The end of the world is not nigh, but the end of 2012 is! What a year it has been! 😀 I’m not going to do a “Best of 2012” in a true sense, because heck, its hard to choose, ok! So I’m just going to pick some random categories and tell you what I think the best of 2012 has been for me, and you can do the same 🙂
Best Nail Polish discovery
I don’t wear nail polish at the best of times. But I am ever thankful to the reader who pointed me in the direction of A-England nail polishes.
For someone who doesn’t wear nail polish, I’ve accumulated quite a few from the brand. Application is superb, colours are beautiful, and they ship worldwide for free, from the land of Arthurian legend, England. If you have not yet tried theirs, I urge you to. You won’t regret it, I promise! 🙂
Best Makeup Tip
The best tip I picked up this year was the one using black eyeliner or black eyeshadow as a base (Tip is here)
I’d been doing it for a while but rarely with much success because I realised that due to the shape of my eye, I have to take the black shadow much higher than normal. I colour in about half my lid to get a nice smokey effect and if I want something even more intense, I have to colour my whole lid and then blend it out. It also helped me get a fuchsia pink eyeshadow to work and turned it into one of my favourite unexpected looks ever!
Best Makeup Experiment
Grey powder. ‘Nuff said!
I don’t know how many of you picked up the Chanel Notorious Joues Contraste powder but if you did, I’d love to hear how you liked it. I do like it a lot, and I’m getting quite used to using it so these days I just use the lightest of dustings of this slate gray powder to create an illusion of high, sharp cheekbones. Its surprisingly effective! You don’t need this of course, since many people have been able to do the same thing with bronzer for aeons. I could never use a bronzer properly so this has been an experiment I gambled on and won! 😀
Best Skincare Rediscovery
I’m going back to something I used to love – Dior One Essential serum.
This year, ever since I rediscovered it back in April, I’ve been using this almost nightly and I’m very happy with the results. My skin seems to like it very much, it seems to help whatever other skincare I’m using work better and its been all round very good. I was also using the One Essential Mask and although I really like it too, that one’s a pricey treat for the skin!
Best New Thing To Appear in our Pharmacies
Ok I was a little torn on this one… but I eventually settled on these.
The Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters. We had 2 rounds of colours and both times engineered a lot of hype. I’m sure every one of you reading this has at least one, right? Which colour did you pick? 😀
The other item I was going to pick was the L’Oreal Infallible Color Eyeshadows but realised not everyone maybe as crazy about them as I am but I know most people love the Lip Butters!
Best Foundations
Its a bit tricky me including this, because there are a couple of foundations that I tried this year that I liked and there are a couple more I haven’t told you about so I didn’t really want to include it. But hey, why not eh? 😛 Oh and yes, there’s an ‘s’ in Foundations. You can’t make me choose just one! 😛
My favourite foundations that I use most often this year is the Diorskin Nude Hydrating Foundation (new version), Diorskin Forever when I want something that will last and last on me all day (I mix in a drop of serum or moisturizer to combat the dryness) and Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum. I picked the Bourjois last year and I’m picking it again this year simply because its so good.
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012
Take a blog break. It put in perspective what I felt was important to me and how I wanted to handle things. It taught me that its ok to say no, and its ok to let go, as much as its ok to hold onto something.
It taught me that when we fall into a rut, we have to learn to recognize we are in one and to learn to break out of it. Its no use wallowing in self pity, because no one else will ever be able to help us if we don’t help ourselves. So if you are feeling down, burnt out or just like you are stuck in a neverending cycle, pause. Your sanity will thank you for it.
Naturally, once I got back into the swing of things, I wanted more change so you now get a brand new logo and layout which is kept deliberately simple. I hope you too find it as pleasing as I do 🙂
Best Mascara
Truth to tell, the best mascara for me come from the high end Japanese brands – Shiseido, and RMK just to name 2 favourites of mine. I just picked up the very popular RMK Deep W mascara because apparently its really popular and I have to see why but I’m also using a sample size of a regular RMK curling mascara and its so good, I don’t want it to dry out!
