Earlier this year, Total Beauty editors sifted through thousands of beauty products to pick their 2012 Total Beauty Award Winners. The five products below are Editors’ Picks for the must-have beauty essentials — everything you need in your beauty survival kit to get you through the day — from handy applicator on-the-go Q-Tips Precision Tips to Wella Velvet Amplifier. And, with everything under a wallet-friendly $20, restocking your beauty arsenal throughout the year won’t break the bank.

How did I not know about this hair wonder before now? It smells amazing and I love the silky, gel formula. It makes my hair so soft and silky and works great alone or with other products.

THE HAIR HELPER:
Wella Velvet Amplifier ($16): A styling primer made with the science of skincare, “this concentrated serum adds nice texture to hair and makes styling a breeze” says Total Beauty Editors. Yes, please!

Love the precision Q-tips, such a great beauty tool. They work great to apply makeup (eye shadow brush on the go) or fiz smudges without wiping too much off. My favorite thing is to use them for at home mani/pedis. I am pretty shaky with a nail polish brush but I can dip a precision Q-tip into polish remover and clean up my nails in a snap.

THE PRO-TOOL YOU MUST USE:
Q-Tips Precision Tips ($2.50): These Precision Tip Q-Tips are the ultimate tool to have in your arsenal for quick touch ups. Use it to apply lip gloss in a pinch and they’re “erfect for fixing eye makeup mistakes without smudging the parts you got right.”

I just had a facial done and my esthetician recommended I find a cleanser with a little more oomph than my usual gentle cleanser. I had just received the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Oil-Free Cleanser and it has been perfect. The formula is strong enough to really clean out my pores and it leave me face soft and smooth. I am amazed how little product I need to clean my face, don’t tell Kiehl’s this huge tube is going to last forever!

THE KEY TO “PERFECT” SKIN:
Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Oil-Free Cleanser ($19.50): Total Beauty Editors attest that it leaves skin clean, moisturized and quite frankly, “perfect”.

My lips are pretty full so I am not usually hunting for a lip plumper but I love Sexy Mother Pucker Plumping Gloss because is smooths out lips and the colors are gorgeous. It is a bit to the sticky side but it stays on for a long time which I love.

TALK ABOUT LIP SERVICE:
Soap & Glory Super-Colour Sexy Mother Pucker Plumping Gloss ($15): This rising star, award-winning smoothing and plumping gloss doesn’t sting like others, but it packs a hefty punch for your pout!

Oh how do I love this mascara! I had been using another drugstore brand but Maybelline has won my devotion with their Volum’ Express Falsies mascara. I love the curved brush it helps give my lashes a bit of curl as I put on my mascara. Better yet is how amazingly long my lashes look and no clumping or smudging!

THE MUST-HAVE MASACARA:
Maybelline New York Volum’ Express Falsies Flared Washable ($8): Total Beauty Editors adore this “bargain product” because it “can beat the most expensive mascaras around when it comes to delivering thick, defined lashes.”

No surprise Maybelline New York, official Makeup Sponsor of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, knows its way around the runway. Widely regarded as the cosmetic color authority, Maybelline New York mixes fashion forward runway style with beauty savvy, taking it from the catwalk to the sidewalk and bringing the latest colors, textures and trends to cutting edge cosmetics from head-to-toe. Now, just in time for the holidays, Maybelline New York introduces Fashion Prints Nail Stickers by Color Show and Sequins by Color Show, two limited edition mini-collections that no nail diva will want to miss! Here’s the deal…

Fashion Prints Nail Stickers by Color Show – the ultimate fashion fix for fingertips!

These runway-ready, handcrafted designs are the ultimate fashion accessory. And thanks to UV cured technology that lasts, these fashionable prints are made to stick around.

Eight on-trend patterns include Fierce N Fuchsia, Midnight Lace, Wild Reptile, Metal Prisms, Cheetah Chic, Sapphire Jewels, Divine Crocodile and Resort Couture.

Easy to apply in three simple steps: 1.Select a sticker that best fits each nail. 2. Lay the sticker over the bare nail and apply a little pressure over the entire surface of the nail using the cuticle stick 3. Fold the spare top of sticker over nail tip and file away the extra length of sticker in a downward motion.

Sequins by Color Show – a show-stopping nail effect that will have fingers party perfect!

Get your nails ready for the holidays with show-stopping nail candy that dazzles with non-stop runway sparkle and fierce sequin effects.

A unique transparent suspension gel holds these concentrated pigments in their truest form for crisper color and ultra high shine. A flexible resin resists chipping and allows for a smooth, controlled application. The Easy Flow brush makes application virtually mistake proof. Try all eight glam-tacular sequin-laden shades: Ruby Rhinestones, Lavender Sparks, Silver Gleam, Gold’s Night Out, Sea-Quins, Rose Bling, Sapphire Masquerade and Cocktail Dress.

New Fashion Prints Nail Stickers and Sequins by Color Show will be available in mass market retailers nationwide as special limited-edition collections. Suggested retail prices are $7.99 for the Fashion Prints Nail Stickers and $3.99 for Sequins. Hurry fast because this is ONLY available during the month of November!

Victoria’s Secret Hypnotic Beauty Luminous Blush

Maybelline Eye Studio Color Plush Eyeshadows

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Source – Photos courtesy of Instyle

Make Her Up was so happy to be invited to be part of Glam’s Beauty Board. As part of this awesome community within Glam, we’ll be trying out the latest and greatest beauty products – and reviewing them for you! This week we have six awesome new products ranging from quite possibly the perfect blue finger nail polish to a helpful eyebrow grooming kit!

1) Essie Nail Color in Midnight Cami

When I opened my cute little bag of goodies from Glam, this nail polish was the first thing I pulled out and “ooooohed” over. I took a quick peek at everything else, then went back to this gorgeous polish. I’ve tried on lots of blue polish in the past, and nothing – nothing I tell you – comes even close to how great THIS BLUE is. I’m wearing it now, and I would take a picture but I’ve loved it so much it’s chipping off now, and not beautiful at all. In fact, I’m on my second application. I tried it on that first day – and fell quickly in love. If you like blue polish, heck, even if you don’t – you should give this try. All you need is base coat (I made a mistake and didn’t do that the first time, yikes!) and two coats of this gorgeous color. You’ll have a deep twilight blue that shimmers all week long. Love it!

MSRP $8

2) Volume Accelerator Mascara by Rimmel London

If there’s one product I love trying the most, it’s mascara. Have you ever noticed how mascara brings the promise of so many different outcomes!? You name it! It lengthens, it curls, it adds volume, it separates, it darkens, it defines the eyes! If you get the right mascara, you’ll know it immediately. Get the wrong one, and you’re cringing in your robe. I hate coming to the end of my makeup, eye shadow and eye liner looking perfect, and then I top it off with the wrong mascara, and the whole look is shot. Anyway, back to my product. I’m happy to announce that Rimmel London’s Volume Accelerator Mascara is NOT the latter. It is a great mascara formulated with an advanced volume boosting complex. Your lashes can look up to 10x fuller with only one application! This mascara separates your lashes beautifully looking fresh – and clump free! Love it!

MSRP $7.99

3) Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in Blackest Black

This is one of those rare products you find, and you think to yourself – THANK GOD I found this! I love me some eyeliner, and truth be told, I usually spend WAY too much money on it. I used to have this awesome gel eyeliner from another brand – but it costs a fortune! As soon as it ran out – the pot just sat in my drawer and dried up. Not to mention you have to buy the eyeliner brush separately! Forget about it! Well, Maybelline has an incredible gel eyeliner that is perfect – AND it comes WITH the brush! How cool is that! The brush draws on the eyeliner perfectly every time. It’s smooth and beautiful, and doesn’t smudge! Perfect!

