Best of 2013

We are approaching the end of December, so it's time to talk about the products that stood out to me the most throughout 2013 (do not confuse this with all-time favorites). I want you to know that I carefully selected the products because I want you to read and discover the crème de la crème. 

Hope you enjoy. 

pat

The Princess Tag

About a month ago, Tati created the "Princess Tag" which featured all her favorite high-end products that make her feel like a princess. I selected six products in my collection that, well, make me feel like a princess. 

Hope you enjoy.

My Summer Vacation Ramble

Hi everyone! Welcome back. I haven't been here in forever. This post will summarize my summer vacation, which has been great. I'm currently in Michigan visiting my family. I'll be going back home to Venezuela in a few days. This post is also somewhat a goodbye? I am going to be so busy when I get back, I don't think I'll have much time to blog as I used to before. I will though, continue to read all of your great blogs. Always feel free to leave your links below.

I'll be sharing with you some of my Instagram pictures and write a bit about each of them. You can follow me if you'd like -- due to the fact that it's such a quick way to share info, I'm always posting random beauty things. 

Make Up For Ever shade 99 is a gorgeous apple red. I don't have a shade like this in my collection, which is what originally caught my attention. If you want true color pay-off, I recommend the MUFE eyeshadows. Yes, they are a bit pricier than lets say - your traditional MAC eyeshadow, but the quality is definitely a lot better. 

Another gorgeous eye product to look after is Stila's Cobalt Liquid Eyeliner. Oh-my-God. I saw this on Stila's Instagram and I immediately fell in love. This blue is so gorgeous! And Stila's eyeliners are super easy to apply. It's a felt tip pen, giving you precision and control. Color pay off = incredible. 

Ooooh! And what about my August Favorites? 

Yes, I'm a big Ojon fan, and I'm also a big fan of Desert Essence's Curl Cream which I have raved about numerous times (get gorgeous curls without silicones or nasties!). But I tend to get bored of using the same products all the time and like to switch things up. So I went back to Moroccan Oil products which I used around five years ago. The combination of their oil and Curl Cream smells divine - of course - but also leave my curls bouncy and soft without any crunchiness. It was very, very humid in Detroit a few days ago, and my curls survived. 

The Lorac Pro to Go is a fabulous palette and in my opinion, highly worth it. You get six eyeshadows, two blushes, a bronzer and two small brushes. The quality of the makeup is superb (yet it doesn't surprise me, it's Lorac!) but the brushes are OK. 

The Ojon Rare Blend Tamer is a product that hasn't had a lot of mention. It's available on Ojon's website, not on Sephora (online nor stores) although I got mine at an Origins store. Yep, it seemed weird to me as well! I asked the ladies why they were carrying another brand and they said that Ojon shares their same philosophy. I dunno. Anyway - a must have as well! I always carry it in my purse. It immediately gets rid of any flyaways. I love using this whenever I'm wearing a ponytail or bun. Much better than adding water (to further enhance the annoying little curls) or gel (nobody likes that sticky, wet look). 

Stila's Liquid Lipstick in the shade Beso is another product I've raved about before. Opaque, matte, gorgeous... 

The By Terry Touchee Veloutee concealer won the battle against the Mac Pro Longwear Concealer (I wanted to get a new concealer and was in between those two). I like the coverage and love the fact that it does not crease at all. 

Anastasia Brow Whiz. Yes, she's the queen of eyebrows. 

I'm in love with REN. I really am. That rhymes. It's hard to find nowadays brands that are genuinely clean yet good. REN does it. I learned on this trip that my skin is actually normal. The combination aspect of it has more to due with my skin's response to weather (heat, humidity) and not using the appropriate products. The REN Vita-Mineral Day Cream is lovely. A little goes a long way and it skin drinks it up quickly. (PS: I've been using the REN Frankincense Night Cream [sample] and it is divine! And the Glycolactic Mask is worth the hype.)

Talking about skin - my skin has never looked this good before!

I had a skin consultation with a Sephora beauty advisor who gave me samples of what she tried/recommended. I give credit to Perricone MD Blue Plasma and Ole Henrikesen Truth Serum. I'll actually be getting the full sizes. All I can say is: Wow. Thank you Mr. Perricone and Mr. Henriksen. 

Best part of having better skin? Makeup goes on better, and you use less of it!

My sister-in-law, my sister and I. 

My mom, my sister-in-law, my sister and I

To end things on a sweet note, if you're ever in the US and you're a chocoholic like myself, go to Cold Stone and order the following:

"Chocolate Devotion, but Reese's Butter Cups instead of chocolate chips."

