This was a major project of going through the stacks of drawers and fishing out my favorite drugstore products. But then I knew them well and use them often so I am guessing I did not miss out on any. A LOT of you wrote in asking to list out my favorite products and a LOT of you requested for a list of the best drugstore products. While I haven't tried everything, I have tried plenty and this is a list of my most favorite products from the drugstore. Two major brands that I haven't tried much of as far as makeup goes are, Neutrogena and Covergirl. I have tried a lot of Neutrogena skincare products but the only thing I've tried from CG are their Wetslicks lip gloss which I don't like. If you guys have any good recommendations from these brands please list in the comments.

For the benefit of all of us, go ahead and list out all your favorite drugstore goodies in the comments. Recession or not, we love good deals and if I can pay $10, why pay $30 !
LIP PRODUCTS
Lipstick :

Burts Bees Lip Shimmer - Watermelon
New York Color (N.Y.C) lipsticks
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Color Comfort Lip Color
NYX Lipsticks
Max Factor Lipstick
Loreal Color Riche Lipstick
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick
Maybelline Moisture Extreme Lipcolor

Lip Gloss :

Loreal HIP COlor Presso Lip Gloss
Sally Hansen Gentle Plumping Lip Treatment Lip Gloss
Sally Hansen Lipnotic Gem Lip Gloss
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Lip Gloss
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Ultra Soothing Lip Tint
Almay Ideal Gloss - Rose Shimmer
Rimmel Lasting Finish Kiss & Stay Lip Gloss
NYX Lip Gloss
Jane Lip Gloss
Loreal Color Riche Lip Gloss

Lip Liner :

Milani Easyliner Lipliner - Most Natural
EYE PRODUCTS

Eyeliner :

Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Forever Stay Eye Pencil
N.Y.C Eye Liner Duos
Milani Eyeliner Pencils
Prestige Eyeliner Pencils
Prestige Liquid Eyeliner

Eyeshadow :

NYX Eyeshadow Singles
NYX Eyeshadow Trios
Loreal HIP Eye Shadows
Milani Runway Eyes Shadows (use wet)
Prestige Eyshadows & Duos
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Eye Shadow Palettes


Mascara :

Max Factor 2000 Calorie Extreme Mascara
Milani Great Lengths Mascara
Maybelline Lash Stiletto
Loreal Double Extend Mascara


False Lashes :

NYX Fabulous Lashes
Revlon Fantasy Length Lashes (love # 91128)

FACE PRODUCTS
Foundation :

Maybeliine Age Rewind Cream Foundation
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Airbrush Spray On Makeup
Maybelline Mineral Power Natural Perfecting Powder Foundation


Bronzer :

Physicians Formula Organic Wear Natural Origin Bronzing Veil (Light Skin)
ELF Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder - Sun Kissed

Blush :

Almay Powder Blush ( Spice)
Milani Minerals Blush ( Mai Tai & Luminous)
N.Y.C Cheek Glow Powder Blush (West Side Wine)
N.Y.C Color Wheel Mosaic Face Powder (Pink Berry)
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Natural Highlighter
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Natural Powder Blush
NYX Blush
Milani Sunset Duos

I have already reviewed most of these products. All the drugstore products that I have reviewed can be found under the label " Drugstore Darlings " . I have extensive labeling on the blog to aid the readers. So, if you are ever looking for a certain product, you can try the search bar or the labels to find it faster !

Hope you guys found this useful. Do tell me about your favorite drugstore darling products so I can have a lookie at them the next time I hit CVS.

Love,
Indian Girl

This Fall ZOYA will come out with three perfect limited edition , exclusive Mattevelvet collection !

Designed to appeal to a multitude of matte color trend lovers; including every metro mod, vintage stylista, retro pin-up, goth beauty, glam rocker, street chic fashionista and color junkie out there, Mattevelvet shades deliver the new color of fashion. Get all of the color, none of shine with Mattevelve, Zoya’s exclusive blend of matte base and subtle shimmer resulting in utterly wearable and truly stylish nail polish. The three shades include :

Loredana (ZP498) - gunmetal gray matte shimmer
Dovima (ZP499) - black matte shimmer
Posh (ZP500) - wine matte shimmer

The Mattevelve by Zoya collection will be available July 1, 2009 and will retail at $6.00 per 0.5 oz bottle.

