Breaking news folks. It *finally* feels like spring in Chicago – at least for a few days. We’re pushing 60 degrees today and it is amazing. I’m totally in the mood for spring beauty, courtesy of Clinique. I am loving the look featured in their spring collection, Juiced Up Beauty. To me, it’s actually very summery. Don’t you think? At least the promo is!

The collection features a beautiful shade of All Over Color and new shades of the Vitamin C Lip Smoothie, but the real standouts for me are the eyes! It feels fresh – a light wash of color, defined brows and lashes.

Juiced Up includes two new  “Fresh Picked” Eye Shadows in Berry and Pear. While I don’t think the colors are particularly unique, I’m totally loving the fruit patterns – especially the Pear! It actually reminds me a little bit of NARS Eyeshadow Duo in Taiga but I think I might like the Pear better. And while I’m at it with NARS comparisons, the creamy shade in Pear reminds me of my beloved NARS Abyssinia. And at $17.50, the Clinique option certainly is more friendly for the wallet.

Clinique also released a new product for brows, the Instant Lift, which houses a two-in-one brow pencil and highlighter to give dimension and precision to your brows. I think this has promise.

Did anything catch your eye in this collection? It’s still on counters if you haven’t had a chance to scout it out!

Speaking of Tarte, have you seen this new Tarte Maureen’s Favorites Exclusive Set at Sephora? I want it bad. This new set features items picked by Tarte founder Maureen Kelly and it a Sephora Beauty Insider exclusive. If you’re not a Beauty Insider, what are you waiting for? I suggest you sign up now!

So what does this set have? This set includes:

• a mini Lock & Roll 12-Hour Eyeshadow in Deep Amethyst, a new shade!
• a mini Natural Cheek Stain in Exclusive (warm earthy nude), a new shade as well!
• a mini Mineral Powder Bronzer in Park Ave Princess.
• a full size LipSurgence Natural Lip Stain in Peaceful (peachy-pink nude), another new shade!
• a full size Lights, Camera, Lashes! mascara.
• a reusable makeup bag with removable/ reusable flower pin.

I’m definitely on board with this set. I love the peachy shades they are featuring and the bronzer, Park Ave Princess is Laurie’s all-time favorite bronzer. This set is a great way to try out some of the products Tarte is known for if you’re new to the brand. As for me, I’m just doing it for the new lip  and cheek stain shades.

We already know and love Tarte’s gel cheek stains and now we have something new to love from the brand. Last month Tarte finally introduced their new LipSurgence Natural Lip Stains and they are all the rage with me right now. They have permanently moved into my makeup bag and I’m not sharing these with anyone. These new stains come in 6 shades:

• Moody – deep berry
• Amused – bright pink
• Lust – red
• Enchanted – rose
• Charmed – light pink
• Joy – peach

I picked up Charmed, Enchanted and Lust but I think a trip to Sephora is in order for Joy and Moody. I’m like the cookie monster when it comes to lip stains… I need to have them all!

When I first tried these new lip stains, I was surprised by how moisturizing they are. I did not expect them to feel so good on my lips, they didn’t feel like a lip stain at all and that makes me love them even more. Instead, they feel more like a tinted lip balm that you can build layers of color with. Don’t be alarmed by the color you see in the tube though. It goes on lightly and like I said, you can build on it if you want a more intense stain on your lips.

Tarte’s lip stains also give your lips a glossy finish. I don’t know about you but when I wear a stain, I usually add a lip balm or a clear/sheer gloss on top for a little shine and emolliency. I love that I can eliminate this step and keep the color on my lips for longer and the color doesn’t disappear once the moisture does.  With that said, the color doesn’t last all day…but it lasts long enough that I can get away with less touch ups.

When you consider the wear and consider the formula, which for me is a plus in comparison to some sticky, bitter tasting formulas, I’m completely OK with the wear given how moisturizing these stains are. What about you? Have you tried these stains? What do you think and which shades have you tried? Let us know all about it in the comments.

To get ready for my trip to New York for Fashion Week, I picked up travel sets from different lines here and there. One of them was the 1 oz Essential Kit from Malin + Goetz. Not all of the travel sets made it to New York with me but this one did.

The Malin + Goetz Vitamin E Face Moisturizer is my favorite new moisturizer, it tamed my skin during Fashion Week and I love it for that. This moisturizer meets all of my current requirements: is oil free, absorbs quickly, doesn’t cost as much as the moisturizer I want it to replace and my skin likes it.

