Blush Swatches

I am not a big blush collector. I have a lot of natural pigmentation in my cheeks, so I've always passed on blush for fear of emphasizing it. Lately though I have started to experiment with blush a bit more and have added a few to my collection.

NARS seems to be the standard for blushes in the mid range cosmetics. I only have two: Douceur and a mini Orgasm (part of an old Sephora 500 point perk). Douceur is a dusty pink/mauve. It looks really dark and brown in the swatches, but looks less dirty in real life. I'm fairly sure everyone knows why Orgasm looks like...but it's a shimmery peachy pink.

From Tarte, I have two of the Amazonian clay blushes. Both were part of various kits and I'm not sure they are available individually. Charisma is a peachy pink with shimmer. Adventurous is a muted berry with shimmer.

As far as MAC blushes go, I currently own one (although I do have 3 MSFs). It is Launch Away and was released last summer. It's a nice, light pink with a bit of peach and no shimmer/sheen.

Lastly, I have a bareMinerals blush from the Ready line in The Natural High. I reviewed this recently, but it's (again) a peachy pink with shimmer.

(Do we see a trend with my choices?!?)

I definitely need to branch out some with my color choices and also get more matte/satin finishes, but I'm still a blush newbie. Do you have a favorite blush or one you can't wait to buy?

bareMinerals The Natural High Blush swatch

The Natural High was released as part of bareMinerals' Spring Remix launch. It's a pretty, shimmery peachy pink. It's not so shimmery as to emphasize pores, but gives a nice glow. It can be built up in intensity, so it should work in a variety of skin tones.

What's In My Travel Makeup Bag?

As we are heading out if town for the long Thanksgiving weekend, I thought I would give you a quick peek at what I parked to bring along. My included in the photos is a travel set of MAC brushes and my various lip products that I always keep in my purse.

I brought along my NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturuzer (shade Finland). I love this for low maintanencr days. It gives decent coverage and has a good wear time. I also brought my Maybelline Age Rewind concealer for under my eyes. I love this and use it nearly everyday. For an eyelid primer, I brought a sample size of Urban Decay's original Primer Potion. It's not my favorite, but I'm trying to use it up.

For eye colors, I wanted to have a decent selection without bringing along a bulky palette. I have four MAC shadows from this last summer's big collection, Hey Sailor. I also brought a MAC Paint Pot in Groundwork. I love using it a a simple wash of color. I also grabbed two NARS duos. One in Tzarine and the other is Vent Glacé. These are some of my favorite shadows. Finally, i brought bareMinerals Ready Duo in The Cocktail Hour. great neutrals to have in hand. Mascara is a sample of Estée Lauder's Sumptuous Lash Extreme. I am absolutely loving this mascara!

The bag was from an Estée Lauder gift with purchase.

That's it! Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and safe travels!

bareMinerals Ready Duo: The Top Shelf

The Top Shelf is a gorgeous neutral duo. It contains Mixologist, a shimmery champagne and Cognac a shimmery mid tone brown.

These shadows are so buttery and apply like a dream. I have a few of the Ready duos and love them. I haven't found a dud yet ( haven't tried any of the matte formula, it's next on my list).

If I had to find a complaint, the packaging is a black rubberized compact and attracts dirt and smudges like crazy.

These retail for $20 and I feel they ae well worth it!

bareMinerals Ready Shadow Duo: The Alter Ego

I have talked about my love for the Ready eyeshadows on here before. Just a recap: awesome formula, easy to work with, pretty decent value!

Ok, so now that that's out of the way...I bring to you The Alter Ego! This duo contains Wicked and Daring. Wicked is a shimmery lime green. Daring is a dark purple. While this isn't a duo most of us could wear everyday, it's super fun to play with for a night out!

Both shades give awesome coverage and last without creasing over a primer. If you are looking for something a bit different or just love fun shadow combinations, check out The Alter Ego!

bareMinerals Ready Quad: The Soundtrack

bareMinerals Ready eye shadow formula is amazing. It's so soft, buttery, and pigmented. I have a few of the duos (to be reviewed), but The Soundtrack is the only quad I own. One thing I love about the Ready shadows is that each color actually has a name!

Rhythm is a matte ivory. It's a great brow bone highlight. It isn't dry like matte formulas can be.

Remix is a shimmery gold. It's nice and bright, applies really well.

Louder is a bright bronze. This color looks awesome with my blue eyes. I have noticed a tiny bit of fallout if I accidentally overload my brush. Just something to be aware of.

Speaker Box looks like a dark olive in the pan, but swatches and on the eye it looks more like a deep brown with gold shimmer. This one does feel slightly gritty when swatched, but applies nicely.

This is a great quad for Fall and will look great on slightly warmer skin tones. For the record, I have fairly cool toned skin and can still pull this off. I just think these colors flatter warmer tones.

BareMinerals Concealor

As a mom, sleep isn't always easy to come by. Dark circles are a day to day fight to cover.

I was in the market for a new user eye concealor and was introduced to this little gem. It's super creamy which is nice for under the eye since it doesn't pull or drag during application. It doesn't offer full coverage, but a nice natural coverage.

I really do like this and think its worthy look. It has a decent range of colors and I was matched to the lightest one. It has a nice peachy/pink undertone which helps with blue or purple dark circles.

All in all, it's nice to see a cream concealor from BareMinerals. I like that they are branching out from loose products as I think they have excellent quality. The pressed items are just easier to use and travel with.