The Musings of a Working Mom

Happy New Year!  And what a year it has been?  It's been a year since I started my blog and one of my first posts was a list of my 2011 favorites...and here we have come round full circle to my favorites list of 2012.   But first off I want to thank all of you for your continued support and for coming back to read my blog posts, commenting, and subscribing to my blog.  This blog has been my side project and my baby (outside of my real babies).  I have had so much fun writing for this blog and doing my "research" (i.e. having a great excuse to buy makeup and beauty products).  I have done quite of bit of "research" this year and have found a lot of great low-end and high-end products that have become my favorites for this past year.  This blog has also allowed me to try beauty products outside of my beloved MAC brand and I have found some amazing products at all price points.  It has taken me quite some time to compile my list but here are my favorites for 2012

There are so many monthly subscription services out there that offer beauty picks, lifestyle, health, food, etc.  But which one(s) to subscribe to?  Well I have currently have a subscription to Birchbox - a beauty sampling subscription where you get 4-5 hand-picked "luxe" samples of various beauty and lifestyle products.  The subscription is $10/month with free shipping.  I've subscribed since January of last year and I think my interest in BB is dwindling...my thoughts on this coming soon in another post. But I have heard a lot about another beauty subscription, also $10/month, created by YouTube beauty blogger Michelle Phan called Ipsy (formerly MyGlam).  You also get high end beauty products, both deluxe sample sizes as well as full size products, but you also get them in a cute cosmetic bag each month (whereas the Birchbox comes in a brown box).  This month's bag is a navy blue nylon bag with a light blue w/white stars and spots on the interior - very cute. My

It's January 2013 - Have you made your New Years resolutions yet?  Have you broken any of them or abandoned them yet?  Fear not - Shape magazine has compiled a list of 50 easy ways you can get super fit in 2013!  They cover all the basic topics including health, nutrition, weight loss, fitness, motivation, recovery, and all the info you need to help you stay fit, lose the weight you've been trying to get rid of, and keep it off for good.  Get moving and get to it! http://www.shape.com/fitness/workouts/50-ways-get-super-fit-year

Well my January Birchbox has finally arrived....and the theme: 2013 - the "Best Year Ever".  I like this month's theme that Birchbox has proposed for this year and the overall theme for this month's box is refocus on some of the little things that may have been pushed to the bottom of your "to-do" list last year.  I've been dying to try the Embryolisse cream - this has been on my "try" list for the past year so I'm excited about this one.  And I love the Juicy Couture fragrance - I just purchased a Juicy trio no too long ago.  I love this fragrance! This months items are: 1.   amika: Color pHerfection Shampoo (full size, $22) - This gentle shampoo contains fortifying omega acids and healing sea buckthorn berry oil to keep your hair color bright and shiny. 2.   Embryolisse: Lait-Creme Concentre - 24-Hour Miracle Cream (full size, $16) - A favorite of models and makeup artists, this cult French moisturizer heals dryness and leaves sk

I can't believe that December and 2012 is already over!  Between finding the perfect gifts, decorating the house, baking cookies, getting ready for the twins' 6th birthday and all of my end of the year projects, December really flew right on by.  I'm not sure why but last month I went back to my makeup "basics"(i.e. my original makeup items). Here are my favorites for the month of December: 1.   Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation - I love the coverage and finish of this mineral foundation.  This is by far one of my favorites this year in the foundation category.  This foundation applies so effortlessly and just a little covers a lot!  I have to say that I really like the Laura Mercier mineral foundation over the Bare Minerals mineral foundation. 2.   MAC eyeshadows in Vanilla, Shroom, Naked Lunch, Jest, Charcoal Brown, Satin Taupe, Mystery, Wedge, Sketch and Twinks - These used to be my everyday MAC shadows - until I decided to branch out to other make up