Yet again, another month has flown by and we have found ourselves in the midst of the Christmas season. Although most of my routines stayed the same this month, I was reaching for a few new items over and over.
My most-anticipated purchase was probably the Stella by Stella McCartney rollerball. I had been looking for this for ages after reading about the notes and thinking it would be perfect for me. This has notes of rose, peony, mandarin, and amber, and it's the perfect year-round scent. It has the fresh, floral scent of a spring fragrance and the warm notes of the amber to carry it through the winter. I haven't worn any other perfume since buying this, and if I had a signature scent I think this would be it. I'd love to get one of the full size bottles because they're so beautifully designed, but the rollerball is so convenient to travel with.
Although I've been wearing the perfume all month, I haven't really been able to smell it - I've caught two colds in a row, totaling over half of the month that I've been sick! So the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask has been my best friend. I'll spare you having to read yet another glowing (literally) review about this from me, but this has really saved my sickness-induced dehydrated skin and helps disguise the fact that I'm actually sick.
Another highly-anticipated purchase was the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in the shade Vanilla. It isn't as creamy as the drugstore liquid concealer I used to use, but this means it sticks around much longer. Whereas the drugstore option fades away only about a quarter of the way through my workday, the Nars offering lasts at least until dinnertime on me without needing a touchup. It doesn't cling to dry patches and covers anything that needs covering beautifully with such a natural finish. I'm so glad I finally got around to buying this (thank you Sephora VIB sale), and I'm sure my wallet will be weeping over and over as I don't think I could go back to my drugstore option.
My last favorite of the month is a new favorite eye duo - the products alone are favorites, but together they're even better. After watching a Vivianna Does Makeup video where she used a MAC eyeshadow in Sable, I just had to go out and buy it. Soon after I got home, I realized it was a very similar color to the By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Misty Rock - a purple/bronze/taupe color. Since the By Terry eyeshadow is a cream product that never ever budges once set, I've been using it all over the lid and blended up into the crease as a base and layering the MAC shadow over the top. The Sable eyeshadow is a great color to use on its own because as you blend it out, it changes to a different color - perfect for a quick, easy, and natural smoky eye. I always use my trusty MAC 217 brush to do the blending (it really does do all the work for you). I wore this combination on Thanksgiving and will definitely be busting it out again and again - it's a perfect color for the holiday season.
What were you loving in November?