I'm mildly obessessed with those end of the year lists that you've probably seen in the past few weeks. I was starting to make my mental list as soon as I reached consciouness yesterday when I had another thought. Would something declared the best of 2011 still be relevent in 2012? Obviously there's stuff like events I can't do anything about, but what if I found an amazing product, say a face wash, does the calendar turning to 2012 make that item any less great because I discovered it last year? Am I supposed to promote the latest and the greatest even if it's a crap item? I cried for a bit, because that was just
way too much thinking at that moment. Then, I took some Aleve, drank a Gatorade, and prepared my list for you to enjoy:
1. Say Yes To Blueberries Age Defying Wipes. These wipes remove all your makeup, smell great, and really do brighten your face. My skin looked amazing after just two days of using these. What's not to love?
2. L'Oreal's Youth Code line. I bought the sampler set, and while all the products worked well, the Day to Night lotion was amazing. It moisturized and brightened my skin.
3. Olay's Pro-X Cleaning Brush. My skin has never looked better, nor have my large pores looked smaller than after I started using this spinning brush.
4. Nivea Happy Sensation Body Lotion. I hate thick and smelly lotions--Bath and Body Works I'm looking at you--but this has a light, clean, citrusy scent. It's also super light on the skin, sinks in quickly, and is non-greasy.
5. Rare Minerals Blemish Remover. This is a sulphur-based powder you apply with the included brush on acne, and is the best pimple zapper I have used in years. It does smell strongly, but when you see visible results in mere hours, you'll get over it quickly.
6. Dove Winter Care Body Wash. My skin always dries out in the winter, and the Olay body wash which was supposedly moisturizing was actually making my skin worse. The Dove body wash is almost like a lotion and really doesn't lather but it moisutrizes so well I sometimes don't have to put on lotion afterwards.
Having gone on a makeup shopping spree back in '10, I really didn't have the need to buy a lot of makeup this past year, but I did have a good record for buying some great products.
1. Milly with Clinque Pretty Prints Pallette. Unfortunatly, this was a limited edition, but this set has the perfect blush and eyeshadow shades that look wonderful on everyone. I use this set if I'm in a hurry or want to look extra pretty.
2. Tarte's Airbrush Effects brush. This came in the
QVC set I originally wasn't thrilled with back in March, but since then I've come to embrace the brush. In combination with the next product, it's phenomenal. As long as this brush holds up, I'll never use a sponge or any other brush to apply foundation.
3
. Make Up For Ever HD Foundation. After dealing with some meh foundations this past year, I bought this on impulse and have been delirousily happy with it ever since. It evens out my skin tone, and covers acne scars. Perfect!
4. Tarte's Amazonian Clay Blush in Glisten. This came in the QVC set that I got the above brush in, and I wasn't fond of it at first. However, I was too lazy to go out and get something else and I came to really love the color. Unfortunately this was a limited edition, but thankfully, Nars Orgasm blush is very similar.
Nail Polish, oh nail polish. What colors didn't I buy this year?
1. Deborah Lippman's Happy Birthday. Colorful! Sparkly!
2. Chanel Black Pearl. My first Chanel polish, which quickly led to an addiction of $25 nail polish. I love this color for it's elegance and sophistication.
3. Chanel Morning Rose. This has been the polish I have worn ever since I got it in July. I've used up a quarter of the bottle, which is rare for me. This was a limited edition and I'm kicking myself for not buying another bottle.
4. Nars Jungle Red. The perfect deep red as it doesn't border on the maroon/brownish border that a lot of deeper reds do.
5. Nars Purple Rain. This was one of the hot colors for 2010, but I continued to wear it all of 2011. Just a great shade.
6. L'Oreal Limited Edition Project Runway in Owl's Night. I had originally bought this trying to dupe Chanel's Peridot, but I didn't even come close (I did buy Peridot later). This has a black base with a burnished gold with a hint of green sparkle in it. Very pretty.
Anybody have any bests they want to share? Just because it's 2012 doesn't mean it's too late to try a great product.
That's right, the same people who make the Dr. Pepper flavored lip balm is also producing the SkinnyGirl line. While they do make other products, I'm not sure how you get from Hannah Montana bubble bath to a skincare line aimed at adult women. Going on what I know about the company's bonafides, I can't say I'm going to try this line. 
