Best Makeup and Beauty Products of August 2019
September has just begun, which means it’s time for another Monthly Favorites post!
August really seemed to go by in a flash and I honestly can’t remember what I did during half of the month LOL.
BUT, I did manage to try out quite a bit of new makeup products that I’m excited to share with you today!
Making their debut for the first time on my blog are a few Korean makeup products. I’ve had Korean skin care products on my blog before, but I’ve never featured Korean makeup before!
I picked up a handful of products on my recent trip to Korea that are absolute winners!
Also included in this list are a few items I bought during the recent Sephora Summer Bonus Sale. Did you pick up anything at the Sephora sale?
If you missed any of my previous Monthly Favorites posts, be sure to check them out, too!
So, without further ado, let’s get started!
Affiliate links may be used in this post, which I may receive a commission from, at no extra cost to you. You can read my full disclosure here.
And if you’re planning on buyung any new makeup soon, don’t forget to use Rakuten (formerly Ebates)!
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Best Makeup and Beauty Products – August 2019 Favorites
Missha – ItalPrism Satin Highlighter
When I first walked into the Missha store in Hongdae, I did not intend on buying for highlighters…that are the same product, just in different shades.
But, that’s exactly what happened!
The four shades I have are: Touch of Light, Fairy Planet, Odd Eye, and Little Moon (L-R in photo).
I swatched Touch of Light first and I instantly knew I was buying it. Then I swatched all of the other shades and they were all so pretty that I couldn’t resist buying them all!
When I got home from my trip, I was so excited to open them all and start using them.
BUT, I do have to admit that I was slightly disappointed during my first few uses because they definitely didn’t perform like I remember them swatching in the store.
However, once I kind of “broke them in” a bit, their gorgeousness appeared.
I see this happening a lot with highlighters – sometimes the powder gets pressed into the pan so hard during manufacturing that the top layer gets kind of hard and dry.
And once you get through that top layer, that’s when the highlighter truly comes to play!
All of these Missha highlighters are pretty subtle by nature (Korean makeup tends to be more natural than Western makeup), but they build up so nicely.
(And it’s good to have subtle highlighters on-hand for natural makeup days.)
It’s really easy to get a wet, metallic look with any of these shades by applying a few layers and/or spritzing the brush with some setting spray before applying it.
The shade Touch of Light has been my go-to recently as it’s a soft champagne shade and that kind of shade always suits my skin tone perfectly.
It’s seriously so stunning. It puts a smile on my face every time I wear it!
Shop now: YesStyle
Missha – ItalPrism Satin Blusher
I’ll be honest – I bought this blush because I thought to myself, “I’m already buying four highlighters in this line, I might as well buy the blush, too!”
And I have absolutely no regrets. This blush is so beautiful!
I have the shade Summer Christmas, which is a darker pink with a hint of gold shimmer in it.
Like I said earlier in my description of the ItalPrism highlighters, Korean makeup tends to be more on the natural side when compared to Western makeup. And that is also the case with this blush.
It creates a sheer flush of color across your cheeks with just a hint of glow for a very fresh and youthful appearance – totally in line with Korean makeup trends.
Blush is one of those products where more is not necessarily better and applying too much blush can easily make your face makeup look a bit strange, so a subtle blush like this one is great for most makeup wearers.
It’s very fool-proof in that one layer creates a sheer wash of color, but it can be slowly built up for more color saturation. There’s no worry of over-application with this blush!
Shop now: YesStyle
Innisfree – Blueberry Rebalancing 5.5 Cleanser
As someone with sensitive skin, I probably should be a little more in-tune and picky about the cleansers I use. But, I’m totally not LOL.
Up until now, I’ve been using the Cetaphil Daily Cleanser as the second part of my double-cleanse (after removing makeup with an oil cleanser) and that’s been working out just fine.
HOWEVER, while we were in Korea, my lovely boyfriend was on the hunt for this specific cleanser (yes, he knows more about Korean skin care than I do).
And I figured it must be good since he’s been searching for it! He gave me one to try out of the 3-pack he bought and I’m so glad he did!
I did a little research on this cleanser after realizing how much I like it, and it’s a low pH cleanser (at a pH level of 5.5) that gently cleanses to rebalance your skin without stripping it.
It also has skin-soothing and anti-inflammatory ingredients like allantoin, orange peel, and lavender oil, which is totally what my skin needs.
Since I have very sensitive skin, it often becomes inflamed and many cleansers leave my skin feeling dry and too clean – like there aren’t any of my natural oils left.
But, my skin has only felt hydrated, soft, and supple since I started to use this cleanser.
Shop now: Amazon
3CE – Multi Eye Color Palette in All Nighter
Another purchase from Korea! But, this one was not bought on a whim.
