Beauty Trove's Top 5 for February

Hi Everyone!  Sorry I have been gone for a hot minute.  Things have been somewhat hectic at work and I have been playing catch up for the last couple of weeks.  I will be updating Beauty Trove with new sales, hauls, and favorites.  For now, I will start with letting you all know what my favorites have been for February.

1. Maybelline Fit Me Foundation Matte and Poreless ($7.29).  For the past few months, I have been trying on drug store foundations.  And I have to say that the drug store lines are stepping up their game.  During February I wore Maybelline's Fit Me Matte and Poreless Foundation nonstop.  I

just love this foundation for a demi-matte and flawless finish.  I find that I can wear this foundation for up to 8 hours with minimal breakup.  The Fit Me line can be built up for medium coverage.  I also like that the foundation is not too heavy.  If you have not tried the Maybelline Fit Me Matte and Poreless foundation, you should definitely stop by your drug store or Ulta and check it out.

2.  Maybelline Fit Me Loose Powder ($5.89).  I have paired the Fit Me Foundation with the Fit Me Loose Powder during Feburary.  The hype over this powder is real.  The powder is finely milled and applies beautifully over skin.  The powder creates an airbrush appearance and sets makeup nicely.  I think this may be my favorite drug store setting powder.  And at 5.89, it is worth every penny. 

3.  Coloured Raine Cheers to the Beauty (orig. $50, sale $40).  I bought this palette at the original price during the winter holidays.  I came across this on the colored raine site and thought it looked absolutely gorgeous.  In person, it is just as beautiful and does not disappoint.  The eyeshadows are hyper pigmented, buttery, and apply smoothly.  It is almost effortless to blend the colors out on the eyelid.  I especially love using this palette for evening parties.  I would highly suggest picking this eyeshadow palette up even if it was not on sale.

4.  MAC Extra Dimension Skinfinish in Double Gleam ($34).  MAC highlighters especially the one in double gleam is a classic for a reason.  Double gleam is a smooth, light gold-silver highlighter that melts flawlessly into the cheekbones and other high points on the face.  This highlighter is not for the faint of heart.  It truly is for those who want a highlight that will outshine Apollo himself.  I am so

glad I have finally picked up this MAC highlighter. 

5.  ColourPop NKLA x Laura Lee Super Shock Eyeshadow Quad ($18).  Colourpop has paired with cosmetics influencer/youtuber, Laura Lee and No Kill LA for this lovely super shock eyeshadow quad.  The quad features 2 metallic/glitter and 2 matte super shock shadows in the warm tone shade family.  I could not be happier with this purchase.  The glitter shades are to die for.  I love wearing them alone and on top of a regular eyeshadow for an extra pop of shimmer.  The matte shades are super creamy and blend out nicely.  I am planning on picking up another quad as a backup.  Most importantly, the proceeds from the eyeshadow quad go directly to No Kill LA, a no kill shelter group for stray pets.  Help support NKLA while looking bomb by picking up the Laura Lee x NKLA eyeshadow quad.

Beauty Trove's Top 5 for August 2017

Every month seems to go faster than the one before it.  The summer was filled with lots of new launches from Anastasia, Morphe, Too Faced, ColourPop, and many more beauty companies.  It was almost too much to keep up with.  I have been trying out a couple of items from these new launches and discovering cosmetics that have been a mainstay in the beauty community.  If you want to see the makeup that I have been loving for the month of August, keep on reading.

1.  The Jaclyn Hill x Morphe Palette ($38.00).  This is one of those palettes that was hyped throughout the summer.  The palette itself ranges on the more expensive side for Morphe, but as evidenced by the fact that the palette has sold out every time it relaunched, it is well worth the money.  The eyeshadows are of a higher quality than Morphe typically has and I am hoping that this is a sign that Morphe may be reformulating its older palettes.  The Jaclyn Hill x Morphe palette features 42 gorgeous and very bendable eyeshadows.  It is mainly geared towards warm toned colors (perfect for fall!) and a few pops of unexpected colors.  I think the metallic gold, bronze, and copper make this palette worth the investment.  I have gotten a number of very pretty looks with this palette and can't wait to take it back out again in October to play with it some more.  I will keep you informed on the next relaunch date.

2.  Wet n Wild Color Icon Blush in Apri-Cot in the Middle ($2.99).  Wet n wild is known for being an affordable yet high quality cosmetics brand.  Wet n wild surely doesn't let you down with their Color Icon Blushes.  I have been wearing Apri-Cot in the middle pretty much everyday in August and am continuing to use it in September as well.  Apri-Cot in the middle is a super pigmented blush that is the right combination of nude, pink, and peach.  It looks great on the apples of the cheeks and goes perfectly with the Jaclyn Hill x Morphe palette and a new highlighter that I am going to discuss.  Apri-Cot in the middle is super affordable and super flattering.

