Curating a Cohesive Style Within Your Beauty Collection

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a bit of a makeup hoarder - some people collect stamps, or Pez dispensers, or coins, and I collect makeup. I've really grown quite proud of my collection, as I'm realizing that every product I own fits my style and is something I would wear. And it's only taken me three years. I've gone through cycles of beauty hauls and purges to curate my collection, and I wanted to share some tips I've found helpful if you're looking to really make sure your collection "speaks" to you.

WOULD YOU WEAR IT?

Let's start with the obvious one - go through your collection and think about each product. Is it something you'd genuinely wear? Does it fit into your personal style/aesthetic? It took me a long time to admit that I'm just not one for super shimmery smokey eyes (in fact, I haven't worn eyeshadow for more than three days in a row in months), so I eventually gave away my Naked palettes. I had a few bright orange lipsticks that looked stunning when swatched but just made me look ill. Go through your collection and be picky - if you haven't worn it even once in about six months, chances are it's just not your thing.

WOULD YOUR BEAUTY ICON WEAR IT?

Taking the first tip one step further - picture your beauty inspirations and icons. Go through your collection and ask yourself if it's something they would wear. Now, this doesn't have to apply to everything. My ultimate beauty icon is Audrey Hepburn, but I'm sure she wasn't piling on the blue highlighters from the Anastasia Moonchild Glow Kit, which I love and will never part with. Think of their style and how you can adapt it to yourself. I feel like my penchant for lowkey and understated makeup looks focusing on the lashes and a pinky nude lip is definitely influenced by my love of Audrey Hepburn, but I throw in some smudgy brown liner (rather than a cat eye) and a highlight because that's just me.

DOES THE BRAND'S MESSAGE RESONATE WITH YOU?

This is a question I've found myself asking when going through my collection a lot lately. There are a few brands I had things from, but I just wasn't a fan of their brand image/message/business practices as a whole, so I made the decision to part with them. Even if the product was a color I'd wear or one of my role models would wear, I don't want to feature the product in my content if it's not a brand I can stand behind. Some brands I'm really admiring at the moment are Glossier, Bite Beauty, Drunk Elephant, and Milk Makeup, so I want to make sure I showcase brands like those more and clear out some clutter to give them more attention.

DOES THE BRAND'S AESTHETIC COMPLEMENT YOURS?

I've saved this one for last because sometimes I find myself getting a little shallow here - if I have two products that are similar shades and similar formulas and I want to get rid of one, I'll always keep the one with the packaging I like better. Lately a lot of minimal, monochrome packaging is speaking to me - I think this is why I'm falling in love with Marc Jacobs Beauty at the moment. Of course, it's more important for the product inside to be good than it is for the outside to look pretty, but isn't it a plus when just looking at the product makes you feel good? I try to steer away from products in overly cutesy, colorful packaging because it just doesn't fit the overall "feel" of my content - the product really has to blow me away for me to use it anyway.

I hope these were somewhat helpful or even made sense - do you think about your collection as having one cohesive style?

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Spotlight: Marc Jacobs Beauty

I don't think of myself as super loyal to one brand or another, but every once in awhile I look at my collection and realize I've amassed a fair few products all from the same brand. This happened this weekend with Marc Jacobs Beauty - I've had a few bits for awhile but in the last couple weeks have added three more products to my collection. I haven't tried the whole range, but everything I have tried has been worth it.

I've been raving lately about how much I love the Under(cover) Perfecting Coconut Face Primer. I was never much of a primer gal before I tried this, but there's just something about how it plumps and smooths the skin that has me hooked. It's super hydrating on the skin but doesn't feel sticky or tacky under makeup - very important. It definitely helps my skin stop drinking up my foundation throughout the day too, so while hydrating primers normally aren't marketed for prolonging foundation weartime, it really does do that for me.

I'm quite smitten with the cheek products I've tried from the brand. I was sent the Air Blush Soft Glow Duo in Kink & Kisses from Influenster last summer, and I loved it so much that I recently bought the shade Flesh & Fantasy. The formula is beautiful and perhaps the most finely-milled powder I've ever felt. It adds such a lovely luminous glow to the cheeks without being shimmery or glittery in the slightest. Kink & Kisses is such a perfect neutral pink shade, and Flesh & Fantasy is a lovely nude. Over the summer I was also sent the Glow Stick Glistening Illuminator from Influenster and fell completely in love. I've heard some people say they don't get along with it, but it's one of my favorites. I apply it with my fingers and it leaves such a high-shine finish on the skin. It's got both silver and gold tones in it, so I think it would work on most skintones.

My sister got me the Style Eye Con No. 7 Plush Eyeshadow Palette in 'The Lover' for Christmas this year after I decided it would be the perfect mix of shades to use when I get married. This palette is stunning - the eyeshadows feel similar to the blushes, quite soft and finely-milled. The shades are so gorgeous, too. I love that they're quite rosy, but they're neutral rather than warm. I've used every shade in the palette already, and they all perform well.

