Inspired by the mini-makeover I gave myself at Sephora today on my lunch break.

I wanted to buy everything, but there is just SO much stuff! I'm admittedly really bad at using makeup & moisturizers & all that shit, so I basically walked around feeling like a newb.

Sometimes the price has to do with the concentration and/or quality of the active ingredients. The sooner on the ingredient list, typically the higher the concentration. For example, two products might contain glycolics - but one in a far lesser concentration than the other.

With that said, there's always a bargain to be had somewhere! I love TJ Maxx for that very specific reason!

@bizzy I have so much stuff that I can hardly attempt to use it all! I will bring you stuff on our next girldate!

Faves:

Best Make-up Primer: Korres Quercetin Primer
Best Brow Pencil: Christian Dior Universal Brow Styler
Best Haircare: Hercut Shampoo & Conditioner
Best Eyeshadows: Stila ( hands down )

I could go on but maybe I should stop before I bore you all.

No, please go on! You won't bore me!

@Eva: I recently discovered brow brushes, so I'm considering switching from pencils to powders. Do you have any recommendations for good brow powders/brushes?

A soft-angled one works best. The stiff ones work too, but I feel like they're too rough on my skin.

More, you say? You got it!

Best Lipsticks: Yves Saint Laurent
Best Lip Gloss: Hourglass
Best Moisturizer: Nude skincare
Best Foundation: Cargo/Lancome
Best Eyecream: Peter Thomas Roth

@Bizzy: You can use brow powders or regular eyeshadow to fill in brows. For brunettes, use one shade lighter than your hair color. For blondes it's one shade deeper.

what about redheads?? my eyebrows are too light, but i'm usually too lazy to fill 'em in with anything unless i'm getting all gussied up.

speaking of: WHERE CAN I GET AN EYEBROW BRUSH THAT DOESN'T BREAK? i had another one break today. if the head doesn't fall off, then the bristles fall out. or, like the one today, the head just breaks in half. buh. i need one made of titanium or something.

I like this thread! I need this info bad! I need a good make-up tutorial

the irony of that name is that the beautiful don't need them.

man, that's exactly why i need the tutorial

My favorite face makeup is Makeup Forever, they have an HD foundation that is amazing, and their waterproof concealer is like magic. I think everyone's consensus is that NARS Orgasm blush is the best out there and I tend to agree it looks great on anyone and it's not draggy bright.

My favorite eye shadows are Dior, and I wear liquid eyeliner everyday and the best one I've found is Kat von D's which has a tapered brush. Benefit also makes a good one with a flat brush. Fuck the felt tip and the pens, with liquid you need a brush. Pens look like an awesome idea but they never deliver enough of the liner to make anything worthwhile.

Mascaras you don't need to spend money on, a lot of the best ones are drug store brands but if you want a designer one go for DiorShow (there's a Noir kohl one which is a more intense black). Also don't wear waterproof nothing, it's bad for your eyelids and tends to be more irritating.

I have this pet peeve that people who do makeup tutorials on YouTube only use MAC stuff. Sorry, MAC is not the be all end all, it's stage makeup and it's not for everyone.

RANT RANT RANT

oh yea, my roommates use DiorShow and talk about how awesome it is.

For those of you looking for good brow powder, Urban Decay makes a little brow box that comes with a mini mirror, a pair of tweezers, wax, brow powder, and a little brow brush. All of it is fantastic, and I've never had a problem with the brush breaking.

I have a really unhealthy obsession with Urban Decay products. I swear by their eyeshadow primer potion.

For regular make-up primer, lately I've been using Benefit's pore minimizing stuff (pregnancy had a really, really, really awful effect on my pores during the first trimester, and it works pretty well as a primer in general so I've just kept using it). In the same trip, I picked up some Benefit Erase Paste concealer, which I'm honestly not crazy about. I have a REALLY difficult time with concealer, I feel like nothing ever adequately covers my dark circles. If I could find the perfect concealer, I would likely die a happy woman.

Sorry Jubilee!, but I love mac. I really do. But speaking of drugstore mascara, I really dig Almay's 3 in 1 mascara (it's called "triple effect" I think). But yeah, you don't have to waste money on mascara, especially since you have to throw it away every 6 months anyway (drat!).

I have a pretty solid regimen of mixing drugstore products with high end products. For moisturizer I've been using yes to carrots, which works well enough for me, but I don't really ever have problems with moisturizers anyway.

Truth be told, I haven't been wearing make-up 99% of the time lately, because at 8 months pregnant I am so hormonal that it's a pretty valid concern that I will cry it all off by the end of the day anyway. But dang, I really love make-up.

for a somewhat beefish farmer type metal dude from the sticks, i buy matrix biolage conditioner by the tub for more than i'l admit.

a variety of conditioners and shampoos are what my sister usually gets me for christmas because she knows i love showing the local carhart fans and their exes how good long hair on a guy can look (and because all my cop relatives went bald in their twenties and seeing their stoner cousin open haircare products at grandma's on christmas morning infuriates them and that's just fucking hilarious for everyone in the family but them).

i do recommend the biolage ultra hydrating though. i can make my hair do different things based on what point in my shower i apply it.

applied late and washed out soon, i get ringlet curls. applied early and left in for the whole shower i get disciplined straight hair falling to my shoulders.

