♡ Best Of Beauty 2016 ♡

Tuesday, January 10, 2017



2016 was a big year, the highs were high and the lows were low, pretty much all the feels for me. Beauty wise, it was great! So many product releases and new favourites that I have acquired, along with some trusty favourites that I've stayed loyal to for quite a while. These are all my ultimate makeup must haves of the year. 
Please keep in mind that all prices are in AUD.




Primer | Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer SPF 15 ($79)

I'd heard a lot of people talking about this primer and seeing that price tag, I wasn't particularly eager to buy it, however I received a sample size of it and was excited to try it out. At the same time, I was kind of hoping not to fall in love with it because I didn't want to have to purchase the full size. Unfortunately/fortunately that happened. This primer has the smoothest texture, that leaves the skin feeling silky and moisturised (it doesn't have that silicone-y feel), which equals to the perfect base. Foundation glides on effortlessly afterwards and I find that it prolongs the wear with less breakage around places such as the nose. 



Foundation | Marc Jacobs Re(marc)able Full Cover Foundation Concentrate ($79)

The hype around this product was definitely for good reason. This is without a doubt, the best foundation I have ever used and for so long, I thought I would never find 'the one'. It has the highest coverage I have come across, but unlike other full coverage foundations that are typically quite thick, this one is really thin and really needs the smallest amount. The common mistake many make is applying too much. With the unique applicator, I directly apply a dot to each section of the face - cheeks, nose, forehead and chin - and buff it out to create a flawless matte complexion, which is not too matte in my opinion, since I don't usually prefer that finish. For this product, I won't complain about the price because it is worth every dollar for me, especially since I will go through it slower than any other foundation. 

Shades: 12 Ivory & 27 Bisque Neutral



Concealers | Maybelline Fit Me Concealer ($14.95) & Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer ($41)

Some people have claimed that the Maybelline Fit Me is a dupe of the Nars Radiant Creamy concealer and I love them both, but I don't agree, I think they are different. The Maybelline is definitely more lightweight and easily blended with a dewier finish, as opposed to the Nars, with its thicker consistency due to its' slightly higher coverage and more matte finish. I use the the Maybelline in all the highlight areas - under the eyes, down the bridge of the nose, between the brows and on the chin, whereas I use the Nars where I need that extra bit of coverage. I always apply this in the inner corner of my eyes as it is always really dark there, as well as on blemishes or scars. 

Shades: 15 Fair (Maybelline), Chantilly & Vanilla (Nars)



Under Eye Powder | RCMA No Color Powder ($16)
Also shown: Beauty Blender Original

This powder is a game changer for me, it compares to no other. It is described as an invisible setting powder and is exactly that. It is undetectable on the skin, which makes it a miracle product for people with dry skin that find that powders can emphasise. I use this for the baking technique. With the packaging as it is, it can be quite messy to distribute the powder, so I remove the cap, and with a damp sponge, I stick inside and tip the container upside down, piling powder onto it. I tap off excess powder back in and press the sponge under my eyes. After a few minutes, I'll brush it off and my concealer is left perfectly creaseless and set for the whole day. I love this powder because it leaves the under eye area looking smooth and not at all cakey. It is also great for the rest of the face if you don't want to add any extra coverage or to adjust the shade of your foundation.



Face Powders | Australis Fresh & Flawless (12.95) & Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder ($67)
Also shown: Real Techniques 300 Tapered Blush & Multi Task Brush
I love these two powders for different purposes. I use the Australis to set my foundation and add extra coverage which it does well with its' high pigment. Depending on the shade, if the foundation match is a little off, you can easily fix it by adding a lighter or darker powder, something you can't do with most powders. As I have somewhat oily skin, I have found that this is the best powder for oil control, and unlike some powders that will easily fade and rub off (due to me being a face toucher), this one has the most impressive staying powder. For the Hourglass, this is my totally extra step. If I'm looking a little too matte, or I just want an extra glow, I will dust this all over the face and it leaves the skin looking so beautiful, radiant and soft looking. It doesn't add coverage or shimmer, it just looks luminous.

