Ah, the post where I try to wrap up my entire year in beauty in one place *gulps*
This has been a tough post for me. 2014 seemed like a big year makeup wise for me. So many amazing products came into my life, some of which are here to stay for possibly forever (or until discontinued).

Brace yourselves, a long post is coming.

First, I want to talk about the Revealed 2 palette by Coastal Scents. I was once someone that swore Urban Decay made the best palettes…then I bought this one. I use this palette about any time I am not reviewing something or creating a tutorial. It’s so versatile and I feel it really suites my green eyes. There’s really not a color in this palette that I don’t love.
The shadows are very smooth and pigmented. Totally a palette that I would recommend to anyone that doesn’t already own it.

Second, the elf prism palette in “Naked” which is probably my second favorite palette at the moment. I’ve talked about this palette so much, but it deserves the attention. I won’t go into too much detail to avoid putting everyone to asleep, but just order this palette. You will thank me.

Concealing is a big part of my makeup routine. I have fairly clear skin, but I have very dark under eyes from being super pale and an asthmatic. I look like a real life Tim Burton character some days. The Nyx HD concealers have been a staple in my makeup routine for pretty much the entire year. I have tried and liked other concealers, but these are just beyond amazing. I mix both porcelain and lavender together to create the perfect shade to conceal and highlight my under eyes. The only downfall is that there doesn’t seem to be a ton of product in the tubes, but at $5 each it’s okay.

The Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade was a product that I purchased twice in the year 2014. Yep, that’s when you know the love for a product is real, especially if you’re someone that is constantly trying new products like myself. I currently have the shade ebony, and even though I still don’t think this shade is dark enough, I make it work. I love it that much. When I need a very carved out and precise brow…this is what I use. Holy grail status.

I would be no where without my Manic Panic white foundation, or at least my face would be a different color than my neck. I always bring this up when a fellow pale warrior talks about the struggle of finding foundations that are light enough. This product has helped me to bring some of my old favorite foundations back into my life. I just mix a few pumps in and apply to my face. It doesn’t change the foundation. It’s perfect. I’ve been through 2 bottles this year alone.

Going with the face thing, I do have to mention my Elf acne fighting foundation. There are cons to this products such as not being light enough, swatches looking different online than in person etc, but the formula and coverage are amazing. I wear this when my skin is less than satisfactory. It has salicylic acid in it, but not a lot so it’s never made my face feel dry. For $6, I would recommend everyone try this out if they’re looking for a great full coverage foundation.

The Too Faced Cocoa Powder didn’t come into my life until later on the year, but it’s still worthy of being mentioned in this post. I have the shade “light” (duh) and I use it to set my foundation if I’m wearing a BB cream, or I wear it alone on “no makeup” days. It doesn’t get cakey at all, and it looks beautiful on my skin. Powders are a hit and miss with my because my skin is very dry in some places, but this powder doesn’t cling to my dry spots. Worth every penny. And the packaging is so freakin’ adorable. Too Faced always creates the cutest packaging.

The Mary-Loumanizer by The Balm has been a product I have been wanting to try for so long and I finally found it 50% off on hautelook.com one day. This product is incredible, and I will repurchase it at full price if need be. However, I don’t foresee running out of this product anytime soon. This is my go-to highlighter if I’m not reviewing/creating a look and I haven’t even made a dent in the product. Very very little goes a long way. I feel this is the holy grail highlighter for pale folks. It gives a very healthy glow, and paired with a nice peachy blush it makes me look like I had the best orgasm of my entire life.
Too much info? Oh well 😉

At the top of the picture, that’s my real techniques miracle sponge. I own several of these. I’m in love with them. I use it to blend foundation, concealer, and my contouring. I also use it to apply powder. I have no idea what I was doing before this sponge came into my life. If you have dry skin and brushes on your face make your foundation cling to dry spots, buy this sponge. It’s $6 at most places (on sale often at Ulta) and incredible. Just trust me.

My almost everyday contouring product has been the Nyx blush in Taupe. It’s a product that’s talked about often in the beauty community, so I won’t ramble too much, but it’s truly spectacular on pale skin. It’s cool toned and doesn’t make me look orange.

I’m a blush fanatic. The products I buy the most have to be blush and lipstick. However, I reach for Elf’s Studio Blush in “Wanderlust” often, especially in the fall and winter. It’s a deep plumish-mauve color and very cool toned. I wear a lot of cool toned looks, so this has been an almost everyday blush for me lately. It’s very pigmented, so use a very light hand with it if you’re pale. I feel this is a color that can flatter every skin tone though.

Now…on to lip products. This was the hardest part for me because I love lipstick and stuff.

Probably my favorite lip product discovery of 2014 in general has to be liquid lipsticks. I reach for them often and they last fo-freakin-EVA on my lips.

A new brand I have discovered is Pretty Zombie Cosmetics. I purchased “Zombettie” and “Black Cat” awhile back, and I reach for Zombettie so often. It’s a very pin-up vintage red and super matte, but not drying. Pretty Zombie has liquid lipsticks that are $12 each (cheaper than many) and it’s a vegan brand. However, they have been slightly MIA from instagram and it’s raising concerns for some. Apparently, it’s a one woman army running the company and has been overwhelmed with all of the people in love with her product. Not that I can blame them. The packaging, price, and product are all spot on. I don’t feel ethically right purchasing Lime Crime after reading and witnessing some things, so I hope that this brand releases more in 2015. I went to the site a few days ago and it looks like there’s a new burgundy shade to be released in January, and I am flippin’ excited about it.

Okay, forgot I had a lone non-lip product in this picture haha. If you’ve been keeping up with my blog or youtube channel you have probably heard me mention the physician’s formula eye booster pen in “ultra black” at least a bajillion times. It’s my favorite liquid eyeliner. It makes creating wings super easy, and it’s half the price of the Kat Von D pen ringing in at $9. Life changing product.

Speaking of Kat Von D, I can’t hate on her products at all because her brand is probably my favorite to buy when I have the money to splurge. I bought the liquid lipstick in “Lolita” on a whim a few months back, and damn I’m glad I did. From what I’ve seen this color has been hard to get a hold of at times throughout the fall and into winter. It’s such a beautiful brown nude color though. It’s my go-to nude lately, and probably will continue to be into 2015. I’m obsessed.

Too Faced was a brand I had never tried until not too long ago. Once I tried this brand I have been hooked and I love when I can try out new products. One of my favorite lip products for the year is also by Too Faced, and that is the shade “Fig” from the Melted Lipstick line. It’s such a beautiful and perfect plum toned color. I feel this is a very flattering color on pale skin tones, and would probably look great on everyone. I really need to get my hands on several of the new colors though.

Last, but certainly not least, are the LA Girl Lip Paints in “Tempt” and “Blushing.” I own about 8 of these babies ($4 each) and they are all beautiful, but these were my most used. I don’t like sticky gloss, but these aren’t sticky whatsoever. They’re super pigmented and look great alone or on top of other colors. Tempt is a very dark berry color, and Blushing is a gorgeous darker mauve shade.

If you made it to the end of this post…congrats. This was a long one. I’m excited to see what’s in store for 2015 in every way, not just in terms of beauty.