So, there are things we say we can’t live without…significant others, family members, pets…some get poetic and talk about the ocean, Shakespeare, the sunrise.That’s great. These are all great things. I couldn’t agree more, but let’s take a minute to talk about the things I really can’t live without for fear of turning people into stone with my unadorned face. (Insert a hard wink here…I’m trying to be better about self-deprecating remarks.)Yes, I’m actually writing a beauty post. Weird, right? I didn’t think it was my thing, but I do feel the need to tell people about a few product that are my die-hard go-to’s. These are the products that, if discontinued, may completely derail my entire existence.

Photo by Nami M. Scott

These are what they look like! And, look, I’m pointing that them to let you know how awesome they are!

Here are some super-convenient links!

• Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm (SPF 45)
• Smashbox Limitless Liquid Liner (Waterproof)
• Makeup Forever Waterproof Eyebrow Corrector
• Make-Up Forever Faux Lashes
• Nars Pure Matte Lipstick (Carthage) / Nars Lipstick (Roman Holiday) / MAC Cremesheen Lipstick (Creme Cup)*

*Yeah, so I have 3 lipsticks! Big deal. I’m counting lipstick as one item here!!!

Ok, you have my list…my secrets have been exposed. The truth is, I don’t actually wake up looking like this. I know, I know. Hard to believe! Now to tell you why these items are so great. (a.k.a like a product review except I’ve been using some of these things for years…sooo, a product review looong overdue.)

Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm (SPF 45)

Close your eyes and imagine a world where having moisture, sheer coverage, and sun protection all exist in one product. Isn’t it the most beautiful thing? Now open your eyes and realized that it actually exists! Holy frijoles. I know. Amazing!

I live in Los Angeles, where the air is dry, so I’ll take all the moisture I can get. I layer this beauty balm over my daytime moisturizer for some extra facial love. It evens out my skin tone without covering up my freckles! Yay!

You can also layer it on for more coverage if you need!

Smashbox Limitless Liquid Liner (Waterproof)

This stuff is my jam. The liner pen is intensely precise, the liner is hyper-pigmented (it’s the blackest black that ever blacked in all of blacktown), and it stays on until you tell it not to. (Also known as “use make-up remover on it.”)

I sobbed on my father’s shoulder during my wedding (most crazy-emotional father-daughter dance award goes to Nami) and this liner didn’t budge…at all. My eyes were red, but my liner was perfect. Go team Liquid Liner!

I use it everyday to give myself a nice, thick line on my upper lash line with a flick at my outer corners for extra pizzazz. (I think we should all use pizzazz when we can because most things in life could be categorized as “pizzazzless”…if you can add pizzazz do it and do it with reckless abandon!)

Makeup Forever Waterproof Eyebrow Corrector 

I’ve mentioned this magic gel before in my earlier post (Mama Matsuo Musing #4: Brow Wow Wow) and I will continue to sing its praises. For someone who has very little in the way of eyebrows, this is just the thing. Use it with a hard bristled make-up brush (an angled one is best) and you get a product you can control with ease and that can be layered for more or less intensity.

Sometimes I go with a standard brow and sometimes I Audrey Hepburn the crap out of my brows and either way, they look great and natural. For those of you who don’t know what I mean, Audrey Hepburn used to draw in eyebrows that were much thicker than her real ones. This gives your face an overall more youthful look and, depending on how much you arch it, can also give you an instant facelift.

This brow gel will not go anywhere. For the record, I will say that since I have oily skin, on super oily days, I’ve touched a brow and had it fade a little…but, really, what do I expect? Oil removes most make-up. The bottom line is, if I don’t touch my eyebrows, they stay on all day and all night.

Make-Up Forever Faux Lashes

So, let me tell you a little tale. I once got eyelash extensions because I found this seemingly great Groupon deal. The extensions were amazing. I had the thickest eyelashes ever. They were like brooms stuck to my eyelids and I loooooovedit.

