Beauty products are always a favorite to buy during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. It’s really the only time of year products like these are marked down and I usually try to take advantage and stock up. Remember, the sale doesn’t open to the public until Friday the 22nd, but if you’re a Nordstrom card holder you have early access now.

I love Voluspa candles and have bought this set the last few years. I like a to buy a few to have on hand for gifts.

 – Shop all my beauty picks –

If there’s one makeup product I can’t live without, it’s mascara. I’m a bit of an addict and usually have about six different ones floating around my makeup drawer. I have a few favorites but am always up to try out a new one. Until recently my all-time favorite was this one from Benefit. I love it and always end up going back to it, but I decided to mix it up and try a few to review.

The Good:

Too Faced Better than Sex. Everything about this mascara is perfect. Love the brush, love the way it goes on without clumping and seems to stay put all day. This is huge. I usually do my makeup around 5:15 am so I depend on a product to get me through the day.

L’Oreal Voluminous. This one was my favorite in high school and my lashes always looked long and healthy so I decided to go back to it. It’s pretty much the same 10+ years later and is a great budget friendly mascara. I’m really picky about brushes but I love this one.

L’Oreal Voluminous Superstar. Another great drug store buy, this mascara kicks it up a few notches. It has a dual brush with one side for primer and one for the mascara. The primer goes on white and makes it easy to see where you’ve applied and where you need to go with mascara. It’s great for length and volume but does smear a bit after a few hours.

The Bad:

Maybelline Colossal Spider Effect. The brush is terrible, it’s bristles are short and it’s hard to apply and what you do apply ends up clumping. I didn’t notice any spider-like length to my lashes.

Les Watier. I’m not sure where I should start with this one. I was optimistic because the brush is great, but I can’t say the same thing about the product. It’s extremely hard to saturate the brush and once you do (or think you do) it doesn’t add much to your lashes. I honestly felt like I didn’t get any product out of the tube. I thought maybe I got a defective tube but asked a friend who also bought one and she had the same experience.

So there you have it. The good, the bad and the few I’ll buy again!

A few months back I was looking at old pictures and noticed how long and full my eyelashes looked. I started thinking maybe over the years they’d broken off or thinned out. It got me thinking about the beauty products I used to use. The ones I grew faithful to in high school and college but drifted as the years went on. I remembered my old favorite mascara was L’Oreal Voluminous, so I picked up a tube to try again. It brought my eyelashes right back to their youthful state and I am once again hooked. The icing on the cake was when I noticed a makeup artist at work using it on celebrity guests on the show.

Now I’m thinking I need to re-visit some other oldies. Do you have a favorite tried and true beauty product? I’d love to hear!

It might be because I have light eyelashes, but mascara is hands down my favorite beauty product. Even on days when I’m going for a clean look I love to finish it off with a couple swipes of mascara. I love trying new products but there’s nothing more disappointing than being stuck with a brand new tube of mascara that you hate. My mascara prerequisites? Lengthen, define and add volume… all in one, of course. It may seem impossible but I’ve broken down my top three that fit the bill.

Let me know your fav!