It's funny how much people spend on this stuff when most grocery stores still GIVE AWAY paper bags.

some banks call the cops when I walk in with my paper bag on.

did you draw a smiley face?

dag yo, I just drew a bowler hat.

YES. This shit is great. I love all the details! This is seriously going to help me out a lot guy. Keep it coming!

*guys.

that's why they call the cops!

I am obsessed with Sephora, but I'm also a lady on a budget, so I mix a lot of my Sephora shit with drugstore shit. I almost wrote dragstore shit, which probably is more accurate. I ENJOY DRAGGING IT UP. WHATEVER.

So for face makeup, I really like Loreal TrueMatch Super Blendable. It blends well and it comes in a variety of shades so I have one for my sunkissed days and for my vampire days. Also during the summer I just mix it up with a moisturizer instead of going all full-face makeup.

Speaking of moisturizer, I am OBSESSED, like, OBSESSED with Lorac's ProtecTINT tinted moisturizer. http://sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P172737&categoryId=C13200&shouldPaginate=true I've used other moisturizers and this is the only one that doesnt get all oily disgusting and doesn't smell like absolute butt. LOVE IT. But it is SO expensive. Wahhhh.

I have never found a decent concealer or primer that I like. Anyone have suggestions? My worst experience was with Smashbox's color correction primer, which was really, really, really, really expensive, and totally fucking useless. Never buying anything from them ever again.

For highlighting, I LOVE Lorac's luminizing powder. http://sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P187601&shouldPaginate=true&categoryId=4144. I recently bought a bottle of their liquid highlighter and don't like it nearly as much, but it accomplishes basically the same thing. LOVE THE POWDERED HIGHLIGHTER, THOUGH. It leaves me looking sparkly and shimmery. Love.

As for eyes, I am really really into Urban Decay eyeshadows, because their palettes offer so much variety, I find their shadows to be super pigmented, and they make some of my favorite colors. Also, they make any color that you can see in a YouTube MAC-centered tutorial so, whatever. I'm not a huge MAC fan either.

I also really like Urban Decay's 24/7 pencil eyeliners. Cool colors that glide on super smoothly.

For mascara, I really like tube mascara's and I got a sample of Blinc's Kiss Me mascara, which I LOVED (http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P46017), but it's more expensive than I'm willing to pay regularly, so I just use Covergirl waterproof Lash Blast Volume, which does more than enough for me.

As for liquid eyeliner, there is NOTHING that I have found that beats the waterproof Ultra Liner by Maybelline. You can get it at any supermarket or drug store and it is amazing. The thin brush lets you make your lines as thin or as thick as you need to, and its ultra flexible so you don't have to contort yourself to get it straight. I have tried so many liquid liners and that one is by far far far my favorite.

For lips, I use a lot of different lipglosses from a lot of different brands, but my ULTIMATE FAVORITE is Soap & Glory's Sexy Motherpucker in Peach. (http://www.soapandglory.com/products/cosmetics/sexy-mother-pucker-lip-gloss-peach?fromSearch=c2hvdz1hbGwmb3JkZXJieT1kYXRlJm9yZGVyPWRlc2MmY2F0ZWdvcmllcyU1QiU1RD0xMTk=). It lasts FOREVER without getting that nasty gummy feeling, and the color is subtle but still pretty. And, it lasts FOREVER. Clearly, this is the best perk. They used to sell Soap & Glory products at Target, but the UK based company is looking to get their products in beauty-specific stores, so I can't find a place to get my lipgloss anymore. :C I'm thinking of trolling ebay to get it, honestly. WAH.

OKAY DONE NOW.

I am only slightly embarrassed by that drag queen-inspired tl;dr up there.

I'm posting so I remember to look at this more later.

and it keeps getting better! now with links!!

i think i'm going to go on a mini makeup shopping spree and use my recently-acquired $100 gift card on some of this stuff to try. A hundred bucks will get me what... an eyeshadow, a lip gloss, & maybe a foundation, yeah?

Ladies with concealer problems, especially dark circles, I'm telling you--Makeup Forever. Best:

http://sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P151107&shouldPaginate=true&categoryId=4028

It's one of those concealers that actually makes it look like pimples/dark circles are not there.

Cleezus, primer wise I got a free sample of the Makeup Forever color corrector primer in Green which was awesome, it's not slimy like the Smashbox one and it adheres really well to foundation.

As far as drug store mascaras go I'm a fan of the Falsies one from Maybelline though it does clump (--get an eyelash comb with metal teeth it will change your life--), and all the Lash Blast mascaras are awesome, the Luxe one has shimmer in it which I like, but it's not as BLACK as the regular one. Also they come in these big chubby tubes which I like.

I'mma have to try that liquid you mentioned Cleez, I love me a liquid with a brush. Those goddamn felt tip pens are bullshit and everyone thinks they are like the magic solution to winged eyeliner--they aren't, they blow asshole.

I really liked the Luxe LashBlast too, but I felt like I ran out of it way sooner than the other ones. I will have to try the makeup forever concealer but it seems like such a large amount of money! I need to see how many points i have at sephora

It's A LOT though, I use like a teeny dab everyday and it's a big ass tube.