Last year I did not do a dedicated post to yearly beauty favorites mainly because it was a shitty year for me, personally :-) So I just stopped caring about makeup. But I am really glad that this year I am back to having fun with makeup :-) I love reading and watching Yearly Favorites posts! As you can see, I have significantly cut down on purchasing new makeup products (I still buy a lot makeup/skincare from Sephora) so almost all these products are old favorites that I have fallen back in love with!
Different bloggers/YouTubers have different criteria for selecting the favorites products. I look at it from a few different angles - how often did I reach for these products throughout the year, is it long lasting and easy to apply etc etc. But for me I think it has to be something that fills my heart with joy or something that I have been constantly using in my everyday life. Sometimes a product may not excite me all that much but for some reason I find myself wearing it to work everyday. Or sometimes it is something I may have worn just a few times but it just has made me happy for those few times. Whether I discovered the product first time in that particular year or not does not matter to me! 2019 was also the year I rekindled my love for jewellery and here you see some favorite jewellery pieces that I accumulated this year! I was especially obsessed with the gold-pearl trend this season :-)
Different bloggers/YouTubers have different criteria for selecting the favorites products. I look at it from a few different angles - how often did I reach for these products throughout the year, is it long lasting and easy to apply etc etc. But for me I think it has to be something that fills my heart with joy or something that I have been constantly using in my everyday life. Sometimes a product may not excite me all that much but for some reason I find myself wearing it to work everyday. Or sometimes it is something I may have worn just a few times but it just has made me happy for those few times. Whether I discovered the product first time in that particular year or not does not matter to me! 2019 was also the year I rekindled my love for jewellery and here you see some favorite jewellery pieces that I accumulated this year! I was especially obsessed with the gold-pearl trend this season :-)
Here are the products -
PAT MCGRATH LABS MatteTrance™ Lipstick in Elson 013: I think it is the only product in this bunch that was new to me in 2019. It is a matte red lipstick; quite a lightweight formulae that stays put very nicely. I love this shade, it is VERY pigmented and just a tad bit darker of a red. Somehow it makes me feel fancier and more posh than I am in real life you know! I love the dinky size as well. The design of the bullet also makes me feel fancy! My only problem with the lipstick is that it bleeds a little if I am not wearing a lip liner. Anyway, I did wear it throughout this year and loved it!
Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Stylist: This is a very classy lipstick bullet with a very standard old-school lipstick formulae. In a day and age when brands are coming with different lipstick formulae and crazy creative names for the lipsticks this can seem very boring. One of my close friends gifted me this around July and I have been regularly wearing this to work since September. I love the comfort it provides; simple lipstick formula that stays put without drying out my lips. It does fade towards the end of the work-day but it fades gracefully. Sometimes simple things are the best! I also love the soft pink shade - it helps me to remain close to my softer, feminine, emphatic side which can be sometimes difficult as I work in engineering and more often than not I am surrounded by masculine energy. Hope that makes sense!
Cover FX Bronzer in Sunset: Another product that comes in a seemingly boring pan and a boring formulae. But I like the no-nonsense approach Cover FX takes. Simple classic packaging that is not going to get dirty every time you use it. And I love the formulae - it is a simple matte powder but is not dry at all! I love the shade also, it is not always easy to find a bronzer that is a good color for a medium dark Indian skin-tone! It is also super easy to blend.
RMS Beauty Living Luminizer & Buriti Bronzer: Do I even need to talk about these two? They were favorites the first I bought them and they are still favorites. I still feel the excitement every time I wear them. I love, LOVE them and use them almost everyday! Especially the Living Luminizer! And I loved using the bronzer during the summer. I have full review on the Living Luminizer here. I will definitely repurchase these once I finish them.
Makeup Geek Cosmetics Eyeshadow in Creme Brulee & Cocoa Bear: Creme Brulee is MUST-HAVE shade for me. I wear it on my crease every time I wear eyeshadow/eyeliner; I use it with everyday simple eye look and with any intricate colorful look. I cannot do my eyeshadow without it. Cocoa Bear is my favorite brown - it is so warm & happy. No matter how many brown shade I try from other brands this remains irreplaceable!
Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Eyeliner in Midnight and Indigo: I did not buy a lot of makeup this year. I think that has helped me to go back to a lot of my "tried and tested" favorites. This eyeliner in 'Intense Black' shade has been my #1 liquid liner for a long time now. I have gone through a few of those. And with time, I have collected many different colors from this range. Out of all those, Midnight and Indigo have been my most used and most favorite colors this year! My soul, in general, is obsessed with colors. Both these shades are just colorful enough to satisfy my soul but also have enough depth (in the shade) that I can easily wear them to work. The blue in them does not clash with any bold color lipstick I want to wear - that is a plus for me. They are very long wearing, quite pigmented and easy to apply! I love them :-)
Viseart Eyeshadow Palette in Dark Matte (Read my full review here): "Dark Matte" is an old love! It was a big investment when I bought it; obviously I did expect a lot from it. And my god, it did not disappoint! I have been wearing a lot of color on my eyes, especially this fall & winter season. And I have been using this palette on my crease or outer V area to complete my looks. I adore all the shades in the palette but the two brown shades at the top left corner have been used and loved a lot this year!
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara & Lash Primer: I have gone through a few of the travel size tubes of Perversion Mascara. But I finally decided to invest on the full size version as I found a good value set that included the primer. I have used a few of lash primers from different brands but never noticed any kind of improvement on the way my lashes looked. But I love this combo! I have tiny eyes; my lashes have a curve to them but they are quite short. Despite that, I don't really ask a lot from my mascara! I hate plastic wands - they poke at my eyes. And I hate mascaras that flake off or are painful to remove. This one does not have such issues. The brush on both the mascara and the primer is quite soft and perfectly sized. The formula itself is wet but not too wet; it also does not dry within a month like some other mascaras. And for the primer, I can see that it helps my lashes look more voluminous and thick. Definitely a favorite this year!
Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Stylist: This is a very classy lipstick bullet with a very standard old-school lipstick formulae. In a day and age when brands are coming with different lipstick formulae and crazy creative names for the lipsticks this can seem very boring. One of my close friends gifted me this around July and I have been regularly wearing this to work since September. I love the comfort it provides; simple lipstick formula that stays put without drying out my lips. It does fade towards the end of the work-day but it fades gracefully. Sometimes simple things are the best! I also love the soft pink shade - it helps me to remain close to my softer, feminine, emphatic side which can be sometimes difficult as I work in engineering and more often than not I am surrounded by masculine energy. Hope that makes sense!
Cover FX Bronzer in Sunset: Another product that comes in a seemingly boring pan and a boring formulae. But I like the no-nonsense approach Cover FX takes. Simple classic packaging that is not going to get dirty every time you use it. And I love the formulae - it is a simple matte powder but is not dry at all! I love the shade also, it is not always easy to find a bronzer that is a good color for a medium dark Indian skin-tone! It is also super easy to blend.
RMS Beauty Living Luminizer & Buriti Bronzer: Do I even need to talk about these two? They were favorites the first I bought them and they are still favorites. I still feel the excitement every time I wear them. I love, LOVE them and use them almost everyday! Especially the Living Luminizer! And I loved using the bronzer during the summer. I have full review on the Living Luminizer here. I will definitely repurchase these once I finish them.
Makeup Geek Cosmetics Eyeshadow in Creme Brulee & Cocoa Bear: Creme Brulee is MUST-HAVE shade for me. I wear it on my crease every time I wear eyeshadow/eyeliner; I use it with everyday simple eye look and with any intricate colorful look. I cannot do my eyeshadow without it. Cocoa Bear is my favorite brown - it is so warm & happy. No matter how many brown shade I try from other brands this remains irreplaceable!
Viseart Eyeshadow Palette in Dark Matte (Read my full review here): "Dark Matte" is an old love! It was a big investment when I bought it; obviously I did expect a lot from it. And my god, it did not disappoint! I have been wearing a lot of color on my eyes, especially this fall & winter season. And I have been using this palette on my crease or outer V area to complete my looks. I adore all the shades in the palette but the two brown shades at the top left corner have been used and loved a lot this year!
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara & Lash Primer: I have gone through a few of the travel size tubes of Perversion Mascara. But I finally decided to invest on the full size version as I found a good value set that included the primer. I have used a few of lash primers from different brands but never noticed any kind of improvement on the way my lashes looked. But I love this combo! I have tiny eyes; my lashes have a curve to them but they are quite short. Despite that, I don't really ask a lot from my mascara! I hate plastic wands - they poke at my eyes. And I hate mascaras that flake off or are painful to remove. This one does not have such issues. The brush on both the mascara and the primer is quite soft and perfectly sized. The formula itself is wet but not too wet; it also does not dry within a month like some other mascaras. And for the primer, I can see that it helps my lashes look more voluminous and thick. Definitely a favorite this year!
Real Techniques Deluxe Concealer Brush: Oh man! It's such a versatile brush! It is called 'deluxe concealer brunch' but I never really used it for concealers; I am sure it works great for that purpose. I actually use it to apply my eyeshadow. It is just the perfect shape and size for blending my eyeshadow on the crease area. I can also use the outside edge of the brush at an angle to apply darker shades on the outer V area. I also use it to apply matte eyeshadow on my lid area! It is soft, fluffy and because it is a bigger size brush, I can use it for at least a few days before I need to wash it. Overall, I LOVE using it - it has become an essential for my eyeshadow application. I can get decently detailed eye look by using only this brush. I need to buy one more but this only comes in a set - that is my only gripe about it.
Earth's Nectar Green Olive & Lavender Scalp Oil: When I first bought this oil, I did not use it mindfully and I obviously did not notice any improvement or difference in my hair. I neglected my hair for all of 2018 and first half of 2019, obviously my hair was getting all frizzy and lifeless. My already existent dandruff, itchy scalp issue was getting out of hand. So I revisited this oil in my stock and for last 3-4 months I have been using it generously on my scalp overnight before washing my hair next day. I use a different oil on my hair though! Anyway, I would generously massage my scalp for at least 10-15 minutes. I think it s positively affecting my hair and nursing it back to health.
Also, because I am a stupid woman I totally forgot to add this nail polish in my photos! I managed write and edit my posts where I did include it but I just completely skipped to add the polish in the flatlay. I typically keep it near my living room sofa as I paint my nails watching TV, so I totally forgot about it when I was collecting my favorites from my vanity. :-(
Smith & Cult Nailed Lacquer in Peaceful Paranoia (check short review here): I got this nail polish in a value set in Spring, 2018 and I fell in love immediately. I wore it a few times but I did take a break from Social Media in 2018. During that time and after that also, I kind of lost my interest in nail polishes. I did not even wear nail polish for most of 2019 but whenever I did wear nail polish it was this - at least 90% of the time. I absolutely adore the shade. Such a perfect nude on my skin tone, it has a slight purple-y delicate shift to it! Simply gorgeous! The shade makes me look and feel fancy; like I am some retired CEO of a very successful company - poised, graceful & full with life experience :-) It even makes any jewellery I am wearing on my hands (like rings, bracelet) look daintier and prettier! :-)
That was everything that loved and used the most this year. Hope you had a wonderful year and hope you are excited for this new decade!
Happy New Year guys!
Love,
~Arrru
Happy New Year guys!
Love,
~Arrru
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