What's in my Travel Make-Up Bag #2 | Canada, Eh!

It's been over a year since I posted my last What's in my Travel Make-Up Bag post.  Last time, I was on my way to London; however, this time I'm on my way to somewhere much less exotic - Toronto.  Despite living quite close to the Canadian border, I've only ever ventured up there once.  But with a long weekend looming in front of me, I've decided to head up north again to visit a friend, and eat some donuts and maple syrup and whatnot.

Let's jump into what I'm taking along for the journey.

As you can see, I've kept my options limited.  I'm not checking a bag ($25 each way? I think not), so I've had to carefully select each liquid product, only taking the bare necessities.  For my base, I opted for my most travel-friendly foundation: By Terry Sheer Expert in 2 ($65).   This will also be a good reason for me to start using this foundation, I've had it for months and have used it maybe three times!  I also decided to bring along the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer in Porcelain ($23), as it will cover both under my eyes and any blemishes that may arise during the weekend.  Finally, I've chosen my well-loved Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in Translucent ($5).

For eyes, I've given myself a few options, filling up my MAC eyeshadow quad with my current favorites: Grain, Era, Sable, and Brun ($10 each in pan form). My eyebrows also wouldn't be complete without my beloved Anastasia Brow Powder Duo in Medium Brown ($23).  I've also chosen to bring along the Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Damsel (part of the Stila in the Light Palette for $39), for any eyelining that may be required.  Finally, I'm along this teeny tiny Fresh Supernova Mascara sample ($25 for full-size), which I'm very curious to try out!

I'm also bringing my favorite contour shade - Burberry 'Light Glow' Blush in No. 07 Earthy ($42), which is so perfect for fair skins, but it also works well as a very natural blush.  However, I couldn't just leave myself with one blush choice, could I?  At the last minute, I threw in the Laura Mercier Second Skin Cheek Color in Spiced Cider ($26) - possibly the best named, and perfect for Autumn blush I own.  As for lips, I decided to bring one of my all-time favorite lipsticks, the Clinique Chubby Stick in Bountiful Blush ($17), as it will cover any and all needs I'll have lip-wise.  Finally, I'm brining the Marc Jacobs Daisy EDT Rollerball ($20) with: my travel-scent of choice.

Are you travelling anywhere soon?  What will you bring with?

Recent Favorites #1

Since starting back up at college, I haven't had time to post monthly favorites - being far too busy to set aside time for it at either point over the last two months.  That being said, I just couldn't wait to share some of the products that I've been loving recently!

First on the list is Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in 2 ($60).  This is one of my most expensive bases; however, it's also one of my favorites.  I bought this about a month ago and I can't stop using it.  It's a gorgeous match for me, and the light-medium coverage and natural finish are exactly what I look for in a foundation.  I've also recently fallen for a higlighter - the Burberry 'Fresh Glow' Luminous Highlighting Powder in No. 01 Nude Radiance ($48).  Although not the most shimmery highlighter, it gives a subtle glow that is just so natural - no disco balls here!

As for eyes, I've been sticking to some tried favorites - MAC Eyeshadow in Era (easily my favorite MAC eyeshadow) all over the lid for a simple, natural look, and MAC Eyeshadow in Brun to line my upper lash line, again for a more natural looking eyeliner ($10 each in pan form).  Anastasia Brow Powder Duo in Medium Brown ($23) has also been my weapon of choice for my brows.  I use the lighter shade for a more natural, defined brow - plus this powder seriously lasts, you can't fault it! 

Finally, I've been reaching almost daily for an all-time favorite lipstick - Chanel Rouge Coco in 05 Mademoiselle ($34).  Chanel's lipsticks are definitely my favorite high-end offerings, with a creamy texture and good lasting powder, they can't be beat.  This particular shade is supposed to be special, as it's meant to appear to be a slightly different shade on everyone (I'm not sure whether that's entirely true or not).  All that being said, it's a warm, natural rose shade that's perfect for everyday wear.  You can read my full review on this lipstick here.

What have you been loving recently?

