What I'm Thankful For - 1 of 2

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, at least in my opinion.  My husband and I celebrated our birthdays, we made it through Halloween and, now that Thanksgiving is in TWO WEEKS (!!!), we are officially in the holiday season. Since many folks do the Facebook “what I’m thankful for today” thing during November, I'm sharing some of my favorite beauty products - as well as some things that just make me smile (which is the best makeup!).

Before we start, as I normally post on Wednesday, the hubby and I took yesterday off to celebrate Veterans Day.  I want to give a sincere THANK YOU to him and to those who signed up to protect and defend this great country, as well as the families who carry on in the service member's absence - whether temporary or permanent. I'm forever grateful.

So here we go...

1. La Mer everything

Full disclosure: I used to work for La Mer.  I fell in love, and I fell hard.  It saved (and continues to save) my face, and I’ve even convinced my husband to use it.  Yes, it’s expensive, but I make it last all year.  Since I only get one set of skin, I am completely okay with getting my jeans from Target in favor of first-class skin care.

2. My Water Bottle

Though not technically skincare or makeup, I can’t tell you how big of a difference drinking a daily minimum of 64-oz. of water makes in my skin, and therefore my makeup.

3. NYX Cosmetics Butter Gloss

I feel like this is the best all-around gloss on the market: cruelty-free, buttery texture, fantastic color range, smells divine, and costs $5.

4. Almay Makeup Eraser Sticks

You will always find these in my purse, at my makeup table, and with me on makeup jobs.  It’s a cotton swab filled with makeup remover, and it has saved me from smudges so many times. (Also great for making winged eyeliner even!)

5. theBalm Sexy Mama Powder

This stuff is the jam and, if more people knew about it, it would never stay on the shelf.  Full disclosure again: I worked for theBalm – but TRUST me, I follow the “if you don’t have anything nice to say keep your mouth shut” rule, and I don’t get sponsored by any of the brands I write about (yet!), but either way I’ll always keep it real.  Anyway, it’s incredible because even though it contains little oil-absorbing spheres, it doesn’t dry out my skin.  Also, it’s truly translucent: I buffed this onto the face of a woman with beautiful, espresso-colored skin, who was also very shiny, and she instantly looked airbrushed. Get this ASAP.

6. Weleda Skin Food

When I’m not bathing in rationing out my La Mer, I use this for moisturizer.  It's very hydrating, made with essential oils, and I think it smells like Sweet Tarts.

7. Armani Rouge D’Armani Lipstick in Beige 100

My perfect nude lip color to which I’ve been loyal for years.  It makes me feel powerful, pretty, and sexy, and it’s nude without making my lips disappear.

8. Yes to Carrots Cream Cleanser

This is such a whipped, delicious cleanser that leaves behind no icky residue.  And it smells so clean and fresh.  It's available at drugstores, it's good for you and the environment, and beats every high-end cleanser I've tried (except for La Mer's The Cleansing Oil...I mean...).  Occasionally I'll even do an in-shower spa-like treatment:  massage the cleanser into my skin, then rinse.  Next, I massage the product into my skin again but let it sit there until the very end of the shower, like a mask, and use either my Clarisonic or a wash cloth to gently buff it away.

9. My Doggies

As you might have seen in more than one Friday Flash, we have two beagles named Clark and Kent.  You can follow them on Instagram @TheSuperBeagles.  They're super cuddly and they don't bark much, but they do grunt like little piggies when they are really happy.  They're our best friends, they're family, and they have brought more joy into our lives than we can say!

10. Treat Beauty Lip Balm

Saw this jumbo tube o' balm on Kandee Johnson's YouTube Channel multiple times, so I ordered the Marshmallow flavor.  Holy wow. It's perfect.  So then I ordered the 3-pack.  And now they have holiday flavors which I'll also add to the collection.  Again, this is a good-for-you-and-the-environment product, so my three- and four-year-old nieces will get these in their Christmas stockings.

See you next week for the second installment!

(Photos c/o Lamer.com,  Amazon.com,  nyxcosmetics.com,  Drugstore.com,  thebalm.com,  Birchbox.com,  Beautezine.com,  Target.com,  and TreatBeauty.com)

Mad Props

If you don't know about Kandee Johnson, you should.  Even if you're not into her incredible impersonations and cream foundations, you can still learn so much from her.  And she's really perky, so I tend to watch her videos while I'm on the elliptical for an energy boost. I recently watched THIS video where she shows how to do skin makeup - meaning everything but eyes, brows, lashes, and lips.  It's almost 20 minutes, but she goes through everything step-by-step using drug store AND high end versions of each product.

Normally I only do this many layers of makeup for brides or special events, so I'll work on and post a fast(er) version of great skin in the weeks to come.  She makes a great point: even the best smokey eye or crazy lip color won't look as good if there are several skin imperfections.  If you focus and spend time on skin, then a little brow gel, mascara, and a swipe of gloss goes much, much farther.

Also, I apologize, I accidentally erased several photos from this website.  I'll go back and add as many as I can, but I just wanted you to know that I know, and I'm sorry, and I'm on it!

{Photo courtesy of KandeeJ.com via Google Images}

Finger Painting

The other day I was running out the door when I realized that, after their monthly bath, none of my brushes were dry. So I used the original makeup brushes, my fingers.  Disclaimer: like many of my posts, this was unplanned, which means I was literally in a rush to get out the door (hence the curlers) and I was literally applying my makeup in my bedroom while trying to snap photos with my iPhone (hence the really poor quality).  We're all about keepin' in real real here at Electra Lane. While this isn’t enough color for me for The Work Appropriate, it would work for those who want a clean, low-maintenance everyday routine (it’s my perfect Minimalist).  I started by smoothing on tinted moisturizer (Glow), then I added a little cream blush (Anguilla) and blended upward

I took a liquid concealer darker than my skin (Amande) and dotted it on the sides of my nose and under my cheekbones, then blended back and up into the blush

Next, I took that same concealer, but in a shade lighter than my skin (Vanilla), and patted it under my eyes, around my nose and mouth, and in the center of my forehead and down the center of my nose.

This is where we are so far:

For my eyes, I added a thick line of warm brown eyeliner (Costa Riche) to the top lash line and just the outer corners of the bottom lash line and smudged gently with my ring finger

I filled in (Taupe) and set (Clear) my eye brows

Then added a brightener just to the inner corners of my eyes

Next, I curled my lashes and applied mascara (Blackest Black)

And added a little gloss (Bellini)

Finally, to set everything, I used a few spritzes of setting spray

Refinery29 wrote an article about no-brush makeup, and a new line, called Nudestix, has capitalized on the technique, so that might be a great option for those who want an ever quicker and easier routine. HRH Wayne Goss does a lovely demo and review of that line here.