Lastly, I've got three of their lip products. Their Poutliner Longwear Lip Liner Pencil in Prim(rose) is probably one of my favorite lip products ever. It adds the perfect neutral pink flush to the lips and does. not. budge. You might remember me raving about it a while ago because I wore it to a dentist appointment when I got two cavities filled, and it was still completely intact when I left. (side note: I swear I brush my teeth) After falling for the lip liner I grabbed one of the New Nudes Sheer Lip Gel Lipsticks in Role Play. These are really quite pigmented despite having "sheer" in the name, but they're super comfortable on the lips and last reasonably well. Role Play is a perfect deeper pink nude - it goes great with (Prim)rose. Lastly, I just picked up one of their new Le Marc Liquid Lip Cremes in the shade Shush, Blush. The formula is lovely - it doesn't feel too thick when applying. It doesn't completely dry down, so it's not transfer-proof, but that makes it so much more comfortable on the lips. Despite not being super matte, it still stays put on the lips and wears off evenly without smudging. The shade Shush, Blush is a really pretty deep pink that's quite unique to my collection, so I'm super excited to wear it more. It also goes really well with the lip liner!

Have you tried any products from Marc Jacobs Beauty? What are your favorites? I'm dying to get a lip gloss next, I've heard nothing but good things!

(This post isn't sponsored - although how cool would that be?! - I just am really loving the brand!)

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The "Last Hurrah" Beauty Haul

I wrote at the end of last year that I wanted to work towards doing away with haul posts this year - I'm hoping to curb my spending and therefore eliminate the ability to write haul posts. As one last hurrah though, I picked up a bunch of beauty things with Sephora giftcards and other Christmas money and I've been having such a great time trying it all. I think I got a nice mix of things, from new releases to old favorites, and from face to lip products.

THE PRIMERS | I used to never wear a primer until I tried the Marc Jacobs Under(cover) Perfecting Coconut Primer, and now I'm kind of hooked. I've been super intrigued by Cover FX lately after trying one of their new powder highlighters, so I ended up grabbing their Calming Primer. This is an incredibly soothing primer with skincare ingredients to reduce redness and calm the skin. And it really, really works. Any redness is instantly knocked out of my skin, so I'm really impressed. Amelia has a great rundown of all of Cover FX's primers, too, if you're interested. I also ended up ordering the Milk Makeup Blur Stick last week when a few people had their own early access links, though it is out for everyone now. I typically can't use smoothing primers because they break me out, so seeing that this one is silicone- and oil-free made me unable to resist. I really like it so far - I'm going to have a more detailed review with before and afters up sometime in the next week or two, but so far it is really doing what it says, and despite being mattifying, it doesn't leave my skin looking dry or cakey.

THE FOUNDATION | I've wanted the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation for the longest time, so I figured it was now or never while I had some giftcards to spend. This is such a beautiful foundation and really deserves all the hype it gets, in my opinion. I've started thinking about what makeup I'm going to wear when I get married next year, and I'm sure this will be my foundation of choice. It looks so skin-like and luminous and stays looking perfect on me all day without getting greasy or cakey.

THE BLUSH | I've been so in love with the Marc Jacobs Air Blush Soft Glow Duo since trying it last year, and given my love of neutral blushes I'm surprised it took me so long to get my hands on Flesh & Fantasy. This is just the perfect bronze-y blush with just a hint of sheen, so it really adds a healthy glow to the face. The formula of these blushes is unreal, too.

THE LIP BALMS | When I saw that Bite Beauty were releasing an Agave Lip Balm to go with their Agave Lip Mask (which is my holy grail lip balm - I can't go a night without it!), I knew I needed it. I love that it comes in a stick so I don't have to use my fingers to apply it when I'm out and about. It's of course not as hydrating as the original mask, but it is still so nicely nourishing throughout the day. It's a super smooth formula that doesn't feel sticky, too. For a tinted option, I finally got my hands on the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment in Honey. I had such a moment with the Petal shade last year, so I wanted to try this more brown-y nude shade. So far, it's all love.

THE LIPSTICKS | I've also been having a moment with more dramatic lipsticks, wearing a different one every weekend. I finally decided to bite the bullet and get the NARS Lipstick in Scarlet Empress. It's a beautiful berry red shade with a satin finish. It's not the most pigmented lipstick I've ever tried, but I love the soft flushed stain it brings to the lips. It isn't patchy at all, and it builds up to an opaque finish super nicely. I'm in love. I also had to get one of the new shades of the Sephora Cream Lip Stains, seeing as they're still one of my favorite liquid lipstick formulas. I went for the shade Vintage Rosewood (41), which actually upon swatching I realized was sort of similar to the Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick in Allison. It's just a nice deep rosy brown shade. I also had to get my hands on one of the new Marc Jacobs Le Marc Liquid Lip Cremes in the shade Shush, Blush (456). I'm surprised I didn't go for Slow Burn, the dusty pink shade, but again, I've been into a slightly bolder lip. This is a lovely deep pink shade that looks a bit coral-y on me - normally warm shades look odd, but I love this one. The formula is beautiful and comfortable as well - it doesn't fully set, but it still lasts quite well.

Did you pick up any beauty products after the holidays?

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