Beauty

Beauty gifts for the holidays

 in Beauty  tagged elemis / holiday gift guide 2017 / holiday gift ideas / holidays 2017 by

Beauty gift ideas for the holidays from top left: YSL lipstick gift set / Estee Lauder skin care gift set / Elemis skin care set (I own this and love it!) / Laura Mercier gift set / Clarisonic gift set (I own this one and it’s amazing!) / Chanel gift set (be still my beating heart!) / Fresh skin care set / MD Perricone no makeup set (watch for my upcoming review-love it!) / MAC lipstick set (On my gift list!) / Makeup gift set / Dior lipstick gift set (I need this one!) / Colleen Rothschild skin care gift set (I love these products!) / Burberry nail polish set (love these blues!)

If you have been following along, you know I test out, and review, a ton of beauty products. Since I have tried so many products, it was easy to put together this beauty gift guide for you; I just included all of my favorite products!

I always try to give people something I know they would like, and I also would buy for myself. I like to give people the same quality I buy for myself. This is why I am only featuring products in this gift guide which I already own; since these are gift sets, ,this could be one or more products featured in each set.

The brands I am featuring in this beauty gift guide are beauty brands I use, love, and trust. Only the best for you!

Lipstick beauty gift sets

Skin Care beauty gift sets

More fabulous beauty gift sets

Beauty gifts on my holiday wish list-hey hubby, are you reading this? Hint, hint 😉

Happy Holidays!

XOXO

Cathy

holiday beauty gifts

YSL holiday 2017 nail polish Dazzling Lights review

 in Beauty / Nail Polish  tagged holidays 2017 / reviews / saint laurent / ysl by

YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection review

YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection: Red Lights and Gold Fire

When it comes to fashion, the holidays are all about sparkles, and festive style. I was looking for something festive in the world of nail polish, to compliment the festive vibe of holiday fashion, and was thrilled to find the YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection; so of course I purchased it right away! The collection is back to holiday basics; sparkling red and gold.

I tested out both colors; because they are fabulous! I liked one more then the other when it came to texture; while loving both of the hues. Without further ado, here are my reviews!

YSL Holiday 2017 Nail Polish: Gold Fire

YSL gold fire nail polish holidays 2017

YSL Gold Fire nail polish is my favorite of the two limited edition hues introduced by Yves Saint Laurent for the festive holiday season. Gold acts like a neutral, so it matches everything. This is a color I can easily wear during the day, or rock at an evening soiree.

This is a glitter nail polish. The glitter bits inside YSL Gold Fire are long and don’t stick out, or cause a rough surface. I tested out YSL Gold Fire nail polish with one base coat, and two coats of color. I did not use a top coat. The gold color is sparkling and shiny. The texture is rather smooth; unlike many glitter polishes which can be rough and catch on things. Don’t you hate it when your nail polish snags your clothing? This one won’t! Love that!

YSL Gold Fire nail polish is long lasting, and won’t chip easily. I love how strong it is, and how festive it! This is my favorite of the two colors from the YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection named “Dazzling Lights.’

YSL Holiday 2017 nail polish: Red Lights

ysl red lights nail polish holidays 2017 review

This color, YSL Red Lights nail polish, is a beautiful cherry-pink-red. Think of it as a pinkish cherry red. I love the color, and I am not a big red nail polish fan. The pink tinge is just enough to make this an easy red to wear daily without looking too much like a fire engine.

The glitter in YSL Red Lights nail polish is small. This is where the problem comes in. Since the glitter bits are small, they bunch up in the second coat. I used one base coat, and two coats of color. When I applied the first coat, I thought it looked perfect; I should have left it. The second coat is where I ran into the problem. The glitter clumped together causing a rough surface. Next time I apply YSL Red Lights nail polish, I will only wear one coat. Photo shown with two coats.

I love the sparkle in this nail polish. It really glistens in the light. It will be fun to wear with only one coat this holiday season, for special occasions. There is something very festive about this color. It just screams Christmas! Love!

The YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection, “Dazzling Lights,” is a beautiful, classic holiday collection. It has the two colors we really need to get through the holiday party season. I can’t wait to wear them more!

You can find the YSL holiday 2017 nail polish collection online here.

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO

Cathy

Winter beauty must-haves for skin and hair

 in Beauty / Hair Care  tagged aveda / bobbi brown / chanel / chanel nail polish / colleen rothschild / elemis / lavanila / lipstick / revive / skin care / tan luxe by

winter beauty skin care hair must haves

Winter beauty must-have’s from top left: Aveda hand cream / Revive eye cream / Elemis face cream / Colleen Rothschild retinol supreme / Revive neck cream / LaVanila body butter / Tan-Luxe body drops / Tan-Luxe face drops / Chanel fall nail polish / Bobbi Brown crushed lip color / Aveda scalp cleanser / Aveda shampoo / Aveda conditioner

Despite the fact that is technically still fall, I have already started my winter beauty routine. The fall season here in the San Francisco Bay Area is half summer, and half winter. We don’t really have an in-between. This means my summer beauty routine continues until the cold front hits in November; and we are here!

My skin takes a beating during the winter season, not from sun exposure, but from the dry, indoor climate. The furnace in my house, combined with heaters everywhere I go, are really good at drying out the air. This leaves the skin on my face and body desperately thirsty. In order to ensure I don’t become a prune during the winter season, I need to make sure I am using the right skin care products.

For my face, I have been using Revive’s neck cream since I was twenty-eight years old. You read that right! It has kept my neck in a perfect state; and I won’t use anything else on it! I have fallen in love Elemis’s face cream. It gives my face the perfect amount of moisture and balance. For my eyes, Revive has a fabulous eye cream which does wonders for reducing fine lines, and adding just the perfect amount of moisture. Colleen Rothchild’s retinal serum is perfect for keeping my skin balanced and youthful.

When it comes to my body, my skin is ghostly white and dries out easily. Thank goodness for Aveda hand cream and LaVanila body butter! They keep my body from drying and flaking off like snow! As for the white part, have you tried new Tan-Luxe? O-M-G! It is a gift from God! These fabulous drops add just the right amount of tan to my legs. They also have a version for the face which is perfect for adding some sun-kissed color back to my cheeks. Love it and can’t live without it!

Hair also takes a beating during the cold winter months. The heater dries out my hair like crazy! In addition to my hair, it dries out my scalp; which is super annoying! To combat dry scalp, I use Aveda Pramasana scalp cleanser which gets all that extra yuck off my scalp, leaving it squeaky clean; and not dry! Shampure shampoo and conditioner by Aveda are great for keeping my hair clean during the winter months. It keeps my hair from getting greasy without drying my scalp or ends. Love it!

Now you might be wondering why I included Chanel’s fall nail polish and Bobbi Brown’s lipstick in a skin care slash hair post. Well, I can’t leave home without wearing these two beauty products, so I just thought I would throw them into my seasonal skin care post. I hope you don’t mind. 🙂 This lipstick is great since it holds color well throughout the day without drying out the lips. I’m addicted to it! And. . .well. . .Chanel needs no explanation 😉

Which products are you using to combat winter dry skin and hair?

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO

Cathy