Best, Most, and Worst [2023 Edition]

[makeitup305]

I've been posting this thread for a few years and wanted to bring it back again. I love reading through everyone's responses. 

1) Your favorite purchase of the year- why?

2) A purchase you regret- why?

3) Most expensive purchase- was it worth the money? 

4) Most hyped product you bought- was it worth it?

5) Did you spend less, the same, or more than other years? 

6) Rediscovered loves or underrated/underhyped makeup discoveries

7) A product you missed out on, or haven't bought yet, but really want

8 ) Did your makeup routine change in any way?

9) What makeup trend do you think will be big next year?

10) What was your favorite body product or fragrance?

I'm tagging some BICers but please feel free to participate or tag anyone!

@itsfi @Sunnysmom @tsavorite @Mellmars1185 @ather @Samtian @JoSometimes @curlychiquita @lmaster @CynthieLu @SportyGirly125 @blackkitty2014 @sister13 @Ispend2much6 @haleyvvvv @WinglessOne @danielledanielle @eshoe 

[CynthieLu]

I hope you are a fortune teller @lmaster ✨ 🔮 Glitter Lips is a huge yes please from me. 🤩 

Oooh what is your favorite scent from you new SDJ's? 

[lmaster]

There's none that I don't like 🤣 it's too hard to pick one!! @CynthieLu 

[CynthieLu]

That's a good answer 😉 @lmaster I love a whole batch of winners. 

[SportyGirly125]

@lmaster @Glad I could help 😉

[lmaster]

@SportyGirly125 and of course all the TJ goodies I would miss out on if it wasn't for you

[danielledanielle]

@missjeanie, @CorgiMommy , @CattyT3 , @caitbird , @cianni , @Loretta55 , @greeneyedgirl107 , @Titian06 

[greeneyedgirl107]

@danielledanielle thanks for the tag! I'll have to check this out when things calm down over here.

[makeitup305]

@danielledanielle thanks for tagging! 

[cianni]

@danielledanielle thanks for the tag!! Love this thread 

[Titian06]

Thanks for the tag, @danielledanielle !

[danielledanielle]

@makeitup305, thanks for the tag.  I love me a good list/listicle!

1) Your favorite purchase of the year- why? Oh man, just one?!?!  Definitely Danessa Myricks Beauty Linework Paintbrush Fluid Liquid Eyeliner 0.034 oz / 1 ml   , I use this nearly everyday and have re-purchased it twice.  There's something about the tip, it's not super floppy and I can angle it well enough to even line the inner corner of my eye with little discomfort.

2) A purchase you regret- why?   Hate to say it, OUI the People Sugarcoat Moisturizing Shave Gel-to-Milk with Vitamin C 5 oz / 150 ml .  I really loved learning about the brand this year, so I was excited to try this gel.  It's way too pricey for what it is and didn't give me the silky smooth legs I'd hope for.  I can't discern it from any shave gel I've used in the past.

3) Most expensive purchase- was it worth the money?  I managed to buy more brushes??  I have to go back and look to see which one was the biggest expense before I can answer.  I also bought KILIAN Paris Love, Don’t Be Shy Eau de Parfum with Vanilla & Marshmallow after obsessing over samples, but to alleviate the expense, I got the refill instead & used a Rouge reward.

4) Most hyped product you bought- was it worth it?  I kind of have a hate/love with hyped products.  Like, I won't buy them if they are too hyped and can wait for the hype to die down.  Or, if something I loved gets too hyped, I'm excited at first, but then annoyed when it's OOS, so I get kind of gatekeep-y about it, 🤣

5) Did you spend less, the same, or more than other years?  MORE .  Because, I knew DanDan was on the way, everything was my "last hurrah." This is my first time "diamond-ing" at Ulta, for example.

6) Rediscovered loves or underrated/underhyped makeup discoveries .  Heh, my response to no. 4 makes me not want to say 🤣 , but I'm going to think about it and answer.

7) A product you missed out on, or haven't bought yet, but really want? I'm hemming and hawing on the OTP razor.  I can get other safety razors like that for a lower price point.

 8 ) Did your makeup routine change in any way? Yes.  I transferred from one job location to another at the end of 2022, then there's DanDan...so I'm wearing less full glam than I used to as a result.  But, I have found quicker ways to achieve a desired look.

9) What makeup trend do you think will be big next year?  I'm still having a love affair with the 90s, so that will continue.  Also, from what I can understand, it's about glowy skin, but then there's also the 90/00s looks still available via grunge, glitter and bold lids and matte lips. 

10) What was your favorite body product or fragrance?  I really love my Maison Margiela Replica BTF hand cream, wish it was sold at Sephora, because ordering it direct 👎🏽👎🏽

My body care hasn't changed much.  I'm a fan of Buttah by Dorian Renaud's Shea butter, but it's also pricey, so I use it during this time of time year.