Love,
Indian Girl

Spotted Bollywood actress Prachi Desai with a heavily contoured nose at a party. I personally don't like how it looks. Heavy highlighting is okay for stage makeup because sharp angles look great on stage ! But for everyday / party makeup it should be subtle or even better left alone. I don't blame the girl entirely. I suppose a makeup artist once did it on her and she picked it up. Also, a lot of people are insecure about their nose. Plus its the movie industry, people there have weird insecurities and high demands to looks perfect!


But all that apart, I think its a great idea to highlight some other feature than trying to sculpt you face into something else with makeup. The girl has beautiful eyes and eye brows. Keeping all the focus on her eyes and downplaying the rest of her face is a great idea ! But if you really wanna contour, use a matte powder in a color that is just about one or two shades darker than your natural skin tone. After applying to the sides of your nose remember to blend it, so it looks natural and not like two stripes on either sides of the nose. After darkening the outer sides, it is a good idea to highlight the bridge of the nose. I suggest using a gold highlighter / bronzer for this rather than a champagne color or anything light, especially for medium - dark skin tones. The light color on the bridge of the nose will accentuate the difference in colors and end up looking fake and too made up.

Contouring is great and can add a lot of dimension to one's face only if its done right.

Love,
Indian Girl
Pic Source

I know nothing abotu the LA Lakers except that a whole bunch of celebrities are often seen at their games. Jack Nicholson and Leonardo DiCaprio try and make it to as many Lakers games as possible. What I do love about them is their yellow , purple colors ! Makes for an awesome eyeshadow combo :p

But why am I writing about the Lakers ? Because I just found out that Stila is the proud sponsor of the beauty wardrobe for the Los Angeles Laker Girls! That's right... the lovely Laker ladies wear Stila!!!! I cant wait to find out which products exactly were used for which looks ! And if you're wondering why Stila's name is appearing with the people in those heart images...its coz Stila also sponsored the KISS ME CAM event at the game ! Check out the couples caught by the camera ! SO Cute !



Love,
Indian Girl

This post was contributed by dear reader Shivali. She talks about her experience with ELF Cosmetics. Big thanks to Shivali for sharing all the info and pictures with us !

If you wanna write in about any products you recently bought or have loved forever, do send them in. I would love to publish them as reader contributions !

Here she goes ....


I really recommend the liquid eyeliner waterproof pen from e.l.f. I have used Prestige for a long time. As much as i love it..I think I found something better. Prestige ends up on my top of my eyelid. I have tried primers and lighter strokes but nope, it doesn't work for me. So I finally gave up on liquid eyeliners...till e.l.f came along. It doesn't smear that easy and I actually put it on in car this morning while going 75mph ( not recommended, LOL). It is very easy, convenient and functional for me. I am usually always running late so I just grab whatever and do my makeup in the car. This is great.

I don't think the camera did justice to liner. It really brought out the brown in my eyes. Combined with a heavy mascara. I just did this look for you really quick. With the brown liner on top and bottom combined with some hot pink/reddish eye shadow.

Their lip plumper/primer duo pen is great. I usually have a problem with lip stuff. My lips end up having stuff in the crease and I hate that. But this plumper has like a Cinnamon fire to it. The primer works great and bring out whatever lip color i want to put on. They also have this lip gloss tin. It tastes like chocolate. i love ittttttt! Its thick enough,smells great, feels great. Really good for a light day..!! I also ordered fake lashes which I am still struggling to put on. Their lip glides work well for me because I prefer the transparency...and a little bit of shine.

Over all, I was happy. I got me a black eyeshadow finally, because every time I go to Clinique they are out of the black eyeshadow!!! I got the liner pen in black and brown. I am hooked to the brown cuz it really suits the black hair, brown eyes, the whole Indian skin tone...its great! I also got a conventional liner in plum color. Haven't tried yet, but will let you know:). And yeah I read your recommendation the Sunkissed blush, I got that too :) I haven't worn it yet but I will surely let you know and yeah you know how much all of this cost me?

5 eyelashes
2 liner pens
1sunkissed bronzer
2 lip glides
1 lip plumper/primer
1 chocolate gloss tin
1 black eyeshadow
1 plum eyeliner

total= $14.95 and inclusive of shipping!

I usually don't go for cheap products but this was a good experience :)
And yeah I tried their clear mascara that I bought from a store...IT SUCKED. I will stick to Clinique for that :)

Love,
Indian Girl

If you were wondering what that goregeous lipstick was , that Angelina had on at Cannes this year, then this makeup breakdown is for you :)

To define Angelina’s lashes, Celebrity Makeup Artist Mary Burton used two different mascaras, Lancôme Hypnôse in Black and Lancôme Ôscillation in Black and applied a few coats of both to add volume and length. Mary used Lancôme Color Design Lipstick in Candy Apple to create her voluptuous red pout.

