CoverGirl Fresh Complexion Concealer

While I love my precious YSL Touche Eclat, times are tough for everyone (including me) so it is s good idea to have a cheaper option waiting in the wings. I think I discovered Cover Girl's Fresh Complexion Concealer one day when my makeup had gone to hell and I had to run to the drugstore to fix it before I met up with friends after work. It has turned out to be my favorite cheap-o concealer ever. The doe-foot wand and liquid formula is super easy to apply and blends in well, especially to cover dark under eye circles. It is not quite thick enough to cover serious blemishes, but it works as a quick color corrector for my red blotchy areas. I follow it with some powder foundation and end up with a flawless "no-makeup" look. For $4.99-$5.50 it is certainly a bargain buy!

Conceal lovely!

YSL's Touche Éclat Lives Up To The Fame

I've been meaning to find out why everyone is so in love with YSL's Touche Éclat Radiant Touch Luminizer but it wasn't until Sephora finally started carrying the brand (in select stores and online) that I had the impetus to buy it. Well, now I get it. It is an AWESOME highlighter and concealer. It really knocks the socks off any other under eye concealer I've tried. I LOOOOVE the bottom click gold pen. It is so glamorous and yet so practical. I can throw it in my mini makeup bag in my purse and have it available anywhere.

I purchased the lightest shade, Luminous Radiance, which works well for me to hide dark shadows and light blemishes. I might try the next shade darker as well, Luminous Ivory, for other areas of my face like my nose and chin. A professional makeup artist (who did not work for YSL) told me she didn't use foundation personally, only two shades of Touche Éclat to hide imperfections and highlight her features subtly. And she certainly looked radiant, and foundation free.

I highly recommend trying the Touch Éclat, even if it is pricey ($40). It is a piece of luxury, the only one you might be able to budget in during these crazy times of economic turmoil. At least we have makeup, right?! Argh. Well, if you are losing sleep over money worries, at least this will hide the shadows!

Radiant Lovely!

Camouflage Your Dark Circles with Powderflage by Benefit

Sleepless nights call for some major cover up operations. Being such a beauty junkie, I never just use one product to attack a flaw, I go for at least a combo of two or three. Lately, a new piece of ammo in my routine to hide dark circles has been Benefit's Powderflage. A very light, super fine powder that instantly brightens and refracts light, hiding those evil shadows. I apply it after my under eye concealer choice of the day. It seems to help set the cover up as well. The camouflage tin it comes in is very cute, I think. It includes a tiny fan brush, perfect for applying the powder, which is housed in an adorable pink sphere. Available at benefitcosmetics.com for $28.

Camouflage Lovely!

Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener

I mentioned last week that I was looking for products to wake up my sleepy looking eyes. I thought I would try Smashbox's Photo Op Under Eye Brightener, since it seemed to be exactly what would deminish my sad dark circles. Now that I've tried it, I am happy enough with it, but it isn't everything I was looking for. It does indeed brighten, by adding a bit of sheen and shimmer, which reflects light to give you the "effect" of lightness. But it doesn't actually cover the dark, since it is very light and pale. If this sounds like enough for you, go for it. The brush applicator makes it easy to use and blending is simple with your finger. For days when you need extra coverage, a more opaque concealer should be used, perhaps underneath, to really covers those shadow.

Brighten Lovely!

Brighten Your Under Eyes

Living with my new kitten is kind of like having a new baby. He literally wakes me up at 5:45 am every morning! Argh. With this disturbance in my sleep patterns has come even larger and darker circles under my eyes. So I have been looking into a few products that will help me solve this beauty dilemma:

Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener: This little tub with a handy wand promises to brighten away any darkness that befalls your undereye area, enough so that even the harsh flash of a camera won't scare it. It's super light weight and a sheer shimmering peach that should complement most skin tones. At $18, it is worth a shot, but I wouldn't do wedding photos until you take some test shots.


Make Up For Ever Lift Concealer: This promises not only to hide your circles, but the tiny wrinkles too. It has ingredients to firm as well. Sounds too good to be true?! Well, I tried it and I do like the consistency and coverage a lot, but I got a shade slightly too dark for me. A good rule of thumb when trying to hide circles: go lighter rather than darker if needed. At least at $21 my mistake wasn't so pricey.



Yves Saint Laurent Touch Eclat Radiant Touch Concealer: This is known industry wide as the mother of all concealers. I believe YSL was the first to use the click pen brush, but I could be wrong. It seems like everyone now has a copy of it in their line, but none touches YSL. A makeup artist once said all she needs is a light one to create brightness and a darker one to hide blemishes. It goes on super smooth, like silk. At $40, you better freakin love everything about it. Now available at online at Sephora and in select Sephora stores in Septemeber, and of course at YSL beauty counters.

Click Lovely!

Conceal On The Cheap

My favorite stand by concealer is still CoverGirl Fresh Complexion Concealer. I found it online one day, looking for a cheap way to get some quick coverage with the overly made up look. Now whenever I find it sitting on the shelf in Walgreens, I snag it up! It really covers my dark circles under my eyes and even covers blemishes with a little blend of the finger. It's still a light coverage though, so I don't look like a clown with spots all over me. Fabulously flawlous without trying too hard.

Conceal Lovely!

New Fabulous Foundation and Concealer

The other night I realized that after being in the sun for a few days in Cabo, my foundation didn't match my skin anymore. Even though I protected my face, I still got a touch of color. When I put on my old concealer and powder my face was a VERY different color than my neck and chest. YUCK!

So something had to be done. I have heard raves about Laura Mercier products for awhile now, especially her concealers, so I decided to try them out. I needed to pick up some things at Macy's (tights... I am loving the sweater dress and tights combo for winter work wear right now) and so I headed straight to The Laura Mercier counter since its strategically placed right at the bottom of the down escalator at the Macy's in Union Square.

The sales people were very helpful and nice. I told then I wanted a new powder foundation and a spot concealer. The woman found a powder (No. 2) that is a perfect match for my skin and showed me how to apply their highly rated Secret Camouflage concealer (she also selected SC 2).

Secret Camouflage is a compact concealer that comes with two colors. For perfect application, use a small-tipped brush and mix the two colors on the top of your hand, to warm up the makeup and make it easier to apply. Then lightly dab on the spot you want to cover, blending into your skin. Set lightly with powder. It is the easiest application I've tried and really is effective. I had some nasty breakouts after vacation, but no one could tell after this stuff! Glorious!

I am very happy with my new foundation routine. It looks flawless without looking overly made up. I love powder foundation because it is buildable, so depending on how you feel about your completion, it can give your the coverage you want all the time. Love it!

Cover Lovely!