Loving Right Now

It’s time for another monthly favorites roundup! Weather is warming up and I have been on a kick to find some new fragrances for the spring to summer season. Here’s what I loved the most this month.

Top 3 Perfumes

I’ve been exploring more perfume brands that have caught my eye with several perfume influencers I started following on YouTube. I feel like I am a total perfume novice watching so many new videos with their detailed descriptions and comprehensive reviews. I ordered a few discovery sets from Kilian, Parfums de Marly, Mizensir, Giardini di Toscana and Ex Nihilo to name a few (some are still in transit on their way to me).

I’m new to Parfums de Marly and ordered the Feminine Discovery Set. I ended up loving nearly all the scents. My top 3 from the set were Delina La Rosee, Meliora and Valaya. They’ll send you an eGift Card code where the price of the set can go towards a full-size purchase. I ended up buying Meliora which is so different for me because it’s fruity and floral. I’m not usually into fruity scents but this is so bright and summery I fell in love. You can also find them at Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.

Meliora Top Notes
Red Berries, Raspberry, Lemon essence

Heart Notes
Rose, Ylang-Ylang, Jasmine Tea

Base Notes
Vanilla, Musk, Cedarwood

I bought the Kilian Discovery Set from Sephora last month. I liked 3 but it wasn’t quite love yet. They have some beautiful options but I am more into lighter and brighter scents. I ended up really loving their new Sunkissed Goddess which so many have described as very different from what Kilian usually launches. If you love Tom Ford Soleil Blanc of Eau de Soleil Blanc I think you will really like the Kilian one. It’s a bit more floral compared to the Tom Ford ones. I actually like layering Sunkissed Goddess and Eau de Soleil Blanc together.

Sunkissed Goddess Notes: Ylang-ylang, Tiare Flower and Coconut.

I pulled out Dioriviera and forgot how much I loved it. It is one of the few fig scents I can wear. I love a good fig candle for the home but wearing it on my skin has never worked well for me. This is a beautiful fresh fig with rose. It smells expensive, lush and like a fancy vacation in a bottle.

Dioriviera Notes: Fig + rose

April Makeup Favorites

For the complexion I’ve rediscovered my Armani Luminous Silk Foundation + Concealer combination. Everytime I start using it again I forget why I stopped using them. The foundation is a timeless classic for medium coverage, natural glow and beautiful finish. The concealer has been hit or miss for me in the past, but my skin loves it right now. I wear Shade 6.5 in both formulas.

For bases I tried the new Ilia Skin Rewind Complexion Stick and it’s one of the best foundation sticks I’ve ever tried. It’s like a skin tint in foundation stick form. No other stick glides onto skin as seamlessly as this one. It blends really well and great for a wide range of skin types. I think it’s best for normal to dry skin. It wears well (I have to set with a powder). My match is 18W and it’s a perfect match. It will be coming with me on an upcoming trip. Coverage is pretty good but still looks like skin but better. The Complexion Brush is also very good. Small but surprisingly good.

I partnered with them to share a demo here and they’ve given me a promo code to save 20% off orders from Iliabeauty.com with code THEBEAUTYLOOKBOOK20 (valid thru 5/10).

A few other complexion loves are two bronzers and a highlighter. I have a love/hate relationship with most cream bronzers because so many pull foundation right off your face, look too greasy or don’t have flattering colors. I finally tried the Makeup By Mario SoftSculpt Transforming Skin Enhancer (Medium) and it’s a really good one. I love the color, texture, finish and way it looks on the skin. It’s much better than the Saie or Anastasia Beverly Hills ones – the Makeup By Mario is easier to work with, blends well and isn’t too heavy.

I picked up two of the new Armani Luminous Silk Bronzing Powders. They’re HUGE compacts and the formula is so beautiful. It has a soft silky texture, subtle shimmer and beautiful natural looking finish. I bought 100 and 110. Right now I like 100 better but I can still wear 110 without it looking too dark. I will have a review + swatches soon but you can see them in action here.

 

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I picked up the new Dior Forever Glow Maximizer in Nude (they added this shade after the initial launch) and I love the color. It’s a champagne that isn’t too pale and the undertone is so pretty on the skin. I would say out of all the shades for a highlight I like Nude and Peachy the best. I updated my review + swatches in my original review here if you want to see all the colors swatched.

For the lips there were lots of new launches this month. So many good formulas to choose from these days! My two most-used lip colors though were previous purchases. I loved the Dior Addict Lip Maximizer in 051 Nude Bloom and NARS Afterglow Sensual Shine in Breathless the most (also love Orgasm and Voyeur, review + swatches here and here).

That wraps up my April favorites! What did you love this past month?

Rounding up my favorites for the month of January! I have a mix of beauty and a few other favorites I’ve been loving. I have my Top 10 in beauty and Top 5 in fashion/accessories.