3.  Maybelline Face Studio Master Chrome Metallic Highlighter in Molten Gold ($9.99).  I fell hard for this highlighter.  It is absolutely stunning on the high points of the face.  I have a number of

high end highlighters that cannot do what this less than ten dollar highlighter can do.  The shade, in my opinion, is universally flattering and gives a gold, bronze goddess look.  It pairs wonderfully with my other two favorites (above) this month.  Pick it up and try it out, you won't be disappointed.

4.  Juvia's Place the Magic Palette ($35.00).  The other palette have been wearing exclusively in August is The Magic Palette by Juvia's Place.  NikkieTutorials featured an eye tutorial on this palette.  It has 16 huge soft and pigmented eyeshadow pans.  The metallics are some of the best eyeshadows I have ever used.  I really love this palette and love that The Magic Palette is now part of my permanent makeup collection.

5.  First Aid Beauty Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser with Red Clay ($24.00).  I typically stay with my Mary Kay Timewise set (includes cleanser).  But this month has been strange and I have been breaking out frequently.  I received a sample of this cleanser in my ipsy subscription and decided to give it a world and try it out.  This cleanser really works.  I am not sure how it worked but my breakouts calmed down and my pores shrank, quite a lot.  I decided to bite the bullet and purchase a full sized one from Sephora.  I am continuing to use this cleanser twice a week, while using my Mary Kay cleanser as my main one.  I am interested in trying out the rest of the red clay line by First Aid Beauty.  I am wondering if anyone else has liked the red clay line and which products do you suggest I try next?

That's it for my August favorites!  What products have you been enjoying in August?  Let me know by commenting below.

March 2017 Top 5 Favorites

It's the last day of March.  You know what that means?  Top 5 monthly favorites!!!

1.  Makeup Revolution Naked Chocolate Palette ($15.00).  I am so glad I purchased this palette!  I've used it pretty much everyday this March.  It has quality eye shadows at a super affordable price.  The palette comes with 16 buttery and highly pigmented eye shadows.  There is a nice mix of highlighters (for your brow bone), transition shades, shimmer shades, and darker shades for the outer v or eyeliner.  One of the reasons that I have been continuously going for this palette is that it is a stand alone palette, meaning you don't have to go searching for other eye shadows to complete your look.  Also, this is a great palette that transitions from day to night easily.  The palette itself is very aesthetically pleasing.  It is in a very cute yellow case that looks like a chocolate bar that is slightly melting.  If you like to display your makeup on a vanity, this would be a great palette to select.  I don't really care for the sponge brush that is inside the palette.  I use my Real techniques brush with the eye shadows.  The color payoff is fantastic.  I highly recommend this product.  You won't be disappointed if you get one for yourself or for a friend.

2.  Maybelline New York Dream Cushion Fresh Face Liquid Foundation ($12.98).  I usually don't go for drug-store foundations and stick to companies like Too Faced and Pur Cosmetics.  I made an exception for this because I heard a lot of great reviews and I was intrigued by a cushion formula.  Glad I took a chance on this.  This is a great foundation if you want a medium coverage look.  It is very easy to use, applies nicely, and covers blemishes easily.  There is a price range with this depending upon where you get it.  I think Walmart has one of the cheaper price tags.  The color range is a little limited but it might be that Maybelline is testing to see how well consumers like it before expanding to other shades.  I like to use this as an every day makeup look and save my more expensive foundations for special events or job interviews.

3.  Maybelline Color Sensational Inti-Matte Nudes Lipcolor in Almond Rose ($5.59).  Maybelline has been on a role!  Almond Rose is such a beautiful shade of nude-pink.  It pairs nicely with any eye shadow look.  I've worn this lipstick pretty much everyday this month with the Naked Chocolate palette above.  It wears nicely throughout the day and requires minimal touch up.  It also is very comfortable and is not drying to the lips.  I recently purchased other shades in the line, Beige babe and purely nude, and can't wait to try them out.

4.  Mary Kay Makeup Finishing Spray by Skindinavia ($18.00).  I've been setting my face makeup with Mary Kay's finishing spray.  The setting spray is by Skindinavia, which is a well known for its bridal finishing spray.  The spray dries down quickly and keeps my makeup in place.  It also works well as a refresher throughout the day (16 hours).  

5.  Make Up For Ever Pro Light Fusion Highlighter in Color 1 ($39.00).  One of my favorite cosmetics is highlighters.  And I do love me some glow!  The new MUF highlighters definitely deliver on some high impact glow. I've only tried the color 1 since it is meant for light to medium tones.  This is a gorgeous pink and slightly golden highlighter.  You can build the highlight up if you want to take a 20 watt to a 1,000 watt glow.  This is a great highlighter for work, if you apply it with a subtle hand.  It is expensive.  But if you are going to mainly be using one highlighter, the MUF  color 1 is worth the investment.  The packaging is very durable and the highlighter comes with a nice attached mirror.

This wraps up Beauty Trove's Top 5 for the month of March.  Have you tried any of these products out?  What were your top 5 for March?  Comment below!