(Click on pictures for a bigger size)

I sent my mom pics from my recent Big bend trip and after saying the mountains were pretty she went to my hair. I am apparently her favorite daughter now, because I am a good girl who doesn't cut her hair off. She loves it when I keep it really really long, just the way it is now. I love it long too...but I wanna have it styled in some way. Right now it could be a bunch of black/brown threads hanging. All I've been doing is tying it up in a bun. Like this. Not even remotely glamorous.

So, I need your help. A lot of you out there are hair gurus. Help me with my hair please. Show me a hairstyle I could be proud of and never want to tie it up in a bun. I wanna keep the length but am willing to play around with any other thing. Bangs - yes, no problem. Layers- sure, I'd love a few. Straight is okay, wavy is fine too. I am not very fussy , I just want it to have some decent shape.

I have been collecting inspirational hair pics. If you have any pictures or ideas for me, please tell me about it. You can even email me : makeupgirl007@gmail.com

Help me out, please.
Love the long layers...

Love the bangs !
Love Hilary's waves


Love Reese...
Great hair, Sonali !

Love,
Indian Girl

Sonali Pic Source

Makeup Artist Nicoletta Skarlatos was responsible for Lara Dutta's sexy looks in the upcoming Hindi movie Blue. She was kind enough to share the makeup products used on Lara Dutta and a few pictures with us at AIMB ! I am super excited to share it with y'all ! Its not everyday that I get an exclusive lookie into the products used on a Bollywood star !


Lara Dutta's Makeup Breakdown :

Julie Hewett Shimmy in Cleo all over face and on body,
Julie Hewett Shimmy in Cleo, Pinkie, Goldie on eye lids, also Julie Hewett Soiree palette for definition and liner.
I used JHLA mascara, and hints of Goldie and Cleo in the corners of Lara’s eyes.
I used Julie Hewett Bette as her cheek shine and
Julie Hewett Nude Noir lip pencil and lipstick, with a touch of Goldie/Cleo mix in the very middle of her lip.

Cleo is a sultry bronze shade that is just the right product to create a bronzy tanned skin look. It can be used on eyes as an all over color or just on the inner corner of the eye for a super sexy brightening effect. Goldie is shimmery mix of beige and gold shine. It works well on the eyes as a highlighter and on the cheeks as well. Bette is a cheekie that looks great on medium - dark skin tones like Lara herself. Like I mentioned in an earlier post Bette is a complex mix of gold, bronze, pink, peach . Overall a very flattering shade on both lips and cheeks !



Nude Noir Lip Pencil is the best nude lip pencil ever. It is creamy, a great color for medium / dark skin tones. I am usually not a lip liner person but I often use Nude Noir over lipbalm, all over lips for a sexy natural looking pout.



I tried out the look with some of the products I had.


Products Used and Description :

1. Apply primer all over the lid
I used Urban Decay Primer in Sin

2. Apply a dirty bronze gold shade all over the lid.
I used NYX - Golden

3. Apply Cleo on the inner corner and blend a bit with Golden

4. Apply a brown shade along the crease to add some definition
I used the dark brown from NYX Copacabana trio

5. Add a brown eyeliner along the upper lashline, lower lashline and water line.
I used Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Bourbon

6. Apply mascara, add false lashes if needed.
I used Max Factor 2000 Calorie Extreme Mascara and Revlon Fantasy Length Lash Strip on the outer corner.

7. Apply a highlighter under the brow bone.
I use Julie Hewett Shimmy in Goldie.



Thats it !

Love,
Indian Girl

These are the products I took on my trip . I'd like to think that I am very good at packing for trips. I think it through and carry as less as possible. Another reason to love multifunctional products. I knew I'd be camping and hiking which doesn't require me to look the least bit glamorous. All I'd need would be sunscreens and face mists to keep me cool. Everybody there had face mists. You'd see the girls whip it outta their bags and their friends taking their glasses off so the girl could spray it all over their faces. Cute !

Technically I did not need the lipstick but I was SO loving the orange poppy color on my lightly tanned skin that I kept using it. I took the foundation and eyeliner for just in case purpose but no case came up where I had to use it. The Biore Skin Preservation line was my pick because the packaging is awesome. The pumps can be closed easily and no product leaks out. The Aquafina Gel is awesome at taking all the dirt off without drying much - heavy duty stuff.

