Friday Favourites: Vol. 5

So, it's been a minute since my last Friday Favourites post. By "a minute," I really mean "five months." Of course, I've had a ton of obsessions and addictions since March, but I've been so busy with, you know, life, that I haven't had much time to blog here, let alone put together a Friday Favourites. But I found myself with two days off in a row with no freelances, meetings, or social engagements, so I decided it was about time to do one. So, here, my current favourites:

NARS Pro-Prime Pore Perfecting Primer — It is really hard to find a primer that gives a matte finish and has oil controlling or skin smoothing properties that also doesn't contain silicone. But I don't like the feel of silicone because it makes my makeup feel too heavy and thick. I was using the Laura Mercier Oil Free Foundation Primer, and I like the texture of it, but I didn't feel like it was keeping my foundation matte at all, nor did I feel like it really helped with extending the wear-time of my makeup. This NARS one is super lightweight, almost like a serum meets a lotion, and I've found that it helps my foundation keep matte longer throughout the day as well as looking smoother. It's still not as mattifying as a silicone-based primer, but so far, it's the best one I've used that still feels weightless.

NARS Velvet Matte Skin Tint — I use a pea-sized amount of this and buff it onto my skin with a MAC Oval 6 brush to create a sheer base for my MAC Studio Fix Powder Foundation. Used alone, the Skin Tint doesn't cover freckles or blemishes or pigmentation; it just lightly evens out skin tone with a natural finish. But the addition of it as a base helps my powder foundation from oxidizing on my skin, makes my foundation look more "soft focus" rather than chalky, and keeps my skin more matte for longer in this disgusting summer humidity.

MAC Dazzleshadow in I Like 2 Watch, Let's Roll, and Slow/Fast/Slow — Finally, MAC has made Dazzleshadows permanent! I've loved them since their launch with last June's Le Disko collection (you can find my reviews here, here, and here) and they have replaced Pressed Pigment as MAC's permanent glitter eyeshadow (thank god). Each shade has a 3D multi-dimensional effect that gives a wet, duochrome look, and they shift in colour depending on the angle and the lighting. My favourite way of applying them is using a flat synthetic shader (MAC #242 is my go-to) for maximum impact with minimal fall-out — I use it dry if I want more of a soft iridescent sparkle, or I wet it with MAC Fix+ if I want intense disco ball glitter. Especially gorgeous as the centre of a halo eye look.

Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Safe Word, Insanity, and Uptight — It seems like every brand is coming out with brand new lipstick ranges lately, but none have been more impressive than Urban Decay, who released 120 shades in six different finishes and priced them at a very reasonable $21 a pop. My go-to shades recently have been Safe Word, Insanity, and Uptight, which are various nudes in various finishes, and all of them have been ultra-pigmented, super-smooth, wear for at least four hours, never dry out or feel uncomfortable, and never leave that nasty white ring of dead skin around the inside of your lips. You can read my reviews on them here and here.

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Splits Shimmering Skin Perfector Mineral Blush in Prosecco Pop/Amaretto — I love, love, love the Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Collection Face Palette. More specifically, the Amaretto blush and Prosecco Pop highlighter. In fact, I've been using them almost daily since I got it, to the point where I worried that I might hit pan on them before the end of the year. And then what would I do? They're all limited edition! So when the Champagne Splits duos came out and I saw that there was one with Amaretto and Prosecco Pop specifically, I snatched one up right away. Obviously, I am saving this duo until I finish the pans in my face palette, but if there's one thing that needs to become permanent from Jaclyn Hill's collaboration with Becca, it is this.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Eyeshadow Palette — This has been my go-to eyeshadow palette for the last month. You can read my review and see swatches of it here. All you have to know is that this is by far my favourite pre-curated eyeshadow palette of the year. 

Anet Gesualdi macarons — I get mine from the Ela's Macarons kiosk inside Vaughan Mills, but these are my new favourite macarons in the city. (My old favourite place, also a wholesaler, Kerry's Macarons, closed down last year. My favourite place to get macarons in the country is Point G, but alas, it's in Montreal.) Light, crisp shells that don't crumble even when you cut through them, with soft, creamy, flavourful centres, that stay fresh and tasty even three days after you buy them. Favourite flavours include Salted Caramel, Lemon Poppyseed, Pistachio, and Matcha.

The Gallagher Girls book series by Ally Carter — Yes, it is YA, and it's about students at an all-girls spy school and the crazy shenanigans that being teen spies would encompass, like kidnappings and explosions and memory wipes. And as a full-grown adult, I appreciate both its fluffiness and wit. Think Alias meets Veronica Mars meets Gilmore Girls with incredible world-building details and no girl-on-girl hate. It's fucking awesome.

What are your most recent favourites?