Beauty Favorites of 2014

I know, I know. It's almost March and I'm just NOW uploading a 2014 Beauty Favorites post. In my defense I have had this planned for awhile, just a lot of stuff has been coming up lately that has prolonged me from posting frequently. But regardless, better late than never, right?

( I don't think it's sold anymore, sorry! )

My first favorite will have to go to Make Up For Ever HD High Definition Primer in the green shade. 2014 was the first time I actually started using primers and I really fell in love with this one. I have lots of redness in my face and the green tone really calms it down and makes my skin very even. It also does help keep my foundation on longer. If you want a more in-depth review you can click here!

Tarte Amazonian Clay Foundation & Lancome Teint Idole Ultra Foundation

I have two favorite foundations of 2014! The Tarte Amazonian Clay and the Lancome Teint Idole Ultra were both foundations that really stood out for me. The Tarte has great coverage but looks very natural and it stays for a very long time! I can say the same for the Lancome foundation, however I only use it when I have a big event to go to because of the price.

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer was definitely a winner. I love putting this under my eye area in the shape of a triangle. It gives a really beautiful highlight while covering up dark circles.

Anastasia Contour Kit

There are so many good things I could say about the Anastasia Contour Kit, but I'm sure you all have heard plenty. Bottom line is, if you haven't tried it you definitely need to! It has the perfect shades to contour and highlight and has really made me more comfortable in contouring my face. Before I had this, I was so hesitant to contour! Now it's one of my favorite things to apply.

MAC Blush - Melba  &  NARS Blush - Deep throat

These two blushes are rather similar except for one being a shimmer and the other a matte, but I really found myself using both of these blushes quite a lot. The MAC blush in Melba is a beautiful shade I had had my eyes on for such a long time, and when I finally bought it I realized what I was missing out on! It's not overpowering and it just gives the right amount of color to your cheeks, which I really love.

The NARS blush in Deep throat is also gorgeous. I'm not a huge fan of shimmer blushes, I usually tend to stick to mattes, however I really fell in love with this shade. The shimmer is very light and I feel like it looks beautiful especially in the summer time when you want a more "glowy/dewy" look.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder

These Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders are my favorite setting powder I have used. It doesn't make me look cakey at all and it gives such a lovely glow that doesn't make you look like a discoball. The only downside is the steep price but I feel like if you find the right powder to go with your skintone it will be worth it!

MAC Fluidline - Dipdown

Fluidlines are often used as eyeliners but my favorite way to use this is for my eyebrows! I take an angled brush and fill in the tail of my brow first so it's the darkest. I then make my eyebrow an ombre using lighter or heavier brush strokes. It works great and I never have an issue with it fading or smearing. I've always used this as part of my brow routine but it just recently became the only product I use.

Urban Decay Primer Potion

I always had problems with shadows creasing or fading through out the day, but I never have that problem anymore with Urban Decays Primer Potion. It really holds onto my eyeshadows and keeps them looking freshly applied the whole time and you only need a tiny bit! There really isn't much to say other than I love it and will definitely repurchase.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Palette

This palette is my favorite of all that I own. Sometimes I really feel like it was made specifically for me. All of the colors are so gorgeous and I feel like they are so much better than the Naked Palettes. The shades are extremely pigmented and creamy and blend out beautifully. I am dying to try the new one! If you want to check out a full review and swatches click here!

Rimmel ScandalEyes Rockin Curves Mascara

I received this mascara in an Influenster Box, you can see the post here! Mascara is one of those products that I really hate buying, I don't know why, I just hate spending money on it! Influenster sent me this one and it's not amazing by any means, but it is my most used and I do like how it lengthens and volumizes my lashes. I think it's worth buying for the price!

Maybelline Ultra Liner

I've tried so many different eyeliners and none of them are actually waterproof. My eyes tend to water quite a bit causing my eyeliners to smear, flake off or just get all over the place. I really want to try more high end eyeliners in the future but I was pleasantly surprised to come across a Maybelline liner that really stays. It drys pretty fast and the only way I can get it completely off is to use an oil based makeup remover. It's the best one I currently have! Although, it does dry out pretty quickly but it's very cheap so I have no complaints!

Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray

I always have issues with my mascara transferring, eyeliner smearing, or my concealer creasing. I didn't think there was anything that was going to dramatically improve any of those issues until I tried Urban Decay All Nighter Spray. All it takes is 2-4 sprays all over my face after applying my makeup and it will stay on for hours and hours! I even used this on my most recent road trip and my makeup was still on 16 hours later, crazy!

