Milk Makeup First Impressions: Part 3

July 26, 2016 in Makeup

As I'm sure you can tell by now (because I've written these kinds of posts twice already - here and here), I'm a bit in love with Milk Makeup as a brand. They've got that simple, cool aesthetic down and are a little more edgy than what I'm used to. Between my love for Milk and Glossier, you can definitely tell I have a type. When I saw they had released a few new products, I took the opportunity to make another order and try a few more new things. I got the new Sunshine Skin Tint and Holographic Stick, as well as the Rose Lip Salve (exclusive to Urban Outfitters) and the Lip Pigment.

Sunshine Skin Tint | I love a good skin tint - if it promises lightweight coverage and a dewy finish, I'm in. The Milk Makeup Sunshine Skin Tint uses the previously-released Sunshine Oil to give the skin a hydrated, dewy look while smoothing over imperfections. It also boasts SPF 30 (a combination of chemical and physical sunscreens) and no preservatives - the use of silver in the packaging acts as an antimicrobial. Upon my first use I was sold. I love that it's applied with a rollerball, and the glass rollerball feels really nice and cooling. It's so thin and lightweight, and the oils it contains makes it super easy to spread over the skin and blend in - I just do it with my fingers after I've applied it to my face with the rollerball. It leaves a nice radiant glow that doesn't get greasy at all throughout the day - but please do note that I have normal to dry skin. This is definitely going to become a staple for sure, and I love how portable it is.

Holographic Stick | I've already mentioned this in my Alien Babe Glow post on Saturday, but I've really been loving it as well. It's got the same beautifully creamy and blendable formula as their other stick products, but this one gives the skin a beautiful lavender sheen. It's such a unique take on a highlighter, and I've been loving wearing it on a daily basis. It gives the skin a glow like any other highlighter, but the real magic happens when it hits the light - it's a really cool unexpected twist.

Lip Pigment, 'Swear By' | I've been wanting to try one of the Lip Pigments since I saw Jess Clements (my new favorite beauty vlogger by the way) mention how much she loved them. The formula is really cool, almost like those old Maybelline bouncy blushes. The color Swear By is a really pretty nude - it's not too warm or too cool. A lot of the reviews say that these can be drying, but I haven't noticed that. I do always pat it on over a lip balm though. It's really pigmented, but when you dab it in with your fingers, it blots it down into a nice stain. I'd love to try the red shade next. My one complaint with this is the packaging - it swings open rather than having a lid, and the first time I opened it, it smeared all over the top. I had to reach inside the outer case with a tissue to try and clean it up for photos.

Rose Lip Salve | First of all, this is supposed to have an accent on the 'e' so it's like the wine, not the flower. I just can't figure out how to do that in Squarespace right now. Anyway, I'm a sucker for lip balms. I really need to be careful because there's an ingredient in a lot of them that I'm allergic to (out of all the ones I've had a reaction to, the only thing they've had in common is the presence of both coconut oil and shea butter, but each ingredient on their own seems to be fine. I know, it's weird). This one hasn't given me any reactions at all, so it's automatically a winner for me. It's got a thinner consistency on the lips than my usual Balm Dotcom, but it's still really hydrating and actually quite smoothing and plumping too. I love the smell of it - it almost has a bit of an herbal smell. And I love the color of it in the pot. It doesn't transfer to the lips, but it's still pretty to look at, and that counts for something, right? I've been keeping this on my coffee table to just smooth on while I'm lounging around, and I've really been loving it.

So far I haven't found a Milk Makeup product I don't like, so I feel like my obsession with them just won't end. Have you tried any of these products, or Milk Makeup products in general? What are your favorites?

"Alien Babe" Glow

July 23, 2016

I'm sure everyone knows about my obsession with highlighters by now - I've pretty much been shouting it from the rooftops the whole time I've had this blog. Lately I've been taking that obsession a little farther and dabbling in the world of colored highlighters - I'm sure this trend started from that viral rainbow highlighter (which, let's be honest, I still want to get my hands on). My favorite thing about these more unconventional highlighters is that they make me feel like I'm from outer space or something - the unique colors rather than your typical golds and champagnes just scream "extra-terrestrial."

Kat Von D Metal Crush Eyeshadow, 'Thunderstruck' | This is definitely one to pick up if you're a little nervous about the whole colored highlighter thing. This is a white gold with a really pretty peachy-pink duochrome, so it's not too out of the ordinary. You'll only be able to tell it's something a little different when it catches the light.