But I’m going to pick instead the Maybelline The Falsies mascara for Best Mascara because I think it does a good enough job for something that is half the price of a high end wonder. I do have a back up of this one which I (naturally) buy during a sale or promotion. That’s the good thing about buying from the drugstore/pharmacy. Often, these things go on sale!
Best Makeup Collection
So many makeup collections come and go every year but the one I’m picking out for being all round outstanding to me is the Guerlain Liu Christmas collection.
It was not just the Liu Calligraphy palette that I found entrancing. The Perles du Dragon Meteorites Perles was also a winner as is the Lou Ling Rouge Automatique lipstick which I also picked up. The whole collection was very cohesive, eye catching and one of the strongest I’ve come across this year. At the very least, it made me want almost everything in it which is quite a feat 😉
Best Blush
I have to pick this one. The Dior Healthy Glow blush in Petal that came out with the Spring 2012 collection. It is seriously something! I love how deliciously soft it looks on skin and how gentle. I know, gentle is such a weird word to describe it, but it looks like just a gentle flush of colour. I have 2 of these now so I can afford to be liberal with it yay! 😀 I believe it was limited edition but if you ever come across it, do not hesitate. You need this in your collection!
Best Hand Cream
Anyone who reads this blog will have noticed by now I don’t talk about hand creams. I don’t use them. Well, not until this one came along 🙂
This Clarins hand cream has been the only one I use nightly to keep my hands from looking like that of an old crone. When I get dry hard bits around my nails or dry cuticles, slathering this one on helps soften my skin and keeps my nail beds looking healthier. It is seriously NOT sticky at all. I can apply this, give it a couple of minutes and pick up a book without staining the pages. I’m almost finished with this tube (it almost never happens so this is quite a feat!) and I’ve got my back up on stand by. That’s how sold I am!
Best Memories of 2012
Ah there are so many, where do I even begin?! 😀 I’ll pick just 3 :-
- My nephew who made me a first time aunt – he’s so adorable and growing so quickly!
- My brother getting married and gaining me another sister
- Disneyland ! 😀 (8 things you have to do there!)
Oh I do have one more memory to hold on to – the time I became a Her World Magazine Beauty Judge. It was an amazing and pretty surreal experience 😀
So that’s me and my Best Of… 2012. Would you like to share your best moments of 2012? Please feel free to nick the categories here or just make up your own and tell me what you enjoyed best in 2012. Its enlightening to travel back and look at the high points, even as we stumble over the low points 🙂 If you’d like to nick mine, here’s the categories I had
- Best Nail Polish discovery
- Best Makeup Tip
- Best Makeup Experiment
- Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012
- Best Face Serum
- Best Foundations
- Best Mascara
- Best Makeup Collection
- Best Blush
- Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies
- Best Hand Cream
- Best Memories of 2012
See you in the comments! Can’t wait to see what your highlights of 2012 were! Please do share, I love reading what other people have liked and how their year has been 😀
Paris B
Oh, this was a fun one, Paris! You’ve reminded me that I have yet to do the “eyeliner as black base” trick. I’m going to give it a shot! I have a best of 2012 post set up, but it’s just to highlight certain products. I like yours a lot 😀
Thank you Larie and that eyeliner base trick is da bomb! 😀 Can’t wait to see your “Best of” series!
Love this post! I wonder if I should do a Best of 2012 myself 🙂
Thanks and if you did manage to find any best ofs why not? 🙂
Really love this type of post! 😉
Thanks Tammy, did you manage to pick out any bests this year?
I love this line: “Its enlightening to travel back and look at the high points, even as we stumble over the low points”
I’m going to remind myself to think of the high points when I’m down in the dumps! Here’s mine!
Best Nail Polish discovery – Ciate. Weird ass colours that make the old fogeys at work raise their eyebrows 😀
Best Makeup Tip – Using base & dusting Meteorites over for a glow (I came up with it due to sheer malasness)
Best Makeup Experiment – None. I’m boring that way.
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012 – Buying a
monsterLabrador puppy 🙂 She makes me happy (and sometimes scream in frustration too)Best Face Serum – Kiehls Line Reducing Concentrate (magic!)