Kat Von D Studded Kiss Lipstick - Cathedral

This is the first Kat Von D lipstick I bought. I had seen it online but figured I probably had a color similar to it in my collection already. But after going to Sephora and swatching it, I knew I had to buy it. Cathedral is such a beautiful pinky brown and it's unlike anything I have! I've also noticed that it's a lot more longlasting than any of the MAC lipsticks I own.

I just always notice myself picking this shade up before anything else. I will definitely be purchasing more of these!

Have you tried any of these products? What were your favorites for 2014?

What I got for Christmas 2014

Christmas has always been my favorite time of year. Even now, I still get those happy little butterflies on Christmas morning. I love going shopping, wrapping gifts, making good food, decorating the tree and everything else that comes along with Christmas! I am very lucky to be surrounded by so many wonderful family members and friends who want to give me such nice gifts and I thought I would share with everyone what was under my tree this year! I really love hearing what other people got, so I thought this would be a fun post.

I'm obviously not going to show every little thing, because that would take forever. But I will share the main things I received this year.

The bracelet was a completely unexpected gift from one of my best friends when he visited on Christmas day! The watch is from my grandmother because I had mentioned before that I really wanted a gold watch.

If you've been following me for awhile you've probably picked up that I'm a bit in love with Katy Perry. So of course, when my mom saw this she totally had to pick it up. Anything with Katy on it is definitely a win in my book!

I am a sucker for gift sets. Little things like this make me so excited! It's silly, but I always really look forward to using everything in these types of sets!

Hell House was something my mom picked up on a whim for me and I'm so happy she did! I love everything creepy and haunted so of course I love flipping through this book. I also had been wanting Black Hole for awhile, I can't wait to read it!

I think I'm most excited about these two books I received. I absolutely love Grace Helbig and Amy Poehler. They are both such funny, smart and incredible ladies and I cannot wait to get around to reading them!

Everyone knows how much I love The Last of Us so of course it was only natural for them to pick this up for me for Christmas. It's such an interesting book to look through! The art is incredible and I really want to start collecting art books for all of my favorite games. 

I had been needing a new pair of boots for awhile, my current ones are completely falling apart. These were such a nice surprise and I was so relieved when I saw there was a zipper on the side! I love my Doc Martens but pulling them on and off constantly is so annoying. I have already tried these on and worn them for a few hours and they are so comfortable and fit perfectly! I also like the little heel they have. 

I got some video games, as usual. These four were actually the ones I wanted the most and I was pretty shocked that I got all of them. The one I wanted most was obviously The Last of Us (who could have guessed). I've already beat it twice if that tells you anything!

I have been wanting to become a Playstation gamer for awhile now! So seeing this under the tree was very exciting! Earlier in December I ended up selling my Xbox 360 along with all of my games so I could make some money to get a PS3, so I was extremely thrilled to have one. It's also nice that it plays Blu-ray's and Netflix as well!

And last, but certainly not least, I got a new TV! I'm not the type of person who has to have a huge, new flat screen but oh man I REALLY needed a new one. My old TV was falling freezing and I couldn't plug anything into it. This new one is so lovely and it's great to play all of my new games on or just relax and watch some Netflix!

As always, Christmas was wonderful and I want to thank all of my family members and friends who thought of me. I hope your holiday was wonderful as well!

How was your Christmas? What was your favorite gift you received/gave?

2014

This year has been one of the best I have had in awhile. There were far more ups than there were downs and I can honestly say I was genuinely happy and excited for the majority of the year. I have bettered myself and my life and I'm positive 2015 will just let me continue that journey! Here are some of the big (and small) things I have taken place in 2014.

I discovered how beautiful it can be where I live.

I started blogging this year which is something I had been wanting to do for awhile!

I graduated high school!

On the same day that I got my braces off I went to my first concert, ever, Panic! at the Disco! It was an absolutely amazing day.

I went to my another concert which was Katy Perry! I have loved her for so long, so seeing her was such an amazing and surreal experience. I have a major crush on her!

I visited so many awesome places, especially cemeteries! 

 I got to go to Comic Con & see Norman Reedus for the third year in a row!

These were just a few things that made my year an amazing and wonderful experience. What are some of the highlights of your year?

(ps) HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE, STAY SAFE AND HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME.