My Top 18 Makeup Products of 2018!

I may totally be clickbaiting you here, because I liked the idea of the title, but I’m not sure if I have a Top 18 favourites. We’ll find out on our journey together through this list, where we actually end up.

Okay…wow gals…..it’s been a minute since I posted! I won’t lie, it’s been difficult to get back into the swing of things after the holidays, but nothing like revisiting your favourite makeup products to get the blood pumping! Right? 2018 was definitely the year I picked up some of my favourite products and also where there was a bit of a shift for me…. I’m buying less, but also trying to invest more into my skin. I’m trying not to let one obsession become another…it’s about finding balance though. That is what 2019 is definitely going to be about for me. Anyways, enough with the chit chat, let’s get into it, because I have a feeling this is going to be a long one!

Primer

The one I reached for most this year, was definitely my Benefit Porefessional. It’s reliable, it fills and blurs pores, mattifies….everything that I need it to be. Close second, and very similar, is the Elizabeth Arden Flawless Start Instant Perfecting Primer. These are the 2 I alternated between and I’m going to actively try to finish these in the next few months. 

Foundation

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’d know every year its been the same foundation…The L’Oreal Infallible 24hr Matte foundation. Every single year. I still love that foundation, and if you’re an oily skinned gal on a budget, get it! However, if you have some coins to spare….the Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place foundation….*insert heart eyes*. Gals….I get why this is a cult favourite around the world! This stuff is soooo freakin good! It’s full coverage, but you can sheer it out with a sponge. It lasts all day, doesn’t seperate and it makes my skin look flawless. Go pick up a sample and thank me later! My Summer shade is Cashew, just as a point of reference.

Concealer

Depending on what I’m looking for, I had 2 favourites last year. Still holding a spot in the ‘best of‘ from 2017, is the world-famous Tarte Shape Tape! This is full coverage, doesn’t crease and blends like a dream. The hype exists for a reason. However, if I’m looking for something lighter and a bit more natural, the Elizabeth Arden stroke of Perfection Concealer is my go too! Very lightweight, so creamy and you can blend it with your finger if you need to. Easy, quick and an amazing staple to have for a girl on the go, or even a newbie to makeup!

Powder

There was one that stole my heart this year…..and it’s the Elizabeth Arden Loose Blurring Powder. Gals, this powder is so beautiful! So finely milled, flawless on the skin, blurs your pores. It’s literally the best powder I’ve tried! One product I highly recommend that you try out if you’re in the market for a face powder.

Bronzer

So I discovered 2 new bronzers this year that I fell in love with! Hoola, by Benefit is a product I was always curious to try, so one day I spotted a mini at Edgars and grabbed it…then paid for it. Side note: Somebody told me the way I say ‘grabbed it’, is like I walk into a store and steal it. So DISCLAIMER…I do pay for the things I grab. lol. I thought it was so funny when she messaged me! This bronzer is stunning and I feel very neutral. It’s not too warm and not too cool toned….it’s just such an amazing bronzer and a really blendable formula. Really easy for the ordinary gal wanting to get into bronzing!

Then next, is the Clarins Summer Bronzer. This is a limited edition item, so I’m not sure if you can still get it. Everything from the packaging to the formula of this bronzer is amazing. I just feel so fancy when I use it, and the fact that it’s a great product only compounds that feeling. The formula is so good and there is a gradient made up of 3 different shades, so you can zone in on a shade or shades that appeal to you more. I personally swirl my brush into all 3.

Blush

I’m going to stop including blush in my ‘best of’ posts, because it’s the same blush….3 years in a row! Dallas, by Benefit! I don’t like looking like a rosy-cheeked clown, so Dallas is just enough to flush my skin to give me a natural bronzey-mauve wash of colour. I’m obsessed and try as I may, I barely ever reach for anything else.

Highlight

Another one I may as well remove….because same shit, different day! OFRA….. has the BEST highlight formula in my opinion. I have the shade ‘Rodeo Drive‘ and it’s just perfection. This formula melts into the skin and gives you the most gorgeous glow that you can either tone down…or glow to the moon and back. Your choice!

Eyeshadow Palette

I really want to try more locally available eyeshadows this year…that’s one of my goals. International brands just appeal to me more, so unfortunately most of my eyeshadow palettes are imported. The eyeshadow palette that stole my heart this year, was a mother’s day gift from my husband… The Soft Glam Palette by Anastasia Beverly Hills. The shades are beautiful, the formula is beautiful….if there’s one palette I could use for the rest of my life….it’s this one. BUT please don’t make me use only one…..pretty please!

Mascara

In 2018 I tried quite a few new mascaras….and I especially tried to find more affordable drugstore mascaras. I find that the ones I love are so expensive and I can’t use a mascara for more than 3 months, so it kind of adds up. I was ecstatic to discover the Essence Supercurl mascara this year and it was one that I repurchased and will continue to repurchase. It lasts all day, curls my lashes (I never use a lash curler) and doesn’t flake or transfer. For R64,95…really, you can’t go wrong!

Brows

I’ve always been a brow pencil kinda gal, and the MAC pencils have always been my favourite. Recently though, I picked up a Benefit Brow Kit…and my world has changed. I love every single brow product from Benefit, BUT Kabrow has got to be my favourite discovery of 2018. The little applicator brush is so small and precise…I find you can do the most subtle, natural brow..as well as a really dramatic brow. I am a changed woman and I doubt I’ll ever stop using this product.

Lips

This is the most boring category of makeup for me. I really am not experimental with my lips at all and I rotate between 2 MAC lipsticks (Velvet Teddy and Modesty), my Elizabeth Arden Plush Up Gelatos (in Natural Blush) and more recently…my Clarins Lip Oil in Mint. All great products, my absolute favourites….but I’m sure a few of you may find them boring. lol.

Setting Spray

So you may know that I am an oily skinned gal, I’m always looking for matte setting sprays! I was thrilled to get my hands on the MAC Fix + Matte earlier in 2018 and I am hooked. This takes away any powderiness, blends my makeup and also sets it…without it looking flat. I really adore this setting spray! Just remember to shake it like crazy before you use it, or you will be sitting with white flecks all over.

Gals, that’s it for my 2018 favourites! If my maths is correct and we take the MAC lipsticks as 1 product….I actually ended up with a top 18! A total fluke!!! I hope that you enjoyed the trip down memory lane with me. Hopefully this didn’t feel like that Survivor episode, where they light the torches of all the eliminated players and we all feel like…why did we have to go through that????? Thankfully, they’ve stopped doing those episodes now! I hope this post wasn’t like one of those episodes….

Let me know below which products were your favourites of 2018! I also really want to discover some more ‘drugstore’ holy grail products this year, so hit me up with your faves from the drugstore please. Also, did you spot anything here that you love or hate? I will be doing a ‘product misses of 2018‘ post…that will be coming a little later, but if you like that sort of thing, subscribe so you’re notified of all my new posts 😉