Shades: Light Beige & Natural (Australis), Dim Light (Hourglass)



Bronzers | Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer ($44) & Benefit Hoola ($51)
Also shown: Benefit Cheekathon Blush & Bronzer Palette & Sigma F05 Small Contour Brush

As you've seen, I tend to buy certain products in multiple shades, this is due to my skintone changing due to fake tan. I buy one for my natural skintone and one to match my tan. For bronzer, I like to have one a few shades darker when I'm tan. My favourite is this one from Too Faced, it is so smooth and blendable. It's not too pigmented, I usually tap my brush in twice for each area. I like to be able to build up to a nice colour, rather than have it intense straight away, making it hard to blend out. And of course, it smells so delicious and chocolatey. For paler days or if I just want something a little more natural and softer, I will go for Hoola. This is a perfect neutral tone, with no orange or ash to it. This product requires a few extra brush taps to get the right amount of pigment, which is definitely a good thing because it is so easy to go overboard and it definitely shows on lighter skintones. Both are perfect contouring shades as well as to generally bronze and warm up the face.

Shade: Medium Deep (Too Faced)



Blushes | Milani Baked Blush ($10) & Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush ($55)
Also shown: Real Techniques 300 Tapered Blush Brush

Milani Luminoso is the most beautiful blush. I love peachy blushes and this one has the perfect amount of pink and orange to it. It adds such a soft flush of colour to brighten the face, as well as a radiant glow thanks to its sheen that contains no shimmer or glitter, just glow. The Hourglass blush is extremely similar, I'd say it has just a hint more pink to it and less luminosity. I choose this one over Milani when I want something more matte, because it has a less intense sheen to it. They both have the perfect amount of pigment to them, that allow you to build to the opacity that you desire. I'd easily be able to live with just these two blushes.



Highlighter | The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer ($29.95) & Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector ($62)
Also shown: Zoeva 129 Luxe Fan Brush

2016 was definitely the year of highlight. Who would have thought adding a stripe of shimmer to your cheekbones would become so important? The first highlighter I ever bought was the Mary-Lou Manizer and for a long time, I felt no need to try anything else. It's the perfect light champagne colour with no chunky glitter. It allows for either a subtle or more intense glow depending on the amount you apply. I always go back to this one. The second is my more recent purchase, Jaclyn Hill's baby, Champagne Pop. This product is definitely worth the hype. I love the true champagne colour and the intense highlight this gives. This is for those who want to blind. It's so beautiful and buttery to the touch. This is the one I choose for more dramatic looks, or just extra glowing days. (Still crying over the fact that I dropped it and it smashed 😭)

Shade: Champagne Pop (Becca)



Brows | Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz ($38) & Australis Clear Lash And Brow Extender ($11.49)

I've used quite a few different brow pencils, but this is the one I have repurchased multiple times and will continue to. Its' super fine tip allows easy precision and the ability to create natural hair-like strokes. I love that it has the spoolie on the end, I always start by brushing them into place, filling them in and then brushing through the product to blend and soften the harshness. The shade range is really good as well, Dark Brown is the perfect ashy toned brown to match my natural colour. To set them in place and prevent the product from fading, I use this clear Australis gel that always keeps them in place.



Eyeshadow Palette | Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance ($75)

Of course this is my ultimate palette of the year. I have a full review and swatches of it in a previous post here. I just can't stop using it. It is the perfect neutral palette with a few added extras of red and rosey tones that mix in so well. This has been my everyday palette and I know I will continue using it. They are some of the most pigmented and blendable shadows.

