The best of 2012: My favorite products

Hi everyone! Happy New Year! It is officially 2013 and I couldn't be more excited! But before I can spring forward into the new year, I think it's important to look back over 2012, and share with you all of my favorite products from 2012. We're talking makeup, skincare, bath and shower products, tools, makeup removers. Everything you can think of! These can be products that just came out in 2012, or products that I discovered in 2012, or even just products that I continued to use and love all year! I still plan on doing my December favorites soon, but those just consist of products that I used and loved in December, where my yearly favorites are products I loved all year!







I didn't really try that many moisturizers for my face. But the one that I tried, loved and continue to use in the new year is the Equate Naturally beaming Daily moisturizer with SPF 15. It's the walmart brand equivalent to Aveeno positively radiant moisturizer. I can't tell you how it compares to the aveeno one, because I have never tried that one. I just know that the Equate one really helps moisturize and nurture my dry skin. It works well, even in winter when my already dry skin gets even dryer. I find that is moisturizes, and also helps to even my skin tone. It is not greasy or sticky at all. I highly recommend it, and it was a definite favorite in 2012!

For Body, I haven't really found a fantastic body lotion. So no ultimate favorite for 2012. I could have picked one, but I didn't want to include something that I wasn't totally in love with just for the sake of filling this spot! So, if you have an ultimate favorite body lotion that you love, and think I should try, leave me a comment down below and let me know!!

The face primer that I used and loved in 2012 is the Elf Mineral Infused Face Primer. I have tried both the original clear one and the one in Tone adjusting Green and I gotta give the prize to the original. The green one didn't really work any differently to me than the Clear one. This primer is really good! It glides on silky smooth, evens out my skin and makes my foundation glide on effortlessly and last all day. I have tried some other more expensive primers that I have liked, but this is the one that I consistently came back to in 2012, because it works well and has a great price point at just 6 dollars from eyeslipsface.com (You can often get it for half off as well)

For eye primer I gotta give it to Elf again. My favorite eyelid primer for 2012 is the Eyes lips face essential eyelid primer in sheer. It's a one dollar miracle worker! It works great for keeping my eyeshadow lasting all day without adding any color or glitter or shimmer to the look. This little one dollar tube of eyelid primer is an amazing value because it works great, and one tube lasts me a good 10 months, even when I have used it practically every day! I have tried both urban decay primer potion and too faced shadow insurance, and while I do like those, you simply can't beat Elf's value!! 

In the summer time when it's hot out, I tend to skip heavy foundations and go more often to a tinted moisturizer. The one that I used most often? Once again it's Elf. The Elf Studio tinted moisturizer in Nude. It's a great, light tinted moisturizer. It gives a light converage and contains spf 20, which is great for those hot summer days. The shade in nude is a perfect match for my skin, and I really like the finish of the moisturizer as well. It left my face looking and feeling moisturized without looking or feeling greasy. And at just 3 dollars a tube, you can't go wrong. Especially since two tubes took me through spring and summer (and I still have most of the second tube left!)

As far as foundation goes, I have a couple of different favorites. I reached most often for these two foundations over all of my others. The first is the NYC smooth skin liquid makeup. I am in the shade Nude. This is a fantastic foundation with medium coverage. I find that it lasts all day on me, does not oxidize, and I enjoy the finish. It's also a great value. you can buy a bottle of this foundation for around 3 or 4 dollars. The only thing I am not crazy about with this foundation is the packaging. It's a glass tube with no pump, and the foundation itself is so thick that it does not pour out. I have to use a Q-tip to get the product out of the tube in order to apply it to my face. If NYC would change the packaging on this I would like it a lot more!

My other favorite foundation for 2012 is the Revlon colorstay whipped creme foundation. Once again, my shade is Nude. I love this foundation. It's a medium to full coverage. The consistency of this foundation is a great whipped texture, without being too thick. Once again, the only complain I have is with the packaging. The packaging on this is a glass jar, which makes it heavy and awkward to travel with, plus, you have to dip your fingers or brush or whatever into it to get the product out which isn't the most sanitary. Otherwise this foundation is amazing, and it costs around 10 dollars.

I have a couple of different favorites in the way of concealer for 2012. The first is the Elf tone correcting concealer. When I got this concealer, I honestly wasn't expecting much, but this is a great little concealer. It's a liquid concealer and I find it does an amazing job for general concealing, whether it be for under eyes, blemishes, or dark spots. I use the shade light beige. It's got great coverage and I am incredibly happy with it, especially since it only costs a dollar!

The other concealer that I absolutely loved in 2012 is the Urban Decay 24/7 concealer pencil in CIA. I use this concealer under my eyes and since it's such a light shade it works great to conceal and brighten that area. It can tend to crease a little, so I use a bit of eyelid primer under it to prevent that, but it's an awesome pencil concealer I lucked out and was able to get this for just 5 dollars on sale from urban decay. The original price is, I think 20 dollars, and I love this concealer so much I am considering paying full price to repurchase when the one I have now runs out!