Why You’ll Love It

Now gel reinvents liner:
• Oil-free formula holds highly concentrated pigments in a clear gel base
• Smudge-proof and waterwproof for 24 hours
• Most intense line for lasting drama
• Safe for sensitive eyes and ophthalmologist-tested
• Contact lens safe

MSRP $7.99

4) Revlon Matte Lipstick in Really Red

MSRP $7.99

5) Urban Decay Eyeshadow in S&M

Urban Decay has always been one of my favorite eyeshadow brands. I love how their shadow goes on. It doesn’t take much to get the color/look you’re after. It’s rich – and bold – and gorgeous! Every time! I’m loving their new shade, S&M. It’s a beautiful metallic color. When I tried this shadow, I paired it with the gel liner and mascara I reviewed above. The results were amazing! The three together make the perfect look! Add the lipstick, and voila! You’re looking hot!

The shadow is loaded with color, with very few binders (the stuff that holds shadow together), resulting in beautiful color that blends easily and lasts. Lots of finishes to suit your mood: sparkle, shimmer, duochrome or metallic.

$17

6) Benefit Brow Zings

Benefit Brow Zings comes with all the tools you need for clean, smooth, perfectly-defined brows. The instructions tell you to use the wax to set your brows where you want them, then apply the powder to fill areas that need it. Use the handy tweezers to pluck away stragglers!

The kit includes a soft, pigmented wax that defines and shapes brows and a color complementing setting powder to keep them looking wow, plus discreet tweezers for pesky stray hairs, a hard angle brush, and a blending brush.

$30

Check out the rest of the family at Glam’s Beauty Board!

Volume Express Mascara!

FALSE LASH GLAM IN A TUBE – NOW GOES FLARED! 300% MORE VISIBLE LASHES. Winged out & over the top, instantly!

Why You’ll Love It
False lash glam with a flare, instantly!
• Patented Spoon Curler Brush fans out lashes from corner-to-corner, while our Pro-Keratin formula instantly builds volume without clumping.
• Unique flexible wand lifts and separates lashes to provide the look of 300% more visible, lashes.
• Contact lens safe and ophthalmologist-tested.
• Washable, also available in waterproof formula.

I love this mascara. I’m always thrilled when I find a drugstore mascara that rivals the $30 brands. This mascara really does the trick – and you’re going to love it! It actually does flare your eyelashes, which is pretty awesome! Love it!

BUY

Color Sensational High Shine Lipstick!

MIRROR-LIKE COLOR from micro-mirror pigments, CREAMIER FEEL from nourishing honey nectar, 10 lush lip shades!

Why You’ll Love It
See the sumptuous side of high shine:
• So refined, so sophisticated…it’s sensational
• Mirror-like color from micro-mirror pigments
• Creamier feel from nourishing honey nectar
• Now lips flaunt the most spectacular shine
• 10 lush lip shades

I tried this lipstick in Lacquered Brown, which was really dark – but I liked it! It doesn’t have that gross smell that a lot of lipsticks have. It goes on really smooth and creamy – and it really lasts! You have 10 shades to choose from! Give it a try!

BUY

Eyestudio Master Drama Cream Pencil

PENCIL’S DELIVERY PLUS CREAM’S INTENSITY. Created with the highest concentration of pigments for more intense eye drama.
The NEW GENERATION of liner.

Why You’ll Love It
Experience the new generation of liner:
• Oil-free cream formula holds the highest concentration of pigments for more intense eye drama.
• Smudgeproof and waterproof for 16 hours.
• Most intense line for lasting drama.
• Safe for sensitive eyes and ophthalmologist-tested.
• Contact lens safe.

Why do I love it? Because I LOVE eye liner. Obsessed is more like it! I am ALWAYS looking for a good eye-liner. My #1 complaint with eyeliners is a liner that runs or bleeds. This eyeliner doesn’t do that! It stays put – and looks gorgeous for hours! It’s waterproof – which is perfect. You don’t want it running down your face every time your eyes water! This is a GREAT liner!!

BUY

EyeStudio Color Explosion Luminizing Eyeshadow!

Exclusive luminizer combines with pigments for PURE IMPACT, EXQUISITE COLOR. IGNITED BY LIGHT. Exquisite color. Ignited by light. Now explosive eyes are born.

