Current Favorites!

I just realized the other day that I haven't done a Five Favorites post for several months now, at one point I was doing them monthly and then somehow I just stopped during them during the fall months.  I can pretty sum up my entire fall and early winter favorites with this post, I have been using all kinds of red shades for my nails and lips and have been using Kate Walsh Boyfriend ever since I first got the sample from Sephora and then ordered the rollerball of the fragrance.  I can say that I have chosen some really great products over the past few months since I have been many of the same shades and fragrances since October, normally I tend to rarely use the same fragrance or shade two days in a row so it is pretty unbelieveable that I continue to use the same shades day after day and am still in love with them!

My Five Favorites from the beginning of fall to the present!

MAC Lipstick in Ladybug - " Colour plus texture for the lips. Stands out on the runway. Simmers on the street! What made M·A·C famous"  Ladybug is a sheer red, described by the company as "yellow tomato" and it is one of the Luster finish Lipsticks.  Lusters are on the sheer side and are more hydrating than any other formula, they are perfect for any time of the year and are among the easiest of MAC Lipstick's to wear.  This lipstick shade is a neutral red that is sheer enough to wear in any situation but will still get you noticed.  This is one of my favorite red lip shades and is one that I often recommend to ladies looking to buy their first red lip hue.

Kate Walsh Boyfriend - "She inhales his shirt, taking in the scent of the man she loves. It lingers on her clothes, her sheets, her hair—all over. Imprinted on her body and in her mind, it radiates within her, filling her with feelings of warmth and desire.  Actress Kate Walsh wanted to capture the scent of a guy on a girl: a man's cologne mixed with perfume, the smell that lingers on the skin. This fragrance evokes memories of that time after he has left for the day—when she gently awakes in a bed that's still warmly redolent of "boyfriend."  An alluring balance of vanilla, jasmine blossoms, and an accord of amber is set against the sensual scents of a man, including a light musk and a shimmer of fresh woods.  Notes: Dark Plum, Myrrh, Night Blooming Jasmine, Benzoin Tears, Skin Musk, Golden Amber, Vanilla Woods."  This unique fragrance has been one of my favorites over the past few weeks, I used my sample of this scent within a few days and then quickly ordered the Rollerball from Sephora.  This fragrance is a mixture of plum, jasmine, vanilla, and wood on me.  I initially didn't like this fragrance but am very glad that I gave it another chance, it is much more masculine than what I normally wear but doesn't smell like men's colonge.  It is very soft and sensual and the perfect date fragrance or to wear for cuddling in the winter months.  I will be using this all the time until spring comes.

China Glaze Nail Lacquer in Adventure Red-y - "China Glaze is a professional-level nail enamel made with a special balance of polymers and resins that combine to create a nail lacquer that is long lasting, chip-resistant and resistant to color and shine fading. Will not thicken in the bottle, no thinners necessary. "  Adventure Red-y is a "deep vivid red" with a cream finish, I love this red shade so much!  It came out in the On Safari collection for fall and now it is getting harder to find but I really recommend searching for it.  This is one of my favorite reds, it is deeper than many of the other that I own and I get compliments on it whenever I wear it.  It works very well in the fall months and then I wore it straight through the holidays and will still use it next summer for pedicures.  This is one of the best purchases that I have ever made from this polish company and On Safari is now up there with Anchors Away as my favorite collections from them.

Buxom Big and Healthy Lip Polish in Betty - "A pout-perfecting, sheer coverage, shimmering lip gloss.  This bestselling, lip polish instantly creates the look of fuller, more voluptuous lips with luminous shine. Vitamins A and E help keep lips soft, smooth, and protected while the tingling sensation reminds you that it's working."  Betty is a "crimson red" and is one of the older shades in this product, I first got this lip gloss back in 2009 and I somehow forgot about it for a whole year and then I pulled it out and tried it for the first time around the holidays in 2010.  This is a lovely deep sheer red.  It is another shade that is sheer enough that anyone can pull it off and it will work in any situtation but will still get you noticed.  This formula has a bit of a plumping effect but nothing mind blowing, it will help to slightly fill out your lips and improve the texture but it will not give you the collagen lips.  This is one of the Sephora best-selling lip gloss formulas and I have never met anyone that doesn't like this product!