I decided I wanted to create my own personal palette with all shades that I love that has everything I need in it. I wanted it to be my travel palette, as well as my everyday palette. Just the perfect all rounder. I bought a large Z Palette and chose 25 single eyeshadows from Makeup Geek. This is definitely my most used palette, which is what I fully intended and hoped for. These are my favourite eyeshadow formulas. They are such an affordable price and are even better than Mac in my opinion. The foiled shadows in particular are an extreme stand out. They have such a metallic, wet look to them. They are so beautiful, as well as the shimmers and mattes.

Shades: (L-R) Vanilla Bean, Rapunzel, Shimma Shimma, Starry Eyed, Beaches and Cream, Peach Smoothie, Cinderella, In The Spotlight, Cosmopolitan, Grandstand, Magic Act, Barcelona Beach, Homecoming, Mai Tai, Whimsical, Blacklight, Daydreamer, Twilight, Unexpected, Moondust, Frappe, Cocoa Bear, Mesmerised, Pegasus, Corrupt



Single Eyeshadows | Makeup Geek ($8)
Also shown: Zoeva 228 Luxe Crease & 232 Luxe Classic Shader Brushes

My must have transitions are Beaches and Cream and Peach Smoothie. They are light, almost my skintone shades, with warmth to them, being the perfect shade for others to blend into. My favourite crease shades are Frappe and Cocoa Bear, I feel like I can't live without these two shades, they're beautiful warm browns, Coco Bear being deeper and chocolatier. I also like these two, to define the lower lash line. Lid shades that I always go for are Rapunzel, a subtle glowy champagne shade for more natural looks, Shimma Shimma for that intense highlight (also beautiful to brighten the inner corner and brow bone) and Grandstand, the most beautiful bronze shade. I've gotten more compliments on this eyeshadow than any other, so I think that says it all. I also love the intense gold shade Magic Act, which is a foiled shadow as well as Grandstand. I'm hoping to add more to my collection, but I'm also really happy with my choices so far. I highly recommend these eyeshadows.

Shades: (L-R) Beaches and Cream, Peach Smoothie, Frappe, Cocoa Bear, Rapunzel, Shimma Shimma, Magic Act, Grandstand



Kohl Eyeliners | Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil ($33), Nars Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner ($36)

I don't typically use dark kohl liners that often, but when I do, I love this Urban Decay one. Its a beautiful dark brown with a subtle metallic bronze to it. Its super smooth to apply, as the name suggests, but it doesn't smudge at all once it's set. I like to apply it to the top lash line in the outer corner about 1/3 of the way and smudge the line out a little. This adds depth and makes the lashes look thicker at the base. We all know the struggle of eyeliner fading from the waterline. I was beginning to give up on applying it, knowing it would be barely visible in about 2 hours. This Nars liner is the best I've tried. I love the look of a nude brightening shade in the waterline and this creamy formula doesn't tug at all on the delicate eye area and stays for an impressive amount of hours. 

Shades: Hustle (Urban Decay) & Rue Bonaparte (Nars)



Liquid Eyeliner | Maybelline Hyper Sharp Wing Liquid Liner - Black ($17.95)

I used to think I just could't do winged liner. It always looked so thick and jagged and not cute at all. I tried out the Maybelline Master Precise Liner and found an immediate improvement. It was all down to the type of liner I was using. I had previously tried brush tip liners and they were far more difficult for me because the brush is more flexible and harder to control. Although, some people prefer those, the felt tip liners are what I'm comfortable with because it is stiff and I can easily press it onto my skin in small motions for more precision. A while after, the Hyper Sharp came out and I saw how much thinner it was. I've always found thinner eyeliner suits my eyeshape better so I bought this, thinking it would be much easier to get the thinness I desired. Somehow it was all over easier to use. Now the only hard part is getting the wings even. It's my lifesaver, no more stressful eyeliner tantrums!



