February was a pretty busy month for me. I spent a lot of time out of the house—art fair, two trips, et cetera—which isn’t something that usually happens. I didn’t experiment or play much with makeup this month, mostly because I didn’t have the time to bother with it (huhu), but here are a few favorites from the month, anyway, most of which are “tried and true” status.
Hey everyone! Here’s a quick post on some of my favorite finds this year. I had a really, really hard time narrowing down my picks because, frankly, 2014 was a great year of discovery for me, as far as beauty products and cosmetics are concerned. I’ve mixed in fragrance and skin care picks, as well as other products I really wanted to mention that I really loved as well. Let’s start with makeup!
Once upon a time, I convinced myself that I would never look good in purple lipstick, and that I would never, ever want to wear it, ever. Somehow, I got it into my head that all purple lips did to people was make them look witchy. Well. Times have changed. Here are various types of purples, some leaning more pink or red or blue than others, but all are—to me—purple, as far as colors go. (Don’t mind Sad Keanu in that clam shell… it looks gross, but it’s fine.)
ILIA Beauty, a “green beauty” brand, has steadily become one of my favorites these past few months. After first trying out the Multi-Stick and the mascara, I have somehow accumulated five of their tinted lip conditioners, three lipsticks, and a lip crayon. I don’t know how that happened either. Because I purchased them so quickly, I don’t think I have been able to really speak about them, besides the standard “I like ’em!” This isn’t really going to be a full-length review on every single one of them (mostly because I’m not in the mood to wax poetic), rather a sort of overview of each of the items I have managed to try.
I often add a space in my calendar to put in a “monthly favorites,” though I don’t always have “enough” products to show that would warrant an entire post. This is especially true for the month of October, most of which I spent in a different country. I do have a couple of skin favorites and mainstays that are similar to that of the last favorites post I did, but I hope you guys don’t mind if I also share some recent finds that I have been loving lately. One Love Organics Brand New Day Scrub & Masque This powder is to be mixed with water (to act as a scrub) or Greek yogurt/honey (to use as a mask). When I remember to use this—just about twice a week—my skin feels so refreshed and clean after. This will definitely be a mainstay in my routine. I just wish it were a bit easier for me to get. La Roche-Posay Redermic R and Redermic R Eyes This range is an anti-aging treatment that contains retinol, which …
And it’s time for another round of beauty and skin care favorites! I usually am at a loss when I write this feature (30 days is a long time for the mind to rewind back to, it seems…) but since I’ve been on the road for most of September, it was easy to find things in my small-ish stash that I enjoyed immensely. Here are some of them: One Love Organics Skin Savior Waterless Beauty Balm — this is a makeup remover, cleanser, and moisturizer all in one. It is AMAZING and helped my skin out a lot in NYC where it was breaking out a lot. My sister’s been enjoying using it, too! Indie Lee Squalene Oil — I bought this at Space.NK and wanted to try an olive-based squalene facial oil, because it’s known to be great for the skin. I can attest to these claims. This oil is fantastic and I usually use it on my skin during the day, before I put on my sunscreen/moisturizer. MAKE Colour Soft Focus Foundation — …
“White on White” is one of those works of art that I like whipping out to show people who just don’t get modern art. “Well, I could make that!” they decry, in a bubble of incredulity. The question is, did you? Russian artist Kasimir/Kazimir Malevich founded a movement called Suprematism around 1913. It focused on the rejection of the depiction of objects, opting for “the supremacy of pure artistic feeling.” This work is one of the most famous from the movement, as is another one of Malevich’s work, “Black Square.” Suprematism has been briefly, though wonderfully discussed on this Tumblr post by WTF Art History. Under the caption of “White on White,” WTF Art History writes, “A non-figural work, the White on White painting demands extended viewing in order to grasp the contrast between the white hues, the imprecise delineation of the inner square, and the effect such a painting has on you the viewer. Your response to the painting is what Malevich considered “the supremacy of pure feeling or perception in the pictorial arts.”
Softly Sometimes 