March Favorites!

Oh, dear God, it's April. When did that happen? Well, here are the products that most impressed me during the month of March. Some are new, some are new to me, and some are old loves. Have fun, and leave me your faves in the comments.

Eyes
Naked Palette--Half Baked/Smog
Who doesn't adore the Pixiwoo sisters? I mean, really? They're precious, and their tutorials are amazing, and surprisingly easy to recreate. One of my favorites was a Victoria's Secret-inspired bronze look that used these two shadows from the Urban Decay Naked palette. Half Baked on the lid, and Smog at the lashline (upper and lower) look spectacular on hazel eyes. It's my go-to these days.

Anastasia Eye Lights Matte in Camille
Sure, you can use this to add a matte highlight to your browbone or inner corner...yada, yada, yada. Whatevs. Personally, I love to run this creamy, slightly pink fleshtone over the darkest parts of my undereye, then go over it with my regular concealer. There's no tugging or pulling, and the shade is just pink enough to brighten without going over into the too-peach category that so many brightening concealers tend to lean toward. I'm super pale with yellow undertones, so while salmon concealers look gorgeous on everyone else, I look like I smudged coral eyeshadow under my eyes. It's not a good look, trust me. This works perfectly.

Lips
Flower Beauty Shine On Lipgloss in Pretty In Petunia
Hello, gorgeous! This has been the perfect wash of coral-ly goodness for the dreary Spring we've had so far. Whereas salmon concealer looks horrendous under my eyes, salmon lipgloss brightens up the face like crazy! The formula is really beautiful, too; not to sticky, decent wear, and moisturizing. It's lovely, and you can't beat the Walmart pricetag.

Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush in Strawberry Fizz
This stays in my purse. In a pinch, it looks beautiful on its own, for a lot of shine and a little color. You can also pop it over a coordinating liner (Rimmel Rose Quartz is a good one) for a deeper, super sparkly, shade. Plus, it smells like candy.

Face
Flower Beauty Skincognito Foundation Stick
You know how in my review I mentioned that this went on patchy and didn't cover well? Well, I'm going back to update it. The product is fine--my application was off. I used a brush to blend the foundation into my skin, when really, I should have been using my hands. The heat from my (clean and sanitized) hands melts the product into the skin for a much smoother, more even application. Used over a primer, this lasts all day, and the finish is completely natural looking. The coverage has been much better, as well. I've been wearing this about every other day, and love the look of it.

Flower Beauty Ready, Set, Glow Blush/Bronzer Duo in Beachy Keen
I know, I know, I'm on a Flower Beauty kick. I can't help it! All of the products I picked up have, legitimately, become everyday staples. This blush has usurped my NARS Orgasm, and the bronzer is just the ticket for a beachy glow. I highly recommend checking this one out.

*Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Branded
This is sort of an honorable mention because it's been in a few Favorites now, and this is not the intended use for the product, but it works. If you like the look of Benefit Watt's Up but don't have it handy, dab a little of this particular shade onto your cheekbones, inner corners, brow bone, and cupid's bow for an almost identical look. Added bonus: it's not going to budge. Well...the cupid's bow budges, but nothing else does. Plus, it's $6 compared to $30.

Skin
Basin Face Mask
I didn't supply a link for this because you can't get it online...which really sucks. However, if you happen to have a Basin store near you (or are planning a trip to Disney World--there's one in Downtown Disney), do yourself a favor and hop on over and get a custom face mask. For about twelve bucks, you'll receive a colloidial clay base of your choosing (mine is strawberry), and a bottle of glycerine mixed with whatever ingredients you decide. I picked green tea and sea kelp...I think. It's not in front of me, but it is marked on the bottle. Mix the two together whenever you want to apply. I needed a mask to brighten skin and fight inflammation, since I tend to get puffy. This has worked like a charm! The lady at the counter told me I could get three to five masks out of the set, but I've had it since October, and have made well over half a dozen and it's still going strong.

Meaningful Beauty Skin Brightening Treatment
For years, I have been infuriated by informericials for Cindy Crawford's Meaningful Beauty. They talk about Ms. Crawford like she was the Cryptkeeper! "What? She's 43 and still looks sooo young!!" Because she is young. Forty-three ain't what it used to be. My mom had a one year-old when she was 43. I'm not quite 33, and the mere thought that I could be considered "old" in ten years is downright heartwrenching. That said, I've been fighting some dark spots for a bit, and ran across a bottle of this on sale at Sephora. (Meaningful Beauty has revamped the formula and changed the packaging) Desperate times called for desperate measures. And you know what? It's really good stuff. My skin looks incredibly bright and alive, and my makeup applies better, too. Honestly, I'm considering ordering the set when I need to restock my skincare. It's about forty bucks for five pieces (fifty for seven pieces), and my eye cream alone costs thirty at MAC (and I'm not thrilled...review to come). That's a serious deal, money's tight, and I know that at least one product is a winner. It galls me to use this stuff, but it's a good product at a great price, and I'm not going to miss out (or not tell you about it) because of ego.

*Replenix All-Trans-Retinol Eye Repair Cream
Here's another honorable mention, but only because I'm never going to purchase this. It's $75 freaking dollars. That's not happening. Anyhoo, I had a deluxe sample of this stuff, and my current eye cream was a bit of a disappointment, so I gave it a shot. It's wonderful. It's emolient and moisturizing and makes my little fine lines softer and less noticeable and I love it...and it's crazy expensive. Darn it.

Hair
Garnier Fructis Hydra Recharge Shampoo/Conditioner/One-Minute Moisture-Plenish
This is going to get a real review later, but I've been using this for a while and really, really like it. BzzAgent sent me this set to test out and give my opinion on, so it's been in my shower for a few weeks. In that time, I've been able to stop using my leave-in treatment. That's astounding. Plus, while it's not color-safe, I haven't noticed any fading. I even used a white towel to dry my hair, and had to look extremely hard to find even a trace of transfer, and I'm still not positive there was any. I've been using mainly the shampoo and conditioner, but once every one to two weeks I'll throw in the one-minute treatment. My hair's been smooth, shiny, and soft. Best of all, the system smells like tropical fruit, so I feel like I'm showering with a mixed drink--I just wish it came with one of those little umbrellas!