Mascara | Covergirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara ($18.95) & Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara ($33)

I've been using the Covergirl mascara for about 2 years. I've tried lots of different ones, but I always go back to this one. I love how separating and volumizing it is. Its easy to achieve a soft look, as well as more dramatic by adding extra coats. It never seems to go clumpy either. The Too Faced mascara almost contradicts how I don't like clumpy or thick lashes, because this can easily create this. I use this mascara as a second step, since the Covergirl one is so separating, it's nice to add a little thickness and drama to them, as well as the extreme blackness this one offers. They pair really well together, it doesn't matter if the first mascara is dry or not, it always works. I especially like the Too Faced mascara for bottom lashes as it makes them a lot longer.



Lipliners | Too Faced Perfect Lips ($24), Jordana Easyliner For Lips ($3.37), Kylie Cosmetics Lipliner ($39)

This Too Faced lipliner has to be my all time favourite, it is the most perfect nude shade that goes so well with any nude or pale pink lipstick. Unfortunately, I have heard it is being discontinued and I've been unable to buy it (or 10 more incase), it is still listed on some stores online, so if you see it, definitely get it. The Jordana Easyliners are the most affordable of my collection, but the quality is extremely high. They are super pigmented and aren't rough at all, making it easy to apply precisely. They provide such a great base. Typically I would go for a nude, mauve or a red lip, so these are some of my go to shades. The last is from Kylie Cosmetics, this lipliner can only be purchased in the Candy K Lipkit with its matching liquid lipstick (shown below). This would have to be one of the most creamiest lip liners I've tried. Its so easy to fill in the whole lips without any patchiness. I use this under a variety of different lipsticks and liquid lipsticks as I think it is the perfect warm nude with a slight mauve tone to it.



Lipsticks | MAC Faux ($36), Kylie Cosmetics Candy K Lipkit ($39), Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick ($30)

I can't even begin to describe my unconditional love for MAC Faux. It's the perfect shade of mauve that can be worn everyday as a nude or with more dramatic looks depending on the lipliner underneath, you can easily manipulate this shade. It is a satin finish, which are my favourite of MAC because they have the hydration, as well as the ability to stay on the lips for many hours, and one swipe equals full opacity. It's just perfect to me, this is my third repurchase and I'm sure there will be many more as this is my most worn lipstick, it goes with almost any look.

This Kylie liquid lipstick goes with the previously mentioned lip liner Candy K. This would be my favourite shade of her range, it is a darker, warm nude with an equal amount of pink and brown. These liquid lipsticks have incredible pigmentation with just one swipe, but can easily go cakey if there are more layers added. I love this and wear it a lot, but I must say, they are extremely drying. But I can look past this for the beautiful colour. The last two are from Kat Von D and these are my all time favourite liquid lipstick formulas. They are the least drying and don't look super cracked and matte. They look like a standard lipstick, but stay on really well. They're definitely the most comfortable and have a huge shade range. The left shade is similar to the other two in this photo, but is significantly more purple. The other is my most worn red lipstick. It is a beautiful, slightly darker cool toned red. I definitely recommend liquid lipsticks for darker and vibrant colours, because they are less likely to smudge and move around.

Shades: Faux (MAC), Candy K (Kylie Cosmetics), Lovesick & Outlaw (Kat Von D)



Setting Spray | Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray ($49)

I like to ensure that my makeup will stay on all day (or night), so I use this setting spray. I apply it after I have done all makeup, besides liquid liner and mascara, to prevent any smudging. It helps to settle down any powders that are looking excessively powdery, to melt into the skin and look more natural and smooth. It locks in makeup and increases the longevity. There is also options available suited for oily or dry skin.

These have been my ultimate favourites of the year and I'm sure I will definitely continue to use them throughout this year. I'm excited to find new discoveries that 2017 will bring! Thank you for reading :)

What were some of your makeup favourites of the year?

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2 comments

  1. The Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso is just amazing and you can never go wrong with Makeup Geek's single eye shadows. I have a z palette of some of your favorites mixed in as well. Such staples. Great round up of the year!

    xoxo Bryanna | Coming in Clutch

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks so much! Haven't been able to put Luminoso down since I've gotten it.

    xx

    ReplyDelete

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