Best Foundations – RMK – I conspired with you to get
Best Mascara – Australis Voluptulash
Best Makeup Collection – Guerlain or Dior – kinda hard to pick
Best Blush – NARS Sex Appeal (at this point of time)
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies – Can I say the Australis mascara?
Best Hand Cream – Soap & Glory Hand Food
Best Memories of 2012 – Bringing up Coco the fuzzbutt/furball/monster
I’m going to have to finally break out that Australis mascara you sent me! Oh and I wanted to like Hand Food but I find it smells too sweet to me 🙁 And Ciate has the cutest nail polish packaging! The bows are adorable!
Such a cute photo of your nephew! (I know you’ve posted before.) I was telling a friend the other day that I didn’t think I had a hint of maternal instinct in me until I became an aunt.
Awesome post. I’m sure many of us are always curious to know what you think are worthy products, considering you try a ton during the span of a year! 😀
Thanks Peach and I still don’t have much of a maternal instinct in me, although I know I will spoil the little one dreadfully, because I know he isn’t mine teehee… 😉 I decided not to do a traditional “Best Of Product” because I get a little bored that way. I guess if there’s no category then there were no real stand outs for me! 😉
Great post PB! I don’t have any best of to share, have been quite boring with my choices this past year. But the one thing I did for myself this year that I’m proud of is getting into cooking again. 🙂
Yay for cooking! I’ve been cooking a fair bit myself this year and I absolutely love it. Its about as creative as I get 😀
Oh I have to really really think about it to be able to answer your query!
Your nephew’s photo made me smile! i can still remember the first time my sister gave birth to my nephew and made me a first time Auntie! I spoiled him like my own child so I can imagine how you are with your nephew! 😀
I smiled with your double rainbow photo as I recently just took a shot of a double rainbow photo too 😀
Not as easy as it looks eh? Feel free to answer whenever you find the answers 😉 There’s something so beautiful about seeing a rainbow isn’t there? And to see two at one go? Its magical!
very cute baby!
Thanks Bita 🙂
Love this Paris! Love your best things-all of them! Your nephew is darling! And your advice-you are a wise woman! 😉 My best of post is coming up as well! It’s fun to look back on the past year and reflect.
Wise! Thank you Tracy! I think it comes with age 😉 I look forward to reading your best of post – its always interesting to see what other people have liked in the past year.
This post made me smile so much. It was sweet and I loved looking back on what a great year it seemed to be, for beauty and otherwise. This year was kind of dump-ity for me and I struggled a lot, but I think the best thing I did for myself was to get out of an advanced school program that I absolutely disliked. Despite all the self-doubt and insecurity that continues, this is undoubtedly the best thing that’s happened to me all year (I also discovered your blog this year and started to converse with blog writers in general, so that was definitely a high point too!). Here’s to 2012, and hoping for an equally amazing 2013!
I’m glad you enjoyed this Laura, and I’m glad you took the plunge to converse with bloggers! We love it 😀 I think you did something very brave, in realising what you disliked doing and getting out of it. Very few people do and for many its much too late by the time it hits them. I wish you lots of success ahead, whatever you decide to do! 😀
I love your best makeup tips! Works like a dream and look so professionally done too. Oh the best new thing appeared in our pharmacies is exactly what I have in mind too. I need to get those lip butters in every colors! 😉
Yes! Its such a no-brainer when I’m in a hurry that I wonder why I never thought about doing it before! 😀 Revlon Lip Butters are quite something. I think I prefer them to the Just Bitten Lip Stain!
Disneyland! 😀 love that place. Doesn’t matter which one, love them all.
Ooo…a very nice SA just gave me a sample of Dior Forever foundation. Was still undecided on whether to try it or not. Now that it has made it to your Best-of list, then I think I should. 😉 The color might be a bit off though. But I can still at least try out the texture and wear. Does the Nude and Forever shades match?
Yaaay for Disneyland! 😀 The shades in Nude and Forever do match for me. In terms of texture I find it a wee bit drying but I usually mix in a dollop of moisturiser or serum and it stays on beautifully all day long. That’s what I like about it – the longevity!
