NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder-Pressed

NARS recently released a new setting powder. It's supposed to have light reflecting pigments and blur pores and fine lines.

This powder is amazing! And I generally don't get excited by setting powders. It gives a semi matte, yet glowy, finish to the skin. It seems to blur the visible pores on my nose. It just generally makes my skin look better.

This is available in both a pressed and loose form. I really am thinking about getting both! The pressed for my purse and the loose to keep at home. This is totally worth the $34!

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?

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!

NARS Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil: Baroque

Baroque is a nice burgundy red with slight shimmer. It's a great Fall color. It applies nicely; smooth and even. It is a tad sheer, but I'm ok with it; it makes it more wearable. My biggest issue is that these must be sharpened, so you lose product doing that.

NARS 500 Point Perk at Sephora

As most of you know, it's VIB sale time at Sephora through tomorrow. I was in to grab a couple items and was lucky to get the NARS 500 Point Perk. These are currently sold out online, but your store may still have them.

This comes in a super cute, black drawstring bag with the NARS logo. Inside you get a sample of the Pro Prime Pore Refining Primer, Pro Prime Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base, a small Velvet Gloss pencil in New Lover, and a small (size of a NARS single eyeshadow) Orgasm blush!

It's a really great perk if you can get your hands on it!

Great Foundation Hunt: Various Brands

I did a post earlier on my search for an HG foundation and the samples I had received at my local MAC. This post is dedicated to some other brands I have tried.

First is NARS Sheer Glow in Ceylon. This is a fairly close color match. I like that this feels lighter on my skin and offers light to medium coverage. It hasn't irritated my skin at all. Still in the running.

Next is Laura Mercier Moisture Supreme foundation in Warm Ivory. This color is a bit too yellow for my skin. It feels nice, but a bit heavy. Not really a contender.

Estée Lauder Double Wear in 2C1. This was so dark on me! Really bad color match and felt like a mask. It also dried my skin out. Not a contender.

Estée Lauder Double Wear Light in Light 1 and Light 2. I was originally matched to Light 2 and it was too dark for me, so I returned for a sample of Light 1. This wore well, felt decent, and didn't irritate my skin. I'm willing to test this one a bit more.

New Additions....Just a Quick Post

Just wanted to show my two newest additions! First is the NARS single in Lhasa, a gorgeous grey, purple, taupe. I missed this when it was released last fall, so happy they made it permanent.
Second, is the NARS duo in Vent Glacé. This is new for Fall 2013 and I believe it's permanent. A beautiful combo of shimmery silver and pewter.