Fragrance, it's so hard to pick.  (I know it's an "or" question , but I'm answering both.) I can name/tag a few recent standouts

LoveShackFancy Forever in Love Eau de Parfum with Green Pear & Gardenia 2.5 oz / 75 mL Eau De Parfum  

Boy Smells Woodphoria Eau de Parfum 2.2 oz / 65 mL eau de parfum spray 

Maison Margiela REPLICA' From the Garden Eau de Toilette with Tomato Leaf & Patchouli  

[makeitup305]

@danielledanielle thanks for the heads up on the liner! I'm going to add it to my loves list. I haven't used liquid liner in forever but I could use a solid one in my stash. I feel you on the overhyped-ness. It's kept me away from a lot of new or trending products just because everyone is talking about them. Even whole brands in general, like Rare Beauty and Fenty. I hate having to hunt down something I'm interested in just because it went viral (I'm looking at you Dior Sequin lipstick!). I participated in that this year with the Summer Fridays lip balms sets and, while I love them, it was annoying to scavenge.

[WinglessOne]

@danielledanielle  Danessa’s Linework liner is magic, right? It has the perfect brush tip, even for someone like me who normally has trouble with liquid pen liners. Glad you love it so much! And thanks for the feedback on OTP’s shave gel/milk. I was very curious about it but haven’t bought to test. Now I think I’ll skip it altogether. Sorry it was so subpar for you. 

Gatekeeping beloved products is something I can understand. One of my all time favorite soothing & hydrating serums suddenly sold out everywhere because it was hyped up on a certain YouTube-famous dermatologist’s channel—which I learned from a friend who follows that derm, and I was kinda mad at myself for not periodically checking said derm’s videos and maybe catching the video in question so I’d have a heads-up that my savior product was about to go OOS seemingly forever. Then the brand reformulated that serum for worse and I can’t use the new version. I’m still slowly working through my stash of old bottles, hoping another skincare brand will create a similar serum someday. ANYWAY, yeah, I can relate. 

[CorgiMommy]

@danielledanielle inwill have to look into the eyeliner, thanks

[JoSometimes]

@danielledanielle I’m not too sure how the tiers work at ulta but diamond sounds like a pretty big deal! Double congrats to diamond tier and to little DanDan!

This might be the Filipino culture in me talking but I love double syllable nicknames. They’re so cute!

And that eyeliner sounds great! If you forget and store it point side down, does the point get completely flooded with product?

[danielledanielle]

Thanks @JoSometimes !

At this point, I rarely call him by his actual name.

IMO, ask brush tip liners should be treated like ballpoint pens.  They can all leak as they likely work similarly, so if you store them upright, they are just less likely to explode/leak.  I did have it leak once because I put it upside down, but it still worked pretty well afterwards.

[SportyGirly125]

@danielledanielle @JoSometimes @I always stored my brush tip liners laying down. It has never leaked in the Kipling bag I store it in or perform different. 

[danielledanielle]

@SportyGirly125  I'm glad that works, but I',d still advise storing any brush tip upright.  I find I get the best performance, especially if the item isn't the best.  It helps me avoid the dreaded leak that tends to occur with brush tips.  I also note drying out occurs much later - I can get months out of most liners (compared to others when I'm reading reviews on a liner I've purchased).  Also, what I'm referring to is storing them face down vs lying down.

I also don't shake them, it confuses me that people do that - but to each their own.  It drives me crazy when people blame a product, but then store it in all odd ways and then wonder why it blew up on them.

[WinglessOne]

I’m happy to play along again, @makeitup305 ! 

1. Your favorite purchase of the year- why?

Can’t narrow it down further than this (hey now, this list was at least 3x longer): 

Spoiler

• By Terry 8HA Hyaluronic Hydra-Powder (loose version) - a good reformulation of my longtime favorite setting powder. I was so worried By Terry would ruin it, but they didn’t! 
  
  
• Live Tinted Hueskin Concealer - my new favorite concealer that gives me good coverage, plays nice with my textured skin, and blends like a dream. 
  
  
• Ami Colé Ultra-Flex Clear Eyebrow Shaping Gel Clear  - I also love Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez Brow Harmony Flexible Lifting and Laminating Eyebrow Gel 0.15 oz / 4.5 g  for better hold, but AC’s gives me a more naturally fluffy brow. 
  
  
• Sonia G. Mini Keyaki Buffer - this magic brush lets me buff powder products over cream products and sunscreen without disrupting creams/sunscreen. 
  
  
• Violette_Fr Petal Bouche Lipstick shade Amour Fou - best liquid matte formula for my lips, in a perfect red rose shade with a magical opacity level. 
  
