.:: CybeleSays ::.

You’re look ain’t nuthin’ if your makeup is sliding off your face! Here are two that will help keep color where it belongs.

COVER FX Protection Primer SPF 30 ($38/1oz @ coverfx.com) – just like the name states, this one is great for daytime as it contains a SPF 30, it’s vegan and contains those light refracting elements to blur the appearance of lines.

PIXI BEAUTY Flawless & Poreless ($29/1oz @ pixibeauty.com) – if you have prominent pores then you  should try this primer. It helps smooth them out and this one is shine controlling and oil-free. Comes in only one shade – No. 1 Translucent.

If you haven’t incorporated a face primer into your daily makeup routine by now, you are really missing out. Might I suggest this next goodie add to your arsenal? The BECCA Ever-Matte Poreless Priming Perfector ($36/1.35oz @ sephora.com) is recommended for two things – big pores and if you have a problem with oiliness. I don’t really have an issue with either so I can’t tell you how this helps those, however, what I really liked about this one is the overall matteness this makes my face, and they claim 8 hours of mattness, which I pretty much can agree with, which is from their exclusive ingredient inside called EverMat. And I really can feel how matte my face is after applying this. Not sure why I like that so much but it seems to provide a really nice foundation for whatever you put on next. And know that this one is free of silicones (silicones are certainly not bad but I know some try to avoid them in their everyday products), oil, alcohol and fragrance.

We’re in full-on award show season and even if you can’t live like a star, you can primp like a star, with BENEFIT COSMETICS’s Primping with the Stars All-Time Greatest “Fake-It’s” Kit.

This one includes the following:

• .08 oz Stay Don't Stray Stay-Put Primer for Concealers and Eyeshadows
• .12 oz Some Kind-A-Gorgeous Foundation in Medium
• .13 oz Benetint Rose-Tinted Lip & Cheek Stain
• .25 oz The Porefessional Pro Balm
• .25 oz Girl Meets Pearl Liquid Pearl for Face
• .1 oz They're Real! Beyond Mascara in Black

I can’t rave about these kinds of kits enough as they let you try quite a few of the different products (deluxe sample sizes) for a super reasonable price. And let's face it, how often do you actually use up a full size product? This one is just $32 @ sephora.com.

And be sure to investigate their other kits under this moniker: Do the Bright Thing and The Bronze of Champions.

And know that these sets also make great Birthday gifts! I had three parties this week alone. Lots of January babies for some reason.

Have you tried any of the beauty sampling programs yet? Yes, there are quite a few out there now and even though I’ve only samples a few of them, I found the selection to be eh, at best. One that stands out is a deluxe-sized item I received in the Glossybox box. It’s a Korean product from the brand TOUCH IN SOL. The product is a face moisturizer and base/primer in one called Feel Like Honey Moon Skin Base.

Now this is what these sampling boxes should be, the best products from other nations. Hey, now there’s an idea!

Anyway, back to this item. Not only am I digging its double-duti-ness but it also soaks in quite quickly, so I don’t have to wait around before I apply my foundation. Even though the third ingredient listed in this is alcohol, I didn’t find it drying to my skin at any part during the day (the honey extract in this is the 13^th ingredient listed, for whatever that’s worth). $20/1.6oz @ touchinsolus.com.

I’ve come to pretty much expect some products to do double-duty and I’m adding makeup primers to that list. And this one is really doing triple-duty so it’s raising the bar! COVER FX BritePrep FX Brightening Foundation Primer & Photo-Aging Defense ($45/1oz @ coverfx.com) is not only a primer but contains a SPF 50 - A SPF 50 PEOPLE! - as well as those properties that blur lines and pores using what they call Dermaveil. And they’ve also added Bearberry Extract to help with skin discoloration, which I think we can all use help with.

Have you jumped on the primer bandwagon yet? There’s still room, ya know!

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided for review purposes.

NAPOLEON PERDIS NP Set Calming Pre-Foundation Primer ($29/1.7oz @ target.com) – now that colder temps are here, your skin might want to act out. Keep redness away with this green primer. The formula also contains aloe and cucumber extracts to make skin feel great.

NARS Concealer ($22 @ sephora.com) – now available in a stick form, this smooth formula is available in 10 shades.

MIRACLE SKIN Transformer SPF 20 To Go ($18/.85oz @ sephora.com) – yeah a tinted moisturizer with SPF. This new size is perfect for the purse and contains micas, Saw Palmetto Extract, CO Enzyme Q10 among others to give skin a shot of anti-aging ingredients. Choose from seven shades.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

OMG, it is already September 21^st and I’m not even half way through featuring all the new fall beauty products so I’m going to stretch this Fall Beauty Pick feature into October. After all, fall is one of my favorite seasons – the colors, the textures and of course the temperatures! Here are some that are singing my tune right now.

Clockwise left to right:

MAKE UP FOR EVER Smoky Lash in #6 Plum ($22 @ sephora.com) – this one claims to curl and lo and behold, I think it did! A great complement when wearing their Crayon Kohl Pencil in new shade 10k, a deep eggplant sheen.

NYC COLOR In A New York Color Minute Quick Dry Nail Polish in Scenestealer Grey ($1.99 @ drugstores nationwide) – metallic grey is a hot color for fall and it goes with so many different looks.

NAPOLEON PERDIS NP SET False Eye Lashes in Manchester ($10 @ Target or target.com) – if you just want a little emphasis on your eyes, this style will do it subtly. If a strip is too hard for you to maneuver, there’s also Copenhagen, individual lashes.

