LOTD: my daily face

It sucks that traffic subsides until 9 a.m, making what's supposed to be a 5-minute drive into a 20 to 25-minute drive just to get to school. Traffic in the morning enables me to think without much attention to the slow-moving cars that surround me. This morning I thought that I should update my blog, since it's been a while (or so my popular saying goes...). Sometimes I run out of things to blog about, or most of the time it's because I get lazy to upload pictures onto my computer.

For this entry, I wanted to show you my daily face, when I do use make up to get minimal effects to seemingly make me appear more awake which in turn makes me "feel" more awake.

Btw, my cheap point and shoot camera, does not capture pictures true to its color. Instead, it makes it look a little bit more fake, yet more visually appealing imo. 

Prior to my make up application, I moisturized my face with Clinique's dramatically different gel. 

Incidentally, the bolded products are my daily beauty essentials, as well as make up staples... forever, meaning these are products I never want to be without. Then again, most of these products are easily duplicated... but you get the picture. 

1) Face

I take a foundation or stippling brush or a make up sponge and apply a liquid foundation on my face. Lately I've been using MAC's studio fix and MAC's prolong wear (which I prefer more for my oily skin). Today I used MAC's prolong wear in NC42 which is a light color for me but I like my foundation that way, to make me appear lighter/brighter. I set it with MAC's MSF in medium-dark. 

2) Eye brows

The products I use often change, but in a cycle. Usually it's whatever product I find first. I used MAC's eye brow pencil in velvetone (it's black... lol. For a more natural look, use studded... I think that's the color). Then using my favorite angled brush to draw in my eye brows (MAC 266) I use my cheap yet effective and reliable Jordana eye shadow in black.

3) Eye lids

Actually before drawing in my eye brows, I primed my eyelids using my fingers all the way to my eye brows using Too Faced's shadow insurance. I also use UDPP. I prime my eyes because it helps my eyeliner stay in place. 

4) Eyes

Then I take Sonia Kashuk's bent liner brush and apply Smashbox's jet set gel liner in black. Then for mascara I used Prestige's my biggest lashes after curling with a regular eye lash curler. I have yet to invest in a really great eye lash curler. :)

Also, in the inner corner of my eyes I put some of MAC's cream color base in pearl using my finger. It brightens up my eyes and make me look more awake. I often do it, using various pearly/creamy eye bases or eye shadows. 

5) Concealer

Using my fingers, I apply Revlon's age defying concealer in medium deep (a recent beauty find... and totally worth it) to cover up my dark circles. It works as well as MAC's studio fix concealer imo. A cheaper product with way more product. However, there are only 4 shades... :(

6) Contour

Using the brush that I came with this product, I applied Benefit's hoola bronzer to add some contour to my face so my cheek bones are more accentuated than it already is. 

7) Lips

A simple lip balm does it for this step. I have many to choose from, but lately I've been in love with Bobbi Brown's lip balm. I don't know how to explain in words, but I just love the way it feels on my lips especially because I love puckering up my lips when I have some lip balm on, all of the time until I have to re-apply. The best way to ever moisturize my lips is to apply it before I go to sleep, because I don't unconsciously pucker my lips, or at least I don't think so because after 8 hours of sleep my lips wake up feeling super moisturized with product still on top. 

And there you have it, my daily make up face/routine.

What are your beauty faves?