  
• Laura Mercier High Vibe Lip Color shade Pop - a perfect Urban Decay Vice Firebird dupe that doesn’t bleed/feather at all, hooray! (Firebird’s one of my all time favorite lipsticks, but also a chronic bleeder and discontinued shade.) 

2. A purchase you regret- why?

#PAT McGRATH LABS Mothership X Eyeshadow Palette: Moonlit Seduction - it’s too similar to Natasha Denona Star (which I already had), which means it’s too neutral for me. I don’t hate it; just not sure I’ll get much use out of it, especially since it’s one of Pat’s long string of pink/rose palettes. 😒 Of all my Motherships, it’s the one I could most do without. 

3. Most expensive purchase- was it worth the money?

Frederic Malle The Moon (the 1.7 oz size), though a Nordstrom sale + Nordy Notes brought it closer to my affordability range. I don’t have many big bold funky ouds in my fragrance collection, so this one’s a welcome addition. It transforms to a gorgeously warm blend of scents after a strong oud opening. As for “worth the money,” well… I’d say no fragrance above $200 USD these days is really worth its price point, what with in(greed)flation. Heck, even some $100-200 fragrances are overpriced lately. But yeah, I’m a Frederic Malle fan who thinks $530 is too much to pay for 1.7 oz of this fragrance, regardless of how much I like it. 

4. Most hyped product you bought- was it worth it?

Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez Soft Pinch Tinted Lip Oil Stain  - nope. These are much too drying on my lips without an Aquaphor base, which prevents them from leaving a stain behind so I miss out on that feature. I know many other folks love ‘em though, so consider me an outlier. 

5. Did you spend less, the same, or more than other years?

Probably less? I haven’t kept track, unfortunately. Seems like I bought fewer makeup brushes, or at least fewer pricy brushes—though I did buy 3 sets late in the year. I tried to buy less lipstick than usual but probably failed there. 🤦‍♀️ At least I caught a lot of sales in 2023 and used more store/reward credits to bring down prices. 

6. Rediscovered loves or underrated/underhyped makeup discoveries?

Hmm… I need to think more about this and answer later. 

7. A product you missed out on, or haven't bought yet, but really want?

Plenty of fragrances could fill this answer. Eh, sometime this year I’ll add a couple more Zoologist bottles to my collection. Oh, and nail polish: I missed Zoya’s 70% off sale in 2023 (by the time I knew about it, I’d already blown my polish budget elsewhere), so I’ve got a wishlist awaiting their next one. 

8. Did your makeup routine change in any way?

Not compared to 2022. Well wait, I did start using brow gel in 2023 on a regular basis. My brow routine used to be just brow pencil and took me 2 minutes. Now that I’ve found 2 brow gels I love that work great for me, I’ve worked gel into that routine. Takes a minute or 2 longer, sure, but I use less brow pencil as a result and my brows look more natural than ever (that’s the look I prefer for my own brows). 

9. What makeup trend do you think will be big next year (2024)?

More natural looking lashes, even for fake lashes. Or I guess I should say fewer exaggerated/super dramatic fake lashes. I wonder if colored lashes/mascara will gain speed this year… that’s not “natural looking,” but it’s a different way to get dramatic lashes without exaggerated falsies. 

Also, I suspect the draped blush trend will fade, or at least the trend of connecting eyes and cheeks with blush. (Though it was kinda fun to see the ‘70s draping trend return during recent years’ anti-cootie masking.) Maybe blush will return to apples of cheeks and/or cheek-to-ear ovals. Eh, I don’t normally keep up with trends so who knows what’ll happen. 

10. What was your favorite body product or fragrance?

Probably Boy Smells Violet Ends Eau de Parfum 2.2 oz / 65 mL eau de parfum spray . That’s what I wore most often throughout 2023. I see that Sephora now has the full size (huh, wonder when that happened) and travel size… I might buy the latter, if I travel this year. 

[makeitup305]

@WinglessOne thanks for the rec on the Live Tinted concealer. I'm kicking myself for not picking up anything from Violette when they had their Black Friday sale, it's been so highly recommended. I swatched it in store the other day and it looked really nice. Sorry the PMG is not for you. I've made that mistake before. Maybe spice it up with some new Terra Moons? 😉 

[WinglessOne]

@makeitup305  I think I need to make myself use this Mothership on its own (well, alongside any of my fun eyeliners) for a while, so I can get to know it better and then decide if it’s really as bland as I think it is. I mean, I wasn’t a big fan of V Bronze Seduction at first either: felt like I bought it just for 2 shades, and the rest of the color story was too one-note. I had to use that palette on its own for a while before it grew on me. 

Ironically, I have Natasha Denona’s INAN palette which is the epitome of bland neutral. 😂 But I bought that palette with the sole intent of using it as a base for other fun shadows, plus a couple of shades surprised me enough (when swatching in-store) to make me think “huh, this palette might be brown skin friendly and usable after all.”