My 2017 Makeup and Skincare Favorites

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Without too much preamble, I'm going to dive right into my favorite products from the last year, and then when I get to the end of the list, I'll discuss any patterns or other observations that come from looking at the group as a whole. These weren't all necessarily new releases in 2017--because I'm not that on top of trends--but they are things that I bought in 2017 or late 2016 and enjoyed during the last year.

Urban Decay Naked Heat palette and Juvia's Place The Nubian palette

The easiest choices for my list this year were the two palettes above. I've never been a big eyeshadow palette hoarder, but last year I ended up with a few of them, and I seem to have my eye on some others. Not sure what's going on there, but I doubt I will ever have more than a half dozen or so palettes as large as these. Even that is a lot of eyeshadow.

Urban Decay's latest Naked palette offering seems to be a bit polarizing. There are those who complain that all the colors are so similar that it's hard to create a look using just this palette that has any contrast. Fair enough. Then there are those like me who absolutely love coppery eyeshadows, and who have small and/or hooded lids, so that they don't create complex designs with their eye makeup anyway. I rarely use more than a couple of different eyeshadows at the same time. So for me, a whole spectrum of variations on a favorite in different finishes is right up my alley. While I understand why it's not for everyone, it's still one of my personal favorites from the past year. I also like the 80s-style design of the packaging, for what it's worth. (I haven't actually swatched or written about this palette here yet--not that there's a lack of information about it out there--but I will work on that.)

Juvia's Place The Nubian is another warm palette, like so many that came after it in 2016-2017. It's more exciting than Naked Heat, but also trickier to use (for me, at least). I reviewed it here, but the main difference is that the shadows tend to appear more orange/pink/red rather than brown on me, even those that look quite brown in the pan. It's beautiful and good quality and a lot of fun, though, so I don't like it any less than Naked Heat.

Physician's Formula Eye Booster 2-in-1 Lash Boosting Eyeliner + Serum in Ultra Black

I finally bought the Physician's Formula liquid liner pen with all its ridiculous claims and horribly long name, and it's as great as everyone says it is. I reviewed it here. I recently brought the brown too, but I'm waiting to finish another brown liquid liner before I crack it open.

Butter London Glazen Eye Gloss in Oil Slick

This gooey, glittery cream eyeshadow isn't anything like a staple product, but it's got to be the most unusual and entertaining makeup I've bought recently. Swatched in all its glory here. I see that Butter London now has blushes and a highlighter in the same formula--intriguing! I will probably use some Ulta points to try out the blush at some point, though surely it's not as sparkly as the eyeshadow (right?), because I don't think that would work for me.

Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid in Yellow and Essence Eyebrow Designer Pencil in Soft Blonde

Urban Decay's yellow corrector, on the other hand, has become a staple in my routine. I use it almost every day. (Reviewed here.) It's not cheap, however, so I've bought the LA Girl version, and I'm going to write a comparison post soon, since my Urban Decay tube is getting low.

What is cheap, though, is this Essence eyebrow pencil. Soft Blonde is a nice taupe that is slightly warmer than my discontinued Avon favorite, so while it's not the absolutely perfect shade, for $2 I will gladly accept nearly perfect. It's the right softness and pigmentation (i.e. not too much of either) to make it easy to use when I'm in a hurry (i.e. every morning).

Urban Decay Vice Lipsticks

From left to right above: Venom, Backtalk, Manic, Rock Steady, Sheer F-Bomb, Wildfire, Accident, Epigram.

Instead of choosing a specific lip product as my favorite, I figured that the number of Vice lipsticks I've accumulated by now is pretty good evidence of how much I like this line. Mind you, two were mini gifts-with-purchase, and there's one here that I don't actually like much (Manic), but I wanted to include them all for completeness. They combine easy application and wear with interesting colors and, most important for me, comfort. My only complaint is that I wish the case didn't look like a fucking bullet. I understand the visual pun, but I could really do without it. (By the way, I swatched a ton of Vice lipsticks from samples last year.)

Oh, you know what I just realized that's kind of weird? Of all the full-size Vice lipsticks I own, only two have not been discontinued (Manic and Accident). That probably says something profound about who I am as a person, or whatever.

CosRx Acne Pimple Master Patches, Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster, and (not pictured) Paula's Choice Omega+ Complex Serum

Moving three times to three different states with three very different climates within the space of a year has really confused my skin. I've needed to use more of these CosRx patches than I'd like, but they are reliable. I reviewed them here.

I actually don't remember when I started using my first bottle of the Paula's Choice Niacinamide Booster, but I'm now on my second. I've come to realize that my skin just really responds well to niacinamide, which keeps it smoother and clearer. It's convenient to be able to add this stuff to whatever other product I'm using at the time. It's very pricey, though, so when I finish this bottle I might try The Ordinary's niacinamide stuff, and I've also heard that Stratia's Rewind has a lot of niacinamide and is great. But it'll be a while before I need something else.

Paula's Choice Omega+ Serum is something that I loved, used up, and didn't replace, because it's more than I want to spend right now. But it made my skin feel fantastic, and--even though it's not a benefit they advertise--it cleared up the redness in the center of my face better than anything I've used before or since (including the Paula's Choice Redness Reducing Serum). It was also hydrating enough that I didn't need to use a separate moisturizer in the summer. I'm probably going to have to just buy another bottle, because it has so many ingredients in it that I could waste a lot of money trying to pinpoint what exactly worked so well for me.

So those are my favorites! It's a smallish list, I guess because I already have products in most categories that I love and continue to use from past years (listed here and here and here), and nothing more recent has surpassed them. Two observations from looking at the list as a whole: (1) there is some stuff here that's more expensive than what I usually buy myself; and (2) Urban Decay is heavily represented. On the first point, that's mainly due to having an Ulta MasterCard that I pay off every month. I use the points to get things I might not otherwise buy. (I'm a Canadian who never thought I would stay in the US this long, and I suddenly found I needed to build credit at a rather late stage in my life. And there was that pre-approved Ulta card . . .) On the second point, I've just been liking Urban Decay, I guess. I mean, they have been churning out a lot of crap, and their "shock me, shock me, shock me" eye-rolling marketing doesn't exactly resonate with me, but I've tried a bunch of things that I ended up enjoying a lot.

I was also going to write a disappointments post, like I did last year, but I wasn't able to come up with a very good list. That's surprising for a bitter bitch like myself. (Honorable mentions go to every Maybelline and L'Oréal mascara I tried, though, because they always, always flake like crazy on me.) Can I chalk it up to continued learning and having a better idea of what I like and what I don't like? I certainly think I made fewer impulse purchases in 2017 than in previous years, but as for whether I know myself better, let's give it another year and check in again.

What have you been liking (or hating) recently--whether it's something new or an old favorite? I'm always up for recommendations!