Favourites Lately: Late 2016

~ stashy

This year I decided to do quarterly favourites so I’ve had lists for early 2016 (covering January to March) and mid-year (covering April to June), and now I’m showing my third quarterly favourites to cover July to September:
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It’s mostly Summery products but a little bit of Autumn is creeping in… yes, I’m a bit late in posting this – it should have been up early October. 😳

Skincare:

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• Antipodes Vanilla Pod Day Cream (review here) – of the 4 Antipodes products I started using this summer, this is the one that stands out and I continue to use daily. It creates a smooth and hydrated base for foundation to be applied on top.

• Paula’s Choice Resist Anti-aging Eye Cream – my friend gave this to me because I was complaining about my eye area looking crepey and none of my eye creams were cutting it (this was before I went crawling back to Shiseido’s eye cream). This eye cream is fantastic for providing hydration and protection in a lightweight, non-greasy formula. I prefer this for nighttime since it does tend to ball up underneath concealers.

• Nuworld Botanicals Cold-pressed Organic Sea buckthorn & Jojoba oil (review here) – this surprised me by showing me that not all oils are created equal.
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• TonyMoly Dalcom Banana Pong Dang Lip Balm – I don’t think I’ve ever shown this on the blog before. I keep this at work normally – in fact, my coworker bought it for me. She got hooked on the TonyMoly line when she discovered it at Hudson’s Bay Beauty Underground. This lip balm isn’t sticky at all and smells like REAL banana (not that artificial crap that triggers memories of medicine when I was a kid – gag!)
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• Garnier Micellar Cleaning Water – I’ll join the legions to echo their “believe the hype” assessment of this micellar water. It does the job, it’s easily accessible, and it’s affordable. I personally still prefer the micellar waters from Yves Rocher, Sukin and Reversa – I find them more effective and soothing for my skin. But that’s just me being extremely picky. 😛

• MUJI High Moisture Toner – I mentioned this in my recent MUJI skincare post. This has a high glycerin content which makes it almost like a priming water (something that the Smashbox Primer Water fails miserably at! :/ ). There are some days I use just this and skipped my serum, and apply the Antipodes face cream on right after, that’s how hydrating this is. This might edge out my previous favourite misting toner, from Sukin.

• Biotherm Biocils Lash Optimizer Eye Makeup Remover – this is a long time favourite ever since I received a sample and then I was hooked! Another example of where sampling works. 😉 This is a very effective eye makeup remover and it doesn’t leave any residue.

• Avon Makeup Setting Spray (review here) – a surprise find from Avon. This setting spray really does work to lock down makeup for the day.

Body care:

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• Cake Coconut Body Souffle – this smells like a coconut and a cupcake had a lovechild. The formula is also divine – absorbs quickly but keeps the hydration all day.

• L’Occitane Ultra Soft Balm  – I wouldn’t call this ultra soft in terms of its texture – it’s quite a solid wax, but it does make my skin very soft! It smells like roses and I like it for my cuticles and elbows.

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Mine was broken upon opening the container – here’s what appears to be the bunny ears. My favourite way to use this is to break it up into chunks the size of cherry tomatoes and lather up in my Salux wash cloth.

• LUSH Bouncy Bunny Bath Jelly – yes this is an Easter limited edition item and I’m only 6 months late on this. This is my first time using a LUSH bath jelly and it’s so much fun! Plus, it smells like Creamsicles (orange + vanilla), lathers up nicely, and leaves my skin feeling soft. I’m going to be getting a holiday one if they have any scents I like (and I’ll get around to using it by June 2017!)

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While I’m at it, another favourite is this Umbra ENSA soap dish. It has a raised tray so the soap doesn’t sit in water. And the metal portion removes for easy cleaning.

• Nova Scotia Fisherman Sea Salt Soap (haul here) – a very soothing soap that smells warm and inviting (mixture of shea and sea salt is my guess?). Thanks again to Dal of Little Beauty Loves for raving about this line, or else I would have never tried it.

Hair care:

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• Herbal Essences Smooth Collection shampoo  and conditioner (haul here) – thanks to Mrs. Strawberry Blonde, I picked this pair up and I’m really enjoying both! They clean my hair and adds moisture without weighing it down. And they smell great, don’t forget how “orgasmic” they are. 😉

• Korres Licorice & Urtica Shampoo – my friend went to Greece last year and actually hauled this back for me! It’s a bit medicinal but it really clarifies my hair. I like alternating my shampoos so I use this alongside the Herbal Essences one.

