The all round best of 2019

After 3 weeks I'm back blogging. It's a weird feeling but one that I definitely missed. I love writing
and sharing things I love with everyone so it's nice to be back. One of the first posts I do every new
year is my favourites or best of for 2019. I usually just focus on beauty since that has always been my
main love and passion. This year I've discovered new loves and wanted to share them all with you,
rather than just the beauty. Planning this blog post, was a lot harder than I recall. Trying to remember
every items you've loved throughout the year that aren't the same as the year before.

My biggest love this year has been reading. Although I didn't start until March I made it a goal of
mine to read 26 books by the end of the year. I managed to complete that, in fact I actually doubled it
and read a total of 52 books. That was my ideal goal but I didn't want to set it at that and feel
disheartened if I didn't reach it! I will be doing a thorough post at the end of the week, with stats,
insights and what I have read. However since this is technically a favourites post I wanted to share an
insight into my top 3 books of the year! They are; The Paper and Hearts Society by Lucy Powrie, 
Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott, Mikki Daughter and Tobias Iaconis and Doing it! by 
Hannah Witton. Each book is very different, but by far my favourites of the year.

This year my skincare obsession has grown but also became a lot simpler. Instead of piling loads of
products on my face, wondering why they aren't working, I stripped it back to the bare minimum
and started noticing a difference. my favourite skincare product of the year has 100% been the
Dermalogica skin smoothing moisturiser*. This was the year I actually discovered Dermalogica
products, and the year that they completely took over my life. I love this because it is so smooth and
silky yet it is super hydrating on the skin and leaves my face feeling amazing. I also love their nightly 
lip treatment*, as it not only targets the dry areas on your lips but also any fine lines and wrinkles
around the lip area whilst restoring volume in the lips. For a more in-depth review of Dermalogica
products, check out my post here and check out my new skin care routine here.

Another product I love to use on my lips but can be used all over the body is the Dr Paw Paw multi 
purpose balm. I originally picked this on a whim in TK-MAXX and wasn't expecting much, but boy
was I wrong. This is amazing on the lips and has helped me to avoid getting dry and sore lips in the
colder months. I also love using this on any extra dry patches on my body such as cuticles and
elbows. Since then I've purchased multiple tubes and have them ready as a back up.

When it comes to makeup this year, my love has remained but its dwindled down in comparison to
previous years. I used to buy hundreds and thousands of pounds worth of makeup every year and now
I've come to realise that there's no point. Yes I still love makeup and it will always be one of my
favourite passions but if it's not a product that I'm 100% set on or interested in them I'm not going to
by it just for the sake of it. Saying this there are a few makeup related products that I've loved this
year and have become staples in my life. Such as the Dermalogica skin perfect primer*. This primer
is perfect for me as it adds a slight amount of tint to the skin whilst working as an SPF and filling in
the pores, which is something I am always in need off.

Another primer that I've loved and is extremely popular is the ELF poreless putty primer. I think this
got all of its hype from Jeffree Star as he did a video dedicated to this product, and since then it was
impossible to purchase, and I can see why. I went into this hoping I'd find a new favourite, but wasn't
sure as primers are either a hit or miss for me, but oh my gosh ... I'm glad I waited and managed to
pick this up. It fills in your pores to the point where your entire skin looks airbrushed and flawless. I
did a blog post dedicated to this primer with a more in depth review, which you can check out here.

On one of my many searches for the ELF primer and unsuccessful atttempts at finding it, I picked up
the ELF dewy coconut setting mist. This keeps my makeup looking fresh all day long and it doesn't
budge at all. It adds a slight dewy finish, but doesn't make my face look oily. If there was one thing I
could change it would be to remove the coconut smell as I'm not the biggest fan, but it's still my
favourite setting spray. I've also been using this for the past 9 or more months and theres still more
left in the bottle! Talk about getting your moneys worth.

How could I do a yearly favourites post and talk about makeup with mentioning highlighter. I
couldn't. Once I've found a highlighter that I like and love then I stick to it, even though I keep
buying more. One that I bought at the beginning of the year, I believe, was the P.S (Primark) 
beauty brunch club highlighter. This is one of the most blinding highlighters I've ever found, that
also happens to be under £5. Any time I do my makeup I try using a different highlighter to switch
things up a bit, but always end up adding this on over the top.

Last but certainly not least for my favourites of 2019 that I want to share with you all is the
Shaaanxo x BH Cosmetics remix palette. This came out in the summer of 2018, however it's been
the main palette that I've picked up and reached for throughout last year. I love how this palette has
18 unique and wearable shades but it still has those pops of colour, such as the hot pink for a more
intense and bold look to spice things up. For a more in depth review on this palette, check it out here.

There have been a lot more favourites throughout 2019, such as getting engaged and getting our
puppy, however these are some of the main ones that I wanted to share with you all!

Here's to 2020.

xoxo
Lea-Mai

Some of these products were gifted (have been marked with an asterix) to me however this post is not in collaboration with them and opinions are my own.