ProductWhores

Jillian Dempsey for Avon

I love me a goof-proof palette so when I saw that Jillian Dempsey released two new palettes for Avon I got super-excited.  She has perfectly designed both a smokey eye palette and a blush palette, both perfectly marked for easy application.  Seriously, it would be hard to mess these up!  Her Professional Perfect Eyes Kit contains four perfectly-coordinating shades to achieve a sexy smokey eye.  The colors are all lined around a cut-out of a eye so you know exactly where to place each of the colors - brilliance!  I am loving the Deep Purple palette - gorgeous shades of plums, glistening icy-white and glittery soft pink make for a non-traditional smokey eye which I adore.  She also has three additional palettes worth checking-out for the eyes - Cinnamon, Smokey and Aqua.  

I also couldn't post without mentioning her awesome Professional Perfect Contour Powder palette which has bronzer, blush and highlighter in perfect complimentary shades (and, like the eye palette, they are clearly marked where you need to apply them).  I love this palette so much, I want to own both shades - Angelic and Blissful.  Contour Powder set is available in April, while the Eye Palettes are available now.   Check out Avon.com for more information.  Also, I just went on and checked - the eye palettes are only $4.99 for a limited time only.  That is a serious steal, my friends!!

Note: Samples of the above were sent to me by a PR represenative working with Avon.

Reese Witherspoon Gives Us a Trio

I love Reese Witherspoon.  Not only is she a great actress, and has great fashion sense (I loved her wedding dress even though my mom hated that it was pink - I can't tell you how many conversations we had to have about it) but she seems to be a genuinely cool person - you know someone you could have a beer with and then go to a spa for a mani/pedi.  When I read about how she's releasing three new scents with Avon, appropriately called Expressions, I knew I had to check them all out.  The first in the series is Love, which is a crazy-sexy, woodsy scent that makes me think of being outdoors.  It's very rich, but not overpowering like a lot of fragrances that contain amber can be.  It has top notes of black cherry, peony and you definitely notice the amber and woods in it.  What I especially love about this fragrance is that our girl Reese has it priced so affordably (okay, okay, I know she has nothing to do with the pricing but I'd like to think she wanted it to be something every woman could afford!)  It's a total steal at only $22.50!  Love is out right now at avon.com while Laugh (citrus floral) and Live (fruity floral) release in May and August respectively.  I can't wait to own all three!

Note:  A sample of this product was sent to me by a PR representative working with Avon

Liiv Well

I've actually never used an Avon product before trying these two from the Liiv Botanicals collection, which is totally weird considering the mass amount of products in my closet.  And on a side note, are there still Avon ladies?  And if there are, do they go door to door?  Because my lazy self really loves the idea of being able to buy products that I like just by getting off the couch.  (You know, instead of the 5 minute drive to the mall that it usually takes.  It really is a wonder that I don't weigh 300 pounds).  I tried out the liiv botanicals Revitalizing Body Scrub and liiv botanicals Moisture Boosting Body Butter and found them to be nice, inexpensive shower products.  The scrub exfoliates without being too harsh on my skin, and the body butter is thick and moisturizing, but not greasy at all.  What I really like is the scent though.  I've talked (endlessly) about my love for fresh, clean smelling products and these totally fit in that category.  They both smell sort of like a cross between soap and cucumber, which sounds really weird, but it somehow works.  (I think the cucumber is the most dominant though).  They're a great value too - the scrub is only $8.50 and the body butter is $10, but when you order online at avon.com, if you buy one liiv botanical product, you get the second one for only $1.99.  I love when companies do promos like that.  I'll bet if the auto industry had done similar things, they wouldn't be in such trouble.  I can see the ads now - "Buy a Ford Explorer, get a free Smart Car." I think I'm on to something here...

Poppy Palettes

I've never really tried any Avon products before, but when I saw these new Marimekko for Avon palettes, I knew I had to have them.  They're adorable.  Seriously, seriously adorable.  Look at them!  Before I saw these palettes, I wasn't familiar with Marimekko, but after doing my research, I found out that they're a renowned design house and that the floral pattern on the palettes is their signature floral motif.  There are four palettes in total, two for cheeks and two for eyes, and I love them all.  The eye colors are bright, but totally wearable, and the cheek colors are the perfect shades to transition into fall with.  And at only $10 for the cheek colors and $8 for the shadows, you can get all four palettes for only $36 - that's less than one Chanel item!  My only issue with the palettes is that I almost love them way too much to use them - I want them to always look as pretty as they do now when they're practically brand new.  (I feel this way about my Marc Jacobs shoes too - I almost like staring at them more in my closet than I do wearing them.  How sad is that?)  I might have to order backup palettes so I don't shudder every time I dip my brush into the originals!   

You can check out the palettes and other Avon Products at Avon.com.

Photos courtesy of Avon

Mineral Blush Makes me... well... Blush!

Avon's new lightweight loose powder blush, Smooth Mineral Blush, goes on so smooth and even I was literally stunned.  I usually struggle to get my blush looking perfect (not clown-like) and with this one, I put forth minimal effort (I'm lazy so minimal effort is great!)  I have been wearing "Blushed," which is a deep rose color in the container but leaves a lovely delicate rose color on my pale cheeks.  It blends right and leaves cheeks literally glowing (that after workout glow I love, but hate to work out for).  Aside from how lovely this looks on cheeks, I have been experiencing sticker shock from it, but not in the way you'd think.  The blush retails for only $9.00, which is amazing.  Check out the collection and you'll be sure to find a shade that perfectly suits you.  I am a click-a-holic when I'm on the site, so I tend to buy more than I ever could need.   Eh, that's why I have a job - to buy beauty products.

Photo courtesy of AVON

Affordable Glamour

For some reason I always picture Avon to be for old people.  I remember the Avon lady coming to our house, carrying a large case filled with products my mom and I would "need" to make our lives complete.  I also remember we always had a spray bottle of their signature bug spray on hand for mosquito season, which came in very handy in New England.  But, as I grew up, I strayed far far away from the products that really seemed to be about fixing sun damage and preparing skin for the not-so-delicate process of aging.  But, with their new line, Mark, I am once-again drawn back in.  One fabulous, of the many fabulous, products I am passionate about is the Hollywood Pink perfume.  Simply delicious.  It smells of chocolate with notes of freesia (sounds nasty as I type it, but I swear it smells amazing).  I even bought the shower gel and lotion because at the crazy low prices, how could I not own the full set.  The scent really sticks with you and smells much more expensive than it's $15.00 price tag.  Also, it comes in this adorable white glass container which I imagine would look perfect on a vanity.  It looks equally impressive on my dresser, but I just wish I had a vanity.