You know my love for the new Clinique Sunscreens. They continued to work their charm. The Coppertone Ultraguard SPF 50 is a great pick for these trips where its okay to look a little bit oily. I used this on my legs and hands. They sink in very well and does not leave a white film. This is important coz you will be clicking pictures nonstop.They are a bit oily sometimes but that's okay. The best part is that it holds up very well with all the sweat. The Clinique face Cream is a tad bit, not so great here. It sometimes runs off with the sweat. But I like that the Clinique one doesn't have any scent to it. They ask you not to carry any products with strong fragrance as it might attract the animals !

I carried all the products in one of those plastic zipped bags in which you get bed linens. They are a good size, strong and have a zip ! Save those form the next time you buy linens.

Bath & Beauty Products :
Aquafina Shower Gel
Biore Skin Preservation Face Wash Gel
Coppertone Ultraguard SPF 50 Sunscreen
Clinique SPF 30 Body Creme
Clinique SPF 30 Face Creme
Aquafina Face Mist
Biore Skin Preservation Hard Day's Overnight Face Moisturizer
Boscia Jujube Rejuvenist Whipped Body Creme
Alterna Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner sachets
Olivella Hand Wash sachets
Biore Facial Wipes
Hair ties and hair bands
Hair brush
Hand Sanitizers ( Purell/ Germ X)

Makeup Products:
Estee Lauder Pure Color Gloss stick in Orange Poppy
Prescriptives Exhilarating Lip Color - Papaya
Snog Lip balm
Milani Eyebrow Pencil
Susan Posnick Mineral Foundation
Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Zero

Dont forgte the insect repellents. Carry an umbrella. You'll probably get the same funny reaction from your fellow hikers but unlike them you wont feel the heat as much ! You need not over do it like I did. I wore a wide brimmed hat and carried an umbrella :p

Love,
Indian Girl
PS: I would have put up pics but I put all the products back in their places yesterday :(

Sorry I've been MIA for the past three days. If you follow me on twitter you'll know I was at The Big Bend National Park for the weekend. I wanna share my whole experience with you guys and give you a little glimpse into my vacation and hopefully get you excited about Big Bend NP !This post is not related to beauty in any way. I will have a post up soon on all the beauty / makeup products I took on this trip :)

I missed you guys. I really did. Every time I saw something great I kept making mental notes of telling you all about it. The Big Bend is something everyone has to experience to believe. The vast stretches of mammoth mountains, dry desserts, wild cacti tell the story of how small man is. No amount of technology or human intelligence can take over nature. Like I said you have to see it to believe it.

We started out on Friday night on our 10 hour journey to the Big bend. I did not know what to expect. The photos and all the material I read online did no justice to the beauty and strength of what I was about to experience. A little after a town called Ft. Stockton you'll catch the first sight of the mountains. I was SO excited I could not stop saying wow and stopped the car several times trying to take pictures. It totally skipped my mind that I was gonna go sit on those mountains in a few hours ! After several hundred of those wows and OMG's we finally reached the park.

Never ending empty roads
Roads inside Big Bend National Park

After a quick info gathering session with the rangers we set off to the camp grounds to pick a spot and a quick wash. After the wash we slathered ourselves in sunscreen and drove down to Boquillas Canyon. A small trek leads to some more mountain and Rio Grande river (now muddy) views. It is amazing to know that just behind these mountains is Mexico ! It is a heavily monitored area with Border Patrol everywhere. Apparently the Big bend NP also used to be a drug route (I love mafia /drug lord stories ). After Boquillas we made our way to the Hot Springs. The road to this place was narrow and muddy and a little scary. Once you reach the parking spot you walk around a few historic buildings and make your way to the hot springs. It was hot and the hot springs are at a temperature 105 F so no way I was gonna soak in it.

Lots more views and lots more ooh's and aah's later we drove back to our camp site and set up the tent. By then few more people had come to the site and had their tents up. We bought a lot of camping food so we could cook em over the coal and I got working on it. I love camping. I love camp food. I love eating out in the wild. I love I love I love. So we ate lots of kebabs ( well we did what best we could) canned chili, potatoes. Yumm fest - just plain food with salt cooked over fire. I could eat like that everyday. After learning that this 800,000 acres of land was home to several bears and mountain lions I'd been having nightmares of being attacked. But trust me its safe. The camping grounds are maintained very well and though not as many people visit Big Bend, the few you see there, will make you feel better. The days are long and hot with sun setting at around 8:30. The nights are so very pleasant and cool.

