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I haven’t gotten a chance to see the new Muppets movie yet, which I’m really disappointed about because everyone I know who has seen it has raved about it.  But the only time I’ve gone to the movies lately, it was a choice between the Muppets and “The Descendants” and I’m sorry, Muppets, but Clooney wins in that scenario.  I’ll see it soon, but until then, I’ve been passing the time playing around with their new collection from OPI.  “The Muppets” is a set of 12 different polishes that were all inspired by the new movie and are out for the holiday season.  I love the collection because it’s filled with sparkly glitter shades and tons of color – not many neutrals here!  I love glitter polishes pretty much any time of the year, but I especially covet them this month when you can wear them to all of your fabulous holiday parties.  Also, OPI has the best names for shades.  They make me laugh out loud every time I read about new collections and this one is especially fun.  Here’s what you’ll find in the collection: (more…)

When it’s cold, I’m rigid about using body lotion as much as possible to keep my skin hydrated.  My current favorites all come from Pacifica’s Magic Carpet Ride set.

For $28, you get three full-sized Body Butters, so you’re saving almost half of what it would cost if you bought them separately.  And the scents are amazing.  The three included are Indian Coconut Nectar, Tuscan Blood Orange, and a new scent called Island Vanilla.  Seriously, you guys, they’re fabulous.  I sometimes catch myself just opening the cap and sniffing the lotion even if I’m not putting it on – they’re that good.  (I make sure to do it when no one’s around, so I don’t look like a crazy person!)  The body butters themselves are delightfully moisturizing without being greasy or oily, and since I love to layer my scents, I really enjoy that there’s matching body washes to go with them.  I love finding favorite new products!

Urban Decay never fails to wow me, especially around the holidays when their already impressive lineup always expands to include lots of fun sparkly makeup and tons of holiday gift sets.  This year is no exception.  There’s so many fun things to play around with, I almost didn’t know where to start when I picked them up.  (more…)

Shiny Happy Holiday is the heading on the press release for the new Essie luxeffects collection and it’s so perfectly apropos that I had to use it myself.  Luxeffects is a new collection of multi-dimensional top coats that Essie’s releasing for the holiday season.  They’re meant to be worn a number of different ways – you can wear them by themselves for a sheerer look or layer them over each other or shades you already own to create your own unique look.  It’s a relatively small collection with only five shades, but the colors are so pretty and feminine that you won’t feel like you’re missing anything.  Here’s what you’ll find in the collection:  (more…)

I never really thought that I liked matte lips, although admittedly I hadn’t tried on a matte lipstick in a very long time.  But recently, I got the chance to try some of Chanel’s new Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colours and now I’m all over the matte trend.

One of the main reasons that I’d avoided matte shades is because I thought they’d be drying, but these aren’t at all.  They have as much moisture in them as all my “regular” lipsticks, so that fear was put to rest immediately.  There are eight shades total, ranging from a few bright colors to other, more subdued neutrals, which were my favorite of the bunch.  (Although shade 41 L’Exquise, a deep red wine shade, is probably my first pick out of the ones I tried.  It’s just so rich and sophisticated).  I like that all the shades are highly-pigmented – these aren’t lipsticks you’ll have to put three layers on to see any color, which is my pet peeve in a lot of lipsticks.  They’re vibrant and colorful right from the first touch.  I also like that although the finish is definitely matte and not glossy, it’s not a formula that settles into the lines on your mouth.  There are no Grandma lips here!  All in all, any of these would make a great addition to your lipstick wardrobe.  Plus, the case is so chic and I love the way you push on the bottom to get the lipstick out.  It means there’s no way that any of the shades will wind up all over the inside of your purse and since that just happened to me with another lipstick and ruined a bunch of things inside, I’m very happy about it.  I heart Chanel!

