Who’s ready to ring in the New Year? It feels like just yesterday we were saying hello to 2014. I’m not here to reminisce, as that will be a later post, but I am here to talk about the products that consistently impressed me throughout the year. There were a ton of new beauty products released this year, and while some were subpar, a few were standout items. Amongst the new are also the tried and true products, because we can’t forget about those. This post is broken down just a tad differently from your standard “best of beauty” posts. Rather than only pick the top item of each makeup category, I’ve divided them as such:

• Best of: Beauty Basics
• Best of: Eyeshadows
• Best of: Spring and Summer Shades
• Best of: Fall and Winter Shades
• Best of: Everyday, Year-Round Shades

Ready to get started?

Let’s get to the basics:

Best of Beauty: The Basics

Nail Polish Remover Pads (x)

• Must-haves for your beauty bag
• Great for removing nail polish on-the-go
• Only one pad is needed to remove polish from all ten nails
• One pack comes with 10 pads

BareMinerals Frame & Define Brow Styler (x)

• Comes in two shades: universal light and universal dark
• Provides natural-looking results
• Retractable pencil that doesn’t require a sharpener
• Opposite end has a spoolie to groom brows and help blend any mistakes

Benefit’s The POREfessional (x)

• Great primer for oily skin
• Helps makeup lay on a smooth base
• Only requires a pea-sized amount per use
• Bottle lasts a long time
• Helps keep oil at bay throughout the day

L’Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara (x)

• Provides extreme length without compromising volume
• Amazing results for a drugstore price
• Comparable to high-end mascara

The Beauty Blender (x)

• Easily the best tool to apply liquid foundation
• Provides a flawless, even finish
• Requires less product so your foundation lasts longer
• Cleans easily with dishwashing liquid or shampoo

Best of Beauty: The Basics (Cont’d)

NYX Matte Lipstick (x)

• Best drugstore matte lipstick
• Powerful color payoff
• Doesn’t leave lips feeling dry
• Available in 33 different shades

NYX Butter Lipstick (x)

• Leaves lips feeling moisturized and hydrated
• Has a smooth, butter finish without compromising color payoff
• Available in 22 shades

Covergirl All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Foundation (x)

• One of the best drugstore foundations
• Provides medium to full coverage
• Available in Covergirl Outlast and Covergirl Queen
• Lasts all day without feeling heavy

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer (x)

• Great for using under the eyes
• Leaves minimal creasing when set with a sheer powder
• Full coverage results
• Spreadable product so only a little is needed per use

NARS Lipgloss (x)

• Perfect for the girl who doesn’t like a high shine finish
• Provides a moisturizing, low shine result
• Available in 33 shades
• Available in both opaque and semi-sheer shades

NYX Butter Gloss (x)

• Available in 22 shades
• Leaves sheer to semi-sheer color
• Buttery smooth lip gloss without feeling sticky

Best of Beauty: Eyeshadow

MakeupGeek Eyeshadow (x)

• Available as a pan or single compact in over 60 shades
• Small enough to fit most empty eyeshadow palettes
• Affordable price with high pigmentation
• For swatches and a review, click here

LORAC Pro Palette 2 (x)

• Best makeup palette to travel with
• Comes with 8 matte shades and 8 shimmer shades
• Includes a lot of neutrals, great for daytime looks
• Eyeshadow pigmentation lasts all day
• Travel-sized primer included with purchase for maximum color payoff

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette (x)

• Great neutral shades with a sweet scent
• Shades are easy to blend together

Best of Beauty: Spring and Summer Shades

NYX Butter Lipstick in Razzle (x)

• Beautiful bold pink color with a smooth, non-sticky finish and hydrating finish

NYX Matte Lipstick in Shocking Pink (x)

• A great matte alternate for the cool-toned pink. Very similar to MAC’s Flat Out Fabulous for less than half the price.

Marc Jacobs Polish in Lola (x)

• Best described as a spicy red with a warm, orange undertone

Essie Nail Polish in Come Here (x)

• Beautiful opaque finish with a tangy coral color

Essie Nail Polish in Naughty Nautical (x)

• The perfect aquamarine shade with finely milled glitter mixed in for a subtle shimmer

Best of Beauty: Fall and Winter Shades

NYX Lipliner in Dark Red (x)

• Retractable lip pencil that is a good universal red for various red lipstick shades.

Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm in Standout (x)

• Beautiful crayon red color with a matte finish

BareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Buttercream in Moody Berry (x)

• While the color isn’t nearly as dark as it appears in the bottle, the shade is a gorgeous deep berry with purple undertones.

OPI Nail Lacquer in Malaga Wine (x)

• Buildable deep red shade with cool undertones that applies to an opaque finish

Essie Nail Polish in The Perfect Coverup (x)

• A unique blue shade that has smoky steel-toned gray hues

Sally Hansen Big Smoky Top Coat (x)

• The perfect nail polish to have that instantly transforms your current colors into a darker shade

MAC Lipstick in Amorous (x)

• A cool-toned mauve shade that is a beautiful “your lips but better” color

MAC Lipstick in Diva (x)

• The best deep matte red lipstick with a longtime wear color payoff

Best of Beauty: The Everyday Shades

Essie Nail Polish in Eternal Optimist (x)

• A very pretty pink that can go from semi-sheer to opaque when applied with two coats

Essie Nail Polish in Take it Outside (x)

• Best described as a cool-toned mix of eggshell and grey

NYX Butter Lipstick in Pops (x)

• A beautiful neutral mauve-y brown that’s the perfect nude shade for women with deeper skin tones

MAC Lipliner in Soar (x)

• A great liner to achieve the “your lips but deeper” look

Rimmel Exaggerate Lipliner in Rapture (x)

• Highly pigmented deep mauve-y brown lipliner that’s smooth enough to wear alone

Maybelline Matte Lipstick in Lust for Blush (x)

• Soft neutral pink shade that applies to a smooth matte finish

NARS Lipgloss in Stolen Kisses (x)

• A great daily lipgloss shade that’s semi-sheer and has a slight shimmer to it

I showed you mine, so show me yours! I want to know your top beauty products of 2014. Leave a comment below or tag me on Instagram with a pic of your best beauty products, from one makeup lover to another.