My favorite powder for 2012 is the same powder I used and loved in 2011. It's the NYC smoth skin pressed face powder in Translucent. I love this powder It is silky smooth on the skin, isn't cake-y and since it's translucent it doesn't add a ton of color or powdery look to the skin. It's a fantastic powder and since it only costs a few dollars, I don't mind repurchasing this one again and again!

My favorite powder blush for 2012 is the Elf studio blushes. All of the ones that I have tried are fantastic. They have a beautiful selection of colors and the quality is great for the price (3$ each). Some of my favorite shades include Pink passion and blushing rose.

My favorite cream blush of 2012 eeked in right at the last minute because I didn't actually get this one until a month or two ago. It's once again Elf and it's a new product that they came out with this year. It's their famous contouring blush and bronzing powder in cream form. The blush in this duo is absolutely beautiful. It's creamy, it applies like a dream and even though I have not honestly tried many cream blushes, this one is by far my favorite for 2012!!

Just like 2011, the bronzer that I loved the most for all over color and perking up my skin is the NYC smooth skin bronzing face powder in Sunny. It's a fantastic, light bronzer shade! The bronzer that I loved the most in 2012 for contouring is the Elf baked bronzer in St. Lucia. I only got this towards the end of the year, but I like it better than any of the other bronzers I have tried for contouring, because it's not too dark or muddy looking on my pale skin!

I didn't really have a favorite highlighting product for 2012. I used a lot of different ones and liked them all pretty much equally. So since I didn't have a product that really stood out from the crowd, I won't name a favorite for 2012.

Moving on to eyes, my favorite cream eyeshadow are the maybelline color tattoos. I use these as eyeshadow bases, as well as on their own and they are amazing quality. I have 5 or 6 of these and absolutely love every single one of them. Some of my favorite colors are bad to the bronze, too cool and audacious asphalt. I hope to purchase even more in 2013. I can't say enough good things about these!

I used a TON of different eye shadows in 2012. A lot of different shadows in many different finishes, and forms. I could go on and on forever about certain shades that I love, etc. Instead, I will just talk about a couple of my favorite brands. I love the eyeshadows from Wet n wild. They are incredibly rich and pigmented, and have a ton of different choices! The other favorite brand is Urban Decay. I especially love the Urban Decay naked palettes and use them on a very regular basis! 

The pencil eyeliner that I loved the most in 2012 are the Urban Decay 24/7 glide on eyeliner pencils. I loved all of the ones I have but the one I used the most frequently is their blackest black eyeliner pencil in perversion.

The gel/cream eyeliner that I used most often in 2012 and really enjoyed using is the Elf cream eyeliner. I have it in the shade black as well as metallic olive and I use them both on a fairly regular basis. These cost 3 dollars each and come with a little brush for applying them which is actually a pretty good little brush if you don't already own an eyeliner brush.

The liquid eyeliner that I used, and the eyeliner that I used most often in 2012 overall is the Elf waterproof eyeliner pens. I have them in a bunch of different colors and I love them. They are a felt tip pen style liquid liner, which I find easiest to apply. I adore these. They have a decent color selection and at a dollar each, you can afford to own them all!

I have three different favorites in mascara. I tried to narrow it down and I simply couldn't, so I decided to include them all! My favorite waterproof mascara is the Covergirl lash blast volume waterproof mascara. I love what this mascara does for my lashes. The rubber bristle brush helps totally separate my lashes without clumping, and the waterproof formula lasts all day but comes off easily with eyemakeup remover. I also love the NYC instant lash mascara. This mascara is only a dollar, and is great for when i simply want a casual everyday look. My third favorite mascara is the mascara I use when I want major drama. It's the L'oreal voluminous million lashes mascara. It's an awesome mascara and one I tried for the first time in 2012 and I am so glad that I did! None of these lashes flake or fade throughout the day. I recommend any of these, depending on what you are looking for in a mascara!

For my brows, I love the elf eyebrow kit for filling them in. I use the one in medium, and I find it's a great match for my brows, and makes it easy to fill them in. Then I use the elf wet gloss clear lash and brow mascara to set them. This is the combination I used all year in 2012, and I imagine it will continue to be the combo I use in 2013 as well, because it's fantastic! 

My favorite lip balm for 2012 will come as no surprise to any of you! It's the EOS smooth sphere lip balms. I have quite a few and love them all, but my all time favorite is the one in Lemon Drop.

I couldn't leave out the maybelline baby lips, though, so I am including them as my favorite tinted lip balm. I love these. The sheer wash of color is awesome, and these lip balms are incredibly moisturizing!!

