May Favorites

Hello there, friends! May has been a bit of a crazy month for me, and I know I haven't been as active around these parts as I would like to be. It's not for lack of things to share. I've got A TON of posts queued up, waiting for me to make time to finish them. My hope is that I'll be able to get my butt in gear over the next couple of days and get down to blogging business. On that note, if you aren't already subscribed to Little Blushing Birdie by e-mail, it's the best way to get notified whenever I post something new. It'll deliver a snippet straight to your inbox so you can remember to check it out whenever you've got the time.

Anyway, back to the reason your here! There are a few great products I've been playing with this month that I'm excited to share with you all. Truthfully I've been using a lot of the same things I've been loving from the past couple of months (the IT Cosmetics CC Cream is life), so if you really want a clearer picture of my beauty loves, I'd recommend looking back at my previous favorites posts from this year. But as any beauty junkie knows, there's always something new to talk about. So let's get to it!

BH Cosmetics Sculpt & Blend 2 Review

*Affiliate Links Used

Whether you're someone who prefers a minimal makeup look, or can't leave the house with any less than 10 products on your face, let's all take a moment to consider the artistry of makeup application. A face makes for a wonderful canvas, and the makeup we wear can be both beautiful and transformative. There are countless products in a variety of textures and shades that we can use to paint our masterpieces, allowing for an incredible amount of creativity in the process. And like any artist, the last thing we want to hold us back is not having the right tools to get the job done.

If unique brushes with an affordable price tag are what you're after, the BH Cosmetics Sculpt & Blend 2 Set might just be exactly what you're looking for. In the early fall I picked up the original Sculpt & Blend Set on a bit of a whim, and it's quite possibly been one of the best impulse purchases I've ever made. I rarely do my makeup now without reaching for at least one or two brushes from the set. Then I discovered that BH Cosmetics had released a sister set to my beloved Sculpt & Blend, and I knew I needed to get my hands on it.

Orange Crush

As a warning, this post may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I seriously CANNOT get enough of orange colored lips. There's something so fierce and energetic about a firey pout that it basically gives me an instant boost of self confidence every time I rock one. Plus, orange just screams summertime. Spicy lips, bronzed skin, beachy waves...what's not to love?

Today I wanted to share five of my favorite lip products for channelling my inner sexy salsa dancer. If orange seems way outside your comfort zone, I challenge you to take the plunge and give it a try! It's an extremely flattering color on light and deep skintones alike, but much like its oh-so-basic cousin pink, it's all a matter of finding a shade that works right for you.

SK-II Facial Treatment Essence Review

*PR Product/Affiliate Links used

As much as I have a weakness for eyeshadow palettes and lipsticks, the one thing I never regret investing my money in is quality skincare. Makeup is fun and beautiful to look at, but nothing is more important to me than taking good care of the face it sits on top of. You can totally build a great regimen on a budget (check out this full skincare routine I've put together for under $100), but that's not to say that luxury products are never worth the splurge. For me it's all about getting bang for my buck. Do I want to drop an extra $40 or $50 for pretty packaging and a name? Not really. But if I'm investing in top-notch, effective ingredients that actually deliver as promised, I can get behind that. The tricky part is understanding what exactly you're paying for before you hit that checkout button. And that, my friends, is why I'm here. I want to help you #educateyoself so you can make informed decisions about the things you're spending your hard earned money on.

Recently I was sent two insanely splurgey products from Influenster to test and review - the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence and the SK-II Facial Treatment Mask. And when I say splurgey, we're talking triple-digit-burn-a-hole-in-your-wallet-splurgey. There are very few products I've tried that are more expensive than these, which left me all the more curious as to whether or not they actually work. Now, I haven't explored much of the Asian beauty scene, but I have heard many rumblings about how amazing this particular brand is. With innovative ingredients, SK-II products promise to transform your skin and deliver a youthful, radiant glow. Transform is a pretty powerful word, and an enticing one at that, but ultimately I need more than words to become a believer. So, in the name of science and informed consumerism, let's get into this!

April 2016 Favorites

As the months of the year roll by, April usually isn't one of any real significance. Yes, spring is here, but for the most part everything is still very brown, and the weather isn't all that wonderful, and nothing particularly exciting is going on. This year, though, April was fantastic. Blogging-wise I've had my best month to date. I was featured by Stitch Fix, gave my blog design a fresh face (and took on some serious coding challenges to do so), and got more pageviews than any month in the past three years. Even if Little Blushing Birdie is still a pretty small-time deal, I feel like I've come a long way from where I started.

April was also a great month for beauty. I've hauled and tried a ton of new products since March and can't wait to share the best of the best with you all. So enough of me rambling, let's get into it!