2013's Most Loved: Part 1

I'm a little bit late on this post, but I couldn't transition from 2013 to 2014 without wrapping up the year through a favourites post (or two - my non-beauty related favourites will be posted tomorrow). I've absolutely loved reading everyone else's favourites and thought I'd do my own for those who were interested.

Skincare: Arbonne RE9 Advanced Generating Toner
It astounds me that of all my skincare, a toner was my favourite. I've never shown any interest in a toner in my life (primarily due to the fact that all past experiences with them have been bad ones) but when I was given the opportunity to try this out, I fell in love with it. It is the best.

Hair care: Batiste Dry Shampoo - Fresh
I can be lazy at the best of times, but when it comes to my hair I am lazy to the extreme. It is for this reason that my favourite hair care product was easily a dry shampoo, in particular one by Batiste. Maybe I'll have a hair product that is a little classier in 2014, say a lovely hair oil or serum or something, but for now I'm content to rely on the lazy girl's hair wash.

Fragrance: DKNY Be Delicious
I was given a tiny little bottle of DKNY's Be Delicious perfume for Christmas in 2012 and wore it non stop in 2013. Along with Marc Jacob's Daisy Eau So Fresh, I think it will be a perfume I continue to use for a long time into the future.

Body: My New Skin Multipurpose Balm
A super late addition to the family, the My New Skin Multipurpose Balm practically saved my life. Okay, perhaps not my life but certainly my horribly dry skin around my feet and elbows. I has a super heavy duty formula and works like a charm.

Brush: Real Techniques Stippling Brush
I had heard so many magical things about Real Techniques brushes and took the plunge myself, purchasing a face set and Stippling brush. Then came my obsession with cream blushes, and in turn I came to use the Stippling brush everyday thus appreciating how darn amazing it is.

Tool: Eyelash curler
It was a toss up between the humble Q-tip and eyelash curler, but in the end I realised it is the eyelash curler that has the truly magical touch.

Nails: Red Nail Polish
I have no overall favourite polish, but my most worn shade was most definitely red. Red, red, red, I acquired so many gorgeous polishes all in...red.

Shower product: Lush Snow Fairy Shower Gel
Though this is the most sugary, intense flavour I have ever come across, I did use this regularly in the shower and I came to love this more than when I had first received it as a gift. Some days it is too sweet, but most of the time I am a big fan.

Base makeup: Garnier BB cream for oily skin
I rave about this all.the.time. so I'm not going to make you endure yet another ramble. Just take my word that for light, everyday coverage this is the best of its kind.

Foundation: Rimmel Wake me up foundation
For a cheap foundation (in comparison to both other 'drugstore' foundations like Revlon and higher end ones too) this is pretty impressive. It's glowy and youthful, healthy looking and easy to work with. My only complaint is its shimmer which can, at times, be a little too much, but other than that it's excellent.

Setting powder: Maybelline Dream Matte Powder
I hit pan on this in 2013 which shows you just how much I loved it. If there weren't so many cheaper options out there I would get it again, but I'm currently in the middle of three other adequate powders and (sadly) won't be purchasing this anytime soon.

Concealer: Face of Australia Stick Concealer in Neutral
I played around with a couple of concealers in 2013 but the best all rounder and the one I turned to most often was the cheap little stick concealer by Face of Australia.

Bronzer: Maybelline Bronzer in Forever Warm
I'm not really a bronzer person, nor do I have that many in my collection. Though I wouldn't purchase this bronzer if it disappeared from collection due to the fact that, well, it's just not that good, I did use it often in 2013.

Blush: Australis Creme Blush in Flirtatious Pink 
Choosing my favourite blush for the year just about killed me. Honestly, I am such a blush junkie that I have enough to use a different one everyday for two weeks...which is basically what I do. In the end I had to give the award to a cream blush, specifically Australis' Flirtatious Pink. Perfect in every way, it is the gorgeous colour that pulled it over the line and onto the winner's podium.

Highlighter: Essence Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 2 Shimmer Powder in Bella's Secret
Despite that it has the most awful name I have ever heard of, this is stunning. It's a warm toned golden powder highlight that catches the light exactly how I want it, looks subtle enough not to make me resemble a disco ball but not too subtle that you can't even see it. Oh my, it's so frustrating that it was a limited edition product (like all of Essence's best products have been!)

Eyeshadow: Bloom Eyeshadow Duo in Waikiki
Like blush, this category was very near impossible to narrow down to a single shadow. In the end I had to recognise the incredible champagne golden shade from the Bloom duo that accompanied me on every trip and was the base shade for every eyeshadow look I wore. It really does deserve to win 2013's best shadow although it does pain me to leave out my much loved Inglot Shadows...

Eyeliner: Face of Australia Liquid Liner in Black
This liner is the best, no doubt about it. It's jet black, sticks like glue and easy to use for even the most useless eyeliner appliers. I turned to it time and time again and even wore a cat eye look for the first time in my life. Thank you FOA!

Mascara: Covergirl Lashblast length waterproof
The tube of this mascara that I own is honestly a magic mascara - there is no other explanation for the fact that I have used this every.single.day. for two years and it has still not yet run out. It lengthens like crazy, defines every lash and gives a gorgeous natural look. Sure, it's not at all suitable for you if you want a bit of drama but for me it is just perfect.

Eyebrows: Essence Clear lash and brow gel
I had many empties of this and raved about it all the time. It's super cheap and makes my brows somewhat acceptable, so who could ask for anything more?

Lipbalm: Blistex lip conditioner
I share the most complicated love/hate relationship with this product, but the bottom line is that it saves my chapped lips and works better than anything I've ever tried. I apply this every night and at the rate I'm going it will be a 2014 empty for sure.

Lipstick: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Romantic
I deliberated about this for twenty minutes, no exaggeration. I narrowed it down to ten lip products, then five, then three, then two and final to one. Lip products are my favourite makeup products so it's no surprise that I own about ten billion of them. 2013 was the year of the lip crayon, and I wore this red beauty non stop.

Overall makeup brand: Face of Australia
Face of Australia is affordable, Australian (obviously) and comes out with some incredible products. Their lip crayons, nail polishes and face products were all favourites of mine throughout the year and it was an obvious choice to nominate Face of Australia as my overall brand winner for 2013!

Phew...that is a lot of products for one year! I'd be amazed if you actually made it to the end of this post! My makeup collection certainly expanded significantly throughout 2013 but I had a lovely time, and it was all in the name of blog reviews...right?!

What was your overall favourite makeup brand for 2013?