Best Makeup Tip – I learned to tightline. It does wonders for my eyes!
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012 – Getting Eckhard Tolle’s The Power of Now. It was honestly and truly enlightening and have helped me so much. Peace is now my ultimate goal.
Best Mascara – Majolica Majorca’s Lash King, although the formula is really funny, but once it dries up, it really gives me major lashes.
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies – Revlon Lip Butters. No contest. It’s the ONLY lipstick (ok, I know it’s technically a lip BUTTER), but it’s the only one I’ve ever managed to use up.
Best Hand Cream – I love the Clarins one too!
Yay for tightlining and the Clarins hand cream! I’m glad I discovered a hand cream I can use comfortably or I’d have to contend with having claws in place of hands eeps! 😉
Great post. Revlon lip butters are really great. Oh that pic of your nephew is just too adorable!
Glad to know you like the Lip Butters too! 😀 Thanks Marla!
Ahh Paris, your nephew is PRECIOUS 😉
PS: The Dior healthy glow blush is coming back this spring with the new BB cream. I’m not sure if this collection is available in Asia, but from what I can see it’ll be back!
Thank you Sunny! I don’t have a good recent picture of him but he’s soooo adorable! 😀 I didn’t know the blush was making a return but that’s great news! I really like it a lot so its good for those who missed it the first time around to catch it 🙂 I was hoping they’d make it permanent or bring out more colours. The texture is so different and its so much more pigmented than their regular Diorblush range.
Best Nail Polish discovery – oh i have never used nail polish or anything nail related in my life so there’s nothing for me to share 🙂
Best Makeup Tip – Even though eyeliner tip is good, I used to do it for sometime and i can’t remember a good makeup tip but a good skincare tip was using moisturizers as sleeping packs (thanx to you 🙂 )
Best Makeup Experiment – none (so sad!!)
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012 – starting a big diet and will continue until I lose 15 kg
Best Face Serum – still haven’t found the one, or not even one that works up to its name. but I do know I really dislike Estee Lauder’s idealist eventone stuff…
Best Foundations – Clinique superbalanced makeup!!
Best Mascara – Loreal telescopic carbon black
Best Makeup Collection – a bit of a late bloomer but I just got my hands on it, so I must say UD naked palette
Best Blush – Ok this is hard.. Nars cactus flower, cobacabanna, the body shop baked blush (coral), tarte exposed, benefit bella bamba 🙂
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies – caudalie body oil (oh I can’t remember its name)
Best Hand Cream – Well, I am still searching for clarins hand cream but still couldn’t find even a tester, so I must say nivea pure and natural hand cream
Best Memories of 2012 – so sad but none 🙁 2012 was a hard year for me overall, fingers crossed for 2013.
I’m sorry to hear 2012 was a tough one for you, but chin up! 2013 is almost upon us and it can only get better! 😀 😀
Thank you for sharing your best of with us! Like you, I dislike the Estee Lauder Idealist even tone thing too! I know lots of people raved about it but I just couldn’t like it at all. And I like your blush choices – excellent ones 😀
Ooh! Must do this! So here goes (mine):
Best Nail Polish discovery: Zoya. Matte. MATTE! I love matte anything!!
Best Makeup Tip: Highlight above the brows for a lifted look. Anything to make me look less…err..aged!!
Best Makeup Experiment: Layering. Mascaras!! I love big fat trannie lashes, and found that layering 2 mascaras worked like a charm!
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012: Stopped obsessing over my 2.5 yo daughter. I can’t do it all. Let my mom take over some nights, and I finally got to spend quality time outside w/ hubs and close friends.
Best Face Serum: IOPE Whitagen Luminous Essence for day and IOPE Whitagen Ampule Essence for night.
Best Foundations: Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum & Revlon CS Whipped Creme.
Best Mascara: Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping & Maybelline Full&Soft w/p.
Best Makeup Collection: None, not into collections, but dabbled in Nars shadows and MakeupGeek shadows. Pure.Love.
Best Blush: Nars Exhibit A
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies: Revlon Lip butters & Revlon Kissable Balm Stains.
Best Hand Cream: Soap&Glory Hand Food.