This oil free moisturizer has a great texture to it. It’s not a cream but it is not thin like a moisturizing fluid. A little pea sized amount of it is all you need and that goes a long way, it is very concentrated. It doesn’t leave any residue behind and it is great for sensitive skin. Maybe it was the stress of getting ready for a trip but my skin freaked out right before I left and this moisturizer did a fantastic job of soothing my skin and keeping it well hydrated when I needed it the most.

One thing I didn’t expect was for this moisturizer to keep me shine free for as long as it did. By the time lunch rolls around, I already have to break out the blotting papers. I was pleasantly surprised when the Malin + Goetz Vitamin E Face Moisturizer kept my skin shine free longer than the moisturizer I was previously using did… and that one claimed to be oil-absorbing.

The bottom line is that this moisturizer is gentle but effective and given how concentrated it is, a bottle of it will last you forever. Don’t you love it when something from a kit turns out to be a new fave?

Benefit’s Stay Don’t Stay is a very cool product. It’s a 360-degree primer for the under eye area and eyelids – so both your eyeshadow and concealer stay put. After three weeks of use, I’m still undecided if I love this product. Let’s pro/con it…

Pro: It does help concealer stay but…

Con: …can be a bit heavy looking with concealer over the primer. I find a luminizer works best. I’ve been having a lot of luck with Trish McEvoy’s Luminizer Pen.

Pro: On a good night’s sleep, this can serve as concealer. It’s a nude universal shade, seems to help brighten my skin a bit.

Pro: Primes the eyelid area for the first few hours but…

Con: …doesn’t pull an 8-hour shift unless layered with another base over (like a cream shadow).

I really am torn. I wish that I got better wear on my eyelids, but this is a fantastic undereye prime and can even function as a concealer for me.  Has anyone given this a try? Does it hold up for you?

In the past few weeks, I’ve done a lot of packing and unpacking of boxes. While moving isn’t fun, it’s a good exercise in cleaning (or so I’m telling myself!) During the packing frenzy, I happened to uncover an abyss of beauty product samples. You know, the “three” from every online purchase at Sephora or the extras from the counters. I was a little ashamed to see so many samples untouched and forgotten. So I’ve vowed to start using them.

Out of the abyss arose Bliss’ Fabulous Foaming Face Wash. I can’t say I was particularly excited about it at first glance, but once this stuff met my face it was, well, fabulous. It’s got a delightful grit to it – an exfoliater that that consists of the finest particles. My face felt so clean and refreshed after just one use. I literally felt the dead skin come off of my face and didn’t have that dry, tight feeling afterwards. It was amazing.

All traces of makeup were erased and it is pretty gentle, despite the exfoliating properties. If you’re sensitive to fragrance, this may not be for you. It’s got Rose Hips leaf extract, chamomile and has a citrusy aroma. My skin is pretty sensitive, but surprisingly this didn’t bother my skin or my nose.

I’m quite smitten with this face wash and am going to see this sample through. The full-size retails for $22 – so we’ll see if I make an upgrade. This whole using samples might prove to be expensive if they all turn out as well as this! Any hidden treasures lying around in your home? Let us know!

To celebrate its anniversary, Elizabeth Arden is launching a new limited edition anniversary lipstick and this is right up my alley… a universally flattering, sheer lipstick named Red Door Red.

To celebrate its anniversary, Elizabeth Arden is launching a new limited edition anniversary lipstick and this is right up my alley… a universally flattering, sheer lipstick named Red Door Red.
This limited edition lipstick is packaged in a gold case meant to evoke the glamour and drama of makeup from the 1940s. It has an emollient formula with vitamins A, C and E along with aloe to hydrate and cushion lips.

Also, proceeds from the sale of each lipstick is going to Look Good… Feel Better. This organization works with people undergoing cancer treatments to help improve their self-image, appearance and quality of life by teaching them techniques to deal with the beauty related consequences of cancer. Sometimes a little lipstick goes a long way and this one is going even further.

You can find Red Door Red online at elizabetharden.com on Wednesday, March 10th and on counters mid-March.

The other day I was at Ulta browsing for a new nail polish for my pedicure later that afternoon and I was stopped in my tracks but the new Stila Long Wear Lip Color shades. A few of the bolder shades just caught my attention and I couldn’t look away.