Chocolate ice cream, fudge, brownie and Reese's Butter Cups. You're welcome.

Have a beautiful week everyone! xoxo

Current Night Time Skin Routine

Hi dolls! Today's post will be an updated version of my night-time skin routine. I'm constantly testing and rotating products, but these are the ones I've been using for the last three months and I've been loving them. Enjoy!

Super Sephora Haul!

Hi dolls! And guys if you read me, too.

I have no idea how I'm still awake. It is 9:45pm Eastern Time and I've been awake since 2AM. Yup. The flight went fine. The jump from Maracaibo to Miami is pretty quick - two hours and forty minutes. 

I told you I was bringing all of you with me, so I'm taking as many pics as I can!

First of all, here are some pictures I took off the plane. This is the Caribbean Sea.  

This is the view from our condo. I have so many memories of this place... I've been coming here since I was a newborn!

The area is called Aventura - it's very safe and quiet. I love it because you can walk at any time of the day. My mom, my sister and I took a shuttle to Aventura Mall which is a mile away, and we came back walking at 8pm. 

Now onto the haul... 

I got to the mall and went straight to Sephora! I wanted someone to pinch me... these vacations are my only time to shop because everything is too overpriced in Venezuela. Aside from that, you can barely find anything.

I'm a VIB member, which means "Very Important Beauty Insider". You get a few extra perks like discounts, invitations to private events, etc. I got a one on one session with a beauty adviser who was so kind. She gave me tons of advice on skincare and haircare. I talked to her about my blog and about my passion for skincare and makeup, and she gave me tons of samples (you'll see that at the end).

Please excuse my lousy pictures. I took them with my phone. 

The lady strongly suggested the Clarisonic. She said it really makes a difference in ones' skincare regimen. She advised me to go with the cheapest one, because it gets the job done. She used it on me today and it felt quite nice. 

The lady also put this mask on my face, and WOWZA! My skin was glowing afterwards. She left it on for thirty minutes and then peeled it off. It hurts a wee-bit when its being peeled, but it's tolerable. This is a detoxifying mask. 

There are SO many face oils in the market right now. I told her I was confused because there are people raving so much about Josie Maran's Argan Oil, Marula Oil, the one by Nude, one by Fresh. She recommended me the one by Fresh (I love the brand anyway) and she added a few drops of this on my face after removing the mask. My skin was pink and glowing. Loved it, so I got it.

She also applied this Ojon hair mask and told me to leave it on overnight. She even braided my hair :)

I needed a cleanser for my to use with my Clarisonic, so I got the Peter Thomas Roth Anti-Aging Cleansing Gel. I had tried this on a kit before and loved how a little went such a long way. It also has glycolic acid = exfoliating = glowing skin.

This product by Kate Somerville is one I had been wanting to try out. It's supposed to be amazing to clear out nasty pimples.

Another product with glycolic acid, the Perricone MD Firming Facial Toner. This brand is the most sold in Sephora.

And more hair stuff. I was hesitant about this one... have any of you tried this? I saw it on an infomercial the first time... and I'm always dubious when it comes to infomercials. A lot of them seem fake to me. But after reading many, many reviews online before coming to the States, and after noticing there was a try-it-out-kit, I decided to get it. According to the Sephora website:

What it does:
Cleanse, condition, nourish, and repair your locks with this collection of WEN favorites for all hair types. The five-in-one Cleansing Conditioner will pamper and invigorate your stressed-out tresses with its luxurious formula of herbal extracts like aloe leaf juice and sweet almond oil. The Re Moist Intensive Hair Treatment is a super-nourishing, weekly mask that promises to give your hair more body and a beautiful, healthy shine. The Replenishing Treatment Mist is a lightweight, hydrating formula specially designed as a quick pick-me-up to increase volume and body between washes. 

This set contains:
- 12 oz Sweet Almond Mint Cleansing Conditioner 
- 2 oz Sweet Almond Mint Re Moist Intensive Hair Treatment 
- 2 oz Sweet Almond Mint Replenishing Treatment Mist 

What it is formulated WITHOUT:
- Sulfates 
- Synthetic Dyes
- Petrochemicals
- Phthalates 
- Triclosan 

And finally, THE SAMPLES!!!!! She gave me tons! I will be reviewing all of these products individually in a few months to give you proper and genuine opinions.

Enough for tonight. I should take a nice warm shower and go straight to bed. My eyes are achy. 

Have you tried any of these products?