It’d been far, far too long since I’d visited a spa for some pampering, so when the chance came to try out Ona Spa in Los Angeles, a place I’d always been curious about, I jumped at the chance.  Originally, I was just going to go in for a facial, but strangely enough, the week before my appointment was scheduled, I started to get this weird shooting pain in one of my arms.  Being a semi-hypochondriac, I of course panicked and became convinced that I was dying, but then my friend suggested that it might be from stress since I could feel how tight my muscles were.  She sounded like she knew what she was talking about, so I decided to add a massage to my day in the hopes that it would help and luckily, they were able to accommodate me.

I showed up for my appointment bright and early on a Saturday (okay, fine, it was noon, but that counts as bright and early on the weekend after a long week of work).  The space is cozy and welcoming, and once you’re inside, you’d never know that busy Los Angeles traffic is waiting for you just out the door.  I snuggled into a big, comfy robe and lounged in a chair sipping a delicious coconut tea and reading fashion magazines (so relaxing!) until I was called in for my massage.  (more…)

MAKE UP FOR EVER doesn’t have a ton of gift sets out for the holidays, but one of them deserves a shout out because it’s one of my favorite kind of sets.  The Wild & Chic Best of MAKE UP FOR EVER Kit is a collection of six different MAKE UP FOR EVER favorites.  I love these sets because they’re an economical way to build up your product collection, but they’re also a great way to try products you’ve heard a lot about but never tested too.

The set has six items in it – a Smoky Lash Extra Black Mascara, an HD Microfinish Powder, a travel Aqua Eyes liner in Mat Black, an HD Microperfecting Primer, a Lab Shine gloss in a pearly pink beige shade, and an Aqua Cream in Warm Beige, a champagne shimmer.  I’ve tried all of the products in here and they’re all great, so it’s a fabulous deal to take them all home for $55.  I especially love the Aqua Cream (I’m obsessed with them and have every single shade) and the HD Microfinish Powder, which makes skin look practically poreless.  Why can’t ever brand do a “Best of” set?  It would make my life so much easier!

How much do we love Benefit product names?  So much, right?  They’re all so damn cute and catchy!  I’m Glam… Therefore I Am is one of their new holiday palettes and it’s chock full of products you can use to glam up for a big night out.  In the kit, you’ll find four different shadows, in shades of pinks, purples and grays, a face powder with a mixture of peach and rose shades, a miniature Girl Meets Pearl highlighter, a mini Bad Gal Lash, and a travel-sized gloss in a bubble gum pink shade. The thing I love about Benefit’s sets is they’re always so complete – you can pack this palette in your bag and have enough products to create an entire look, which always makes things easier.  It’s also great how coordinated the colors all are – they go together perfectly on my fair skin with green eyes complexion.  Plus, you can always slip the mini products out of the kit and throw them into your bag individually, always nice when you travel.  I love getting glammed up with this fun palette!

Benefit also has a new highlighter, Watt’s Up, out for the holidays.  (Well, technically it came out a little while ago, but I’m just now getting around to trying it, so it’s new to me!)  It’s a cream to powder highlighter in a champagne shade that conveniently comes in a tube with the highlighter in stick form at one end and a blending sponge at the other.  (Ingenius packaging, by the way).  I like using it underneath my brows as a highlighter on my eyes or on the top of my cheekbones to let them stand out a little.  It’s a fun way to glimmer a little or add a little glow to your look, especially at night.  Also, I just love that it’s a highlighter called Watt’s Up.  Adorable!  In my next life, I really want to come back as the person who names Benefit’s products.  How fun would that be?

This year’s holiday collections are my downfall because so far, I haven’t seen a single one that I don’t love.  I’ve spent WAY too much money already picking up one more thing that I “need” and it’s not even December yet.  This does not bode well for my Christmas present budget (sorry, family!)  The latest collection to get my seal of approval is NARS’ Holiday 2011 collection.  I got a chance to test out a few of the products and they’re all fabulous. (more…)

I feel like the holiday sets I’ve played around with this year so far have all been fabulous.  I can’t remember another year when I walked into Sephora and literally oohed and aahed my way from aisle to aisle.  So much fun stuff!  Now that I’ve played around with some of LORAC‘s holiday offerings, I can add my obsession with them to the list.  (more…)