But there are a few cons about having them…

1) You can’t sleep on your face (which I’m known to do)
2) You can’t rub your eyes
3) You can’t wash make-up off your eyes properly (you have to go in with swabs & make-up remover and be really careful…so, in short, it’s like surgery.)
4) You might end up with an allergic reaction to the lash adhesive

I experienced all four of these things and ended up in a state where my contacts would fog up and I wouldn’t be able to see anything!

Cut to me at an optometrist’s office, finding out that the undersides of my eyelids were covered in tiny bumps from my allergic reaction which were releasing stuff that was fogging up my contacts. So, yes, it was a party…the worst kind of party…the kind of party where there are no goody bags, no cakes, no piñatas, and no one’s dancing. In fact, everyone is reading books and not talking to each other…and the books are in different languages…wait a second, I think I’m describing one of my horrible nightmares!

Anyway, I got those extensions removed…but what people don’t tell you is when you have extensions for a while, they destroy your eyelashes. So, when you finally decide that you’d rather deal with what you’ve got naturally instead of having eye pus fog up your contacts while you’re driving, causing you to pull over because you’re basically blind…well, you quickly discover that your natural lashes are so damaged that they are practically gone. (Refer to the earlier “party” I had mentioned.)

This observation came about right before I had to leave for Fashion Week in NYC. I had to be on-camera or dealing with Fashion Week patrons all day for an entire week and I had three eyelashes in total. It wasn’t gonna fly, so I went and bought myself some quality falsies.

I mastered the application in the next week, each morning before going to the tents at Lincoln Center and by the end of the week, I was basically waking up and throwing them on before running out the door. At the end of the day, I could pull them off, rub my eyes, wash all my make-up off, and face plant into my pillow! Absolutely fantastic!

The only problem now is this: I’m so obsessed with the fluttering, fawn-like look the falsies give me that I wear them EVERY SINGLE DAY! And the Makeup Forever brand of lashes, when taken care of properly, can last you weeks! Just be sure to remove all the adhesive each night and clean the lashes thoroughly with rubbing alcohol. Store them in their lash case and you’re good to go! I love, love, love, love them.

No more bald eyes for this girl!
(Sorry for the long lash story…”long lash”…get it? Oh, puns!)

Nars Pure Matte Lipstick (Carthage) / Nars Lipstick (Roman Holiday) / MAC Cremesheen Lipstick (Creme Cup)

Last, but certainly not least, I have my trio of go-to lipsticks. You know that book, Two Lipsticks and a Lover? (If not, read it. It’s a great book that I’ve read at least twice…a great way to get your inner French woman going.) Well, I’m part of the “Three Lipsticks and a Husband” school of thought. (Oooh, remind me to write a post about that.)

Here’s how I roll. Every day can be a sartorial adventure and in my mind, not every outfit goes with one type of lipstick. It’s just illogical. Much like if you’re wearing too much eye make-up and you wear a strong lip, you’ll end up looking like a clown, a harlot, or a harlot clown (riding your unicycle around the redlight district), I feel like the same goes for outfits and lip color.

If I’m wearing a strong color on my body, I probably won’t wear a strong color on my lip. It just doesn’t balance out…unless you’re on camera. Pale lipstick with make you look dead on camera, so just keep that in mind. However, on the day-to-day, pale lipstick is a nice way to look natural, but still have a little bit of color. (I would mention blush, by my list was only top 5, so I had to leave blush out.)

So, Nars Pure Matte Lipstick in Carthage for LBDs and super neutral outfits! Nars Lipstick in Roman Holiday for a splash of girliness (and it can go with loud colors or neutral outfits) and MAC Cremesheen Lipstick in Creme Cup for crazier-colored outfits, a super natural look, or (if you layer it on) a great 60’s mod look. I’m such a sucker for London in the 60’s. Thick lashes, short haircuts, androgynous models, and pale lips. It’s one of my aesthetic obsessions!