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Beauty Haul: Kevyn Aucoin, Bioderma, L'Oreal, Rimmel

I've cut down my beauty spending by a lot over the past couple of months.  After returning to the US, some costs came up that weren't necessary for me in Germany (re: gas for my car, more expensive food, and cell phone bills that are larger than €10 a month), so I had to rearrange my budget to accommodate, naturally making my frivolous beauty spending the first thing to be cut!  However, after a month of being good, I thought it was finally time to treat myself!

The first thing I decided to splurge for was the Kevyn Aucoin The Sculpting Powder in Medium ($44).  I've been wanting to try this for months, and when I saw it for sale on a blog sale, I immediately picked it up.  I've only used it once so far, but let me say that my cheekbones have never looked better!  A full review will soon follow.  The other item I splurged on was a new bottle of Bioderma.  I actually have a full bottle lurking at my parent's house, but I couldn't seem to find it when I was last there, so a quick eBay search was in order.  This 500ml beauty doesn't come cheap (mine was around $30 including shipping), but it works like a dream!  You can read my full review of this here.

Today, I also lurked the aisles of Walgreens, initally looking for pens, but leaving with much more than that.  The first thing I grabbed was the L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara ($8.49).  I currently don't have any non-colored mascaras in my stash, and I decided that needed to be changed.  This seems to be a mascara that everyone and their mother has tried, but I've always stuck to Maybelline for my drugstore mascaras, so I'm curious to see how this one will go.  I also decided to grab two nude lipsticks: the L'Oreal Color Riche Balm in Nourishing Nude ($8.29) and the Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in To Nude or Not to Nude? ($7.29).  I've never really found a nude lipstick I've liked, so I thought I'd try these two out and see if either (or hopefully both) will work.

Have you tried any of these before?  Have you picked up anything new recently?

bloglovin' l shesaidbeauty

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Daily Make-Up #2 | Job Interview

I had my first job interview today (Senior in college, let the fear take over), and along with the fear and nerves that go with the entire process, I still had to figure out the best make-up look to wear!

However, after some serious thought (I may or may not have spent all week planning today's make-up), I think I came up with a very natural, very appropriate job interview make-up look.

I have quite a stash of foundations, but I wanted to wear something that I knew matched me perfectly and only gave a little bit of coverage, so I opted for an old favorite - the Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation in Porcelain 0 ($47).  Although it's by no means the cheapest foundation I own, it is a perfect match for me, and it literally looks like skin.  I then used the Dolce & Gabbana The Concealer Perfect Finish Concealer in 2 ($37) underneath my eyes, which creases like no other (not too impressive for the price), and the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in 1 (£4.19), which I will forever love.  I then set everything with the Burberry Sheer Powder in Porcelain No. 01 ($45).  

I kept it very simple on my eyes, doing a very basic, but natural look.  I put a base on my lid using the MAC Painterly Paint Pot ($20), which I used to not care for, but have since grown quite fond of.  Then I used the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette ($27), using Foxy and WOS all over the lid, and putting Naked 2 through the crease, using Faint and Crave (mixed) as a liner, and then using WOS as a brow and inner-corner highlight.  I then used the Rimmel Scandaleyes Liner in Taupe ($4.49) on my waterline, and then used the Laura Mercier Long Lash Mascara ($24) on my upper lashes, which is nice, but nothing special.  As for brows, I used the tried and true MAC Omega eyeshadow ($10 in pan form), with my favorite MAC 266, and then set it with the MAC Clear Brow Set ($16).

I then used the Burberry 'Light Glow' Blush in No. 07 Earthy ($42) to contour, and used it as a 'barely there' blush.  For highlighter, I made sure to use something subtle - the Diorskin Nude Shimmer Illuminating Powder (£32) was thus chosen and added the perfect amount of glow!  Finally, I added lipstick, which was probably the hardest decision to make out of all the products I chose.  I ended up picking one of my all-time favorite lipsticks - Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick in 45 Caractère ($34), a natural rose with gold sparkle, which looks absolutely stunning on the lips!

Is this something you'd wear to an interview?  Random question alert:  What's your favorite drugstore mascara?  I really want a new one!

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