while my focus is largely on perfume, there were many beauty products out there that i discovered this year and enjoyed very, very much... for a time. only a few lasted long enough for me to really register as my favorites of 2007. oddly enough, this year's favorites are all centered around my eyes, which were overwhelmingly in love with Urban Decay. to the eyes first! the nose comes second. ;)Eye Flash
#5: Tweezerman Spa Browmousse
since i started getting my brows threaded on a regular basis, i've noticed some rogue brow hairs running around. most of the products for hair control are awkward and get very flaky, but this stuff?? sheee it ladies, this does the trick and doesn't look odd.
#4: DuWop LashLacquer in Plum Black
while i still love my Guerlain mascara and my MAC ProLash, this double-dipper takes the cake. i can control how extreme i want my lashes to be at all times, and this never gets clumpy.
#3: Urban Decay Heavy Metal glitter eyeliner in Spandex
flair and fizz! this glitter matches any color i wear without screaming "OMG I'M WEARING GLITTER!" like some eye flash does. it is, bizarrely, such a sheer black that it comes off looking quite romantic, rather than strikingly obvious.
#2: Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils in Gunmetal and Covet
these two colors line so smoothly it's hard to believe, and they blend like a dream. the gunmetal is everything i ever wanted in something of this kind of grey, and the covet can go from a dark vivid green to a light bright teal that makes my eyes look stunning. i also tried Lust and Deviant, but they really didn't work half so well.
and on to the best eye find -
#1: Urban Decay Metallic Eyeshadow in Strip
wow. just... wow. this was the silver to end all silvers. i have no idea why this one was the one that worked best, but it really is the best i've tried, even beating out many of the MAC pigments i own. combining this with the Gunmetal pencil i mention above can be as subtle or as striking as i want to make them.
and moving our way down...
Fragrance
#5: the re-release of Lubin's L'Eau Neuve
it's a crisply herbal quasi-chypre, something that you can tell was meant to compete with the big guns but because of its spicier notes, didn't quite make the times. it really is a nice scent.
#4: Miller et Berteaux bois de gaiac et poire (otherwise known as "Close your eyes and...")
unlike most people, my skin brings out woody scents like mad, and the straight combo of fragrant wood and powder is enchanting. there was almost no rose, on me, which was almost a relief, and nothing remotely vanilla-ish was brought out. the perfume, on my skin, really was something new and unique, mother-strong and fierce.
#3: Parfumerie Generale Cuir Venenum
it's a dryly tropical leather, unique in how it sits on the skin. not harsh or demanding, but rather quietly compelling, rendering relaxation at the same time as it tugs on you.
#2: Burn Rare Mahogany Palisander candle
i deeply wish for someone to make this into a skin scent. this is, really, the same scent that Malin & Goetz had as a candle, but the boyus don't have it on their site anymore. sad sigh. ;)
and on to the best nose find -
#1: biehl parfumkunstwerke eo1
while there are a lot of comparisons between this and Givenchy's Organza Indecence, there is one major difference on me which rendered this a step above Givenchy's delicious formula (which is saying something, since i adore that scent). eo1's styrax and nutmeg pounce out at me, making the elixir spicier and more exotic on my skin. it isn't an HG, but it left me speechless for nearly an hour going "...um. um. ....ummm."
so there are my beauty picks for this past year, and i hope for more upcoming. thanks go out again to the marvelous Annie at Blogdorf Goodman for putting this together again! please check out the other bloggers who are listing their favorite things of this past year; they're all amazing.
