Favourite Products Of 2011

I have probably spent more on makeup in the last 12 months than in any other year of my life. It sure is expensive work being a beauty blogger! Luckily it means that I've found some products that I really love and can see myself using for a long time to come. Here are some of my favourite things that I used last year. I liked a lot more stuff than what I've listed here but these are the products that really stood out to me.


Skincare
Clarisonic Mia / Liz Earle Eyebright / Dermalogica Active Moist
The best thing that I invested in last year was my Clarisonic Mia. There is no other skincare product or treatment out there that compares to what this will do for your skin. I love how it makes my skin look, almost like I've had a spa facial every time I wash my face. I love all the Liz Earle products that I've tried so far. I use Cleanse & Polish with my Clarisonic & follow up with their Skin Tonic too. Eyebright is a bit of a wonder product as it instantly cools & refreshes your eyes. Its brilliant if you've had too many late nights or need to look & feel more awake. Active Moist has been my favourite moisturiser for a while now. Its perfect on my normal/combination skin type. I haven't really liked any of the moisturisers I tried last year so I'll be sticking with this one for the foreseeable future.


Haircare
Tangle Teezer / Kerastase Ciment Thermique / Batiste XXL Volume Dry Shampoo / Frédéric Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Cream
For anyone still wondering if Tangle Teezers work, yes they do & mine has saved me from some pretty horrific knots. I still really like the Kerastase Ciment Thermique & I don't think that any other heat protection product compares to this one. The grapefruit scent lingers on your hair & its absolutely beautiful. I only recently managed to purchase the XXL Volume Batiste as its been really hard to track it down. Its literally always sold out. I'm so glad I got this as although it does make your hair feel like utter crap, it does give you lots of volume. Just whack some serum on afterwards and you're good to go. The Brilliant Glossing Cream is kinda like a cream version of Moroccanoil so it helps to weigh down your hair more. Some people won't like that but I do as it means less flyaways & a more polished looking hairdo.


Base
Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation / Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer / Bobbi Brown Corrector / MAC Pearl Cream Colour Base / Illamasqua Hollow Cream Pigment / MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural / Dior Amber Diamond
Last year I became obsessed with finding the perfect base products. I bought a ton of different products but these are my favourites and I use all of these every day. Illamasqua's Skin Base Foundation has been a revelation. I finally have a foundation that matches my exact skintone and has no SPF in which stops the 'ghost face' that Estee Lauder Double Wear used to inflict upon me. Like everyone else I love that Collection 2000 concealer. Its practically opaque & covers pretty much everything. I couldn't live without my Bobbi Brown Corrector as although the Collection 2000 concealer is really good, this product colour corrects my dark circles making me look really awake & like I've slept for 12 hours each night. MAC MSF Natural has been my fave powder for ages, I just wear this with some concealer if I have no time at all to get ready. When I use the Illamasqua foundation I just use this to powder under my eyes because otherwise my mascara ends up all over my face. Pearl Cream Colour Base & Amber Diamond are the perfect highlighting duo. I've bought more highlighters than I can count in 2011 and these are the best of the best. I like a lot of glow so using a cream under the powder makes my cheeks look super shiny & it lasts all day. Hollow Cream Pigment is something I only bought recently but it is the best contour product ever.


Eyes
Lancome Doll Eyes Mascara / L'Oreal Carbon Gloss Superliner / HD Brows Palette / MAC Shroom & Patina Eyeshadows / MAC NC15/NW20 Pencil
The mascara that I've most recently fallen in love with is the Lancome Doll Eyes one. When I first got it the formula was a lot more fluid and didn't really give me the volume I wanted. But as it dried up a bit it got thicker and it is everything I could want in a mascara. It makes my lashes super long, thick & black. I use the L'Oreal eyeliner on a daily basis as I think I look weird without it. This one is really black, long lasting and pretty cheap too which makes it the best eyeliner I've bought this year. I love the eyebrow powders in the HD Brows Palette, they're so pigmented and just brilliant. I only use the one in the bottom right corner as the others don't suit me but I use the others as eyeshadows so its a fab product. The eyeshadows I've reached for most are Shroom & Patina by MAC. I don't really wear eyeshadow much but these are subtle enough for everyday wear. I love this MAC eyeliner pencil as it makes my eyes look bigger & brighter without being a really obvious white line.


Blusher
Illamasqua Katie / Illamasqua Thrust / NARS Deep Throat / Topshop Head Over Heels
I like to wear a lot of blush as it adds some pretty colour to my deathly pallor which saves me from bronzing my whole face to an unnatural colour. My fave blusher at the moment is NARS Deep Throat, I think its the perfect colour for me with just the right amount of sparkle. I adore Illamasqua's powder blushers. Katie is a lovely pastel pink & Thrust is a bright magenta. It looks so scary in the pan but its a gorgeous colour if you apply it with a light hand & blend it properly. I want to try some of Illamasqua's cream blushers next as they seem really good too. The only cream blushers I own are from Topshop but they are great quality for the price. I like the shade Head Over Heels best as its a very pretty peachy colour thats perfect for Summer.


