July 2011 Favorites & Not-So-Favorites

I've been super busy and I almost forgot about my July favorites post. I was all about shimmer/glitter last month and I had a few things that I constantly found myself grabbing in the morning.

*The first thing I found myself loving was Sephora's I.T. Flat Brush. I've been using it for powder, brush and bronzer. It's a flat brush for powder and blush. This brush has natural goat hair bristles that's made to apply powder smoothly across entire face and helpful for contouring. Woo hoo.

Retail: $38 at Sephora

*My favorite blush in July was MAC cosmetics Warmth of Coral Mineralize Blush. It's the perfect peachy, coral for summer and I love the finish on my cheeks.

Retail: $23 at MAC

(This blush has been sold out for weeks--Enter my blog giveaway here for a chance to win one)

*Since I was all about the shimmer this July, I wanted my bronzer to have one as well. I used Smashbox's Fusion Soft Lights in Dusk. It's described as a "shimmery, bronze color" and it gives the perfect summer glow without being too dark.

Retail: $29 at Sephora

*More shimmer?! Oh yes. For my highlight, I used Tarte's Provocateur Amazonian Clay Shimmering Powder. This shimmer is gorgeous. It's not too much shimmer or too little -- just enough.

Retail: $30 at Sephora or Tarte

*On my eyes I found myself reaching for TheBalm Shady Lady Palette I had recently purchased.

Product swatches & review here.

Retail: $39.50 at Sephora or The Balm

*When it came down to foundation, I kept experimenting with different brands. I wore tinted moisturizers a bit, but love the finish of Nars Sheer Matte in Santa Fe. It was a tad light once I had a tan, but I made sure to bronze myself up.

Retail: $42 at Sephora or Nars

*I definitely made sure to set my makeup each day before I left my house because the weather was SUPER hot in August and I didn't want it to melt away. I used Cover FX's Setting Powder in Light. This setting powder comes in two shades - light & dark.

Retail: $32 at Sephora

*Glitter Me Up! I pretty much kept my eyes pretty natural all of July BUT I did play it up with Make Up For Ever's Glitter #4. You have to be very careful putting this glitter on your lid because it can cause a lot of fallout and get all over the place. I made sure to do my eyes first and then work on my foundation. 

Retail: $13 at Sephora or Make Up For Ever

*Lips: I pretty much stuck to a classic pink gloss this July. Nothing too fancy. My top three lips products were Lorac's Polished Poli Lip Gloss, NYX Cosmetics Mega Lip Shine in Pink Frost and Pacifica's Coconut Pearl Luminizing Lip Quench.

Retail: $5.50 at NYX Cosmetics/$22 at LORAC/$9 at Sephora

I also actually had two products this month that I wasn't loving.

The Benefit cream on the left did nothing for my skin (although my girlfriend liked the smell & texture) and the face primer from Korres on the right didn't help keep my makeup on all day at all. The only good thing it did was tighten my skin.

What were some of your favorites?