Pat McGrath Skin Fetish 003, 'Nude' | (review) Yes, I'm still going on and on about how much I love this. For this post, I'm talking about the pigment included in the kit in particular. It gives off a reflective pink sheen that's just absolutely stunning. It doesn't have any visible shimmer particles, so it looks like your skin just naturally gives off that color. It's an incredibly cool look.

Top to Bottom: Moonchild Glow Kit (Blue Ice, Star, Purple Horseshoe, Pink Heart, Lucky Clover, Blue Moon), Milk Makeup Holographic Stick, Pat McGrath Skin Fetish, Kat Von D Thunderstruck

I don't know when I'll get around to posting this selfie on Instagram so here's the Milk Makeup Holographic Stick in action

Milk Makeup Holographic Stick, 'Supernova' | This is a new release from Milk Makeup that I just had to have. I'm a big fan of their original highlighter stick, so this lavender version really caught my eye. It gives off such a pretty sheen, and while it's definitely purple in the light, it doesn't leave a noticeable purple stripe on my pale skin. The formula is lovely too - it's super creamy and blendable, but it also feels really silky. I'm not worried about it slipping around on my face, so I can pretend to be an alien even in this 90 degree weather.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Glow Kit, 'Moonchild' | How stunning is this, though? I had resisted the hype of the Glow Kits up until now, but as soon as I saw the photos on the Anastasia Beverly Hills Instagram promoting this one, I knew I'd be giving in when it came out. This seriously might be the most beautiful product I own. All of the shades are super buttery (I've heard people say they're not as soft as the other Glow Kits, but I haven't tried them so I don't know) and pigmented, but again they don't leave weird colored splotches on my face when the duochrome isn't catching the light. It's a little bit high maintenance of me but every time I use this I use at least two or three colors, blending them together down my cheekbones for an almost watercolor effect. If you buy one thing from this post, definitely get this palette.

Have you bought into this "alien" glow trend? Are there any cool/strange highlighters you love that I've missed?

The Perfect Summer Mask That Smells Like Fall

July 21, 2016

I've gone on and on about how much I love to try and brighten my skin as much as possible in the summer. I love a good exfoliator - I'm probably not alone when I say that I get extra paranoid of my skin getting congested and clogged when the weather warms up. Layers of thick sunscreen mixed with sweat and makeup just sounds like a breakout waiting to happen to me, so I always look for something that will really help to clear out my pores and rid my skin of any dead gunk. Enter the Peter Thomas Roth Pumpkin Enzyme Mask - a product I've seen in countless autumn roundups, but one that I'm making a case for this summer.

I totally understand why everyone talks about this in the fall - it smells just like pumpkin pie filling, so having it on your face really conjures up images of pumpkin patches and Thanksgiving. But I say why wait until October to break this baby out? Your skin can benefit from it now.

This powerful mask exfoliates the skin in three ways: using pumpkin enzymes, AHAs, and aluminum oxide. It's meant to work as your own at-home peel. The directions say to apply a thin layer to the skin and massage it in with wet fingers using gentle circling motions - this will activate the polishing powers of the aluminum oxide crystals. You can then leave it on for 3-7 minutes, depending on how sensitive your skin is, and then rinse it off.

I only leave it on for about 3 minutes because MAN does this stuff tingle. It doesn't feel irritating at all, but I'll be honest in that it is quite a strong tingle on my skin. I've got slightly sensitive skin, though. Despite leaving it on for the minimum suggested time, I've been completely wowed by the results of this mask. My skin is a little flushed for an hour or two after rinsing, but it isn't sore or hot to the touch or anything. I can't believe how smooth my skin feels after washing this off - it especially helps where I can get some uneven texture on my chin. The smoothing results last a few days too, so I'm not tempted to overuse the mask and overexfoliate my skin. I've been loving doing this mask on a Sunday afternoon once I'm home for the day because I know my makeup will apply beautifully all week afterward.

The reason why I'm most impressed, though, is because of its effect on breakouts. The kind of breakouts I get are those painful under-the-skin bumps that will honestly last months sometimes. I had one pop up last Friday afternoon (I literally felt it start aching on my face while driving home from work), so I used the mask that night. When I woke up on Saturday morning, the spot had already come to a head! That usually, again, takes months to happen or never happens at all. On Saturday night the spot popped on its own while I was washing my face, and now it's almost completely gone. This one instance alone has totally confirmed this is something I'll always want in my skincare rotation.

Have you tried this mask? What do you use to get rid of breakouts?

And heads up - I've linked the product from Sephora above since that's easier for most people, but if you can get it on Amazon, it's much cheaper there (that's where I got mine)!