Lip Products
Philosophy Kiss Me Tonight / Beaute Wanted Weightless Lip Creme / MAC Hue Lipstick / MAC Enchantée Kissable Lip Colour
I bought a lot of lipsticks this year. In order to keep my lips lovely & smooth I use Philosophy's Kiss Me Tonight lip treatment. Its a balm that you put on before you go to bed and you wake up with beautifully soft lips. I also put some on before I do my makeup then blot it off when I'm ready to apply my lipstick. I bought the Beaute Weightless Lip Creme in Wanted after I heard that Kristen Stewart loves it. Its a lovely nude thats halfway between a lipstick and gloss. The MAC Kissable Lip Colours from their Peacocky collection use a similar formula. I love the colour Enchantée which is a cool toned bright pink. My fave everyday lipstick is MAC Hue. Its the most perfect pinky nude that looks brilliant on everyone.


Nail Polishes
Illamasqua Jo'Mina / Models Own Utopia / Models Own Pink Punch / Barry M Peach Melba
This was such a hard decision as I adore all the nail polishes I bought last year and believe me, I bought a lot! These ones stood out to me as unique colours that I always get complimented on. They all apply really well and don't chip too badly with some Seche Vite on top.

October/November Favourites

Clarisonic Mia
Back in October I decided to get myself a very early Christmas present in the form of the pink Clarisonic Mia. I don't generally get many proper spots anymore but I do get some bumps under the skin on my cheeks and forehead which make me look spotty even though I'm not. After reading some reviews I wanted to give the Clarisonic a try in an attempt to get rid of these bumps. I've been using it for less than two months now and my skin already looks a thousand times better. All the cleansers, toners, exfoliants and face masks in the world haven't done as much for my skin as this one tool has. Theres so much to say about this so I'm gonna post a full review later.

Moroccanoil
I got this bottle of Moroccanoil free in my Cosmo Blog Awards goodie bag. I'd previously tried a mini sample bottle and really liked it then but felt I had to use it very sparingly because the bottle was so tiny. Plus it didn't have a pump so I pretty much ended up pouring out most of the bottle every time I used it. The full sized bottle does come with a pump so I can get the amount I want out. This stuff just makes your hair look so shiny, its a really incredible product. I'm willing to use anything on my hair in an attempt to avoid cutting it and this seems to be doing the trick nicely. I want to give the Moroccanoil shampoo and conditioner a go next.

Lush Snow Fairy Shower Gel
Everyone's favourite shower gel is finally back in the shops! I'm a bit Snow Fairy mad and buy any Lush product which smells even vaguely similar. I've bought two of the big bottles and think I'm gonna go back for a third because I can't bear to be without this product. Pink, sickly sweet & sparkly, what more could you want in a shower gel?

Frédéric Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Cream
Another really fabulous hair product is the Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Cream. I apply this to my hair just before I blow dry it to add extra shine & fight frizz. It does a similar job to Moroccanoil but in some ways I actually prefer this product. Because its a cream its a lot heavier so it does a better job at smoothing everything down. It really helps your hair keep its shape once blow dried. The secret ingredient in this is olive oil which forms part of the 'Encapsulated Shine-Release Complex'. I can really tell the difference when I use this because it makes my hair properly glossy and lustrous, not just shiny. The only things you have to be careful about is how much you use and where you apply it. If you use it anywhere near your roots it'll make your freshly washed hair greasy again. Same goes for if you use too much of it. Its an expensive product so I guess its a good thing that you only have to use a tiny amount to reap the benefits of it.

Nailene Ultra Adhesive Tabs
I normally use Nailene's Ultra Quick Dry nail glue to apply my falsies but when they would eventually fall off I hated the glue residue that remained on my nails. Charlotte posted about these nail tabs as a way of sticking on falsies without damaging your own nails. These are such a great way of applying nails. As well as not damaging your nails, they feel very strong and you don't have to deal with the inevitable mess of getting nail glue all over your fingers. Thats the worst feeling ever, makes me shudder thinking about it haha. They cost the same as the Ultra Quick Dry nail glue and will last about the same amount of time so I'm always gonna use these from now on.



The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword
If you know me at all, you'll know that I absolutely love video games. I have been waiting for ages for this game to come out. I'm a big fan of the Zelda games even though the only one I've ever managed to complete is Phantom Hourglass. I've been spending almost every night playing this since it came out last week and its such a blast. I got the 25th anniversary limited edition pack which comes with an awesome gold Wii motion plus remote and a CD with some of the classic Zelda songs on it. The motion controls are a nice touch. Its so much fun being able to slash away with your remote and watch Link do the same on screen with his sword. If you have a Wii, you need this game in your life!