I heard so many good things about 3CE from Stylenanda that I was dying to try out some of the brand’s products.
I seriously wanted to buy almost everything when I walked into the store in Myeongdong. But, it’s not the cheapest of brands, so I limited myself to just this palette.
And what a great choice that was! It’s a gorgeous all-shimmer palette that I’ve been using constantly on my lids.
One of the most popular Korean makeup trends I’ve noticed is applying a shimmer shadow on the entire eyelid without much of anything else.
You never really see prominent outer corner shades or crease shades – it’s almost always just one shade across the entire eyelid.
BUT, this is not just any shimmer shadow palette, these shimmer shadows look wet. It creates that glossy eye look perfectly.
These shadows are made with moisturizing oils, which makes them apply like a cream, leaving you with a gorgeous dewy finish.
If you have oily eyelids, though, I’m not sure how well these would perform. Since they already have oil in them, I can imagine they would crease more easily on oily eyelids.
I’ve always applied them after an eyeshadow primer and I have dry eyelids, so they’ve never creased on me.
Shop now: Stylenanda | Amazon
Marc Jacobs – Highliner Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner
In Jazz(Berry) 46 and Ody(Sea) 62
If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know how much I love these Marc Jacobs Eyeliners. At $25 each, they are definitely on the pricier side, but I believe they are totally products that are worth the splurge.
The formula is just so soft and creamy that it applies effortlessly, even on the waterline, and it has amazing color payoff that lasts all day.
Jazz(Berry) 46 and Ody(Sea) 62 are the two newest shades in my collection and I’ve been using them non-stop since I got them!
I’ve been trying to incorporate more color into my makeup recently and when you work at a regular office job, adding a pop of color to your waterline is an easy way to do that without going overboard.
Jazz(Berry) 46 is a raspberry purple with shimmer that goes perfectly with any deep burgundy/maroon looks I do. It’s also perfect for fall!
And Ody(Sea) 62 is a teal green shimmer that really brightens up any dark smokey looks I do.
Shop now: Sephora
Artist Couture – Diamond Glow Powder
In Gold Digger and Illuminati
These are my first ever loose powder highlighters! I was super slow to jump on the loose powder highlighter train and I have no idea why!
I’m a blinding highlight kind of girl and loose highlighters tend to be more blinding than pressed highlighters just because of the nature of the product – just like how loosely pressed eyeshadows tend to be more pigmented than tightly pressed shadows.
So, I don’t know why it took me so long to try loose highlighters out! And I think these were the perfect choice to get me started because they are STUNNING.
They are the kind of highlighters that you can see from outer space. If you are a natural highlighter kind of person, these are not the ones for you because they are anything but natural LOL.
I am now officially obsessed with loose powder highlighters, so don’t be surprised if you see a bunch more on this blog in the upcoming months!
Shop now: Sephora
Yves Saint Laurent – Libre Eau De Perfume
c/o YSL via Octoly
I am a huge Yves Saint Laurent fangirl. Everything from their handbags, to clothing, to makeup, I WANT. But, I was never a huge fan of any of their fragrances UNTIL NOW.
The Libre Eau De Perfume is a flora scent with key notes of lavender essence, orange blossom, and musk accord. That addition of musk gives it a unique, edgy twist, which sets it apart from your usual floral scent.
It’s right up my alley. It has a fresh and clean feel, but it also feels very classy with a bit of a seductive vibe – the kind of vibe that dressing up in a classy black dress with a smokey eye and red lip give you.
And can we talk about the packaging?! This bottle kills me! The asymmetric cap with the gold around the neck of the bottle and the classic YSL logo in gold wrapped around the bottle – I DIE.
Shop now: Sephora
And that’s it for my favorite makeup and beauty products of August!
I had much more to share with you that I did last month and thanks to the Sephora Summer sale, I’m sure I’ll have an even bigger list to share with you next month!
Have you tried any of the products I mentioned today? If so, I’d love to know what you think of them!
And if you haven’t, are any of them now on your list of must-try products?
Be sure to let me know all of your thoughts, good or bad, down in the comments!
What beauty products are your current favorites? Please feel free to leave me your best recommendations in the comments as well!
If you are planning on buying any of these awesome products, don’t forget to use Rakuten (formerly Ebates)!
SIGN UP HERE FOR FREE AND GET A $10 BONUS after you make your first qualifying purchase using Ebates!
Thank you so much for reading and until next time! <3
P.S. If you like what I do here on lianadesu, it would mean so much to me if you bought me a coffee (support my blog)!
Previous Favorites Posts:
- July 2019 Favorites
- Mid-Year 2019 Drugstore Favorites
- Mid-Year 2019 Luxury Favorites
- May 2019 Favorites
- April 2019 Favorites
You can view all my favorites on my Monthly Favorites page.
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