Tarte EmphasEYES Waterproof Clay Shadow/Liner in Bronze - "A collection of plush eyeliners and a double-ended eyeliner brush, to create intense and long-lasting high definition eyes.  These liners provide skinvigorating™ benefits and an intense yet smooth-cream texture, perfect for creating a precise, high definition line or a smoky, sultry shadow base. High-performance natural™ Amazonian clay deepens the intensity of pure color pigments while nourishing skin for a truer, bolder color that lasts. The botanical waterproofing agent in these liners is earth engineered from a blend of natural plant waxes to form an impermeable layer that protects against rain, sweat, tears, and creasing for longer wear.  Nature's most perfect ingredient, Amazonian clay, balances and neutralizes skin's surface. Whether oily or dry, it reduces surface oil and improves the overall texture of the skin, for smoother application and better wear. The black and brown shades are matte; the bronze, plum, indigo, and green shades are metallic."  Bronze is a "deep bronze sheen" and is the eyeliner that I have been turning to more and more ever since I bought it in October.  This liner shade works with both of the Urban Decay Naked Palettes and therefore I use it at least three times a week, it is more subtle than the liner shades that Urban Decay selected for the palettes and therefore is much easier to wear in a professional environment.  This shade has a bit of shimmer but it is subtle and will work well with any type of makeup look.  I have been using this liner with shades from Naked and Naked 2 and then doing a sheer red lip at lot lately, both for work and getting dressed up at night.

I have been using this fragrances and products for the past few weeks and I know that I will continue to use them all through the rest of the winter.  Last year, I got sick of red right after the holidays were over but I am much more in loves with reds this year and I know that I will be using these products all the way until the beginning of March!

photo courtesy of China Glaze's Facebook page

Kate Walsh Boyfriend

Kate Walsh Boyfriend is one of the most hyped perfumes on the market today and it has remained a top seller at Sephora ever since it first released.  I was interested right away when I first read about it but then wasn't quite as in love with it when I tried it out at the store, it was just too woody and musky for my tastes at that time.  I didn't buy it at that time and then pretty much forgot about it until it was offered as a sample on one of my many Sephora orders.  I decided to try it out again and see it I liked it a bit more when I had the time to really wear the fragrance.  I don't know if the formula has changed or if my tastes have changed a bit but this time around I fell in love with it after wearing it for a day and have already gone through my sample and ordered the Rollerball form of it from Sephora.

Why is Boyfriend such a unique fragrance?  This fragrance was created by Kate Walsh in order for her to smell like her boyfriend's colonge after he left.  "You don't need a boyfriend to have Boyfriend, the new fragrance created by "Private Practice" star Kate Walsh. Inspired by the longing felt for her boyfriend's warm scent, Boyfriend combines muguet, dark plum, myrrh, and night blooming jasmine to create a seductive floral fragrance. Topped off with amber and woody musk, this intoxicating scent includes all the notes that make your eyes roll—just like him.", states the Sephora website when they introduce this collection.  Boyfriend was the first fragrance in the Boyfriend collection and Billionaire Boyfriend was released soon after (I have tried and reviewed that fragrance earlier in the fall). 

The actual description of this fragrance (from Sephora), "She inhales his shirt, taking in the scent of the man she loves. It lingers on her clothes, her sheets, her hair—all over. Imprinted on her body and in her mind, it radiates within her, filling her with feelings of warmth and desire.  Actress Kate Walsh wanted to capture the scent of a guy on a girl: a man's cologne mixed with perfume, the smell that lingers on the skin. This fragrance evokes memories of that time after he has left for the day—when she gently awakes in a bed that's still warmly redolent of "boyfriend."  An alluring balance of vanilla, jasmine blossoms, and an accord of amber is set against the sensual scents of a man, including a light musk and a shimmer of fresh woods."

The notes of the fragrance are: Dark Plum, Myrrh, Night Blooming Jasmine, Benzoin Tears, Skin Musk, Golden Amber, Vanilla Woods.
This is by far one of the most unique fragrances on the market and I can see why it was an instant success and is still very hyped up.  The first time that I smelled this all I got was wood and amber and it was way too masculine for me, however now it seems to develop differently when I am using it.  The plum comes out first and then the fragrance settles into a combination of jasmine, amber, and a little bit of wood on my skin.  This fragrance continues to change throughout the day and settles more into the amber as time goes on. 

