Amazingly, we are already at the end of the first month of 2015. January was the month of experimentation with beauty products. I haven’t used most of the newer items long enough to form favorites, but I have used a few products–old and new–quite often this past month. I’ve broken my favorites down into three categories:

1. Beauty
2. Fashion
3. Fragrance

The Beauty

• Urban Decay’s Naked 2 Palette
• Milani Baked Blush in Rose D’Oro
• OPI Nail Lacquer in AmazON AmazOFF
• MAC Lipstick in Diva

MAC’s Diva Lipstick

We’ll start with MAC’s lipstick in the shade Diva. What I love most about this shade of red in comparison to the countless red lipsticks I own by various brands is that the color is a deep cool-toned red that mixes perfectly with the colder weather. The finish is a true matte, which makes its staying power longer than most reds without the use of a lipliner. Although I’m beginning to transition into a spring mood, this lipstick shade is one thing about winter I’m not ready to stop using. I swatched this lip shade along with a few others by MAC in an earlier blog post, which you can view here.

Milani’s Baked Blush in Bellissimo Bronze

If you haven’t caught on to Milani, it’s time to hop on the bandwagon. Milani has always been an underrated drugstore brand that creates quality makeup products. I used to be a huge fan of their baked eyeshadows, but more recently I have rediscovered their baked blushes. I own two, but primarily use Rose D’oro, a beautiful golden shimmer blush with a warm undertone. For someone of my skintone, it provides a beautiful glow to the skin with a hint of gold. For lighter skintones, it’s bronze enough to provide a sunkissed cheek. My local Target stores no longer carry the brand, but you’re still able to find it at CVS, Walgreens, and Milani’s website.

OPI Nail Lacquer in AmazON AmazOFF

Whenever I pick up a lot nail polish colors, there’s one that stands out from the crowd. There’s always one that I go back to over and over again. This month, my standout polish is AmazON AmazOFF by OPI. Truthfully, I tend to favor Essie over OPI, but nothing beats this color. It’s a beautiful deep blue green shade that applies opaquely with a single coat. This shade is from OPI’s Brazil Nail Lacquer Spring/Summer 2014 Collection. The collection is one of the best released in my opinion. I originally purchased 3 others within the collection last summer (swatches here), but went back for this vibrant shade. The color is deep and bold, which makes it an appropriate color for the colder months as well as it’s original spring/summer intentions.

 Urban Decay’s Naked 2 Palette

I have been extremely into cool-toned eyeshadows, lately. Blame it on the moody gloom of cold weather. Don’t get me wrong, I still love my warm shades; however, it’s nice to switch up the normal and reach for something cooler. It’s because of this phase that the Naked 2 palette became my most reached for palette this month. With the exception of the darkest shade, each color was used at some point this past month. I’m really pleased with this rediscovered beauty, especially for nighttime looks. If you don’t yet own this palette and you’re curious with how it stands up against its two counterparts, I have a comparison of all three Naked palettes here.

The Fashion

• Black and White Printed Tops
• Faux Fur Coats
• Sheer, Minimal Tops
• Knit Infinity Scarves

Black and White Printed Tops

Spoiler alert: I’m always into black and white tops. This month, however, it seemed to amplify. I’m partially sure it has something to do with my resolution of shopping my own closet more often than not. Seeing as how the majority of my wardrobe is lacking color, I’ve been using various patterned tops to diversity my black and white outfits.

Faux Fur Coats

When it comes to outerwear, I’ve gotten full use out of my faux fur coats. The black one pictured above is from Topshop, which I got for a steal thanks to the good eye of one of shopping cohorts. You all have seen my brown coat in a previous haul post, which was also on steady rotation this month. It may seem a bit silly to have two (three, if you include the hand-me-down one from my sister) fur coats living in Texas, but I have surprisingly gotten to wear them more than I could have hoped. We’ve had a pretty cold winter in between our spurts of higher temperatures, which my immune system is currently reaping the consequences of. In terms of warmth, Topshop is definitely of greater quality. I would recommend a fur coat by them if you truly live in a city that requires a properly insulated coat. The Abercrombie coat, while a favorite, is less warm and more for show. It’s a good one to have if you live in a similar climate to mine.

Sheer, Minimal Tops

Do you ever purchase an article of clothing and love it so much you want to fill your closet with that exact item in a variety of colors, often times duplicates of the same color? That is totally me with the long sleeved, sheer blouses. What I love about them is the versatility and comfort. I’m not a big fan of tight tops, as I can get fidgety and feel constricted in them, so this style of blouse is a welcomed alternative to button down tops. The white one pictured above is from Forever 21, and I’ve worn it so often that I’m surprised it has yet to be photographed for the blog. I’m looking to replace it with a higher quality one as it’s starting to get some wear and tear, but it’s still in good shape for now. The black one is a somewhat newer purchase from Topshop, which you can see how I’ve styled previously for the holidays here.

Knit Infinity Scarves

Be honest: Isn’t one of the greatest things of fall and winter fashion the ability to throw a scarf over any and every outfit? Sure, summer scarves are a thing, but they aren’t exactly practical. I used to purchase scarves like they were going out of style, all of which I still reach for on occasion. This winter, my favorites have been my knit scarves. Knit infinity scarves hang perfectly over an outfit in a way that other scarves often lack. My favorite is the maroon one picture above from Target, which I wore in my striped tee outfit seen here.

The Fragrances

• Philosophy Pink Almond Candy (Body Wash, Body Scrub, Body Lotion)
• Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black Perfume

Philosophy’s Pink Almond Candy Scent

This Pink Almond Candy Philosophy bundle is a recent purchase from Sephora that I’ve used so frequently it became an instant favorite. My friend and I were in Sephora looking for who knows what, when we found an endcap filled with Philosophy’s Christmas sets. Since it’s January, they were on sale for really great deals. I loved this scent as soon as I picked it up. I purchased another Philosophy gift set as well, but haven’t tried it yet because I’m so in love with this one. In my own words, I’d describe this as a balance between nutty almond and sweet sugar. It’s not overtly sweet in the sense that you feel like a walking candy jar, but it does have a subtle sweetness to it that blends well with the warm and neutral scent of almonds.

Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black Perfume

In a few words, Nirvana Black is everything I look for when it comes to perfume. It’s warm, sensual, and has a hint of vanilla. I step outside of my warm fragrance preference sometimes, but testing this out brought me right back. This scent is my favorite perfume that I own, and I absolutely plan to repurchase when I inevitably run out. It makes sense that Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen would create my perfect scent, seeing as they’re a few of my fashion role models. I tested Nirvana White as well, which also smells good, but Nirvana black truly encapsulates what I look for in a perfume. Taken from Sephora’s site because I wholeheartedly agree with the description, “Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black is an addictive blend of alluring violet, sensual sandalwood, and rich vanilla that strike the perfect balance between masculine and feminine.” I recommend testing this out, but try to avoid getting the rollerball version if you can. I almost opted for the rollerball to keep from buying a large bottle, but that version smells more like alcohol and doesn’t carry the same mysterious scent as the full bottle.  Also? It stays on the skin all day long.

What were some of your favorite products for the month?

Liked this post? Pin and share it with your friends: