and clicking my links gives me points too!).



























Let's start with the face stuff:

I started out by applying the Hey Honey Good Morning honey silk facial serum that I got in this month's Ipsy glam bag. I've never used a serum before, so I'm not sure what it is really supposed to do, but a tiny little bit covered my whole face. I followed that with my new favorite moisturizer from Temple Spa that I got from my very first Birchbox. It's light but very moisturizing, and as I get older I'm seeing my skin change and I'm realizing I need to take better care of it, so this moisturizer is my new bff. Over that, I started applying Kat Von D's Lock-It Tattoo Foundation in the shade Light 48. I got this as a sample from a Sephora order, so I didn't have a choice in shade. This is the 4th lightest shade in the line and too dark for me. Looking at the card it was attached to, I'd guess Light 45 is probably my color. Anyway, I applied the foundation with a flat bronzer brush from Crown Brush (super affordable brushes and very good quality) and found that the coverage was excellent. I also used a MAC concealer on some redness and zits under that.

Because the foundation was a little darker than I usually use, I went in with the darkest shade of Kat Von D's Shade and Light contour palette in the hollows of my cheeks, temples, and sides of my nose with my new favorite brush, The Velvet Luxe Flawless Face brush by IT Cosmetics. I also applied the lightest and medium lightest shade from the contour palette on my forehead, nose, cheekbones, and chin, followed by Hikari blush in Tango on the apples of my cheeks, applied with my MAC 129. I was almost scared of how bright pink it is, reminding me quite a bit of Dollymix by MAC, but it is a lovely shade, silky smooth and buildable.  Everything was blended with my MAC kabuki 182.

My eyes! Oh my eyes:

Always always always, I start with my Urban Decay primer potion. For today's look, I started with a base of MAC paintpot in Blackground and topped/blended it with MAC Carbon eyeshadow. I dabbed some Sugarpill Countess loose shadow on my lid with a damp shader brush from Crown Brush. My browbone has both Shroom and Phloof! from MAC. I used Kat Von D tattoo liner in Trooper on my upper lid. I'm not sure yet how I feel about this liner; the applicator is actually a brush made up of many many fine hairs made to look like a felt tip liner. It's a thinner formula than I'm used to, but definitely buildable. I'm going to need to try it more to see how I really feel about it. So far: meh. We'll see. I also used Kat Von D Immortal Lash. I'm surprised how much I actually like the weird brush on this. It separated well, and the mascara itself gave good lengthening and volume. I'm concerned, though, because this product isn't waterproof and my eyes water like crazy. In my brows I used NYX eyebrow cake powder in the darkest shade and set it all with a brow gel I got in this month's Julep box called Lock Down Your Brows. I can feel that my brows are set without feeling gross, which is a plus. To finish off, I have MAC Blacktrack fluidline on my waterline, because again, my eyes water and that stuff does not move.

And what's on my lips? My new favorite lip color, I'm pretty sure: Copenhagen Soft Matte Lip Cream by NYX. I applied a few coats to build up color (and colored outside the lines a few times, whoops) but it's gorgeous and dark and vampy and not drying at all (which one typically expects from a matte lip product) and I love it so much. Beware though: it is matte, but it is not kissproof, as I tested on John.

I hope you enjoyed this inaugural post! Some of my friends have asked that I do Youtube tutorials, and I'd love to, but alas, my laptop's webcam doesn't work and I don't have a decent camera for shooting video.

Indirect sunlight

Direct sunlight. Countess is just a hint of color