The staying power on this fragrance is amazingly long, I put this on in the morning and it is still hanging around when I go to shower at night.  I know that jasmine works very well with my skin chemistry and that is one big reason that this fragrance hangs around so long on me.  This is definitely a fragrance that I would wear only in the cool weather, it is very strong on me and I have to use it sparingly.  I do wonder if I first smelled this fragrance in the warmer weather because that could easily explain why I disliked it so much in the beginning.

This is one of the most unique fragrances that I own and I know that I will be wearing this for the next few months.  This is currnetly one of the items that I reach for the most now that my rollerball has arrived from Sephora.  I will be buying the full sized perfume bottle next fall (I should have some room on my dresser by then...hopefully) and I am also excited to try out the body products the next time that I go to Sephora.

photo courtesy of Sephora

Kate Walsh Billionaire Boyfriend

I have been interested in the Boyfriend scents by Kate Walsh ever since it first came out.  I had tried it out in Sephora right after the initial release however I was very on the fence about the fragrance and I decided that I would not be purchasing it that day.  At this point, I have so much perfume that I don't purchase any fragrance that I am not in love with as I don't even enough room on my bureau for all the fragrances that I already own and love.  I have stated many times that perfume samples from Sephora are one of my best friends as I can try a fragrance several times and then decide how much I love it and if it should occupy a place on my bureau.

The last time that I ordered from Sephora, I added several free perfume samples from the list in my cart.  My goal when I looked at the fragrances was to pick scents that I have never smelled and have never had fragrances from these lines.  We already looked at the Cartier sample that I ordered and now we are going to look at the other one today.  Kate Walsh Billionaire Boyfriend was the sample that I was most interested in really trying out as I was still on the fence about the original fragrance.  I like the original and will admit that it is very unique but I still didn't know if I would get much use from the scent.  Billionaire Boyfriend is the newest fragrance from this company and I believe that it came out sometime over the spring or summer.

First I looked at a bit of background on the Boyfriend fragrance line as I have never owned a fragrance from them before.  This line was created by "Private Practice" star Kate Walsh and she was inspired by the longing that she would feel for her boyfriend's scent after he left.  She created a scent that would allow her to smell this fragrance long after he left.

"Private jets, superyachts, diamonds, and roulette.  It's a dream of wealth and glamour where every whim is indulged.  Imagine a vintage convertible whisking you down the Amalfi Coast to an elegant dinner, taking you to a time and place where a gentleman would never let a lady pay.  Live the fantasy with Billionaire Boyfriend.  Indulgent and sensual, this floral-oriental opens with succulent fruit notes, including bergamot and tangerine wrapped in lush green leaves.  The scent intoxicates asit blooms into a provocative blend of black jasmine, velvet orchid, gardenia, and a touch of patchouli flower.  As the fragrance dries down, it exudes an addictive, sensual warmth and a sense of wealth with hints of vetiver, cistus, sandalwood, and golden amber.  Even the Billionaire bottle is one of a kind: opulent, rare, crafted, and disruptively beautiful.  Inspired by a special reserve champagne bottle, the antiqued platinum-mirrored finish exemplifies the wealth and glamour of the old world atelier."

The notes of this fragrance are: Bergamot, Tangerine, Green Lush Leaf, Black Jasmine, Black Velvet Orchid, Gardenia, Patchouli Flower, Amber, Cistus, Vetiver, Sandalwood.

This fragrance is slightly more feminine than the original, the floral notes appear on my skin and are the strongest when I wear it.  When I first apply the fragrance, the Bergamot note is the strongest but quickly fades down (about fifteen minutes in total) and then the florals come out.  The Black Jasmine and Black Velvet Orchid notes come out on my skin and stay on for the next few hours.  After about an hour, the Amber and Sandalwood notes begin to become evident and mix with the florals, making the fragrance stronger and on the creamier side.  This scent fades a bit quicker than I thought it would on my skin, it goes from strong and lovely to completely faded within an hour after the base notes come out.

I liked this fragrance when I tried it out however I am still not sure that I would purchase this one either.  I don not find this scent as unique as the original, this one contains more florals than the original and I find it much more feminine than the original.  I have many fragrances that contain Jasmine or Black Orchid and I would be more willing to wear one of these than this one if this was the type of scent that I was going for.  For the uniqueness aspect, I would buy the original fragrance before this one as it is warmer and muskier and isn't quite so floral. 

I was a bit let down with this version of the Boyfriend fragrance, it is nice but nothing that I need or couldn't be found in another fragrance that I own.  Thank god for Sephora and all the perfume samples that they offer...

photo courtesy of Sephora