Goodbye April, Hello May!.. April 2010 Favorites

Here's a round up of the products I've been enjoying all April. Some are new, most are rediscovered treasures that I've been neglecting.

1. LORAC Snakecharmer Palette- One of my first "high end" palettes ever and I still think it's one of the best warm "basic" palettes out there. I absolutely love it. I bought one for my cousin too for her birthday. The packaging is kind of gaudy with the "croc" or "snake" skin and ginormous fake red jewel in the center but I love it. The palette features 4 neutrally shadows and a peachy blush -don't remember each shade's name but it's somewhere in my room (if you wanted to know, comment me and I'll find it.) This was originally $35 (when I bought it) but I noticed it was in LORAC's sale section a few months ago for like $12 or something. CRAZY SAUCE right??! Anyways, it's sold out but there are still plenty of nice LORAC palettes on sale at their site.

2. Smashbox Muse Artist Eye Palette (from MUSE Spring 2009 Collection)- This baby was originally $48!! I don't remember what I paid for it but I got it on sale (around $35?) and now it's on Smashbox.com for only $24. You can also find it on Ebay for as low as $10 (be aware of FAKES though.. more on that soon.) Sigh.. if only I had waited. When I first bought this a year ago, I barely even used it but I've recently pulled it out and started really putting it to use. I love it. The colors are very springy, soft, and sort of water color like. Perfect for if you're more of a neutral gal but want some color.

3. MAC Pearlglide Intense Eyeliner in "Black Line"- I've been using this since I got it. It's my every day black liner pencil and I like it. I like my liner to have glitter -for some strange reason I think it holds up better for me. This one works way better on the waterline than the OG Pearlglides and is 10x sparklier. My only gripe is that sometimes I'm not really feeling the green glitter. The gold's fine but I wish they had a black with silver glitter -like Black Russian.

4. Revlon Super Lustrous Gloss in "Peach Petal" (from Daydreamer Summer 2010 Collection)- I've been loving this gloss since I got it and am so thrilled that I've found some really good gloss for such a low price. I didn't expect to like it as much as I do and have found myself regularly reaching for it all week. It's such a nice peachy beige with some pink and will work with anything. Love that it doesn't dry out my lips -that's always a major plus. This is limited edition so if you want it, buy it now. They're selling really fast.

5. NARS Duo Lip Gloss in "Giza/Boogie Nights"- I got this in a set of 3 (so you get 6 different gloss colors) awhile back. I just checked right now and I think NARS is discontinuing their duo (double-sided) glosses because the individual glosses are nowhere to be found on the Sephora, NARS, or Nordstrom website. They still have the set at the NARS site though. Kind of sad about that since it's nice to have 2 colors in 1. Anyways, been using the "Giza" side a lot lately. It's a pretty, opaque nectar color (think light peachy coral.) I love NARS glosses because they're pigmented and moisturizing -I can wear it without lip balm. Only downside is the price (like all NARS products) and the fact that it smells a bit like melted waxy crayons mixed with other art supplies.

6. CARGO BeachBlush in "Coral Beach"- I love CARGO blushes and own quite a few so many of them are often neglected. I dug this out earlier this month and to my surpirse, it had never even been used -only swatched! I'm so glad I found it because the color's gorgeous. This BeachBlush contains 4 color "strips" which I mix all together (I guess you can use the colors indivually but the "strips" are pretty skinny so it would be hard to do this with a brush.) This had the perfect amount of shimmer and gives my skin a really nice glow. I'd describe the color as a peachy bronze with a touch of coral. CARGO blushes are blendable, long lasting, and pigmented.

7. CARGO Blush in "Topeka"- One of my favorite CARGO blushes. This is just a solid color (no "strips.") This is an amazing, natural looking blush that gives you that nice "pop." The color is a lightish medium peachy bronze with a hint of rose gold. People with medium/tan warm tones must have this.

8. Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm in "Lemon & Chamomile" with SPF 25- I've mentioned my love for Jack Black balms before. I use this stuff on a daily basis and can't see my life without it. Dramatic? I know. It's one of my "luxory items" since I don't think lip balm should really cost 7 bucks. Around the Holidays, they always come out with a slightly discounted set of 3 and I usually buy 1 or 2 of those to get me through the year. I've tried the original mint flavor, lemon & chamomile, and I think the other one's vanilla mixed with something else -can't remember. I was using the mint flavor but for some reason, I just couldn't stand the tingly feeling lately. I opened this one up and fell in love all over again. So soothing and no tingles. It smells like Lemonheads. I wouldn't call this a lip treatment though, it's a balm. It'll help semi dry lips and maintains the moisture. If you have really crusty dry lips, it won't totally cure it but it'll help. I'm still trying to find a lip treatment that will handle those gross crusty days.Also, it contains SPF 25. We all know the importance of sunscreen but it's so often we forget that our lips need it too! Why not get your daily dose of lip SPF from something that smells and tastes super yummy?!

What are your monthy favorites? Share!