So after food we got to out tents and decided to do a early morning (5 AM) trek along Lost Mine trail or The Window trail. That was the plan of course. But our tents were so cozy and the weather so good that we woke up only at about 8:30 AM. So much for early morning. By then everybody had left. Only about two other tents were still up. Hilarious. After a quick wash and a bread & cheese breakfast we drove down to Chisos Basin Lodge , had some coffee and set out to climb along the Lost Mine Trail. Young and old get on this trail. Some do the one mile hike, some go all the way. We went all the way along the 5 mile hike (1100 ft) . It took us about 3 1/2 hours up and down. The trail is of moderate difficulty but is pretty steep. My glutes were killing me towards the end but making small stops in between helps recuperate. Don't forget to take lots of water and gatorade to avoid dehydration. The sun is brutal so don't forget sunscreen and face mist. I also took an umbrella and almost every climber would stop and make a cute comment asking me if it was raining. Some others who found the sun too strong thought it was a great idea. I personally would have died without my umbrella. With it I felt like I was walking in the shade through out the trek . Of course its narrow so I had to keep closing it when people had to walk by but that's no biggie at all.

The temperature gets remarkably cooler as you make your way up the mountain. You will hear the winds howling through the mountain ranges. AMAZING , I tell ya . We made several stops just to stand and take the view in. Every angle makes for something beautiful. Its a photographers paradise. From the lost mine trail you have a great view of Casa Grande Mountain (7325 ft) , several other peaks of the Chisos Mountain range and many canyons. Once on top of the trail you get an exhilarating feeling looking at all the enchanting beauty that surrounds you. By now you'd have seen so much that you are out of words to describe them. You just stand still and look at it. Take in as much as you can. Tell you brain to click a mental picture of it and make it your default screensaver. There were a bunch of brats on top who kept yelling and spoiling the silence. But to each his own. I was happy I completed the trail and got to see all this.

We got down pretty fast but its so steep I needed all the concentration in the world to avoid slipping on the rocks. Plus there was a fear of running into a bear. Unfortunately I dint see any :(
After the trail, we did another round of slathering sunscreen all over and left for the most beautiful Santa Elena Canyon. You drive along the Ross Maxwell scenic drive ( 30 miles) to reach it. Along the drive you get a great view of the Chihuahuan Desert. Santa Elena is majestic. Its beyond beautiful. Except I had a severe headache and could not concentrate much on what I was seeing. But if you do go to Big Bend make it a point to see this. The long drive is SO worth it.

After seeing Santa Elena Canyon, we made our way back to visitors center, took a quick shower at the Rio Grande Village Complex and started on our way back to the city. It was sad leaving all this behind. The raw, undisturbed, nature here is like nothing I have experienced before. I feel terrible that in my early 20's I thought I wasn't a nature person. I take it back - I AM A NATURE PERSON.

On our way back, we had to keep to a speed of 40miles/hr because the roads were full of deers and rabbits. You never know when one of them would want to cross the road and land right in front of your car ! So to avoid any accidents we moved slowly and saw several several deers and rabbits. And yes, at Fort Stockton you'll see a heavily advertised IHOP that says its open 24 hours but closes at 12 midnight on weekends. We ate there on our way to Big Bend and thought of stopping there for dinner on our return trip. But then at 1 AM on that hungry night, we got to to know that the 24 hour claim was wrong. So, instead we went to a small Mexican joint. Bad food, but food nonetheless. Got back on the road and got back home.

Reflecting back on the trip I think I'd say I've seen a life time's worth of :

Mountains
Desert
Cacti
Roadrunner birds
Roads
Texas Ranches
Oil wells
Deers
Rabbits

The ranches are huge. There are SO MANY of them ! Makes me wanna buy one too. Buy a huge piece of land, call it "Moneymaker Ranch" and hope to find oil and rare minerals in it. Then I'll become a oil millionaire and life will be settled. I will not have to think twice about buying another Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge or for that matter anything. I will sit in my ranch surrounded by natural beauty, have loads of horses and blog all day long....

Few more pictures from the trip for y'all !
Roadrunner bird : It can fly very well, but chooses to walk /run most of the time !
Notice how small the houses and the trailers are in front of these gigantic mountains

Wind Farms

Love,
Indian Girl