The new shades have something for everyone. There are some fun bold shades like Outrageous and Exhilarating, neutrals like In the Nude and there’s a red for the gals who love reds like me with Lover. Here are all the shades:

• Adorable – pale peach
• Daring – burgundy wine
• Exhilarating – matte bright fuchsia
• Intriguing – matte magenta
• In the Nude – light beige
• Lover – deep red
• Outrageous – matte deep orange
• Phenomenal – reddish brown

I picked up Lover because you know I can’t pass up a red…

And by the way, today at Stila is having a 4-hour sale from 10am to 2pm PST and you can get 30% off their holiday sets as their Friday special. Will you be picking up anything?

We are all about the lip stains this month! Lip stains are one of our favorite types of beauty products so this month we’ll be taking a look at different lip stains out on the market. We will be revisiting some old favorites and taking a look at some new ones as well.

We’re starting things off with Givenchy’s Printed Lips. You don’t see higher end brands like Givenchy release a product like a lip stain very often so I was practically giddy with excitement when I learned about these for the first time. I just wish they would hurry up and make an appearance in my local Sephora soon! Last time I checked, they still hadn’t arrived.

That is ok though, I will tell you all about them. For it’s first lip stain release, Givenchy released 2 stains: Pink Impression (the first image above) and Rose Impression (directly above). I love the design of these lip stains, I’m glad that Givenchy decided to go the felt tip route instead of giving us something fluid. This way I can just line my lips with the tip and tilt the pen on its side to fill in the rest of my lips. If it were up to me, everyone would follow this format.

The stain itself is pretty good. You have a few seconds to make sure you color your lips evenly and there’s a slight stickiness to it as the color dries but after that, you are good to go. The formula also holds up pretty well.  I like to wear my Bonnie Bell Dr. Pepper Lips Smacker over stains to keep my lips moisturized and it tends to eat away at lip stains. That is not the case with Givenchy’s Printed Lips, I have several hours of wear with this formula with minimal color loss.

Right now there are only 2 shades but let’s cross our fingers that Givenchy releases more of them! Pink Impression is a light pink that is very fresh and just adds a very spring appropriate brightness to the lips. Rose Impression is a bolder rosy shade. It looks a little plum-ish in the image above but it really isn’t like that, it is more of a pinkish red and it builds beautifully.

So what kind of lip stain do you prefer? Are you obsessed as much as we are?  Do you like gel, fluid or pen type stains? Let us know all about your lip stain lust in the comments.

Trish McEvoy’s newest Nordstrom exclusive – the All About Eyes Collection – has got us drooling over here! This kit is jampacked with a ton of amazing products, all for $68. Here’s the details:

• Eye Base Essentials in Demure Sparkle - This is Trish’s newest eye base from the Demure collection – a beautiful shimmery pink, full-size.
• Line Refiner – The aptly-named “magic moisture wand” that I’m obsessed with – and this apepars to be a full-size tube!
• Antique Silver Eye Definer Pencil - A charcoal shade of the double-duty shadow/liner pencil, full-size.
• High Volume Mascara - A deluxe sample of Trish’s long-wearing, tubing mascara.
• Lash Enhancer Nighttime Conditioning Treatment - A new product not slated to be released until April. This is a deluxe sample and it supposedly creates longer, fuller, darker lashes in 4-6 weeks! Um…sign me up.

This should be making its way to Nordstrom counters quickly. I believe it was released just in advance of spring trend shows, which are kicking off this weekend. Pretty sure I’ll succumb to this collection so I will report back in full!

In my daily perusing of “what’s new” in beauty at Nordstrom.com, this Nars Some Like it Hot set appeared. Isn’t it wonderful? It features three of my favorite items that  I probably use almost every day – Greek Holiday Lip Gloss, Larger than Life Volumizing Mascara and the Orgasm Illuminator. All full-size and accompanied by a chic Nars cosmetic bag for $69. Love!

Seriously, with every use of the Orgasm Illuminator I love it that much more. Lately, I’ve been using it as a finisher. I’ll dab a little on my MAC 188 and blend over my cheekbones and the high points of my face. It never alters the makeup I’m already wearing, rather it just gives a serious glow. The “I naturally look this way” kind.

Has anyone given the O Illuminator a try since it came out? Let us know if you have – and how you’ve been using it. I’m seriously convinced this product has superpowers it does so much!

Becca Cosmetics and I have been reconnecting lately. Right before I left for New York Fashion Week, I found a local store carrying the Becca line and then later during Fashion Week I met a few people from Becca at the Hautelook suite. I think this means we’re meant to be friends. At least my wallet thinks so because I did some hauling while I was in New York.