Best Memories of 2012: Tonnes but I’ll give u 3.
1. FINALLY enjoyed Sydney when we went back to see the in-laws.
2. Received a phone call frm an ex-colleague asking me “are u ready to come back (to work)?” I’m a stay-at-home mom w/ no maid/nanny/servant/slave. I had to say “not yet” but the call made me realised I was good at what I did, and I wasn’t forgotten at all 🙂
3. Getting my daughter out of her nappies. Been having nightmares about this day, but it took me a few weeks and we’re nappy-free!! Just in time for (pre) school! It’s true what they say, once this is out of the way, u can breathe (a bit) easy. So breathing a sigh of relief…
Have a fab new year Paris 😉 xx
Yay I absolutely enjoyed reading your list, Ika! I also love that you have rediscovered yourself 🙂 Not to say of course that you should be abandoning your daughter (i’m sure she brings you a lot of joy) but that its great that you have quality time to yourself now. Oh, and being “headhunted” must have felt wonderful! 😀 It looks like you’ve had an excellent year, so here’s to an even better 2013 🙂
I love Clarins Hand and Nail treatment cream
I love the scent, kinda like Jamu and very comforting for me
Haha I didn’t realise it smelt of jamu but I like the smell too 😀 Great to know you like the same hand cream I do
Nice! I’ve post my Top 12 of 2012, but I like the way you did it with the categories. So here’s my response to yours. =D
Best Nail Polish discovery – SG Nails self-blend polish (Indie brand)
Best Makeup Tip – Double eyelids don’t need eyeliner. Just tightline.
Best Makeup Experiment – All those sheer lipsticks. I had a great time comparing high-ends with drugstore, and I still think Revlon Lip Butters beat Lancome’s and even Dior’s Addict Extreme (due to price point).
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012 – Getting back into blogging and helping my blog to pick up.
Best Face Serum – Estee Lauder ANR
Best Foundations – N.A. because I pretty much don’t use foundations. Would say Garnier Light BB Cream if this were category of bases though.
Best Mascara – Essence Multi-Action False Lashes. Cheap and good.
Best Makeup Collection – Dior Summer. Awesome palette, lipglosses, and that eye glow liquid thingy.
Best Blush – NARS Deep Throat. And SilkyGirl Single in Flashing Rose, just because it’s so affordable.
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies – Essence, essence, essence. At less than $5, and with so many hits, nothing can beat that!
Best Hand Cream – Still La Source Hand Cream. I just can’t get out of that! hahaha.
Best Memories of 2012 – Going to Gardens by the Bay twice with my brothers. It’s been a long time since we enjoyed so much together, especially since I’ve shifted out.
Thank you for sharing your Best of 2012, Jyoan! 😀 I have a lot of faves in your list too and I actually remembered that you loved the Dior Summer collection! Good pick!
Loving the new classy chic look PB! Here’s my ‘best’ list that brought a smile to my face as I was reading your entry and thinking about them:
Best Nail Polish discovery – Illamasqua. I only bought Viridian but I love the application and the color.
Best Makeup Tip – Using Meteorites (haha, I wonder why that came up).
Best Makeup Experiment – Rainbow eyes, thanks to Connie.
Best Thing I’ve done for myself in 2012 – Getting a new job.
Best Face Serum – Honestly, none at the moment. I used to love ANR, and then my acne attack came; I’ve stopped using it since then as I got used to a 3-step routine.
Best Foundations – Illamasqua Rich Liquid Foundation, hands down.
Best Mascara – Australis Voluptulash (I agree with Geeque on this. OHMYGOD).
Best Makeup Collection – I rarely follow these collections so unable to comment.
Best Blush – Chanel Brume d’Or.
Best New Thing to appear in our pharmacies – None.
Best Hand Cream – Anything from Crabtree and Evelyn.
Best Memories of 2012 – Amongst the many: Gaga concert, work achievements, friends…too many to count 🙂
Thanks Dom, glad you like the new look 😀 It sounds like you’ve had a very rewarding year and good on you for getting your new job and for finally seeing what the hype about the Meteorites was! Haha… Here’s to a better 2013!