Why You’ll Love It
• Sophisticated color, ignited by an exclusive luminizer, reveals amazing color highlights.
• Explosive pigments sweep on for the truest color payoff. Exclusive luminizer unleashes a surge of color.
• Ophthalmologist-tested. Safe for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers

I love the colors of these eyeshadows. I love that there’s five colors in one place! The colors go beautifully together! I wish they were bigger, actually. It’s hard to negotiate the brush on these little palettes, but the colors are great!

BUY

Instant Age Rewind!

ACTIVE FORMULA + MICRO-CORRECTOR APPLICATOR NOW ERASE INSTANTLY. MORE TARGETED. MORE COMPLETELY. Erases dark circles, puffiness and fine lines.

Why You’ll Love It
• Micro-Corrector Applicator micro-fills and smoothes.
• Active formula with Haloxyl reduces the look of puffiness and shadows while fading the appearance of under-eye circles.
• Apply neutralizer shade for extreme dark circles.
• Brightener shade adds a luminous touch.

I have always had problems with dark circles under my eyes. This is a concealer that actually works! It has a super-soft applicator, and it goes on really beautifully. If you get the right color – it really does conceal those dark circles really well!

BUY

Fans of The Hills may be divided between Team Lauren and Team Heidi, but everyone concedes that Audrina Patridge has some pretty amazing eyes.  Allure Magazine asked her to share her lining and shadowing tricks – totally unscripted – or so we think.

My eyes are hazel, but sometimes they’ll look more brown, amber, or green.  When my hair is dark, it brings out the green. (My hair is naturally dirty blonde.)

I love black eyeliner.  I put it on the inner rims of my lash lines, top and bottom.  If I want a more dramatic look, I’ll go back over the top lash line again just a tiny bit to darken it.  If I mess up, I’ll just smudge the line with my finger and put eye shadow over it.  At night, I’ll switch to green, violet, or blue liner, and make it thick on the top and winged out at the ends.  And I always stick to pencil – lately I’ve been loving Maybelline because I never have to touch it up.

For shadow, I use M.A.C. All That Glitters as the base and a dark brown or maroon right in the crease.  And mascara’s a must.  Too Faced Lash Injection makes my lashes long and full.  When I go out, I add Benefit Gilded Highlighter on my brow bones.  It really makes your eyes stand out!

Get the look at home!

Maybelline Expert Wear Soft Lining Pencil.  This lining pencil features a soft glide formula.

• All-day wear
• No smudging, no smearing

Pick it up at a drugstore near you!

M.A.C.’s Eye Shadow, in All That Glitters.

Highly-pigmented powder. Applies evenly, blends well.

$14.50 – BUY IT HERE!

Too Faced’s Lash Injection.

Super-volumizing and lengthening mascara.

This exclusive, 3D formula actually builds tubes around each lash. This ” Lash Injection ” has unique elastic polymers that curl, fatten, and stretch far beyond the natural lash. This adds extreme volume, curl and length for that costly lash extension look without any of the hassle, pain or commitment. . You will no longer see clumps and lumps – but long, gorgeous, fluttering, new and improved eyelashes.

With a flick of the specially-designed “GIANT” wand lashes will be injected with indelible, weather-proof color. Substantial percentages of jojoba and vitamin E deeply condition lashes to prevent breakage and damage that can result in broken or sparse lashes. Easily removable with soap and warm water or eye make-up remover, this amazing mascara doesn’t dissolve and smudge like any ordinary mascara. Lash Injection comes off in tiny tubes, like little lash socks!

$19.50 – BUY IT HERE!

Benefit’s Gilded Highlighter!

Eyeliner Gilded
One stroke of this soft tequila gold pencil turns eyes and lips a gorgeous gold. Give it a shot.

$20.00 – BUY IT HERE!

I found a bunch of her advertisements for Maybelline online, and wanted to share!  Have any of you guys tried these products?  Do share! Do they work?  Would you recommend them?

Dream Matte Mousse

Intense XXL™ Volume & Length Washable Microfiber Mascara