February Favorites!

IT LIVES!!!! IT LIVES!!!!!!!

Believe it or not, guys, I'm still not 100%. I'm not quite zombified anymore, but I'm still kind of "meh", so I apologize again for the lack of posting. However, I'm up to typing today (saints be praised!), so here we go with the February Favorites!!

In keeping with the I-feel-drugged-and-horrible-so-why-bother-with-anything theme, I've been going around with just enough makeup to keep from scaring small children. The thing is, I'm honestly loving this more natural look, and am thinking of keeping it for Spring and Summer. It's too hot for a full face of makeup around here, anyway, and the humidity just melts it off. I'm also finding that I look younger and more glowy with the lighter, fresher looks. Considering I've been sick since, oh, Thanksgiving, I'm taking this as a trade-off. So, without further ado...

Eyes
Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal in Barely Branded
I'm crazy pale (MAC NW15--yes, it really goes that low), so this is basically skin-tone on me. It adds a light shimmer to my lids, and also makes a beautiful inner corner highlight. I do recommend using this over a primer, as it tends to crease.

Urban Decay Glinda Palette in South
This, again, adds a beautiful shimmer to the lids, but in a much deeper color than the Color Tattoo. This is a gorgeous taupe shade, with oodles of silver microglitter. There is some fallout, but the wow factor this gives as an all-over lid color is worth the hassle. I like to use it on the lid only, then fill in the area from crease to brow with Foxy or W.O.S. from Naked Basics.

Lips
Burts Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil
For those days when all you need is a little moisture. I used a really drying lipstick one day, and paid for it the next. One day of giving my lips a break and only using this fixed me right up. I just keep one in my purse at all times now.

Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Lip Gloss in Strawberry Fizz
I love this gloss. It's just a darn fine tube of lip gloss. The color is barely there, but the shimmer is out of this world. On top of that, the gloss isn't sticky, but feels like butter on your lips. It's fairly long-wearing, and smells like candy. Actually, according to Thomas, it smells exactly like Dennis the Menace cereal from when he was a kid. I didn't know that existed, so I can't vouch, but he's pretty set on that opinion. So, there you go. In case you were wondering, VS Strawberry Fizz smells like Dennis the Menace cereal. *cue "The More You Know" rainbow and music*

Face
Josie Maran Argan Oil Color Stick in Love
I've raved about this enough. It blends beautifully, feels amazing, and is DEAD-ON the same shade as my skin's natural flush. It also travels easily and doesn't require a brush. There just aren't enough good things I can say about this.

Benefit Watt's Up
Yet another product I just can't shut up about. The color is a stunning light champagne, so it's not too pink and not too white. There's shimmer, but it's not glitter. It's such a fine shimmer that it's really more of a glimmer, and leaves the most natural looking glow on the skin. Again, it travels like a dream, and no brush is required. Stunning!

Hair
Got 2B Smooth Operator Hairspray with Cashmere
I used to use this daily, and then I moved and it was packed up and forgotten about. I recently rediscovered this product, and am hooked again. The hold is soft and touchable, but it does hold. It also smells heavenly. One of my little voice students even commented on how pretty I smelled. The scent's not overpowering, though, so you don't have to worry about knocking people over as you walk by. The spray is also anti-humidity, which is a necessity down here in the Ninth Cir--um...Deep South.

Nails
Zoya Wednesday
This came in the first Glossybox I received, and I've been in love with it ever since. It's the perfect beachy color--seagreen with a tinge of blue, and a little bit dirty. Love, love, love, love, love!

LA Colors Cocktail
I picked this up on a whim at the Dollar Store. I thought it looked similar to O.P.I.'s Teenage Dream. It's close--nowhere near as opaque, and the pink base is lighter, but for a buck, I'm not complaining. I used it over Zoya Wednesday, and received more compliments on the combination than I think I've ever gotten on a polish! They look like they were made to go together.

Zoya Wednesday with LA Colors Cocktail Overlay

That's it for favorites! Have a great day, and I'll see you soon!

Now I Need a Pink Bubble and a Wand: Urban Decay Glinda Palette Review

I caved. My love of all things Oz and Disney and Urban Decay proved too great to ignore (plus, I had a coupon code), and I broke down and bought the Glinda palette. And you know what? I have zero regrets. It's utterly amazing. I was so wrong to have not been excited, because these are some seriously gorgeous shadows with great versatility. Let's take a look:

The outer packaging is pretty...

...and inside you get a beautiful tin, Super Saturated Lip Color, and a get the look card (that I haven't used).

Here are the shadows. Clockwise from top left: Tornado, Aura (duo), Magic, South, Oz (duo), and Illusion. My swatches were abysmal, but you can find some fantastic ones here. There's not a dud in the group, and a few far exceeded my expectations.

Tornado: Similar to Urban Decay Freakshow. Deep purple shimmer with reddish undertone.

Aura (duo): Both halves feature a white base with reflective pigments that skew either pink or blue. The pink side is sheer, slightly chalky, and more difficult with work with, but lovely. The blue side is still sheer, but much more buttery, and leaves a blue glow wherever it's placed. Stunning!

Magic: One of my two favorites. This is a blue based medium pink with tons of golden shimmer. It's universally flattering and looks downright ethereal on the eye. I'm currently obsessed with it.

South: My other favorite. Medium taupe, loaded with silver micro-glitter. It has a finish similar to the urban Decay Stardust shadows, and just glistens.

Oz (duo): The gold side has an antique look and is chock-full of glitter. It's a glitter-bomb, honestly, and I've had difficulty wearing it. It's not as bad as, say, Midnight Cowboy, but it is a discoball. The silver side is phenomenal, though. It looks on your lid like it does in the pan, and has almost a wet-look finish. It's that metallic. Patted on like a dream, and is a slightly blue based true silver.

Illusion: Pale peach satin. It's not super exciting, but makes a nice "eraser" color on fair skin, and would be very pretty as a lid color on darker tones.

The included travel-size 24/7 Glide-On Pencil is in the color Rockstar, and is part of the permanent collection. It's a rich eggplant, and a welcome alternative to black.

This photo has not been blurred. It was not soft-focused. This is just what it looks like when you blend these shadows out. I know I already used the term "ethereal" to describe it, but that's the most apt adjective I've got. I used every single color in this look. Oz (silver) is all over the lid. Tornado is in the crease. I blended out the line between Tornado and Oz with Oz (gold), and then used Magic to blend out the crease. Illusion went from crease to brow, with Aura (pink) as a brow highlight. Aura (blue) is in the inner corner. South lines the lower lashline. Rockstar on upper lashline.

All in all, I'm ecstatic over this palette. There is fallout with most of the shadows--not as much as with the old formula, but a significant amount. If you wear these, do your foundation after your eyes. It'll make it easier to clean up.

Sorry about that lovely nose shot, but I couldn't get the cropping program to work. Yay! This is the lip color in Glinda. It's a peachy-pink nude, and reminds me a lot of the Lip Junkie shade Naked. The product is creamy, moisturizing, ridiculously glossy, and long-wearing. The gloss will wear off before the rest of the color, so bear that in mind. Personally, I have no complaints.

Final Verdict: 9 out of 10. The fallout's a little irksome, but I can totally deal with it for all of these gorgeous colors!