Favourite Products Of 2012

My monthly favourite posts are probably the ones I enjoy writing the most. Lots of you have told me that they're the ones you enjoy reading the most too. So today I bring you my yearly roundup of the products that I've loved using. It was really difficult to narrow the list down this year. There were so many new things that I tried & that have quickly become an essential part of my beauty regime. I'm surprised to see what things have changed & whats stayed the same from my last yearly favourites post. One thing's for sure, 2012 was a very expensive year in beauty!

Skincare
Emma Hardie Amazing Face Natural Lift & Sculpt Moringa Cleansing Balm / Alpha-H Liquid Gold
REN Invisible Pores Detox Mask / Hydraluron / Caudalie Beauty Elixir / Bioderma Créaline H2O

I definitely spent the most amount of money on new skincare products. I fell in love with this Emma Hardie cleanser from the moment I tried it. It removes makeup like nothing else & leaves your skin feeling so soft. I'm sure you could tell that Liquid Gold would be on my list. This glycolic acid based chemical exfoliant is something of a miracle potion for me. It resurfaces your skin getting rid of blemishes, fine lines & reducing scarring. Hands down, it is my favourite product of the year. The REN Invisible Pores is such a wonderful clay face mask. It draws out all the impurities in my skin & tightens every pore. Hydraluron is my favourite product for injecting a quick hit of moisture to the skin as its basically a super power up serum for your moisturiser. It rehydrates skin & helps keep spots at bay. I still love the Caudalie Beauty Elixir and spray it on my face twice a day. Its just so refreshing on the skin & I couldn't go without it now. Bioderma is the best thing you can use if you're feeling too lazy to actually wash your face. It just dissolves makeup so well & doesn't irritate my skin or eyes whatsoever.

Haircare
Moroccanoil / Percy & Reed Finishing Polish / Kerastase Ciment Thermique / Redken Real Control Overnight Treat
Bumble & Bumble Texture Hair (Un) Dressing Creme / Denman Dressing Out Hairbrush

I use Moroccanoil every time I wash my hair & it has definitely helped with its overall condition. I really like the Percy & Reed Finishing Polish as it gives my hairstyle great hold & successfully tames my frizz without weighing down my hair. Nothing beats Ciment Thermique when it comes to heat protection. It also makes your hair softer & has a lovely grapefruit scent. The Redken Overnight Treat is my favourite leave in product as you really do wake up with better looking hair. Bumble & Bumble products are amazing, I only wish they weren't quite so expensive. One thing from them that you should definitely splurge on is this Hair (Un) Dressing Creme. A tiny blob of this stuff ran through your roots before blow drying will give you just the right amount of texture & volume. To give my roots even more volume I use this Dressing Out brush. It is the best backcombing brush ever & can even be used to brush through wigs & hair extensions.

Base
Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch Primer / Bobbi Brown Corrector / Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation
Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray / theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer / Laura Mercier Mineral Powder
Illamasqua Translucent Loose Setting Powder

Clarins Instant Smooth is my new favourite primer. It gives you such a flawless base & basically airbrushes out your pores. Nothing manages to cover my hideous dark circles quite like my Bobbi Brown Corrector. It really brightens up the under eye area and makes you look a lot more awake. For most of 2012 I stuck with Estee Lauder Double Wear because I do love the coverage & staying power. Then Estee Lauder did something stupid & got rid of their palest shade. Enter Laura Mercier Silk Creme foundation. Soft Ivory is such a perfect colour for me. You only need the tiniest blob for flawless skin and I find I don't need to use concealer on my blemishes when I use this foundation. I love the Urban Decay Setting Spray as it keeps your face in place all day & stops powder from looking powdery. I have a ridiculous obsession with highlighters and I couldn't stop myself from buying new ones in my search for the perfect glow. Look no further, theBalm's Mary-Lou Manizer is the ultimate highlighter! I bought this back in May and haven't used or purchased another one since. I use this every single day as nothing else can deliver such a powerful shine. For days when I'm running late I go for a quick bit of concealer under my eyes and a good dusting of this Laura Mercier Mineral Powder. It has great coverage & gives a natural glow. I'd recommend this one over the pressed mineral powder as the pressed ones give a more matte finish. My favourite product for setting my makeup & taking away shine from my t-zone is this Illamasqua powder. I'm paranoid about my mascara running & concealer creasing under my eyes. This powder sets them perfectly & doesn't look cakey at all.

