December Favorites ♡ Twenty Thirteen

I can't believe that December is almost over! I decided to do my December favorites a little early this month so I have some extra days to do a NYE post or two! December, for me, flew by, and I had a busy, but awesome month. Here's a look at my favorite products & things that I've been using!

Beauty

01. Benefit's The Porefessional- I rediscovered this product when I came home and decided to clean out my makeup cabinet a bit. I have always loved this product like crazy, but I stopped using it to eliminate the amount of face products I was using in order to be a little more gentler toward my skin. I decided to start using it again on a whim, and I've seen a significant difference in just two weeks! I rediscovered the magic of this balm, for it has brightened and softened my complexion so quickly. I will most definitely continue to use this product for I've seen no damage to my skin so far, and I'm so happy I came across it again. 

02. Mac's Chilled on Ice- I love love love this paint pot! I purchased this in early November when I used it a ton, but I've been reaching for this paint pot a lot more in December. Wintery months inspire me to create really icey and shimmery eye looks, and this paint pot is perfect for those. It's an icey champagne with gold undertones, and I believe it would be gorgeous on any skin tone. 

03. Mac's Darling Coquette Pigment- This pigment came in Mac's Holiday 2012 collection (I believe) and it's a pretty shimmery peach that brightens your tear duct to perfection. It's super metallic and when swatched, super pigmented. This highlight compliments icey wintery eyes as well, and would also look gorgeous if foiled and packed onto the lid.

04. Tarte's Exposed- I adore this blush! To start with, I love Tarte's Amazonian Clay Blushes, for they're really pigmented and matte (a great ally to oily/combination skin). After I purchased my first Tarte blush, Tipsy, I was on the search for a nice, nude-pink wintery shade and decided to go with Exposed once I swatched them all in the store. I love that this shade is so neutral, yet, so versatile with any eye look.  If you're in search of that perfect winter blush, this one will be sure to fit that description!

05. Lip Combination of Mac's Cremecup + Mac's Rags to Riches- I've been loving this combination on my lips recently, for it creates a kind of modernized, muted, but still super sparkly pink lip. Cremecup is already gorgeous on it's own, but it's a "cremesheen" lip color that's a rosy baby pink with a bit of a purple undertone. Rags to Riches is a Mac Dazzleglass, and is an extremely glittery pink with a lot of purple mixed in. The two put together creates a light purply-pink shimmery lip that I think is super pretty for winter! 

06. Lip Combination of Mac's Cherry Lip Liner + YSL's No.4- I wore this lip combination for both Christmas Ever and Christmas day, and it creates a kind of red that is bright, but a bit muted by the deeper red of YSL No. 4. I like to start by lining my lips with Cherry and then filling them in with Cherry as well. This gives a bright red base to the next lipstick, and gives the final look a bit of a brighter red undertone. Next, I dab YSL No. 4 over it, and the combination mutes the brightness slightly, but in turn, creates a really pretty and not too harsh red lip.

(I swatched all the above mentioned makeup products on my hand, and all together they are extremely symmetrical and do create a pretty palette!)

07. Lush's Santa's Lip Scrub- I bought this lip scrub towards mid-December with Miss Lindsey, and I cannot stop using it! It is delicious, different, and does an even better job of exfoliating my lips than some of my other Lush lip scrubs. If you like cherry cola, and are in need of some lip exfoliation in these dry months, definitely go and pick this up, you won't regret it!

Miscellaneous 

08. Ralphie Mug- I bought this mug for my house last Christmas, and I just think it's the cutest thing so I wanted to include it in my December favorites. I've been using this all December, and it's just an adorable accessory that really got me into the Christmas spirit. I found this mug online via A Christmas Story's site.

Fashion/ Accessories

09. Nasty Gal Tripp NYC Black Pants- I am in love with these pants and have worn them a whole ton during December. The front of these pants are a really slick pleather, while the back is a regular tight-fitting black pant. They're skinny-cut, which I love, and they go with so many things in my wardrobe. 

10. Michael Kors Watch- So as you can probably tell, this particular MK watch is a little different than many of the watches that I've seen a ton of people purchase and wear from MK. Rather than the chunkier ones, (I still like those too), I prefer this gorgeous black leather wrap one, with gold detail studs and a gold face. I think this watch is sheer elegance and will be a staple in my accessories for years to come. It's totally beautiful and I'm so happy I got my hands on one of these!

Instas 

01. Rockefeller Center, NYC

02. Holden being a goof

03. Miss Glo and I partying it up on her last night at school before break

04. Adorable sign at 1 OAK, NYC 

I hope everyone had an awesome December and last month of 2013... Here's to 2014 and a new year!

"The time is out of joint, O cursèd spite, 

that ever i was born to set it right"

[Hamlet 1.5]

Cheers! x