Makeup:

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• Faces Metaliglow in 03 Rose Bronze – I bought this way back in January and finally busted it open in the summer. I had heard for years how great this is as an eyelid primer – they weren’t kidding! It really works to keep things from fading and creasing. It’s also a nice highlighter for the cheeks (its intended purpose) – similar effect as the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector.
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• Teeez Spectrum of Stars Eyeshadows in Smokey Rose (haul here) – I never did review this but my pal Polished and Inspired did, so go check it out! It’s a wonderful, strong duochrome eye shadow (sage grey with a rose glint) in a last-all-day formula. The orb packaging is slightly annoying – it’s about the size of an EOS lipbalm – but what can you do (I might depot).

• Shiseido Luminizing Satin Eye Color in RD709 Alchemy – this is a soft rosy taupe that I like wearing on the weekends.
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• MAC Paints in Bamboom – This was from a January haul where I lament that likely MAC will discontinue these Paint tubes in favour of the Paint Pots. Thankfully, that hasn’t happened and this shade is still available. This warm brown shade was my base for many looks this summer.

• Shu Uemura Coloring Pencil in M Dark Brown 83 (haul here) – I’ve found a worthy successor to the Lancôme Khol in Love eye liner. This thing stays on through anything! 😮

• CoverGIrl Supersizer mascara – a surprisingly good mascara that lasts amazingly well on my lashes and holds a curl.
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• MAC Lipstick in Brave – I Back to MAC for this with the help of my PLC (Personal Lip Consultant), Cat.  It’s such a wearable beige-y pink shade with a lovely brightening effect on my skin tone.
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• Burt’s Bees lipsticks in Lily Lake 530 and Sunset Cruise 523 – I got these during my birthday haul and I haven’t reviewed these yet but spoiler alert, they are awesome! If you like tinted lip balms but wished they were more pigmented, that’s what these are.  They smell fruity too. There, I don’t even need to devote an entry to these now. 😛
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• Shiseido Lacquer Rouge in RD203 Portrait – This liquid lipstick feels comfortable on the lips and has good wear time. This particular shade is a peachy nude that looks great with bronzed skin.
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• L.A. Colors Pressed Powder in Beige (review here) – what a great powder especially for the summertime. It really controls oil and provides good coverage. And only $2!

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Check out all that pan showing in that LA Colors pressed powder! 😀

• MAC Extra Dimension Bronzer Aphrodite’s Shell – I remember reading from some people that they didn’t find this bronzer to be pigmented enough when this was released in the Alluring Aquatics collection. That’s precisely reason why this appeals to me – it’s completely foolproof and easy to apply all over my face for a sheer sunkissed look.
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• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Rio – this was a limited edition item from the Tropical Taboo collection in 2013. I use it as a blush / highlighter combo – it’s super flattering on tanned skin. When swirled together, it creates a warm pink colour – I read that Milani Baked Blush in Dolce Pink is similar.
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• Shu Uemura Point Cealer in 7YR-ML – I got this during my birthday haul – it’s an unassuming little concealer that plays nice under the eye area (it’s ever so slightly too ochre on me). It’s pigmented but doesn’t look dry and does not crease. I can’t seem to find this online so I’m worried it might be phased out; I’ll have to go back to the Shu Uemura counter to ask if it’s discontinued.

Nails:

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• Essie Gel Couture Pinned Up and top coat (review here)
• China Glaze Change Your Altitude (review here)
• China Glaze Let’s Jam (review here)
• Nicole by OPI Sing You Like a Bee – review soon!

Tools:

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• H&M Precision Makeup Sponge – I picked this up on a whim for $5 and was so impressed by its texture and performance.  It is less airy compared to the Beauty Blender but it blends foundation just as well. The only downside is the white colour: stain-city! 😕

• MAC 129SH Powder/Blush Brush – I bought this back in April and I’ve been using it quite a bit for applying blush. It picks up the perfect amount of powder and blends well. I had heard mixed reviews the long handled version of this (shedding, not soft) but this short handled version is great (and unlike the LE versions, this is made in Japan, not China).
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• MAC 217SH Blending and 239SH Shader brush – and since I’m talking about the SH (short handled) brushes from MAC, the other two I’ve been enjoying are the 217SH and 239SH. If you’re thinking of upgrading your brushes, look no further than these 2 brushes. At the very least, get the 217 (either short handled or regular length handle – the heads are the same as shown above). You can thank me later.

I’ll be doing one more quarterly favourites in December, and then I’ll do a “best of” list in January for all of 2016 (I love reading those!). What have been your favourites lately?

56 thoughts on “Favourites Lately: Late 2016”

    1. I knew you’d comment on the mascara… I ended up really liking it! 😛
      I was iffy about the idea of the banana lip balm but she bought one for herself and I smelled it and it was nice. I’m not the biggest fan of banana flavour stuff myself.
      What colour are you thinking of getting from the Gel Couture line?

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    1. I know, it’s too cute. I’ve never used a bath jelly before and now I’m hooked. I wish we had those when I was a kid.

      Yesss, the Herbal Essences are working so well on my hair! Thanks again!