I thought long and hard about which lipsticks to name as my favorite for 2012. I have a lot of loves, and I wanted to include them all, but that would be a whole separate post. So instead of naming all of my favorite lipsticks of 2012, I decided to name just one brand of lipstick the winner, and I had to go with the Revlon colorburst lip butters. I own 6 or 7 of these, some of which I have had since January of 2012, and others that I just recently purchased but I love them all. The color selection is awesome, they are so buttery and moisturizing on the lips, and the packaging is beautiful. Love the lip butters, and hope to own many more before 2013 comes to a close!

My favorite lip glosses for 2012 was another one that I had a hard time picking because I love so many, but ultimately I had to go with my old stand by. The ELF lucious liquid lipsticks. I love these. I use them as a gloss, because despite their name, these are too sheer to be lipsticks. The color selection is nice, I like the application, and these aren't sticky at all. And they cost just 1 dollar each! The elf hypershine glosses are more popular, but I prefer these by far!

My favorite makeup remover wipes for 2012, and the only wipes I ever use are the Elf makeup remover cleansing cloths. I have gone through dozens on these in the year 2012. I love them,. They easily remove all of my makeup, don't leave behind any weird residue, and cost just 3 dollars. I always stock up on these whenever they go on sale, and usually end up getting them for half price. I can't say enough good things about these!

For stubborn eye makeup and waterproof mascara, the eye makeup remover that I turn to and love the most is the equate brand eye makeup remover. It's not oily like some others that I have tried, it's a great price and works incredibly well for a store brand! It's from walmart, and are supposed to be comparable to the loreal eye makeup remover, which I haven't actually tried, and don't feel the need to since this works so well! 

I am not going to include my favorite nail polishes in this post, because I am planning a separate post for my top 12 polishes of 2012, but my favorite top coat for 2012 is the Sally hansen insta-dri anti-chip top coat. It's amazing. It adds a nice shine to any nail look while protecting the polish and keeping it chip free for up to a week! I don't have a favorite base coat, so leave your favorites in a comment below so hopefully I can have a favorite for 2013! I also don't have a favorite nail polish remover. I feel like they all pretty much work the same to me!

My favorite brushes for 2012 are the Elf studio brushes. All of them are amazing, but I especially loved  the elf powder brush, the elf blush brush, the kabuki face brush, the small stipple brush and the complexion brush. Also the angled eyeliner brush and the small angled brush for eyes. Other eye brushes I liked a ton came from the essential line of brushes. the essential eyeshadow brush, the blending eye brush, the defining eye brush, the crease brush and the eyelash and brow wand! Also, I gotta throw in my favorite foundation brush which is the coastal scents powder buffer, which works amazing for buffing in foundation!

My favorite eye lash curler in 2012 is the Elf mechanical eyelash curler. It's from their one dollar essential line and works great. It's the perfect size for my eyes, works easily and is efficient at curling each and every lash. 

Moving on to some skin care stuff. My favorite everyday face wash for 2012 was the Clean and Clear Foaming Facial Cleanser for sensitive skin. It's a great, basic everyday cleanser for removing dirt and oil.

My favorite exfoliating scrub that I use every few days to help slough off the dead skin and keep my dry skin looking good is the  Clean and Clear Deep action exfoliating scrub. I love that it exfoliates without being super harsh, and it has a great wake me up smell. 

I don't have a favorite body wash. I find that they all pretty much work the same for me, and even the moisturizing ones that I have tried haven't been all that impressive. Leave me a comment and let me know what your favorite body wash is!

My favorite shampoo and conditioner for 2012 is the one that I went back to most often. Whenever I wasn't trying something new, it was always the tresemme shampoo and conditioner,. I have used lots of different ones from tresemme and I like them all pretty much equally. They do a good job of cleaning my hair and have a great smell.

 For deep conditioning I used and loved The Aussie 3 minute miracle. This stuff literally works a miracle on my hair. I love how soft and pretty my hair looks after using this stuff. I used this about twice a week in 2012. I think for 2013 I am going to make this my everyday conditioner and look for something even more moisturizing to deep condition with. but in 2012, it was deep conditioner of choice and I will definitely continue to use it in 2013.

My favorite dry shampoo of 2012 is the suave dry shampoo. I tried dry shampoo for the first time last year and I tried quite a few different ones, but of the ones I tried, this was by far the best! Love it! It works great for absorbing the oils in my hair between washes and even helps give me some volume. Highly recommend it! 

Really quickly, A couple of other hair products that I used and loved in 2012 are the Beyond the Zone super sexy wave spray, which is great for adding texture to the hair. I used it a ton during the summer time. Another hair product that I used and loved is the organix renewing moroccan argan oil which was great for making my hair look shiny and healthy and moisturizing and helped to tame fly aways as well.




Well guys, I think that about wraps it up for my favorite products of 2012. This was an incredibly long post and I worked a long time on it so hopefully you found this helpful. Let me know in the comments down below what some of your favorite products for 2012 were. And be sure to follow this blog, as well as my youtube channel: Jwhackers for lots more great posts in 2013! Hope you all had an amazing 2012 and have an even better 2013. Thanks for reading!!