PACIFICA Island Vanilla Perfume ($22/1oz, $12/roll-on @ pacificaperfume.com) – Tahitian vanilla, vanilla absolute, honey-jasmine and a touch of fruit and tea make up this totally wearable made from pure grain alcohol scent.

POP BEAUTY Face Magnet Primer ($26/1.18oz @ dermstore.com) – this makeup primer not only keeps your makeup on but it has UV protection, caffeine and anti-aging ingredients. Gotta love double triple duty products.

NARS Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Rue de Rivoli ($25 @ narscosmetics.com) – this metallic forest green will complement any eye color. Very smooth application and it has a sharpener built in the backend.

CLINIQUE Lipgloss/Lipstick Duo in Black Honey ($21 @ sephora.com) – check out what all the hubbub is about with their cult favorite Black Honey shade. It’s their best seller for a reason and now they have it in a combo Lip Gloss and Lipstick.

Disclosure: Some of these items were provided for review purposes. Some I bought.

These are really helping me enjoy summer this year! Have you made any adjustments due to the heat and humidity? Give these ones some consideration.

ELIZABETH ARDEN Pure Finish Mineral Cheekcolor in Sunkissed Coral ($28 @ elizabetharden.com) – If this one could talk, it would say, "I am the color of the decade!" Coral again is a big summer color and it's so gorg on the skin and really enhances a nice tan.

ORLANE Super-Moisturizing Tinted Cream ($75/1.7oz @ neimanmarcus.com) – it’s way too hot to put on a full mask of foundation so why not use a two-fer like this? It combines a deeply moisturizing face cream with a slight tint. Available in 3 shades.

NYX COSMETICS Studio Liquid Liner in Extreme Sky Blue and Extreme Green ($4.50 @ nyxcosmetics.com) – colored liquid liners are hot these days and these do like the Michael Jackson/Paul McCartney duo and “Stay, Stay, Stay.” (I know it’s Say, Say, Say but Stay works better for this piece!).

LUSH 'Dirty' Springwash Shower Gel ($9.95/3.3oz, $17.95/8.8oz, $26.95/16.9oz @ lushusa.com) – I really wasn’t feeling their Dirty collection of products but this shower gel seems like a lighter version of the rest, according to my nose and it has a hint of spearmint oil in it.

SMASHBOX Photo Finish Luminizing Foundation Primer ($17 @ smashbox.com) – who wants their makeup to slide after applying? Summertime is great for this one as it gives a nice sheen, whilst helping makeup stay, stay, stay! And this one has some good-for-skin ingredients like grape seed extract and vitamins A, C and E.

VICTORIA’S SECRET Sheer Love Ultra-Moisturizing Hand and Body Cream from the VS Fantasies Collection ($12/6.7oz @ victoriassecret.com) – a scented cream is the perfect way to kiss the skin with fragrance without overdoing it. This one is a mix of fresh white cotton and luminous pink lily and contains avocado, zsweet almond oil and my favorite ingredient, honey.

The Victoria's Secret item contains mineral oil, which is seen by some as an ingredient of concern. The Lush product contains Sodium Laureth Sulfate, which is seen by some as an ingredient of concern. Read more about these and other ingredients here.

Read my ingredient disclaimer here.

Disclosure: Some of these items were provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

From the man that I credit with pretty much creating the first makeup primer on the market, NAPOLEON PERDIS, comes his new ROCK ON! Collection. And this one has a new kind of primer, a powder form!

This is Mr. Perdis’s venture into the mineral makeup world and I actually kind of surprised it took this long for him. Here are the deets:

Mattifying Mineral Primer ($29) – this one can be used before and after foundation. A yellow powder? Don’t worry, it’s translucent but do you remember Urban Decay’s Nirvana Universal Loose Powder? It was yellow. Or I could be really dating myself by mentioning the other yellow powder I remember - T. LeClerc’s Banana Loose Powder? Also yellow and had quite a cult following.

Anyway, I found using a medium sized flat top brush like this one most effective when applying it before(it) the foundation and a bigger domed brush when applying it as a finishing powder.

And one tip about the container – he created it so that the sifter mechanism will measure out (click-click) just enough primer for one application. Genius!

Advanced Mineral Makeup SPF 15 ($59) – available in 6 shades, this one contains those light diffusers (pretty much a must-have inside any foundation these days), and also antioxidant ingredients and the aforementioned SPF. It gives medium matte coverage and a little goes a long way. I tried this one with a makeup brush and a sponge and found the sponge worked best. Let’s hear it for another winning liquid mineral foundation on the scene.

He was smart about these first two products by including antioxidants and sodium hyaluronate, which is a key anti-aging ingredient, in both of these. Love a multi-tasker! Both @ napoleonperdis.com. 

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

I go in an out of wearing what they call complexion enhancers like this next one. Some come in the form of a face primer like this one or this one and some are in the form of a powder. For the most part, most that I’ve come across are just too shimmery for someone my age to wear with the exception of the few I just  mentioned. One I will be adding to my list of keepers(color) is this JEMMA KIDD Mannequin Skin Complexion Enhancer in Canvas from the JK line. This reflective pearl beigey shimmer seems suitable for most skin tones and adds just a small kick the eyelids, as a primer, top of cheekbones, anywhere really. $24 @ target.com.

And be sure to check out the Jemma Kidd Make Up School making its debut on QVC on March 4^th @ 10pm ET. She will showcase her Long Wear Eyeliners and more!

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.