Becca is going through a bit of an overhaul right now, some products have been discontinued to make room for new ones, but what is in store for us is great. They are introducing some new lip color (say hello to 2 new Beach Tint shades!) and a new palette for summer, the Bombora palette.

Like it’s Showgirl palette predecessor, the Bombora Palette is a multi-tasker perfect for summer. It features:

• Lip Gloss: Mai Tai (sheer peach nude)
•  Lip & Cheek Crème: Bougainvillea (peach/pink)
•  Highlighting Crème: Mazu (sheer gold)
•  Compact Eyeliner (with shimmer): Raffia (turquoise)
• Compact Eyeliner (with shimmer): Sunburst (glistening yellow/gold)
• Dual Ended professional brush

Since it’s all about the turquoise this summer, these eyeliners will be perfect for the season. It feels good to be reunited with Becca and I can’t wait to see this one in person. How about you?

Makeup primers for me are a must-have, which is why I was so excited to try L’Oreal’s new Studio Secrets Magic Perfecting Base. I wear my makeup for so long during the work day – minimum of 12 hours – so it’s important to me for my face to look just as good at 4pm that it does at 7am. It’s an extra step in my routine that makes such a difference.

L’Oreal’s latest comes in a small pot and is light pink in color. The base glides onto the skin like silk and feels lightweight. I think application is key to achieving a lightweight finish though. I like to use a flat foundation brush to blend it into the skin. The first time I used it with my fingers it didn’t feel right. But once I found my groove with the brush, I was hooked. It controls oil so well and gives skin a matte finish. My Revlon Photo Ready glided on like a dream and my complexion appeared flawless!

My mom and I both bought this at a recent Ulta shopping trip and she likes it just as much, if not more, than I do. Her pores are much larger than mine and she said this hides them better than any other primer. I’ve seen this at CVS, Walgreens and Ulta for about $12. If you struggle with oily skin or large pores, this is absolutely worth a try! The verdict is definitely “love it!”

I cannot get enough of Tarte’s Flower Child Natural Eyeshadow Palette. The colors are perfect for spring and the combinations are endless. With names like Peach Tulip, Vibrant Forest Grass, Ecru Hibiscus and Soft Daffodil, it even sounds springy.  Which is exactly what Tarte sought to evoke with this palette, designed by makeup artist Tina Turnbow. It’s all about saturated pigments of earthy hues with subtle pops of color. And in true Tarte form, it’s free of all of parabens, talc, preservatives, GMOs and other un-natural ingredients.

It also comes with a double-ended eyeliner, brush and a sample of natural eye primer. Really, what’s not to love about this palette? I highly recommend you give this a second look on your next trip to Sephora!

To say that I like the Ellis Faas line is a bit of an understatement… I am completely in love and obsessed with this line. From the moment I set foot in Bergdorf Goodman’s last week and stepped up to the Ellis Faas counter, it was as if I was in a strange, new but fascinating land that I didn’t want to leave. The Ellis Faas is the most unique beauty line I’ve come across in awhile. From line’s the concept to the packing itself, it is brilliant.

The line believes that the most obvious and natural way to enhance beauty is to do it with colors that are already in the human body. That is how the Ellis Faas line began, a line of “human colors”, colors that are found naturally in or under the skin. For example, if you had a bruise, the color of the blood under the skin would be purple and that is a color found in this line. It may seem a little dark but I find it to be interesting.

Then comes the packaging, this is what drew me in to the counter in the first place. For the most part, the products come in these sleek silver pens with a pointed tip that look like elongated bullets, which was the idea behind the design. The one exception to this packaging is the pressed powder, that comes in it’s own unique packaging. Otherwise everything else comes in the same silver elongated bullet like pen. Inside you may have different tips but the shape is basically the same throughout, even with mascara and foundation. I love how industrial chic it is.

There is also an Ellis Holder to house all your Ellis Faas favorites and it has a surprise inside. This too was inspired by a gun. It holds foundation in the middle and 6 other projects of your choosing. If you twist a portion of the holder, each “bullet” in the chamber rises up for you to use. The surprise in the packaging is the pressed powder and mirror in the cap. Clever, is it not?

I’ll be going into the products more in depth soon but for now, I wanted to peak your curiosity and tell you a little bit about this line. I picked up a couple lip colors and an eyeshadow and I am loving them so far, I’ll tell you all about them soon.

Have you tried the Ellis Faas line? If so, I want to hear all about it. Let’s discuss our love of Ellis Faas.