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  8. Favourites posts are my favourite type of post to read! Gives me ideas of more products to put on my wish list, hehe.

    When I saw the TonyMoly Banana lip balm, I was like “Blegh…” I hope they stopped making children’s medicine in the banana flavor because no kid likes that, much less an adult! Anyways, glad to hear it doesn’t actually smell like fake banana…whew!

    The coconut body soufflé sounds DELICIOUS, as does the bath jelly…I love anything that smells like creamsicles. Still need to try out a bath jelly – like you said, maybe during Christmas!

    Oooh, Smokey Rose looks so pretty layered. I think I need to play around more with different combos of this shadow this weekend!

    Have you seen any more Essie Gel Couture polishes around? I wanted to buy some more this month but the displays have disappeared!

    I went into MAC last weekend specifically to look at 217 and 239 as per your recommendation, but the SAs were helping other customers for a long time and I got impatient – I need to go back this week! I’ll look into the 129 too, I’m particularly in the market for another blush brush. See what I mean about getting ideas from favourites posts?

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    1. I was worried this post would just plant seeds of lemmings for you! 😆 But hey, if you’re planning on getting new brushes ANYWAY, then why not these? 😉 Ick, I know what you mean about MAC stores being so busy and not wanting to wait – I’ve walked out too! That’s why sometimes I’d rather just shop at the MAC counter at the Bay or now Nordstrom!

      Yes the fake banana taste / smell haunts every person. I know a few people who actually enjoyed that stuff. The other flavour is the cherry cough syrup… yuck.

      I’ve seen some Essie Gel Couture polishes get added to the core Essie displays, maybe that’s why the special stand alone displays are disappearing? I’ve noticed that they have special displays for the new Sally Hansen ones, and the L’Oreal ones. I am curious about the L’Oreal ones – those bottles are so chic!

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      1. Hehe, so many seeds planted!
        Ugh, there are people who ENJOYED that stuff? Makes no sense! Even the regular unflavoured icky cough syrup tastes better.
        I haven’t been able to find the Gel Couture polishes at ALL – thought they might have been added to the core display since they’re no longer new, but nope. Maybe I just have to expand my search. But yes, the packaging of the new L’Oreal ones have made me curious about the polish too!

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  11. MAC 129 with the long handle is the blush brush I’ve had for many, many years. It still sheds ALL THE TIME but for some reason it still looks and works fine. I have no idea how.

    I thought about trying the Burt’s Bees lipsticks, but…I hate the packaging. Good to hear they are nice, though.

    And…what kind of weird medicine did you have as a kid that tasted like fake banana?!

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    1. I was wary about getting that 129 brush – I wonder if they improved the manufacturing?

      Yes, I agree about the BB lipstick packaging – it’s SO long and bulky. Also, the lipstick doesn’t go all the way down when you swivel it – annoying. But I do like the formula a lot.

      Hmm the fake banana stuff was antibiotics, I think. It wasn’t some over the counter stuff – it was prescribed by MD. GROSS.

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  12. That banana lip gloss looks fun! I must be one of the few people who doesn’t love Garnier’s Micellar Water. I don’t think it’s bad, it just didn’t seem to do much good for my skin but I think they have come out with micellar waters for different skin types now so perhaps one of them is the way to go? All the MAC products are so purrty!

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    1. Yes Garnier has a bunch of micellar waters now catering to various skin types. I should qualify how I use micellar waters – it’s not my first line of makeup removal or my only face cleanser. I always use oil or balm cleanser beforehand. So the micellar water isn’t doing the “heavy lifting”. It works well for cleaning up residue and it doesn’t irritate my skin. 🙂 What about it was not wowing you?

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      1. After using it my skin felt like it had an oily/greasy film and I washed my face with a wash cloth afterwards to get rid of that. I still have a half full bottle which should probably be thrown away because it is past the 6 month expiry but I don’t want it to go to waste. I haven’t used the product in ages though haha.

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  13. The Brave lipstick looks beautiful, good choice! Also, glad to see you’re liking the Garnier Micellar water! I’ve only tried the waterproof makeup removing one, not the original, but I really like it! Mostly due to it’s affordability, I love a good deal!

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    1. I’m thinking of trying the waterproof micellar water from Garnier, I think it could be a cheaper alternative to my expensive eye makeup remover. Do you find it leaves any film / residue on your skin afterward?

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  15. The MAC Bronzer looks so nice! And coconut and cupcakes sound divine. I’m pretty much sold on any body cream with Cake on it. I tried a Sheseido foundation and really love it but haven’t ventured into the lip products yet. Will keep it in the back burner. 🙂

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    1. I’m with you – basically any body stuff from Cake, I’ve loved. They haven’t steered me wrong yet!
      My wish list based on other people’s favourites or recommendations is a mile long… and always growing! 😆

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