Eyes
Lancome Doll Eyes Mascara / L'Oreal Carbon Gloss Superliner / Anastasia Granite Tinted Brow Gel
Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara / Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette / MAC NC15/NW20 Pencil
Maybelline On And On Bronze Colour Tattoo 24hr Eyeshadow / MAC Omega Eyeshadow

My mascara & eyeliner choices are the same as last year. I just love this combo for long, thick, voluminous lashes & that perfect black flick. Anastasia are a brand I've been excited to try for a while & their Tinted Brow Gel certainly didn't disappoint. This is such a great product for when you need your brows done fast. Something I've used for a long time is the Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara. The tiny brush is fab for getting all those little bottom lashes & as it is a tubing mascara you don't have to worry about it running. The Naked 2 palette really is the best eyeshadow palette I own with shades & textures for all occasions. My eyes don't look right if I forget to use my MAC NC15/NW20 eye pencil. It really opens them up and takes away any redness. I've bought quite a few cream eyeshadows this year but Maybelline's On And On Bronze tops the list. Its such a nice colour & works well on its own as well as under other eye shadows without any creasing. At the beginning of last year I was using the HD Brows palette but I found the shades were just too dark & it was easy to overdo it. Omega is the perfect eyebrow colour. Its dark enough to match my eyebrow hairs & cool enough to look right with my blonde hair.

Blusher
Stila Petunia Convertible Colour / Illamasqua Sophie / NARS Deep Throat

I adore the Stila Convertible Colours! I used to be quite wary of cream blushers but the formula of these is just spot on. All the colours are gorgeous but Petunia is the one I reach for most. Its a bright rosy pink & looks fab on both cheeks & lips. I love love love Illamasqua's blushers & this is one of their newer shimmer blushers. Sophie is such a gorgeous bright golden coral colour and adds a nice bit of warmth to my complexion. NARS Deep Throat is a colour I reach for on an everyday basis. Its just the perfect colour for me & I can't get enough of it. This is actually the only NARS blusher I own, I'd love to get my hands on Douceur next.

Lip Products
NUXE Reve De Miel Lip Balm / Revlon Strawberry Shortcake Lip Butter
Revlon Rendezvous Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain / Look Beauty Citrus Kick Double Hit Lip
MAC Subculture Lip Pencil

The only lip balm capable of saving my lips from death this year has been this lovely NUXE one. I really like the pot & the stick but the pot definitely wins when you need an intense hit of moisture as its a bit thicker. I'd never tried any Revlon products before this year & I truly loved their two very hyped products - the Lip Butters & Balm Stains. Strawberry Shortcake is a lovely everyday pink whereas Rendezvous is sexy orange number. I also really like the Look Beauty Double Hit Lips. One end is a lipstick & the other is a lipgloss. Citrus Kick is another orange but it turns into a very pretty coral when it combines with the natural pink of my lips. The scent is absolutely delicious too. MAC's Subculture lip pencil is great nudey pink shade for emphasising the shape of your lips. It works well under a variety of lip colours & gives you super pouty lips.

Nail Polishes
Essie Cute As A Button / Essie Lilacism / Essie Fiji / Models Own Disco Inferno / Louise Gray For Topshop Junk Yard

I've been loving Essie polishes this year. The new brush makes them so easy to apply & they dry fairly quickly. They don't chip much either with a good coat of Seche Vite on top. Lilacism is probably my favourite one as I just love purple colours! I've also gotten into glitter polishes this year. The whole Models Own Mirrorball collection was amazing but as a gold lover Disco Inferno is the one I reach for most often. This Louise Gray for Topshop glitter nail polish is so stunning & I can't stop staring at my nails whenever I wear it.

Tools
Real Techniques Brushes / Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers / Tweezerman Tweezers

Most of my makeup brush collection has been replaced with Real Techniques brushes since they launched in the UK. I think they're amazing quality with super soft bristles that dry quickly after washing & don't shed at all. My makeup looks so much better since I invested in some of these. I use these three on a daily basis. I apply my foundation using the Buffing Brush, my blusher using the Contour Brush and loose powder with the setting brush. I can't recommend these enough and wish these were around before I wasted loads of money on overhyped MAC brushes which used to just shed all over my face. I use these Shu Uemura eyelash curlers every day without fail. They make my lashes look so much better & open up my eyes. They make such a difference. I've used these tweezers for years as you can pluck out the tiniest hairs with them. They last forever so they're definitely worth the investment.