The biggest hit in January was Ollie! He turned 1 year old on the 21st and I cannot believe how fast time has flown with this little fluff ball in our life. We are so happy to have him. We think he’s full grown now at 21.5 pounds but some say they keep growing past the 1 year mark.

This month’s top 10 beauty favorites include:

Dior Addict Lip Maximizers ($40) are of course in this month’s favorites. I’ve been wearing Rose Nude 38 the most this month. All the swatches in this blog post here.

Bobbi Brown Extra Plump Hydrating Lip Serum ($35) for lip balm. This comes in one color Bare Pink which is a shiny milky pink that goes on clear. Feels ultra smooth, cushiony and hydrating. It has a very subtle citrus kind of scent to it. I do think it’s a little pricey for what you get but I’ve been really enjoying the formula.

Celine Parade Eau de Parfum ($255 for 3.4 fl oz, also available in a travel refill vial size) is the scent of the month. I love all things citrus and this one is pure love for me. A look at 10 of the scents in this Celine Fragrance Review roundup.

Balmain Hair Couture Hair Clips ($89 to $114) are quite the splurge but I really love the ones I ordered. I have a couple different sizes including the small and medium (ones shown). They’re pretty sturdy and well made. If you’ve been looking for them they are restocked at Saks in both the White Medium, Tortoise Medium (and some other sizes too).

Chantecaille Future Skin Cushion Foundation ($139, comes with a refill) is a rediscovered favorite this month. I love how it melts right into the skin to look like skin but better. I use the Shade Nude right now. In summer I also wear Wheat.

Static Nails in Milky Pink ($16) so many of you have told me to try Static Nails for over a year and I finally did. I love both Mademoiselle and Milky Pink for that sheer jelly pink. They’re easy to apply and there’s no streaking. I can use 2 or 3 coats to get smooth sheer pink perfection.

L’Oreal Telescopic Carbon Black Mascara ($10.99 at Target) was a recent impulse buy. I can never resist checking out the new mascara launches while at Target! I really liked the original Telescopic Mascara (in the gold tube) because the ultra skinny wand grips all of my lashes. I picked up Carbon Black which is deeper and slightly more thickening on me. I really love it. (Wearing Olive and June Quick Dry Polish in Picante on the nails.)

Lawless Forget the Filler Winter Beach Set ($27) has 3 minis of the Forget the Filler Lip Gloss in Bitten, Blushed Sand and Rose Pearl. The shades are so beautiful and I wish they were permanent. I rarely buy backups these days but I bought an extra set because the set is limited-edition. I love the tones and think they wear nicely alone or layered on top of a lipliner.

Tarte Maneater Blush in Coral ($27) is a favorite for the second month in a row. I really like the liquid blush formula because it has a nice dry down. There’s a bit of shimmer to these so it’s almost like a blush and highlighter in one. There are several shades to choose from, I hope they keep launching these in more shades!

NARS Orgasm Rising Eyeshadow Palette ($49) made my favorites this month. I love the colors and have been reaching for it a lot. I did just order the new Pat McGrath Love Collection palettes though which look beautiful if you’re looking for something newer. Review coming soon. I’ll let you know if any of those palettes top the NARS one.

I have quite a few new things in the non-beauty category that I’ve been loving this month. I might do a more detailed review on some of them in an upcoming post but here’s my Top 5 Edit – 3 different sneakers, 1 new bag and 1 new wallet.

You girls know I love APL sneakers. I’ve been wearing them almost exclusively for the past several years but recently tried New Balance sneakers last fall and absolutely love them. They run true to size for me. I’m a 6.5 and wear the New Balance in a 6.5. I’ve tried two styles so far and love the 574 Sneaker in Nimbus Cloud/White and Grey/White. I even bought a pair for Andrew and he really likes them.

The New Balance 327 style is the one I tried after seeing it on Instagram. I bought the Sea Salt and Sea Salt with Black and also love these. The neutrals seem to be the most popular and sell out quick but I’ve seen them restock at New Balance, Free People and Jcrew to name a few places.

Loewe Small Puzzle was a holiday treat over Christmas. I have the Mini Puzzle which I really love and use all the time. I had my eye on the Small which is larger, comes with an adjustable strap and is more practical. It can hold more and I like that the strap allows you to wear it over the shoulder or as a cross body. I bought it in the grained leather which softens and has more of a slouch as it wears over time. I purchased mine from the Loewe store but you can also find this style at Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Net-A-Porter.

Loewe Anagram Small Vertical Wallet was another splurge. I really love my other card case in the pink shade (exact style has been discontinued) but wanted something a little bigger but still small enough to fit in my mini bags. I’ve looked at several beautiful options from other brands but they ended up being too thick/bulky. This one from Loewe (shade is Nude) is perfect.

Shop My Favorites

That wraps up my January favorites! What did you love this past month?